5 new favorite apps

It may be a misguided thought, but I feel like new apps fit into my whole minimalist mission thing. They don't take up any physical space, there is no packaging to throw away...

Either way, here are some that we have all been enjoying (in no particular order):

• Cake Doodle -$0.99

• This was a referral app from one of Stella's friends' Mom.
• You get to pick a cake like "Strawberry" and then do cute things like tap the screen to crack the eggs.  You mix it all up, pop it in the oven and then decorate away.  Stella and Hudson love it.
• They have other Doodle apps like Cookie Doodle and Donut Doodle.
• I think it is just fun to say Doodle.  Everything sounds better when you add that - "Dirty Diaper Doodle", "Puke Doodle", "Broken Mirror Doodle" - sorry, but those were all things that happened in the past 24 hours that I needed to make sound more fun.

• Dino Digger - $0.99

• For the price, you get a good variety of different dinosaurs that "come to life" after you "dig" them buy swiping around with your finger.
• Once they are alive, they do things like make noise and do funny movements when you tap on them.
•  This is one of Hudson's favorites.  Stella likes it too, but there is something about digging in the dirt and dinosaurs making loud growling noises that really appeals to the little guy.  I prefer something more like Cake Doodle, but hey, that is why there is something like 60,000 apps for the iPad - we can all find some we like.

• Touch Hockey Extreme - $2.99 

• It is just like the real thing! You know that sound when the puck slams into the goal and falls down the hole?  It is on there.
• Very entertaining for the older folks (you know, those of us who went to pizza parlors and thought games like air hockey were rad).

• Pocket zoo with live animal cams - $2.99
• This is usually more than I spend on a kid app (unless it is something like rad air hockey) but the live animal cams did it for me.  LIVE ANIMAL CAMS!  At a bunch of different zoos around the world.  Yep, you can log in every hour and check on the beavers at the Matsushima Aquarium in Japan or the tigers at the Kolmarden Zoo in Sweden.  Seriously, what will they think of next?
  

• Draw a Stickman - Episode 2 - free

• This was another referral app from a different mom - Man, Stella's friends have cool Moms! :)
• You follow little prompts to draw a stickman and then help him get out of a sticky situation by drawing other things.
• It is very creative and so cute to see how the kids draw.
• I've heard Episode 1 is a little more violent, but 2 isn't too bad.
• I'm sure now that we are hooked, Episode 3 will be like $4.99 but we'll have to buy it to see what the stickman does.  Man, why don't I think of some of these things?

Vivi isn't playing any of the aforementioned favorite apps in this picture.  Actually, I think she is watching a ski movie.  I just thought I should have a picture of one of the kids and the iPad.  There you go.

A trip "up" memory lane.

On the way home from McCall after Zach and Lori's wedding, we decided to take the scenic route. It also took us past where Mr. Yost and I had our first "outing" together-Jerry Johnson Hot Springs. The next day we drove by some of our old haunts in Missoula before heading home.

~ A pit stop along the river ~

~ A rare moment of brotherly/sisterly love in the hotel in Missoula ~

~  Playing at the riverfront park in downtown Missoula ~

 ~ Some of Vivi's first slides...check out the closed eyes as she nears the bottom - too cute! ~

 ~ The kids were thrilled with their rides on the carousel. ~

Good thing it wasn't cold out!  

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Sky Pilot, How High Can You Fly

A few months ago, Vivian realized two things: she had fun little squishy things in her ears and she could reach them!

Our best defense against her curiosity is to block all access.  We have a few different hats that we've tried. 

The best basic hat for wearing on a daily basis to daycare is the Hanna Andersson cotton pilot cap.  They are $10 each + shipping.  While they work well, they leave a little to be desired in overall cuteness factor.  I call her my little water polo player when she wears one of these.  Pouli calls her "Sky Pilot."  I recently looked up and listened to the song by The Animals in 1968 to see just exactly who this Sky Pilot was. 



The Sky Pilot of the title is a military chaplain, as revealed by the opening verse:

He blesses the boys

As they stand in line

The smell of gun grease

And the bayonets they shine

He's there to help them

All that he can

To make them feel wanted

He's a good holy man

 

Sounds just like our Vivi, right?  Maybe not exactly, but I still think Sky Pilot is a pretty cute nickname :)

Below is a cute hat that my cousin, Cheri, sent when Vivi was born.  Since it doesn't have a tie, she can get it off pretty easily.  This one ends up being more of a fashion statement than a daily wear option. 

*Notice how Hudson has rigged up a kite string on little Sky Pilot's swing as an alternative to the traditional swing pushing.

Somewhere on a blog about kids with hearing loss I saw a company in Canada called SilkaWear.  It was started by a family that had a child (Silka) with hearing loss.  They designed a hat that she could comfortably wear all day. 

"Prewashed to eliminate shrinkage, these custom-made bonnets are made with a top panel of 100% cotton, binding and ties of 100% cotton, and side panels of polyester sports mesh for breathable comfort and optimal hearing aid reception."

This one was more expensive - about $35 with shipping.  It was hard to tell what size would fit her.  I didn't want it to be too small, so I ordered one that is a little too big.  The fix?  I use a little pony tail holder on the top to gather up the excess material.  I call her "Top Knot" when she wears this hat.

The most recent find was this super cute summer sun hat.  These are called modBonnets.  A fellow Mom and blogger who also has a little daughter with infant hearing loss shared this great find with me.  It has a fun pattern on each side and is reversible.  It will be great for riding in the backpack, camping or just hanging out in the backyard this summer.

New carpet

We finally did it! We replaced our old, dirty, disgusting construction-grade carpet. When we moved into this house about 4 years ago, we knew we'd want to replace it at some point.  Over the winter it got to the point where I cringed every time I looked down. 

Not anymore!

Over Mr. Yost's spring break we moved literally every single thing out of all the rooms upstairs, had the new carpet installed over a two day period and then moved everything back. It was a little crazy at the time, but well worth it.

It inspired some more purge projects along the way like books...I think the final purge tally was somewhere north of 40 grown-up books and 20 kids books.

Stella climbing on the mound of stuff that was in the kids' bathroom.

This doesn't look too bad, right? Wait for the close-up...

What IS that?  Who knows.  That old carpet seemed to attract dirt and stains out of thin air.

All I can say is thank goodness I don't have to look at that every time I walk down the hallway anymore!

 The finished product - a wool Berber that is a great solution for our busy family.  It isn't a huge transformation as far as the look, but now all those little dots you see are actually part of the carpet instead of stains! 

 It was an in-stock carpet at one of our local furniture/flooring stores.  It was an affordable way for us to get a wool carpet. 

 I finally feel comfortable walking barefoot and letting Vivi roll around on the floor now!