Three Successes and a Fail

This girl was NOT going to take a vacation from Summer School. ::grin::  Today we did four experiments.....

We checked the freezing point of four different liquids

 

Neither guessed Jello would freeze first....we're waiting to see if one of their guesses as to which would freeze last is correct. Success.

In this one we were to explore an amorphous solid - it didn't work - and then I tasted it.

 

Yep! We learned you can't substitute powdered sugar for corn starch. Fail. We'll try this one again.

 

Success - we demonstrated how atoms like to stick together.

 

Alex wanted this one to succeed - and it did. We learned about surface tension and floated  a needle.

We finished science in time for me to go with Michael to Sacramento for his brain scan.  We picked up Papa Murphy's on the way home and are settling in to watch Independence Day.

WOOT - ACCLIMATION

Woot! We have acclimated from the frigid temps of Northern Japan to the scorching, drought-inducing temps of Central CA.

We know this because we rushed outside to enjoy the cool evening - 90*. Yes, our yard is dying. Yes, we have let our landlord know.  The verdict was the sprinklers are on the CA drought allowed water schedule. ::sigh:: I hate that it's dying. He's trying to sell when we move out.

Bocce

 Arielle and I ENJOYED the hot tub - the water was way HOTTER than normal given our recent temps. 

SUMMER Days

No Brain Dump for these students

We use "summer"  to fill in any gaps we let slide during the "school year," read a lot of good books and continue on with "table school." This works for us.  As of 1 July we have officially begun our new school year....the years morph.  Schooling this way allows us to school the number of days the state requires (usually more - we had 205 days this year), take breaks when it fits our schedule (12 weeks this year - allows for the natural rhythm of our family) and still cover all we want to cover in any given year.


For us, "104 Days of Summer," equals brain dump and fog in the fall. We had a couple of weeks of NO SCHOOL at all in June and we take complete breaks here and there during the year - 3 weeks in December. The rest of the summer we do "table school" - finishing last year's work; getting ahead in next year's work - this includes math, language arts and reading.  It takes about an hour a day. The older two are continuing with their Japanese lessons. The younger two get to pick their own reading material for our mandatory 30 min of reading a day.

"Any book on the shelf?"

"Yes."

Stacia told Arielle, "Mom gave us the privilege of choosing ANY book on the shelves we want to read." 

Sometimes it's SO easy to be cool. ::wink::

Alex has been choosing science text books. Stacia is reading a story about children immigrating to America to join their father.

The routine and a bit of structure is nice - and this greatly helps with the brain fog that used to accompany the start of each school year. It also gives us a legitimate reason to stay in the air conditioned house during the "hot hours."

We did get behind on the experiments which accompany our science text. We are doing them now and have discovered it's  perfect for Summer School. It anchors our day and is serving as a great review. I don't think I'll save them all in the future - but a few from each unit would be fine.

 

We made lava lamps today.

 

Science is serious business - you never know what will blow up

 

 Moments like these (above and below) make homeschooling fantastic!

Everything but the Epsom Salt in a basket for tomorrow's fun. I don't want to BUY a big thing of Epsom salt when we are SIX WEEKS away from moving into the trailer. I may skip the Epsom Salt....which may be why we have iffy results so often. LOL 

 

*Note we used vinegar instead of water for a stronger reaction. I think the results would have photographed better with a lighter color oil - but I had full body olive oil and I'm moving in SIX weeks. LOL  

Summer Evenings

This spring we've enjoyed lovely bike rides and leisurely family walks in the evenings.....but I'm quickly learning SUMMER EVENINGS aren't  pleasant as the heat rises. The rising heat seems to activate the wasps and mosquitoes, as well.

 

Our new trend seems is staying inside in the air conditioning.....I'm dreaming of a soak in the hot tub...but even *I* am not dedicated enough to jump in when it's 108*. 

 

Monopoly

Priceless

Both girls needed to see an Oral Surgeon - we did that today.

We learned a few things at this new office.   I learned to calmly and patiently talk to the receptionist about the viewing choice in the waiting room. "I've not seen a soap opera in a long time. I guess you don't realize how inappropriate they are until you're watching them with your 9 yo sitting beside you."

They apologized and turned it to the home shopping network...which beat the stuff on Days of Our Lives - criminey.

Stacia was  alarmed we were not at 12 Bridges. Oops. I thought she realized Dr. Zanzi referred her to another.  Today was just a consult.

They called us back and the tech took Arielle's blood pressure - great. She took Stacia's - 129/89. She told Stacia it was obvious she was nervous. Stacia agreed and said something to the effect that anyone would be nervous about THIS.

Arielle is used to "clean shaven Air Force dentists." Her face was priceless when the surgeon walked in with a full beard and a turban.  He was quite friendly and asked her why she was moving to Oregon...which led to talks about what she wants to do with her life....which led to questions about her faith and the faith of many in Japan and more. It was quite fun to sit back and watch. I did tell Arielle in the future she could say, "I want to teach English as a second language in Japan," if she  wanted to avoid the faith discussion. But, why? He brought up the questions and she fielded them well.  He asked about her t-shirt. She was wearing our family shirt. We got to quote a bit of Scripture too....though she was flustered and flubbed that one earning her a fair dose of teasing from the doc.

The earliest they can get Arielle in for her wisdom teeth is 14 July. They'll put her on standby for earlier. This means she can't move to OR until after 21 July. It also means we are unlikely to go to OR/WA on 15 July. It seems we are not meant to take a trip in July...... ::snort::

Watching the girls deal with a new situation as priceless. Watching Arielle share her plans was priceless.

Sundays.....

are made for worshiping , catching up with old friends, making new friends, enjoying lunch as a chapel family, skyping with a friend from Misawa, doing nails, reading, naps

Working on a puzzle

 

Playing Dixit

Ice cream (or hummus and carrots)

and

An episode or two of the Andy Griffith Show.

GIVE ME COLOR

Michael called Friday morning to say he'd like to have a family for dinner. Making new friends is always  GREAT MOTIVATION to get our Friday chores done. I had promised the kids I'd take them to "Inside Out." We headed out for a 1300 showing, picked up some dinner items and headed home. I missed the message that we weren't having company after all - but it was nice to have the house clean and an easy dinner all ready to go.  

 

It gave us time to pursue the DECLUTTERING!  I decided the easiest way to decide if things would go in the donate, priceless family heirloom, or essential trailer pile was to take photos....lots of photos. The things I think may be donations are now in a private facebook album.  The elder Gherkins get first shot in claiming items....several of them are starting new homes. Score for them!  I'm going to do my best, after an item is in the album, to either find it a home or donate it. Rather than share photos of Panini makers, waffle irons, slow cookers and couches....let's move on to SATURDAY.

 

Michael and I headed to Lowes to look for supplies to do a few trailer remodels. I want a backsplash and was hoping to find "smart tiles." No luck. I did find quite a few on Amazon. I also wanted some sort of laundry line and a bike rack.  Michael was looking for hardware to convert an entertainment center to more storage for the "queen" room and for generators and portable BBQs.  RV's don't do well in long-term storage. They need to be used. We didn't know this when we stored ours for the four years we were in Japan. The heat caused the glue to release on the contact paper which covered the wood (in other words we THOUGHT it WAS wood). This paper has been peeling off the wood.....we purchased a heat gun to remove all of it and paint the wood work. Michael suggested I look for colors..... I did. I'd also like to paint the slide out a nice burgundy color. 

 

It turns out Michael meant to pick a color of WHITE to paint the spots the WHITE paper used to cover....I think a bit of color accent would be fantastic. 

These photos clearly illustrate one difference between us....I love color...he likes lots of shades of white. ::snort:: He cannot fathom why I'd paint over the wallboard in the slide out.... I don't want to live in something which clearly looks like every other 2008 RQS. LOL  His eyes glazed over when I mentioned painting a couple of cupboard doors with chalkboard paint...and he rolled those eyes when I told him I was thinking of painting the front door of the trailer - yes the external front door.

 

I think we'll call the outing a date. LOL