homemade play doh {for long days in}

Excuse the pajamas. My boys wear regular clothes too, sometimes.
But the past few days have been pj's only. We've been cooped up with on again off again fevers since Monday and the boys have been sluggish and lethargic as a result. {This is the point in winter when I am desperate for spring.}

One of my favorite things to do with the boys when we're cooped up is to make something together. It wards off the crankiness to get them excited about creating something. William and I tried this recipe for play doh for the first time a few months ago and we were so excited when it worked. Henry hadn't tried it yet, so we decided to make a batch yesterday morning.

It is so easy. Three batches, some assorted cookie cutters, a rolling pin and a few plastic forks and knives later and the boys were happy as clams. They busily created, invented, chopped, diced and sliced through their colored {and scented} dough. They were happy and it staved off their feeling cranky at being confined inside for a stretch longer.

 To make your own mix together the ingredients in any order. We added them in a different order each time and it worked every time. To add color, you can use 1 packet of kool-aid or food coloring. We made three kinds -- Henry chose pink lemonade and added red, William's was blue raspberry and the last one we made together with green food coloring and a few drops of peppermint extract. Stir everything together. Heat over medium heat, stirring constantly. After a short time the dough will start to pull away from the edges and clump together. Once it's mostly one big clump, take it off the heat, turn it onto a surface and knead. The lumps smooth out and it's warm and soft and ready to use.

It's really super easy. I worried that I'd somehow mess it up, but several batches later, I promise you that it will work and works every time!  We store ours in small tupperware containers. It lasts for a few weeks.

 I know I need to choose to be grateful on these long cold winter days spent inside with sick children. Fussy times and crabby days {for them and for me} happen but there's something about quality time spent making something together that chases away crankiness and brings a smile to their faces and to mine too.

love each other

I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. 
Yes, your joy will overflow! This is my commandment:  

Love each other 

in the same way I have loved you.  
There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

^{{John 15: 11-13}}

For valentine's day this year we shared loved with each other. We swapped our traditional breakfast of pancakes for a pan of Patrick's cinnamon rolls {also known as cinnavances around here} covered in a heap of extra icing for good measure. On the table we left little packages for the boys, the Incredible Hulk superhero William has been pining for and a set of blank canvases for my sweet budding artist Henry. The boys brought their signed cards to school to give their classmates and I attended a "love tea" at William's preschool for the children and their moms. In the evening, we pored over their boxes of Valentine cards and candy from their friends at school, and Patrick made me a homemade pot of creamy tomato soup for dinner. It tasted just like my favorite bowl at Biaggi's. It was a delicious way to end a sweet day.

I think the command "love each other" is something that children intrinsically just get. They have such a great need to receive love and such a desire to share their love with others. This year I saw such an eagerness in my boys to share love during Valentine's Day. They shared in ways that they were able, creating cards for great grandparents, cutting and tying and hot gluing and signing Valentines for classmates, surprising Patrick and I with little hearts and handwritten I love you's. My hope is that we can continue to find little ways (and big ones) to love each other, inspired by the love we're reminded we shared during this sweet month.

re-arrange {aka my crazy gene}

My favorite thing to do to beat cold winter day doldrums is rearranging furniture, hands-down. I love the way it gives a room an immediate {and free} but very gratifying change.

Two other bonus reasons:
1. I purge more stuff -- garbage, broken toys and McDonald's junk that we've held on to for too long. Love the feeling of filling bags for garbage and Goodwill.
2. The boys find things. Long lost things. Play things. Things that keep them happily and busily playing for the hours it takes to put the room together again. {thank goodness}

I blame this on the crazy gene I inherited from my mom. She too, loves to rearrange furniture. Nurture or nature, I learned to love it growing up.

On Monday, we had a long afternoon of winter doldrums on our hands. Henry had stayed home from school, it ended up being a false alarm and as he was having the time of his life, I teased him referring to him as Ferris Bueller. {I like false alarms, we tend to err on the side of caution with sickness and I liked having him home and having him not sick.} I got a wild hair to bring the former coffee table upstairs to the toy room to use as a drawing/play/cafeteria-for-restaurant table. One thing led to another and I became the mouse from "If you give a mouse a cookie". In fact, the entire thing started because I wanted to make Valentine's with the boys and thought it would be nice to have a change of scenery, thus the upstairs table. 

As I well know from having lived with this crazy gene for my entire life, things always look worse (a lot worse) before they get better. The middle of the room was a pile of toys. It stayed that way while we vacuumed base boards, lined shelves and stuck contact paper to our little table (and a patch of the wall courtesy of Henry) -- see it gets very "if you give a mouse a cookie". But in the end it was worth it. It feels fresh and cheerful. I like seeing the space right when I walk up the stairs. The two little wooden rocking chairs are from our sweet neighbor Darrel. He made them for his grandchildren who are now adults and he thought the boys would like to have them. He was right, they're just perfect at the little table.

Valentine's Day {a few of my favorites}

Valentine's day is coming {Thursday}! I've seen lots of cute decor, treats and homespun Valentines buzzing around pinterest and instagram. Tonight, feeling quite behind, I finally stretched a heart garland across the mantle and hung a beaded heart wreath {thanks, Holly!}. There's more to be done, like decking out a shoebox for Henry to fill at his school party, making Valentine cards with the boys to pass out to classmates and thinking up something sweet to do for my little Valentines. I've always liked Valentines Day, except for maybe in junior high when it meant the sale of the carnations. Oh the dreaded colored carnation sale. Where every color meant a different message, like the much hoped for pink "I like you" or the purple "secret admirer". I remember decorating my own shoe boxes in elementary school and shyly smiling as that box filled. I pored over the cards and messages and little packages of candy at home, saving every one. It was an entire shoebox of happy mail. I love it as a mom even more, watching the joy spread across my boy's little faces as they see the love poured out for them in the form of tiny cards and store bought messages and powdered sugar hearts on pancakes.

Here are a few of my favorite Valentine things this year:

 {For kids to give}

Source: armommy.com via Christina on Pinterest

Source: zakkalife.blogspot.com via Christina on Pinterest

Source: dandee-designs.com via Christina on Pinterest

William is making these for his classmates. Ten out of 13 children in his class are boys. So most of them will probably be happy to receive a bug!

Source: dandee-designs.com via Christina on Pinterest
Henry made these last year. They were super easy and turned out so cute!

Source: armommy.com via Christina on Pinterest

 Henry is making these this year. He likes the idea of giving candy and "hey smartie" made him smile.

{For me to make}

Source: laurenslatest.com via Christina on Pinterest
I absolutely love the idea of stamped sugar cookies. The possibilities are really endless for any occasion! I think I need some mini alphabet stamps...

Source: etsy.com via Christina on Pinterest

Source: ontobaby.com via Christina on Pinterest
I love these little glittered flags. Maybe a cute addition to our Valentine's morning breakfast.

Source: lisastorms.typepad.com via Christina on Pinterest

Source: eighteen25.blogspot.com via Christina on Pinterest
These would be cute to give to teachers and friends.

Source: domesticfashionista.com via Christina on Pinterest
I like the cute Valentine bunting but really I love love love this piece of furniture and the styling! I think I need to get my white paint ready and start scouring craigslist.  

Source: domesticfashionista.com via Christina on Pinterest

 {To make with the kids}

Source: megduerksen.typepad.com via Christina on Pinterest

Source: igottacreate.blogspot.com via Christina on Pinterest

{Gifts I'd like to receive}

Source: etsy.com via Christina on Pinterest
Gold, gold, gold. And dainty. And pretty. 

Source: ontobaby.com via Christina on Pinterest
I really adore this cake stand. The detail is so beautiful!

Source: adorama.com via Christina on Pinterest
This 50mm camera lens. Sara calls this one the "nifty 50". It's beautiful with close-ups, details and background blur. 

Source: etsy.com via Christina on Pinterest
Or really any Katie Daisy print. I love the colors and message. I would love to have this hanging in our home.

Source: shop.nordstrom.com via Christina on Pinterest
These boots are very practical. My big clunky wool lined winter boots are starting to feel too warm on some sunny days. But with muddy spring coming, Howard still needs his walks and it's messy out there!

 

Source: amazon.com via Christina on Pinterest
A cute set of alphabet stamps.

Now I need your help. Do you buy for the grown men in your life? What thoughtful things do you do to make Valentine's Day special after 5 and 10 plus years of marriage? {Patrick didn't like my idea of a puffy painted t-shirt. ha ha!}

William is 5! {Five!}

In October we celebrated William's birthday with a backyard camp-out and some of his favorite friends. The two things that were really important to him this year were celebrating with friends at our house and somehow incorporating this tent. We spent and celebrated his actual birthday in Florida. On the morning of his fifth birthday he woke up to warm sunshine and salty breezes.

I give all of the credit for this party, the fishing game, the faux fire and the star garlands to Erica. She threw a {much more darling} camping birthday party for Ben when he turned four. We chatted about the details on the balcony in Destin over our morning coffee and I threw this party for William the Friday after we returned.
I took shortcuts, like re-using buntings (the red and white checked and burlap were from William's 3rd birthday), and sending a mass text message to dear friends in lieu of a paper invitation.

The campfire should never probably be in the tent. Let's be honest, this is the closest to camping out that I've been in over a decade.

The best parts for William were diving and jumping into the giant leaf pile with his buddies, eating sugar cookies from our favorite bakery and having his friends over to our house to play for a few hours.

For me, the best was watching my sweet birthday boy. He helped me with every last detail of this little party, so happy and excited for it to happen.

{After the party, I emailed Erica about how it went. Here's a little excerpt: } 
William was so absolutely precious though -- he helped me with literally every aspect and was such a cheerful and happy helper. It was he and I setting up yesterday and he did everything with such a cheerful heart (God definitely uses his attitude to convict me of mine!) and he greeted his friends at the door and loved every minute playing with them and then he stood at the door and handed out favor bags and thanked them when they left. It made my heart swell to see him honored in that way. I was proud of him and happy for him. Sometimes I think he gets left in Henry's shadow and as much as I wanted our family to be a part of celebrating him, it was really nice for him to have the playdate while Henry was at school so it was all his own.

Happy Birthday, to our five year old boy. We love you so!