Paramecium

Animal Science Assignment: Make a Paramecium by tracing your shoe.

Chandler

Logan

Fisher

~k ((gotta show 'em what to do, right?))

My favorite part of this project was when Chandler momentarily looked up from his protist project and quipped: "I thought we quit gluing food to our paper in Kindergarten. "

Echinoderms

Animal Science Assignment: Make a sand dollar and a sea star out of sand dough.

Chandler

Logan

Fisher

~k ( I love getting to join in on school projects with my kids :)

Cell Structures

We are studying cells in both Plant & Animal Sciences. 

Plastic Bag= Cell Membrane

Jello=Cytoplasm

Non Perils= Mitochondria (dissolved prior to photo)

Fruit Cereal-Vacuoles

Honey Cereal= Nucleus

~Placed in empty oatmeal boxes, stacked on other boxes, discussed Cell Walls giving plants structure

Added Raisins= Photons

Pizza Play

For another 'chapter' in our busy book:

Pizza Play

I ask you, what can't be made out of felt? 

Add Toppings

Making The Big Kids each a slice  

Carefully arranging things

Riley Wren; Pizza Chef

Pizza Play

For another 'chapter' in our busy book:

Pizza Play

I ask you, what can't be made out of felt? 

Add Toppings

Making The Big Kids each a slice  

Carefully arranging things

Riley Wren; Pizza Chef

Fathers

While looking for something celebratory for my nephew's birthday, I came across  this piece for mothers. In the interest of equality, I share this equally challenging & powerful piece on the calling of fathers.

I am grateful for the good fathers I know.

If you are a dad, I hope you celebrate the gift that God has given you in the form of your children and take to heart the call to disciple them & ready them to be presented back to their Giver someday. 

Mothers

As I was looking for something 'sentimental' of sorts, to mark my nephew's 5th birthday and to celebrate his mom and dad's 5th anniversary as parents 

(Reagan made them parents for the first ~but not last~ time) 

I came across this piece on motherhood. It seems to be an excerpt from a mother's day sermon at a church I've never been too.

It is a really good thought.

 It made me thankful for all the godly mothers I know. It also made me want to encourage those who may not value the calling God has placed on the life of a mother... especially friends and family who are moms but think that it doesn't count as much.

I hope you will be encouraged if you are a mom. I hope you will pass this on if you know any other mothers that need to be reminded... or perhaps told for the very first time.

And...if you happen to be a father? Well... there's something in there for you too 

:) Big Smiles Until We Meet Again 

Happy Birthday Reagan!

   HAPPY 5th Birthday Reagan! 

We Love You Buddy!!

My all time favorite Ray Gun pics...

(cause it was just me and him as I  stole him away into the yard to play with the camera... 

...and the angel))

Wee Catechize

We have been doing a version of catechism with the children for the past few years. It started with reading through "Training Hearts, Teaching Minds" and the desire to give our children a solid foundation of biblical truths.

Now, before you dismiss catechizing as an archaic practice or too quickly equate it with a Catholic-only practice, let me say that I have found it a wonderful way to ensure I'm 'covering all the bases' as I attempt to train  my children in Biblical doctrine. Someone else likened it to teaching the times tables and I have to say, I believe that is a more than adequate analogy. 

We've gotten off track in our home with teaching through the questions more often than we've sailed right through. Even so, it is nice to have a schedule of sorts- a checklist of fundamentals to make sure we've covered as we go; to pick up where we left off. 

It was while looking for varied schedules that I came across this blog post:

  'Cheerios with a Side of Catechism'

If you click over there, you'll find a link to catechism themed songs and a print out of questions that you can take your child through. 

 Around the same time that I came across the post, we were trying to wrap our brains around the most unexpected blessing: we found out we were going to have Riley. 

When I read the suggested age on the list of questions, I fell in love with the idea of starting simplified catechizing as early as possible. (Another one of those things I feel bad about not catching on to sooner with The Bigs... thankfully, God is so much bigger than our parenting gaps!)

Since that time, we've found some additional resources and more supporters/discussions about the value of 'catechizing':

Voddie Baucham

Paul Washer
CJ & Kevin Mahaney w/ Curtis Allen

But now, without further delay, Riley answers the first two questions from the revised

Wee Catechize

We have been doing a version of catechism with the children for the past few years. It started with reading through "Training Hearts, Teaching Minds" and the desire to give our children a solid foundation of biblical truths.

Now, before you dismiss catechizing as an archaic practice or too quickly equate it with a Catholic-only practice, let me say that I have found it a wonderful way to ensure I'm 'covering all the bases' as I attempt to train  my children in Biblical doctrine. Someone else likened it to teaching the times tables and I have to say, I believe that is a more than adequate analogy. 

We've gotten off track in our home with teaching through the questions more often than we've sailed right through. Even so, it is nice to have a schedule of sorts- a checklist of fundamentals to make sure we've covered as we go; to pick up where we left off. 

It was while looking for varied schedules that I came across this blog post:

  'Cheerios with a Side of Catechism'

If you click over there, you'll find a link to catechism themed songs and a print out of questions that you can take your child through. 

 Around the same time that I came across the post, we were trying to wrap our brains around the most unexpected blessing: we found out we were going to have Riley. 

When I read the suggested age on the list of questions, I fell in love with the idea of starting simplified catechizing as early as possible. (Another one of those things I feel bad about not catching on to sooner with The Bigs... thankfully, God is so much bigger than our parenting gaps!)

Since that time, we've found some additional resources and more supporters/discussions about the value of 'catechizing':

Voddie Baucham

Paul Washer
CJ & Kevin Mahaney w/ Curtis Allen

But now, without further delay, Riley answers the first two questions from the revised

Fun Dough

Riley LOVES to 'cook'.

Since we had already had breakfast, it wasn't yet time for lunch and I've been meaning to whip up some play dough (which has been renamed Fun Dough by Rye & The Bigs) that's what we did.

I used the Kool Aid Dough Recipe found in the free eBook @ Pocket Full of Posies blog:

1 Packet KoolAid (or other brand flavored drink mix)

1 Cup Flour

1/2 Cup Salt

3 Tbs Oil 

1 Cup Hot (boiling) Water

Mix & Knead

Rye isn't fond of messy fingers... she will even ask someone else to lick them for her.

THE AFTERMATH (see my spilled coffee there?)

Baby Bird is still figuring out how this dough stuff works... 

Fun Dough

Riley LOVES to 'cook'.

Since we had already had breakfast, it wasn't yet time for lunch and I've been meaning to whip up some play dough (which has been renamed Fun Dough by Rye & The Bigs) that's what we did.

I used the Kool Aid Dough Recipe found in the free eBook @ Pocket Full of Posies blog:

1 Packet KoolAid (or other brand flavored drink mix)

1 Cup Flour

1/2 Cup Salt

3 Tbs Oil 

1 Cup Hot (boiling) Water

Mix & Knead

Rye isn't fond of messy fingers... she will even ask someone else to lick them for her.

THE AFTERMATH (see my spilled coffee there?)

Baby Bird is still figuring out how this dough stuff works... 

Easy Light Table

The original table I remembered looking at used a sting of Christmas lights. The cashier at Dollar General (love that place!)  So, I grabbed some push lights with adhesive backs instead:

The instructions said to line the bottom of a plastic storage bin with wax paper- I used two layers: 

Now- turn the lights on and place the bin on top of the lid, like this: 

Pour salt, sugar, sand or Pixie Sticks if you dare onto the 'table' surface~ add translucent items that light can shine through: 

Suffice it to say, this activity is best played with on a surface that is easily swept  or perhaps atop a vinyl tablecloth. 

ColorSicles~ Color Matching Activity

 I had seen several variations of color matching activities using paint swatches and clothespins... what we came up with was sort of a mish~mash of all of our favorite ones. I used fabric glue, popsicle sticks, clothespins and 3 swatches each of our favorite hues (the popsicle stick is between two swatches, so that the colors are on either side of the stick.) This is the first addition to a project we have under construction currently- a 'busy book' (a zippered binder found  for $1) filled with activity pouches (pencil bags marked to a quarter each)

Riley loves her 'popsicles' almost as much as playing with the iPad or watching t.v. Which is the point...she happily stops asking for a glowing screen in exchange for playtime with the popsicle bag.

She has assigned every family member a color. She walks around, handing out popsicles like the Good Humor Man and watching to see that it is 'eaten'. If it isn't, she quickly instructs us on how to enjoy our treat.

"Lick it!"

Mmm! Nothing quite as scrumptious as felt...

When she is older, the colors can be matched by hue. 

 I only had the video camera available~ these stills run together for a snippet of Rye on the first morning with her ColorSicles.

Easy Light Table

While looking for more early development activities for Rye, I crossed a slew of MomBlogs and DiYPins... they've all become a blur. If I could remember the source for this light table's inspiration, I would give credit. Unfortunately, that information is filed away amongst a zillion other items in the Lost Memory bin. . That I remembered the supplies while in the store is no small wonder in and of itself :) 

The original table I remembered looking at used a sting of Christmas lights. The cashier at Dollar General (love that place!)  So, I grabbed some push lights with adhesive backs instead:

The instructions said to line the bottom of a plastic storage bin with wax paper- I used two layers: 

Now- turn the lights on and place the bin on top of the lid, like this: 

Pour salt, sugar, sand or Pixie Sticks if you dare onto the 'table' surface~ add translucent items that light can shine through: 

Suffice it to say, this activity is best played with on a surface that is easily swept  or perhaps atop a vinyl tablecloth. 

ColorSicles

 I had seen several variations of color matching activities using paint swatches and clothespins... what we came up with was sort of a mish~mash of all of our favorite ones. I used fabric glue, popsicle sticks, clothespins and 3 swatches each of our favorite hues (the popsicle stick is between two swatches, so that the colors are on either side of the stick.) This is the first addition to a project we have under construction currently- a 'busy book' (a zippered binder found  for $1) filled with activity pouches (pencil bags marked to a quarter each)

Riley loves her 'popsicles' almost as much as playing with the iPad or watching t.v. Which is the point...she happily stops asking for a glowing screen in exchange for playtime with the popsicle bag.

She has assigned every family member a color. She walks around, handing out popsicles like the Good Humor Man and watching to see that it is 'eaten'. If it isn't, she quickly instructs us on how to enjoy our treat.

"Lick it!"

Mmm! Nothing quite as scrumptious as felt...

When she is older, the colors can be matched by hue. 

 I only had the video camera available~ these stills run together for a snippet of Rye on the first morning with her ColorSicles.