Yesterday......

We were involved in a serious accident after I picked the girls up from the studio....the van is probably going to be totaled, but thankfully we walked away with fairly minor injuries (burns from airbags, bruises, cuts, back aches, etc)....I had Hannah, Em, Sophie and the baby with me....things would have been much worse had we been in a car or even the minivan....a landscape truck coming the opposite way lost a huge auger off the bed of its trailer and it came flying into the front end of the van. Our guardian angels must have been watching out of us....the van didn't roll, I didn't hit the bed of the truck that was in front of me (which would have probably decapitated both me and Hannah) and the person behind me didn't rearend us, the windows didn't shatter.....the squad that responded said that they were amazed at how little we were injured, saying that they would have been using the jaw of life to recover bodies had I been driving something smaller...

The auger hit the front corner/driver side.......ripped off the bumper, pulled it under the car, destroying the wheel/rod,everything on the driver side. Thankfully the truck stopped (it took him a few minutes, he ended up about 1/2 mile down the road).....there is definitely some neglicence (sp) involved....he either didn't secure it properly (his fault) or the pin assembly was bad (company's fault).

I am trying not to be angry.....after all, the 4 things I can't replace walked away from it....Will and Sophie only had slight redness from their carseat straps and Em just banged her knee (apparently when she saw Will's carseat flying up as my body was being thrust back against the driver seat...his carseat was directly behind me.....she instinctively tried to stand up to grab it with her seatbelt on so her knee had a "rug burn" from the back of the seat)....emotionally they are torn up (you should hear Sophie in her little 2 year old voice tell about the accident...of course according to her version,the fact that she fell in the grass when she got out of the car is worse than the crash)....Em swears she will never learn to drive....Sophie and Will tossed and fussed all night....wonder just how much they remember. Hannah's face is burned and bruised from the airbag and my arm is pretty torn up (those darn airbags eject VERY forcefully!) and I can't really use it, makes taking care of the kids and house almost impossible. Poor Will, I can't hold him or nurse him on my right side....guess we will be spending a lot of time laying in bed having nursing-fests!

On a bright note, I got a glimpse at the brighter side of my fellow man yesterday.... three WONDERFUL people stopped to help us.....the guy in front of me, the guy behind us, and a lady coming down the hill behind the landscape truck. The guy in front of me put the kids in his truck and pulled them over in a nearby driveway to keep them out of traffic, the guy behind us flagged traffic (there were almost 2 more accidents immediately following mine one car ended up doing a complete 360 to avoid hitting into the van and then minutes later someone almost rear ended us as they flew up around the curve). The woman gave the kids water bottles to calm them down and held the baby for me since I couldn't move my right arm. The responding squad had great people in it and two state troopers loaded everything they could from the van into their patrol cars and drove us home.

Draw a pig:

I found this site to be hysterical.....draw your own pig and see what it says about you!

http://drawapig.desktopcreatures.com/draw.asp

Toward the middle, you are a realist.

Facing front, you are direct, enjoy playing devil's advocate and neither fear nor avoid discussions.

With many details, you are analytical, cautious, and distrustful.

With 4 legs showing, they are secure, stubborn, and stick to their ideals.

The size of the ears indicates how good a listener you are.The bigger the better. You drew medium sized ears, you are a good listener

The length of the tail indicates the quality of your sex life.And again more is better! You drew large tail, WOW!

I copied this out of my friend's Kas Journal (Hestia Homeschool) that she had copied out of her friend Sugar's journal.....thought I would answer them....

Put an x to the things you have done:
(x) smoked a cigarette
(x) smoked a cigar
() made out with a member of the same sex
(x) been in love
() been dumped
(x) stolen
(x) been fired
(x) been in a fight
(x) snuck out of my parent's house
(x) had feelings for someone who didnt have them back
()been arrested
(x) made out with a stranger
(x) gone on a blind date
(x) lied to a friend
(x)had a crush on a teacher
(x) skipped school
(x) slept with a co-worker
(x) seen someone die
() had a crush on one of your journal friends
(x) been to Canada
() been to Mexico
(x ) been on a plane
() thrown up in a bar
() purposely set a part of myself on fire
(x) eaten Sushi
() been snowboarding
(x) met someone in person from journals/online
() been hxc dancing at a show
() been in an abusive relationship
(x) taken painkillers
(x) love someone or miss someone right now
(x) laid on your back and watched cloud shapes go by
(x) made a snow angel
(x) had a tea party
(x) flown a kite
(x) built a sand castle
(x) gone puddle jumping
(x) played dress up
(x) jumped into a pile of leaves
(x) gone sledding
(x) cheated while playing a game
(x) been lonely
(x) fallen asleep at work/school
(x) used a fake id
(x) watched the sun set
(x) felt an earthquake
(x) touched a snake
(x) slept beneath the stars
(x) been tickled
(x) been robbed
(x) been misunderstood
(x) pet a reindeer/goat
(x) won a contest
(x) run a red light
() been suspended from school
(x) been in a car accident
(x) had braces
(x) felt like an outcast
(x) eaten a whole pint of in one night
(x) had deja vu
(x) danced in the moonlight
(x) hated the way you look
(x) witnessed a crime
() pole danced
(x) questioned your heart
() been obsessed with post-it notes
(x) squished barefoot through the mud
(x) been lost
() been to the opposite side of the country
(x) swam in the ocean
(x) felt like dying
() cried yourself to sleep
(x) played cops and robbers
(x) recently colored with crayons/colored pencils/markers
(x) sung karaoke
(x) paid for something with only coins
(x) done something you told yourself you wouldn't
(x) made prank phone calls
(x) laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your nose
(x) caught a snowflake on your tongue
(x) danced in the rain
(x) written a letter to Santa Claus
(x) been kissed under a mistletoe
(x) watched the sun set with someone you care about
(x) blown bubbles
(x) made a bonfire
(x) crashed a party
(x) gone rollerskating
(x) had a wish come true
() humped a monkey
(x) worn pearls
() jumped off a bridge
() screamed penis in class
() ate dog/cat food
() told a complete stranger you loved them
(x) kissed a mirror
(x) sang in the shower
(x) have a little black dress
(x) had a dream that you married someone
(x) glued your hand to something
() got your tongue stuck to a flag pole
() kissed a fish
(x) worn the opposite sexes clothes
() been a cheerleader
(x) sat on a roof top
(x) screamed at the top of your lungs
(x) done a one-handed cartwheel
(x) talked on the phone for more than 6 hours
(x) stayed up all night
() didn't take a shower for a week
(x)pick and ate an apple right off the tree
(x) climbed a tree
() had a tree house
(x) are scared to watch scary movies alone
(x) believe in ghosts
()have more then 30 pairs of shoes
()worn a really ugly outfit to school just to see what others say
(x) gone streaking
() played ding-dong-ditch
() played chicken
(x) been pushed into a pool with all your clothes on
(x) been told you're hot by a complete stranger
(x) broken a bone
(x) been easily amused
() caught a fish then ate it
(x) made porn (well if photos count!)
(x) caught a butterfly
(x) laughed so hard you cried
() cried so hard you laughed
(x) mooned/flashed someone
() had someone moon/flash you
(x) cheated on a test
() have a Britney Spears CD
(x) forgotten someone's name
(x) slept naked
(x)French braided someones hair
(x)gone skinny dippin in a pool
(x)been kicked out of your house

Kas added
(x) gave birth without drugs
() had poison ivy on your butt
(x) had chewing gum stuck in your hair
(x)talked to plants
() fell asleep driving
(x)nursed a baby while on the commode

I added:
(x) fell asleep on the bathroom floor
(x) returned a book for a refund after you read it
(x) pretended you weren't home when someone was at the front door
(x) had someone lose their virginity to you
(x) have a library book in your house that should have been returned years ago
(x) had sex in a public place
(x) snuck into the movie theater without paying

Cade's 5 year old portrait 

Our day yesterday....

This is something I posted to the email list, but I thought I would share it here....a typical day around here....

Started early as the kids had to get their planters down to the Cincinnati Flower show...now this is a huge deal, they have never let juniors have planters at the show before and we know very little about plants. Of course in typical fashion, we had to stop at 3 diferent places to try to find the missing lettuce for Grant's container (no luck) and when we got there we had to haul the containers quite a distance! The kids were so proud of themselves. The women that checked us in were wonderfully sweet and they even invited me to join their garden club (of course it appears I would be the youngest member by about 20 years!). We will find out tomorrow if their containers did well enough to earn ribbons!

After dropping of our containers, we dashed back home so Grant could shower and get dressed for his BIRTHDAY pictures. Hannah and Em dressed the other kids because after the pictures we had to get to a park program. Pictures turned out well, despite the fact that I had to run all over JC Penney's to find someone to tie his tie for the picture (Grant wanted a "fancy" picture).

We headed to the park program (the topic was weather) and it was wonderful to see so many of our homeschooling friends. Keith, the park naturalist, was WONDERFUL and everyone learned so much, including me....like I never knew it could only hail when it was hot out or that the earth spins counterclockwise. I was so surprised that Kas showed up with her girls, I forget how wonderful it is when we see them regularly (they have been so sick this winter). After the program we picniced and played in the park for a couple of hours.

Popped home, Jay and I ran Hannah up to dance and then we went to the cardstore to get MLB showdown cards and then to ToysRUS to pick up a bike for Grant for his birthday. Stopped in Krogers for a cake and icecream. Jay also grabbed some cookies for Grant to take to his baseball practice.

Got home and Jay left almost immediately with the boys to head up to the ballfields. Cade had his first t-ball practice (he was so excited) and Grant's team had practice after that. Once Jay was finished at the ballfields he swung by the dance studio and picked up Hannah.

We all met at 9 PM at Smokey Bones for Grant's birthday dinner. Both the staff and a table of customers commented on how well behaved the kids were (does a mom's heart good). The customers happened to be retired school teachers who even commented how they would have loved to have had such well behaved kids in their classes....OK I didn't have the heart to burst their bubble and say the kids were homeschooled! They even gave us free desserts (hot cinnamon donuts which they wrapped for us to take home) . Once we finished dinner we headed home.

Stopped and bought gas...it was $1.99 a gallon....I couldn't BELIEVE it.....the price had dropped over $.70 in two weeks! Of course the $20 I put in only gave me just over 1/4 of a tank in the monster van!

We got home and sang happy birthday to Grant, he opened his presents and went off to play MLB showdown with Brett.

So we will soon see what today brings....children are beginning to stir! I hear laughter coming from upstairs!

My family

I just joined a new email group and had to send an introduction...thought I would post it here also to refresh any old visitors memories and to give new vistors an idea of who we are.....

Here's the long version of our intro.....

I am Laura, wife to Jay, unschooling mom to Brett (14 1/2), Hannah (13), Emily (10), Grant (9), Jacob (7), Cade (5), Sophie (2) and baby Will (9 1/2 months). We live outside of Cincinnati, Ohio. Needless to say, with this crew there is never a dull moment in this household!

We began homeschooling in early Sept.2001 (after trying to convince my husband for over 5 years) and I planned to "school at home".... like many hardheaded people who need a ton of bricks to fall on them to figure something out, my "ton of bricks" was the tumbling of the world trade centers in nyc on 9-11-01. In those hours as I cuddled my babies close and prayed with my older children, I realized that "living" was what was important and ironically never looked back. I don't know why it was so easy for me to give up my ideals of "schooling" and comfortably fall into unschooling but it was (OK, I know part of the reason, I knew I never retained any information I was taught if it didn't interest me). Strangly enough, my husband, son of a schoolteacher, embraced my decision to let the kids take the lead in their learning.

Almost 2 years ago, my older two decided to enroll in a local co-op run by a couple of moms. The effort they put into their classes is purely what they chose,my only rule is that they be respectful of the "teacher" and not disrupt to the other students. At co-op Brett takes Algebra, US Government, Conversational spanish, and Biology with lab. Hannah takes U.S. History, Spelling, and Conversational spanish. They are given assignments to complete each week and they determine how much effort they put into completing them. Grant (9) and Jacob (7) take a reading class for one hour one day a week because they both expressed a desire to learn to read and interest in taking the class. Outside of these activities we use no textbooks, no curriculum, no workbooks.

Brett (14 1/2) is an avid golfer and basketball player. Like many teens, he spends a lot of time on the computer, IM with friends, playing games, downloading music. He is addicted to PS2. He love MLB showdown cards (a game that you play with baseball cards) and spends time trading cards online. Brett was born 10 weeks early and is hydrocephalic and vp shunt dependent.

Hannah (13) dances competitively. She competes on a jazz, hiphop and tap team as well as performing a tap solo. She is a cadette girl scout and is involved in 4-H. She loves stamping and scrapbooking. She is ALL GIRL and loves make-up, music and her cell phone. She has a lot of male friends, but will not be permitted to date until she is 16. She earns extra money babysitting for a couple of families from the dance studio.

Emily (10) also dances competitively. She competes on a jazz, hiphop, tap and ballet team and performs a jazz duet. She is a junior girl scout and is involved in 4-H. She loves stamping and scrapbooking. She is a nature girl and loves to spend time outside. About a year ago Emily had a dream and decided that she needed to become a vegetarian. She is bordering on being a vegan but drinks milk/eats cheese and yogurt. She won't touch eggs or any meat.

Grant turned 9 today. He is a naturally gifted athlete who loves baseball, basketball and football and excels at all! He struggles with learning to read (I suspect some -lexia but haven't had him tested). He likes math and works numbers well in his head. He loves MLB showdown cards.

Jacob just turned 7 last week. Like his big brother he likes sports but isn't as natually gifted. He plays baseball and football and never complains about going to practice or playing time. He is learning to read and like his big brothers has an easy time with numbers. He loves riding his bike. He loves MLB showdown cards.

Cade turned 5 earlier this month. The kid is a born comedian and keeps us in stitches. He is playing t-ball this spring and is looking forward to playing football this fall. He LOVES math and anything number related! He just got a bike for his birthday and is loving learning to ride it. He loves MLB showdown cards. His special talent is that he knows the name and number of every Cincinnati Reds baseball player. People love to quiz him by saying a number and he tells them the player.

Sophie is 2 (will be 3 in June) and is the princess of the family. She loves to dress in her sisters outgrown dance costumes and usually goes everywhere in a tutu or some sequined costume. She LOVES books and must be read to at least 3 times a day. She is working on learning to use the potty.

Will is our baby. We have nicknamed him Harry Hudini (sp) because he can escape from any seatbelt and LOVES to climb. He crawls and pulls himself to standing and loves to cruise the furniture. His newest feats include learning to wave, learning to sign "milk" when he wants to nurse, and learning to clap.

Let me see, anything else? We have a family bed, believe in child led weaning, don't vaccinate, don't restrict tv/computer time/video games, are very liberal with viewing/listening content, don't have bedtimes. Favorite family tv shows include The Simpsons, Family Guy, Malcolm in the Middle, anything on Court TV and CSI. We eat as a family every night usually after everyone is home for the evening (so about 9 PM). And although you might not have guessed it, we are very conservative both religiously and politically. We love getting together with other homeschoolers/unschoolers and work daily at practicing tolerance towards everyone we met. By no means do I think because it works it us that it will work for anyone else.

We also play host to 4 aquatic turtles, one ornate box turtle, 2 cats, 4 toddler kittens, and 4 newborn kittens and a gerbil.

Meeting in Real Life....

For close to 10 years I have been involved with a little email loop of woman. We have seen each other through pregnancy, divorce, moves, children's illnesses, unemployment, the list is endless. Finally on April 8, I had the opportunity to meet one of my fellow loop members in real life when she extended an invitation for my daughters, Will and me to stay with her on a visit to Indianapolis for a dance competition.

Beth was a WONDERFUL hostess and despite her protesting people saying it she does exemplify grace under pressure!

April 8th, the day the adventure begins was Cade's birthday. We celebrated early so that the girls and I could head out to Indy...he seemed THRILLED to have cake for breakfast and was so excited to get his bike in the morning instead of nighttime!

I was a bit apprehensive the whole drive to Indy. I tried to remember the evolution of our little list, of how long Beth and I had "known" each other and tried to reassure the girls that we weren't going off to meet some "sicko" from the internet. She gave wonderful directions and we found her street easily, the homes in her neighborhood are just beautiful. The numbers switched quickly and I ended up driving past her house (her daughter Sophie was in the driveway) so by the time I turned my monster van around Beth was standing in her driveway to greet us. It was so strange to wrap my arms around someone the had just been a flat screen for almost a decade. We piled out of the van and into the house. It was a pleasure to get to meet her children and like in any large family it was neat to see how different their personalities are! We had discussed going to Conner Prairie, but the kids seemed content hanging out and it was so nice to just get to sit and talk so we spend the better part of the afternoon chatting. One of her sons made brownies and we enjoyed them HOT from the oven!

As dinner time approached, a minor mishap occurred. Her son Josh was in the driveway playing basketball with a friend and he fell into a bolt on the basketball pole and gashed his head. Beth handled it in stride, pulling her insurance cards from her purse while calling her husband on the phone. Her husband came home and took Josh to the hospital. Surprisingly they just glued the cut and tied his hair to hold it tight (I jokingly said Allen should have taken the digital camera and taken step by step pictures so we would know how to do it the next time...of course that would mean I would have to LOOK at the cut !!!) Anyhow Allen and Josh get home and we have a WONDERFUL DINNER.....Beth said it was SIMPLE and shared the recipe (I made it Wed night..everyone loved it!). Before anyone else had finished their first helping, my little Sophie was demanding more food...I think she ate 3 or 4 servings......probably because her BAD MOMMA forgot to feed her lunch (she was asleep when the girls and I got Subway!). So take note before inviting Riesenberg children to dinner to make sure they have had LUNCH!

After dinner the girls convinced us to go to the mall.....I think Beth and I had a better time than they did...Beth treated me to an frozen iced coffee treat (the first I ever had!) and we found an adorable dress for my Sophie. After the mall we went to Target to get the diapers I forgot at home and then went back to Beth's house. I so did NOT want to go to bed, I wanted to spend the night talking with my friend, but sleep called!

We were up early the next morning......second mishap, my Sophie managed to puke in the family room! After cleaning up the puke (Beth did the hard work!), my kids and I headed off to the dance competition (the real reason for our trip to Indy) and Beth and her family headed off to Enoch's soccer game (you all should see that boy's calves! they are HUGE!). We didn't get home until late and were wiped out, but Beth and I got to spend a bit more time talking.

Sunday morning was so hard.....we had to be at the competition early and Beth had nursery duty at church.....as I was heading out Allen came downstairs in his suit with this bright striped tie on....Beth commented abouting him wearing it and I just had to tell him how much I liked it...Beth mumbled something like "thanks, now he will wear it all the time"...I am still half expecting it to show up in my mailbox in a wrinkled ball! I was so sad pulling out of the driveway!

Beth's family plans on practicing courtship with her children, but if the plans for Josh's courtship don't work out, I think Miss Emily would gladly get in line....of course she wants 12 kids.....but Beth and I would be WONDERFUL grandmas! Could you just imagine the story they would have to tell...."our moms met on the internet and they ended up arranging our marriage!"....

So that's my story and I sticking to it!

Beth's Chicken Recipe:
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 cups sour cream
1 packet onion soup mix
6 chicken breast

In a crock pot, mix soup, sour cream and onion soup mix. Put chicken breasts in crockpot and push down into mixture. Cook on low 8 hours. Remove chicken from crockpot and serve remaining sauce over egg noodles. Super easy and super yummy!

The 3rd grade boys basketball team won their division with a 9 and 1 record and advanced to the elite 8 of the cyo tournament. 

Someday he will hate me for this picture, but I just LOVED the flowers! 

Wild Wednesdays:
Last year my family attended the Wild Wednesday programs and had a wonderful time. The information for this year's program is now available and we wanted to share it with our homeschooling friends. There are trails for hiking, ponds for exploring and a playground, so we usually plan to hang around for a while after the program.

04-May H.A.T. - Horns, Antlers, & Tusks presented by Second Nature Animal Programs +
11-May Newport Aquarium presents A Visit From the Indonesian Rainforest *
18-May Farmer Frank and Sunrock Farm presents Barnyard Animals **+
25-May Life With Reptiles presented by Second Nature Animal Programs *
01-Jun Birds of Prey including Aquila, the Bald Eagle presented by Raptor Rehabilitation of Kentucky
08-Jun Cincinnati Zoo presents Wildlife Comes To You *+
15-Jun Second Nature Animal Programs presents The Incredible Egg **
22-Jun Natural History Education Co. presents Bringing the Zoo To You and They Only Come Out at Night! *+
29-Jun Owls presented by RROKY and book reading of Woody, the Kentucky Weiner "A New Home" by Leigh Anne Florence)**
13 -Jul Sunrock Farm presents Barnyard Animals with Farmer Frank *
20-Jul A Visit From the Indonesian Rainforest presented by Newport Aquarium **+
27-Jul Natural Flight - A Juggling Show presented by Tom Sparough, The Space Painter *
03-Aug Cincinnati Zoo presents Wildlife Comes To You **+
10-Aug Kentucky's Trees presented by Kenton County Cooperative Extension Service *
17-Aug Aussie Animals including Bennett's Wallaby joey presented by Kentucky Down Under **+
24-Aug Outdoorswoman Vikki Rawe presents Feathers, Fur, and Feet *
31-Aug Cincinnati Zoo presents Wildlife Comes To You
From the webpage: Kenton County Parks & Recreation and Toyota Motor Manufacturing North America, Inc. welcome you to Wild Wednesdays! at Middleton-Mills Park from May through August. Join us for this, our sixth season of educational and entertaining programs about Nature and our natural world as we celebrate the amazing diversity of life on Earth.

The free programs begin at 10:00 am at Shelterhouse 2 - rain or shine - and last about an hour, with ample time for "up-close and personal" observation, and questions and answers.

Arrive early! For Wild Wednesdays! marked with one or two asterisks (* or **), plan to arrive early! Beginning at 9:30 am, on dates marked with one asterisk, Laura Davies, from Kenton County Public Library, will read stories, sing songs and promote "Imagination Exploration", their terrific summer reading program. On those dates marked with two asterisks, also beginning at 9:30 am, we'll have visits from Bearemy, the Build-A-Bear Workshop mascot, and his keeper will read a story or two.

Stay late! On dates marked with the plus sign (+), Naturalist John Barker from Big Bone State Park will make special presentations following the scheduled program.

Following Wild Wednesdays! during the months of June and July, Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission Head Start, thru the USDA Summer Feeding Program, will provide free sack lunches with milk to all children 18 years of age and younger.
During the school year, it is not unusual to have a number of different schools represented each week, generally in the K-8 age groups, accompanied by their teachers and chaperones. But, it's not just schools and school-age children who are attending the programs. It's all ages, from babies to seniors!

Answer the call of the wild! Meet live Cincinnati Zoo creatures face-to-face! See eye-to-eye with a Bald Eagle and Great-horned Owl when Raptors Rehabilitation of Kentucky comes to visit! Meet Farmer Frank and barnyard animals from Sunrock Farm! Howard Schwartzman and Second Nature Animal Programs will be back, along with new presentations from Natural History Education Co., the Newport Aquarium, and Kentucky Down Under!
Join Kenton County Parks & Recreation to discover the fascinating world of wildlife during Wild Wednesdays! at Middleton-Mills Park! Learn simple definitions for big words such as biodiversity, endangered, conservation, preservation, adaptation, ecosystem, indigenous, extinction, specialization, and interdependence.

Each week, there is a door prize-type drawing; in which donated items are given away.
After the program, take a hike. We mean it! Take a hike! Explore the mix of meadow and woods and hike the trails of Mills Road Park. Here's a chance to "Get back to Nature" and identify some of Kentucky's native trees and wildflowers. Discover the Northern Kentucky Bluebird Trail, a monitored series of nest boxes for cavity-nesting birds. Take advantage of this unique opportunity to observe Bluebirds, Tree Swallows, Chickadees, and Wrens and many other species in their natural habitats.

Or, explore the ecosystem of a pond. Examine the inhabitants of one of three ponds - from microorganisms found in pond water to the variety of plants, animals, and birds, which depend upon the ponds for life.

All you need is a sense of wonder - we'll take care of the rest! Go wild! Wild Wednesdays! Don't miss a single adventure!

Directions to Mills Road Park are easy: From I-275, take Covington/Taylor Mill exit (Exit 79), go south on KY16 7 miles to Mills Road, go east (turn left) on Mills Road, go one mile to park
For more info check out the Kenton Co Parks website.... http://www.kentoncounty.org/department_freeform_T7_R170.html

Easter p.s.

I completely forgot about this until a minute ago.

While we were waiting on my brother to show up at my mom's she asked about Brett going to highschool. When I commented that Brett had decided to stay home and continue going to the co-op for at least another year she replied "but he needs to go to school for socialization". I quickly began to enlighten her with just how much "socialization" the boy gets and she mentioned prom to which my wonderful eldest daughter commented "there is homeschool prom". I think my mom could tell that I was getting a bit defensive so she dropped the subject!

I do have to say it was a marked improvement though......when we started homeschooling she constantly questioned us about academics...now all she can think to question about it the darn prom......small steps, small steps...what progress we have made!

Habbo Hotel

Emily discovered a new online game while spending the night at her friend Alison's house. She has been having a ball playing. You create a hotel guest and then you get jobs and interact with the other guests. Check it out http://www.habbohotel.com/habbo/en/

Emily gets so engrossed playing the game. Her comment the other day was that it was really helping her spelling because you message with other guests. See, even a stupid computer game has educational value!

Easter

Easter was a truly glorious day!

Luckily we must have been one of the first stops on Mr. Easter Bunny's journey because at 3:15 AM I awake to Grant standing over me saying,

"mom, mom, can I open my baseball cards"
"what? what time is it Grant?"
"3:15"
"Yes, you can open them as long as you don't wake ANYONE else up then go back to BED!"

By 7 AM the rest of the kids were up and had opened their goodies and were making a breakfast of the candy in their baskets. Everyone bathed or showered and everyone but Jay, Cade and a very sick baby William headed of to the 9:30 services at church. Once we were finished with church we headed back home and then to my mom's for lunch.

She was in an unusually good mood. Could be that she knows if she pisses me off that I will leave, so things tend to stay civil! My brother and his wife even showed up with their dog, Scrappy. Of course that ticked Jay off...not that the dog was there, but that my mother gave more attention to the dog than her grandchildren! The kids were THRILLED with the baskets my mom made up for them, the boys were in heaven because she got them baseball cards and tennis balls! Sophie loved her coloring book and her VERY OWN package of markers!

We left my mom's house later than we were supposed to.....2:40 PM, so we were approaching Jay's mom's house a little later than the 3 PM start time for the egg hunt. I kept assuring the kids that they would wait for us to start the hunt, after all it was only 3:05 when we pulled onto her street, but NO, as we pull towards the house we see the kids HUNTING eggs...now if these were LITTLE KIDS I would have been fine, but my kids are amongst the youngest and there was only one kid UNDER 9 at the house when she started the hunt.....you have never seen my kids FLY out of the van so quickly and start scooping up eggs! The REASON???? My MIL puts $5 bills in about 5 eggs, $2 bills in many of the others, and change in others. Jacob came away the big winner in our family, snagging $11.61!

In years past, I used to let the fact that Jay's sisters really didn't talk much with me bother me, but as I have grown older and a bit wiser, I have decided to make the best of the day and put myself in charge of my own happiness. I spent some time talking to his sisters but then focus on conversation with my 19 year old neice who is in college and my 17 year old neice. After my older neice left, I sat and continued talking with my younger neice.

I was brokenhearted talking with her. She seems to be in so much pain and confessed that she thought of killing herself. I was floored...it wasn't like I was praticularly close to her, we only see each other a handful of times each year, and here this poor child was pooring her heart out to me. I kept asking her if there were adults in her life she felt she could talk to and trust and at first she said no, but then as we talked more (and I mean hours here) she finally came up with a list of people that she felt she could turn to in crisis.....of course I made her promise to call me if she needed help. Unfortunately things at her home are so broken down that approaching her mom with any other this would just make things worse. Of course anyone looking in from the outside would think the kid had a perfect life, she lives in an expensive house with an olympic size pool, got a brand new car at 16, goes to a great private school, gets good grades....but things are obviously not what they seem. Unfortunately so much of what she said echoed my own teen years, but because of that I feel I was able to give her some solid advise that she seemed receptive to hearing!

She headed home (did I mention she had come to my MIL alone because her mom and dad refuse to visit my MIL????) and I got to spend some time talking with my MIL and then we packed up and headed home. Jay was thrilled, she had made him some beef tongue (YUCK!) to bring home with him and she loaded the kids up with left overs!

We got home, got the car unpacked and settled in just in time for me to see the new episode of DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES.....I just LOVE that show!

Hannah

Here are pictures for Hannah's 13th birthday photo session. Hard to believe how quickly they grow up! We chose to have "fun" pictures taken, rather than something formal and stuffy!

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/mrsmomof6/album?.dir=/ed2c

I think they reflect Hannah's personality pretty accurately!

ADA Dance Competition
Dayton Convention Center

I absolutely hate waking up to find out that the roads are bad. It doesn't help to hear such news on the morning you are supposed to be in Dayton (60 miles away) for a dance competition and you have a schedule you have to meet. The girls and I loaded the car quickly and headed out at 6:35 AM in hopes of making it to Dayton by 8 AM. It's not like I would have stopped and filled the tank last night, no, I had to wait and do it on the way out. We pulled out of the gas station at 6:45 AM and prayed that we would make it in time.

For the most part, the roads just seemed wet. We passed an accident near Rt. 28 in Milford and a car of the road near Loveland, but the traffic kept moving. I jumped off the highway at Rt. 42 and cut up to Tylersville to grab 75 north (I hate getting on 75 at the 275 interchange, it is such a mess even on a good day). As we approached Middletown, the skies opened and dropped an icy mix everywhere. Luckily it seemed the roads had been pretreated, yet we passed another car that was off the road. The icy mix halted as we approached 675 in Dayton, but we had the misfortune of getting BEHIND a salt truck...talk about wrecking havoc on your visibility!

We pulled up in front of the convention center at 7:58 AM and I quickly unloaded the girls, Will and assorted dance costumes and accesories and I began the great search for a parking spot. The van wouldn't make the clearance for any of the nearby garages so I ended up finding a spot on the street. Luckily the meters weren't in effect on the weekends, so I didn't have to worry about going out and feeding the meter. I was a bit perplexed though because many meters said 1 hr or 2 hr parking only (posted on a sign on the street) and I couldn't decide if the sign applied even when the meters weren't operating. I opted on the side of caution and went over a couple of blocks and found 10 hr parking.....so I knew we were going to be there 13 hours or so, but I figured no cop would be on patrol long enough to spot my van within the 10 hr. contraints!

Once I got into the convention center the madness began! Hannah quickly dressed for her jazz number and I helped Emily put the finishing touches on her makeup for her ballet number. The morning was pure madness.....6 of our 9 dances fell within 3 hours...it was rather hectic getting everyone ready. Emily just about melted down after her duet. I quickly fed her and tried to refocus her. It didn't help that her teacher made a comment about her lipstick bleeding, Em is so sensitive to comments like that. We got through the first set of awards and the pace slowed down.....unfortunately Hannah's solo was almost the 1st thing after the second award ceremony (she went on stage at 6:15 PM) and we had to hang around until 9:15 PM for awards to start!

Hannah was really excited because one of the former teachers from the studio was at the competition to watch. Angela left the studio to go dance on Broadway. The owner of the studio was upset when she left because she thought that she would be returning to teach after her stint on Broadway but she didn't come back. There was a lot of tension because some people were talling the kids should talk to her because of that. How childish can you get? Hannah of course ran up and hugged her and was thrilled that she was going to see her perform, after all she had done the original choreography for her tap solo! Hannah got a high silver on her solo!

After Hannah preformed, we got to hang out, it was nice because I got to touch base with a lot of the moms I don't get to see very often. There is a lot of tension at our studio right now and it was nice to hear how the other moms felt about it. Plus it is always nice to glean new information or to confirm information that is circling about!

The big excitement of the day was that production hiphop "Sign Up!" got ULTIMATE GOLD! The kids got a huge trophy and $250...not much when you divide it by the 40 kids on the team, but it really got the kids PSYCHED!

Our drive home was worse than the drive up.....falling snow made for slick roads, salt thrown up unto the windshield made for horrible visibility and traffic was bumper to bumper (at 10 PM on a Saturday) for over half the trip home. Add to that that I HATE driving at night. We made decent enough time given the road conditions though!

Demonstrator kit arrives!

I am so EXCITED! My kit arrived today! I have blisters on my right hand from cutting out all the wonderful stamp sets I got! I can't believe that I actually sat here and mounted each and every set and cut them out! Now if I can just convince this crazy crew to let me stamp. Yeah, like that is going to happen!

Hannah is such a sweetie. She sat down with the catalog and made up an order for me! She wanted to be my first customer and used her babysitting money to buy a stamp for her sister Emily, herself and me and some ink pad! Now if I can just figure out how to submit the order!

EXTRA! EXTRA! Will masters new skill!

Proud momma joyfully announces Master William's newest accomplishment:
HE IS PULLING HIMSELF UP!
Can you believe my baby boy, at just one day past his 8 month birthday is pulling himself to standing! There is going to be no stopping this boy!

The Angel Company
www.theangelcompany.net

In typical Laura fashion, on a complete whim, I signed up to sell The Angel Company (TAC) stamps. I signed up under fellow homeschooler, Barbara Campbell. I am hoping that I can talk a few people I know into hostessing stamp workshops for me. The hostess benifits are wonderful and each guest gets a free stamp with each $30 they order.

Hostess benifits ($100 minimum net workshop sales):
1) Complimentary catalog
2) Free hostess set of your choice
3) Free hostess set for workshop net totals of $250, $500, $750 or $1000
4) Hostess 1/2 price item (anything in catalog)
5) 20% discount on purchases up to but not exceeding $150

I signed up because they were having an INCREDIBLE offer for new recruits in Feb (hence me signing up the last day of the month!!).....I got $225 in stamp plus about another $75 in stamping supplies (not counting the business forms and catalogs) for $150.......the company is really cool about minimum orders to stay active (only $100 every 4 months) and Hannah and I were usually ordering almost that much anyway...now we get the discount! Hannah is trying to come up with some kind of stamp camp idea for girls for this summer.

Another Angel posted the catalog at her site if you would like to check it out! http://www.stampingimpressions.com/TACcatalog/index.html

Perfect North Snow Tubing Activity
Thursday, February 24, 2005
4:30 PM until close

I was so excited when I saw that another homeschooling family was organizing a snowtubing trip to Perfect North. With the group rate of $10 a person for 4 1/2 hours of tubing, it seemed like the perfect deal. I even convinced Jay to join us, he is usually reluctant to join us on homeschooling outings since it seems that none of the dads ever show up. The kids were really excited and we began our journey west at 3:15 PM.

The whole drive, I had visions of hanging out in the lodge with the baby and sitting by the roaring fire. I was so disappointed when we got there and I realized that the tubing hills were nowhere near the lodge so that I would be spending my evening in a large TENT! My self pity quickly evaporated when Kas and her girls pulled into the parking lot! I'll take good company over a fireplace anyday!

I went into the tend and got us settled...I brought a huge crockpot of vegetable soup and some rolls, some snacks and hot chocolate. Will was fairly content! Jay paid for the tubing and the aventures began. The kids had an absolute blast. Even Sophie went down the hills, well at least with her father and sister, she REFUSED to go when I took her up and poor Brett had to clumb back down the STEEP walkway with her....poor kid fell half way down!

I couldn't believe that I actually ENJOYED tubing, it was a blast, brought back memories of being a kid and sledding on the hill at Gibson Greeting Cards....of course here we didn't have to worry about falling into a creek at the end of the hill or climbing ALL THE WAY back to the top (gotta LOVE the moving sidewalk!). Jacob was a complete daredevil, conquering each of the runs, he even made me climb all the way to the highest run and go down with him. OK I will admit it, I kept my eyes closed and SCREAMED....but it was a BLAST!

Will was such a TURKEY when we were trying to eat. Another mom was holding him while I tried to eat some soup and he was throwing an absolute fit.....so she asked if she could feed him something....we made him a bowl of soup and boy did you know if they were shoveling it in fast enough! And he was SO PICKY....he wanted the corn, potatoes and peas but kept spitting out the lima beans! I think he ate more soup that Sophie or Cade!

I can't wait until next winter! Hopefully more families with join us and another dad will actually show up! I wonder if baby Will will continue to want to keep up with everyone and actually join us on the hills...only time will tell!

More info on Perfect North:
Snow Tubing Groups:

Bring a group of 15 or more to tube after 4 p.m. and receive a discount on your ticket. Call (812) 537-3754 or (513) 381-7517 as soon as possible to make your reservation. A credit card is required for deposit (we must have at least 48 hour notice of cancellation or card is charged $5 per person based on the number registered.) The Group Coordinator will receive a complimentary tubing ticket for organizing the group. Upon arrival proceed directly to the Tubing Park. Collect all money (no personal checks) and only the Group Coordinator should go to the window to pay.

Snow Tubing Group Pricing:

Any day After 4pm, Monday – Thursday unlimited hours $10Friday, Saturday, Sunday & Holidays 2-Hour Tickets $15(To add additional time: $5 upgrade for each additional hour of tubing if purchased at same time as initial ticket purchase. If purchased during the 2-hour session the cost is $10 for each additional hour of tubing.)

FAQ:
At what age can a child tube?We prefer that children be at least three (3) years old. A separate, small tubing area is provided for children 3-6 years old. Children must be supervised by a parent/guardian while in this area. It's the parent's choice to allow their child to tube on the main tubing hill or in the children's tubing area. The cost for children 3-6 years old is $10.

Can more than one person ride in a tube?We allow one person per tube. On the main hill, as many as three tubes can "link" together. So a parent can hold onto their child's tube.
Do I need to sign anything?We do require that everyone sign a Tubing Waiver form. A parent/guardian signature is required for anyone under 18. A copy of the Waiver form is available to download.

Can I bring my own sled?We do not allow personal sleds to be used on the tubing runs. The tube rental is included in the cost.

How do I get back up the hill?You can effortlessly ride back up the hill on our state-of-the-art moving sidewalk.

Can I purchase a tubing pass for the season?We do offer for sale a Tubing Season Pass or you can add the tubing option to your ski pass. Go to "Plan & Buy" and get pass information and pricing under "Snow Tubing."

Do I need to wear special clothing?Dress according to the weather and as if you were going sledding. We suggest dressing in layers and waterproof clothing is recommended.

Happy Birthday Hannah!

I can't believe that Hannah is now officially a TEENAGER! My goodness, two teens in one household, how will I ever survive??? (OK, let me be dellusional here for a minute...I do realize that eventually I will have 4 teenages at once...YIKES!!)

Hannah's birthday celebration was overshadowed a bit by the Team Showcase. She didn't mind at all since she is so passionate about dance, but was a bit miffed when the instructor called her on stage and had EVERYONE in the auditorium sing Happy Birthday! to her! We ended up going out to dinner after the competition was over.

Springfield Township police station tour
Wednesday, February 16 1 PM

Margie wrote: The Springfield Township police will give a tour of their station for young homeschoolers. 1130 Compton Rd near Daly in Finneytown. RSVP by February 2 to Margie.

Emily, Sophie, Grant, Jacob, Cade , Will and I joined a bunch of the younger homeschoolers for a tour of the Springfield Police station. I was a bit leary, the boys were being wild and loud prior to the tour starting, but they quickly fell into line once the police officer began to show them around. The tour mainly showed of the building, but they did get to see a taser (and I was shocked to learn that each cartridge for it cost $25). I wished that we had gone into the holding cell and been able to see a police car, but the kids seemed to enjoy themselves.

Story Circles
Freedom Center
February 15
12 PM


Highlighting wonderful children's books featured in the Freedom Center's Teacher Resource Center and Gift Shop, these interactive sessions invite our young participants to read aloud to the group. Recommended for ages 3 - 11 years. This program series is free with Center admission.February 15, 12:00 p.m.Hall of Everyday Freedom Heroes

Although I was a bit apprehensive about heading downtown without one of the older kids to help me out, I decided that we would give the story circle a try. We didn't have any trouble finding parking (although I did have to pay $4 to park) and the walk from the garage under the stadium to the Freedom Center was only a few blocks. Because Jay frequently takes the boys downtown for baseball games, they are really familiar with downtown walking and stay constantly aware of the buzzing traffic.

There were 4 other families that tried to join the story circle, but the oldest of the children looked to be only about 3 and they didn't want to sit and listen. The Riesenberg children, on the other hand, made themselves quite comfortable laying on the floor and gave the woman in charge their full attention. She ended up reading them 4 magnificent books. The only one I know the exact title of was "The Butter Battle Book" by Dr. Suess. I believe the titles of the others were "Don't Laugh at Me", "The Princess who lost her hair" and "Zuma" based on an African folk tale.

After storytime was over she stayed and chatted with me a bit, saying she loved having homeschooled children come to events at the Freedom Center and how she and her husband plan to homeschool their own family once they have children. It is so wonderful to hear from adults that encounter children daily that they are impressed by homeschooled kids. She told me to keep watching for more events for the kids.

We wandered around the center for a while, taking in a couple of the movies and playing in the interactive areas. The kids really enjoy playing the interactive computer game where they pretend to be a slave who decides to run and where they have to make decisions that guide their journey north. What amazes me is that both Cade (4) and Jacob (6) know how to answer the questions just from walking around the museum and listening. They also love playing in the mock up of a "safe house" . One of them pretends to be a slave catcher and the other a slave and they have to decide where to hide.

When we left and headed back to the parking garage, we found the power to the elevator turned off so we had to walk all the way past the stadium and down all the steps, made for a long journey back. The weather was absolutely GORGEOUS, so I asked the kids if they would like to stop by the zoo before heading home since it was less than 10 minutes from downtown. Everyone agreed!

We ionly spent about an hour and a half meandering through the zoo. We saw the elephants, giraffes, okapi, wild hogs, gazelles, white lions, polar bears and speckled bears. Sophie, Will and I sat on the bench when the other kids went through the manatee exhibit. I am so glad we took the opportunity to enjoy the warm day, since I heard on the radio on the way home that we are in store for "return" of the cold wet weather that has plagued us this winter.

Other local recreation resources:

World of Sports 7400 Woodspoint Dr., Florence, KY 41042Phone: (859) 371-8255World of SportsThis unique sports complex has activities for a variety ofinterests. It includes an 18-hole golf course and driving range,miniature golf, billiards, slam dunk basketball, racquetball,Nautilus, and a game room.http://www.landrumgolf.com/fw/main/default.asp?DocID=1337

Cincinnati Cycle Club P.O. Box 8371, 45208Phone: (513) 791-7190New and experienced bicyclists will enjoy being a part of theCincinnati Cycle Club.Members sharing a common interest in the outdoor sport, canparticipate in a variety of year round rides - from challenging torelaxing, city to parks.http://www.cincinnaticycleclub.org/

Cincinnati Diving Center 8412 Winton Road, 45231Phone: (513) 521-3483The Cincinnati Diving Center (CDC) offers scuba lessons (entry levelthrough mixed gas diving), sales, equipment service, rental and divetravel. Students learn from instructors who have years of experienceexploring some of the world's most beautiful waters. The CDC trainsand manages volunteer divers at the Cincinnati Zoo Manatee Exhibit.http://www.cincinnatidiving.com/

Kids First Sports Center 7900 E Kemper Rd45249513-489-7575Home to one of the largest gymnastics programs in the United States -Queen City Gymnastics, Kids First offers instruction and events forkids in a variety of sports and other activities. Among itsprograms: Starfish Swim School, Tumble Bees, TnT -trampoline andtumbling, soccer school, Queen City Dance, taekwondo, basketball,and golf instruction.http://www.kidsfirstsports.com/

Cincinnati Recreation Commission 805 Central AveCincinnati, OH 45202513-352-4000The Cincinnati Recreation Commission operates recreationalfacilities, athletic leagues, seniors programs, therapeuticprograms, student programs, and special events throughout the city.http://www.cincyrec.org/

Little Miami-Whitewater Canoe Rental 225 Corwin Rd., Lebanon, OH 45054Phone: 800-634-4277Morgan's Canoe Livery5701 St Rt 350Lebanon, Ohio (main address)with liveries at: Ft. Ancient by Kings Island or Brookville, IndianaPhone: 800-WECANOEhttp://www.morganscanoe.com/ Scenic River Canoe Excursions 4595 Roundbottom Road513-831-5552For outdoor lovers, this area offers a variety of recreationopportunities.For more information onwhat Greater Cincinnati has to offer, you can contact theseorganizations.

Cincinnati Area Recreational Resources
Most of this info came through on a local homeschooling list....what great resources!

Every Child's Playground Sawyer Point on the Cincinnati riverfrontWith the help of more than 30 companies and hundreds of volunteers,Every Child's Playground, a 1000 Hands/Cincinnati RecreationCommission project at Sawyer Point, is the area's first totallyinclusive playground. Included in the playground are features neverbefore integrated into a local play area. Among them: a pavedpathway leading from the parking lot to the playground; tactileplayground maps; tactile puzzles and Braille signage; therapeuticswings next to regular swings; a cushioned safety surface; heightconsiderations; visual and auditory play opportunities and rampingthroughout allowing for easy wheelchair mobility.

Clermont County Parks http://www.co.clermont.oh.us/parks/programs.htm We use this park's resources and staff for many of our wonderful homeschool park programs.

Miami Township/Clermont County Parks http://www.miamitwp.org/index.htm

Hamilton County Parks 10245 Winton Rd., 45231Phone: (513) 521-7275 http://www.hamiltoncountyparks.org/ Hamilton County parks have been wonderful in offering programs to homeschoolers.

City of Cincinnati Parks 950 Eden Park Drive, 45202Phone: (513) 352-4080 http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/cityparks/pages/-3036-/

Campbell County Parks and Recreation 24 W 4th StreetNewport, KY 41071 859-635-1104 http://www.campbellcountyky.org/

Warren County Park District300 E Silver StreetLebanon, Ohio 45036 513-695-1109 http://www.co.warren.oh.us/parks/

Kenton County Parks and Recreation Department 3902 Richardson Rd Independence, KY 41051859-392-1921 http://www.kentoncounty.org/recreation.html This is the park district that hosts the WONDERFULLY FUN Wild Wednesday Programs from May through September.

West Chester Parks and Recreation 8070 Tylersville RdWest Chester, OH 45069513-759-7311 http://www.westchesteroh.org/parksandrec/home.html

Boone County Parks and Recreation PO Box 566Burlington, KY 41005859-334-2117 http://www.boonecountyky.org/Parks/parks.htm

Butler County Park District2051 Timberman RdHamilton, Ohio 45013513-867-5835 http://www.butlercountymetroparks.org/

Chicago

I don't think I have mentioned that our dance studio is going to go to Chicago this year for Nationals (well actually to Aurora, which is 37 miles west of Chicago). I was thrilled to find out that a number of museums in the Chicago area have reciprocal programs with our local museum center. Now the problem is going to be figuring out what museums to visit! If anyone has an opinion, please leave a comment in my comment section!

Chicago Children's Museum
www.chichildrensmuseum.org

The Field Museum of Natural History
www.fieldmuseum.org

International Museum of Surgical Science
www.imss.org

Museum of Science and Industry
www.msichicago.org

Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum
www.naturemuseum.org

SciTech Hands-On Museum Science
scitech.mus.il.us

Another cool possible outing:
Trammel Fossil Park

Trammel Fossil Park (this is supposed to be one of the richest fossil sites in our area):
http://physics.nku.edu/geology/Seminar%20Geology%20Field%20Trips/Trammel%20Fossil%20Park/trammel_fossil_park.htm

From the website: "Trammel Fossil Park is an excellent place to look for nice Ordovician fossils from the Cincinnatian series. At this outcrop there are four formations exposed. From oldest to youngest the formations exposed here are the Fairview, Miamitown, Bellevue, and the lower portion of the Corryville fm. The park has excellent facilities, there is ample parking and there are signs galore all over the park telling exactly what is there."

"Trammel Fossil Park is located in Sharonville, Ohio just off of I-275, as mentioned above there are four formations present. The bedrock and fossils in each reflects the environment at the time of deposition. The formations that are older have predominantly more shale than limestone this indicates that the rock was deposited in a deep marine environment. The fossils in these deep water marine units are mostly intact compared to those fossils deposited in shallow marine environments. Why? Deep water environments are much more calm, enabling a better environment for organism preservation. As opposed to a shallow marine environment that is more chaotic because it is located closer and within the wave base. The organisms in this situation are less likely to be preserved intact because of the hostile environment caused by the wave action that is not present in a deep water environment."

What to bring: field guides /fossil books, a few simple tools (I am guessing a bucket/pail and something to dig with, something to work fossils loss with)

Directions: From I-275-take exit 46 (Sharronville/Mason Rt. 42 Exit)-and turn NORTH on Rt. 42 (if coming from points west, this will be a left on 42, from points east this will be a right on 42). Turn left at Hauck Rd. (You should see a White Castle)-After about a half mile go right on Tramway Drive. From there you can't miss it (or so they say!).

Cool Outing Possibility:
Ohio River Explorers Field Trip

This just recently came through on one of the many homeschooling lists I am on and it looks like it could be great fun.... http://www.ohioriverfdn.org/ The cost is $6 per child, a bit steeper than what I like to pay for programs, but it really sounds worthwhile!

From the webpage:
Sample Field Trip Timetable :

A typical field trip lasts 4-5 hours with a 30 minute sack lunch break. Lunch is not provided by Ohio River Foundation and should be brought by the student or school. All students will rotate through each of the learning stations for 1 hour per station.

9:30am: The group arrives and is greeted by the Ohio River Foundation leader, who discusses the day's plans and safe behavior.
9:45am: Learning Station 1
10:50am: Learning Station 2
11:55am: Lunch Break
12:30pm: Learning Station 3
1:35pm: Closing Activity
2:00pm: Group Departure

Learning Stations:

The following are our basic learning stations. Generally, program participants rotate through 3 of the 6 available learning stations for 1 hour per station. This format allows us to connect with students in small groups where hands-on learning is easier to facilitate. The stations are chosen by the teacher at the time of registration but can be changed by the teacher before the actual visit. River Explorer learning stations can be customized based on the interests of the classes. If you are interested in something we don't have here, please contact us and we will work with your specific needs.
• Mussel Mania : Did you know there are monkey face and pig snouts in the Ohio River? Just what does a baby bi-valve look like? How many eggs do mussels produce at one time? Discover the unique life cycles of the mussels of the Ohio River and see how they have evolved to survive as a part of the river's ecosystem. Learn how the mussels' well adapted anatomy helps them resist attack from most predators. Did you know the Zebras are attacking? This exotic invasive species is muscling its way into the ecosystem, destroying the native populations, and has made species such as the pink mucket, orangefoot, fat pocketbook, clubshell, and fanshell endangered. Learn how these interlopers starve the natives and what can be done to stop them!
• Fish Factor: What can you tell about the way a fish lives by how it is physically structured? The answer is… everything! Don gloves and examine preserved and live fish specimens to learn about fish morphology, life cycle, and population levels. Biology at its best!
• Planktonia: Some squirm, some undulate, some pulse and others scoot. What are these bizarre looking critters? They are one of the smallest creatures on the planet, Plankton. For something so small they are arguably the most important member of any aquatic food chain. We'll throw plankton nets and examine our catch under microscopes. Everyone will learn about the important role of plankton in the Ohio River food web and the environmental conditions that affect population size. Endless fun and knowledge at the end of your microscope slide.
• River Chemistry: C.S.I. team needed! We found some dead fishes and we need a top notch investigative team to figure out why. Our prime suspect is the water. We need you to test samples of river water for oxygen, temperature, and more. Learn why these parameters are so important to river health and fish longevity and vitality.
• The Water Cycle and River Ecology: Through games, puzzles, and group activities, piece together an overview of the Ohio River hydrologic cycle and ecosystems, learn how to tell what caused certain erosion patterns, and focus on the impact human activities have on the health of the river and its riparian zone. Two heads are better than one when solving a problem, but ten heads are better than two. These activities allow students to use innovative “out-of-the-box” concepts and really stretch their mind!
• All Together Now: Learn about the differences between food chains and food webs in the Ohio River. Create a food web and learn about the various factors that can disrupt the web. This exercise takes pieces from all of the other activities and amalgamates them into a big picture lesson. Guaranteed to make students look at the river in a new light.

Through discussion and hands on activities, all modules will explore what changes, small and large, can improve the environment and the Ohio River. By learning about their individual roles in the environment, students will be empowered to live in an ecologically friendly way.

In my child's mind.....

During a recent trip to the Cincinnati Museum Center, the kids and I were chatting in the car. Emily started talking about how she wants to have 12 kids when she grows up (OK so she watches "Cheaper by the Dozen" all the time) and that she would probably end up homeschooling them (big beaming smile from her mom when she said it) but then she interupted my *smug* moment by adding ..."well, unless I marry a school teacher or a school football coach so they can go to school for free." A bit puzzled by her comment, thinking a doctor or lawyer would make a much better husband if one wanted to send their children to private school, I posed the question.....

"Emily, do you know that it is free to go to public school?"

Her answer" "Really? I thought we were homeschooled because we were too poor to go to school!"

I started laughing HYSTERICALLY...good thing I had peed right before I left the house. Out of the mouths of my *poor* child

Team Showcase Schedule:

Just got the girls schedule for the dance showcase up at Mason Middle School (same place as last year). It will be held on Sunday, Feb 20 ..here is the schedule....This is probably my favorite dance day by far, I get a chance to see all of the routines our studio is taking to competition and but you don't feel the frenzy pace of a typical competition.

1:00 Carousel Ballet--Emily
1:25 Sugar and Spice and Everything FUNKY! Hiphop--Emily
2:05 Sign Up! Production Hiphop--Hannah 8 minute routine!
2:45 Workin' Day and Night Tap Solo--Hannah
3:10 Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves Tap--Emily
5:00 A Star is Born Jazz Duet--Emily
5:05 Trash to Treasures Tap--Hannah
5:50 Work it Out Jazz--Hannah
5:55 Out of this World Jazz--Emily

Girl Scout Valentine's Meeting/Party
Tuesday Feb 8th
10 AM to 12 PM

We plan to kick our meeting off with a cool Valentine's craft. The cost will be $3 per girl for the craft, please bring exact change.

Following the craft we will exchange Valentine's. Encourage your daughter to get crafty and make her our Valentines, although store bought ones are acceptable!
They need to make a Valentine for each girl in the troop. I know Sophie and Shelby will want to be part of the fun, so they are on the list also!

Hannah F.
Kate
Cora
Mary
Julia
Lizzy
Mandy
Tabby
Shelby
Hannah R.
Emily
Sophie
Alina

Following the Valentine exchange, we will have a snack. Please have your daughter bring a treat to share. We have an icecream cake (thanks to Dairy Queen) and I will provide napkins/cups/plates/forks. Kas will provide drinks.

What great fun! The meeting started out with the girls making these adorable folding mini photo albums. Tabby had made one previously and Kas ordered the kits for the girls to use. Tabby led the whole activity! Once the girls were finished they had cake (from our Dairy Queen tour, slightly melted but oh so tasty!) and exchanged valentines!

Will had an absolute blast crawling all over the Ridiman's floors, I was surprised how quickly he moved on the hardwood!

Once the meeting was over the girls, Will and I headed over to Melodie's for our quilting class. We created some 9 block design (it has a funky name that is escaping my swiss cheese brain!). At 3 PM we had to leave to get Hannah to dance class. Once I dropped her at dance class, I swung back by the house, grabbed Grant and took him and Emily out to their Tuesday night art class. After art we went and picked Hannah up and then came home. Certainly a very very full day....and they worry about homeschoolers being social!

Ronald McDonald House
Thursday, February 3rd at 6 p.m.

The S.M.I.L.E. Youth Group Menu:
Fried Chicken Chris L*
Beef Stew Marie L*
Devilled Eggs Hannah R*
Carrot & Celery Sticks Brett R*
Strawberry Jello Salad Pat S*
Vegetable Casserole Scottye A
Green Bean Casserole Kathy B
Mac & Cheese Mike T*
Rolls Mike T*
Mashed potatoes Cori *
Cookies Alexa H*
Salad & fixings Tara B*

Rides: I'll meet everyone down there. Marie Lauer will drive Hannah and Brett (theyre neighbors). Pat S will drive Mike T, Cori S, Alexa H and Tara B.

*=means coming down to help. If there is no (*), that means they're sending food. Let me know if the food is a drop-off and where youre dropping it off.

I had a couple of kids that were interested in going, but we really dont need more than 10 people down there helping. Besides, Pat S car seats 5 and shes at capacity as it is now.

Call me if you have questions Chris

Brett and Hannah went back down to RMH to volunteer and to serve dinner. As usual they had a great time! I am so proud of them, that even in such a little way, they are making things brighter for families in crisis! I bet none of the families they serve know how close we came to losing Brett as a baby and how Children's Hospital and their wonderful staff saved his life.

Animal Tracks!
Tuesday, February 1, 2005 11 AM
Pattison Park in Owensville

Laura wrote: Come and learn about animal tracks! The program will be held inside the lodge (located on the left hand side of the road) and we will also go for a short hike (barring subzero temperatures) to see what animal tracks we can find in the park. Dress for the weather. RSVP to Laura

What a wonderful program and a great turn out! Keith did his usual great job at getting the kids interested and keeping them involved. He used a huge sheet that they had made animal tracks on and scattered some pretend scat on it. All of the kids got a real kick out of the scat! He showed us a stuffed beaver and made a comment about it being stuffed in 1973 adding that it was older than he was, which of course sent all the moms into hysterics since that meant he was a good 5 years younger than even the youngest of us! We told him he was just a "baby"! Once he finished up showing the kids the prints, he let them make plaster molds of some prints to take home. While the molds dried, he took us on a snowy hike to see what kind of prints we could find. Deer, squirrel, and rabbit were among the many we saw. And of course he had to point out both rabbit and deer scat to the kids!

I found a great site once I got home for info on animal tracks that even had some great scat pictures....http://www.bear-tracker.com/. Jacob is talking about making a project for the homeschool science fair on animal tracks. It should be great fun!

Beginning Reading Class
Loveland, OH

Cindy C. writes: We are looking for 2-4 children roughly 6-8 years of age for a beginning reading class. The class will take place on Thursday mornings either from 9:30 to 10:30 or 11 - 12. The cost will be between $5.80 and $8.75 per class depending on how many students are enrolled with a maximum of 6 in the class. We would like to start the class as soon as possible. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Cindy C.

Course description: Decoding and phonics skills for reading fun. We will demystify the reading process and learn the skills neeeded for reading adventures.

As soon as this was posted, I contacted Cindy to get more info. After hearing back from her, we decided that we would enroll both Grant and Jacob in these classes. I am curious to see how they go! It should be interesting!

Friday, January 28; Noon – 2pm
Bowling & Food!!
Cost: $6/unlimited bowling and shoes
AMC King Pin Lanes 7735 Beechmont Avenue/231-8010
ALL ages
Organizer: Cindy

Cindy writes: We hope you will join us for an afternoon of bowling, socializing, and food. In addition to bowling which is $6 person (which includes unlimited bowling plus shoes) we will also be able to order food from the snack booth. (Personally, I will bring my own drinks as I think they are too expensive here.) Normally we order pizza, but this sounded like it might be fun. Everyone can get what they want. It looks a bit pricey, but they do have a variety of items AND kids can order whenever they want (instead of waiting on the delivery man!) On Friday, we’ll vote on whether we like this or would rather have pizza for our February date.
PLEASE RSVP by Thursday evening, January 27, at 8pm. Tell me how many bowlers and their ages. I will group bowlers by age (approximately) There are bumpers on all lanes except the teen lanes (unless they request it). THAT DAY…it’s great if you can come a few minutes early and bring cash – small bills are greatly appreciated. Please no checks or credit cards.

As usual, the kids really enjoyed bowling. We stopped and picked up our free pizzas with their "book it" coupons on the way to the bowling alley to save us the money from buying food there since it is so expensive. Jacob bowled an AMAZING 133, rolling two strikes in a row on the final frame. He was so excited! Certainly beat Brett's whooping 21 from his first game! The kids bowled the entire 2 hours! Cade and Liam had a bit of an arguement, but nothing that didn't pass quickly!

Andrea, Carter's mom, was an absolute dear and brought a great book (a Cub Scout leader handbook) full of GREAT ideas for the field day we are planning for May. It is so wonderful when you get unexpected help, especially when it is freely given!

Altered Book Opportunity
Thursday Jan. 27 7PM
Ridiman Home, Newport KY
Submitted by Laura Riesenberg because the Ridiman computer is broken: Kas Ridiman has offered her home for anyone who would like to work on an altered book this Thursday (1-27) evening from 7 PM -9 PM (although people are welcome to hang out later). Please bring a snack to share, Kas will be providing beverages. Also, if you are so inclined, the hot tub is available for use, so bring a swimsuit and towel.

What to bring for working on your book: altered books (any hardback book you would like to alter), any stamps/stickers/craft items you would like to use or to share, adhesive, scissors. There will be plenty of paper, paint and misc supplies available to be shared!

Since Kas Ridiman's computer is down, please email any questions to Laura

OK, so I didn't get much done in my altered book, but I had a great time. It ended up just being Kas, Mandy, Mandy's boyfriend, Tabby, Shelby and my girl,Will and me, but it was so nice just to get to spend time with Kas! She did a couple of really nice pages in the horse altered book she is doing and the girls all did some very creative work (Mandy's boyfriend just kind of hung out!). We had some yummy snacks and Will entertained us all with his scooting and babbling!

I can't figure out what direction I want my book to take....I keep pasting pictures in, but it really isn't developing into anything! I did manage to make this really cool tag booklet thing, well I should say start it,I still need to embellish it, but I really like how it turned out.

We ended up staying until after 11 PM, the girls tried to talk us into letting them all spend the night with each other, but I was too tired to agree! Maybe in a few weeks!

Girl Scout Meeting
Tuesday, January 25 11 AM
Dairy Queen Milford

Our meeting on TUESDAY JAN 25th will be at 11 AM at the Dairy Queen in Milford. We will tour the facility and of course eat ICE CREAM! Please arrive promptly at 11 AM (this is when the store opens). I think the tour will last about an hour (I will check with the manager before we begin).

Directions to Dairy Queen: Take I-275 to the Rt. 28 exit (if approaching rt 28 from points east you will turn right onto 28, if approaching from the west turn left onto rt 28). Go straight through the light (you are now on the rt. 28 bypass). At the end of the bypass you will come to a light (Krogers will be on your right hand side and you will see Meijers to your left) , turn left. At the first light turn RIGHT onto Meijer Drive. You should see Dairy Queen on your left hand side! Questions call Hannah's cell phone at ********.

What great fun and FREE, can you believe it? We got there and were welcomed to decorated tables, treat bags and cups for soft drinks. The manager then let the girls decorate a cake with a girl scout on the front of it. It was quite interesting to see them take some creative license with the picture. They gave us the cake for us to use as a snack for the next meeting, perfect timing since our next meeting is a valentine's day celebration!

After we decorated the cake, each girl got to make her own cone or cup of icecream. The store was even great about taking pictures of each girl while she made her own cone.

Check out some photos of our tour! http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/mrsmomof6/album?.dir=/203e

Quilting Club

Melodie posts: Upon request, I am putting together a quilting club for students (and interested parents) who want to learn the science and mathmatics of quilting. We will be making a sample quilt, where we will measure out, piece, and sew together a new block for our quilts each month. Anyone interested in joining the club please let me know so I can reserve you a space in my home. I have 2 (maybe 3 if I can get my other one fixed) sewing machines to share for anyone who does not have one to bring. If you want to join but one or more of the dates do not fit your schedule, we can schedule make-up dates so that you don't fall behind. Probably mature 8yrs and older. Parents use your discression as we will be using cutting blades and sharp needles. I was thinking about 1 - 1 1/2 hours is all it will take per get-together, depending on how many people show up. And I will provide a copied diagram of the pattern to take home for anyone who does not finish and needs to leave early. Then probably people will linger and hang out if they want to.

Dates:
Tuesday, Jan 25th 1:00pm - I will reserve this day for anyone who would like to come over and help pick out the design of blocks that we will use for the quilt. I have a book with over 5,000 different designs to choose from. We will keep it simple enough for beginners to keep up.
Tuesday, Feb 8th 1:00pm
Tuesday, Mar 8th 1:00pm
Tuesday, Apr 5th 1:00pm
Tuesday, May 3rd 1:00pm

Laura added: http://www.projectlinus.org/ Project Linus is an organization that you can donate quilts to for needy kids...it might be a nice "group" project with everyone making the squares...just a thought...there is a chapter here in Cincinnati...

Brett and highschool

Last night Brett and I were watching tv and they had a preview on for an upcoming tv new show (I believe it was Dateline).....the topic of the show will be "Teens and Sex" and they go into this blurb about parents not knowing what is going on with their teens and one girl comments "Yeah, at my school by the time I was in the 6th grade nobody was a virgin" and then they flash to another girl and she says "Kids have sex in my highschool all the time. All over the place"....the blurb continues but I don't hear the rest of it because my son says "Guess I should watch that to figure out what highschool to go to next year."......what a TURKEY!

Teens: Dinner and a Movie
Saturday, Jan. 22 6 PM

Cindy wrote: The teens ARE going to the movies tonight. Please meet at Gold Star Chili at 6pm. From there the teens will decide what movie to see. Then the teens will get a ride to the cinemas. So far, I have at least one chaperone - Tammy F. Laura has volunteered to drive the kids from Gold Star to the theater. If any other parents are staying, let me know. (Don't worry, teens....the parents will sit by themselves!). Thanks to Sarah L for organizing this!

Brett, Hannah and I and their friend Anthony (who bummed a ride with us) met up with eveyone at Gold Star at 6 PM. I was impressed with the turn out, 4 boys and 6 girls. The kids mulled through what movies to go and see and most of them agreed that "WHITE NOISE" would be their choice. Brett of course, the non conformist that he is, opted to go and see "COACH CARTER" by himself. We all ate dinner and then headed to the theater. Brett's movie started about 45 minutes before eveyone elses, so the rest of the kids purchased tickets and Tammy and I then took them to Target to kill some time.

Brett loved his movie, gave it 4.5 out of 5 stars. Said it had everything in it to make it a great movie! Hannah on the other hand, gave her movie only 1.5 stars. Said it was pretty stupid and very predictable. She said that the kids who had insisted that they HAD to see that movie were the ones hiding under their coats and screaming! I am sure those same kids probably had trouble sleeping that night!

Only bad thing about the evening was that the roads got rather slick due to them being wet and then us having wind gusts!

Tasty Toes!

William has a new favorite toy and the great thing is that he can't lose it!

Check out the pictures!

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/mrsmomof6/album?.dir=/97eb&.src=ph

Wednesday, January 19, 2005, 7:00
Teen Panel: School or Homeschool?
St. Timothy's Episcopal Church, 8101 Beechmont Ave.

Submitted by Debbie W. This meeting is to help families with older kids make a decision about whether they continue homeschooling or choose school. I have 3 older kids who have already made the decision. My first son homeschooled all the way through high school. My second son choose high school and my oldest daughter is now a senior at Batavia. Both of these students homeschooled up until their 8th grade year. Now I have an 8th grader evaluating her options. I anticipate the evening will be helpful for her. Come hear directly from teens who have already made up their minds. There will be a mix of experiences. Any age is welcome to attend the meeting- the meeting is targeted for parents and older kids. Please bring individual questions you may have for the teen panel on 3X5 cards. Also- please bring a snack to share. I will provide beverages. If the weather looks challenging- be in touch with me by cell phone to know whether or not we need to reschedule. You are welcome to bring friends and if you know of families who are in the opposite camp; in school now and thinking of homeschooling in the high school years- do invite them to join. Directions: From the North or East- get off at Amelia exit off of 275 (the one past Eastgate Mall). Turn Right on Beechmont. Pass lights at: Mt. Carmel Tobasco Rd., Williams Rd, Independence and Fox Chase Apt, Hamblen, Cherry Grove Plaza, Nordyke and 8 mile- now look for a church on the left with a huge"A"frame. It's across from a Blockbuster. If you get to Nagel - you've gone too far. Coming from the south- you'd get off at 5 Mile exit and turn L, traveling all the way to Beechmont. Turn R on Beechmont. pass Forrest and Wolfangle and Nagel and see church on Right.

What an interesting evening. Jay, Brett, Grant and I went to the meeting in hopes of helping Brett with the big decision he is facing about attending highschool or continuing to homeschool. Brett, Grant and Jay had to leave about 20 minutes before it ended to get to basketball practice, but they gleened a lot of insight from what they heard. Ironically, Brett and I came away from the program with the same impressions! I told Hannah and Emily when I got home that to me it seemed that there were 2 reasons the kids that chose to attend highschool had made that choice. I acutally made the two of them try to guess the reasons and they guessed right! It was 1) was friends...either to make more friends or because their homeschooling friends were also going to school or 2) they wanted to play sports. Not one child on the panel said they chose school because they feared they couldn't learn what they needed to at home or that they felt their parents couldn't teach them. When Brett came home from practice he came into the family room and said almost the EXACT same thing to me and Hannah....Hannah busted out laughing and told him I had told her the same thing when I got home. Brett also added that he felt what Christopher (a homeschooler who decided against going to highschool) said was true and that he agreed with him. Hopefully that means Brett is leaning towards staying home! Either way, we will support his choice!

Wed, Jan 19th
Bass Pro Shop Forest Park
Cost: free

11:00 - Fish Identification class. Limit 20 kids.
Noon - fish feeding and demo in center court at big tank.
12:30 to 1:30 to eat lunch (pack our own, eat in their cafe, buy lunch in their cafe or in the mall food court)
1:30 - archery class - limit 15 kids.

Julieanne wrote: I told them to plan for a variety of ages, but as my son is 6 and daughter is 8, and will be doing the archery and fish ID, those are the ages they're accommodating.

What a BLAST. Because we had gone to the fish ID class last year with the girlscouts, we opted to arrive at noon for the fish feeding. There is a huge tank in the middle of the store. One of the employees came out and fed the fish goldfish and worms. The big bass in the tank was over 13 pounds, just a little smaller than William! At the end of the feeding, the employee offered the kids worms to hand feed the fish. Grant and Jacob LOVED it, Jacob's finger must of looked a bit too much like a worm and the fish bit it, but he just laughed it off.

After the fish feeding we went out to the food court for lunch. How I HATE paying $3 for a slice of pizza! Once the kids were fed, we headed back to Bass Pro for our archery class. Cade kept asking if he could shoot "bows"....I kept correcting him and telling him he was shooting arrows. Both Emily and Grant managed to hit the target and Jacob and Cade both hit the surrounding "hay". Jacob bugged me the whole way home about when he would get to go shoot again!

Will's 6 month check up (a few weeks LATE)!

For the record, baby Will now weighes 15 lb 8 oz and is 26 1/2 inches long! He is in the 25th percentile for both height and weight.

We had a wonderful visit with Dr. Linhardt today. She was thrilled with how Will looked and expressed little concern over his hearing and says that developmentally he is ahead of schedule. We spent a lot of the visit talking about things that were not "baby" related like broken furnaces, new roofs, cars and dinner out.

We go back on April 20th at 10 AM.....Will will be almost 10 months old...so hard to believe!

Storytime
Tuesday, Jan 18th
11 AM
Joseph Beth Booksellers, Rookwood

Julieanne wrote: We'll have story/craft time at Joseph Beth. I need RSVPs as soon as possible o they can plan the supplies for a craft. This is free.

What great fun we had at Joseph Beth. The woman from the bookstore was WONDERFUL and led the group by reading about 5 books and then the kids did a craft (a popsicle stick picture frame). Each of the kids picked a different book that they liked best. Cade's favorite was "My Sister Swallowed a Hare", Jacob liked "The real story of the 3 little pigs", and Grant liked "Blue Dog". Sophie liked everything. Hannah and Emily were good sports and helped the little ones with making their crafts. The staff said they would be willing to set up a program on a monthly basis, I hope that we get it set up because the kids had such a great time!

Once we finished with storytime we went and had lunch at Golden Corral. The kids were THRILLED to be treated to lunch out and I was thrilled to not have to come up with something to eat.

Quilt making

A homeschooling friend (Melodie) is quite the skilled quilter and so we decided to enlist her help in teaching us this age old craft. In typical "Laura" fashion, I invited myself and the girls over to her house on December 30th so that she could teach us the fine art of quilting! She was so wonderful, she cut all the squares for us before we got there and then was extremely patient and spent about 6 hours teaching us to piece and make our quilts.

Hannah was the only one who finished her quilt that day, we knew we had to have one completed so that we knew what we were doing once we were home and on our own. Emily finished hers the following day and I was the last to complete mine 2 days later. The girls were so excited that they actually pieced a quilt top for Sophie on New Year's Eve and finished it up on New Year's Day (we had to go out and buy material to back it with and batting).

We are so proud of our new skill. Some of us are more of the "perfectionist" than others, but it is a skill we will continue to build on with each new quilt.

Both Hannah and Emily have started new quilt tops. We were fortunate to have some scrap material from my grandmother and we were able to borrow a rotary cutter and cutting mat from my mother. Now our spare change is going to fabric purchases. We can't pass Walmart, Joann's or Hobby Lobby without checking out the clearance fabric.

Check out our yahoo album with pictures of our first projects and of sweet William hanging out on the quilt his momma made him! http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/mrsmomof6/album?.dir=9693&.src=ph&store=&prodid=&.done=http%3a//photos.yahoo.com/ph//my_photos