learning to live
By K10
I wanted to make a catapault from The Dangerous Book For Boys that I got for my birthday, so I asked Mama if I could and she said, “Yes”. I drew a plan, which I followed. Here’s the end result:
I used chopsticks (which I got told off about), a bottle lid and copious quantities of wool.
1. Tear up 100g of carded wool into strips. Then pull the wool out so it fluffs up.
2. Lay the wool so that the grain of your first layer (I did five layers) goes all up-and-down. Lay the next layer on side-to-side, the next up-and-down and the next side-to-side.
3. Now you are ready for one last layer of wool. We did fancy coloured wool.
4. Mix together three cups of boiling water and a squirt of detergent, pour this slowly over the wool and start to gently squeeze the wool. You will have to wear rubber gloves as it will be very hot!!!
5. Keep adding more water and keep squeezing until the fibres all matt together.
6. Turn the piece over and repeat the process on the back. The longer you work the wool, the tighter it binds together.
7. Rinse the piece of felt.
If you want to speed up the process, you can place your piece of felt in a pillowcase and put it in the washing machine. Just remember to use hot water and a wee bit of washing powder.
“Before” shots are never enhanced, are they? So we didn’t wipe the snotty nose or airbrush away the lunch remains from the chin.
The first lock….
And where it came off….it’s not as precarious a seat as it looks – I have my teeth brushed here twice a day and I haven’t fallen off yet!
By Mama
Having impressed me with their origami skills, the boys asked to try out their Dangerous Book for Boys constructions…..
“Can I throw it out the upstairs window Mama?” J11 pleaded.
Why, oh why, would I say NO to that request?
What else would you do with a water bomb?
By Mama
His eyes just about popped out of his head. K10 repeated over and over and over “Oh man, oh man, oh man”.
We had pulled into the carpark at Gengys Restaurant and K10 had thought we were pulling their legs, and were about to drive out again. But then someone spotted Grandpa’s car. And if Grandpa were there, maybe it meant we were going to stay for dinner.
It was a surprise too big for anyone to hardly believe! What a way to finish Dadda’s week home with us. Eating this Mongolian food made EVERYONE eager about the day Dadda leaves work behind and we are all together – just like this last week – and hopefully in Mongolia!!
Eating out meant we didn’t need K10‘s birthday cake…..so we get that tonight. YUM.
It looks like pizza and a glass of fizzy drink, but don’t be fooled; there’s a chocolate cake and carrot cake underneath copious quantities of sugar and food colouring.
By J12
(posing in the first photo, taken at Karekare earlier this week)
Wanting to attract some different kinds of birds to our garden, I decided to make a bird feeder. Before Dadda would let me use his tools, he required a plan! I provided him with a very detailed one. It was so good I had unlimited access to his saw, drill and screwdrivers.
Here’s what I made
(with a little assistance from an interested J11):
The little piece of dowel held up by two small branches can be removed and have a piece of apple or something stuck on it, but we didn’t have any spare. Water goes in the yellow container (Dadda said I should hollow out a piece of wood instead to make it look really natural – I just might yet), and seeds go on the other little platform. Any bird who happens to use the swing too energetically might knock itself out on the upright stick – that’s a wee design fault, which could be fixed in the Second Edition!
By K10
Do you see that? K10, not K9!!
It’s my birthday and so I’m very excited. I’ve been looking foward to my pudding breakfast. At our house, whenever you have a birthday you get to choose what’s for breakfast.
Today it was caramel self-saucing pudding with whipped cream.
Yes, for breakfast!!!! Last year I had icecream and Weetbix (yum), but everyone else thought this year’s was infinitely better!
inventions & adventures 