Tie Dye Fun
We had so much fun with our last tie-dying experiment, we decided to do it again! The kids had a fabulous time, and ended up with some great looking shirts!
Chicks!
We borrowed an incubator from the 4-H office this month, hoping to have hatching chicks to watch for our meeting. We discussed eggs and chickens, cracked some grocery store eggs to identify the different parts, and everyone had a chance to see the incubating eggs and learn about the process. Unfortunately, the eggs didn’t actually start hatching until almost everyone had left, but several families were able to come back and see the emerging chicks over the next 24 hrs, and we updated everyone else with pictures and videos online.
Visit to the Landfill
Our visit to the North Montgomery Landfill finally happened! After having to postpone a few times due to rain, we were glad to be able to head out on the berms to see how a landfill works. Our wonderful guide, Mr. Cork, was full of interesting information about the history and daily operations of the landfill and the kids enjoyed seeing all the large machinery at work.
A Day at the MOOseum
The Alabama Cattlemen’s MOOseum is always a hit with the kids. We learned about cows, traced the history of the cattle industry in Alabama from its origins, donned chef’s garb to learn about food safety and nutrition, and pretended we were cowboys and cowgirls from the Wild West in the dress-up room.
Montgomery Area Food Bank
The kids were full of questions at the food bank, and impressed with the sheer volume of boxes, packages and cans. Our guide was very informative and friendly and passed out candy at the end of the tour, so of course she was a hit with the kids!
Fruits of Our Labor
This month we all brought things from our gardens for show and tell. We learned about tomatoes, broccoli, butternut squash and more, and loved seeing what everyone else had grown over the summer. We look forward to more planting, growing and learning with next year’s gardens. 
Pumpkin Patch Fun
We had a fabulous trip to the pumpkin patch! Farm animals, pig races, corn maze, hay bale jumping, and of course choosing a pumpkin. Some of the parents even rode the “cow train” with the kids–talk about a bumpy ride! The biggest hit of the day was the corn box, where the kids thoroughly enjoyed jumping, diving and burying each other in dried corn. Can’t wait to go back next year!
Exploring Solar Power
Everyone enjoyed our experiments in solar power at this month’s meeting. After discussing renewable and non-renewable energy sources, we had fun watching our solar frog robot hop around, then launched our solar boat. Not sure which was more entertaining–watching the boat propel itself across the water, or watching the parents wade in to retrieve it when it got caught in the weeds. 
Geocaching
For our August meeting, we learned how to use a handheld GPS device and enjoyed a geocache game of hide-and-seek. It was boys versus girls, and everyone had a great time hiding their cache for the other team to find.
Explosive Fun
We had a blast blowing things up at this month’s meeting. We started by popping ziploc bags with a mixture of baking soda and vinegar for some loud and messy fun. Then, we went for an even bigger explosion with candy and soda. with great results. Fun meeting!