Halloween Complaints

Complaint #1:

I'm longing for a good old fashioned Halloween. One where children actually walk door to door and go good old fashioned trick or treating(GOFTOT). Not walking from car trunk to car trunk in a very small parking lot. Goodness. Are we so lazy that we can't get out in the neighborhood and meet our neighbors? Is walking around the block really that big of a deal? Is it unsafe somehow to go GOFTOT, even if you are RIGHT THERE with your kids and there is no possibility of them getting snatched? This is just one more reason why we as a nation are raising a generation of coddled pantywaists. Who invented these things anyway? Heaven forbid our darlings get any exercise in the form of trolling the 'hood for treats. And don't EVEN get me started on trick or treating at the mall. That is just wrong in so many ways.

Complaint # 2:

Why, when you go to the Halloween store to buy a costume for yourself, are all the women costumes slutty? Wait, wait, don't tell me. Because a man designed them?

Disclaimer:
We attended a trunk or treat last night and had a blast. Of course, there were games, and lots of hanging out getting to know each other beforehand AND, it didn't replace GOFTOT.

Just A Cute Scene I Saw

So I've seen this particular cute thing happen several times now. On Saturdays, we're usually busy going to Keller's football games. (Yes fellow Alta Hawks, that's a Brighton uni). This is Keller's first year playing as it is for most of the other boys he plays with. They are about 8 or 9 years old. They look adorable and tiny in their pads and uniforms. The referee for most of the games is this teenage kid who looks like he might be a high school football player? Not sure. But he's young. When the play starts and the ball is snapped, like most young sporties, all the players kind of just follow the ball around on the field. When the running back (or the kid who runs with the ball) finally gets tackled, they all dogpile on top of him and everyone winds up in a five foot stack of flailing arms and legs. The ref comes over and stars grabbing these little kids by their shoulder pads, picking them up in the air and setting them on their feet one by one, just like you would for a toddler who was learning to walk. I can't explain why it's so cute. And I'm not sure the cuteness is coming through in my words, but it just makes me smile every time. It makes them seem even smaller. Like little baby puppies or something.

Another moment of football cuteness: The smallest kid on our team (and I mean he's TEENY) ran and tackled the biggest kid on the other team while he was running for a touchdown last Saturday. I mean, he took that big kid DOWN! It was awesome and hilarious.

Green Hour Pix

It took me long enough to get these pictures added. Life with a newborn...
Anyway...this is a cool rock we found on our nature walk. It had a shiny spot with shimmering rainbow like flakes of rock that would peel off...




This is one of the peelings from the rock.








Keller and Ella getting excited about some crocuses that were blooming.






A tiny little pine cone. Ella called it a baby pine cone.



A leaf Ella was excited about. I don't know if we'll keep doing this...I've got a lot going on already. The kids loved it though. And now... we're off to tour the State Capitol Building. By the way...do you love Keller's mismatched outfit? He looks pretty homeless.

Green Hour

We've decided join the Green Hour Challenge! We're committed to spending an hour outside a week, just observing nature and learning more about it. I'm excited to get this going. I know the kids are gonna flip. They love this kind of thing, especially Keller. He's such an outdoor boy. We'll start tomorrow and I'll return and report.

From the Teacher's Desk

The lazy girl's guide to the library:

1. Go to your library's website.
2. Choose the books you want (you can browse around by author, subject, title, and more) and put them on hold using your library card number. It doesn't matter if the book you want is already at your regular library, put it on hold anyway.
3. Check your library account in a few days and make sure all items you've put on hold for the week are there.
4. Go to the library where you've chosen to have your books delivered.
5. Go to the hold shelf and locate the letter of your last name.
6. Pick up your books and check them out. Make it out of the library in five minutes flat, even with four kids in tow.
7. Go home and read.

Carschooling

Don't waste the time you spend in the car. Lately I've been amazed at how much my kids are able to learn while we're out and about. The main way that they've learned is through tapes and CD's.
We've listened to the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I can't say enough about these books! What a peek inside the life of a farming family a century ago. You'll have to hear it to believe some of the things they knew how to do. It was a good look at what every day life was really like for average people back then.
We've listened to Egyptian, Greek, and Roman myths and legends and they're fascinating! There is a particular guy who narrates these really well. His name is Jim Weiss. Look for CD's by him in your library's books on tape for children. They're not to be missed!
I ordered a series of CD's about the lives of the great composers. Though not as fascinating and well done as the Jim Weiss series, (I wish he would do some of the composers!) these have certainly been educational and have introduced my kids to the beautiful music and the lives of these interesting men.
Lately we've been listening to the multiplication tables put to music. It's pretty painful to listen to, I must admit. But, maybe it will help them learn their multiplication facts!
I've also seen CD's about the state capitals, and tons of other educational subjects...give it a try!
Oh! And by the way, there is an added perk to listening to stories in the car...the kids fight a lot less!
Happy Homeschooling,
Kristy