I want to give you just a little bit of a idea of what the kids' new school is like. Last academic year (the school year runs from August to June here remember) our kids were doing a combination of home schooling and regular schooling. They were going to a regular school two days per week, and Sonia home schooled them three days per week. This worked reasonably well and because the school provided the curriculum which was a "classical" system, the kids learnt a great deal.
However it was a big pressure on Sonia as the curriculum was very rigid in what had to be done and the timeframes it had to be done in. We decided that, if possible, we would try to put our kids in the local elementary school. We have been very blessed to have such a great public school just down the road from us (about 500-600m from us) and we were also very blessed to have our application to the school accepted. You see, the public school system here in Louisville is a bit strange. You apply for a school and indicate your preference, but the Louisville school administration, in an attempt to balance out socio-economic profiles of schools, may send your child to any school in the city - they may bus your kids (even 5 yr-olds) a couple of hours each way on buses to achieve this goal. Most parents around the city don't like the system at all, and we have a number of friends who have very testing times with their kids being bused for miles across the city. So, we were very thankful to have our kids accepted for the local school here - we would have kept the home-schooling system up if they hadn't been accepted.
And the kids are loving the school. They love their teachers, they love the special classes like the computer class or the music class or the french class (for Ashleigh at least). We are really pleased. And to top it all off, the school's mascot is a tiger (Sam's absolute favorite animal).
Today, they had a "tiger fun-fest", which was a whole-school event which included running races (the tiger trot), a band with the music teacher featuring on saxophone, sack races, egg and spoon race (with pumpkins on tennis rackets instead - it's harvest time over here) plus loads more. It's a great atmosphere down there, with families involved in everyday school life.
One of the best things about the school according to the kids is the fact that they get to ride their bikes down there. They are two of the very few that ride to school so they feel very special. Last year the first downfall of snow was in late November, so we'll see how long the riding lasts.
All in all, we're very thankful for the school and what it is offering the kids. We are also very thankful that it is freeing Sonia up a little bit so that she can take a class or two down at the Seminary. They allow students' spouses to sit in on classes for free (if they're not taking the class for credit), and we figure that we will probably never again be in such close proximity to a resource such as Southern Seminary, so it's great that Sonia is able to learn from the faculty there. The kids have been at the school for 6 weeks now, and we're all looking forward to the year ahead for them.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Fall festival
Each year, Southern Seminary puts on an event for the families of the seminary called Fall Festival. It takes place about a month into the academic year (which starts in August over here remember) and is an event that the seminary specifically gears for the families. And they typically make a really great event. Last year, our kids had a blast in what was essentially a carnival. They loved going on the Ferris Wheel and the rocket ship rides etc.
This year, though, they pulled out all the stops. The theme was Narnia, from C.S Lewis's famous fiction series. When we arrived, we had to walk through the seminary rec centre which had been set up like a train station and then walk through a massive wardrobe (crafted just like the one in the movie) through to the seminary central lawn which was set up like a Narnia scene. We were greeted by Narnia characters on the way in, and then made our way through to the central lawn which had Narnia style tents all around the edge, as well as a large fenced in field in the middle which was to be the stage for professional jousters... that's right, there was jousting there, with knights in full armour on enormous horses.
There was a huge area with amazing bouncy castles, which were fun for all ages - it was quite amusing seeing a bunch of adults and even a few professors climbing in and around and up the bouncy castles. There was the normal face painting, candy floss and hot dogs (all free), plus you could get a (plastic) sword after being knighted by Peter and Edmund, or have your photo taken on Aslan's broken stone table.
In addition to all this, they fed us all dinner (the festival was at no cost to us), which was catered by a local restaurant. But the part that got me was finding out that this local restaurant had donated the dinner. We're talking over $10,000 worth of food. There is some amazing generosity around here, especially when it comes to the seminary.
It was a great night - one that the kids loved and will probably remember for quite some time. It's fun evenings like this that make us feel part of the seminary community and are making this place feel more and more like home... at least for now... :)
This year, though, they pulled out all the stops. The theme was Narnia, from C.S Lewis's famous fiction series. When we arrived, we had to walk through the seminary rec centre which had been set up like a train station and then walk through a massive wardrobe (crafted just like the one in the movie) through to the seminary central lawn which was set up like a Narnia scene. We were greeted by Narnia characters on the way in, and then made our way through to the central lawn which had Narnia style tents all around the edge, as well as a large fenced in field in the middle which was to be the stage for professional jousters... that's right, there was jousting there, with knights in full armour on enormous horses.
There was a huge area with amazing bouncy castles, which were fun for all ages - it was quite amusing seeing a bunch of adults and even a few professors climbing in and around and up the bouncy castles. There was the normal face painting, candy floss and hot dogs (all free), plus you could get a (plastic) sword after being knighted by Peter and Edmund, or have your photo taken on Aslan's broken stone table.
In addition to all this, they fed us all dinner (the festival was at no cost to us), which was catered by a local restaurant. But the part that got me was finding out that this local restaurant had donated the dinner. We're talking over $10,000 worth of food. There is some amazing generosity around here, especially when it comes to the seminary.
It was a great night - one that the kids loved and will probably remember for quite some time. It's fun evenings like this that make us feel part of the seminary community and are making this place feel more and more like home... at least for now... :)
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| The kids with a Narnia character |
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| Sam and Jack on the horse racing bouncy castle |
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| One of the knights on his steed prior to getting armored up for jousting |
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Patriotism
One thing that is plainly obvious after spending a little time in the
But it really hit home when we went to a baseball game. This was not a major game – it was our home
team the Louisville Bats against the Tulsa Mud-Hens. Yes, Mud-Hens.
They deserved the thrashing they got just for having a name such as
Mud-Hens. Anyhow, that’s not what I’m
getting at. It was a minor game between
two cities, but it seems that they play the national anthem at just about any
sporting event over here, and this game was no exception.
We had just arrived at the game and were walking around
behind the seating grandstand in front of all the hotdog stalls etc. when we
noticed that EVERYONE had stopped walking, EVERYONE was silent, and EVERYONE
was facing in one direction (towards the flag). I looked around and noticed that all the men
with caps on had taken them off. Then it
struck me – it was time for the national anthem. Like I said, this wasn’t a major game, but
still the national anthem held such importance that it made the entire stadium
go still and silent.
We sung the Star Spangled Banner with great gusto, and at
its completion everyone put their caps back on and carried on whatever they
were doing.
These guys know how to build patriotism. From the pledge of allegiance at school and scouts,
the respect of the national anthem at sporting games to the incredible esteem
and honor they give to those that serve in their armed forces, Americans (in
general) love their country and their flag. I think we could learn a few things from these
guys…
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Canada
It has been way too long since we’ve put something on this blog. Sorry, it’s been a bit of a whirlwind summer. However, I’d like to write a quick summary of our time in Canada, one of the biggest highlights of the summer.
Since arriving in the states, we have been flat out. We were told by others who have come here from overseas with a family that the first six months or so would be a mess and take a lot of getting used to. They were kinda right. After we’d been here for half a year and had survived the first winter, the place started to feel a bit more like home and it felt a bit more normal. But it was still full on.
As the summer and the one year mark approached (remember summer here is June-August) we realised that we had been going full steam ahead for almost 18 months without a real break away. Also, we’ve wanted to go to Canada for years (like, about 10) to take Sonia back to visit the place she spent a year of her youth on a student exchange. We figured that we were more than three quarters of the way to Canada already (from New Zealand that is) and that it would cost over 3 times the price to go up there if we did it later from NZ, so we decided to head off to Northern Alberta, Canada to visit Wayne and Val Schamehorn and their family.
Canada was amazing. It is such a vast country, with amazing diversity. Where we were staying (Northern Alberta) it is mostly forest and vast amounts of prairie land. Sonia had said to me a number of times in the past that the sky was huge in Canada. Approximately just as many times I had thought to myself “the sky is the same size no matter where you are in the world – science kind of dictates that”. Well, it turns out the sky is HUGE!! in Canada. I don’t know how to explain it – I’m sure it is physically the same size as anywhere else on the planet, but it just seems to stretch an unbelievable distance, and in all directions. I’m picking that it’s due to the fact that in the prairie land there are no hills and almost no trees. There is nothing anywhere 360 degrees around you to stop you from seeing all the way to the horizon. It really is something to behold.
It also turns out that it’s not just the sky that’s huge there. The country itself is enormous. It’s enormous and vast. It’s enormous and vast and for the most part empty. Approx 80% of Canada’s population lives within 100 miles of the US border. If you look at a map of Canada you’ll soon realise that the other 20% probably get to have about the size of a small country each if they divided it up evenly. But I got the opportunity to experience first hand how vast the country actually is. I got to go on a fishing trip to the west coast, to a sea side town called Prince Rupert in British Columbia. It was about a 2000km drive, spanning three days (we did it in two on the way back). The thing that stunned me though, was that I had only travelled across approx a third of the country. It’s crazy how big the place is.
We all loved our time in Canada. The kids loved being on the farm up in Manning, riding on quad bikes, catching frogs, going camping and playing in tree huts. And we all loved catching up with so many people we hadn’t seen in a long time (and many that I’d never met before). They were all amazingly hospitable and everyone had time to stop and chat, and if required, spend an afternoon just catching up and “visiting”, as they call it. I think we can learn a lot about the way they structure their lives and the priorities they put on people and relationships.
There is one major downside to having gone to Canada – the fact that we want badly to go back one day. I would love to see a winter there (Sonia already has). We’ve had a winter here in Kentucky with a bit of snow, but we measure the snowfall here in inches and fractions of inches. They measure the snowfall there in feet (even though they use the metric system in Canada – that’s another story for another time). Perhaps one day the Lord will give us cause to go back there, but for now it is a memory that is imprinted in our minds with a vividness and a fondness that we are immeasurably thankful for – a memory that we will cherish forever.
Since arriving in the states, we have been flat out. We were told by others who have come here from overseas with a family that the first six months or so would be a mess and take a lot of getting used to. They were kinda right. After we’d been here for half a year and had survived the first winter, the place started to feel a bit more like home and it felt a bit more normal. But it was still full on.
As the summer and the one year mark approached (remember summer here is June-August) we realised that we had been going full steam ahead for almost 18 months without a real break away. Also, we’ve wanted to go to Canada for years (like, about 10) to take Sonia back to visit the place she spent a year of her youth on a student exchange. We figured that we were more than three quarters of the way to Canada already (from New Zealand that is) and that it would cost over 3 times the price to go up there if we did it later from NZ, so we decided to head off to Northern Alberta, Canada to visit Wayne and Val Schamehorn and their family.
Canada was amazing. It is such a vast country, with amazing diversity. Where we were staying (Northern Alberta) it is mostly forest and vast amounts of prairie land. Sonia had said to me a number of times in the past that the sky was huge in Canada. Approximately just as many times I had thought to myself “the sky is the same size no matter where you are in the world – science kind of dictates that”. Well, it turns out the sky is HUGE!! in Canada. I don’t know how to explain it – I’m sure it is physically the same size as anywhere else on the planet, but it just seems to stretch an unbelievable distance, and in all directions. I’m picking that it’s due to the fact that in the prairie land there are no hills and almost no trees. There is nothing anywhere 360 degrees around you to stop you from seeing all the way to the horizon. It really is something to behold.
It also turns out that it’s not just the sky that’s huge there. The country itself is enormous. It’s enormous and vast. It’s enormous and vast and for the most part empty. Approx 80% of Canada’s population lives within 100 miles of the US border. If you look at a map of Canada you’ll soon realise that the other 20% probably get to have about the size of a small country each if they divided it up evenly. But I got the opportunity to experience first hand how vast the country actually is. I got to go on a fishing trip to the west coast, to a sea side town called Prince Rupert in British Columbia. It was about a 2000km drive, spanning three days (we did it in two on the way back). The thing that stunned me though, was that I had only travelled across approx a third of the country. It’s crazy how big the place is.
We all loved our time in Canada. The kids loved being on the farm up in Manning, riding on quad bikes, catching frogs, going camping and playing in tree huts. And we all loved catching up with so many people we hadn’t seen in a long time (and many that I’d never met before). They were all amazingly hospitable and everyone had time to stop and chat, and if required, spend an afternoon just catching up and “visiting”, as they call it. I think we can learn a lot about the way they structure their lives and the priorities they put on people and relationships.
There is one major downside to having gone to Canada – the fact that we want badly to go back one day. I would love to see a winter there (Sonia already has). We’ve had a winter here in Kentucky with a bit of snow, but we measure the snowfall here in inches and fractions of inches. They measure the snowfall there in feet (even though they use the metric system in Canada – that’s another story for another time). Perhaps one day the Lord will give us cause to go back there, but for now it is a memory that is imprinted in our minds with a vividness and a fondness that we are immeasurably thankful for – a memory that we will cherish forever.
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