Family Schooling Summary: Pokeweed Berries

There is a gutter on the side of the house that I believe is also a drainage spot for condensation from the AC.  It is often wet. The ducks love it. The children like it too. 

 They like to encourage the flow of water down a canal under the gazebo.

 Funny thing though - in the moments after I took this picture and one more of the boys smiling-- Little Miss Stinker walked over to the shrubbery and grabbed some pokeweed berries. They are ripe and she has this thing for putting stuff in her mouth.

 I knew that they were poisonous. We have had some close calls with her trying to put them in her mouth before.  They are everywhere and impossible to get ride of all of them in the woods around our property.

She had purple hands and lots of purple on her clothes... and a little purple on her mouth and tongue.  I called Poison Control asap.  At first they were going to send me right to the ER. Then I was transferred to another guy and he said to feed her some dinner and just watch her for an hour to see whether she throws-up. I didn't think she would have eaten many, but at least one went in her mouth. Short story - she didn't throw-up. She ate and played as if nothing had happened. The Poison Control guy called back after an hour to check on us and said that we should be okay. I thanked him for saving me a long ER adventure. 

Acorn gathering continues.  There are tons! Maybe this is the sign of hard winter ahead? I hope not though since we didn't buy our tractor/snowplow yet. I hear that pigs love acorns too. Maybe next year we can feed them to our pigs. So far we are just using them for decorations and playing games.

 

Farm Fresh: Turkeys on the Loose

The turkeys have adjusted to their new outdoor housing well. They even learned to use the chicken nipple watering system. They are about 9-10 weeks old and we decided to let them out to free range with the many other fowls.  

 Here are some pictures of the first day.

 The kiddos helped herd them gently across the driveway toward the green bushy area that the ducks and chickens seem to enjoy.

 It took them awhile to get the idea.

 

 This is a funny picture that confirms my suspicions...The three in the foreground holding up their winds are the ladies (hens) and the one still standing (not paying attention) is a Tom (male turkey). They are practicing for their mating rituals.

Home Work: Dining Room Table Refinished

We finally brought our refinished dining table back in the house.  Hubby stained it and then put 7 or more coats of sealer on it. Some might say that is overkill...but the 2-3 coats of varanthane that were on the old table only lasted a couple years.  It gets spilled on and wiped constantly.

The stain that we finally went with was General Finishes Espresso.  It is pretty dark brown, but it covers up the reddish orange tone of the wood nicely.

 Of course I also had to update the chair upholstery to match. Those light gray flowers did not have the same feel as our sultry brown table.

We also repainted the white base with black satin rustoleum paint. Now it matches the chairs. Next fun decorating task is to choose a centerpiece. I am thinking something long and oval. Maybe potted herbs? Something made out of stone would also be nice.  And I probably need a tall potted plant in that corner?  I know that as winter rolls in I am going to be dying for more greenery in the house.

Family Schooling Summary: Back to Co-op School

 The kids had their first day back to co-op school this week.  I didn't take any pics until lunch time when they were playing on the playground. I am teaching pre-school science. A and M are taking a microscope class "Mysteries of the Unseen World", then Spanish, and "See How They Run" (about politics and government). M and S are both in my pre-school science class.  L is in the nursery the whole time. It went well.  I think everyone liked their classes. We'll see how things go.

Another week of soccer practices and games. A has two practices/week and M has one.  Then they both have games Saturday morning.

A is very crafty and while we were outside gathering nuts as part of our nature study we started talking about all the fun non-edible uses for them.  She decided that she wanted to make an acorn wreath.  I helped with the glue gun, but this was almost 100% her project.  She did such a great job! It is on the front door now.

Family Schooling Summary: Soccer Season Kicks Off

This week launched us into Fall busy-ness. We had riding lessons and soccer practice.  There was a ward camp-out on Friday night. Saturday morning hubby helped with the pancake breakfast and then we had to quickly pack-up to get back in time for soccer games.

 First soccer game for brother M went well.  He was so excited that they won.  He played goalie for awhile.

 At this age it is mostly a pack of kids all trying to get the ball.  Not much passing.

A's first game went well too. Though she is more shy about wanting to play, she is fast and has better team skills.

Big sister A wrote a play about Under the Sea Adventures this week for part of her school work. They also practiced guitar, did history lessons (Early Christian Martyrs and Rome), dictation work and Math (word problems for A and telling time for M).
Oh and a new hobby - hand stands against the wall. Everyone wants to try it.

There was also an International Night at our old ward.  We enjoyed the delicious feast of international fare and looked at booths from all different countries.  I did one on Brittany this year.

A picture of baby L with the other kids dressed in Vietnamese Ao-Zai.

Recommended Reading: July & August

1. Dragon Slippers Series: Another lovely plot unwinds through this series by Jessica Day George, with tons of likable characters and hair-raising hijinks. It's story about a talented seamstress who saves the day. Great for kids 8 and up.  
2. Sea of Trolls: A deep plot line with quests and battles.  I would catalogue this book with The Lord of the Rings and The Once and Future King.  The kids listened to it with interest, but I think it is complicated and violent enough to be better for ages 10 and up. 
3. Her Royal Spyness Series: I don't usually like murder mysteries, but I became addicted to and absorbed this series very quickly.  It is set during the great depression in England and Ireland. The protagonist, Georgie, is 35th in line to the throne, but penniless. It is light hearted with rich scenery and menu descriptions that made me want to make tea and scones every night. Adults only though- there are a lot of references to sex and of course, descriptions of murder scenes.
4. Cheaper by the Dozen: I have read this book 2-3 times now. It was fun to share it with my kiddos. I love the efficiency and humor of the family.  I don't think I realised the last time I read it that it was written by 2 of the 12 children and is mostly non-fiction. 
5.  Titanic: Voices from the Disaster: I was worried that this book might be too serious for the kids, but they seemed to enjoy it. It is non-fiction and summarizes what happened on the Titanic's maiden voyage through first hand accounts. 
6. Searching for Bobowitz: This tongue-in-cheek story is about summer vacation in Hoboken. I laughed out loud, but they storyline was a bit too crazy for me to really enjoy. 
7. Alchemy and Meggie Swan: Lovely historical fiction about a pair of misfits in the days of alchemy.

Farm Fresh: Turkeys, Grumpy Rooster, and Berry Picking

 Our rooster suddenly became aggressive a couple weeks ago.  The internet says that this is just a phase as he adjusts to his raging hormones. Experienced chicken raisers suggest that we gentle his rage by carrying him around and showing him who's boss. The kids are still scared to go near him. I agree that he needs more time, but as I tell him regularly, if he doesn't grow out of this soon he is dinner.

 The turkeys are about 8 weeks old and ready to move outside to their new home.

 Here is the new turkey house - neighbor to the duck and rabbit hutch.

The design improvement on the turkey house is a chicken wire floor lining to keep animals from digging under and getting in. We probably need to add the equivalent to the old house.

One of hubby's best friends came to visit with his family.  We went raspberry picking at a local orchard. They have some fun tunnels, slides, animals, and sand boxes for the kids. 

These kids are experienced berry pickers. 

 Baby L was mostly eating. Picking some for herself and then taking all the ones I put in my bucket.