Not Back to School!

It's been a crazy summer, and I saw lots of yellow school buses out today. However, since we're NOT going back to school, our summer does not officially end until September 23! Just one of the many advantages of unschooling. . . plus we get to buy any "school supplies" and clothes after they've all been marked down. Joy!

In any case, I just love this time of year because I get so excited to think about various classes we can all take. On the menu (but not ordered yet) for fall are ninja classes for Ezra, Jiu Jitsu for Ezra and Papa, maybe "open build" art and science classes for both kids, swimming lessons for both kids, yoga for Mama (and hopefully kickboxing, too), possibly some Japanese tutoring for Ezra, and we shall see what else. Just waiting for that big paycheck to come in. . . the one we've been waiting for for weeks.

Right now Ezra, who is 7, is still really into martial arts. He's also teaching himself Japanese. Right now he's using a CD/book called Teach Me More. . . Japanese and he is in love with it! Both kids have also requested that I get them the Spanish version from the library. Ezra has also morphed over the spring and summer from being somewhat obsessed with The Civil War and guns, to moving on to submarines, and now he has expanded to be obsessed with World War II and the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He spends many hours every day drawing and building battleships, submarines, and aircraft carriers. He is also on a Jesse James kick and he and Ottar spent an entire afternoon last week re-enacting his death.

What I'm trying to work out now is creating a more structured life. As many of you avid fans may recall, I tried doing a schedule last winter (read here). Well, that crashed and burned immediately. I think it is because it was not the kind of thing that is true to my nature. In fact my whole life was untrue to my nature. But now that we're living on the river and close to the Twin Cities, let me start that over. That will be my topic for tomorrow.

About Time for an Update, No?

Here's what's going on around here, with the kids:

1. Ezra is waaaay into his Bunjinkan (Ninjutsu) class. He wants to take it twice a week instead of once, but we don't have a car the other day that the class is offered. He does practice on a daily basis, though, of his own accord. As I type, he is in the bedroom trying to give Ottar (3 yo) lessons.

2. The "Japan Unit" went O.K. - not as well as it could have, as it seemed to be too much dependent on me gathering things (without money), etc. We did do origami one day (but then lost all the paper), we read several awesome new children's books about Japan, and Ezra works almost every day on his Hiragana alphabet - either copying it, making up direct-translation words, (i.e. he just made me a sign that says "ma-ma"). Kenny was supposed to make a Japanese dinner with him or something, but apparently the Japanese fervor is not so infectious as to affect Papa Pyefeld. He muttered several times under his breath about it, but I have yet to see any wontons or sushi.

3. Ottar is obsessed with words, asking me all day long, "what does _____ mean?" Sometimes I feel like crying, if it's the end of the day and he asks me something complex, as in last week when he kept asking for increasingly precise definitions of 'deserve'.

4. Ezra is also still a voracious Tintin reader. I cannot stop him, though I am worried because the print is so tiny, and he will read it for hours on end. I am amazed by the amount of vocabulary and geography he has learned from these books!

4. Guns, guns, guns! Ezra can now identify just about any firearm by sight, and also explain how it works, what it is for, and the materials it is made from. In yet another attempt to draw myself in to his world (because I am so NOT interested in guns), I started looking stuff up on the History Detectives website last night, and I think that if we watch some of those videos together, we may have found some common ground!