A nest, some homemade soap (lavender, oatmeal, and goats milk), a bobble-head squirrel, a new suet feeder, home made peach ice cream, a beautiful day, and good company.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
The Butterfly Experiment
We received a monarch butterfly caterpillar egg from a Monarch Lady (through the good graces of Cindy, who made the contact and conducted the rendezvous). We discovered a milkweed bonanza in the backyard meadow at Grandma and Grandpa's in PA the following day. These photos above the milkweed show a monarch egg magnified 100 and 200 times. An egg supposedly appears grayish when the caterpillar is about to emerge, so we are hoping the dark spot in this one means we are about to have a baby.
The Regatta
The fleet lines up for the first race.
"There was a young sailor, his name it was..." Zach, our intrepid skipper, stays cool and focused amid the competition.
An exceptional start!
The race is on!
And the finish is close but in our favor for the first race. Two heats of seven races each will determine the winners.
A graceful retrieval.
The winners under sail (left to right): #100: 1st place; #1: 3rd place; #22: 2nd place. The results were close and the achievement unanticipated and well received.
Team Tie-dye: basking in glory.
The true rewards...
Gearing up to "SAIL FAST"
Arrival via "two fish" for the big day: Severn River to Back Creek.
Registration includes the official measuring and certification of the vessel. Completed boats in race ready condition must fit within the confines of the bucket that contained the building materials. Ours holds up to critical inspection.
Practice starts occupy the time before the first start. Proper technique requires a straight and rapid release followed by a duck and scramble. Racing etiquette proscribes that you do not block the fans for your vessel or the competition. The race committee has a water oozy to enforce proper sportsmanship.
Finally, a trial run for the racing fleet.
And, a chance for last minute adjustments before the official races begin.
Boat Building 102
The Challenge: Construct a boat from the contents of the bucket (e.g., tin foil, rubber glove, lead weights, coat hanger, balloon, 6-pack (root beer for the kids competition)).
Step 1: Puncture and drain the hull material. Full cans are not fast.
Steps 2-2+n: Design and construct your hull and rig. We agreed on a trimaran with canted pontoons to increase stability, minimize drag, and hopefully, prevent pitch poling.
Step 3+n: Seal the holes. The bucket offers birthday candles, a blue crayon, and electrical tape for this critical task.
The maiden voyage: She floats and sails in light breeze, but the trial is necessarily limited due to the lack of running lights.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Boat Building 101
The hulls were not designed for efficiency, but they floated and held up to the fountain. When I asked about the elements it appears that one was a motorboat equipped with a crayon ""engine"; the other had a similar motor and was rigged with a toothpick/tape mast/sail combination. But, both kids also chose to add paddles. "Just in case the motor doesn't start." Observant, creative, and hilarious.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Kallan and Daddy "Read" Green Eggs and Ham Together
She basically recites it from memory, but we get her to sound out the words she forgets.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
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