Happy Syrup

My syrup wishes me a good day each morning:

Death Star Birthday Cake

When we asked Grant what kind of cake he wanted for his 5th birthday, he said he wanted a Star Wars cake. If I was really talented that request may have resulted in a cake shaped like the Millennium Falcon or R2D2's head.

However, since I am as good at cake decorating as photosynthesis, I went a little safer route and made a Death Star cake. Still though I think it actually turned out quite nice.

Basically we just did the following:

Windows Calendar

Those who know my wife, know she is not the most techie person in the world. However, I was down in her office the other day and was glad to see that at least she is using Windows to keep her calendar organized.

Bedtime Stories 2.0

The word "bedtime" is deceptive. It implies that there is a specific time when children simply go to bed. With three little boys there is no such thing as just going to bed.

It is more like a long, drawn-out ordeal. Better yet, it is a painful process of brushing and flushing, snacks and drinks, finding pajamas that fit, and searching for that stuffed animal my son cannot possibly, conceivably, ever sleep without, but has not idea where he threw it absent-mindedly several hours ago. By the time we finally get the boys to bed (by which I mean the third and final time they go to bed after coming down the stairs several times) we are so tired that we just want to go to sleep.

So I am always looking for anything that makes the bedtime routine go more smoothly. One of the better tactics is reading a bedtime story. It can be a great time to bond with your kids, help teach them new vocabulary and facts, stretch their imaginations, and hopefully quiet them down gently to ease them into sleep.

Dots (Laundry, Life and Loving Your Kids)

My wife assures me that there are only three boys living in our house. However, judging from the amount of laundry we do, I seriously doubt that. To account for this much clothing I am pretty sure we are housing an entire little league team, a cub scout pack and the Vienna Boys Choir.

We wash a lot of laundry.

How much laundry you ask?

Making Faces

At some point in everybody’s life, your parents have said to you, "If you keep making faces, you’re going to get stuck looking like that!" However, making faces doesn’t have to be a bad thing. In fact, one of our favorite family activities is literally ... making faces.

Besides being a family favorite, this activity has lots of good points:

• It is something all ages can do, from my youngest son Grant (age 4) to my oldest son Carter (age 9) to my college daughter (age 19) to me (age undisclosed).
• It is low cost or no cost.
• It allows for lots of creativity.
• Everybody laughs.

The activity is something we simply call "Post-it Note Faces." Here’s how it works:

(Make You Own) Movie Night

Friday night usually means one of two things for the family:

• If it's Fall and you live in Ohio, you are probably at a football game (a legal requirement in some communities).
• Or if you aren't into sports (like us) it is probably "Movie Night" at the dollar theater or with a rental or by streaming something on Netflix.

Well this Friday night it was just me and the boys (Carter age 9, Mason age 6, and Grant age 4).  Mom was out for the night working, doing a home party for Thirty-One Gifts. So rather than settle for just watching a movie, we decided to make our own.

With today's technology it is so easy to create, edit, and publish your own home movies.  Once you come up with a fun idea, it is as easy as 1, 2, 3.