Amy Scott's Thoughts

What I’ve Been Reading – April 2024 April 30, 2024

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf — Amy Scott @ 12:30 pm

Bookish Thoughts for April

I’ve spent the last few months stocking up on books I thought I would read again. I am a re-reader by nature. Books become my friends and hold a special place in my heart. I love to re-visit places and characters. To prove to myself I would re-read my recent purchases, I gave quite a bit of time to re-reading favorites this month. As much as I love reading new books, there is something comforting about curling up with a familiar book. My top picks for April are all books you’ve seen here before, but I couldn’t help myself. They are 5 star reads, in my humble opinion!

My new release reads this month were But He’s My Fake Fiancé, Romancing the Grump, and Just for the Summer. I’ve really enjoyed Annah Conwell’s “But He’s a Carter Brother” series. I can’t wait to see how she concludes the series. I also decided to tackle some books that have been sitting on my shelf for a while – The Screwtape Letters and Habits of Grace. I’m prone to book guilt if a book sits too long without being read. After watching all the movies, I pre-read How to Train Your Dragon before passing it along to Owen. I love that pre-reading books gives me a chance to read kid lit. Owen has loved The Phantom Tollbooth this month, so I’ve promised him I’ll make it my next read.

I’m already curating my books and making a plan for my May reads. I’m excited for yet another month of good books and inspiring reads coming soon!

Top Picks for April

The Book List for April
1 Star = I did not like it. 2 stars = It was okay. 3 stars = I liked it. 4 stars = I really liked it. 5 stars = It was amazing.

Non-Fiction:

The Read-Aloud Family: Making Meaningful and Lasting Connections with Your Kids by Sarah MacKenzie – 5 stars
I’d Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life by Anne Bogel – 5 stars
Habits of Grace: Enjoying Jesus through the Spiritual Disciplines by David Mathis – 3 stars

Fiction:

How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell – 2.5 stars
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis – 3 stars
The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery – 5 stars
The Librarian Spy by Madeline Martin – 4 stars
Love Finds Your in Annapolis, MD by Roseanna M. White – 5 stars
Dreams of Savannah by Roseanna M. White – 4 stars
Just for the Summer by Melody Carlson – 3 stars
Hello Stranger by Katherine Center – 4 stars
But He’s My Fake Fiancé by Annah Conwell – 4 stars
The One with the Kiss Cam by Cindy Steel – 4.5 stars
Romancing the Grump by Jenny Proctor – 3 stars
Falling for Your Best Friend’s Twin by Emma St. Clair – 3 stars
Falling for Your Boss by Emma St. Clair – 3 stars
Falling for Your Fake Fiancé by Emma St. Clair – 4 stars
Falling for Your Best Friend by Emma St. Clair – 3 stars
Falling for Your Enemy by Emma St. Clair – 3 stars

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Concluding April April 29, 2024

Filed under: Children's Ministry,Family Time,Travels — Amy Scott @ 12:40 pm

It’s time for the end of the month wrap-up. Crazy, right? Mentally, I’m stuck in the middle of April. I’m absolutely flabbergasted that May begins this week. Part of the reason my mind is frozen in the middle of the month is travel-related. When I travel, I feel like time stands still. I expect to come home to a calendar that hasn’t moved while I was away, but that is not reality. So here I am. Playing catch up and wrapping my head around May.

We have an annual conference in Coeur d’Alene, ID at the end of April. Our network of the Assemblies of God gathers to take care of business and cast vision for the coming year. It’s a good mix of free time, conference gatherings, and meals with the pastoral staff of our church. CDA is about a 6 hour drive away, so Jeremy and I had plenty of drive time to dream out loud and sing along with my current musical obsession – all things For King + Country. The highlight of Monday was taking a hike together before the conference started. Getting my steps in is a priority because conferences come with a lot of sitting and eating. I need to balance that with moving! Jeremy and I enjoyed lunch at a local favorite, Meltz Extreme Grilled Cheese and got mini cookies at Crumbl for the first time. Yum! Tuesday, we had dinner with fellow children’s pastors in our network and enjoyed some Bible trivia together. After dinner, we met up with our church team for dessert at the hotel. Wednesday, we got to cheer on two of our team members who got ordained. Jeremy got to golf in a tournament that afternoon while I got some introvert recharge time. It was the the perfect combination of taking a walk, finishing a book, and watching a show.

The boys were off on their own adventures while we were at Network Conference. Jeremy’s parents graciously watched our kiddos while we were away and the boys had a blast with Nana and Papa! They spent a few days at the beach doing all sorts of fun stuff. They got to enjoy the beach, the hotel pool, an aquarium visit, a carousel ride, and time at the arcade. Nana and Papa know how to have a good time! It was fun to get updates from them as they adventured together. The boys brought their spending money and picked up treasures in the form of small stuffed animals and new puzzle cubes. We are in a massive Rubik’s cube phase at the moment. The boys enjoy watching YouTube tutorials on how to solve these cubes and honestly, it’s a bit beyond us all. With tenacity, they are picking it up as they continue to study!

Our weekend was spent catching up on laundry, chores, and resting after travels. We also played some family games together as a way to reconnect after being apart. A highlight of the weekend for me was going to see “Unsung Hero” in the theaters. When Jeremy and I saw For King + Country in concert, they were promoting the movie and sharing their family story from stage. I knew I wanted to see it on the big screen! Also, fun fact – their sister, Rebecca St. James, was my middle school hero. Her music and ministry had a major influence on my faith in very formative years. The movie was moving, powerful, inspirational, and so much more. It’s neat to see how this family is still ministering together. It was definitely worth the visit to the theater! A big shoutout to my parents for watching the boys while Jeremy and I got a movie date. We are very thankful for all the grandparent support we’ve been shown this week!

And there you have it! The end of April is in sight! Our May is a bit up in the air at the moment, but I know no matter lands on the calendar, our family will always find adventures around the bend!

Taking a hike before Network Conference began. Such a beautiful day to be outside!

The Coeur d’Alene Resort is always such a beautiful place to stay and visit

Jeremy took flower pictures on our hike! I borrowed them because they were too pretty not share!

Beach Boys! Thank you to Nana & Papa for this awesome adventure!

Movie date to see “Unsung Hero” in theaters!

Reliving my Rebecca St. James obsession! CDs, t-shirts, posters, devotionals, concerts, signings – I was all about all things RSJ in middle school. So thankful for the influence her music has had on my life! Her song “Kingdom Come” featuring For King + Country is one my current favorites!

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An April Update April 18, 2024

Filed under: Children's Ministry,Family Time,Homeschool Adventures — Amy Scott @ 1:47 pm

After a very busy start to April, our middle of April has been considerably quieter. Jeremy and the boys came down with minor colds. We cautiously opted-out of our extracurriculars for about a week just to be safe. It’s funny how our schedules can go from 0mph to 100mph and back again in a blink! Things have been more in the 15mph category this last week and that’s okay. Thankfully, no one was super sick and it ended up being a nice change of pace.

We had a fun outing before the colds kept us home – we visited Northwest Trek with family! Northwest Trek is an animal park that features animals native to our area. They have a large free roam exhibit that you can caravan through. A zookeeper leads the group and gives information through a radio station the vehicles tune into as they follow. We loved seeing a closer look at the moose than we’ve ever had before. The lynx was super active thanks to a keeper talk. We met the new marmot that was rehomed from Mt. Rainier. If you ask the kids what their highlight, they would say the playground. It makes me chuckle that they love seeing all the animals, but the playground and time with cousins always wins!

We followed coverage of the Solar Eclipse as a part of our homeschool day on Monday the 9th. We followed the path from Mexico to Maine. It was on in the background of our school day and we paused to watch every time a major city went dark. Unfornately, it was cloudy and rainy day here in the PNW. We saw pictures though of how our local area had a small bite of the sun – just like someone nibbled on a cookie. It was a fun science lesson and gave some excitement to a Monday around the house.

Our latest adventure has been housesitting the neighbor dog. For the last few days we’ve been TC-sitting and the boys loved it. They were very responsible and took their jobs seriously. It helps that TC is a very low-key dog. The boys did everything from making TC her meals to taking her out to the bathroom to picking up poop and giving her treats. They doted on her quite a bit. It was a good opportunity for them to experience pet care firsthand.

Those are the highlights for the middle of the month. Things should be picking up pace again as we look to the latter half of April. We are optimistic for the next wave of adventures around the bend!

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Celebrating All.The.Things. April 4, 2024

Filed under: Family Time,Homeschool Adventures,Tasty Treats,Travels — Amy Scott @ 1:26 pm

We’ve been celebrating all the things since my last update here. There is so much to share! I’ll try to hit the highlight reel. I might have waited too long to share! So much has happened. Here’s hoping I can contain all the fun in one post!

To start things off, our family attended the Spring Work Party at our church the weekend before Easter. The boys each earned $100 off of their camp registration cost by serving for 4 hours. They helped clean inflatables and create Easter gift bags. I wiped down tables and then did a thorough purge and reorganize of Jeremy’s children church closet. I love cleaning and sorting, so it was a very fulfilling day! The next day that same weekend, we celebrated an early birthday dinner for Jeremy with his parents. It was a good, full weekend.

Jeremy’s birthday fell on a Monday this year. Honestly, it’s hard to make a Monday birthday thrilling… We were able to pick up the license plates for our new van and then we went out to dinner as a family at our favorite Mexican restaurant. We came home to play a new game that we got Jeremy for his birthday and had birthday cake. It was a low-key birthday, but I think Jeremy felt special and celebrated!

Easter is always a big event in our world. Jeremy had lots of prep at church and I had lots of prep around the house. The Thursday and Friday before Easter were big baking days for me. I made sugar cookies, chocolate chip cookie bars, and brownies to share over the weekend. Jeremy mowed the lawn and I cleaned the house in prep for hosting a gathering with my family on Saturday.

Saturday’s celebration included honoring my parent’s anniversary (which was that day), a belated birthday for Jeremy, Graham’s baptism the following day, and Easter. We know how to pack in a party! The boys opened their Easter baskets (we normally do this the day before Easter because Sunday is always so busy) and did an egg hunt around our house. We had pizza and plenty of desserts to share. The kiddos enjoyed doing some Pokémon trading with their super cool Auntie. We wrapped up the day by coloring eggs.

On Sunday, Graham got baptized at church. He’s been talking about it for a while and finally decided now was the time. Jeremy and I got to baptize him. It’s been an honor to be a part of the boys’ baptisms and to encourage them in their faith journeys. It was a fantastic way to celebrate Easter! After church, we went over to Nana & Papa for tacos and treats. The kids and the adults each had an egg hunt in the afternoon. It’s always a good time when the whole cousin crew is together! Side note: Sunday was our house-iversary (a holiday I personally celebrate every year). Sunday marked six years in our home here on the hill. It’s been such a wonderful place to raise our family. I’m so thankful to live where we do!

After all the celebrating, you’d think we would quiet things down, but no. On Monday, we met up with family at the beach. They had a house rented in Seabrook for Spring Break and we crashed a day of their trip (at their invitation). The kids got to swim in the community pool, watch a magic show, get soaked in the ocean, and visit the arcade. It was a super fun day!

We had a field trip on Tuesday with our homeschool co-op. Now that the weather is warming up, we are definitely getting out and about for field trips more often. We visited a piece of local history at the Borst Home in Centralia. We got to tour both floors of the home, the carriage house, the gardens, a one room schoolhouse, and pioneer church. The timeline of this field trip fit well with our Oregon Trail field trip. It was fun to see local history overlapping.

By the time yesterday rolled around, I was glad to have no where to go and nothing pressing to do! Yes, we did school and our normal Wednesday chores, but I got to be homebody and it filled up my tank after being so busy. Today is another day around the house, just doing our normal school and chores. I sure love celebrating, but our pace of life has caught up with me. I am thankful today for the margin to rest and happily reflect on the fun we’ve had the last few weeks.

A little March Madness: Graham and Spike cheering on Gonzaga

Helping to clean the church before Easter

I used a new bunny cookie cutter this Easter. It might be my new favorite. So cute!

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What I’ve Been Reading – March 2024 March 31, 2024

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf — Amy Scott @ 7:00 pm

Bookish Thoughts for March

You’ll notice some themes or common groupings amongst the books I read this month. The first centering on C.S. Lewis. I finished Surprised by Joy last month and wrapped up my book club for The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe at the beginning on March. I picked up a copy of Once Upon a Wardrobe from the library and it was the perfect book to follow-up the previous two I mentioned. It was a work of fiction that summarized Surprised by Joy beautifully and the focus of a young boy on the inspiration for Narnia was enchanting. Spoiler Alert: The book is sad, but also beautiful. I hope to add it to my home library someday! It’s one I can see myself reading again.

The next group revolves around Jane Austen. I have a confession to make… I like Jane Austen things much more than I like reading Jane Austen books. A movie based off her books? Sign me up. A book based off of her books? Yes, please. I feel guilty I didn’t actually read any Austen this month, but I loved reading books inspired by her work. Both The Austen Escape and Austenland feature destination vacations where the characters are immersed in the world of Austen. Curiosity got the best of me and I watched the movie version of Austenland. Of course, the book was much better. I also watched Persuasion (2022) on Netflix.

Both Katherine Reay and Roseanna M. White had new releases this month. (The Berlin Letters for Reay and A Noble Scheme for White.) This inspired me to reread some favorites by these authors. I read Yesterday’s Tides by White last month and I decided to find her main character’s minor role in The Codebreakers series. I love it when authors overlap their worlds and I find familiar characters making appearances. Reay and White are go-to authors for me. If they write it, I will read. It was a treat to have new releases from both of them this month!

The final bookish highlight of my month was a Goodwill book haul! A friend invited me on a kid-free shopping adventure to look for books at Goodwill. So many friends share their Goodwill finds and I’m always envious. I tried to book shop there once, but I had my whole family in tow and I just couldn’t focus. It was a total bust. Apparently, going kid-free was what I needed to succeed. The funny thing is I only purchased kids books. So even without my kids, it was still all about them. It’s always satisfying to get a good deal on a huge stack of books!

Top Picks for March

I went with two fiction books this month! *Once Upon a Wardrobe* was a 5 star read for me. Those don’t come around very often, so it made the top picks. *The Austen Escape* was a reread for me, but I found that I really enjoyed it the second time more than the first. It deserved a place to shine to this month.

The Book List for March
1 Star = I did not like it. 2 stars = It was okay. 3 stars = I liked it. 4 stars = I really liked it. 5 stars = It was amazing.

Non-Fiction:

Field Notes for the Wilderness: Practices for an Evolving Faith by Sarah Bessey – 2 stars
The Enchanted Hour: The Miraculous Power of Reading Aloud in the Age of Distraction by Meghan Cox Gurdon – 4 stars

Fiction:

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis – 5 stars
Once Upon a Wardrobe by Patti Callahan – 5 stars
The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley by Courtney Walsh – 4 stars
Austenland by Shannon Hale – 4 stars
The Wild Robot Protects by Peter Brown – 3 stars
A Groom of One’s Own by Emma St. Clair – 3 stars
The Austen Escape by Katherine Reay – 4 stars
The Bronte Plot by Katherine Reay – 4 stars
The Berlin Letters by Katherine Reay – 4 stars
A Noble Scheme by Roseanna M. White – 4 stars
The Number of Love by Roseanna M. White – 4 stars
On Wings of Devotion by Roseanna M. White – 4 stars
A Portrait of Loyalty by Roseanna M. White – 4 stars

P.S. Happy Easter! He is risen! He is risen, indeed!

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Welcome Spring! March 20, 2024

Filed under: Family Time,Homeschool Adventures,Travels — Amy Scott @ 2:18 pm

It’s officially spring! It’s actually felt like summer here in the PNW this last week. We’ve had sunny days and temps into the mid-70’s. It’s been lovely! However, today is back to the usual – clouds and drizzle. Spring is like that… Sunny one day, rainy the next. While I’ve loved the sunshine, the trees are waking up and seasonal allergies were definitely a thing over the weekend. My hubby sneezed dozens of times over the weekend! I’m hoping the drizzle today will wash the pollen out of the air. There is a price to pay for sunshine.

Life has been full since my last post. My cautious optimism panned out and we’ve been able to see many people and do fun things. No more sickness keeping our friends at home. Hooray! Last week, we started new classes with our homeschool co-op. The kids are enjoying botany and American government this spring. Owen, especially, has been inspired with how the botany class as lined up with our own science at home. He has had his microscope out multiple times this week examining plant life.

I had a first this last week. I was asked if I could share some tips about home organization (especially, kid storage) with a mom from our church. I love home organization so it was fun to share this interest with another mom. I got to wax poetic about storage bins, labels, and my enjoyment of The Home Edit. Such a good time! Okay, I realize keeping a tidy house doesn’t make everyone want to do jazz hands, but it certainly gets me excited!

A special highlight of the last week was a visit with my forever friend, Maggie. She moved across the country at the end of 2023, but she was in the PNW for a few weeks assisting her parents. She came to visit me on the last leg of her trip. She arrived Thursday afternoon and we got to walk/talk while the kids played at a local park then we were able to go out to dinner together. She spent the night at our house and we were her shuttle to the airport the next day. It was so good to spend hours chatting and just being on the same side of the country. The countdown is on until her next visit!

Friday, after dropping Maggie at the airport, we went south to Oregon City. We had an appointment to get our van serviced. Luckily, the dealership is right by the End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Visitor Center. This historical museum has been on my field trip wish list for a few years, so this was the perfect place to wait while our vehicle was looked at. The kids had a lot of fun making candles, fabric toys, and petting their collection of fur pelts. The last month has been full of awesome field trips. We love adventuring as a family and learning together! The boys did a presentation at our co-op yesterday about our visit to the museum on Friday. They shared Oregon Trail facts and their highlights of the experience. It was neat to see them take something they learned and share it with others.

Other highlights include having friends over on Saturday and celebrating St. Patrick’s Day on Sunday. My kiddos know I’m a pincher, so they made a big deal of wearing green this year. We made green mini-waffles for dinner with shamrocks on them. On Monday, we prepared our March Madness brackets. We have our brackets printed and on the fridge ready to highlight wins and scratch out losses. Yesterday was a beautiful first day of spring! The kids got to play on the playground with friends at co-op, enjoy their classes, and then spend the evening at piano lessons with Nana. I slipped away with a friend last night to shop for books at Goodwill. I’ll share all about my book haul in my book blog at the end of the month.

And there you have it! All the big and little things of the last week. It’s been a good stretch of sunny weather, time with friends, and lots of fun.

Wrapping up our book club for *The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe* with paper crowns in honor of the kings and queens of Narnia.

End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center

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Welcome March! March 11, 2024

Filed under: Family Time,Homeschool Adventures,Travels — Amy Scott @ 2:19 pm

March is here! It’s been a bit of mix. Some big days and some very quiet days. A major theme of March so far has been rescheduling. Our co-op crew has been sick and it has greatly altered our plans this last week. We had plans on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday all be cancelled and/or rescheduled. Last week looked like a very full week, until it wasn’t. It’s all good, though. We don’t mind the extra time around the house. We love being home just as much as we love being out and about.

What is there to share if all we’ve done is reschedule life? Well, at the beginning of the month we purchased a new-to-us minivan! We’ve had a silver Dodge Caravan for the last 8 years and it’s been a good vehicle for us. As we started to talk about replacing it, we decided to look into another Dodge Caravan because we like them so much. We were able to purchase a newer model with fewer miles. Our new van is black and has been named Toothless from How to Train Your Dragon. We are marveling at new-to-us features like doors that open automatically, seat warmers, and a back-up camera. Our old van was low-tech, so there has been much to learn about this newer model. I hope Toothless will be a beloved addition to our family for many years to come. Now I need to relearn what vehicle to look for in the parking lot!

The other big adventure we had this month was a trip OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry). We’ve attempted to visited multiple times and it felt like it was impossible to make it actually happen. We were thrilled to finally have this family field trip! Highlights of our visit were the main exhibits about tyrannosaurs and animal survival skills. The physics lab was one of Owen’s favorite places and Graham thanked me over and over for the planetarium show we watched. Super fun, super educational. I know I’ve said it before, but I love field trips! They are my favorite!

That’s the update for the first half of the month! The latter half will be full of all the things… reschedule plans, St. Patrick’s Day, Jeremy’s birthday, Easter – so many fun times to look forward to with family and friends! However, the quiet start to the month does have me wondering… Will it be as full as I expect? Probably not… But I will be thankful for the opportunities that come and be grateful for pauses to rest when things don’t pan out. Spring is just around the corner and I am cautiously optimistic for what’s ahead!

Owen’s final diorama in this science curriculum! Graham will start the diorama fun next fall.

Chasing away the daylight savings yawns with laughter at Kung Fu Panda 4!

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What I’ve Been Reading – February 2024 February 29, 2024

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf — Amy Scott @ 2:00 pm

First off, Happy Leap Day! Or Happy Leap Year Day!? I’m not sure what the proper title for this extra day is, but I hope you’re enjoying a little extra time this month. February was an exciting book month for me, so let’s dive right in!

I mentioned in a previous blog that I got to visit Powell’s (a Portland, OR bookstore chain) on February 1st. This visit was the catalyst for spending the last of my Christmas/Birthday gift funds on books. I was so happy to pick up a few titles in-person and then I hopped online to finish my shopping expedition. I was able to add a grand total of 12 books to my home library this month. Combine that with January’s 14 books and Decemeber’s 7, my shelves have seen quite a bit of rearranging to make space for new books. The joy of having a birthday so near to Christmas is that I get a lot of goodies all at one time… The downside of having a birthday so near to Christmas is I get a lot of goodies all at one time… and then nothing for a long time. Haha! It’s all good. I won’t be bragging about my book haul next month, but that’s okay. It was fun while it lasted!

My Kindle Unlimited subscription is finished for the time being. Some KU favorites this month were Heidi Lucy Loses Her Mind and Wish You Weren’t Here by Gracie Ruth Mitchell. Both were rom-coms, but with a twist that made them unique. I enjoyed Country Walsh’s new release, My Lucky Charm. Her Holidays with Hart series has been a fun one with more sister to go in the saga. Cinder Luna by Marie Soleil was a creative fairy tale retelling of Cinderella. I’m a sucker for fairy tale retellings and can’t wait to read the rest of this new series as it’s released. Waiting for the next book is always so hard!

I finished the Skyward series by Brandon Sanderson this month. I really enjoyed how the novella series with Janci Patterson gave a look at what was happening “back home” while Spensa was off on her own intergalactic adventures. The novellas also deepened the side characters stories so you felt more connected with them in the final book, Defiant. I was gifted the first book of the series and decided to buy the rest of the series this month. This YA Sci-Fi series is one I could see my boys enjoying down the road. I love sharing books with them when the time is right!

A few other honorable mentions… I finally read Surprised by Joy by C.S. Lewis. I picked up a used copy at Powell’s years ago and I’ve felt bad about how long it’s sat on my shelf. There were parts of his story that I didn’t love (boarding school sounded awful!), but parts I really enjoyed. While I am nowhere near as well read as Lewis (understatement), I appreciated how books featured so prominently in his life story. I re-read A Beautiful Disguise by Roseanna M. White to refresh myself before her new release, A Noble Scheme, is out. My copy of the book is in the mail and I can’t wait to read it before it’s actual release date. I did a little book scouting and read Adventures with Waffles and Lena, the Sea, and Me by Maria Parr. I enjoyed the tales of childhood in Norway and could see my boys reading them when they are ready for new books. Right now Owen is in a Hardy Boys phase and Graham is obsessed with Ramona Quimby and Henry Huggins. We are a household of happy readers!

Top Picks for February

The Book List for February
1 Star = I did not like it. 2 stars = It was okay. 3 stars = I liked it. 4 stars = I really liked it. 5 stars = It was amazing.

Non-Fiction:

Intentional Parenting: Autopilot Is for Planes by Sissy Goff, David Thomas, & Melissa Trevathan – 4
Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life by C.S. Lewis – 3 stars

Fiction:

Skyward Flight: Sunreach, ReDawn, Evershore by Brandon Sanderson and Janci Patterson – 4 stars
Defiant by Brandon Sanderson – 4 stars
Adventures with Waffles by Maria Parr – 3 stars
Lena, the Sea, and Me by Maria Parr – 4 stars
But He’s My One Regret by Annah Conwell – 4 stars
The Love Audit by Annah Conwell – 3 stars
One More Song by Annah Conwell – 3 stars
Out of Office by Annah Conwell – 3 stars
The Last Taste by Annah Conwell – 3 stars
One Last Play by Annah Conwell – 4 stars
The Golden Goal by Annah Conwell – 3 stars
Heidi Lucy Loses Her Mind by Gracie Ruth Mitchell – 3 stars
Wish You Weren’t Here by Gracie Ruth Mitchell – 3 stars
Cinder Luna by Marie Soleil – 3 stars
My Lucky Charm by Courtney Walsh – 3.75 stars
A Beautiful Disguise by Roseanna M. White – 4 stars
Yesterday’s Tides by Roseanna M. White – 5 stars

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February Field Trips February 21, 2024

Filed under: Family Time,Homeschool Adventures,Travels — Amy Scott @ 12:37 pm

February has been a full month. After a super quiet January, our pace of life has picked up! Our calendar this month is a mix of playdates, family dinners, church commitments, dental appointments, well checks, and my personal favorite – field trips! Oh, also add in low-key celebrations like the Super Bowl and Valentine’s Day. It seems there has been something going on every day!!!

Let’s chat about our field trips! I love field trips. They are one of my favorite parts of homeschooling. Life is a full of learning opportunities and so many adventures can be classified as a field trip. On Friday, we took off for the Tillamook Creamery. This is an annual adventure for us! We love watching the cheese being packaged and processed. We tried the cheese samples, had lunch, and got ice cream. The boys enjoyed racing to see how fast they can milk a cow (a display cow, not a real cow). The Tillamook Creamery is always a good time!

After Tillamook, we made our way up the Oregon Coast. We stopped in Cannon Beach to visit Haystack Rock. The tide was out so the tide pools around the rock were exposed. We saw some small fish and sea anemones. It was a cold and windy walk to Haystack Rock, but our kids come alive at the beach. They didn’t mind the chilly weather and had fun exploring around the tide pools.

Our last stop on the way home was to see a dead fin whale that washed up on Sunset Beach. I didn’t know much about fin whales until this last week. They are the second largest whale and they rarely wash ashore because they stay out in deeper waters. Owen recently wrapped up a whale unit in science, so this seemed like a good chance to see a whale up close. The boys got to see the baleen and see the size of the large whale. The sight was a bit more gruesome than I expected as the whale had been cut open and certain parts had been harvested. It was kind of gross, but still educational!

Yesterday, we joined our homeschool co-op for a field trip to the Washington State Capitol. Jeremy took the day off to join us. His presence was so appreciated! It was our family’s first visit to the Capitol and it didn’t disappoint. Through a co-op connection, we were able to explore parts of the building that usually aren’t open to the public. We even got to go on to the senate floor and take a picture (the senate obviously wasn’t in session at the moment). We had a short class on what is a bill and the process of getting a bill to become a law. After our time with the senate staff, we went on a guided tour which showed us the rest of the building. One of the highlights of our visit was the fact that it was Potato Day. Washington potato farmers set up a baked potato bar and offer baked potatoes to anyone who would like one. They also gave away reusable bags and potato recipe cards. Jeremy did a little research and they say about 1,600 potatoes are given out on Potato Day. It made for a crowded visit, but it was also a fun bonus to the experience!

We have some more field trips planned this spring and I am so excited for them! Getting to experience learning outside in the world is so valuable. We are making memories as a family and I love that we get to explore the world alongside our kids. We’ve had so many conversations as a family about what we learned this last week, what we enjoyed the most, and clarifying what we experienced. I’m so thankful for these opportunities. Field trips are one of the best parts of homeschooling!

Co-Op Book Club: Making Christmas snow globes for the chapter in *The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe* where Father Christmas visits.

Co-Op Book Club: Christmas one week and Easter the next! Talking about how Aslan’s sacrifice on the Stone Table is an allegory for Christ’s sacrifice on the cross.

Heart-shaped mini-waffles for Valentine’s Day!

Mini-tulips and more mini-waffles! Loving the spring vibes!

Washington State Capitol Field Trip – the WA State Seal

Washington State Capitol Field Trip – learning about the doors and the history on them

Washington State Capitol Field Trip – the Senate Reception Room which is original to it’s 1928 completion

Washington State Capitol Field Trip – Potato Day!

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Books, Board Games, and Life at Home February 5, 2024

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf,Family Time,Homeschool Adventures,Tasty Treats — Amy Scott @ 11:33 am

January turned out to be a much quieter month than we anticipated. Between the winter weather and Graham coming down with a cold, we had a lot of time at home in January. As a homebody, the extra time at home was no hardship. A majority of our free time in January was spent playing board games and reading books (well, books for Owen and I – he is flying through The Hardy Boys right now and I’m making the most of Kindle Unlimited and the Skyward series). Our family has an obsession with The Quest for Eldorado board game at the moment. The game says it’s 10+, but our 8 year-old, Graham, has picked it up fairly easily. I would even say that Graham has probably won more times than me at this point. And yes, I am a little bitter about that. Just kidding, but kind of, not really. Ha!

Life has picked up with the calendar turning to February. On February 1st, Jeremy took the day off as comp-time for working at a conference in January. We wrapped up our school day quickly while Jeremy was at a morning dentist appointment. When Jeremy arrived home, we set off for a spur-of-the-moment trip to Portland, OR. (Yay for a flexible homeschool schedule!) We planned 3 different visits to Portland in January, but each time we had to cancel (twice due to weather, once for illness). The original Portland plan was to visit OMSI – Oregon Museum of Science and Industry – but we are now waiting for March when their next exhibit opens. The other part of our Portland plan was to visit a few bookstores and we were able to make that happen on Thursday! I loved wondering Powell’s Books and spent the last of my Birthday money. I’m already looking forward to my February book blog. So many new books to share!

This weekend, I was able to reconnect with a friend over coffee. Our family was also able to have dinner with friends we haven’t seen in a while. It was a good weekend to catch up with friends! Our February calendar is filled with dinners, playdates, field trips, and a marriage conference. The month is booked with just enough margin to hopefully stay sane. I would like to believe that March will be the month it all balances out, but Easter is in March this year. Between Easter prep, making sure Jeremy’s birthday doesn’t get lost in the Easter prep, and Easter itself, I have a feeling March might be a bit full as well. But since March is still a ways away, I will choose to focus in on this month, this week, this day. When I look at the big picture, the calendar can seem daunting, but then I remind myself that I can only in live in this moment. One day at a time!