Somebody loves her new "toy":
Seth made a pretty awesome landscape on the stairs:
Miah continues to love the fact that she is allowed to
color "on the floor"
Adding paint to the mix was a huge hit:
L.
Happiest Place on Earth
Showing posts with label summer vacation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label summer vacation. Show all posts
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Beautiful Day...
I couldn't have asked for a better day to kick off our summer vacation! Snuggling in the morning with Miah, followed by lots of Saturday morning cartoons (Darkwing Duck was our cartoon of choice today), a great workout, homemade Chinese food for lunch, and some good time outside with perfect weather. Back inside for showers, some silent reading time, dinner, and now it's time for Garfield and Friends. With any luck, everybody under age 10 will be in bed by 8:00, we'll all get some good sleep, and we can repeat this over... and over... and over again...
Friday, May 24, 2013
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
My Starting Line-Up...
Yeah... not for hockey... or baseball... or even quizzing (gasp)!
This is how I'm kicking off my summer reading. Please take note there is nothing even remotely academic here. I might pull out C.S. Lewis when I get to July, just to make sure I haven't lost too many brain cells...
Bring on the sunshine and lemonade...
L.
This is how I'm kicking off my summer reading. Please take note there is nothing even remotely academic here. I might pull out C.S. Lewis when I get to July, just to make sure I haven't lost too many brain cells...
Bring on the sunshine and lemonade...
L.
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Growing Up...
... my cousins were my best friends.
Unfortunately, our family is spread hundreds of miles apart, so my kids don't get to see their cousins as much as we'd like. However, these three managed to stay up talking well past 2:00 in the morning, so I'd say they like each other (more than just a little bit), even though they only get together about once a year...
L.
Unfortunately, our family is spread hundreds of miles apart, so my kids don't get to see their cousins as much as we'd like. However, these three managed to stay up talking well past 2:00 in the morning, so I'd say they like each other (more than just a little bit), even though they only get together about once a year...
Audrey, Elizabeth, and Grace:
Friday, August 12, 2011
Good-bye Summer, Part 1…
You were far too short this time around… but a lot of people seem to share that sentiment this year…
Our family ordinarily enjoys summer vacation from Memorial Day until Labor Day, but for a variety of reasons we chose to enroll our kids in a virtual public school this year, so we had to kiss summer good-bye on Monday. I currently have mixed feelings about that. If we can finish all of our curriculum by early May and also net several additional weeks of vacation time during the school year, I think I will be OK with the turnaround for next summer… but it doesn’t seem right to start on August 8th. In fact, this is the first time in years that I do not have a single picture of the first day of school. My mind simply couldn’t process it…
But this post is not about school. This post is about summer and specifically about the last three weeks of our summer vacation (there will be more than 1 part)…
I began blogging these weeks… well… as they happened, but I never had another chance to sit down to upload photos or to take a breath between then and now. Realistically, I should be working on school assignments or going to bed at this hour, but I am blog starved. The summer’s going up tonight!
When last I left you, we were in the midst of driving to Fort Wayne for Seth to attend a video game creation day camp. Five days later… 15 hours of driving later… more gasoline than I care to count later… We had managed to collect a great number of fun memories.
Just a rundown…
Monday I already blogged… see below…
Tuesday: Caleb, Ian Miah, and I stuck around at Science Central and enjoyed some of the exhibits that we do not always have time for during homeschool trips. Caleb also traded a rock at the swap shop for some shells which is always a favorite activity. When Seth was done with camp we all headed to the mall. We intended to eat first, but Miah had fallen asleep, so we took this opportunity to play glow golf. At half price we paid $12.00 total for 54 holes of golf (3 games) each! Ian gave up after about 20 I think and quickly proceeded to return his golf club and lose his glow in the dark golf ball… Miah woke up about halfway through and was not real happy about sitting in the stroller until we finished. Seth, Caleb, and I had a very nice time, however, and it was so nice that I actually haven’t even tallied the score yet (now 3 weeks later)… I am pretty sure I won… You really cannot do justice to glow golf with pictures... After this we went to Chick-Fil-A for free kids meals, and since you have to buy one adult meal for each free meal; I got Seth a chicken sandwich (which is what he always really wants at Chick-Fil-A but almost never gets). This was a huge hit until we discovered that they accidentally gave him a spicy chicken sandwich and his mouth caught on fire… We then proceeded to ride the carousel (which I always say no to), because it was also half price… This was Miah’s first carousel ride. She liked it until it started moving…
Wednesday: Phil came with us, and after we dropped Seth off we did some shopping and then took our three littlest people to see Winnie-the-Pooh. This was an enormous hit with Ian. We always stay for the credits (which in this case were almost as long as the movie). All the other people who left during the credits did miss some extra footage, just in case you’re wondering! We picked up Seth and the best Marcos pizza I have ever had and then headed home after another great day!
Thursday: Caleb, Ian, Miah and I attempted some fall clothes shopping. Although we did end up with several free items from Old Navy, we decided that the bulk of the shopping would have to wait until we arrived in Michigan at the outlet mall… which, of course, was a real disappointment to me… I mean, I don’t love outlet mall shopping or anything (feel the sarcasm)… We also went back to the mall, ate breadsticks at the food court, and experienced Cold Stone Creamery for the first time (and quite possibly the last, because it sort of made me sick, but I’m not sure if I can blame that on the ice cream or the heat). Chick-Fil-A won out again for dinner (3rd time this week)…
Friday: When we arrived at Science Central, Seth’s eye was all red and bubbly from an allergic reaction to something. We grabbed some ice and then took a little side trip to Wal-Mart for some fake Benadryl and eye drops. Then we took Seth back to camp and proceeded to enjoy ourselves at Science Central, because we didn’t want to leave in case he needed anything else. It was another fun day and rather relaxing as it wasn’t packed. I have always been intrigued by the announcements for a star lab show but can never find the planetarium. We bought tickets ($2.00 total) and asked for directions. It turned out to be an inflatable planetarium (which I have experienced before (although not at Science Central) and should have realized, but it was new for the kids). Ha! Now I get it! It wasn't the greatest show, but it did give us something cheap and different to do, so it was a good decision. We also enjoyed a couple of demonstrations this week, and I always think its a plus when we get something educational out of our little trips! By the end of the day, though, I was so ready to return home and to see Grace (who had arrived home from camp earlier in the day). We made one more quick stop at Marcos and scarfed some pizza that was not as great as earlier in the week but still pretty good, and then headed home (watching my lead foot that apparently developed this week... thank you for those race car driver genes, Dad)…
Although it was busy and exhausting, I wouldn’t trade the week for anything. It was a fantastic break from the every day routine and I love the memories we made!
A few picture highlights:
Caleb on the Moon Walk:
Squishy Ian:
Best Shirt Ever:
Our family ordinarily enjoys summer vacation from Memorial Day until Labor Day, but for a variety of reasons we chose to enroll our kids in a virtual public school this year, so we had to kiss summer good-bye on Monday. I currently have mixed feelings about that. If we can finish all of our curriculum by early May and also net several additional weeks of vacation time during the school year, I think I will be OK with the turnaround for next summer… but it doesn’t seem right to start on August 8th. In fact, this is the first time in years that I do not have a single picture of the first day of school. My mind simply couldn’t process it…
But this post is not about school. This post is about summer and specifically about the last three weeks of our summer vacation (there will be more than 1 part)…
I began blogging these weeks… well… as they happened, but I never had another chance to sit down to upload photos or to take a breath between then and now. Realistically, I should be working on school assignments or going to bed at this hour, but I am blog starved. The summer’s going up tonight!
When last I left you, we were in the midst of driving to Fort Wayne for Seth to attend a video game creation day camp. Five days later… 15 hours of driving later… more gasoline than I care to count later… We had managed to collect a great number of fun memories.
Just a rundown…
Monday I already blogged… see below…
Tuesday: Caleb, Ian Miah, and I stuck around at Science Central and enjoyed some of the exhibits that we do not always have time for during homeschool trips. Caleb also traded a rock at the swap shop for some shells which is always a favorite activity. When Seth was done with camp we all headed to the mall. We intended to eat first, but Miah had fallen asleep, so we took this opportunity to play glow golf. At half price we paid $12.00 total for 54 holes of golf (3 games) each! Ian gave up after about 20 I think and quickly proceeded to return his golf club and lose his glow in the dark golf ball… Miah woke up about halfway through and was not real happy about sitting in the stroller until we finished. Seth, Caleb, and I had a very nice time, however, and it was so nice that I actually haven’t even tallied the score yet (now 3 weeks later)… I am pretty sure I won… You really cannot do justice to glow golf with pictures... After this we went to Chick-Fil-A for free kids meals, and since you have to buy one adult meal for each free meal; I got Seth a chicken sandwich (which is what he always really wants at Chick-Fil-A but almost never gets). This was a huge hit until we discovered that they accidentally gave him a spicy chicken sandwich and his mouth caught on fire… We then proceeded to ride the carousel (which I always say no to), because it was also half price… This was Miah’s first carousel ride. She liked it until it started moving…
Wednesday: Phil came with us, and after we dropped Seth off we did some shopping and then took our three littlest people to see Winnie-the-Pooh. This was an enormous hit with Ian. We always stay for the credits (which in this case were almost as long as the movie). All the other people who left during the credits did miss some extra footage, just in case you’re wondering! We picked up Seth and the best Marcos pizza I have ever had and then headed home after another great day!
Thursday: Caleb, Ian, Miah and I attempted some fall clothes shopping. Although we did end up with several free items from Old Navy, we decided that the bulk of the shopping would have to wait until we arrived in Michigan at the outlet mall… which, of course, was a real disappointment to me… I mean, I don’t love outlet mall shopping or anything (feel the sarcasm)… We also went back to the mall, ate breadsticks at the food court, and experienced Cold Stone Creamery for the first time (and quite possibly the last, because it sort of made me sick, but I’m not sure if I can blame that on the ice cream or the heat). Chick-Fil-A won out again for dinner (3rd time this week)…
Friday: When we arrived at Science Central, Seth’s eye was all red and bubbly from an allergic reaction to something. We grabbed some ice and then took a little side trip to Wal-Mart for some fake Benadryl and eye drops. Then we took Seth back to camp and proceeded to enjoy ourselves at Science Central, because we didn’t want to leave in case he needed anything else. It was another fun day and rather relaxing as it wasn’t packed. I have always been intrigued by the announcements for a star lab show but can never find the planetarium. We bought tickets ($2.00 total) and asked for directions. It turned out to be an inflatable planetarium (which I have experienced before (although not at Science Central) and should have realized, but it was new for the kids). Ha! Now I get it! It wasn't the greatest show, but it did give us something cheap and different to do, so it was a good decision. We also enjoyed a couple of demonstrations this week, and I always think its a plus when we get something educational out of our little trips! By the end of the day, though, I was so ready to return home and to see Grace (who had arrived home from camp earlier in the day). We made one more quick stop at Marcos and scarfed some pizza that was not as great as earlier in the week but still pretty good, and then headed home (watching my lead foot that apparently developed this week... thank you for those race car driver genes, Dad)…
Although it was busy and exhausting, I wouldn’t trade the week for anything. It was a fantastic break from the every day routine and I love the memories we made!
A few picture highlights:
Miah's 1st Carousel Ride:
I can't believe that Caleb didn't want to ride the elephant!
I can't believe that Caleb didn't want to ride the elephant!
Caleb on the Moon Walk:
Squishy Ian:
Best Shirt Ever:
The Boys Absolutely Loved this Game in the Bible Times Exhibit:
Lisa
Monday, July 18, 2011
It’s Been A Really Good Day…
I expect that this week is going to be hectic. I dropped Grace off, this morning, to go to Pre-Teen girls camp. Considering she has been counting down the days since… oh… November or so, she was a little on the excited side! I always miss Grace when she is gone, because she is such a great helper to me, but I am so happy that she is going to be with her friends, soaking up Jesus all week long! Still can’t wait to see her on Friday, though…
Seth also has a camp this week, but it is a day camp… In Fort Wayne… about an hour and a half from home. We signed Seth up for this camp because of his love for video games. He legitimately wants to create video games when he grows up. There is a part of me that hopes he changes his mind, but in the meantime, since we believe in giving our kids every possible opportunity, we’re on the lookout for anything that might actually help him to move in that direction. So I’m going to be driving to Fort Wayne all week long…
This, of course, left me with my “babies” (although Caleb is finally starting to balk at the word at age 7… tear)… After we dropped Seth off, it occurred to me that I really didn’t have a plan for the day. Science Central is closed on Mondays (surprise!), so our membership there didn’t do us any good. Our zoo membership has long since expired, and I really have a hard time paying for one day at the zoo when a membership can easily “pay for itself”, but I couldn’t seem to find an extra hundred bucks in my back pocket to renew the membership, either, so that was out, as well. We finally decided to take a walk. This lasted for approximately 4 minutes, until we came to an area of the sidewalk that was closed and also realized that the temperature must be well into the 90s. We hauled our sweaty selves back to the van…
At this point, I did what any reasonable mother with three small children and no money would do. I decided that we would go browse at Toys R Us… Go ahead, I dare you to tell me that’s not reasonable. The truth is, Miah had a gift card from her birthday, and her favorite baby doll is in desperate need of some clothes, because she is always naked and that is embarrassing when we have company. We went in search of doll clothes. Yeah… the boys totally loved that. I knew that Caleb and Ian each had some money saved from their allowance and birthday gifts, etc, so I indulged them by letting them throw potential purchases into the cart. I think this was especially fun for Caleb, since Ian was in the cart… I mean, how often does he have permission to throw stuff at his little brother? They started out relatively cheap, but as we progressed through the store it occurred to me that I should probably count their money to give them some sort of realistic expectation for what they might be able to afford. I am not kidding you, I was shocked. Those kids were loaded (for a 4 and 7 year old)! We darn near could have gone to the zoo! We exited Toys R Us with a few school supplies (Crayola was buy 1, get 2 free… don’t even get me started), a birthday gift for October (for Grace… and I can’t give any more details at this point, because she actually has friends who are old enough to read this… but I got a fantastic deal), a huge stuffed dinosaur (Ian’s purchase… which, ironically really was exactly what he was looking for), a Pac-man DS game and Thomas the Tank Engine bag (Caleb, or course), and baby doll bottles and clothes for the poor, naked baby doll… Not bad for window shopping, right?
Caleb was just itching to go to the mall after this, because he wanted to buy taffy. Since we still had a couple of hours to kill, that’s where we went. Of course, it was here that we stumbled upon signs for “Tuesday Family Night” discounts, so I guess we at least have a plan for tomorrow… A broken elevator, a few new t-shirts, a JCPenny employee who wanted to sell me a portrait package (I love saying, “Actually, I’m a photographer”), and a couple of bags of taffy later, we made our trek back to the van, in the rain, sloshing through some major puddles, and were on our way to grab a bite to eat for dinner before picking Seth up. Of course, we ate Chick-Fil-A, because there is just something wrong about being in the vicinity of a Chick-Fil-A and not eating there…
We proceeded to pick Seth up (who had a wonderful day, himself, I might add), and then it was home for ½ a game of church league softball (where Miah turned into a hot potato and the boys managed to cover themselves in dirt from head to toe), and then really back home for baths and showers.
By 8:30, my house was completely quiet, and I snuggled down with my laptop and a raspberry lemonade and actually had the time to post to my blog… which you just read…
What a nice day…
Lisa
PS I love driving. I guess I always have, but the time in the car is just a wonderful time for reflection and also for communing with God. I am too tired to get philosophical or theological, tonight, but there was a lot of good stuff going on during our travel time today, and I hope to expound on that more… soon…
Seth also has a camp this week, but it is a day camp… In Fort Wayne… about an hour and a half from home. We signed Seth up for this camp because of his love for video games. He legitimately wants to create video games when he grows up. There is a part of me that hopes he changes his mind, but in the meantime, since we believe in giving our kids every possible opportunity, we’re on the lookout for anything that might actually help him to move in that direction. So I’m going to be driving to Fort Wayne all week long…
This, of course, left me with my “babies” (although Caleb is finally starting to balk at the word at age 7… tear)… After we dropped Seth off, it occurred to me that I really didn’t have a plan for the day. Science Central is closed on Mondays (surprise!), so our membership there didn’t do us any good. Our zoo membership has long since expired, and I really have a hard time paying for one day at the zoo when a membership can easily “pay for itself”, but I couldn’t seem to find an extra hundred bucks in my back pocket to renew the membership, either, so that was out, as well. We finally decided to take a walk. This lasted for approximately 4 minutes, until we came to an area of the sidewalk that was closed and also realized that the temperature must be well into the 90s. We hauled our sweaty selves back to the van…
At this point, I did what any reasonable mother with three small children and no money would do. I decided that we would go browse at Toys R Us… Go ahead, I dare you to tell me that’s not reasonable. The truth is, Miah had a gift card from her birthday, and her favorite baby doll is in desperate need of some clothes, because she is always naked and that is embarrassing when we have company. We went in search of doll clothes. Yeah… the boys totally loved that. I knew that Caleb and Ian each had some money saved from their allowance and birthday gifts, etc, so I indulged them by letting them throw potential purchases into the cart. I think this was especially fun for Caleb, since Ian was in the cart… I mean, how often does he have permission to throw stuff at his little brother? They started out relatively cheap, but as we progressed through the store it occurred to me that I should probably count their money to give them some sort of realistic expectation for what they might be able to afford. I am not kidding you, I was shocked. Those kids were loaded (for a 4 and 7 year old)! We darn near could have gone to the zoo! We exited Toys R Us with a few school supplies (Crayola was buy 1, get 2 free… don’t even get me started), a birthday gift for October (for Grace… and I can’t give any more details at this point, because she actually has friends who are old enough to read this… but I got a fantastic deal), a huge stuffed dinosaur (Ian’s purchase… which, ironically really was exactly what he was looking for), a Pac-man DS game and Thomas the Tank Engine bag (Caleb, or course), and baby doll bottles and clothes for the poor, naked baby doll… Not bad for window shopping, right?
Caleb was just itching to go to the mall after this, because he wanted to buy taffy. Since we still had a couple of hours to kill, that’s where we went. Of course, it was here that we stumbled upon signs for “Tuesday Family Night” discounts, so I guess we at least have a plan for tomorrow… A broken elevator, a few new t-shirts, a JCPenny employee who wanted to sell me a portrait package (I love saying, “Actually, I’m a photographer”), and a couple of bags of taffy later, we made our trek back to the van, in the rain, sloshing through some major puddles, and were on our way to grab a bite to eat for dinner before picking Seth up. Of course, we ate Chick-Fil-A, because there is just something wrong about being in the vicinity of a Chick-Fil-A and not eating there…
We proceeded to pick Seth up (who had a wonderful day, himself, I might add), and then it was home for ½ a game of church league softball (where Miah turned into a hot potato and the boys managed to cover themselves in dirt from head to toe), and then really back home for baths and showers.
By 8:30, my house was completely quiet, and I snuggled down with my laptop and a raspberry lemonade and actually had the time to post to my blog… which you just read…
What a nice day…
Lisa
PS I love driving. I guess I always have, but the time in the car is just a wonderful time for reflection and also for communing with God. I am too tired to get philosophical or theological, tonight, but there was a lot of good stuff going on during our travel time today, and I hope to expound on that more… soon…
Monday, July 27, 2009
Summer Adventures...
... Are Wearing Me Out!
I'm behind... again... as far as blogging goes. Seems that I never stop running long enough to sit down and write about it here lately!
Last week, Phil, Seth, and Grace went off to camp, so Caleb, Ian, and I decided we needed an adventure of our own. On Monday our plans were kind of thrown for a loop, and we ended up just hanging around home most of the day and then goin' to "The Rat Place" (AKA Chuck-E-Cheese) in the evening. We spent tons of tokens, earned relatively few tickets, and came home with lots of prizes, because the girls working the prize counter thought the boys were super cute!
On Tuesday we headed to the Fort Wayne Children's Zoo, which we enjoyed a lot. Ordinarily, I do not "splurge" on rides when we visit the zoo. However, since there were only three of us it made the prices a little more reasonable, so we rode everything! It was on the "Sky Safari" that it occurred to me that although I have never been afraid of heights, I do have a pretty huge fear of falling from high places... particularly while holding on to two small, wiggly children! Caleb actually did a pretty job sitting still once I explained to him exactly how I expected him to position himself and not to move. Ian... well, that's another story... Unfortunately, I have almost no pictures of the animals (except the ones that live at my house). I had a pretty good pic. of Caleb with the lion, but when I downloaded it must have gotten lost in the process. Thinking everything had transferred alright, I erased all of the images from the camera... ugh! I do have some nice pics. of us on the rides and exploring the zoo:
After the other half of our family returned home, we spent a couple of days cleaning up from camp and then took a trip to Cedar Point!
It was definitely a fun trip, but not "classic" Cedar Point by any stretch of the imagination. This can most accurately be understood by the list of things we did not ride... calypso, turnpike cars, antique cars, cedar downs, raptor, thunder canyon, wave swinger, matterhorn, super himalaya, scrambler, even the carousel (for crying out loud)... not among the things we rode this time around...
However, Seth and Grace hit the 52" mark this year, so they got to experience a whole lot of new things including MaxAir, Wicked Twister, Skyhawk, Power Tower Up and Down, and Magnum for Grace (Seth took his first spin on Magnum last summer). Ian also rode his first coaster (well, unless we count Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, seven months before he was born). His assessment of Woodstock Express was, "I don't wike this wide"... Below are pics. of first time coaster experiences:
Amazingly enough, we actually didn't take a whole lot of pictures while we were there. I guess I've been dropping the ball all summer long in this regard. We did pretty much ride till we dropped, though, and arrived home at 3:15am! My quote of the trip comes from our friend Avalyn, "Lisa... I like that ride... It makes me sick!" How's that for making a new generation of adrenaline junkies...
I can never quite understand why I look so forward to the end of the school year but as we turn the corner into August I am ready for it all to begin again... Not that we are starting in August... NO WAY!!! One of the nice advantages of homeschooling is that we can run a normal school schedule Labor Day to Memorial Day, get all of the work in, ace the placement tests, and enjoy life a little bit! However, I am starting to look forward to the structure that comes along with Fall...
Until then...
Lisa
I'm behind... again... as far as blogging goes. Seems that I never stop running long enough to sit down and write about it here lately!
Last week, Phil, Seth, and Grace went off to camp, so Caleb, Ian, and I decided we needed an adventure of our own. On Monday our plans were kind of thrown for a loop, and we ended up just hanging around home most of the day and then goin' to "The Rat Place" (AKA Chuck-E-Cheese) in the evening. We spent tons of tokens, earned relatively few tickets, and came home with lots of prizes, because the girls working the prize counter thought the boys were super cute!
On Tuesday we headed to the Fort Wayne Children's Zoo, which we enjoyed a lot. Ordinarily, I do not "splurge" on rides when we visit the zoo. However, since there were only three of us it made the prices a little more reasonable, so we rode everything! It was on the "Sky Safari" that it occurred to me that although I have never been afraid of heights, I do have a pretty huge fear of falling from high places... particularly while holding on to two small, wiggly children! Caleb actually did a pretty job sitting still once I explained to him exactly how I expected him to position himself and not to move. Ian... well, that's another story... Unfortunately, I have almost no pictures of the animals (except the ones that live at my house). I had a pretty good pic. of Caleb with the lion, but when I downloaded it must have gotten lost in the process. Thinking everything had transferred alright, I erased all of the images from the camera... ugh! I do have some nice pics. of us on the rides and exploring the zoo:
After the other half of our family returned home, we spent a couple of days cleaning up from camp and then took a trip to Cedar Point!It was definitely a fun trip, but not "classic" Cedar Point by any stretch of the imagination. This can most accurately be understood by the list of things we did not ride... calypso, turnpike cars, antique cars, cedar downs, raptor, thunder canyon, wave swinger, matterhorn, super himalaya, scrambler, even the carousel (for crying out loud)... not among the things we rode this time around...
However, Seth and Grace hit the 52" mark this year, so they got to experience a whole lot of new things including MaxAir, Wicked Twister, Skyhawk, Power Tower Up and Down, and Magnum for Grace (Seth took his first spin on Magnum last summer). Ian also rode his first coaster (well, unless we count Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, seven months before he was born). His assessment of Woodstock Express was, "I don't wike this wide"... Below are pics. of first time coaster experiences:
Amazingly enough, we actually didn't take a whole lot of pictures while we were there. I guess I've been dropping the ball all summer long in this regard. We did pretty much ride till we dropped, though, and arrived home at 3:15am! My quote of the trip comes from our friend Avalyn, "Lisa... I like that ride... It makes me sick!" How's that for making a new generation of adrenaline junkies...I can never quite understand why I look so forward to the end of the school year but as we turn the corner into August I am ready for it all to begin again... Not that we are starting in August... NO WAY!!! One of the nice advantages of homeschooling is that we can run a normal school schedule Labor Day to Memorial Day, get all of the work in, ace the placement tests, and enjoy life a little bit! However, I am starting to look forward to the structure that comes along with Fall...
Until then...
Lisa
Friday, July 17, 2009
Circus City U.S.A.
... Who would've thought...
I mean, seriously... When I was a kid I never said anything to myself like, "When I grow up I hope I live in a town in which everything in life revolves around clowns and organ music... and for a full week every year, no one functions except to eat cotton candy and tenderloins... and to spend twice as much as a day at Cedar Point on a handful of carnival rides..."
In just a little while, here, I am going to pack Caleb and Ian into the wagon, and then I am going to walk downtown to purchase tickets for tonight's show. And I don't really mind going to the show. We have a couple of teens who participate in circus, and I rather enjoy seeing their acts, if nothing else. What the kids do is impressive. But the overall pervasiveness scares me more than just a little bit...
People who cannot pay their basic utilities, rent, or mortgage throw cash around like it grows on trees during circus week. People completely forget about their responsibilities, and they don't even bother to call. Heck, half the town forgets what day of the week it is! In fact, I forgot what day of the week it was yesterday...
The other day I stopped and wondered if Frank Peretti was walking through the streets of our town during Circus week when he penned the first chapter of "This Present Darkness"... If he wasn't, he could've been...
Time to eat an elephant ear...
Lisa
I mean, seriously... When I was a kid I never said anything to myself like, "When I grow up I hope I live in a town in which everything in life revolves around clowns and organ music... and for a full week every year, no one functions except to eat cotton candy and tenderloins... and to spend twice as much as a day at Cedar Point on a handful of carnival rides..."
In just a little while, here, I am going to pack Caleb and Ian into the wagon, and then I am going to walk downtown to purchase tickets for tonight's show. And I don't really mind going to the show. We have a couple of teens who participate in circus, and I rather enjoy seeing their acts, if nothing else. What the kids do is impressive. But the overall pervasiveness scares me more than just a little bit...
People who cannot pay their basic utilities, rent, or mortgage throw cash around like it grows on trees during circus week. People completely forget about their responsibilities, and they don't even bother to call. Heck, half the town forgets what day of the week it is! In fact, I forgot what day of the week it was yesterday...
The other day I stopped and wondered if Frank Peretti was walking through the streets of our town during Circus week when he penned the first chapter of "This Present Darkness"... If he wasn't, he could've been...
Time to eat an elephant ear...
Lisa
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Oh, So Random...
... Well, so much for my relaxing summer, so far! We kicked it off with homeschool camp, which was a real adventure. I don't even really know what to say. I certainly didn't expect to walk right into co-ed dorms, and it went downhill from there (at least to an extent)!
The kids had fun and made friends, so it's all good... except they will probably never see their new friends again, because it's not like this is an organization that does things together on a regular basis. I never, ever thought I'd say this about a camp experience, but recreation time was definitely my favorite... Please see video:
Softball season is in full swing... except for those of us who prefer to stand at the plate and hope for balls... Our first double header was a near disaster, redeemed only by the fact that we are doing this for fun! Our next game was better, although we still lost, but at least we were finished in time to get ice cream!
The kids are participating in the public library summer reading program and hoping to earn lots of free kids meals and ice cream! Add that to eating breakfast on the deck and picnics in the park, and they are happy! Now... if we could just get the swingset up and figure out how to make the pool fit...
Grace had her piano awards ceremony and recital. I don't have the video on my camera, and I don't think Phil has captured it yet, but I'll try to remember to put it up when he does. She hit one pretty terrible note, but she kept playing, so it was alright in the end. I am so proud of her... little miss perfection...
Our new "pets" Einey, Meenie, Miney, and Mama Lilly Groundhog are still boycotting the live trap that will lead them to a life of freedom at the resevoir with Papa Bear and Moe... It would be really convenient if they would catch on soon, because I'd like to fill in their home under the garage and pave a nice tricycle riding area in the back...
Grace and I have the coundown goin' on for Orlando! 13 more days to go!
And I guess that about covers it for the first two weeks of vacation!
Lisa
The kids had fun and made friends, so it's all good... except they will probably never see their new friends again, because it's not like this is an organization that does things together on a regular basis. I never, ever thought I'd say this about a camp experience, but recreation time was definitely my favorite... Please see video:
Softball season is in full swing... except for those of us who prefer to stand at the plate and hope for balls... Our first double header was a near disaster, redeemed only by the fact that we are doing this for fun! Our next game was better, although we still lost, but at least we were finished in time to get ice cream!
The kids are participating in the public library summer reading program and hoping to earn lots of free kids meals and ice cream! Add that to eating breakfast on the deck and picnics in the park, and they are happy! Now... if we could just get the swingset up and figure out how to make the pool fit...
Grace had her piano awards ceremony and recital. I don't have the video on my camera, and I don't think Phil has captured it yet, but I'll try to remember to put it up when he does. She hit one pretty terrible note, but she kept playing, so it was alright in the end. I am so proud of her... little miss perfection...
Our new "pets" Einey, Meenie, Miney, and Mama Lilly Groundhog are still boycotting the live trap that will lead them to a life of freedom at the resevoir with Papa Bear and Moe... It would be really convenient if they would catch on soon, because I'd like to fill in their home under the garage and pave a nice tricycle riding area in the back...
Grace and I have the coundown goin' on for Orlando! 13 more days to go!
And I guess that about covers it for the first two weeks of vacation!
Lisa
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
I think I can... I think I can... I think I can...
...Catch up! But maybe I can't...
At any rate, be looking for updates soon, including our only trip to Cedar Point with the kids this summer. There is still much going on, and I doubt the load is going to get much lighter as I start school next week and the kids start right after Labor Day! And then there are piano lessons... and soccer... and swimming... and vacations... and field trips... and quizzing (imagine that)!
For today, here's the long postponed posting of the VBS slideshow (several weeks later)! I stayed up until 5am creating this one (long story), which is really late! This week I'm only staying up until midnight... or maybe 1am, depending on how long the prime time Olympic coverage lasts! I never claimed I wasn't an absolute moron...
See below for the VBS pics:
Lisa
At any rate, be looking for updates soon, including our only trip to Cedar Point with the kids this summer. There is still much going on, and I doubt the load is going to get much lighter as I start school next week and the kids start right after Labor Day! And then there are piano lessons... and soccer... and swimming... and vacations... and field trips... and quizzing (imagine that)!
For today, here's the long postponed posting of the VBS slideshow (several weeks later)! I stayed up until 5am creating this one (long story), which is really late! This week I'm only staying up until midnight... or maybe 1am, depending on how long the prime time Olympic coverage lasts! I never claimed I wasn't an absolute moron...
See below for the VBS pics:
Lisa
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
I Need A Fence...
So... Yesterday marked day 2 of summer vacation. And Seth was bored! 
I told him I could order our second grade curriculum now, and he decided he'd find something to do...
With that thought, I've decided that I really need a fenced yard. I realize that I am getting particular. After all, we have only lived in this house for 14 months, and the landscaping people came and graciously planted our grass this week! So, you would think that I could be grateful that we are getting close to having a yard, at all. But I want a fence.
It's mostly due to the fact that I am not a "fun" mom. I do not let my kids run around in the possibly snake infested weeds. I do not let them play in the road. And I do not let them splash around in the retaining... uh... pond. My neighbors let their kids do these things, so clearly they are much more fun.
Heck... I even screamed out the open window the other day when Grace was about to throw herself in front of the moving mail truck. She was probably embarassed, but I guess I prefer that to squashed...
Now, aside from these glaring imperfections in my parenting skills, I also must admit that I am more of a sidewalk chalk drawing, book reading, play-doh creating, board game playing, silly song singing kind of mom. I guess it would be more fun if I could catch a baseball, but thankfully Daddy's pretty good at that!
I hope that some day my kids realize that we gave them boundaries because we love them.
In the meantime, I could use a fence.
Lisa
P.S. You will find the same post, in essence, at "Oh, Baby". So, if you are one of the beautiful people who bothers to check all of my blogs, you can skip that one today!
I told him I could order our second grade curriculum now, and he decided he'd find something to do...With that thought, I've decided that I really need a fenced yard. I realize that I am getting particular. After all, we have only lived in this house for 14 months, and the landscaping people came and graciously planted our grass this week! So, you would think that I could be grateful that we are getting close to having a yard, at all. But I want a fence.
It's mostly due to the fact that I am not a "fun" mom. I do not let my kids run around in the possibly snake infested weeds. I do not let them play in the road. And I do not let them splash around in the retaining... uh... pond. My neighbors let their kids do these things, so clearly they are much more fun.
Heck... I even screamed out the open window the other day when Grace was about to throw herself in front of the moving mail truck. She was probably embarassed, but I guess I prefer that to squashed...
Now, aside from these glaring imperfections in my parenting skills, I also must admit that I am more of a sidewalk chalk drawing, book reading, play-doh creating, board game playing, silly song singing kind of mom. I guess it would be more fun if I could catch a baseball, but thankfully Daddy's pretty good at that!
I hope that some day my kids realize that we gave them boundaries because we love them.
In the meantime, I could use a fence.
LisaP.S. You will find the same post, in essence, at "Oh, Baby". So, if you are one of the beautiful people who bothers to check all of my blogs, you can skip that one today!
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