I'm serious. We had an honest to God snowstorm this morning! And it had not been forecast. It was supposed to be rain all day. It was quite a shock (and an annoyance) to get woken up at 7:30 this morning by a call from my husband saying guess what. Sigh... Late nights and early mornings just don't go together.
We have had quick little flurries before. I remember one little snow shower on July 4th one year. However, the one's I can remember never lasted more than a few moments and were quickly gone. The snow never stuck and was was pretty much melted before it hit the ground. Today, however it not only stuck, but accumulated well enough that the whole ground was white. It lasted around three hours and while at the end it was a very fine snow, more sleet than anything else, at the beginning there were huge fat flakes. WOW
Now, as to my long and unfortunate absence. :( It had not been planned at all. Things have been super busy around here and while I've continued composing posts in my head, somewhere along the way they were never set to paper (or to keyboard as the case may be). I've missed doing this. So, here's just a quick update about what's been going on. I'll post a slideshow of pics withing the next couple of days.
Today is James' 6th bday!
James has lost two teeth within the last week.
Charles inists that Deedee is no longer his sister. She's now a magic pig.
Kitty is potty training very well. She's almost exclusively in undies now and she sleeps dry 4 nights out of 5.
Kitty is speaking very well, even starting to string words together into sentences. One of her favorites is "I go play".
I have been sewing up a storm. Carey put his foot down and said I had to use my enormous stash of fabrics and patterns or get rid of them. So I've started making Kitty her summer wardrobe. We have extensively downsized clothing anyway and we settled on 10 outfits for her. I need only make 4 more (but I have more planned :D). Even Deedee has gotten in on it and I've managed to make her two outfits with a third cut and ready.
Not only have I have been sewing clothing, but children's aprons. The first two I did as a last minute bday present. I had two batik fat quarters but couldn't think what to do with them. As I was digging in my stash I found a large length of canvas, I happened to see Deedee's little apron hanging from the easel and an idea was born. The fat quarters are big enough for the apron as well as a pocket so I made a reversible apron (batik one side, canvas the other) with pockets, rick rack and little buttons for decor. The party was a bug theme for fraternal twins so the boy got a caterpillar button and the girl a butterfly. They were such a big hit that two more were asked for as bday presents and a few others ordered by guests! I will eventually get a pic posted of them, and I hope to start selling them on Etsy.
James is having sewing lessons! And he's having a blast. More on that in a few days (such as the manual he's using, etc.). I have a big potluck bday bbq to plan for this weekend.
Carey finished this semester with a 3.0 and has an A in his summer class so far. (It ends next week).
James is oficially enrolled for kindergarten this fall. I'm not happy about this one but his father wants him to try. He decided because of some of James' problems, that this is the only way to get some services that he feels are needed. So, we shall see how it goes. So far, James seems excited. So, according to the professionals, other than his speech delay, he has a fine motor delay, seperation anxiety, maybe a low level autism, and Oppositional Defiance Disorder. Fun, huh? Why his father thinks he'll be treated better in school is beyond me. I'm especially frustrated because I believe in a philosphy that children aren't really ready to learn this way until they're around 7 or 8 and that this early is just pushing them too much. At least he's in K and in the afternoon so I can still control some of it. The district actually wanted to put him in 1st! Grrr... He's not ready developmentally, emotionally or academically and it was unprofessional of them to want to do this only for their convenience and not because of what's best for James. The K is in a seperate building entirley from the rest of the school, and a couple blocks away so the idea was that it would be easier for them to provide the services they promised (and sold Carey on) if he was in the main building. GRRRR..... Although he's been making breakthroughs, he's still not at a 1st grade level academic wise, and barely K. They're already insisting on putting him in special ed and if they had succeeded in sticking him in 1st, he would have needed it extensively and they would have pretty much set him up to fail. Sigh... Sorry, didn't mean to get on my soap box here.
I'm now oficially a Barefoot Books stall holder and am authorized to sell their books! HOORAY
My garden is doing very well. I have leaf lettuce, strawberries and onions right now. There's also garlic, assorted tomatoes, acorn squash, potatoes, eggplant, cucumbers, bell peppers, radishes, spinach, and a few other things I can't remember. :D
My husband found this today (he's always in Metacafe, speaking of which it's not a good idea to kids wander around in this site unsupervised) and thought it was interesting. The kids enjoyed watching it and then we looked at some books about birds, how the eggs are formed, cracked open some local chicken eggs, etc. An interestind day.
Similar to the The Great Sunflower Projectthat I posted about a few days ago, instead of tracking bees, this frog and toad monitoring program gives you the opportunity to help scientists conserve amphibians! With as little as 20 minutes a week you can collect essential information to protect frogs and toads.
This is a long-term amphibian study that is managed by the National Wildlife Federation in partnership with the United States Geological Survey. It will increase awareness of amphibian decline and gives you the opportunity to be directly involved in gathering information that can ultimately lead to ways to help stop the decline of these important species. Frogs are very important to the environment. Didn't realize just how much? You can find out a little more about that here. Also, frogs live in wetlands & swamps, a very important eco system. Check out the Magic School Bus to discover why wetlands are important as well as why frogs are equally important as signs of something gone wrong.
Lots of Frog Fun:
The Magic School Bus Gets Swamped: Activity, the episode, the book is sadly OOP but look for it at your local library.
It's easy! What better way to not only learn about your local environment and include Nature into your studies, how to observe Nature but also to help protect it! This looks like it could be a lot of fun. Oh, and there is one more really cools site that would help you with your studies. eNature is linked with Frog Watch to show what frogs are found in your area. However, don't stop with just frogs. You can learn about the whole habitat in your area from mammals to birds to even trees! So check it out. My kids loved looking it over. They were especially excited when they got to hear a Mallard duck! They've been especially interested in that bird since we got a close up view of a pair only last week!
Don't forget! Record the Ribbit 2008 is on Saturday, May 3 so mark your calendars and set up activities!
I learned about this in my Ideal Bite newsletter. On March 29 starting at 8 PM YOUR time, turn off your lights for on hour. Originating in Sydney, Australia last year, it has now gone global. Last year, it had the effect of taking 48,000 cars off the road for an hour. Since this year's event is global, savings will be even bigger. Even landmarks such as the Golden Gate Bridge, Sears Tower, and the Sydney Opera House will dim during Earth Hour. If just 10,000 Biter turn off 10 lights tomorrow evening for just one hour, the amount of CO2 created by an average apartment in a whole year will be averted. That's a lot! So join the millions of people world wide and switch it all off for one hour. Earth Hour.
Ok, Earth Day is still oficially almost four weeks away, but now's the best time to prepare for it! Start with two great Earth Day sites here and here. You'll find all sorts of interesting info, including some interesting curriculum (for hichschool students this includes, lessons, virtual tours, etc.).
Lots of local activities, including a FIELD TRIP! Our homeschool group has set up a tour of the local recycling plant. How cool is that? Link up with other homeschoolers to see what they're doing here. Oh, and don't forget a fun craft to get you started! What better way to recycle news paper than to make hats!
Join the hunt for bees and plant a sunflower in your garden! A San Francisco State University scientist is conducting a study on bee pollination. Participants across the country are being asked to plant sunflowers and observe bees attracted to the flowers.
The Great Sunflower Project, run by Gretchen LeBuhn, associate professor of biology at the university, provides participants a kit that includes a packet of wild sunflower seeds, a gardening guide, species information and data forms to report bee patterns. Participation will take no more than thirty minutes, twice a month. With a $4,000 grant from the university, the project has created 10,000 kits, available in English, Spanish and Mandarin, that are ready to send out to those who request them online.
Sunflower project organizers are hoping to solicit residents whom reside in different settings, so bee behavior can be observed in urban, suburban, and rural areas. Great Sunflower Project kits are available online at www.greatsunflower.org or by calling (415) 847-1716.
How Will the Great Sunflower Project Help? (from The Great Sunflower)
Your home, school or community garden and those around the world produce roughly 15-20% of all the food we eat. And for the urban poor, who spend 50-70% of their income on food, these gardens are a real source of good nutrition and an essential route to food security.
We know very little about bee activity in home and community gardens and their surrounding environments, but we are certain that they are a crucial link in the survival of native habitats and local produce, not to mention our beautiful urban gardens. Our local pollinator populations require our understanding & protection, and to answer that call we need to determine where and when they are at work.
With enough citizen scientists collecting data, we can learn much more, much faster, about the current state of bee activity. We would love to have you join us; let’s learn about pollinators together!
Interested in getting a kit or already have one? Use Mister Linky to let me know! As the summer progresses and each do their own projects, it will be fun to link together to see what everyone else is learning about the habits of their local bees.
The musings of my childrens journey in the wonders of love, life, and spirituality. Love, Live, Laugh, and Learn. That's what it's all about. Welcome and blessed be.
* Carey ~ Beloved husband that puts up with everything.
He's majoring in history, loves to read, play D&D and Mech Warriors.
* Ami ~ Me. Busy teacher and housewife. I love to spend
time with the kids, read, garden, cook, knit, sew, make my own soaps
and salves.
* James ~ Our oldest at five. He loves to build with blocks, enjoys the guitar, adores robots and believes he
can't live without his trucks (and skateboard).
* Charles ~ My little monkey! Our youngest son at four, he
is the most precious gift ever recieved on a birthday.
He's a wonderful, sunny little guy that's very inquisitive and artistic.
* Meradydd ~ Our oldest daughter at three.
An opinionated and exceedingly bossy little girl with a temper to match her copper hair.
My little fashion diva that loves shoes, furlies, & hair pretties.
* Kathrynn ~ Kitty is my 1 year old little angel. She's a beautiful, mellow little girl that's extremely patient but is also starting to show her claws.
Abraham Lincoln ~ You have a Bible and a library card what more could you possibly need? You prefer the Charlotte Mason Method of reading living books for everything: historical fiction, biographies, real histories, nature guides, etc. No soon-to-be-outdated textbooks for you. Visit my blog: Guilt Free Homeschooling Take this quiz!
