Technology sucks!

My computer seems to have picked up some weird virus! I think we fixed it this time (knock on wood!), but we aren't all that sure. It doesn't seem to be eating anything, it just holds my computer hostage. I can't get to anything, and it's really frustrating.

It started with a pop-up telling my my computer was threatened, and would I like to Heal, Ignore, etc. I chose Heal, thinking it was my anti-virus software. My computer locked up for a bit, then everything seemed to be fine. I got offline right away. The next day, things seemed fine, til I tried to get online. That's when it locked up, and a pop-up for an anti-virus software kept pinging. The hubby checked online, and it seems to be a scam to get money. We found a download to get rid of it, but it happened again. I really hope that we got rid of it for good this time! Is it weird to sometimes really hate technology? Hopefully, I'll be back with some summer and home school posts. Hope you guys are having fun!

I want to move to the City!

So, we don't live waaaaaay out in the country on an 8,000 acre ranch or anything, but having an acre between each neighbour, and only having 8 houses in our "subdivision" feels like it to me. I am an Air Force Brat who grew up in base housing, and having space scares me to death! And, honestly............Nature freaks me out. I don't like bugs and snakes and things, being up close and personal. *Shiver*

But here's the deal. I married a man who loves space, and would be the only house out here if it were possible. And the house was already here, so what can I do, I love the man. For 10 years now, we have lived here, and in that 10 years, we've spotted many a bug, and animal. One night, I took pictures of an opossum roaming around our back porch and patio(from the safety of the living room and porch, of course!). I killed the biggest Black Widow I have ever seen in my life, right outside our front door two weeks ago. We've watched wild turkey's fly from our backyard, seen deer scamper across the fields, and hubby even spotted a coyote in the road one morning on his way to work. Raccoons and their babies walk along the road at night, and a baby skunk and I scared the crap out of each other once when I opened the door to let out the dog! Thank goodness my reflexes kicked in and I slammed the door before it realized what was going on! And the bunnies......oh the bunnies! Sadie the Greyhound is just dying to get her paws on one! And they taunt her mercilessly, the little devils. And yes, it all sounds wonderful, and it has been......until the night before last.

The kids and I were out "Bunny Hunting" with Sadie. That's what we call her evening "business" outings now, thanks to the taunting. The three fields around the yard have sprouted a huge crop of blackberries. And either it just started, or I've been totally blind for 10 years now! Anyhooo.....we found some that were hanging over into the yard (heck no, I'm not walking into the field to pick them! Helllooo, Nature Phobic!), so we discussed the stages of ripening, and picked some good looking ones. We were close to the road, and I just happened to look up. I spotted something out of the corner of my eye on the ground, and my heart revved. I told the kids to take Sadie in the house, and to tell the hubby to come outside. I backed away, but realized it wasn't quite what I thought it was. Hubby came out, and was amazed. I, on the other hand, am scared to death to walk around the yard now. Would you like to see what I found???

That is not a stick. That is a 5ft - something long, fully intact snake skin!!!!! Hubby is "pretty sure" it's a black snake. I don't really care, I think it's gross and horrible and scary. That thing is almost as tall as me, and I don't like it not one little bit. I am packing as we speak. City, here I come!!!

Crafty withdrawls

My craft room is a mess (again), and I hate it! I seem to be one of those people who feel all out of whack if I'm not making something. It might not be good, but I made it myself, and there is something to that. I embroider now, which is tiding me over a bit, but I also enjoy my new found paper mache hobby, as well, and am dying to combine the two. I also enjoy my stamp carving, which I cannot do outside my craft room thanks to the mess I make doing it.

My craft room has become a "catch all" room, thanks to lack of storage in our house. I walk by daily, and just sigh. There is something new in there every single day! I have become overwhelmed by the amount of stuff in there, but I have got to get started. My Mom has asked me to do a project for her, and I'd like to be able to do it for her rather quickly. It isn't hard, nor will it take long, but I need to do it IN THERE!

I miss my craft room, darn it, and all the weird and wonderful things in it. It's my getaway. It's where I stash my Anime figures (we are weird enough without those being out in public), My Alfred Hitchcock Barbie (The Birds!), my kids wonderfully abstract art, and hopefully soon, a Coraline doll (sigh). I need to be in there at least once a day to help calm the waters.

So...starting tomorrow, I will begin the tedious, and time consuming task of cleaning it out (again). Yay! Wish me luck!!

Ballet Slippers and Diva-ish Behavior

My youngest, Moongazer, has been taking Ballet through our Home school group for about 6 months now, I think. She enjoys it, but it hasn't become her passion. She preferred to show me the stretches they do in class, than the actual moves! I think that might have all changed last night.

She had her first recital, and looooved it! She wasn't nervous, "Not one little bit," she said. She did a wonderful job for someone who refused to practice at home. I'm not kidding, either, she flat out refused! She remembered a lot more of the dance than I thought she would. We stayed backstage the whole time, since we had seen the performances two days before, at dress rehearsal. I wanted to take pictures backstage, and she liked watching from there. I really enjoy backstage, although, I think we might have been in the way some. We weren't the only ones, believe me!
She was absolutely gorgeous in her costume, and I'm not partial at all I tell ya. Her hair is thin and short, so it took me awhile to figure something out. Especially, since I'm not a big Girly-Girl, and have loathed doing my own hair since I was young. We had to fix it backstage thanks to the rain, but it actually turned in to a blessing. It looked so much better the second time around. And honestly, I'm secretly hoping that there will be more of these sorts of things to come. Whether it be ballet, or theatre, I loved getting her all dressed up. I think having a little girl is starting to bring out the inner girl in me, as well! And being backstage was so much fun. I have secretly had a dream to work on sets and things, but have been too scared to go through with it.

Although, it seems like the costume had some sort of effect on my sweet, darling, daughter. There was more than one instance (as you can tell by the first picture) of Diva behavior. Frowns, foot-stomping, the dreaded "tsk" noise, the whole thing. It was weird, I tell you!

The rest of the girls (and one boy) were wonderful, as well. I loved seeing them all dressed in their costumes, giggling nervously backstage with their classmates, and watching in quiet awe as their lovely teacher danced a solo. Standing there, surrounded by giggles, tulle, props, and my little munchkin glowing with excitement, I was in Heaven. And I think I might not have been the only one.

Poor Sadie

My lovely greyhound Diva is depressed. And it's our fault. We brought home another grey, and man was he a sweetie! Sadie had met him while staying at her former Foster Home while we went on vacation, and they got along sooo well! She was already teaching him bad habits, and loving it. My husband and I went back and forth about it, and finally took him home. We were having a wee bit of a money thing (stupid economy, stupid us), but we thought we would be able to manage. Well.....being a one-income, homeschooling household, money for adopting another dog wasn't really there. So, it was either Wylie, or the kids' education. We are really trying to keep them home, and they have to have books. I feel horrible. We are all upset, especially our youngest who had become very attached to Wylie. The adoption group was very sympathetic, and luckily, they were able to place him in his new Forever Home 3 days after we called them. I know that some people won't understand how we could have given him back. But, homeschooling is something that we are very commited to, and believe me, it was sooo hard to do it.

But, in the past few days, I've noticed that Sadie is sleeping a lot. Now, for most greyhounds, that is normal, but Sadie didn't race, and is a little more active than most greys. She sleeps or lays around, but she has been doing it longer, and more often than usual. And today, she doesn't even want to really go outside. I hope that this is just a mourning period, and that she will come out of it soon. I feel so horribly guilty when I look over and see her just laying there. I'm sorry, my poor, lovely Sadie. I really am.

School starts back when?!!!

I've been talking about the summer quite a bit lately. To my Mom, the hubby, other homeschool Moms....and the question inevitably comes up; "When are you guys going to start back?" My answer is always, "Oh, probably in July, maybe the middle. I want to have time off at Christmas and stuff." And we go on with whatever else we're doing.

Well, I just realized that July is only a month away. One Month!!! What?? When did that happen? Where did May go???!!!! Aaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!

I am FREAKING OUT!! We haven't bought the curriculum yet, I haven't made any plans.....I have nothing! And believe me, I am the most unorganized person on the face of the planet. I need time to figure out HOW to get organized, THEN do it. One of the biggest problems we ran into this past year, was the fact that I didn't plan out and organize our weekly work very well. It was a sort of "fly by the seat of your pants" kind of year, and it bit me in the butt. I don't want a repeat of that.

Soooo, it looks like my nights will be busy with curriculum research, books, forms, and "How To Organize Your Home" tips. Ah, Internet, I love you.

Our Summer Plans

Our school year is over, and it's time for a break! We are more than likely going to be starting back in July, so I wanted to make the most of the time the kids have off. There are going to be library visits every week (they enjoy it, I swear! ), slip n' slide action in the yard, disc golf with Dad, aaannnnd.......Weird Side Trips! What better way for our weird little family to celebrate summer, than with The Summer of Weird! I love this book, and have the Weird U.S. one as well. We've actually been to a couple of the places in here already, but there are so many more that I'm dying to see! I mean, WE are dying to see,that's right, all of us.....

So, over the summer, the blog will consist of pics and stories (hopefully!) of all the weird and wonderful places we've discovered in our home state. If the kids look a little less than happy in the pictures, don't worry about it, they are probably just overwhelmed by the awesomeness of the things we are finding. Stay tuned!

Ramble on...

Things have been pretty boring around here, actually. Not too many adventures in the Electric City, thanks to my lazy butt!!

The kids are finishing up their school work, thank goodness!! This last half of the year has been rough, and seems to have gotten worse now that we are at the end! Next year will be sooo much better. We have begun doing research on some curriculum, and I'm going to try and plan better before we start our school year this time. I bet that will help alot, don't you!? LOL!!

Allergy season has hit us full force! I am miserable. I keep forgetting to take my medicine bottle with me when we run errands so that I can get my perscription refilled. I'm paying for it, too. We have Park Day today, and I am not looking forward to the aftermath. I wonder if I have any Clariton left over? I'll have to rummage. The kids have been sneezing and snotting as well, so I know it's bad out. I seem to be the most sensitive in the house. Looks like we'll be picking them up some meds. soon, too. Of course, they are kids, and I'm a wuss, so they are dealing with it sooo much better than I am!

Mother's Day was busy. I spent most of the weekend with my parents in Ga. I haven't been down there to stay the weekend in forever! My loves took me out for my MD dinner Saturday night, since my favorite is Sushi. We took my Mom in law to lunch, and my Mom to dinner on Sunday. My glorious hubby got me, my mom in law, and my mom gift certificates to the spa!!! I am sooo ready to use that puppy! Massage and pedicure, please!!! I'd get a facial, but my face has become extremely sensitive over the years, and the last time I tried one, I broke out in a rash. It was not a pretty sight, believe me.

I have dyed my hair a couple of times in the past couple of weeks. The first was supposed to be Aqua, but since the blonde in my hair is more brassy than true, it turned slightly more green than blue. No worries, it actually looked pretty cool. Unfortunately, I have yet to find a dye that will stay in my hair more than a couple of days and keep it's color. So, I got some Manic Panic Pillbox Red to try out. It glows under a blacklight, don't ya know, but I haven't been able to try it out yet. I dyed it over the fading green, and it's awesome. Again, it's fading pretty quickly. There is another dye I've heard of that I might try out. I think I might need to leave it in longer, too. I want to go and get my hair bleached true blonde, so that the colors will come out the right shades. We'll see.

I've gotten two of the six embroidery projects for the kitchen done! It's going to be 3 girls and 3 boys. They are retro patterns, and I'm wild about retro! I do think that I'm going to have to redo the first of the girls. She was one of my first ever projects, and I'm not too happy with how she looks now compared to the others now. Oh well! I am really enjoying embroidery, and have a couple of other projects in the works. I bought some fabric this weekend to use as a background for one, and my Mom has asked me to do one for her house. And then there are some patterns that I'm dying to get from Sublime Stitching! I looooove Jenny Hart's stuff!!! I'm hoping this summer will be productive in the craft area, LOL!!

Busy, busy...

Ooo, I've become one of those people, haven't I? I get the blog going, then ignore it completely...sorry! We have been pretty busy lately, though, if it's any consolation. Let's see...

We had our church's Easter Egg Hunt.

Went on a vacation, thanks to hubby's job. We went to Hilton Head for the week before Easter. I like it better in the off-season, but we took what we got.
We stay on HH so that we can go to Savannah, which I looooove!

We took the kids to Bonaventure Cemetery. It's my favorite place in Sav.

Then it was Hunting Island State Park. We have a thing for lighthouses, and last year, we missed going up by 10 mins. So, we had to do it this year.
I have some brave kids, people! They love going up and seeing the view. Although, poor hubby has a thing for heights. I've been very proud of him this year. He made it all the way around the top without having his back plastered up against the wall! Yay, hubby!

I'll be back with more soon! We are off to a Meet & Greet in Greenville today!

Funny Story....

Okay, so here's the funny story about the topiary. But, you know how some stories are funny to you, but then you go and tell them to someone else and they look at you weird? This might be one of those.

As you heard in the last post, I tend to craft quite a bit, and I like to spice it up. What happens to all of those crafts you ask? Well, I tried my hand at the craft show circuit, but that was a major eye opener (not to mention a blow to my self conscience!). So, most of the stuff is either up in the attic, at my Mom's, or in the heat of a hissy fit, thrown out. I know, that last one isn't very adult of me, but us artists are like that. Oh, right, the story..I'm getting there.

The hubby and I were up in the attic this past fall, doing some cleaning, and I came across these really pretty topiary's.

"Oooo, these are really pretty, I should put these out!", I say.

"Hmm.", says hubby.

I look at them some more..they really are nice.

"Where did I get these, honey? Why aren't they downstairs?", I ask. My memory ain't what it used to be, you know.

There is silence from the hubby, so I look up to see why he isn't answering me. He is staring at me like I've grown another head.

"What?", I ask.

"Really?", he says.

"What?", I repeat.

"You made those, honey. Don't you remember?"

I am shocked. He must be mistaken, I don't make anything that looks that good.

"I didn't make these, these are nice."

He stares at me. "Honey, listen to me, you made those, I promise. Look at the bottom, you probably signed them."

I did, and I had.

I figured out that what I see, and what others see, are two totally different things. Weird, right?

P.S. the picture isn't one of the topiaries in the story, I can't find a pic of those. That is one of the floral arrangements I've made. It was the closest thing I had, sorry!

A little crafty-ness

The hubby says that I have crafters ADD. I have tried lots of different crafts, but have not settled on one. Maybe I'm just looking for THE ONE. Maybe I'm just trying to prove to myself that I can do them? I don't know. I do know that I love crafting, whatever it is I decide to do that day!


Let's see....I've tried decorative painting, mosaics, floral design, decopauge, wire jewlery, scrapbooking, faux stain glass work, stamping, wooden box purses, took a sewing class, made faux topiaries (there is a funny story with that one!), stamp carving, paper mache, wool felt applique, and my newest adventure....hand embroidery.


Okay, so that does seem like alot when you put it in print. Hmmm, maybe the hubby is right, but don't tell him that!

I have taught myself almost everything I've done, with the exception of a One-stroke painting class, and the sewing class. The hand embroidery is by far my favorite. I think that it might be because it sort of links me with my Maternal Grandmother and my Mother in a crafty way.

My Mom's Mom quilted and crocheted, and my Mom did Cross-Stitch for as long as I can remember. Oh, I've cross-stitched as well, so add that to the list! I don't care for cross-stitching (sorry, Mom!) because I can never keep my place counting all those little colored boxes on the patterens! Ugh! I'm too much of a spaz to work the sewing machine, and hand quilting just seems like it would take too long. And with the emboidery, you can do anything you'd like. I have done two drawing that my kids did for me, a regular pattern, and I just finished my very first portrait! I need some work on my satin stictches, but I am very proud of how it came out.

Don't eat the ants!

Here is a funny story for you guys! But first, a little background, hmmm? We got a Mini Schnauzer pup last weekend, and although he is a cute little thing, I worry about him. *rolls eyes and twirls index finger near temple* And, he isn't potty trained yet, so that means I'm taking him out constantly (which doesn't guarantee that I won't find a surprise). We named him Chewie since he chews on everything! Soooooo.............

I take him out for the umpteenth time this evening (in the rain..ok, drizzle, but still) and he immediately begins to chew on stuff. I look away for 2 seconds, look back, still chewing. Okay, he really needs to do his "business", so I call him to get his attention. He looks, and I notice he has red clay on his muzzle. "Are you eating dirt?", I ask him. Oh, yes he is, but not just any dirt, nooooo. Extra Special Boy is eating ant pile dirt. And there are ants on his face. Holy........ I snatch him up, rush into the house, throw him in the tub, yell for the hubby, and start hosing him down. Ants are flying down the drain like they are on a water park ride, he's trying to escape, and I'm getting bitten! Add to that my hubby and two kids trying to squeeze into the bathroom for a look, when said bathroom is the size of a closet. There was some yelling going on, I will admit. There doesn't seem to be any emotional scarring, but I reeeeally hope that he learned his lesson!

Dang Leprechauns!

This St. Pat's Day, was the first time we'd ever been visited by Leprechaun's, and boy are they boogers! They toilet papered most of the ceiling fans and my plant. Along with a couple of the kids' favorite toys. They left green pencils (can you tell we homeschool?!) hidden all over the house, and filled our "treasure box" with chocolate gold coins and rolo's. They also turned the toilet water green, and left little green smudges (from whatever they used to do the water) all over the place! The kids thought it was hilarious, and can't wait to put the box back out next year! Hopefully, the little boogers will be a little more creative next year!

I was a bit under the weather for a bit last week, and boy did it suck!!! I had to be on antibiotics that didn't want me drinking caffeine! Ack! I thought I was dying from the withdrawl. I had already decided, before having to be on the meds., to stop drinking soda's. But, my morning coffee was something totally different. I wasn't giving up that! Well, show's what I know, cuz I did it for the last 6 days. I WILL be having coffee in the morning, that's for sure! I was so tired the first day, I alsmost dozed off helping my youngest with her math work. It felt like someone had drugged me. Then, came the headache. I had that puppy for two and a half days straight! Blech, I am so glad it's over. Although, now the allergies have kicked in. Things are blooming, which is pretty for the eyes, but not so much for the nose. Looks like it's time for more medicine!

I was also not supposed to be in the sun for long periods of time on the meds., and Saturday was a M & G in Greenville for the Greyhound group. All the rest of them had been inside, so now worries! WRONG!!! We were outside, with no cover, for 2 hours or so! I got a slight sunburn, and then worried all night about what might happen, thanks to the vague threats about prolonged sun exposer on the bottle. But, we did get to hang out with Sadie's Grey friends, and talk to alot of nice people. So, it was worth it in the end.

I'm getting excited about next years curriculum for school. We went to our local homeschool bookstore.....man, I could stay in there for hours!....and looked at some really cool stuff. We are having a curriculum fair at our Round Table meeting next month, so we can see types of curriculum some of the other families use. It's all hands on, and the families will talk about how they use it, pricing, etc. Hopefully, I'll be a little more organized next year, too.

Here are some pics. from the M & G. I know you guys are just dying to see those!

Sadie and her Foster Dad having a cuddle

Lovely Quinn ( 3 weeks off the track, I think ) who is petite, but a bit taller than Sadie, and Extra Large Orlando.

Quinn getting some lovin'. This little one was soo cute! He did not want to leave!

What lovely Greyhounds they are!

Weekend Update

We've been kind of busy around here the past few days. Co-op classes, surviving Friday the 13th, Awanna games, Meet & Greet, and rain...whew!

Thursdays are pretty busy for us, since we have co-op classes with our home school group. The kids are in 3 different classes, at an hour a pop. I'm on the class committee, so we have to be there about an hour before classes begin to set up, and stay til an hour after, to clean up. The classes run for 10 weeks, and we just finished week 8. We will have a break for summer, then start back in Sept. Along with getting things ready Thursday morning, the hubby calls and says he got an email about a homeschooling Mom in NC that is being forced by a judge to put her kids back in public school next year. I had to google! I was worried all day, even though there is nothing I can do for her. But, when stuff like that happens to one of us, it gets all of us in a tizzy. What if a judge ( or two, or three ) follows suit in our state? What does that mean for us? It's not all that fun, let me tell you! Luckily, it doesn't seem to be as big a deal as the ruling in Calf. They are going through a divorce, so it sounds kind of petty. Don't get me wrong, I am still worried about her and her kids. I don't think that is fair at all! But, I'm not as worried for my family now. Classes went great, the kids were happy...I was tired.


Friday the 13th was cloudy and chilly, and a great day for naps! That's about all there was to Friday....sorry!



Saturday, we were up and at our local high school for the Awanna Games. My son was chosen to participate, and he was very excited! And a little nervous, too, I think. I was not very happy with having to be there at 8:30 in the stinking morning! I looooove my weekends so that I can sleep in! My hubby is fabulous that way! They messed it up, but the kids had fun, so I guess I can over look it this one time. They came in third, but none of them looked very upset about it, which is good.



Sadie and her lovely scarf. It was chilly.


Later that day, Sadie the greyhound, my lovely ( but non-listening ) daughter and I headed to PetSmart for a greyhound Meet & Greet. I love going, but think I might be the only one. Sadie gives me the look the whole time we are there, and likes to show everyone that SHE rules ME. Moongazer ( the non-listener ) scampered around the store giving me frequent heart palpitations, and getting the venom voice every 5 mins. about crawling around on the floor. She's 5, and likes to pretend that she is a dog. I ruled that she is no longer allowed at Meet & Greets til she can listen better, which means that she probably won't be going ever again.

Frosty ( black ), and Lucy. Both very sweet girls!!!

Saturday night, the hubby and I dropped the kids off at his parents to spend the night. He and I headed over to my sister-in-laws for dinner, then home. Today has been another rainy day, but I hear it's going to get back up into the 70's in the next couple of days. Another exciting and glamorous weekend here in the Electric City! Jealous much!? Happy St. Pat's Day everyone!

Spring?

Well, the snow is all melted (the bucket is all that's left of our weird little snowman, Buckethead), and it was in the 70's this weekend! But, guess what our weatherman says...it's gonna be in the upper 40's on Friday! What???? Of course, that could change tomorrow, you never know with them. I think they do it so that we'll keep watching the horror they call the News.



What have we been up to? Well, the week was pretty uneventful. It got a little warmer everyday, so Sadie got walks in the afternoon. The kids did their school work, complained, helped me walk the dog, and complained some more. They spent the night with my Mother-in-Law on Friday night, so the hubby and I got a date night. Sushi and a movie!! Yay! Or so I thought....



The sushi was fabulous (even with the wait, and sitting with the octopus tentacle in my face), but the movie was not. The hubby has been dying to see Watchmen since he saw a preview and bought the graphic novel. I on the other hand, prefer my superhero's a little less gritty. I prefer the X-Men, and am breathlessly awaiting the new Wolverine movie! Not because of Wolverine, but Gambit! Oooo, he is wonderful.......wait, what were we talking about? Oh, yes, Watchmen...ugh! I am not a huge fan of gore (weak stomach), nor of the soft-porn disguised as R rated movies. This was both. I tried to leave about 45 mins. into the movie, but hubby got mad, so I stayed. I was miserable for 3 hours, people!



Other than that, the weekend was fine. We hit our local flea market for the first time in ages, but I didn't find anything good. We all got a bit of a sunburn, since we aren't used to being out for long periods of time. We visited our local goat farm to pet goats, see giant "polar dogs", tons of cats, sample free cheese and fudge, buy said cheese and fudge, and giggle as a very fat goat managed to escape and wander around at it's leisure. Today was church, lunch with my in-laws, and errands. This springing forward is taking it's toll, so I think it might be time to hit the hay. I forgot my camera when we went to the farm, so I don't have any pics to post, dang it! Maybe I'll just leave you with some of the kids and the dog? You know you want it!

Snow!!

This is not something that we usually wake up to here in South Carolina! I know alot of you northerners are over the whole snow thing, but down here.....WhooooHooooo!!!! It started on Sunday evening, about 4ish, with wet snow. Then, it progressed to huge flakes that fell all night. I took this around 7ish in the morning, Monday. An hour or so later, after breakfast, and layering, it was trashed! We had a blast! There were still traces of it left today, but barely. By tomorrow, you'll never even know it snowed. We had 5 inches in all!

We had a massive two day snowball fight! That's all they wanted to do! We have video, as well, and it's hilarious because they are constantly throwing snow at one another!

Sadie hated the sled! It scared her to death! I think that she's a little worried about the kids being on it....

This was not long after it started Sunday evening. Sadie wasn't sure what it was, but at least she went out and did her "thing". I was worried that she wouldn't, because she refuses to go out if it's raining (or dark!). The hubby actually got a picture of her "going" since we were so happy she did it, but I'll spare you that!

Our oldest. She is completely blind, so I was afraid that she might freak out a bit when she hit the snow. She acted like it was nothing! You go, Rosebud!

This was the day I wished we had a fence already! She wanted to play sooo bad! Check out the tongue!

He threw that at me!

Our gorgeous Ice Princess!

Our very own snowball tree!

Daddy is the designated sled puller for the boy....he's gettin big!

Her brother was nice enough to pull her for about 5 seconds!

Meet Me, Greet Me, I'm a dog store Diva

Today, Sadie, the greyhound Diva, and I went to our first Meet & Greet with the rescue group we adopted her from. GPA Electric City is a small organization that just started up this past summer. They have already placed 11 dogs in their Forever Homes! You go GPA EC! Whoo-Hoo!

I had a greyt time! I love talking to the volunteers, they are so funny! And I enjoy talking to others about being a first time Grey owner. Sadie, on the other hand, dosen't really care for the whole thing. She kept giving me "the look", trying her best to coax me into heading for the front door. Then, when she realized that I wasn't going to do what she wanted me to, she plopped down in the middle of the main thouroughfare and took a nap! I am a total pushover when it comes to my pets, and they wrap me around their paws pretty quickly. Everyone there got to see that in all it's glory! I could not get her to get up for anything! The only time she would, was when one of the other Greys would step on her. It was a little embarassing, I must admit, but other than that, I really enjoyed it. I am looking forward to helping out with the group when they need me, and bringing Sadie to many more Meet & Greets.

Oh, and I've already found my next Grey, but he does have a application on him already. Dang!

February, Dread-uary

In the world of homeschooling, February is a hard month. Actually, January wasn't all that easy either, but it's not in the title of my post.

When we started this year, I thought that it would be more fun if we didn't use a curriculum. Note to self: Maybe you shouldn't think without supervision. We would be interest led, and use the library all the time. I mean, we were there every week anyway, right? Right! Wrong!! Well, not about the library part, we were there every week.....but the other stuff, not so much. It started off great, but as the months past, it began it's downward spiral. Books on my book list were checked out, so I was forced to come up with something on my own. Believe me, that isn't good for anybody. It's been way more work that I thought it would, which means alot less fun for everyone. My stress level is hovering near critical mass, and the kids' patience is wearing thin.

I don't want you to think that I thought homeschooling would be a breeze or anything. I knew that it would be work. Especially for me, seeing as how I'm organization impared, but I don't think that this is supposed to be this hard. We aren't having fun anymore, and homeschooling should be fun. For the kids, and for me. Yes, they are learning things... But, not in the way I had pictured. They are learning things in a public school way, and that defeats the whole purpose of bringing them home. What I mean is that they are just sitting here, learning the basics out of their workbooks like they would in school. I had pictured tons of field trips, doing our work outside in the yard, wonderful art projects that were not only fun, but educational as well, etc. It ain't happenin' people, and the only one I have to blame is myself, and that stupid little voice that told me I didn't need no stinkin' curriculum! Too bad the dog muzzle won't fit on the mouth of that stupid little voice.

So, we will keep chugging along with our work during the day, and at night I will be researching curriculums to see which one might fit us best. And on Monday, we will officially say goodbye to the dreaded month of Dread-uary! We might even have party hats and cupcakes!

A little about us

Hi there! I'm a first year homeschooling Mom with two crazy kids, a wonderful hubby, a blind Basset Hound, and a newly adopted 2 year old Greyhound! I love blogs...although why I thought it appropriate to start my own, I don't know. I guess it isn't enough to talk to myself around the house, now I can do it via the internet!

We began our Homeschooling adventure two summers ago. Through a wonderful hobby called, Letterboxing, we met a gaggle of Homeschool families. I was intrigued right away. Our public school experience wasn't horrific, just so you know, but I was having a hard time "cutting the apron strings", I guess. I honestly think that I was meant to be a hardcore Stay-at-homer. Call it scared, lazy, whatever, but even on the days that I could scream for hours, I wouldn't trade it for the world. I missed my kids, now aged 8 and 5, and mornings were horrific! No matter what time we got up, we were late! And every afternoon, my son(the 8 yr. old) came home in the foulest moods. My daughter is the social butterfly, and likes to talk. She isn't ADD, she's 5, and enjoys being a kid. That dosen't mix well with the public school system. She was the one that I was the most worried about. My son is a fabulous public school kid. He is able to sit at his desk and do his work without a problem. She, on the other hand..... So, I talked to the hubby..alot..and we decided to try it out over the summer. Things went well! I realized I could do it, and was excited. Then, the notices started coming from the school. Open House was coming, and the voices inside my head (the good ones, not the weird "maybe you should talk to someone" kind!) went into overdrive. I freaked. I fretted. I begged the hubby to tell me what to do. He said, in his glorious wisdom, "It's your decision, you are the one that will be the teacher." Ugh! That didn't help at all! I caved and sent them back to school for another year. The boy (Computer Monster) went to 1st and the diva went to 4K. I regretted it the first week. Although, we were extremely blessed to have a wonderful first year teacher for the boy, and glad we got to know her. The diva (Moongazer) got notes sent home about her talking and playing, and visions of notes filled with the word Ritalin danced in my head. Then there came the "Shot incident", and ohhhh was I mad! I came close to yanking them that day! My doctor was just as upset with the school as I was! I love, love, love our family doctor! But, I let them finish out the year. That was the thing that pushed me to my final decision. We haven't looked back since! This year has been tough, and I've learned alot of lessons along the way, but that's what the Adventure is about, right?!