Movie Night

After a busy week (what week isn't busy lately?), we stayed in tonight for homemade pizza, baths, Toy Story 3, stove-popped popcorn, and fruit smoothies. It was a nice evening. I'll let you guess, though, how long the kids actually sat cuddled like this watching the movie. I think it was about 3.5 seconds or so, but they sure were cute.

Freezing Football

Tonight was the homecoming football game for Dave's school. It was a bit chilly as you can tell by my literal little bundle of joy.
The big kids had a fun time snacking,
playing with their friends,
and watching the "princesses" (homecoming court).

Happy Birthday, Molly!

We celebrated Molly's birthday tonight with dinner at The Melting Pot. Good food, good friends, and kids who were good for the babysitter: it was a good night all around. Happy Birthday, Molly!

October 2010 Books Read

68. As Husbands Go by Susan Isaac - This was okay but not great.
69. Unlocked by Karen Kingsbury - I've decided that I like Karen Kingsbury's stand alone books (which this one is) better than her books that are part of a series. I thought this one was pretty good. It's set in our area and is about a boy with autism, both of which interest me.
70. Secret Lives by Diane Chamberlain - I read this book on my new Nook, which was an early Christmas present to myself. The Nook is great, but this book was not. It is one of Diane Chamberlain's earlier books, and it is much more risque than her newer ones.
71. The Courage Tree by Diane Chamberlain
72. Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton - I read this one for the class I teach. I liked it, but not as much as Uncle Tom's Cabin, which we read last month.
73. Between, Georgia by Joshilyn Jackson - This was a quick, easy read.
74. The Lies We Told by Diane Chamberlain - I also read this one on my Nook, and I really liked it.

A Monkey, a Butterfly, and a Flower

Dave was out of town this weekend, so my parents met me at their church's Reformation Day party on Saturday night to help me out with the kids. We had a great time and, of course, came home with a lot of candy. Here are some pictures, and if they happen to look familiar, it's because I bought Caleb and Alexa's costumes big last year so that they could get 2 years out of them. And this also happens to be the 4th year that Caleb has been a monkey.

Teaching Time October 25th - October 29th

We had a good week of school this week. Here's what we've been up to.

Both -

We are over halfway through reading Mr. Popper's Penguins. We also read some penguin books and listened to some music by Schubert (who is mentioned in Mr. Popper's Penguins). We read lots of other books as usual including some of the dinosaur books by Jane Yolen.

In Bible, we discussed patience and read the story of Simeon and Anna who waited patiently for the coming of Christ. We memorized I Corinthians 13:4, "Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant," and continued to memorize the Apostles' Creed. Our hymn of the week was "Come Thou Almighty King."

Caleb -

In Phonics, he finished the section focusing on short vowels and worked on consonant blends and double consonants. He also finished reading the first box of Bob Books and the first book of his Phonics readers. In addition to the work we do at home, he started twice a week speech therapy at the local elementary school (at 8:00; I hate mornings).

He finished capital letters in his handwriting book and began lowercase letters.

He began his first grade math book this week and worked on addition plus 0 and plus 1 and on writing the numbers 1-20. This was review for him, so we covered 2 lessons in 1 week. He took his first ever math test this morning and made a 100%. He is his father's child after all.

Alexa -

I got her this cutting workbook to keep her busy while I work with Caleb, and she LOVES it. She also did the letter "L" this week and continued to work in her handwriting book.

For Your Viewing Pleasure

Jordanna playing with Caleb's Super Mario hat. She steals his green hat all the time, too.
Alexa has her table set and is ready to eat. Caleb is in the play room preparing her some food.
Muffin tin lunches.
Matchy, matchy.
Trying on their costumes from last year, which they will be wearing again this year.