Sunday, July 31, 2011

Colors of Summer and a Sneak Peek

I do believe that God loves color.
Look what He has blessed us with in our garden this year.
Even if you don't like veggies, they sure are pretty to look at and fun to harvest!


               Summer is alive with color!  Behold the cool blue!
          Personally, I would like to see the ocean, but the water 
         certainly looks inviting on a day like today....


            The summer colors have even spilled over into my jewelry.  
        How could I resist?



                   And crafts!  The colors of summer, all year long...
                (gorgeous idea from my friend, Nancy!)


                           What's this in the garden??


                         It's a little peek at the colors of Fall!


                                       And I am more than ready.

Saturday, July 30, 2011

The Mystery of the Moss Covered Mansion

Nancy Drew Class.
The Mystery of the Moss Covered Mansion.
My little detectives...


      This mystery involved NASA, explosive oranges, wild animals, 
    and a mad scientist!


                    The girls created sand art in the shape of a rocket and
                                     
       
                         made (and really enjoyed!) Orange Julius shakes!
                                                                (recipe below)


               We played some games and had our monthly trivia 
          challenge, too.


                    Next month..... The Quest of the Missing Map!


Orange Julius


6 oz. frozen orange juice concentrate
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
8-9 ice cubes


1. Combine all ingredients except ice cubes in a blender.
2. Blend for about 1-2 minutes, adding ice cubes one at a time.
3. Enjoy!
**This recipe serves about 3 people, so we doubled it.**

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

School, baseball and Mrs. Crabbypants

The school/studio/everything room needed help.


                It's just not possible to work and learn in a pig pen
           environment.


               The girls and I finally have things cleaned, sorted, and
          organized.
          We'll see how long that lasts.

Our new curriculum arrived the other day.
A World of Adventure for 4th-8th graders.
I am anxious to open the box and take a peek.
I am curriculum junkie and I'm not ashamed to admit it.


                 The only problem is... we are still finishing up last 
           year's work.
           I am not a diehard teacher.  It just doesn't work for us.
                               


                               We went to a baseball game the other day.
                     Seeing friends and eating junk food was fun 
                     but otherwise the girls were not impressed.
                     (I read a magazine.)

 
                            Some of us whined because it was so hot.
                  When I got home in the a/c I was much happier.


                                         Summer volunteering ends this week.
                           So does swim team.


                                 I can sleep late again.


                                                      No more Mrs. Crabbypants.

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Skansk Grat, Apple Dancing and Bartering

American Girl Class!
Kirsten!


          We started the day with bartering.  The girls amazed me with 
      corn husk dolls...


                                   sparkly notebooks and frames...


                                  colorful pot holders...


      stuffed matryoshka dolls, doll blankets and pillows, headbands 
    and rings...


                                     and blingy flip flops!


                               It's such fun to watch them shop.:)


                     Then, we worked in the kitchen...


           making a traditional Swedish dish that Kirsten would have
        enjoyed on a cold morning....
        (Can't wait for cold mornings to return!)


                Skansk grot (SKONE-sk groot)  - Swedish Rice Pudding
             It was yummy!  (recipe below)


         Since we didn't have the time to make a quilt we did the next 
      best thing!
      We created Paper Quilts on notecards! 
      (Purchased at TJ Maxx)



            Then, the girls painted some wooden boxes that we will 
        finish at our next class.


                It was a fun time for visiting and giggling.  Aren't girls 
          the best?:)



          Back inside, the girls practiced Apple Dancing!  It is not easy,
       let me tell you.
       Super fun to watch, though.:)


           The girls had to dance while keeping an apple from falling!


         This is the kind of fun that pioneer children had.  No TV and
       Nintendo back then!
       The girls really had a good time trying this.:)  


Skansk Grot:

1 large apple
a tsp. butter
1 cup white rice
1 cup water
3 inch cinnamon stick
4 cups milk
3 TB brown sugar
1/3 cup raisins (we skipped this)
1 tsp. vanilla
Cream 
Honey

1. Skin and cut the apple into tiny pieces.
2. Use your fingers to rub butter over the bottom of your saucepan.
3.Put the rice, water and cinnamon stick into the saucepan.  Place the pan over med. heat.
4. Bring the mixture to a boil.  
5. Lower the heat until the mixture simmers. You will see tiny bubbles along the edge of the pan when it is simmering.
6. Cover the pan and simmer the rice 10-15 minutes, or until the water is absorbed.
7. Pour the milk into the saucepan.  Turn up the heat and stir until it begins to simmer.
8. When the milk begins to simmer, turn down the heat to low.  Carefully add the brown sugar, chopped apple and raisins.  Stir gently.
9. Cover the pan and allow the porridge to summer for about 45 min.  As it cooks it will thicken.  Stir it once or twice as it cooks.
10. Turn off the heat and take the pan from the stove.  Remove the cinnamon stick.  Stir in the vanilla.
11.  Pour the porridge into a bowl.  Serve it warm with cream or honey.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Please join me...

Allow me to take you on a trip...


to meet some fairies!


                                  Fairies are not easy to find.


       But on this warm summer eve, they were all together in 
     this lovely garden!


        These two precious fairies shared their icy treats with us.


                  They even taught us how to make fairy houses!


                         This lovely maiden joined in the festivities!


      I do believe that she wanted to remain in the garden with 
    the fairy folk!


Alas, there was music to be made and entertainment to be enjoyed as the night went on...


       Who is this kind and handsome man?  He seems to be a 
    fairy pack horse of some sort.:)


          It was dreamy watching the fairies work their magic.


        Pumpkins, rose petals and a tree stump.  What fairy
     dreams are made of!


   Don't you wish that you could join them?  This only happens
  once a year so you will have to mark your calendar.


                                      This little fairy is my favorite.


                                     Precious...


       The fairies had so much to do so we hurried on to the 
    next bit of fun!


            They created wind chimes for a bit of musical magic...

      
       It was quite warm so a quick fairy shower was enjoyed by 
    all as the sun went down...


The night came to a close as fire dancers performed and lanterns were released into the sky.  It was a magical ending to a very enchanting day.