Music Monday - The Warning "Money"

Digging this song lately.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Into the Windwracked Wilds by A. Deborah Baker

Title: Along the Saltwise Sea (The Up and Under #3)

Author: A. Deborah Baker

Publisher: Tordotcom 2022

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 224

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

When the improbable road leaves Avery and Zib in the land of Air and at the mercy of the Queen of Swords, escape without becoming monsters may be impossible. But with the aid of the Queen's son, the unpredictable Jack Daw, they may emerge with enough of their humanity to someday make it home. Their journey is not yet over; the dangers are no less great.

We continue on with Avery and Zib’s journey on the Improbable Road. Or more accurately, their journey after losing the Improbably Road. We finally get more information about Crow Girl’s past and specifically her making. And we get to meet some great new characters. The mosasaur was an intriguing “monster” lurking the sea. The Queen of Swords was suitable mercurial and cruel. But my favorite was Jack Daw. I loved seeing his interaction with the other characters and especially his explanations for the inner workings of The Up and Under. It looks like Jack Daw will continue with our misfit band for at least a little while. I am very excited to continue reading this series.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Stranger Diaries by Elly Griffiths

Title: The Stranger Diaries

Author: Elly Griffiths

Publisher: Mariner Books 2019

Genre: Mystery

Pages: 338

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

Clare Cassidy is no stranger to murder. A high school teacher specializing in the Gothic writer R. M. Holland, she even teaches a course on him. But when one of Clare’s colleagues is found dead, with a line from Holland’s iconic story “The Stranger” left by her body, Clare is horrified to see her life collide with her favorite literature.

The police suspect the killer is someone Clare knows. Unsure whom to trust, she turns to her diary, the only outlet for her suspicions and fears. Then one day she notices something odd. Writing that isn't hers, left on the page of an old diary:

Hallo Clare. You don’t know me.

Clare becomes more certain than ever: “The Stranger” has come to terrifying life. But can the ending be rewritten in time?

I heard about this one from a book recommendation list from my library. They described it as a spooky mystery with lots of atmosphere. There was definitely some atmosphere and a few spooky scenes, but that’s really it. The book just didn’t live up to what I was expecting it to me. I wanted to be very creeped out by the book. I wanted the potential haunted school and study to be more of a thing. I wanted something more to be made of the old ghost stories. In the end, this was a very boilerplate murder mystery involving a stalker. I wasn’t that excited when we get to the end. Clare was an okay narrator to follow. Georgie tended to be very annoying and naive in her narration. Understandable given her age, but still not what I wanted to read. And Harbinder was just so incredibly surly all the time that I didn’t really want to attempt to connect with her. A middle of the road mystery.

Next up on the TBR pile:

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers

Title: A Prayer for the Crown-Shy (Monk & Robot #2)

Author: Becky Chambers

Publisher: Tordotcom 2022

Genre: Science Fiction

Pages: 152

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Summer TBR

After touring the rural areas of Panga, Sibling Dex (a Tea Monk of some renown) and Mosscap (a robot sent on a quest to determine what humanity really needs) turn their attention to the villages and cities of the little moon they call home.

They hope to find the answers they seek, while making new friends, learning new concepts, and experiencing the entropic nature of the universe.

Becky Chambers's new series continues to ask: in a world where people have what they want, does having more even matter?

A lovely continuation of the explorations of Sibling Dex and Mosscap. This time we get to see Mosscap interact with a variety of humans and learn about different settlements. I loved seeing Mosscap get a bit of distance from the forest and move into more settled areas. My favorite section was actually the small chapter set on the coast. We get to learn more about the current state of the world as Dex explains how humans on the coastlines live. I was fascinated. And though it all, they discuss life and identity. I can’t wait until the next volume of their journey to the city.

Monk and Robot

#1 A Psalm for the Wild-Built
#2 A Prayer for the Crown-Shy

star-rating-remains-the-most-important-part-of-a-review-cad0047.cad0047.png

Next up on the TBR pile:

Currently #16

Reading: I grabbed an ebook of Sarah Gailey’s new book, Just Like Home. it was described as gothic horror, so of course, I needed to read it like now. I’m only about 40 pages in and the mystery has yet to really be revealed. But it definitely has a ton of atmosphere.

Watching: J and I are focusing on music documentaries and movie for September. We started watching Sonic Highways, one of the two docu-series done by the Foo Fighters. I’m loving this look at different music scenes and people around the country.

Listening: I’m finally catching up on my small backlog of Currently Reading podcast episodes.

Making: Working through my August Memory Planner pages. I’m hoping to stay on top of this throughout the end of this year.

Feeling: The boys and I are doing a weekend trip to Des Moines starting on Friday. We all want to go now. Unfortunately, we still have to get through today, Wednesday, and Thursday.

Planning: Slowly planning out the boys’ birthday party in early October. We’re doing a Knights of the Round Table theme.

Loving: Sometimes I want a bit of sweetness in my iced tea, but don’t really want proper sweet tea. So excited that Gold Peak sells Slightly Sweet Tea. So good!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Homeschool W5: Spontaneous Trips are Fun, but Also Tiring

What We Studied

We left the house every single day this week (again). This wee was the Nebraska State Fair and I randomly decided on Saturday to take the kids on Monday. The fair location in Grand Island is about a 2 hour drive from home. So we left the house early on Monday morning to spend the day at the fair. Fun, but my goodness, it was exhausting when you add on a lake trip on Tuesday, science on Wednesday, coop on Thursday, and a Fontenelle Forest trip on Friday. A full week of activities!

Literature and Poetry

Arthur finished reading Through the Looking-glass this week. He didn’t like the sequel as much as the first book, but we wanted to cover the two volumes before watching a movie version. He also has a weekly poetry selection. We continued our Myths and Maps extra curriculum from B&R. We began covering creation stories from around the world. I’m liking these short retellings of myths. Eventually we will add our squares to a world map and see where all the civilizations are. We continued our next book club selection, Word of Mouse. Trying to finish this coming week.

Through the Looking-glass and What Alice Found There by Lewis Carroll
Nat Geo Book of Nature Poetry
In the Beginning by Virginia Hamilton
Word of Mouse by James Patterson

Quentin covered some interesting books focused on Native American cultures. We also started sprinkling in animal stories from around the world. I’m trying to line them up with our continents as we move across the world.

Nat Geo Book of Animal Poetry
A World Full of Animal Stories by Angela McAllister
Around the World in 80 Days by Saviour Pirotta
We are Grateful / Otsaliheliga by Traci Sorell
A Boy Called Slow: The True Story of Sitting Bull by Jospeh Bruchac
Fry Bread by Kevin Noble Maillard

Math

For both boys, we have scheduled math for three days a week. One day is focused on logic, games, puzzles, and special projects. The two other days are focused on covering the main math curriculum (Singapore 4A and 4B for Arthur and Singapore 1A and 1B for Quentin). I also found a fun packet of logic puzzles based on Alice in Wonderland. We will be spreading these out over our reading of the text.

Logic Liftoff (Arthur)
Singapore 4A
Tinkeractive Math Kindergarten
Lollipop Logic Book 2 (Quentin)

Social Studies

Arthur skipped history this week in favor of science. No problem, we’ll pick up where we left off next week.

Quentin began his study of the world with Build Your Library Level 0. We did a study of the United States. To celebrate, we made s’mores.

Nat Geo Beginner’s World Atlas
DK Countries of the World
DK Children Just Like Me
DK Children Just Like Me; A School Like Mine

Arthur Independent Time

We are working on following a checklist in a planner for weekly independent work. There’s usually some math workbook pages, an ELA packet, weekly writing prompts (1-2 times a week), independent reading time, and a special creative project. Beyond the paperwork, Arthur focused on his game he’s been making (Lord of the Book) and some random side creative projects.

Science

Arthur is focusing on Physics this year. We are covering the text and related videos at home and then joining friends for experiments and extra projects. This week the boys learned about Newton’s Third Law of Motion and conversation of momentum. They had fun making balloon rockets for their challenge level.

RSO Physics
The Story of Science: Aristotle Leads the Way by Joy Hakim

Quentin will be focusing on animal science with BYL Level 0. We talked about animals of North America.

Nat Geo Wild Animal Atlas
DK Animal
Lonely Planet: The Animal Book

STEAM Coop

This was our first week post-closing registration. We have 21 families that have joined coop with a total of 38 students participating. We are just about at capacity! But I’m very excited about creating deeper bonds with everyone in coop. The older class continued their geology lessons this week with a focus on weathering and erosion. The younger two classes learned about fungi. Quentin was super excited to paint with mushrooms.

Art/Music/Crafts/Cooking

We’re planning one doing on art project and one cooking project each week as well as picking a composer or musician to listen to and enjoy. This week, art and music just didn’t happen. But that’s okay. This is why I have built in flex weeks to catch up on some of the things that get pushed aside during a normal week.

For our cooking, Quentin made s’mores. Pretty basic for the U.S., but it was tasty. Next week’s Mexico menu will be better.

Field Trip

Our actual field trip was Friday’s visit to Fontenelle Forest. All the kids were tasked with spotting mushrooms along our hike. We found many different kinds and took tons of pictures. Of course the kids had to play at the playground after our walk and have a picnic before seeing the birds at Raptor Rescue.

High

The State Fair was an experience! The boys are already asking if we can go next year. Only 360 days to wait…

Low

So many activities meant that we are a bit behind on our book work. We’ll catch up (that’s why I build in flex weeks), but I’m not a fan of feeling behind.

Next Week

Starting an ELA read aloud and a History read aloud (A)
Learning about Native American cultures of the West Coast (A)
Moving on to Friction for Physics (A)
Reading some animal stories (Q)
Covering Mexico (Q)
Covering geology (A) and fungi (Q) for coop - last week for geology (and me teaching!)
Introducing the art of John Singleton Copley?
Finishing Word of Mouse for coop book club
Listening to Bach

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - Rain City Drive "Blood Runs Cold"

I didn’t realize that I liked this band as much as I do.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

Title: The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry

Author: Gabrielle Zevin

Publisher: Algonquin Books 2014

Genre: Fiction

Pages: 260

Rating: 2/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

A. J. Fikry’s life is not at all what he expected it to be. He lives alone, his bookstore is experiencing the worst sales in its history, and now his prized possession, a rare collection of Poe poems, has been stolen. But when a mysterious package appears at the bookstore, its unexpected arrival gives Fikry the chance to make his life over--and see everything anew.

Definitely not my book. I should have known that anything labeled “sweet” was probably not going to appeal to my reading tastes. I was interested with the first two chapters, but then things went downhill immediately. Too many cutesy coincidences. Too many sweet interactions. Too many heartwarming conversations. I was rolling my eyes throughout the entire book. Curmudgeon characters are not my thing. I dislike when terminal diseases are used to pull at the heart-strings. I was not a fan of the weird time jumps. Overall, I very much disliked this book.

Next up on the TBR pile:

City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab

Title: City of Ghosts (Cassidy Blake #1)

Author: Victoria Schwab

Publisher: Scholastic 2018

Genre: MG Fantasy

Pages: 285

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

Ever since Cass almost drowned (okay, she did drown, but she doesn't like to think about it), she can pull back the Veil that separates the living from the dead . . . and enter the world of spirits. Her best friend is even a ghost.So things are already pretty strange. But they're about to get much stranger.When Cass's parents start hosting a TV show about the world's most haunted places, the family heads off to Edinburgh, Scotland. Here, graveyards, castles, and secret passageways teem with restless phantoms. And when Cass meets a girl who shares her "gift," she realizes how much she still has to learn about the Veil -- and herself.And she'll have to learn fast. The city of ghosts is more dangerous than she ever imagined.#1 NYT bestselling author Victoria Schwab delivers a thrillingly spooky and action-packed tale of hauntings, history, mystery, and the bond between friends (even if that friend is a ghost . . .).

A lovely blend of spooky and friendship. Right away, we’re dropped into Cassidy’s world of ghosts; We don’t get all the answers in this volume, but we certainly start to uncover the secrets. With Jacob and some new friends, we get a bit more information about living in the world between the living and the dead. I loved the entire setup of Cass’s family right down to the cat Grim. Once we get to Edinburgh the story starts moving quickly and doesn’t let up. I loved the various locales and descriptions. I do so wish to visit Edinburgh at some point in my life. I would love to see the Old Town and the Castle. And maybe I will see some ghosts while there. There are definitely some great spooky scenes involving lots of child ghosts and the Raven. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.

Cassidy Blake

#1 City of Ghosts
#2 Tunnel of Bones
#3 Bridge of Souls

Next up on the TBR pile:

September 2022 Life Goals

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

Read 18 Books ✓
Kick off the Coop for the Fall Semester ✓
Make 4 Recipes for Our 52 Deserts - I fell a bit short with only two recipes.
Visit the zoo once ✓
Visit two state parks ✓

September Goals:

Read 18 Books
Have a Fun Weekend in Des Moines
Complete Music Movies and Documentary Month
Plan the Boys’ Birthday Party

Next up on the TBR pile:

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for the week:

Okay, it’s officially September. Let’s cut the 90 degree days please…
Returning almost all my library books feels really good. I’m trying to dive into my own shelves for the next two months.
Only one more week of teaching coop for me. I’m almost done with the big geology unit.
I need to put the final touches on our trip to Des Moines next week. Saturday’s plans are still up in the air.

Next up on the TBR pile:

August 2022 Wrap

August TBR Pile (20/26):

BOTM: TBD
Bookworms BC: Already read
Friend BC: Pachinko by Lee Min-Jin ✓
Friend BC: Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley ✓
Currently Reading Buddy Read: The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles ✓
Currently Reading Buddy Read: The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K Le Guin ✓
Currently Reading Buddy Read: Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
Jane Austen: Sense and Sensibility
Fantasy: A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas ✓
Fantasy: Hotel Magnifique by Emily J. Taylor ✓
Fantasy: The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake ✓
Horror: The Fervor by Alma Katsu
Horror: Hide by Kiersten White ✓
Romance: Dirty Rowdy Thing by Christina Lauren ✓
Historical Fiction: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
Kid Read Aloud: The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall ✓
Kid Read Aloud: Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (Arthur’s selection) ✓
Kid Read Aloud: The Very Very Far North by Dan Bar-El (Quentin’s selection) ✓
Kid Read Aloud: The Beast of Buckingham Palace by David Walliam ✓
Poetry: Inheritance by Elizabeth Acevedo ✓
Science Fiction: Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots ✓
Comics: Lore Olympus Vol. 2 ✓
Added: The Mermaid by Christina Henry ✓
Added: The Palace Papers by Tina Brown ✓
Added: Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak ✓
Added: Dark Wild Night by Christina Lauren ✓

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 7578 pages
Pages Remaining: 387,247 pages

Current Read -

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books Bought/Received (1)

My BOTM selection this month was Small Angels by Lauren Owen. It was described as gothic fiction. Hope it lives up to the name.

UnRead Shelf Progress

Starting Number: 329
Books Read: 0
Books Acquired: 1
Books Unshelved: 0
Finishing Number: 330

September TBR Pile: I returned all my library books and am going to focus on reading books from my shelfs for this month (and into October). I want to get the number on my unread shelf below 300 by the end of the year. I can do this!

Bookworms BC: The Storied Life of AJ Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin (library)
Bookworms BC: The Book of Cold Cases by Simone St. James
Friend BC: Garlic and Sapphires by Ruth Reichl
Friend BC: The Midwife’s Revolt by Jodi Daynard
Nerdy Bookish Friends BC: Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
Jane Austen: Sense and Sensibility
Fantasy: The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry
Fantasy: Into the Windwracked Winds by A. Deborah Baker
Fantasy: Ariadne by Jennifer Saint
Fantasy: City of Ghosts by VE Schwab (library)
Fantasy: A Prayer for the Crown-shy by Becky Chambers (library)
Mystery: A Curious Beginning by Deanna Rayburn
Mystery: The Stranger Diaries by Elly Griffiths (library)
Romance: The Heiress Gets a Duke by Harper St. George
Romance: Wicked Sexy Liar by Christina Lauren (library)
Historical Fiction: I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
Thriller: Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey (library)
Horror: The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (library)
Science Fiction: The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson
Science Fiction: Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi
Science Fiction: The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. by Neal Stephenson
Nonfiction: The 1619 Project edited by Nikole Hannah-Jones
Nonfiction: Stamped from the Beginning by Ibram X Kendi
Nonfiction: Share Your Stuff, I’ll Go First by Laura Tremaine
Poetry: The Girl and the Goddess by Nikita Gill
Kid Read Aloud: Through the Looking-glass and What Alice Found There by Lewis Carroll
Kid Read Aloud: Word of Mouse by James Patterson

Movies watched

Ghost in the Shell - J was surprised that I had never seen this one. Interesting anime set-up.
Day Shift - Our fun movie for the month. All about see Snoop Dogg take on some vampires.
Persuasion (2022) - Goodness, that was not the book at all. I might have liked it as a separate story, but that was not my Anne Elliott.

TV Shows watched

Only Murders in the Building S2 - Still really loving this show.
The Umbrella Academy S3 - Finally started this season. Klaus and Five are still my favorites.
The Sandman - Oh goodness, that was absolutely gorgeous. Loved it so much!
Loot S1 - That was entertaining. Hope it gets a second season.
What We Do in the Shadows S3 - Love this show so much!
Below Deck: Down Under S1 - Still watching during the occasional lunch hour.
The Bachelorette - Blergh. I love Gabby, but this season has done her dirty.
Little Demon S1 - We love Danny DeVito, so of course we are going to watch this one.
Lower Decks S3
The Orville S3

Comments -

Next up on the TBR pile:

A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas

Title: A Court of Wings and Ruin (ACOTAR #3)

Author:Sarah J. Maas

Publisher: Bloomsbury 2017

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 705

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

Feyre has returned to the Spring Court, determined to gather information on Tamlin’s actions and learn what she can about the invading king threatening to bring her land to its knees. But to do so she must play a deadly game of deceit. One slip could bring doom not only for Feyre, but for everything―and everyone―she holds dear.

As war bears down upon them all, Feyre endeavors to take her place amongst the High Fae of the land, balancing her struggle to master her powers―both magical and political―and her love for her court and family. Amidst these struggles, Feyre and Rhysand must decide whom to trust amongst the cunning and lethal High Lords, and hunt for allies in unexpected places.

Goodness! That was a chunker of a book. There was so much packed in this volume of the series. I almost would have liked to see this book split into two volumes. I kept hurtling along the plot adding in more and more elements of the larger game. Overall, I enjoyed the story and loved seeing how the fight against Hybern ended. I loved the portions about Feyre and Rhys connecting and coming into their partnership as High Lord and High Lady. I was less enthused by Nesta and Elain. A lot of their story seems to move very slowly and be very drawn out in the pages. Some cuts would have been nice. It was loads of fun to see all the people arrive at the final battler (sorta like that whole scene in The Two Tower, so good). I especially loved the inclusion of the Weaver, the Bone Carver, and Bryaxis. Fascinating to see them as they really were. And obviously we have now set up the next book in the series. I enjoyed this volume even if it took me what seemed like years to read it.

A Court of Throns and Roses

#1 A Court of Thorns and Roses
#2 A Court of Mist and Fury
#3 A Court of Wings and Ruin
#3.5 A Court of Frost and Starlight
#4 A Court of Silver Flames

Next up on the TBR pile:

Homeschool W4: A Week of Daily Activities!

What We Studied

We left the house every single day this week. Exhausting! But we had a great time exploring some places.

Literature and Poetry

Arthur started reading Through the Looking-glass this week. We hope to finish next week so we can watch one (or two) movie versions of Alice. He also has a weekly poetry selection. We continued our Myths and Maps extra curriculum from B&R. We began covering creation stories from around the world. I’m liking these short retellings of myths. Eventually we will add our squares to a world map and see where all the civilizations are. We started our next book club selection, Word of Mouse, and will probably finish late next week.

Through the Looking-glass and What Alice Found There by Lewis Carroll
Nat Geo Book of Nature Poetry
In the Beginning by Virginia Hamilton
Word of Mouse by James Patterson

Quentin finished reading The Very Very Far North for his read aloud. We are to going to take a break from a long read aloud book in favor of some picture books for the next few weeks.. We also started sprinkling in animal stories from around the world. I’m trying to line them up with our continents as we move across the world.

Nat Geo Book of Animal Poetry
The Very Very Far North by Dan Bar-El
A World Full of Animal Stories by Angela McAllister
Around the World in 80 Days by Saviour Pirotta
Biscuit and the Great Fall Day by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (Q reads)
You are a Beautiful Beginning by Nina Laden

Math

Logic Liftoff (Arthur)
Singapore 4A
Alice in Pastaland: A Math Adventure by Alexandra Wright
Tinkeractive Math Kindergarten
Lollipop Logic Book 2 (Quentin)

Social Studies

Arthur continued his large study of United States history using a combination of Build Your Library Level 5 and History Quest United States History. We did a bit more exploration of the various groups of Native Americans. Arthur also continued reading a graphic novel collections of Native American tales as part of his independent work.

A Kid’s Guide to Native American History by Yvonne Wakim Dennis
An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
The Earth Under Sky Bear’s Feet: Native American Poems of the Land by Joseph Bruchac
Turtle Island: The Story of North America’s First People by Eldon Yellowhorn and Kathy Lowinger
What the Eagle Sees: Indigenous Stories of Rebellion and Renewal by Eldon Yellowhorn and Kathy Lowinger
Trickster: Native American Tales by Matt Dembicki
History Quest: U.S. History

Quentin began his study of the world with Build Your Library Level 0. We did a study of Canada complete with a Canada food night. We had Maple Chicken, Wild Rice, Bannock Bread, and Blueberry Crisp. I had saved a Sunnie Press map featuring Banff, Alberta, Canada that was perfect for the week.

Nat Geo Beginner’s World Atlas
DK Countries of the World
DK First Earth Encyclopedia
DK Children Just Like Me
DK Children Just Like Me; A School Like Mine
Carson Crosses Canada by Linda Bailey Kass Reich
Canada ABCs by Brenda Haugen
Follow Me Around Canada by Wiley Blevins
Canada through Time: Canada Today

Must stop for Ted & Wally’s if downtown anywhere… Cookie Monster, Lemon, and Sour Apple choices.

Arthur Independent Time

Science

Arthur is focusing on Physics this year. We are covering the text and related videos at home and then joining friends for experiments and extra projects. This week the boys learned about Newton’s Second Law of Motion. Their engineering project was to make a solar powered windmill. For our history of science, we read a chapter more about the Greeks and the three “A”s.

RSO Physics
The Story of Science: Aristotle Leads the Way by Joy Hakim

Quentin will be focusing on animal science with BYL Level 0. We talked about animals of North America.

Nat Geo Wild Animal Atlas
DK Animal
Lonely Planet: The Animal Book

I promise that they had fun. Just ridiculous facial expressions.

STEAM Coop

Coop continued with a slightly smaller group (thank goodness). We had a great week where the older kids learned about minerals and gems. They got to dig for their own gems. Simple, and yet, loads of fun. The younger groups finished their theme of reptiles and amphibians. Quentin make a frog and frog life cycle.

Art/Music/Crafts/Cooking

Thursday as a bit of a slog and we didn’t make it to art class. But I put it as a definite for next week.

Field Trip

On Monday, I grabbed a library pass for The Durham Museum so we could check out the dinosaur exhibit before it closes on Sept. 4th. We had to go through that particular section three times before we moved on to the rest of the museum. This visit, the boys really got interested in checking out the 1898 Exposition models.

On Tuesday, we had a coop field trip to Heron Haven to spy animals (specifically reptiles and amphibians). We ended up seeing a heron, lots of ducks, turtles, and some frogs. I loved spying the frogs in the algae on the pond.

High

Tween Gaming - On Friday, we met some other homeschoolers at a local game shop and played some games. I was impressed by the variety of games they stock (that I’ve never heard of). We ended up buying Pokemon: Battle Academy. The shop has open Pokemon play on Sunday afternoons. We will have to check it out soon.
Family Trivia Night - Tuesday night, we headed over to the cafe/bar for General Trivia night. We had fun, but ultimately came in second. It was still fun.

Low

Um… there was a bit of bickering between the boys this week and we had to separate often.

Next Week

Finishing the sequel to Alice in Wonderland (A)
Learning about Native American cultures of the West Coast (A)
Moving on to Newton’s Third Law for Physics (A)
Reading some animal stories (Q)
Covering United States and Mexico (Q)
Covering geology (A) and fungi (Q) for coop
Introducing the art of John Singleton Copley?
Finishing Word of Mouse for coop book club
Listening to Bach
Going to the Nebraska State Fair!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - Sleeping with Sirens feat. Spencer Chamberlain "Crosses"

I rediscovered Sleeping with Sirens and I am totally in love with their new music.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Dark Wild Night by Christina Lauren

Title: Dark Wild Night (Wild Seasons #3)

Author: Christina Lauren

Publisher: Gallery Books 2015

Genre: Romance

Pages: 358

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Summer TBR

WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS STAYS IN VEGAS. BUT WHAT DIDN’T HAPPEN IN VEGAS SEEMS TO FOLLOW THEM EVERYWHERE—Book Three in the sexy, fun New York Times bestselling Wild Seasons series that began with Sweet Filthy Boy (the Romantic Times Book of the Year) and Dirty Rowdy Thing.

Lola and Oliver like to congratulate themselves on having the good sense not to consummate their drunken Las Vegas marriage. If they’d doubled-down on that mistake, their Just Friends situation might not be half as great as it is now.

…Or so goes the official line.

In reality, Lola’s wanted Oliver since day one—and over time has only fallen harder for his sexy Aussie accent and easygoing ability to take her as she comes. More at home in her studio than in baring herself to people, Lola’s instinctive comfort around Oliver nearly seems too good to be true. So why ruin a good thing?

Even as geek girls fawn over him, Oliver can’t get his mind off what he didn’t do with Lola when he had the chance. He knows what he wants with her now…and it’s far outside the friend zone. When Lola’s graphic novel starts getting national acclaim—and is then fast-tracked for a major motion picture—Oliver steps up to be there for her whenever she needs him. After all, she’s not the kind of girl who likes all that attention, but maybe she’s the kind who’ll eventually like him.

Sometimes seeing what’s right in front of us takes a great leap of faith. And sometimes a dark wild night in Vegas isn’t just the end of a day, but the beginning of a bright new life…

We finally get to Oliver and Lola’s story and I ended up being a bit disappointed. I had loved Oliver from the first scenes with him in the first book. I wanted to see him get his great romantic story. I loved the first 60% of this book. I understand Lola’s hesitation and Oliver’s need for communication. The steamy scenes were super steamy and thoroughly enjoyable. But then Lola has her freakout and I was so incredibly disappointed in her behavior and actions. I wanted her to be better. By the end of the book, Oliver and Lola get back to together, but I really wanted to see more from their relationship. I even wanted to see more of Lola’s career scenes. It like this book was about 50 pages too short for me.

Wild Seasons

#1 Sweet Filthy Boy
#2 Dirty Rowdy Thing
#3 Dark Wild Night
#4 Wicked Sexy Liar

Next up on the TBR pile:

Life Right Now #26

As I look outside my window: It’s pretty windy outside which is different.

Right now I am: About to head out to the deck for my Sunday morning reading and coffee.

Thinking and pondering: What supplies am I forgetting for coop this week? I completely changed the plan and now I’m a bit adrift.

On my bedside table: The Storied Life of AJ Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin; Wicked Sexy Liar by Christina Lauren

On my tv this week: We finished this season of Only Murders in the Building S2 and The Outlaws S2. Lower Decks is back and we’re loving it!

Listening to: All my podcasts. I caught up on Maintenance Phase and have almost finished Mother Country Radicals.

On the menu for this week:

Monday - Veg Edible Dinner Choice
Tuesday - Veg Edible Dinner Choice
Wednesday - Leftovers
Thursday - Veg Edible Dinner Choice
Friday - Veg Edible Dinner Choice
Saturday - Pulled Pork Sandwiches
Sunday - Seafood Night

On my to do list: I have some planning to do for our Des Moines trip and the boys’ birthday party,

Happening this week:

Monday - Nebraska State Fair!
Tuesday - Louisville State Recreation Area for swimming
Wednesday - Science with Katy
Thursday - Coop; Art Class
Friday - Fontenelle Forest Field Trip
Saturday - Home Day
Sunday - Coop Book Club

What I am creating: I started working on August’s Memory Planner pages yesterday.

My simple pleasures:

Looking around the house:

From the camera: During our gaming session, we played this fun game. It’s kind of like Dominos. We’re going to have to pick this one up soon.

Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley

Title: Firekeeper’s Daughter

Author: Angeline Boulley

Publisher: Henry, Holt and Co. 2021

Genre: YA Fantasy

Pages: 496

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

Eighteen-year-old Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in, both in her hometown and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. She dreams of a fresh start at college, but when family tragedy strikes, Daunis puts her future on hold to look after her fragile mother. The only bright spot is meeting Jamie, the charming new recruit on her brother Levi’s hockey team.

Yet even as Daunis falls for Jamie, she senses the dashing hockey star is hiding something. Everything comes to light when Daunis witnesses a shocking murder, thrusting her into an FBI investigation of a lethal new drug.

Reluctantly, Daunis agrees to go undercover, drawing on her knowledge of chemistry and Ojibwe traditional medicine to track down the source. But the search for truth is more complicated than Daunis imagined, exposing secrets and old scars. At the same time, she grows concerned with an investigation that seems more focused on punishing the offenders than protecting the victims.

Now, as the deceptions—and deaths—keep growing, Daunis must learn what it means to be a strong Anishinaabe kwe (Ojibwe woman) and how far she’ll go for her community, even if it tears apart the only world she’s ever known.

I finally got around to reading this one for our book club selection and it was not quite what I was expecting. And yet, I really really loved it! We open with Daunis navigating life between her the two sides of her family. We dive right into Daunis’s life and then start to unravel her identity. I loved how Boulley mixes native words into English to recreate Daunis’s actual speech. I learned so much about Ojibwa culture and life in modern America. Just those portions created a beautiful book. And then, we get the larger mystery revealed in big bursts. I was on pins and needles waiting to see how everything would play out. I ended up speeding through the book in just a few days. It was emotional and hopeful at the same time.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Palace Papers by Tina Brown

Title: The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor - the Truth and the Turmoil

Author: Tina Brown

Publisher: Crown Publishing Group 2022

Genre: Nonfiction

Pages: 571

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Summer TBR

“Never again” became Queen Elizabeth II’s mantra shortly after Princess Diana’s tragic death. More specifically, there could never be “another Diana”—a member of the family whose global popularity upstaged, outshone, and posed an existential threat to the British monarchy.

Picking up where Tina Brown’s masterful The Diana Chronicles left off, The Palace Papers reveals how the royal family reinvented itself after the traumatic years when Diana’s blazing celebrity ripped through the House of Windsor like a comet.

Brown takes readers on a tour de force journey through the scandals, love affairs, power plays, and betrayals that have buffeted the monarchy over the last twenty-five years. We see the Queen’s stoic resolve after the passing of Princess Margaret, the Queen Mother, and Prince Philip, her partner for seven decades, and how she triumphs in her Jubilee years even as family troubles rage around her. Brown explores Prince Charles’s determination to make Camilla Parker Bowles his wife, the tension between William and Harry on “different paths,” the ascendance of Kate Middleton, the downfall of Prince Andrew, and Harry and Meghan’s stunning decision to step back as senior royals. Despite the fragile monarchy’s best efforts, “never again” seems fast approaching.

Tina Brown has been observing and chronicling the British monarchy for three decades, and her sweeping account is full of powerful revelations, newly reported details, and searing insight gleaned from remarkable access to royal insiders. Stylish, witty, and erudite, The Palace Papers will irrevocably change how the world perceives and understands the royal family.

Wow! That was quite a chunker that I didn’t quite realize until after I started reading. Before starting this book, I knew some about the royal family, but definitely would not call myself a royal watcher in any sense. Once diving in, I learned so much about the family. It’s fairly funny that I thought this would either be complete takedown of the family or a glowing portrait of them. It is neither. In fact, we get to see all the ups and downs of the family. In turns, I felt outrage at the obtuseness of the various royals when it came to how their actions hurt others. But I also felt sympathy toward them for the trials they endured, especially the outlandish attacks from the press. I now have a much more complete picture of the various royal family members.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for the week:

Four weeks into our homeschooling year and need to reassess our schedules. I think I need to tweak a few things to help me to not get overwhelmed.
Finally watched the new Persuasion and it’s definitely not the book. Decent overall movie, but not the Anne from the book.
Ordered a meal prep box from a local chef that features vegan and gluten free dishes. The cost is just about what we spend at the grocery store. I’m very excited. I have had some of her desserts and they were most delicious.
I need some new lightweight pajamas…
Very glad that the open house period of coop is over. That was exhausting. Now we get to see who else (if anyone) joins before September 1st.

Next up on the TBR pile: