Happy New School Year

Our new school year has been up and running since the Wednesday after Labor Day.  

I have found that two in high school takes up a lot of my time. Plus, there is the balancing act of their right to privacy with my mommy bragging.  

So here is what has been happening:
Mister B has his learner's permit.  I am the worst passenger ever.  He is doing great (which is a good thing since the imaginary brake on my side of the car does nothing.  I have also learned that leaning in the direction I want the car to go does not work, either.  Also, my death grip on the door handle and grimace do not inspire confidence.  Just food for thought for when your kids get their learners permits).
Mister B is also taking Spanish at our local community college and a college Philosophy class.  This is on top of the regular course work we do at home plus still competitive swimming for the high school and the club team.
Little Miss M (not so little.  I am the shortest one in the house) has dived into her freshman year of high school with maturity and enthusiasm. She will also be swimming for the high school and the club team.  Don't tell her brother ;) but such a pleasure to be doing 9th grade with her versus my general freak out, suck all the joy out of homeschooling when her brother started high school.  My poor son is the guinea pig.

It will be busy year over here.


  






  

Happy Birthday, Little Miss M!

My baby girl is 14!  

For her birthday breakfast-Ice Cream.  Salted Caramel ice cream.  Yum.






It has been a busy couple of months.  We are wrapping up the school year in the next couple of weeks.  Next year I will have a High School Freshman and a Junior!  

Our last field trip of the year was to The Bronx Zoo.  We had not been in a few years.  We got to see the baby giraffes, a baby gorilla, and Komodo Dragons.

B rode a camel!

M was not happy that I made them stand by the rhino statue.

Everyone loves the sea lions.

After viewing the short film about the Congo I was ready to get on a plane and save the rain forest.  But then I remembered, giant insects, malaria, lack of hot and cold running water, it is hot and muggy in the rain forest.  So, I will save the rain forest by not using products that are the result of deforestation and using products that help the rain forest when possible.

A great time was had by all.  I sent them on a photo scavenger hunt to give some purpose to our wandering.  It worked out great.  It was a basic list of questions such as -find an animal eating. Find an animal with feathers. Etc.  Who knew the preschool scavenger hunt would work so well for teens.

Soon the school year will be over and we will enjoy a lazy summer with my only commitment being to the summer swim team for the month of July.  Little Miss and I will enjoy a lazy summer.  Mister B will be life guarding at the town pool again.

I am looking forward to relaxing.  

Sophmore Dance

Mister B attended the Sophmore Dance at the high school with a friend this weekend.  Don't they make a cute couple?

Alas, they are not a couple.











They had a great time.  They danced, they sang, they ate.

Mister B is studying for his learners permit.  Soon he will be driving. They grow up so fast.

School work continues to progress nicely.  We recently took a food tour of the lower east side with my sister and her family.  It was a lot of fun and a lot of good food.

Yum, the pickle guy!

Of course we bought pickles!

We got to see Matzoh coming out of the oven.

We saw and tasted all highlights. Russ and Daughters for smoked sable and pastrami salmon, Katz's deli for hot dogs and knishes, The Streit's factory for matzoh, economy candy for halvah (delicious middle eastern treat), Kosser's for fresh baked bialys.  FYI, a true bialy is nothing like a bagel. And the final stop at the pickle guy. 

The tour was a lot of fun.  Our tour guide was very knowledgeable about the history of the lower east side.  Fun fact-Streit's is the last family owned factory. Manashevitz,Goodman's, etc. all since gobbled up by conglomerates.  Since Little Miss M is studying immigration right now the tour was timely.  Showing them where their great grandmother lived when she first came to this country added some extra meaning.

We also celebrated Great Grandma's 102nd birthday last month.

Doesn't my grandma look amazing with her great-grandkids.  Unfortunately my cousins with the baby had to leave before we could get this pic.  But know that there is one more great-grandchild.  Another boy. Poor Little Miss, the only girl on my side of the family.

Happy 16th Birthday

Mister B turned 16 over the weekend. I can't believe my baby is 16. On the threshold of adulthood.  I couldn't be prouder of the man he is becoming.

Birthday breakfast-Ice Cream! And, no, they did not eat the whole pint in one sitting.

Birthday tradition-dessert for breakfast.

So delicious!

Other big news-At the end of the season dinner for the Bergen Sharks it was announced that Mister B set the team record for the 200 backstroke.  Good year for Mister B.

Mister B is studying for his driving permit test.  Yikes!  He will be driving.  But also, yay, I can send him to run errands in another year.

Happy March

Having totally skipped January and February I finally have a few minutes to update what has been happening in our little homeschool world.  In a nutshell-swim, swim, swim, snow, snow, snow, and school, school, school.

Swim season is over.  That was quite a ride.  Mister B made it to States for the Bergen Sharks.  He swam freestyle and a relay.  He came in 2nd in his heat for freestyle and shaved some time.  Overall, he came in 7th place.  But he earned 2 points for his team.  So, all in all, pretty good if you ask me.  The Sharks won States overall combined score of girls and boys.  The girls came in 1st and the boys came in 3rd.  A great day and a lot of fun.

The high school team also qualified for States.  Our team made it as far as the semi-finals.  First time ever.  Very exciting.

This is the last week for the Sharks.  Sunday will be the fun meet against themselves.  Then the end of the year dinner. At which point I will enjoy a couple of weeks off before Spring Training begins.

But enough about swim, what about school, I can hear you saying.  School is going well for both of them. They are making progress.  Little Miss has been devoting some time to the study of Freedom from Religion and how that applies to daily life.  She has also been studying the moon.  In English she is enjoying The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.  She is not enjoying my constantly making her look up words when she does not know their meaning.

Mister B is also progressing nicely.  He is working on a research paper for his writing class and has started a 10 week Shakespeare class studying Romeo and Juliet.  Math is steady progress as is health, science, and history. 

The past couple of months have been hectic, crazy, and wild ride.  Here is to March roaring in like a lion and going out like a lamb.

Happy New Year!

Yes, I am still horribly neglecting this blog.  Between lack of time due to two teenagers and their right not to have every little thing they do tooted over the internet I find updating challenging.  So here is a recap of the end of 2013 and the beginning of 2014.

Swimming.  Lots and lots of swimming.  Mister B is having a good year so far on the high school team.  Both Mister B and Little Miss M have shown improvement in their times.

Schoolwork continues to go fairly smoothly.  They are learning.  They even remember some things when asked.  Although for some reason Little Miss keeps forgetting The Pledge of Allegiance.  However, I just asked her to recite it and she remembered the whole thing.  Perhaps that hurdle has been conquered (to be replaced with her inability to remember the name of our National Anthem).

Mister B completed his first semester of the online writing class.  Considering how much he hates writing and how he has never taken an online class I think the B- he got is pretty good.  We have now gone over her comments and are working on strategy to bring the grade up.  Algebra seems to finally be sticking.  That is a relief.

We started back to school on January 2nd.  Only to have a snow day today, January 3d.  We got a good 8-10 inches.  Thank you to my neighbor who comes by with his blizzard grade snow blower and does most of the work for us.  I bake him cookies in return.  And then I get to feel like my mother by saying "Don't touch.  Those are Eric's cookies."  Okay she would say "Don't touch, those are for the holiday." but it is the same idea.

Did I mention the swimming?

Oh my! I have been horribly neglectful.

I realized today that it has been quite a while since I updated.  Life with teens has a funny way of cutting into my blogging time.

The big news here is that Mister B's PSAT scores arrived in the mail today.  Big sigh of relief-I have not ruined him for life and chances are he will get into a decent college.  He did just fine. Everything exactly where I expected it to be.  Now an action plan is being put in place for next year.  Never hurts to try for a National Merit Scholarship.

Mister B is having a busy school year.  His online writing class has been an exercise in time management.  Perhaps he will even master it by the end of the year.  In spite of his scheduling challenges the class is going well.  First there was the essay about him.  Then the persuasive essay.  Currently he is working on a short story.  He is doing well in the class but I don't think my main goal is being met.  I was hoping the class would help make the writing process easier for him but I don't think it is working.  Perhaps by the end of the year.

Little Miss M is also having a fine year.  Last year she loved all things science.  This year she told me she is enjoying her civics class more than science.  What is not to love about learning about our constitution and why we have ethics and civics.  She is also loving her rainbow loom. I think it is great that the loom entertains her for hours.  I certainly prefer stepping on little rubber bands instead over legos.

They are both still swimming and loving it.  Mister B is still swimming for the club team and the high school.  The high school season just started and Mister B is a little upset that the coach wants him to continue doing distance.  He prefers sprinting.  You want to sprint-get faster.  Little Miss continues to work hard and will be trying out for the high school team next year.

Happy Halloween!

This Halloween was a little bittersweet for me.  I don't have little kids anymore.  No more pumpkin crafts.  No more cute princess and pirate costumes.  No more trekking in the cold following my little munchkins (okay, I don't miss that). 

Mister B spent the afternoon at a friends house.  Little Miss M and her friend put on their zombie makeup and went out for what was likely their last trick or treat.

Sure, I still passed out candy and oohed and aahhed at the adorable little kids and faked horror at the scary older kids but it is not the same when you don't have one of your own.

It is almost Halloween

Oh, my! Halloween is already upon us.  Where in the world did October go?  These past few weeks have been a whirlwind of activity.  Swim practices, schoolwork, Hebrew High, laundry.  So much to do, so little time.

This past week we have been working on the Tennessee Williams play "The Glass Menagerie".  Mister B has been having an issue with the phrase "Gentlemen Callers".  He thinks it sounds weird.  I suppose it is a bit old fashioned but I think it needs to make a comeback.  A time of charm and grace and not honking and general rudeness.

I love the play.  Mister B and Little Miss M seem to have tolerated the play.  As I was explaining to them it is difficult to read a play.  It is meant to be performed, not read.  You have to pay attention to stage direction and picture it in your head.  Not an easy task.

This afternoon we watched the movie-with Katherine Hepburn. And I even recognized a young Sam Waterson.  Who knew, besides my mother, that he was more then a lawyer on Law and Order?  Okay, I knew that but I can't recall seeing him in anything else.  But, I digress.  My children's big observation.  "They didn't have the screen like in the play."  Very astute.

Totally Jinxed It

Remember when I said how great everything was going and I didn't want to say anything for fear of jinxing it.  Well, I jinxed it.  The last couple of weeks have been challenging to say the least but I think we are finally back on track. Whew!

Mister B was avoiding his writing class and handing things in late.  Not cool.  For some reason he did not think I would find out.  Delusional teen brain.  How many times can one say "I know you hate writing but it is a life skill. One day you will have a boss who will give you all the sucky reports he/she does not want to do and if you want to keep your job and get promoted to where you no longer have to do the sucky reports I suggest you learn to write well." Stubborn.  I can't imagine where he gets it from.

Little Miss M was also skating by in Civics.  Oops, did I forget to answer 5 of those 8 questions.  What do you mean I can't use "I don't like using "insert vocabulary word here" in a sentence as my sentence to show understanding of the meaning. 

Seriously, was mars in retrograde or something these past few weeks?

Mister B is taking the PSAT tomorrow.  That was a challenge and a half.  Well over a month of my phone calls and emails being ignored by the testing guy at the high school.  I was ready to go up to the high school and go apoplectic but decided to try one more phone call.  He was sweet as pie and so helpful.  Again-mars in retrograde anyone?

I gave Mister B a practice test yesterday and am ready to pop out the champagne that without any test prep he scored average in writing and critical thinking.  Math was below average-but I expected that.  He and I discussed prior to the practice exam that math was going to have to be more of a focus this year so that next year when he takes the PSAT as a Junior (when it counts) he will be prepared.

He kept asking why he had to take it this year if it didn't count.  I explained my reasoning.  He is taking it for the experience.  His score doesn't matter at all.  It is a diagnostic tool. From this test we will learn what to focus on for next year when he takes it as a Junior. 

Don't want to jinx it

I've got a secret.  I have been afraid to say anything for fear that putting it out there would ruin the magic.  My secret-The first week of school went incredibly well and week 2 is off to a great start, too.

To paraphrase what a friend of mine posted on facebook recently-in my head my school days look like me dancing and singing like Julie Andrews on the mountaintop aka The Sound of Music.  So not the reality  But this year, for me, something is different.  Things have not gelled this well since the year we started homeschooling.  Is it maturity (theirs and mine)?  The alignment of the planets?  A butterfly flapped it's wings in Africa? Just a magic moment in time?  I don't know and I don't want to look to hard because I am enjoying it. 

I am relishing this sweet spot in our homeschooling adventure. I am trying to live in the moment and not analyze what I am doing.  I know if I look to closely I will think "I can replicate this and make it happen every day."  I also know that there is no way I can make this happen over and over. It is a moment.  A moment that much sweeter because I know in my heart of hearts that it is fleeting and impossible to capture.

Happy New School Year

Today was the first day of our new school year.  Overall, one of our more successful beginnings.  Little Miss M followed directions, completed all assignments, and seemed to take joy in the start of the new year.  Mister B also has gone about his day with a renewed sense of purpose and dedication.  So nice to see.  On the other hand, does such a good beginning mean tomorrow will be a nightmare?

Here are the obligatory 1st day mug shots.

A moment of sibling love caught in the moment.  They were laughing together.

10th grade!  Seriously, can not believe it.

My baby girl! 8th grade, her last year before I have 2 high schoolers!

Gearing up for the new school year

It has been a wonderful summer.  Okay, it is not over yet since school for us does not start until after labor day but the dog days of summer are on the decline.  Summer always seems too be too quick but for some reason this one has seemed to go faster than others.

Summer swim team was a lot of fun and this year both kids won awards.  Mister B received a plaque for Most Improved Swimmer (meaning his attitude, work ethic, being a team player has taken a big leap from years past) and Little Miss M received a trophy for MVS (most valuable swimmer) in her age group.  She earned 30 points for her age group throughout the season.  Lots of excitement for us at the end of the year pizza party.

Mister B has been busy life guarding at our town pool and loving every minute of it.  He is a true water rat and happiest at the pool.  He truly does not understand why his friends do not want to spend every minute at the pool.  Earning a paycheck has been exciting for him, too.  Who is that FICA guy and why does he take all my money?  He is now the proud owner of his first checking account and debit card.  He is now learning how to put 10% aside for retirement and about budgeting.

I am finally getting my behind in gear and getting everything together that will be needed for the new school year. Organizing the books, making sure we have all the textbooks, checking for items needed for experiments, and so on, and so on. 

It has been a challenge for me this year to get motivated because the past year and a half my husband has been having serious health issues.  Debilitating health issues.  We went from doctor to doctor and ologist to ologist trying to find out what is wrong with him.  No one knew but they all offered up various treatments for his various symptoms.  Until finally someone suggested he find a Lyme literate doctor and get tested.  Best advice ever. 

We saw Dr. Lesley Fein.  We spent 3 hours with her for the initial consult.  Prior to the consult you have blood work done.  You bring all your medical records with you and she reviews your blood results and all your records.  All while taking a compete medical history.  Asking questions about where you grew up, jobs you have had, the diet you had as a kid and the one you follow now.  More and more questions.  While asking all these questions she is reviewing and making notes and miracle of miracles she is coming up with hypothesis as to what may be ailing you.

She initially did not think it was Lyme disease even though his blood work did show exposure and active at one time.  She was suspecting a type of heavy metal or pesticide toxicity.  Then came the exam.  Where she quickly discovered he was showing all he classic symptoms of Bartonella (another tick borne illness) so she ordered up more blood work and a brain spect.  Then she said that even though she suspects the bartonella we would be remiss not to follow up on the toxicity theory because just because he has one does not mean he does not have the other, too.  She then told us she would research who she thinks we should see and get us a name.  Here is a list of supplements you should start taking.

A couple of weeks pass and Good News!  Blood work tested positive for Bartonella and your brain spec shows you also have Lyme and here is the name of a doc to see about the other issues.  Here are scrips for heavy duty antibiotics and continue taking supplements.

Finally appointment with Dr. Robban Sicca.  More Good News.  You clearly have hypothyroid and have probably had it for 20 years and it has never been diagnosed or treated.  Here is a scrip for armour thyroid.  More testing to be done on metals to see if that is also an issue and a test for adrenal fatigue.  Waiting on results.

I know what you are thinking-how is all this bad news good news?  It is good news because we finally have some answers.  He is not nuts he really is sick and he can be treated.  Treatment will probably take months but he should experience a total reversal of the Lyme and Bartonella.

Now that my hubby is on the road to recovery I finally have the mental fortitude to start looking at the new school year.  Here is hoping it is a good one.

I love to watch you swim!

I recently read this blog post:
http://www.handsfreemama.com/2012/04/16/six-words-you-should-say-today/

It was a bit eye opening for me.  I realized that I am that mom.  Full of constructive advice (criticism), everything a teachable moment, how to be better, stronger, faster.  But did I say those 6 words "I love to watch you play."?  No, I didn't.  I certainly thought it. I kvelled with pride as I watched them cut through the water doing their best.  But I didn't tell them.  I felt I should let them know how they could do better next time.  Seriously, what was wrong with me?

For the last swim practice of Spring Training I went in to watch for a few minutes.  Parents are not normally allowed on deck to watch (I get that, who wants a bunch of parents watching you do your job) but it was the last one so I took a peek.  Afterwards as each of my children emerged from the locker room I told them "I love to watch you swim."  I can't say I noticed any straightening of the shoulders, the pressure is off moment but what I have noticed in the past few days is a difference in our relationships.  It seems everyone is a little more willing to spend time with me.  "Want to come to the market with me?" I get a yes when in the past it would have been no.

I still feel an urge to "help"  all the time but I am working on controlling myself.

Happy 13th Birthday Little Miss M!

Today it is official.  I am the mom of 2 teenagers.  My baby girl is 13 (in case you were wondering-today's birthday breakfast is chocolate pudding pie).  She is ready to move into the next chapter of her life and I want her to be my baby.  I know, she will always be my baby, but her moving to the next chapter means I have to move to the next chapter.  I am not ready.  Ready or not, here it comes.

So much has been going on this past month.  Little Miss was called to the Torah as a Bat Mitzvah.  She chanted her Haftorah beautifully and read Torah as if she had been doing it all her life.  She also led most of the service.  The Cantor had a nice break.  She was amazing and I am filled with pride and joy over her accomplishments.

A large part of the last month was spent in preparation.  Planning the party, making sure she practiced, making sure Mister B practiced his Torah portion, getting the dress, getting my dress, making sure Mister B and hubby had suits that fit, following up on response cards from people who neglected to respond, and so on.  Needless to say-school light. Summer school this year.

As my daughter enters this next phase of growing up I can't help but wonder what the future will bring.  There is the obvious-make up, more intense school work, clothes.  Then there is the more subtle-boys.  Continuing to instill in her a strong sense of self so she can always remain true to who she is and not go changing just to make some boy happy.

I see a bumpy road ahead.  Or perhaps I should say hilly.  A ride that will be filled with twists and turns and ups and downs.  One that will move super fast at times and other times slow down.  Hopefully, there will be pleasant valleys full of joy and laughter and few dark woods.  Will I be able to think of some more cliches to describe this journey? 

Happy 13th Birthday!

Walkway Over The Hudson

Took a field trip today to The Walkway Over The Hudson (http://www.walkway.org).  It is an old train trestle that was converted into a pedestrian bridge.  Chock full of history and a beautiful walk.

The views were stunning.  We learned a little about the history of trains in the area.  This used to be the only bridge connecting across the Hudson.  The bridge was used to transport troops, supplies, coal, etc. but the interstate severely diminished use of the trestle.  In 1974 there was a large fire and the property was sold to a private owner.  Eventually the funds were raised to convert the trestle into a pedestrian bridge that opened a few years ago.

The weather was great and the walk is a bit over 1 mile in each direction.  After our walk we enjoyed a picnic lunch.

It was an enjoyable day.

April is almost over! Oh my!

I am sorry that I have been so neglectful of my blog.  We are counting down the weeks until Little Miss M's Bat Mitzvah and buried under all the last details.  Lessons with the Cantor, practice your Torah and Haftorah, and don't forget to practice your speech, dress fittings, finalizing the menu, suits, ties, centerpieces, place cards, candle lighting, oh my!  And somewhere in all of this there is some schoolwork getting done.

The swim season ended-The club team they swim on-another undefeated season.  The high school team was undefeated until the last meet.  Still a great year for them, too.  Now they are both enjoying Spring Training.  Need to stay in shape for summer swim team.  Plus, Mister B is taking the American Red Cross Lifeguard Certification class.  My baby is going to be a lifeguard this summer.   My baby will be responsible for other peoples safety!  I know he can do it and he is looking forward to earning his own spending money.  But, sometimes I look at my boy and think "What a derp."  He is so smart in so many ways and so clueless in others.

Today we are heading out to see the movie 42 with our discussion group.  It is the wrap up to our stereotype unit.  We spent a few weeks talking about stereotypes and assumptions. We talked about stereotypes about homeschoolers, schoolers, religious groups, athletes, ethnic groups, and anything else we could think of.  We listed different stereotypes we had heard about different groups or people and ones we experienced personally. The following meeting we listened to a poem and listened to a song.  Then asked the group what they thought they were talking about.  They were about love.  At the end after they assumed that the lovers were heterosexual we enlightened them that they were written for same sex loves.  The lesson here was even though you are aware of stereotypes it is still very easy to make assumptions that are incorrect.  We thought a wrap up with the Jackie Robinson story would be fitting.

They continue to enjoy philosophy.  Lots of ethics and figuring out what is truth.

Music class ended early this year because the teacher is having another baby soon.  They miss music but what are you going to do.

All I will say about math is that I now know how to convert slope intercept to standard line equation.  As I wondered back in 9th grade, I still don't know when this will ever be used in my daily life.  And Mister B can do this, too. Little Miss is mastering probability.  I like that one.

Happy Wednesday!

Happy Birthday!

Mister B is 15!

This year he wanted pie for his birthday breakfast!

My baby boy!  He is 15 today.  15!  I am the mom of a 15 year old.  How can this be?  I am still just a kid myself.  What was that line from Steel Magnolias....Time marches on and one day you realize it is marching right across your face.  Or something like that.

In a few short months Little Miss M will officially be a teenager.  I won't have any kids.  Just teenagers.  Maybe I should run for the hills now while i have the chance.

Parenting a teen is so very different from parenting a child.  They are starting to spread their wings to fly.  You are trying to remember what it felt like to be so sure you knew everything and be ready for anything but those fond memories struggle with the responsibility of wanting to protect them and keep them safe from everything and anything.

Eee Gad! It is almost the Ides of March!

Tomorrow morning I will wake up the mom of a 15 year old.  15!  Where has the time gone?  Since I am only 27 myself it is quite the miracle that my first born is going to be so old.

As I was mildly freaking out over the fact that my baby boy will be 15 tomorrow I also realized that the school year is more over then beginning.  More panic!  I have not done all I wanted to do.  I won't get done all I want to do.  What am I doing?

We have been spending some extra time on linear equations this week.  Mister B is having some difficulty with converting slope intercept to standard line and vice versa.  I can honestly say I had absolutely no idea how to do this.  Algebra was really not my forte.  My algebra teacher was The Dean of Detention, an Ex-Marine, and coach of the wrestling team and he gave the impression that if you were not on his team or really smart he wanted nothing to do with you.  He was scary and when you told him you didn't understand he would come over to your desk.  Point at your paper and say "You do this, this, and this.  Understand?"  "Yeah, sure" you would say even though you had no clue.  Lets just say I had a lot of math tutors in my day and I still only squeaked by with barely passing grades. But now, thanks to the internet and www.kahnacademy.org, and some other math resources I found online I have mastered this skill.  And more importantly, Mister B has started mastering this skill. 

Little Miss M has quickly mastered median, mean, and mode and is now starting a unit on probability. 

In Biology we took a step back and now Mister B has a better grasp on the material.  Little Miss M is working on a sky journal and is learning about the stars.

History and English are moving along nicely as is Spanish for Mister B.

I can not wait to see what tomorrow brings....

I am mom to a Letterman!

Here he is, Mister B with his First Varsity Letter.  So proud of him.  After the hoops I jumped through to get my homeschooler on the high school team I feel pretty darn good.  All his hard work swimming for two teams has certainly paid off.  Freshman and a Letterman, so very cool!