Apple Picking, October, 2012

Apple picking, just the girl's and Mama this year. We had a beautiful day, perfect weather. Not many apples left, but we managed to pick a bunch. The swings were a huge hit, and the woolly caterpillars too.

What We Have Been Learning About This Month

Doing a pumpkin math page.

Stirring acorns into blue paint.

Rolling painted acorns across paper.

Painting a paper acorn with a glue/paint mixture.

Painting an acorn.

Gluing coffee grounds and oatmeal to her acorn.

Carefully gluing her coffee grounds.

Finished sensory acorn project.

Making a squirrel snack.

Squirrel snack.

Pumpkin picking.

Open Gym

Upside Down

Flip

Making a crust for an apple pie.

Rolling out a vegan, gluten free pie crust is not easy.

Using their feet to transfer acorns from one bowl to another.

Transferring acorns with tongs.

The girls each made a 5 little pumpkins picture.

Our apple pie.

The girls enjoying their apple pie.

Hiding peanuts for the squirrels.

Peanuts hidden in the tree.

The girls sitting in their doll strollers eating peanuts.

Violet wearing her bat hat she made, complete with a purple hair bow.

We have been learning so much about squirrels this month. We have read volumes about them, done lots of art projects, hidden nuts for them, gone on nature walks in search of their homes up in the trees, made and eaten squirrel snacks (mixed nuts and dried fruits).

We also learned a lot about apples and pumpkins, went apple picking and picked out pumpkins too. We made an apple pie, and lots of other apple foods. We have been enjoying fall a lot, and it has been so beautiful this year. The weather has been perfect.

Penelope has been continuing with her ASL class, and both girls love open gym day. We have been enjoying weekly playground days with our local homeschool friends, took a trip to the children's museum with some friends, the girls carved pumpkins with their Daddy and toasted pumpkin seeds. We are very excited for Halloween and it is all the girls talk about.

This Moment, Friday, October 26, 2012

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. 

Childhood Unplugged, Brought to You by Auntumn

The weather has been so deliciously crisp and chilly, leafy and perfect. We have had so much outside fun of the best kind. Nature walks, acorn gathering, leaf pile jumping, mushroom hunting - the mushrooms have been insane this fall! And to follow up our wonderful outside time we have been enjoying hot cider, cocoa, and homemade soups.

We have been enjoying a second weekend in a row of dog-sitting our friend Baxter, and Penelope is in heaven caring for him, walking him, and giving him too many treats.

We have been doing a unit study on squirrels this past week, and have learned a lot, and I think we'll continue into the coming week with the squirrel theme.

Fall is my favorite season, and it's more fun when there are enthusiastic little people to share it with. Little people who agree with me that every scarlet leaf is a work of art, that each acorn is amazing to see and to realize that it will grow into a huge oak tree, if not eaten by a hungry squirrel first, who find wonder in the magical fluff waiting to be discovered inside a milkweed pod, and who know that there's much good fun to be had in a crazy leaf fight. And can I just say how much I love it when my kids spontaneously end up looking like little goblins or forest gnomes when we head out for an adventure on a nature trail?