Happy Holidays

2011 is winding to a close.  This week we have focused on Hanukkah.  We have 2 menorahs.  No arguing over whose turn it is to light the candles.  This year we tried something new and so far it has been working.  Mister B lights the match and lights both shamash and Little Miss M says the prayers.

Yes, I let my child strike a match.  I realized last year that he was 12 going on 13 and should probably know how to light a match.  After years of "Don't play with matches" well, he needs to know how to light a match.  It is a life skill.  There isn't always a lighter around.  He used kitchen safety matches and practiced over the kitchen sink.  If I could find a book of matches I would have him practice with those, too.  Remember when restaurants gave out matches.  They don't really do that anymore since no one can smoke in a restaurant anymore.

My mini-rant on being unable to procure free matches is now over.

From our family to yours.....Happy Holidays and Best Wishes for a Happy and Healthy New Year.

The Met

Today we returned to The Met (http://www.metmuseum.org) for a one hour tour of ancient Greece and Rome.  Our tour guide was very informative and really was able to engage the group.  I always find museums much more enjoyable when there is a knowledgeable tour guide.  Without a good guide, just how many Greek urns can you look at?

Just finished our dirty water dogs outside the museum.

I made them to pretend to run as we always do when we go to the met.  Little Miss M was not totally feeling the moment

They shared a moment of kindness as they looked at weapons.

They are learning about a little stand with Medusa on it.

In Ancient Rome they are learning how sculpture has changed over the years from the stiff poses to more realistic.  Here they are also learning that Cupid's father is Chaos.

The end of a successful day.  We are on our way to get pretzels.

I hope to return soon for more museum fun.

Tuesday

Our bathroom renovation is moving along.  The plumbing, electrical, and building inspectors all gave their okays and our contractor has started putting up the sheet rock.  Exciting stuff.

This past Sunday the kids participated in the JCC RJ All Star Memorial Swim Meet.  This meet was held in honor of their coach who passed away suddenly by stroke over the summer.  It was an exciting meet.  Both kids did really well, shaving seconds off of their previous times.  Mister B even managed to place and earned our team 2 points.  Our team also won the meet.  All the kids swam their best to make RJ proud.

This week our studies continue. Mister B is learning basic geometry terms and Little Miss M is solving for the unknown.  For History they are learning about British Imperialism in Africa.  In science Little Miss made a cell out of Jello and fruit.  She started to eat it before I could get a good picture but here are a couple.

A bit hard to see in the pic but here it is after we removed it from the glass jar to see how a cell wall adds structure to plants.

Inside the bag.  The plum is the nucleus, there are grapes for cytoplasm and raisins for mitochondria.

She really liked this project.  Mostly because she got to eat jello, but I believe she has a better understanding of cell structure and how plant and animal cells differ due to the cell wall.

Mister B is continuing to learn about energy and how all energy emits heat.  Yesterday he was going around the house and looking at various appliances and how they vent heat.

Grammar, vocabulary, and critical thinking round out the day.

Thursday

The week is almost over and I feel as though nothing got done.  Or more accurately, nothing I planned got done.  Lessons are progressing and this week was filled with activity.

Tuesday: The kids had music class.  They learned about flats and sharps.  Thankfully, we have a wonderful music teacher because the only thing flats and sharps brings to my mind is forks and knives.

Wednesday: Discussion Group.  We watched Jumanji and everyone brought in their favorite board game.  Everyone gave a little presentation about the game they brought in and why it was their favorite.  They discussed the different games.  Then they discussed the movie-likes and dislikes, actions and consequences, and if they would like to play that game.  Then they discussed an essay by Benjamin Franklin and how life is like a game of Chess.  The discussion finished off with their breaking into teams and playing a Jumanji trivia game.  They had a great time.

The bathroom renovation continues.  The plumbing and electrical inspector come tomorrow and the building inspector comes on Monday.  One day I will have a bathroom.

The year is flying by....

Here we are at December already.  It feels like time is just marching by as quickly as it can.  How did that line go from Steel Magnolias....Time marches on and one day you realize it is marching across your face....or words similar to that.


Schoolwork is coming along nicely.  Mr. B is dabbling in Geometry.  Learning about planes, and lines, and segments, and other things I have forgotten since 10th grade.  Little Miss M is learning about reciprocal dividing and reducing ahead of time.  In History we are learning about the British influence on India.  In Science, Little Miss M is learning about cells, tissues, and organs.  Mister B is learning about the different types of energy.  

We have been under construction at home since we are renovating our upstairs bathroom.  We have been showerless for longer than I would have liked.  It amazing what you find when you rip down walls.

Day 1-walls coming down.  To the right you can see the junction box that was hidden by the medicine cabinet that was not properly taken care of.  A miracle the house has not burned down.

Turns out we have had a long term leak in the wall.  That is my disintegrating house.  This will need to be taken care of in the Spring.

The tub is being removed.

This is the leaky pipe that has been destroying my kitchen ceiling.  Apparently it has been leaking for years.  Due to our hard water the hole would seal itself and then the water would break through again and reseal the hole.

Hi, mom, that is Harry carrying out part of the tub.

Here is the hole in my kitchen ceiling.  It got much larger once they started banging around up there.

The good news is the new tub should be installed tomorrow morning and some kind of showering will be able to happen.  Showering at the JCC while the kids are in swim practice is getting old.