Extra-Curricular Activities

Well, I've definitely over-done it this year. In my attempt to make sure the girls are "socialized" (not like that was really the motive, but I have to make up some excuse)... I have over-socialized our calendar. But, we're sure having fun in the process. Hang on... it's gonna be a bumpy ride of extra-curricular activities:



Monday: Ava has soccer practice (aka P.E.)
Caroline is in Club 19:14 Speech and Debate
Caroline has Youth Bible Study (Erich has fun teaching)
(whew, I'm already tired... and Caroline's basketball season is coming up)

Erich coaching sweet Ava

Tuesday: Caroline and Ava are in Sonflower Literature Club (Caroline studying Shakespeare's "MacBeth" and Ava studying Myths and Legends)

Olivia and Caroline are matchy-matchy at Lit. Club

On the opposite Tuesdays, a few of us get together to study Apologia's Zoology. We have a blast!

Bug pinning... gross (only to me, not to them)

Of course, Caroline (the deprived child whose mother didn't bring a bug collection) had to add to the Donnelly’s. She caught a HUGE bumblebee, doused it in alcohol and performed acupuncture the pinning.

Wednesday: Piano lessons with Ms. Kristin Yost (she is an exellent teacher and the girls just love her)!

Since I don't have pics of the girls at lessons, how about pics of the girls in front of the piano?  :)

Ava is beaming with joy!

Thursday: FREE DAY!  (thank goodness... although we usually find "something" to do to fill it up)

We fill it with fun field trips (this one at the Dallas World Aquarium)...

...  or swingin' on the Donnelly's front porch

... or something real fun like going to the dentist to get a tooth pulled! 

Friday: Ava is in a Word of Mouth Drama class and then goes to Art Class
Caroline is usually working on her speech or baking some yummy treats while Ava is gone.  :)

Showing off her "whoopi pies"... notice that one is already missing (I think in Erich's tummy)

Oh, and I forgot to mention our monthly American Girl Bookclub.  Last quarter we read all the Kaya books and had fun making tee-pees, corn husk dolls and going to the Wycliffe Bible Translators Museum.

Olivia and Ava getting ready to make their corn-husk dolls

Caroline and Jade show off their dolls

Don't know which is creepier: the snake skin or the red eyes?!

This quarter they are studying Felicity and they got off to a good start today sewing potpourri sachets and writing with quill pens and ink.  Looking forward to the girls making samplers and their tea party.  Colonial days seem so elegant (nevermind the fact that there was no indoor plumbing or deodorant)!

Do they look like homeschoolers Colonial girls or what?!

Olivia and Ava concentrating on their backstitch

Yep... those are our extra-curricular activities in a nut-shell.  We don't get out of the house much, do we?!  :)


Have a blessed day!

Adieu Hiver! (aka Goodbye Winter!)

Spring is in the air; so much that Caroline and Ava jumped in our swimming pool yesterday to "cool off" (85 degrees in February)! So, before it totally blooms into season, I wanted to journal and post some of our favorite Winter memories. (I tried oh so hard to narrow down the pictures to just a few, but there are just too many sweet ones that I failed at my task of "just a few"!) Enjoy:




Could Fly be any more submissive or what?!




Caroline's basketball team, the *Stars*, at Double Dip
for their end-of-the-year party. Erich just loved coaching their team and Caroline hated that the season came to an end.



Speaking of *Stars*, Erich took me to the Stars game for Valentine's Day... isn't he so sweet?! (ask me the real story behind it, and you'll get a good laugh!)

Caroline has learned the art of pie baking and so excited about her new found skill! This is her homemade pear pie that she baked for dessert at Popi & Kiki's! (I remember being her age and standing in this same exact spot at my home... if only I could find that picture...)

Another homemade pie... this one was an apple pie! Delicious! :)-

Caroline and Ava set up "store" in Ava's room. They donned name tags, had a check-out procedure and everything... very official!

Of course, Mommy and Daddy had to have our turn at cashier!

Here's their pretend money (obviously, some more pretend than others).

Here's a sampling of how they set everything up and priced it.

Obviously we haven't had any economics lessons, or the wallet with $88.41 inside wouldn't be selling for $15.00... lol!

Here's a view from Ava's window of our dreadful ice storm that warranted the schools to be closed (are we sissies, or what?!... lol!)

Ava and Caroline bundled up to play in the little bit of ice that they could find.



The girls have to have fun some way... add a basket and a little ice, and there's your fun!

We made a trip to the American Girl store, and Caroline surprised Ava with a gift of matching P.J.'s! They were so excited to dress alike that night!

We went as a family to the King Tut Museum. It was great since we just finished studying Exodus and were in the middle of learning about Egypt in geography! It wasn't so great that both of the girls got diagnosed with strep throat that day! :(

Ava lost her 7th tooth...

Emma, Ava & Liliana in book club making marshmallow snowmen!

Ava just loves her class... she has made some precious friends that we are so blessed to know!

Erich and the girls monkeying around. No joke, I originally was on the pile, too... but I had to hop down b/c somebody had to take the picture!

Caroline and Ava on Christmas Eve about to complete the Advent calendar with Door #24... baby Jesus!

All the cousins posing after they sung Happy Birthday to Jesus!

So, these pictures are out of order, but this was the first attempt at our homemade pie... we did this one together as a family. The other ones were special b/c Caroline did them by herself. Just had to make sure all the details are clear... :)

Fun times at our sweet friend's house baking cookies!

Ava and Olivia hamming it up (and rolling it out)!

Emma, Ava & Abby at the bowling alley! Sweet friends! :)

Caroline, Abbey & Jade posing between strikes.

We had lots of fun baking pumpkin bread... (it's not fun unless you have flour on your nose)

Ava just loves using the mixer (and I'm sure Erich is glad to see I have paper sitting on top of one of the burners)

I think this is a picture of another lost tooth... it's really such a cute picture, I'm posting it even though I don't remember the "memory" of it!

Caroline & Ava in front of a tepee at the Dallas Heritage Village candle lighting! This is one of our favorite family traditions! (not standing in front of the tepee, of course)

Aren't you glad we don't have to wash clothes like this anymore?!

The girls had fun sitting in the old school desks!

Ava finished her wonderful sewing class, and for her final project she made her best friend, Rachel, this apron! She was so excited! :)

Caroline and Ava in front of the manger at our church's Christmas production. Both of the girls had precious solos... and it was such a blessing to see them lift their voices up to praise God!

Abbey and Caroline dressed up like Charles Dickens' characters after reading A Christmas Carol in book club. Abbey was a "merry old gentlemen" and Caroline was a "wash maid". Fun times!

Nothing like making paper dolls with your friends...

Rachel and I had to get in on the action too (it was harder than we thought).

Erich is holding Ava and our friend, Kennedy, as we toured the local Heritage Museum. We learned a lot of really cool facts about our city and even watched a super old Mickey Mouse cartoon (I can't remember what that had to do with the tour... but it was fun).

Had to just throw this one in here b/c Erich looks so cute... I'm such a proud wife!

Of course, you have to make "mud pies" in your prairie clothes at least once in your life. I think this one was a "berry" flavored one!

Caroline and her friends make a race track at the Hands on Science field trip. They had a blast working together to put together pulleys and inclined planes!

And in the other classroom, Ava and her friends are working on some science experiments! These field trips are so exciting for the girls!

Well...that's all the fun memories from Winter. Whew, time really flies when you're having fun! I just relish in the blessing of being with my girls throughout the days so that we can enjoy each other and learn about God's creation together and have time for making sweet memories with friends and family!

Have a blessed day! :)