We had a fabulous time when our son and his family visited earlier this month. Ben, our oldest son, was in a wedding for one of his long-time friends. They’ve known each other since birth—that’s how long-time.
And while he focused on wedding fun, ChiChi and Pop focused on four boys. I tried to line up some pampering for our daughter-in-love (who is such a great mom) so she wouldn’t feel left out. Besides, what mother of four boys under six doesn’t deserve some TLC?! For that matter, what mother of you-fill-in-the-blank doesn’t?!
But, back to the boys…
Puppets!
For this visit’s art project I had planned to use a big box to make a puppet theater. But the box I had earmarked in my parents’ garage wasn’t quite what we needed after all. So, we just made the puppets, which turned out to be plenty to satisfy their creative urges!
I’ve found the simpler the project, the more fun for all of us.
I took the boys (well, the three who walk!) to The Dollar Store and told them we had $10 to spend buying supplies to make puppets. It was so much fun watching their decision-making process: “I want pink hair. No, yellow. No, blue. No, red.” In the end they each chose a different color of yarn for hair.
They also chose some cute but—as it turned out—useless glue sticks. (Even with kids packaging makes the sale!), a rainbow assortment of popsicle sticks, good old brown paper lunch sacks, small colored pom-poms, and googly eyes. I already had plenty of markers, crayons, and paint at home.
As an aside, have I ever told you how much the grands love these “dot” markers? Oh my gosh, they LOVE them! I guess it’s because they are simple to use, and you get instant polka dots.
The frog-head glue sticks didn’t work, so the oldest made the executive decision that we needed double-sided tape. I didn’t have a clue what double-sided tape was when I was six, but then I’ve got advanced grandchildren. What can I say?
Decorating was straightforward, and I love how different they all turned out.
The Next Projects
We stuck with markers on the puppets, but you KNOW the paint had to come out! We had two simple paint projects: Stars and rocks.
I’d found these pressed wood stars at The Dollar Tree and put them in their welcome baskets. No instructions needed for this…just set out some paint, give ‘em cheap brushes, and let them have at it.
The rock event resulted from our prior night’s fun. If you recall, I gave the grands backpacks filled with adventure goodies. One was similar to this “critter catcher.” They all brought them so that we could catch lightning bugs like we did last year.
It tickles me that catching lightning bugs—or fireflies—has become a tradition at ChiChi and Pop’s! I have wonderful memories of doing the same with neighbors we had when I was a child. As an adult I’m still wowed by the blinking glow of the tiny insects. Our Creator sure did have a fabulous imagination, didn’t He?!
But, back to the rocks. The boys had filled their critter catchers with things that would make the fireflies “feel at home”—leaves, twigs, grass, and rocks. They found their rocks in our firepit area.
So, when the fireflies announced they were ready to be freed, we recycled those rocks. Last year I had found a rock painting kit at Hobby Lobby, and I still have those proudly displayed on our screened porch. So, I suggested we paint these found treasures and then scatter them back into the firepit. Then, ChiChi and Pop could enjoy spotting them all year long.
They LOVED that idea! They even got Pop in on painting them! (He chose to paint Jesus on one—get it? Jesus is the Rock—and the Texas A&M logo on another, in case you were wondering.) After they dried, the boys carefully placed them around the firepit area like they were hiding Easter eggs. A colorful reminder of a fun, fun week together. Can you spot some of them?
Last but not least, this is what Noah, the four-month-old, looked like all the time! I’ve never seen a baby smile so much and be so easy-going! I guess with three active older brothers, he already recognizes the need to be flexible.
To Be Continued…
In my next post I’ll share all of the activities we did with the boys. We crammed a lot of action into a few days. And we didn’t even get to do everything we planned!
Fortunately there will be a “next time,” and we’ll probably think of some new stuff to do in the meantime.
How do you entertain your grands? We must swap notes! Please leave a comment…
Linda Hart
Cutest ever! I don’t have any of these but enjoy seeing the antics of others!
Tracey Buchanan
Thanks, Linda!!