Daily happenings

Grace really enjoys going to the Baby and Me hour at the library. (She does not prefer the toddler hour.)  We take Sheldon, so we're legit, but really it's for G and her baby. She sings "Bouncy Mouse" and "Trot Old Joe" and then listens to the stories.

Nap-time is changing these days.  We still observe it, but some days G talks to herself for two hours.  Other days she falls asleep.  Some days there is evidence that she did not stay in bed for the duration.

 

We made a Rice Krispie house.

Sheldon thought it was delish.

He loves to stand!

Sheldon at 10 months

 Love him!!!

Day Trip to Ligonier

My aunt gave us an excuse to visit the Lenox Warehouse, so one fall day we did some fun shopping. And on the way home we drove through Ligonier.

Shel's first ice cream cone.

Grace had hers with sprinkles.

Americana street, toy store in foreground, cemetery on rolling hill.

It's fall at the fort!

White Mountain Ice Cream

David has been looking for a hand-crank White Mountain ice cream maker for years.  His search came to a successful end in October, when he found this on Craigslist.

It's as old as it looks.  But D's made some great ice cream, so I've stopped teasing him.

It's a one-quart sized and freezes in about 15 minutes.  He found that the rock salt in the basement (used to melt snow on the driveway) also works in this machine.  He's made a Helen Corbitt's lemon velvet and a cinnamon flavor (trying to match the delicious dessert we had on a date to Alma's Pan-Latin restaurant).

The man who sold us the maker is a tall man in his 50s, with grey-blue eyes.  He lives in Ellwood City, an hour from Pittsburgh in a little round home with his wife and two daughters.  He showed us his barn and his plans to convert the upper portion into a rental-loft and the lower portion into a venue for private musical concerts.  He discussed theater with David, and told us about his family and his connectedness to that particular plot of Pennsylvania countryside.  We left him refreshed and happy.  There are kind people tucked away in all parts of this world.

Phipps Night

At the end of October, our very cool local greenhouse hosted a members only night.  The reason was to showcase their new "living building", which had a garden roof and nearly all three very difficult to get certifications (last one pending, as the building has to be used for one year).  The interior of the building smelled fresh and lovely.  And that was as far as I got, because Sheldon dropped his plastic cup one too many times and I decided we'd go back to raiding the black bean and corn salsa.

There was also vegetarian paella and little white bags of popcorn.  Something for everyone.  

The night was clear and warm (76 degrees; I checked on the way home.)   "I really, really like going on a date with Daddy and Mommy!" Grace said.  Sheldon, of course, partied on well past his bedtime--there were lots of people and that's all the boy needs to be happy.

End of Summer / Early Fall Recap

We've already got the Christmas tree up, but I found a few photos from this summer and I wanted to note them.

Chillin' with the McPhersons at Dormont Pool

We went with our neighbors to Morris Farm.  Our neighbors keep a garden in their backyard, and in their spare time they come here to volunteer.  Morris Farm is organic, so Grace was able to enjoy eating tomatoes and green beans right off the vine.

We took a quick trip to see the Meissenheimers, who were staying with the Pecks in D.C. 

My little redheaded boy.

The whole gang on the night we arrived.

Sweet Carrie is expecting their second.  Copeland is a cutie!

Pittsburgh has yearly "RAD" days, where many of Pittsburgh's museums are free to the public.  We took the kids (for the second year) to the Children's Museum and (for the second year) swore never to return on a free day. 

Sheldon enjoyed watching the Ryder Cup in September.

 

One warm Sunday afternoon, we took a walk by the Monogahela, starting in the South Side.

Grace is holding soft baby so that she won't get wet.

We went to Zoo Boo with the Emerys!

And Autumn arrived, and it was lovely.

Maddie's Dash

Halloween Houses with McPhersons

7 Quick Takes (Sunday): Homeschool Edition

Joining Jen for 7 Quick Takes Friday!

1. Many of my friends have chosen to enroll their kids into preschool, and their kids are learning French and coming home with crafty fall art projects.  In the past when people have asked where G will go to school, I've said that we plan to home school.  Now that she's three, I'm feeling the pressure to say that we DO home school.  And that I need to have something to show other than that "Um, she counted out potatoes for me for dinner" (and got to "eleventeen").  So, here are some things we've done in the past weeks for her education.

2. We took a field trip!  A replica of the Nina (the most accurate ever built) was docked in Pittsburgh's North Side for a few days prior to Columbus Day.





It's quite small, compared to today's ships.  But for being guided by a tiller (not a wheel), it's large.  The crew of 24 men used to sleep on deck, as the hull was full of food, horses and extra rigging.

Grace's fav part was trotting up and down the gangplank.

I found out about this event because I joined the Catholic Homeschoolers of Pittsburgh listserv.  All kinds of home school points!

3. We went apple picking.  This is our third year going to Simmons Farm to pick apples, and I love that we have this tradition.  I saw a preschool group there and realized that this totally counts as a field trip.

The tractors on the farm were not G's fav part.

4. We did something with construction paper!  In The Well Trained Mind, Bauer recommends Slow and Steady, Get Me Ready as "a preschool curriculum in itself", or something like that.  There is a weekly activity for children from birth through age five.  G's age-approp. activity was fishing.

We are learning colors and counting in fun ways.

5. We checked out a Theme Bag from the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.  (Incidentally, this has to be one of the best libraries in the nation.  Is that obvious? They probably have lots of awards. I'm just talking from personal experience.)  A friend recently recommended Theme Bags, which are intended for teachers but (apparently) anyone can check them out.  We did the Silly Songs and Nonsense bag which had 11 books and some cloth figures.  My favs from that bag: Silly Sally and Donna O'Neeshuck was Chased by Some Cows.

6. We have magnet letters, and they're on the fridge.  Our very cool library gave them to us (along with a backpack of other fun items) and I selected just a few and review them with her (almost) every day.

7. Gettysburg--another field trip!  We drove through Gettysburg on the way home from DC.

The look of a mom who still has miles to go before she sleeps.

Actually, though, Grace was too engrossed in her (non-educational) TV show to get out of the car.  Fail.  But Sheldon liked it.

One afternoon, when our girls were toddlers, my friend and I put them in separate clear Rubbermaid bins (sans lids, of course).  We tossed some toys in there, and the girls were quite content and out of trouble.  I joked that we should open up a daycare and call it "Le Petite Bucket."  So far, the ad hoc nature of our home school reminds me of "Le Petite Bucket."  We're totally making this up, and it's probably fine for now.  :)