Day 12. Fear Factor.

I have definitely found that the days I take the time to add in a little something extra and fun, the whole day goes smoother.

Today we played Fear Factor. A fun, made up game that gives me an excuse to mildly torture or shall we say "stretch" my kids. We will play this periodically throughout the year. It may be a new activity, a new food, anything goes!

Today here is how it went down. I Loaded the kids up and went to the Nugget Market. (The prettiest grocery store ever). Kids had to pick a "vegetable" that they have never tried before. Emma chose Tomato and Cucumber, Cameron chose Carrots and Cucumber, Taylor chose Bean Sprouts and Tomato. Yes, its true. My 10 year old has never tasted a carrot.

When we went to pay, the checkout lady said..."Hey, are you guys playing hooky, or are you home schooled?" I gotta admit I felt a bit embarrassed to answer, almost like I was doing something wrong. I don't know quite where that comes from. I said "home schooled". She was pleasant and said...."Go, hit the books and stop playin' around". I read into that statment. She was likely just making conversation. Anyway, we had donuts from the bakery and milk out side on the patio. It was beautiful.

When we got home Fear Factor began. Dramatic name for eating a carrot, I know. Kids had 5 minutes to eat what was in the dish that I put in front of them. If they did, they got 5 sticks. Every minute that passed, a stick went away. If the timer went off, they got nothing. This first round was followed by a bonus bite round. Thirty seconds for a bigger bite of the same food. If completed, another stick. The girls chose this option. Cameron did not. They all even begged for round two.

The kids ended up with over 10 sticks a piece. Vegetables were eaten before noon. A fun new challenge has begun! Wonder what next time will be? Maybe parasailing.

Emma made Cameron's lunch today. Complete with napkin adorned with a love note, the kids watched Disney's Earth, and we did lots of school work. Feels like I am getting somewhere. Just 158 school days until summer.