Science Fair

The kids recently participated in a science fair with our homeschool group. It's been on the calendar the whole year, but I procrastinated until the last 2 weeks. I got books filled with ideas from the library and allowed Braedi and Corbin to pick something that interested them. Corbin picked an ant farm and Braedi picked making a light bulb. For Dyllan and Ephram I picked something easy that they could do together--popcorn.

Braedi worked with her dad on her project. He helped her get the materials and test them. Unfortunately the light bulb only glowed one or two times.


For Corbin's project we went out to a nearby field and dug up an ant hill. We made our own ant farm, fed the ants and observed what they preferred to eat. I thought it was FASCINATING to watch the ant dig tunnels. They were always busy.

Dyllan and Ephram did different things to the popcorn kernels (soaked, cooked, froze)and then popped them to see if they would pop.


We had a fun time, but next year I want to make sure that we have more time.

A New Sword and Shield

I have this history book that is filled with crafts and other activities from almost every notable era in history. Corbin and Braedi like to look through it and find something they can do. I don't really like the book because they always want to do these complicated projects that require too much of my time and we don't always have all the materials. I try to be supportive, but I'm not much of a crafty mom. After our trip to the Estrella Wars Corbin started looking through the book again to find a sword and shield. We didn't have time to work on it that day, and the next day I was going visiting teaching so I told him to ask his dad to help him. When I came home Corbin had almost finished the shield and was going to make a sword. AND he did it on his own (with a little modifications)! Then he and his dad had a sword fight.

Famiy Pictures

Faythe is 2 1/2 and I don't have a picture of her in the house. We got family pictures taken when she was about 8 months old, but I never printed them. We finally decided to have another photo shoot and this time I'm going to print them. Thanks to a couple of my fabulous sisters-in-law we had a successful shoot. Thanks to Misty for help with the outfits (that was my biggest stresser) and to Christy for taking the pics. Here are a few of my favorites.

Tex-Mex Bean Salad with Cramy Salso Dressing

I made another yummy meal that I thought I would share. I ate it as a salad, but it would be super yummy as a chip dip--that's how Braedi liked it.

1/3 c. salsa
3 Tbl. sour cream
1 Tbl. apple cider vinegar
3 c. black beans, drained and rinsed
1 c. grape tomatoes, halved (I used regular tomatoes)
3/4 c. corn
1/2 c. avocado, diced
1/2 c. scallions, sliced (I used green onions)
1/2 c. cilantro, chopped
6 c. romaine lettuce, shredded
2 oz pepper jack cheese, cubed or shredded (I used sharp cheese, but it would be better with pepper jack)
24 tortilla chips (I used tortilla strips)

--In a large bowl, stir together salsa, sour cream and vinegar until blended. Add beans, tomatoes, corn ,avocado, scallions, and cilantro; toss to mix and coat.
--Place 1 1/2 c. lettuce on plates; top with 1 1/2 c. of bean mixture. Sprinkle with 2 Tbl. of cheese; arrange 6 chips around each plate.

Yields: 4 servings
Points Plus: 9

Estrella Wars

Ever been to the Renaissance Fair? This is kind of like that, only different. It's a week-long event hosted by a non-profit organization that studies western European history by recreating some pastimes and crafts of the Middle Ages. (from their website). Basically it's a bunch of people who spend 10 days living out of tents and pretending to live a long time ago. They dress in period garb, have wars and sword fights and put on classes and other events for anyone who wants to participate. They walk around with real weapons and are wiling to talk to anyone about who they are pretending to be. We learned a lot about the time period and Corbin really wished that he had enough money to buy a sword. My favorite part was the educational classes. I wished there were more. The kids liked (in order of oldest to youngest, excluding Faythe) being with friends, the dog races, the horses, and eating ice cream.

This is one (or two) of the kingdoms preparing for war.

One of the other people on horses showed us how they practiced for a jousting tournament.

Fencing/Sword fighting--if they got hit on the arm or leg they had to pretend that they couldn't use that limb. They showed great sportsmanship.

One of the educational classes. She had actually been cooking in that oven all day. She let us sample a Cinnamon roll and it was yummy. Some of the other classes included blacksmithing, armor, and spinning wool into thread.
If it weren't for the drive (all the way out in Florence) I would think about doing it again next year.

Southwest Thomas Jefferson Education Forum

Awhile back I talked about re-reading A Thomas Jefferson Education by Oliver DeMille and deciding that that was how I wanted to teach my kids. I've slowly been changing how I do things and feel that I'm getting the hang of it. I'll share more about what a Thomas Jefferson Education (TJEd) is and how I'm implementing it later. For now I want to share about my (our) experience at the convention. This convention was little like the homeschool convention that we attend every summer. It was much smaller and a little less organized, but it boosted my confidence and provided a lot of input/insight like the other. We were lucky to hear from some seasoned TJEd-ers and get some helpful tips on how to apply the philosophy in our own home. Here are some things that stood out to me:
--What is true, good and right? How do you know? How can you lead/teach unless you know?
--Would you be good if no one saw you? What about if God couldn't see you? Is justice it's own reward? (That's a story from Plato's Republic. I think I need to add that one to my list of books to read. Am I up for the challenge?)
--Guide the child to love good through stories, music, movies, plays, dance, etc.
--I need to make internal changes to create an external environment so students can make internal changes. I want to create an environment of greatness. I can do this by getting my own education, letting go, holding onto the 7 keys and focusing on people.
--Read, write, discuss, apply.
--I want to incorporated a song of the week and a story from our family history.
It was a good convention and I can't wait to see the end results.

Don Quixote

Last Thursday we, along with Christy and her kids, went to our last ballet of the school year. We saw Don Quixote. For the other 2 ballets we read the story and were familiar with the plot, but Don Quixote is a 700 page book and I wasn't about to try reading that to the kids. We own it, but it's at the bottom of my reading list and that's not reading aloud! I did find a children's story at the library that was one part of the whole and unfortunately it wasn't the story the ballet told. Regardless of all that, we enjoyed our experience. I like to see the costumes (especially the tight tights!) and am so impressed by the dancing. I look forward to the ones we'll see next year.

Look Ma, No Training Wheels

It's time for Dyllan to learn to ride with out training wheels. When Braedi was ready to learn we took an idea from my mother-in-law--practicing in the back yard on the grass. This was after lots of tries doing it the traditional way--dad holding on the back of her seat and following her around the block. She finally figured it out then Corbin wanted to learn. She taught him and he quickly caught on. I finally took one of the old bikes and put it in the back yard for Dyllan to practice. But, guess who learned instead? Ephram!

He can go around the yard a few times (and he usually manages to avoid all the stuff). Now we just have to get him out on the street to try.

Another Valentine Activity

I've started doing stuff with Faythe while the other kids are finishing their chores and practicing their paino. They can join us as they finish. It's mostly the stuff I did with the other kids when we did Mommy and Me. I decided with Faythe that I didn't have the time to do a class with her. But now I want to do some of those activities. We sing our abc's and count to 10, practice shapes and colors, read a book and do a thematic activity. Last week we did some valentine activities. We read the same book (Hearts on the _____.) everyday for a week and today Faythe "read" it. It was super cute and I wish I had a video camera. Then we did some sorting activties and a craft.

Valentine's Day

Jonathan and I don't celebrate Valentine's day, but the kids and I did some fun activities. We started the day by writing haikus. It was Braedi's second attempt at poetry (she wrote her dad a poem for Christmas), but for the rest of them it was a first. We made a list of valentine words (chocolate, love, cupid, candy, etc.) then tried to put them into sentences that fit the criteria of a haiku (5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables). We just covered the basics of a haiku without getting into the emotions of one.

Braedi:
February love
Valentines, hearts and flowers
Make me love you much

Corbin:
Chocolate is good
m favorite kind of chocolate
is dark chocolate

Dyllan:
I love valentines
because I get candy
(no last line)

Ephram:
Heart
Red

Mine: (this is maybe my first or second attempt at poetry, too)
Cupid's arrow flies
Searching for someone to love
My heart it reaches

Then we met the Pottle's and Schloss' for a party. The kids decorated mailboxes


played some games

(this is a relay where the kids had to bring the hearts from one side of the room to the other with out using their hands. most of them decided using their mouths was the best idea.)

(a classic game of pin-the-heart-on-the-cupid)
ate cookies
and opened valentines.
Fun times with friends!

Frittata with Spaghetti and Tomatoes

I'm going to try to post more meal ideas/recipes, but only if I think they are extra yummy. The other night for dinner I made a frittata and I really liked it, though I think I was the only one. But I don't cook for anyone else, I cook for myself.

4 oz uncooked spaghetti
4 large eggs
2 large egg whites
1/3 c. milk
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. table salt
1 1/2 c. plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped (I used roma tomatoes and didn't seed them)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 c. basil, chopped (I used about 2 tsp. dried)
2 tsp. butter
1/2 c. shredded Parmesan cheese (I used Romano)

--Cook spaghetti according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain well.
--Combine eggs and next four ingredients in a large bowl; beat well with a whisk. Add spaghetti, tomato, garlic, and basil; stir well.
--Preheat broiler.
--Coat a large ovenproof nonstick skillet with cooking spray (I used a regular frying pan); melt butter in the pan over medium heat. Add egg mixture. Cook, uncovered, 13 minutes or until top is almost set. Sprinkle with cheese.
--Wrap handle of pan with foil; broil 4 to 5 minutes or until set. cut into wedges.
Yield: 4 servings
Points Plus: 7

E is for Elephant

When each of the kids were about 2 years old I made up songs to help them learn how to spell their names. Now it is Faythe's turn. Faythe can recognize an F. (But she also thinks that an E is an F.) We've been doing an activity for each letter and today we did the last letter--E. I enjoy being able to work one-on-one with Faythe.

How Do You Sleep?

Me? I sleep laying (or is it lying? )down in my bed, but apparently Faythe sleeps standing up. I went in to check on the girls the other night and Faythe had her feet on the floor and her head on her pillow and she was sound a sleep. I don't know how she did it. Too funny!

Putting Off the Natural Man

A few weeks ago the Relief Society lesson was on fasting and one of the things I got from it was to be more prepared. Yesterday I started talking with Braedi about what she wanted to fast for and I began thinking about what aspect of my life needed work. Whenever Braedi says the family prayer she asks that there be less contention. I (gently) pointed out to her that often times the cause of the contention is her actions and behavior. She decided to fast that there could be less contention. As for me, I noticed that I have not been very patient with kids' behavior--always nagging and never noticing the good. I fasted that I would be able to look for the good and be more patient with behavior.

Today after church I had some time to read the conference issue of the Ensign. The article I read was He teaches us to put off the natural man by Elder Juan Uceda. Who knew it would be the answer to my prayers?! He tells a story about a dad and his daughter and a little contention and how the problem was solved. Near the end he shares how contention can depart from our homes and lives--by living Christlike attributes. I shared with Braedi and said a prayer of gratitude.

--forgive others
--be submissive (yield to the power of the Lord)
--be meek (be mild of temper, not easily provoked or irritated)
--be humble
--be patient
--be full of love
--put of the natural man and plead for help
--become a saint through the atonement

Gathering Blue

We just finished reading a book called Gathering Blue by Louis Lowry. (It's part of The Giver series.) In the story there is a girl who is learning the art of coloring threads--what plants make what colors and how to make the best dyes. We had a little discussion of where the colors in our clothes come from (mostly chemicals) and what plants can make dyes. It tied into how lengthy and difficult the process was and how royalty could afford to have their clothes dyed. We decided to give it a try. After doing a little research we learned that it was a LOOOONG process and needed some items that I didn't have. So, we modified it a little. We mashed up some blueberries (a plant that is/was actually used in dyeing), put them in a pot with some water, added a strip of muslin and simmered it for an hour or two. Then we rinsed the cloth and hung it up to dry. And, guess what?!? It was purple! The kids thought it was neat and were surprised it worked.