August 30th, 2010

I Love Marriage!

August 5th, 2010

A Science Kid Experiment: Freezing and Melting

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When it comes to Homeschooling it is necessary to admit your strengths and weaknesses. I am not strong in math, and while science is interesting, I am not that great when it comes to that either. However, I am creative and I love to learn- two traits that helps significantly when it comes to creating lessons and activities to do with my 4 year old. It also helps to have resources like Sid the Science Kid, a PBS show focusing on science exploration and research. The lesson/activity that follows was inspired by the Frozen Fruit investigation episode. This is a four day exploratory activity.

What We will Learn: What are the reversible changes of melting and freezing? How do different liquids change when they are frozen and melted?

Materials Needed Day 1:

• 1 ice cube tray
• pitcher or cups of water
• Exploration Notebook (we use a wire bound cork sketch book)
• vocabulary sheet
• crayons and pencils
  

Materials Day 2:

• Everything from above
• a bowl
• 4-6 different liquids (we used milk, juice, olive oil, olive oil and water, bubbles)
• Hot water

Day One

• Explore the concept of “LIQUID” and examine the water in the containers or cups.
  • “  “When something is in liquid form, it takes on the shape of its container. Water is a liquid.”
• Allow child to draw ice trays, water in container, etc. in Exploration notebook.
• Help child pour water into the ice tray. You do not have to fill them. If you want, add fruit to each as done by Sid’s teacher.
• Allow child to draw what he/she observes.
• Put ice tray in the freezer and ask child what he/she predicts will happen.

Day Two

• Pull the ice tray out of the freezer and allow child to touch it being sure to ask what he/she observes.
• Ask child to compare what you have now to what you had yesterday..
• Allow him/her to draw observations in Notebook.
• Pop ice out of tray and place in bowl.  Ask child what he/she sees and have him her record observation.
• Ask child to help you define frozen.
  • congealed by cold; turned into ice
• Ask child what he/she predicts will happen if we pour hot water on ice cubes?
• After he/she answers help pour the hot water. Encourage child to state observations and to draw them in notebook.
• Let child touch (be sure it is cool) in the different stages. Ask child to compare what you started with today to what you have now.
• Ask child to help you define melting:
  • to change from a solid to a liquid state, generally by heat

For Day Three and Four: repeat day one and two using the other liquids. Compare and Contrast the results and be sure to record in Notebook.

July 15th, 2010

THE SORCERER’S APPRENTICE: A Premiere Event

Disney invited me to the World Premiere of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice at the New Amsterdam Theatre in New York City last Tuesday, July 6.  This was the red carpet event attended by cast members Nicolas Cage, Jay Baruchel, and Teresa Palmer, and producer Jerry  Bruckheimer, and director Jon Turteltaub.  It was the first time I (along with my husband)  have ever strolled down the red carpet  and it was certainly an interesting experience.  The whole event was far more organized than I pictured from watching these sort of things on TV.  The carpet extended down about half a block on 42^nd Street between 8^th Avenue and 7^th Avenue.  There were about 6 staging areas where camera and press equipment was setup to photograph and interact with the celebs.  Of course, for us non “fabulous” people there was an express path to walk behind all of the action and I was OK with that. I did not want to end up on Page 6 as a “Fashion Don’t!”

The New Amsterdam Theatre, complete with it’s old-styled charm, has three levels and numerous private balconies.  The internal structure was very beautiful with intricate woodwork and delicate marble murals.  The high arching hallways and exquisite chandeliers really send you back to a time when a night out required suits and even tuxedos.  We were seated off to the left a bit and about 5 rows from the bottom, but unlike most theaters we were not straining our necks to view the movie.  With the three levels of seating and the private balconies, we figured the stars would be seated separately from the general audience.  We were, in fact, wrong as our seating was 1 row ahead and about 10 to 15 seats away from both Nicolas Cage and Jay Baruchel.  Of course, to my determinate I am a rule follower and did not bring a camera so we could not get any pictures to share.  However, there were plenty of pocket digital camera flashes popping. I do have 6 pictures that I took with my phone of Nicholas Cage but they are so dark that only my husband and I know that he was really there.

Enough of the fan stuff, let’s get to the movie.  The Sorcerer’s Apprentice was a fantastic movie and thanks to its PG rating, fun for the whole family.  The movie is a fast paced adventure with a running time of 1 hour and 51 minutes, but feels much shorter.  Nicholas Cage’s performance, as Balthazar Blake,  was one of his best.  He was so natural and seemed very comfortable as the master sorcerer.  I am a huge Cage fan and he can overact a bit, but not in this flick though.  Cage and Jay Baruchel, as Dave Stutler, had great chemistry that really stood out throughout the film.  Baruchel successfully held his own onscreen with the superstar Cage.  Their great chemistry is most illustrated in how witty the movie was with I would say at least six occasions where the crowd genuinely burst out laughing.  The jokes were not forced and just flowed naturally, which is a true testament to chemistry of the lead actors and the talent of the  writing team.   Alfred Molina, Maxim Horvath, showcased his talent as the film’s antagonist and added to the overall wittiness of the picture.  The Sorcerer’s Apprentice was full of CGI effects that were well done and looked realistic even in the absence of IMAX or 3-D viewing as this screening was normal viewing.

A few down points include the rushed feel of the beginning of the movie as it felt as if the movie began at the introduction of the present day Dave and everything leading up to this was added as an afterthought.  Also, Monica Belluci, the Italian bombshell playing Veronica, deserved a larger role with more screen time.  In all seriousness she is a seasoned actor and her character played a large role, but lacked screen time.  Finally, Morgana, played by Alice Krige, needed to be developed more as she was the ultimate evil threat, but the plot lacked the proper build to her climatic fight scene.  If I were to enter this film without some prior knowledge of the story of Merlin I would not really get why Morgana was so feared and powerful.

Overall, the experience was unforgettable as the world premiere lived up to all the hype that I had built up in my head from seeing these sort of things on TV or reading about them on the internet.  The temperature on that July 6^th went above 100*F and the event was just as hot.  I mingled, sort of, with celebrities, walked the red carpet, watched an exciting and enjoyable movie, got free popcorn and soda, and shared a great evening with my wonderful husband.

Enjoy the clip below and make sure that you head to this Family-Friend movie.

The Sorcerer’s Apprentice — Film Clip “Sorcery 101″

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Disclosure Policy: Compensation Level I: Kristina Brooke received two tickets to the Premier of the Movie. All content is solely her own and review is based on her own experiences. For more information regarding disclosure policy at Mom on the Rise please see http://www.mom on the rise.com/about/disclosure.

July 4th, 2010

Growing So Fast

Dear BabyGirl,

You lost your first tooth today on July 4, 2010 and upon realizing that you did, I burst into tears. They were not tears of joy as I told you in the hopes of stopping your tears of fear. In fact, while I hugged you and told you that everything would be OK, what I was thinking was that things would never be the same. And my heart aches.

Th loss of the first tooth will be followed by so many other firsts that I don’t want to think about. Each first takes you closer to adulthood and further away from the baby I see when I look at you.

I don’t mind you growing up, despite how it may seem. It’s just that you have grown so much in the last week. You can write all the letters of the alphabet. You can reach things off of Daddy’s dresser with very little strain. You want to pick out all of your own clothes. And now your tooth…

And you are only four. I love you! Please stop growing so fast. I’m not ready.