Teeth just falling out.....

Alec has been losing teeth quickly and early for his age. One of his top teeth fell out before the Iowa trip, one while we were in Chicago, and now, the bottom tooth fell out this morning!

Day trips in Iowa

What is there to do in northeast Iowa, other than experience rural life? Well, plenty. Since our children are old enough to appreciate and enjoy museums, we have started exploring the treasures of Iowa when we go there in June every year. This year, we took two separate day trips and had a blast! We visited the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium in Dubuque, Iowa. This is a must see if you happen through this area. We found that our FONZ zoo membership got us in for half off, which was a plus.
There are several aquariums scattered throughout the two buildings.

Lots of hands-on activities for the kids!

The special exhibit was about nocturnal animals....any guesses as to what Ann-Marie turned into?

Of course, there was a water room for the kids to play in also!
Below, the crew....Uncle Jim and Aunt Bonnie, Dad, Carla and Isabelle along with my family made for a really fun and memorable day! Also, the Shot Tower Inn is a great family-friendly lunch or dinner spot nearby to eat at.
On another day, Dad took us to Spillville, Iowa to tour the Bily Clocks Museum....we took a guided tour and learned a lot about these clocks, the men who made them, and the historical time frame that they were made.
No pictures are allowed inside the museum, but there are some interesting things outside the museum also....for example, the old Spillville Jail.....

and the school house.

We then headed into Decorah, Iowa for lunch and to visit the Seed Savers Exchange.....
Ann-Marie especially likes this place because of all the unique flowers, herbs, and plants. Later, Darrell and I went back to Decorah to eat at the Dolce Vita Restaurant....we highly recommend this restaurant! They have wood-fired pizza and a great international menu.

So many treasures in northeast Iowa to discover.....we will look forward to next summer!

Iowa trip 2011

Almost two weeks in Iowa and lots of great memories made. First, I want to thank everyone who made this trip wonderful. Our neighbors, Mike, Chelsea, Allan, and Anna - for watering our flowers and plants, mowing our grass, and picking up our newspapers. To Aunt Sue and Uncle Lyle in Illinois - for being wonderful hosts as our halfway landing spot between Iowa and Pennsylvania, as well as being gracious enough to allow our dog to stay also! To all our friends and family who carved time out of their days to come visit us - Jack and Verna Ouverson, Karl and Doris Erickson, Wally and LaFonda McIntyre, Cletus and Lorna Bouska, Aunt Jill and Uncle Scott and Tyler, Aunt Pat and Uncle Kent. To Uncle Jim and Aunt Bonnie - thank you so much for taking a day off work to spend time with us in Dubuque - that was a really special memory. To Carla and Isabelle - thank you for the surprise day in Dubuque also! So with that being said......most of our time in Iowa was spent just spending time with family and friends.....

My dad with Evan....

Amma making cakes with Ann-Marie....

Dad showing off his farmer strength.....

My grandparents with my kids....

Grandma teaching the kids how to make her famous buns....

My sister!

My cousin, Tyler, and my niece, Isabelle, and nephews, Wade and Will, with my kids....

seeing double.....

some downtime activities....

and the trip isn't complete without animals....new puppies!

Finishing Well

Summer has officially arrived at the Jerome household. School is finished and preparations are being made to make our annual trek to Iowa. I wanted to pause a moment and reflect upon the past year of homeschooling for us. As I took pictures this past week of our everyday, "normal" activities, I was struck at how this second year of schooling at home just felt so natural to us. The kids enjoyed it and it fit our lifestyle so well. We are thankful for all the memories that we made together this year. So, for us to remember and to share with you.....here we are during a school day.....above, Alec playing Zoodles on our home computer.....
and Evan completing a Calvert on-line computer lesson (notice his "Redwall" book nearby - he is really into that series right now).
Our workbox system went very smoothly this year......

Evan's

Ann-Marie's and Alec's

Alec's calendar and theme for the week.......

The children choose where they will do their independent work, so Ann-Marie did hers close to the butterfly house and was rewarded by getting to see one emerge from the chrysalis.
Evan is a voracious reader and he really enjoyed "Island of the Blue Dolphins" as part of his fourth grade curriculum. Comet obviously enjoyed it also.
Just to show you I'm really not as organized as you think.....the school room table often looks like this!
To end, my little gardener potting her plants....she has a green thumb, I do not. In Ann-Marie's words as we were buying her flowers, "Mom, don't touch anything because they will die!"

So now onto summer.....camps and swimming and unstructured time.....we are ready for you!

Guitar....

Evan and Ann-Marie were able to take guitar lessons this semester through PACyber. We borrowed guitars from a friend - thanks to the Richards family. Evan really enjoyed it so I think we will be pursuing further lessons and his own guitar in the future. Ann-Marie just liked to sing - she didn't really care for the guitar. David Granati, of the Granati brothers, taught the class. He is well-known in this area.....I don't think in Iowa, however, as I had never heard of him. He definitely made the class fun and exciting for the kids!



The class put on a performance for the parents and it was fun to watch. Great job!

Wordless (or Toothless) Wednesday

May.....

Halfway through May, and what have we been up to?

Tolerating a very dreary and rainy month.

Finishing strong - school will be done on June 3rd.

Activities ending and final performances.

Gymnastics and Soccer.

So much going on, yet not a lot to talk about. So we continue to live each day, trying to keep dry, trying to keep a positive attitude amidst the dreariness, and looking forward to the ending of Spring and the beginning of Summer.

How is your May going?