Whoops!

Didn't realize how long it has been since I updated. Anyhow, here's a quick run down of all that has been going on...

the Elf:
Has been keeping up with his reading. He was laughing hysterically while reading Mouse Tales to himself, so I asked him to read it out loud to me, and WOW his reading is improving! He is doing a bit better with writing, but still hates doing it. At least now when he is doing copy work, he looks at each word rather than each letter, so it's taking about half the time, and he isn't getting so confused.

In math, I pulled out Saxon Math 2 again the other day (he's on lesson 111 of 132), and he got very excited! He said that MathSteps is okay, but he really likes Saxon.

Science and social studies are going well with him. We did a project on acids and bases the other day, using, of course, baking soda and vinegar. We tried different amounts to get different results. He spends a lot of time pouring thorugh our science encyclopedia as well. In social studies, we have moved on to Italy - and believe me, we eat a lot of Italian food, so this is already a hit with the kids.

I may also have found a once-a-week karate class for him! Part of the trouble in finding an activity for him is that we have a lot going on already, and going to martial arts 2-3 times a week is a difficult commitment to make. Once a week sounds good.

the Fairy:

She turns SIX next week! I am not sure how that is even possible :(
And she has decided, on her own, that she is now a vegetarian, laregly because she does not want to eat the "poor little animals". I was a vegetarian for years, so this is fine with me. M doesn't mind it either, but my BIL was giving her a hard time, listing all the things she can't eat. So, just to back up the Fairy, I said I would be vegetarian with her. Probably good for me anyhow!

I still haven't been teaching her to read, but she seems to be picking up a lot of words on her own - I keep meaning to look at The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading for that, but never seem to get around to it. She is also very good with her memory in regards to colors/amounts/etc., as we found out when we played Monolpoly with the kids last week. She didn't really seem to get the denominations of the money, but she could accurately tell everyone 10 minutes in which color combinations added up to certain amounts!

She is still really enjoying Oak Meadow, and is doing well with Saxon. She loved drawing tulips for our Netherlands study, and is more than willing to help me cook delicious Italian dinners. Her favorite hobby right now is helping in the kitchen, which is great because she's learning fractions and a lot more by doing it!

In other news, my classes are going well, though I have lots to do much of the time. I am also busy now planning a birthday get-together for family, and baking a lot of cupcakes is on the agenda (vegan because the Fairy has a vegan classmate, and we have a friend with dairy issues)!

Four of the best words in the English language...

Last night I heard four words I have hoped to hear for some time, coming from my sometimes reluctant son: "Mommy, I love to read!" Until now, he has been a strictly read-aloud-when-made-to kind of kid, but then I gave him the assignment of reading to himself. He quietly settled down last night with Frog and Toad Are Friends, and within five minutes was grinning ear-to-ear. I caught him at it again this morning - truly a boy after my own heart :)

I had some interest expressed in what classes I am taking - there are actually only two, for a total of thirteen units. The three unit class is at the local community college - Regional Geography. This class covers physical and cultural geography, with an emphasis on what globalization means to different cultures. I am taking this to satisfy a history/world cultures requirement. The other class is at the local university, and is a ten unit class called Work & the Global Future. In a nutshell, it covers everything from political science, to cultural studies, to management sciences, sociology, economics and more. It is the second semester of a four semester degree completion program, after which I will have a BA in Liberal Studies. Then I can move on to teacher credentialing. Despite budget cutbacks, the state of California is desperate enough for teachers that a number of schools now offer the chance to intern (paid regular salary) one's way through credentialing, an option I will definately be checking out!

Yesterday was the first (blushing here) day in a while that we settled down and actually got through all our planned lessons... it's been a few weeks of hit and miss around here. We started with a lesson from First Language lessons, then I split the kids up - the Elf dictated and then copied a paragraph about his Oak Meadow story, did two math pages on measurement, and did a timed read-aloud, while the Fairy watched the Shirley Temple version of "Heidi" in another room. Then, the Fairy and I ran through some very plain alphabet and number flashcards I made (no pictures to distract her), worked on our Oak Meadow alphabet pictures (we did "J"), and did 2 pages in Saxon Math while the Elf had some computer time. We wrapped it all up together with a couple of chapters from The Wheel on the School, and a taste test for bases and acids (baking soda versus lemon juice), based on chapter 5 in RS4K Chemistry.

Today we're doing math again, more alphabet work with the Fairy, and the Elf is doing a free writing piece about an invention he'd like to create, plus more quiet reading time, though right now they are watching a Magic SchoolBus episode on digestion. Then they're off to my mom's for the night, where they will be helping with a couple of cookie recipes, while I go off to work (yippee).

We also went to our 4H American Kids Crafts earlier this afternoon (don't tell my son that the projects are from the American Girls books!). They did stenciled "colonial rugs" - stencils, paint, and large pieces of canvas-type fabric. Both really enjoyed it. the Elf was very methodical, arranging his stencils carefully and painting them just as carefully, while the Fairy asked me to hold her stencils while she attacked them with painty sponges. Both pieces turned out to be quite attractive and are now gracing the kids' bedroom walls.

I think that's about it for now!