Janne's Jabberwocky {Mommy Blog}
Disney Topiaries: I have been wanting to go to Flower and Garden Festival for years. And I finally did. And without children in tow! :) I was already in Orlando for the weekend, for the ETAAM retreat [now called BeTA] (a gathering of moms from all over the United States and Canada. Moms of children with attachment disorders, or, in cases like mine, children with bipolar disorder, autism … [Read more...]
We have lived in the Tampa Bay area for eight years now. I have driven past this little gem multiple times. I have viewed the marquee from a distance while dining al fresco at the downtown location of Taco Bus. I have even marveled at the miniature representation of this building at Legoland, Florida. But I had never actually been INSIDE the Tampa Theatre until this week, when we took a … [Read more...]
It was kind of a strange Easter this year, with only eight of the ten children at home. Audrey now lives in New Hampshire with my beautiful granddaughter, and Gator was working at the local Renaissance Faire. It just feels very awkward to have my family getting smaller, especially during holidays. After a whirlwind three days of shopping, attempting to find outfits for eight children that … [Read more...]
The girls, while waiting for "The Walk" to begin. This is the second year we have attended the "Walk Through Bethlehem" at Kings Avenue Baptist Church. (Last year we discovered it thanks to a road sign advertisement we spotted while driving down the busy State Road 60 in Brandon, FL. ) We enjoyed it so much that I have decided to add it to our unofficial list of family Christmas … [Read more...]
Although one of their most memorable projects of our Mexico study, the homemade piñata isn't suited for the most impatient among us. (It's difficult for girls to remain patient when they know candy awaits.) The piñata took several days to make (due to the drying process), but it was worth it in the end. The project (from p. 123 of Global Art: Activities, Projects, and Inventions from Around … [Read more...]
"Comida Mexicana" = Mexican food. And I LOVE Mexican food. So much so that I could probably, quite honestly, eat it for every meal and not ever get tired of it. One of the most fun things about the My Father's World: Exploring Countries and Cultures curriculum is the sampling of foods from the countries we're studying. Living in the Tampa Bay area of Florida certainly has its advantages in this … [Read more...]
Our new homeschool study of countries and cultures (My Father's World: Exploring Countries and Cultures) started in our home continent of North America. After "traveling" through the United States, we headed to Mexico, and had a blast! One thing in particular that I have decided to do this year to amp up the learning fun a few notches is to buy weekday Disney passes for the homeschoolers. I … [Read more...]
This year, for our homeschool, we started a new curriculum; My Father's World: Exploring Countries and Cultures. I chose this curriculum, which focuses on world geography and learning about different cultures and ecosystems, after realizing that my children had a "gap" in their knowledge of geography. My Father's World: Exploring Countries and Cultures spends a year going through the seven … [Read more...]
While reading the book Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear? as part of our BFIAR learning fun, we took "Dee" and her friend on their first ever trip to Build-a-Bear, to "create" and dress their own bears. Dee, of course, chose a pink bear. :) She watched as the bear was filled with "fluff", then she picked out a special heart to place inside her bear before it was sewn shut. The girls then … [Read more...]
While reading We're Going on a Bear Hunt for our BFIAR book studies, I found some inspiration at The Adventures of Bear blog and made our own sensory bin based on the story. How we did it - We used: Sterlite 15 qt container (16 1/2″ x 13″ x 6 5/8″) - recycled from our previous sensory bins 3 (28 oz. each) bags of river gravel (JoAnn's) Animals: Black Bear from "Wild" … [Read more...]
