Slowly Progressing

It's amazing how some things can slow down so much and other things speed up at the same time.  Sales at my shop, flea markets and sales, working on projects....these have slowed down considerably lately.  Homeschooling, sorting, time...these have definitely sped up.  We started school last week.  My husband has next week off (and a busy one it will be!), so I wanted to get a jump start on the kids, work so that we didn't get behind.  That takes up a good deal of time.  My sales have slowed down considerably lately, no doubt because of the time of year.  I had purchased things over the summer but had not gone through everything, so I am taking the time while the kids work on school to sort, organize, and rearrange.  I HAVE worked on a few things like this pretty bottle but not on many.

I've been to only a few sales lately and have tried to go to some flea markets only to find out that they didn't really exist or something else came up unexpectedly so that I was not able to go.  As fall approaches I know that sales and flea markets will be coming to a close pretty soon.  Not looking forward to that! 
I have also been working on a swap--it is for a prize ribbon.  I was to create a prize ribbon in colors to my swap partner's liking.  I finished it yesterday and will be mailing it off today.  Pictures will be in another post once my partner receives her ribbon. 

Roses, Flea Markets, School, and an Air Show

Well, Mom and I went the the Princeton flea market a week ago Saturday.  It was on one of the holiday weekends of the season and, therefore, supposed to be one of the best weekends to go.  Unfortunately it was stormy and windy, and we came home with very little.  While we still had fun, all of my favorite vendors except for one were not there!  Boo hoo!  So, this past Saturday we went to the little flea market here in town.  They have one the first Saturday of every month in the summer.  There wasn't a whole lot.  I did find some little mini tins to make push pins with, so that was worth it for sure. 

The kids worked hard--really hard--all last week to finish school, and they did it!  It was Friday evening before one of the kids finished...but we are done!  Hooray!  I will organize the books and records and store everything this week so that all of it can be well put away for the summer.  Of course, I will buy new curriculum at the end of the month, but at least nothing will be worked on until fall.  I'm very pleased with their hard work and efforts.  Now for a fun summer!

Speaking of summer...here are a few pictures of my rose bushes.  There are other varieties of roses on our property, but these are just what I got pictures of.  Can you almost smell them?  They are such a delight, and I so enjoy roses. 

Also on Saturday we went to an air show at a National Guard base not too far from here.  Our son loves airplanes, it was free, and any food we bought went to charity...so why not? 

 There were shiny airplanes, roaring engines, and amazing stunts in the sky.  It was a beautiful day, and we had a grand time.  Besides, the patriotic feeling was thrilling. 





Hummers, Flowers, and Glass Lights

Guess I've been MIA lately!  Lots of things going on.  The kids and I have been working extra hard finishing up school for the year.  They have worked very diligently, and thankfully their standardized testing went well.  I'm very pleased with their efforts and work, and we only have a few more weeks left of school.  Hooray!  I finished another swap but will blog more about that later once my swap partner gets her package.  I hope all of you moms had a nice Mother's Day.  My big sweetie and two smaller sweeties gave me the nicest cards for Mother's Day (the kids made theirs).  What a blessing and delight to have such a loving family!  They bought me some flowers....

I'll need to replant them soon.  I DO love these colors, and they go well with the cranberry, gray, and deep purples on the siding and rocks on our house. 

They also bought me some solar night lights.  I've always wanted some but thought that so many styles were terribly ugly (not to mention the ones that change colors).  They know I love stained glass, and these mosaic glass ones are just perfect--beautiful during the daytime and at night!  I can't wait to get them into the ground. 

The roses are all blooming around the house (will save that for another post) and the hummingbirds have returned.  This pretty copper feeder was yet another gift from my crew--though for my birthday a few months back.  My other feeder had broken last year, and I really like this one.  Apparently the hummingbirds like it too.  They've been busy feeding.  What a joy to have them return for the season!  It has been great fun watching them. 

The Nina, the Pinta, the...

...okay, well the Santa Maria wasn't there, but the other two were! 

We decided to take a homeschool field trip last Saturday to Kenosha, Wisconsin.  The kids had just had a week studying Christopher Columbus, and replicas of the Nina and the Pinta were in port at Kenosha until Sunday.  What a great way to visualize history!  Apparently these have sailed all over and had made their way down the St. Lawrence across Lake Michigan to Kenosha.  The Nina is an exact replica, and the Pinta was built slightly bigger.  I have a greater respect for those who traveled across the Atlantic in these little vessels!  They were small.  We heard a detailed account of Columbus's life and things that happened on that first trip.  It was an interesting history lesson.

They had examples of navigational equipment used, and we were shown how to use them.

Then, after the history lesson we were able to tour both ships.  It was a wonderful experience for the kids. 
After the ship tours we saw lighthouses.  We went through the Public Museum and saw a life-sized replica (the actual bones are safely tucked away in a controlled environment) of a wooly mammoth that was dug up in southeastern Wisconsin.  We went to the Civil War museum and browsed through a farmer's market.

We even rode this glamorous old street car on her entire circuit.  Isn't she a beauty?  It was a beautiful day that was fun and educational for our whole family. 

First Day of School

**Thank you Graphics Fairy for the the picture above** Summer is over...I can't believe it.  We switched over the calendar. The books are all opened and sorted and readied.  I have reviewed the curriculum.  The new pencils are all sharpened.  The desks are cleaned.  We are ready.  Today we start. *sigh* Just where did summer go with all of its new projects to start, new places to visit, and all that we were going to accomplish?  Usually we start up our homeschooling year earlier than September 1.  However, violin lessons officially start up again today, and, well, we just decided to wait this year until today.  This is the first year we have started homeschooling with my husband on a normal, predictable schedule, and I'm very thankful for this.  As hard and frustrating as some days can be and though I get very little done during the course of a day on house work and on my business when my focus is on guiding and teaching the children, I am thankful for the freedoms and rights to homeschool our two precious children.  It is worth it in every way!  Their little minds are fertile grounds for all sorts of influences and ways of teaching and thoughts.  I'm very grateful for the freedom to be sure they are taught truths (Biblically, scientifically, historically, socially, etc.), are given the very best of curriculum, and can be either pushed or slowed depending on their level of understanding and ability.  No other teacher could individually and consistently take the time to love and care for them and push them and encourage them to do their very best more than their dad and me.  So, today we tackle the books and start on our new year's journey.  We are ready. 

Homeschool Language Trip if Interested

Surround your family with language. By taking them there!

Travel to Paris, Madrid and Barcelona with Homeschoolers from all over the United States. Join Rosetta Stone Homeschool, Heart of the Matter and Fusefly on the inaugural Homeschool Language Learning and Networking Trip August 2-11, 2010. Become immersed in new lands, explore history, culture, art and community. And truly speak to the world. For more details visit www.RosettaStone.com/Homeschool/LanguageLearningTrip.

Hurry, registration for the trip ends February 15, 2010.

For your chance to win a Rosetta Stone language product, please visit Heart of the Matter. Entries are being accepted until February 1st.

Thanksgiving Craft with the Kids

I send out Thanksgiving cards every year because I like Thanksgiving (my favorite holiday), and I like to tell people that I'm thankful for them. What better time? I decided to make my Thanksgiving cards this year and bought a packet of pretty green blank cards and some gorgeous, very elegant stickers. Then I decided that our friends and relatives would probably appreciate something handmade and full of love from my two kids rather than something elegant from just me. So, we did this craft as a homeschooling project, and I think they came out quite well. We cut out the turkey shapes from thin foam paper which the kids glued on. There were feathers in fall colors to glue behind the turkey for his feathers. They dotted the eyes with a black marker. Then inside, we glued cut out acorn parts and put glitter on the acorns. Then with their fancy scissors they cut out the Bible verse ("O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good..." I Chronicles 16:34) and glued that in. One child did the turkey then the other did the inside work so that they both would have a part in each card (and I noted who did what on the back). The card is full of texture and color, and it was a fun project which I'm sure the recipients will enjoy--much more than a card just done by me.