WARNING: This post contains graphic images....

An email from some friends led to an exciting Biology lesson for Allie on Monday.

Yep - - Chicken Butchering. Remember, I warned you at the beginning of the post......

Allie was a quick study and not grossed out at all. She helped in every area except, well, the part with the ax and the neck! For starters, one must catch the chicken.


Then Mel does the hard work.

Yes, I am afraid it's true. There is some flailing about even after the head is gone.

Plucking is great fun.

Donna shows her how to get those stubborn feathers.

Ready for the next step.

Umm..this is an interesting step.

And Jackie was the official "gutter" and "cutter".

Allie is braver than me!!!

Bagged up and ready to cook.

You thought I was kidding, didn't you??

Yum, Yum! Delicious. Less than 12 hours from chicken coop to table. It's almost like living in Walnut Grove (Little House on the Prairie...)

As we sat down to eat, Allie prayed for the meal and ended something like this, "Lord, thank you for the hands that gutted this chicken."

I had to buy another one at the store because we are officially a 2-chicken household. (By the way, the Koslowsky chicken was WAY better) As we finished praying, Timothy gave us a good laugh as he proclaimed, "I don't want the REAL one!" Ha Ha.

His definition of "real" was the fact that when he saw Allie's chicken it still had the feet attached...... But he insisted, so he ate the water injected, steroid infused Safeway chicken.

While at Donna's, Timothy and Savannah had some fun also.

Wow--look, carrots come from the ground, not just at Safeway....

Hottest Day of the Summer?

I think some of our hottest days came after school started. I am not sure of the official temperature for this day, but the thermometer looks pretty close to 100 degrees.






So off to the mountain we go! In our hurry to get packed up and loaded, we forgot the peanut butter and the knife, plates AND napkins. Oh well.... we remembered the kids and that's what counts!



Timothy's concoction - Tomato Basil Wheat Thins and Grape Sandwich.....

Lindsay enjoys her pretzel sticks.

And Sarah and Allie enjoy each other.

A short hike to the top.

Savannah did her little "hike-hike dance".

Ahhh

Phil is always ready for a candid shot.

Savannah is finishing strong even with the banged up knee.

Okay...so I helped out a little.

As we were driving out of the mountains, Lindsay spotted two deer and their babes. One set got fairly close to the vehicle.

The sunset was gorgeous as we wound down the hill.

Another August Birthday

Sarah celebrated her birthday on August 21 -- the big 1-0! We started with a breakfast at IHOP -- just her, Phil and I. Allie watched the others so she could have this special date.

After school 5 of her friends came over for pizza, games, and fun. They played a very lively game of Apples to Apples.

They made sucker cookies. No, that's not Playdoh and yes, it is edible.

Papa Johns was Sarah's choice.

Must have been something funny on the card.

We all walked to the park to get rid of some EXCESS energy!!

Savannah had several little mothers to help her.

Playing peek-a-boo with Kristy.

Jenna flashing a bright smile.

Sarah gave Leland a ride and Melissa was on the attack.

Sarah and Sierra

Whipped Cream -- YUM!

Sarah is like me in more ways than one -- her choice for birthday cake -- Plain Angel Food Cake with strawberries and whipped cream.

The birthday party is not complete until someone throws confetti.

Lazy Evenings.....

.....wish there were more of them!


After dinner one night, we loaded up the Yukon and took a short trip to the Platte River. The kids skipped rocks and waded in the water. It was very refreshing and nice to be outside while the weather is still warm.

Allie made sure Savannah didn't get too far off the bank.



Now it's my turn to coax her back in......

Skipping rocks.

Timothy was determined to get one all the way across.

A new education adventure for Allie

Also on August 17 (which happened to be Allie's birthday), we began a new adventure in education with Allie. She is going to be home schooled and is very excited for this opportunity. I am still a bit glassy-eyed about the whole thing, but am also excited and FULLY depending on God's strength, grace and perspective as we move forward!!

Since I had to spend some time at FCA with Sarah and Lindsayon their first day, and because it WAS Allie's birthday, we started with lunch as Red Lobster and did an overview of what our typical days would look like.

Allie had a great first week and even though I was physically and mentally exhausted by Sunday, I thought it went very well also. She is really liking her science book and experiments.

Here is her first experiment about the concept of atoms. Most of the ingredients are common household items which make it nice on the budget.

What do you get when you add oil, water and syrup? What about when you add a cork, ice cube, rock and grape? ANSWER - very definite layers based on density.

Allie has been so diligent in illustrating and writing out the experiment process in her science lab book. She just finished her 3rd experiment a few hours ago and can't wait for the next one!

So what is my biggest challenge with this new adventure? Quite simply -- Timothy and Savannah. They are 2 very busy toddlers and want to be involved with everything. We have found some creative ways to entertain them while I am going over new concepts with Allie. Timothy especially enjoys "school" with his math manipulatives!!

I am sure more exciting home school posts will be coming soon!