Homeschooling Weeks

I've been SO busy with everything that I haven't had ANY time to blog. As you know, we started homeschooling this year. We've been going for eight weeks, but not eight weeks strong.
I'm just not going to go in depth about everything I've been doing, but here're my top things I didn't know before I started homeschooling:
#1 Saxon math, in the geometry level, has 30 math problems a day, more than my middle school homework had.
#2 Double-speed First Form Latin is too slow for me.
#3 It is really easy to drag your feet on finishing science experiments.
#4 There's a lot more room for creativity in answering history review questions when you're doing so orally. For instance: "Who were the Olmecs?" "The first major Mesoamerican culture to carve giant stone heads before mysteriously disappearing." "Who were the Toltecs?" "The guys after the Olmecs, who, like many ancient mesoamerican cultures, mysteriously disappeared." "How were the Olmecs and Toltecs similar?" "They both were early mesoamerican cultures that disappeared– or did they?" "You're not even looking at the book." "No, I'm on the floor stretching while you read questions from the answer key."
#5 The urge to sit on the floor to do schoolwork is a tough one to fight.
#6 We have to go to the library every week.
#7 "Life Skills class credit" is code for "Chores with a Smile."
#8 "Time Management in Homeschooling" means, "Get the work done before 5 o'clock."
#9 Facebook during Spanish class becomes possible, but not appealing.
#10 The answer to "Is homeschooling worth it?" is, without a doubt, "HECK YEAH."

Goat Stall

Today was interesting* and eventful†. It all revolves around our little goat shed that takes up a corner of the backyard. It's not in great shape, and getting worse all the time. It's been serviceable, but not excellent. 

This morning, at my summertime seven-o-clock, I went outside to take care of my pets. I let Peanut and Blackie out. I let out the geese. I propped open the door, and Mary darted out. She ran right into my stomach, and, though I didn't lay a hand on her, I kicked the shed. Then I grabbed some hay, and slammed it into the basket. Then the shed did an amazing thing. 

It fell down. I am not kidding. It honest-to-goodness fell apart into pieces. Mary was outside, and I managed to keep the plywood from falling on me too hard. I got kind of nicked up**, but I didn't even need stitches. Thankfully, I was not trapped, just whacked. 

As a result, we need somewhere to keep The Goat. Mary can stay on her chain for a day, and maybe even to sleep (it's warm enough), but Dad says we should just build a sort of stall leaning against the garage. 

It's kind of funny to think that only last night, Mary slept in a shed that doesn't exist any more. It's nothing more than the sandy patch of the yard, with a little hay still sprinkled around. 

*bizarre †hectic **bruised and scraped 

Operation Gain-Some-Weight

I went to the doctor last week. Apparently I'm in fine health, except my weight.
I am 105 pounds. 47 kilos. I'm also 65 inches tall, or 165 centimeters. That puts my BMI at, oh, pathetic. Specifically, 17.5.
Doctor says I need to gain weight this summer, which is not going to be easy. Why not? Here's my breakfast menu.
1/4 cup granola
1 bagel (large)
6 ounces yogurt
1 banana
Seasonal fruit
2x3x1/2 inch slab of ham
1 cup milk
1/2 cup juice.
Oh, and I'm best described as hyperactive. Mom, thankfully, has been trying to find constructive outlets for my energy. I now do gymnastics, baton twirling, dance classes, swim lessons, and noncompetitive basketball. I'm still hyper, but I have more fun this way.
So my goal this summer is to gain 20 pounds. That will make me an even 125, with a healthy BMI of 20.8.
Well, I'm off to have a quarter cup of peanut butter and six bananas. Breakfast was two hours ago, and it's still an hour till lunch!

The Curriculum Fair

Mom had already gone to a curriculum fair in Nebraska (Pine Creek is really near the border), but a few days ago she dragged me to a fair here in Iowa, in Spruce Hill. We looked at a million stands and mom bought a bunch of books. She got:
Saxon Geometry (I've already done Algebra 1 in school)
Winston Grammar
A thick book called "WORLD HISTORY"
A million science brochures
A dozen or more catalogs for foreign language programs
A book titled "SAT prep for Over-Achievers."

All the homeschooler kids there seemed like they were having fun and were chatting with the vendors. Quite frankly, I don't know why they enjoy shopping for work so much.

HOMESCHOOLING!

So, just an hour ago, I was eating dinner. I had just taken a bite of baked ziti when Mom and Dad asked me a big question.
"Joan, how would you like to be homeschooled next year?" they asked.
I started choking and coughing. Normally, I would have just swallowed then hollered my surprise, but, ever since I got my braces a week ago, choking is normal.
"What?" I wheezed as soon as I could.
"Homeschooling. We've thought a lot about it, and we're going to homeschool you for ninth grade."
"What?" I repeated. This time I got a more thorough explanation.
Allie is homeschooling too! You see, her little brother, who is seven years younger than her, is having trouble in school. Her parents decided to take her out of school, too, and mom liked the idea of homeschooling me!
The reason they told me is because mom wants to go to a homeschool conference in a few weeks. Allie and her mom are going too, and Mom thinks this will be a good time to look at curriculum.
Of course, I instantly agreed to homeschool. I mean, who wouldn't? Maybe somebody who only has friends at school, but not me, as long as Allie is homeschooling too, two houses away.
I haven't been bloging for a while, because, quite frankly, it's been boring. But now I think I'm going to have to get this blog back up and running! :-D

Ahem... If you will turn your attention to Joan...

ACK!

Okay, okay, sorry to start a posting that way. I'm just a little nuts right now.

It's just that Shimmy, my gerbil, just had her babies! FIVE OF THEM! Also, this morning, when Shimmy was just having her babies, my parakeet, Sunny, decided that she would learn how to talk. So, now, hours later, we have five baby gerbils and a talking parakeet. The most annoying thing is WHAT Sunny says. Most of it, she picked up when we were running around crazy. She says the following: "FIVE!?!?! Oh, gosh, gotta go. I'm late! Where did you put. Baby gerbils!"

So, that's about it. Just kind of figured I'd tell about these interesting events.

We Interrupt This Program for an Important News Bulletin!

News flash! No, nothing interesting has come up, particularly. I'm just giving a general update.

School/Activities: I got the lead in the Halloween Play at school. I also have a baton twirling show the day before the play opens. I'm the executive editor for the school newspaper. And I'm still the patrol leader of the Palomino Patrol.

Pets: Blackie is the same as always, Peanut is bigger and more rambunctious, The Cats have become increasingly wary of Peanut, Shimmy and Squeak have learned to ride in a pocket, Mary is at the Farm, Muriel is same as always, The Geese are always trying to "defend" me from Peanut, Shimmer hasn't been looking so good, and Sunny has learned to imitate the song "King of The Golden Hall" from the Lord of The Rings movie in the whole.

"That's All Folks!"

Recent Additions

Yesterday, I was picking berries in the backyard when Mom said there was a phone call for me, from the vet.
Now, sometimes a dog breeder ends up with a few "imperfect" pups. Often they take these to the vet to be put down. However, the vet might say they'll kill them, but, once the breeder has left, they find owners for the puppies. Such was the case yesterday.
Recently a breeder had dropped off a perfectly healthy beagle puppy. For whatever reason, they wanted it put to sleep. So, the vet called me. After seeing me come in with so many pets, they figured I wouldn't mind another one. With the appropriate parental permission, I accepted the offer of a beagle.
Today I picked him up. He's really friendly and very cute. I named him Peanut. Grizabella and Mistoffoles were wary of him, but Blackie took to him at once. She started licking him and sniffing him like a mother dog. Soon, they were snuggled together.
Peanut is an adorable little guy, and I have a feeling we'll have a lot of fun.

My 13th Birthday

It was my 13th birthday recently. I had Sophie and Allie over for dinner and cake (chocolate with chocolate frosting, of course). It was a ton of fun because...
Mom and Dad gave me pet gerbils for my birthday! One's a boy and one's a girl. I named them Shimmy and Squeak. They love their colorful cage, and it can sit many places in the house.
Gerbils have to be the best rodents. They are hyperactive but not terribly nervous. The cage won't need to be cleaned all the time, but they do throw their bedding around a bit. The cage I have it plastic without large openings, so no problem. They don't drink a lot of water, meaning, uh, less ... And they are super cute! Either will sit happily in a shirt pocket.
All in all, a good birthday.

The Wasabi Touch

Oh dear, oh well, oh boy! Some girls started a stupid (very) rumor about me. Not really a rumor, though. Today, on a dare, I put wasabi peas into a half-full bottle of apple juice, shook it up, and drank it (it sounds worse than it is). Well Zoe (read back a bit for a full description) saw me and started this thing called the "Wasabi Touch". According to them, I have it and anyone I touch also has it. Sophie and Allie both took my side and got it. Now we have it, but the only ones who stay away from us are annoying people. We'll see what happens. I might be able to lord over them. On the other hand, I could insure that everybody in the world gets it. Hmm...

Welcome to The Joan Zone!

I would like to call attention to the change in name of this blog. You've entered The Joan Zone. No particular reason, except that I thought it was better. I only intended Me, Joan to be somewhat like the web page. So, I changed it. I like it!

Amish Friendship Bread

Help! We're swimming in Amish Friendship Bread! For those of you not cursed by this parasitic food, I will explain. It all starts when someone gives you a loaf of bread and a plastic bag of starter. The "starter" is yellowish and smells a bit. You squish it and add flour, sugar, and milk. Then you wait. Then you scoop some out, mix it with other stuff, and bake it. You save some, though, so you can go through the whole process again. We got a bag of goop at Christmas, and it has become an obsession. The only strange thing is that you use instant pudding in the bread, so it's not very Amish. However, if you use chocolate pudding mix, you get something that resembles brownies. Yum. But let this be a warning to those who start a bag: DON'T.

My Cousin Rachel

Last you heard of my cousin Rachel, she came to Thanksgiving. Well, now there is some very, very, happy news about her. She's getting married in May. She got engaged on New Year's Day to a really sweet guy. We're all happy, but the immediate family is a little crazy. The family women (note-- I'm not one of them, I'm a girl) are a little caught up in the "planning" frenzy. Rachel is rather laid-back and is not worried. This should be fun. :-)

Thanksgiving

As I write this I am still stuffed. Turkey, bread, green beans, cranberries, jello, and PIE. The best part about it is I saw my one and only cousin, Rachel. I must say, I haven't written much about her. She's in her early twenties, almost ten years older than me. But we're the only cousins we have, so we just make the best of it. Well, to make a long story short, Thanksgiving was good. Yum.

Pre-Order Your Ferrets

You will not believe what I saw at the pet store Saturday! We were at the little strip mall, and Mom was getting pizza. It was boring to sit waiting for the pizza to be ready, so I went to the pet store nearby. It's fun to look at the tropical fish in big tanks, the squealing mice, the adorable puppies, and whatever else they have. It's a locally owned store, so people give unwanted baby animals to them. Their stock fluctuates all the time. Someone had recently given them some parakeets, but that wasn't the best part. There was a sign that read: "Ferrets available soon-- pre-order now!" I asked about it and apparently someone was going to bring in some baby ferrets, and, for best results, the ferret should not be much older than six weeks. The ferrets are just a couple of weeks old now, but once they are old enough to be separated from their mother, there's only a two-week window (approximately) until they are too old to be adopted. If they sit around in a pet store for a few weeks, they will be too old to become good pets. So, the pet store is taking orders now. When the ferrets are old enough, they get dumped off at the pet store, where you pick yours up right away. I really want a ferret. They are really cute from what pictures I've seen, and I've read all about them from my pet care book (entitled Great Pets-- but it's copyright is 1976, so you probably won't be able to find it. I got mine at a library book sale some time ago). They can eat canned cat food and the book shows how to build a cage for them. I'm going to ask Mom and Dad about getting a ferret.

Act Like a Squirrel

Ah... Blessed peace. FINALLY, we finished storing up nuts for the winter. What did you think we were going to do with all the stuff from the garden? But, the summer vegetable season is over, you say. However, apples went on sale. Think of all the ways you can store apples, as long as they're on "super sale". Apple pie filling made in bulk and frozen, dried apples, applesauce, apple butter, the list goes on.

The garden turned out great. Here are some lists.

Frozen- grated zucchini, peas, carrots,

In Jars- pickles, strawberry jam, tomatoes, sauerkraut (yum!),

Dried- strawberries, herbs,

In The Basement- potatoes, onions,

This is only a sample of what it was like. It does get dull, you know, to snap the stems off endless heaps of herbs, shell innumerable peas, grate dozens of zucchini, and run apple after apple through the Apple-Peeler-Corer.

Well, I say this as if I was annoyed, but it's nice to have lots of homemade stuff. Soon, all the pumpkins will be ripe!

Sunday Fun

Today was fun.

First, we went to church. During fellowship hour, five people (more or less) said that I looked taller than my mom. You see, my mom is real short, and my dad is real tall, so nobody knows how tall I will be. Dad thinks I'll be six feet tall. Mom says I'll stop growing soon, and be short, like her. I don't know how tall I'll be, but I know I'll be taller than Mom. Well, when we got home, Mom insisted that we measure me. It's official. I'm one inch taller than my mom.

Well, in the afternoon, we watched Room with a View for the second time this week. Mom and I, that is. It's such a great movie. It's both silly and sweet.

For dessert tonight, we had some great cheesecake. It's like a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. Yum!

That's all. :-D

End-Of-Summer Report

Hello again. School's started. So, a quick end-of-summer report.

Sadly, my goldfish Forty-Niner died. He lived a long life for a goldfish. We went to Aunt Sue and Uncle George's farm for a while, and he died while we were away (no fault of the pet sitter, he was looking bad for a while).

At the same time that we were at the farm, we brought back Muriel. She was old enough to go without her mother, and we don't really have room for her.

Also, for a while Allie took care of Goldilocks. She loved her so much I let her keep her.

This year, I am taking Gymnastics classes, and, like last year, I'll be in Girl Scouts. I got made a patrol leader! I'm leader of the Palomino Patrol. Some of the girls wanted it to be the Rohirrim Patrol, but we decided it was too weird.

That's all. I'm having a good school year so far, and summer was a lot of fun.

The Garden

Did I mention that we have a huge garden? Mom planted most of it while I was still in school. Now, we have more vegetables than we can eat. We have: 25 huge zucchini (I told Mom not to keep five plants!), 3 pea plants, 2 cucumber plants, 5 tomato plants (each with several enormous tomatoes), as well as cherry tomato plants, 6 huge heads of lettuce, 2 broccoli plants, 6 heads of cabbage, and a few strawberry plants, plus more onions, carrots, and potatoes than we can count, not to mention herbs. Today ALONE I picked 6 zucchini, a bucket full of peas, 7 tomatoes, 3 cucumbers, a head of cabbage, a bowl of strawberries, and I thinned out large heaps of little onions and carrots. I took large baskets of veggies to the neighbors. We're swamped in vegetables. However, Mom keeps up her "isn't it wonderful to have fresh vegetables" attitude. I don't know how she does it. For dessert tonight: zucchini drop cookies.

Inv'ation Req'd

Oh my gosh! I just had an amazing insight into the inner workings of the English language! How come people use abbreviations, like "req'd" for "required", but don't pronounce it that way, and instead say it out the long way? For example, for the word req'd, you'd say rek-ED, or just REKT. And we could have more of them, for investigate, you could have inv'ate said in-VATE. It doesn't make sense to me. Why not just give your mouth a rest and shorten it?