U Pick Strawberries

Yesterday we took the boys to Jacquemin Farms to pick strawberries. It was a lot of fun. Cedric had a blast looking under leaves for treasure.  Heath needed a little help figuring out which ones were ok to pick and which needed to be left on the plant. The only down side was that it isn’t an organic farm so we could not eat as we picked.

Both boys ended up with red fingers by the end of the day and we took 6 quarts of strawberries home for $12  – not a bad deal especially when you add in the entertainment factor for the kids.

We ate one quart at the bunny park and Alissa made a yummy gluten free strawberry pie. Unfortunately I gave the boys some pie after dinner which resulted in keeping them up for a LOOOONNNG time.

Not sure what we are going to do with the rest – any ideas?

Gluten Free Ice Cream Cones

I have Celiac Disease.

This means that my body is Gluten Intolerant and has trouble processing Gluten which is in Wheat, Barley,  Rye, and Oats. I found out a couple years ago when my dad was diagnosed with it.

Since it is a hereditary trait we have kept the boys away from gluten as well. Being gluten free is not easy, but it has gotten easier over the past year or so thanks to new labeling requirements.

Anyway, Alissa got some GF Ice Cream Cones from a friend and tonight we had Cones for dessert. This was the first time the boys had Cones before. Usually we just get ice cream in bowls.

They were real good. I could not tell that they were GF which is pretty amazing.

Now I just need to find out if any local ice cream shops will let me bring my own cones.

I love summer!

Columbus Dad’s Weekend Top 5

If the weather man is correct, we are in for a nice weekend.

1) Waldorf Story Hour – Sprout Soup 10AM – Join Rebecah Freeling of Briar Rose Children’s Center in an interactive story time, great for toddlers and preschoolers. All Ages.

2) Family Fishing – Fryer Park, Grove City – Enjoy a morning of fishing at Rotary Lake in Fryer Park, 3899 Orders Road. Gather family members, pack up fishing gear, cameras and refreshments (no glass) and head to the fishing pond on Saturday, June 6. Pick a spot on a dock or fish from the shore between 8 a.m. and noon at this catch-and-release even

3) Birds! – Glacier Ridge Metro Parks – Sunday 2pm – Discover how birds take care of their young through games and activities. Ages 3-5.

4) Egypt Exibit at COSI – Unearth the secrets of an ancient Egyptian world in an interactive exhibition featuring the hidden stories and artifacts of a lost civilization.

5) Go Ride A Bike, Hike, or Walk – Take advantage of the great weather and get outside.

Haircut Time

My kids love going to the barber. I know some kids have a problem going to get their haircut, but I have been lucky. I took Cedric to watch me getting my haircut several times before it was actually his turn to get a haircut.

The guys at Longview Barber Shop in Clintonville are awesome with kids and definitely have a ton of experience cutting kids hair. Saturday mornings are usually packed with Dad’s and kids getting cuts.

After our cuts we would go home and play haircut and give each other haircuts using various toys as cutters and scissors.  This of course led to him playing haircut by himself. Which of course led to him finding a real pair of scissors and attempting to cut his hair and then I had to take him to get his head shaved at the barber to try and hide the damage.

He mostly has outgrown this, but he still cuts his own hair from time to time. Heath has started doing the same thing, but not quite as much as Cedric did. From time to time they cut each others hair.

After Cedric’s latest  foray into the barber world I decided that if I was going to have to get his head shaved again, I might as well do it myself. I ran out to Target and picked up a clipper set.

The boys had fun playing barber with me out in the front yard. Only one small nick on Heath’s ear. I think I will call it a success, but I will not be hanging out my barber poll anytime soon.

Rainy Day Blues

So you had big plans for the day. Maybe you were heading to the Clippers game morning. Maybe you just wanted to take the kids to the park and let them run wild.

The real question is what to do now that mother nature canceled your plans.

Here are some ideas:

1) Recycled crafts – Get a box and start saving up crafty things (toilet paper rolls, buttons, and pull it out and let the kids get creative. One possible ideas if they need a little direction: Discovery Bottles. Get an empty water or soda bottle clean it out and peel off the lable. Put small toys or other items (Popsicle sticks, buttons, pennies, etc) in the bottle then put rice in the bottle to cover the items – about half to 2/3 full. Then glue the top on and let it dry. Kids will have fun shaking the bottle and playing games like eye spy.

2) Take the kids to the Mall – All the big malls have great play ares where kids can run out a little of their energy.

3) Let them Play the Rain – If it isn’t too cold out just let the kids go out and play. Kids need to get dirty and wet – it is part of childhood and it all washes off.