Dangerous Plants and Animals; New Chickens

We've been doing a lot of reading all together: bible, nature magazines, children's storybooks, rhymes, Mystery of History, science books, etc.  Trusten is doing really well learning how to read with the Rocket Reader's Learn-to-Read Bible, which I also used when teaching Jaden William how to read. He's doing well with most of his workbook work, too.  Jade's still doing workbook work now, too, but the main focus is math.  He's still not finished with the Grade 3 math workbooks, though he's done something like 40+ pages in his Grade 4 grammar.

Liv loves playing with her baby sister, and is usually nice when she's doing that.  It's when she's doing something else that she often becomes naughty:

Nice mode turns naughty later in the day

Muddy yet again, as she doesn't seem to understand that "jumping in the sprinkler" means just that

We had many run-ins with dangerous creatures—both plant and animal—since my last post.  Here are a few:

Deadly black widow spider

Poison ivy rash, which poor Liv experienced body-wide (but is fine now)

Deadly water hemlock

Water hemlock (Cicuta maculata) grows abundantly around here, and I took special time out to teach the kids about this plant one day, because they like to pick it for my bouquets (which is fine; it's pretty), and Liv wanted to eat some on that particular day.  I told her to NEVER eat that, because it would kill her.  That was back before it all (almost) seeded.  I searched diligently to find a little today to photograph.  Down in the shade I found a bit.  It's important to be able to tell this and Queen Anne's lace (otherwise known as "wild carrot") apart, because they look very similar at a glance when the water hemlock is fuller of the little white flowers than the picture above shows, like seen in this picture.

 Queen Anne's lace (Daucus carota) has an edible taproot.  The root is a wild carrot. The flowers are also edible, but the leaves are toxic and can even cause skin irritation.  Here is some Queen Anne's lace from our yard:

Note the frilly leaves underneath the flowers at bottom left and the difference in the leaves at bottom right when compared to water hemlock

I dug up one of the Queen Anne's lace plants today, and sure enough the root smelled just like a carrot (I've wondered for a long time).  We also tasted it.  It was too hard to eat raw, though.  I read and learned, though, that the plant is a biennial, and it flowers during the second year during which time also the root is very hard.  Apparently the roots are better to eat toward the end of the first year.  Calorically speaking, I think you'd burn more energy digging one up around here in the Ozarks than you'd get by eating it.  The rocky soil makes it quite a task.  They are said to be especially abundant in Missouri, though (where we are) and are thought to be an invasive species that is a nuisance to many.  Well, I don't quite see it the same way as those folks.  I imagine they are the same type to buy the damned Monsanto's Round-up toxin to spray on their dandelions and other lovely edibles.  I think Queen Anne's lace is pretty, and it gets an extra mark of approval for being a wild food source.

L: Jaden holding my freshly-dug-up plant; R: the white carrot after I washed it

Jaden William turned nine, and we went to the Dixie Stampede for his birthday.  I thought it was neat how it worked out, because we'd just watched Dancing with Wolves the night before, and they are both themed around the War for Southern Independence and have a lot of horse riding.  We had fun, and he loves his gifts, too.  Nathan bought him a nice watch (that he got about a month early), and I got him some books and a science kit that has 70 or more science experiments.  He has been having so much fun making things in the test tubes.

About to open gifts before going to the show (where pictures are not allowed) and enjoying some black cherry cream soda

Some other random pictures:

Can you say squash jungle?!  Our garden is doing well, and we finally got more chickens!!!!!!!

One of Jaden's latest caterpillar finds, perhaps for a Polyphemus moth, which I've posted before, but I've also posted a caterpillar before that we believed to be the larva of the same, but it had reddish dots, but that doesn't mean this isn't the same, as I've seen variations in many species

My sweet baby girl, Elizabeth, at six months of age, learning to sit and having fun with Momma (me!)

Until next time...

May Fun: Pentecost, Birthday, Plants, and More

A lot happened in the Roman month of May.  Some highlights:

Nathan replaced the flooring in our living room and rearranged the furniture, so now I have most of my bookcases (except for the one on the desk) all on one wall, and the seating in relation to the tv (which we only use for dvds and games) is better.  We love it!  I can finally use my little table now I bought about seven months ago.  I was planning to use it for our microscope and my sewing machine, but the latter went back into my closet, because it's too much of a temptation for Liv (which means I can further drag out my excuse for not sewing), but at least we can easily use the microscope.

Trusten's birthday was toward the end of the month; he turned five years of age.  His birthday trip this year was a visit to the Promised Land Animal Park in Eagle Rock, MO.  We've been there twice, but the last time we went was when I was pregnant with him, and Jade was not quite four.  We love going there!  It was a lovely day when we went, and all the friendly, free-ranging animals reminded me of my Father God's soon-coming Kingdom to this earth, at which time His children--headed by Salvation the Firstborn--will reign over the earth, turning it back into a paradise garden from the wilderness it has become, and humankind that lives during that time will enjoy a much better world than this one, when even the animals will live in harmony and will only eat plants.

Deer coming to our windows to be fed and pet

Emu--these are always so funny, but Trust and Liv were scared, and Liv fled to the front floorboard

Male zebra to left was not happy in fenced enclosure alone; farther down were pregnant mares and babies, which explains why the male was by himself. 

L: Alpaca; R: Elk

The cutest in our very own vehicle.  I sat in the back beside her so Trusten and Liv could sit in the front to see better

I got Trusten some practical things for his birthday--some original Smencils and colored Smencils (scented pencils) for his book work and some books, as well as some floam-like stuff that I forget what is called (alternative to Play-Doh).  He got several cards and other gifts from friends and family.  He got a gardening set from his Gamma Pat (my mil) so he can do his very own gardening.

My precious boy with a couple of his gifts

Trusten ready to do some gardening

We also celebrated Pentecost.  We ate our traditional (for us) feast of brisket and sides and homemade punch.  Mmmm.  The children listened to their holy day lesson, Nathan and I listened to a sermon, and we enjoyed the outdoors.  The children also received their biblically-themed Pentecost gifts.  Jaden William and Olivia were both very excited about and thankful for their gifts, but Trusten was very ugly and unthankful for his and then hit Jade after Jade innocently asked why he didn't like his gift.  Needless to say, Trusten got in trouble and had his gift taken away (to be returned soon).  Jaden got a new bible and a bible word search.  Trust and Liv got different bible story sticker books.

Will, Trust, and Liv with their Pentecost gifts

We're in the process of identifying more local plants, but the only one I've actually written on the card about so far, recently, is the wild oats:

Wild oats top right picture

I posted on this blog recently a picture of an unknown wild grass, although I had told the children several times over the last few years that it looks like wild oats.  Ironically enough, that's one of their common names (also wood oats, spangle grass, and others), Latin name Chasmanthium latifolium.  Info copied from eattheweeds.com:

IDENTIFICATION: A perennial, clump-forming grass, wide leaves, nodding clusters of flat, oat-like seed heads, two to five feet,   clump spread two or more feet, leaves are about one inch to eight inches long, flat, terminating in a sharp point. Leaves has distinct cross veining. Flowers flat clusters, spikelets, to two inches long, one wide, spikelets hang on thread-like stems in loose, open panicles above the leaves. Leaves and flower heads turn tan in autumn, reddish-bronze winter.

METHOD OF PREPARATION: Winnowed grain as cereal or ground to make flour.

  We're about to read through Eat the Weed's edible flower pages and identify all the local flowers we can eat (besides the ones we already know, like dandelion which the kids love). 

The kids are all doing well in their workbook work.  Here are a few more pictures of some of the things they've been doing:

Boys cracking pecans; they were delicious but went quickly w/o my getting very many--lol

Jade dressed up as an Arab

Learning about the states with a fun sticker book

Jade with one of his recent caterpillar finds (maybe a swallowtail variety, but I cannot positively id it as of yet)

Groundhog at the edge of our yard

Until next time....