Avery's 9th Birthday

On Tuesday, Avery and I headed south to Orlando to celebrate her birthday at Epcot. We had a great time spending the whole day together. We were worn out by the end of the day, but it was worth it!

Meet and greet with the Disney characters. Avery bought an autograph book to make the day more memorable.

Donald always makes a fun picture!

We were both excited to meet Princess Aurora in France! She was very sweet to Avery.

Hanging out in the Moroccan Market...

A Japanese tower....

Under the Sea with Nemo and Friends....

Can't believe my oldest is NINE!! It's gone by really fast. I love young lady she's becoming. She is so special to me!

What we've been up to lately

Life goes on and sometimes it seems like you don't have a minute to catch your breath. Can anyone else relate?? I am thoroughly enjoying spending so much time with Avery, but I still sometimes miss the days of chilling out and doing nothing while the little ones napped. Now, that is our best time to do schoolwork uninterrupted. I still know we are on the right path, though. Here's just a few pics of what we've been doing around our house this past month.....




Hunter is having a great time pretending to be John or Whitney and wants to be fed his "bottle." Of course he will always be our baby, so that's okay with us!


Avery and I are enjoying picking different recipes from the Paula Deen kid's cookbook and trying them out. Avery remembers reading the book "Stone Soup" in school, so she wanted to try that one out even though it's full of veggies! Sounds good to me! She had a great time making it and it was yummy!!

Avery has been picking out several dolphin books at the library one of which had some craft ideas in the back. She really wanted to make this dolphin mobile so we gathered all the supplies and got crafty! It was a joint effort, but we had fun and she loves it hanging over her bed.

The most exciting new adventure we're embarking on is DANCE CLASS!! I finally found a studio in Ocala that offered classes on the same day and same time for both of the girls. Avery is taking Tap and Meagan is taking Kinderdance (intro to dance). So far, they love it and Hunter and I hang out in the waiting area with the other kids/moms while they do their thing.

Gus and I are still working hard and of course Gus is getting geared up for hunting season. He went to GA last weekend to bow hunt, but no meat in the freezer yet!!

I'm so ready for some cooler weather with Fall, but knowing Florida weather, it's gonna be a while!!

Orlando Philharmonic Field Trip

Our first "official" field trip as a group took place last Wednesday afternoon. We all loaded up and headed for the big city of Orlando. These little girls were in my van (along with their lovely Mamas) and were so precious in their excitement at seeing the "skyscrapers" as we drove into downtown.

Of course, there was no photography allowed during the performance, but I snuck this one as the musicians were warming up. The show was titled "The Nature of Music" and was a special concert just for school children. We had been given a CD and curriculum to prepare our kids for the experience and it was great. Avery and I both learned a lot and REALLY enjoyed the show.

Along with the music we enjoyed, we were also treated to a performance by the Orlando Ballet Company dancing to Swan Lake and two opera singers that performed "Flower Duet." Our students were very well behaved and truly enjoyed the experience.

Of course, after all the being quiet and sitting still, they had to get a little silly!! Can't wait til the next adventure!

Back to School

Okay, so I'm a little late on this post, but as anyone that follows my blog knows, I tend to blog in spurts, so here is my back to school post! Miss Meagan is back at First Baptist Wildwood preschool in Mrs. Angela's class. So far, she has had a little bit of a hard time adjusting to a new class, new friends, and a new routine. The "highlights" have been that she had an "accident" in her pants so she could change into her spare outfit on week one and she gave herself a haircut on week two. What will next week bring......?????

Notice the shoes my little Miss Priss had to wear on the first day - they're peep-toe wedges!

Next, onto Avery's schooling for this year. I think most of you know that we have chosen to homeschool Avery this year, but some of you do not know why and may be surprised by our decision after she was in public school for three years. I feel like I have to be very careful how I say what I want to say because I know this is a very controversial subject. Let me start by saying that this is solely what we felt like what was best for our daughter and our family. I am in no way promoting/advocating this for anyone who may read this blog or knows me.

It's hard for me to concisely state "why" we're homeschooling Avery. I, of course, have several friends who successfully homeschool their children, but that never once made me want to give it a try. In fact, I didn't really even "get" why they homeschooled their children. My own journey started when I volunteered to be a member of the School Advisory Council for Wildwood Elementary last year (beginning of Avery's 2nd grade). After the first meeting, my eyes were opened wide to the challenges that school faces because of the demographics of students that attend there. I also could not believe the amount of money that was being spent on trying to bring up the "below average" students and that very little was being done for "above average" students. Let me say here that we were very blessed to have three wonderful teachers in Avery's three years at WWES. It's simply not about the teachers. There are many, many wonderful teachers at that school and public schools around the state and country that are doing the best they can with what they have, but sometimes that's not enough for all students.

So for the past year, I have been researching, praying, and talking about what I should do for Avery's education. I didn't feel like changing jobs was the answer (so she could attend the Villages Charter School). I do feel like the quality of education there is greater - due in large part to greater funding and mandatory parental involvement. I also knew we couldn't afford a private school and I also didn't want to spend a large part of my day shuttling Avery back and forth to Leesburg or Ocala. So, I started looking into homeschool for the first time and it was like a light bulb went off for me and it finally made sense. I asked myself - Q: "Why do I go to work every weekend and stay home all week?" A: so I can be the primary caregiver to my two younger children. Well, the thought occurred to me that just because Avery is eight years old, doesn't mean she doesn't have that same need anymore. And because she was in school all week and I worked all weekend, I had very little quality time with her at all and it really bothered me and it bothered her. I also wanted Avery to have the freedom to explore subjects she was interested in and not just what was on the State Standards for her grade. Avery is very artistic and creative and there just isn't much room for that in a standard school especially as she gets older. Of course we are covering the basics, but there is soooooo much more out there that we haven't even scratched the surface of yet and I can't wait to learn along with her!

I know this post is really long, but I just wanted to get this all out and make sure I explain myself fully. I know I don't "owe" anyone an explanation, but I really don't mind talking about it and I want to be understood and supported even if everyone doesn't agree with me. We are each responsible for our own children and what we do with/for them for the time we are raising them. I know in my heart that this is what is best for Avery Anne Kornegay for right now and that's all I can say for sure. She is so happy to be home with me and I am so enjoying her presence and zest for life! As far as Meagan and Hunter go, we'll cross that bridge when we get there. I will be surely consulting God about that and I will be obedient to His will, just as I am doing with Avery. I truly feel God's blessing on us right now as we step out in faith and go against the grain to do what is right for us.

Here's my happy little homeschooler at the dining room table - ready to learn!

A couple of pictures from our first Co-op last Friday. We are studying The Story of the World and it it Avery's favorite subject by far!! I love that she has the opportunity to learn so much about world history at this age.

I am so thankful to all the other homeschooling Moms that have helped me take this leap - have been there to answer all my questions no matter how big or small and have welcomed me and Avery into their group with open, loving arms! You all know who you are and I love ya!!!

So far, I'm loving the freedom that we have to do what we want when we want. It has taken so much stress off of me which is a very good thing. I'm looking forward to alot of trips we have planned this year also which so far include a trip to the Orlando Philharmonic, Epcot, MOSI in Tampa, and a play! I'm going to wrap up this post since it definitely wins the award for "my longest post EVER!" Thanks for taking the time to read about my life and thanks for your prayers and support!

Hunter's 2nd Birthday

We celebrated Hunter's 2nd birthday about two weeks after his actual birthday (the 8th) to be able to include my parents in the festivities. I basically used the leftover John Deere decorations from last year's party and threw in a Cars cake to make it different. Avery helped me pick out the cake cause she thought her baby brother would like it the best!

Our smallest party guests - John and Whitney looking oh so cute!

Mimi and Poppa Danny Wayne enjoying the party....

Nana Harper and Aunt Lisa - looking good, girls!

Time for presents - of course, Meagan was close by to "supervise"...

Hunter LOVED his Alvin and the Chipmunks music card that sang "Funky Town!"

And as you can see by his face, he also loved his cake and did a great job blowing out his candles, too!

The girls had something special planned for our guests - a Birthday Concert! Meagan and Avery had been rehearsing for about two weeks for the show. Avery made up tickets and a poster and even a tip jar! Avery played six songs on her keyboard and Meagan sang and danced - it was GREAT! Everyone enjoyed the show!

All together it was a great party!

Museum of Natural History

On Friday, we headed over to Gainesville to the Florida Museum of Natural History. It's only about 35 miles from the camp. Gus and I had not been there since we were kids and our kids had never been there. It was wonderful! The highlight of the museum was definitely the butterfly rainforest, but we enjoyed everything we saw. I would like to go back with just Avery when we have more time to read and explore without the distraction of impatient younger siblings. I'll have to plan on that this fall. One of the student volunteers was kind enough to take a family photo of us in front of the big mammoth. Imagine that..... Mom in one of the pictures!

Avery climbing on the rope spider web in the butterfly exhibit.

The kids loved exploring the caves - love that look on Hunter's face!

Avery pretending to be a caterpillar in it's cocoon.

Gus and Hunter weren't as impressed with the butterflies as the girls and I were, but that's alright...

I think this it the Blue Morpho... Loved this one!

Meagan was tried very hard to contain her excitement and follow all of the rules given to us before we could enter. It's only natural to want to touch a beautiful butterfly when it's inches from you isn't it?

This picture does not do this beautiful bright green butterfly justice. It was my favorite!

That is Avery's finger reaching up to that butterfly - I had to remind her that was a big No-No!

I have to admit that I was thinking of my sister Lisa the whole time we were in the Rainforest. She could probably spend hours in there taking some awesome pictures with her fancy camera and I'm sure they'd do more justice to the beauty of these creatures than my little point and shoot. Can't wait to go back!

Gulf Hammock Getaway

We headed over to Gulf Hammock to camp at Gus's Mom's place for a few days. After we unloaded our stuff, we headed up to Chiefland to eat lunch at a local favorite - Barbeque Bill's. It was delicious!! Then we traveled west to Cedar Key. We found a really nice playground that the kids enjoyed playing on even though it was burning up. After Gus and I had enough of that, we followed the signs around the island to the Cedar Key Museum. It was really tiny and not too interesting, but it was something to do. The funniest part was when I explained to Meagan that we were going there to learn and she responded "But I don't WANNA learn!!!"

After all that learning and sweating, we headed back to camp to get down to some riding and relaxing. The kids loved taking rides on the four-wheelers and Jeep.

Avery and I had a couple of good games of Uno - a family favorite!

Katrina was ecstatic that Hunter finally started saying "Mimi" this weekend!

You know we enjoyed some yummy meat off the charcoal grill compliments of the master chef!

The kids all had fun playing with the rod & reel we brought over. Meagan actually was pretty good at it.

Another fun game Gus and Avery learned this weekend was Dominoes. Gus got pretty hooked and stayed up late playing each night. Of course, Hunter liked them, too!

On Friday afternoon, Gus's Uncle Damon and Aunt Ruth came over. Ruth surprised us with this beautiful (and delicious) cake from Fresh Market to celebrate Gus and Hunter's upcoming birthdays.

Sweet Aunt Ruth (as the kids refer to her) also bought Hunter his very own Spiderman 4-wheeler! He was super excited to be a big boy like Daddy!

Gus and I came home Saturday afternoon to get ready and go to a National Wild Turkey Federation banquet over in The Villages. Not exactly my idea of a good time, but it was nice to spend some time together (kid less). We also woke up this morning and went out to breakfast and picked up some groceries at Publix. Katrina brought the kids home around 2 and we've just been hanging out here enjoying our last day together. Gus decided this has been one of the best vacations we've ever had and I have to agree!