Easter Egg Hunt :)

We recently joined a new small group through our Church.  We love it!  5 families . . . . 27 soon to be 28 kids!  All of the other families have 6 kids.  And they all homeschool which is definitely what we are leaning towards with our kids.  

We had an Easter egg hunt today with our small group.  Samuel was sick last night but he seemed fine this morning so we decided to still go.  (He acted fine throughout the day but ended up feeling sick again Mon/Tues/Weds/Thurs - nasty nasty bug!!)  The weather was beautiful - up near 60 - the warmest day of the year so far.  The kids really enjoyed the egg hunt and also playing with the other kids.  Aliyah was really clingy . . . I'm a little worried she is coming down with what Samuel had/has.  Daryl and I both really enjoyed the adult company and spending time with other like-minded families!!

March 30, 2013: Happy 4th Birthday Hope!

Odd and Even

Samuel and Daryl were out shooting hoops in the driveway tonight (it was sunny and almost 50 today - Spring is coming!!) when Samuel told Daryl:

"Daddy, when my numbers are in order I shoot two pointers and when my numbers are not in order, I shoot three pointers."

Daryl used this to teach him that "in order" numbers are even numbers and "out of order" numbers are odd numbers.  Things are not right in Samuel's world when he has an odd number for his basketball score (i.e. When he only makes one free throw or when he is way behind and starts taking three pointers to catch up.).  But he'll never just take one three pointer - he'll keep going back to the three point line to make a second one if he makes a first.  If he gets too frustrated and can't make a second one, he'll shoot a couple two pointers and then go back to shoot a three pointer to put his score back "in order".

I continue to be amazed at Samuel and his love for (and quirkiness with!) numbers.  After tonight, he can tell you if any number is odd or even.  And all that coming from playing countless basketball games downstairs to 30 (or 40, 50, sometimes 60!).  Basketball is great for math skills!!  He's also great with addition and some subtraction - and keeping score during basketball games has only strengthened this love for numbers!  He can usually figure out how far behind a team is from the other team or how many points they need to catch up, etc etc.  Who needs traditional sit-at-a-desk math lessons?  Especially with my active little boy that rarely sits still??  Basketball math lessons work great!!

**In other news - we put the swings up today!  That means Spring is officially here.  The weather was beautiful and we played outside for the first time this year without hats and mittens and winter coats!  I love pushing the kids on the swings after they haven't been on one all winter - the gasping and "don't go any higher!" didn't last too long this year though before they were once again acclimated to the feeling of swinging high up in the air!

An Unplanned Haircut

Today was one of those days where we all had a really difficult morning.  I was trying to settle things down and gain some order to the morning by doing an Easter craft with the kids.  Samuel ended up getting frustrated and throwing a fit over copying down the letters "HAPPY EASTER" onto his Easter egg that he had just cut out.  I was helping him through his frustration when I heard Aliyah say, "hair everywhere!!"  I turned towards her and saw long blonde hair all over the table.  It took a few seconds before my brain comprehended what my eyes saw.  Aliyah was as shocked as I was, I think.  I cried, she cried.  We talked about how we only cut paper and how it is never okay to cut hair.  She took a chunk out of the right side and it really isn't all that noticeable, I keep telling myself that it could have been much worse.  Because I didn't see her do it, I'm not sure if it was intentional or unintentional.  Samuel was sitting over on the futon (where I sent him to calm down from his meltdown over copying the letters) freaking out and saying over and over again, "Is it bleeding? Is it bleeding?"  There was a lot of chaos in the Huinink basement as this all unfolded!

The day continued to be a struggle.  Complete with Samuel dumping a plate full of crumbs all over his head when he picked up his plate to ask for a second sandwich.  I had to laugh.  Because really, what else are you going to do?  Hair grows back, crumbs sweet up . . . all these days are fleeting and I absolutely love the ages of my kids right.  Some days are just like this. :)

Jungle Joes

The kids loved Jungle Joe's today!  Samuel went with my Mom (and Savannah) a month or two ago and since then he has not stopped talking about it and about how he really wants to take Hope and Aliyah with him next time.  Aliyah was unsure at first but after I got her going, I couldn't get her to stop!  By the end of the 2 hours, she was going down the slides all by herself - no fear at all! It was so much fun to watch her!  Hope ended up with a huge rug burn on her chin (ouch!) but she had a great time as well.  Samuel had fun showing his sisters all of the cool slides.  We were a little disappointed that our favorite obstacle course was deflated and that the shark slide had been replaced with a tiger slide . . . but we still managed to have a blast!!

**I'm writing this post months after this day actually happened.  FYI - about 2 days after we went to Jungle Joe's, Samuel came down with the stomach flu.  Aliyah followed the next day and Hope a couple of days after that.  I'm not saying it was the conditions at Jungle Joe's that got us sick . . . I'm just saying I'm suspicious. ;)

My Girls

Hope set Aliyah all up for her meal.  Complete with the arm protectors from the chair for a bib!

Toys? Who needs 'em?

Really.  This entertained two of my children for a good 15-20 minutes.  A toothbrush catapult.  They had a blast taking turns launching the toothbrush off of the edge of the table and seeing how far they could make it fly!  Way more fun than toys.  Way more fun.

What is that round yellow thing up in the sky?

The sun was shining through our windows this morning and my kids didn't quite know what to do with it! Samuel wanted his sunglasses on while eating breakfast because the sun was too bright. Can you tell we haven't seen sunshine in awhile? Gotta love Michigan in March! :/

Can you tell . . .

. . . that we were just at the dentist?  I'm not sure what Aliyah's job was in these pictures but Samuel was the patient and Hope was the dentist.  

Our trip to the real dentist went well.  No cavities for anyone!!  Samuel and Hope were both very brave and let the dental hygienist count and clean their teeth.  Samuel loves when they polish his teeth - he says the polisher tickles!  Aliyah wouldn't go within 10 feet of the chair so we decided to wait with her and try again next time.  She still got a new toothbrush and a prize from the basket. :)