WHEN SCIENCE IS MORE THAN SCIENCE

This was my view as I planned a menu a couple of weeks ago. Nothing particularly special, just a kid doing their science. Except that it was the first day Naomi had done her science on her own. Ever. The following week was the first time she did a whole week's worth of science on her own. Ever.

I don't really give a rip when a kid starts reading well. Barring a learning disability, all kids eventually get it and I've never met a single person whose life was forever changed because they started reading at 3. Or 5. Or 10.

So when Naomi struggled to read I just figured she was just one of those kids who took a while for it to click. Yes, she knew her letters and their sounds. Yes, she new how to read. But it took a lot of work for her to get through a whole sentence, paragraph, or page. She definitely was not reading with the same skill as her older brothers had at the same age (that's fine because they're each their own person, but they were my reference point), would often guess at words, and was resourceful enough to look around the page for contextual clues when she got stuck on a word.

Somewhere around kindergarten or first grade I wondered if she was dyslexic or had vision problems, but I realized she was still well within the normal range of reading skills and decided to just let her blaze her own trail. We'd take things at whatever pace she needed them to be, which meant I was doing all her school work, except math, with her for years past when the big boys were working independently. Time consuming and inconvenient? Sure, but that was fine. It's what she needed and so it's what we did.

Then she got a tic over the summer. At least that's what it looked like. It was something new and odd, a facial behavior she was oblivious to until I secretly made a video of her doing it. We decided to get her eyes checked because the only time the tic thing appeared was when she was reading a book or at the computer. Anything else, like brain tumors or something, would have made the tic happen any old time.

Sure enough, she needed glasses. It figures that the one time I decided to be all go with the flow was the one time I should have been my usual Type A, get the job done self. Oh well. What's done is done.

She's not the first W to need glasses, but it wasn't blog-worthy before because the vision problems weren't debilitating. This time was different. Now this girl of mine is picking up the pace in the reading department. She's not reading huge chapter books on her own yet, and that's totally fine, but she is doing her science independently, along with some other parts of her school work. It's pretty awesome to see her progress over the last two months!

What's funny is that she's wanted glasses for a really long time purely for cosmetic reasons. This is the same girl who punched out the lenses of some cheap sunglasses before we went on a run one day in the hopes that people would think she was wearing real glasses with black rims. She thinks glasses look awesome, so this was like a dream come true. Bonus points for the fact she got pink ones. In a purple case. It doesn't get much better than that!

MOVIES I WATCHED: 4/8/15 - 10/11/15

Crooked Arrows, starring Brandon Routh, Chelsea Ricketts, and Crystal Allen
Fairly predictable sports movie about an underdog Native American lacrosse team whose new coach used to be a star player.

Fiddler on the Roof, starring Topol and Norma Crane
I haven't watched this since I was a kid, so all 6 Ws watched it on a recent Friday night. It's a great story about family and friends, tradition and change, love and hate, faith and humanity, plus it has a healthy dose of humor.

Flywheel, starring Alex Kendrick
The Kendrick brothers have now produced several movies, but this was their first one and was intended only for local viewing. While it's not the same quality as their later films, the lessons taught about honesty and integrity through the lens of a used car salesman are important and our family enjoyed it.

The Help, starring Emma Stone and Viola Davis
Silas and I watched this together (Tim and I saw it a long time ago). It's the story of a story, how a book about what life for black maids was like during the 1960s came to fruition. Simultaneously heart-breaking and heart-warming, it's a neat story of bravery and cowardice, kindness and cruelty, and a strong reminder that people matter more than politics and that character matters more than social standing. I haven't read the book by the same title and written by Kathryn Stockett, but I'm sure it's good.

Hotel Rwanda, starring Don Cheadle, Sophie Okonedo, and Nick Nolte
Tim and I saw this a long time ago, but watched it with Silas and Devon one night. The older they get, the more important it is for them to understand the real suffering people experience. We thought this movie was one good way to expose them to the horror of genocide and the heroism of those who do whatever they can to save lives. I've mentioned it in a former book list, but An Ordinary Man: An Autobiography, written by Paul Rusesabagina with Tom Zoellner, is a great book about the man the movie is about.

The Jazz Singer, starring Al Jolson and May McAvoy
This movie was referenced in another one we saw and I thought it would be good to see it for the historical value of being the first talking picture. I thought it had more talking than it did, as it's just "synchronized dialogue" for the songs and one conversation, but Naomi got to snuggle while we watched it.

Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium, starring Dustin Hoffman and Natalie Portman
This is one of my all-time favorite movies and we've watched it multiple times over the years. It's magical and sweet, the story of an awesome toy store, it's eccentric owner, two people who love both the shop and its owner, and one person who seems too uptight to fully appreciate the wonder of the store. It's a family friendly movie that adults will enjoy as much as the kids.

McFarland, USA, starring Kevin Costner
I'm a sucker for underdog movies and loved this one that's based on a true story. It's about a cross country team in California that was comprised of a bunch of non-runners in a poor and predominantly Hispanic community. Great lessons about the value of hard work, family, and friendships. The community reminded me a lot of our own town with a demographic made up largely of families from Mexico who leave early in the morning to work in the fields that surround us and come home late at night to put food on their tables.

Miracle of the White Stallions, starring Robert Taylor, Lilli Palmer, Curd Jurgens, Eddie Albert, and James Franciscus 
I found this movie after reading White Stallions of Lipizza, written by Marguerite Henry and illustrated by Wesley Dennis, for school the third time. It's the true story of how the Lipizzaners were saved during the bombings of World War II. The bigs and I watched it and enjoyed it, perhaps more because we've read the book than we would have otherwise.

Paddington, starring Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, and Julie Walters
This is a fun movie that we watched for a family movie night. A young bear travels from the jungles of Peru to London and ends of living with a family there. It has plenty of silly antics, but also has the love of a family trying to help a bear they care about.

Philomena, starring Judi Dench
This movie is about the true story of a woman who became pregnant while young and unmarried, was sent to a convent by her parents during her pregnancy, and eventually had her son placed for adoption without her consent. She then spent fifty years looking for him, eventually finding answers to her questions with the help of a journalist. It's not really a "happily ever after" kind of movie, but I liked it because I think it's important for all of us to remember that we never know someone's whole story. We don't know what they've experienced, all their hurts and losses, the courage and forgiveness they've chosen or anger and bitterness they've clung to, the kinds of people who matter to them ... so we need to be kind.

Singin' in the Rain, starring Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor, and Debbie Reynolds
This is one of my all-time favorite movies and I realized I'd never had the little Ws watch it. They loved it, laughing throughout the whole thing and replaying a couple funny parts. It's the story of a movie star who finds himself in a jam because talking movies have just come out and the beautiful woman he always co-stars with has a horrendous voice. Romance, friendship, business, comedy, singing, choreography ... it's perfect.

Unbroken, starring Jack O'Connell and Domhnall Gleeson
I'd heard such great things about this movie, but I was so bored watching it. I think the story is great and the man it's about is admirable, but the movie just seemed to go on and on and on. Maybe I just wasn't in the mood for it. It's the true story of Louis "Louie" Zamperini, an American Olympian and soldier whose plane crashed in WWII, leading him to spend nearly seven weeks adrift on a raft and over two years as a Japanese prisoner of war. The movie is based on Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption, written by Laura Hillenbrand.

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A DAY IN THE WOODS

We spent last Saturday out in the woods with a few other families. It was a great day of relaxing, playing, riding bikes, sitting around a campfire, going on walks, hanging out on the river, sitting under the trees, chatting, eating, and laughing.

Most of the older boys were down at the river for a while and I asked Tim to go check on them. What he discovered upon his arrival at the water was some kids livin' off the land with a fish they'd caught ... without a pole. He only had his phone on him, so he went back down with the regular camera and got this shot.

Here's their triumphant arrival back at main camp.

Here are all three of the boys who played some part in the catch.

We'd planned on grilling hot dogs, but the men ended up putting some fresh fish over the fire instead.

The big girls spent much of the day together.

As did the big boys.

Actually, they all played together and didn't separate by gender at all, but I just happened to bust out the camera when they were grouped that way.

I didn't remember to get a picture of all the women who were there until after one had left, but three out of four is better than none. Right?

The littles were a bit oblivious to each other for quite a while, but eventually bonded over stick fights and the bike pump they took turns making farting noises with. Oh, the giggles!

It was such a fun day!

10/8/15 - THANKFUL THURSDAY

I'm thankful for the first foggy morning in a long time.

What is something that you're thankful for?

JOB SHADOWING - WOODBURN VETERINARY CLINIC

~ Guest post by Devon, who I snapped this picture of as he headed out the door on 9/24/15

MY TIME AT THE VETERINARY CLINIC

I had sent out multiple letters to veterinary offices asking if I could volunteer and so far I’ve only received one answer. Woodburn Veterinary Clinic said that I couldn’t volunteer, but I could job shadow for a few hours. So we planned a time and I went over and watched them work.  I watched them do a surgery on a dog and spay and neuter a couple cats. They had a big wall of medicine.  I got to pet one of their cats while eating candy they gave me. I had fun and I hope I can go again.

!!!Trivia!!!

Q: Did you know that a normal cat temperature is 102-107 degrees? 

A: I bet you didn’t. 

Q: Did you know if you touch a cat where its back ends and its tail starts the tail will twitch?

A: I bet you didn’t know that either.

PICTURES WITH THE PADRE, WHO IS ALSO PAPA

Not only did my dad stop for a quick visit on his recent trip north, but he also took the little Ws and I out for lunch on his way south a couple days later. I wanted a picture of just he and I, so Silas snapped one for me. Me and the padre.

Then Teebs chimed in with, "I want to take a picture with Papa. On his lap. But just me. No one else!" So, I granted his request.

Naomi didn't want to miss her opportunity, so she also requested a picture with Papa. Although Dad had taken off his glasses because of the glare in the previous pictures, Naomi asked him to put them on for her picture with him so that they could be matching.

The big boys didn't have the same burning desire for a picture that the rest of us had, but that's fine. They love him just as much as their younger siblings do.

Getting two quick visits in one week was pretty awesome!

10/1/15 - THANKFUL THURSDAY

I'm thankful for laughter.

What's one thing that you're thankful for?