We started school mid-August, and I've been trying to document at few things here and there both for myself, and for the kids' "permanent record," whatever that is. All I know is that when I was going through public school we all had one.
One day in late August we were learning how a wing works, and did an experiment with home made gliders. It was also to learn about the scientific process, recording data, all that fun stuff.
Also at the end of August a field trip opportunity came through on one of the home school email loops I'm on. It's unusual to have anything worth going to close to home, especially right here in Cleveland. We met up with some other home schoolers for a field trip to White County's Mountain Airpark airport. (Yes, we have an airport. I don't recommend landing your commercial jet here, or any other jet for that matter, but it was still a fun.) Pretty cool that it coincided with our flight/wing study too.
The Mountain Airpark only has a grass strip, and is very popular with the ultralight crowd. We see them circling overhead a lot on weekends. A nice guy who has turned a hangar into a home and lives at the field showed us several of his ultralights.
Shannon has officially achieved snaggletooth status now. Tooth number two came out the week of our fieldtrip.
The last weekend in August was James' dad's 60th birthday. James' brothers and sister, grandparents, and aunt (all in Texas), plus his uncle from Colorado were all driving over for the weekend. So James flew in to surprise them and be a part of the festivities. It was a terrific surprise, only his brother Jason knew he was coming. He timed it to arrive just after the bulk of the crowd got there, and even made his mother cry. (I'm told it was a GOOD kind of cry...) Here are a few pictures.
All told the weekend was very enjoyable, and James headed back to Georgia on Monday to get ready for our first ever Strong Rock Family Camp on Labor Day weekend. It was a big success, and though the turn out was smaller than were hoping for, the families that came had a terrific time and all promised to come again and bring friends. I know our family sure had a good time.
Families were able to sign up to participate in several classes, including horseback riding, climbing, canoeing, riflery, archery, arts and crafts, and more. They also played camp-wide games in the evening. We ran it a lot like the summer camp schedule, which all the kids loved. Several of the adults, however, were dying and begging for mercy. Next time we'll schedule some more downtime!
As soon as families were leaving from Family Camp on Sunday, we were heading out for vacation. September 6-11 we went to Hilton Head, SC with my folks and my brother and sister-in-law and nieces. Because there are lots of pictures and it deserves it's own post, I'll stop here for now. It was a FUN week, the kind where your biggest dilemma is "Do we swim in the ocean or in the pool?" More on that later.
Before I sign off I wanted to post a series of the kids' latest remarks that I think are worth remembering.
The other day Avery was talking to himself in the presence of the other kids, then looked at a picture one of them had colored. He pointed to it and said, "I change your color, (raises one hand straight up, dramatically) by the POWER OF GOD!" I got cracked up and had to laugh that the power of God had to be invoked for a coloring book page. It's not enough just to get a new crayon...
Lately Avery has also been praying out loud, and goes through a LONG list of things he's grateful for. He asked the blessing this week and thanked God for "toilets to pee in." Thanks, dude, for the reminder to be grateful for all things, but maybe next time we could save that one for a time when we're not at the table?
We went to Monkey Joe's (one of those places full of inflatable jumpy things) a few times when they had free admission Tuesdays in September. On the way the first time Elizabeth said she wanted to go to "Junky Moe's."
She is a kid who misses nothing and her attention to detail is surprising. This week Amelia left the table during snack time and came back to find a few of her crackers gone. She was also working on some math problems left over from school that morning. Elizabeth was sitting next to her, and Amelia kept blaming her for the missing crackers. Elizabeth kept saying no, then exasperated looking finally pointed to Amelia's book and said, "Do your math."
This week Shannon was late to the dinner table. I called him a few times and when he came down one of the other kids asked him what he had been doing. I kidded that he was probably just upstairs putting together a rocket so he could blast off through the ceiling. He shook his head and not missing a beat said, "Nah, I didn't have all the parts."
And now, from Amelia. We were doing creative writing for school the other day, and were playing a game that helps reinforce how a story is put together. She randomly drew a main character, a setting, and a situation or problem. Then she wrote a story including those elements. She drew "princess," "forest," and "battle." Here is her story:
Once upon a time, Princess Bell was in her garden, hiding because there was a battle in the field. Her father was dead, her mother was dead. Her sister took care of her. One day Bell died at battle, but on Sunday, though dead, rose from the dead. She praised God and had fun for the rest of her life. The End.
I congratulated her on her creativity, and then had a good chuckle around the corner. I love this story.
Lots more to come in the near future, including baycation (Avery and Elizabeth's word), both boys' birthdays, and much, much more. But wait! Call now and we'll include photos of more missing teeth! An offer you can't refuse!
For now, goodnight and goodbye.
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