Santa's Land '10

On Thursday the kids and I went with my parents to Cherokee, NC.  It's so beautiful there and September/October is the best time to go.  The weather is perfect!  It was 82 degrees on the day we went.

We spent the morning looking at the bears from the Bear Project.  

Then we had a picnic lunch by the river.  The kids fed the ducks some bread and we ate in front of a quacking audience.   

When lunch was finished we spent some time shopping.  Everyone left Cherokee with a new pair of moccasins!

We ended the day at Santa's Land...the Hannah & Samuel's favorite part of the day! 

Cherokee Bear Project

Pottery Bear

The Bear Project is really neat.  They wanted to showcase the variety of talented artists that live within their community so they commissioned 25 bears to be made and decorated by these artists.  The bears are scattered all throughout the reservation and it's almost like a treasure hunt to find them.  So, with list in hand we started walking up and down the sidewalks looking for these bears.

The Legends Bear

Fair Bear

Eagle Dance Bear

Patriot Bear

Cherokee Sunset

This was our favorite Bear!  The Sequoyah Syllabeary.

 Santa's Land 

  

Lava Lamps

 

 

 

For additional instructions and info on how to make a lava lamp go to The Science Mommy blog.  Check out the other science experiments that she has for kids of all ages!

Encyclopedia of Fun: B & C

Mr. Clark recently informed me that I've been neglecting my blog.  My sincerest apologies.  I was having trouble getting my photos to upload to Picnik so I could edit them.  Then our internet service became fickle and started moving at a s n a i l s pace.  That's basically the reason I've been behind.

To catch you up with the Clark Clan here is what we have been doing:

---B---
Baseball

 The number one rule concerning sports is safety.  Sammy understands this and therefore wears a bike helmet while hitting his plastic ball with his plastic bat.

 

Bean Bag

 It's fun to put a bean bag on your bed and pretend it's a roller coaster.

Afterwards you can put in on the floor beside your bed and use it as a landing pad.

Our poor bean bag already had a rip in the outside leather part.  With all the jumping off the bed and onto the bag, the inside material ripped as well.

Before we could get it fixed the kids decided to make the bean bag "snow."

 

If only we could make a snowman...

 

---C---

Caterpillars

 Hannah named this "little" guy Fatso.  We kept him in our bug catcher kit for a few days but had to let him go.  

  Have you ever seen a purple & pink caterpillar?  I hadn't until Samuel found this fella in the yard.  Hannah ended up losing him while she was running up to the trampoline.  I wonder what kind of butterfly he would have turned into.

Cleaning

Mainly dishes...

Cutting  

potatoes for supper.  yummy mashed 'tatoes.

* I have two fabulous little helpers.  They make a lot of messes but they're always more than willing to help clean up.  They both help with dishes, making supper, separating clothes for laundry, etc.*

Check back soon for more updates. I'll be posting about the Lava Lamps we made and possibly about the Plum tree we recently planted. And there will definitely be a post about Santa's Land in the near future.

 

 

Herbal Remedies

It's that time of year again.  School has started, chilly weather is creeping in and with it comes a multitude of germs.  They take the form of colds, flus, fevers and sore throats.

Just this past week Hannah & I had a cold while Samuel had a fever for a day and a half.  Thankfully I had researched and found some valuable information on natural home remedies so we were prepared.  I love home remedies because they don't involve trips to the doctors office, unnecessary chemicals and considering that most of them aren't ingested, they're not going to hurt your child.  You probably have everything  you need in your pantry - garlic and olive oil.

Here a few of my favorite remedies and medicines:

Colds:  For colds I use the garlic press.  You just peel a clove of garlic and crush it into a paper towel.  Fold the paper towel, with the garlic inside, and run it under hot water.  Squeeze all of the excess water out of the p. towel and then apply to the sole of the foot for 60 seconds.  I do each foot for 60 seconds each.

Chest Congestion:  Repeat the instructions for the garlic press but this time place the paper towel on your chest for 90 seconds.

Ear Infections:  Crush a clove of garlic into a tablespoon of olive oil.  You can heat it in the microwave until the oil is warm (but don't get it too hot because that will not help the ear).  Strain the garlic out  of the oil.  Rub oil around the outside of the ear and around the lymph nodes.  Also, put a small drop or two in your ear three times a day.  

Sore Throat:  Do the garlic press and apply it to your neck and the soles of your feet.

Fever:  There's not really a natural remedy for fevers.  I use Motrin and give luke-warm bathes.  I don't bundle my kids up but dress them lightly and cover them with a blanket if they're cold.  I will do the garlic press on their feet just as a precautionary measure.  

 ............

With everything I give my children a teaspoon of raw honey each morning and each evening.   There are so many health benefits of honey that we actually use it for everything!  We eat it on as many foods as we can, I put honey on burns and cuts and we use it as a vitamin when we're sick.

Also, to alleviate the systems of a cold, I give Hannah & Samuel Hyland's Homeopathic Cold'n Cough 4 Kids.  You can give it to your two year old (but not younger than two).  My kids love it!  You can buy it at most pharmacies but we get it at Wal Mart because it's cheaper there. 

I promise these remedies work.  I use them any time we're sick and they have shortened our illnesses by days.  A cold normally lasts two to three days in our house!

Useful links:

• Bulk Herb Store has great articles on remedies and you can even order herbs from them.
• Click here for a great article on the benefits of raw honey.
• Click here for a great article on the benefits of garlic.