It is HOT around here! It seems like just the past two weeks have been so hot, and of course the worst is not here yet!
To beat the heat, we have bought a kiddie pool. I debated about getting one of the "nicer" temporary pools from Walmart with a filter/pump, etc. but ended up just getting the same inflatable pool we've had before for a couple of reasons. First of all, I have had my kids fully clothed and ready to go somewhere, and had them jump in the pool! So, I want to be able to dump it if necessary. Yes, I want to be in control of their swim time-call me crazy!!! Actually, they are a full year older, so I think it will be easier this year to manage-we'll see! For $20, we'll get lots of cheap entertainment!
We have been making snow cones like crazy! I recently got a BlendTec blender, which I LOVE!!! It is awesome! If you aren't familiar, they are commercial grade, really nice blenders. It can cook soup, make ice cream, grind wheat, and do all sorts of cool stuff. They are normally $400, but Dustin's friend got ours from his work's salvage place for $75! A real steal! (He works at a freight co.) On a side note- I just got 25 lb. of wheat berries today and have ground some fresh flour already. You cannot beat fresh flour! Just saying....
Back to snow cones- the blender makes the ice exactly like snow consistency in 10 seconds. The kids help me scoop out their "cone" and add the flavoring. I am looking online for some all-natural flavoring because what they had at Walmart is most definitely filled with dyes I don't want my kids to have.
We haven't been to the lake yet, but my mom and I went yesterday to check it out. We only had to pay $2 for parking, and swimming will cost me $7 for all of us. Quite a bargain I think! They had a nice kiddie area, some shade and picnic tables for picnics, and a huge playground with super-nice equipment. I must say, we were impressed! I will say, my sister always gives me a hard time about asking for credentials from people. I learned yesterday where I get that from- MOM! She had two park rangers cornered and was asking all about the water and if they test it. They DO test it and gave her all the info on the tests they did yesterday! I still hope my kids don't drink too much lake water- eek! I have let go of many of my germophobias.....lake water NOT being one of them! I think we are going next week when it's cooler with my mom and sister- plus nephews! It should be fun!!! I think we will have to check out even more State Parks near us! This is only 10 minutes away!
We have been trying to stay indoors during the heat of the day- I am trying to make a concerted effort to do more indoors-ey things with the kids. We painted sun catchers one day and also make bead necklaces- great for working on those fine motor skills! I already have a lot of craft supplies on hand from teaching vacation Bible school over the years, and just different projects I've done. I always keep an eye out for clearance stuff and Dollar Tree has some supplies too. I think we'll be doing quite a few crafts this summer. Pinterest- here I come!
Since our beach trip is approaching, we are going to use some of our indoor time to learn about the ocean. I decided instead of just "going", we'd try to learn a little about it first. They already know a lot of what lives in the ocean, but I am going to reinforce that with letting them color pictures of those things. Also, I have a few crafts planned- like making an octopus out of a toilet paper roll, paint, and googly eyes. I am also going to mix up some salt water for them to taste. I have to say, I really am excited about how excited the kids are getting about learning new things. It is so fun to see their enthusiasm, it is contagious! It will be good to do a few things in kind of a relaxed fashion before we start their pre-school work in the fall (at home).
Some other summer things we can do on super-hot days (that aren't too pricey) are- the Children's Museum which is indoors, Monkey Joe's, the $1 movies at the theatre (we are probably going to meet some dance friends for this), pool time at the Y (it's indoors so you don't have to worry about sunscreen or burns), riding on our RTV through the woods (it's cooler and shady doing that), library, visiting great-grandparents (a change of scenery is always nice), and much more! I will have to post ideas as we think of them and do them! We are going to a live play in July based on a children's book- Richard Scarry's BusyTown. I am excited for the kids to experience that-and it's not super-expensive. They've never been to anything like that before.
I love summer because my Mom always has lots of free time to hang out with us, and my sisters are all out of school for babysitting purposes if I need them- or to go with me to do fun things with the kids. And of course my oldest sister, Amanda, has a pool with a fun slide for the kids. My dad also has a pool- so we have no shortage of swimming options to beat the heat!!!
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