Back in September of 2006 we decided to really study nature up close and personal.  But then we had a nasty surprise!  Since that time we haven’t kept anything in our terrarium until a few weeks ago. Grasshoppers are found aplenty in our yard right now so we caught about 6 and placed them in our terrarium.  Pet Bugs by Sally Kneidel gives instructions on how to keep crickets and so I followed those for our grasshoppers. 1.  We filled our terrarium with 1" of sand. 2.  We placed a toilet paper tube inside. 3.  We filled a jar lid with water for them to drink. 4.  We cut a…

This past week I learned something very interesting at Lake Powell.  At least it was to me and since you all are homeschoolers I thought you might be bowled over by this fascinating bit of knowledge.  Homeschooling moms are neat that way.  My boys were familiar with sandstone but somehow I never had learned about it.  It is what it’s name implies – sand.  But when mixed with a mineral the sand holds together and makes it rock.  If that mineral is silica, sandstone can even be used for structural purposes. Here is a large sandstone boulder.   Lake Powell has sandstone cliffs all over, some up to 2,000 feet high.  They sit right in the water and you wonder why…

Did you know you can determine if an egg is fertile or not fertile by looking at the germ spot?  The germ spot is the white spot on the yolk.  The non-fertile germ spot contains only the female’s cells and looks like a solid white spot.  In a fertile egg the germ spot contains both the female and male cells.  This allows cells to divide and the spot grows while the rest of the egg is being built in the female’s oviduct.  Because of this growth the fertile germ spot on the yolk looks like a circle with a somewhat clear center. (This information was taken from a book called "Hatching – Classroom…

Since we’ve planted a few flowers and Zachary has planted a garden, we are regularly seeing these beautiful creatures flitting around from flower to flower. The tulip and the butterfly Appear in gayer coats than I: Let me be dressed fine as I will, Flies, worms, and flowers exceed me still. ~Isaac Watts

Here is some pictures that Seth (16yo) has been taking while scouting for antelope.   Pronghorn Antelope (I especially like the background.  So beautiful.)   A Herd of Antelope. Coyote   Sandhill Crane Can you believe this is Arizona?