Science and Ships

A couple days ago, Levi and I did a science experiment for school, to see how atoms are dispersed in different liquids and to see different items' densities. We put oil into a glass, then added water, which went through the oil to the bottom of the glass. Then we added some maple syrup, which went through the oil and water both, straight to the bottom of the glass. It created a three-layered effect of separated liquids. It was pretty cool. After we could see that separation well, we added some items to see their density and how they would end up in this glass. First, we added a rock, which went straight to the bottom. Next we added a grape,which was denser than the water and oil, so it ended up right on top of the maple syrup, sitting in the water. The third item we added was an ice cube. The ice cube was denser than the oil, but not the water, so it ended up sitting on top of the water, in the oil. And, the last item we added was a little cork. The cork wasn't denser than anything, so it ended up sitting right on top of the oil. It was a very basic experiment, but it was fun to do and Levi was amazed by it. Science can be so much fun! Here's a picture of our finished experiment.

On that same day, I got to watch something amazing. Well, amazing to me anyway. I'm easily entertained. :-)  There's this author I read often. She's an older lady, close to my own mom's age, but I really enjoy her blog and books on homemaking and her travels. And, she does fabulous drawings and watercolor paintings. Actually, I think her artwork is half her charm. Anyway, she and her husband are taking a two-month tour all over England and Scotland and she's planning to blog about it all, which is going to be so much fun to follow, but they didn't fly over there because she doesn't like flying. They took the Queen Mary 2 and are taking a transAtlantic 8-day crossing to get there, which is really cool in itself, but the day they left, she had posted a link to the New York Harbor cam so we could watch the ship leave. So at 5pm on Thursday, while I was making dinner, I set up my tablet in the kitchen to watch her ship leave. Now, personally, I thought that was really cool, but even more cool than that, was that as the ship was beginning to pull out of the harbor, it went right past the Statue of Liberty! I got to see the Statue of Liberty in real time in New York Harbor! I was mesmerized!! (See? I told  you I'm easily entertained!) So, of course, I had to take a picture of it.

                                                             How cool is THAT?!?

Trying Delicata Squash

     Last week I got some vegetables from a veggie co-op I'm part of and one of the things I got was a delicata squash. I've gotten them before, but frankly, I usually just use them for decorations, rather than actually cook them. So this time I decided to try to cook it and see how we liked it. Of course, the first place I searched for recipes was Pinterest, my favorite go-to for new ideas. The recipe I found was pretty easy and it ended up being tasty, too. I think we still like summer squash better, but it was something different and now I know what I can do with these when I get them!

Here's what I did:

I took a raw delicata squash and cut it in half lengthwise. Winter squash is usually pretty tough to cut, but this one was not difficult at all.

 Then I scooped out the seeds and "guts" of the squash.

 After that, I cut the halfs into 1/2" - 3/4" slices.

 I forgot to take this picture, but I put the squash slices into a bowl with some olive oil, 1-2 Tbsp, I think, and some salt, pepper, and fresh rosemary and then mixed it all up to coat the squash really well.

Tip: Put the baking sheet into the oven while the oven preheats to 425 degrees. The squash will brown better on a hot pan.

I put the coated squash onto the heated pan and baked in the oven for 10 minutes, then flip them over and baked for an additional 6-8 minutes. You can add a little more salt and/or pepper when they're done for added taste, if desired.

Not only did they taste good, but they looked pretty, too!

So, if you're looking for something new to try, cook up some of these yummy winter squash to add to your veggie repertoire. Bon appetite!