Sunny Skies Outside

The Other Mother has been back in my books again.  Actually I am so glad.  As she is a pro at finding out the good information.  I love the idea below.  We did our own back outside yesterday too.  But I will tell you that after we visit with the Other Mother.  By the way....that is her just over to the left.  Isn't she beautiful.  I am always swept away by her eyes.  No wonder Princess Emma aka The Poo is so pretty.  We see where she gets her looks at.

Many of you know that the Poo and I spend as much time as possible outdoors. We fly kites and play baseball and kickball. We play red light green light and garden with veggies and flowers. We go for walks and go play at the park. She loves to be active and Papi and I encourage that as much as we can. Even if it is just coloring with sidewalk chalk. When Papi is not at work he joins us in our outdoor adventures and loves it just as much as she and I do. But even we run out of things to keep us outside and that is why I really have enjoyed reading a new book Lynette from Crazed Mind lent to us. 15 Minutes Outside : 365 ways to get out of the house and connect with your kids by Rebecca P. Cohen is a wonderful book packed with ideas to get you and your kids outside and moving no matter the weather. Rebecca shares her story of how she got the idea to get her kids out everyday and took a leap of faith to change jobs after 15 years.

In this book she has ideas for every month of the year and all kinds of weather. There are tips to get your kids imaginations going as well as their bodies. She has put in the tricks she has found to make things easier and quicker to get out no matter the weather and how to stay warm in winter and cool in summer. Some of the ideas are super simple and tons of fun, some require a little more planning but are worth the effort it takes to get outside. One of the ideas I really liked was create your own drive in. In the evening, get some lawn chairs or blankets set up, pop your popcorn and head out with your laptop or portable dvd player and enjoy a movie night outside with your family. Simple but not something I would have thought of on my own and a great way to have a nice family evening. I have really enjoyed reading this book and think the ideas are wonderful and enjoyable for all ages. I would recommend you check out Rebecca's website. 

  

Now to tell you of our day yesterday.   We did a massive cookout.  It is how we do in nice weather.  And it was our first for this year.  As a way to save money, time, keep the house cooler and have fun together we cook out.  This time we had several of the discounted family packs of meat from our local grocery store along with a gathering from our freezer.  By doing this we have all of the meat cooked for the meals all week long.    Dear Hubby cooked for us with doing the best seasoning.  While he was doing that I headed in to make a surprise for dinner.  Princess Emma (the Poo) gathered flowers in the front yard and showed a nice 66 year old man how to dig in the dirt.  Like he would have never known how to do that one.  My surprise was homemade Coconut Cream Pie.  I will be posting the pics and recipe soon.  The Other Mother, Princess Emma and The Ex all joined in for our family fun.  Ending in a showing of Avatar once it was good and dark.  The colors in that show are so beautiful that we wanted them to really light up the screen.

DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy of this book to facilitate this review. No other compensation was provided.