Plimoth Plantation

We went to Plimoth Plantation and Mayflower II yesterday for FREE, courtesy of The Highland Street Foundation. There are a bunch of places that are free on Fridays, so click the link!
Here are some of my favorite pics from our trip:






The big boys were asked to help put in a couple of planks for a fence that needed repair. They got to break out one of the rotted planks and then put in two new ones.


The day was flawless. Temp and humidity perfectly comfortable. Only a few puffy clouds in the sky. Aaaaaaaaah, summertime!

Photo Op

actress: Boo; photographer: Banana

Graduation

Big T graduated high school this year. We are all very proud of him. He will be taking a couple of college courses this fall while finishing his GED. There were forty other homeschool graduates this year. The ceremony was personal and well done. There was a short bio and a message from the parents read aloud for each graduate, followed by a slide show. It really is amazing to think of all the things these kids have accomplished.
Our graduate alone has been in the church choir since he was nine. He has completed about 40 hours of volunteer work at the church each year. T has been taking karate since he was ten, and earned his Black Belt in Kenpo at thirteen. He is in an "invitation-only" leadership program at the dojo, where he is training to become an instructor. T has also been taking piano lessons since he was ten. He gets sheet music out of the library and practices popular music as well as the great masters. T attends a weekly writing class where he is working on his first novel. It is amazing to see how far our timid, anxious and easily frustrated little boy has come. Good luck, Big T!

An Etsy Promotion

Miss T has a great shop on Etsy. Her shop is being featured in a Giveaway on the following blog: B.F.F.E. (Best Finds From Etsy)
You have a chance to win a beautiful handmade wooden teether. All you have to do is post a comment on the B.F.F.E. blog! Winners will be notified on Tuesday the 20th.

Sewing Expo

Spent the last three days taking classes at the Sewing Expo with Miss T. It was a blast and I learned alot. Mostly, I learned that I don't know how to sew. *LOL*
I behaved myself and only bought one piece of fabric. I decided, after the 'stash game' that I really can't justify too many more of those purchases.
Besides, I felt that what I really needed are resources. Having taught myself to sew, I thought, (maybe) there might be a little information I was missing.

I bought some thread on clearance, which matched some fabric for an order perfectly. I was all excited about finding it, until I looked at the bottom of the spool and saw the words, "solar active blue/purple". What did that mean, anyway? So I took it outside, even though it was cloudy. Here's what happened:

Yikes! Glad I checked first.

Regretsy Book Cover Contest

[Note: I altered one of the images for the purpose of this blog.]

Regretsy had a contest for the best book cover design. I entered, along with dozens of others, and the winning list came out today. I am not a winner; yet, in a bizarre twist of fate, I still showed up in third place! Not possible, you say? Ah, but feast your eyes on the 3rd prize winner's entry!

RED AND BLACK by Laura

Perdy and I are on the back cover, left side, near the spine of buttons!
*LOL*

Soapmaking 101

Miss T and I went to a soapmaking class in Medway on March 23rd, so I am a little late with this post. Can I tell you how much fun we had? Who knew? I think I have found yet another hobby to take time away from cleaning the house! *LOL*
Apparently, up until WWII, pretty much everyone made their own soap. And it isn't hard to make, either.
We learned the cold process method, which means that you don't add any heat from an external source, ie. no cooking. We made 4 1/2 pounds of soap, which equals 15 bars. Mine are a citrus blend of pink grapefruit, lemon and lemongrass. The whole house is lightly scented with citrus. I love it!
I have to wait about 3 weeks (4/13!) to use my soap, as it takes that long to "cure" or harden. If I am impatient, and use it now, it will melt away very quickly. Patience is a virtue. (Yes, it's killing me to leave them alone!)