Silva Rerum

Butterflies!

For a simple project that is interesting for all ages I highly recommend the butterfly kit from Insect Lore. We ordered our caterpillars last month and saw all five of them go through their mysterious metamorphosis. We released the Painted Lady butterflies last week because we wanted them to experience the great outdoors before their relatively short lifespan of 4 weeks was over. Here are the chrysalises when they were first put in the butterfly house:

   

I can't wait to see....

Teacher-Made Materials

I have been burning the midnight oil to finish my teacher-made materials:

This Geometric Solid Card and Photo Matching was a big hit! I got the idea over at Sew Liberated and used cards I made from the beautiful pdf's available from Montessori for Everyone. I would like to work toward having complete sets of images for the polygons, circular, and triangular shapes but some of the images are very hard to find.

My personal favorite was a Sensorial matching of eight different species of wood. My talented uncle made it for me and it looked, smelled and felt absolutely beautiful! The photograph just doesn't do it justice.I already have had several teachers express an interest in purchasing this.

For Language I used this Underwood Leader my dad received around 1950 as a Christmas present from his parents. It resembles the model that correspondants used during WWII. Weighing about 35 pounds it was considered portable! As a girl, I spent countless hours before it composing newsletters, stories and flyers. Now my kids love it, too! It is better than newer models because it takes a beating and has a very simple keyboard.

Friends

One of the nicest things about my Montessori training is lovely people I have met. Like-minded ladies who are devoted to children and the Montessori method. We swap ideas, ogle each others albums and share classroom stories. Well, they share classroom stories while I listen intently. I am the only one not currently working in a classroom. Here are my fellow roommates Tiffany, Laura and Jennifer. They all come from too far away to travel back and forth each weekend so we bunk up at the Holiday Inn. Having never experienced dorm or sorority living I enjoy the camaraderie immensely.

And talk about traveling from far away - here is Jane all the way from New Zealand! The Montessori training program we are in is top notch and attracts students from all over the world.

If by some remote chance you find yourself in Adrian, Michigan you simply must go to Mario's Mexican Restaurant. A little, out of the way place with lots of character. From the inviting fluorescent Mario's sign out front to the cozy red vinyl booths inside. Is that a Salvador Dali on the wall? The food is perhaps the best Mexican I have ever had. Better than Detroit's Mexican Town. I may never go to Taco Bell again.

Photo Update

I have been crazy busy this year with my Montessori training. Writing and taking pictures for my albums is no small feat. But I thought the friends and family who regularly check in to see what's new would appreciate a little photo update of life since Christmas.

Our sweet 20 month old was a holiday scene-stealer:

My husband and his sister had Christmas season birthdays. Look at all that smoke!

We celebrated the fourth birthday of my oldest daughter on Jan. 27. It wasn't a big production - just a few friends in attendance and a store bought cake - because mommy arrived from her out-of-town Montessori training just in time for the party. Good job on the decorations, Daddy!

Frosting fingers:

Thanks for looking! I will try my hardest to keep the blog up to date. Check back for Montessori activities for your home or classroom. I know there are a plethora of them on the internet but hopefully mine will be new to you.

Many funny things have been said this week

The five year old fell and bumped his nose. He said through his sobs, "It hurts so bad I must have broke some of the cartridges."

The seven year old, after talking about school for a while, said, "Do you know what two things I really want to learn?" (and here mom is thinking long division and chemistry) "How to whistle and how to snap!"

Yesterday afternoon the almost four year old asked me what I was doing on the computer. "Ordering some new schoolbooks for you." At 8:30 this morning she runs downstairs yelling, "Yay! I'm ready to do my new schoolbooks." Sorry, honey, technology is not that fast.

It's a marshmallow world....

in the winter when the snow comes to cover the ground. All day yesterday there was the warning of much snow. When we went to bed at midnight it was just starting. This morning our yard was beautiful and, best of all, we had no obligations. It was noon before we were all dressed and outside playing in it.

 

A Resolution

No fast food for 2008! Now the rest of the family is grumbling, saying that this is too rash. But when over $800 was spent on fast food in 2007 it is time for radical change. I had a lot of fun last night playing around with all of the features in Quicken and was not at all shocked to discover that we spent over $800 going to the Golden Arches and running for the border! It seems like I'm always going through drive throughs because the kids are starving and can't wait until we get home, or I am too tired and don't feel like making anything or we don't have the ingredients on hand to whip up a decent dinner. No more excuses. I will make an enormous effort to avoid fast food this year. Can we make it 366 days?

Christmas is a season...

not just a single day. And if you're Catholic you know that the Christmas season BEGINS on Christmas Eve at Midnight and goes until the feast of the Baptism of Christ on January 13. Which is why I can say "Merry Christmas!" on December 30th. Hope you all enjoy this selection of pics from this past week.

The boy loves his drumsticks:

Christmas morning must include orange rolls from a can:

Finding a friend on the wall of Christmas cards:

What happens when you get a bicycle in winter:

And while the girls stayed home and merely read tales of snow and ice:

the boys headed north to enjoy the serenity of a hunting cabin in the middle of nowhere sans electricity and running water (Mom says a polite "no thank you" to any invitations):

where they enjoyed nightly walks in the woods, great sledding, and lego building indoors:

They came home in desperate need of baths and dying to play their new video games!

Snow Day!

Music to any child's ears...and mom's too, to be honest. A day of just staying home. Bundling the kids up in tons of snow gear was followed by 30 minutes of snow play. That was followed by extra laundry for mom and a dirty, wet entryway. Afterwards, two of the four children took nice hot baths and all of us enjoyed steaming cups of hot cocoa. Baby keeps saying over and over, "Snow outside!" with a sense of wonder only toddlers have.