The Mommies Made Me Do It

DIY Swim Lessons

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Thu, 24 May 2012 22:28:00 +0000

I looked up and The Chief was underwater!
He'd decided, at that moment, he was going to swim like the big kids. I got no warning, nothing, not even a "Look at me, Mommy." He scared the pooplypits outta me! I pulled him out of the water and he yelled at me, "No, Mommy!!" One minute he was staring at the big kids swimming in the deep end, the next second he was underwater trying to hold his breath and move his body like they were doing. He spent the next hour trying to figure it out. By the next pool day, he was a fish! The kid had taught himself how to swim just by watching the big kids.

Here, he'd just seen a kid push off the wall, so Copycat had to try it too. He's never taken a swim class because his attention span is so short. He's 3yrs old but still just wants to play, not sit and listen to a structured lesson.

I think it helps that he's not water wimpy like his Mommy :/ He's always been comfortable around water. We hit the pool every other week in the Winter and a couple times a week in the Summer.

He's actually a little TOO comfortable. To me, the word isn't "comfortable" but rather "CRAZY".
He used to jump into the deep end... BEFORE he knew how to hold his breath!! Yep, he'd get a couple lungs full of water, choke, drown a bit, then jump right back in again... and again... for a half hour... with a big dimpley smile on his face. Oh how fun... the jump-n-drown game :/

I was stressing trying to figure out why this kid would rather torture himself in the deep end than go play in this ridiculously fabulous kiddie pool over here!! Huh???
I later realized he was just trying to figure out that whole "breath-holding thing" on his own. He can now jump in, calmly float or kick to the top, and find his way to the wall or my hand... without drowning. Yay, no drowning :)

The big kids were playing with these diving sticks, so I bought him a pair to see if he'd do the same.

Sure enough, he tossed them in, dove underwater, and fished them out. I love how this is a game for him but it's secretly building his underwater stamina, strength, breath-holding ability. This is how he got really good at moving from one place to another while staying underwater.

What bothers me is that he won't wear goggles like the other kids do. His eyes are always wide open when he's underwater and remain red for the rest of the day :(

He's way more comfortable in water than I am. I can't do this without pinching my nose :/

Yikes, I would never do this. I'd feel like a big tsunami is gonna swoop in and drown me! What? Yes, in an indoor pool!! It could happen :/

This kid just inspires me to no end :)

Target Practice

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Tue, 22 May 2012 00:51:00 +0000

We re-created the classic carnival duck shoot/watergun game!
Poor Ducky never had a chance :(

Hit the toy box for some worthy targets.

Set 'em up.

Ready... Aim...

FIRE!!!
We took turns to see who could shoot down all the targets in the least amount of time.

Bike DC with Kid-in-Tow

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Tue, 15 May 2012 15:34:00 +0000

For Mother's Day, we biked 11 miles for Bike DC.
Well, actually, I biked... he rode and ate snacks the whole way.
Hubby is usually the one towing The Chief on our bike rides but he couldn't make it today. So I (badass that I am) decided to tow him all by myself. Listen Mommies, you don't really know how heavy your kid is until you've pulled him in a bike trailer up hills for 11 miles, whew! Next year, he'll be doing Bike DC on his own bike!!

The ride started at the Capitol Building.

Stopped for pics at the White House.

On our way to the Pentagon.

At Netherlands Carillon overlooking DC.

Marine Corps War Memorial aka Battle at Iwo Jima.

Impromptu Dance Performance in the Woods

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Wed, 09 May 2012 12:56:00 +0000

Nope, no performances scheduled for today in the amphitheater so The Chief decided to put on his own show! Daddy pulled out his iphone and played Chief's 2 favorite songs... "Moves Like Jagger" and "Party Rock" :)
This is Burke Lake's outdoor amphitheater in the woods where they have summer concerts for children.

Spring Snowball Tree

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Mon, 07 May 2012 14:53:00 +0000

Snow in the Spring?

His first inclination upon discovering this tree blooming on the side of our house was NOT to stop and admire it's beauty... but to ofcourse pick off the flowers, throw them up in air, and pretend it's snowing! Boys :/

Not sure what kind of tree/flower this is. We decided we don't really care because Snowball Tree is a much better name for it :)

We were out there for half an hour playing in the "snow". It almost makes up for us not getting any real snow last Winter :/

Backyard Robins' Eggs

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Thu, 03 May 2012 17:52:00 +0000

The Chief found a robin's egg in the backyard .

It was on the ground and cold so we assumed the baby bird inside was already dead.

It fell out of a nest in a tree only about 6ft tall so The Chief was able to get a good look. There were no birds or eggs inside.

It's pretty impressive. We recognized most of the material the bird used from our backyard, like balloon strings from past parties.

Here's an eggshell we found underneath a different nest in our yard. I assume the bird successfully hatched out or the neighborhood squirrels got ahold of it. Stupid furry bullies :(

This must be robin baby-making season because later that day on our bike ride, we spotted LOTS of these little blue eggs scattered on the ground in the wooded areas of our neighborhood.

Check out these awesome articles posted by my bloggie buddies with DIY bird feeders and kids with birds!

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Travel By Boat

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 17:20:00 +0000

Water taxis are great for kiddie-cruising!
They run all day everyday, it's cheap, it's a short 20min ride each way, and every marina/harbor in the DC area has something cost-free and fun for kids to do when they get off the boat.
Today we boarded the Lady Josephine in Virginia and cruised to Maryland for a playdate.
(photo by Potomac River Boat Co.)

All the kids had fun running up and down the boat spotting wildlife, low-flying airplanes, and waving to the passengers in the yachts and cruise ships that passed by.

He's seen the Woodrow Wilson Bridge many times from the car and on bike rides, but never from the water. I don't think he realized how massive it was until seeing it from this perspective. When the boat took us underneath it, he shouted, "Whoaaaaa!"

He got to see various types of boats that share the river.

It got a bit windy so we stepped inside the cabin to have a snack.

Made it safely to our destination... The Awakening sculpture on a small beach at the National Harbor. After an hour of play and a visit to the Peeps store, we got back on the boat and headed home.

We checked out the back of the boat on the way home.

Flour Power

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 00:11:00 +0000

The Chief and I were bored so I grabbed a bag of flour and we headed outside!
Flour isn't just for biscuits and fried chicken, ya know!

Make footprints!

Mold into shapes or build a flour castle!

Write your name!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Spray colored water on it and make rainbow clumps.

Fine-motor Fever (Part 2)

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 12:48:00 +0000

This is article #2 of my Fine-motor Fever series.

I love any type of play that improves fine-motor skills... like playing Daddy's guitar.
To play it, he has to grip the neck and push strings with his left hand while gripping a pick and strumming the strings with his right. There's plenty of cool knobs and tuning pegs to fiddle with too. He'll sit for hours on it making (what he thinks is) music.

His camera has a zoom toggle and lots of little buttons on it. He's constantly working those little fingers to shoot pics, zoom in/out, and push different buttons to see how the pic changes.

I put coins and marbles in his piggy banks. To unlock and remove the cap, he has to pinch, push, turn, and lift with one hand while holding piggy with the other.

Hole-punchers are great for hand muscles. I give him cheap playing-cards because it makes a better "ka-chunk" sound than regular paper when you punch holes in it. And playing-cards have stuff to aim for. Can you punch a hole on the queen's face? How many diamonds can you punch? Punch 5 holes in the 5-card.

Staplers are great too. He's not strong enough to staple something with one hand so he squeezes with both hands or sets it on the floor and pushes it.

Write with a fat marker on something slippery, like a plastic cup. He writes with the right hand while turning the cup (but keeping it steady) with the left hand.

Write with a fat marker on something tiny.

Drink a cup of water using tongs.

Pull the petals off Mommy's flowers when she's not looking :/

See Fine-Motor Fever Part 1 HERE

Go Fly a Kite, Kid

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 23:29:00 +0000

Kite Flying... another thing I didn't know 3yr-olds can do!

This is The Chief's buddy, Pumpkin. She gave The Chief a kite and invited him out to fly for the first time. As you can see, she got the hang of it quickly and enjoyed it very much.

The Chief, however, was not feeling it. As you can see, the kite reel was more interesting to him than flying the kite.

This is me saving his kite from blowing away after he threw down the reel and decided he'd rather just run around this big open field.

We were all so surprised he didn't want to fly this kite. It looks exactly like his Thunderbirds F-16 collection. He's always pretending to fly these things (loudly) running through the house. I thought for sure he'd love to see his F-16 actually in the air!

I guess he's fine just pretending for now :/ We'll try again later. Meanwhile, Daddy is very impressed with the kite and can't wait for the next windy day so he can fly it himself :)

Spring-loaded Backyard

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 12:45:00 +0000

We dressed up the backyard for Spring!

Washable acrylic paint on the back sliding door.

Front door

String of balloons using quick and easy slipknots.
Check out my tutorial for this HERE.

I dressed up the trees with an Easter egg garland I saw on Family Volley.

The Chief is ALWAYS spring-loaded, no matter the season!

We had a Spring Party and every kiddo got a little birdhouse party favor.
I got these from Michael's Craft Store.

At our Spring Party, we went on a Hunting Eggs-pedition. I got these Groovy Pops and Twinkle Pops from Michael's also.

Everyone brought yummy goodies for the party.
Momma's Fun World brought the Peep-cakes :)

Slipknot String of Balloons (Tutorial)

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 12:43:00 +0000

Here's a quick and easy way to inflate and string up lots of balloons for a party.

I don't blow up balloons. Instead, I use the electric air blower that comes with an air mattress or inflatable pool. I can inflate 200 balloons in about an hour... while sitting on the couch watching a TV show. I do this a couple days before a party for 2 reasons. One, to give the defective balloons time to deflate because there's always a few bad ones in every bag. And two, so The Chief can have a room full of balloons to play in for a while.

I use a slipknot to string up balloons because it's easy, fast, and you can attach a balloon on any point of the string without any cutting. You don't need the end of the string to make a slipknot. In fact, you can hang the string first then attach the balloons. I choose to sit down, attach balloons, then hang them up. I did all the balloons in the first pic in about 30 minutes.
Start with a basic "rollercoaster" loop in your left hand.

Using your thumb, push some of the hanging right side string through the first loop.

Remove your thumb, leaving that string still poking up through the first loop.

Now pull it to form an opening big enough for the tied end of the balloon to fit inside.

Insert balloon's tied end into the opening.

Now pull the hanging string that closes the opening.

Keep pulling until it stops into a knot.

That's it!
Now, notice how there's a big gap between the blue and the yellow? Let's say you misjudged your spacing, or there may have been a balloon there but it popped, or you just have tons of leftover balloons and want to add more. No worries...

Just make a slipknot in that gap and attach another balloon like I did here with the pink.
Easy!

11 Silly Reasons to Eat Your Breakfast

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 13:57:00 +0000

Here are 11 silly activities to do with empty breakfast boxes.
So hurry up and finish eating!

1. Build a fort and don't let anyone in unless they know the password.

2. Build a house with "windows" and play peek-a-boo.

3. Build a railroad, an airstrip, or a superhighway for Daddy so he can get home from work faster.

4. Build the Great Wall of China.

5. Then crash into it like Angry Birds.

6. Build a "brick" tower and practice your karate chops and roundhouse kicks.

7. Play dress-up.

8. Make a puzzle... then tape it back together.

9. Hey waiter, how many "dishes" can you balance on one hand?

10. How many "miles" can you walk with a box on your head?

11. Build a "mountain range" and leap over it like The Hulk.

Celebration Mud Pies

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 13:37:00 +0000

Time to celebrate! Celebrate what?
ANYTHING!

Little M, from Mummy's Busy World, came over for a flower-planting playdate. We had so much fun playing in the mud we decided to make birthday mud pies. But you can't celebrate a pretend birthday with just a plain old mud pie. Glam it up with some glitter, sequins, candles, and ofcourse, the birthday song.
NOW it's a party!

Everyone's invited... including (rubber) cockroaches :)

Giant Squishy Sensory Bag

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 13:32:00 +0000

Absolutely fun-tastic!
Great for a hot Spring day when the water is too cold to swim.

We saw this super idea on Play at Home Mom and jumped on it... literally!

You can also insert objects like big leaves or soft squishy toys.

Here are the easy-to-find materials I used:
Clear plastic sheeting (any size), duct tape, and food coloring.
Just tape up the sides into a bladder then fill it up with a water hose. I got the sheeting from Home Depot's paint section in the aisle with all the tarps. I got this 2-roll pack and only used one 250 sqft roll. I just folded it and taped the 3 sides together to form a 125 sqft bag. This was PLENTY huge for 3 people but next time I will put together two sheets and tape all 4 sides to form a ridiculously gigantic 250 sqft bag... yeah baby!!

We played on it all day... only stopping for a short lunch and a popsicle break.

Ours leaked a tiny bit but not enough to collapse or burst the bag.
Next time we'll squirt in more blue to make it darker... or maybe try red!
Also gotta make sure we place the bag on the flat part of the yard so the water is spread evenly.

The bag never popped, even with all the fun abuse we did to it!

Resting on cold water on a hot day without getting wet :)

Cartwheels on water... or should I say waterwheels!

By the end of the day when I thought for sure he'd be exhausted and done, he asked for bubbles. So we fired up the bubble machine and had bubbles on a bag!

Kids Co-Op Weekly Playdate

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 14:00:00 +0000

We jumped off a tomato into a big giant pizza!
Pizza Playground at the DC National Zoo.
So what's your kiddo up to this week?

Come link up your kid(s) activity or craft at the Kids Co-Op!

Visit/comment on 1 or 2 other articles in the linky and don't forget to grab our button :)

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Kids Co-Op Weekly Playdate

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 11:18:00 +0000

Servin' up strikes!
So what's your kiddo up to?

Come link up your kid's craft or activity at the Kids Co-Op.

Visit/comment on 1 or 2 other posts in the linky and don't forget to grab our button :)

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Do Your Own Ice Cream Dibs

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 14:18:00 +0000

Because they're sold out, I set out on a mission to re-create The Chief's favorite ice cream treat... Nestlé Dibs!

These are the little boogers causing me grief. They're sold out... everywhere! Which is very hard to understand because they don't even taste that great to me!
Since they're his favorite (and the only desert he'll eat) I had to figure out how to make them... and pass them off as the real stuff :)

I had no clue how to approach this task but luckily my bloggie buddie, The Outlaw Mom, came to my rescue!
She suggested using a melon baller and some chocolate Magic Shell. The Hershey bar is to melt and mix into the Magic Shell if it doesn't taste the same as the chocolate coating on the real Dibs.

After I finally got the hang of using my (never before used) melon baller, I stuck a toothpick through each ball of vanilla ice cream.

I quickly dipped it into a small bowl of Magic Shell. That stuff works great! No drips or mess because it hardens into a chocolate shell in seconds.

I found a piece of styrofoam in my son's craft box.
This was perfect for setting each one in the freezer so I could finish them all without the ice cream melting.

So here's the finished product. I think they look and taste exactly like the real Dibs! Ok, maybe not "exactly" but a 3 year old certainly would not be able to tell the difference. Right?

Wrong! I failed to realize that you can't fool ANYONE when it's their favorite food... not even a 3 year old. He checked them out and was less than thrilled. But Daddy was very happy with them :)
I may try this again later... giving him enough time to forget that Mommy tried to trick him :/ Next time I'll make them smaller and use french vanilla ice cream because the natural vanilla didn't look the same as the vanilla inside the real Dibs.

Kids Co-Op Weekly Playdate

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 01:11:00 +0000

We went on a hike through the woods at Powhatan Children's Rain Garden.
So what has your kiddo been up to?
Link it up!

Then visit/comment on a couple other posts in the linky.

And don't forget to grab our button :)

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Sparkley DIY Playdough (stovetop)

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:36:00 +0000

Once you make your own playdough, you'll never go back to PlayDoh! Here's our stovetop version.

Stovetop Playdough Recipe
Mix these ingredients in a pot or pan over medium heat:
1 cup flour
1 cup water
1/2 cup salt
2 teaspoons cream of tarter
1 tablespoon cooking oil
5-10 drops of kiddo's desired food coloring

Buying PlayDoh means we'd miss out on all this great kitchen play together!

DIY playdough is not a new concept. I just never considered making it because I didn't know how easy it was. His teacher taught us how to make it at a parent group meeting... took just 5 minutes!

It calls for 2 teaspoons. Instead of a full teaspoon, I give him a 1/4 teaspoon so he can scoop it out 8 times. The kid LOVES to scoop!

He likes to level it with his finger rather than a straight edge.

Stir the ingredients over medium heat until it forms into dough.

Place on foil. Then knead it with your hands.
In about a minute, its cool enough for kiddo to play with.

Flatten it out, sprinkle some glitter, then knead it some more.

Store in ziploc bags or airtight containers. DIY playdough is super easy to make and the ingredients are super common. This is the cooked/stovetop version. We also plan to try a no-cook recipe. You can even add various scents to make it smell yummy like chocolate, vanilla, lavendar, etc.
Check out THIS no-cook recipe made with Kool-Aid by Momma's Fun World.

Rain? What Rain?

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Find a puddle and jump in it... with an umbrella!

He didn't like that the puddles were too cold to sit in :(

Buckets, buckets... why do boys have so many buckets!

Dig for worms.

Your honor, I present to you exhibit A.
Evidence that water and dirt make mud!

No, this is not real.
If it was real, there would be no picture of it because my camera and I would be far FAR away!
This is one of his rubber bugs he buried in the dirt last summer.
He just dug it out of the mud and tried to scare me with it :/

Shaving Cream Shenanigans

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 12:23:00 +0000

Shaving cream... sensory silliness at its finest!

I just set out an empty bin, shaving cream, buckets, animal figures, and marbles. SUGGESTION: Do not buy the cheap cans of shaving cream. Instead, spring for the good stuff that you like you'd like to smell on a man. Or buy the sweet-smelling ladies shaving cream. The cheap stuff will have your house smelling like "old cheap dude" for a couple days :(

We also squirted in some food color.

Glad we didn't do this on carpet!

He wasn't interested in digging for animals or marbles.
He just wanted to bath, swim, and skate in it.

You'd giggle too if you had a fluffy, jiggly, creamy mountain in your hand.

Squish!

Kids Co-Op Weekly Playdate

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 15:05:00 +0000

The Chief painted pottery for the first time at his buddy's birthday party at Color Me Mine.
Such a fun idea!
So what has your kiddo been up to?
Link it up on this Kids Co-Op Weekly Playdate!

Visit/comment on 1 or 2 other posts in the linky.

And don't forget to grab our button :)

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Here are clickable links to the participating Kids Co-Op Members:

Imprints from Tricia
No Time For Flash Cards
Train Up a Child
Caution! Twins at play
Creative Family Fun
mamascout
Share With A Kid
Scribble Doodle and Draw

One Perfect Day
Ways2Play
Mum of Twins a Toddler and a Teenager
Carrots Are Orange
Small Types
Rainy Day Mum
Smiling like Sunshine
Dirt and Boogers
RainbowsWithinReach

The Mommies Made Me Do It
It's A Long Story
Reading Confetti
B.Inspired, Mama!
The Good Long Road
PlayDrMom
ToddlerApproved
Growing A Jeweled Rose

Put a Picky Eater in the Kitchen

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 17:22:00 +0000

The Chief's teacher recommends letting a picky eater pick out, prepare, and play with his own food to encourage him to eat and try new foods. Today we put him in charge of the flapjacks!

I set out all the ingredients for him which was just Hungry Jack pancake mix, water, and the cinnamon shaker. He poured everything in and I let him stir, mix, shake, and play in it for as long as he wanted... which was hard because hubby and I were starving!

Use a spray bottle of oil to spray the grill rather than pouring oil from the bottle. It's less messy.

Pour each pancake the same size (or smaller) as his spatula so he can flip and scoop them up successfully. We used a small flexible cup. He can also use a condiment bottle to squirt out shapes or letters.

Because his favorite part is flippin' jacks, the waiting is a teeny little lesson in patience.
Don't flip them 'til you see the bubbles pop. No, they're not ready yet. No, Chief, not 'til the bubbles pop! Just wait! Dude... WAIT!!

Ok, let's flip 'em!

This is the only part he needed help with. But I think next time we'll just make one pancake at a time so he'll have the entire grill surface to perfect the flip on his own.

Ok, now scoop 'em up and turn off the grill.

He was very choosey about which ones to put on his plate. And he wanted no butter, no syrup, no honey, no chocolate chips, and no blueberries.
Really, Chief, no blueberries??? Wow, you must be really proud of those pancakes!

He devoured 3 whole pancakes that morning! I froze what we didn't eat, which was smart because he asked for pancakes and apples for dinner 3 nights in a row after that!

Give Him Just Enough Rope to LEARN Himself

noreply@blogger.com (SugarMomma) — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 16:29:00 +0000

We saw how much fun the kids were having at Let the Children Play so, ofcourse, we had to try it out! Rope bridges are excellent for gross-motor, imaginative, and dramatic play.
Oh no! There's a pit of angry alligators waiting for you to fall off... hang on, man, HANG ON!!

Daddy tied two 75ft ropes from the deck to the fence post. The only difficult part was keeping The Chief off the ropes while trying to tie them. He couldn't WAIT to get on!

The Chief plays with ropes all the time but it never occurred to me that a 3yr old would be capable of doing this. I'd never done this until I joined the military!
It took a minute for him to figure it out.

Daddy put his foot on the rope a few times to help him figure out how to get on.

Balance with hand-eye-foot coordination!
He quickly realized he had to be steady and slow at first to figure it out.

Now he can walk all the way across like a pro! Which is good because we wouldn't want him to fall into that big pit of mean, hungry, kid-eating alligators!