Field Trips

Two weeks ago we took a field trip with Emily's class to see the Cy-Ride bus barn and ride around town.  I was pretty excited she got to go and that we could tag along.  Most preschools in town arrange this field trip and I was always a little sad she had never gone to preschool when I heard others speak of their trip. 
Dallas and Emily both had a great time, I was not super mom on this trip and had to keep both Noelle and Dallas seated for safety, so I didn't get any pictures, plus it was raining!  The CyRide building is fairly new, one of my college roommates even worked on the building project as an engineer.  Some things we learned.
The buses hold 100 gal of gas, they fill them up every night even though a typical bus route day only uses 50 gal of gas.
They do all of their own servicing, have their own mechanics, several bays with lifts, and they even paint the buses there.
They have a bus wash tunnel, we got to go through it in a bus, and the brushes are Cyclone colored!
There are more than 100 people on staff, many part-timers during college stay on after graduation and move to full time.
We also learned why there is often 5-6 buses hanging out in the parking lot South of Hilton.

This Friday we joined the class exploring McFarland Park, Story County's little Conservation area.  It was a fun, cold, windy, but not quite rainy time discovering things.  My kids were good nut finders, we found several different varieties and showed our guide.  We also got to see a Green Backed Heron on our hike.  We could have picnicked following our hike.  I didn't plan on it because of the weather, they only have spots outside, plus we really didn't have any picnic type foods at home.  Scrambled eggs or leftover steak didn't seem like good options for my littles.  I had planned on running to a place to get some food on our way home since it was a special day.  I changed my mind, and we went to the Co-op and spent the $15 we would have spent on hamburgers on food the kids picked out.  Wheatsfield always has awesome samples out in every isle, so we sampled our way around an came up with a silly lunch.

3 organic peaches (Dallas picked)
2 organic pears (Em picked, she loves pears)
1/8 lb dark choc chips ( I picked these)
2 fruit leather strips for snack later this afternoon
tuna salad (my pick)
1/4 lb white cheddar (Noelle's pick)
1 dessert bar square with pecans, dark choc chips, with a shortbread crust? (we split 4 ways)
1/4 lb cashew veggie and noodles (Em picked)
We made it out spending $13 something, with a pretty yummy and random lunch + snack and it was fun (plus the free samples, the jalapeno + cheddar tortilla chips we sampled were yummy!)

We also saw a guy walking around wearing 500 grocery sacks turned into a sort of costume. He was holding a sign stating the average shopper uses 500 sacks a year.  I was glad I happened to have a reusable tote in the van that we took in with us.  I am not that much of a hippie.  I love getting sacks at the store.  We often ask our friends to give us extra, we put them to dog duty use and also use them in our little trash cans around the house.  But all that said, it was a good day not to feel guilty at the checkout when she asked if I needed a sack!

Oh, and sorry no pictures from the nature hike either.  Again I was not super mom, I was trying to keep Dallas on the path, I had Noelle up on my back in the Kelty Carrier, and helping Emily learn and hear what the Conservationist was saying.  Plus it was cold, my iPhone needs skin contact to take pictures and I was wearing mittens!

 I'll give you one guess as to what this guy was doing!

 Driving

 At the park

 Emily's first American Girl series book picked fresh from the library, Aunt Lynne was so proud

 So tired

 Emily's first time putting in pigtails herself!

 Unprompted, Emily reads to Dallas (I love this, and so glad I got to witness it)

Dance party happens in our living room frequently while waiting for Rob to walk through the door

While memorizing Hebrews 11:6-8 this week were talking about if we would be scared if we were Abraham. 

Emily said she would not be afriad, "when I grow up I want to know God and tell people about God" ( I said she could do this now and not have to wait until she grows up)

Dallas said "when I grow up I want to drive the General Lee"

So precious that my children are so different!  In other news.  Rob should be home tonight!!!

Banana Bites

Picture from weelicious.com

 I made these for lunch for the kiddos to eat this week.  They are really simple and fairly fast. 
I use the pancake recipe out of my classic Betty Crocker, but subbed rice flour.  I made two banana's worth, served with sliced strawberries and peas.  Everyone licked their plates!

third kid

Noelle's first 3-4 word sentence as follows.  She came shuffling into the kitchen after a scream, a cry and a yell from the living room.

She pulls on my pants, looks up at me and says
"D lls boom boom me"

She said it three times for emphasis.  I am pretty sure she told her first tattle as well.

These pictures are from Rob's phone.  He climbed to the top of the jungle gym with the kids when he met us after work.  View from the top!

I spent way to much time this afternoon trying to make a healthy yummy snack for us.  I dehydrated some apple slices.  Peeling, coring, slicing, then laying them in the dehydrator.  The good news is they taste great.  The bad news is they are all stuck to the dehydrator racks, as in I have to chisel them off and they are coming off in bits!  So sad.  Any idea what I did wrong. I am guessing, too thin, too hot, maybe I need to grease the sheets????

And I need to share this, please read it, it will only take 2 minutes.  It is a short read, but so good!

http://raisinghomemakers.com/2012/a-letter-to-my-children-about-marriage/

Happy Easter

and we ate



At the ice cream parlor

waiting for breakfast

First time we have ever eaten at an IHOP

The kids menu had pictures, Em loved her pancake

My kids love breakfast food

clean plate club?

we did lunch after the museum at Papa's Downtown Deli, PB and J for Dallas and Em, Turkey and Cheese for Noelle

Noelle doesn't eat bread.  She takes the sandwich apart and eats the meat!

In Champaign, IL on our way home eating at Papa Del's, google said it was the most popular pizza place in Champaign.  It was good not great, Ames has several places that best it.

By far the hardest part for me is taking the kids out to eat by myself.  We managed twice for breakfast and lunch.  Luckily Robert was done by dinner time.  It is hard to get them all to behave, be quiet (at least restaurant quiet), and keep the entertained.  Also to do this while not spilling every glass of milk or dropping all our fruit on the floor, and then not picking it back up and eating it.  Emily eats very slowly.  The other two are often finished 15 minutes before her.  She gets easily distracted by everything.  We all survived.  I do prefer to stay at hotels where the breakfast isn't $10.95, but we pricelined our stay so we didn't get to pick!  That being said we paid $50 for our 3 star stay in Columbus!  Love a deal

More from Kidscommon

Giant toliet slide, it flushed when you got inside.  Dallas started pulling his pants down when he saw it, luckily I headed that off.

She won't walk, but I had to tear her away from Just Dance with Hanna Montana

The third floor had a fitness theme, lots of exercise activies

I tried to get into a pic

Emily was in love with the art area.  Notice the rows of little bins, each containing a little scrap of paper, something sparkley, fabric, any little bit you could want.  The otherside had bins full of paper, foam all kids of stuff.  Each table had scissors, glue, markers, crayons, and tape.

a Japanese house

Dallas worked a long time at this robot claw picking up and moving foam bricks

There were play tables everywhere with little activites, blocks or puzzles

Kidscommons Children Museum

This is the second or third Childrens museum that we have been too.  The first with three kids.  It was such a great experience.  It was easy to do with just me helping.  Robert was at Cummins working (the reason we made the trip).  We tagged along after I researched the town.  It sounded so fun and kid friendly, after you made the 9 hour car ride!  Taking advantage of one of the perks of being self employed and homeschooling, we can pick up and tag along whenever we want.  We dropped Bo off to pal around with his dog friend Lucious, and drove 9 hours to Columbus IN.  Our first stop was too this ice cream parlor Zaharakos.  It is a 1900 restored soda shop.  We had dinner and then let the kids order a treat.  Emily had a cinnamon shake, Dallas ordered a strawberry shake, and Noelle, Rob and I split a Fudge Brownie sundae.  So yummy!

We hit the hotel and went swimming.  The water was freezing, so then we went to the hot tub area and all dangled our legs in. 

The next day Rob went to Cummins.  I packed up and we went to the Childrens Museum.  It was so great.  Lots of different age appropriate activies.  Easy to keep an eye on all children at once.  Great price, I had found and printed a coupon before hand, $4/person.  If we lived there I would definetly have a membership!

Noelle sorting giant wooden nuts

Camper to play in

Noelle setting the picnic table

Dallas planting a garden.  He loved this area.  He put on gardening gloves, out the plants in the wheel barrow, and then took them back out to plant.

Camping, Dallas is on the bottom bunk

Giant play mat.  Emily was adding wooden houses to the mat.  Dallas was adding train tracks, trains, and trucks.

Noelle in the pond, checking herself out in the mirror

(this was only some of the stuff on the first floor)

The Commons in Columbus, IN

One of the reasons we tagged along on daddy's business trip.

The Commons in Columbus, IN

The Commons is a public meeting place for the community.  They have this free indoor playground, tons of seating, all encased in glass and sunglight.  The floor was all rubber playground stuff.  They had a 0-2 yr, 2-5 yr, and the climbing upright area had a recomended age of 5-12.  Everything was so nice.  The kids loved it.  I kept wishing we had anything remotely close to this in Ames.  What a fun place to meet friends, mom's could chat, kids could play.

maybe some new pictures for the house?  Noelle is very under-represented in print!