Myjobchart.com

I found this link on another person's blog and thought I would give it a try. I think this is a great idea and wanted to share it. Myjobchart.com let's you assign jobs to your kids on the computer. They get to login under their own name and picture, view their jobs, and check the job off when they are done. You assign each job a point value and you can decide what the points represent. It will also email or text the parent when the job is completed-- a little over the top, I know, but if you're into that kind of thing. The idea is that kids are so computer oriented nowadays, this is something that they will enjoy doing. My kids are real excited about it and I am too. I'll let you know how it goes but you may want to check it out. By the way, it's free!

Science

We had a week full of science. Luke and Lindsey both participated in the school science fair and Heather was "scientist of the week" in her class. I have heard many complaints from parents about the science fair but I am actually a big fan of the fair. I know it takes a lot of work and time but it is one activity that I think teaches the kids some valuable things. That being said, we were a little stressed trying to get two projects done. The projects themselves weren't bad, it's making the displays that seems to take so much time.

Luke's project was testing which spice emissions keep E. Coli from growing. If any of you were wondering, you can purchase E. Coli online. (I may be on the terror watch list now.) After ordering the E. Coli and petri dishes, Luke swabbed the petri dishes with the E. Coli. Then he put a teaspoon of spices in the lid of the petri dish, turned the petri dish upside down so the spice is at the bottom and not touching the agar. He sealed the petri dishes and let them grow for a few days. His results showed that cinnamon kept the E. Coli from growing. Runner up was lemon juice.

Lindsey examined what happens to the sugar bond as the temperature rises. She boiled a sugar solution and took out spoonfuls of the solution as the temperature rose 25 degrees. After letting the spoonfuls sit for a few minutes to reach room temperature, she analyzed the texture, taste and color of each spoonful. Lindsey, unfortunately, had to try a few different experiments to get one to work. She started out trying to grow bean plants with different color of filters and she also tried to find ways to keep erwinia caratova (a bacteria on carrots) from growing. Neither of these were successful or needed more time so we had to find one we knew would work. She ended up really enjoying what she did in the end and she learned a lot about the scientific process.

Luke got a first place and Lindsey got runner up to first place. It was explained to me that this is somewhere between first and second-- whatever that means.

Heather got to present a science project to her class. We had a bag of polymers. She demonstrated to her class what happens when you add water to the polymers. The polymers absorb the water completely. This is the same stuff that is in diapers and keeps them from leaking. She had the class guess what product the stuff was in. Being third graders, when they found out it was diapers, thought it was hilarious. I told the kids not to go home and pull diapers apart to find it but I was told at church today that at least one little boy went home and did just that!

Winter Wonderland

We have been experiencing quit a big of fog lately. Every night the fog rolls in and some days it doesn't roll out until afternoon. I actually really like it. The fog is mysterious, you never know what's lurking around the corner. One of the advantages of having fog is the residue of frost it leaves everywhere. I took my camera to Jensen Park (this is a park I like to jog at) and took some pictures as I made my way around the paths. This is what we are experiencing here right now.

2010

The new year has been rung in and we are starting down the path of 2010. We had a fun New Year's. It was pretty low key with the kids but it was nice and relaxing. I took the kids to the movies earlier in the day then that evening James and I went out with some friends for dinner and came back to watch a movie. Luke had some friends over for a small party. By midnight, James and half the kids were asleep. The other half ran outside to bang pots and pans and run around. Then I tucked everyone into bed.

New Year's Day we had a fun family day. We had our traditional chocolate breakfast. We decided a couple of years ago that chocolate always makes things better so why not start the year off with it. We have chocolate milk, chocolate cereal, chocolate pancakes, etc. Around the breakfast table we plan out the year as best we can. Later, I met with all the kids and helped them set goals for the year. My goal is to help them follow up on their goals!

Our first week of this new year has been good. The kids headed back to school for a couple of weeks. They go off track later in the month. Before that happens, they have the science fair and the spelling bee. We have been busy working on those projects.

James left for Las Vegas this week with his good friend. They have decided to make it a tradition to attend a convention down there. They went last year and went again this year. At the convention they get to see all the new and latest technology that will be released. I can tell how exciting it is for James as he calls me and tells me about all the interesting things he sees. I'm glad he and his friend are able to attend the convention together.

I have made it a goal to de-clutter!! I began my journey this week. It is amazing how much junk a family accumulates. We have been here for six years, and while you try to keep the clutter under control, things pile up when you don't move from one house to another. I have discovered that the more I de-junk, the more areas I find that need attention. This project is going to take some time but if I am persistent we should be junk-free before the year is up. I have actually been reading a book that points out what "junk" is. It is written with a lot of humor and I laugh at nearly every chapter because I realize they all apply to me/us. It has been an eye opener but also very freeing. This week I made two trips to Deseret Industries and one to the trash pile. We'll see what next week brings--or gets rid of.