Al Fresco Dining

One sure sign that the warm weather is here to stay is when we start eating dinner outside. It is such a simple ritual, but yet seems so elegant and special. Our backyard seems to have a serene feeling as the day winds down at dinner time. We go from the craziness & giggles with friends & games in the bright afternoon sun to a relaxed state during the sweet light at the end of the day.  It is not uncommon for us to spot a turkey or two from the deck, and it is almost routine to see the gang of five deer dash through the yard as we are eating. We feel more connected to the outdoors and with each other as we enjoy our meals as a family.

Outdoor Chalkboard

The girls and I created this neat little drawing station in the yard. I saw the idea in a Lowe's ad and slightly revised it to make it a more kid-friendly project.

We took cement board and painted it with black exterior paint (flat finish). I was told this works better outdoors since regular chalkboard paint cracks and peels when exposed to the elements.

A friend of mine showed us how to create alcohol ink tiles.  I cannot believe how easy and fun (and cheap!) this project is with school aged children!  We plan to make these tiles in the future for other projects or gifts. 

Here's the tutorial on her blog A Bird and a Tree After buying the ink set for $10 which we can use many times, the only cost is the tiles at Lowes.  We chose the 4x4 tiles for 16 cents each. 

I used tile adhesive to arrange the tiles around the cement board.

And here is our finished outdoor chalkboard.

Lessons in the garden

We started our herb garden this past week, along with some new flowers. The girls were excited to get dirty, but reluctant to hear my "life cycle, photosynthesis, importance in composting, parts of a plant" speech. As Mya pointed out: I like the planting, but not all this learning. (I am so looking forward to parent-teacher conferences in kindergarten.)

I told them to just put the garden together and since they know EVERYTHING, there is no need for me to say anything about gardening at all. I suggested they sort the plants before we got started.  They chose to sort by edible vs. non edible, then sorted each group further by expected height.  Marlee thought it was a good idea to place the plants while in their containers around the plot to see where we may want to put them in the ground.  We discussed height, sun/shade requirements, appearance, and accessibility to our herbs.

After everything was planned out, we had a great time creating our garden.  Both girls were relieved that they escaped my science lesson. I couldn't bear to tell them all that sorting, spatial reasoning, and critical thinking was certainly a killer math lesson that I could not have better planned myself!

Free play

Sometimes I forget the benefit of free play, how it not only strengthens the creative mind but also strengthens the bond between two sisters who are in the prime of their childhood.  I tend to get a little uneasy if the temperature is above 50 degrees and we are not outside or if the kids are looking for something to do and I do not have a back-up art project for them. I created a world for my children where they go to a structured school, have formal ballet lessons, arranged playdates, and enrichment activities. Free play is sometimes underrated in a world where we only want the "best" experiences for our kids.

So today, even though it was close to 80 degrees, we cancelled everything from our social calendar. The gals decided to stay in their room all day and spend some time with old toys. This was one of the most peaceful, laid back days we had in awhile.

Miss Matches

Although the girls are only 22 months apart, they like to dress and act like twins.  On most days they will choose their outfits together, not always matching, but usually both will wear dresses or pants, etc. They have long deliberating discussions about the weather and what clothing will agree with it or what colors suit their moods--yes, I actually overheard that one. There are some days that they feel they must absolutely match.  This has been a challenge for me since I buy most of their clothes on consignment. It is a great find when I come across a duplicate of Marlee's vintage Mini Boden skirt in Mya's size.  Oh, I love children's consignment shops, but it is getting more difficult to find cute clothes in sizes 7 and up. Not to mention my time to spend in these shops has become more limited.

I recently saw pillowcase dresses in a Hannah Andersson catalogue.  I simply had to buy 2 matching dresses!  However the total cost of $56 + shipping kinda made me realize that I am out of hand with this, and maybe while my girls like to dress similiar, is it because they are slightly encouraged? Anyway, they are 5 and 7, how much longer can this last? 

I decided to challenge myself to make 2 dresses for the cost of $20 total.  I googled a few patterns, the one I liked best was from LGB Studio, a great blog with other fun tutorials.  I bought 1 1/2 yards of fabric (matching dresses of course) for $8.99/yard and some double biased tape for $3.  I had the elastic in with my supplies already.

The dresses were a huge hit with the girls and a success with my budget.  Now I hope they can keep their style this cute for just a little bit longer.

Everything deserves a second chance, even a toothbrush

I suppose if I will be blogging about some of our learning experiences, I guess there will be a handful of household drama involved.

For instance, Mya was getting ready for school when she noticed that she was in need of a new toothbrush.  I helped her get one out of the closet and left her to finish.  Moments later, she came running downstairs sobbing. Her crisis was as follows:
"Mama, I threw my old toothbrush in the trash can. *sob, sob*  When I looked down at my lonely toothbrush in the trash, I felt *sob* so sorry for it. I picked it up and brushed my teeth with it even though it was in the trash.  I feel bad that I brushed my teeth with something from the trash, but *sob, sob* I couldn't stand to see it so lonely in the traaasssshhhh *sob, sob, sob, sob*  (Note to self: My 5 year old may need some closer supervision when brushing her teeth.)

Now personification of any and all household objects is a normal part of life for this child. I am remembering that I used to do that as a child as well. But right now, I am remembering that it is 8:15 and I have a dilemma of trying to help her solve this problem, be on time for school, and not burst out laughing.

After a few minutes of calming down and some reassurance that this innocent little toothbrush is not destined for the dark, lonely landfill, we began to brainstorm ideas.  Her first (and most clever) idea was to give it to Marlee so she can use it.  I am sure THAT will not cause any drama during night time brushing.  We finally settled on using it for a scrub brush for her bath toys during bath time. 

After our rescue of the toothbrush

So I have decided to keep a small box for our "think about it" items.  We discard our old objects into this box and ponder any additional use we may have for them.  Maybe every few weeks we can sort through and decided what really needs to be tossed or rescued.  Hopefully, this will also make us think twice before we decide what will go into the landfill.

Oh, and we were only 5 minutes late for school :)

First Post

So I have decided to start a blog! Welcome to 3 Mountain Girls.  The three girls being my daughters, Marlee and Mya, and me (Lori).  We live in the mountains of NC and enjoy the wonders and beauty of this area.  We spend a lot of our time outdoors and enjoy crafting, imaginitive play, and seizing every opportunity to learn something new about the world around us.  As a mom, I try to lead by example with healthy and simple living (sometimes it is not so simple)!
I will use this blog to journal our experiences as the girls and I (and their father will make some appearences as well) grow and learn together as a family and as individuals.