Weekly Wrap-up ~ Thanks for the Day Off!

In our regular life this week…

we were busy! On Monday night Eli had Scouts. We continued learning about First Aid for our Readyman badge. On Tuesday night we had a recruitment event for Scouts at the elementary school. We were able to recruit a new Webelos II to our group. Brynne also had her very first volleyball practice on Tuesday night. She was sooo excited to start volleyball and it did not disappoint! Wednesday night we were happy to have a quiet night. On Thursday night Brynne competed in the little Miss Junior Septemberfest pageant in our town. She didn't place, but she said, "I came close to winning this year!" Now that's a positive attitude! She just enjoys getting all dressed up, having her sister do her hair and makeup, and having fun with her friends. Last night she had volleyball practice again. Then we were off to the carnival.

In our homeschool this week…

We had another great week and a big surprise! We found out on Wednesday that the public schools were going to be closed today for a teacher's training on Friday. Since we follow the public school schedule, we got to take the day off, too! After our busy week, that was a relief!

Bible - This week we studied about Gideon and his tiny army of 300 beating the Midianites. The kids were really into the story and how God wanted to use a small army with unusual armor to win the battle so that they would give their praise to Him instead of taking the credit themselves. I love how they are really "getting" the application of our Bible stories to their lives.

Grammar - In Logic of English we studied phonograms ck, ee, ng, th, short and long vowels, adjectives, and the spelling rule for use of /ck/.

Spelling - We learned two-syllable words this week and they each aced their final tests again.

Reading - In addition to our regular read-aloud and personal reading, we read some really great picture books this week:

Math - We continued to work on multiplication facts this week. We also got in two days of MEP. I am so glad we are back to doing this program and stretching our logic and problem solving skills.

Handwriting - This week's cursive letters were x and q. I realized that I have been writing capital cursive Q's wrong for so long that I didn't even realize what they really looked like! I just don't get how a 2 is supposed to look like a Q.

Writing - Creative writing continues to be a struggle for Eli. He just really does not like it. We had some stubbornness this week in getting some paragraphs on paper. I had the pleasure of receiving a free download of Story Builders: World of Animals by WriteShop. You can pick up your FREE copy of it by going HERE. I am hoping this game might make creative writing more fun. Brynne, on the other hand, is loving coming up with stories! That's a girl for ya.

Geography - This week we studied Maine and Maryland. My Study America Saturday contains all the details.

Science - Since Science is a Friday activity, we didn't do any science this week.

Nature - We saw a LIVE cicada on our back porch. Brynne wanted me to take a picture of it. We noticed that it was camo! The cicadas were especially loud this week!

Counter-clockwise: Brynne's cursive handwriting practice, Eli's lighthouse art, our camo cicada, the kids playing "Moose for a Moment" (those are their antlers), Brynne's lighthouse art, a note from Kyndal.

Homeschool Tricks and Tips ...

Sometimes do your most dreaded subjects first. On Thursday morning we already had a story web on our white board from the day before and I didn't want to erase it to do our Bible lesson. So, we started with writing. Once we were done Eli realized how great it felt to have it out of the way!

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…

Brynne almost had a big first this week .... she went on her first sleepover! After the queen contest on Thursday night, she went to Taylar's volleyball game. Taylar's mom and little sister asked if she wanted to spend the night. She went for a couple of hours, but when Dawson took Taylar home she decided she wanted to come home and sleep in her own bed. That was okay with me ... I'm not ready for sleepovers just yet.

A favorite thing this week was…

Going to the carnival on Friday night! It was fun to ride rides!! We also enjoyed watching Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. And Eli was hyped up about the new National Geographic United States Atlas for Young Explorers we received this week.

What's in the kitchen this week ...

For Maine the kids made homemade blueberry muffins with Kyndal. (The bad part about doing all this cooking is that I end up eating all the baked goods!)

What we're reading ...

Mom:  The Book Thief by Markus Zusak , Trim Healthy Mama by Serene Allison and Pearl Barrett, What Happens When Women Say Yes to God by Lysa TerKeurst. 

Eli: Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 2 by Dav Pilkey.

Brynne: New Home for Lily by Mary Ann Kinsinger and Suzanne Woods Fisher.

Read-aloud: Ragweed by Avi. 

Things we're working on…

getting the basement set up for a bedroom for Kyndal and Brynne. We aren't getting as much done this weekend as I had hoped, but we are making some strides. Next weekend we should be able to do more.

I’m grateful for ...

sleep. I just love sleep. And the rain that is lightly coming down as I type this AND the cooler temps that are heading our way. It's been a scorcher the last few days! You should see my garden! Speaking of my garden ...

In the garden…

Cucumbers and onions, sweet pickles, and spicy dill pickles.

What's coming up this week ...

Tomorrow I get to meet my long-time blogging friend, Jodi! I cannot wait!! The rest of the week is more Scouts, more volleyball, and more school.

A photo, video, link, or quote to share (silly, serious or both!)…

We are happily linking up this week at the following sites: