Grasshopper Days

Grasshopper Days

For today, September 11, 2012
Outside my window...  a perfect fall day - sunny and cool, leaves beginning to turn colors... and the city public works department delivering Occupational Education right to my doorstep as they dig up an old storm sewer in our yard.  There are some days I envy Tate's ability to "turn off his ears" ;D
I am hearing...  heavy equipment and crows, neither very pleasant.
I am thinking...  it was lovely to have Naomi for the weekend, and lovely to send her back home and get back to our 'normal' life... as normal as things ever get around here, anyway!
I am praying...  for my mom to continue healing, for the boys to continue well in their schooling (the year is off to a very good start :D), and for Kerry to balance the work we're oh-so-thankful for with family life.
I am thankful...  for a good report from our friend at church regarding his cancer, for the aforementioned good start to the school year, and for the bright, beautiful, sunny day.
I am wearing...  blue crop pants, white t-shirt, socks, faux-crocs... ever the fashionista. NOT.
I am creating...  a new daily rhythm for us, with Wyatt gone for part of the morning.
I am going...   to pick him up, shortly, after I get Gunnar going on his science journaling.
I am reading...  Women Helping Women, slowly.  Not as much time for recreational reading of my own, as we're spending a lot of time reading together with Sonlight Eastern Hemisphere curriculum.  (And that's fine :D)
I am learning...  gathering new breakfast options.  Calling baked oatmeal "a cookie you eat with a spoon" made it so much more appealing to the boys.  And the chocolate chips didn't hurt either ;D
I am looking forward to...  the change of seasons - watching the leaves turn colors, the days getting shorter, taking walks in the cooler afternoons, and - oh be still my heart - pumpkin spice candles.  Not yet, but soon!
In the kitchen...  boys have CAP tonight, so we'll have a bigger lunch today and a snacky, left-over dinner.  Amazingly, I combined several days' leftovers into a casserole last night and Wyatt and Tate LOVED it - will miracles never cease ;D  And there are leftovers of that, but not much!
In the learning rooms...  it feels really different this year with Wyatt gone for the first part of the day.  He leaves the house about 7:10, and Tate, Gunnar and I get going by 7:30.  I'm LOVING how productive the mornings are!  It's just after 9:30 and we're done with our language, math, and Tate's science.  We'll start on our history work shortly, and Gunnar can finish his science (with my help) while Tate is gone this afternoon (practicing shooting with Grandpa, as hunting season is just around the corner).  I'll need to duck out and pick up Wyatt in about a half hour, but he mostly works independently, with just a bit of direction from me.
Around the house...  the boys and I did a bit of tidying after we returned Naomi to her parents, but it's kind of bare at the moment.  Looking forward to sprinkling some fall decor around :D
The Mother Load...  I'm gently getting (us AND me) into the new routine, and we're still adding school subjects.  We had less of a "rolling start" this year than usual, but haven't begun any art or journaling, and I have yet to load our new keyboarding program and figure out how it works.  We'll get there :D  I'm anxious to get going on some sewing projects as I figure out what blocks of free time I can carve out of our new schedule.
Noticing that...  the boys still like my help, but are capable of doing much of their school work on their own.  Amazing to see them growing and maturing.  If they were girls I'd say they were blossoming like flowers, but boys?  Maybe they're growing into strong and vibrant trees?  Well, young men, anyway!
Something I want to remember for later...  how Tate (a little) and Gunnar (to a greater extent) have adopted phrases and figures of speech from the Redwall books they've been enjoying.  Like Gunnar saying, I wouldn't fancy getting soaked by that muddy water, or something like that.
Something fun to share...  must get more pics of the baby bunnies.  They are hopping all over the hutch, sampling pellets (food), and drinking - sometimes two at a time - from the water bottle.  I love to see them thriving.
A favorite quote for today...  Miss Manners trusts that she can count on you to teach your child that, contrary to current popular belief, the great moral quality of honesty does not require blurting out everything you know all the time.  I love Judith Martin.
A few plans for the rest of the week...  Tate goes shooting today, then he and Wyatt to CAP.  We'll be schooling (officially) Monday to Thursday, and using Friday as a catch-up day.  Wyatt and Tate also have a handgun shooting lesson (which they won at an auction!) on Friday afternoon.  They'll be volunteering at the flight museum on Saturday and may get to go flying again.
A peek into my world...

I found myself in need of another alarm clock, to remind me to go get Wyatt from school.

I get involved in studying with the other boys and suddenly get a jolt of What time is it?!

It's only a matter of time before I forget, so I set an alarm for 10:30 am in the school room.

He's a big boy, for heaven's sake, and not going to panic if I'm not there the moment he gets out of class.  But he has a lot of schoolwork and I don't want to lose time by keeping him waiting.

And... off I go :D