Summer Reading - Aardvarks, Coelacanths, Colugos & More!

     

Have you ever heard of a Coelacanth? They were thought to be extinct - the oldest fossils of these fish date back 410 million years! But, imagine how surprised fishermen were when a live Coelacanth was discovered off the coast of South Africa in 1938! From time to time they are found, but not often as they live in deep waters.  Aside from still being alive, two more surprising things about Coelacanths are they typically live 100 years and mom Coelacanths are pregnant for five years! Yes, five years! I'm SO glad I'm not a Coelacanth.

Tomorrow - August 10th - is National Bowling Day!

Tomorrow is National Bowling Day so if the children you love are like my grands, then this is a day to celebrate for sure! Yesterday, in fact, my grands all chose for us to bowl for our yearly "Day of Fun"! (We also went out for lunch, then watched a movie, and today we are extending the "fun" by making fudge!) At any rate, since bowling is enjoyed around here, I thought it would be fun to share some fun facts about bowling - did you know . . .

Today - August 8th - is International Cat Day

If you have a feline family member, then today is a day for you to celebrate as it is International Cat Day! Candy is the cat in the photo - she is our cat. Three years ago my grands went with their poppa and I to the Humane Society to get a cat - they chose her - or she chose us? Either way, she is the one who came home with us and we are very happy to have her as part of our family!

So, today I thought it would be interesting and fun to look at some cat facts, did you know . . . 

Summer Reading - Jaguars, Lilac-Breasted Rollers, Nautiluses & More!

     

We parents and grandparents tend to do a decent job when it comes to teaching the "whats" - what the Bible says and therefore "what" we believe. But, we do not teach the "whys" - why we are able to believe God is real, the Bible is true, God and science DO go together, and God is good. When we do not teach the "whys" we open the door for someone to question what we believe and for the ones we love to turn away from their faith when they do not know the answers. We must teach the "whys" so they know the answers and are able to have a confident faith.

Skydiving . . . in Six Years!

Today is my husband's and my 44th anniversary - we met on an active volcano in Northern California! In six years this will be me as we are going skydiving with our daughter, son, and three grands to celebrate our 50th anniversary! When this happens, we will join the two percent of grandparents who have been skydiving - it will be SO much fun!

Summer Reading - Polar Bears, Purple Gallinules, Numbats & More!

      

As parents and grandparents we certainly are able to be inspired and motivated to hand down confident faith to the children we love - yes, it absolutely matters today what we do with them to hand down confident faith - and the Life on the Goldilocks Planet books will help you do exactly this!

Happiness Happens Month & Day & Fudge

  

August is, "Happiness Happens Month" and tomorrow - the 8th - is Happiness Happens Day. I personally think every month and day should be when we celebrate what makes us happy, but apparently August is a time to be sure to do so. So . . . take time today to bring happiness to your life and the lives of those you love.

Summer Reading - Cheetahs, Mimic Octopuses, Hoatzins & More!

     

Each book in the Life on the Goldilocks Planet series is filled with at least twelve interesting and surprising animals - many of which you may never have heard of before! For example, in   Cheetahs, Mimic Octopuses, Hoatzins & More! you will find Cheetahs, Eels, Philippine Eagles, Chameleons, Gerenuks, Mimic Octopuses & Immortal Jellyfish, Hoatzins, Moose, Boxfish, Iberian Wolves, Olms & Mombachos, and Bactrian Camels - which of these have you never heard of before? Did you know there is an octopus which is able to change how it looks to scare away predators by looking like creatures which eat those predators? Did you know there is a jellyfish which doesn't really "die"? Did you know there is an eagle which has blue eyes?

Today - August 6th is National Wiggle Your Toes Day!

 

Did you know if you were to lose your thumb you could have it replaced with one of your toes? "When your big toe gets attached to the rest of your hand, it can accomplish many of the same activities your thumb could, including holding a pencil, eating food, and opening doors." I found this toe fun fact at the following  link and since today is National Wiggle Your Toes Day, I thought it would be fun to share some "toe facts"!

Upcoming Anniversary & an Important Example

My husband and I are just two days from celebrating our 44th wedding anniversary! We met on an active volcano (Mt. Lassen in Northern California) and were married on my grandpa/ma Fullmer's 55th anniversary - both sets of my grandparents and my parents had long committed marriages. They all set the example for me of loving, honoring and cherishing my husband. I never one time heard my grandparents or parents say anything negative about each other - I think this is what the vows mean - or part of it - when we commit to love, honor, and cherish the one we marry. (This is an engagement photo of us on Mt. Lassen where we met, and a wedding photo . . . we were SO young!!!)

Summer Reading - Giant Anteaters, Peacock Mantis Shrimp, Rufous Potoos & More!

     

You might be wondering why I am posting pretty much each day about the   Life on the Goldilocks Planet  books - well, there are a few reasons why . . . first of all, this is a fantastic time to get a book, or two to provide a fun resource for the whole family - especially as children return to school! 

Tomorrow - August 6th is National Root Beer Float Day!

 

I posted this last year, but in case you didn't see it, or forgot, I wanted to let you know tomorrow is National Root Beer Float Day - absolutely a day to celebrate for sure! So, let's look at some Root Beer Float fun facts . . .

Summer Reading - Scorpionfish, Clouded Leopards, Pygmy Hippos & More!

    

Yesterday I wrote about how vital it is for us to hand down confident faith to the children we love by teaching them the "whys" - why we are able to believe God is real and God and science DO go together. Today I want to write about what it may look like for us to do this!

Today is National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day!

While chocolate chip cookies are a treat to enjoy any day - especially fresh from the oven, today is actually National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day! Of course this means I need to share a recipe or two with you, so I chose the first one from when my oldest grandson was young he and I were going to make cookies, so I asked him what kind of cookies we should make. He said, "Chocolate, chocolate-chip!" So, we sat down with my computer to find a recipe. I found one and read the ingredients to him and he said, "That's not the one we want." I thought it could work, but read the next one to him. He said, "Yes! This is the one. It has cocoa and the other one didn't. We need cocoa to make chocolate, chocolate-chip cookies!" He was right! I didn't think he paid close attention to the ingredients, but apparently he did! We made the recipe he chose, with just a couple "tweaks" which I'm sharing with you. The cookies turned out quite delightful - after all, they have cocoa, chocolate-chips, peanut butter, and sour cream in them, so how could they be anything but delicious and delightful?