First Day of School!

Today was our first day of school!  It is later than we usually start – but we’ve had a very busy summer and this was the first day I had all the kids together!  I surprised them with a field trip to the Franklin Institute to see “Mummies of the World”.  What an amazing display!  if you get the opportunity to do this tour – go for it!  Andy was able to go with us!  I so love it when he goes to these type of things as he can easily translate the dates of the mummies to Biblical times.  It was really neat to see these people who had lived so long ago.  I was a bit worried about how Daniel would handle it – but he loved it!  He was fascinated with all the details and examples of mummies.  I really wish I could have taken photos – but with the delicate nature of the objects that was not allowed. 

After the Mummies exhibit we toured around the different rooms.  Isaac’s Loft is always a favorite……as is the newly redone Benjamin Franklin room.  The kids also enjoyed the new Changing Earth room.Here they are making a news cast about the weather via green screen.  Afterwards you could watch it on a TV outside of the room.Matt rode the Sky Bike and was showing off a bit!

It was a good first day!  Now only about 179 to go!  Tomorrow we are going to start Math, English, Spelling/ Vocab, Spanish (for Matt) and Science.  I am waiting on Literature, Writing, and History until after our staff retreat next week.  I’m really praying that this will be a better year than last! 

I Never Thought....

I would go where I went today. Today, Andy, Matt and I walked over to Jones Middle School, the public middle school of our neighborhood. We inquired about enrollment and took a tour of the school. What brought us to this point? Last night Andy and I decided that we had done more than enough to try to get Matt into the routine of school. We have done 13 days and instead of getting cooperation, we got arguing. It breaks both our hearts. We so desperately want homeschooling to work, but in order for it to work he has to cooperate. He has made it clear that he does not wish to do school....period. We have let him know that no school is not an option, he has to do school. Andy and I came up with a list of our options and are checking them out.

Today was step one in visiting Jones. He would go to school from 8:00-4:00pm and have at least one hour of homework four nights a week. He would have to get up at 6:30 am and walk to and from school (one of us would walk with him). That means he would see Andy about 30 minutes in the evening for three nights. This upset Andy more than anything. He would also start school Sept. 4th, which means no beach vacation for him. This is more upsetting as we really enjoy spending time together as a family at the beach. It would also mean no Disney vacation for him as we are planning to go in May (my mom is taking us) and we have decided that if he goes to school we will not be pulling him out. In talking with the teacher who toured the school with us she made it very clear it would be a huge adjustment for him. It would be tough. She was almost discouraging us from considering the possibility. I really felt she wanted to say - STAY HOME! But wasn't allowed. We are praying.

Our second option is Cedar Grove Christian School. They give a pastor's discount that would help and if I got a part-time job we could swing the cost. I called this afternoon and the sixth grade class is full. God has closed that door. It has been my prayer that things would be abundantly clear as to what we are to do for our son's education. This was pretty clear!

Our third option is PA Charter Cyber School. They have virtual classes that he would have to sign in and listen to/ watch on the computer and then do the course work. He would be completely responsible to the teachers teaching the classes, I would only be a go to person if he has questions. We are researching where and when there is an informational meeting we can attend. Again, we are praying.

We are also still considering our "normal" homeschool. On the way home from Jones we talked with Matthew about how he was feeling. He obviously does not wish to attend Jones - that's a lot of time away from home. We expressed to him our reasons for homeschooling, one of which is that we realize the short amount of time God gifts us with these children. We desired to spend as much time raising and growing them as we could. God had blessed us with the opportunity and affordability to homeschool. At this point Andy shared how much he enjoys going to his parents house, because he misses them - even at 39 years old! This was also the point at which Andy started to tear up. I have seen Andy cry only a handful of times, it takes a great burden to cause tears to fall. This affected Matt tremendously as he realized how much we would miss him. I believe he is getting a glimpse at how we are all hurting and the effects of a disobedient attitude. I do not know how all this is going to turn out. I do know there needs to be change. Please pray with us and for us that we would do what is right for our family and what God desires for our son.

YES! We are alive!

Yes, we are still around! Life has been absolutely CRAZY the past two weeks! It all started when we left for Massachusetts Saturday, May 17th. Andy was asked to speak at a church, North New Salem Congregational Church, up there and we decided to make it into a family vacation. We traveled up to MA, a six hour drive, and the kids did great! I was really concerned with how Daniel would manage the long drive, but he was incredible! We really didn't hear a peep from him! I have to say that the blessing of a car DVD player REALLY helped! That and Backyardigans! Though he also chose to watch "Touille" (pronounced too-ee) or Ratatouille, much to Matt and Sarah's relief!

Andy did an incredible job speaking at the church and the people were wonderful! I LOVE New England and their easy going ways! After church we went to a dear friend of Andy's mom, Brenda Buck. What a sweet woman of God! I can so see why Lois loves her! They have very similar likes - including gardening. We spent the afternoon there and the lids loved her! Matt and Sarah even stayed with her while Andy and I checked out a wonderful store called Country Mischief. Like I said, I love New England and this store was the epitome of New England! After saying good-bye around 5:00 PM we headed over to Old Sturbridge Village. Monday morning we headed over to the village. It was so cold! But at least the rain held off until later in the afternoon. We had a great time exploring what life was like in the 1830's. The kids had fun dipping candles and petting lambs! I loved seeing the one room school house and talking with the "teacher". Did you know that their school terms were May-August and then December-March? I thought maybe we should adopt the same schedule - the kids didn't think to highly of that!

Being put to work by the local farmers! They were so much fun to listen to!

Daniel found these blocks in one of the Sturbridge houses and decided he needed to play! He spent more than 15 minutes with them!

After spending the day, we headed over to our hotel in West Yarmouth, which is about 40 minutes out of Plymouth, MA. We also met Andy's parents in Plymouth Tuesday morning. We spent Tuesday and Wednesday at Plimoth Plantation. Both days were chilly, but at least Wednesday turned out to be beautiful and sunny. It was fun to compare life in the 1620's to life in the 1830's! I love talking with the women that portray people from their time. They always give you a little insight as to what life for them may have been like. I have to say that in both time periods woman had their way of getting what they wanted - either by refusing to cook in the 1830's or not cooking what the husband liked in the 1620's! Either way, my poor husband would have starved being the stubborn red-head I am and not knowing how to do half the cooking they did back then! I guess I would have learned more back then, though!

Plimoth Plantation Armory. Daniel LOVED the cannons - he thought they were jungle gyms!

Matt and Sarah in front of Plymouth Rock! It was closed for renovations! Can you believe it!?!?

Wednesday afternoon we headed over to Mystic, CT. We went to downtown Mystic where we were told there was a boardwalk with stores to look through. Well, there was one store and the boardwalk wasn't like we were used to. It is a cute little town, though. We even saw the drawbridge go up to allow a boat to go through. The hotel we stayed at had a great pool, so the kids were able to enjoy themselves a bit before heading off to bed.

On our last day of vacation the weather proved to be more dreadful than the other days. It was cold, cloudy, and had the threat of rain. But we headed over to the Mystic Aquarium and loved every minute! Lois' birthday had been on Monday and Andy and I decided to treat her to a Buluga Whale Experience as a combined birthday/ Mother's Day gift. As long as I can remember Lois has LOVED buluga whales. I can remember back in '90, when Andy was in Israel, John and Lois took me on a trip for Fall Break and we went to the Mystic Aquarium so we could see the buluga whales. Well, she had an incredible time being able to touch and talk with Naku - her buluga whale! She was the only one scheduled for an experience so she was able to do everything and not have to share! We were so happy for her! The kids loved watching her and told me when I am her age they'll treat me to an experience! They are so funny!

While at the aquarium we were also able to feed the Birds of the Outback. There were about 350 birds in a large cage and we were handed popsicle sticks with bird feed glued to them. The birds swarmed all around! At one point Lois had them hanging off her arms, looking in her sleeves, and even on her head! It was great! Then the torential rains came! At one point the lights even went out in the aquarium area! It was a huge storm, but the clouds finally moved and we enjoyed the rest of the day. We left around 5:30 PM and after a stop or two finally got home around 11:00 PM. It was a busy week, but we had a great time!

Friday and Saturday were spent trying to get two portfolio's together. This was my first year doing two - and I hadn't anticipated the number of hours it would take to get them together. I was up until 5:00 AM Saturday morning and 4:00 AM Sunday morning. Sunday, late afternoon, we headed to my mom's house to spend a couple of hours before heading up to Andy's parents. Monday was the semi-annual (depending on the weather!) Memorial Day picnic. I was able to spend some time with my good friend Kelly, who I haven't seen in months! It was so good to talk with her. Our girls, Sarah and Morgan, were born a day apart! I often wished I lived closer to her as Sarah and Morgan play so well together and really enjoy each other's company. I am hoping we can get together a couple of times throughout the summer.

After staying up until 5:00 AM Tuesday morning to put finishing touches on the portfolio's, the kids evaluations were at 3:00 PM on Tuesday. I now have 6th and 4th graders living in my house! How did they get so big so fast? They did well with their evaluations and I am glad it's DONE! Now I only have to turn them into their proper schools and I can start working on next year!

So where are we today? We are currently at Great Wolf Lodge in Pocono, PA! My mom treated the kids (and us!) to a night as an end of the school year gift! The kids spent 5 hours sliding, jumping and swimming in the water. It is a fantastic place! And the room is great! We are staying in a Kid Cabin Suite and it is wonderful! All the kids have their own beds - so no having to share! I love Daniel to death, but he has the boniest knees! We are planning on spending the day here tomorrow and heading home sometime late in the afternoon. Then we will be home from all our travels! This has been a whirlwind month and though I have had a great time I will be glad to be home! I think the kids will be, too!

I REALLY DO like my kids!

We have been done school for one week! And in that one week I have discovered that I REALLY DO like my kids! I know that sounds funny, but we have been having a lot of fun. For the past few nights the older two, Andy and I have been playing Mario Kart on the Wii. It has been a riot. Andy and I usually lose, but that's okay! Today I took the kids - all three - out to lunch. It was so great! Daniel was such a big boy and sat in a regular chair and ate his lunch so nicely! He continues to amaze me at how grown-up he is getting! We even bought big boy underwear today! CARS!!! He can't wait to wear them. We are going to do potty training as soon as we get back from all our running around this month! It is really nice to be done with school!

Last weekend Andy and I attended the CHAP conference, while Andy's parents watched all three kids! They are amazing! (THANK YOU!) The conference was pretty good. Andy went to Chris Hogan's seminars and was really encouraged. He really opened our eyes to some things that have to change in our family. Some of the changes will be tough for all of us, but will be well worth it in the end! I was very thankful to attend the conference as I purchased everything I need for next year! Yes, I guess we will be doing this again! I am very excited about the reading program I discovered for Matt. When I went to the conference I had NO IDEA what I was going to use for him next year. I prayed the entire time I was there for God to direct me to the right program. He lead me to Drawn to the Heart of Reading. It looks so amazing! It is exactly what I wanted and am hoping that Matthew will enjoy as well. In a few weeks when I get my objectives together and the portfolio completed for this year I will post everything I intend to use for Matt, Sarah, AND Daniel! Yup, we are doing preschool next year! Nothing stressful - just some scheduled reading, coloring, art, etc! It is going to be WILD year!