Marshmallow Molecules

Silly Guy is learning about Chemistry this year using the Real Science 4 Kids curriculum. This week he and Little Man made marshmallow molecules.

Supplies:  Large marshmallows, small colored marshmallows, and toothpicks.

  First he had to make shapes using any number of toothpicks and marshmallows.   

After learning the "rules" and assigning each "atom"  a marshmallow he was to create molecules. 

   H2O                                                                                                                               NH3

CH2Cl2

 

Town of Genoa

We took a short trip to the town of Genoa.  It was a quaint town nestled on the eastern slope of the Sierra's.  It is the first recorded settlement in the state of Nevada, 1851. 

 While in Genoa we visited the Mormon Station Memorial State Park.  Some things we found most interesting in the museum...

The woman to the left is Eliza Mott.  In 1852 she was the first woman to settle in the area.  In 1854 she started the first school which was held in her kitchen. 

To the right is a pair of skis belonging to "Snoshoe" Thompson.  He would brave 20-50 foot snow drifts with a 50-100 lb mailbag strapped to his back.  He made his own skis and only used one pole in his travels.  Not only did he deliver mail, he also delivered medicines, newspapers, and has been given credit for many daring rescues.
Interesting medicine remedies-
Baldness: Smear your head with fresh cow manure.
Cuts:  Pack the cut with axle grease.
Coughs:  Put some cow dung in water and bring it to a boil. Gargle the water three times per day.
Crick in the neck:  Go down to the hog pen and find where a hog has rubbed his neck against the fence, then rub your neck in the same spot and the crick will be gone.                                          

 While we were in this adorable town we decided we would do some geocaching.  It was a fun trip!

Our Summer Part 3: Nature Hikes

We went on a few hikes this summer.  I am hoping as the weather begins to cool we can go on a few more-taking my camera;)

If you are interested in hiking this beautiful and historic trail click here to download a map.



Dad and Little Man

Sweet Girl and Silly Guy



The Susan River



We stopped to rest and my camera couldn't resist the daisies

Foxtails-very dangerous(especially for dogs) but beautiful colors

To find out more about foxtails and the danger pose on dogs visit this website.  Our dog had one imbedded in her ear and  it was extremely painful for her.  We had to take her to the vet in order for it to be removed.  I was shocked when I found out they can even be fatal.



Our Summer Part 2: Camping

 We went on a camping trip this summer to Eagle Lake.  It is located in the northeastern corner of California at the juncture of four major geologic provinces:  the Sierra Nevada, Cascades, Great Basin, and volcanic Modoc Plateau.  
It was a serene, peaceful area.  We enjoyed nature hikes, relaxing on the beach, and some much needed family time away from everything. 

In this picture the kids were giving swim lessons to our puppy Boomer.  He's not a  proficient swimmer which gave us a lot of entertainment.

 

 If there is a tree, there my boys will be...

When we came home this little guy was resting above our front door. He must have enjoyed the quiet while we were gone but that night he took off never to be seen again.  We were a little disappointed it would've been neat to observe him for a few days but I guess our front door was a little too busy for his taste:) 



Our Summer Part 1

 I haven't blogged in quite some time. I am hoping to come back now that we've started the new school year.  I thought I'd catch up a bit:). 

We finished our school year around the end of June. All in all I am very happy with our school year.  Then we enjoyed the summer by getting caught up on things around the house, some reading, an art class, gardening, planning for the school year, and I even was able to read a few books other than curriculum ;). 

Silly Guy finished baseball season in June. This was his first season playing baseball and loved it. However, he did break his hand and was out for about 5 weeks. He healed and came back strong, ready to play.

Little Man turned 4 years old!! He is such a fun little guy and is growing so fast.

 We have had some visitors to the neighborhood this summer. A couple of wild herds have been hanging around the house. They are beautiful and we've enjoyed watching them. They were gone from early spring until August. It is the same herd we observed over the winter plus a few foals and new members too.  

 

We experienced our first wild fire which was on Fourth of July weekend. It was a bit scary. This photo was taken from our neighborhood. It was a bit too close for me but was reassured by neighbors whom have experienced this before that it was far enough away from the houses. What a blessing that the wind was only about 3 mph that evening.

Fourth of July is the biggest event of the year in our new town.  They had a huge parade down Main Street.  Little Man, Dad and I watched from the curb while Silly Guy and Sweet Girl participated in the parade.  After the parade there was a huge festival with activities planned for the entire day.  At the end of the day there was an enormous display of fireworks.   
 

 

Sweet Girl entered in the 4H dog competition at the county fair.  She did very well for her first year.

 She entered Roxy in the Rally, Showmanship, and Obedience categories.  They were supposed to have an agility trial but couldn't get the equipment there on time for the show. She was disappointed because agility is where Roxy shines. They did place 1st in Rally and 2nd in Showmanship.  It wasn't their year for Obedience.  She knows now what they have to work on.

Joining 4H Clubs

Shortly after we moved here I signed Sweet Girl and Silly Guy up for the 4H club in our county.  They both picked out a few clubs they wanted to be involved in.  Sweet Girl chose the dog club and the skiing/snowboarding club.  Silly Guy chose the skiing/snowboarding club, shooting club, and rocketry club. This has been our first experience with 4H and so far it has been wonderful!  They have been making new friends, learning new things and getting involved in the community.

Silly Guy

The skiing/snowboarding club has been a great time.  I have enjoyed watching them learn and grow to love this sport.  They still have a couple more times this season to hit the slopes:)

Sweet girl

The shooting sports club hasn't started yet but I am told it starts when snowboarding club is over.  Silly Guy can't wait!
Sweet Girl is in her element with the dog club.  So far along with"business" meetings, they've been to a clinic which involved a  veterinarian talking to them about dog nutrition.  They went to a veterinary clinic and watched a dog under anesthesia have a few teeth extracted and cleaned.  This week they will be having another clinic about vaccination.

Roxy-Sweet Girl's project dog

The club is also organizing a dog show that will take place in our town this May.  Sweet Girl volunteered to take on the project of advertising.  She has chosen Roxy to be her project dog.  When we live in Hawaii she trained Roxy to do an agility course,basic obedience and a few tricks. However in the past six months or so, Roxy seems to have forgotten some of her training and is giving Sweet Girl a challenge.  Such a loveable girl though:)

Observing Nature in the Winter

 This winter we have ventured out a few times to do some nature observation...

Tracking



 


   


 

Little Man wanted to leave his own tracks behind

Collecting 

Driftwood-LM thought... triceratops horns








  


 


 

Watching



Beauty