Mulberry Street

We converted the dining room into our homeschooling home-base.  I imagine we will be tweaking ideas, schedules and assignments as we figure this out.

Good things about our field trip today include: stopping to buy rain boots from the thrift store, bringing enough umbrellas and zero crowds.  Also, there was a day camp there with low attendance so they shared their pizza and juice boxes with my kids.  Super generous leaders and I am grateful for their kindness. Some not so good things about our field trip today include: the rain, leaky umbrellas, and falling in the mud.  I also learned how difficult it is to hold an umbrella with one hand and shoot photographs with the other hand. It was raining hard enough that I didn't ever put the umbrella down, just attempted to pin it between my head and shoulder if I needed to use my other hand to get a shot. C'est la vie they say. The kids earned Junior Ranger badges and I managed to get a few good shots which almost makes all the whining worth it.  Next time, I wouldn't mind visiting the aquatic gardens on a sunny day, alone.  

Since we had a two hour delay we rushed outside to play in the snow before the bus came.  You never know if the snow will melt by the time school is out in the afternoon so you have to cash in whenever possible. Jake continues to impress us with his non-cat behavior.  He runs through the snow, climbs trees and follows us through the woods despite the cold and wet.  

A quaint civil war town that sits at the junction of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers.  The kids had a good time, despite the cold, exploring this old town, watching trains and enjoying hot cocoa.

...three children later, we couldn't be happier with what our marriage has brought to us.  

Benjamin is in the throes of independence.  It's exhausting.  All the things I wish he would do for himself, he refuses to do.  So naturally, all the things I don't care for him to do, are the exact things he wants to conquer.     Emory is still so sweet and sensitive.  Someday he'll really be heartbroken when a friend teases him too far.  Our attempts to "toughen" him up are not working.  He is a great reader, but would much rather be read to.  He isn't sold on the whole work reaps reward thing. Genevieve is my introvert.  She loves loves loves to read and would rather read alone in her room than engage with others.  Emory begs her to play Legos with him daily.  When she agrees to set down a book and play their imagination is unstoppable.  Her creativity may really take her places someday. I let the kitties out for a few minutes today.  Jake is super curious and would disappear in a moment if I didn'...