Today is…Thur Mar 17 2011: Happy St Patrick’s Day!!!
We started the day with Irish Oatmeal.
Not the steel cut kind.
The chocolate kind:
With milk turned green by a sneaky leprechaun:
(who didn’t want to add too much green dye to the milk, apparently)
For Gospel study, we discussed Matthew 24 and the signs of the Second Coming. First we talked about how we can know when winter is coming (Giant offered that leaves die and fall off trees, and it gets cold). Then we talked about how we are told to be of good cheer and not fearful, and that we have a Prophet to lead and guide us today.
During snack, I found a note and stash of goodies left by a leprechaun in need:
It asked the boys to please help him find a rainbow.
Okay, this was a big and cool learning moment for me. I had simply planned to do a rainbow art activity (I even had a colouring page all printed out). Then I thought, well, I should make this more open-ended. More self-directed. I suppose they could choose to paint or colour or even glue different coloured pictures to create a rainbow. I was feeling proud of my ability to let loose a little. So we read the note, and I asked Giant what we should do to help get a rainbow for the leprechaun (expecting him to say paint, colour, or choose another quietly controlled craft). He said, “well, when rain comes down and the sun shines through the rain it makes rainbows. So we should get some rain and sun and make a rainbow.”
I just about gave the answer I would have had to give had I been in a preschool setting, “Oh, what a neat idea. But we can’t do that.” But, I wasn’t in a preschool setting. And we very well could do that!
I had sunshine.
I had glass raindrops (pieces from a chandelier).
So we made ourselves a rainbow catcher:
Which sent rainbow sparkles all over the walls and table, and sent us into many discussions about refraction and transparency and the light spectrum.
The boys were delighted with the dancing rainbows:
Then, on his own, Giant asked if he could colour rainbows.
So we talked about the colours we could see, and picked out some crayons:
Ettin said he wanted to colour purple.
So he did.
(and I may have snuck in a lesson on the names of colours)
Just think. If I had been feeling more controlling, we would have missed out on the magical experience of colouring rainbows while sparkly rainbows danced all around us.
Lunch was shamrock pizza buns:
Ettin was dubious. I was treated to lots of extra green peppers from all my boys (Hubby is not a fan of peppers either).
After lunch I found another note from the leprechaun, saying that he was grateful for the rainbows they had caught, and that he had brought a gift from Grandma for them.
Which he had left for them in the “nest” we have beside our bed (where they can sleep on our floor anytime they want during the night, so long as they start the night in their own beds).
Woweeee!!!!
The boys were elated bouncing off the walls with delight:
They opened lots of fun presents: felts, colouring and connect the dots books, candy, and green bouncy toy, Bob the Builder, jello, nifty napkins and plates for supper, and mommy and daddy got some lovely clothing and jewelery. Utterly spoiled on St. Patrick’s Day!
Thank You Grandma!!!!
(Just look at Ettin’s face)
They spent a lot of time playing with the blocks (and exclaiming every few seconds, “this is so COOL!”):
Even Galoot got to chew on Pilchard:
We read a few stories before naps:
(doesn’t that kid look huge?!)
Giant spent nap time building many different towers…
…doing dot-to-dots…
and finding rainbows around the house.
Ettin woke up from his nap and coloured with the new felts:
Then they helped me make green jello for dessert:
Supper was bean stew, with a shamrock toast topper:
After the boys had baths and had gotten into their jammies, I tried to surreptitiously ask Daddy if the boys could e-a-t j-e-l-l-o. And even though I’d spelled it out, Giant piped up right away with, “I want to “eat Jello!”” Smarty.
So we ate Jello:
Galoot approved. (Yes, he got a tiny tiny taste, and thought it was the best stuff in the world.)