Testing

In Georgia, the state requires that we test our kids every three years starting in third grade when we home school.  They don't require us to turn in those test results, but we have to have proof that we did the testing if asked.  So a week and a half ago, we did the required testing using the CAT untimed test with Keira.
Keira loved the one on one time as I read the test to her and she gave me her answers.  We took several days to finish the testing.  One thing I like most about the CAT, is that we get the results almost instantaneously!  Keira did much better than I expected.  The Lord is good!
As a reward for her hard work, I took Keira to get a lemonade freeze from Chickfila.  Keira loved it!

Project 365: Week 26

This week marks half a year!  Can you believe that half a year is gone?  Wow!  I have fallen into just taking a quick snapshot of our day just to get a picture taken.  To combat that, I have tried to take an "artistic" picture each day.  I have not managed it, but it does keep me on the look out for that interesting shot.


Sunday: This handsome boy had a loose tooth and pulled it out DURING the worship service!

Monday: Avalyn bought her first technic LEGO set.  She promptly put it together and had fun playing with the car's pull back motor.

Tuesday:  We went to the pool for the first time this year.  We hope to go about once a week to help teach a couple of the kids to swim.

Wednesday: Kyle was given two build your own model kits for his birthday.  Adrian helped him put together the car.  Kyle was really excited that the doors and the hood open!

Thursday was a busy day, and I thought I would take some pictures in the evening, but I did not manage to do that.  So this beautiful flower picture was taken on Friday morning with the dew still fresh on it!

Friday: As our park day this week, we went to the pool again, but this time with the Presleys.  (I'll post about it soon.)  I am not sure what draws me to this picture, but I absolutely love it!

Saturday:  For about as long as I can remember, Mercy has sucked her index and middle fingers on her left hand and stuck the corner of her blanket up her nose as her self-soothing habit.  I have tried to get a picture of it before, but she always ends up smiling and being goofy.  This time she must have been more tired because she let me get several pictures. 

This is about the strangest self-soothing method I have heard of.  What Have your children done to sooth themselves?

Park Hopping: Tribble Mill

Tribble Mill Park is located near Snellville/Grayson side of Lawrenceville.  It is a larger Gwinnett County park as it is centered around a lake.  Tribble Mill has paved walking trails and a large playground, and even horse trails and fishing.  But what we went to enjoy is off the the paved paths and in the woods.  Water flows out of the lake via a small dam and in one part of the creek's path, it flows over solid rock.  There it has created channels and little pools.  And that is where the fun began!

Before letting the kids get into the water, Megan (my sister) went to see how deep each of the pools were in order to give the kids their limits as several of them can not swim.  We found that all the pools were shallow enough even for the 4 year olds except for the very end, so we told all the kids to stay above the last rapid and told them to have fun!
The rocks are VERY slippery, so everyone had trouble staying on their feet, but they soon learned to walk carefully!
All the kids started at the top rapid.

From there, they moved further down scooting across places where the water was too shallow to carry them.

Megan didn't mind sitting in the pool and getting a picture.  Did I mention that it was really hot?!

Mamaw and Mercy sat in the shade.  Mercy got into the water once to try walking around, but fell.  She decided she didn't want to play any more after that.  (We didn't know what the rock wall in the background was from, but further up from there, the creek was calm.  The kids enjoyed walking up that way as well.)

Keira didn't slide much, but she enjoyed walking through the rapids and looking for fish in the pools.

Megan and the kids enjoying the rapids.

Clayton and Keira spent time catching fish and tadpoles in a little pool.  They both managed to catch what looked like little catfish!

We really enjoy our trip to Tribble Mill Park, but the walk back to the car was hard because it was so HOT!  The kids are already talking about next time, so we might have to make a trip back before the summer is over.

Park Hopping: Back to CRNRA Jones Bridge Unit

We loved the hiking at Jones Bridge Unit of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area so much, that we returned with Adrian last Saturday.  This time, we took the trail from the back of the parking lot.  We were surprised that it was an up hill hike as the hike by the river is mostly flat!
While we were still in the parking lot, I heard a loud low rumble and thought that another large truck or van had pulled into the parking lot.  As the rumble continued, I turned to look, and saw this fire truck backing up through the parking lot!

We were surprised by how big this gate is.

On the trail

Near the bridge, we saw this

hanging from a tree.  The card had "You bring civility to my life" written on it.
Later along the same trail, we saw another card hanging in a tree.

"Let us never know what old age is.  Let us know the happiness that time brings not count the years."
I am guessing that someone hung several more of these down the trail, so that they came to the king at the end.  As I explained to Kyle, I figured that a couple would walk together down the trail collecting the cards until they got to the end and then the man would get down on one knee and ask his lady to marry him.  She would think he was so romantic that she would immediately say yes, and they would live happily ever after until after the honeymoon and he squeezed the toothpaste tube from the middle!  :)  Kyle responded with, "Mommy, you're crazy!"

Adrian Picked up the Camera

Adrian managed to pick up the camera and take some pictures over the last couple of weeks.  I love the one of Mercy and of the mushrooms,

Give a 10 year old a Camera

Once upon a time, a mother of six took half of her children to the doctor, two for well checks, and one because he couldn't leave her side.  Because the mother didn't plan well, the four got stuck in rush hour traffic.  She decided to stop in a random parking lot to feed the baby instead of letting him scream his way home.  To entertain the other two children, the mother let the oldest one play with the camera.  This was the results:

Project 365: Week 25

I missed a couple of days this week, but I did make up for them!  I have really been enjoying our summer and all the different activities with the kids.


Sunday: Missed, but took some pictures of Avalyn setting up her robot for a concert on Monday.

Monday: Park day!  I love the symmetry of the bridge rails, and the asymmetry of the shadow.

Tuesday: Sophia's sparkly eyes

 Wednesday: I missed this day too, but I got this cool picture later in the week.  The concrete in the foreground is a piece of the Berlin Wall.  It is decorated and on display at the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center.  But I like this perspective with the state flag in the background.

Thursday: My baby has freckles!

Friday: Kyle was given a gift certificate to Steak n Shake, so we picked up a milk shake!  (He also got the treat of playing with my iTouch!)

Saturday: Waking up is so hard!