A Fine Father

Happy Father's Day to all the fathers who read this blog (which I think totals two)! The kids and I are leaving today for our trip to Jackson Hole, Wyoming for a family vacay with Adam's clan, a big extended Conlin family reunion in Preston, Idaho and finally Western Washington for three weeks to play with friends and family there. Adam has to stay behind for work, darn it! As thankful we are for his job in this nasty economy, and he really does enjoy most of it, it's just not the plum job we dream of having one day! But don't you fret, he will be meeting up with us in a couple of days. But since we had to leave him on his big day, we decided to do a little early celebrating.

Yesterday Adam took the boys for a father-son bike outing. Luke loves the trailer, and the kids love speed, so it was a hit!

We served him up a tasty early Father's Day dinner of barbecue chicken with potatoes and veggies. We even made sure he'd have leftovers for tonight, when we wouldn't be here. We gotta make sure our main man is taken care of!

This morning the kids chipped in to help make Dad some breakfast in bed.

It was a real "man's" breakfast, eggs, bacon and banana bread with chocolate chips! I had to sneak some fruit in there for good measure.The kids made a great coupon book including things like "a game of basketball," "helping to take out the trash," and "building Legos together." It was so cute and very appreciated by Dad!
Adam also got the cast iron skillet he wanted for camp cooking. I guess that means the camping expeditions will be increasing, now that bacon and eggs can be on the menu!

He got in some tramp time with the kids before we had to start packing the car.

We love you, Adam! You are an incredible father! If I could only put into words what you mean to us. You not only provide for our family's comfort and means, but you provide us with love and fun and joy. You complete our lives. Happy Father's Day!

And to the other fathers in our lives, Dan and Stan, we love you too! Thank you for helping us grow into the people we are. What a blessing that we were given you as fathers. We can't wait to see you...soon!

I will post again in a week or so about our Wyoming and Idaho adventures! Until then!

Reporting on the Summer of Science: Weeks Two and Three; and a Rebound

There are actually some fun, easy, boredom-buster ideas below that any mom might love for the long summer days!

The Summer of Science experiments continue to be a success! After the fun of the chemistry in week one, we moved on to water experiments for weeks two and three. I have to confess, that with as much as I would love to just be brilliant, I am using a book I found at Barnes and Noble a couple of years ago called Science Wizardry for Kids. So thanks for your vote as "Most Intelligent Mom of the Year," but now the truth is out! The sad thing is that before I had these sweet boys whom I am teaching this stuff to, I may have been able to come up with these ideas on my own. I once was that brilliant-minded gal. But the loss of millions of brain cells from pregnancy, lack of sleep, and pure mom-mindedness (a mind that can only focus on things "mom" related), require much more help, like idea books. Oh well, that's why authors make the big bucks, right?!

Day Four:
Experimenting with Color

This is a simple one, with very interesting results. The kids were fascinated. We colored the end of paper towel strips with black, brown, orange, green and purple (non-primary colors). Then stuck the non-colored end of the paper towel into a dish of water. As the water crept up toward the color, the colors combined to make the black, brown, etc. began to separate. The colors dripped onto the paper towel underneath the bowl to give us awesome separated color rings. It was amazing to see what colors end up in marker ink that result in the single color we have when we color on the paper! We were surprised to find it wasn't as simple as red plus yellow equals orange, etc. In the picture below, starting with the pink/yellow on the left and moving clockwise, you have orange, black, brown, purple and green separated out. Look at all the green in the brown! And the dark pink in the black. So interesting.
Day Five:
Using Fruits and Vegetables to Determine Factors in Floating/Sinking

The boys really got a kick out of this. It's pretty self-explanatory, but here they are floating a red pepper.

Here are all the veggies/fruits we floated, and our chart that included factors such as size (comparative), shape, weight (comparative), density (comparative), and "other" factors. Again, we made our predictions, then tested. We found that in each case there were different factors that determined whether the test item would float or sink. The answer was definitely not weight, as the blueberry sunk quickly. Shape, size and weight seemed to combine for unique outcomes. Hmmmm....

Day Six:

Float a Needle (Water Tension); and Clay Boat Competition

This one was a huge hit. First we discovered that water pushes up on things. When a needle is dropped into the water, it will sink, but by carefully placing it in the water, we could get it to float. We talked about why that was true. If you look closely you can see the needle floating in the water in the picture. It was REALLY hard to keep Luke out of the bowl, which is why I usually do these experiments during nap time. Then the boys used the shape/density/water tension principles we talked about to make boats out of modeling clay.

Then we filled them, one penny at a time, and tested to see which boat stayed afloat the longest. Zach's is yellow, Josh's blue, Ben's green, and Luke's (with 99% help from mom) red. We talked about why some sunk quickly and some stayed afloat and could hold a lot of weight. The boys loved it; Ben wanted to keep changing his boat until he could get it to beat mine. He eventually settled for a tie.

Luke loved playing with all the discarded boats after our experiment was over, filling them with pennies, watching them sink, and ended up making quite an ocean on the counter-top as the bowl was emptied, boat-load by boat-load!

Day Seven:

Aluminum Foil Boats in Different Water Types

This experiment was to test the buoyancy of different water types. We made boats of aluminum foil, and I have to tell you, if your kids are ever bored, give them a chance to make boats from aluminum foil or clay and then float them. My boys really enjoyed both days of boat making/floating/competing. Zach's mighty Blue Wolf, Ben's huge S.S. Longer, Josh's small but strong Littlest Boat, and mom's simple but hearty Rinky Dink.

First we figured out how many pennies it took to sink the boats in homemade salt water. The trick was pulling the boats out without changing them at all, so we had to try a few times to get it right. Next we used the same boats and sunk them in fresh water. It took fewer pennies to sink the boats in the fresh!! Then we tried corn starch water. The results were inconclusive on this one. Maybe I didn't add enough. I believe they are supposed to sink faster than in fresh, but they sunk in about the same time. So we decided that for sure, salt water had the best buoyancy. Hopefully we are never out boating on corn starch water anyway.
Day Eight:

Our Own Water Cycle

First we made steam, and talked about the cold ocean and the warm air and what happens when the warm air hits the cold ocean. Evaporation occurs, so it's not exactly steam, but we had to speed up the process! This first experiment was not from our book, but completely Zach's idea when I told him we were going to make rain later. He suggested that we use fridge cold water and pour in boiling hot water to get the biggest amount of steam and show evaporation. I loved that he contributed, he's really thinking about this stuff! That's not just a bad picture below, that's Ben behind all the steam from the experiment.

Then we made rain by boiling water and placing a pan of ice-cold water above it. The steam condenses on the bottom of the cold water pan, and once enough collects it starts to drip. So we talked about how rain is created in a similar way up in the atmosphere. The cold air high up causes the evaporating air to cool and condense, creating clouds. When it condenses enough, it gets heavy and falls to the ground as rain. It was a quick experiment, but the boys thought it was really cool.

I am still so happy with how these S.O.S. experiments are all going and the reaction I am getting from the boys. I don't know how much of the information or principles we are learning will be remembered, but I think the point is to get them to love science. And I really think we are achieving that goal, experiment by experiment!

I also thought I should report on our garden. After a great start, a harsh move and a time of shock, we've had a bit of a rebound! Seriously, the plants that didn't die from the move just seemed too afraid to do anything for awhile. They didn't call it quits, but they weren't growing at all. It was very odd. But finally, they seem to have revived themselves. These are the radishes, that are really starting to get going again. Below are our bean plants. It's not the best picture, but you can see at the bottom of the stalk the leaves from the shock of the move, all curled and withered. But above them is new growth, and there seems to be new leaves every day! Yes!

I will probably head to the nursery today and buy some tomato plants and lettuce plants that are already established, because we don't want to miss out on those veggies later this summer, and they just didn't survive. But our squash and pumpkins and peas are still trying to grow, slowly but surely, and we even have two corn stalks that look healthy! Poor artichokes, they never had a chance. We may have success yet!

I think next year we will just go for it and plant everything outside in late Spring. No starts. We'll see how that goes! I guess a lot of it depends on when our weather turns in the Fall. If we have a lot of sun and warmth like we did this year through October, it will be great, but if we have an early cold...well, not so good!

Thanks for sticking with me again on this post. I am in science-nerd-girl heaven! We're going to take a little break now from experiments while we travel, but we should have a couple of weeks left at the end of the Summer when our journeys have ended to have a bit more science fun!

Hi Ho! Hi Ho! It's Off to Scout Camp He Goes!

Yesterday, today and tomorrow, Zach will be consumed with all things Cub Scout. That includes: constructing and running obstacle courses, taking hikes, making soap boats and floating them down the stream, building birdhouses, learning Native American folklore, eating roasted hot dogs and marshmallows, playing marbles, climbing rock walls, golfing and using a bow and arrow, to name only a few!! Honestly, these three days are packed with every cool thing a boy could dream of, and more!

And can I express the complete joy in his heart brought on by all this boyness? I cannot. It is beyond description. Cub Scout Day Camp is now his favorite thing in the whole world, and I expect tears on Thursday afternoon when it ends.

Since moving out here, much of our summers are filled with travel; I think we are really only going to be here in The Springs for about six weeks total this summer before school starts up again. Plus, with a big family and a lot of fun things to do at home, camp is one expense we willingly say goodbye to. The older boys have done some sports camps in the past, but with the busy sports year, it's not hard to let those go. So Scout Day Camp is a big event for our Zach. He's gettin' while the gettin's good and absorbing every minute of it! His brothers are already waiting for their day in the distant future.

Yesterday I went to camp as a volunteer, and although I was needed elsewhere much of the day, I did get a peek at him from time to time. His face was alight with joy, he was laughing at everything, and completely consumed in whatever activity he was assigned to for the session. And at the end of the day, he was filthy. You know me, I believe that the dirtier the boys are, the more fun they obviously had. And if that's the scale, the day's activities were fun to rival all fun.

When I loaded the washing machine last night to get his t-shirt ready for today, it was a must. However, as I searched the dryer, filled with the clothing I had washed last night, for the beloved shirt, I found he had not stuck it in the washer as instructed, but in a basket...where it was still sitting...drawing ants and stray dogs--it was so dirty and stinky. So today he headed to the second day of camp in a disgusting shirt, tucked into his shorts, in the hope that it might mask some of the nastiness. {ahh, boys. how i love them!} Needless to say, I will be placing it in the washing machine myself tonight. I guess if there is a silver lining to the misplaced shirt: it really needed stain spray, so at least I didn't wash the stains in, even if practically walked itself onto his little body this morning!

I guess clean shirts just aren't the point, and if his attire says anything, it's, "I had the best time of my life yesterday! Can I have more?" And the answer is: Absolutely.

Zach yesterday morning, excited for the big day up at the Scout Camp Ground at the Air Force Academy!

Here's Zach (yellow hat) on the Wolf Scout one-mile hike with his buddy from our scout den, Grant. This was the activity I led. We had a good time, all 39 Wolf Scouts from our Stake and I, but a hike at the end of a long, hot day is hard even for the toughest of boys; next year I am going to suggest they start with this and finish with something nice and simple, like sleeping!

Thank goodness for Scouts! Zach really loves participating in it. It gives him a community, a brotherhood beyond our family (a tribe, if you will), a way to release that inner all-boy, time with friends from church who are at different schools...and a way to be "Zach" that he can't be anywhere else because he is being "Scout Zach:" fearless explorer, curious experimenter, helpful friend, team player, knowledgeable leader, interested listener, goof-ball entertainer all rolled into one great kid!

Another Day, Another Hike

This summer it has truly felt like the wilderness is calling to us...loudly. Every chance we get, we are off to the mountains or woods. It could be all the verdant greens, brought to us by an extra heavy rainy season, that I not only love, but physically need. Or maybe it is the bright, stunning wild flowers, also extra-voluminous this year because of the rain, that take your breath away every time you come around a bend in the trail and find a new vista flooded in color. It might be the exercise in the fresh air that doesn't really even feel like exercise because it is so beautiful out there. Or maybe it is the time with friends, talking, laughing, just being together that I love so much.

Whatever it is, today we were off again, this time joined by our great friends the Pucketts, to Black Forest Regional Park. And all of those things that give us that hiking itch were definitely with us!

Coming out here to Colorado, we learned first-hand that "forest" can be defined in many different ways. While the Western Washington forests are thick with various trees and abundant undergrowth, here there is very little that grows below the trees, which themselves aren't very varied, although all the rain is bringing out the best in the forest floor. Here are the black pines of Black Forest amid the purple blues of the Lupine.

Joel and Ben and Cory and Zach are great buddies from school; Josh loves being included as one of the "guys."

All in all, Ben counted fifteen varieties of wild flowers today, wanna take a tour of a few? Here's Indian Paint Brush (orange) mixed with Lupine. Dang! See, it's so much more lovely in real life! Lisa and I switched backpacks for half of our hike; Luke, who considers Lisa a great friend, didn't mind a bit. Lisa, her husband and two boys are headed on an amazing adventure to Rwanda later this week. They will have the privilege of visiting some of the outreach projects that their church is doing there to help pull the people and communities back together, as well as share the gospel through service, after the genocide in 1994. So awesome!

Nothing gets past Ben's eagle eye! What did he find hiding in the rocky soil? A teeny grass hopper that he didn't even bat an eye at catching. I remember when bugs used to not bug me just like that...oh, so long ago! When is it that they start giving you the heebie jeebies?
Wild rose (a little blurry, but still so pretty!)Half-way along our route there was a cute little shelter built that we took a short rest in. It took me a while to realize it was probably for hikers to use in a lightning storm. Yipes! It may have been a little overcast this morning, but no lightning, thank goodness! These are the kind of pictures you get when you try to photograph two curious, excited, happy to be out-and-hiking doggies. Finn and Ruby are always happy for every moment they get together, unless you are trying to take a picture of them. As we were returning to our cars today a couple of women asked us if they were related. They aren't, but easily could be, from the color of their fur right down to their matching tongue freckles!

So I had to settle for a picture of Ruby alone. Our princess! The boys always correct me when I say I am the only girl in our family...we mustn't forget our Rubybelle!Zach and Cory, down the trail with Rubes.
Josh found this perfect trail-side seat.

One more amazing wild flower: a Yellow Salsify...

...That was growing taller than Josh.

High Calorie Diet

The results are in! Luke's blood work (let me just tell you how fun it is to get three syringes full of blood drawn from a two-year-old) and urine test (that sure was fun too!) came back all clear! Deep in our hearts we knew he'd be just fine, but it is so good to really know. So now it is fat and calorie pounding, along with food diary keeping for us!

Here are some of the delicious, high-fat and high-calorie content things he gets to eat:

• Pumpkin Apple/Graham Cracker Dip made with full-fat cream cheese and tons of brown sugar (thanks for the recipe Staci!)
• Ice cream galore with chocolate sauce topping
• High-calorie shakes such as Pediasure and Scandishakes, that come in tasty flavors like chocolate, strawberry and vanilla
• YoBaby whole milk yogurt
• Cheese, cheese and more cheese
• Crackers and muffins heaping with butter, peanut butter, or cream cheese

And it just gets better from there.

Last night he got pasta with veggies, swimming in butter and parmesan cheese...how I wanted to steal some of that! His brothers are incredibly jealous.

Any really fattening recipes you have are welcome!

Oh, to be a low-weight two-year old! Now I just have to remember that I can't share food with him...ever.

Coyote Gulch Hike and Other Weekend Fun

Friday night Adam and the kids made the long journey across the street to a neighborhood s'mores roast held in our neighbors' basketball court. They had a great time playing with their friends, eating s'mores and getting nice and spazzed up just before bed. Adam loved that!

My little junk food junkie, Josh, was in sweets heaven!

Luke liked the mallows and grahams, but mostly liked rolling in the grass, making everyone laugh. As you can see, they were having way too much fun to miss me!

I was at a little "Happy Trails" party (we couldn't call it a 'goodbye party,' that sounded too sad!) for two of my great friends here, Jacquie, next to me with the baby, and Kendra, in the pink shirt on the floor. Both of them are Air Force wives, and both of their husbands have been given new assignments in new locations. It makes me so sad! These two are such incredible moms, wives, women and friends, and I am so blessed to have known them for this too-short year! Kendra and Jacquie, you will be missed incredibly! At least our last girls' night was a good one!

Here's a picture of many of our kids together from earlier in the week. What a great group of kiddos! The boys are sure going to miss their buddies, but not nearly as much as I am going to miss mine.

Saturday morning, Adam woke the boys up early and took them to the church to help clean. Luke and I slept in and then rewarded our hard little workers with blueberry muffins when they got back home. Adam's report: they were really enthusiastic cleaners! Now if only I could get them to be more so at home!

We decided to take a late afternoon hike down at Bear Creek Regional Park and did the Coyote Gulch and Songbird Trail Loop. It was beautiful, as always. Ben was really excited to go because his kindergarten class had just visited the park before school let out. He was our designated "guide" for the hike, and was very proud to hold that title. He led us well!

Yes! A big, hearty grin for the camera from Luke!
Zach wanted to give the camera a try:
One of our views...ahhhhhhhh.

Josh walked out of the house in too-small shoes with no socks, while Zach and Ben grabbed their Crocs (with socks on, yes!). I didn't realize we needed to monitor our children's hiking footwear more closely! Part-way along the trail we had to do the sock swap or Josh would have ended up with massive blister damage. Ben's socks fit Josh well, but were too thick for the too-small shoes; Zach's did the trick, even if the sock's heel was up on Josh's ankle. Thank goodness he has nice brothers who are willing to share without a grumble!

The mid-laugh looks on our faces can be explained. While we were posing for this picture, Luke was in the backpack behind Adam...

...doing this. What a clown!

Down the trail! I take a lot of these kind of pictures...I don't know why.

On the way back to the car we passed this stream, so of course we had to take a pause.

We ended up dashing through a little afternoon drizzle back to the car, but we were only slightly damp by the time we arrived, and very happy. And at least there was no lightning...that is until the big, loud, pouring-rain storm hit during dinner tonight! Glad we weren't out in that!

Weekends are so nice!