India
Jaden and Jesse
Isabella and Emmy
Siena
Brennan
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Hero Generation: Our School Year
Well, due to extreme technical difficulties--they never go away for me--I am now finally able to publish a few snippets of our school year. This years EPIC adventure was "Hero Generation: A Rendezvous with Destiny". Our goal was to learn about World War II, the heroes that lived during that time, and instill in each child that they each have a special mission in life and they will have an opportunity to be a "Hero" based on their character and the choices they make.
The best part of this year has been meeting the real life World War II heroes who lived through sometimes horrific circumstances. I never imagined I would sit in a room and hear actual holocaust survivors from Auschwitz and other prison camps, discuss forgiveness, hope, and faith. We met with survivors of the inhumane Bataan Death March and their experiences as Japanese POW's that followed. We also met with an orthodox Jewish Rabbi who taught the children about the significance of Chanukah. These are just a few of the great people we were exposed to this year. These photos are just a couple of our field trip/ being there experiences. It has been a great year and I can't wait to start our yet-to-be-unveiled Epic Adventure for next year!
Marching Through History--at Prado? Regional park in Chino
I highly recommend this living history experience to anyone interested in the past. They have camps from most major wars since Roman times--all in authentic period costume. This is a reenactment of a battle in a vintage WWII jeep. They also had a Sherman Tank in the action. I especially enjoyed watching the Revolutionary war soldier make his own lead ball ammunition.
The Rabbi demonstrates the proper way to light a menorah and explains the real miracle of Chanukah.
Our trip to Camp Pendleton Marine Corp base featured a tour of the motorized equipment museum, lunch at the mess hall, and a demonstration by the K-9 unit. Based on first hand observation, if a marine with a German Shepard ever tells you to stand still, I recommend you listen. The highlight of the day for the kids was riding the chartered bus all over the base. The low point was the expired registration ticket they favored me with when I drove my minivan on base.
My favorite World War II Hero--my Grandpa Joe Culotta.
He was our honored veteran at our closing day last week. I love this man!
The Japanese-America Museum in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles
Our school group standing in front of the actual remains of barracks from a Japanese internment camp which had once been located in Arizona. Our tour guide was a prisoner in that camp as a young child and lived next door to this very building. Talk about heroes! Many young Japanese men volunteered to serve their country, despite their families being wrongfully imprisoned by that country.
Mr Malehue and Mr. Berest--Bataan death march survivors.
In addition to other inhumane cruelty that these men endured, due to malnutrition and illness both of these men weighed under 75 pounds at points of their imprisonment. Mr. Malehue was able to escape on the march and became a guerrilla warfare leader for the Alliance in the Philippines for the rest of the war. He was later given the rank of Captain in the Navy for his service.
"Rosie the Riveter"
"Rosie" visited our group and told about her experiences as a woman in the home front during the war. Afterwords we ate food from authentic World War II recipes and learned how to dance 1940's style.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Well, the world must be wondering where the heck I am again. (At least I hope the world is wondering. It would be pretty horrible if no one even cared that I never update my blog.)
Life has been the same 'ole thing---it's has been crazy with home school, fieldtrips, keeping house, buying a car, making plans for the future, etc., etc.
Most notable things to happen over the last few months:
My mom got married on November 14th.
Jeremy passed the academic portion of his Paramedic school. This was a big deal. The entire class was a bundle of blubbering nerves by the time the testing was over. Jeremy is attending a private school so the students have put their own cash, as well and their lives and careers into this program. It is a very difficult program. The students take it VERY seriously--much more so than some of the reports we have heard from the local junior college programs. He is now excelling in his ER clinical internship and looking forward to completing by August. (Any Firefighter contacts or job leads are greatly appreciated.) Somehow, he managed to do really while still working over 40 hours a week. Jeremy, you are incredible!!
India, Siena, and Jaden are now involved with Piano, Ballet, and Karate Lessons thanks to the new charter school that I joined. (It's function is to provide support and resources for home schooling families.) They are loving it.
Our home school not only has allowed my kids to learn and grow, but our study of World War 2 has provided me with great opportunities to meet fascinating, heroic people, and inspire me to be better person. I was privileged to sit in a room with several Holocaust Survivors a few months ago and listen to them discuss forgiveness, faith, and hope. It was an amazing, life changing experience. This past Monday, India and I attended a lecture by two Bataan Death March survivors, and the attorney that had helped to get retributions for those that were used as slave labour by certain Japanese companies during their internment. They came and spoke directly to our little home school group. It is humbling to think, not only about how cruelly we humans sometimes treat one another, but how much we can endure and triumph over. These were obviously the most extreme examples of deprivation, but they made it through. I guess I can figure out how to keep a smile on my face through my comparatively silly trials.
I wish the best to all of you until the next time I post.
Love, Bridey
Life has been the same 'ole thing---it's has been crazy with home school, fieldtrips, keeping house, buying a car, making plans for the future, etc., etc.
Most notable things to happen over the last few months:
My mom got married on November 14th.
Jeremy passed the academic portion of his Paramedic school. This was a big deal. The entire class was a bundle of blubbering nerves by the time the testing was over. Jeremy is attending a private school so the students have put their own cash, as well and their lives and careers into this program. It is a very difficult program. The students take it VERY seriously--much more so than some of the reports we have heard from the local junior college programs. He is now excelling in his ER clinical internship and looking forward to completing by August. (Any Firefighter contacts or job leads are greatly appreciated.) Somehow, he managed to do really while still working over 40 hours a week. Jeremy, you are incredible!!
India, Siena, and Jaden are now involved with Piano, Ballet, and Karate Lessons thanks to the new charter school that I joined. (It's function is to provide support and resources for home schooling families.) They are loving it.
Our home school not only has allowed my kids to learn and grow, but our study of World War 2 has provided me with great opportunities to meet fascinating, heroic people, and inspire me to be better person. I was privileged to sit in a room with several Holocaust Survivors a few months ago and listen to them discuss forgiveness, faith, and hope. It was an amazing, life changing experience. This past Monday, India and I attended a lecture by two Bataan Death March survivors, and the attorney that had helped to get retributions for those that were used as slave labour by certain Japanese companies during their internment. They came and spoke directly to our little home school group. It is humbling to think, not only about how cruelly we humans sometimes treat one another, but how much we can endure and triumph over. These were obviously the most extreme examples of deprivation, but they made it through. I guess I can figure out how to keep a smile on my face through my comparatively silly trials.
I wish the best to all of you until the next time I post.
Love, Bridey
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Recent Blog Hijacking
INDIAAAAAAA!!!!!!
No random postings without my approval or I will remove you as an author.
p.s. I love you.
No random postings without my approval or I will remove you as an author.
p.s. I love you.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
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