A New Week

I'm still reading as much as I can about the AO curriculum. I love so much about it and it's nice the kids see how great it is, too. What makes it better is how they chose this for themselves. I'm pretty sure there wouldn't be this much enthusiasm if I picked it for them, gave them no choice, and "made" them do this work every day. I read about so many other homeschooling families having such a hard time making their kids do work - the kids are even punished. I don't get it. All that kids need is choice, trust, and support. Then watch what they can do!

J and W had their first day of CCD this morning. Both kids are receiving Sacraments next year. W will be making his First Holy Communion (in May) and J will be doing a year of Confirmation prep, with a few more classes next September, a weekend retreat, and her ceremony next October. W had so much nervous energy about going today. He was a little worried about a new class and new teacher. He was still excited though and went right up to the classroom with a happy "See ya later!". A couple of the schoolkids in his class were crying outside and clinging to their mothers. W came out high fiving old friends, said his teacher is really nice, and that the class was fun. So I think we can put to rest the whole socialization, fitting-in, homeschoolers-won't-know-how-to-act-out-in-the-real-world (hahaha) issues, mmmkay?

K is off from school on Tuesday and Wednesday. I'm so looking forward to that. J has a full week of dance and is already making plans for those "off" days with her schooled friends. W loved cub scouts on Friday. He has so many friends there. They spoke about (and did a project on) the Wright brothers and about their upcoming weekend camping trip. He can't wait for that.

Our beloved Mama hamster passed away the other day. She was W's Christmas present 2 years ago. We had decided to get him a male and bought a cute Spiderman cage and everything. W loved it. It was a Syrian Black Bear hamster and so tame and friendly. 9 days later "he" had 13 babies right before our eyes - the first one was born in my hand (and no she didn't eat it, lol). We raised the babies for about 3 months. We kept 2 babies, gave 5 away to friends, and gave 4 to the pet store (2 didn't make it). Mama had been a wonderful pet and we will miss her.

Mama - January 2007 right after she had her babies

Some of the babies - 13 days old trying some new food

The babies again - exploring the cage, with Mama on the far right keeping watch

Waffles - one of the babies we kept

Week 4

Week 4 of AmblesideOnline is going great. W, especially, is still really enthusiastic about it. His favorite thing to do is cursive writing. I don't really see much need for it, except to know how to sign your name, but he mastering it like a pro. I figure he sees it the same way J saw calligraphy a few years ago. It's fun and just looks cool. J's days are pretty busy, so she's fallen behind a little on the weekly schedules - and she's sleeping over a friend's house tonight, so tomorrow morning's academics are out. I think she's doing wonderfully. She enjoys the readings and has even decided to read some on her own. In the early years of AO the kids are read to and by the age of like 10 or so, they should start doing some of the scheduled readings on their own. Since we just started AO, she preferred that we read together. But it hasn't taken long for her to start taking over. She even takes notes (I swear, I had nothing to do with it!), and loves narrating back to me. Eventually she'll do written narrations instead - again, AO suggests around age 10, and she's slowly getting closer to that as well.

We had our homeschool group's geography club today. The focus was on Hawaii and the kids presentations were fabulous. Every family brought in a native dish - that's my favorite part. J spoke about Hawaiian jewelry and W opted out of this one. He's getting a bit self-conscious about his reading speed and he had a tickle-cough all day. That was enough for him to not want to do his report on Hawaiian instruments. So afterwards, W and I checked out about 10 library books and J spent the day at her friend's house. As for me, work is still good. Big changes have been made this week and most of my normal duties have been outsourced. So what I did for about 15% of the time for the last 2 1/2 years has been changed now to 100%. I feel rusty with it somewhat, but I'm always up for a challenge. My boss says I should make the same if not more money with this change, so I'm ok with it so far.

Here's a not-surprising news article.

A Ranger and a Scout

Today W became an Urban Ranger at Central Park. We headed into Manhattan for the first of a series of fantastic ecology classes with the homeschool group. We met at Belvedere Castle - which was breathtakingly beautiful - right in the middle of the park. Two park rangers brought the kids around through hidden paths and walkways pointing things out and talking about the plants, trees, and birds in in the park. The kids started out playing a game where they formed a web out of thick string, showing how different things in nature interconnect with each other. Then onto lots of walking and discussing. After 90 minutes the kids all got ranger badges, pencils, stickers, and info sheet, and a ruler. W had lots of friends there and ran around playing with everyone before we left. Awesome class, and we get to do one every month!

We got back to Queens just in time to get J to her tap class/solo lesson. After buying her some Vitamin Water, W and I drove a few blocks away to his first Cub Scout meeting of the season. He's in an awesome pack. The pack leader is a friend of mine from 12 years ago and she's great with them. They also have tons of trips already planned - the first camping trip is set for next month. The parents got to hang out and watch the meeting today since it was the first one and there were lots of new kids. I really do love it. They say the Pledge of Allegiance, follow gentle but important rules, work as a team, do crafts, make friends, go on trips, march in parades, serve the community, earn badges, get treated with total respect, and best of all, W thinks it's great. It incorporates everything that I feel was beneficial at school (and there truly weren't very many things I found beneficial at school) in a fun hour each week.

J slept over her friend's house, K went to a local fair, and W and I played The Allowance Game twice. He also played a bunch of reading games on the computer. It was a beautiful day today.

Flyin' High!

This morning we went on an amazing trip to JFK airport. All of us in the homeschool group met up near the departure area, got "real" boarding passes, snail shell leis, and boarded a 777. The kids got to ask the Captain and the plane mechanic questions before heading into the cockpit. We were told all about how the plane works, what buttons and screens mean what, and the kids sat in the Captain's seat. We then went back to the waiting area where the staff blew up balloons for the kids, who ran around playing for about 30 minutes. Then it was time to visit the control tower. What a cool place that is. The kids asked lots of questions and got to check out some of the computers. Then after we all went for lunch (with vouchers for the food court!) we went up to another room where the kids (and parents) got goodie bags.

We just so happened to be the first "school" group to visit the airline since 9/11/01 and they staff all made a big deal out of it. We were told this was very special and would probably get national exposure. Not sure what that means, but there was a photographer with us. All the kids on the tour were fascinated by everything. I definitely had a great time.

Hershey Park '08

We drove out to Hershey Park Yesterday. We've been holding onto tickets most of the summer and finally got the opportunity to go. It was fun as always, but very hot. I think it was like 92 degrees - which was surprising after it was in the 70s all last week. The kids and I still went on all the big coasters. I think we just scoured the park map for anything labelled "aggressive thrill ride". J is finally tall enough for everything, and W has made it to Hershey Bar status, giving him access to a bunch of the bigger coasters. I did the Comet and Sidewinder with all 3 kids, the Stormrunner and Great Bear with K and J, and the Fahrenheit with just K. Then I'd pretty much had it, lol. The kids also hit the Tidal Force flume ride for a last soaking before we left. B was happy enough just watching. He's a water park guy and Hershey closed that section right after Labor Day. We also did the Zoo America, but I found that a baby squirrel peeping out of a tree hole on the way up to the zoo was more interesting. We ate kettle corn, won a few prizes, and stayed over 6 hours.

Week 2

The kids are still enjoying the new schedule. Yesterday W did some handwriting practice, math workbook, phonics workbook, and we read from the Burgess Bird Book, Paddle to the Sea, and Aesop. He loves it all. It's great seeing so much enthusiasm from him.

We haven't done much yet with foreign language, extra reading, or nature study. I think we have to build up to those. Although, last week W got a pet lizard (a green anole) and observing it and feeding it live crickets is pretty fascinating. We now have 4 goldfish (3 comets and a black moor), 3 African Dwarf frogs, 2 hamsters, 2 hermit crabs, and a lizard. That's more than enough nature for me.

J started with math and then we did readings together about the 19th Amendment, Natural Law, and Einstein. We also started reading A Midsummer Night's Dream. I couldn't stand Shakespeare in school. It was dissected to death and all the enjoyment was sucked away. J happens to be very into it. I'm liking it a lot now as well. I "get" it now.

Basketball registration is this weekend. Cub Scouts starts next week, too. W and K will both take Musical Theater with J at the dance studio, and K starts private guitar lessons this weekend. J's dance classes are in full swing now and she's assistant-teaching one of the younger classes again as well. So much great stuff happening around here.

Determination

This morning we went to archery. J felt like trying it, too, this time and fell in love with it. After 3 hours, she could have stayed another 3 hours. She was popping the balloons and hitting the bullseye on almost every shot. The photo on the left was taken by the guy running the place. She did very well and he told me he knew J was a dancer from the way she carries herself, that she has so much poise, is really focused, and takes direction very well. I wasn't shocked at that, since I know J takes very quickly, easily, and usually incredibly well to knew endeavors, but I had to laugh a little on the inside. My J, who not so long ago was singled out to be put on medication for being too hyper and too unfocused in school. She was told she "wasn't a good fit" for the full-time/self-contained gifted program she'd been in over a year (called "The Academy for the Intellectually Gifted" - a name that still makes me rofl). She was very extroverted and popular (and bored and uninterested) in the classes and that clashed with the kind of children the teachers were used to in that program. I'm just glad she got out when she did. What I think is important is that J learned a lot from her school experience and it only cemented her decision to homeschool even more. Her education is now what she needs it to be: hands-on, experiential, and in context. And I believe this is the reason she can now approach anything new with drive, determination, and confidence. I have no doubts that she'll continue to succeed at anything she wants to.

On Sunday, we spent the early part of the day at a local street fair. J's studio performed about 12 numbers to a nice-sized crowd. It was hot, but everyone had fun. J did her dance solo, sang a song, and was in a few group numbers. Then they got to do the whole set over again a couple of hours later! This week also starts her new class season. 1.5 hours of ballet was slotted for Monday evening and the kids looked beautiful. I was off of work yesterday for my birthday, so I got to watch the class a bit, but I probably won't get to do that again for a while. I'm really looking forward to seeing all the new choreography for this season.

Cartoon

Fourth Day

Ok, so we ditched the schedule today and went to the Hall of Science! It was great. No school trips (well, only 1 high school class was there), no camps, and practically the whole place to ourselves. The best thing about that is that we get our own personal "explainers" who help you perform the experiments and talk about what's happening and why. It's funny how we always find something new every time we go there. The kids plugged in a route for a Mars rover and watched it move around on the "Mars landscape".
We visited the magic exhibit again, too. A lot of focus today was on molecules and J practiced writing out the molecular formulas of different common things. W copied examples of ready-made molecules using plastic balls and sticks. The sports area was a hit as usual, and they particularly enjoyed the microbes area this time. W sat in with the high schoolers on a demo called "The Science of Sports". He listened very intently, answered a bunch of questions (correctly!), and participated when asked. Also, we found out that the biochemistry lab is temporarily closing due to lack of funding. I'm so writing a letter about that.

Third Day

W and I got so much done in an hour-an-a-half this morning. He was ready by 8:45am ("Mom, can we start now??"). I, on the other hand, wasn't ready til 9, lol. He started with script writing again. Today we added the letters l and e and then made words using all the letters we learned so far. He used script in the phonics workbook, too. He didn't learn all the letters he needed yet, so he asked me to just show him what k looked like, as well as w, h, d, s, r, and n. It was a quick once over, but he is determined. This is a page of today's phonics (a review). I think he's doing a great job with cursive after only 3 days. When he starts copywork next week, he plans on doing it all in script. So, after that we read from Fifty Famous Stories Retold, and Parables from Nature. Then a math page. He asked to do more math later on when J was doing hers.

So far, so good. The kids are really enjoying the structured mornings. Of course this can change any day now, lol. I wonder if it's just the first week newness of it all. We'll see.

...And the Second

We're starting to find a groove. J sleeps later than W, so W and I started on his scheduled stuff earlier than usual. He always would wait to "do work" with J, but I think he realized today that it's fun having all the academic attention on himself for an hour. He started with a new Spectrum phonics workbook and then onto cursive writing. He caught on with this so quickly, I cannot believe it. His print writing is really nice and now after just 2 days, and having learned 5 letters, his script is just as neat and so well done. He's learned c, a, b, t, and i. He's writing words like "bat" and "cab" and "bit" on regular wide-ruled notebook paper. And he could keep going for hours. We read a history story, an Aesop fable, another Stevenson poem, and more Paddle to the Sea. He can't wait to narrate back what he remembers from the stories. And he did 3 math pages.

J started with a lesson in math. She does about 1 whole TT lesson each day. We read some School of the Woods, a book on Einstein and his theory of relativity, and some Age of Fable. She loves this last one. It was a story based on The Iliad about Ulysses (Odysseus) and his men coming to the island with the Cyclopses. She is so loving these stories.

What's odd is that it doesn't feel like "doing work". It's relaxing together on the couch over tea and toast, laughing and learning and loving our time together. Workbooks and handwriting are just different types of fun games. Readalouds are serene, bonding, and captivating. W must have said "this is so cool" at least 3 times -- about his math. The books go back in the drawer right before lunchtime and we spend the afternoon doing art projects, nature walks, science centers, vocal/dance lessons, playground, supermarket, library, whatever. I love life.

First Day

The AmblesideOnline curriculum is so far a big hit. J and W loved the readings. No, I mean, LOVED them. We started with math. J did Teaching Textbooks and W did a new Spectrum workbook. While J continued with math, W and I went over cursive handwriting together. He did great - a lot better than I expected. W and I read Paddle to the Sea, with J listening in. She gets as interested in W's stories as much as her own. J and I read a chapter of The Story of Mankind and about David Livingstone. W's readings continued with a poem from A Child's Garden of Verses and an Aesop's Fable. J's continued with some Robert Frost poetry and the first chapter of The Hobbit. Then both kids sat by the computer with me and we learned about Sandro Botticelli and analyzed one of his paintings. The whole thing took about 2 1/2 hours. I have to say, it was fun, interesting, and done so quickly. I enjoyed it a lot, myself. Now, let's see how long all this love lasts. ;)

After lunch, J had a vocal lesson. She's performing at a local street fair on Sunday and was asked to sing. The vocal coach went over her old song with her, fine-tuning any perceived weak spots. This coach is amazing. She's so thorough and has such a great ear. We lucked out finding her. The bulk of the lessons will be focused on J's new competition vocal selection (which hasn't yet been selected, lol). They are trying out different songs and styles. J will know when it's the right one.

K's first day of 10th grade was really good. She's happy with (almost) all of her teachers and the classes look fun. The entire English term is called "Newspaper" and will be run like they all work for one. She's excited about all the subjects, actually, and says she feels like acing everything this year. I love that her school is incredibly small (for NYC), has a uniform/dress code, and is very progressive as far as mission and overall attitude towards learning.

First day done.

Archery

W gave archery a shot today and really enjoyed it. There were a bunch of boys his age there and he made some new friends (and loved seeing his old friends). The kids each got their own targets and were fitted with arm bands, clipped on a big cylinder of arrows, and learned how to use the huge bow. W started out shaky, but within 30 minutes he was shooting straight, very near the bullseye. The instructor pinned a balloon to each target and W hit it every time. It was so cool to see the quick progression from not being able to hit even the wall around the target to popping the balloon in the middle on the first attempt. So we signed up for the fall season!

He decided that for now he'd like to put football on hold for a while. He's been getting knocked around pretty hard and cannot stand the intense drills. It probably would have been fine once a week, but once they started this 4-days-a-week schedule (Saturdays and Sundays at 8am!), he just lost his drive for it. I don't blame him. I mean, he loves the actual games, but since those are only once a week, it doesn't make the rest worth it to him. Maybe another time. I'm relieved. Although I never said anything to W, I was very nervous watching all these 6-8 y/os getting the wind knocked out of them 25 times in 2 hours.

Cub Scouts and CCD starts up again next month, too. J is all set to start her new solo choreography, group technique, and 12 weeks of vocal training within the next few weeks. K is looking forward to her sophomore year of high school. She needs a few more supplies, a haircut, an eye exam, uniform clothes, and lots of other clothes before school begins next week. Ugh, nothing like waiting til the last minute.

NY Homeschool Paperwork - Easier Than You Think!

All our homeschool paperwork was received and is in compliance. Now I sit back and wait for the kids' Metrocards to arrive in the mail. I sent it regular mail - I refuse to spend extra money on certified or receipt-requested - and they did receive it (which somehow surprised me, lol). I sent the kids' 2008-2009 LOIs in with the 2007-2008 4th quarterlies and annual assessments, but they informed me they didn't have them. I felt like "here we go again" with missing paperwork, but I spoke with Mr. Director of Homeschooling and we straightened everything out. I have to say, for many reasons, I do like him the best so far.

Our homeschool correspondence is still the same exact stuff we sent in 2005. There are links to it in the sidebar. Our letter of intent is comprised of 2 sentences and is in a business-letter format. The 1-page IHIP is a copy-and-paste from the worldbook.com course of study, with an extra paragraph I created for a little more detail. The IHIP takes about 7 minutes to update the copy-and-paste to the next grade and change some dates. Because there is so much detail in our IHIP, our quarterly reports can be pretty minimal. Ours contains about 4 sentences explaining that we're moving along fine. I send the same exact quarterly 4x a year with a slight date change on each. Each quarterly takes about 1 minute to update. Our annual assessment is very similar to our quarterlies. I add several sentences describing some the year's highlights to make it more narrative-ish. This takes about 5 minutes (unless you get stuck thinking about which highlights you want to include, lol). On a testing year, I'll add another sentence to the annual assessment stating my child took so-and-so test on such-and-such date and enclose a copy of the result page. I used to just put a sentence that she scored above the 33rd %ile, but the NYC district is now asking for more. Most of my paperwork was created on the advice and suggestions of the amazing homeschoolers at NY-HEN. I love that group and would encourage all new homeschoolers to join.

This year J will be in 7th grade, so it's a testing year for her. We order the CAT-E from the link in the sidebar. It's about $25. The CAT-E goes up to 12th grade. Many homeschoolers like to use the PASS test. The highest grade for this one is 8th grade (link to ordering it is in the sidebar). We do use a certified teacher to administer the test - but I know some NY districts are okay with parents administering it themselves. Once J finishes the test, we send it back to the testing company and we get her scores within 2 weeks. It's very easy.

I will never understand why some NY homeschoolers choose to send pages and pages of information that pretty much will go unread. The districts honestly do not care. All they want to do is check off paperwork that's in compliance. You're honestly not impressing anyone with a description of all the cool stuff you did or plan to do. Really. For myself, I need everything to be simple, minimal, and streamlined. Our total homeschool correspondence takes less than 20 minutes to write up and costs about $3 in postage to mail PER YEAR. And it's always been in compliance. We're in our 4th year of paperwork now. No one should be afraid of it, no matter how many big, scary words "Section 100.10 of the Regulations of the New York State Commissioner of Education" uses, lol.

Here's to a wonderful new homeschool year!!!

Jonas Mania

Mom dropped the girls off at home around 2ish. It was the first time she'd been here since we switched the apartment around. The girls couldn't wait to show her their new bedrooms. Next week we're having the entire bathroom ripped out and redone. I just hope everything is completed by the 2nd week of September.

So, as soon as J got home, she started decorating a t-shirt with everything Jonas Brothers. She had a bunch of Sharpie markers and went to town. I dropped her off at S's house at 4:30 and they left for the concert around 6. The JB concert was at Madison Square Garden and the kids had center seats (far away, but still center, lol). I gave J the camera and she took tons of pictures. She said it was incredible. A guy came out at the beginning telling the crowd to get excited because they were going to be part of the 3-D movie. So I guess the JBs are doing something like Hannah Montana did with the movie. I'm wondering: Do they only use one concert's footage for the movie or snippets of all their concerts? Anyway, the girls were on their feet dancing and screaming the whole time. S's dad picked them up in the city and drove J home around 11:30pm.

And to top off all this Jonas Mania, K and J went to the set of Regis and Kelly this morning to watch the Jonas Brothers do their sound check. The girls were up at 5:30am, got dressed, and were out the door by 6:15. B took them in on the train and they got there early. B's friend (who works there) met them outside the building and got them past the hundreds of lined-up people. In the studio, they were brought right to the front row! B's friend gave J a guitar pick that Nick dropped backstage. Then one woman selected a few people to move even closer - and one of them was K!

It was awesome, they said. They watched them rehearse 3 songs. All 3 guys made eye contact with, smiled at, and waved to the girls. They were literally 4 feet away from them. They left right after that. I picked the girls up at the train station and B got back on and went to work.

Click on pics to enlarge.

W's scrimmage game was so much fun to watch today. The team they played against are in a totally different NY league, so they won't be playing any "real" games together. This other team had mostly 8-9 y/os so they were bigger and more experienced. W's team got in a few good tackles, though. Each team got to do 10 plays per quarter. I think W's team learned a lot today about teamwork and game rules. I still think it looks so rough and B and I both keep reminding W that it's ok if he feels it's not the right thing for him. We just keep taking it day to day and we'll see what happens. W has 2 practices and 2 more scrimmages this week. I'm tired just thinking about that for him.

J knocked out her dance essay in about 2 hours. I knew she would.

And J turned 12 yesterday! B took her into Manhattan on Friday for some shopping and some lunch. We spend Saturday at my moms, went to dinner, and came back for cake. We stayed over and B, W, and I left early this morning for W's game. The girls stayed out there, went to the beach, and did a bit of shopping (of course).

I got a few more books at Borders yesterday: The Hobbit, Island of the Blue Dolphin, A Cricket in Times Square, the new Clique book, Nate the Great, and the Complete Works of Shakespeare (34 plays and a bunch of sonnets and poems). I only spent $37. I love the educator discounts! I want to start a new readaloud this week and finish it before we begin the AO stuff. W's been doing a new (really fun) reading/phonics workbook the past few days and J's been reading more, too. Now that she has her own room, she has more privacy and peace. She has a high loft bed and underneath will be a cute futon/couch where she can read and relax. It's being delivered this week! K loves the look so much, that she decided she wants a similar setup in her room. Apartment living demands creativity and good use of space. I'm getting pretty good at it, lol!

The Single-Word MeMe

1. Where is your cell phone? Pocketbook
2. Your significant other? Funny
3. Your hair? Frizzball
4. Your mother? Generous
5. Your father? Grouchy
6. Your favorite thing? Blankets
7. Your dream last night? Trees
8. Your favorite drink? Cola
9. Your dream/goal? Success
10. The room you’re in? Alcove
11. Your church? Catholic
12. Your fear? Health
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Debtless
14. Where were you last night? Work
15. What you’re not? Wallflower
16. Muffins? Banana
17. One of your wish list items? Kitchen
18. Where you grew up? Gotham :)
19. The last thing you did? Drive
20. What are you wearing? Jammies
21. Your TV? Large
22. Your pets? Boring
23. Your computer? Awesome
24. Your life? Rich
25. Your mood? Peaceful
26. Missing someone? Grandparents
27. Your car? Crapola
28. Something you’re not wearing? Bra ;)
29. Favorite store? Borders
30. Your summer? Busy!
31. Like(love) someone? Many
32. Your favorite color? Green
33. Last time you laughed? Today
34. Last time you cried? Today
35. Who will repost this? Friends

J went to the Knitting Factory in Tribeca tonight with her friend S (and S's mom) to see a band called "Honor Society" . Never heard of them, myself, but the girls are into obscure boy bands lately, so why not. They got up close to the stage and had a fantastic time. During one of the songs, S's mom happened to look up - the Knitting Factory is a smallish place and has a few balconies (B's band played there earlier this year and he explained the place's layout) - and 5 feet away, on the first balcony was another boy band. These guys are a certain trio of brothers named Nick, Joe, and Kevin. Yep, the Jonas Brothers were in the same club as my kid. S and J made immediate eye contact with them and were thrilled that Kevin smiled and waved to them. So this now means that Kevin is the nice one and his brothers...not so much. It probably won't matter next week when the girls are at their concert at Madison Square Garden next week.

Speaking of B's band, they're still NYC regulars. They just had a gig Friday night in Greenwich Village. He loves it, it's cool, and they make some bucks. Over the years they've also played at Desmond’s, Kenny’s Castaways, Village Underground, Continental, Hogs & Heifers, Otto’s Shrunken Head, Lit Lounge, Tribeca Rock Club, Don Hill’s, Snitch, Le Bar Bat, Ace of Clubs (Acme Underground), and tons of others. They crank out demos and are always writing new songs. They've even been on the radio a few times. Not bad for what basically amounts to a hobby - and an inexpensive one at that! None of the band members really have any grand ambitions to "make it big". They all, thankfully, have pretty nice day jobs. And besides, I keep telling B that all the real money and fame is with children's music! He's considering it, lol.

J still hasn't started her essay for dance. It's due tomorrow. I think she's like me - prefers to wait until the very last minute and then does a pretty good job. I figure, why do it early? I would constantly second guess myself and revise it too many times. The first draft is always the one you really mean, anyway. :P

W had football practice again tonight. Now he's up to 3x a week. I know he loves it, but the roughness is kinda worrying me. I mean, he's a tough kid, and certainly holds his own, but still. I think we'll just take this week by week and see what happens. He's on the front offensive line during every practice. That's probably going to be his place for the season. Not sure exactly what that entails (not a football person), but I do know he runs into the other players a lot. B will fill me in on the rest of the rules before Sunday's game so I know what exactly I'm rooting for. LOL.

W and I went to the Queens Botanical Garden yesterday. I haven't been there since a 5th grade school trip. It was nice and peaceful with pretty flowers and trees. I liked how all the different gardens had the plant species labeled so you knew what you were looking at. W thought it was ok. He liked reading the signs, learning about the gardens, and coming up with his own theories on why things were the way they were. His favorite part was the "bee garden" where lots of wooden bee "houses" were and we could see the bees going in and out. He also loved the visitor's building where he could look through pamphlets and check out the different objects and books for sale.

Football is going well. Next week, the team has their first scrimmage game with another team a few towns over. They'll be going together by bus and all the parents will follow and meet them there. W is really excited about it. He's starting to really love football now. He was having some fear issues with a drill called "nutcrackers", where two boys just run into each other full-force - the kid with the ball is supposed to get past the other without getting tackled (or fumbling the ball). One big kid terrified W the most the last few weeks. W would get tackled right away, getting the wind knocked out of him a bit and asking to please not get paired up with him again. But yesterday W went right up to the coach and asked if he could try once again to go against that kid because he needed to do this to get over his fear. He did it, and did it well without fear and was so proud of himself. He admitted his fear, faced it head-on (literally!), and proved to himself he can do this. That took a helluva lot of guts, imo. I'm so proud of him. Here's W during a defense drill (at the beginning he's on the left)

J had a fun week at dance, having to choreograph a number with 2 friends and perform in front of the parent audience. They wore purple, white, and black, and I know they put their hearts into it. I had work, but B went and said it was great. The new season's choreography starts next week and they're having a pizza party on Friday. She still hasn't started her essay, but I'm like that, too. I do my best work when it's last-minute. Not sure why that is, lol.

Another thing I've come to realize is that I function best with schedules and lists. Deep down I knew that, but when we embraced unschooling, I felt I should learn how to be more spontaneous and creative. I lived without my daily lists for a while - only making the occasional shopping, Christmas gift, or cleaning list. But now, ever since AmblesideOnline has become a part of our lives, I am starting to make list after list and schedule after schedule and I'm LOVING it. I made a daily AO subject schedule. I wrote down the weekly schedule. I have a list of their books. I have an extra-curricular calendar list. And I've stated making daily to-do lists for myself again that I cannot believe I lived without for a few years. Everything's on my daily list - and then I check things off as I do them. I've become a total list/schedule junkie again. All I needed was that little taste...

Summer is a weird place for us. We just kind of live our lives without much rhyme or reason to it, seeing where the days end up taking us. My lack of frequent blog posts are just another part of how summer affects me. We're all out of the house pretty often, doing stuff that we love, and that you've mostly heard before. J is dancing. W is footballing. K is teenaging. B and I are working.

My get-up-and-go bug usually winds down at the beginning of summer and picks up again in September. We're still doing a lot, though.

W's football practices are at twice a week now. He's fully padded and helmeted up (today he'll start wearing his padded pants - and other little boy accouterments that go with it) and slamming full-force into the other kids, loudly encouraged to "hit 'em hard" by the coaches (and the macho parents). He loves it, but sometimes looks at me like, "he wants us to do WHAT?". He had a birthday party yesterday at a nearby sports complex and has been at the playground most days.

J's second summer dance session ends this coming Thursday and she gets a week off. Then she starts on the new season's choreography on August 4th. That will be for 2 weeks and there's another break til September (I think). She's been hanging out with her friend (S) almost everyday, swimming in S's grandma's big pool, and still giggling and gabbing about V-Factory.

K's been loving summer so far. She spent 4 days at my mom's - going to beach every day, shopping, and living the high-life, lol. She's got a new boyfriend and has been spending a lot of time with him. B and I both met him and he seems like a great kid. He and his parents have driven to our house a few times to pick up K and we were very glad to meet them. His mom is a school principal, so yeah, she's home when the kids are there and is well on top of where they are and who they're with when they go out (I like that, since I'm the same way, lol). K is happy and talks about him nonstop. She's being very mature and I love that she tells me all about him. I'm ok with this. No really, I am. I mean it, I really am. Sigh.

J and W decided they want to wait til September to start the AO curriculum. I think it's because K's home. But that's fine. We try and squeeze in a few readalouds here and there. W has been into puzzle books lately and sits quietly doing several pages out of one every day. J's dance studio has their essay contest up and running. The winner gets a month free tuition. 2nd place gets $100. J said the topic is perfect for her and will be getting started this week (it's due Aug 6th). 3 years ago she won one of the prizes for her essay. It was the same year we started homeschooling. And her teachers always criticized her writing. The contest is judged by a third party of folks who do not know the kids, and J did wonderfully. That sure cemented our belief that homeschooling was the best thing for her.