Co-op has started again!

I write this post with excitement, because I am very happy that co-op has started again. Last Saturday morning I found Nathaniel setting on our red chair, bouncing up and down. When I asked him why he was so excited, he answered and said "because co-op starts today." That of course made me sad, because I had to tell him that he had his days mixed up, and it wasn't Wednesday. "Oh then is it tomorrow?" He asked, and I had to tell him no. He started to look sad. "Then is it the day after that?" He also asked, and I have to once again tell him no. Yes he loves co-op that much, they all do (well except of the one little girl who doesn't get to go).

This year they moved it to a new location, and I was glad that I didn't drive to the old place anyways out of habit. I like the new location much better, because It's really close to the mall, and all of the other places I like to go shopping. If I have any shopping I need to do, I usually save it for Co-op day, when I only have one kid to worry about (and the boys really hate shopping).

The boys are so grown up, and I can't believe it, the two older boys didn't need any help finding their new class rooms, and to tell you the truth the youngest didn't either, but I insisted (it's all I really get to do anymore). Olivia almost sat down with Nathaniel in his class room (I'm sure his teacher would have loved having an extra student), but I made her leave with me. She was not happy about it, and reminded me that we were leaving without her brothers.

Olivia and I went thrift shopping after we dropped the boys off. I was celebrating, she was pouting, until we got to the store. Goodwill now has their Halloween decorations up, and Olivia loves Halloween decorations. My little girl loves monsters and skeletons (she calls them pirates). I'm not really sure why she loves them, but she just does (Monsters inc. is one of her favorite movies). Olivia also found a new favorite dress at Goodwill and that cheered her up quite a bit.

The boys had a ton of good things to talk about when we picked them up. One of Nathaniel's friends shared a caramel apple with him, and Darien was able to discuss Pokemon with his best friend Harrison. Zachary said he hung out with Sundari, but he wouldn't tell us anymore about that (does this mean my son is starting to like girls, and already has one that he likes?).

The weather has gotten colder here all of the sudden. I had to break down today and finally turn on the heat, because I really couldn't take the cold (yes I'm still a San Diegan at heart). We've been wearing jackets and long sleeves for a week now, so yes summer is definitely over for us.

I've started a few new crochet projects. My kids have asked for blankets as part of their Christmas present, and I let them pick out the colors. This is what I have done so far...

I usually pick a different one to do every day, and just try to get as far as possible in what little free time I have (can you tell who's blanket is who's?). Jeremy has also asked for one, and I have started his, but his is on the back burner right now. I'll post pictures once I am finished. If anyone was wondering I used half double stitches (those are my favorites), and the yarn is Red Heart (yes because they sell it for a good price at walmart).

Well that is all for right now. I'm sorry that things have slowed down, but that's just how things are this time of year. Thanks for reading :)

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Harry Potter Party 2013!

We had our Harry Potter Party (YAY!). It was great, and I may need some time to recover. Here is our guest list and schedule...

We started friday night (as you can see), to split up the movies so that we wouldn't end up feeling so worn out afterwards.

In our house we do have everyone sorted into which ever Hogwarts house fits their personality (yes the cats too).




The menu was fun and mostly simple. In my last post there are 2 videos that show you how to make Cauldron cake pops, and chocolate frogs.

As far as the butter beer, I made up a recipe of my own...

I used two scoops of Ice cream, six cups of Cream soda, and three cups of Ginger ale. My only complaint was that it wasn't as carbonated as I would have liked, but I felt like I got the taste right.

Now are for the pretzel wands... I took the big pretzel sticks, and dipped them in melted chocolate (I took some chocolate chips, and melted them in the microwave), then rolled them in sprinkles and nerds candy. I set them on some wax paper, then put them in the freezer for about ten minutes. They were really good.

The cupcakes were not really anything special, I just put pointy ice cream cones on top of them, to make it look like they were wearing wizard hats...

The rice crispy treat were also nothing special, but they were of course really good.

The eggs, mac and cheese, and pizza were for meals, so that way we actually got some real food in us, and not just sweets.

Despite the fact that my kids can eat a lot of food, I still have left overs. I really liked the menu and enjoyed everything on it, so next year I don't think it will change much.

First Week of School, Congrats to Shelby, and School Pictures

Hey everyone! We are finished with our first week of school, and finally into the swing of things again.

This was how I did the white board on the first day of school (and actually to tell you the truth it still looks that way... oh well). The question of the day was "Who is your favorite fictional character of all time?" As you can see I also put on the board that they were not to answer it until the end of the day, because I really wanted them to think on it. Finally after much thought they all had an answer for me. Darien picked Severus Snape (from Harry Potter), Zachary picked Wreck-it Ralph (from the Disney movie Wreck-it Ralph), and Nathaniel picked Violet (from the Disney movie The Incredibles). Their assignment after that was to write a story about them, a new story. I'll let you guys know how that turned out.

I also mentioned in a previous post that we have new bedtime rules in regards to grades, and this is what I came up with...

The New Good Grades / Bad Grades Bedtime rules

You can now earn a later bedtime by getting good grades, but you can also be sent to bed early for bad grades. This will be counted weekly, so at the end of the week on Friday mom will grade all of your papers. Your grades will decide your bedtime for that upcoming week Monday - Friday (weekends you will always keep your 8pm bedtime).

- If you get all 100%

     *then you get to stay up until 9pm

- If your lowest grade is in the 90's

     *then you get to stay up until 8:30pm

- If your lowest grade is in the 80's

     *then your bedtime will stay the same at 8pm

- If you lowest grade is 79% or lower

     *then you are to go to bed at 7:30pm and take your notes with you

Keep up the good grades and you will be rewarded

- If you get 2 great weeks in a row (meaning 90% or higher on all or your test and quizzes), then you will be allowed to take your DS to bed with you.

I don't know about your kids, but mine love to stay up past bedtime, and now they can earn it. The Abeka curriculum is a tough one with studying, notes to take, and a lot of memorizing, but I want my kids to be challenged. With this rule in-place they want to study, and not just slide by.

Now if you guys are still wondering about those chickens well here they are

This is their new coop (you can see three of them in this picture). Yes they have gotten much bigger. The coop we got off of amazon, and it was actually a rabbit hutch, but it works as a coop as well. I love it, and it's super easy to clean. The roof opens up, and the upper floor slides out, so I can take it out and hose it down.

Something exciting happened this weekend...

MY LITTLE SISTER GOT MARRIED

Yeah wow!

I know, they make a really cute couple (picture by Jessica Ober). They had their wedding in my parents' back yard, and it was beautiful. I was able to be there via Skype. Yes I was carried around on a laptop, and it was awesome.   It almost felt like I was there. I'm really happy for them both, and I'm sure they will have a wonderful life together.

I got the kids school pictures done early this year. I really wanted to do something fun and different this year, since last year we did the whole sailor thing...

I wanted a way, not to top it, but to at the least be just as cool... cute... oh I'm not sure... I finally decided that I wanted to do hats and scarfs (you know since we live in the northwest and all), and to make it unique, they wore their Hogwarts' house hats, and I crocheted scarfs to match (because the scarfs were super expensive on amazon).

I took the pictures with my iPhone at Scenic Beach in Seabeck, WA. I love them! Okay so their not professional but their good enough for me, and they were cheaper this way. I got them printed at walgreens, and I had a coupon as well. I'm just really excited right now about all of the money I saved.

In other Harry Potter news, we are planning another Harry Potter party. It's going to be in October. We have one every year, it's where we watch the movies back to back (we have to start early), and eat yummy food, and just have a fun time and hang out as a family. This year I'm making...

Chocolate frogs

Cauldron cake pops

And that's just the desserts. I'm really excited and can't want, and yes I will tell you all about it. :)