Watching, Reading, Thinking

*1*
Landry Academy Classes- are cruising along. Feeche is taking Pre-law and LOVING it. The teacher is fantastic- very enthusiastic, as well as demanding- pushing the kids to take responsibility, to be able to recite and to back up their points. It is so engaging that the rest of us usually take the time to listen in.
He's also taking Copywriting. We've had technical difficulties with the book but it's more writing- which he loves.
Cub is taking Intro to Greek. Very basic, slow and steady- he absolutely loves it. I think he is looking at it like a code to crack- which it is.
Landry Academy is using the Haiku platform - it is fairly easy to use with a lot of features. The boys both really enjoy doing classes via tech. I am loving the structure, the assignments due, and the excellent teachers. Win-win.

*2*


Photo by Jannell

Saturday saw us sitting in a local university theater enjoying Tantara, the Festival of One Act Plays. A whole day of family fun. This is Feeche's 5th year performing, even though it's technically for high schoolers. The kids did a challenging ensemble comedy set in the south. These are northern kids, ya'll! The hillybillys were one of four plays, all performed by local homeschooling high schoolers. Look at what a little old backyard drama camp turned in to?
Stay tuned for Drama Camp this June and Shakespeare Camp this summer.

*3*

Literature for the week. We read The Bridge to Terabithia. Cub and Flower spent the afternoon asking  WHY would the author of a children's book kill off the main character?! Didn't she know that young kids would read it, fall in love with her characters and CARE that she died?! I warned them it was sad, but they insisted. I told Cub to pick something happier for the next read-aloud and he choose Johnny Tremain. He says, "Nobody dies." I say, "It''s the revolutionary war, everybody dies." Perspective, eh?

We also watched Return to Me. GREAT cast, set in the Windy City, a heart warming movie. I literally cried. I do every time. Even the boys watched. It's just such a sweet story. Serendipity. Bonnie Hunt wrote it, directed it and acts in it (wife to Belushi).

I'm reading L'Engles Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art. Truly exceptional writing from a thinker and artist extraordinaire. I'm partial to L'Engle. I love her passion for science and theology and how she intertwines the two, as they should be, reveres the divine and seeks the Holy.
Tried to read Pride and Prejudice but I've memorized too much of the BBC version and the voices in my head were too distracting. Pitiful, eh? (I probably shouldn't be publically admitting that I listen to the voices in my head, but now you know!.)

*4*
We did some memory work this week. Flower started memorizing The Spider and the Fly- fun, with a great rhythm!, VP cards for the Medieval period, review of math facts. Speaking of which. We are trying out a new math program. It reminds me of Right Start without all of the manipulative's, goes quickly through the math facts and focuses on mental math. I'm really liking it and will be doing a review soon.
*5*
Meet an amazing woman today who survived the Rwandan genocide. She was born Muslim, became a Christian, bore a child conceived through rape. She is fearless and full of the joy and the fervor of the Lord. An amazing sister. I have plans to get some high schoolers together to hear her testimony. She believes that she was saved from death and mutilation to preach the good news, heal the sick, proclaim the year of the Lord's favor. Makes some of our struggles seem a bit small.

*6*
It was so warm out this week that I got in a couple of decent walks. Today's was cut short cause the city village graded the road and it was a muddy mess. I was slip sliding away. It's like the beginning of April around here, instead of the beginning of February. I am so loving it.
Feeche and Cub have been getting up together in the a.m. to do bootcamp calisthenics. Of course Viking Man couldn't stand to hear all of the fun they were having without jumpin in on the fun and the three of them are doing burly stuff like pyramid push-ups. Hooyah!

*7*
I've gone back and read my plans for the school year along wtih plans for this New Year. I'm behind on everything. My good friend, Lori (LOVE you, Girlfriend!) excuses me by saying I'm an idea person and I have some many ideas, who can get them all done? I'll take that grace. But, seriously, where does the time go? We're back to co-op in the morning and the kids have been longing for it the entire 8 weeks we've had a break. It will make everything busier, but it adds so very much to our lives!!

How was your week? What are you reading? Watching? Thinking?