| The Lee's...Homeschool (and Life's) Happenings*******************************Check out www.xanga.com/leebenvic for updates
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Monday, August 7, 2006
Northern Route
J4ds has been into watching Star Wars, Episode II over and over lately (not all day or all in one sitting, just over the last few weeks ) It made me think about how I've been a stickler for subtitles during home dvd movie viewings. Back during my (Vicki's) college years, I was spending a year abroad studying in Japan and teaching conversational English on the side. I had one student who insists she learned a whole lot of English just from studying movie subtitles. I think it can only help and can't hurt for kids to also see and read the words. Sometimes we play a little game with J7ds and pause the movie before the speaker says his line and let J7ds read it.
Posted 3/25/2007 at 9:49 PM
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We went fishing on base tonight (and caught and released this one...) We looked it up at home and it looks like it was a Sheepshead fish.

Some swim team kids and coaches who were in town for their spring break went to a bowling party on Wednesday.
Here is Ben doing a card trick he learned on You Tube...J9dd is taping him.
Posted 3/24/2007 at 9:35 PM
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J7ds: "I wish they had a Where the Red Fern Grows, episode 2."
It's sort of heartwarming when a child (or anyone for that matter) reads a book that they wish would never end...I was reading in a book about homeschooling teens that audiobooks can play a great role, especially in a reluctant reader...So, I've been picking out different ones from the library for us to listen in the car and this one was a winner...except it's tough driving around with tears in my eyes after the dogs passed away... We struck out a couple of times with duds, one time the cd was old and we couldn't hear it well (Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories) and another time, the kids didn't care for the voice of the reader who was also the author (Wrinkle in Time). This week, we'll try listening to Redwall.
Posted 3/23/2007 at 1:25 PM
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| At work, Ben gets a lot of public health info like this infant sling recall...He wanted to spread the word in case family and friends happen to use this sling...I've heard about a lot of benefits of this type of sling...I never cared for them, but practically lived in my Baby Bjorn baby carrier...
Posted 3/23/2007 at 9:21 AM
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Ben's M9 Pistol Training from yesterday
He also showed us some videos they showed in class about gun mishaps, search "accidental gun discharge" on You Tube or click here.
Posted 3/21/2007 at 10:25 AM
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Whew, thank God, J11ds and J9dd survived 2 days of testing...J7ds didn't have to test this year because our homeschool group doesn't start testing until 3rd grade. It was J9dd's first time ever and J11ds's third. It was very organized and well-run...and according to the kids, they served great snacks (including sandwiches, fruit, and Chex mix). We're "testing the waters" (ha ha), trying to figure out how to best comply with Florida's education regulations for homeschoolers (which are very different from California's) and this was one option at least for the older two...J7ds will need a portfolio evaluation from a certified teacher...
On an unrelated note, I am so relieved that the 12 year old boy scout was found ALIVE in the mountains of North Carolina.
Today, Ben spent the day doing pistol training...
Posted 3/20/2007 at 8:57 PM
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| Yes, in a way, the "cheapest" bird (in a zoo or science museum) gets the worm (yearly membership)...This year we didn't do it right...Last week, we found ourselves at the Exploreum in Mobile (while waiting around to meet up with Ben's cousin) and ended up buying an $100 yearly family membership, justifying that we will hopefully save money in the long run after another visit or two...I had read about this other idea and next year I want to try it...Get a membership at an out-of-state zoo/science museum (just find the least expensive one out there) and use the ASTC Reciprocal program. I found one we could have bought for $50 in Idaho. Plus, sometimes it's better to have an out-of-state one because "Science centers and museums located within 90 miles of each other are excluded from the program unless that exclusion is lifted by mutual agreement." You can apply either online or via snail mail and they always send the card in the mail. There is also a zoo Reciprocation List here. (Compare this zoo in San Jose with a $60 family pass (2 adults, 4 kids) to San Diego Zoo's rates ($90/couple, plus $24-28 per child). Anyway, it's another instance where a little forethought and pre-planning can save a chunk of change... And speaking of the green you will save...Happy St. Pat's Day!
Posted 3/17/2007 at 2:33 PM
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This morning a bird got caught in our birdfeeder. J7ds took a video.
Posted 3/14/2007 at 9:48 AM
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| The other day J3ds and I saw this at the commissary...The design is made out of soda boxes!

The other night J9dd accompanied Ben to a classmate's wedding (I know, I'm such a party pooper and never got around to arranging a babysitter...good thing we have a daughter who likes to go out and get all dressed up!)

J7ds took this photo of his sister reading outside...

And this photo of a cardinal visiting near our backyard birdfeeder...

And here is one more he took of his sister's Playmobil castle:

One day, J7ds decided he wanted to learn how to sew, so we started a little project. Hopefully he will become a self-sufficient bachelor and do his own hems someday...or maybe a surgeon...

Here is J3ds folding laundry for me...We've been trying to use cloth rags instead of paper towels to help the environment...(Does that make up for driving 2 gas-guzzling vans?)

We added photos from the Gulf Coast Exploreum in Mobile here.
Posted 3/13/2007 at 10:5 AM
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This morning while I went to my echocardiogram appointment (It sounds like everything is fine, thank God...) and Ben had a late start morning due to his PRT (twice-a-year fitness test), I came home to find them NOT doing homework, but watching airplane crash videos...:-) like this or this. (Ben has been studying crashes and accident investigations lately). Anyway, later on we found this video...Sounds like a good art project someday...and probably the only good use of french fries!
Posted 3/12/2007 at 11:34 AM
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Today we went to Mobile, AL (about a 1.5 hr drive) and met up with Ben's cousin from NY, Tim and his wife Judy. They are in Mobile for a week on a short term church missions work project with Habitat for Humanity. We met them at their hotel and had dinner at the Waffle House so they could have some good ol' Southern grits . Before meeting them, our family went to the Gulf Coast Exploreum to see their exhibit on Pompei, which I thoroughly enjoyed, except I think the admission prices to the "real Mc Coy" in Italy were actually cheaper...
On another family note, Congratulations to Ben's cousin, Hoon and family on the recent birth of their second son, Baby "O"!
Here are some photos from the Exploreum:
  
Posted 3/11/2007 at 10:32 PM
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OK, I think I'm ready to come out of my "shell", a.k.a. Xanga posting writer's block secondary to umm... a monthly hormonal funk...
Here is a video of J7ds...His current obsession is reciting lines from the movie Facing the Giants:
The other day, we went on a field trip with the homeschool group to the National Museum of Naval Aviation here on base. The first photo is of the kids with the O's and E's. #2 is with my friend Vicky P. who designed some of the museum exhibits. The 2 younger J's and Vicky are back in time in a 1950's kitchen. #3 is J9dd before she rode in a simulator.
  
Now here are some photos taken by budding photographer J7ds. (#3 & #4 with friends Susan, Lillian, and Michelle)
    
Last week we went to the kids' end-of-basketball parties. Here they are with their coaches:
  
The 2 middle J's party was held at Chuck E. Cheese downtown by the mall. We hardly ever make it over that way and the one day we needed to go there, there were severe storms and rumors of tornados elsewhere. (It was the same day the 8 students died in a tornado in Enterprise, AL). Beforehand, we (ok, just I) debated whether to skip it due to the weather or try to "weather it out" ...We were already out in town to get the 2 middle kids fitted for upcoming CA weddings and we heard some conflicting information, the coach told us that the party was still on since the storm was supposed to end an hour after the party would be over and Ben and store clerks told me that they heard that the base and city workers were sent home early because of the weather...Thank God, everything worked out ok, despite driving home in a bad storm...I think next time I will be a weather wimp and stay home...
Posted 3/8/2007 at 10:59 AM
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Don't forget to try to look for the lunar eclipse tonight!
Happy Birthday to the kids' cousin (Vicki's niece) T. The other day, J7ds and I had this conversation:
me: Next year, (your cousin) T. might have to move far away (from home in CA) to go to grad school.
J7ds: Really?? Will they have a football team?? Mom, do they let women play in the NFL?
Posted 3/3/2007 at 11:52 AM
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August 9, 2006: Random Thoughts - More Random Thoughts:
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Route and Travel Journal Templates/Writing Prompts
- It's 10am already...so much for our early morning start...
- Here is our 2 week tentative (driving/camping with occasional hotels) route: Las Vegas, Hoover Dam, Zion National Park, Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, Capital Reef National Park in Torrey, UT, Canyonland National Park (Moab, UT), Arches National Park, Rocky Mountain National Park (Estes, CO), Madison WI, Chicago IL, Warsaw IN, St. Louis MO, Memphis, Millington TN, Pensacola FL.
- Travel Journal Templates/Writing Prompts: While we were waiting at AAA yesterday, I browsed 2 books: Kids Trip Diary and Kids Travel Fun Book by Loris Bree. I'm too cheap to buy the books (and we really don't have the room)...but I really like journal template questions/writing prompt for kids so I took notes on these:
- Draw something you see as you travel. Write a few words about it.
- Tell something that happened today that interested you. You can have a lot of fun writing about your own travel experiences and adventures. Some hints: When did this happen? Where were you? What were you doing? What and who did you see? How did you feel? Tell about colors, numbers, movements, and actions.
- What made you smile today? What did you do that was fun or did that you are proud of?
- Draw your own map and label your stops.
- Daily Trip Diary: Date, weather, Today we are in ___, What we did today, Things I liked best, What I saw or heard that was funny, Some foods I ate, What I bought today, draw something I saw today, my picture is about_.
- Whew, thank God, everything fit in the van...
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I know this is old news, but did you know that kimchi is one of the world's healthiest foods, according to this article? (...along with soy, olive oil, lentils, and yogurt).
I wasn't sure if I should mention to the kids how this boy escaped from a kidnapping using a safety pin. Would it be possibly helpful information someday or overly scare them? I casually brought it up this morning (not at night to avoid scary dreams) and it has helped that we have seen the Safe Side Stranger dvd before. I knew there had to be a good reason I'm terrible at sewing so some seams are attached with safety pins! 
Posted 2/28/2007 at 2:14 PM
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Our neighbors T and D delivered their 3rd son over the weekend. We brought them an easy meal today:
Crockpot Cashew Chicken Fun Play Dates.com
Notes: I couldn't find the exact recipe I used online, so adapting the above link to the recipe I used, it substituted the broth, water, and cornstarch for a can of golden mushroom soup, added 1/2 t ginger, 1 C shredded carrots, 1 C chopped celery, 1-8 oz can water chestnuts, chow mein noodles (topping), omitted green onion, pea pods. Served over rice. The recipe I used was from Cindy Rushton's new Crockpot e-Cookbook, which we purchased during the last half-off sale. (More info about that cookbook is here.)
This is very similar to a recipe from my friend here Lillian. The kids devoured the one she made for us the other day. It goes well with vanilla ice cream, which I forgot to buy this time...  Shhh...don't tell the kids, but I substituted olive oil for the butter in the 2nd cake for our family and they ate it just fine tonight. I've been having a "don't ask, don't tell" food policy lately, sneaking in the TVP with no complaints...I've learned that if I state it contains a healthy substitution outright, they won't go near it...Will the Lord forgive me if that is too deceptive?  I know...enough people are afraid of my cooking surprises...I once gave the kids and my friend Katrina (from Sigonella, Sicily days) a brownie made with spinach ...Not to worry, I usually give full disclosure soon after a bite is taken...
Posted 2/26/2007 at 10:28 PM
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| Does anyone know how I can convert raw measurements with my tape measure into a boy's suit size? J9dd and J7ds have been asked to be a flowergirl and ringbearer (respectively, of course) in my nephew D. and S.'s wedding in CA in a few months and I need to give S. their dress and suit sizes. I can figure out J9dd's dress size from her other dresses, but I need to get the suit size...I'm wondering if there is some kind of chart online or do I need to go downtown or somewhere near the mall to a tux shop and get him measured?
Posted 2/26/2007 at 11:1 AM
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Booster Antenna.com
Evdo Mobile Wireless Internet Coverage, works with cell phone provider
Our friends J. and T. and family from Iwakuni, Japan days have an interesting upcoming travel plan. T. will retire from the military soon and they plan to temporarily live in their RV for a few months, exploring the National Parks all over the USA and eventually heading up to Alaska where they plan to build a log cabin (and possibly stay in the RV until it is completed). They are also homeschooling and their 3 boys are around the ages of our older three, so this should prove to be an exciting learning environment. I would love to do something like that someday...Anyway, we e-mailed them the above links about Evdo mobile wireless internet coverage (I think it's like getting your own wi-fi hotspot using your cell phone provider) which might work in their RV setup. Ben's classmate told him about it and it's something we're considering to replace our home DSL. If you have set this up successfully, please let us know since we're not so tech-savvy about it yet...
Speaking of RVs, I read a library book recently about cooking in an RV and found a great recipe, see below. We don't have an RV, but I thought it would have good ideas and recipes adaptable to tent camping. I liked this one because it is a way to use up cooked oatmeal. Everytime I make a big batch of oatmeal for breakfast, we invariably have leftovers and no one around here likes to eat leftover oatmeal.
Porridge Muffin Recipe (modified from Cooking Abroad Your RV)
1 2/3 c flour
2 T brn sugar (unfortunately, I had to add more sugar than this in order for my kids to eat it)
2 t baking powder
1 1/2 c milk
1 c cooked oatmeal
2 eggs
1 T olive oil
Combine dry ingred, beat together wet ingred, pour into dry ingred, and mix just until everything is moistening evenly. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full and bake 425F for 20-25 mins.
Posted 2/25/2007 at 3:0 PM
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Matthew 5:45..."that you may be sons of your Father in Heaven."
This morning was the second time this week that J9dd pointed out the prevalent fact that men seem to be mentioned more or favored over women in the Bible. She asked, 'Why does it only say "sons" and not "sons and daughters"'?! There is that somewhat delicate balance of teaching your daughter that she can grow up and reach the sky, her highest God-given potential in a world of "equal opportunity" versus the implied semantics versus the church history of custom and tradition of subverting women, mostly mentioning men in the Bible, only counting men in their census, etc. It brings back some memories of DaVinci Code that we read and our church in CA studied together...I don't buy those conspiracy theories...I told J9dd that in certain contexts it was safe to assume they meant sons and daughters.
Posted 2/23/2007 at 2:59 PM
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Please pray forthe kids' "Halmoni", Ben's mom in CA...She was walking to church this morning when a car hit her while making a turn. Thank God, it wasn't life threatening and didn't involve any head injuries...So far it looks like she has a broken arm and bruised internal organs. Thank you for praying for her recovery...Below is a photo of her from last Christmas with nephew J. and J3ds. Ben commented that it's in moments like these that make you stop taking your loved ones for granted.

Posted 2/23/2007 at 1:52 PM
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J7ds arranged his Mardi Gras beads in rainbow "Roy G. Biv" order. I think he wanted to make it like the Italian bead screen that he saw in our friends, the Zach's, daughters' room doorway.
Posted 2/22/2007 at 11:43 AM
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Our Used Books or Items For Sale or Swap (Pre-Moving Sale! Everything Must Go! :-)
Knowledge Quest Maps
List Of Some Favorite Links
Please visit our family blog at http://www.xanga.com/leebenvic.
For security purposes, we recently started replacing our children's names on this blog with more non-descript initials. <BR>
J.12.ds = our oldest son, age 12. He likes computer/video games, Basketball, Football, and Lego.<BR>
J.9.dd = our only daughter, age 9. She likes drawing, crafts, stuffed animals, and reading.<BR>
J.7.ds = our middle son, age 7. He likes photography, animals, bugs, and nature.<BR>
J.4.ds = our baby son, age 4. He likes fire trucks, Bob the Builder, enjoys saying hi to people in uniform.<BR>
<BR>We'll be in Pensacola, Florida for about 2 years while Ben works on his second residency in Aerospace Medicine (He is also a Family Medicine Physician). Most of our extended family live in Southern CA. After Pensacola, Ben will probably have to be deployed on a ship for 6 months...Hopefully we can be stationed on the West Coast near family while he's away.
We are an Asian-American (Ben is originally from South Korea and Vicki's grandparents are from Japan), military (US Navy) family who enjoys anything "children-related", home schooling, Bible study, Tupperware Home Business, attachment parenting, traveling, swimming, camping, fishing, reading, journal writing, scrapbooking, digital photography, computers, casual get-togethers with friends, simple/frugal living, trying different kinds of ethnic food, learning about different cultures, languages, etc.
Our current homeschool methods include a somewhat relaxed, Charlotte Mason/Classical style using a mix of resources: Thomas Jefferson Education, Ruth Beechick, Cindy Rushton, Sonlight (for Literature, History), Story of The World (for history by Susan Bauer, author of The Well Trained Mind), Institute for Excellence in Writing IEW (for writing and spelling), BraveWriter.com, Math-U-See, Elementary Apologia Science, Handwriting Without Tears, Start Write, Audio books/cds (Jim Weiss, Classical Kids, Audio Memory, etc.), Tae Kwon Do, Awana, Girl Scouts, swimming, and of course, everyday life learning lessons...
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"Parenting consists of long days and short years." (author unknown)
"I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they were great and noble." (Helen Keller)
"The secret to success is making very small, yet
very consistent, changes." Slogan of Messies Anonymous
Some Links, In Random Order:
List Of Some Favorite Links
Shop for
Tupperware� products online
Harbor Trinity Church
Power To Change/ Forza Per Cambiare

 Visit Us @ My Space!
Some Links From Our Time Living in Sicily, Italy 2002-2005:
What Time Is It In Italy?
Church, Chiesa Battista Calvario
Chapel, NAS Sigonella
Base, Naval Air Station, Sigonella
Ben's Work, Naval Hospital Sigonella and Flight Line Clinic
Swim Team, Sigonella Swordfish
European Forces Swim League
Sigonella Homeschool Support Group
Other Links:
Homeschool Blogger.com
Our New Homeschool Blogger.com Blog
Some Favorite Links/Bookmarks
Friends' Web Sites
The Bible for your Palm or Pocket PC
 Evangelism Resources
The Daily Meme.com
Learn Spanish: A Free Online Tutorial
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