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| The boys have been really busy lately with writing in their journals. I bought these composition books for them several months ago...actually I intended them to be nature journals, narration journals, handwriting, etc. But, instead I just handed them over and it has been really neat to see what they have been creating. On the front cover there are lines for name, school, and grade.
I was looking at Eli's and he wrote eli/Homeschoold/ 1st grade.
I looked inside and found that he was writing a screen play for a movie...it is called: Episode 1 The Return of the Pizza Man.
Next page says DUM DUM DUM DUUUUM.
He drew some creatures and space ships...because clearly this is an intergalactic pizza man. He wrote in the colors of what things should be in the movie. He also wrote his synopsis:
(Put, of course, after a page with a self portrait of him, glowing, that says directed by eli)
Name is PizzaMan
When it is rated it will be PG.
Except since we are still working on spelling, and right now inventive spelling is what is
happening it says:
When it is wadid it will be PG.
I puzzled over that for a minute and realized that he meant rated, but was hearing it as wadid. I found it to be just adorable.
Gwen has been working on addition and subtraction up to the sum of 6. Six, because she saw a short clip about a ride at Disney that is from the Little Mermaid, and it seats 6 people. She decided that we MUST go there, and take Grandma with us so we have 6 people. She then made story problems about if someone couldn't go or whatever and how many would be left or added on.
Addison has been making super detailed battle scenes. One has 52 good guys and another has 48 bad guys, so they add up to 100. He also finished his first chapter book, it was about Jedi's...what else? Eli read it after Add.
Today we went to the park and met up with some friends, and some friends we have not seen for a few months. The kids had a great time.
On the way home we were stopped at a stop light and there was a sign. The boys read it and it said "Kick Ass Garage Sale" or maybe it said Huge instead of Kick?
For dinner I made a spinach and cheese lasagna. Called Tim to tell him that I made it, and he was beyond happy.
After dinner I noticed a weird thing by the barn...it looked like a part of a flannel jacket poking out the barn door. I took the dog out with me to see what it was ...and naturally the thought occured to me some flannel clad psychopath could be hiding in there. I was brave, and slid the doors open...and it was just a flannel patterned horse blanket that hangs on the wall, that blew out a bit. I managed to knock the door off the track, and smashed my finger while trying to put it back on...all while trying not to freak out about potential spiders hiding on the other side where my fingers were. (I had a bad barn door, HUGE jumping spider incident yesterday)
While I was doing that, Add came outside and the dog ran back in. I went back in, only to see the dog EATING the lasagna. I was wearing my husbands sandals and did my usual kick that I do to get shoes off, except since it was WAY too big for my feet, it flew....into the lasagna.
And I put the lasagna into the garbage.
I called Tim and told him there was not dinner for him ,because the dog ate it, and then a shoe landed in it.
He didn't even question that one | | |
| And 2 hours after we left it was closed due to dangerous wind conditions... I took photos....of course. The first one I took because the sign cracked me up. It says, at the bottom "Purchased with seized drug funds" Not sure why I found it humorous. Anyway...what I didn't realize when I was standing there trying to just get the sign, is that the Command Center has a telescope camera and they were watching us. Then the Sheriff invited us in for a tour, and it was pretty interesting, though incredibly creepy when they showed us the telescope and how they could watch a person ALL the way across the fairgrounds. 
Watching their balloons fly away 
Tractors!! 
Tim and Elvis. I tried to get one of him and Obama, but he wouldn't do it. 
The ferris wheel was called Big Eli. So we made Eli take a picture with...clearly it was the most joyous day of his life. 
The sign on the pony ride. Because generally people choose to ride a small pony with these things... 
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| and has been since Sunday. Naturally I procrastinated on laundry thinking that I would do it all on Monday...uh..no. Now I just have a ton of laundry that can't be washed and we are at crisis level of clean clothes. I managed to take a shower, albeit a rather cold one, in the dark this morning.
Now Im sitting in some guy's apartment that I don't know, and the kids are watching Spongebob...ok...that didn't sound right. I met the guy a couple times, he works with my husband and is going out of town for a day...so he offered us his place to do our laundry and whatever, which is really nice of him...and Im very thankful. I can handle not having electricity, but I cannot handle not having a shower or clean clothes.
Yesterday was our first "official" day of our school year. It was spent with me cleaning up the yard and the kids playing with the black walnut tree that blew down. They turned it into a fort, then it was a jungle complete with a tiger because Jack, our tiger striped cat was crawling in the branches.
My husband is under strict orders to be home nightly by 8 as long as we dont have electricity, because Im just a little afraid of the dark. Last night around 8:30 it was very dark, and the coyotes started howling. I told my husband that that was why he needed to be home, because if I had been alone..with my overactive imagination, I would've been freaked out about werewolves.
I'm a bit tired and not too inspired right now...so here are some pictures.
This was the framing of a chicken coop out back...Now all the work of tearing it down has been done for me, and I can pull out the usable pieces to build our coop. Here is Bella checking out a sheet of metal roofing that blew off the barn. 
 
Kids playing in the tree that fell down.  
Im just happy it wasn't THIS tree that fell....it is HUGE, and would have squashed our house....or my car. | | |
| My husband and I went on a date.
We realized that it had been a few months since we had one. The last date we went on was an overnight in Cleveland. We went up to see She Wants Revenge..a band that I really enjoy, and my husband doesn't, but he loves me a lot so he thought we should go.
This time my mother in law came down to stay with us for the weekend. For her coming down to our little farm is a nice getaway....which puzzles me because all I see is all the work. ha!
My husband and I decided to go to the Gallery Hop. We had way too much fun. To people watch, look at art, peruse stores with breakables, and eaves drop on conversations is what we love to do. This date had a few positively brilliant parts to it...
In a gourmet dog bakery/boutique I heard a woman discussing the dog treats that were artfully created...she was asking ingredients and when she heard nuts were in the treat she was eyeing she said "No..her stomach is a bit sensitive...what is in the biscotti" Then my attention went to the dog treat baker, who had cut out some cookies and was sprinkling them with nuts...and I had to wonder how one decides to do that, and if they fess up when people ask what they "do". I also overheard anxious owners discussing their dogs and the dogs various ailments. We had to leave because I nearly burst out in laughter.
Next was some store that was CRAMMED with all sorts of things, we slowly made our way to the back of the store where they had some kid furniture, and some really cute things. That was where things got a bit hairy. Jack Johnson came on the radio....I cannot listen to that man. NO matter where I am, when I hear his music I start crying. I looked at my husband, trying really hard to hold back the tears, and whispered that I had to get OUT asap or I would turn into a bawling mess.
He looked alarmed.
Naturally since it was a crowded store, there were people blocking all the ways out...but I managed to get out in time. Curious George the movie was miserable for me because of the music, and I find it to be the most depressing movie I have ever seen. I don't know why it hits me that way..
For dinner we went to a fusion restaurant..and it was really good. My husband thanked me for not being a nagging wife like the couple next to us...the woman complained, and picked on her husband..their entire dinner. When we sat down we realized the piano guy was playing the song we had at our wedding. That happened one other time to us...in Cancun at a restaurant called Bogart's.
We wandered around for a bit, watched more people, bought some candles. Well...my husband did, after 5 minutes in the store I felt ill...I can only tolerate certain scents..mainly spicy ones...and the store was a bit too fragrant. He found several that he really liked, and bought a thank you gift for his mom for babysitting. I did love the Pipe Tobacco scented candle though
Before we left we stopped at an ice cream store, that had a really long line...and it was there that the date was made complete.
While waiting in line I saw a woman in her 60's wearing super tight flared leg LEOPARD print pants....I noted that she had had some facial work done., and wore Chanel glasses I asked my husband if I could someday wear those when Im in my 60s...I was really impressed by her daring. He said only when we are millionaires because that is the only way to get away with it
Then I thought I heard Hari Krishnas singing...but figured I was imagining it....but no....it was real! They came dancing through...ok..there was one guy in a robe singing, a guy with a megaphone, and a guy with a drum....but still.
We got home by 9....because we are old. | | |
| Ok...I survived 5 entire days without internet access. It was grueling, and Im sure I was incredibly annoying since the only other thing I could find to do to amuse myself was text message my dear friend strange photos of things I took throughout the day. At some point, Im convinced she began to ignore me.
Nothing notable happened.
I was sick all weekend and very grumpy, and slept a lot. I probably WAS sick in the first place because clearly I must think Im sub-human and don't need much sleep, so I did not have much. We met some friends on Thursday. They are a family that we have been trying to get together with all summer, but our schedules never matched up. That was really fun, except I was SO tired that day that I was really scatter brained, and when I am like that I tend to rattle on about nothing. Which is always embarrassing after the fact.
I took the kids to COSI on Friday and we had fun. While in line for something or other, I started talking with the mom behind us, turned out that they were homeschoolers too.
Afterwards we went to a bookstore and bought more books.
Saturday we all went to the Farmer's Market, and all I bought was some honey.
Sunday, I think I slept all day...
Monday....library.
Today I had intended on surprising my friend. She had some things to do this morning, so I came up with a grand scheme of buying her stuff for her birthday and leaving them on her porch to surprise her when she got home. Unfortunately, I hatched this plan too late, and while I was driving to the stores she called.
The conversation went like this:
Friend: "What are you doing"
Me: "Im driving, where are you?"
F: "Im home, where are you going"
Me: "Your house, but you aren't supposed to be home yet because Im coming there"
F: "WHY are you coming to my house, are going to TP my house?? WHAT are you doing"
Me: "Can't say, Im plotting something, and you cant know"
F: "I know you are going to buy colored toilet paper or streamers and TP my house, do the kids know what you are doing, let me talk to them?"
Me: They do and no, because if they tell then they will have to self destruct"
Anyway, the kids and I bought her some lotions, and chocolates, and flowers, and a nice book, and met her and her son at a restaurant. The kids had a lot of fun helping, and thought it was funny.
At the restaurant when the waitress asked Gwen what she wanted my lovely little flower of a daughter said "Fried monkey brains and a cup of tea" The waitress laughed (thankfully) and said they didn't have that, so Gwen said she would like a white alligator head instead.
She got macaroni and cheese.
The 3 boys re-enacted Star Wars in the booth....then they were bribed with getting ice cream, and stopped.
My father in law called today to tell me that the Sonic Youth cd and the movie Control had come in for us, at the store my husband ordered them at in Cleveland. So, he picked them up. I knew nothing about the ordering of anything, and was very happy to hear what it was. He said he listened to my cd and had forgotten how great it was, and watched the movie and said that we would really love it. I thanked him for taking the time to critique our orders.
My father in law is the loudest opposition I have had in regards to homeschooling.
So, I decided to tell him that Add, had picked up my copy of Walden and was reading bits out of it. He said "Whew, Im so glad that kid is FINALLY reading...I guess that online school is really working."
:bite tongue, bite tongue....do not say we are not using virtual academy...keep biting and mumble some noise and CHANGE TOPIC.:
(In the past we have had some pretty hasty words thrown at each other about homeschooling...)
But anyway, Yes, Add has taken an interest in Walden. He also informs me that he finished reading a GI Joe comic, and Eli read that too.
Tonight we watched bats fly out of our barn, the kids thought it was neat, but very creepy . | | |
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