Toby goes to scout camp

This weekend, Toby and Nate attended Toby's first camp as a Boy Scout. They braved freezing temps and rain and had a lot of fun. Toby was able to pass off some requirements and is on his way to becoming a scout. His favorite activity was whittling.

Toby was the injured person for the first aid demonstration and clinic. He loved it.

Science Master and Super Scientist

It is that time of year again...time for the Science Fair. We started earlier, but still we were up late the night before, and up early the morning they were due. But the kids did all of the experiment parts all on their own and did a great job. I helped with the picture taking and the typing.

Isaac did his project on the many colors that ink is made up of. He was awarded the first place Science Master ribbon.

Aspen did her project on testing household things to determine if it was an acid or a base. She was awarded the second place Super Scientist ribbon.

A side note: There were only 5 entries in Isaac's division. There were probably 25 in Aspen's group.

WARNING: Not for little eyes

We were doing a little bit of spring cleaning last week while we were stuck home during the ice storm and I was helping Aspen clean out her room. I found a tooth on her shelf that she had, apparently, lost some time ago. This is our conversation:

Mom: "When did you lose this tooth?"

Aspen: "A long time ago. But the tooth fairy never came."

Mom: "Maybe you can write her a note."

Aspen: "I already did. She still didn't come."

Mom: "Maybe the tooth fairy is on vacation."

Side note - The tooth fairy has been known to take very long "vacations" because of forgetting to check pillows. She ends up paying double to appease the child who lost the tooth for taking so long.

Then that night at dinner we were talking about it again. It came out that Isaac thinks that I am the tooth fairy. So I took the opportunity to share the truth about all magical creatures.

On Friday morning Aspen came down for breakfast and said, "Can I have a dollar for this tooth that I pulled out last night? And a dollar for the last one that you never paid me for?"

Mom, the tooth fairy, no longer needs to be sneaky to buy those baby teeth now. No need for sneaky santas either I guess. Until Hazel gets older anyway.

Texas Sleds

These are our Texas sleds. We discovered that boards with hard plastic bottoms work much better than just the foam boards. Isaacs plywood skim board worked well also.

Since the snow is really very icy, the hill behind our house was super fast.

Because of the ice it was a little harder to climb up the hill too.

I don't know why his tongue is always hanging out. But Isaac is a daredevil and will try just about anything.

Even Hazel insisted on coming out. These boards worked great. They were very slick and fast and padded for comfort!!! I can't wait for the ice rain to let up so we can go back out. Even though the hill is small, the ground is slick enough to make you go really fast and really far!

Ice Storm '07

Austin has been preparing for this ice storm for 4 days. There have been runs on the grocery stores. Roads, especially bridges and overpasses are closed because of flooding on Sunday and Monday and ice last night and today. Businesses have closed for the 2nd day in a row. School was out yesterday for the MLK holiday and it is closed today because of the ice. We woke up this morning to ice on everything. All north facing surfaces are covered in 1/4 inch of ice. I am glad that I have all my family home with me today. It is nice to have a day or two at home. Because it wasn't planned we can just spend the day having fun, playing games, making cookies, and watching movies. Tomorrow is supposed to actually snow!!! We might get a 3rd day of staying home.

Let there be light.

So, we wanted to get a light in our kitchen that was a better reflection of our personalities. So we found a great one at IKEA. This is not it. After installing the IKEA light, we discovered that it wouldn't work. I was bummed. A few days later, I was going through a closet and found this light that I purchased a bout 3 years ago and just never put up anywhere. Better late than never!

A book? That's right. When I was your age, television was called books! And this is a special book.

Well, IKEA is now open here, and I just got this new bookshelf for my office.

I like it. The best part is that there are enclosed cabinets, so I can hide my junk, rather than have it sit out in a pile.

Also, check my tank site--I just bought a fish.