* Are There Any Mountains in Kansas?

Find this article at its new home in Loving Nature's Garden.

Learning Links

Web page tabs are stacking up fast again and it's time to share learning links. Here are some great links that are laying around unused by me and you might as well have them :-)

• Cornell Lab of Ornithology has a vast collection of information on their website. Your family might like to join in with Project Feederwatch. Check out their wonderful Homeschoolers Guide to Project Feederwatch. I love our little feathered friends; anyone else wish they could fly?
• My bloggy friend Janet at Adventures in the 32-Aker Wood pointed me to I Love Mountains. Janet lives right next to a place where a mountain top is being removed for coal mining. Understandably she has had quite a lot to say about this recently. I'm still trying to process all of it. The I Love Mountains website allows you to track companies who are cutting off mountain tops and see whether the coal from these mines is being used by your local electricity supplier. Personally I do love mountains and I'd like to do something to help... still thinking about what that should be.
• If you want to find bloggers who live close to you, http://feedjit.com/ is a great resource. I guess they know from your ISP address where you are located and they serve you up local blogs with the highest rated at the top. What a useful little tool if you want to locate others nearby who share your interests.
• Watch out for the computer virus that comes in an e-mail and pretends to be UPS or FedEx trying to deliver a package to you. Read about the UPS/FedEx Delivery Failure Virus at Snopes.com. Actually my computer virus checker detected this on an e-mail I received this morning. If you've not received it yet it's likely only a matter of time!
• A week or so ago I somehow managed to discover something called Reborn Baby Dolls. These are baby dolls that ladies spend hours hand painting and crafting so that they are VERY realistic baby look-alikes. Although some of them are almost freaky, I can't help but admire the craftsmanship and patience that goes into these. Not only does the skin look very realistic, but they are weighted to resemble real newborn babies. You can read about reborn baby dolls and there are plenty of websites to browse, including DollsRealistic.com, WhoopsyDaisyBabies, and ButterflyBabiesbyBecky. If you were just wondering what to do with your spare time, take a little crawl around these sites, or look on e-bay for reborn dolls. Let me know what you think.

Brought to you by UsborneKC.com - meeting your Usborne Books needs in Kansas City and beyond (Johnson County, Kansas; Wichita, Kansas; Independence, Lee's Summit, North and South Kansas City, Pleasant Valley and Liberty, Missouri; Virginia and New Jersey).

Blog Roundup #1

I've found so many great blogs in the last week that I just can't keep up with writing articles that touch on each topic so that I can showcase them. I have so many tabs open on Firefox that I'll likely have to reboot soon. It's time to have a clear-up and share what I've found. In the order I found them, here goes:

• Random Jottings - taking a fresh look at life from San Francisco
• Homemakers Guide to the Galaxy - homeschooling while loving henna
• Fireflies, Frogs and Mosquitos - Oh My! - adventures with the Condie family (I like the title)
• Eco-savvy Kid - a 10 year old school kid who cares about our planet
• A Spot of Sun - writing by a mom of five
• Biking for Breast Cancer - two lads cycling from John O' Groats to Lands End - follow their adventure
• Vinderama - a personal tour of the Olympics
• Bitterroot and Bergamot - a log of pristine places
• B J Parady - Fiber art and other things of note from along the Mississippi River
• Adora's Blog - from a 10 year old writer in Redmond, WA
• Armadillo's Book Blog - book reviews and rants (mostly book reviews) from a homeschooling family
• Help! My Kids are Smarter than Me - I know the feeling - from a homeschooling mom of two
• Guy Steven Mountain Leader - photo rich commentary from a guy who hikes the mountains of Scotland and beyond
• Basado En Una Historia Irreal - I've no idea what it means (I just speak English) but the photos paint a thousand words - very nice photography!
• Planeto Postal - again I've no clue about the writing, but the photos are intriguing

Well, that got rid of a few tabs I had open! I hope you found something worth browsing in that list. Let me know what you think :-)