This might pinterest you: car edition

well, actually I couldn't find ANYTHING on facebook that I didn't already come up with on my own...
so here's what I've come up with:
*skittle sorting: have them shade in, count, add, answer all kinds of questions while they snack on treats and if they get everything right, give them a mini skittle pack wrapped in foil.
Why foil?
Then we can make foil staches... or animals or rings or whatever...
*Car scavenger hunt. Yah, I know you know it all, but there are different age groups in my car... I have one who can't read, one who just started and a smarty pants.... so I have to gauge it different.
so preschool: pictures of things that can be found on the road or billboards
just reading: name the pictures that you put on preschool
Smarty pants: name specific ads
EXAMPLE: cow, c-o-w, and chickfila
give a prize not to the first but to each one as they finish
*have an ABC jar... they have to find all 26 letters and when they do, give abc crackers wrapped in foil
* magnets: get a dollar store cookie sheet . they're small... have some cut up pipe cleaners or magnets that they can play with.
* Have a coloring theme party: best monster, best superhero, favorite animal etc
* make paperbag puppets
* time to learn: learn to tie shoes, read, biographies, learn aobut where you're going etc
*take the name of the place you're going ... ex. chicago, illinois. take the letters and seehow many words you can make out of it.
*pipe cleaner animals

hope this helps with car trips!!!

movin on up

Had a conversation with Ada the other day. Now if you've never had a conversation with a 4 year old, they can be um..... interesting... and when you have one with Ada, she'll rock your world with insight.
she  was telling me about moving overseas.
She told me she was excited, but when she got tired of it, she was moving back.
"how?", I asked.
"I'm going to bribe the customs people with candy"
Who do you think you'll live with?
 "I'm not living with anyone. I think I'll find a lost child who has no family or place to live and invite her to come to America with me and then we'll live together."

So my brilliant 4 year old...
What do I do with a conversation like this...
ok.

What the ...

After watching the Muppets new movie, our favorite line to yell out on a periodic basis is, "what the Wacca?" by fuzzy Bear from the Moopets.
I can't remember who we said this in front of that got truly offended, but it made me think about perspective yet again.
Setting the scene: Ella and her friend (bob) in the car while I eavesdrop on the conversation.
ella tells a story
Bob: What the heck?
Ella: Don't say that word.... it's inappropriate.
Bob: it's not inappropriate, it's like saying what the crap
after much discussion... Ella: that's inappropriate to say too
Bob: no. it's like saying, what the hell, what the butt, what the sh*t, what the world.... it's just, what the heck? it's what you say...
Ella: mom, tell him he can't say that
Me: (bob), you can't use potty words in my car, if you want to talk like that , it must belong in the potty. it's ok at your house maybe, but not in mine.
Bob: so if I'm in your bathroom I can say what the butt all the time... please don't tell my mom that I said what the butt, she'll be so mad.
There is so much more  to this conversation that made me laugh , but what stuck out afterward was that he considered butt to be a bigger concern than sh*t.... In his house, the priority was different.
How to then apply this to our lives right?
I heard a story today about a city in india that had a roundabout (we know those) with a tree in the middle. beggars lived there and even slept there. One day there were two kids who had made a rope swing on that tree and were enjoying their day, oblivious to the chaos of a busy roundabout and begging going on around them...
I am oblivious to the pain around me for the most part... yes, I'm going overseas so I CAN see beyond myself, but at the same time, I'm not overly burdened by seeing poverty..
Do I notice the beggar on the corner. Do I notice the cleaning lady n the hotel that is struggling to appreciate her day. Do I see a need in the waitress at my favorite chick fil a or McDonalds... Can I even see a need inside my church or in my neighborhood or .... well, you get the point... Much less do I yearn to see those in other countries whole (shalom whole).... change my perspective

This might pinterest you: food edition

I've been trying out some new recipes... some good, some not so good, so I thought I'd review in case you're hungry
This is my one from today... yah, it's great...http://piarecipes.blogspot.com/2012/08/cranberry-buttermilk-breakfast-cake.html

I've already eaten like 3/4 today.

yah, umm.. it's ok... it's ... uh... healthy... but if you gotta be healthy, it ain't half bad. hint: slice cucumber and put a damp paper towel in tupperware so it's always ready.

Buffalo chicken rolls... yah, it can't be 100 calories... and they're good, but only if you're desperately in the mood for buffalo chicken. Otherwise, get you some wings.
http://pinterest.com/pin/11681280254609238/

it was easy stroganoff... put ingredients into the crockpot except the cream cheese which you wait til 15 mintues before you serve so it can melt. EASY over egg noodles.

yah, this was AWESOME.. but I think I might be allergic to kiwi. frozen, I just kept itching my tongue... maybe it's the consistency or something... but SOOOO good.

Kids LOVED this for lunch... sliced apples and pb in a roll up.. mmm

warning... I can't cook a potato for my life, but this... WAS GREAT

I made this for my community group. Apple enchiladas. I didn't even look at the recipe. just made up my own. I sliced and cooked down apples... added cream cheese and 1 cup powdered sugar... I made enchiladas .. sprinkled cinamon and sugar on top and baked for 20 min on 325

so I'll try a few more and get back to you.. enjoy!
ali

feel the love

A friend told me the other day that she reads my blog, but she never comments... no one ever does... (you know who you are). but really it doesn't overly bother me.... frankly, I'm afraid of what would happen if people really did tell me what they think.
What I do'nt know is if I'm wasting my time.
I can only see whos' following me, I can't see who reads this or how many times or if they get it sent to their email (which doesn't register as even being at my website)... and I feel like I'm wasting my time... I mean, if I'm going to keep a journal, maybe I should just keep it to myself... so I express my thoughts with this awesome picture (ignore the explative)

New perspective

Set the scene:
Zoe and I are cutting out magazine pictures of words that start with the letter O.
I'm picking out pictures of octopus, oragami, oregon.
Zoe says, " oooo, I have a perfect picture, but I have to draw it"
5 minutes later, she's been working hard on this picture and finally finishes it. To me it looks like she drew some balloons and a girl hanging from 2 of them. I'm trying my hardest to think of O words that could go with it. Finally, I have to ask what it is a picture of.
"Owesome!"
And that's the way she thinks of everything. She is very abstract. She doesn't think of snake or slide. She thinks of silly and strong. Her drawings are exquisite.
I want to think this way...
it reminds me of a story of Jesus. The disciples are on the boat after Jesus died. They are in the middle of the lake. No one was supposed to be there. When they saw Jesus who had risen come out on the water, they were so afraid that they almost missed what blessing Jesus had in store...
Am I so distracted by the obvious that I miss the big picture.
I need to find perspective like Zoe... something abstract about JEsus... praise him from whom ALL blessings flow.

you pushed me over the edge

so, the other day I was visiting some old friends. What a sweet time right?
well, not 1, not 2, not 3, but 4 people told me congratulations for being pregnant. The first person I thought I could correct, and she said, "well you just had the baby then." I said yes (as I muttered under my breath that it was a year and a half ago).
After that, I no longer corrected anyone. I just said thank you with a smirk and dealt with the fact that I shouldn't cry in public like this.
I have the awesome friends who tell me not to worry about it because I only live once or eat what I want because soon I'll be walking everywhere... but the damage is done.
Monday I started eating healthier. Frankly, I have had a rough start. I love food. But I have increased the water, taken out the sweets except maybe a small individual chocolate each late afternoon. But I am hoping and praying. I have a plan.
So if you see me with a milkshake in hand, slap it out of my mouth and replace it with a cool glass of water.
otherwise, don't assume I'm pregnant, fools!