Camp Degen: Day 3

Well, when you ask a 5-year old boy what they would like to do, you can't be surprised that Chuck E. Cheese comes up! We got a LOT of tokens and played a LOT of games and even won a LOT of tickets! This was a fun afternoon even though CEC was a bit busy with other families trying to soak up the last fun of the summer. 

Camp Degen: Day 2

Day 2 of Camp Degen was a last-minute play date & lunch with some of our friends before we had to head towards gymnastics. On the way, we stopped at a beautiful cemetery that Degen had asked to visit on previous drives. Honestly, I am not a macabre or dark person, but I do love cemeteries. I find them peaceful. And surrounded by monuments honoring the departed I find them filled with love. I prefer older cemeteries for the sense of history, and this particular cemetery was filled with both old & new headstones. It was a picture-perfect afternoon for a walk. We talked about the headstones we saw and how much the people were loved. Degen liked the headstones decorated with flowers & figurines. He would run ahead then call me to come see a headstone that he found. It was a beautiful afternoon, and we look forward to going back again. 

Camp Degen: Day 1

Kyrie was off this year to her first all-day camp: riders' camp at the barn where she takes lessons. Since she was going to be off all day, I decided to give Degen his own special experience with Mom. And so began Camp Degen! Each day, we did something fun that was often his choice/idea. The week went by quickly with lots of special time for this little guy who has only ever known what it is like to be the little brother! It was good to spend one-on-one time, and we had a lot of fun in just one week!

We spent most of our first day at COSI and to make it extra-special we did lots of the stuff that we usually don't on a typical visit. We saw a 3-D movie, ate in the cafe and rode the simulator. All fun! We look forward to trying out some of these again with Kyrie!

Lunch!

Movie time!

Degen's choice for the simulator experience!

The simulator

Homeschool: Summer Fun & Games

Degen building a Lego watermelon.

I guess I am not really surprised that I forgot to take a picture of our books from this unit. Sigh... in the last few weeks of summer, we have been busy with camps, friends and the end of our summer activities. Well, trust that we read some good ones and had fun talking about summer weather, safety, treats, activities and games. Of course, this is a fun & laid back unit all about the fun we have been having all summer long. 

Degen's unit folder.

Kyrie's unit folder.

The kids had lots of glyphs to work on this unit, two of which we used to decorate their unit folders. Creating glyphs involves passing along information with visual clues. I like using glyph activities with the kids because it gives them a chance to provide information about themselves, follow directions and be creative. I have 3 glyph books that I use for thematic units. 

Degen working on reading numbers.

This was our food-craft for this unit, which I found on Pinterest. I already had all the ingredients in our cupboards and started the kids out with counting cookies and red M&Ms. This was super-easy to put together and delicous!

When working with almond bark, I like to melt it in one measuring cup and then boil water in a larger measuring cup and place the smaller into the larger to keep the almond bark melted while I dip. 

Our assembly line was me dipping cookies, Degen placing M&Ms and Kyrie spooning sprinkles.

If we are talking about summer fun, we are definitely talking about swimming! Though it has been a cool summer, we have made it to the pool a handful of times. We have the most fun when we get to join our friends to swim! I am happy to see Kyrie jumping in the deep end (though not far from the ledge) and Degen (finally) trusting the lifejacket as he paddles around the lazy river!

Degen with his "sand" castle!

I have tried to give the kids extra time to play with their friends before everyone goes back to school. I love looking out the window and seeing all these kiddos playing in the backyard.

Veggie Good!

Degen sorting the vegetables he harvested with Darren.

We got the garden in late after a long, cold winter and this summer has been cool & mild. So only bit-by-bit have we been pulling in crop this year. So far, we have gotten peppers, cukes, squash and cherry tomatoes. When I can...well, I can! 

This is my third or fourth year, and I am still trying to work out a dill pickle recipe that I really love. I tweaked a recipe this year and the result is juts about right. 

Kyrie processing cukes for dill relish.

An alternate version of our dill relish.

Last year, I made a sweet & sour pepper sauce with our abundance of peppers. This year, I found a recipe for pickled Italian vegetables and turned it into an Italian garden relish. 

Degen processing mixed vegetables for our Italian Garden Relish.

Italian Garden Relish