Apple Picking

Just doing the traditional fall thing...visiting the apple orchard, taking hay rides, seeing animals, and picking apples!  :)

Hike in the White Mountains

This past weekend we went on a family hike in the White Mountains in New Hampshire.  It was our first real "hike" as a family with all the children.  We've done easier hikes, where children can walk the whole way, but this one was a little more intense.  Hannah rode the whole hike and Jadon rode part of the time and walked part of the time.  It was Will's first long hike where he walked the WHOLE way, carrying a pack with his gear and some of the gear for the family (it was about a 5 mile loop).  The highlights of the hike were a gorgeous waterfall and a stunning cliff outlook.  The weather was perfect and it was a great family day.

Snack break!

Way down there in that small opening is a building and a few cars you can see...that's where we parked.  This is the pinnacle of the hike.  :)

Pictures can't even come close to the beauty of this view.

The way home.

This boy was so worn out.  He was such a trooper on the whole hike, and didn't complain.

Jadon did much less walking than Will, as can be seen by his energetic expression.  Lol.  ;)

High Tide and a Fun Walk

The other day we were driving home from an errand and had to stop for a local walk after seeing how high the water was during the high tide.  It was a really HIGH tide.  ;)

 

The children on the path to the island walk.  Notice how the water is almost on the path on both sides.  During low tide, there is dry land on each side of the walk.

 

The water is so beautifully clear.

 

Throwing rocks into water is always a necessity when one is so near to it.

 

Hanny for once actually WANTED to hold my hand!

 

Getting ready to cross the "Wiggly Bridge" to the island.

 

Will informing the children of the different paths they could take, then directing them to the one we will take now.  ;)

 

Jadon telling me a story about something he thinks is in the trees.  He's always very earnest and expressive in his story telling. :)

 

My pretty girl.

 

The children took the high path, while I took the low, which they thought was pretty cool.

 

Will pretending to be a tree to try to be camouflage so I couldn't see him.

Pinterest WIN!

So I'm not super crafty, but I like to collect Pinterest ideas like any other mom, especially when it comes to homeschooling.  The queue of ideas is quite long, but recently I found one that I had to use right away and it was a success!  So, I thought I'd share.

Will loves Lego's and this uses Lego's to help with spelling and writing.  The child uses the Lego's to help show the positioning of the letters on the lines before writing the word themselves.  Will really liked it.

 

 

First Will chose a word from random to "build" and write.

 

Then he started "building" the words with the Lego's.  

 

He successfully "built" the word.

 

Writing a word after building.  

I love this activity for practicing spelling and writing.  I just printed the papers and laminated them with construction paper as the backing to make them firm (and colorful). Here's the link:Lego Handwriting Mats.