Sunday, February 21, 2010

Hockey Game

We took the kids to their first hockey game. It was called Pink in the Rink night to raise money for cancer research. The ice and jerseys were pink.



Here's the stingray:





I was surprised that Molly was really interested in the game until she got tired near the end. Caleigh said she liked it too. Colin had to buy himself a puck and then came home and started practicing. First thing this morning, he was playing hockey on the winter Olympics Wii game.

Blackbeard's Cove

It was such a nice day yesterday that we wanted to make sure we spent some time outside so we decided to go to Blackbeard's Cove, which is just a few miles from our house.  


The kids had fun playing miniature golf.



 


 





Then they played in the bounce house and on the big slide.


 






They also did a little gem mining.


 



Colin rode go-carts too, but I had the camera over at the bounce house with the girls and Chad's picture with his phone didn't turn out.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Valentine's Day Study

We spent a few days reading Valentine's books and doing activities relating to them last week. Here are some of the books we read:



They made these heart people:

Here are the notebook pages: 



We worked on how to address an envelope, what happens to a valentine when you mail it, and the symbols of Valentine's Day. We also matched holidays to the months of the year. I made them each a pocket to store the valentines they received.

Although he wasn't too happy about it, Colin wrote a poem. Here it is:

I hate poems
Oh yes I do
How they bother me 
So now this poem is done and I am free.

Monday, February 15, 2010

Valentine's Day

My kids love holidays and expect a celebration for every one. I decorated the dining room after they went to bed. 



For breakfast, we had pink heart shaped pancakes. Colin made heart shaped sandwiches for lunch. He and Chad also made some chocolate covered strawberries.


The girls were very happy with the roses Chad brought them.




Everyone got some small gifts.



Chad made dinner and Colin was our waiter. Here he is showing us the "wine" offerings.



Dessert was heart shaped brownies.


Sunday, February 14, 2010

Snow

It snowed in Charleston for the first time in 10 years, but we missed it. We were in Wilmington, NC at the time. Luckily, it snowed there too so the kids got to see snow. They were very excited since it's been a year since they've seen snow. We took them to the beach so they could play in the snow for a little bit before heading home.













Unfortunately, there were only small patches of snow left when we got home.

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Valentine Party

Yesterday we went to a Valentine party with our homeschool group. The kids exchanged valentines, played games, ate lunch together, made valentines for some nursing home residents, decorated cookies, and played at the playground.


Here are the kids decorating their cookies: 


Playing Bingo: 


Colin won the guess how many hearts are in the jar contest. There were 270 and he guessed 251. He got to keep the jar of candy and got a prize of pencils and scissors.  


Here are the girls on a scavenger hunt: 


 The girls love getting valentines. They have gone through their bag over and over looking at them all.

Monday, February 8, 2010

North Charleston Fire Museum and Education Center

This is a really nice museum. They have many antique firetrucks and displays showing gear firefighters wear now along with what was worn in the past.



 



A model of a house shows hazards that can be found in a home and the damage they can do if there is a fire.


The kids loved getting a chance to drive a fire truck on an emergency call. They showed the images on the windshield so it was really like driving down the street. There was also a vibrating feel to the seats so it felt like you were moving.  


There is a small playground that includes a pole the kids can slide down.


 




There was also a 20 minutes show on Charleston history and the history of fire departments.


This was a really good field trip because it reinforced all the things we'd read about during the week. All the interactive displays made it fun for the kids. As we were leaving, they were each given a fire hat.



 

Fire Safety Study

Last week, we spent some time working on fire safety. We read a lot of books on how to prevent fires, safety precautions to take at home, how to escape if there is a fire, firefighters, their gear, and firetrucks.


Here are the notebook pages:



Small books: firemen (listed things a firefighter uses), our meeting spot, how and when to call 911, knowing your address in emergency, 4 steps to fire safety, smoke detector, questions about getting out, and stop, drop, and roll. The pamphlet is from the fire museum we visited. I'm planning to let the kids choose pictures from the museum trip to add to that page also.

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Monster Truck Show

Colin loves monster trucks. For one of his birthday gifts, we got tickets to go see a show. The girls really enjoyed it too.



This dragon thing picked the car up and ripped it apart. Molly said it was the best part.





I think these dirtbikes were Colin's favorite part. It's hard to see them in my pics though. When they would jump, they were right where they blended in with the crowd. I missed getting a picture when one of them went upside down.