Oct. 28th - Nov. 1st, 2013 in Pictures

Oct. 28th - Nov. 3rd, 2013 in Pictures

in process and still adding pictures

With the stormy, rainy, horrible weather on Halloween night our whole area of Indianapolis called off Trick or Treating and postponed it for Nov. 1st!!  How weird to go out in November!!!  But, we did.  This was the first year Dd did'nt want to T or T very long.  She really just wanted to get all dressed up in her costume---that was her fun part!  She took her shower in the morning and we put her hair in curlers to dry all day.  Then we still had to curl her hair with the curling iron after that; not to mention lots of hair spray!


Christie's daughter went as Merida; and we thought that was such a great idea that Dd did that too!  It was a much warmer idea than a basketball player!!!  Do you know who Merida is?  It is the red-headed archer from the Pixar movie, Brave.



We spent all day on her hair and then the can of red hair "chalk" stopped spraying after we did her front---so she pulled up her hood and covered up her curls--but her hair looked like it was red all the way around, even though the red didn't get all the way around.  I was so upset the can didn't work!!!  Of course, she got the can to work the next day!!!

 Three going into Chrysalis-- the top one dropped it's last skin on 11-1-13

Three still eating--


One Praying Mantis left and lots of crickets and grasshoppers!

My two fallen friends

Archery:

Caterpillars and Fennel:

This is one of 4 sections of fennel I planted. 

Harvested our CELERY:

/...

Going to the Farm Oct 26-27, 2013

Going to the Farm Oct 26-27, 2013

This is what our trails in our woods looks like---since we ride the tractor through it is nice and wide and beautiful.

Guess who is posing for the camera!!

..

Lone Pine Farm-field trip to a "vertical farm" 10-25-13

Lone Pine Farm-field trip to a "vertical farm" 10-25-13

in process

It is going to take a while to type out how this farm works b/c Adam Moody; the owner and tour guide did such an amazing job at telling us how everything worked.  He filled my brain with TOO much information!!  It is going to be hard to edit it all down for this post.  After I spent 30 minutes rambling to my husband about this tour, he said, "that's how my grandfather ran his farm too!"  To put it very simply-- this farm does things the 'old fashioned way'.  They use seeds that are NOT genetically modified; they don't use fertilizers and pesticides (except a 'safer' pesticide once every 7 years), they use the animals and the animal by products to farm with....for example the cow poop and saw dust from the barns gets worked back into the soil for fertilizer; etc.

This barn houses the youngest of the cows---we got to bottle feed the calves warm water.  We also got a good lesson in chemistry and how cow poop is an acid and needs a neutralizer like leaves or saw dust to attach to it to combine----and a whole lot that went over my head!  We also found out that all the unpasteurized milk that we and others around here have been buying is ILLEGAL!!  Who knew?  I sure didn't!  Adam Moody and his family own chickens, cows, sheep, and fields of crops in and integrated farming lifestyle.  They sell the eggs; and meat.  They own the meat butchering company, the meat shops that sell their meat as well as a few other farmers meats that they endorse.  They have 2 meat stores open now; and are preparing to open a 3rd store soon.  His son; Isaac and his wife and their 2 children were on the tour too.  They own a lot of the livestock and have started farming the fields too--next door on their own farm.

 

 

These are the oldest, biggest cows they own.
 

We got a ride on hay bales behind a tractor to the various areas around the farm to see.  Here we are seeing the Picker- Pick corn--they keep it on the cob, so the kernels stay attached to the cob and can take in or give off moisture and stay the right humidity.  Adam compared the kernels attaching to the cob like an embryo chord between a baby and it's mother--passing nutrients.  Then when it is time to feed the corn to cows or chickens they put the WHOLE cob and corn in a machine that grinds it all together into bits and they feed all the pieces combined to the animals.  Adam says the animals need the fiber as much as the kernel.  He went on for some length about how fiber is very important--and eating grass--access to fields; etc.  He discussed what things to look for in determining how a cow should look to be considered healthy---for example; a "fuzzy" coat.  

They grow the corn and grain to feed the chickens and cows.  They run their fields in 7 year cycles.  Each swatch grows for 6 years, then gets a year to rest.

...

Mary Cassatt

Thursday I taught the last art class on Mary Cassatt; and posted the info. here on our current page for any who might be interested to read what my research turned up. During the drawing portion of the class, we did blind contours, upside down drawings, and ellipses.  Then we drew simple objects--cylindrical bottles I had brought in.  Then if they mastered that--they could add a light source.  I had a great time revisiting artists that I hadn't focused on for a while.  In a way, I wish I did more art classes for just this reason---maybe in the future???  Anyway, if you want to see the rest of the class material--go to the side bar on the right and look for 2013--September--Sept. 29th--"Masters Art Class for Surf Students fall 2013" 

Mary Cassatt

Mother About to Wash Her Sleeping Child

(Surf Drawing Class 6 ---the last class)

Mary Cassatt (May 22, 1844 to June 14,1926. 82 yrs old), American painter, lived most in France, Impressionist.

The painting of hers that I chose to pick to focus on is titled: Mother About to Wash Her Sleepy Child; 1880: oil on canvas; 39 ½ x 251/8 in.  The reason I picked this particular painting is that this is her FIRST painting of a mother-and-child theme; which was to become (after this painting) her trademark.  Just like Caravaggio and his dramatic painting style (chiaroscuro), or  Leonardo da Vinci’s style (sfumato), or Georgia’s flowers, or Frida’s passionate feelings on display for all to see---Cassatt became famous for painting genuine sentiment of love and care between mothers and their children---in a way….that had never been done in a way quite like she did it!!! 

A little detail about whom Mary Cassatt was—and how she became the only American painter to become an established member of the French impressionist movement.  She was born on May 22, 1844 (43 years before Georgia O’Keefe) in Allegheny City, PA. to a very well to do real estate and investment broker, and her childhood was typical of his social standing.  There were advantages and disadvantages to being from such a wealthy family.  The advantage was that at the age of 16 she began to study with private art lessons in the Louvre, where she would study and copy masterpieces.  She traveled and lived in Europe; especially Paris, France—travel was considered part of her education; such as learning to draw and speak German and French.  But, her dominate father did NOT approve of her being a “bohemian” artist.  He would never approve or pay for any expenses regarding anything art related—just for her living expenses. When she was 15 years old she began attending the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and ended in 1865; which was the duration of the Civil War.

When she was 24 years old; one of her portraits was selected to be shown in a elite Paris salon (art gallery); which would have been a very big deal for her.  But then 2 years later she had to return to PA because of the Franco-Prussian War breaking out in Europe.  Her father made her life very difficult back at home; and she eventually accepted a artistic commission to return to Europe.

Wasting no time to get back to painting; the Paris Salon accepted her work starting in 1872- which established her as a legitimate artist—and not some hobbyist.  1877 was the first time in 7 years she had no works in the salon; and it was at this time that she was invited by Edgar Degas to show her works with the Impressionists.  (Who are the Impressionists?  A group of artists at the time that broke out of the current style of painting and tended to prefer open air painting and the application of vibrant color in separate strokes with little pre-mixing, which results in an “Impressionistic” view of what you are seeing in the painting.)

Cassatt gladly accepted the invitation from Degas, whom she had long admired.  She began preparing paintings for the 1879 show.  They became good friends, and he influenced Cassatt greatly through the years (pastels, etchings, Japanese influences, and perspective).  She remained an active member of the Impressionists until 1886; then her style evolved and she moved to a more straightforward approach.  She no longer considered herself part of any movements but instead actively experimented with a variety of techniques.  The 1890’s are her most busy and creative time.

In 1915 she had to stop painting because diabetes stole her vision; and she lived the remaining 11 years,  until her death, bitter and unhappy that she couldn’t  do what was her greatest source of pleasure; paint.  Mary never married or seemed the least bit interested in anything but her family and her art.  Her family came to live with her in France; and she took care of them.  She faced many restrictions because she was a woman in this particular time period.  She wasn’t allowed to go the café’s with the other male artists—her good friend, Degas.  She couldn’t take any figure drawing classes where there were nude models.  She worked well around all the limits society and her family imposed upon her and succeeded extraordinarily.

Lastly, a quote from her: “O how wild I am to get to work, my fingers farely itch and my eyes water to see a fine picture again.”

Oct. 21-25, 2013 LOW Left Over's Week for Core F 4A

Oct. 21-25, 2013

LOW (Left Over's Week)

 Core F 4A

Some of our green peppers we picked this week from our garden.

Some of our canning this year from our garden.

Monday

Today was a tough day to start; as usually I get all my cleaning done on my 'cleaning Saturday', but not so much this weekend.  Not only that, but my Dh was also sick---so our mess was compounded and cleaning up decreased...I woke up with a drudge!  I went in with Dd to start our bible lesson and saw that I had actually put in my SL "Additional Schedule Page" that I use whenever I have a LOW (left-Over Week) and sighed relief!  I had actually pushed next week off when I planned my schedule weeks ago!!!  Just in the nick of time.  I was really going to just keep pushing forward truth be told, and tow the line, so to speak---but, when I saw that blank form, instead of an official "to-do" list--- I knew I was fine to take a real break!!!  Phew!!

So, we did a really good bible study and then had Dd do her Reader---Anne of Green Gables (she is over a week ahead of her scheduled Readers) and then we had lunch.  I had a nice extra healthy lunch; and she had a lunch more on the unhealthy side.

After lunch we totally cleaned the kitchen--counters, refrig..then we worked outside for hours.  I had two major chores that HAD to be done: 1) dog poop removed so I could mow this week.  2) crickets found--which isn't so easy in this cold weather.  I gave Dd the choice of which she would rather do--and she chose the dog poop???  How odd is that?!  I ended up doing all sorts of chores and one thing turned into another.  Our neighbor had given us 2 big bags of his cut grass that needed to be dumped in our big compost pile.  I had compost to take out too. Then we walked out in the acres of fields behind our home looking for crickets, and got 2 smaller ones.  I tried to pry some memories out of Dd of what she could remember of her childhood.  But, she really didn't have much.  Dh said I should try to write some of our days down--here and there on the blog--for our memories.  I cleaned up the garden and took the old tomato plants out to the field.  I picked more green peppers for us to eat.  Meanwhile, Dd took out her machette and hacked up things!  It was great to be outside for 3 hours just doing 'stuff' in the garden, yard, or field.  We did that some last week too--- for a minute I thought "we should be doing our lessons"; but then I thought to myself that winter is going to be here before we know it and now is the last time to be outside and enjoy what we can of what sun and warmth there is, while there is....and the guilt disappeared!  I read a brief thing in the news a few weeks ago that the average kid spends FOUR MINUTES a day outside!!!!  I just am not going to participate in that!  That is crazy.  So, today we did bible, readers, cleaning, and were outside---nature study or whatever you want to call it.

Dd used the old apple gizmo to peel a bunch of apples and then made a baked apple dessert in the oven.  To her surprise the oven started smoking!  Something had spilled in the oven the last time it had been used and not cleaned up; so we had to put in some baking soda and clean it up...then I turned up the oven and heat cleaned it for about 30-40 minutes--then I let her bake her dessert.  She seemed to like it very much.  

Oh!  I forgot to mention---we found 4 or 5 Black Swallowtail caterpillars on our Fennel!!!!  So we brought them in and put them in our bug aquarium!!!  Joy! oh Joy!  I have lots of fennel plants outside and hope they will survive our first frost tonight; so I will be able to feed those caterpillars!!!  Which is especially nice b/c our largest praying mantis (Cleopatra II) died over the weekend.   She had an abdomen injury, and stopped eating....and it just makes me so sad.  I haven't typed those words out yet.  I hate to admit it.  Even when she was laying stiff and not moving, I kept saying that "she wasn't doing well...." when in fact I knew it to be more severe than that; but didn't want to face the truth myself.

Wednesday went on a  field trip to Lone Pine Farm in Lagoda, Indiana.  I will just make a separate post about that since it was such an interesting place to visit. 

For Bible this week, we started VP Bible card #14: Jacob & Esau : Genesis 25 & 27
(I went to Grampy's Sunday School on Sunday--and guess what he was covering!!!  This section in Genesis!!  Isn't that great!  It is really interesting spending weeks really digging into studying Genesis; and getting Grampy's/Kenny's insight into this book too.) 

Math:

Math U See: Zeta: Lesson 5: A, B, C

History Add-In:

The Silk Route: 7,000 Miles of History by John S. Major and Stephen Fieser

The Silk Route: 7,000 Miles of History by John S. Major

(I had read this to her a few years ago; and then Chelle mentioned it and reminded me that this would be a good book to fit into our China section of Core F! Thanks, Chelle!)

Artist of the Week:

Mary Cassatt

History of Art for Young People (5th Edition) by Anthony F. Janson

American Painting by Francesca Castria Marchetti

Lives of the Artists: Masterpieces, Messes (and What the Neighbors Thought) by Kathleen Krull

I read sections on Mary Cassatt from History of Art for Young People by H.W. Janson (pg. 521-522); American Painting by Francesca Castria Marchetti (pg 118-123), Lives of the Artists by Kathleen Krull (pg 36-38) plus we found numerous online resources to look at together too.

Audio:

The Quest Begins (Seekers #1) by Erin Hunter

1: The Seekers: The Quest Begins--Completed

Seekers #2: Great Bear Lake by Erin Hunter

2: Great Bear Lake: In Process

Reader's:

Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery

1: Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery- her official reader (She regrets picking AOGG's as her "Reader" because I have read her this book at least once before -who knows maybe twice before; and she remembers it so well that knows what is going to happen and therefore is kind of bored by this book.  I tried to suggest she read something NEW; but she wanted to read Anne "by herself"...That is why she keeps putting in the Mandie books in the middle of reading Anne.  She has also been reading Thea Stilton books....but, I'm not so excited about those!

 and movie:

Anne Of Green Gables - The Continuing Story (Sep 7, 2004) Starring Megan Follows, Jonathan Crombie, Schuyler Grant, et al.

 

Reader's continue: 

Mandie and the Secret Tunnel (Mandie, Book 1) by Lois Gladys Leppard

2: Mandy and the Secret Tunnel by Lois Gladys Leppard---finished

Mandie and Her Missing Kin (Mandie, Book 25) by Lois Gladys Leppard

3: Mandie and her Missing Kin by Lois Gladys Leppard---finished

Art:

Felt mushrooms--one red with white dots (for herself); and one white with red dots (for friend)

Felt heart and pin

Language Arts:

Dd wrote two letters

Over the weekend - 10-26th and 10-27th, we were at the farm and Dd got to do her archery and be outside and in the woods all day; both days.  She had a great time!!!!  She just "played around" in the woods.  Plus, she got to see "Giz" and Grampy for a two meals.