I believe it was almost 6 years ago when I first found Jessica’s blog and started following along with her homeschool journey with her 2 girls.

We went from comments to email to phone calls to texting several times a week to meeting last year when they came here.  She is one of my dearest friends and my ‘go to’ person when I need to talk about anything.  Her friendship means so much to me even though we are over 1000 miles apart.

This year when they took their trip to her husband Greg’s parents house, Jess and the girls came to stay here for a couple of days.  We had the best time ever.  I love her and her girls (and Greg too but he stayed with his parents).  Keilee adores them all and we just have so much fun!

After the initial hugs and squeals they brought their luggage inside so we would all fit in their SUV.  They also came bearing gifts which we LOVE.  But…the best gift of all was they brought Keilee a OLD typewriter.  Jess knew she had been wanting one and Greg found one at a tag sale.  Keilee was speechless and has spent many hours since their visit typing away on it.

Then we took them to Lowe Mill.  On the way we stopped by Mooresville which is Alabama’s oldest incorporated town.  It is also where Tom and Huck was filmed. Lowe Mill is a beautiful old textile warehouse that has been converted into an Art Entertainment center.  It is the largest independent center for the arts in America with over 120 artists.

Then we came home and changed and went to dinner at world famous Big Bob Gibson’s.   Afterwards we had planned to swim at their hotel pool but there was a huge lacrosse tournament in town and it was packed.  So we decided to go to the Drive-In in a nearby city.  Grace and Lilah had never been.

On the way the girls serenaded us with old Miley Cyrus songs.  It was awesome!

It was such a great night, the girls in the back of the SUV and Jess and I sitting in chairs all watching Home under the Alabama skies.

We got home and made plans to go to our church the next morning.  I was so excited about this because Jess has been watching online for several years.  Unfortunately our preacher and his wife were on vacation but it was still amazing having them there.  Afterwards we went to Cracker Barrel for lunch.

Then we went to Ava Maria Grotto.  This is an amazing little place in Cullman, Al.  From their website:
Known throughout the world as “Jerusalem in Miniature,” is a beautifully landscaped, four-acre park designed to provide a natural setting for the 125 miniature reproductions of some of the most famous historic buildings and shrines of the world. The masterpieces of stone and concrete are the lifetime work of Brother Joseph Zoettl, a Benedictine monk of St. Bernard Abbey. Begun as a hobby, with various materials he could find, and infinite patience and a remarkable sense of symmetry and proportion, Brother Joseph re-created some of the greatest edifices of all time.

Even though it was very hot, even by our Alabama standards, we had a great time.

Selfie at Ava Maria Grotto

All too quickly it was time to head back.  They needed to get on the road to get back to Tennessee before dark.  We had the most amazing time.  They were on vacation but it was truly like a vacation to us.  We crammed so much into 2 days.  Yes I wish we had more time, but it was a beautiful adventure with 2 homeschool Moms that met online and their 3 amazing daughters.

Thank you Jess, Grace and Lilah for taking time to come visit us.  We loved every single minute of it.

Selfie before leaving: (until next time)

Homeschool and Homeschooling Friends Rock!
Karen

“There is magic in long-distance friendships. They let you relate to other human beings in a way that goes beyond being physically together and is often more profound.” ~Diana Cortes

The South is steeped in lovely traditions.  Growing up here I was not really aware of it. It just was where I lived. It took some growing up and moving away to realize how lucky I am to have grown up in the South.  No everything is not perfect.  There are people who still think the south should have won the war among other things.  But we also have people who are truly caring and kind.

When I moved to California one of the first things I noticed was that no one looked at you when you passed them on the streets.  I couldn’t believe it.  Here when you pass someone walking you say, “Hello” and maybe even stop and chat.

When Keilee was planning her 9th grade year we discussed doing Southern Literature.  I loved it when I was in high school.  It wasn’t required but I took every Literature class that was offered.  My teacher was this lovely southern lady with that great old school Southern voice.  My Mother talked like that.  Very slowly and and with such an amazing accent.

When we begin looking for a curriculum we couldn’t find anything.  So with my brother’s help, who was an English major, we made a plan.

I bought a book he recommended called “Growing Up In the South: An Anthology of Southern Literature”. The stories were full of beauty and poverty and racism and joy and heartbreak and first love and more.  There was a bio before each one of the authors and Keilee researched each author and did a notebook page on each one.  We read each story aloud.  We looked up words we didn’t know.  We Googled places mentioned and found they were all real places.  One of our favorites was from “A Southern Landscape” that mentioned a church with a gold finger pointing toward heaven.  We looked it up and it is a real place in Port Gibson, MS.

We spent the year in the Deep South, in cotton fields, during some of the most life changing events of the 60’s, on the Mississippi River, in old Southern mansions and so much more.

We read lovely stories by William Faulkner, Truman Capote, Maya Angelou, Flannery O’Conner, Eudora Welty and more.  We even found a few authors on YouTube actually reading their stories.

We used Shmoop as a reference to so many other things.  We listened to songs written about “A Rose For Emily” by William Faulkner.  Keilee took reading comprehension tests from the same site.  It is full of GREAT resources.

Each section of the book is divided into categories; “Places and Voices”, “Families”, “Southern Communities” and “Southern Stereotypes”.  After each few stories she would write a report on the story she liked best of the group and how the author used words to exemplify the category is was in.

The book that was on every single book list was “To Kill A Mockingbird”.  We listened to that book on audio when Keilee was 11 and she played Scout in the play.  We also watched the movie. She has such an unbelievable knowledge of this book now.

We branched off and did a short study on Truman Capote.  He was a beautiful writer but a tortured soul.  We read autobiographies and watched YouTube videos of him speaking. We watched and read “A Christmas Memory”.  It is a beautiful story about Truman Capote when he was a boy and his relationship with his aunt “Sook”.   I HIGHLY recommend it if you aren’t familiar with it.  We read it every Christmas. In fact this Christmas my brother recorded the story with him reading it and gave it to us.  He is a wonderful reader.  We read several short stories by Capote and watched “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” and researched the background and making of it.

We also watched “The Glass Menagerie” by Tennessee Williams. We listened to “Fried Green Tomatoes” by Fannie Flagg. We watched “The Help” again and listened to the audio book.

I found a video on YouTube that an Advanced English high school teacher posted.  It was a summary of what her students would be reading in a semester.  It was 3 short stories!  I couldn’t believe it.  We probably read 40-50 stories and watched several movies and listened to several audio books.

I feel like Keilee now has a great background in Southern Literature.  We are forever making references to things we see or hear and the stories we read. These stories and characters are a part of her now.  They are in her blood.  Just like the magnolias and the smells of Alabama dirt and the accents and the smell of rain falling on fall leaves and the hot summer nights filled with lightening bugs.  And no matter where she ends up, she will always have those memories.

Homeschooling Rocks!
Karen

“Maycomb was a tired old town, even in 1932 when I first knew it. Somehow, it was hotter then. Men’s stiff collars wilted by nine in the morning. Ladies bathed before noon after their three o’clock naps. And by nightfall were like soft teacakes with frosting from sweating and sweet talcum. The day was twenty-four hours long, but it seemed longer. There’s no hurry, for there’s nowhere to go and nothing to buy…and no money to buy it with.”
― Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird

“I’ve barely said five words to you. What indication could you possibly have that I am a Yankee?”

“Well, we could start with the words ‘what indication.’ Someone from south of the Mason-Dixon would have said, ‘Who the hell are you calling a Yankee?’ Then we would have fought.” ― Jana Deleon

Keilee, as many little girls, grew up on Disney films.  Time after time she would watch The Little Mermaid and Cinderella.  For years the most repeated words I heard from her was “Rewind it please”.  We had all the movies on VHS at the time.

She would dress up in her Princess dresses and high heel shoes and want to wear them everywhere.  There are so many times she wore them to the grocery store and the sound of them ‘clicking’ on the grocery floor is a memory I will never forget.

When she was 3 she dressed up as a Princess for Halloween.  It was a huge, itchy outfit.  After going to a Halloween party we were going to go trick or treating and she wanted to go home and change clothes.  (I had a backup Pirate costume because I knew how uncomfortable the outfit and shoes were)  She said to me in her little 3 year old voice, “It’s tough work being a Princess Mommy”.

Now, 12 years later, she is still playing Princess dress up.  This group that she is a part of has been such a perfect fit for her.  It combines her love of all things Disney Princess with her love for acting.

She has had 3 birthday parties that I don’t have pictures of.  Here is one of her coming back to the car afterwards though.

They set up a booth at a local Market Day.  Keilee played Cinderella.  Even though she loves Elsa and plays her the most, she loves being Cinderella more.

They got a call from an aunt whose twin 3 year old nieces and their families had lost everything in a fire.  They were most upset about their Elsa dresses.  The aunt bought them new ones and wanted to know if “Elsa” and “Anna” would surprise them with the dresses.  I love that they donate their time when there isn’t any monetary reward.

Then they went to 3rd Friday.  They did this as promotion for their business.  It is downtown and we have always gone.  I love the looks on little girls faces.  And I love to watch Keilee interact with them.  There was also this little boy who acted so shy but made his Dad follow them up and down the streets.  When any of them turned around he would hide behind his Dad.  It was so cute. Oh and Keilee found a dog to pet. Keilee ALWAYS finds a dog to pet, even as Elsa.

They also have gone to the mall to walk around.  On a Friday night.  It was the coolest thing.  Several “big” girls asked to pose in pictures.  And several boys!  Teenage boys!!  One little girl asked Keilee is she was the real Elsa.  When Keilee said yes she jerked on her hair.  Thankfully Keilee is able to use her real hair! 🙂

May is chocked full of events.  Markets and birthday parties and library read alouds. Keilee has tons of ideas and even though she is the youngest she is always calling or texting the ‘main’ girl to share ideas.

This is such a perfect thing for her and I am so glad she found this.  It requires so much time and organization and commitment. And she is more than willing to do it all.  It is so special to see the little girls eyes light up when they see her.  To make them believe in the magic that is their favorite Princess come to life.  She always says to me, “I would have loved to see my favorite Princess when I was little”.

Homeschooling Rocks!
Karen

“And yet, through it all, Cinderella remained ever gentle and kind, for with each dawn she found new hope that someday her dreams of happiness would come true.” ~ Cinderella

“Whatever comes,” she said, “cannot alter one thing. If I am a princess in rags and tatters, I can be a princess inside. It would be easy to be a princess if I were dressed in cloth of gold, but it is a great deal more of a triumph to be one all the time when no one knows it.”
― Frances Hodgson Burnett, A Little Princess

“But they say if you dream a thing more than once, it’s sure to come true.”~Walt Disney

Keilee had the most awesome opportunity this past weekend.  She was asked to play Elsa at a March of Dimes Fundraiser.  She had the best time and was hugged and sang and danced and talked and laughed with so many little girls.  She is actually in her element with small children.  It always amazes me to see because she is such an introvert and can only handle people in small doses.  But around children she is different.  She was also asked to play Elsa the next day at a 3 year old birthday party.  She made $50 for one hours work.  She loved that too.

This week was beautiful (well except for today.  It is cold today).  We spent Tuesday at the park with our homeschool group.  It was a lovely day spent by the Tennessee River.  Someone from our local paper was there eating lunch and saw some of the teens sword fighting and took their pictures.  They were in the paper!  I love what it said under the pictures of Keilee:
“Rhodes Ferry Park was the scene of a battle worthy of Knights of the Round Table, Robin Hood and Romeo and Juliet, that is if Juliet was wielding a cutlass. ”  🙂

Nomad turned 5 this week.  It is hard to believe we have had him 5 years.  But I can barely remember a time without him.  He has brought so much to our little family and turned us from a family of 2 into a family of 3.

There was also Psychology and History and creative writing.  There was Art Journaling and crocheting and lots of Korean drama watching.  There was CNN Student News and Curious and tons of YouTube videos.

I can hardly believe April is almost  here.  I measure time by my Bible App.  It is the first thing I read every morning.  On the 1st of each month, I always think, “Ok here is a brand new month.  Please let me make something productive of it.  Let me find people to bless and laughter and joy and happy”.  Then I turn around and it is all of a sudden the 15th of the month or the 26th.  I just can not believe how quickly time passes.

Happy weekend all,
Homeschooling Rocks!
Karen

It finally snowed here.  Really snowed!!  We got between 9-10″ and as of today, Saturday, it is still here.  It started Wednesday around noon and snowed until 11:00 PM.

It was magical and beautiful and something that happens so rarely here.

We went out several times Wednesday and Wednesday night took a midnight walk.  I know it is so common place to so many people but to us it was just unbelievable.

Nomad had a blast too.

The first day I had to do a photo shoot with Keilee.  She put on her tutu and my old black leather jacket from the 80’s.  This jacket is a replica of the jacket George Michael wore in “Gotta Have Faith” and I thought I was too cool when I wore it.

Thursday was “Do You Want to Build a Snowman” day.  Keilee built it all by herself with me giving her a quick “Snowman 101” class.  She didn’t know you had to start with a ball and roll it.

Snowman Selfie 🙂

By Friday we were both ready for it to go away but it is still here today.  I love snow, and love the beauty of it but I don’t think I could stand a winter where the ground was mostly white all the time!

Homeschooling Rocks!
Karen

“Snow provokes responses that reach right back to childhood. “~Andy Goldsworthy

“I love snow for the same reason I love Christmas: It brings people together while time stands still. Cozy couples lazily meandered the streets and children trudged sleds and chased snowballs. No one seemed to be in a rush to experience anything other than the glory of the day, with each other, whenever and however it happened.” ~Rachel Cohn, Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares

After reading Jessica’s post about how hard it was to blog High School I started thinking about some of the things she said. She was inspired to write her post from at Diane at Cabin in the Woods. 

This is so true for me too hence the ‘one maybe two posts a month”.  There is only so many pictures of Keilee on her laptop or Art Journaling I can post.  It’s not that our days aren’t lovely and full of learning their just not very picture worthy. 

Keilee has had a great 2 weeks.  She started Geometry right before Christmas and while she will never love Math it is going smoother than Algebra.   She is taking an online course through Coursera called  “DNA and Genetics” that she loves.  We are still loving Southern Lit and she is still LOVING Psychology.  Enough that she is exploring some career options.  We are still watching huge amounts of Korean dramas.  She has a Korean language app and has learned so many Korean words.

There has been a lot of driving.  Which I can’t imagine ever getting used to.  But I suppose I will.  We all have an amazing ability to adapt. 

In this picture we ventured a bit further. 

It was VERY warm this past week.  I think several places in the US had unseasonably warm weather.  We walked Nomad a couple of days.  He really isn’t a lot calmer when walking.  He gets SO excited still!

1. Working on Psychology.  2. Her new Owl boots cuffs she made.  Aren’t they cute?  3.  Creative Writing class with Jessica.  This 6 weeks is “Fairy Tales” so she wore her tiara.  4.  Nomad love 5.  Stuffed Animal fun at Walgreens.

It is a rainy Friday here.  We are planning to stay in where it is warm and dry.  There is a very small chance of snow tonight.  But I’m not getting excited.  I want snow so badly, just ONE SNOW but I don’t think tonight will be it.  So we will spend our weekend doing, hopefully, absolutely nothing.

What we really want is SPRING but I know that’s a long way off.

Happy weekend all,

Homeschooling Rocks!
Karen

“What I like doing best is Nothing.”

“How do you do Nothing,” asked Pooh after he had wondered for a long time.

“Well, it’s when people call out at you just as you’re going off to do it, ‘What are you going to do, Christopher Robin?’ and you say, ‘Oh, Nothing,’ and then you go and do it.

It means just going along, listening to all the things you can’t hear, and not bothering.”

“Oh!” said Pooh.”  ~A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

Linking with
Mary at “Collage Friday”

Sylvia at “Friendship Friday”

Michelle at “TGIF Hop”