Dallas Zoo

Emma loves animals more than anything else, so it's no surprise she was on cloud nine to be at the zoo all day. She's wearing her hat because she was afraid the birds might poop on her head!

Signs of Spring

Our hyacinth is blooming and it smells wonderful! Renee has declared that it's now her favorite flower.

The Casino

This was taken at the Choctaw Casino in Durant, Oklahoma early this morning (1:30 am?). We went with Sam and Doyle and some other people from Matt's poker group. Usually when Matt plays poker, they each pay $10 for the night. It was amazing to see what the people in the casino were tossing out for bets! The people watching was entertaining. It was a fun, "out of the norm" date night.

Library

The girls and I walked to the library. It was a beautiful day! We each had to bring our own backpacks because we tend to bring home several more books, audio books and DVDs than we originally intend. I refuse to carry their stuff!

The Opera

Today the girls and I went with a bunch of people from our homeschool group to see the opera "Romeo and Juliet". Emma is with one of the chorus members. I'm not sure if he is loyal to the Capulets or the Montagues; but then "What's in a name?"

Napkins (part two)

It was a busy day today. In addition to helping the girls with their school work, taking them to handbells and running errands, I also spent some time working on the napkins. I managed to iron and cut all of the fabric and finish sewing a few of them. It will be a few days before I complete all 18.

Napkins (part one)

We only use cloth napkins and the napkins we have are well used. I wanted to buy more, but they are a little too pricey for my budget. The girls and I are going to make them using this fabric. We spent less than 9 dollars and I think we'll get about 18 napkins. 50 cents a napkin is so much better than more than 2 dollars a napkin!

"Race to Nowhere"

Plano ISD hosted a free documentary viewing this evening at a local high school. The movie is called "Race to Nowhere" about the pressures of school (http://www.racetonowhere.com). Several homeschooling moms and kids attended. This photo was taken at the end of the event.

Cookies

I forgot to take my camera with me today. I could have taken pictures at Robotics, Book Club, or Mom's Night Out. On the way home from the movie ("The King's Speech"), I realized I didn't have anything for my photo-a-day! I was so glad to discover these cookies, along with a sweet note from Emma, left on my pillow so I could use it as my photo for today.

Father Daughter Dance

Matt took the girls to the annual Father Daughter Dance, hosted by Girl Scouts.

Year of the Rabbit

This evening Matt and I took the girls downtown to the Year of the Rabbit, Chinese New Year celebration at the Trammell Crow Asian Museum . The girls made lanterns and watched various performances and demonstrations (including a Chinese Orchestra, Chinese harp, calligraphy, paper cutting, etc.). We all enjoyed the Dragon and Lion dances!

Bernoulli

Miss Kathy's hairless cat came out to visit with everyone today during Druidawn (philosophy and writing class). Most of the children were thrilled to see him, my girls included. He definitely commands attention and draws a crowd and I'm fairly certain he knows it!

Ferdinand

We have long called Buddy "Ferdinand". It amuses us to no end how much he loves to smell things. He is particularly attracted to anything that smells "pretty" (soaps, lotions, perfumes, candles, incense, flowers, etc.). Matt gave these flowers to me for Valentine's Day. I set them on the floor to get a photo of them from above and Buddy couldn't keep his nose out of them! If you don't know the story of "Ferdinand", you should. It's one of my family's favorites! http://www.amazon.com/Story-Ferdinand-Munro-Leaf/dp/0670674249

Astronomy Club

We had a long school day today (usual stuff...math, grammar, etc.), ending with Astronomy Club. The girls are standing next to the telescope built by the kids. Thanks to Paul and Jonathan for all that you do to make this activity possible!

Pioneer Woman

I know, I know! It's Valentine's Day and I have Pioneer Woman's photo up. I had to do it! I met her tonight as well as the infamous "Marlboro Man" . She is not only a talented writer, great photographer and notable chef but she is also a homeschooler! She was incredibly gracious as were her husband and children. Here is her website: http://thepioneerwoman.com. I'm looking forward to reading her new book "Black Heels to Tractor Wheels". (This is Monday's photo.)

Strawberries

I was going to make chocolate covered strawberries for my family for Valentine's Day (on my own, as a gift to them). When the girls discovered this was my plan, they wanted to help (which meant they wanted to do it). My job was to melt the chocolate. They did the dipping. We have about 50 organic strawberries; 25 dipped in white Ghirardelli chocolate and the other 25 dipped in bittersweet Ghirardelli chocolate. We have to wait until tomorrow to eat them. (This is my post for Sunday, Feb. 13th but posted after 2:00 am Monday.)

Love

It's the little things. Every morning Matt brings me a cup of coffee. Emma brought me a handful of sweet tarts, all pink (my favorite) and left them with the messages facing up. The coffee cup was given to me by a dear friend who knows I love Disney. It really doesn't take much to know you are loved by the people who surround you. You just have to pay attention to the little things. (This is Saturday's photo-a-day. I took it yesterday, but forgot to post it.)

Goddess

We celebrated Ricki's birthday tonight. It was fun! This was taken at Churchill's. I didn't get home until after 2:00 am, so it's showing up as a Saturday post. This is my photo for Friday.

Thank You

Renee and Darby were perfecting their blood splatter for the thank you card they were making for the CSI guys.

Lazy Day

This month our book club is reading/discussing "A Dog's Purpose: A Novel for Humans". Because we got a wimpy, one inch dusting of snow, all of our activities for the day were canceled. I didn't mind. I got to read all day! After reading this book, of course my photo-a-day needed to be of my dog.

Junior Aide Badge

This evening, Emma's Girl Scout Leader, Miss Sonya, was visiting our home (to hang out with me). She surprised Emma with her Junior Aide Badge, which she earned this weekend teaching ASL to Brownies and Daisies.

Amaryllis

Renee's Christmas gift is blooming!

ASL

Renee's troop (and Emma) worked for three hours straight teaching Brownies and Daisies how to count to 20 using American Sign Language. The older girls did such a great job working with the little ones; they were so patient and kind.

Gifts

For Matt's birthday, Renee knitted an iPhone case. It's lined with fleece and the button has a longhorn on it, made with shrinky dinks. Emma made a coffee cup coaster. If you look closely, the longhorn together with the red make the shape of a heart.

Sledding

Renee and Emma took advantage of our ice and snow covered, moderately inclined driveway to go sledding. After about an hour of sledding we were grateful to have friends arrive to make it even more fun. It was a great day! (Renee's jacket is a little too big for her; it's Cameron's)

Watercolors

Because of the icy roads, we have been stuck in the house for three days (not that I mind one bit). The girls have been doing many things for entertainment including knitting, reading, playing games and painting (to name a few). I have enjoyed watching them use the watercolors. I love how they move away from the usual line drawings and instead get caught up in watching the colors merge together. Their final projects rarely end in something recognizable, but always beautiful.

Ice

Renee and Buddy spent some time outside this afternoon. It turns out Buddy loves the ice. He couldn't get enough. If Renee held up a chunk of ice, he would beg for it. She spent quite a bit of time helping the poor dog out by chipping away at the sheet of ice on our back porch.

Birds

The robins and cedar waxwings were out in full force this afternoon. We saw so many birds! Of course, because they held our attention for much of the day, I decided to go outside to take a few pictures for my photo-a-day. It was 18 degrees with a wind chill of 3 degrees. It was so cold!!