cake, chickens and crochet

Binky's first cake!

Vanilla cake with chocolate frosting.

He made this himself and it was delicious!

He was very proud of himself.

Goose is chicken sitting!

That sounds funny!

She is taking care of 1 hen and 10 chicks for the next month.

So every morning at 7:30 (being a homeschooled girl who usually gets to sleep in until whenever, she isn't so happy about this part of the deal) she walks across the street to let the

chickens out for the day, clean their water and give them

food.  Every night she goes back to put them in their house for the night.

Binky has been helping, too.

He named two of the chicks Nova and Jubilee.

I think this is a great experience for her.

This is my first crocheted bag.

I was making an infinity scarf when I realized

the yarn was just way too itchy.

So I made a bag instead.

I love it!

I have never made anything other than scarves, so

this is a big deal for me!  I think it will make

a great farmer's market bag. 

I haven't crocheted for several months and now I am

hooked again.  It is so meditative for me. 

Goose is joining me and making her first attempt at a hat.

My husband is always asking me when I am going to make him

a sweater.  He doesn't even wear sweaters!

I know he just wants me to make him something.  I've made both

the kids and myself scarves, which he doesn't wear, either.

So a sweater it is.  I know it will probably take me several attempts

to get it right.  Maybe I should start now to have it finished

by Christmas!

painted glass bottles

Goose and I made these adorable painted bottles for some fun summer decor.

They are so easy.

We used rootbeer bottles and acrylic paint.

Choose the color you want and pour it into the bottle.

Start with enough paint to cover the bottom of the bottle.

Then begin to turn and twist your bottle upside down.

It takes a few minutes to completely cover the inside.

But when you are done, the effect is very cool!

Aren't they fun?!

I have mine outside to brighten up the backyard.

Solstice is almost here and I found this beautiful solstice pendant to make

in celebration of the season.
We will be bbqing and spending the evening outside with a bonfire and some
good music.  I can't wait!
Happy Solstice!

Reading and Eating

I found this book at the library last week.

Have you heard of it?

The illustrations are beautiful!

There are fables from India, Scotland, Tibet and more.

I am in love with the illustations!

We have been in the kitchen a lot lately

making delicious goodies like chocolate covered strawberries

and bananas.  Last night we made s'mores in the

backyard with Daddy.

A perfect ending to Father's Day!

This week we have friends coming over who are finally out of school

for the summer.  I am thinking pool, letterboxing, crafts, a hike maybe.

Both friends are big readers, so hopefully we can get some reading time in as well!

We are making progress on our Summer Reading List.

I will be adding our list in my sidebar later today.

Have a great week!

Glue Batik

This project has been in the back of my mind ever since I found it here.

I always find inspiration and great directions on this lovely blog!

I had been hiding a bottle of Elmer's blue Gel Glue just for this day.

So I pulled it out and found an old cotton pillow case to cut up.

Binky used a brush with the glue to create his TRON flag.

He is very into TRON right now!

Goose used the bottle of glue to create her pyramid and Eye of Horus design.

Egypt is a big part of her reading, writing and art right now.

After the designs were finished we left them out in the sun to dry.

Lucky for us it was a very warm day and they dried in no time!

After painting our fabrics, we left them to dry in the sun.

After they were completely dry, maybe an hour or so, we washed them in the bathtub.

It took a few minutes to rub off all the glue.

A fingernail brush does work very well.

This is Binky's TRON flag.

If you don't know TRON, this is the symbol for TRON himself.

I was thrilled with how well the glue really worked.

I love this pyramid scene!

I made this flower and Reiki symbol wall hanging.

We made these in a day and it was so much fun!

Both kids were very into each step, from the glue to the bathtub rinse.

Thank you Gail for another great project idea!!

good food and legos

I went to the farmer's market last Tuesday and spent $40.

I came home with 2 bunches of kale, 1 pound of baby lettuce, 1 bunch of broccoli, 2 bunches of carrots, 1 bunch of green onions, 1 pint of blueberries, 4 plums, 2 bunches of bok choy, 1 bunch of basil, 4 zucchini, and 1 giant cookie!

I made myself some lunch with the zucchini.

I sauteed it in a little butter, salt, pepper, parsley, oregano and thyme.

Then I shaved parmesan over the top.

So, so yummy!!!

We've also been making homemade pizzas a lot for dinner.

I make mine with marinara sauce, mozerella, parmesan, kale and basil.

Delicious!

I love the way the kale crisps up!

Binky is working on a lego movie.

That's Captain America in front, in case you didn't know.

We are very much into the Avengers right now.

He is sitting next to me right now writing the scenes out while

sipping on a lemonade with a straw made from 4 straws put together.

It is hilarious!  He is writing and slurping at the same time. 

I just took a picture with my phone!

So cute!

But don't tell him I said that!

getting ready for summer

Summer is almost here!

Can you feel it? 

I can.

Yesterday was so beautiful!

While enjoying our backyard, the kids and I

started a Summer Book List.

We are attempting to read 100 books by the end of summer!

No, not 100 each!  But 100 between the three of us.

This includes any book I read to them, they read themselves,

and even Garfield!  They can't get enough of Garfield!

Right now, Goose is reading The Staff of Osiris, A Theodosia Book, by

R.L. LaFevers.  Binky is reading the Bionicle series.

I am reading A Wind In The Door by Madeline L'Engle aloud to Binky.

This is one of my favorites to read aloud to the kids.

I read it to Goose a couple of years ago and she loved it.

What is your family reading right now?

There has also been a lot of baking going on in this house!

I made the first blueberry pie of the season.

Can I just say, YUMMY!

Oh, how I love blueberry pie and coffee for breakfast!

Goose made her first souffle the other night.

Wow!  Was it delicious!

She wants to go to culinary school when she is old enough.

I see many more delicious treats in my future!!

I found these goddess flags buried in Goose's closet yesterday.

I knew they would look beautiful hanging from our pergola.

They add so much color, beauty and peace to the backyard.

Our first swim of the season!

Our homeschool charter ended the year with a Swim Day.

All the kids were there and had a blast!

Binky has been asking to go to the pool everyday since!

And would it even be Summer without watermelon?

I think not!

I actually hate watermelon.

I can't stand the taste or smell of it.

But I always buy it for the kids.

And, as you can see, it is a big hit with them!

How are you getting in the Summer spirit?

photosynthesis and how it works

Binky made this youtube video as part of his plant cell study.

Enjoy!