repurposed toys

I love it when toys find a new purpose in our house! What was once Audrey's dollhouse is now Ethan's firehouse. Sleeping quarters upstairs, living quarters in the middle, and firetruck parking below.

(...the dollhouse is still yours when you're ready Alice!!)

our parents

Patrick and I have been blessed with amazing parents. Seriously. All four of them are wonderful. This past week we had the chance to go to Chelan for a week of vacation. And I am not kidding when I tell you that we were spoiled rotten by our parents. (Is it possible to spoil adult children? Yes, I think so.)

My parents host us when we visit Chelan. And for seven days we take over, TAKE OVER, their home. They never complain. They are so gracious. We eat their food, we swim in their pool, we pee all over their toilets (sorry - we're working on that!). We are so very comfortable in our home away from home.

We have been in need of a new computer for a few years now. When we were finally ready, I asked my Dad (former owner of Chelan's premier computer store) for his input. He found us a great deal on a laptop and had it ordered and at his house when we got there. Then he spent hours getting everything transferred and set up. What a gift.

Patrick's parents have a tradition where they take our kids school-clothes shopping every September. The kids look forward to this day all year long. And we are so thankful because we could never afford to give them so much. When they get home they put on a pretty amazing fashion show!

Amy Grant and Michael W Smith were performing in Wenatchee last week. My parents treated Audrey, Liam, and I to tickets to the show. SECOND ROW! I could feel the sweat as it flew from Michael W Smith's brow. No kidding. (He's a sweaty man on stage.) And Amy Grant has been one of my favorites since I was Audrey's age. It was so much fun!

On Monday, we took a walk around Riverfront Park with Patrick's parents. As we finished our route through town, they took the kids into the bookstore and let them each pick out a new book. On Thursday they cooked us pancakes for breakfast. And on Friday, they had the kids over to bake cookies. All very special traditions my kids enjoy so much.

See what I mean?? We have been so blessed to have the parents we do. It is something we do not take for granted. They love us, they care for us, and from time to time, they spoil us rotten!

first and third

Our year ahead is going to be a busy one! First grade and third grade both sound so big. I'm feeling more pressure every year to make sure I'm covering grade-appropriate material. I think we're doing okay - but it's A LOT of work! Here are the details:

History - Story of the World: The Middle Ages
Science - Chemistry: Adventures with Atoms and Molecules
Geography - Spectrum Geography, Grade 3
Spelling - Spelling Power (Audrey), Spelling Workout (Liam)
Grammar - First Language Lessons (Gr. 3 for Audrey, Gr. 1 for Liam)
Writing - Writing with Ease (Gr. 3 for Audrey, Gr. 1 for Liam)
Math - Horizons Math + lots of memory work and math games
Bible - What the Bible is All About for Young Explorers + memorization + daily verse look-up
Discovering Genres - Fiction and Nonfiction
Editing - Daily Paragraph Editing
Handwriting - Handwriting Without Tears
Memorization - verses, the presidents, states and capitals

Oh - and we're fitting all of that into four days a week because every Friday we will be going to our new homeschool co-op!! The kids and I are very excited. We've been on the waiting list for the past two years and there is finally a spot for us. I had no idea what I would do with Ethan during this time, but then a wonderful opportunity to trade childcare with a friend worked out for fall quarter. Co-op goes from 9:45-1:30 each Friday. The kids will pick two classes each quarter. They will get to bring their lunch (picking out our first lunchboxes was a huge hit!) and meet lots of new friends. I think it's going to be the perfect addition to our homeschooling.

Both big kids are also playing soccer and doing Awana. And I begin my weekly Bible study this week. Phew....I'm tired just thinking about it. But in reality, we all seem to do better when we're busy. And schedules are good. So here's to fall! We're off to a great start.

we're diving in!

not over yet

Summer is not over in the Oscarson home! (1) We haven't started back to school yet. (2) The weather is HOT! So in our usual relaxed, summer fashion - we are enjoying it! The kids are still sleeping in. They play outside and read books most of the day. And we spent yesterday afternoon at a spray park. It was Ethan's first time and that little guy was loving it. Hooray for summer!

*not* back-to-school

We had our annual 'not back-to-school' celebration yesterday with our good friends. We went to our favorite park, had lunch at a little bakery, and visited a new library. Very fun day!

perfect ending

We had a great family weekend. Garage sale/lemonade stand, BBQ, church, date night, bike riding, trail hike with friends and time on the beach. Such a perfect end to a wonderful summer!

once upon a time...

Little Boy (crying loudly): I want a marshmallow.
Big Girl: But Mommy said no.
Little Boy: But I want one.
Big Girl: Remember how I told you yesterday that tv will rot your brain? Well marshmallows can rot your teeth. So Mommy doesn't want you to have one.
Little Boy (cries even louder)
The end.

public transit

Each summer, Kylie and I take the kids on a city bus field trip. This morning, we boarded the bus near our home and took a 30 minute ride downtown. We went to a bakery and enjoyed cookies and then walked to the library where everyone checked out books. We made it back to the bus station right on time and had a nice ride home. Despite our grumpy bus driver who looked at me like I'm a moron when I asked him questions, it was a delightful morning!