Gatorade Bottle Hack

Charlotte discovered Gatorade last summer, and now it's one of her favorite drinks.

The only problem is the Gatorade bottle's wide mouth. Char tries to be careful in the house, but the bottle can be messy when you're moving around on the couch or bouncing around in the car.

That's a spill waiting to happen.

I had the idea to make the bottle into a more grown up version of a sippy cup. I used a 15/64 drill bit to drill a hole in the bottle cap. That drill bit size makes a hole that is just slightly larger than the bendy straws we have at home. I placed the cap on a scrap piece of wood so I could cleanly drill through the plastic.

I then washed the cap to remove any oil or other contaminates left by the drill bit.

It's not centered, but it'll work.

Just replace the cap, and slide a straw through the hole.

The straws we have reach to the bottom of the 12 oz bottle, so Char can get to all the Gatorade and not have to tilt the bottle at all. 

The best part is you can keep the cap and use it again. I store ours on a shelf in the fridge.

Is it spill-proof? Nah. Kids will still find a way to make a mess, but at least this makes it a bit harder to do. 

Lightning Strikes Again

Tonight was our last night with Lightning, Char's first grade class's pet.

Char read Red: A Crayon Story to him.

She gave him a makeover, and that made him sad. I'm sympathetic; I've gotten that makeover, too.

To make up for the makeover, Char and her mom taught Lightning to play the Rat-a-Tat Card game. Lightning is either a fast learner or Charlotte is a good teacher, because it wasn't long before he beat Mom in a game of Rat-a-Tat. True story.

Lightning went with Char on a bike ride around the neighborhood after dinner. 

Then it got dark, and Lightning looked pretty worn out. It was time for him to go to sleep and time for Char to write in the journal.

Thanks for visiting, Lightning! You're our favorite snake!

Classss Pet

Charlotte's first grade teacher has a class pet. He's a snake named Lightning, and he's stuffed. I'm not sure about his schedule, but yesterday Charlotte was picked to take him home. She sprinted down the school's sidewalk to share the big news when I picked her up. After two days, Char will return the snake along with a writing assignment about what Lightning did during his time with the Monsons.

Charlotte and I have been listening to the Harry Potter book series on CD in the car. We're on the third book, Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban. After listening to a few CDs, we watch that same section of the movie. Charlotte was excited to show Lightning what the Night Bus looked like.

Since it was a daddy daughter night, Char and I took Lightning to the Flix theater for dinner and a movie. Lightning was happy the movie was about other animals.

Actually, he couldn't contain his excitement; he had to dance!

Who knows what else we will do with him?

Belted, Again!

Charlotte passed her karate test, and she can now wear her new yellow belt!

I Get That

Spotted on the drive to school today.



Well, at least I was once cool in my own mind.

Now I can't even fool myself.

Breaker, Breaker

Charlotte tested for her orange karate belt last week. We were given a list of hand positions, stances, and kicks that she would have to be able to perform, and we had a list of five tenets to memorize: courtesy, integrity, self-control, perseverance, and indomitable spirit.

At the end of the testing time, each student was required to walk to the front of the class and break a board with either their hand or their foot. We didn't see that coming. Charlotte hasn't tried breaking a board before, and I could see she was nervous. Heck, I was nervous, but Daphne was positive that Charlotte could do it.

Char bravely took her position.

Atta Girl!

We had her sign and date the wood so she can remember the first time she kicked a board into pieces.

Homecoming '16: J-Hawk Spirit Day!

A retired cross country jersey and some J-Hawk tattoos make for a pretty good spirit outfit.

Nice job with the theme colored hair ties, Mom.

Char says, "Go J-Hawks! Argh!"

I have no idea why we ended on a pirate note, but that's kids for ya.

Homecoming '16: 100 Years Old Day!

Homecoming '16: Clash Day!

Homecoming '16: Crazy Hair Day!