Road Trip

ROAD TRIP!!!!!

Oh we just love road trips...slip a book on CD in the player...fill the tank...and jump on the highway.

But where did we go?

Alex looks like hes waking up...though its still dark out...

Trinity is really hyped up!...maybe they didn't give her a decaff at Dunkin Donuts this morning.

We had dinner that night at a pizza place I grew up on as a teen...in Brandon Florida.  The kids questioned me...sooooo we came all the way to Florida for a really good pizza?  OK maybe Trinity was questioning me and Alex was egging her on.  Alex was in on the charade.

After a good nights rest, we loaded up the car again and pointed the car East.

Alex started handing out Magic Bands...Trinity...started connecting the dots just as we passed under this.

The next six days were full of fun...rain...fun...rain...fun...rain...and oh did I mentioned rain. Dry or wet we had fun.

The Seasonal Dogwood limb

I have had a dogwood limb in my schoolroom since I could remember here is this Springs, Trinity is getting big enough to help me do it.

Rainbows everywhere!  The leaves are tissue paper that I cut long strands like willow leaves and draped them over the limbs.  This is their third year, if you fold them in half and put them in a plastic bag they will keep well.  If they have kinks just iron them.

Its the second year for the folded paper star, I store them between the mattresses.

The rainbow girl was made by a friend of mine for Trinity, I share a swinging song and a photo of her in an earlier post.

Sorry its been very cloudy hear so the picture is not so bright. 

The fairies are about 8 years old, their wool hair is starting to show it. 

The bumble bees are made from folded over pip cleaners and tiny wax paper wings here is the tutorial for them http://kingdom-of-the-sun.blogspot.com/2012/08/these-little-guys-are-fun-and-easy-to.html

The clouds I think are 1 or 2 years old.  They were sewn from felted wool with cotton floss.

 

Lucky the cat sits and watches the bird outside at the bird feeder.  Waiting for the kids to come and do their lessons.

 

Catching Up

Here are some photos that the kids and I put in our memory albums.  I wanted to give the kids some memories so I made sure my camera went everywhere we did.  Then we went and got three photo albums and three copies of each adventures photos and started filling them up.

 

I highly advise you to do this, my family is all gone and I have very few photos of all the times we spent together...I know they will appreciate this later on in life.

 

 

We have bee so busy and having so much fun!  Here we are at the Etowah Indian Mounds

Waiting for the Fireworks Labor Day...we got a double dose as the 4th of Julys fireworks got rained out so we had a firework extravaganza.

I know bad photo but the lighting was crazy...everything was under black lights and glowed in the dark.  This is Monster Golf

One of my most favorite picture of the kids!  When we went camping at Vogel

Full Life

I just wanted to share a few reasons why I haven't been Blogging lately...the photos say it best

The Kids first Drive-In Movie...we had to drive an hour and a half to get to it...but we had a blast.  We took a picnic dinner relaxed and watched Despicable Me 2...very funny by the way.  We didn't stay for RIPD of course.  The Swan Drive-In Theatre took me back quite a few years.  If your in Blue Ridge Georgia check it out.

Tent camping at Vogel State Park Georgia...giggles and laughter, not to mention getting soaked in the rain (we decided to just go with it and sing in the rain) is what we did all weekend long.  Vogel is one of my favorite places to camp.  It is just west of Blairsville Georgia and near Brasstown Bald the highest point in Georgia.

A trip to the Etowah Indian mounds...you didn't think I would let the Summer slip by without throwing in something educational.  Shhh...don't tell the kids they were learning something. Not to mention all the stairs we climbed on the three mounds.  The Mounds are in Cartersville Georgia and have picnic tables out front but our favorite place to picnic is down by the river under the trees.

We also Monkeyed around at Zoo Atlanta...this was educational too.  We got in for free by watching a video at the Library.  How cool is that? You can also take a cooler in here.

So please forgive me for being lax on my blog...but they are the light of my life and I want to bask in it all I can.

Home School Gardening

On your Mark...Get Set...Plant!

Well the garden beds we built last year are getting this Years Spring crops in.

 Each of us has chosen something different.  Alex and I want to learn all we can about each vegetable so we decided to pick one climber and one non-climber.  So we can get to know each vegetable intimately and know its likes and dislikes as well as planting and harvesting time.

 Trinity on the other hand likes her flowers, so she opted for a cut flower garden with as many different flower seeds she could get.  So last falls seed collecting really helped her out.

As Alex and I were preparing our soil in early spring...one thing led to another and a bet was placed as who would have the most lush garden.  The winner doesn't have to do any fall clean-up in the garden...and it seems a lunch at our favorite diner got in the bet somehow.
Well, may the best gardener win.

Cleaning a Waldorf Cloth Doll

I have had the honor of making my children's first dolls. Far from perfect but still well loved. In fact loved till they were dirty. After so much work going into them I was afraid of cleaning them. I had done spot cleaning, which led to a different type of stain. I searched and searched for what to do, but found nothing. So I took a chance and bathed them in a sink of water...I know very scary. But the results were excellent and I wanted to share.

Sammy and Alaska

Doll Bath
1. Fill Kitchen Sink about two inches deep with warm water (about the temperature you would bathe a baby in)
2. Add two Tablespoons of Prell Shampoo and swish water till bubbly.
3. Dip the dolls body parts in the water till very wet including face. (The dolls limbs felt heavy with water)
4. Gently squeeze doll over the sink (soapy bubbles will come out) dip again if needed. I also rubbed the very dirty hands but tried to maintain the dolls shape as I did so.
5. Wrapped the doll in a towel and continue to squeeze and rub gently on extra dirty spots. This is a good time to hand them over to there Mamas and Papas for some extra squeezing.
6. Lay them out in full sun all day long turning them half way through.

My dolls kept there shape and felt soft...there skin looked brand new. The wool inside didn't felt and kept its shape.

Adopt A US Soldier

WE LOVE OUR US SOLDIERS

Hey all...we are so excited the kids and I have have adopted a Soldier overseas.  We thought long and hard about it.  I researched several sites that aid and support our troops.  It only took about three days after I choose Adopt A US Soldier to get our Soldier address.  In this day and age we can e-mail each other, though at times they are unable to e-mail back.  But it is suggested that snail mail be sent as well and care packages.
This has been a great lesson for the kids on several levels.  First to be giving and compassionate and second we did a geography lesson on where he is now and where he is from in the United States.  They also have to learn how to keep secrets, though we can tell others we Adopted a soldier we cannot tell too much about him to keep him safe.
The Kids are having a fun time figuring out what to put in the box we are sending him.  We compiled a list from the Internet of people who have shipped or who have received care packages.  We hope he will feel the love and care we put into it.

 

Girl Day - Nail Art

Trinity and I love nail polish the more fun and funky the better!  Every week we are trying something new.

Trinity chose red, white and a glittery silver for this braided design, quick and fun!

Mine is a few days old (dishes, house cleaning and scrubbing the bathroom) but they still look really good. 

We Love being girls and doing girly things together!

GBBC 2013 Bird Lovers

Red Tailed Hawk

THE Great Back Yard Bird Count (GBBC) Is Back and bigger than ever. It has gone global. For those of you who have no idea what I am talking about the Audbone Socity has teemed up with the Corneal Lab of Ornotholgy to do a bird study that is now world wide.

Female Ruby Throated Hummingbird

We did our first bird count in 2003 when Alex was 5, sitting on the kitchen counter (my birdfeeder was right outside that window then) eating cheese sandwiches.  I thought it was going to be hard counting and entering in the data on-line.  But it was easy and so much fun. 





                                                                     Male Eastern Bluebirds



In all the years we have been doing the count I have yet to purchase a field guide.  I found I could get far more information than I could afford, by just going to my library and taking home 4 or 5 different field guides, and spend my money on more bird feed.

 

My Christmas gift to the birds

 This wound up being a great way to have fun, do some nature science and enjoy the lovely winged creatures we share our home with. I know this sounds and looks like an infomertian but there is no way I can earn off something that is free.  We just enjoy it so much I have to share this every year. 

Click on Owl to go to the GBBC



How To Stash All The Decorations

Well its time to make the seasonal change once again in the school room...we are saying goodbye for now to the winter tissue paper scene, wax paper folded stars and all the cut snowflakes.  But they all are in great condition and we can get a few more years out of them.
I have tried several ways to store them but nothing works as well as laying them between my mattresses.  Its dark so they don't fade, its flat and the weight of the mattress presses them out looking nice and crisp for next year.  I also keep all my poster board there as well.

As for my mobiles they get hung on a hanger, with a trash bag tied over them and put in the front coat closet where no one go's.  

The rest of the gnomes, fairy's and such get put in plastic bags (I use old bread bags and such) then into a bin in the bottom of the coat closet.  This keeps everything near by and handy and out of a damp basement.

Ant Farm On The Cheap

We are doing a little science project that should be a whole lotta fun...ANT FARM!

But when I went online to order my mouth dropped open and all the cash in my wallet started to disinigrate!
First stop: Carolina
Ant farm kit: With ants, poster, booklet and plastic farm thingy was $26.95 OK not too bad.
Freight and Handleing: $19.95
Tax: $3.28
This put my total at $50.18! OMG for a plastic ant farm are they crazy!

OK, being a frugal Mom I started shopping around.
Next Stop: Uncle Miltons
Plastic farm thingy: $14.99 that's much better
The ants were separate: $6.00
Still around $20.
Then the shipping and handling was $15.00
There went my total to $35.99
Still allot for some ants and a plastic container.

I knew I could still do better, and I remembered that Hobby Lobby carries science kits and had a 40% off coupon I could print off.

Armed with my coupon I bought the Uncle Miltons farm for $9.00 (original price)
When I got home and opened the box I found a coupon code inside for the ants from the same Uncle Miltons I went to earlier.  All I had to pay was the $5.00 shipping charge.

In total I paid $14.00  CHA CHING!
 

Hiking With Trinity

Of course Since Alex and I had our Hike Trinity and I needed one too.

She is such a cutie...we hug her allot, she gets mad at Alex for it but really can you blame him.
Little bit of belly showing, trying to stretch the summer clothes.

Trinity's keen eye spotted two dear...can you see them?

She did 3.5 Miles...way to go Trin!

Buzzy Bumble bee Tutorial

These little guys are fun and easy to make...perfect if you have a limb in your Waldorf or natural Home school room. Or just because you like fuzzy little bees.

Materials:

Stripy Pipe Cleaners

Wax Paper

String to Hang them by

Scissors

Cut the pipe cleaners about 1.5 inches long.

Cut a piece of wax paper about 1 inch wide and 1.5 inches long.

Fold the wax paper accordion style and trim ends in a curve.

Fold the pipe cleaner in half with the wax paper at the bend.

Fold pipe cleaner in half.

Fluff up wings.

Add a string to hand it with.

Walla!

It took maybe 20 minutes to make these...that's with looking out the window at the bird feeder. And sipping my ice tea. And taking photos.

Just buzzing around

I know you really can't see my bees in this photo...I wish the lighting were better. But its been overcast here forever and I just had to take the photos. The little black dots are bees, with a few cloud babies and fairy's hanging about.

Fablehaven Book 1

Road trip Entertainment was needed when my family discovered Fablehaven on CD. E.B. Stevens performance and the gripping story line made for a very interesting and fun trip. We were hooked, we had to know did Kendra quit being a tattle tale, will Seth ever stop braking the rules, will Grandma Sorenson forgive Grandpa for eating her eggs when she was a chicken, and will the Society of the Evening Star open the demon prison and release the horrors within.

Fablehaven Book 1
Kendra and her brother, Seth find themselves staying with an eccentric Grandparent, during the Summer. They have no idea his home is a hidden refuge for mystical creatures call Fablehaven and that Grandpa Sorenson is the caretaker and Grandma Sorenson is a Chicken. Soon after they discover that Fablehaven is a mystical preserve Kendra and Seth become its rescuers.

As we listen to the Series I will share them with you as well and where to find them on Amazon.

Hanging Around our Waldorf Home School

I have been working on our Waldorf Home School...one of my favorite things to do...so I wanted to share some of the things I have made...that are inspring us as they hang around

Stained glass tissue paper window rose window

rainbow bird mobile

Yellow folded paper star

Willow tissue paper leaves with Cloud Babies

Rainbow folded paper star

101 Ways to Torture Your Brother

Trinity's 101 Ways to Torture your Big Brother

#1 Dress up his action figures in doll clothes and put them on display when his friends come over. Innocently say "I don't know why my brother plays with my dolls clothes, but Buzz sure looks sweet in them" Then bounce out of the room humming.

#2 Pretend you have no idea how to model your fluffy fur kerchief. You know brothers must tell you how to do everything, Suggest he shows you how. When he slips it on GET THE CAMERA.

Keep all photographs for #101 and to use as needed to humiliate and control him for the rest of his life.

This blog thread will be continued as important tortures arise and need to be shared.