Catch up on April Staycation photos and general status

Ben is reading the last 80 pages of Dracula right now, instead of doing his schoolwork, because, what is the point of homeschooling if you can’t finish a plot driven book before doing your trig once in a while? Who could leave Mina and the gang in such straits and actually concentrate – seriously.

M at Mechanic's Pont (with walking stick)
M at Mechanic’s Pont (with walking stick)

K is checking on her paper mache experiments drying on the front porch, M has another sinus headache and is back in bed – probably reading Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince while waiting for the Claretin to kick in, see first paragraph for my homeschooling philosophy on gripping plot driven books and serious school work.

M wearing short sleeves and jeans, standing on a pile of un-melted snow, in early April
M, standing on a pile of un-melted snow, in early April

We’ve actually been very, very good about lessons lately, I will probably make my planned late July deadline to finish everything this year. I’m even up to date on K’s narrative (not that the principal will think it’s anywhere near enough for assessment, but it complies with the current interpretation of Mass case law, which is all either of us really has to worry about. The schools never want to know anything about young elementary kids except – are they reading? fluently? And I always feel a bit let down when mine finally do read; fluently, enthusiastically, constantly, when they should be doing something else, and all the schools say are, “please send me your paperwork by June 15.” What a let down.)

K hanging off the front porch railing pretending to be a gargoyle
K hanging off the front porch railing pretending to be a gargoyle

Can I put on the assessment, “K is old enough scare me by climbing on the porch and playing gargoyle now just like her brothers?”

No, I didn’t think so either.

Ben, Me, K and Mom beside Blythwold Mansion, in the daffodil garden that wasn't blooming yet.
Ben, Me, K and Mom beside Blythwold Mansion, in the daffodil garden that wasn’t blooming yet.

Once again, we used up Dan’s vacation days for a series of local day trips in April before his annual use them or lose them date in May, but this year was particularly relaxed.

Ben, M, Me, K and Mom eating a gf picnic at Blythwold Mansion and Gardens
Ben, M, Me, K and Mom eating a gf picnic at Blythwold Mansion and Gardens

We took Mom to Blythewold to see the daffodils, but the harsh winter made them late.

Dan's elbow, K and M climbing on rocks in the bosquet at Blythwold Mansion and Garden
Dan’s elbow, K and M climbing on rocks in the bosquet at Blythwold Mansion and Garden
M in front of the Giant Sequoia at Blythewold Mansion and Gardens
M in front of the Giant Sequoia at Blythewold Mansion and Gardens
M entering the bamboo grove at Blythewold Mansion and Gardens
M entering the bamboo grove at Blythewold Mansion and Gardens
M counting for  hide and go seek in the bamboo grove
M counting for hide and go seek in the bamboo grove
Mom and K warming up in the sun near the bamboo grove
Mom and K warming up in the sun near the bamboo grove
Ben by the koi pond
Ben by the koi pond
M and Mom watching koi
M and Mom watching koi
K, M, Me, Ben and Mom in the bosquet
K, M, Me, Ben and Mom in the bosquet
Me and M by the rock garden
Me and M by the rock garden
Mom in the rock garden
Mom in the rock garden
Me, Ben, Mom, K by the bay
Me, Ben, Mom, K by the bay
Naragansett Bay
Naragansett Bay
Ben, K, Me and Mom by the mansion
Ben, K, Me and Mom by the mansion

We may have missed the daffodils, but K adored the fancy mansion though, so it all evened out.

K and Ben in the Moon gate
K and Ben in the Moon gate
Me in the billiards room at Blythewold
Me in the billiards room at Blythewold
Me and M on the pretty stairs at Blythewold
Me and M on the pretty stairs at Blythewold
butler's pantry at Blythwold
butler’s pantry at Blythwold

I got to look closely at the butler’s pantry and kitchens this time, I think the behind the scenes aspect are especially popular now that people are watching Downton Abbey, the volunteers allowed us to troop right through a fund raising tea to see them.

plates and glasses at Blythewold
plates and glasses at Blythewold

K is hoping to be dressed up and brought to a tea someday – I’ll have to deputize Mom to take her, I can’t eat anything on the menu, they serve authentic Blythewold recipes, complete with gluten.

Dan's shoes as he rested on the lawn at Blythewold
Dan’s shoes as he rested on the lawn at Blythewold
Mom and Ben in the greenhouse at Blythwold
Mom and Ben in the greenhouse at Blythwold
K and M in the greenhouse at Blythwold by the American Wonder Lemons
K and M in the greenhouse at Blythwold by the American Wonder Lemons
Me in the greenhouse at Blythwold by the American Wonder Lemons
Me in the greenhouse at Blythwold by the American Wonder Lemons
K in the greenhouse at Blythwold
K in the greenhouse at Blythwold

We used another day off to head to the insurance office and start updating our coverage. Mom watched K, Ben and M studied at the house. We got stuck in traffic so Ben made quesadillas for dinner. It was actually romantic to have Dan all to myself in the car. Complete sentences – wow.

clue bags for the Eagle' Wing's Coop code class
clue bags for the Eagle’ Wing’s Coop code class

Dan has been the mastermind behind the coding class at Eagle’s Wings, so it was fun that he was on hand to help me with the final day. He wrote 5 clues in 5 different codes for the kid’s treasure hunt. The prise was gluten free, dairy free snickerdoodles. I used coconut oil in place of the butter, and the texture was wonderful. No one minded the rain. Some of the older kids finished early, so we added them to the youngest group that was struggling. Dan taught the kids yet one more transcription code to take up the time.

Matt had gone to a lock in at the library for an “Escape from Mr Lemoncello’s Library” event, we took one of their ideas to simplify the treasure hunt – all the clues were the same, they were just presented in a different order. But figuring out how to pack the ziplock baggies so that no one had dead end clues, or clues that sent them in an infinite loop took three tries, a spreadsheet, and a few arguments. But we kissed and made up in the end.

K on the bridge leading to the Boston Children's Museum
K on the bridge leading to the Boston Children’s Museum

Dan wasn’t able earlier this winter to take K to the Children’s Museum for her birthday treat, because the trains weren’t running. So he took her in April.

K before the Boston Children's Museum sign
K before the Boston Children’s Museum sign
K making a huge bubble with a hoop in a pan of bubbles at the Boston Children's Museum
K making a huge bubble with a hoop in a pan of bubbles at the Boston Children’s Museum
K in the climbing structure at the Boston Children's Museum
K in the climbing structure at the Boston Children’s Museum
Close up of K in the climbing structure at the Boston Children's Museum
K in the climbing structure at the Boston Children’s Museum
K carving at the Boston Children's Museum
K carving at the Boston Children’s Museum

He took M to a climbing gym for his birthday, but we didn’t get pictures, Dan must have been too busy actually climbing.

2 Replies to “Catch up on April Staycation photos and general status”

  1. I can’t decide if my favorite part of this was the captions, or your commentary on school. Either way, I loved it!