It's mid October and all is well

Thanks for your laughs and comments about my last post. A few people have asked if I did go back to Abby's Pizza to look for the lost Lego and the answer is yes. Yes, I did. I actually crawled around the sidewalk looking for a gray Lego that wouldn't make itself known to me. Only later did Henry tell me that he thinks he actually has it in his bed somewhere.

Since this space is a virtual baby book of sorts I'm planning on posting some pictures from Henry's birthday party, but as it promises to be a "photo heavy" post, I need to eat my Wheaties first. If you have a blog, you know exactly what I'm talking about!

So anyway, we've been doing a little of this and a little of that around here lately. I found a great art project using a black Sharpie marker and oil pastels.

It was interesting and fun to teach/learn a bit about positive and negative space within a piece of art. If you'd like the directions for this project you can find it at Art Projects for Kids.

One of the benefits of homeschooling is being able to make some allowances within our school day. Like drinking hot chocolate and eating pumpkin cookies during during spelling. Whenever we use the Scrabble tiles, Henry loves to get in on the action.

In between bites of cookies and drinks of tea, Havah took her spelling test. She likes using the tiles for spelling. If you'd like to try a yummy pumpkin cookie recipe click here.

This week, as part of our Language Arts program, Havalah started her very first journal. This is a very big deal in the life of any girl and she and I took this very seriously. We headed over to Target and found exactly the right one. In other words, the one with the most pink and purple, rainbows and kittens.

OK, so I know what you're thinking. That family eats a lot. Maybe it's the colder weather, I don't know, but yes, we do seem to be frequently dipping our toes in the pool of comfort food.

We had this delicious German pancake the other day for breakfast. Oh man. Sooo good. And crazy easy.

Here's the recipe if you want to give it a go:
1/4 c. butter
3 eggs
1/3 c. flour
1/3 c. milk
1/2 t. vanilla extract

Put the 1/4 c. butter in pan - I used a 9 inch skillet - in a 450 oven and let it melt. While the butter is melting, mix together the other ingredients in a blender or mixer. Pour the batter into the skillet of melted butter and return to the oven for 15 minutes or until the edges are brown and crispy. Top with powdered sugar or syrup.

One more fun thing to try for some fall color around the house is painting with corn syrup and food coloring. I mixed a little of both and the kids swirled the colors around to make these fall leaves. If you try this, just know that it takes a day to dry. The final product is a shiny lacquered finish. Very fun and pretty. And I love any art project where the cleanup only requires me to throw it all in the dishwasher : )