Homeschool Activities

 The past few months between science and nature study, we've been doing some fun experiments and observations.

In science, the big girls dissected a flower, but we enjoyed the others from the bouquet in our vase.

My Grandma sent us a packet of souvenirs from Ireland that we enjoyed with our lessons on St. Patrick's Day.

We have had an uptick in doctor's visits since March, it seems.  Since I knew we would be rushed one of our days, I took some pictures of tree stumps while I was walking around a park during William's karate.  Their favorite was the heart shaped one, though we had to use a rounder one to follow the guide.  

Another project was to grow some mushrooms.  They required daily watering and then they just exploded in size! We put the decaying project near and old stump in our backyard, maybe they'll be able to expand into a new home. = )

For yet another project, we had to collect pond water.  The day we went there was a layer of ice on top of the pond that we had to break through just to get the water from below.  Once it melted, we were able to start our experiment.

From the literature that we read, we expected the bone meal to explode, and the rest to be hampered, but we think Alice added a little too much, so it didn't grow and it started to smell like rotten fish. = (  

The vinegar, soap and detergent all killed off anything that might have grown, so our control actually did the best.

We've since moved the bone meal outside, and are watching as small organisms are appearing in our control.  Also, we got to use some of the control water for another experiment during which we put a drop and viewed it through a microscope. = )

Yet another experiment was to grow bacteria.  We were unable to maintain as warm enough environment as the directions indicated, but we still had some gross growth!  Emily's purple popper had the fastest growth, so you'd better believe we sprayed that thing down with lysol as soon as we saw the strongest of the bacteria appear.

8ish days in:

2ish weeks in:

We threw them all away after we took this picture, because it was just too gross.

With only 7 weeks left in our school year, we still have a few more projects to which we are looking foward.

And I want to record that we've decided that the three little ones will return to public school in the fall.  It will be William's final year at the elementary school, and we don't want him to be thrown into middle school before reestablishing some of his friendships.  The big girls will continue to be homeschooled for the time being.

later days

Snow, School, Lunar New Year, Valentine's Day and Other Things

 Emily helping Grace decide to fold or call during a game of 5 card draw.

We went 15 days without temperatures above freezing.  The snow actually looked fake, the way it flocked the branches!

Valentine's day treats for my valentines. = )

Grace twinning with Molly.

This book, Children of the New Forest, is what the big girls are currently reading for their literature.  It is quite a jump from their previous text, and Emily was overwhelmed.  I found the book in audio form (for free) and it has been a great thing for Emily. Alice prefers to just read it, and seems to be doing just fine.

The icicles were getting pretty big around here!

The kids painted suncatchers one afternoon.  This is the one that Alice painted, that I will be keeping.  My snow guage!

We got a lot of snow to be shoveled, then we got some more, and then some more. 

The same storm that crippled Texas did not pass us by, and buried us in a good 8-10 inches of snow!

I only had the energy to clear the sidewalk, I broke down and hired a service to clear the drives (for the first time since we've lived here.)  It was a lot of snow, all at once.

Emily, Grace and Juliet prepared a "romantic" Valentine's dinner for us.  We had salad, lasagna and chocolate cake!  It was a very nice meal, and the cutest wait staff ever!

To celebrate the Lunar New Year, we made "fancy" lollipop stick decorations, made a year of the Ox banner, and had a freezer dinner meal of sweet and sour chicken.  It was low key, and enjoyable and perfect!

We also picked up my car last Friday, after almost 6 months of waiting for the ABS light to be tended.  Our mechanic ended up buying a whole new software/hardware system just for my car. = /  But I'm so happy to have it back with no warning lights on the dash!!!

For science we mixed water, oil and syrup.  The oil separated very well, the syrup was not as quick to separate from the water. Possibly because, much to my chagrin, the syrup we used was maple.  I didn't know how much we would need or I would have purchased some cheap stuff! = (

Emily's friend brought her by a bag of goodies, and it was well received by this crew!

The weekend before Valentine's my mom offered us a date, so we went through the Biggby drive through, which has discontinued both of our holiday favorites already, and then to Walgreens for some drugstore chocolates.  I like Valentine's day almost 14 years in, spending time with my favorite person eating chocolate and drinking decaf* coffee.  

later days

*how are we going to sleep if we get the caffeinated type?

Goodbye November

267th Day of Quarantine.

36F was the high.

Still reading Midnight Sun.

Quesadillas for dinner.

The kids put out lists of "forgotten items" (usually we forgo the letter to santa in a mailbox, and simply send it during nikolausstiefel, but this year, they had a candy cane tree, so we went to grab one and send off the letter.) in their shoes. 

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266th Day of Quarantine.

42F was the high.

I embroidered Janie's name on a stocking for Deb, and while we were out, we delivered gifts to Abby and her sisters, Nick, Willow and Zoey!

I started Midnight Sun today, and am totally loving it.  I know that Twilight is known for being corny and ridiculous and I really don't care.  In fact, I spent my time following along in both books so that I could know what Bella was thinking (since Edward can't read her mind.) = 0

We had enchiladas for dinner.

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265th Day of Quarantine.

The high today was a partly sunny 44F.

In my dream last night, we were raising an alligator (to eat) in a barn with 6 doors that I couldn't find the key to lock.  The alligator needed to be kept under the drizzling shower head, and I was annoyed that the kids kept letting it out. = )

We went to our nature spot to sketch a winter solstice observation (we are still running a bit early in the course.)  The big girls were tired and gave me a bit of pushback. The littler ones enjoyed getting out of the house, and seeing some of the fun things in nature this time of year.

We had other errands to run too.  We went by the pharmacy in a failed attempt to pick up William's prescription toothpaste, then to the candy cane tree & Santa letter drop off!

Then we went to pick up some of my mops supplies for tonight, drop off a white elephant gift for our next meeting, and to pick up Avia.  Since Billy was back a day early, we were able to return Sarah's truck that she kindly lent us to sit in the airport parking lot. (So that I wouldn't be without access to a car that fits everyone, since my car is still at the mechanic, but that's another story.)

For dinner we had spaghetti.  It was simple, quick and well received.

Grace received a big package of goodies from her friend Zoey and was very excited.  Poor Juliet was sad, understandably so.  Sometimes it's tough to be a twin.

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264th Day of Quarantine.

47F was the expected high today.

The kids set up a pleasant tea time today.  My plate display is displaced because of the Christmas decorations, so we 'made due' with just a fancy plate. = )

Beef and broccoli for dinner, since it's not a dish that Billy likes and he wasn't due home until after dinner time.

Billy came home a day early, and I am so happy to have him here!  I do not sleep well when he's gone.

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263

35F was the high today.

Avia and Seven came by.

In science, the big girls were working with the Kinex set that I bought just for the purpose, and so I pulled out the small garage sale set that I picked up last spring for the other 3. Fun was had by all. = )

I packed up my Secret Santa gift: cupcake topper numbers!

Lasagna on the menu for dinner.

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262nd day of Quarantine. Kind of, Billy left today, on a small plane bound for Georgia.  The house feels too big and kind of empty without him here, despite the number of children I have running around. ; )

33F is the meager high we saw today.

We got our first snow of the year, which made for a fun recess time for the kids. = )

It wasn't a big snow, but they managed a Texas sized snow man. = )

For dinner I made a crockpot roast & roast sandwiches, since it is not one of Billy's favorites.  Many of us enjoyed the roast, but WGJ all ate their slab of roast on buttered bread instead.

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261st day of Quarantine.

41F.

Online church this morning, followed by grocery pick up.

Shots since Billy was heading to Georgia tomorrow. = (

Tree lighting, virtual

Tikka masala for dinner, before Billy leaves. = (

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later days

The First week of October

211th Day of Quarantine

68F

Started new Jim Carrey Biography.

Billy sanded, then Grace and I painted the back porch.  It was the final item on my summer home improvement list and I'm so happy that we had such a nice weekend to finish it off!

We also put away summer things, and got out winter things.  I need to winterize my car, but am still currently waiting to get it back from the mechanic.

leftovers or sandwiches

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210th Day of Quarantine.

79F

We had pizza for dinner.

On the way to picking up pizza, I happened upon an estate sale.  I didn't get much, since they were closing, but they had soooooo many books (and so much other stuff) that I hope to return.

Finished book.  It was a good ending, but not a happy ending.

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209th Day of Quarantine.  I do feel obliged to include today that much of society has reopened, and we are independently deciding to isolate.  There is no fear of the illness in particular, more fear of misinformation about the coronavirus, therefore, we cannot make a sound decision, and the best of all options is to stay put.

Today was cooler, but still coming in at 67F.  I am totally okay with this as an October temperature.

Grace's handwriting was just beautiful, I had to share!

Alice is quickly shifting from child to teenager, and I'm having so much fun with it. Whenever I say something it's either "soooo sarcastic" or annoying. She has no idea how flattering it is to me that she thinks I'm sarcastic!  She wouldn't say it any more if she knew, I'm sure.

My favorite is her current reaction to the way I say her name when I pull out her stick (for her turn to answer during lessons.) Apparently I was "too excited." So, after having a little fun with that, I tried to say her name as mundanely as possible. She didn't like that either. Apparently "too excited" is better than "bored."

For nature study, we did some pumpkin activities.  We guessed how much the pumpkin weighed (Juliet won), and voted whether or not it would float.  Then, we cut it open to see the seeds, and made some pumpkin seeds and I made a pumpkin pie. = )

For dinner I made some PF Changs Ramen mixed with some of the cheap stuff.  I thought it was pretty good, Billy really enjoyed it.

Tonight was our second mops meeting of the year.  I've switched over to the virtual group, and really enjoy it.

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208th Day of Quarantine.

Somehow, we were gifted a second comfortable 69F day, in October!

For dinner we had sausage and beans.  Well, everyone but Billy who opted for candy instead.

Also, I'm reading the new Suzanne Collins book, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, and it is really good.  = )

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207th Day of Quarantine.

Today was a respectable 67F, and probably the last comfortable day of 2020.

In German we are learning some morning routine phrases, so I pulled up a German teeth brushing song that we enjoyed.  I managed to jot down the first chunk of it, before I was completely stumped and had to consult a real German.  Thankfully, she helped me get most of it squared away, and I wrote up a translation for us to use tomorrow during our German lesson. = )

For dinner we had tikka masala.

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206th Day of Quarantine.

The expected high today is 58F.

We started our 8th week of homeschool, and homeschool is a lot like having toddlers, the days are long, but the weeks are flying!

We played a board game that I bought for my potential German classroom 15 years ago (and never used.) But today, I got to play it for the first time with my big girls!!!  Alice won, and they enjoyed the break from our usual German drills. = )

During science they created a webbed glove, based on one of DaVinci's models.

For dinner we are having a crockpot potato & beef in a wine sauce.  The house smells really good!

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205th Day of Quarantine.

53F Was the high.

After online church, picked up groceries, in Billy's car, since mine is still in the shop.

For dinner we had the chicken Satay.  It wasn't as good at the restaurant's recipe, but not bad either.

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later days