Of Mice and Moles......

Sid and Dad came up with a project.  There is a mouse living in the garage so Dad suggested Sid take mom out to buy a live trap and Sid could set the trap, place the trap and check the trap.  Once the offender was caught they would play with it for a bit then release it.

The trap was ordered, picked up, baited and set and the waiting began.  4 hours later Sid checked the trap and then came flying into the house shouting "WE caught it! We caught it!!!"  She was so excited.  We opened the trap and found not a mouse but a mole!  This was a surprise and set us on a learning adventure we hadn't counted on. 
In 48 hours we caught three moles.  We learned that they need to eat every few hours or they will die.  They eat 70% - 100% of their body weight a day.  If they are trapped in a trap with a friend they will eat their friend..... :( 
They have polydactyl hands (an extra toe that works as a thumb), they eat bugs, earthworms and each other :(  They have a toxin in their saliva that paralyses worms so they stay alive but can't get away and the moles will store caches of up to 1000 worms for later consumption. 
3 moles caught, one released, one eaten, one died of starvation (caught over night so went without food for about 8 hours)We have learned to set the trap with loads of cat food in the catchment area so they don't starve to death or eat each other.  Who knew!??  Ahhhh science at its best.

This is the first mole we caught and Sid named Ted.  He is the survivor!

Sunday Sid was invited to Johnny's to play on the 4 wheeler with him.  Johnny and Sid went to playgroup as newborns together (for about a year) then we lost touch until Sid started Karate.  It ends up that Johnny lives on our street (about two kilometers west) so we are neighbours. 

Sid in front and Johnny riding in back for the first lap so she could learn how to handle the machine.  Johnny flips the peace sign and yells "Peace MAN!" as they drive by. LOL

We are now in the process of looking for a machine for Sid so they can ride together.  Johnny and his family own some property on the other side of the train tracks beside our house where the kids can ride this summer.  It will be so fun. 

A Viking In The House

We saw the movie How To Train Your Dragon last year and loved it.   Just recently we revisited the movie and Sid went through a week of watching it almost every day.  We started discussing lots of facts about Hiccup (the protagonist) and dragons.  I decided to buy Sid the book since our good friend said it was nothing like the movie and BETTER!  So we picked it up on Sunday and whoa, what an awesome, funny and creative story.



Sid has been enjoying the story so much we started a brief literature unit study based on some of the info on this site: HTTYD unit study

After the first chapter, we decorated Sid's dragon now named Firefang, added a dragon basket to her back and she had to climb the mountain to pick her dragon.

This was fun but there was a bit of viking missing.   We decided to make a viking helmet to add to the costume.  We took an old baseball hat and cut the brim off.  We made horns out of plastic bags that we wrapped around a pipe cleaner and then covered in masking tape.  

 Lastly we attached the pipe cleaner to the hat and covered the entire thing in duct tape.



 Ta-DA!

 Cute, but still something missing!  How 'bout a shield and ax?

 Ta-Da, cardboard covered in duct tape.  Wow I LOVE DUCT TAPE!!!!

 But wait we have a perfect dragon to train!

 Now her official Viking name is Gecko the Strong.  Gecko because that is her nickname since she literally climbs walls and door frames because she claims she has sticky feet!

Here she is jumping off the couch trying to see if her dragon will fly.  Oh what fun we had.  Today we read another three chapters and then I sewed a viking tunic out of an old sheet.  It looks awesome with brown leggings and a brown belt.  We are bringing the get up to our group tomorrow so I will try and get a decent picture of the entire thing!

We REALLY love homeschooling... must go before the house gets pillaged again ;)

Someone Else's Shoes

This week we met up with friends and donned used sweaty shoes to tackle those five little white soldiers at the end of the lane.  This was Sid's first time bowling and she LOVED it!

Sid's first frame.  (Nice bowling speak eh?  I am a pro now hehee)

Success!

Huwyl has a go.

Drat!  Not so pleased with the results.

Little Nierin having a try.

Success!  His goal was to avoid the pins.  He did this with great ease.

High Five from Mommy!

It was a delightful morning.  We had the lanes pretty much to ourselves so it didn't matter that it took an hour and a half to complete 10 frames of bowling.  We certainly got our monies worth.  The kids had fun playing and chatting and mom's got to kick back and bowl too.  I enjoyed the experience especially with Zepplin, Nirvana and Guns n Roses completing the atmosphere.  It was a touch surreal but that could have been partially caused by the dorky / used shoes.

To end out the morning I said "Hey kids, can you pose in front of the lane so I can get some pictures of our adventure?"  Clearly the choice of the word POSE was a mistake.  Here are our super models doing their best.  Boy-oh-boy do they crack me up!

We will certainly do this again soon......

Geocaching Revisited

We found our very first Geocache in March of 2008 (http://www.fundipp.blogspot.com/2008/03/airedales-love-geocaching.html).  For those who are new to the idea of Geocaching, check out geocaching.com.  Essentially it is a treasure hunting game involving clues and gps coordinates.  I used to use an Exterra GPS but now I have the new fancy Iphone Geocaching app so I can hunt down caches anywhere we are.  Over the last few years we searched a few caches but I found it difficult for Sid because a lot of the treasures are hidden off the main path and would require a bit of a bushwhack to get to them.  This was sometimes very tough on a little kid.  Now that Sid is 6, a bit bigger a lot stronger and more determined, these bushwhacks are nothing for her!  I can bring a dog to walk while she tears off through the woods with the GPS to find the cache first.  This is going to be a fun summer collecting treasures!

 Sid testing out the new geocaching app on the iphone.  It works great!

 This was one of three caches we found on this day but sadly it was frozen into the tree trunk.  It is close to home so we will return in a few weeks when the big melt is on.

This is really special to me.  I have waited a long time for the right dog and a little one who is old enough to handle her.  Sid can now officially walk Lilly and they are both very happy about that.  Lilly came to us with incredible leash manners.  She can still pull but she stops as soon as you ask her to heel (unlike Groovy and Maggie who will take you for the ride of your life if they are so inclined).

 This was Lilly's first cache that she could stick her head in.  It was cool!  Lights, sound, creepy stuff and HUGE.  It was set up in an old foot stool and dragged way out into the woods. 

 Sid found a cute stuffed tiger and we left a small flashlight behind.

The owner of the cache requested that a picture be taken with El-Bearo (the purple bear) to be posted on the log.  Check!

It was a gorgeous day in the woods filled with sunshine, a happy dog, a happy kid, a happy mom and treasures.  Can't wait for our next caching adventure.

Another Sparring Video

First of all, let me explain that my precious iphone is having issues.  It works but the video has lines through it.  This is a recent development and I am trying to get it fixed while it is still under warranty.  So please forgive the quality of the video.  You can still see how the sparring is coming though.

Sigung has the kids working their combos; back fist, punch, kick.  Sid and Wyatt had been practicing the drill for about 20 minutes then he had them fight.  They are a bit more tentative than usual because they are trying to get their combos in.  I love being able to track her progress like this.  

Sid is the one with her back to the camera when the video starts.  She is also the one wearing the white shin pads.  Enjoy!

Taking In More Fresh Air!

 Woooo Hooo!  Let's go!

It was cold with the wind but a beautiful sunny day none the less.  We took advantage and planned a lovely nature walk with our friends at one of our favourite places.  The Kids were super excited to be out running, exploring and playing on their own while the mom's enjoyed the sunshine and company! 

 Lots of footprints in the snow to study.

 Dragons to tame

An Ode to winter?

 Sunshine, Smiles and Friends!

 Not sure we want to leave.

C'mon let's have a picnic guys!!!



Back In The Swing Of Things

The last month has been a difficult weather month.  It was really cold or freezing rain.  Not very conducive to dog walks, skiing, snowshoeing or just general playing outside.  This week has changed everything!  Single digits below zero seems to be the magic that motivates us to be outside. 

Growing up in Ottawa I remember going to Winterlude many, many times.  While I remember the snow sculptures, the skating, hot chocolate, and activities held on the canal, I also remember the chilling biting wind that swirls through the wind tunnel like canal walls.  Cold cheeks and cold feet are indeed a part of the experience.  Sid has wanted to go to Winterlude for the last two years.  Last year I was willing to go but the weather heated up too quickly and everything was shut down in the second week of February.  This year she begged me to take her before everything melted and that is exactly what we did!

 "Guess what?  We're going to Winterlude!"

 Happiness is....

 This ice was listed in poor condition so we knew we were in for a bumpy ride but it was ok for the amount of skating we did.  Best Sisters on ice!

 Time for some minor adjustments to try and keep those cheeks from freezing!

 We couldn't miss the opportunity to test out the new 750 000.00 (a piece) skate SHACK!  Ok, in all fairness it was toasty and spacious but seriously??  As my friend said "Is this really worth three times the cost of my house?"

 A trip to Winterlude for Sid would not be complete without a hot chocolate and beavertail.  Mmmmmm so delicious!

 Happy Girls with helmet head!  After two hours we were ready to head home.  It was a perfect Winterlude experience.

Here is a link to a wonderful video by Magda that captures our little skaters :)

We left the canal and picked up Uncle Rick to continue our day of adventure.  He was coming home with us for dinner and then off to Karate to see Sid in action.  It was awesome having him over.

It was a busy day and a memorable one for February!  I hope this weather keeps up and we can squeeze in a few more adventures before mud season!

Idioms

Idiom (Latin: idioma, "special property", f. Greek: ἰδίωμα – idiōma, "special feature, special phrasing", f. Greek: ἴδιος – idios, "one’s own") is an expression, word, or phrase that has a figurative meaning that is comprehended in regard to a common use of that expression that is separate from the literal meaning or definition of the words of which it is made.^[1] There are estimated to be at least 25,000 idiomatic expressions in the English language. - wikipedia

A friend posted this picture on facebook of 26 idioms that grade one students completed. 

I thought this was brilliant and something I just had to try with our little grade one kid.  I did not read her the answers listed above.  Here is what she came up with :)

1. Don't change horses  while riding
2. Strike while the punching bag is there
3. It's always darkest before morning
4. Never underestimate the power of magic
5. You can lead a horse to water but let it drink
6. Don't bite the hand you use
7. No news is bad news
8. A miss is as good as a hit
9. You can't teach an old dog new things
10. If you lie down with dogs you'll get stomped on
11. Love all trust your parents
12. The pen is mightier than the pencil
13. An idle mind is a good mind
14. Where there's smoke there's a fire
15. Happy the bride who marries the groom
16. A penny saved is a penny lost
17. Two's company, three is triplets
18. Don't put off till tomorrow when we're going out
19. Laugh and the whole world laughs with you, cry and the whole world cries
20. There are none so blind as blind people
21. Children should be seen and not hurt
22. If at first you don't succeed try again
23. You get out of something only what you do
24. When the blind lead the blind they collide
25. A bird in the hand will fly away
26. Better late than dead

17 is my fav, followed by 24 and then 26.  Happy week everyone!