A Star is Born!

Big Girl did it!  She was cast as a Sprite in the Ballet Company production of Cinderella.  I knew she was a shoe-in!

She was thrilled, of course.  We are very proud.  This will be her 3rd time dancing with the company.  She was a mouse in the Nutcracker when she was seven, an angel in the Nutcracker last year and now she will be a sprite.  (Her dad teases her that she'll be dressed as a can of soda).

The ballet will be the middle of October.  I will try to get some pictures to post if I can get away with it.

Backs, Break-Ins and Ballet

Big Girl had a visit to Shriner's hospital on Thursday.  This was to be a regular check of her spine and we suspected a new brace would have to be made as she had grown so much it no longer fit well. 

After a looonnnggg wait we finally saw the doctor.  I can never figure out why it takes 2 hours to see the doctor when he only comes in the room for 2 minutes! 

The great news is her spine is completely straight for now and she gets to take a 6 month break from her brace.  She'll have to go back for x-rays in 6 months and may have to go back to bracing if her spine curves again.

She was ecstatic but she and dad were mad at me for giving the brace to the doctor to recycle...they had big plans for a bonfire. (You see why I was so anxious to leave it in Portland).

We had a celebration dinner at Joe's Crab Shack...a pretty fun place to eat. We went to our hotel looking forward to a trip to the coast the next day.  Our plans were quickly changed when we got a call from our alarm company.

We came home to find our basement had been broken into.  Luckily, the alarm scared them off and nothing was taken.  There was no damage.  Very scary, though.

We are now proud owners of a handgun and lessons are in my near future. I'm sure I'll be a natural.  I was pretty good at duck hunt on my playstation back in the day.

Today Big Girl is auditioning for a part in the Ballet Company's production of Cinderella.  Hopefully, later today we will have some more good news!

Orthodontia--The Sequel

Before

After

Oh, the joy of flossing a 7-year-old with braces!

Only 12 months to go!

First Day of School!

We had our first day of School on Thursday.  The kids were excited to get started with some of their new curriculum. (Homeschool mom says hopefully).

They probably wouldn't have minded a few more days of vacation.

But first, the photo shoot.

Dance started this week too.  Girls were VERY excited about that.  They have decided to take a hiatus from karate this year...good thing, too since they are taking a total of 6 dance classes between them.  Mom needs to be home to clean and cook once in a while.

 Snickers wants in on the act. 

He's not a great model...hard to shoot a moving target!

Here's to a great year!

The Well-Educated Mind...A Journey

I mentioned in my previous blog that our homeschool loosely follows Susan Wise-Baur's book The Well-Trained Mind.

She has also written a book for adults who wish to improve their minds and read challenging classic literature.   I purchased The Well-Educated Mind some time ago and fully intended to work my way through all the novels, autobiographies and poetry.  There is a recommended list of books and directions on how to read them... I got stuck on this one:

Unfortunately, this is the first book...So, I am challenging myself to read this book and blog about it.  I will be forced to complete it or be shamed in public.



Here is a short list of some of the first books in The Well-Educated Mind:

Don Quixote
Pilgrim's Progress
Gulliver's Travels
Pride and Prejudice
Oliver Twist
Jane Eyre
The Scarlett Letter

Ms. Wise-Bauer recommends reading the novels first before moving on to other genres. Anyone want to take the challenge with me?

Join the Well-Educated Mind Book Club!

Home School Review

It's that time again...Back to School.  It means something a little different for me and the girls than for most families.  Most moms are buying back to school clothes and school supplies and getting ready for a bit of freedom...

Well, our school clothes consist mostly of PJ's and our school supply list is quite a bit longer than most. 


This year's curriculum consists of:


Little Girl

Math-U-See Beta
Singapore Math 2A and 2B
Growing With Grammar 3
Institute for Excellence in Writing
History Odyssey
Singapore Science Early Bird
Trail Guide to World Geography
Spelling Power
Rosetta Stone Spanish
Art-Meet the Masters


Big Girl

Math-U-See Zeta
Singapore Math 5A and 5B
Singapore Science 5A and 5B
Trail Guide to World Geography
History Odyssey
Rosetta Stone Spanish
Institute for Excellence in Writing
IEW Grammar Fix-Its
Art-Meet the Masters
Life of Fred-Fractions

My new favorite book is Life of Fred Fractions...I'm not sure you could call it a full-year curriculum.  More of a supplement.  It is a humerous, fun look at math with quick assignments.  It reads like a story book.  Big Girl has really been enjoying it and did 3 chapters in one day.  I highly recommend for ALL students.  It begins at Fractions for about 4th or 5th grade and goes up to higher math.  Some of the books have a Home Companion for extra practice.  http://www.stanleyschmidt.com/FredGauss/index2.html

I am also really looking forward to History Odyssey.  We are covering Early Modern Times.  We will be doing lots of projects and using quality literature of the era. 

We loosely follow the classical model of homeschooling.  I follow the advice of Susan Wise-Bauer of the Well-Trained-Mind.  I use a lot of her recommendations with a few adapations of my own.

Looking forward to another great year! 

Camp Cleawox-Part Two

This week I dropped my oldest child off at camp for the first time.  The first time she has ever stayed with someone who is not family.  The first time I won't be able to at least call her.  The first time!

She looks broken up, distraught,despairing!

We arrive at camp.  Me: Are you nervous?  Her: No.  Me: Wanna go home?  Her: NO!

Big girl gets loaded up with her gear...6 days is a long time!

I sense her fear is building.

After some tearful good-byes...

Sarah tried to put on a brave face and ran off to play.  Uhhh...honey?  Did you forget to say good-bye to Mommy?  Ummm...I'm leaving now, sweetie?