Short and Sweet

CJ BDAY EVE: I can guarantee you this won't be the longest blog post ever. Eyes are blurry and fingers are speckled with fondant. Today it's been a whirlwind of preparations for CJ's bday tomorrow.

The kids started their day with a writing exercise. I thought having them write a thank you note would be a great way to get some language arts in as well as checking something important off the 'to do' list.

The kids did a good job. They were motivated and CJ was "on" when it came to not being intimidated by the blank sheet of paper and the fact he doesn't know how to spell every word in the English language. ;)

SCIENCE 'N' STUFF: The kids requested we visit the BBC Web site for some learnin' today, so I hopped over the their Bitesize headquarters. In the past we've used their math and language arts activities and games, but today we gave some science a whirl.

First, they played "Gut Instinct" where they had to battle "Viral Vinnie" (a cartoony virus) and other players in real time. It was way above their grade level so I had to help.

Next, they chose to play "Changing State" on the Bitesize "Materials" page, because we suspected it might relate to some of the same concepts that they learned about during the Pacific Science Center class last Friday. It was a good follow up to Friday, so that was time well spent.

Third, they learned about microorganisms - how some are helpful and some are harmful - through a Flash-animated activity.

ARTISTIC DIRECTOR: The Bowser pinata inches closer toward completion. I was going to do a fast-slap job of painting it, but Annabelle would have none of that. She shamed me into adding some shading on his stomach and shell. Annabelle helped crafting Bowser's wristbands and collar. CJ has approached this project in a hands-off manner. He just tells me what his vision is and I'm supposed to make it happen. ;)

It was nice when he walked in from Tae Kwon Do tonight and the first thing he was was Bowser, complete with hair, eyebrows and claws. Despite the fact Bowser's still missing his horns, CJ smiled widely and said, "Now THAT looks like Bowser" and "it's perfect!" High praise coming from a kid who knows his Bowser.

FULL BLOOM: For our fresh air and exercise we loaded up the bikes and headed west, to Magnolia Boulevard, where a ribbon-like park fronts the bluff overlooking Elliott Bay, Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains. It's always a feast for the eyes, but today was especially nice because the sun was out, it was over 70, and everything was in bloom. Here, Annabelle stops to admire one yard in particular ...

We stopped so the kids could play around in one wide patch of grass. They played tag for awhile, and a game Annabelle invented where each of them picked a color, and when their color was called, they had to pick as many 'flowers' (dandelions) and they could before the other person's color was called. We closed the field play with a game of Red Light, Green Light.



The view from this bench is terrific - Space Needle and stadiums to the east/left; the water, West Seattle, lots of ship traffic and nearby islands to the south; and the Olympics to the west. It's a nice place to "have a sit." PILLOW TALK: A few minutes ago, Annabelle called out from the bedroom, "Dad?" He asked what she needed and she replied, "Solids, liquids and gas are states of matter."

Goodnight, Annabelle. :)