Busy Bees With New Adventures And Loving It!

We've had a very successful week. We've really been trying to stick somewhat to our schedule without being so rigid it takes all of the fun out of everything. I am slowly but surely learning balance. That's my new mantra, "All in due time, and with appropriate balance." Lord, help us all. LOL.


We completed our writing assignment on To Kill a Mockingbird, much to Baby Boy's delight. The writing is his least favorite part of anything we do in our home school program. I keep explaining to him how wonderful and fulfilling it is to be able to express yourself clearly and artistically via the written word, but as of yet, he hasn't bought into it. Of course he's actually pretty good, so that frustrates me even more, but what are you going to do? As Moms we're trained to just wait until our young find their own way in life. I try to apply gentle pressure and guidance, and I hope the rest will work itself out.


Baby Boy learned some pretty impressive take down moves in tae kwon do this week. I have a little film, but it isn't of those moves. I usually try to get some photos or even a video or two on the "down low" so as not to interrupt the class. What you see here, is what transpires when a group of teenage boys realize they are being filmed. It's extra silly, so view at your own risk!

Somehow, we also did get to our art project this week. We actually finished the last in a 7 part series of lessons on Color Theory. This week we learned about shading with color. Of course you know I have photos. So without further ado, let me present to you . . .

. . . Shading With Color . . .

By Baby Boy


and


By Mom #1

I did promise Baby Boy that if/when we moved out of the sticks and closer to a town, which we have, we'd get out and do more things with other people. I'm a bit of a recluse and really like wearing pajamas, so that's a promise I will have to work to keep.


So, with that in mind, we tagged along with a homeschooling field trip group and saw a beautiful exhibit at a local art museum called The Virgin, Saints and Angels. If you know me at all, then you'll be aware that I don't really do groups, but since with this particular one I am able to pick and chose what I want to do buffet style instead of honoring a full-time, long-term commitment, then I feel somewhat safe. Also this is a nice inclusive group with no nasty discrimination against people of different religious beliefs, different races, different family lives, or any other differences that seem to reek havoc in our quest to find nice home-schooling families to socialize with. Afterwards we walked over to a social spot and Baby Boy played pool, air hockey, and bowled for a while with some of the other boys. It was a pretty good time. I think we'll have to give them another try in the near future.


We also attended a Barack Obama rally last night that lasted very late into the evening. His speech was so commanding and inspiring. There was music and dancing and a great time was had by all. I'm not going to post any political opinions here, as this isn't that kind of blog, but I did want Baby Boy to experience a little piece of real live history. Whether Barack wins or not, I think it's incredible that a black man has made it this far in the election for the president of the United States. I really want Baby Boy to understand that, when I tell him he can be anything in the world he wants to be, I mean anything. I want him to dream the kind of dreams that have no limits.


Well I rambled on much longer than I intended, as usual.


So, until next time. . .


Smooches!

Still Trying To Find The Groove, Getting Closer.

We've tried to adhere to something like a schedule this week.


We still have lots of settling in to do, but I think we're finding a little rhythm to go with the chaos of our lives. It's still very much a work in progress, but I think it'll have to do for now.


We did find time to watch our homeschool movie, To Kill a Mockingbird. I know most grownups have probably already seen it or at least read the book, myself . . . well . . . this was my first viewing. I was actually extremely impressed that a movie made back in the 60's had so much artistic integrity. Aside from the fact that the movie is very good, I love the opening credits and the interesting camera angles used to shoot the movie. It's not just your normal "head on" shots usually seen in older black and white movies. It may be a funny thing to notice, but with two budding amateur filmmakers in my home, it's impossible for some of it not to rub off on me. Also something else I found interesting was that the movie is almost entirely told from the children's point of view, particularly the daughter's. It is about a small town white attorney who has been appointed to defend a black man against the rape of a white woman. Instead of giving just the "token" defense usually given to accused blacks, he has decided to give the black man a real, thought-out, researched, top-notch defense. I don't want to give away too much by saying this isn't your usual race relations movie (Is a black person allowed to say that?), but an insightful look into the lives of the children of a man trying to do the right thing, and how the entire ordeal affects them. It's a definite "thumbs up." I highly recommend it.


Seeing movies isn't all we had time to do this week. Baby Boy had the chance to "bring home the bacon." Actually, he brought home the catfish on a little fishing trip with my niece and my dad.


Delicious!


And, of course, here are some photos . . . enjoy!

I love my niece, but if you can't take the heat . . .

But I don't want to be a pirate!

Get the hot grease ready!

. . . Until next time . . .



Smooches!

My Niece Is A Superstar - And Here's Why . . .

If you've read this blog at all, you already know that my niece is just about my favorite person in the entire world. She has the kind of blind ambition, wholeheartedness, and lack of inhibition that I can only dream of growing up to achieve. I know for some it's just youth, but I wasn't like that when I was young. . . LOVE HER!

Anyway, as a for sure sign that my pitiful party was over, I got up early and got dressed and went to my niece's basketball game this morning. It was very early, actually way too early to be getting up on a Saturday morning, but I did it anyway out of pure principal. Baby Boy and Mom #2 were too busy shuckin' and jivin' to get ready in time, so I went at it alone.

They lost the game, but the beauty is in the PLAYING of the game. The girls are so incredible! They aren't afraid to run, jump, dive, duck or whatever it takes to get the job done. In a world of prissy make-up obsessed and boy-crazy pre-teen girls, it was just so refreshing to see.

Like I said, she's my hero. Brilliant and athletic, she's my kind of girl.

Ok, I know, it's enough already. I'm obviously blood-related to the child and heavily biased. But I speak the truth. ;-)

Here's some photos. . .

In the heat of the moment.

Supporting from the sidelines.

Superstar!

My niece and my sister (her mom).

Until next time. . .


Smooches!

An explanation for my absence, and an update of sorts.

I know. The current state of this blog is so sad. There is nothing worse than a blogger who refuses to update. I'm so sorry, but it really could not be avoided.


Our family recently and unexpectedly had to move.


That's pretty much all I'm going to say on the subject because it's still very emotional for me. We moved from a very big beautiful place to a very small place. It is very nice, as Mom #2 would have nothing less, but it is not my old house.


I already know that a home is not the real estate but the sharing, love, commitment, and character of the family inside; but I still miss my old house.


That's why I've stayed off the blogs, message boards, and other technological outlets for a few weeks. I was hosting my own personal, pathetic, pitiful, emotional, broken-down, party for one - me.

But as of this moment . . . all of that is over!

I've decided to take this experience in stride. I've used the opportunity to de-clutter my home, my mind and my life. Unfortunately, I had to get rid of the “stigmata” in my mind before I could embrace and appreciate the de-cluttering process going on in the rest of my life. Now that I have stopped feeling sorry for myself and taken a few days to get things together, I have realized that it really isn't so bad. Now all involved will admit, it's not ideal, but it really isn't that bad. I’m not quite overjoyed yet, but I’ll settle for “not so bad" for right now and I’m sure the rest will come. . . with time. ;-)

So . . . Baby Boy has been having some life skills training and no traditional school work for the past few weeks. He has witnessed a lot of heated discussions, a lot of heart-filled apologies, a lot of packing, unpacking, organizing, reorganizing, frantic cleaning, and I’m sure plenty more that I’m forgetting to list.

Also, I now realize that I am so glad for Baby Boy's marital arts training. What a worthwhile investment. He’s strong as an ox and has unlimited energy. He actually likes showing off how much he can lift and carry. What did I do to deserve such a great son? I win! I win! I win!

Well, we’re going to take the rest of this week off and recuperate from all we’ve been through. We're definitely overdue for some positive family time. Next week I’m going to try to get back on my regular schedule, with some modifications, of course. ;-)

I’m going to try to stop by all of the wonderful blogs that I’ve been neglecting. I need to say to all who have emailed asking where I am and how I’m doing, thanks so much for your care and concern. I really LOVE the network of cyber-friends I have. You ladies are fabulous! I just wasn’t in a good place to respond. I try to keep my negative dew drops to myself so as not to poison the whole fountain, if you know what I mean. I have two military parents and stoic solidarity is one of my greatest and worst traits all wrapped into one.

But enough of that for now. . .

. . . until next time . . .

Smooches!

Catch-up Potpourri: Mom's Gonna Live, Salamander Art, A Movie Review, & A Sentimental Field Trip.

It's been such a long time since I blogged. I feel overwhelmed with all of the things I want to talk about. I hate really long posts, especially when they have only a couple of pictures (or worse, none - the horror), so I'll try to just put a quick blurb about each item I want to mention. Being extremely long-winded is my Achilles Heel, so I'll do my best. ;-)


First and foremost - I'M WELL!


Well, I'm mostly well. I have been so under the weather for so long that I finally went to the doctor. For the working poor and uninsured, which is who my family is (all except Baby Boy), this is a major deal. I have to pull out the yellow-pages and find a doctor who will see me, who won't judge me, and who won't price-gouge me because I want to pay cash. I have to find a doctor who will do a thorough exam, yet won't do any unnecessary testing because I'm paying cash. Who will hopefully have a solution, but will have samples of that solution, because I'm paying cash. So I guess it's understood - I had to pay cash. Anyway, I thought for sure that I was infected with the plague all over my body, but the doctor assured me it was an extreme case of cedar fever, gave me a bag full of samples of miscellaneous allergy medications and told me to get on them right away while we're having a short cold front so my body could get ready before the cedar pollen gets back into the air. I will admit, I doubted his diagnosis, but within three days of starting his recommended regime, I'm as good as new! Hurray! My doctor was kind and considerate, expeditious yet thorough, mindful of my financial situation without being condescending, apparently right-on with his diagnosis, and very generous with the Rx samples. I've filed his phone number and office address in my Rolodex for definite future use. A success!


To all who emailed your well wishes, when I say I have not been on the computer AT ALL, believe me. I was miserable and unable to do anyone any good, so I stayed away. So please allow me to say right now, en masse, Thank you so very much. I really appreciate it and it's great to know that people really do care. I've been known to be a cynic, but on this I'll just let that stand.


We have not done much school work in the past couple of weeks since I last posted. We have been sort of hit and missing our lesson plan. Baby Boy has done a lot of work on his own, but the fun stuff we usually do together has been sort of lacking. We did finally get an art lesson off the ground. We studied analogous colors - using drawings of salamanders to illustrate our point. Have a look, why don't you . . .

Analogous Colors

By Baby Boy

and

By Mom #1

Also, we finally did get around to watching The Philadelphia Story. It has youthful Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart, and Katharine Hepburn. What's not to like, the eye candy alone is worth the viewing time. One thing I have learned about older movies, in order for me to really appreciate them, I have to watch them at least twice. They don't spoon-feed you the plot like movies do today. They are complex and complicated and witty and sly and you have to really pay attention to both the brazen and the innuendo to really get a good grip on the story. Baby Boy and I have viewed it a few times in answering our discussion questions, and it is simply an amazing story. It's so sharply and humorously written and acted. It's so amazing how the beautiful people just acted in the movie instead of walking around like they are always in a full length mirror. They seem so uninhibited by their breathtaking appearances. Actors today could really learn a lesson in class from this trio. Actually it was a foursome. Ruth Hussey is second billed, but just as beautiful and equally good in this movie. I won't give away too much about the film other than to say, it's a hilarious comedy of errors . . . what Three's Company could have been if Chrissy had stayed dressed more often. Definitely a must-see.


I do have some sad news. My great-grandmother passed away last week. She was a fiery pistol of a woman and so stubborn that I thought for sure she would outlive us all. Although her health had been declining for a few months now, I was honestly shocked and saddened by her passing. We took a few days last week to drive the 7 hours home and visit with family and attend her memorial services. It was a sad yet pleasant occasion. No one is foolish enough to harbor ill-will regarding the passing of such a long and fruitful life. She worked and retired from her government job, while raising livestock and also growing, preserving and selling vegetables every year. And she didn't have a little hobby garden, we are talking about a farm! She was a well rounded woman who did it all and never apologized for any of it. I know that I am blessed; not many people in their mid 30's live to see their great grandmother. I am glad that my son, her great, great, grandson got to know and appreciate her into his teenage years before she passed away. She even lived to see some of her great, great, great grandchildren. Long lifelines run in my family, (I sure hope to have one) and the older generations harbor history lessons that cannot be taught in books or found on websites; it has to lived, cherished, and passed down. So I am honored to be one of the loved by my great grandmother, and I am sure she is resting in peace right now. She certainly has earned it.


Oh, my goodness, I could go on and on, but I think I'll call it quits for today. We do have some other things in the works right now, but I am not level headed enough to comment gracefully right now. And really grace is key for a lady.


I have SO MANY blogs that I haven't visited in a couple of weeks, so I'll be trying to stop by all of those in the next few days. Missed you all!


Smooches!