Tea Party

Today was just a day for my daughter and I.  I considering going out somewhere to do something.  But then I thought, why not relax today.  It feels like we are always going places, rushing from place to place to do things and get things done.  Sometimes my daughter just needs to be home together--and we both enjoy it.  So we kept it simple and played at home.

So, instead of going out...

we hosted a tea party.  A baby doll tea party.

Together we got out the easy bake oven (that my daughter has wanted to use for awhile), found a recipe and baked a mini cake.  We also made some graham cracker cookies with chocolate frosting (one of my favorite treats growing up).  We got out her little card table, spread a table cloth, and then set the table with my nice china dishes.  Instead of tea we filled the tea pot with milk and I sliced a few plums to balance out the sweets.

After the table was set, my daughter collected her baby dolls and we all gathered around the table for the tea party.

After we were done eating we played one UNO--a fun, family card game.  We both had so much fun today--talking, pretending, and laughing together!

{Tuesday's Tip} Climb Every Mountain

All summer I've been wanting to go on a local hike.  Yesterday, I finally did it!  It was just me my baby yesterday with no other appointments, so I packed us up and off we went.

I used a hiking backpack for the trip to carry my baby on my back.  The backpack I used has a shade canopy and a pouch to carry other essential items.  In the pouch I carried some water and snacks for both of us along with my camera and extra baby clothes in case the lake area was cold.

There are lots of different styles of hiking backpacks out there.  These backpacks are great for both the carrier and the baby because: 1) the carrier has the advantage of using his/her hips (and legs) to carry the bulk of the weight instead of it resting all on your back and shoulders, and 2) the baby gets to sit comfortably and either enjoy the view or take a nap.

We are blessed to live so close to beautiful mountains where I live.  I picked a hike up a local canyon that I had never done before and one that I thought would challenge me, but not take all day.  I chose to hike up to White Pine Lake.

Being in nature all by yourself gives you a lot of time to think.  To be honest, I kept asking myself on the way to the lake, "Are you sure you can make it all the way with a baby on your back?!"  But each time I just kept hiking and, eventually, we made it!

We didn't stay at the lake for very long.  Just long enough to rest, stretch our legs, and have lunch.  But it was still so much fun!

If you want to find out about hiking trails--easy or hard--you can purchase brochures and books online or at your local bookstore or town visitor's center.

You can also find several hikes available online.  Here are some websites I found helpful:

1. http://www.utah.com/hike/
This website is for all of Utah, although it does not include


2. http://www.fs.usda.gov/recmain/uwcnf/recreation
This website is for the Unita-Wasatch-Cache National Forest.  There is a list of other ranger districts in Utah on the right column of this page.


3. http://www.tourcachevalley.com/outdoor/hiking.php
This website is for Cache Valley only.  But you can go to your own city or county website and search for hiking trail information.

4. http://www.trails.com/
This website was very helpful.  However, my search was limited because I don't have a login.

5. http://www.localhikes.com/Default.asp
This website shows a list of hiking trails near U.S. metropolitan areas in every state.


6. http://logancanyonhiking.com/
This website is specific to hiking trails in Logan Canyon, UT.


It's such a great feeling to finish something you started and to achieve one of your goals.  Good luck finding a hiking trail near you.  Now is the perfect time of year for hiking, so go out and enjoy!

Sherlock Holmes Date Night

I saw this "Clue Mystery Puzzle" and thought it would make a fun activity for my husband and I when the kids went to bed.  Like a "date". :)

The puzzle comes with a mystery scenario that you read.  When you complete the puzzle, you try and figure out what happened and solve the mystery.

While we put the puzzle together, we watched episodes of the new BBC Sherlock Holmes series (what do you think of the series?).  You could also watch either of the recent Sherlock Holmes movies with Robert Downey Jr, both are fun mysteries. 

Wacky Wednesday Dinner Night

Sometimes I feel like my family can be so silly.  So they inspired me to have a "Wacky Wednesday" night at dinner time.

On Wednesday morning I gave everyone an invitation to our Wacky Wednesday Dinner Night.  On the invite it specified some of the dinner details.

{Click here to print your own Wacky Wednesday Dinner Night invitations}
The day, time, and place are left blank for you to fill in.

On the invitation it specified to wear "wacky" clothes.  For example, wearing mismatched socks, backwards pants, inside-out shirt, one pant leg rolled up high and the other down, multiple layers, mixing clothing styles, etc.  Everyone came up with their own wacky ensembles then came to dinner.

We each took turns modeling and presenting our wacky outfits.

Some were pretty funny!

Then we read a Dr. Suess classic called Wacky Wednesday.  It's a quick read, so we read it before dinner. 

At dinner, I wanted to make things "wacky" so I set the table by putting things in weird places.  Some things were upside down (including the pictures on the walls) and some were in odd containers (like the blender for holding sugar and the Halloween bowl for the casserole).

I hung a few items from the ceiling and light fixture that weren't normally hanging there and used different objects as our seats instead of our regular kitchen chairs (like an exercise ball).

I also added some unusual silverware to the place settings (like using a measuring cup instead of regular drinking glass).

All this wackiness made for lots of laughing during dinner time.  My kids loved discovering all of the wacky things I had set at the table and we all had fun trying to eat dinner in such a wacky way!

{Tuesday's Tip} S-L-O-W Down

Last week I decided to play in the back yard.

We had a relaxing BBQ for dinner--fish and veggies.

{Ladder Golf}

Then I set up our ladder golf game. As we were playing and having fun, the thought came to me, "I need to slow down!"

 I don't need to go somewhere else to be entertained. There are lots of things we can do right here at home and we can have just as much fun (if not more fun) together!

Sometimes I get it in my head that we need to go somewhere to have fun.  We are always going and rushing places.  Instead, I need to slow down and enjoy activities at home.

Here are a few other games we like to play in the back yard:

{Bocci Ball}

bocci ball, soccer, frisbee, 

{Croquet}

croquet, volleyball, and badminton. 

Pick one and have a stay-at-home, slow-down evening!

Easy Flannel Board Stories

You probably thought I'd be done with flannel boards by now...but there are just so many great crafts and activities that you can do with flannel boards!

Today I'm sharing how to make the quickest and easiest flannel board figures ever!  All you need is some Pellon, a permanent marker, crayons, and pictures from a coloring book or story.

So the first thing you need is the Pellon.  You can purchase Pellon at the fabric store, it is sold on the bolt like other fabric.  Pellon comes in different thicknesses.  I prefer the type that is light weight but pretty stiff.

Once you have your Pellon, place it over the picture you want to create, get your black permanent marker and simply trace the picture and then color it in.  

I like to use crayons to color on Pellon.  You can use markers but they tend to be messier and smear. 

When you've finished coloring your picture, you can cut it out.  Now your picture is ready to use on your flannel board!

With Pellon, you can make all kinds of characters and pictures to use in telling a story or singing a song.  FOr instance, you can make five monkeys for the song "Five Little Monkeys," or farm animals for "Old McDonald."  It would be fun to turn a favorite picture book into a flannel board story as well.

With older kids, they can trace and color the pictures themselves--it could keep them entertained for hours!

See, I told you it was quick and easy. :)

Nerf Birthday Party

Last month was my husband's birthday and I wanted to throw a party that would be active, simple, and fun for the whole family.  We ended up having...a Nerf Birthday Party!

The inspiration for this party came from The Dating Divas blog (they have lots of awesome date ideas).  When I saw it I knew it would make a great birthday theme for my husband's party!

The only supplies I purchased for the party were 4 Nerf guns, so everyone could have their own.

We started off the party with BBQ steak and veggies for dinner. 

For the table setting I used a yellow table cloth and placed a Nerf gun at everyone's place setting.  I also had a few snacks to go along with dinner as well.  I guess it was not all healthy.  ;)

 After dinner we each did a little target practice.  

I had a bulls-eye and stacked blocks all set up as our own little shooting range.  

After we had all practiced our shooting skills...we had a big Free-For-All!  We did not keep points or track how many times someone was hit.  We just had fun "shooting" at each other and running and hiding.

It turned out to be a fun, simple, active birthday party!!

* If you decide to host your own Nerf Birthday Party, please leave us comment and tell what you did! We'd love to hear your own creative Nerf ideas!