Science Fair

This week was the Science Fair.  Merrick has been working on his project for several weeks and we were all really proud of him and how it turned out.  The idea was to study how what is on our hands effects our food.  For the project we touched bread with tongs, with clean hands, clean hands with lotion, dirty hands, and dirty hands with sanitizer.  We let the bead then sit in baggies and observed as mold develop.

We all thought that dirty hands would mold the fastest and were all shocked when the clean hands with lotion grew tons of mold long before anything else.  Eventually all the breads molded, but interestingly developed different kinds of mold.  It was all really disgusting.

On the day of the Science Fair Merrick bravely stood by his project and answered questions.  He did a great job and we were really proud of him.  I asked him if I could take a picture of him by his poster and he said he would smile nicely for one picture if I would take one of him pretending to throw up due to to grossness.

His principal was very impressed by his project and came by to encourage us to take it to the district Science Fair next week.  We haven't decided if we are going to do it yet, but I think Merrick is pleased that all his hard work paid off.

Valentine's Day and More

This was a fun-filled week.  We had Valentine's Day on Tuesday with a Valentine's Day party in preschool on Monday and parties both in preschool and in Merrick's class on Tuesday.  On top of the parties, I did my best to make the day special for the the kids.  Merrick got a Valentine's Day themed lunch at school and that evening we went with our traditional heart shaped pizza.  Carrigan also helped me make dipped Oreos for dessert (she did the sprinkles).

Despite the fact that I told him not to, Jeremy came home with flowers.  He knows that roses are not my favorite and went above and beyond to find me something different.  After dinner we had our 4th annual "love hunt".  Carrigan is really starting to get what the scavenger hunt is all about and really got into it this year.  After the clues led the kids all around the house, they finally found their Valentine's Day surprise hiding in our shower.

In addition to my flowers, I got a new band for my Fitbit and, thanks to my parents, Jeremy and I got to go out on a special date.

Valentine's Day was just about perfect but the week's fun wasn't done yet.  Yesterday we drove down to Salem to spend the day with the Eyestones.  In the afternoon we went to the Children's Museum (which it turns out we get into free with our OMSI membership).  The kids particularly enjoyed the outdoor play area.  We will definitely have to go back again.

In the evening, the adults went out on a date.  We went to this restaurant/bar that not only has amazing food but has classic arcade games as well.  After stuffing ourselves, we played pac man, pinball, air hockey and other classics.  It was another blast of a day with the Eyestones.

Harry Potter Night

I think I have written a blog before that was titled something along the lines of "my city is better than your city".  When it may not have been very nice, but I stand by it.  This Friday our library held a "Harry Potter Night".  Since Merrick recently has gotten into Harry Potter we decided to go and see what it was all about.

I was shocked by the time, effort, and money put forth for this event.  To start out with, every child got their own, individually named, wand.  Then they went through the "wall" on Platform 9 3/4 to make it to Hogwarts.  Once at Hogwarts, they were sorted into houses.  Merrick was in Hufflepuff and Carrigan in Ravenclaw.  After sorting, everyone was given a welcome packet for their house, a map, and told to go to class.

  

The classes were all over the library and included potions, quidditch, transfiguration, levitation, test of knowledge, hunting for magical beasts and wizards, and others.  I think it is impossible to oversell how awesome the night was.  Jeremy and I left asking what their budget could possibly have been for such a night and the pictures do not do it justice.

Truth be told, this was a make up night because the original night was snowed out.  I am so happy it was because, had it not been, we would have missed it.  I am so glad we didn't!

Parenting Tip 217

This week's blog comes in the form of a recently learned parenting tip.  Sometimes you will have a busy, fun Saturday.  You will have spent the morning at a church activity and then the afternoon at Dave and Buster's with the family.  Afterwards, you will have gone to dinner and by the time you get home, you will know that you will have to really hurry if you are somehow going to get in a hair cut for your son and husband before bedtime.

Under these circumstances you will likely not think anything of leaving your daughter to play with your sons motorized cars and tracks while you start haircuts.  This is where the lesson is to be learned.  You will discover you have made a critical error because when you are about halfway through the first haircut your daughter will come in with one of the motorized cars, still running, at her scalp with her hair wound tightly around one of the tires.  You will obviously panic but try as hard as humanly possible to gently entangle the car.  You will think you are getting it.  It will suddenly start to get loose and you will think you may get out the incident unscathed.  You will be wrong.

Oh and then when asking your daughter how it happened you will find that she more or less did it on purposed.  Awesome!