Cupcake Day

February 3, 2015February 3, 2015Amber 6 Comments

I recently spied an adorable toddler craft that coordinated with one of my favorite childhood books, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. Pop by Texas Tales to see the cookie craft that coordinates with the book.

We don’t have If You Give a Mouse a Cookie in our personal library, but we do have If You Give a Cat a Cupcake. And, since my kids absolutely adore cupcakes, they received several other cupcake themed books as gifts. I was delighted to find cupcake shaped foam cut outs and mini glitter shakers at Target’s One Spot last week. With our book collection and craft supplies, I decided we should devote an entire day to the quad’s beloved dessert.

One morning, I enthusiastically announced that it was “Cupcake Day” and told the quads of all our cupcake themed plans. Their eyes glistened in anticipation as their mouths watered at the mere thought of cupcakes. We started by getting dressed for the day. Naturally, the girls wore their cupcake t-shirts.

Once everyone was dressed, we read If You Give a Cat a Cupcake and talked about cupcake toppings before making a cupcake craft. When we do crafts at the kitchen table, I use a lunch tray to contain pieces for each child. It works really well by establishing a boundary for materials and clean up is a cinch.

I’m not ready to let the quads loose with glue so I dotted the glue myself and let them stick the sprinkles, wrappers, and cherries on their cupcakes. Since the glitter shakers were small, they were perfect for the kids to shake without making a huge mess. In fact, I may keep the containers to refill for later crafts.

Making a cupcake craft was fun, but you can’t celebrate Cupcake Day without eating cupcakes, which meant it was time to bake Funfetti cupcakes. I wanted to involve the quads, but knew they’d be impatient with baking. I pre measured everything and gave each one a turn pouring an ingredient into the mixing bowl. Once the batter was mixed, I moved our cupcake pan onto a stool and asked the quads to put liners in each hole.

During naptime, the cupcakes baked then cooled. George arrived home shortly after nap and insisted we make cream cheese frosting for our cupcakes. Even though I didn’t want to deal with frosting mess, he was right, cupcakes are never complete without frosting. It’s the BEST part!

As soon as each cupcake was delicately frosted and accessorized in rainbow sprinkles it was snack time. These cupcakes earned a round of applause. Seriously, the joy harnessed from cupcakes tempt me to celebrate Cupcake Day several times a year!

It’s no surprise, when we asked the quads what color frosting they wanted, the vote was split between blue and pink. Consequently, we frosted half blue and half pink.

What is your favorite dessert? I enjoy a cupcake, but honestly chocolate chip cookies are my weakness, especially when they are warm.

hugs!

Amber

P.S. Did you know National Cupcake Day is December 15th? Either we celebrated very early, or very late…

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High Tea

January 5, 2015June 7, 2015Amber 7 Comments

The past week was drizzly cold one and we had four sick toddlers held hostage in the house. Whining reached epic proportions (not just the kids…parents included). Desperate to change the pace without actually leaving, I set up high tea for lunch one day. The quads received a lovely ceramic tea set from Aunt CiC this Christmas and this was just the occassion. She scored the set at a local Asian market for $1 per piece, which was a brilliant idea because I know it’s food safe and we can add pieces later if needed.

While the quads watched an episode of Sesame Street, I prepped a meal fit for tea. I created a spread of peanut butter and honey sandwiches, sliced strawberries, and veggie straws. I also made a small kettle of lemon honey decaf tea (the best stuff for scratchy, sore throats!). For new scenery, I set the kid-sized table in the playroom with all the needed accoutrements for tea. Although the tea set was inexpensive, I was admittedly nervous someone might decide to chuck a dish or two; eating at the kid table would mean a shorter distance to the floor.

Once Sesame Street wrapped up, I invited the quads to join me for high tea. I explained that we were using our special tea set from Aunt CiCi and it could break if anyone did not respect it. I emphasized that all dishes were to stay on the table and needed delicate care. Eight doe brown eyes stared into mine as they nodded in agreement. I still wasn’t sure how this would go.

Teatime proved magical! All four cheerily noshed on their meal while politely sipping tea. Not an hour before they were wallowing in misery, tears, and snot. Teatime also turned into a great opportunity to practice manners. Since I poured only a sip or two worth of tea into the cups so they had to request more by saying, “more tea please”.

My low appetite kids managed to scarf three peanut butter sandwiches, a pint of berries, and several handfuls of veggie straws, all washed down with four cups of tea. Getting sick kids to eat is a win in it’s own right! Our impromptu tea party went so swimmingly that we held another today, and it went equally well. I think tea parties may become part of our TLC routine when everyone is sick. It certainly brightened everyone’s glum spirits.

As an added bonus, tea cups were great open cup practice. Everyone did very well sipping, and not one drop of tea touched the floor. Only two of the four dribbled onto their clothing, but it was minimal.

What is your favorite way to nurse a cold? I used to love it when my mom made buttery baked potatoes with iced Sprite.

hugs!

Amber

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The Reason for the Season

December 22, 2014Amber 6 Comments

When my parents first got married, Mom worked at a Hallmark store. While she worked there, she bought a small nativity set, which she used every Christmas while we were growing up. When my sister and I were little, we had a grandiose Barbie Dream house, but Barbie found her home empty at Christmas. At the time Mattel did not manufacture families for Barbie. I think it was just Barbie, Ken, and Skipper. At Christmastime we would take Baby Jesus from the nativity and he would serve as Barbie’s baby. I guess he was sort of a foster child staying with Barbie and Ken for the month of December. He did a beautiful job as Barbie’s baby and we generally got him back into his manger before Christmas. However, at some point with all of our shenanigans, he went missing. Of course, you can’t have a nativity without Baby Jesus so my mom removed the wings from the little cherub who resembled Baby Jesus and put him in the manger instead. The cherub sort of looked like Baby Jesus, but he didn’t fit quite right in the manger and looked awkward. Mom used the nativity with the cherub sitting in for Baby Jesus for years; I think always complaining about how we lost Baby Jesus.

One year Mom found a gorgeous jewel-toned nativity set at Bombay and Company and decided she didn’t need her incomplete nativity anymore. By then I was in college and had my first apartment. Mom gave me her old nativity since I didn’t have one, and I happily accepted it. I soon discovered that Mom’s vintage nativity was actually a Fontanini set from Italy and they continued to make pieces for it. I found a replacement Baby Jesus in a department store and added him to the nativity. This new figurine was a Baby Jesus, but with his newness he didn’t fit in with the old nativity set quite right either.

When Dad was putting the Christmas decorations back into the attic that year, he saw something tiny glimmering between two rafters. He shined a flashlight on the tiny object and discovered it was the original Baby Jesus. As it turned out, we had not lost Baby Jesus after all. He was in our house all along and right over head for all those years. I like to tell this story at this time of year because it is a reminder that He never leaves us alone even when we feel forgotten or forsaken. It is also a message that I kept close to my heart during our struggles with infertility, and still do as we take on the everyday challenges of raising quadruplets.

This December has been joy filled with the quads learning about Christmas traditions and celebrating the season. They’ve learned Christmas carols, watched holiday movies, and visited Santa. We’ve crafted all sorts of festive decorations from gingerbread men to reindeer. If you’ve been following us on Facebook or Twitter, you may have seen Bop’s (our scout elf) various locations in our house.

All of those secular traditions are fun, but we haven’t let them overshadow the true reason for the season. This year, we spent time reading toddler books about the first Christmas and showed the quads our Fontanini nativity set. They’ve rearranged the nativity a few times, but have been good about leaving it on the burlap, which helps me keep tabs on Baby Jesus.

It was Harper’s idea to move the kitchen footstool to the den so he could get a better view of the nativity. I thought it was clever, and I’ve been proud of his self-restraint in looking at the nativity. Sometimes two of the quads will share the stool and look at the nativity together.

Since I’m not exactly encouraging the quads to play with our family nativity, I was happy when I found a Melissa & Doug toddler’s nativity set. This one is wooden and durable so they can manipulate and arrange as they like.

Despite making several Christmas crafts, I kept coming up short when it came to an age-appropriate nativity craft until my friend, Amber shared hers last week. (Don’t forget to stop by her blog, Texas Tales for a more detailed description of the craft and other toddler nativity books). It’s very simple and ideal for toddlers. I printed Baby Jesus coloring pages and let the quads color them. Then, I dotted glue onto the manger and asked the quads to place snips of rafia over the dots. For a special touch, we also glued a star on the top of the page.

May you find love, peace, and hope this year. Merry Christmas!

Hugs,

Amber

Quaddler Approved! {Casdon Toy Dyson Vacuum Review}

December 17, 2014June 7, 2015Amber 7 Comments

When choosing toys for the quads, my favorites inspire imaginative play, problem solving, and creativity. Consequently, I was pleased when they received a Dust, Sweep and Mop set from a friend for their second birthday. At first, they seemed to think this toy was best suited for swashbuckling so I safely tucked it away, and temporarily forgot about it. A couple of weeks ago, I rediscovered this toy and demonstrated how to use it. In fact, the crew happily “helped” me tidy up for a party we were hosting. Later in the week, my heart exploded with joy when Mason independently pulled all of the chairs from our kitchen table to sweep the crumbs below. This particular not only inspired imaginative play, it encouraged chore completion, a major win in my book!

I was delighted when Casdon’s Toy Dyson Ball Vacuum arrived for the quads to test drive since it is exactly the type of toy I prefer. It encourages imaginative play while also helping the quads learn a valuable life skill. I planned to surprise the quads with it after bath time, but they spied it prematurely and squealed “It’s a vacuum!!!” I couldn’t squelch their desire to clean so we immediately opened the box and loaded the batteries. It only took about a minute to assemble and load the batteries, which was good because the quads were chomping at the bit. The biggest problem? There was one vacuum and four eager toddlers awaiting a turn. Toddlers are notoriously impatient, especially with new toys, but everyone got a turn before bath.

Seriously, who can resist this face? He was ecstatic about a vacuum

The quads easily learned to operate switches and didn’t mind the realistic sounds. Thankfully, the toy is much quieter than my Dyson because when they hear me vacuuming, they cover their ears and whine. In addition to a colorful spinning cyclone, it also provides real suction from the base, which can pick up small bits of debris and dust. (Don’t get too excited though…remember, it’s just a toy so it won’t replace your vacuum.) The quads are a little young for to operate the removable dustbin independently, but they will learn in time. They did, however, try to remove the clear container on the front since that’s how I unload the dust from our actual Dyson. Toddlers really watch every single thing we do, which is good reason to model what we desire for them. The quads didn’t seem to notice, but I appreciated the gender neutral color since our boys and girls will be playing with this toy.

Though the age range suggested on the box is three to eight, I think kids about 2.5 to 5 or 6 would be better suited for this toy. My kids aren’t quite three and adore it, and I suspect most eight year olds would find it a bit immature (or too small) for them. In fact, I’d be inclined to teach an eight year old how to operate our real Dyson as part of a chore chart. If you’re looking for a last-minute gift for a toddler or preschooler this year, consider the Casdon Toy Dyson, it’s quaddler approved!

hugs!

Amber

Disclaimer: I would like extend a special thanks Casdon for providing a Toy Dyson Ball Vacuum for us to try for the purpose of review. No other compensation was received, and all thoughts/ opinions are 100% my own.

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Gateway Church Southlake {A Spot to Visit with Tots}

December 5, 2014December 7, 2014Amber 2 Comments

I’ve found that everyone’s mood and behavior is always best when we play outdoors at least 30 minutes daily. However, sometimes winter weather puts a damper on outdoor play. I’ve been searching for indoor options to help keep everyone active. Thanks to our local mothers of multiples groups, we’ve discovered several fabulous indoor play areas. Many of our local churches maintain indoor play areas that are free and open to the public. This week, we joined our mothers of multiples group for a play date at the Children’s Indoor Play Area at Gateway Church Southlake. Someone counted 19 children and seven moms with our group. It was a nice turnout! The quads had a great time playing in this cheerful, bubble themed play area. I was grateful that my friend, Kristin, tagged along to help me watch all four.

Location:

700 Blessed Way

Southlake, Texas 76092

Hours:

8 am – 8 pm weekdays

Cost:

FREE!!!

Favorite Features:

Did I mention it’s FREE???

Since the play area is indoors, it’s climate controlled and clean.

The play area includes several ride on toys (e.g. train, ark) that do not require coins to operate. There are small climb on toys for young toddlers and a large climber and slide for older children.

Tips:

The entrance to the children’s play area is on the north side of the church. Look for the signs and you can park close to the entry.

Shoes cannot be worn in the play area, so be sure your kids are wearing socks.

Sydney and Mason were the only ones brave enough to climb to the top of the play area. Sydney had so much fun, I had to go up and get her down myself.

The boys got plenty of practice taking turns driving the coveted fire engine.

Rylin did not care for the larger climbing area and instead took refuge on this pack of gum.

If you aren’t in the Dallas Fort Worth area, chances are local churches in your area have similar play areas. Ask around! There are several other indoor play areas we plan to try this season.

hugs!

Amber

Dear Thanksgiving, You Aren’t Forgotten

November 26, 2014November 26, 2014Amber 2 Comments

The week following Halloween, George and I took the crew to Half Price Books in search of Thanksgiving books. Behind an elaborate Christmas book display, we found a meager shelf labeled, “holiday”. This shelf contained a conglomeration of holidays ranging from Valentine’s Day to Easter with a smattering of Thanksgiving books. Sadly, the majority of the Thanksgiving books were geared to older children. We snagged two age appropriate books worth purchasing so we’ve read these two at least once daily all month.

The Best Thanksgiving Ever is a charming story about a family of turkeys that gather to celebrate their many blessings. Naturally, their feast consists of corn.
Let it Fall describes the change in seasons and family activities during autumn. The illustrations are beautiful and capture the beauty of family time.

After our trip to the bookstore, my Facebook news feed began overflowing with pictures of children clad in Christmas attire as they visited Santa, evidence of wrapped packages, and fully decorated Christmas trees. Seriously, this began around November 3rd. Anytime I entered a retail establishment, holiday music lingered and Christmas products were in the fore front. It started feeling as if it were December already, and there was an urgency to prepare for Christmas. Then, our neighbors began adorning their homes in twinkling lights. It became such a trend that our home owner’s association left notes at homes where decorations were out 30 days prior to the holiday. Consequently, the HOA president has been dubbed “Scrooge of the Neighborhood” by some overzealous residents. Holiday light citations may not have been necessary, but I tend to agree with the notion it’s too early to commence Christmas activity the first week of November.

Instead of following the masses, I dug my heels in this year and refused to begin decorating for Christmas when the turkey hasn’t been carved. This year, the quads are learning about the seasons and holiday traditions, and I want to teach them about Thanksgiving as much as any other holiday.

To give a little attention to Thanksgiving, we spent time decorating die cut leaves and then writing what we are thankful for this season. (In case you were wondering, the quads dictated, and I transcribed.) Since the quads have been working on prayers expressing gratitude, this task was an easy one for them.

For a little festive fun, we also made turkeys from paper plates and toilet paper rolls.

Once we finished our Thanksgiving crafts, I nestled the turkeys into our mantle decor and taped the die cut leaves among the autumn garland. The leaves are nice reminders of the little things we appreciate in our lives.

Despite my reluctance to start celebrating Christmas before Thanksgiving, I did purchase the quads Christmas pajamas. In my defense, I was burned the first two Christmases with the quads. I waited until after Thanksgiving and found barren shelves! Harper was forced to wear pajamas about a size too small two years in a row. I wasn’t making him do it again. They’ll get to wear their new pajamas the night our Christmas tree goes up.

When do you begin decorating for Christmas? Perhaps you’re an eager beaver. Maybe you wait until Christmas Eve. Maybe you’re like me and want the turkey gobbling to cease first. Or maybe you celebrate a different holiday altogether.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Amber

Bass Pro Shops {A Spot to Visit with Tots}

November 23, 2014Amber Leave a comment

Over the course of the week a pesky cold was passed from one family member to another, and successfully kept us confined indoors. In fact, Mason missed his dental visit due to said cold. Yesterday as everyone was on the mend, a thunderstorm rolled successfully holding us hostage. Everyone (including me) was cranky and unpleasant. We needed to go somewhere to restore our spirits. There don’t seem to be many Thanksgiving family activities, but Christmas festivities are already in full force. After cruising the Fort Worth Mom’s Blog for places to visit, I found a thorough listing of holiday venues. Since Thanksgiving has not yet been celebrated, I could not bring myself to go all in on the Christmas cheer, but settled on taking the kids to the Bass Pro Shops.

Location:

Bass Pro Shops are available nationwide, check here for the location nearest to you

Hours:

November 15 – December 24 during normal store hours

Cost:

All activities are FREE! Santa’s wonderland includes kid friendly crafts, games, a carousel ride, and a visit from the jolly old man himself. Bass Pro Shops provide a complimentary 4 x 6 photo with Santa. You may choose to purchase a complete package of photos with Santa or you can take snap shots with your own camera as well.

Favorite Features:

What’s not to love about FREE family entertainment?

The quads enjoyed taking a spin on the carousel. Since all children under 42″ must be accompanied by an adult, three of our littles enjoyed their ride from Santa’s sleigh allowing me to supervise all of them.

Harper apparently felt slightly intimidated by the ride, but once it was in motion he settled down. The fear of the unknown tends to get the better of him.

After taking a spin on the carousel, George demonstrated how to drive a remote control monster truck in the toy testing area.

We weren’t willing to brave the line to visit Santa (and I just don’t like the idea of seeing Santa before Thanksgiving), but we did check out the aquarium.

Tips:

If you plan on visiting Santa, see one of his elves first. They have passes to get into the line at specific times, which will reduce your wait time.

Don’t forget to bring your own camera in case you’d like to snap pictures with Santa yourself.

Our trip to the Bass Pro Shops was a success in decreasing the tension and brightening our day.

After we celebrate Thanksgiving, I’d like to enjoy several of the local holiday scenes around town. I’m really looking forward to celebrating our Christmas traditions with the quads since they can understand them now.

What are you hoping to do or see this season?

Hugs!

Amber

Japanese Gardens {Spot to Visit with Tots}

November 3, 2014Amber 3 Comments

With four curious toddlers, we are making an effort to get out of the house a few times week, and to visit somewhere new as much as possible. Too much time spent at home often results in stir crazy toddlers and haggard parents. It’s an ordeal just to load the van, but outings are always worthwhile, they refresh all of us. When George had a recent holiday from work we took a field trip to the Fort Worth Botanic Gardens- Japanese Garden

Location:

3220 Botanic Garden Blvd.
Fort Worth, TX 76107

Hours:

Daylight Savings Time

Monday – Sunday 9:00 am – 7:00 pm

Standard Time

Monday – Sunday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm

Cost:

Adults $5.00
Senior (65 and over) $4.50
Child (4-12) $3.00
Under 3 Free

Favorite Features:

The Koi ponds are by far our favorite part of the Japanese Garden. The quads had a fabulous time watching them and of course feeding them.

The entire garden is serene and relaxing.

Tips:

Pack a picnic lunch to enjoy somewhere in the garden.

The garden is stroller friendly so bring one along if you have young toddlers who may tire easily.

I didn’t dress everyone warmly enough, but fleece blankets from the van made for cozy stroller rides.

The quads had a blast stopping at each Koi pond to for a feeding frenzy.

This spot was my favorite for feeding the Koi because the concrete wall created a nice barrier between the little people and the water.

Look carefully, and you’ll notice the water droplets all over Harper’s face. He got in the Koi pond splash zone!

This bench proved to be ideal for our picnic. We had a serene view of the Koi pond and a nice place to sit.

If you are a Dallasite or Cowtown family, what are some of your favorite places to visit?

Hugs!

Amber

Read This, Made That {Tissue Paper Pumpkin}

October 30, 2014Amber Leave a comment

I cannot take the credit for implementing this adorable craft, but it is the kid’s handiwork. Last week our family friend, Billie, babysat and brought a craft for the quads. Being a former preschool teacher, Billie is a pro with the crew.

She printed jack-o-lantern coloring sheets from Make and Takes and colored the faces with black marker. Then, she pre-cut and wadded orange and green tissue paper into squares. She dotted glue along the pumpkin and let the quads stick orange tissue squares there. Then she dotted more glue along the stem and vine for the green squares.

The activity paired well with The Biggest Pumpkin Surprise Ever!, coincidentally a gift from Billie. There are flaps throughout the book, and the goal is to find and count all of the hidden pumpkins. Beneath the final flap is an enormous jack-o-lantern.

Hugs!

Amber

PS- Don’t forget to share photos of your Halloween art on our Facebook page! We’d love to see it.

Read This, Made That {Spindly Spiders}

October 29, 2014Amber 2 Comments

In this tale, Happy Halloween, Max pulls out all the stops including dangling rubber spiders in a futile attempt to scare Ruby. The quads absolutely L-O-V-E waiting for the end of the book when Ruby startles Max. In honor of Max’s not-so-scary spider, we made our own spindly spiders.

We had black dessert plates from the quad’s birthday party that we used as the spider body. I punched eight holes around each plate and let the kids string pipe cleaners through the holes. I then dotted the center of the each plate with glue and let them stick an assortment of googly eyes. For a little more pizzazz, I swirled more glue onto the spider and let the quads dust them in black glitter.