A retrospecticus

Atticus is 7. We're not sure how that happened so quickly.

He has brought us so much joy and happiness (and tears, don't forget the tears). Atticus is full of love and loyalty, wonder and awe, awareness and intellect, respect and determination, drive and focus, and the list goes on. He loves his family and friends fiercely and unconditionally. He is brilliant beyond words. He loves attention and interaction. He is a kid who squeals with joy when there is a set back during a game, just because it means the interaction will last longer. He is constantly pushing us to become better parents and to relearn everything we ever knew. He is more than the experimental first child. He is the answer to our dreams, the force behind our growth and development, and the leader into our future.

The first year







The second year



Three (sorry, can't figure out the flip)

Four
Five
Six
And all the growing up he has done over the past year











When we found out he was a boy and told people his name, someone once said, "Wow! That's a big name to live up to!" We think he's well on his way. Happy birthday to Atticus Winfield. Happy birthday precious child!

Jello Cell-o

We are loving our new Science Curriculum for Atticus. We chose the R.E.A.L. Science Odyssey Life (level one). It contains great worksheets for each experiment and they are extremely kid and teacher friendly. You can check out a sample here.

Today we talked about plant and animal cells and how they are similar and different. We started out by labeling animal cells and plant cells. We used the Cells Alive site to aid in the labeling.
I cut up fruit to represent parts of the cells and made small flags to label the parts as Atticus placed them in the Jello.
First he chose the round container to make his animal cell.
Then he made the plant cell in the square container.He noted the main difference between the two types of cells, besides the shape, was the presence of the chloroplasts (green grapes) in the plant cell.
We compared the finished result and completed our lab worksheet.
A pretty tasty lesson, I think!

Outdoor Hour Challenge #3: Now is the Time to Draw

If you've missed my previous blog posts, and really want your children to grow up with an appreciation of nature, grab a copy of The Handbook of Nature Study and join in the fun over at the Outdoor Hour Challenge.

This week we did the third challenge, called Now is the Time to Draw. The response to this week's adventure brought tears to my eyes. You know when your kid exclaims, "this is the best thing ever," you are on to something. I made each boy their own Nature Journal using the free downloads from this site. We explored Papago Park in Phoenix before our zoo visit.

Right away, we had a few bird sightings. Next weekend we are going on an official bird walk and the boys already have their binoculars ready!
Then, unfortunately, the plastic litter sightings occurred. I took a few minutes to explain how this type of litter hurts our environment and reinforce our use of stainless steel water bottles and recycling at home.
Creeley seemed the most affected by the thought of the harm to the animals and came up with a great idea! "We should make signs that tell people not to throw their bottles on the ground or in the water and hang them on the trees." Brilliant! We should! That might be a great project for the Earth Scouts group we are forming.
Next, we set out for a hike. Atticus suggested a good path.
Baby in a hat confirmed that he was ready for an adventure.
Atticus noted that the recent rain made some interesting designs in the dirt.
Creeley noticed a dead tree.We spotted a great nest, complete with some human trash.
The boys pointed out "hole in the rock," a fun, quick hiking spot.
Atticus celebrated his climb on a rock.
Townsyn is constantly amazed, and probably a bit confused, about the enthusiasm his brothers display.
The boys found some holes and speculated that lizards, small mice, and other creatures probably made them.
We saw some cool cacti. Perhaps this one is a staghorn cholla?
They really loved this little cactus growing under a tree.
Nature journal time:
On the way out we spotted some leaves that were "hiding on the ground."
Creeley thinks a worm or some bugs were eating it.
And as a parting shot, we saw a bird displaying his wings amongst a tree of littered plastics.
Signage project....here we come!