Quarterly Update?
I, um, haven't posted a lot recently. By "recently" I mean "since July."
By request, here is an update on the wee ones.
Bert is 7, made of skin over bones and muscle, somewhat tall for his age (50"). We could use him for anatomy studies. He is very interested in cats, in being a cat, in reading about cats. I wondered if he'd branch out to other animals, so I just began reading "The Heart of a Dog" to him and so far he loves it (thus far it has been about the silver foxes and Ruff; no Lad yet!). He also loves swords, lightsabers, dart-shooters, and explosions. He told me, "I used to like to wear fancy clothes, but now I'm more into explosions." His favorite color is red (not purple any more!) and he loves excitement, noise, and motion, as long as he can always come back for cuddles, kisses, and lap-sitting when he needs a break. (This is why he loves to be a cat - they play exciting games and then they get to be cuddled and sleep on people.)
His favorite activity is playing games - any kind of game, ideally with other people but in a pinch, left hand against right. He likes to go out to restaurants and he loves his newest activity, tae kwon do (TKD). We frequently have to tell him "This is not an appropriate venue for martial arts." Once he was compelled to ask for forgiveness from his TKD master for using his skills inappropriately (a.k.a. kicking his sister). He is continuing to enjoy gymnastics as well. He still enjoys reading books, especially those which are about cats or those which are funny and exciting. His favorite school* subject is math, which he finds intuitive and fun; his least favorite subject is handwriting. He is full of energy and always wants to be doing something with someone.
Ernie is 8 3/4 and almost up to my shoulder in height (52.5"), just about average for her age. She is very interested in being a girl. She frequently informs us about what is "girly" and what is not. She likes pink, flowers, lace, embroidery, soft fluffy kittens and bunnies, anything cute, pretty dresses, jewelry, hair do-dads, dress shoes, nail polish that matches her eyes, lace-edged socks, reading "American Girl" catalogs, et cetera. She plays with dolls and loves to have wardrobes for all her dolls and stuffed toys. She has never met a craft project she didn't love, but most frequently she makes things from paper and tape (lots of tape) and her products are inventive and usually decorative. She also enjoys science experiments and loves plants and gardens.
She enjoys her gymnastics class and making friends there, and she wishes that there were more girls at TKD but otherwise quite likes it: she recently told me the I would soon need to buy her some sparring gear. She reads everything, all the time. She doesn't have a favorite school subject; if there is a book about it, she will memorize facts from the book by reading it repeatedly and then tell us all about it whenever the subject comes up. Like her brother, she does not enjoy writing. (This dislike of writing by hand deeply puzzles their mother but seems completely reasonable to their father.) She is like the little girl with the little curl - when she is good, she is very, very good, and when she is (in a) bad (mood) she is horrid.
They both love Star Wars and The Princess Bride (movie). They frequently play with Legos and Tinker Toys, and they make up elaborate imagination games using the dress-up chest, sheets and blankets, and their stuffed animals. Frequently there is a Cat Star Wars theme to the play (our cats Kepler, Orbit, and Quasar have inspired the young farmcat Kepler Skywalker, the mysterious hermit Orbit-Wan Kenobi, and the cranky and evil Darth Catsar). Both kids love to "play computer" - Webkinz or JumpStartWorld (the latter is edu-tainment). They have been watching the "Avatar" series on DVD (so has their mother and all three of us love it) and listening to the Harry Potter books on CD in the car. Lots of fun with magic, martial arts, swords/sabers, and the concepts of Good/Jedi and Evil/Sith.
*"School subject" as in "subject which is taught explicitly." We are still home-educating.
By request, here is an update on the wee ones.
Bert is 7, made of skin over bones and muscle, somewhat tall for his age (50"). We could use him for anatomy studies. He is very interested in cats, in being a cat, in reading about cats. I wondered if he'd branch out to other animals, so I just began reading "The Heart of a Dog" to him and so far he loves it (thus far it has been about the silver foxes and Ruff; no Lad yet!). He also loves swords, lightsabers, dart-shooters, and explosions. He told me, "I used to like to wear fancy clothes, but now I'm more into explosions." His favorite color is red (not purple any more!) and he loves excitement, noise, and motion, as long as he can always come back for cuddles, kisses, and lap-sitting when he needs a break. (This is why he loves to be a cat - they play exciting games and then they get to be cuddled and sleep on people.)
His favorite activity is playing games - any kind of game, ideally with other people but in a pinch, left hand against right. He likes to go out to restaurants and he loves his newest activity, tae kwon do (TKD). We frequently have to tell him "This is not an appropriate venue for martial arts." Once he was compelled to ask for forgiveness from his TKD master for using his skills inappropriately (a.k.a. kicking his sister). He is continuing to enjoy gymnastics as well. He still enjoys reading books, especially those which are about cats or those which are funny and exciting. His favorite school* subject is math, which he finds intuitive and fun; his least favorite subject is handwriting. He is full of energy and always wants to be doing something with someone.
Ernie is 8 3/4 and almost up to my shoulder in height (52.5"), just about average for her age. She is very interested in being a girl. She frequently informs us about what is "girly" and what is not. She likes pink, flowers, lace, embroidery, soft fluffy kittens and bunnies, anything cute, pretty dresses, jewelry, hair do-dads, dress shoes, nail polish that matches her eyes, lace-edged socks, reading "American Girl" catalogs, et cetera. She plays with dolls and loves to have wardrobes for all her dolls and stuffed toys. She has never met a craft project she didn't love, but most frequently she makes things from paper and tape (lots of tape) and her products are inventive and usually decorative. She also enjoys science experiments and loves plants and gardens.
She enjoys her gymnastics class and making friends there, and she wishes that there were more girls at TKD but otherwise quite likes it: she recently told me the I would soon need to buy her some sparring gear. She reads everything, all the time. She doesn't have a favorite school subject; if there is a book about it, she will memorize facts from the book by reading it repeatedly and then tell us all about it whenever the subject comes up. Like her brother, she does not enjoy writing. (This dislike of writing by hand deeply puzzles their mother but seems completely reasonable to their father.) She is like the little girl with the little curl - when she is good, she is very, very good, and when she is (in a) bad (mood) she is horrid.
They both love Star Wars and The Princess Bride (movie). They frequently play with Legos and Tinker Toys, and they make up elaborate imagination games using the dress-up chest, sheets and blankets, and their stuffed animals. Frequently there is a Cat Star Wars theme to the play (our cats Kepler, Orbit, and Quasar have inspired the young farmcat Kepler Skywalker, the mysterious hermit Orbit-Wan Kenobi, and the cranky and evil Darth Catsar). Both kids love to "play computer" - Webkinz or JumpStartWorld (the latter is edu-tainment). They have been watching the "Avatar" series on DVD (so has their mother and all three of us love it) and listening to the Harry Potter books on CD in the car. Lots of fun with magic, martial arts, swords/sabers, and the concepts of Good/Jedi and Evil/Sith.
*"School subject" as in "subject which is taught explicitly." We are still home-educating.