Today was a field trip day. Yes, I’m exhausted, but glad that I went. And we have one more field trip yet to round out the school year.
This is a tulip poplar bloom I picked up as we headed into the woods around Camp Chestnut Ridge. The forest floor was covered in these in spots.
The group participated in the short ropes course. It was awesome. Aside from all the physical activity involved, the children had to think their way through assignments. One involved a rope, an imaginary boulder and Indiana Jones. The children had to figure out a way to transfer their team from point A to point B with just a rope and a set of obstactles they had to overcome. I loved the way this made everyone really think and work as a team.
She made it. That’s my girl!
Right now we are enjoying some popcorn from the hot air popper with real butter and some ranch seasoning. Yum.
Today was a field trip day! You know, when they roll around, I always feel like I don’t have time to go, but the field trips are so good for us. They get me out of the house, Princess of the Universe learns hands-on, and I get to visit with other homeschooling moms! Does it get any better?
I was struck by the juxtaposition at Historic Yates Mill County Park: beautiful remnants from a far-away past lay quietly on the ground just yards from mini vans whizzing down a busy road.
It’s really beautiful around the mill. And we had a beautiful day today! Sunny, breezy, and a bit chilly but not enough to make you feel cold. I love days like that. Oh, and we had the moon and the sun clearly visible today. Can you see it? It seems just a white speck in the picture, but I promise it was pretty – a reminder of how amazing creation is.
Next, you gotta see this rosemary plant!
I’ve never seen rosemary get so large. Yes, that’s rosemary and it was in bloom.
One of the big draws to homeschooling for me is what I see in homeschooled young adults. They are so at ease, so unaffected by trends, so able to interact with young or old.
A pretty framed map of Historic Yates Mill Park.
The children in our group learned about the food chain (or web). I found it interesting and the children seemed to enjoy taking part in the questions and the activities.
They colored small pictures of various aquatic wildlife and then glued the pictures into an illustration of a food web.
Then it was outside to get wet. The kids learned how to use a kick net. They also used small nets to look for fresh water clams and other creatures that live in the water. Buckets of muddy sediment were provided so that each child could examine a tray full of muddy leaves and water to look for water bugs and larvae and nymphs.
Isn’t this a lovely setting?
I was amazed at all the creatures seen and identifed: bloodworm larvae, tadpoles, a leech, and a few other things.
All I can do is smile at this picture of this sweet little lady in the sparkly red shoes. She looked so tempted to go in with other children who were attired in tennis shoes and boots. I asked her if her mommy would want her to get her shoes wet. With a shy look and without saying a word, she made a quick, executive decision to wade on in. Memories.
Guys, I was in a corn playhouse today. I’m not kidding.
We went out to Hill Ridge Farms. Again. It is SUCH a fun place. I cannot stress enough what a cool place this is to have a family picnic. But back to the Corn Playhouse.
You know those play thingys they have at McDonalds with the plastic balls in them? Well the corn playhouse is a countrified version of that. This is a play thingy full of CORN. I like the countrified version best.
Would you look at all that corn!! The children played. And played. And played.
I stepped in and SUNK. Look how deep the corn is! My sister said she wanted one of these corn playhouses at home. Come to think of it, it would be nice. Hubby, can I ask you for another teeny-tiny favor?
Just like our last visit to Hill Ridge Farms, we were there today to meet with my mother and sister and niece. My sister lives out of state, so I don’t get to see her nearly enough. Two cousins. Same size, same age, much alike. One belongs to me. One belongs to my sister.
We celebrated my niece’s birthday. The girls were sure to get all the icing off of every single candle.
Then we decided to pan for gems. Fun stuff! First you shake the sand out of your sieve.
Then place your sieve into the running water.
Then you look through the stones in your sieve.
I think I found something!!
If you take your sieve out into the sun, the colors of any gems show up better.
We found a couple of types of quartz.
John found a really large peridot.
It was a fun day. I got to play in corn and I came home with several bags of gems, but I enjoyed more than anything spending the day with my favorite girls in the world!
Yesterday we went with our homeschool group on a field trip to Elodie Farms in Rougemont, North Carolina. The whole outing was beautiful. The farm was beautiful and so was the time spent after the field trip, picnicking and watching the children play.
There was a sweet-natured paint horse that stood at the fence and let the children pet him(?) to their hearts’ delight. Do you see the blue eye color on that horse? Beautiful. (I’m really overusing that word today, but it’s true.) I’ve come home and read that blue eyes can be a marking of paint horses that have the Sabino gene.
Awwww, look at all these little kids wanting attention. They were so sweet and little and it made me want to pack up my things and move right away to a goat farm.
Uh, sweetheart? I have a little bitty teeny-tiny favor to ask.
Cheeses waiting for the next step in the process.
The entire operation, explained to us by the owner, Dave, appeared clean and orderly and carried out with much love. I was transformed by the rustic look of the dairy parlor and the kitchen.
You all go on and spread out your blankets for the picnic. I’ll just stand right here in the kitchen for awhile.
Princess of the Universe gets a turn on the swing after pushing others for awhile.
Finally, blankets spread out and picnic baskets opened, we homeschool moms began to talk of books, gardening plans, childrearing, and everything you can think of that homeschool moms enjoy talking about, while the children ran around and played.
Mom, look. It’s a baby and it tries to suck on your finger.
Did I already say that I’m ready to pack up my stuff and move to a goat farm? Oh, right.
Princess of the Universe was totally in her element out there. It’s clear now. Chickens. We don’t have room for goats, but we must get some chickens. Did I hear one of those sweet moms mention a “chicken tractor” yesterday? I’d never heard of it. Boy, do I see excitement on the horizon for Big Furry Man.
Yesterday we enjoyed a very nice field trip to Crowder Park in Raleigh. This was with a lovely group of ladies and their children who make up a fabulous homeschool group that we’re a part of.
The 6-11 year-olds got a class in the water cycle while the 12 and ups got a class in pond life and worked with a microscope.
I love being able to get together with a group of moms who are like-minded and trying to accomplish the same educational and moral things with their children that we are. It’s nice to talk about things. For example, “I’m encountering this with this child or that with that child. What would you do?” It’s nice to talk about what kinds of limits others set, what expectations they have, etc. This kind of involvement does so much for me!
Crowder Park itself is a beautiful park. The pond was a little murky on this day. Normally you can see turtles, which the children love!
There are a couple of playgrounds for the children. This is the biggest one.
There are nice trails for walking.
After the first of the week starting out SO cold with SNOW even, I was thankful for a nice, sunny day for this fieldtrip!
Ackland Art Museum. Not very large. Worth seeing. Some beautiful works of art. We really enjoyed it.
The man who left the money and the vision for the museum, William Hayes Ackland, is actually interred right inside the museum, in a sarcophagus below a bronze statue of his likeness.
My two favorite paintings there? (These will be large, but you can scroll back and forth and up and down and see the paintings.)
The snow is still trying to compete with me. Many neighborhood children were at the door throughout the day to see if Princess of the Universe could come out and play. A couple of times I let her go. I mean, how often are we able to go sledding? Especially if one of the parents is accompanying them to a “really big hill?”
Nevertheless, we managed to get some school work done.
We had fun yesterday looking at
a piece of dandruff – eewwwwwww
a seed from a plant — groovy
a little rosemary leaflet (still very green this time of year) — way cool
Michaela is not really doing any formal botany or biology yet, but I want her to become familiar with a microscope and to develop a sense of observation. It’s a nice science lesson just to note the differences in what you see and to be able to say them or write them.
Along a Charlotte Mason line, we got serious yesterday about our nature sketching. Michaela loves to draw, and does so regularly, but I want her to work more on her nature journal and observations. Since there was not much stirring outside yesterday, we used a little resin robin that sits in my office as a model.
Michaela and I sat side by side in front of the warm heater, sketching our own versions of the little robin perched on the mantle.
Michaela said she loves mine, but I love hers — the first one. I love her drawings and the way she sees things, and I think she should further develop her drawing skills. I see she needs to work more on observing exact colors perhaps, but I love her detail. Tomorrow we will be placing these into our nature journals and labeling them as American robin, Turdus migratorius.
(there’s a newer version of this book, I think, but this is the one I have and use)
We are also reading about Augustus from Famous Men of Rome – a great book, by the way, from Memoria Press. (Writing a review of this book is on my to-do list.) Pictures to represent both Ovid and Augustus will go into the timeline notebook.
Finally, for math, we got as far as completeing one lesson in Saxon and then cutting out some fraction manipulatives for the next lesson…
and doing a one-minute math drill sheet.
I guess I can’t complain, really. Did I fail to mention how grateful I am that Princess of the Universe is learning from home? And that she and I are great friends? And that she really has it all: plenty of social interaction with friends and an amazing homeschool group AND she gets to be taught by the people who love her most and be the boss of her free time? Yeah. I can’t complain.
“An effort made for the happiness of others lifts above ourselves.” Lydia M. Child
Today was perhaps one of the best field trips of all. A service project in which children from our homeschool group came together to make fleece blankets to donate to organizations where sick or newborn children need an extra bit of care or just something special to hold onto.
“For happiness brings happiness,
and loving ways bring love,
And giving is the treasure
that contentment is made of.” Amanda Bradley
“A child’s kiss set on thy singing lips shall make thee glad:
A poor child served by thee shall make thee rich;
A sick child helped by thee shall make thee strong;
Thou shalt be served thyself by every sense of service which thou renderest.” Elizabeth Barrett Browning
“Sow good services;
sweet remembrances will grow from them.” Mme. de Stael
“If I can stop one heart from breaking, I shall not live in vain:
If I can ease one life the aching, Or cool one pain,
Or help one fainting robin Unto his nest again, I shall not live in vain.” Emily Dickinson
“Service is what life is all about.” Marian Wright Edelman
“If someone listens, or stretches out a hand, or whispers a kind word of encouragement, or attempts to understand a lonely person, extraordinary things begin to happen.” Loretta Girzartis
“Compassion is the little light Whose gleam goes dancing through the night, And only the cold and hungry men Know how it quickens hope again.” Aline Michaelis
“After the verb ‘To Love,’ ‘To Help’ is the most beautiful verb in the world.” Bertha Von Suttner
“As the purse is emptied, the heart is filled.” Victor Hugo
“He gives double who gives unasked.” Arabian proverb
“Caddie Woodlawn…laid a silver dollar on the counter.”
“I want to spend it all, Mr. Adams,” she said, “so you’ll have to tell me when I’ve used it up. I want some hoarhound and peppermint and some pink wintergreens, and then I want three tops in different colors with good strong strings, and will you please tell me how much that is, because if there’s anything left I want to get some more things?”
“The little Hankinsons looked on in amazement. The black mood of despair which had enveloped them all day had turned into wonder, and now wonder was rapidly giving way to incredulous delight. Candy! Tops! No one had ever bought such things for them before.”
“Well, young lady,” said Mr. Adams with an amused twinkle in his eye, “now your dollar’s gone, and you didn’t get a thing out of it for yourself.”
“Oh, yes, I did, Mr. Adams!”
(Conversation between Caddie Woodlawn and Mr. Adams from Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink, Newberry Medal winner.)
Yesterday was a big field trip day! All I can say about Noah’s Landing is WOW. It is truly an impressive family operation. A mom and her now-grown children have basically built an animal sanctuary over the years. There are exotic animals there that we would never have had the opportunity to see anywhere else. And believe me the animals are well loved and cared for!
We learned about llamas.
If you knew how much Princess of the Universe loves animals… Well, I’m sure you can imagine. She loved this field trip.
I dreamed about this animal, the donkey, last night. I’ll tell you why in a little bit.
Forgetting myself (and apparently where I was) I leaned in toward the fence at one point to get a picture. Almost immediately I felt warm breath and something nuzzling the scarf wrapped around my head.
But would you look at this face. How could I be scared? Or mad? I’m just glad the children had food with them so that my fuzzy scarf was not such a disappointment.
As the children get into lines for our tour, the very nice and knowledgeable woman who runs Noah’s Landing shares the rules and some safety tips, i.e. How many fingers do you have? How many fingers do you want to leave here with?
I’m excited!! Are you?
Ohhhh, now I can tell you about my sweet dreams last night. The donkeys above are Sicilian donkeys. We were given quite a bit of information about them. Then I came home and read a bit in Matthew and different places about Mary and Joseph and baby Jesus. I just slept really well last night and dreamed about a different landscape and a different time and a different way of traveling. There were donkeys there. Funny where we go in our dreams!
Legend has it that the Sicilian donkey is the type that was used to carry Mary on the long journey to be taxed and to where she ultimately gave birth. It is also apparently the type of donkey that Jesus would have called for not long before his death, when he rode into Jerusalem. The donkey is the animal of peace, whereas the horse is the animal of war. The legend says that the patient and lowly donkey had been such a good friend to Jesus that, even standing by at the very last, when the evening fell after Jesus’ death, a shadow of the cross was cast on the donkey’s back, leaving the mark of the cross forever. We were told that many years of breeding have allowed people to perhaps alter the color and size of this donkey somewhat, but that cross has never been able to be bred out. It’s the first time I had heard that story. I found it inspiring.
This ring-tailed lemur watched all of us walk away from its cage.
The serval cat acted like a great big kitten, climbing and playing.
I probably should have used my flash, but I wanted to capture this tortoise just as he looked, sitting under his warming light, with his wise eye looking at me. He tracked my movements with his head.
She is closing her eyes, though she was not scared at all. If only I could have gotten another picture with her eyes open, but my camera battery gave out. Sigh.
If you visit the Noah’s Landing website you’ll see that the list of animals is most impressive. There were many, many more animals that we met and learned about that are not pictured in this post. This was a long and informative field trip, one that we won’t forget for a long time to come.
Several other moms and children were taking pictures yesterday, so maybe I’ll get some more pictures soon – of things I was not able to photograph myself.
As far as school today, Princess of the Universe will be writing a journal entry in her nature journal about what she learned yesterday. She’ll be looking at the atlas to locate the countries and continents we heard about. Then, of course, is the standard math and spelling. It’s a work day for me, so I’ll be right here, but not doing as much hands-on, so we’ll pick back up with our rowing of The Raft in a couple of days.
We read another chapter in Caddie Woodlawn last night.
When Father or Mother made a decision, the Woodlawn children accepted it as final. There was very little teasing for favors in a large pioneer family.
Okay, so we didn’t get much book work done yesterday, but how can you miss the North Carolina State Fair?!
Mom, I’m ready to ride rides!!! Right now!
Well, not yet, we must eat.
Oh my! These gourmet candy apples (for just 5 dollars apiece – YIKES) were delicious. Michaela and I shared one. Can you guess what kind she picked?
I love the bright displays. This one looks old in design, but bright and shiny and new!
Ooooooooooh looooooooooooooook.
That’s what we said.
Those are Braham cattle above.
Ooooooooooooooooh. (We said that a lot.)
Can you imagine being able to sleep that soundly?!
The State Fair offers so many opportunities to learn about North Carolina. It’s really a wonderful thing to take advantage of. Here, a poster shows the life cycle of the honeybee.
More honey displays. So many beautiful things made of beeswax. Jars of honey. Yum. They even had cotton candy spun from real honey. It was amazing! Much better than the sugary stuff.
I was impressed by the sign above. Colony Collapse has been a major concern in many areas.
Princess of the Universe gets on the cell phone to try and find out where Grandma and Aunt Shelby have gotten to.
The plants listed above (you can’t read the writing in the pictures_ are:
cotton
sumac
tupelo gum
blackberry
blueberry
mountain mint
bee balm
sourwood
pepperbush
holly
locust
ladino clover
This brave man got into this wire cage with a bee hive. Yes, you read that right.
Actually, I am not terrified of bees, but I do think it would take nerves of steel to get in there with those bees, as some landed on his face, his arms, his neck, and talk to the crowd while working with the hive.
That huge horse above… Well, you might want to read about it! Going all the way back to the middle ages, your son might be interested in this.
They also had information about the mule, in case you were not aware of how they come about.
It’s time to ride rides!! Yes, I am about to go into the Cuckoo Haus.
And then it’s onto the Flying Bobs. It may be more like Flying Hair-Buns. I wonder if my hair will stay up
We are strapped in and ready to fly. I thought of taking a video, but Miss Priss told me no. She meant it, too.
Do we look ready to fly?
Oh, you must see Michaela jump. She gets strapped in.
Doesn’t that look like fun? I passed on it though, especially since I was wearing a skirt.
Let’s go into the house of mirrors and try to find our way out.
The Cliff Hanger was really fun.
By the time the ride was over, Miss Priss had made friends with the children on either side of her.
My oldest son showed up with his girlfriend.
She’s so beautiful. And even sweeter than she is beautiful.
Michaela loved holding the baby chicks. She also got to hold a baby duck.
Finally, I thought you might want to hear and see the inside of the livestock building where the chickens are. Fun!
Today we must buckle down and get some school work done. Yes ma’am. Part of today’s assignments will be to write a journal entry about the state fair. Oh, and there will be a separate post for the pumpkins, since we are studying the Pumpkin Runner.
Approaching-50 mother of four. Thrifter. Content with lots of clothes bought for very little money. Loves retro. (That could be styles from the 40s and 50s. And sometimes stuff even older than that. And sometimes stuff from all time, all mixed up together!) Bluffs about decluttering but secretly loves STUFF. Goes through stages. Has standing and staring spells before rearranging the entire home. Just because. Tune in each day to see what new outfit comes home from G.W. Boutique next. (That's Goodwill, by the way.) Oh, and she owns a spoiled beagle named Annie. And this blog.
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To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not rich; to study hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly; to listen to stars and birds, to babes and sages, with open heart; to bear all cheerfully, do all bravely, await occasions, hurry never. In a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common. This is to be my symphony.
William Henry Channing
1810-1884
What You Do
Sow a thought, reap an action.
Sow an action, reap a habit.
Sow a habit, reap a character.
Sow a character, reap a destiny.
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for you to leave a comment, but you can also e-mail me at lynn AT thehealthyhomeschool.com
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