Looking Ahead, but not very far.

Sometimes, Looking Ahead starts with a little Looking Behind. Like remembering when the kids where younger and I had more to do to herd them daily, but a lot less to do on my calendar. More to Juggle IN THE HOME, but a lot LESS to juggle outside of the home. Neither way i s better or worse. Life is just a series of trade-offs and changes.

Gavin is registered at a student at the local Community College. He's in 11th grade. Here (and many other place) upper High School kids can take college courses that count at college credits (so the are a few steps ahead of the game when they graduate high school) and that count as High School credits. And it's usually tuition free. (but other fees apply, of course. Like books and art supplies)

This new endeavor will have us booked every Monday and Wednesday morning. No more deciding to skip off to the beach on a Monday Morning or fit his dentist appointments in on a Wednesday morning.

Connor and Ki will be taking Wednesday Afternoon Theater Classes. So no afternoon beach trips on Wednesdays.

This concept of having to fit our lives around school is something we are not used to doing. We have done it for a short time a couple times, but it's always a huge hassle. But, then, so are lots of things in life. That's just how it goes.

Gavin is taking an Art Class at Allan Hancock College. I figured it'd be good to start off with something easy; esp since he'll miss the first day of class because he'll be out of state. Though he is a registered student, he has not enrolled in this art class. "College Now" class enrollment starts Aug 9th. This is the day before he leaves on his trip. Nothing like cutting it down to the last minute. I thrive on procrastination. That feeling of having "NO MORE time left, so gotta do it NOW!"

I really should start thinking about their other learning adventures; math, science. history, grammar.... But it's not down to the final hour yet, so I have plenty of time until that Window Of Motivation.

***** Subject Change *****

I have had 4 acupuncture appointments. 2 worked GREAT, one NOT at ALL, and this last one has not had migraines afterwards, but I'm headachey. But then again, I don't think I'm getting enough protein and my water and glucose intake or not optimal.

But I'm also learning some acupressure that I can use with Ki, too.

***** Subject Change *****

Here i a fun little game that has you building a cell and fighting of viruses and looks like maybe splicing DNA in the future- all why teaching what the different parts of the cell do and how.

CELLCRAFT (click to play)

***** Subject Change *****

I knit a couple Coffee Cup Sleeves. I wanted to learn to use DPNs. Double Pointed Needles.. I found that it is easier to use 5 than 4.

***** Subject Change *****

The summer is a time of less structure. Less structure is a time of more Sensory Meltdowns. Ki's meltdowns and outbursts have been getting more frequent and more..intense.

When I plan the upcoming 'more structured than not-schooling', I'll be adding some occupational Therapy for Ki (his brothers will join in).

This will include, but it not limited to, Obstacle Courses, Brain Gym, joint Compression. Yoga, and maybe some massage.

On Pins & Needles

I laid there with about 12 skinny spikes sticking out of my back, neck and head. I could see the loops in the lava colored carpet through the doughnut shaped head rest. I was a spiked dragon flying over the village. I flew in large, sweeping loops as I only had one wing coming out of the side of neck, the other didn't seem to stick out the other side. Some villagers ran away in fear, some just stared, too frozen in shock and curiosity to move. Some just enjoyed the tranquil music playing somewhere off in the distance. With the pikes in my ankles I would sometimes skewer cows for dinner. When I was feeling in a giving mood I would shoot liquid fire from the spikes in my back, erupting in a display of lights and sparks for the villagers to watch and enjoy.

I could not feel the needles in my neck and head, but the ones in my back had this sensation of slight pressure and burning. I had one in each angle that sort of tingled.

The appointment started with lots of questions and information gathering. Doctor Herb Kandel lived in Africa for a while and cam back with a few 'bugs'. He has a virus that lies dormant in him. So he has first hand experience with what it can be like to live with a retro virus, or latent virus. He also knows about Sensory Processing Disorders.

He took my pulse with 3 fingers, saying he was listening to 3 different aspects of my pulse. He felt the muscles in my neck. He was able to tell me a few things that made sense to how my body seems to work.

So far, it all seemed good. He even said he will help me with the Latent virus stuff. and would show me some acupressure things I can use and teach to Ki that will help with our Sensory Processing problems.

After my 25 minutes of lying face down in the doughnut hole table, with needles sticking out of me, I was bored. My mind was bored after the first 10 minutes of not being able to move or get up. Hence the DragonScape story. It gave my mind something to do.

I was a bit dizzy & headachey upon getting up,but also hungry. It was after 5 and I needed some food. And I had been a bit headachey all day anyway.

My friend came over for a quick dinner and to play Settlers of Catan. It was fun. My head ws better after dinner.

Also on Monday I started my Mystery Dishcloth. The lady sends us instructions for about 8 rows each day until it's done. So we don't know what it is we are knitting really. It should be fun.

I was very very tired this morning. I slept till around 10:3o. But NO HEADACHE. Not that I have them every day, but I have had them almost daily for quite a while, although very very small mild ones the past couple days. And considering the busyness of yesterday, a headache would be normal for today probably.

Was it the acupuncture? Was it the extra sleep? Is it just a fluke?

The doctor wants to do a 3 week course of acupuncture and then evaluate. That's twice a week, for 3 weeks. Six visits to the Needle Man.

I am hopeful. But My back still has a pressure/burning sensation down the middle whre my dragon spikes were.

After some food my head was

Knit1 - Detox, too.

I like my new fingerless gloves. I like to wear them while I knit another pair of fingerless gloves for my mom. These gloves will be her belated Mother's Day gift. I also gave her 'homemade soap' I bought at the Avila Beach Farmers Market. The soap was dipped in sand from the beach. It looks neat.

Also, on the knitting scene is Green Bamboo Yarn. This new goody will become a Travel Neck Pillow for Connor. I still have that DNA scarf to do. I want to do it, but I need TIME and SILENCE and SOLITUDE. Then there is a project I have planned for my niece's baby girl. I think I will order yarn from Knit Picks for the baby project. I want to make more T.A.R.D.I.S. cloths, too. And I want to make dome DALEK cloths to go with it. They will be trivets, I think. Now I need to prioritize these projects and make them in the most efficient order.

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DETOX TOPIC ~

After 2 weeks of vacationing, my digestive system is not happy with me. So I am going to do some Detoxing. I bought lots of fruits from Trader Joe's and I'll dig out the Juicer. Juicer Menu Plan for the weekend:

FRIDAY- (fruit/protein smoothie for Breakfast) JUICER for Lunch. Snack- Yogurt Smoothie. Dinner will be JUICER. And there will be a small snack in the evening to ensure I don't have a Big Glucose Drop in the morning and wake up dizzy.

SATURDAY- Juicer for Breakfast. (light lunch and dinner of mainly fruits & veggies)

SUNDAY- Fruit/Protein Smoothie for Breakfast. "regular supper/lunch" with the family. Dinner will be a Juicer Concoction.

Monday I will start with some Detox Supplements. I bought some from Trader Joe's. They are called Total Body Cleanse. There are 3 different pill types (Digestive, Fiber, Liver). It's a 14 day Program. I think I'll have my fruit/protein shake for breakfast all week and juicer for Lunch or Dinner all week. My tummy has felt icky since mid vacation. Hopefully this should help.

Juicer Stuff I bought: carrots, cucumbers, bell peppers, peaches, nectarines, grapes, blueberries, cherries, apples..... and I have spinach in the garden. Tomorrow(Fri) will be apples, blueberries, carrots, cherries, and cukes.

ѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪѪ

GARDEN FRONT- I planted LOTS of things! Pumpkins, cucumbers, sunflowers, onions, radishes, and bell peppers. The Bell Peppers are 3 small plants I bought from O.S.H. I just can't seem to get them to grow from seeds here.

I want to have enough sunflowers to make my own sunflower butter! YUM!

Plane & Misery... and tomatoes

The plane flight was miserable. I started feeling pretty dizzy after Take-Off. The Gs that pull me into my seat always make me feel like passing out. Once up in the air, I was still very dizzy and light headed.(sometimes I think I do faint for a couple seconds) Every time the plane changed altitude it got worse. It wasn't nausea , just feeling dizzy, light-headed, faint. My limbs and head felt weak and my heart felt numb somehow.

Brian was a bit upset out layover wad delayed. I was happy. We would of had to run from getting off the 1st to getting on the 2nd. Just walking off the plane made my heart race and made it hard to breath. So I welcomed the chance to sit and rest for an hour.

I often get dizzy and often get heart palpitation. At home I just drink some O.J. & take nap. Then take it easy the rest of the day. If not, if I over-do after my initial warning, I'll ennd up sick for a few days and sometimes I even pass out a few minutes.

So, the Main flight was worse. Brian took my heart rate. Sitting, right after walking the aisle (after take off and we had plenty of altitude), my rate was 75. This may not be a super low sitting rate for most, but my normal 'sitting at rest' rate is about 100. So that's kind of a drop. I was so light headed I couldn't even hold my head or lift it up (I was leaning against Brian). I couldn't raise my arms for mot than a split second either. I finally fell asleep and slept most the flight and felt better when I woke up. I bet the altitude isn't good for my "Lower Blood Pressure"

I could talk to my Doctor, but he might tell me not to fly. So I figured I'd go with the "Don't ask then you won't be told 'no' " philosophy. As long as no medical intervention is needed, all is fine.

After being back on Terra Firma a bit, the dizziness dissipated. But just walking to get baggage and to the shuttle had my heart racing and my vision blurred and good ol' SOB (Shortness of Breath).

I slept or knitted on the drive home. I am very very tired, but happy to be home.

The poor kitty is hoarse. He barely has a voice. He cries non-stoop for more and more attention. He probably cried most the 2 weeks we were gone to have lost his voice.

^ ^ ^ part of the harvest that welcomed me home ^ ^ ^ - along with a handful of Sugar Snap Peas, about 8 Strawberries, and some HAPPY Sunflowers!

^ ^ ^ ^ Ki enjoyed wearing my knit fingerless gloves. ^ ^ ^ ^

^ ^ ^ Flying atop a blanket of clouds. ^ ^ ^ ^ Brian has a better picture.

Moutains sticking up out of the Cloud Blanket.

^ ^ ^ ^ My Dad's Bearded Dragon ^ ^ ^ ^

^ ^ my mom's fingerless Glove got started on the short flight from Dayton to D.C. ^ ^

gardening in small spaces

our space isn't really THAT small, but we rent, so I don't want to plow the whole back yard.
I couldn't find pics of the hanging garden stuff in other posts, so I am putting them here- so I know where they are in my blog if anyone happens to ask.

I started m y sugar snap peas (and a few other things) in well-rinsed milk cartons.

What Brand are you?

The boys are working on memorizing 1 Corinthians 13. (which means I am, too) They are doing pretty well. I found that having them read passages over and over and over and over on our drives to and from Base works well. And I print the verse out with more and more blanks for missing words. I want them to have this memorized before they go to camp in July.

I rode my bike to the pharmacy to get my Fioricet. I was under the impression it was ready for me, but it's not. I'll go back this afternoon. I want to have my Fioricet with me on this 2 weeks in Ohio. Though I love rain,I hate the humid heat and the mold it brings- I get such bad migraines from it all. I don;t want to spend my vacation in bed with pain in my brain.
We have a few Sunflowers in bloom. One is about ready to be beheaded. The one that looks about 7 foot tall is blooming. I'm afraid when its flower opens all the way and gets heavy with seeds, it will fall over. I'll try to get a picture of it this afternoon. Right now the sun is behind it and glares in the photo.

I need to find some cheese cloth to hang the head to dry out while we're gone.

My neighbor will be coming over to water plants and feed the cat. I told her to just pick/eat whatever is ready while we're gone. The sugar snap peas are taking off. I pick a few every other day. Some of the green tomatoes are starting to turn to almost yellow. I wonder if the neighbor will get to eat my 1st ripe tomato of the season.

Yesterday the boys made a fire out back and were cooking marshmallows. Ki stepped on a glowing hot poker.

He used aloe from the plants outback. He's finally walking OK again. I think he hopes he has a scar for life. My son has been branded! He's a Knock-Off Hurley brand, I think.



I had planned on knitting a lot on out flight to Ohio. We leave tomorrow. We'll be gone June23-July7th. I'll have my laptop, so I hope to find time to update occasionally.
ANYWAY, it's an overnight flight, so I'll just sleep, not knit.
I'll bring my Dishcloth Project with me on the plane though. In case I find the time. The DNA project will be for the hotel where I can spread out on the bed.

Here is my Doctor Who Discloth. It's the TARDIS. Or will be. I have a few other patterns I want to do for my Doctor Who Dishcloth Collection. this yarn didn't show the pattern quite as nicely as I wanted. I t is Cotton. I might try it in a wool blend next time. Soksey though it was time for a head rub when I got the camera out so he's in a few pictures from today.

Berry Baskets

I Knit a Trivet. It was a practice in some new techniques (seed & Basket Weave). It was good. Good for the practice and it was also very good for learning how to read my stitches, how to recognize previous stitches, how to recognize right legs, and how to recognize and fix twisted stitches.

I also practiced TINKING. Reverse Knitting to just go back a few stitches.

Ki liked my small trivet and used it as a placemat this morning. I call it Berry Basket Trivet, due to the Basket Weave and to the Seed Stitches that look like a Raspberry to me.

*******

On Wednesday we leave for our 2 week Vacation to Ohio.

YAY!

But it is an Overnight Flight, so I probably won't get any knitting accomplished on the flight. I'll sleep.

I should have plenty of time to knit while doing nothing at the hotel while Brian is at meetings.

*******

I picked 10 Sugar Snap Peas Yesterday! MMMMM---MMMMMM---MMMMMM!

******

Today we are going to a friends for lunch. Then home to PACK

Blast from the Past.

For Today... June 18, 2010 [with Oct 2008 stuff, too](click the above picture to read more Simple Woman Daybook entries by other women)


Outside my Window... [today] The water sprinkler is feeding the grass it's daily dose of water. Not many avocados left on the tree that over hangs the wall. The sky is white-grey with the Santa Maria Morning Cloud cover; which rolls away to reveal bright sun by about 10 AM. "June Gloom" [Mid October 2008]There was an extra heavy dew/mist this morning. We get our Morning Garden of Eden Dew here. Some days it's so heavy you can hear it dripping off the roof and through the trees and it sounds like rain- almost.

I am thinking... [today] about our trip to Ohio next week. Getting Excited. And I still can't find the gift I bought for my mom for Mother's Day. UG. [mid Oct 2008]Having a teenage girl living here this week and next will be interesting and hopefully fun.


From the learning rooms... [today] Ki and I are learning how to make FRUIT LEATHERS. No 'intentional learning' today. Gavin is learning how to drive. He drove about an hour on the way back from L.A. (with Brian). I will be looking into requirements for Gavin to take classes this fall at the local college and I'll be installing a SAT Prep course on the laptops for G&C. But that'll be after our trip. [oct 2008] I posted a list 2 days ago of the boys intended work. Gavin did 2 of his Physics Experiments yesterday and will hopefully be ready for his end of chapter test later this week. Physics has become a weekend/evening class now that he had advanced enough to need help. Brian does it with him a couple nights a week on Saturday or Sunday. This week for Social Studies the boys are researching different Political Parties for their Elections class. I think I have 2 more classes of ASL to teach.

I am thankful for... [today] I'm thinking I'll use my Oct 2008 answer: Brian's great job! He took a Business Trip to L.A. and was able to take Gavin with him! father-Son time. w00t! And he has a Business trip back to Ohio, which is probably the only reason we can afford to go back and get to stay in a hotel for a week while there! [Oct 2008]My husbands great job. He had 15 workdays of leave he has to take of between now and Dec 31. That's almost every other workday.

From the kitchen... [ today]Fruit Leathers are STILL drying. We started them yesterday. My oven's lowest is 170. F.Ls need 140. So I turned the oven off overnight. (you;re supposed to leave them in the warm oven overnight)... and now, I see Oct 2008's answer and I want to make Amish Bread Starter! [Oct 2008] 2 bags of Amish Friendship Bread starter. I forgot to take my 4 bags to the Homeschool Group Friday. I decided to just keep 2 and throw 2 away. Tomorrow we'll have the V.H's over for Tacos when they drop Dynasty off to stay a week.

I am wearing... [Today] Brian's Sweater & Jeans. with a tank top under the sweater, b/c when 10:30 hits, the clouds will have burned away and it will probably be warm enough for it. [oct 2008]new slippers from Target. I had worn holes in my other ones.

I am reading... Books in the Kathy Reichs Series. These are books on which the TV Show BONES is based. But it's NOT "Bones".. good books still, but don;t read them fully expecting them to 'be' BONES. [Oct 2008]about the Green Party, the Libertarian Party and the Democratic Party.


I am hoping... [Today]Eat Fruit Leathers today. [Oct 2008]to have a smooth week with our house guest.

I am creating.. [Today] I am procrastinating a scarf that I want to knit. I am about done with the swatch (the practice section) Mostly, though, I am just creating a mess. [Oct 2008]I am waiting for the sewing table to get cleared off so I can create there.

I am hearing... [ today] about the same as the Oct answer- with the added sound of the cat eating and the hum of the fan in this laptop. [Oct 2008] cars, trucks, keyboards, Connor&Gavin, birds, some humming sound....

Around the house... [Today] - We got rid of the rug in the front room. I always walked around it instead of having my feet touch it, so it was basically just a big obstacle in the middle of the room. AND- the sink is fixed. And the Dishwasher is fixed- but won't really work well until we get a water softener which we won't be getting, so it doesn't matter. [Oct 2008] All the questions are getting redundant now. Last week I used our dry erase board as a calendar for the week. Each day with school times, plans we have, place we will go, dinner, etc- the boys really liked it so I'm doing it again this week.

From the Garden... I just added this question. It is replacing "1 of my fav things". Picked 3 huge strawberries today! The 4 largest tomato plants are covered inn blossoms and small green tomatoes. The squash plants have all had flowers. I have a big handful of Sugar Snap Peas to pick today (or tomorrow. I might give them one more day to get extra fat & juicy) I have weeding to do and h ave to make sure the plants are ready for the neighbor to come water them.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week... [Today] It's Friday. The rest of the week is todayand tomorrow. House cleaning and bike ride today. Tomorrow I'm going on a Lunch Date with some moms from Vandenberg. Debb is moving to Germany next week, so we're all going out one last time before she leaves. I'll even Flat-Iron my bangs and maybe wear eyeshadow!

[Oct 2008] continuing the: Getting up around 7:15 daily, earlier breakfasts, that was great for everyone except Ki who was overly tired and having meltdowns at the end of the week. So we are back to the older two getting up early and letting Ki sleep until 8:30 and Breakfast at 9, unless G&C ate already. Continue the Individual classes for each boy, ASL, PE and elections class, and Gymnastics. This weeks PE class is a run/walk to support the troops. I will be biking to the Farmers market on Wed. **BIGGEST PLAN this week- Dynasty comes tomorrow and stays for 8-9 days. Brian will take her to school and pick her up.

Injurious

I bet I could start a Daily Blog entitled; "Injury of the Day". If I miss a day of injury, I'm sure one of my boys will be able to fill in for me. While doing the Self Check out thing at Albertson's I sliced my thumb. It was a small slit, but hurt. I was pinching something and it slipped and my fingernail sliced accross my thumb. It just kinda hurt, nothing new, so I continued my Scan & Bag. Soon though, I noticed blood droplets forming on my thumb and getting on my frozen veggies. I tried putting it in my mouth (the thumb, not the bag of frozen veggies). I quickly discovered Scan & Bag is pretty much a 2 handed job. We're up to but drops running down my thumb now, so I ask the Cashier for a band-aid. Poor dude. You'd think he'd not seen blood before. It was just a couple drops on a thumb. He brings this huge BRIGHT BLUE foam bandage. I'm scanning, bagging, towelette wiping, and bandaging all at the same time. I didn't want to hold up the line. When I was done the Head Self-Check Cashier asks if I need help out; like they always do. I tell him no I'm fine, he asks about my cut (wow, it's not even big enough to be called that really) and asks if I'm sure I'm OK and I'm sure I don't help taking my 3 bags of groceries out.

I don't think the loss of 3 drops of blood is gonna make me too dizzy to push a grocery cart.

*****

Today I took picture of my 13 year old by his Sunflowers. One of them is probably 7 feet tall!

I ate 3 strawberries from Gavin's plants today. Tomorrow I might eat 3 more......

Or I might save them for Gavin.... Decisions! Maybe I'll just eat one tomorrow.

** I really really really need to do some work knitting on my DNA Swatch. I'll do that tonight I guess. I think I need to go buy some cheap circulars to use on the plane.

**
Did I Mention that Brian took G with him on a TDy to L.A. So he's by himself all day while Brian is as meetings, probably getting lots of extra computer and TV time. He said he might go hang out at the pool today.

Vitamin C

I have some citrus trees outback. A Key Lime Tree. We made a DELICIOUS Key Lime Pie last year.

I have a lemon tree with gnarled, deformed lemons that on rare occasion actually ripen.

I have small, regular lime tree. Last year it only had a couple limes and they never got big enough and kinda shriveled or just fell off. The people before us in this rental house didn't water and didn't do any plant care (the later is just a guess, the former was evident by the large amounts of brown, dead grass and plants)

I was watching some of my limes and keeping the tree watered. I pruned it last year and trimmed overly grown or overly spider-webbed branches. Some of my limes got to be 'lime size' and started to lighten. Which I took as a sign they were ripe.

My first ripe limes. I picked a few to cut and try.

I cut one open.

It did not smell like a lime.

It did not look like a lime.

It did not taste like a lime.

Apparently I have an ORANGE TREE that was so neglected it only got to the small green fruit stage last year before they all died and fell off.

MAYBE I will get some REAL ORANGES this year!!

A lot of the neighbors have orange trees that seem full of orange oranges all year.

And some tomatoes that are almost ripe!

Beach, Wind, & Sand

BEACH TRIP!! Halfway to the beach my cell phone rings. Ki answers it, has a somewhat confused look & says; "Dishwasher???"

-- OOPS! I forgot the dishwasher repair guy was coming this morning. He's at the door knocking, apparently. I tell Ki to tell him to just go ahead and go in and fix it. Ki tells the man; "We're not home. You can just go on and fix it anyway."

:pause:

Ki= "Sometimes you have to wiggle it" (the door) "bye"

*** does that make me a bad renter? ***

The beach was sunny and warm! We met our friends and laid out all the beach paraphernalia. Warm Sun. A light Breeze. Beach. Water. Dead Crabs and crab parts.

15 minutes or so later......

No More Sun.

Lots of cold Wind.

More Dead Crabs.

A guy is walking on the beach with his daughter. The other moms there recognize them from the charter school (My boys & I are the rebels. the only homeschoolers in our group not going to the charter school).

He asks is his daughter can play with the girls in our group (the little girls seem to recognize each other and were playing together). We said "Of Course" and invited him to come join us if he wanted.(we had a bit of a lean-to [to block wind] and cupcakes [to eat]).

He said no thanks, and something about how he's not a single dad so doesn't really fit in with us.

he did not recognize us (well, them. not me)

We all found that to be an odd statement and each had our own theory as to why he'd introduce himself as a non-single dad. This became out topic of conversation for a bit and when he came back, Theresa asked him why he introduced himself like that... if he thought we looked desperate or something....

*** *** *** *** ***

my dishwasher will never work. (well, the dishwasher in this house that we rent, to the House Owners Dishwasher)

Unless we spring for a water softener. I doubt this will happen. I guess I need to wash dishes more often.

Tomatoes/Moles/Math

Soksey caught 2 moles in the backyard. He's been stalking them for weeks. He finally caught 2 and presented them to Gavin today, neatly displayed on Gavin's bed.

The boys pet the cat, let him smell his kill, then fed him treats to reward his skill and heroic behavior is ridding the yard of the rodent delinquents that have made a molehill of half the yard.

I hope we don't miss out on too many of our tomatoes the 2 weeks we are gone. We have about a dozen little green ones and a few more that are larger and turning orange - on their way to red. Then we have dozens and dozens of blossoms!

And my sugar snap pea plants are also covered in blossoms. I better not miss out on too many of those either.

I have some limes ready to pick and my key limes should ready to pick enough to do something with in a week. I'll have to find some recipes. Maybe a pie again... or lime mousse....

I did this years High School Transcripts for G&C. Sometimes I think Gavin may have done enough computer programming for a whole years class. And I wonder is researching weapons can count as a semester class- he sure does enough of it. I chalked it up to Social Studies and History. Which I list as very general classes (just Social Studies and History) and figure they do enough Hodge-Podge, random research in those areas it counts as a school year course.

here is what I listed for Gavin (some of these full year, some of them single semester)

Algebra 2 (which he actually has to finish this summer)

Physics 1

Driver's Education (he took an online course, I think the DE courses at the schools here count as 1 semester, so that's what I counted it as- though he completed it in 3 days)

Astronomy

Shop/Car Maintenance (I figure all the car work he's done with his dad and the engine model he made, and all the power tool usage he's done- count towards a semester of 'shop/car maintenance'

10th Grade English (whatever. I dunno.)

Physical Education

Computer Science

Art (he's been teaching himself anime this year, plus done a few painting classes, and a sketching class)

History

Social Studies

Home-Ec

**** **** **** **** **** **** ****

Connor's is Similar.

I need to get them doing more volunteer, organizations stuff .... I hear colleges really like seeing that stuff on transcripts.

* Ki's CLASS * MayTerm Myths

May is Over. Ki was a bit sad on Friday when he realized there are no more school days in May. He said he wished it was May Longer so he could do more MayTerm.
His Lap book is finished. "art" is not his thing. I try to get him to expand a bit, use some color, add some detail, make things at least almost coordinate. He did better. He used some colored paper here and there and used color pencils instead of just mechanical pencils.

(You Can Click On the Pictures to see them Larger)

THE OUTSIDE SAYS: "GRAECO-ROMAN MYTHOLOGY"



The book OPEN. The white pocket in the middle holds 4 CARDS on a chain. it's a VENN DIAGRAM- but in circle attached to a chain.

Title Circle says: Creation Story.

YELLOW are facts of the bible Account on Creation.

RED are from the Mythological Creation Story

ORANGE are things the 2 have in common.

LEFT- you can see some of the BiFold Cards. a picture on the outside- Bible Verses that go with how GOD is like each specific Myythological god on the inside,

MIDDLE- the Blue Star says GEMINI. Ki's chosen Mythological Constellation Story from the ones he read about


WHEN opened,the Star has a Picture on the Constellation on the bottom Piece and a short Synopsis on the backside of the top Star.

During the time in History when Rome Ruled the World, the Romans adopted a lot of other cultures, beliefs, gods, etc from many other Countries. The Romans especially liked the Greek gods and the stories that went with them. They named some of their gods to line up with the Greek gods. A lot of Greek and Roman Culture was intermingled. This can be seen in the parts of the New Testament. That's why we decided to study Graeco-Roman Mythology first (before Norse or Egyptian, etc); so we could read in the Bible about some of these things. So that's the list of the 'similar gods' in Greek and in Roman.

To keep in God's Word while studying Mythology, Ki made bi-fold cards that on the outside have the symbol of one of the mythological gods and on the inside it has that god's name and then a Bible Verse about The One True God. He did this with 5 different mythological gods, showing how the one God of the Bible encompasses all that the Many Graeco-Romans tried to have their many gods be.

We read in Acts 17 about when Paul was in Anthens and say all the temples to all the gods. The Greeks even had a temple to the UnKnown God. We read these verses when studying about the PANTHEON. the temple in Rome to "ALL GODS" ('pan'=all; 'theo'=god)

ALSO in his LapBook- Ki has a Memory Match game. It's Astro-Myth-Match. He cut yellow Circles and on them he wrote the names of planets and moons (their names are taken from Roman MMythology) and their matching Card is what they are the Roman god of.... Like Mars if the Roman god of war.


- - in this picture is 'god of speed' and then further down is "Mercury" - - -

~~~~ Ki read a lot of the myths, about Roman Culture, about greek and roman word roots we see in mythology and in words we use today, and he made Graeco-Roman recipes.

Ki wants to show his lapbook to the pastor and to James, his youth group pastor.
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Knit 1, Purl a Cookie

My posts have not had Much Ado Bout Boys lately, despite the title of my Blog. My Apologies. That will slowly be corrected over time.

Ki saved his last 2 cookies for Brian and I. YUM. Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookies! (that I made in the first place)

Gavin is working of some computer programming for his End of the Year School Presentation.

Connor fed his cat Lime Yogurt again today.

Now that we have the Boy Stuff taken care of, let's move on to the Non-Boy stuff......the girly stuff.

June is DNA SCARF KNITTING month. Lots of weird and varied, funky cable and twists stitches. I am knitting a swatch first- to practice (learn) these new techniques.

Or does it look better when using a Flash?



On Memorial Day I sewed. I sewed a bag to hold my Knitting Supplies. It is my Sewn Knitting bag.

GLUVLUV2

I changed my gauntlet design. The last one was good, but I wanted something a little better. The thumb opening was a bit too big last time.I am pretty happy with this new design. It fits the hand/thumb better, BUT is a bit loose.

NOW I just hope I took good enough notes so I can make one for my left hand, too.

I cast on 44 (need to cast on 40 next time)

did a few rows of seed stitch.

a few rows of K1P1

Then started into many rows of stockingette.

I added(increases) a few stitches for a few rows each to get to the thumb opening.

I cast Off 3 for the base of the thumb hole then just did the flip Back and Forth for the thumb.

Added a few more stitches at the top of the thumb opening.

Joined it together.

did a few K2TOGs on the upper rows. (which were sets of 3Purls, 4 knits, 2 purls and a purl-stitch Cast Off)