Day Seventeen

Today was one of "those days"...at least one of "those mornings" for me. I was feeling down, feeling doubtful, feeling like I needed to get away. The two younger kids were fighting a lot. I think that it all started out with one VERY grouchy toddler. It was hard to stay positive. We managed to get all our work done, but it was just hard.

However, after talking with a sweet sister who somehow has a way of putting things into perspective for me, I felt better. Thank God for encouragement from someone who understands.

Tomorrow is a new day. There is grace. And I'm thankful. I wouldn't trade my job for anything.

The day had a good ending...I'm also thankful for that. When we were at the park in the evening during Aidan's soccer practice, the two little brothers played quite nicely and we had a great game of tag, lots of time on the swings, and a few games that Dominic made up. The above picture was a genuine hug in a moment of "hug base tag" (if you hug another person who's playing, you're both unable to be tagged). It was great fun.

Day Sixteen

It was a great fall day. Aidan had his first pottery class at The Arts Center. He was comfortable within seconds of being there. The instructor really has a way with children (that's a total understatement). I showed up to pick him up and saw my little man helping clean up the potter's wheels, scrub off equipment, and rinse sponges. When he noticed that I had arrived, he said, "Hi Mama. This is SUCH a fun class!" After he was finished cleaning up, he showed me the four "little pots" that he had thrown on the wheel. He was a little disappointed that we couldn't take them home, but he's excited to glaze and fire them next week.

Day Fifteen

Oops. Sometimes Aidan hurries through math. We're working on that.

Day Fourteen

Today we received two small glass viles full of harvester ants in the mailbox. It was the highlight of the day. The boys watched them throughout the day as these little insects busily worked from the moment they were introduced to their new home.

Ant farms. Get one for your kids. They're awesome....and cheap.

Aidan wrote down some observations in his nature journal and sketched a few things while Dominic drew a fine picture of an ant. Proverbs 6:6 says "Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise." The boys got a kick out of the song I know from childhood (taken from this verse).

However, when I read them the warning about not letting the ants out and Dominic realized that the ants were "biting ants", he was a little taken aback. He downright freaked out when he thought the lid was open. I had to explain that they're not killer ants. Active imagination? Check.

Day Thirteen

A sunny Saturday it was. We took advantage of the weather and harvested some veggies from our garden. We've had cucumbers coming out of our ears for months and finally we're harvesting green beans! Here's a shot of Aidan as he's picking beans while holding his shirt up with his mouth. The funny thing is that I remember harvesting beans into my upturned shirt when I was young. Great memories.

Day Twelve

Today I'm ever so grateful for the homeschool group that I get to be part of this year. This is our second meeting (and the first one with all of our kids). It is truly a Godsend. We played in the park from 11 until 4:30. The sun shone down on us for most of the time. Thanks to all of the beautiful moms who are a part of this. I am blessed.

Day Eleven

"There are many little ways to enlarge your child's world. Love of books is the best of all." - Jacqueline Kennedy

And just FYI, I wouldn't recommend this book, but Simeon simply HAD to pick a few out on his own.

Day Ten

Today was Dominic's birthday and we all took the day off from schoolwork to celebrate. The highlight for Dominic was that JJ took the afternoon off from work to spend with JUST him. This was his face upon seeing Papa walk into the sandwich shop where we all ate lunch together. It's hard to capture a genuine smile with this guy. Well...here it is.

Day Nine

It's really, really hard to choose just one photo. But I'm trying to stick with my goal.

Today I gave Dominic a dry-erase board and he was able to write the letter "T" during our time together this morning.

He was very pleased.

Day Eight

It was a rough Monday. I took the perfect "school picture" to capture this kid. Enough said.

Day Seven

Dominic had a combined birthday party with three of his cousins that also have birthdays in September. There was a piñata and 13 or so children in our house. It was crazy. We ate cake. I'll write more about it later. In the meantime, Lucy and her blue sucker made the blog. This girl cracks me up constantly.

Day Six

I left my camera at home when we went to Aidan's first soccer game of the season. J.J. snapped this picture with his camera phone after Simeon faceplanted into a mud puddle. Unfortunately, since J.J. was a line judge, we didn't get any action pictures of Aidan playing soccer. He had a great game though and almost scored a goal...almost.

Day Five

There's just nothing like small town activities. Zucchini Festival? Yes...we have one. Apparently this year marks the 7th Annual Zucchini Festival in Corvallis. The boys enjoyed making "King Zucchini" and "Underwear Man Zucchini Guy" to take to the festival. They were entered in the "Best-Dressed Zucchini Contest". The boys had a lot of fun with this project. Plus I baked my favorite ginger cookies (see half-eaten cookie in Aidan's hand). Here's to fun on Fridays! And FYI, we had a really good first week.

Day Four

When we were doing our math lesson today, Aidan took advantage of the shiny coffee table to play a little joke on me. I asked him to show me 100 with the "ten rods" and he stopped at 50 and said, "Okay, there's one hundred!" Giggle, giggle.

Day Three

It's really hard to choose just one photo...REALLY hard for me. But this is the one. Dominic was very proud of his artwork today. He used the oil pastels, which he loves because "they make prettier pictures than crayons." After showing it to Simeon, little brother remarked, "Oh, that's bewful." Here's to beautiful.

Day Two

A trip to the library always makes for a fun afternoon of reading. Dominic took Buddy the stuffed monkey with us on our trip and Buddy even chose a few books of his own.

Day One

On the first day of school, I give the boys boxes full of supplies. This year I let them decorate them with stickers of their choice. Here they are comparing the scenes that were created with aliens, dinosaurs, trucks, and such.

An Introduction

I've been wanting to do one of these "Project 365" Blogs ever since my cousin Ana started hers. I've known numerous friends who have done it and I love the idea. However, I always had in my mind that I needed to start on January 1st or it just wouldn't be right. Then my sister Jodi started one a couple weeks ago and I thought to myself, "You can really start it any time you please, Janine."

Then, last night, I had the idea to post one photo a day of our homeschooling experience. I think it will be a fun way to document the year. And on the weekends and in the summertime...it's just life as we do it. Same teacher (with the addition of the husband), same students, same camera.

So, here goes!