Recipes for Unburnt Bread....

Can you help me name them?

2008-05-05T21:21:00.003-04:00

They were found in the back of my neighbor's shed!

Too cute!

There are 4 of them.3 black and 1 gray striped.

We will be taking care of them until they are old enough to go to great homes. We will most likely be keeping two of them....Any name ideas.....?

The gray on is a girl. (cutie and adventurish)

1 of the black ones is a girl (very sweet and shy)

and the other two black are boys.one is shy and the other is a little lover boy/problem child!

I think it would be cute to name them after characters from books..... or whatever suits them!

Green Hour Challenge # 2

2008-03-27T00:49:00.010-04:00

This time we went to our local park and took the afternoon wandering and checking everything out. We sat and listened to the waterfall.

Investigated moss growing on a log.

Noticed berries starting to grow.

Discussed how and why this tree is decomposing.

We sat together and talked..... tried to skip rocks across the water.

Pointed out insects inside this log.

Came home and worked on our notebook page.

But most of all we really had a great time. We enjoyed our time outdoors and took advantage of the nice weather.

Green Hour Challenge # 1

2008-03-27T00:24:00.009-04:00

We started working on Barb's Green Hour Challenges about a couple of weeks ago and I thought I would share our discoveries.

For the first challenge we took a little walk in our neighborhood. Unfortunately, our tiny strip of woods was littered with trash and glass....However we were able to check out the moss growing....

Signs of spring coming....

Evidence of a squirrel's kitchen table.....

Here is the drawing that Morgan made of the moss we found......

And we completed the notebook page that Tina was so kind to offer....

We started late joining the Challenges but are enjoying the time that we are taking each week for out nature walk.

What's for dinner?

2008-03-10T17:55:00.007-04:00

A couple of weeks ago Morgan wanted to cook us dinner and of course I couldn't object! So I let her choose what she wanted to cook and let her get to work.....!
Here are some of those photos....

Here she is struggling with the can opener! So I did end up helping her open it, but everything else was all her. I just stood behind and took pictures :)

Checking the ham to flip it

Taking the corn out of the microwave.

Dinner is served! She was just so proud of herself!

Computer Trouble......

2008-01-22T19:52:00.000-05:00

Well to start our new year off, my computer just quit on me.... See one thing you all don't know about me is that I'm a gamer.... My husband is a huge gamer and we now play World of Warcraft together for fun.... No we are not freaks... My daughter does get fed :) Well sometimes !!!! Just kidding.

So at the beginning of the new year the video card in my laptop went up!!!! so I needed a new computer.. No biggie right? WRONG!!!!! Just when my new dell desktop arrived and got set up. I started moving over files from the old laptop and thats when it all happened ..... It was late and I was in the middle of moving our family photos when I decided to call it a night... The next day I couldn't turn the laptop back on.... It went to a black screen (bad news)!!! I totally freaked and my husband took a long time checking it out and he said we needed to take it in to get looked at..... So off to Geeksquad..... It turns out that the hard drive went up! I LOST EVERYTHING!!!! all my documents, contacts, calendar, music, EVERYTHING... but the worst of all is the photos of our family from this past year! My only saving grace is that I also saved some photos on my mothers laptop and this blog with my daughter's photos...... So needless to say I learned a huge lesson in backing up files..... I had to replace the hard drive (we decided to give the laptop to my daughter) and that is where another frustration came in.... I started off like this......

but when I tried to set up the laptop to be child friendly it became so hard to figure out how to get her to be able to surf the net safely.... I downloaded Kidzui which didn't allow her to get on to Webkinz or her email (the two things she uses the most) and their search and layout is not what was ideal. So then I turned to Buddy Browser...that would also not allow her to sign on to webkins but she could get her email, however the parental controls were almost nonexistent ....... so then I felt like this.......

I have spent so many hours and days trying to figure this out and I ended up with downloading Firefox with the add-ons that would help her... I changed the google search to yahooligans... and I created another blog to be her homepage.... that way I can add new things that I want her to check out right on her homepage....... I can add links to Educational Videos on topics we are studying using Cosmeo. I hope and pray that this will be able to work.... so far so good!!!!
So right now I am feeling like this.....

However that can change at any moment!!!!

Christmas Fun....

2007-12-11T19:17:00.000-05:00

Now that the Christmas season is upon us we are listening to Christmas music 24/7! One of our favorites has got to be the Hippo song.... While I was searching the web to find it I came across this and I thought it was so sweet... This man obviously took a lot of time to put this together for his loved one.... What a sweet and wonderful present... Enjoy!

Winter Fun!

2007-12-11T18:43:00.000-05:00

Last week we had our first snow of the season.... and Morgan was loving it! She was begging to go outside before I even put my feet on the floor for the day! So while the kids were "hitting" the books" Morgan was sledding!

And who better to keep her company then her "sibling"!!!

This is my other child... She had a blast all day , inside for 10 minutes then out for another 10 minutes... It drove me nuts but she doesn't get to go outside any other time (unless she sneaks out under our feet) Because of the snow she just stays in the yard. Just an FYI she gets the fur from my husband's side of the family!!! Ha!

After the kids came home a little early from school ..... Morgan and her best friend played and played.... This is a shot of them going down the hill pretending to be sleeping!

Then they proceeded to roll over the ground and laugh their butt off.... What a bunch of silly girls!!!!!

Bookclub Fun

2007-12-06T14:52:00.000-05:00

Each month we have a book club that I lead with our homeschool group.... This past month we read Jalapeño Bagels by: Natasha Wing. This is a cute book about a little boy who needs to bring something to school for international day. His parents own a pastry shop and he decides to pick something that his families makes there. In the back are some recipes of the treats mentioned in the book.... so of course we needed to make them and share with our book club friends.

I have never made bagels before but I will in the future... They were alot of fun and oh so tasty!!!

Some comforts of homeschooling....

2007-11-14T14:08:00.000-05:00

When it comes to homeschooling my favorite things have to be ....the luxury of NOT having to rush off early in the morning to a cold building.... The fact that we can wake up, make a hot meal, choose what we would like to work on and then do it!!!! No, having to wait by the bus stop in the rain, cold, or hot mornings!!! Not having Morgan sit in an uncomfortable chair and sit and sit and sit..... looking outside and wishing you could play in the snow or beautiful weather!!!! I know these things not because Morgan has said this (she has not gone to school at all) but because I spent too many days that turned into years doing this very thing..... Why should I send my daughter into a building for her whole childhood when the fact that when we grow up we are out in the world and not spending time in a building all day long? Okay, thats enough rambling....

Here are some times in our house:

Nothing like working by the fire in your pj's!!!

Then spend as much time as you want painting!!!

Spending the afternoon birdwatching!!! Morgan loves to find new birds and look them up to see what they are called.... she has started putting a sticker new to the picture in her guide book, every time she sees the same bird!!!

Here is Morgan at our HAHSA bookclub meeting... This past month we read Gooney Bird Greene by Lois Lowry. The kids got to dress up like Gooney Bird... they had a blast... we told "absolutely true stories", gave ourselves new names "gooney bird style". etc....

Whenever I start to have doubts about if we made the right choice about homeschooling (and yes, sometimes I rethink it) it is only for a minute because I come back to these awesome times that just can't be replaced by public school!!!
Okay there is many more awesome things about homeschooling but at the moment these are the only pictures I can get my hands on !!!! LOL

Happy Homeschooling!

Overdue Photos

2007-11-10T18:10:00.000-05:00

Lake House (September 16th -20th)

In September we went on a mini vacation.... Morgan, myself and my dad went to our families lake house in Va.... It is a beautiful private lake that is such a joy to visit... I would love to move there....
We had such a relaxing week.... We went through the whole week on a whim.... nothing planned!!!!!! We brought some books down with us, played the license plate game on the way down and back, talked about our George Washington (as we drove through DC), talked about the "poop plant" in the city, played board games, and really just chilled out!!!!! We went fishing (something my Dad and Morgan love to do) and really enjoyed nature and each other.......
Here are some photos:

I love photos like this.... I look at this and I see just how truly beautiful she is and what a great gift God as entrusted me with.... To look at her and realize that He is saying "Kate, I love you so much that I want to give this treasure to watch and love and I know you can and will enjoy her and help create a wonderful woman in days to come" ... It makes me cry with overwhelming joy!!!

More updates.....

2007-11-10T13:55:00.000-05:00

Okay, A couple weeks ago I was venting about a situation that occurred at the local football game.... (you can read it all here) Well I am updating you all of the situation.... my friend and I emailed the Rec council and someone actually paid attention!!!! She was very receptive to what we had to say... she even took it up with the County and not only was the song banded from the play list but the man (who is the commissioner for the football league) was reprimanded!!!!! Good huh? Well I am just happy that something was done and that someone else acknowledged that I am not crazy!!!!

Pumpkin Patch (October 28th)

We went pumpkin picking at a new place this year..... The past years we drive up to the big
maze quest in PA... but that was just a little too big for us old people :) and they were pretty expensive in my mind.... we never left with out paying about $80-90.... for an afternoon activities and pumpkins (not including eating)!!!! So this time we went to Brad's Produce...
They had a maze with an activity sheet. The maze wasn't too big and not too small!!!! Prefect.... We finished and maze and grabbed hotdogs and waited for the hayride to come (free hayride by the way) we took that out and hung out at the pumpkin patch for a while
and came back to the barn..... they had mini mazes too that were cute..... we bought 2 pretty large pumpkins, cider and we left with spending about $35 for the whole day!!!! I was a happy costumer and the service was nice!!!!

Okay enough with my rambling ... here are some pictures

Which way now?

Morgan was determined to pick out the perfect pumpkin!!!!

A little help from Daddy.....

And she found it!!!!

Here is my husband in deep thought over another maze!!! Don't hurt yourself there Chris!!! Your brain is going to blow!!!! LOL

Here is what he was trying to figure out...... you can only make right turns and you need to get to the middle of the maze..... Good luck!

I love going to the pumpkin patch each year because it reminds me of Morgan's first real Halloween and he went to get pumpkins .... it was only the 3 of us in the whole place and we spent the afternoon walking around with Morgan while she tripped over the vines..... It was a sweet day and a great memory for me..... Here is a picture of her and Chris then!!!!

Pumpkin caving and caramel apples (October 31st)

This year Morgan cleaned out her own pumpkin..... Chris won't even do his... I have to for him!!!! What a whimp!

And we made caramel apples... and I have to say they were gross!!!! but we had fun and made a mess!!! Isn't that what really counts?

I need to play catch up.....

2007-11-09T15:24:00.000-05:00

I have really been out of it lately... between being stressed out and busy with things I haven't been posting so I need to get back into the habit......
Morgan's 7th Birthday Party (October 13th)

Here are some photos from Morgan's b-day party..... She wanted to have a Harry potter party with the neighborhood kids and that was fine by me!

Here "Hermione" is with her Quidditch cake.... She wanted to use bubble blowers for the goals!!!! Creative... huh? Don't worry we washed them first ... LOL

Morgan wanted to make Magic slime ... This was a huge hit and a really big mess... Thank the Lord it was a pretty day outside !!! LOL

Here is my little sister... she turned 13 this year.... Lord help us all!!!! The boy next to her is a neighbor that Morgan has had a crush on for a year or so now... He is really sweet and loves to play with her... I told him that I am going to file the paperwork for an arranged marriage!!!! He's a little older but hey, it won't matter when she 21 .... :) He and I talk alot about all sorts of stuff... he is really big into reading so he and I swap books alot.... when the last Harry Potter book came out over the summer we would discuss the book after each chapter!!! It is really cool to see a kid that excited about reading.....

The kids played red light green light and Morgan "flew" on her broom!!! They were so funny!

Morgan opening her presents with her best friend.... They are only 2 months apart and have so much in common....

That night my sister spent the night and we had roasted marshmellows and watched a movie.... Not bad for turning 7 huh?

Halloween (October 31st)

The past 2 years we have gone trick or treating up at Mountain Christian Church for their Trunk or Treat event... My neighbor belongs to the church and we really enjoy the event.... They have food, great music, moon bounces, car decorated tastefully and a good clean environment. Morgan enjoys the neat "treats" she gets here.... This year she got: play dough, a worship Cd, pencils, stickers, toothbrush, bracelet, mini Mr. Potato thing, etc..... Also lots of candy!!! but for some reason we can't find most of it.... hint hint .... I ate it!!! LOL The pleasures of being a Mom.... no wonder some people have more kids..... more kids = more candy.... What have I been thinking.... LOL

Here is Morgan and her best friend, Mackenzie....who was Pippy Longstocking

Here are the girls at the first "trunk". The family live on a farm that raises miniature horses.... She allowed the kids to pet the horse and believe it or not she was so soft!!!!

Morgan and Mackenzie got their faces painted....

Okay that is two updates ... I hopefully will get my butt in gear and do more tomorrow..... See ya!

I have returned!!!

2007-10-30T13:44:00.000-04:00

I feel the need to get back into blogging...... I have missed you all!

The month of September and October is just crazy for us.... We have many birthdays, vacation, my husband's business trip every year, my homeschool review, sports, and many other life things. It just gets so crazy!!!!

However, here is what is going on in my mind at the moment.....

I recently had my HS review and it went awesome.... It normally does... hehe Warning: I am about to boast here!!!! This year I decided not to get nervous and freak out before hand... I keep saying to myself... "Kate.. dont freak out, you did that last time and got so stressed over nothing. We are doing awesome .... don't freak out." and guess what? I didn't I walked in just a cool as a cucumber. As I sat down, my reviewer noticed that her secratary had double booked with another mom for the same time. She then walked out of the room and I overheard her talking with the secratary saying... "Not to worry, this mom has it all together... she is one of my good mom's" Hey!!! Did you hear that ? I'm a good mom who has it together..... ha ha ha Who would have thought!!!!! LOL
Ok that is enough of that....

On a really cool note, my daughter has learned to ride a bike!!!! We got a big bike a while ago and we decided to pull it out a couple of weeks ago.... it only took her one day to get the hang of it!!! She should/would have learned earlier but the house we were living at didn't have much room for that and she was too scared.... but she's got it now!

Here she is showing some frustration with Daddy!!!

Oh, she's almost got it!

And she's off!!! Am I a proud Mamma or what!!!!?

I have also started reading a new book called By the Light of a Thousand Stars by: Jamie Langston Turner.
So far so good..... I haven't been one to read Christian Fiction... I don't know why but for some reason I never thought about it... Silly, huh? However I went to get some books that Heather recommended over at Sweet Simplicity and this book just came to me... Next time I think I may get The importance of Being Foolish by: Brennan Manning.
This book starts with Dottie (a church going woman) grieving over the loss of her daughter dying and thinking about her faith and why this has happened and dealing with it.... The book then goes into another character who is the total opposite of Dottie. She is self absorbed, no relationship with her children and an even worse one with her husband. She seems to miss all the wonderful things at happen on a day to day basis.
Well, I won't say anything else (mainly because I haven't finished the book!!!) but go get it yourself and see what you think!

I hope to post more soon. I have lots more photos to share!!!!

I am extremely disgusted!

2007-10-22T14:16:00.000-04:00

Please be advised that this post is not intended for children and I mean no offense to anyone! I just want to vent about an incident that happened over the weekend....

Little background info:
Our best friend's nephew has been playing Rec Football since last year... My husband and I have been at most of his games... Not only do we love football but we want to show our support!

This past Saturday night was his last game for the year..... During half time my daughter (7 years old) went to get a hot dog and we heard over the speakers that a song was playing..... It went something like this.... "Ain't nothing like a booty call, Hell Yeah!" That was in the chorus and repeated itself over and over.... I proceeded to go back to my seat and drop off my food.... I went up to the man in charge of the music and asked him if he found this music at all offensive... Not only did he not turn to look at me.... but he said "NO" with his cigarette hanging out of his mouth. I proceeded to explain how this is not the type of music that I like to hear at a child's football game and that I find it very offensive and I do not approve of the language used... He said that there wasn't any bad language.... I said that I find the work "hell" to be a cuss word and that I don't allow my child to talk like that. He proceeded to ignore me and then a woman sitting down next to him said that "hell" is not a cuss word because it is in the bible... When I mentioned that "hell" was not referred to "booty calls" in the bible she just repeated that "Hell is in the Bible." I then mentioned how smoking at a Rec event is prohibited. He just mumbled "Well I don't see that anywhere". then the women said that I was the only one complaining... I then told her I was just the only one to come and say anything.... I was so upset that no one even cared about this I turned and walked away..... When I got back to my seat I told my friend and his sister... My friend got up very upset and walked to talk to the guy.... He came back saying that the man said he was the commissioner of the football league and that he could play what he wanted and that he has been playing that for years... He also mentioned that his daughters who are in cheerleading have also been dancing to it.... When my friend said he wanted to make a formal complained his response was "noted" and that was it..... !!!!
Am I crazy or is this just wrong?
It was then very upsetting to sit there and listen to that music and watch the kids (of ALL ages) dance to that on the field during half time.....
My friend emailed a lady he has talked with before that is apart of the league and she said that we could go to one of the meeting and say how we felt or if we wanted to she could read something that we type up.... However we are very upset and want to do more.... My friend wants to call the local news station as well as get a "play list" that they use and form together a petition.... I feel that this is very disturbing and I am very upset.....
I just can't believe that a Rec council has no problem with supporting premarital sex with minors in the form of a "booty call" not to mention the smoking, cussing and the rude attitude of a visitor....
Any thoughts?
Sorry for rambling and I need to update on all the things that we have been up to.... It has been a very busy month!!!!

Hermione came to visit today!!!

2007-10-09T20:35:00.000-04:00

My daughter decided to be Hermione from Harry Potter for Halloween. She finished the first book about a month ago and has turned into a "Harry Potter freak" (her words not mine).... I absolutely love the HP books so this has warmed my heart... I use to hate to read... more like detest it..... Until I came across Harry Potter. J.K Rowling has given me such a freedom and love for books.... I have now spent many years reading any children's literature that I can get my hands on. I have missed so much from my years of not reading.....

So anyhow back to the outfit..... We went to Goodwill and got most of the stuff there..... I love a good deal so here is what it cost:
Robe: $1.60 ( this was a woman's coat and I resewed it to fit my daughter)
Shoes: $1.00
Sweater $ 1.00 (not on her.... but it is a gray V neck sweater in case it is a cold Halloween night)
Skirt: $.60 ( this was a woman size 6 that I resewed to fit her)
Tie: $ 1.00 ( this is a clip on boys tie that was blue and gold... so I painted the blue to be red.....)
she also got a real cool "witch's broom" that was $ 4. 95......
It was "Super Saturday" at Good will so these prices are the %50 off price!
The white shirt we already had and the black socks are really her soccer socks!!!!
I also printed out a Griffindor crest that I laminated and will pin to the robe......
We are also going to do her hair.... but pretty cool huh?

I went to the Halloween store to find stuff in the beginning and they wanted $24 just for the robe and it didn't look well made at all (I know she will be using this for dress up after Halloween)..... so instead I got the whole outfit for..... drum roll please........
$10.15!!!!! Ha -take that Halloween store!!!!!

Okay I'm done now.... :-)

You are invited....

2007-10-04T17:19:00.000-04:00

How cool is this!!!!
Morgan's birthday party is going to be next Saturday... She wanted a Harry Potter Party... So here is what we did for the invitations....
Here is the front of the card.......

This is the card opened up.....

I know it is not readable so here is what I wrote: (I changed some things because it had personal info)

HOGWART'S SCHOOL
of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY

Headmaster: ALBUS DUMBLEDORE
Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards

Dear Guest,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. A special pre-term birthday celebration will be held on Saturday, October 13th, 2007 at Two O’clock in honor of our newest Head Girl, Morgan ******, International Confederation of Prefects, Honorary Junior Mugwump.

Please RSVP by sending an OWL or by Muggle phone at (Our Phone #) by October 10th. Transportation to Hogwarts will depart from King’s Cross Station, (Our Address), Gate nine and three quarters.

*Note that students may wish to wear their casual robes, as the journey may entail physical activity as well as working with messy potion ingredients. Also students are required to bring their broom sticks for they will be used for their flying lesson.

Respectfully,

Kate *****

Deputy Headmistress

So what do you all think...?
However I just found out that the next door neighbor will probably not be able to go because they don't believe in Harry Potter and anything about magic.... I don't even what to begin on what I feel about this but now I am thinking on changing the theme (even though my daughter has her heart set on Harry Potter) There is also another neighbor who I know can't come already.... I just am very down now when I was just so excited!!!! oh bummer.... :-(

Look what I made!!!

2007-10-01T23:14:00.000-04:00

I am just so busy right now but I wanted to post the curtains that I just finished making and hanging up.... they match the ones also in the kitchen.... I hope the color looks okay...

First weeks of Five in a Row!!!!

2007-09-11T20:34:00.000-04:00

Okay everyone here is our work from our first 2 weeks of school.... We have decided to row for 2 weeks because we do alot of things with our homeschool group and we wanted not only flexibility but enough time to really dive into each book.....

For now we are using seperate Spelling, and reading programs but I may be replacing these with Learning Language Arts through Literature: Red Book. Not sure but we'll see.....

Here is Morgan's math work (for now the beginning is review from first grade). She is using MCP Math: grade 2

Next is Handwriting. This year we are transitioning to cursive..... using A Reason for Handwriting: Transition

Here we have Morgan's Spelling. She is working in Steck-Vaughn Grade 2.

Here is the latest story Morgan read in her Pathway Readers...... She is reading the second book on the "first grade" level.

And now the fun part!!!! Drum roll please................

Ping!!!!!

First 2 pages........

First Page....... This has a photo of the ducks from our field trip to our local pond to feed the ducks rice cakes, photo of Morgan working on her coloring, sink/float science experiment, a mini book with what types of food ducks eat.

First page, opened up........

Second page.... Including another photo from our pond trip, another photo of Morgan coloring, photo of the front of the book, and a title of the study as well as the dates.

Next two pages.....

The third page.... including the different types of ducks, Morgan's art work (I scanned her original and copied it smaller so I could include it in these pages), mini book of info on the Yangtze river, and a mini book of the amount of Pings family members.

Here is the same page but opened up.....

Forth page; including the flag of China, map of the world/china, Picture of Ping and underneath of that is a diagram of the parts of a duck (see below)

Forth page opened up....

The last two pages....

Fifth page includes photo of the ducks at the pond, a turning thingy (for a lack of better words) :-) about the direction of the sun rising and setting, mini folder of different uses of the Yangtze river.

Fifth page opened up.....

The last page includes vocabulary words and their meanings, story order file, questions and answers about ducks, a "library card" with the info on the book and dates we read it, and lastly their is a hotch at the top where you pull out the game board that we made about the book (found this on Homeschool share- real cool)

Last page opened up....

There you have it. This completes our tour of Ping! Please stay tuned to our next show on How to Eat an Apple Pie and See the World! Ha Ha! Thank you and have a great night!
-kate
P.S. Am I a dork or what!? lol

Baby Got Book......

2007-09-10T02:29:00.000-04:00

Well if you are at all a kid growing up around the early 90's, you may remember a very disturbing song called "Baby got Back". It was very disturbing and frankly just plain old gross! However, a while back I found this link and it just makes me crack up! It's so funny how someone can take such a nasty song and make it clean and fun..... LOL Let me know what you think!!!

What's up with the name "Yoda"?

2007-09-10T02:19:00.000-04:00

You will notice that I also refer to myself as "Yoda". There is a simple reason to this; when my family was expecting me my older brother insisted that I be named Yoda!!! (this was when Star Wars was first released- obviously). My mother told my brother that my name would be "Kate Elizabeth Yoda *Last Name*. So from then on it has just been a family nick name for me…… It's that simple :-)

Let the Force be with you......!

This is my daughter.... what a mess!!!

2007-09-09T22:36:00.000-04:00

This week my daughter wanted to wear a dress and sandles and have her hair braided and what did she then go and do? Well check out for yourself!

Go outside and play in the dirt of course!!! At least she's got style!!!! LOL

But at least she is enjoying herself!

Are these cute or what?

2007-09-09T21:53:00.000-04:00

My next door neighbor's daughter moved in with her as well as her grandchildren last month..... Her daughter has a 9 year old daughter and twin boys who turned 2 this past Saturday..... We were invited to the party and I wanted to make something cute for them.... So check these out.......Aren't they cute!!! I filled them with some craft books, crayons, and a puzzle box set...... They were so cute and I had so much fun making them!!!

Here is a close up on the pocket!!! LOL

This is the back... notice how the pattern is centered!!!

There is a close up on the strap detail!!! he he

Here are the tags I made to tie to the bags!!!! Gee there is the extent of my scrapbooking abilities!!! LOL I am such a geek!!!

Here is my daughter modeling them!!!! Sorry for the trash can in the background!

And I can't leave out the stars of the show!!! Here is Mr. Christopher! Is he a cutie or what!!!! How could anyone say no to that face???!!!

And lastly is Mr. Nathan sportin' his new cell phone- what every 2 year old needs- right? lol I just hope he's not calling China!!! LOL

Did I mention I had such fun making these bags? and how could I not for those little faces!
Life is so awesome!

Thanks for reading!!!
-Kate

Here we are.....

2007-09-07T13:19:00.000-04:00

I noticed that most of my photos on here will be only my daughter! Mainly because I'm the one taking the pictures!!! So I love this picture of my husband and I but this is the only copy and its pretty tattered..... I wanted to scan it and thought I would add it to my blog....... This photo is cute but more than that is touches my heart.... You see, this was before my daughter was born and their was a real bad snow storm. My dh and I decided to go to this hill and sled in the middle of the night with some friends..... We had such a great time and this photo was taken...... So some time went by and I found out I was pregnant..... Then I had these photos developed and I realized that in this photo I was about a week or less pregnant... and we didn't even know it.... Every time I see this photo I think "Hey Kate, Your whole world is about to change so hold on and get ready it's going to be an awesome ride!!!"

Field Trip Day.....

2007-08-30T22:28:00.001-04:00

Our day started off with a Library tour. Morgan was given a tour of our local library. They showed her where all the different types of books are, how to use the computers, and even a behind the scenes of sorting books that have been returned. She had a real nice time.
Here are some pictures....

We then went to the pond to feed the ducks! We brought rice cakes just like in The Story About Ping! We are enjoying our FIAR journey. Morgan seems to really be interested and excited about her work. Today I woke up to a "surprise" on the kitchen table..... She went ahead and did her handwriting to surprise me! How sweet!
Here are the photos from our pond trip.....

The Lunar Eclipse!

2007-08-28T13:20:00.000-04:00

I must first start by saying how incredibly blessed that I am able to homeschool...... We were able to wake up Morgan at 4:00 am! We went out and while my dh set up our telescope, Morgan pointed out Orion's Belt! Too cool. We then ate cinnamon rolls and looked up the other constellations. We were able to hang out and talk about the Dew on our cars and grass, we made funny drawings on the cars!!!!! While we watched the moon and waited, we saw our neighbors waking up and getting ready for school/work. The whole neighborhood was running around while we were able to stop and watch something so very cool!
Here are some photos.....

First Day of "school"!

2007-08-27T21:08:00.000-04:00

Here's how are day went....

8:00am Alarm goes off (to wake me up) and I say go bye to dh then go back to sleep---- Big No No.....

9:00am Phone rings- dh calling (waking me up b/c I didn't get up when the alarm went off) and asks if I was just sleeping.... I lie and say "No" Big BIG no no..... he he

9:45am Running out of house with dd late for our Homeschool group picnic that starts at 10:00!

10:25am Make it to out "Not- Back to School Picnic" after a stop at Burger King for pick up our "picnic lunch" b/c I didn't have time to pack it b/c my lazy butt was sleeping in..... Double big No NO!!!! He he he ....

12:35pm Leave the picnic after having a great time (150 people showed up-too cool) Drove to Staples to purchase colored paper for Lapbook printables......

1:00pm Drove to the Hallmark for dd to pick out a Webkinz that I promised her last week.... yet again another No No.....

2:00pm Arrive home and start something called "school" ? HA! We worked on Math, Spelling, Reading, Handwriting......

3:00pm Then we Read The Story about Ping by: Marjorie Flack, discussed the 2 types of ducks, parts of the ducks body, colored a Ping picture, talked about FIAR and what we will be doing this year......

4:00pm Cleaned up mess and out to play with neighborhood kids.....

7:30pm Ate crabs (we are Marylanders') and then Morgan Played online with her new Webkin!!!!

9:33pm Bedtime for Morgan!!!!

I may wake Morgan up in the middle of the night to see the Lunar Eclipse!!!! Triple cool!

What a great first day!!!!! We had a not so crazy day and enjoyed it all!!!!!

Well, I'm Broken!!!!

2007-08-22T00:50:00.000-04:00

Here's what happened.... I was outside talking with the neighborhood kids. I am normally out talking with a few in particular about books and such..... (I read alot of youth literature) So anyway, This one boy (who I hope Morgan will marry one day----I am all for an arranged marriage now that I have a daughter- LOL) was on his roller blades and when I said that I also have a pair he didn't believe me.... So to show him up (stupid me) I went and got them on......

DUMB MOVE!!!! lol I got them on and went about a half a block and BAM!!!! I tripped over a stick and busted my tail bone and knee :-( So now I am writing this sitting very UNCOMFORTABLY on a sofa cushion and a frozen juice container (we are out of ice-to make this even more painful) under my tush!!!!! Oh silly me!!! but I am really paying for it!!!! oh well -that's life hun? but on the up side- I'm still the "Cool Mom" that was outside *trying* to rollerblade with the kids.... lol
BUT ME BUM STILL HURTS!!!!!

-Kate

2007-08-21T14:28:00.000-04:00

Look what I made yesterday!!! This is the new pattern for our Living room!!!! Ha ! Just kidding ... This is for my daughter's room... It's pink! There is no way I would have wanted a pink room when I was her age but she loves it.... The curtains/dust ruffle are the same fabric... I'll post a picture of the whole room when we are finished......
But for now here are the throw pillows.....

Soccer Camp Aug/2007

2007-08-20T20:08:00.000-04:00

For more recent photos....... There is soccer camp!!!! Morgan actually won a week at soccer camp from a raffle at a Chick-fil-a Soccer Clinic.... Too cool hun? It was for a week and she worked on soccer skills, drills and mini-games. In addition, she got a t-shirt, soccer ball, water bottle and Chick-fil-a lunch on the last day!!! Morgan had such a good time. She starts Soccer for our local rec team this week so this was a nice start into the Soccer season.

Plumpton Park Zoo Field Trip

2007-08-20T19:57:00.000-04:00

Here are some photos from our HAHSA trip to Plumpton Park Zoo. We had a great time checking out all the animals and then had lunch by the playground......

Rocks State Park Letterboxing Hike

2007-08-20T19:45:00.000-04:00

Ok, I wanted to add the photos from our family letterboxing hike at Rocks State Park.... This is a letterbox made by another HAHSA (our HS group) family. The directions are then posted on our groups site and families can go check it out when they have the time.......
Here are the pics from our hike....

Letterboxing Hike May 2007

2007-08-20T19:15:00.000-04:00

I wanted to add some things that we have done this summer. We belong to a Homeschooling group that has been wonderful! They have all kinds of things going on and Morgan and I have had a great time so far.......

Here are some photos from our Letterboxing club. There is a hike each month where a new letterrbox is introduced, there is a scavenger hunt for the kids and then lunch and hanging out.....Each family then finds the letterbox on their own!!!! It has been very cool! I will post some photos of us(our family) finding a box... but for now here are the pics of the Hike/scavenger hunt. The kids needed to find many things including: Jack in the pulpit and Poison Ivy.

What's up with your blog title you ask?

2007-08-19T16:38:00.000-04:00

Well here's the deal, in my family there is a running joke on how I acquired my mother's habit for always burning breads of any sort (bagels, making toast, garlic bread, waffles, etc.) So a while back I was making toast but instead I burned the sucker---- ok I charred it!!!! I then had one of those "Oh Dear God, I am turning into my mother" moments that everyone tells me about. Well that was it; I am scraping off the charred part!!!!! and b/c of my plans for rediscovering myself I thought it would be a great way of saying that I am scraping off the bad habits/mentality of my childhood and starting from scratch and working on "not burning my daughter's bread" along the way..... So how is that? Make a little or not sense at all? LOL oh well its all ME!
-Kate

All about me!!!

2007-08-19T03:08:00.000-04:00

Hello all!!!
Well here I will give you all some info on why I am creating this blog and what my hopes are for it.....
First, the basics: I'm Kate, mother of one daughter (hopefully have another in the future) wife to an ok guy (I think I may keep him for a little longer- he's getting kind of old!) Just kidding However he is six years older then me but who's counting, hun?
We have decided to Homeschool our daughter for many reasons (that's a whole other post). However, one of our main reasons was because we are outraged at the public school system (to be frank)

As I have gotten more comfortable with homeschooling, I am now able to move on to my next project---- ME! I have come to the realization that I never think or do anything for myself.... I have now realized that is becoming harmful for myself and my family.... SO having said that I am now looking into different things to help me find what makes me "tic" What my passions/hobbies/intrests.....? I never give myself to chill and do these type of things....... That has to stop!!!!! Myself and family all agree I me to be selfish and take the time and look into myself!!! :-)

One of my first goals will be to learn about scrapbooking. I love the concept and have some things but I never created a simple space for myself to do this or put aside the time to complete pages........ Not anymore :-) In addition I want to look into painting, working with clay, sewing, quilting, Etc..... who knows what else!!!!

Lastly one main area that I will be working on will be my own education! I went to public school and a year of college. I did not have happy experiences at all and I was very bitter and just plain old mad. However, I am passed being mad about my own education.... I can change that! I have picked out some high school curriculum that I will be purchasing soon (my dh is going through some job issues so it is being put off for just a little while....) and will be learning on my own!!!! This will also be great for my daughter to see that Mommy is studying too! Too cool, hun?
Here is my choices that I am looking into:
Science: Apologia Science:Exploring Creation with Biology
History: Short Lessons in U.S. History Using this as a simple guide thought the years but reading on the topics more with Library books.
Literature:For Such a Time as This: American Literature Student Book
Math: Teaching Textbook: Pre-Algebra- I wanted to start small to remember things that I missed so I will probably go through this quickly.
Art: Short Lessons in Art History This is mainly for fun with my daughter. I'm looking into finding a art class for her and I to attend.
What do you all think? Am I a geek or what? lol oh well I am completely OK with that :-)
Well, I think that wraps it up of a bit.....

Busy, Busy, Busy

2007-06-04T14:17:00.000-04:00

We have been so busy lately, between activities, housework and good old playing outside. We are currently spring cleaning and redecorating/reorganizing, so we have been constantly on the run.

However, today we went to the local Planetarium. It was only the three of us! We were able to choose what we wanted to do and she choose to learn about the constellations and planets instead of "day and night sky" which is what they normally do for Kindergartners'. Gigi really enjoyed being able to see the stars so bright and understand how to use your imagination to create the constellation "pictures". She was also able to really see how the big dipper is just a part of the Big Bear. He showed her how to use the big dipper to find other constellations by following up the edge of the big dipper to the north star and over to the left to find Cepheus (the king) and if you look right of the north star to find a "W" that forms the Cassiopeia (the queen). He also sent her home with star charts and solar system flash cards! The school where the planetarium is located is also my husbands old middle school and he went to see his teacher from 20 years ago! He brought my husband and Gigi into the class to meet his students! lol Talk about culture shock!

From there we came home and Gigi wanted to work on handwriting, did a lesson in Math and from then got out our science curriculum and then wanted to work on 3 different lessons/experiments. She created her own mold fossils, exploded a film canister and blew up a balloon with vinegar and baking soda. My husband also showed her how to turn ice cubes (solid) into water (liquid) into a steam (gas) and then turn the water back into a solid just by changing the temperature.

Here are some pictures:

First the Fossil Experiment

What a smile! This is Gigi working on the mold fossils.

Pushing in the samples to create the mold.

Her carefully creating "perfect" fossils. :-)

Next comes the States of Matter experiments using antacid tablet and a film canister.

This is to see to see what happens when you put the anti acid tablet in water.

Then we do the same thing inside a film canister and close the top real fast.

These are some picture of use melting my ice cubes i work so hard to keep up with! LOL (we don't have an ice maker-poor us)

She was feeling how the steam (gas) can turn back into a liquid so quickly when it is cooled.

And lastly our Balloon experiment

Gigi Dropping the baking soda that is in the balloon into the tube filled with baking soda.

See ya soon!

Our New Look at Homeschooling

2007-05-24T13:24:00.000-04:00

Ok, well alot has changed in the last couple of months! After my last review for the year, I have realized that Gigi (my daughter's nick name) is learning all the time and I need to chill out. I have spent too much time over analyzing everything we do making sure it is perfect. I would check and recheck Homeschool message boards all day long. This is just crazy! I am on the verge of burn out! I need to get back to being ME! I found a book called The Joyful Home Schooler by: Mary Hood at the Library and it was exactly what I was looking for. I was able to remember why we chose to Homeschool and to take is easy and remember that this is not a school, it's a home, my daughter is not a student, she's a child and I'm not a teacher, I'm a mom. I need to remember that when I start to rethink things.

We are working on learning to unschool. Yes, I said unschool! I have decided that my daughter does not need a teacher, she needs a mom. I have stayed home with her since she was born and I have to say I have done an awesome job (patting myself on the back :-) I have taught her now to walk, talk, eat, swim, use good manners, etc. Why does all that have to change when she turns "school age". When we were doing "bookwork" everyday, I found myself missing my daughter and we were spending the whole day together! I was missing the fun and joy of just going through our days together. I am going to relax and *learn* to let go. This is very hard for me but over the the past couple of weeks I have noticed a huge difference in myself. I have taken her lead and am amazed how much she is learning by herself! I was too busy focusing on book work to see any of it. (silly mommy)

Over just the past couple of weeks we have done so much! I can't believe how much we are learning by just living!

Gigi loves listening to books on tape. She has been listening to Rabbit Hill by Robert Lawson, Charlotte's Web by: E.B. White, and The Giants and the Joneses by: Julia Donaldson .

Not to mention reading along with Minnie and Moo books. She has even started reading Elvis the Rooster and the Magic Words by: Denys Cazet all on her own.

My husband found a Usborne book about space that I bought at a Library book sale and he started reading it at night before bed. My daughter saw that he was reading it and started asking him some questions and before we knew it she wanted to learn about planets and stars! The two of them are working on making a model of the planets!

Gigi noticed a *star* near the moon that didn't sparkle and she wanted to look it up and found out that is was Venus!!! We purchased a telescope and have been spending our nights checking out the moon and stars as well as Venus :-)

Here are some pictures on the first night with the telescope. They are taken in complete darkness :-)

We have been bird watching and have been looking up birds in our field guide to find out what they are. Each time we see a new bird we put a sticker on the page in our field guide. Our cat (Lily) is also liking the birds too!

The other day we had a heavy rain fall come through. Gigi and I decided to go out on our deck (we have a canopy over the deck) and read while the rain came down all around us. She then decided to get out her math book and asked for some help. So there we were, in the rain, late at night, doing math work outside!!!! Too cool, hun?

The other morning she asked me to open a blank page for her to type on the computer. So I did, thinking that she was going to *play* typing. Well, when I came back in she was typing a story and sounding out words she didn't know how to spell.

We have always gone to the library around once to twice a week, however she has asked to check out Magic School Bus movies and books and has spent many mornings watching them and reading the matching book at night before bed. She then has been telling me all the neat things she has learned from them. (mommy's very impressed)!!! Well, I gotta run for now.