Happy Fake Father's Day!

Jonathan is leaving for Uganda this week and he will be gone for Father's Day. We decided to celebrate Father's Day a few weeks early. The kids made cute cards that look like a shirt and tie. We found the idea here.
We also made a picture collage to go in his wallet.
Another gift that we made was for him to use in Uganda. We filled a bag with paper notes of love and a poem that said "When you are feeling down and blue, read a note from us to you, it should hopefully make you smile, and make you happy for awhile."

Jonathan wanted Puff Pancakes for breakfast and chicken tortilla casserole for dinner. The kids rubbed his back. I'm glad that we were able to pamper him before he left. We love you, Jonathan! Happy Father's Day!

Defrosting the Freezer

Several years ago we inherited an old freezer from my parents. I love it because I can store so much food in it, but because it is an older model it needs to be defrosted manually. This is a long process and should be done more often that it is. The kids love to help me. This morning we emptied the freezer and put pots of hot water in to melt the ice.
Then we'd go in and bang of the ice chunks. This is the part that the kids like to help with.
We had to do this several times. The ice chunks and melted ice helped water my flowers out front. Then I wiped everything down and loaded the food back into the freezer. It's amazing how much more I can fit in the freezer when I don't have 2 extra inches of ice in the way.

Another Garden Update

My garden is looking so good. And I think the trick is that I am giving it enough water. My mother in law taught me that I should be giving each square about a 12 second spray of water. It takes me a long time to water each day, but it is worth it to see all the green leaves and to have yummy tomatoes, squash and zucchini. I'm still waiting for carrots, beans, and melons. Yeah! A successful season of gardening.

Pulleys Part 2

Remember the pulley we made with the soda can? Today we made a bigger one and tried to lift something much heavier. We ventured out into the heat, filled a bucket with water and tried to lift it onto the swingset. Having a heaver object made the experiment more realistic.
Here is Corbin trying to use his muscles to lift it up.

Each of the kids had a turn pulling on the rope to lift the bucket. Ephram and Dyllan needed Corbin's help.Here's what Faythe was doing
There were some minor accidents. Once Ephram walked under the bucket when it was coming down and it landed on him. Another time the bucket came down too fast and it cracked and water splashed over me, Corbin and Dyllan. Gotta be careful with gravity.

Godzilla vs Veggies

Godzilla is well known for his destructive exploits. Tromping down cities, fighting other gigantic monsters, and enjoying the celebrity status lavished on him by a cultish following. What is less known about Mr. Zilla is his chronic health problem.

It all started shortly after Godzilla devoured the life force of Rodan and gained the ability to spew out a spiral fire ray. His belly ached! He thought it was the fiery life-force, but a visit to the doctor was planned to make sure everything would be OK.

The doctor told him, "Mr. Godzilla the problem is simple. You've been eating entirely too many large insects, reptiles, and stringy gorilla meat. The remedy is just as simple. You need to eat more fruits and vegetables!"

So Godzilla searched high and low for veggies his size. His search was largely unsuccessful, until he met the Mecham family. They sent their beautiful daughter to offer Godzilla a zucchini from their garden. It was just what the doctor ordered...

... except Faythezilla was rather upset at the loss of her favorite zucchini...

... so she took it back!

I guess we're all doomed to the consequences of an angry, belly-aching, gigantic lizard smashing our cities because he cranky from a lack of roughage!

La Campanella by Franz Liszt

One of the performers at Women's Conference this year was a young pianist named Josh Wright. He told us that the thing he likes to do best is combine classical music and hymns. He played an interesting song combining How Great Thou Art and a classical song I was unfamiliar with.

Then he wowed the audience (at least the part of the audience that I was sitting it) by playing a piece by Franz Liszt. He introduced it by saying that Liszt liked to write difficult songs to show off how good he was. I have now learned that Liszt was known as the most technically advanced pianist of his age and perhaps of all time. I also read that there are few sources that give an impression of how Liszt really sounded. If that's true then he must have been a fantastic pianist. When Josh Wright played La Campanella I was very impressed. If he sounded that good then what did Listz sound like?

I tried attaching the video, but it won't work. Here is the link to a youtube video. Please check it out. And be sure to listen all the way to the end. I think the end is the best.

Simple Machine--Pulley

Sometimes when we go to the library I'll pull random non-fiction books of the shelf in hopes that the kids will want to learn more about that subject. We recently read one about pulleys and decided that we needed to try and make one to see if there really was a difference.

We first filled an empty pop-top soda can with sand and rocks, tied a string to the top and tried to lift if with our hands. (Do you like Corbin's fake expression?)
Then we made a fixed pulley with a screwdriver, a spool of thread, a rubber band, and the soda can with string. It was a little easier to lift.Then we made a moveable pulley. This required some paperclips and a straw and the soda can with string. It kept getting easier to lift.
Lastly we combined the two types of pulleys and made a compound pulley. This was the easiest. Tomorrow I want to try it with something that is really heavy. I wonder if we'll have to make our pulleys stronger?

It's Magic!

I've discovered a new and wonderful cleaning product! I don't like to clean my shower because it never looks clean afterward--nothing cuts through the soap scum. A friend told me about Mr. Clean Magic Eraser Bath Scrubber and I decided to try it. Here's what my tub looked like before: (it's sideways--I can't figure out how to make it stay right side up)And here's a picture of after:I'm not if the picture does it justice, but the difference was AMAZING! It took a little effort, but that is because my shower was BAD. I'll have buy more and clean more often. I love how nice a clean shower looks.

Girls' Bedroom

I recently bought new bedspreads for the girls' room. I shouldn't say recently--it's been more like 7 months. It takes a long time for me to finish a project. I don't really like to do projects like this. I don't have a lot of decorating sense and I always have to ask other for help.

After buying the bedspreads I was concerned that they didn't go together. Braedi's is striped and Dyllan's and Faythe's are flowery. They contain the same colors, but I have issues with mixing patterns. I started asking around to get a second opinion and see if there was something I could do to tie them together. Christy suggested pictures of the bedspreads mounted on wood and curtains. She did the pictures and another friend helped with the curtain.

Before I could hang up the curtain rod and the pictures I wanted to paint. I wanted to do the same neutral color through out the house--no special colors for the bedrooms. But after painting the kids' rooms I wish that I would have picked a different color for them.

The girls have a chair rail and I left it white. Above it I painted a light brown and a darker brown below. I like the colors I just don't think it's right for a bedroom. Oh well! I'm not going to repaint. I'd forgotten how much I don't like painting. It's too much work and paint is expensive.

Now I need to find some other embellishments/accessories. Any ideas?

Reading Activities

We've been doing a lot of reading aloud lately. Sometimes I'll read the book and sometimes we'll listen to an audio book. During this time the kids play quietly or quietly work on a project. During our last book we finished a puzzle. Here are some of the other things that have been created while listening to books.

More Collages

We did another collage activity for art co-op on Wednesday. The kids were given 2 ovals cut from scrapbook paper and given directions to make an animal using the ovals and other pieces of paper. They had to cut out the other body parts and glue them to the ovals. Ephram made a frog, Corbin made a make believe creature that he calls a jabbercat, and the rest of us made cats. I like to see the creativity in their projects.

It's My Birthday!

I celebrated my 34th birthday on Wednesday. I've mentioned before that we don't do much for birthdays at our house and mine is not exception. We started the day with a family dentist appointment--YIPPEE! The best present was that none of us had cavities.

We had our art co-op that afternoon. My friend, Courtney, made a yummy carrot cake to help me celebrate. I was hoping that we could go for a hike as my family activity, but it didn't work out. Jonathan was on call the night before and he needed sleep. But for our date night on Saturday he took me hiking and it was nice to be with him.

I don't think that I'm old, but when I was young and my mom was 30 I thought that she was old. I'm grateful to be healthy. I'm grateful for a loving husband. I'm grateful for my kids and all that they teach me. I'm grateful for my family. What more could a girl ask for?

Mother's Day

Yesterday was my best Mother's Day so far. It was so nice to be taken care of. I got some beautiful flowers from Jonathan and the kids. I usually don't like flowers, but this year I asked for some. Jonathan bought me tulips and then the kids wrote me a note on a paper tulip.
Braedi: I love how you work for me and love me when I do worng. I love you a lot.
Corbin: I love that you cook meals. (I love that you kock mels)
Dyllan: I love mommy because she takes care of us. (I love mommy becus she tacs kir of os)
Ephram: I like that you play with me. (I like that u play with me)
Faythe: I love that you teach me about Jesus.
I love kids' writing!

I got the sweetest letter from Jonathan and a card from Braedi. Those two are good about showing how much they appreciate me. Dyllan has been telling me all weekend that she had a present for me. Sunday morning she reminds me but says that she wants to get all ready first. After she is dressed with her hair done she comes up to me with her hands behind her back and tells me that she is ready. Then she gives me the biggest "tighter-tighter" hug. So sweet. I didn't have to fix a meal and I got time to lay on the couch and read. I felt so special.

Strawberry Jam

Remember last year's experiences making jam? They didn't set up and we just used them for syrup. I decided to give it another try. I measured exactly and followed the directions to a T. AND. . .it worked!

The kids helped cut up the strawberries. I told them they could eat 1 for every 5 they cut. Faythe couldn't wait that long. "Can I eat this one?" Ephram took it very serious. "I've cut 5 now I can eat one." I love my kid helpers!
I got to use my Christmas present (a Bosch food processor attachment) to puree the strawberries.
I decided to try it without doing a water bath, but the jars didn't seal by just turning them upside down so I put them in my canner and all but 2 sealed. Homemade jam makes me want to make bread, but I think we'll just have pancakes instead.

Faythe Prays

Faythe says that she can say her prayers by herself. I love kids' first independent prayers. "Heavenly Father, Thank you for this day. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen." So simple.

Collages

The word collage comes from the french word coller which means "to glue." It is a way to create art by gluing papers and small objects to a flat surface. Making a collage has been around for a long time, but wasn't considered art until Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque began gluing newspaper prints and wallpaper patterns to their canvases. They thought the normal forms of art were boring and too limited so they looked for a new way to express their ideas.

Our art co-op created collages today. I gave each kid a picture of a face that I printed on-line as a base. Then they looked through magazines to find new eyes, ears, noses, mouths, and hair to make a funny face. The kids came up with some great faces. The picture is upside down--I can't figure out how to change it. Maybe it makes the faces even funnier?