Braces for Amy

Yesterday Miss Amy had her braces put on. Everything was going fine until the evening, then the pain and discomfort started. I have never had braces so I do not know what she is feeling but I do know that she was miserable. Today she seems in better spirits, it helped that her orthodontist called this morning to check on her and also a trip to the comic store for an X-Men fix with her friends. Her best friend said that she is lucky that she gets to do school from home because no one will tease her for having braces. Well, actually no one will tease her for having braces because all her friends have braces too! (I didn't say that though.)

Harvest Time

Okay, so this does not technically have to do with school, but it sure is fun! We went to our little city garden yesterday and picked some nice, juicy red tomatoes and basil. I had one last night, dressed simply with a little bit of balsamic vinegar, EVOO, basil and some feta cheese. It was super yummy, reminded me of the ones I used to eat on my grandpas farm in Missouri!
Next to ripen is the cucumbers-can't wait :)

Summer Days

So our days of summer have not been too sunny, lots of fog and drizzle but somehow Miss Amy and her BFF have managed to find ways to enjoy their freedom from the books. Today I went downstairs to run some errands and found the driveway covered with their artwork. I think this is how the Rainbow Fish got started; chalk drawings being washed to sea! Afterwards they crashed on the couch, (teeth started hurting from the orthodontist appointment) and watched X-men for the four-hundreth time.
Love these long summer days!!

Book Drop Day

As promised the Big Brown Truck came today and Miss Amy signed for her 22 lbs of books. She opened the box to check out what was in store for the Fall and I was disappointed that the usual Course Handbooks were not included. Hmmmm, ponder, ponder...I guess a phone call is in order. I knew that she would not be receiving any Language Arts textbooks but apparently all her novels will be iTexts this year as well. The novels not being in the box were a big disappointment. Looks like a run to Borders is in our future.

To Much Time On My Hands Today

So, My darling husband woke up at 8:30 this evening (he is a vampire, works the graveyard shift) and wandered into the kitchen. He saw measuring cups on the counter and food coloring so he assumed I was baking a treat. When he asked me what I was making I said "urine." His forehead furrowed, he kissed me on the check and said "will we be having something other than urine for dinner?" Now, let me explain. I have a copy of my daughters biology book and I like to supplement her labs throughout the year. One of the labs is to check for glucose in urine. Well, naturally, I am not going to use the real stuff so here is the recipe on how to make your own urine. 1/2 cup water, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 drop yellow food coloring. This would be the normal urine.
For abnormal urine: 1/2 cup water, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp. honey or glycerol, 1 drop yellow food coloring (if working with glycerol remember it is toxic, so best to use honey if doing this project for younger ones.)
To test for sugar you use a grease pencil and draw a circle on a microscope slide, place a drop or two of the normal urine inside the circle and dip a glucose strip into the drop (available at most drug stores.) Do the same for the abnormal urine, right down results.You can have your child test other substances for sugar too-koolaid, coke, plain water, etc. Have fun!!

The Big Brown Truck is Coming!!

Feels like Christmas is in the air! I received my email this morning letting me know that Tuesday was Book Drop day, no language arts books but I will just purchase those to supplement the virtual ones. So, I let Miss Amy know that she could pick out a couple of movies to watch on that day since we will be tied to the house until The Big Brown Truck arrives. When she was little, she thought that UPS worked for Santa Claus as undercover elves (I think she secretly still does!)

Getting Ready For September!!

Well, This fall starts an adventure that I didn't think I was going to undertake-having Amy complete her schooling from home! Since making this decision I have wrapped my mind around the fact and have come to terms with the fact that I needed to get myself organized. So, with my families help, (and a site called Flylady-love her!), I de-cluttered, swished, swiped and eventually ended up in what we call "the closet of doom." The closet of doom was supposed to be designated as Amys spot to keep all her curriculum and school supplies. It ended up being a catch-all for tax receipts, broken vacuums, toys and empty juice pouches (can I hear an ewwwwww?) But since I do not have a fairy godmother to come and rescue me I turned to the Connecitons Academy message boards for help and soon discovered that there are so many women (and men) out there who are gifted in the area of organization. I became excited. Could it happen to me? Could I actually get myself organized to the point that I had confidence to "coach" a high school student? In a nutshell, YES! I have attached pictures of the system that I am planning on using this fall. It is very simple to use and very inexpensive to implement. I purchased some inexpensive plastic boxes from Target and designated one box per subject. In each subject box there is my daughters textbook, notebook, pencils, pens, highlighters, index cards, and other subject specific items. All she has to do is take the box out that she is working on and put it back when she is done. No more hunting for pencils, textbooks, or anything!
I also went through her science labs and put all the items she would need into ziploc baggies and organized them by chapters. Now when she comes to a lab in her book we have the items! She can just grab the bag and have fun! Perishable items I marked on the front of the bag so when I lesson plan for the week I am aware of what is needed from the store.
So that is it so far...just waiting for the textbooks now and enjoying the rest of these lazy days of summer!!!