Girls Shakespear Festival

I joined some friends at the beginning of June on a trip to Ashland, Oregon to see a Shakespeare play. Two of us came in from California, one was in the process of moving to Bend and the rest of us carpooled from Eugene. On the way down we stopped at Heaven on Earth and enjoyed a cinnamon roll Brandi told us was to die for. It was pretty tasty and HUGE! If you ever find yourself near Ashland, stop and check out this restaurant. They have a large array of desserts and it's a quint place with very friendly employees.

There were ten of us in all and Sandi found a gem of  a house for us to rent out in the country. It had two master suites along with four other bedrooms and a fabulous kitchen with gorgeous views from every room.

The view from my bedroom balcony.

View from the back porch.

View of part of the house. There was a hot tub and 

a ping pong table which we never got a chance to use.

We arrived on Thursday and hit the town to shop. There were lots of cute and trendy little stores with fun things to look at. We shopped on Friday as well and we all found things to buy for our families and ourselves. We also enjoyed some food at tasty restaurants Margaret's friend told us about. If you want good Thai go to Thai Pepper. Cucina Biazzi for tasty Italian. Martolli's had amazing pizza, even great the next morning out of the fridge. We also enjoyed Breadboard for breakfast one morning.

Friday night we went to see the play Taming of the Shrew. They didn't wear Shakespearean costumes, they wore clothes from the 60's era, which was different but the play was hilarious. They left the words and language the same but took today's culture and threw it in. Example, they had a band playing and in the background on a projection screen there was Guitar Hero playing as if they were playing the game with their guitars. It was an excellent show, we all enjoyed it.

Saturday we hit some more stores then grabbed a couple of pizzas, some scones, the movie Pitch Perfect and enjoyed a night in together. I always enjoy getting away with the girls and having fun. We laugh, we cry, we can be our goofy selves and we get rejuvenated for our families once again. Plus M would never go to these destinations with me so he says I need to do it with my friends. Someone mentioned going to New York on our next trip. Sounds good to me, I have always wanted to go there, and again, M refuses to set foot in that state.

Music to Our Ears

K participated in her first piano recital last Thursday with nine other students. Her teacher, Kristan, started teaching all of the kids in February of this year. Some of them had been taking piano from a different teacher who had to stop teaching recently. K performed Yankee Doodle.

K did a very nice job. She was so excited to get to use the pedals on her song. Kristan said she is a very bright and fast learner. We are quite proud of her.

Here are all the kids who take lessons from Kristan. 

They range from 5 to 12 years old.

After the recital we had cake and ice cream. It was Baily's birthday so her mom brought a cute cake so we could help celebrate Baily's her special day.

K has been teaching L piano the periodically. L has been doing a great job and we hope to get her taking piano lessons soon.

Spelling Bee

K started having spelling words in reading class this year. She had ten words and three bonus words each week. She did a great job spelling her words only missing three words all year long. I figure this has something to do with all the reading she does and her amazing ability to remember things. Well, at least things she finds interesting since she quite often claims to not remember things I tell her mere seconds after I have spoken.
Anyway, the last week of school the kids from the three 2nd grade reading classes had a written spelling bee consisting of all the bonus words from the year. The ten kids with the most correct answers got to participate in an oral spelling bee in front of their peers and parents. K was one of the ones to compete.

Notice how there are only two boys and the rest are all girls? 

I thought that was interesting.

K sitting with one of her closest friends, Maggie.

K had three words during the spelling bee. Her first word was Tennessee and her next was trembling. It was down to her and one other girl when she got the word tightly. Unfortunately she forgot the 'h' but she still came in 2nd place. We are very proud of her!

Portland Zoo Field Trip

K's class went on a field trip to the Portland Zoo on June 3rd. I was able to talk her dad into going with her this time. It helped that his friend, Dan was going up with his daughter as well. M rode up in Dan's van while K rode the bus, (she begged to), they left at 8am. There were so many parents going that there were only one or two kids per parent which allowed the groups to go wherever they wanted and then meet back up with the teachers when it was time to leave. Dan had his daughter and M had our daughter and our next door neighbors daughter.

K and Emily in a nest.

Dan and Maggie.

The flamingos.

Stand like a flamingo.

K's favorite thing is to feed the birds.

They were excited to see the new baby elephant.

The girls had a great time together exploring the zoo and the weather was gorgeous. Maggie and K got to ride home in the van with their dads so they made it back to town by 4pm, the bus didn't arrive until 5. M said he actually had a pretty good time. While he was in Portland, I got a 90K mile check up on the van, went on a bike ride with L and played at the park with friends.

Garage Sale & Soccer Fest

The first Saturday in June was super busy for us. I had spent the previous weeks going through every room in our house looking for unused and outgrown items to put in a garage sale with my close friend, Liz. M made me this great rack to hand clothes on which he will use as a target holder in the future.

Every year Liz's neighborhood has a community garage sale. Over 200 houses are involved and they sell food and drinks as well their unwanted items. It is a great place to get the most foot traffic for the items you want to sell, and a to find treasures for yourself.

Between the two families, we had a ton of stuff to sell. Liz has a side business of purchasing makeup items in bulk from companies that have changed their packaging and can no longer sell them. She gets them at a great price and then sells them for a profit but a lot cheaper than you can find them at Target or Wal-Mart. She sold these at the garage sale with her other items. She made a killing! If you ever need makeup or hair straighteners/curling irons, go to her facebook page. You really can't beat the prices.

While I was at the garage sale making us some money, M took the girls to L's last soccer games of the season. She had three almost back to back but she didn't play as hard as she usually does. M said she wasn't really interested.

While L played her games, K climbed trees.

I am thinking we won't put L in soccer for the fall season. She never seemed really into it for more than half a game all season and by the end she mostly walked around the field.

L's soccer party was on the following Tuesday at Pappy's Pizza. She got to play with her soccer team and receive her trophy. Her dad even had time to make a special medal for her and her teammates.

We just started L in Taekwondo this week though, and she seems to be loving it. We will see how the summer goes but hopefully this will be a sport she really gets into. I think we are done with soccer for the time being.

Preschool Graduation

L finished up her second year at preschool and had a little program for the parents to enjoy on May 30. Her class sang a few songs, one of which was God Bless the USA after saying the Pledge of Allegiance. It made me tear up hearing these sweet little 5 year olds belting out the words. So glad that there are still teachers among us willing to teach the kids to have pride in their country. Here are my three favorite videos.

After the music program and handing out of the diplomas we retrieved our kiddos from their class rooms and then enjoyed a picnic lunch in the park. L's teacher is one of my favorite. She loves the kids and is great at teaching them compassion and classroom etiquette. L is really going to miss Mrs. T.

Dorris Ranch Field Trip

I went with K's 2nd/3rd grade class the last week of May to Dorris Ranch. During the tour, we learned about the lives of Kalapuya Indians, Hudson's Bay Company trappers and Oregon Trail pioneers.

We started with the trapper who told us all about trapping beavers and other animals. They preferred to catch beaver because they got the most money for them but they also caught mink, raccoon, fox and bob cats. Trappers used steel traps attached to a chain that was nailed into the bank by a river. A piece of wood that had been chewed on by a beaver and then rubbed by a beavers tail was placed inside the trap. Beavers would be curious about the wood and go after it, getting caught in the trap. The traps had no teeth because the trappers didn't want holes in the pelts. The beaver would try to get away by jumping into the river and swimming for home. Since the trap was nailed down, the beaver would swim and swim, not getting any where and eventually drown.
After 4-6 months, the trapper would take the pelts he collected and walk to Portland to sell them off. It was a two week walk. Instead of coin he would receive colored beads that he could trade for services and supplies. After a wash and shave he would buy supplies like salted pork, dry tack, tobacco, and possibly a brick of tea. He would then head back to the wilderness in search of more beavers. Beaver pelts were used for coats and pants.

At our next stop we learned about the Kalapuya Indians that inhabited this area. They ate plants, berries and meat. They figured out what plants and berries to eat by tasting a small amount and seeing how they felt after. If they got sick they would pass on the information to the other members. If they felt better or their headache went away, they knew it was a medicinal plant.

They ate mostly deer and fish. When they killed an animal, they used every piece of it for something. In this picture the man is holding a fox that had been turned into a bow and arrow holder. We also learned that the Indians would wear deer hides and antlers so they could get up close to deer to kill them because the only thing that doesn't scare deer, is other deer.

Each of the kids got to take a turn shooting a bow and arrow. None of them were able to hit the deer hide 15 feet in front of them. It would definitely take practice with hand made bows and arrows.

After learning about Indians, we headed over to the pioneer homestead and learned about their way of life. The kids dressed up in pioneer clothing and went about doing the chores children did in that era.

They started with pumping water from a well to fill buckets that where then placed on a yoke the children had to carry to their home for cooking and washing. We were told that children might have to do this 5 or more times a day to get enough water for their family.

Then they learned how to wash clothes with a bar of soap and a wash board inside of a wooden tub. Granted they didn't do a great job and their little fingers were frozen when they were done since it was only 60 degrees that day.

Next they learned how to plow a field with a hoe. I can't imagine the blisters you would have after hoeing a field full of rows all day long in order to plant your garden to feed your family.

They then headed inside to sort beans for the soup and grind corn into cornmeal. The house was very small. It was maybe 10x6 feet with a loft about 4x6 feet. We learned that the kids would sleep huddled together in the loft and the parents would sleep in the kitchen by the stove.

Sometimes I think it would be nice to have some land out in the country with a little cabin to stay in. No electricity, just living off the land. A place we could go to in the summer for a few months away from the hustle and bustle of the world. A place where we can teach our kids what hard work is really like so they can appreciate all the convenience and ease of their day to day life. I don't know if it will ever happen, but it is one of my many dreams.

The kids had a great time but were happy to get on the bus and head back to school where it was warm and there was running water.

Crafty Kid

K's teacher had a birthday recently and K wanted to make something extra special for her. While up at Bahmah's she sewed another project, a sturdy bag. After she sewed it, she drew and colored a dog on both sides. She did a great job and her teacher, Mrs. F. loved it! She said it was super sturdy and great for taking all her school papers/books between home and work.

About a month ago, K did another project for her reading class. She had read in their scholastic flyers about a group of women in Britain who did acrobatics on the outside of a bi-plane while flying 150 miles per hour. The unit was on courage and K thought this would be a great example of courage to do her project on. She found pictures for me to print off and she glued them to the inside of a Kleenex box. She then wrote up a bunch of bullet points and used her laptop to type them up so they would look nice.

M found a website that had printable cutouts of a bi-plane which she used to make a 3-D model of a plane and then attached a picture of the three women to the top of the plane. We both thought she did a great job.

 The bi-plane K cut out and folded together.

Here is the finished project. Again, we were astonished by the response K got from her teacher. She accused K of not typing up the words on her own. K told her she did it and the teacher said she was sure I had done it for her. K responded, "I have my own laptop. I did it myself." The teachers response? "Whatever."
It really irked us to hear that she not only accused K of not doing her own work but that she called her out in front of the whole class. This was a much easier project than the dinosaur one she did and HELLO! she is in the TAG program for a reason. She is accelerated in that area. Of course she can type. In this day and age of I-pads and I-phones, what kid can't figure out how to type up a few sentences. Even if they don't know how to type, they know their letters and can hunt and peck out what they want to say. It took her 45 minutes to type up her bullet points, but she did it!
We can't wait until next year when she will only have the one teacher. I LOVE her homeroom teacher. She is nothing but uplifting and complimentary to all her students. It is a big change from last year. I just wish we didn't still have last years teacher for reading class.