Painless Learning

Luci is not joining the circus, even though it looks like she is flexible enough to be the "Rubber Lady." I found this game at Target the other day, and it is so much fun. It is Super Stretchy ABC game, the Dr. Seuss version of Twister. The kids put hands and feet on different letters--but that is not enough for Dr Seuss. You also have to put your ear on a letter, too! Hilarious. Perfect for the Kindergarten set. I love this game so much that I am going to look for other games patterned after Dr. Seuss books.

Patience....

Something I don't have much of today. Homeschooling...One-Room Schoolhouse...

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Bryan, please just pretend you are awake and paying attention!

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How much experimenting does a four-year-old need to do with Elmer's glue, anyway?

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Thank goodness JT is done with his schoolwork for today. My bright spot!

Animals Playing with Me

After watching Lion King 2, Luci tells me this:

I don't want to be where wild animals are, because they will play with my face! I'm thinking scratch, claw, etc. But Luci says, Like this:

And I tell her that the wild animals won't play with her face, they would want to eat her face! Here's the look I got then:

Luci-isms

Pringles--what Mommy has.
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(in hushed tones) Mommy, don't tell anyone you're .... old.
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Balderdash!--her new favorite word from The Backyardigans.

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(talking in her sleep) 6, 7, 8, 9 ... Ready or not, here I come!

Funny, Funny Boy

Janet gave me an idea for the boys: to do some research on Shingles. John loved this idea, thinking it might increase the boys' empathy for me. My thoughts: it couldn't hurt!

I told JT about this new assignment yesterday. Here is his report:

Shingles
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They go on the roof.

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The End

When John Deploys, Things Happen

This time it's shingles for Susan. Whoopee.
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As I'm finding out, shingles can be painful, and it can be isolating. We've had to cancel travel plans for this weekend, miss karate class since I can't take Luci to the child watch area, and skip worship. Can't wait for the spots to dry up!
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Neuralgia is a part of shingles, the part everyone's heard about--and it's changed the dates for our trip to Disney World. The kids haven't minded the changes in worship (we have a worship time at home) or the karate classes. For the Disney trip now we are going to Vero Beach instead of Wilderness Lodge (the only time and place we could get in exchange for our vacation club points), and spending Luci's birthday there. She is totally excited about going to the beach on her birthday. We will manage to get to Magic Kingdom for one day, to visit Cinderella and ride Winnie the Pooh's Honey Pots. It will be so fun to do something totally different. We've never been to the resort at Vero Beach.
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This also means changes in schoolwork and chores, which is not going over well right now with the boys. They try to put off things, thinking mama doesn't know what is really going on. Mama knows, but sometimes just does not care much. So things pile up for them.
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We were going to go to Huntsville this weekend, to the Bridge Street Town Centre, but that's out now. This morning I took the money budgeted for food and fun and got lots of food for the freezer (i.e., boys can cook for themselves) and a blue ray disc player (Wal-Mart has one for $98!); I told the boys when they were all done with schoolwork and chores they can get it out of the van and watch movies in the Man Cave. They are off and running with their list of things to do!

Dreams

Luci woke up this morning and told me about her dream:
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I was a baby in China and someone gave me away and I had to leave my China. I was so sad!
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Lots of hugs followed.

Corn Harvest

This is it, the corn harvest. Two ears. Luci helped to shuck the corn (ooh, what's that?! corn silk) but would not even touch it when it was ready to eat. The boys loved it, though, and pronounced it "Awesome!" I guess we are at the end of our photo-journal of Luci and the corn.We went to a near-by dairy's open house, hoping to see how it runs but just got a nice little glimpse at their shop. They may be field-trip ready by Spring, I will call then to see and perhaps set one up for our homeschool friends. Really gorgeous barn--can't wait to see the rest of it. (By the way, I discovered that I really, really don't like goat cheese. It's been 20 hours since we were there and the taste is still fresh in my mind!)
We found a bonnet for Luci in the shop.
A nice place to sit and visit. The chairs had Auburn or Alabama painted on them. We disinfected JT as soon as we got home.

Family Day!!

Today was the fourth anniversary of Luci joining our family! It was a great day full of good memories. One thing that struck me as unusual was this: Last night I gave Luci a Barbie "Chinese New Year" doll--dressed in a red dress, holding a red good luck envelope, and with gorgeous black hair. We had not talked about Luci's China mama much in the past few months. Luci looked at that doll and said, "She looks like my China mama." She also picked up the chopsticks at the restaurant today and said, "Chinese girls eat with chapsticks." Cute. She ate about half her meal quite nicely with the "chapsticks" before switching to a fork.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Listen to the Music of the Falling Rain...

They say we all look like somebody else....

Time for a haircut, Bryan!

Lyle Lovett's picture taken from here.

Luci's Learning Method

Luci today. She loves the reference books! Always something interesting. Bryan says she's learning through osmosis, sitting on the American history books like that. Surrounding herself with knowledge!Luci two years ago. Wow, she was so small!

School Days

Here is the student body today. JT's not pictured because he is sick in bed. I hope he doesn't share his germs with everyone else. Just started this book--Luci is very happy to be doing "real school."

Corny Luci

Week 9 Week 10

Now we are watching the sunflowers develop. The corn seems to be as big as it's going to get.

First Official Day

We started school a few weeks ago, and of course I forgot to take a picture. So here the kids are, through the years...
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1997 2007
2008

Today

Last year's post

Enjoying the Changes

Saturday

Wednesday and the previous Sunday

So True--

Working on our school schedule, and found this verse in my teacher planner today...

The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;

surely I have a delightful inheritance.

Psalm 16:6

Well...I like mine!

Doctor: Women Wired to Dislike Mothers-in-Law

Luci-ism

Today Luci came to me with a funny powder on her face. Turns out it was my make-up. The powder was all over the bathroom counter and the bathroom floor--it's Ecco Bella, and not cheap! I told her she did look pretty, but she can't use my face powder any more. "You can use my lipstick, if you want. But please stay out of the powder." Not 5 minutes later, this is what I found...more face powder and lots of lipstick!

Yesterday I asked Luci, "What do you want to be when you grow up?"

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A Princess! With Lipstick! And I'll marry a Prince who has Applets!

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Applets: epaulettes. Luci really likes men in uniform, just like her Daddy

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Thanks to my Feingold cyber-friend Linda, who calls this a "Luci-ism" :)

Ta-Dah!

Sunday Wednesday