The next time I need to mail an egg....

This week, one of Clara's homework assignments was to make something for Friday's "Egg Drop". The challenge is to package up a raw egg so that it won't break when dropped off the top of a building. Personally, I think this kind of thing should either be done at school, or left to kids who are old enough to figure it out on their own. But then, that's just my own little hang-up....I'm completely against projects that are done at home (by well-intentioned parents who just want little Joey's project to be the best one in the class). Ya, I know that it can create some nice family time as everyone "works together" toward a common goal blah blah blah, but, really, why not just plant flowers or make a cake? Why must the fruits of family togetherness be handed in to the teacher? Of course, I had to give this exact same blankety blank assignment to my own students, because, like the Leprechaun Trap, it is a tradition at our school, and I am the new kid on the block (so far be it from me to rebel in any visible way).

Today, Clara set to work on her trap. Not wanting to be a hypocrite, I asked non-leading questions, and supplied only straight information about where to find the stuff she requested. First, she asked for a box. When I sent her to the garage to find one, the one that she found was (conveniently) full of bubble wrap, and sitting next to a box labeled, 'packing supplies', which contained a pile of foam rubber slabs. Clara figured that she could fill the box with foam and bubble wrap to keep the contents safe. Wish our overseas movers had thought of that....
For a final touch of softness, Clara asked if she could take the stuffing out of a teddy bear. I gave her a piece of cotton batting instead (still kicking around from my short-lived foray into the world of quilting).
Okay, you can go ahead and call me a hypocrite, because I did suggest that she seal the box with something, so that it wouldn't pop open on impact. She automatically went for the duct tape. Atta girl!

Clara was very excited to go outside for a test run. I managed to convince her that a few high tosses onto the concrete would be almost as damaging as a fall from the roof, so she started launching the box from the deck (which is only a foot off the ground, but oh well).


Did it break?????? Oh, the suspense.......No! It did not!
We'll see how little Eggbert holds up when he takes a long walk off a short pier on Friday.
I may grumble about the project in general, but I just love taking pictures of things in mid-air. And I love the way Clara tackles challenges like this. As she put the egg back in the fridge, she said, "I'm really proud of myself, even if it breaks on Friday."

And a little Trevor moment that made me laugh:
Trevi was not enthusiastic about going to bed tonight...not sure if he napped in the car earlier with Grampy or what, but he claimed to be wide awake. I've heard a lot of different bedtime negotiations over the years, but never these ones:
"I can't go to bed because I have the hiccups. What if I pop up in the air and fall down and hurt myself?"
When I didn't go for that, he continued,
"What if I dream I'm a waterfall, and flow over the edge of the bed?"

:)