October Occasions, 2010 Edition

Continuing on with our whirlwhind birthday month!

Allison and Amanda turned 9 on the 10th! Here they are waiting to open gifts at breakfast.

Got some good ones! Of course, then we went to church, and not even our own church, and were gone for lunch, so they didn't even get to play with any of their new stuff until later that day!

Birthday cupcakes for dessert.

Here they are modelling their lovely new dresses from Grandma and Grandpa!

On my birthday, I had the privilege of accompanying Grade 3/4 on a Field Trip to Fanshawe Conservation Area. We had a guided Habitat workshop. So fun!

While waiting for our guide, I snapped a class shot:

It's a big group this year: 21 students!

First stop, the pond! They all got a seive and used it to dig into the muddy bottom to see what kind of critters they could find. Rubber boots were mandatory for this trip!

Allison looking to see what's in her muck. We found lots of dragonfly nymphs, and even caught two minnows!

Then into the forest for a lesson on survival of the fittest. They were all bears, and had to gather enough food for themselves. According to the guide, only two would survive. I don't have pictures of this game, as I had to help the "blind" bear gather her food. (She got too close to a beehive and her eyes were swollen shut. )

Last stop, the field. Each pair of students had a butterfly net to swoop through the long grass in search of more critters.

Lots of grasshoppers! Some crickets, a honeybee or two, milkweed beetles, and a butterfly!

It was a fun day!