Handwriting meets Art

The boys were in the schoolroom working on their handwriting journals while I loaded the dishwasher. This is what was on the whiteboard when I returned. I like the teeth in the shark. And the ears on the dog. You think this is a cry for help? "Mom, PLEASE sign me up for another art class!" says my ALWAYS VERY creative little redhead.

Wegmans field trip on nutrition

We had a GREAT 2.5 hour field trip to Wegmans today! LOVE that store - can't wait until they put one in the next town over, next year!!! It was geared toward a 4th grade level and they talked about nutrition and healthy eating.

They talked to us about nutrition and the importance of eating a rainbow of colors each day as part of our "5 a day" fruits & veggies:

The bakery department was oh, so delicious and smelled incredible! They gave us samples of various breads (their oven bakes 200 loaves at once) and let the kids feel the difference between sticky white bread (below) and hearty, nutty wheat breads. Strive for 6 oz. of grains per day ~ 3 of which should be whole wheat.

Science in the bakery department and how yeast makes bread rise:

They spoke to us for about 20 minutes about dairy and let us taste test 2 different mozzarellas, hard yellow cheese and yogurt. They showed us a cheese wheel that had holes in it and explained how the holes were made (by bugs! in hay! intentionally!). Below, she's showing how the curd separates from the whey:

Mmmmmm, steak!!

They showed us their meat department and talked about the importance of protein in a diet. Gave us a sampling of shrimp. Here's a huge Alaskan crab leg:

Just a tiny segment of their "take home and bake" section. Have you ever seen so many shishkebabs? As far as the eye can see!

Yep, as soon as they build the one in the next town over, I'll be calling RV on his way home from work -- "Hey honey, stop at Wegmans and bring dinner home. I don't care what it is - surprise me!"

Earth Day 2008 ~ Reusable Grocery Bags

I'm far from a tree hugger, but to 'celebrate' Earth Day 2008 ~ April 22nd I'm making reusable grocery bags my 'thing'.

I've actually used them off and on (mostly off) since October '07 when I bought CUTE pink reusable bags from Giant in honor of breast cancer awareness month. After reading these statistics, I've committed to using them more ON than off!

* 1 MILLION plastic bags are used EVERY MINUTE!!!!!!
* it uses as much petroleum to make 14 plastic one-use grocery bags as it does to power a car for a mile
* the average family uses 60 plastic bags in 4 trips to the grocery
* the reusable bags cost a mere 99 cents to purchase at the grocery
* most stores will now pay you .05 to .12 cents/bag each time you use your reusable bags (so they'll pay for themselves in 10-20 trips)
* in New York City alone, one less grocery bag per person, per year - would reduce waste by five million pounds and save $250,000 in disposal costs!

Plus, the reusable bags hold SO MUCH MORE than the 'disposable' bags. You can easily get as many items in 1 reusable bag as 4-5 plastic bags. They don't tip over in the car, less trips to/from the car carrying groceries in the house and they don't dig into your hands.

I bought several for each vehicle - I think the key will be putting them back in the cars as soon as they're emptied. I'll even make RV put a couple in his truck for those times when he stops on his way home for a few grocery items. He says he doesn't want the pink ones, though ;-)


I might as well confess -- I'm also a purse and tote bag junkie. Guess reusable grocery bags will prove to be no different. Need a few to choose from depending on my mood ;-)

Oh - this was funny. When I bought today's green/brown bags (top photo) my cashier & bagger were 2 teenage boys. The bagger put my reusable bags INTO a regular, plastic grocery bag. I laughed on the inside and was going to politely tell him at the end that he could keep the other bag. Then the cashier said "Dude, I don't think she wants her bags bagged!! It kind of defeats the purpose!"

Why don't you try one next time you're at the store and see if you like them? It'll only cost you 99 cents. In fact, this week, Giant, is giving away 5 FREE bags for a $15 purchase of certain foods.

Whew

Thank you so much for your prayers! The 2nd mammo was normal! Thank you, Jesus!

Now what will I worry about until next month's colonoscopy? Have I mentioned a) that I'm a worry-wart and b) I'm over 40, so everything is starting to fall apart? Oh well, beats the alternative! I do so want to be a grandma - but not until the boys are about 30 or so. I just did the math and TT is over 1/3 of the way there. Gulp!

Thanks again for all the prayers and encouraging emails!

Hope you have a great weekend -- I can't believe it's almost Friday again ALREADY!! On another note, I've been eliminating most of my HFCS consumption this week and really think I have more energy than normal. I hope it's not just a figment of my imagination. I could get used to this! OH! And I've been riding my exercise bike for 30 minutes as soon as I get up in the morning - for 2 whole mornings in a row now. Only 19 more to go until it's a habit. It's a rotten shame habits are so much harder to make than break!

Mammo do-over

Last week I had a mammogram. This morning the radiologist called and said they found something suspicious. So, I need to go back in today at 12:30 for another mammo and talk to a doctor. They said they're not too worried, but just want to check it out. I'm trying not to be too worried, too :-) Then I'm off to a 2:30 dentist appointment. There's always something messing up our days and throwing us off kilter. Kenny had to re-arrange his work schedule so he can be back here by noon and then take the boys with him to deliver some equipment to a jobsite. The boys are thrilled and can't wait until just after noon, when they'll be riding in the truck that's pulling the mini-excavator or backhoe or whatever the heck it is. And asking why don't we just ditch the whole day of school? Guess they're not satisfied with just 1/2 day. Spoiled kiddos.

Prayers appreciated!!

Men forget things (ya think?!)

Tonight, I asked if anyone had fed Solomon. TT was outside (it's his job to feed Pup Tent his evening meal). PUp said "I'll do it. TT has been forgetting lately. I guess he's a man now, because men forget things!"

I'll just file this little nugget under "mouth of babes" .........

High Fructose Corn Syrup ~ HFCS

All afternoon I've been reading about HFCS - High Fructose Corn Syrup. Fascinating reading! Apparently, it started being put in almost everything we eat and drink, in the late 70's/early 80's, as a substitute for sugar ... at exactly the same time obesity rates in the US started skyrocketing. Coincidence? If you Google it, you'll find some very interesting reading!

These guys have made a documentary, airing on PBS in April - you can check their website at http://www.kingcorn.net/ and click on the PBS link to see when it airs in your town.

My kids are going to be so sorry I started reading about this stuff. Oh well, there's decent substitutes for almost all of it -- Heinz organic ketchup instead of Heinz regular ketchup, Paul Newman cookies instead of Oreos, Martin's potato bread for hamburger/hot dog rolls -- so I figure if I start incorporating it slowly around here, they'll be none-the-wiser. Certain brands of peanut butter, certain mixes of Heinz ketchup, some breads that we already eat, same with some of our cereals in the pantry are HFCS free. And when we go to Canada this summer, we'll be able to indulge in Coke there - made the old fashioned way with good ole, regular sugar!

I also learned that around Passover, you can buy "Kosher" Coke made like it was pre-'80's with sugar. Same thing with other Kosher products. I might check some ethnic markets around here - they say some of them carry Coke and other products made with sugar, not HFCS. Also read that some Costcos carry Coke made with sugar - guess it depends which distribution center they use.

That's mountains of corn .... waiting to be processed into HFCS.

Some of the statistics linking it to obesity, diabetes, high triglycerides, physical & mental sluggishness, ADD symptoms, mood swings, allergies, and more are just insane. There are other symptoms. Those are just the ones I made a mental note of and remember off the top of my head, because they're evident in our household. Some have also linked it to the increase in alzheimers & autism. The way your body holds on to it (and doesn't process it!) as opposed to sugar, is fascinating. Also interesting, the links some of it has to various lobbyists, too. Kind of makes you go "hmmmmm".

Fortunately, some manufacturers are starting to take notice, and putting regular cane & beet sugar back into foods. Guess everything really does start to come full circle eventually.

On Sunday afternoon, I think I'll head to the grocery and get some Heinz Organic Ketchup, some Paul Newman oreo and peanut butter type cookies, Archway molasses cookies, Fritos & 'natural' Cheetos (? I never knew there was anything natural about Cheetos!!). All HFCS-free. The kids won't even know what hit 'em. I also read that the Safeway "O" Organics brand is HFCS-free. Will have to check it out next time I go to that town.

I plan on recording it on our DVR when it airs here on PBS (Tues, April 15) but just in case, I reserved it at our library, too.

70 year old 1st grader

He made ME cry when he told the little girl she was going to make HIM cry!

What a beautiful story and how lucky those other students are to have him in their class!

Mini Mime Camp

A brother & sister team from our church has been selected to be part of a 15-person Mime Troupe to go on a missions trip to Alaska this summer and tell some eskimos about Jesus. To help raise some of the $3,000 in support that's needed for their trip, they held a Mini Mime Camp every morning this week (similar to VBS).

We saw a Christian mime at (click here): Sandy Cove's homeschool week one year and it was sooooo beautiful how they told the story of salvation. I think almost everyone was in tears. So, I've been waiting for the day when the boys could try their hand at it. I take every opportunity I can to let them experience a wide variety of things (piano, skiing, swimming, sewing, canoeing, public speaking, rock climbing, basketball, soccer, choir, mime - and others I'm forgetting) - so they will one day know what type of things they are gifted in and passionate about. I'm pretty much passionate about life experiences. At the very least, they should be well rounded by the time I turn them loose into the world. I think it's safe to say, at this stage in the game, they are not passionate about piano. I keep telling them one day they'll at least be grateful for the piano experience. But you probably remember those days when your Mom didn't know all that much. Yeah, we're living some of those now. They're being made to stick with it, regardless. It improves math skills and works on other brain connections, you know.

In this scene, the girls were playing the part of Satan, trying to tempt the boys into sin:
Come over to the dark side:
H#$% no, I won't go!:
The Mini Mime Men (I wish I'd have gotten a picture of the girls side, too!):
They had a great time all week. Learned some new skills. Made some new friends.

Speaking of learning new skills, if RV and/or I can figure out how to upload video from the camcorder (that will require some sort of software installation, I'm sure) I'll post it here soon, so you can see & hear for yourself.

Awesome day

Today was such an incredibly peaceful, awesome day! ........ (scroll down) .........






























April Fool's!

LOL! Sorry. RV made me do it .... after a miserable, fussy evening with PUp. The day wasn't SO bad, but as the night wore on, it went straight downhill -- FAST! He's perfected the art. Although thankfully, there have been less and less nights like this as he's gotten older. But still. Aye carumba.