Category Archives: Posts

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Art on the Square 2012

It’s hard to believe it’s already that time of year again, but this weekend was Belleville’s annual art show–Art on the Square. The weather was perfect for browsing the different tents–warm and sunny. There was a good crowd there already when it opened at 10 on Saturday morning, so hopefully this was another successful year for the artists in attendance!

Every year, I give the children an assignment while we’re there. For example, one year, it was finding and identifying different styles of painting. This year’s assignment  was finding one piece of art that was a favorite, and then explaining why they chose it. Bunny really liked a group of paintings of the Great Plains..she said they made her feel free and wild. Turkey really liked these sculptures, because they’re colorful and fun, and move in the wind.

As always, I loved looking at all of the different styles and kinds of art at the show. It seems that all kinds of art are represented, from photography to paintings, sculptures to jewelry, pottery to wood carvings. Even when something doesn’t reflect my personal taste, I can still appreciate the talent and effort it takes to make it–especially since I’m not gifted in the art department!

We got to see a few different artists at work, demonstrating their skills.

The children enjoyed the children’s art area, and they had a fun time adding their personal stamp to the giant mural that was set up.

This year, we even bought a few prints from my favorite artist, local photographer Mark Hurd!

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Armed Forces Day

In honor of Armed Forces Day, I thought I’d share the commonly used verses of each branch of the military’s songs/hymns.

Army–”The Army Goes Rolling Along”

“First to fight for the right,
And to build the Nation’s might,
And The Army Goes Rolling Along
Proud of all we have done,
Fighting till the battle’s won,
And the Army Goes Rolling Along.

Then it’s Hi! Hi! Hey!
The Army’s on its way.
Count off the cadence loud and strong
(‘Two! Three!’ is typically sung here but is not an official part of the song)
For where e’er we go,
You will always know
That The Army Goes Rolling Along.”

Navy–”Anchors Aweigh”

“Anchors Aweigh my boys
Anchors Aweigh
Farewell to foreign shores
We sail at break of day ‘ay ‘ay ‘ay
O’er our last night ashore
Drink to the foam
Until we meet once more
Here’s wishing you a happy voyage home!”

Marines–”The Marines’ Hymn”

“From the Halls of Montezuma,
To the shores of Tripoli;
We fight our country’s battles
In the air, on land, and sea;
First to fight for right and freedom
And to keep our honor clean:
We are proud to claim the title
Of United States Marine.

Our flag’s unfurled to every breeze
From dawn to setting sun;
We have fought in every clime and place
Where we could take a gun;
In the snow of far-off Northern lands
And in sunny tropic scenes;
You will find us always on the job
The United States Marines.

Here’s health to you and to our Corps
Which we are proud to serve;
In many a strife we’ve fought for life
And never lost our nerve;
If the Army and the Navy
Ever look on Heaven’s scenes;
They will find the streets are guarded
By The United States Marines.”

Air Force–”The U.S. Air Force”

“Off we go into the wild blue yonder,
Climbing high into the sun;
Here they come zooming to meet our thunder,
At ‘em boys, Give ‘er the gun! (Give ‘er the gun!)
Down we dive, spouting our flame from under,
Off with one helluva roar!
We live in fame or go down in flame. Hey!
Nothing’ll stop the U.S. Air Force!”

Coast Guard–”Semper Paratus”

“From Aztec Shore to Arctic Zone,
To Europe and Far East,
The Flag is carried by our ships
In times of war and peace;
And never have we struck it yet,
In spite of foemen’s might,
Who cheered our crews and cheered again
For showing how to fight.

We’re always ready for the call,
We place our trust in Thee.
Through surf and storm and howling gale,
High shall our purpose be,
‘Semper Paratus’ is our guide,
Our fame, our glory, too.
To fight to save or fight and die!
Aye! Coast Guard, we are for you.

‘Surveyor’ and ‘Narcissus,’
The ‘Eagle’ and ‘Dispatch,’
The ‘Hudson’ and the ‘Tampa,’
These names are hard to match;
From Barrow’s shores to Paraguay,
Great Lakes or Ocean’s wave,
The Coast Guard fights through storms and winds
To punish or to save.

Aye! We’ve been ‘Always Ready’
To do, to fight, or die!
Write glory to the shield we wear
In letters to the sky.
To sink the foe or save the maimed
Our mission and our pride.
We’ll carry on ’til Kingdom Come
Ideals for which we’ve died.”

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Baby Birds–The Next Generation

To be fair, I have no way of knowing if this nest belongs to one of the robins we watched grow last year. We did learn in our studies that sometimes robins do go back to where they were hatched to lay eggs, though, so I’m choosing to believe that this is the next generation of “our” robin family!

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Turkey Talk

Today in school, we learned a bit about the state of Wisconsin, which was particularly interesting to Turkey and Bunny, since they have lived there. After we learned about dairy production in the state, I asked them to guess what the state beverage is (milk).

Without blinking, without even thinking, Turkey immediately responded, “Beer!”

He may have only been a toddler when we lived there, but he certainly knows the state of his ancestors well!

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Like Daughter, Like Mother?

In February, Ladybug got new glasses. Very cool, purple, zebra-striped glasses. I have to admit, I was a little jealous!

Fast forward to today. Since I had broken my glasses last month, and it had been over five years, and they were pretty worn anyway, I also got new glasses. Had they had the same ones Ladybug picked in adult sizes, I have to admit, I might have been tempted to order them. But they didn’t, and they really wouldn’t have been the right shape for my face, anyway. It wasn’t until after I chose and ordered a pair, however, that I realized that they do have something in common with the ones Ladybug got.

Apparently, we’re both into animal prints. Mine is a bit more subtle, being on the inside of the frame, but it’s still there. Usually, we say children take after their parents, but in this case, I think the reverse may be true, as Ladybug’s fashion sense seems to have rubbed off on me!