Soccer fingers / rainy day fun, or office high jinks

I drew these on my kids and they played nice for almost an hour. We had a bunch of laughs. A crumpled ball of paper is a fine soccer ball, and bent out paperclips taped on each finger can make the frame for shoes. I saw this on the HP site called fingerskilz.

Summer and complications

I love this picture of me and my kiddos. It was taken at the state park. I love having picnics and hanging on at the beachhead. They play in the sand, and water for hours, and just love it. Now summer is here, and I hope we can do this more.

But there's a catch. Nathan has to be in extended school year, and I have him in a program to help his social skills. These are two things he really needs, but it seems to kill summer. Tues- Thurs is chopped, so only a bit of afternoon is left, and now Mondays and Fridays will be gone too. It makes these favorite summer season times we enjoy much more rare, and, of course, special too.

I switch back and forth, wondering if the sacrifice is too big, or if the help is worth losing what we do, or what I do. I know we'll still get to the park, and have our times, but the struggle to pick the best path as a parent can be daunting.

Campfire cooking: Why, and How to...

Some reasons I'll be campfire cooking more in the next few months:

Fun for the kids. (Simple way to get the kids happily involved in a low-tech, low-cost activity.)

It keeps the house cooler in the summer.

It's cheaper than going out to eat--by a lot.

It teaches the kids a useful skill for future camping fun; or perhaps, God forbid, survival.

It's potentially healthier than many other meal choices. 

It creates more family-time opportunities.

Time spent outdoors is something we all enjoy.

Here is a link to how to make a cooking style campfire, and some easy recipes to enjoy outside, or in your fireplace. 

Enjoy the season.