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Tuesday Tales–The Scrambled States of America Talent Show

Posted on May 31, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

People always think that the only trips I went on as a child were to Walt Disney World. The truth is that we did a lot more than that. We used to drive up and down the east coast to fun destinations. My mother always made sure that each trip had at least one education component. We went to places like:

Fort McHenry – National Anthem written there
Monticello – Estate of Thomas Jefferson
Colonial Williamsburg
Washington DC
Mount Vernon – George Washington’s estate
Philadelphia, PA – To see the Liberty Bell among other items

Memories of touring different states, cities, and historic areas were amazing. When I learned about them in school, they meant so much more to me. This is something I would love to do with our boys.

The other day NHL had a connect at home activity to do. Apparently, a story in their reading book had something to do about traveling in the United States. One of the items for home was to read The Scrambled States of America. We had already read that with NHL. For Chanukah, one year, he received that book by Laurie Keller, along with a puzzle. I recalled that I had purchased the follow up book from Scholastic and decided it would be a great substitution.

About The Scrambled States of America Talent Show:

From Laurie Keller’s website:

THOSE WACKY SCRAMBLED STATES ARE AT IT AGAIN! This time they’ve come together for a spectacular show featuring their many goofball talents. But just when Indiana (the director) is about to call SHOWTIME!, Georgia gets a bad case of stage fright. Will the show go on or will it be curtains?

In this sequel to The Scrambled States of America, young readers will get another dose of madcap adventure and silly antics while learning interesting facts about the states and geography.

The Scrambled States of America Talent Show – Written and Illustrated by Laurie Keller – First Scholastic printing 2009 (released in 2008 by Henry Holt and Co.) – ISBN 978-0-545-22108-5 – Ages 9-12 – 40 pages

Not only are there the two scrambled states books, there is also a puzzle w/book (we have this), Scrambled States of America Board Game, Card Game, and even a Scrambled States of America DVD. Here’s a preview of the DVD that I found:

What We Thought:

NHL loved this book. He laughed and learned with every page that we turned. The details within the text and chatter of the states is amazing. Even if you had not read the original Scrambled States of America you could easily pick this up and read it. Yes, it is a picture book and this is an amazing example of the power of this genre of books even with older children. The illustrations and facts that are packed into them will keep these items in your child’s head. Almost a week after reading the story, NHL keeps talking about going to see the Liberty Bell in Pennsylvania and laughing about Georgia’s state fright.

Here is a view inside the book:

Laurie Keller’s illustrations keep readers moving and wanting to learn more. If we had time, I can imagine sitting down to start a mini-research project on items that were intriguing to him.

As a parent and teacher, I adore this book. United States history, geography, and state facts are learned in an entertaining fashion. When Georgia goes to see Dr. Globe, he runs some tests. The x-ray shows her cities, and them they zoom out a bit to see counties. I could see this book being used as an introduction to items to include in a state report or more. I highly recommend this to use within a classroom setting, while homeschooling, or just as a fun book for a family read aloud. Laurie Keller even has a page on her website to use with this book. This includes a matching sheet, meet your state, unscramble storyline, word find, and teacher’s guide.

I know that we will be gifting this book for kids that we know in the future. No doubt we will also be reading other books by Laurie Keller this summer.

What have you read recently? Please be sure to link up to your Book Posts, and/or leave a comment below. Include something you read on your own, with a child or someone else. Tuesday Tales are all about spreading the love for books.

Disclosure: I purchased this book from a Scholastic Book order form that my son had sent home a while back. One widget within the review is for my Amazon Affiliate where I will receive a percentage of money for the sale of the books should you opt to buy the book mentioned.

Categories:
books Educational looking back nhl photos school Tuesday Tales

Memorial Day Thanks 2011

Posted on May 30, 2011 8:32 am by TheAngelForever

A long weekend filled with family and friends. Time outside in the sun and fun. Of course, all of this is thanks to the brave men and women that have served in the military allow all us to have our freedoms. On this Memorial Day, we need to stop and remember these amazing and brave individuals.

There is no hero braver than those that serve in our United States military to protect our rights. Far too many pay the ultimate price to defend our country and the rights that we have. To all of those that have served, lost their lives, and the brave families behind them . . . .thank you! All of you are the real reason that we celebrate Memorial Day.

Categories:
holidays photos

Changing a Project Goal

Posted on May 29, 2011 10:54 am by TheAngelForever

Way back before the start of 2011, I taught myself a new technique in knitting.

I made a goal to do a project using this process. As you can see my Log Cabin Blanket was a large and lofty goal.

Sometimes, you find something else you like more and your goals are put off to the side. The reality is, I like mindless knitting. Log Cabin is not mindless to me and the idea of sewing everything together is daunting to me at this time. So I am changing things up. I am going to use the yarn that my family picked out to make a lighter diagonal blanket, like the one that I just finished. Here is the start:

Last night, I was in a knitting mood. I now have a stripe of all colors except the Autumn Red. I really like this project to unwind at night and keep up with my hobby of choice.

Have you ever changed up a goal or something for a project to make something else?

Categories:
arts and crafts knitting looking back me moments photos

Favorite Flavors For Summer

Posted on May 27, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

It’s hard to believe that I have not had my Keurig Machine for a year. I do believe that it may be my best small appliance friend. During the winter, it helped to keep me warm, get me going in the morning, soothe me after a rough day, gave me a caffeine boost, and allowed me to control my headaches. Here is my beloved machine and some of my K-Cup collection

Now that the warm, even hot weather is here (it reached close to 90 here in NY Thursday), coffee is ok in the morning. By the afternoon or early evening, it is just too warm. This weekend, I think I am going to work on making some ice to try some iced coffee. I think it may work, but not too sure how I will like it. Each morning, I will look forward to my cup of coffee along with one of my favorite add-ins.

Yes, I am a HUGE fan of Coffee-mate. Although I like the liquid ones, the powered ones are even better for me because they do not have to be used as quickly once open. It allows me more variety in a short amount of time.

So my question to you this week is:

What is your favorite coffee or iced coffee to have or make? If you do not like coffee, what summer drink do you prefer and why?

Pssst . . . stop by TechyDad’s Dinosaur Train Giveaway to enter for a chance to win some Dinosaur Poop and Hatchers.

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Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.

Aloha #153

Categories:
Aloha Friday food glorious food me moments photos summer yummy

Baby Blanket Envy

Posted on May 26, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

When my nephew was born, I gave him my first ever baby blanket that I knitted. Sure, I had started many afghans over the years, but had never actually finished one. Here is little BA sleeping under my blanket:

When my life long friend H found out in January that she was having a little boy, I told her that I wanted to knit him a blanket. That evening, I went to the craft store and bought yarn. I picked out a new pattern to try and knew the supplies that were needed. I opted to try a new adventure. A knitting buddy finally convinced me to try a diagonal blanket using circular needles. I quickly fell in love. Before I knew it, the baby blanket was complete and ready long before the baby shower.

Much to my surprise, my two young boys were quite jealous of this soft blanket and wanted me to knit something for them. Once again, I went to get supplies to make a family blanket. I knew the yarn I wanted, but they did not have nearly enough in the dye lot. I got a little more creative and opted to try the diagonal pattern using stripes. So every 25 rows, I switched from the Sunny Days yarn to dark blue. Here are some photos from the last 3 months. Thanks to trips to Disney, business, illness, school hoopla, and more – it took 3 months to knit the entire family sized blanket.

Now the blanket is knitted and I need to weave in the ends. I was shocked to see that the blanket almost fits across my entire queen sized bed. Next up, I am going to use the yarn that I had bought for a Log Cabin blanket to make another lighter and larger diagonal blanket.

If you knit or crochet, be sure to catch me on Ravelry: