Take me down to California, baby

Today we flew to California and played at the beach.

Ah, think I'll call it a sheep..

Scenes from Autumn

Need I say more about our weekend??

Where did Vincent Van Gogh go?

A kid favorite this week, a Van Gogh home with interchangeable painting and window scenes combined with paper figures. It has been out on the counter all week after sitting on a shelf untouched for months. They love it!

"Ah, think I'll call it a cow."

I cannot recommend this field trip enough. dairy.com/">Hatcher Dairy Farm is an all natural/ green/ local dairy farm. We toured the farm this week and were really impressed with their practices and expertise. The Hatcher family has been milking cows in our neck of the woods since 1850, and it was fun to get the inside scoop. The have a small store where they sell the milk and meat produces that day on the farm.

I can see the Master's hand In every leaf that trembles, in every grain of sand.

A couple of shots from homeschooling at home today..rare, and lovely..

We read The Little Yellow Leaf and Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf.
We did yoga, bible story, and a little phonics and math work book all outside today. We worked on our bible verse, "Jesus said, Love others as I have loved you." John 13:34.
The boys played, a lot.

We then made blow trees, loosely based on an idea found here.

And then, we frolicked..

My mind weaves a symphony

So my mom used to spin and weave. She has a huge basket of yarn that I raided this week, and I am so excited. This is probably 1/5 of the treasure that basket holds. My nephew thought it was her wigs.. She still has her wheel and her small table loom that have been idle for some time. She has promised to teach me using the piles and piles of raw SILK she has just lying around. That is as soon as she returns from a weekend in Las Vegas seeing Bette Midler, then a week at the beach with old friends, and then a long weekend in California with us. Whose mom goes to Las Vegas, Orange Beach, and California on her fall break?? She is amazing.
For now, I am happily knitting.

Well, my daddy was a fireman and my mama-ha

One of our field trips this week was to our local fire station. We got to see the beds, the kitchen, the trucks and the garage. The fireman that showed us around was home schooled all of his life, and he was FANTASTIC. Best of all, this was free! We made the men cookies, and they were gracious hosts. Heroes!

Underneath the bridge where the water flowed through

This weekend, we welcomed a beautiful new baby boy to our family.
Congratulations to Aunt Danielle and Uncle Ethan.

This is how happy being with cousins makes Eli.

While there we went to the Covered Bridge Festival.

And though overwhelmed with antique vendors and funnel cakes, we did get to take an insiders tour of a real flour mill. We went to highschool with the owner, so when we ran into him, he gave us the behind the scenes view. It's good to know people.

Hannah Kay and Eli are inseparable tough guys.

And, Ollie was even caught smiling.