Bats!!!

My class studies bats for a few weeks at the end of each year. Rob Mies from the Organization for Bat Conservation visits my classroom and brings different bats to show the students.

This year he brought five different bats. I only posted pictures of three. The Rodrigues Bat(2nd photo) is from an island off of Madagascar. It is one of the rarest bats in the world. He also brought a Malayan Flying Fox. It boasts a wingspan of 6 feet...yes 6 feet on a bat! The last few pictures are of a typical fruit bat. He fed the bat cantalope during the presentation. It was so funny because bats just suck the juice and mushy part out of the fruit and then spit out the rest. The kids thought it was hilarious when the half chewed fruit landed on the classroom floor. Yuck!

Even though many people think bats are gross, they really are amazing animals. I know that many years from now my students will still remember this amazing experience. Who could forget a 6 foot Asian bat swinging in your face in the middle of Indiana??

Splash!

Olivia has been taking swimming lessons at the high school for the past few days. I can't believe how well she is doing already. She was timid at first, but soon grew some fins and jumped right in. So far she has practiced backstroke, kicking on the kick board, and swimming freestyle. My camera skills are horrible so I wasn't able to capture a picture of her backstroke technique. But I assure you that it is a sight to behold.

At the end of each lesson the students have free time to jump off the diving board. This is Olivia's favorite part. She climbs right up, walks right out to the end, and jumps! She can even swim independently over to the side of the pool. Michael and I are so proud of our little fish!

What's Growing?

My mom's friend shared some starts with me last year. I think they are filling in nicely. There are daisies, columbine, irisies, peonies, geraniums, day lilies, and some others (but I do not remember the names).

I also planted my pots for the deck. I used a mixture of plants, but I also planted a few Gerber Daisies this year. Last year I had one, and it was beautiful. Hopefully, I will have the same luck again this year. Everything looks a little sparse now so... hopefully I can post photos later this summer of lush, healthy blooms. Just have the mulching left to do and it will be "picture perfect."

Much thanks to my mom for her generous gift for Mother's Day! I got to pick out the plants as a special treat for my special day as a mother! Thanks Mom!

Last Days of Preschool

Olivia celebrated her birthday with her friends at school. Since she has a summer birthday, she brought in treats for a pretend celebration. The class even sang Happy Birthday. I can see how this would really confuse a kid. But... Olivia seemed to get the idea and realize there would be no party and presents for her "fake" birthday.

Olivia also brought in her rocks for show and tell. I love how she makes them look so super exciting. She looks as if she really got into the presentation. She does have her own style.

Finally, Olivia graduated preschool. We were so proud of her. During the commencement celebration, she wowed us with her singing. She knew ALL the words to the songs, and everyone in the audience knew that she knew ALL the words. In other words, the songs were loud and memorable...but heartwarming and perfect. At the end, Olivia was presented with a little diploma. Mrs. Shannon read a couple things about each child.

What do you want to be when you grow up? A ballerina

What is your favortie part of school? Playing in the middle room

We are all so proud of our little graduate! Way to go Olivia!