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If we value the pursuit of knowledge, we must be free to follow wherever that search may lead us. ~ Adlai Stevenson
Showing posts with label movies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label movies. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Hey There!

...What We've Been Up To...

The Girl started working with the wildlife rescue center. These are her foster babies:


They are, of course, opossums, four of them. We actually interact with them as little as possible, so that they remain relatively feral. They'll be released back into the wild once they're larger. The Girl learned to tube feed them (they can't suckle), but thankfully we are past that stage now, and they just eat foods (mice, sardines, fruit). They live in a very large tub in the bathroom for now!


The Boy is soon to wrap up his figure drawing class. His skills just continue to blow me away!



Some of his work has been hung in the student art center, and he's thinking of entering some in the local fair this year.

As far as homeschooling, it's been spotty, which is something we really need to address. The kids have already agree we need to work through the summer. Math, writing, literature, and more documentaries have all made the summer to-do list!

Speaking of literature, we watched the movie League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and the kids loved it! So we decided to read through all the books mentioned in the movie (a list I am still working on). Here is their first pick...


We have agreed to check out this movie version when we are done with the book.

We started watching Bill Nye Saves the World, which I think is okay, and they seem to like. I'm thinking American Experience, and/or maybe actually finishing Mankind: the Story of All of Us, and America: The Story of Us. We also have a few unwatched episodes of Big History. And there are plenty of biographies, etc. I also need to find some more science documentaries! We finished up all three seasons of The 100 that are currently available, and can't wait for season 4 to come to Netflix in June. If you haven't checked it out, you should. Totally engrossing!

Besides all that, I'm wrapping up my year of teaching at the university. I am planning to continue my teaching assistant position at the junior college for another year, but beyond that, I am not sure at the moment. I've applied for a couple of very part-time things, so we'll see what works out!

Hope all is well in everyone else's corners of the world!

Friday, June 19, 2015

A Weekly Wrap-Up of Sorts...

We have been BUSY here lately! I can't wait for next week to be over, as I will then be on summer break. Well, sort of. I still have one tutoring student, am helping with an advanced English class at the local junior college, and am still sewing cat toys on the side. But I will be less busy, and that is good!

So here's a quick run-down on what we've been up to...


Exploring creek side trails





Watching the Peggy Sue Cruise


We saw so many beautifully kept/restored cars!

 And The Boy, with the help of his best friend, J, got to do a pretty major job on the car. They put on new front brake pads, which involved removed tires, a lot of pounding to get things loose, some tools borrowed from a neighbor (as some of ours are missing), and lots of grease, as you can see!


At least now my brakes are working well, and not grinding when I stop.

We've also been... 

watching movies (Excalibur and Mists of Avalon last weekend)

Enjoying a read aloud of Holes

Getting ready for M's birthday tomorrow

Preparing to celebrate summer at our park day, and then at home on Sunday (I think I'll make these muffins for Sunday's breakfast, and I am making this dip to go with strawberries for today's park celebration)

Rearranging parts of the house

I've also been fairly hard at work on the front yard. My brother-in-law, when he lived here, insisted on keeping a small patch of lawn out there, which he surrounded with bark... bark that brought bindweed with it (I am sure Jessica can sympathize). We had thought about a gravel and plant combo, but have decided bark, combined with grasses and flowering plants, would look nicest... if put over a weed cloth barrier. And I want to plant a Meyer lemon tree to compliment our very healthy olive tree. We also have well established lavender, rosemary, and sage to work around, as I like landscaping with herbs too.

image courtesy of dogislandfarm.com
So I have been tearing up dead lawn (thank you drought), removing bindweed, and daydreaming about something prettier.

Cooking-wise, the kids and I have been eating a lot of meat-free dinners when M is at work in the evenings. Inexpensive and healthy. Do you have any favorite vegetarian main dishes/meals to share? I'm always looking for new ideas!

Have a good weekend, and


Friday, December 13, 2013

Christmas Movies...

We got our Christmas tree, a small one, set up yesterday, and it is finally beginning to feel like Christmas around the house! I'm compiling our annual to-watch list, since I will be on vacation from both work and school as of this afternoon.

There are some movies we watch every year....

           

Yes, we watch (at least) TWO versions of A Christmas Carol. Alistair Sim is amazing as Scrooge -- an absolute classic -- and I have a longtime crush on Patrick Stewart. And yes, we only watch the Boris Karloff version of The Grinch, thank you very much! Scrooged was new to the kids last year, and they seemed to really enjoy the more modern take on a familiar story.

Other Christmas movies we enjoy...

        and   

Though I must say, we much prefer the first Santa Clause movie over the other two.

This year, I am thinking of adding in a classic or two...

   and maybe   

What about you? What are your favorite holiday movies?

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Having a "Dickens" of a Time...

Sorry for the horrible pun, but I couldn't resist!

Last Friday, we watched... 


And it was very good - absolutely a well done version of this story!

So then we did some research on what other Dickens work is available on film. I'm loading up our Amazon watchlist now, with films like...

David Copperfield


We're really especially interested in the David Copperfield film, as it has both a young Daniel Radcliffe, and one of our all time favorite actresses, Maggie Smith!

Watching very well made period films is a fun way to learn some history, and it is good exposure to the woks of a man considered to be one of the greatest writers ever.

Besides that, we went to Wunderkammer this week, and had a marvelous time...

 We saw people in fabulous Steampunk costumes, watched a Handcar Regatta and a magic show, along with gymnastics and hula hooping, and of course the kids couldn't resist either of the bicycle-powered rides!

And yesterday, we found one of our mantises that had grown just a wee bit...


Next week we'll be back to hitting the books. I think we're ready!