| Online Journal for 2003 |
| January 2003 After spending New Years Eve alone with my TV (the children were visiting their Dad) I have started a job, gone and purchased myself a PDA and laptop computers for myself and the children and started a new school schedule. Eventually I hope to learn to use the laptop better (it takes some getting used to), so I can update my website more often! ;) The school schedule and the PDA are working well together, the PDA alarms when it is time to change subjects. The new routine is working pretty well, especially now that I am working part time. My job is temporary and will end in April. Until then we will just have to squeeze in fun stuff where we can. We are trying to do more science experiments and are learning about chemistry some. In January we learned about gold and have started learning about iron. We did some more electrical experiments, but no pictures this time. Christopher is learning about mammoths and saber-toothed tigers. Kiaya is learning about Frank Lloyd Wright and Queen Eleanor. Christopher finished one of his math books and will be starting a fourth grade workbook in February. They have both started learning the recorder again. This time I hope they keep it up. My grand-niece turned a year old in January. Hooray! |
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| Old journal pages Updated February 3, 2003 |
| February 2003 On the first day of February we went to a SCA event and got to visit with friends in a medieval market place. Kiaya learned some of the 'fine art' of haggling with the merchants as part of the children's activities. Christopher played some games from the middle ages. I purchased a new pair of boots. It was the last weekend day off that I get until April. We visited the Museum of Science on February 12 and 14th. We saw the Omni show Australia:Land Beyond Time and the Planetarium show The Stars Tonight. We also saw a live animal demonstration on snapping turtles. |
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| March 2003 The highlight for March was going with friend's to the Museum of Science again and seeing the traveling exhibit that was there on Egypt. The mummy kind of weirded Christopher out, but he enjoyed the other parts. Kiaya found the exhibit very interesting and enjoyed the breathtaking artifacts. |
| April 2003 So far the best highlight for April is my finishing my job. Tax season is over... Hooray! We have lots still to do this school year and will be hitting the books big time over the next few weeks. The bad highlight was when my grandmother collapsed and went into the hospital and then to a nursing home for rehab. The children missed that as they were in Montreal visiting their father for a week and got to see such sites as The Cathedral of Notre Dame and the Underground Mall. |
| May 2003 Our big thing in May is to go to the cemetaries in the area and plant flowers on the graves of some of our relatives. I know this may seem kind of grim to some people, but it is a wonderful way to pay tribute to our ancesters. We visit 4 different cemetaries in the area and this year we took on the task of attempting to clean the stones as well. Unfortunately, one of the stones has lichen that has started to eat away at some of the words on the monument. How to restore that is a new research project. |
| June 2003 School is out for most public school children but we still have a bit more work to do. We have attended three SCA events so far this month and we leave for a trip until the middle of July. But I guess that will be news for July's entry! |
| July 2003 We spent the first part of the month in Hannibal, Missouri enjoying the Tom Sawyer Days. Kiaya entered into the Tomboy Sawyer contest and the Frog Jumping contest. We toured Mark Twain and Cameron Caves. We walked up to Lover's Leap and searched for a Geocache. We toured the childhood homes of Molly Brown and Mark Twain. On the way home we drove by the Gateway to the West and stopped in Ohio and did a little nature walk and saw a little history. There was about 1 week home for the children before they were off for a week to see their dad in Canada. When they got back we headed off for NY where we met up with some family and visited Six Flags Darian Lakes and went on a tour of some locks on the Erie Canal. |
| August 2003 From NY we went straight to PA where we spent 2 weeks living in a medieval town that is created there every year by people from all over the world. The children and myself participated in various classes and learned many different things. From there we went to NH to camp with other family members. Phew! What a full summer! |
| September 2003 Time for school to start. I don't think we ever stopped, the summer was so busy. But it is back to book learning. We went for a weekend to Niagara Falls. What fun! |
| October and November 2003 Towards the end of October we left on a trip with some friends. Some of the things we did include the National Inventor's Hall of Fame in Akron, Ohio; COSI in Columbus, Ohio; the Children's Museum of Indianapolis in Indiana; Wolf Park in Lafayette, Indiana; and Tippecanoe Battlefield in Battle Ground Indiana. That was the first week. We then separated from our friends and we headed toward California and they to Chicago. The major stops were at Mesa Verdre National Park and Four Corners USA. While in California we visited family and friends as well as Disneyland, Six Flags Magic Mountain and the Children's Museum in LA. On the return trip we stopped at the Grand Canyon. What an unbelievable place, I am determined to make it back there and to Mesa Verde when we have more time. We went down to Texas to visit some friends and family there. All in all we drove through 25 states. It was a wonderful trip. |
| December 2003 This month brought preparations for Christmas. Shopping, decorating and cleaning. We had a friend from across the state and one from across the country as well as family to share the holiday with. After Christmas the children got to visit their father in Canada one last time before he moves to Texas. |
| My About Me from 2003: I have realized that I have had these web pages for way too long to have nothing new in them. I guess that means that we have been rather busy. I will try to bring the camera along more often for our endeavors! When looking at the 'things that I enjoy doing' list I realized that we haven't done much for hiking or puzzles recently and I should try to amend that. We have managed to fit in more time to do SCA related activities and we went to a Rush concert. But I have the same tablet weaving on my loom as last year, although it is closer to being done. I have taken up embroidery and am doing that more then weaving lately. Much has changed in my life over the past year, so 2003 will hopefully bring on some bright new beginnings! |