Challenging - but, I can do all things...

Chapel for the first time with #1 - which was rewarding for me. Little boy twin was having an "I can't do it" day. He enjoyed the reading times and the weather recording times, but was challenged today. Little girl had fun drawing her favorite character from "Pup and Hound Catch a Thief" and listening to the call of a magpie who ended up the culprit in the story. She drew a butterfly and thought about what the first question was that she might as God upon arriving in Heaven (PDL Children's journal). Heading out to the library and then p/u #1. Breakfast for dinner will have to work it's way around #1 soccer practice tonite. Twins start soccer tomorrow night. September should be quite a soccer month. October will be travel month...

Tuesday with apple butter fixins

Firstly, email if you're interested in the kids' audio responses to the Turkish Cultural Fair a Navy Pier on Saturday. I'll send them to you. Secondly, Monday was a wonderful adventure in continuing to establish our routine. I snuck in a bike ride to check the weather as P.E. THis week they are listening to Beethoven in the background. We'll see if it sinks in as an awareness to the foundations of music. Each of the twins enjoyed helping me measure out the ingredients for zucchini-choc.chip-almond chocolate pudding/ german chocolate bundt cake/muffins. The letters c and d are much easier for them to write and the problem/ solution in Chicka Chicka Boom Boom story is brilliantly represented in their artwork.

Thirdly, Today is a wonderful experiment in preparing apple butter in the crock pot for canning this evening. George Washington is part of our lessons this week. I will continue to ask them why he is special. I just have to keep reminding myself that it wasn't an apple tree, but a cherry tree that he cut down. More important is the fact that the state of Washington is named for him and begins our travels across the nation's northern border states. Later today, we get to take turns studying the piano lesson book or writing words down from the Magic School bus dinosaur cd-rom. But for now, it's play time. Let's finish lunch and create some magnificent train track or tea party table.

I'll finish by also shining the spotlight on #1 child who put up with me in his classroom yesterday following up on my job to clean the desktops each Monday after school. He had some fun showing his siblings all the stuff in the classroom, enticing them. He also did a brilliant job last night carrying his part of the first soccer practice for our park district team. He is looking forward to the twins starting their soccer practice soon so that his brother doesn't spend so much time trying to play soccer on "his" field. Each day is a blessing, enjoy it with us :- )

Saturday with Daddy

http://www.chicagoturkishculturalfair.org/

more details to follow (we can't figure out how to load the right audio file)

No power at school/church

Well, more rain and storms caused the power to stay off at school/church and the first grader is home today. The park district golf lessons were held, unexpectedly for all 3 children inside the building today. It was a day for putting anyway, so the lesson was very applicable in a low pile carpet area. Wow, now the twins did a few lessons for kindergarten (each earning a temp tatoo) with supervision by the older brother, and that is over in time for lunch! Later, another storm, but hopefully we'll keep power and run the sump pump as long as it takes. It is definitely time to play make believe trains or airports or castles or something!!! YIPPEE, more time with my children :- )

Afternoon with Daddy

The work picnic was Thursday in Palatine where we met people from 2 areas of Daddy's work. We played games and I spoke a little Turkish with a couple of people there. The twins played some more time with Daddy while I went to get the 1st grader from school. EXCEPT that once at school/church, a tornado warning forced the principal to retain the children for a practice/real drill and provide shelter for the parents from their cars. The power went out at school and I gathered the 1st grader from the dark after the danger passed. We went home to wait for the twins and Daddy because the picnic was rained out too. What a mess in this new area we call home.

Kindergarten, first day

Dropped 1st grader, returned to pray and pledge in the garage (that's where the flag is hanging over the freezer), organized our desks and set to reading Genesis 1:1. The twins already had a clue what sounds the a, c, d, f made, so phonics was easier than it could've been. Except those silly d and b appearances. The literature exercise found us reading "If you give a mouse a cookie" and retelling the story to me with help from an drawing from the website. Math found them writing their numbers on special lined paper & my introducing the idea that the top line was the top of a tree house, middle line was the area where the leaves stopped, the bottom line was the grass and the letters that hook under the ground find roots in the dirt. It was time to check the meteorological conditions and record those on our calendars - clear and windy. They had to check all the way around the house several times because conditions changed rapidly on the first day. Stickers for everyone (on their right writing hands)! I read a story about how the hymn "Amazing Grace" was written and a story about George Washington. They colored in a picture of George while Amazing Grace played on the speakers. They practiced a little handwriting exercise that meant drawing a circle from a point at 2 o'clock counterclockwise and that's when the boy threw the pencil and was sent to his room without a reward. Girl finished that and then closed out our time with a child's journal day from "40 Days of Purpose" to receive a reward (temp tatoo on her left hand). Boy came down later and finished the child's journal page too, but no tatoo for him.