Long Time Gone!

Has it really been almost a MONTH since I've updated? Geez, guys, it's not for lack of activity around here -- That's for sure. I've got oodles of pictures stored up and I'm going to update those later this weekend, but I'm just saying a quick hello before I head out for a softball tourney this weekend. I just thought if I didn't update while I had all this junk in my head it might be another month before I got around to it. So let's get started!

First, Joey's high school baseball season has mercifully ended. He ended up getting in at least an inning a game for most of the remainder of the season. A small victory, but a victory all the same. So summer season has started and life is back to normal. We're gearing up for trips to Mt. Juliet, Kingsport, East Cobb and Charleston with his team this summer. Then we've got our annual Daytona family trip coming up. We're storing up our dough for a trip to the Daytona Beach Kennel Club. "Give me the straight trifecta, 7-1-4, please, ma'am!"

The girls have a week and a half of school left and we're preparing for end of the year luau parties, final report cards and fun day at school. It's hard to believe we're moving to 4th and 2nd grades next year. Little Syd is not so little anymore and Kelsey has grown so much this year she's wearing women's size shoes and junior-sized clothing. Time marches on.

They both did great grade-wise this year, no Bs on either report card. They tested great on their standardized tests (not that I have any love for those things -- I could write a book about the loathing I have for them.), with Kelsey testing at Post-high school in several subjects and Sydney testing at a sixth grade level in a couple of things. Whether that's truly accurate or not, who knows, but I do know that they are learning and progressing tremendously in their studies. I'm glad I'm able to have a hand in that actually. Watching their academic progress has been one of the greatest experiences I've ever had.

In other news, Kelsey had her first pitching outing last month and did pretty well. She got out of the first inning with no runs, walking the first two batters. Batter #1 got thrown out trying to steal second and Batter #2 got called out for leaving the base too early (a little help from Blue, thank you very much). Then she was down in the count 3-0 on Batter #3, but came back and fired 3 right down the middle! Inning over! Woohoo! Now, in the second inning, things didn't run quite as smoothly, but it was exciting nonetheless. Let's see. With control issues, she threw a few behind the batters' backs and hit one in the head. Her dad brought in another pitcher soon after, but all-in-all, for a first time ever outing, she did great. I'm hoping to post some video on Vimeo later in the week, so I'll let you know when I get around to that.

Sydney had her spring musical May 1 at the co-op. I usually dread the spring musical simply because it's the typical, boring, school program. It's hot in the auditorium, crowded and you can't hear anything for all the babies fussing and crying all around the room. Kel missed out on this production because she had a softball game. (As is custom, I let her decide which event she preferred to attend, and she (BIG SHOCKER) chose to play ball.) Anyhoo, Syd had two songs in this production, one with the 1st and 2nd grade classes and one during the big finale with the entire school on stage. It was such a great little show this year! It was very upbeat and the music was contemporary Christian, so the kids danced and did sign language and it was beautiful. It was a very simplistic performance with minimal set design. The kids were dressed in khaki bottoms and spring colors on top, so it looked like a bunch of Easter eggs up on stage!

I have to say it was very enjoyable and Syd also came out of her shell this year and actually did the hand motions. For those of you in attendance last year, you will remember it was a little like the episode of the Brady Bunch where they went on the TV show as the group, "The Silver Platters", to perform a song and one of them froze up -- Was it Jan? (If you know the answer to this one, please leave it in the comment section below!) Anyway, Syd was kinda like that last year, but this year she was loosey-goosey and really enjoyed herself. I'm hoping to upload that on Vimeo this week, too.

We also took a quick trip to Pigeon Forge for our annual cabin vacation. It was tons of fun (even though it was Rod Run weekend and driving on the main drag was IMPOSSIBLE!). The cabin had a hot tub, two video game machines, foosball, air hockey, pinball, a jukebox and a pool table. So the kids -- Dad included -- had a ball! We visited the Gatlinburg Aquarium on Friday and then we invited the fam up on Saturday for a cookout. The girls got in the hot tub with their cousins after we ate burgers and horsed around for about an hour. Then after the family was leaving, we were stalked by a peacock for the remainder of our trip. It was beautiful, but kinda creepy, too. Evidently it was mating season for the little guy and he spent most of Saturday night squawking right outside the cabin -- Joe was thrilled, let me tell 'ya! Then on Sunday morning as we were getting up and getting ready to come home, Mr. Peacock was sitting perched on our front porch! AAAHHH! Anybody who knows me knows how much I fear birds, so it was not a big treat for me. Neither was the big pile of hmmm, how can I put this delicately, bird stuff he left on the front porch! I've got pics of all the festivities and I will upload those to the blog later this week.

Well, kids, I think that's all for now -- I know you're thanking the Good Lord that the babbling is ending! Kel's got three games today and it's time to get ponytails pulled up, Under Armour donned and cleats laced. If any of you have a 9 year old, you know this is not a quick process. So I gotta run. I hope everybody is healthy, allergy-free and in a good place. I'm hoping once school is out I'll be more attentive to the blog. There are lots of things coming up!

Finally, tomorrow is Mother's Day. I don't have a whole lot to say about that except I am thankful I still have a mother, two grandmothers, a mother-in-law and two sweet aunts (not to mention many friends) who are still around to share this experience with me. We will gather tomorrow at Mom's house as we always do, having sub sandwiches and chips and cookies and we will laugh and poke fun and enjoy the day. While I always say my idea of the perfect Mom's Day is laying in my comfy PJs all day watching movies and napping, I have to say I am so fortunate to still have so many mothers (this phrase is open to interpretation!!) to spend my day with tomorrow. Being a mom has been the greatest challenge of my life, but also the greatest privilege. I never regret for a single moment making the choice to be one. I am richer for having done so. So for all the moms reading this, Happy, Happy Mother's Day!

~Peace

Field Trips, Uniforms and All The Rest

Joe, Kelsey, Sydney and I went on Kelsey's third-grade field trip to Wonder Works today. Joe, just in from a short jaunt to Ann Arbor, Michigan for some kind of special *work training* -- You know, he works for the government, so I don't even ask anymore what that exactly means -- accompanied us on this beautiful 70+ degree day to spend time with the kiddos and their friends. It was a fun trip. There were probably about 30-35 kids and maybe 10 or so adults in attendance.

If you've never been to Wonder Works in Pigeon Forge, it is tons o' fun! It's covertly educational, sorta like those Brain Games the kids like to play on the DS. There's a rock wall, a virtual roller coaster, all kinds of *What you'll look like at age 40* and *What's your personality* types of kiosks everywhere. There are space exploration exhibits, a bubble room, a bed of nails and an optical illusion art gallery that is spectacular.

So we spent a couple of hours there, then headed to Logan's Roadhouse for a little lunch. Kelsey's favorite restaurant since she was old enough to know what a restaurant was is Logan's. Sadly, we haven't had a Logan's in Knoxville for a year or so now and Kelsey hasn't quit griping about it. Fortunately for her, a brand-spanking new restaurant just opened across the street from the Tangers Outlet (fortunate for ME) in Pigeon Forge, so whenever we're in the vicinity we have to make a stop.

After lunch, we decided to take the girls to play a little miniature golf at Old McDonald's Farm in the Tangers Outlet parking lot. After much back and forth, we decided to play on the Porky Putters course (Insert your own joke here). It was so nice out today. The sun was shining, skies were blue and it was about 72 perfect degrees. A little taste of early spring. After about 45 minutes of hits and misses and all kinds of barnyard animals critiquing the putting skills of the Birchfield family, we headed back to K-town. It was an unusually easy-breezy, non-stressful day for the fam and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Let's see. What else has been going on around here? Ah, I think I may have forgotten to mention in earlier posts that the girls are going to be wearing uniforms to the co-op next year. Since I spent my entire elementary and high school career in a uniform, I think it is safe to say I am not a big fan. I'm not against it enough to start a war over it, but I think all the reasons the administrator and the *Board* give for why uniforms are the greatest thing since sliced bread are hysterical. "Uniforms give the students a sense of pride, of unity, will help keep behavior problems down, help them become better citizens," blah, blah, blah. You know, the co-op instituted uniforms this year for the middle school for the first time and the behavior problems are UP, way UP, from last year. Funny stuff, huh?

Until now, I have really tried not to be too critical of the administrator or the decisions of the Board here on the ol' blog simply because I do have some friends who read this who are parents there. But I will say this: I really have come to the conclusion that our administrator is a little out of touch with the way the world works today, especially when you are the parent of a little one. He is a grandfather now and it has been a loooong time since he has been chasing toddlers or even elementary school students. He is a decent man, a DEVOUT Christian, always says hello when you pass him in the hall kinda guy. He's also a khakis and button-down kinda guy. At first I doubted if he even owned a pair of jeans, but he does do some hiking, so maybe somewhere he has a pair of Levi's.

But he is convinced somewhere deep inside that if every child at the co-op is in a polo shirt and khakis that the world will somehow right itself and we will be discharging the most respectful, well-behaved geniuses East Tennessee has ever produced. He firmly believes that being comfortable equals a poor work ethic and that having a princess on your shirt might just mean you're a -- God forbid -- liberal! The horror!

I have a mom friend at the school whose daughter is not the traditional stick model that some elementary/middle school girls are. She says her daughter is self-conscious in a tucked-in shirt and therefore opts to wear a nice tunic with her jeans or slacks. The child is beautiful and always looks well-groomed. My friend fears that the forced uniform code will cause her daughter greater self-consciousness than she is already feeling. And it probably will.

I don't think the physical differences in children ever came into play when making these decisions. I don't think the children came into play, period, when making this uniform decision. I think what came into play is what all too often comes into play when decisions are made at the co-op -- The *Board* (those who sit in judgment of all the rest, I choose to call them) in one of their *secret meetings* (Parents are never privvy to these meetings, unless they need to address the Board and then they are given the secret time and place to show up) decided we will look more like the real private schools if we all look the same.

Interesting, isn't it? We're supposed to be at a HOMESCHOOL co-op, but it sure has started to look, feel and act like real school. The only thing left to vote out is the parental involvement and then we're all set. But, as I said, this is not a battle I choose to fight. We're there 3 days a week for four hours each day. After that, I don't care if the girls come home and run around in a sparkly scarf and panties with puppies on them the rest of the day. In my grand scheme, what they're wearing just isn't that important. And I don't think it should be as important as it is at the co-op either. We're drowning in minutiae more and more each year.

Just between you and me, if the girls were interested, I think we'd probably ditch the co-op and blaze our own trail. Kelsey has come close a time or two, especially this year, but she likes the routine. And I think it's important that she has it. So we will trudge forward, in our navy blue polos and khaki chinos, loafers and black or brown belt, until we've had enough. Then we'll have a ritual burning of school uniforms in the firepit in my backyard and maybe even roast a marshmallow or two for good measure!

~Peace

History Fair

Sydney & the Tennessee flag
Kelsey and Allie in front of the stable
More of Kel and Allie


Well, the History Fair was two days ago and we are almost all recovered. The day started horribly with tornadoes in West and Middle Tennessee and a tornado watch for all of us here in K-town. We headed out for school at 7:30 a.m. right as the skies turned pitch black and the rain began to fall in big, round globs -- Splat all over the windshield. I was praying silently the whole way to school for the Lord to please just let us get there safely. Then whatever was gonna happen could just go on and happen.

I told the girls we could not tune in to Disney on the XM radio this morning (something we do EVERY DAY OF OUR LIVES) because we had to set the channel to WIVK to listen to the weather. There was no music on the radio Wednesday morning, just DJs talking about how there were tens of people dead in Tennessee and how dark it was outside and how JUST NOW the storms had entered Knox County. Great, I thought. Then the streaks of lightning started and the thunder. Sydney was squealing every time she saw the lightning and Kelsey was commenting on how loud the thunder was. It looked like we were headed into the middle of hell.

So I pushed on, Joe following me two minutes behind so he could help me unload at school. We were moving through the flooded roads on our usual route and I thought we were JUST GONNA MAKE IT before the deluge when we got into a long line of stopped cars -- a huge sewage truck had overturned! So we got detoured onto this little one-lane country road. I had no idea where I was going. Needless to say, the stress level was fairly high in the car. I kept trying to remain calm and not make colorful comments on how bad everything sucked (something at which I am well-trained) so that the girls would not get scared.

Finally, after following all the cars in front of me, hoping and praying they were going the same way I was, we got back onto our normal route and made it to school just as the skies opened completely and dumped gallons of water all over us. I let the girls out under the overhang, dropped all of their stuff off, including the robotic horse and parked. By the time I got inside the building I looked like I had showered in my clothes. And I smelled like wet dog. It was gonna be a good day!

So after all of that and after setting up all of the girls' displays, getting everyone settled, the History Fair began. Most of the displays were very creative and the costumes were neat. There were several people there doing soap-making demonstrations, quilting demonstrations, etc. There were even Civil War re-enactment enthusiasts there to show off their authentic goods. The kids created little vignettes from colonial times, a tea party on the lawn of the White House, castles, ships, wigwams, you name it.

Kelsey and her partner, Allie, were, as I said in my earlier post, blacksmiths. They had a stable complete with forge, authentic horseshoes, hay and a robotic horse. They stood before groups and groups of people and explained their trade, their importance and even told stories of famous blacksmiths in colonial times. They looked and sounded great.

Sydney's class did their projects in their classrooms. Kindergarten through second grade are not involved in the BIG History Fair, per se. Their displays consist of tri-fold boards, costumes and any accessories they want to bring. Sydney did a little project on the Tennessee flag, the designer, the significance and its adoption date. She wore a t-shirt with the Tennessee flag on it and had red, white and blue ribbons in her hair. She constructed a flag out of red, white and blue clay. She stood proudly in front of her board for most of the day, giving her speech to every group that came calling. Surprisingly, the projects in her class were very entertaining and pretty detailed. There was old-time candy, homemade butter and even a log cabin made out of Lincoln logs. They were creative and very age-appropriate.

So all in all the day went well once we arrived at our destination safe and sound. Outside, it was wet and windy, but inside, it looked like a different time. The kids were excited, bubbling over with information they had memorized, costumed in great detail. All the time and effort put into the day was evident. While I was worn out after it had all ended, from set-up to clean-up, I was glad I spent the day with the girls, listening to their presentations and even learning some new things myself. It made an otherwise dreary, miserable day into a memorable one.

History Fair

In this homeschool journey our family is on, some days are more trying than others. As anybody who has visited here before knows, the girls attend a 3-day-a-week co-op. When we ran screaming from the Knox County public school system in the fall of 2005, this little co-op was the oasis we had been seeking. It was peaceful, calm, challenging, loving, all those adjectives that you pray will describe your child's school environment. We saw (and still do) great results in Kelsey and our relationship with our child became better, stronger, happier.

And because of that success in our first year I became a great advocate of the school, so much so that our administrator started sending potential parents my way, hoping I could shed some light on the whole wonderful process for them. I will say it has never been an easy experience. Even back then, it wasn't easy. It was challenging for me. It was challenging just by definition -- schooling at home. I was now in charge of her education, and when I started to think about ALL of the things her little mind needed to absorb, well, it gave this mother pause.

Here we are in 2008 and both of the girls are at the co-op now. Double trouble, double time, double lesson plans, double schoolwork on homeschool days. Like I said earlier, some days are better than others. This week we are preparing for the History Fair. Every other year we have the History Fair, alternating with the Science Fair.

I don't know if any of you out there are homeschoolers or know people who are, but whether they be homeschoolers for religious beliefs or, like us, because of environmental concerns, one thing never changes -- the level of intensity put into projects. There is nothing like doing projects in a building full of home educators. It is like preparing for the Miss America pageant, like preparing for some historical blockbuster television mini-series, like preparing for the presentation of your life. These people (most of these people) LIVE for these History Fairs. We have mothers frantically sewing authentic historic costumes, complete with hoop skirts. We have dads painting and building the White House, Indian wigwams and royal palaces. It is the most over-the-top experience you will ever witness.

Thus, my good days/bad days statement. While I am all for delving into the pasts of all these historical figures, giving oral presentations to enhance public speaking skills, even putting together dioramas to depict the historical topic, I am more than overwhelmed with the level of authenticity required at this little co-op. It isn't really acceptable to pull your hair up in a bun, put on your prairie skirt and your ankle boots to depict some woman out in the wild, wild west. That will require a wig, a costume and a horse (complete with saddle), maybe some cactus and a gun (loaded) if you can get it approved by the administrator.

This year, Kelsey is a colonial blacksmith and Sydney is doing a project on the Tennessee State flag. Mercifully, first grade is a little more low-key about this kind of thing, so Sydney's project is just your typical poster board, paragraph, clay mold of the flag type of deal. Kelsey, on the other hand, has been spending the last few days of school painting and building a forge for her blacksmith shop. She will have a stable made out of wood complete with hay and horseshoes to stand in front of and a robotic horse for the visitors to enjoy. She will be dressed in full garb, britches, knee socks, apron, etc. We are to bring our costume in to class tomorrow for *approval*. Sigh...

So this is an *interesting* time for us on our homeschool journey. I use the term homeschool loosely because truly we are more private school than homeschool. I have very little say in the curriculum for my kids, the pace at which we do the lessons and even the grading of their test scores, etc. I hear next year I won't even have a say in what they wear -- uniforms for all ages for the next school year is on the table and really already a done deal, if the rumors are true. Do I wish I TRULY homeschooled? Some days, yes. I wish I had more control over what material was emphasized, wish I didn't have to spend so much time dealing with unimportant things like how the hardback binders are organized or whether the folders I bought are acceptable to the teacher, wish we were less deadline-oriented and more LEARNING oriented.

But I have always told myself on every challenging day that a bad day in this little co-op is better than a good day in *regular* school. I still believe that. I love Tuesdays and Fridays at home, books all over the table, studying definitions on the trampoline, memorizing Bible verses in the kitchen. I think 10 years from now I'll mourn the passing of this time, remember it with great fondness and no regrets.

And I'll probably be fond of it again right around 12:31 p.m. this Wednesday -- right AFTER the History Fair ends! :)

Third Grade Pool Party

Well, Kelsey had her third grade Meet & Greet today at Lovell Hills Pool. She has a new teacher this year -- and I mean NEW. The teacher was recently hired by CFC (That's Christian Family Cooperative to the 2 people in the world reading this who don't know where my little criminals attend school!) and she's fresh out of college.

To this point, I had not met the teacher and was looking forward to it. I had requested this particular teacher simply because the existing third grade teacher seems a little worn down from teaching and lacks -- hmmmm, how shall I put this -- a sense of humor of any kind. For those of you who know my sweet little Kelsey, you know this will not work. Kelsey is my mini-me. And for those of you who know me, you'll know why a teacher with no sense of humor would not work!

So I hang out at the pool watching Kelsey jump repeatedly into the water, stealthfully chasing her little boyfriend, Christopher, from one end to the other. Finally, I ask one of the other moms where the teacher is. After all, that's the ONLY reason I'm loitering in the 90 degrees on this muggy August day. She says, "She's right there." I turn around and a little girl with a long blonde ponytail is standing looking all of about 14. I swear it was Hannah Montana!

I introduce myself and spend a few minutes talking to her. She's bubbly, she's excited, she looks just like Barbie. How old I now feel. I really am *the mom*. You know, you can fool yourself for a long time that you're only as old as you feel, ignoring the gray in your hair, the pain in your back and the age spots on your hands all because you still feel like you're 23 inside. But then you meet your child's new, fresh-out-of-school teacher and she calls you, "Ma'am" just that one time.

What is that Garth Brooks' song -- Too Young To Feel This Damn Old? Yeah, well, not anymore, I guess.