Tax season is OVAH!

Well, mostly. Tomorrow is my last day! YAY! :)

This past week was ridiculously busy, as I worked Monday through Saturday. Haven't done that since February. I'm not whining; I do realize that I am unbelievably blessed in that I only have to work outside of the home a short time during the year...but still...made for a long week, lol.

Add to that, we had soccer on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. It was good though...both boys' teams won their first games, so that was a very encouraging start to their season!

The boys did well with school last week. I didn't have anything planned, but they plugged away at their T4L and they chose their own spelling lists. They also worked on making some stop-motion films using some modeling clay and an app on Bailey's iPod. Awesome stuff. I don't have anything to share right now because the boys want to tweak their technique before I start sharing with the world. :)

This coming week will start to quiet back down. I work tomorrow, but then I am done! We again have soccer on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. Bailey has Masters on Thursday, and since Braeden is done, he and I are going to have a special lunch and enjoy some quality time together. Nothing else really going on.

For school, they will do their normal T4L thing. For spelling, I will have them work on some printable games and some worksheets. Maybe a crossword. I have to stay on them both about their handwriting...that will be focused on again now that I will be back home more.

Since I suck at laundry when I am home, you can imagine what my laundry area looks like after 7 days of me not home. GAH. I am going to try and tackle that (try being the operative word, lol), then we are going to proceed with a mini-marathon of more Battlestar Galactica. Courtesy of Netflix. :D

Have a great week everybody, and for those that wait until the last minute for your taxes, don't forget to have everything postmarked by tomorrow!

Soccer, Drama and Beer...

I guess that sounds a little...errr...trashier than I meant it, lol.

We had a busy week and great weekend! I feel like I've seen the inside of house no more than 5 minutes total over the last few days, but it's been good. Soccer kept us at the field most of the week, except for Thursday when Mother Nature was having another one of her manic spells. 

Braeden's last day at Master's was Thursday (he is in the lower school grade ranges and they were done on Thursday...Bailey is in the upper school grade ranges and they will continue to have classes until May 2), but he had dress rehearsal for his end of the year play on Friday. The play itself was Saturday. Every single performance was fantastic! We had a great time watching all of the kids perform. Braeden did very well and didn't seem at all nervous. Along with the play, they had an art show displaying all of the art projects that the kids worked on throughout the year. It was so neat to see everything, and all of his work will make great additions to his homeschool portfolio. I was shocked when Braeden could tell us about some of the things he worked on at the beginning of the year. He can't remember at lunch time what he had for breakfast, yet he remembers art techniques he practiced in September, lol. Ah well. That's an 8 year old for you.

The goblin to left is my wee one... :)

After the play, our family and the Bell family all went out for a yummy lunch at Steak N' Shake. Tracy's mom, who even we affectionately call Nana, generously treated us all and we had so much fun. I tried a new burger this weekend, which is not something I usually do. I'm very much a creature of habit. Anyway, I had the California burger, with bacon, swiss and avocado slices. It was soooooo good! 

Yesterday the hubs and I did something we never do. We had a date! Well, of sorts. It was without the boys, so we're calling it a date, lol. We, along with Tracy and Scott, went to that local Brew Fest I mentioned in my previous post. We had a blast, and the guys really enjoyed  cutting lose and sampling all of the beer there. Tracy and I sampled some, but we mostly just sipped one of their samples every once in a while. We graciously voluteered to be the DDs. Heh. :D

My goofy husband and I, with our little sampling beer mugs. :)

This upcoming week is the last week of tax season, so I am working every day. Since I spent NO time at home this weekend, of course I have nothing planned. I know...so responsible. We are where we need to be for the year, technically, so I guess it's alright if they have a light week. They will do T4L and SpellingCity. Those are always a given. Bailey wants to build a terrarium, so I will let him have at that. Braeden doesn't want to build a terrarium as much as he wants to help catch what they are going to put it. I will probably also have them both play some animal games online, and I will try to find some little mini-unit study like activities for them to work on, revolving around the terrarium and it's inhabitants. 

I know I say it ALL the time, but I really cannot wrap my head around how quickly this year is flying by. Every year, time seems to pass more and more quickly, but this year has just been ridiculous, lol. I would swear someone has played a cruel joke on me and has altered all calendars I come in contact with. :/

Happy Easter!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter weekend with their loved ones. We had a great, but busy weekend visiting family. As usual, we try to fit in way too much in a short period of time. But, it worked out alright.

Yesterday afternoon and evening we spent visiting with the hubs' side of the family. The boys always enjoy hanging out with my nieces, and my sister-in-law and I had a lot of fun making little charms out of clay. It was something that has intrigued me in the past, but I've never really tried. She had bought a kit, complete with clay AND an instruction book, so we gave it a try. I loved it! I immediately ordered my own kit, and I'm looking forward to playing with it when it gets here this week!

I made these...little pink crab, a cute pear and an octopus with a top hat and a monocle for the hubs. :D

Today we spent the day with my family. My parents are very heavily involved with their American Legion/Legion riders and there are times when we go down and we don't actually get to see them much. Today was an off day for the holiday, so we actually got a nice relaxing day with them and my brother and his family. Just chillin' and a wonderful dinner my mom made. It was a really good visit!

My boys and my brother's kiddos.

This week shouldn't prove too different than last week. I'm working Monday and Friday at the tax office. Thursday is Braeden's last Master's class of the year. Soccer Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. Saturday is Braeden's end of the year Master's play (he's playing "Frick" the goblin in Hansel and Gretel!). And finally, on Sunday, the hubs and I are doing something totally different...we're going to the Classic City Brew Fest. An all day, 300+ craft beer sampling, live music, charity event. Proceeds benefit the Athens-Area Humane Society. So, we're going to drink beer and help the animals. Not a bad way to spend a Sunday afternoon. ;)

As far as school work goes, Bailey won't be working on his normal stuff this week. He and I have an opportunity to get a glimpse and a short trial of a high school homeschool curriculum, so we are going to really focus on that. Braeden is going to be spending a lot of time practicing for the play, so he will honestly have a lighter work week as well. I will let him do some spelling and study vocabulary words from Hansel and Gretel, so he will have something schooley to work on, lol.

Okey Dokey...I hafta hang out at the bottom of Mt. Laundry for a bit, and get ready for the week. Have a great week, errbody! :D

When is Spring?

Wasn't the first day of spring this past week, lol? It has been cold and wet for the better part of the week and certainly doesn't feel very spring-like to me!

All is well here. I just returned from a girls weekend with Tracy and her mom, Jeanne. Had a great time with the gals, and really enjoyed the scrapping (and laughing...oh, the laughing!) and hanging out. Want to see one of scrapbook pages I worked on?

Ayup. I did a scrapbook page with a photo of us girls, doing a little scrapbooking. Obsessive? Nah. ;)

The guys enjoyed their "guy weekend." They hung out, played some D & D and watched some "guy movies" like The Hobbit and The Dark Knight Rises. 

We only had one soccer practice last week, due to rain and some nasty head colds. This week, provided Mother Nature plays nice, should see us at the fields more evenings than not.

There's not a lot going on right now. Just continuing to wind down with the tax thing, and gear up for the soccer thing. This coming weekend we are going to spend the weekend visiting family for the Easter holiday. That will be nice since we haven't seen anyone since tax season started. :/

Believe it or not, I do have plans laid out for the boys' school this week. They have a specific number of lessons they will do in T4L, they will do some handwriting worksheets (MUCH to their displeasure, lol), I'm going to have them work on some Easter themed vocabulary flashcards for kids, and they are each going to try and find some books by homeschoolers that they want to read from the HomeschoolLiterature.com website. 

The also have a nice little wish list going on Amazon. As the school year starts to lessen, and as vacation time approaches, they want their iBooks stocked and ready to read. Even though we've been telling them thing all along, they now understand why we like reading by the pool or at the beach. :D

That's about it for now. Have to unpack from the weekend and get ready for work tomorrow. I also need to catch up with my boys before bed.

I hope you all enjoy your last week of March (GAH! I can't believe that!) and have a wonderful Easter holiday with your loved ones! 

Happy St. Patty's Day!

Gosh. Middle of March already. This year seems to be going by faster and faster.

The past week went well for us.  I had jury duty on Monday. No, I didn't get picked. This was the second time in a row that they had the jury picked before they even polled me. The case was an aggravated assault against a police officer that I really wanted to be on. Oh well. Maybe next time...

Even though I didn't get picked, the whole jury duty process made for some interesting school time throughout the week. We looked up how the whole jury thing works, the boys learned why it was so important for citizens to have a jury of their peers and we even plugged some jury and court related words into a spelling list for each of them.

Tomorrow evening starts our spring soccer schedule. It feels like the fall season just ended, lol. Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays will see us at the fields. This is Bailey's last spring season with the recreation department. Because of his age, he will be able to play one last time this fall but then he will age out. The local school will not let him try out and play (grrrrr), but we have already found another youth league near us. It will cost more, and involve more traveling, but at least it's a way for him to still play, which is what he really wants.

As far as school goes this week, the boys are doing a little bit of learning about St. Patrick's Day. I know...shoulda let them do this last week, but I forgot and let it slip up on me. They are also working on some Easter activities. They are plugging along with their core Time4Learning stuff and they have a few holiday themed vocabulary words to work with in SpellingCity. I will assign them some math games too. Those go over much better than assigning math worksheets. :D

Wednesday is free parking day at GA state parks, so I think Tracy and I are planning a picnic with the boys. The weather here has been absolutely beautiful the last couple of days. Hopefully that will continue!

I am working only Monday and Friday this week, and that's very nice. Next weekend, Tracy and her mom and I, are having a scrap weekend. We are soooooo looking forward to that! A weekend at Archiver's, with a Dragon*Con staff meeting thrown in. Woot!

For now, I'm going to get comfortable on my couch and pretend to be a sloth. Have a great week!

Field Trips...

We love field trips! :) This weekend has felt like one big field trip for the boys and I, lol. This past Friday, we headed down to the Atl for a performance by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and a nice stroll through the High Museum of Art. By we, I mean the boys and I and Tracy and her boys.

This is the second time that we have done this particular trip. This time, the symphony performance was "American Journey through Music" and the exhibit at the High was Freida and Diego. We had a great day, and enjoyed lunch together at IHOP!

Yesterday we took the boys to see Jack the Giant Slayer, and we all really liked it. I wanted to see the new Oz movie, but got out voted. Having said that, I have no regrets about the movie we did see...great "popcorn flick" (not really an Oscar type movie, but fun for the fam).

Today, we met some friends for lunch on their way back home to NC. Loved seeing them and chatting for a bit.

This week should be good for us. I have Jury Duty tomorrow, and I'm only working on a couple of days this week. I will get to spend Thursday dropping a ton of stuff off at Goodwill (yay for spring cleaning!) and running errands. But other than that, hopefully all will go smoothly.

The boys have some art projects and some science experiments they have been wanting to do, so I think I will let them focus on that. We'll let T4L and VSC be their supplementary enrichment this week. ;)

I, as always, have some laundry to do. At some point this evening, I think the boys and I are going to continue our Merlin (I heart Netflix!) marathon. For now, I'm going to grab a cup of coffee, go sit on my porch to enjoy this beautiful day, and I'm going to dream about buying a Winnebago and taking our family on a roadschooling across America journey. One day, that dream will come true...I just know it. :D

Have a great Sunday afternoon!

The First 4-H DPA Weekend...

Bailey had his first 4-H DPA (District Project Achievement) this past weekend. He's in the Jr. division (for lack of a better word?) because he's in 8th grade. He has been really working on hard his project, which was Better Breakfast. He had to prep, cook and present a healthy breakfast. He chose breakfast burritos, which had to be made with egg substitute and turkey ham, as well as lowfat cheese, bell peppers and green onions. He also had a zesty sauce for the burrito, which was made of salsa and nonfat plain yogurt. He chose to make his burritos with whole wheat tortillas, and serve them with a side of sliced apples and some orange juice. He had to take allllll of his ingredients with him, as well as allllll of his kitchen utensils/pans/tools/tableware. He couldn't pre-chop or pre-prep anything. He had to do it all on site, and he had exactly 1 hour, from the time he opened the fridge to when he had to have it plated for the judges.

He has been working really hard on this since October or so. Practicing and making this for us (lemme me tell ya...at one point the hubs and I thought there was NO way we would ever eat another breakfast burrito, lol) over and over. 

Friday, when it was time to drop him off to ride with the other 4-H'ers (btw, there were 8 total from our county, but Bailey was the only one from the homeschool 4-H club), he had a bad case of nerves/cold feet and did not want to get in that van. I pushed, and felt guilty as hell for doing so, but he went. And overall ended up having a blast this weekend. Met some new friends, had a lot of laughs and really had a fabulous time.

Oh...and how did he do for the competition/demonstration?

FIRST PLACE!!!!!

I went up to watch the demonstration, but they didn't announce how everyone did until later that night in an assembly. The hubs and I were grocery shopping when Bailey called to tell us how he did. You would have loved watching me walk all over Ingles with the proud-mommy sobs. :D

What's even better than all of us being proud of Bailey? Bailey is so proud of himself! He's known since he was five years old that he wanted to be a chef. We've even already priced tuition at Le Cordon Bleu (Gasp! Ack!). Seeing him excel and be recognized for doing something that he wants so badly to do with his life...it's such a wonderful thing!

Last week involved so much prep and practice for 4-H, that it feels like there wasn't a lot of anything else going on, lol. This week will be better. I'm still down to two days a week at the office. That's nice!

I'm going to try and squeeze in some worksheets for Braeden. We're finally seeing improvement in his handwriting, and I don't want to backslide by forcing him to do handwriting worksheets. When I force him to do handwriting worksheets, he rebels and I yell and we both end up crying in a corner. He enjoys the free online puzzles (like the word search) at SpellingCity. Fortunately, there are printable versions of those too. Hopefully those will be well received...

Bailey and I are going to try and start (yes, start - UGH!) looking for a high school homeschool curriculum that we both want to try. We have used T4L for so long, it sucks even thinking about transitioning away from it. :( At least we are in a better place now, than we first started homeschooling. We know that we can piece together several programs/curricula/methods, and while it's stressful to think about high school, it's not as stressful as trying to find that very first homeschool program. 

Other than that, I don't know what the week holds for us. The boys and I have Friday off so we can go see a performance by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and take a stroll through the High Museum of Art. Woot! We did this last year, with Master's, and we're very excited that it worked out so we could do it again this year. :D

Okey Dokey. Getting off here now...going to go cuddle with the kiddos a bit, and maybe fit in an episode of The Following. Have a great week, errbody!