October is such a fun month for our family. Both our boys have October birthdays, as well as many extended family members and friends. It’s like a month long birthday party! Add in all the awesome autumn outings and you have a recipe for the best month of the year. I love October!!! Here is a look at what we’ve been up to recently!
Sunriver Resort (outside of Bend, OR) is one of favorite places to visit as a family. We have a blast every time we’re there. We never want to come home! Sunriver is definitely our happy place! We have visited in the spring and summer, but the best time to go (in our opinion) is the fall! The weather is still lovely and the quiet of off-season is nice, too! We just got back from a week of October adventuring in Sunriver. Here are the highlights!
We got into Bend on Monday and tried a new treat – Handel’s Homemade Ice Cream! It was so good! I loved my s’mores ice cream. Graham thought his cinnamon roll ice cream was great and Jeremy was pleased with his deep dish apple pie flavor. Only Owen didn’t love his treat… The kid is committed, heart and soul, to Tillamook Mint Chocolate Chip. For him, nothing compares! Oh well. Three out of four Scotts gave it two thumbs up! Once we got settled into our Wildflower condo, we walked across the street to the Village. Owen has been looking forward to getting a new Sunriver t-shirt and hoodie. Graham found a wolf t-shirt he loved. After we had our SWAG, we spent the rest of the evening at the Cove. The Cove is the resort aquatic center and it features two pools and two water slides. We spent hours at the Cove everyday! The kids are now going through Cove withdrawals!
Tuesday we explored the Newberry Caldera in the Newberry National Volcanic Monument. We hiked around Paulina Falls. We climbed all over Big Obsidian Flow. We enjoyed a picnic lunch at East Lake and then went looking for hot springs in the lake. You know you’re inside a volcano when you smell sulfur and find bubbling water! After the caldera, we took off for the Oregon Observatory at Sunriver. We had tickets for a stargazing event on Thursday and the weather forecast didn’t look promising. We found out the observatory was flexible and we had a couple options. While we were there, the employee let us use their special telescopes to look at the sun! Not something you can do everyday! A solar flare had just occurred and everyone was excited! Owen was also thrilled to see a sunspot. The observatory is right beside the Sunriver Nature Center. We decided to check it out as well. The nature center is small, but their birds are beautiful! The boys loved Luna, the Eurasian-eagle owl, and Freya, the gyrfalcon. We wrapped up Tuesday with Cove time and telescope time behind the Lodge. The Harvest Moon was very impressive that evening!
Wednesday was Owen’s 12th birthday! We celebrated with all his favorite things! We grabbed doughnuts at the bakery across the street before renting bicycles for Jeremy and I. We spent the morning cycling around the golf course and river. Such a pretty ride! It’s one of my favorite places in Sunriver. We had Papa Murphy’s pizza and Safeway chocolate cake for lunch. We spent our afternoon bike riding and looking for geocaches around the resort. Jeremy made Owen a special steak dinner before we went for an even walk/ride. So much bike riding! Then it was a swim at the Cove! The skies clouded up so we decided not to switch our observatory tickets to Wednesday. It was a little disappointing not to stargaze on Owen’s birthday and we were concerned stargazing might not happen at all with the forecast. Owen was sad, but we went to cheer up by the fire pits behind the Lodge. Fire always improves moods! Overall, it was a great and active birthday!
Thursday, we visited The High Desert Museum. It has a fun mix of regional animals and history. The boys enjoyed getting to pet a turkey at the Settler’s Sawmill. They also loved watching the bobcat stare down a butterfly and they got up close to a peregrine falcon at the Birds of Prey encounter. Our afternoon was spent doing a walk/ride around the resort and then hitting the Cove after dinner. We had kept our Thursday stargazing tickets in hopes that the sky would clear and miraculously it did! It was such a God thing and answer to prayer! This event was Owen’s birthday present and we’d been looking forward to it for months. The event featured guided telescopes to see special sights in the night sky. Employees were around to explain what you were seeing. In the middle of the event, they moved everyone to look at constellations in another part of the facility so they can reposition the telescopes for another round of viewing. Owen was in his element and he had a blast conversing with the employees. No surprise, we were the last leave. We had a very happy 12 year old that evening!
Friday was our final day. We packed up and tidied our condo before heading out to the Cove. We were there just before they unlocked the doors! After our final hours of swimming, we took off for the long drive home. We made some many good memories on this trip! We love exploring the Bend area and we equally love hanging around the resort. There are so many options for fun and adventure! It was sweet to celebrate Owen’s birthday in a special place. He definitely enjoyed the birds, the biking, and the night sky! Truthfully, we all enjoyed it all! It was a trip for the record books!
Field trips are one of my favorite parts of homeschooling. I love adventuring into the world with my family (and often with friends as well). There is so much experiential learning that can happen outside of our dining room table classroom. In the PNW, fall can be a glorious time to get outside, especially before the rain settles in closer to November. September and October field trips are some of my favorite of the whole year! I’ve already highlighted our visit to Fort Vancouver and the Oregon Zoo at the beginning of September (September Sports and Adventures!). We’ve keep the good times going with even more autumn adventures the last few weeks!
We recently enjoyed a visit to the Ape Caves with friends. It makes me chuckle that on a beautiful, sunny September day, we’d head underground! However, the hike from the cave exit back to the parking lot is much nicer with pleasant weather, so I’ll use that as our reason! The Ape Caves are always an unusual experience. There are many big rocks to climb over and lots of uneven ground. You certainly have to pay attention to your surroundings and it’s a pretty good workout. The kids love visiting caves and this is a favorite place to explore with friends! I’m so glad we made this outing happen. So much fun!
Next, we went to the Ridgefield Wildlife Refuge. After recently visiting both the Nisqually and Willapa refuges, I thought it would be fun to compare a third location. The RWR has two units and one has an auto tour. We selected that one. We saw many birds, white-tail deer (only found in that location), and, my favorite, a turtle! We got out of the van and walked some trails. It was another beautiful, sunny September day. With rain moving into the forecast, it felt good to be outside soaking in the sunshine. Wildlife refuges are a great place for our young nature enthusiasts to observe the local flora and fauna. I’m sure we’ll be back to visit the other unit in the future!
Finally, we made it to Mt. Rainier National Park to see the autumn color. When we visited the mountain in 2022, we were blown away by the fall colors. I’ve been trying to find the perfect time to visit again with that same amount of color, it’s evaded me… While the colors weren’t quite as spectacular as I had hoped for, our visit to Mt. Rainier was still worth it. We made it in time to see the mountain before it went behind the clouds. We enjoyed hiking around Paradise and stopping at Narada Falls on our way out of the park. I asked Graham what his favorite part of our adventure was and he replied stopping for Chinese food on the way home. Oh brother! Owen’s highlight was seeing a varied thrush (an uncommon bird).
We have more exciting field trips planned for October. Autumn is my favorite time to be outside in the PNW. I love the cool, crisp sunshine and fresh air! We are trying to make the most of the dry weather before the drizzle settles over us. By the time the rain arrives, I’m ready to slow down and be cozy inside. It’s a good balance. I love living in the northwest! Fall field trips here are the best!
I used to believe that September was a chill month where we’d fall back into our school year routine and everything settled down. Haha! It’s been years since I’ve held those false assumptions. Going back-to-school certainly does change our calendar, but September is not calm or quiet. Expectations and assumptions can be tricky little things. Now that I have more realistic understanding of September, I enjoy it so much more! Funny how that works.
We tried something new this September. We did a week of swimming lessons with our local homeschool sports group. It had been a few years since we’d done swimming lessons. Graham had just learned to swim when we stopped taking them and Owen loves to improve his strokes and diving techniques. We figured a little more practice and skill improvement couldn’t hurt. This was our first time doing swimming lessons with this group and it was a new location for us. The boys were nervous about the unknown, but once they got into the water, they were all smiles!
Since we aren’t apart of a co-op this year, we plan to lean into the offerings of our homeschool sports group. After a week of swimming, the boys kicked off soccer season this week. They’ll have six weeks at the soccer fields building skills, running out energy, and playing with friends. Graham even scored the first goal of the game on Tuesday! I’m grateful that this homeschool group allows us to experience team sports with a very manageable weekly commitment.
A few of our friends moved to a new co-op this year. While we aren’t able to join that group on a weekly basis, we’ve been invited to tagalong for field trips. Our first field trip with them was on Friday to the Oregon Zoo. This is one of our favorite places to visit and the group discount was amazing! Our boys enjoyed going around the zoo with friends. The weather was perfect and we saw so many of our favorite animals, including baby elephant, Tula-Tu! We made it to a keeper presentation for a South American porcupine that was also pretty neat. The zoo is always a wonderful field trip!
September is also hunting season. Jeremy and the boys have been out looking for elk to fill the freezer. The elk have been elusive this year, but the list of critters they come home seeing is pretty long. The highlight is all the different kinds of owls they’ve seen this month. Owen loves the hiking and the critters. He is very motivated by the idea of meat in the freezer. Graham enjoys the animals and time with family, but he is less interested in the hunting aspect. It’s a great nature walk and father/son bonding experience.
I’ve kept busy this month with school, the house, and coordinating the calendar. While the boys were out hunting on Saturday, I attended a women’s conference at our church. The worship and speaker were encouraging and it was nice be with other women (since I’m usually with the kids ministry). I attended a holiday themed workshop filled with tasty treats to sample. Yum! I led a crafting and conversations workshop in the afternoon. It was a good day. We also kicked off our Christmas musical practice on Sundays at church. I’m back to clicking through lyric slides and learning the music alongside the kids. It’s a fun season in children’s church!
As you can see, September is not a low-key month! But… at this moment, my menfolk are in the woods for the final hunt of the month. Rosie, the Roomba, is vacuuming my house. I have a few more steps to reach my daily goal. I hope to nibble on a slice of pumpkin bundt cake and start a new book. Not a bad way to spend a September evening, if you ask me. There are a few chill moments to be found in September!
September is here and with it all the fall feels! This is my favorite time of year. The sights, sounds, and smells of fall just can’t be beat. I tried to wait to decorate the house until September, but I could hear the siren song coming from my autumn tote in the garage! I started with a gradual transition to fall in the house. Because we hosted a dinner with friends on August 30th, I simply switched some household items out for orange ones – orange throw pillows in the living room, an orange hand towel in the kitchen, a tissue box with orange highlights. I figured with no pumpkins in sight, this was an acceptable start to my fall decorating in August. Fall color was already outside my window, so it didn’t feel too early to bring it inside.
The next day, I pulled down my tote and got to work. Decorating for autumn this year is happening in stages. I don’t love the delay, but I’m trying to be patient. We added a new bookcase and fireplace to our living room last winter and now I have more places to spread seasonal cheer. Our current décor didn’t fill in the space as well as I had hoped. I was able to pick up a few more decorations at Hobby Lobby yesterday and I ordered my final pieces online. I’m hoping in the next week or so, I’ll have our living space settled. I can’t wait!
Decorating for fall is a huge part of my mental shift for the new school year. When my house feels like fall I transition back to school to better. It’s a visual cue that summer is over and with it the summer schedule. Time to get back to our school year routine! The boys started 4th and 6th grade on Tuesday. We are continuing to homeschool and our first week of school went well. If they can continue with this momentum, I see an excellent school year ahead of us!
We had our first field trip of the school year yesterday. Fort Vancouver has been on my field trip list for years and I was determined to make it happen this year. I’m glad I did, because it was such a fantastic outing. The boys were given clipboards to answer questions around the fort. Each building was set up authentically with staff in costume ready to explain how the space was used in the 1800’s. When the boys turned their clipboards in with the park ranger, they were awarded Junior Ranger badges. If you’ve been around this blog for a while, you know our family loves the National Park Junior Ranger program. We also got Graham’s 4th grade national parks pass through the Every Kid Outdoors program. We are ready for more national park adventures this year!
It’s a dark and stormy day here in our little corner of the PNW. I woke up to lightning and thunder. My hubby is out in the woods elk hunting at the moment. Now that the storms have moved through, I feel better about him being outdoors. The boys and I are enjoying some downtime and Owen hopes to head out with Jeremy this evening for his own nature walk with Jeremy. I enjoyed a tasty pumpkin spice doughnut from Krispy Kreme for breakfast and I may have a Costco pumpkin pie in my fridge. My obsession with pumpkin strong! My recent Scentsy order arrived yesterday with pumpkin, apple, cinnamon, and vanilla scented bars. Curating the fall feels involves all the senses. I’m here for it! All of it!
Our September schedule will be full this month. Back to school, a week of swim lessons, soccer kick-off, church commitments, adventures with friends, and appointments are filling the calendar. I used to think September would slow down with back to school, but I now realize we don’t “chill” until November when the rains move in. But no matter the pace, our home will be an autumn haven of good things! I’m embracing September and all the fall feels. Time cozy up with a good book and a slice of pie.
Just one week until we head back to our regular school year schedule! We enjoyed the slower pace of summer school in June and July. We really enjoyed taking the month off in August. But alas, the school year is quickly approaching! It’s crazy how fast summer goes. I remember feeling that way as a kid and now as a parent it seems magnified. I’m trying my best to make the most of those 18 childhood summers!
We had one final “hurrah” of summer last week. We took off to the Washington coast for a few days. Grandpa and Grandma now have a beach place. A new spot to make family memories together. We enjoyed our time there for the 4th of July and we were eagerly anticipating more time in August. Our days at the beach were a good mix of activity and rest. Our crew was getting over the summer camp sniffles, so stamina wasn’t quite 100%, but that didn’t keep us down. We were at the beach every evening. The boys playing the waves, getting all sandy and wet. Jeremy and the boys took morning walks each day while I got ready at a slower pace.
On Monday, we went mini-golfing in Long Beach. This was one of Graham’s summer bucket list items. We got there right when it opened and had the whole place to ourselves! We grabbed some lunch in town and then explored the kite festival happenings down at the beach. The kites were super cool to watch and Graham was thrilled to see a vendor selling churros as we walked down to the beach. Monday was really his day. After the kite festival, Jeremy surprised us all by suggesting we go to the arcade. The kids had a blast! I even played a couple of games. We got home mid-afternoon and crashed at the beach house for some rest. We enjoyed an evening trip to the beach and then a Scoopers run for ice cream. It was a great day in Long Beach.
Monday was our town day and Tuesday was our nature day! We hiked a couple trails at the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge. Visiting the refuge was on Owen’s bucket list. While he didn’t see as many birds as he hoped, we did enjoy time on the trails. The only downside of the morning was Graham got stung by a wasp. The best way to recover from a bee sting was cookies as the local bakery! After our time at the wildlife refuge, we went to Cape Disappointment State Park. We have visited the North Head Lighthouse before and this time the trail to the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse was open (it’s been closed in the past). We decided to explore a new trail and lighthouse. The view from the lighthouse was fantastic and the boys enjoyed our stop at Dead Man’s Cove. Not a pretty name, but a very pretty beach! Once our legs were done with hiking, we did a repeat of Monday – back to the house to rest for part of the afternoon, dinner, and then a trip to the beach. We wrapped up Tuesday with backyard smores and a beautiful sunset!
Wednesday was our final day at the beach. We spent the morning tidying up the house and packing. We had lunch at Chico’s, the local pizza place. Our kids love pizza so it was a must to find good pizza on the peninsula. Thankfully, Chico’s was kid-approved! I’m sure we’ll be back. We made one last stop at the kite festival on the way out of town. The event had filled in more since our Monday visit. After we left Long Beach, we took off for Fort Stevens on the Oregon Coast. The kids hadn’t visited Shipwreck Beach in years and they wanted to see it again. We also explored the ruins of Fort Stevens. I have such good childhood memories running around the batteries at Fort Stevens. It made my heart so happy to see my boys enjoying it just as much as I did. We’ve taken them before, but it had been years, so it was all fresh and new to them. We learned a bit of WWI and WWII history, but the coolest part was visiting the Earthworks which was built during the Civil War. I’ve always assumed the west coast doesn’t have much civil war history, so it was fascinating to discover a piece of it so close by. I love when adventures can also be educational. Yes, I’m such a homeschool mom!
The kiddos weren’t ready to come home. They could have stayed at the beach house for the rest of the summer and very happily lived off smores and ice cream! Like I mentioned earlier, we are now home and in the last week of summer vacation. It’s been so good. We’ll take many fun memories into the school year with us. One last beach getaway was the perfect way to wrap up our summer break!
July tends to be a super social month of us. Somehow most of our social engagements landed in a two week span of July. It was a bit of a whirlwind, but also incredibly fun! Jeremy had jury duty in July which added a unique vibe to the month. He never had to report, but he did have to check often. We didn’t make any out of town plans, due to jury duty, so our days were spent locally. We often hosted company at our house or met up with friends at parks. We also had some extra time with family this month while Jeremy’s aunt visited from out of state. Our big outing was a trip to the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium. It was a cool and cloudy morning which made for great animal viewing. The red wolves are our favorites! Our library summer reading program provided tickets for both kids and adults this year. What a treat!
True to life, not all summer moments are fun and games. The boys had their first dental work this month (beside their biannual cleanings). Graham had a tiny cavity that needed a small filling. No numbing was necessary and the entire appointment took about 20 minutes. Easy peasy! Owen had two baby teeth that were getting in the way. Despite a month of wiggling, they didn’t come loose so the dentist had to assist. This was Owen’s first time getting numb at the dentist. He was nervous, but handled it like a champ. A few days after the dental work, Graham had his first consultation with the orthodontist. It looks like a palette expander and braces are in his future! Oh goody! I’m glad those appointments are behind us. We can give thoughts about teeth a short break.
August comes with it’s own set of adventures! On Sundays, our church runs our Vacation Bible Adventure program for the month. We kicked off True North VBA this Sunday. Week one was a hit! Our kids love VBA! Jeremy and his team do a great job of decorating and making the theme come to life each year. We can’t wait to for the next four Sundays!
An annual August tradition is summer camp. Jeremy co-directs two camps for our Assemblies of God network. The first camp started yesterday so the boys and I are on our own for a few days. We taught the kids Boggle on Saturday before Jeremy left for camp and they loved it! We played again yesterday and another game has been requested for today. I picked up a few Dominos pizzas yesterday as a treat and we’ll live off the leftovers for a few days. My meal planning skills are strong when I’m the only adult in the house. Haha! Graham baked himself cinnamon rolls for breakfast this morning. Our days are filled with games, books, baking, playing outside, and yes, some screen time, too. I try to keep the boys and myself busy while Jeremy is away. We sure do miss him!
I’ve been using the quieter days to work on some projects. My biggest project has been back-to-school planning. I have our first homeschool semester all planned and written down in my official planner. I even have first-day-of-school signs ready to go. It feels good to have the fall prepped. It will allow me to truly savor this final month of summer. We are starting a new state history curriculum this year and I need to pick up to two binders for it. Then I’ll be officially, officially ready for school to start! We usually start school the last week of August, but we’re waiting until after Labor Day this year. It feels nice to know we the full month of August to enjoy the last days of summer break. We making the most of our summer days before they disappear!
With May endings comes summer beginnings! While the first day of summer isn’t officially until June 20th, we are officially in summer mode now that our regular school year wrapped up in May. Switching to our summer school schedule is a little bit of an adjustment period. I’m actually grateful for a lighter school load this month. June has filled in with all sorts of extra commitments. I’m glad that summer mode has given us the margin to show up in other ways this month.
Our first official day of summer vacation was spent visiting friends at the beach. My forever friend, Maggie, was staying at the Washington coast after the passing of her mother. It was a sad reason to be reunited, but time with Maggie’s family is always a blessing to our family. It’s so sweet that our families are friends. We visited the local bakery, got crafty making centerpieces for Jayne’s memorial, let the kids play at the McDonald’s play place, and then spent hours at the beach. Such a good way to jump into summer.
We wrapped up our final week of soccer last Tuesday. It was a beautiful sunny day and the boys played so well. It’s been neat to see their improvement from fall to spring. They’ve really advanced in their soccer skills. I’m proud of them. Graham wasn’t so sure about spring soccer, but he ended up enjoying much more than expected. I’m glad it was a win for our family!
Tuesday was also the beginning of the summer reading program at our local library. After soccer, we went to the library to pick up our free tote bag, books, and fair tickets. We picked up the paperwork for the program as well. We’ll be back in a couple weeks for another round of free books and coupons. The summer reading program is always a highlight of our summer.
We’re coming off of a few full days. Thursday, we met Maggie’s family in town at their hotel for a swim. We enjoyed pool time, pizza in the hotel lobby, and then play time at a local park. We just kept the fun going until it was time to wind down and prepare for Friday. Friday was Jayne’s graveside service and celebration of life. We got to the local grange early to help decorate. This was our kids first graveside experience. I’m thankful they were there to support Maggie’s kids and be pals on a difficult day. The graveside and celebration of life were a lovely testimony to Jayne’s well lived life. The grange was decorated in vibrant colors, beautiful flowers, and cute knickknacks. It felt like Jayne. All the treats were Oreo themed to honor her love of Oreos. It was such a cheerful celebration of Jayne’s life. Saying good to Maggie’s family on Friday was hard. We loved having them nearby, but we hope to see them again soon.
The pace of the weekend continued with a trip to the beach on Saturday. My parents recently acquired a beach house on the Washington coast. We spent Saturday doing projects around the house. The boys have loved exploring this new location and can’t wait for our first overnight stay later this summer. Sunday was church in the morning and a family birthday party in the afternoon. Unfornately, Graham ran out of steam before the weekend was over, so we sent Jeremy and Owen to the party as the family representatives. Graham and I rested and kept cool with AC and slushies from Grandpa’s new slushy maker (thanks for sharing, Grandpa)! We are in the middle of a heat wave at the moment and 90+ degree days call for cool treats.
The summer adventures have only just begun. We’ll see what the rest of June has in store for us!
May has been a month of full of endings… Actually, specifically this last week. Each ending has been bittersweet and has been accompanied by many emotions. It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster around here! Let’s dive into it… Going in reverse order!
Today was the last day of school for my homeschooling boys! They completed their 3rd and 5th grade curriculum as well as their end-of-the-year assessment testing. This year the race to the finish line felt more like a sprint or a mad dash. My goal was to finish before June and we succeeded! Praise the Lord! Usually the end of the year is all sweet with no bitter, but this year… This year is a bit different. Owen wrapped up elementary school today. It’s a big milestone. Because we homeschool, the transition to middle school won’t be quite as big as a jump as it is for other students. It’s still hitting me a kind of hard. I’ve loved the elementary school years with my boys. They’ve been such a fun adventure. Middle school kind of intimidates me, but I have to believe that God is faithful. Good times still await us! I can trust the Lord with the future and with my kiddos. I’m so proud of Owen and Graham for all they’ve accomplished this year. Graham specifically made some big leaps in his education this school year. We will celebrate with pizza and chocolate cake this evening!
Our homeschool co-op came to end this week. We had a final meeting on Tuesday and held a presentation fair. Each family set up a display and then gave a presentation on their project. It ended up being a science fair (even though any topic was acceptable). Our boys gave a report on our adventures in Redwoods National and State Parks. One family did science experiments to show the difference between physical and chemical changes, another talked about teeth, another shared their rock collection, and one brought their household pets (including a hissing cockroach). It was a sweet time and the kids got to play on the playground in the sunshine afterwards. The bittersweet part of this ending is our co-op has decided to disband at the conclusion of this year. Many of our core families are moving on to new opportunities. It felt like time to be done with so many members leaving. This change will open up some time in our weekly schedule. I’m researching and noodling on what new extracurriculars will take the place of co-op. We’ve been a part of this co-op for four years and it was such a blessing to our homeschooling journey. We’ve learned a lot of great subjects and made many friendships that will carry on outside of co-op now.
The final ending I have to share is the passing of a sweet friend. My forever friend, Maggie, lost her mother to cancer early Saturday morning. Maggie’s mother, Jayne, has been in my life since I was 16. When I think back on all the big moments of my life like graduations, weddings, and babies, Jayne is attached to those memories and those seasons. It’s not just the big moments either. There were countless small moments as well… seeing her at church, high school sleepovers, making brownies in her kitchen, saying hi when we visited the beach. Jayne had an eye for design and a talent for making things beautiful. She loved her family and showed up for them in big and small ways. She was a light in any space she entered. She will be dearly missed. Walking along side my friend through this loss has been hard, but my comfort is in knowing that Jayne is healed and whole with her Creator. That is truly a better existence and I know I will see her again someday.
Okay… heavy stuff today… But that’s life. It certainly has it’s ups and downs. They often happen simultaneously. I’m trusting the Lord with these many endings. I might not know all the next steps or what the next season will hold, but that’s okay. God sees the big picture. I just need to focus on doing the next right thing in front of me. God’s got this and he’s got me. Amen!
I thought about calling this blog post “The End is Near!” But that seemed a bit too dramatic! All I mean to say is that our school year is about to wrap up. We are about a week away from being finished! Woo hoo! Coming off of two weeks of travel, it’s been a bit of a mad dash to get back to school and then race to the finish line. It’s so close! I’m ready to tie a bow on the school year and call it done!
We started homeschool soccer again last week for the spring season. It’s a short season – only 4 weeks. Owen got his first goal the first week and Graham got his first goal yesterday. This season the teams are smaller so the boys are seeing a lot more action on the field. I’m so proud of them for running hard and engaging with their team. We’ve gone to McDonald’s each week to celebrate the goals with Happy Meals. Soccer makes for big, but exciting Tuesdays.
Last week, we had our final field trip with our homeschool co-op. We visited a local dairy farm to see the day-to-day operations of running a farm. The boys got to pet, feed, and milk the cows. They also got to climb all over a bunch of hay bales like they were a jungle gym. We ended our outing with a hay ride through the pasture. The funny thing about our hay ride was the cows following in a parade behind us trying to munch on the hay we were using as seating. It was quite the sight!
The boys and I were finished with our travels after our Redwoods trip, but Jeremy still had one more traveling adventure on his calendar. He attended a men’s conference with our church on the other side of the state. His brothers and father also come and they golf as much as they can while away. It’s a time that Jeremy looks forward to every year. I held the fort down at home while he was away. Thursday was a normal school day. Friday, the boys and I went to lunch at Panda Express and ran errands in town. I hosted book club Friday night and the boys got some extra video game time with friends who came over to play. Saturday, we had a Portland adventure day with my parents. We roamed IKEA, Barnes & Noble, Petsmart, Target, Powell’s Books, and the LEGO Store. We had a yummy lunch at Red Robin and ice cream at Salt & Straw for dessert. It was a fabulous day exploring our favorite stores and spending time with family.
I look forward to updating you again when we have officially finished the school year. There is definitely a since of accomplishment as we complete our current curriculum. It’s been a good year and I’m proud of the growth I’ve seen in the boys. They are such diligent students and it’s a joy to be their teacher. While we still do school in June and July, it’s a lighter schedule for summer. I enjoy the change of pace and it’s also interesting to start new curriculum. Here’s to wrapping up the final stretch soon and moving on to new adventures!
Amy Scott's Thoughts 