Inventive learning tools

I discovered a new way of teaching counting today, without even meaning to. We have a stack of Skip-Bo cards that Will has recently discovered, and likes to throw all over the floor. He did it again today, and while we were cleaning them up, I had another "Mommy breakthrough". I thought, "Hey, these cards have numbers on them-why not teach Will his numbers." So I started showing Will some of the cards and pointed out which number was on each card. So far he recognizes the number 7, but he also thinks the number 8 is the letter O, so we still have some work to do.

Crazy Kid

I left Will alone for a few minutes to play, and when I went to find him, this is what I found

It's amazing what a little creativity can do

As a mother I am constantly trying to do all I can to make sure that Will is entertained and happy, at the same time trying to make sure he is well-behaved and safe. This is often a very daunting task, especially when the "terrible twos" are in full force. I am not the most creative person in the world, but I think I might have figured out a way to make cleaning up toys and being obedient a fun game. Earlier today I decided to see how well Will would do at "Simon Says". We started simple with things like "Simon Says touch your head" and "Simon Says sit in the chair." When I saw that he had grasped the concept, I decided to try "Simon Says put your shoes in your room." It worked! So I kept going with other things that needed to be put away. I was amazed at how quickly he did as he was asked, and there were no tantrums and no disobeying. He actually had fun! I love it when I have "Mommy breakthroughs" :-)

ABC Tag

Ok, so I wasn't officially tagged, but I saw this on my cousin's blog and I thought it looked like fun, so I hope she doesn't mind.

A-Attached or Single? Happily attached
B-Best Friend? I don't really have one, but I'd say my husband is probably closest to being my best friend.
C-Cake or Pie? Either one is great. I love chocolate cake and strawberry pie the best.
D-Day of Choice? It's a toss-up between Friday and Sunday.
E-Essential Items? Cell phone, car keys, backpack
F-Favorite Color? Most shades of blue
G-Gummy Bears or Worms? Neither one is really that great, but I guess I like the worms better.
H-Hometown? Provo, UT
I-Indulgence? Since we don't have our TV hooked up, I've gotten into watching shows online. My favorites are Dancing with the Stars, Extreme Makeover Home Edition, LOST, Oprah's Big Give, and Are you Smarter than a Fifth Grader (I'm a big reality show fan, in case you couldn't tell)
J-January or July? Definitely July
K-Kids? 1 extremely cute and extremely active little boy
L-Life isn't complete without? Spending time with my husband and my son
M-Marriage Date? July 10, 2004
N-Number of Brothers and Sisters? 1 sister, 3 sisters-in-law, 4 brothers-in-law
O-Oranges or Apples? I love apples, but I'm also a big fan of orange juice
P-Phobias or fears? For some odd reason I hate having to call people on the phone that I don't know very well. Also, I'm somewhat afraid of heights.
Q-Quote? I have way too many favorite quotes to pick just one.
R-Reason to Smile? When I hear my son say that he loves me or he gives me a big hug and kiss.
S-Season of Choice-It used to be summer, but the spring is really turning out to be beautiful here.
T-Tag 5 People? I'm going to cheat and just tag whoever feels like doing this one.
U-Unknown Fact about Me? I won Student of the Year in 8th grade.
V-Vegetable? Either corn or potato.
W-Worst Habit? I'm definitely trying to work on it, but I have a bad habit of putting myself down or being too hard on myself.
X-X-ray or Ultrasound? Uhh, ultrasound I guess. I don't really like those hard X-ray tables.
Y-Your Favorite Food? I've admitted it on an earlier post, but I have a slight obsession with tuna noodle casserole. I don't know why, but that stuff is soooo good.
Z-Zodiac Sign-Cancer

Grandparents are great!

A couple days ago we received a great package in the mail from Will's great-grandma Phyllis. It was full of some fun treasures, including a book and CD combo called "Take-Along Songs: Silly Songs." Will and I are listening to it as I write this, and Will is having so much fun listening while looking at the book. It's full of songs that I remember as a little girl - "Do Your Ears Hang Low", "There's a Hole in the Bucket", and "John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt". I'm sure I'll probably get sick of it after about the 100th time of listening to it, but I'm all for things that keep Will's interest, even for just a few minutes. Thanks Grandma!

Who knew?

I discovered something yesterday. Going to the library is really fun! I know you're all probably thinking "duh!", but you have to understand that, as much of a voracious reader as I am, going to the library has never been on my top ten list of fun things to do. Until yesterday. Our local library has small concerts that happen at least once a month, and last night our family decided to go to one of them. It was a group called "Oberon the Possum King". That name alone tells you what kind of fun we had. Not only was it fun for the kids, but the parents had fun taking pictures, watching their kids dance, and tapping their feet to the good music. All in all it was a great time, and we're all looking forward to next time.

Really fun tag

This is such a fun blog tag! Apparently what you're supposed to do is go to Google images (or Yahoo works too) and do an image search for each of these categories.

Age on my next birthday



A place I'd like to visit


This is actually supposed to represent all of Europe. I couldn't decide on just one place.

A favorite place


I love this temple for many reasons, most especially, of course, because that's where Bill and I were married, so it holds special meaning to me.

One of my favorite things


Bill is always commenting about what a voracious reader I am. Now that I have more time on my hands (at least when Will is sleeping), and I don't have to read textbooks anymore, it's such a fun and relaxing thing to do.

One of my favorite foods


In case you can't tell, this is tuna noodle casserole. I'm a little embarrassed to admit just how much I love this stuff. I can go through a couple of bags of egg noodles and a few cans of tuna in very little time.

Favorite flower


Call me old-fashioned, but I just think roses are one of the most beautiful flowers there are. There are so many different colors and types, and they just look so delicate.

Favorite color


It's funny what you can come up with when you do a word search. My favorite shade of blue would probably be navy blue.

The city I live in


One thing I love about Urbana is the neighborhoods. The streets seem to go on forever, and there are a lot of really neat old houses. It makes for a great family drive.

Name of a past pet


Actually, my cat was named Sugar Baby, and I got him when I was about 6 or 7 as a birthday present I think.

A nickname I've had


I can't remember any of my childhood nicknames, so I picked the one I have now.

My college major



My first job


I was a ticket cashier at Seven Peaks Water Park in Provo, Utah.

A hope for 2008


Now that Will is almost 3, I'm definitely ready for and hoping that we have another baby soon. Cross your fingers!

So instead of singling people out, I'm going to tag anyone who reads this and wants to have some fun of their own.

You're wrong, Mom

I have decided I have one of the smartest kids in the world (I know, you are all thinking "You're wrong, mine is the smartest"). But allow me to brag about Will for a minute - not like you have a choice :-). Anyway, last night we were sitting with Will in his room getting him ready for bed. He's got a picture on his wall of Joseph Smith, because that's where we got the inspiration for his middle name. We pointed to the picture and said "Who's that?" Right away he said "Joseph Smith." I proceeded to explain that Joseph Smith was our first prophet, to which Will promptly responded "No, Thomas S. Monson is the prophet." Not only was it funny that my 2 year old was correcting me, but I felt proud that my son is learning at an early age who his Church leaders are.

What is it with kids and the phone?

So have you ever noticed that, as soon as you get on the phone, your child decides that it's the perfect time to go and get into some kind of mischief, because you aren't paying as close attention? Well today, my child has done just that. Earlier tonight I was talking to Bill on the phone and I saw that Will had grabbed the marker off the whiteboard in the kitchen. I didn't think anything of it for about a minute or two, because he's always grabbing things like that to drum with, until he came back over to me and I noticed that the lid was missing. I got a bad feeling in my stomach, told Bill I'd call him back later, and followed Will into his room...where I found this:



and this (Sorry for the bad picture. That's a small section of his bedsheet):



and this:



I was pretty proud of myself for keeping my cool, while on the inside I felt like screaming. Usually Will is so well-behaved, but I guess I was just in denial and I knew in the back of my mind that something like this is inevitable with a child his age. Oh well. Off I go to find the 409!

My little motivater

Who needs a personal trainer when you have a 2-year-old? A while ago Will saw Bill and I doing some sit-ups on the floor, and now he constantly asks Mommy to get on the ground and do sit-ups. It was funny when that was one of the first things he said when I went to get him up from his nap today. And who can argue with a an adorable little boy? He'll whip me into shape yet!

So glad

I just had to share how glad I am for one thing - the fact that Will is perfectly capable of entertaining himself. As I sit here I am listening to him waking up from his nap, perfectly content to stay in bed and play with whatever toys he hasn't thrown out yet. Bill and I were talking last night about how innocent and helpless a newborn is, and I was saying that it will be strange for me to go back to being needed 24/7 whenever we have another child. It made me appreciate the fact that I don't always have to stay with Will and entertain him, which is especially nice when I have to get something done around the house. I love spending time with him, of course, but it's nice to get a break every once in a while!