Sunday, June 21, 2009

Do we have to have fun?

So, the summer is going well and the guys have even been enjoying it. To bad because it was supposed to be unbearable :)

Here is a list if things the guys have been working on:

Logan: sewed a small felt dog, has been practicing reading, math, fitness (he can do over 20 push-ups), reading "I-Spy and "Where's Waldo", 100 piece puzzles and playing checkers and Guess Who.
Caleb: has been working with his communication device. He's learning about colors, letters and numbers. He matches numbers well and can string count but not the concept of numbers. Pray he can grasp this soon.

Sammy: built a toy solar powered tractor/post hole digger from an erector set. He is now learning drums.
Kosal: built a toy tank from an erector set, figured out a wooden puzzle, 3-D puzzle of Notre Dame, a model of a MIG airplane, a small ballista/crossbow, assembled a wood-ply puzzle elephant and is now building a miniature castle with tiny bricks.
David has been building a go-cart-ish device based on a set of plans in the "Dangerous book for boys" and has been reading a book.
Jonathan: mastered a wooden 3-D puzzle, built a 3-D puzzle battleship, completed a 3-D Empire State Building, and is now working on a new wooden puzzle.
Hocklee constructed a race car from an erector set, built a 3-D puzzle of London Bridge, produced a small catapult, and has figured out a wooden 3-D puzzle, he has started training his new puppy. "Sakra" (means: cherry blossom in Japanese) she is supper smart. She has learned where to go to the bathroom and to whine at the door when she needs to go out. She learned with only two accidents and inside of one and a half days.
Krumm: learning to drive the Tuk-Tuk, assembled a 3-D castle, and has begun learning the guitar.
Veassna: put together a 3-D Empire State Building puzzle, been learning drums and helping Sammy learn drums.
Pov: constructed a solar powered tractor and trailer, started learning to drive the Tuk-Tuk and was building a web site for the Tuk-Tuk. He is also practicing drums.
Joe: has been planning a more complex castle with little blocks and experimenting with mold making.
Rene: Reads as often as she can. She read Duteronemy in one sitting. She said "It was sad when it was over".

Monday, June 8, 2009

Naughty Water

Monsoon season is back and with it comes the side effects.

The House we live in is large and works well for the purpose of having enough in regards to space for all the activities we do. But... The house is old and has many "quirks". For instance the roof, walls and ceilings have a tendency to leak for all manner of reasons. Some due to drain pipes, bad roof design, an old/poor seal in the bathroom, or just wind blowing rain where it's not supposed to be. It inevitably ends up in an electrical junction somewhere buried in the wall and begins to trip breakers and knock out circuits for indefinite periods of time.

Not long ago we had the privileged of being reminded (for three-seven days) of how much we loved electricity in over half the circuits. It was a holiday or we were really busy and just couldn't get to it. But after running two new "home runs", changing 4 breakers, and rewiring 1/4 of the electrical box we only have one breaker that is still acting up.

A few months ago the guys were saying how they don't want to move in December. Now the guys are saying how moving might be handy. It's funny how things work out.

Sunday, June 7, 2009

For the people that are interested in what the summer might look like, this is the Summer schedule we have worked out for the guys in the home.

House of Hope Summer Schedule

8:00-8:30am Breakfast 7 days a week
8:30-9:00am Breakfast clean up and Room Cleaning 7 days a week
9:00-10:00am Chores: Monday/Wednesday/Friday Monday
Life Skills and Technology: Tuesday/Saturday
10:00-12:00pm Project/Personal Growth time Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday
12:00-12:30pm Lunch
12:30-1:00pm Lunch clean up
1:00-1:15pm Get ready for Work
1:15-2:00pm Leave for Work
2:00-4:00pm Work: Help build Homes
4:00-6:30pm Work: Help Teach English Monday thru Friday
6:30-7:15pm Drive home
7:15-7:45pm Dinner
7:45-8:15pm Dinner clean up


We will see how this works out...