AM Snack: "clean out the pantry day"--organic raisin bran, organic Z bars, Cheerios, graham crackers, water
Lunch: Asian noodles--roast chicken, organic spaghtetti, school-grown zucchini, organic milk
PM Snack: organic popcorn and trail mix, water
Infant Room: Today we opened the windows and enjoyed the sound of the falling rain! We played with sensory bottles, sang "If You're Happy and You Know It" and "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star".
Toddler Room: Our class loved watching the rain fall outside the classroom window. They laughed at the water pouring from the gutter. The children built with blocks, read several books, and ate a huge lunch--we love Asian noodles with chicken!
Twos Room: The class enjoyed pretending to go on a bear hunt, searching for a bear. The class played "pow wow teepee time". They loved wearing boots and the mud outside. We sang "Oh Where oh where has my little do gone?". We had a short lunch because we were so sleepy!
PreK: The class sang ocean songs and did ocean fingerplays. We made sand starfish for our craft today as well as an "ocean in a bottle". Lots of pretend play today! We had a class full of horses. Thank, Sarah Justice, for sewing halters for pretend play! They are a hit! Thanks to Siler for bringing champagne grapes ("baby grapes") to share with her friends.
Summer Camp: Today Allison Sutton helped the children sew their own aprons, with a sewing machine! Thanks for your patience and planning, Allison. The kids are really proud of their creation. We tended tended to Queso after the rain, and did a little school clean-up--sweeping the walkways and such. The kids enjoyed volleyball before rest time. Lots of pretend scenarios made the day fun, especially with our toddler friends visiting this afternoon!
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
Today in Pictures
We were very busy today. The preK and summer camp kiddos enjoyed picking tomatoes and looking at our growing cantaloupes! We picked a few zucchini and pulled up the remaining tomato plants as the heat has taken a toll and they aren't producing. We fed the greens to the chickens--which they love and we love because it makes their yolks an intense dark yellow! Gotta love a fresh yard egg!
Catherine gathers several tomatoes. 
Our green tomatoes. 
Will is excited to feed the farm kittens.
Catherine gathers several tomatoes.
Our green tomatoes.
Isa showcases one of our great zucchini.
One of our three cantaloupe.
Will is excited to feed the farm kittens.
Monday, July 27, 2009
AM Snack: bananas, water
Lunch: organic spaghetti with organic basil marinara sauce and natural turkey breast, organic buttered corn, organic milk
PM Snack: snack mix: dried dates, pretzels, veggie straws, sunflower seeds, organic raisins; water
Classroom Highlights:
Infant Room: Today we played with fingerpuppets at storytime. We dropped balls in the shape sorter toy and used sensory bags to explore new textures. We also enjoyed aromatherapy!
Toddlers/Twos: The children visited the animals, worked puzzles, sang the alphabet song with sign language, blew bubbles, and enjoyed school lunch. We all had "spaghetti" faces!
PreK/Summer Camp: Everyone worked on the farm this morning--from feeding all of the animals to picking tomatoes and pulling up the tomato plants. All of the tomato plants were fed to the chickens! In the garden, we examined our cantaloupe and how they originate on the vine. We also took a look at squash blossoms, small squash emerging from the blossoms, and the remnants of blossoms on squash we picked. PreK enjoyed hearing the story Over in the Ocean and the ocean is the focus this week! Summer Campers read chapter books, built a giant house with silks and clips inside, checked for eggs, and loved playing tag in the cooler morning.
Lunch: organic spaghetti with organic basil marinara sauce and natural turkey breast, organic buttered corn, organic milk
PM Snack: snack mix: dried dates, pretzels, veggie straws, sunflower seeds, organic raisins; water
Classroom Highlights:
Infant Room: Today we played with fingerpuppets at storytime. We dropped balls in the shape sorter toy and used sensory bags to explore new textures. We also enjoyed aromatherapy!
Toddlers/Twos: The children visited the animals, worked puzzles, sang the alphabet song with sign language, blew bubbles, and enjoyed school lunch. We all had "spaghetti" faces!
PreK/Summer Camp: Everyone worked on the farm this morning--from feeding all of the animals to picking tomatoes and pulling up the tomato plants. All of the tomato plants were fed to the chickens! In the garden, we examined our cantaloupe and how they originate on the vine. We also took a look at squash blossoms, small squash emerging from the blossoms, and the remnants of blossoms on squash we picked. PreK enjoyed hearing the story Over in the Ocean and the ocean is the focus this week! Summer Campers read chapter books, built a giant house with silks and clips inside, checked for eggs, and loved playing tag in the cooler morning.
Think You're Eating Healthy Food? I did!
At home and at school I have made a serious attempt in the last few years to serve more and more organic and preservative-free foods, whole grains, etc. Thank goodness price and access have made more organics possible. My reading over the last couple months, though, has really shed light on just how tainted so much of the food we eat is. Now, I love a good treat like the next girl--ice cream, a burger with bacon and jalapenos, a Coke on ice. But it's not the infrequent treats that will get you--it's the "stuff" in routine items you and I serve our family, most especially our young children, that are causing the most long-term harm.
Let's just consider food additives. We've all heard for years that we should avoid MSG, and some people have a terrible headache or reaction after consuming it. I bet you, like me, had no idea that almost all of us are having daily doses of it! Of the many articles and explanations I have read, this excerpt of an interview with Dr. Russell Blaylock, a neurosurgeon who now devotes his time to studying the relationship between nutrition and wellness, really hit home for me:
"Excitotoxins are a special group of amino acids that are building blocks of proteins that we call glutamate, aspartate, and cysteine. The food manufacturers add tons of these excitiotoxic amino acids to foods of all kinds, including baby foods. The only reason glutamate and similar excitotoxins are added to foods is because they greatly enhance the taste of foods--they make food taste scrumptious. For instance, MSG (monosodium glutamate) is a dangerous brain-toxic compound that should not be added to baby food, or any food. MSG is not the only taste-enhancing food additive know to cause damage to the nervous system. There is a whole class of chemicals that can produce very similiar damage. They all share one important property: When neurons are exposed to these substances, they become very 'excited' and fire their impulses very rapidly until they reach a state of extreme exhaustion. Several hours later these neurons suddenly die, as if the cells were 'excited' to death. As a result, neuroscientists have dubbed this class of chemicals 'excitotoxins' . . .
So much negative information had come out inititally on MSG that they came up with yet another substance called hydrolyzed vegetable protein that contains three known excitotoxins and, in many cases, also has added MSG. This substance is even more dangerous than MSG. As soon as negative information gets out they always find another way to fool the public; now they are adding even more excitotoxins, but they are called caseinate, autolyzed yeast extract, beef or chicken broth, or natural flavoring.
Ironically, the government regulatory agencies allow food manufacturers to call these excitotoxin additives by any name they choose as long as the glutamate conted is less than 99 percent pure.
Now, what if someone told you that a chemical added to food could cause brain damage in your children, and that this chemical could affect how your children's nervous systems formed during development so that in later years they may have learning or emotional difficulties. How would you feel?" (pg. 189)
Dr. Blaylock went on to say:
". . . a recent study showed that if you fed an animal MSG early in life for about six doses--six doses, that's not much--when they reached adolescence (and the same goes for being a human being having the same amounts early in life), these animals were still generating high levels of free radicals in the walls of their arteries at an age equivalent in humans to ages twenty and twenty five . . . one short dose of MSG early in life is still producing free radicals for two decades, which is the cause of arteriosclerosis, not elevated cholesterol as it was thought to be. Cholesterol has little to do with it. In essence, what I am saying is that the high excitotoxin additve intake causes chronic inflammation and this results in most of these diseases." (pg. 198-199)
Somers, Suzanne. Breakthrough: Eight Steps to Wellness. New York, Crown Publishing Group, 2008, pg 189, 198.
I went through my pantry shelves and checked out some of my food using a list like this: http://www.msgmyth.com/hidename.htm At least in Europe they have some handy-dandy numbers that must be listed on products containing this junk, but we get to sort through 18-66 names of things we should consider before buying a product . . .
In the trash went a box of stuffing mix, chicken broth, several kinds of "healthy, wholegrain crackers", ranch dip mix, a bottle of "healthy" vinaigrette, hot chocolate mix, and more! We went through the school pantry and eliminated several of the same. See what you find in your pantry . . . I think you'll be as shocked and &*^%$ off just like I was!
~Leslie
Let's just consider food additives. We've all heard for years that we should avoid MSG, and some people have a terrible headache or reaction after consuming it. I bet you, like me, had no idea that almost all of us are having daily doses of it! Of the many articles and explanations I have read, this excerpt of an interview with Dr. Russell Blaylock, a neurosurgeon who now devotes his time to studying the relationship between nutrition and wellness, really hit home for me:
"Excitotoxins are a special group of amino acids that are building blocks of proteins that we call glutamate, aspartate, and cysteine. The food manufacturers add tons of these excitiotoxic amino acids to foods of all kinds, including baby foods. The only reason glutamate and similar excitotoxins are added to foods is because they greatly enhance the taste of foods--they make food taste scrumptious. For instance, MSG (monosodium glutamate) is a dangerous brain-toxic compound that should not be added to baby food, or any food. MSG is not the only taste-enhancing food additive know to cause damage to the nervous system. There is a whole class of chemicals that can produce very similiar damage. They all share one important property: When neurons are exposed to these substances, they become very 'excited' and fire their impulses very rapidly until they reach a state of extreme exhaustion. Several hours later these neurons suddenly die, as if the cells were 'excited' to death. As a result, neuroscientists have dubbed this class of chemicals 'excitotoxins' . . .
So much negative information had come out inititally on MSG that they came up with yet another substance called hydrolyzed vegetable protein that contains three known excitotoxins and, in many cases, also has added MSG. This substance is even more dangerous than MSG. As soon as negative information gets out they always find another way to fool the public; now they are adding even more excitotoxins, but they are called caseinate, autolyzed yeast extract, beef or chicken broth, or natural flavoring.
Ironically, the government regulatory agencies allow food manufacturers to call these excitotoxin additives by any name they choose as long as the glutamate conted is less than 99 percent pure.
Now, what if someone told you that a chemical added to food could cause brain damage in your children, and that this chemical could affect how your children's nervous systems formed during development so that in later years they may have learning or emotional difficulties. How would you feel?" (pg. 189)
Dr. Blaylock went on to say:
". . . a recent study showed that if you fed an animal MSG early in life for about six doses--six doses, that's not much--when they reached adolescence (and the same goes for being a human being having the same amounts early in life), these animals were still generating high levels of free radicals in the walls of their arteries at an age equivalent in humans to ages twenty and twenty five . . . one short dose of MSG early in life is still producing free radicals for two decades, which is the cause of arteriosclerosis, not elevated cholesterol as it was thought to be. Cholesterol has little to do with it. In essence, what I am saying is that the high excitotoxin additve intake causes chronic inflammation and this results in most of these diseases." (pg. 198-199)
Somers, Suzanne. Breakthrough: Eight Steps to Wellness. New York, Crown Publishing Group, 2008, pg 189, 198.
I went through my pantry shelves and checked out some of my food using a list like this: http://www.msgmyth.com/hidename.htm At least in Europe they have some handy-dandy numbers that must be listed on products containing this junk, but we get to sort through 18-66 names of things we should consider before buying a product . . .
In the trash went a box of stuffing mix, chicken broth, several kinds of "healthy, wholegrain crackers", ranch dip mix, a bottle of "healthy" vinaigrette, hot chocolate mix, and more! We went through the school pantry and eliminated several of the same. See what you find in your pantry . . . I think you'll be as shocked and &*^%$ off just like I was!
~Leslie
Sunday, July 26, 2009
It's Time to Start Thinking About Fall/Winter Gardening . . .
Can you believe it? It's time to start thinking about starting some plants indoors to sew outside as the temps get cooler in September and October.
Mother Earth News recommends "counting back 12-14 weeks from your average first fall frost date to plan your first task: starting seeds of broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower and kale indoors . . . " Mother Earth News Aug/Sept '09. According to Victory Seeds, the frost date that we should be counting back from in the Austin area is 11/5.(http://www.victoryseeds.com/frost/tx.html)
We are in Zone 8 for the USDA, also called the "Southern Interior" on some planting guides.
A complete month by month table of what to plant can be found here: http://www.motherearthnews.com/What-To-Plant-Now-July-Southern-Interior-Gardening-Region.aspx
and a fall guide here (we are Zone 3 in Texas):
http://plantanswers.tamu.edu/fallgarden/falldirect.html
We'll be busy as beavers at school repairing our greenhouse and get our fall crops started!
Mother Earth News recommends "counting back 12-14 weeks from your average first fall frost date to plan your first task: starting seeds of broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower and kale indoors . . . " Mother Earth News Aug/Sept '09. According to Victory Seeds, the frost date that we should be counting back from in the Austin area is 11/5.(http://www.victoryseeds.com/frost/tx.html)
We are in Zone 8 for the USDA, also called the "Southern Interior" on some planting guides.
A complete month by month table of what to plant can be found here: http://www.motherearthnews.com/What-To-Plant-Now-July-Southern-Interior-Gardening-Region.aspx
and a fall guide here (we are Zone 3 in Texas):
http://plantanswers.tamu.edu/fallgarden/falldirect.html
We'll be busy as beavers at school repairing our greenhouse and get our fall crops started!
Friday, July 24, 2009
A New Category--Some Things a Fly on the Wall Might Hear at our School!
Our administrator on the phone with a parent whose child swallowed a foreign object a few days beforehand--reporting on the poop that two staff "went through":
"The poop was, uh, uneventful."
A teacher heading out to do the morning feeding with the children:
"There seems to be an abnormal number of chickens out."
"The poop was, uh, uneventful."
A teacher heading out to do the morning feeding with the children:
"There seems to be an abnormal number of chickens out."
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Today was a boot day! Lots of mud after the wonderful rain last night. Yipee!
AM Snack: organic strawberries, water
Lunch: "breakfast" casserole with local potatoes, sausage, organic eggs and milk, colby jack cheese, orange juice
PM Snack: pistachio kernels, craisins, water
Classroom Highlights:
Infant Room: Emma practiced crawling, Gage exercised his legs by sitting, then standing on Janie's lap, and Lorelai enjoyed "rolling" around the room. There was lots of laughing and smiling in the infant room.
Toddler Room/Twos Room: The children were excited to discover a toad in the treehouse. They were excited to see it hop around, and the kids loved getting muddy outside. The children went on a farm walk, sang, danced, and rolled a large ball across the classroom!
PreK: Everyone had fun doing the morning farm chores. The children got to watch the farrier work on Abby our minature donkey. The class continued its discussion of rocks, and today talked about gems. The class made crowns with gems and then pretended that they were kings and queens.
Summer Camp: Today the class enjoyed finishing their sewing project--sewing and stuffing their felt pillows with Allison Sutton. A long "dog" play scenario was enjoyed again today. After lunch, the class had fun playing badminton and volleyball on the front lawn. (Thanks to Sarah Justice and Jesse Castaneda for setting up the net last night.) The kids couldn't wait to get back to their volleyball game after PM snack! During quiet time, the several "campers" enjoyed doing some artwork with paper, glue sticks, and scissors. They placed their work on display in the classroom. In the late afternoon, they fed the farm animals and put the animals away for the night.
AM Snack: organic strawberries, water
Lunch: "breakfast" casserole with local potatoes, sausage, organic eggs and milk, colby jack cheese, orange juice
PM Snack: pistachio kernels, craisins, water
Classroom Highlights:
Infant Room: Emma practiced crawling, Gage exercised his legs by sitting, then standing on Janie's lap, and Lorelai enjoyed "rolling" around the room. There was lots of laughing and smiling in the infant room.
Toddler Room/Twos Room: The children were excited to discover a toad in the treehouse. They were excited to see it hop around, and the kids loved getting muddy outside. The children went on a farm walk, sang, danced, and rolled a large ball across the classroom!
PreK: Everyone had fun doing the morning farm chores. The children got to watch the farrier work on Abby our minature donkey. The class continued its discussion of rocks, and today talked about gems. The class made crowns with gems and then pretended that they were kings and queens.
Summer Camp: Today the class enjoyed finishing their sewing project--sewing and stuffing their felt pillows with Allison Sutton. A long "dog" play scenario was enjoyed again today. After lunch, the class had fun playing badminton and volleyball on the front lawn. (Thanks to Sarah Justice and Jesse Castaneda for setting up the net last night.) The kids couldn't wait to get back to their volleyball game after PM snack! During quiet time, the several "campers" enjoyed doing some artwork with paper, glue sticks, and scissors. They placed their work on display in the classroom. In the late afternoon, they fed the farm animals and put the animals away for the night.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
AM Snack: watermelon, water
Lunch: homemade organic chicken noodle soup, homemade bread with honey butter, organic milk
PM Snack: organic apple cinnamon chips, Annie's bunny grahams or cheddar bunnies, water
Classroom Highlights:
Infant Room: Today Caprice read Maisy's Pop-Up Book Playhouse and Maisy's Pop-Up Book Boat Houses. The children listened to farm animal sounds.
Toddler Room: The toddlers enjoyed seeing the farm animals this morning during feeding time. Janie read It's Not Funny Being a Bunny and Go Do, Go!. The class kneaded dough which was baked for school lunch. Everyone enjoyed a healthy, delicious lunch of homemade chicken noodle soup!
Twos Room: The class helped with morning feeding, read books, played with cars/trucks/trains, and had fun kneading bread dough. Sasha through the ball up outside, and all of the class ran to retrieve it like a little pack of puppies. Warm, homemade bread was a hit!
PreK: The PreK started their day by feeding the animals. In Community Time, the class did rock fingerplays and sang nursery rhyme songs. Lunch lasted an extra long time as everyone ate lots of (you guessed it!) bread. In the afternoon, the class enjoyed yoga!
Summer Camp: The summer campers enjoyed baking bread today, playing tag, and feeding the farm animals. After a yummy lunch, the kids enjoyed climbing trees, checking for eggs, and building fairy houses in the front flower beds. In the afternoon, the class enjoyed yoga!
Lunch: homemade organic chicken noodle soup, homemade bread with honey butter, organic milk
PM Snack: organic apple cinnamon chips, Annie's bunny grahams or cheddar bunnies, water
Classroom Highlights:
Infant Room: Today Caprice read Maisy's Pop-Up Book Playhouse and Maisy's Pop-Up Book Boat Houses. The children listened to farm animal sounds.
Toddler Room: The toddlers enjoyed seeing the farm animals this morning during feeding time. Janie read It's Not Funny Being a Bunny and Go Do, Go!. The class kneaded dough which was baked for school lunch. Everyone enjoyed a healthy, delicious lunch of homemade chicken noodle soup!
Twos Room: The class helped with morning feeding, read books, played with cars/trucks/trains, and had fun kneading bread dough. Sasha through the ball up outside, and all of the class ran to retrieve it like a little pack of puppies. Warm, homemade bread was a hit!
PreK: The PreK started their day by feeding the animals. In Community Time, the class did rock fingerplays and sang nursery rhyme songs. Lunch lasted an extra long time as everyone ate lots of (you guessed it!) bread. In the afternoon, the class enjoyed yoga!
Summer Camp: The summer campers enjoyed baking bread today, playing tag, and feeding the farm animals. After a yummy lunch, the kids enjoyed climbing trees, checking for eggs, and building fairy houses in the front flower beds. In the afternoon, the class enjoyed yoga!
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
AM Snack: clementine oranges, water
Lunch: black beans with organic brown rice and a little cheddar, organic broccoli, organic milk
PM Snack: all natural veggie straws, colby-jack cheese sticks, water
Classroom Highlights:
Infant Room: Caprice read "Fun Time" short stories to the children. The children enjoyed playing on the floor as Caprice exercised their arms and legs!
Toddler Room: Janie read Guess How Much I Love You? and You are My Perfect Baby. The class fingerpainted with the color orange. Morning snack was served picnic style outside. The children sang, danced, built with blocks, and blew bubbles.
Twos Room: The Twos class enjoyed a lot of outside time with Sasha. The class loves books, so Sasha read a lot. The wooden train table was a hit!
PreK: The class fed the animals and did morning farm chores. At Community Time, Kari introduced some new finger plays and songs about rocks, and the group talked about fossils. One of the PreK friends even found a fossil at the farm school. Kari also introduced a new game outside before lunch called "What Time is it Mr. Fox"?.
Summer Camp: The class started the day by feeding the animals and brushy Queso. Kari brought a saddle blanket to share with the class. Everyone enjoyed a long ride on Queso! He loves to be ridden. While each rider waited for his/her turn, Tina showed the class how to clean Lily Belle's hooves. Inside, the class enjoyed working puzzles, fingerknitting, building with Legos, and wipe off boards. "Dog" continued to be a favorite pretend scenario! We found some nice sized cantaloupe growing in our garden, and lots of our tomatoes are ripening!
Lunch: black beans with organic brown rice and a little cheddar, organic broccoli, organic milk
PM Snack: all natural veggie straws, colby-jack cheese sticks, water
Classroom Highlights:
Infant Room: Caprice read "Fun Time" short stories to the children. The children enjoyed playing on the floor as Caprice exercised their arms and legs!
Toddler Room: Janie read Guess How Much I Love You? and You are My Perfect Baby. The class fingerpainted with the color orange. Morning snack was served picnic style outside. The children sang, danced, built with blocks, and blew bubbles.
Twos Room: The Twos class enjoyed a lot of outside time with Sasha. The class loves books, so Sasha read a lot. The wooden train table was a hit!
PreK: The class fed the animals and did morning farm chores. At Community Time, Kari introduced some new finger plays and songs about rocks, and the group talked about fossils. One of the PreK friends even found a fossil at the farm school. Kari also introduced a new game outside before lunch called "What Time is it Mr. Fox"?.
Summer Camp: The class started the day by feeding the animals and brushy Queso. Kari brought a saddle blanket to share with the class. Everyone enjoyed a long ride on Queso! He loves to be ridden. While each rider waited for his/her turn, Tina showed the class how to clean Lily Belle's hooves. Inside, the class enjoyed working puzzles, fingerknitting, building with Legos, and wipe off boards. "Dog" continued to be a favorite pretend scenario! We found some nice sized cantaloupe growing in our garden, and lots of our tomatoes are ripening!
Monday, July 20, 2009
Monday, July 20, 2009
AM Snack: organic Z Bar, water
Lunch: grilled provolone (hormone, anti-biotic free) on whole wheat bread, cucumber slices, hummus, organic milk
PM Snack: banana, water
Classroom Highlights:
Infant Room: The infants had a picnic on the front lawn! Some of the Summer Camp class helped Miss Caprice water all the plants and pull weeds, rake, and bag them. Lots of work and fun! A couple of babies slept comfortably while we worked.
Toddler Room: The toddlers enjoyed singing the "ABC Song" and "Tiny Tim". Janie read the class Polar Bear, Polar Bear. The toddlers especially enjoyed eating hummus at lunch!
Twos Room: The class enjoyed visiting the animals during morning feeding time. In the classroom, the children played with the teepee and read books with Ms. Sasha. There was lots of laughter coming from the toddler room today. Waylon loved hummus, Kai wanted none, and Gavin loved his sandwich!
PreK: The PreK worked on morning farm chores! The class went on a rock hunt to add to our classroom collection. We learned new songs with Miss Kari, who has organized our classroom and made it beautiful. We had a good day!
Summer Camp: Today we fed the farm animals (just before the road project had to turn off our water for 30 minutes!) and did farm clean-up around the feed barn and the greenhouse. The class enjoyed painting and some friends helped with preparing sandwiches for lunch. We pulled up the green bean plants and fed them to the chickens, who loved all the new greens! We found a couple of eggs and we were excited to see cantaloupes growing in the garden and lots of tomatoes ripening! Inside, the group enjoyed pretend play--pretending to be dogs.
Lunch: grilled provolone (hormone, anti-biotic free) on whole wheat bread, cucumber slices, hummus, organic milk
PM Snack: banana, water
Classroom Highlights:
Infant Room: The infants had a picnic on the front lawn! Some of the Summer Camp class helped Miss Caprice water all the plants and pull weeds, rake, and bag them. Lots of work and fun! A couple of babies slept comfortably while we worked.
Toddler Room: The toddlers enjoyed singing the "ABC Song" and "Tiny Tim". Janie read the class Polar Bear, Polar Bear. The toddlers especially enjoyed eating hummus at lunch!
Twos Room: The class enjoyed visiting the animals during morning feeding time. In the classroom, the children played with the teepee and read books with Ms. Sasha. There was lots of laughter coming from the toddler room today. Waylon loved hummus, Kai wanted none, and Gavin loved his sandwich!
PreK: The PreK worked on morning farm chores! The class went on a rock hunt to add to our classroom collection. We learned new songs with Miss Kari, who has organized our classroom and made it beautiful. We had a good day!
Summer Camp: Today we fed the farm animals (just before the road project had to turn off our water for 30 minutes!) and did farm clean-up around the feed barn and the greenhouse. The class enjoyed painting and some friends helped with preparing sandwiches for lunch. We pulled up the green bean plants and fed them to the chickens, who loved all the new greens! We found a couple of eggs and we were excited to see cantaloupes growing in the garden and lots of tomatoes ripening! Inside, the group enjoyed pretend play--pretending to be dogs.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Aztec Organic Pest Service
Recently we were inundated with fire ants--inside our house. One afternoon, they ate part of our leather couch (seriously). We have always tried to avoid pest control service, and have not had our house treated in about four years. When fire ants eat your couch and bite your kids inside, though, we knew we needed some help. . .
Today we were visited by a lovely gentleman from Aztec Organic Pest Service out of Austin. He was right on time! They do charge a trip fee to Cedar Park and Leander, but if you are willing to wait a couple of days until they can pair a trip to your house with someone else, they will waive the fee. Such was the case for me today. Aztec takes pride in using totally natural means of treating your house and lawn for pests, and feel that if the case is handled effectively, there is no reason for repeat service (and chemicals!). Check them out if you find yourself with a serious problem, as we did. I'll update you on how our fire ant debacle unfolds. I think Aztec did the trick!
http://www.aztecpest.com/
Today we were visited by a lovely gentleman from Aztec Organic Pest Service out of Austin. He was right on time! They do charge a trip fee to Cedar Park and Leander, but if you are willing to wait a couple of days until they can pair a trip to your house with someone else, they will waive the fee. Such was the case for me today. Aztec takes pride in using totally natural means of treating your house and lawn for pests, and feel that if the case is handled effectively, there is no reason for repeat service (and chemicals!). Check them out if you find yourself with a serious problem, as we did. I'll update you on how our fire ant debacle unfolds. I think Aztec did the trick!
http://www.aztecpest.com/
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Thursday, July 16, 2009
AM Snack: cantaloupe, water
Lunch: tuna noodle casserole with organic vegetables, organic milk
PM Snack: organic yogurt cups, graham crackers, water
Twos: The class fed the animals in the morning with PreK and Summer Camp kids. Miss Kari read lots of books, played outside, and chased bubbles.
PreK: The PreK class fed the animals this morning. At community time they enjoyed reading
Benny's Big Bubble, as it is bubble week! The class worked on sewing a felt bubble together as they continue to add to their basket of homemade classroom props. The wood play stands were made into rocket ships, and some friends practiced cutting paper. We had a good day!
Summer Camp: Today the children enjoyed working with school parent Allison Sutton on a pillow sewing project. The children picked the colors of their pillows, and cut a shape out of felt to adorn the front of their pillows. They are going to look really cool when they are stuffed next week. Campers helped fill the animals water buckets and bottles, and fed Queso early this morning. Pretending to be animals continues to be a popular play scenario. This afternoon we will use our digital cameras to capture activities around the farm school.
Lunch: tuna noodle casserole with organic vegetables, organic milk
PM Snack: organic yogurt cups, graham crackers, water
Classroom Highlights:
Infants: The class listened to "Bear Stories" and "Fairy Tales", and played with finger puppets. The children played with sensory bottles, sat in circle time, and clapped while Miss Caprice sang.
Toddlers: The toddler class enjoyed time with our substitute teacher Sharon! In the afternoon, Jack visited with the Twos class and Maya visited the infant class. Everyone loved tuna casserole for lunch!Twos: The class fed the animals in the morning with PreK and Summer Camp kids. Miss Kari read lots of books, played outside, and chased bubbles.
PreK: The PreK class fed the animals this morning. At community time they enjoyed reading
Benny's Big Bubble, as it is bubble week! The class worked on sewing a felt bubble together as they continue to add to their basket of homemade classroom props. The wood play stands were made into rocket ships, and some friends practiced cutting paper. We had a good day!
Summer Camp: Today the children enjoyed working with school parent Allison Sutton on a pillow sewing project. The children picked the colors of their pillows, and cut a shape out of felt to adorn the front of their pillows. They are going to look really cool when they are stuffed next week. Campers helped fill the animals water buckets and bottles, and fed Queso early this morning. Pretending to be animals continues to be a popular play scenario. This afternoon we will use our digital cameras to capture activities around the farm school.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
AM Snack: dry cereal, water bottles
Lunch: homemade organic vegetable soup, cheddar cheese cubes, homemade honey wheat bread and butter, organic milk
PM Snack: strawberry smoothie (organic yogurt), ginger snaps
Classroom Highlights:
Infants: The infants enjoyed hearing Miss Caprice read poetry at circle time. She sang nursery rhymes with the children and blew bubbles.
Toddlers: The toddler class had a fun time splashing in the baby pool and visiting the animals.
Twos: The twos class enjoyed blowing bubbles inside. All of our friends are using more and more words each day, including saying their ABCs and counting in English and Spanish to ten. We painted bubbles with white paint using the end of a toilet paper roll. We read We've All Got Belly Buttons and visited the animals in the morning during feeding time.
PreK: The PreK has been working on learning to set a table complete with cloth napkins and napkin rings. Friends enjoyed using plastic bolts to build robots. The class read Benny's Big Bubble. A fine motor activity was to practice pouring water, and transferring water using eye droppers. Stacy Wooster taught yoga to the children after nap time.
Summer Camp: The children enjoyed baking honey wheat bread, taking care of the animals, pretending to be animals in several play scenarios, and reading to younger "buddies" to complete a summer reading program.
Lunch: homemade organic vegetable soup, cheddar cheese cubes, homemade honey wheat bread and butter, organic milk
PM Snack: strawberry smoothie (organic yogurt), ginger snaps
Classroom Highlights:
Infants: The infants enjoyed hearing Miss Caprice read poetry at circle time. She sang nursery rhymes with the children and blew bubbles.
Toddlers: The toddler class had a fun time splashing in the baby pool and visiting the animals.
Twos: The twos class enjoyed blowing bubbles inside. All of our friends are using more and more words each day, including saying their ABCs and counting in English and Spanish to ten. We painted bubbles with white paint using the end of a toilet paper roll. We read We've All Got Belly Buttons and visited the animals in the morning during feeding time.
PreK: The PreK has been working on learning to set a table complete with cloth napkins and napkin rings. Friends enjoyed using plastic bolts to build robots. The class read Benny's Big Bubble. A fine motor activity was to practice pouring water, and transferring water using eye droppers. Stacy Wooster taught yoga to the children after nap time.
Summer Camp: The children enjoyed baking honey wheat bread, taking care of the animals, pretending to be animals in several play scenarios, and reading to younger "buddies" to complete a summer reading program.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
We were visited by a real renegade!
It's been a while since our last post. Giving life to two new "businesses"--swim lessons and a farmer's market--plus running a very small summer camp for our older friends proved to be a lot more than we thought in terms of time and energy. If you ask Tina and Janie, that's always the case with me though. I am trying very hard to temper my Sagitarrian ways and enjoy the fruits of our labor as they come rather than focusing on the next big thing.
The fruits this summer have been: a quiet school; a delicious week's vacation; yummy eggs from our chickens; beef, pork, vegetables, natural body products, cookies, cinnamon rolls, and massage most Saturdays at the market; a wonderful staff; and contact with nature! In fact, yesterday we were surprised by a visit from farm neighbor the "Food Renegade". She was kind to feature her family's trip to our market on her blog:
http://www.foodrenegade.com/saturday-morning-leander-farmers-market/#more-1070
Thank you to all of our customers for supporting our school, and thank you to everyone who has volunteered or donated to us in big and small ways alike! Your kindness means so much!
The fruits this summer have been: a quiet school; a delicious week's vacation; yummy eggs from our chickens; beef, pork, vegetables, natural body products, cookies, cinnamon rolls, and massage most Saturdays at the market; a wonderful staff; and contact with nature! In fact, yesterday we were surprised by a visit from farm neighbor the "Food Renegade". She was kind to feature her family's trip to our market on her blog:
http://www.foodrenegade.com/saturday-morning-leander-farmers-market/#more-1070
Thank you to all of our customers for supporting our school, and thank you to everyone who has volunteered or donated to us in big and small ways alike! Your kindness means so much!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)