MBKS’s Neighborhood

We went to the mountains this weekend to ride the Polar Express.  We had a great time on the train.  The kids got treats and we all got hot chocolate.  The kids loved singing Christmas carols and Audrey loved seeing Santa.  We also got a chance to spend some time with the other Murray family.  It was a great time.

Audrey got her Preschool pictures back and I love them.  I love seeing pictures taken by others.  The one of her standing is so her personality.  She loves preschool.  She is in the 3 year old room and has made so many good friends already.  She does have a best friend and her name is Maggie.  She is learning some great skills and loves going to Chapel once a week.  Her favorite is when Creature Teacher brings in different animals.  She has learned so many new songs and is learning how to write her letters and numbers.

Just wanted to share a book we've been reading together lately--we love it!

Teddy just loves science--cannot get enough of it.  Today we pulled out our egg from the vinegar in the fridge and wiped off what was left of the shell.  Teddy learned that the vinegar is an acid and ate away the shell, leaving a rubbery egg behind.  The membrane absorbed the vinegar too.  You could roll it around and see the yolk inside.

Then we mixed some cornstarch and water--boy was this a hit!  Teddy learned that together, this mixture is a hydrosol--a solid suspended in a liquid.  So cool!  It felt solid yet liquidy at the same time--very cool!

Then we dropped some water on a clear plastic bag then slid it over some print type in a magazine.  We learned that the water is curved like a magnifying glass and acts the same way enlarging the type.  The more curved the droplet, the larger the type became.  We thought that if we added more water the type would become larger, but the opposite was true!  The more water you added, the larger the droplet became, but it also became flatter.  The smaller the droplet, the more curved it was and the more it magnified!  I was very impressed with our discovery!!!

Before we put up our Christmas tree John took Evan to one of his client's hunting lodges to shoot a BB gun.  They spent about 3 hours shooting and Evan had a lot of fun.  While the boys did boy things, Audrey and I went to the pool for a few hours (but no pictures) and then shopping =)

" Mix the balls with bells and polly, fa la la la la la la la la".......this is how Audrey sings "Deck the Halls". We put up our Christmas tree today.  The kids had so much fun decorating this year.  Audrey was really into it and continues to take ornaments off so she can re-decorate it.

 

Today we did several experiments together...but I forgot to photograph.  Anyway, we pulled some stuff from an old Martha Kids magazine. 
First, we have decided to take the shell off an egg without peeling it--you do this with vinegar in the fridge.  It will take a few days, but in the end the vinegar will dissolve the shell and the egg will absorb the vinegar making it rubbery. 
Next we suspended food coloring in oil and poured it into water.  This lead to a discussion of water-soluble materials. 
Then we made some ocean waves in a glass bottle.  We poured some vinegar in and a few drops of blue food coloring.  Then we topped it off with oil.  We learned that they will never mix because the oil is lighter than the vinegar.  Teddy really enjoyed seeing this--he was fascinated!

Evan's Cub Scout Troop sang Christmas Carols at the retirement home down the street from our house last night.  John took this picture with his phone.  He said he did a really good job and the old folks loved it. 

We surprised the kids with an overnight trip to the Great Wolf Lodge near Charlotte.  We told them we were going shopping and then when we pulled into the parking lot Evan read the sign and they were so excited.  This place was amazing and just the reward we all needed for a long, difficult and challenging year.  The water park was fantastic and the restaurants and game room were a lot of fun.  It definitely earns its 5 star rating for a resort.  There aren't a lot of pictures because believe it or not, I actually joined in the fun!