An Egg Drop and ARRR-chery

Daniel attended Cub Scout camp this week.

I volunteered to help out a couple days, while Anna and Todd did crafts and games with the "tag-along" group.  And yes, Daniel's camp shirt is enormous in this picture.  I somehow managed to order him a medium adult shirt, instead of a medium child shirt.  Fortunately, they had extra kid shirts at camp.

There was a pirate theme this year, and some of the den areas were decorated very elaborately.  Each den also came up with a pirate-themed cheer that they yelled at each activity station they went to.

I was assigned to help out on the archery range.  It was fun to help the kids learn the basics of archery, and see their excitement as their aim improved.

At one point during my second day, a firetruck rolled in and raised its ladder to the highest point possible.  The dens had each been given an egg, along with some materials (a box, some paper, a big sock, etc.) they could use to try to protect the egg during a long drop.  The firemen dropped each den's package onto the road, and some of the eggs actually survived the fall.

When I went over to watch the egg drop, I noticed the Tag-Alongs had come over to watch it too.  Can you spot a couple Hendricksons in the crowd?  If you need a hint, Todd is wearing a red hat, and Anna is wearing a big pink hat.

At the end of each day, a camp director in full pirate regalia gave closing announcements and a few parting words, then he dismissed everybody and the theme song from the film "Pirates of the Caribbean" would start playing over the loudspeakers.  No offense to Bach and Beethoven (who did fine work), but I think "He's a Pirate" is one of the most stirring instrumental pieces ever written.

Games and the Mystery Machine

We were in the mood for some games this afternoon . . . 

. . . so Anna and Daniel played chess . . .

. . . while Todd played checkers against Todd.  It takes a truly great master to defeat himself.

In other news, apparently Scooby Doo and his gang retired to Maryland.  Given that it says "Zoinks" on the license plate, I'm guessing Shaggy holds the van title.

Summer Fun and Homework

We've spent our first few days of summer vacation . . .

. . . selecting and sharing end-of-school-year treats . . .

. . . swimming at the YMCA . . .

. . . enjoying free ice cream at Chick-fil-A, courtesy of the library's summer reading program . . .

. . . building a train track . . .

. . . and doing homework.  Wait, what?  

I told my three school-age kids that I wanted to help them keep their minds sharp and improve their writing skills this summer, so I'm giving them a writing assignment each weekday.  Anna asked to write emails to family members, and Daniel and Joy requested that I come up with daily writing prompts for them, such as "Research why Maryland is called The Old Line State" and "Imagine you are attacked by a giant pizza; how do you defeat it?"  That last one was inspired by a dream I had in college.  Tip: Don't stab a pizza because it doesn't have a heart.  Your best bet is to slice it in half, rendering it immobile.

Joy and Daniel also asked me to give them a math problem every day.  I found lots of geometry problems online for Joy, but Daniel prefers word problems and I've ended up making those up myself.  You know, things like "How many hours are there in a week?" and "Multiply Joy's age by Anna's age, then subtract three and divide by Daniel's age."

All of this is probably more work for me than them, but I hope it will at least help Daniel with his writing assignments once school starts again, since he tends to find writing intimidating.

Father's Day 2018

Today was Father's Day, so we cooked Daddy a dinner with lots of meat, baked his favorite cookies . . . 

. . . and gave him a card with a math problem on it (isn't that what you give your dad as a gift?).

We also gave him some of his favorite candies and another Darth Vader comic book, which he read to us in his best Darth Vader voice.

Happy Father's Day, Daddy!  Thanks for working hard, playing hard, and being a great example to us!

Todd's Joy School Graduation (and Mine Too)

Our family attended another Hendrickson graduation today.

Todd and his classmates finished their year of Joy School, so we held a little party to celebrate.

The kids performed a few songs they'd learned in class . . .

. . . then they put on some fancy construction paper mortarboards . . .

. . . and I handed out their certificates.  Anna couldn't resist coming over to congratulate her little brother.  The kids had also made flower necklaces as gifts for the teachers, since it was kind of a graduation for us too.  Joy School is fun, but it's a lot of work. :)

Our Wonderfully Quirky Graduate

Todd and I headed to Thunder Hill Elementary for what feels like the umpteenth time this month to attend our family's first promotion ceremony.

On the way to the multi-purpose room, we passed a wall of self-portraits painted by the soon-to-be graduates.  I wondered which of those smiling faces belonged to Joy.

Then I spotted this one, and immediately knew I had found my thoughtful, skeptical, delightfully quirky daughter.

When the kids filed into the room for their promotion, it was interesting to see what they were wearing.  Some looked like they were dressed for a fifth-grade prom, while others looked like they were dressed for a preppy game of basketball.  As usual, Joy had her own unique look that defies categorization.

I let Todd play with a scientific calculator to keep him content and quiet (wow, our family is so geeky) while the fifth graders sang a song and shared their favorite memories of elementary school.  Joy said she'll always remember her cool teachers. 

When it was time for the kids to parade across the stage and receive their diplomas, I noticed that some families clapped politely while others boisterously cheered for their kids.  I wondered whether Joy would feel loved or mortified if I cheered for her, and I concluded that she would probably feel both, so when it was her turn I shouted, "YEAH, JOY!  WOOOO!!"  It came out about twice as loud as I meant it to, and people laughed, but I'm still glad I cheered for her.  I hope she is, too.

After the ceremony we snapped some pictures with her teachers . . . 

. . . then I treated Joy to lunch at Chick-fil-A, which she enjoyed until she went to the indoor playground and realized she is finally too big (and perhaps too old) to enjoy it.  Growing up has its drawbacks.

The disappointment didn't last long, though, because her inquisitive mind soon found something to experiment with: Do root beer and a peach milkshake taste good together?  What is the optimal ratio of soda to shake?  There's nothing like combining math, dessert, and the scientific method to cheer up a Hendrickson.

Is It Still a Picnic If We Don't Eat Anything?

Todd and I attended our third and final end-of-school-year picnic today.  For some reason, the third graders had their "picnic" two hours after they typically go to lunch, so they didn't actually eat anything.  Is it still a picnic if there's no food?

Basically, we showed up to give Daniel a big hug, watch him play tennis . . . 

. . . and cheer him on when he sank a basket.  It was a nice way to spend an afternoon, even if there was no pizza involved.

Anna's First Grade Picnic

Todd and I arrived at the big kids' school this afternoon to visit Anna at her end-of-year picnic.  As we approached the crowd assembled on the school lawn, a small figure dressed in pink suddenly came running towards me with outstretched arms calling, "Mama! Mama!"  If Tinkerbell ever sprinkles me with pixie dust, that will be one of the happy memories I use to fly.

Todd and I brought pizza to share with Anna, who had gotten a heart and rainbow painted on her face earlier in the day.  One of her classmates kept dropping hints about how much she LOVES pizza, so we shared an extra slice with her too. :)

What's Blooming and Barking?

Todd and I were getting cabin fever . . .

. . . so we decided to take a stroll around our neighborhood.

We saw a little dog . . .

. . . a big dog . . .

. . . and lots of lovely spring flowers blooming.

In our own yard, the sheet mulching experiment hasn't produced stellar results (perhaps it needed more soil, more sun, and fewer rabbits), but we may at least get a few fresh peas . . .

. . . but it looks like we'll have a nice crop of tomatoes in our raised bed. :)

Joy's Fifth Grade Picnic

Joy's fifth grade class had their end-of-year picnic at a nearby park today.

I arrived to find Joy playing basketball (of course) with her social studies teacher (AKA the cool guy who played a patriotic saxophone solo at a school assembly last month).

I signed up to chaperone the playground, not because I worried that a bunch of eleven year olds needed a mom to keep them safe on the jungle gyms (they didn't), but because it was a way I could help out in an area where my four-year-old sidekick would be entertained.

After my shifted ended, I left to pick up pizza while Joy played chess with Maria.  Friends, pizza, and chess--sounds like a nice afternoon to me. :)

Champ Ball at the Park

The big kids don't have much homework as the school year winds down . . .

. . . so this afternoon we headed to a local park to play.

Joy brought along her birthday basketballs so she could practice shooting free throws.

Her newfound interest in basketball is rubbing off on the rest of the family too.  Daniel practiced shooting a few hoops of his own . . .

. . . then he went over to the playground while the girls and I played Champ Ball, a popular game at their school.  Two contestants start out at the free throw line, each holding a basketball.  They tap their balls together three times, then shoot and try to make a basket.  If neither player makes their first shot, they rush to retrieve their balls and repeatedly shoot from any place they want to until one of them makes a basket.  Whoever makes a basket first gets to keep playing against the next person in line.  It's a fun game, and Joy and I are pretty evenly matched.  Anna rarely made a basket, but we always cheered for her when she did.

After many rounds of Champ Ball, we headed over to the playground to make sure gravity was still working before we drove home.

It's Never Too Late to Party!

A couple years ago, I sat all my kids down and had a talk with them.  No, not THAT talk.  I spoke to them about the fact that all parents have strengths and weaknesses.  Specifically, their mother bakes great bread, makes sure we study scriptures each night, gives lots of hugs, and deals with bugs and spiders without freaking out.  However, she's lousy at planning parties, and they really stress her out.  Consequently, I would continue preparing birthday dinners and desserts of their choice each year, but I wasn't going to plan any more birthday parties with themed games and decorations.

They took that sobering news in stride (bless them), but earlier this year when Joy went to a friend's birthday party, she came home with a look of longing on her face.  She told me that they had simply eaten pizza and cake and played around a lot, and she asked if I could handle hosting a low-key party like that.  I said that sounded manageable, and we agreed to plan a no-frills birthday party, even though her actual birthday was months ago.

It took me weeks to actually set a date (I don't know why party planning is so intimidating for me), but today we finally hosted several of Joy's friends for a six-month-late birthday party.  The girls played Balderdash . . .

. . . ate pizza (note to self, order more cheese pizza next time) . . .

. . . scooted around our hard floor in their socks . . .

. . . smashed open a donut pinata full of raffle tickets to win some prizes . . .

. . . ate ice cream cones (with Anna's approval) . . .

. . . then played with the two basketballs Joy received as birthday gifts (at her request).  Did you know she liked basketball?  I didn't.  When did that happen???

A few of the girls then played some songs they learned while taking Suzuki piano lessons.  Joy played one of her favorite songs from Book 1 and was pretty pleased with herself until one of the other girls sat down and played a minuet from Book 3.  It was impressive to hear someone Joy's age play something so complex and beautiful.  After everyone left, Joy commented that she'd like to start taking music lessons again.  Maybe it's time to start looking for a piano teacher.