Preschool Paintball!

Lil Bisuit has had a busy summer--he just turned three years old, so we've had lots of family in town for the celebrating, then his aunt was here for a few weeks and kept us entertained, and, in between, we've been working hard on preparations for Baby Biscuit who's due to arrive in August...so, we just haven't had a lot of time to blog. Now that things are settling down some, we needed some summer fun outside today...MESSY fun, of course...but since real paintball was out of the question for either of us, we decided to make our own game of it!

First we had to gather our supplies...water guns and squirters, splash bombs (those soft, foamie water balls for the pool), bowls, washable poster paint in various colors, and good ole' H20...

We filled up the bowls and blasters with a mix of water and paints, and we were ready for pint-sized paint wars!

 He thinks he can avoid my expert, precision shots with his impressive ninja dodging skills...

OHHH! I gotcha!! Mommy 1, Biscuit - 0!! :D

Just wait...there's more where THAT came from :D

Hee hee...I think I'm still winning, but now it's payback time!

Uh-oh...he's gettin' serious now!

Time for Mommy to go on the offensive again!

 Let's re-load...

Hey...cheater! You can't just smear me with it! ;)

Umm...I guess maybe me and Baby Biscuit didn't win after all?

The proud champion...:D

 Oh well...there's always a rematch right? And clean-up is just as fun--especially with colored bathwater!!

Pet Caterpillars?

A few weeks ago we had a TON of those tent caterpillars in trees around our house, and crawling all over the sidewalk. The first time we came across one, Lil Biscuit was so excited by it that I put it in a jar with some leaves and sticks and dirt so he could see it more up close at home.
Here's what transpired:

So as soon as we got him inside, he laid down on his tummy and started talking to the "worm" (I have a video of the conversation which was adorable but it is taking too long to upload so you'll have to trust me, it was cute!) anyway he kept asking me to get him out, so he could "pet it like a doggy"...so I let the fuzzy footed thing out of the jar to crawl around the kitchen floor.

Biscuit thought he was awesome!

He wasn't content just to watch him and pet him...

 ...he wanted to HOLD the caterpillar in his hand! He kept giggling and saying, "He tickle, mommy!"

He was pretty thrilled when I told him we could "keep" the critter overnight. We did let it go in a tree the next day, in case you were wondering ;)

Driveway Sponge Stamp Splash Art!

Today we skipped spring and went straight to SUMMER! It was HOT...close to 85 degrees, so we had to do something outside and WET! I found some sponge stamps that I originally bought for less than a dollar at Hobby Lobby to use for crafts and painting (they didn't work so well for that) and figured they'd be more fun in a sand bucket full of water. I told Lil Bisucit the plan to stamp some shapes on the driveway with bubble water and sponge stamps...he thought it sounded like a good time!

 First he had to pick out what stamps he wanted to use...

Then wring out some of the extra water....

Then he had to find a nice dry spot on the driveway to work. The stamps could make big blobs with too much water in them (or not much of anything without enough), but if you're really careful the prints turn out nice!

 When he got bored with that, we moved on to stamping with Biscuit ... first, he put a foot in the water bucket...

and ran all over the driveway making footprints!

 Here's one he made...

He made handprints too...

And splashed around with a soccer ball...

Then he washed rocks.

Finally it was time to clean up...he loved dumping out all the water!

 He was a good helper...

 He was all smiles after a good time - in a good mood, tuckered out and ready for a nap!

Leaf-Looking with a Little One

Today we had the delightful combination of beautiful foliage and warmer weather so me and my little guy couldn't resist a trip to the park. In fact, we heard about a new one we had to check out, and it was paradise for a toddler ;D

Of course, the new playground was fun, but the best parts of all were not man made!!

He absolutely LOVED this little creek. And the gravel pile beside it of course! The colors of the trees near there were breathtaking! A photo does not do it justice.

The fuzzy "caterpillar" weeds made his day too!

He called them "tickle weeds!"

He also found some deer tracks...this place looked like Heaven for wildlife.

Then it was time to run through the fall fields!

Look! We found a scenic trail hidden behind a field.

Hmm...I wonder if there's a tree house to play in up there?

"See the pretty grasses mommy?"

And a bridge too? Wow, does it get any better?

Yes it does! Ladybugs!

And ladybug kisses!!

And holes to throw pine needles and rocks inside!

The quiet babble of the brook was so relaxing to us both.

I wish the leaves didn't have to fall off...but until they do, we'll probably be back to this place as often as we can!