Probably Bad Ideas

Klenda: Next time we get a pet, can we name it Peeve?
Me: Peeve?
Klenda: You know, so I can say, "This is my pet, Peeve."

Also Klenda: I want to get a parrot.
Me: Really?  You know they live 70 years, right?
Klenda: I want to teach it to say, "Help me!  I've been turned into a parrot!"
Me:....
Leena: Oooooh!  And we could teach it to say, every time some one left the room, "You are DIS-missed!"
Me:...
Leena: And when they came into the room, it could say, "Hiya, scrubs!"
Me:...
Leena: And it could say, "I DEMAND food!"
Me:... I could send it to my sister!

Poem of the Week: The Tuft of Flowers

The Tuft of Flowers

By Robert Frost

I went to turn the grass once after one

Who mowed it in the dew before the sun.

The dew was gone that made his blade so keen

Before I came to view the levelled scene.

I looked for him behind an isle of trees;

I listened for his whetstone on the breeze.

But he had gone his way, the grass all mown,

And I must be, as he had been,—alone,

As all must be,' I said within my heart,

Whether they work together or apart.'

But as I said it, swift there passed me by

On noiseless wing a 'wildered butterfly,

Seeking with memories grown dim o'er night

Some resting flower of yesterday's delight.

And once I marked his flight go round and round,

As where some flower lay withering on the ground.

And then he flew as far as eye could see,

And then on tremulous wing came back to me.

I thought of questions that have no reply,

And would have turned to toss the grass to dry;

But he turned first, and led my eye to look

At a tall tuft of flowers beside a brook,

A leaping tongue of bloom the scythe had spared

Beside a reedy brook the scythe had bared.

I left my place to know them by their name,

Finding them butterfly weed when I came.

The mower in the dew had loved them thus,

By leaving them to flourish, not for us,

Nor yet to draw one thought of ours to him.

But from sheer morning gladness at the brim.

The butterfly and I had lit upon,

Nevertheless, a message from the dawn,

That made me hear the wakening birds around,

And hear his long scythe whispering to the ground,

And feel a spirit kindred to my own;

So that henceforth I worked no more alone;

But glad with him, I worked as with his aid,

And weary, sought at noon with him the shade;

And dreaming, as it were, held brotherly speech

With one whose thought I had not hoped to reach.

Men work together,' I told him from the heart,

Whether they work together or apart.'

HT: Poetry Foundation

Awesome History Middle Ages: Mongols- Magellan

 Our seventh session covered the Mongols, Marco Polo, and Joan of Arc (chapters 58-60).

I had planned to play Marco Polo (like Blind Man's Buff), but it was a beautiful day, so we went on an expedition like Marco Polo.

Mostly we walked down through the woods and lake, giving  Marco Polo like explanations for the things we encountered.

These were misunderstandings: "Look!  Their roads are carved from a single piece of stone, many miles long!", exaggerations: "The trees are hundreds of feet tall!", and actual facts, "They have chariots that move without horses!"

            Back home, our art activity was the making of quadrants.

We got our quadrant patterns (and excellent directions for making and using them) here. 

Our snack was Mongolian pork with rice.

Longtime readers know that I am fascinated by all things Mongolian, and the Mongolians did grow grain, even while they were  nomads.  Before leaving their winter quarters, they would throw the seed on the ground and trample it in with their horses.  By the time they returned in the fall, the grain was ready.

Our 8th session was Print, Powder, and the Age of Exploration (chapters 61-63). This was yesterday, so I am finally caught up!

Our active activity involved gunpowder!  Most fireworks are illegal in my state, but they do allow tiny firecracker type things, so we had fun with those (outside!).

Our art activity was printing.



Primarily we were doing potato printing.  If you haven't done it, you cut a potato in half, carve it as a stamp, dip it into paint, and press it onto paper.

I also had a bunch of rubber stamps (especially letter stamps) and ink pads that I put out.

This is one of those simple projects that makes me glad we are doing the class: everyone is wildly successful at their own level of skill, and everything is amazing at the end!





Our snack was Mexican snacks (snacks from the New World!) provided by our very own Miss Shelli (who is half Mexican).  Yum!

She had bought a lot of different things like guava paste, sesame cakes, and pork rinds (common in Mexico and brought over by the first Europeans!).  She said fresh fruit would be a great choice.  It's served sliced, spritzed with lime juice, then sprinkled with  chili sugar (like cinnamon sugar with chili instead of cinnamon).

Seven Quick Takes: Implausible Explanations for Random Photos

1. The reason so many of my children have shown up with beards made of bubbles is that they all have a deep devotion to St. Nicholas of Myra.

Or maybe it's St. Anthony of Egypt.

I'm pretty sure it's one of those.







2. The reason my teenagers try to look like superheroes every time I try to take their picture is that they actually are superheroes.

They just don't want me to know because they don't want their dear mother to worry too much.



3. They need to be superheroes to save their younger siblings who otherwise must cower together in rocky holes to avoid the dreaded Papparazi Mother who wants "Just One Nice Picture of Everyone Smiling" for the blog.

We know how that always turns out!

But with supersiblings, they can relax...


4. Great news!

We finally found a way to clean up all the Legos.



5. In other news, we  found a picture of Crazy Dave when he was little.

6. Which reminds me: the real reason I  love to  garden is that I play (too much) Plants vs. Zombies.

I know it's just a game, but if the zombies ever do show up, my house is safe!






7. Lastly, here's an actual explanation: This is me, geeking out over the Emperor's grandfather's steampunk microscope!

No kidding, it's a Bausch and Lomb microscope from 1902!

I love it!  It's gorgeous!

However, I was happy to pass it on to my niece because it isn't nearly as powerful a microscope as any of my four.


Have a great weekend!  More fun with Kelly!

Awesome History Middle Ages: West Africa- Magna Carta

 Our 6th episode featured chapters 55-57: West Africa, Cathedrals, and the Magna Carta

This time we had two active activities: a  Mansa Musa themed obstacle course outside, and a mancala game going on inside.

Our art project was making sealing wax and seals (like the seals on the Magna Carta).

We made the seals out of pipe cleaners covered in foil, and they worked pretty well.

I used candle wax as the sealing wax, and that turned out to be a bit too rigid -it tended to pop off the "letter."

I think adding some paraffin or oil would keep it more flexible next time.

Our snack was rolled sugar cookies which the kids cut into cathedral shapes (with a knife).

They then cut windows and filled the space with crushed hard candy.

The way to do this is to roll it on parchment so that you don't have to move it after it's been cut!

 You just slide the parchment onto a baking sheet.

Yummy and beautiful!

Wordless Wednesdays: the C & O Canal (Guest Blog by Leena)

3rd Grade Religious Ed: The Good Shepherd

This past weekend was Good Shepherd Sunday, and the theme was "God Blesses Contrite Hearts." Perfect!

We started out acting out the parable of the Good Shepherd with all the kids looking for our hidden sheep.

We talked about how Jesus himself was the Good Shepherd, looking for people who needed forgiveness.

If you read the Gospels, Jesus forgives a lot of people! 

We talked about three examples: Peter, the woman at Simon's house (washed Jesus' feet with her tears), and Zaccheus.  What did they all have in common?  Contrition- being sorry for what they had done wrong!

What about us? Do we do things that are wrong? Those are sins, but what is a sin? For something to be a sin, it has to have three things:

1. It has to be wrong (if it wasn't wrong, nothing bad happened)
2. You have to know it's wrong (if you didn't know, then it's a mistake)
3. You have to do it on purpose (otherwise it's an accident)

And, of course, if you want to do something wrong, but you don't do it, that's just a temptation!

We went through a lot of examples with the kids telling me if the scenarios were sins, accidents, mistakes, or temptations.

We played this board game!

Then we worked on how to do an examination of conscience.  Did you do anything wrong? Did you not do something you should have? How have you loved God and others?

 
I encouraged the kids to make a nightly Examen  where they look at what they did wrong, and ask forgiveness, but also look at good things they did (what did you do that made God smile?), and bring that as a gift to the Lord.

We did a little art project, a coloring page of the Good shepherd where we clued bits of cotton to the lamb.

And we finished up with a "Find the Lost Sheep" card game where they were looking for the card with the sheep.

Awesome History Middle Ages: Vikings-Crusades

 The 4th session was chapters 49-51; Vikings, Castles, and Knights.

We started with the art project- body traces so that the kids could design their own armor!

Very fun!  I have them hanging on the stairs since some of my kids now wear very large life sized armor!

The active activity was castle building.  I gave them a choice of building materials, but in the end everyone wanted to build with the large cardboard bricks (presumably because you could build a castle you could step into).

And, of course, Legos.




The snack was mincemeat pie (and grape juice "wine"). 

This was the first time I had made mincemeat pie with actual  meat, but it was really tasty! I used ground beef, apples, whole ground oranges, and whatever dried fruit I had on hand (cherries, apricots, and raisins).


The 5th session was chapters 52-54: Normans- Crusades.

Our active activity was the game Going to Jerusalem (which turns out to be the original name for Musical Chairs!)

Our art activity was designing coats of arms.


Our snack was apples, cheese, and bread.

And I'm almost caught up!

Poem of the Week: Spring

Spring

  By Gerard Manley Hopkins

Nothing is so beautiful as Spring –         

   When weeds, in wheels, shoot long and lovely and lush;         

   Thrush’s eggs look little low heavens, and thrush         

Through the echoing timber does so rinse and wring         

The ear, it strikes like lightnings to hear him sing;

   The glassy peartree leaves and blooms, they brush         

   The descending blue; that blue is all in a rush         

With richness; the racing lambs too have fair their fling.         

What is all this juice and all this joy?         

   A strain of the earth’s sweet being in the beginning

In Eden garden. – Have, get, before it cloy,         

   Before it cloud, Christ, lord, and sour with sinning,         

Innocent mind and Mayday in girl and boy,         

   Most, O maid’s child, thy choice and worthy the winning. 

HT: Poetry Foundation