The World According to Leslie

Junior Gold National Tournament, 2021 Indianapolis, IN In 2019, we went to Detroit, MI, for almost two weeks so that Chasity could compete in the Junior Gold National Championships. She qualified in May of that year, we we took off to Michigan in July.  This year, 2021, we took off on July 8 to Indiana. We drove through a few states to get there. On the way back, we stopped in Kentucky (to see Church Hill Downs) and Pigeon Forge (just because).  On the way to Indiana, we saw a lot of rain, but we saw some beautiful clouds after it.  After one of Chasity's practice sessions, we went to downtown Indianapolis. We found Lucas Oil Stadium where the Indianapolis Colts play. We did not go for a tour, but we did drive around and take a lot of pictures. Chasity took pictures on my phone. I used my camera.  Between her 2nd and 3rd practice sessions, we went to the Indianapolis State Fairgrounds . That place is H.U.G.E! We had to do registration so she could get her badge and b...

 There are a million-and-one things that go into homeschooling. Over the past four years, I have been making notes about the things we have needed, wanted, gotten, or gotten rid of in our homeschool.  Enjoy the ABCs of Homeschooling according to Leslie. (Please note that some letters may have more than one thing!   Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash A--Attitude; Art supplies; Art classes B--Books; Binders; Boldness; Bowling Balls C--Curriculum; Conferences; Computer; Compassion; Curiosity; Calculator; Classes D--Desk; Dinner; Dining Room; Decisions; Dishes E--Expectations F--Faith; Fun; Family; Flashlights; Forgiveness; Fairness G--Goals; Grace; God; Google H--Humility; Help; Home; Hot Chocolate; Honesty I--Integrity; Intensity; Imagination J--Jammies; Jokes K--Kids; Kindness; Kidding L--Library Card; Love; Lesson Plans; Learning M--Mentor; Mind; Mental Health N--Notebooks; Neatness; Niceness; Noise; Notes O--Openness; Open-mindedness; Outings; Obedience  P--Pen...

Last week, Tony, Chasity, and I had the opportunity to help assemble bicycles for Toys for Tots.   Cougar Run Winery in Concord saves their tip money for the year and purchases bicycles to donate to Toys for Tots. Last year, they had over 100. This year, they had ALMOST 100---but they were shut down for 4 months!   Imagine what they could have done this year, if they had not been closed for 4 months!  Panoramic Shot of the Room of Bikes and Volunteers Chasity and the group of scouts she was working with assembled 46 of the bikes. That's about 1/2 of the total. They started at 6pm last Thursday, and they were done (and cleaned up) by 9pm. Three hours, 8 scouts, parents too, and they completed 46 bikes!  Tony and Chasity together worked on and completed 8 bikes. Chasity only allowed me to help once or twice. :)  She wanted to do it herself. Tony was there for assistance, if she needed it.  The hardest part on every bike was the brakes. She had to make s...

 In April 2019, so over a year ago, we went to visit Liberty University .  This was during the Spring of Chasity's junior year. This is one of the first schools to which she was accepted.  We were able to see the entire campus. It was truly beautiful! Bell Tower Top of the Bell Tower (from the Ground)                          View of the Lawn from one of the Buildings Water Feature I thought was neat I believe this is the library Softball game The view The view again We are scheduled to go to College for a Weekend (CFAW) in February. I'm hoping to see some snow, and hopefully she will be able to start whittling down her choices.  I have a feeling, considering her choices, that Chasity is going to choose a mountain school. We just have to wait on all the acceptance letters and scholarships, grants, and financial aid to come in!

 Back in August, we visited Chowan University.   The campus is small, about 1200 undergraduate students.  When you pull in, you notice the simple beauty of it.  Entrance Gazebo Columns Building They are decorated for Christmas, but everything is Chowan blue! While we were there, we talked to her admissions counselor, he gave us the tour. We also talked to financial aid!  Oh my!  If you didn't know already, college is expensive! (No matter where you attend!) Finally, we spoke with the athletic director. If Chasity attends Chowan, she will probably be on the bowling team. With her average and skill level, she should fit in well there.  The best part of the long drive to there and back was the cotton fields. They were EVERYWHERE! We found the closest Wal-Mart to Chowan, and there were cotton fields on three sides of the parking lot.  I wanted to touch the cotton, but I never got out of the car to do it. I should have!! These were the fields near Wal-...

Back in September, I think, we went to visit the University of North Carolina at Asheville.  Chasity has decided, for now at least, that this is her first choice school. We will not know until February if she has been accepted or not. The only way to find out sooner was to apply with a binding Early Decision application, and she did not want to do that. This is the view from the library. Chasity and I love the library, of course. This is the view from the front steps. I'd never get any work done with that view, and Chasity probably won't either!  But, she WILL be able to send me thousands of pics of this view (and others from campus and around town).   This is the Bulldog mascot. The legend is that if you touch this statue while you are a student there, you will fail!  We told Chasity not to touch it that day.... just in case! :)  The other legend is that the student who built it wore the same outfit every time he worked on it. Then he put those clothes ins...

As you turn left onto Main Street in Banner Elk, you see a quaint little building labeled "Chamber of Commerce" with a sign out front inviting you to "Race Your Wooly Worm"! Banner Elk, North Carolina, is the home of the Annual Wooly Worm Festival , but it is also home to Lee-McRae College.   Just a couple turns of the tires later, you see this sign saying to "Turn Here" to park for Open House. At check in, they gave us Lunch Vouchers. Three of the four places on the voucher were within walking distance of the campus. The other was only a couple blocks away, so we could have walked there.      Just about every school we have visited has given Chasity a bag and a t-shirt. She's never going to run out of t-shirts!!  At Lees-McRae, they had the bag customized. It had her degree plan in there. It gave information specific about the art program. Most schools just give you a generic bag and let you collect information from your specific program as you make t...