Science Fair 2016

Ohhhhhh I love science fair!!!!  My friends call it MY science fair...but it's not.... really... it's Mikayla's... mostly... and heck it's ok for me to be excited about a big ol project we get to do together!  Yes it is!!!  That is the best part.

 

Last summer at day camp, there were some engineers that came every Wednesday and one time they had the kids all make an "Art Bot"  so we have been sitting on this project since last summer!

 

Mikayla made three different Bots...had them draw...then calculated and measured the differences in circles that they drew compared to the size/height/circumference of each bot.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here they are - subjects 1, 2 and 3

 

 

 

 

then "we" made her board... (even though some things may or may not have been started/completed while she slept/recovered from the slumber party).  Here is her board/display. (hello MESS).

 

 

 

 

The "Bot" below was HORRIBLE - dumb Styrofoam head made him look stupid...so he didn't make the cut.

 

and guess what!  She won first place for 4th grade!  The school is a STREAM school so they are going to add this project in particular to the activity list to do AND one of the little kids that saw it, went home THAT night and made one!!!  Isn't that cool!

 

SO!!!

 

She made it to the next round, she was competing with all of the Houston/Galveston 4th Graders in the Arch Diocese!

 

We left home at 6:15 am and got to watch the city wake up while we drove there.

 

We drove past my old work building and I am SOOOOOO glad I don't have to go this far anymore.  Granted it's still a round trip hour each way but it's not highway travel.

 

 

We were early but that's ok, I was very concerned about traffic and I'd rather have to wait a bit rather than stress about getting there.  I need to get my parking spot.... it was a small lot and then I wouldn't know where to park.

 

So she got her area all set up.

 

 

We met up with the 5th graders....

 

 

There were 13 schools represented and 195 participants.  Very creative kids were here!!!!

 

 

A lot of time waiting....

 

 

Then they called her to go present!!!  Yikes! 

 

 

(Love the photo bomb of the kid dragging the other kid in the background)  HA!!

 

 

More waiting time.

 

 

Our little group, there were 8 kids from our school that went.

 

 

We didn't win but we sure had a good day.  Mikayla was very disappointed but she was able to turn it around and say, I didn't need to win twice.... bless her little heart!

 

This was her afterwards, she slept HARD all the way home!

 

 

 

It was tiring..... but oh man I can't wait for next year to see what we do!!!

 

Here is a funny picture from this weekend.  I'd say we're exhausted from everything that's been going on. From the kiddo that doesn't take naps any more..... she is tired!   Oh and on top of all of it...they have had two weeks of Iowa testing at school...UGH!  (at least we haven't had as much homework) and now because they missed last week, this week will be more testing to finish it off. 

 

 

Stormy days

It's kind of hard to see but if you look closely, we have no street!!!  It was the most intense... non sleeping.... night ever!!  (even more than that slumber party).  It was all night of lightening and thunder...no sooner one boom would end and the next would begin.... seriously, no exaggeration at least 6-7 HOURS of it.... we were all a bit shell shocked after it was all said and done.  Intense.  Why do these things always happen at night.....   When I first looked out, the water was up to the tree.... we did have our trash out.... we no longer own an outside trash can.... crazy.

 

 

 

It took a few hours for the water to drain down....and we tried to run a fast errand.  (and being that it was tax day, we needed to go to the post office).

 

The picture below is the bayou park we walk to all the time, it was more than 6 feet under.... crazy!

 

 

This is the entrance to the neighborhood right behind us....they had massive flood damage, more than 180 houses flooded.

 

 

Here is the bayou separating the two neighborhoods (ours and the one behind it)(next to it/whatever).  Thank goodness this didn't overflow!!!!!

 

 

 

It turned out that school was closed all week because of the floods and roadways under water.  Mikayla came to work with me all week.   It was crazy!!!! 

 

Of course we have two very scardy cat dogs..... Abbie became my earmuffs as she curled around my head on the pillow and Bella, I figured out how to keep her from shaking us off the bed, I wrapped her up in a blanket, keeping her head covered up so she couldn't see the storm.... good grief!  then at one point she got so hot she was panting and HOT.... so I uncovered the lower part of her body and left her head bundled up, she was just fine! We have to do what we have to do, huh.....

Slumber Party!!

It was our good friend's birthday celebration. 

 

Mikayla's first ever slumber party.

 

She informed me I was not to stay......

 

They started the party by having the painter lady come and teach them how to paint an owl.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then in the middle they ate pizza and cake.

 

 

 

 

then back to painting to finish up their project.

 

 

 

I was sitting with the other moms talking about how much Mikayla LOVES to add eyelashes.... she did not disappoint... look a the lashes on this little girl!

 

 

Huge group.... unknown to us...they were ALL staying overnight!

 

yay!!!  they were very good about posing for pictures!

 

 

 

My friend texted me this picture at 4:16 AM...... the kids were STILL up!!!!  (I think I'm glad Mikayla didn't want me to stay!)

 

 

Needless to say, Sunday was a total bust. Mikayla napped for about 4 hours...... and was rather grumpy for the rest of it UGH. I don't think I'm a fan of slumber parties with 17 girls..... no... no I am not. 

 

However she had a mostly GREAT time.

Spring Break

Our original plan was to go tent camping for the week.  Well it turned out that for dayS before we left it was pouring rain and thoroughy saturated.  So we quickly changed the first half of our time off to go up to the "hill country" for a few days and see some sights there.

 

So we packed up the car and headed out.  We found some NEAT NEAT NEAT places and can't wait to go back again!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We went and saw the cave caverns...it was FANTASTIC!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mikayla "found" some rock treasures... you buy a bag of sand and wash them off in the water.... it fascinated us for awhile.

 

 

 

After this we went over to the drive through safari!  I've been so anxious to do this!!  I cannot wait.

 

Well after waiting in the car line for over 45 minutes..... we had MAJOR MAJOR MAJOR car trouble.   We were spitting and sputtering and  BARELY made it into a parking spot!

 

So we spent the next 2 hours like this..... one was talking to the tow truck company, one was talking to the nearest firestone, the other one was pretending to talk to someone (can you guess who?).

 

Then this was us :(

 

 

Over the next 2 days we spent about 16 HOURS waiting for something..... waiting for the tow truck, waiting for the bad news at firestone, waiting at the dealership to get a rental, waiting at the rental for the car....and so on.... then we had to wait to find out what was wrong, waiting waiting waiting...... and through it all, Mikayla bless her heart, was an ANGEL!  no fussing, whining, messing around (in a bad way), we found things to do to use our imagination and there we have it.  One of her most memorable "games" was when she became a baby dinosaur and her name was Clara Belle.... I had to call her Clara Bell for 3 days.... LOL

 

So four days later, we have a rebuilt engine!  Yay, here's to another 105,000 miles!  We had an adventure - not the one we thought we were going to have...but an adventure all the same. 

They are people too!

So our Abbie was recently diagnosed with high blood pressure.... so the vet put her on some meds and said to come back to get it checked.  So, I brought Abbie to the vet.  On the way there she was SO happy, riding in the front seat.... she is such a great car passenger now...when we first got her she was so incredibly scared :(  she loves a good car ride now!!!   So here she is, my front seat partner!  "Hi Mom....where are we going now?!?"

 

 

And on the way home, she was MAD at me!!! My gosh, they didn't even have to give her a shot, she was so mad and would not sit by me.  She went alllll the way to the back, third row all by herself in the back back, there was no further back she could go to show me her displeasure.

 

 

 

Here was Bella's reaction when Abbie got home..... she thought it was hilarious.  HAAAAAA HAAAA HAAAAAAA

 

 

But then she say's I'm soooo sweet, will you please love me because I love you!

 

 

Silly dogs!!