Builder Boy

Ben scored a K'nex coaster set in the clearance section yesterday.

K'nex apparently can't make decent assembly instruction booklets, he just put together Fallingwater from Lego last week, for ages 16+ and it took him hours, but he was never frustrated.  This thing was for ages 9+ and he was QUITE irate more than once. 

Despite the shoddy instructions (in his opinion) he was able to get it up and running last night.  I think he did a great job!

Look, art!

AWESOME!

Snake Eating Mouse

 Warning, the following images are very graphic and may not be suited for all viewers.

This really happened.  Eep!

 My name is Tango and I eat Woodland Creatures.

You, mouse, get in my belly!

Salt Water Things

It's not news that the ocean scares the willies out of me.  I have often gone off about the things that live there.  Once, when I was swimming in the sea with Jacki, she was adamant about holding on to her daughters.  I said something about they would never learn to swim or something equally asinine.  I have let my kids jump into lakes and creeks since they could toddle.  She said if my kid was swept away, the body would wash up somewhere.  If hers were, she'd never see them again.  

The ocean is huge, it's full of life, despite our best efforts to destroy the whole of it.  I have been snorkeling and diving since I was 11, off the Bahamas, in Florida and off Grand Cayman.  I have swam with sting rays larger than myself, I have been in a small school of barracuda without incident, I have been wading with jellyfish and have sat on sea urchins and still have the scars to show for it.  

All of this in my mind is like our lake critters.  We have freshwater eels, I have been bitten viciously in the ankle by one in a place I have taken my own kids back to several times.  And, likely, yours too if you swim with us often.  We have HUGE fish, scary fish, there are snakes.  There are leeches.  There are pockets of deep water that no telling what is peeking up through the gloom at your lily white legs.

But none of them are sharks.  UGH, I am so freaked out by sharks that I can't even look at a picture without getting the creeping willies. 

Today, I am minding my own business reading Discovery News and see THIS:

http://news.discovery.com/animals/deepwater-sharks-diet.html

Lego my Lloyd Wright

 Ben has wanted this Lego set ever since he first set eyes on it a few months back.

He loves architecture and Frank Lloyd Wright almost by default since Matt has many books about his life and his designs.

Lego Fallingwater was top on his list and when it went on sale at Amazon over the holiday, he bought it.

 The instruction book is 102 pages long, there are over 800 pieces and it's for ages 16+

 He worked all afternoon, a good 4 hours of solid effort. 

 The detail is good, the house comes apart in 4 sections to see the whole interior lay-out. 

Now Dobby has a place to live.  He bought Dobby with his birthday money and has spent an unusual amount of time worrying over him, trying to find a tiny sock or something to let him know he's free.  I think giving him Fallingwater as his own home is a pretty decent gesture!


Thankfully, Netflix has Fallingwater as a documentary, it will be in Thursday!  They also have Taliesin, which is my favorite of his houses.  

Lego has a second Wright design, the Guggenheim, which Ben said was overpriced and under detailed.

He had Fallingwater down today, drawing designs to improve it...I am glad to have a child who is not content with only what's there.

Below are photos of a gingerbread Fallingwater that were recently shared with Ben.
It was made by Maggie Patrick, photos by Katy Bothwell.
AWESOME!

New Term

In an effort to...make an effort, we have come up with our new plan for this half of the year.  We started off in the summer doing SO well with math and history and working on the GED test prep and it sort of fell apart when the weather got nice around mid-October and never quite fell back together again as smoothly as before.

Here is our new plan.
Daily:
Personal chores
A Khan or similar video before or during lunch
Weather below 55 or wet: 30 minutes of vigorous indoor activity
Weather above 55: 30 minutes of vigorous outdoor activity

M-W-F
Math
M-Health and Hygiene (which has nothing at all to do with science)
W-Physics
F-GED test prep (where we work on the test, specifically the way questions are worded)

T-Th
History
Science

One day each week:
Music

Art
Geography
Home Ec
Pen pal writing or personal journaling

Each Friday a 1-page hand-written report is due about anything of their choice, just as long as the handwriting and spelling improve.

The last Monday of each month, their nature notebooks will be turned in and checked over for certain entries which are: plants, animals, weather notes.

We are also trying out bedtimes again.  This is mainly for Ben, who gets the short end of the stick coming and going-he needs the most sleep, yet he gets kept up to all hours by Jake and then he is naturally the earliest to rise, meaning some days I get grump boy who is prone to yell or cry or both along with the Hormone Twins who can yell or cry or be sullen or become very needy and clingy and/or swat at each other.  I am hoping some solid required sleep will help all of us deal with Adolescence.  Ack.

All That Remains