We Interupt this Vacation to Bring You a Tropical Storm

Instead of here

we are in a lovely Hampton Inn in Cape Coral, FL.   It's not quite the same.

The fire chief on the island decided to play it safe and have all the visitors evacuated yesterday afternoon. If you read my last post about getting on and off the island, you know that is not an easy job. We dropped by the time we got to the hotel.  So far all we've had here is a steady, moderate rain.  The wind is blowing a little.  I don't think we've gotten the worst part yet, but they are still only predicting 20-30 mph winds at the most.  Our hope is that tomorrow afternoon we will be able to go back out.  The caretaker who has taken us and our luggage via golf cart and trailer to the house says that we should be able to return as long as there is power.  And, since they do not have anyone coming in next week, they have offered to let us stay a few days extra at no charge.  We sure are hoping to be able to finish our week there. 

In the meantime, there are 6 of us in one hotel room for 2 days!!  We got here at about 5:00 yesterday.  It's 11:00 am, and so far everyone is still happy.  : )  We do have several board and card games with us, books, the computer, and the little ones have their leap pads.  We have a micro and frig, so we can make lunch here, and we had the complimentary breakfast this morning.  I'm sure we will resort to some tv by the afternoon--HGTV, TLC, or whatever channel has Little House on the Prairie reruns. 

We have had a nice time so far.  Since we knew we might have to end our trip short, we went straight in to go swimming after we got there Sunday.  Some of them snorkeled.  We found some great whelk shells, but they still had animals in them, and it is against the law to take them with an animal.  We stayed out on the beach until 8:00 pm.  Monday we took a golf cart tour of the island.  It was fun with all 6 of us piled into one golf cart, flying around those little paths.  since that is the only means of transportation, there are no actual roads, only these paths.  Later in the day we went back out to the beach until after the sun set, and a thunderstorm popped up and ran us in.  It was a beautiful sunset, though, and we watched the big orange ball touch the water and sink. 

Yesterday they came at about 9:30 to tell us we would more than likely have to leave.  The last boat out was at 3:00, so we made a reservation for it, hurriedly packed the little we had unpacked, and ran back out to the beach for 2 hours.  Since it was still morning, the water was perfectly calm, and no current, so it was great for lying on a float and for them to snorkel.  They saw a great big crab and lots of shells.  On the way to the boat the caretaker stopped at a dock.  Next to the dock was a manatee.  How very, very cool.  He came up to the surface for a breath.  We hope we got a good picture of him. 

We had to sit and wait about 35 min. on the boat.  Did y'all know it's hot in south Florida?!!  Just about the time the boat left, there came a pretty strong rain storm.  That was fun.  Thankfully, it only took a few minutes to get ahead of it.  Just before we got to the marina, the captain saw some dolphins, so he slowed way down (this is a large speed boat).  One of the dolphins started jumping over the wakes.  Another very cool. 

So, here we are, praying we'll be able to go back out tomorrow.  And thankful that this stormed died down for everyone who was in it's path. 

Letitia

Vacation plans

We will be leaving this Friday for our summer vacation.  I know.  Everyone else is starting their school, and we're just now going on vacation.  Because of recitals in May, drama/dance camp in June, and Ashley's camp counseling in July, that leaves August for vacation.  Actually, we have taken an Aug. vacation for years to go in the off season with less crowds and cheaper rates.  This year we decided to do something different.  Well, going to the beach is not different, but the location and circumstances are.  We are going to North Captiva Island in Florida, which is south of Tampa, and about a 12 hour drive from here.  The thing that is most different about North Captiva is that there is no bridge over there, and no cars at all on the island.  Transportation is by walking, biking, and golf cart.  There is one restaurant and no "amusements", except for a pool, tennis courts, the beach, a bird santuary, biking, kayaking, fishing, etc.  There is only one tiny store, which may or may not be open, and has outrageously expensive groceries.  ($12 for a gallon of milk, we're told-really!)  There are only 50 year round residents on the island, and we were told we'd probably be one of only about 30 guests this time of year.  We are renting one of only 2 homes directly on the beach.  The others, under the new requirements, have been built behind the sand dunes.  This is where we are staying.

We have a huge private beach, and have been told since it is the slow time, we probably would see very few people anyway.  Our rental comes with bikes, a golf cart, tennis rackets, 2 sea kayaks, and beach chairs and umbrellas.

We will get to the area on Saturday night, and finish our grocery shopping on the mainland on Sunday early afternoon.  We catch our boat to the island at 3:00.  Okay, this is the stressful part of this vacation to me.  We can have 2 suitcases per person, plus your groceries.  That means absolutely everything has to be packed in a suitcase.  The books and tapes the kids will use in the car, the laptop, buckets & shovels; no little individual makeup bags or medicine cases.  I know 12 suitcases is a lot, but today, I'm trying to figure out how this is all going to fit.  Plus, I don't have that many suitcases!  We also have to take extra toilet paper and paper towels.  The other part we've had to plan today is food.  Since we won't be buying at the little store, and it is too expensive to catch a boat back to the mainland for food, we have to be sure we have plenty of food for the week.  So we've been menu planning today, but trying to come up with meals that the older girls and I don't have to spend a lot of time cooking.  We were told the sulfer is really bad there, too, so we have to figure out how much bottled water 6 of us need for a week of drinking and cooking.  I can't even figure out how we're going to get all those groceries in the car to get *to* the boat on top of all of our other luggage!  Everybody is going to be holding groceries in their lap! 

Otherwise, I'm excited and finally looking forward to it.  It should be an adventure--but I hope not too big of one.  And, say a prayer for no hurricanes or tropical storms.  I want to see lots of sunsets from my deck overlooking the Gulf!  I might be able to check in sometime during the week, and I'll be thinking about you all, with the Sand Between My Toes ! 

 

Tagged

Well, 2 different people tagged me on the same day with the same tag.  So, I guess everyone really wants to know what it lurking in the hidden places around here!  LOL.  So here are my answers.

5 things in my freezer:

1.  3 bags of red and white wheat berries

2.  1/2 case of whole wheat tortillas

3.  4 lbs. organic blueberries

4.  3 loaves homemade whole wheat bread

5.  a bag of tater tots!  Ha! 

5 things in my closet:   downstairs hall closet

1.  candles

2.  coolers

3.  herbs for cooking

4.  extra bottles of vitamins & herbs for taking

5.  dog leashes

5 things in my car:

1.  atlas

2.  books

3.  handi-wipes

4.  potty chair (for traveling emergencies)

5.  jackets (because in the mtns. you may need one in July)

5 things in my purse:

1.  wallet

2.  photos

3.  crayons

4.  calendar

5.  checkbook

5 things in my wallet:

1.  debit card

2.  library card

3.  money (a little)

4.  homeschool registration card

5.  driver's license

5 people I tag:

1.  PinkFlamingo

2.  DancingFeet

3.  iluvmy3chickiesandtheirdaddytoo

4.  His4Life

5.  ThreeLittleLadies

Feel free to decline. 

Random Information

I hope everyone had a great week.  Mine has been super, super busy.  Someone in our church passed away in a drowning, so my Monday and Tuesday were mostly spent with that situation. 

 On Thursday we went to Dolly's Splash Country.  This week local residents are allowed to go one time for free.  It was a really fun day, but also tiring.  And, yes, I do ride a lot of the slides!  Not the straight up and down ones, but the tube slides and raft slides.  They are tons of fun, even for an old mom!  However, climbing all those stairs to get to the top of the slides is not fun, and makes me feel like an old mom. 

  Maria tells me I should let everyone know that I am doing the "Tip of the Month" on the Company Porch for the next month.  My first tip was posted this past Monday.  Tia asked me last week if I would do it.  It was kind of funny, cause I really didn't know if I could come up with a month's worth of tips!  At least ones everyone else doesn't already know.  I'm the one usually devouring everyone else's. And, I was SO honored that out of all of the great bloggers on here, that she asked me to be one of the ones to post.   So go by the Company Porch and read about some more of the things my family does around here.  I'd love to hear your comments. 

   Last night was our local homeschool support group's registration night, and we were blessed to have Paul Suarez speak to our group.  A lot of the gang was there--Geoff, JenIG, Coie, Paulie, and Levi.  I hope I'm not leaving someone else out.  And, WHERE was our illustrious TOS leader??  At home babysitting!  I missed you Gena!! I haven't seen you in forever.  I also got to see Annemarie, Dawn, Maria, AmyBeth, and Vickie.

  I am so thankful that today is an at-home day.  I hope to spend some time on a sewing project with Marissa.  I also have some catching up to do around here since I've been gone all week. I've been ordering a few books I still needed, and I think that's all about done.  I do still need to do some more scheduling of my time.  I am re-reading The WholeHearted Child right now.  I really like that book.  It's full of so many great ideas.  I highly recommend it. 

  If I am going to accomplish any of these things today, I suppose I should get far away from the computer.  Last night at the meeting, Maria and I were talking about blogs, and someone said, "Oh, you are blogging."  Maria says, "Well, no, not right now.  Right now we're talking!"   I told them we did that occasionally, we only blogged the other 20 hours a day!  Well, not quite. 

   I hope all of you have a blessed weekend with your family.

My New Laundry Room!

My sweet husband is adding on a new laundry room for me.  At present, any company has to squeeze through my little laundry area to go to the restroom.  Yuck.  On top of that, with clothes for 6 people and the fact that I hang dry a good many of our clothes, I get so claustrophobic in there.  And hangers falling everywhere drives me crazy. 

The new one is well on it's way.  He's built the new room on the other side of the bath, and has knocked the wall out in the bathroom for the doorway.  In place of where the washer and dryer are now, he will add in closet doors and shelves to be a pantry.  Yes!!!! I am excited about just that.  We buy a lot of foods in bulk, and they now stand stacked in the corner of my den.  In addition to the washer and dryer, the new laundry room will also have room for my freezer, extra frig, folding table, and laundry sink (actually that's his to wash paintbrushes in).  He also put in a back door so the dogs can come in that way instead of tracking their wet feet through the dining room.  So here's the before:

And this is the after so far.  This is the left side of the new room, with the door going outside, and half of the windows.  My freezer and frig will go on this wall to the left.

And, this is the right side of the room.  The small folding table and laundry baskets will go under the window, with the sink to the right. 

This past week, he actually got all the drywall up, and it is ready to be taped and "mudded".  We have a lot of running to do this week, and may finally go on vacation next week, so it may still be a while before it gets done.  I'll post pictures of the final product, though, whenever it's finished. 

Our School Year

I have had a couple of people ask me about what our school year will look like, so I will give you a glimpse.  Be forwarned--for the most part, we are pretty relaxed homeschoolers, so not everything we do comes in a nice, neat little package that is easy to explain.  We are not unschoolers, but relaxed.  I don't panic and make my kids do workbooks for extra hours so that we can "keep up" or "catch up".  No offense at all to those of you who do.  It's just not our style, or the way my kids really learn best.  We each have to do what the Lord has laid on our hearts for our family. 

Marissa's schedule especially is the one you will find hard to explain.  She is my challenge, because she rebels against a schedule.  She loves to learn things on her own and when she's interested, but not because it's something she is supposed to get up and do everyday.  We will be using the Prairie Primer this year.  This is not necessarily something I would have chosen, but she is really into Little House right now, and wants to read the books.  So, I'm praying that using that as a base will make her have a greater desire for "school time", but I don't like that it takes up so much time and leaves less room for reading biographies and other historical fiction that we enjoy together.  So here's the plan, although it may change.

Ashley-all graduated like, and doesn't need her mommy to tell her what to study.  Sniff, sniff.  She is studying writing-fiction and non-fiction through Writer's Digest, and may start studying Christian Counseling, but that is still in the air.  She is also beginning to study photography. 

Briana-- A SENIOR this year.  WOW!

French-ABeka and French for the Real World computer cd

Physical Science - ABeka   (science is not her thing, but we need one more credit,

       so we're taking the easy way this year.)

Economics-The Ultimate Book of Economics for the Ultimate Teenager, time with

       Dad studying Mutual funds, etc. 

English-she really doesn't need another credit, but she will be writing a couple of

       reports about world history events she has researched, along with reading of

       her choosing.

Bible-her quiet time, adding adult study guides of her choosing

Piano lessons-her 13th year

Ballet- her 14th year

She will also study for one or two CLEP tests for college, probably English Comp.

       and psychology to start.

Marissa-age 9

Bible-One Year Book of Family Devotions (taken from Keys for Kids), AWANA,Bible memorization and discussion, Bible stories with Dad

Prairie Primer-this will cover some reading, science, history, and a little writing, art, and cooking.  We will do this 4 days a week, relaxed (if all goes well, and if  I don't scrap it!).

Math-ABeka and Advantage 2007 computer math games, 4 days a week total

Copy Work-  3 days a week.  We will be working on writing getting easier and a little faster for her, plus spelling and grammar. 

Cursive handwriting-short lesson 4 days a week

Spanish-Rosetta Stone, 4 days a week

Geography- 3 or 4 days a week-learning states and capitals, countries and capitals and flags, no particular curriculum.  We will be using outline maps and short activities I have made up, along with geog. board games.  We also discuss geog. quite a bit in family discussions, etc.

Journal-one day a week, or more if she desires, she will write or dictate to me

Thinking Skills- 2 days a week at lunch time with Dad

Art and craft time- one day a week, formally, plus she enjoys this in her free time

We will not be doing a grammar/spelling curriculum.  This will happen during copy work, letters and emails to grandparents, and other writing she does.  She also writes plays on an American Girl program she has and has started her own spelling dictionary.  Marissa cannot hear phonetically, so we have to take a different approach to spelling.  She reads a lot on her own, so this won't be assigned.  She can read most anything you put in front of her.  I also plan to order this timeline in some fashion. 

This is an ambitious schedule for us, and it will be eased into and modified as needed.  We do a lot of learning through reading, discussions, and games.  At the moment, the dinner table conversation centers quite a bit on the presidents and learning their order using a President's place mat Marissa has.  We're all learning! 

Daniella- age 5

Bible- Bible stories, memorizing verses, AWANA

Reading- various children's books

Puzzles, games, and art and crafts

Other- we don't do formal school work at this age, but she has some preschool/ kindergarten activity books that she begs to work in, so we will do that a couple of days a week.  Those cover math, letters, etc.  She also learns things listening to family talks and from Marissa, such as presidents. 

I Got a Turkey and a Cold

I started coming down with this cold (passed from my children) last Sunday, and I am still hanging on to it.  Yesterday I was in bed miserable with it.  Today seems like I will feel a little better, but it's all hung up in my throat this morning, so it is raw.

Last week we went bowling for James' birthday.  We only go bowling about once every two years or so.  I guess considering how little I go, I do pretty well.  I don't get gutter balls, so that's pretty good!   I can usually get a strike or two during a game.  Last week, first ball, I get a strike.  I told them that was it, I quit while I was ahead.  The 2nd game I got one on the 2nd frame and a bunch of spares the rest of the game.  Then on the last frame, I got 3 strikes in a row!!  That, my fellow non-bowlers, is technically called A Turkey!  I left their mouths hanging open. 

We are leaving tomorrow to go to Greenville, SC for 2 nights.  James' sister is going to be there for a wedding, and since it is only 2-3 hours from here, we're going over so we can visit with her on their free day.  She lives in CA, so the last time we saw her was 3 years ago at their dad's funeral.  It was nine years before that the last time we had seen her at their grandmother's funeral.  If I remember correctly, I think we have seen her 3 times in our 21 year marriage.  So, it will be nice to visit over something more joyful than a funeral.  My parents are coming to stay here to dog sit, and use their Dollywood season passes. 

We usually (always) take our "real" vacation in Aug. or Sept.  Many times we go to the beach, but sometimes do new places. In the last few years we've done Cape May, NJ, Philadelphia, Niagara Falls, and D.C.  This year we absolutely cannot decide what to do for a vacation.  See, I am a vacation planner.  I start trying to plan our late summer vacation in January.  But, this year we didn't know if James and Ashley were going on a mission trip to Guatemala in Aug., and for some reason, we just never planned what we would do, even when we could.  So we waited and waited.  We found out that the trip is not going to happen, but now no one can come up with anything.  It's like, "Yeah, we could do that."  But no one can really work up any enthusiasm about anything.  I really, really want to go somewhere, so we will just have to see where the destination ends up being.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Letitia