Are We Famous?

Things have been a little hectic around these parts lately.
I have been working at overhauling our school schedule as well as school curriculum.
This has been our first week with "new" ways of doing things, and my goodness what a breath of fresh air it has been.
I have had several great reminders of why we/I wanted to home school. It is like having a light bulb come on. I don't have it completely how I think I want things to go, but that will have to wait until January or possibly next year, (compromise, compromise) but at least things are better now. The girls are back to actually enjoying learning.

We received a very wonderful gift and surprise the other day.
Let me back track a bit. A person at our church asked if they could paint a portrait of the girls. This was during the summer. The girls had been seen wearing white one Sunday, and this person loved the white with their dark hair. One Saturday, I put the girls' hair up in buns and they dressed all in white (or almost all white), and a picture was taken of them. The picture was used for the portrait.
Thank goodness it isn't like long ago where you had to sit absolutely still while your portrait was done.
Anyway, it is finished! I had to laugh when we put it up on the piano (not sure where to hang it yet) and Aeva turned to me and asked, "are we famous?" When we have studied portraits in art it has always been of very famous or wealthy people that got their portraits painted.
Anyway, here is the finished product.


Chris and I were studying it last night and were thinking how interesting it was that the personality of each girl shows, right down to Rhaevyn putting one foot on the other. That is so her.
We feel so blessed and privileged to have this beautiful work of art of two of our precious girls.
Just two random and fuzzy pictures.
I peeked into the girls' room last week, and there were Myles and Aeva working side by side.
It was just too precious.



Hope you are all enjoying your month of October. Can you believe November will be here next week?

Field Trip

Today we had a field trip to the pumpkin patch.
This was our first visit to this particular one.
Normally as a whole family we go to a different one, but I thought this would be a fun outing for the kids.
We surprised Myles and didn't even tell him where we were going.
We told him to look for a red barn and when he spotted one to let us know.
He was quite excited when we pulled into the parking lot.
They had a hay bale maze, a hay pyramid, animals to see and pet, and of course a pumpkin patch.
I thought I'd be hip and dress all the kids in Halloween colors and take some pictures.
Wouldn't you know it, this is the day the camera decided not to work, as you can see from the following photo. And this was one of the better ones.

Myles petting a goat.

Elsa stuck her hand out and one of the goats licked it. She laughed half heartedly and then decided she did not like that one bit.
She loved petting the bunny though. She couldn't get enough of that.
Myles fed a llama.
Then it was off to the hay pyramid.
I did take video, but that is not wanting to upload.
And too bad because I was going to show you the height at which I fell.......dragging Elsa with me. Luckily I don't think anyone but our teacher saw me fall so ungracefully. She came rushing over. The hay is pretty soft, so between that and my padding I am fine. I was so focused on Elsa while I was falling, so I think she managed to fair the best. She didn't cry. She was probably thinking "what is my crazy mother doing?"
Here is my one picture from the hay bale maze. I followed Elsa through the tube.

Unfortunately, by the time we got to the pumpkin patch my camera pretty much was telling me it was dysfunctional. Aeva got the biggest pumpkin, while Rhaevyn and Myles picked out some tiny ones.

The weather was great, the company was fantastic and we really had a lot of fun :)

Wooly Bear, Wooly Bear, What Do YOu See?

I see Myles looking at me!

There are tons of Wooly Bear caterpillars around here. The past couple of days we have seen them crawling across the roads.

Yesterday I finally saw one on a road where I could pull over and catch it.

Myles has been wanting to see one up close. So I pulled over, emptied out a container from the car, and pushed the little fellow in. Myles was so happy.

Then when I went to pick Aeva up from her piano lesson I saw two more. They were on a very quiet road. I got out of the car with an empty Ziploc bag. They must have seen me coming because one totally disappeared, and the one that had been sunning himself was making a bee line for cover.

When I got home I told Myles I had a surprise for him.

He squealed in delight, ran to get the other caterpillar and said "Oh we have another friend for you my friend!"

They have names: Apples Peaches Pumpkin Pie, and the other is Fuzzy. They have a nice little home in a mason jar with thin tree branches and strawberry leaves. We cleaned out their humble abode this morning. They are quite messy creatures in the bathroom department.

And we have discovered the reason for that. Tonight we looked closely at the strawberry leaves and vines we had put in there. We were amazed to see huge round openings in the leaves where green used to be. Then the most amazing thing was that we got to actually watch them eat.

It was so fascinating to see these little creatures eat.

Science class doesn't get any better than watching nature up close like that.

Last night Myles said to me "Oh mom, they will make a cocoon and we will have beautiful butterflies." I let him know that unfortunately they will turn into tiger moths. He was very put out by this bit of information.

I think we may release A.P.P and Fuzzy back into the wild tomorrow. Myles says he is ready to have them go back outside.

Slow and Steady

I am slow at getting the new blog entries up, but I am steadily working towards accomplishing the task.
Everyone is getting in on school work around here.
I logged on to the online literature circle for Aeva, and Elsa climbed up onto the chair with
the book, ready to go!

I just loved this picture because it looks like Myles has hands coming out of his head.

He set the timer, put the camera on the foot board of the bed and pressed the picture button.

Viola!

Myles's science experiment this week was crashing colors.

I don't think the experiment quite turned out like it was supposed to, or maybe

just how I thought it was supposed to turn out, but it was a lot of fun for Myles.

We ended up doing the experiment twice because I thought maybe

I'd read the directions wrong, or the soap had been added too fast.

By the end of the second try we just decided to scrap it and make our own fun

with the crashing colors.

On Saturday Rhaevyn's friend came over for a play date.
All the kids enjoyed dipping Oreo cookies in milk and white chocolate.
They also decorated with Halloween and fall sprinkles.
Lots of fun, and oh so chocolaty good!

The finished products or works of art.

Going crazy with all that sugary goodness.

Myles shows what he made.

Sweet is Myles's favorite new word.

Everything is "sweet!"

So, we are wishing you all a sweet week.

It's October?

Really? I just can hardly believe it.
It was a good week this week.
Very productive and happy.
Have I mentioned how much I love coupons?
I think I keep meaning to write that, but then I forget.
I love seeing my bill at a store and then handing over a stack of coupons to the clerk.
What a great feeling it is to see how much the amount comes down.
It is even better when the clerk actually says "wow!"

On to what we have been up to this week.
I made two baby blankets.
I wasn't sure about the girl one at first, but I am glad I listened to Rhaevyn at the fabric store because I really love the roses. It has an old fashioned feel.
And boy do I have a weakness for those small rolls of scrap booking ribbon.


Rhaevyn decorated this notebook with some ribbon she found at the fabric store.
I think it turned out pretty cute.

She also wanted me to post one of her drawings.

It is from the cartoon "Avatar."

Last but not least here is Myles and his science experiment for the week.

What's New Magoo?

My apologies for taking so long to update the blog.

Our computer speed has been bumped down, so it is slow going getting the pictures uploaded.

That and I am not finding the ample amount of time these days to sit and update the blog.

I was lamenting to Chris the other day about the lazy days of summer being gone.

After the third week I think I can honestly say that school is going a lot smoother.

This rocky experience of getting school started this year has the wheels turning for what we want to do next year, as I will have three to home school.

I thought fall weather had settled in, but this week is proving me wrong. It has been sunny and warm, and at times a bit muggy.

But when it was raining last week we made hot chocolate with whipped cream and some sprinklings of autumn colors to top it off.

Myles and I are having lots of fun doing school work so far.

We've got the three sounds that the letter "A" makes down.

I have a little story that goes along with the letter, which I learned when I was doing Kindergarten with Rhaevyn. Myles was getting a kick out it.

We also did a science experiment this past week. It was called Emerald Pennies.

We took two shiny pennies and watched them turn green while sitting on a vinegar soaked paper towel over a period of three days. He thought this was pretty amazing.

He is also pretty excited that WAVA is letting him sit in on an online story time class.

It is right after lunch on Wednesdays. He was so excited when I told him they were going to let him do the class. They are reading "The Wise Enchanter, A Journey Through the Alphabet"

Coloring his observation sheet.

Turning green.

Here is the collage Myles made for the letter A.

Here is Miss Elsa being her cute self when she isn't working for,

as Aevav puts it,

Destruction Incorporated.

I got her a new pair of shoes. She hasn't worn them outside yet.

I am thinking that when she does, I may get her a pair of soft shoes to wear inside, as she just absolutely loves wearing shoes. She gets so upset when we take them off of her.

This is a bit out of order, but here is Myles at the computer

for his first story time class. They get to see the teacher reading on the web cam.

They are making an alphabet book.

So during class they can draw and color the letter they are reading about.

He looks like he's had a hard day.

Elsa has been sleeping in the trundle........her very own bed.

She has been pretty successful over the past couple of weeks.

One night we had put all the kids to bed except her. I went through the house calling her name, but couldn't find her. She was being awfully quiet.

Then Myles yelled to me that she was in his bed.

When I took this picture it was dark in their room.

Elsa just hanging out with her bottle while we do school.

Getting a love from Aeva.

Rhaevyn has become quite interested in drawing lately.

She had checked out a lot of "how to draw" books over the summer.

She amazes me everyday with her drawings.

I am pretty much limited to stick people myself.

Nap time :)

Have a wonderful Autumnal week, everyone!

Here we go October!

Coming up for Air

The official first week of school was a breeze for us, as we were down in California visiting family. But then the fun was over, and it was time to come back and get down to business with the school work and learning. The girls had started on their school work in August, but we did not do full days. I saved this until we got back. Being that this is our fourth year with WAVA, I really didn't think there was much to worry about. However, this week has given me a run for my money. I am finally, as the title says, coming up for air.

Here is a brief recap of our vacation.
Myles enjoyed being able to play and watch movies with Cash.
Elsa enjoyed the fact that shoes were not put out of her reach, and she seemed to have full reign of every one's shoes.
The kids enjoyed their many walks with Opa.
Aeva and Myles were excited to swim in Auntie Cullen's pool.
We enjoyed visiting with Christopher's mom, and Chris, Myles and Aeva went to visit her for a couple hours on Monday.
Chris got to go shooting with his brothers Adam and Robert, and also Peiling and Cameron. He had a great time. Then our last Friday night there Chris went to Robert's house with his mom, and Peiling treated them to a homemade and authentic Chinese dinner.
I think the kids all got to go to Powell's candy store about three times. They simply cannot visit without going there.


Oma and the kids had their annual tea party, and I joined in. I cannot refuse a good cup of herbal tea and, most importantly, cookies.


It is amazing how good family photos actually turn out when you've got a few extra people to help take them and make sure everyone is smiling and looking in the general direction of the camera. I think we got some pretty nice ones on this trip.

Wednesday we made a trip down to the city to see my Nana and Papa.

We were thrilled that Donna stopped in while we were there.

We all had a nice lunch and visit.

I love this picture.

Elsa sat still for a bit to rock with Papa.

The girls enjoyed one of Nana's great stories and learned a little something about jade.

They got some treats too.......fuzzy haired pencils.

My mom and Aeva took a walk to the Safeway nearby.

I think Aeva enjoyed the hike back up the street. It reminded me of when I used to got walking with my Nana.........always such fun!

Auntie Donna suggested we check out the Lucas studio.

I enjoyed looking at the houses out the car window on the way there.

My goodness there are some beautiful old houses in San Francisco.

Such architecture can't be found like that these days.

We headed out to find Lucas Studios, but got a bit turned around because the route we were going to take was closed.

It's a good thing that my mom at least had some sense in which general direction we should head. And thank goodness for cell phones because I felt like we were the epitome of lost tourists.

Aeva and I got out for a few seconds to catch this lovely view.

We were told to look for the Yoda Fountain.

We actually passed the studio twice. Third times a charm.

We pulled into the parking lot and were greeted by a very nice man at the security booth.

We told him we were lost, to which he replied "no you're not, you're here." He gave us a parking pass for 30 minutes and instructed us to park and proceed into the lobby for a nice treat.

Here are the kids at the Yoda Fountain. We made it!

Myles says, "My, how impressive you are!", in true Yoda fashion.

Say "Star Wars!"

The kids were so excited to see this replica of Boba Fett.

Darth Vader is one of Myles's favorite characters.

And I am laughing right now because Rhaevyn is having to spell

all the Star Wars names for me.

The kids were in heaven!

The grounds were just beautiful.

Here are us girls.

Donna, all I can say is, thank you so much for the heads up on this special treat.

I have at least four Star Wars nuts at my house :) and this truly was a highlight for them.

We wound up on the Northeast side of the bridge by going through a long, single lane tunnel. It was very cool.

Thursday we started off the day in Sacramento at Sutter's Fort.

It was very interesting to compare the set up and life at Sutter's Fort to

Fort Vancouver and Fort Nisqually.

Neither Sutter's Fort nor the two in Washington State seem like an easy way of life.

Rhaevyn said she likes Sutter's Fort best.

After we got done at Sutter's Fort we headed over to the Train Museum.

The moving train was by far the most popular and favorite among our little crew.

Chris took Aeva and Myles on it twice because they loved it so much.
One really gets the feeling they are on a moving train at night with the train lulling from side to side and lights whizzing past the windows.

It seems like a very classic and romantic way to travel back them.

Myles, Aeva and Rhaevyn got to try their hand at the xylophone in the Dining Car.

It was the job of one of the train employees to go from car to car playing certain notes on the xylophone announcing the the dining car was now open.

Myles loved this.

It is amazing how big the wheels are on the really big trains.

Upstairs in the museum there are several trains running on a track.

One of the workers approached an older gentleman and said something about how 99 and under can take a turn at running the trains by pushing various buttons.

Aeva only heard the number nine and was quite worried that if we ever made it back to the museum she would be too old to do this part again. I giggled and reassured her that she had plenty of years left, age wise, to come back and play with the trains.
This one was her favorite on the track.

We thought this paddle boat was pretty neat and think it would be fun to have lunch on it.

As usual there is always more that we want to do than there seems time for. Some things that we wanted to see were closed. I guess this is good because it gives us something to plan for for next time. I am not sure how we got to Friday so soon. Before I knew it it was time to pack the clothes and then pack the bags into the car. Then we were headed towards home. Thankfully the trip is not as taxing as it once was because we break the traveling part up(to and from) into two days. A big thank you!! (You know who you are).

Thank you, mom and dad, for feeding all of us and letting us take over your house for the week.

I know it is not easy to have a house full of extra people, more noise, and probably quadruple the laundry. We really appreciate you putting us up and putting up with us.