A new bottle bobs among the waves….

Sand castles, seashells, strawberry fields, first roller coaster rides, tire swings, firecrackers, flip flops, sunblock, ice cream cones, moving vans, bubble wrap, sad good-byes, hopeful greetings, green swimming pools with frogs, playgrounds, zoo trips, s’mores, glow sticks, campfires, leaf collections and the sound of rain on our tent.  These memories (and so many more) I will cherish when I look back at the Summer of ‘09.  As I toss yet another bottle out into the swirling currents of our wake, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on my life and how rich it has become.  I am so thankful everyday for my loved ones and the joy they bring to my life.  It’s been a great summer… and now I turn toward the future with great anticipation.  Fall arrives today at 5:18pm EST, and on the horizon I can catch glimpses of all the wonderful memories that have yet to be made.  My favorite time of the year is upon us…  Let the fun begin!

She put the "labor" in Labor Day….

“You’ve got this… You’ve got this… You’ve GOT to GET this!” I muttered to myself as I stood amidst a field of camping paraphenalia that I had hauled from our perfectly good, air conditioned home a few hours before.  In a moment that I can only describe as INSANITY, I had assured my husband that it would be “no problem” to set out early on Friday with two small children and a minivan of necessities to our campsite at Lake Martin while he finished up his classes and lectures.  I would set up everything, play with the kids a while and see him in the late afternoon… no problem!  Fast forward to the present where the sounds, smells, and creatures of the woods were surrounding me… indeed were very nearly eating me alive as I clenched the instructions to our eight man tent in my sweating hand and swatted the air with the other.  Several indistinguishable nylon mounds were strewn about, along with a couple of dozen poles of various lengths.  One could only assume that they were vital to the actual construction of said tent…. The crew sat on a nearby picnic table eyeing me dubiously as I threw what I hoped was a cheerful “Mommy will put the tent up, and then after that we’ll have fun, fun, FUN!”  I cringed as I heard the  desperation from the last word still hanging in the air, and threw a quick glance over my shoulder to see if I had fooled The Crew…. from the look of alarm on their faces, I could see that I had not. 
Two hours, four packs of fruit chews, two juice boxes, several coats of bug spray (12 hours protection my ass!), and one potential deal made with the Devil as he passed thru on his way to Georgia later, I stood back… scraped the sweat laden hair from my eyes, and admired my work.  This small patch of Alabama dirt… had become mine. I had conquered the Alabama wilderness and built my family… well, maybe “home” was a stretch… but a definite zone..yes, "Zone of Comfort”!  Channeling Tom Hanks from the movie “Castaway” I danced around thumping my chest and declaring to the emptiness “I… I have made SHELTER!”  It was a heady moment to say the least.  The Crew who had abandoned all hope and retired down by the lake to throw rocks, and most likely discuss their current chances of survival, came running back and immediately inquired “Are we having fun now?”   Well, I know what our answer to that question is…. now you be the judge!! Happy Labor Day!

    
              

 
             
      

Exploring our new Habitat…

This week our science lesson was about habitats and how every animal, insect, and plant has a “home” in which they feel the most comfortable and thrive.  The Crew pondered this and then proceeded to discuss amongst themselves the different perks of the many “habitats” they have known. 
“I like our new habitat in Alabama because it has a pool!” said one to the other.
“I like this habitat because it has nice doors and windows” the other said to the first.
“Our Virginia habitat had fun rides though (Busch Gardens)”  said the one.
“Ya, but our next habitat in Florida is where Mickey Mouse lives!” the other countered.
Okay, not quite what I was hoping for… So off we went to our local zoo to explore the idea of animals and their habitats a little deeper!


              
We wandered for several hours and the boys even found a “habitat” of their very own… the zoo playground!
                      
All in all it was a good week here.  We closed out our third week of homeschooling, and made good progress on our reading.  The boys are each reading their BOB books with very little assistance and are also doing well with their handwriting practice.  We are trying to get additional crafts made each week to coincide with our science “theme”.  This week we made a jellyfish family!  They had fun “stinging” their toy fish in the tentacles of the jellyfish and we all had fun getting messy with markers!

Poster Children….

The Crew is big into dress up these days… We have a basket that can fully outfit two small children (and sometimes one adult, but that’s another post!) into brave knights, fierce pirates, brave firemen, and explorers of the savannah.  On any given day you can find me escorting a pair of superheroes into the local library, and as recently as this morning I found myself transporting two fully masked transformer robots who sat calmly in their booster seats contemplating the passing scenery as we headed to the YMCA.  I have to say though, as commonplace as this pastime has become around the harbour, one particular dress up session really stands out as a personal favorite…. Enjoy!
   

The school bell rings…

Well, our first week of our homeschooling adventure has come to a close…. and it was amazing!!  The boys and I both learned so much!  It was a week of discovery, learning, and adjusting to our new rhythm.  From a strictly academic point of view we learned our vowels, and the “short” sound that each makes.  We memorized a 10 line verse about the vowels and will have our final recitation this evening for Dad.  On the math front we discussed like objects and whether they were the same or similar, did pattern recognition exercises, counting games, and some manipulative play.  And of course there was reading, reading, reading and more reading!  Add in a dash of art, cooking, science and a field trip to the library, and you will get a sense of the fun that was had.  The boys have been great and really have a great time “doing school”.  I have also gained great insight to their independent personalities and really enjoyed seeing their eyes light up with interest in various subjects.  We even made it a point to take our first “school” pictures and our class photo!  The boys love their new shirts with our school name and logo applied… Harbour Lights Academy is officially open!!