And They're Off

My parents, that is. Back to Maine to commune with the black flies and perhaps enjoy a little end-of-winter snow. We knew they were going to go back to their home in Maine in mid-April, but we Miss having them here! The Saturday dinners, Banana-gram tournaments, hikes, and frequent visits we enjoyed this fall and winter were just so Nice. Still, now that they have a house here, at least we can look forward to their return in November (or maybe October?!)!

These are pictures from the last hike we took with them before they left. Despite what the park ranger said about the voracious deer having eaten them all, we saw quite a few wildflowers.

 These might be fire pinks. My parents told me what they were repeatedly, but my memory...

(but I Do remember that this one is Pawlownia, not Polonius!)

As part of his earth science studies, Travis recently constructed this marshmallow building. He was supposed to be looking at what sort of arrangement would prove most earthquake proof. The illustration in the textbook was Not helpful, and I don't think the exercise was particularly instructive. On the other hand, his structure stood up to a lot of shaking. And the jello and marshmallows were tasty, so it certainly wasn't the total loss that so many science experiments turn out to be.

 And here is Harry. Shelf space never lasts around here.

And another experiment. This is the baking soda volcano. An oldy but a goody. Actually, it didn't work the first time because Travis followed the directions (sucker!) and sealed the bottom of the funnel with clay. The vinegar leaked out all around and nothing bubbled out.

So I secured the bottom with a plastic bag (and gave the poor kid a more reasonable sized funnel). He had a good time and quickly gave up on the careful measuring and just poured in baking soda and vinegar. Again, not particularly educational, but quite satisfying!

And finally, Ed bought us some Peeps at an "after Easter" sale at CVS.

If you melt them in the microwave along with toasted o's (bargain cheerios!) you get something rather like rice krispy treats. But yellow. Mmmmm!