How to Play X-treme Cards

I know that I have mentioned that one of the great things about homeschooling is our ability to be very involved in other programs like Scouts. I thought you would enjoy this picture of DS during his summer canoeing trip down the Delaware Gap. During this trip, he got to canoe with a bald eagle, earned the Indian Lore and Canoeing Merit Badges, and apparently learned some good card games.

Anyone interested in exploring a program like this should check out The Pack Shack. You don't have to be in Scouts to enjoy what these hard working people have to offer.

Fair - Unexpected Lessons

Well our fair is over. Now all that is left is clean up. The lessons from the fair were a little different than expected. The kids learned about erosion, drainage, gravity. In Connecticut, apparently September had 9 inches of precipitation in September with 5 to 6” of that coming this past weekend. The Discovery Tent was redesigned with a river running through it (I think that may be a movie or a book – A River runs through it. It is probably a better book than location at the fair). Two performances on the main stage had to be cancelled and instead kids used the hill as a mudslide. And apparently despite the torrential rain, the fire marshal was still concerned about the fire hazards. He made the fair association fill the mud pits on our town green with gravel instead of hay. You can only imagine what our green is going to look like when the tents come down – maybe we should rename it a brown. I’ve got to tell you that I think the fair grounds were in worse shape than they were the year that Gloria shut the fair down on Friday.

The kids still had a good time and did well in their entries. And fair food is always delicious even if it is becoming ridiculously expensive. Unfortunately, due to the weather many of our non-profits did not make nearly what they normally do and they will all have financial problems this year. Tonight some of them are going to reopen as all of us townies return to pick up our prizes and entries.

DD calculated that she has now been to the fair 37 times and frighteningly, I am at 104 times (and my friends wonder why I don’t get as excited as I used to). So, goodbye fair for at least another year.

Library Lock-in

Ok, I’ll go from writing about too much to do to being excited about one of the activities. We received an invitation to a Lock-in at the local library. The homeschooling community is going to have a sleepover with literary scavenger hunts, a video game area, movies, authors’ reading their work. As Regenia said, “Don’t plan to get too much sleep.” I wasn’t too sure how the kids were going to react, but both said they were in so I have signed us up.

Of course since our group is well known for its cooperative management, I now have to think of some activity that might blend with what they have planned. I’ll have to really think on this one.

One of the great things is that it will cost me a whopping $15. $5 for each of us and that will cover the cost of pizza. I love when cheapness collides with fun and education.

I encourage you to find a homeschooling group if you haven’t already. If you have found one but did not mesh with it, I encourage you to look again. We are very lucky that we found a great group right from the beginning.

Fieldtrip - Eric Carle Museum

DH needed help delivering a firetruck today, but he also needed to do some work. So we needed to "waste" a few hours in Mass. I took the opportunity to take the kids to the Eric Carle Museum in Amherst.

It is not a large museum. We spent about 2 1/2 hours there. The museum included three galleries, an art studio, a gift shop, an auditorium, a cafe, and two video productions. They generously gave me a teacher's admission as a homeschooling mom and their youth admission extends to 18 years old. I found the fee to be very reasonable.

If you are not familiar with Eric Carle read any of his wonderful children's books The Very Hungy Catepillar, Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, or Walter the Baker. He has several others as well. Eric Carle's collage style intregues kid's and adults alike. His artwork is very identifiable.

I think when the kids were young, DH and I knew every word to Brown Bear, Brown Bear.

Our trip was very inspiring, so I think next week DS and I are going to try to use his collage idea to create some pictures. Both of us were fascinated by the video segement about how he created his artwork.

Eric Carle has a style all his own and his artwork is everywhere in the museum. The gift shop had Eric Carle clothing material and even the bathroom was decorated with Eric Carle decorated ceramic tiles.

While we were there, we tried creating our own style in the art studio by creating texture creations. This is the best kind of art - created with everyday items and glue. Even reluctant DD (13 year old), got caught up in the act and was the last to finish.

PS. If you keep your eyes open over the next week or so, I will put up an Eric Carle Unit Study. It will certainly be fun for the whole family.

Fair Experiences

It came today . . .The Fair book. Our town is known for its late September fair. It is all consuming for everyone in our town. In fact as we are selling our home, I think I should add a disclosure “Home includes requirement to attend and work local fair for 3 days in late September.” We grew up here so we knew what we were getting into, but someone from out of town could be caught off guard. Truly, the only way to avoid all that the fair entails is to leave town completely. As a homeschooler, the fair is wonderful diversion from the regular day. This is not just true of the actual fair days, but beginning with the arrival of the fair book.

For a week, the kids will flip through the pages back and forth trying to decide exactly what they want to enter. Then we have to send in the registration forms and beginning planning to get the projects done. Some projects can take weeks like paper mache and others can’t be done until the day before you drop them off. We won’t even discuss the fun of trying to drop them all off. In my brilliance last year, I decided that it would be easier without bringing the kids along - - -a clear example of not thinking a plan all the way through. Who did I think was going to carry all the stuff? Lego towers can get very heavy when you stand in line for 20 minutes.

The most embarrassing and funniest year of fair preparations was many years ago when my children were young, idealistic, and did not take disappointment well. I had set up the kitchen to work with one child at a time. I was only there to supervise and make sure that they did not replace flour with sugar or tablespoons for teaspoons. Poor dd waited patiently for her turn to cook, while her brother made oatmeal raisin cookies. She was very excited to make a layer cake. She carefully measured and cooked. Everything was ready to be put together. So I stepped in to carefully lay one cake atop the other – vump! The top layer went right on the floor – perfectly flat, perfectly on floor. She just looked at me. I knew I had cut it all too close and there was no time to do it again. I looked at her. I looked at the floor. I calculated how much dirt could have been on the floor, when it was washed last, and what other options I had. At the mere mention of not entering, tear welled in dd’s eyes. I looked at the cake again, scooped it up, and put it on the cake. (I know – gross, but you would be amazed what you would do for your children.) We delivered it on time. And to our great surprise, she took first place. Maybe we should throw all our meals on the floor.

So, off we are on our new fair adventures . . .I promise not to drop and serve another cake.