Weekend Run Down

We were finally, FINALLY able to get some outside exploring done at home this weekend! The polar vortex decided to take a break and the entire family ventured out on BOTH days. It was amazing!!

Day One: Winslow Park

Winslow Park is a town owned park on Casco bay. During the summer it is packed with people camping on the sunny shores of the bay, but in the winter it is quiet. They have a great playground, a small beach area, nice trails where dogs can run free during the winter months... it is a great place to hang out.

Ben's favorite part is the giant pirate ship. There is also a traditional playground and swings.

We spent an hour or two just getting some energy out. I imagine this would be a pretty spectacular place to hang out in during the summer months as well. As locals, we are a little bit spoiled by the lack of people in the winter, so haven't actually ventured there during the busy season.

Day Two: Our little corner of the world...in the woods

On the second day we all strapped on our snowshoes (minus the baby) and ventured into our woods for a little snowshoeing. We have some need little trails and old logging roads out in our woods, once we trek through the uncleared sections on our land.

While we ventured the Hubs and I came up with some big plans for cleaning up some of the dead underbrush and creating a few trails so that the kids can link to the other trails a little easier. We even have a few ideas for a tree house nestled out a little ways in the woods.

Ben is really enjoying snowshoeing these days, and Max got his first pair this Christmas, so I am looking forward to more treks out into the wilderness.

So, that is a quick run down of our outside adventures this weekend. Were you able to get outside this weekend. I have to say, it was so nice to be able to get outside without nine layers of clothing and kids screaming because they are freezing! Has anyone else noticed the lighter afternoons? Spring is coming!

Advent adventures: Go to a Parade

The Sparkle Parade is one of our family traditions. Every December, no matter what the weather, we trudge to Main Street to watch a (thankfully) short and sweet parade full of twinkle lights.

The school's band wear antlers with sleigh bells, lighted hats and bracelets and march down the street playing festive holiday tunes. They are followed by boy scouts with candy canes and more lights.
The local unicycling group (yes we have one and they are pretty darn good) made up of elementary and middle school students light up their wheels and don Santa hats as they make their way down the street stopping every hundred feet or so to "perform."

There is a glowing Mickey Mouse and Pooh Bear too. The local McDonald's employees dress up as french fries. And, other local groups set up bands in beds of pick ups or

The boys' eyes glow when they see the lit up bulldozers, fire truck, giant LL Bean boot, and, last but not least, Santa traveling aboard a fishing boat. The smiles on the kids' faces make the cold and dark worth it every year. We have been there in snow, sleet, rain, warm(ish) temperatures, and freezing cold. It doesn't matter because it is a fun and festive parade that warms my heart.

The 2013 Holiday Season is Here!

The holiday season officially kicked off tonight at the LL Bean tree lighting.

Check out this lightorama:




large from Home from the Ground Up on Vimeo.

Crazy, right?

Here we go... the 2013 holiday season is here!

Did anyone else have tree lightings this weekend? Anything as elaborate as this?

Let the countdown to Christmas begin!

I know this one is a little early, but I figured if anyone wanted to try this idea for filling their advent calenders they would need a few days to get everything together. Plus, the Christmas tree lighting in town is tonight so ready or not, here come the holidays!

I love our advent "calendar." It is from L.L. Bean. I actually dreamed about owning it for a few years but couldn't justify the price tag. One day The Hubs' mom showed up at our door with it. Love her!
 

Every year I try to come up with something interesting to hide in it for the boys. The first year I bought a  bucket of little green army men which fit okay in the little boxes on the lighthouse. Certain men fit better than others and it took a little bit to figure out which ones we could use, but it wasn't candy which was my whole goal so I felt like I was winning.

The next year I caved and bought Hershey Kisses to put in the boxes. It was easier since I had two boys who I needed to make happy and more than one kiss fit in some of the boxes. The year after that I resorted to the chocolate again because I was tired and running out of ideas that would work for both boys.

Last year we had little Lego kits that we stole from a Lego advent calendar that Grandma got us. That was a hit for a few days, but I ended up putting most of them together in the end.

Then, one day, I was wasting some time scrolling through Pinterest when I can across this:

 What??? Give "experiences" rather than little trinkets or chocolate? Sounds good to me! And, this idea comes with bonuses (even better)!

The bonuses:
#1 We try to squeeze in a ton of events every holiday season. These events can easily become cards  for the lighthouse and since I get to load up the advent "calendar," I can make sure that the events are pulled on the correct day.
#2 There is an "unwrap a book" card. I have always loved the idea of unwrapping a book as a kind of countdown to Christmas, but I didn't really want to have 25 new books (holy expensive)  and have to find homes for them in addition to the new gifts.
#3 Some of the cards that I have seen/came up with have to do with the kids doing something nice for someone else, i.e. buy a gift to donate, wrap and bring a gift to the neighbors, etc... This way the boys can see that the holidays are also about doing nice things for others and not just about getting presents.

It took me a little while to come up with a variety of things and, I will admit, some have to do with candy, but overall I think there is a nice variety in the adventures that we will be experiencing this December. Thanks to Kim and her awesome blog post I had a great starting point. Many of the experiences below are borrowed from her.

1. Go to the Sparkle Parade 
2. Cut down our tree (more on that tradition here)
3. Put up some holiday lights/ decorate your bedrooms
4. Walk around town and look at the lights
5. Buy and donate a gift to a needy child
6. Make hot chocolate
7. Unwrap a book (this one will probably be used more than once)
8. Family movie night
9. Go out to eat as a family (the boys LOVE restaurants and we hardly ever go.)
10. Decorate Cookies
11. Go for a walk in the woods and collect branches for a wreath
12. Wrap a gift for the neighbors
13. Go on a light drive (LOVE this! We do it every year and have been since before we had kids)
14. Eat a candy cane
15. Go to a holiday movie at the movie theater (one of the local movie theaters has a free movie morning for kids)
16. Visit Santa
17. Go ice skating
18. Make a gift for someone else
19. Bake a treat
20. Go snowshoeing/skiing (depending on the snow)
21. Go to a holiday party
22. Get Chinese Food and have a picnic by the tree (the Chinese food request has been happening weekly and we have yet to get it.)
23. Decorate a tree. (This one has many possibilities. There are lots of "trees" that you could decorate.)
24. Open our Christmas Eve box (More on this little tradition later...)

Other ideas:
Make a gingerbread house
Take a winter walk on the beach
Go to a holiday party/ Have a holiday party
Bring a dinner to someone else
Donate food for a needy family (we actually do this one before Thanksgiving)

That is what I have so far. I plan to blog about some of these experiences as we go. Do you have any other ideas that I could add?  How do you countdown to Christmas? What is your advent calendar tradition?

Happy Halloween - Main Street Treating

After hanging out at LL Bean last weekend for the annual Pumpkin Fest we decided to return to go trick or treating! That's right, many of the stores open their doors to trick or treaters every Halloween afternoon!

Honestly, the place was a zoo and the rain didn't help much. It was all I could do to keep my two year old by my side, and keep the 6 year old within eyesight as he ran ahead with his buddies. Add to that the 7 week old strapped to my chest in the Baby Bjorn who (thankfully) slept through the whole thing, the huge astronaut helmet that the 6 year old insisted on wearing, only to decide less than one hundred feet away from the car that he didn't want it anymore, the two year old's trick or treating bag and raincoat, and the umbrella... let's just say it was fun stuff. Despite my best intentions, there was no way I could take pictures of the event. So, just close your eyes, picture a quaint Main Street, full of shops with employees standing guard dressed up in Halloween costumes. Add hoards of children, parents, and rain, and you have one fun afternoon. Luckily I was there with some great friends who helped me hold things and herd my children.

If you go, go early. The event runs from 4 - 6 and many of the stores had run out of candy by just after 5:00. Still, the kids LOVED it and Halloween really is all about them, isn't it?

Fall Outings - Pumpkin Festival

This past weekend we took the boys to the pumpkin festival at LL Bean. This is an annual fundraiser for Camp Sunshine which is a camp in Casco, Maine for kids with life threatening illnesses and their families.

Ben's class carves pumpkins for this festival every year. It is amazing to see all of the pumpkins created by students in area schools, and employees from neighboring businesses displayed on the LL Bean campus. They line the streets of downtown Freeport,

are stacked into pumpkin towers,

create a pumpkin maze, and line the walkways and streets of the campus.

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During the festival you can purchase a pumpkin to carve and add to the collection. In fact, people were still carving even when volunteers had begun lighting the pumpkins. 

There are events for kids and adults, live bands, snacks, and of course the pumpkin lighting. Unfortunately we had to get home to feed the baby before the lighting, but it was a fun way to spend the afternoon. 

http://www.campsunshine.org/pumpkinfestival/portland_home.html

Next year, hopefully we can all carve pumpkins for this great cause! 

Fall Outings - Apple Picking

Who goes apple picking when they already have two full bags of apples in their fridge? I do! I do! Maybe I'm crazy but for our family, apple picking is a fall tradition. Every year we travel to a local orchard that also sells donuts, cider, and other yummy food and handmade crafts. I know it sounds silly, but I really need to go to an orchard that also does the whole baked goods thing to feel like I've gotten my full annual apple picking experience.

Last year, Max wanted nothing to do with the actual act of picking the apples. In fact, when we tried to make him pick an apple he screamed. See?

I guess it just goes to show that you can't make that child do anything!

This year was a different story. He couldn't get into the trees fast enough!

When we got home I was faced with three bags of apples. Ben suggested applesauce so I got out my trusty crock pot and made the easiest version of apple sauce I have ever tried. I used the recipe from food.com ( thanks Lovebakedin) and then took some lazy shortcuts.

Instead of  measuring out apples I just cut them up until they filled the crock pot.

As you can see, I wasn't too careful with fully peeling the apples. The skin is extra fiber, right? Instead of just cinnamon I used apple pie spice, and I left out the lemon juice because we didn't have any. It turned out great. The boys are loving it with a side of pumpkin bread for their afternoon snack. Unfortunately it only used four or so apples, which means that I have a ton more apples to use up. No worries, I will come up with something! Stay tuned!