Exercise

This morning I voted and took Sweet Pea went along with me.  We drive 9 miles to the county courthouse.  All five ladies, the voting officials, recognized me.  They gave me the ballot and asked if I’d like to fill out my ballot electronically.  Sweet Pea gave a resounding, “YES!”  We sat down, and I voted for 6 positions.  Other voters came and filled out their ballots before we finished, but it was fun for Sweet Pea to see the voting action.

After we left the building, I shared with Sweet Pea the privilege of voting.  Since we’d recently studied the American Revolution, the timing of the right to vote couldn’t have been better.

Have you exercised in your state?

Homeschool Olympics 2012

We held our 1st Homeschool Olympics today.  There were 21 kids who participated, ranging in age from 1-14.  We held an opening ceremony, complete with Torch Run, Mascot Parade, Athletes’ Oath, and Judges’ Oath.  After that, it was time for some friendly competition.

The kids did an egg/spoon race. We had to make it more difficult for the older kids.

They participated in a bean bag throw, both for distance and accuracy.

A javelin throw was conducted for the older groups of kids.

The kids tried their hands, I mean feet, at the long jump.  We really needed a sand pit for this one.

Even the mascots got into the action.  There was a race designed just for them.

An obstacle course was done as well.  The kids had to balance, toss, and run their way to the finish line.

After lunch and some time on the playground, the kids were divided into three teams.  The ages were all mixed together.  A variety of relays ensued.And there must be a race that involves water.

A medals ceremony was held late in the afternoon.

The day ended with a tug-of-war. It wasn’t enough for the kids to pull against each other. No, the dads got in on the action, too.

All in all, a great day for the kids.  And me, too.  I enjoyed organizing the event (along with my cohort Kathy).  There’s so much more to show you in the slideshow.  Note:  1) There are lots of pictures.  I love the smiles and the joy on the kids’ faces.  2)  I got some good action shots of the parents.  Some of them were part of the pit crew.  They were all part of the demonstration of the hula hoop race.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

And, finally, here we are at the end of the day.

Note to Self

When I bake pies, I like to make several at a time.  My oven is hot, so I might as well bake some more.  I like to have pie when we’re having company; that’s one less thing that I have to prepare.  If I make a meal for a new mama or a family who’s suffered a death in the family, then I can put a pie in the mix as well.  After I bake the pies, I store them in the freezer.  I always label the pie so that I know what flavor I’ve baked.

Here’s what greeted me when I pulled out the most recent pie:There’s a reason I’m not showing you the actual pie.  Trust me, it’s under there.

Tutu Cute

Joanna and I made tutus for my nieces for Easter.  They are sooooo easy.

Measure the child’s waist and subtract 2 inches.  This is the amount of elastic you’ll need.  After you sew the elastic together, you’re ready to attach the strips of tulle.  The strips should be about 5-6″ wide.  A toddler only needs the tulle strips to be about 14″ long.  This length is folded in half when you tie it to the elastic.  You’ll need about 6 yards of tulle for a toddler tutu.  A preschooler needs the tulle to be about 18″ long.  Again, this length will be halved when you tie it to make the tutu.  You’ll need about 8 yards of tulle for a preschooler’s tutu.

Here’s the finished product.

Chickadee’s waist is 21.5 inches.Sugar Plum’s waist is 19 inches.
And one more picture – because I like it.Now, don’t you want to make a tutu, too?

A Polka, of course

My 4-year-old niece Chickadee is a delight.  We spent time with her over Easter break.  On Monday morning, I decided to play some music at the piano. When I started playing “The Beer Barrel Polka,” Jerome and Sweet Pea started to dance.  Chickadee climbed onto the bench and sat beside me.  After a few moments, she looked up at me and asked, “What is that?”  Joyfully I replied, “It’s a polka!”  Silence.

Then I felt little pricks of Chickadee’s pointer finger in my arm.

Yup, it was a “polk-uh.”

And I’m not going to tell her what a polka really is either.

Busy Hands

Sweet Pea has been busy the past several days, doing a variety of activities.  I won’t post pictures of all it, but here are some things I enjoyed seeing.

I taught her to peel potatoes.  (Mark my words: Someday I’ll be sitting on the sofa, eating bonbons.)  She was not exactly thrilled, but by the time she finished the first potato, she was pretty proud of herself.

Her BFF spent last Saturday at our house, and they crafted.  Here’s the egg Sweet Pea did.

And, finally, Jerome was gone the past couple of days.  Sweet Pea got out the paper and the paints and made this sign all by herself.  My baby’s growing up!

Roll the Credits!

As our adoption draws closer to fruition, we are becoming more serious about the need to choose a name for our little girl.  It’s hard to find a name upon which we can all agree.  Also, my husband and I were teachers.  There are some specific children associated with certain names, and we’d never give that name to our baby.

 

We’ve been online and looked at the list of 1000 top girl names.  We’ve scanned baby name books.  We’ve had some fun dinner conversations, calling out names and vetoing others.  So what to do?

Watch a movie.  That’s right; we’ve resorted to watching the end credits.  There are lots of names listed there.

Please don’t text-bomb me with name suggestions.

Still Tapin’

The local library hosted another Duct Tape Day and asked Sweet Pea and me to help lead it.  There were 12 youngsters who signed up to participate.  Here are the finished products.

This gal is a 6th grader and has played with duct tape at our house.  She even wore a hair bow made of duct tape today.Two boys decided to give it a go.  Their tape was camouflage and Super Mario Brothers.These gals had a fun time mixing and matching their colors.This trio of girls was all about bright, neon colors.
Twelve is definitely the limit for a group, especially if some of the participants are ages 8 or younger.  I consumed a nice, cold beverage after the 2-hour taping session.  I must admit, though, it is fun to see the kids be creative.

April Showers

Isn’t that glorious?  We’re getting rain today.  Enough rain to make puddles!  We’ve had only 5 inches of snow since last October, so this is a huge blessing!

The rain is even flowing out of the gutters.  That’s fantastic news!  Thank you, God!

Eatin’ Fresh

Asparagus, that is.

We’re keeping track of our neighbor’s home while they winter in Las Vegas.  Their asparagus patch is flourishing with the early spring temperatures, so we have reaped the harvest.