We made ice cream today as part of Christian's lessons. We have been working on our senses (sight, smell, sound, feel, and taste) this week and this tied in well to those. It also worked for us because Christian thinks that when you put things in the freezer, they melt. So our "bag freezer" is going to help him see what happens to liquids in the freezer first hand and the difference between frozen and melted. Anyway... on to the instructions.
Ice Cream in a bag: You will need:
1 cup of milk
2 tablespoons of sugar
1/4 cup of salt
ice cubes
2 resealable sandwich bags (ziplock or other brand)
1 larger resealable bag
towel
plastic shopping bag
string or twist tie
First add the sugar and milk to a small resealable bag. I let the kids taste it, mush it, and we used the term "melted". Let some of the air out and seal it. Then put your milk bag into another small resealable bag. Next, Put ice cubes in the big resealable bag. We put just enough to fill the bottom to start with. Add the small bags of milk and surround with more ice. We put just enough to reach the top of the milk. Put salt on top of the ice and let a little air out when you seal the large resealable bag.Then, Wrap a towel around the bag of ice. Tie up your towel to keep it around the bags. Place the bundle into a plastic shopping bag and then tie.
After you have everything sealed and tied shake the bag! Have fun with it... get friends to help... but continue to shake for 15 minutes. We ended up sitting in a circle and tossed the bag around.
Finally, when the 15 minutes is up take the small bag out and rinse off the salt. I let the kids put it in a small bowl and describe the changes, before digging in and enjoying the ice cream!
Christian has been asking for a hat for sometime now. I think he feels a little left out that he doesn't get leg warmers made for him. So I started this later last year, and finally finished it up the other night. He loves it. I crocheted the whole thing, of course without a pattern. One of these days, I will learn to read patterns so I can make things without having to build the design up myself. With this hat, I was sweating it the whole time! Just praying that it would actually look like a hat. LOL. I think it came out pretty good now, and the best part is Christian LOVES it. He never leaves the house without it now.
I just wanted to remind myself how awesome last year was and how great this year is going to be....
Last year started off with a lot of snow and cold. Of course, we are in Alaska, so that shouldn't be to much of a surprise. We took the kids sledding, snowboarding, skiing, and ice skating. Of course Madison participated in Girl Scout events. Madison also participated in her first science fair and received a first place ribbon for her project on clouds! We really got into the Library's story time where Christian and Liberty participated regularly and I even started helping with crafts and such. Before we knew it the school year was coming to an end and the snow was already melting.
Spring brought with it a lot of sludge as all the snow and ice melted. The warmer weather had us dying to spend time outside. The family went to a Girl Scout event that had us flying kites and cleaning up the beach for summer. A spring concert at school and a pre-school graduation for Christian, and we were ready for the heat!
Summer came with long days and new friends. Spending almost every waking hour playing, hiking, camping, sitting around a fire, bbq's, swimming and so much more. Madison and Christian both celebrated birthdays! Soccer, the fair, and a trip to Anchorage made the summer even fuller. Christian learned to ride his bike without training wheels just before the cold weather started kicking in again.
Fall gave us amazing colors and cool weather. It also brought a brand new school year. Madison moving on to 1st grade and Christian staying home and going to speech therapy in preparation for Kindergarten. By October the snow was falling and the kids were ready to get out their sleds. The holiday's felt amazing and full! Halloween was a blast and Thanksgiving was full! Before we knew it Christmas break was upon us! More sledding and ice skating. I finally talked Todd into buying some tools, and I mean real tools... Like saw and sander and so on. So over the Christmas break we started building things together. Here we find ourselves in a new year with all the love and joy of last year! This new year will bring us so much I'm sure and we already have some exciting things planned! The science fair, a visit home, another year of Girl Scouts, summer activities, and a new baby!
This makes baby number 4 for us! We are so excited! Today we made a trip to Fairbanks to see an ultrasound tech. She was wonderful and allowed our whole family, of 5, in the room at the same time. She was very pleased with how well behaved and well mannered our yes ma'am/no ma'am kids were. Which is always nice for me to hear because it offers some reassurance that I am doing well raising well adjusted, respectful, one day adults. Anyway, when we left the office we were equipped with pictures, a dvd, and new knowledge of our little kicker. We are having another girl! Christian was not to thrilled with the idea at first, because he has been asking for a brother. He says he needs someone to share his toys with. I think a girl will be great for us. Christian will be our only boy and that makes him that much more special. Of course each one of our girls are special to us, and they seem to have a knack for making themselves so. With enough chatter from me I will get on to sharing the video I made. I used the song "Come To Me" by Celine Dion on her Miracle album she did with Anne Geddes. Hopefully baby will enjoy it as much as we do.
Lyrics: I will always love you no matter what No matter where you go or what you do And knowing you You're gonna have to do things you're own way And that's okay So be free, spread your wings And promise me just one thing...
If you ever need a place to cry Baby, come to me Come to me I've always known that you were born to fly But you can come to me If the world breaks your heart No matter where on Earth you are You can come to me
Don't walk around with the world on you're shoulders And you're highest hopes laying on the ground I know you think you've gotta try to be my hero But dont you know the stars you wish upon they fall its true But I still belive in you
If you ever need a place to cry Baby, come to me Come to me I've always known that you were born to fly But you can come to me If the world breaks your heart No matter where on Earth you are You can come to me
And the seven sea's you sail All the winding road you're on Leave you lost and feeling all alone Let my heart be your beacon home
If you ever need a place to cry Baby, come to me Come to me I've always known that you were born to fly But you can come to me When the world breaks your heart No matter where on Earth you are You can come to me
I worked on this little book of prayers today. Madison loves it! I wanted an easy reference for her. She asks me constantly about prayers and such, which I don't mind, but find it might be easier for her if she doesn't get my distracted response. It has all the basics she has been wanting to learn. It also contains blank pages in the back, so we can add to her book as her knowledge grows.
On the first page we did the morning prayer, prayer before meals, and the evening prayer.
Page two contains the Sign of the Cross and the Apostles' Creed. Page tree contains a "How to" say the rosary. I used a lot of references she already knew to help explain the steps.
Page four and five continue with the other prayers in the rosary like Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be, and O My Jesus. The mysteries are also stated.
These pages contain the conclusion to the Rosary prayers and the 10 commandments.
These pages in brown are her "confession" pages. With instructions for preparing for and receiving the sacrament of reconciliation. I included a list to help her examine her conscience. Of course it is very simple and geared for a 7 year old. Questions include: Have I shown obedience? Do I participate in Mass and keep Sunday holy? Have I prayed? Have I been happy for others when they have things they want or need?
These last two pages contain blank space for her to write her own notes or prayers. And of course we left several blank pages at the end of the book to add more later. For now, this covers all the basics she has been questioning about or they have been going over in CCD.
For Dustin's anything goes challenge. I colored one of Dustin's images with water color pencils, blending with a brush and blending medium. I used embossing powders to make the clouds, halo, and wings sparkle a little. Added a few red bows, white/clear gems, and blue papers so that this finished project will look cute next to the eldest child's bed (whos room is now done in red, white, and blue). To the right of Dustin's image, I printed a copy of her bedtime prayer. Put it in a frame and tada! She loves it!!
My dear husband and I were looking into making our own family coat of arms. We thought it would be a lot of fun to have one for future family reunions and events. Something to pass on through the generations. I finally got curious and decided to look up the Harris family name and the original coat of arms. I found this image...
The chevron design represents the roof of a house and the importance of home and family. It is also supposed to represent protection and faithful service. Which I also feels appropriate for our family because of military service. The gold is supposed to represent generosity. The blue, strength and loyalty. The hedgehog, according to some, represents a provident provider. I feel that this suits our family well. We try to live joyfully within our means and be content with what we have. Dear husband finds it his main goal to avoid excessive debt and diligently saves and prepares for our future. Hopefully our efforts will prove to provide for ourselves and our families throughout the generations. We also hope to follow the holy families example and live modestly to serve and bless others. The family motto, which is seen at the image to the right, is "Everywhere to remember one's own country." I am not entirely sure what this motto means. I can see it represent our family, as we move around a lot. No mater where we go, we will always be part of our country. On a more spiritual level, I can see it represent that we can go everywhere on this earth, but none of it will mater when we get to our heavenly home.
Next, Put ice cubes in the big resealable bag. We put just enough to fill the bottom to start with. Add the small bags of milk and surround with more ice. We put just enough to reach the top of the milk. Put salt on top of the ice and let a little air out when you seal the large resealable bag.
Then, Wrap a towel around the bag of ice. Tie up your towel to keep it around the bags. Place the bundle into a plastic shopping bag and then tie. 
