Papa and Nana's Farm

The boys love to run with Little Ann.

Hidden Beneath the Fleece...

For those of you who didn't know this about my wife....next time you see Val, ask to view The Gun Show!!

One thing I love about homeschool

Yesterday for school the boys and I had a great time learning about circuits and electricity. We were taking apart some old Dollar Tree remote control cars and using the parts to make our own experiments. We were lighting up Christmas tree bulbs, flashlight bulbs, making fans with the motors and some flying discs. It was such fun for all three of us. At one point, while splicing wires and trying bigger batteries, I remarked about never having learned about circuits before. To which Solomon said, "Didn't you learn ANYTHING in school?"

That's what I love about homeschooling. I get to learn all kinds of cool stuff.

Gingerbread House Fun

The Simonsens, Shaws, Papa and Nana came over to decorate gingerbread houses.

Thanks to Costco, the assembly was painless.

Thanks to the Simonsens, the adults enjoyed espresso drinks.

Thanks to the Shaws and Papa and Nana there were extra hands and it was more festive.

Thanks to Ellie (the Shaws' lab) there was no candy to sweep up afterward.

Bowling

We went bowling in Oregon last month with Jer's family. Gotta love those bumpers! Evie and Zach's favorite part of bowling was watching the ball shoot back at them from the retrieval machine. Evie didn't care that her ball weighed 12 pounds, she HAD to have a pink one. And she was quite disappointed about giving back the cool shoes.

It's Christmas Time!!!!

A Good Man

Yesterday Solomon said, "Mom, I think Jedi is going to grow up to be a good man. He always does what he says he will do."

Mama's Girl

This week my mom was talking about going to the mall and Evie asked, "Nana, what is the mall?"

Have a Happy Day!

What? I have something on my face?

We are our father's sons

Me:"What do you want to be when you grow up?"

Zach: "I want to be Cole's friend."

One Brave Nana

Nana took Evie and Emma to Portland on the train. They came back later that day with three of their cousins. They had a giggle-filled 4 days together. What a sweet Nana my kids have. She is much braver than I.

Crazy September

Happy birthday Solomon, Jed and Evie!

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Working hard at school.

You can go ahead and faint, Candace, because I am finally adding to this blog you started for us! September was crazy for many reasons: vacation in Arizona, starting school, celebrating Solomon and Jed's 9th birthday and Evie's 5th! Now it's already October and I'm ready to slow down.

(Candace, once you peel yourself off the floor, maybe you can give me some technical advice on how to arrange pictures?)

Zach works hard, too.

Spoken like a true Northwesterner

Evie was outside playing basketball in Arizona.

As she was getting ready to make a shot, the sun came out from behind a cloud.

In complete dismay she said, "Oh maaaaaan! The sun came out AGAIN!!!!"

Jeremy's Birthday Celebration

We celebrated Jeremy's 30-something birthday

at a fun AZ joint called Oreganos.

We had pizza for dinner and pizza cookies for dessert.

A fun time was had by all!

Zach and the baby pool

Goggle Party

We have been having a blast here with the Staples in Arizona.

The boys' feet are so dry and cut up from all the time spent in the pool that they have started wearing socks and sandals while swimming. We have spent a majority of our waking hours in there. Before we arrived I told Candace that Solomon and Jedi's swimming resembled drowning rats. They have improved to the point of swimming the whole length without taking a breath.

Evie is doing amazing, too. She has progressed from a white knuckled death grip on daddy to actually swimming solo.

Zach...he enjoys staying on the pool steps and going down the slide. Not much swimming progress, but he does have a dark tan.

Homeschooling-wise, it's going to be hard to convince the kids that Arizona isn't surrounded by water.

Brase Yourself

So, we too are joining the ranks of the 21st century bloggers.

To our all of our friends and family who are interested in our daily adventures... brase yourself!