http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pigpen_cipher
Anna brought it up at our craft class this week and I was so glad. Leif and I touched on codes and code breakers when we read about WWI and II last fall. I thought maybe he'd get 'into' codes and we could write secret notes, but it just didn't take. Now it has. Last night he wrote his own pig-pen coded letter to his dear friend, and we delivered it today. While I cannot divulge what it said, because I know the mama needs to keep the secrets, not spread them, suffice it to say it was the best little coded note written by an 8 year old, who has a sense of how you speak to others in written form (how are you?), and yet at the same time, is a newbie to this whole social discourse thing (what you a doing?)(huh?). It was precious, and made Kit and I want to watch The Big Lebowski to see if Leif had truly caught the essence of 'the Dude' in his tone.
This week Leif had a new experience. His soccer coach invited him to come to the practice for their Academy class. It sounds more big-league than it is, the truth is it's a practice-only class for kids 8 and up who are truly commited to improving at soccer. So not just the community team with over-sized donated t-shirts, get my meaning? I think Leif enjoyed it, and this week we'll talk to his coach more to see what happens next, can he come back, what's the deal? I think I can get him 3 weekly opportunities to play this spring, which he is really excited about. And I need to toss on my cleats and go to the field near our house and work with him too, he'd love it.
Our knitting class has finished up, but our project has a bit more work to go. This week Leif knit his Inuit guy and read more about igloos. Now we just need to knit his hood and stuff him and give him hair. Hannah had struggled with the knitting and just wanted me to do it for her, but I'm going to try again with the hoood part, I think she could get it if she doesn't start out thinking she can't do it. Pics next week, promise.
We got a story kit out of the library of First Nations stories/tales, plus some factual books on the various bands in BC and their traditional lives. So far we've read the stories, and we all really liked them. Leif liked the story best of why the birds fly south each year (they lost a bet between the animals and the birds) and thus the bat is a bird-like animal who stays here all year (he helped the animals win the bet). Hannah liked the story about how we humans were once naked tiny people, and how we grew with the animals help to be brave and tall. (My fave was the Eagle boy). Next week I hope to weave in some learning about BC bands and culture. We'll see . . .
The annual Lego display was up in Sidney until March and we managed to squeek in during the last week of it. It is always fun for them to see what is made, and it inspires them to create new stuff at home. Leif was excited to see a Robin Hood set.
We'd been watching the original movie version with Errol Flynn, and Leif and Hannah were enthralled with the swordfight scenes. They'd tell me how fair Robin was, he always gave the guy his sword back and waited until he was ready. And he hit his mark EVERY TIME MAMA!!!! Yes dears. They've been re-enacting different scenes from the film throughout the week, and then the lego show was the perfect addition to our Robin Hood fun. Leif also liked the dragon set at the show, and tried to copy it at home. (It's so great that when he sees something he likes he doesn't want to buy it, he wants to figure out how to make it out of his own lego.)
Leif's dragon
He was also really inspired by the castle set he saw. He took pics and then came home and copied them. He doesn't have a draw bridge in his lego, so he built a working port cullis on his castle. Sweet! Spot how much his matches the museum set.
Kit and I are doing exercises each day (we're feeling our age, the bones aren't doing so well). Push-ups and sit ups, and now chin ups. The kids HAD to show us their strength. I was impressed.
Yeah, I know they're sideways. If I could fix it I would. I MUST stop filming this way.
More Star Wars inspired living skills this week. Hannah makes Luke Skywalker smoothies!!!
After this kitchen success, Hannah helped me make muffins. She has mastered cracking eggs. As she beat the egg in the bow, she asked me where did 'they' get the first chicken. From the mouthes of babes. I explained the quandry of, well, did the chicken hatch from an egg, or did it lay the first egg. As she figured out the answer-less riddle, she broke into a huge grin.
Hannah has asked if she too can take more soccer, and do the 3-hours/day 5 day long spring break soccer camp Leif is signed up in. While she's 'underage', she's good for her age, and I'm going to ask her coach if we can sneak her in. I think she'll rock at it. Unless she gets tired. Then she'll hate it.
Today was a gorgeous day. We spent it here.
Hannah and Leif would roll a big log off the end of this pier thing, and then throw rocks at it until it washed onto shore. Then they'd drag it out again. Hannah was determined to build a fort out of logs, so we did. :)
Monkey see . . .
. . monkey do.
No comments:
Post a Comment