This week I am challenging myself... I am taking my kidlets camping by myself... We are going to Elkmont in the Smoky Mtns. to see the "Synchronized Fireflies" . which is considered to be a "modern day phenoman" as they were once only thought to be found in Southeast Asia... I tried to get a spot for the weekend, but it is booked a year in advance for this time of year due to the immense number of people from all over the world that come to see the fireflies...
So, I decided to be brave and take my kids myself... We leave Wednesday and are going to stay until Friday evening... I will update everyone on how it goes...Just pray that I don't forget any necessities and that I can actually get tent set up...*L*
This is my weekend to work, but as there were only 2 babies in the unit, I was able to be off today...
So, I thought, "What could we do on this rainy day?" Well, it didn't take me long to remember the list, "What every child needs to do before they grow up"... and on that list is "PLAYING IN THE RAIN"...
So, out we go... We did some brief yard work, mulch around our trees, put up some lattice around our deck steps... and then we plant some "Morning Glories", and "BirdHouse Gourds"... the kids had so much fun... (little did they know, their "playing" was actually work)..*L*
Our "Marigolds" and "Impatients" that we planted in the little hot houses have came up and doing really well... we hopefully will get to put them out into planters soon....
Last night, DH and I took the kidlets to see a "CASTING CROWNS" concert with some friends from church.. It was wonderful. They are like one of my favorite groups...So great... DD danced all through it.... DS was a little disappointed that his name wasn't drawn for the free electric guitar they were giving away though...*L*
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They showed some pictures from their "invited" tour in North Korea and also spoke on the great works of World Vision...
87% of every dollar donated goes to the people through World Vision for clean water and education... I think that is pretty incredible...
DH and I have discussed maybe sponcering a child now for the kids to help with teaching them about missions...They would receive a picture of that child and we could pray for and recieve updates... You can check out more about World Vision here ...
Driving home from the game tonight, I get a call from my mother.."Did you forget the Lunar Eclipse tonight?" Well, uh, yes... I did...
So, we pull over into the parking lot at the Pilot and hop out and gaze up at the sky... Luckily for us it was only 9:56pm... so we had just made it...
We were able to observe the eclipse (which seemed to last forever, but I think that was just because it was chilly and we were standing in a gas station parking lot looking up at the sky, while other people thought we were nuts, I am sure)... *L*
The kids loved seeing the "orange-red" tint... and I myself was very happy to have not missed it, as the next one won't be visible in the US until 2010...
Tonight we went to a UT Vols Basketball game... The stadium was packed... over 20,000 people were there... They are ranked #2 in the nation right now and played Auburn ...we won 89-70 Had a great time!!!
Today since it was raining out and nasty, we decided to go to the movies... (which we don't do often because a movie around here is $8.25 for an adult ticket)... anyway, the BEE Movie was playing at one of the West End theaters for $2 a person... So we loaded up and went... It was great... It was funny and educational also... and Scholastic has a unit to go with it...
You can check it out here. Anyway, it will give the kidlets something to do this weekend while I am at work and let DH have the opportunity to "help" them with school...
So if you have the opportunity, check out the BEE Movie...It is "G" rated and extremely funny...
p.s. One more little gripe, what about the price of popcorn and a drink at the movies?... *L*
On with the original plans for the day.... We continued on our trip to the mountains... Our intention was to take the Cades Cove Loop tour... but having seen the "HUGE" flashing sign stating that it would take 3-4 hrs. to complete the loop, we made a slight change in plans and did the following instead.. *LOL*
We took in some short hikes...(absolutely beautiful )...had a picnic, where we found a great campground...(Elkmont) and then the kids played in the creek...(even though the water was freezing) and played with the "water skimmers" ... The kidlets even gathered some leaves to bring back home...
And DH and I are so THANKFUL to be able to spend a Sunday afternoon with our DC and watch them play and explore....
Today we went to "Winter Jam" with our church youth group...
This is an event sponsored by WMU for educating youth about missions...
DC learned about how missions are needed not only in the international arena, but also locally... there were several exhibits and hands-on opportunities...
DC made bread as was made in the time of Jesus and learned about "locust stew"... they "traveled" to Kenya and Malawi, where they learned of the immense poverty and disease there... they made jewled bookmarks for the missionaries to use in the field and got bring one home for their own use in their bibles...
The highlight of the day for them was speaking to a missionary from Croatia, who told them all about the country, taught them to say "hello" and "goodbye" in Croatian, and gave them cookies made from the recipe used by Lottie Moon in her travels to China...
They had a great time and learned a great deal about missions the world over...
Today was our first trip for the fall... We went to Echo Valley Farms with our church youth group (the CIA's, Children in Action) and had a fantastic time... We did the corn maze, (which was so neat) and the we took a hayride, and each child picked out a pumpkin...(even the big kids, like my DH and myself )...
We divided up into groups and of course DS wanted to go with his friends in a group, so DD, DH, and myself went with our friends on the adventure through the maze...When we got to the pumpkin patch, DS had to have a big pumpkin while DD picked out a cute lil' pumpkin that she has named "Jack"...
After all the fun we went to a local campground and had a weinie roast... The kids had a great time and it was certainly a great way to kick off the Fall Harvest Season!!!
We spent today learning about Greece... We talked a little about Grecian Gods (my kidlets thought it was crazy to think there was more than one God) and I didn't go into it too much as I didn't want to confuse them (they are only 4 & 7)... and then we looked into their dress... where Greece is located in the Mediterrenean and it's neighbors Cyprus and Italy... We talked about the wildfire that they had there recently and then onto the best part (at least for the kidlets) talking about the miscellaneous sea creatures and animals in that region..
We did math problems using octopus and squid... Worked on the letter "G" with my DD... did some colring of the map and labeled the capital and talked about the Parthenon with DS.. (he thought it was just like the one in Nashville *L* ) I told him the one in Nashville was a "recreation" that I was glad he'd had the opportunity to see it and remember it..
And to cap off our evening, DH and I took them to Greek Fest in Knoxville... This is an annual event and was wonderful... We took a tour of the St. George Greek Orthodox Church. The Byzantine icons and stained glass windows were only a background to the beautiful mosaics found there... The ceiling was one huge mosaic of Christ... and it was incredible...
We feasted on Souvlaki and "greek fries" (for the DC) and then drank a special brewed Greek Coffee... We bought a box of miscellaneous pastry (Baklava, Finikia, Kourambie,and Koulourakia). The kids loved the Loukoumades, which are Greek Puff Pastry deep fried and then covered in honey and cinnamon... DS described them as being "better then doughnuts " and asked if we could move to Greece... *L*
To finish the evening off, the kids (my DH and I included) danced to traditional and modern Greek music (performed by George Karras) and watched as dancers performed traditional dances and taught audience members and "willing" children the steps...
All I can say we had a wonderful time and are definitely looking forward to going again next year!!
Tonight we went to the Dixie Stampede..My employer (St. Mary's Hospital) had employee appreciation day and purchased tickets fo employees and their dependants..
It was a great show... DS and DD both had a great time watching the animals and the trick riding and eating with their fingers.. (no silverware for this wild west meal)... It was a enactment of " the Blue vs. the Gray " all over again.. DS actually put the symbolism together with the Civil War... The kids enjoyed the "piglet" races and the wagon train and the singing... Especially the "Buffalo Stampede"...
They came home asking to go again sometime... We'll see about that...
Tonight we had family night... We went to another Smokies game... We just love going there...There is always excitement at a ballgame and just plain fun!!
This was a play-off game and it was the Smokies against the Huntsville Stars (a farm team from AL) and the Smokies came back to win 11-6.. It was a fantastic game...
But the highlight of the evening was watching my DH (who cannot carry a tune) and my DD (who didn't know all the words) sing "Take me out to the Ballgame" in front of 1300 people for 2 free tickets to next years game... I must say I was so proud...My DH tries to get me to, but I was so hoarse from a cold/cough that it was impossible (need I say that I am a worse singer than my DH when feeling good)...
And to top off the evening, my children got to race across the field after the "Chicken" ... DS is quite a sprinter and DD was the only lil' girl but tried her best to catch up...
So, after a great dinner at Cracker Barrel, we headed home and off to bed...
Labor Day WeekendPart Deux: We came home Friday afternoon after a field trip and DH was at the computer... He was making reservations for an impromptu trip to Chattanooga!!!
What a SURPRISE for us!! The kids were thrilled with the thought of another trip and I was thinking YEAH!! A MINI VACATION!!!
So in an hour, I had thrown together clothes, swimsuits, and snacks for travel and we were off...
We spent the weekend at a Holiday Inn Express.. Great because we can eat breakfast there... Which makes it very convenient and inexpensive... *S* Plus they have an indoor pool which made entertaining the kids in the evenings easier...
So on Saturday morning, we got up, had breakfast and took off to our first destination.. "Downtown Chattanooga" ... Lots of stuff to do.. The Tennessee Aquarium is there, the Chattanooga ChooChoo, and lots of historical things to see and do... We chose to spend our morning at the Children's Discovery Museum... So for the next 4.5 hours, we played, had story time, and even took in an art class... We will definitely be going back to this museum.!!!
Then we were off to a restaurant called Cheeburger! Cheeburger!... where you can get a cheeburger any way, (and I mean anyway) you like it!! DD decided to have her 1st "cheeburger" and LOVED IT!!! THey also mix different flavored sodas right at your table and 78 different milkshake flavors... YUM!!! After walking around downtown, (we've been to the aquarium there several times) we took in some ice cream at Ben and Jerry's.... another YUM!! and proceeded to let the kids play in the water / sprinklers at the aquarium... then we watched as they danced in the impromptu rain shower we had... (which thankfully cooled the afternoon off!!)
We ate that evening at a place called the Acropolis... and then we proceeded to have a little lesson on Greece and Greek foods.. DS was on a "tasting" mission... (actually, I think he was trying to compete with DH)...*L*
Sunday came as another beautiful day and we decided to take in some more views... LOOKOUT MTN (1200 ft. above the valley)... Absolutely beautiful, but the area attractions are definitely really busy on Labor Day weekend, so we took in something a little less populated and more educational in the long run.. We learned about the battle fought there (The Battle above the Clouds) and watched some "volunteer" Confederate soldiers re-enact the battle... We also did learned about a piece of art that was commisioned about the battle by a onlooking artist (James Walker)at the time of the war... It is 30ft.x 13ft and is on display at the Point Park Visitor's Center...
We were then getting hungry and decided to take in an open market... I love those... they had all kinds of things to see and do...from rock climbing (for DS), to eating kettle corn (for DD) to music and authentic Mexican food (for DH and me)...
We decided to do one more thing before calling it a trip and that was to do a DUCK!!! We took the kids on a ride on one of those WW11 era amphibious vehicles... They loved it... We never told them they would go in the water and when the driver turned off the road onto the ramp to head in to the Tennessee river, my DS eyes were the size of saucers... So we proceeded to tell him all about his great-grandfather and D-Day and the use of these vehicles at that time... The driver was a former Coast Guard man and told him all about the particular age and use of the vehicle and how it actually floats.. It was wonderful and competely worth the expense.. Plus we got to tour a military museum with items from WW1 to Iraqi Freedom...
Well, I think I have covered our vacation... Couldn't have asked for a better one!!
We got up, had a breakfast of French Toast and did our morning chores... (making the beds, the daily load of laundry and running the dust mop)... then we did some workbook pages and had a spelling test... Not too bad for before 11am...
Off to the library we went after completing all our things at home... We use the Knoxville library because it is bigger and offers more to us... the fee for being out of county is only $25 and I am able to check out 36 books for up to 6wks at a time using my teacher card... plus I can order what I need online and then pick it up at the branch that is most convenient for me... Well worth the small investment..
On our way, we stopped at a yard sale, where I found some great items... A set of "princess Mega blocks" BRAND NEW!! and a 1000 piece Puzz 3-D puzzle of an Alpine Castle... (also BRAND NEW!!) I really lucked out and spent only $1.50 for my treasures... (and each child was happy with their "new" item...
Then after stopping and picking up our miscellaneous books, we decided we had time to play around, so we went downtown and took a tour of the "SUNSPHERE" ...
Sunsphere
It was built as a theme structure for the 1982 World's Fair (symbolically representing the sun) and has been several things since, including a restaurant, offices, and empty... Recently it was reopened to visitors and is completely free to see.. It has a observations floor on the 4th floor that has a lot of interesting facts about Knoxville and history on display in pictures and the view is incredible...
The kids loved it as did I...
We had lunch at Mickey D's... (I really am not a fan, but it was close)... and then we headed back home..
DH called to let me know he had made plans for us (all 4 of us) to go to a "Smokies" game tonight.. That means we'll be doing hotdogs and chips at the ballpark.. The kids will be in heaven!!!
We should try to do a unit on the History of BASEBALL... I think that would be great fun for DS and we could count this as a field trip...*L*
I go outside and decide to look at the stars... The moon is beautiful tonight... A perfect crescent and an orange color... I decide to wake up the kidlets and show them... Now they are back in bed, (not as excited as I was to see it) and i am going to www.spaceweather.com to look and see what's up...
)... 
The kids enjoyed the "piglet" races and the wagon train and the singing... Especially the "Buffalo Stampede"... 
