Logan's Lego Movie

Months ago Logan and the girls were sitting around watching the Lego movie, and he asked me how they made it. I told him that I heard that they used real legos for the whole thing and some kind of stop animation technique. We then ended up watching video after video on youtube about how to make a real lego movie! Logan became convinced that he could do it. So Josh and I told him that we  (by we I mean Josh) would shoot it for him if he made the set, script, and did all the work himself. It took him a good month to make his whole set, the people and the script (Which he ended up not using).

So here it is! He is very proud of it, and we are very proud of him for sticking with his project till the end.
(Oh, and turn it up because he did all of his own cute sound effects!)

Without further ado......... SPACE HEROES by Logan VanderLinden

Why I love homeschooling

I love homeschooling these days. Last week after we finished out lessons we decided to head to the closest canyon for a hike. The weather was about 75 degrees and it was so perfect, not even the teeniest bit of wind. When we got down there, we just couldn't believe how green it was! I didn't take as many pictures as I'd meant to, I was so overwhelmed by how beautiful (and uncrowded!!) it was. After spending some time hiking around we went to our local neighborhood bakery and got some sweets. We ate them in the hot afternoon sunshine. We talked about the bugs, trees, and birds we'd seen down there. Then, we came home and played outside some more before lunch. I love days like these. 

Ladies say pledge

The ladies wanted me to show you that they can say the pledge of allegiance now. They are very proud. Just don't pay attention to their early morning dreadlocks....

winter

Those selfies in the beginning make me giggle every time. You would not believe how many selfies (hundreds!) i found on my phone from Claire AND baby Rose. I had no idea those two had gotten ahold of my phone so much! Anyways, some highlights from this past winter: A polar express party with friends (every year) , sending our letters to santa, days and days of Christmas crafts, art days with friends, valentines mailbox exchanges. Winter is almost over now, and we are welcoming spring with both arms!

Autumn

Pictures from this past autumn. Snippets of pieces of our days, many of which I'd already forgotten about. This past autumn was filled with a first birthday party, a trip to a witches festival with my twinners, halloween, homeschooling art classes, many many children's museum trips,  and a day of the dead celebration. Its a bit late to document, I know, but I didn't want to forget about these pictures and these days. 

Pacific North West Trip

                                                                         


It's amazing to watch the changing landscape when driving into Oregon from east to west. Crispy sage brush laden landscapes begin to dot with a bit more green, until you seem to turn a corner and everything is lush and blooming. Blackberries grow wild on the sides of the roads. They are literally everywhere. Rose bushes and vine maples and gigantic pine trees so large they touch the sky. What a beautiful, magical place northern Oregon was. We just couldn't get over it. As we drove towards the coast it just got better and better. Small little farms littered the sides of the roads with signs like, "Organic Blueberry patches this way!" and "Apples and pumpkins over here!" On and on. Sigh. So much goodness in such a small little area. Its like sensory overload.
The coasts of Oregon (and Northern California for that matter) were absolutely magical. Never did we ever consider ourselves a beach loving family, but we realized after a day in the sand that we could all (especially the baby) be beach bums, no problem! At first glance of the ocean for the first time, Logan took off inn a sprint right to the waves. He scared us, of course, but I couldn't help but smile at his enthusiasm. They were all SO so happy to be there. We collected sea shells and sand dollars and driftwood and vowed to make a mobile when we got home (still a work in progress).  We visited as many beaches as possible during our trip. So, so beautiful.
We really did try to make the trip as fun for the kids as possible. On top of beaches we went to a waterfall, an awesome toy store, a rose garden, and to the biggest bookstore in the world (I think? It had an AWESOME kids section). We climbed on redwoods and swam in lakes and played with cousins and great grandparents . And it must also be noted that we ate... A LOT! Oh man, we ate so much junk, seriously, it was terrible, but also so liberating for a little while (we did a 2 day vegan detox when we got home, which NOBODY was super enthusiastic about but was totally necessary).
It was our first family vacation planned out completely by us - for us. No other agendas than to do whatever we wanted. To be spontaneous and get lost and enjoy each other's company. At the end, Josh and I looked at each other and said, "We need to do this every year!" Best. Time. Ever.