My Attempt At Making Tree Blocks

I was very excited when I saw the idea for making Tree Blocks on the blog Childhood Magic!  Free and easy to make ~ or so I thought! 

Yesterday I headed out into my mom’s backyard, searching for sticks and logs for my project.  Let me add that it was 100° outside ~ what was I thinking?  After about an hour I came in soaking wet, but I did find a wonderful pile of sticks and the perfect log.

I headed home, excited to get started cutting the wood ~ how hard could this be anyway?  My husband had his band saw all set up, ready to go.  I started or should I say attempted to cut my first piece of wood, which I immediately got stuck.  I managed to free it, with all my fingers intact, and tried again.  My second cut and the belt that turns the saw blade slipped off.  Feeling rather defeated I decided to wait for my husband to get home.  My dear sweet husband fixed the belt and showed me the proper way to use the saw.  He watch me make a cut ~ success!  My next cut and the blade broke.  Cost for a new blade $40.00.

Day two, hubby decided I should use the table saw.  He set it up for me and I finished cutting.    The kids were so excited to see what I had been working on and they LOVED the blocks.

     

The blocks didn’t turn out to be completely free ($40.o0 for a new blade) or that easy (2 days to complete this easy project), but it was still worth it!

~Cindy

Zucchini Pizza Bites

We made some Zucchini Pizza Bites today using our first zucchini from the garden. 

   

What You’ll Need:

• 1 medium zucchini
• pizza sauce
• fresh oregano (or dried)
• shredded mozzarella cheese
• shredded parmesan cheese
• pepperoni
• onions (optional)

What You’ll Do:

1. Preheat broiler; set rack in the middle.
2. Trim ends on zucchini and cut into diagonal slices.
3. Spread a teaspoon of sauce over each zucchini slice and sprinkle on some fresh chopped oregano.   Top each zucchini slice with cheeses.  Add pepperoni and onions, if desired.
4. Broil about 3 minutes or until cheese is melted.

My kids tolerate zucchini, it’s definitely not their favorite.  I on the other hand LOVE zucchini, so guess who planted lots of it in the garden this year? 

The verdict ~ add some sauce, cheese and pepperoni and the kids have decided that they like zucchini after all.  Do you have a favorite zucchini recipe?

~Cindy

The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine ~ Amazing 4th of July Sale

The Old Schoolhouse is having an amazing four day sale on new or renewed subscriptions to The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine starting today!

1776 was a spectacular year, and it's a smashing, save-more-money price! Grab your subscription to The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine during their four-day Fourth of July sale, and check out the craziest price on July 1 only!

ONLY ON JULY 1st ~ receive a 2-year subscription, free Homeschooling with Heart tote bag, and five FREE E-Books for just $17.76!  While supplies last. U.S. and Canadian residents.

July 2 through July 4 the unprecedented savings continue. The sparks are flying at TOS Magazine . . . join in the celebration and savings! Get the details here.

~Cindy

4th of July Shirts

Can someone please tell me where the month of June has gone and how it is possible that this coming Sunday is July 4th?  

We couldn’t let the holiday go by without making some 4th of July crafts so I pulled up one of our favorite websites, Family Fun, and let the kids pick some fun things to make.   After a quick trip to Michaels, to get t-shirts we came home to start on our first project ~ Fireworks Shirts.  

What You’ll Need:

• Plain t-shirts
• Glittery fabric paint (we used red and silver)
• Newspaper
• Paper plates
• Pipe cleaners

 What You’ll Do:

1. Spread some newspaper down on the table.
2. Place a piece of newspaper (we used construction paper) inside the t-shirt so the paint won’t bleed through.

3. Create a fireworks stamp, for each color paint.  Arrange three or four pipe cleaners in a bunch, pinch the center, then bend the ends over your thumb and twist them together a few times, forming a loop. Spread apart the ends and bend up the tips.  (There is a video here if you want to see the instructions.)

4. Dip the stamp into the paint and press it firmly onto the fabric. 

5. When you are finished, hang the shirts (far away from little hands) so it can dry thoroughly.

Our finished shirts. 

Emily’s

Aiden’s  

The shirts turned out super cute and the clean-up was easy!

If you are a regular reader you know that Aiden likes to sneak off when Emily and I are working on projects together.  Today was no different.  I heard water sloshing and giggles coming from the bathroom.  This is what I found.  

Aiden sitting in the bathroom sink (in his swimsuit), giving his baby doll a bath.  He is going to be a good daddy some day!

~Cindy

Nature Shelf

We recently borrowed the book Anna’s Table by Eve Bunting from the Library.  During the past week this book has been read over and over and it has become one of our favorites.  The book is about Anna, who collects wonderful nature treasures and displays them on a table in her room.  Each item has a story and cherished memory tied to it.Did you collect nature items as a child?  I did ~ dead bugs, feathers, and rocks were a few of my favorites. 

My daughter also has a collection of nature finds, most of them tucked into boxes in her room.  Treasures that Emily decided needed to be displayed.   We have a small house and while we didn’t have room for a table, we did add a shelf to her wall.  She pulled some of her treasurer out of hiding and carefully arranged each one on her new shelf.

Some of her treasurers include sea shells and a picture of dolphins,

small sea shells found during our early morning walks on the beach,

lavender she picked at Grandma’s,

a rock collection, 

two beautiful rocks painted by our neighbor, who is an artist,

and her newest find, a dead horse fly.

Each item displayed on her nature shelf has a story and memory to go along with it, just like Anna.  She can recall with detail where she found each item, who was with her, and anything she has learned about it.

The next time my kids bring me yet another rock or bug I’m going to stop and take the time to listen to them.  To look at their treasurer as they do ~ with wonder.  To listen to their story.  It just might be a cherished memory in the making!  

~Cindy

Fun Activities with Glow Stick Bracelets

It was HOT today and the kids just didn’t know what to do with themselves so I pulled out some glow stick bracelets that I got from Target’s dollar section.   Here are some of the things we did with them:

We made letters,

sorted them by color,

counted them,

and talked about small, medium and large.

Feeling satisfied that Aiden and I did a little school, I handed over the bracelets and let the kids play.  They put some of the bracelets together, making a big circle, and took turns tossing the bracelets into the circle.

They made faces

and jewelry.  This is Emily all decked out in the dark

and the kids sporting their jewelry with the lights on.

                

The kids have played with the bracelets all evening.  Who knew  glow stick bracelets would occupy them for so long?

~Cindy

Homeschool ~ Summer Plans

We have enjoyed a few weeks of NO SCHOOL!   Although I don’t plan on doing much with the kids this summer, there are a few things we are going to work on.

Emily

Math:  Games ~ lots of games!  Emily’s favorite game right now is Monopoly Junior.  I would like to find a game that works on telling time.  Anyone have any suggestions?

Language: We started using First Language Lessons in the middle of the year so we need continue doing a couple of lessons each week in order to catch up.

Spelling:  We switched to All About Spelling after reading all of the wonderful reviews ~ so glad we did!  Emily actually loves spelling so we are going to continue doing at least one lesson a week. 

Science:  I really want to start doing more nature studies and drawing with the kids.  We are also going to be doing some FUN science experiments.

Aiden

This summer our plans are to read, read, read, and play.   I’m working on some printables  ~ will see if Aiden is in the mood to do them!

Me

The kids may not be doing much this summer but I have a LONG list of things to do. First thing on the list is to organize our school/playroom and finalize our curriculum choices for next year.  

What do have planned for the summer? 

~Cindy