what's that word?

Guess what....

In addition to my love of glitter I am also a lover of the game Scrabble.  Funny though that I was not a fan of words in English or Language class in school and my teachers would probably be amused that I am at all a despiser of misspelled words (although spell check doesn't catch them all on the blog here)and a huge fan of Scrabble and Wheel of Fortune.  I love that one too. 

I recently purchased a computer version of Scrabble that I play every day.  Maybe it helps keep my brain sharp on the game and words because sometimes I come up with words, when there are a rack of lettered tiles in front of me, that I didn't know were in my vocabulary.  Sometimes I spell out words that are correct but I couldn't really tell you the meaning.  Speaking of which, in my pc game I always play the computer mainly because I'm the only one here that can play and although I have played the board game solo it's better to have an opponent.  Which leads me to my title of this post... what's that word?

The computer opponent comes up with some of the craziest words.  Words I have never heard of let alone seen.  So I decided while playing today to make a list and look up some of the words I've not heard before.  Maybe it will help me to remember them when I have letters I don't know what to do with. 

Quango: an organization that deals with public matters and is supported by the government but that works independently and has its own legal powers

Brant: a small goose (Branta bernicla) about the size of a mallard having a black head, neck, and chest

Biro: used for a ballpoint pen

Skirred: (Skirr)  to leave hastily, to run, fly, sail, or move along rapidly

Gonia: (being the plural form)the point on each lower human jaw closest to the vertex of the gonial
angle

Adz: (presented as Adze)  a cutting tool that has a thin arched blade set at right angles to the handle and is used chiefly for shaping wood

Zerk: a grease fitting

Fatling: a young animal fattened for slaughter (makes sense)

Silex:  silica or a siliceous material (as powdered tripoli) especially for use as a filler in paints or wood

Dirk: a long straight-bladed dagger

Anoxias: hypoxia especially of such severity as to result in permanent damage (which leads me to look up hypoxia - hypoxia especially of such severity as to result in permanent damage... well how about that)


 Maybe these words are familiar to you but they were not to me.  I know a couple of guys named Brant but didn't know it stood for "wild goose".  And I've never used the word Quango but will try my dangedest (not a word) to do so in the future.  There are many more and I may write them all down as I go.  You just learn something new every day and as for me.. I learn something new every time I play Scrabble!



I even have a Scrabble Fun album on Flickr created years ago.  You can find it HERE.  Which leades me to wonder why I ever stopped buying flowers for my table.  The pictures were pretty much taken when I was a single gal in my house in Hendersonville.  At the time you could get a bunch of filler flowers for three dollars.  I picked some up every couple of weeks.  Aren't they pretty?!

My sister M.E. even made me and NeeNee a Scrabble cake for our birthday one year.  Wish you could see the cake better in the picture.  How crafty!



a dc scavenger hunt

I love when a new game pops into my head.  Especially one as easy as this.  

If you have the ease of a computer and digital camera this indoor scavenger 

hunt can be made in minutes.  

I began by walking around the day care and taking pictures of this and that.

I wound up with about twenty or so pictures.  

Then I went in to Microsoft Publisher, because it's my favorite, to create the cards.

You could probably do it in Word or another program I'm sure.

I chose to make a circle and fill it with a picture that I took.

I did this for all of the pictures.

Then I printed the pages of circles onto white card stock.

I also chose to use a laminating sheet over the pictures.

Next I cut them out and now I have a neat little stack of picture circles.

Now today... let's see how well these kids know their surroundings.

I'm guessing the game won't last real long.  

My older ones are pretty observant.

That's why I threw in some harder ones to find.

I hope it will really make them think.

I feel round two coming!

let's play a game

The Robertson County Fair is next week and this will be the fifth consecutive year that I have had entries.  I mainly enter in the amateur photography and canning sections but have been known to venture into others.  I have to take my entries this coming Sunday and have just about waited until the last minute.  Which, is why I need your help and am calling it a game!  I need help choosing which picture to enter in the Nature-Color division.  If you could just choose your favorite from the following pictures and let me know.  I am going to temporarily open up my comments for this so please feel free to use that or you can email me your vote.  I would completely appreciate the help!  Thanks a bunch!

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Learning Letters Match Game

This idea came from the website kiwicrate.  I am sure it has been featured somewhere else also, but that is where I saw it.  Our version varies from the original version in that I wanted the kids to be able to play and match letter to letter over and over so we incorporated magnets and hung it on the refrigerator here at the day care.  It was simple to make and took Kristen and I about an hour start to finish.  The main time is cutting out the flowers.

The kids do like to play the match game.  I will call a name and hand them a bowl with four or five flowers in it.  They pull out a flower and we identify the letter, mention words that begin with the letter and the sound it makes and then they match it to where it goes on the fridge.  Pretty brill!

Valentine Memory Game

As a child, one of my favorite games was Memory.  Where you have the little cardboard squares with pictures on them and have to match up the pictures.  Mine was adult and baby animals.  You would turn over a square cow, for example, and try and turn over the baby calf to match.  Or chicken to chick, dog to puppy, you get the picture. 

Well, I am always looking for ways to use my old canning lids and last week I had a thought of placing stickers on one side... a memory game was born.  This is so very simple and delightful at the same time.  Also it's a great way to re-purpose 20 or 24 used canning jar lids! 

You can really use any kind of pictures or stickers that you want.  This game uses different colored hearts with two of each color for matching.  Simply click  here for a copy of the pdf hearts.  Cut them out and glue them on to the top of the canning lid.  I used Mod Podge cause I'm that kind of girl.  You can use plain ole school glue if you have it.  Once they are dry, you are ready for an old fashioned, homemade game of memory!  Shaun even played a game or two with me!  We each won one round so I'm pretty sure we need a tie breaker... maybe later :)

I will tell you that the pdf of hearts for you to upload lost one set of hearts somehow.  So you can choose to omit one color of hearts.  This resulted in twenty two hearts which would leave your board uneven.  It's up to you.  Have fun!