International Towne

Conner and Chase got to participate in International Towne through the homeschool program we belong to.

It's a great program run by Young Americans Bank to teach junior high children about global economics.

They had training for the last month or so, learning about different countries. They had job interviews for the positions they were interested in. Conner was the president of Egypt and Chase was a carpenter in Finland.

Scott was off work for the day and he watched the 3 younger kids while I volunteered there. I'm glad I was able to attend. It's set up so neat. They have several countries represented and each has its own area. They put 3-4 kids in each country and they run it. They each have a job and receive a salary which is in the currency of their country. One position is the president, one is the finance minister, one is the custom agent and one is an artisan.

They get 2 breaks during the day in which they can leave their country and visit the others. They have to go purchase a passport in Egypt before they do anything else. Then they can go to Singapore to exchange their money.

Each country had souvenirs to sell. For example, Costa Rica had paper flowers and butterflies; China had green tea and fortune cookies; Egypt sold chocolate pyramids and plastic snakes. So the kids could go around on their breaks and purchase items, either to eat or as a souvenir to take home.

They also had peace-keepers. These were kids that monitored everything and if they saw a law being broken (running, chewing gum, eating outside of the designated areas, traveling without a passport), they wrote the person a ticket. Then that person had to go to a tribunal which was comprised of the country presidents. They then decided if the person was guilty or innocent and how much to fine them.

It was a long, fun day. Next year they get to do Ameritowne which I hear is even more fun.

Chase in the garb of Finland

Conner as president of Egypt

Exchanging currency

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Costa Rica

Finland

Mexico

Egypt

One of the countries also worked on producing a little newspaper we got to bring home, and one country did interviews and a little video:

Chase as a Peace Keeper

The Tribunal members

Rockies season is complete

The dream is over. =(

But just until next year! =)

The Rockies come home

So the first two games of the World Series haven't exactly gone our way. But we play at home for the next 3 games. Here's hoping for a major turnaround!!!!!!!

early Halloween fun

A nearby town had trick-or-treating last night. We met with a group from MOPS and walked around, letting the kids visit each shop for candy. It got cold and windy, but was still great fun!

Coffee and Friends

What could be better?

I got to meet some girlfriends for coffee yesterday. That's always fun and gives a lift to my day.

(For those who don't know me, I'm in the last picture in the back, wearing coral)

World Series Mania!

So, sadly enough, we were not able to purchase tickets. Mopsy's blog about sums up my experience. However, her husband did manage to score tickets for Monday's game after all. I'm so happy for them and will live vicariously through their experience if indeed there is a Game 5.

I knew our chances of getting tickets were almost nil. But I made my sons' day by at least trying. For awhile, as we waited for the ticket page to refresh and refresh and refresh, they held out hope of attending their first World Series game. I admit to a tiny thrill of hope, too.

But it was not to be. So we will root for our team from inside where it's warm. And we'll still be wearing our Rockies gear and screaming for our boys in purple.

More fall fun

In spite of the small smattering of snow we received today, it is still fall. Right? Here are some pictures from our field trip last week to a pumpkin patch:

Heading into the corn maze

The older kids were blindfolded since they towered above the maze

Aiden and his two best buddies

The petting zoo

Picking a pumpkin

Stuffing a scarecrow

Painting their pumpkins

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Happy Fall Y'all!

My first blog award!

Cynthia at Life is Good gave me this award.

This award is for those bloggers who are nice people, good blog friends, and those who inspire good feelings and inspiration. Also, for those who are a positive influence on our blogging world. Once you've been awarded please pass it on to seven others who you feel are deserving of this award.

This is what she wrote on her blog:

Robin - (LifeofRileys) is a new blogging friend. While I don't know her very well yet, I can tell from her blog that she is someone I would LOVE to have as my next door neighbor and homeschooling friend. I love how they go to help with her parent's motel up in the mountains (or it seems like it's in the mountains anyway)! I enjoy visiting her blog and seeing all of the cool field trips they go on as well as all of the FUN projects they do for school. Thanks for taking the time to start a blog, Robin. I've enjoyed getting to know you these past few months!

Thank you, Cynthia! What a way to brighten my day. =)

Now I need to pass it on to 7 others. I may not come up with all 7 since some of mine would be the same as Cynthia's and I am new to blogging. But here goes:

Gretchen (lifenut) - I feel lucky to know her IRL. Many, many people read her blog and get to enjoy her amazing writer. But I also get to attend bible study with her and go have the occasional coffee together. She is an inspiration to writer, bloggers, moms and Christian women everywhere.

Stacey ( sitting in the driver's seat) - Another IRL friend. In fact, she is the closest thing to a sister. She started her blog after I did so is new to the blogging world also. But in that short time, she's written some wonderful posts about her kids. What a great mom!

Michelle (lynchpin) - A very inspiring lady! She has been through much as a mother and has used it all to increase her faith. Her love for her kids comes shining through her posts. I met her at MOPS and she is one of the main reasons it was such a positive experience for me.

Kristine ( jewels of my own) - She has probably already received this, but I'm giving it to her anyway =). Kristine used to live here in Colorado until recently and I'm sad we never got to meet. But I enjoy seeing her amazing pictures of the scenery at her new home, and will continue to post pictures of Colorado for her. She does such great research of curriculum for her kids. I've learned a lot from her reviews of various curriculum and of books she's read.

Okay, I'm sure there are more I can think of, but those are the main blogs I read right now. (Barring the ones already on Cynthia's list).

Thank you again, Cynthia!

8 Months

Zane is 8 months old today. Here are some words we as a family have picked to describe him:

Smiley, active, crawling, fun, baldy (lol), loud, standing, fast learner, stinky sometimes, loving, smart, chubby cheeks, fast,curious, eats-everything-in-sight, playful, outdoor-loving, happy, Momma's boy, cuddly

World Series, here we come!

YAY ROCKIES!! They are in the WORLD SERIES!!

Thirteen

I now officially have a teenager. My wonderful eldest child Conner turned 13 today. Can I just have a moment of silence please? Thank you.



Everyone always told me our kids' childhood would fly by. I nodded and smiled. Sure, sure. I believe you.



Why didn't I listen?



Especially with my first child, I was always watching to see if he'd reached the next milestone on time as listed in "What to expect the first year." Shouldn't he be crawling already? When was that tooth going to come in? I could not wait for him to be walking, talking, playing at the park. It sounded like so much fun to have him old enough to join sports or take him to the zoo and the Children's Museum.



And those things were a lot of fun. But why didn't I stop and find more enjoyment at each stage instead of continually looking ahead to the next? I would love to go back and cuddle him more, sing more songs, read more books, play more Candyland.



But alas, he's well past all this. He is nearly my height, his voice in deepening into that of a young man and he's more independent every day.



So I am mourning his childhood just a bit. I wasn't ready for it to end.



On the other hand, I rejoice at the young adult he is. I couldn't ask for a more responsible son. After mommy, he is the one Zane turns to for comfort. That's his biggest Bubba and he feels safe and loved with him.



I know I can entrust any of my children to Conner while Scott and I go out for a rare date or a quick run to the store.



I also just really enjoy spending time with him. Such a quick wit! And I love his thoughtfulness. I never have to load or unload the stroller or open a door when he's around. He's always quick to ask if I need help with anything.



So though I miss the child, I will treasure the memories deep in my heart and remember to enjoy each of these new moments. I know they'll pass too quickly also.

I believe it now.

Happy Birthday Son!! We love you and are so proud of who you are!!

School update

I'm not sure I'll do a "weekly" report but I do want to post regular updates. Trivium Academy has some great graphics and a list of people participating in weekly reports if you want to check them out.

Here we are in about our 5th week of school. I'd love to say we've got around routine down to a science and all runs smoothly every day. But I'd be lying. =) We are moving along well with My Father's World. I've really enjoyed our history readings about Ancient Rome. One of the books we're reading is this one:

I love the way it's written as an ongoing story. Through it, we've come to really know Julius Caesar, Antony, Cleopatra and Octavian. Some of it goes over my younger kids' heads but I'm learning much.

These are a couple books on Rome the kids have liked looking at to get a feel for Roman life:

We've also completed a couple projects. This is a writing tablet made of clay:

These are mosaics, such as Romans decorated their homes with:

We also played a Roman game called Evens and Odds. This week, we are supposed to make a pig. Hmmm....I'll post the results.

We're also moving right along with Math-U-See, God and the History of Art, handwriting and language arts. I'm still struggling to fit in Latin and music. But I'm happy to say we've gotten a pretty good routine for the baby. He is generally up during the first part of our studies, then takes a nap between break time and lunch so we can read and do history together.

I am using My Father's World Kindergarten for my 4yr old. We're taking it slow and only doing as much as he wants to. He has really enjoyed working on creation. He colored, cut out, and pasted the 7 days which we displayed on the wall:

Today, he finished a creation book he'd been working on. He loves to do school and I hope that never changes.

So overall, it's been good. Not perfect by any means, but good. I think we're all a bit smarter since September 4th. I know I am.