October 2012 State Fair Competition

Sarah raised all of these from eggs that she hatched out in the incubator.

Today we went to pick up Sarah's chickens from the fair. She got her ribbons and her check. Not bad for the first time she has ever tried something like this. She entered six chickens and won four first place and two second place. Way to go.

Eye Dissection

Tonight we did our eye dissection. Gotta love science and a child who loves science. Sarah started by watching a cow eye dissection on you tube. Then she gathered her supplies. We started by examining the outside of the eye, finding the cornea, iris, and pupil.
She then cut away most of the fat and muscle. Then using a scalpel to make an incision into the cornea releasing the clear liquid called

aqueous humor. Sarah then made an incision through the sclera in the middle of the eye, cutting the eye in half. Removing the cornea and placing it down to cut it with the scalpel. The next step was to pull out the iris. In the center of the iris was hole which is the pupil. The back of the eye was filled with a clear jelly,(vitreous humor). Sarah remove the lens, which she placed down on a piece of paper with words on it to see the lens magnify the words. You could the see the thin fleshy film on the back half of the eyeball which was the retina. The retina is attached at just one spot, the optic nerve. Under the retina, the back of the eye is covered with shiny, blue-green stuff, called tapetum, which reflects light from the back of the eye. We both learned a lot from this.

Differenc in dance and gymnastics

Sarah is working hard to change a dance step that she spent years perfecting. The coupe in dance and gymnastics is quite different.

Motorcycle Baby

Sarah has many fears. One has been the motorcycle. Tonight she decided to ride it. To all of our surprise, she love it. God is truly good in helping her heal and face fears that she may overcome and expand her horizons.

10-18-12 State fair

Today we went back to the fair and took Spencer with us. We wanted to see Sarah's chickens. We had a great time. Sarah and Spencer rode a lot and Sarah rode some rides by herself.

Biology Experiment --Osmosis

Sarah a raw egg then  placed it in a cup with vinegar, letting it sit for 24 hours. When she took it out the shell had dissolved, which left the membrane under the shell exposed. That membrane is a semipermeable membrane, whick had allowed the egg to soak up the vinegar. She then rinsed the egg off and placed it in a cup filled with Karo syrup for 24 hours. Whe we exaamined the egg after 24 hours it was smaller and dimpled, since the vinegar moved out of the egg and into the syrup. We then placed the egg in a cup of distilled water for 24 hours, which allowed the water to move back into the egg again. 

Seems like a lot of work to try and understand a concept, but it works well for us. Sarah is a hands on learner and this works great for us. I love homeschooling and the fact that I get to travel this journey with her.

Pumpkin Carving with Brandon and Sydney

We went to Katie's today to have supper with them and let the kids carve pumpkins. That was quite a laugh. Jessica enjoyed it as much as the kids I think.

State Fair October 11, 2012

Today we went to the State Fair with Megan, Aaron and Katie. We got there at about 1pm and stayed until 11:30 pm. Sarah, Megan and Aaron rode rides util they cut out the lights. Sarah's favorite ride this year was Speed. Of course don't ask her what it looks like coming down, she covered her eyes. Ha. The smile on her face and the sound of her laughter was priceless. It was a great night.

Red Cabbage pH experiment

Today we did the experiment to test acid and bases with red cabbage juice.
It was quite interesting to see the color change when the cabbage juice was added. We laughed a lot during this experiment. These are the moments I trasure the most. The oridinary moments when the light comes on and she laughs because she truly gets it. Life is good. Thank you Lord for these man;y blessings.

Zoo Trip 10-5-2012

Today we took Spencer to the zoo. We had a blast. Except for the playhouse, we didn't share well. Oh well, we still have a few things to learn. We rode the trolley to the gardens and played in the playground for a long time. I love the gardens and I'm  glad that Spencer enjoyed it also. Then we went to the Kenya Cafe for lunch. Spencer did very well, He sat and ate his lunch. the food was good. Off to see the animals. The gorilla was out and about. We finally made it to the merry go round. Sarah rode with Spencer for a long time, then I rode several times so she could rock climb. He loves to ride the carousel. How I love this little boy. He melts my heart.

Juniorette Haloween Party 10-4-2012

Tonight was Sarah's Juniorette Halloween Party. They dressed up in costumes and had snacks. We had dip and chips, sandwiches, cake, punch and drinks. The girls visited for a while then started the meeting. For the ice breaker everyone took turns popping a balloon and answering the Halloween question that was inside the balloon.

There were awards for the costumes. Sarah won "fanciest". The girls then discussed
ideas for the upcoming year. They decided to collect penguin themed items and donate

a stocking to the fundraiser for the headquarters silent auction to help with repairs to the headquarters house. The next project for November was to collect shoe boxes filled with toys for operation Christmas child. In December they decided to once again enter the West Metro Christmas Parade. Their theme is "July in Christmas". They must now collect and decorate a float to ride on in the parade. They also decided to participate in the Veterans Charity Ride to collect gifts for the veterans at the VA Hospital in December. They will also have their Christmas party and gift exchange. They have a lot planned for the new year also. They are mighty ambitious.

Week 8 and 9 Our first nine weeks completed

But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God a great price. 
                                                                                          1 Peter 3:4
 
Lord help us today to put on the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit. Search our hearts and help us first deal with those issues, and when we do let us fill our hearts with good things from you. What comes out of our mouths stems from our heart condition. Let us give you our hearts so they can b cleaned and then let us dress ourselves in the Fruits of the Spirit. Let our mouths give life today. Thank you Lord.

So many days we just plow through the day without realizing what blessings we have been given or the impact we have on others. I desire to slow down and enjoy today's blessings. To be fully present and soak up all that today has to offer.  To love my family with all my heart and to let them know it.

This week we are finishing up our study on the fungi kingdom. We have viewed fungi
slides, watched several movies-Division of kingdom Fungi, Reproduction of Fungi, Bread Mold. We played with a computer game of drag and drop Bread mold. We did several labs; mushroom dissection, comparative fungi, and several experiments from our book. We placed a tomato slice and slice of bread in a covered container to watch mold grow on them. How interesting. We also viewed a video of McDonald's decomposition. After 10 weeks the fries still had not started decomposing. Scary. What we eat and how it's really prepared.

In anatomy Sarah is starting a study of the brain. She watched Brain pop movies and took quizzes on: Brain, Neurons, Headaches, and the Spinal cord, ADHD, Alzheimer's,
Sleep, Autism, and Dyslexia. We made a hemisphere hat. We completed a dissection of  a sheep brain and then viewed it under the microscope.

We completed our study on Explorers with Henry Hudson and de Champlain. Now we can move on to something else. Yea.

Sarah continues to do well in Spanish. She enjoys it. I really like that we choose Rosetta Stone.

Spelling and Vocabulary continue to be very important. She is mastering them quite well.

We are looking at some different resources to help with Grammar and Writing. We have been using some videos and computer games to help. We have also started using Daily Grammar. It is very helpful. We continue to search for the things that fit Sarah's unique learning style. She is an easy student, but like so many she has her own set of challenges and our goal is to meet her individual needs to cookie cutter school.

Brain dissection.

What a great end to the 1st nine weeks. How blessed we are as a family.

Sarah's Biology experiment growing mold/fungus on bread and tomato.
Sarah completed a study on MRSA. She is a very motivated learner when she is interested in things. It was truly a great nine weeks.

Zoo Visit 9-15-12

Today we all went to the zoo with Spencer and JL. We had a lot of fun. Sarah loves the zoo and never seems to get tired of it. We visit often. Spencer loves it too, especially when Sarah goes with him.