Adventures in Homeschooling

Unsoclalized Homeschoolers!!!

2011-12-20T16:41:00.000-05:00

When I tell people that we homeschool the response I get most often is.."what about socialization?" Funny, that is the least thing I worry about in our homeschooling life. It is harder with Anthony because a lot of homeschoolers go back to public school when they get to high school. But we work at finding ways for him to be around friends.

I mention this because we had a homeschooling party at our house. There were 27 kids here ages 4 to 16. Don't think we have had that many people here before. I wasn't feeling great but the boys really stepped up and helped me get the house ready. I think a good time was had by all and there was SO much food.

So here are a few pictures of our unsocialized friends ;)

Jeannie made the cutest little penguins!!!

Lots of food.

Our front living room was full!!!!!

The kids having an impromtu PE class ;)

A few of my homeschooling momma friends....love these guys!!!! A few are missing, you left too early!!

Stage Left Workshop

2011-12-16T22:26:00.005-05:00

The Stage Left Repertory put on a Christmas workshop. The broke into groups and each did their own version of "The Night Before Christmas."

The boys and cousin Anna.

Anthony and his friend Jacob.

Anthony's Group

Jacob as Santa and Vance as his reindeer.

Michael's group.....

Gingerbread houses at the library

2011-12-06T21:57:00.000-05:00

The library had a gingerbread house building day. The boys have been going to the art class there on Tuesdays. I think mostly they go to see their cousin Anna. Neither of them are very fond of art.

Christmas Parade

2011-12-03T21:44:00.000-05:00

The boys walked in the parade with Stage Left of GCT. They dressed in some of their costumes from past plays. Anthony didn't really have a costume so he just wore one of his production t-shirts and a santa hat. Jacob and Michael went as Mopp and Glowe from Princess and the Pea. The weather was great until it got dark then it was a little nippy.

After the parade...look at the red noses on Jacob and Anthony :)

Winter the Dolphin

2011-12-02T23:05:00.005-05:00

We took a day while we were in Florda and headed to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. The dolphin from the movie "Dolphin Tale" is at the aquarium. The movie was shot here and Winter played herself in the movie :) Anthony decided he would rather hang out with Tristan instead of seeing dolphins. Tristan is pretty cool :)

This is Hope, a young dolphin. They rescued her after her mother died. They try to release the animals they rescue but Hope will not be able to go back into the wild.

Another picture of Hope with her trainer.

This is Winter, the dolphin without a tail.

Winter riding a raft with her trainer.

Watching Winter swim.

This is Panama.

I love how this picture turned out. It looks 3D but this shark was just painted on the wall.

Jacob and Micheal got soaked by Nicholas the dolphin!

They got to hold the prosthetic tail made for Winter.

Thanksgiving in Florida

2011-12-02T21:51:00.005-05:00

We decided to spend Thanksgiving in Florida visiting family. I didn't realize it had been almost three years since we had been there! The drive down was long and the drive back seemed even longer but our time there seemed to fly by. My Grandma Juanita has been having some health issues but she is doing much better now :) We took her to Chick-Fil-A and a little place called Salems with awsome chicken!!! My aunt Jackie made Thanksgiving dinner, her turkey was delicious. Lots of our other family came to help and share Thanksgiving with us. Some we didn't get to see while there, they were missed. Anthony hung out a lot with Tristan. Jacob and Michael hung out with Bryce and Kendall. We spent a day at my Aunt Lynda's house. Jacob LOVES it there, they have a mini zoo!! And he decided that he doesn't get to see Bobby and Chris nearly enough. It was sad leaving but we had promises of visits this summer :)

Great Grandma and the boys

Hanging out with cousins.

Jacob caught a frog in Aunt Lynda's pool!

Chris and his corn snake.

I love this tree in Lynda's yard.

Great ice cream at Bo's

Kids hanging out at ice cream shop.

Anthony couldn't go a week with a guitar....David let him bring his travel guitar.

Chris, Jacob and Bobby. When they were little Jacob and I went to visit and stayed at their house. They were only two years old. They said they were three brothers then :) So I couldn't resist taking this picture...I should try to find the one I took when they were 2.

Thanksgiving Dinner.

Giving Grandma Jackie love before she leaves for work.

Lunch at Salems. The big boys loved the wings!!!

Awe....they love each other.

Saying goodbye to Grandpa.

Civil War at the Fraizer History Museum

2011-12-02T16:18:00.001-05:00

We went to Louisville today to visit the Civil War exhibit. We was some wonderful historical folk including a Knight, a Civil War drummer boy and Clara Barton. That is my favorite thing at the Fraizer, watching the performers. We got there early and got to talk a long time to a man about Native American tools and weapons. We got to see the Chrismas trees from other countries and I got to see a wonder photography exhibit. The pictures were taken in rural Kentucky during the 70's. A few were taken near where I grew up. I was so engrossed in the pictures the boys walked away from me and someone from the museum staff brought them back :(

The Blue and the Grey.

Brothers at war with each other. All in fun of course.

a wonderful Knight demonstration.

The Civil War drummer boy who also happens to be a homeschooler :)

Best buddies :)

This picture belonged to a soldier at Gettysburg. He pulled it out to look at as he laying dying on the battlefield.

Clara Barton showing the boys a bullet that almost got her.

Christmas Trees from around the world.

Another beautiful day at the gorge

2011-11-07T22:31:00.006-05:00

Yesterday was so beautiful we just couldn't spend it inside. We packed in the car, even the dog, and drove down to Red River Gorge. We decided to do a little bit of a longer hike than we usually do. It still wasn't very far, just 1 1/4 miles. The stairs on the way out were killer but so worth it! I always feel so content when I am out hiking in gorgeous places. I already want to go back...tomorrow would be good :)

On top of Sky Bridge.

Under Sky Bridge.

Leaving the Gorge, Nada Tunnel.....Can't wait to see you again!!!!

GCT's Stage Left Repertory

2011-11-07T22:02:00.004-05:00

Michael and Anthony had their plays on Saturday. They were so good!!! Michael's play was "Beware of Greeks Bearing Gifts." Anthony's was " A Seuss Odyssey." They had a great time getting ready for this play.

Blues Brothers and Jimi Hendrix

2011-11-07T21:19:00.004-05:00

We had a wonderful Halloween with friends. Jacob and Michael were the Blues Brothers, Jake and Elwood. Lots of adults knew who they were, most of the kids thought they were men in black. Some lady we didn't know even took a picture!! Anthony had play practice for a while on Halloween but he hasn't gone trick or treating for a long time. But he decided he wanted to dress up this year, he was Jimi Hendrix.

We're on a mission from God to get candy!!! And the penguin wants her share!!!!

My homeschooling mom friends.

Pre- Halloween fun

2011-10-28T22:10:00.004-04:00

Who says Halloween is only one night!!! There was a party at the library on Tuesday. The teen advisory group helps with this every year. Anthony started volunteering last Halloween on the board. He went early to help set up and Michael and Jacob went later. We decided about 5 minutes before we needed to leave that they should dress up. We got into our costumes from previous years and this is what we found. Michael was Charlie Brown, his costume from year before last. Jacob has grown a lot, non of his old stuff fit anymore so we got down Anthony's old Woody costume. They had a great time.

On Thursday Michael and Anthony had play practice. One of the girls dorms at the college has trick or treating every year. This year it happened to be on the same night as practice so a couple of us took the kids who aren't in the repertory. This was the first time we had been to this. It was really fun, the girls gave out some good stuff!!!

Jacob's costume was a big hit. We even saw Buzz and Jesse, they had to take their picture with Woody :)

Enjoying the candy.

Evans Orchard field trip

2011-10-19T21:09:00.004-04:00

Yesterday we went on a field trip to Evans Orchard. Its the field trip we look forward to most every year. The weather was awesome and there were lots of great friends there with us. We brought home some apple cider and apple cider donuts!!

Some of my Momma friends.

Anthony even had a great time. He doens't like to go on lots of our field trips but he likes this one.

Jacob and his buddy Seth.

Baby red kangaroo....so sweet and soft.

Riley buried Anthony in corn!!

Frankfort Cemetary.......

2011-10-19T20:07:00.005-04:00

The Frankfort Cemetary is full of History!!! We spent a great afternoon there a few weeks ago. Lots of photo ops!!!

Confederate Memorial

Gravestone rubbings.

Great day with great friends.

Fallen solders memorial.

The Zoo

2011-10-18T23:07:00.006-04:00

Spent the day at the Louisville Zoo a few weeks ago and still haven't blogged about it. There are several posts that I need to catch up on!!

We hadn't been to the zoo in forever, not sure exactly how long but it was well over a year. My animal guy was in heaven and Michael and I enjoyed ourselves too :) Anthony decided he didn't want to go this time. The new Glacier Run exhibit was open. They switch out the Polar Bears and the Grizzily Bears half way through the day. The Grizzly Bears were so fun to watch!! They were quite active and play fighting with each other. The sea lion was pretty awesome too. It kept swimming back and forth fast next to the edge and stopping really fast to splash the kids standing there!! It did that for about 10 minutes. We got to see the baby polar bear that was found abandoned in Alaska. She kept rolling around in a huge tub of ice.

The day was beautiful, the lions were roaring and we got to feed a giraffe!! We will be back again soon.

Anthony's lab at Asbury College

2011-10-06T22:50:00.003-04:00

Anthony started a Biology lab last month. A couple of our other friends are also taking a lab there too. The first day we hung out with Brandi and Vance while Anthony and Shayne had their classes. We stopped by a neat little drug store with a soda shop and had milkshakes. The pizza looked really good, we will definatly try it sometime. After our milkshakes we drove up to Highbridge Park. It was very pretty up there.

Anthony and Shayne seemed to enjoy the labs. And Anthony says that they are getting even better. He is excited to be able to disect and I am happy that I don't have to do it with him!!!

Jamestown and the York Town victory center

2011-09-19T10:25:00.007-04:00

We visited the Jamestown Settlement, it was the first permanent colony in North America. They had a really cool Native American village with demonstrators. We got to see replicas of the ships that brought the settlers to America, the Susan Constant, the Discovery and the Godspeed. We watched a guy fire a really interesting musket gun. It had a wick you stuck in the firing hammer when you were ready to fire.

After Jamestown we drove to Yorktown. We went to the National Park but realized that it wasn't part of the package we paid for and our friends were in a different place. So we left and went to the Yorktown Victory Center. We got there just in time to see a cannon being fired. The kids spent a lot of time in imaginative play today. They were Native Americans with their own houses, they were settlers in a new world and solders on a battlefield.

On the way back to the hotel we stopped a put our feet in the bay. Then all of us had a wonderful dinner at a Mexican restaurant and the kids ended the day with swimming. It was a wonderful day!!!!

Williamsburg day 2

2011-09-13T21:59:00.003-04:00

We spent the morning visiting Williamsburg again. We saw the wheelwright and the blacksmith. Then we went over to tour the Govenors Palace. It is very pretty and very interesting. It was like a mini armory inside!!! The whole foyer was totally lined with weapons....guns and swords.

After the palace we came back to the hotel for lunch and swimming. The boys swam a long time then some of our group went back to Williamsburg to see a fencing demonstration. The rest of the kids swam and then swam some more!!!!!

Tomorrows line up is Jamestown and Yorktown and hopefully a junior ranger badge!!!

Da Vinci at the Frazier

2011-09-12T22:15:00.011-04:00

Last month we went to Louisville to visit the Da Vinci exhibit at the Frazier History Museum. It was a great exhibit but we weren't allowed to take pictures of it :( But as always the rest of the museum was awesome as well and I did manage to get a few pictures of those and the live historical performances. We got to see the end of a sword fight and the actors spent a long time afterwards talking to the kids and showing them all the weapons. Had a great day and looking forward to visiting Louisville again soon. I always forget how much I love down town there!!!!

colonial Williamsburg

2011-09-12T22:15:00.006-04:00

We left yesterday morning for Colonial Williamsburg Virginia. Most of the day was spent driving but we had a beautiful drive at least!!!! Stopped at a scenic view.....so pretty!!! This was very close to the place where Earl Hamner grew up and he based the show "The Waltons" on his early life here. We drove by Charlottesville and I got giddy! Definatly stopping at the Waltons Museum on the way home! We ended the day swimming with friends at the hotel pool.

Today we got up ready to tackle Williamsburg! We saw the court house and lots of horse and carrages. We went to the museum and did a little Scherenschnitting (German paper cutting). Lots of interesting things in that museum, including a hippopotamas record player!!!!

The whole area is just beautiful!! Lots of white pickett fences and ivy. And so many pretty yard gardens.

We walked 10 miles according to Michael ;) But it really wasn't that far. We are all tired so I am just going to let my pictures tell the rest of our adventures today.

Close to Charlottsville

Very cool...we found a fairy circle.

Scherenschnitte.............

As this thing played its tongue moved!!!!

Only here for and hour and already they are in trouble!!!!!

The judges.....think you would get a fair trail.....Oh YES!!!!

Acting Sheriff Anthony

The re-enactor showing Jacob how he would get to Massachusetts if he joined the army.....

The rest of our trip to Canada.....

2011-09-08T15:36:00.006-04:00

The rest of our trip in Canada wasn't as great as I hoped it would be. That area is either industrial or farm land, which means flat!! I think I was expecting quaint little small towns and that isn't exactly what we saw. But there were some interesting things along the way......

We were just driving along and saw this neat little place...it looked like it was right out of Percy Jackson...where Medusa lived!! We stopped for a second and I explored a little and found this beautiful garden area.

After that we drove to Dresden, Ontario. This is the site of The Dawn Settlement. Josiah Henson was an escaped slave who settled here and helped education and train other former slaves. He wrote a book about his life. Harriet Beacher Stowe said she based her charactor "Uncle Tom" on Josiah.

Josiah's home

Josiah's grave marker.

After we left Uncle Tom's Cabin we headed for Erieau. Its on the northern edge of Lake Erie. We have spent lots of time on the southern part of the lake while visiting Alyssa in Toledo.

Not sure what this is but it was very bright!!!

Really cool park right on the beach. Jacob loved it!

Ice cream for dinner!!!! Right after I took this picture the ice cream hit the floor. There was also a pretty bad storm while we were eating there.

Taken from the dock behind our motel.

We decided to come home a day early......heading back into the USA. It took us about 45 minutes to get through customs. The lines were long, once we got our turn we got right through. She did ask the boys when their birthdays were.

Stopped at Tony Packo's in Toledo for lunch. David had never been there. This is not the original Packos. There was a block fair or something going on and they had the streets blocked off. So we headed for another one downtown close to where the Mud Hens play.

Interesting clouds on the way home....

Niagara on the Lake

2011-08-19T20:31:00.006-04:00

We visited Niagara on the Lake today. It a pretty little touristy town. Lots of flowers and shops. We saw some really awesome animal prints at one shop that were painted by a local artist. I bought a pretty little dragonfly wind chime. We had lunch out of our cooler today then we drove over the The Queens Park to look at Lake Ontario. We sat for a while enjoying the view. Jacob and I took a walk on a little trail by the water. There will be more pictures of Jacob in this post because Anthony wouldn't go with us :( After the trail we saw a dog that looked just like Diesel with a little bit shorter hair. The owners said he was part lab but they didn't know what else. His name is Mack, like the truck ;) Wish I had thought to take a picture of him! Don't think the owners believed us until Anthony showed them a picture of Diesel on his phone.

We drove to Hamilton after the park. The route was suppose to take us along the lake but we really didn't see much of it but glimpses :( Hamilton is a very industrial town, not very pretty. But they do have a little area on the lake that is nice and its pretty there. Took the boys to an indoor go cart place. They both seemed to enjoy that. No pool here so they are kind of bummed about that. Had dinner at this little place by the lake called Hutch's. The food was okay, kind of a Parkette with fish. They had something listed called ice cream wafers, while they last so Jacob asked about them. Sounded like and ice cream sandwich to him so he ordered it. Turned out to be a box of just the wafers. So we ordered ice cream and made our own sandwiches!

Smallest cannon ever!!!!

Lake Ontario with a fort in the background.

Huge rock chained to the ground!!!!!

Niagara Falls, the Canadian side.

2011-08-18T22:23:00.006-04:00

Our 75 dollar lunch!!!

The view from our lunch.

Man VS Food!!!!

Got up this morning and headed for the boarder. It was pretty easy going into Canada, but the line coming into the U.S. was LONG. We got to our hotel way to early to check in but they gave me a tag for our car so we could park it and go. We aren't very far from the falls but the hill is HUGE. It was hard walking down it, I knew it was going to be terrible walking back up. We walked up the path to the falls and got to see the American side and the Horseshoe falls from a different angle than last year. We had a very mediocre lunch that cost 75 bucks!!!! Still not happy about that. We got two jumbo hot dogs a cheeseburger and a vegi wrap and 4 bottles of water!!! But we did have a view of the falls while we were eating, I guess you pay for the view.

We hung out around the falls for a little longer and then headed back to the hotel to see if our room was ready and to let the boys swim. The hill was murderous so we stopped half way up and got the boys an ice cream cone and David and I shared an Orange Julius. For dinner we looked up the address for a restaurant that we saw on Man VS Food. It was much better than lunch and didn't cost as much!!!

We got misted at the falls!!!!

2011-08-17T23:13:00.002-04:00

Got up and headed towards Niagara Falls. We stopped in Columbus for lunch at Schmidts! I love the German potato salad!! And of course we had to get cream puffs, got them to go though ;) While there I noticed that something was wrong with the screen on my camera. It still takes pictures put I can't see the screen :(

Got to Niagara Falls, New York around 7:30. Checked in to the hotel and went to Hard Rock for dinner. Then we walked to Goat Island to see the falls lit up.

German village in Columbus Ohio, love the brick streets!!!!

The falls were really 'wet' tonight. Anthony found a dry spot :)

Cream puffs for dessert!!!!

Canada here we come!!!!

2011-08-16T22:53:00.002-04:00

Taking a small trip while Michael is in Oregon with his grandma visiting his sister. Will only be gone 6 days this time. Michael called me on the layover in Huston, said he already missed me!! I thought he was going to cry when I dropped him off at the airport with Jackie. I told him he will have such a good time that he won't even miss me.

We will be stopping by Niagara Falls again. Had such a good time there last year we wanted to go back. Will also be checking out the Canadian side this time. It has been close to 17 years since we were on that side of the Falls. Jacob wants to go behind the falls so we will see about doing that. Then we are driving through the southern part of Toronto and coming back into the states close to Detroit.

Reed's Orchard

2011-08-13T23:09:00.004-04:00

We went blackberry picking after school on Wednesday with our friends Rachel and Walker. It had been so hot but it was quite nice today. There were some huge berries!!! Thinking about taking Jackie back there to pick berries for a cobbler the weekend we will have company :)

Nice man stopped and gave the boys a ride.

School year 2011- 2012

2011-08-13T22:53:00.002-04:00

We started our school year on Monday, August 8th 2011. Forgot to take our annual start of year picture, maybe I will take it next week and pretend its the first day :)

We got a little bit of a rocky start because we all got sick after we got back from Toledo. But by the end of the week we had hit our gro0ve.

Anthony is a Sophomore this year. He is taking...

Biology
Biology lab
Algebra 2
World History
Spanish
English 2
Performing Arts
College prep vocabulary
and continuing his guitar lessons

Michael is taking
Algebra 1
Latin
Language Arts
Drama
History
Chemisty
Spelling/vocabulary

Jacob is taking almost the same as Michael except he is taking 7th grade math, and instead of Drama he will be taking a photography class.

Day two in Toledo.....

2011-08-06T22:13:00.004-04:00

We spent our second full day in Toledo visiting metroparks and taking pictures. That all it takes to make me happy :)

We drove back up to Luna Pier to try to find the geocache that we didn't find the day before. It was pretty but there was a fence with a no trespassing sign, so we left :(

Jacob had to try cat tails, after all survior man says they are good!!!

Ohio has beautiful parks.....

2011-08-02T23:36:00.005-04:00

We got up this morning and headed for Luna Pier, Michigan. There is a geocache there that I have been itching to find for about 2 years and just never made it up there. We found one cache but not the one I wanted to find. I drove around lots of little streets trying to find the place to start the hunt. Never found it so we gave up and had lunch. We got back to the hotel and the kids went swimming for a while, and I looked up the cache again. Turns out we couldn't get to the cache from where we were at all, needed to get off at the exit before Luna Pier!!!!

After swimming we went to Maumee State park to take some pictures. Its on Lake Erie and very beautiful. We headed to Don Pablos for dinner. I have been wanting that ever since they closed the ones that were in Lexington. The food was good after they brought me tacos that had meet in them. After dinner we drove to another park called Side Cut on the Maumee River. So pretty there it made my heart sing. It was getting dark so we didn't even get to see all of it! Maybe we will get back there tomorrow if we have time. Definately going to Wildwood, I am taking pictures of Alyssa and Abigail :) Oh and my guys too.

Maumee State Park.

Side Cut Metropark....one of my new favorites.

Jim Butcher is FUNNY!!!!!

2011-08-01T22:09:00.005-04:00

July 30th 2011
We were excited when we found out that Jim Butcher was coming to Lexington!! We started reading his Dresden books a few years ago. Then we found the Codex Alera books!! They are very good to0. Even Anthony loved them, and he is a very picky reader. He took questions from the audience and his answers were very Dresden!!! He puts a lot of his personality into those books!!!!

Jacob entertaining himself while we were waiting to get our books signed.

Wands, Wiener Dogs and cousins

2011-08-01T21:57:00.003-04:00

July 22nd.....
Walker and AJ spent the night and we went to Potter Palooza at the library. We pulled out a few of our old costumes for the event. Michael won the costume contest with his "Ron at the Ule Ball."

They learned to play Quiditch!!!!!

Then we went to the library in Paris to see our friend Leigh Ann Florence and her weiner dogs. Walker was really homesick the night before but stayed so he could go meet the dogs :)

Jacob and Woody

Michael and Woody.

Saw this really cool cloud on the way to Stanton to drop off the cousins.

Picnic at Salato

2011-08-01T21:27:00.005-04:00

We went to Salato with our friends Zach and Peter. Anthony stayed home and had band practice with his friends Jacob, Paul and Joel.

It was so hot, but we built a fire anyway and had hot dogs and marshmellows.

The very cool thing that happened today was that one of the workers took us back into the employee room to show us more reptiles!!!!!!

Wimpy kids and cows

2011-08-01T20:48:00.004-04:00

Michael and Jacob went to the Diary of a Wimpy Kids party at the library. They played a version of the Newlywed game and won!!! Seems they know each other ;)

A few days later we dressed like cows to get free food at Chick-fil-a!!!!!

What one word would your brother use to describe you......"annoying"

The 4th of July

2011-08-01T20:20:00.005-04:00

Going to let my pictures do the talking for this post :)

Rabbit Hash Kentucky June 25th

2011-07-30T23:37:00.003-04:00

We took the day to drive to Rabbit Hash. It was an interesting drive, a huge hit for motorcycle riders. The place was very busy!! Its very small with a general store and a resturant. The mayor is a dog and the boys were excited to meet her but she wasn't around that day. We decided we would go back during the week when it isn't so crowded to see if the "mayor" we be around.

This was in the General Store....all the boys looked at it and said "whats that." I remember my aunt and Grandma using one of these!!!

WAY behind.....

2011-07-30T23:20:00.003-04:00

I have been slacking were my blogging is concerned so I am going to try and play a little summer catch up!

On June 21st we went to The Cincinnati Museum Center to see the Cleopatra Exhibit. It was wonderful but we were not allowed to take pictures inside the exhibit :( We also stopped by the Natural History museum after an IMAX movie (Tornado Alley) and the Exhibit. We had a great time with our friends!!!!

Nature Power!!!!!!

2011-06-14T21:20:00.005-04:00

Went to Red River Gorge today with Rachel and Walker. Had a GREAT time!!! We stopped by the rest stop at Slade and explored the red caboose. It was open today and we got to go inside. WE drove past through the Nada tunnel and along highway 77 into the gorge area. It was beautiful. We rolled down the windows and I felt the stress melt away. We were remarking about it and Jacob said, "nature power." Nature truely does have a wonderful relaxing power for me. We stopped at a log cabin with picnic tables for lunch, then we drove on down to the Gladie Learning Center and the boys all worked on the Learning Page and they gave them Smokey the Bear pins :) We hiked the Whistle Arch trail and spent some time climbing on rocks. After the hiking we stopped by the pool at Natural Bridge. We left at 10 am and didn't get home until 6!! Anthony didn't want to get out of bed to go with us. He ended up going to the library for a teen craft program, although I think he really went to see a girl ;)

Nada Tunnel

Whistling Arch.

Tree huggers :)

Swinging bridge.

Fort Boonesborough

2011-06-10T22:06:00.004-04:00

We took an imprompto trip to Fort Boonesborough on Tuesday. We stopped at Halls on the River for lunch before the fort. We sat on the deck outside, the boys loved watching a huge fish trying to get to food dropped before the ducks got to it. Michael got fish and loved it!

It was so hot but we had a great time at the fort. Anthony wanted to go to the Library TAB meeting so he stayed home. We watched a lady make fire, she even let the boys try to make a spark. We saw a lady making cloth, a tin smith, a blacksmith and a gunsmith. The gunsmith was very impressed with the boys because they knew what riffling is and what it does. I spent a long time talking to the lady who makes Lye soap....I feel a project coming on :)

The view from our table at Halls.

Making fire!!!!

The boys trying to get a spark.

Ahhh......summer

2011-06-04T15:05:00.007-04:00

I am so behind in my blogging.....so I am just going to add a few pictures with descriptions to catch up :) I will start with Princess and the Pea.......

Michael as Moppe.....one cool dude!!!Jacob as Glowe..........people thought he looked like John Travolta!!

Moppe and Glowe with Princess Purity of Spotless.

Anthony....student technical director.

Anthony with his crew.

We went to Camp Nelson for Military honors for hour dear friend who passed away.

We had our last sign language/science class of the year at Great Crossings

Learning about water maples and how they have drinkable water! We also did the "Rabbit Dance"

We have finished our required days/hours for school but we have a few things to catch up on so we will be doing some school this summer. Bring on the fun!

Hodgenville.... birth place of Lincoln

2011-05-11T22:52:00.000-04:00

The little boys and I met our friends the Shoups at the Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Park. They are moving to Oklahoma in 2 days and we wanted to see them before they left. The park was beautiful, as was the company. The kids all earned junior ranger badges, they even made little Mark an honorary ranger, he was so happy to get his badge :) The kids worked very hard, this one was one of the harder books we have completed.

The Sunken Spring was very cool! We walked down the stairs to the spring and about half way down the temperature dropped. It felt very nice because it was hot today!

After we left the park we stopped in downtown Hodgenville and had ice cream. They had a cool statue of Lincoln in the middle of a roundabout. Then we stopped by Knob Creek Farm, the boyhood home of Lincoln. They moved from Sunken Spring farm to Knob Creek. They left Knob Creek when Abe was 7 years old.

Sunken Spring

Jacob, Hannah, Michael, Sara Kate and Mark.

Working Hard!!

Knob Hill Farm

Hiking in the Gorge......4-21-11

2011-05-11T21:10:00.000-04:00

We drove to Red River Gorge to go hiking. I took the wrong road but we found a nice hike anyway. We took Grey's Arch trail, it was suppose to only be a fourth of a mile but it ended up being over a mile at least. We walked for a long time but never got to the arch and the name of trail changed so we turned back. We stopped by Miguels Pizza for lunch. We brought Diesel with us and he loved the hike and the pizza bones at lunch :)

We have been busy since we got home.....

2011-04-11T09:33:00.004-04:00

We got home on Friday the 18th. Michael's birthday is on the 27th, so I had him a party on Friday the 25th. I knew there wasn't going to be very much time for planning but it turned out very nice. There were 15 kids and 8 adults. He had a great time! We started practicing for The Princess and the Pea. Michael and Jacob don't have to be there very often at first. They are not to happy about that but they did a great job at the practice they have been to. And they really aren't friend deprived no matter what they think ;) We had and awesome sign language/science class. Ms. Jawanna is very giving of her time and supplies for our kids. This lesson was about how peroxide kills enzymes. It was a little gross....the kids loved it!

Home!!!!!

2011-03-18T22:23:00.002-04:00

We are home!!! So good to be here. We had a nice trip but 3 weeks may be just a bit long.

We spent last night in Kansas City and had dinner with our friend Jose'. Got up this morning and drove 9 1/2 hours home. I am tired!!!!

We drove 6178 miles and hit 10 states. I took over 2,000 pictures.

Going tomorrow to pick up my puppy, thanks to Beth and her kids for keeping him for us.

Rocky Mountain High....Colorado

2011-03-16T23:49:00.004-04:00

We stopped by Arches National park this morning. We went there on our first big trip 2 1/2 years ago and we really loved it. We didn't have a lot of time today just the morning but we walked back up to Window Arch this time because we really enjoyed climbing around in it last time. Still Beautiful!!!!!!

We had lunch a picnic lunch in the park at the Garden of Eden. Its so nice to sit and enjoy nature while you eat.

We left the park after lunch and headed to Colorado. I drove so David took pictures with my camera. He got some good ones :)

The rest are Davids pictures.

Vail Colorado

Today was a driving day.....

2011-03-16T01:52:00.005-04:00

Today was mostly a driving day. We did stop to quickly drive through a Ghost Town called Rhyolite. It was just outside of Death Valley on the way to Moab where we are spending the night. David has been doing most of the driving and I spent most of the day snaping pictures as he drove. If we have to be driving at least its a beautiful drive :)

Death Valley day 2

2011-03-16T01:16:00.003-04:00

Death Valley is so cool!!! Today we saw Salt Creek and the tiny pup fish that live there. This creek is more salty than the ocean! The fish are tiny but fast and fun to watch. They were given their name because they play like puppies. We also got to see Road Runners at the creek. All the boys were so excited, especially when they flew a little.

We took a ride around Artist Drive. It had some interesting colors. And I got to take a few pictures of the desert flowers.

We also drove to the Furnace Creek Inn to check it out. We had watched documentaries about the parks and inns before our trip and I wanted to see it. We didn't get a good look, it did seem smaller than I thought it would be. The pool there is interesting, it doesn't use any kind of chemicals, it is continuously fed by an underground spring and the water is replaced 5 times a day.

After lunch at the 49er Diner we got back in the car for a drive up to Ubebehebe Crater. This crater was formed when lava heated up water from an underground spring and the pressure caused it to blow. It was pretty cool but very windy.

We got back to our hotel to find that the construction going on had broken a water line and we didn't have water in our room. We took the boys swimming while they worked on it and they gave us coupons for some free drinks and desserts at the restaurant. It was fixed by the time we were done with dinner.

Salt Creek

Pup fish

Artist's Drive

Only Jacob and I got out to walk up the hill for this view. A man up there took our picture.

Desert Flowers

The Furnace Creek Inn.

Ubehebebe Crater.

Stopped by the sand dunes from the other road....better pictures :)

At the pool area waiting for the water to be fixed.

Death Valley day 1 3-13-11

2011-03-16T00:10:00.005-04:00

We left Lone Pine this morning and got to Death Valley around noon. We got lunch at the Badwater Saloon then headed down to Badwater, the lowest place on Earth!! We stopped at a Ranger station on the way to get Junior Ranger books. We got to Badwater just as a Ranger talk was starting :) Ranger Bob was full of interesting information and was really impressed by the boys and all the badges they have. He spent a long time with them after the talk answering questions and asking them questions. He even let them all put on his hat. And wonder of wonders Anthony said he wasn't too old to put it on!!! Jacob told him that he wanted to be a Ranger and Ranger Bob told him that he could start when he was in college. Jacob was thrilled to hear that. Badwater is 284 feet below sea level. Ranger Bob said the sign was 2 feet off. We walked out a little way onto the salt beds. It is really dry there and even though it didn't get very much above 75 it felt hotter.

One the way back to the hotel for the evening we stopped to play on the sand dunes. We were hoping to see more wildlife but all we saw was one little bug. He was tromping along making lots of little tracks which was cool to see. After dinner I took the boys to the outside pool. While there a man came over to me and told me that jacob was yelling and being disruptive. It was a pool and only 8 o:clock!!!! Right after the man left 6 other kids came to swim. Sure was glad he left before all that fun really happened!!

Father Crowley's Canyon

Badwater.

Boys with Ranger Bob.

Salt flats.

Lone Pine California

2011-03-12T23:42:00.007-05:00

We left the Sequoia area this morning. Along the way we saw Red Rock Canyon and we could see the Sierra Nevada Mountains after a while again. We are at the southern end of them right now in Lone Pine. This is a unique place with rock and the mountains in the distance. Mt. Whitney is here, its the highest point in the continuous United States. Tomorrow we are headed for Death Valley and the lowest spot in the US.

Lone Pine has been used for lots of movies because of its interesting terrain. Lots of westerns and one of our favorite movies, Tremors. Also a few of the scenes from Iron Man were shot here.

Red Rock Canyon.

Tremors...the Graboid!

Sequoia National Park today!!!!

2011-03-12T00:32:00.004-05:00

Higher than the clouds.

Lots of snow.

Giant Sequoias today!!! I knew they were going to be big, but I had no idea just how big they were going to be!!! The road through the park was very twisty, possibly the most twisty so far. And there was construction work going on, if you didn't time it right there could be a two hour wait. Luckily we got there just in time for them to let us through. We climbed very far up the mountains, at one point we were 7280 ft above sea level.

We got to see the largest tree in the world, not the tallest or the biggest around but the biggest in terms of the amount of wood. They named it the General Sherman. The boys got junior ranger badges. Not sure how many they have now but its quite a few. The visitor center was still mostly under snow. The front was dug out so it could be used. The Ranger said they had 93 inches of snow on the ground right now!

We had lunch in the park, that is where we were at 7200 feet. As we ate fog started rolling in, it was insanely fast and thick! And it was very hard to see driving out of the park. We did stop on the way out and take pictures with the very cool park sign.

The worlds largest tree, the General Sherman.

This was the parking lot!!!!! It was like a maze getting out of there.

More of the parking lot at the visitors center.

The Fog.

Heading for Sequoia

2011-03-11T23:50:00.002-05:00

We got up this morning and left the Yosemite area. We drove out of the Sierra Nevadas, the foothills looked to me like what I think Scotland might look like. We drove to this little town called Chowchilla and finally got cell reception back!! I think I am way to attached to my internet.

We had a short drive so we stopped at a Walmart to restock our cool and snack box. As we started getting closer again the the south end of the Sierra Nevada mountains we saw lots of orange trees and we realized when had not had any California oranges yet! David saw a sign for a fruit stand and stopped. The guy inside was from Mexico and a little hard to understand but he was very nice and let us try a bunch of stuff! I loved the oro blanco, its a cross between an orange and a grapefruit. Its more grapefruit like and the best I have ever had! We bought two of them and quite a few of strange looking little tangerines. They look wilted and bad but they are wonderful, seedless and very easy to peal.

Rolling foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

Look close and you can see the snow covered tips of the mountains.

Mountains and Palm trees!!!

Cool little fruit stand, not the one we stopped at though.

The view while driving was beautiful most of the time.

Last day in Yosemite......3-9-11

2011-03-11T22:01:00.005-05:00

Our last day in Yosemite. We were so excited to see what we thought was Frazzel Ice the day before that we decided to get up really early and go back to Lower Yosemite falls to see if it was there. We started the same hike but didn't see any Frazzel Ice :( We started back but decided to take the path to the right this time and go to the bottom of the falls. I am so glad we did!! It was beautiful and we were almost alone. The light hit just right to make a rainbow. We stayed for a while then came back to the hotel. We made lunch then headed back into the park. We had pretty much seen everything that we wanted to, or could since some of the roads were closed for winter. We just wandered around looking at things and taking pictures. We ended up back at the Tunnel View of the whole valley, then we drove by El Capitan again. Jacob begged to stop at "our place" again. We ended up being there quite a while. This last day was soul renewing for me. We didn't have anywhere we 'needed' to be and we took it at a much slower pace sucking up the sun and nature. When standing in such big and beautiful surroundings it makes you want to be a part of it even more. We talked and decided that we have beautiful places at home and we are determined to explore Red River Gorge more this spring and summer and to find "our place" there. I want to spend more time outside doing our school.

I have to say that Anthony has really been fun this trip, well at least after he started wearing the right shoes for hiking :) Jacob and Michael have really been at each other, that is new for our trips :( While they do that at home, our trips are usually wonderful. Everyone except me has had a cold though and that may be the reason.

Lower Yosemite Falls in the early morning sunshine.

The Rock Arch entrance to Yosemite.

Boys soaking up the view.

Anthony was all smiles until he saw me taking a picture. He thinks not smiling is cool.

Look closely at the tree on the right.

A huge pine cone we found at our hotel.

Yosemite day 2

2011-03-11T21:30:00.006-05:00

We got up on Tuesday and headed back into the park. It was clearer today and no fog. We drove around and saw all the main things again without fog :) We also found the road that takes you up to a view of the whole valley.....WOW.

We also hiked a trail for a closer look at Lower Yosemite Falls. On the way there we saw what looked like the remnants of Frazzel Ice in a stream.

We had lunch at a little deli/store inside the park. We all got chili. The boys thought it was wonderful but I think it was just because we were so cold :)

We also stopped by a small waterfall that we found the day before. We love this little area, it doesn't have a name but it has a stream a waterfall and LOTS of rocks for climbing. I took lots of pictures of the boys there.

We bought some hamburger patties to make in our room and had dinner there again. Having the little kitchen has been great. We are eating almost every meal there.

Our favorite spot at Yosemite.

View of the whole valley. You can see Bridal Veil Falls, Half Dome and El Capitan.

Mule Deer.

Tired boys.

Frazzel Ice leftovers.

Half Dome

On the way back to the hotel.

2011-03-10T22:22:00.007-05:00

We got up this morning and drove to Yosemite National Park. Our hotel is right outside the park. Our room has a kitchenette and boy did that turn out for the best. There is a rustaurant but it is very expensive and isn't very good. We drove into Yosemite Valley and tall granite mountains are all around you, with the Merced River flowing down the valley. It is breath taking. We hiked up a short trail to Bridal Veil Falls. It is snowy here and the trail was very slick. Good think it was only a half of a mile hike. We drove fathre up the vaelley and saw El Capitan and Half Dome. The boys did the junior ranger program amd got their badges. We came back to the when it started getting dark. The boys swam in the indoor pool and then we made dinner int he room. It was a great day, just a little rain and fog. Tomorrow is suppose to be a little cloudy and no rain :)

Snow covered peaks everywhere!!!!

El Capitan

Coyote walking beside the road.

Merced River

Bridal Veil falls

Upper Yosemite and Lower Yosemite Falls

Horse Tail Falls with a snow cone underneath.

Another picture with John Muir....he was a great guy!!

Half Dome

Leaving San Francisco and headed for Yosemite 3-6-11

2011-03-10T20:01:00.008-05:00

We got up this morning and headed out of San Francisco. It started raining last night and was still raining this morning. It was quite foggy, but it was cool to see the Golden Gate Bridge in the fog. We drove by Lombard Street on the way out of town so I could take pictures. They weren't great but at least I got to take them. Then we went across the bridge and out of the city.

We drove about 30 minutes to Muir Woods. It was still raining but we made the best of it and tromped through the park. The boys worked on the Junior Ranger books and learned about the trees. The most interesting thing to me was the 'family circles." This happens when a single tree is badly damages but the roots are still alive and start growing new trees all around it. The original tree most of the time can still be seen in the middle of the circle. The badges the boys got from Muir Woods were made from the stumps of the 'fallen' redwood trees.

I drove from Muir Woods to our hotel right outside of Yosemite. The road was small and twisty. Driving through Oakland wasn't fun either! I was just glad it was a Sunday afternoon and not a weekday at rush our. We are at the hotel but we can't get cell signal and the hotel doesn't have internet. So, I am going to get my blogs ready and saved each day to post when we get somewhere with internet. We will be here 4 nights then headed for Sequoia. Not sure when this will get posted.

Lombard Street. I need to be at a higher angle to get a better picture but I took this while we drove by at the bottom.

The streets in Frisco are INSANE!!!!

Fog on the GGB.

Standing with John Muir.

Escaping from Alcatraz :)

2011-03-05T20:17:00.010-05:00

We woke up this morning and got ready to head to Alcatraz. Michael has been sick the last few days and this morning Jacob woke up not feeling so great. He says he didn't sleep very well and has been dragging all day.

We drove down to the wharf this morning and found a parking garage. We ended up being about 40 minutes early so we sat and waited for our boat. The ride didn't take that long, good thing because it was a little cold. The island was pretty cool. Lots of the buildings are in disrepair but the main cell building is interesting. The thing that was really interesting is all the plants growing there. After it was was turned into a penitentiary the inmates where allowed to plant things and take care of them. Volunteers now take care of the plants and they are beautiful.

Golden Gate Bridge from the ferry.

Alcatraz Island

The dock side of the island.

Intersting trees.

Watch tower

Jacob on "The Rock" at The Rock!

Another cool tree :)

Showers in the prison.

Inmates cell

Three levels of cells.

Jacob and Michael in a cell.

Control center for the prison.

Alcatraz lighthouse. I can see it flashing from my window right now :)

There were very good views of GGB from Alcatraz.

This is the side of the island that the prisoners were allowed to garden.

These cliffs are the reason it got the name "The Rock."

Now Alcatraz is a bird sanctuary.

This was how Anthony looked most of the day today. How dare we drag him across the country!!!!! Really though I don't think he is feeling very well either :(

San Francisco!!!!!

2011-03-05T19:40:00.008-05:00

The view from out hotel room. You can also see a little bit of Alcatraz Island between buildings.

We found Christy!!!!!

Working on ranger books.

My beautiful friend Christy.

Yummy ice cream!!!!

This is what I got. Chocolate peanut butter sundae.....so good!

San Francisco Bay

Anthony is actually smiling!!!!!

We made it to San Francisco. Get here yesterday around 10:30 am. We checked into our hotel. We have a great view of the bay and the Golden Gate Bridge. We started walking to the wharf to meet my friend Christy. Everything looks close on a map but let me tell you, it isn't!! We met up with Christy and had lunch at a place on the wharf called Tarintinos. After lunch we walked around and found a National Park information center. The little boys worked on the workbooks for the Junior Ranger program. We looked at Hyde Pier and a couple of boats there. After the boys got their badges we headed towards Ghirardelle Square and ice cream......very yummy. We sat and watched the boats on the bay for a while and did a little souvenir shopping. Then Christy left :( I always enjoy seeing my friends but it is always so sad when they leave. Even the boys felt it because Jacob said....."I miss Christy." We hung around the wharf a little longer then headed back up the hill to our hotel. San Francisco is VERY hilly. But the walk back wasn't as bad as we thought it was going to be. We found a little Italian place with a Chinese cook :) The food was very good. We came back to the hotel and I sat down on the bed to look at a tourist guide and fell asleep. It was probably around 8:30 and I slept all night! Which is why I didn't blog last night :)

California coast...

2011-03-04T00:15:00.008-05:00

Today we left Bakersfield and headed for the coast. None of us had ever seen the Pacific Ocean and we were excited. As we got close we noticed the fog. We stopped at a pullover area and took some pictures. It was slightly foggy. The next pullover was awesome. The fog seemed to back away from the beach area. Jacob was thrilled to see an Elephant Seal. We walked down the trail a little and found even more. We were pretty close the them but kind of on a ledge away from them. The rest of the drive was VERY foggy. This road was very twisty and seemed to go up the side of a mountain. A couple of times we were above the clouds. I tried to get a picture but they didn't turn out very well. I was kind of bummed because I planned this route to be able to see the ocean and we only got to see it at the very beginning of our 4 hour drive.

We got to our hotel at Marina and the fog was bad here too. Took the boys to the beach anyway and Michael and Jacob just had to get there toes in even though it was about 53 degrees. I wanted to get sunset pictures but it wasn't meant to be...maybe tomorrow in San Francisco :) The best part about San Fransisco is I get to see my friend Christy!!!!! Going to be now so we can get back on the road at a decent time.

The streets of Bakersfield.........

2011-03-03T01:28:00.007-05:00

Joshua Trees

A wash in the desert.....beautiful!!!

Jacob exploring the wash.

Jacob with Hank Williams.....we took this picture for Uncle R.W.

We left Vegas this morning. We were all glad to get out of the city. We drove to the edge of the Mojave Desert and had a picnic lunch. The desert was beautiful! Its always more exciting to see things that are different from what we normally see. The most interesting thing I think was the Joshua Tree.

After we explored the desert we got back in the van and headed towards Bakersfield. When I was a child my dad religiously watched Hee Haw so I knew who Buck Owens was and the song that he sang about this town. We found a restaurant called Buck Owens Crystal Palace and we had to go there. It was quite interesting and we ended up getting a concert with our meal :)

We are all tired and I am trying to do laundry at the hotel but as always it is slow going.

Viva Las Vegas.......

2011-03-03T00:23:00.010-05:00

Our second day in Vegas started out with souvenir shopping. I promised Jacob a shirt for his birthday and he wasn't going to let me forget :) After shopping we had an early lunch at the Flamingo. We are on pacific time but our bodies are still on eastern time. After lunch we walked across the street to Caesars Palace. That place is huge, it has a whole mall inside! After that we went to the Mirage to see the Secret Garden and Dolphin habitat. The white lion was beautiful and we watched the dolphins for a long time.

We then headed to the Bellagio to watch the fountain show. We got there right at the end so we decided to what 30 minutes for the next one. At one point Anthony said "are we waiting for the next show" in a very I want to leave voice. I told him YES, were where waiting. When it was over I asked him if that was worth waiting for, he said yes! He is very much a teenager and complains all the time that he is tired or sleepy or his feet hurt. I really hope the other two don't get like this. Anthony does seem to enjoy things after we force him to do them, just wish we didn't have to make him.

The boys really enjoyed the buffet at our hotel!!!

This was the best thing on the buffet!!! A banana crepe'.

The beautiful Caesars Palace.

Batman was just standing on the street!!!

One huge Chia Pet :)

White Lion

February 28th.....Jacob's birthday.

2011-03-02T12:24:00.009-05:00

We woke up in Arizona and got on the road headed for Vegas. On the way we saw a sign for a Meteor Crater. So we decided to stop and check it out. It was a huge crater, 2 miles around. They did the Apollo moon landing practicing here.

We got to Vegas close to 4 pm and checked into our hotel, the Flamingo. We checked out the gardens and the flamingos at the hotel. Jacob wanted to go to the Black Bear Dinner for his birthday dinner. The food was good and the staff very nice. They gave Jacob a pie for his birhtday and they even put the candles I brought on it and sang to him. He loved all the bears, kind of reminded me of something you would find in Gatlinburg.

After dinner we drove up and down the strip looking at the lights.

I havent been able to blog because the hotel charged 14 dollars a day for internet and our sprint card wouldn't work int he hotel :(

The San Francisco Peaks. They are the remains of a stratovolcano.

Meteor Crater in Winslow AZ.

This Falcon flew right over my head!!

At Meteor Crater looking at the San Francisco Peaks.

We stayed at the Flamingo....We loved their bird habitat!!

Happy 12th Birthday!!!!!

Pawn Stars...we didn't go inside.

Excalibur

Driving, driving and more driving

2011-02-27T19:31:00.008-05:00

We left Oklahoma this morning. We drove through Texas and we ar now in New Mexico trying to get to Arizona. We have been driving since 9 this morning and we still have 3 hours to go!!

This was a total driving day and I think we are getting antsy. I love looking at Texas though and I took lots of pictures out of my window. We just drove through the top of Texas this time, it isn't quite as interesting as mid Texas.

I love the "ranch" signs in front of peoples houses.

Passing the time.

Sand storm in Amarillo

This tumbleweed was under our car

We are on the road again.

2011-02-26T14:18:00.005-05:00

We started our California trip yesterday evening. We drove to Evansvill Indiana and spent the night. We got up this morning and headed for Tulsa. We made great time and got to our friends the Vance's a little after five this evening. We got to see Billy, he looks good. We were also really happy to see Tammy and Jesse. After a tour of the hospital we went to dinner with Tammy and Jesse. It was so good to spend some time with them. Can't wait until Billy is cured and back home again. We drove a little further after dinner and we are sleeping in Yukon Oklahoma.

We drove by the St. Louis Arch.

Jacob loves the Sinclare Gas Stations. We have a picture of him with one of the dinosaurs from our first trip west in 2008.

The hospital where Billy is getting treatment.

Anthony really likes Mr. Billy :)

Jacob wanted to blog about seeing Jesse :)

Last couple of weeks...........

2011-02-26T12:24:00.007-05:00

We had a field trip to a little museum in Paris. The kids wrote a little book while there and learned about Mexican tiles and how to make them. They had a really neet little area to play in with a store and lots of dress up stuff. The kids always have a good time when they are with their friends.

Then on Wednesday I took Jacob and Michael to our library for an art class. Jacob just had to go because he wanted to see is cousin.

Anthony has been helping with the lastest Community Theatre play, Love Letters. He has been asked to be the student Technical Director for the upcoming Stadge Left play Princess and the Pea. Since we were going to be out of town for the auditions the other two boys auditioned yesterday. They all love being a part of the Theatre. I am so happy to have found this outlet for them.

California or Bust!!!!

2011-02-07T22:16:00.003-05:00

We are headed to California soon! Getting excited but a little nervous. Only had a month to plan this one and its our biggest trip yet!

We will be making stops in Vegas, the Mojave Desert, Big Sir, San Francisco, Death Valley and Yosemite.

We love National Parks!!! Google "National Park service" and do "park search" for one near you :)

Meeting Nat Geo Wild's Casey Anderson

2011-01-29T21:30:00.004-05:00

We spent the day with friends at the Louisville RV and Boat Show. Wasn't sure I wanted to go because we aren't interested in a Boat or an RV but David wanted to go and I am glad we did! It was nice to spend the day with friends and there was a guy there from Nat Geo Wild, Casey Anderson. He has an animal show that the boys like. He raised a bear from the time it was "twinky" sized. He was so nice to the boys and answered questions. We bought Jacob his book for his birthday and Casey signed it. Jacob was in heaven!!! He kept going back to the booth to talk to Casey. Michael enjoyed meeting Casey too but it isn't his "thing" like it is Jacob's. Michael really wants to meet Gary Paulsen, he is an author but lives FAR away. And I don't think he does book tours :(

We looked at RV's and boats. I really liked the pontoon boats. We may rent one sometime. The kids had so much fun fishing and shooting bows. They got to ride on a virtual speed boat and tried to walk on a tight rope. We ended the day with dinner at Tumbleweed. It was a great day!

Behind.......

2011-01-29T21:13:00.003-05:00

Wow....I haven't blogged since before Christmas!! I will try to catch up on some of the fun stuff we have been doing.....

We went sledding at the park.

Christmas Eve PJ's

Christmas Eve lunch at Sabaro.

And Christmas Caroling with friends. The boys enjoyed this so much they asked to make it a Christmas tradition :)

Santa's Specticals....

2010-12-22T23:06:00.005-05:00

The boys had 3 performances of their play last weekend. They were suppose to have 7 performances but the weather was bad and the school performances were cancelled. I was really proud of my guys. Jacob and Michael had speaking parts and they did great!! Anthony was working the sound on this play. He is learning so much and did a great job.

The whole cast and most of the crew. Anthony wouldn't get in the picture.

Jacob handing out programs.

Anthony at the sound station.

The boys taking their bows.

The boys were carolers in the play.....God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.

Anthony with Mr. Perkins who is teaching him sound.

Jacob and Michael with Mr. Mike (aka Santa Clause)

Visiting family.....

2010-12-22T22:57:00.003-05:00

We have a a couple visits from out of town family this month. Alyssa and her family came to visit on the 10th. We just hung out at home and the kids played together and watched movies. It was really nice and relaxing. Then we met Donald and DJ at Culvers for lunch on Monday. DJ was here visiting from Indiana. My guys love their cousin!!

Playing guitar together. Anthony didn't really like Davids travel guitar.

Michael and Jacob made another gingerbread house while Alyssa was visiting.

Gingerbread houses at Co-op.......

2010-12-22T22:45:00.002-05:00

At our last co-op the kids made gingerbread houses. Michael took his time and made a nice house. Jacob's was good too, he just went a different way with his.....ZOMBIES!!!

Michael's nice sweet house with little teddy grahams making snow angels.

Jacob's impaled gingerbread men with bloody hearts (red hots) and yellow snow!!! Gotta love his creativity I guess.

Merry Christmas............

2010-12-22T10:32:00.002-05:00

Way behind again on blogging :( Just want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. I will try to catch up soon!

Hummel Planetarium

2010-12-06T22:09:00.003-05:00

We went on a field trip to the planetarim at EKU today. We met some friends there for a program about Christmas traditions. It was very nice. I love Christmas field trips!!!!