Reading challenge

I love to read.  Don't most homeschoolers?  My favorite is historical fiction, I guess that's why history is my major.  I'm especially fascinated with colonial and pioneer historical fiction, although I do read others.

I've been doing a lot of reading on the Thomas Jefferson theory of reading classics.  I've made an effort over the last few years to read more classics.  TL reads some classics and award winners-time honored and tested literature that has survived generations.

I have decided that along with school this year, I need to start reading more classics and having TL read more of them.  So, I designed a new list to read.  I have also included the list of historical fiction that I need to read that's stacking up:

1776
Mayflower
The Intrique at Highbury (okay it doesn't classify as either, but I have to get my Elizabeth and Darcy fix)
The last of the Mohicans
The Lonesome Gods
Northanger Abbey
A Tale of Two Cities
The Whiskey Rebels
Rebel (by Bernard Cornwell)

That's all I have listed for this year.  I just can't do anymore with homeschooling and college.  Plus, I need to read all the books on TL's list because believe it or not, I have not read any of these books!

From the Mixed up Files of Mrs. Basil E Frankweiler
The Phantom Tollbooth
The Cricket in Times Square
A Wrinkle in Time
The Silver Chair
The Horse and his boy
The Magician's Nephew
The Last Battle

We will be reading aloud together The Hobbit, The Wind and the Willows and finishing up Pilgrim's Progress.

I will be reading aloud to the girls their classics.  I'll be reading fairy tales at bedtime and during the day, we'll be reading the Betsy books and Little House on the Prairie series. 

Lots and lots of reading, but I'm looking forward to it!  Take care everyone!!

Have a wonderful adn safe New Year!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!! May you and your family be blessed with peace and joy this Christmas!!




Please remember to pray not only for the service members that are serving away from home, but also the families that not only have their loved one deployed. Most of these families can't afford to go home for the holidays so they are stuck at the duty station without their service member or family.







Blessings to all

Michelle

I've won an award!!

First one ever and I have no idea why.  I am certainly not stylish!!  I dress in jeans and tshirts and sneakers that are ripped and two years old.  My hair is usually in a pony tail.  I don't change purses to match my outfit or my shoes.  I never wear jewelry-well, maybe I will when the baby turns three. 

So, in honor of my award, I'm supposed to tell you seven random things about me:

1.  I've lived in Japan.  Loved it, it was wonderful.  I would go back in a heartbeat.

2.  I quilt.  Lots of people call it the old lady hobby, but many do it.  I spend only a little time on it because of school and homeschooling, but I love to quilt, it relaxes me.

3.  I love to do genealogy research.  I've come across many interesting facts about my family. I've almost traced some lines to the American Revolution and before!

4.  I love to go to the movies.  I haven't been in over a year, since we left Japan.  In Japan we went every week, it was very affordable $2 for me and $1 for the kids.  Of course, most of the movies I've seen are kiddos movies but still-I love the movies.

5.  I would love to travel to Scotland and visit family there-once I track them down that is.

6.  I love to go camping.....in my camper.  Sorry, but I need a bed and a shower.  I'm a cranky lady without them.

7.  I would love to travel in my camper and with my hubby and kids across the US.  I would love to see the country.  I've traveled across the country, but missed many states, and have missed stopping at many interesting places.  I mean really, you have to stop at the Corn Palace, right?

Things I miss about home....

This is the time of year that I miss being home.  Not only for family and friends, but just some of the foods that are comforting and I miss.  We never head home for the holidays.  Its too expensive, too difficult, and usually too far to travel. 

I do miss being in Western NY.  Home of the four time Superbowl losing Buffalo Bills.  I miss watching their games.

I miss watching the Sabres-or any hockey.  Apparently, Directv doesn't allow hockey unless you pay for it.  I'm hating it.

I miss authentic Buffalo wings.  Actually, I'd eat any at this point, but I can't seem to find any on the island.

I miss good pizza.  With a nice thick crust.  This flat tasteless cardboard stuff gets me mad.

I miss seeing Niagara Falls all done up in Christmas lights.

I miss Bison Chip Dip.  For those of you that have never had any, you're missing out.  My husband claims that its no different than any other chip dip he's eaten......yet he eats most of the tub.

I miss Sahlen hot dogs.  NY hot dogs are totally different than any other hot dogs I've ever had.

I miss Friday night fish fry-at EVERY single place to eat.  And the best was in the dumps or bars.

I miss Beef of Weck.  No one knows what that is unless you've lived there.  Its shaved roast beef with gravy (not thick) on a kimmelwick roll.  No one knows what those are either.

I miss Mighty Taco.  Best taco place ever!

I miss snow!  I love snow around the holidays.  I would love to have some now, except that the whole city would shut down!

And I miss my friends and family.  Thank goodness for phones, email, and skype.  I don't know how the pioneers did it!

have a wonderful week!

Let it snow!

I know its been a while.  Between wreath making for the Boy Scouts, being hit with a really bad cold, and a nine page paper due, I've been neglecting my blog.  Sorry.

Monday of Thanksgiving week, it started snowing.  At about 9am.  This abruptly finished out school day.  Even though we live in Western WA, we live on an island in between the Olympic and Cascade mountain ranges.  It rarely ever snows here. 

At about ten, I realized that it was going to make the roads really slick.  I know how to drive on slick roads-I'm from Buffalo!!  However, there are many people who don't and I wasn't going to put my life into their hands.

So, I ran off the the commissary and picked up a few groceries we needed and over to the exchange to discover they did not have any snow gloves.  I couldn't find the big girls-I actually think they're in the camper. 

My husband's work sent everyone home that afternoon.  The schools decided to wait until the roads were nice and slick to put the kids on the buses.  At this point, there had dozens of accidents and road closures.  The island has lots of steep hills and without any way to treat the roads, they were sheets of ice. 

We got two inches.  Just barely enough to cover the grass.

Daddy was off of work on Tuesday.  They closed the public school Tuesday and Wednesday.

It makes me laugh.  Back home, we never had school closures for snow.  It was extremely rare!

Here's some photos.  Our road is a small hill and it was slick with ice, so daddy helped the girls sled down it.

The view of the backyard

The front of the house.  Don't ya love the telephone and cable boxes there?

The girls after their snow run

Daddy getting the girls started

Off they go!!  That's the Pugent Sound at the end of the street!

Little Miss Trouble liked the snow, but preferred to only stay out for ten minutes, then come in and get undressed, then go back out for ten minutes.....you see the pattern here

Prairie Primer lapbooking pages

I am sooooo excited!!  We love lapbooking and I just found out that my favorite lapbooking company A Journey through Learning has just designed a lapbook to go with the Prairie Primer.

This lapbook goes through the first three Little House on the Prairie books.  You can see sample pages here.

Their lapbooks are absolutely wonderful and a joy for us to do!!  I'm looking forward to starting this one with my girls!!

Have a wonderful weekend!