Are we done yet?

       With only two weeks left of school, I'm thinking "Are we done yet?"  If you have seen the movie "Are we done yet?", the sequel to "Are we there yet?"  it seems like everything that could go wrong, does go wrong when you are just trying to finish! 

    That being said, we have made it farther in the school year than most years.  Usually about this time I say, "Close enough!" and call it a year.  This year, I was determined to make to the end of the school year (180 days).  Ok, it will be 175 days, but... "Close enough!"

       We took an impromptu trip to Kenya last week-- this is the kids at the beach.

     That is what I love about homeschooling!  We are able to travel when we want, and take off a day now and then... of course, we have to make it up at the end of the year!

Enjoying Nature where you are

 

Summer is the perfect time to enjoy nature.

     Whether you are able to take a vacation to the beach, and observe tidal waves, or go camping and listen to the crickets at night and cook over a fire, summer is a fun time to get outside and enjoy nature. 

 

 

We went on a nature walk, and saw some unique creatures-- Mudskippers.

 

 

These fish can breath out of water, and walk about of their front fins.  When startled, they will skip across the top of the water. 

 

So, get out there, and explore the nature that is near you, and unique to your area. 

 Set up a bird bath, and watch the birds that come every day.

Let the kids dig in the garden and find some worms and beetles. 

Plant some seeds and see what grows.

 

Nature is all around us, and it's one of the ways that God interacts with us.

 

So... Get out there!

Traditions equal Stability

We have a lot of instability in our lives.  We tend to move about once a year, and things change for us a lot.  Because of that, I try to make some simple traditions that add some stability for the children.  These include meals that we love, movie and pizza night, special time with the kids, holiday traditions, chores, reading together, etc.

       One tradition that has sort of developed over the years is, having a 'cook out' when Bill has to travel.  He traveled last month for 10 days with John and Hannah for a seminar in Arusha, and to go to Nairobi.  It's always a bit quiet around the house when Bill travels, so I try to do something different and fun to make the days go quicker.

    We sometimes will all sleep in the living room and watch movies until late at night.  Or, play board games all day.  But, we like to have a cook out.  This time, I decided to up the ante and to actually "camp out" on our upstairs balcony.  We put up two tents and cooked hot dogs and marshmallows over a tiny charcoal grill.  We stayed up late singing camp songs.  We lasted pretty long, but ended up coming inside to actually sleep. :)

  

The point is, the children miss Daddy while he's gone, but know that something fun is going to happen too.  Jonathan saw a bag of marshmallows in the cupboard and said, "Are those for the next camp out when Daddy has to go on a trip?"  Yes. Yes, they are. :)