Medieval Madness

The past month has been Medieval Month in our house. I love teaching our boys with Unit Studies. They really bring to life the time period that we are studying. The boys learned a lot about the feudal system, castles, knights and monarchs, and had a blast doing it.

The coronation of the Kings. Not pictured are the orbs and scepters that the kids worked hard on. Not sure why I never got a picture of those. I guess we were having too much fun. Oh... and Little Man woke up from his nap early that day. Made for a hectic end to the activity. That could have something to do with the lack of pictures. :)

We studied Medieval cathedrals and then made tissue paper stained glass crafts. While those dried, we made stained-glass cookies. Yum! Notice there is no picture of the craft... just the cookies. That's right. Momma was equally excited to have an excuse to make cookies :)

Grandma grabbed some empty boxes from her school so our kids and our neighbors could create a castle on the front porch. It ended up being pretty cool and even had a secret escape passage.

I found a cool lesson plan online that showed how to make catapults. I debated giving the kids the directions, but instead, I just gave them a bunch of supplies and told them to figure out how to make a catapult. They each came up with a slightly different design, but both worked well.

They enjoyed setting up an enemy army and attacking them with "cannon" balls from their catapults.

Amazingly our unit timed out perfectly with the Renaissance Festival that is held annually about 45 minutes away. We had fun walking back into history and experiencing life in a Medieval village. The highlights were trying our hand at archery and seeing a real, full-armor joust. Enjoying the company of great friends made the day even better.

Our unit ended with a Medieval Feast. The kids worked hard on their costumes and enjoyed wearing them as we ate a utensil-free meal of chicken wings, crusty bread and fruit (I know fruit may not have been authentic, but a momma's got to throw in something healthy). We drank our wassail, entertained each other with juggling and jokes, and then conducted our own jousting match in the yard. It was a fun way to end a very fun unit. 

*We use KONOS as the backbone for our unit study. I highly recommend it, and though we do add activities and books of our own choosing, I have found the activities in KONOS to be very fun, educational and easy to use. I do not receive any payment from KONOS. Just recommending something I love.*

Family Fall Updates

It's hard to believe that N has only been in the country for less than 6 weeks! We have found a good balance of fast-paced fun and slow-paced family bonding. Despite the more relaxed pace of life, he has had a few big adventures.

Labor Day brought N's first trip to Kelley's Island!! We weren't sure until last minute if we would make it, so we decided to surprise P's family. Only one cousin knew we were on our way (to make sure our beds were still available). It was so fun to surprise Grandma the Great and the rest of the cousins. Some highlights: N's (most likely) first experience at the beach (he was not impressed), meeting LOTS of family, golf cart rides and those little firework poppers.

We've taken a few trips to the zoo. During the first trip, N was pretty much expressionless. I guess he was taking it all in? The second trip was more exciting. He loved the monkeys and the penguins. 

And we went to a local high school football game to cheer on our neighbor. The big kids were in heaven, and have been reenacting the football game ever since. N wasn't phased by the crowds or noise or chaos. He was amazingly chill. We didn't stay until the end, but our team won...incase you were wondering :) Our neighbor scored three touchdowns in the second half to come from behind against our biggest rivals. No big deal :) Go #5!

To Test or Not to Test

When people find out we homeschool, there are several questions that typically get asked. One of the top questions is, "How do you know that they are learning enough? Do you have tests?"

*sigh* To test or not to test... it's a huge debate in the homeschool world. Really, it's a huge debate in education across the board. Personally, I don't test my kids. At least not in the sit-at-your-desk-and-answer-these-multiple-choice-questions kind of way. I honestly don't think that is necessary when my kids are 7 and 5. Many people disagree with me. It may be baggage I still carry from my years as a classroom teacher where high-stakes testing was the focus from September until May. I've had enough teaching to the test to last me a lifetime. But how, you may ask, do I know that my kids are learning without testing?

Here's just one example. Today, our neighbor came over to play legos. Not sure how on Earth the conversation got going in this direction. I'm assuming they were reenacting a battle scene because that's what boys do.  This is what I overheard:

A- Okay. You see, in the year 1898 Theodore Roosevelt...
Neighbor- Who's that?
C- He was a leader in the army, but then he later became the president.
A- So Teddy Roosevelt led his rough riders - that's what they called his army - up San Juan Hill.
C- They were fighting the Spanish.
Neighbor- Why?
A- Well, the Spanish ruled Cuba but the Cubans wanted to be their own country.
C- Yeah- the Spanish ruled pretty much all of South America... except Brazil. That's why if you go to South America, they still speak Spanish.
A- Except Brazil. They speak Portuguese.
Neighbor- What's South America?

My teacher heart was so proud of them and I could easily tell that they had mastered that unit. I can honestly say my preschooler and 2nd grader know more about history than I do!

The beginning...

Many people ask how life is doing now that the adoption is over. But the reality is, the process is just beginning. Adoption isn't about paperwork, fingerprints, foreign governments and months of waiting. It's about kids. Adoption is adding a child into our family. The past two and a half years were the prequel. We have finally reached the beginning of the process.

It is the same as being pregnant. I think we as a society should get out of the habit of saying, "I'm having a baby" and into the habit of saying, "I'm having a child." Sometimes we are so captivated by the adorable baby clothes and the precious little blankies that we forget we are signing up for a life time of loving a child through the easy and the hard.

That's what we have done. We've signed on for loving sweet N through the easy and the hard. We've experienced both so far. In some ways, N is the easiest child. He has attached to our family so quickly and is often smiley and full of wonder. And did I mention that he SLEEPS?!?! Hallelujah! But we've experienced some hard. He currently has the language of a 1 1/2 year old with the stubbornness of a 3 -year-old. It's a rough combination.

But through it all, he's ours to love and parent and train. He's not a blank slate. He has baggage we haven't even uncovered yet, but we have a lifetime of loving on him to figure it out.

We have been so excited to hear friends that are looking to adopt now that they've watched us walk this path. We are thrilled because we believe that every child deserves a loving family, and we truly believe that adoption models God's heart for us. But I would caution that you shouldn't adopt because you are passionate about adoption or have a heart for the orphans.  Adopt because you have a heart for raising children because once the emotional high of walking off that airplane with the child you have been fighting for comes to an end, you have a lifetime of parenting still ahead. The real journey is just beginning.

Happy Birthday, N

Sweet, sweet, N. Before you were even born, God started the process in Mommy's and Daddy's hearts  to lead us to adoption. He knew that our family was not complete without you. We have been loving you from afar and praying for you since before you were born. As you were growing and learning, we were fighting through stacks of paperwork to bring you home. We love you more than you could imagine.

As the adoption process neared the end, we prayed diligently that we could be with you for your third birthday. It seemed impossible from earthly standards as your birthday grew closer, but God is a loving Father who loves to give good gifts to His children. Out of His great love, He made it possible for us to be with you as a family of five to celebrate your third birthday. Happy Birthday, little man. Know that the God of the Universe is writing your story. We don't know all of the details, but we are so grateful that He has woven our stories into one and that we have front row seats to watch the rest of your story unfold.

FINALLY!

For safety and legal reasons, I haven't posted on here too often about this, but our family has been in the process of adoption for 2 1/2 years. It has been a roller coaster, but all of the ups and downs were worth it. On August 14th, in a country far away, a judge ruled that we are suitable parents and we officially became a family of five!

A few weeks later, we hopped on a plane, along with our two boys, to go get our son. We couldn't be more excited to add this sweet boy to our family. Welcome, little N. We love you so much!

The Summer in a Nutshell

One of the best parts of homeschooling is that school can happen when it works best for the family. We ended the 2013-2014 school year on May 16th. We started the 2014-2015 school year on May 19th. :) Two whole days of summer vacation!! :) Throughout the summer, we did school a few days a week. This helped us get a jump start on the year as we knew that a huge life change was coming for our family. 

Here's a glimpse of the fun that we had this summer.

The boys played on a local t-ball team. It was a lot of fun for both of them. The best part was they could be on the same team, so we only had one practice and one game a week! 

We ventured down to NKY to see Gramma's horses. The kids loved riding, grooming and caring for the horses. I am so thankful that Gramma can teach the boys all about animals since it's not my area of expertise. 

After horseback riding, we hiked down to the creek to search for crawdads because that is how it is done in Kentucky.

In May, we took a trip to Shaker Village in Kentucky. It was a long ride, but worth the drive. The kids had fun learning about the Shaker culture, using old-time tools to carve broom handles, taking a horse-drawn carriage tour of the grounds and viewing the animals, including a sheep being sheared.

Our annual trip to Kelley's Island for Memorial Day included lots of time with family, including helping our Uncle build a garage. He took a break from his hard work to make a set of wooden hammers and pegs for the kids. They enjoyed many hours of "construction" work.

Not a traditional summer activity, but the kids enjoyed an ice-skating outing with some school friends. With the help of some PVC pipe contraptions, the boys were able to skate without an adult, and by the end of our time, they were leaving the supports behind and skating independently.

Our unit on Birds included some fun activities with our school friends. We examined bird feathers under microscopes, made bird feeders and dissected owl pellets (aka throw up) to see what their last meal had been. It as a super fun day for everyone.

Our local library hosted a petting zoo this summer where the kids got to touch and learn about animals ranging from chicks and bunnies to donkeys and alpacas.

We took a trip to Gormon Heritage Farm with our cousins. The highlight was seeing a bunch of baby chicks! We also learned a lot about plants and animals and enjoyed walking the beautiful grounds.

The boys were very helpful in our garden this summer. They helped plant, weed and harvest. Of course their favorite part is eating the harvest :) 

Our library offered a ton of educational programs this summer. We attended an art class where the kids studied the art of Sam Gilliam and created projects in the same style.

Summer also involved a soccer camp! The kids enjoyed a week full of drills and skills. Their favorite part was the last chunk of time each day when the kids were divided into teams and played the "Gold Cup" Tournament. C's team made it to the finals, and lost by only one goal in sudden death kicks.

On the last day of soccer camp, the local fire department showed up to spray the campers with the fire hose. They also allowed the kids to climb aboard and talked to them about fire safety.

The CNC provided a fun field trip that included hunting for tadpoles, birdwatching, creeking and playing in the NatureScape.

The library also held weekly science classes. The kids would learn about a different science concept each week and complete a hands-on project or experiment. They loved shooting off bottle rockets, making slime and building gumdrop structures just to name a few.