Life Lyn Style

Around Christmas, I bought several craft kids for the kids.  I think most of the kids were 50 cents or less.  Although we have lots of general craft supplies, sometimes it’s nice to open a small package and have an instant project.  This wreath kit came with enough supplies for 2 wreaths and all I needed to provide was the glue (and an old Giant Eagle ad).

Nick and Sally didn’t care that they were making Christmas wreaths in March.  They are happy as clams as long as they can play with the glue!

I tried to help Sally learn to dab the glue with a toothpick.  It didn’t work too well.  She wanted more glue than a toothpick would allow.

Nick agreed, he just wanted the whole bottle of glue to use on his project.  Both Nick and Sally had a great time and were busy for about 30 minutes.  After the wreaths were done, clean up was surprisingly easy.

I’ve already started a list of school supplies to buy at the sales this summer.  Extra glue is definitely on my list!

Yesterday, I happen to see the KidShow at Great Lakes Mall mentioned somewhere on the web.  I looked up a bit of information and decided it would be fun.  Today, Stephen, the kids and I headed to the mall and arrived at 10AM.  I always like to go early since the crowds aren’t as bad and our kids are at their prime.  The KidShow is basically a collection of many kid oriented vendors with tables of activities and information.  There was also a main stage with entertainment.

We went in through the main entrance and made it as far as the cars that you put money in before they wanted to stop.  We talked them into just a quick try since the cars would always be there.  We never put money in the cars.  They still have fun!  Our first official stop was the Step 2 booth.  They had a play area set up and since we arrived early, there wasn’t a crowd yet.

One of my favorite stops was for Widening World preschool.  We have other preschool plans for the kids, but this was an awesome booth.  It was inviting.  They had trucks and vehicles on the floor, recipes and literature on the tables, photos on the display boards, a tribute to Eric Carle with books and stuffed animals and a few awesome activity bins.  Nick and Sally were enjoying this one for play dough.  I picked up a recipe for homemade sidewalk chalk.  I can’t wait to make it with the kids this summer.

Many of the booths had crafts and coloring.  Here Sally is making a book mark.  As we wondered, we ran into various characters.  Nick and Sally are pictures with a rhino here.

Another favorite booth was for the local boy scouts.  They brought a display that included pinewood derby cars.  Since Stephen and I were both involved with scouts, it was fun to see Nick interested.  They picked out cars to race and eagerly watched for the finish.

The Cleveland Children’s Museum brought these blocks for the kids.  Nick and Sally had fun playing with them.  The people at the booth challenged them to go through the tunnels.  Sally went through just fine.  Then Nick decided to add a block and then try.

Surprise!  He knocked them all down.

We finished with a couple of temporary tattoos before leaving their booth.  We took a break for lunch at Subway in the food court.

After lunch, we finished with Nick’s two favorite activities.  The Great Lakes Science Center brought along a line following robot.  Nick loved it.  He would have played with it all day.

Our last stop was the Lake Captains booth where Nick and Sally had the opportunity to swing a plastic bat.

To our surprise, Nick hit the first 3 balls in a row!

We ended up staying at the KidShow for 3 hours.  We had fun and were exhausted when we left.  The show is in its 14th year and runs through Sunday, March 25th.

Yesterday was the first beautiful, warm, weekend day that we have been able to enjoy outside.  After I got home from my lifeguarding class, we decided to head to the Duck Pond at the North Chagrin Reservation.  Near the Nature Center there are 2 ponds.  I’m not sure if either have a formal name, but we usually just say we’re going to the Duck Pond.  To Nick and Sally, that encompasses the entire area of 2 ponds, education building, nature center, etc.

We arrived to find a very full parking lot.  Lots of families were out enjoying the beautiful day.  Nick and Sally were happy to be in light jackets and hats.

We arrived at the first pond to find tons of turtles enjoying the sun.  I can’t ever remember seeing turtles before.  And they were everywhere!

Most of the turtles we saw were on logs in the pond.  The last one on the grass actually lives in the nature center.  Mindy brought him out so he could stretch his legs and get some fresh air.  She spent time talking to Nick and Sally about his favorite foods like worms and slugs.

We enjoyed a walk around the big pond.  Nick and Sally stopped to look for fish.  Sally also posted for a photo with mommy.

Sally is very intrigued by her shadow.  She was giggling and having a great time.

After several hours in class and the indoor pool, it was so nice to be outside with the family for a while.  We ended the day with dinner with friends.