The First Day of School 2021-2022

The summer seemed to go by way too quickly! But, alas, it was time to get back to our Homeschool routine. 

Our first day of our new school year was Wednesday, August 11. 

Toby is an inside cat, but he loves coming outside when his people are out. The kids wanted him to be in the picture, but I told them that he wouldn't sit still to be in it. The next thing I knew, Toby sat right in front of us and looked up!! He's our official mascot!

I cannot believe that Gabe is a Junior this year!! 

I am only teaching him Spanish 3 and piano this year. He is doing a combination of World View and Dual Credit for the rest of his classes.  

Here he is on his first day of dual credit. He is taking Elementary Statistics this semester. 

This is Selah's first year in high school! It is pretty cool that she is in high school right now because she is only 13! So she will actually be graduating high school as a 16 year old! 

She is doing Spanish 2, Biology, Algebra 1, piano and World View 1. 

Here she is on her first day of World View - her first class outside of the house! She is in a class of 16 - 14 of them are boys. She is really grateful for the other girl in the class. 

Mig has started his first year of Middle School! 

His classes are Middle School Spanish, Algebra 1/2, Grammar, History, Science, Spelling, Art, and piano.

Faith is a 4th Grader!

She is excited because this is the first year that she is doing math on the computer instead of math worksheets. Her classes include math, elementary Spanish, spelling, handwriting, grammar, history, science, and piano. 

This is my 16th year teaching and 11th as a homeschool teacher! 

I think it is a pretty good fit! 

We are ready for a year full of fun! 

 

Stranded in Buffalo, Texas

On our last morning in Houston, the Mottos met us at the RV  park to do a little fishing.

Gabe was the only one to catch anything.

On our way home we stopped at the big Sam Houston statue.

We stopped here in 2017 after the Motto's wedding, too, so of course we had to recreate this picture:

Look at how much they have grown!!

Not long after getting back on the road Byron noticed the truck vibrating more than usual. He pulled over into an empty parking area off the side of the road and saw that his back tire was about to burst. 

The spare tire was also no good, so we called AAA. We pulled over at 2:30pm and were told that a tow truck would be there by 4:30. 

We went into the RV to wait because there was no shade and no where near by to stop in an wait. We were in the middle of nowhere Texas - Buffalo. 

On his way into the RV, Byron's sandal broke. That's a bad day.

We passed the time by doing Madlibs...

And playing Farkle....

It was HOT!!! And we had no drinkable water. To keep cool Byron stuck kitchen towels in the freezer and every so often pulled them out for us to put around our necks. Then we realized that there was a water spigot in the parking lot. We didn't trust it for drinking, but got the towels wet to help cool us off. 

After speaking with AAA more, we realized  that though a tow truck was going to come out, there would be no room for all 6 of us to ride with him. And he wouldn't be there until 6:30pm. So, we called on our friend, Chuck, and he graciously drove 2 hours to rescue us! 

Byron said that this was a sad, sad sight. 

 

Space Center Houston - NASA

I have always wanted to visit NASA! While we were in Houston, we got to go with Amanda, Brian and Joel and had so much fun!! 

We were able to catch 2 shows while we were there. They were both pretty cool!

My maiden name is Collins, so I have always had an affinity for Michael Collins.

We also got to take a tour - this is the training area for the ISS. 

The cousins really got along great!!! They had such a great time together! I love how Joel has his arm resting on Faith's shoulder - such a "big cousin" pose. Also, it is so cool to think that without the miracle of adoption those two would never know each other. 

The grown ups had a great time, too!!!

Such a cute family!

Mig and Joel had a fierce Connect 4 competition. Joel won, but he said it was harder to beat Mig than he thought it would be. 

Can you see me?!?

A space shower! 

This display was my favorite!

Faith was very excited to get to touch a piece of the moon! 

And of course, we needed some group pictures! 

 Such a fun place and fun people to enjoy it with!