First and second week roundups

We're done with our first couple weeks of HSing. WooHoo! I thought I'd summarize some of the highlights (even though we had some low points too, I'm going to focus on the positive.)

Highs of first week:
Enthusiasm on the first day, making cupcakes together to celebrate and giving J a schultute (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schult%C3%BCte), getting into the routine of calendar activities, completed a Kindergarten Portfolio, made it through the week with both of us still alive and (pretty much) unscathed, new washer and dryer (Totally not HS related, but it makes me smile and they both play a happy little tune when they are finished. It is a welcome change from my washer which sounded like a jet plane was taking off during the spin cycle and we won't even discuss the scary buzzing that signaled the end of the drying. *shiver* Mama happy.)

Week two was very busy. I hated having to go somewhere all the time. I would say that we teetered on an "unschooling" label this week. Me = creature of habit and homebody.

Highs of second week:
J read (almost 90% independently) the first three Bob books, she is much more interested in the new handwriting worksheets (A Reason for Handwriting is what we are now using.), she started a beginning gymnastics class for 12 weeks - she loved it, it's a very small class (4 kids) and it's 5 minutes from our house - Score!, she went to her first afternoon of classes (art/PE/geography) at the umbrella school, alone - knowing no one in class - that's big for her (I did see her tell her teacher that she was scared while her little chin was quivering (*sniff, sniff* It was heartbreaking.), but, even though I had the option of going with her to class, she took her teacher's hand, gave me a kiss, waved goodbye and went on her own. Bittersweet. She also went to a homeschool science class at a local nature center and learned about Monarch butterflies. She was asked what her favorite insect was and she said "snake". I guess we better focus on some science activities. :) We also took a little family overnighter to stay in a renovated lockhouse (www.canalquarters.org) on the C&O Canal. I love the canal...everything about it. We stayed in lockhouse 6, which is the most "luxurious" (read: kitchen and indoor bathroom.) They have 4 lockhouses that are available to stay in each portraying a different time period along the canal (construction, operation and the fight to preserve the canal.)

Some pics:

Yummy!


Schultute (German school cone)


Gymnastics


This was our David and Goliath day. From J's feet to top of Goliath's head is his actual height (9 ft tall). Not sure why Goliath looks like the Incredible Hulk. I blame Dad's artistic interpretation.


Lockhouse 6 (near Cabin John, MD)



Can you guess the Bible character? lol J is currently obsessed with this story, so we did a devotional one morning and made the character. I'm sure he didn't have the snazzy burial clothes that we gave him, but I didn't have any white muslin. Ha.