The School Year is Almost Over

I just thought I'd make a quick entry this morning. I can't believe it, but in just a couple of short weeks Jaden will have completed his first year of homeschooling. I can not believe he'll be a first grader this fall. He is growing up TOO fast.
This year has been pretty good so far. There were times when I wanted to absolutely pull my hair out from frustration and then other times have been very good. I'm so glad I didn't have to throw him into a public school classroom with a stranger to "teach" him. Maybe I'm being too overprotective, but the way things are now I think more parents should be over protective. I just want what is best for him. So far I think we're on the right track... I haven't messed him up too bad yet I don't think. :)
We've had a good time though and he's been able to learn and observe things that he wouldn't be able to see in a boxed-in classroom. We go outside at nights with his telescope, we meet up with our local astronomy group, he learned a little math/economics by setting up his own drink stand at our yard sale this past weekend, taking a trip to Discovery Place in Charlotte, NC, on our camping trip the other week he was able to see a lot of different wildlife, and he went with us to the tea parties and learned about Freedom of Speech. There have been many other opportunities this year to learn outside a classroom. I can honestly say that I don't remember much from those boring text books in school, but I think that more will stick in his mind because we had FUN learning.
I am also glad that we can really focus on astronomy in school for Jaden. He has been hooked on astronomy since I can't remember when. If he were in public school he'd probably study it for a couple of days and that would be it, but we can delve deeper into it and hopefully his love for it will continue to grow. That's a great thing about a homeschool curriculum- you can really custom build it to fit your child's interests. I think that when that happens they are more likely to excel in their studies. So far that's proving to be true... how he remembers all those facts about our solar system, I'll never know.
Anyway, I better end this right here. It's time for breakfast and to get school started in a bit. Only 20 days to go! It's been a fun year, but Jaden and I both can't wait for summer. :)

Nancy Pelosi can kiss my "Astroturf"!

We attended the Greenville Tea Party Friday Evening and had a great time. It is so wonderful to live in a free country where we can speak out and show the government that we're pissed off.

Ofcourse, Obama and his left-wing buddies all are making out "tea partiers" to be everything from "right-wing extremists" to nothing more than an aggravation for them and citizens to spit on. Nancy Pelosi, that lying CNN "reporter" Susan Roesgen, and many in the Obama administration think we've been hired by Fox News... I guess they assume that all protesters are paid (ACORN, wink, wink). We are regular American citizens that genuinely care for our country and aren't out for the attention of the media. Nancy Pelosi said it was not a grass-roots movement, but "what they call astroturf". Well, Nazi Pelosi... you, Obama, Barney Frank, Janet Nepolitano, and all the other left-wing idiots can all kiss my "astroturf".

I knew when Obamanation was elected in November that it was going to be a rough four years and it didn't take long for Washington to prove me right (in more ways than one). I am truly worried for my son's future now. He's already broke and he's only six years-old. I find myself wondering what the country will be like for him when he gets older. I really worry. Apparently, the FBI were out taking photographs of tea party attendees and the Department of Homeland Security has labeled returning vets, anyone that is anti-abortion or against illegal-immigration as "right-wing extremists". Whoa! I mean, one day I cook dinner, take my son to T-ball practice and go to bed, then wake up a danger to my country? How did that happen? Ohhhh, that's right... idiots voted that socialist a-hole into office and he's now marking anyone that disagrees with his marxist agenda as an "extremist". I wonder sometimes if we're on the path to one day being marched into "re-education camps" so that we'll AAAALLL bow to the Obamessiah. I do NOT trust that man and genuinely worry about the country's future.

I guess I don't really have too much more to say other than I suggest everyone next year on April 15th send ONLY what they think they owe to the government. We are the bosses of the government and I think they haven't been meeting demand and deserve a pay-cut. Contrary to what liberals want everyone to think, I don't mind paying taxes... as long as it goes towards keeping the military stocked with what they need, hardworking police, firefighters, roads, etc... I don't want it going to abortions, ACORN, Planned-Parenthood, tattoo removal machines, golf courses, to study blueberries, to save a mouse or other inane $#!^ like that! Let's give Washington a paycut... it's happening to alot of other citizens... why not them?

Alright, I'm through griping, but I leave you with some photos from the Greenville, SC Post Tax Day Tea Party. Oh, and there were around 10,000 people... not 1,000 like some media outlets reported. (And if Big Brother IS watching I just have three words... "kiss my astroturf".)

Here I am with talk show radio host and Fox News contributor Mike Gallagher.

Jaden took this photo of me.

Here is one of those dangerous little radicals. Beware!

My mom and dad attended the rally as well.

I like this sign. Hear that Obama?!

Here is a photo of part of the crowd. Notice the people in the parking garage too.

Russ Cassell speaking. Russ for President!

Gov. Mark Sanford speaking.

Getting Ready to Party!

I'm sitting here this morning just itching to get out this evening and attend the Greenville Post-Tax Day Tea Party. Our family has been getting ready all this week making signs, buying flags and even teaching Jaden about what socialism means so he understands what we're protesting... despite what SOME deluded minds may think, we're not attending to be anti-Obama, anti-government, nor anti-CNN (although they do suck). We are protesting the fact that OUR government has completely forgotten who they represent. We are protesting the fact that once these crooks get into office they forget who put them there and decide to go on their own shopping spree... spending OUR money on ridiculous things. I, for one, DO NOT want to be paying for an overseas abortion. I am protesting the fact that WE THE PEOPLE have absolutely no say in what our money is being spent on and that pisses me off.

So, this evening my family will attend the Greenville tea party along with several other thousand and tell the government to kiss our tails. Call me a "right-wing extremist" if you wish. Apparently, someone that is simply anti-abortion is determined by Homeland Security to be a "right-wing extremist", so if that's the case I guess I'm a twenty-five year-old, radicalized, right-wing extremist, t-ball mom. Sounds scary, doesn't it?

Here are some signs that we've created for the event:

Our Camping Trip

Last weekend we took a short camping trip to Croft State Park in Spartanburg, SC. We had a great time once we got settled in. The campsite was wonderful! Only a thirty second walk from the lake... fishing, kayaking, and roasting marshmallows to our hearts' desire and we couldn't have asked for better weather.

The view from our campsite.

We arrived on Saturday afternoon after Jaden's baseball game and got everything set up. The afternoon flew by and we didn't really have the chance to do to much that day, but we were able to squeeze in a little bit of fishing that evening. The fish were hopping and at one point right after sunset a fish grabbed my line and decided to take it for a ride. I have no idea how big the thing was, but after fighting for about 15 seconds or so the darn thing broke my line. I would really love to know how big that sucker was. LOL By that time it was getting dark though and we had to head back to the tent to get the campfire going for dinner. Gotta love roasted hot dogs over a campfire.

Jack, Jaden and Priscilla kayaking on Lake Craig.

Sunday we were able to take the kayaks out on Lake Craig. We headed up towards one end of the lake and we overheard a guy in a nearby boat saying that there was something called "Turtle Hill" in one of the coves so we headed that way. There were many bubbles coming to the surface in places and at one point something hit the bottom of my boat. About five seconds later Jack asked me if there were alligators up this way. His paddle had also hit something. We had discussed kayaking and alligators before so I think he got a bit nervous. lol Personally, I'm more worried about snakes. ACK! The cove started getting VERY shallow even for a kayak so we turned around and headed back. There is a geocache on the other side of the lake so after kayaking a bit we parked the kayaks on the shore (which turned out to be a bunch of quick sand) and took a short hike to find the cache. After looking for 20 minutes or so we all couldn't find the cache and gave up. It was very beautiful on that end of the lake though and I can't wait to return.

Priscilla and Jaden

We jumped back in the kayaks to return to the campsite and boy was it rough getting back. The winds had picked up and we were all fighting to paddle against it. We eventually made it back though and then had to carry the kayaks back up the steep hill to the site. After that we were pretty much exhausted and rested for a while.

Jaden, Jack and Priscilla hiking up to the geocache.

Ofcourse, the fish in the lake were calling my name and I couldn't resist heading down that evening too, so we all headed down to the shore with our fishing rods. We had been fishing for a while when my line got all messed up. I called Jack over to help, so he recruited Jaden to watch his line for him. Jack had only been over there with me for about 20 seconds when Jaden yelled "Daddy, a fish is on your line!" Jack went running back over there and yanked on it. Sure enough he got it! So, technically, Jaden caught it. It wasn't a monster, but it was a good little fish. :) I decided to try my luck somewhere else since I wasn't even getting many nibbles. Ofcourse, Jaden comes running over to my secluded area to yell at me, "Daddy needs your help!" Jack had caught another small bream. GRRRR... Oh well, I'm glad someone caught something atleast.

On Monday morning we decided to take our (much needed) showers and then head up one of the trails to find another geocache. We started off on an easy horse trail but decided to break off on another to (in Jack's words) make it more interesting. Good GRIEF! The trail was called "Rocky Ridge" (a 3.5 mile horse trail that is rated strenuous) and I see why. Most of it was uphill on uneven terrain. Thank God the weather was turning cooler or I would have never made it! There were also strong gusts of wind and some of the extremely tall trees would creak and bend right over our heads. That made us all a bit nervous as well as an odd sound coming from the woods. We still don't know what in the world was making it, but we all figured we would pick up our speed to get out of there! There were several old building foundations and chimneys along the trail. This area was once part of an old World War II Army training camp so maybe they were remnants from that?? Luckily we made it to find the cache. We stopped to have a snack, but quickly started back since black clouds were moving in and it didn't look too good. We finally made it back to camp after walking 5-6 miles and just as the temperature started to plummet.

Ruins from the old World War II training camp? Checking out the geocache.

Monday night temperatures were supposed to be near the freezing point but we all stayed warm. It even rained a little bit that night. Tuesday morning it was time to pack up and it was a bit rough since the winds were very strong and I thought we'd all fly away while packing up the huge tent. It seems that we picked the right time to leave as it was very cold Tuesday morning. We were exhausted and cold when we arrived home, but we had a great weekend overall. There is something about camping that is just so wonderful... breakfast foods smell so good cooking over a propane stove in the morning... there is no need to keep track of time... your friendly temporary neighbors... sleeping under the stars... and a campfire at night with the sounds of frogs and crickets in the background. It's a wonderful feeling. :)

Perfection! Jaden playing in the campfire.

Our tent. Thanks Mama and Daddy! We love it! Jack and Myself.

Full-Time RV Living

Our family loves yard sales. Each spring I always look forward to seeing many yard sale listings in the newspaper. So, about a month ago I was thrilled to see someone having a moving sale and that they were going to be selling all of their tiki-bar and tropical themed items. So, since our home is completely done in the tropical theme I couldn't resist this sale. I couldn't wait to see what kind of goodies they had. After getting there we couldn't help but buy every single bit of their cute beach souveniers, tiki statues and other crap that we really did NOT need. We had a lot of stuff to load up in our car so we had plenty of time to speak with the couple that was moving and they told us why they were moving and had to sell EVERY item they had. It turns out that they were selling their condo to move into a sailboat and "move" to the Bahamas. Lucky people!
After we left and were driving up the interstate back home, Jack and I kind of talked about how neat that would be. I don't think Jack thought much more of it after that afternoon, but since then I have been dreaming of not actually living on a sailboat (that is kind of a scary thought), but living in an RV full-time. I began thinking of how wonderful it would be for Jack to be able to quit his job, hit the road, see the country and spend QUALITY time with each other.
I keep thinking to myself that there is an entire country out there with beautiful scenery and great places to visit, so why be stuck in one home for your entire life? Since I homeschool Jaden (see, we're already a family that thinks outside the box) I think it would be great for him to not learn everything from a boring textbook, but to encounter it up-close and "hands-on". I read about another family that has been full-time RVing for four years now and have only used their alarm clock two dozen times.
We live in this "rat race" society where we're all SUPPOSED to go to college, get married, buy a huge house, get a high paying job, have 2.5 kids and then retire and begin traveling at 65 years-old. Why should we wait until we're that age to begin traveling? Why are we expected to live in one spot and then move to Florida when we retire? Seriously... think about those questions.
So many people think that success is having lots of money, a large house, an expensive car, and lots of THINGS, but I believe success is determined by how happy we are. Look at all the celebrities in Hollywood. They have things that my family will NEVER be able to afford, but I don't have to rely on a "nanny" to watch my son, I don't have to spend a few days in rehab, I don't spend weeks away from my family to work, and I know who my real friends are. So many celebrities smile for the cameras, but look in their eyes and you can see their unhappiness. But our society thinks that these people are successful because of their wealth and fame. If that's success, I don't want it!
Anyway, I got a little off subject... the point is, I don't think our family could be more successful if we were to sell our home, free our family from the mundane, see what great things our country has to offer, get out of the rat-race and spend our DAYS together instead of just weekends and a couple of hours in the evenings. We only have one life to live, why waste that time?
I know it wouldn't be a permanent vacation and some things would be a little tough... we're not rich by any means so we would have to find ways to work on the road. It would probably get cramped at times. Our first Christmas in an RV would be strange. And I've even thought of how hard it would be to sell our home. We bought our house five years ago and it makes me tear up just THINKING about selling it.
I just try to think of all that we would gain... No more 9-5 workdays, no mortgage payment, minimal housework, nothing to tie you down, simplifying life and focusing on what we SHOULD focus on in life.
If you're wondering... I have talked to Jack about this too. He says that he would consider doing that and we have even set a goal of 4-5 years (even if it's not set in stone yet), so we could possibly end up becoming full-time RVers. I don't think he is onboard 100% yet, but he says I've persuaded him. He's talked about getting back into selling sports memorabilia and doing card shows if we did that. We're obviously not going out and buying a new motor home today or anything, but this is definately a dream I would like to try to keep alive and hopefully make it reality in a few years. If/When anything becomes of this I'll be sure to write about it! :)

P.S. Just another thought... I went to a yard sale to buy a bunch of junk a month ago. That same yard sale (and the people that put it on) has made me come to the realization that I don't want to go to another yard sale or buy anymore junk that I don't need. I've already started getting rid of stuff now. :)