Category Archives: HomeSchool

Catching Up!!!

It’s been awhile.  I was doing so well at updating and then…..well life happened.

It’s like Talluah Bankhead said, (who was born in a city near us and was actually NOT anyone’s role model)  “Good girls keep diaries; bad girls don’t have the time.”

Actually we haven’t, of course, been ‘bad girls’ just busy girls.

Quilts and skating and candy and Disney trips (not us!) and refuge trips and last minute plays and more.

We had a month long celebration of The Quilters of Gee’s Bend.  This was one of the most wonderful things we have done lately.  This a group of black women who live in south  Alabama.  They have been making quilts for generations.  There is a wonderful documentary on PBS about them.  Our museum had an exhibition, our library had a meet and greet and then they spoke (and SANG!) at a local senior citizen center.  It was all  magnificent.  Their stories were so unbelievable.  Afterwards Keilee got their signatures on an embroidery hoop she had stretched a piece of fabric across.  She wants to use it as a square in a quilt.  You can also read more about them here.

I think this would be a great unit study on patterns.  Learn about these lovely ladies and then have your kids make ‘quilts’ from construction  paper!

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Meeting the ladies of Gee’s Bend.

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We also went to a field trip to a candy making company.  This company has been in operation for over 25 years.  It was a great tour with them explaining all the processes that is involved in making an array of candies, shipping problems and the history of chocolate.

Candy Field Trip

And the cookies and candy!!!!  YUM

Candy Collage

Keilee got a phone call from a local director to ask her if she would be an understudy for a middle school/high school play called “Keep Your Eyes on the Prize”.  Keilee, of course said yes.  This is produced and directed by our theater company for a middle school who doesn’t have a drama department.  It was about the Civil Rights and presented for Black History Month.  She found out Monday and went to practice.  She then found out Tuesday that she was going to be IN THE PLAY.  She had 4 practices total (and they had been practicing since January) and she had one of the main roles!  They performed Thursday morning at the middle school (and dropping her off at 8:00 am and watching her walk into the school was surreal!). They later performed at the beautifully restored Princess Theatre downtown.  This experience was unbelievable for her.  She was so good on stage (and yes I’m her Mamma but no one could believe she had come aboard Monday).  She met some kids she really liked and just soaked up every minute of the experience.

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Keilee was contacted by Magic Moments Organization which grants ‘wishes’ for chronically ill children.  She was able to go to a dedication (where the family was donating a handicapped piece of playground equipment) and present sweet Albany with a trip to Disney!!!!  As wonderful as this was for Albany and her family it was more so for Keilee!

Elsa Collage

Keilee with her Bible opened working on a game for her girl’s group at church.  Voting. 😉  We went to homeschool skate day this month.  Keilee used to never miss a skate day but now she wants to go less often.  She had a great time even though we had to leave early to do some things. Nomad in his ‘tiara’ Keilee made him.  And our LEAP DAY picnic at our Wildlife Refuge.  She had, of course, to leap.

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And finally she was Cinderella at a birthday party Saturday.  She rarely gets to be Cinderella because kids refuse to “Let It Go” and want Elsa always and she loves Cinderella.  And of course I made her drop off the Redbox movie.  And to let me take a picture.

Cinderella Redbox

Whew!  I’m exhausted just typing that.

This week is supposed to be WARM!  We are so ready for Spring.  Isn’t everyone?

Homeschooling Rocks!
Karen

“Enthusiasm is one of the most powerful engines of success. When you do a thing, do it with all your might. Put your whole soul into it. Stamp it with your own personality. Be active, be energetic and faithful, and you will accomplish your object. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Blessed…

We had a wonderful Christmas season.  I tried to say ‘Yes’ more than ‘No’ during this month.

And because of that we had the best month, one full of beautiful memories.

We went to our town’s Christmas parade which we haven’t done in a couple of years.  And ate dinner at one of our favorite sandwich shops.

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We served Christmas dinner for over 250 people at our downtown rescue mission.

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We went to church to the kid’s showing of “Polar Express” in footie pjs!

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We went to the boat Parade of Lights and then looking at Christmas lights and out to eat with our dear friend Patsy.  (who was my Mom’s best friend)Search results for icloud2

Keilee and her princess friends were in a Christmas parade in a town near us.  They rode on a float and threw candy.  Fun was had by all!

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Keilee went to eat lunch right before Christmas vacation with her favorite little girl in the world.  She surprised her and she was beyond ecstatic.

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We took selfies. 🙂

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We went to our downtown and watched this amazing 3D light show on the Old State Bank.  Then we walked through downtown and ate dinner with some of our favorite people.

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Keilee fell in love with my cousin’s new Lab while delivering a crochet order to her.

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We took photos with Keilee wrapped in lights.  Because we thought it looked cool.

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Keilee taught kid’s church every Sunday.  She taught over 100 kids per service and also led a small group of girls in 4-5th grade.  She LOVES this and even made each of her ‘girls’ a goodie bag for Christmas.

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She had a great idea of ringing the Salvation Army bell dressed as Elsa.  I took her to the main office and she met with the director and he told her she could.  She asked the girl who plays Anna and they both spent over an hour walking around the mall taking pictures with tons of kids and then ringing the bell for 2 hours.  And Keilee did it all in 6″ heels.  She’s kinda my idol.

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We had the most wonderful Christmas morning complete with great gifts for each other.  And Nomad.

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We plays tons of Board games, baked for friends and family, read Christmas picture books aloud, listened to Christmas music almost non-stop, watched tons of Hallmark Christmas movies and so much more.

So from us to you, we hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.

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It was one of our favorite Christmases to date.

But…we are both ready to get back to ‘real life’.

Bring on 2016!!

Homeschooling Rocks!
Karen

“At Christmas, all roads lead to home.”

Fawns, Barbies and Cotton…

It’s been a crazy 2 weeks.  Most days I feel very non productive.  That is because I live with Keilee who does more in a day than I do in a week.

She has decided that she wants her Instagram more ‘artistic’.  So she has been taking and posted photos she deems ‘artsy’.  This is one of my favorites.

Keilee Paint

Keilee  helps teach a homeschool Science class on Thursdays and they did exploding pumpkins.  The kids all LOVED them!

Pumpkin Collage

Halloween was a great day.  Keilee told me she wanted to be a fawn and I was like, ‘What??  How boring. ” I should have known better.  I love the way it turned out.

Fawn Halloween

Our church had a Fall Festival that we both helped with.  It was a great day and we had a wonderful turnout.  We went to a play Halloween afternoon and then it rained Halloween night so we decided to stay in at night.

Halloween collage

We have a family that we met during “Shrek the Musical”.  They homeschool and they have 2 boys.  We really liked them but haven’t seen them since the play.  About 6 months ago we followed along with the journey to adopt Lily from China.  We finally got to meet Lily.  Keilee took her 2 tutus that she had made.  She was such a delightful little girl and Keilee had a blast hanging out with her and her 2 older brothers.

Lily Keilee

This is a collage for Keilee.  It is the guys she thinks are cute and I told her I was going to put it here so one day she could look back and see it.  Think she has a ‘type’?  6 guys and 4 of them are Korean. 😉   Plus Jason Momoa and of course, Johnny Depp who she has loved since she was 3 and saw Pirates of the Caribbean.

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This little girl was turning 4 and her Grandmother hired Keilee to dress up as Barbie and visit her at her day care.  It was the first time Kei has gotten to be Barbie and she loved it so much.  The little girl and all the kids were just so excited to see her.  She sang Happy Birthday and ate cupcakes with them.

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Keilee is still working hard on Bringing Smart Back on YouTube.  This past Wednesday was about cotton and we got to visit a farm and a cotton gin and Keilee interviewed the farmer and cotton gin manager.  It was SO very cool and she has learned so much.  We both have.

I can not believe it is already November.  Time marches on so quickly. We have a CRAZY month planned with Elsa parties, field trips and a TRIP with friends!  We are both so excited.

Homeschooling Rocks!
Karen

“October extinguished itself in a rush of howling winds and driving rain and November arrived, cold as frozen iron, with hard frosts every morning and icy drafts that bit at exposed hands and faces.”
J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

It’s Fall Y’all…

The 1st week of Fall was a very good week.  I’ve said it a million times but we are so lucky that we are able to live this homeschooling life.  The only thing  this week lacked was actual FALL temperatures.  It is still way too hot in Alabama.

We went to the next to the last “3rd Friday”.  This is something our town has done for years.  It’s like a street fair with antique cars, crafts, stores opened late, bands on every corner and more.  We always have a blast.  And Keilee always finds dogs to pet.

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We also volunteered at CCC (Community on Church Cooperation) Monday.  This is something we LOVE doing.  We love serving others and meeting people from all walks of life.  They usually serve over 150 people lunch.

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We also did a lot of what we call “book” learning.  Cells and Luther and the Reformation and Canterbury Tales and Shakespeare and Geometry.  She watched Pope Francis every time he was on TV because she adores him. 

But most of her time was spent on her YouTube channel “Bringing Smart Back”.  Hours and hours and hours.  More about this in a later post.  But click on the link and watch! She’s also working on a website with lesson plans for each episode.

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We are finding our groove after changing things up about 22 times.  But that’s ok.  It’s one of the things we love about Homeschooling!

I spent time on the hammock reading Harry Potter, for the 11th time under the beautiful, blue September sky.  Life is good.

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Homeschooling Rocks,
Karen

“As your kids grow they may forget what you said, but won’t forget how you made them feel” – Kevin Heath

Linking with
Mary @ Homesgrown Learners for Collage Friday.

Kris @Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers for Weekly Wrap-Up

Hello June…

May went by in a flash.  As they do.

May started chilly and ended rainy.  But we did so much .  It’s hard to put a month’s worth of activities in one post.  But I am SO bad at updating my blog.

We did a lot of volunteering this past month.  Keilee has always volunteered so much.  Because of our awesome church she has always had so many opportunities.  We volunteered this month at a place where people can come and get clothes and shoes and household items.  We also volunteered serving lunch.  This is an ongoing thing and we want to serve at least once a week.  It seems like no matter what is going on in my life I just feel better when I am there serving others.

We also volunteered for 6 hours at Soulstock which is a HUGE 2 day Christian rock concert.  We actually ran the merchandise tent for Noah Cleveland.  Keilee and I met several artists and it was just an amazing day.

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Katherine, my niece, graduated from high school.  Now Keilee is the only grandchild still in school.  Not counting college.  I wish they could all go back about 10 years!!

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One of our favorite things each year is the Alabama Jubilee.  It is a balloon race and people come from all over the country to participate.  We wake up about 5:30 and get to the park by 6:30 so we can see them take off.  Seeing 60+ balloons getting blown up and then taking off is so magical.

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Hiking with friends.  And sword play with friends. 🙂

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At an outdoor concert with friends.  I love that Keilee and Emma jumped up to swing dance even though they didn’t really know how.  This picture just screams ‘Joy’ to me.

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Lunch at Cracker Barrel after church.  Leaping in the rain. Rides in the country with the dog and the girl.  Memorial day service.  Cute little golf cart we both wanted!

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So now it’s June.  Hot days at the pool, yard sales, festivals, friends, board games, walks at night, reading aloud, laying in the hammock, sitting out on the patio watching the lightening bugs, hiking in the woods, visits from far away friends and so much more.

We can’t wait.

Homeschooling Rocks!
Karen

A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining, the breeze is blowing, the birds are singing, and the lawn mower is broken. ~James Dent

The summer night is like a perfection of thought. ~Wallace Stevens

Frank Lloyd Wright and Cypress Moon….

One of the things I love most about homeschooling is field trips. To my knowledge high school kids or even middle school kids don’t take field trips. I know we didn’t many moons ago.

Wednesday we had a wonderful day. We started out by touring the Rosenbaum House which was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.
The Rosenbaums, Stanley and Mildred and their 4 boys, are a very interesting family. Stanley’s father immigrated from Poland to Florence, Alabama. He owned and operated 12 movie houses which was the entertainment of the day. Stanley went to Harvard at 16 and received his Masters at the University of Denver. He met his wife Mildred in NYC where she studied music. She was also a Vogue model. Stanley returned to Florence to teach English at University of North Alabama. He also spoke 5 languages fluently. They received $7500 as a wedding gift to build their first home and through acquaintances contacted Frank Lloyd Wright to design their house.

The Usonian designed house was an idea of Wright for middle income families.  He wanted it to fulfill the American dream of home ownership. The house originally contained 1,540 square feet, but when the household grew to include four sons, the family called upon Wright to design an addition. In 1948, 1,084 square feet were added. Wright was very excited by the addition because it was exactly what he built the Usonian houses for, so they could grow with the family as it grew.  He also designed ALL the furniture in the house.  Everything there is original except for 2 chairs that were reproductions.

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I have heard of Frank Lloyd Wright my entire life but until about 4 years ago never knew there was a FLW home in Alabama.

He was also very picky.  He had certain rules about his houses and gave the owners almost no room for changes.  We were told a story about Mildred wanting a door in her boy’s room during the addition and he refused and said it would ruin the lines.  She kept on until he added the door and she said it became one of her biggest regrets about the house.  It opened up a huge circle area around the house and the 4 boys would drive her crazy running round and round the house.

The first thing we noticed from the outside is the roof lines.  There are 5 different levels.  FLW believed in using the surrounding environment and natural materials found in the area to build his houses.  It isn’t built on a slab so it follows the line of the property which is higher at points.  There are so many levels inside the 1 story house.  These are mostly only a couple of steps down or up to each level.

The living room is one of my favorite rooms.  It is floor to ceiling windows and built in bookcases that run the length of the room.  The Rosenbaums requested screens and FLW refused but they insisted.  (Obviously FLW hasn’t spent a summer in Alabama with mosquitoes!)  But he made the screens on the INSIDE of the doors and windows.  And they are bronze so it can reflect the light.  It is beautiful from outside.  He also built the house on a grid.  In the living room he positioned the windows so that in the winter the sunlight comes all the way into the room for warmth but in the summer it doesn’t because of the heat.  (This was before AC)  Stanley would have ‘salons’ at his home for his students.  They would come and he would read the final chapter of whatever novel he had assigned and they would all discuss it.  That sounds like my DREAM evening.  Especially if it was in this beautiful room!

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The light is the main thing I noticed.  It is beautiful.  It gives everything a gold sheen almost.

There was a very small kitchen, a study, the living room, 3 bedrooms and a bath in the original structure.  But the kitchen was TINY.  When FLW designed the addition they added a larger kitchen in the new addition, a guest room, a bathroom and the boy’s room.  The boys room is a GREAT space.  There are 4 bunkbeds butted up against each other.  Each has their own reading light.  There is a fireplace (4 total I believe) and a huge window seat in front of more floor to ceiling windows.  Each bedroom always opens up to the outside.

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Keilee and I both loved it and both would love to live in a house like this.  It is perfect for us.  Since the house is smaller, he used space so well.  There are tons of storage places that are as beautiful as the actual rooms.

Mildred was a weaver and used one of the bedrooms for her weaving supplies and loom.  The picture in the top left and under are the new kitchen and the bottom left is the old kitchen.

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A bedroom, the master bedroom that Keilee is in, the Japanese garden outside the window, the bench in the boys room, one of the beautiful closets and the window in the guest room.  See how the glass is cut to form the corner?

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The bunk beds.

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After the tour we all went to eat lunch in the park.  It was a great day with Moms talking and kids playing with swords under the trees!

Then we stopped by the new Welcome Center.  I LOVE Welcome centers and we always stop at everyone we see.  This one was new and very cool.

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Muscle Shoals, which is right beside Florence, is a huge recording town.  After the park we went to Cypress Moon Productions.  It has an amazing history and we got a tour of the facilities from the owner.  They record music and do film.  Of course Keilee had to stay after the tour and talk to the owner about the possibility of her being an extra.  She is sending Holly her resume.  I am always proud of the way she will talk to people about things she wants to know.

There were WALLS and WALLS of people who had recorded here.  If you click on the link above it has more detail.  See the young Bob Dylan?

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It was such a beautiful day with friends and learning so much.  We have gotten into a bad habit of saying “no” a lot.  We blame it on the cold or this or that.  We used to do things almost every week.  Now the only constant is running to the grocery or Dollar General 3 times a week!  That is about to change.

We have plans this weekend even though its going to be BITTER cold.  And there is a possibility of SNOW the first of the week but we aren’t getting excited quite yet.  (well I’m a BIT excited)

Happy Valentine’s weekend all.  By the way, Keilee hates Valentines Day.  She said you should tell the people you love that you love them every day and there shouldn’t be a special day for it! 🙂

Homeschooling Rocks!
Karen

“No house should ever be on a hill or on anything. It should be of the hill. Belonging to it. Hill and house should live together each the happier for the other.” ~Frank Lloyd Wright

“Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you.” ~Frank Lloyd Wright

Linking with Sylvia at Homeschooling Blog Linkup
Dawn at My Week In Review

November is Here…

November….. Wasn’t it just October?  It never ceases to amaze me how quickly time goes by.

 Here are Keilee’s accomplishments for the week of Nov 3-7, 2014.  We recreated this Friday morning so we may have left out some things.

SUBJECT ACCOMPLISHMENT
Current EventsCNN/Channel One Midterm elections, How certain names stay in the political pool, update on girls kidnapped in April, Private rocket company that blew up and killed a pilot, House of Representatives are now Republican after the election, There are more people with mobile phones than access to toilets (this BLEW our minds!), Info from smart phones are stored on the Cloud.   SpaceX scheduled to take supplies to ISS.
Psychology
Altered States of Consciousness

Section 1 discussed sleep, an essential state of consciousness, and describes theories of sleep, the stages of sleep, sleep disorders, and the role of dreams.
Section 2 described altered states of consciousness that can occur while we are awake, such as hypnosis, biofeedback, and meditation. Therapists use hypnosis to change behaviors, to lessen patients’ pain, and to help patients gain insight into problems. Section 3 examines psychoactive drugs and how they interact with the central nervous system to alter consciousness. Psychoactive drugs discussed include marijuana, LSD, opiates, and alcohol. The chapter concludes with the definition of drug abuse and its treatment.

 

World History The History of 100 Objects. #3 Olduvai Hand Ax, read about object, listened to podcast. Did a Notebook page and watched 2 videos. #4 Swimming Reindeer, read about object, listened to podcast, did a Notebook page, watched video about Ice Age Art. Put both objects on TimeLine Book. Put both objects on world map where found.Did “Red China” in her Billy Joel “We Didn’t Start the Fire” project. Did Notebook page and watched 2 documentaries on Red China.
Keilee’s Kreations Worked on rug for den and secret Christmas present for me. Worked on Elsa hat for her orders.
Geometry Rays, Angles, Lines. Learned 6 Postulates.
Southern Literature Read bio on Truman Capote and read “Children on Their Birthday” story. Watched Documentary on Truman Capote’s life and watched “Breakfast at Tiffanys”.
Quote Journal Worked on quotes journal and illustrated and told what they meant to her. Also looked up each ‘author’ to see why they are important.
Bible Jesus Calling and daily verse
Language Arts Jessica’s Creative Writing class. Worked on novel, “September’s Academy”
Read Read “The Testing” aloud. She is reading “The Selection” and we are listening to “Under the Never Sky”
Videos Good Mythical Morning: Talking Animals. Always Hank Green
Art Finished October journal pages. Started November. Did Calendar page. Did Dia de la Muertos page, Did 2 more pages.
Life Had Knitting Club meeting with her ladies, Went to “The Way We Worked” Smithsonian Exhibit and learned about all the ways people have ‘worked’ over the years. Made “Thankful” poster for Poster Contest at Skate Day

We had a great Halloween.  Keilee was The Cat in The Hat.  She made the Tutu.  We went to a friend’s house for a Halloween party.  We had a GREAT time.  The weather went from Summer to Winter in about 3 hours so a lot of the outside festivities had to be brought inside.  We had great food, conversation, laughter and fun. And the kids watched “Jurassic Park”. I so love that movie.  Thank you Dy for hosting!
Oh and one picture is Nomad as Shrek. 😉

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Painting pumpkins, being silly and Jessica’s class.

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We met Esther and her kids in Athens for the “The Way We Worked”  This is a traveling museum exhibit from the Smithsonian.  They have the core pictures and each town adds their memorabilia to it.  It was very interesting and we LOVED hanging out with Esther and her kids.  It had been way too long. And these pictures are really weird for some reason.

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My favorite picture this week:  Fall has finally arrived in Alabama!

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Homeschooling Rocks!
Karen

Even if something is left undone, everyone must take time to sit still and watch the leaves turn. “~Elizabeth Lawrence

Almost Sisters, Field Days and Some Learnin’…

Kei came home from Kindergarten the first day talking about “Livvy”.† Every day she would tell me things that happened with her new ‘best friend’.† I met Livvy and her mom, Laura early in the year. Her Mom and I bonded just like our girls did.† In first grade, Kei changed schools and we didn’t see Livvy every day anymore. But the girls and the Moms still stayed in contact.† I pulled Kei out of Public School after the 1st week of 2nd grade.† We weren’t talking to Livvy and Laura every day then.† Sometimes not even once a month.† But Laura called me a couple of weeks after I started homeschooling Kei and said she was going to take Livvy out too.† They homeschooled for 3 years then last year Laura put Livvy in private school. She is a single Mom like I am and she had to go back to work.† But our girls have become closer each year.† They have always played so well together, talked on the phone for hours, spent the night with each other.† They call each other ‘sister’ and I love Livvy so much.† Laura is one of my dearest friends in the world.† You know..it isn’t often that your child’s best friend’s Mom is one of your best friends but that is the way it has worked out.† We love our relationship with these amazing girls in our life.
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The best kind of friend is the one you could sit on a porch with, never saying a word, and walk away feeling like that was the best conversation you’ve had.† ~Author Unknown

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Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another, “What! You too? I thought I was the only one!” by C. S. Lewis

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Tuesday we had Field Day.† This is always a HUGE deal.† We had so many people there. I have no clue how many but it was well over 100.† The kids all enjoy it so much.

Hanging Out Before Field Day
Cool Homeschoolers...

Kei won 3 Medals and Ribbons for Shot Put, Soccer and Mile Run.

Mile Run..err Walk..

Kei loves Soccer, she has never wanted to play organized Soccer but every year she signs up for Field Day and has a blast.
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We are still ‘schooling’ but we really never stop.† We do less in the Summer, not so organized, but we still do things.† I want to finish our Story of The World.† We have a couple of chapters left.† The biggest thing we need to finish is Zoology 3.† Since I used another science the first of the year, we started this late.† I would like to finish the book but if we don’t and summer’s siren song gets to be too much,† we can finish it in August.

I can’t believe my little girl would be going into 6th grade if she was in PS.† 6th GRADE!† It is so hard for me to believe.† I have lots of thoughts swirling around about that but I will save it for another post, another day.

As for now…there are long, lazy days to explore, lightening bugs to catch, swimming pools calling our names, picnics to be taken, meandering trips down country roads, food to be cooked outside, songs to be sung, movies to watch, flowers to stop and smell and more.

Viva la Summer!

“Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass on a summer day listening to the murmur of water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is hardly a waste of time.” ~ John Lubbock

Simply Simple…

Simple times..

Simple pleasures..

Simple smilesÖ

Simple laughsÖ

Simple hugsÖ

Simple mealsÖ

Simple giggles..

Simple sillinessÖ

Simple livingÖ

It took awhile before I understoodÖ

It used to be a battleÖ

That I could never winÖ

Rush around to be perfect..

Perfect look, perfect clothes, perfect house..

Get it all done..NOW NOW NOWÖ

Silly me..

Why did I waste so much timeÖ

When it was right in front of meÖ

All it took was a child, and a crazy dog to realize

That the sweetest, most perfect, most awesome, most wonderful things in lifeÖ

Are right there..

See them?

Right there….

My wish for you:

Find yoursÖ

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Our Simply Lovely Week:

Making a Robot..
Bug Bot...
Kei's Cake...
Pink Frosting...
"GIRL'S NIGHT OUT" Cake...
Clay Fairies...
Wonderful Library Books...
Kei's Pasta, full of tomatoes, squash, brocoli, carrots, cauliflower and onions...
Kei's Chicken with Caribbean Jerk sauce...It was delicious.

And she wrote a story..a lovely story of a world of Numphs, Everas, Layus Elves.

Here is the ‘blurb’ she wrote for the back:

“They are all around us but only the warrior can see them and save them from evil. Come and learn the truth. Help the creatures of the land and save them too! We need you. See the world the place where dreams are true. Come let’s go!”

Doesn’t it just make you want to read it right now???!!!† It has 14 chapters and she worked on it all week.

"The Book of the Creatures of The Land: The Untold and Unkempt"
"The Everas"


Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.† ~Confucious

Ami Mental, Baking & Ouchies…

AmiMental is a blogger that I read.† She is funny, smart, caring and she blogs EVERY SINGLE DAY!† I bow to her greatness.† She is also the sweetest person.† She is the one who sent Kei the yarn and yarn book. She read on my blog that Kei was making some clay fairies and asked if I thought Kei would like a book about making fairies.† Well duh!! Of course she would.

Fast forward to a few days ago.† A package comes in the mail, a BIG, HUGE package.† Kei opens it and can not believe her eyes, I can not believe my eyes.† It is full of Klutz books, Sculpey Clay, charms, glow in the dark stars.† It was amazing. If I had gone out and picked Kei’s favorite things I couldn’t have done better.† Kei was so excited.

Wow and Wow!!

She has been making clay bears, animals, food for hours and hours.

Honey the Bear..
Sushi, Rice w/ chopsticks, salads, bread, candy, cakes, ice cream and more!!
Cake and Candy Cane...

I emailed Ami to tell her how much she loved it and she told me she just kept finding things that Kei would like.† She also told me her son bought the clay for Kei and wouldn’t even let her reimburse him.† This is what I love about my blog, it brings together people that I would never know.† A Mom and a son in Oregon send Kei a great package full of things she loves,† a Mom in Australia posts about cute little owls that she and her girl make which inspire Kei to make felt animals.† The mom in Australia sees the pictures and calls her kids to look at Kei’s owls.† 2 Moms with girls Kei’s age; one in Connecticut and one in New Jersey;† read my blog and we comment regularly back and forth.† We share ideas, ask questions, share links.† Kei reads their daughters blogs.† Their daughters read Kei’s blog. † I consider them friends.† The world is so much smaller with the internet.† People can get close no matter how far.† I love my new friends.† I love reading about their world, their lives.† They encourage me and inspire me to be better.† I am a better Mom, a better friend, a better HS Mom because of people like them.

And thank you again Ami. You just ROCK!!

Kei and I also baked a lot this week.† We made Oreo Truffles, Mystery Bars, Banana bread and more goodies.† Kei loves to bake but I never have.†† I love to cook, but never have liked baking.† Since Kei loves it so much I have actually began to enjoy it.† The main thing I don’t like about it is you have to be so precise.† I am more of a throwitinabowlandstirit kinda girl.† This 1/2 T, 1/4 Cup stuff just doesn’t appeal to me. 🙂

Let the Baking Begin...
Oreo Truffles...
Kei Jumping for Joy!
Mystery Bars...

Now for the ouchie portion of this story.† Aforementioned Mystery Bars are made with sticky goodness.† Kei ran some goodies to the lovely ladies next door while I finished getting the bars out of the pan.† Some of them were stuck, there was a knife laying on the counter.† I picked up the knife to slide it under the stuck on portion.† The knife met resistance, the knife flew into my palm.† I felt 2 stabs.† This is a hand that has had severe nerve damage about 10 years ago, which is another story for another day.† I closed my eyes, said “No God please” and looked down.† I saw a cut on my palm, turned my hand over and saw a cut on the front of my hand.† I walked outside and yelled for Kei who came running.† I almost passed out, but I don’t really know why.† It wasn’t a lot of blood, it didn’t hurt that much and I am not a passing out kinda person.† Fast forward to the rest of the story…I stabbed a knife completely through my hand.† I have butterfly stitches, got a tetanus shot, doc put me on antibiotics and stressed over and over that I must keep it clean.† He said time and time again, “I can not believe you didn’t damage anything, not a nerve, an artery, a tendon, a bone, it is a miracle”.† I think God heard my prayer and said, “While I can’t do anything about your stupidity in picking up a knife to use as a spatula, I will make sure it does as little damage as possible”.

So here I sit, with my hand bandaged up, my arm sore from a shot, not able to do much of anything.† But I do have some amazing Mystery Bars and how many people can say they stabbed their hand completely through with a knife???

Merry Christmas Eve Eve,

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus! It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no child-like faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.
Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies!
Francis P. Church