Letting Go

We had huge milestones this year.

It was the big girl's senior year and as of May 20, she is officially graduated!! It was a hard fought battle, but, by golly, it's done. The dance load was huge this year, but that was lightened when we got kicked out. That's a different story for another blog, but you can bet your bippidies, it's coming out (full of angst, jealousy, butt hurt, and back stabbing. I cannot make this stuff up). Her school load was heavy this year. She could have saved herself a lot of trouble, but you know how that goes. Hello, senioritis, it's been a while since I've seen you. We both had a HUGE case of that. We all know the only cure for that is to be done, done, done with school, which was not an option. Here are some pics of our year.

Senior pics. The struggle is real, y'all. I teared up during the shoot and balled like a baby when I got all the pics back. She is so stinkin' gorgeous, but that goes all the way through to her soul. She is kind and generous and giving and loving and funny and intelligent and here come the tears again!!

 



I have more company pictures, but they're on my old phone, darnit. I might just have to do another post. Well, ok, if you insist...

 



My kids can hula hoop like nobody's business. At the kingdom one day, there was a nice cast member handing them out. So my kids took them. And I took this! There was a little girl that said "Mommy, I want to hoop like that!" Me, too, child, me, too.

 

This amazing young lady is one of our favorite people on earth. She choreographed the big girl's solo, gave my kids dance lessons after the big debacle, and found opportunities for the big girl to present her solo. I have so much respect for her and her outlook on life. I will forever be grateful for her spirit and grace.

 



The big girl and her bestie attended a couple of cons this year. Her bestie, A, likes to cosplay and so the big girl joined her. A is Kylo Ren and the big girl is Rey. They were like rock stars when they walked in and pretty much all day. I had no idea what a big deal it would be, but they had an amazing time.

 

 

They also went to Megacon this year and had a huge Lord of the Rings group. The big girl was Arwen, A was Legolas. They also had Boromir, Gandalf, Faramir, and Gimli. Along the way they met a group of guys that were Gondorian troops, so they all took a pic together. That was super cool!

 

 

 

So what else? She had a big role in our Christmas play this year. It was bigger than what we've done in years past and she rocked it. She got her driver's license, thank God! That has been a blessing. She performed at a recital at a friend's studio. She performed in skits at church. I know there's so much more, but I'll be darned if I can remember anything else right now.

 

What does her future hold? So much! This summer she and her siblings will be touring with the New Dawn Singers. If you happen to be in Pennsylvania this summer, message me and I'll let you know where she'll be. She wants to attend a special effects make-up school that's fairly close. She will be auditioning, auditioning, auditioning when she turns 18 because she wants to dance at the House of the Mouse. And later, she'll attend a local technical school to get her cosmetology license so she can work in special effects when she's done with that portion of her schooling.

 

And, as always, her future is bright and wide open! I am so excited to see where the Lord leads her. Y'all hang on. I know this is going to be a great ride!

 

Have a great day.

Dance, Donuts, and Disney

I know it's been awhile. I'm trying to remedy that. I'll be dumping some pics. You're so lucky! Today's post is brought to you by the letter D...



 

 

 

 

 

These are the pointe and ballet costumes from recital. I need to download the rest of the pics. I have to be honest, though. I was so busy back stage, I didn't get a lot of them. The best ones are from a friend that took pics during performances. She got some great shots!

The big girl wanted me to get pics of her pointe shoes at the end of the year, after it was all said and done. Poor beat-up shoes. We go in August to get fitted for a new pair for the upcoming season.

I found some break dance classes for the kids. It's actually just called breaking, but when you say that, people think you're destroying things. The classes are very inexpensive, but it's kind of a drive. You want to talk about fun, though.These are just a couple of shots. They are learning a move called the 6 step in the bottom pic. The kids are also learning how to do a baby freeze. Look it up, but I promise no babies were injured in the learning of that step. I am super impressed with the instructor. And just a little jealous.

 

This was my birthday cake from last year. Donuts. I can't have sugar or grains, but I would eat every single one of these if they were in front of me right now. I would be miserable later, but totally worth it!

We wandered the resorts at Christmas time. It was something we hadn't ever done before and we are so glad we did! This is the ginger bread house at the grand Floridian. That is an amazing place in and of itself, but dress it up for Christmas and holy cow! See the boy and the baby in the bottom right hand corner of the screen? That should give you the size scale.

We also stopped at the wedding chapel that sits between the Grand Floridian and the Polynesian. GORGEOUS! Then we found this around the back. Hubby and I are blocking it, but Cinderella's castle is right between us. I want all my kids to get married there.

The Christmas tree at the Grand Floridian. It goes almost all the way to the ceiling. The ceiling is waaaaaaaaaayyyyyyy up there!

Phineas and Ferb need no introduction. We knew what we were doing that day!

A Bill and Ted moment at the Hall of Presidents. My kids are crazy, did you know that? Totally hubby's fault!

Cinderella's carriage from the movie. I sure wish we could have gotten in, but I get it. I don't like it, but I get it.

One of our favorite things is the concert series at Epcot. They do 2 a year. Y'all should be jealous because En Vogue are still gorgeous, still super talented, and still put on an absolutely amazing show!!

That's all I have for now. I may do a school post later. Or I might not. Who knows?

Have a great day.

In Sickness and in Health...

I know. It's been awhile. We have been slammed busy. I don't really like when we get so busy I can't remember what day it is or where I'm supposed to be. Here's what we have going on:

• Yup, there has been a lot of yuckiness around here. The big girl and the boy had it 3 times! I tell everybody I can't be mad at them. At least they're sharing! I did tell the kids after round 2, though, that if they got it again, I was dropping them at the animal shelter. Every time they got it, it was just a little different than the time before. I found that one of the best things for a cough is a spoonful or coconut oil followed by a spoonful of raw, local honey. It took about 15 minutes to work, but at least the big girl was finally able to sleep. We missed roughly 3 weeks of school and each of the kids missed at least 2 weeks of dance. Everybody is fine now except for the runny noses. So. Much. Snot...
• School is way behind due to bullet point number 1. There won't be much of a spring break around here. We'll take a few days because the big girl is spending time with a friend and I'm hoping to have my niece and nephew for a couple of days. We'll see how it goes.
• We have a new to us vehicle! It was time. We had finally found parts for the van that were available and not expensive. But once we took care of the little stuff that seemed like a big deal, we ran into some things that were big stuff that was a big deal. Stuff that would take hours to fix or a professional. We traded her for a 2006 Jeep. Gorgeous vehicle! She's silver and chromed out and did I say gorgeous? It's MUCH smaller than the van on the inside and we're having a hard time figuring it all out. Sometimes I wish we had gotten the Suburban, but it was way out of our price range. The Jeep had a leaky sunroof (every used vehicle with a sunroof is a flood waiting to happen, and I don't mean outside your vehicle), but hubby fixed it because he totally rocks!
• Dance rehearsals started back in February. The kids are learning their company recital dance. They've started recital dances in their regular classes as well. So much to learn! We're also involved in some fund raisers. We are raffling Easter baskets, we are starting birthday parties at the studio, and we are having hot dog/bake sales at a local retailer. Add that to the regular schedule and things get crazy around here.
• Science co-op is getting ready to wind down. It has been an interesting year, that's for sure. I've enjoyed hanging with the younger crowd and not listening when I have to sit in on chemistry. I'm glad the boy and the big girl are both in that class. That means I'll only have to teach it once. Or find a teacher. My friend M has volunteered to teach a speech and debate class next year. We just may do that.
• I did a quick clean out of the curriculum cabinet. I did take some things out to sell that I know I won't use. There are a couple of local used curriculum sales I may participate in. Get rid of what I can and see if I can trade for what I need. I'm already planning for next year, but you already knew that. My next step is to make a list of what I need to complete a set, and what I want to complete a set. I've made a bunch of copies this year, but at least I have them for later.
• We're getting new chicks! We need to make them a home for now and a home for later. We figured we put them in with the older ladies since there are only 2 of them left. And that's one reason we're getting new chicks. We're getting chickens that lay green eggs. That's going to be so much fun!

That's about it for now. But, really that's enough since I have to go teach!

Have a great day.

For Your Enjoyment (Well, Mine, Really, but Whatever)

I cleaned some pics off my phone the other day. Over 300 of them. My total is now below 1200. Woot!! I'm getting there. And since I had to download some before I deleted them from my phone, I get to do a photo dump blog!

 

This was when Blossom first came home. She was so tiny. And cute. And good. Hmmm...

 

 



Just another dance picture. We seem to have a ton of those for some reason...

 



 

This was our first official family pic at Disney. Wow, have things changed! And grown...

 

I can always count on the big girl for a selfie. This was at Hollywood Studios for the Osborne Family Lights. Love that place...

 



The boy after he won 2nd place in the talent show. I think he should have gotten first...

 



Gotta love a family shot...

 



Beautiful...and lazy...

 



 

The big girl and the boy teaching dance at VBS...oh, yeah, they did... 

 

Downtown O-town after a Magic game...

 



 

Because sometimes there isn't anywhere else to sit...

 

Big girl said she didn't look good in a scarf. I showed her...

 



 

This is our loot from the summer reading program a couple of years ago. Yet another reason we read...

 

 

And that's all you get. For now...

 

Have a great day...



Stretching...

We are in our last official week of school. Glory, glory, hallelujah! The end is almost here. Come April, I have had all the fun I care to have. There is still a couple of weeks of science co-op, and as long as we have that, the kids are going to finish their math. The big girl dragged her feet with her Algebra II, so she has some summer school to do. Here's what's been going on in a random style blog.

• Science co-op is winding down. It has been a blast teaching biology. I had a great time and I hope the kids learned tons. Biology is one of my favorite subjects. Next year is chemistry for the big girl and the boy. My chemistry background is horrible so I'm glad there's a different teacher for that class. The baby will be with the youngers. They are going to do earth science next year. I'm actually looking forward to that. It helps I only have to teach once every 5-6 weeks. I have no idea what I'll do with the free time. Oh, you know that's not true. There will hopefully be much, much reading going on.
• There was a used curriculum sale in our little town. I was hoping to find some of what I need for next year, but no such luck. There is a huge sale in a neighboring town. They consistently have over 200 people selling their books. I don't need much, but if I can find it for super cheap, all the better. I already know of 3 things I have to buy new, but those are inexpensive. Hubby is taking the day off to chauffer me and a couple of friends to the sale.  
• We are about a month away from recital. All of the dances are coming along and several are done. I'm excited to see the costumes. It's one of my favorite times of the year. The company number is almost complete. It is going to be so much fun. The big girl has been helping in a half/half class. The girls are 5-6 years old and the class is a half hour of tap and a half hour of ballet. They go on right after the company number this year. They are too cute!
• Summer camp and summer dance start shortly after recital. The big girl will start pointe this summer. She is so excited. The big girl and the boy also get their week at camp. I wish I could have gone to camp as a kid. The baby is champing at the bit to go. One more summer and she's in.
• Summer reading is always in our summer plans. We missed the last 2 summers because of traveling, but the kids like the programs that are being set up. We usually sign up at a couple of different libraries and pick and choose the activities.

Just a few more days and we are free. Mostly. I just want to go to Disney!

Have a great day.

A Dash of This, a Dash of That

That's my way of saying this is going to be a random blog. Just a little bit here and there. Which, of course, leads to bullet points. I love bullet points.

• From the farm: We lost a chicken. Our original ladies number 9 now. We looked out and she was sitting on the ground. And couldn't get up. We isolated her and she never got better. The kids found her when they went to check on her. I think the ladies miss her. On the flip side of that, we have 6 new chicks! When we got our original ladies, we decided on pullets. They were a little more expensive, but I would have felt bad if I killed a chick. Well, rule of thumb, never enter a raffle for something you don't want. Hubby entered a raffle outside the feed store, just for grins and giggles. Lucky duck won!! We won 6 chicks and a bag of starter feed. We wanted Ameraucanas, but they were all out. They were a straight run, too, which meant we could possibly get a rooster. Or 6 roosters. Yuck! We ended up picking 6 from a menagerie of types that were all sexed to be females. Right now they are living in a plastic tub in my kitchen. The chirping is amazing. I thought it would get old, and quick, but it's actually very relaxing. Happy chicks make happy cheeps! And they are so fuzzy, I'm going to die!!!! Cutest. Thing. Evah!!
• From the schoolroom: We have a little over 2 months of school left. Where did the time go? Tick, tock, baby. The big girl is behind in her Algebra 2, and if you tell her I said anything I will deny, deny, deny. She is trying to complete 2 assignments a day to get caught up because she will school all summer. Who wants to do that? I am researching curriculum for next year. I am trying to stay away from a computer based program. There is one computer in this house and I do not need them making a fuss about who's turn it is. I perused my cabinet of curriculum to see what I need for next year. It turns out I need quite a bit. I thought I had more, but apparently, I didn't think that far ahead. There is a huge curriculum sale coming up I am bound and determined to go to. I'm hoping to pick most of it there or on a couple of chat boards I belong to. And I think I may have the big girl take American Government and US History. She may kill me in my sleep if I make her do that. So maybe not since she will also have to complete her first ever research paper. Don't judge.
• From the kitchen: I got a new crock pot!! I am so happy!! It is a quart bigger and I can set it for a specific length of time. I love it. I am a little intimidated by that extra quart, though. I feel like I should be adding more food to the pot. The baby's birthday is coming up soon. She wants an ice cream sandwich cake. Not a problem. If I don't eat it all while I'm making it. 
• In the garden: There is not much happening in the garden. The rabbits have decimated the cabbage. The broccoli started to grow back, and the scoundrels just eat it as fast as it can grow. Hubby's looking into traps. Our poor tower has sat neglected for too many months. That is getting a good cleaning and set up for planting. We are going to try a lot of greens: lettuce, chard, bok choi, and kale. Wish us luck.
• At the studio: We are into recital dances. This is one of my favorite times of the year. When the dances start, they are rough for sure. By recital time, they are polished and so good! The kids are working so hard. The instructors are not making it easy on them, that's for sure. I am having a hard time dancing. My foot just aches and aches. It is usually swollen for the rest of the night and part of the next day. Blech!  We are into company rehearsals as well. There is a ton in this dance and it will be an amazing number come recital time. I have a feeling it will be a show stopper. 
• Around the house: Not much. The mountain of Mt. Washmore seems to always grow back again and again. We still need to paint the boy's room. We got the paint free with a coupon I got from my Better Homes and Gardens magazine. Now to actually use that paint. And new blinds are in order. Not only do we just need new blinds, but Stella doesn't wait for me to open them. She just dives right through. I'm not sure we have a whole set of blinds anymore. Ours have big Stella size gaps in them. Crazy dog.

That's about all I have for now. I'm getting some stuff together for a picture blog. Yea, more pics of my kids!

Have a great day. 

Daybook Be My Playbook

Catchy title, huh? Things are a little jumbled in my head, so it's the easiest thing for me right now. Ready? Come on...

• I am listening to... Queen's A Crazy Little Thing Called Love. My kids are diggin' Queen. Me, too, actually. I downloaded their greatest hits and now the kids want me to make a CD for the van. Well, ok, when I get the time. Oooo, Destiny's Child now.
• I am reading...Doctor Sleep by Stephen King. It is almost the continuation of The Shining. It's the story of the son, Danny. I borrowed it from a friend. It is so good. Hubby and I stopped at the library today and I browsed their bookstore. I walked out with 2 Dean Koontz books I hadn't seen before. I'm ready to read those, but I need to get through the Stephen King book first. Our after dinner book is the last 39 Clues book from the Cahills vs. Vespers series. We had started it, but we weren't able to finish it before we had to turn it in. In the four weeks we waited for it, we started Where the Red Fern Grows. We'll go back to that when we finish the current book. So much reading and switching, I hope we remember it all.
• From the kitchen...So, you know we do the whole cook from scratch thing. Hubby has taken on a new endeavor in that arena. He bakes bread. I had done the whole bread from scratch thing a couple of times. It was just not my thing. I liked the bread the first day, but come day 2, I was not impressed. Hubby found a recipe that is super yummy on day 2 and beyond. It makes the most delicious sandwiches. Oh, my. His brother just gave us a ham from a pig he caught and I picked up some conch peas at the farmer's market. We are going country around here. Add hubby's bread, sliced and still a little warm. Makes me want to cook right now!
• From the garden...We let the chickens free range in the garden a few times. That was hilarious the first time, watching the ladies look at each other and trying to figure out what they were supposed to do. They did a very good job of scratching and eating lots of little buggies from the raised beds. Hubby cleaned out the tower and gave it a good scrubbing. We got everything planted finally a couple of weeks ago. We have brussel sprouts, broccoli, and cabbage. Our pepper plants are still hanging in there. We aren't getting any peppers, but the plants are still green and growing. I am so ready for those brussel sprouts! I've got a few weeks to wait bit I go out every day and encourage them. Go, sprouts, go!
• From the schoolroom...Still trying to find a groove for the big girl. So much work, so little time! We have gone to a block system. She has one hour a day for each subject she has to do. So far, there have only been a couple of days where she had to go back and finish something. And now there's driver's ed in the mix. She is about halfway done with it and I am ready for it to be OVER! She has done very well and hubby gave her the first driving lesson today. I'm not sure I'm ready for that part, but it's almost here, so I need to get over it. I have dropped Latin for the baby and the boy. It wasn't getting done, and before I knew it, 3 weeks had passed and there hadn't been a lesson done. Ok, then, moving on. Works for me.
• From the dance studio...rehearsal, rehearsal, rehearsal! We are about 3 weeks out from the holiday performances. All of the dances are done and now it's clean up time. The baby started rehearsal for the group that dances in the Christmas parade. It's tough right now, and it seems like we only have time for dance and school (because that's all we have time for!), but I am so proud of the kids for all of their hard work! I love to watch my kids perform!
• Around the house...I know that one day Mt. Laundry won't be there and the dishes in the sink at Mt. Washmore will be gone. I'll miss the chaos and the scrambled to get out the door. I know I'll have time to actually clean my house. It will be here before I know it. Until then, I'm trying to not have a panic attack at all the cleaning that needs to be done around my house. I'm breathing, I'm breathing...I'm freaking out just a little.

And that's what I've got for now. Just a little peek into the funhouse. Who doesn't like a little fun?

Have a great day.

Daybook

Hubby's almost done making tortillas, which means breakfast, so let's get started, shall we? Music's rolling, lights are dimmed, and queue:

• I am listening to: Godsmack right now, but who knows what will pop up next. The kids were on restriction  from electronics for a week and today is the day they get them back. I have to be honest and say I can't remember what they got put on restriction for, since that was longer ago than yesterday. Anyway, The TV has finally come back on and I don't want to hear it. Yuck. Oooh, now I'm listening to Snap! I got the power!
• Around the house: The pig sty has returneth. I miss July when the chores were getting done. But, we started school and science co-op, so there goes what little time we had for that. It's really not as bad as I make it sound. For the long weekend, hubby has a list of chores we need to get done. Yea, chores! Not really. I despise chores and I wish I had a chores fairy. The most exciting news is that we just celebrated the big girl's birthday. She turned 15 and we spent the day at Disney. Duh. We all had a good time, but you probably already knew that. Guess what she gets to do now? Learn to drive. That is hubby's job. I told him I carried and birthed the babies, he gets to teach them to drive. That seems fair, don't you think? Heaven help us.
• For the holiday: Ha! I added a new category! We don't have big plans. We're talking about going to the beach. Hubby wants to metal detect after 4,000,000 people have been there for the weekend. We just bought a grill. It's a little $20 table top. We haven't had a grill in almost 2 years and we wanted one. Burgers're going on that thing this weekend. I. Love. Grilled. Burgers.
• From the schoolroom: It's been a bit of a rough start for us. We started at the beginning of August so we are about 4 weeks into it. It has been a huge adjustment in workload for the big girl. She was using FLVS for Latin, but she dropped that class. What a big, giant cluster of mess that is! If you haven't used the website, it is not user friendly at all. The lessons seemed to weave back and forth, but never long enough on one topic to make sense. Her teacher was really nice. I have heard horror stories about some of the teachers. Gives me shivers. She will take driver's ed from them because I hear that's pretty good. I have high hopes. The boy and the baby have a heavier word load this year, too. I added vocabulary to their day. There was always vocabulary in their language arts, but I didn't feel like it spent enough time reinforcing the word. They're both using Wordly Wise 3000. I used it with the big girl when she was in the 5th grade. Love it! They are both learning Latin this year. They get science at co-op, so that kind of freed up a spot. So far, so good. They both seem to be enjoying it, so yea!
• From the dance studio: We start dance next week!! I cannot even begin to express how excited we are about that. There are just no words.
• And don't forget Stella: Stella is 6 months old now, closing in on 7. She is not the teeny baby anymore. She is so big. She can set her head on the dining table. We don't let her keep it there, but good grief. She is super smart. She and hubby were chasing each other yesterday. At one point, she reversed on him so many times, he had no idea where she was going to come from. I watched the whole thing and I had no clue! She's learned sit, lay down, show me your belly, and off, darn dog, get down! She still follows hubby like he saved her life. She has even made friends with the neighbor's dogs. They run up and down the fence line, chasing each other. She won't get to go play for real until she gets Bob Barkered. We still can't get her to stop barking at Mr. D, our neighbor. He even brings her cookies! Maybe one day.

I think that's about all I have for now. Tortillas are ready and I'm hungry.

Have a great day.      

Planning

I have a plan. Well, for now. I am a planner. I like to know where we're going and how to get there. From there, I fly by the seat of my pants. It's about the journey, what can I say? So here are some plans.

• We have all of our curriculum for next year. I've sorted through my curriculum cabinet and taken out everything that I am absolutely not using. I put all of our stuff in that we'll be using now and later. I've made a list of the things I will need to complete sets. I've boxed all the stuff I'm getting rid of. Now I just need to get it posted and sell it. That would clear a spot in my living room I'd like to have back. With Mabel in the living room, there isn't much open space.
• I am thinking of starting a biology co-op for next year. Biology is my favorite science. I haven't decided when, but I may hold the class at our church. The only thing that may get in the way is the storage of our dissecting specimens. I think it would help the big girl to have someone else to study with and I have friends that are terrified of higher level science. I even have a couple of biology projects planned. Eek!!
• I have thought about some co-op classes in different subjects for the big girl. Some things to consider are timing, driving, and money. I'm just not sure if it would be right for her. It might give her the opportunity to get a little more one on one help since I have her brother and sister to teach. She would have to be responsible to someone other than me. I think that would be good for her. Just don't know. Yet.
• I am attending a Finish Well conference. They walk you through how to homeschool through high school. I love that question, by the way. Are you going to homeschool all the way through? Yes. Yes I am. I am excited about the possibilities and the opportunity to get some fresh ideas. I am excited about getting some guidelines (there's that planning thing again. I'll probably show my butt).
• I have gone through all my freebies and picked out some fun things for the boy and the baby to use for science. We are going to start with weather and go from there. I downloaded a ton of freebies from my favorite lapbook company, In the Hands of a Child. I even downloaded a unit study of mythical creatures. That was for fun, but it looked really cool. 

I know we haven't finished this year yet. I know we still have 3 1/2 months of school left. That's a lot of time and then there's summer break. There's dance and piano and girls club and co-op and field trips and so many things to think about and plan. I know where the path is leading, though. Now to play adventurer and see what the journey holds!

Have a great day.
       

More Pics

Just some random stuff.

This was the family that was in town for my mom's funeral. We went and ate Mexican food, which was one of her favorites. Margaritas have never been so good...

My sweet nieces, the baby, and my crazy boy! We were walking to the park to hang out and play. Love spending time with them!

Turn your back on the big girl for half a second and what happens? She makes herself comfortable and starts reading. Wonder where she gets that from? Oh, yeah...

I love the fact that all the people in the background of this pic are family. I call that crowd control.

The babies!!What happens when you get 2 divas in a room? Lots of laughing and trying to out queen each other. But they're so pretty, how can you help but laugh (and put them in time out when they've gone too far!)

Have a great day.

Daybookish...

Outside my window: It's a little gray, but the sun should be out soon. It's going to be cold tonight and the next couple of days, but hopefully, it will get back to the 80's. Soon!

Around the house: Holy smokes, will someone please get the Christmas stuff into the tubs and put away?!?!?! I have it all together, it's just getting the rest done. Meanwhile, all that stuff just sits in my kitchen, taking up space. It could sprout legs and help itself just any second now...

From the garden: I am this close to having rabbit for dinner! Stinkers ate our garden. We had taken some cabbage out of the tower and planted it. It was beautiful! It's gone. Brussel sprouts, bok choy, cabbage, broccoli and carrots are all gone. Gonna clean a rabbit it happens again! We cleaned out the tower to get it ready for "planting". We are plotting our square foots. And we are planning a fence! Grrrrrr...

From the schoolroom: We are taking the day off. I had work scheduled, but it's the boy's birthday. Hubby has to work Saturday, so we're gonna school then instead. I am trying to get the big girl to schedule her time better. Some days she can get it all done. Some days it's like pulling teeth to get anything finished. On a bright note, I have some curriculum planned for next year already. See how I am.

I am reading: Alas, Babylon. I know it should be a good book, but I haven't had the time to devote to it. I'm hoping to sit and read today and see if it gets any better. If not, it goes back and gets replaced by one of the 5 books I get to pick up from the library today. We finished Mark of Athena as our after dinner book, and are reading Shatterproof, which is a 39 Clues book. We have 3 series we're reading and they keep coming out with new books! Somewhere in there, I manage to throw in some classics and just some fun stuff.

From the kitchen: Smoothie heaven!! We are loving the Ninja! My favorite so far is kiwi, apple, spinach, cucumber, and coconut water. It is refreshing and cool and so stinking good! Hubby and I are rededicating ourselves to not going to restaurants. There are a couple of new vegetarian cooking websites that I like. I'm looking forward to trying some of the recipes. And adding meat to a couple.
 
From the dance floor: Love, love, love, the kids new class! They are all taking a spins, leaps, and jumps class. After the spins, you should see the baby! Too funny. She's working on her spotting, but doesn't have it quite down yet. Recital dances are being learned. It is going to be crazy for us this year with 2 dances for each kid. I don't know how the kids with 4 and 5 classes or more do it. Eeeekkkk!

That's about it. I'm going to enjoy the quiet a little longer and do some reading.

Have a great day.

Catchin' Up

We are still here! I promise. Just some stuff to convince you:

• We've been sick. Oh, yuck. How does the body produce so much snot? That is just disgusting. And debilitating. Apparently, when you're sick, that's what your body does with all it's energy. It makes more snot. Thanks, I've had my quota for the day. It's hubby's fault and he is in so much trouble. We're finally getting over it. I cancelled school for the week. Which stunk because we were off for the whole week of Thanksgiving. We schooled Monday, part of Tuesday, then forget it. At least I have the beginnings of lesson plans for next week.
• Still not sure we'll make the Christmas parade this year. It's this weekend and the kids are still recovering. We have one more rehearsal and we'll see how they do. I'm sure they'll be amazing, but it's a long walk when you're dancing you're tushy off. We are resting, practicing a little, and just trying to take it easy. The theme this year is a Seussical Christmas. The boy was going to be the Grinch, but I couldn't find a costume. Instead, he's the Once-ler from The Lorax. Simple, easy and he can wear the clothes for every day wear. Sweet! The big girl is going to be the Cat in the Hat. She is something. Now to find someone to do her makeup...
• The good thing about being sick and not schooling is that I've had time to catch up on some reading. Loving that. We finished a book on CD to listen to Life of Pi. The movie is coming out and I wanted to read the book with the kids first. Yeah, well. We got through the first 5 chapters before I pulled the CD out of the player. A little inappropriate for my younger 2. "Hey, Mama. What's a sexual deviant?" is not a question I want to answer for my 8 year old, but thanks for playing the game. Maybe in 20 years. The book we finished, The Navigator, was really good. There are supposed to be more books, but we'll find out. We just read George's Marvelous Medicine as our after dinner book. I can honestly say that Roald Dahl is our favorite author. We're back to Mark of Athena. Hopefully, we'll get it finished. If not, I requested it under all the kids, so we have more time.
• I am already researching curriculum for next year. I need to go through my cabinet of doom and see what I have and what I need. I only have pieces and parts of some things. Others, I think I'm going a different way. Oh, how I love curriculum.
• We had a great Thanksgiving. We had our big meal Wednesday, then went to the mouse's house on Thursday. It wasn't bad. Some parts of some parks were a little crowded, but those parts are always crowded. We didn't stay too long since hubby had to work the next day. And besides, we had pie left! The big girl made 2 apple pies, the boy made a pumpkin, and the baby made chocolate pie. Scrumptious! One of the apple pies didn't make the night. Everyone had some, even me. My nephew had a huge piece. It realy was very good and I don't eat apple pie.

That's all I've got. We're still here, I promise. I think it's nap time, though. Wish we still had pie.

Have a great day.

•         

Bees Knees

I don't know if bees have knees or not. I know the saying is supposed to mean that something is really great. I think my blog is great, but that's just me. I just had to use a bee reference, though. You'll see why in a minute. Ready for the journey?

• We are taking a field trip to our local enough zoo to take a beekeeping class. We aren't going to keep bees, but it would be great to know what makes them tick and how do we attract more of them to our garden. I'd also like to find out what the beekeeper's views are about hive collapse. I think it's pesticides. Poison is supposed to kill things so why not bees. And the larger the colony the better chance of spreading it to the rest of the bees. That isn't why we're going, either. We're going because we like honey and we think it's way cool. We have to wear long sleeve shirts and long pants, they supply the helmets. That's gonna bee a funny pic. I made a funny. In honor of our field trip, we are going to forgo most of our schoolwork and do a bee lap book and unit study. We are still going to do bible and math, but how fun. I checked out a bunch of books from the library. The baby has read all but 1. Guess who's going to teach the bee unit study? Not really. I even checked out a Magic School Bus movie just for fun. 
• Speaking of watching movies, we watched Chitty Chitty Bang Bang for our family movie night. I haven't seen that movie in probably 30 years. The kids and I had listened to it as a book on CD. It was completely different from the book, but we all enjoyed it. Hubby had only seen parts of it. We were singing the CCBB song all night. It's very catchy! I had no idea Roald Dahl had written the screenplay. We heart Roald Dahl. I am waiting for Mary Poppins to come in. I also haven't seen that one in years. My kids haven't seen it at all that I know of. I am a bad mama. It's in transit, so hopefully we'll get to pick it up come Monday or Tuesday. 
• We did a pretty good cleaning of the house before my dad and step mom came to visit. Believe it or not, except for the kitchen, which is the hub of our home, everything has basically stayed that way. If I can keep ahead of the hand washing, my island stays clear. I've even mopped a couple of times since they left. That, in and of itself, is tantamount to a miracle. The baby's room, however, may be the downfall. That poor room. 
• I make our own broths. One of my favorites to make is veggie. I keep a gallon size baggie in the fridge in the crisper drawer. When it's about 1/2 full, I make stock. I save the peels from my garlic press, the ends I cut off the onions, potato and carrot peels, zucchini ends I cut off, and spinach leaves and stems. I also save some of the cabbage leaves I pull off the plants in the tower. I normally make it in the crock pot, but I changed my mind last time. I pulled our big stock pot out from under the cabinet and made it on the stove top. I let it cook for a few hours. I like it much better. My house smelled amazing! It smelled like veggie soup, only better. I used it to make brown rice and a couple of other things. It was so good. That has now become the way I prefer to make veggie stock. 
• We had our first ever tailgate party at youth tonight. It went very well I think. There was some last minute stress that required us taking our little table top grill, but it was all good. We had grilled hot doge, brats, and hamburgers. We also did chicken wings, but we baked those since the grill was small. We had a pretty good turnout. 
• We are looking for some trick or treating options. We normally trick or treat at my in-laws with the rest of the family, but that is not happening this year. My MIL said she cancelled it. Funny since I'm not sure anyone will be there this year anyway. I already have a bead on some fall festivals we're planning on and some trunk or treats planned. We aren't keeping the candy we get this year. Our dentist has a program where you can turn in your candy for chances to win prizes. I wonder what the prizes will be this year. We're hoping for a Kindle Fire, but we'll see.   
• I am trying to be grateful for the loaner computer. I really am. When I have to print, I get extremely frustrated. There are only 2 USB drives that work. I have 3 things to plug in usually: my mouse, my flash drive and the printer. The process is mouse and flash drive, click what I need to print, unplug mouse and plug in printer, after printing unplug printer and plug mouse back in. Pain in my butt! But, we have a computer, we have a computer, WE HAVE A COMPUTER. Sorry, I didn't mean to yell. I think I was trying to convince myself. Gift horse, gift horse, gift horse...
• I have to write everything down or I'll forget. You have to email me, text me, or social network me. I use the notes feature on my phone like it's going out of style. If I can set an alarm to remind me as well, then bully. I have lost my mind. Wait, I think I already knew that. Let me check my notes.

And there's my alarm. Well, not really, but I did mark stuff off my list. Now to fill it up again.

Have a great day.       

7 Is the Magic Number

I know it's really 3. I have the Schoolhouse Rock DVDs. Let's hope I make it to 7.

• Dinner was extra scrumptious tonight. Hubby made gravy! Believe it or not, I am gravy challenged. Sometimes I make good gravy, but sometimes not so much. I made a pot roast. In years past I would use a can of cream of mushroom soup and a packet of onion soup mix. Not anymore. I did use homemade chicken stock and fresh basil when I cooked the roast, though. I made mashed potatoes and they needed gravy. So hubby worked his gravy magic. Even the picky baby ate it, and she doesn't like gravy. Oh, to have a sweet potato biscuit... 
• My SIL that I get along with posted a math problem on FB. She needed help solving it. Several people tried, including me. I got 432. I got it right! But, really, the big girl and I just got done with that in her math. If I hadn't gotten it right, then shame on me. 
• We have bell peppers galore in our garden right now. We picked several the other day for stuffed peppers. We must have 7 or 8 that are almost ready to pick. Loving that! We have okra. Unfortunately, we only have 3 okra plants right now, so there will probably only be enough for one person. Or I could be nice and share with hubby. We have more started and we originally planted 6 okras. 3 died and one is very small. It still has little okras on it. Our broccoli is getting big. We are excited for that. We have brussel sprout sprouts ready for the tower. Our sweet potatoes and yukons are growing like gangbusters. Hubby wants to train the sweets to grow up then put them in a big pot, like at Epcot. We don't really have the growing room that they need, but we make a lot of things from sweet potatoes and would like to grow as many as we can. Our bok choi looks so cute. Now, if we can make it to harvest, we'll be ecstatic.
• The baby has switched jazz classes. She tried the one after her tap class and loved it! That makes me happy. I wasn't sure she'd like it since it's a bigger class. She has her most of her tap friends in her jazz class so that makes her happy. We're in town one less day so that makes my gas tank and wallet happy. Happy for small favors right now. 
• We have a couple of field trips coming up. We like field trips. We're going to the Museum of Natural History with a group. It happens to be where a dear friend moved a couple of years ago. We miss her and her family. They're coming, too! SO excited to see them. Before that we have a field trip to the zoo. They are having a bee keeping class. We aren't going to get bees, but what a cool thing. We get to see their hives and watch the bee keeper handle the bees and eat the honey! Oh, the honey! It is so nice to have field trips in the books.   
• We have finished our book Missing May. The last chapter was a little hard for me to get through. Then the last couple of pages just wore me out. The kids took it hard, too. It was a great book just in case you're interested. It wasn't what I expected, but it was still good. We are reading a 39 Clues book now. We had started this one, but had to turn it in when it was due. I backed up a couple of chapters to help refresh our memories. I picked a second book for the big girl. I am trying to get all the kids out of their reading ruts. The baby isn't that bad. She reads all kinds of stuff. The boy and the big girl tend to get stuck in one genre. She said it was funny. I'll take that. I picked Hatchet for the boy. I can almost guarantee you that he hasn't gotten past Chapter 2. That'll change tomorrow. 
• School is pretty great right now. I think the change in classes and feeling a little less stressed about it has helped us hit a groove. The big girl is still working into the afternoon, but that won't change any time soon. I have cut her back as far as I can and she knows that. She has been very good about it. The boy has decided he wants to do the science that the baby is doing. That's actually ok. The curriculum we're using is made for a wide range of grade levels. I also have a ton of stuff on all levels to supplement. I do need to look up a couple of experiments for the big girl, but I have a ton of those, too. I made myself promise that I would get better at grading the kids stuff in a more timely manner. I did until Thursday. After a busy long day, I forgot. I had gotten some of it graded earlier. Then we did Saturday school. I had the stuff graded by then and there wasn't anything they needed to work on from the previous lesson, so all was good. Saturday school got whines, but that's what happens when you don't get Friday's work done. Good thing hubby was working or that could have gotten ugly. I would have had to rebel and cancel school and set a bad example and we can't have that, now can we?               

Look, I made it! I made it! That was easier than I thought it was going to be.

Have a great day.

Plugging Away

We have been steady at it for about 3 weeks now. We've made some additions, and some subtractions, and really we're just trying to find a groove. My dad is coming to visit in about 2 weeks, and there will be no school that week. Here's what we've got going so far.

• The baby says she's bored. OK. I can fix that. Really, poor thing doesn't have that much to do. I have a few more workbooks she could do, but I don't want her to just do busy work. At the park the other day, one of the moms had some Rod and Staff language arts. So I got it. Rod and Staff is a curriculum I have wanted to use with my kids for awhile. The only place you can get it is the Rod and Staff website. Which I forget about when it's time to order. Anyway, it's grammar. Ooooo, the most dreaded of the dreaded subjects. I like the thoroughness of the curriculum. It has a lot of extras that come with it that we may or may not need. I always read the teacher's manuals (I'm weird that way) and it said that 120 minutes should be set aside for this. I'm not gonna, but the baby won't be bored anymore. 
• The boy is having motivation issues when it comes to his guitar. I think because he doesn't have anyone to just sit and play guitar with. He hasn't picked it up in over a week. Probably closer to two or three. It breaks my heart. He enjoyed the lessons so much. My dad is supposed to be bringing his ukelele with him. I'm hoping it helps the boy. Then we can get back to it. I'm thinking about putting him in piano with his sisters. Or maybe drums. I just don't know.
• The science we are doing for co-op is very time consuming. We work on it for about an hour, then we go to co-op the next day. But between the exercises and the reading, good grief. We could spend an hour and a half on it and probably still not get everything done. We go over half of the chapter one week and some experiments, then we finish the chapter and test the next week. I'm starting to think we may have to test at home. Then there's the chapter review. I use it as a test prep. If we have time. It is wearing me out. 
• We got all the shoes we need for dance. I finally found a white shirt for the boy. Just a plain white shirt. You could not imagine how hard that has been. The big girl has her leotard and tights. The baby has been set for awhile. She couldn't find her jazz shoes. One day she had them. The next day they were gone. Crazy girl. I found them under my desk. I have no idea and neither does she. The best we can figure is that she was wearing them while she was playing on the computer.
• We desperately need a new computer. This one is old, loud, and we can't always access all the websites we need to access. It gets very frustrating. At least we can use it for history. It's better than nothing. 
• I made stuffed shells for dinner. They were lovely. Everyone agreed they should go in the keeper pile. I'll post the recipe later. I looked through the stack and realized I have a lot of cooking to do. I made veggie stock. I'm going to make turkey stock in a few days. I also need to make cream of broccoli soup and maybe cream of chicken. I need them for two casserole type dishes the kids picked. Then there's the sweet potato crescent rolls. Oh my giddy aunt, they look amazing! I cooked a chicken today and deboned it so I have chicken and stock ready for soup and dinner. And I got a butternut squash at co-op. I am the only one that likes it, and I don't always. I do like butternut squash soup. We are going to have a couple of dreary days and soup is good on dreary days. I might make the rolls with the squash soup. Can you imagine? I think I'm drooling.     

I think that's good for the run down. I need to go put my stock away now that's it's cooled some. I think I may flip through my Better Homes and Gardens. I almost feel my kitchen mojo coming back.

Have a great day.        

Daybook

I have about 8 minutes until I get the kids up and we get ready for school. I like my quiet time in the morning. I can sit with my coffee and computer(or phone more often then not these days) and just browse through some sites I like or play Angry Birds or any of my Friends games. Then they wake up and it is pedal to the floor all day it seems. Here we go, 'cause we are wasting time.

• Outside my window: it is sunny and starting to get hot. Who knew at 745 in the morning it could be so muggy? You would think I was back home in Texas. Oh, now that is a lovely dream.One day, my dream will come true. I hope we have time for a swim this afternoon before it rains. We like the rain. The garden gets watered and the pool gets full. Mercy, the humidity, though. 
• I am reading: I have a couple of books that the big girl checked out and one for me. She started one and said it was boring. It looked pretty interesting to me, so she handed it over. The other one is by an author she really likes, but she didn't realize it was an adult book. There's nothing bad in it so far, but she wanted me to read it first. Can do. We just finished our after dinner book, which was The Secret Under Platform 13 by Eva Ibbotson. There were a couple of things that were a little weird in the book and I thought for sure we were gonna have questions, but no. I don't know whether to be OK about that or terrified. There was a part where a young man sat with his grandmother as she died. That was kinda hard to get through. Now we need a new book. I'm not sure what that will be, but we'll figure it out. And, of course, we're still listening to The Hobbit. It's not my favorite book, but it's better than I thought it would be.
• From the garden: Hubby and I cleaned some things out of the tower. We lost some strawberry plants to the heat, but it leaves room for other things. Right now we want to put in kale and Brussel sprouts. Our purple cabbage has not done much and they are getting pulled this weekend. There are three and they're tiny, so we'll use them all at once. Our sweet potatoes are flourishing as are our bell peppers. I wish the peppers would get bigger and come in at the same time. They are loving the rain, so hopefully. We pulled the rest of the tomato plants, but hubby rooted them and stuck them back in the ground. The bottom half of the plants were bare and ugly, but the tops were green and growing. We cut out the middle man and hopefully we'll get Romas and lemon boys and mortgage lifters out of it. We also planted beets, red okra, green okra, chard, and bok choi. So excited for our fall/winter crop. 
• From the schoolroom: We started school yesterday! So happy to have that going again. The baby has already asked for more work. Can we get through the first week, please? Really, though, her language arts is lacking, so I may change it. Or add to it, I haven't decided which. I have a couple of weeks before I order Latin, so I have some time to decide. Day 1 went well. There was some basic orientation to do. For us, that means looking at the new curriculum, discussing how the assignments are laid out, going over our schedule, that sort of thing. This year is the big girl's first year of high school so that means keeping grades. And I got our dance schedule finally! It is quite hefty this year, but that's fine, too. I've added dates for science co-op, girls club, and dance to my phone. Now to get it all on the big calendar. 
• Around the house: Operation clean rooms is mostly complete. Everybody has a little more that needs to get done, but the baby got her room vacuumed and the boy got his swept. So really, that means they do have a floor and I'm happy about that. We need to get the big girl some shelves so we can move her desk out. Now to get the pile in the kitchen to the thrift store. We could stock their shelves for years to come. 
• From the kitchen: I'm bored!! What kind of junk is that? My goal is to go through my gray box of yummy, aka my recipe box, and a bag of recipes I've torn out of Better Homes and Gardens magazines and pull 10 recipes I haven't made before. Hubby has to do the same thing. That will give us 20 new meals. We have got to find something in all that that is a winner. I'm hoping it will help me get creative in the kitchen again. Our schedule isn't nearly as wonky as it has been in the past, but there are still a couple of late-ish nights, so I'm hitting my crock pot blogs, too. There was a lemon chicken recipe I wanted to try. You know I'll post the recipe if it's a winner. 

I have gone over my allotted 15 minutes by about 10. The kids are up and I need to get moving. I have a bowl of oatmeal with honey and butter calling my name. And I'm hungry this morning.

Have a great day. 

Daybook Style

I like the daybook when I have a lot I want to say, but don't quite know how to say it yet. At this point, I'm just glad to have a computer to use. I'll grumble about it on the other blog shortly.

• Around the House: We are trying to get to those things finished that didn't get done during school or at the beginning of our crazy summer. The kids' rooms are coming along. The baby needs help, but have you seen her room? I'm cleaning up and cleaning out piles. I have books for the kids library at church I need to drop off, clothes to the thrift store, and things I had promised to give to friends that are just sitting in the corner of the kitchen. But at least they're organized. The yard is finally taking shape as is the garden. One thing at a time.
• Outside My Window: The sun is trying to peak out. It's been a rainy summer (duh!) and we appreciate every drop. Specially the drops that filled our pool. We didn't do much of that, but God has worked overtime on it. It's nice and full now. It will be oppressively hot for a few hours then rain, glorious rain. 
• I Am Reading: Nothing right now. I did just finish the 50 Shades trilogy. It is not what you think it is. I've got a blog planned for that as well. My next book will be Heaven Is for Real. I've been wanting to read that one for awhile, and borrowed it from a friend. Maybe when I'm done working this afternoon, I'll have a few minutes to get started. And, as usual, my request list is full at the library, I just don't have any books ready to pick up yet.  
• From the Schoolroom: School starts for us in 2 weeks. Lots of work to get done this year, but I think I've got a groove planned. Can you plan a groove? Anyway, we had to borrow a computer from my FIL, since our laptop decided to go to sleep. Like permanently. It's not what I had, but we can use it for school, so there ya' go. I cannot believe this will be our 5th year homeschooling. Where did the time go?
• From the Kitchen: There is not much happening there. Between Art and Music Camp, VBS, and all our other summer activities, I haven't made a "real" trip to the grocery store or planned a menu in weeks. I do have a list and even printed my coupons. I did manage to make a really good stuffed zucchini using lentils and brown rice instead of ground beef and white rice. It was lovely. We've been eating more vegetarian meals and no one has complained. I like it when that happens. Now to start adding more raw meals. Slowly, but surely.
• I Am Thankful: For my HUBBY!!!!! He has stood beside me in good times and not so good times. He has lifted me up and treated me like a queen. As my mom's health was steadily declining, he comforted me and held me and prayed with and for me and for Mom. God hand picked this wonderful man for me and I am ever so grateful for God's discerning wisdom. 
• From the Farm: You should see our chickens! They are so big! We get between 9-10 eggs a day. I am selling eggs as quickly as they lay them it seems some days. Talk about fresh eggs. We are going to add a run to the coop, but it will probably be the fall before we get to it. The tower has been cleaned out of old plants and is ready for some new stuff. We didn't take everything out, just what was done growing. We are going to start a few things to replace it with. Hubby wants a whole square foot bed full of brussel sprouts. I love that man. He said he never liked them until I cooked them. See what I mean? The man is amazing. We are putting up a portion of privacy fence by the garden, hopefully next weekend. The garden beds have been cleaned out as well. We had to pull several plants that died while we were in Texas and either haven't come back or only partially. It's ok, they'll make great compost. We did move the sweet potatoes container and ended up pulling 5 lbs of sweet potatoes! So happy about that!
• I Am Researching: Alkaline water. I very much believe that diet and nutrition has as much, if not more, to do with your health than any other thing, including exercise. While I believe that exercising is an important component, I also believe that the food you put in your mouth trumps even that. I am looking at both sides before I decide if that's a route we want to take or not. I know that keeping your body as alkaline as possible will help prevent and discourage sickness and ailments. I even have a list of alkaline foods. I'm basing a series of meals on them and we'll see how easy it is. Lots of veggies, that's for sure. Good thing veggie co-op is this week. 

That's what I've got for now. I think that's more than plenty for now. I've been inspired by my friend and fellow blogger to do some rearranging of my closet and clothes to create new looks. Thanks, ALT. I needed another project. At least my closet will get cleaned out. Wait, I thought that's what the blog was for. Oh, different kind of closet.

Have a great day.          

Something Old, Something Not So New

My computer is fried. Makes me mad, too, because I still have pictures I need to get off of it. In time, in time. Anyway, we had to borrow a computer (this thing is so ancient), then we didn't have a keyboard, then we couldn't get the mouse to work. One thing after another just makes me want my computer back! Well, really, it makes me want a new one because I am a consumer. Anyway, while I have a minute, here's an incredibly long run down, catch up, freaking out because school is about to start blog. Grab a drink. You may need one. I know I do! Shall we?

• The last two weeks were incredibly busy. The big girl and I volunteered at church for our Music and Art Camp.The boy and the baby participated and they had a great time. I was exhausted. The next week was VBS. I remember the years when the kids went to at least four a summer. Those were the days! Now I have 2 kids that have aged out and one that only has a couple of years left of VBS. I am so sad. We were all tired when we got home. The great thing about the programs is that they offered breakfast and lunch. The bad thing was the breakfast was some version of toast (buttered, cinnamon, cheese) and lunch was processed to within an inch of it's life. I got to the point that I couldn't feed my kids that junk anymore and took lunches for them. Then Friday morning I woke up late and there went lunch. Oh well, I did what I could. We were all regretting it by the time we got home. It was the thought that counted I guess. And nap time was much appreciated!!
• I have most of my curriculum and two weeks of lesson plans done. I was waiting for two books I had loaned a friend. I got those back and went to planning. Then my computer died. The history I was planning on using for the boy and the baby is on a disc. Kinda hard to use that when you don't have a computer. It's a good thing I had a whole history curriculum I could use with them. I got it when I was given six boxes of curriculum last spring. Now we have a loaner computer so we're back to the original plan. Thank goodness, too, because my back up history was a TON of work. Like I need that this year.
• I've decided to add Latin to our school year. I am nothing if not tenacious. Let's do more work!! Ugh!! I've been thinking about it for the last year or so. The big girl has to have a foreign language for high school. She wanted to take French, but I have no desire to teach or learn French. German, I'm good with. The kids want to wait until after Latin to learn German. Um, ok, whatever. I'll order that in a couple of weeks and get it in the lesson plan. Won't this be fun? 
• I don't get our dance schedule until the Friday before we start school. This should be interesting. The big girl wants to take ballet and jazz. The boy wants to take tap and hip hop. The baby wants to take tap and jazz. Now to get the schedule to work the way I want it to. Please, please, please. I am excited already for recital and it's not even here yet. I'm skipping dancing this year, maybe. We'll see how the schedule works out and when the rest of the classes are. If I can swing a class or two a month, that would be awesome. That's up in the air, but thankfully, not for much longer.
• I have a folder I keep for field trips and activities. I keep mementos like programs or flyers or ticket stubs. We have quite the array right now. When we were in Texas, we got to go to Grossology at the Museum of Science and History. We also got to go to the Rancher's Museum and another exhibit called Risk. They were both very cool. We still haven't made it to the Texas Civil War Museum, but we're working on it. There is a local place that is like a "retirement" home for missionaries to Africa. I would like to schedule the tour and talk and then visit the gift shop. The items benefit the various projects in Africa that the missionaries started. Pretty cool, I think. I'm not real sure when that will happen, but it's on my list. I would also like to visit a local tractor museum and an apiary. They are both relatively close, just in opposite directions. Lots of great ideas but if you have another, bring it on. I'll add it to the list.
• Summer reading was a bust. By the time we got back from Texas and had some processing time, there were only two classes left for the big girl. Pokemon Club was in full swing for the boy, but that's come and go. You don't have to be there for the whole thing. There were also cool science classes on Wednesdays, but we had Music and Art Camp and VBS. Maybe next summer...
• We worked on the garden today. Between hubby working long hours and our volunteering, the house had gone to heck in a hand basket and so had the yard. Thank goodness for our neighbor mowing our front yard. We removed some old cabbage plants and a couple of strawberry plants from the tower. We're going to add kale and bok choy. We've been needing to move the sweet potatoes, so we did. And pulled up 5 pounds of those babies! We didn't treat them very well, but they grew anyway and we are thankful. We've started a new crop and hope to treat these better. We had to pull all of our cucumbers and some of our tomatoes. That was heart breaking. We are starting some beets, brussel sprouts, chard, and carrots. We are looking for okra seeds. We may have to go with seedlings if we can find them. We are babying the strawberries through the heat and are hoping they last until the weather cools down some. I hope the weather cools down this fall. We even have corn. We're still not sure how it lived, but ok. The bell peppers have been loving the rain. They just multiply like rabbits overnight. Now if they would get a little more size to them.
• The heat has been oppressive. It's like having a hot, wet blanket thrown over your head every time you walk outside. Our saving grace is the pool! Hubby worked really hard a few weeks ago and got the pool up and running. It is so nice to have. One day after VBS, I dumped all my stuff at the door, cleared out my pockets, and crawled straight in the pool, clothes and all. It had been one of those mornings. The baby told the big girl I was in the pool. The big girl didn't believe her, so the baby pointed out the window. I think the big girl wanted to put me in time out. She didn't thank goodness! I took the kids down to the dollar store to get pool toys. I let them spend a little money and everybody got what they wanted. I got noodles. What can I say? I like to float.

I know there's more, but I'll be darned if I can think of it. I cannot stand to type on this ancient keyboard, but at this point, it's better than nothing. Maybe.

Have a great day.