PICTURE DAY

Well picture day went great and fortunately we didn't get rained out. Ashley will get me the disc as soon as she is done editing the pictures. Now the rule with the pictures are as follows, 1) Everyone will get a release of copyright with their disc 2) Ashley does not want any NON-edited pictures on  the internet 3) When getting the pictures printed do not print larger than 11 x 13 because then the pictures look distorted.
Ashley has been my photographer for me and my family for many years and I just can't see anyone else taking pictures of those I love but her. She has taken the pictures of all my grandchildren, my large family photo's, my niece's wedding, my nephew's engagement photo's, my sister-in-law and my bro-in-law's family photo's and she will continue down the line for years to come.
I have given everyone her flier with her website ashleywrightphotography.com before so you could check it out. She is reasonably priced with all the other photographers around, but for me she is just better. I guess mainly because I love her, she like your children have become like my family.

SCREEN FREE WEEK

Can you believe that we actually have to schedule in a time where there is no screen time. This means no T.V., no video games, no cell phones or cell phone games, no Skype, no Facebook, Xbox, WII, Gameboy, and all those other electronic games. WOW will the world end? Will the world literally stop on it's axis? Oh no what to do? Well I am sure we can suffer through and find wonderful new things to invent and experience in the next few days before the world explodes. Follow the link and see what there is out there.......... http://www.screenfree.org/

PRACTICING MAKES IT SO REAL

It was a melancholy kind of moment and the weather must have known it. As I pulled into the parking lot and found a parking spot right up front, right there, right in front of the doors it started to rain; not too much just a light sprinkle just enough to make the air smell wonderful and make you want to find a puddle to jump in. 

Gavin and I arrived at the school to start our "practicing" for drop of and pick up for kindergarten. This coincides with picking up Kaiden right now which will be the same next year also so this works out great. But this just everything seem so real, like Gavin is growing up, getting older, becoming the "big" boy. Ya Ya I know he is BUT does it have to be now? Couldn't it just wait a little longer? Why can't they stay our little people for so much longer than they do? This way we can keep them safe in our back yards, safe from the world where we know their going to eventually going to get hurt. Hopefully we will have prepared him.

going up to the doors

I'm going in

I'm in the school

Such a big boy

 

Last week I stopped by Voyage Academy here in Clinton and had a most fabulous surprise. It is an Expeditionary Learning school and I got so excited and so overjoyed I could barely contain myself. Outside of San Francisco and the Berkley area Expeditionary Learning wasn't all that popular. Now mind you I was in the San Francisco area back in the early 90's but still my excitement on seeing the school right here, right down the street from my home, WOW.  Complete joy, I just wish my children were still young and could have the opportunity to go to Voyage Academy. Expeditionary Learning is hands on learning where children actually "do" they "get involved" they "work through" the real subject. Rarely is it just a book, never are they given worksheets upon worksheets for the rote of remembrance.
I firmly believe that everyone learns better by doing, but most especially children. Can you imagine if our children from birth all the way through college learned by doing? Our children would have a much lower drop out rate, our children would be so much more engaged in learning and would enjoy it. Look at these links and you will see what I mean. This is where I have founded many of my beliefs in over the years, along with Maria Montessori and a few others but the bottom line is Play, engage, and enjoy what you do.
http://www.kauffman.org/what-we-do/programs/education/expeditionary-learning
http://elschools.org/
http://open.spps.org/expeditionary_learning
https://vimeo.com/elschools
A lot of these things can also be done by parents. It would be better if it was done across the board with daycare, preschool, grades k-12 and through collage but we have to start somewhere and like I said I first learned about it in the early 90's now it's 2015.

PARENT ZOO DAY

Friday May 1, 2015  Hoggle Zoo opened the Dinosaur Robotic Exhibit. Nana (me), Grandma (my mother Ramona), Ryker and his mother Allie, Kaiden and his mother Whitney were all excited to see them.

oh my I love you

Let's GO

This has 3 horns

Can I keep him?

Look babies.

The children were having so much fun that they did not even want to go home. Sadly though we had no choice, Whitney had to go to work and Allie had to get her there so I took our precious little ones back to daycare where we continued our day.