Did you know that Claude Monet burned his paintings when he didn't like how they turned out? Well apparently Andrew didn't care for this particular impressionistic painting because he torched it in the front yard. The other two survived and are hanging in the schoolroom.

Nana's new digs.
Nana has moved in to the brick house at the barn! We have had alot of fun fixing things up and discovering what a homey place it is. Its so nice seeing her each morning and each night when I go to do barn chores. The kids are loving it because if they enter the front door they can usually scare up some pancakes and chocolate milk before they exit the back. Good stuff.
Love you mom,
karen

Ponce Inlet Lighthouse circa 1888
This is the second lighthouse to be explored by the homeschool crowd. This one was taller as my legs could tell you the next day. I especially like the photo going down the steps. I wish you could have heard the children howling. They would let out a howl and someone below would answer. It was great fun for them though I passed a few adults that looked like they were seeking a quick exit.





(photo op/cardio break)

In the last two weeks Ashley and Retto have earned their C2 rating in Pony Club -exceeding standards on everything over fences and most of the knowledge! At Rocking Horse Fall Trials they made the connection and scored a 33.7 in dressage. They are continuing to work with Ralph Hill and will be joining Young Riders in the coming year. We are PROUD of you for all your hard work Ashley and Retto.

News from the Hill:
Adam comes by to visit and help with some fence building. Its a rare occasion to get a photo of all three of these boys together. I have to grab the chance when I see it.

Andy is loving his new bike. He gets a little speedier everyday. Oh boy!

Ashley is very busy with Retto and Phanny. She has Rocking Horse Trials on the weekend and her C2 rating the following weekend.

Austin has been busy with basketball and working on his new room. He is pretty excited to move into Adam's old pad.

Amy gets the credit for finding this animation. Harvard gets credit for making it. God gets credit for well: making it possible. I get credit for being impressed enough to blog it.

Life inside a cell by ZDNet's Roland Piquepaille -- Harvard University has decided to use animations as a tool to enhance the performance of its students in biology. And it selected XVIVO's animation studio to take Harvard University students on a 3D journey. Among other realizations, the company delivered an astounding eight minute animation titled "The Inner Life of the Cell."

http://www.aimediaserver.com/studiodaily/harvard/harvard.swf

Free reading time - homeschool style.



Andrew can read his book anywhere on our property. It is always his choice where to read. I only require that he reads for 30 min to an hour. While he reads he doesn't hear anything going on around him. Sometimes his position is very interesting. He would have a little trouble in public school with a few of these positions.

Homecoming week ended with...you guessed it a football game and a dance. Lake Mary won their game (which always is nice) and the dance was last night. It is all part of the game to torture the kids with photos so Denise and I had them standing and posing for what seemed to them a long time.



I personally voted these two "cutest couple" at the dance.

Its homecoming week so in the name of school spirit we run around the house at 6:00 am looking for strange costumes for Austin. So far he has attended school as Napolean Dynamite and a Peace nik Hippy. Today he went as Jordans twin. They both wore pink shirts with unicorns. I didnt get that photo yet.

Horsey News:






Ashley and Retto won 5th place at the Adequan Gold Cup Classic in Georgia. They rode in the junior training rider division and finished with 44.5 points.
Highlights of the trip:

Clear cross country round!
Singing kaoroke with Will Faudree.
Warming up with Bruce Davidson Sr. in the ring.
Having Ralph there to walk courses and warm up.
Watching Ralph ride.

Ernesto crept through here pulling just enough moisture out of the air to make it a nearly bearable temperature. Just right for some pool time.

For any of you out there that are worried about us...Ernesto was a wimp. The weather was...well normal. The house filled with other peoples children and they made up some hide and chase games. Andy went swimming. Ashley went riding. Austin started getting a little cabin crazy so we let him open his Xbox 360. Anyway we were happy for the sunny day today.
Photos of Austin's B-day to follow.

Ashley, Ralph and Retto doing their thing.(It's fun to watch)
Photo Sharing - Upload Video - Video Sharing

I call this "Cat in a Box".

Happy Birthday Nana!

Congratulations to our "Where's Waldo?" winner!!!!!!!! Very impressive visual skills.

This photo of Ash is a Where's Waldo picture. Can you see why?

Ashley and Retto went to their first training level event and WON! Ralph Hill, her trainer, would say that they both showed up to the dance.


Hats off to Ashley and Ligoretto. Job well done!!!!!!!!!

Simple beauty found in an unexpected place...how cool is that?!

Our Idaho cousin, Anhwei is showing off the hat, mittens, and scarf that her Grandma Nancy made for her. We miss you Anhwei and hope to see you soon!

First week of school has come and gone. These are some photos taken the past week of the kids doing various things. Andy is working on a chemistry project which he has since consumed, Austin has a Zeus thing going on, Ash I am pretty sure is networking and Adam is trying to get my beloved camera wet. No serious school blues yet except for the early wake up call. That has us all a little blue.

Almost as big as Mama. These two are getting to be quite the acrobats. Many times you need to look up to find them. Favorite moves are pouncing on the hay and wrestling on the fence. Both kitties are beginning to seek out attention. Most importantly they have learned the valuable lesson: 'stay out of Phanny's stall because she tries to eat anything that comes through the door even if its fuzzy!'

Missing person report-
Many of you may be wondering "Hey, where has Austin been this summer?" You guessed it. Stetson, Jim's Alma Mater. He attended 3 basketball camps this summer and summer school at Lake Mary. Now that school is back in session we catch glimpses of him at about 6:15 am and then again in the afternoon. Get a look now because when B-ball starts at the high school he will be missing in action again.