Well, it’s baby time at our house. Our daughter was expecting her third boy and as soon as she went into labor, I was off! She lives about two hours away and I had to get there in time to take care of her two little boys. I had looked forward to this for months!
A few weeks before the scheduled event, the van was already packed with games and books. Also, I had several treasure hunts ready so I could do one every day. I glued individual pictures to small pieces of card stock and put them into colorful envelopes. One picture lead to the next, etc. until the last one depicted where the treasure was found. We did that a few times. Then, I scattered puzzle pieces throughout the house and when the kids found a piece they brought it to me. When all the pieces were collected, they put the puzzle together to discover where the treasure was hidden. It was so much fun. Also, I found an adorable doggie back pack that was used in the treasure hunts. I put the first clue in the backpack and put it outside the front door. Then I rang the doorbell and when the kids answered the door – they found the backpack and the fun started.
As a matter of fact, that doggie backpack appeared at random every day. One day it was hanging on the back of a kitchen stool. They opened it up and discovered some Halloween stuff. One day the backpack was on the floor by the door that comes in from the garage. They found a couple of little ‘treasures’ inside. That doggie backpack was so much fun. It’s been three weeks since the baby was born and my daughter says the kids still talk about the doggie backpack. I’ll be using that little satchel for many years to come.
I discovered Uno Moo – a game for young children. It’s a little barn that’s filled with red, green, yellow, white, and blue ‘animals’. You play the game sort of like the card game Uno – but it’s adapted for youngsters. Whenever I buy a game I’m always a little leery as to whether it’s going to be worth the price (Uno Moo was about $20), Well, let me tell you. Uno Moo is worth it! Admittedly, we altered the rules just a tad because I was playing it with a four year old – but the kids love it and asked to play it over and over again. Even the two year old got involved. However, what he enjoyed most was just playing with the animal game pieces. Several times every day he would ask if he could get the green doggie.
Our daughter’s oldest boy wanted to make a birthday cake for the new baby – which I thought was extremely appropriate. After all, we only have one actual birthday. Anyhow, we made my Oreo cake. Prepare a chocolate cake according to the directions. Bake as directed and as soon as it comes out of the oven, poke it (in one inch intervals) with the end of a wooden spoon. Next, pour over the warm cake two packages of Oreo pudding (mixed with four cups of milk) and put into the refrigerator. Meanwhile, crush some Oreo cookies. When the cake is completely cool, cover with Cool Whip and sprinkle the crushed Oreos on top. What a great way to welcome home the new baby!
Another thing we did was decorate plates (thank you, Pinterest). I bought some white ovenproof plates at the dollar store and a package of colorful Sharpies. Anyhow, the kids drew (and I use the term loosely) pictures on the plates. We baked the plates in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes to set the ink. I had heard that the decorations will last longer if you don’t put the plates in the dishwasher so I mentioned that to my daughter.
Her four year old completely covered one of his decorated plates with red Sharpie. I mean, the entire plate was colored red. So, he handed me his creation and I baked it in the oven. Well, a few days after I returned home I got a call from my daughter who said, “How would you feel if everything in your dishwasher turned pink?” I was mortified. She was good-natured and assured me that it was nothing serious. She also told me that it wasn’t she who put the plate into the dishwasher.
Can you tell? Being a grandmother is the best invention ever! You’ve just got to try it some time!