Volcanoes and fossils, O MY!

We (mostly me) celebrated our first homeschool milestone: We are one-third the way through our school year. I am so excited about this because I am reminded of how incredibly overwhelmed I felt just getting started. I now say that I absolutely love homeschooling and I cannot imagine doing anything differently. This is HUGE for me to say because I wasn't so convinced earlier this year. Here are a couple of science projects we did last month. These pictures motivate me to take more pictures of the projects we do. Today we made "flying machines" and I did not think to grab my camera until after we flight-tested our creation. Maybe I can sneak one in on another day!

Allison's dinosaur fossils:

Here, Allison is making a volcano:

Sewing

Sewing has become quite a hit around our house lately. Allison has made a blanket, Greg has made a dress for Giraffe and a little outfit for Allison's new addition, Lucy Ann. I have been busy on my first quilt. I am in the final stages and hope to show pictures soon. I have a couple of projects on my mind for this month: a mommy/daughter quilt for Allison and I to work on and a few snack bags so that I can stop buying those pesky plastic ones.

Here is a sneak peek at my quilt:

Here is Allison trying her hand at sewing:

I apologize for the quality of pictures, I had some things done to my laptop and I haven't reinstalled all my software - particularly photoshop.

Summer

We've had a wonderful summer. We have been blessed with being busy. Our goal for this summer has been: swim swim swim!

How cool is this?

Can you tell I have a craving for homemade ice cream? I thought this was a pretty neat idea!
I found this recipe at organicvalley.coop

Plastic Bag Ice Cream
PREP TIME
10 Minutes
TOTAL TIME
20 Minutes
SERVINGS
1

Ice Cream
1⁄2 cup Organic Valley Half and Half
2 tablespoons sugar
1⁄2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Supplies
2 one-quart sealable plastic freezer bags
1 one-gallon sealable plastic freezer bag
4 cups crushed ice
1⁄2 cup rock salt
Gloves or a towel
1. Place half & half, sugar and vanilla in a one-quart plastic bag. Squeeze out excess air and seal tightly. Shake vigorously to ensure sugar is completely dissolved. Double-bag the first bag with a second one.

2. Place these bags inside a gallon-size bag. Add crushed ice and rock salt to the outer gallon-size bag. Squeeze out excess air and seal tightly. Place the bag inside a towel or put on gloves. Shake and massage the bag to work the ice around the ice cream mixture. When mixture firms up (in about 5-10 minutes), remove the quart bag from salt and ice. Serve immediately.

Beach Day

Allison and I made a plan in March to visit the beach for my birthday in June. With the sweltering heat lately, we almost decided against it. The plan was to make an early morning trip to the beach, stay for a few hours (until it became too hot) and then visit a local museum on our way back home. We loved the trip. We are all about day trips - they are a whole day packed with fun and then you get to be lazy the next day (you deserve it after all!). We plan to make a trip to the beach again this summer and to visit a different museum on our way home. Here are a few pictures from our trip. I should mention, Greg wasn't a fan of this trip, but was quickly converted upon our arrival. He thought a visit to the beach would be boring and hot. He actually thought it was relaxing and fun. Yay, especially since I love most anything having to do with outdoors.

See that smile on her face?

Cathching a wave

Building a sand castle

At the local aviation museum

Allison and I after a morning at the beach, sun-beaten and dirty (from the sand)

Having a Martha House the Mary Way

I have been hearing much talk lately about a book titled, "31 Days to Clean - Having a Martha House the Mary Way." I have read the book, "Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World" by Joanna Weaver and loved it. I wanted to get my hands on this book.

What is this book about you might ask? To care for your family by creating a nurturing environment.

What is the challenge?
After each days reading, you will be given two challenges:
The Mary Challenge -Something you do that encourages/engages your heart
The Martha Challenge – Specific cleaning tasks

I"m excited for the challenge and what it will bring for my family. Care to join me?

see 31daystoclean.com

One year and three months ago.

Food for thought

As I get older, I become more concerned with my health. Lately, I've been thinking about it a lot. I'm not a fan of becoming obsessed with turning back the clock, I just want to feel strong. I want to feel capable and not feel UNable.

Turning thirty years old was hard for me. I am not really sure why. I have never been a person who worried about age. Maybe I felt sad for things left undone or maybe I felt my youth slipping away. Maybe it was a combination of both, who knows. One thing that sticks out in my mind and I associate with turning thirty was the day I was pushing Allison in her little car around the yard. I was only able to push her a few feet before I became winded. That was it for me. I knew my body was aging and I had to be proactive. In my youth, like so many others, I was able to "snap back" to shape. That isn't the case anymore.

I've been wondering lately if my concern over my health is healthy. I watch what I eat (the good and the bad) and I try to exercise regularly. As the summer approaches, I feel a little more pressure. I know I can't turn the clock back on my body, but I do want to feel, as I've stated before, stong. Then I came across this blog: www.curvygirlguide.com/self/women-getting-real-about-weight/ (for some reason I am not able to add a link to my posts - so I listed the entire address, you'll have to copy and paste or use good old google).

This article came at the right time. As a mother, my body is not the same as it was before having my daughter and it never will be. I am okay with that. I do think with so many labels around us, it is sometimes hard to gain a healthy perspective about our bodies. This article summed it up for me. I hope you will take a moment to read it.

WATCH OUT!

I just unearthed the cord to my camera. Out came over six hundred pictures. 600! I won't bore you with 600, but here are a few of my favorites of the last few weeks.

Allison ice skating. I love to watch her ice skate because she is so proud of herself when she accomplishes a goal such as making it across the arena or spinning around.

Rollerblading.

We spend a lot of time taking Ozzy for a walk and visiting local parks.

This picture is one of my favorites from her birthday party this past fall.

Hiking.

Container Gardening

We have been talking about starting a small container garden this year since the size of our backyard has decreased considerably. While window shopping at the local home improvement store we came accross the Miracle-Gro® Gro-Bag - Scotts Miracle-Gro Have you seen this contraption? Such a neat concept we thought we could re-create by spending a little less money.



So Greg created a box that fit two potting soil bags with left over lumber and we planted our small garden. Allison can't wait to taste the fruit of her labor and has even asked if she could get an extra allowance for watering the plants. Gardening with a five year old is so much more fun than doing it alone.

Fifty Nifty Books for 2011

I am an avid reader, like many people I know. I usually have two or three books that I am in the midst of reading on my nightstand. Since having a child, most of my books seem to be of the nonfiction variety. I read a lot of parenting books of different varieties or "how to..." books or an occasional memoir (usually my favorite). I've never sat down and counted the number of books I've read in a year or the number of pages. Recently, while searching for a great book to read, I've come across a few blogs that issue a challenge to themselves and their readers. The challenge being to read fifty books in one year. I love a challenge. So I decided 2011 was my year! I am counting everything from those I read for book club to guilty pleasure reads. If anyone has a great read, I'd love your suggestions!

2010 was a wonderful year for our family. We welcomed a new niece and nephew making nine nieces and nephews for Greg and I. We were blessed to celebrate birthdays and holidays close to our family. While we have moved a little ways down the road, we are still not too far from family. We have watched as our little girl grew one year older. Here are a few recent pictures with hopefully more to come...