can it really be october 1st today?  september flew by way too fast.  my baby just turned two yesterday.  it's incredible to think he's been a part of our family for two years now!  wow.

it would be hard to fathom that it is autumn-time already, if it weren't for the way the weather has gotten much cooler and the leaves have been changing colors/falling already.  autumn has definitely arrived.

i suppose it might be in part because my birthday is in october, but i've always enjoyed this time of year. (except for the weather getting colder.)   i grew up in central wisconsin and each autumn i feel a little homesick for the many colors of autumn that we had there.  here in northern minnesota we mostly get yellows and browns with just a few spatterings of orange or red on low bushes which are still pretty, but i always loved the vibrant orange and red leaves of the maple trees.  and the hills.  somehow seeing all those colors at once on the side of a big hill makes me want to smile.  i guess we'll have to make a trip "back home" in autumn sometime (probably won't happen this year though) so i can see those beautiful colorful trees again and show my sons where i grew up.  it's been a long time since we've been back for a visit. 

We're on our fourth week already of our 2008-2009 school year.  I've been meaning to update my blog for a while now, but haven't had the time. 

Anyways, here's what we're using this year for curriculum(s).

Sonlight Core 3 = History & Geography, Reading, Listening Comprehension

Sonlight Language Arts 3

Singapore Math Primary 2B (finishing up what we didn't last year then on to 3A and 3B)

Sequential Spelling (recommended for use with Core 3) 

Artistic Pursuits Book 1

Story of the Orchestra (music appreciation)

Homeschool Physical Fitness  (purchased last year, finally using)

Apologia Elementary Science Zoology 1 (LOVE IT!)

Rosetta Stone Spanish (Latin America)--also purchased through Sonlight...we love this program so far!

D'Nealian Handwriting Grade 3

 

Things seem to be going very well so far.   I think it helps that I made a point to schedule ALL our subjects ahead this year instead of trying to just mark them down as we do it.  This way, I've got a plan and I just have to mark it when it's done.  I find that I forget to do certain subjects if it's not pre-scheduled for me.  That's just how I work, I guess.  So far, this seems to be working much better.  I'm glad to have put the extra work into it earlier so that it's less work now. 

We decided to purchase Rosetta Stone so ds could start learning a foreign language.  I've heard so much that it's good to get kids started young because they learn it faster and remember it better.  So we invested in Rosetta Stone v. 3 Homeschool edition for Spanish (Latin America).  We got the three level deal they've got going.  Blew our school budget and then some, but I think it's worth it.  Ds just LOVES it!  I like it too.  I took two years of high school Spanish but remember very little from it.  This really seems to do a good job of teaching the language.  Even DH plans to make time to learn with us if he can. 

(I realize I already posted a little bit here about our trip to Maui, but I wrote this review on Viewpoints and since it's more of a review than just a quick "here's what we did", I've decided to post it here too.)

My husband and I spent March 1-9, 2008 on Maui as a special get-away to celebrate our 10th anniversary.  This was our first trip to Hawaii and it was wonderful!  We did a lot of the typical tourist stuff, but tried to find some time to just relax and enjoy ourselves as well. 

My husband found our lodging which was a rental unit called Tradewinds Suite near Haiku.  It was so nice and private.  I would go back in a heartbeat and stay there again!  They also have another rental unit that's a bit larger and is recommended for families.

We picked a wonderful time of year to go too.  Not only was it really cold back home (a good time to get away!), but we were there during the whale season.  Whale watching was incredible...lots of mama's and their calves. 

The Pacific Whale Foundation offers both snorkeling and whale-watching tours soo we did both!  I especially liked that money from our tour costs will go toward research and education and stuff like that. We went snorkeling for the first time ever and I really enjoyed seeing the tropical fish in their natural habitat. 

One of the first things we did to "get in the Hawaiian mood" was attend a luau.  And not just any old luau.  We went to the Feast at Lele.  It's pricier than the others, but well worth the extra cost.  I've heard that other luaus are buffet style which may mean standing in line for your food.  At Lele, you get a 5 course meal brought right to your table, course by course.  We were seated in the second row from the stage so we had a really great view of the dancers/performers and the ocean as well.  The performers did a good job of telling about the different Polynesian peoples that have come to Hawaii and how their cultures have blended with the Hawaiian to be one.  And the dance demonstrations were a lot of fun to watch. 

Another highlight of our trip was sunrise at the summit of Haleakala.  It was crazy getting up at 3am and driving up the mountain in the dark.  It was also quite cold at the summit (still not as cold as it was back home though but it was 42 degrees F with a wind chill of around 27 degrees--brrrr!)  It was a neat experience despite the cold.

The drive to Hana was fun and beautiful.  We toured the lava tube near Hana which was interesting.  Would have liked to do a more extensive tour, but didn't have time (nor did we plan ahead for it).  At the state park we saw the 400 foot tall Waimoku Falls after taking the nearly 2 mile self-guided hike up to it (4 miles round-trip).  We were there during what appeared to be a dry season, so we weren't sure whether the falls would be as spectacular as it usually is (some others along the highway were more or less dry).  No need to worry, though.  It was still quite a sight!  And the hike to it was really neat too.  We especially enjoyed the bamboo forests.  Definitely not something we get to see everyday.

Finally, I will mention the beaches.  Quite honestly, we didn't spend a lot of time on them.  Dh got sunburn so bad our second day on the island (our snorkel tour) that he was trying to stay out of the sun as much as possible.  (It was really bad...blisters...yuck!)  But we did take a little time to walk along a few of the more lovely beaches...just enough to get some nice photos.  And our final day while waiting to catch our flight back to the mainland, we spent a good hour and a half or two on Makena beach, a.k.a. "Big Beach".   So, even though it wasn't as much beach time as I would have liked, I can still say I sunned myself on a beach on Maui! 

All in all, I loved my time on Maui and wished we could have had another week or so to enjoy the beaches more, but we've got a lot of really neat memories and a hope to go back again someday.

The Expenses:  airline tickets, rental car/gas, lodging, food/meals, entertainment/tours, and of course gifts/souvenirs.  Total: A lot!  LOL!

The Experiences:  The Feast at Lele (luau), Snorkeling Molokini Crater, Whale-watching, Haleakala at sunrise, The Road to Hana, driving around the island and seeing the sights, working on a tan in early March (and not in a tanning booth!), sunny beaches, mango smoothies and mango icecream/sorbet.  Total:  Priceless!

Well, we're back from our trip to Maui.  It was a really nice getaway for dh and me.  There's lots to do over there and the island is sooooooo beautiful!  Will have to post some pics when I get them on my 'puter.  We enjoyed snorkeling for the first time, whale watching (incredible!), the summit of Haleakala (a dormant volcano) at sunrise, driving all over the place to see as much of the beautiful scenery as we could take in.  It was incredible being able to walk on beautiful sandy beaches with the waves crashing in and 80+ degree weather in early March.  (At home it was 20+ BELOW zero while we were away.)  Thankfully, the weather here at home has warmed up a bit and has even been above freezing! YAY!  Dh said we were going to bring the warm weather home with us.  I hope he's right!  LOL!

And my baby is walking now!  He was just taking a few steps before we left.  Now he's a lot more sure of himself and is walking everywhere instead of crawling.  I noticed even his hair is longer!  LOL!  They sure change fast when they're little.  Our eldest son, on the other hand, hasn't changed much at all.  Except that I think he's glad to have us back home and to be back home himself.  He hasn't been talking back near so much--yet. 

It's good to be home!  (But I do hope we can go back to Maui again someday!) The only drawback to Maui is how expensive stuff is--especially food and gas.  I think it was well worth it though!