Week 8, September 15, 2012

Oh my STARS!  Can I call it "Week 8" if we only formally schooled for 2 days?  This was the busiest week, EVER!  Here's what we're up to:

In my life this week:
I'm down another 3 pounds, total of 6 - woo hoo!  I'm looking to get back to running, and I'm feeling great.  (although tired with the busy season we're in)

I'm reading:  Running stuff and The 5 Love Languages with Hubs.

I'm cooking:  chicken, salad, smoothies...again.  This weekend, I'm hoping to make some whole wheat, low cal pizza dough to put up in the freezer, I'll let you know!  Also, I'm really craving some orange chicken, so I'm going to try to lighten that up.

I'm praying for:  strained marriages for some of my loved ones, a friend's mom with cancer, and Hubs, who's currently trying to quit a nasty tobacco habit of his.

I'm thankful for:
Work!  What can I say?  Our family real estate business has lots of it right now!  We've seen the lows and the highs, and I've learned to appreciate the highs.  I'm so thankful for the extra income, even when its difficult for us to do it all.

In our homeschool this week:
We actually schooled, workboxes and all, on Monday and Tuesday.  Here's a little of what we accomplished.  The other days, not so much.

Thoughtful is working on Georgia, in his state study. 

 

Spunk is working on "Solving for the unknown" in Math.  He totally gets this, when reading word problems, and when asked the questions.  He doesn't get it when he sees the math problems written on the page.  He sees 6+?=8, and proceeds to add 6 and 8 together.

 

Other than actual schooling, we did this other stuff:

 

Caught and released a neurotic squirrel.

 

 

Check out what came out of art class this week!!  Cave paintings replicated with charcoal sketches.  We're going to frame these for their outdoorsey-themed bedroom.

 

 

We visited Daddy's job site.  Watching the trucks and tractors come and go, dump, swing, etc., was so cool for the boys to see.  I always find it a plus when children get to see what their parents do at work.  This is going to be a new medical center in our county.

 

 

We also finished reading Charlotte's Web, which we all absolutely loved!!  So we had to watch the movie of course.  It was a hit all around, and the boys are sad its over.  Hopefully, our next read aloud will be just as fun!

 

At co-op this week:  Spunk's class found different locations where the continents may have fit together, with the theory of Pangea.  Honestly, I remember learning this in school as a kid too.  But I never thought to check it with the Bible.  It turns out that Genesis does, in fact, leave room for the thought that Pangea possibly existed.  We don't know, but its possible, and this is how we taught the kiddos.

 

 

 

Then, they did this awesome hands-on activity to see how it may have worked.  See those green Lego plates?  Those would be tectonic plates.  See how they're all together?  That's Pangea.  The children in our K-2 class then added features to the continents.  Animal fossils, human remains, gemstones, fruit trees, other plants, volcanoes, and so much more. 

 

Then they pretended there was a flood, a Great Flood, as in Noah's days.  The continents drifted apart.  The waters receded, and the explorers set sail.  Little men in Lego boats traveled the world and discovered some of the same fossils along the coastlines of different continents.  AMAZING!  Kudos to the wonderful Momma that planned this activity!

 

And then, hurdles!

 

This was the lower level, everyone did it without too much difficulty.  Very cute!

 

 

The higher level, however, was challenging, but fun too!  Here's Spunk trying the 2-footed approach.  It was a crash.

 

 

Thursday, the kids both went to friends homes while Momma attended a continuing education seminar for credit hours. 

 

Friday, we attended a pinning ceremony for my brother, the newly recognized

United States Navy Chief!

 

We are blessed to have him stationed here, where his family is.  Here, he is, being pinned by his wife, daughter, and our parents.

 

And then "covered" by his commanding officer, someone of importance to him.

 

 

Ah, there he is, Chief!

 

 

And our very proud Daddy!

 

 

This was a sweet, tearful, emotional ceremony, which I'm so thankful to have witnessed.  Our chests swelled with pride for not only my brother, for the other Chief Selects, for the entire Navy, and other branches of military service, and for our Country.  Hearing the national anthem sung, the invocation asking God to protect these men and women and thanking Him for allowing us to serve Him (a shocking and humbling moment all at once), the ringing bell, and the Sideboys' whistle as the chiefs were presented, oh man, it was all so awesome!

 

And truly, I think my boys learned this week. 

 

 

A quote to share this week: 

 

By day the Lord directs His Love,

at night His song is with me -

 - a prayer to the God of my life.

 Psalm 43:8

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm linking up to Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers and The Homeschool Mothers Journal where you can read how other homeschooling families' weeks went.