Hamsters

Jimmer and Ganache joined our family in June. Alexa and Mackenzie have been begging to get some kind of critter for the past year and I finally relented. They researched and researched. They talked to the pet store people, a lot. They both decided to get Chinese dwarf hamsters. Mimi was Mackenzie for about 3 days and it wasn't working out. Mimi wouldn't let Mackenzie hold her, she was a bit spastic, and she would bite. We took her back and Mackenzie got Ganache who is a winter white hamster. The girls figured out how much money they would need to take care of their new charges for an entire year and they figured out what they needed to buy to make them happy. Aside from the noisy wheels at night it hasn't been so bad. The girls have done a great job feeding, cleaning, and playing with Jimmer and Ganache. I took the family to the humane society to look at dogs and although there are some really cute dogs none of them are Harley. I'm just not ready to get another dog and I may never be so the hamsters are a way for my kids to get to care for a pet and have the chance to love and care for something that they get to take care of. I hope it will be a good experience.

Jaime's 35th Birthday

One year older and supposedly wiser too. This year I taught piano in the morning and then spent the afternoon making my birthday cake. I found a website that has all of these different cake flavors, filling flavors and frosting flavors so I decided to try it out. (www.easy-cake-ideas.com) It was a bit overwhelming. I had a hard time choosing what flavors I wanted and what combination would be the most tasty. I settled on a white cake with coconut lime filling and key lime pie icing. It was so good! This is the kind of cake you need to make for a big crowd because it is so rich. It was not a favorite with my kids. But using some of the manners I taught them they said, quite diplomatically, "we are so glad you like your cake, mom." And they offered to just eat the cake part not the filling or icing. Nathan gave me a gift card to Olive Garden, the kids got me a foot bath(and couldn't wait to try it out themselves) and mom and dad got me a heart rate monitor. We ate dinner at On the Border and it was delicious. I received tons of birthday wishes on facebook, by phone, email and mail. It was a great day!

Dayton's Quarter Map

Dayton has taken an interest in quarters lately. He figures out where they are from and what the date is on each one. He wants to trade to make sure he gets a variety and he offers those quarters that should have some meaning to you, like the year of your birth. He was looking for something to do so we pulled out the road atlas and he placed each quarter on the state, or close enough, to which it belonged. His goal is to get all of them.

Strawberry Freezer Jam

Spencer's U-pick farm is about 15 minutes from our house. We have picked strawberries there for the past 3 years and each year it gets easier. I attribute that to the fact that my kids are such good helpers and the older they get the more efficient they are. We picked 2 overflowing flats in just under an hour. We were in the store paying right when the rain started coming down. After buying some fudge for my 3 hard laborers, we headed home to start making jam. We were the opposite of the "Little Red Hen" story because everybody helped. It sure makes the process easier. I am a complete believer in the phrase, many hands make light work. We have a freezer full of jam to enjoy and the satisfaction of knowing we all contributed.

Half Dollar Masterpiece

Dayton and Mackenzie were playing with their money and Dayton decided to put all of his half dollars on Mackenzies face. She had to remain perfectly still and she couldn't laugh or they'd fall off. She lasted about 3 minutes and then off they came.

Pages Penny Candy

While we were in Ohio for spring break we visited a store, Ben Franklin, that has an isle of penny candy. The kids loved it. So I suggested they sell their own penny candy this summer as a way to make a little extra cash. I, the bank, loaned them their initial investment and we headed to Sams Club to buy the wares. The kids figured out their cost, what they wanted to sell each piece for, inventory, created signs, spreadsheets, and a money box. They were open for business. Everything is under a dollar and they've done pretty well. It looks like Pages Penny Candy will be around for a while. The kids are ready to be set up even after school starts. They can do homework and sell candy at the same time.

Invention Fair

Dayton and Reece teamed up to invent the Pollution Pick-up. The name of the company was Pick up People, Inc. "Don't laugh for litter, yeah!" They had to come up with a logo, motto, and a slogan then create the actual product. The last week of school they held the invention fair and I was able to go to the class and see all of the inventions. Each student had their own set of business cards that they handed out to everyone that came by along with a memorized speech promoting their product. Dayton was the only one wearing a tie and most were impressed he knew how to tie it himself. The concept was a truck that had a rolling barrel type thing on the bottom that would pick up trash as it drove around and then deposit the collected trash into large bags. They did a great job and it was fun to see how creative these 3rd graders were.