Cheap stuff to do in the Antelope Valley #1

Anyone who knows me is aware that I am completely uncoordinated and suck at sports, even stuff like table tennis and bowling. But I still love to participate, and so do my girls! One favorite activity is miniature golf. So we were really excited to get free passes to play miniature golf at Mulligan's Family Fun Center in Palmdale! In addition to mini golf, Mulligan's has an arcade, laser tag, go-carts, a rock wall, batting cages and boats. Mini-golf is very affordable, at $5.00 per player. However, if you want to do the other activities, there are additional charges. Mulligan's also offers an all-day pass for $20.00. Mini-golf was a fun summer family activity, and we had an awesome time! Mulligan Family Fun Center Palmdale 525 West Avenue P-4, Palmdale, CA 93551 Telephone: 661.273.1407 http://www.mulliganpalmdale.com

It's Summer!

Tody is Summer Soltice. Happy first day of summer!

Baskin Robbins Family Night!

My 10 year old has a goal: she wants to try all 31 flavors at Baskin Robbins. That's why we love Tuesdays! All participating Baskin Robbins offer $1 Kid’s Scoop or a 4 oz. scoop for $1.50 every Tuesday from 5 to clsoing! Yum!

Free Stuff to Do in L.A. #1

Being a homeschooling mom, I try to find as many cool, affordable activities as possible to do with my girls. I especially love to find free stuff to do! One super-cool place you can go to with children is the LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art).LACMA offers the only free youth membership program in the nation! Nexgen offers free general admission to anyone 17 and under as well as one accompanying adult! This includes permanent collection galleries and selected special exhibitions. To join, just visit the museum box office and sign up. If you prefer, you can go to http://www.lacma.org/arts-for-nexgen-lacma for a mail in application you can print out. I've included a photograph of a work of art created by my 12 year old at the Boone's children's Gallery on a recent visit. LACMA is located at 5905 Wilshire Blvd. Los Angeles CA 90036. If you need more information, the telephone number is 323 857-6000. LACMA is open every day except Wednesdays, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

Vineland Drive-In Theater

I am SO excited! I just found out that there is still a drive-in movie theater open in Los Angeles/Orange County! For those who love drive-ins as much as I do, here's the information: Vineland Drive-In Theater 443 N. Vineland Ave, City of Industry, CA 24-hour telephone Information: 626-961-9262 Open 7 days a week! Gates open at 7pm, show starts at dusk. Prices: General Admission (9 years old and up) $9.00, Children (ages 5-8) $3.00, Children under 5 are FREE! On Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights the first feature is repeated after the second feature is over. All films are broadcast in FM Dolby Stereo sound. Enjoy!

School's Out!

Here it is, the end of another school year! It's certainly had it's ups and downs, but I think we finally hit on a formula that works, and my little family is once again enjoying the learning process. We've hit another milestone, as Skylar turned 12 last week. It's so hard to believe that she is a young woman now!

Photo Shoot

The girls and I did a photo shoot at the railroad tracks using a very cool vintage steamer trunk. My three favorite little models and I had a great time!

Gardening Project Update

With the heat we’ve been experiencing out here in the desert, the girls and I have been concerned about the seeds we recently planted in containers. However, the girls were thrilled to discover that the cucumbers and zucchini are sprouting nicely. Our rosemary plant is thriving as well. We have yet to see any sign of seedlings from our tomato seeds, but the girls are hopeful. All in all, our project is going well!

Gardening project

We're trying something new this year: container gardening! We've never tried this before, so we're starting off slowly. We made this decision because the house that we live in has no place where we can plant a garden. The backyard is all concrete,in order to accommodate the pool and spa. The front is desert landscaping, using a great deal of gravel.
We decided to plant rosemary, bush zucchini and bush tomatoes. We selected the bush varieties because they appear to be the most suitable for growing in containers. We are going to attempt to grow the tomatoes and zucchini from seed. Skylar also has a sunflower which she has been growing for several weeks, but needed re-potting. We've been making our own compost out of vegetable and fruit peels, as well as egg shells. To be completely honest, we were pretty grossed out by this concoction!
In spite of the compost, the girls and I had a great time together. If we're successful, next year we'll try planting more variety.

Rainy Day Fun

Nothing like building a fort on a rainy day. Such fun!

Musings on Unschooling

I've read a great deal about a method of learning called unschooling. Like many homeschoolers who've gone with more traditional methods of teaching,I've had my reservations. We are not unschoolers, as we belong to a charter school. However, we have incorporated some of this philosophy into the way we now do things. I was unsure that, left to their own devices, my children would want to learn such essentials as reading, writing and math. And frankly, none of my girls would voluntarily decide to learn how to divide fractions. However, by allowing my girls to choose the topics they wish to research and write about, I've seen a drastic improvement not only in their desire to write, but in their writing skills. It is not unusual for one of my girls to decide to research and write a four page report on a topic she finds interesting. The first time it happened, I was beyond surprised. Now it is a common occurrence. Skylar's writing is surprisingly mature and descriptive. And Haley has lately started looking into using more "colorful" words to make her writing more interesting. In the past, I have chosen the books or materials I wished my girls to read. It was a struggle to get them to spend as little as ten minutes a day reading. Since I decided to let them choose what they wish to read, it's difficult to get them to do anything else! The girls each read a minimum of twenty books a month. Skylar currently loves to read fictional stories involving horses. She has just finished reading the Phantom Stallion series by Terri Farley and has been looking for similar books to read. Haley loves the American Girl History Mysteries and the fictional diaries from the My Dear America series. Pickle loves the Fancy Nancy books. Now, if I could just figure out how to get them to enjoy math just as much...

My Musicians

Aah, the benefits of belonging to a charter school! Skylar and Haley recently started taking music lessons. They had been asking for these for some time, but being on a tight single-mom budget...well, you get the picture. Luckily for us, our charter school contracts with a music school right here in the boondocks! Their father provided the instruments, and now there is actually some rhythm to Haley's drumming and Skylar can play the first verse of "Hey, Jude". While our home isn't any quieter, it does sound less chaotic.
The music school we are attending is Mel Booker Music. The staff is very friendly and helpful. I would recommend them to anyone in the AV looking for drum, guitar, piano or voice lessons. I've posted a link to their site below.

When you make a mistake, it's just an opportunity to learn something new.
Haley, age 9

Riley's Farm

Last week the girls and I went on a day trip to Riley's Farms for a colonial era reenactment. It's one thing to read about history, it's another to actually experience it. Riley's Farm really brings history alive. All the staff at Riley's farm are dressed in colonial costume, and all speak with "British" accents
The first thing we did was try to show off our strength by using an authentic cider press to press apples for cider. We then dipped candles, which we got to keep for souvenirs. After etiquette lessons and churning butter, we learned how to write with real quills and ink, as well as loom. Writing with quills was surprisingly difficult. It's almost impossible to write without leaving dark blotches all over the paper.We had a wonderful time trying to produce the best written work. We rounded of our tour with colonial era games. So much fun! We had such a wonderful time, that we went back to Riley's Farm on Saturday to pick apples!

Riley's Farm
12261 S. Oak Glen Road
Oak Glen, California 92399
(909) 797-7534

Homeschooling thoughts for the new school year

So, it's the start of another school year! In our home that means going through all the old school books, replacing old supplies, and establishing goals for the year. I recently realized that this is my tenth year homeschooling! This has set me to reflecting on our goals for the year.
We've been homeschooling through a charter school here in Southern California for several years now called CAVA. There are several positives to schooling through a charter. First, all the materials and curriculum are provided for you,at no cost. You also get support from the charter schools staff, if you need it. We use the K-12 curriculum. However, the primary reason we chose to go through a charter was because of our experience with my son, who was the first of my children to be homeschooled. When my son reached the 11th grade, he decided he wanted to be main streamed into the public school system. He was accepted into the local high school. We submitted samples of his work. At 16 years old, he only needed the state required health class, a biology lab and the second semester of world history in order to graduate. When he was enjoying his senior year of high school, we were informed almost half way through the year that the decision had been made that my son wouldn't be allowed to graduate with his peers, that he needed to retake all the classes he had taken while homeschooling. I contacted a couple of legal groups that represent homeschoolers in the hopes of fighting this decision. This is when I learned that in the state of California, the schools must accept all homeschool students without prejudice, however, they aren't required to accept any of the student's work. This is what really lead to my decision to go with a charter school rather than homeschooling on my own.
When I first started with the charter school I'm with now, I was thrilled with the quality of the materials. We started out with a great deal of enthusiasm. I've always loved homeschooling, and my children enjoyed it too. However, without my even noticing it, the joy has gone out of teaching (for me) and out of learning (for my children). I had always kind of felt that the curriculum didn't allow for any creativity or spontaneity. But I thought the pros out-weighed the cons. But over the last couple of years, the focus of the charter has shifted entirely. Previously, the focus had been on the individual child and that child's needs. The focus is now entirely on standardized testing. From the first day of school, they start preparing the children to do well on testing. Nothing else matters. The kids are tested to death from day one. We are now two weeks into the school year, and my children are spending nine hours a day on school. There is an awful lot of "busy work" and I notice that my two youngest are frustrated and bored.
Therefore, my goal for this year will be to bring that enthusiasm and love of learning back into our schooling. I haven't completely figured it out yet, but I'm working on it.

The best things in life are FREE!

With all the changes our family has been going through recently, we find that we are somewhat...um....economically challenged. (And we aren't alone!)This has pretty much put a stop to our family outings, with the exception of our local dollar theater. That is why I was thrilled to find out that there is tons of cool stuff out there that we can do for FREE! We have been dying to check out the Gene Autry Museum of Western Heritage. I was excited to find out the the second Tuesday of every month is "Free Tuesday" at the Museum of Western Heritage. We paid a visit last week and had a great time. The girls' favorite exhibition was "Granite Frontiers: A Century of Yosemite Climbing" which will continue until October 4th. The kids were able to handle actual rock climbing tools and climb on a "portaledge", a hanging tent system which rock climbers use as a temporary shelter during longer climbs. We also especially enjoyed the "Chinese Home". The girls dressed up in authentic Chinese costumes. Skylar and Haley pretended to cook in the kitchen of the restaurant, while Kaelyn manned the old fashioned cash register. If you wish to purchase lunch at the museum, the "Golden Spur Cafe" offers children's meals at pretty much the same price as a MacDonald's Happy Meal. The meals are large, filling and the fries are great. If, like me, you would rather bring your own lunch, you can sit outside on the museum grounds and have a picnic lunch. There are even picnic tables!With its many interactive displays, I was pleasantly surprised at how "kid friendly" the Museum of is. My girls are already asking to return!

The Autry National Center’s Museum of the American West
Griffith Park Campus
Autry National Center
4700 Western Heritage Way
Los Angeles, CA, 90027-1462
T. 323.667.2000
F. 323.660.5721
Summer Hours: On Thursdays, in July and August, the museum and Museum Store are open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. The Golden Spur Cafe is open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

http://www.autrynationalcenter.org/

Haley's Art Work

A drawing of big brother Christopher playing basketball.

Annual Acton 4th of July Parade

The things we do for our kids...

I love my children more than anything. Like any good parent, I would be willing to risk life and limb for them. Therefore, I knew that it was only a matter of time before I would be forced to watch "Hannah Montana: The Movie". First, I tried to convince my girls that Hannah Montana aka Miley Cyrus is really an evil child genius trying to take over the world through clever marketing. When this failed, I fell back on, "Well, we can't really afford a trip to the movies right know." However, when the Hannah Montana movie hit the local dollar theatre, I knew that my doom was almost upon me. Monday's at the Cinemark 12 in Lancaster is family night. Tickets on family night are only .50 per person. Ah, for the days when they couldn't read! So, last Monday, I packed my purse with enough chocolate to sustain me for 1 hour and 42 minutes of watching perky little Miley Cyrus bounce around the screen exclaiming "Sweet niblets!" Although the movie was every bit as awful and corney as I had feared, I must admit some of her songs are kinda catchy. The most important thing is, that my girls loved it and in spite of the movie, we really had a great
time.

If you are interested in an inexpensive movie night, the Cinemark can't be beat, as long as you don't mind seeing the movie after it has been out for a while. Here's the info:

Cinemark Movies 12
44790 Valley Central Way
Lancaster, CA 93534
Recording:
1-800-FANDANGO Exp Code 1438#
Office: 661-945-5183
Fax: 661-945-5084
Prices from $2.50 to $1.25
Mondays are Family Day, 3 guests or more pay only .50 each.

For more information, go to: http://www.cinemark.com

The Perils of Pickle

And the saga continues...
in my living room, I have a small sink with a cabinet underneath and one above. I have yet to determine it's purpose. I noticed that someone had written "mommy" in permanent black marker. Having recognized the writing, I called the culprit out. The discussion went something like this:
(Me): "Pickle, who wrote this on the cabinet?"
(Kaelyn): "Well, it's your name, mommy."
(Me, raised eyebrows): Are you saying I wrote that?"
(Kaelyn):Duh mommy...if it's your name, you musta wrote it!"
As the song goes...that's my story and I'm sticking to it....