Has it really been SIX WEEKS ?!?!?!?

Well, I would have never guessed it had been this long since I had updated my blog. Time has really gotten away from me.

School has been clicking along really well. We are studying Europe and have covered Norway and France in depth. Monday we start 2 weeks on Germany and then we are DONE for this semester. I am looking forward to the L-O-N-G break I have allowed for. I decided early on that with the freedom to choose my own school dates, I would shorten our Summer and give us equal breaks in the Summer and Winter. We will be off SEVEN weeks .... from Thanksgiving to January 6th. WOO-HOO !! We are right on target as far as the goals I set in all their different subjects. I am amazed at how well this has been going. It really feels like the best decision we've ever made.

I am really looking forward to the Germany section of our studies as I lived there for several years as a child/pre-teen. My parents were both in the Air Force so we lived in a lot of places. Sadly, the age I was when we lived there was not conducive to really appreciating the culture and such, but I am looking forward to reflecting back on those times. I am hoping my Mom can find some pictures of us there for me to show the kids. I am pretty sure my parents DRUG us to everything there was to see in the entire country. hehe. I think it will make it that much more interesting to the kids to learn about a particular place if they can see a picture of 13 year old Mommy standing in front of said place with B-A-D 80s hair. haha

We went to the State Fair a couple of weeks ago and had a nice time. It was one of those great days here in Texas when it FINALLY isn't 100 degrees anymore. It was downright cool ... I think the high was something like 85 degrees that day. Our nephew "C" and Chad's brother went with us. "C" is such a doll. All 3 kids had fun and it was nice to have the freedom to go in the middle of the week when there was almost NOBODY there. Here are some pictures:

The standard BIG TEX picture:

They had this great exhibit called "Little Hands on the Farm" where the kids were able to put on aprons and go through stations where they "worked" the farm. They fed chickens, milked cows, planted seeds and at each station received the "fruits of their labor". In the chicken coop they got an egg, in the barn they got a milk carton, after planting their seeds they picked veggies ....etc. At the end, they went to the market and sold their goods. The market owner gave them money which they got to spend in the General Store. It was a really neat set-up. Bubby and "C" went through it. They wouldn't let Fancy in because she was too old. She wasn't too upset as I believe she was enjoying a lemonade with her Daddy at that point.

Feeding the Chickens:

Milking the Cow:

Planting Onion Seeds:

Being Silly Boys:

Well, there is plenty more to tell, but I better get my day started. I will try to update again soon.

Thanks for checking in !!