tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-42882607272483963862009-11-07T11:41:47.021-05:00Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.comBlogger67125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-20209620172238046652009-09-18T21:57:00.002-04:002009-09-18T22:15:09.740-04:00

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-46355502180604854222009-09-18T21:27:00.003-04:002009-09-18T21:56:14.032-04:00

The Banana Boat Song with her special twist-

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-69924461190824752942009-04-30T21:29:00.001-04:002009-04-30T22:19:53.604-04:00

Ds is playing (organized) baseball for the first time this spring. His team is currently on a 5 game winning streak and he is enjoying himself. He is throwing easily twice as far as he could when the season started, and way, way harder. My hand actually aches after having a catch with him.Ds batted the winning run in tonight. I wasn't recording, but here's some footage from a previous game. Here

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-8291854982158043262009-04-30T20:24:00.005-04:002009-04-30T21:28:56.821-04:00

This song was not part of her regular violin lessons. Her teacher did not assign it. She figured out how to play it herself, then asked her teacher if she could play it at the recital.Very proud of her, and she is deservedly proud of herself. Here she is with her violin teacher.Her gymnastics teacher showed up too, and with a rose for her!Note: She's wearing her great grandmother's pearls.

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-56310350757743487412008-11-11T22:03:00.011-05:002008-11-11T23:04:36.586-05:00

I declared this week the peak of fall foliage on our little mountain. Dh and the kids made some simple leaf presses out of wood and bolts. The kids and I identified trees and pressed some leaves.Good thing. The latter part of the week was windy. Quite a few trees dropped all but a few of their leaves. This golden beauty- a black walnut, we *think*- was bare by the weekend.The kids and I talked a

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-88443422671600332112008-11-11T21:54:00.002-05:002008-11-11T22:00:07.868-05:00

Three days officially on this week. Ds completed three math lessons and two science lessons. Dd completed one math lesson, a language arts lesson and two science lessons. Dd took a violin lesson and practiced about every other day. Both kids took a gymnastics class and visited the library. Park day was rained out. Lots of free reading and ds drew quite a bit.Of course, it was all just

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-57432583983600870682008-11-11T21:36:00.003-05:002008-11-11T21:48:21.453-05:00

We worked on Halloween costumes early in the week. For the kids, that meant applying glitter, cutting patterns and foam, and some hand sewing.We made it to our support group's park day and spent about three and a half hours playing. We visited the library and stocked up...just in time for yet another #!!$%%@!# round of viral crud.For the better part of the week, we read, watched movies and

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-34130011575856405402008-11-11T21:21:00.004-05:002008-11-11T21:35:05.958-05:00

This week was dominated by paid work. Both kids colored comic strips for dh in Photoshop, plus various other minor tasks like erasing pencil lines. I am (seriously) going to file '08 tax returns for both kids. They won't owe any tax, but I might craft a simple finance lesson around the baby IRAs we can open.They also began swimming lessons- two this week. Per their request, I am the

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-85176198278850819472008-11-06T19:08:00.004-05:002008-11-11T16:38:09.902-05:00

Their ears perked up when he spoke to his daughters.Ds: “Oh my gosh! They’re getting a new puppy!”The envy in his voice was plain. We can’t have pets in our current (rented) home. More striking, to me, though was the instant connection he seemed to feel. This previously recorded family standing in front of a ginormous crowd on the screen of my laptop was suddenly human and, at least in one

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-51751285508822075832008-10-23T15:20:00.002-04:002008-10-23T15:22:03.263-04:00

We still went to dd's violin lesson, both kids' gymnastics classes and park day. Lots of reading, drawing and talking. But I won't be counting every day of this week in attendance.

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-73822195328316998372008-10-23T14:06:00.004-04:002008-10-23T14:12:30.672-04:00

Craft books for kids- in which projects require kid skills to create items for kidsVs.Craft books for adults- in which projects require adult skills to create items for kidsMy kids regularly peruse the arts and crafts section at the library. They found their hearts’ desires last month in a couple of craft book Halloween costume patterns.Half way through, after many bucks left behind at Hobby

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-28990576070014243312008-10-17T13:37:00.008-04:002008-10-17T15:51:39.069-04:00

Last week, we drove up to Henderson County, NC to pick apples. This week we had to figure out what to do with them all. We made apple crumble, apple pie and lots and lots of applesauce. I kicked myself on the drive home from the orchard for the impulse purchase of that cute little apple coring/peeling/slicing machine the owners demonstrated. I’ve reversed my decision and am now praising myself

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-90462626032891359722008-10-04T15:05:00.005-04:002008-10-04T15:11:17.828-04:00

We visited Skytop Orchard in Zirconia, NC this week and spent the better part of a day picking apples. Unlike last year, the trees were loaded. Very much as it was the year before last, the bamboo forest was tall, dark and the bane of parents trying to get their kids to sit down (just for a minute) and eat some lunch.My legs were screaming at me the following day. Pulling a wagon with six

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-23708520522373160092008-09-22T21:07:00.003-04:002008-09-22T22:25:41.921-04:00

Another short week, but for a much more pleasant reason. We celebrated two birthdays this week- mine and dd's. We always have family celebrations. For the kids, we alternate additional "friend parties" and birthday trips. This year was a trip year for dd and she chose to go camping.It rained pretty much the whole time, and I swear our new tent has ultra amplification features. However, we managed

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-37265331177598385162008-09-22T21:01:00.005-04:002008-09-22T22:01:55.631-04:00

This was an incredibly short school week. We lost a couple of days to a nasty cold. Ds caught it. He immediately gave it to his sister. Just when they began to feel better (and oh so energetic), I caught it.Before the run on tissue, ds completed a lesson each in history, math and science. Dd completed a lesson each in language arts, math and science. Both made it to park day and gymnastics

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-88206935418391799102008-09-09T15:54:00.001-04:002008-09-09T15:57:21.948-04:00

The 141st Carnival of Homeschooling is up at Why Homeschool. Check it out.*

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-82468006473190515632008-09-07T22:48:00.005-04:002008-09-07T23:13:34.288-04:00

The holiday postponed a violin lesson and my volunteer shift at the library. The missing day to the school week was the only light aspect of our start.Ds completed a history lesson via The Student’s Friend. He summarized select articles on current events daily. (This news site is associated with Weekly Reader, and I’ve been pleased so far with the level of detail and variety of topics.) He

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-83852681897457502432008-09-06T00:18:00.008-04:002008-09-06T00:31:42.789-04:00

I opened my eyes and contemplated the living room ceiling. I’d managed maybe two hours of sleep the previous night. Dd had wandered into our bed. As is her SOP, she proceeded to aim her precious little feet at my bladder, repeatedly and with stunning precision. Apparently, I was too exhausted and groggy to realize that I could simply take her back to her own bed. So, I got up at 5:30, with a

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-73105439673620247922008-08-26T00:35:00.002-04:002008-08-26T00:52:18.046-04:00

Yay! We’re beta testing Brainology. We’ve completed the first unit, and I must say that the online program does not disappoint. The graphics and humor are, imo, perfect for the age range. Ds was skeptical at first. After snickering through the first unit, he declared that he was “going to like this program.”I’m honestly not sure of how much information I can divulge. So, I’ll just relate

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-64472064410808010612008-08-23T15:09:00.010-04:002008-08-23T22:55:00.743-04:00

Can you spot the copperhead in the picture to the left?So, the kids and I were the first to arrive for park day at a state park. We piled out of the car at our favorite shelter site. They grabbed their water nets and buckets and headed for the creek. I grabbed lunch and…froze. The first snake I saw that day was nestled beside a culvert that allows creek water to flow under the park road.“Stop!

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-44289550436056378162008-08-13T14:39:00.017-04:002008-08-13T15:23:26.941-04:00

So, the kids and I attended a recent park day gathering at a SC state park. A half dozen other families were there. We spent hours wading, conversing and eating. Many water striders were caught and set free. Many rocks were skipped and portions of the creek were dammed and released. It was a fun day for all.Near the end of the afternoon, dd and a friend found a damselfly. It was alive, but

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-31465194951978303952008-08-05T22:00:00.003-04:002008-08-05T22:12:17.009-04:00

Homeschooling is, for us, a lifestyle. (As I type this, we’re watching an installment of David Attenborough’s Living Planet series with dinner. And, yes, the kids are enjoying it.) However, this week we hit a bureaucratic milestone. Both ds and dd hit the 180 day mark. One hundred eighty is the minimum number of homeschooling days per year required by SC statute.For the remainder of August,

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-18751618261752151202008-07-31T20:51:00.004-04:002008-12-11T12:15:17.503-05:00

Okay, here’s the backdrop…Now, imagine a dozen or so seniors, taking an aquatic exercise class in the lower left hand corner. The roped off swimming lanes alternately contain seniors water walking independently and competitive swimmers freestyling laps. The upper left hand corner- the shallowest end- is temporary home to a half dozen small groups- a few parents with lower elementary children

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-64327191255044842752008-07-29T22:49:00.003-04:002008-12-11T12:15:17.780-05:00

Ds was a "nature detective in the creek" for a day this week. I packed him off to Paris Mountain SP with a cell phone, a lunch and watershoes. He spent the day with Ranger Cathy and twelve other kids. They tested water quality and caught creek creatures. They released tadpoles/frogs and decorated bandanas. We spent another half hour after the program looking at the exhibits in the park

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4288260727248396386.post-37567187132121333762008-07-27T12:25:00.003-04:002008-07-27T12:32:42.370-04:00

More than 40% of people who find my blog through search engines use "brainology" as a search term. So, why not compose a blog post that redirects them to that for which they're really looking.I *think* this is the official site of the software program. By official, I mean that Dr. Carol Dweck is involved.I've sent off for information on license purchase. I half expect the cost to be out of

Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18409075986236827999noreply@blogger.com0