Wednesday, October 28, 2009

A Crafty Haunted House

For arts and crafts time today we made a fancy haunted house. We made a trip to Michael's a while back and found (for $2, I might add) a handy little pre-packaged craft.

It consisted of two sheets of balsa wood which are stamped, making easy to punch out pieces ready for assembly.

I punched them out and did minor sanding, then I passed them over to little man for coloring (he let me do a couple pieces). We then took our time assembling it (which was easier without the instructions) and viola...

Casa de fantasmas!!

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

TRAGEDY STRIKES THE FIRST ANNUAL LEGO BOAT REGALIA

This just in, ladies and gentlemen. The First Annual Lego boat Regalia has suffered a major tragedy. Of the 5 boats entered in what was to be an historic event, only two boats and three amateur sailors have survived to tell the tale.

This cool, fall morning began as any other. A light, crisp breeze pushed across the waterfront and calming birdsong filled the air. The excitement began to build as block after block was assembled and the boats began to take shape. Once completed and fitted with sails, the shoreline became riddled with spectators who came to witness history in the making. As the day progressed, however, no one watching could have known that they would instead be witness to one of the greatest tragedies in Lego boating history.

Early reports received stated that upon entering the water, many of the boats began tipping and taking on water, ultimately resulting in the capsizing of three of the vessels, including the royal ship of Schtupidberg. We cannot confirm if any royalty was on board, however we are still investigating. Witnesses to the event have been cordoned off for questioning, but some witnesses were quoted as saying the accident was, "horrifying, unbelievable and scarring."

The only three surviving members of the event include West Virginia resident, Cleaven Onetooth and his boat, Yard Junk and the leather clad duo of Dicky and JJ with their boat, The Streisand.

"Amateur tapes have been confiscated by local authorities and the cause of the multitude of accidents is still under review," said Hans Blockenbuilden, the representative for the event. "Until then, we can only speculate as to the cause. Until the findings are determined, we can only pray for the families and those affected by this horrifying accident."


**We must warn you, the photographs below may be disturbing to some readers.

[this image removed due to its graphic nature]

Other representatives for the event, who spoke on the condition of anonyminity, stated that they believe the design of some of the ships may be to blame, but they too are speculating. However in traditional Lego fashion, Hans Blockenbuilden was quoted to say, "the fallen vessels will be stripped down and we'll give it another go. That's just what you do with the little blocks."

Friday, October 16, 2009

What's inside the box??!?

Ok, well and envelope would be the more appropriate term, but I'm a fan of Weird Al and 'UHF'...so sue me.

Mommy opened the envelope and what was inside this spooky, makeshift package of doom?

A nice Halloween picture inside a home made frame for Mommy to put on her desk.


(and if you're curious...that's a trick-or-treat bag he's holding...der)

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Window art and a surprise for Mommy...

Today was a cold, rainy, Fall day. Perfect for making Fall decorations out of constriction paper. Everything we made was simple and easy to cut out, giving the little mister some practice with his ladybug safety scissors.

He cut them out, I helped him with the gluing and he decorated away! Just a few minutes ago he ran up to the window and said, "I can't believe we did all of these today. It's so awesome!"

And check in tomorrow to see what this little project for mommy is...you won't know until she does...

Monday, October 5, 2009

The Rainy Day Obstacle

A couple of weeks ago it was raining rain outside, but apparently (I was told) it was raining hot lava inside (I'm glad my son imagines things like Hellfire and brimstone).

Anyway, it got me thinking. What if it was raining hot lava? We couldn't exactly go outside to play, but we could get some of that energy out inside...we can make a pillow obstacle course. It;s fun and easy, takes 0 prep time and actually engages the problem solving process.

First, set a starting point and an ending point. Then, for round 1, throw a line of pillows across the floor. Hop, hop, hop...done. That was easy. Now for round 2: make a zig-zag pattern, but don't tell him how to do it. Let him figure it out. Hop, think, hop, think, hop, done. Good. Now for round 3, I got a little bit cynical. I gave him a pillow at the starting point and made a huuge gap from the start to the first pillow. The idea is that he's to throw down the first pillow where needed and go from there.

Overall, the game was a success. He played it for about 30 minutes, which is awesome. You can get really creatve too, make his socks lava proof, but only for 3 steps or one hop. If you have different colored pillows, set a path for him where hee has to hit a certain color combination. The possibilities aren't exactly endless, but you can do a lot with it.

So the next time you have a rainy day, pretend there's 1000 degrees of orange fiery death-liquid on the floor and have some fun!

Thursday, October 1, 2009

Volcanoes are cool.

The old vinegar/baking powder trick is an easy trick for an elevation to cool dad status.

take a little vinegar (and some food coloring)...


add a little baking powder (pay no mind to the use of a shot glass)...


and voila!