First Week of 6th and 2nd Grade!

It was a great first week of school, at Two Cowgirls Homeschool!

On the first day of school, everyone was very attentive, and got their school work done promptly (never mind that we overslept by an hour...).





We started out with a little photo shoot in the park:

 Went to the park with friends for playgroup, and had ice cream.

We finished off the day with rides at Nickelodeon Universe and dinner at Hard Rock Cafe Minneapolis.

So much fun!!

The rest of the week was very...umm...unschooly.

I'm a little overwhelmed with my school, the kids school, work, my field trip club, SciGirls stuff, and Jr. First Lego League stuff.  I've got a lot of stuff on my plate.  :(

Anywhooo, we're on a long weekend getaway right now.  I'm loving it, and really looking forward to starting back up with a new EXCITING week next week.

Find out what other homeschoolers were up to this week, here!

The Final Days of Summer, 2015

Well, here we have it!  Summer is coming to a close.  It went by SO FAST this year.  Millie said she's really going to miss it because she loves having long lazy days of just playing and having fun.  I'm glad/relieved/shocked that she feels that way, because I didn't feel "lazy" at all!

Here are some pictures from the last half of summer.  You can see the first half, here.

Washington County Fair

Lots of beach time

Searching for milkweed

When we see this guy, we have to buy ice cream!

Playing in the Mississippi

Monarchs, monarchs, and more monarchs

Finally paid a visit to Wild Rumpus Bookstore

Her first trip to the Clinique counter.  You know, Middle school...

Fun times at the farm

Historic Forestville

Day trip to Duluth

There we have it!  School will be in session in 3 days.  Weeeee!

Homeschool Orientation 2015

Today was our annual Homeschool Orientation session.  What's Homeschool Orientation, you ask??

It's just my way of introducing everything "new" to the kids, and discussing our agenda and schedule for the year.

One of the new things we'll be doing this year, is getting our bodies moving every morning.  If the weather is nice, we'll go outside for a quick walk or bike ride, or play tennis or basketball.  For orientation, we took a walk up to the capital and circled the grounds a couple times.  While we were walking, we discussed my expectations of them (getting their morning book work promptly in the morning so we can have our afternoons free for other things).

I also introduced them to notebooking. We did an art project from Artistic Pursuits, and later notebooked about the artist, Peiter Du Hooch.  It went really well!

The one part that I didn't get around to, is going over our Thursday Governess plan (more on that later!).  I guess I'll have to save that for another day ;)

I love that school starts in one week and one day.  I'm super ready to get back into our fun routine!!

What's New For 2015-16?

As with every year, the new school year brings about a lot of changes here at Two Cowgirls Homeschool Academy.  The changes are exciting, and I'm really excited to implement them.

Here's what's new:

Millie:

 She's entering middle school (sixth grade)!  This year she'll be attending a co-op for her first time, where she'll take cooking and creative writing.  I'm so excited to see the results from both!  Most of her learning will be done independently.  Math, spelling, and typing are all done on the computer.  The only thing I'll teach her is sewing, architecture, science, and ancient history.  She's going to love her new independence!


Elise:

Second grade, for this little one!  A lot will remain the same, except that we'll be adding a special class all her own this year.  While big sister is away at co-op, Elise will get to hang out with a group of kids her own age, and participate in Jr. First Lego League.  She love robotics and she loves Legos.  It's a perfect fit!




Me:

I'm going to school (14 credits), working 15 hour per week at night, mentoring Millie's SciGirls class and Elise's Jr. First Lego League group, running a field trip club, and somehow trying to teach the kids, all at the same time.  Thank goodness I have my trusty calendar that keeps me organized!










T-11 days until the first day of school!  Woo hoo!

Our Summer So Far...

I've been a lazy blogger this summer, which is exactly how I like it.  I like to take as much off my plate as possible.  Even so, I've been busy running kids around, planning, working on projects, and trying to soak up as much sun as possible.  It's been pretty fantastic, so far!  With over a month left before school starts, I'm sure there's a lot more fun to be had!  Here's some of what we've been up to:  

Millie turned 11!  She's turning into such a nice little lady.

Cake in the fairy garden

When life hands you cushions, build a fort

4-H Daycamp - worm composters.  Ewwww.

Getting ready to climb.  Nervous at first...

...but that didn't stop her!

My new motto

Elise and her bestie

Millie celebrated her birthday with a few friends!

We went on a search for our ancestors graves.  We found them.

Beach day

Building forts and forts at Farm Camp

She loves talking to the staff at the Science Museum

Selfie!

Cooling off.  It's been a HOT summer!

Hanging out with Grandpa, learning about old wood mills.

Root beer at the saloon with me, while dad and Grandpa watched a never ending tractor parade

And of course, ice cream!

Camp Week!

An overnight camp.

Zoo camp.

Aunt Leslie's Daycamp.

It was camp week!  Everyone had a lot of fun :)  Now, when I finish posting this, I have to get ready for Monarch Camp for...me!!!  Stay tuned for details.

Off to 4-H overnight camp!

Splashy fun at a homeschool picnic

Say Cheee-tah!

Lake Superior