Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Our April update

It's been a pretty eventful week! Last Tuesday we took the kids hiking. It was the first time since high school I have been hiking and enjoyed myself, so it was a landmark day. Both because I am in better shape and I'm not pregnant and because the kids are getting old enough to do fun stuff like that! It was a perfect day.

The next day we left (sans Andrew, again) to Utah for Cami's graduation from BYU, and then to Idaho for Kim's baby Eliza's blessing. It was a great trip. The kids fell in LOVE with my aunt's house, where we stayed, and were literally crying and begging to go back the rest of the time. I told Leighton we could go back for his birthday. Their backyard was paradise - trampoline, swingset, slide, dog, and cat. What more could the kids ask for?

 My parents came from TX for the weekend as well, and it was so fun to be all together. I was missing Linds something FIERCE!! It just wasn't the same without her there. Christmas will be awesome.
Idaho was a blast too, although I took no pictures. We went to Rexburg, where I met Andrew and part of my heart still lives. I was thrilled to walk the campus and reminisce to myself. So many memories, most good and a few bad, but I sure love that town.

We went to the sand dunes, where Kim rented a 4-wheeler and we all took a spin. (I was mocked for my extreme-slow speed, but I'm not exactly an adventurous spirit when it comes to motor vehicles. Or anything, actually.) The kids got completely FILTHY playing in the sand and lake, alternatively, and their clothes were caked. They all 3 fell asleep on the way back to IF, so they obviously wore themselves out in a good time.

Sunday night I stayed with our dear friends the Noyes back in Utah, who are pretty much like family. It was a quick visit but so much fun. Our kids are all getting married to each other someday, so if for nothing else we have to keep the relationship alive. ;)

We came back home on Monday, to a spotless house and a bored Daddy. He cooked us a yummy dinner that night and we were so glad to be back. And just in time to start our new school year bright and early Tuesday morning!

Yes, we're officially homeschoolers. Possibly nerdy, but I absolutely love it. We found out we'll be moving in the fall, so I decided to start our academic year a little early so we can take our break when most kids go back to school. We just finished our preschool year 2 weeks ago, but who needs a summer break anyway? We get pretty bored around here without our list of books to read. :) We use Sonlight and I can't say enough about how wonderful it is. If you are even considering homeschooling, please look into this company! It's absolutely the best. Just 2 days into our kindergarten curriculum and I've already learned a few things myself!

So there's our little update. We're happy to be back home in the swing of things, as they say.

Oh, and also, my sisters' cooking blog is back in gear as well. If you need some recipes, head on over and check it out. My recipes are all vegan (I'm a vegan homeschooler; I may be losing a few friends here...) but my sisters' have more "normal" stuff. Let me know what you think if you take a peek!

6 comments:

Lisa said...

Um, WOW! Lots of exciting stuff for sure. That is amazing that you are homeschooling. I hope you will blog regularly and tell us more about it; I would love to hear how you like it.

Chels said...

Gotta love the crazy fun life. You look awesome! We miss those kiddos. Kiss them and tell them we love them.

Elise said...

1. You look so great! I want to be in shape again.

2. My mom loves Sonlight curriculum too! Do you still do Five In A Row? I am thinking of buying that one for this fall since you recommended it before...what do you think?

3. Where are you moving?! Do you have to sell your house again?

Stephanie said...

Lise, I don't use FIAR anymore, but I did love it. The book that went along with it (the instructor's guide thing) wasn't my favorite - the best thing was their book lists. I would recommend ordering the books (either through them or Amazon) and then just doing web searches for activities to go with each book. Great book choices for young kids. I hear the older one is good too and I usually use their booklists for my kids' birthday and Christmas present books.
And we are moving to New Mexico! We're not even going to try to sell our house - the market here is not ready yet. :)

Lacking Productivity said...

What? How come you've never blogged of your vegan-ness! I love to hear people's stories about why they transitioned and just how vegan they are.

Deidra said...

Why don't we live by eachother now? We could eat together and school together!! Miss you!