Monday, June 14, 2010
Zachary's Violin Recital
Zachary played Vivaldi's "Winter" for his recital piece this year. He did an amazing job...even had it memorized!! We are so very proud of him!!!
Friday, June 11, 2010
Photo Hunt #156 - Bubbles
Hannah LOVES blowing bubbles, so it was easy finding photos for this topic.
Here's an old one I took of Zachary a few years ago. One of my favorite photos!!
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Scenic Sunday - #17
My favorite photo from happiest place on earth!!! We recently got back from our vacation there. I'll be posting more photos soon.
(Click on photo to enlarge for a much better view!)
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Photo Hunt #155 - Memorial
The word this week is "Memorial". It's not only an appropriate word for this weekend, but because Zachary has decided he'd like to join the Air Force when he graduates high school in 2 years. He hopes to go to the AF Academy out in Colorado Springs to become an officer. Here are a few photos from our recent vacation, where we happened to stop to visit an Air Force Museum down in Georgia.
Zachary's dream is to fly...to become a pilot. If he doesn't get to fly while in the Air Force, he still wants to get his pilots license and fly privately, but I'm praying he will get to live out his dream and fly for our country!
My handsome son Zachary...I'm so very proud of him!!!
Take the time to remember those who have given their lives up for our freedom in this country. One of the saddest funerals I ever attended was for a friend whose 21 year old son was killed in Iraq while serving as a US Marine. A big thank you to those who are in the military serving our country. You, and those who have gone before you should be honored this weekend.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Fun with the 'Light & the Glory'
Hannah and I have been enjoying her history this year! Currently we're reading through "The Light and the Glory...Discovering God's plan for America from Christopher Columbus to George Washington." by Peter Marshall & David Manuel.
The reader (on the left) is fantastic! I love that each chapter begins with a Bible verse that is applicable to what you'll be reading, and that there is an activity book (on the right) to go along with each days work. We are finishing up the sections on the Puritans and are just about to start on the Great Awakening, but to complete this section Hannah put together and is painting a log cabin. As you can see, she loves the hands-on activities that go along with each lesson.
The best part about these books? They are from a Christian point of view, and they have wonderful thought provoking questions in the back for each chapter. This helps you not only learn the material better, it shows how God's hand of providence is always with us!! The Pilgrims, Puritans, Indians and others mentioned in the book experienced so many blessings and miracles when going through tough times!! Those who followed God were truly blessed...a great lesson for an 8 year old, don't you think?!?
The reader (on the left) is fantastic! I love that each chapter begins with a Bible verse that is applicable to what you'll be reading, and that there is an activity book (on the right) to go along with each days work. We are finishing up the sections on the Puritans and are just about to start on the Great Awakening, but to complete this section Hannah put together and is painting a log cabin. As you can see, she loves the hands-on activities that go along with each lesson.
The best part about these books? They are from a Christian point of view, and they have wonderful thought provoking questions in the back for each chapter. This helps you not only learn the material better, it shows how God's hand of providence is always with us!! The Pilgrims, Puritans, Indians and others mentioned in the book experienced so many blessings and miracles when going through tough times!! Those who followed God were truly blessed...a great lesson for an 8 year old, don't you think?!?
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Earthworms are icky!
Well we dissected our first specimen, the earthworm. It wasn't as bad as we thought, we actually had a great time identifying all the body parts. Fascinating stuff!! It's amazing how small these little critters are and how truly amazing God's creation is!!!
Here is Zachary opening up the package containing the earthworm...
He was very brave and didn't complain once! He actually said he had a great time dissecting it and can't wait to do the other specimens.
Cutting open the worm...
Pulling the Setae apart in order to open him up...
Here he is...
Checking out the details with a magnifying glass...
Our 'mad scientist'...
Hannah decided that looking at the worm wasn't as much fun as drawing one, so she left the room and created this masterpiece...
You can see the black intestines running down the length of the worm....by this point he was pretty much mangled inside, but we did find many parts, some very very small!!!
All done...now it's time to dispose of this little guy and lay him to rest...
and in case you're wondering...we're getting rid of the worm, not Lionel!! =)
Our next dissection will be the Crayfish. That should be fun as it's a bit bigger than the worm. Look here for more photos if you dare!!! Now...I've got to go see about how to get this smelly formaldehyde smell out of my nose. Eeww!!!!
Here is Zachary opening up the package containing the earthworm...
He was very brave and didn't complain once! He actually said he had a great time dissecting it and can't wait to do the other specimens.
Cutting open the worm...
Pulling the Setae apart in order to open him up...
Here he is...
Checking out the details with a magnifying glass...
Our 'mad scientist'...
Hannah decided that looking at the worm wasn't as much fun as drawing one, so she left the room and created this masterpiece...
You can see the black intestines running down the length of the worm....by this point he was pretty much mangled inside, but we did find many parts, some very very small!!!
All done...now it's time to dispose of this little guy and lay him to rest...
and in case you're wondering...we're getting rid of the worm, not Lionel!! =)
Our next dissection will be the Crayfish. That should be fun as it's a bit bigger than the worm. Look here for more photos if you dare!!! Now...I've got to go see about how to get this smelly formaldehyde smell out of my nose. Eeww!!!!
Dissection Day!!
We're 'finally' getting around to dissecting our specimens for Zachary's Biology class. These critters have been sitting in their packaging on the floor of our dining room for a couple months now. Don't worry, they're sealed up very well...so our dining room isn't contaminated. ha ha
We've set up 'shop' on the kitchen island...covered it with garbage bags and laid everything out so it's all organized. Now we just wait until Daddy gets home and we start the process...slice and dice! Mmmmm...lunch anyone??
I'm not sure if you all have memories of dissecting specimens in high school or not, but the memories I have aren't all that great. I vaguely remember the actual dissection process, but what "jumps" out in my mind (pun intended) are the times the boys in class threw frog guts at all us girls. It was so disgusting!! The cow's eye was even worse. Then, when I was in college, we had to work on an actual cadaver, which totally creeped me out!!! The memories...they still haunt me. Fortunately my kids won't have to worry about those things. They will dissect their specimens and enjoy the learning experience without flying frog guts or cadavers.
Our 'lab'...or operating room...whichever you prefer:
Zachary isn't too sure he's ready for this!! Some of the specimens are pretty big!
Our dissecting tools:
"Wiggles"...our earth worm:
"Mr. Snippy"...our Crayfish:
"Slime"...our Perch:
"Prince"...our frog:
I will post photos in more detail once we're done with them all. It should be fun...minus the smell and slimy feel. I am excited to be doing this with my kids though, most parents only have memories like I do from dissecting animals; this gives me a chance to make new ones. Even Hannah is interested in getting in on the action. When it's her time to dissect, she'll be a pro at this! Time to get to work....
We've set up 'shop' on the kitchen island...covered it with garbage bags and laid everything out so it's all organized. Now we just wait until Daddy gets home and we start the process...slice and dice! Mmmmm...lunch anyone??
I'm not sure if you all have memories of dissecting specimens in high school or not, but the memories I have aren't all that great. I vaguely remember the actual dissection process, but what "jumps" out in my mind (pun intended) are the times the boys in class threw frog guts at all us girls. It was so disgusting!! The cow's eye was even worse. Then, when I was in college, we had to work on an actual cadaver, which totally creeped me out!!! The memories...they still haunt me. Fortunately my kids won't have to worry about those things. They will dissect their specimens and enjoy the learning experience without flying frog guts or cadavers.
Our 'lab'...or operating room...whichever you prefer:
Zachary isn't too sure he's ready for this!! Some of the specimens are pretty big!
Our dissecting tools:
"Wiggles"...our earth worm:
"Mr. Snippy"...our Crayfish:
"Slime"...our Perch:
"Prince"...our frog:
I will post photos in more detail once we're done with them all. It should be fun...minus the smell and slimy feel. I am excited to be doing this with my kids though, most parents only have memories like I do from dissecting animals; this gives me a chance to make new ones. Even Hannah is interested in getting in on the action. When it's her time to dissect, she'll be a pro at this! Time to get to work....
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Hannah's Dream...
Hannah and I went to see Stars on Ice....we had a total blast!! We had tickets front and center, right on the ice! Since she has been taking figure skating lessons herself, it was fun to see her eyes light up as the skaters performed. Also, after the show we were able to meet some of the skaters which was a real treat.
I brought my camera (of course!) but was not able to get the best photos. They are very strict with their rule about not zooming in with your lens or using flash photography, and when you have a larger SLR camera like myself it's hard to hide it when you zoom, let alone flash...especially when sitting right in the front row! That being said, I did take a ton of photos, but they weren't nearly as good as I'd have liked them to be. Thanks to Scott for some of his tips on how to set my camera. It helped with the lighting, but I'm afraid most of my photos didn't come out as well as expected. With a bit of practice though, I'm sure I'll 'get it'...
Anyhow, here are some of the photos I managed to capture....enjoy, but please do not copy them or use them. Thank you!
Hannah with Sasha Cohen....awesome moment!
Hannah with Marai Nagasu
Posing with her very first figure skate (one she no longer wears)...which she had autographed by the stars. How cool is that?!?
Alissa Czisny
Todd Eldredge
Sasha Cohen
Michael Weiss in mid back-flip
Alissa Czisny & Sasha Cohen...so elegant!
Todd Eldredge saw I had my camera up ready to take a photo, so he came right over to me. As I shot his photo he got even closer for another, laughing the whole time. Gotta love it when they interact with the audience!
The whole cast...
Todd Eldredge with Michael Weiss in the background
Jeremy Abbott
Meryl Davis & Charlie White skating beside Tanith Belbin & Ben Agosto
Michael Weiss, Yuka Sato, Todd Eldredge & Jeremy Abbott
Sasha Cohen - my favorite outfit and song, hands down...she skated to Alleluia.
Michael Weiss
Yuka Sato...such an elegant skater
The whole cast...final performance
I wish the show wasn't over, but hopefully we'll be able to see it again in 2011. It'll be the show's 25th anniversary, so I'm hoping they'll bring back some 'old' skaters from the past!! Tomorrow is Hannah's skating lesson, and I'm sure her coach will get an ear full about how wonderful the show was!! Can't wait.....as much as I love seeing the professionals perform, there's nothing like watching your own child out on the ice!!!!
I brought my camera (of course!) but was not able to get the best photos. They are very strict with their rule about not zooming in with your lens or using flash photography, and when you have a larger SLR camera like myself it's hard to hide it when you zoom, let alone flash...especially when sitting right in the front row! That being said, I did take a ton of photos, but they weren't nearly as good as I'd have liked them to be. Thanks to Scott for some of his tips on how to set my camera. It helped with the lighting, but I'm afraid most of my photos didn't come out as well as expected. With a bit of practice though, I'm sure I'll 'get it'...
Anyhow, here are some of the photos I managed to capture....enjoy, but please do not copy them or use them. Thank you!
Hannah with Sasha Cohen....awesome moment!
Hannah with Marai Nagasu
Posing with her very first figure skate (one she no longer wears)...which she had autographed by the stars. How cool is that?!?
Alissa Czisny
Todd Eldredge
Sasha Cohen
Michael Weiss in mid back-flip
Alissa Czisny & Sasha Cohen...so elegant!
Todd Eldredge saw I had my camera up ready to take a photo, so he came right over to me. As I shot his photo he got even closer for another, laughing the whole time. Gotta love it when they interact with the audience!
The whole cast...
Todd Eldredge with Michael Weiss in the background
Jeremy Abbott
Meryl Davis & Charlie White skating beside Tanith Belbin & Ben Agosto
Michael Weiss, Yuka Sato, Todd Eldredge & Jeremy Abbott
Sasha Cohen - my favorite outfit and song, hands down...she skated to Alleluia.
Michael Weiss
Yuka Sato...such an elegant skater
The whole cast...final performance
I wish the show wasn't over, but hopefully we'll be able to see it again in 2011. It'll be the show's 25th anniversary, so I'm hoping they'll bring back some 'old' skaters from the past!! Tomorrow is Hannah's skating lesson, and I'm sure her coach will get an ear full about how wonderful the show was!! Can't wait.....as much as I love seeing the professionals perform, there's nothing like watching your own child out on the ice!!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)