Chocolicious.

Today we went on a field trip to Dinstuhl's chocolate factory. I was in chocolate heaven!!!! What a job to have. First we saw a slide show about the origins of chocolate and how it has been used in history. Then we toured the factory. We first had samples. Yum. Then we saw several people making various candies. One paricular cream candy took 3 people to make it. The first guy put the bottom chocolate on the cream center and sent it on down the line. It was then pulled through a chocolate waterfall and shaken to remove any excess chocolate. We all agreed that you couldn't have too much chocolate, but they disagreed. The lady in the middle put the squiggle on top of the candy and then it was cooled as it was sent to the final lady. She inspected each piece and put it into boxes. Another lady was in charge of making chocolate in molds. She was taking duckies out of molds. They were solid chocolate. Then we were shown all the various packaging. They can make anything out of chocolate. All you have to do is ask. Finally, we shopped for chocolate to take home. Bobbi picked out a chocolate record. Yes, she knew what a record was. Tyler chose the chocolate policeman set that included chocolate handcuffs. Then, as if that wasn't enough, before we left, they gave each child and each parent another chocolate gift. They were super nice people. I love chocolate!!! Sigh.

Silent Sunday

Another Gift From God!!!

Well, I checked on our Mockingbird nest today. It is in a bush just off our front porch. My mouth dropped open when 4 little yellow beaks opened to me. Aren't they sweet?!!! Of course they aren't as cute as Kildeer, but they are cute in their own way, all fuzzy and hungry. I was a bit worried that Mama Mockingbird would come back at any minute and peck me on the head. I had to open the bush a bit to see inside. God is a master of creating awesome creatures. New life. I love to whistle at the Mockingbirds. Sometimes I get a conversation going. I don't know what I'm saying, but I just keep on whistling. LOL I'll keep you updated on these little guys (or gals).

Nature Walk

You don't realize how much wildlife is right in your own "backyard" until you go outside and look for it. We did just that today and it was only a couple of miles up the road. Check out what we found. Enjoy. Catkin

Bumblebee

One Goose Family

Another goose family

Red winged blackbird.

Ladybug

Turtle

Mama Goose on the nest.

Worm

Yes, this is a snake. He was more scared of us than we were of him. How do I know that? Well, I stood there and took his picture and he was the first to slither off.

Wild Strawberry

Turtle on a log

Empty Nest Syndrome

Well, the baby birds are gone. They ran around our back yard most of the day. The fourth eggs did hatch, so there are now 4 little chicks. You can tell the youngest. He isn't quite as advanced as his siblings, but he does just fine. Mama bird wasn't as accomodating today. She and daddy bird were in training mode with their babies, so I was the enemy to fear. I did get pretty close later this afternoon.

Mama bird trying to distract me. Ha. I don't think so.

Here is the whole family out for a walk. I numbered the babies. They blend in so well.

After lunch we went back out and I couldn't find them. Then I saw Mama bird. She was in my garden, so I went to her. I couldn't find the babies. Where did they go? Then I spotted one in plain view. Then I spotted another in the tall grass. Where were the other 2? Something moved to my right. It was number 3. She was pretty close. Now, where is number 3. It must be the baby. After a few more minutes she moved to and there she was, right beside me. Sweet, sweet, sweet. Then the race was on. Mama bird squaked out orders and they obeyed, sort of. One little guy apparantly wanted his picture taken, so he stayed near me. That was a no no. Mama bird threw caution to the wind and flew to him. She squaked some more then stepped on his head. I wish I could have gotten a picture of that. You know, I sometimes feel like doing that to my little chick. This afternoon the all slipped through a hole in the fence and into our neighbors yard. I'll miss them. LOL Enjoy the pictures!!!!

We Have Chicks!!!!!

Today we noticed that the Kildeer chicks have hatched. I had to run and get my camera. Boy are they cute. Mama Bird and I have this understanding. I just talk real nice to her and she lets me take pictures of her babies. My "babies" were outside running wild but they didn't seem to bother her.

Isn't he just the cutest little thing!!!!!

There are three of them that have hatched so far. 2 are pretty advanced but one must have just been hatched because he couldn't walk well and his feathers weren't as nice yet. There is still one egg left. I fully expect it to hatch by tomorrow.

It is amazing that God created these little birds to be ready to go within hours of hatching. They look like little adult birds only cuter. I would love to have picked one up and petted it. However, I have seen Mama and Daddy bird's beaks and I didn't want to push.

Mama bird just sits there on her little ones keeping them warm. They take turns poking their heads out. Once all three got out and were running crazy. She had to call in daddy bird as reinforcement. She managed to get them all back under her. They are such obedient little birds. When I was taking pictures of the babies, Daddy bird got a bit worried. Never mind that I had been sitting there talking with mama bird for a good 20 minutes. He started squaking and squaking. I told mama bird to tell him it was ok. Well, she let out 2 or 3 little peeps to him and he quit. I can't wait until tomorrow to see them all running crazy all over the yard. I hope I catch them before they are gone.

Resurrection Day Fun

Today was a pretty good day, except for the rain and the cooler temperature. It could have been worse, though. We started the day with church. Everyone got dressed up in their Sunday best.
Then off to Sunday school. I teach 3rd grade girl and we have been working on a Ressurrection lapbook for the past 5 weeks. I hoped to finish it today, but due to circumstances, we will finish next week. Then off to church service. My brother joined us today. That was a blessing. After church we were off to have lunch with my parents and my aunt and uncle. We ate out, as did many other people. It was fun, but I would have rather had my homemade soup back home in the fridge. Yum.
Next was a special treat. We went to see my grandmother. She is in her 80s and in a nursing home. I was shocked that she remembered who I was. It has been a while since we have been there, and her mind isn't what it used to be. Of course, I took my camera. There were 4 generations present.From left to right are my daughter, Bobbi, me, Grandma, my dad and Tyler, my son.

We didn't stay long. Grandma had been to a church service and probably lunch and she was tired. My mom and Bobbi smiling for the camera.

The kids decided to mess with their Uncle Randy (my brother) while we waited. They think he is just the coolest.

He really is just one of them.LOLLast, but not least, the driver for the day was my wonderful hubby. Thanks, sweetie.

Burning Down the House

We had a scary moment this morning. No, our house did not burn down, but...

We were having school upstairs this morning and Bobbi asked if she could bake her clay creations in the toaster oven. I don't know what I was thinking, but I said sure. She did everything just right. She set the timer to what she usually sets it to, but then she left it and no one thought about it again. The timer did its thing and the oven went off. However, later (much later), I passed near the stairs and smelled something. It was not a wood burning smell, but more of an electrical smoke smell. I followed my nose. I felt just like our cat. Upon arriving downstairs and in the kitchen I knew for sure something was burning, but I couldn't quite figure out what it was. I sniffed my way around. The whole house had smoke in it by now. For a split second I thought I might have to call 911. Maybe the attic was on fire and the smoke was seeping into the house. I thought about running back to the attic when I turned to see the toaster oven billowing smoke from the front. I knew what it was. The creations were crispy critters. I saw them before they went in. They were quite lovely. One was a Christmas tree. Another was a candy cane. There was a bell and a small football also. The others I can't remember. I opened every door we have to help the smoke exit. It was very smokey. I turned on fans. Then I put the creations on the porch. I think it is safe to say they won't be bothered. It has been a few hours since the incident and the house still smells of this horrible smoke. Lysol doesn't even cut it. I'll leave the windows open and see if that helps. I don't know what went wrong. Maybe the clay was too thin to be cooked for that long. I don't know. We will watch the creations cook from now on.

Bee All You Can Bee!!!!

Science says that a honeybee can't fly. It's wings are too small and its body is to heavy. However, the bee doesn't know that, so it just does what God wants it to do and flies from flower to flower. We should be like the bee. We shouldn't worry about what others(or ourselves) say and just do whatever God designed us to do.

This week we visited Peace Bee Farm in Proctor. It was an awesome trip. I love insects! Bees are fascinating to me. They are one of God's wonderful creatures that make life better and possible for us. They pollinate flowers which results in the fruit we eat and they make yummy honey for us to eat. If you love honey, you might not want to learn exactly what it is and how the bees make it. Just let that be a secret of the bees.

On our field trip, our homeschool group met with beekeeper Richard Underhill. He is a bee expert. The kids, and adults, asked lots of questions and he answered all of them. We got to see the "hives" or boxes where the bees live. It was cold that day, but the bees were out. Mr. Underhill said that bees only fly when it is about 50 degrees out, so he knew the temperature by the actions of the bees. There was a large group of bees on the ground. They aren't usually on the ground so they might have found this particular soil full of nutrients they needed. Next, we looked at a display bee box. It was way to cold to open up a real box. Bees are cold natured and they keep the hive at 95 degrees year round. Opening the box would have cooled the hive. The display box was very interesting and had pictures in it that looked like what you'd see if you opened a real box. The kids took turns trying on beekeeper equipment. They all looked so cute in their beekeepers hat.

Then we went into the processing building. There we were showed how they uncap the honey and get it out of the frames. The wax is saved and melted into candles. The honey is bottled and sold. Each child was given a straw with honey in it to try. They loved this. Finally, Mr. Underhill took us to some special bee boxes that are used to raise new queen bees. Everyone had a good time and many took home bottles of honey and candles as well. We all know so much more about bees now. We will build upon that knowledge when we discuss bees again in our summer Botany coop.

A Royal Race Winner

Tyler participated in his first Royal Ambassadors (RA) Royal Racer race. Our church starts RAs at first grade and this was Tyler's first race. He participated in a glider race earlier this year, but he didn't win. It was our first time and we didn't know much about it. This time, though, we did our research. Tyler painted his car and weights were put in to help increase the speed. The cars can weigh up to 5 ounces. His weighed 4.6. That is pretty close using the crude measuring device we had. There were lots of boys at this race. Races were run according to grade, then the winner of each grade race raced again to determing the overall winner. Tyler placed 2nd in his grade level. The boy who beat him won the overall. It was a super fast car. Tyler was so excited to get his red ribbon. We were pretty proud of him. This year was a learning year for us, so watch out next year.