It is sunny and mild this morning, and is supposed to stay that way all week, with temperatures in the high 60s to low 70s. I am seriously hoping for some rain soon! I drove M out to a local reservoir for some fishing this weekend, and I have never seen the water so low. We may be looking at a fairly serious drought this year if the weather doesn't cooperate.
In The Garden...
We haven't done much lately. Next weekend though is slated for dormant pruning -- the olive tree, the apple tree, the roses, and anything else we notice that needs some TLC. We're also planning out some new raised beds with the scrap lumber a friend gave us, and I am working on a chart of what we can plant and when. I am determined to make the veggie garden pay off this year, and to get the kids more involved!
In The Kitchen...
Still trying to keep to our budget food-wise, which isn't always easy with current prices (and how finicky we are about quality). I also need to work on cooking ahead (or quick meals) for Mondays, Wednesdays, and possibly Thursdays, as The Boy has fencing two of those nights, and I have class the other one. I say "possibly Thursdays" because if M gets the job he's trying for this week, the kids will spend Thursday nights with their Nonna, and so I won't be cooking that night. Anyhow, I am trying to meal plan more carefully, make good use of bulk goods, and so forth.
In Our Homeschooling...
I decided to trial run Writing With Skill, level 1 this week, with The Boy. Way, way back, when it was being beta tested, I got the first ten weeks of both the instructor and student books for free, so I think we'll give it a go. Having graded oodles of college essays now, I can see very clearly where I want The Boy (and someday The Girl) to go with writing, and I think WWS might help. The Girl will, in the meantime, do some writing with Intermediate Language Lessons.
Both kids have also asked if they can "PLEASE do some science NOW" instead of waiting until the next block, so I am shifting our schedule around a bit. I downloaded ACS's Middle School Chemistry, and we'll be trying for two sessions with it this week.
What I Am Working On...
Still working on scarves for The Girl and myself. The ones I made for The Boy and M get a lot of good use, I am happy to say! I am also working out budgetary plans and goals, which is a bit difficult when we don't know about an income for M. If the job interview tomorrow does not go well (which we very much hope it does go well), at least he has another interview with the EDD coming up, to see if he can reestablish unemployment benefits until he can find something.
General Plans for the Week...
Two fencing classes, a January birthdays celebration at our park day, the job interview for M, and I am determined to fix the master bathroom shower this week, much the same way I fixed the one in the kids' bathroom.
And For Fun...
Here is this morning's sunrise, as seen from my backyard! Not the best quality picture ever, but I was in a hurry...
Have a good week!
Good luck with the job situation, I hope it works out! I love the sunrise picture-very lovely colors. We get a nice sunrise here too but I never think to photograph it. Perhaps this week:).
ReplyDeleteMy son LOVES Writing With Skill. It's the one writing curriculum I've never had to bribe him to do. I will say that some of the days (when they're 'practicing the topos' or whatever) they're expected to suddenly produce quite a bit of work, and I let those stretch to two days, which makes it a five-day-a-week curriculum but keeps the stress level low. Good luck on the food budget/job thing. That can all be a major pain in the rear.
ReplyDelete