Bethelem Walk 2011

Yesterday evening our family attended a wonderful "role play" event for this Christmas season. We went on a Bethlehem Walk put on by King's Grant Presbyterian Church & Saint Nicholas Catholic Church in Virginia Beach, Va.

As part of the "Jacob Tribe" originating from the town of Bethany, we journeyed through bazaar shops, were counted (and taxed), directed along by Roman soldiers, and welcomed in the temple. The kids her gifted with a necklace of stamped leather, clay coin, and a chocolate gold coin.

I'd seen information about it posted on an area homeschooling list and thought it might be something we'd enjoy. Boy, I sure am glad we went! We *ALL* enjoyed it; yes, even the toddler.  It was held mostly inside... right up until we met up with the three wise men. Outside were a couple of fires to warm up next to, a "camel," angels declaring the Good News, and of course... the Holy Family. The Nativity scene had some livestock there as well, the favorite of our toddler being the little sheep. After the walk we were directed back inside the church for a snack of cookies & cocoa.

Here are just a few of the photos from our lovely walk to Bethlehem.

It really was a VERY lovely time. And it was free.

Soccer Season 2011

It's continuing soccer for the teen (in the 13+ level) and a new beginning for the toddler (in the Tots level.)

CLICK images to enlarge.



The teen was #11 on the red team again this year.

The homeschool soccer league plays in a church's field that  runs alongside the highway, thus the big gray barrier wall.

Notice the semi-truck in the background on the right (on the far side of the highway.)

There were plenty of players on her team--nice for rotation out for a break. Past teams haven't always had enough players for rotation.

And the little one...

 In case you wondered... the 2-year-olds Tot league pretty much consisted of a few minutes of some of the children kicking the ball, sometimes, on some game days, while their parents followed them around, convincing them to kick the ball, chase the ball, etc.


The girls have just two more games for the season. Whew.

Got Snack?

So the toddler (27 months  *gasp!*) asked for a morning snack, of course JUST as I had sat down to knit for 30 minutes. (sigh. LOL) For whatever reason my apple peeler/slicer came immediately to mind so I opened the fridge and had her pick an apple while I retrieved the peeler from the kitchen cabinet. Yes. The one that holds all the misc. kitchen gizmos and gadgets, including the waffle maker. (Honey, sorry but I made waffles this morning for the girls, even though you're on duty on the ship today. Don't worry, there were plenty of leftovers.)

I set her up at her small table, pushed the apple on, turned the handle just a bit to start the peeeling process (while she watched), and then let her do it. She was all smiles. In less than a minute she had made her own snack.

And in less than five minutes she'd eaten it all up!

Now, if only the twirly intrigue of the peeler would work on broccoli!

Got Goggles?

The teen donned the safety goggles that came in her Physical Science Kit. Of course the toddler wanted to do it, too. Luckily, we had another pair of goggles from last year's General Science Kit. Results:

And if those weren't silly enough, when the teen complained about how dorky the goggles were I had to explain that yes, they get even dorkier. That she could be in a public highschool science class and HAVE to wear the goggles OVER her glasses. (BTDT)

 Of course, she had to try it out...

Yes, I blog about the hard-hitting, news-making things. LOL

Menu Plan for the Week 9/11

Google Calendar is really keeping me on track on "what's for dinner"... provided that I remember to take whatever is necessary out of the freezer in time! LOL (wink to hubby) And when I forget or something comes up unexpectedly, it's easy to click/drag/drop the menu item around to a different day.

This week our menu looks like this:

Sunday: Chicken garden salads
Monday:  Gyros with Tzatziki sauce* in pita pockets  with lettuce & Cucumber Tomato Relish
Tuesday: Salsa Chicken & Black Bean soup (minus the avocado) with corn bread
Wednesday:  Chinese Vegetable Stir-fry over brown rice with egg rolls
Thursday:  Chicken Sausages, green peppers & onions on hoagie rolls w/ fries
Friday: Baked pork loin, quinoa, & ranch vegetables
Saturday:  leftovers


*Note: this will be the first time making "gyros" at home. I'm trying this recipe because I have the cookbook. If we like it I'll stick to it, if not, next time I'll try the Sandwich King's recipe for the stovetop.

NOT Back to School!

This was the first year (as I can recall) that I intentionally looked for the starting date of area public schools and planned something for us to do for our "NOT back to school" outing.


With a 14 year old and a 2 year old it is often difficult to find something they'll both enjoy, but the teen was game for my surprise and we had a good time.

First we went and got the teen a much-needed haircut... Then, we went to the ZOO. It was our second visit and we still thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

We visited the monkeys and the tiger together then the toddler attended a session of their toddler class (and got to pet a hen and a rat! She LOVED IT!!!!) while the teen walked around for 30 minutes till the class was over. Afterwards, we grabbed some lunch, perused the farm section, checked out the prairie dogs, then headed over to the Savannah area. We watched the elephants for a bit but soon headed up to get a better look at the giraffes, one of which was in their garage! TOO COOL to be that close! Then we went into the restaurant and bought ice creams, enjoying the air condition while we ate them. Finally on the way out, we popped into the zoo store for a Schleich Giraffe for the wee one and an elephant necklace & photo postcards for the teen.

We didn't stay too long (about two hours total) but it was a fun time. Except for the iffy weather (we got 4 raindrops on us, not the SHOWERS that were forecast) of HORRID humidity, it was a SUPER day to go to the zoo. There were NO crowds, no school buses-- PERFECT.

Here's a photo montage of some of our zoo trip:

August, albeit late

Hey, what can I say? I've been busy. I have a high schooler. I have a toddler. I have a husband. We had a hurricane come by. Add all those together and you'll understand why it's now well into September and I'm just posting about August.

So, I'll just post a short version...

There was some painting at our new easel

There was some noodle making

There was applying for her first, official volunteering position

And there was our hurricane "vacay"...

One in which we stopped at

Appomattox first...

Then hung out in Roanoke, VA, for a couple of days...

There, now you have the highlights. *Whew*

First Semester daily map

I've been making a version of this for years, either on paper or the white board. Thought I'd share it this time here on my blog...

click to enlarge

Nothing fancy. Nothing special.
Just a "map" of what assignments to do when/on which days.
I keep one for myself (so I can know at any given time what the teen should be working on) and I hang one at her desk so she knows what to work on.
The two grey cells denote that those specifically require my attention (though, of course, other assignments/feedback will require input from me as well.)
(I'll have to hand-write SOCCER PRACTICE in once we're given the day of the week evening practice will be held. Hoping for Tuesdays, but we'll see!)

Anyhoo... just another item "X'd" off my to-do list now! woohoo!