Goodbye! New Phase!

Goodbye, everyone! I've decided to stop blogging. It has been a while, and everyone's been wonderful, but I have decided to move on. I'm writing a book, educating my child, traveling, cooking, taking an intense Martial Art, and too many other things to list! I'll leve this blog open for anyone who wants to read it, and hopefully it will help someone else who has a kiddo with special educational needs.

I'll still be reaidng your blogs, and I'd appreciate it if you left me linked, just in case I pop in and offer an update!

I am, now and forever, your humble servant,

Forte

Connections

Grace and I are going into her third week of school, and I must say that it has gone much better than I thought! The structure that her online classes have brought is welcome this year, and she seems to really appreciate the online community that goes with the classes.

She'll be trying out for her new play this week, as well as continuing with her Jiu Jitsu training and drawing. It is a full schedule, but she still seems to have time to read, dream, play, draw and program!

We took several walks, she had a back to no-school picnic and we studied a school of fish that had come to spawn near the sea wall. It was simply spectacular! She had studied a bit about deep ocean schools of fish, and how they behave like "flocks" and we could see the parallels in the school of fish.

Grandma came to visit this week, and we made a birthday party for Carl. It was fun! Grace will miss Grandma...

Forte

Upon Closer Examination, We Get to the Heart of the Matter...

We Teach them this stuff when they are young, because Some Things are JUST THAT IMPORTANT.

The Sky's The Limit...

Summer has been fun, busy and short. Fall is quickly approaching, and our days of hanging out at the pool, wading in the ocean and reveling at the site of a butterfly will soon be over. I'm not sure how I feel about that.

Grace will be taking mostly Middle School classes this year. Many are online, some of them with friends. Her schedule is pretty tight, but I have managed to fit some "discovery time" in , here and there.

She'll be taking MCT Grammar and Caesar's English II, Lightning Literature 8 and US History online with gifted teachers. She's taking AP Biology with a friend, using UCCP Open Access ware, Hippocampus Lectures, and old college text of Carl's and AP Web Labs for the lab component. She'll be completing IRL labs with her friend. Her math is Teaching Textbooks. She loves it, so I am not messing with it. She's gone through so much already this summer. She'll also be taking Jiu Jutsu three times a week and her theater class for 2 hours , twice weekly. We are currently simply allowing her to draw and paint for Art, but we're helping her search for a good art school to apply to next year. There are several here, and I think she may qualify. She just needs to get a portfolio up and running. We will probably apply to a local fine arts camp for next summer as well. Whew!

On top of all of this, we have a trip to Japan scheduled for two weeks in November, and a trip to AZ. We also plan on going to theater performances of A Christmas Carol, Shakespeare, Opera and various local ballets and random theater shows. We have scheduled trips to a local farm for some fun "social" classes and several play dates per month.

I am not really concerned about Grace, believe it or not. She LOVES this stuff. I am concerned about how *I* will hold up though;)

Goodnight, Sweet Kitty. Wait for Us.

Lily was the best cat ever. She wasn't even a cat, really. She was more like a dog.

Whatever species she most closely resembled, she certainly was the best friend a girl could have...

She was loved.

We know she'll be waiting with Daisy, somewhere just like this...

We Love You, Lil Cat, Lilliputian, Friend, Cat.

Advanced Class

I am sorry I haven't blogged in a while, but we have been busy again! :)

We went to the mountains for 4th of July, where Grace entered a sand castle contest, we attended a parade, ( Grace came home with a lb of candy...:/ )

viewed fireworks which went off above a mountain and went hiking with friends! It was a great weekend!

We have also been very busy with summer outings, school, reading club and, of course, training at the Dojo!

Speaking of training, Grace was very honored , and humbled, to be personally invited by her Shihan to attend the advanced training class early. ( One usually must be 11y/o or the rank of Green belt to join, and Grace just turned 8 and just got her Orange belt...)

This Dojo is quite special because they really are about learning the actual art, and not about "marking time" in a belt level or "social" promotions to new belt ranks.

She is very seriously studying for her next belt already. Apparently this fact has been noticed. She is most often humble about her accomplishments, and has not told any of her friends. We are very proud of her dedication to making herself a strong, disciplined person. :)

For Ami, Drawn by Grace and inspired by a photo on a bench.

It is a combination of "Alice" and Ami's love of the Mariposa, which is why she's standing on a mushroom, instead of sitting on a bench!

What rhymes with "Orange"?

That 's a tough one. I suppose I will not be writing a poem about Grace's new JuJutsu Belt...

The test is a 3-4 hour, grueling process, in which the children ( and adults the night before) show every skill they have learned from every belt they have already earned. They do techniques, spar, reflex blocking and foot/hand work. The students throw 550 punches at the beginning and end of the test, representing symmetry. ( 1x10, 2x10, 3x10...10x10, then 10x10, 9x10, 8x10...1x10 at the end...) The end of the test is a very emotional moment, in which all of the exhausted students throw the last 10 punches of the second 550 in precision...ich, ni, san! Everyone yells the numbers in Japanese to encourage the students and breaks out into applause after the bow-out.

Grace's Shihan gave her high praise upon bestowing her rank, saying that she is "one of those rare few " that come into her Dojo with a "natural" ability for the Martial Arts. She said she was VERY proud of her work and that she was proud to promote her to Rho Kyu. ( Orange Belt) Grace can now begin learning Judo Throws! Shes extremely excited.

Here is the Secret Family with the Shihans who teach us and own the Dojo.

They are Purple belts and are the very highest rank attainable. Do not let the one on the right fool you...she can throw you into the basement. The grey hair only belies wisdom, not age. We highly respect both and trust them implicitly on the mat. They are truly beyond professional at what they do.

Grace now out-ranks us. The belts go as follows, and each belt takes about 6 months:

white, yellow, orange, green,blue, brown, brown, brown, black

Grace's Dojo Friend.

can also throw you into the basement;)

She wants to be an Astronaut?

This is for all of us out there with little girls who have expressed an interest in being an Astronaut...

Please view it after your lovelies have gone to bed, and refrain from drinking...

Make sure to read the message at the base! :)

Happy weekend!

A Week in the Life

It is Summer again, in all it's glory, and we're having a ball going to Ju Jutsu, "hanging out" with buddies, having Barbecues and watching interesting series'. 

We just finished watching the series "The Seeker" , as a family, and it was great! it is based on "The Sword of Truth" Novels, by Terry Goodkind.  

We also watched "Seven Years in Tibet" , as Grace is interested in teh Dalai Lama.  She loved it, although it also made her angry.  Grace is still into her Manga and Anime, as well as SCRATCH programming, and she just made a REALLY awesome "Joke Aquarium" program. She's also decided to make her own Manga, and we are evaluating software packages to help her do that! :) 

Grace is in her element, scampering over rocks, sloshing through the shallow ocean water,  and exploring the foliage. 

The resident Night Heron  at our nearby pond was having a particularly friendly evening! He decided to pose nicely for this photo! 

Yay! We planted a garden, and it looks as though it'll be "Wick"! 

This is the mock-up for a Dinosaur hat grace wants to make! 

Grace is in the outfit from her audition in NYC. We went to the AMNH afterwards. These photos were taken in  the Hall of Biodiversity! We also saw the "Extreme Mammals" exhibit, which was both fascinating and wonderful! 

This little piggy...was cute. This photo was taken a t a sweet little local zoo, where they rehabilitate injured animals, or save ones that cannot be rehabilitated. 

Grace liked making the Greek Pottery! 

The Darwin Memorial Lecture on the voyages of Darwin, Wallace and Burns, by Dr. Sean Carroll, got Grace all fired up! 

The Y-M-C-A Carnival...Yipee!! 

Um, yeah...They WERE that cute! 

Grace a la Electronica--a marriage made in heaven. 

She's my awesome little elf.  I just love her. What more can I say? :)

Prop. 8 Upheld

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-prop8-court27-2009may27,0,189764.story

Has there ever been a case in US History when a right was granted,only to be  taken away by popular vote?  Shame on California.  

The Ultimate "Green" House

I think I'm in love...

More Pictures of Grace "Scratch-ing her Programming Itch"

Yeah, Grace. You wish...A few more years, sweetie! 

I didn't know there was a clone of Kismet!! 

Dynamic Programming! 

Ze Teacher's Pet...

Happy Scratch Day!!!

So Grace and Carl went up to MIT this weekend for "World Scratch Day" . I got a nice voicemail from Grace, upon getting to the hotel, that they had "arrived" and that they were "living in the lap of luxury, with a 'splendid' view" .

One Year Ago...

One Year ago, I took this picture of My Girl...

My, Oh My! See how she has grown? 

Happy Mother's Day!

This is the lovely Dogwood flower.  Note the delicately shaped petal tips...

This is Andromeda, a very beautiful flowering bush. Grace loves this kind of flower, as it is in her name...
Who could forget the Cherry blossom? It is as Spring itself!! 

Oh!! Look Now! It is the rare "GrandmaWineLikesis"Flower....Lovely, is't she? 

Oh, how sweet! They brought the Grandmawineliksis to Disney with them. She really brightens up a whole world, doesn't she? 


Grace and I would like to take a moment and say that AZ GRAM is the best Mom and Grandma ever!!! 

We love you, and we'll see you soon!!! 

The Call by Spektor

"The Call"

It started out as a feeling
Which then grew into hope
Which then turned into a quiet thought
Which then turned into a quiet word
And then that word grew louder and louder
Till it was a battle cry
I'll come back when you call me
No need to say goodbye

Just because everything's changing
Doesn't mean it's never been this way before
All you can do is try to know who your friends are
As you head off to war
Pick a star on the dark horizon and follow the light
You'll come back when it's over
No need to say goodbye
You'll come back when it's over
No need to say goodbye

Now we're back to the beginning
It's just a feeling and no one knows yet
But just because they can't feel it, too
Doesn't means that you have to forget
Let your memories grow stronger and stronger
Till they're before your eyes
You'll come back when they call you
No need to say goodbye
You'll come back when they call you
No need to say goodbye

EPGY Online JR High? Neato!

I am very interested in the newest concept from EPGY.

I must admit that I have always been interested in this option, but I felt that DD was still "too young" to flourish with such a huge work load at the High School.  She is now 8 y/o, and has a few courses online, which are going smoothly.  I could seriously consider placement for part-time in their Jr High program, given that they ALLOW part time. She has a huge extracurricular schedule, but this would cover her academics in a great way.  I  would probably have her do History and Math with the OHS Jr High, while out-sourcing Biology and Lit to other sites.  The following year, I may have her apply to the full program for 8th , depending upon where she tests. 

I'll be attending an Open House on the 21st of May.  I'll let you all know how it goes. :) 

It is a great feeling, knowing there are options. 

Ze Big Performance!

She was a bit nervous, but did a great job with the performance!! :D 

Here is one clip that Carl took: 

The Final Hours

The show is tomorrow! The costumes are ready!  The lights and sound are worked-out and the show must go on! 

Director's gift!! 

Grace wanted the "Morning Lark" on top of the tree! :D 

A snapshot taken during curtain call rehearsal...

This is the little fairy reacting to something being said by Titania!