You Tube Monday - GCK 11-12 Recap

Our version of a yearbook!!! 

Weekly Update - Looking Ahead to SPRING!!!

This past week is the last one of our winter session and things went really smoothly. This was DN's first full session and though there was some trips and a few stumbles all and all it seems as though we are all getting our feet firmly planted beneath us! He was here over the weekend and finished up things smoothly and with no issue. He also completed a few "pre-tests" in writing and in U.S. Geography so that I know exactly what I am working with. He really surprised himself on the writing evaluation as he thought he was going to do poorly on the entire thing, but only a few areas - 4 out of the 21 - that he needs to work on. As for U.S. geography, we have a ways to go, but I think it will all come together without too much of a problem if he puts his mind to it. He was at home for the rest of this week and will be going on the road with CJ next week. This should be a very interesting experience for the both of them, as they have never spent that much time together - 24 hours a day in close quarters for an undetermined number of days. I am confident that this will help them to understand each other a bit better.

KM finished up some areas, but will not be taking a full break over the next two weeks as she has to complete her Literature Skype class which doesn't end until 3/28. She has also decided to keep watching the Liberty Kids episodes and may need to do one or two other things as she is HOPING to have her turn to on the road with CJ the first week of April. This will also be an interesting endeavor as has never been away from me for more than two nights and although I know she will be fine and CJ will take good care of her, I will also be staying at home all alone for the FIRST TIME EVER - dun, dun, DUN! I will be fine, but will probably not know what to do with myself after the first day. I bet they will come back and the whole house will be rearranged, organized and unrecognizable.

As we were ending our winter studies, this included the ant and earthworm habitat studies, so it was time to release the critters. Although I know it is not recommended that you release harvester ants in our area as they are sure to not survive, there were only two left and we really didn't think that it would be long before they would be gone as well. They seemed so sad and lonely in there. As for the earthworms, they were going strong and KM had a great time making me jump and squirm nearly as much as the worms were - I know it is an irrational fear, but I think it is more that I just don't LIKE them than that I am afraid of them. So we released all of the critters close to home and right into our compost container. KM was delighted to see all the worms that were already crawling in there and felt Herbert and his friends would be in good company there. We will be freecycling the Anthill and remaining supplies so that another family can enjoy learning about these incredibly complex creatures. For next session we will be hatching frogs and are awaiting the arrival of the embryos.

I had a personal break through this week that I want to mention - I FINALLY learned how to skate backwards. Yes at 33, my 14 year old daughter found the key to unlocking my ability to skate in reverse. I have been trying all season to figure out how it is done. I watched others, I tried it myself, I listened to suggestions, but for some reason I just could not get more than two or three little movements before I would be in a dead stop or a spin. Well today we got to free skate a few minutes early and had the entire place to ourselves. We got right out into the middle of the ice and started playing around, spinning, turning, attempting to go backwards and suddenly I was doing it a little bit more than I had before. KM was making different suggestions to me and I was trying all the different things when suddenly I had made it from one side of the rink to other, it was jerky and no where near smooth, but I made it. At this point some other skaters arrived and I was nervous about them being behind me. When I would glance over my shoulder my whole body would move causing me to feel unsteady and catch my skate. I just kept trying though. KM was very supportive and started skating in front of me to keep an eye out when she suddenly said, "Move like the samba"  - WELL DUH!!! That was it, I moved like I was doing the Samba and I skated backwards flawlessly. That was my key, she kept trying and finally found a way for me to understand what she was doing.  I was so proud of myself, but I was even more proud of her. She didn't get frustrated or give up on me, she just kept trying. I feel like this is what I do every day with her and DN - I try to find just the right words, programs, approach, resources, games etc. to help them reach their potential and her she was doing the same for me!

And on that note here are some pics from the week -

Weekly Update - A HECTIC ONE!!!

I feel like we haven't been home much at all and since our internet is out and I am now at the library, I am going to keep this rather short so that I can go get some things done around the house!!!

DN was not with us this week, but reported having no issues with his lessons and that he likes this bi-weekly schedule. KM cruised through her work this week despite our busy in and out schedule. Highlight of the week had to be seeing the BLO final dress rehearsal of Barber of Seville! It was breathtaking and sidesplitting. KM always loves going into Boston for whatever reason, but this was an extra special occasion and we had a blast!

Here are some pics from the show -

Weekly Update - Week of Game Play

DN has become very motivated and is finishing his entire weeks worth of work in just about a day, so he was only here Monday and Tuesday this week and I sent him home with a copy of Lord of the Flies to read and a calendar to keep track of any basketball he plays or other "phys. ed-ish" type activities he is doing as this is something that we feel is really important. He also responsible to do Khan Academy and watch CNN Student News each day while he is home. My hope is that in the free time that he has he will discover something that will spark his interest and he might start to see that learning goes beyond worksheets, report writing, and textbooks.


KM moved along smoothly with her lessons per usual. She has been working on a story that is in journal format and decided to turn it into a fictitious blog, pop on over if you feel like checking it out - HERE. She is planning on adding to it with some of her manga drawings, so it should be pretty interesting! She has two more weeks left in her poetry class she is taking via Skype and is getting a bit anxious about the final assignment which is to write a critical analysis of a poem. Formal writing has never been her strong suit, but it is more about her lack of confidence than her actual writing skills. I am fairly certain that she will do just fine and she is excited that she will be continuing with this group and doing a literature study of Bronte's Wuthering Heights.

Click here to get the answer!

Learning this week centered around a lot of game play. They played a round of Math Jeopardy from What's Your Angle Scholastic Math Games Resource. For health this week we played the Professor Noggin's Human Body game.  I am always shocked by the ones that we get right, as well as the ones that we get wrong.

As part of our U.S. History we have be doing activities from Colonial Days: Discover the Past with Fun Projects, Games, Activities, and Recipes (American Kids in History Series) and this week we played a Native American Stick Toss Game. It had a lot to do with luck, more than anything, as you simply toss the sticks in the air and add up your score based on how the sticks land. The kids seem to enjoy it and the scores went back and forth quite a few times!

KM started practicing for the World Education Games this week! She has participated in some Math events previously but this will be the first time she will be doing the spelling and science competitions so she wants to get as much practice in as possible. There is still plenty of time to register HERE!

KM also had fun with music and dance on the Wii this week! We all LOVE the Wii! It is such a great way to incorporate fun into learning while getting everyone up and moving!

Busy week - catch up with some photos

We wee quite busy this week and our calendar does not seem to be letting up much this week either, so I thought I would take a second to post a few pics that I found on my camera this morning -

K enjoying a warm afternoon and her books

K figuring out how many shingles we will need.

I finally got K's bowling badges from LAST year on her bowling bag and her punk costume for the library Halloween party really wasn't that far off from her everyday outfits. 

Took the Littles to the library and playground while K was at theater.

The Itty Bitties are getting so big!!! I don't know where the time has gone! They are almost 6

 months old already!

Finishing up Spring Session

Although this week is our last for lessons in our spring session, KM has had a pretty light month as she finished up most of her programs - formal math, science, house building elective, environmental issues elective, etc. - in April. She will have Story of the World Volume 4 completed by the end of the week and this will give us a full month free from "book work" before we begin our summer session the first week of July. KM does have some programs finishing up during June, -  she will have her performance of Much Ado About Nothing in just under two weeks and has two more sailing classes -  but after that the last three weeks of June are WIDE OPEN!!!

I have been writing more and doing reviews for UnpluggedMom.com, so if it is quiet around here for a bit, you should totally check out all that is going on over there!!!

UUGGGGHHHH!!!!

Rain Rain Go Away Come Again another day ---- or week ---- or next month.

The rain and mist is driving me CRAZY!!!! The sun peeked out for LITERALLY a few minutes yesterday afternoon and is gone again. BLAH, BLAH, BLAH...I can't get out of this BLAH funk!

The sun will come out tomorrow ----will it? I SINCERELY HOPE SO!!!!

Sometimes things just work out

May is one of those months when EVERYTHING seems to happen at once! On top of our regular schedule KM has theater practice twice a week, has signed up for a sailing class that was too good to pass up and decided to do a Science Jim class at the last minute. We also have lots of events and spring field trips scheduled and have been wondering when the two newest Littles were going to arrive.

Well this afternoon I got back from theater a bit early - our hike went REALLY quickly and we got to theater early so we ended nearly an hour ahead of schedule - and I thought to myself here is some "extra" time to get some work done. I emptied out the bags and got things put away, changed into some sweat pants, and was ready to get down to work. First I checked my emails and saw that due to the forecast of 40 MPH winds KM's sailing class was going to be cancelled for tomorrow - YIPPEE even more free time! What luck I will be able to get ahead of the schedule! I stopped for a second and went to check the mail. When I came back in the house the phone was ringing. I answered to hear MC saying - "Hey what are you doing tomorrow?" I replied, "actually I suddenly have a free day. Why what do you need?" "Well I think my water may have broken....."

So here I sit - at my sister's - waiting to hear if my new little niece and nephew have arrived! I will be sure to let everyone know when I have heard that they have arrived.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~UPDATE - 9:32p

All is well I just got the call - 

Baby Boy - MJ was 6'10"

Baby Girl - AR was 5'8"

pretty decent sizes for three weeks early.

Mom is doing well - Dad reports that AR is beautiful and MJ is a chunker.

The littles were perfectly exhausting and I am now going to crash into the big fluffy mountain of pillows that is beckoning me from my sister's bed. 

Will be sure to post pics as soon as I can get there to take some! 

Busy, Busy, Busy, but not too much to report!

Things have been going very smoothly around here lately. KM has been keeping up with her lessons and staying very busy with ice skating, theater, sketching and spending time with her friends. We are enjoying the flow of things lately and the occasional snowstorm to keep us in the house for the day is a wonderful winter bonus!

We have been starting our days off with household responsibilities, yoga and meditation. Then after lunch we work on lessons and this leaves the late afternoon and evenings free for her to spend however she likes. It seems to have worked out that Tuesday and Thursdays are VERY light lesson days, to accommodate for ice skating - and spending the rest of the afternoon with one of her very best friends - and theater. When CJ is home he has been taking her skating at a more local place on Wednesday afternoons. This leaves a lot of the main lesson times to Monday and Friday which seems to be giving a natural flow to our week.

She has chosen to do her research report for this session on owls - BIG SURPRISE to those who have seen her lately! We have decided that she will follow the outline form that the writing mentor used with her in the fall. This method focuses on researching, getting the info down, and then editing and cleaning up the content. As I have written what feels like hundreds of posts on our thoughts about writing and the writing process, I will not go into length about it again. I will say though that I have noticed a huge improvement in her open responses now that she has no writing "guidelines" and just has to present the information clearly.

Other than that, there is not much else to report as it is pretty much status quo around here - Just enjoying our family, home and learning - all together! Hope you can find some time to do the same!

Update - Feeling a bit under the weather

I have not been feeling so fabulous the last few days. Luckily KM is a trooper! She has been very busy with friends and getting the last of her fall lessons completed, while nursing me back to health. I just have some sort of head cold, but it is making it nearly impossible to sleep and my sinuses feel like they are going to burst. She was very understanding when I offered to make a quick run to the library for her to pick up books this morning in lieu of me having to sit in the freezing cold ice rink this afternoon - THANK HEAVENS the mangas she requested were in through interlibrary loan! I am hoping if I rest up one more day I will be up for taking her to the rink on Thur and if need be I can stay in the warm room with some coffee and a book! I have to be better by this weekend, as we have our Bonfire Bash coming up!

Update - Stupid Internet Signal

So my internet signal is not working at home, so I am taking a few seconds at the library to quickly post some pics from our fabulous Thanksgiving weekend....will be back as soon as signal is restored at home...PROMISE...

Hope you all had a FABULOUS Turkey Day!!!

General update....

Things have been flowing rather nicely lately. We have found a very steady groove, but we are both getting at the point where we just want some down time and needing some time at home. This upcoming holiday week should be just the start that we need. We will be finishing up some lessons for the end of our fall session and will be beginning to work on our holiday gifts. KM will be making all her gifts again for her grandparents and aunts. One lucky relative will even be receiving her first attempt at knitting. Postings may be a bit slower than they have been lately, but I will try to stay steady over the holidays!

Update on Camper Project

I got an email this morning from a long time reader that was wondering how our camper remodeling project has been going as I had not updated on it quiet a while. It is ironic as CJ went to Lowes last night to get the floor tiles -

KM hasn't been able to help with the project as much as we hoped as she was having issues with the dust and dirt agitating her asthma, but we are almost to a point that she can start helping again. On the exterior CJ has removed the awning, caulked all the seams and seal coated the roof as there were a LOT of leaks. After he was sure the leaks were sealed he was able to reinforce and straighten the outer walls. He removed all the 70s orange shag rug and will be working on painting the interior before installing the floor tiles. Once it is all painted and the floor is in, we will be reinstalling the refrigerator and installing the larger sink where the stove was - we NEVER used the stove when we camped - except for more storage, so I felt the bigger sink would be wiser use of the space. The last and most daunting area will be the bathroom. We are hoping to be able to salvage the shower and sink unit and just have to get a new toilet as the bathroom units are rather pricey.

I will be sure to post pictures once the painting is done, I really think that is going to make such a huge difference!

Extra Quiet Week...update...

...and I have gotten some concerned emails. It has been very quiet around here as we took the week off. We have been fiddling around and trying to wind down from the CRAZY HECTIC autumn schedule before we gear up for our TOTAL WHIRLWIND of holiday events. Since I am here I could share a few pics that I hadn't gotten a chance to yet...

First these are some pics from the Lego League Competition last weekend. Team didn't do so great, but they had fun and it was quite and experience for them!



CJ had a slow work week because of the rain, so he started tearing apart the camper ----


He took the fridge and the mirror vanity out of the bathroom, which dropped a ton of pine needles out of it. We are trying to figure out if the fridge works or if we need to replace and we WILL be replacing the toilet and possibly the sink in the bathroom. He also started trying to figure out the piping so that he can take the stove out and replace it with a full size sink.

Another Busy one!

We had another rather hectic time last week, but it was again doing lots of things that we really wanted to do - which is always good!

We had some HOT days and since the pool looked like....

They decided to fill up the kiddie pool on the deck.

We couldn't get to the water toys so they went digging through the craft closet for things they could recycle into squitters, scoops and floaties!

We went to a local park to do our nature journal pics for the week - TAKE A PEEK!

of course SC was attached to KM, per usual...

they couldn't help wading in a bit

then it was back to the house for a picnic lunch...I was not cool enough to sit at that table!

We experiment with some new bread recipes...

KM said that these were better than the restaurant bread
and she can be a tough bread critic!

We worked on Ancient History and decided to turn the History Pockets into a giant lapbook!

Using this scholastic box as a tri-fold presentation board...

and pieces from different History Pocket books...
we think it is going to work rather nicely
We will let you know how things turn out as we progress through this one...but it will take us a while as we plan to work on the ancient at least through this next year!


Finally our homeschooling group did a benefit performance of Midsummer Night's Dream
for the museum where we have our coop classes.
They had another spectacular performance!
KM's favorite part is the fight scene, though she had a bit of trouble staying in character!
This is the cast mascot, who must be fit into each set!


All and all it was another GREAT week!