Fun at the Pumpkin Farm

Last weekend we spent a very hot, but beautiful afternoon at our favorite pumpkin farm. My sister Colleen and nephew Carter joined us. Great family fall fun!

Pigs for Dinner and Spiders for Dessert

We finished reading Charlotte's Web so we celebrated with a special dinner party. (Thanks Sylvia for the ideas!) It was definitely not a fancy affair, but it was a fun celebration. Just before dinner Adam was out on the porch. I asked him to come in and he told me he was waiting for all of our guests to arrive. He was disappointed to learn that this was just a family celebration. I'm not sure how long his imaginary guest list was!

Ray made the main course all by himself! Pigs in a blanket, tres gourmet.
We also had curly fries, aka "pig's tails." (We did also have fruits and vegetables! After all, we are studying nutrition this month!)

Adam was in charge of decorations. He made a centerpiece and place cards.

And hanging over the table.....

I was in charge of dessert:

After dinner, we headed to the back yard. (The boys strongly believe that every "party" MUST have games.) We spray-painted a spider web in our yard. (Yes, we are that crazy. We have done this before for a Halloween party. I wonder what the neighbors... and airplane passengers landing at the nearby airport... think!?!)

We played a family tournament of "TRY TO THROW THE BEANBAGS AND/OR BALLS INTO THE CENTER OF THE WEB."
When we came inside, we surprised the boys with more Charlotte's Web goodies: an activity book, an easy reader from the library, and a Charlotte's Web 2 video (also from the library). They took a quick bath and enjoyed the video before bed.

We have all enjoyed our Charlotte's Web adventures and I'm sure they will continue. For now I'm considering the options for another chapter book read-aloud. Little House on the Prairie? We'll see.

A Trip to the Farm

We took advantage of yesterday's beautiful weather to make a Fall trip to Slate Run Farm. As the Charlotte's Web craze continues, seeing pigs and searching for spider webs qualify as big fun for us! (As I type this the boys are having a wonderful time winding very long pieces of yarn all around the house. They are turning our house into a gigantic spider web!)




Grinding corn - We spent lots of time playing in and climbing this giant pile of straw.


Hanging out in the hammock -

Fabulous Creations

After our school work yesterday morning, the boys had great ideas for some creative projects. They worked diligently and enthusiastically for a long time. I didn't take a picture of the school room mess afterward, but it was epic. It was worth it, however, to see their excitement and pride. I have to admit I had a lot of fun helping them.

Adam made a robot out of an oatmeal container. There's a robot baby too!

Ray made a Charlotte's Web diorama. (Yes, the Charlotte madness continues here!)

Tall Tales

Last week we finished up a very fun Tall Tales unit. I was amazed at how much the boys loved these stories. The stories are wild, rough-and-tumble, and just plain fun. Perfect for boys! We enjoyed talking about which parts are/could be true and which parts are clearly fictitious.

We read:

Paul Bunyan, Johnny Appleseed, Pecos Bill, Mike Fink, and Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind Crockett all by Steven Kellogg. The boys LOVED his illustrations!

The Narrow Escapes of Davy Crockett by Ariane Dewey

Casey Jones by Larry Dane Brimner

The Bunyans by Audrey Wood

John Henry by Julius Lester

Davy Crockett Gets Hitched by Bobbi Miller

After we read about each tall tale character, the boys drew a picture in their tall tale flapbooks. They narrated what they remembered and liked about each story and I wrote their words next to their pictures. Now they have really nice flapbooks of which they are very proud.

Here's what Ray had to say about Pecos Bill (pictured above): "Once upon a time there was a cowboy named Pecos Bill. He had a horse that was named lots of names. Then in the ocean he saw Slue Foot Sue riding on a fish. They traveled to Texas. At the end, Slue Foot Sue bounced up and down, up and down. Pecos Bill went and got into a coyote family. Thank you. Thank you."

My favorite narration from Adam is about John Henry: "John Henry was a MIGHTY man! He raced a guy with an engine. He used his hammers to break through a mountain."

We also listened to the American Tall Tales cd by Jim Weiss and watched American Legends by Disney. These really brought the tales to life for the boys.

I am planning to use one or more of the tall tale stories to teach Geography to my 4 and 5 year old co-op class next month. They refer to the move West in early America and also to many American landmarks. It would be fun to map out the places mentioned in the stories.

I highly recommend these fun stories!

A Wonderful "Web" of Weekend Fun!

Our weekend plans got all mixed up, but we had some really fun surprises.

Ray did get to play soccer on Saturday morning and he even got to be the goalie during the second half. He did a good job, only allowing one goal even though he didn't realize he could use his hands. I am thrilled by his enthusiasm and the endurance he's shown in the games.

Last night we were supposed to go to a hayride and bonfire with some homeschool families. Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate. We had some friends over for pizza instead and it was a really fun evening.

Today we were supposed to head to a pumpkin farm with my sister and nephew, but again the weather did not cooperate. We had seen a flyer for a local high school production of Charlotte's Web and we decided to go to their afternoon show. (After recently seeing a Charlotte's Web video, Adam is crazy about the story. We have been reading the book and Adam is planning to be Charlotte for Halloween. It's all about spiders for him these days.)

We had an absolutely fabulous time! This was the first play the boys have seen and they were completely enthralled. The production was really good, which is amazing since the young man playing Wilbur broke his arm this morning and had to be replaced by another student. He was great! We sat up very close and took in every minute of the action. The boys were fascinated by the scenery and props. After the show Adam said to me, "That was not at all what I thought it would be like. It was AWESOME!"

Here are the boys as we headed into the high school:

Here they are enjoying spider and pig chocolate lollipops at intermission:

Here's Adam with "Charlotte." Are you wondering about the paper on his shirt? Before we left for the show he made his own "Charlotte shirt." There is a front and back to it, taped over his shoulders and around his belly. It has pictures he drew of Charlotte. He very proudly wore it throughout the afternoon. He told the Charlotte actress all about it and informed her that he plans to be Charlotte for Halloween.
Here's Ray with Wilbur:

After the show, the students put on a "County Fair" in the school cafeteria. They had games and prizes and snacks. It was really fun! Here's Adam eating cotton candy:

Check out this goose costume! Adam loved this spider ring toss game. Sack races:
When we got home I went upstairs to get some things ready for this school week. When I came downstairs, this is what I found in the living room.... along with a big mess of paper and tape in the school room.After dinner Jon and I were treated to ANOTHER production of Charlotte's Web, complete with costumes, scenery, set changes, intermission, and a county fair with games at the end! It was very elaborate. I was so impressed by the details of the story that they remembered and re-enacted.

As I sat and watched the show with Jon, I kept thinking.... "This is exactly what I want them to be loving and doing!" They had a blast and so did we. No TV. No computer. They were very disappointed to learn that they can't go back tomorrow. They can't wait to go to another play.

I am very thankful tonight for a fun weekend with my family. THIS is what it's all about and I love our life together! Thank you, God.