Franklin Graham at the Capital

Dr.Dh, Cub and I trekked to the Capital this week to hear Franklin Graham on his 

Decision America Tour. Just under 3000 came out, in the middle of the week. It was gorgeous weather and an enthusiastic crowd.

It was great to be part of a huge crowd praying for our state and country, but I wish Franklin's message had been more relevant to what our current issues and challenges are. 

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Summer Splash Season

Summer Splash Season is in session! 

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Volleyball!

A couple of cool homeschool Moms that we know got together a few years ago and started Wednesdays at the Park, learning and playing Volleyball. The season officially started today and it couldn't have been more perfect weather! The littles play on the playscapes, the Jr. Highers worked on skills and then did a couple of scrimmages, and the older crowd jumped right into playing games. Amanda brought Popsicles and fudge bars for 40 to celebrate J's birthday, which was a perfect addition to a late spring evening at the Park, complete with babies on blankets and dogs on leashes.

To top it all off, we saw hot air balloons! 

Guess where you'll be finding us once a week throughout the summer? 

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Vietnam Memorial D.C.

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

D.C. in Five

After a  full day of hotel snafoos and conferencing. 

 It was a crazy fast trip and we crammed a lot in, including a Crab-fest at Abners on the Chesapeake (yes, Flower was as tired as she looks in the picture above). Her comment, when dinner was served, "We just dissected this in Science- I can't eat that!- She proceeded to prove her distaste for seafood by projecting her entire dinner across the hotel room in the dead of night). 

The weather could not have been more perfect- high 70's and blooming everything- trees and flowers galore- it smelled and felt wonderful!

Flower left the Lincoln Memorial saying, "Lincoln was a great man." 

We couldn't have asked for a better CC Cycle 3 Field Trip-fun times! 

And a different river-front- we had just enough time to say "Hi" to a few Midwestern peeps.

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

My 2 Lefties

We've had 2 Southpaws in the house this month; 

 

one by birth, one by break. 

This is what happens when you ask brothers to pose for a picture. They can't just stand there, looking nice and all, they have to wrestle, man-handle and probably end up in a pile on the floor. 

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Memory Master 2014

This gorgeous girlie made Memory Master. Word perfect recitation of over 400 facts, learned in 24 weeks.

3 complete 2-hour proofs and one review proof of 6 subject areas: Latin, Math, English, Science, History sentences, Geography In addition she recited John1: 1-7 in both Latin and English, all 50 U.S. Presidents and a Timeline from Creation to September 11, consisting of 160 peoples and places and events.

Flower and three other hard working young ladies earned the imitable title of Memory Master for our Classical Conversations Community. Good stuff, that. 

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

TeenPact State Class

We've been involved with TeenPact for 8 years and it has provided our kids with amazing and varied opportunities. The State Class teaches the kids about local government, how they can make an impact regardless of age, teaches them the political process, how to write a bill, responsibility, familiarity with State Government officials and so much more! 

Not only is the State Class so totally worth going to, but the Alumni Events are every bit as good. Our kids have traversed the country, working on State and Federal Campaigns because of TP contacts, had free classes given them and made amazing friends. 

If you haven't discovered TeenPact yet, it's probably time to do so! 

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Classical Conversations Community Day

I Tutor the Master's Class so I try to get my kids up front and leading as much as possible. Here is Mr. J, who has boundless energy, is easily bored ready to move on and is as sharp as a tack, leading the class in Latin memory work. He is hopping on one foot, while doing the "robot" while reciting Latin with an English accent. Yeah, our class rocks. 

Presentations this week featured lots of Bible Memory, including the first couple chapters of an entire book, recitation of all of the Presidents as well as the Books of the Bible, a Book Report and this little gem- a remote control flying thingamajig. Look at that happy face.

How to blow up a ballon without hot air? Our science experiment for the week showed the kids how to do just that. Cool beans.

Throw in water color painting ala Andrew Wyeth, Map Blobbing, an Irregular Verb Tense review sheet and Human Tic-Tac-Toe and it was a full and fantastic morning. 

We followed up with Essentials. Which we love no matter how much I could be re-convinced I missed the grammar gene. My kids totally know more than I do about grammar but I keep sticking with it. Thank the good Lord I have other admirable qualities. 

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Leaf Love Part 2

More pics of 2 cutie patooties. Both W and Flower are the youngest kids of large homeschooling families. They have a lot in common, including a love of kittens, good books, nature, art and being together! 

Aren't they gorgeous?

Jumping for joy! 

#1 Pile Leaves

#2 Jump off tramp

#3 Thank God for young knees! 

#4 Smile immensely and pose adorably!

Love these 2, and sweet Jannell, who is as gifted with a needle, and in the kitchen, as she is with a camera.

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Leaf Mummy

This is what happens when Flower, Miss W and her rocking picture snapping Momma get together.

Do you see the joy on that girls face? Love that. 

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Goofy Girl's Gorgeous Gloss

Above is a depiction of my Goofy Girl. 

She is holding her two paintings from the conference last week-end. 

"Reflections on a Lake"

"River-Valley"

Not bad, eh? She had a blast- each painting was a large class and took 3 hours, she learned a ton of techniques and was in paint-lovers heaven for the day. 

(Can you tell by the title I was working the IEW booth all week-end?!)

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Smaug, Sam & Gandalf

Just wanted to brag on my adorable kids kittens- Cute aren't they? We are going with LOTR inspired names, from the left: Smaug, Sam and Gandalf.

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Update on Adorable

The kittens are growing. Names this year are Tolkien inspired.

 Gandalf the Grey is Flower's favorite. 

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Lake Superior Love

Took a little road trip last week-end with Flower to a huge homeschooling convention to help out some desperate IEW homies.  Of course, my brand new power cord died so I was without electronic communication- including my camera (sacrilege!) for most of the duration.

I did find a new power cord on the last day and Flower managed to capture one of the huge liners, parked across the lot from our van. Loved the lake; completely captivating! Loved the hilly terrain. LOVED the trees. My deciduous loving heart was doing the "home" call and response. 

And yet, Sunday we drove, back across prairie- bleak and brown- with snow- an insult in April, I might add, to home. 

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

FeLion

 

Baghera is feeling much better since all of her internal parts have been re-internalized, her tail's been sheered and the stitches are out. Mega bucks for a barn cat; geesh. My consolation is that the kids have been hauling her around snuggling her like crazy, talking about what a great cat she is and how happy they are that's she around to enjoy spring with them. Simple things, eh.

 

Money can't buy happiness, that much is sure and certain; but it can keep the harsh realities of life at bay a bit.

 

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Doe, A Deer

More winter wild-life, captured from the back window. We often seen a small herd of deer crossing to make their way to the river. Not as idyllic as it sounds, as they'll girdle our trees in a heart beat.

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Air Soft Buddies

Guns, Masks, Friends and 10 acres, regardless of sub-zero weather.

Baboom, baby! 

Sign up for my Learn Math Fast give-away, going on NOW! 

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Playing Possum

 

The dog discovered a rodent in the yard and Feeche got up close and personal.

He said it was pretty small, but its fur was pretty fluffed out in terror. Homestead living, y'all.

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!

Calvin and the Babysitter



 

Found this in the dining room.

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!