Third Week of August

Monday, we started our first official week of homeschool.  (Did you know that the spell checker does not consider homeschool a word?  I think I feel discriminated against.)  Will has started soccer practices, but school starts next Monday.  

What this has meant in practical terms is that we're in sort of a dual existence, the already and the not yet, if you will: mornings are for school, afternoons and evenings are for summer.  

For the last couple of nights, the three younger kids have slept in a tent in the backyard; last night we had a cookout with s'mores; today we went to a movie at the library and got ice cream afterward; tonight they had a water battle.    

This is part of our back yard, in full summer glory.

The weather has been dreamy.  Today's high was 80.  

The sunflower seeds Sam sowed in May have grown into plants as tall as the garage now.

Summer is going out in a blaze of glory.