field trip to nankin mills

because the last week of school isn't busy enough, hayden's class decided to take it's first and only field trip of the year. we headed to nankin mills in westland which apparently is some kind of a nature center.
because they are only in school from 9-12 it doesn't give a very big window of time to do much on a field trip. so i'm sure there is a lot more of nankin mills that we didn't see.
hayden's group went in to a room first and they were taught about reptiles and amphibians. they were able to see several different turtles and frogs and they all sat pretty quietly through the whole thing.
after that, they headed outside to the little pond and were able to fish out stuff and look for little bugs and frogs and such. hayden almost slipped in the mud and landed right in the pond...it was way too close, but i caught him just in time.
let me just say that i will NEVER get true nature people. they are some of the happiest people on earth. and if they hear a bird? even happier. they think that all living things are them most magnificent things ever. while we were outside, our guide walked around way too enthusiastically showing everyone a mosquito that was not quite a mosquito yet. after a bit he started telling us..."ok, i have to get this back into the pond now to keep it safe!" me? i would have hunted and killed them all.
they kids found all kinds of pond life and the guide was happy to tell them what it was and a story behind in. the kids weren't really listening, they just wanted to get back to finding baby frogs and scooping up pond water. but the guide had fun.
i think hayden was the only one that found a tadpole. most of the other ones were just about frogs. and hayden was SO excited that he found it.
we eventually took a little hike through the woods and learned about different trees and other wonders of nature like the rouge river. i think i learned a couple of things, but i have already forgotten them. all but one. i learned that if you come in contact with poison ivy, you have 10 minutes to clean it off with warm water and soap.
once we got to the bridge over the rouge we had to be quiet for 20 seconds and listen to the birds. then we headed back to the bus as it was already time to go.
hayden seemed to have a great time and was quietly and intently listening through the whole presentation at the beginning. he sure does love to learn. usually.

sue the snapping turtle that has never snapped:
turtle race. it was a tie.:
a tortoise eating a worm. the kids loved it.:
pond time:



he seems to care as much about the water bugs as i do:
yes! frogs again!:


hayden's tadpole:
eric and hayden:

the beautiful rouge river:
some chick hangin' out at the rouge:

macgowan field day 2009

this year, instead of having a "spring fling" for the end of the school year, macgowan elementary decided to have a field day for their kindergarten and first grade classes.
the kids started out with their typical morning routine in the classroom and were then given field day shirts to wear before heading outside. there were 13 stations that the classes got to visit, although hayden's class didn't get to the last two...tether ball and volleyball...as it was time to leave for the day.
the weather was beautiful and all of the kids seemed to have a great time. probably the most popular station of the day was the blow up obstacle course. unfortunately, hayden only got to go through once since they were hurrying us along so they could get to as many stations as possible.
hayden/hayden's team ended up winning almost everything he did even though the teachers kept telling them "this isn't a race." whatever. it was totally a race and hayden knew it.
after participating in the last station, the sack RACE, the kids headed back into class to get ready to go. mrs. arnett then handed out gold medals to each of the kids. hayden looked SO proud when he got his. he kept talking about his "gold medal" and the little girl next to him kept saying..."it's not metal, it's plastic." and he, of course, fought back..."YES IT IS!!! it's a gold medal!"
we had a great time and can hardly believe that kindergarten is almost over.

tug of war. hayden's team won just about every time. even when they switched the teams up:

balloon toss. this game turned into who could reach the furthest. except for hayden. he tossed it the second time. and then it broke:

spoon race. the teachers told them if they dropped it they could just pick it up and keep running. hayden did drop it, but not too often. he dropped it right when he was crossing the finish line (he came in first) and was then told by the teacher that he lost because he dropped it. even though some of the other kids were holding theirs the entire time. hayden didn't mind, he was ready to move to the next station:

the three legged race. this one cause a few tears amongst some of the participants. hayden did NOT come in first for this one, but after awhile they ended up getting the hang of it. for the most part.:


hayden and aiden:
crab soccer. again, hayden's team won all but 1 round of this one. most of the kids would jump up and run over to the ball and then get back in the crab position if the ball was too far away. they seemed to love this one and only 2 or 3 kids got hurt.:


kickball. nobody was ever tagged out when hayden's team was kicking. not because their kicks were that great, but because nobody had a clue what to do. when their kicking turns were over, hayden ended up getting about 3 people out. eventually he tried getting them out by simply tagging them, even if he didn't have the ball.:


the wet sponge. the kids had to soak a sponge, run back and fill up a bucket. the other team beat hayden's team by literally 1/2 a second.:

the obstacle course. the kids had to jump through squares, crawl through a tunnel, ride the bike around the cones, walk on stilts, jump over hurdles and then jump on a ball. most of the kids, along with hayden, decided it was easier to ride the bike straight and forget the cones.:
blacktop. the kids moved to the blacktop where they got their snack (a popsicle) and then could play with jump ropes, balls, chalk, clay, or make bubbles.:
the blow up obstacle course. hayden totally killed on this one. and then had his first and only breakdown of the day because he didn't get a second turn.:

sack race. yet another race in which hayden won. he didn't even fall a single time.:



the award ceremony. hayden was so excited that his medal said "#1" and "winner" on it and kept asking what everyone else's said. i don't think he wanted to believe that they all said "#1 winner.":