I can't wait to see you all tomorrow.  I hope your break was just perfect.

It's December.  Think Snow!
We have so much to do in just a short three weeks.  So get some sleep tonight and bring your game face tomorrow!

Friday housekeeping gone very wrong!

Also, HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOLLY!

Yesterday, Quintin shared his article Drought Sticken Texas Town Turns to Toilets for Water.  

We learned that with a little hard work the water in your toilet can be turned into drinking water. Gross right?  Actually, pretty cool when you think about it!  The water gets forced through screens (semipermeable membranes) kind of like the sieves we use to sift flour or strain pasta only with way smaller holes.  The water is filtered many times and then treated with ultraviolet light so it's de-germified and safe for drinking.  Watch this video for more information. This sparked a discussion on how we can save water everyday.  Let's all turn the water off while we brush our teeth!  Thanks Quintin.

So cool! Julie Wille came back to finish the experiment.  We poured vegetable oil in first.  Then we poured baby oil in.  The baby oil floated on top meaning it's lighter.  Then we gently put an ice cube into the mix.  At first the ice cube was suspended in the middle, but as it started to melt the water sank to the bottom.  So water is the heaviest, then vegetable oil, then ice, and finally baby oil is the lightest.  It was crazy!

Next stop.  The courtroom.  Did you know this room is filled with thousands of books containing every law in Colorado?  There are quite a few.  We were fascinated by them and the different bindings from different years.  We got to sit in the juries chairs, at the witness stand, and where the lawyers, the plaintiff, and defendant sit.  The court clerk showed us around.  He explained going to court like settling an argument that you just can't settle between yourselves.

Next stop, a tour of a police car.  We saw a shotgun that shoots bean bags for bears (they shoot them in the bottom!), a flare (we thought it was probably dynamite), a first aid kit, an AED, a tow strap (which we thought might be a handkerchief, hmmm), a bulletproof vest, and a life preserver just in case.  We also got to hear the horn and sirens.

Next stop Community Banks of Colorado.  It was really warm and cozy in there.  We learned that the bank keeps anywhere from $200,000 to $500,000 in cash in the vault on any given day and maybe even more around the holidays.  We saw a 50 year old vault that had to put in by a crane and bolted to the floor.  We saw safety deposit boxes where people keep their valuables and important pieces of paper like birth certificates.  We saw behind the teller's booths and guessed how much different rolls of coins were worth.  We saw the timer they use to set the vault each day.  We were a little bummed when we realized that banks don't give away money to really nice first graders.

Whew, it's only 10am and we've been busy.  Next stop, Paradise Bakery for a cookie treat before lunch (don't tell) and the playground on the mall.  Self explanatory, but obviously a highlight.