We're Back

This little guy is most of the reason why you haven't seen any blog entries this summer. I know, he's cute and all, but he is kind of trouble.
We spent a fabulous 9 weeks in the NW...and it was great, really a lot of fun. We moved around a lot, were able to have quality time with some of our most favorite people and family members. It was also very busy, and while I had big ambitions of blogging all summer, the reality was that we were frequently staying in places without easy internet access, not to mention the fact that there just didn't seem to be enough hours in the day. We drove all over Washington, Idaho and Oregon, and spent time hiking, boating, swimming, camping and catching up with so many people that we have missed over the past couple of years.
The kids traveled splendidly for the most part, except for a few select hours that I would purge from memory if I could, and while it was wonderful to have a car for the summer, it was just as wonderful to hand it over and get back to walking, subways and the occasional taxi. Brett was finally able to get away from work for 3 weeks in the middle of the trip and hiked a 200 mile section of the Pacific Crest Trail.
We returned to NYC and jumped right back into our fall schedule since most of it had been already underway for a week or two. Still homeschooling, the kids are doing their usual array of classes and activities--new this fall to us are swimming lessons and Coyote Tracks (based on the Children of the Earth Foundation started by Tom Brown), and so far Brett's schedule has been great--he is assistant coaching soccer and taking a 1/2 day off to do the Coyote Tracks class with the big kids. I was able to attend my book club twice in Portland, and just started one here in New York that met for the first time this week. I am so excited about it!
The actual academic portion of homeschooling is definitely more challenging with a toddler around. All of a sudden Simon wants to scribble on every piece of paper, "read" every book and nibble on erasers. He babbles while anyone is reading aloud and if you ignore him he starts throwing things at your head. We are making progress, but I'd be lying if I said there weren't moments of total chaos. But it's all good, he is a sweetie for the most part, and I am so grateful to be able to be home with the kids--their schoolwork is interesting and fun and they are thriving.
I am getting the photos off the cameras and will post belatedly about our NW adventures.