Chattanooga Choo Choo

All aboard...

Travel back to the 1880s (in your mind) and think about how exciting it must have been to be at Chattanooga Union Station. The Cincinnati Southern Railroad had a small wood burning steam locomotive that journeyed from Chattanooga, TN to Cincinnati, Ohio. 

The wood-burning "Choo Choo" was the first to provide non-stop service. How cool is that?!?

Today, you can see a train engine displayed at the Chattanooga Choo Choo. It is the same kind of wood-burner used on that first run from Cincinnati to Chattanooga in the 1880s. Amazingly almost all trains traveling South passed right through my hometown, Chattanooga.

Cool Fact: The one on display was built by Baldwin and last used in service on the Smoky Mountain Railroad in the 1940's. It is completely refurbished & only engine of its kind now in the city!

 

Of course I cannot visit here without singing in my head... "Pardon me, boy, is that the Chattanooga Choo-Choo?"

Thanks Glenn Miller Orchestra... now I will be singing it all day! In 1941 the song was performed by Glenn Miller Orchestra and Tex Beneke and the Modernaires in the movie "Sun Valley Serenade". Watch it here. The Chattanooga Choo Choo song traveled fast during World War II and has a catchy ring to it.

 

As most of us know there was a decline in railroad passenger traffic in the 1950s & 1960s. And unlike many stations built before the Civil War, Chattanooga's Union Station was saved from demolition by local businessmen and renamed Chattanooga Terminal Station. Inspired by the theme of the "Chattanooga Choo Choo" they revitalized it and it opened on April 11, 1973.  

You may think it is only about visiting the train while here, but make sure to go inside the actual station. It will give you a glimpse at some of the elegance that purchasing a ticket, having a drink or meal, and riding the train must have been like. 

Personal Fact: My mother departed on a train here for her high school trip to Washington, DC. She boarded the train with a packed sandwich to eat along the way. That is pretty cool!

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974, Chattanooga Choo Choo Historic Hotel is considered one of the city's first historic preservation projects. So, make sure to look around the station and read some of the historical plaques about military and local history...

Cousins + Animals = Love

Today is a good day!

A day enjoying the company of your spunky cousin & holding sweet, fluffy bunnies & riding small yet sturdy mini-horses. Seriously, it was like a perfect storm of cuteness!!!

We've got some Mass, Volume, & Density

Science is fun!

Since our current science lesson was on matter, it only seemed right to really examine some practical and fun objects in our own home. I picked out a few items like a rock, penny, water balloon, air balloon, & vegetable oil. She included a Littlest Pet Shop, eraser, frog (toy), & gummy worms.

Part 1 - Observe Matter

Time to talk matter:

It is not to complicated because matter is anything that takes up space... aka, Stuff!

We examined matter: 

It's shape, color, size, texture, & other features were noted in her science journal. She loved picking up each item one-by-one and really noting details.

Part 2 - Examining Mass

Time to talk mass:
Mass is how much matter makes up an object (the amount of atoms that make it up). Mass is not to be confused with weight. Mass does not change (while weight can).

We examined mass:

Each item was put on the scale and the mass was recorded. She loved being able to do all of this independently. However, she did not like that many of our objects rolled... making it more challenging.

Even the liquid was put on the scale, which took some extra explaining:

Mass of Container with Liquid - Mass of Container without Liquid = Mass of Liquid

(Note - make sure to get the Mass of Container without Liquid before you put it on the scale with the oil, water, or other liquid inside it.)

Part 3 - Density & Volume

We tackled both of these during the same part of the lab... with water in a measuring cup.  We filled one clear measuring cup with 250 mL of water.
And what kid doesn't like to play with water?!?!

Time to talk about density:

For an object to be bouyant, or float, it must have less density then what it is floating in. 

It the object sinks then it has more density then what it is floating in.

We examined density:

We predicted: Would the object float or sink?

Then we placed our items into the measuring cup (saving the liquids for last). We noted whether it float or sank in the journal.

Time to talk volume:

Volume refers to the amount of space the object takes up. In other words, volume measures of the size of an object.

We examined volume:

Amount of Water with Item - Amount of Water without Item (250 mL) = Volume of Item

Time to note additional info:

Did the object change shape? Did the object expand to fill the space?

The experiment took quite a bit of time and required some pre-organization. And on her part... a lot of writing (which she made sure to tell me multiple times). However, it was fun and we both got to put our lesson to the test.

Be your own scientist...

All matter (everything around you) has both volume and mass.

FYI - there are actually some things in the universe that aren't matter. These are called abstract, which means they don't have a physical existence. Some examples include energy, heat, light and sound. And so, these abstract things have no volume or mass.

• Matter – Anything that takes up space. Aka: Stuff
• Mass – Amount of matter that fits in a given space, or amount of matter or substance that makes up an object, or amount of atoms in a given object.
• Weight – A measure of the force of gravity on an object. Materials with more density weigh more. Think heaviness.
• Density – How closely packed together the molecules of a substance are.
• Buoyancy – Ability to float or rise to the top of a liquid or gas.
• Volume – How much space a substance takes up. Think size.

The confusing relationship between weight and mass:
On earth, a bowling ball can weigh about 10 pounds. It will weigh much less on the moon because the gravitational pull of the moon is less than the gravitational pull on the earth.The bowling ball has the same amount of mass on earth as it does on the moon or anywhere else you take it.

• Weight is a measure of gravitational pull.
• Weight changes depending on where you weigh it.
• Mass does not change, no matter where it is.

Density has to do with buoyancy, or the ability of objects to float in water (or air). Whether or not an object has buoyancy depends mostly on two factors: 

1. The amount of water an object displaces.
2. The density of an object. 

Examples: A pebble or rock is dense and displaces very little water, therefore it sinks. However, a ping-pong ball or littlest pet shop is not very dense and displaces more water, therefore it floats. 

Thanks to any sites I used to get more facts!

It's only been over an hour...

Everyone knows that raising a teenager is, well, challenging. It can take every bit of your patience (and then some). It can take every bit of your sanity (and then some more).

So, of course you should expect days when scheduled to pick up your teen they forget to tell you they have a meeting/test/whatever that lasts for 30 minutes until after you arrive to pick them up (having already driven 30 minutes from home to get them), which turns into over an hour and you become helplessly annoyed and stuck.

What can you do to pass the time?

Possibly text them annoyed pictures of yourself (and sibling), so that they are aware that you exist on this planet that is theirs...

#parentingwin

Happy Anniversary!

How to have a Brockiversary?

Get your meat eat on

at Texas de Brazil!

Teenage angst

I take him out for a doughnut...

And can't even get a happy picture...

Teenage Angst!

Is it possible... a leak-proof bag

Science is fun!

It's true. A plastic ziplock bag, water, and a few pencils had her wondering if I would really permit her to spill water all over the house? 

This idea had her both curious and concerned. We opted to perform our experiment in a water-safe location (aka over the bathroom sink). However, our experiment ended up going right over our heads... literally... when we held the pencil-poked bag above each of our heads... just because we could.

Be Your Own Scientist...

Materials:

• plastic ziplock bag
• sharpened pencil(s)
• water
• science journal (optional)

Procedure:

1. Predict what will happen if pencil is pushed into a sealed bag of water in journal.
2. Fill ziplock bag around 3/4 way full with water and seal it shut.
3. Hold the water bag with one hand and use the other hand to firmly push the sharpened pencil into the bag (lower part of bag with water).
4. Observe what happened in journal. Then predict what will happen if pencil is pushed all the way through the bag in journal.
5. Push pencil through the other side of the bag. Continue pushing until the pencil is completely through the other side of the bag.
6. Observe what happened in journal.
7. Push additional sharp pencils in water bag to see what happens (and for fun).
8. Take one pencil out of bag (over sink) and observe what happens. Place pencil back in same hole and observe what happens.

What just happened?

The ziplock bag is generally made of polymer, which happens to be made of long chains of molecules that just happen to be flexible. Those flexible molecules help form a seal around the pencil when it is pushed into the water-filled bag. Hence, the water stays in the bag (no leaks!). However, when the pencil is removed the water leaks out because the molecules were pushed aside leaving a permanent hole in the bag. Hence, the water leaks out of the bag (oh no!).

Similar Experiment

Rock my Vote

It is Super Tuesday... a big day in the primary election. However, I am not going to get all political. I do not want to know what party you are for or which candidate you feel is best. And I am not about to share my views either. Whew... a collective sigh of relief! 

So, why the heck am I posting about voting?

Voting is a right. It was not a given. Not for African American Men (15th Amendment, 1870) or for Women (19th Amendment, 1920). Please notice those years... women were LAST to get the right to vote and it was in 1920... and 1920 was not that long ago.

This privilege of voting I have is because many women, long before me, fought for... suffered for... my opportunity to check whatever box I want. If you are a woman, parent of a girl, or know a woman then it's important to understand why her vote matters. 

It goes beyond who you vote for, it is the fact you can vote. There are so many important women, from Addams, Anthony, Blackwell, Burns, Cary, Catt, Mott, Paul, Shaw, Stanton, to Woodhull... and so many more.

Alice Paul, even has a movie

based on her, Iron Jawed Angels

Before I existed there were people fighting, picketing, & suffering so that I could have this right. It is hard to imagine, but in the early 1800s women were second-class citizens. Women were limited to home and family. Education and careers were considered pointless. Their place was as a wife and once married they didn't have rights to their property or wages. And they definitely could not vote.

  

It took DECADES for women to get the right to vote. Woman suffragists endured intense political activity and protesting to finally win that right for me (possibly you, your mother, your daughter, or any woman you know). It was a huge political movement, full of press, fundraisers, organizers, lobbyists, and more. Many women fought hard so I could walk into my polling place and cast my vote, to make my voice count!

 

In honor of them, I will teach my daughter that she matters. Her opinion is important and should count. No matter what she believes, no matter which party she votes for... she has that right to vote because other women have ensured that opportunity for her.

Today, she helped me Rock My Vote!

Educational Sites on Woman Suffrage Movement:

Scholastic
National Woman's History Museum
History for Kids
Time for Kids