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!
What’s that leaf?
We had a great time collecting and identifying leaves for this month’s meeting. We started with a nature hike to look for different types of leaves (and met some goslings along the way!). After we had a nice collection, we discussed the different parts of a leaf and identified the shape, venation and margin type of our leaves, then made some leaf etchings. Afterwards, we enjoyed some playground time and shared yummy homemade cookies baked by one of our members.
Farm Day!
One of our members was nice enough to invite us to spend a beautiful spring day at her family’s farm! We learned about horses and went for a ride, then got a lesson on chickens and collected eggs. We also cuddled some bunnies and baby chicks, milked goats and helped feed an orphaned kid.
Very Hungry Caterpillars
This month, we used Eric Carle’s classic book as a starting point for our discussion of caterpillars and butterflies. By comparing the story with the real butterfly life cycle, we all learned a few things. We also talked about the differences between butterflies and moths, then examined some real moth cocoons and made colorful butterfly models.