Yogurt Smoothies

The boys still love making yogurt smoothies in the blender. We do this a lot -- this summer we've probably been doing it about 3 mornings per week. They want to do everything themselves now. First they go get their stools and place them at the foot of the counter. They always place themselves in the exact same spots, and Owen is always on the left, Kyle always on the right. Next they like to get all the ingredients collected up on the counter: yogurt, orange juice, fresh fruit, frozen fruit, honey. They let me vary the ingredients (different types of yogurts, different juices or frozen fruits, etc.), but they always insist that bananas, blueberries, and honey are included. Then they carefully get everything ready (peel the bananas, open the yogurt containers, remove the strawberry stems, rinse the blueberries, etc., etc., etc.). Then they put the ingredients into the blender (tasting everything along the way). It is a messy process. Their favorite part is when they get to push the buttons on the blender to turn it on... and then off again. They go nuts for this part -- jumping up and down on their stools, etc. Then I pour it into their "straw cups" for them. Finally, they sit down on their stools and drink. They drink two "straw cups" full each. Then they are off and running.