Science Monday

We had fun learning about properties of water and oil today. C. decided to take things into her own hands and come up with her own experiments, as she is quite sure she will be a scientist when she grows up.
We started out using some experiments from the Pop Science kit she received for Christmas. It's very cute, you use the bottle it comes with to do all sorts of simple experiments with basic household items.

This morning G. had preschool so we got back in the swing of things with some reading and writing, math, and Faith & Life. C. was feeling quite tired and uninspired for some reason, so every 10 - 15 minutes we had to go around the house with a different exercise/stretching activity. First we did the silliest walk we had ever seen, then we jumped like frogs, and the next one (C.'s favorite) was sideways crabwalking. I'm glad the curtains were drawn for that one, I'm not sure my neighbors are ready to see me struggling across the living room with my head back and belly up - and I am quite certain I may have permanently damaged my hamstrings when I got back up. But the important thing is that the math lesson was complete!

Nobody can ever truly appreciate the sacrifices I make to homeschool - walking like a crab, waddling like a duck, slithering like a snake - I don't remember ever having to do that as a public school teacher. But, at least I can have coffee whenever I want and take snack breaks, although I'm not sure that is such a good thing...

Carmelo Frazetti February 9, 1912 - February 15, 2008

This is from something I wrote for Mal's wake. I am feeling a bit better today, it has been very emotional and I have been crying a lot since last Friday. 

Dear Mal,

 

How can it possibly be that 96 years just wasn’t enough? How can it be that we feel so heartbroken and empty upon losing you? I would give anything to have had you for just awhile longer…a few days maybe…a few weeks even. We thought you would be here for a bit longer, and we could have your love guiding us and keeping us whole like only you could.

Everyone has been telling stories about you, and inevitably the stories end with laughter, everyone laughing at your wit and charm. I know there were many sides to you, that you were a complex man. But not all the stories are about my Mal. If you ever uttered an unkind word, I never heard it. If you were rude or sarcastic, I never knew it. When you saw me, your smile enveloped me and I felt truly loved. I knew you were always thinking of me. You were affectionate and kind, so happy to see me.

Your house, so important to you, was important to all of us. When we would sleep over the cereal bowls were always ready on the kitchen table in the morning, the Captain Crunch and milk ready to be poured. You’d greet us with kisses and smiles, and ask if we had washed our face and hands. And we’d always answer yes, even if we hadn’t – we didn’t want to disappoint you.

We’d play cards with Grammy and you’d accuse her of “stealing all the picture cards.” You’d throw your cards down in mock disgust when she won and accuse her of cheating. She’d smile, knowing you were teasing her. And of course, when it was time to go home, there was a dollar for our pocket and the words “go easy.”

Mal, Mary tucked a few pieces of Bazooka gum into your pocket. I’d forgotten all about the boxes of Bazooka in the pantry. It was such a treat for us, and you weren’t happy until our mouths were stuffed full and the wrappers with comic strips had been read and laughed over. When Mary told us of this, we sobbed, startled by a memory that suddenly seemed so raw.

When I became a mother, you were one of the first people to see Carmella. When you held her in your arms, you both fell instantly in love. The kids talked about you all the time and loved to come visit you. I wish we could have even just one more visit,  just to see your smile.

Nobody will ever have your grace, dignity and love. Nobody will ever be loved as you were loved. And we, your children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, can only hope to make you proud and be worthy of your love.  When the time comes that we can truly accept that you are gone,  maybe I  can laugh at the stories without a lump in my throat and the desire to sob out loud, but for now,

 

Go easy Mal,

 

We love you and miss you.

A St. Valentine's Day Super Heroine morning!

I can't resist posting these photos. This was Carmella 5 minutes after she woke up this morning. 

Super heroes to the rescue!

Thank goodness for Superheroes! Who better than to help us pass a day of freezing rain and subzero temperatures! Without them, I don't know how we would have made it through the day!

Of course, they can fly at the speed of sound and rescue lost, kidnapped, and otherwise needy stuffed animals.

WonderWoman saved the day with her amazing abilities of flying, deflecting, supersonic-ing, invisibility, and let's not forget the ability to speak to animals!

Should I jump??? Can I really fly?

Sometimes a superhero has to be serious.

Gung hay fat choy!

It's the Year of the Rat!  We've been enjoying learning about the Chinese New Year. C. was born in the year of the Snake, G. was born in the Year of the Goat, and I was born in the Year of the Monkey. Apparently, I am an "Earth Monkey" - "Always the community activitsts, Earth Monkeys have an inherent desire to live life the "right" way. They're very dependable and they take their work and their relationships seriously. In fact, they put forth 100% effort into everything they do. In return, Earth Monkeys expect respect from others." So how about some respect, people???!!!!

You can find out about your year here.

We made some fun crafts. The lanterns are very easy and we strung them up around our classroom. 

The dragon puppets are fun too and very easy.

We are lucky to have a beautiful parasol that my Dad brought back from China on one of his trips. C. is also wearing a lovely dress he brought her. You'll notice she is also missing her front teeth! I can't believe how quickly she is growing up. I feel so lucky to be able to spend so much time with her this year.

We're looking forward to the New Year celebration in Boston next weekend. Hopefully the weather will be decent. If any of you can give us some good tips on what's going on, where to eat, what not to miss, et cetera, we'd really appreciate it!

Xin nein kuai le! (That's Happy New Year in Mandarin!)

Speaking of Field Trips...

I was just thinking of where we have gone over the past few months...

1. Red Apple Farm in Philipston - A pick-your-own New England farm - highly recommended
2. Sholan Farms in Leominster -  Another pick-your-own farm, owned by the city of Leominster and a not-for-profit organization.
3. Worcester Art Museum - We had such a wonderful time here. It's small but has a range of interesting collections. It also offers art classes for all ages. 
4. The Discovery Museums in Acton. Highly recommend! This actually consists of two museums. The Children's Discovery museum is geared for the younger crowd - 6 and under I would say. While small, it is packed with activities to make a child's imagination come alive. G. loved the ball track room and could have stayed there all day. C. is probably just starting to outgrow this museum but still had a lot of fun. There is also the Science Museum housed in a separate building and it is fantastic! It is hands-on science exploration, geared for those over 6, but G. had an incredible time, and there was so much for him to do. It is expensive, $9 per person, but we ended up buying a membership because I can see us coming here a lot. They also have scheduled activities, the day we were there the kids could take apart telephones with tools. Very cool! Tip: Call ahead to see if there is going to be a schoolgroup at the Children's Museum because it can get very crowded!
5. The Ecotarium in Worcester. See previous post.
6. Petco - where the pets go! We had a wonderful field trip here with our local homeschooling group. The kids learned about petcare and all of the pets sold in the store. This Petco does not sell dogs and cats (thank goodness!). We did end up with a new pet though - a blue Beta fish named Thomas.

I'm sure we've been other places this year but I can't think of them right now. We've also been to some neat places for nature walks, but I'll list them in another post. Have a fun day!

Salamanders are amphibians!

We learned this at the Ecotarium the other day during the "Animal Encounter." Another great field trip courtesy of the library passes. We had a great time learning about salamanders, and also enjoyed the Dinotracks exhibit. The kids loved looking under the microscopes at different sand from around the world and bugs, of course.

I will say that I can't imagine ever paying full price to go to the Ecotarium. As great a time as we had, it is still a bit...welll...down at heels in portions. The poor polar bear, Kenda, is all alone in a pathetically sad enclosure - gray concrete and peeling paint. How could they not have concentrated on giving this poor animal a decent home?