Bird houses are adorable symbol of spring, don’t you think? Our flower bed birdfeeder is brimming with activity, hosting a wide variety of wild birds throughout the day. I thought it would be really cute if each of the kids decorated their own birdhouse for the flower bed too. I picked up some adorable, small wooden birdhouses at Michaels over the weekend for only $1 each. Today we got out the paints and brushes and got busy painting!

Each child had their own paint set and a variety of brushes. Alex chose the cottage birdhouse, Derek the plain birdhouse, and Ethan the barn. Bella didn’t get one this year as she’s still quite young and more likely to paint herself than the birdhouse. I had Derek take off his shirt and don a painting apron instead. As expected, his entire work area as well as part of his arms, face, and hair were covered in paint by project’s end.

Each child’s creation was vastly different. Derek mixed brown, yellow, and green together, splashed it onto the wood, and finished his birdhouse quickly. Ethan chose two colors and painted steadily. Alex took a very long time, adding lots of detail. I think that says a lot about each of their personalities!

Here are our birdhouses after hours of drying:

Derek's Birdhouse

Alex's Birdhouse

Ethan's Birdhouse

This was a very fun and inexpensive project that thoroughly occupied my little learners for the better part of an hour. Tomorrow we’ll see if the globs of paint are dry and apply a protective coat. Then we’ll set them up in the flower bed to enjoy. I’m sure they’re much cuter than they are functional, but it’s the thought that counts, right?

I love it when the spring birds come out in force. There will be plenty to look at right outside our little window.

It was unusually warm outside today, even for Florida. At 9 am, the temperature was already above 70 degrees. It is technically still winter, right? We began our school day with a “bird walk.” Drawing pads and pencils in hand, we headed out to the NAS Jacksonville nature trails.

As we neared the trails, we spotted a jolly red cardinal! The bigger kids began drawing to the best of their abilities. Derek scribbled a bit, then threw his drawing pad under the stroller. I told them to stand quietly a moment and listen to the different bird songs. There were many varieties!

We saw surprisingly few birds out and about, probably because Derek was so darn loud. I reminded him that if he was loud, he would frighten the wildlife away. There were plenty of butterflies, though! They really liked Alex’s hair flower and flittered and fluttered about her head.

Alex and Ethan drew lots of birds, plants, and butterflies throughout our walk. After about 20 minutes or so, all the drawing pads were stored under the stroller and the kids ran, explored, and frolicked along the trail. They got a lot of exercise!

Our forest adventure lasted an hour and a half. The kids got in some great science time, a bit of art, and lot of physical fitness time too. They were all quite tired by the time we meandered home, ready to focus on some school work. Bella was ready for a good, long nap.

We love exploring and spending time together in the great outdoors. Perhaps eventually I can even convince them to tone down the volume and we’ll see some interesting Florida wildlife. Besides for gators… I really don’t want to see any gators. A cardinal or two will always do.

Although we’ve been there at least 100 times, the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens is still one of our favorite places to go for a walk. Alex and Ethan had their very last homeschool class at the zoo this morning. Sigh. I wish the classes went longer! By the time classes start back up in September, we should be moving or already relocated to our new duty station. Although exciting, it also makes me pretty sad. We’ve been in Jacksonville for so long that I consider it my home. I’ll really miss all the things to do and the great friends we have here.

While the bigger kids learned all about animal tracks, snakes, and other interesting animal facts, the younger children and I walked the zoo with some friends. We all got plenty of exercise and lots of visiting time too!

Derek was a stinker at the zoo, refusing to talk and not listening to a thing I said. He was mad that Ethan was able to go to class and not him. They are the same size, after all. However… they are for ages 5 and up for a reason. Poor guy doesn’t understand that. He felt that his rights were violated. After all, Ethan shouldn’t be able to do anything he can’t do, right? Sibling love.

Bella loves running through the zoo with her dolly, exploring and seeing everything. She was so funny when we stopped to play near the squirrel monkeys. She didn’t notice them at first and climbed all over the ropes, then suddenly , “Ew! Ew! Ew!” She ran to the glass and pressed her face against it, pointing. “Mom, Eeeeew!!!” She was very concerned. “Am-im-ows!” she proclaimed. “Eeeeew!” (PS: That’s baby for “animals”).

I was debating whether or not to take the kids out today since I haven’t been feeling that great this week, but I’m glad I did. They had a blast as always. By the end, though, Derek was being even more rotten. He found his “missing” voice, but everything he said was contrary.

“Look, Derek, the rhinos are lying in the grass!” I told him.

“Seen it before,” he said, not bothering to look.

“Look, Derek, that bird is stretching his wings!” I said, “Do you see him sitting up there in that tree?”

“Seen it before,” he said.

“Derek, look at the zebra!” 

“Seen it.”

“Derek, look at the elephant! He’s eating with his trunk!”

“Mom!” Derek sighed, “I have seen it all before. I not liking animals.”

Oh well. Maybe it is time for a change of scenery. We went to the front of the zoo and shared a pretzel snack, watching the crowds of people and talking about the things we had seen. Food is one thing that never ceases to interest Derek.

The big kids had a blast in class and got to meet some komodo dragons, snakes, a porcupine, and more. They both told me lots of things they learned about animal tracks and how snakes eat.

Now the bigger kids are resting quietly in their rooms. I am ready for a nap too. How come the little kids are still roaring along as if we didn’t spend our morning walking the zoo? Crazy children.

Our butterflies have set out into the world, soaring into the sky above Jacksonville and into the great blue yonder. It was kind of sad to see them go, but wonderful too.

Our last chrysalis hatched on Sunday and we’ve been enjoying our four active painted lady butterflies. We gave them a piece of orange to suck the nectar. It was really interesting to watch! The weather warmed a bit today and although it’s cloudy, it’s not raining. It was time to let our butterflies out into the world to enjoy the rest of their short lives. We read that an adult butterfly lives for 14-21 days. Rather sad, isn’t it?

As soon as we unzipped the butterfly habitat, the most anxious butterfly fluttered right out. The remaining three were not so interested and needed some urging. Each eventually  flew carefully out and landed not far outside of the habitat, testing their wings. One of the butterflies kept landing on us, as if he didn’t want to leave at all. Bella squealed with delight each time one of the butterflies moved.  The butterflies left one at a time, giving us to time enjoy each one individually.

Eventually, each of the butterflies took off and fluttered into the sky.

Our butterfly and ladybug experiences were phenomenal learning experiences. We released our ladybugs into the flower bed today as well. They are crawling merrily about the bushes, looking for an aphid snack. The children learned a lot about how things grow and change and gained a greater appreciation for living things. No matter how small, every life is worth something.

We’re keeping our butterfly habitat in case we decide to do this again. I definitely think we will. This is a project we could enjoy year after year as the younger kids grow up and begin to learn more about their world. Derek learned so much from our studies. Just this morning he was explaining to me how a caterpillar grows and changes into a butterfly…. for the millionth time. It sure made an impression on him!

Bye, bye, butterflies, bye! We will miss you.

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• This Week: Butterflies and Caterpillars! (homeschoolinghelicoptermama.wordpress.com)
• What Happened to Our Caterpillars? We’ve Got Chrysalises! (homeschoolinghelicoptermama.wordpress.com)
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This is just a short post to share a video a friend of mine posted on face book. Most American parents believe that they should control how they raise their child. Unfortunately, this couldn’t be farther from the truth. Check out this 36 minute video to learn how much government encroaches upon your rights as a parent:

http://www.overruledmovie.com/

American parents are losing their rights, and they don’t even know it. Stand up for what you believe is right.

I am completely in support of a Constitutional amendment protecting the rights of parents. Are you?

Sign a petition at:

https://www.thedatabank.com/dpg/385/personal2.asp?formid=signup

Related articles

• Overruled: Government Invasion of your Parental Rights (wife2dondi.wordpress.com)
• “Parents Don’t Know What’s Best For Their Children” – You Must Read This! (homeschoolinghelicoptermama.wordpress.com)

Exciting news! Our butterflies and ladybugs have hatched! The ladybugs have been breaking free from their pupa throughout the week and emerging full grown. Their spots emerge over a day or so and their shells harden to protect their soft, filmy flying wings. I haven’t been able to get a super great picture, but here’s what they look like today:

We studied lady bugs last week for science, but I figured I wouldn’t post pictures until they actually did something interesting. The larva turned into stationary pupa about a week ago and just sat there, transforming on the inside. We read books about the ladybug lifecycle and found some great related printables at www.enchantedlearning.com. Learning about ladybugs from our books and literature really added a lot of depth to our experiment, and the hands-on aspect of our science experiment made the project very meaningful!

Look what we made!

Learning About Ladybugs

Alex got a shot of me reading to the crew

The butterflies have been resting within their cocoons for about a week or so too, peacefully sitting on the desk and nearly forgotten. I was gathering the children’s drawing pads this afternoon, looked up, and this is what I saw:

Two tiny butterflies fluttered their colorful wings from within the mesh habitat! Two more cocoons are yet to hatch. The kids ran over to see the new butterflies. I gently set the habitat on the middle of the table and all four kids crowded around to see the miracle.

Our fun insect experiment is coming to a close. The kids have learned so much about how living things grow and change. The child who got the most out of it was Derek, I think. He talks about the insects a lot and also compares their changing forms to how he is changing and growing up. Score!

We’re going to release our insects early next week when the rain stops and the sun brightens beautiful Florida once again.

I think we’ll miss our little friends. It has been an eye-opening experience and I’d recommend it to anyone with little kids.

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Every Friday afternoon, the children all gather around our dining room table for an art lesson. Last week we drew geometric animals, turning basic shapes like circles and triangles into birds and caterpillars. Today the boys practiced drawing shapes on their drawing pads and Alex moved on to something more advanced: shadowing.

We’re working through the text Art Basics for Kids- The ABC’s of Art by Sharon Jeffus and really like it. I wasn’t sure how to help the children take their drawing to the next level and this really helps guide the way. Today’s lesson was A is for Apple. We transformed a basic circle into an apple, learning how to shadow with a basic pencil to add shape and depth. Alex drew numerous apples and honed her shadowing skills on her drawing pad. Then, when she was ready, we got out a piece of construction paper for today’s challenge: draw an apple on a table and add shadowing to bring the picture to life.

This is what we got:

Alex's Apple on a Table

I was beyond thrilled with the results and Alex was too. She drew numerous other pictures throughout the evening, experimenting with shadowing in new and exciting ways. Hubby was really impressed with Alex’s drawing when he came home from work. She’s only 7 and can already draw better than him. Now… does that mean she’s good or he’s really bad?

Help! We’ve got a bad case of CPS, or Crazy Preschooler Syndrome! I believe it’s also known as MPHWTMFE, or My Preschooler Has Way Too Much Freaking Energy. Symptoms include: bouncing off the walls day and night, rarely sleeps, often up till 11 pm if napping quota was met, crazy sense of humor involving bodily functions, laughs like a maniac at the slightest provocation, and possesses more pent up energy than a boiling kettle. Have you heard of it?

I’ve always heard that boys are constantly on the move but never knew exactly what that meant until we had Derek and he turned three. This boy seriously never stops moving! In order to get him to concentrate on a little preschool work, I’ve got to let him run wild and expend a ton of energy outside. This means three hour-long outside periods. That is three hours of our day walking about, riding bikes,  running around the playground, chasing and kicking balls, etc. I took him outside one last time before baths and bed for a nice long walk and he ran the entire time! This way and that, here and there, discovering rocks, acorns, sticks, tree stumps, and anything else that captured his fleeting fancy. I took the camera along to capture our crazy walk.

Derek insists on jumping over every single crack in the sidewalk. Alex is an extremely accommodating sister and plays with him. Derek pretends that there’s an alligator hiding in each crack and if you don’t jump over it you get eaten. He ran, jumped, and squealed for the entire walk. He amassed a collection of pine cones and flowers, rocks and sticks, forgetting the last treasures every time he found something new and exciting.

Derek: Alex, Alex, guess what?

Alex: What, Derek?

Derek: The alligator is gunna eat you! You had better run faster! If he come after me, I am gunna kick him. I can kick him and run cause I am really fast and strong. I am gunna get that alligator with my stick. Plus I has rock. Lots of rocks. Alligators not like to eat rocks. 

(Pause)

Derek: Alex, Alex, guess what?

Alex: What, Derek?

Derek: The sun is going to bed and the owl is coming out of his home. When I was a mouse, I was really scared cause the owl was going to eat me! I ran and ran. But I is not a mouse, I is a Derek, and I can kick owls. They not want eat me. Cause I is a Derek. 

(Pause)

Derek: Alex, Alex, guess what? I is going to walk over that bridge (pointing in the distance) and I is going to walk and walk till I get to the store. Then I is going to get us a birthday cake. 

Alex: It’s not your birthday, silly.

Derek: I is needing a birthday cake cause I like them. We can have a picnic, but not at night. At night there are raccoons and bats, and those is scary. But I can get my stick and hit them. Cause I is a Derek and I am not a baby.

On days I am on top of it and get Derek outside numerous times a day, he’s a pretty manageable little boy. He went to bed so nicely tonight and is sleeping soundly! It only took three long play breaks: morning, noon, and night. Yesterday we missed our morning playtime AND he took a short nap. Guess who was running around the house like a crazy person until nearly 11 pm? Yes, Derek. I am not ready for him to give up naps completely. I need a little down time and he is a very intense, in-your-face kind of child. On the other hand, I really don’t enjoy him being up so late either. Which is worth more: an hour of peace in the afternoon or quiet time all evening? It depends on how tired I am, I guess.

As crazy and over-the-top as he is, I adore Derek at this age. He’s so inquisitive and full of wacky ideas. He talks my ears off and tells me lengthy made-up stories that take a great deal of creativity. He still loves cuddling too, when he isn’t beating up on his brother or running from one end of the house to the next. He asks “Why” at least a hundred times a day and wants to know everything about the world around him. He wants to hit every tree we walk past with a stick to hear the sound it makes, step on every acorn, run through every mound of grass, and jump in every puddle. Everything is interesting and worth investigating.

I’ve read that boys are really being left behind in today’s schools because they’re not prepared for the amount of energy these kids have. Modern kids in daycare and preschool spend 95% of their day sedentary. Kids like Derek don’t sit still. They need a serious amount of play time outside, climbing and running and exploring.  He won’t get that at a traditional school. I’m glad that we can work around his style, providing him with both the exercise and activity he needs as well as a great education. Walking Derek definitely wears me out too!

Do you have a crazy preschooler at home? I think one day I’ll look back and miss this phase. He’ll have outgrown it (hopefully!) and be embarrassed by the crazy stories of his wild antics and crazy aspirations.  As his mom, I’ve really had to learn to let things go. Does it matter that our walks often have no real direction and take 10 times longer than I’d like? Not really, in the grand scheme of things. I think that watching him discover his world and laugh like a mad scientist at everything that he finds hilarious is much more valuable. I don’t think I really mind having a kid with CPS after all….while he wears me out, breaks things, and has caused his fair share of headaches,  he certainly keeps things interesting.

Image via Wikipedia

I came across two articles this week that really scared me regarding the direction of the American education system.

First, let me tell you about the little girl in North Carolina whose lunch was taken away from her because it was “unhealthy” and was given cafeteria food instead. What was so unhealthy about her lunch? The preschooler’s mother packed her a turkey and cheese sandwich, a banana, apple juice, and potato chips. Her lunch was inspected at school and “didn’t meet USDA requirements.” The child was given a tray of cafeteria food and ate only three nuggets off the tray. Her perfectly-good lunch was sent home… with a bill for the cafeteria lunch.

What on earth??? What is wrong with a turkey sandwich, fruit, juice, and chips? I think it’s pretty scary when society gets to the point of examining our children’s lunches and deciding that parents aren’t capable of packing their children’s food. I think that the girl’s lunch was perfectly fine!  It’s not like she had a coke and a twinkie for lunch!  Wouldn’t her turkey sandwich have been a lot more nutritious than the three processed nuggets she ate?

According to the following article, the state is allowed to come in at any time and make sure that schools are in compliance with USDA guidelines, which includes something as minute as the contents of a preschooler’s lunchbox. If the teacher feels that the child’s lunch doesn’t meet guidelines, they are required to supplement it. In some states, children are not allowed to bring lunch from home at all.

Check out this article: http://myfox8.com/2012/02/15/usda-meal-was-not-replaced-mom-was-never-charged/

More info: http://myfox8.com/2012/02/14/nc-preschooler-fed-nuggets-because-packed-lunch-wasnt-healthy/

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If you haven’t read the news at all in the past decade, you might think this is just fine and dandy. For those of you that do read the news and keep up on current events, you likely know how unhealthy cafeteria food really is. Dateline investigated the quality of public school cafeterias and found many of them to have serious violations. They commonly serve hamburgers, pizza, and chicken wings and food is often not kept at a healthy temperature (this leads to bacteria growth and consequently food poisoning).

There have been efforts to clean up school cafeterias, but it’s still not that great. We let our daughter buy lunch every Friday when she went to public kindergarten, and what did she choose? Pizza, tater tots, chocolate milk, and jello. I was unhappy with her choices, and even  more so that this is what was offered.I’m sure there where also fruits and veggies, but how many children choose these over tater tots and jello? Is this school lunch more nutritious than something I could pack at home? Not a chance.

Here’s an article discussing this issue:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6430258/ns/dateline_nbc/t/how-safe-school-cafeteria-food/#.Tz1UyYem92A

Also, 50% of elementary schools still have vending machines that offer unhealthy snacks. 3/4ths of American schools serve entrees that exceed recommended levels of fat. A la carte lines brim with unhealthy treats. And the problem is the parents? I think not.

Education Nation (Photo credit: Gates Foundation)

To understand how school and state officials come to believe that they know best and have the right to dictate every detail of a child’s life, check out the following article:

http://biggovernment.com/eagtv/2012/02/10/member-of-education-establishment-parents-dont-know-whats-best-for-their-children/

Debbie Squires, associate director of the Michigan Elementary and Middle School Principals Association, explained to members of the House Education Committee why her association opposed allowing more cyber (or online) schools to operate in the state: “Educators go through education for a reason,” Squires said. “They are the people who know best about how to serve children. That’s not necessarily true of an individual resident. I’m not saying they don’t want the best for their children, but they may not know what actually is best from an education standpoint.”

When asked to clarify, she said “I said they may want what’s best for their child (but) they may not know.”

So… parents don’t know what is best for their children? Interesting. How did the human race survive for millenia if parents were so incapable of caring for their offspring? If cave parents didn’t know what was best for their children, they would have been eaten by predators. If our recent ancestors didn’t know what was best for their children, would they have survived the challenges of their time and grown to be successful, educated, and happy people (all without the government to spoon feed them a false sense of security)? No? If our ancestors had not been capable of rearing their young, you wouldn’t be here. Think about that.

What happened to this country? Wasn’t the United States founded on principles of freedom? Didn’t our ancestors leave Europe to escape the control their governments had on their lives?  Didn’t our pioneer ancestors head west for freedom and unbounded opportunities? We’ve come a long way since then. Now, government intercedes into every aspect of our lives… right down to the contents of our children’s lunch sacks. Wake up, America, before the last of your liberties are gone. Our inalienable rights are being threatened. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, right? Your liberty is being taken away and you might not even know it.

When will it be time to say, “Enough is enough?”

Related articles

• ABC, NBC Skip Food Police Confiscating Preschooler’s Dangerous Potato Chips (newsbusters.org)
• State employee replaced preschoolers “unhealthy” lunch with chicken nuggets (winteryknight.wordpress.com)
• Preschooler Forced to Eat Chicken Nuggets After Bag Lunch Fails State Inspection (outsidethebeltway.com)
• School forces preschooler to order cafeteria lunch because mom’s isn’t healthy enough (hotair.com)
• North Carolina – Schools Hired a “Lunch Inspector” to Inspect Our Children’s Lunches in Public Schools? (bonjupatten.com)
• Preschooler’s Homemade Turkey Sandwich Replaced With Nuggets (huffingtonpost.com)
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• Liberty Alert: Protecting Preschoolers By Feeding Chicken Nuggets? (claimingliberty.wordpress.com)
• Your Nanny State Intrusion of the Day! (thedaleygator.wordpress.com)
• School Lunch Uproar in North Carolina Preschool (eatdrinkbetter.com)
• Nanny state report: NC school officials confiscate preschooler’s homemade lunch – The Daily Caller (gds44.wordpress.com)
• Wake Up Amrica! (wdednh.wordpress.com)
• Lunch Bags Inspected for Nutrition (neatorama.com)
• The Food Police Order Parents to Pay for Replacement Lunches (trutherator.wordpress.com)
• Government agents now searching sack lunches at schools (aboundingwellness.wordpress.com)

My Oriental Trading Company order came in this week and the kids were excited to rip open the modest cardboard box and discover the treasures inside. If you’ve ever seen their catalogue, they’ve got some weird stuff! The craft supplies are a great price, though, and I stocked us up with buttons, pipe cleaners, stickers, buttons, sequins, stencils, and… feathers. Why feathers? We’re talking about birds this week, and feather art is a fun sensory activity for little hands.

I asked Derek, “What kind of animals have feathers?”

“Giraffes,” he stated, matter-of-factly.

“What? Did you say giraffes?” I was pretty confused. I thought this project would be a bit more straightforward. 

“They has feathery tails!” he said.

Good observation… although I did explain to him that a giraffe’s tail is fringed with hair, not feathers. It’s interesting to look at the world through the eyes of a 3-year-old. I suppose a giraffe’s tail does look something like feathers.

We talked about birds a bit and I filled a bowl with colorful feathers. Derek loved grabbing handfuls and feeling them. I also provided him with glue, a paintbrush, and some construction paper and showed him how to smooth some glue onto his paper and stick a feather to it. Today’s project: feather collages.

A bowlful of feathers!

Derek's "Bird-brain" look

And this is what happens when you give a 3-year-old a bowl of feathers...

Derek's feather collage

By project’s end, the feathers were all over the dining room floor. Bella wanted to play with them too, so I scooped them into a large mixing bowl and placed the bowl in the middle of the living room on the rug. I gave Bella and Derek an extra bowl and tongs to pick up the feathers and play with them, scooping them from bowl to bowl.

Bella delicately scooped her feathers and placed them neatly in the smaller bowl. Derek scattered them around the entire living room. Wow. That boy is something else. This  would have really gotten on my nerves a year ago, but now it doesn’t even phase me. I guess that’s what happens after having 4 messy, creative little monkeys and homeschooling them. Things like that just aren’t a big deal anymore. I did make him clean up all the feathers when he was done “decorating.” I’m rather thankful the neighbors didn’t come over at that moment!

These things are tricky, mom!

Play is vitally important for preschoolers and it’s amazing how long they’ll play with the simplest things. It just has to be novel and the fun can last for an hour (an eternity in my house!). Play is the foundation for learning, and giving kids a variety of things to play and experiment with stimulates their imaginations.

One of Bella’s favorite things to do is to play with an assortment of dried pasta, sorting them between various bins with spoons, tongs, and her hands. The feathers added a bit of freshness to this activity. The feathers were soft and light, colorful and interesting to touch. The kids liked sorting them and throwing them into the air, watching them fall slowly to the ground. Bella was interested for about 20 minutes and Derek played with the feathers for about an hour. That gave me a lot of time to focus on the other kids’ lessons. I’d say that was a good morning all around!

Now, I wonder if Derek will make a connection between this project and birds? I think we need to take a trip to the library for some age-appropriate bird books. After all, I don’t want him to grow up convinced that giraffes have feathers.