tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23898844095674721572024-03-13T12:26:46.804-07:00mytwentyseventhyear...things i do, things i want to do, things i make, and what i like to eat...mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.comBlogger38125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-55052489734299639672014-05-09T05:24:00.001-07:002014-05-09T05:24:50.038-07:00Asheville: I love you<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-jcLoszHhU2w/U2zACR4DcII/AAAAAAAABEw/_L98vRaBgNU/s640/blogger-image--964214982.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-jcLoszHhU2w/U2zACR4DcII/AAAAAAAABEw/_L98vRaBgNU/s640/blogger-image--964214982.jpg"></a></div><br></div>My first impressions of Asheville were that it rained all the time, the hippies were just as pretentious as the hipsters of Nashville, and that it was expensive. It didn't take long for my views to change though. It did rain all the time, but that's because it was January of the rainiest year Asheville had experienced in years. Sure, I had a Portlandia like experience when I forgot to bring my own back to Greenlife once and I got glared at every now and then for having my baby in a stroller rather than an ergo, but for the most part, those hippies turned out to be pretty awesome. Maybe a little low on iron, which could make anyone grumpy. But really, for the most part, the people of Asheville are kind, interesting, and generous. The people here want to be here and that results in a really cool sense of community awareness and pride. <div>Our time here has been full of adventure, beautiful friendships, amazing food, and so much fun. I feel like I have learned so much about myself here and really found a focus of how we want to raise our children. </div><div>I'm getting sentimental about leaving this place, so I have a feeling there will be a few entries about this place over the next week until we leave. For now, I leave you with these- a few pictures that sum up what I will think of when I think back on our time in AVL (if only I had a picture of 12 Bones or 9 Mile...).</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-NqrPOZK9pOU/U2zJC_pgmZI/AAAAAAAABFY/w2Dx1ZpI4a0/s640/blogger-image--1489864571.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-NqrPOZK9pOU/U2zJC_pgmZI/AAAAAAAABFY/w2Dx1ZpI4a0/s640/blogger-image--1489864571.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5qEe6JnQnAU/U2y_t4O7uQI/AAAAAAAABEY/rrdi06deFCA/s640/blogger-image-1643579335.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5qEe6JnQnAU/U2y_t4O7uQI/AAAAAAAABEY/rrdi06deFCA/s640/blogger-image-1643579335.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-R95_r8-zb80/U2y_qVk2KPI/AAAAAAAABEA/NMsJ-B0pYZg/s640/blogger-image-1130884668.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zIVQLpzEqWI/U2y__yg7ZNI/AAAAAAAABEg/l5EE1wfSKX0/s640/blogger-image--2016441489.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CUZb_4qIYzw/U2zABJtenlI/AAAAAAAABEo/SyVymwqa2HY/s640/blogger-image--1982408842.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CUZb_4qIYzw/U2zABJtenlI/AAAAAAAABEo/SyVymwqa2HY/s640/blogger-image--1982408842.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-tDTjzqrxcAk/U2y_rlcjIKI/AAAAAAAABEI/nqjktIGymno/s640/blogger-image-1441406675.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-tDTjzqrxcAk/U2y_rlcjIKI/AAAAAAAABEI/nqjktIGymno/s640/blogger-image-1441406675.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-DBx3kuI7w6A/U2zADoVa7BI/AAAAAAAABE4/LfKABG6fWQg/s640/blogger-image-967402736.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-DBx3kuI7w6A/U2zADoVa7BI/AAAAAAAABE4/LfKABG6fWQg/s640/blogger-image-967402736.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-N1h9pYr9ir8/U2zJByQyogI/AAAAAAAABFQ/r3mohfuSblc/s640/blogger-image-1580830063.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-N1h9pYr9ir8/U2zJByQyogI/AAAAAAAABFQ/r3mohfuSblc/s640/blogger-image-1580830063.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-durCy5aalcY/U2y_s3JTicI/AAAAAAAABEM/ovJz3Wgo3iw/s640/blogger-image--1572750321.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-durCy5aalcY/U2y_s3JTicI/AAAAAAAABEM/ovJz3Wgo3iw/s640/blogger-image--1572750321.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-LBKFGs1ZwMA/U2y_pGr0HkI/AAAAAAAABD4/E5Oqd2Qcfw0/s640/blogger-image-550979185.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-LBKFGs1ZwMA/U2y_pGr0HkI/AAAAAAAABD4/E5Oqd2Qcfw0/s640/blogger-image-550979185.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><br></div>mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-11625589691027120472014-03-11T12:30:00.001-07:002014-03-11T12:30:58.058-07:00Thankfulness and sorrowToday I am thankful for sunshine and for life. For the way my boys' hair gets super curly after a bath and the fact that we have plenty of warm water to bathe them in. I'm thankful for friends whom I fully trust to watch my children. I'm thankful for my littlest son's naptime and for coffee. I am thankful for school days with my eldest that go smoothly and happily and that I get to be such a big part of his educational experience. I'm thankful for a husband that makes me laugh on a daily basis and keeps life fun and bright. I'm thankful for so many things this week and it comes at a time when I have friends who are deeply mourning the loss of loved ones. It's so hard to keep in mind that our life here is temporary. That our souls go on and we leave people behind. It's easy for me to get so heavy hearted when loved ones are hurting that I cannot allow myself to celebrate the good that still is here. But certainly we must have balance... Right? I mean, if we spend our days mourning only the injustices and hardships, then isn't it a bit of a waste? There is a season for everything, to be sure. Right now, I am working on loving those around me and having compassion and sorrow for their pain, but also to remember why we are here and to love and rejoice. Trying to celebrate this life and each day we have with each other is not always easy, but I do think it is necessary. Thoughts?mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-56977130513690948542014-03-10T05:50:00.001-07:002014-03-10T05:50:02.882-07:00Determined.Well, I did not succeed in my goal of documenting our kindergarten homeschool experience, nor did I succeed in doing so for first grade as we are now in the final months. But, I blame a lot of that on not having the blogger app on my phone... So I am determined to kick start it back up! <div><br></div><div>In a nut shell, homeschooling has been great. The two biggest challenges have been trying to figure out how to provide a calm and quiet place for my 6 year old to learn with my 2 year old around... Who is neither calm not quiet! The other has been teaching reading. I do feel like we are in a much better place for both of those than we were 6 months ago and that gives me hope for the future :0)</div><div>My favorite things have been learning my son's learning style. The things that I can do to help him want to learn and the things that only frustrate him more- it's fascinating! I also love learning alongside him. So many things that we are studying have been long forgotten in my brain and it has been so fun to learn about Ancient Egypt and Greek myths together. I had also forgotten how complex learning to read is! All the rules and then things that break the rules are so overwhelming at first. I know I was pushing him to fast last summer and he absolutely hated school to the point if years because if reading. So we took a break for weeks and only did silly sight words. It was refreshing and a good lesson for me to learn about why I am homeschooling and that the spectrum for learning to read is a big one. I want him to have a love for reading, not just a basic understanding of it. </div><div>I am so thankful that I get to stay home with my boys and teach them. I am also thankful that my husband is supportive and encouraging in this journey. </div><div>So, I am determined to keep this going and document the rest of first grade and beyond! </div><div><br></div>mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-17441543018356939182013-11-19T11:56:00.002-08:002013-11-19T15:15:59.703-08:00Giveaway time!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FmNYYdmqeGI/UovCDnKzVzI/AAAAAAAAA_g/vbIlUM8fLSk/s1600/FB_HolidayCoverPhoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="117" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FmNYYdmqeGI/UovCDnKzVzI/AAAAAAAAA_g/vbIlUM8fLSk/s320/FB_HolidayCoverPhoto.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I have been a big fan of Usborne books ever since I was about 6 years old sitting on my bed and searching for the duck on each page in the "find the duck" First Words in Spanish book. Usborne books were created out of the desire to have quality educational books that were interactive and interesting enough to compete with video games and magazines. Over 20 year later, I am even more in love with them and the richness they bring to my home. We use them in school, we use them for bedtime stories, my 6 year old uses the doodle and activity books during road trips and quiet time and my toddler loves all the touchy feely pages of the board books. I recently started selling them and couldn't be more excited! I love these books and I love sharing my love for them with new people! I have decided to do a quick little giveaway this week! Everyone who orders through <a href="https://x3768.myubam.com/" target="_blank">THIS LINK</a> before Thanksgiving will be entered to win a free product! The winner will be notified and given a variety of products to choose from, which I will have shipped directly to you! This is an excellent time to buy Christmas presents for the children in your life and possibly get a free item to go with it! I am also linking to a few of my very favorite products that we sell! Good luck and may the odds be ever in your favor!<br />
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<b><u>My top 5 choices for Christmas gifts:</u></b><br />
<a href="https://x3768.myubam.com/search?q=that%27s+not+my" target="_blank">"That's not my..."</a> board books. These are touch & feel books perfect for babies and toddlers. Subjects range from puppy to princess to car and right now the tractor one is on sale for under $4! $4-$9<br />
<a href="https://x3768.myubam.com/search?q=1001" target="_blank">1001 Things to Spot books</a>- subjects vary from bugs to fairies to pirates! Ages 3+ for only $9.99!<br />
<a href="https://x3768.myubam.com/search?q=big+book+of+" target="_blank">"Big Book of..."</a>-subjects vary from big machines to big monsters to sea creatures! Ages 4+ for $15.99<br />
<a href="https://x3768.myubam.com/search?q=doodle" target="_blank">Doodle books!</a> So many fun activities in these books! From $5.99-$14.99<br />
<a href="https://x3768.myubam.com/search?q=sticker&pagenumber=2" target="_blank">Sticker books!</a> These are SO much fun and there are so many to choose from! Fashion, history, warriors, fairies, cars, trains, heroes, pirates, you name it! These are one of my favorite products hands down! And they range from $6.99-$9.99 making them a truly affordable gift that your kids will love!<br />
<b><u><br />My top 5 choices homeschool supplements:</u></b><br />
<a href="https://x3768.myubam.com/c/78/encyclopedias" target="_blank">Children's Encyclopedia's</a>- These books are outstanding! One of the best resources I have found for home schooling across the board, but are excellent for homework and research for children in a classroom setting as well. Not only are they interesting for kids to just flip through with their beautiful illustrations, but the information inside is extremely well written and distributed in a manner that keeps it from feeling overwhelming. $15-$20<br />
<a href="https://x3768.myubam.com/c/75/illustrated-dictionaries" target="_blank">Illustrated Dictionaries</a>- These are excellent resources for math and science. So many concepts can be easy to understand, but difficult to explain. These books help break it down in a way that kids can see and understand, without ever talking down to them. I love them!<br />
<a href="https://x3768.myubam.com/c/74/beginners" target="_blank">Beginners books</a>- These come in a wide variety of subjects and are packed with just the right amount of information. Great for early readers and as a general resource for common subjects and interests. Age 6+ only $4.99<br />
<a href="https://x3768.myubam.com/p/1143/my-very-first-art-book" target="_blank">My Very First Art Book</a>- This is basically a full art curriculum in one great book. Awesome! $12.99<br />
<a href="https://x3768.myubam.com/p/874/famous-paintings-il" target="_blank">Famous Paintings</a>- This is my favorite book in that it also makes an excellent gift for anyone interested in art and it makes a beautiful coffee table book. Do yourself a favor and buy a couple :o) $16.99<br />
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So get some Christmas shopping done AND get entered into the free giveaway!<br />
<b style="background-color: #fce5cd; color: #45818e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">*Usborne Publishing Ltd. has no connection with these pages and does not sponsor or support their content.</span></span></b><br />
<br />mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-87823257436391389322013-11-04T17:03:00.003-08:002013-11-04T17:56:21.140-08:00Creative Gift Ideas for Kids (All are $25 or under!)<h1 class="quoteText" style="color: #181818; font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px;">
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“Books make great gifts because they have whole worlds inside of them. And it's much cheaper to buy somebody a book than it is to buy them the whole world!” - Neil Gaiman</span></h1>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I love books. I have always loved the escape a good book can provide when you are stuck in one spot. Growing up we did a lot of road trips and, along with my gameboy, books were always a favorite activity to bring on the road. And to have in bed after lights out. And to have at all times in my backpack, then purse, and now diaper bag just incase I get a few minutes of waiting that can be better spent delving into the adventure awaiting me between those pages. Books make my heart so happy. Now that I am a mom and a homeschooler, I have found an even deeper love for books. I love the interests that the right books can create in my children. I love fiction as well as non-fiction. I love anything that sparks creativity, curiosity in the world and people around us, and a desire for more knowledge. My absolute favorite books are Usborne books. Hands down the best books out there for kids. They range from great baby board books to fabulous young adult fiction. The company was created out of a desire to create books that were interesting and interactive enough to compete with video games and magazines and they have done an awesome job of keeping up with this. I am a big fan of giving books as gifts, but am aware that many kids are not a fan of receiving them. I think this is so sad and a clear sign that they haven't been given the right opportunities to fall in love with books. So, out of my love for them, I have decided to compile a list of books, both fiction and non fiction, that make excellent gifts for kids! I have divided the lists by age and provided a link for each book for details, as well as the opportunity to purchase it for the kids on your list! Enjoy!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Babies (from $5-$20)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/14/animal-hide-and-seek" target="_blank">Animal Hide and Seek </a>(My personal favorite!) </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/search?q=that%27s+not+my" target="_blank">That's Not My...</a> (This series is SO cute! That's Not My Puppy is my favorite, but there are many cute ones to choose based on the interests of the parents/child) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1155/very-first-words-on-the-farm" target="_blank">Very First Words: On the Farm</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/15/animal-noises-board-book" target="_blank">Animal Noises </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1098/cars" target="_blank">Touchy Feely Cars</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/493/find-the-duck" target="_blank">Find the Duck </a>(There is also Find the Kitten and Find the Puppy) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/551/hop-skip-and-jump-with-cd" target="_blank">Hop, Skip, and Jump with CD</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~ <a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/611/baby-scrapbook" target="_blank">Baby Scrapbook</a> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Toddlers (From $5-$25)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1071/construction-sites-lift-and-look" target="_blank">Construction Sites Lift and Look </a></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1450/cuddle-bear-book-and-plush-toy" target="_blank">Cuddle Bear book plus a huggable Cuddle Bear toy</a> (This is such a sweet book and a portion of the proceeds go to the Scott Carter Foundation to help end childhood cancer) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/2599/flippy-floppy-jungle-animals" target="_blank">Flippy Floppy Jungle Animals</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1159/mini-machines-box-set" target="_blank">Mini Machines Box Set </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/941/planes-lift-and-look" target="_blank">Planes Lift and Look</a> (Especially great if you will be traveling!) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/808/the-holes-in-your-nose" target="_blank">The Holes in Your Nose</a> (Because what toddler isn't fascinated by their nostils?) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/267/trains-lift-and-look" target="_blank">Trains Lift and Look</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/223/under-the-sea-chunky-board-book" target="_blank">Under the Sea Chunky Board Book</a> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Preschoolers (From $5-$25)</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/208/complete-book-of-farmyard-tales-cv-cd" target="_blank">Complete Book of Farmyard Tales with CD</a> (One of my personal favorites and a very popular Usborne product. This is perfect for something to keep little ones entertained on road trips or for quiet times in bed listening to the CD as they following along looking at the pictures.) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/24/big-book-of-playtime-activities-cv" target="_blank">Big Book of Playtime Activities</a> (Tons of ideas for things to make and do- perfect for those blustery days indoors!) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1181/big-book-of-big-animals" target="_blank">Big Book of Big Animals </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/868/asia-box-set" target="_blank">Asia Box Set </a>(Retail value of over $60 if sold separately, but altogether in this set it is just $15!) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/228/fairy-tales-cv" target="_blank">Book of Fairytales </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1192/little-book-of-train-stories-with-cd" target="_blank">Little Book of Train Stories with CD </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/227/princess-stories-cv" target="_blank">Book of Princess Stories</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/163/squirrels-tale-a" target="_blank">A Squirrel's Tales</a> (Another favorite of mine! My 18month old AND my six year old love this book and taking turns having the squirrel follow the path through the pages.) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1783/wipe-clean-doodles" target="_blank">Wipe Clean Doodles</a> with pen</span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">School Age Kids (From $4-$20)</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/548/book-of-know-how" target="_blank">Big Book of Know How </a>(My favorite! This book is so fun and I cannot wait to give it to my son!) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/888/illustrated-classics-for-girls" target="_blank">Illustrated Classics for Girls </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/402/illustrated-stories-for-boys" target="_blank">Illustrated Stories for Boys</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/584/story-of-spying" target="_blank">The Story of Spying </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/182/true-escape-stories" target="_blank">True Escape Stories </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/565/survival-skills" target="_blank">Improve Your Survival Skills</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/search?q=extreme+adventures" target="_blank">Extreme Adventures Series </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~ <a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/search?q=phoenix" target="_blank">Phoenix Files Series</a> (Great suspenseful young adult fiction) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">--Activity Books-- (All under $20)</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">~ <a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/889/50-science-things-to-make-and-do" target="_blank">50 Science Things to Make and Do</a> </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~ <a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/919/recycling-things-to-make-and-do" target="_blank">Recycling Things to Make and Do </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/503/face-painting" target="_blank">Face Painting </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/332/fairy-things-to-stitch-and-sew" target="_blank">Fairy Things to Stitch and Sew</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1602/100-paper-planes-to-fold-fly" target="_blank">100 Paper Planes to Fold and Fly</a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1243/write-your-own-storybook" target="_blank">Write Your Own Story Book</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1315/monsters-coloring-book" target="_blank">Monsters Coloring Book</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/2592/doodle-pad-for-boys" target="_blank">Doodle Pad for Boys</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/2590/art-deco-patterns-to-color" target="_blank">Art Deco Patterns to Color</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/745/50-rainy-day-activities" target="_blank">50 Rainy Day Activities</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1553/big-doodling-book" target="_blank">Big Doodling Book </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">These <a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/search?q=to+spot" target="_blank">Things to Spot </a>(similar to I Spy) books are so much fun! My eldest son has loved them since he was 3 years old and still spends time looking at them in bed with the flashlight. They have many themes ranging from Bugs to Spot to Things to Spot in Fairyland to 1001 Pirate Things to Spot and at only $10 each, they make a great gift! </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Activity Cards (All of these are ($10!)</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/558/100-things-to-spot-in-the-night-sky" target="_blank">100 Things to Spot in the Sky </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/666/50-horses-and-ponies-to-spot-ir" target="_blank">50 Horses and Ponies to Spot </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/939/50-optical-illusions" target="_blank">50 Optical Illusions</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~ <a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/658/hundreds-of-silly-jokes" target="_blank">Hundreds of Silly Jokes</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~<a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/988/monster-doodles" target="_blank">Monster Doodles</a> (Wipe clean with pen) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">~ <a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1040/travel-doodles" target="_blank">Travel Doodles</a> (Wipe clean with pen) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Sticker Books (All are under $10!)</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1194/under-the-sea-sticker-book" target="_blank">Under the Sea</a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1108/dollhouse-sticker-book" target="_blank">Dollhouse</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1538/first-sticker-book-fairies" target="_blank">First book of Fairies </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/680/sticker-dolly-dressing-pop-stars" target="_blank">Popstars</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1791/historical-sticker-dolly-dressing-1920s-fashion" target="_blank">1920's Fashion</a> (My favorite!) </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/2087/build-your-own-car-sticker-book" target="_blank">Build Your Own Car </a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1373/sticker-dressing-heroes" target="_blank">Heroes</a></span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1107/pirate-sticker-book" target="_blank">Pirates</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/381/dinosaurs-sticker-book" target="_blank">Dinosaurs</a></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #45818e; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">... What are your favorite books to gift to the children in your life? </span>
<b style="background-color: #fce5cd; line-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">*Usborne Publishing Ltd. has no connection with these pages and does not sponsor or support their content.</span></b></span>mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-22120050922231214492013-10-20T16:39:00.000-07:002013-10-25T11:00:09.671-07:00Classical Conversations Cycle 2 Usborne Book Suggestions<div style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;">I have had a number of friends ask about using Usborne Books to supplement Classical Conversations. I decided to go ahead and make a list of books that tie in nicely with what Classical Conversations is learning this year (cycle 2). These books are great for all students, whether they are in a classroom setting or in home school of any kind. I have only included those that fit alongside the CC Cycle 2 subjects. I plan to have a list for cycle 3 out before too long for those who want to prepare for next year. This list is NOT an official list from Usborne nor from Classical Conversations. Please feel free to share this and to let me know if you find Usborne books you feel should be added. </b></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><br style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;" /></b></span>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;">History-</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Encyclopedia of the Ancient World ("From the first farmers of the Middle East to the rise of mighty empires in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece and Rome") - </span><a href="http://x3768.myubam.com/p/461/encyclopedia-of-the-ancient-world-il-reduced-format" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/461/encyclopedia-of-the-ancient-world-il-reduced-format</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Encyclopedia of World History ("Find out about dinosaurs, the first humans, Ancient Egypt, the Aztec Empire, Medieval Europe, the First World War and many more fascinating subjects.") </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1077%2Fencyclopedia-of-world-history-il-cv&h=EAQH84tfx&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1077/encyclopedia-of-world-history-il-cv</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Medieval World ("Follow the Crusades to the Holy Land, explore China with Marco Polo and visit a Mayan ball game. Find out how a knight trained for battle, who invented fireworks and who the Vandals were.")- </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F262%2Fmedieval-world-il&h=6AQExye0n&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/262/medieval-world-il</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Living Long Ago: Everyday Life Through the Ages </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F124%2Fliving-long-ago-cv&h=kAQFYORSA&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/124/living-long-ago-cv</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Castles (Level 1) </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F414%2Fcastles-irlevel-1&h=SAQF7fHS2&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/414/castles-irlevel-1</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Castles </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F29%2Fcastles-il&h=nAQHtVA9X&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/29/castles-il</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Sticker Dressing: Knights </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1111%2Fsticker-dressing-knights&h=nAQHtVA9X&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1111/sticker-dressing-knights</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Illustrated Stories from Shakespeare </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1440%2Fillustrated-stories-from-shakespeare&h=_AQHQIAbS&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1440/illustrated-stories-from-shakespeare</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">World of Shakespeare </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F2666%2Fworld-of-shakespeare&h=_AQHQIAbS&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/2666/world-of-shakespeare</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Sticker Dressing: Explorers </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F2083%2Fsticker-dressing-explorers&h=AAQFe0yqL&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/2083/sticker-dressing-explorers</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Story of Exploration </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F748%2Fstory-of-exploration-ir&h=WAQF2Y3lU&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/748/story-of-exploration-ir</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">A Tale of Two Cities (Set during the French Revolution) </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F715%2Ftale-of-two-cities-yr3&h=PAQGwRXrq&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/715/tale-of-two-cities-yr3</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">The Story of Inventions </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F585%2Fstory-of-inventions&h=uAQFTjUm-&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/585/story-of-inventions</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">See Inside Inventions </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1327%2Fsee-inside-inventions-ir&h=tAQEPIcs-&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1327/see-inside-inventions-ir</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">The World Wars </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F533%2Fworld-wars-il&h=cAQFiU0fR&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/533/world-wars-il</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Introduction to the First World War </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F486%2Ffirst-world-war-il&h=2AQG8s1fs&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/486/first-world-war-il</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">True Stories of the First World War </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F187%2Ftrue-stories-of-the-first-world-war&h=TAQHFzEqf&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/187/true-stories-of-the-first-world-war</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Story of the Second World War </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F2901%2Fstory-of-second-world-war&h=ZAQHVHglD&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/2901/story-of-second-world-war</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Second World War Cards </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F2571%2Fsecond-world-war-cards&h=vAQEFJcQH&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/2571/second-world-war-cards</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">True Stories of the Second World War </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F634%2Fsecond-world-war&h=nAQHtVA9X&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/634/second-world-war</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">See Inside the Second World War </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1279%2Fsee-inside-the-second-world-war&h=BAQGbP9aY&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1279/see-inside-the-second-world-war</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Sticker Dressing: Second World War </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1554%2Fsticker-dressing-second-world-war&h=OAQHnmuau&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1554/sticker-dressing-second-world-war</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Fighter Planes </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1276%2Ffighter-planes-ir&h=RAQH8eUb5&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1276/fighter-planes-ir</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Submarines </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F990%2Fsubmarines-il&h=JAQE54v3i&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/990/submarines-il</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Tanks </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1162%2Ftanks-ir&h=tAQEPIcs-&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1162/tanks-ir</a></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;">History/Art-</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Impressionist Sticker Book </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1128%2Fimpressionists-sticker-book&h=yAQHTOaM8&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1128/impressionists-sticker-book</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Impressionist Paintings Cards </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1240%2Fimpressionists-paintings&h=2AQG8s1fs&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1240/impressionists-paintings</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Famous Paintings </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1241%2Ffamous-paintings&h=1AQGRtt0V&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1241/famous-paintings</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Children's Book of Art </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F294%2Fchildrens-book-of-art-il&h=RAQH8eUb5&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/294/childrens-book-of-art-il</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Art Sticker Book </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F722%2Fart-sticker-book&h=PAQGwRXrq&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/722/art-sticker-book</a></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;">Science-</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">First Encyclopedia of Science </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F2714%2Ffirst-encyclopedia-of-science-il&h=RAQH8eUb5&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/2714/first-encyclopedia-of-science-il</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Illustrated Dictionary of Science </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F513%2Fillustrated-dictionary-of-science&h=eAQF9KWta&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/513/illustrated-dictionary-of-science</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Science Encyclopedia </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F870%2Fscience-encyclopedia-il-cv&h=BAQGbP9aY&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/870/science-encyclopedia-il-cv</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Living World Encyclopedia ("To emphasize how living things interact with each other and their ever-changing natural world, this informative first reference book is arranged by environments and habitats. Every page is packed with wonderful full-color illustrations and fascinating information about plants and animals and the way they live.") </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F978%2Fliving-world-encyclopedia&h=KAQHA-Bg9&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/978/living-world-encyclopedia</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Science with Water </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F460%2Fscience-with-water&h=WAQF2Y3lU&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/460/science-with-water</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">World of Animals </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F754%2Fworld-of-animals-il&h=NAQE-OKuB&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/754/world-of-animals-il</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Big Book of Animals </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1181%2Fbig-book-of-big-animals&h=nAQHtVA9X&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1181/big-book-of-big-animals</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Mysteries & Marvels of Nature </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F576%2Fmysteries-marvels-of-nature-il&h=8AQHMj6an&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/576/mysteries-marvels-of-nature-il</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">The Great Animal Search </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F952%2Fgreat-animal-search&h=sAQF0FUSS&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/952/great-animal-search</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">First Encyclopedia of Space </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1073%2Ffirst-encyclopedia-of-space-il&h=IAQEDw6O1&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1073/first-encyclopedia-of-space-il</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Look Inside Space </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1539%2Flook-inside-space&h=wAQGgHmdk&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1539/look-inside-space</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Discovery: Space </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F690%2Fspace-il&h=tAQEPIcs-&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/690/space-il</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Discovery: Astronomy </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F670%2Fastronomy-il&h=YAQHcTwGR&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/670/astronomy-il</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Living in Space (Level 2) </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F351%2Fliving-in-space-level-2-ir&h=iAQGDcrGW&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/351/living-in-space-level-2-ir</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">100 Things to Spot in the Night Sky </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F558%2F100-things-to-spot-in-the-night-sky&h=QAQGh_r0m&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/558/100-things-to-spot-in-the-night-sky</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Astronomy and Space Sticker Book </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F2066%2Fastronomy-and-space-sticker-book-ir&h=xAQGzBR5o&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/2066/astronomy-and-space-sticker-book-ir</a></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;">Geography -</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">World History Sticker Atlas </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F357%2Fworld-history-sticker-atlas-ir&h=8AQHMj6an&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/357/world-history-sticker-atlas-ir</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Children's Picture Atlas </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F32%2Fchildrens-picture-atlas&h=yAQHTOaM8&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/32/childrens-picture-atlas</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Geography Encyclopedia with Complete World Atlas- </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F933%2Fgeography-encyclopedia-il&h=AAQFe0yqL&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/933/geography-encyclopedia-il</a></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;">Math-</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">First Illustrated Math Dictionary </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1358%2Ffirst-illustrated-math-dictionary&h=yAQHTOaM8&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1358/first-illustrated-math-dictionary</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Math Puzzles </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F1153%2Fmath-puzzles&h=NAQE-OKuB&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/1153/math-puzzles</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Wipe Clean First Math </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fx3768.myubam.com%2Fp%2F2334%2Fwipe-clean-first-math&h=HAQHb6BMd&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://x3768.myubam.com/p/2334/wipe-clean-first-math</a></b></span><br />
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mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-81105452181763142632013-03-29T17:25:00.003-07:002013-03-29T17:25:46.638-07:00Dd is for Dinosaur<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NPNjRRjWOJw/UVYnIGlqicI/AAAAAAAAA54/FsWI5zXmJRU/s1600/IMG_1432.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NPNjRRjWOJw/UVYnIGlqicI/AAAAAAAAA54/FsWI5zXmJRU/s320/IMG_1432.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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Elijah started asking when we were going to do the dinosaur unit ever since he found out there was one, which was before we even started kindergarten. It came at a good time, too. We finally were unpacked and starting to get into the groove of our life in Asheville. Homeschooling had been less exciting since the move and this was a good way to bring back the fun of it all. We started the unit with evidence of dinosaurs in the living room...</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KQAXyBRH-uk/UVYnBb4zMPI/AAAAAAAAA5k/mDYjG7RF0d4/s1600/IMG_1229.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KQAXyBRH-uk/UVYnBb4zMPI/AAAAAAAAA5k/mDYjG7RF0d4/s320/IMG_1229.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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I used these footprints for a number of activities. Some were movement ones, having him jump from one to the next. I also wrote a large letter on each one and we used them for man words he knows like man, cat, sun, etc. </div>
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We talked about measurements and how you can use almost anything for measuring. We traced and cut out an elijah foot print and hand print then made a graph. He helped pick things to measure and chart. I thought this would be super fun, but in all honesty, it took ALL day and was more like pulling teeth. He just wasn't in the mood for it I guess. Oh well, you can't win them all :o)</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1SfJ3dX0bBk/UVYnAaALnDI/AAAAAAAAA5c/KkPbipbrDhs/s1600/IMG_1249.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1SfJ3dX0bBk/UVYnAaALnDI/AAAAAAAAA5c/KkPbipbrDhs/s320/IMG_1249.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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I saw <a href="http://media-cache-ec6.pinterest.com/originals/13/c6/eb/13c6eb3501e4e11d822aaba6dd0fec71.jpg" target="_blank">these two</a> <a href="http://pureandnoble.blogspot.com/2010/07/gettin-crafty.html" target="_blank">ideas on</a> pinterest, too (seriously, my homeschooling would be so much less fun without pinterest!) We made some cute little dino feet for Yohan, too, but I never got a picture. I used craft foam sheets for them so the are more durable. Paper would work, too.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sgES6yx660g/UVYm3p2iugI/AAAAAAAAA40/M_a-etZjdeU/s1600/IMG_1103.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sgES6yx660g/UVYm3p2iugI/AAAAAAAAA40/M_a-etZjdeU/s320/IMG_1103.jpg" width="239" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SFmz1_C_3lA/UVYm61Pa_eI/AAAAAAAAA5E/_sMdkMCyM2U/s1600/IMG_1105.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SFmz1_C_3lA/UVYm61Pa_eI/AAAAAAAAA5E/_sMdkMCyM2U/s320/IMG_1105.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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We both love Bill Nye the Science Guy. Between him and The Magic School Bus, I have at least one fun episode for most every unit. Learning about dinosaurs seemed like a good time to learn about volcanos, too so I threw that in on one of the days I added to the unit's curriculum. Most of the units we do are 6 days, but we went ahead and did 8 or 9 for this one cos there was just so much cool stuff to do.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_At9i9pQgrk/UVYm5VNhDwI/AAAAAAAAA48/aUZY4ye9iWM/s1600/IMG_1226.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_At9i9pQgrk/UVYm5VNhDwI/AAAAAAAAA48/aUZY4ye9iWM/s320/IMG_1226.JPG" width="320" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XAXADt-n3vs/UVYnLMtW2RI/AAAAAAAAA6M/cnwcrPL8K4Q/s1600/IMG_1443.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XAXADt-n3vs/UVYnLMtW2RI/AAAAAAAAA6M/cnwcrPL8K4Q/s320/IMG_1443.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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And of course, you can't learn about volcanos without making one! I had wanted to do it outside on the grass, but it was too cold and wet out, so we tried to make it look as outdoorsy as we could...using legos. Lij covered a plastic water bottle with play dough. we poured in some baking soda with a little bit of dish soap then poured in the vinegar and food coloring and watched the eruption. Many people pointed out on my instagram picture that it looks like a pig head with a bloody snout. Gross! I assure you it is not! haha<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e2DTZeDVY3U/UVYnB405MnI/AAAAAAAAA5s/H9fex5B4Tek/s1600/IMG_1379.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e2DTZeDVY3U/UVYnB405MnI/AAAAAAAAA5s/H9fex5B4Tek/s320/IMG_1379.jpg" width="239" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_cWxDEtcuL4/UVYnH4HNdJI/AAAAAAAAA50/DojlmZKs_3Q/s1600/IMG_1403.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_cWxDEtcuL4/UVYnH4HNdJI/AAAAAAAAA50/DojlmZKs_3Q/s320/IMG_1403.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Another favorite was making<a href="http://www.ourbestbites.com/2011/04/dinosaur-eggs/" target="_blank"> dinosaur eggs</a>. We made them one day and then cracked them open and turned them into dinosaur egg salad sandwiches for lunch the next day. Yum!</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FdcvzV05LYQ/UVYm7cbfLQI/AAAAAAAAA5M/YXWogzGNApk/s1600/IMG_1123.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FdcvzV05LYQ/UVYm7cbfLQI/AAAAAAAAA5M/YXWogzGNApk/s320/IMG_1123.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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I got the idea for this<a href="http://www.iheartcraftythings.com/2012/02/paper-plate-t-rex.html" target="_blank"> cute dino craft</a> from here. He is still hanging out on our fridge.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o3Osq0mK4QA/UVYm-3y9WEI/AAAAAAAAA5U/z3bQ83xBvwE/s1600/IMG_1256.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o3Osq0mK4QA/UVYm-3y9WEI/AAAAAAAAA5U/z3bQ83xBvwE/s320/IMG_1256.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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This <a href="http://www.lovingmynest.com/learning-activities/dinosaur-craft/" target="_blank">pasta and coffee grounds</a> craft (whyyyy is it upside down??) was so cute and fun! and I got the printable for making the skeleton puzzle <a href="http://www.prekinders.com/dinosaurs-theme/" target="_blank">here</a>.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vLeCYrkWvZA/UVYnM1NMdOI/AAAAAAAAA6c/c0xcP3kqo20/s1600/IMG_1577.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vLeCYrkWvZA/UVYnM1NMdOI/AAAAAAAAA6c/c0xcP3kqo20/s320/IMG_1577.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Elijah is learning so much with letters and reading and it just thrills my heart! </div>
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There were so many great books for this unit, but these were our favorites :o)</div>
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<br />mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-13042235994622350332013-03-27T19:30:00.004-07:002013-03-27T19:30:53.703-07:00Uu is for Us & Valentine's Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Uu us for Us was a good unit. I, personally, am fascinated with anatomy and had hoped to instill that in my son. He's just not that into it at this point and that's ok. We had a good time anyways. We have a kid's museum with an exhibit all about the 5 senses, which we visited. We also watched a couple Cat in the Hat episodes and a Magic School Bus episode all about the body. I had him lie down on a large piece of brown craft paper and i traced his body, then had him fill in the features and even make his outfit look like what he was wearing. However, he asked me not to put the pictures of that online, so I won't. But trust me, it was cute :o) We went on "blind walks", observed sounds outside, and of course, did some activities with food. I forgot to take a picture, but I made a chart with the 5 senses and each of the foods shown in the picture (marshmallow, cheerios, granola bar, pretzels, and chocolate chips. I had him feel them with his eyes closed, smell them, listen to them being broken or bitten, look at them, and taste them. we then charted how he described each sense in relation to the food. </div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mg95DAQLSjk/UVOhcOLMqvI/AAAAAAAAA0k/tdbH3caQYOA/s1600/IMG_0795.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mg95DAQLSjk/UVOhcOLMqvI/AAAAAAAAA0k/tdbH3caQYOA/s320/IMG_0795.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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We LOVE these cards from Usborne all about learning to tell time. We also made our own clock out of paper plates. (Please forgive the not upright photos!) </div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gdSKNy0ZpCg/UVOhc96KkyI/AAAAAAAAA0w/rZmV4-R5zU4/s1600/IMG_0797.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gdSKNy0ZpCg/UVOhc96KkyI/AAAAAAAAA0w/rZmV4-R5zU4/s320/IMG_0797.jpg" width="239" /></a> <a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IqUge7oFvK8/UVOhzNAHQnI/AAAAAAAAA1g/V_8QgISWrpg/s1600/IMG_1112.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IqUge7oFvK8/UVOhzNAHQnI/AAAAAAAAA1g/V_8QgISWrpg/s320/IMG_1112.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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And ok, seriously, how cute are these little tootsies? </div>
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And then we had Valentine's Day! I LOVE this day! It inspires so many beautiful things, especially in the food department! We got to have a little themed party when our friends visited, which made it even more fun. I made <a href="http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2013/01/23/strawberry-chocolate-chip-cookies/" target="_blank">these cookies</a>, which I loved, though I think everyone else just thought they were ok. We also had twizzler hearts and ice cream sodas. So pretty!<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SAzGkCBJbkE/UVOh0lNXOjI/AAAAAAAAA10/Ls2HfyWCsVg/s1600/IMG_1304.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SAzGkCBJbkE/UVOh0lNXOjI/AAAAAAAAA10/Ls2HfyWCsVg/s320/IMG_1304.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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We made <a href="http://funhandprintart.blogspot.com/2010/01/sign-language-i-love-you-handprint-for.html" target="_blank">these cards</a> for the grand parents and my husband's aunt and uncle. I love that we traced Elijah's hand for it. I think that makes it even more special. For his cousins and friends he made monsters with googly eyes and they said something like "I've got my eyes on you". Cute stuff inspired by Pinterest! Love it.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vHCCIqhyG8k/UVOhzrXx8JI/AAAAAAAAA1s/2cRYUpSke4E/s1600/IMG_1254.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vHCCIqhyG8k/UVOhzrXx8JI/AAAAAAAAA1s/2cRYUpSke4E/s320/IMG_1254.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I also got the idea for<a href="http://jenniekat.blogspot.com/2012/02/valentines-day-gift-for-dad.html" target="_blank"> this online.</a> I interviewed Elijah about his dad and write it down. This is totally something that will be saved. </div>
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On Valentine's Day we took a break from our curriculum and learned a smidge of history about it (turns out there's not much to learn). Elijah got homemade cards from us, his first very own box of chocolates (it only had 4 in it) and candy hearts. We put those candy hearts to work with this graph he filled out. I saw a print out for something like this online, but I can't find it to look it. I just went ahead and made it myself though. Super easy. </div>
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He also did some taste tasting and clearly marked how he felt about each flavor/color and he practiced drawing hearts.<br />
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By far the best part was having Elijah help decide what random acts of kindness we would do and who we would give them to. He picked out a chocolate bar to leave for the mailman and we made chocolate dipped short bread cookies (one of the best recipes ever, which I got from my dad) for our neighborhood firemen and librarians. He helped make them and we added a note saying we appreciate them and i included a list of ingredients for any restricted diets they might have. We also made chocolate dipped strawberries as a surprise for my husband :o)</div>
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Delivering the cookies was SO fun! I cannot recommend doing this enough. I need to do it more with him. The firemen were so excited and kind and the librarians (whom we see on a weekly basis) were extra appreciative and thankful. I could tell he was so happy and proud. I love seeing him shine like that. I love that he is old enough to feel how good it feels to be kind to others.<br />
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Our Valentines Day table was covered with sweet cards and gifts. I also got a surprise box from my sister full of Valentine's Day gifts that made me cry and miss her and her family so much.<br />
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My husband and I ended the day with a homemade dinner of flilet mignon (my first time making it), spicy roasted zuchinni, and creamy garlic noodles and we watched Lars & the Real Girl. It was a beautiful day full of love and happiness, which I am so blessed to say that I experience on a daily basis with my boys. I am so in love with my family I can hardly stand it. </div>
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<br />mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-26152288171522440462013-03-25T18:08:00.003-07:002013-03-25T18:11:33.510-07:00Moving Between Units...<div>
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Moving day arrived quickly and I am SO very thankful for the help we got from our friends Dave & Allison and my awesome sister and sister in law. Seriously, I have the coolest people in my life. We got to Asheville late at night and decided not to face the music until the next day. But not before going to s cute little diner for breakfast. :o)</div>
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I tried to pack the boys, but decided to keep them around with us...</div>
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I decided to take a break from the unit studies during unpacking/the holidays, but still wanted to do school. I took this time to focus on things Elijah was less confident in and to stick with the basics. We started learning how to tell him and did a lot of reading together. We also spent a lot of cold days making forts inside. </div>
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We also had days where we learned all about Christmas and Hanukkah, which was special and fun. I absolutely love these holidays.</div>
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And I did random things around the house, trying to keep things fun for Elijah during the transition. This was my favorite :o)<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YB7abIB40v8/UVDx6mehuBI/AAAAAAAAAzY/p-6UzzhjzGQ/s1600/IMG_0764.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YB7abIB40v8/UVDx6mehuBI/AAAAAAAAAzY/p-6UzzhjzGQ/s320/IMG_0764.JPG" width="320" /></a>mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-54361198272789923222013-03-25T17:46:00.003-07:002013-03-25T18:10:59.717-07:00Nn is for Nest & Tt is for Turtle (ish)So... I know we did a lot of fun stuff for these units, but it feels like SO long ago and I remember nothing! Basically, anything we did the month before moving is a blur. This is all I've got...<br />
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For the nest unit we learned about animal homes and I know we spent a lot of time outside. We went to the zoo and talked about habitats. We also did a day that I added when my nephew was visiting (age 4) about fire safety. Stop drop and roll is always fun :o)</div>
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For the Turtle unit, my favorite book was Emma's Turtle. Elijah loved having a new reason to look at the globe and track where the turtle thought he was. Cute stuff!</div>
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letter blending! I was so excited to officially start this with elijah and he picked it up so quickly.</div>
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I don't remember exactly what this was for, but I love the pictures. I know I had him run a distance in his boots and then had him do it in mine. What did it have to do with? I am really not sure, but the message is clear: his boots are way easier :o)</div>
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We also spent A LOT of time in this month making lego robot "families" and "armies". These are a personal favorite of mine in the list of things to build with legos.</div>
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This was also right around the time that Hans started pulling himself up on furniture.<br />
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We also had a day with friends over to learn about Thanksgiving (again, I KNOW I took pictures of all the cool things we did, but this is all I can find) and the kids made these cool Native American vests.<br />
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...and this is just because I am in LOVE with these beautiful dishes my sister found for me at a yard sale! I was so happy to get to use them for Thanksgiving and thought these happy flowers went perfectly. We have so very much to be thankful for!<br />
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<br />mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-20853070415965449432013-03-25T17:21:00.000-07:002013-03-25T18:09:50.742-07:00On to the Next Chapter... Asheville!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I knew it had been a long time since I updated this thing, but I had no idea that it was 5 months ago. Wow! Well, we thought we would stay in TN after my husband graduated with his Masters, but we ended up moving to Asheville, NC. We had only visited once before accepting the job offer for my husband, but had heard good things. We moved here the first of December and had a crazy couple of months. I really write this stuff out more for my own benefit, so I won't go into detail, but trust me. It was wild. :o)<br />
So far we really like it here. I am starting to make friendships that I think will actually last and, more importantly, Elijah is making friends! By far the hardest part of moving each time has been taking Elijah away from his family and friends. This is a quirky town and I have never felt like the conservative, main stream person like I do here! haha. It is beautiful and I am really looking forward to warm weather and everything blooming.<br />
We had a hard Christmas with a death in the family and then a horrid virus that had all 4 of us and my parents sicker than we have been in years. The New Year lightened up though with a reunion of Mike's parents AND all the sibling's together at our place. It was so much fun and made the move a little easier.<br />
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Yohan turned one at the beginning of the month and I cannot get over how incredibly awesome this little boy is. He is adventurous and fun, curious and sweet. He melts me more and more each day. He has yet to take real steps, but he loves to climb the furniture, do anything outside, eat cheese and clementines, and, as of the last couple of days, stand up on his own and clap for himself. Sheesh, he is cute!<br />
Elijah is doing awesome with home schooling. His favorite unit so far was the dinosaur unit, but he greets each one with excitement, which makes me SO happy. He is on book 5 of the BOB Books and my heart jumps with joy listening to him read. I cannot believe how grown up and cool this kid is. Legos are his passion and he tells me weekly that he wants to work for Lego one day. Awesome. He sings all the time, especially when he thinks we can't hear him. We also recently started giving him an allowance, complete with Save, Spend, and Give jars. He is, of course, saving up for a Lego set :o)<br />
We are thrilled to have had A LOT of visitors already and we have been able to take trips back to stay with dear friends in Knoxville and friends and family in Nashville. Those helped keep me sane. We have also taken all opportunities when it has been warm enough to go hiking and hammocking. I see lots more of that in our future :o)<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kaNe2wM7O_o/UVDm1JOtJqI/AAAAAAAAAwg/pyY_riKR0so/s1600/IMG_0861.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XRiheBnhqNA/UVDm3HlwVxI/AAAAAAAAAww/2ZxtIg1EX04/s1600/IMG_6804.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XRiheBnhqNA/UVDm3HlwVxI/AAAAAAAAAww/2ZxtIg1EX04/s320/IMG_6804.JPG" width="320" /></a><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kaNe2wM7O_o/UVDm1JOtJqI/AAAAAAAAAwg/pyY_riKR0so/s200/IMG_0861.JPG" width="200" /></div>
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QyD6G5N_-dQ/UVDmxIi6ZYI/AAAAAAAAAu4/VCV3869hSiU/s1600/IMG_0126.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QyD6G5N_-dQ/UVDmxIi6ZYI/AAAAAAAAAu4/VCV3869hSiU/s320/IMG_0126.JPG" width="320" /></a>I miss my close friends in Knoxville and I desperately long to be near family, especially for my boys, but this is a fun adventure and I am so thankful to be in such a beautiful place and to be meeting the awesome people that are coming into our lives.mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-71576795620752230402012-11-13T18:39:00.000-08:002012-11-13T18:40:39.230-08:00Aa is for Apple<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I am pretty behind on my blogging and keep being tempted to quit, but i really want to blog each unit for my own sake to keep record of what we did. So... here it goes :o)</div>
Our apple unit was delicious! I really wanted to go apple picking, but because of a freeze in April there were no local apples. Sad stuff! We still did a lot of fun activities outside of our regular school stuffs.<br />
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We went to the grocery store and lij helped me pick out a few different kinds of apples. We used these to make apple graphs, </div>
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discussed and organized by largest/smallest, first/last,</div>
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read books about apples and practiced apple stacking, </div>
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Explored the 5 senses with apples,</div>
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we had a taste test to compare and contrast the textures and flavors,</div>
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and made fun apple snacks including apple crisp (not pictured), apple sandwiches, apple muffins, apple sauce, and apple sugar cookies.</div>
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I filled a bag with different fruits and had lij feel around without looking to guess what he felt and to compare/contrast the items without looking.</div>
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We also made apples to hang on our tree and he made an apple tree by tracing his hand.</div>
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We also learned about Johnny Appleseed, the Fruits of the Spirit, and all about tally marks for counting.</div>
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In the middle of the unit, we got to have our awesome nephew come stay with us for a few days. I decided to pause the apple unit and do a few random things instead. We learned about Daniel and the Lion's Den and all about lions and we also learned all about fire (and a little bit of gun) safety and worked on patterns.</div>
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I LOVE all the Clifford and Let's Find Out papers I have from my mom. I finally got them organized and as soon as I decide on a subject I want to teach about, i pull out a few of these and I have a lesson ready. I highly recommend looking into getting them if you are homeschooling and can do it.</div>
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The boys and I went on a walk and I found this leaf that looked like fire.</div>
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The boys spent a lot of time playing in the yard and eating outside. I LOVE seeing my kids enjoying nature. So wonderful. I also love when they make silly faces...</div>
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I was super proud of my son for saving up his money to buy Legos, his current obsession! He was so proud of himself, which made me even more proud. :o)</div>
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Hansi was proud, too.</div>
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All 5 kids together in Nashville :o)</div>
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My sister and I threw a personal shower for a friend and it was BEAUTIFUL. We did it outside on her deck in the evening and it was too dark to get good pictures, but this gives an idea of how lovely it was. </div>
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We had wine, warm cider, chocolates, cheeses, and other lovely foods.</div>
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Mmmmmmmm, cheese!<br />
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mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-13670148594964121032012-11-07T18:41:00.001-08:002012-11-07T18:55:11.317-08:00Ll is for Leaf<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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L is for leaf! I was sad to leave the space unit, but was happy that the next one was all about nature. We learned about the different parts of plants, different uses for plants (food, clothes, shelter), and about different kinds of plants. Our sight words for the week were Plant, Leaf, and Tree.</div>
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I told lij to draw a tree with the trunk, branches, leaves, and roots. I was quite impressed when I saw that not only did he add sunlight, "because they need it to grow", but that he also had the ground water in the picture for the roots. His hydrogeologist father was proud, too :o)</div>
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We took a number of walks, even in the rain, and took notice of the plants around us. We also collected leaves and did things like contests to see which ones fall faster and comparing and contrasting how they fell. It was interesting to see which ones twirled, fell flat, or whooshed away. </div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Al6xJQcKQOk/UJsPnI-UyLI/AAAAAAAAAmk/aPcO0IDUSxw/s1600/LEAVES.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Al6xJQcKQOk/UJsPnI-UyLI/AAAAAAAAAmk/aPcO0IDUSxw/s320/LEAVES.jpeg" width="239" /></a></div>
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We researched to find out what kinds of leaves are in our yard, and then pressed the leaves. We painted their outlines and we painted on the leaves themselves.</div>
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We also learned about magnetic forces during this unit, which was quite fun. One of the things we did was to make a list of things we (he) thought might be magnetic. Then he went around and marked what he learned. I love this magnet set he got from a friend for his birthday. So fun!</div>
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We also made a new tree for our hallway and put up all of our thankfulness leaves from last year. We will be adding more from this year soon enough.</div>
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We also had a Leaf Day at my dear friend Allison's house. She planned fun activities and while a storm ruined our plan to go on a leaf walk, the kids had a blast and learned lots! My favorites were the little leaf men the kids designed and the leaf salt dough ornaments. SO cute.</div>
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Hansi is in love with their dog, Lucy.</div>
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We also had a leaf cookie decorating day. I'm a big fan of cookie days!</div>
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Meanwhile, we let the little boys "play"... which is actually them staring at each other and Hansi stealing all the toys. But not for long! :o)</div>
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During this unit we also did science class at the zoo, which is an AWESOME program for home schoolers and I am so thankful to have it as an affordable supplement. Each class has a subject ranging from physics and forces to geology. The kids learn about it and have hands on experiements and activities. They also get to meet a couple of different zoo animals each week and the teacher also has a way of tying in the subject to something about the animal. This week they got to meet an owl and learn how drag helps her fly. Each student got to make parachutes and predict which ones would get the best drag.</div>
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Hansi also turned 7 months around this time. He is my happy boy who loves to chew on everything and army crawls like crazy.</div>
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And he likes to help with the laundry :o)</div>
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mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-21595101609551622372012-10-03T08:23:00.000-07:002012-10-03T12:26:21.422-07:00Mm is for Moon The second half of our space unit was all about the moon. We focused on the letter "M" and had so many fun projects! I found so much cool and easy stuff online that i couldn't even fit it all in. However, we were able to do a lot outside of just the worksheets and curriculum activities... and, of course, I took pictures of most of it :o)<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Cs8Rz0COPZ8/UGxB_75g-6I/AAAAAAAAAg4/d-RJI8dBk5w/s1600/Mm.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Cs8Rz0COPZ8/UGxB_75g-6I/AAAAAAAAAg4/d-RJI8dBk5w/s320/Mm.jpeg" width="239" /></a></div>
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We read so many fabulous books about space over the 3 weeks of our sun and moon unit that it felt weird to read about any other topics. I learned so much during the moon unit and even found a new </div>
fascination with the moon. It is so easy to take things like sunlight and the moon for granted, but then when you really think about it everything is so complex and amazing. I mean, really, it is bizarre that everything was put into place exactly where and how it needs to be in order to allow life on this planet. And the fact that the moon gives off no light, but works like a mirror to reflect light for us to have at night is just incredible. I have found myself more and more thankful for this beautiful planet God has given us and that He is the ultimate scientist who created the laws of physics and chemistry that makes it all work so perfectly. Wow. Okay... anyways, these are some of the things that we did. We made M's and m's out of play dough and practiced writing it in dry oatmeal. We learned about the relative size of the moon using small balls of play dough, kept a list of moon facts for our wall, and did space mazes i found online. We learned a lot about astronauts and practiced counting backwards from 10 and then ended it with a "blast off", which is basically Lij throwing his astronaut lego man in the air. I also saw on pinterest that you can use sharpie's on a ceramic plate from the dollar store, then bake it at 300degrees for 30 minutes and its permanent. We did this and he created his own planet with aliens and even named it. We were pretty excited, but it doesnt seem to be baked in enough...<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-w-YJo8JddPI/UGxCJyrtrPI/AAAAAAAAAhg/v8rpK_PxwP0/s1600/mmm.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-w-YJo8JddPI/UGxCJyrtrPI/AAAAAAAAAhg/v8rpK_PxwP0/s320/mmm.jpeg" width="239" /></a> <br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-C-x1BLAL2J0/UGxMfvtkcaI/AAAAAAAAAjs/LEK1MeoEpDo/s1600/findout.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-C-x1BLAL2J0/UGxMfvtkcaI/AAAAAAAAAjs/LEK1MeoEpDo/s320/findout.jpeg" width="239" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Xguna5Xk8Ec/UGxMdrKLo0I/AAAAAAAAAjk/lO4VdSVULTQ/s1600/blast.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Xguna5Xk8Ec/UGxMdrKLo0I/AAAAAAAAAjk/lO4VdSVULTQ/s320/blast.jpeg" width="239" /></a><br />
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One of Elijah's friends was over for a school day so they made cards with the phases of the moon and then played Memory with the cards. Then we took those and turned them into little moon phase books, complete with a few moon facts in the back. I don't have a picture here, but he also has an awesome moon light that hangs on the wall. You can use a remote to make it go through all the phases from new moon to full moon, it waxes and it wains. It was a birthday gift and it fit in perfectly with this unit!<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--936wAUU-cQ/UGxCHWso6qI/AAAAAAAAAhY/JL2tKT1Dneg/s1600/match.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--936wAUU-cQ/UGxCHWso6qI/AAAAAAAAAhY/JL2tKT1Dneg/s320/match.jpeg" width="320" /></a><br />
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One of my favorite projects was learning the moon phases using cookies. :o) <br />
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We learned about space travel and what all goes in to actually getting to space and then made these rocket ships using a tp roll, foil, and construction paper. I put a round piece of cardboard inside to make a shelf, then used an exacto knife to cut a small door in the ships so that their lego men could participate in space travel.<br />
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I really wanted to make an environment box with a space/moon scene and knew that it would mean more to him if he could use his lego's with it, so using a box, bubble wrap, paint, and glitter glue, we made one! He was SO excited and it was such a fun project to do together. </div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hoTc2bTl3lo/UGxCOqTkd6I/AAAAAAAAAh4/GjtVWqq_LgM/s1600/paint.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hoTc2bTl3lo/UGxCOqTkd6I/AAAAAAAAAh4/GjtVWqq_LgM/s320/paint.jpeg" width="239" /></a> <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XZU5r2rSa5E/UGxCFy-fJNI/AAAAAAAAAhQ/v3-nSKENRb0/s1600/boxy.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XZU5r2rSa5E/UGxCFy-fJNI/AAAAAAAAAhQ/v3-nSKENRb0/s320/boxy.jpeg" width="320" /></a><br />
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And the grand finale for our "Space School", as Elijah has been calling it, was to go on a field trip. My husband is in grad school and a friend of ours who is working on her PhD in the planetary side of things invited us to come and see some meteorites she has access to. My sweet boy was so shy and nervous for much of it, but it was obvious he was having much fun! We learned about meteorites and even got to hold them! Then she let him look at thin sections of rocks from Mars! How cool is that?! She taught him how to use the microscope and even let him pick out a thin section to take home. He chose a basalt sample. Some other souvenirs he got included a NASA sticker (which I shamelessly tried to talk him into wanting to put on my car...), a garnet, and a cool NASA poster of a meteorite! Seriously cool! Before we left she also took us to one of the rock rooms at the University, which happened to be near this awesome wall. The signature on the wall is from a real astronaut! We had so much fun and I think I learned almost as much as Elijah did. Thanks again, Arya!<br />
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The three rocks here are the meteorites. He was much more excited and interested than he appears! I was especially impressed with the weight of the meteorites. The largest one was quite heavy at 50% metal!<br />
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I liked the names on these rocks :o)</div>
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Outside of school time, we also spent a lot of time outdoors and took advantage of the cooler weather. Two of my favorite things our family does together is little family hikes and hanging out in our hammocks and with the fall weather coming in, it looks like we will be getting to do both even more!</div>
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Oh ya, this week we also taught Yohan how to drive :o)<br />
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<br />mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-64229505428842605292012-09-14T13:18:00.001-07:002012-10-03T12:26:42.673-07:00Best Homemade Pudding<div style="text-align: center;">
I am a huge fan of pudding. Pistachio, vanilla, lemon, banana, butterscotch... they all fill my heart with joy. My husband is not. He thinks it's gross. I think the texture just weirds him out. However, my mom and dad won him over to pudding with their homemade cocoa pudding that we have during the holiday season. Well, really anytime, but especially around Hanukkah and Christmas. I finally started making it for him (well, us) a few years ago. It is SO easy and SO good! We like it best when hot, especially if you top it with homemade whipped cream. Oh my. It is also quite good cold. In fact, that is what I used as <a href="http://mytwentysixthyear.blogspot.com/2012/09/space-day.html" target="_blank">Moon Mud for our space day</a>. I'm going to be a doll and share our super easy recipe :o)</div>
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Cocoa Pudding</div>
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1/2 cup sugar (brown or white! I have used both and can barely tell a difference)</div>
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1/4 cup cornstarch (I love Trader Joe's brand as it is non GMO)</div>
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3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder</div>
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1/8 tsp salt</div>
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2 1/3 cups milk</div>
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dash of vanilla</div>
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Combine the dry ingredients in the pot, then add the milk. Heat on medium and whisk pudding until it is thick. DON'T let it burn! It will get weird and lumpy. When it is the desired consistency (about 4 minutes usually for me), add the vanilla and enjoy!</div>
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mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-4647646668797924022012-09-13T19:02:00.000-07:002012-10-03T12:27:44.964-07:00Space Day!Today was such a fun day! I have been thinking about doing a space day for weeks, if not months; I LOVE themes! My dear friend Allison brought her adorable kiddos over for the festivities. Her two older kids are great friends with Elijah and her baby is just a bit younger than Yohan, so our kids blend well together. Especially because her baby is so chill and relaxed while Hansi wriggles like crazy as he roars for attention. They are some of our favorite people so it made the activities even better.<br />
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I started our "school day" by reading <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Theres-No-Place-Like-Space/dp/0679891153" target="_blank">this book </a> about our solar system. Then I had the boys color the pages to make their own solar system book. Unfortuntely I couldn't find the site to print a third one for Emmy, but she seemed content to color a picture of planets, as long as she could have a staple in hers as well. I did finally find it again though and think it is a great thing to add to any space units for home schooling or just for fun. <a href="http://iloveteachingblogs.com/sites/printable-book-about-the-planets-the-solar-system" target="_blank">Here it is</a> :o)<br />
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After they were done coloring, I read the chapter in<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Little-Bear-Anniversary-Holmelund-Minarik/dp/0060242418/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1347586464&sr=1-4&keywords=little+bear+moon" target="_blank"> this book </a> where Little Bear wears his space hat and pretends to go to the moon. After it was through, I asked the kids if they would like to have their own space hats like Little Bear's. They were so excited to do this project! I loved the simplicity of his hat in the book so I copied it as close as I could by just having small boxes and pipe cleaners. They chose the color pipe cleaners they wanted and where to put them in, then they decorated them with markers. So easy and fun!<br />
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We took a little break for a space lunch, which included a sun made of mac n cheese and carrots, bread stars, and a rocketship with small planets made of pineapple, celery, and more carrots. And of course, no space lunch would be complete without Tang! I can't believe people still buy the stuff and really didn't think we would find it, but apparently all kinds of people are drinking the juice of the stars cos it wasn't hard to find at all.<br />
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After lunch I read <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mooncake-Moonbear-Books-Frank-Asch/dp/0689835175/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1347587098&sr=1-1&keywords=little+bear+mooncake" target="_blank">one last book</a>, in which Little Bear makes a rocket ship and thinks he has landed on the moon. I asked the kids if they wished they could play in a rocket. Of course the answer was a resounding yes, so we told them to put on their space hats and go downstairs...<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ppZtgOWjUXQ/UFKJd4j-BvI/AAAAAAAAAeg/WhIE3dZ-GVg/s1600/misson.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ppZtgOWjUXQ/UFKJd4j-BvI/AAAAAAAAAeg/WhIE3dZ-GVg/s320/misson.jpeg" width="239" /></a>... they were so excited to find a rocketship!<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vmMrS4CY1uY/UFKJmqudQcI/AAAAAAAAAfQ/oT8a3JRNzBo/s1600/rocket!.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vmMrS4CY1uY/UFKJmqudQcI/AAAAAAAAAfQ/oT8a3JRNzBo/s320/rocket!.jpeg" width="239" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TzIz-POKYzQ/UFKJn-N7C5I/AAAAAAAAAfY/xra_0skc7pI/s1600/rockettop.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TzIz-POKYzQ/UFKJn-N7C5I/AAAAAAAAAfY/xra_0skc7pI/s320/rockettop.jpeg" width="239" /></a><br />
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My awesome husband put this together a couple of nights ago using a bunch of boxes. I was just going to give them a big box to pretend in, but creative man that he is, my husband put in a little door to go in through, a window they can open and close, charts and buttons, and even this 3d computer, complete with keyboard. He also made little computer scanners for collecting data outside of the rocket ship. Inside there is even a flashlight is hanging down for lighting. SO cool!<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--C_12EqU4jw/UFKJbwASYMI/AAAAAAAAAeQ/8HCJUN-JkIc/s1600/inside" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--C_12EqU4jw/UFKJbwASYMI/AAAAAAAAAeQ/8HCJUN-JkIc/s320/inside" width="320" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qyj8mbRzMnQ/UFKJWVNnRtI/AAAAAAAAAdo/Xi616OAsFKs/s1600/boys.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qyj8mbRzMnQ/UFKJWVNnRtI/AAAAAAAAAdo/Xi616OAsFKs/s320/boys.jpeg" width="187" /></a> <a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nxrx3fobNDA/UFKJVHGufPI/AAAAAAAAAdg/S-B5gRMNMLk/s1600/astros.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nxrx3fobNDA/UFKJVHGufPI/AAAAAAAAAdg/S-B5gRMNMLk/s320/astros.jpeg" width="320" /></a><br />
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After some play time, I served a snack, which was a jar of Moon Mud.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l0Ycn5QWzR4/UFKJgV4rUiI/AAAAAAAAAew/P9s0msM9lww/s1600/moonmud.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l0Ycn5QWzR4/UFKJgV4rUiI/AAAAAAAAAew/P9s0msM9lww/s320/moonmud.jpeg" width="239" /></a><br />
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"is it really mud?...."<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qjqGYrM3Bjk/UFKJh7MWknI/AAAAAAAAAe4/J6jfURx7XVY/s1600/mudd.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qjqGYrM3Bjk/UFKJh7MWknI/AAAAAAAAAe4/J6jfURx7XVY/s320/mudd.jpeg" width="239" /></a> .....<br />
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"it's chocolate pudding!" <a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MBDlCN_YcGI/UFKJrgiBnFI/AAAAAAAAAf0/Ub2IN-lWYQQ/s1600/yummud.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MBDlCN_YcGI/UFKJrgiBnFI/AAAAAAAAAf0/Ub2IN-lWYQQ/s320/yummud.jpeg" width="239" /></a><br />
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And because no Space Day would be complete without watching a video of space, we all watched <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCp2jTtay0w" target="_blank">this video</a> of the men on the moon. I'm inspired every time I see it.<br />
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Our last activity was inspired by this <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Life-Food-Clare-Crespo/dp/B005Q67R9U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1347587703&sr=8-1&keywords=secret+life+of+food" target="_blank">awesome </a>book. Instead of making a whole solar system, I just rolled enough balls of minty goodness for us each to paint our own planet. Honestly, they were kinda gross, but it was still fun :o) I love that over the course of the day Emmy ended up in a bee costume.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hN_E0_wQ0z4/UFKJlOTv6xI/AAAAAAAAAfI/JWV_Ag2wqdM/s1600/planets.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hN_E0_wQ0z4/UFKJlOTv6xI/AAAAAAAAAfI/JWV_Ag2wqdM/s320/planets.jpeg" width="240" /></a> <a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iRbC3zNIWJE/UFKJT8Rv_YI/AAAAAAAAAdY/dPsVEI7NqwY/s1600/allison.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iRbC3zNIWJE/UFKJT8Rv_YI/AAAAAAAAAdY/dPsVEI7NqwY/s320/allison.jpeg" width="311" /></a><br />
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This is my planet. I took one little bite then threw it away.<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--cVjtoNcMVI/UFKJjcCJONI/AAAAAAAAAfA/T285GdIbZ9g/s1600/planetmint.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--cVjtoNcMVI/UFKJjcCJONI/AAAAAAAAAfA/T285GdIbZ9g/s320/planetmint.jpeg" width="239" /></a><br />
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And then after all this, my husband came home with flowers and chocolate for me. He said it was because there was too much traffic so he pulled over to the store, but I know it's because he is awesome.<br />
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<br />mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-66813263766533853902012-09-13T18:09:00.000-07:002012-10-03T12:28:31.643-07:00Ss is for SunMy impression of homeschooling thus far: I love it! I certainly don't love every moment of it, but in my 16 class days (we are doing a 100 days chart so yes, i know how many :o) I have really enjoyed it. I love the creativity it inspires, I love the flexibility of it, and most of all, I absolutely love watching my son learn and get excited about learning. It is one of the coolest things ever.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-m0F3-7-IWGc/UFJ2go3jOgI/AAAAAAAAAbs/Kk0DN-Ox3Sc/s1600/suncard.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-m0F3-7-IWGc/UFJ2go3jOgI/AAAAAAAAAbs/Kk0DN-Ox3Sc/s320/suncard.jpeg" width="239" /></a></div>
The last 6 days we have been focusing on the letter S and learning all about the sun. Since our second unit is M/m/moon, I decided to tie them both together for a full on outer space theme. It has been so much fun! Elijah was already quite interested in space so it was a good way to kick off school.<br />
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Every morning we do our <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPzIbbvoiMA" target="_blank">Days of the Week</a> song, go over our calendar, do our 100 days chart, and say the days for yesterday, today, and tomorrow and he sticks on the appropriate day. I let my son decorate the poster board for the days...<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rHABPWil9pk/UFJ2TCKy-7I/AAAAAAAAAak/U6r2OzYx-6o/s1600/days.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rHABPWil9pk/UFJ2TCKy-7I/AAAAAAAAAak/U6r2OzYx-6o/s320/days.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
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We then discuss the weather for the day and he marks it in his chart. Every week I am adding a nursery rhyme to our curriculum. The first 10 days of school was a bit of a review and a unit on creation. He memorized 1,2, Buckle My Shoe and Hickory Dickory Dock during that time. For the sun unit he did Star Light, Star Bright. I think this is one of his favorite things we have done. He loves memorizing them and putting the gold star stickers on when he has it down.</div>
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Aside from doing the regular things such as writing and reading and working on math and the alphabet, we have also done a lot of fun extra projects. Here are a few of them.</div>
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Awesome solar system puzzle by Melissa & Doug. I recommend buying it.</div>
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I got a solar yard lamp from the Dollar Tree. One morning I found a video online about solar energy and after watching it he put the lamp in our yard. That night we went out after dark and he got to see how it worked just using solar energy. </div>
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Lots of stuff about shadows! All about shadows and how you can't get rid of yours. There's a great Reading Rainbow episode about shadows that we got from the library. We traced our own shadows, read about shadows, found funny ones, and left a pair of scissors on construction paper to see how its shadow kept the sun from fading the paper under it. We also made a sun dial and learned all about how people used them to tell time.</div>
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One of my favorite things we did was making a sun for our "classroom" (half of my husband's office). We cut open Trader Joe's bags and painted them. I had Elijah put it together then we hung it on the wall together. It reminds me of Eric Carle and makes me so happy! As we read through our books about the sun we kept a list of the facts we thought were the coolest/ most important, such as the fact that it only takes light 8 minutes to travel from the sun to earth, but using today's space shuttles it would take us over 3 YEARS to get there from here. Wild!</div>
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We talked about grapes vs. raisins and how they make raisins, then we ate them :o). We put a few grapes outside and every day Elijah charts what they look like as we wait for them to turn to raisins. It is kind of taking forever!</div>
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We have played a lot of Star Wars lego's. Not because of the theme so much as the fact that my son is <br />
addicted :o)<br />
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Some other things we did with the sun unit were to make sun tea, practiced making S's with chalk and play dough, went on a "things that start with s" scavenger hunt, I had him water color on a white piece of paper, which I had already drawn a sun and stars and the names of them on the paper with white crayon, so it surprised him like invisible ink. </div>
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I am taking a day off between our sun unit and our moon unit to have a day all about space with some of our friends and I am so excited about it! That blog to come soon!</div>
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<br />mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-2994598151579842702012-08-21T20:31:00.003-07:002012-10-03T12:28:44.304-07:00The last few months...<div style="text-align: center;">
So, basically I forgot I had a blog...</div>
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The last few months have been busy and interesting. I have adjusted to being a mother of two (on most days) and, aside from my youngest not sleeping, I feel like I have come out of the new baby fog and am a normal human being again! I am not sure how it happened so fast, but Yohan is almost 6 months old and Elijah celebrated his 5th birthday while we were in California. </div>
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My husband had field camp for 5 weeks so the boys and I spent some time at my sister's place and then headed to stay with my parents back home. They were a HUGE help while he was gone and I will forever be thankful for the special time we got to spend with them and and in-laws. Mike met us back in CA and we were able to celebrate our 7th anniversary, spend a ton of time swimming, reconnecting with old and dear friends, and we had a blast at Sea World! I also did a Color Me Rad 5k with a friend I have had since 6th grade! We ended up being gone for 2 months to the day and while it was sad to leave our friends and parents, it felt good to come back. </div>
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Oh ya, and I spent a whole lot of time with my little one in a hammock as it was the only way to get him to fall asleep for WEEKS</div>
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Now that we are back Mike is back to working on his thesis and finishing up his Masters and the boys and I have had fun days with friends and some not so fun days when naps don't last more than 20 minutes. This past weekend we went camping in honor of my lovely sister in law's birthday! Our dear friend's from here in town came too and it was such a good time! Eating, hammocking, hiking, and more eating! I can hardly wait to do it again! </div>
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The birthday girl and my brother in law!</div>
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Hammocks, babies, and one of my best friends! </div>
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My sweet family that I am so, so thankful for! </div>
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So that was my summer... and tomorrow we start a whole new adventure: Homeschool! And on the week I decided to take a break from caffeine!</div>
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Wish me luck...</div>
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<br />mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-40902275907626545412012-04-29T19:16:00.001-07:002012-04-29T19:16:43.228-07:00Life Happens Fast<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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There is only a 2 month, 6 day difference between the top and bottom image. It has gone by fast, but really I can barely remember life without this sweet little guy. My boys light up my life. And I love my husband's hammock.<br />
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<br />mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-64900606754614469362012-04-16T12:57:00.003-07:002012-04-16T13:15:08.438-07:006 week old Faces<div>Yesterday I turned 27. I got to spend the day with my family in Nashville, including my beautiful mother who gave me a birthday to celebrate. My dad was missed but at least we got to talk on the phone. Every year when my birthday comes around I am reminded of how blessed I am to have all the amazing people that are in my life. Seriously, I don't think I could ask for more. Other than post pregnancy clothes...I could use some of those! </div><div><br /></div><div>Instead of new year's resolutions I like to do birthday goals of things that I want to accomplish/see/do/eat/make before the next birthday. I plan to get that set up today... any suggestions?</div><div><br /></div><div>Also, I cannot believe it has been 6 weeks since little Hansi was born. Really it feels like he has been here forever, but it's hard for me to believe he is heading out of the newborn stage so quickly. His face is changing and he is starting to get so smiley. Last night was kind of miserable in the way of sleep (or rather lack thereof), but this morning he gave me the biggest smiles and completely made up for any tiredness I had. </div><div><br /></div><div>See how my Hansi grows...</div><div><br /></div><div>One Week Old Faces</div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wup1lIxXtcQ/T4x6A-J2MdI/AAAAAAAAAYM/Q5My-hIJBmk/s1600/faces%2B1%2Bweek.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wup1lIxXtcQ/T4x6A-J2MdI/AAAAAAAAAYM/Q5My-hIJBmk/s320/faces%2B1%2Bweek.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5732090582838686162" /></a><div><br /></div><div>One Month Old Faces<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eMLmP1ECXrk/T4x56ZpnD9I/AAAAAAAAAYA/jnw3yTEpphU/s1600/6weeks.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eMLmP1ECXrk/T4x56ZpnD9I/AAAAAAAAAYA/jnw3yTEpphU/s320/6weeks.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5732090469960585170" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>Six Week Old Faces (this morning)</div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-T0l9ef71UuI/T4x50wzEv3I/AAAAAAAAAX0/LhzRiZN5w4Q/s1600/6%2Bweeks.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-T0l9ef71UuI/T4x50wzEv3I/AAAAAAAAAX0/LhzRiZN5w4Q/s320/6%2Bweeks.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5732090373095079794" /></a><br /></div>mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-86646348485743244592012-04-11T18:18:00.024-07:002012-04-11T20:23:30.166-07:00Pregnancy Art<div> <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span> </span><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-avjnaHslKq8/T4ZI49wc0LI/AAAAAAAAAXM/sPtCPW5Nny0/s1600/babyverse.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-avjnaHslKq8/T4ZI49wc0LI/AAAAAAAAAXM/sPtCPW5Nny0/s320/babyverse.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730347719363186866" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 250px; " /></a></div><div><br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>Every week of my pregnancy I got an email notifying me of baby's development and each one included a comparison of the size of my baby to some kind of produce. So we decided to use that as a way of documenting this pregnancy. I looked around online and couldn't find any other documentation like it, but I suppose that doesnt mean it's not already out there.<div>I enlisted my super talented husband and we had planned on doing it every week, but that just didn't happen. If I had the patience to learn how to use fancy things like photoshop then I would make all the images the same size so they're not annoyingly uneven. But, even with as much as it bugs me, I am letting it go for now. One day I will do something really cool with them. Anyways, here it is...(week 26 was just for kicks...)</div></div><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sFwT2gOeDRI/T4ZGwFvPZpI/AAAAAAAAAUM/HTiLBo5mHPM/s1600/9.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sFwT2gOeDRI/T4ZGwFvPZpI/AAAAAAAAAUM/HTiLBo5mHPM/s320/9.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730345367863518866" style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TEsSDJGY3dE/T4ZIZU8JyaI/AAAAAAAAAXA/LZBJOgK70lg/s1600/10.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 238px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TEsSDJGY3dE/T4ZIZU8JyaI/AAAAAAAAAXA/LZBJOgK70lg/s320/10.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730347175830473122" /></a><div><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rWiKE0_BG8o/T4ZIUwnlnKI/AAAAAAAAAW0/JqXFvRf9-30/s1600/11.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 278px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rWiKE0_BG8o/T4ZIUwnlnKI/AAAAAAAAAW0/JqXFvRf9-30/s320/11.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730347097361063074" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3W0y_sAI6Qc/T4ZIO10gzlI/AAAAAAAAAWo/W1tqlIhYM3s/s1600/13.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 302px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3W0y_sAI6Qc/T4ZIO10gzlI/AAAAAAAAAWo/W1tqlIhYM3s/s320/13.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730346995678236242" /></a><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-um8x_qyOdPU/T4ZIJZa6vgI/AAAAAAAAAWc/xi2e9lineXA/s1600/17.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 317px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-um8x_qyOdPU/T4ZIJZa6vgI/AAAAAAAAAWc/xi2e9lineXA/s320/17.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730346902155345410" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jrnYEOpEnKk/T4ZIEog9CcI/AAAAAAAAAWQ/Up5ezwBhApc/s1600/18.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 275px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jrnYEOpEnKk/T4ZIEog9CcI/AAAAAAAAAWQ/Up5ezwBhApc/s320/18.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730346820307847618" /></a><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CFhKEVYezNQ/T4ZH-ql4RyI/AAAAAAAAAWE/5Ra3NuGDd1o/s1600/20.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 202px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CFhKEVYezNQ/T4ZH-ql4RyI/AAAAAAAAAWE/5Ra3NuGDd1o/s320/20.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730346717786162978" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5sCnhbYpqKw/T4ZH5f4yIkI/AAAAAAAAAV4/JoHekcQVFME/s1600/21.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 311px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5sCnhbYpqKw/T4ZH5f4yIkI/AAAAAAAAAV4/JoHekcQVFME/s320/21.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730346629013316162" /></a><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_cmhG7xfW5I/T4ZH0ErTAbI/AAAAAAAAAVs/dqJvcAZ928A/s1600/25.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 277px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_cmhG7xfW5I/T4ZH0ErTAbI/AAAAAAAAAVs/dqJvcAZ928A/s320/25.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730346535809647026" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sJqa7M3Xvm0/T4ZHt0kV17I/AAAAAAAAAVg/sv43WZs1c30/s1600/26.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 298px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sJqa7M3Xvm0/T4ZHt0kV17I/AAAAAAAAAVg/sv43WZs1c30/s320/26.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730346428406290354" /></a><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aSBT2qWE9q4/T4ZHodxbAjI/AAAAAAAAAVU/z_sj-xkw4iw/s1600/27.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 253px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aSBT2qWE9q4/T4ZHodxbAjI/AAAAAAAAAVU/z_sj-xkw4iw/s320/27.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730346336387793458" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-n85sQvu8MUA/T4ZHhZLmhTI/AAAAAAAAAVI/s_0lVLCQXGQ/s1600/30.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 239px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-n85sQvu8MUA/T4ZHhZLmhTI/AAAAAAAAAVI/s_0lVLCQXGQ/s320/30.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730346214896338226" /></a><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UMoAByk95Q4/T4ZHZ0IKyuI/AAAAAAAAAU8/V1DQLZc4ktc/s1600/33.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 234px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UMoAByk95Q4/T4ZHZ0IKyuI/AAAAAAAAAU8/V1DQLZc4ktc/s320/33.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730346084690741986" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-U8abba_Jbug/T4ZHUYdKtHI/AAAAAAAAAUw/u8geS1RL0aE/s1600/34.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 239px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-U8abba_Jbug/T4ZHUYdKtHI/AAAAAAAAAUw/u8geS1RL0aE/s320/34.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730345991363277938" /></a><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nqXx_rxsv74/T4ZG-WlQl-I/AAAAAAAAAUk/jEwZsakRVEM/s1600/35.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 239px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nqXx_rxsv74/T4ZG-WlQl-I/AAAAAAAAAUk/jEwZsakRVEM/s320/35.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730345612903225314" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CQaM0JWNRUw/T4ZG10rx4-I/AAAAAAAAAUY/J1gzhfs1SW8/s1600/37.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 262px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CQaM0JWNRUw/T4ZG10rx4-I/AAAAAAAAAUY/J1gzhfs1SW8/s320/37.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730345466364814306" /></a><br /><br /><br />My favorite artist doing his thing<div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-K2tA6ErtAgQ/T4ZI5FKBE3I/AAAAAAAAAXY/iuBd9drKXyI/s1600/mikey.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-K2tA6ErtAgQ/T4ZI5FKBE3I/AAAAAAAAAXY/iuBd9drKXyI/s320/mikey.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730347721349469042" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 238px; " /></a><br /><div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><div><br /></div></div></div></div></div>mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-59147982757277532152012-04-10T11:37:00.009-07:002012-04-10T11:57:34.474-07:00Snake Bubbles!I have been much less involved with Elijah in the way of projects and school time these last 5 weeks so yesterday when he quietly asked me if we could do a science experiment together I decided I should. So I went to find something quick and easy online. I knew it needed to be something with stuff we already had and that I could put together while holding a baby. As soon as i saw <a href="http://www.cometogetherkids.com/2011/04/bubble-snake-maker.html">this</a> I knew it would be a hit. Its not a science experiment, but if I had varying kinds of woven materials such as cheesecloth, it totally could have been (thanks for the idea for next time, mom! :o).<div><br /></div><div>All you need is a <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3333ff;">water bottle</span> that you can cut the end off of, an old rag or <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3366ff;">wash cloth</span> you can cut, a <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3366ff;">rubber band</span>, and some <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3366ff;">dish soap with water</span>. It was fast, easy for him to do without my help. Plus, it was a good way to get him outside after watching waaaaaaay too much Spiderman on netflix. </div><div>Clearly he needed to get out... :o)</div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cyfznxj_0GI/T4SAmqRMs5I/AAAAAAAAATM/fjiCDj7D-HA/s1600/before.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cyfznxj_0GI/T4SAmqRMs5I/AAAAAAAAATM/fjiCDj7D-HA/s320/before.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729846027591922578" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 239px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>It worked!</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KPQWA0vwTJk/T4SAbc99PMI/AAAAAAAAAS0/9VkeOW-1Ac0/s1600/start.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KPQWA0vwTJk/T4SAbc99PMI/AAAAAAAAAS0/9VkeOW-1Ac0/s320/start.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729845835042995394" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 239px; " /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IGbqpflRpw8/T4SAVmtTlVI/AAAAAAAAASo/UXetAs5zXLU/s1600/snakes.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IGbqpflRpw8/T4SAVmtTlVI/AAAAAAAAASo/UXetAs5zXLU/s320/snakes.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729845734578296146" style="cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px; " /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0CQdZPnu3O0/T4SAPhRsZ3I/AAAAAAAAASc/WnAJORMvQDI/s1600/snake.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0CQdZPnu3O0/T4SAPhRsZ3I/AAAAAAAAASc/WnAJORMvQDI/s320/snake.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729845630041089906" style="cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>And Hansi and I had fun watching </div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ptLSk-s-S8U/T4SAhZRWLHI/AAAAAAAAATA/08gimYEkl6A/s1600/watching.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ptLSk-s-S8U/T4SAhZRWLHI/AAAAAAAAATA/08gimYEkl6A/s320/watching.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729845937129794674" style="cursor: pointer; width: 295px; height: 320px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-45884858563786597272012-04-08T19:18:00.013-07:002012-04-08T20:37:12.673-07:00Newborn PicturesWe had Emma of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/cqphotographytn">CQ Photography </a>take some newborn photos of little Yohan when he was 5 days old. She was so good with him, I highly recommend her! Here are a few of them.<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fxfDzaZAfC0/T4JYJwh_x3I/AAAAAAAAASE/UM7zKtjfat0/s1600/hans.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 213px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fxfDzaZAfC0/T4JYJwh_x3I/AAAAAAAAASE/UM7zKtjfat0/s320/hans.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729238600638252914" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O-hsga1V1bg/T4JXzsCyNDI/AAAAAAAAARI/NumlWh3Uhj0/s1600/han2.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O-hsga1V1bg/T4JXzsCyNDI/AAAAAAAAARI/NumlWh3Uhj0/s320/han2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729238221476475954" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px; " /></a><div><br /><div>Baby wrinkles!!<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NqZZqQc0TgA/T4JYFi5FDvI/AAAAAAAAAR4/ehVXgbDFOTM/s1600/han6.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NqZZqQc0TgA/T4JYFi5FDvI/AAAAAAAAAR4/ehVXgbDFOTM/s320/han6.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729238528257494770" /></a><div><br />This adorable hat and the baby pod were made by the talented <a href="https://www.facebook.com/markandandrea">Andrea</a>, whom I highly recommend you purchase baby hats and pods from :o)<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SXZe12qN02Q/T4JX8xCndbI/AAAAAAAAARg/uI68xp7yyMI/s1600/han4.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 283px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SXZe12qN02Q/T4JX8xCndbI/AAAAAAAAARg/uI68xp7yyMI/s320/han4.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729238377436771762" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dOrth7-_zRM/T4JXrDN8AtI/AAAAAAAAAQw/OrHvpe1o_aU/s1600/han.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dOrth7-_zRM/T4JXrDN8AtI/AAAAAAAAAQw/OrHvpe1o_aU/s320/han.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729238073078448850" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>Brotherly love.<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TigIIeTFyq8/T4JX4m7GlcI/AAAAAAAAARU/cM4s34i4mTs/s1600/han3.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TigIIeTFyq8/T4JX4m7GlcI/AAAAAAAAARU/cM4s34i4mTs/s320/han3.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729238306001425858" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-drfPKY7sNHA/T4JYBGrx3BI/AAAAAAAAARs/1rRG-u01YLY/s1600/han5.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-drfPKY7sNHA/T4JYBGrx3BI/AAAAAAAAARs/1rRG-u01YLY/s320/han5.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729238451966041106" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 208px; " /></a><br /><br /></div><div>I am pretty much in love with the kid. :o)<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F8kjFYmKIj4/T4JXv5YbFSI/AAAAAAAAAQ8/0inZBKiu4wA/s1600/han1.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F8kjFYmKIj4/T4JXv5YbFSI/AAAAAAAAAQ8/0inZBKiu4wA/s320/han1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729238156337419554" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZAV8WFzNxgg/T4JYpiku4TI/AAAAAAAAASQ/HFy4fj_2I1s/s1600/tie.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZAV8WFzNxgg/T4JYpiku4TI/AAAAAAAAASQ/HFy4fj_2I1s/s320/tie.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5729239146647445810" style="cursor: pointer; width: 213px; height: 320px; " /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><br /></div></div></div></div>mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-46682037764438826912012-03-28T17:00:00.030-07:002012-04-09T10:16:05.396-07:00Yohan<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0); font-family:'times new roman';font-size:medium;">Tuesday marked one month since giving birth to my second boy, Yohan. I know im biased, but isn't he adorable?</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cP36CdQ9u5U/T35RNGhEzNI/AAAAAAAAAPc/CyaKlc-Rhe4/s320/lovebug.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728105061591338194" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">My first was born a week early and I (stupidly) thought my second would be early as well. I spent that last week certain I was in labor nearly every evening. My mom was in town and we would watch Father of the Bride 2 or Columbo while she rubbed my feet then I would go to bed thinking, "this is it". Every night we reminded Elijah that we might not be there in the morning and every morning he would come in disappointed we were there... without his little brother. I am sure I was more disappointed than he was. I was beginning to get rather grumpy despite the fact that it wasn't even to my due date yet. This is us on Wednesday. I was so sure I was in labor. but was only 2 cm.... </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bGF8pmIKdgU/T35R2ISbETI/AAAAAAAAAPo/HKmVnKgqtcI/s320/wed.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728105766441390386" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">I tried to eat a whole pineapple to bring labor on, but all I got was a raw mouth and angry stomach.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ep2kVa1jH-w/T35K-babLTI/AAAAAAAAAMY/idU4Hpx2YOA/s320/pineapple.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728098212432784690" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>Finally on Friday afternoon I realized my contractions were consistent again so i began timing them. After about 2 hours of them being 3 or 4 minutes apart we left for the birth center. I wanted to stay home longer as it felt more natural to me to labor at home. Last time we had a home birth and it just seems like the right place to be. However, I knew my parents were worried I wouldn't leave in time and would have the baby at home. Unattended. No thanks :O)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">Also, bad weather was coming so it made sense to head out.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">Before we left my mom rubbed my feet between contractions and then my dad prayed for me and the baby. Those are two of my favorites moments in this experience. So thankful to have had them here.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>I was not nearly as far along as I had hoped by the time we got to the center, but I was far enough for us to stay. I look back on those first few hours fondly. I was the only one in labor so we had the place to ourselves. We walked the halls, stopping for contractions and frozen grapes. By the way, I highly recommend frozen grapes as a snack during labor.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">We had a photographer there and she captured some really beautiful pictures from the labor. These are some of my favorites.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Za2BS45s86k/T35Lxm2GfYI/AAAAAAAAAMk/59UYtVahsLo/s320/feet.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728099091674987906" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 266px; height: 320px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">A few hours later the bad weather arrived. There were tornados just outside of town, some not too far from where our photographer lived, which brought some anxiety to all of us. I knew Elijah and my parents were fine, but I still worried some. It was quite surreal being so far into labor (9cm) and watching an electrical storm light up the sky through the glass french doors. I am certain this slowed my labor down. I don't know how long I was stuck at 9cm for, but it was a number of hours. Our sweet photographer ended up needing to go home before the delivery, but I am so thankful for the pictures that she got. Mike was amazing the entire time and I feel like many of the pictures she took really capture that. I don't know how he knows what to do, but he does. Seriously, he is a better birth partner than I would be. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-r3LX4hmRn8I/T35Mc_LjkqI/AAAAAAAAAM8/k8hE1SIim6I/s1600/labortub.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-r3LX4hmRn8I/T35Mc_LjkqI/AAAAAAAAAM8/k8hE1SIim6I/s320/labortub.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728099836941800098" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px; " /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IcbmmWx9ppA/T35Mozrn4BI/AAAAAAAAANI/NsJNhxylEHs/s1600/support.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IcbmmWx9ppA/T35Mozrn4BI/AAAAAAAAANI/NsJNhxylEHs/s320/support.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728100040013504530" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 256px; " /></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">It wasn't until after they broke my water, which I am generally not an advocate of, that I progressed to 10cm. My main memories of the labor experience after that point are of me loudly calling out to God to "PLEASE GET THIS BABY OUT" no joke. I was so quiet and calm with my first labor and this time I think I spent a couple of hours pleading with the Lord out loud to pull him out. Right.Now. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">And then it happened. At 2:20am my sweet little boy was born. Pulling him up out of the water and onto my chest was amazing. It is bizarre the energy rush you get after giving birth. I went from falling asleep sitting up in the birthing tub between contractions to being wide awake and excited within minutes. The first thing the midwife pointed out when I lifted him up from the water was his chin dimple. I still can't get over how much I love that dimple. My guess is I never will.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">He was 8 pounds 14.5 ounces when he was born and 22"long. Plus, he was born on his due date!</span></div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GhFgoUWp38w/T35NO6lC39I/AAAAAAAAANU/5mG0SNnXa4I/s1600/newborn.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span> <img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GhFgoUWp38w/T35NO6lC39I/AAAAAAAAANU/5mG0SNnXa4I/s320/newborn.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728100694699990994" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 239px; " /></span></a></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">Sadly, we didn't think to have anyone take a picture of us just after he was born, but we do have these two. In the first one I am on the phone with my dad telling him about the birth. It's not a great photo but I like it and the second is right before we left the center.</span></div><div> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JT3K8gKp9cU/T35OVdpBWwI/AAAAAAAAANg/NMt-0RkpgIg/s1600/mee.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JT3K8gKp9cU/T35OVdpBWwI/AAAAAAAAANg/NMt-0RkpgIg/s320/mee.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728101906702752514" style="cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px; " /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6-laFdVmggs/T35OepQWqQI/AAAAAAAAANs/oB1MTXlIO7U/s1600/daddy.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6-laFdVmggs/T35OepQWqQI/AAAAAAAAANs/oB1MTXlIO7U/s320/daddy.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728102064439339266" style="cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px; " /></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">My parents got to stay with us a full week after he was born and this was a HUGE help. I am so thankful for that time with them. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lAzjfo8ll-s/T35O6xfUOPI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/6C5nJjHSbTY/s1600/papa.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lAzjfo8ll-s/T35O6xfUOPI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/6C5nJjHSbTY/s320/papa.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728102547685914866" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 235px; " /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-M_-FlEIjPR0/T35O1wRoFDI/AAAAAAAAAOE/FrbKhARnDdY/s1600/mom.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-M_-FlEIjPR0/T35O1wRoFDI/AAAAAAAAAOE/FrbKhARnDdY/s320/mom.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728102461460714546" style="cursor: pointer; width: 297px; height: 320px; " /></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0); font-family:'times new roman';font-size:medium;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_EtctANmzQM/T35Ov7Yf5GI/AAAAAAAAAN4/bR1vKsa8QQ0/s1600/grands1.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_EtctANmzQM/T35Ov7Yf5GI/AAAAAAAAAN4/bR1vKsa8QQ0/s320/grands1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728102361363113058" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 246px; " /></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">Then the next weekend my sister and her kids got to come stay with us and that was so wonderful as well. It was so fun having all 5 cousins together.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xYscwSVJ99o/T35PXbUoasI/AAAAAAAAAOo/2CWntMc9_Mc/s1600/kids.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xYscwSVJ99o/T35PXbUoasI/AAAAAAAAAOo/2CWntMc9_Mc/s320/kids.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728103039951727298" style="cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px; " /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pBycgyqA85U/T35PR-eaB3I/AAAAAAAAAOc/ZaMTbCvASyM/s1600/allkisa.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pBycgyqA85U/T35PR-eaB3I/AAAAAAAAAOc/ZaMTbCvASyM/s320/allkisa.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728102946308753266" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 119px; " /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5bklwcQotOU/T35PqSlv96I/AAAAAAAAAO4/erbIyz5UDd8/s1600/lydia.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5bklwcQotOU/T35PqSlv96I/AAAAAAAAAO4/erbIyz5UDd8/s320/lydia.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728103364025120674" style="cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px; " /></a></span><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eOVyai-dkVg/T35VUqZjw2I/AAAAAAAAAQk/ksDaBE9hLl4/s1600/me.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eOVyai-dkVg/T35VUqZjw2I/AAAAAAAAAQk/ksDaBE9hLl4/s320/me.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728109589529084770" style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " /></a></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">He is now a month old and on one hand I feel like time has flown by, yet at the same time I cannot imagine not having him here. There is a small part of me that remembers how good I had it sleeping through the night and doing whatever I wanted much of the time with just an independent 4.5 year old to hang out with, but I wouldn't trade it for the world.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">Yohan is sweet with a raspy voice. He is wide eyed and is curious about what goes on around him. He has just started intentionally smiling this week and most of his smiles are reserved for his big brother. You can already tell he looks at Elijah differently than he looks at everyone else. It is beyond precious. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-geJDODFbXGk/T35Qq5UtlGI/AAAAAAAAAPE/Lvx2DPL865w/s320/brothers.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728104473934271586" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 208px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">With the assistance of Mike, Yohan spent much of his third day in the outside world inside of this dump truck being pushed around by Elijah who "delivered" him to us over and over. Then we did a similar picture with our photographer :o)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_a9UxWEPyfk/T35S4wAQAsI/AAAAAAAAAP0/JD3B2SFsG6E/s320/truckboys.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728106910973952706" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 299px; height: 320px; " /></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DZsQmvYe-6I/T35S9vvTodI/AAAAAAAAAQA/EyQp2melgVU/s320/truck.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728106996802232786" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 213px; height: 320px; " /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">Elijah loves being a big brother. He loves to hold him, bounce his baby seat, and even helps clean up his ever present spit up, which I don't even like to do.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">I am tired and sometimes a little cranky and I miss having a personal space, but I am thankful and happy and so blessed to have such a wonderful group of family and friends and especially my beautiful boys.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zN8_h6n3dIM/T35Q37RPCfI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/2r4neETqdKk/s320/boys.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728104697794857458" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 283px; height: 320px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>Our first family photo.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zXsKttBq2yQ/T35Tl87AWlI/AAAAAAAAAQM/BOaoAq6c-V4/s320/family.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728107687535729234" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 317px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; font-family:'times new roman';font-size:100%;color:#660000;">And last but not least, just for kicks, a picture of our tree that fell over, bounced off the house and onto our fence during the storm. Thankfully it didnt do too much damage to the house, especially since my parents and Elijah were in the room where the tree hit.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RWeoW8pUX1I/T35UEkLK7wI/AAAAAAAAAQY/Aifjtl7YL1w/s320/tree.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728108213468589826" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; ">*our photographer is <a href="https://www.facebook.com/EmmaTravisPhotography">Emma</a> and if you live in the Knoxville area, she comes highly recommended!*</span></div>mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2389884409567472157.post-7330154500705052922012-02-20T14:32:00.006-08:002012-02-20T15:25:46.063-08:00Easy, Fast Fun with the Boy<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 51, 51); font-size: large; "><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>So I am realizing more and more how fast and easy it can be to do fun things with kids. Thanks to my parent's being teachers and good at encouraging that kind of thing and thanks to far too much time spent on the internet, specifically pinterest, it has been rather easy for me to pull up projects or crafts to do with Elijah that make the day special. And, honestly, that entertain him and prevent tears over the fact that i cannot play wrestle or cars for hours on end. Or even minutes at this point. Today was a day where I decided to do multiple projects throughout the day until my husband got home.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;">-5 minute project: First things first, we made an Ant Restaurant.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cQcRxKJTstk/T0LMQpntVII/AAAAAAAAAL0/WTdTG_nNsj0/s320/ants.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711351863881585794" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px; " /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>I saw got the idea from this <a href="http://eisforexplore.blogspot.com/2012/02/ant-restaurant.html">site</a>, which i use as a resource often. We raided the kitchen and picked out 6 foods for the ants varying from honey to avocado to leftover spanish rice. Then we came up with a hypothesis of what we thought the ants would eat the most of on the menu and what they would eat the least of. We took it outside and put it in the sun. We checked on it throughout the day and after 6 hours of business and not a single customer in sight, we decided it was still too cold for ants. Kind of a bummer, but it was still fun. And it took... maybe five minutes. At most. </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;">-5 minute project: Next up, we turned our hallway into a road. Well, it already served as one for all kinds of cars, remote controlled and otherwise, today we just made it look like one. I wanted to give him some inspiration to play on his own and i saw some tape sitting on the desk. So we took a few minutes to make this. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TNdCo_UKhqs/T0LMZm0k3BI/AAAAAAAAAMA/fWReaZcnQmc/s320/cars.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711352017749072914" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " /></span></span></div></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>I didn't even do the middle line, i just ripped it off and he laid it down, which he thought was totally fun. He used this road over and over today, including while i took a 40 minute nap. Well, he probably was only using the road for half that time, but either way, I got a nap! Tomorrow I think I will turn it into a "school time" thing by adding letters and numbers to the pieces of tape in the middle. Not sure exactly what we will do with that, but certainly there are all kinds of ways to make it educational! </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;">-3, 10, and 10 minute projects: One of the biggest hits today was his new pirate sword. It is one of the most basic things you can do and he was thrilled. He found a big(ish) stick and a smaller stick. I used some twine to tie them parallel and viola! A new pirate sword, rugged style! </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>We continued with the pirate theme by making <a href="http://eisforexplore.blogspot.com/2012/02/moveable-pirate-spy-glass-telescope.html">this</a> spyglass. Basically you cut a hole out of a paper or plastic cup, stick a toilet paper tube through the hole, and decorate! We skipped a couple of the things on the directions from the site just cos our way was simpler. He painted the spyglass and we checked out our restaurant while it dried. I drew a couple rings around the top and he had another accessory for his pirate attire. Lastly, we made a treasure map. I did a very rough sketch of our house and he decided where the treasure would be hidden and we made the map take the follower throughout the house in circles before coming to the "X". Lij also did a Pirate Elijah work sheet from <a href="http://twistynoodle.com/worksheets/letters/">this great site</a> while i sketched the map for him.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ibYMAzI27jo/T0LMfX6h_yI/AAAAAAAAAMM/xe43iWqyshY/s320/pirates.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711352116826734370" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px; " /></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>So we hid the "treasure", which was his new spyglass and a picture he drew for Mike, and checked on our restaurant again. When Mike got home Pirate Elijah greeted him and gave him his map. 2 minutes later it was over with and Elijah had so much fun he said it was, "like a birthday party". </span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;color:#003333;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>None of this took any real effort from me. It was all done with stuff we already had, and it made our day fun and special. Special is something I am trying to make every day as I know this time alone together is going to be gone any day now once this baby decides to be born.</span></div>mytwentysixthyearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17043354683880748462noreply@blogger.com2