Mickey, Music, Musings

Such a good, relaxing day.

We all slept in later than usual, and honestly...who couldn't use that? ;-)

When Tori and Ashlyn woke up, I offered some granola to eat, while I was fixing one of their FAVES: Banana Bread! Yummy, yummy. Shelby is at her Dad's house till tonight, and I'm afraid there will be no banana bread left when she gets home...poor Shelby!

The girls wanted to do some Language Arts stuff last night (see previous post, Late-Night Schooling), so no pressure to do anything today. Honestly, I'm not pushing any of this stuff on them, and am actually a little discouraged that they seem to want to do school-y stuff. They both recently asked which "grade" they're in. Without going into a whole spiel about how grades are really irrelevant (in my opinion), I told them: "Ash, if you were in school, you'd be in 2nd grade. Tori, if you were in school, you'd be in 3rd grade".

Ashlyn's immediate response: "Second grade SUCKS...I want fird grade"! (Obviously, still a little trouble with that pesky "th"). ;-)

Hey, what does it matter to me? OK, Ash...you can work in one of Tori's "fird grade" books. Grades, schmades...school, schmool. Whatevah.

We watched American Idol together last night, me and the girls. Dave, who is allergic to any and all reality TV, went downstairs to play Civ on the computer. He told me to come down with him when the "crap" went off. I went downstairs to hang with Dave before he went to bed, sat on the couch giggling over Arrested Development (best damn show on TV, evah...sweartogawd) while he continued to play his game.

After a bit, the man turned around and said, "Ya know, this is what I love. I'm playing my game, doing my own thing, and I can hear you laughing behind me. I love just being in the same room as you, even though we're doing different things". I think I went over and kissed him after that. At least, I should have.

He shaved his beard yesterday morning, and woke me up saying "I hope I don't look too much younger than you now". He's 4 1/2 years younger than I...maybe I should have kicked him in the nads, hmm? ;-)

After David went to bed, I went online to find some coloring pictures for Lolo. Specifically, I was looking for Mickey Mouse stuff...she's fascinated by that little rodent lately. LOVES him! I found some stuff online, then searched on iTunes for songs from The Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Ashlyn's big discovery for the night: "Mama, did you know that the guys who sing the Higglytown Heroes song also sing the song for Mickey Mouse Clubhouse?". Well, I sure did, baby...it's They Might Be Giants!!! So I showed her the Here Come the ABCs CD we own, and then I found (on youTube) the vid for Birdhouse in Your Soul.




Damn, but that song holds up...love, love, love it. It makes me feel squishy inside.


I finally did find (and print off) some MM pictures for Loryn. She colored a bit, I turned my attention back to the computer, and a few minutes later I turned around to find this:

Forget coloring Mickey...Lolo drew him herself!

She definitely gets the artistic talent (hmmm...is that "autistic" talent, as well?) from Dave. I can't take any credit for that. Her beauty, however...well, that's all me! *snicker*

Here are some pictures of the artist/autist, from today.





We had a good, full day, weaving connections all the time.

Harry Potter Fans, Unite!

Here's your official countdown clock for Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix!

Late Night "Schooling"

These kids of mine, I swear!

Tonight they got a wild hair and decided they wanted to do some Math "stuff". Mind you, we were trying to "settle down" for the night, as it was after 11 PM!

Hey, like I'm gonna get in the way of learning? No way. If your kids asked, I'm sure you'd do as I did: wander around muttering, "Now, where the hell did I put those books?", before finding them hidden under several other books, magazines, and catalogues.

What's funny is that when Loryn saw Tori's and Ashlyn's Singapore math books, she wanted to write in theirs...so I pulled out her very own, Pre-K Winnie the Pooh workbook! And she took it very seriously, and scribbled in several pages before getting bored. :-)

Our First Snow, in our New Home

Tori, outside in the snow.


Shelby, looking cute in the snow.

Poor Loryn...she slept thru most of the snow when it was falling. She was happy enough to put on her hat and Shelby's (new, from Hot Topic) gloves and make pretend snow angels on the...kitchen floor. sigh

Seriously though...how cute is this kid?

Loryn did eventually play outside for a bit, but the batteries were dead in my camera. She probably had as much fun in the kitchen, bugging me when I was cooking. ;-)

Snow Day!

Tori and Ashlyn in a *fierce* snow fight...even though they couldn't form actual snowballs.

FUNschool Gamers

It seems like our little circle of fUNschool gamers is getting bigger every meeting.

And Tori (cutie grrl wearing glasses, and her jacket) is smack dab in the middle of this group, which is all boys, by the way.

I think it's pretty cool that she can hang with these boys (most of whom are 2-4 years older than she is), and just have fun. No silly crushes going on here...not much, anyway! Just kids, hanging out and playing games together...and learning, all the time.

Cupcakes? I got your cupcakes right here!

My first attempt at VEGAN cupcakes, inspired by this too-cool little book Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero.

These are for fUNschool today. We're all celebrating the 5th Birthday of fUNschool. Although I didn't attend the first year or so, I'm so very glad we're members now. Our group has a blast!

Battle of the Record Covers

I had fun trying to name all of these records. I only had a couple of them, though. *sigh* I miss albums, ya know?

Check it out!

OH my Goddess...I just found the neatest blog, EVAH!

Check out Vegan Lunch Box, a neat-o mosquito blog written by a kewl stay-at-home Mama, who fixes delicious looking (and tasting, I'm sure) lunches for her boy Shmoo. AND, she has a link to the recipes from the Vegan Lunch Box!

Two thumbs up! If you check it out, be sure to click on her FAQs and other links. I can tell I'll be visiting this site often...and it'll be added to my 'Cool Links' fer sure.

What Color Should Your Blog Be?

Your Blog Should Be Blue

Your blog is a peaceful, calming force in the blogosphere. You tend to avoid conflict - you're more likely to share than rant. From your social causes to cute pet photos, your life is a (mostly) open book.

What Color Should Your Blog or Journal Be

Grandma Elsie

Dave's Mother, Elsie, passed away July 4, 2006. She left us her house/property in Nelson County, Virginia, and we were there today to pack up some of her things.

We have decided to sell the property, which is a little sad for all of us. It's a beautiful piece of land, but the house needs more work than we can put into it at this time. We just bought our "dream home" in Staunton, and we've never been happier, but we're really gonna miss

Grandma's house.

So strange to be wearing a tank top and light-weight sweater on January 14! The high today was 69...absolutely gorgeous weather...which just made us miss Elsie more. She had quite a green thumb, and beautiful days like today remind me of her. I could just see her outside with us, puttering around in the garden and watching the girls run and play.

Good Friends, Good Books

Our family is really lucky to have found a great group of home/unschooling families that we enjoy hanging with.

When we first began our homeschooling journey almost five years ago, I made the mistake of joining a large, local homeschooling support/co-op group. For many reasons that I won't go into now, let's just say it was NOT a good fit (and they very well may have thought the same thing, about us).

A couple of years into our now UNschooling journey, and we found a great all-inclusive, non-sectarian group of open-minded, considerate, compassionate souls. Most of the Moms in this group parent in much the same way as us (read: non-coercive, gentle parenting), and I'm lucky to call many of them friends. And the kids in the group? Oh, wow...what a neat bunch. All of them: funny, smart, and kind. Not that they're little shining angels who "Yes Ma'am" and "No Sir" and chew with their mouths closed and have perfect penmanship and whatever...but who likes those kinds of kids, anyway? ;-)

Anyway, we haven't seen our group of friends in a while. The co-op met once in December, for a holiday party, and we haven't been to any meetings since then, even though the group has met twice in January. No, the Parrs have been taking it easy since the holidays, what with Loryn's erratic sleep schedule (or lack of schedule, period) and all. But when we missed this past Friday, I felt a little guilty.

So, I decided that after we were all up and moving, I'd treat the girls to a shopping spree. I had a little extra spending money (from Christmas and such), and Shelby had LOTS of money to spend, so I thought we'd treat ourselves. And what does a shopping spree mean to the Parr family?

Why, Barnes & Noble, of course!

Here are some books we bought:

La Dolce Vegan: Vegan Livin' Made Easy

Duncan Cameron's Shipwreck Detective

Kana de Manga: A fun, easy way to learn the ABCs of Japanese

and

Chibi Vampire, Volume 1

Shelby bought a couple of Manga of her own (Vampire Knight being one of them), with her own money from Christmas. She's trying to save some of her money for her trip to Chicago this summer, but she just had to buy herself some pink and black-striped over-the-knee socks at Target. They're actually pretty cute, especially paired with a Jack Skellington t-shirt and some camouflage pants. Oh, rule of thumb: when your 13-going-on-20 daughter asks how she looks in a new outfit, the answer is not "Cute". I don't know what the answer is supposed to be, but just trust me...don't say "cute".

Shelby and Tori have already read their books, and have traded back and forth. They're pretty considerate of each other). Shelby is even allowing Tori to read her much-valued Harry Potter books (Tori's working her way through Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets , and is nearly finished). Ashlyn has been sharing facts from her Shipwreck Detective book with us, and is clearly understanding concepts of North/South and East/West. The book came with a compass, which she calls a comp-ASS, because it's funnier that way. :-)

When you think about it, there's nothing quite like a book, is there?

Which Superhero Are You?

Your results:
You are Green Lantern

Green Lantern 85% Wonder Woman 75% Robin 72% Spider-Man 70% Supergirl 70% The Flash 70% Catwoman 65% Superman 60% Hulk 60% Iron Man 50% Batman 45%

Hot-headed. You have strong will power and a good imagination.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Test


Oh well...I was really trying for Wonder Woman. Guess I'll have to get rid of my WW Underoos. ;-)

Ashlyn

Not really asleep, just pretending.

Ashlyn is 7 years old, and she, too, is diagnosed with Autism (like Loryn). I'd say she's more in the Asperger's Syndrome category, personally...though no "label" changes anything about our kids, ourSelves, or the way we live our lives. Really, sometimes a label more easily explains a meltdown, or little "quirks", but friends (online and IRL) and family members who know and love us are already understanding and supportive. Why worry about what others think? This is one of my struggles, personally...there are days where it's all I can think about when we go out with the girls.

Ashlyn (or "Ash") just got a guitar for Yule/Christmas, and is ready to start guitar lessons ("SOON, Mama!"). She loves We Love Katamari (PS2 game), and enjoys playing games online with Loryn's help (sometimes, a hindrance!). She has an imaginary friend or two, and has just recently started reading her "own" Manga books.

Loryn

My youngest daughter, Loryn, goofing around on the floor.

She was diagnosed a couple of years ago with Autism. There is *nothing* in the world I would change about this kid...her being here, just the way she is, is a joy, everyday.

Loryn is an amazing and beautiful four year old. She is still non-verbal, for the most part, but has a wicked sense of humor. She has a few phrases, like "Help", and "Miska-Mooska-Mickey Mouse!" (from the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse show on the Disney channel). She loves The Wiggles and the Upside Down Show, as well as pizza, popsicles, music and dancing. She still loves to nurse. :-)

Loryn is the youngest of my four girls, and is quite spoiled, naturally.

Beautiful Child

Beautiful Child, by Rufus Wainwright


When I am older than


These small, goddamned hills


And there's no reason for


My mind to be still





Oh how I'll feel like a beautiful child


Such a beautiful child again


Such a beautiful, beautiful child again