Looking back, there isn't any one thing that kept me from blogging. We had doctor's appointments, but probably not more than we have had at other times. We've had lots of activities, but again, probably not more than any other time. I guess I just needed some time off.
I'll jump back into blogging with a look back at the past few weeks of homeschooling and life.
What I've been reading:
Since our class at church based on the book The Way We Love is over, I've set it aside. I didn't read it completely from cover to cover, but I read all the parts that I was interested in. I also read Lysa Terkeurst's Uninvited because of rave reviews from some women at church that have been studying it.
In terms of fiction, I found a new legal author that I've been enjoying. I flew through Randy Singer's False Witness and am three-fourths of the way through The Last Plea Bargain. I started looking at his books when I saw a Kindle deal on one of them and then found out that I can check digital copies of many of his books out from our library. Score!
What we've been playing:
In addition to Commissioned, we've been playing 3 Seeds -- a card game from the same company. Lots of fun and not quite as long as some other strategy games we've played lately.
What I've been cooking:
For Thanksgiving, my husband experimented with smoking the turkey on the charcoal grill. It turned out delicious and didn't take nearly as long as we all feared. (I was scrambling a bit to get all the side dishes finished, but it all worked out.)
I splurged and bought myself an Instant Pot with some birthday money (Black Friday deal). I'm now looking for new recipes to try out my new toy.
What we are studying:
Science Olympiad has been keeping us busy. Brennan's hovercraft now hovers, and he's almost finished making a rough prototype of his part of the robot arm. He and Lauren have been studying a set of mineral specimens trying to learn identifying characteristics that will help identify them at competition. There's also a lot of other rock knowledge (formation, classification, etc) that Brennan is studying. Lauren was recently added to the Microbes event, so it looks like we'll be talking a lot about bacteria and germs in the months to come.
Lauren and I finished our Roald Dahl read-aloud series with Matilda and The BFG. We still haven't seen either of the movies, though. Our current read-aloud is Anne of Green Gables, but I fear the language is a bit too difficult for her to follow.
How I'm keeping my hands busy:
I just finished a baby blanket that has been taking up most of my knitting/crochet time. It needs to be washed, and then I'll take a picture to share.
I'm also nearly finished with this big puff of fluffy yarn that Lauren picked for me to make into a shawl/cape for her. Not my favorite yarn or my favorite pattern, but Lauren is going to love wearing it.
Where we've been traveling:
In late-October, Tim and I snuck away for a weekend to attend an amazing marriage retreat for parents of special needs kids. It was sponsored by The Hali Project and is an amazing opportunity.
In November, we drove to Oklahoma for Homecoming and to see Addison. I'm happy to report that she's doing quite well at OC. In fact, I'll be a bit cheesy and say that it seems like "OC is Home" for her. (For those unfamiliar with Oklahoma Christian University, the phrase "OC is Home" has been one of their marketing slogans for at least the past few years.)
What we marked off our bucket list recently:
Last weekend, we endured a cold afternoon and saw an NCAA Football game at the Air Force Academy. I'm pretty sure Tim has pictures to share, but he hasn't posted them to his blog yet.
What the next few weeks hold:
Singing. Lots and lots of singing. Lauren's big chorale concert is this Sunday, and they have four straight days of large group rehearsals to get ready for it. The following Sunday is the Christmas musical at church. I think all the performances will slow down a day or two before Christmas.
I'm linking this overdue and overly-long update to this weeks' Homeschool Highlights linky at Homeschool Coffee Break. With luck I'll have my act together and won't wait so long before posting my next update.
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I liked your 'catch up'! I love legal thrillers too. I will check out this author. I've heard people love the Instant Pot. I don't have one but might be looking into getting one. I still like my crockpot a lot!
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