Another attempt at catching up

The air is chilly.  The leaves are beautiful and changing golden yellow.  Our winter clothes are hanging in our closets and fires are being built quite regularly in our fireplace.

That means it's been WAY too long once again, since I posted anything fun for you to see. 

So, here's an attempt at filling you in.

We started back to school on August FIRST! I'm not kidding.  It's quite ridiculous. With our three older kids enrolled in another district for their homeschooling programs, they start early, as that district has a modified-year-round calendar.  Eme didn't start until about 10 days later.  She is ALWAYS ready to go back, though as she gets older and her classes get harder, she seems a little less enamored. 

We are almost through the first quarter of school, and she's doing so well on her work.  Homework is becoming easier, though, and I rarely have to help her at this point.  That is a HUGE accomplishment, as she is becoming much more independent on so many things.  She has the same 4th grade teacher that Trevor had, and we LOVE her (Mrs. Gatti). 

Jay Henry is a sophomore.  I took great comfort in the fact that we still had three years with him at home, but now that we are this far into the school year, I realize that our number has dropped to 2 and 3/4 years left.  Ummmm.....no.  That's not okay.  Every time I look at him, he looks a little older.  That, also, is not okay.  He recently went on his first "date" when he accepted a girl's invitation to go to Homecoming with her.  It was exciting.  And weird.  And overwhelming.  And nerve-wracking.  But it went well and they had a good time.  They are very good friends (both play the cello in YS) and have very similar personalities. 

He is as focused as ever on pursuing the cello as his future.  This year, he was accepted into a College Prep class whose entire objective is to get him into the music college or conservatory of his choice.  It is time intensive, but he is in it 100% and still spends 3-5 hours a day practicing.  I'm so excited to see what his future holds. 

Trevor is at home with me this year.  He's doing great in the 7th grade, and has really started evolving into a teenager.  Like his brother, each time I look at him, he appears to have aged.  He is taking Pre-Algebra through FHAP (Falcon Home Academic Program--where Jay Henry attends as well) two days a week.  He then is responsible for doing the other three days at home.  While this is helpful, it really cuts into our day, as his class meets at noon.  We have a hard time getting everything done in the morning, and by the time he gets home from that, we're all focused-out and it's hard to get anything done.  So, we're figuring that out, and tweaking things here and there, but for the most part, it is going so very well. 

Masyn is home again with me this year as well.  She is an easy 5th grader, and can crank out her school work so very fast.  She is focused and determined, and then fills the rest of her day with gymnastics, and e-mailing her friends.  She's definitely a "Tween" and is still pretty happy most of the time.  She recently hit the 5 foot mark (she's TEN!!!) and is looking forward to the day that she will catch up with me.  She also made the competitive gymnastics team in August, and now attends twice a week, with competitions slated for next summer.  She's THRILLED! She's working so very hard, though those legs that come with a 5 foot frame sure make it harder. 

Here are a few more pictures of what's been going on lately.

Watching the Eclipse from the backyard:

Hanging out with the "wildlife" around our house: