Productivity...

Since we wrapped us school 2 weeks ago I have been on a mission to catch up on things around the house. I've been re-arranging rooms, organizing closets, catching up on yard work etc. We have our first 2 of our 3 home study visits next week and friends coming from out of town next weekend. So it's going to be a busy next few weeks around here! All good things though!!!

I had Dave install a new closet organizer in Emily's closet that really maximized her space... I must confess I have a bit of an organizing obsession, I seems I can just breathe better when things are in the right place. As I was putting all the things back into Emily's newly organized closet, Dave looked over and said "This is like Christmas for you isn't it?!?!" I'll leave you with a pic of my newly organized school room... I traded in the baskets that held our junk and art supplies for these new clear, plastic SnapWare containers. I love them!



Since a post is not complete without a pic of at least one of my kiddos, here is Nathan enjoying his summer vacation in the pool!! Have a great weekend!

North Carolina Symphony

This weekend we took the kids to the North Carolina Symphony. They were offering a FREE concert on Saturday afternoon. Here we are in front of the Meymandi Concert Hall at the Progress Energy Center in downtown Raleigh.

The view from the balcony... we enjoyed over an hour of music from Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Gershwin, Debussy, and more. To quote Nathan, it was "fun and VERY affordable!!"

Soccer Awards Ceremony

We officially ended the soccer season tonight with a Hot Dog Feast/Awards Ceremony. It was a perfect night to be outdoors and enjoy the sunshine.

All the boys received a soccer ball instead of a trophy this season, they thought this was really neat and all took turns signing each others balls. Here is Nathan's cheesy "smile at your Mom" smile!

Soccer Season is Over!

It's hard to believe it, but today was Nathan's last game of the season. We can't believe how quickly this season flew by! They boys had an awesome last game with a 5-0 win over the other team. They all played together so well and showed some amazing teamwork. Here is team "Fire" and their amazing coach!!

LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!!!

Today is our last official day of school!! Needless to say, there is much excitement in the McClard House this morning...

"It's Fun and Affordable"

Sometimes my kids say and do things that crack me up! Today has been one of those days.... Nathan has this new phrase he has been saying for the past few days, "It's fun and affordable"...actually he kind of sings it... I have no idea where it came from?? This morning I asked him to unload the silverware basket in the dishwasher and he said "Sure, it's fun and affordable!" He proceeded to do the job while singing "Joy to the World" and "Have a Holly, Jolly Christmas"!! Oh, to be nine and that carefree again...

Then, while Emily and I were doing her language lesson she got me too. Her assignment was to list 6 places she has visited or would like to go and then write a story about one of them, for her last one she wrote that she has always wanted to go to Ohio??? I said "Ohio?? why do you want to go there??" she then said "You know, it where it is always sunny and they do the hula dance and wear leis and stuff!!" We're thinking she meant Hawaii... :)

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all of you who have been blessed with the gift of being a Mother! Hope you had a wonderful and relaxing day spent with the ones you love, I know I did!!

SEEK Family Night

Our homeschool co-op ended this week and we had Family Night on Thursday where all the kids get to show off projects they have made and things they have learned this semester. Nathan took a Greek and Latin Class & an Introduction to Physics class. Emily took an Etiquette for Girls class that I taught and took a Dramatic Expression class for the second hour. I took a video of the kids performances in hopes of being able to attach them to the blog but we realized we do not have a firewire cable to link the videos from our camcorder to the computer, and I was not willing to drop the $ 50 Best Buy wanted for one!

Nathan's Latin class opened the evening reciting the Lord's Prayer in Latin then in English.

Emily with our Etiquette for Girls table display. This was a fun class to teach....14 sweet little girls! We ended the last class with a Teddy Bear Tea Party. Emily's drama class did the cutest performance of "A Mouse and a Monster". It was absolutely precious!!

Swing Set Construction

The kids have been asking for a few years now for a "real" wooden swing set, given that the cost of these can be ridiculous Dave decided to build them one on his own. We have been saving up and buying the wood a little bit at a time and he has been working on it in his spare time on the weekends. He finished it up this afternoon and it is amazing!! Here is a progression of pics showing the progress of it. I still can't believe he built this for them!!

Weekend Wrap-Up!

We started off Saturday morning with an 8:30 soccer game for Nathan. It was a tough game for the boys as the opposing team was very competitive. They did their best but the game ended in a 1-0 loss for team Fire. I love this shot with the ball in the air and all the boys wondering where the ball went??? The coach giving a halftime pep talk...


We had my parents and brother over for a cookout on Saturday. Nathan decided it would be fun for us all to get out in the yard for a baseball game. Needless to say we did alot of laughing... :)


Tonight, we had our year-end AWANA awards celebration and carnival at church. Nathan received an Excellence award for completing his second Truth & Training book. Emily received a "Sparky" Award for completing all 3 years of Sparks and all 3 books. We are very proud of both of them!!