Fall Festivities

Pumpkin Farm Fun

Family time with Grandma Gail and Grandaddy, Gessie, and Ash's family.

Jacob was making us laugh because he was walking around with a corn cob between his legs (like for a while), so that he could use both hands to peel a corn cob and then have one ready to peel after. 

These ghosts are my new favorite crafty craft. They are super easy, cost like $4 and they are boo-tiful!

These are some shots of them hanging outside. The wind makes them fly around in a ghosty way.

See the floaty-ness.

        

 

I am missing Jacob's mask picture for some reason? It was fascinating for Tim and I to see our kids in a family dance setting. I didn't get pictures at the actual masquerade because it was too dark for my phone camera. But here are some highlights. Scarlet could not have been more delighted- she danced the night away. Jane learned some sweet dance moves from Shaina (who seriously got the party rock'in). I am still picturing her dancing on a chair with a black wig on... love her! 

Charlie was shy like me but he really wanted to dance. He needed his pal Brady I think.  And Jacob was happy as a clam just dancing by himself :0)

A Living Education

I just started this book today. So far its lovely.

"To bring the human race, family by family, child by child, out of the savage and inhuman desolation where He is not, into light and warmth and comfort of the presence of God, is no doubt, the chief thing we have to do in the world. And this individual work with each child, being the most momentous work in the world, is put into the hands of the wisest, most loving, disciplined and divinely instructed of human beings. Be ye perfect as your Father is perfect, is the perfection of parenthood, perhaps to be attained in its fullness only through parenthood... The highest duty imposed upon him, it is also the most delicate; and he will have infinite humility, gentleness, love and sound judgement, if he would present his child to God and the thought of God to the soul of his child."

~Charlotte Mason (1842-1923)

Pioneer in the field of education and educational reform.

Lapbook Factory

 Ancient Egypt history lesson.

The kids wrote hieroglyph and cuneiform words in plasticine.

 Saturday morning Spanish Class in action.

My friend Amber told me about Lapbooks. My kids really like them. We work on them at the end of our school day if we have time left over.

 Charlie chose to do his first Lapbook on Peregrine Falcons.

On the inside he traced a map of where Peregrines live in the world. He filled an envelope with cards explaining what Peregrines look like, he wrote about Peregrine eggs and chicks, what they eat, etc. My favorite part is his drawing on the back of his folder. He drew the inside of Sam Gribley's Hemlock tree  and included his pet Falcon "Frightful"on the bed post. 

 Jacob wanted to study whales. He was very diligent about his work and was even the first one to finish his Lapbook. He poured over his books and re-read them over and over.

 Jane chose to study Horses and Ponies.

Jane worked hard on this collage on the back.

Pumpkins

We are both holding a pumpkin...

Turkey Time

 I'm more of the "do one thing a year that scares you" type... but I did cook a turkey this month and it was scary. I feel like I have to admit that I bought a turkey breast roast which was all white meat, no bones and no guts or anything weird. Plus, it cooked in less than 2 hours. By the way, Pura Vida Farm will have good for you turkeys ready for Christmas (if you are local).

The kids were so into the candlelight idea.

Homemade ice cream. No sugar. So good. Homemade Raw apple crisp. SO GOOD. No sugar, or butter. Email me for the recipe. We loved it.

I will always do this at Thanksgiving time from now on. Its a "Thankful Tree".

Charlie and Jane gathered small sticks and branches from outside and we put them in a glass jar to make our tree. Then they cut out little paper leaves and strung them with embroidery thread. Then we set the tree out with the little leaves next to it so that we could write something we are thankful for throughout the day and it turns out we'll be doing it all month because its so much fun. Its so cute to see the kids writing and funny spelling on the little leaves. It makes my heart happy every time I pass by it.

I posted so many pictures of this little tree because I just like it so much!

Month Two.

The best gift I ever bought Jacob is this insect book. He got it for Christmas last year and he still carries it around the house most days. Only now he is so adept with it. He uses the index and knows all the categories by heart. I love when he asks me to look through it with him. It takes a long time so he dog ears the page we finish on so we know for next time. While we are going through it, he'll often show me where he and his friend Summer left off.

We did some Scientific Method lessons and then chose a mold experiment to apply what we learned. It was honestly too gross for me to stand. Mold grows way too fast and we had each food item in a sealed yogurt container but when the lids came off, it REEKED. 

This is a glimpse of "Grammy Class" which happens to go down on Wednesday mornings. My mom Skypes with Charlie, Jane and Jacob, while Scarlet and I have some alone time which has been really nice. She teaches the kids about her travels, which ends up including geography, science, current events etc. The last couple lessons have been from her recent trip to California- so she covered bottle-nosed dolphins, and the brown pelican so far, and earthquakes for this week. She even gives them homework! Grammy Class is AWESOME.

Oh Christmas Tree

If you heard that I've finished my Christmas shopping and you are wondering if its true... its true. I was actually done on Oct. 10th. I know, super annoying, but at least its not wrapped yet. And no, I do not put up decorations before December and neither should you.

Bribery

The kids are so motivated by getting to pick a treasure from the prize basket. I just don't get what all the excitement is over but it works. They choose a prize after they work really hard on something, finish a chapter book, after spelling tests or math tests, that sort of thing. The latest reward was for Charlie. I told him he'd get a prize for learning the sign language alphabet. What I didn't realize was that it would barely take him the afternoon to do it and in the meantime we all learned it from him showing us over and over. Brilliant. I've noticed that happens a lot when everyone is learning together. We all learn each others poems or songs or whatever it is someone else is memorizing. Bonus.

Prize basket: bouncy balls, jello, stickers, soap for carving, balloons, embroidery thread...

Brilliant

When our friend Shaina gets out the face paint she's not messing around. Every kids gets a masterpiece on their entire face and they LOVE it. Shaina ends up sitting for hours at a time so that all the kids get one. She said that Charlie was making squeaky bat noises while she was finishing his. So funny. She is the coolest!

Farewell Waterton

Look at these kids. They love wildlife. I even caught Scarlet with her face in binoculars... looking at the roof of the car? They obviously get it from their dad. I just sit in the front seat with my face in a book- they can scarcely get me to look up to see any of it. I figure I'll get my reading done while everyone is occupied for once.