Newsworthy

We just finished learning about weather in science, and my friend scored an opportunity to go on a field trip to meet a weatherman.  We had no idea what to expect when we arrived downtown.  We thought we would see some kind of a weather room with lots of satellite maps and Doppler Radars, with meteorologists running around making predictions.  :-)

Instead, we were ushered into the newsroom and offered a seat on the cozy little couches where they conduct on air interviews.  Seconds later, "On Air" lights were flashing and we were watching the 5:00 news being done live!  It was completely unexpected and totally fascinating!  One of the more curious parts was watching the weatherman point to the green screen.  We wondered how in the world he knew where to point, but he showed us the hidden monitors where he could see the maps.  The kids got to try it too.

They stood in front of the green screen, but of course, on the monitors they had the weather behind them.  Except Hayden was wearing a green shirt.  Hahaha.  So he was "wearing" the weather and looked like a floating head!  That was pretty funny.  (A new fashion trend, perhaps?)

So we made him zip up his jacket.  :-)

I was intrigued by how many things happen simultaneously in a newsroom, and I was completely stunned by how welcoming and informative everyone was toward us.  It appears they don't have visitors too often, and never homeschoolers before!  

The producers showed the kids how they schedule sections and explained the crucial timing behind each segment of news.  There is constant communication with the production staff upstairs, so as the anchors are speaking they are also constantly listening to directions in their ear pieces.  There were seven cameras in action, and the weatherman and anchors move around a lot to "set" different takes.

They have to know where to look when, and the camera guy has to be dead on track to give them the correct prompter at the correct angle.  There was a short gap between the 5:00 and 6:00 news, and the anchorman showed a particular interest in the kids.  Turns out, he works with teens running a state wide civics competition, and he is a real advocate for homeschooling.  He initiated lots of conversation with us and was exceedingly encouraging to the kids.  We got to ask him all kinds of questions about what he does and he was funny and passionate in his responses.  A total blessing!

The weatherman that we originally went to see was also out-stand-ing.  

(Such a small world....he grew up and played baseball in the same TINY town in Tennessee where Hannah goes to school.  That was a crazy connection.  Then he played professional ball in the town where I lived as a child.)  

He is BUSY during the news, but he constantly circled around to us, giving updates and information about what was happening and how it was being done.  We learned SO MUCH.  The only complaint I had was his forecast....the weather here is supposed to be absolutely miserable today!  Ha!!!!  (Had to razz him about that.)  He has a fourteen year old and a sixteen year old, so he was the perfect fit for our crowd.

He would just be talking away to us and all the sudden need to look right to shoot a little live "blip".  

"Cold front moving in!  I'll tell you all about it at 6:00!!"

We were so pumped when we left there.  It was a TOTAL blast, and the kids were made to feel incredibly special.  Confession..............they were NOT all that excited about driving downtown to see a weather room full of doppler radar.  ;-)  And they were even less enthused when my friend and I forced them to come up with a bunch of weather questions to ask.

"Why do cold fronts move faster than warm fronts?"

"Since cold air masses produce severe weather, how to you track those?"

My personal favorite....

"How much of weather prediction is scientific data and how much is educated guessing?"

(My diplomatic way of wondering why the weatherman is always wrong!)

NO WORRIES.  Instead they got to ask REAL questions with GENUINE interest, like "How do you read a teleprompter?  How much ad lib do you do?  What happens if you goof up on air?"

Oh it was fun.  Super fun.  I may need to give up my day job and go work in a newsroom.  Or not.  The first thing Julia did when we left the studio was grab my arm and say, "THANK GOODNESS YOUR MOM IS WATCHING EMMA!!!  Can you imagine trying to keep her quiet and BEHIND the cameras???"

We all had a great laugh over that one.  Yes, the local news is very adept at reporting breaking stories, but they may not be quite ready for Emma just yet!  :-)

My friend has set a pretty high bar.  I'm not sure how we'll plan another science related field trip to beat this one!  Thank you to our new friends at WFAA!!

Carry On, Mr. Bowditch

Hayden and I attended our last book club of the school year.  The book we studied was Carry On, Mr. Bowditch; the true story of the sailor in the 1700's who wrote the navigational tables still in use today.

It was a sea-faring theme, and our lovely hostess helped coordinate a seafood buffet.

(I got stuck on a busy day in a busy week, so my big fancy contribution was Swedish Fish.  Ha!)

We played a game of power-jeopardy, where the kids competed to answer questions about all the books we have studied so far this year.

I have to say again that this has hands down been one of my favorite homeschool activities this year.

I love the creativity and passion that the women who lead these studies pour into reading....and into teens!  I always come away feeling inspired in both my teaching and my parenting.

We had to leave club early because of a baseball game far, far away.  I was having such a great time it was almost impossible to walk out the door.  We drove for 90 minutes to get to our game and arrived to an empty parking lot.

Panic!

Turns out, I misread my calendar, and we got to the fields an hour early.  We didn't need to leave club after all.  No worries....I made good use of that hour kicking myself in the pants and stewing!!  GRRRR.

Our summer book is Ten Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.  We're reading, then getting together for a swimming party.  Can't wait, but it's a big book, so we've got to get started!  :-)

The French General

The Worldview ball.  Our sixth year.  This just gets better and better.  Oh, what a night.

This year, the theme was the late 1700's, and Max chose to go as a General from the French Revolution.

Our friend Bill says this is the photo we need to keep to show to Max's kids one day to prove he was homeschooled.  He thinks Max can garner a lot of sympathy if he tells people this was his homeschool uniform.  :-)

He volunteered at a horse barn this afternoon, so we made a quick dash to Nana and Papa's farm for a shower.  

Then, off to the ball.  Look at this raving beauty.  Isn't she stunning?  The girls' dresses were some of the best I've seen.  The time period lent itself to grand extravagance.

A sit down dinner first, then the dance floor will open.  The kids have attended dance practice for weeks.

There have been many unique opportunities over the course of our homeschool journey to bring life and depth to our studies.  By far, our participation in Worldview studies ranks at the top of our high school experience list. 

It's a hard class.  Really hard.  Max, you make me very proud.  Your faith, your creativity, and your academic stamina are constantly stretched to unimaginable limits.  Your roots reach deep and spread wide, and continue to provide a constant foundation as you grow, mature, and bloom.  

Fortitude.  A wonderful thing to see in a boy.

Love you, son.

Humid Hairs

Last night we made a hygrometer for extra credit in our science class.  A hygrometer is a tool used to measure humidity.  The best kind of hair to use is horse hair, so I called up our sweet friend who owns a horse and asked her if she would kindly perform a plucking.  Or two.  A true friend is one who will actually deliver a horse hairball to your house for you.

Anyway, we googled directions for construction.  They cost ten cents to make.  Oh, and it's best, as Hayden pointed out, to use the tails side with your tail hairs.

You attach a plastic pointer, weighted with the dime, to the horse hair and mount it on a board.

When the hair gets moist it should expand and lengthen and cause the pointer to aim downward.

Each boy made a hygrometer and we mounted them to opposite sides of a cardboard box.  We then set the box in the guest bath with the shower running.  When we went in to check our status, both pointers were facing straight up!  Vertical!  There was lots of give and slack in the horse hair.

Hmmm...the hair was supposed to elongate, but it curled up instead and caused significant movement on our primitive tool.  I'm not sure if we get extra credit for an experiment gone awry, but I found the outcome very interesting.  We tested a second time and got the same result.

We left it sitting on the counter overnight and it was back to the horizontal position this morning.

So there you have it.  An interesting tale.

Dancing With Diana Berry

For the past four years, Hannah has attended a Biblical Worldview Humanities course as part of her homeschool curriculum. Every year, the worldview academy hosts a ball, and it is one of the highlights of our year. This year, the theme was a literary ball. The kids got to choose their characters from any piece of classical literature, written at least 50 years ago.

Hannah chose Diana Berry, who was Anne Shirley's best friend in Anne of Green Gables.

Every ball is special, but tonight was especially so. It is her senior year, and her final ball. She was incredibly excited to wear her her Nana's dress, which Nana wore to her prom in the 1950's. It is a lavender lace, tea length gown, with an organza sash and bow.

She paired the dress with a diamond ring that was her Oma's, and pearl drop earrings that were Suzanne's. A sentimental ensemble.

For some kicky fun, she found a pair of vintage lace boots on ebay. These had Hannah written all over them!

Buzzard and I always look forward to dropping her off at the ball so we can marvel at the talent and creativity the kids display in their costuming. This year was especially fun to guess which characters they had chosen.

One of Hannah's friends went as Juliet Capulet.

This is her teacher, who always presides over the ball and shows the kids an amazing time. This year he went as Ebeneezer Scrooge. This is a great man. We owe him much, and admire him deeply.

She looked ravishing for this, her final worldview ball. What a special four year run of memories this has been.

Now the challenge remains for Buzzard and I to keep each other awake until 2:00 this morning when it is time to go fetch her from her ball! :-)

Fish and Beans

Guess what? We're makin' stuff! But, we're not quite finished yet, so it isn't time to spill the beans. :-)

Today we went to the aquarium. That is hands down one of my favorite field trips. I can attribute my deep fondness for the aquarium in large part to the handsome whiskers on this little devil.

I just want to hug a sea cow. They are the gentlest, sweetest looking creatures in the world! This one came and squished his nose up against the glass right after I took his picture. I think he wanted to hug me too.

Emma was particularly taken with the pink "ostriches". If I could be any color in the world, I might choose this one....

There was a huge storm brewing just as we were on our last exhibit. We were outside looking at the penguins, when the sky grew very dark and ominous clouds rolled right above us.

I asked Max to take one last picture so I could have one with me in it. Focus? Who had time to focus? Weather was coming! Could you tell from Emma's hair?? :)

We raced to the van and got everyone loaded just as gigantic raindrops began to splat down on us. We had the best time on the way home voting for our favorite animals. Emma got to feed blueberries to a toucan! She loved that part.

We were just about to pull into our neighborhood when it happened.....we heard the first Christmas carol of the year on our Christian radio station. They played Amy Grant's "It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Year". And I think it is!!