Synchronized Pooping

I came up with a new sport at the Olympics...Synchronized Pooping. My children will win...they are the best Synchronized poopers in the world! It really is amazing that they all seem to poop at the same times every day. Yes I did say same timeS (plural) because I do have some super poopers that poop several times a day! I put both diaper dudes on the floor to change them end up changing one and hear MOM MOM I need you to wipe me and I run off to one bathroom and wipe one bootie and then to another bathroom and wipe another bootie. Yes this does happen almost every day! Then I return to change the other diaper. I am telling you there will be no better Synchronized Poopers! We are raising them right here in our home!

Paper Chain

So we also made a paper chain counting down the days until Easter. The chain is totally demolished at this point, but I think we had it until we were at day 15 which is great! I got very eager at the beginning of making it and started by putting bible versus on each sheet. I made it to day 5 when Fussy Finn whom I had moved around in several different positions and was still screaming in the ergo carrier on my back point, Gavin was eating the markers and Tristan was well lets just say very stapler happy with everything around and on him! Water toppled on top of many of the slips of paper and I had to cut more and they had to decorate more. Gavin decorated his with the peanut butter that should have gone into his mouth and there was probably a little snot decorating going on as well. What a beautiful chain it was peanut butter, snot and all and I thought the thing would never break with the 1000 staples that held it together, but it did not stand the test of time in our home.

Stations of the Cross Activity

Grandma sent a baggie full of 14 items for the kids. Each station has an item that corresponds to it so when we read the station they find the item. Such a fun activity and I put pictures of the items because it is super easy to get together. Gavin (2) even has fun with it and understands. I heard him saying as he opened the bible the other day Jesus fall and Jesus die first time. My big kids are playing stations of the cross right now with their items. It is kind of cool that they take their bags and play stations of the cross together. Tristan knows all of them.
First Station - Jesus is condemned to death - rope
Second Station - Jesus takes his cross - Popsicle stick cross
Third Station - Jesus falls for the first time -bandaid
Fourth Station - Jesus meets his mother -small statue of Mary
Fifth Station - Simon helps Jesus carry his cross - red heart
Sixth Station - Veronica wipes Jesus' face - cloth with image of Christ
Seventh Station - Jesus falls the second time - bandaid
Eighth Station - Jesus meets the weeping women - tissue
Ninth Station - Jesus falls for the third time - bandaid
Tenth Station - Jesus' clothes are taken away - purple cloth
Eleventh Station - Jesus is nailed to the cross - large nail
Twelfth Station - Jesus dies on the cross - small crucifix and plastic spear
Thirteenth Station - Jesus is taken down from the cross - Pieta Holy Card
Fourteenth Station - Jesus is put in the tomb - stone

Lent

This is one activity we have done this lent.
The Family Altar:
I let them design it, but gave advice here and there. We used things that we had in our home and yes it does look kid created and yes it is in our living room! I had to let go of that whole thing especially when we were having people over to our house. Over a two week period of time we normally have a lot of traffic in and out because we have lots of people over and that is just how it is neighbors and friends in and out all the time, but during lent we had more new people come over than normal because of Bobby's birthday party and bunco that I hosted. I was really torn with whether or not I should take down the altar for the different events and have my house look prettier but I then realized by doing so I would teach my children vanity and in-authenticity. We could have our altar proudly displayed for some and then we could hide it away for others or we could share it with everyone. I chose share it with everyone and we are we share it with everyone who walks through our door. Many of which had no idea why we put the altar together or what the stations of the cross are. It has been a beautiful way to reach people and teach people about living as a domestic church. Okay so we started and of course the kids ran...sometimes I think they have no other speed especially the boys the only speed they have is run even when they are going four steps away. So they run away and come back with a bright multi colored and flowered comforter as the cloth to lay on the table. So yes it was super thick and so inappropriate for an altar, so I redirected them and said get a sheet that is plain and they came back with the one seen in the pic. They then proceeded to get their Mexican candles that we bought in Kroger one day on a whim. I never buy my kids anything as we go around stores for several reasons 1. They don't need it 2. They can't have everything they want 3. They need to be told no often 4. We don't have the money It is cool how the fourth reason allows the others to happen. It really is a blessing not to be able to get them everything and to not have enough money for everything. Materialism paralyzes the spirit. We want free little spirits we don't want spirits bound to a bunch of crap! BUT one day in Kroger shortly after Gavins long awaited talking we walked past the Mexican candles and in some adorable mumbled way he said what only I as his mother could make out to be Jesus! HE SAID JESUS! Any person walking by would have thought he said Ja Ja or some other meaningless sound, but I knew it definitely was Jesus so I said with excitement oh honey do you want Jesus well you can have Jesus and then of course Annaliese wanted Mary and Tristan wanted Jesus and there we go to pay for our Mexican candles. The kids are still to this day so proud of those candles. So Mexican Candles, a family bible, family rosaries, a cross, st. michael the arc angel, mary, stations of the cross, our bean jar, holy water and rice bowl box we are collecting money in.

Beanie the Snowman

Here are some pics of us with the last little dusting we had. You can tell by the grassy muddy snowman there wasn't much snow, but we made him and left no snow behind. Yes Annaliese is out there in a skirt with no tights and no jacket. I had gotten her dressed and she went in and changed. We had fun making beanie. Gavin loves hats, actually he just loves putting everything on his head...everything. I took a picture of Finnian on my back to show he goes everywhere and does everything even playing in the snow he just does it all on my back. He loves being in the ergo carrier!