[/caption]The boys decorated two paper plates for their weather vane. We placed a blob of clay in the center between the two plates so as to hold up the pencil. The plates are glued together around the edges. The arrow tail (3") and point (3") which we cut from a watercolor painting was inserted at each equal end of the straw and then we placed a pin through the center of it into the eraser of the pencil to allow it to move freely with the breeze.
- Boys watching their weather vane for wind direction
Mark it with compass markings N, S, E, W and using the compass we point the plate according to the compass markings and wait for the wind to blow and give you your wind direction. We have an east wind blowing daily. We are also logging the information into a Beaufort Scale.
[caption id="attachment_2634" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="Their little three wheeler"]
[/caption]This is a little three wheeler car that the boys made for their little moose.
[caption id="attachment_2633" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="Petit Chenille/Worm"]
[/caption]They love to play with clay and have been moulding these little worms inspired by the plentiful Frangipani worms we have in our Frangipani Tree.
[caption id="attachment_2630" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="Frangipani Worms"]
[/caption]They spend hours, months.. playing with these little worms, building homes and mazes for them. They are carried around like pets.
[caption id="attachment_2632" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="Clay snail"]
[/caption]Sasha's snail creation.
[caption id="attachment_2645" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="Sania's clay house construction"]
[/caption]Sania moulded this little clay house which almost looks like a home of a troll, it was for his little moose.
[caption id="attachment_2637" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="Cosmos Flowers"]
[/caption]These photos were taken a month ago when our cosmos were in full bloom bordering our entire garden.
[caption id="attachment_2639" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="Butterfly"]
[/caption]They are teeming with bees and butterflies and my honey boxes are overflowing with honey!
[caption id="attachment_2638" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="More cosmos"]
[/caption]So pretty - the nice thing about living in the tropics is that when these die, they seed and the seedlings are already up and growing.
[caption id="attachment_2636" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="Yellow cosmos"]
[/caption]We have yellow cosmos as well.
[caption id="attachment_2635" align="aligncenter" width="533" caption="Green Papayas"]
[/caption]So many papayas, they are all ripening. We, along with the staff and chickens are indulging in all those healthy papayas.
[caption id="attachment_2629" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="Cooling off"]
[/caption]Sometimes the cows spend hours in our duck pond cooling off.
[caption id="attachment_2631" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="Sasha driving"]
[/caption]My children are driving. Sasha alone and Sania on my lap but they both work the accelerator. They help papa drive the tractor too.
Great projects. We will try to work with clay next week! Oh Papayas!
ReplyDeleteYour children are incredible Jeanene. I especially love Sania's clay house. Straight away, my mind's eye sees the sorts of magical creatures that would make their home there. I also love the way your children are so fond of their moose. The last time I saw him I think he was driving some other sort of vehicle they had created!
ReplyDeleteYou have been so busy with the most amazing projects, I love the little clay house! All the photos of the flowers are wonderful and to have cosmos seeding and growing right away is such a lovely gift from nature. The cows in the duck pond are so sweet.
ReplyDeleteTake care and have a lovely weekend my friend,
Love
Linda
How nice! I will have to remember some of these projects for when my little one is older!
ReplyDeletei love that they're driving! such farm boys. and i love their creations too. i keep thinking you are here! i will email you...
ReplyDeleteThe girls were modeling with clay today, dug from outside in the cold morning. Chloe made a horse, which she is saving to give Jason as a gift for Christmas.
ReplyDeleteLove the beautiful bright color of your cosmos!
And so nice to see the boys and their creations.
Hope all is well. Love to you all... XO
Country life for kids is the best isn't it. It looks a bit windy the day you photographed your beautiful flowers :-)
ReplyDeleteThere are ever so many things to comment on here, that I'm just gonna end up sitting back and sighing a content "Ahhh". But the worms, I LOVE the boys worm creations. And the actual worms themselves, those would be a HUGE hit with my kiddos too, judging by how they play with caterpillars.
ReplyDeleteSo much beauty you get to bask in.
What a beautiful place you live in! I love the children's little clay Frangipani worms. Looks like they are really enjoying all of their projects!
ReplyDeleteBecca
Oh what lovely days! Your life is beckoning me - we would all have so much fun together :) The worms would be a HUGE hit with my boys too, especially Asher who wants to play with anything crawling around outside. The weather vane is a great idea - I might try that soon.
ReplyDeleteCosmos are one of my most favorite of flowers (they are so happy) and I love how they reseed themselves so easily.
Sounds like you are doing well :) xx
Wonderful projects with your boys. I love the photo of your two boys sitting watching the weather vane. The sereness (sp?) of the moment and Sasha's hair blowing a bit in the breeze........ a magical moment.
ReplyDeleteMy kids love clay. I have to admit I do as well. There's just something addicting about molding clay in your fingers and hands.
Beautiful flowers. We've had two hard freezes here now so everything is going the way of the color brown and dead. :) I'm ready for it. I'm ready to let the gardens rest for a spell as I sit and learn to spin now. I won't feel so guilty ignoring the yard and gardens while spinning.............
WORMS!! Hurrah for the worms! And for moose. We're cold and dreary. Nothing green will show its head again for months. Love the three wheeler, and the breeze Rachel remarks upon? Already I miss such a thing, turning our weather vane in balmy, slow ways and rifling our hair. TWO BOYS driving? Ach! The charms of the farm life. TWO COWS in the duck pond? They'd be frozen in there now for weeks -
ReplyDeleteFranginpani's are a favourite flower of mine. We even had them on our wedding cake. Cosmos too - swaying in the breeze and growing so freely. Incridble colours you have there. Do you remember trying to knock pawpaws off the trees as a child back in Zim? I have such fond memories of that. And hoping we could get down a nice ripe paw paw and catching it before it smashed on the ground. Then eating it still warm from the hot sun. I love Sania's clay house. There is always so much enjoyment when creating with clay. Do you have lots of natural clay there? Haven't discovered any here yet and on the look out.
ReplyDeleteLove to you
happy new year and thoughts of you from BC Canada!
ReplyDeleteHope you are all well :)
love it all!!! Earth boys is the perfect name for this space. What an incredible gift you are giving them!
ReplyDeleteI love to read about your adventures. Where are you? I hope everything's alright with you and your sweet family. Please let us know.
ReplyDeleteIm sure I have said it before but my kids would LOVE those frangipani caterpillars! at the moment my sons favourite insect are these little armoured creatures that curl into a ball when you touch them. My daughter has a emoty box in her room because a caterpillar has made a cocoon in one of the corners. Love childrens love for nature.
ReplyDelete