Classical Cursive

I love the idea of learning cursive before print.  

I just do.

With the exception of enrolling my kids in the nearest Classical school, I don't know how to teach this way.  I learned print first.  (I know I could research this more online and find some tutorials, or even buy curriculum for early cursive, but I just haven't.)

Well, we are doing attempting both.

Liv is familiarizing herself with the cursive letters, but she is much more proficient with print.

I figure this will work for us.

Rather pretty, I think.

Sir George

Most days, my kids are super shy.  So I love it when they get into character.   

Liv will do this sort of thing even less.  

It's just not her style.  

Unless the role is a puppy or kitty.

But mention a knight or a cowboy and George is all about getting in costume.

Love it!

What a Day.

It is getting a little chilly.  I am now feeling like turning on the oven once in a while. 
I didn't realize how much I missed baking bread.

My first loaf turned out amazing.

My second batch...well.  Not so much.  I had a few complications.

The 4 loaves below are really my 3rd batch, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

The 2nd batch I put in a "safe" place for the first rise and forgot about it.  I decided to make a pie too and preheated the oven (you know, my "safe" place) to bake a pie crust.  I ended up baking my barely risen dough in the shape of a bowl.  It was edible, but not like any kind of bread I would want to serve (or photograph).

So.... then I worked up a 3rd batch to redeem myself.  Somehow, when I pulled the towel off the dough after the 2nd rise, the towel stuck to one loaf.  It got mangled.  What else do you do for bread that looked like it got smashed in a car accident?  Ummm, you paint some green food coloring on it, give it eyes and a tongue and hope this kids love their special SNAKE bread!

Except they thought it was a seahorse.  Tip your head to the right.  See?  I wish I saw that before I made it a snake, or it would have been a better seahorse.  You know, a curly tail and all.

Good bread, bad bread, seahorsey snake bread, and chocolate cream pie makes for the start of Fall baking.  Not so bad.

So we lost a couple....

Our Frog Life Cycle lesson is not starting off super awesome.  Two [edit- now FOUR!] of our little guys died.  Apparently the mortality rate is very high, and even more so when they grow legs.  Well, we have  5  3 now.  Our seven dwarf names don't make much sense anymore.  Not like we could tell who was who anyway.

But we are still learning!

We made a Frog Life Cycle poster but copying out of a Children's Encyclopedia (thanks Carolyn!).

We are learning responsibility by trying to keep alive take care of animals.
We are learning that animals sometimes just die.
We are learning to take turns feeding the pollywogs.
We are learning to stop climbing on everything because when you put your weight on the desk it makes the shelf shake and the aquarium wobble and the poor little guys go nutso in their underwater earthquake scenario!

Well, I'm hoping we are learning most of those lessons.

Boy time

There is nothing like a simple IKEA shelf assembly to teach the skill of following directions and how things fit together.

Troy really put some teaching skills into this.  He spent 30 mins on what would have been a 10 min project because he was coaching George through the instructions.  I never realized how great this could be.  There are no words, just pictures and numbers- perfect for George!

 The little man counted, followed the order of steps, screwed, hypothesized about what would happen next.  He had no idea he was learning so much!  He was just happy to build with Daddy.

 In the end, we got a shelf with 6 pull out drawers that were to go on the wall next to the girls' bunk beds.  Thanks to this whacked out house, studs weren't where they were supposed to be, plaster and slats aren't fun to deal with, the shelf didn't make it up.  

Maybe Troy will want to teach George the wonders of filling holes with plaster next!

Baby Dedication. 2 for 1

Don't make fun.  It was pretty sweet to do two dedications at once.  Out of town family only had to make the dive once, we didn't have to get all dolled up in different outfits (of course) and commit to 2 Saturdays.  See?  Genius.

This day we dedicated Virginia and Margaret to the Lord and promised to raise them up as children of God.  Troy read a letter to each of the girls, with out Children's Pastor near by.  We really like him.  I can't tell if he likes us back or just thinks we are crazy and we get the sympathy love.

Ciacie, Uncle Justin and Grammy

Aunt Marcy, Mike, and Katie (and hiding is Stephanie!  Found you!)

Dad was the photographer.  He was able to catch the slide show with the girls' pics.

Liv is thrilled.

Church did a lovely job.  I missed most of the service because Virginia was not into it.  We chased each other in the hallway for an hour.  

The foyer was decorated with piggy banks to represent the investment the church will put into our children, just as we invest in them daily.  The Pastors even started the fund with some moolah in each bank.  

Oh, and there were cupcakes.  That might be all Virginia remembers.  That is why I blog.

The one good thing about cool weather

I turned on my oven for the first time in months!  (Ok, there might have been a random bake here and there, but during the summer months we live off the grill, large toaster oven, and stove top only!)

I felt like soup in a bread bowl.  I missed baking bread.

 It is good when you can still eat outside, have fresh tomatoes, and homemade bread!

 I made them on the small side for the kids.

Broccoli and cheese.

 I never know how meals will go over with these kids. 
I know I liked it.

 George and Liv weren't totally into chowing down on their bowls.

Weirdos.

 But they had no problem with dessert!

Cookie pizza!

The works.

 The works with a side of bananas.