Shelling popcorn for the first time.

Rachel was hard at work when we first got there.

Jadon taking his turn, it was very windy and chilly the day we did this.

Matthew was giving it his all in turning the handle. Becca was watching to make sure that he did it right.



Thomas and Aric are taking turns at the shelling machine.

Caleb was stretching to reach the top to put an ear into the shelling machine, while Noah was turning.

Caleb and Ashlee picking up some that had fallen out of the pan, this was just part of what we did and then some that was already shelled when we got there.

They all had a wonderful time and thought that it was pretty cool to make popcorn. It was very windy and chilly on Monday when we did this. The best part was when we got back to Mary's and we tried 4 different caramel corn recipes, yummy. The children didn't really care for the Gingerbread caramel corn, but they all enjoyed the regular kind. So much so that I didn't really get any. Oh well we have plenty of popcorn here at home, plus we even took some still on the cob.

Workboxes

After looking at a few more blogs, I think that I have found the containers that we are going to use.



These with 6 drawers each but you can add more to them so I am going to get 10 of them so that each of the boys have 12 drawers. I have figured out what they will each do during the day. We will use funny faces on each drawer once they are finished with their work. These will also take up a lot less floor space than the shoe racks would. We just don't have the room to do the left and right aspect. But I do believe that if they can see that they funny faces are there then that will be good.

So far the ideas that I have for hands on/fun drawers are lots of math, arts & crafty things, science. So here is my list:

Draw Write Now books
Math Dice
Counting bears & scale w/activity cards
Frogs, logs and activity cards
Cuisenaire Rods & different books, Roddles
Lacing beads
Geo Shapes/Pattern blocks w/triangle tray or hexagon tray, different activity books
Geo boards and activity books
Dot to Dot books-numbers, letters, math puzzles
Word searches
paper airplane book-they have to copy the parts and put the plane together
Wikki Sticks and books
Can you find it? books
Geo puzzle
toob farm animals
Dr. Drew blocks
Klutz Lego book
Klutz How to build Castles
Snap Kits
Stained Glass coloring pages
Equate Game
Horse Bingo
Math book puzzles
Origami
Varies Art books
Lap Harp
Caluladder pages
Match It
Math War
Nature Study book
Water colors
Knights
Human Body pages-various workbooks & Enchanted Learning website pages
Building thinking skills -Not sure what books or software I am going to get yet.
Quilt block History of Pioneer days
Melissa and Doug wooden ABC's
The Story of the Orchestra by Robert Levine
Piano books
piano practice
guitar books
guitar practice
a wooden loom
Magnetic letters
Magnetic numbers

Their drawers so far are lining up like this:
Thomas Aric Noah Matthew Jadon
1Bible Bible Bible Bible Bible
2Hands Piano Snap LA/RA LA/RA
3LA/RA LA/RA LA/RA hands hands
4Piano hands Math Math math
5Art Math HWT HWT Art
6Math Art Piano Art Piano
7Science Science Science Piano HWT
8History History History hands Hands
9Snap HWT Art History History
10hands Snap @Piano Science Science
11HWT @Piano Hands @Piano hands
12@Piano Hands hands hands @Piano

Of course the 6 hands on/fun boxes will change, Piano will be every other day or I will rotate so that everyone gets time at the piano. Plus I am going to add in guitar books but we need to get a guitar first.

But this is the tentative plan for now. I am sure that as we start working things will change.

Planet Earth DVD's

I have seen this series for a while now, but it has always been all the episodes together with about a 80.00 price tag. But the other day I saw them at Walmart for 10.00 each. I know you're going to still spend that same amount, but it is just easier to budget 10.00 at a time.

Anyway last week we I picked one that looked good and this is what we use for our end of day wind down time. Believe it or not but listening to David Attenborough talk and watching the wonderful nature films just settles down my boys that they are able to calmly go to bed and they have been sleeping better too.

We picked up the a second DVD yesterday, there are 11 total episodes looks like most have 3 per, the last one only having 2. Each is a full hour long, with a diary entry at the end. Tells us things about how things were done while filming.

This is a great set and I do plan on getting them all again when we get a Blue-Ray player for Christmas.

Electronic Snap Kits

Today on the way into town to get yet another load of stuff from the storage stall, I noticed a 30% off all toys at our Radio Shack, so I stopped.

Well they had the Electronic snap kits the big kit 750 experiments with the computer interface.

I looked it over for a moment trying to remember how much it was from Rainbow Resource and said I'll take it. The boys have been having a blast with the little set that we have, that Richard had found in someones recycling back in FL-it was amazing the things that people throw away. Anyway since we got that one free, I didn't have a problem spending money for this one.

When I walked outside to the van, the boys were like wow what did you get? As I passed it in to Thomas he was like HEY THIS IS THE BIG ONE!!!!!!! The smile on his face was great. I even took a picture of him holding the box. I just need to email it to myself then I can post it. Or find where I've hidden my camera.

Going to do try something new.

The older boys seem to have serious issues with the very small amount of book/seatwork that they are required to do every day. So I have been reading about this Workbox, there are plenty of blogs on this subject and all the different ways that people are using it. Heather's blog was the first one I read and I really enjoy her's and have gained a lot of great ideas, not just for boxes but for just new things to add to our school.

So last week I went and got the shoe rack and the shoe boxes from Walmart. Not really wanting to go this route since I currently have 4 students and 2 more that are really on the move, and little miss on the fast tract and she's only 1. 7 children times 12 boxes is 84 boxes and at least 4 different shoe racks probably more, or a great bookcase.

So yesterday I was blog hopping and found a different idea that I am thinking will work better for us and take up a little less floor space(which we are very short on to begin with). Here is Ginger's blog post about how she is making it work. I really like this idea, plus I think that I could put a second set of three sets of drawers on top.

I am going to order the book probably tonight, I am still unsure of which way I want to order it yet.

Once I've actually read the book I will post more about it.

Archery

Today we drove over to Anniston, AL so that the three oldest could compete in the 4H shooting sports event.

They all did really well, Aric it looks like came in 4th with a score of 155 on a re-curve bow.

Thomas has some big time issues, he needs a left hand bow, which we our instructor Kim finally found Wed at a practice we had. The only problem was we all had the wrong parts together trying to make this bow. So we thought that we would just give him a right handed bow-that is what he had been practicing on all this time. But then we pulled apart a different bow and got the left handed one fixed. So he shot, left-with a messed up bow, right-with a good bow, then left with a good bow. I don't remember his score but I believe that it was good too.

Noah did just great probably came in 5th or 6th.


I wished that I had written all three of their scores down. Not bad for only starting on Valentine's Day.

After we left there we went to the new Bass Pro Shop in Leads, AL and talk to a wonderful man that worked there in the Archery department. David was great, he answered all of our questions, even let all of the boys-including Richard shot a compound bow. I am thinking that I will write a letter to the store to complement him, as there were a lot of people in the store that might have been out to buy something, and yet he stayed with us.

We have a lot to learn about all of the different parts to the bows, the correct sizes of the arrows, the proper way to string a bow and sight it. Then once we are good with the basics we will move onto making our own arrows-cutting them to size, putting the fetching, tips and notches on. Should be a lifelong adventure. It was a very long day, I fell asleep before posting this.

general update

Baby Bryce went home with his Mom & Dad on Sunday! Marmee(Mary) was enjoying some snuggle time with him Mon morning while Heather was still sleeping.

I ordered a 12x16 lofted barn for all of our storage needs. It should be here by the end of the month. Then we get to make several trips into town to empty the garage stall we've been renting.
The goal here is to downsize until all I need it the lofted part and then turn the barn into our little school house. YEAH!!!! I might even paint it red. We will probably add windows and an A/C unit later.

I am slowly working on getting all of our new fruit trees planted, we've done 1, only 19 more to go. Plus the blackberries, blueberries and grapes.

I asked a neighbor yesterday if he wouldn't mind turning over our garden, and he said yes. Just as soon as he puts his plow on he'd be down to do it. I offered to pay him but he wouldn't hear of that. I am going to now get started on our plants, since I was unsure of how we were going to be getting this garden done I hadn't started anything. We are going to try for a large crop again this year, they are saying that it shouldn't be as hot this year. We shall see.

I am going to order our chickens next week, 50 of them total-40 hens & 10 roosters. Thomas is chopping down smaller trees to build a new chicken coop for me, he has is all drawn out and knows in his mind what he wants, but is already finding it to be a lot of work. We may just have to build a smaller coop with store bought lumber for now and then use that building for something else later.

The septic tank has been emptied, however it looks like it is old enough that when it was put in they never ran a drain field-ya I know, but what can I say this is rural Alabama here. Anyway to get all the proper work we need done, it is looking to be right under $2000.00, there goes that new to us van we were praying for. I suppose the boys could dig an outhouse and we only use the septic for baths.

Our school work is lacking as usual, the weather has gotten really beautiful and after being cooped up all winter they are bursting to be outside. The time change hasn't helped much either, I am at such a loss as to where I am in the day. I HAVE got to get this under control. We have this seasonal little creek that runs on the back side of the barn that they all enjoy playing in. With the rainy weather it all drains down and makes this wonderful creek, but sadly it will be gone all to soon. I pray that someday we have a place with a year round creek, I love the sound of water running over rocks and of course a source of water.

Thomas, Aric and Noah will be competing in 4H Archery this Sat over in Anniston, AL. Should be a fun day that even Richard gets to go with us. We do need to run over to Tupelo today to get a bow string for Thomas's bow. Kim our teacher finally found the left handed bow, but it didn't have the correct string, so I told her that I would get one since she is letting us use these bows at home. She is such a sweet lady too.

We are still uncertain as to what or when Richard will be going to deploy, but we should know a little more next month. He has weapons qualifing, and then a three day paperwork thing at the end of the month. It has a name but I don't remember what it is.

My sister is another step closer to joining her husband in Germany, I believe that they were going to try and leave next Monday, but that has changed. She has an apt up at Redstone to set up her household shipment, then she will get her travel agrangements at that time also. Praying for her as she is a ready to be together as a family, but scared and nervious about leaving Mom and Dad for the next three years. She is their little girl and we all know it. LOL!!!
I also ask for prayers when she does leave as she will be making this flight(I believe that she has said it will be 17 hours) alone with a very head strong 3 year old and a 9 month old.

The boys and I are going to be making a new clothes line soon. I have the lumber, but need to get the bolts, washers and nuts, plus I think that we might need another 4x4. We will be stopping at Lowe's while in Tupelo today.

So that is pretty much everything that has been going on around here for the past week or so. I hope to start more regular posts, but with the gardening season starting I will do my best. I really need to make daily posts with photos of what we are doing in our school work, to help keep myself more accountable. I need a kick in the pants. Feel free to give me one.

Have a blessed day, enjoy the sunshine if it is shinning where you are.