Boys Will Be Boys

This year, a few friends and I organized a co-op preschool for our energetic three-year-old boys. It's nothing fancy; just once a week for two hours, to give our little men some social interaction and an intro to a preschool setting. We usually do some circle time (letter, color, shape of the day, weather, and show-and-tell), story time, snack, a short lesson, and an even shorter craft (the boys aren't into crafty details, I've learned). The rest of the time free play time. The boys really seem to get a kick out of it. Logan feels so big bringing his backpack to school just like Andrew.

This week was my turn to teach preschool at our house. We learned about camping. The boys especially loved their mini flashlights and playing in the "tent."

Wesley, Gavin, Logan, and Brigham

The camping fun didn't last too long though. Soon the flashlights became...you guessed it...LIGHTSABERS, and the tent became the Rebel base! BOYS!!!

A few weeks ago, during our apple unit, we took a preschool field trip to Eddy's Fruit Farm to pick apples.

Logan had a great time picking his own apples and filling his bag with many different varieties. We went home with plenty to make yummy Crockpot Applesauce and a few batches of Apple Pumpkin Muffins!

Camping Trip

Last weekend was the annual ward campout. The weather was perfect and we had a great time! It was so nice to be away from the world and enjoy the beauty and peace of nature. And guess what? There actually ARE stars up in the sky here in Cleveland! Who Knew?!

Top Five Best Things About Our Campout

#5 - Pioneer Trail Camp

This place is awesome! We're talking rows of bathrooms with showers and flushing toilets and rows of sinks with mirrors and running water (cold and hot!). This is where the YW around here have their Girls Camp each Summer. A FAR cry from my Girls Camp years at good ol' Lake Lyman (right Mom, Jen, and Amy?)!

#4 - Sleeping in a Tent

The boys couldn't wait to get into the tent! They kept asking us, "Is it time to go to bed yet?"

#3 - FIRE!

Andrew, our little Pyro! We had to keep a close eye on him around the fire! Every time we turned around, he was throwing something into the flames and watching it burn.

#2 - Bryan's Cooking

Here's one of the very best things about camping - Bryan does all the cooking! He does such a good job too! This time he made tin foil dinners with glazed sesame chicken, seasoned potatoes and veggies! YUM! Great job, Babe!

#1 - S'MORES!!!

Need I say more?

I was kinda dreading sleeping in a tent with a 6 month old, but Hannah did pretty well! Our only issue was around 1:00am when she wanted to eat. I had pre-filled her bottles with water, so I thought making her formula would be easy, but by that time, the water had gotten a little too cold for her liking and she screamed whenever she took a gulp. We had to somehow make it warmer, so Bryan got up, lit the camp stove, boiled some water, and then let the bottle soak in the water for a few minutes to warm up (yes, Hannah screamed through this whole process - so sorry fellow campmates!) Eventually Hannah got her bottle and settled down for the rest of the night. It wasn't until the next morning that one of our friends reminded us of the warm running water in the bathrooms right next to our camp site - DOH!!! Yeah, I felt pretty dumb!

When it was time to pack up and leave after breakfast, Logan "hid" behind a tree, hoping we wouldn't find him and take him home. I guess that means he had a fun time, right?