Coonawarra

As many people know, Coonawarra is one of the premier wine growing areas of Australia. The town of Coonawarra is very small and the whole grape growing area is known as Coonawarra.
Today after we had another look around Penola, bought heaps of yummy foods at the Farmers' Markets and checked out Sharee's winning artwork, we headed out of town to one of the wineries for lunch.
Mrs Zema of Zema Estate Winery made the most amazing Arancini for us to have for lunch.

We went back to Balnaves Winery to show Andrew and Maryanne the sculptures we had looked at yesterday.
This is the lake at the Cellar Door and by this stage we thought a cappacino here would have topped off an amazing weekend.

I couldn't resist trying to photograph some of the amazing Autumn leaves that we had seen. What do you think of these?

This was Daniel's idea to hold the leaf in front of the lake. I think I may have a budding photographer in the making. He often has good ideas like this.

And who can resist a little daisy in the lawn. I was wearing one in my jumper that Daniel had picked for me - think he is a romantic as well!

Penola Part 2

After a quick Bakery lunch, we went for a drive out to some of the wineries to check out the photographic competition, another photographic display and a sculpture exhibition. They were brilliant, especially the sculpture as we were allowed to touch it.
We headed back into town for a treat at the best coffee shop in Penola - Di Vine. Then it was off to do the Kite Making Workshop.

I have photos of the kite in progress but alas there are other children in the background, so I won't post them. Here is Daniel trying to get his kite up in the air. It was a bit gusty and the kites kept dropping out of the sky!!



The kids all decided to run with their kites - I was stunned that there were no major pile ups or knotting up of strings!! It was an amazing sight seeing about 40 kids all running around the oval with the kites they had coloured and made themselves!!

This is a friend of ours, Maya's kite - I loved the colours she used!

Of course there was a trip to see Sue (she owns the Lolly Shop!! ) and we headed for home. We plan on going back again tomorrow for the Farmers' Market, a yummy lunch out with friends and probably another trip into say hi to Sue!!

Penola Part 1

The day started with Breakfast. Yes the dog likes cereal too!!

Then Daniel and I headed off to the Penola Coonawarra Arts Festival for the day. Daniel was booked into 2 workshops. I was booked in to do a Poetry one but since Daniel has had 2 seizures in the last 3 weeks, the doctor said we should be with him all the time. It was fun to hang out with Daniel for whole day anyway - he is really good company. He is easy-going and never has a whinge! The first workshop was about Herbs. The kids got to make an egghead with mustard seed,

grind up their own pesto with a mortor and pestle (think I spelt that right??), put the pesto on rice paper with some yummy veges and eat it all up - Dan made 2 so guess who got one too??

Then they got to pot up their own herbs to take home. Daniel chose rocket, chives and basil - yummo!!

At the end of the workshop, there was a little competition for the funkiest apron. Daniel and I were so amazed that he won third prize. He was wearing the free apron I got off the front of a magazine years ago, that he had worn to a scout camp and covered in house paint and handprints of paint!! He won 3 bunches of herbs to take home and cook with.

You just HAVE to listen to this...

This doesn't make you cry then I don't know what will!!

Susan Boyle

Don't you love serendipity.... I do. After listening to the above youtube movie, I was reading a blog with the following quote.

Watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you, because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don't believe in the magic will never find it!" - Roald Dahl

That is serendipity.

Later
Kathryn

New Blog

I have started a new blog for homeschoolers. It is about computers and internet etc for homeschooling families. If you want to have a look here it is....

http://computersandhomeeducation.blogspot.com/

Cheers

Kathryn

Dr Suess

The subject I have chosen to do first for my study is called Computer Based Resources In Education. I figured that even though I don't have an actual class as such, I do have these 2 technologically minded sons that I homeschool, so thought I would enjoy this subject. I started off very tentatively as I was unsure of so many things to do with studying after finishing my first degree 25 years ago!! I'm sure I am not THAT old??

I am enjoying it now that I have decided to do what I tell the kids - be yourself and do your best!

A task we had to do was chose an historical figure we could identify with and how they would have used the internet. I couldn't think of anyone to identify with... so ended up on the internet (how appropriate!) searching for historical figures.

This is my response to the task -
I ended up choosing Theodor Suess Giesel or Dr Suess. We have many things in common - love to write, enjoy nonsensical words, love bright and wacky illustrations and always like to see a positive message in things. I think Theodor would have loved the internet. Imagine the possibilities? He could have made interactive characters come alive on the screen for millions of people. He could have surfed the net and found enough to make hundreds more crazy characters and zany drawings. Imagine what fun it would be to read his thoughts on twitter?
My lecturer ( I think that is her title) posted a reply in response and included the following poem by Dr Suess on computers. I love it... as does the rest of my Dr Suess loving family. I hope you do too?

If a packet hits a pocket on a socket on a port,
and the bus is interrupted as a very last resort,
and the address of the memory makes your floppy disk abort,
then the socket packet pocket has an error to report.

If your cursor finds a menu item followed by a dash,
and the double-clicking icon puts your window in the trash,
and your data is corrupted 'cause the index doesn't hash,
then your situation's hopeless and your system's gonna crash!

If the label on the cable on the table at your house,
says the network is connected to the button on your mouse,
but your packets want to tunnel on another protocol,
that's repeatedly rejected by the printer down the hall,

and your screen is all distorted by the side effects of gauss,
so your icons in the window are as wavy as a souse,
then you may as well reboot and go out with a bang,
'cause as sure as I'm a poet, the sucker's gonna hang!

When the copy of your floppy's getting sloppy on the disk,
and the microcode instructions cause unnecessary risk,
then you have to flash your memory and you'll want to RAM your ROM.
Quickly turn off the computer and be sure to tell your mom.

Don't you just love that!? Of course I had to look up what a gauss is... here is a definition.

The gauss, abbreviated as G, is the cgs unit of measurement of a magnetic field B (which is also known as the "magnetic flux density", or the "magnetic induction"), named after the German mathematician and physicist Carl Friedrich Gauss. One gauss is defined as one maxwell per square centimeter.

So now you know too!!

And a souse? souse 1 (sous) v. soused, sous·ing, sous·es. v. tr. 1. To plunge into a liquid. 2. To make soaking wet; drench. 3. To steep in a mixture, as in pickling.

Not so sure this fits the poem but then Dr Suess was reknown for his use of non-existent words!

Righto gotta go...

Ciao, Kathryn

Study Time

Well this confirmed natural learner has gone back to school! Yep I have enrolled in a Postgraduate Certificate of Education. I already have my teaching degree but thought it would be a good example to set for my children to do some serious study. If I survive the four units for this I will go on and do another four units and than when I decide to return to teaching I will have a Masters degree to wave around!!
Gregory has also enrolled in some serious study -a unit through Open Uni. He is pretty impressed with himself for starting a Uni subject at only just 15 and this has gotten him through the very steep learning curve he had to begin with. He has chosen a Philosophy subject which means there are some seriously deep and meaningful discussions going on in this house!!
Part of my Uni subject is to start a blog - woohoo I am ahead there!! About the only thing I feel ahead on though... who had the bright idea that she had time to do study??? Yikes - talk about serious committment!!
Anyway the good thing is that I won't be neglecting my blog so much now.
Ok, off to do some more study - will be back soon to fill you all in the first 2 months of the year.
Ciao, Kathryn