Saturday, January 31, 2009

Our Spelling Star

As you can see in our last post, Sis has changed her blog name to Stella (Latin for Star). I thought that this was an appropriate Latin nickname for my sparkling little girl and one of my prize pupils. :)

I am so proud to announce that Stella won first place for 3rd and 4th graders in our homeschool Co-Op's spelling bee!! She worked so diligently to prepare for this and entered it with so much confidence and poise. She truly wasn't nervous and did a fabulous job. The winning word was cauliflower, and my heart was pounding out of my chest when she spelled it correctly. She won a gift card to Target, so we went out on a special date to choose a gift with her prize. After looking through nearly every department, she settled on a pretty necklace to remind her of this special event.

CONGRATULATIONS, STELLA!

Friday, January 23, 2009

New Blogger Names By: Stella (SIS) Age: 8

We as a family have decided to switch our blog names, which we hope will not be confusing to you all. Well, we decided to change them because they are Latin, and as some of you may know, we study Latin! We study it because it is called 'the root of all languages'. (Languages came from Latin). Well these are the little changes we have made as a final
Dad= Pater
Mom= Mater
I (SIS)= Stella
Buddy= Leo
Baby Boy= Taurus
Papoose= Tert

Well, as for what it means, we all have a secret identity on the blog from now on! We decided not to tell what it means! (GRIN).
Well, all for now!

By: Stella
Age: 8

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Reasons Why Students Should Take Destination Imagination By: Sis Age: 8

All students should participate in Destination Imagination (DI). Destination Imagination is a program that allows young people from elementary to college age to develop many skills while having lots of fun.

The first benefit of participating in DI is that it forces you to really think harder. It is important to be able to be able to come up with a solution on the spot.
In DI groups, this is known as improvisation.

The second benefit of taking DI is that it teaches acting skills. Acting skills are very important to have and can be used in many ways, such as public speaking. In DI we act out skits which help us to overcome our stagefright.

The third benefit of taking DI is that it teaches you how to work together with different teammates. In a DI team, we have six or seven students, and we have to work with different personalities and opinions. Usually everybody doesn't agree on the same idea.

In conclusion, every student should enter in a DI team. Destination Imagination provides young people with a fantastic experience that they can remember for the rest of their lives!

By: Sis
Age: 8

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Day with Dad By: Sis Age: 8

Yesterday, Daddy and I went to UNH for a Destination Imagination Workshop. In the morning, we got all ready, these are some pictures we took, just as we were heading out the door...




When we got there at the challenge, we went upstairs to our group, and we built a character and learned skills on that; it was a ton of fun! Next we went and practiced Instant Challenges, such as when we built a tower out of a cup, chopsticks, and a plate and stickers, didn't go well... REALLY HARD! The next thing we did was we made up five jobs, in 4 minutes with no words in it in a skit, and my dad and a couple of other grownups, had to do it! IT WAS HILARIOUS! JUST what Dad hates doing most :) It was funny! Then after that, we made up a little commercial of something that had never been invented and was about to be invented, which we (my DI team) decide to do a commercial on lemon flavored taffy, and twenty seconds into it, one of the directors, held up a sign that we had to add into our skit, somehow! Unluckily, our word was waterproof, two seconds after one of my friends had said, "And it makes your tongue turn a different color!" then she held up WATERPROOF, and luckily one of my friends said, "And it makes your tongue WATERPROOF!"! It was hilarious, and it was done in just the right amount of time! Next, we went and we played a game called What are you doing? ! You go up to someone while they're acting out something, and they say something that they're not doing and so you have to do it, one boy said, "What are you doing?" And the girl responded, "I'm just pracicing my ballet!" Then the boy had to take her place and practice HIS ballet. It was fun! Then we played freeze tag where someone would be in a motion and when somebody said to freeze, then they took the motion and like when one person had been toasting marshmallows, the girl changed in into turning a door handle, so in all it was fun!

Thank you Mrs. Lommen for doing Destination Imagination!

By: Sis

Age: 8

Our Christmas

I was so sleepy and distracted on Christmas Eve that I completely forgot to fill Buddy's stocking. He is the most precious, good natured little boy. He woke up with a puzzled look when he saw his empty stocking and then burst out in his dimpled laugh when he heard that we completely forgot about him! :)




Papoose takes a spin in his brother's birthday car. Isn't this adorable?!




A groggy Baby Boy enjoys some caramel popcorn. We made 10 batches of this for Christmas gifts! We're still sticking to our floor. :)



Here are some of the special gifts the kids made (complete with homemade wrapping paper). The highlight of this Christmas season was the creativity and love the kids' poured into their gifts for our extended family...




Festive candy wreath Buddy made for Aunt Krista's family




Sis and Mommy sipping tea from some dainty cups we received from my dear friend, Kristine. Thank you so much, Kristine!




Baby Boy receieved the biggest gift this year. It's a toddler train set that all 3 boys have enjoyed immensely.





Buddy's big gift from us was a gun that shoots rubber bullets. He has proven very responsible with this grown up gift and has practiced the safety rules he learned when he went shooting with Grandpa and Daddy.





Sis' two big gifts from us were a scrapbooking kit and a sewing box. My mom brought her out shopping for fabric and then spent a day teaching Siobhan how to sew her own curtains! What a special memory...





The cutest little Christmas feet ever...




Buddy really wanted this book on dolphins that shows the skeletal structure, etc.


Papoose was delighted with the day - even though his gifts from us were very practical...


It feels like much more than a week has passed since Christmas/New Year's break! We are back into our school routine full swing. It was difficult to say goodbye to Stephen after a delightful two weeks with him all to ourselves. I keep saying what a luxury it was to have such a long vacation that wasn't spent on a move, major house construction or childbirth.

Stephen and I were really encouraged by the kids' sweet spirit during this Christmas season. Their Christmas wish lists were so simple which made it all the more fun to surprise them with their desires on Christmas day. We were so thankful for the generosity of our extended family and some special friends which made the kids' (and our!) Christmas even more exciting and fun.

Friday, January 9, 2009

It Is Important To Get Up Early By: Sis Age: 8

It's important for everyone to rise early in the morning. Mornings are the best part of the day. There are many reasons why getting up in the early morning is wise.

The first reason why getting up in the early morning is wise is because you could enjoy the sunrise. The sunrise has many brilliant colors for all who rise early to enjoy. The second reason why getting up in the morning is wise is because God's Word tells us to use our time well. "Go to the ant thou sluggard; consider her ways and be wise" (Proverbs 6:6). Finally, you should get up in the early morning because you will finish your work earlier. There are lots of activities or hobbies you can spend time on when you finish your work. For example, I like to settle down and read a good book or e-mail after my work is all done.

In conclusion, everybody should be an early riser. As Benjamin Franklin put it, "Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."

By: Sis
Age: 8