Edible Cells

In Anatomy & Physiology, we have been studying the cell, and it's various parts and functions. So for a fun project, we made an edible cell out Jell-O. The Jell-O was the cytoplasm, then we had Jelly Belly mitochondria, Skittles lysosomes, Smarties golgi bodies, fruit roll-up endoplasmic reticulum, cake sprinkles ribosomes, Twizzlers Pull-Aparts centrioles, and a bubble gum nucleus. We invited some friends over to join us in the project who hadn't been reading the same text, so it gave Aile a chance to teach them about the parts of the cell and test what she had learned. All the kids had fun, and it turned out to be a neat project, worth repeating! (Also, as a bonus to us parents, all those different candies in the Jell-O turned out to be not quite as yummy as the kids had hoped, so they really didn't eat all of it!) :)

Re-creating Adam and Eve

As part of our Bible class, we have been studying the days of creation. The other day we studied about how God created Adam, and them made him fall asleep, took a rib, and formed Eve. So we used some clay and Aile made her own version of Adam and Eve. :)

Entertaining Birds?

All three kids are playing nicely together (yes, I'm serious), when out of the blue, Brenner asks: "Mommy, when can we go to the bird feeder?"

I'm a bit perplexed. Did I hear correctly? "What bird feeder?"

"You know, the BIRD FEEDER!"

"The bird feeder in the backyard?"

"No! The BIRD FEEDER!"

"Where is it?"

"It's at the BIRD FEEDER!"

By this time, I think both of us were getting a little frustrated. I had absolutely no clue what he could possibly be talking about. And he was desperate for me to understand, but could only give that one description. After we went round and round a few more times trying to figure this out, he finally pointed to a building on his car mat where he had been playing--"Here! You know, Mommy, the BIRD FEEDER! When can we go here?!" He pointed again.

I actually kept a straight face, and answered calmly. "Well, Brenner, I'm not sure when we would go there. That's the MOVIE THEATER."

"And to top it all off, he flings his arms out and says, "That what I SAID!"

Little Men on the Moon

We were driving home one evening, and the full moon was already out and quite bright. It looked pretty cool. Brenner noticed it first, which was not surprising. He has had an obsession with the moon ever since I showed him a video of the first astronauts to walk on the moon and we learned about being an astronaut, gravity, etc. Anyway, so Brenner noticed the moon, and commented, "Look! It's a full moon today!"

"Oh, that's very neat!" I replied.

Brenner, for about the 20th time in the last couple weeks: "When can we go to the moon, Mommy?"

"Well..." I hedge. I am trying to come up with a 2oth answer, since the previous 19 apparently did not suffice. But Caelum chimes in and answers for me, in all his 2-year-old logic: "You can just drop us off, Mommy! Can you drop us off at the moon, please, Mommy?"

"That's a very far to go, Caelum. We can't drive there."

"But, I think I can walk on the moon!" He shouts emphatically.

"Maybe someday..." I reply.

Heavenly Swimmers

So the discussion in the van today was about how the animals in Heaven will be tame and we can walk right up to them and pet them. Aile pointed out that even the crocodiles will be nice.

Brenner, in his excitement, exclaimed: "Oh wow! Mommy, don't let me forget to take my swimming suit to Heaven because I JUST HAVE to swim with the nice crocodiles!"

Caelum's Mishaps of the Day

So this morning, after loading the kids into the van all ready to go, for the second time this week, we were met with the typical clicks of a dead battery in our van. So out we went to play in the yard instead.

On the scene comes Caelum: he backs up against the tree and starts counting-- "One...two...three...four...five...six.......GO!"

He runs. He dives onto the swing on his tummy.

And he slides right over and ungracefully face-plants into the dirt. The crying...and the blood...commences.

After 30 minutes of consoling and blood-mopping and unsuccessfully trying to inspect his mouth for missing or loose teeth, Caelum starts to talk. Here are his delirious ramblings: "My mouth is hurt! My back hurts! I want my shoes on! I don't like race cars anymore! I need to learn my memory verse!"

For some unknown reason, I actually tried to engage him in a conversation about these things.

Me: Why don't you like race cars anymore?
C: Because I don't know! But I want my shirt clean! (It was very wet with blood and slobber.)

Me: Okay, I'll get you a clean shirt. Let's go to your room.
C (Not getting up.): But do you know my memory verse? That would be FUN!

At this point we commenced going over his memory over and over about 5 times: "We will obey the voice of the Lord." Until Caelum says he wants to do it himself. His version: "We obey the Lord! And then there's the sun and the moon!"

LATER in the day:

Caelum is crying again, in his room. I enter and ask what happened.

C: My microphone!

Okay, so I am searching for a microphone that has been snatched away by a thoughtless sibling or that has fallen to an unreachable place.

C: I'm bleeding again!

Sure enough. Blood all around the mouth for the second time in one day. Search for the missing microphone stops abrubtly. Again, I ask what happened.

Caelum stands with hands on hips and answers as if I should have known all along: Well! I was singing and dancing on my bed! And now I'm bleeding again!

Okay. I think it's nap time.

RE-VAMP!!!

Well, it has been almost a year since I logged in to this blog. Life gets like that, you know. Craziness overwhelms the senses, survival instincts kick in, and all else goes by the wayside! :)

No matter, here I am, alive and well. And although it would be nice to have the record of the past year of our lives on here, I am looking forward to getting back into the swing of things and beginning anew with capturing the little important things in life right here for my own recollection and for the amusement or curiosity of whoever else would like to read it!

From this point, I will not tune in to the OCD component of my brain that makes me feel like I can't post something if I am behind and need to "catch up" first! Also, I will probably use this page for mostly homeschool purposes--to keep my resources in one place and to record the projects and such that we do. Occasionally I will have to entertain myself by adding strange, quirky, and hilarious things my children do. :)

Here's to blogging! And on we go....