Treasure Hunt

I have been trying to think up some creative ways to encourage handwriting with Tanner. So yesterday I did a little treasure hunt with him. We talked about how we use clues all the time in our everyday lives to make decisions. Then I taught him about riddles and how they are a fun way to give clues.

I tried to cheat and find my riddles online, but only found a few that I liked. If you have older kids, there is a lot out there, but for little ones, it was a bit more difficult. I did find two, the rest I made up. So, no laughing at some of my attempts (and non-attempts) to rhyme! (This was an indoor scavenger hunt since it was raining the day we did it.)

I had Tanner pull out his writing journal and number the page from 1 to 9. Then I gave him his first clue. As he found each clue he had to write down its location. This wasn't a spelling test, so I let him write the words how he thought they needed spelling.

Water and light I need to grow.
You can find me near the window.
(plant)

Knock, knock
Who’s there?
Note.
Note who?
The note you are looking for.
(Door) www.treasurehuntfan.com

I can see you
You can see you
If you find me,
There you will be too!
(mirror)

I go up
I go down
Find me on the wall
I make light all around
(light switch)

Sometimes we cuddle
Sometimes we read
Sometimes we play boat
But if you jump off me, you might bleed
(Sofa)

Paperclips and tacks,
A little this and that,
Pencils and pens, I am handy just when
You need pull me out to reach right in
(drawer) www.treasurehuntfan.com

I am round and I am white
But unroll me and I am square right?
(toilet paper)

I am soft
Give me your head
Each night you find me
Ready for bed
(pillow)

I am white
But not a light
I come from a cow
But how?
(milk)

By the last clue, he had written all 9 words and not a single grumble! He loved it.

On each clue, I highlighted one letter and put a number from 1 to 9. The last location where he was to find the "treasure" had a piece of paper with a bunch of numbers on them. He had to lay out his clues he had been collecting and write the letters that were highlighted from each cooresponding clue. The numbers made up the words "kitty riddles" which was the name of the book I had for him to read. We ended our treasure hunt reading the riddles together. I snuck some handwriting in and we both had a blast.

Feel free to use these silly riddles I hope they come in handy for you and that they create a little magic at your house!

Butterfly House

Our last day in St. Louis we met up with some friends to go to the Butterfly house. It was a rainy day and this was a perfect indoor activity. At first we walked a long coordior where we learned about all sorts of insects.

Can you guess what these are?

Then we went through two sets of double doors into the butterfly atrium. It was 80 degrees in there and filled from floor to cieling with tropical, flowering plants. I felt like I jumped into a lush, tropical rain forest!

This butterfly found Addison's pink bow and stayed there for the longest time. She must have had the right sweet smell because the butterflies just loved her!

Here is a special moth visiting the butterfly house. It stayed open on the tree trunk for all to see it's beauty. Can you see the reptile it displays?

Here's the birthday girl! Happy 3 little gal!

The atrium was a perfect place to get some great shots of the kiddos. I guess brides actually go there for wedding photos too. I wasn't prepared with well groomed kids, but thought I would try just the same to sneak in a few. I had no problem catching Tanner and Colin for a photo, but Lexie let her true colors show.

No way mom.

I'm gonna hide this smile if it kills me.

Okay, so you kill me!

In the end, a smile fit for a princess.

Here's the gang! Thank you to our dear friends for sharing this day with us! We love you!

Some craftiness

It was my mom's birthday just after Mother's day and my aunt's 60th birthday around the same time, so I made them both this card. I'm hoping it got there okay since the card had several layers that pop out.

The inside

I found these cute vibrating toys for babies at Carter's the other day and bought two for my two new cute nephews. Of course I had to find a way to package them! So, while I was in UT I dipped into some heaven and used my mom's goods to make this cute popcorn bin for the toy to go in.

Science Center

The next day we went to the St. Louis Science Center. The whole time Tanner made SURE that we didn't visit their full-life automated dinosaurs.

I snuck the dinosaur in just the same. You can't see him very well in the background, but you can sure tell his fierceness by the look on Tanner's face!

Tanner was bound and determined to sort all these little pieces by color. And he did!

Colin loved the puzzles.

Tanner loved the math games.

I need one of these at my house!

This was HANDS DOWN the favorite attraction for Tanner. He could sit there for hours if I let him to watch the balls go through the maze of metal. You can just see his own gears turning!

I caught this as I was pulling out of Forest Park.

St. Louis Zoo

While Derek was in St. Louis for the month, I incentivized good behavior in the kids with a fun trip to see dad. They had to pay me 100 beads each in order to make the trip, which took them about 10 days to earn. They worked really hard at being super good and the trip was a great reward for them. (I definitely got the best end of the deal with good kids AND a fun trip!)

The first day we arrived, the weather was in the mid 60's and sunshine so we hit the ZOO! Springtime is a perfect time to go because it is not too hot yet and the animals are out and playing.

Giraffes are my favorite! Since we had all day to be at the zoo, when we arrived somewhere where the animals brought the kids to life, it was so nice to let them take all the time they wanted. The hippopotumuses were one such animal.


These purple blossoms are everywhere in MO in the spring. Though they are abundant, I never tire of them. They are just delightful and seem to shout

"spring is here"!
Momma hugs
We went to see the elephants and found both babies. The first was with the herd and the second we found around the corner under a waterfall playing in the water! We must have stayed for a half an hour and watched her.

When we first arrived at the zoo, we sat down next to this statue and ate our lunch. But after seeing that baby elephant play in the water, the statue came to life for us!

Down right cuddly!
If you haven't see the movie "March of the Empire Penguins" you need to! The penguin house was a magical place for the kids. I can see why when there is LOVE in the air! hee hee

Rinocerous hornbill


I loved this little sparrow.
I liked this bird because his feather pattern was so fun. He'd make a perfect scrapbook paper!

Tanner took one look at this guy and said, "Mom, he is saying,

"Behold, I AM CAMEL!""

No mom, don't make me take a nap! That's for the birds!

I don't see many tulips in Columbia, so it was a treat for me to catch them in full bloom at the zoo. I know I should keep my eyes on the animals, but I always admire the gardens while I am there.