Dump Truck in a Bag

Well, it's an awful picture but still really cool. Cam got a mini-lego set and made this dump truck, while it was still in the bag!! Amazing right? Yeah I know. I have a talented little bro! :)

5 Guys

 Dad is a 5 guys hater!

Not as good as In-n-Out but oh well.

In Vitro-In a Glass Container

This is what I did in Chemistry this morning! I just started the module yesterday so the experiments are pretty basic but still pretty cool.

In this one, we learned about density by measuring the mass of three different substances: corn syrup, water, and vegetable oil. Then we layered them in the glass (shown above). The layers stayed separated because of the different densities!

It was pretty neat. I'm liking chemistry a lot so far. In chemistry, you have a very specific way of measuring things and then you only use a certain amount of numbers (called "significant figrues") depending on the precision of the instrument you are using. Cool huh?

Stop Stop Stop....A Quote

Me: Stop stop stop. It feels like you're moving something in my back.
Mattea: What?

Yesterday's dorky quote of the day. My back was hurting so I was telling Mattea to press really hard on it, in the hopes that it would get the cracks out.

But then she started using her thumb in a circular motion and it honestly felt like she was moving something in my back! I don't know what exactly-cartilage? That's just what it felt like! And I know it's physically impossible for Matt to be moving a piece of cartilage in the middle of my shoulder blade, but that's what it felt like.

But Matt repeated it back to me and I realized how ridiculous it sounded and we both laughed about it for about twenty minutes. And it's still funny!! It probably wouldn't have been nearly as funny if we hadn't been super tired and high on helium....

Sucking Helium

Acting out the Darth Vader scene at 11 o'clock at night.

Spanish

I fail at spanish... O_o stupid r's...

*Update!!* I rolled one r today!! (1-20-11) In aldentro, whatever that means. I rolled an r!

A Massive Library and a Scary Book!

While we were out and about, we visited the Library! And it was huge!!!

Three stories high, there are naturally, lots and lots of books. (three stories! Can you believe that?)

But they didn't have the book we wanted....


So we went and bought it at Barnes and Noble instead!! And now, I present to you:

Dun! Dun! Dun!

We're going to read some of it tonight. Should be fun! The way I see it, this is educational! We are learning about something that really happened! In the '70's! That's ancient modern history right there!! And this education is being combined with entertainment which is really the best way to learn in my opinion. And I am sure it will lead to some deep discussions about the state of our society as well.

I fancy to liken it to a roller coaster ride. You know that you are perfectly safe and you aren't going to get hurt... and yet, you still clutch the handle bar as the ride throws you around the track... Scary stories are the same way. Some people like that thrill of being scared. That paralyzing, blinding fear....hmm. I don't know what is wrong with some people...

Tragedy!!

The snow has melted and its wintertime magic is gone. Thus the tragedy:

Yes, Mac the ninja snowman, lies there now, broken, in shambles. We were devastated to find him like this. We'd known he was anorexic and were seeking mental help for him but we never thought it would go this far. Alas, poor Mac. Rest in Peace.

It happened on one of the worst of days. An eerie mist covered the area. Cold and drizzly, we can only hope his last moments were happy ones.

Surprise!!

It began....as any ordinary school day would begin. Mattea did school. While I baked bread, talked to my dear mother, and watched awesome Japanese anime videos on Stephanie's blog.
After Matt was finished with her work, we headed off to the movies to watch Gulliver's Travels. Afterward, we went out to Coldstone again. We had a lovely time but we snacked throughout the whole movie and then with CS, we were stuffed.

Here's us at Coldstone!^

Little did Mattea know, that there was a SURPRISE PARTY waiting for her at the house!! I have been keeping that one under my hat for a couple weeks now. She was soooo surprised!! It was amazing!! Mrs. Swegles invited 8 of her friends over and we had a grand old time.

There was a scavenger hunt:

And after Matt and I ran all the way up the street to one of the houses, not only were we ready to puke our brains out (thankfully, we didn't) but there happened to be no one home! So we had to get our item elsewhere.

The cheaters who took a car instead of running.

Posing for a picture together!

Ringing the doorbell of another house.


After the Scavenger Hunt, we played a few other games and ate dinner and watched Letters to Juliet (a super cute chick flic!) and after the movie, we ate cake and opened presents!!

The whole table, minus Matt (who took the picture)

Us!

The cake.

Group photo.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MATTEA!!! I LOVE YOU!!!

USSRC part 2!

Can I add captions to all these later? I think I will. In any case, here are some more pictures to content you with, oh hungry picture starved beast! (just kidding, I don't  think you're a beast...mostly.)

*Update 1/22/11*Thank you to lovely post options, I can move this next to my other USSRC post! Yay!

Me demonstrating what one pound of thrust looks like.

Rocket outside the center. It was quite large...

Me trying to do the (virtual) moon-buggy race. As you can see from the screen, I wasn't doing so hot 'cuz my car flipped over.

Jarrett looking at the fascinating monkey display!

Church and the USSRC (Not the Soviet Union)

This is the Swegles church. I asked Mr. Swegles to stop the car as we were leaving so I could get this (crooked) picture of their church. The crookedness wasn't on purpose. We're going back for youth group on Wednesday but it will be dark then so my picture wouldn't turn out quite as good.

It's a sweet medium-sized church! Lots of friendly people there.

Now pictures from: The United States Space and Rocket Center (USSRC)

The rocket outside the center that doesn't fit in the screen of my camera because I was too close!

Me showing Jarrett my postcard that I made on the airplane! He looked at me like I was crazy...

Inside the museum-another ginormous model of a rocket. Separated in the different parts that it launches into after takeoff. There was a great long kinda dull explanation about it but I don't remember exactly how it works.

Monkey footprint!!!! The first monkey in space-his footprint is the subject of this picture. Yay monkeys!! I love monkeys...

I know it's backlit and awful; but this is a picture of an engine. On the giant rocket, there were five of these great funnel like things. I wanted to sit on one of them and dangle my feet over the edge. This time Mattea gave me the "you're crazy" look! Unfortunately, I couldn't do it with this engine as there were orange bars blocking the way and it was resting on the ground. =P Lame.

Me and Matt in a model flight chamber. (I think.) It looks like we're lying down, but we're really not. The seats were put that way! It was weird.

Lookin' good in them thar spacesuits!! You really should've seen the boots. Wow. They were.... quite fashionable.

And last but not least (because it was probably the most fun part) was the rock climbing wall!!!

Notice how about 3/4 (1:06) of the way through the video, I (I'm the one on the left) do my spider monkey pose (not intentionally) and get stuck because I have nowhere to go...

I think this was my first time on a rock-climbing wall. Maybe my second. Now that I think about it, it was actually my second since I did do one when I was nine... But that was a long time ago.

There are a few more pictures on her camera but it's being finicky right now so I'll post them later.

To Be Continued....

Coldstone Combo

 Best coldstone combo ever: sweet cream icecream mixed with coffee icecream and heath bar pieces! Yum!

Mac the Ninja Snowman

This is Mac, the ninja snowman. See his snowball. Fear his wrath! He is a blackbelt in snowman karate and to complete the ensemble, he has a carrot nun-chuck. His squinty eyes will strike fear into your heart. Just by looking at this picture, hope and pray you will never come across such as the likes of THIS.

Posing with Mac.

Close up.

Snowman in progress.

Mac receives his ski mask. We had to...modify his head a little bit so the ski mask would fit properly.

Jarret's alien snowman, which he eventually turned into a dead snowman. In order to protect the public and uphold our agreement with Blogger that we shall not post inappropriate material on this blog, we cannot post pictures of the dead snowman, nor do we possess said pictures.

After we finished our snowmen, we invited the neighbor kids out for a snowball fight!! My first real snowman (that was taller than 2 feet) and my first snowball fight in the same day! Yeehaw!

Tomorrow, we are going to the rocket museum (?) after church. And on Monday, Matt and I are goin' to the movies. We haven't decided what we're going to see yet but it should be fun!

Snow Gear 101

First, you put on socks.

Then you put plastic grocery bag over the socks.

Then you put another pair of socks over the plastic bag.
And finally, you put on your boots!

Isn't that amazing? I have never thought to use plastic bags to insulate your feet! Genius!

"I can't put my arms down!" Me all bundled up

Giant snowman!! There's a ton of snow here and it is so beautiful!! It's a little slushy now that the sun has come out. But it's all good. Later, we are planning to have a snowball fight with all the neighborhood kids. Should be fun!

Reunion!!

Here is the video of our reunion. We both started crying and the video still makes me cry! ^-^ It is so wonderful to be here!

The flight was good; there was a nice man sitting next to me. He was interested in nearly everything I was doing but he was just super friendly and probably lonely so I didn't say anything. :)

Homesick at Home

I am starting to feel homesick already. And we haven't even left yet! I am flying out to Nashville,TN this afternoon. But I'm gonna miss my peeps!

Bringing Down the Mammoth--a short story

Hugging and puffing and quite out of breath, Eh burst into the cave. His primitive eyes did not register the firelight casting its dancing shadows across the stone walls. Or the smoky odor of charred logs upon which nothing had been cooked for too long.

                Grunting and moaning in a kind of nonsensical language, Eh gestured wildly at the men lounging around the slowly dying fire. Eh was near frantic, “Come!” he grunted in the simple language they spoke. “Food. Not far. Mammoth. Big.” Eh gestured with his hands to show the massive size of the mammoth.

                The men, very excited at even the mention of food, jumped up. They grabbed their spears and harpoons-crude but deadly weapons, grunting, “Show. Show. Show food.” Eh led them away to the Mammoth. The women began to move as well, glimmers coming to their eyes as their stomachs growled in anticipation of food.

                The men jogged as they followed Eh through the rocky snow-covered terrain to the place where the mammoth was. In some places, the sharp rock cut through the soles of their shoes but they did not notice and kept on. Soon, the mammoth came into view. When they saw the Mammoth, the men jumped up and down in excitement. Food had been scarce for so long and before them was the equivalent of a feast.

                Eh grunted, warning them agains the mammoth’s strength. It was wounded but it was still very strong. Blood had stained and matted the fur around its torso. Since it had started to get colder, the animals slowly disappeared, or died, or went into hibernation. The mammoth would not have survived long.

                Quietly, the men spread out to surround the mammoth. Then they attacked. All at once, the men attacked the mammoth, jabbing their harpoons at it, trying to kill it. The mammoth fought back. Enraged, it swung its head around, knocking out one man with its trunk. Still the men persisted in stabbing it with their spears. The mammoth trumpeted its protest with several great blasts. But the men kept stabbing it. The mammoth heaved, gasping, desperately trying to stay alive. The men panted, tired from the work but determined to have the mammoth. They continued their attack on the mammoth. The mammoth took out more men but it was weakening. The mammoth collapsed, still struggling to stay alive. Then, it was dead.

                The men beat on their chests in triumph. As one, they converged upon it, ripping its flesh and shoving raw pieces of meat into their mouths as was custom for the men o fthe hunt. After they had filled their bellies, they hauled the carcass back up the slope to the cave so that the women and children could eat too.

                Everyone celebrated the return o fthe young men. They ate the rest of the mammoth and beat their fists upon their chests, shouting their triumph to all the world. Chief Ug took the blood of the Mammoth and bits of charcoal from the dying fire and painted pictures of the men fighting the mammoth on the mural on the inside wall of the cave. That night, with very full bellies, the little tribe slept very well.

I wrote this at the beginning of last year for a history (ancient civilizations-cavemen chapter) and I found it while I was cleaning my room today! :)

Cameron Plays Rockband!

Thought this would amuse you folks! Cameron singing, "I Want to Rock and Roll" at the Coffin's this evening. We were having a guys night (plus me) while all the women had their gift exchange! Apologies for the terrible lighting! Also, just as a side- you don't have to watch the whole thing. It's towards the end of the song so he's singing the same thing over and over.

The Thing about Flames....

You know, there's a thing about flames and public blogs....

People can find them!! O_o

Last night, I wrote a giant post about the Bio 5 Institute. I have removed it after Mr. Hall, the Co-director of the Bio 5 Institute, corrected me and I will be emailing him later today to apologize and ask a few more questions. The post turned into a rant about people who are anti-homeschool and I realize that it may have appeared that I was accusing Bio 5 of being anti-homeschool.

In any case, it was not my intention to paint Bio 5 as an uninformative anti-homeschool program. Mr. Hall said they understand the homeschooling plight and he has known some talented homeschool students. He said the details of the 2011 program are still being worked out and they'd be happy to talk about our situation and options. I intended the post to keep the family informed of what I've been up to and it turned into a flame so I have chosen to remove it.