Changes happening but happiness abounds

Monday - the Girl Scout flag team had practice before their big event in March.  After practice, we had our regular troop meeting where the girls were finishing up their swaps and tri-fold boards for Thinking Day.  Thinking Day is coming up soon!!  Can't wait - my co-leader, Lori has done a fantastic job getting the girls ready.

After our meeting some friends came over to play before dinner and before I headed out the door to teach a co-op class.  It was only for the moms so the kids stayed home and played with Dad.

Tuesday - we were out the door to drive to the Springs for our field trip to the Cave of the Winds.  I didn't take my camera because I didn't think it would be allowed in the cave but I was wrong.  Oh well - maybe next time.

The kids learned about bats and caves - bats are the only mammals that can fly, they can see (they are not blind), vampire bats do not actually kill the animals they get the blood from, bats eat fish, insects (up to 1000 an hour) small rodents, and fruit.  We watched a video before our tour into the cave.

The cave was found in 1869 by Arthur B Love when he investigated a limestone archway but the kids liked the 2nd discovers - brothers John and George Pickett who found a large chamber in 1880.  The first tours started in 1881.  The tour cost $1 (about $80 today) and took 12 hours - (2 hour hike up the mountain to the entrance, 4 hours in on your belly, and 4 hours out on your belly and 2 hour hike back down).

Luckily, our tour only took an hour and a half.  The kids learned about limestone, calcium carbonate, Stalactites, Stalagmites and columns (when a stalactite and stalagmite meet), different types of rocks, and a few jokes.  Immediately, after the tour we had to race back to get Andrew to piano class.  The kids ate lunch in the car while we listened to a book on tape (our new favorite thing to do in the car).  We got to piano about 15 minutes late but Andrew transitioned right in.

Today, we went to dance class, Panera bread to visit with our dance class friends and then we took Jewel to the vet.  In the afternoon, when we finally got to work on schoolwork, everyone got right to work without complaint.

I did take the kids out of COVA on Monday.  The teachers didn't give me a hard time at all.  I have been talking to a couple friends of mine about how we are going to homeschool now without the curriculum right there for us.  I am looking into a math curriculum, Math-U-See for the kids but especially for Cairn (my visual learner) But I am also reading lots and lots of books.

Tonight, Cairn and I headed to the library to pick up our books on hold.  Andrew asked for books on bats and caves (I can do that).  Skylar just wants books.  Tonight I introduced Cairn to a new site, Goodreads.com.  Here she can rate books she has read and then get recommendations, log the books she has read and find out about other books.  She is constantly asking me to find her a new series of books to read - this way she is in charge of finding the books.  She was super excited!  This way I can also see what she is reading and she is writes a book review when she is finished reading a book.  I just snuck in some writing without her knowing it!!

Four Mile Historic Park field trip

We started a new routine this morning.  Everyone is awakened and they are to get dressed, brush their teeth and hair and make their beds before coming downstairs to eat breakfast.  Then immediately after finished breakfast, they are to get started on schoolwork.  It worked well today especially since we had to be out the door by 9 AM to get to our field trip.

We went to Four Mile Historic Park so named because it is 4 miles from the house on the property to Broadway and Colfax which is where the capital building stands.  Pioneers would stop for food, drink and rest at the house before heading into Denver for business.  The house was built in 1859 by the Brantner brothers.  Eventually it was bought by the Booths who increased the farm to 60 acres and had a large honey and butter business.  Mrs. Booth produced 4000 pounds of honey at one point with all her hives.  Eventually, the railroads arrived and the property was given to the city of Denver and made into a park.

We were there to learn about the pioneers.  First we stopped at the loading of the wagon and learned how kids had to make choices about the things they could take with them across the prairies.

 This was an actual wagon - it seems so small.  I guess I always imagined the wagons to be like the ones on Little House on the Prairie.  The kids also learned that everyone had to walk the entire way since there wasn't any room on the wagon except for the driver.

 Then we got to ride on a freight wagon.  This was everyone's favorite part of the day.

Then we headed over to the fire to make some oyster mash - no oysters inside only flour, egg, butter, salt, pepper and corn.  Then they threw in some crisco to the pan and baked the batter over the flame.  The kids seemed to like - Cairn and I didn't want to try it.  I didn't like the crisco part of the meal.  Everyone got to help stir the batter.  First up Skylar,

Then Andrew, 

 Finally, Cairn.

 Waiting for our turn to try the oyster mash.

 After a snack we headed off to pan for gold.  Cairn was the expert pan handler since we took the class at the Mining Museum back in January.

 No one got wet which was amazing and they all found little pieces of gold.

Our last stop was the teepee to learn about sign language the Indians used on the prairie.  Andrew couldn't wait to go inside the teepee.

After we hit all our stops on our field trip, we ate our picnic lunch with our friends.  It was a fun morning and the weather was perfect.  Not too cold or too sunny, just a nice fall day.

When we got home (around 2 PM), Andrew was sleeping so the girls got to work with few interruptions on their schoolwork and got it finished before Cairn had to go to piano.  Cairn earned 100% on her unit assessment for fractions and decimals.  Skylar earned 100% on her language skills unit assessment too.  Andrew had finished his schoolwork in the morning so I let him nap until we left again.  He went from no naps to falling asleep early in the afternoon the last 2 mornings.  The only bad part about it is he doesn't fall asleep at bedtime and he takes forever to fall asleep too.  Tonight I finally got him to sleep at 11 PM.

Touch-A-Truck, Puppet show and friends

What a full day we had and with just enough time in between events to give everyone a break.  We started off the day at Touch-A-Truck where Andrew got to see all kinds of trucks up close and even run some of them.

First up was the fire truck and he was ready to climb all over it.

 But then Andrew saw something else across the parking lot that caught his eye!!

 First, we had to finish up at the fire truck.

 Then everyone got on the ATV.

 Andrew got inside the Army truck.

 and "drove" it.

 Finally, we got to what he had seen earlier - the trash truck.  He got to make it move the trash - he was in heaven.

 Then Skylar took a turn.

 Then we found the police car.

 Cairn found a nice quiet golf cart.

 Then a drag racing car - this one was bright pink and said "drag queen."

 The noise was too much for Cairn so her and I ended up in the car waiting for everyone else.  We had a nice chat and Andrew got to see what he wanted on his time.  After the show, we went home for lunch and then headed to the library for a puppet show with homemade instruments.  The one man show was Eric West who has been doing shows for Colorado Children since 1982.  He was very funny and interacted well with the kids.  He told many jokes that only the parents understood but the kids still had a good time.

Cairn got picked to play in the band.  She had an extra loud horn.

 After the show, all the kids got to play the instruments.  Cairn and Andrew working the horse puppet.

 Andrew on a bongo.

 Skylar playing the pot top drum.

 Skylar playing with another puppet - this one was the conductor for our train song.

 Now, Andrew's turn.

After the show, we went home for some play time outside and then dinner and then waiting for Baby C to come over.  I was babysitting Baby C but everyone was super excited.  We were also expecting N and C home from their 2 week trip away.  We thought they were coming in late but at 6:50, N rang the doorbell and he was ready to go to the park.  Everyone was thrilled from having Baby C to N and C being home.  It was a great night with everyone happy and ready for bed by 8:30.

Tomorrow is much quieter but I am sure will include a lot of play time with N and C.  We will see them a lot this next week too because I am going to take care of them during the day.  Their school hasn't started yet and their Dad couldn't find a camp so they are staying with us.

Plains Center visit

Since it was going to be 100 degrees I thought we should head out to the plains and do a field trip.  Actually, it had been planned for awhile but here are the kids before they got hot.  Check out the background - no trees - it is going to be a hot one.

 This is our guide.  She wore this outfit the entire time.  I was hot so I know she was burning.

Cairn sitting on the wagon listening to our guide - she is starting to look hot.

We rode a short distance to the farm where the chickens came out immediately, thinking they were going to be fed.  Not yet little chickees!

This guy liked Andrew.  He kept trying to pet the chickens but they weren't into that.

This is a picture of the first house a pioneer would have built, a house built into the side of a hill.  They could have lived here for a year or more while they built their sod homes.

We got to go inside the sod house to see how the pioneers would have lived.  It was a one room home that could have had 12 people inside.  Mom and Dad had a bed with a trundle under it for another small child and then everyone else would have slept on the floor.  Someone had to stay up to tend the fire too so they wouldn't freeze to death in the winter.

This boy is demonstrating how they would have gotten water from a nearby creek.

Here is the frig where they kept their milk, butter or anything that needed to be kept cooler.  No ice in this neighborhood.

This is the biggest/tallest cow I have ever seen.

After seeing the house and the animals we headed to school.  It was a one room schoolhouse.  The kids entered the school in a line with the smallest in front and the boys were in their own line.  The smallest sat in the front and they filled up the seats with 2 in a seat.

First, they counted the stars on the flag because there were not 50 yet.

Then they pulled out their slates and did a listening and drawing activity.

Cairn did some reciting in the front of the room and then walked back to her seat with a book on her head to practice her posture.  They got a lot accomplished in the one room schoolroom.

Finally, it was time to feed the chickens after we saw the chicken coop.  Some of the kids went inside to collect eggs, mine didn't because it was too hot in there.

After our guided tour we were taken back to the main area where we had lunch with some of our friends and then checked out the visitor center.  No one wanted to stay long because they were hot and thirsty and just wanted to go home.  We headed home for some coolness and quiet time.  The heat drained everyone.