Homeschooling

I really have been enjoying spending time with the boys each morning focusing on their education. I have a new admiration for homeschooling parents.  I love when the boys call me teacher, it is too cute! I thought I'd tell you a little bit about what resources we have been using. We've been using this book to discuss our Catholic faith. Jacob and I just finished "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lesson," and for him it really worked! We are now starting the "Explode the Code" series (thanks Jessica). Raphael and I have been working on the letter sounds and identifying numbers. This week we've been focusing on the five senses.  I introduced the boys to different flavors, smells and sounds.

 

 

  

 Here is Jacob's reaction to trying a lemon.

Raphael tried a teeny tiny bit of horseradish and said "cake?!"

 

Some of our favorite reads lately include:

"Fables" by Arnold Lobel: one of my childhood favorites that the boys have just discovered.

"The Children's Book of Virtues" by William J. Bennett: this includes the stories of Ghangis Khan, St. George and the Dragon and George Washington and the Cherry Tree.

"Eric Carle's the Rabbit and the Turtle" by Eric Carle: another great book of fables and moral lessons

"And then there were Six" by A.A.Milne: we love these poems by the beloved Winnie the Pooh author.

"Polka Bats and Octopus Slacks" by Calef Brown: this was given to us by a dear friend right before Jacob was born and we still love it almost five years later!

"Where the Sidewalk Ends" by Shel Silverstein, another great book of poetry.  Sometimes you just need to read more poems to make your day brighter.

Our favorite musical CD during the past week has been "Baby Beluga" by Raffi. "Joshua Giraffe"  is our favorite song on the CD. "Day O" and "Kumbaya" come in close seconds.

 Every week I try to be ambitious and do one fun art project. This week we made handprint trees.

Raphael loves to paint, he really does.

 

 Theo is such a little snuggle bug. He loves to give hugs and kisses. He also loves to stand by the baby gate and say "outside." Every week he is learning a new word.

 

Theo at 15 months

 This little cutie pie just turned 15 months! He is a pretty easy going little guy, but quite determined. He's constantly on the move and he loves to climb.

 I just love little boys in suspenders! 

 Some of Theo's favorite words include, hat, shoes, cheese, dog, ball and da da.

He wakes up in the morning with a smile and puts his finger in his mouth to let me know that he would like to eat.  He is down to one nap a day and goes to bed around 7:00 p.m. and sleeps straight through until 7:00 the next morning.

He is very attached to his Daddy! Look at those lovely blue eyes.

School and the War of 1812

 We had a wonderful back to school dinner which included turkey burgers and macaroni and cheese. The boys picked out the menu. We also picked some large sunflowers to place on the table.

We had ice cream sundaes for dessert!

Jacob completed a week of UPK (here he is with flowers for his teacher). After the first week we decided we'd have more fun if we home schooled this year. We are very happy with this decision so far.

 Raphael is attending a coop preschool twice a week. He loves it! Here he is showing off his dinosaur backpack.

 I was so proud of how he walked right into the classroom on the first day and never looked back! No tears were shed.

 We created an educational board to use at home.

For the first week we talked about space.

 Jacob spent some one-on-one time with Daddy at the science museum. They checked out the space exhibit.

They had a fun morning together!

 On Thursday we headed down to the waterfront to check out navy week. As part of the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812, they had a parade and some ships from 1812 on display. It was the perfect evening.

We enjoyed some Wegmans' subs for dinner with a perfect view of Lake Erie.

 The boys love walking along these rocks.

 Checking out the cannon and being silly.

 This was one of the original ships from 1812! It was super cool to see up close.

A visit to Delhi!

 We spent a lovely Labor Day weekend in Delhi, NY to visit with Omi and Opa. The boys had a fabulous times and the memories were priceless.  Above is Jacob reading to Omi before bed.

 Theo spent quite some time in this little nook. He enjoyed putting the bottles in and out of the wooden box.

 On Saturday we meet up with Katharina and Fabian, who were visiting from Germany. Katharina and I met in fourth grade, when her family spent a year in Oneonta.  We have kept in touch for all these years. Katharina is expecting a boy in November.  His name will be Jacob.

The boys were all given some chocolate eggs with a toy inside. Fabian  helped the  boys put all their toys together. He is going to be a great Dad!

 Jaocb went across the monkey bars all on his own for the first time.

 "Surprise!" it is me!

 We meet up with Katharina and Fabian in beautiful Cooperstown, NY. Here were are right next to Otsego Lake. In a few years we will go back and take the boys to the baseball hall of fame.

 There were some lovely gardens near the water.

 Eating some lunch (thanks Omi) in one of the parks off Main Street.

 The boys were super excited to visit Uncle Greg and Aunt Vicky's barn when we returned from Cooperstown.

 Collecting eggs from the hen houses.

 Aunt Vicky took out lots of fun toys for the boys to play with. Raphael found the largest nerf gun I have ever seen!

 We cooled off with a dip in Omi and Opa's pool.

 Unfortunately, Uncle Greg was busy most of the weekend. But we did spent a nice afternoon with Aunt Vicky. Thankfully she brought over toys to help keep the boys busy!

 Checking out a birdsong book before bed.

 Every time we visit Delhi, I feel like I am staying in a bed and breakfast. Omi and Opa spoil everyone with wonderful breakfasts and lavish dinners. We enjoyed chicken bar-b-que, a  roast beef dinner, homemade pancakes and an after church brunch.  

It is so beautiful to be in the midst of the Catskill Mountains.  We went on a walk after church to enjoy the landscape and to get some exercise.

 One thing you can do out in the country is climb trees!

 We took some group photos before we headed out the door.

Thank you Opa and Omi for a perfect weekend. The boys keep saying they want to come back again soon and we hope we can. We love you!

A weekend with Grandma and Poppy

 We had a relaxing weekend with Grandma and Poppy Albanese, a few weeks ago. We headed to our favorite playground and let the boys get out some energy. On Friday night, we had an OMFS resident watch the boys (thanks Mike) and we went out to eat at Prime 490! We enjoyed great food, champagne and conversation. Thanks Mom and Dad for the night out!

 Theo with Poppy and Grandma.

 Cute picture with Raphael!

 The boys love getting dizzy on the tire swing! They look like drunken sailors once they get off.

 I love this picture.

 We had beets and plum popsicles for dinner one night. What a cute mess.

 Oh and the boys enjoy turning their corn into light sabers. 

And you know your boys are a little obsessed with Star Wars, when your one year old walks around saying "Star Wars."