tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80183933090865700452024-03-19T05:17:10.092-04:00You know how we're an art family...Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.comBlogger1349125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-86656373117510656962015-10-28T15:03:00.000-04:002015-10-28T15:03:01.809-04:00homeschooling update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I thought I would give a little update now that we are about eight weeks into our homeschooling experience. All in all, I would say it's been a very smooth transition for both of us. Elizabeth largely keeps to herself while she's working, which allows me to get my own work done around the house and kitchen.<br />
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The way that've we chosen to set our schoolwork schedule for the week is a list organized by subject. She mostly picks and chooses what she wants to work on at any given time, although she's getting good at spreading out things like math, that are more effective when studied daily. We've tried to spread out extracurricular activities so she's only really home all day on Tuesdays and Thursdays.<br />
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On Mondays, she's been taking a metal working class our local art school. On Wednesdays, she volunteers at her old elementary school and has violin lessons. And most Fridays she visits some of her middle school friends at their high schools for lunch. She still misses being around her friends on a regular basis, but she enjoys the schoolwork that she's doing. Most weeks she's done with her work by Thursday afternoon, which leaves Fridays to take field trips or watch movies relating to her studies. She has more time for personal reading, she's been teaching herself to play various songs on the keyboard, and she has more time to spend on painting.</div>
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The photos above are from our excursion to the <a href="http://www.reynoldahouse.org/">Reynolda House Museum of Art</a> last Friday. Their new exhibit, <a href="http://www.reynoldahouse.org/exhibitions/detail/the-artists-garden">The Artist's Garden</a>, was a wonderful treat, full of American Impressionist paintings. After we had our fill of the museum, we wandered the gardens. Well, I wandered; Elizabeth mostly read. And somewhere in there she talked me into an <a href="http://www.anartfamily.com/2009/04/dont-go-round-artless.html">Art-o-mat</a> purchase of "modern cave art".<br />
<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-71766063275041779432015-10-21T14:50:00.001-04:002015-10-21T14:54:01.325-04:00autumn hiking<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I think I forgot that I was back to blogging. Oops! It's been a month since I was in this space, and it just occurred to me yesterday, "hey, we're doing stuff around here, and I've not thought once to blog about it!" Mostly, we're taking advantage of the gorgeous fall weather and getting outside. Two weekends ago, Paul's aunt and uncle came down from NY for a visit, and we spent Sunday afternoon hiking at <a href="http://www.ncparks.gov/hanging-rock-state-park">Hanging Rock State Park</a>, which is only about 45 minutes from our house. The day was practically perfect in every way, and exactly what we needed after nearly 2 weeks of rain.</div>
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This past weekend was much cooler than the weekend before, but we braved the freezing temperatures and met friends at <a href="http://www.ncparks.gov/crowders-mountain-state-park">Crowders Mountain State Park</a>. Crowders Mountain is about a 2 hour drive from our house, but between us and our friends' house. A great day trip for both of us. We chose the shortest trails since we had little ones in tow. They were troopers and hung in there for both of the short trails near the lake. We also played by the lake, skipping rocks and muddying sneakers, and picnicked near the lake, even cooking hot chocolate on the little camp stove. The best way to spend such a lovely autumn day!<br />
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<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com420tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-4727171120309698582015-09-28T11:13:00.000-04:002015-09-28T11:13:33.437-04:00Giving back<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I've mentioned on many <a href="http://www.anartfamily.com/2012/02/on-stage.html">occasions</a> the <a href="http://www.anartfamily.com/2012/03/romeo-and-juliet-on-border.html">fantastic</a> <a href="http://www.anartfamily.com/2013/02/6th-grade-filmmaking.html">experiences</a> Elizabeth enjoyed at the arts-based charter school that she attended from kindergarten through 8th grade. She still holds a great deal of fondness for that place and appreciation for her time there. Back in the summer, when I mentioned that she should find somewhere in the community to volunteer once she started homeschooling, her thoughts naturally turned to her beloved school. After considering the opportunities there, she asked her former 2nd grade teacher if she could assist in reading time once a week. </div>
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Now, every Wednesday afternoon, while I otherwise engage myself, often photographing for the school yearbook, Elizabeth returns to her old classroom and listens to burgeoning 2nd grade readers. They get to know a "big kid" who encourages their developing skills, and my teenager learns to slow down and listen to and care for younger students. When people ask what we're doing for "socialization", the age-old homeschooling concern, this is one of the activities I list. Socialization isn't limited to same-age interaction. (In fact, an argument can be made that socialization with only same-age individuals isn't generally the most positive socialization.) This year has been about stepping outside of our comfort zone and embracing new experiences. And although she won't get a high school credit for this, she will become a more well-rounded individual, which is ultimately the goal of high school, right?</div>
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<a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blogger.com%2Fblogger.g%3FblogID%3D8018393309086570045%23editor%2Fsrc%3Ddashboard&media=https%3A%2F%2F1.bp.blogspot.com%2F-yvp_AH2SOik%2FVglRAl7qN2I%2FAAAAAAAAZYo%2FNY6ZTkE2Iss%2Fs550%2FIMG_9325-2.jpg&xm=h&xv=sa1.37.01&xuid=wt7_5HrwidP7&description=" style="background-color: transparent; background-image: url(data:image/png; border: none; cursor: pointer; display: none; height: 20px; left: 153px; opacity: 0.85; position: absolute; top: 18px; width: 40px; z-index: 8675309;"></a><a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blogger.com%2Fblogger.g%3FblogID%3D8018393309086570045%23editor%2Fsrc%3Ddashboard&media=https%3A%2F%2F1.bp.blogspot.com%2F-yvp_AH2SOik%2FVglRAl7qN2I%2FAAAAAAAAZYo%2FNY6ZTkE2Iss%2Fs550%2FIMG_9325-2.jpg&xm=h&xv=sa1.37.01&xuid=wt7_5HrwidP7&description=" style="background-color: transparent; background-image: url(data:image/png; border: none; cursor: pointer; display: none; height: 20px; left: 153px; opacity: 0.85; position: absolute; top: 18px; width: 40px; z-index: 8675309;"></a><a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blogger.com%2Fblogger.g%3FblogID%3D8018393309086570045%23editor%2Fsrc%3Ddashboard&media=https%3A%2F%2F1.bp.blogspot.com%2F-yvp_AH2SOik%2FVglRAl7qN2I%2FAAAAAAAAZYo%2FNY6ZTkE2Iss%2Fs550%2FIMG_9325-2.jpg&xm=h&xv=sa1.37.01&xuid=wt7_5HrwidP7&description=" style="background-color: transparent; background-image: url(data:image/png; border: none; cursor: pointer; display: none; height: 20px; left: 153px; opacity: 0.85; position: absolute; top: 18px; width: 40px; z-index: 8675309;"></a><a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blogger.com%2Fblogger.g%3FblogID%3D8018393309086570045%23editor%2Fsrc%3Ddashboard&media=https%3A%2F%2F1.bp.blogspot.com%2F-yvp_AH2SOik%2FVglRAl7qN2I%2FAAAAAAAAZYo%2FNY6ZTkE2Iss%2Fs550%2FIMG_9325-2.jpg&xm=h&xv=sa1.37.01&xuid=wt7_5HrwidP7&description=" style="background-color: transparent; background-image: url(data:image/png; border: none; cursor: pointer; display: none; height: 20px; left: 153px; opacity: 0.85; position: absolute; top: 18px; width: 40px; z-index: 8675309;"></a>Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-72814411631518601622015-09-16T09:49:00.002-04:002015-09-16T10:00:01.614-04:00a National Park obsession<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Over the last couple of weeks, Finn's 3rd grade class studied various parks that are part of the National Park Service. What a timely study since we were already planning to spend <a href="http://www.anartfamily.com/2015/09/shenandoah-in-september.html">the weekend in between</a> in <a href="http://www.nps.gov/shen/index.htm">Shenandoah National Park</a>! Shenandoah wasn't the particular park that Finn studied and made a poster advertising, but he was thrilled nonetheless. (He actually studied <a href="http://www.nps.gov/colo/index.htm">Colonial National Historic Park</a>, a mere 4 hour drive from us. We might have something up our sleeve concerning that park.) As part of their studies, Finn's teacher brought in her <a href="http://www.eparks.com/store/product/22515/Passport-To-Your-National-Parks%C2%AE/">National Park Passport</a> to show the students and then the students made their own passport books to stamp as they heard about each classmate's national park. Of course, when we visited Shenandoah, Finn needed to acquire an "official" National Park Passport, complete with requisite stamp. As he devour each page and map, he made a plan to visit every park in our state and surrounding states in the coming months. I'm not sure that we'll be able to follow his plan quite to the letter, but since one of the national military parks is right down the road from us, we spent a few hours touring it this past Sunday afternoon. Finn has actually visited <a href="http://www.nps.gov/guco/index.htm">Guilford Courthouse National Military Park</a> (locally known as Battleground Park) many, many times in the past. It's a common walking area, and we often stumble upon reenactments here. Needless to say, he saw this familiar park with fresh eyes and his passport book in hand. We'll be visiting other parks as we can, including a few that were already on our travel docket before this providential class study. I'm looking forward to see how many we are able to explore! I'll tag them as <a href="http://www.anartfamily.com/search/label/National%20Park%20Service">National Park Service</a> as I share them here. What are your favorite National Parks, Military sights, or National Monuments that we should add to our list?</div>
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<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-85642374077029758032015-09-13T19:03:00.000-04:002015-09-13T19:05:54.437-04:00Bookmarks<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<i>{Robert Beatty, author of <a href="http://amzn.to/1K7CtBD">Serafina and the Black Cloak</a>}</i></div>
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This past weekend, the <a href="http://bookmarksnc.org/events/festival">Bookmarks Festival of Books and Authors</a> arrived downtown. The weather appeared threatening, but ultimately held off for the day. Paul, Finn, and I went down there for a few hours to buy a few books, participate in some children's activities, support Finn's teacher (who illustrated a book that was in one of the exhibition tents), and listen to a couple of author lectures. I was able to get a few books as Christmas presents, and Finn had a fantastic time visiting the children's activities and winning a free book. He was also thrilled to see his teacher, buy the book she illustrated, and have it signed by both her and the author. What a great connection for him to have as a kid. We are so fortunate to live in an area that hosts such an amazing event each year!<br />
<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-38192537056823275572015-09-10T10:43:00.000-04:002015-09-16T09:50:12.981-04:00Shenandoah in September<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We spent Labor Day weekend up in <a href="http://www.nps.gov/shen/index.htm">Shenandoah National Park</a> seeking relief from the heat and connection with the mountains before the intensity of the school year sets in. As we suspected, Shenandoah was just what we needed. Big Meadows Campground is one of my favorite places to camp, and despite the Labor Day crowds, we had a marvelous time. We scrambled over the rocks at Bearfence Mountain, wandered through the Big Meadow, lounged around camp, watched the sunset from Blackrock, communed with dozens of friendly deer, and generally had a marvelous weekend. As <a href="http://www.anartfamily.com/2013/09/camping-in-shenandoah.html">we did last time</a>, we camped with Cindy of <a href="http://zachaboard.blogspot.com/">Zach Aboard</a> and her sweet family. I'm always grateful for other sweet kids who enjoy our kids so much. Every time we see them, our kids immediately fall back into their easy way of being together. The time of course went too quickly, as it ever does in Shenandoah; we clearly need to find a way to visit more frequently.</div>
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On a side note, I've started dabbling in video. The video of our weekend in Shenandoah can be found here: </div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/L-X-8HDYa9E" width="560"></iframe></div>
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<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-49684920035421261622015-08-28T13:02:00.000-04:002015-08-28T13:02:08.104-04:00movie and mittens<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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One of my homeschooling goals is that Elizabeth finish her work in roughly 4 days each week which will enable us to reserve one day per week for field trips or other enrichment. In our first week of homeschooling, Elizabeth finished her week’s work by noon on Thursday. When I asked about her thoughts for Friday, she responded that she’d like to watch <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boy_in_the_Striped_Pyjamas_(film)">Boy in the Striped Pajamas</a></i> since she’d recently finished the book.<br />
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When I read <i>Boy in the Striped Pajamas </i>over the summer, I wasn’t overly impressed. The notion that a boy in the midst of Hitler youth would be that naïve and innocent in his surroundings didn’t ring true for me. In addition, the use of Out-With (a combination of English words) as a pronunciation substitution for Auchwitz (a German name) drove me to distraction. I finished the book, gave it 2 stars on <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/">Goodreads</a>, placed my copy in the <a href="http://www.anartfamily.com/2014/04/a-little-free-library.html">Little Free Library</a> outside, then moved on to greener pastures. I don’t think I even mentioned it to my kids.<br />
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Elizabeth discovered it in the LFL, and I found her reading it one afternoon. She seemed engrossed so I didn’t share my opinion. Of course, she became enraptured with it, finished it, and placed it on her “permanent collection” bookshelf. She wasn’t thrilled with the vagueness of the ending, but she found the child’s perspective of the Holocaust intriguing. She also recognized Bruno’s natural love and friendship toward others, regardless of heritage, as endearing. I think despite her fondness for Bruno, she appreciated the karmic payback received by his father.<br />
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Isn’t it fascinating how an adult reader and a child reader can see such different sides of the same book? <br />
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As for the movie, I found it more tolerable, without the insufferable “Out-With” references, and the mother’s and grandmother’s disapproval translating into Bruno’s naivety seemed more believable. Rarely do I appreciate a movie more than a book, but this was one of those cases.<br />
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As for the mittens, they don’t particularly tie into this post except that I finished them while we watched <i>Boy in the Striped Pajamas</i> today. I’m more than ready for cooler weather to allow me to test them. The pattern is <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/joy8/detour-mittens">Detour Mittens</a>, available for free on Ravelry. I knit them in <a href="http://www.knitpicks.com/yarns/City_Tweed_AranHW_Yarn__D5420183.html">City Tweed</a>, Tahitian Pearl. At first I wasn’t sure about the pointy tips on the mittens, but the elvish look has rather grown on me. I might be in love with these tweedy mitts!<br />
<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-73746490285627603502015-08-26T11:14:00.000-04:002015-10-21T10:29:16.491-04:00a new year<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A new school year is upon us. Paulie, Philip, and Finn are back in their respective high, middle, and elementary schools in 10th, 7th, and 3rd grades this year. School is now underway, and we are settling into familiar routines. Except Elizabeth. She's feeling her way through a new routine this year as she homeschools for 9th grade.</div>
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The feedback when you decide to homeschool a highschooler is interesting. "Really?! Why?!" "What about math?" "Won't she miss the socialization?" Ok, maybe those responses aren't so different as when you announce that you intend to homeschool at other ages, but the underlying question that many seem to hedge is, "aren't you afraid of spending THAT much time with your teen?" The basic answer to all of those questions is this: I not only love her because she's my daughter; I like her too. She's witty, curious, and engaging. She's had a great educational foundation and enjoys learning. She's a motivated kid who likes to check things off lists, which means no nagging from me. She already has deep connections to many friends. She will volunteer, take art classes, take violin lessons, and find other ways to "socialize" if we find that lacking over the year. As for math...thank goodness for <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salman_Khan_(educator)">Sal Khan</a>.</div>
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Since the ever-burning question from other homeschooling parents is generally curriculum related, I'll post a list of our resources below:</div>
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<i>English:</i> I'm making my own literature curriculum supplementing with resources online. We started with <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adventures_of_Tom_Sawyer">Tom Sawyer</a></i>. <a href="http://www.bravewriter.com/">Brave Writer</a> will stand in the gap for writing.</div>
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<i>Math II:</i> <a href="https://www.khanacademy.org/">Khan Academy</a> (following the basic Common Core Integrated Math II)</div>
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<i>US History:</i> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/History-US-Eleven--Set-Paperback/dp/0195327276">A History of US</a>, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/U-S-History-Maps-Grades-Blattner/dp/1580371094">US History Maps</a></div>
<i>Earth Science: </i><a href="http://www.ck12.org/book/CK-12-Earth-Science-For-High-School/">CK12 Earth Science for High School</a>, supplementing with YouTube, online activities, and projects<br />
<i>PE: </i>4-6 week units as Elizabeth chooses, right now she's doing yoga and stretches<br />
<i>Art: </i>assignments that tie into her other classes as well as classes through our <a href="http://www.sawtooth.org/classes/">local art school</a><br />
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A few other things worth noting, I'm trying to keep a week or two ahead on planning, which will allow me to adjust as needed. <a href="https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/">Teachers Pay Teachers</a> has fantastic resources, some free, for nearly every subject. I've already downloaded many of their resources to tie into other curricula we're using. YouTube is your friend. There are videos on EVERYTHING out there! Netflix too. I'm sure as we continue I'll find things that work better and not as well. I'll try to keep you posted as we go along!<br />
<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-42870386771147819612015-08-23T15:10:00.002-04:002015-08-23T15:10:31.331-04:00Summers end13 months.<br />
That's how long it has been since I visited this space. A year full of beginnings and endings.<br />
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Among other things:<br />
Paulie began high school.<br />
Elizabeth finished her final year at her K-8 arts school.<br />
Philip began middle school.<br />
Finn began guitar lessons.<br />
Paulie began marching band.<br />
We each grew a year older.<br />
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Just this summer, we visited with friends at Hanging Rock,<br />
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Finn participated in music camp,<br />
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Finn and I visited family in Philadelphia (and met a new niece!),<br />
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the kids and I hiked the top of Pilot Mountain,<br />
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Finn lost a plethora of teeth and went to camp,<br />
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Elizabeth and I summited Mt. Evans outside Denver,<br />
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we fed large animals at Lazy 5 Ranch,<br />
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and we spent a week at the beach with friends.<br />
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I'm unsure how often I'll be in this space. I was relieved to let go of the pressure of blogging last summer, and I'm happy to be back now, in whatever capacity I feel works for me. Stay tuned later this week for details of new endeavors we're embarking on this year.</div>
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Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-67036196209509134922014-07-23T07:56:00.001-04:002014-07-23T07:56:54.781-04:00Yarn Along<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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After a fairly significant break in knitting, for me anyway, I started a new project last week, socks for Finn. I'm using leftover yarn from other projects, which necessitated mixing colors. Finn requested that I make the sock's colors reverse images of each other. The pattern is <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/joy8/easy-toddler-socks-4">Easy Toddler Socks</a>, which I've made many times in the past. I'm using the same number of stitches as in the pattern but using sport weight yarn and size 3 needles so that they'll better fit a 7 year old.</div>
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As for reading, I'm just starting first book in the <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0062194348/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0062194348&linkCode=as2&tag=thebookchildren-20&linkId=KGUAZNHXLQUNODFJ">The Very Nearly Honorable League of Pirates</a></i> series. I'm reading it for a children's lit online book club. Philip read it while we were in Costa Rica and loved it. Although I'm only a couple of chapters into it, I must say that it's proved very entertaining thus far.</div>
<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-86063860866823751912014-07-10T21:26:00.001-04:002014-07-10T21:26:17.678-04:00Tortuga Island<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Sunday morning, bright and early, we boarded a bus to the Pacific coastal edge of Costa Rica. From there, we caught a catamaran to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicoya_Peninsula">Nicoya Peninsula</a> to a small natural island called Tortuga Island. It was a beautiful place, with little disruption to the natural state of the island. There weren't even permanent bathrooms or shelters there. The sand was warm and the waves were frothy as we basked in a bit of time just enjoying the sun. The kids swam, we shelled hunted, and we even rented a kayak for a while. It was nice to enjoy a simple day of relaxation in the Costa Rican sun.</div>
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<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-66988327657939264172014-07-04T23:51:00.003-04:002014-07-05T07:49:28.261-04:00Manuel Antonio National Park<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Bright and early this morning, we headed out for the long drive from our hotel to Manuel Antonio National Park. Unfortunately, only 4 of us were able to make the trip. Paul had to stay back at the hotel with Philip because he was having tummy troubles this morning. We were sad to leave them behind, and I was more than a little apprehensive about taking 3 kids + 2 bags full of stuff on a tour that I knew would require at least 2 miles of hiking to the beach and back. I frequently tell the kids that we sometimes have to do something less than pleasant (ride a long way, trek in hot weather, etc) before we can experience something wonderful. I was meditating on my own words with this adventure! </div>
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We stopped about halfway into the trip for a mid-morning breakfast and a visit with this brave iguana.</div>
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Following breakfast, we trekked across the Tárcoles River bridge to spot many of its famous crocodile inhabitants. (Another thing I am not comfortable with: walking on an 18-inch wide path over hundreds of 7-foot long crocodiles while traffic flies by mere inches away beside me.)<br />
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Fortunately, we made it across unharmed and caught our bus again for the park.<br />
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Once we arrived at the coast, we parked and readied ourselves for the hike to the beach. The first thing I noticed was another iguana sitting on a spray-painted wall like he was an art installation. Iguanas must be plentiful in this area. We saw quite a few of them.<br />
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Just outside the park's entrance, you can find several vendors selling coconut water from green coconuts. We waited until our hike back to buy one, but it was delicious!<br />
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Once we hit the trail, our guide pointed out the local flora and fauna, in addition the animals that are popularly spotted in the area.<br />
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The first mammal we saw was the squirrel monkey. He, unlike many that we saw later, seemed to be posing for our photos.<br />
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Random spider. "Non-poisonous. You can touch." says the guide. Um...not hardly.<br />
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We saw a sloth early on in our walk to the beach. I took a few shots but he was hard to see tucked behind branches and leaves. Fortunately, this sloth was on the closest tree to the trail and was easily spotted and photographed.<br />
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Almost as soon as I started snapping, he turned toward us and flashed his famous smile. The kids were thrilled to see this 3-toed sloth, not only moving but easily spotted.<br />
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Our guide also pointed out this sleeping frog on a leaf along the path. He was adorably tucked up and completely zonked out.<br />
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We ended up seeing a total of 25-30 monkeys while we were in the park. This white-faced capuchin was the other variety we spotted. The guide warned us several times that these monkeys were famous for stealing tourist's food from their bags on the beach.<br />
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At last we were on the beach. The water, beaches, and natural areas were just as lovely as all of the photos I've seen. This first photo is looking right from the trailhead on the main beach.<br />
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The following photos is looking left from the trailhead. The park forms a horseshoe shape here at the main beach. Its really so beautiful and lush, and the water is the prettiest green color.<br />
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The kids, of course, didn't care as much about the beauty of the beach. They just wanted to play.<br />
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We were warned that the water was a little "strong" today. The guide wasn't kidding. The waves were strong, and the pull of the receding water, even in just knee-deep water was crazy strong. The waves would crash and splash 10-15 feet in the air when they hit the rocks further out in the water.<br />
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I didn't let the kids go out very deep, but they seemed to have plenty of fun in the shallow water too.<br />
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When they warned us about food-stealing animals, they should've told us about this fellow! I watched him walk right up to a couple's bag and steal wrapped food out of it with them sitting right there! He tried the same with our bag. I swung it at him a few times, and he wandered off to find easier pickings.<br />
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One of our favorite parts of the day was walking over to the right to the rockier side of the beach.<br />
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The sand changed quickly to rocks, and what beautiful rocks they were. We each kept a small handful of pretty colored rocks and wave beaten coral.<br />
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This area of the beach attracted many hermit crabs. They were skittering all over the sand and rocks.<br />
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The kids found a "pool of warm bath water" as Finn aptly named it.<br />
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And then we saw the tiniest little conch shell with its little conch feeling its way around the beach.<br />
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After about 45 minutes of rock hunting, the kids decided to return to their beach play. The rock hunting was probably my favorite part of the day. "I found another treasure!" Finn kept shouting.<br />
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After another 30 minutes of water play, it was time to head back out of the park, among the coconut palms and yet more monkeys. I'm so glad that we were able to make this trip, despite how tiring it was. I'm also sad that Paul and Philip missed it. I think they would've had a fabulous time here. Thankfully, Philip appears to be on the mend, and hopefully he won't miss out on any other adventures.<br />
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<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-41423710165385594292014-07-03T22:35:00.000-04:002014-07-03T22:35:11.520-04:00downtown San Jose<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Today we spent the morning through early afternoon wandering around downtown San Jose. The hotel staff arranged for a friendly taxi driver to shuttle us back and forth to downtown (about 20 minutes from where we are staying). He dropped us off at the Costa Rican parliament building, and we wandered west from there.</div>
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Directly across the street from the parliament building is the side of the Museo Nacional de Costa Rica building. We decided not to venture into that museum because we had limited time. I just love the bright colors of many of the buildings here.<br />
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As we wandered toward the Parque Nacional, we found an entire block full of street art.<br />
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After wandering through the national park, we headed west toward the general direction of central park.</div>
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At the central park, we found a group of museums, with one admission price. We were predominantly interested in the Pre-Colombian Gold Museum, although we did enjoy the walk through the art museum and bank museum.<br />
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The art exhibition currently on display is by José Miguel Rojas. His Macabre Feast, pictured below, was one of the largest and most interesting pieces.<br />
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And the kids enjoyed checking the interactive board to see who each figure represented.<br />
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After walking through the art exhibition, we headed into the Pre-Colombian Gold Museum. This museum is very well developed and all of the family enjoyed it immensely. The early gold figures were fascinating. How <i>did</i> they melt and form gold into figures like that in the 1500s?!<br />
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There was an intriguing display of a recreation of the archeology site where some 80 pieces of gold were found.<br />
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The kids were enthralled with the miniature recreation of Pre-Colombian Costa Rican life. They spent a great deal of time examining and commenting on the various depictions.<br />
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Toward the end, there was another interactive set of boards with imitation gold figures, and when you press the buttons for them, a stuffed figure of that animal would light up in the habitat scenery. I love it when museums engage kids in this manner.<br />
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Just outside the entrance of the bank museum, we spied a Heidelberg press. The kids had no idea what that could possibly be used for!<br />
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Upon leaving the museums, we meandered the rest of the way down to Mercado Central (central market). We shopped for a few souvenirs, had a delicious local lunch, then drifted through a few more of the stalls before the tight quarters and dank air forced us back outside again.<br />
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Before we had to meet our ride back to the hotel, we managed to hit the famous POPS ice cream shop. A friend recommended POPS to us, and we were happy to take the suggestion.<br />
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A perfect ending to our day roaming through downtown San Jose.<br />
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Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-75554646786950463102014-07-02T23:12:00.001-04:002014-07-02T23:15:47.197-04:00another volcano, churches, and coatis!<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
This morning we were up bright and early to catch our bus. We headed immediately up onto the slopes of Irazú volcano past the city of Cartago. This is the fertile landscape on the side of Irazú. Apparently all that volcanic ash and rock makes for fertile farmland. I couldn't believe how dark brown and rich the soil appeared. The city of Cartago lies beneath the clouds just past the farmland.</div>
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Once we finally made it into Irazú volcano national park, we were greeted by this cute little white-nosed coati. Coati's are a relative of raccoons, and they certainly act the part. They were scavenging through the garbage bins and walked unafraid up to the visitors.<br />
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The kids were freezing when we set out on our walk out to the Irazú craters. They humored me with a photo looking out into the mist that initially covered the first crater.<br />
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Although it was a relatively short walk out to the other 2 craters, the mist seemed to move out quickly and we were afforded nice views of the craters. We were much obliged after the disappointing views at Poás volcano.<br />
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The first crater is easily reached along the path and the kids were excited to be able to walk into a volcanic crater. When I tried to take a photo, Finn said, "Not now, Mom! I'm trying to examine this volcanic ash!"<br />
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The principal crater had the best view, although I wish we could've seen all the way to the lagoon at the bottom. Apparently, that is only seen from the air. I remained grateful that the clouds kept out of the crater area while we visited though.<br />
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The kids spent quite a while playing in the first crater, then we examined some of the foliage growing along the volcano's craters.<br />
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These huge leaves are called the poor man's umbrella plant. The leaves can grow up to 6 feet in diameter.<br />
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When Elizabeth returned from a solo walk around the principal crater. I asked her what she was carrying. "Trash! Can you believe someone just left trash out here!" That's my girl. :)<br />
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When we returned to the parking lot, more coatis had joined the scavenger hunt. We probably saw more than a dozen total, including some babies.<br />
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Upon leaving Irazú, we headed into Cartago to briefly visit Basílica de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles, the most notable Catholic church in Costa Rica. Built in the 1600s, it was partially destroyed by an earthquake then restored. The mix of Byzantine and colonial architecture is quite lovely, and the sky cooperated to give us a few nice photos.<br />
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The inside of the church was just as amazing. Unfortunately, a service was in session while we visited so I only took a few photos from the doorway.<br />
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Not too far from the church, we visited Lankaster Botanical Gardens. The gardens are operated by the University of Costa Rica and boast the largest collection of orchids in Costa Rica.<br />
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The collection of orchids were truly amazing. I could've easily photographed more than a hundred of them.<br />
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They even have a collection of microscopic orchids. (I never even knew there <i>was</i> such a thing!)<br />
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We also quickly visited the rest of the gardens.<br />
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I think the favorite was the Japanese garden area. Between the bamboo, the water lilies, and pagodas, it was fun to explore.<br />
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There were so many other lovely plants and flowers. I took way too many photos of them! The succulents section was amazing.<br />
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The plant below is related to the banana plant. You can see the red banana-ish looking things below the bloom. They aren't edible, but they aren't poisonous either.<br />
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I don't know exactly what the plant below is; I've never seen the leaves before. As I walked past it, I caught the unmistakeable whiff of honeysuckle though.<br />
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The orange and green plant below was probably the strangest I encounter at the gardens. I have NO idea what that thing is! It looks like it belongs in a Dr. Suess book!<br />
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Upon leaving the botanical gardens, we traveled down into the Orosi valley to find a meal and a beautiful view. You can see the rain off in the distance. By the time we finished lunch, that rain had moved through the valley and found us.<br />
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Our last stop of the afternoon was the oldest Catholic church still in use in Costa Rica. Iglesia de San Jose de Orosi, was built in 1743 and looks very colonial and quaint. The inside of the church looked incredibly old as well, and judging by the signs not to touch, they probably were.<br />
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The view looking out of the church was quite amazing as well. You can see now why this is called the rainy season. The seasonal rains seem to find us nearly every day at some point.<br />
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Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-68006185598519592142014-07-01T21:37:00.000-04:002014-07-01T21:37:16.657-04:00ziplining through the cloud forest<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Today, we spent the morning traveling up to the slopes of Barva volcano to a lush wooded area on the side of the inactive volcano inside what is known as the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_forest">cloud forest</a>. Honestly, it didn't seem nearly as much like a cloud forest as the hike up Poás volcano yesterday, but it was beautiful, green, quite mossy, and very similar in altitude and scenery as the Poás hike. The terrain was amazing to behold, although it was somewhat difficult to absorb at times while we were whizzing so high ziplining through the canopy. We did zipline over a few waterfalls and running water that were quite lovely. The highlight was at the second platform; after our first brief zipline, the guide pointed out 2 sloths in the trees overhead. They were impossible to photo, and difficult to see while they slept, but the guide whistled at them a few times and once they started moving their heads, we could spot them more easily. Very exciting! The kids ziplined like champs and seemed to have a blast up there on the lines.</div>
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As we were waiting for our tour guide to pick us up from the apartments this morning, we spied a dazzling blue and green hummingbird sipping from the red blossoms nearby. From what I could decipher in our bird guide, I think he's a Steely-vented Hummingbird, but I hope someone will correct me if I'm wrong. He stuck around for several minutes and gave us quite a show of his speedy, slick little self.<br />
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<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-2423728996617784242014-06-30T23:32:00.003-04:002014-06-30T23:32:49.471-04:00volcano, coffee, & oxcarts, oh my!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
This morning dawned fairly overcast, but we headed out early to try to catch a peek of the craters at Poás volcano. The drive up from the central valley was beautiful, if a bit hazy under the clouds.</div>
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We paused briefly to view a statue of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juan_Santamar%C3%ADa">Juan Santamaría</a>, a Costa Rican hero.<br />
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Interestingly, although we passed many coffee plantations on the way up to the volcano, the plantations stopped before we reached the top of the mountains because the Costa Rican's don't grow coffee above 5500 ft altitude. (Poás volcano reaches 8800 ft.)</div>
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Everywhere you looked going up the mountain, you could find either bananas, mango trees, avocado trees or coconut palms. What a bounty!<br />
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When we reached the base of the trail up to Poás craters, we stopped to buy ponchos. The cloudiness changed to full rain and high winds. The temperature was only about 50°.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuDrfLDpvLj2LMT-ZGSEGooja73jiiGgp8Kj6HaAR4baPO2_vtRaeVJ-_f-R2ckVvlKboagQs1n6jUIPlCJAGRhlrzWLnPkrB1xf-LJSEUeCdE0cQjcFNjec6LH5VZJuQjbvMkShGxeJs9/s1600/IMG_7022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuDrfLDpvLj2LMT-ZGSEGooja73jiiGgp8Kj6HaAR4baPO2_vtRaeVJ-_f-R2ckVvlKboagQs1n6jUIPlCJAGRhlrzWLnPkrB1xf-LJSEUeCdE0cQjcFNjec6LH5VZJuQjbvMkShGxeJs9/s550/IMG_7022.jpg" /></a></div>
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Our guide was wonderful about pointing out local vegetation and information about the ecology in the volcano area.<br />
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This particular leaf is thick and long-lasting, to the extent that someone could carve initials and a date that we found 3 years later!<br />
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My favorite things to photograph are all the amazing flowers here. I could fill an entire blogpost with them. I probably should and label them so I can remember later.<br />
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Finally we reached the main crater! Can you see it there behind Paulie? No? Us either. We waited around for 10 minutes or so, but it was clear that the clouds weren't going to move along that quickly. The kids did have fun letting their ponchos whip about in the crazy high winds.<br />
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Here's some info just in case you ever need to know what to do during an eruption:<br />
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The next several shots are from a different trail we took when returning from the craters. It was steeper but had a bit of different foliage and more birds which made it worth the extra climbing.<br />
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We even spied this wee hummingbird nest in a plant alongside the trail.<br />
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Finn found a loose fern leaf on the side of the trail. It was nearly double his height!<br />
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Once we made our way out of the soggy volcano trail, we headed to a coffee plantation for some lunch and a tour.<br />
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I was shocked at the number and size of hydrangeas that grow at the higher elevations here. This hydrangea bloom was easily 18 inches in diameter. Crazy!<br />
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We learned the process of growing and harvesting coffee, from seed to cup.<br />
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Did you know that many other types of plants and trees are grown at coffee plantations to aid in the coffee tree's growth and maintenance. Some trees help with shading and protection from high winds. Banana trees help with moisture in the dry season. According to our guide, the bananas grown at the coffee plantations are some of the sweetest around but the plantation owners don't even care about the bananas, they just let the workers take them home when they ripen.<br />
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Every where we looked, both driving up the mountain and all over the coffee plantation, we could see huge clumps of green coffee beans. They won't be ready for harvest until much later this fall.<br />
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The view from the plantation we visited was quite lovely. The mountains provide such a lovely view of the central valley below.<br />
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The flower below was definitely the most unique flower I've seen so far. I can't figure out what it is though. Any ideas?<br />
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After we learning about growing the coffee, we headed into the warehouse to see how the coffee is processed after picking.</div>
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I think the kids just enjoyed digging their hands through the sacks of coffee.<br />
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How beautiful are all of these beans drying in the sun?!</div>
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Following our education on the different types of coffee roasted at the plantation, we saw a traditional Costa Rican oxcart. They used to be used for carrying coffee down from the mountains. Each province had a different style of painting that they used on the oxcarts in that region.<br />
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Then came the tasting, which Philip had been asking about ALL. day. long. And of course, we bought a few bags of coffee too.<br />
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Upon leaving the coffee plantation, we stopped briefly at a famous metal church, manufactured in Belgium and built in the late 19th century.</div>
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It truly was beautiful and unique to visit.<br />
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Not too far from the church in Grecia is the town of town of Sarchi, the only remaining town that makes the famous oxcarts. The photo below is actually of the largest oxcart in the world, verified by Guinness Book of World Records. The town of Sarchi makes most of the furniture in Costa Rica, as well as many other wood and leather hand crafts. We saw some beautiful work there!</div>
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<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-34344199970921418632014-06-29T22:10:00.001-04:002014-06-29T22:10:56.442-04:00Hello Costa Rica!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Our first full day in Costa Rica is pictured in the photos below. We largely spent our day recovering from the long day of travel yesterday and getting acquainted with our surroundings. We did venture briefly outside of the complex we're staying in for groceries. The kids, of course, were all consumed with playing in the apartment pool, which sounded like an ideal first day here in Costa Rica. We did explore some outside of the pool, mostly the lush greenery and flowers here where we're staying. Everything is so beautiful and unique, particularly the flowers. Elizabeth was especially enamored with a fallen hibiscus bud she found, and Paulie couldn't get over the mango tree right by the pool! He clamored to climb the tree, of course, but as I doubted the staff would appreciate that, we settled for buying a mango at the market.</div>
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<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-33071290684098211222014-05-27T10:31:00.000-04:002014-05-27T10:31:11.486-04:00Yeh Shen: A Cinderella Story from China<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Finn's first grade class, at the little arts-based charter school that he and Elizabeth attend, performed Yeh Shen: A Cinderella Story from China this month as part of their curriculum. Each of the first grade classes performed a Cinderella story from a different country as part of a larger study of fairy tales and their place in various cultures.</div>
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Finn's class began reading the book of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0698113888/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0698113888&linkCode=as2&tag=thebookchildren-20&linkId=CJDT4QLHILEZXLO6">Yeh Shen</a> about 6 weeks before the play, then many times over, in different groups with different children playing the various parts, they would go over each facet of the story. Finn would come home almost nightly telling me of the part he practiced that day and who else was in his group and how much fun it was to be a guard one day and a king the next.<br />
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During dance class, Finn and his classmates learned out to be cattails, reaching high for the sun, and fireflies, twittering around the cattails, and frogs, jumping among the lily pads.<br />
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During art class, they practiced symmetry by drawing shapes, folding their papers, holding them up to the light, and copying the shape to the other side, eventually turning these shapes into Chinese paper dragons.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSFdWQHPIoMKwmQYAPwekX5lhnLytw6nazv7nkLBse-8sJPjruOx6SD4s893XVkI-eWznhad72xRfSy9CWjYmzTstp4G-d-UsuHJUPRwWx7tLuSOT7xH6Ckr-8USO8j4pIVM8cNoRLIwDM/s1600/IMG_6136.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSFdWQHPIoMKwmQYAPwekX5lhnLytw6nazv7nkLBse-8sJPjruOx6SD4s893XVkI-eWznhad72xRfSy9CWjYmzTstp4G-d-UsuHJUPRwWx7tLuSOT7xH6Ckr-8USO8j4pIVM8cNoRLIwDM/s550/IMG_6136.jpg" /></a></div>
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In music class, they learned about the music from China and a little song to perform briefly in the Yeh Shen play.<br />
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During writing time, they eagerly made up their own fairy tale characters, giving them special talents and magical powers. By the end of the performance, these first graders had not just experienced the music, art, and fairy tales of China, they had an intimate knowledge of a story to share with their parents through their play. I didn't see one nervous performer nor one hesitant speaker, and even the children I know to be shy, found their courage and boldly shared this tale which has become part of their life experience now.</div>
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Yet another shining example of the educational accomplishment of this little charter school we've come to adore.<br />
<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-81156375734799901472014-05-08T11:45:00.003-04:002014-05-08T11:45:40.171-04:00more storage for canning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The time finally came. The time where I clearly needed more space if I planned to continue canning as much as I have been. We filled our little jar shelf <a href="http://www.anartfamily.com/2012/06/canning-cherries.html">that used to sit in this space</a> and then another two shelves in the pantry, a half shelf in the garage of empty jars, and still we were squeezing jar into random places. Random places that I would, of course, forget about when I needed a particular item. We've talked about added more jar storage in this space for nearly a year, and the time finally came.</div>
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We hired another parent from our kids' school to build this shelf unit, then I immediately set to work on the painting. The paint on the top 3 shelves are drying as I type, but I just couldn't wait any longer to get some of these jars out of the hallway!</div>
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The best I can figure, this shelf will hold about 250 jars of varying sizes, which is about how many we have right now. If I decide to can more than that, we'll still have to utilize part of the pantry, but at least the bulk of our jars will be in a single, organized location.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirLJTC0s8W88ahlKytZ16QbhXwR2qaNviYKRgasYVE10hidCP49j4ILbdj6y7qVC9ArtXr-73QTa2rmBRxYqFxeJBmtdXKMNr2xYHyjLPk2DADWWZDmqex04M1RtstTeoDwkkFrPin_ODU/s1600/IMG_6004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirLJTC0s8W88ahlKytZ16QbhXwR2qaNviYKRgasYVE10hidCP49j4ILbdj6y7qVC9ArtXr-73QTa2rmBRxYqFxeJBmtdXKMNr2xYHyjLPk2DADWWZDmqex04M1RtstTeoDwkkFrPin_ODU/s550/IMG_6004.jpg" /></a></div>
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Bring on the summer! I'm ready to start canning!<br />
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PS. Have you visited <a href="http://www.thebookchildren.com/">The Book Children</a> recently? There's a <a href="http://www.thebookchildren.com/2014/05/the-book-children-store-and-giveaway.html">giveaway right now so check it out</a>!<br />
<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-39460289523595574652014-05-07T07:19:00.002-04:002014-05-07T08:38:18.740-04:00a Lego poem by Philip<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Philip had an assignment for his AG class to write a poem that was a metaphor. The metaphor was to center around the story of the Mexican migrant workers in Arizona in the 1920s who were making such low wages that they walked out of their jobs and walked some 300 miles in protest. As Lego is the language that Philip speaks best, he used a Lego man as a metaphor.<br />
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<b>Lego Sadness</b></div>
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I am the Lego head.</div>
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What a sad life I have lead.</div>
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I am the Lego hand.</div>
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I am worth a pile of sand.</div>
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I am the Lego arm.</div>
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I do not mean any harm.</div>
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I am the Lego leg.</div>
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Bad Legos I wish to peg.</div>
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And then there's the body.</div>
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We don't know about him.</div>
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He's come to help.</div>
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We now are one!</div>
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We now can walk & talk!</div>
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Our former lives are dim!</div>
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Yay!</div>
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<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-3304349582233802072014-04-30T09:39:00.002-04:002014-04-30T09:40:16.944-04:00Yarn Along<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
For this week's <a href="http://www.gsheller.com/">Yarn Along</a>, I have a new book that I just started reading aloud to the kids, <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/076366040X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=076366040X&linkCode=as2&tag=thebookchildren-20&linkId=YDQ6GSOSMY54BUXB">Flora & Ulysses</a></i>. We're enjoying it, so 3 nights in we're already more than 1/3 of the way through the book. I'm still intrigued that it won the <a href="http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/newberymedal">Newbery Medal</a> this year though. Thus far, it seems a little sillier than Newbery's usual fare. More of an older-kid version of <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0763657093/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0763657093&linkCode=as2&tag=thebookchildren-20&linkId=ZZD5SB6KQXXZVCGU">Mercy Watson</a></i> than <a href="http://www.katedicamillo.com/">Kate DiCamillo's</a> other more serious novels. I'll reserve my final judgment until we finish though.</div>
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On the knitting front, I've been working on some new dishcloths. I've made several dishcloth patterns in the past, but this one is new to me. I needed a change. The <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/double-bump-dishcloth">Double Bump Dishcloth</a> pattern is easy to remember, but has enough visual interest and knitting interest to keep the utilitarian knitting from becoming boring. And it moves quickly. A perfect dishcloth pattern, in my opinion!</div>
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Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-14402034209805481462014-04-29T10:28:00.000-04:002014-04-29T10:28:33.403-04:00a mess in the backyard<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The saga of the backyard fence began, unbeknownst to us, back when we moved into this house nearly 10 years ago. One of the appeals of this neighborhood property was the fact that our backyard shared a property line with a farm full of cute animals, mostly cows at that point. We enjoyed watching the cows as they grazed and eventually gave birth and raised baby calves. They ate everything in sight and would even happily eat our grass, which we often dumped over the fence to them.</div>
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Eventually, the cows were exchanged for horses and they still ate a good bit of the brush from around the property, although we did have some blackberries that came up along the fence line. We were actually thrilled about the blackberries. Who doesn't love free food, especially if it's just growing in your backyard!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1TfZXRMO3SODHYe2JvlxQuEngiZs1_jo5cctRgGxCUbMWD423gqBztqst2pnERZ2YLrWUO2vDlhjoASgu-8N78sh5KfZ6yCwQglBUaVdS3kTN2jr3eFX2Rf4czvUkObMCIilBYuhhx6Dq/s1600-h/057b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1TfZXRMO3SODHYe2JvlxQuEngiZs1_jo5cctRgGxCUbMWD423gqBztqst2pnERZ2YLrWUO2vDlhjoASgu-8N78sh5KfZ6yCwQglBUaVdS3kTN2jr3eFX2Rf4czvUkObMCIilBYuhhx6Dq/s550/057b.jpg" /></a>
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Eventually though, the farmer passed away and the animals left. With no one to pay much attention, the forest and field ran wild and started bleeding through the fence and into our yard. Even many of the blackberries were crowded out by the pokeweed and dozens of small trees that sprouted up here.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEoiovhRIBcivBFkvFG8M_iIcUEV3YK5V4iKiMF48QBxlX2fytsL4SZkfSKADoQIzLFXv2j6L_Gte5nINpR4sWYwTuYiXUBuv4pfManM-u4is7m4cOmHvzmZ0DtktZ4QhOjjeZHTc33MzE/s1600/IMG_5914.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEoiovhRIBcivBFkvFG8M_iIcUEV3YK5V4iKiMF48QBxlX2fytsL4SZkfSKADoQIzLFXv2j6L_Gte5nINpR4sWYwTuYiXUBuv4pfManM-u4is7m4cOmHvzmZ0DtktZ4QhOjjeZHTc33MzE/s550/IMG_5914.jpg" /></a></div>
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The brush and vines became so thick that we couldn't even see much of the farm unless we were upstairs. Eventually even poison ivy became part of the mix and to top it off, the smallish trees were becoming larger trees and started shading my garden!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO676OHo1s7FZVcw0g68bzfnUAKyOQNnRVbHPMoeoTj-CINsK6e5Uy-Q6LiOIHmp0wJDZUsh9nFbLQSwNtzqWK_Pn-gb5Nrvg6y34ereEWw_lglsLb8jw-8Ncnte1_Vxf4nVGU_0W47nCV/s1600/IMG_5915.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO676OHo1s7FZVcw0g68bzfnUAKyOQNnRVbHPMoeoTj-CINsK6e5Uy-Q6LiOIHmp0wJDZUsh9nFbLQSwNtzqWK_Pn-gb5Nrvg6y34ereEWw_lglsLb8jw-8Ncnte1_Vxf4nVGU_0W47nCV/s550/IMG_5915.jpg" /></a><br />
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Clearly, we needed to get a handle on things before our garden area was completely shaded and overgrown.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGadDChflTzhpzHJje4pPhwsIxlzr-qNq2gX5epOWv1kScDU5eq5jaY2PFjNZXwiramdyhwNcOlYSyurIRhZdoo7-6ejshCAPLorvWRLiXzySbE1bP2mFbPWiWOKey8GK49gPUuER3lwGL/s1600/IMG_5918.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGadDChflTzhpzHJje4pPhwsIxlzr-qNq2gX5epOWv1kScDU5eq5jaY2PFjNZXwiramdyhwNcOlYSyurIRhZdoo7-6ejshCAPLorvWRLiXzySbE1bP2mFbPWiWOKey8GK49gPUuER3lwGL/s550/IMG_5918.jpg" /></a></div>
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Sunday morning, a couple of nice fellows made short work of this area. I was very impressed. We did decide to keep 2 trees back there, a wild cherry tree and a pine tree. Neither are a shade threat to the garden but will shade the part of the yard where the kids play most.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8Garl4xpswZWRP-IpsdcNs_ZXxbHoxvXukvQKB_JVDIGmhEbFbp5Blyta2YCGvk_OcqgI43aLpsLGoaJJMBcI8qJZygSrPK2xe-D6H8t1YlO8xThjEl7afbNar9HXUmLdjPJMiFSPV6qg/s1600/IMG_5938.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8Garl4xpswZWRP-IpsdcNs_ZXxbHoxvXukvQKB_JVDIGmhEbFbp5Blyta2YCGvk_OcqgI43aLpsLGoaJJMBcI8qJZygSrPK2xe-D6H8t1YlO8xThjEl7afbNar9HXUmLdjPJMiFSPV6qg/s550/IMG_5938.jpg" /></a></div>
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We still have a great deal of work to do along the fence as there are numerous twigs and debris left over from the removal. There is even still some poison ivy hanging around back there. We're hopeful that the coming rain over the next 2 days will wash some of the residual oils away so we can finish pulling up the roots.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDqblkl5MJLVZLgKDUev3zMRiQAFzI1dguQnFU-sQN_euMC2-5LYPgRXtpAth4b7lszN6UOrA_WABYshuxi9ul2xnX6dYEcPDYKCDjAB5qd4WzEEZi_9IiL2jJOLtgDnZpJutQziCUqin1/s1600/IMG_5946.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDqblkl5MJLVZLgKDUev3zMRiQAFzI1dguQnFU-sQN_euMC2-5LYPgRXtpAth4b7lszN6UOrA_WABYshuxi9ul2xnX6dYEcPDYKCDjAB5qd4WzEEZi_9IiL2jJOLtgDnZpJutQziCUqin1/s550/IMG_5946.jpg" /></a></div>
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There are also still hundreds of blackberry canes back there but most are at least a foot from the fence. Hopefully we can do a better job, with the help of a brush blade for our weed whacker, of keeping the field in it's place.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6klC5BicJjeqGW6xzko3qQGCGojW1ktRFCnhFUycflls7rLPzuIRwfYWlVNABCCTkmvfBjbyLj30T7XRzgTQ6iKTsK7XqfzGQFw8WrjvNat9b9IOrOazmiiV09T6nTWsi18rPm4PexKIj/s1600/IMG_5949.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6klC5BicJjeqGW6xzko3qQGCGojW1ktRFCnhFUycflls7rLPzuIRwfYWlVNABCCTkmvfBjbyLj30T7XRzgTQ6iKTsK7XqfzGQFw8WrjvNat9b9IOrOazmiiV09T6nTWsi18rPm4PexKIj/s550/IMG_5949.jpg" /></a></div>
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Now...let the gardening season begin!</div>
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Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-53240700900917846172014-04-28T09:12:00.000-04:002014-04-28T10:32:16.059-04:00an update for the dining room<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
For several months now, we've had an update for the dining room on our agenda. This room was originally painted within months of moving in almost 10 years ago! It definitely served us well, but the paint was fading and the curtains were nearly faded through. </div>
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First we had to recover from the <a href="http://www.anartfamily.com/search?updated-max=2014-01-17T12:34:00-05:00&max-results=10">Christmas updates to the kids' rooms</a>. Then, we had to wait on the painting until I had the new curtains finished for this room. Our dining room faces the street and gets all of the morning sun. Living without a curtain in these windows is not a possibility! Finally, the stars aligned, the hardware and paint were purchased, and the curtains were sewn. For about $80 in cloth, hardware, and paint, we gained an updated look in the dining room.</div>
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<b>Before:</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigYWw_whyphenhyphenwwIecDoOEIM0tfphUmiyOZS3ir7gc0zyMo8z-0YBorxU39TfSYGG4CWuvA3uJVOANgnd-uwALxrv_j29cbBYo6ixu96XPn_cjBtWX6RetgL-O_iJf72ErJ99DFiXaJGDGc4DV/s1600/IMG_5908.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigYWw_whyphenhyphenwwIecDoOEIM0tfphUmiyOZS3ir7gc0zyMo8z-0YBorxU39TfSYGG4CWuvA3uJVOANgnd-uwALxrv_j29cbBYo6ixu96XPn_cjBtWX6RetgL-O_iJf72ErJ99DFiXaJGDGc4DV/s550/IMG_5908.jpg" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrpJM-6H_-ikRTXoYuuBXebtt9W8EqlsI7Wp-0AByyzxfxW55IfGkZaq-LHpiPcq41eouPaUQWyMc9ABNMeByRM1cI4-KYFBrbV1URq8sEpck8KpLhGhmDInbJwgY8WiSno8EaT2esHDzN/s1600/IMG_5911.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrpJM-6H_-ikRTXoYuuBXebtt9W8EqlsI7Wp-0AByyzxfxW55IfGkZaq-LHpiPcq41eouPaUQWyMc9ABNMeByRM1cI4-KYFBrbV1URq8sEpck8KpLhGhmDInbJwgY8WiSno8EaT2esHDzN/s550/IMG_5911.jpg" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDz3xYJ30ZBBsYqzoWx1LxJkOYPJTNd1xwS0xZAT_fYLXzZdhC6b18WhWP2bfYJUoJrL_LDNs64B8OG-KxIOJl-WbmE3lmtcPb3bWUhpXf_kR0XZGwsQUHO2EAoEgPid5blP2o4VvwJs7h/s1600/IMG_5912.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDz3xYJ30ZBBsYqzoWx1LxJkOYPJTNd1xwS0xZAT_fYLXzZdhC6b18WhWP2bfYJUoJrL_LDNs64B8OG-KxIOJl-WbmE3lmtcPb3bWUhpXf_kR0XZGwsQUHO2EAoEgPid5blP2o4VvwJs7h/s550/IMG_5912.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>After:</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTGIyD0rk4w2eGE1WSVPkb1KzOiYxPpa6kMM3Z_65zSxigurFnD0ufK85KlWHivizIMNWd5Mw-LCGQRkyV-9n5LkpfRL_IKyaFh5vYJ_ZV_V03VRvwI44z4n9_Hp8uIKWcd-8KsN0N7skf/s1600/IMG_5935.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTGIyD0rk4w2eGE1WSVPkb1KzOiYxPpa6kMM3Z_65zSxigurFnD0ufK85KlWHivizIMNWd5Mw-LCGQRkyV-9n5LkpfRL_IKyaFh5vYJ_ZV_V03VRvwI44z4n9_Hp8uIKWcd-8KsN0N7skf/s550/IMG_5935.jpg" /></a></div>
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In addition to the new curtains, we relocated the keyboard and the stemware that cluttered the top of the wine cabinet. We also moved the <a href="http://www.nikkimcclure.com/">Nikki McClure</a> prints to this room from their old home, which is getting an update soon.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzURgrCZxWw1Lt32PzhtTmqQVMJAM7b_3683gw_I4fwzBBhpNXObJ8_Uujm_PFGiHL45PT08hz0hErXN0EXi8yBISET4OB9RZSdTC-9AAVDE6SFofVY0I1T6zsyV1I4Zc8cDghtdwTm21p/s1600/IMG_5929.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzURgrCZxWw1Lt32PzhtTmqQVMJAM7b_3683gw_I4fwzBBhpNXObJ8_Uujm_PFGiHL45PT08hz0hErXN0EXi8yBISET4OB9RZSdTC-9AAVDE6SFofVY0I1T6zsyV1I4Zc8cDghtdwTm21p/s550/IMG_5929.jpg" /></a></div>
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I'm happy that this <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/102402621/vintage-pyrex-poster-black">Pyrex print</a> matches the new curtains so nicely. It needs a larger frame and matting to really fill this space though.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_indB3XSfDuFfCTbAehEqGZMhtu1s2usk5-y6l6Q3ZKqTYC0XOID3Z6JSFqo4CzuwfRGXXORvVhso6z6iOBgeRCgaN_-fvbY5I4rN1l12ObKB82W4dl0mNKbN8M1_sgVTycYcBO5FE13a/s1600/IMG_5931.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_indB3XSfDuFfCTbAehEqGZMhtu1s2usk5-y6l6Q3ZKqTYC0XOID3Z6JSFqo4CzuwfRGXXORvVhso6z6iOBgeRCgaN_-fvbY5I4rN1l12ObKB82W4dl0mNKbN8M1_sgVTycYcBO5FE13a/s550/IMG_5931.jpg" /></a></div>
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The curtain fabric is from Michael Miller's Put a Lid on It line. I fell in love with it nearly a year ago, and the dining room update was really planned around this fabric.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh65LUGAcwded0biheULlnX4GoHtp4EDtU6EYJTGdJDDdH1NXKRwa__gqTWYYBd8mpslOzhqPCDKL7nx72Ia4-UvnWGuonZT7nopWREXBZJg_okxyL5k5g7FuJROfzsG_JpnlCf2r__aMA5/s1600/IMG_5932.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh65LUGAcwded0biheULlnX4GoHtp4EDtU6EYJTGdJDDdH1NXKRwa__gqTWYYBd8mpslOzhqPCDKL7nx72Ia4-UvnWGuonZT7nopWREXBZJg_okxyL5k5g7FuJROfzsG_JpnlCf2r__aMA5/s550/IMG_5932.jpg" /></a></div>
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The orange walls make the photographs look a bit darker, but the room is just as light as it was before and even lighter when the curtains are drawn. The heavy red drapes we had before really blocked out the light in this space. I'm definitely happy with the updates we made here.</div>
<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-1175844918819918042014-04-25T09:55:00.000-04:002014-04-25T09:55:50.533-04:00{this moment} - National Junior Honor Society<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; color: #474b4e; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px;"><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. See </span></em></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; color: #474b4e; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px;"><em><a href="http://www.soulemama.com/soulemama/" style="color: #1b703a; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Soulemama</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> to play along.</span></em></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkhWTIfuQquAshF-iCYJgj7nSUtO4FKV17XFpOO0wUgIQjJnv1dmL2hJoYWG9UZ0bFcLu_S8LS9MEHDRilT0iQP3z7RM48FZuac3qywNeDEtQvY8YYi8HbCRHkKqLKAw3_40bxG1OeWmQr/s1600/paulie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkhWTIfuQquAshF-iCYJgj7nSUtO4FKV17XFpOO0wUgIQjJnv1dmL2hJoYWG9UZ0bFcLu_S8LS9MEHDRilT0iQP3z7RM48FZuac3qywNeDEtQvY8YYi8HbCRHkKqLKAw3_40bxG1OeWmQr/s450/paulie.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17002360993206729015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8018393309086570045.post-74149171991921121492014-04-21T08:37:00.000-04:002014-04-21T09:27:53.435-04:00a happy Easter<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Often, the week of Easter is busy for us. It's typically the week that Paulie and Philip have spring break. We often travel. I forget during the busy times just how valuable it is to have a low-key Easter, full of the kind of busyness we enjoy most: making hot cross buns, church services, knitting <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/joy8/bunny-cubes">bunny cubes</a>, dyeing eggs, hunting eggs in our own backyard. With the number of snow days we experienced here in NC this year, the boys' spring break was shortened. We had a bit of a staycation instead, which afforded us the kind of Easter holiday that we all enjoy immensely. (The 5th bunny cube is NOT an announcement, as I've been asked, but a bunny for Paulie's and Philip's baby sister at their mom's house.)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXTGj6XAotdpmSM2bj0MUBbxWGn-Km21jAQewVe4n-MjWfsqmB5yr9gsSifvX99IFD6YUNOb9ryZH_RY5bO6_kLEhcjQ26_X_jIxO6gPw32XATLORTWxTVTx0aX8w3IVzPDrBBFjJ6JWac/s1600/photo+2-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXTGj6XAotdpmSM2bj0MUBbxWGn-Km21jAQewVe4n-MjWfsqmB5yr9gsSifvX99IFD6YUNOb9ryZH_RY5bO6_kLEhcjQ26_X_jIxO6gPw32XATLORTWxTVTx0aX8w3IVzPDrBBFjJ6JWac/s550/photo+2-1.jpg" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTNTv4brmP472Q9SapwDsEpUtkIFhVBHGsIIhFRTCXN0V7m1Qr_Pukmc-y4HyJ3iuVBRMMkc5Vr76ykl8bz_dz_7r35B5s1bKXzsWuGOth085ooRXeqVb7wZ1HeRn8Ovue0zMvYBtdCCMq/s1600/IMG_5864.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTNTv4brmP472Q9SapwDsEpUtkIFhVBHGsIIhFRTCXN0V7m1Qr_Pukmc-y4HyJ3iuVBRMMkc5Vr76ykl8bz_dz_7r35B5s1bKXzsWuGOth085ooRXeqVb7wZ1HeRn8Ovue0zMvYBtdCCMq/s550/IMG_5864.jpg" /></a></div>
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