Mingling Christmas traditions

This year for Christmas eve we celebrated with our friends, mingling some British tradition with Chinese and American and even little German food. Seems like every year we do somethings new, but all is merry.

British: Christmas crackers, homemade mince pies
Chinese: Roast duck, Chinese dishes, tangerines
American: potato leek soup, glazed wild caught salmon, mozzarella sticks, Godiva chocolate
German: Stollen bread Yum!

Pulling Christmas crackers; inside is a hat for the winner and a joke.

The day before, we gathered with friends and the kids put on a little talent show. It was definitely the highlight of that evening.

Christmas show

J and W participated in our church Christmas play this past weekend. J is the chief angel while W is a shepherd. I had to borrow costumes from our homeschool group. And feel blessed the need was met. My favorite camera or the one I know how to operate is out of commission so hasn't taken any pictures. These are by DH.

Favorite stamentment of the month

"Oh, my goodness, Oh, my goodness!!"

The kids, esp. J have been saying that in the tone of the show "Annie" ever since they saw the play last Sunday.

And sometimes, " I love you, Miss Hennigan" also in tone of Annie. :)

Few favorite reads

1. The King of Ireland's Son by Padraic Colum

2. The Book of Fairy Princes by Isabel Wyatt

(This is where I'm impressed with Waldorf education as I can tell by the interest of my children esp my son with these books)

3. Homeschooling Our Children Unschooling Ourselves by Alison McKee (I finished this book in one night. Even though I don't think I have enough trust in myself and in my children to fully do unschooling, I'm definitely going to give them plenty of time and opportunities to let them take the lead in their education.)

Lately, the kids has been busy making Christmas presents for us, and that is something they are passionate about and go work on by themselves in their room whenever there is time.)

New Hip Hop dancer in the family

W is officially the new hip hop dancer in the family. It started when I wanted W to try hip hop so daddy asked J's dance studio if they offered an all boy hip hop class. It turns out they did for the first time this year and for the competitive hip hop class, it was free. But since it is already half way through the year, there was great concern if W can catch up fast or not. So we took him there just to try. Before he went, he was a little resistant, doing a little dry "wann-wann" cries and saying he doesn't want to be on stage and etc. And when he first went into the class, he didn't look like he want to participate at all.

But after the class was over and the children came out, the first thing I heard was one of his classmates, saying to W that he did good for his first day. Then his teacher came out and said W caught on lot faster than he expected and that he can be enrolled in the class. I asked W if he had fun and want to take the class, and it was a definite yes.

When he came back, he was already practicing the moves he learned. Even before he fell asleep, he was still going over the moves in bed with his arms. It was very cute. Good thing we asked. :) God did say, Ask and you shall receive.

Blessing of Performances

We have been busy watching quite a few performances, namely A Midnight Summer's Dream, Annie, and soon The Nutcracker. None of this would be possible without the blessing our homeschool school group who have diligently negotiated with area performance centers to negotiate very discounted tickets and in some case free tickets or donations for ticket for homeschoolers and for that I'm very grateful. W also got discounted tickets to see Monster Truck and had great time.

Holiday twitter?

I'm already receiving Christmas cards, letter,pictures from friends so it inspired me to write one of our own to share. Good thing I keep a blog to help me remember the events. I'll probably post a holiday picture later.

Happy Holiday, everyone!

January: W turned 6 this month and started all of sudden began to read chapter books all by himself. His first chapter book is “The Diary of the Wimpy Kid” given by Auntie Michelle.

February: J attended her 2^nd Homeschool Spelling Bee and won 2^nd place. Every year, there is always someone who gives her a really good run for the money. At Kalahari indoor waterpark, J conquered her fear and came down the Cheetah Race. W picked up knitting at amazing speed much to my surprise.

March: J had her first piano recital and did great. We dyed our own silks and they turned out beautiful. They are great for creative play and dress up.

April: We took the kids to China for a 3 week long vacation. They were absolutely troopers considering all the walking and long days we had while on tour. Their favorite part was getting a full body massage and riding on Grandpa’s motorbike.

May: Watching our caterpillars morph into painted lady butterflies was cool. J and I led her Girl Scout troop’s Try-It meeting. She was very nervous about it but it turned very well. We showed the girls how to uncover a secret message using watercolor, draw a 3 dimensional chain, finger knit a bracelet, and did an iridescence science experiment using ice, salt and food coloring.

June: I completed 2 out of 3 summer projects: knitted a hat using a loom and finished knitting a scarf for W. J also knitted a hat for daddy for Father’s day while all of us worked together to make an I-touch Father’s day card and a collage crown for daddy.

July: Our cousins came back to visit and stayed with us for 2 nights. The kids had a great time playing with their cousins and had fun watching the fireworks. They also came just in time to help celebrate J’s 8^th birthday. On a sad note, our little pet hamster, Fluffy, died.

August: We received and raised monarch butterflies courtesy of a homeschool friend and it was so cool to see it land on W’s shoulder and hand. We also went to Potter’s zoo and rode on camels, fed birds, and had close encounters with the animals. I even had a goat tugging hard on my shirt. It made me get out of the petting zoo real quick.

September: I finally finished my 3^rd project of the summer: a 16’’ customized Asian boy doll for W. Now Alex sleeps with W every night. J auditioned for competitive dance team on the recommendation of the studio owner back in August and got in. It surprises me how much she is loving dance. Her favorite dance is hip-hop.

October: Big news, we have a 3^rd baby on the way. We are all excited but initially this is totally daddy’s idea and a dream come true for J who always wanted another baby. After making sure he will still be homeschooled after the baby comes, W is warming up quickly to the idea of being a big brother. But he is definitely praying for a boy.

November: W started taking guitar lessons and is gaining confidence fast in roller skating. I found J a new piano teacher in Canton so she resumed her lessons. In preparation for baby, we specifically got a light vacuum for J and W so they can help vacuum and they love it. Another passion of both J and W is drawing. I call them my blooming artists. J

Designer Doodles- J's new passion

J always loved to draw ever since she was a little girl. But as she grew older, I noticed most of her drawings are girls with long hair wearing different costumes. So I thought she might have an interest in fashion design. This is what has been keeping her busy ever since I brought it for her the day before Thanksgiving. Here are few pages. If you are curious, the book is called Designer Doodles Over 100 designs to complete and create.





Even when her friend was over, who is also a little artist herself, the girls drew together while the boys built using blocks.

Beth's adventure by J

J has written snippets of stories and illustrated them in the past but this is the first time she's written I think more than 2 or 3 pages. The best thing is she told me she really enjoys writing. This is something she has been doing with no input/help from me. I have refrained from giving her editorial comments, as tempting as it is. That can come later; good thing we are doing some grammar work using Rod and Staff.

There was even one night where she stayed up when everyone has gone asleep and she decided to stay in the upstairs hallway to continue writing and illustrating her story. So far there is 18 pages. This Thanksgiving she has taken a break but hopefully she'll continue with her story and finish it. I think some of the inspiration comes from reading all the American Girl book which she has just been devouring. So far, the story is about an American girl named Beth who becomes friend with an Indian girl named Speaking Rain and her adventures in Indian territories.

Cover of her book

J - little piano teacher

Recently, W has shown an interest in learning to play the piano. And guess who's been teaching him? J.

J's piano teacher asked J how much she charges W, and J said, well, I don't charge him anything since we share the same piggy bank. Even he paid me, he'll just be taking the money from the shared piggy bank. Good point.

J has been also teaching herself how to play the recorder by herself with materials from the Enki 1st grade materials. Good thing since the Kunath recorder was pretty expensive. Guess it helps since she have some piano background.

W started guitar lesson little while ago. This was when we first got him his guitar.

Dance Convention and Roller Skating

This past Sat, J attended her first dance convention. She was the only "mini" from her studio to attend. J was very excited to go and came to my room little before 6:30am just as I was getting ready to wake her up. It was great experience for J to go and she learned many new dance moves. The classes was pretty fast paced for J as she was in the 8-14 years old group but she kept it up. Most of the teachers flew in from CA and they were awesome!

J's favorite class was Jazz; love the teacher too. She got her first exposure to lyrical and musical theater at the convention. They danced for 6 hours with only a half hour break for lunch. Did you know parents have to pay to watch during class? I might have to get a part time job if J keeps going to these conventions and she does want to!

While J's heavily involved in dance, W has been taking roller skating class and loving it. Daddy says this Sat. he made so much improvement his teacher recommended he be moved to the advanced class. Daddy also says his teacher said she is really proud of W and that he is one of the best students in the class. Way to go, little boy!

First times

W did his cartwheel successfully for the first times today and he is so happy. Wish I had caught that on camera. Now he is working on doing the cartwheel on his left side.

He was also brave enough to climb a high ladder.

First time J/W putting their geography knowledge onto a large map. They were super excited that I finally let them write on it.


First time I caught J eating watermelon straight out of the melon on camera.

What W/J are enjoying

Few things W/J are enjoying (that I actually have and took a picture):

1. The Children's Book of Heroes; both kids finished reading this book in no time.
2. Crafting - J made this duck entirely on her own, with not even a tiny help from me.


3. Boyscouts- W really loves his homeschool boyscout troupe and look forward to it every week. They have done quite a bit and is a lot more strict than J's girl scout group through her old school. Next trip is Monster Truck show and maybe even being a safety belt tester. Lots of exciting things.

These (first) days...

These first pregnancy days of mine has been filled with walks, naps, and cravings. We are all very excited to meet baby. When we first told the kids, W only had one main concern, was he still going to be home schooled? After I reassured him that he will be, he felt a lot better and a lot more happier. He is definitely looking for a brother. J had always wanted another baby. She doesn't care if its a boy or a girl, just a baby to love and take care.

This time we are hoping to do a home birth with the help of a midwife if God willing. It will definitely be a leap of faith but I feel this is the door God opened for us. We are also exploring the possibility of cloth diapers and home made detergent as well as options for baby wearing. So if you have any advice regarding these kind of things, I'd love to hear it.

I'm also feeling lots of movement in my lower tummy; it seems like it's baby but everything I read says its too early to feel the baby move. Baby is already getting kisses and many touches from hubby and the kids.

We are of course still doing school and hope to until the baby comes.

importance of friends

This year, I can really see that friends have taken on a more important role in J's life.

This past Saturday, J's competitive dance team had a sleep over party at the studio. I didn't want J to sleep over but agreed she can stay there til about 9ish. We got there about 3:30pm so I feel it's good block of time. I gave her my cell phone to call just in case she wanted to come home earlier, but at 7:30ish, she called to asked me if she can spend the night and to say her friends are making her a bed with their sleeping bags. I said no since she is having a birthday slumber party this coming Friday. Then she asked if I can pick her up little later than 9, like 9:10? Ha,ha, negotiating already. She apparently had a great time.

Our next door neighbor's child has also been coming to hang out with J (and W) more in last few weeks to the delight of J.

W hangs with his boyscout friends once every week; he's always excited about that. Now we just need find a time to hook up with our cousins whom J and W dearly loves.

E. Orchard

This is from a while back, and I have just realized I never posted these. But it was a fun trip with our friends. Jumping on the haystack was all the kids' favorite. The apples we picked are not our favorite, but they did make great apple sauce. Now I understand why hubby asked if I wanted a apple peeler machine. :)

Insect study

For science this year, we are using Exploring Creation with Zoology 1: Flying creatures of the Fifth Day by J Fulbright. It is a very in-depth study of flying creatures. We have been enjoying it.

Sometimes I wonder if it is too in-depth for the kids and perhaps too difficult for W. But when I ask them, they all say they like it and want to continue. They have also told me they want to study Human Body next year so we'll probably do that. I'm learning as much as the kids and feel I'm getting a new-education along with the kids, esp in regards with history and science.

When we notice things we have studied, it is very exciting.

Like this female dragon fly, do you see the "ovipositor", the spike on the end of its abdomen? This one is short and stout.
I love the pretty "membranous" wings of this dragon fly. I have yet to see the "ocelli"or simpile eyes, on an insect. We are hoping to catch or spot a praying mantis close up.
This grass hopper (male) as we have determined, has super strong legs. It can jump 20 times further than the length of its body and we have witness it. It took W by surprise at first. J has also been Google-ing to learn more the insects we catch.

Looks pretty brown, huh? Previously, I thought grass hoppers were green. Yet we learned, they can be green, brown or multicolored. They are def. very active and in the day.

J buying snack

I was surprised when I picked up J at dance, she had a little bag of fruity snack. And when I asked her about it, she says she took some money out the bottle piggy bank I gave her and brought it with her to dance so she can buy snacks for herself. Sneaky girl! :)

Remembering the parent

For a good part of this morning, the kids and I cleaned. Not what I had planned, but what I really needed. A clean, organized house really gives me peace of mind. And after a weekend of not feeling well and being on the sofa, getting the house in order was great.

J mopped the floor; she likes it, esp. the spraying part while I helped W "see". The places where there is stuff lying around and where things are out of place. I guess kids don't "see" like the adults do. So instead of telling him to do this, pick up this, I brought him over and asked him what he sees, what else do you see. We also talked about doing our best, like checking that the table is indeed wiped clean, chairs pushed in, etc. Vacuuming the house was my "morning exercise" of the day.

I'm also letting the kids to do more of their work independently, meaning I'll be around but not necessarily in the same room with them or sometimes they'll have to skip a part and wait. I found that to be a great time reliever. I'm sure veteran homeschooling mom or even newbies would say of course but that is just starting to occur to me.

We still managed to get most of our school done and had a play date which was great for both the kids and I. Great day in remembering the parents' need. In the end, when the parent's tank is full, we have more to give to our kids.

Leaf prints and tree identification

We learned a lot about different trees yesterday. The kids' favorite part was doing the leaf print craft. There were silver maple, tulip,dogwood, red bud, sweet gum,and elm leaves to paint and press.

There was also a hike in the woods to look at the trees and just enjoy the weather. This leaf is from the tulip tree.

A picture by the pumpkin before we go.

Impromptu drawing of Indians

by J

Cute bee,upset flower, etc

Hanging with daddy

While I was on my women's retreat, the kids hanged with daddy. The most memorable and fun for J and W was the 3 hour bike ride to, and in the forest. It was a time of exploring, wandering, playing and fun. After spending their time in the outdoors, they were spent but content.