Two for Tuesday...
Tuesday, April 22, 2008 at 10:47PM Today was such a nice day! Not only was the weather gorgeous for a change, but we had a fabulous time at Denver's Butterfly Pavilion with our homeschool group. The kids started out with a little class about habitats and then we all roamed at will. Nathan took a break from work and joined us (which was lovely!) so he and the boys and I started in the "bug" room (it has a different name, but that's how I think of it)...staring at all the beetles and cockroaches (including the hissing variety) and spiders and bees. Still couldn't convince any of the boys to hold Rosie (the resident tarantula) but took a plunge and did so myself:
Not really a bug sort of person (and, thankfully, neither are any of my boys) but it was fun. :)
Then, we ventured through the aquatic invertebrates and the shrunk room (where the bugs are big to give you perspective on how life would be if you were a bug) before heading to the butterfly area. Wow. We've been to the Butterfly Pavilion before and this is our second year raising butterflies ourselves, but still. Being surrounded by so many fantastic butterflies and foliage is awesome. Micah, in particular, was delightful...so thrilled every time he spotted a butterfly yet simultaneously completely freaked out if one came near him. He and Noah were on a quest to find a blue morpho butterfly (thanks to an episode of "Go, Diego, Go!" that's been a favorite lately...for Micah, not Noah...Noah just thought Micah was cute and decided to help him). Both boys ended up spotting one, so they're content. Oh, and Micah calls them "bubble-flies"...how cute is that?! Anyhow, here's one of many pictures:
No. This isn't the blue morpho...just a pretty one that was fairly cooperative. :) Saving the rest for a layout or two or three.
All in all, a very good time. :)
So. That was one for Tuesday. The second thing is that I just finished and ordered my awesome School Days photo book from Shutterfly! It was designed by my good friend Tiffany Tillman (who rocks!) and is great fun! Even though we don't do "typical" school stuff, this album still worked fabulously for our homeschooling story. You can check out my completed album HERE. (Sorry. Can't figure out how to place an image directly on my blog of the book.)
I just have to add that, even though these photo books may seem a bit pricey at first glance (I know they did to me in any case), they're sooooo worth every penny! I love how incredibly easy these are (with these pre-designed ones by CK you only have to drag and drop your photos and add some journaling...beauty) and what a gorgeous finished project you end up with. Even though I've scrapbooked much of our homeschooling stuff already, I love that with this album I can quickly get a nice overview of it all. (And, incidentally, if you're ever concerned that perhaps you don't do enough with your kids, pulling a bunch of pictures together like this is a great exercise! I know that I have my moments of doubt and this really helped!) If we did public schools, I can see that making one of these for each child would be a super easy annual solution for capturing all that "schtuff." Anyhoo...check it out.
Okay, off to wade through some more of the photos I took at the Butterfly Pavilion...
Reader Comments (7)
You have reminded me that we are long overdue for a trip to the Butterfly Pavilion! I miss Rosie! :) That school book is fabulous! I need to look into doing one of those. Eli's winding up his first year of kindergarten and it would be fun to have a record of it all together like that. Goodness knows I have taken photos at enough field trips and school events, not to mention all the work I've scanned and/or saved!
aw I wish I had known, I live right down the street and could have come seen you! my son's having his bday there next weekend, thanks to heather's review.
I love that book! It looks great. and how pretty is that butterfly?! I would love to see all those butterflies... but I wonder, do they kind of swarm all over? I might freak out a bit? gorgeous pics though.
Holy cow! That picture just makes me cringe. Not something I would do! :) Would you believe that I live in the Denver area and have never visited the butterfly pavilion. It's on my list of things to do sometime. :)
EEEEEK! i had to shiver when i saw the furry tarantula, you are SO brave, spiders scare me like crazy.
OH! and i checked out your shutterfly album and it's BRILLIANT! thanks for sharing with us amanda. hugs and happy weekend, rachel
We're homeschooling too....sounds like a GREAT trip. Your photos are beautiful!