The Last Day of Camp

Yes, I know it is after Labor Day.  Yes, I know the kids should be in school.  Yes, I know you get weird looks saying your kids are at camp all week in the middle of September.  Yes, I know we are slightly on the weird side.  I'm ok with it.  I'm also absolutely thrilled with being able to send the kids to a home school camp in September when the weather is cooler and the crowds are smaller.  The kids love having a special way of starting off the school year and truly seem to get a lot out of the experience each year. 

 This year Kieran participated in a camp focusing on Music of the 19th Century.  He learned to play a tin whistle and sing a few period songs.  They also spent some time learning about the role music played in the Civil War and in regular life in the 19th Century.  He requested a camp this year that was not attended by any of his siblings so he was thrilled to spend the week alone and not have to be someone else's brother for a while.

Sean participated in a camp on orienteering.  They learned how to use a compass, went letter boxing, geocaching,  took lots of hikes, learned about trail marks, went in search of the other kids in their group who got lost, made some crafts to leave behind in the boxes, and sang plenty of goofy camp songs.  He spent most of the week wearing his handmade duct tape hat and enjoyed what was likely his last year being young enough to participate as a camper.

Katie and Liam participated in a camp called Huck Finn/Tom Sawyer Days.  They spent time making slingshots, hunting, making journals, learning how to start a fire with flint and steel, cooking over a fire, making butter, making beef jerky, making a tin ornament, baking corn bread, and in general playing in the village.  They usually came home fairly tired.

Bryan worked as a helper for Katie and Liam's class.  He seemed to be the only volunteer who understood that you were expected to arrive early and stay late to help with the clean up and such chores but he did a great job even without the help of the other teens.

Frontier Girls

The girls had a fund raiser craft sale at a local farmer's market this weekend.  Yes, I'd wanted to do a bake sale but it turns out those are illegal. Because, of course, the government has nothing better to do with it's time than chase down rogue children selling illicitly baked goods.  So instead the girls sold scented play dough, heart shaped crayons, ribbon wands, hair ribbons, and homemade flannel wash cloths.  Everything was made by the girls.

Katie and Abby were the only 2 girls who hung out for the entire sale and set-up and clean-up.  By the end of things, there were a bit tired.  But everyone did a great job. Maybe by the next official outside activity, I will have fixed my sewing machines or borrowed someone's and will actually have all the appropriate badges on the uniforms.  Maybe.

"Horned Cows"

Meet Buck and Dan.

These are the two new oxen currently residing at Genesee Country Village.  They are in training to take over for the older two oxen: Mike and Tom.

The size difference between these two sets of animals is amazing.  Gabe has decided he absolutely does not like "horned cows" and that they are just too big.  And, yes, I find the names for all of these creatures to be slightly humorous given that each of the names is in some way connected to someone in my husband's family.

Pictures from the Village

Happy Birthday Blessed Mother!

Today we celebrate the Blessed Mother's birthday.  I used to be really great about planning these things ahead of time and we've even been known to make treats to share with our priest and church staff.  This year I kind of planned ahead but was smart and kept it simple.  I used some printables from ThatResourceSite and we put together a very simple celebration at home.  The kids colored some pictures, Bryan made cupcakes, and they sang happy birthday.

Trip to Grandma's House

In pictures.

Bible Adventures and Activities

There are a ton of children's bibles and books designed to help your young children understand bible stories on their level.  So why exactly makes the book Bible Adventures and Activities stand out from the crowd?

This book has the typical bible stories written in a child friendly manner.  Each story is covered in just enough depth to give the meaning without being overwhelming.  The stories are also accompanied by colorful attractive pictures.  In this way, the book is pretty much the same as most other children's bible story books I have read with my children.

The big difference is that after the bible stories, Bible Adventures and Activities includes puzzles and activities to review the story.  These activities include mazes, matching activities, word searches, and other fun reviews.  These activities are perfect for a 5-8 year-old child and provide a painless, easy way to reinforce the stories.  They also require no parent prep time (a big plus when you want something that you can just grab and go) and all are covered in the answer key in the back.

If you are looking for a fresh way to expose your children to some of your favorite bible stories, this book will easily fit the bill. 

This review was written as part of the Catholic book reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Bible Adventures & Activities. The Catholic Company is also a great online store for all your Catholic gift needs, such as baby baptism and christening gifts. You can also find a wide selection of Catholic Bible Studies for both parish groups and individuals, as well as a variety of other Catholic Bible study resources.