Homeschool 2013-2014: The rest of them

My plan for the rest of the school-aged kids is simple.  Math and language arts.  If I have time, I will add history and science.  But the most important thing will be sustained one-on-one instruction time with each kid in these two subjects.  No more will they hear, "Do this workbook page and then you will be done. I have to work with so-and-so."

Everyone, from Ian on down to Fiona, will be using Saxon math.  This is the easiest, most straight forward, affordable math curriculum.  When Ian was in kindergarten, I bought all the instructor's guides from level K to 3 from another homeschooling friend.  Saxon wasn't her style, but it is mine.  I've tried other, more hands-on styles and I have no patience for them (see, when one is considering homeschooling, one must consider teaching style along with learning style).  Evie has spent the last two years using RightStart math.  She can add two and three digit numbers in her head with carrying, but she can't subtract worth a darn.  So back to Saxon she goes!  Ian will be in Saxon 8/7, Shane in 6/5, Evie will finish up some review in 2 and move to 3, and Fiona will finish K and start 1.  Today I ran the girls through review exercises to target exactly where I needed to start with them.  It was beautiful!

Everyone, from Ian on down to Fiona, will be using Sonlight's language arts.  Most of the criticism for Sonlight is for their LA programs.  Often, the writing portion of the daily assignments are way too difficult for the writing ability of the child.  Kids learn how to read so much faster than they can master handwriting and spelling, so most people skip the writing part and just do the reading.  I've done that too, but now I'm going back to use the writing part.  The best part about using this curriculum is that I already own it all!  Any books I'm missing I can get from the library.

Fiona is doing the kindergarten level, which is often called Sounds, Letters, and Easy Words.  She is reading simple CVC words already (like cat, sap, bam), so we are starting halfway through.  Today she circled rhyming words after she copied them and then spelled "pat" backwards.  Her whole face lit up when she saw it spelled "tap!"  Her enthusiasm rekindles my excitement for teaching.  I love the younger years.

Evie is doing a modified version of the 2nd grade level.  She read all the books this last school year, but did not do the writing assignments.  Instead of moving her up to the 3rd grade level (with an increase in writing difficulty), I'm having her read the Magic Tree House series and then adjusting all the copywork, grammar, and writing assignments to match whatever book she is reading.  Today, instead of copying a passage out of a children's Bible, she had to copy, "The vowels are: A, E, I, O, U, and sometimes Y."  (If she still asks if T or D are vowels during tomorrow's spelling test, she can copy that phrase five times)

Shane is on the 4th/5th grade level and is doing the lessons as written.  When we first started Sonlight, this level was called Advanced 2nd grade.  I have never known a 2nd grader that can write several paragraphs on a topic!  His first reader is More Stories from Grandma's Attic, a book that was sent to me by my Nana when I was a little girl!  His first writing assignment is to record a story from when one of his parents or grandparents (or great grandparents) were younger.

History, if time permits, will be the second volume of Story of the World: the Middle Ages through the Renaissance.  Evie will also be reading about some of the topics (castles, vikings, pirates) with The Magic Tree House books.  Shane will get extra books and DVDs from the library.  I honestly don't care what Fiona learns about the Middle Ages this year.  She is in kindergarten after all.  The rest of the kindergarteners will be learning about the fairness of rules in a classroom setting (no, I'm not kidding-it's a Washington State Learning Standard).

Science will be whatever books strike their fancy.  Seriously.  Last year was pretty intense with all the biology we did.  I do have some science experiment books that I used with Ian, but I'm going to try to avoid all books about nature and habitats.  We will instead read our monthly National Geographic magazine and discuss the articles.  The library is filled with awesome DVDs too (Bill Nye, National Geographic, The Universe, etc). 

Sorry this post is so long and boring! If you made it this far, you get a gold star!

Homeschool 2013-2014: Ian

Oh yes, yes I can.  I can start my school year in July because I am a homeschooler and I can do what I want!  Plus my kids are beginning to drive me crazy.  I know I'm not the only one.  I see other moms post things on facebook about how they can't wait until September...

I have a good reason for starting now.  I want to get a head start while the kids are burned out on playing outside.  I want to be able to take as much time as I need after Lucky is born.  And I want to jump on this great thing my kids have going that we call child-led interest-based education.  That right there is the beauty of homeschooling without the school district.

So here is the run down:

Ian will be a sixth grader.  I seriously considered sending him to middle school this year.  With all the extra work I had to put in for the MP3 program, important things like grading Ian's math seemed to slip to the side.  I looked at the bus routes, bell schedule, and available classes at the middle school and decided it would be better if the two of us just got up a little earlier to spend some time doing math, just the two of us-it's not like he is behind or anything, I just need to be able to focus on him.  If Ian were to catch the bus, he would need to be walking out the door at 7:10 every morning to catch the 7:30 bus.  Which means waking up by 6:00.  School starts at 8:15, but first period doesn't begin until 8:55.  What the students do for forty minutes every morning is a mystery to me and it sounds like a waste of time.  When I informed Ian he would be getting up at 7:00 every morning to start his math by 8:00, he whined until I reminded him of the public school schedule.  Ian and I could get a lot of work done between the hours of 6:00 and 8:55 if we wanted to!  That is nearly three hours of wasted time everyday!

Ian going off the high jump at Camp Parsons

Another problem we faced with middle school enrollment were the classes available to sixth graders.  Ian's peers will be learning ancient history and earth science, both of which Ian has done at least twice.  We were scheduled to study the Middle Ages, technology and computers, Spanish, and
8th grade math.  None of those classes are available to sixth graders.

Because I do not know when he will be "main-streamed," I'm going to adjust his schedule so he can slip easily into courses at the public school if he needs to in the next year or two.  Since we just did ancients and the seventh graders do middle ages, I'm taking him out of my normal history cycle.  He is going to use Sonlight's Core F, which is all about the countries in the Eastern Hemisphere.  This is a research and writing intensive course that I have been looking forward to using since he was in kindergarten.  I am so thrilled we get to use it!  Next year, his seventh grade year, he can finish up world history and be ready to start US history in eighth grade.

I'm taking a year off from teaching science to Ian.  He is welcome to follow his interests and design projects to his heart's content, but I am not scheduling anything specific for him.  We have plenty of books about physics and chemistry and hopefully he will get the Visual Basic program he wanted for Christmas!

I need to add that Ian accomplished an amazing feat at the YMCA yesterday.  After they go through a taekwondo class, Mark takes the four older kids to the pool for some instructional/fun swim time.  Ian swam 112 lengths of the pool without stopping or touching bottom or pushing off the edge!  He is ready for the Mile Swim at Boy Scouts!

Marshmallows vs Apples

Hmmm...I think we are developing a pattern with weekend bonfires and marshmallow roasting...

After a quick barbequed dinner, we hauled the playpen and our blanket down to our bonfire site.  Last night I realized that we needed a pattern to our bonfire, otherwise the kids go nuts and make too much noise and make their dad cranky.

So as the fire is first starting and there are no roasting coals, I read out loud.  This keeps this kids close by on the blanket and sets the mood...  Last night, we started reading Island of the Blue Dolphins. 

As soon as the coals are ready, the roasting begins.  Ian, Shane, Evie, and Fiona can all roast their own marshmallows.

Some are better roasters than others...

...but then Ian had a really great idea...why not roast some apples?

Our Golden Delicious tree is just about ready for picking.  Apples are just starting to fall and they are right on the edge of becoming sweet.  We'll pick them a bit green and let them ripen on the counter...if they last that long.

 

When the roasting is done, the older kids run in the pasture while the little ones snuggle with me and watch the bats fly around.  When it starts getting dark, I bring Lula and Daniel up to the house for bed.  By the time I get back to the blanket, the older kids are settling down and telling stories.  I told them the stories have to match the fire.  If the flames are leaping and jumping, the stories can be funny and crazy.  But when the fire starts burning lower, the stories need to be reverent or meaningful or calming.  When the kids are in that mellow fireside mood, bedtime goes a lot easier...

Joemma

The benefit of having a Discover Pass is that most people don't and we get the beach (mostly) to ourselves.  Today was a good low tide and a day off for Mark.

Lula tasting the sound

Teething on a clam

Enjoying a spa treatment

Teething on a brick

Eating a SANDwich-and also when I discovered her new tooth

I stayed in the shade of this tree to whole time and wore 30 spf sunscreen, but I STILL got sunburned!

Mark and Ian swimming to the boat buoy.  They both got minor jellyfish stings.

Ready to go home and eat ice cream!

Besides watching Mark and Ian swim all the way to the buoy and watching Lula sample everything on the beach, my favorite part of the day was watching Evie and Fiona play pirates.  Girls play pirates so differently than boys.  Their ship was called The Purple Pirate Ship.  They used their towels for their beds so they wouldn't get dirty from sleeping on the logs.  They couldn't agree on who should be the captain and neither wanted to co-captain.  So they switched to playing house.

So Many Books...

...so little time!

Beans (and Peas)

Early this morning, I made my naughty boys go outside and work.  Why were they naughty? Because Ian thought it would be funny to hide in the dark hallway last night and jump out to scare Shane.  They made a ton of noise, right outside the bedrooms where I had just gotten Lula and Daniel settled.  Their job was to pick all the eating-sized beans out of the garden.

They brought in 16 pounds!  I blanched most of them for freezing.  It really is easy.  I just filled our giant stockpot with beans and water, brought them to a boil, drained them, and dumped the hot beans into the kitchen sink that was filled with cold water and an ice block.

After that, I filled up six meals worth of Food Saver bags and shrunk them down for the freezer.  I love the Food Saver.

I also went out and picked every single pea.  Big, small, everything.  I know that I have reached the end of my desire to garden.  Bending over squishes Lucky, so all I can do it sit in the dirt to pick.  The peas never got tied up, so they were crawling all over the ground.  All the big, fat peas got shelled and all the flat peas are going into our Asian noodle salad tonight.  Four pounds of peas equals two meals and over an hour of shelling.  Talk about labor-intensive!

Daniel's bed got moved back into the "nursery" last night per his request (and my delight).  He and Lula stayed awake for a good 15 minutes making funny sounds back and forth to each other.  I was wondering how I was ever going to get my disobedient child and my easy-sleeper to shush and close their eyes.  Easy Lula had an easy solution: I just hung a blanket on the edge of her crib so she couldn't see Daniel.  She rolled over and went to sleep, easy at that.  This afternoon, however, while she was napping, someone offended Daniel and he ran to his bed crying.  Which meant he woke Lula up.  And I got cranky.  He felt bad, so he stayed in his bed until he fell asleep.  And Lula crawled all over him while he slept.  Turn about is fair play!

Shane's Pet

This is Oogway.  He is Shane's new pet.  Oogway came with the name Jeffrey, but we don't like that name.  He has a friend named Jenny, but she is either sick or hibernating... if she lives, she will get to join Oogway in the garden for some free-ranging!  They are Russian Land Tortoises and came to us from a friend who is moving.  I didn't even talk it over with Mark, I just adopted them on the spot.  He has been wanting to get a new snake for a long time, but the tortoises are just as good!  This has been a great project for Mark and Shane to work on together.  They are living in the shed with our chicks for the moment, but when it starts getting cold outside, they will move in downstairs by the fire.  We think they are five or six years old, but our research says they can live to be 50!  Oogway is just so cute.  Happy early birthday, Shane!

I Changed My Mind

About homeschooling, that is.  I spent half the summer wondering if we would be covered by our school district.  And now that I know we are, I don't even want to participate anymore.

"I don't WANT Evie in my picture!"

When the program first started, the rules were pretty relaxed.  We could learn what we wanted, when we wanted, HOW we wanted, and we could purchase our materials wherever we wanted.  We could take unplanned field trips.  We could take lessons.  All I had to do was report on our learning and submit our receipts every month.

But then the rules started changing and we were like frogs in boiling water.  You know the story: start turning up the heat slowly and they won't even know they are cooking.  Well, we are hopping out of the pot now.  The rules have gotten so restrictive and the allowed amount available for resources is half of what it was when we started.  No field trips. No lessons. No PE classes (but we still have to do PE). No partially approved curriculum choices.  No shopping for good deals on ebay and getting reimbursed.  No spur-of-the-moment learning opportunities.  Plus, the amount of time I am required to invest in record keeping and weekly/monthly contact has become a burden.

Getting ready for a marshmallow roast!

Mark was curious how much it would cost us out-of-pocket.  Because I invested in several instructor's guides for math and language arts when we were first starting, we will only have to pay $250-and most of that is for Ian and can be handed down.  When he found out I had already submitted $1800 in purchase orders through the school district (and it didn't even include a YMCA membership), he exclaimed, "What the HELL were you buying?"  Stuff.  You know, books and workbooks and stuff like that.  Some kits.  Rosetta Stone.  New math curriculum for everyone.  New science curriculum.  Because I could.

Will the one with the REAL black eye, please stand up?

Another complication that was bothering me was the calendar.  The rule changes were announced during the summer, when there was no office staff to answer questions.  With such a huge cut in funding, I had to adjust my purchase orders.  By the time the office staff is available and revisions are made and approved, we wouldn't receive our learning materials until the end of September...or later.  Even in good years we've waited until mid-September.  But I would still have to show progress on my learning goals for the entire month.  And if I didn't achieve 80% of my learning goals, then I would receive an "unsatisfactory" on my report.  Throw in Lucky being born at the end of November and needing time off for that (and also not knowing what kind of trouble she is going to be), I will never achieve 80% of my goals and we will be expelled.  I need to start school NOW.  My kids are bored with the outdoors.  All they want to do is watch TV and mess up the house.  We do better with a mid-July through April school year.

The benefit of large families: the oldest kid makes the sticks, the middle kids cook the marshmallows, and the youngest eat them.  We relax.

I am once again excited to homeschool.  Enthusiasm is contagious.  If I'm excited to do something, chances are that (most of) my kids will be excited too.  I feel FREE to school in the best way for each child and not have to justify or plan anything a year in advance.  I already know EXACTLY what I'm going to do for the WHOLE year...but that is a post for another day.

World's Longest Marshmallow Stick

All the "extras" we are losing by leaving will make great Christmas and/or birthday presents.  Things like art and science supplies, gift certificates for books, software... yeah, so, if anyone wants to get the kids meaningful presents, just let me know *big grin*

Now, pictures.  Lula got her black eye by falling off the changing table.  She usually just sits there and chews on lotion bottles while I spray diapers, but this time she took a dive.  Mark said (loudly), "This is a BAD THING that happened!" while she was crying, so I was forced to say back (also loudly), "Thank you, Captain Obvious!"  She has entered the dangerous climbing and falling age.

Last night we had a super-fun BBQ and marshmallow roast.  Ian cracked us up with his long roasting stick.  Jack made us laugh harder when he grabbed the end of my stick and ran off with it (no marshmallows were on it).  I throw sticks for him every evening, so I guess it just made sense to him that the stick I was holding was for him.  He left all the other sticks alone.  Mark and the older boys sat around the campfire as the stars came out, but I had to come in with the cranky, naughty little kids that couldn't be quiet.  There is a reason we don't go camping at state parks!

Lessons from Daniel: Part 2

Daniel has been sick for the last few days.  It started Monday night with nightmares.  By Tuesday morning he had a high fever that lasted through Wednesday.  Both Tuesday and Wednesday nights were filled with fever-induced nightmares.  Yesterday, Thursday, his fever broke, and he ran off to play with his sisters.  But last night was the worst night of them all.  Night Terrors.  SO different from a regular nightmare.  I was able to wake him from the spiders that needed killing and the dragons that talked too loud.  But last night, he screamed and screamed like he was being tortured.  He looked past me and through me and over my shoulder; he couldn't look at me.  He convulsed and kicked and hit.  He could only speak in gibberish with an occasional terrified NOOOO mixed in.  It was TERRIFYING.  It only lasted until just after midnight and then he woke up for real and crawled into bed with me.  Normally I put him back in his own bed because he crowds my space, but after those night terrors, he could sleep anywhere he wanted.  He slept fine the rest of the night, woke up at 9:00, and cheerfully announced that he had nice dreams and he wanted cold hot dogs for breakfast.

None of my other kids have ever had night terrors to this extreme.  I can only attribute it to his personality.  He has always been my most volatile, sensitive, extreme, passionate, needy (must I go on?)... Even when he isn't sick, he can throw a doozy of a scene.  Remember our trip to see King Tut's treasures?  He pushes us to the outer limits of our patience...and forces us to find inner peace.

So, the last post talked about Daniel's tantrum while going down for a nap and how he was starting to learn the meaning of, "I love you."  His language skills are more sophisticated than they were when he was two years old, so his fits are more...colorful.  If he doesn't get his way in a game, he will say, "Fine, I don't like you anymore and I'm going to throw the toys in the garbage."  For awhile he was saying, "I HATE you (sibling name)!"  I would correct him with, "No, you don't hate them, you are just really mad at them.  Say that.  Say, 'I'm REALLY MAD at you, (sibling name)!'"  The hard part is trying to keep the older kids from giggling and throwing gasoline on the temper fire.

The older kids don't always laugh.  There are times where Daniel is just so mean and he really hurts someone's feelings.  This is when I have to teach them about the fruits of the spirit (kindness, gentleness, self-control) and how they respond to him will either help prop him up, like a tomato cage, or keep him down.  My favorite illustration is from Kung Fu Panda 2.  I'm not even going to write what I say because someone else has.  Visit this post to see what we talk about: 5 Life Lessons From Kung Fu Panda 2  I have the kids imagine they are Po, catching the cannon balls (Daniel's hurtful words) and throwing them into the water.  Sure, your hands get a little singed, but it won't last if you won't let it.

When he really gets going, he will scream, "YOU'RE NOT MY MOM ANYMORE AND I DON'T LOVE YOU!!!" and so on and so forth. My parental training (snicker, snicker) teaches to respond in a calm, soothing voice, "That's okay, you don't have to love me.  I still love you and I always will."  Really, I don't say, "Fine. I don't love you either and I'm going to throw your toys in the garbage.  Go find a new mom."  It's so tempting, so very tempting, but I don't do it.

Saturday, the day we spent at the beach, he was so totally out of control and so tired and he just needed to go to bed.  He threw one of his big ones with all the toppings.  He hated his bed, his pillows, his blankets.  He wanted different ones and then none at all.  He hated his pjs and wanted to throw them in the garbage.  I started to wish he were non-verbal, like my nephew.  I bet my sister doesn't have to hear her 2 1/2 year old say things like what comes out of Daniel's mouth.  When he started in on the, "You're not my mom anymore, I don't love you, you can't be my mom..." I had a sudden realization that we, as adults, will often do this to God.  When we are tired, overwhelmed, and maybe even praying for something and it doesn't go our way, we will often shake our fist at God and cry, "Fine! I don't believe in You! You are not my God anymore! I hate you!"  What does God do? Does he say, "Fine, I'm going to throw you in the garbage?"  So, what does he say instead?  Well, What Would Jesus Do?  It's not just a cute bracelet with a WWJD-it's a serious question.  As my Heavenly Father, I know I want God to say, "You don't hate Me, you are just mad at Me. Take a rest, you'll feel better in the morning."

I'm just a stand-in until Daniel is old enough to know God on his own.  And my words and actions should reflect that.  I'd certainly rather hear him say, "I'm going to feed you to the chickens!" instead of God and Jesus.

Swirly Thoughts (Lessons from Daniel part 1)

I originally wrote this post a year ago...and I never posted it because I didn't want people to laugh at me behind my back (or to my face).   But I had a conversation with my aunt this past weekend (she is also my Godmother), and she encouraged me to post it anyway.  I have a Part 2 to add to this-it's also about Daniel...

***

Okay, here are some random thoughts that have been swirling around my head this weekend... My thoughts are like separate colors of paint that have been combined into a big ole swirl. You can see the separate colors, but when they are all mixed up they make a muddy picture that is sometimes hard to see... so it is hard to me to separate my thoughts out of the swirl and onto a piece of paper (or screen).  So bear with me...

I'm almost always thinking about God and religion and the best way to get my kids to know God.  It is easy for those who believe the Bible is the one and only Word of God, pure and perfect in the written form, published and bound between two book covers, to walk into church and teach their kids, "It's in the Bible. Believe it or you're going to hell.  If it isn't in the Bible, it isn't true or doesn't exist and if you believe that it is true or does exist, you are going to hell."  I believe God spoke to people through all times and geographic regions, and did not limit His glory to the Middle East in ancient times.  I don't believe that God stopped speaking and inspiring in the 1600's when King James commissioned a group of professionals to translate and assemble the best writings into one Book.  I believe that God speaks to us, all of us, today and will continue to do so.  I believe that anyone can be inspired to write like Paul for the purpose of uplifting, instructing, and supporting people in their religious walks.  I believe that anyone can prophetize (and be right) like Elijah.

One of my favorite Sunday School songs was the Joy, Joy, Joy song.  Now I love the song even more because I can sing, "Lula Joy, Joy, Joy, Joy Downen my heart!"  I've forgotten some of the verses, but I heard one of our friends sing a verse that I incorrectly heard as, "I've got the peace of passive understanding down in my heart." What? I don't want PASSIVE understanding.  I want to ACTIVELY understand. What kind of mindless robots are the churches turning kids into with that passive nonsense? I had to look that verse up on the internet...yeah, I totally remembered it wrong.  It is "I've got the peace that PASSES understanding..."  That is what I want.  The peace that passes understanding.  You don't have to explain, debate, or rationalize anything about God, Jesus, the Bible, recorded history, science, evolution... just have the peace in your heart that is so awesome you don't have to understand it.

The day I realized what "grace" meant, I was practically knocked sideways.  I always thought grace referred to being graceful like a ballerina in a floaty sort of way.  When I realized that God's grace was something completely different...when I realized that grace could also be giving someone something nice whether they deserved it OR NOT...it was like my mind blew wide open.  I was given grace from God and I didn't do anything to earn it.  I didn't deserve it.  But it was there and I accepted it.  And ever since then, through my ups and downs, I've tried to be deserving of it.  Tried is the key word because I am not perfect-I'm flawed like every other human out there.

Yesterday Daniel threw this amazingly huge temper tantrum.  He is two.  He was tired.  He was hungry.  His dad had been gone for four days and had just got home.  It was too much for his little mind and body.  He kicked, he screamed, he even scratched!  We needed to get him down for a nap.  Naps for tantruming two year olds are like giant reset buttons.  He was not going to go down easy though.  I had to hold him, both to keep him from scratching and kicking me and to keep him in the bed.  He screamed and screamed and screamed and when he took a breath, I would tell him I loved him.  He is beginning to understand that "I love you" is the phrase that goes with snuggling, hugging, and kissing, so even though he screamed, "NOOOOO!" I knew he got it.  He knew that although he had these huge nasty feelings exploding out of him, my holding was not a punishing restraint, but a loving restraint.  On the next breath I said, "I'm going to let go of you now...one...two...three....okay. You're done."  He screamed, "NO! Don't let go!" flipped over, and hugged me tight around my neck.  I said I loved him again and held him until he was asleep a minute later.

While I held him, I understood that THIS is how I bring my children to know and understand God.  By showing them grace.  By holding them and loving them when they tantrum.  By whispering I love them while they take a deep breath to scream again.  Our sins are just like a two year old's temper tantrum.  Adults just don't kick and scream out loud (usually) while they are saying, "I don't want to love my neighbor! I don't want to turn the other cheek! I don't want to turn away from sinful behavior-it feels too good!"  But God still holds us all and whispers in our hearts that He loves us and will let us go to try again to make the right choice.  Boy, how many times have I thought angrily that there is no way I was going to do things God's way? But the minute He lets me go I turn around and say, "Don't let go of me!"  That is the peace that passes understanding-the peace that settles my heart just like the two year old that settles down for his nap.

My children are leading me closer to God, just when I think I'm the one leading them.

Grandma Jane Memorial Part 2: The Game

Now that I've had a few good night's sleep, I can fill in some blanks about our memorial weekend.  We had our initial get-together/ash scattering at the beach, but the real fun happened at the ball game.  My grandma loved the Mariners, so my mom thought it would be a good idea to celebrate her birthday at Safeco field watching them play.  It just so happened it was Kid's Day with free T-shirts and the opportunity to run around the bases AND they were playing....the Angels!

I left the three youngest at home with Mark so the three oldest and I could really enjoy ourselves and not worry about any details like bottles and diapers and temper tantrums.  We took the ferry from Bremerton to Seattle and left the car at home so we wouldn't have to drive or park.  But it wasn't just us.  We traveled with my parents and my sister and her family for the day!  While we were walking to the ferry, Ian spotted a car parked on the side of the road that wasn't very tall.  Now, my kids like to find little cars and make fun of how small they are compared to our Big Van.  So, he pointed to it  and exclaimed, "Look, Mom, isn't that car pathetic?"  I looked. I saw.  I said, "Ian, that's a Corvette."  Hahahaha! You should have seen the look on his face.

We Downens are on super money-saving mode, so we packed all the food we would need for the day.  Lunch was a picnic on the ferry.  I tell you, my kids and I were having so much fun; silliness was definitely our theme for the day.

"Bye-bye green hat!"

Once, when Ian was a toddler, we took the ferry when we took Ami to summer camp.  Ian pulled his binky out of his mouth and threw it overboard.  He said, "Bye-bye blue binky!" as we all watched in shock as it landed in the water and slowly sank.  Thank goodness I had a spare in the van.  This ferry ride wasn't as surprising, but it was a lot of fun.  Ian and I played War with a deck of cards I brought along.  The first round was the traditional what-number-is-bigger.  Round two was addition war with two cards.  Round three was subtraction war.  Round four was multiplication war.  Ian won, not because he is better at math, but because he had better cards.  Haha!

I made Shane stay close to the safety ring, just in case.

Mark has a fear of losing Shane at baseball games.  That was the number one reason he didn't want to go or let Shane go and the number one reason he gave me strict instructions on not letting the kids out of my sight even for one second.  We've sung Shane's song enough times that he is very embarrassed about the whole getting lost thing.  So I had a little fun and had the kids pose like they were lost in the crowds on the streets of Seattle:

The game itself was not very fun for us.  Sorry, but it's true.  We don't spend much time following professional sports, so we ended up just getting hot and bored. 

Watching the Reader Board

Luckily, there were lots of people to talk to, including cute little cousins that fill the Daniel hole when he isn't with us.  I brought my knitting and got several inches done on a pair of wool pants for Lucky.  When the sun reached our seats, my kids and I took a walk around the stadium and looked at the outrageous prices.  They know a hot dog and soda at Costco costs $1.50 and whole case of bottled water is $3.25 because I always tell them.  When they saw that hot dogs were closer to $8 each and one bottle of water was $4.50, they were completely happy with filling their empty water bottles from lunch at the water fountain.  (One of my favorite pranks was telling my kids Safeco field had 66 water fountains and they could refill their bottles as many times as they wanted.  But there are NO bathrooms, so they are going to have to hold it for the whole game until we get back to the ferry.  Yeah, that was a good one!)

Cousins

The Mariners won, so the baseball fans in my family were quite happy.  The forty-three members of our group said our goodbyes-some took longer than others-and the kids got ready to run around the bases.  My kids and my sister's kids were not interested, but my cousin's kids were.  One of them was brave enough to scatter another small bag of Grandma's ashes right on home plate.  She truly carries Grandma's spirit in her heart.

Waiting in the Shade

After that was the hot walk back to the ferry, a quick $5 Footlong at Subway, and the ride home.  Evie took 100 pictures of blurry boats and seagull wings.  I got another sunburn (ouch) and was completely exhausted by the time we got home.

Goodbye Seattle!

Grandma Jane Memorial Part 1: The Beach

 This is my family (photo courtesy of one of my cousins):

We have my mom, her three siblings, and their spouses.  My sister and her family.  My eight cousins, some with spouses and children. And my family (minus Daniel who was off playing).  We gathered at Belfair State Park to scatter my Grandma Jane's ashes.  My Grandpa passed away when I was 11 years old and his ashes were scattered here too.  It was so wonderful to have our entire family together, possibly for the last time.  We came from as near as a twenty minute drive and as far away as China!  We met in Belfair because we used to come here to camp when I was growing up.  I have many fond memories of playing with my cousins.

Evie

Evie was blessed with a bag of hand-me-downs today.  She is the only child I have ever met that can fit into slim-sized skinny jeans (she isn't wearing them in the picture, but they fit like a pair of tights).  She likes the skinny jeans that have zippers in the legs because it is easier to get her feet through the legs.  Wow.  Important information that I'm going to have to file away in case I get another skinny-guinea girl.  Aren't those platform sandals adorable? They are shiny silver.  Completely impractical, but totally fun.  She can wear them while she prances on the porch, but that's about it.  Who buys this stuff for girls? You can't run or climb trees or play four square in platform sandals!

VBS is over for another summer.  Our next upcoming adventure is...family reunion with my mom's side of the family!  Stay tuned!  We're heading to the beach tomorrow and a Mariners game on Sunday...

VBS Week

New Tire Swing!

It has been a busy week here.  Every morning, I wake the kids minus Ian at 7:30 so they can get ready for Vacation Bible School.  They are all sleeping downstairs on the floor because no one wants Shane to sleep alone.  Isn't that sweet? Every morning I have to have breakfast ready by 8:00 and find them clean, unstained, matching clothes.  Every morning, I load them up into the van and drive 15 miles to our favorite church, drop them off, and find something to occupy my time for three hours.  It is almost like sending them to school...but not.  By the time we get home in the afternoon, tired and hungry, and the housework is still waiting for me from the day before, I get so tired I take a nap.  Yep, VBS week wears me out!

Doesn't Ian look tired? One of the parents is taking pictures of the campers and posting them on facebook for all us parents who miss our babies.  The boys have to wake up at 6:45 every morning.  HA HA HA HA HA! No wonder he has dark circles under his eyes!  Ian comes home late tomorrow night and Shane can't wait!

Oh, and Lula turned one year old on Wednesday!  We postponed our celebration until Ian can be here.

The Beetings Will Continue Until Your Appetite Improves

Our beets are doing wonderfully.  We've harvested almost half and have experimented with many wonderful beet dishes.  Forgive the garish pictuers; beets and camera flashes are not a good combination.

Summer Borscht

Pickled Beets

Hard-boiled Eggs in Pickled Beet Juice

Roasted Beets with Steamed Greens

Beet and Blueberry Pancakes

You can't beet a cute baby picture!

The kids weren't too fond of the borscht, but once Mark said, "Whoever finishes first gets to play video games!" the kids started eating as fast as they could.  I haven't opened my pickled beets, but I can tell they are going to be good based on how tasty the pickled eggs were!  The pancakes were made on the 4th of July; we called them Red, White, and Blueberry pancakes and topped them with whipped cream.  But the best thing we've made is...Beet Brownies!  The kids were amazed that the brownies had beets in them.  Of course I know how much butter and sugar went into the recipe; you could disguise ground beef if you wanted to! 

Daniel was a little confused when I handed him the brownie.  He looked at it hesitantly and asked, "This is Brownie?" I reassured him that I was not feeding him spiders, just beets in a cookie.  It reminded me of the time I offered him stickers for using the potty after he had a battle with the blackberry bush.

The second half of our harvest will be cooked into beef stew, pureed and frozen, and I will probably make another batch of pickles.  The greens will be cooked and frozen for stews, soups, and sides or put into smoothies.  We love beets.