The Everglades

What is a trip to South Florida without a visit to one of the greatest National Parks ever? Pretty boring, that's for sure! The Everglades is a one of a kind National Park experience. You really could spend days down there exploring- I think it would make a fun camping and biking trip once the kids are old enough to not look like such tasty morsels to the gators who call the glades home! We stuck to the Anhinga and Gumbo Limbo trails which are always sure to please the tourists.

While we were out seeking the big thrills- the gators of course, we also happened upon some smaller creatures. Jack almost stepped on this snake on the side of the road as I yelled at him to stay on the path.



While I was reprimanding him, I was shushed by the photographer taking the picture of the Green Heron in the next photo.


We saw 6-7 of the gators sunning really close to the path. They weren't "big" according to the Park Rangers but they were big enough for us.

We missed any up close panther sightings (thank you!) but still saw enough to earn our Junior Ranger badges!

South Florida Trip

In November, we took a road trip down to Hollywood to visit Great Grandma Mil-Mil (as the kids call my grandmother). The children were delighted to see where she lived. Jackson had been there when he was a baby but Jane had never been. Grandma's condo is full of photos, artwork and mementos commemorative of a lifetime of travel and other experiences. My grandfather was a talented artist, utilizing all sorts of mediums from oil paints, copper and wood and it was interesting to see the young eyes take it all in!

While there, Jack begged Grandma to teach him to play chess, which she gladly did. The kids also were fascinated by her library-sale-salvaged encyclopedia set and had us looking up everything from Pocohantas to the Tower of London to Ibis. The Towel of London look-up was inspired by a teapot, of which Grandma Mil-Mil has 104, according to Jane's last count.

Also of great interest were the 6 iguanas we encountered outside the condominium. These are likely former pets released into the wild and we were excited to see so many in one place. Of course, we looked them up under "I" and found out they eat fruit and swim and are from South America. Everything is a lesson when you homeschool!

This is what it is all about!

Jane is reading to Jillian. These wonderful moments when the children are together, just enjoying being siblings, are what home- schooling is all about. You just can't get that in a classroom!

Sanity Saver Tip #1

The internet has coloring sheets for every topic under the sun- I was recently surprised to find a Crayola picture of Shakespeare. Who knew? My children burn through printer ink like crazy. I collect the print-outs and place them in a 3 ring binder (one for each child). Voila! Who needs to buy coloring books when you can make your own? And where would you even find the Disney Princess-Election 2008- Mount Rushmore-Star Wars-Vikings-Scooby Doo-Planets-Holly Hobby-Backyardigans coloring book anyway?

Handicrafts

Handicrafts are a core aspect of our curriculum. I enjoy things like sewing and knitting and while I want the children to also learn them for fun, more importantly I just want them to have that knowledge. If you can sew a button and a straight line, there are countless household projects you can do, from making curtains and table clothes, to hand-crafting costumes and gifts. I used to say that you could also save yourself all kinds of money but have you seen all the fabulous fabrics there are out there? Forget it! Here Jackson and Jane are working on those plastic weave boards and yarn. Remember those? I promise not to teach them how to make Kleenex boxes that we would then give to you for Christmas.

Homeschool PE

The local Park District has a lot to offer for families schooling at home. We are currently enrolled in their free home school physical education program that meets weekly. We laughed when they started out the season with Dodgeball, because "all kids know that game." Really? How many pick-up games of Dodgeball do you think get started in our house? I mean purposeful games of Dodgeball, not a sibling beaning another over the head with a wiffle ball. *That* happens all the time but I don't consider it a game.

The parents favorite line of the day while watching the game was "if you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball."

Tea Time!

We had our very first Tea Time this past Tuesday and it was a raving success! I had actually underestimated the amount of learning experiences that can arise out of preparing a "fancy lunch," as Jane deemed it. We got lessons in setting the table and the differences in types of flat wear, we polished silver, put on a tablecloth, and rolled napkins into napkin rings. We made traditional cucumber sandwiches and fairy cakes and real tea. The children were delighted to choose "one lump, or two" and I will have to remember to purchase sugar cubes for next time. Also on the purchase list will be candles for the candelabra! All we could find were two Halloween candles- funny! We used our good silver and china and dressed up. Well, Jane, Bean and I did. Jack opted for a tie on top of his t- shirt which he promptly removed after I took a photo! We used our finest manners while we listened to Bach's Greatest Hits and read poetry from Robert Louis Stevenson's "A Child's Garden of Verses." It was a delightful morning.