The Christensen Family: Late Summer/Fall Work & Play

Above is an image of a mandrake from Harry Potter. This image was crucial in creating a key component in our "Movie Night" Cooking Challenge. We made mandrakes using parsnips and broccoli.

Our mandrakes are carved and roasted parsnips.

So, the Cooking Challenge in August was to create a meal using a movie as your inspiration. Our family decided to use our favorite movies as inspiration, so we came up with Lord of the Rings, Napoleon Dynamite, Harry Potter, and Anne of Green Gables.

Our menu was as follows:

Lord of the Onion Rings
Napoleon's Tots
Uncle Rico's Steak
Hobbits Mushrooms
Roasted Mandrakes and Mandrake Tops
Marilla's Raspberry Cordial

So, Steve got a new job! He works in a very large funky-shaped office with 3 other teachers. He now teaches 6-8 grade made for Basin Online. The school is brand new last year, so he's helping create the courses as well as track and tutor students.

Lily also got a new job, which is an interesting story. She didn't want to work at some fast food joint, she wanted to work with horses. So, she posted on Facebook and sought out work. Someone saw her post, contacted her, and she got a dream job working with ponies! But before she started work, she got a call from the boss saying she had to give the job to an employee who came back. That was a crushing disappointment. But that didn't stop Lily from pursuing it. She offered to volunteer there, and before you know it, she was volunteering which eventually turned into a paid position. I'm so proud of her for taking the initiative. Lily grooms and works the ponies to keep them looking great because they are actually show ponies, some of which are national champions!

Harvest Time! Amara joined me at the Neola Orchards to pick some of the tastiest plums.

This is one of the pine trees Amara likes to climb at Constitution Park.

We had Heidi, Sarah, and Sabrina Cooper over for a Family Home Evening. We talked about temples and using blocks, the girls built a lovely temple.

Putting the finishing touches on the temple

When we'd find some time, we'd take Pippin with us to throw some discs. He likes to bark at them when we throw.

pippin on a sunset walk

bliss

Pippin donning his new hotdog costume

Although the depiction is a little exaggerated, it gets her point across. I don't think I was supposed to stumble upon this, but I did and thought it would be a great thing to take a picture of. Something tells me that it will have historic significance one day.

I also have a job, once a week, teaching a class I created at Alliance Learning Center. The class is for homeschooled tweens and teens and focuses on leadership principles in a very hands-on-social-interactive way. We play games. Lots of them. We practice skills of communication, team work, persistence, resilience, patience, strategy, leading and following while also talking about leadership qualities like service, optimism, networking, dependability, judiciousness, friendshipping, motivation, appreciation, and mentoring.

Me demonstrating the handshake challenge

Vernal Theater Live getting ready to enjoy a play (PS- note the covid-carelessness)

April and Devon came and joined one of my Teams for Teens classes one day.

Just resting with my pup

One of the ponies Lily groomed.

Again we find Amara in the trees. A bit suspicious, this one.

We went to find some fall color in the canyon and found that it would take an off-roading vehicle to find the colors we wanted, so we pulled the van over and climbed and steep mountainside until we came to a grove that gave us some good color.

More fun at home...

Amara would say- ewww.

For Amara's tech class this year, she is doing a maker-crate subscription from KiwiCrates. Here we see her making a piñata and learning to twist a balloon into a dog shape.

Sweater Weather!

This was a pretty photo taken in Provo canyon on our way down to visit family on the Wasatch front.

I love this pic. Not sure why, just do.

I spent 8 bucks on this specialty cotton candy flower made by a machine. Well, let's say I was a little disappointed. I was really hoping to be dazzled, like expecting to see the amazing creations I've seen on YouTube. The machine was at King Buffet in Orem. At least the buffet was good.

We went disc golfing with my dad!! Went to Jolley's ranch.

Our mailbox looks amazing with the sky so vibrant!

Sunday afternoons ... ahhhh...

This game was great! Called candysaurus rex! Teams choose a participant who gets taped up to have t-rex arms, then they have a minute to gather as much candy as possible for their team and put it in the bucket.

This fall, the kids wanted to go through the haunted maze. That was fun... and gross like most halloween stuff, but fun in it's own way.