Monday, April 30, 2012

April Stats Post


Since I'm a stats geek, I'm posting a stats post at the end of each month. Feel free to ignore my craziness :D


Top Posts:
Ultimate Blog Party 2012! (4/12/12)
Our Current Curriculum (3/9/12)
Tot School - Letter E (4/1/12)

Top Referring Sites:
Google
1+1+1=1
5 Minutes for Mom

Top Keyword Searches:
Grade Sheets

Dissection of a Lima Bean
Tot School

Audience:
The USA gave me the most visitors, followed by Russia and China
Most of my visitors came to me though IE, followed by Firefox and Chrome via Windows, Mac or Linux 


Thanks to all my readers for providing me with constantly updating stats to oogle!

Menu Plan Monday


I'm linking up with I'm an Organizing Junkie


Monday - Ham Steaks, Mashed Potatoes, Mixed Veggies

Tuesday - Sausage and Rice

Wednesday - Enchiladas (from last week)

Thursday - Mexican Casserole

Friday - Tuna Salad (from last week)

Saturday - Chicken Stew (crock pot)

Sunday - Daddy cooks

Sunday, April 29, 2012

Tot School - Letter G


Olivia is 33 mths old

Linking up with 1+1+1=1

Olivia had very little interest in school last week so we moved Letter G to this week

Photography Skills lol

She gets right into gardening!
She's madly in love with her Octonauts Easy Reader from 1+1+1=1

Super Cheese!

Brianna colored the flower on the left and Olivia wanted to "color nice" too

She's started freehand drawing, her favorite being a happy face. The 2 scribbles to the sides are ears and she's working on eyebrows at the top.

She hasn't been terribly interested in her printables lately

Friday, April 27, 2012

5 Question Friday


Linking up with My Little Life

1. Do you make your kids finish all the food on their plates? They eat whatever they choose. However, if we happen to be having dessert (once or twice a week), there's no treats if they don't finish their dinner. 

2. Do you give an allowance? Sorta. My older kids earn money by doing chores. Regular, self responsibility chores (like picking up their toys and such), don't get paid for. But other stuff that they're asked to do for the whole family or off the chore list of larger chores, they get money for.


3. Do you actually park your car in the garage? We don't have a garage, so no.


4. What is one food you will NEVER cook? liver. I refuse to even try it. I also can not stand the smell of shortbread cooking


5. Do you have anything exciting planned for the summer? Other than the birthday trio (all 3 of my children are born in a 2 week period in July), not really. Maybe a day trip to the zoo or a water park. 

Thursday, April 26, 2012

I Have a Fear of Play Doh

I was reading a blog post at The Usual Mayhem about how great Play Doh is. And I agree! Play Doh is the first thing Olivia and I pull out when we visit her brother.

Play Doh in my house though? NO WAY! My old excuse was it gets smeared into the carpet.

Then we ripped out the carpet in the living room. But oh! We have kids and they drag their toys around and there's still carpeting upstairs! Yes! That's a great excuse!

Then we moved to our new house. Which has ZERO carpeting anywhere.

Crap.

Ok, so I hate Play Doh. Maybe it's my OCD. I can't stand Play Doh being left out to dry. I can't stand the colors being mixed, never to be separated again, eventually turning into a putrid grayish purple that no one wants to play with. I'd rather tubes of loose glitter to Play Doh

Modelling clay? Not as bad. I allow Brianna to buy it. However, she keeps it in the basement other than to bring it up to show me her creations. Olivia, not surprisingly, finds it too hard to work with.

*Maybe* just maybe, I could buy a single color tub of Play Doh and keep it high up and only bring it down when it can be contained......

Monday, April 23, 2012

Menu Plan Monday


Linking up with I'm an Organizing Junkie



Tuesday - Hamburger/Peppers/Onions w/ Potato Coins (from last week)

Wednesday - Enchiladas

Thursday - Lazy Lasagna

Friday - Tuna Salad (from last week)

Saturday - BBQ for my BIL's birthday

Sunday - Serve yourself (of hubby cooks)

Sunday, April 22, 2012

College for Homeschoolers

Even though we are still years away from college (even at the dual enrolment area), it's always a good idea for a homeschooler to start looking at their options.

Credit

St. Lawrence College is a wonderful local college in my town. They have great special events and work well with special needs whether they be dietary, mental or physical. The school is a smaller college that has smaller class sizes that will appeal to homeschoolers. Most teachers are on a first name basis with their students. For religious students there is a prayer room, regardless of the religion. There is a doctor on campus available to all students.

A sign outside the cafeteria

As specified on their website they do accept homeschoolers. From the site, on admissions requirements"St. Lawrence College evaluates applications from home-schooled students on an individual basis. Applicants should supply detailed information about the curriculum and the methodology used in acquiring the knowledge they have. Any standardized tests that have been taken should also be provided. The College may require further pre-admission testing."


Unfortunately the admissions office was unable to get back to me in time for this post, but they can be reached at (Cornwall) 613-933-6080, press 1 or 1-800-463-0752 (Kingston/Brockville) for more information.


Waterview Homeschool recently sponsored a cart race for the school for my sisters class. Lots of great fun, but also counted toward the participants grades as they had to pitch marketing details to the "Dean's Den" and secure sponsorship and actually build a cart and compete in the race! This is the event highlighted in this post.


Building of the cart
Our driver, my mom in her "air bag" (bubble wrap suit)
One of the races that our team won
The whole team (minus myself and my sister's teacher, Carla), including the Dean (in the middle-back with the blue sweater)
Trophy my sister's team won for Sustainability

Friday, April 20, 2012

Record Breaking!

I know it's my 3rd post of the day, but I wanted to make sure to record that the girls BOTH broke their all time running records today! They were told that as of next week they'll be running further than the .3 mile (almost 1/2 km) that they have been running and they seemed to put the most effort possible into today's run. Brianna broke her all time record by 12 second with a time of 2 minutes and 28 seconds. Tanya broke her all time record by an even 10 seconds with a time of 2 minutes 25 seconds.

Next week they will lengthen their route to 1.05 miles (almost 1.7 km). Their first 5k of the year is on May 21st.

Titanic!

Last weekend was the 100 year anniversary of the Titanic's sinking and we did a unit study of all the history involved. From the 13th through the end of this week we did solely Titanic work. Here's some of our highlights.

 A collection of books and movies, both from the library and my own collection (yes, I let them watch Hollywood's version, but only after learning the facts and stressing that while it's based on a true event, it's still a Hollywood movie)

The girls doing their reasearch
            We were lucky enough to be able to go to a Titanic exhibit that a local collector put on
The girls outside the exhibit 

Thomas Andrews

A postcard showing how large the Titanic was

An actual cup and saucer from the Titanic

A real piece of wood from the Titanic's grand staircase

An actual photograph someone aboard the Carpathia took of the survivors.

A model that the collector built of the Titanic as it now looks

An actual chandelier from the Titanic's sister ship Olympic and a picture of a chandelier that is currently in the Titanic (with a sea pen sticking out of it, the girls' favorite part)

The collector also had a large selection of souvenirs from the Hollywood movie. All pieces in this picture are actual items from the movie.

Not the actual necklace and picture, but the necklace is one of 200 exact replicas from the movie and the picture is on that was pencil sketched by an artist from the real one.


The girls putting together a timeline

Completed timeline

Brianna was inspired to build the Titanic as it hit the iceberg out of clay

Brianna researching for her essay

Though it's a little above their level, I had them put together essays from what they learned. They both impressed me a lot with how well put together they we're given their age and writing levels.

Brianna wanted to type out her essay onto her laptop

Linked up with Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers as our Weekly Wrap Up

5 Question Friday


I'm linking up with My Little Life


1. Groceries are high right now what is easiest way you have found to cut back? I actually have quite a low grocery bill as it is. We have 3 adults and 2 kids here (and 3 pets) and average between $300-400 a month for groceries (and we live in Canada where groceries are stupid expensive). My biggest money savings have been shopping the markdown bins. Meat, bread and produce (and dairy, but you really don't want that dept to have a markdown bin lol) are some of the more expensive areas in a grocery store. My 2 favorite stores usually have a large selection in the markdown bin. Both breads and meats are either the day of or the day before the "sell by" date. I have a large freezer. Problem solved! Produce from the mark down bin usually isn't as pretty as regular stuff... smaller heads of lettuce, spots on fruit, peppers starting to wrinkle, ect... still perfectly good, they don't have a different taste at all, but they are considered "not-sellable"

2. What are the top 3 things on your "bucket list"? I actually don't have a bucket list. Hmmm...

Travel all of Canada

Travel anywhere overseas

Completely renovate/remodel my house and property

3. Would you rather give up AC or heat? Well since I live in Canada and we have winter I'd have to say I'd rather give up heat simply for survival's sake. I'd be investing in a LOT of ice/fans if I gave up AC though!

4. What's your favorite cocktail?? Um... I don't have one? Does Kahlua and coffee count?

5. What was your first job & how old were you? Well, my father owed a Pog store (remember Pogs?!) and I was paid slave wages to help there after school when I was 11 and 12. As for an actual job where I got a pay stub? Walmart, 19 yrs old.

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Wilderness Wednesday


Please join our linky! Be sure to read the guidelines page if it's your first time linking up! 

We got the opportunity to go on a nature walk with a gentleman from the River Institute (which we found out is based only 2 minutes out our front door!) We went to Guindon Park, which I did not know had hiking trails, for an amphibian workshop.


Wild Strawberry

Blood Root

When they're picked, the stems "bleed" hence the name Blood Root

Tanya with a Wood Frog

Brianna's best friend Rebecca happened to show up for the same trip and that made it all that much better of a trip!

Shelf Fungus

We're pretty sure this was another Wood Frog

Skunk Cabbage

Unspecified Tree Frog

A Newt/Salamander (we're not sure which)



Monday, April 16, 2012

Menu Plan Monday


Linking up with I'm an Organizing Junkie

Monday - Cheesy Bacon Hashbrowns (from last week)

Tuesday - Hamburger/Peppers/Onions w/ Potato Coins

Wednesday - Rice and Bean Burritos (from last week)

Thursday - Poutine (take out)

Friday - Tuna Salad 

Saturday - Crock Pot Roast

Sunday - Chicken Salad (from last week)