7 Quick Takes -- Concrete and apples edition

**1**

House progress is moving along quite nicely, I think. We have concrete in the ground!! It's just the footings, right now, but next week we should have the foundation walls poured. We are having a walk-out basement, so the cellar hole and footings look strange to me now, but I am certain it will turn out right, since my hubby is the "site guy" and he is very good (read: picky) at what he does. He's also getting impatient trying to explain to me why the foundation looks like it does and where the retaining walls are going to be, etc. He does this every day....I'm a newbie. Just because I have been married to an excavating contractor for 22 years, doesn't mean that I know how to do his job. Although, disturbingly enough, I do know a great deal about septic systems...
**2**

We have been inspired by so many great homeschooling blogs to try new art media. This week and last week we tried our hand at watercolors using real watercolor paper (what a difference that makes!!) and watercolor pencils, along with our regular crayola watercolors. I did look at "high end" watercolors, but wasn't sure how to use them and was reluctant to spend the money and then mess it all up. The kids pictures turned out great!! Here are the watercolors:

Ethan's version of the Annunciation

Sam's version of the Annunciation

**3**

And here is a great new medium we were excited to try: wool roving on flannel board. I purchased the wool roving in several (beautiful!) colors and all we do is pull off pieces and arrange them on the flannel board in a picture. I then took photos for them to cut out and glue into their main lesson books. It is a really neat medium and requires some "out of the box" type thinking. Here is Ethan's picture of a coyote chasing a prairie dog for his history narration:)

This is Sam's depiction of a dog chasing the Town Mouse and the Country Mouse (Aesop's fable)

**4**
Summer was exceedingly short here in New Hampshire. It showed up late and left early. I would say we are probably 2 weeks ahead of schedule, as far as the fall foliage goes. It is more spotty this year than I remember it being. Some spots are almost at peak, while others have plenty of green left. Fall is a glorious time of year, especially in New England. The colors and scenery are phenomenal. I just wish winter didn't follow autumn.

**5**
One of the best things about Fall is Apple picking time!! We made a "spur of the moment" trip to the apple orchard with a couple of friends on Monday. It is always great. I love, love, love that first bite of a crisp, juicy McIntosh seconds after it has been plucked from the tree. Mmmmmm.... It was rather windy and stormy the day we chose to go, but we managed to pick a bushel and a half of apples before the rain came. The kids even got to visit the petting zoo for a few minutes. We look forward to this time of year and our annual apple picking outing.

**6**We took these lovely, healthy snacks and look what we did with them!! For Shame!!!

**7**

When college girl goes off to Ohio and gets busy with studies and theatre and, of course, her social life, we tend to not hear from her much. I have devised a clever way to stay connected with her. Since she was a little girl, she has been able to memorize, almost word for word, any movie she has seen. She even was able to tell us, as a young girl, what the characters were doing in the movie during the instrumental pieces. She would listen to the sound track and say, "Oh, this part (of the instrumental piece!!) is when Uncle Scar did such and such." It was obvious, from a young age, that her gifts were for music and theatre. And, that is just what she is studying. Anyway, I have begun sending her a movie quote and asking her what movie it is from and who said it. It's been fun so far, and I have even stumped her!! I think I might institute it here, also. Feel free to leave your answers in the comment box. Here's your quote:

"Stop crying. There's no crying in baseball!"
What movie? What character?

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