Rosetta Stone~FREE!

We have been using Rosetta German and LOVE it! Well I better go sign up before I miss out!

Rosetta Stone has been the #1 foreign language curriculum among homeschoolers for a while -- next week they are unleashing a brand new curriculum, and you can WIN the *all new* Rosetta Stone Homeschool Version 3… FOR FREE!
This is a $219 program (and believe me it's worth every penny!) and the winner gets to pick from any of these 14 languages: Spanish (Spain or Latin America), English (American or British), Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Irish, Hebrew, or Russian.This will also include a headset with microphone, and students will participate in lifelike conversations and actually produce language to advance through the program. Rosetta Stone still incorporates listening, reading and writing as well, in addition to speaking. Many homeschoolers requested grammar and vocabulary exercises, and with Rosetta Stone Homeschool Version 3, they're included! For parents, the new Parent Administrative Tools are integrated into the program and allow parents to easily enroll students in any of 12 predetermined lesson plans, monitor student progress, and view and print reports.To win this most excellent program -- in the language of your choice -- copy these (blue) paragraphs and post it in (or as) your next blog post -- then to enter the contest, go to the original contest page HERE: http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/JenIG/501132/ and leave a comment with the link showing where you blogged about it. And please make sure the link works to get back to the original contest page when you post it. And good luck! The winner will be picked randomly on March 26, and will be notified thru the link they left to their blog pg. And if you have more than one blog, you can post them and enter those separately for more chances to win. Yay for free stuff!

Artwork- as promised to my big brother

My brother called the other day wanting to know if my bike was on the road yet. Not yet since we are still waiting for various parts and pieces to arrive from all over the states! In the meantime here is the latest on the custom bags we are having made.

We received an email from Dave over at Osprey Limited-Custom Saddlebags. He recently added laser-etching to his list of customizable options. This was mentioned way back when we first placed the order....we figured we would settle on a HD bar and shield on the top of the bags or something similar. That was back around Christmas.....so we hadn't given it much thought....today, he emailed some of the artists renderings and here is what we settled on....far cry from a little bar and shield.....don't you think?
Thanks, Dave

Bad, bad Mom!

I was SURE I had finished uploading Robert's Sr pics (at least for a little while)...not so according to my Dear 17yo....he REALLY wanted this picture to live on in infamy for all to see on the internet...

so here it is....enjoy it, run from it, wonder what the heck we were thinkin'...but here it is Robert...

Love, Mom

Making up for lost blogging time!

I have been meaning to post these pictures for sometime but managed to forget regularly. These are are just a few of Robert's Senior pictures.

This was the 2nd time he had Sr pictures taken. The 1st were taken at school before he cut ALL of his hair off...plus he realized a few days later that he was wearing the SAME clothes as our family portraits taken in Florida! Not a great testament to the changing spirit of a teenager! :) SO off to a different (read: better) photographer for pictures of the new and improved Robert!

He took some prodding to FINALLY smile...of course it helped that I refused to pay for any sullen, sad-sack portraits and walla, we have a smiling boy in our midst!

In case anyone is wondering we own the rights to these pictures so there is no copyright infringement happening here....a graduation present for the boy...just so he could post his favorite shots on his Myspace.

I will post more as I get the opportunity to watermark and convert them.

Enjoy!
Jackie

This would be the picture Robert chose for the Yearbook! When we went to look at the proofs our photographer told us this one was just a goofy joke that she mocked-up to freak Robert out...but he/we instantly knew this captured the essence of Sparky/Gumby! She was sure we were crazy but it turned out to be the perfect choice!

Okay, I lied, we paid for a couple of "non-smiling" shots...but if you look closely he is trying NOT to smile...but doesn't look like we just cancelled his allowance!

My personal favorite!

Nick cuts off ALL his hair....well most of it!

Nick has spent months trying to talk us into getting his hair cut but we were afraid he was only interested in copying his brother. We finally reached a point where it was becoming apparent that he like many other 'tween boys typically do a lousy job of maintaining good hygiene!!



If you have ever noticed a young boys "gookey" teeth you can imagine what "past your shoulder hair" plus a complete fear of warm water and SHAMPOO looks like on a daily basis.

When you combine this with a wonderful set of greasy Italian genes....well let your mind wander to something that looks like salad dressing spilled on a kitchen counter and that is how bad Nick's hair could get...granted he did TRY to keep it clean but most of the time we fought over the definition of "clean!"

I finally had enough and decided to fulfill his dream of looking like a boy once again.

It didn't hurt our cause that Nick was completely mortified the other day when a man asked him, "ma'am, are you sure you are in the right bathroom"....hmmmph... some people can be SO thoughtless!

I won't lie, we (Shelby and I) miss his long locks...but he is much happier now and tranquility has returned to our household....yeah right!

Photoshop can be SO addictive!

Now that Robert has given me a beginner's tutorial on Photoshop
I figured it was time to mess with some run of the mill photos.
These are of a town near us. Every time we drive by John mentions how we need to get a picture...but it is always overcast, too late or we have once again forgotten the camera!

Enjoy,

Wonderful product and Fabulous service

I want to thank Dalyn & Tori of Hick Chicks Soap Barn. Talk about service above and beyond! Knowing not every company is willing to take care of those of us living in APO and FPO--it means ALOT when a company goes the extra mile. Even though the site didn't give APO as a choice--I emailed hoping just maybe....and even though it was a HUGE hassle plus a bit more work, I was so happy when (4 days later!) our order arrived. The soaps are great (the pumpkin spice sample made me want pie...go figure) and the lotion bar is our favorite!


If you have been looking for great homemade soaps and lotions make sure to check them out!