t u e s d a y

baking together

reading by the fire

dance of the water molecules experiment

candlelight to celebrate the season!

Autumn Fires

by Robert Louis Stevenson

In the other gardens

and all up the vale,

From the autumn bonfires

see the smoke trail!

Pleasant summer over

and all the summer flowers,

The red fire blazes,

the gray smoke towers.

Sing a song of seasons!

Something bright in all!

Flowers in the summer,

Fires in the fall!

Pier 39 and Thanksgiving

It's that time of year again. 

Time to light the tree at Pier 39.

It was also a blue moon last night!

It was cold but beautiful in San Francisco yesterday.

Christmas music is already playing on the radio!

This was a little shocking to me.

It seems the holidays are coming whether I'm ready or not.

We are spending Thanksgiving at my mom's house.

I will be doing all the cooking!

I want my mom and Joe to have a relaxing day with the family.

Joe will be on the tail-end of his chemo for the month, so I know he will be tired.

So we'll cook, play Apples to Apples, and watch football.

Sounds lovely to me!

How will you spend your Thanksgiving?

Homeschool Day at Monterey Bay Aquarium

Grandma, the kids and I spent the day at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

It was so warm and beautiful.

We had to stop at the beach before going into the Aquarium.

Binky took this picture of one of his favorite animals.

The sea horse exhibit was one of my favorites.

There was a room filled with exhibits and touch tanks.  And lots of docents to answer questions.

We watched a sea star grab a tiny shrimp and carry it down to its mouth.

Goose stopped to draw in her journal.

Binky found some old friends.

My favorite is this beautiful octopus.

She is usually hiding in a corner, but yesterday she gave us quite a show!

We also found a lovely pearl inside this giant clam.

I think we're gonna keep her!

We just had to stop at the water one more time.

Before getting in the car, we stopped at Ghiradelli for some ice cream and chocolate.

It was a wonderful ending to a wonderful day.

Thank you Grandma for joining us!

zoo day

Binky and I went to the San Francisco Zoo yesterday.

It was such a beautiful day.

Binky took a lot of these photos.

He is very interested in photography.  We are making a photo album of

all his work.  He will be showing it at our

homeschool Gathering of Learners next week.

Tonight both kids have a friend sleeping over and Daddy went to the movies.

Me and the kitty are hanging out while the kids are having fun with their friends.

Daddy just got home so I'm gettin' off the computer to hang out with my best friend!

one p r o u d mom

Binky performing Pinan 3.

He was the lowest rank in his group and had to perform his Kata 3 times before

the judges made their decision.

He won 2nd place!

He was soooo proud!

Goose performing Pinan 2.

She won 1st place!

Binky also competed in sparring and came in 2nd place.

They worked very hard for this tournament.

Lots of practice at home and extra classes.

We are so proud of them!

I am so amazed at their confidence to get up and perform in front of a large group people.

But what really made me proud was watching all the kids high-five each other as they came off the mat, regardless of what dojo they were from.  That was the real prize of the day!

After six hours at the tournament we celebrated

with ice cream sundaes, extra cherries!

Bonnets and Comics

Goose made this Blackfeet war bonnet for her history class project.

Isn't it beautiful?!

Binky has been making comic strips nonstop!

These last two photos are from our moring walk around the neighborhood.

The sky was so blue and bright!

Right now we are making a stew similar to what the Blackfeet would make.

The recipe calls for buffalo, but she would have none of that.

So beef stew it is.  She is, or rather I am, bringing the stew to class tomorrow as part of her

Blackfeet project.  They've been studying the Overland Trail and she chose

the Blackfeet tribe for her project.

I am also going to make paper airplanes with Binky and his friends at lunch.

I only hope I feel better.

I can't seem to kick this thing I've got going on in my head, neck, throat and ear.

It's driving me crazy!

And life doesn't stop just because you are sick or your husband had gum surgery or

your kids enlist you to cook a stew for their class or you have to find a part-time job

or, or, or...

But taking care of these three, five including the cat and dog, is what brings me the greatest joy.

Even if I feel like crap!

Leaf Cut-out Frame

I have been saving leaves to do this project for about a week now.

All you need is a frame, some cut-outs, and Mod Podge.

I pressed the leaves between books for a few days so they are nice and flat.

Then I got to work cutting out the shapes I wanted for my frame.

I didn't have any problems cutting out each shape. 

You can use the veins of the leaves in interesting ways.

Next, I covered the frame in Mod Podge and placed my cut-outs.

Then I covered the frame again in Mod Podge.

After drying, I did another coat.

It really is pretty!

I can't wait to make more with the kids!

wednesday and thursday

This tree took my breath away!

It was so beautiful in the sunlight.

Goose found this little guy Wednesday after classes.

Thursday was a day of friends, Catopoly and

cookies! 

Binky helped me make cookies, which I really enjoyed.

I even fit in a little fraction lesson while we were measuring.

Then we took the kids to martial arts and then home for dinner.

I had dinner with a friend at a local pub while listening to some great jazz.

It was so much fun!  I really needed to escape for a while.

She is a first grade teacher and an amazing one at that.

We met at our preschool and have been friends ever since.

I listened to her head lice and mother-in-law ranting and she listened to my tween daughter meltdown rant!

My throat is a little sore from laughing so hard!

Today I am a little tired, but far more relaxed.

Thank you Beth!!

birds and a pod racer

This beautiful pelican was diving in and out of the water looking for a feast!

The Western Burrowing Owls are back!

They spend the winter here and we look forward to watching them every year.

This little guy was very vocal. 

He was having a conversation with a seagull.

Peace by the bay.

And no outing would be complete without a lego pod racer!

Another week of classes.

Bats, the Overland Trail, Bizwiz and outdoor games.

While the kids are in class I head to the local coffee house with another mom or two.

We head back in time to have lunch with our kids.

After classes today, the kids are going to a friend's house for a few hours.

Goose is tutoring him in reading.

She is making money tutoring and being a mother's helper.

She is so thrilled!

Binky plays with legos while he waits.

While they are away, I will be applying for a part time job.

Some evenings and weekends to help out financially.

We are going through some rough times.

It looks like we are foreclosing on our house...

It is so hard to even type those words.

So we are looking for a new place to live.

The thought of living somewhere that isn't ours is no fun.

We have been honest with the kids.

Which I sometimes regret because they are very stressed out

and SAD about leaving the only home they've ever known.

And no matter how much I tell them that as long as we are together everything will be okay, they

still seem sad, nervous and worried.

Goose is having stomach problems and Binky is constantly reminding me that he does not want to leave his home, that he will never be comfortable any where else.

So...

that is where we are.

It isn't easy to share these things when I know Goose and others read this.

But there it is.