Traveling the States with Gage- Hawaii

Hawaii: The Aloha StateExploring the States:Hawaii, the Aloha State

Gage has always had a soft spot for Hawaii, who doesn’t?  We started by reading through the book and then I chose some  5-10 minute activities over the next week.  My goal is really just two activities for each of the three days and then a book or two.

  1. He traced the state map and marked the capital.
  2. He made this very cool state flag out of colored tape. I did the rough cutting ahead of time and then he had to use the picture from the book to recreate it.
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3. I wanted to make a lei, but decided instead that we would learn about deconstructing.  So, we deconstructed a lei and tried to put it back together again. Well, the joke was on me because the wire they used was way too hard for 4-year-old hands to work with, so I had to come up with an alternate plan the next day.  We used pipe cleaners because that’s what we had.  He really didn’t like this activity and even with me helping him it was a struggle to finish – not  that you can tell from the ‘after’ pic!
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4. And, of course, no Hawaii project would be fun without making a volcano!
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(we used 2/3 cup water, 3-4 TB baking soda, 1 tsp dish soap, paint to color and stir.  Add 1 cup of vinegar to erupt)
5. Dog-of-the-Sea-WavesDog-of-the-Sea-Waves by James Rumford was a great book on the settling of Hawaii.  Although fictional, the story of the brothers, Hoku, Na’ale, Opua, Makani and Manu featured animals unique to Hawaii on every page and a story that could have taken place. The Polynesian brothers explored and Manu found a friend in the Monk Seal and his friend would eventually save his life. There are scary parts but everything is okay in the end. Loved this book and it’s sure to please animal lovers.  It even told the story in Hawaiin at the end, provided a glossary of all of the animals in the book and the story of the Islands.  40 pages.

Keep sending me ideas for your state – especially book ideas!

Our Arizona activitiesIndiana activities.  Michigan activities. Ohio activities. Pennsylvania activities. West Virginia activities.

October’s Movies and $ for Charity

Another month and another chance to contribute money to charity.  Add your 5 words (or less!) to mine in a comment and earn $1 for charity.  Once we get to $100 the person with the most reviews will choose the charity.  Click here to see the past winners, the charities they chose and the other reviews you can add to.  Anyone is welcome to join in at any time.

We’re at $9.

I hope that you will take a few minutes to participate when you can each month.  It’s fun for me and for everyone else who reads it.  I’m not looking for a critical review, just a few words about how you felt about the movie.  This is ongoing so you can leave your 5 words anytime.

Begin Again film poster 2014.jpgBegin Again, 2014 (Cast-Keira Knightley, Mark Ruffalo, Adam Levine, Hailey Steinfeld, James Corden, Catherine Keener)    Grade A

Lovely take on musical dreams.


Unbroken poster.jpgUnbroken, 2014 (Cast-JackO’Connell, Domhnall Gleeson, Miyavi, Garrett Hedlund, Finn Wittlock)  Grade B

Inspiring athlete goes to war.


The Martian film poster.jpgThe Martian, 2015 (Cast-Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Jeff Daniels, Chiwetel Ejofor, Kristen Wiig, Michael Pena, Sean Bean, Kate Mara)   Grade B

Upbeat astronaut left for dead.

great movie, book way funnier!  (Sheree)


The Ghost Writer poster.pngThe Ghost Writer, 2010 (cast-Ewan MacGregor, Pierce Brosnan, Kim Cattrall, Olivia Williams, Tom Wilkinson)    Grade C+

Complicated political thriller turns deadly.


The main protagonist appearing with other supporting characters.Snowpiercer, 2013 (Cast-Chris Evans, Song Kang-ho, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell, Octavia Spencer, John Hurt, Ed Harris)     Grade F

A bloody train going nowhere.

October is the bestest month of the year

Oh, how I love October in Ohio.  The leaves change color, the air turns crisp, and sweaters and jeans are brought to the front of the closet.  But there are a few other very important reasons that October is the jam.  On the 11th, since the day I was born people celebrated ME!!  Woo Hoo! I have my own day.  And then 27 years later on the 17th I married the greatest guy and people came out to celebrate then too.  And, of course, the love of my life was born on the 19th to much fanfare by the family who loves him.  It is a month of celebration around here! I already have 15 kids rsvp’d for Gage’s party and the only reason I’m not freaking out is that we’re having it somewhere else 😉

These are the things that were happening the week I was born.  Wanna take a guess on how old I’ll be this month?

The French Connection with Gene Hackman was the #1 movie in theaters.

The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty was atop the New York Bestseller list.

The #1 album was Every Picture Tells a Story by Rod Stewart and the #1 song was Maggie May from the album.

Ike and Tina Turner were on the cover of Rolling Stone.

What year do you think I was born?  There’s a small prize in it for the first person who guesses correctly 🙂