Tag Archives: activities

Surviving Being Off Track – Week 3

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This was the week I was dreading most of all, all of the fun things we had planned we had already done, and what was left on the list no one wanted to do, or the weather didn’t permit.  On top of that we had three major events to host/attend all sandwiched back to back with far too little breathing room in between.  All with raging PMS.

Today, even with the considerable foot dragging on the part of my oldest, the kids are back in school.  I’m too burned out from the past three weeks to do the happy dance that this occasion deserves. Maybe tomorrow.  I can content myself with the fancy chocolate I hid away instead.

I wish I could say that we did some really fun new things this week, and in some ways we did.  One of the events that we hosted was a sleepover for my son and his cousins to celebrate his birthday.  They stayed up late watching movies and playing Minecraft and having a great time.  We finally got them to bed around 11:30 – which was a good thing because they woke up at 5:30 (yes, in the morning – eeek!) to plug back in and play more. We asked them to please sleep a little more so they wouldn’t be super cranky the next day. You can imagine how well that worked.  At least they were downstairs and behind closed doors so we could barely hear them.

We did the Planetarium one more time, this time seeing the Rocky Mountain Railroad movie on IMAX.  Out of the latest three this one was my favorite, beautiful cinematography, epic landscapes, great history, and awesome music (and free popcorn!).  Even the youngest sat for most of it, although I’ll admit it might be because the train whistles and noises might have scared him a little.  I’ll take what I can get.

We attempted to test out oldest’s new birthday bike, but with the snow and ice it didn’t last too long.  He doesn’t like change and those extra 6 inches are making a big difference in his confidence.  The brakes are different as well, he’s used to pushing back on the pedal but the new bike has hand brakes.  I can only be thankful that he tends to be overly cautious, and didn’t wipe out.  That would have put him off of riding for weeks if not months.  IMG_2288[1]

Part of me is sad that I didn’t spend any time in the kitchen making goodies together.  At the same time, it’s a bit of a relief that they didn’t seem to want to either.  With hubby and I both dieting, having cookies, cupcakes and other treats around isn’t a great idea.  I still made cupcakes and a Minecraft inspired rice crispy treat “cake” for the birthday sleepover, and I won’t admit to how many crispy treats I ended up eating.

Here’s to the next time the kids are off track!

 

 

Surviving Being Off Track – Week 2

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The second week of being off track is now over and we are all getting a little stir crazy. With only one week to go there is still time to make some memories and have lots of fun. The moaning about having to go back is already in full swing, especially from my oldest who hasn’t warmed up to his teacher and at this point probably never will.  I chalk it up to helping him build character by doing things he doesn’t like. He doesn’t agree.

Here are last week’s highlights –

  1. The Library – We finally made it over to the library and grabbed a bag full of new books to read and a few DVD’s to watch.  Oldest son would only grab science books, and that’s okay because that’s what he loves. The rest are Spongebob and Barbie books. Nothing for me this time, Baby D started acting out before I dared venture into the grown up section. Next time I’m planning on reserving a little something for me so it’s super easy to grab.
  2. Playing in the snow – it snowed two days last week which meant sledding and snowmen!  IMG_2234
  3. Movies – We love movies around here and almost watch one everyday.  It gives the kids a chance to wind down for a while and gives me some much needed peace. Our favorite titles this week were “The Lorax” and “Cloudy and a Chance of Meatballs 2.”
  4. Planetarium, again – This time we went to the dome theater and watched “Ultimate Universe.”  Did I mention that having a membership is really awesome?  My son is already planning our next trip.

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    My three little monsters on Mars

  5. More Minecraft! – I’m now hoping that the novelty of playing together is starting to wear off.  I’ve spent way more time mining imaginary rock than a sane person should.  It’s still pretty fun, but so much screen time is starting to put a kink in my neck and back.

As for me, I’m still pretty happy about how the break has gone.  I’ve managed to keep the house under control and have started a new goal with my writing using the Giveit100 website where you work on something for 100 days straight trying to improve.  Most people have health and fitness goals, mine is to work on editing my book and get into a habit of working on it everyday.  So far it’s working for me and I think it’s fun, I hope it lasts!

Surviving Being Off Track – Week 1

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We’ve made it through one week of being off track from school and so far everything has gone well. Everyone is still talking to each other and the house has not been destroyed, yet.  There is still time for that.  My youngest has uncovered an even more stubborn streak than before and is testing his limits right and left.  As I type I’m letting him watch his favorite show on my computer screen, but he can’t be happy with just that.  He also feels he must pull my fingers off of the keyboard as I type.

Here are the highlights from last week –

  1. Homemade Gak – By far this was the favorite activity. The kids spent hours playing with the stretchy gooey stuff.  We chose clear glue to make our Gak and discovered later that the chemical composition is different from with white glue. Mixing and mashing it with more and more water until it was usable took longer than I originally planned.  In the end it still wasn’t as stretchy as I thought it should be, but was still really cool. As a side note, Gak works wonders to get dust out of the cracks of your keyboard, mine is sparkling clean now.  You can also add essential oils to make it smell nice, peppermint worked great.  Playing with the Gak was so popular that it took place of several of the other activities I had planned for the week.IMG_2261
  2. Super Absorbent Polymers – Also known as Orbeez, these spheres start as tiny BB sized balls and absorb 20-40 times their size in water. The kids loved watching them slowly grow over the course of several hours and then playing with them. They look like glass marbles and feel a little squishy when held.  The clear balls disappear like magic in water.  If let out to dry they shrink back to their original size over the course of several days and then can be stored and used again.  We found ours in the vase and silk flower section of our local dollar store.IMG_2260
  3. The Planetarium – This year we received a membership to the local Planetarium, a terrific gift for any family with kids who like science like mine.  Ours has a 3D Imax theater and a dome theater and has different shows throughout the day.  It also has two floors of exhibits and hands-on activities that the kids love.  This week we watched the 3D Imax Dragons movie.
  4. Minecraft – I didn’t want to get sucked into this game, but at the same time if this is what my kids want to do and it’s something we can do together, then it makes for good together time.  We figured out how to share each others worlds and visit.  I’ve made myself little homes and gardens in each of their worlds and then can come over and help them fight their zombies and find materials for building.

I had hoped to be able to work on my projects as well this week, my manuscript is feeling rather neglected lately.  With my youngest fighting naps and the other two at home, finding uninterrupted quiet time doesn’t happen. I did a little work on my query letter and through it was able to solve a major plotting concern that had nagged at the back of my mind. With luck, this week I’ll find a few hours here and there to get more chapters edited.

Here’s to another great week!

Perks and Pitfalls of Going Off Track

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As of tomorrow, my kids are off track from school for the next three weeks and I can’t say I’m 100% excited about the prospect of having them home for so long.  When they first proposed year round school I had mixed feelings.  No more big summer break and instead random three week breaks during odd parts of the year.  Because of it my children didn’t get to celebrate Halloween at school and both of their birthdays fall during off track times as well.  Some enjoy the prospect of being able to take family vacations during the off season and while it’s nice to have that as an option, chances are you won’t be going on vacation with each break.

That means there are weeks with no school that need some sort of structure.

It would be so easy to just let the days slide by in a blur of lazy TV watching, video game playing, and not dressing until after lunch.  I’ve done it before and chances are even with the best intentions we will still be doing a lot of lazy.  There is just so much time to fill and currently, not much to fill it with.

Last night I tried to find a magical solution to this problem online. I searched “what to do with kids that are off track” and got hundreds of sites giving recommendations for different youth correction facilities and advice to deal with troubled children. Not helpful.  I searched for “kids winter break” and had better luck although most of the activities had something to do with Christmas.  I can use some of these, although I’m still limited because of the age range of my kids.  In the time I wasted trying to find a plan for keeping everyone engaged and entertained without breaking the bank or my emotional well being, I probably could have come up with some great ideas of my own.

So this morning I did –

  1. The library – I love the idea of being lazy with books.  My dream is one day to have the whole family curled up with great books and reading together for hours on end. Right now that’s more difficult, my toddler has limited patience for both visiting the library and reading together. For the other two it’s still a great idea. If I’m lucky I can even find a little something for myself as well!
  2. Cooking – There are so many fun treats that I’d like to try making with my kids.  I’ve seen recipes for fruit leathers, cheese crackers, and other yummy kid staples that would be great to try, and healthier than the store bought versions as well.
  3. Crafting – From simple paper crafts like origami and watercolors to fiber crafts like finger knitting and bracelet making, there are hundreds of different things that we could try together.
  4. Science experiments – There are hundreds of mini experiments that can be done in and around the house.  Some of the things on my list: baking soda, making slime, paper airplanes, magnets, magnifying glasses, and more.
  5. Plain old fashioned fun – Hide and seek, hopscotch, jacks, and all of those great games that have survived the years are still terrific for kids.  What’s more they don’t require expensive equipment and can be done anywhere.
Author: child and books by george hodan

Author: child and books by george hodan

With these ideas I’m hoping that the break will be fun for everyone – including me.  There’s nothing worse than working so hard to entertain the kids that there’s no time or energy left for the stuff that I need and want to do. 

What do you like doing when the kids are out of school?