December HomeSchool Update

The Fall of 2008 has come and gone. We are four months into our HomeSchool adventure now. The girls continue to thrive and enjoy being home. We all have learned alot through this great experience. Most importantly, the girls have a desire to learn! The primary focus these past few months has been reading and math. With the new year approaching and cooler days, I think that we will be spending more time outside and incorporating more Science. There are so many resources here in North Florida. One is the St Marks Wildlife Refuge. It is a favorite of Leonard's. He tries to get out there every chance he gets. He loves bird watching and fishing. Unfortunately, I haven't had the opportunity to venture out with him in years! Well, I was blessed with another Friday night off this week. So, on Saturday morning we all drove down to St Marks for one of their Families in Nature educational programs. The focus this month was on the Whooping Cranes. The girls learned about their migration here in an attempt to save them. Leonard says that there are only 70 left in the wild. Hannah made a "pizza" with all the toppings that a Whooping Crane would enjoy. Leonard was able to pull out his new binoculars that he received for Christmas and the weather was awesome (mid 70s)! The volunteers at the Refuge are awesome. They shared alot of educational material with me. I also learned that they offer free environmental education programs for children! We have been inspired to venture out into nature with the new year. Stay tuned,

The Christmas of 2008

Hannah & Fall Dance

This week was Hannah's fall parent observation day at dance. This is her fourth season. She is taking Ballet II, Jazz II, and Hip-Hop. That's three hours every week and three different pairs of dance shoes to keep up with! She continues to look more and more like a dancer every season.

Unfortunately, she did not make the cast for Alice in Wonderland. However, she is not broken. "Mommy, not everyone can be in the show," she said. Her instructor and dance director did recommend that she audition for the company. Being a part of the company would allow her more practice and attention to grow. Also, she would have more opportunity to perform on stage.

She enjoys sharing what she learns with Sarah after class. Some days she's not so excited about going to class. So, I have to keep on her and remind her that you just can't just give up...you have to work hard...hard work pays off every time! To keep her motivated, I am planning on taking her & Sarah to Atlanta in February for Hannah's birthday. The Alvin Ailey Company will be performing at the Fox Theater. I pray that seeing others like her dancing well will inspire her.

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas!

The TLH Huff's Christmas Tree 2008

Can't pull out the camera without an ANTM photo shoot




I was blessed with a Friday night off. :O) What's the big deal? I work weekend nights! What does that mean? It means that I work every single Friday, Saturday, & Sunday night from 7pm to 7am. I am only granted two (yes, 2) weekends off a year. Therefore, I have to be very careful how I choose which days to take off. So, I was extremely excited when my job called & asked if I wanted to stay home! Yippee! Not working on a Friday night meant I didn't have to sleep all day Saturday before going to work. Leonard & I could actually sleep in together on a Sat morning and spend the day with the girls before I went back to work Sat night. So, we took this opportunity to dig out the Christmas tree from the garage. We haven't bought a real tree since we brought home our first cat, Tinkerbell. She goes crazy for the Christmas tree. Last year she crawled up into it every night to sleep. Great pics! The girls were really excited about decorating it. This is the first year that Sarah is old enough to participate and not be constantly told "stop, don't pull on that, get that out your mouth!" Of course, Leonard was the sour sport that he is every year and did not help. Oh, well. He did run out and get new garland and watched the girls & I decorate. I let them decorate however they want as long as they are enjoying themselves. Christmas' lists are long this year! I don't see how my Momma did Christmas every year with four girls! Our two are going to drive us into bankruptcy! Just kidding! We love shopping for our girls and watching their faces light up on Christmas day. Needless to say, the theme for homeschool this month has been the birth of Christ and what it means for our eternal life. Thanks to a dear friend, Cory, we have TONS of arts & crafts materials to utilized. Stay tuned for more great pics!

Sarah helping Mommy decorate the tree

"Sarah, they all don't go on one branch!"

Ms Sarah Frances is 3 yrs old!

Today our baby girl turned three years old! Cannot believe it has been three years already. She was very excited about the day and had been counting down the days with Hannah. Last year she celebrated with friends at Baby Power. This year we settled on a good old fashion backyard home party! The weather was great for December...low 70s! It was windy and a little cloudy, but all the kids had a great time. Incorporated some of Sarah's favorite activities. She loves playing with the hula hoops, bubbles, and balls at her mommy-and-me class and having her face painted by Sparkles the clown on Tuesday nights. So, mommy and daddy made it happen! A bounce house with slide was the hit of the day. She was surrounded by good friends and family. And we all had a great time!

Thanksgiving 2008 at Dear's

The TLH Huffs had the blessing of traveling to Grandma Dear's for Thanksgiving. I was so grateful to see all three of my sisters. We all haven't been together in a long time. We enjoyed Dear's famous dressing and sweet potatoe pies and Tee Lexy's Red Velevet cake!

Fall in North Florida

Fall in North Florida means the State Fair and the changing color of leaves...both a site to see!

Hannah Banana on the Carousel...nice weather out (no sleeves)

Sarafina riding solo for the first time!

We enjoyed a lovely fall night with the McCoy Family at the North Florida State Fair. The weather was great....not too cold and not warm. I did become a little frigid towards the end of the night; however, I stay cold. The girls, like always, enjoyed themselves. We all enjoyed GREAT food...Italian sausages, pulled pork, fried turkey legs, cotton candy, kettle corn, sweet tea (for only .75), soft pretzels, and funnel cake! Hannah played "chicken" this year and didn't ride as much as usual. Sarah would have rode everything if she was tall enough! Leonard rode with Trinity on the dare-devil rides! Vince isn't a "rider." Yet, he and Leonard did tackle the mechanical bull! LOL! Leonard got him by 1 second. Now that was a site to see! So grateful to be raising my girls with a great family like the McCoy Family! Stay tuned for more of our great explorations!

Before jetting off to the fair, the girls & I met with Paige at McClay Gardens for more pictures. The gardens are so beautiful this time of year. Here are a few pics that I took with my phone. Paige has posted some on her website...check'em out!

http://elizabethpaigephotography.com/

November HomeSchool Update

It's already November...time is flying. I cannot believe it has already been over 2 months since we started off on our homeschool adventure. The dining room remains our classroom for now... even though we have utilized the bed at times! :) The official classroom is still a work in progress. Leonard has installed the shelving in the closet to store ALL the books that we have accumulated. Thanks! Still in search for the "perfect" desk, but have tons of ideas...chalk board walls and magnetic walls and bright colors!

Hannah is still thriving and having fun. I think we have accepted the "unschool" method. The works gets done, but we aren't on a strict time schedule...tons of time to play and adventure out and just learn from life's daily lessons. Her reading improves daily. She started the homeschool book-it program and has set the goal of doing 15minutes of EXTRA reading five days a week! She is doing well with her dance as well. She is going to audition for "Alice in Wonderland" next Friday...say a prayer for her...she can be shy at times.

Sarah is approaching her third birthday (Dec 9th) and eager to learn! We are working on letter and number recognition and vowel sounds. She is doing well with colors, shapes, and puzzles! Her vocabulary is well above average and she surprises us daily with her new words.

Stay tuned,