In the Spirit

A poem here; some history there; and a paperback or two.  The  weather is cooler, and the weekend is here!  Let's celebrate!

I love home-school bloggers.  I have been getting ideas from them for seven years.  Over the weekend, I was reading one  which mentioned a poetry program she loved.  Poetry!  Yes.  I want to add poetry to our days, too.  However, I cannot justify buying a program right now.  So, a-searching I went.  Thanks for the inspiration, Jamie. 
Free poetry plans are not abundant, but I found some ideas.  We already had the Random House Book of Poetry for Children to start, and I found a poetry unit using that book at Homeschool Share. 
The kids both enjoyed reading poems together.  And they didn't groan when I asked them to try to write their own poem using repetition.  Here is one:

More good news:  About two weeks ago, I needed to find a new spelling plan for Z(9).  He had gotten bored with dictation and wanted "real" spelling homework and tests.  His sister is using the Phonetic Zoo which is working out great, but it's her thing.  She needs her own things.  And again, I'm not buying a spelling program.  It's not that complicated. Right?  I found a free spelling course at Splashes From the River for grades 6-8, and I love it!  The words are well-organized with simple, not silly, activities to work on as you practice the words.  It's perfect for us for now.

Fun finds:  I needed some books for our Bible study and for our Science study that I didn't want to buy. I found TWO on paperback swap and one through Inter-Library Loan! 

The grand finale:  On Friday, we took some time for a truly history-based field trip.  Now, it's not Ancient History which we are studying, but it was a once-in-a-lifetime kind of experience that we had to see.  
It's called the Spirit of Freedom.  It's a plane used after World War II to lift supplies into West Berlin between 1948 and 1949.  The plane has been made into a traveling museum of the Berlin Airlift, and this weekend it is in Montgomery, Alabama!  I learned a lot about this "battle" which preceded the Cold War I grew up in.  We met two women who grew up in Berlin during that time as well as Colonel Gale Halvorsen, the "Candy Bomber."  What kind, generous people they all were.  I am blessed for the experience.  If the Spirit ever comes your way, don't hesitate to visit it.   

This 1940's radio was playing while we toured the plane.

The cockpit. 

The German "girl" who remembers the supplies the Allies delivered, The Candy Bomber (Col. Halvorsen), and us.

A Mid-Week Diversion

Tuesday night, I decided that we needed a little break from our routine.  Tensions had been getting a little high and spirits were falling.  What should we do?

Callaway Gardens came to mind. It's a large park in Pine Mountain, Georgia filled with gardens, a couple of lakes, trails, a butterfly pavilion, and other things.  We had never been there, even though it was only about a 90 minute's drive from home.  There is usually a cost to get in (which might have led me somewhere else on Wednesday), but in honor of September 11th, admission was free!  With that, I knew we had to go there.  

Mind you, just because we were taking off for fun, the tensions did not completely melt away.  We had bickering, grumpiness, and disappointments which started before we even left the driveway.  That's life.  I cut our adventure short to make it home in time for our regular afternoon sports, which decision I now regret.  A day off should be a day OFF!  I'll have to give myself a second chance some day soon.
We saw some beautiful sights and had a memorable day in the midst of it all.  Before we left, we all agreed we'd have to come back to see and do more at this new place - especially when they have their Christmas lights display!  

Z is trying to feed the turtles in the water before the fish steal the food.

September is Blue Morpho month at the Day Butterfly Center

These butterflies hardly stopped fluttering, but this one actually landed on Z's shorts for a minute. 

At the Birds of Prey show, the birds flew back and forth right over our heads!  It was the coolest birds show we've ever seen. This hawk had been injured while catching road prey.

Check out this handsome Black Vulture.

I'd love to know what the rest of you do when your "class" needs a break, so feel free to leave a comment.  Then, if you want to see highlights from other home-schooling families, check out the Weekly Wrap-Up from Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers here. 

A Natural Surprise

Not being much of a weed puller, I am rarely happy with the results.  This summer, however, what I might have pulled as a weed turned out to be a wonderful surprise.
We live in Alabama, mind you, where the "soil" is mostly red clay.  We can barely get the grass to grow in our back yard.  Weeds, though, seem to love it.  
At first, since the mystery weed started growing right beneath our hummingbird feeder, I thought the hummingbirds who sip there must have dropped something they picked up.  You know, literal birds and bees pollination going on.  
Within a few weeks, I realized this was no weed.  It was some kind of flower.  In fact, it reminded me of the pumpkin plant flower.

A few days later, my son decided the plant was no pumpkin, but a watermelon.

How in the world...?  Well, when the kids had their camp-outs in June they had watermelon.  Maybe someone dropped a seed?  Wait a minute!  I thought the seeds from those so-called seedless watermelons couldn't reproduce?  
It doesn't matter now.  There's a watermelon plant growing in our yard!  That will have to suffice because the melons are not thriving. We still love them no matter how they got here.