Good home-math stuff and a not-so-great Rachel Ray dinner

What a great book - who doesn't like to do projects with FOOD anyway...???!!!...
http://www.creativeteaching.com/p-2702-gobble-up-math.aspx

Also, these are neato pre-algebra tools (plus they're *pretty* and I like *pretty*!)
http://catalog.teachingsupplystore.com/connecting_cuisenaire_rods_introductory_set-p-48103.html?osCsid=c93eac1a08d21b4098e49bd0fed3bd81

Also, I like this site for multiplication tips and help
http://www.mathcats.com/grownupcats/ideabankmultiplication.html

I made Sam and Jake a blog today, and Sam doinked around in it for a while, then we sat and explored the Cuisenaire rods a bit - it was fun. Sam lined them up and we figured the value of each color and he made a chart for future reference. Then Charlie got unruly, so we had to stop for the day.

Later in the afternoon Sam was at the table writing "chapter 2" of his Star Wars book (which just totally traces the same exact happenings from the movie, heeheehee) so I decided to get Charlie working at the little Fisher Price toddler table at the same time. Thinking he would be interested in the contrasting colors, I tracked down some colored chalk and black construction paper for him to go to town on. Instead, he seemed happy just taking the chalks out of the plastic baggie and putting them back in. Over and over. I was the only one drawing, LOL.

Dinner was a nightmare - I attempted a Rachel Ray 30 minute meal idea (which, incidentally, NEVER turn out in 30 minutes at my house - I guess it would help if I had an assistant to chop up and prep each and every item and then and only then could I expect to complete a whole meal in 30 minutes).

It was "knife and fork burgers with provolone cheese sauce (to dip the burger in) on the side, with arugula salad". The burgers took freaking FOREVER to cook on my new grill pan, so they were the last things to be ready. AND they were burned on the outside, yet still pretty pink on the inside...sheesh. Sam totally gagged on the cheese sauce, while Charlie dipped everything on his plate - including fruit and butternut squash chunks - into it. Blech!
No one liked the arugula salad. *sigh*

Ugh, it was a thumbsdowner because, unfortunately, the amount of icky cleanup did NOT justify the meal. Oh well...