Things That Fly

This little guy would certainly fly, if he could!

I was thrilled to capture such a fun photo:)

In fact, he flies around here most days...buzzing like a bee, not so much in a hurry to land any where...Or any time for that matter:)  Moving at a rapid speed of any kind of play is his game.  And that's the perfect life for an eight (soon to be nine) year old.

I'm trying to remember these things, appreciate these things, the simple things, that make me smile as I watch another thing fly by...

*TIME*

Where has my baby gone?

She'll be 5 soon.

How did we gain another teen so quickly?...

High School next year!

And my oldest child will be 20 this year (yikes)!

Which reminds me to cherish "oldest/youngest" moments like these:)

I know it sounds cliche but it's still worth repeating and reminding myself over and over again. Like the wind that blows, time flies...."Enjoy the moment, each moment," I tell myself.

Well, yes I did...for once!

We did it....

The weather beckoned and we went!

I'm not always good at this.  In fact, I'm terrible at being spontaneous, especially without my husband.  That being said, I always welcome help in this area:) College boy was home to encourage and prod so we did it...Dad was working so the rest of us packed up at the spur of the moment and headed out for a hike, not sure where we'd end up!

That's SO not-like-me the "master planner":)

After option A failed, we ended up here, a couple of hours from home, just outside of San Francisco at the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge.  There's an old Army Fort to explore and some foot paths a long the Bay and up in the hills (headlands) that lend these amazing views on a clear day. 

I feel a little guilty showing off this glorious weather that we've been having. *wink*

Don't get me wrong, it hasn't been all that warm...Most mornings we are scraping the ice from our windshields before Mass.

Chilly and all, it sure has been stunningly, clear and bright around here.

I'm not a photographer, by any means, but I had fun capturing some interesting shots!

I sent this one (above) to my son and said "Your future looks bright!"

Love this one in the tunnel too...

Can I just say that I love being outdoors.

I am restless until I get there.

It draws me out of my rigid routine,

promising freedom as God draws me to Himself in His natural world.

All spirits renewed!

College boy is back to his Texas college now.

 We sure enjoyed having him home for a whole month!

Feeling blessed, I look toward the horizon with peace...Waiting for the next moment to seize, watching carefully for things that fly!

Animals, Art, and Hair That Sticks Out

I always enjoy hearing tid-bits about how other family homeschools operate.  Sometimes we can learn new things, just from a little detail here and there so I thought I'd share one of my discoveries.  Over time, I have found it most successful when we study our science and social studies, one subject at a time, over a week's period. (This would be instead of trying to do both subjects in the same week)

Our daily mornings include math and language arts, ideally finishing at lunch time.  Then we rotate weeks for science and social studies in the afternoons.  Sometimes I will also devote a week to a particular writing assignment if we need more time than our regular mornings.

Soooo...

This week was science week!

One of my sisters was visiting this week from Oregon.  Her husband was away on business so we got to spend some fun time with her and my niece, plus new baby on the way:)

One of my favorite things about homeschooling is the flexibility, not just with scheduling, but also with subject matter and curriculum.  For example, yesterday we combined an afternoon of science AND art.

Sound like an odd combination?

Hey, it worked and it was so much fun...even for this Mama who struggles with finding science much fun*wink*

This Wildlife Center has been on our "science bucket list" and our Princess (who loves animals) has been dying to check it out!

It's primarily a refuge for injured, sick, or abandoned wild animals.  

We met Bella, the Red Fox...

who quickly became a favorite!  She was quite lively and definitely interested in us. What a friendly fox:)

Skunkie the Skunk...

who UNkindly sprayed us with her stinky perfume.  Can you believe that got captured on film?  Look at that thick and smelly fog...P-U!  She didn't like us gawking at her one little bit:)

This was a beautiful barn owl...whose name I forget:(

But the highlight was Fizzle the Squirrel who rolled around in this plastic ball.  Everywhere we went, he'd follow us!  The littles got the biggest kick out of him:)

Afterwards, we headed home for an art project tying into our field trip.

It was perfect timing that we had recently re-discovered an art book that held instructions for drawing the same animals we had just met at the Wildlife Center.

The art came alive because of our personal encounter with the animals!

 Later on we also spent time looking into habitats and information about the animals we learned about here.

The latter part of the week was spent studying static electricity with the youngers and all of the fun ways that electrons work...Always Fun Good review for Mama too:)

Hair that sticks out is always a hit!

You should see MY hair in the morning...I don't even need a balloon to make it stick up or out, nor can science explain it!

Do you have any tid-bits to share?

Attitude of Gratitude

Is it just me or does it feel like the Earth is spinning at a faster rate than ever before?

I just can't seem to keep up with "everything" that I used to...

There is so much to do in the home, so much to do at church, so much to do outside the home, so much to do to prepare our souls for eternity, so much to do, period.

Lately, it's been getting the best of me and those overwhelming clouds of gloom set in...Darkness ensues.

How quickly I forget the simple cure...An Attitude of Gratitude...A light begins to flicker.

One of the evening prayers from last week (Magnificat) reminded me that the central core of our Christian spirituality consists of an attitude of thankfulness and gratitude that we owe for God's faithful love.  The central core part really struck home.  I have always known the importance of thankfulness but I can't say that I have thought about it exactly in that way...the central core of my faith.  I may be revealing my ignorance but I do so at the expense of my own self pride...Not a bad thing to expose and weed out:) And so I ask myself how do I "do" this two-sided coin as the central core of my life?  (1.Turning to God in Thanksgiving and 2. Doing for others what has been done for us)? 

I was reflecting on all of this as we took the opportunity to go on a field trip this week.

I love field trips!

~Mission San Juan Bautista~

15th California Mission

This mission was named after St. John the Baptist since it was founded on his feast day.  It was built in less than 6 months, which was record-breaking speed.  This shed new light on my whining about "so much to do."  I began to imagine the hard physical labor that went into these adobe structures and suddenly my own work seemed dull in comparison.  I just love how God provides us a new perspective, just when we need it most!  Field trips and a little sunshine have a neat way of providing fresh perspectives too:)

It was a glorious day for a little time out.  Did I tell you I just love field trips?  One of my favorite things about homeschooling is the freedom to "go see it" after reading or studying about something.   I think it's especially fun, when studying your State's history.  It's always a bonus when we have the whole place to ourselves on a Tuesday...We gave thanks for the beautiful sunshine, a cool breeze, and peaceful setting.

I am particularly fascinated by the history of the California Missions so I think our family has actually seen most of them...Out of the 21 Missions, I think we are only lacking visits to 2-3!

~I love this Mission garden...

Each arbor contained a Station of the Cross~

We were joined by the local mission chickens and cats, who both live peacefully together, by the way.

Isn't this a beautiful walk for an outdoor Stations of the Cross?

Most of the time we try to take field trips as a family. Due to other circumstances this time, I just took the 2 elementary kids.  It was different with just the 3 of us but it ended up being great quality time!  We all really enjoyed it:)

I loved this rustic Cross...The best reminder to be thankful.

I thank you, Lord, with all my heart,

you have heard the words of my mouth.

In the presence of the angels I will bless you.

I will adore before your holy temple.

I thank you for your faithfulness and love

which excel all we ever knew of you.

On the day I called, you answered;

you increased the strength of my soul.

This Mission has one of the largest churches with 3 aisles, instead of 1 and is still an active Parish.  It was a bonus and joy to pray before the tabernacle on very old and hallowed grounds.  We should always be reminded that "Eucharist" is the Greek word for "Thanksgiving."

We enjoyed finding the animal prints on the church floor tiles.  As the clay tiles baked in the sun before they were laid in the church, a few friendly animals made their "mark."

This cross marked the spot of the last Native American to pass on from the local tribe.

Thankful for all those who have gone before us, marked by the Christian faith.

The views of the farm land were glorious from this perch.

Now thank we all our God,

with heart and hands and voices, 

Who wondrous things has done,

in whom this world rejoices;

Who from our mother's arms

has blessed us on our way

With countless gifts of love,

and still is ours today.

O may this bounteous God

through all our life be near us,

With ever joyful hearts

and blessed peace to cheer us;

And keep us in his grace,

and guide us in distress;

And free us from all sin,

till heaven we possess.

The field trip for the kids turned out to be a field trip for my spirit.

I shall continue to work on thankfulness as the central core of my spirituality...

Especially on days that I collapse into bed at night, worn out and exhausted from the dealings of the day;

Even when I can barely make it through the Apostles Creed of my nightly Rosary;

Despite the Earth that spins faster than I can keep up,

an attitude of gratitude keeps the fire burning in my soul,

saving me from the snares of myself,

keeping my eyes fixed on the light... the porch light of heaven.

"Be THANKFUL. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly."

Colossians 3:15

Tiptoe Through The Tulips

We wrapped up our plant study this week with a field trip to a local Tulip Farm!

There are rows and rows of 650,000 planted tulips here!  Isn't that amazing?

Some of them were almost as tall as Angel Princess.  These were her favorite...Yep, pink is her favorite color.

There were beautiful blooming blossoms as far as we could see.

Princess liked the bright yellow tulips the best.

There were sticker bushes to protect the tulips from insects...and humans! So we truly DID tiptoe through the tulips, careful to stay on the dirt path.

The boys didn't stop much to smell the flowers...

But they liked this cool tractor!

The bright colors were captivating to me!

I'm certainly no shutterbug, taking all of these pictures with my iphone...

My guess is that this would be a photographer's paradise!

The tulips are on the tail end of their "bloom" but we still thought they were pretty spectacular.

We took some of these home since they were Lenten in color!

It was great fun (and a good excuse) to spend time with our friends that we don't get to see very often.

All kids got their exercise in the bright sun and fresh air today, not to mention the glorious Tiptoe Through The Tulips!

We took 3 bunches home for $20.  I thought that was a very good price...I felt guilty keeping them all to myself so I went back today and bought some more to give away.  The owners of this farm donate all cut tulips (not purchased) to Senior Citizen Care Homes...That just warmed my heart. They are certainly a good dose of cheer around our house and make for perfect almsgiving.  Wish I could share some with all of you!

These are the Lenten purple ones we chose for the family dinner table.

It was hard for me to get a good picture with the light from this window.  These are pink, chosen by you-know-who...We are looking forward to watching them unfold in their splendor.

And yellow for the dining room.

My pictures really don't do their beauty much justice at all.

But regardless of the photo quality, I humbly thank God for this day to marvel in His wondrous works.  It was a blessing to take a little time to Tiptoe Through His Tulips.