Chore Chart

jack's chore chart. made with love from construction paper cut outs put through a laminator. this is how i got my camp name - origami.



there are little self adhesive velcro dots in the boxes and on the check marks.



the laminated checks.



feeding nemo (every fish we've ever had has been nemo) (even before they'd ever seen the movie) is the morning chore.



setting the table is his late afternoon chore.



even if friends are coming over.



last thing of the day...vacuuming.

jack receives $1 per week per chore. so $3 per week total.

correction on giving...i was posting quickly ;) 30 cents goes to giving not one of his dollars! teaching at least 10% here!

Child Seats

so why, after 3 kids, am i just now buying a highchair? well, we have just always prefered not to have one overtaking our small dining rooms. when the kids are little, they sit in a bumbo. i mean, rowan's only 3 months old and he's loving it. when they're big enough to sit on their own, they move to a stokke (click to see more).



i scored our first stokke at a consignment sale. no one knew what they were, and it was only $20!! they are significantly more expensive now (like, waaaaay), but we loved the first one so much we got a second for finn!

so why a highchair now? i don't know. i just think it'll be fun. plus, at 15 dollars i'll paint it any crazy ole way i want!

TV?

i think we might buy a tv.  we've had a tv, but not for a while.  b/c the whole HD thing and needing some kind of special box to use our old tv, we decided to sell it on craig's list instead of moving it.  even when we had tv, we've never had cable, or satellite, or whatever you have with dvr's and all.  it's not a moral opposition, it's more of a is-having-tv-to-watch-the-best-use-of-my-time dilema.    

without a tv, jack can fully navigate a computer and the internet because that's all we have.  he's 4 and he can plug in the internet cable, turn the computer on, open the internet, and log on to pbskids.org, then fully navigate the site by himself.  maybe all 4 year olds do that today, but he does (and opens and navigates videos on the computer) out of necessity.

without a tv, jon and i talk.  that's right, we've been married 8 years next week and we talk, read together and play board games.  weird huh?  as john piper has said, "i will never look back and wish i would have watched more tv."  

all this being said, i think we're going to save up and buy one.  a tv.  we'll hang it right on the wall.  that's what people do ya know.  i'm still holding out on the satellite though.  that's a pretty big leap considering we haven't watched tv (except at friends houses) in 11 months. 

TV

well, we don't get a single TV channel, so "movie" or "video" should have been the title. finn saw "thomas the tank engine" for the first time today. he, as the second child, has seen almost NO tv (movies). when he's up, he and jack just play. i think he liked it though...

New Tent

so we got this new tent. we've researched family sized tents for quite some time, and when they went on clearance at target...we pounced! we knew it'd be big, but this thing is ginourmous! it even has two rooms inside! definitely our dream tent.

Beignets

when dinner is imminent, and mom has to cook,

breakfast gets me off of the hook!

home-made beignets...that's normal right?

powdered sugar is always sure to delight!

Breakin' Out the Good Stuff

"life's too short" is one of my favorite phrases. isn't it? too short, that is. life is too short to do dishes when there are cars to be played with. life is too short not to not to read ALL the words in ALL the books. and life is definitely too short not to use the "good china" for cheerios and milk in the morning.

I Swore I'd Never...

...let my kids drink soda.
...let my kids eat mac n' cheese and hot dogs.
...let my kids play in those gross play places.
...let my kids leave the house in clothes that don't match.
...let my kids veg out to TV.
...let my kids go to bed without a bath.
...let my kids drink chocolate milk.
...let my kids stay in PJ's all day.
...let my kids have cereal for dinner.
...let my kids wear their shoes on the wrong feet.
i swore i'd never, but i have, and they're fine.

The Door to Jack's Room

"did my timer go bring?" that is the question that jack feels compelled to come out and ask during room time. as if he didn't know that it did, in fact, not go off or he would have heard it, no? jack gets "room time" everyday. it's a highlight, nay, a thrill that for 50 minutes jack plays by himself in his room until his timer "brings." we started out with this when jack was just about two. at first it was just 10 minutes, then 15, and so on until he now hangs, by himself (did i mention that?), for 50 blissful minutes. during this time i do whatever i want. shower, watch tv, read a magazine, blog, chew gum...and if he comes out i send him back in. until the timer goes bring.

Built for Speed

this is the bike that races through the house!

the Trike

i let my son ride his bike in the house. is this normal? i envision other moms ranting at their children to take them outside, but i just don't mind it. i've weighed it on the childish/foolish scale, and it just seems like a childish, wonderful memory maker. the tricycle is able to maneuver quite well, even though, as i've mentioned before, we have a smaller house. the bike is another issue, but jack manages to ride it just fine from kitchen to front door after i say the obligatory... "gentlemen, start your engines!" most mornings, jack rides out into the living room with "blee blee" the blue blanket in the "trunk" and a big goofy grin. i have to say i love it! i think it's the cutest darn thing in the world!