Category: Interesting

Bragging on Andrea

AndreaSince 2010, Andrea has been competing in the Photo Contest held by the Elkhart County Parks. While photography is not her favorite hobby, she enjoys going out and taking pictures.

This year Andrea was surprised to discover she won second place in the Capture the Cold division! While she did not win any other ribbons this year, all of her pictures are ribbon worthy.

Andrea loves math. She is eager to start pre-algebra soon. She also enjoys cooking and sewing. Even though she is taking a short break from soccer, she is looking forward to spring soccer starting up again.

When she grows up, Andrea hopes to be a home school mom. She knows that reading will be a challenge, but she is getting better and she knows that God will help her teach her children. But for now, Andrea will keep working hard at school, reading good books to her little sister, and practice her cooking skills to the enjoyment of her friends and family.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Bragging on Audrey

AudreyThis is the sixth year that Audrey has entered photos in the Elkhart County Park Department Photo Contest.  Miss McGuire had six entries and earned an Honorable Mention for “I don’t Need Gates”. Each year her photographs show improvement in composition.

I was granted a quick interview with Audrey.  Audrey enjoys taking pictures of butterflies and caterpillars. She also tries to take pictures that make people smile.

When she grows up, she hopes to be an Lepidopterist, though I would argue she is one already. This year, Audrey plans to continue raising and photographing butterflies. She plans to get better close ups of different butterfly stages.  Audrey also hopes to raise and photograph Luna Moths.

In her free time, Audrey is often found knitting or studying another book about butterflies. She also enjoys the privilege of being able to teach a few classes, telling others about butterflies and how to raise them.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Soccer Weekend

Soccer2This weekend, Andrea’s soccer team participated in a fall tournament. Even with cold and rainy weather, they played very well.

The first game was good, though cold!  The girl’s had a shut out game of 5-0.  The second game was miserable; it was very cold, breezy and started to rain.  However, the girls pulled off another shut out game of 8-0.  They were excited!  They knew they had a chance at the playoffs.

The sun was very low when they started playing at 8:15 Sunday morning with the weather clear and around 38 degrees.  It was a tough game.  The referee seemed very fair even with some controversial calls. We won again, 2-0.

We thought the third game was hard, but it was easy compared to the championship game!  Our girls ran and fought for the ball the entire game.  The other team was sneakily “dirty”.  They fell often and we noticed them tripping or pushing our girls. Our girls aren’t perfect, but usually play fair.  The referee tried hard and he called many of the fouls. After a very exciting, loud game, we ended up losing 0-1.

The girls played so hard!  Most of them needed a break, did not have enough subs, but continued playing their best. They ended up in second place!  We learned later that the last two games they played were with Level 1 girls, and our team is Level 3. So they played a lot better than they realize!

Mulberry Inn

MulberryInnAndrea had a soccer tournament this weekend.  This year, Allan found us Mulberry Inn, a Victorian house that Deana, the owner, told us was built before Abraham Lincoln became president.

It was a pretty house with a nice yard for the kids to explore. We were able to rent the whole second floor and were told we could use the room on the Widow’s Walk if needed.

The inn was perfect for our needs this weekend.  It was inexpensive, the hotel would have cost more! We needed to leave by 8:00 on Saturday and 7:00 on Sunday to get to the fields in time for practice.  We were supplied breakfast food, but we prepared it when we wanted in the full kitchen in our room.  We used the kitchen again for dinner on Saturday when we decided to eat in.

Do you enjoy spiral staircases, dolls, antiques and knickknacks?  Prefer a casual bed and breakfast?  You might enjoy the Mulberry Inn.

Fireworks

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

We were able to see fireworks twice this year.  At least three people around us were shooting them off on the fourth.  Then we enjoyed a much better display of them at Black Squirrel Golf Course.  This was the first year that I remember going without meeting any family there.

A few friends joined us in our customary spot and we invited some other friends to join us.  The kids had fun with bubbles, catching fireflies and playing with many children who they met at the park before the firework show. Allan and I enjoyed the chance to talk with friends and had a relaxing evening watching the children have fun.

Differences

For science today we learned about spiders.  We enjoyed reviewing a few things and then watching a video about how strong spider webs can be.  After, the children were told to create a spider using any snack food they wanted.  They found cookies, pretzels, sprinkles and mini marshmallows to use.

After choosing their snacks, everyone “went to their own corner” so no one could see what they were doing.  Each of my children had a totally different interpretation of the assignment.

Adrian Adrian designed a spider.  But a bird came and attacked the spider, causing him to lose his eight eyes and two legs.

AudreyAudrey’s spider had another mishap.  She came to show me her spider while sobbing and crying, “someone smashed my spider!”

Andrea created a wounded Shelob from the Two Towers (Lord of the Rings) with Frodo’s and Sam’s swords nearby covered with green blood. AndreaFrodo is wrapped in a spiderweb and Sam is wearing colorful white clothes (designed by Megan).

I am not sure what would have happened if any of the kids had attempted to turn these in at school.  But I am so thankful that they can be silly and practice their creativity at home.  Best of all,  I love being the one watching their imagination working  and being the one who gets to laugh first at their goofiness.