Extremes from the window

 So, Joe asked if he could help water the garden.  Remember...this is the boy who LOVES to play with water.  I explained what needed watering and then told him I was going to go fix breakfast. 

I looked out a little later...and saw this...!!!! :)

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From my kitchen window this morning...I found this beautiful sight!

school pictures

 Jake...2nd grade

Joe...Kindergarten

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The boys...

Hunting squirrels

               It's 6:45 am...time to head out for some much anticipated hunting trip with dad.

     They headed to Papa's property to go back in the woods...!  The challenges...
                1. keeping 2 boys quiet
                2. tracking squirrels as they scoot behind leaves in the trees

      But...Daddy pulls through the challenge with a good shot.  And 2 excited boys show it off to mom when they get home!

Joe seems fascinated as it dangles from his hand.

Joe shares his Creation book

Joe has been learning the creation story and illustrating it this week.  So he shared his book with Dad.  My favorite...the "day of rest" explanation! :)

Snapshots of the week

   Jake has been teaching Joe how to play chess.  Although a little sneaky with his intentions at times, he has done well enough for Joe to grasp a lot of it...and even beat Jake.  (Jake has given up on Josh and I learning to play, I guess!)

   We painted a few windows and installed them in the school room for a bulletin board and 2 dry erase boards.  The boys are enjoying the new place to display their work. 

  Josh was able to make progress installing the trimwork for the stairs (b/c his paint crew finally got it together)...and, therefore, some of the baseboard around the dining room and stairs. 

    Even though Jake "fought" school each day, ironically he begged me to keep on reading the history stories each day and was eager to do science.  Among the learning this week, we created Columbus' ships and sailed them in the tub.  Jake was giddy with delight when he placed his in the water, blew on the sails, and watched it take off.  (A friend commented on the fact that Columbus was from Italy...not Chicago...when noticing the sails made out of Bears and Cubs fabric. :)
   The boys added scenery using foil for mountains and such for their animals. However, the sails soon fell and brought the ships down.  So, they are in the "shop" for repairs.

 

Pigs and Bike Trails

    After soccer games on Saturday morning, we headed out to the Power of the Past in hopes of doing the Tractor Pedal Pull (that Joe got his trophy at last year) and other games.
    Due to conflicting info on the schedule, we missed the Tractor Pedal Pull, but got to do the washer hunt for money and the pig chase.  The video of Joe chasing the pig to get it in the bag should help you grasp the concept of the fun they had! :)

    Sunday was beautiful.  So, we headed to a state park in Indy for some biking and family time.  It was an awesome park with some great riding trails.  We did a paved trail in the morning around the pond/lake areas (with some pretty good hills in it that didn't seem to phase the boys!).  There was an area with hundreds of walnut trees that had about 6-8 inch trunks...the sunlight piercing through...with blue sky showing...and yellow and purple wildflowers beneath the trees. Very picturesque.
   After lunch, we headed out on a 3 mile dirt trail through the woods.  It was SO fun...although intense and scary with the steep drops off the path.  Joe fell down the side one time...but he hopped up and got back on his bike.  We enjoyed the ups and downs of the trails...the partial sunlight through the trees with blue sky showing through...and all the shades of green that shown through. And we all finished with smiles on our faces, high fives, tired legs, and all our body parts!  Fun stuff!!!

Soccer, Soccer, Soccer

 Joe and Sveta chase the ball...

Videos...
      Jake scores!

 Joe scores and plays...

Videos...

The treehouse?

It's now referred to as the hunting blind...
The boys (all of them) sit up there shooting birds and doing target practice!

The State Fair

    One of our paths of learning the last 2 weeks included the State Fair.  The first Tuesday, we journeyed through the Boy Scout area where the boys did some shooting, rope making, and Lego motorized games. 
    We also wound our way through the makeshift path of a little farm area for the kids to "plant", work the farm, "harvest" and "sell" their crop in various real-life ways that farmers use what is on their farm.  In the end they receive pay at "market" and got to "buy" a snack from the shop.  It was a great way to actively show kids the overall concept of farms and their importance to what we eat daily.  Here are some funny shots from that area.

   After some other learning experiences, we spent the evening taking in a rodeo.  It kicked off with an incredible tribute to our armed forces and the nation itself through the presentation of the colors and the National Anthem.  This was followed by a prayer recognizing our freedoms (particularly the freedom to talk to God) which was appropriately and powerfully done...presenting the gospel message in a simply yet relational way.  I couldn't believe this was booming out over the loudspeakers of the fairgrounds.  Brought me to tears and what God can use to glorify His name...
   Then we enjoyed an incredible rodeo with bucking broncos and mean bulls...and even an incredible display of 2 huge buffalo. (have to tell that story in person)

   The next Tuesday of the fair, we followed more paths of learning throughout the fair...popcorn facts, carved cheese, the DNR area with fish tanks, the Clydesdale horses, huge cows, and more.  What a fun place to explore...if you like the farm! :)

Brookville Lake

    With the weather still nice...cooler than average and sunny, dry...I decided our school week should include trips to places outdoors.  So, this week, I chose Brookville Lake (which I had heard about but never been to). 
   In our studies, we are beginning with US History as Leif Ericsson discovers land. Since most of the land was Indian inhabited at this time, I thought it fitting for us to travel the Adena Trace trail on a hike through the woods where Indians traveled in past time with their buffulo.  The trail also took us past an old Indian Mound dated 10 BC. 
   So, we set off...biking back to the trailhead...and then talking about all kinds of things as we walked....Indians, plant growth variation, snakes, birds, the lake, etc.  What a fun way to learn!

Then we headed back to the beach area and decided to go fishing...

 And then, we headed back up the road to the Overlook so the boys could see the dam area and understand the purpose of Brookville Lake...for the whole Ohio valley area! 

A FUN day homeschooling for sure...!!!!