The coolest thing happened yesterday. I didn’t expect it to be cool. I thought it was going to be a nightmare. But man, it turned out awesome. Imagine, it’s Monday: the day after Halloween (where we somehow picked up two extra kids along the way who ended up back at our house to watch the… More Students Helping Students: They Can Lift Each Other Up (Academically)

I love Halloween. It’s colorful, creative and usually good fun. But there are weird conversations going on this year about making rules for how old kids can be who want to trick or treat – like no one over 14 should be allowed to go house to house (can you imagine being the cop who… More Restore Sanity to Halloween: The Ultimate Socialist Holiday!

While I was watching the Giants take game three last night, Katie was focusing on “groking” what she had learned in PE this week in preparation for Friday’s big (first) dance! At the commercial break, she dragged me into the office where she had laid it all out on our white board (they are closet… More First Middle School Dance Comes with Instructions! You Gotta See This!

Ever since school started this fall, Katie has come home with weird stories about new behaviors she’s experiencing now that she’s in middle school. These are things the kids didn’t do before middle school (well, maybe a little but nothing like what’s happening now). It goes like this: Katie opens her lunch her friend immediately… More Tween-age Grousing: This Strange Behavior Has Hidden Meaning

I woke up yesterday fired up. Fall – my favorite time of year! I had scoped out an event at our local crafts store, Beverly Fabrics, and I knew Katie was going to love it. They were offering small craft projects of the fall variety with a hint of Halloween thrown in. This would be… More The Sheer Pain of Being a Tween: So Simple but So Awful

Katie created this award-winning poster for our local water utility. We know water is a limited resource. And I have talked to Katie about it for years. We live in a wonderful area but it is regularly impacted by climate shifts that often result in limits on our water consumption. So today, around the world,… More Blog Action Day: Save Water, Take a Dirt Bath

We are a month into school and Katie is humming, almost purring, with the challenge. Sure it’s been a lot of work but as she said, “Mom, I don’t mind working hard for smart teachers!” No truer words have been spoken. For the first time since third grade, Katie has teachers who are actually “into… More Working Hard for Smart Teachers Makes the Whole Difference

Ahhh, bullies. We have managed to get through six years of school with very few incidents of bullying. But now Katie’s in middle school and the landscape has changed. Thankfully, we started reading Queen Bees and Wannabees together just before school started. What a great book. We are only about half way through (homework is… More We Enter the World of Queen Bees and Wannabees (and Bullies)

Okay, so I talked about how much I miss home school and already ranted about one of the things that worries me about being back at public school, but to be fair, there are so many things I am truly appreciating about being back I wanted to share my list. So here goes! My daughter… More We’re Back! Five Things I Am Loving About Public School

Where else can you see piggie butts! We are so very lucky to live in a county that still plays host to an annual county fair. I hear fairs are closing down all over the United States and I think that’s just a shame. There’s nothing better than the sites, sounds and smells of agriculture,… More Local County Fair Delivers Food, Fun and Self-Esteem

The “Study Nest” where it all happens! I know it’s temporary, it will pass, but today I got a kick in the teeth that reminded me of why I pulled Katie out of public school in the first place: she came home defeated. She worked really hard on some homework, I checked it, it was… More I’ve Got the “Oh Crap We Are Back in Public School” Blues…

After plenty of preparation and excitement, we managed to get the child off to school. Sure she was up at 6am. Of course she was ready and dressed by 7am. We needed to pick up her girlfriend Ashley at 8am (no one goes to school alone on the first day) so we had lots of… More Day One: School Starts; Hello Sixth Grade!

I thought she was going to burst. It was 24 hours before school would actually start and the kid was totally losing it. It turned out to be one of the longest periods of time I have lived through. I know, I have to come to terms with the fact that Katie did not love… More A New Adventure Begins: Middle School – Public Middle School