Memorable Moments This Week

Fall is in the air and I'm loving it! I can't tell you how many times I've stopped in my tracks to admire the gorgeous colors this year. Unfortunately, I don't ever seem to have my camera with me, so I can't share these moments with you, but trust me...the artistic beauty of nature is breath taking.

This week we kicked off our week with a Fall Harvest Festival at Harp's Crossing Baptist Church at Hollinsville. They had games for the kids, candy prizes, jumping slides, and my favorite, a petting zoo. Truthfully, even though I thought all the little animals were so cute and cuddly, I actually felt kind of sorry for all the animals, but they seemed to be used to being surrounded by eager children and to all the passing around that was going on.

Monday we made solar ovens out of pizza boxes and aluminum foil. They would have worked great, but the sun decided to go behind the clouds and just sort of play peek-a-boo all morning. I can't wait to try this again, maybe on our next camping trip.

The kids were crazy excited at co-op class today when they were told we were going outside to learn about water filtration and how water filters down through the soil and how pollutants can reach down into wells. Well, they actually got really excited as soon as they saw ice cream! Once again, I'm impressed with the creativity of some people in coming up with hands-on and tasty lessons that really work in demonstrating a scientific concept. I wish I could tell you exactly where this lesson came from, but I just don't know the original source. 

It started with different layers of soil (chocolate chips, ice cream, and green sprinkles) followed by clear water (Sprite) that gently soaked down into the ground. Then, a polluted water (Sprite with a lot of green food coloring) was poured on top of the mix. When a drill bore a hole down into the ground (a straw struck straight down in the middle of the cup), a pump extracted clear water from the well (slow and steady sucking through a straw brought up the clear Sprite), but when the clear water is removed from the well, the polluted water takes the place of the clean water and is eventually pumped up out of the well (the dark green Sprite traveled up the straw after the clear Sprite had been sucked up.)

After all that sugar, the first thing the boys wanted to do was play Ninja. I don't really understand this game, but it is a lot of fun to watch the poses that they come up with as they take turns going around the circle.

Wednesday after we finished all the basics - Bible, Math, Writing, Spelling, and Grammar - I told Zac we'd make a quick snack. I really am going to have to start planning better!

It started off simple enough. I wanted to make a quick healthy snack that I'd seen on-line and pinned to my Pinterest board.  It was called Baked Apple Chips and looked delicious. So we started by using my Apple Peeler-Corer-Slicer (I've been using this so much this Fall that I've just decided to leave it out on the counter next to my sink!) Zac left the peel on them and just cored and sliced them. Then he spread them out on a pan and sprinkled them with cinnamon and a pinch of sugar. Pretty quick and simple so far, right? Well, this is about the time I decided to check the recipe that I'd seen on-line. Ha! Quick my foot! It said to bake at 275 degrees for TWO hours! There was no way either of us could wait that long - they were already starting to smell SOOO good.

So we yanked them out of the oven after about ten minutes and slathered a little peanut butter on them and.......they were delicious.........just like hot apple pie! YUM!!

Thursday afternoon we had our 2nd and last play practice as a group. The kids were nuts - no seriously, they were crazy little people that I could barely recognize. I was worried. Not so much because the play mattered that much to me, but because we were all inviting the Dads and Grandparents and other family members. I was already preparing my response to the questions that might come that would sound something like this..."Are you sure homeschooling is the best choice for you?" I wasn't the only one. Other moms had voiced these same fears to me.

Friday was an all day cooking day. I actually had a great time in the kitchen working with my mom and getting help from Zachary occasionally. We were having a potluck Thanksgiving dinner before the children performed their play, and I wanted to make sure there would be enough food for everyone. 

One thing we made that I hate that I didn't get any in-progress pictures of, was these little Teepee Cupcakes. Again, I had seen them on-line and saved them to my Pinterest board and just couldn't wait to have an excuse to make them with Zachary. I'm glad Mom was there to help out, because they were a little more tedious than I had expected. I'm glad Dad was here too, because he was the one that thought to take a picture. Here is the final product, and I think they turned out super cute.

When we weren't in the kitchen cooking and cleaning, we were working on a couple of crafts. Zachary has started a little Indian village that is quite impressive to me because he's doing it all on his own without any help from me. He said he was inspired by Cade, one of his good friends. I think that's pretty cool!

I, on the other hand, need lots of help with crafty things. We needed a simple little Mayflower for the kids to carry in their play and I volunteered to make one. Sounds pretty brave of me, but what I knew was that my mom was going to be at the house with me and that she can make anything! Sure enough, she didn't let me down. How does she do it?

Zachary was the Narrator

The Co-op Thanksgiving Dinner and Play went over so much better than I had expected! It was really a very lovely evening. All the families were there and everyone brought a lot of delicious food. More than enough to go around. We all chipped in to help decorate the room and the tables, so it turned out very lovely. But, most importantly, I truly enjoyed just being with everyone. It was a needed reminder of all the many great reasons I have for homeschooling and also a wonderful reminder of how blessed I am to be surrounded by the most amazing women and their families. What an super group we have - such a huge blessing in our lives!! 

The kids were amazing in their play too. They remembered their lines, spoke loudly and clearly, and moved about the stage just like we had asked them to. They did so well and the whole thing was just adorable. I should have never doubted them!

The Cast of The First Thanksgiving

So what will we do for Spring?!!

~Vicki~