Zoo...

We went to the zoo with our Funschooler friends today! We always have a great time and being with friends is always fun! We walked around in a big group and we actually got to see a lot of the animals today!

Sea World...

We went to Sea World tonight. It was the first time we went at night with the kids and they LOVED it! Ben and Corey went on the Journey to Atlantis ride and didn't get as wet as they thought they might. We went around and got to enjoy the park with all the holiday decorations up. We walked around but didn't see very many animals, the dolphins (Rebekah's favorite) were closed for the night as were some others. We waited in line for the Skytower (another first for our kids). The view was awesome and we could see for miles! Then we walked over and watched the holiday Shamu show. Hannah kept jumping up and down in joy exclaiming that this was the best night she's ever had! I agree it was a fun night!

watching the sharks

jumping in the snow

snow slide

in line under the lights

Halloween...

As we did last year, we trick-or-treated in a nearby neighborhood with friends. The kids ended up with so much loot that it will take them weeks to eat it all. Ben and Noah were Mario and Luigi this year, Hannah went as a witch and Rebekah was a little bee , though the outfit wasn't on for this picture. Friends Jenna, Paige and Nathan are also in the picture :)

Harry...

We are watching Harry for a good part of the summer and it's been a blast! The kids run around and play all day. They move from one room to the next with their games, then run wild outside or swim in the pool. Everyone is tired out by the end of the day but they are really enjoying themselves. Each night each child asks "will Harry be here tomorrow?" even on the weekends. We will miss him when he goes back to school but we will treasure our time with him this summer.

Here they are all eating breakfast together.

Lima beans...

We have a nice sized teepee trellis growing lima beans. I built it last year with some bamboo and the beans have been growing since! We have eaten them raw and steamed them, they were sweet and don't taste anything like the ones in the store.

I let a bunch of them dry out on the vine and recruited my littlest helper to shuck them. She did an awesome job! We picked them all off the vines and I spotted new ones growing. I suspect that we will have lima beans to eat in a few weeks. I didn't think that beans were supposed to grow in the same spot in succession but I guess I was wrong! I just never got around to pulling them out and planting something else! Anyway, Rebekah is such a wonderful helper, we shucked them all and got 2 1/2 pounds of beans! Nice :)

Eggs...

A few months ago we got chickens. We bought 6 chicks, 4 of them will lay dark brown eggs (a 'terra cotta' color) and 2 of them are Easter Eggers which lay green-ish blue eggs. The lady we bought them from said that they would start laying around now. At the same time, a friend of ours needed to move out of their home and they needed a space for their 8 hens and coop. I told them that if they wanted, we could take them for them. That way they could see them when they were over here. They brought them over at the end of April. Instantly we had 14 chickens.

We built the "Poulet Chalet" with a nice big run and attached their coop to ours. During the day the chickens run free in the back yard, hide under the trees and bathe in the dirt. They go into the coop and run to roost at night and to eat their laying feed. They have been keeping us busy and have been providing us with eggs on a daily basis. The young hens have started to lay, some as early as last month! We weren't expecting their eggs until August! Their eggs are a beautiful dark brown.

We have a daily 'Chicken Checker' job so that the kids turns are rotated around and everyone has their turn. They want to get to a point where they sell the eggs, so we are trying to get them to take care of the chickens and not just play with them. There really isn't much to the job since the chickens are pretty self-sufficient. The kids LOVE to be the Chicken Checker. Rebekah doesn't have a day yet but she is eager to! She absolutely loves to take care of the chickens, change their water, put out food and go hunt for the eggs. Someday soon, she will be the tiniest Chicken Checker around!

This picture is a small variety of what we get on one of the daily checks. The cute little brown speckled egg is from one of our young hens who is starting to lay. They start out small and get bigger with each egg laid. I'll get pics of the coop and the chickens out soon. :)

Reading...

We seem to have had an explosion of sorts with our kids reading! Being a teacher with a Masters in Literacy, I have found it to be a huge struggle within to not push them into reading. I have stood back though to allow them to try and find out their right time to want to learn. I had faith and confidence that it would happen because I have researched and discussed with others "who have travelled this unschooled road before" but it has been so hard to wait. I'm so used to doing things for them.

This morning I found Ben reading a chapter book while eating breakfast. He was trying to finish the book to start another. Hannah was on the couch reading to Rebekah, while a CD was on reciting the letters and their sounds. It sounded like she was trying to teach Rebekah some letters and sounds. It was such a wonderful feeling watching this happen and what a sense of accomplishment that they have when taking charge of their learning.

What a great morning! Here's to hoping it lasts!

Garden pics...

Just a few pictures from what is growing in our garden today. We also have romaine lettuce, onions, tomatoes starting to grow big, celery, kale, artichokes, lavender, basil, chives, parsley, collards (planted from seed last spring, it is still going strong!), rosemary, and a few other things. Sounds like a lot now that it's all written down but doesn't seem like it when we're outside.

We have 30 fruit and nut trees in our orchard now, they are all blooming nicely and we can't wait until they are fruit ready to pick! Most are still young trees but we've had a lot of lemons, oranges, tangerines and limes. The loquats are starting to turn yellow (mostly green now) and the kids can't wait! Those are next to be picked and consumed in our house.

Beets that I harvested today...yummmm I'm going to pickle some, eat some and juice others!

Strawberry

Brussels sprouts, not as tight as I'd like but yummy anyway!

Purple broccoli (large & leafy that we can't wait to eat!) and the lima beans are coming back on the teepee. Not sure if they will make it, I don't think they are supposed to grow in the same area as the previous year. We'll see!

Baseball...

We are in full-on baseball mode in our house! Ben has games a couple of times a week as well as a few practices, and that makes for a busy week. Today was a good game, Ben got several good hits and he didn't get hit in the head with a ball! He did on Wednesday and was dizzy for a few days after. That was not good and we were a little concerned for a bit. But he's all better now and other than the cold he has, he's doing great!

Hit!

Run!

Poop...

Rebekah pooped in the potty yesterday! It was quite a highlight of the day and I wasn't sure it would be something she'd do again. Up until then she would occasionally make the mad dash down the hall to the bathroom and sit on her potty. But with her diaper on. Yesterday she was naked because it was so hot so it was easy for her to just make a run for it and succeed. As she looked into the pot she got slightly nervous about what she found there and wanted me to hold her. But today she is quite proud of herself and her accomplishment and is very happy that Grandad saw her as she was coming out of the toilet.

This morning however she didn't make it. She kept running down the hall and then finally, maybe she didn't believe it was really coming, she went on the living room floor. The older kids were disgusted but she thought it was funny. Then, while I was cleaning it up, she went and pee'd on the kitchen floor. Not funny. But easier to clean up.

So she's on her way! We are very excited because this is the beginning of less diapers for us.

Squirt...

Today was our 2nd hot day in a row and the kids think they are going to melt in the heat! Ryan came over to play this afternoon and I found them all in the back with water guns and swim suits on! They were having so much fun! They love to get their suits on and get wet! They can't wait to get into the pool! With only a few hot days under our belt we are probably not making it to the pool any time soon, we'll wait for the water to warm up first.

Get BEN! (Hannah has a squirt camera, she thought it was appropriate for April Fool's Day)

Daddy is next, we know he is on wheels but we'll get him as he drives by!

Baby...

Last night Rebekah stayed up late. She took a long power nap during the day, woke up at 4pm and the night was full with playing with and entertaining her. The other kids went to bed and Rebekah got herself all set up on the couch so that she could watch her TV show. She put a baby doll on either side of her, pulled up a cozy blanket to cover herself and the baby dolls and started to suck her thumb as she waited for her DVD to start. It was adorable.

Once I gave her attention (I took her picture-below) she wanted to play with the dolls with me. We made them dance on the couch. They slid down the cushion slide. They drank sips of water because they were thirsty. They jumped up and down and they went to bed. Rebekah had so much fun. But this didn't tire her out. She was up until after 11pm and was still restless as she was trying to fall asleep. But she had fun!

Mardi Gras!

Our church had a Mardi Gras celebration between the Masses today. They had masks, beads, food and fun music for everyone to enjoy. We love this church because of the family activities that they have available for everyone to take part in. Everyone feels included even though we might not know everyone! There was a 'decorate your own mask' section for the kids and the adults had a chance to check out all the ministries and outreach opportunities available to volunteer for. It was a great time. The best part of it, according to the kids, was the donuts and juice...but I did see them having a lot of fun with the masks, boas and beads on the tables. And we did bring a bunch of them home with us.

Noah, Ryan and Ben

A beer with Daddy...

For some reason Rebekah decided to have a beer with her dad tonight. It was pizza night and we do have the occasional beer but tonight she wanted to join in on the fun. Cheers!

Freedom...

We spend lots of time at the park. The kids love to run and play together as well as with others. Today we went to the park in Coronado to drop off some Girl Scout cookies but the kids didn't care to play on the playground structure today. They ran free in the grass, chasing each other and running around. They did notice and watch the school kids from the school across the street during their PE session. They just sat and watched for a while, not really saying anything, taking it all in really. Then they'd run around together chasing butterflies.

Dishes...

Rebekah is such a big helper in the kitchen! She wants to do the dishes and make coffee, she loves to put butter on her bread and make quesadillas with us. Here she is doing her dishes. There's something about water and bubbles that can occupy kids for a long time. She had a great time today!

Happy Valentines Day!

We went to a Valentines Day party at one of our Funschooler families house in Ramona. It was so awesome for the kids because they don't have a classroom of kids with whom they can share Valentines! We have given cards and treats to our family, their cousins and so on but today they exchanged with friends! They had a potluck, video games, chickens to pick up and play with, crafts, a playground structure, games and more. The kids ran around free to do what they wanted, it was awesome!

The Craft room getting their bags ready for loot

Rebekah loved playing air hockey

Ben twirling on the structure

All the bags getting loaded up with treats and cards!