A Picture A Day: January 10, 2013

Today we get two pictures of what we did this afternoon.  This has been a heavy week of field trips and classes and this afternoon we had some time to just chill.  We read the third Brotherband Chronicles book (The Brotherband Chronicles: The Hunters by John Flanagan) together and then we each did our own thing.  AH decided that he would just play Xbox 360 live and I decided to cook!

Bolivian Quinoa Stew for dinner!

A Picture A Day: December 6, 2011

Okay, so it isn't homeschooling, but it was a great part of our day!!

Happy St. Nicholas Day!

A Picture A Day: October 23, 2011

 AN and AN's fiance, MB, were over to celebrate their 26th birthdays at our house!  Of course they each got their own brownie pan!

A Halloween Dilemma

It had all the makings of a disaster.

I have an 11 year old son who likes to trick or treat. I also have an 18 year old high school senior who plays football. A section semifinal game was scheduled for 7pm, October 31st.

Like I said. The makings of a disaster.

First off, who schedules a game on Halloween for goodness sake! And then, who schedules it for 7 pm on Halloween night?

Apparently the Minnesota High School League does. And as a parent, how was I to handle this? I really didn't want to miss the game (it is his last year, after all). I also wanted my 11 year old to be able to trick or treat and have fun.

Thank goodness for friends! We've known this family for years. It's not easy to find a family who have almost the same spread of ages that we do! It's come in handy since the older boys have played baseball and football together since 6th grade. They were in the same boat. They live very near the high school, and invited AH to trick or treat in their neighborhood so if there was trouble, we could be there quickly. We outfitted the younger boys with cell phones, and sent them off trick or treating with instructions to go home right after they were done.

They two boys had a blast alone! They had quite a load of candy after canvassing the neighborhood and they got to play video games after they were done. I called at half-time asking if they wanted me to pick them up so they could watch the rest of the game. "No Thanks, Mom! We're having fun!"

I was having fun watching my oldest son catch 5 passes for 128 yards and one touchdown! AD was definitely having a great time out on that field and I was there to see it all. The team went on to win and are scheduled to play next weekend in the section final.

All the makings of a disaster. But a great night was had by all!

That's my oldest son, AD, in red running in for a touchdown

Not Back To School Week: Day 1 - Science

Happy first day of your last year in school, AD! A senior this year...where has the time gone? Thanks for letting me take the last first day of school photo of you. Have a great senior year, bud!

While his brother is back to school as a 12th grader, AD is a 6th grader celebrating Not Back to School Week. Below, he is sporting a new T-shirt designed especially for him! It states, "Why is it Called Homeschooling When We're Never Home?" Below is a list of every single place we've gone since we started homeschooling.

We started out the day studying lenses and light. We used the book, Exploratopia, as our guide today. We completed the chapter on light. We made a 2 litre bottle lens, collected various lenses from around the house, discovered the terms convex and concave and the properties of each. AH got to project a TV image (light) through a magnifying lens and onto a poster board(the image turns out smaller and upside down!!!). We read how eyeglasses work and made our own lenses out of ...Jell-O!

Why study lenses?

Because AH now understands how light and lenses work in his new microscope! He was definitely surprised and happy! After reading a little about and filling out a worksheet I made up to familiarize him with the workings of the microscope, he spent the rest of the afternoon (well, 2 hours of it, anyway) looking at the slides we bought him. He also stole some fur from Solvay, our Samoyed, to inspect under the lens!

A good first day!

Happy 24th Anniversary, Douglas!

If ever two were one, then surely we.

If ever man were loved by wife, then thee.

~Anne Bradstreet

Prom

We were all up and gathered at the kitchen table enjoying a wonderful breakfast made by Doug. It looked to be a lazy, relaxing Sunday.

"Oh, I almost forgot," AD, our 17 year old son, said, "I need to get a tux today." "Oh, so you ARE going to prom! Cool! When is it?" I asked.

"Next Saturday." was his reply.

I'm pretty sure my jaw dropped into my lap and Doug, my husband was stammering out the following, his voice rising with every word (and he rarely raises his voice!), "I've asked you for a MONTH if you're going to prom and if you needed a tux and NOW you decide you are going?!" The 17 year old just looked at us as if we were idiots. What was the big deal? Of course there would be tuxes to rent. Of course a week was enough time!

Well, luck seems to follow AD everywhere he goes and they indeed had the tux he wanted and he ended up having a great time. He went with a group of 26 kids. They had dinner at a friends house and rented a party bus to take them to the dance itself. Here are some pictures I took at the pre-prom gathering of his group:

A little help from Dad

AD on the right with one of his best friends, SC.

The whole group

Happy Cuddle-Up Day!

In honor of Cuddle-Up Day AH and I did school work while we cuddled in bed. What a treat! The Qin Dynasty of China, math review and practice, and reading about the history of the celebration of Epiphany have never been so engrossing! It's silly things like this that make our homeschool experience special.

Our 3 Kings!

We are also celebrating the season of Epiphany today. We read the biblical story of the Magi visiting Jesus in Bethlehem and I am baking a Kings Cake to be served after dinner. AH and I hid a gumdrop in the cake (in lieu of a baby Jesus). Researching Epiphany on the 'net lead to a lovely home blessing ritual that I am going to lead tonight after dinner. Even with a 3 kids and 23 years of marriage, I still find it fun to try new things!

Homeschool Break?

Do home schoolers break for the Christmas holiday? We do and I would imagine most home school families do break for this time of year. But we are not the typical home school family. Unfortunately, I am bound by our public school calendar for the most part. It's hard to get AH to do anything when his public-schooled brother is still in bed or going out with his friends. When I step back from my worrying, I realize the learning doesn't stop. AH is fervently working on the new Lego sets he received for Christmas. Amazingly for him, he picked out a new chapter book to begin reading. AH is also making his way through the Planet Earth series (a birthday-Christmas present from big sis and her boyfriend). These chances to learn without Mom overseeing everything is what I try to re-create during our official "schooling" days, but there really isn't anything like the real thing! Besides, it's Christmas break and breaks are for kicking back and relaxing, too! This also gives me a break to organize my files and plans, to make sure we are on track, and do some rearranging or editing of some units. Of course, this gives me time to do some things I've been itching to do. I'm working on my crocheting much more. Doug and I have had some time to spend together. And the education room is looking much better since I de-cluttered it and put things back into their rightful places. Actually, the WHOLE HOUSE is looking better since we've been on break! We also can't dismiss the importance of mental breaks...for student and "teacher"!!! I know I am looking forward to returning to our regular schedule, but will cherish the breaks I'm provided by the school district as an opportunity to break out of our learning ruts and patterns and spark some self discovery!

The Best Christmas Present...EVER!

My husband and I agreed that this year we were not going to exchange expensive gifts. But making things was okay. I once received a beautiful poem from him when we were young and poor and I mentioned to him this year that I would love another one. Doug loves to tease me about my fascination with the Twilight series of books. He often comments that he is my Edward and is always on the look out to save my life. Not much call for that here in central Minnesota. So when I opened up the card that came with my present and it said, "A love story Greater than Edward and Bella..." I expected a love poem about Doug and me, but what I received was much different. He wrote a love story about our youngest, AH, and me, his mother. By writing this poem, I get to see my relationship with our youngest through Doug's eyes. I debated whether I should show you a picture of the gift because it contains our son's name, but decided that it was worth it. It is entitled, Austen's Song, and Austen (or AH, as you have come to know him) decorated it.

Austen's Song

By Doug

She saved his soul

his self esteem

She made him whole

with eyes that gleam

a broken boy

now restored

Her rescue ship

to climb aboard

Her arms outreach

they search and find

She loves to teach

She sculpts his mind

A boy of length

his wondrous ball

He gains strength

She'll catch his fall

She gives every care

She ensures the fun

Journeys everywhere

She sees each run

Her gentle touch

His tender disposition

They love very much

their own tradition

from the very start

their love so pure

joined at the heart

the perfect cure

She loves his smile

and his frowns

Her love for him

knows no bounds

For him,

there is no other

no better friend

Only his mother

His song

sung for you

His love

forever true

Birthday Wrap Up

Well, the weekend of celebrating came to a quiet end last night. It all began on Thursday night when we celebrated AH's birthday with a family dinner. AN and MB joined us for the carbo-load that AH planned for us! They were brave souls!!

On Friday night, AH had his buddies over for the night.

Six energetic 10 and 11 year olds, pizza, cake, snacks and pop! I'm sure you get the picture!! They claim they were up until 4 am, but when I woke up around 3 am, there was no sound coming from downstairs. They say they were just being quiet! Anyway you look at it, AH had a fabulous time with his friends. What a great bunch they are! Saturday was a quiet day at home for all of us. I think we needed some time to decompress. AH spent the day putting his new Lego sets together and having a nerf tag war with his older brother! On Sunday, I took my mother to an Icelandic language Christmas service. The liturgy and most prayers were in Icelandic, but the sermon and 2 songs were in English. It was a nice quiet late afternoon service. Afterwards she and I stopped in to our favorite coffee shope (the Dunn Bros. Coffee shop on Fairview Avenue) for a cup of coffee and a treat! Their roaster is great!!! I've never had a bad cup of coffee there! When we got home, I pulled out our Christmas decorations and put up our tree while listening to Christmas music. AH and I decorated while AD did homework nearby, Doug made dinner, and my mom watched, supervised, chatted, and ate with us.

Happy 11th Birthday, AH!!

Today my baby turns 11 so he gets to plan our dinner:

Tortellinni with Pesto

Crescent Rolls

Malts

DQ ice cream cake

Big Sis is coming to dinner for the celebration too! Our family will truly be together tonight!

The Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY, Monday, November 24th, 2008...

Outside my window...

I see our dog, Solvay, playing with a paper bag she somehow snuck outside

I am thinking...

that I really CAN be handy if I try hard enough!

I am thankful for...

my husband who loves me more than I deserve!

From the learning rooms...

Viking weapons, helmets and music!

From the kitchen...

I'm hoping to make banana bread today.

I am wearing...

a Mickey Mouse hoodie and my favorite jeans.

I am creating...

an agenda for our den meeting this afternoon

I am going...

to run errands this afternoon before our den meeting

I am reading...

This Organic Life:

Confessions of a Suburban Homesteader

I am hoping...

my brother in law feels better!

I am hearing...

Junkyard Wars on TV and my new dryer humming away.

Around the house...

everywhere I look there are dropped suitcases, backpacks, coats and toys from our long weekend at Grandma and Grandpa's house!

One of my favorite things...

is a day with nowhere to go!!! (it happens so rarely!!!)

A few plans for the rest of the week:

boy scouts, baking, cooking Thanksgiving dinner and avoiding malls!

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

AH working clay to make a Viking runestone.

Thank you, Peggy, for this wonderful idea!

Hope

My heart is happy to be back at home after a long, but fun, weekend with my in-laws. I'm relishing the thought of my comfy bed and pillows that are waiting for me this minute! But the pull of another post has me here in front of the computer tonight. We have in our extended family two who are suffering with painful illnesses. It tears me apart to see them suffer. I am thankful, though, that love and compassion are shining so brightly within our family. I am seeing brother help brother. A sister take control when she had to. A devoted husband caring for his wife. And I saw my own children come to the aid of their uncles and grandmother and aunt to help, each in differing, but compassionate ways this past weekend. It is in these instances that we realize that our children are caring, loving people (despite their inability to clean their rooms in a timely manner!). It also reminds us of what is really important in this life. It is always good when one can glean hope and love in times of worry and pain.

Cousin Capers

We are lucky to have a cousin, CA, visiting us from Texas. He and his mom are up to celebrate an early Thanksgiving this weekend with my husband's family. She has been spending quality time with her mom and dad, my in-laws, while we've had CA to ourselves since Sunday. AH and CA are close in age and they have been playing more than they have ever played in their lives! They certainly have managed to wear me out. We spent Monday at the Mall of America exploring Underwater Adventures , building with legos at Lego and riding some rides at Nickelodeon Universe. Here are some pictures I managed to take:

A Stingray decides to take a closer look at the boys.

The boys built cars and raced them on the race track!

On a ride!

Today we spent most of the day at the Science Museum. I was upset with myself that I had forgotten to take my camera with me this morning, so I have no pictures of this afternoon! Anyway, the Science Museum has an exhibit there right now called CSI:The Experience that we found fascinating! We showed up at our appointed time and were handed a clip board with a colored worksheet and pencil. Next, we were ushered into the exhibit with a small group of people and told we were going to examine a crime scene and use forensic science to figure out what happened. There were 3 crime scenes and we were to solve the one that matched the sheet we were given. CA, AH and I worked on Crime Scene #2. I think they gave us 4 or 5 minutes to take careful notes at the crime scene, then we had to go to different stations and answer the questions on our worksheet. At the end, we gave our results to a computer and then were told if we had solved the case correctly. AH, CA and I are proud to say we did solve the crime and are now rookie investigators! We ended up spending about 3 1/2 to 4 hours at the museum. Now I am desperately trying to catch up on my laundry! My new dryer was installed today so the obscene piles that threatened to take over the laundry room are now being systematically attacked! I'm not sure I'll be able to post until next week since we are headed to Grandma and Grandpa's house tomorrow to play and celebrate Thanksgiving a little early. Have a great weekend everyone!

Homeschool Memoirs

THEME:
This week I’d like to invite you to share what YOUR “Mom” help is. Some drink coffee, soda, or chia-tea. Others check email or read their favourite blogs. Some talk a walk…. what do you do when you need to clear your head and take a breather?

You mean some homeschool moms have only one crutch?????

I am addicted to coffee, coca-cola, my computer, my books! These are all my helps. But my absolute favorite activity to regain my sanity is a bubble bath, a book , candlelight, and 3 hours to myself.

The last time that happened was, oh, 1987!

Let it Snow!

I awoke this morning to AH's voice announcing to his dad, "It's snowing out!" Of course I HAD to look, too. And, sure enough, the white stuff was coming down and accumulating on everything but the ground. It has been a beautiful fall and I'm ready for the snow to come!

We headed out into the snow to visit the Raptor Center at the University of Minnesota today. We learned about the sport of falconry and got to tour the facility and see quite a few raptors. AH's favorite raptor is the Golden Eagle. I was intrigued with the beauty and grace of all these magnificent birds! I had no idea falconry was still practiced today.

Red Tailed Hawk

American Kestrel

Our Halloween

What with election day and homeschooling, I've been remiss in posting about our little Halloween party. Of course, it wouldn't be Halloween without carving and pumpkin seeds! But this year was tough for us. This was the first year AH and I were the only ones carving. AD, our 17 year old, didn't join us for the first time ever. I think it was a little sad for AH, but he seemed to go with the flow. Our finished products:

Notice the bat? We got this idea from the recent issue of FamilyFun magazine.

Every Halloween we put the firepit in our front yard and welcome anyone and everyone to sit with us for a spell. Inside the house we have mulled cider, some kind of stew or soup, and munchies.

We play halloween themed music and give out candy and talk with our neighbors. Oct. 31st is my father's birthday, so my mom and dad join us later for a birthday celebration. This year our daughter, AN, and her significant other, MB and two of her high school friends joined us. MB's birthday is November 1st, so we had a double celebration. Here are the birthday boys:

Of course you can't have Halloween without costumes!

AH before he went trick or treating with a neighbor:

AD was off to a party in this costume:

It is interesting to note that my husband is a high school football ref. Hmmm, is this a dig at his dad?!

Our Election Day Party Pictures

As promised, here are some pictures of our election night dinner.

AH prepares his red/white and blue/white rolled cookies for the oven:

The finished product:

Our Red, White and Blue Sundaes:

Our coffee table downstairs:

Our Flag Pizza before cooking:

Election Day

What a great country we live in! I am such a geek when it comes to voting. I take my responsibility and my privilege to vote very, very seriously! My husband had an appointment this morning and came back (a 45 minute drive one way) after so that he could vote early today. AH and I joined him. AH has been fascinated by this election. He is ten, so this is probably the first presidential election that he has been able to really process the information (and non information!) that has been flying around. We've had some great family discussions about issues, people, candidates, and decision-making this past 6 months. It really does help when our (immediate) family agrees on a lot of the issues, but I'm so proud to say that they are respectful of differing opinions. AD, the 17 year old, is so bummed that he won't be voting for a president for 4 more years. But he told me last night that he can't wait until next November so that he can start being heard. I'm thrilled that my children have followed in our footsteps in that they appreciate the opportunity and responsibility of this process to elect our own leaders.

Anyway, AH accompanied me into the voting booth and had some great questions while I was filling in the ovals on my ballot: "What is the green party?" "Why don't we hear more from the other parties?" "Why is there only one name in this section?" "You can write in someones name?!" And there were plenty more questions. Each of my kids has come to vote with me at one time or another and that has helped them become interested in the process and, hopefully, made them into proud, American voting geeks as well!

Speaking of being a geek, tonight we will be eating in front of the television tonight, watching the results come in. On the menu, lots of little tidbits: A flag shaped pizza; popcorn; red and blue corn chips and salsa; and red, white and blue cookies. I'll post some pictures tonight so you can all see how geeky I can be!