Trying to Focus

To be honest I haven't gotten it together much since my last post.  I just put in one of my co-op orders.  It included a one pound bag of hot cocoa.  So, there's still hope.  Seems I'm anticipating this coming winter like I used to look forward to summer.  I am not alone in my longing this year.  Bella has been asking when it will snow again ever since spring began.  A girl after my own heart!

I have some changes in mind that have little to do with our homeschool and more to do with the sanity that comes along with a life more savored than rushed through.  This mindset is bound to effect our approach to education, but for now the planning of our academics remains the same.

We live about 20 minutes from everywhere.  In this diligent planning of excursions is of high importance so as to not waste time or money.  Years ago when it was just us and the first seven children in The Crew I did my grocery shopping once per month.  It's been on my mind to switch to that again.  The funny thing is that I kept that shopping format when we lived in the city where good shopping and frequent sales were plentiful.  It was just nice to knock it out once a month and not have to think about shopping for a few weeks rather than heading out every Sunday, the worst day to shop, gathering up our supplies for the week.  Also, we had a nice produce market within walking distance.  It made replacing perishables on an as needed basis very easy.  This time around we do not have such a convenience.  Where we are now, convenience costs more than I'm willing to pay most times, and it doesn't include anything fresh.  So, I've been giving this some thought.  Maybe once every three weeks would be more realistic.  I'll really have to figure this out soon since I want to get this started next month.

There are SO MANY benefits of shopping monthly as opposed to weekly, or even bi-weekly.  The biggest for me is the savings.  It also teaches you patience and learning to "make do"; the real essence of truly being thrifty.  We can be much more productive around the homestead when the bulk of our time is spent here.  There's time for games, spontaneous creativity, movie nights, baking together, and on and on.  Ultimately, I hope to use my time in the effort of food preservation, cooking ahead, pursuing my writing course, and working more on my love for photography.  Not to mention the natural health course I purchased nearly two years, yes that's YEARS, ago and never even opened yet.

We'll be learning how to over winter animals for the first time this year.  This is our first time ever, like in our whole lives, raising livestock.  We have chickens and sheep now.  Our oldest female is expecting sometime next month, and we're anxiously awaiting the new experiences a new lamb will bring to the homestead.  With the winters we've had these past two years I am a bit anxious about what caring for these critters will entail.  That's a huge change, going out side every.single.day no matter the weather.  Negative 30 can be really brutal.  Keeping them fed, watered, and sheltered will be a chore, I'm sure.  We are, however, enjoying the dynamic they being to our lives despite the work they require.  There is something to be said about raising your own food.

That brings me to the next thing I hope to achieve this winter.  Garden plans!  I managed to grow a little bit of food this year.  I did get 50+ bags of zucchini shredded up and put in the freezer, and we enjoyed the fresh cucumbers.  However, the chickens have managed to destroy the last of my cukes and are working at my tomato plants.  Jerks!  It's my fault.  I know.  All summer they left my small garden alone.  It's the old flower beds around our front porch.  That is, until I picked four zucchini and forgot to bring them in.  Seeing them laying there was just too much temptation for them to resist, apparently.  Ever since then I have been shooing them off the front porch and out of my vegetables.  UGH!

Next year we plan to have at least a few raised beds built with a fence erected around them to protect our food from the vultures, er uh chickens.  I've been drooling my way through my seed catalog and dreaming of the different things I'd like to grow next year.  I'm hoping my mom with partner with me in this project.  God blessed her with two green thumbs, and a couple of toes I think.  She plans to retire after her birthday in March.  Would be SO AWESOME to have her around more.  There are many, many things we can learn from her.  She's a work horse and would not be thwarted as easily as I when it comes to canning pickles on the hottest day of summer or braving the mosquitoes and humidity to harvest the bumper berry crop in the woods.  She has a way of keeping me moving forward.

Come to think of it, too bad she can't come over and get me motivated.  There are so many things eating at me right now.  I have not finished our school plan for this year, and we are slated to start in just a week and a half.  Then there's the housework.  I really wanted to do some deep cleaning.  My windows look like they've never been cleaned, and there are cobwebs giving birth to more cobwebs in the corners.  Oh, and the books!  I did make a lot of progress with my collection, but there is still more to be done.  How I dream of a fully cataloged library.  Key word dream!

So...

How am I dealing with this jumbled up conglomeration of dreams, wants, and needs that keep tripping me up on my course to a peaceful and prepared start to our new school year?  Sometimes it feels like I'm not, but I know that isn't true.

I've been giving myself A LOT of grace.  We are often times more hard on ourselves than anyone else, so it is appropriate to be the first in line to cut ourselves some slack.  We shouldn't expect perfection from ourselves anymore than anyone else should.  So, why do we do that?  I am actively trying to quit using the word lazy in reference to myself.  I am not lazy.  Repeat.  I am not lazy!  I am tired, overwhelmed, pressured, and a lot of other things, but I know that I am not lazy.  That negative self talk needs to hit the highway.

I make my morning studies a priority.  I have a collection of small books and bible studies that I like to start my day out with.  It helps a great deal to put my mind in the right place before I begin my day.  When my mind is more on Christ and less on my struggles it helps my feet to be firmly planted facing the direction they should be when I step out to face what lies before me each day.  Being grounded means something totally different to me as an adult.  It's a good thing.

I lean on a friend...or two.  Good friends are a real blessing, and I am thankful to count for myself a few.  It's so nice to have at least one person that will tell you like it is; set you straight when your thinking gets skewed.  Sometimes we just need to vent, or we need to run something past someone before we can more forward, especially when it comes to the challenges of life.  I'm willing to bet that most everyone faces difficulties and trials that they never could have imagined they would in their entire life.  Having at least one good friend that you can trust to protect your heart and guard your soul is more valuable than any earthly possession we could have.  Don't be afraid to learn on someone when times are challenging.

I enlist professional, or not so professional, help.  Maybe someone comes and watches the kids so I can take a day to myself.  Maybe I seek the advice of a therapist.  Maybe I get a massage.  Maybe I hire someone to clean my home a time or two.  Maybe I hire a local teen to do garden work or help me organize.  This falls in the realm of grace as well.  Sometimes we don't want to spend our time or resources on someone's help.  Sometimes we feel we don't have time to take off to take care of ourselves.  Let me remind you of the airplane and the oxygen mask.  Enough said.

I throw out the routine and change the plans.  Well, not every day, but here and there when we need to.  Sometimes the time is just right, and I allow myself to go with the flow.  Those are the best days!  No stressing over what wasn't done.  No worrying about falling behind.  Behind what?  Exactly!  No worries, period.  Just go with it.  Those are the times that make memories and rejuvenate the soul.

Now, I am going to go finish preparing dinner.  I am not going to worry or stress over the things weighing on my shoulders.  I am going to be present in the moment, do what I can, and take life moment by moment.  I will do what I can as I am able.

No worries.

S is for Smiling Sunrise - A Book Review

ABCs, ABCs, how many ways can we learn our ABCs?  Learning our ABCs is such a big deal when we are little.  As a parent it can get kind of mundane and boring teaching ABC's, especially when we're raising a lot of children.  I mean...really...how many times CAN we sing the ABC song?  How many picture books can we read with the typical A, apple, and B, ball, and C, cat, and D, dog, and on and on it goes?  WordsBright, a small, independent publisher, has published a book that is anything but the A, apple, and B, ball approach to the ABCs.  In writing S is for Smiling Sunrise Vick Wadhwa (He's on Facebook if you'd like to connect with him.) has most definitely provided parents and children alike with a refreshingly new take on ABCs.



It's quite impressive to me that a children's ABC book can be tied into our homeschool in a variety of ways with a variety of teaching opportunities.  Character and Virtues has been a concentrated area of focus in our homeschool this year.  S is for Smiling Sunrise effectively teaches and reinforces areas of virtue that we have been actively learning and practicing as part of our normal routine.  The vocabulary is excellent.  I love the words that were chosen to represent each letter of the alphabet.  They are anything but ordinary; K, kaleidoscope for example.  Then there's the rest of the book content which is rich in literary stimulation including rhyming words and wholesome messages.  The content is rich enough to even elicit conversation from the nine-year-old, not just the two young ones.  We really enjoy reading it as a family, as a bedtime story, and the kids enjoy looking at it on their own.

Bella, age 4, enjoying the book independently.

S is for Smiling Sunrise also comes with a few wonderful resources.  There is a FREE Teacher's Guide available for download.  I love that the teacher guide provides relevant ideas and activities for K-3 age children.  It's not just for toddlers!  In the Teacher Guide there are four areas of focus for each letter; concepts, questions, vocabulary, and activities.  That's 26 different concepts to explore, 26 different questions to discuss, well over 100 vocabulary words to learn, and more than 26 activities to do together.  All of this from a children's ABC book!  Did I mention that we love this book?  You can even download a free word poster to go along with the book via the website as well as an MP3 of the story put to song.

There is so much potential within the pages of S is for Smiling Sunshine.  It's a wonderful teaching tool for not only learning the alphabet, but fully enriching the learning experience of your child.  It would be a wonderful addition to any homeschool curriculum for young children as well as just enriching the learning process for any child in a variety of learning environments.  We are looking forward to expanding on the book with the provided resources as we go throughout the coming year.  Such a fun way to take learning the ABCs to the next level!

Playing Games

My kids love to play games, and they are a wonderful tool to use within the homeschool for many reasons.  Over the years we've amassed quite a collection of games for various age levels.  Over the past several months we have really upped the amount of time we spend playing games, and it appears to be just what the doctor ordered.

Family Bonding

I grew up playing games.  Lots of games.  Some of my fondest memories are that of game playing.  It was always simple, lighthearted, and fun.  When I think of my in laws I picture them sitting at their kitchen table playing cards.  They were always laughing and having fun.  There's nothing complicated about pulling a game off the shelf, and sitting down at the table.  There is no advance prep.  Everything is done for you.  Pop a bowl of popcorn if you like, but that's about as complicated as it gets.  There is no simpler way to bring the family together for a time of casual conversation and laughter than a board game.  Our last few family gatherings have ended at the kitchen table with a game of cards or other board game.  It just seems the natural thing to do.

Building on Virtues

We focus on one virtue per month here at The Zoo Crew, and board games offer up a simple way to reinforce those virtues.  There are plenty of opportunities for sharpening our character in game playing.  Are we being honest?  Are we being helpful?  Are we being kind?  What about being attentive, or exhibiting self-control?  And on, and on.  Games are such a non-threatening way to interact with each other and reinforces the virtues we teach in our home.

Being a Good Sport

Losing isn't always easy, and games with family provide us with a great opportunity to practice being a gracious loser.  This is such an easy way to set the example for our children on how to lose like a winner.  Games are for having fun, even when we think we're losing or we actually do lose.  Sometimes there's even the opportunity to teach about being a gracious winner.  It really isn't if you win or lose, but how you play the game.  Board games are the perfect place to teach doing your best and having fun no matter the outcome.

Reading and Math

There's hardly a homeschooler that has dropped a few beads of sweat over reading and math.  We're always so worried about them both, aren't we?  Well, what better way to reinforce math and reading than board games?  There are specific games on the subjects like Sight Word Bingo and Money Matters for Kids.  However, games in and of themselves naturally reinforce these skills.  Try to play Monopoly without reading or math being involved.  If you keep score in games like UNO and Rummy that's math.  Plenty of games, like Caboodle and Life, require reading along the way.

Creativity

A lot of games foster creativity naturally.  Cranium and Pictionary play on the imagination and artistic abilities of the participants, and games like Story Cubes or Pig Tales foster creativity on a more literary level.  However, my favorite thing about games is making them your own, and no one that I know does that better than m five-year-old.  He loves to take games and totally use them in ways they were never designed.  He has a game he made up with his cars and our Sorry game.  Typically, he will play this when he really wants to play a game, and no one is available to play with him.  He spends hours doing this.  No kidding!

Critical Thinking

Sometimes it is difficult to impart abstract thinking, thinking ahead, analyzing, and the like.  Games are perfect for this.  Our nine-year-old was gifted the game Othello for Christmas this past year.  We finally pulled it out last month and taught her to play.  All it took was my husband and I playing a game or two with her watching for her to catch on.  Now she's teaching others.  Someone famous along the way said something to the effect that the true test of our knowledge is our ability to teach it to others.  What better way to reinforce knowledge than to teach others, and she's been doing that a lot with the little ones and even her cousins.  A lot of decision making happens in game playing.  What safer environment to practice decision making, risk taking, and making mistakes than playing games?

Some of Our Favorites

Pig Tales
Chutes and Ladders
Hi Ho Cherry-O
UNO
Sorry!
Guess Who?
Sight Word Bingo
Story Cubes
Othello
Monopoly - Dinosaurs
Brain Box - USA and World Versions
Scrambled States of America
Instructables
Ants in Your Pants
Scrabble ABC Scoop
Money Bags
Connect Four
Sequence for Kids

What are your favorite games?  We have plenty more, but those are on the top of our most played list.  We'd love for you to share some games with us that you enjoy as a family. 

Lessons in Nature

I love my community of friends.  I love their willingness to share the knowledge that has been imparted on them.  I love those I know in real life as well as those I've only blessed with via social media.  All are important to me.  Despite my resistance to technology and the challenge I face daily of creating balance with it in our lives on a daily basis, there are many blessings poured into our lives through its presence.

Technology has so much to offer the homeschooling family; free e-books, free printables, free curriculum, free advice and guidance, access to information instantly without leaving home and too much research, and on and on the list could go.  As a product reviewer for The Old Schoolhouse I am growing more and more appreciative of my blogging friends.  Some I only know virtually, and others I am blessed to know personally.

A recent post from a good friend of mine got me thinking about all that winter has to offer educationally as well as spiritually.  You can read her original post here.  Inspired by reading this, I decided to take a peek at what the bible had to say on snow.  Did you know that there are over two dozen verses in the bible that directly reference snow?  There is a lot to learn on this subject.  With a quick overview, I picked a verse that spoke to me today and will be meditating on it throughout this week.  Here is is coupled with a picture I took this morning after the snowstorm at our home:

After searching snow in the bible, I decided to look up what is said about birds.  I have been enjoying watching all the varieties happily visiting our feeders today.  There is a seemingly endless amount of references made to birds in the bible.  Oh the amount we could learn on numerous subjects just by studying the bible's reference to birds.  Here is the verse I picked to focus on after my search on birds:

Today's visitors!

All around us nature is waiting to teach us and guide us to our creator.  If we only pay attention, there is a lifetime of curriculum right at our fingertips.  The possible references and lessons are endless.  Are you paying attention to what's around you?  How do you incorporate the lessons presented by nature into your homeschool?  I'd love to hear all about it!

A Week in the Life

We've been having a lot of fun here at Royal Academy.  The air is downright frigid outside.  It is January in SE Michigan after all.  That being said, I've been trying to talk myself into making a bigger commitment to getting outside with the kids more often.  We tend to hibernate in the winter.  I see it as a season, though.  I mean, really.  Who wants to spend half an hour putting winter gear on children only to return back inside 15 minutes after you walk out the door?  Well, not me.  However, the kids are getting older.  Bella and Avery are more adept at dressing themselves, and Harmony is growing into quite the helpful young lady.  Both are HUGE bonuses for this "round-two" mom.  Tomorrow is the first day in our new routine where I have Nature Walk added to the planner.  We'll see how we do.  There are 11 acres here to explore, after all, and it would be a shame not to discover all there is to discover.

We just wrapped up week one of our newly implemented routine, and we all have had a wonderful time playing and learning this week.  It has been a nice hodgepodge of playing, curriculum, games, impromptu moments, and tweaking the schedule to allow for some flexibility due to a couple late nights.  Yes, week one, and we already employed the right to change up the plan.  In my book that is a VERY beautiful thing.

School for us doesn't always resemble the brick and mortar style school most people think of when they think of education.  Honestly, in my opinion, I am doing things the best when it least resembles institutional education as far as I'm concerned.  My crew seems to learn best hands on, and that's when we generate the most excitement.  Another one of my goals this season is to institute more art into our week.  We have some real budding artists here, and I really do see the real value in art in regard to brain development and such.  I'm sorry to say it had fallen by the wayside.  Somehow, I had fallen into the trap of being more focused on finishing the curriculum on time and lost the joy part of learning.  As far as I am concerned the joy is the most important part, and I had inadvertently misplaced it all together.  With a little shift in priorities, all is right in our world at the moment.

I thought it would be fun to share a little photo journal of sorts to show some of the highlights of our week, messy house and all.  After all, we really are LIVING here in The Zoo Crew.  Hope you enjoy this little glimpse into our week:

Bella exploring math with our frogs on a log.

Harmony exploring the function of
vocal cords and the voice box.

A little make believe princess play.

The newest addition to our routine, Tablet Time.

Avery exploring the effects of water temperature on his color changing car.

Fingerprint Art

Learning some Kung Fu moves to correlate
with our study on The Boxer Rebellion.

Wrapping up the week with some snow fun!

What have you been up to this week?  How do you incorporate more outside activity into your routine?  I'd love to hear about your life at home learning with your family.

December in Our Home School

I've been looking forward to December for months.  This year is the first time I've ever just slowed our pace way down and enjoyed the season full on.  Thankfully, illness has pretty much left our home, and life is starting to become a little more normal.  If I can just manage a few, full-nights of sleep maybe I will start to feel a little more normal myself.

In the meantime the kids and I have been enjoying our special Christmas routine, and it's hard to believe Christmas is right around the corner.  I thought I'd share with you the things we planned, both what we've done and what's managed to slip through the cracks, and the things we still have on the agenda for December.  There is still plenty of time to enjoy a few crafts or activities together as a family.  Maybe you'll find something here that looks like fun, or you can visit my Pinterest board for lots of other Christmas ideas.

1.  Wrap 25 Christmas Books and Read Them - My favorite idea of all I actually failed to do.  Maybe we'll get lucky, and there will be no illness in our home next fall, and I can pull this one off next year.   I originally discovered the idea from Counting Coconuts who got it from The Picky Apple.  (Anyone else feel like they're in that old shampoo commercial?)  Anyway, the idea is simple.  You wrap 25 books with a Christmas theme and open one each night, and read it as a family.

2.  Make Tamales on Christmas Eve - Well, I didn't actually plan to do it ON Christmas Eve, but this is a tradition that I really want to implement in our home.  Our youngest son is 50% Mexican, and I totally believe in growing up with a knowledge of our heritage.  For me, food is such a fun way to learn culture.  Making tamales on Christmas and/or New Year's Eve is a Mexican tradition that I love because it's about family and friends coming together to cook, eat, and celebrate.

3.  Family Movie Night - We've already watched a few Christmas movies, but one of my favorite is to watch The Polar Express very close to Christmas and make it special.  I love the idea of taking the experience a little further with added activities.  Fantastic Fun and Learning shares some wonderful ideas that I plan to choose from before our Polar Express Pajama Party this weekend.  Typically, we make hot chocolate and pop a large bowl of popcorn.  I bought the book this year.  Can you believe I didn't own this one already?  We'll probably read it during the day and enjoy some activities.  Then, we'll watch the movie together as a family.  Honestly, I really look forward to this each year.

4.  Make Cotton Ball Snow - The month of December began with decorating.  Hubby and I got the tree together this year from a local lot forgoing the whole tree farm experience we had planned since all of our children were still sick.  We got the tree set up, and let it get happy for a couple days.  Meanwhile, the kids and I dug out all the Christmas decorations and sorted them out on the first day.  The next day we decorated the house.  Then, the next day we decorated the tree.  It was fun spreading the process out like that, and it totally took away any stress that may have been involved in the process and instead created anticipation.  The day after we decorated the tree we strung cotton balls on thread and hung it in the walkways of our home.  I got the idea here.  It was fun for all of the kids, and it does look really cool.  I purchase plastic needles so the little kids could do it without worry.

The Supplies

I knotted the thread on the needle so the kids didn't have to worry about it slipping out.

We later added snowflakes from the beams.  It created a really cool effect.

Other ideas still on the list include:

Crockpot Cinnamon Almonds

Footprint Snowmen

Fingerprint Art

Popsicle Stick Snowflakes

Borax Snowflakes

Craft Stick Snowmen

Scavenger Hunt while Looking at Lights

Christmas Sensory Bin

Tortilla Snowflakes

Toilet Roll Reindeer

Nativity Sun Catcher

Frosty Winter Art

Christmas isn't here yet, and winter hasn't even begun, so there is still plenty of time to enjoy all of the above activities.  From our family to yours...

Merry Christmas!

Anticipating Christmas

We're doing things a little differently here this year, and I have to say we are all liking it very much.  Our norm is to keep a regular school routine year round with the occasional break here and there; usually a day or two, and never for more than a week or so.  This year I decided to approach things a little differently.  We have been off of our regular schedule since Thanksgiving, and we are having so much fun.

Never in my life have I ever participated in Advent in any way.  Honestly, up until a few years ago I'd never even heard of it.  I found a great study to do with the kids each night, and we started it on December 1st.  It's been a lot of fun, and I'm already thinking of ways to change it up for next year.  For now, we are keeping it simple.  The kids get a picture to color from a free download that goes along with our evening reading, a book I downloaded for $1.99 onto my Kindle.  This is another first for me.  Out of my thousands of digital books this is the first I've ever paid for and the first I've used exclusively for study with the children.  Truth be told, I am old fashioned and much prefer a printed book in my hands.

Each weekday I have planned a craft or special activity to do with the kids.  As each day passes our home becomes more and more festive, and our children anticipate Christmas Day more and more.  This is big for me, because some days (or weeks, or months) it seems we have the market cornered on stressful circumstances to deal with and work through.  It's common knowledge that holidays and special, traditional, family times can play with our emotions, and having this concentrated time to just focus on being with each other, honoring the purpose of celebrating Christmas, and drawing near to those we love has added so much to our family relationship.

It might be possible to think that we have so much time on our hands as homeschoolers, and we can accomplish so many things, but I'm here to tell you that time is very fleeting.  There literally are not enough hours in the day or days in a lifetime to see, do, experience, share, create, or give all the things our hearts desire or long toward no matter the life we choose to live.  I am grateful for the privilege, honor, and freedom to spend my days fully present with my children.  It is by no means perfect.  We struggle and make mistakes, but in the end we love each other with all we have within ourselves to give.  Taking this extended break like this has helped to redirect my focus and assisted me in slowing down enough to see more clearly the things that are most important.  In the end the only thing we can give is our best, and it is my mission to continuously improve my personal best.  Is it any real surprise that I am a genuine work in progress?

As 2014 comes to a close many of us will take time to reflect on the past.  It is my prayer that your focus will be on the positive.  Though it is winter, and quite possibly a winter of your life, there are always sunny days, little gifts, and small treasures that we can hold onto.  The positive things are always there whether or not we take the time to notice.  Why not put our attention on the joyful moments that positively touched our hearts?

"Finally, brothers, 

whatever is true, 

whatever is honorable,

whatever is just, 

whatever is pure, 

whatever is lovely,

whatever is commendable, 

if there is any excellence,

if there is anything worthy of praise,

think on these things."

~Philippians 4:8

Just a Peek

I've been wanting to take a moment to travel back through our first month of homeschooling through the pictures I've taken these first three weeks.  I cannot believe next week will usher us into October!  I remember older people telling me how fast time goes by the older you get.  Now, I am one of those older people saying the very same thing, because it is SO true!  That is why it is SO important to take time to just be.  Be present.  Be mindful.  Be observant.  Be reflective.  Be still.  There is no better way to slow time down than by making a conscious effort to NOT be so busy.  It's the business of adulthood that sucks our time away.  So, now is my time for reflection.  I hope you enjoy traveling back with me.

We ended the summer with our one and only trip to the beach.
Weather was a bit cool here in SE Michigan this year.

The hubby got all our wood ready for this year, and hopefully next!

School pictures!  Our new first day tradition.

The first science experiment of the year; a visual in mummification.
The three-year-old was the one with the spot on hypothesis!
 

We started using the busy bags from the trade I participated in the summer.
(A fun idea I highly recommend!)

Bella loves preschool!

Harmony back at her math program.

We still took time to watch things grow and to enjoy the nature around us.
 

Bella LOVES taking pictures of our growing tomatoes!

We all helped in one way or another to
prepare for hunting season.

Finding out what happened to our apple slices in our first experiment.
Annabella needs to taste everything!

Wild grapes grow around our property.
Maybe we'll do something with them next year.

We enjoy the turkey that travel our yard.
Finding their feathers is like discovering treasure.

My favorite stop when we take a nature walk on our land.

Exploring a new local park.

Bella loves to climb!

The kids think the new hearth is a stage.
Guess what movie we watched recently!

We learned about cells.

And, learned that Play-doh can grow mold.  Gross!

An exercise on the importance of our bones.

People without bones.

Learning about the protective fluid around our brain.

Traveling around Africa before the digging of the Suez Canal.

Benefiting from the short cut of the Suez Canal.

As you can see, we've done a lot in September.  Now that fall is here, we will begin a whole new set of adventures.  I love taking pictures of what we do if for no other reason than to see that we really do get a lot accomplished in our time, as fast as it does slip by.  Pictures are a fun way to record our life together, and with today's technology it is easier than ever.  Most of these pictures are unedited, because I just don't have the kind of time I would like to devote to photography at the moment.  Plus, I wanted you to see that it doesn't matter the perceived quality of the photos, rather it's the ease of record keeping that they provide.  We forget things all too quickly, and pictures are a good way to preserve those memories and even record your school year.