June Holidays

Last month (May) I talked about how I printed out a blank calendar from The Calendar Spot and wrote a bunch of the holidays and days of recognition on it.  To show what I meant, I took a picture of the previous months (April's) calendar.  Yeah, so I have April's calendar on my May post.  Sort of strange. 

This month I thought, just to be different, I'd stick June's calendar on June's post.  I know, nuts right?  There are many more holidays throughout the month (these are just the ones that fit my family or I think are funny), if you want to check them out, visit Holiday Insights.

Aquarium Month
For aquarium month we are going to study about fish and their environment by reading some fun books.  I'll probably pick up whatever looks good at my local library, if you'd like a little more direction, I Choose Joy has a great list.  Then we'll use our knowledge to create a lap book or put one together that someone else has already put together for me!  I found two that look great, one for the older kids and one for the younger kids, both are found on Homeschool Share. 

The one for my older kids is the Amanda Bennett Oceans Lapbook, for which you can also purchase a unit study if you'd like.  The other version is called Hello Ocean and looks PERFECT for my 4 and 6 year olds.

After all this work (and fun), we'll reward ourselves by visiting a local aquarium. 

Candy Month
Mmmmm, candy.  I really love desserts of pretty much any kind (unless you taint it by adding walnuts, I'm sorry, they're just not very good).  I think the fact that it's candy month means we should make candy.  At least once a week.  And then eat it afterwards.  I actually haven't made much candy in my life, I spend most of my dessert making time in the brownie, cookie and cake area, but I'm happy to branch out a little. 

I already know I'm going to haveto make caramels and I have a recipe easy enough for just about anyone.  Six minute microwave caramels are PERFECT! 

We'll also make some peanut butter balls, because they're easy and I love them.  So darn good.  The secret is to use chunky peanut butter, yum. 

I would love some suggestions for the last two weeks, have any yummy candy recipes?

Fishing Week
The first full week in June is Fishing Week, I'm not a fisherman and I don't particularly like fish, but I know there are many of you out there, so take the time to go out and fish (I don't know many fishermen who'd need a whole lot of prodding), better yet, take a young newbie fisherman with you and pass on your knowledge!  Us?  We'll stick to studying fish for the aforementioned Aquarium Month.

1 DARE Day
DARE day or Drug Abuse Resistance Education is a day to teach and learn about the ill effects of drugs.  DARE's website has some fun games to teach kids, but I think the most effective deterrent is time.  I'm not an expert, so feel free to ignore me, but make today a date day, take your kid(s) out one on one and talk with them.  Laugh with them, make sure they know you'll always be there for them.  It'll end up being fun for both/all of you!

2 Rocky Road Day
This day doesn't really need any explanation.  You can run to the store and buy yourself a quart of Rocky Road Ice Cream or you can embark on a new adventure and try one of these amazing looking recipes I found on Pinterest, either way, heaven!

6 National Gardening Exercise Day
It's been proven over and over again that gardening in therapeutic.  It can also be really hard work, but it's always worth it when you get to stand back and see the beauty created by all that sweat (and sometimes a few tears).  Get outside and weed that flower bed or plant something new!

7 National Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Day
I'm sort of in love with chocolate chips.  I also happen to love ice cream.  A lot.  Put them together and all your missing is the cookie dough (oh wait, that was last month).  It's a lot of fun to make ice cream together as a family and I've found a super simple recipe on All Recipes (they have great recipes and with the reviews you can usually tweak them just about any way you'd like) for vanilla ice cream.  Wait until it's done, fold in as many chocolate chips as you'd like, my favorite are the little mini ones, and freeze until it reaches the desired firm-ness, unless you're like me and you can't wait.

Or, if you want to try something a little different, check out this YouTube video and give everyone in your family a chance to make their own ice cream with zip loc bags!

7 National Donut Day
Donuts, mmmm.  There's a donut shop not too far from my house that makes the very best frosted cake donuts with sprinkles.  They're huge and so darn good.  Take your family in a date to try a new shop, or run to the local grocery store, pick every kind they've got and have a taste test for breakfast (or lunch, dinner, snack, dessert...).  You can't go wrong with donuts. 

You could even try some glazed donuts as the buns for your hamburgers.  I know, sounds strange, but it's pretty seriously good.  They sell them at a local dive near where I live, so I know from where I speak.

8 Best Friends Day
Who's your best friend?  Your spouse, sibling, next door neighbor?  This is a wonderful day to do a little something extra for all those friends in your life.  A quick note, phone call, or some freshly baked cookies never go amiss!!

12 Red Rose Day
I love flowers.  I love smelling the beautiful perfume and looking at perfectly manicured beds (which mine, sadly, are not), so I think Red Rose Day deserves a trip to some gardens.  Just south of Salt Lake City, Utah is Thanksgiving Point, home to some beautiful gardens I've been wanting to visit for years.  I think I finally need to plan a trip. 

If you google gardens near where you live, I'm sure you'll come up with lots of options, and it may just be fun to walk around your neighborhood admiring the beautiful flowers around you!

14 Flag Day
Check out a few books about the American Flag from your local library and read about where it got it's start.  How it developed into the flag we have today, and what the colors, stripes and stars mean to Americans.  It's pretty amazing. 

Then do a project or two like these I found on Enchanted Learning and display them with pride on Flag Day!

16 Father's Day
We love Father's Day and we've done a variety of things over the years to show him just how special he is to us.  Every year I seem to add a few more things to my Pinterest Board that I want to try out, but my favorites are always the pictures. 

This is from 5 years ago, I can hardly believe they were all this small!  I did individuals also and put them together into a collage frame. 

I haven't quite decided what we're going to do this year, and I'd love to hear about any ideas you have!

19 World Sauntering Day
I just think this is funny.  It's not walking, jogging or running, but sauntering day.  I am not very good at slowing down and this might be good for me.  Go for a leisurely stroll for no other purpose that to enjoy the sauntering!

20 Ice Cream Soda Day
Yum.  Yum.  And then I think just a little more yum.  We rarely have ice cream sodas at our house (we never have soda around) and my kids LOVE them.  They especially love strange combinations (at least to me) involving Sprite and sherbet.  What's your favorite combination?

21 Go Skate Day
Do they still have local skate parks?  I remember going to multiple birthday and friend parties at skate parks when I was a kid. 

Although, I suppose you shouldn't limit yourself to only four wheels, Rollerblades are lots of fun as are ripsticks (although I have yet to stand on one longer than about .4 seconds) and the many incarnations of the skate board. 

Take your kids outside and have them give you lessons in their favorite form of wheeled transportation, they'll get a kick out of it (although, you might want to try strapping a pillow around sensitive areas if you're anywhere near as coordinated as I am!).

21 Summer Solstice
This is a happy/sad day for me.  I love the turning of the seasons, the beauties that come all year long, but I always long for warmer days and this is the signal that they are turning back towards winter when it seems we have barely made our way out from under it's grasp! 

Kids are get excited about learning hands on, so teach them what a solstice is that then get them to track when the sun goes down one night a week for a month!

24 Swim a Lap Day
Whenever I think about swimming I hear the Beach Boys singing in my head.  As a kid I love blaring their music while I was outside in our pool trying to stand on any sort of flotation device I could get my hands on.  Yes, Surfin' USA was a definite favorite.

If the weather cooperates, take your kids somewhere to get wet.  We have a spay park not too far away, but you could splurge and head to a water park for some extra special family memories.

26 Forgiveness Day
Forgiveness brings more peace and happiness to the forgive-er than the forgive-ee.  It's really a selfish act, but it is one that does not often come easily.  At times it's a struggle, but comfort can be found as we realize that it is not our job (thankfully) to judge.  And if that doesn't help, well, I would suggest lots of prayer (if you're so inclined), it has helped and does help me in my life. 

29 Hug Holiday
I love hugs.  I especially love them when I'm not feeling well.  I want my husband and kids to come and sit with me, hug me and then just stay.  Look for those who could use a hug today, it might just be a family member, but maybe your hug will brighten and change someones day!  Maybe it'll change yours.

29 Waffle Iron Day
Waffle Iron Day, how cool is that?!  I also happen to love waffles.  My favorite are the ones that are almost crisp on the outside, but soft and slightly squishy on the inside. Mmmmm, I'm pretty sure this calls for waffles for dinner...and maybe a viewing of Shrek, WAFFLES!

30 Meteor Day
Towards the end of this school year I started reading more about lap books and adding them into our schedule, Meteor Day is another perfect use for this great tool. 

After reading through a book or two from the library (or out of your home collection), complete a lap book showing what you've learned.  I found a few on space in general on Homeschool Share and some directions for another on meteorites on The Passionate Pastor's Wife.  If you know of any that focus more specifically on meteors, I'd love to hear about them!

I hope you have a wonderful month!