A Few Fun Activities

I have to admit that ever since Eulee joined our family, I have not been a really fun mom.  I haven't really thought about crafts and activities for the kids like I used to.  I just haven't had the extra energy.

But now that Eulee can sleep pretty well at night and takes decent naps during the day, I have been able to setup activities and crafts for Eli and Evie.  It has been SO nice to feel somewhat normal again.  And it's been nice to spend time doing activities with Evie on the days that Eli is at school.  Now I can work with her on her ABCs, too.  She almost knows all 26!

Here are a few things we've been up to--

1. Magic Milk: This is AH-mazing and super easy to set up!  What more could I ask for?  You pour some milk into a shallow bowl, put a few drops of food coloring in randomly, then hand your kid a toothpick dipped in soap...then watch the magic happen!  Eli and Evie both had their mouths open when they saw the results.  They kept saying, "Whoa!"  It was so neat to watch the soap break the surface tension like that.  Even I was in awe.

(I'm whispering in the videos because I had lost my voice from a cold.)
Eli lost interest after he started mixing all the colors and ended up with brown milk.  Evie sat there for another 20 minutes just using her "magic toothpick."  Love it!

2. Recycled Rainbow: I brought out a bunch of crafty things (sequins, buttons, poms, etc.) that I had laying around and I had Evie sort them by color.  Then I drew a rainbow on a piece of paper with marker and had her glue the colored pieces in the right places.  I was thinking this would be a 2 day job for Evie, but she actually sat there for 30 minutes and completed the entire craft!  I was so proud of her for sitting there so quietly and for focusing for such a long period of time.  She was so proud of herself, too.  She had to show everyone her rainbow!

3. Disappearing ABCs: I wrote a few letters on a coffee filter in washable marker.  Then I gave Evie a dropper and a bowl of water.  I would say a letter and she would have to find it and then make it "disappear" by putting a few drops of water on the letter.  She loved how all the colors ended up blending together.  At the end, she even drew her own picture on another coffee filter and made it disappear.

It's been so much fun!!