Archive for September, 2006
September 22, 2006 at 4:39 pm · Filed under home education
In our continued “study” of colonial America, we did further reading from chapter 3 of Great Colonial America Projects You Can Build Yourself. We had a couple of projects to choose from today, and the boys wanted to make “rag” rugs. I say “rag”, because I didn’t have any real rags or old t-shirts I was willing to forfeit. Instead, I diverted some plastic grocery sacks from the recycle pile. The boys cut the bags into strips and began braiding (with some instruction - I guess I never taught them to braid!). B made a short length, but E kept braiding and braiding and braiding. We had to leave for awhile and he came back and braided some more! He really enjoyed the activity and ended up with a length of braid about 7′ long. He wants to coil it into a rug tomorrow, usng glue instead of sewing it together.
September 21, 2006 at 5:56 pm · Filed under My Musings
Tawra Kellam, co-author of Dining on a Dime: 100 Money-Saving Recipes and Tips (Newman Marketing) estimates that 30 to 50 percent of our groceries get tossed into the trash. Think stale bread, old broccoli, sour milk and leftovers.
I know I end up tossing way too much food - but those numbers are a wake-up call to be more efficient!
Complete article, here.
Blog Nod: Thrifty Mommy
September 21, 2006 at 5:10 pm · Filed under home education
September 21, 2006 at 9:10 am · Filed under home education, book reviews
When we decided to delve into colonial American history, I wanted the boys to get a feel for the time period. I searched and found Elisa Carbone’s Blood on the River: James Town 1607 and thought it sounded like a perfect place to start – right in James Town, the place of the first successful colony in the New World.
The boys read it, and while they found it interesting, neither one of them fell in love with it. I finished it last night and now understand why. It’s written for a younger audience than I expected it to be. From the descriptions that I read and even the book’s cover, I assumed that it would be a young adult book and I started reading it with that impression. It took me some time to adjust my expectations! (Amazon suggests 9-12 as the age range for this book)
The book follows young Samuel Collier, an orphan and a page to the famous Captain John Smith, from London to the New World. The beginning of the story gives a sense of just how difficult (and smelly!) the crossing itself must have been. Once Samuel reaches the New World, he watches and learns as gentlemen shirk their duties, a palisade is built, negotiations with the Native Americans are undertaken and many, many colonists die.
The characters in the book are real people and the author has done an amazing amount of research. I love the way she includes tiny details of what life was like, without embarking on a detailed description that might bore young readers. I think if my boys were younger, they would have loved this book. Because it wasn’t really age appropriate they just liked it (though they are retaining many facts about James Town!). I think it would be a fabulous read aloud for kids and would be a good choice for younger readers.
September 20, 2006 at 4:21 pm · Filed under My Musings
…who found this site by googling “quilt patterns kids make snakes“, I’m sorry. You must have been so disappointed with what you found here!
What weird search phrases do people use to find *your* blog?
September 18, 2006 at 2:48 pm · Filed under My Musings
To the parent at the grocery store: I’m glad you are having some time alone. But at the risk of sounding snotty, the bulk gum ball station is not there for your daughter’s entertainment.
To the checker at the grocery store: If someone comes through your checkstand with ALL blue gumballs, you can be sure that it wasn’t a random scoop. Please say something to the shopper about bulk shopping etiquette!
To the bagger at the grocery store: Bananas DO NOT go on the bottom of the bag. Ever.
To me: Don’t go to the beach without snorkel gear in the car. Because the minute you do, you will arrive at a bay that is as smooth as glass to find that there is a pod of spinner dolphins cavorting less than 100 yards off the shore. And you will not be able to watch them underwater because it’s too far to swim without snorkel gear and without that prescription mask, you are blind. Sigh.
To the person who is trying to fax something to me: I do not have a fax.
To Wrigley’s: Why oh why did you have to go and add aspartame to Doublemint gum?
September 14, 2006 at 11:28 am · Filed under home education
As planned, we are delving into colonial American history (after years and YEARS of interest in the ancients). Both of the boys have finished reading Blood on the River, a historical novel about the founding of Jamestown and we’ve begun reading out of my colonial book (which is admittedly pretty darned weird). Yesterday I read the introduction and was a little overzealous in how long I read; E said, “you know mom, it’s GOOD, but I think you could have made the chapters a little shorter.”
Today we read about the Native Americans that were here long before the colonists. Then we did a couple of the projects from the book - we made a ring and pin game and some ‘wampum’.
I’ll send a signed copy of Great Colonial America Projects You Can Build Yourself to the first person who can identify the materials used to make the wampum. No fair playing if you HAVE the book already and know the answer! Leave your answer in comments or email me at teamchallenges (at) yahoo.com.
September 14, 2006 at 8:53 am · Filed under island life
My librarian, to me: Krees! You nevah wrote one book!?
Translation: Kris! Did you write a book?
A year ago I would NOT have known what she was saying!
September 14, 2006 at 7:19 am · Filed under My Musings
I don’t watch Survivor. I’ve seen a couple of episodes, but it’s just not something I’m into. Last night I saw an advertisement for the upcoming season with the TV muted and thought WOW, they’ve really chosen a multi-cultural group this time…Nice!
I should have had the sound on - this morning I read the reason for this diversity in the cast. The new castaways will be divided by race. On national TV, several ethnic groups will compete against one another and by the end, one ethnicity will be perceived as reigning superior. I have a real problem with this; I think this is NOT a good way to improve race relations. With so much racial profiling going on in the world today, this seems like a way to feed that fire. Shame on you, Survivor!
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