Conversations With a 7-Year-Old

Setting: Backyard; I'm in our shed cleaning and organizing and she's swinging on her tree swing near the door.

E "Mom, if you could have just one wish what would it be?"

Me "Probably that we wouldn't have to ever worry about money."

E "Ok, what if I add you up to 5 wishes?"

Me "Whoa, well that's a lot to think about."

E "Ok I'll minus you down to 3."

Me "Ok, no money worries, health and safely for those I love, and...well peace I guess just about covers it."

E "Well, what if our car could fly? Like a rocket button?"

Sunny Game

Oftentimes after I pour my cup of coffee I will nestle myself into the rocking chair situated by our windows and enjoy the warmth. A while back I had my phone out and the sun caught the face of it and projected a concentrated reflection onto the wall and N went nuts! He loved chasing it around the room and frequently collapsing from laughing so hard. E took over this morning while I grabbed this video.

Wait, When Did She Turn 15?

It didn't take her long to make a few new rules after her brother moved out.

A Little Love Nest

We have an escapee, she's figured out how to hop the enclosure and spend the majority of her day out pecking grass instead of marching around in the muddy coop. I let Ivy back in occasionally if she seems to want to return, but for the most part she seems to enjoy her independence and frankly, if she's smart enough to get herself out she deserves a little alone time. It hadn't really been a problem until I noticed she hadn't layed her usual daily seafoamy green egg in a few days. Then one morning after Ella slogged through our muddy backyard to feed the gals I noticed Ivy feverishly pacing the fence, then she got her whits about her, hopped onto the perch, flapped to the top of the fence, awkwardly fluttered to the ground and made a beeline to a patch of dirt that stays pretty dry up against the house. I was so curious, and suspecting to find a few eggs in her new little secret spot among the trowels, rakes and pitchforks leaning up against the house providing her a decent amount of protection. E and I peeked from my bedroom window that is situated exactly above her special little spot (with a bird's eye view) and sure enough she had made a little love nest in the dirt with 2 beautiful seafoamy blue-green eggs.

Plural Nouns

E choose steamy piles of dog poop to illustrate what a noun and plural nouns are...(sigh). At least she can't be sent to the principals office for inappropriateness here at home school.

Keep Calm

I know these signs are kinda the rage right now, but c'mon. This is my favorite chicken thing I found on Etsy today.

(check out their other fun posters)

Fart Sounds Make Him Laugh

He just can't get enough of someone saying "toot" or imitating bodily functions...

The Dark, Dark Joke

Dark, Dark Joke.m4a Listen on Posterous

Little Boy(s) Blue

As I mentioned yesterday, N has finally flipped that all important "use the potty, not my diaper" switch. And apparently, so has Kola his side-kick puppy, both in their blue undies this morning.

Vacuum

N has really been into using scissors lately and is making a royal confetti mess at the art table. Every few days I haul out the vacuum and have him clean up. (click on picture to watch video)

I feel like there should be an overdub of Julie Andrews as Marry Poppins saying "In every job that must be done, there is an element of fun. You find the fun and SNAP the job's a game!"

Pitter-Patter

E is just growing up so quickly.  It's so amazing to see how she's learning and changing each day.This is one of the true benefits of homeschooling your child; you see the development in every aspect of their life. Here are a few things that she's done recently that I just couldn't pass up on posting:

This was a reflective assignment she completed for World History in our co-op. They were instructed to look around outside for what a cave person would use or need. Then she drew a picture of the Stone Age...hilarious!

This was the result of her and I having a discussion about what time her dad would be picking her up from her YMCA class. I told here that she would be dismissed from the pool at 4:05 and that would give her 10 minutes to rinse off, get into clothes and meet her dad at 4:15 in the lobby. We talked about what the clock would look like, and this was her reminder note she made for herself. 4 for the hour and 3 for the 15 minutes.

A Detailed Sketch of a Plant

E's Science teacher instructed the children to draw a plant with as much detail as possible, and then label. Here is what she came up with:

I love this. When she was showing me this evening, she pointed out that she knows it's "not 'th' at the end of branch, (she) just made a 't' instead of a 'c' on accident." Makes my heart melt that not one word is spelled correctly, but she took her assignment seriously.

Flip

We had family photo's this week, and got to peek at the proofs online. After scrolling though a ton I realized that my son was flipping off the photographer...magnified it so you can see.

My Bright Shining Star

It's just a sticker, Mom

There's no doubt that this girl is special. She's got something that is magnetic and smart and creative and happy. She's that way even when she's not covered from head to toe in stickers. Love you, my bright and shining star.

Slip 'N Slide

I have very fond memories of the Slip 'N Slide my parents finally broke down and bought us kids.  My dad tried to talk us into making due with an old tarp and hose for a while, but the grommets riped into our legs and it just wasn't long enough; a really good run at it would send us off the end, hurtling and tumbling onto the worn grass.

I found a decent deal on one a few weeks back (when I assumed summer was actually starting for real) and brought it home for the kids. Today's weather finally showed some promise of warmer temperatures so we fished it out of the garage. The only dilemma was where exactly to put it...The backyard has a nice slope, but it ends at a chain link fence and is frankly covered in 2" long pine needles...The side yard would have been nice, but ends at a very busy street. So the front yard it was; not as much on a decline but softer grass and over-slipping would put them in the driveway. Not ideal, but safer...sorta.

E was soooo excited to try it out, and N just looked on for a bit and tested the waters with his toe.  After a few practice runs that girl was flying down that thing in her preferred kneeling pose. N went down a few times with a little help, but mostly just really liked watching his sis. And no one ended up on pavement.

Good Day Sunshine (bathtub version)

We've been listening to a lot of Beatles in the car lately...

Bubble Trouble

N got a bubble machine for his birthday, he loves it!

A Little Bun(s) In Your Day

String

Oh, the tangled web he weaves...

...when he finds Mama's garden string.

Sweet Surprises

I rounded the corner to head downstairs and found N's special 'lovie' sweetly placed next to our real live dozing 'lovie' at the top of our staircase.