Addle Brained

17, 18, 19 February 2012

My husband came home Friday night and I have neglected to update my blog post. I now do not remember what I did on Friday before my husband came home, save for cleaning house. Ah well. That will teach me for not staying on top of it! As for Saturday we ran a few errands and lazed about the house. Weekends when my husband is home tend to be lazy as far as school work is concerned. I am making an effort to change that but he isn't entirely on board with me for the homeschooling yet.

For Valentine's Day my husband bought me an electric blanket! I am so thrilled because I absolutely hate being cold! I took a nice nap with it Saturday night but I awoke with slight body aches and a sore throat. I still have my wisdom teeth and every time they start moving I get a massive headache, body aches, sore throat and aching jaw. It finally went away this afternoon though my jaw still has a lingering mild ache. Needless to say between that and my kids coughing up a storm we didn't attend church today.

Instead we drove around Antelope Island and did some wildlife watching. We saw coyotes and antelope today! Two more species to cross off our list! So far we have seen: Bison, Mule Deer, Crow, Hawks, Jack Rabbit, Pronghorn Antelope, Coyote, Field Mice, Finches (at least that is what they look like to me), and California Seagulls. That is nearly all of the major species of the island. Only large mammal we haven't seen yet is the Big Horn Sheep and Bobcats.

I had my husband go over some points about the kids education with me today. We went over each child's needs and wants individually and came up with some ideas as to how to best approach their education based on our observations etc. It took a long time but was well worth it and should become faster as we gain familiarity with the process. 

Before bed we watched some NOVA shows with the kids. It meant we didn't do our nightly reading for the first time in almost a month. The kids enjoyed them though and they were good shows so I have no problem with the miss of our reading tonight (especially since my jaw is sore still!

Overall not a bad weekend! Hope yours was well!

Where the Buffalo Roam

30 January 2012

I feel like Charlotte Mason and Oliver DeMille hit me over the head with a frying pan of inspiration. I took the kids to Walmart today and we bought a bunch of craft items. Quiet activities they can do while I read to them at night so they don't bother each other and I can get through more than a few minutes of reading. The things I bought are as follows:

Popsicle Sticks
Lanyard (boondoggle depending on where you are from)
Friendship Bracelet Thread
Yarn
Knitting Needles
Crochet Hooks
Colored Pencils
Crayons
Watercolor
Paper (white and construction)
Drawing/Writing Journals
Pencils
Beads
Pipe Cleaners
Glue
Scissors

I am sure I forgot something(s) on that list, but that gives you a good idea. We also bought fruits and vegetables we could eat without having to prep (apples, oranges, celery etc) and drove out to Antelope Island which is only a five minute drive from where I live. I had never been there before. Don't get me wrong here, I have only lived here since November, so it's not like I have had a ton of opportunities to go there. Anyways, I decided to pay for the annual pass since I plan on going there often since it is so close and it lets me into all of the other state parks in Utah.

We went to Lady Finger Point and walked/climbed up Lady Finger Trail. The kids had a blast running through the brush and climbing up the rocks. We looked out to Egg Island were the seagulls go to roost. We got a pretty good look at just how big the island is from that vantage point. After we had our fun there we drove up to the Visitors Center and had a look around. Ra was a bit disappointed that it wasn't more extravagant than it was. Ah well.

We saw our first bison sitting around outside the Visitors Center, just south of the parking lot. We got back in the car and had something to eat then drove the 11 miles to the Garr Ranch on suggestion from the folks at the Visitors Center. It was really cold and I had only had the kids bring sweatshirts so by the time we got there and had a potty break the kids were ready to call it a day.

On our way back to the causeway I saw a lookout point we could drive to so I took a small detour there and had the kids pull out their journals we just bought and draw a picture about the island and write something about it as well. All three of them did a wonderful job. Ra drew the landscape scene from where we were parked, looking out over the Great Salt Lake. El drew the causeway leading up to the island and our car on it. Ca drew . . . well I couldn't make it out but he explained it to me and said it was dead fish that the animals killed. Ahhh boys.

I think we should spend the rest of the week at Antelope Island, at least a few hours a day. What a great experience and there is still so much to do and see there.