Posted in Life

Posted in Life

RAINY DAY FUN by Shannon Buck © June 2005

I was sitting on my bed, looking out the window and wondering what the subject of today’s article would be. It is grey and cloudy today, and we will be getting rain. I decided to do an article on fun things that can be done inside this summer while it's raining outside.

* Board games are a lot of fun, as is Charades. Both children and adults can enjoy themselves while playing.

* Spread a long sheet of paper on the floor, the same size as your child. Tape it down, and have your child lie down on it. Trace his/her body onto the paper, then allow him/her to color in the outline.

* Have a movie day! This allows everyone to be lazy. You can pop popcorn and have soda or juice.

* Play cards. This is what we do when we lose the power in our home. We light the oil lamps, sit on the livingroom floor, and play.

* Read. There is a good chance if you do this on a rainy day, that you will fall asleep. You can each read your own books, or someone can read aloud so everyone to enjoy a story.

* Coloring is relaxing and fun.

* Play "I Spy". One person starts by saying "I spy with my little eye, something blue," or any other color. Then everyone else tries to guess what it is the person sees. The person who guesses correctly goes next.

* Go bowling. My daughters love to bowl. I keep score. They have cute little dances when they get all of the pins down. It is funny.

* Bake together. These are the cooler days, so why not bake a cake together.

* Do some crafts, or make gifts for people.

* Make some cards.

* Do some scrapbooking.

* Take photographs of all that you do on your rainy day, and get them developed. On the next rainy day, give the photos to your child and allow them to make a book with them.

Enjoy all of these rainy day activities, and come up with some of your own. It does not take a lot to keep children entertained on these days.

Posted in Life

Have the rest of you been as busy as I have? I have so much going on:

We are in the fourth week of our new homeschol year - Going well!

I still have lesson plans to create - I like to do this for the year!

Regular trips to the playground.

My nephew is here 6 days a week.

I need to make curtains for the kitchen and livingroom.

We need to prepare our home for winter.

We are going to Salem, Massachusetts for a day.

I am trying to organize our home a little.

Regular chores.

 Updating all websites and blogs.

I am trying to get some time to work on my businesses as well. There never seems to be enough time for all of the things that I have to do.

Skye and Zowie have their dentist appointments, and Skye has her orthodontist appointments. They also have eyedoctor appointments.

I have a doctor appointment and a nutritionist appointment coming up.

Well, I do hope to get some time to relax soon. I have hoped that things would slow down after the summer rush. Oh, well. Things always sloe down during the winter months.

Warmest Wishes,

Shannon

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Well, it is definitely summer here in Maine. The temperatures have been in the 90's. Not my favorite temps by any means.

Anyway, Skye and Zowie have a friend staying with us for a couple of weeks. She is a good kid. They have been having so much fun. Last week was our official last week of school for the year, and we will not be starting again until Septmeber.

The girls have been spending a lot of time at the parks near the water. Especially the last few days. Skye and her fiance are planning their wedding (for after this year - her senoir year!), and they are all looking forward to the fair.

I have been working 5 and 6 days a week with the daycare, plus planning for the autumn editions of the websites, and writing articles. We are all very busy here.

I hope you all are having a great summer!

Shannon

http://www.thehomeschoolmomof2.com

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At this time we are in a finishing up stage around.

1. Skye and Zowie are finishing up their studies, so I will have to contact someone about doing their portfolios.
2. I have finished up most of my classes, and I have another writing course beginning the 11th.
3. I have finished updates to my websites.
4. I have finished updates to my blogs.
5. I have completed the summer issue of The Down Home(School) Gazette.
6. I have finished the two scrapbook newsletters: http://journals.aol.com/thehsmomof2/a-scrappers-journey-newsletter--/ and http://journals.aol.com/thehsmomof2/a-scrappers-journey---a-newlsett/, and I have added new challenges to the site: http://groups.msn.com/AScrappersJourney/_whatsnew.msnw for http://www.ascrappersjourney.com
7. I updated my author sites.

I have been very busy, and it is a time for new beginnings.

1. I will begin a new writing class this month.
2. I will plan a new school year.
3. I will acquire new materials.
4. I recently became the moderator of an online critique group.

I hope you are all doing well.

Shannon

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for so long. i have no idea why. It has happened before. It won't let me even sign in to do anything with the blog most of the time. It will let me one day, then I can't do it again for a while. Any ideas on why this may be the case?

Shannon

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My grandmother was admitted into the hospital after a bad fall the other night. She will be there another day or two, then she will be at a rehabilitation place for a while. Luckily, she didn't break anything. Unfortunately, she hurt both legs, her left knee, and sprained her right ankle. I spent the entire evening at the emergency room the evening that it happened, until just after eleven, then most of the day yesterday and the day before in her room.

We are on vacation from schoolwork this week. I may need a couple of days next week to recover from this vacation.

I have been doing a lot of walking this past week. Miles and miles. In an effort to lose this access weight that I have collected, I am exercising more and trying to eat better. I am not always on track with this, but I am doing better than before.

I have us set up with new cleaning routines, and am making a great effort with organizing.

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I will be attending her church for the ceremony. I am so happy for her, even though we do not share the same religion.

She has been trying to find her spiritual path for so long. She has pondered much and asked many questions.

I will go to church with her in the morning, and support her in her spiritual journey. She can't believe that we are as excited for her as she is for herself.

Shannon

http://www.thehomeschoolmomof2.com/

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I am working on sticking with my goals for this year. I have been organizing my life and my home.  I am trying to be more patient each day. I am losing weight and learning to eat better.  I always tell the cashiers, waiters and waitresses to "Have a nice day/afternoon/evening," with a smile.

I am keeping up with  SparkPeople.com where I am tracking food/calories/exercise. I have also joined a few challenges: steps per day, breakfast challenge!, yoga challenge. I joined the few teams as well: scrap to lose, moms and dads at home, single parent and book lovers. It is all a lot of fun.

Today we are ging out to lunch with my nephew. We will work on our studies when we get home. The good part about going out to eat today is that I have to walk to the next town and back in order to go.

Shannon

http://www.thehomeschoolmomof2.com/

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Skye and Zowie are finishing up school work for the week. Zowie was sick yesterday so we took a  break. She has been sick a few days this winter.

I was sick all last week, and Skye was sick a couple of times as well. we seem to be catching everything that is going around. I hope that this problem does not stem to the meningitis that others are getting. My heart goes out to those families.

On the up side, I went to the movies with Sheila (my sister), Katie and Judy. We went (with no children!) to see Eragon, which was a good movie. Judy and I shared the special, 2 large sodas and a medium popcorn (I believe), for $6.00. So we paid $4.50 each to get in, and $3.00 each for snacks. $7.50 is not bad for something that we do not do often.

The four of us, and possibly my brother, will be going to Salem, Mass. for a day soon. We have to get up before daylight, and won't be back until later in the evening.

I hope you are all doing well.

Shannon

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1 decorative jar to hold the scrolls of paper

ribbon for tying the scrolls and for tying around the jar.

1 small sheet of stationary per member of the household

1 pen per member of the household

1. Have each member of your family write "2007 Resolutions" at the top of their papers. Everyone should then list their resolutions.

2. Roll each paper up separately, tying them closed with ribbon.

3. Write the persons name on each scroll and place in a jar.

4. Tie ribbon around the jar and put on a shelf until 2008.

5. When you are ready to write your 2008 goals, read your 2007 goals. Then place the 2007 scrolls in your 2007 family album.

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We took Skye to have two more teeth pulled this morning. We drive for about 45 minutes to an hour just to get there. She had two teeth pulled last week as well. She got to keep her teeth, though I do not know why she wants them.. Yuck!

Anyway, they put her braces on the 23rd. Just the top ones, I think.

It was raining so hard through most of the drive there and back. It must have been windy earlier that moning, because there were branches down.

I am trying to catch up on things now, and the girls are studying. We just discussed WW1 and WW2.

Shannon

The Homeschool Mom of 2

thehsmomof2@aol.com

http://www.thehomeschoolmomof2.com/

The Down Home(School) Gazette http://www.thehomeschoolmomof2.com/thedownhomeschoolgazette.htm

http://www.thepampermesite.com

http://www.thelowincomewayoflife.com

http://www.shannonbuck.com

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Good day everyone! We had a great first week of school. It is hard to believe that this is our 8th year of homeschooling.

Skye and Zowie were so little when we started, needing to be taught so much. Now they are in the 10th and 11th grades, and they barely need me any more.

What has stayed the same? They can still be seen walking arm-in-arm or hand-in-hand with me as we walk down the street. Sometimes. My 16 year old more so than my 14 year old. They will still cuddle with me on the coach while we are watching a movie. Again, Skye more than Zowie. I am grateful for these opportunities, these shows of affection. I will cherish them always.

Shannon

The Homeschool Mom of 2

thehsmomof2@aol.com

http://www.thehomeschoolmomof2.com/

The Down Home(School) Gazette http://www.thehomeschoolmomof2.com/thedownhomeschoolgazette.htm

http://www.thepampermesite.com

http://www.thelowincomewayoflife.com

http://www.shannonbuck.com

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I have been trying to figure out how to get the links to the categories under my title to work for months now. I finally figured it out! I now have Categories, My Sites and My Publications, and the links actually work.

I am pretty proud of myself right now.

Shannon

The Homeschool Mom of 2

thehsmomof2@aol.com

http://www.thehomeschoolmomof2.com/

The Down Home(School) Gazette

http://www.thehomeschoolmomof2.com/thedownhomeschoolgazette.htm

http://www.thepampermesite.com

http://www.thelowincomewayoflife.com

http://www.shannonbuck.com

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Zowie and I had a great time in Salem, MA with my sister and nephew this past week. I did so much walking, everyday! Many miles walked, less I still have to do this year.

We shopped, went to museums, haunted houses and more. I went on the tour at The House of the Seven Gables, and saw the house (and the room) in which Nathaniel Hawthorne was born. He was born on July fourth, and changed his name from Hathorne so as not to be associated with his father. He was embarassed that his father was a judge during the witch trials.

The museums on Salem are so different than the ones I have visited here in Maine. You sit in one, and in two others you sit for a whaile, then go on tours. It is all very interesting.

I will be preparing us for school this week.

Happy Days!

Shannon

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This would be the second article down.

Happy Reading!

Shannon

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I walked  51 miles in March!!!    

If you would like to join the April walking challenge, go here:

http://andfam.net/walk/

Happy April!

Shannon

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One of my best friends, Elliot, got into a car accident on Sunday. He did not make it. He died instantly.I miss him more than anything. Elliot was funny, smart, talented, handsome and kind. He will be missed by many. I remember one h

Halloween, Elliot dressed up as a girl. Me and a few friends helped him with everything. I did some of his make up. He wore the skirt, high heals and tights. He even wore a bra. That was funny. One night he walked over to my house in the pouring rain, just to sit on my portch and talk about nothing really. Elliot was my first kiss when I was 14. I have known Elliot for a few years now, and he has always been there for me and many others.

He went to my 16th birthday party. He was so happy that night. We talked, laughed and danced together. We even danced the Chicken Dance. He LOVED to play the guitar, and he was great at it. He had only had his lisence for three days before he passed. He was so excited when he got his

 1989 chevortlet S- 10 pick up truck registered. Elliot was a great friend, son, and school mate. I love and miss him so much.

                                                         ~ Skye ~

***

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Today we are catching up on our homeschool work. We do this each Friday. We wouldn't have to be playing catch up, but for me breaking my arm and then Skye being sick so much. Skye has an appointment with the allergist on Monday.

So...on Fridays we have 2 speeling and 2 vocabulary tests, then extra Writing and Grammar lessons until we are caught up.

Have a nice day.

Shannon

The Homeschool Mom of 2

I drank 16 oz. of water today, so far

I have walked 7 miles this week.

I have walked about 15 miles this month.

I have walked about 73 miles this year.

My walking goal for 2006 is 500 miles, 432 miles to go.

Posted in Life

Our lives are so busy, sometimes too busy. This is why I incorporated family time into our week. No one can miss it.

Family time begins each Sunday at 3:00 pm. We are all expected to finish all of our daily chores before this except for dinner dishes and feeding the cats, which have to be done later in the evening. I also have to finish up any lingering work from the week before.

We usually play games until about 6:15, then have dinner. We watch television during the evening hours. We have a lot of fun. Four times a year, at the change of every season, we all go bowling. Well, my daughters bowl, I keep score. I have a shoulder and back injury that prevents me from playing along. I still have a lot of fun, though.

Yesterday we decided to go out to eat before game time. We walked there and back, about 4 miles towards my weekly walking goal. We went to the Chocolate Grille. I had breaded scallops and a baked potato, as well as a mixture of corn, pees, and some other vegetable. We also ordered cheese sticks as an appetizer, and they always serve a small loaf of bread with honey butter.

My daughters are 13 and 16. At dinner time the plates there are $13.95 and up. My daughters rarely ever finish just a lunch plate which is smaller (and cheaper!). I also was not sure that they would even like most of what came with any meal, so we asked for the kiddie menu. Zowie ordered a grilled cheese sandwich and Skye ordered chicken tenders, each of which came with french fries and one of those individual containers of Mott's applesauce. Each of these meals is only $3.99. Zowie did not eat the applesauce, and Skye did not finish her chicken tenders. These can be brought home to be finished later.

They also could not finish their dessert, which may have never happened before. I told them it was a good thing I hadn't bought them a regular dinner, they wouldn't have been able to finish it anyway.

We had a lot of fun at any rate. We played Uno and Go Fish when we got home. Of course, we played Go Fish with the Uno cards, and only because Zowie was being silly.

I did not stay up for the entire show (the Oscars) last night. I was too tired. But I did see Reese Witherspoon win. She deserved it.

Shannon

The Homeschool Mom of 2

I drank 16 oz. of water today, so far

I have walked 4 miles this week.

I have walked about 12 miles this month.

I have walked about 70 miles this year.

My walking goal for 2006 is 500 miles, 430 miles to go.