A Saturday Evening with the Winchesters...

...no that's not really our last name. I've always wondered if people who read this think that is our last name, it is not, nor is it the last name of anyone I've ever known. It is actually the model name of our house--and we HOMEschool...get it-- "Winchester Academy".

Anyway, I've had numerous thoughts today that would make good blog fodder, the most recent was that Jonathan and Mike and I were out working in our newly planted area and I came in the house to find Madi watching college basketball. She's really getting into this March Madness despite the fact that for the first day and a half she was calling it "the baseball tournament". Earlier today Jonathan asked Madi to "come outside and play", and her reply was "not now I'm watching basketball". Mike's response was that he couldn't be happier with the way the kids were turning out (that his 13 year old boy was still asking his sister to play outside and that his daughter was getting into college basketball). Where was Jake during all this? If you guessed holding two candles (thankfully unlit) and singing and dancing his heart out to "Be our Guest" in spite of the fact that that play was almost a month ago, you'd be correct.

This morning on the way to Jake's game I passed a house where a big, possibly hurt, bird was in the yard. I'm not certain but I think it was a juvenile bald eagle...I've been meaning to look for pictures online (we have tons of bald eagles around here and see them often and I've seen pictures of baby eagle...this kind of looked like a cross between the two, though almost full size). A man was in the yard with it and on the phone. On the way back from Little League a police car was there too, and when Madi and I went out a little while later some animal control people were there putting it into their truck. I wanted to stop and ask questions (that is what we homeschoolers do afterall) but there were too many cars behind me.

As I was watching Jake vacuum this afternoon (we've really stepped up the responsibilites around here...more on that another time), I was thinking about how much I love our life. I really think we live in the best place ever. Today for example we got a hand written note from our dentist inviting us to a charity event where he is playing the trombone...the event is to raise money for a mission trip. Interestingly enough Madi is signed up for an art class that begins on Friday. The art teacher is a homeschooled teenager who herself is raising money to go on a mission trip. Madi is paying for the class with the money she earns babysitting. Not a bad set up we've got around here wouldn't you say?!

So back to the yard work...we have the windy-est and weedy-est backyard around. Using the knowledge I've gained from educating my kids I've put two and two together and concluded that these two things are connected. I think all of the weeds blow into our back yard from their little white dandelion-like tufts. Partly I wouldn't mind leaving the weeds, but Mike disagrees. If they were really dandelions I might insist (I really like dandelions...I like the smell of skunk too--seriously), but they are stinging nettles and all kinds of big yucky things, that incidently are in some places the only green things in what is supposed to be a manicured-sod-Florida backyard. Sadly, even as I was pulling the weeds though the white tufts were flying away to plant themselves somewhere else. I've concluded that trying to pull weeds in my yard is like shoveling snow when it is still snowing (or cleaning the house when you have kids).

I made the best biscuits this morning. They are actually "double-duty" biscuits because they were great for breakfast and they're going to be even better with strawberries and and whipped cream on top! Someday I'll put the recipe on here...right now I'm heading to the hot tub and then right for the strawberry shortcake. How's that for a night with the Winchesters??