Learning by accident

This is what a homeschool house looks like. I had manage to get both the front room and the back room tidy and then I saw the stairs. They were using the broom to "paint" the walls. Not sure why I even bother most days!

We're moving along through grade 1 and some days are better than others. Last week we had a couple of nice experiences. We were at the beach on Monday morning waiting for our other "Beach Moms" to show up for our Monday morning swim and we started to dig a sand castle since the beach was thickly lined with Portuguese Man-O-Wars and the girls were not interested in risking it. While we were digging we found a long thread and as we pulled it out and brushed it off we discovered it was a necklace. So we continued to dig and found a bobby pin and a toothbrush. As a result I was able to remind Hannah what we had learned from our History CD's (Story of the World-Ancient Times, so awesome!!) about archeology and looking for artifacts and what could we tell about who had been here before us. We managed to chat about how the area would need to be marked off into sections so when we come back we know where we left off and where items were found. We also talked about the tools used by archeologists and how careful they had to be with what they found and where. Hands on is when she really makes the connections.

Hannah is also enjoying drawing and writing. She is constantly writing and drawing on everything and I do my best not to think about all the trees that are dying for her art. Seriously we have given her a block of computer paper and said go to town and she is! After listening to "The Greeks" (Story of the World) she started drawing Cyclops. Men Cyclops, women Cyclops, families of Cyclops. Our current favorite movies is Disney's Princess and The Frog, the main character is working hard to open her own restaurant so the other morning Hannah started creating breakfast menus and listing all the possible options we had. I've also taken advantage of the story being set in New Orleans to talk a little bit about jazz music, Hurricane Katrina and American geography. Its amazing what creeps into their little minds when they're not expecting it.

A Day Off

Today we finally hit the beach as a family and it was awesome! Lately Ella has been anti-beach which has made being a Beach Mom challenging. Today we dug out the kayak, dusted it off and paddled out to Flat Island. I'm sure we're quite a site the four of us piled in, along with Ella's Bath Baby who enjoyed having her head dunked into the water as we bounced in the waves. The girls were scouting for turtles and taking turns dipping their toes in the ocean. Finally Hannah got brave enough to jump in and float next to the kayak. We got out and explored Flat Island for a while and managed to see one turtle pop its head up for a quick breathe.

Next we portaged across the mouth of the canal and headed down the stream along side the golf course. The girls loved watching the fish jumping out of the water and spotting crabs basking on the rocks. As we were heading back to Kailua Beach through the shallow waters under the bridge Hannah saw a large crab, Jason tried to pick it up but this was one tough crab! He was in it to win it. The danced around for a bit, each grabbing for the other when the crab decided enough was enough and went for Jason's ankle. At this point Jason relented and Mr. Crab scurried off in the other direction. Unfortunately we also saw 5 dead puffer fish, apparently this has been common on the islands this summer and they're trying to figure out what is causing it.

After a yummy lunch at our favorite Mexican restaurant, home of the massive Margarita, we headed to our friend Matt's lanai for an incredible view of the Blue Angels air show. It was up close and very, very loud. After the show we headed home and while the girls watched a movie Mom got in a run. I've signed up for the marathon but haven't quite committed to it yet. I've done it twice before so its not just a matter of finishing it this year, I'd like to race it. Catch is I'm not sure I can make it a priority. Still deciding. But while I do I'll enjoy the occasional family day off.

What's New

The original plan was to blog every other day and then life got in the way. Its been over 6 weeks and lots is new. Dad started a new job (while trying to finish the last one, fun, fun), Mama got a new bike (which then went on sale, thanks Frank) , Hannah started a new sport, soccer (Go Sweettarts!) and Ella is starting to sound out letters, so we've all been busy.

We're back to homeschooling and so far so good. We've been reading about determination and one of the stories was about Lance Armstrong and the Tour de France. Hannah drew a picture, this is huge progress because Hannah has never really liked to sit and do anything.



Still trying to fit in lots of beach time. This is the second Sea Slug we've found at Lanikai. He's very pretty.




This is the pretty pink table and chairs Ella picked out this week and I assembled it for her. However rather than the tea parties I had envisioned, this is how they spent their afternoon. Playing in the box. Yes, it was a boat and Ella was sailing away to France when Hannah decided she should go too, so they packed in all their belongings and a cell phone in case they get lost. It was going to take 3 days but then there was a Tsunami on the lake so they had to take a lunch break.

Next they had a "stamp fight", Crayola has new markers which have stamps on the end in the shapes of hearts, dolphins etc. So they decided to "stamp" each other. Mom bellows, "We only write on paper, not people!" When I return to the scene I see thisthey have scotch taped paper to themselves and have continued their fencing. They are beginning to join forces, I'm doomed.