Get OUT!!!

I saw this meme over the break and decided to take the idea to heart and to our homeschool.

At first, when I kicked the kids out of the house after they finished school, chores* and lunch; I got a little kick-back.  When they realized I wasn't going to give on this, they decided to use the time to take their favorite new toys outside.  Our family gift for the kids this year came with much begging from Titus (which is why he had to wait and be surprised at Christmas when he had given up all hope of ever getting it).  On Christmas Day they found a box of four "Laser X - Revolution Guns".  They work so much better than any of us thought.  So much so that we bought two more to have when friends come over.

Even on rainy days the kids are learning to have fun.  The other day Amber and Titus came in soaking wet from taking the dogs around the block and jumping in puddles.  But they had smiles on their faces, they'd learned to have fun despite the circumstances and that is the point.

*For the first time ever, I created an official chore chart with chores each child has to complete each day.  In the past I felt such schedules were too rigid but strangely structure is something we've all needed more in the past year.  It seems to be helping the kids finish chores without push-back, its just like their school schedule in that its just another item that needs completion.  Its funny how structure has ebbed and flowed over the years in our home.  At times the kids need less and other times they crave more; its good to be flexible.

Busted

Back on January 15th Lance disabled his throwing wall.

He threw a 2lb Plyo-care ball through the OSB, Drywall, insulation and almost through the siding in the garage.  A friend of Chris' summed it up by simply raising his eyes and saying "great velocity".  Personally, all I could do was laugh when Lance sheepishly came in to tell and show us what had happened.  We want him to "bigger, stronger, faster" and clearly he is.

After coming up with new solution to the "Throwing Wall" dilemma, gathering supplies over the weekend, putting them together yesterday (Lance enjoyed his man glitter).  The new wall is up and running today.  It is a box attached to the pull up stand.  The box is made out of thickest plywood available, supported vertically and horizontally by more 2x4s on the back and wrapped in rubber a friend of ours uses on his gym floor.  Hopefully, this will be hole proof.  I must say I enjoy the fact that the whole house no longer shakes when he throws.  Titus finally, joined in on "Secret Squirrel Training today", and made use of the new wall as well. 

Today is a Beautiful Day that the Lord Has Made!

When we started going to church last fall, I was cynically waiting for the proverbial wheels to fall of the bus anytime but they never did.  I had always dreamed of belonging to a church where people did life together, where community was real; but I always sort-of-thought it was just that, a dream.  Chris and company had humored me about trying out different churches over the years but they thought it was all a dream as well.  Thankfully they are just as thrilled its not a dream, but real; as I am.  

Today was such a special day.  Unfortunately, it's like a wedding day as much as you want to remember every word spoken, afterward its hard to articulate all that happened.  We were interviewed by Pastor and the Elders before services last week, so that this week we could join the church.  It seems like such a small thing but for people who don't take commitments lightly, it was a huge step and one all over were overjoyed to do.  The cherry on the top, was that today was also the day that Jared and Amber were finally baptized.  Jared had at least been "Dedicated" but when Amber was born we were not attending a church and never found one since that we liked enough to ask them to baptize her.  Watching them be baptized by Pastor was such a special event, his joy seemed to equal our own.  

 

Through out the ceremony the one thing that seemed to stand out in everyone's mind was when Pastor said what "what a blessing your family has already been to us."  Not just "what a blessing we would be", but they were already thankful for our involvement the last few months, that really special.

Ironically, after services today we had the A family to our house for brunch (we'd made the plans before we knew we'd be joining the church that day).  However, it was the appropriate way to celebrate with friends from church that we are getting use to doing life with.  Never in my life have I spent so much time with so many people from the same group.  I can't remember that last time where we didn't have someone coming to the house or us going to someone's on the weekend.  What huge blessing, huge blessings indeed.

This was the best way I can imagine to finish off my birthday week.

Turning 50 wasn't so bad.  I have been practicing for quite some time.  When people asked my age over the last six months, I've said "nearly 50", so when the day came I was rather use to the idea.

My children made breakfast for me in the morning, which was nice treat as I laid in bed a bit later than normal.  At the table was a nice surprise of books (published in 1971), bath-stuff from my Aunt and Uncle, a homemade (by Titus) Sudoku book, complete with a pencil holder (I've wanted one for a long time) and a card with prose/original song Amber wrote which was wonderful.  It was a beautiful morning.

As is the fate of mother's we had a busy day with people over practicing for theater that I could not post-pone but I did request an early departure.  My dear friend and her daughter brought me a lovely gift to pamper myself.  This year I made a decision not to "save" my indulgent bath gifts but to actually use them as as soon I got them.  I must say this is much better idea.

In the evening, we enjoyed a yummy lasagna per Chris, and some chocolate brownies per Titus to enjoy while we watched one of my favorite versions of Jane Austen's Persuasion. It was a lovely day.

Battle of Fort Log and Fort Lumber

Today was our biggest airsoft battle ever, 24 participants.  The weather leading up to today was wet so the yard was soggy but thankfully the day itself was sunny and cool.  The only call we got from a neighbor was from GM Mary who wanted to know if she was, "going crazy or was someone playing bagpipes?"

The answer was bagpipes, Nathan started out our day of battle with the playing of "Amazing Grace" and treated us with other tunes at breaks throughout the day.  I'm a huge fan of the pipes.

The day didn't start with the full contingent of players but rather with the "newbies" coming early (10am) to have a few battles before the "veterans" showed up.  For these fights Lance and Christian refereed as the players got used to the field of play and the rules.  This plan worked exceptionally well, all of the newbies having a great first experience.  The veterans arrived at 11am and the games went on till 8pm that night.  My job was simple, keep them fed and hydrated.  No one needed medical care till after sunset and thankfully that was all minor.  The kids did all the rest themselves, organizing various different types of battles throughout the day.

Pancakes and Company

Another blessing that came out of last year, was becoming close friends with our neighbors at the end our cul-du-sac, an older couple we now fondly refer to as GM Mary and GP Frank.  It started out with the kids helping them around the yard and Miss Mary sharing her canning/crops and the friendship just kept growing.  Our kids like to go over hang-out and talk; and  they love the company.  It was really special when they both came Thanksgiving and to Jared's play at the first of the year.  Today, they came for pancake breakfast and stayed for three hours sharing stories and talking about the times.  It's ironic in a year that's all been about destroying relationships, that we have been blessed to gain so many.

I'm BORED!!!!

The phrase "I'm BORED" uttered by me has long sent pangs of panic into my friends and loved ones; because when "bored" I entertain myself, often to the chagrin of those around me.  As a result, I have never been one to play for my kids when they got bored, rather I threatened with work, if they are so bored, or they can't find a productive way to entertain themselves.  

Consequently, creating new games is something my children have done from their youngest ages, repurposing normal everyday objects into the tools for their play.  The old foam tiles in our house Florida house used to cushion falls on the tiles; have been repurposed since we moved here into forts of all kinds, barter stands, shields; and the list goes on.  I have always encouraged time spent on these endeavors, over more traditional time requirements.  Not only does this type of play spark the imagination, it also fosters the tools needed to work together, solve problems and agree on terms/rules.  I think this type of "out-ot-the-box" thinking is what is lost in the average over scheduled, busy work education, electronic filled, no time for creativity childhood.  Frankly, I think its responsible for a lot of the stupid we've had to endure the last twelve months, but I digress.

Recently we had the S Family with their 4 boys over for a play-date.  While they were here my crew introduced them to the latest game they had created in the Bonus Room.  This game involves the ping-pong table, Keva blocks, rubber bands* and four armies of plastic army men (British, Japanese, German and American).  When our friends went home their kids quickly took out their Lego figures (since they didn't have army men), Keva blocks (they had just gotten for Christmas and thought we only for building till meeting my kids) and set up a battle of their own on their dinning room table.  Mom S sent me a photo and Dad S enjoyed the game when he got home as well.  Creative fun is contagious, in a good way.

Here is a quick glimpse at some of the kids favorite original games.

Lance:  Romans and Barbarians. This game leans more towards the barbaric for both sides but one team (myself) is supposed to be more professional and the other side (the rest of my siblings) absolutely crazy. We all have old baseball helmets and foam tile shields/clubs that we use to push the other side into submission. We have only ever broken one wall outlet (3 times) while playing this ;).

Jared: Goodnight Puppies. Don't let the name deceive you, this game has nothing to do with dogs. The name originated from what Dad said every night when he put the dogs in their cages. That was a signal to us we had to start a game, and FAST! If we didn't, the call for bed would come seconds later. So we took dodge-ball, added 400 plastic balls, foam-tile forts, pillow artillery, 5 lives, and viola! We have an intense war zone that would last just long enough to where our parents would let us finish one more game before bed.  

Titus: Rubber-band Wars.  This is the game in progress above, it started out with single rubber bands, then double rubber bands and Titus has since upped his game by building a rubber-band rifle with the scrap wood from Lance's model trains.  He did it all by himself and it works really well.  

Amber:  For a more civilized switch Amber and the boys play with her Playmobile horses and all the drama that they add, like Mr. Business that's always trying to buy the farm because of "progress".  She also likes "Good Morning Puppies", that is a variation of "Goodnight Puppies" played during the light of day.

Laying the first spikes in the train room

This is a pic of Lance's first model he created with "Grandpa".

Some of you may be wondering why we gave up our TV room so that Lance and company could turn it into a model train room.  The answer is a bit varied.  We had talked for years about turning the attic into Lance's room, we've had multiple quotes and no matter how much we try to do ourselves its just out of our budget (the entrance being in the master closet one of the biggest problems).  Lance has always had a fascination with trains (I potty trained him on the bribe of getting "James"), he has pretty much mastered Aquarium maintenance for now (he has three stable tanks with live plants); he needed a new hobby.  So he agreed to move into the smallest bedroom, give the bigger bedroom to his siblings and in return we gave him the TV room for his trains.  It's sorta that simple.  One of the few positive by-products of 2020 was that Lance formed a great friendship with our elderly neighbor who just "downsized" his train layout into one 40x20ft room.  Dil's layout has appeared in magazines over the years, before the chaos started we would see cars lined up in front of his house once a month with all his friends that would come to operate his huge layout, like so many people he lost those visitors this year.  However, Lance is learning a ton from Dil and in return he spent the fall selling a bunch of his old trains for him on Craigslist (his family has him in lockdown so he couldn't do it himself) but most importantly they've formed a friendship that they both need through these crazy times.  Putting my homeschool mom hat on there is a ton to be learned from model training; Geometry, electrical, physics, wood working, computer programing, art (in many forms; like air-brushing, sculpting and weathering), history (as he researches to make his layout as realistic visually and operationally as possible); just to name a few.

Here is the front of one of his weathered Locomotive on his testing diorama.

Now I'll turn this post over to Lance to explain in his own words:

Most people when they think of a train layout picture a train going in circles and figure eights continually with no real purpose other than watching the train. But in the real world trains have a specific job to do. They have customers that want things delivered and picked up in a timely manner which requires complicated track-work and smart maneuvers to get the job done. This is what my buddy Dil and I love about the hobby, making operations that are just as complicated and stressful as the real thing. And the best part about this is that my siblings can join in! Now we won't be tempted to play on computers on rainy days, we will just grab a train and move cars. Building a layout is not as easy as I thought. All the way from DC and DCC control of the trains, to minimum curve radius and hand laying switches!

We have recently completed the bench work for the lower level and have started planning the yard (where cars are sorted by destination.) and the main line (where the trains run from point to point) and we are also planning what our railroad will move (Coal, Propane, corn, beef, lumber etc.) and what scenic elements we want to model. Once we finish track for the lower level we will start construction of the second level above the lower. this will allow us a far away destination for our freight and passenger trains and a grueling climb to the top for that heavy coal train. Its going to be an awesome ride!

Baking Day

In an attempt to keep it real I thought I'd show what my new kitchen looks like on "Baking Day".  In this photo Kombucha is being bottled and brewed, breakfast casserole** is being made for the week, weekly french toast bake* is being warmed in toaster oven, and oatmeal is on the stove cooking.  Only thing missing is Chris coming in to make the boys smoothy and me cooking the scrambled eggs.  It is so wonderful to have all this cleared off counter space on days like today.  Still loving my new kitchen and so is Titus who often treats the family with his yummy baked deserts.

*This is from left overs after the H Family came over for brunch after church.  However, A & T would like it more often so we have decided to make it a staple on M-W.  Amber stopped eating eggs so at least she will get some eggs this way and its got to be better than bagged Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal even if it is organic.

**I wish I could get the kids to eat this, its so full of nutrition but for now this is what Chris and I eat.  I mean who doesn't like ice cream for breakfast?

Secret Squirrel Training

Last Monday was was the start of our new school year and the start of "Secret Squirrel Training" Hee!  Hee!  Every time I hear that phrase it makes me laugh.  According to Chris, its a cycling term for a guy who shows up at ride and blows away the other cyclists; they say he's been doing "Secret Squirrel Training".  Its application to my home, is that Chris and Lance have started some intense training together. The goal is for one to gain weight the other to lose weight and get Lance into top notch shape before baseball season.  This pic is of the latest edition to the training... an agility ladder, to increase obviously agility and consequently speed.  Other toys/tools they use are a "slosh pipe", "medicine balls", the pull-up bar they built last spring (when the world shut down), to enhance the traditional workout activities of squats, lunges, etc.  So impressed they did it five times last week and started again this morning 

I on the other hand, did 15 minutes of yoga once last week, maybe I'll try for two this week, but I'm not a squirrel.

Our school year had a bumpy start but we worked through it.  Doing things a bit different this year (nothing new there), were trying paired teaching and to incorporate more art.

Paired teaching is just what it sounds like; the kids are paired together to learn something instead of me teaching that subject.

Lance and Titus pair up to work on "42 Electronics".  I've been looking at this electronics curricula for years and finally bought it over the break.  So far the kids are impressed and learning a lot, its equal parts mechanical electrical training and programing.  Lance leans toward the mechanical and Titus the programing, though he's equally interested in the mechanical.

Lance and Amber are doing a modified version of "Five in a Row", there first book was "Storm in the Night".  They didn't get the art project last week but hope to do that today.

Jared is teaching Amber piano.  Jared has always had issues with the traditional method of teaching piano, so he's trying to come up with his own new way to teach piano that he hopes will help Amber better understand piano.

Jared and Titus are working a rough "Aviation" curricula, I found an outline for a middle school curricula on the FAA website.  As they both have an interest in a career in aviation, (Jared as an Air Traffic Controller and Titus as a pilot) its important they obtain a strong understanding of they subject matter ie. planes and how they work.  Last week we started slow with reading some basic books on aviation.  This week we'll increase the difficulty of the reading a bit.

Lance and Jared are going to continue their study of Spanish.  We didn't start this last week because I wasn't sure what resource to use.  The one they used last year wasn't doing the trick anymore and then this morning Dwane Thomas gave a glowing review of Madrigal's Magic Key to Spanish.  The boys need a conversational focused curricula, and this looks like it might just fit that bill.  I ordered it today and should be here Wednesday, fingers crossed. 

Winter Storm....Finally!!!

Tonight it finally started snowing!!!  The kids were so bummed we didn't have a white Christmas but this makes it all better.  The flakes are the size of silver dollars and sticking.  My deer finally look like they belong (glad we didn't get them put away yet).  

It's late but we all need to enjoy a simple cheer tongiht.  Amber and Titus are running around with our neighbors and I'm sure he big boys will join in when Chris returns with them from their A Class.  Consider it all joy.... and DO eat the snowflakes and smile :-)

The New Year Came in Like a Lion!

We started the New Year off right.  After five long days of practice this week, the students of the ACTT Company performed to a full the house "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe".  Jared starred as Aslan the Lion. 

The kids joked that it should be called "The Jared, The Jules and the Backstage", as they had minimum props for this production but to me that added to the charm.  This is Jared's second ACTT production and its just amazing what the kids can do in such a short amount of time under the leadership of Emma and Esther. If you are not familiar with this book here's Jared's synopsis:

The classic story by C.S. Lewis has now been brought to the stage! The story follows 4 siblings, Susan, Peter, Edmund, and Lucy (Hope, Keaton, William, and Elaine, respectively), on their journey into the mystical land of Narnia. It is there that they learn about the evil White Witch (Julianna/Jules) and her sworn enemy Aslan (Jared) and their part in the prophecy that is to rescue Narnia from "The Queen's" tyranny. A classic tale of love, faith, hope, courage, and giving, The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe is an inspiring tale for the whole family!

Here's a sneak peak of some exciting scenes:

Now that I have you curious you'll need to watch the whole thing and lucky for you I have a link to do just that:  https://youtu.be/QxGliGRzxeY