Weekly Report: #33

The days are getting longer. I love having the light, bright evenings and mornings. So do my kids. Consequently, we are not getting much sleep these days. Eeek! It's all right. It will be winter again and we will hibernate then.

I have most of the books and curriculum ordered for next year. I can't wait until they come! I'm excited to start planning. But we are going to take a good long break first. :)

Highlights of this week include:

Signing up for swimming lessons. We will start next week. Bright and early at 9am!

Reading: A visit to the library. These days we ride our bikes there. It's about 8 miles round trip. And it's SO fun! I let the kids pick what ever books they wanted this time. I smiled when Sam checked out an Asterix and Obelix comic book. I remember reading those when I was younger. I was sneaky and made it educational too. We found this web site that teaches a little Latin with the characters.

Sam also starting reading Brian Jacques, Red Wall. Elise is reading books on Rocks and Minerals and books about Sea Horses. I am still working on David McCullough's, John Adams which is really a fantastic book.

Science: Watching our robins grow. They are getting SO big. I'm putting together a movie of all the pictures we've taken of them growing up. The are almost fledglings now. That means they are almost ready to leave the nest. But they won't be fully independent for about another week.



We enjoyed some green bell peppers from our garden this week on top of our pizza!

Language Arts: Sam and Elise are memorizing some fantastic poems. Elise is learning Jabberwocky by Lewis Carrol and Sam is learning Casabianca, by Felicia Hemans. We did very little writing this week.

Math: Still at it. Sam and Elise each did 2 lessons. They practice their math facts while weeding the garden. Mwaa haaa haaa haa. I'm so mean.

Extras: Jeremy's brother, Jared, and his family surprised us with a visit. They live in Washington, so it was a real treat to have them come. My kids were very excited to see their cousins! We wish they lived closer.

And now, even as I type this, I'm giddy with joy because today we bought a new camera. Not just any camera. A Cannon Rebel XSI. Oh yeah. That's what I'm talkin' about. Check out the roses:


And yes, for all you photographers out there, we realize it is the "entry level" SLR camera, but we figured it would be a good place to get our feet wet.

Technically, we bought the camera because Jeremy needs it for work. (He's a designer, after all)

And, yes, he is a RAD designer, but what makes his work even more impressive to me is that he has done almost all of it with out-of-date, second rate technology, ie. Apple notebook from 2005, I'm typing on an eMac circa 2003, our other camera is a Cannon PowerShot A 540 with a lens cap that won't close. True, he has the newest Adobe platforms, but still.

SO... I am extremely excited to learn more about photography. It's something I've been wanting to do for a long time.

Scripture Study: through Nephi 15
After Nephi is taken up in the spirit and shown many great and marvelous things, even the whole world and all the people who would ever live on it, he returns to the tent of his father. What does he find there? His brothers. Fighting. Arguing about their father's dream. And Nephi says,

"For he truly spake many great things unto them, which were hard to be understood, save a man should inquire of the Lord; and they being hard in their hearts, therefore they did not look unto the Lord as they ought."

Often, when I'm troubled or have a question about my children, our health, our finances, our future, etc... I try to find someone to talk to about it. Usually my mom or husband. When they are unavailable, I get frustrated or nervous and I sit and stew over the problem. Finally I realize that I always have someone to turn to. The one who knows me and my situation better that anyone else.

When I was Relief Society president, often women would come to me and ask my advice on certain things (I honestly don't know why...). Usually I would ask them first how they felt when they prayed about it. Like me, it wasn't always the first thing they would think to do.

So after being over come with his afflictions, having just beheld the destruction of his people, Nephi asks his brothers why they are arguing. They answer that they can not understand what their father is talking about, with all the natural branches of the olive tree and gentiles and stuff.

And Nephi asks: Have ye inquired of the Lord?

And they answer: We have not; for the Lord maketh no such thing known unto us.

And Nephi, a little fed up replies: Do ye not remember the things which the Lord hath said?--If ye will not harden your hearts, and ask me in faith, believing that ye shall receive, with diligence in keeping my commandments, surely these things shall be made known unto you.