My Summer Blog Album Part II

Our mst recent field trip was to vitit a honey bee "farm". The kids got to see how the honey was made, from hive to the bottle. They got to stick their fingers in it and taste it and try the honeycome (my favorite part!).

Here is Jozie, Hannah, and Bob checking out the extractor (I think that's what it was called!). Jozie is keeping her fingers back so she doesn't get them caught in the machine! :)

Here the kids are checking out the bee polen. He collects it right at the hive off the bees legs and sells that too. They got to taste it too.

She got caught trying to sneek a taste! :)

Jozie and Hannah with mouths full of honeycome!

Jozie lost her 3rd tooth a couple of weeks ago! She said it kinda tickles and makes her talk funny!

We had the honor of having Heidi Holt as house gusts for a week. They had a concert at our church and one in a park in town. This is Heidi. Check out their website to see more about what they did while they were here and hear some of their music.

This is Nick. He is the little brother of a friend of mine from high school. He is the reason that they got in contact with us - he was also in the youth group at GTAG when John was the youth leader. He said he remembered me babysitting him with his sister sometimes when we were younger! Thanks for making me feel old, Nick! :)

Here is Luke, sporting his self done "Nick look"! While the band was here he took hair lessons from Nick, he set up a base guitar lesson with Bear Claw, and drum lessons with Crash - oh, and he thought Heidi was pretty cute! What a boy! :)


Here is Luke racing the waves in Ocean City, MD. The kids were pretty excited to get to swim in the ocean! It was a beautiful day and there were plenty of waves. I almost wish I would have gotten the kids wake boards, they looked really fun and "all the other kids had them"!

Jozie was a little hesitant at first - probably more overwhelmed. Though we swam plenty of times in Lake Superior, we never swam in Lake Superior with waves like this because if the waves were this big than that meant that it was WAY too cold to swim that day. She did eventually warm up to it though and ended up having as much fun as Luke did!

There were plenty of sand crabs to be had. You dig for them in the wet sand down by the water and they reminded me of HUGE bugs! They were pretty yucky but the kids thought it was great and kept bringing them to me up on the beach where I was trying to rest peacefully in the sun!

Here are the sand crabs! :P

Bob spent the day before the wedding with Levi, John, and Brian on the Potomac with the jet ski...

He had to remind them that he wasn't as young as they were (he's the one here trying to get onto the back of the jet ski!)

We went to Baltimore, MD one day and went Fort McHenry. It is the place where the National Anthem was first written. We love these kind of historical places and they are usually pretty cheap to get into! Here is Levi, Sami and the kids in one of the jail cells!

The kids found the map for the sight impaired and thought is was neat to see how blind people got to "see" the fort.

Luke and Uncle Levi tried out the cannon.
It didn't work...

There was a big storm coming so they had to take down their big flag and put out the "storm flag". It's just a smaller flag - and Bob got to fold the big one because he knew how. He thought it was a really neat experience.

Here is Luke trying to lift one of the big cannon balls - he never figured out that they were welded together! :) LOL
While we were in MD visiting Levi, we went to DC and spent the day at the Smithsonian. Here is Luke checkin' out an aircraft carrier at the National Museum of Air and Space.

We walked across the Mall and saw the Capital Building. Here is Bob, Sami, Jozie, and Luke. I took the picture so I didn't get to be in it. :) I'm pretty good at that!

Here is Luke holding some sort of a hissing cockroach at the Museum of Natural History. He got to see the dinosaurs too but we didn't get very good pictures of it. Bob said that everytime he tried to get a picture of the kids I got in it! He was right and NOBODY wants to see that in a picture!!! :)


You asked for more pictures of Levi's wedding so here they are. These are the mothers with the bridesmaids (wearing the dresses Jaclyn made) and the flowergirl - I think Jaclyn made her dress too.

I loved this picture of Levi and the kids! :) Luke looks just like him! :)


This is Levi and our dad with his best man and now brother-in-law, John, and Chris, his father-in-law.

I liked this picture of Levi. He looks like he is posing for some kind of commercial.






Jozie and I had a field trip to Buckley Homestead for Pioneer Days with other homeschoolers in our area. They had a great time and got to see what farm life was like in the early 1900's for kids as they did chores, helped with preparing a common meal - which we shared before we went home - and what a one room schoolhouse was like. It was a wonderful experience and very educational. It made us long for a simpler and slower paced life than the one we live now in NW IN so close to the hustle and bustle of Chicago...We would go back to that lifestyle in a heartbeat if it was possible! Most of the other kids you see in the pictures with her are in our homeschool group that we spend our time with and go on field trips with.


This concludes my Summer Blog Album! We have had a long and busy summer and it isn't even over yet!

Bubba

Luke is 6 today! This child came into the world the epitome of the "Strong Willed Child". He has NEVER done things the "normal way". He was smaller than my first and I was in labor with him longer (They say that the second one is usually bigger and take less time!). He talked from the moment that he figured out he had vocal cords - Da was his first word - and walked when he was 10 months old. By the time he was 3 you could have a pretty good conversation with him and he usually knew what he was talking about. Luke does things his own way and in his own time - and absorbs more than ever really realize, which isn't always a good thing! He can be a very sensitive and loving little boy when he wants to be and he doesn't like to see other people hurt (unless he's the one hurting his sister!).

He is the boy I prayed for when he was still inside of me, and I thank God everyday for my Son.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LUKE!

Food for Thought

Here is yet another reason that I have chosen to Home educate my children and further confirmation that I am doing the right thing. This is a copy of an article written for a newspaper in Kansas about how education in the public schools has declined over the years. It speaks for itself.

- Testing Standards -
Compared to the 8th Grade Test in 1895

Could You Have Passed the 8th Grade in 1895?
Probably Not...Take a Look

by Michael Hodges (email)
prepared Feb. 2001and updated 3/05, as a section of http://mwhodges.home.att.net/education.htm

This is a sub section of the Grandfather Education Report, a chapter of the comprehensive Grandfather Economic Report series of mini-reports with dramatic pictures on critical subjects proving serious threats facing the economic future of our young, compared to prior generations. Poor education quality is a major threat to our nation, partly caused by unacceptable teaching methods, and dumbed-down textbooks and test standards.

This is about test standards, compared to the past.

---

Questions: What percentage of this year's seniors and last year's high school graduates could pass the following 8th grade test required in 1895, even if the few outdated questions were modernized? How many college students could pass it? For that matter, what percentage of high school teachers could pass it? And - - what percentage of today's schools have standards for promotion from 8th grade equal to or tougher than those required in 1895?

8th Grade Final Exam: Salina, Kansas - 1895

This is the eighth-grade final exam* from 1895 from Salina, Kansas. It was taken
from the original document on file at the Smoky Valley Genealogical Society
and Library in Salina, Kansas and reprinted by the Salina Journal.

Grammar (Time, one hour)
1. Give nine rules for the use of Capital Letters.
2. Name the Parts of Speech and define those that have no modifications.
3. Define Verse, Stanza and Paragraph.
4. What are the Principal Parts of a verb? Give Principal Parts of do, lie, lay and run.
5. Define Case, Illustrate each Case.
6. What is Punctuation? Give rules for principal marks of Punctuation.
7-10. Write a composition of about 150 words and show therein that you understand the practical use of the rules of grammar.

Arithmetic (Time, 1.25 hours)
1. Name and define the Fundamental Rules of Arithmetic.
2. A wagon box is 2 ft. deep, 10 feet long, and 3 ft. wide. How many bushels of wheat will it hold?
3. If a load of wheat weighs 3942 lbs., what is it worth at 50cts. per bu, deducting 1050 lbs. for tare?
4. District No. 33 has a valuation of $35,000. What is the necessary levy to carry on a school seven months at $50 per month, and have $104 for incidentals?
5. Find cost of 6720 lbs. coal at $6.00 per ton.
6. Find the interest of $512.60 for 8 months and 18 days at 7 percent.
7. What is the cost of 40 boards 12 inches wide and 16 ft. long at $.20 per inch?
8. Find bank discount on $300 for 90 days (no grace) at 10 percent.
9. What is the cost of a square farm at $15 per acre, the distance around which is 640 rods?
10.Write a Bank Check, a Promissory Note, and a Receipt.

U.S. History (Time, 45 minutes)
1. Give the epochs into which U.S. History is divided.
2. Give an account of the discovery of America by Columbus.
3. Relate the causes and results of the Revolutionary War.
4. Show the territorial growth of the United States.
5. Tell what you can of the history of Kansas.
6. Describe three of the most prominent battles of the Rebellion.
7. Who were the following: Morse, Whitney, Fulton, Bell, Lincoln, Penn, and Howe?
8. Name events connected with the following dates: 1607, 1620, 1800, 1849, and 1865?

Orthography (Time, one hour) - Do any of us really know what this is?
1. What is meant by the following: Alphabet, phonetic orthography, etymology, syllabication?
2. What are elementary sounds? How classified?
3. What are the following, and give examples of each: Trigraph, subvocals, diphthong, cognate letters, linguals?
4. Give four substitutes for caret 'u'. - What?
5. Give two rules for spelling words with final 'e'. Name two exceptions under each rule.
6. Give two uses of silent letters in spelling. Illustrate each.
7. Define the following prefixes and use in connection with a word: Bi, dis, mis, pre, semi, post, non, inter, mono, super.
8. Mark diacritically and divide into syllables the following, and name the sign that indicates the sound: Card, ball, mercy, sir, odd, cell, rise, blood, fare, last.
9. Use the following correctly in sentences, Cite, site, sight, fane, fain, feign, vane, vain, vein, raze, raise, rays.
10.Write 10 words frequently mispronounced and indicate pronunciation by use of diacritical marks and by syllabication.

Geography (Time, one hour)
1. What is climate? Upon what does climate depend?
2. How do you account for the extremes of climate in Kansas?
3. Of what use are rivers? Of what use is the ocean?
4. Describe the mountains of N.A.
5. Name and describe the following: Monrovia, Odessa, Denver, Manitoba, Hecla, Yukon, St. Helena, Juan Fermandez, Aspinwall and Orinoco.
6. Name and locate the principal trade centers of the U.S.
7. Name all the republics of Europe and give capital of each.
8. Why is the Atlantic Coast colder than the Pacific in the same latitude?
9. Describe the process by which the water of the ocean returns to the sources of rivers.
10.Describe the movements of the earth. Give inclination of the earth.

The top of the test states > "EXAMINATION GRADUATION QUESTIONS OF SALINE COUNTY, KANSAS
April 13, 1895 J.W. Armstrong, County Superintendent.Examinations at Salina, New Cambria, Gypsum City, Assaria, Falun, Bavaria, and District No. 74 (in Glendale Twp.)"

According to the Smoky Valley Genealogy Society, Salina, Kansas "this test is the original eighth-grade final exam for 1895 from Salina, KS. An interesting note is the fact that the county students taking this test were allowed to take the test in the 7th grade, and if they did not pass the test at that time, they were allowed to re-take it again in the 8th grade."

Notice that the exam took FIVE HOURS to complete. Gives the saying "he only had an 8th grad education" a whole new meaning, doesn't it?!? It also shows you how poor our public education system has become...

My Summer Blog Album Part I

Jozie turned 7 in April and got her first digital camera (a $20 cheapie! Hardly worth the money!) and this is one of her first pictures - Luke in a store when we took our mini vacation to Michigan City, IN - she wouldn't put the thing down and had the memory filled with over 60 pictures in like 15 minutes!




We went to see the Power Team at a local church (HUGE church) and Luke was mesmermized! This is Big Russ - Lukes favorite guy - the first two pictures are pretty self explanitory, those are cement blocks. The third picture is Big Russ blowing up a hot water bottle. This was the last frame just before it exploded! They were pretty impressive and I would HIGHLY reccomend anybody going to see them. Boys LOVE them and they have a very awesome and powerful testimony. Luke got his picture taken with them too, but I think that Kristin has those because we used her camera that night (we went 2 nights because Bob couldn't come with us the first night) - I will post them in my Blog Album Part II. Luke also got a 2 inch thick steel rod that Big Russ bent with his teeth then over the top of his head. The whole team signed it and one guy told him to practice with it and when he could bend it back to give them a call and they would put him on the Team. He was pretty excited about it and still gets that thing out about once a week to "practice" with and shows everyone new who comes to the house how good he's getting!
On a different note, Jozie HATED it! All the fire, noise, loud music, and sweat just wasn't for her girlie girl ways, she SLEPT through the last quarter the first night then stayed home with Amma the second night! What a girl! :) LOL

Congratulations Levi and Jaclyn!!!
My little brother got married on July 15th in West Virginia. We packed up - all 7 of us - in a rented 16 passanger van, and drove out to see it. It was a beautiful wedding! She made all the dress, including her own and she had wildflowers for all her arrangements. Jaclyn is perfect for Levi and if you know Levi, you know it would take a very special girl to be his wife! :) John, his now brother-in-law, was his best man with Josh E and Brian (from MD, not the one from CA, formerly of MI) as his other 2 guys (I foget what they are called right now!). We got to see family from MI who we haven't seen in quite some time, including my dad, and some friends from when we were kids were there too (Dave and Julie S and also Bethany and Josh w/Isaac, who Jozie and Luke adored!). I was going to post more pictures but it is in a HUGE file with a TON of pictures and it's late and for some odd reason the wrong pictures keep uploading so I guess I will stop with the wedding pics before I get too mad at this dumb thing and break it. If I get time in a couple of days I will post more if...

Ok, so it's doing it to everything now...I guess this will be the end of my post but there is more to come....so stay tuned!

I'm back...sorta...

I debated about posting this since it has been so long since I last posted but thought I would just because I took the time to do it...I am really trying to find time to blog more and I got an extra day off this week so I thought I would take a moment out of my laundry time and post something...anything...! So here it is...but there is more to come! :)

Yoopers Gone Wild!!!

I just got this via email from my uncle and thought that some of you might enjoy it! :) This is too funny! The person who put this sign up must have been a Baraga graduate (and I can say that because I am a Baraga graduate)!!!!

Clubber of the Month!

I can't believe I forgot to post this! I must have been too busy with work and field trips that I forgot about it!

Luke was the Feb. Clubber of the Month for his Awana group, Sparks! What that means is that he passed more sections than any of the other kids in his class! I was so proud of him! He did 14 sections that month and was so excited to get the pin and certificate. I think he was just as surprised as I was because it wasn't something that we were working towards, he was just working hard to get his book done before the end of the year. I didn't even know what it was until he showed it to me when I picked him up that night. He was so excited that he had to call Uncle Levi and tell him all about it and he called Daddy at work to tell him too. Plus he had to wait up until Amma and Papa John got home from youth group to tell them all about it. He was one proud boy. He even buttoned his vest nicely and wanted a hanger to put it on to hang it from the knob on his dresser drawer! LOL I will post his picture that they have up at the church when we get it at the end of this month.

Bedtime Stories

When Bob got home from work the other night both of the kids decided they had to show off their reading skills and read him a book. Luke only got through the first few pages before he decided that his legos were more interesting but Jozie read the her whole book! Halfway through she heard him snore and said, "Dad! I guess I must be reading you a bedtime story, huh!" I suppose he had a hard time staying interested in "My Pony Jack" after a hard day at work!

What Dounut are You?

I found this and thought it would be fun...Boston Cream are my favorite! And Yes, I would choose them the first time, everytime!

You Are a Boston Creme Donut

You have a tough exterior. No one wants to mess with you. But on the inside, you're a total pushover and completely soft. You're a traditionalist, and you don't change easily. You're likely to eat the same doughnut every morning, and pout if it's sold out.

What Donut Are You?

Maple Syrup, Ice Fishing, Doing Dishes and Making Friends

The Voyagers Camp, Deep River Maple Syrup Time

Our Homeschool Group at Deep River for Maple Syrup field Trip


Jozie and Courtney at the Maple Syrup field trip. This is Luke's friend Courtney that he talks about all the time.

Deep River Sap Collection through the green tubes into one large bucket.

Luke decided to help with the dishes one night, but was playing in the water more than anything! Just thought I would catch this moment for when he gets older and doesn't want to help with this chore!

Luke with some of his friends in our hs group. Alexander, Benjamin, Evan, and Raphael.

Jozie's second fish while ice fishing.
(Luke didn't catch any but really didn't enjoy it and came back in to do some more sledding that day.)

Patience is a virtue!
That's why Luke quit so soon!

Jozie's first fish!

Jozie's third fish! If she would have thrown it back in she would have gotten more use out of it as bait! :)

"Back to the Salt Mines"...

...As Bob would say! I went out and got myself a job about 2 weeks ago...Hence, I have been quite busy and not taken the time to post about it yet. I work at a greenhouse about 6 blocks away from home. I walk almost everyday and I work in the morning so I am done by noon. I actually really enjoy it and though I really didn't need to get a job, I felt pressured from my mom and my husband and my step dad because I am the only adult in the house that "doesn't work"...or at least they say so. So now I work part time, about 20 hours a week, and I get to keep working and doing the things I normally do at home. I don't really mind too much. The kids are learning to become more independent in their studies and it's nice to come home to only a few questions instead of them not having any of it done. We don't get to do as many extra activities as we used to do but summer is almost here and things will slow down a bit then when we won't have any school work to do.

We have been on 2 field trips for maple syrup making over the last couple of weeks. It was neat to see how it was made and the kids got to ask a lot of questions. Jozie brought some home with her, she used her money from daddy to buy it, and she tested it on several different things. She started with her finger, then french fries, then peanut butter and banana sandwich, and then she tried it on pancakes and found that she liked Mrs. Butterworth better. She said it is sweeter. But she liked maple syrup on everything else better. Luke used his money to get a toy motorcycle...big surprise there!

I have sat down and looked at our calendar and figured out that by the end of May we will have our required 180 days in and Jozie will be finished with first grade! I am so excited for summer to be here it doesn't even bother me that Luke didn't finish first grade. I know he will pull ahead again soon, he just lacks the attention span. It's 3 seconds long then he wants to be on to his cars or drawing something.

I would like to know how many people actually read my blog...I know 3 for sure because they have posted in the past but now I want to know if you are there and have never posted a comment. You can still post even if you don't have a blogger account, just do it as anonymous...this way I will at least feel that I don't do this just for me. That someone out there actually reads what I write. Hope to hear from you soon! :)

Ice Fishing, Sledding, Fun Rides, and Birthdays!

We went to Michigan this past weekend to celebrate my grandma's 85th birthday with her. We got to see some of our family and the kids got to play with their cousins. Grandma got a lot of cards and many more visitors on her very special day.

We also got to see Uncle Lyle and Aunt Debbie with my dad. That was nice because we haven't seen them since my wedding 5 and a half years ago. The kids had a blast there! We had a long ride there so the kids got to spend some quality time talking to their Papa (my dad) and Jozie told him that she wanted him to take her ice fishing. He said he couldn't this time because he didn't have his gear but he would another time.

The drive up was pretty; it was nice to see the snow again (we don't get much of that here in N. IN) and to drive through some farm country that isn't flying by on the interstate!

When we got there the kids got to ride with Uncle Lyle to the house in his old military vehicle. Luke got pretty excited when he saw it and thought the army guys were coming to kill him...What an imagination! They went with him willingly, which surprised me because they were way too young the last time we saw him to remember who he was (Jozie was 18 months and Luke just 1 month!). I didn't think they were going to have much to do but I did bring their snow clothes just in case they got a chance to get out and play. But, how wrong I was! There was so much to do! (Thanks Uncle Lyle!) The got to ride in and drive the bobcat, go sledding down the hill behind the house out onto the ice, and go ice fishing! Plus Uncle Lyle was going to get the snowmobile out to take them for a ride! They came in to warm up with Aunt Debbie's hot apple cider (Thanks Aunt Debbie!) and have lunch then out for more sledding and the ice fishing. Jozie was so excited that she caught 2 fish (which she threw back to get bigger to catch the next time) and Luke claimed to get cold but only wanted to come back in to go sledding again. He went half way across the lake on one of those antique sleds with the metal runners! He was so thrilled the was hardly understandable when he talked! :)

We had a really nice weekend.

Thanks, Aunt Nancy and Uncle Stan, for letting us stay with you.
Thanks, Dad, for taking us to Uncle Lyle and Aunt Debbie's!
Thanks, Aunt Debbie and Uncle Lyle for having us and showing the kids such a great time! They can't wait to come back!

The Face of Utter Joy! :) That's my boy!

Luke, Papa, Jozie, and Uncle Lyle.


Luke on the Bobcat

What else is Papa good for? :)

Jozie on the Bobcat

Luke Sledding

Luke crossing the lake!

It was a LONG walk back! :)

Ice fishing!!!

Jozie and Jenae :)

Me, my Mom, Jozie, Grandma, and Luke (Katie is the cat).
Hey, that makes 4 generations!
(This is the first picture I am posting of me!)

My pictures are back! :)

Kristin

I have been thinking about my friend Kristin lately. I haven't spoken to her since her Birthday Party where we said we would be spending more time together but haven't. There are a lot of strange circumstances surrounding our estranged relationship - we were like sisters a few months ago and I miss her a lot.

Kris, if you read this, know I love and miss you lots and can't wait for the day where we can be friends again. This is for you:

Aly & AJ
"Never Far Behind"

I know this really isn't you
I Know your Heart Is Somewhere Else
And I'll Do Anything I Can
To Help You Break Out Of This Spell
I See You Following your Crowd
I Know You're Trying To Fit In
But If Your Gonna Find Yourself
You Gotta Start From Deep, Deep Within

Hold On To What You Believe

[Chorus]
I Will Always Be Your Friend
I Know Who You Are Inside
I Am With You Till The End
Never Far Behind
I am standing in the distance
You can take your time
And I will be there waiting
Never Far Behind
Yeah
Never Far Behind

I Am Sending You A Message
Don't ever Think That It's Too Late
When You Care About Someone
There is always room for change
you're allowed to make mistakes
it's a part of every life
I Don't See You very Different
The Truth Is Shining In Your Eyes

Hold On To What You Believe

[Chorus]
I Will Always Be Your Friend
I Know Who You Are Inside
I Am With You Till The End
Never Far Behind
I am standing in the distance
You can take your time
and I will be there waiting
Never Far Behind
Yeah
Never Far Behind

You Can Take Your Time
And I Know
From My Heart

I Will Always Be Your Friend
I Know Who You Are Inside
I Am With You Till The End
Never Far Behind
I am standing in the distance
You can take your time
and I will be here waiting
Waiting by my side God Is Never Far Behind

I Am Sending you a message

Which Peanuts Character are You?

I found this on Jamie's blog and thought I might try it...though I'm not quite sure how accurate it is...it does say that only 11% of the people who took this quiz were also Woodstock so I guess it is true in that I am unique... :)


You are Woodstock!


Which Peanuts Character are You?
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