Echo Springs Blueberry Farm

It was hotter than the hinges of the devil's door, but we braved the heat and made our yearly trek over to Echo Springs Blueberry Farm to stock up for the next few months. No one else was crazy enough to be out there in the heat, so we had the place to ourselves. The berries were sweet and the picking was easy, until I grabbed a handful of wasp nest instead of blueberries! Luckily, no one was stung and we all figured out just how fast we could run!

A Night in San Antonio

One of the things I enjoy most about our new lifestyle, is the ability to travel on a whim. We're always excited to hit the road in search of a new adventure, even if it's just a few hours from our front door.

When I first began explaining to people why I wanted to homeschool, one of my favorite examples was to say that I don't want to just tell my kids about the Alamo, I want to show them the Alamo. So when Coach came home and asked if we wanted to join him on an overnight recruiting trip to San Antonio, of course we jumped at the opportunity!

It was a quick trip, but we got to enjoy dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant on the Riverwalk, we explored every nook and cranny of the Alamo, and Coach managed to land one of the most sought-after recruits in the country. Not bad for a 24 hour roadtrip!

Camp Mimi

Three, three, three camps in one!

 

Not only does Mimi invite all the grandchildren to come stay with her for a week every summer, she also schedules a ton of awesome activities to keep them entertained while they are there. They attend basketball camp at Northwestern State every day, and this year she also arranged for them to have private tennis lessons from some of the young ladies on the tennis team.

 

 

After camp each day, they always find creative ways to cool off. The giant slip-n-slide has definitely become a camp favorite!

 

 

At the end of the week, there is always a talent show that the kids talk about and plan for all year. Their *talents* tend to get more outrageous year after year...there's never a dull moment with this bunch!

 

I know Mimi is absolutely worn out by the end of the week, but what a wonderful opportunity she is giving all the kids. They get to cut loose for a week, learn some new skills, really get to know each other and make memories that will last them a lifetime.

 

 

THANK YOU, MIMI! Now go take a nap!

 

4th of July

Happy 4th of July!!!  We're enjoying a wonderful week at home with family in Natchitoches, Louisiana. The kids are having a blast with their cousins at Camp Mimi, and attending basketball and tennis camps at Northwestern State University.

This is always one of my favorite weeks of the year! I love that we get to spend so much quality time with family and friends, and I love that our children are building such a strong connection to the place we grew up and love so dearly.

Fireworks over the ever beautiful Cane River in Natchitoches, Louisiana.

Happy Girl!!!

What a first season of t-ball for my girl! She landed on an awesome little team that made it all the way to the state tournament. I've never seen such a young team play so well...these girls are the real deal! Congratulations, Orange Crush!!!

Lake Travis, Austin, Texas

To round out our weekend getaway, we spent our last day playing on Lake Travis, a reservoir on the Colorado River. We all needed a day to just forget about school and football and all the other responsibilities waiting for us back home.

 

Ready to ride!

Lucky for us, the Keep Austin Weird Festival had left the normally busy lake almost deserted. We rented a boat at the marina, slathered on sunscreen, turned up some tunes and headed out for some tubing. 

Hanging loose, ready for her first solo ride!

 

Mama's at the wheel...hold on tight!

Daddy getting his revenge!

Since the lake wasn't crowded, we all took turns driving the boat. Our kids are 7 and 9, but my husband was most nervous when *I* was driving the boat. As a matter of fact, everyone was nervous when I played captain. I think I should be offended!

 

 

 

 

Obviously we all survived my driving and a great time was had by all!

 

 

Exploring the Pedernales River

After exploring Hamilton Pool, we decided to make the hike down to the Pedernales River. It was a HOT day, and the trail was narrow and rocky. I thought for sure that the kids would whine and complain every step of the way, but luckily there were enough intersting things along the trail for them to get excited about.

 

 

 

Along the way, we discovered more lush vegetation, searched for the elusive Golden-Cheeked Warbler (that's a bird for you non-nerd types), we pointed out monocots and dicots, compared nectar guides on flowers and climbed a lot of rocks. Just as the kids were starting to lose interest in all the nature talk, we saw the river in the distance.

 

  

Squeals and giggles soon followed, and after jumping into the refreshing water, we all agreed that the long, hot hike was worth every step! The water wasn't freezing like we expected, it was just right.

 

 

It was late in the day, all of the rowdy crowd had already crawled back up the hill and headed home, so we had the run of the place. We explored a bit and built a pretty sweet water slide out of some large, flat rocks. We did some lounging, some diving for treasure (rocks) and even followed a frog for awhile. Mostly we relaxed, talked and enjoyed being together in a cool new place.

 

 

This was totally my kind of vacation...learning new things, exploring new places, no long lines or expensive amusements. Go ahead and ask me if I missed going to Disney World this summer.

 

 

Hamilton Pool Nature Preserve

 

We really must come up with a better word than homeschooling. Very little of our learning actually takes place at home. We love a good adventure and use every opportunity we can to provide hands-on learning. We are a firm believers in show, don't tell!

 

Our latest adventure took us to Dripping Springs, Texas, where we discovered Hamilton Pool Nature Preserve, the perfect spot to put our new botany knowledge to the test and to seek refuge from the brutal Texas heat.

 

 

Hamilton Pool is a historic swimming hole, located 3/4 mile upstream from the Pedernales River. Hamilton Creek spills over the edges of the collapsed grotto to create a beautiful 50ft waterfall, although the lack of rain had slowed it to a trickle during our visit.

 

The pool, grotto and canyon were formed by thousands of years of water erosion. Lush plant communities, a wide variety of wildlife and a natural shelter attracted the area's first inhabitants. Cultural remains date back over 8,000 years. This is a science and history nerd's paradise! We were only there for a few hours, but we could have easily spent a week exploring.

 

 

The kids got up close and personal with EVERYTHING we have been studying in our botany class. They pointed out angiosperms, dissected gymnosperms, compared vascular and non-vascular plants. They squeezed water out of moss, they felt lichen, observed different methods of seed dispersal...it all became real for them. When we read about all this stuff in class, it's just a bunch of boring words, but when they see it, feel it, smell it, it all starts to make sense. It's so fun to watch!

 

Their newly found excitement for learning continually amazes me and reaffirms my decision to take this homeschooling journey with them. I know a lot of you still think I'm crazy, but so far I have NO REGRETS!

Botany Immersion

 

I can't say enough good things about the science curriculum that we chose. The kids love it and so do I! Apologia's Young Explorer Series focuses on science immersion, taking an entire school year to focus on one area of science. Most children only get exposed to bits and pieces of science during their elementary years, randomly touching on different areas. This curriculum digs wide and deep. Not only is the text interesting and informative, there is also a WONDERFUL student journal that is full of great experiments and places for the kids to write, draw and collect. In the short time we've used this book, I've already learned more about science than I did during all of my formal education! The kids are always excited when it's time to do science, so that makes this series a big winner in my book!

 

K'nex Taxonomy

 

Building a light hut for the classroom.

 

Growing basil in the light hut.

*Apologia has no idea who I am and has not paid me for my endorsement. I just like to share good things when I find them.

 

T-Ballin'

Congratulations to the undefeated ORANGE CRUSH!!!

Football Camp

I'm happy to report that we survived another year of youth football camp! Coach and I had a wonderful time working with all the kids and our children were excited to hang out with all their buddies for the week. It was HOT and exhausting, but so worth it!

Thankfully we are blessed with a wonderful group of coaches, who sacrifice their first week of summer every year to help us pull off an awesome camp. They tend to gripe and grumble a bit, but I know they secretly enjoy it as much as we do (at least I hope so). If nothing else, a week with 70 kids serves as wonderful birth control for all our young coaches!

The kids really do make all the hard work worthwhile. They are so fun and so funny. With that many little knuckleheads confined to one football field, there is never a dull a moment...oh the things they say and do! Parents, be careful what you say in front of your children, because they will repeat it. I now know some pretty funny secrets, but I'm not telling!

It was fun while it lasted, but it's time to put away the pigskin for awhile and get ready to finish off another great year of baseball/softball and then get ready to head off to basketball camp!

What's that again about homeschoolers being unsocialized? ;-)