I found this idea online and thought it looked fun - making your own wrecking ball. We created tupperware towers and destroyed them with our soccer ball wrecker. It was a bit trickier to maneuver than I'd anticipated, but Benjamin got the hang of it pretty quick and Bella did okay as long as I held the string and pulled it to the correct height and just let her swing the ball. I tried to make it educational by discussing momentum and pendulums and letting them analyze how much to pull up on the string according to where they wanted to hit the tower. In the end, though, the big fun was watching the tupperware containers scatter and then letting Bella use them as "ice skates" as she scooted across the floor with them on her feet. Yes, I washed them before the next use. ;)
We made another trip to Greenfield Village today. We were supposed to meet a friend there but her youngest took an extra long nap and she was never able to make it. (Doesn't that always happen - they nap best when you've got somewhere to go!?)
As we stood in the glass blower shop for nearly 30 minutes watching them make a pitcher, I was reminded of my experience with watching the wallpaper guy at the gym. Benjamin has a fascination with the methods and techniques of various jobs! I asked him every 10 minutes or so, "Do you want to go now?" "No! I want to stay longer!" he say, as he watched in rapt attention. "How can they DO that?!" he'd exclaim in amazement as the hot, soft glass emerged from the ovens. He could have stayed there all day. I finally couldn't stand it any longer and lured him away with the promise of a horse-drawn carriage ride. Even I have my limits.
As a sidenote, I adore the movie Doctor Dolittle - the original 1960s version with Rex Harrison, not the idiotic remake with Eddie Murphy. Somehow my kids and I got on the topic of talking to animals and I mentioned this movie. They were fascinated with the concept so I got it on Netflix and let them watch it. I thought they'd love the animals and the songs, but about 5 minutes into it (and I'd fast forwarded to the first best part), they said, "I don't like this, let's watch Diego." Stomp on my dream, why don't ya? It was my favorite movie as a kid. That and the original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and Pete's Dragon, which they've also previously nixed because it was "too scary." So sad. I refused to give up on a classic though, in exchange for yet another episode of Diego, so I basically pulled a "you will watch it and you will enjoy it!" stance and we watched for about 20 minutes before I tired of the whining and turned it off. I'll try again in a few years. Maybe they're too young or maybe I'm the only one who can understand the British accents. Guess I'll have to wait until they're old enough to read subtitles.
