This picture has NOTHING to do with this post, but sometimes you just need a picture
On Monday, February 27th there was a fatal shooting at a high school an hour away from our home. Todd gave me 10 homeschool points for that (not because someone got hurt but because our kids aren't in that situation).
The next day we packed up the boys and traveled down to Columbus to see Todd's family and to go to the temple. We had a great time. After getting down to Columbus, we met his dad and sister at a park where the boys got to run and play.
That evening while Todd's mom, Eve, watched the boys, Todd and I went to the temple. It is so awesome there. I love going to the temple. We have made it our goal to go at least once a month, and actually are doing a little thing I call "12 in 12" as in 12 visits to the temple in 2012 because as you know, the world is supposed to end at the end of this year, right? Living almost three hours from the temple while having young children does make this challenging, but it has been worth the sacrifices.
We got back to Todd's folks' house around 8:45 PM. We had a 3.5 hour drive home in front of us and Todd was not excited, especially since I have been known to sleep on the drive home while he stays awake by himself. Seeing that Todd had bloodshot eyes (and didn't have to work the next day) I suggested we stay the night. He happily agreed.
That is one benefit of homeschooling and having an ER physician for a husband. Our days are up to us. Because Todd has to work a lot of weekends (and weekdays and nights as well), we get to decide when our weekends are and usually base them around Todd's schedule. It was nice to be able to stay and do what we wanted because we had nothing we had to hurry back for.
Wednesday morning, which was Leap Day, we started our drive home after breakfast. We decided to go home on some back roads for the last hour and half. I love seeing these little quaint towns and the beautiful scenery.
It was such a nice day, so when we got closer to home we decided to stop first at the local metro park to go hiking.
It was awesome. Michael and Roger would walk ahead of us and explore on the paths. William stuck closer to us, but enjoyed it just as much. Grant had a hard time at first. The ground was wet (which is very normal for Ohio) and the path was muddy. Grant could not handle the mud, crying/whining about getting dirty. I tried reassuring him that the mud wouldn't hurt him and that I could wash his shoes and clothes later. When this didn't work, I told him that if he didn't stop his whining, I was going to put some mud on his face (very mature, I know, but I would have). What finally got Grant to stop was when he heard Roger bragging that his shoes were special for they helped him grip to the ground. Grant started saying that his shoes were special too and from then on had no problems with the mud.
Our walk was heavenly. It was peaceful, it was warm. We got to be with our boys, had a lot of teaching moments and discussions from biology in nature, to gospel principles, to erosion, to why we have Leap Day, to Chronicles of Narnia.
There are times that I just absolutely love homeschooling. It works so well for us. I love having my boys around and I love seeing them learn something. I love that our time is our time, no one or nothing has a claim on us or our time. It really is something I am grateful that the Lord directed us to do for He knows us best and what is best for our family.
After hiking for a couple of hours, we got in the car and headed home. On the way I saw a Red Cross sign pointing down a street, stating that they were doing a blood drive. Todd had been trying to get to a blood drive but the schedule that he had gotten in the mail had been wrong and he had actually gone to a couple of places they were supposedly scheduled to find out that it was wrong.
Todd likes to donate blood, not only because he feels it's a good cause, but also he says that as a doctor, he sees how often it is used and needed. Also, whenever he feels like he uses it on a patient that probably won't make it, he feels as though he needs to help get the blood bank back up. He sure is a funny guy.
I suggested that Todd go to the blood drive and we can also teach the boys about donating blood while he was there.
The place was not very busy. Todd signed in and was taken back for his health questions while the boys and I stayed at the front of the big room by the registration desk. The little old lady running the registration desk was so kind and sweet. She gave the boys each a sticker with their name on it and talked and interacted with the boys, even telling me that they could have some of the snacks that they give to those that have just donated and need to get their blood sugar up. Knowing best how to work with my boys, I let them know that if they continued being nice, they would get a treat after Todd was done.
When Todd was brought out and put on the donating chair/bed, the staff was really nice about allowing the boys to come close to Todd and watch. They loved seeing his blood bag fill up and asked questions about everything that was going on. Michael kept telling Todd to squeeze the ball faster to get the blood out faster. "You need to exercise more" is what he instructed Todd. The nurse that was attending Todd showed all the equipment to the boys and allowed them to ask questions and see things. When the boys were asked if they knew where blood was made, Michael got a lot of extra credit points by stating "in the bones". Really shouldn't be surprised that he would know that, he is a little doctor/scientist in the making.
Now I am not quite sure how she came to this conclusion, and I wish I would've asked her why she suspected they were homeschooled for it was well after the three o'clock hour and I didn't feel like there was anything else that really pointed to the fact that we homeschooled besides maybe the fact the boys were wearing the clothes they wore the day before.
After Roger confirmed that we homeschooled, she said to him and to me, "Well, your mother and father do a wonderful job teaching you".
If Todd would've been in earshot range, I am sure he would have given me at least 10 homeschool points for that.
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