Learning ABC’s with Letter Tubs

A confined toddler on a tiny airplane could spell disaster.  My toddler has been on a plane four times in the last two weeks.  Luckily, half those times he was asleep.  Some of the places we have been include San Francisco, St. Louis and Miami.  My little 19 month toddler is BUSY and changing all the time.  We had to be very creative on the plane and in the airport terminals.  I packed a bag of new goodies that he hadn’t seen before and surprised him on our trips with these presents.  The LeapReader Junior was a big hit.  I also brought 5 new Matchbox cars.  I brought a old wallet and small calculator he hadn’t played with and I also brought a couple of old favorite toys, like our Ikea cars.  We made it but I’m ready for him to have his own seat.  Do you have toddler tricks for traveling?

One of our trips was to visit family, including Aunt Karen.  She is a big inspiration for this blog and a great resource for interesting challenges.  Some of her challenges to me have been to make my own laundry soap and date bars.  One this trip, I spent a day following Aunt Karen around her home learning very cool ways of staying healthy and saving money, all of which I will post about later.  Aunt Karen runs a daycare in her home and has years of practice keeping toddlers busy and learning to read.  I was very fascinated with what I call her “Letter Tubs” and plan to make some of my own.  She saved old yogurt dishes and labeled each one with a letter of the alphabet.  Then she filled each tub with tiny objects that started with the corresponding letter.  For example, the tub for “F” had a tiny fence, frogs, flowers, felt and feathers.  Each tub also had a big letter and small letter, which were usually magnet letters.  You can also make Color Tubs using the same concept.  I will post about the other activities Aunt Karen shared with me including sprouting, raising active yeast for bread, composting in the back yard, art projects, bike riding and play dough just to name a few.  Just as soon as I get back from my next trip to DC!  Any suggestions for long car trips with toddlers! 🙂

 

 

From St. Louis to Michigan – Aunt Karen’s 560 Mile Bike Ride

That’s about 90 miles a day biking the back roads from St. Louis to Michigan.  My husband’s Aunt Karen and Uncle Jim are an inspiration for this blog.  They are a paragon for healthy, active and frugal living.  Check out my prior posts about their hiking trips, recipes, and homemade/cheap cleaning products – just some of Aunt Karen’s inspirations.  This summer their 560 mile bike trip was reported in a small town online newspaper, the Rantoul Daily.  Scroll down to the second page to read the full article, “Couple tandem bike through Rantoul“.  The reporter also included a nice picture of the couple in tandem in case you are skeptical.  🙂  So, what are you doing is summer?

We were happy to get in a 5 mile bike ride at the beach today!  🙂

Aunt Karen’s Summer Hiking Trip! 486 miles in 20 days!

They are back!  My husband’s aunt and uncle completed the Colorado Trail this summer.  They hiked 486 miles, from Durango to Denver, at an average elevation of 10,000 feet, in just 20 days!  You can check out their trail journal at  www.trailjournals.com/mapmanrobin.  Pretty awesome!