JDRF Egg Hunt

Well, this will give a great big clue on how behind I am in posting pictures!  LOL

Our local JDRF group sponsors an egg hunt each year - a sugar-free egg hunt!  (The eggs include things like playdoh, chalk eggs, small toys, bubbles and jewelry.)  It was a beautiful day and lots of fun was had!  Little Miss Independent was ready to go even before it was time!

 There were things to keep the children entertained before the hunt - face painting, decorating bags, chalk and bubbles.  My crew always enjoys the big bubble wands!

 I'm thankful for this group and their efforts on behalf of our kids.  This egg hunt is a small thing in a lot of ways, but for a child with diabetes, these "candy event's can be a challenge.  It can be just one more thing that is hard.  It is really a nice alternative and also a fun time to connect with some other families.  We enjoyed seeing some friends there.

 So many kids were afraid of the Easter Bunny.  Eliana took a little time to warm up to him, but soon was giving him high fives.  

 She even shared her eggs with him.

Trying to get a good group shot.  Smiles are clearly optional.

 The balloon swords are always a hit with my boys.  Always ready for a sword fight!

It's nice for them to be able to enjoy this event and not have to worry about the sugar causing spikes.  They even had some low carb juice boxes!

Thanks JDRF for a fun afternoon!

Blessings
Leslie

Beyond Co-op: Boxcar Children #3

Wanted to share about another fun Beyond FIAR co-op day with The Boxcar Children.  There are so many fun hands-on lessons to do!  I always enjoy seeing someone else's take on a lesson too!  The others always come up with something different than I would have done!  It's a great way to share experiences, talents and interests with each other.

We started with a devotion on this beautiful sunny day in April (yes, I'm behind still).  We sat around on the front lawn and enjoyed our outdoor classroom.  Today we were covering some of the lessons found in Chapters 7-9.

One of the first lessons was on classification and organization.  The children did an interesting exercise demonstrating how they could have some similarities and some differences, but none of these traits worked well or consistently for sorting and organizing.  (For example sorting by color of hair and then color of eye.  As we moved through traits the system broke down.)  The children learned about Linnaeus and his system of scientific classification.  As they learned each of the seven main categories, they learned a motion to go along with it to help them remember.  Below they are putting a crown on their head for Kingdom.  

Raising their hands for "Class".

Working on making paper cones as a means to collect some things later in the day.  Their cones were made with nothing but a single sheet of paper - no tape, glue or staples.

As always, we enjoy a bounty for lunch!

The next part of our lesson focused on ... eggs!  Isn't it fun to see the variety of colors that eggs can come in?

I copied some of the posters so you could see some of the interesting information on eggs.  For the first poster, they played an interactive game.  They were given a circle with a number on it and then tried to figure out where it went in the comparison of pasture-raised eggs and conventional eggs.  The answers below are correct.

Much of the lesson was spent talking about the benefits of pasture-raised eggs and how eggs come naturally.  Did you know that the egg yolk should be orange?  And that a green "egg white" is alright?

We were all intrigued by the variety of colors in the egg shells.  We learned about the types of chickens laying the different colored eggs.

After talking about eggs, it was time to find some!  As an interesting twist, the children 8 and under looked on the ground for their eggs and those older had to look up!

They used their paper cones to collect eggs.  What a fun way to end our morning!

Thanks Julie and Vickie for a wonderful day!

Blessings
Leslie

Duke Gardens

Today was our last field trip of the year.  It was a little bittersweet.  It was a fabulous field trip.  It was the last one that Christopher will be doing with our group.  I've been planning group field trips now for 16 years.  I have loved doing this and loved the memories we have made.  I will miss having him with us.  I'm delighted that we ended on one that he has been looking forward to for quite awhile - and one that was a great one.  One he even thanked me for planning.  :-)  We visited Camp Chestnut Ridge and the oldest kids went on a high ropes course.  I'll post more on that trip later as I hope to get pictures of the older kids.  For now, I'll post another field trip from last month.  (Yes, still playing catch-up and probably will be for awhile).

April - a perfect time to visit a garden.  Especially Duke Gardens.  What a beautiful place!  We were scheduled for touring in 3 groups.  I went with the youngest kids who had a one hour tour around the gardens learning, talking and observing.  

One of my friends snapped this picture of Eliana and I.  I don't know how to turn it so it faces the right way though.  Can anyone help?

 We had a lively tour guide (can you pick her out?) who was very engaging with the younger set.

 After our tour, we waited for the older kids to finish their tours.  They had a Japanese tea ceremony in addition to a one hour nature program.  While we waited, I tried to take some pictures of my youngest two with the beautiful flowers.

 Trying to get them both to look.  To smile.  And get flowers and no people was a challenge.

 We changed locations.

I actually like this one.  

 The flowers were stunningly beautiful.

 I couldn't resist a closer shot of the flowers who posed perfectly for me.

 My little escape artist.  Often too "tired" to do much walking when we are trying to walk with a group.  Left on her own though, she is quick to go wherever she wants.  Do you think she was checking to see if I was following?  LOL

 We wandered over to a large field to have a picnic lunch and play.  Some played near the pond, others under a large magnolia and others yet on the field with a frisbee.  Eliana was very entertained with my camera.  She loves to take photos.  She actually got some good ones too.  Can you see her in the reflection of this wonderful young man's glasses?

 This sweet gal taking a picture of my girl taking a picture of her.

 She has no limits to what she will shoot.  Even went as far as to go up to a sunbather to take a picture.  (Much to the amusement of all of our watching friends!)  I was able to stop her though.  Below is one of her "creative" shots.

 After a warm day in the sun playing, we headed to a nearby popsicle shop.  Homemade and some really unique flavors!  Loco Pops is a great stop!

 They had chocolate too!  Even had some no/low sugar ones.

Another fun day with friends.  I love field trip days!  So thankful for the opportunity to learn and play in such a fun way!  I hope your day and week have been filled with delights!

Blessings
Leslie

Beyond Co-op: Boxcar Children #2

For our second Co-op of Boxcar Children, we covered chapters 4-6.  What a fun hands-on day of learning! We've done a lot of learning with this unit on food, nutrition and health!  Its been neat to see a lot of things tying together as we continue to move through the lessons.  

 After talking about grains and the nutrition of whole wheat and white bread, it was time to put our hands to work making bread!

 First they readied their work surfaces.

 Next it was time for the dough.

 They each received a hand full.

 Rolled it into a snake.

 Ended up with a knot!  Then we had to wait for the dough to rise again.

 The kids then played a fun activity to get to know each other better.  They used this time to talk, learn and also to encourage.

More nutritional information - this time on berries.  We also learned that its not just fun to eat produce, but also to use it to make homemade watercolors!

 The kids each drew a picture and then chose the colors that they wanted to use on their pictures.

 I love the creativity and variety in art work that I always see in groups of children!

 More cooking lessons!  What fun to make your own snack by following a recipe!  I really should let my younger children do this more often at home!  They all loved it.  Simple, delicious and fun!

 Mmmm ... don't these look good?!

What a fun day!  Wish you could all be there for the fun!  I'm hoping some of these ideas will help others who are co-oping these great books!  Thanks Lea and Julie for all you did!  We had a blast!

Blessings
Leslie