Currently #1

Reading: I dove into next month’s book club selection, The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott, and I’m very intrigued by the Cold War historical fiction.

Watching: Somehow J and I missed S3 of Party Down when it aired back in February. We rediscovered and are working our way through.

Listening: I got fed up with my giant Apple Music shuffle. Tt would move from hard rock to classical to singer/songwriter. Sometimes I just really want to listen to more metal selection. So I made a Heavy Bangers mix to hit when that’s all I want. It was a great decision! Already loving it.

Making: I’m teaching symmetry this week in coop and I have a few projects in mind. I need to make a few examples so the kids know what they are doing.

Feeling: It’s so incredibly cold here this week. Below zero temps since last Monday, I think? Plus two snowstorms that dumped a decent amount. I’m just so cold right now.

Planning: My reading weekend is three weeks away! I’ve started the grocery list and the book selections list. My last list will be clothes and such, but that’s no fun. I’d rather contemplate what I want to eat and what I want to read.

Loving: The cold weather has me in the mood for curries and chilis. I’ve made both this week and sitting loving it!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Homeschool W17: Winter Arrived with a Vengeance

What We Studied

After a few weeks of light schoolwork and complete break, we were back at it last week with a full curriculum load. We had planned on chemistry class, a field trip, coop, and a nature hike, but the weather took a turn. Everything except for coop was cancelled due to two winter storms and below zero temps with whiteout conditions. So, I had to seriously modify our schedule and pulled in a lot more curriculum. Even with the heavier load, the boys ended up playing outside for hours most days. We are trying to enjoy the snow while it lasts.

Q’s Science

Q’s Science, ELA, and Math

Literature and Poetry

Arthur started one of my favorite childhood books. We should finish next week.. We also moved on to starting the next coop book club selection. Beyond the actual literature, we are working on some basic grammar skills. We finished the first Reading Explorer book which focuses on reading comprehension. He also continued his Super Secret Notebook from Blossom & Root.

• From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by EL Konigsburg

• The Fourteenth Goldfish by Jennifer L. Holm

• Reading Explorer: Intro

• My America poem collection

Quentin started a very winter themed book with me. We are pushing our Blossom and Root lessons out two weeks. He also worked on some basic grammar.

• Sing a Song of Seasons

• Just Beyond the Very Very Far North by Dan Bar-El

• Polar Bear by Candace Fleming

• Polar Bear Morning by Lauren Thompson

• Polar Bear Night by Lauren Thompson

• Polar Bear Postman by Seigo Kijima

• Polar Bear's Underwear by Tupera Tupera

• The Little Polar Bear Tales a Stand by Hans de Beer

• Polar Bear Island by Lindsay Bonilla

• Once Upon a Winter Day by Liza Woodruff

• My Winter City by James Gladstone

• Bright Winter Night by Alli Brydon

• Winter is Here by Kevin Henkes

A’s ELA, Math, Science, and History

Q’s Bedtime Books

Math

Arthur started the last unit for Singapore 5A. We covered ratios this week. We will finish this unit next week and move on to 5B.

• Singapore Common Core 5A

• Orbiting with Logic

Quentin started Singapore 2A with a big review of numbers to 1000. We also continued our logic book.

• Lollipop Logic Book 3

• Singapore Common Core 2A

Q’s History, ELA, and Math

A’s ELA and Math

Social Studies

Arthur covered two weeks worth of history lessons because of our snow days. We talked about the Progressive Era reforms as well as Teddy Roosevelt and Taft.

• DK American History

• We were There Too! Young People in US History

• Words that Build a Nation

• Heart and Soul

• Nat Geo Our Country’s Presidents

• An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States

• A Different Mirror for Young People

• This is Our Land: A History of American Immigration

• Wheels of Change: How Women Rode the Bicycle to Freedom

• Alice Paul and the Fight for Women’s Rights

• The Remarkable Rough-Riding Life of Theodore Roosevelt and the Rise of Empire America by Cheryl Harness

Quentin also covered two weeks of history with a chapter on the Hebrews and Phoenicians and a chapter on the Minoans and Mycenaeans.

• History Quest Early Times

• DK When on Earth?

• Human Wold

• DK History

• DK Timelines of Everything

• DK A Child Through Time

• A History of Western Art

• DK Science Year by Year

• DK Myths, Legends, and Sacred Stories

• Find the Journeys Around the World by David Long

Science

Chemistry class was canceled due to the first winter storm. Instead, we read two chapters in our Story of Science book.

• RSO Chemistry

• DK Super Simple Chemistry

• Story of Science Vol. 2: Newton at the Center by Joy Hakim

• DK The Elements

Quentin took a detour from our RSO curriculum to learn about the Arctic, Antartica, polar bears, and penguins. We talked a lot about winter and how animals survive.

• The Coldest Places on Earth by Jennifer M. Besel

• Plants in Winter by Jenny Fretland VanVoorst

• Weather in Winter by Jenny Fretland VanVoorst

• All About Winter Weather by Kathryn Clay

• Why Do Bears Seep All Winter? A Book About Hibernation by Mary Englar

• Polar Bears by Gail Gibbons

• Nat Geo Kids: Polar Bears

• Polar Bears by Valerie Bodden

• Polar Bear by Dee Phillips

• Do You Really Want to Meet a Polar Bear? by Marcie Aboff

• Polar Bears by Elaine Landau

• Polar Bear Fur Isn't White and Other Amazing Facts by Thea Feldman

• The Polar Bear by Jenni Desmond

• Over and Under the Snow by Kate Messner

• Click Magazine: No Place Like Home

• Winter Bees and Other Poems of the Cold by Joyce Sidman & Rick Allen

• Frozen Wild: How Animals Survive in the Coldest Places on Earth by Jim Arnosky

• Penguins by Seymour Simon

• Penguins by Ann O. Squire

• Penguin Chick by Betty Tatham

• RSO Life

• DK Oversimple Biology

Art and Music

Q’s Math, ELA, and Science

STEAM Coop

Another January, another coop semester begins. It was a little touch and go for a few days as to if we would actually have coop, but the weather settled enough to get to our meeting hall. All the levels explored Geometry and Art for their first theme. I taught the oldest class and we learned about how artists use basic shapes, played the shape game, and then made collages with shapes.

Art/Music/Crafts/Cooking/Documentary

This was another area that I pulled from later weeks to take advantage of the time. We ended up covering two artists (Picasso and Chagall) and two composers (Haydn and Debussy). This will help us when we hit a week and I cannot fit in art and music.

• DK Music and How it Works

• DK The Arts

• DK Art and How It Works

• Modern Art Adventures by Maja Pitamic and Jill Laidlaw

• 13 American Artists Children Should Know

• A Child's Introduction to Art

• Women in Art by Rachel Ignotofsky

• Iconic Composers by Nicholas Csicsko & Emi Ferguson

• 13 Art Movements Children Should Know

• 13 Artists Children Should Know

• 13 Modern Artists Children Should Know

• The Story of Paintings by Mick Manning & Brita Granström

• Why is Art Full of Naked People? by Susie Hodge

• Just Behave, Pablo Picasso! by Jonah Winter

• Pablo Picasso by Mike Venezia

• Paris in the Spring with Picasso by Joan Yolleck

• Papa Chagall Tell Us a Story by Laurence Anholt

• Marc Chagall by Jude Welton

• Through the Window: View of Marc Chagall's Life and Art by Barb Rosenstock

Field Trip

The weather cancelled our planned field trip. Thankfully we got it rescheduled for later in the month.

A’s ELA and Math

High

• January always makes me want to hibernate. The winter storm really added to it, but I was okay with it. The boys got to spend a lot of time playing in the snow. I got to spend a lot of time reading and drinking hot tea.

Low

• The schedule changes did throw me a bit, but we managed to make it through.

Art and Music

Next Week

• Finishing our two read alouds

• Covering the Spanish American War and American Imperialism

• Competing our math units

• Exploring some new elements on the periodic table

• Easing into Greece with some myths and stories

• Learning about birds for science

• Hopefully heading outside for a nature walk and field trip

A’s History and ELA

Q’s ELA, History, and Science

Next up on the TBR pile:

2024 Goals and Resolutions

Checking in with my 2023 Goals and Resolutions

House Goals/Resolutions

• Organize My Craft Room/Library ✓

• Make Progress with One Home Project - Um… well house project really took a backseat to a lot of things this year.

Life Goals/Resolutions

• Complete 52 Hikes - We got so close! We’re ending the year at 44 hikes. I think that’s a great number even if I didn’t hit 52.

• Add More Vegetarian Dishes to Our Rotation ✓

• Take Care of My Medical Issues ✓

Reading Goals/Resolutions

• Read 200 Books/60,000 Books ✓

• Clear Off 50 Books from My UnRead Shelf - Nope, but that’s okay.

• Skip at Least 50% of BOTM Months ✓

Homeschool Goals/Resolutions

• Create a Long-Term Plan for Homeschool Curriculum ✓

• Continue to Organize the Coop, But Also Delegate for Growth ✓

And now on to 2024…

House Goals/Resolutions

• Paint the living room (and maybe playroom) - Other projects haven’t progressed as far I had hoped, and I’m oh so sick of the walls in the living room and playroom. I convinced J to paint those two rooms at least in the spring.

• Downsize the playroom - The kids aren’t playing with as many tows as they were, so I want to downsize the playroom and start the transition to study/homeschool/video game room.

Life Goals/Resolutions

• Complete 52 Hikes -We’re going to attempt this one again in 2024. I’m really trying to be more and more intentional with our outside time.

• Add More Vegetarian Dishes to Our Rotation - Adding this one on our resolution list again next year. It’s been a great experiment, but I want to do more.

• Work on a Better Budget - I really want to retool our expenses for 2024 and work out a bitter budget.

Reading Goals/Resolutions

• Read 200 Books/60,000 Books - Going with the same thing as last year.

• Clear Off 50 Books from My UnRead Shelf - Going to try again.

• Skip at Least 50% of BOTM Months - This was a great goal and I really did stick with it. If I’m not super excited about the selections, I’m going to skip that month.

Homeschool Goals/Resolutions

• Be a Leader for the Secular Homeschool Community - I want to help others in the area lead the community of secular homeschoolers. There’s not that many of us and we should be inclusive and supportive.

• Move the Coop into the Next Era - I have some dreams and plans that I would love to see come to fruition in 2024.

• Complete Another Year of Homeschooling - We’ve got some great things are going and I want to keep it up in 2024.

Next up on the TBR pile:

January 2024 Life Goals

Let’s check in on December’s goals and my progress.

• Read 18 Books ✓

• Complete our Christmas Bucket List - We didn’t get to everything, but had a great holiday season.

• Travel to Indiana for Christmas ✓

• Finalize Reading Retreat Plans - Still working on some the details.

• Prep Blog for 2024 ✓

• Solidify Art and Geometry Plan (Coop) - Almost there…

• Get the Spring Semester in Order (Homeschool) ✓

January Goals:

• Read 18 Books

• Emails for Retreats (January and June)

• Finalize Coop Plans for Spring

• Get Started on our 52 Hikes for the Year

Next up on the TBR pile:

Christmas Bucket List Finish

We didn’t finish this list, but I’m very much okay with that this year. We needed to take everything a little easier this year. I’m grateful for the slower pace.

Read 10 Holiday Romances (10/10) ✓

• Snowed In by Jaqueline Snowe

• The Christmas Fix by Lucy Score

• A Holiday by Gaslight by Mimi Matthews

• Love in a Blizzard by Britney M. Mills

• White Lie Christmas by Karla Doyle

• A Winter in New York by Josie Silver

• Miss Kane’s Christmas by Caroline Mickelson

• Blue Sky Cowboy Christmas by Joanne Kennedy

• The Worst Christmas Ever? by Rebecca Paulinyi

• Fall for the Rockstar at Christmas by Lyndsey Gallagher

Coop Christmas Party! ✓

Decorate the Mini Tree ✓

Letter to Santa ✓

Christmas Movies x3 (1/3)

• White Christmas

Make Paper Snowflakes ✓

Go See Santa at Cabela’s ✓

Go See Werner Park Lights ✓

Hot Chocolate Bar ✓ - We all agreed that the Salted Caramel was the clear winner.

Meet the Reindeer - We missed them by two days. I didn’t realize that they had a limited stay this year.

Go for a Winter Hike

Puzzle Day ✓

Make Gingerbread Cookies ✓ Also, we decorated a pre-built gingerbread house.

Visit Zoolightful at the Zoo ✓ with bonus Santa meeting

Drive around and see the lights ✓

Fantasy of Lights ✓

Dinner at Coney Island and Visit to Santa Lights ✓

Christmas music dance party ✓

Watch The Grinch

Make Peppermint Bark

Christmas Advent Books ✓

• Merry Christmas, Peanut! by Terry Border

• Who’s that Knocking on Christmas Eve? by Jan Brett

• A Very Quacky Christmas by Frances Watts and Ann James

• Santa Claws by Laura Leuck

• Here Comes Santa Cat by Deborah Underwood

• Maple and Willow’s Christmas Tree by Lori Nichols

• Little Bear’s Special Friend by Claire Freedman

• The Nutcracker’s Night Before Christmas by Keith Brockett

• The 12 Days of Christmas by Greg Pizzoli

• The Nutcracker retold by John Cech

• How to Decorate a Christmas Tree by Vikki VanSickle

• It’s Christmas by Tracey Corderoy

• Clark the Shark Loves Christmas by Bruce Hale

• Was That Christmas? by Hilary McKay

• Bears Stays Up for Christmas by Karma Wilson

• The Christmas Eve Tree by Delia Huddy

• Who’ll Pull Santa’s Sleigh Tonight? by Laura Rader

• The Christmas Tree Who Loved Trains by Annie Silvestro

• The Polar Express by Chris van Allsburg

• Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree by Robert Barry

• The Gingerbread Man Loose at Christmas by Laura Murray

• The Christmas Magic by Lauren Thompson

• The Littlest Elf by Brandi Dougherty

• The Littlest Reindeer by Brandi Dougherty

• If You Take a Mouse to the Movies by Laura Numeroff

• How to Catch an Elf by Adam Wallace & Andy Elkerton

• One Snowy Morning by Kevin Tseng

• I’m Going to Build a Snowman by Jashar Swan

Find a New Christmas Album

Have a Candy Cane Hunt

Go Sledding

Send out Christmas cards

Try a new holiday drink

Make a snowglobe

Make Christmas cocktails

Create my December Daily base pages

Read A Christmas Carol ✓

Bonus: We checked out the very large Christmas tree at the Durham.

Bonus: We had to stop at Albanese on our way to Indiana. This year they had a whole moose on a ski mountain display. Loved it!

Bonus: The Fort Wayne Zoo did a whole Christmas daytime thing and we had to check it out. Years ago, they used to have lights at night. This year, they just had some special displays and certain animals were out. Plus free carousel and train rides.

Next Up on the TBR Pile:

Homeschool W16: We're Ready for a Break!

What We Studied

We are definitely ready for Christmas break! It’s been a hectic couple of weeks to finish this semester and I’m ready to be done for a bit. We ended up finishing this semester with a flex week that turned into a week that we used to finish up some lessons and books.

Literature and Poetry

Arthur started and finished a unit on Norse mythology. We then moved on to starting the next coop book club selection. Beyond the actual literature, we are working on some basic grammar skills and starting our writing journey. He also continued his Super Secret Notebook from Blossom & Root.

• Poetry for Young People: American Poetry

• Reading Explorer: Intro

• Norse Mythology

• The Wild Robot Protects by Peter Brown

• A Snicker of Magic by Natalie Lloyd

Quentin got back into the Blossom & Root curriculum with two tales and their variations. I’m really enjoying the format for this year. He also worked on some basic grammar.

• Sing a Song of Seasons

• Fairy Tales Collection

• The Other Side of the Story

• Cinderella by Jenna Mueller

• Cinderella by Barbara McClintock

• Cinderella by Marcia Brown

• Cinderstella: A Tale of Planets not Princes by Brenda S. Miles and Susan D. Sweet

• Cinderella by Michele Marineau

• Cinderella and the Furry Slippers by Davide Cali

• Cinderella and a Mouse Called Fred by Deborah Hopkinson

• Interstellar Cinderella by Deborah Underwood

• Cinderella with Dogs by Linda Bailey

• Cinderella's Rat by Susan Meddaugh

• Rose Red & Snow White by Ruth Sanderson

• Jo Bright and the Seven Bots by Deborah Underwood

• Snow Pony and the Seven Miniature Ponies by Christian Tremmer

• Zoey and Sassafras: The Pod and the Bog by Asia Citro

• The Little Red Elf by Barbara Barbieri McGrath

• Reading Beauty by Deborah Underwood

Math

Arthur came close to finishing Singapore 5A. but not quite finished. We have one more unit. I’m going to wait until January to finish it up and move on to 5B.

• Singapore Common Core 5A

• Orbiting with Logic

• Sir Cumference and the Isle of Immeter by Cindy Neuscwander

Quentin’s all about review right now. I don’t anticipate starting Singapore 2A until January. We also continued our logic book.

• Lollipop Logic Book 3

• Tinkeractive Math Grade 1

Social Studies

Arthur covered more about immigration and urbanization.

• DK American History

• We were There Too! Young People in US History

• Words that Build a Nation

• Heart and Soul

• Nat Geo Our Country’s Presidents

• An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States

• A Different Mirror for Young People

• This is Our Land: A History of American Immigration

• The House that Jane Built: A Story About Jane Addams by Tanya Lee Stone.

• Gittel's Journey: An Ellis Island Story by Leslea Newman

• Wheels of Change: How Women Rode the Bicycle to Freedom

Quentin learned about the ancient Babylonian, Assyrian, and Persian Empires.

• History Quest Early Times

• DK When on Earth?

• Human Wold

• DK History

• DK Timelines of Everything

• DK A Child Through Time

• A History of Western Art

• DK Science Year by Year

• DK Myths, Legends, and Sacred Stories

• Mesopotamia by Sunita Apte

• Ancient Babylon by Karen Bush Gibson

• Lost Cities by Giles Laroche

• The Assyrians by Elaine Landau

• Ancient Persia by Don Nardo

Q’s Cinderella books

ELA, Math, and Science

A’s Math and ELA; Q’s ELA

Science

Arthur continued covering specific elements with our Chemistry class. We’re still loving our little coop class.

• RSO Chemistry

• DK Super Simple Chemistry

• Story of Science Vol. 2: Newton at the Center by Joy Hakim

• DK The Elements

Quentin continued invertebrates and covered reptiles.

• RSO Life

• DK Oversimple Biology

• Reptiles by Ann O. Squire

• DK Eyewitness: Reptile

• Retiles Everywhere by Britta Teckentrup

STEAM Coop

Arthur completed his exploration of board games. The kids made some great games and we got to playtest on the last week. Quentin finished out the semester studying architecture. We’ll be back in January.

A’s ELA and Math

Q’s Math, ELA, and Science

A’s ELA and History

Art/Music/Crafts/Cooking/Documentary

We got back into it covering four artists (Paul Klee, Henri Rousseau, Henri Matisse, Franz Marc) and four composers (Beethoven, Vivaldi, Handel, Tchaikovsky). We managed to have some great free art sessions while listening to various composers. I’m hoping to keep the momentum going in January.

• DK Music and How it Works

• DK The Arts

• Modern Art Adventures by Maja Pitamic and Jill Laidlaw

• 13 American Artists Children Should Know

• A Child's Introduction to Art

• Women in Art by Rachel Ignotofsky

• Iconic Composers by Nicholas Csicsko & Emi Ferguson

• 13 Art Movements Children Should Know

• 13 Artists Children Should Know

• The 39 Apartments of Ludwig van Beethoven by Jonah Winter

• Ludwig van Beethoven by Mike Venezia

• What Music! The Fifty-year Friendship Between Beethoven and Nannette Streicher, Who Built His Pianos by Laurie Lawlor

• The Story of Paintings by Mick Manning & Brita Granström Pg. 50-51

• Why is Art Full of Naked People? by Susie Hodge Pg. 82

• Henri Rousseau by Mike Venezia

• The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau by Michelle Markel

• Dreaming Pictures Paul Klee

• Vivaldi and the Invisible Orchestra by Stephan Costanza

• The Story Orchestra: Four Seasons in One Day

• Oooh! Matisse by Mil Niepold

• Henri's Scissors by Jeanette Winter

• The Iridescence of Birds by Patricia MacLachlan

• Henri Matisse by Mike Venezia

• Colorful Dreamer by Marjorie Blain Parker

• Matisse's Garden by Samantha Friedman

• Handel: Who Knew What He Liked by T Anderson

Q’s ELA and History

Art and Music

Field Trip

We had a wonderful tour of the Nebraska State Capitol with an emphasis on the art included in the building. I really loved getting more information about this beautiful building. We were even there when they were bringing in the Christmas tree and got to see them set it up.

High

• After our State Capitol tour, some friends joined the boys at Lost in Fun in Lincoln for an entire afternoon of playtime. Sometimes the boys just need unfettered play time with friends and this was the perfect day to do it. Bonus: Lost in Fun was one of our GetOut Pass items, so it was no extra money to go. The next day, we used another GetOut Pass to mini golf at Medieval Putt.

Low

• I’m feeling very tired… it’s been a semester.

Next Week - Break time until January!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Christmas Bucket List Update

Another Christmas season is upon us! Time for another bucket list. Let’s see what I’m hoping to do this year:

Read 10 Holiday Romances (7/10)

• Snowed In by Jaqueline Snowe

• The Christmas Fix by Lucy Score

• A Holiday by Gaslight by Mimi Matthews

• Love in a Blizzard by Britney M. Mills

• White Lie Christmas by Karla Doyle

• A Winter in New York by Josie Silver

• Miss Kane’s Christmas by Caroline Mickelson

Coop Christmas Party!

Decorate the Mini Tree ✓

Letter to Santa

Christmas Movies x3 (1/3)

• White Christmas

Make Paper Snowflakes

Go See Santa at Cabela’s ✓

Go See Werner Park Lights ✓

Hot Chocolate Bar ✓ - We all agreed that the Salted Caramel was the clear winner.

Meet the Reindeer

Go for a Winter Hike

Puzzle Day

Make Gingerbread Cookies

Visit Zoolightful at the Zoo ✓ with bonus Santa meeting

Drive around and see the lights

Fantasy of Lights

Dinner at Coney Island and Visit to Santa Lights

Christmas music dance party ✓

Watch The Grinch

Make Peppermint Bark

Christmas Advent Books

• Merry Christmas, Peanut! by Terry Border

• Who’s that Knocking on Christmas Eve? by Jan Brett

• A Very Quacky Christmas by Frances Watts and Ann James

• Santa Claws by Laura Leuck

• Here Comes Santa Cat by Deborah Underwood

• Maple and Willow’s Christmas Tree by Lori Nichols

• Little Bear’s Special Friend by Claire Freedman

• The Nutcracker’s Night Before Christmas by Keith Brockett

• The 12 Days of Christmas by Greg Pizzoli

• The Nutcracker retold by John Cech

• How to Decorate a Christmas Tree by Vikki VanSickle

• It’s Christmas by Tracey Corderoy

• Clark the Shark Loves Christmas by Bruce Hale

• Was That Christmas? by Hilary McKay

• Bears Stays Up for Christmas by Karma Wilson

• The Christmas Eve Tree by Delia Huddy

• Who’ll Pull Santa’s Sleigh Tonight? by Laura Rader

• The Christmas Tree Who Loved Trains by Annie Silvestro

Find a New Christmas Album

Have a Candy Cane Hunt

Go Sledding

Send out Christmas cards

Try a new holiday drink

Make a snowglobe

Make Christmas cocktails

Create my December Daily base pages

Read A Christmas Carol ✓

Bonus: We checked out the very large Christmas tree at the Durham.

Next Up on the TBR Pile:

Currently #23

Reading: I’m deep into Holiday Romances. I always love to end my year with some light-hearted holiday themed romances.

Watching: J and I have been watching Obliterated and it’s a delightful action adventure. It’s full of violence and nudity, but is such a delight.

Listening: We’ve been sprinkling in holiday music during out car time. I need to find a new-to-me album for our travel to Indiana.

Making: Molasses cookies are on the recipe list for this week. J has requested that I don’t take them all to Indiana with me, but make sure to leave a container here for him.

Feeling: It’s been very cold and windy lately which has added to my achy body feelings. Hopefully I can get warm soon.

Planning: I’m starting my travel packing list. I always feel better with a list.

Loving: To help me get warm, I’ve been enjoying raspberry hot chocolate (made with almond milk of course) during our nightly television.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for the week:

• So so busy… I feel like we haven’t been home for school very much this week.

• The new season of Slow Horses is absolutely amazing! It’s so hard to wait each week for the next episode.

• I really need to drop off two bags of library books today. We need to slowly turn all our library books back in before we leave for Indiana.

• Couldn’t resist the holiday treats at Aldis this week. Oh so good.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Homeschool W14-15: Thanksgiving Break was Needed

The Fox stories

More Fox books

What We Studied

Two weeks of activities and school. Overall, I’m amazed at how much school we actually accomplished. Only a few more weeks until Christmas break. Getting those last lessons.

Chemistry Class

A’s ELA

Fairy Tale books

Literature and Poetry

Arthur started and finished his next read aloud. He enjoyed it, but I did forget about how many weird God references are in that book. I really gloss over those things. Beyond the actual literature, we are working on some basic grammar skills and starting our writing journey. He also continued his Super Secret Notebook from Blossom & Root.

• Poetry for Young People: American Poetry

• Reading Explorer: Intro

• A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle

Quentin got back into the Blossom & Root curriculum with two tales and their variations. I’m really enjoying the format for this year. He also worked on some basic grammar.

• Sing a Song of Seasons

• Pumpkin Butterfly: Poems from the Other Side of Nature by Heidi Mordhorst

• Fairy Tales Collection

• The Other Side of the Story

• Little Red Riding Hood by Paul Galdone

• Lon Po Po by Ed Young

• Red by Jed Alexander

• Little Red Ruthie by Gloria Koster

• Little Red Riding Sheep by Linda Ravin Lodding

• The Girl and the Wolf by Katherena Vermette

• The Wolf's Story by Toby Forward

• Little Red and the Very Hungry Lion by Alec T. Smith

• Ninja Red Riding Hood by Corey Rosen Schwartz

• Werewolf? There Wolf! by Kyle Sullivan

• Tango Red Riding Hood by Rachel S. Hobbs

• Little Red Riding Hood and the Misread Wolf by Troy Wilson

• Little Red Riding Hood and the Dragon by Ying Chang Compestine

• Very Little Red Riding Hood by Heapy & Heap

• The Other Side of the Story: Little Red Riding Hood

• Yummy: Eight Favorite Fairy Tales by Lucy Cousins

• Petite Rouge: A Cajun Red Riding Hood by Mike Artell

• Yummy by Lucy Cousins

• Henny Penny by Paul Galdone

• The Sky is Falling by Mark Teague

• Henny Penny by Vivian French

• The Fox Went Out on a Chilly Night by Peter Spier

• Flossie and the Fox by Patricia McKissack

• Basho and the River Stones by Tim J Myers

• Fox: A Circle of Life Story by Isabel Thomas

• Henny, Penny, Lenny, Denny, and Mike by Cynthia Rylant

• The Great Gran Plan by Elli Woollard

• Watch Out for Wolf! by Anica Mrose Rissi

• Redlocks and the Three Bears by Claudia Rueda

• Tops and Bottoms by Janet Stevens

• The Grasshopper and the Ants by Jerry Pinkney

• The Little Red Hen by Jerry Pinkney

• The Little Red Fort by Brenda Maier

• The Grasshopper's Song by Nikki Giovanni and Chris Raschka

• The Little Red Hen by Margot Zemach

• Rapunzel by Barbara Rogasky

• Rapunzel by Paul O. Zelinsky

• Falling for Rapunzel by Leah Wilcox

• Petrosinella: A Neapolitan Rapunzel by Diane Stanley

• Sugar Cane: A Caribbean Rapunzel by Patricia Storace

• Rapunzel by Bethan Woollvin

• Really Rapunzel Needed a Haircut by Jessica Gunderson

• Rapunzel Let Down Your Zip Wire by Jasmine Brooke

Math

Arthur continued to dive into Singapore 5A. We are definitely going to slow down our math lessons a bit to make sure that Arthur achieves mastery. We’ve moved onto new skills dealing with multiplying and dividing fractions. Time for me to relearn some math! We also continued our next logic book.

• Singapore Common Core 5A

• Orbiting with Logic

Quentin’s all about review right now. I don’t anticipate starting Singapore 2A until January. We also continued our logic book.

• Lollipop Logic Book 3

• Tinkeractive Math Grade 1

Social Studies

Arthur covered more about immigration, specifically Japanese immigration. We also covered the inventions and presidents of the late 1800s. We did a specific lesson on the Statue of Liberty.

• DK American History

• We were There Too! Young People in US History

• Words that Build a Nation

• Heart and Soul

• Nat Geo Our Country’s Presidents

• An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States

• A Different Mirror for Young People

• This is Our Land: A History of American Immigration

• Her Right Foot by Dave Eggers

• Let Liberty Rise! How America's Schoolchildren Helped Save the Statue of Liberty by Chana Stiefel

• Liberty Arrives! How America's Grandest Statue Found Her Home by Robert Byrd

Quentin learned about the ancient Meosamerican cultures including the Maya.

• History Quest Early Times

• DK When on Earth?

• Human Wold

• DK History

• DK Timelines of Everything

• DK A Child Through Time

• A History of Western Art

• DK Science Year by Year

• DK Myths, Legends, and Sacred Stories

• The Ancient World: Ancient Maya by Barbara A. Somervill

• The Ancient Maya by Jackie Maloy

• The Genius of the Maya by Izzi Howell

• The Mystery of the Maya: Uncovering the Lost City of Palenque by Peter Lourie

A’s ELA, Math, and History

Q’s ELA and Math

Art and Music

Science

Arthur started covering the first couple of elements on the Periodic Table. We’ll be doing this for the next couple of weeks for Chemistry. We also caught back up with our Story of Science chapters.

• RSO Chemistry

• DK Super Simple Chemistry

• Story of Science Vol. 2: Newton at the Center by Joy Hakim

• DK The Elements

Quentin moved to invertebrates and covered fish and amphibians.

• RSO Life

• DK Oversimple Biology

• Fish by Isabel Martin

• DK Eyewitness Fish

• Fish by Christine Taylor-Butler

• Do You Know About Amphibians by Buffy Silverman

• Amphibians by Christine Taylor-Butler

Q’s History

Q’s Work and Harvest Books

A’s History, Science, ELA, and Math

STEAM Coop

Arthur continued his exploration of board games. By the end of the six weeks, the kids will have created their own board games. We started our board game construction. Quentin’s class finished their exploration of Native Americans.

A’s Monet Mash-up Art

A’s ELA and Math

Q’s The Tower Books

Art/Music/Crafts/Cooking/Documentary

We got back into it covering three artists (Claude Monet, Mary Cassatt, and Vincent Van Gogh) and three composers (Johann Sebastian Bach, Mozart, and Brahms). I’m working these subjects in as we can, but proud of our progress so far. They are always the first on the chopping block if we run out of time during the week.

• DK Music and How it Works

• DK The Arts

• Modern Art Adventures by Maja Pitamic and Jill Laidlaw

• 13 American Artists Children Should Know

• A Child's Introduction to Art

• Women in Art by Rachel Ignotofsky

• Iconic Composers by Nicholas Csicsko & Emi Ferguson

• Johann Sebastian Bach by Mike Venezia

• The Piano by Marika Maijala and Juha Virta

• Becoming Bach by Tom Leonard

• 13 Art Movements Children Should Know

• 13 Artists Children Should Know

• Monet Paints a Day by Julie Danneberg

• Claude Monet by Mike Venezia

• Monet's Cat by Lily Murray & Becky Cameron

• The Story of Paintings by Mick Manning & Brita Granström

• Impressionism: 13 Artists Children Should Know

• Johannes Brahms by Mike Venezia

• Vincent Van Gogh by Mike Venezia

• The Yellow House by Susan Goldman Rubin

• Vincent’s Colors by The Metropolitan Museum of Art

• The Story of Paintings by Mick Manning & Brita Granström

• Katie's Starry Night

• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart by Mike Venezia

• Mozart: Great Lives in Graphics

• Play, Mozart, Play by Peter Sis

• Mary Cassatt: Extraordinary Impressionist Painter by Barbara Herkert

• Mary Cassatt by Mike Venezia

• Women in Art by Rachel Ignotofsky

Q’s Science

Doing free art

Q’s version of Van Gogh’s Starry Night

Field Trip

Not a field trip, we did have a fun playdate at Backyard Playworld with some friends.

Art with pandas

Art and Music

High

• We took a cold, but lovely walk at Heron Haven on Black Friday. It was the perfect choice for the day after Thanksgiving. Bonus, there was no one else there.

Low

• We actually didn’t really have a low point this two weeks. Taking a few days off for the Thanksgiving break really helped.

More art and music

ELA and Math

Next Week

• Starting a new read aloud

• Covering more classic tales

• Learning about area and perimeter for math (A)

• Lots of math review (Q)

• Covering specific elements on the Periodic table

• Engaging in a few fun field trips

Open play at Bounce U

Next up on the TBR pile:

December 2023 Life Goals

Let’s check in on November’s goals and my progress.

• Read 18 Books ✓

• Have a Great Thanksgiving ✓

• Finish Cleaning Out My Clothes

• Make Christmas Plans

December Goals:

• Read 18 Books

• Complete our Christmas Bucket List

• Travel to Indiana for Christmas

• Finalize Reading Retreat Plans

• Prep Blog for 2024

• Solidify Art and Geometry Plan (Coop)

• Get the Spring Semester in Order (Homeschool)

Next up on the TBR pile:

Christmas Bucket List

Another Christmas season is upon us! Time for another bucket list. Let’s see what I’m hoping to do this year:

1. Read 10 Holiday Romances

2. Coop Christmas Party!

3. Decorate the Mini Tree

4. Letter to Santa

5. Christmas Movies x3

6. Make Paper Snowflakes

7. Go See Santa at Cabela’s

8. Go See Werner Park Lights

9. Hot Chocolate Bar

10. Meet the Reindeer

11. Go for a Winter Hike

12. Puzzle Day

13. Make Gingerbread Cookies

14. Visit Zoolightful at the Zoo

15. Drive around and see the lights

16. Fantasy of Lights

17. Dinner at Coney Island and Visit to Santa Lights

18. Christmas music dance party

19. Watch The Grinch

20. Make Peppermint Bark

21. Christmas Advent Books

22. Find a New Christmas Album

23. Have a Candy Cane Hunt

24. Go Sledding

25. Send out Christmas cards

26. Try a new holiday drink

27. Make a snowglobe

28. Make Christmas cocktails

29. Create my December Daily base pages

30. Read A Christmas Carol

Next Up on the TBR Pile:

Fall Bucket List Finish

My favorite season of the year. Decent showing this year, even if I decided to slow everything down and rest this season.

1. Visit Vala’s 6x ✓

2. Celebrate Friendsgiving - Cancelled due to sickeness

3. Read 50 Books ✓

4. Complete Spooky Movie Month ✓

5. Execute a Halloween Party for Coop ✓

6. Have an Art/Craft Day

7. Three State Park Visists ✓

8. Two Zoo Visits

9. Pick Out and Carve Pumpkins ✓

10. Go Trick-or-Treating ✓

11. Jump in a Pile of Leaves

12. Go Through a Corn Maze ✓

13. Make 5 Fall Recipes

14. Make Leaf Art ✓

15. Go Pick Apples ✓

16. Go on a 3 Fall Forest Hikes ✓

17. Make 3 Pumpkin Recipes

18. Go Bowling

19. Use our GetOut Pass 2 Times - Only used it one time

20. Decorate for Fall ✓

Next up on the TBR pile:

Currently #22

Reading: I’m in between two books at the moment. I picked Whalefall by Daniel Kraus as my lighter thrillers and Bad Bachelor by Stephanie London as a potential dirty book month pick.

Watching: We’re wrapping up our first Nicolas Cage Quarterly. We’ve managed to get to the early 1990s in our first month. I know it’s going to take at least four months to get through all his movies and realistically more like five or six. But we’re doing it.

Listening: What else, I’ve been listening to 99PI and Hello from the Magic Tavern. Slowly, slowly I’m working through the back episodes.

Making: I was going to make coffee cake on Sunday, but just didn’t get around to it. Today is the day!

Feeling: After taking a few days off for Thanksgiving, I’m feel more centered. I took some time and relaxed a bit.

Planning: Just a few weeks until Christmas so I’m deep into travel planning. Trying to decide exactly when I’m going to leave and when I’m going to travel back home. I might just wait until I see the weather report for the week of Christmas before making final plans.

Loving: I had to grab more caramel lava cakes from Aldi’s this week. They are way too delicious!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for the week:

• It’s friends and food day

• I made a mess of next coop semester’s schedule of teachers. Two many changes happening (comings and goings, plus an added class) have caused lots of needed changes. We’ll work it out, but I spent like 20 minutes Tuesday making a list of proposed changes.

• Speaking of… I really need to work on the homeschool plan for spring. I’m still really adjusting to Quentin being a first grader along with coop and activities.

• Blowing way past my reading goal for the year. I’ll be past 250 when December 31st rolls around. So much reading this year!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Homeschool W13: Coop Problems are Taking a toll

What We Studied

We love our coop. I love the creation of a community and the opportunities we have with them. But... there have been a few hiccups lately that have really thrown me. Despite delegating and appointing others to certain roles, balls are being dropped and I have to scramble to pick them up. Hopefully a few conversations this week will fix it. On the flip side, the kids are having a ton of fun learning about a variety of topics. Arthur’s group is creating board games this cycle and I cannot wait to see what they come up with!

Arthur’s ELA, Math, and History

Literature and Poetry

Arthur finished Tristan Strong Destroys the World. It’s number two in the series. B&R has the first book in its curriculum for grade 4, but we’ve already read it. So I’m just adapting. I have the third one (last in the trilogy) coming and we might read that over Christmas break. I really want to see how the story ends. Beyond the actual literature, we are working on some basic grammar skills and starting our writing journey. He also continued his Super Secret Notebook from Blossom & Root.

• Poetry for Young People: American Poetry

• Reading Explorer: Intro

• Tristan Strong Destroys the World by Kwame Mbalia

Quentin got back into the Blossom & Root curriculum with two tales and their variations. I’m really enjoying the format for this year. He also worked on some basic grammar.

• Sing a Song of Seasons

• Pumpkin Butterfly: Poems from the Other Side of Nature by Heidi Mordhorst

• Fairy Tales Collection

• The Other Side of the Story

• The Magic Fish by Freya Littledale

• Luba and the Wren by Patricia Polacco

• The Fisherman and His Wife by Rachel Isadora

• Tortoise Races Home by Jill Atkins and Beccy Blake (Q read)

• Hare and Tortoise by Alison Murray

• The Tortoise and the Hare by Jerry Pinkney

• The Fastest Tortoise in Town by Howard Calvert

• The Great Race by Kevin O'Malley

• When Turtle Grew Feathers by Tim Tangle

• The Hare and the Tortoise by Ranjit Bolt

• The Tortoise and the Jackrabbit by Susan Lowell

Quentin’s ELA and Math

Math

Arthur continued to dive into Singapore 5A. We are definitely going to slow down our math lessons a bit to make sure that Arthur achieves mastery. We’ve moved onto new skills dealing with multiplying and dividing fractions. Time for me to relearn some math! We also continued our next logic book.

• Singapore Common Core 5A

• Orbiting with Logic

Quentin finished the Tinkeractive Math Book. We’re all about review right now. I don’t anticipate starting Singapore 2A until January. We also continued our logic book.

• Lollipop Logic Book 3

• Tinkeractive Math Grade 1

Quentin’s Math, ELA, History, and Science

Social Studies

Arthur covered industrialization and more about immigration with an aside about the San Francisco Earthquake. He also finished reading his historical fiction read aloud, Prairie Lotus

• DK American History

• We were There Too! Young People in US History

• Words that Build a Nation

• Heart and Soul

• Nat Geo Our Country’s Presidents

• An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States

• A Different Mirror for Young People

• This is Our Land: A History of American Immigration

• Prairie Lotus by Linda Sue Park

• I Survived the San Francisco Earthquake, 1906 by Lauren Tarshis

• What was the San Francisco Earthquake by Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler

Quentin learned about the Andes Mountain cultures of the Chavin, Moche, and Nazca. Short chapter, but an important one.

• History Quest Early Times

• DK When on Earth?

• Human Wold

• DK History

• DK Timelines of Everything

• DK A Child Through Time

• A History of Western Art

• DK Science Year by Year

• DK Myths, Legends, and Sacred Stories

Arthur’s ELA and Math

Science

Arthur review Periodic Groups this week with an experiment featuring the effects of baking powder. We also caught back up with our Story of Science chapters.

• RSO Chemistry

• DK Super Simple Chemistry

• Story of Science Vol. 2: Newton at the Center by Joy Hakim

• DK The Elements

Quentin covered the last of the invertebrates with crustaceans.

• RSO Life

• DK Oversimple Biology

• Hermit Crabs by Ellen Lawrence

• About Crustaceans by Cathryn Sill

• Crayfish by Deborah Coldiron

• Mantis Shrimp by Josh Plattner

• A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle

STEAM Coop

Arthur continued his exploration of board games. By the end of the six weeks, the kids will have created their own board games. We learned about the various types of games and played some as examples. Quentin’s class started their exploration of Native Americans.

Pirate Putt Time!

Art/Music/Crafts/Cooking/Documentary

We got back into it covering two artists (Leonardo da Vinci and Jan Vermeer) and one composter (Cecile Chaminade). I’m working these subjects in as we can, but proud of our progress so far. They are always the first on the chopping block if we run out of time during the week.

• DK Music and How it Works

• DK The Arts

• Modern Art Adventures by Maja Pitamic and Jill Laidlaw

• 13 American Artists Children Should Know

• A Child's Introduction to Art

• Women in Art by Rachel Ignotofsky

• We are Artists by Kari Herbert

• Neo Leo: The Ageless Ideas of Leonardo Da Vinci by Gene Barretta

• Steal Back the Mona Lisa by Meghan McCarthy

• If da Vinci Painted a Dinosaur by Amy Newbold

• Fly, Kite, Fly: A Story of Leonardo and a Bird Catcher by John Winch

• Jan Vermeer by Mike Venezia

Quentin’s ELA

Field Trip

No field trip this week. The kids had dentist appointments and we did lots of errands.

Nature Walk

High

The boys had an old fashioned playmate on Wednesday morning. Every once in a while, it’s great to have some free play with friends. As an added bonus, I got to talk to my friend for a few hours without kids interrupting us.

Low

Coop problems…

Boys cannot take a serious photo

Next Week

• Starting a new read aloud

• Covering more classic tales

• Reviewing multiplying and dividing fractions (A)

• Lots of math review (Q)

• Move to Mesoamerica for Q’s History

• More about industrialization for A’s History

• Covering specific elements on the Periodic table

Next up on the TBR pile:

Currently #21

Reading: So close to finishing The City of Dreaming Books by Walter Moers for Nerdy Bookish Friends book club. It’s such a weird book but I am enjoying it.

Watching: We finished Loki S2 and I definitely started tearing up at the end. I’m super sad that this is the end of Loki, but it’s a beautiful ending for the character.

Listening: Still trucking along through old episodes of 99PI. I’m put to the end of 2016. Only about 250 episodes to go.

Making: The kids in coop are working on their board games. I’m helping them create supply lists for their games.

Feeling: Loving the lower temps and cozy vibes. I’m all about sweater weather, but I’m usually way too hot.

Planning: Working on planning my Holiday reads TBR. Lots of good choices for this year.

Loving: The coop gained two new families with week. While they won’t join Thursday meetings until January, they’ve officially joined the group. We hope to see them at an extra event soon.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Homeschool W12: Not Much Book Work Happened...

What We Studied

Another week full of activities that impeded on our book work. We managed to find two mornings to focus on book work. In looking at the next week, we’re going to have the same thing happen. Oh well. Right now we’re all about the activities.

Quentin’s Math, ELA, and Spider Unit

Literature and Poetry

Arthur is all in with reading Tristan Strong Destroys the World. It’s number two in the series. B&R has the first book in its curriculum for grade 4, but we’ve already read it. So I’m just adapting. We are enjoying this sequel. Beyond the actual literature, we are working on some basic grammar skills and starting our writing journey. He also continued his Super Secret Notebook from Blossom & Root.

• Poetry for Young People: American Poetry

• Reading Explorer: Intro

• Tristan Strong Destroys the World by Kwame Mbalia

Quentin read books about bats in honor of our coop themes and the time of the year. He also worked on some basic grammar.

• Sing a Song of Seasons

• Fairy Tales Collection

• The Other Side of the Story

• Mr. Bat Wants a Hat by Kitty Black

• Amara and the Bats by Emma Reynolds

• I Am Bat by Morag Hood

• The Bat Book by Charlotte Milner

• Bat Colonies by Karen Latchana Kenney

• Bat Count by Anna Forrester

• Bats Biggest! Littlest! by Sandra Markle

• Bats in the Band by Brian Lies

• Bats at the Ballgame by Brian Lies

• Bats at the Library by Brian Lies

• Good Night, Bat! Good Morning, Squirrel! by Paul Meisel

• Little Bat in Night School by Brian Lies

• It's Raining Bats and Frogs by Rebecca Colby

Chemistry Class

Math

Arthur continued to dive into Singapore 5A. We are definitely going to slow down our math lessons a bit to make sure that Arthur achieves mastery. These past weeks, the units were very much a review of decimals and fractions. We also continued our next logic book.

• Singapore Common Core 5A

• Orbiting with Logic

Quentin continued with the Tinkeractive Math Book and worked through about a third of it this week. We’re all about review right now. I don’t anticipate starting Singapore 2A until January. We also continued our logic book.

• Lollipop Logic Book 3

• Tinkeractive Math Grade 1

Social Studies

Arthur covered the beginning of the immigration unit with a discussion of the waves before and right after the Civil War.

• DK American History

• We were There Too! Young People in US History

• Words that Build a Nation

• Heart and Soul

• Nat Geo Our Country’s Presidents

• An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States

• This is Our Land: A History of American Immigration

• Prairie Lotus by Linda Sue Park

Quentin finished exploring Egypt. We focused on daily life and the myths and stories. Next week, we’ll move on to Mesoamerica. So much to learn and explore!

• History Quest Early Times

• DK When on Earth?

• Human Wold

• DK History

• DK Timelines of Everything

• DK A Child Through Time

• A History of Western Art

• DK Science Year by Year

• DK Myths, Legends, and Sacred Stories

• Ancient Worlds by Miranda Smith

• Nat Geo Investigates: Ancient Egypt by Jill Rubalcaba

• Egypt in Spectacular Cross Section

• Ancient Egypt by Jinny Johnson

• DK Eyewitness Ancient Egypt

• Hieroglyphs by Joyce Milton

• What Did the Ancient Egyptians Do for Me? by Patrick Catel

• Tales of Ancient Egypt by Roger Lancelyn Green

Science

Arthur learned about Periodic Groups this week. We did an experiment about the difference Sodium and Potassium.

• RSO Chemistry

• DK Super Simple Chemistry

• Story of Science Vol. 2: Newton at the Center by Joy Hakim

• DK The Elements

Quentin got back into RSO Life with a unit on Arthropods and specifically arachnids. Q really got into spiders!

• RSO Life

• DK Oversimple Biology

• Are You a Spider by Judy Allen

• Frank the Seven-Legged Spider by Michaele Razi

• The Spider and the Fly by Mary Howl

• Spiders! Strange and Wonderful by Laurence Pringle

• The Eeensy Weensy Spider Freaks Out by Troy Cummings

Board Games at a Coffeehouse

STEAM Coop

Arthur continued his exploration of board games. By the end of the six weeks, the kids will have created their own board games. We learned about the elements of games and created a rough and dirty race-to-the-end game as an example. Quentin’s class finished their theme on government.

STEM Day

Art/Music/Crafts/Cooking/Documentary

None this week. Maybe next week…

• DK Music and How it Works

• DK The Arts

• Modern Art Adventures by Maja Pitamic and Jill Laidlaw

• 13 American Artists Children Should Know

• A Child's Introduction to Art

• Women in Art by Rachel Ignotofsky

• We are Artists by Kari Herbert

Field Trip

We had a field trip planned for Tuesday, but it completely fell apart at the last minute. The boys and I pivoted and went to one of the new parks. We played for a few hours before continuing with our planned day.

On Wednesday, we got to participate in DoSpace’s STEM Day. The kids cycled through four different topics and projects through the morning. They learned about hydroponics, rockets, robots, and DNA. The logistics were a little messy, but we had a good time.

Making a board game at coop

High

We had a successful meeting with a new coop family coupled with the boys playing a few board games with their friend. We followed that up with a board game meet-up with some coop friends.

Quentin’s Math and Bats Unit

Low

A friend started a Pokemon group. We went, but it was so draining for me. I know the boys had fun, but my goodness, I was so tired afterward. Hopefully this will get better as the kids really learned to play.

Quentin’s Egypt

Arthur’s ELA and Math

Next Week

• Finishing Tristan Strong?

• Covering more classic tales

• Reviewing multiplying and dividing fractions (A)

• Lots of math review (Q)

• Move to Meosamerica for Q’s History

• Moving into industrialization for A’s History

• Covering more of the Periodic Table

Pokemon Club

Next up on the TBR pile:

Fall Bucket List Update #2

My favorite season of the year. We’re diving into the spooky season and planning on soaking up all the fall fun.

1. Visit Vala’s 6x ✓

2. Celebrate Friendsgiving

3. Read 50 Books - in progress

4. Complete Spooky Movie Month ✓

5. Execute a Halloween Party for Coop ✓

6. Have an Art/Craft Day

7. Three State Park Visists ✓

8. Two Zoo Visits

9. Pick Out and Carve Pumpkins ✓

10. Go Trick-or-Treating ✓

11. Jump in a Pile of Leaves

12. Go Through a Corn Maze ✓

13. Make 5 Fall Recipes

14. Make Leaf Art ✓

15. Go Pick Apples ✓

16. Go on a 3 Fall Forest Hikes (2/3)

17. Make 3 Pumpkin Recipes

18. Go Bowling

19. Use our GetOut Pass 2 Times

20. Decorate for Fall ✓

Next up on the TBR pile:

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for the week:

• This week has been nonstop with activities. I need a break.

• Nic Cage November has been an interesting experiment. Slowly making our way through.

• Planning a very quiet very small reading weekend for February. There’s some cute options within 2 hours of here.

• I still need to clean out the clothes in my dresser. It’s been slow going.

Next up on the TBR pile: