Canoeing

Rob & Kristi went on a Daddy/Daughter Date

Canoeing on Tempe Town Lake

The weather was perfect and the lake smooth

Nothing like hanging out with Dad!

New Curtains

Niki & Sally decided to make some new drapes for our living room! I have the best daughters-in-law in the world! But they got in a little over their heads...

They were having all sorts of problems and taking WAY too long to make them... so we had to hire foreign help...
These ladies worked much faster...
A little bent over... but they seemed to know what they were doing.
Ta da! Definitely pays to go foreign!

This is a product of THREE long days of sewing and several trips to the store to exchange hardware. Awesome!

Fedora Date

Kristi is into Fedora hats lately
Amber, Spencer & Kristina dressed for the Prom -

is this a Fedora Prom?
Kristi's First Date!

Curly Locks

TJLA - Commonwealth School

Here's a peek into our commonwealth school - Thomas Jefferson Leadership Academy (TJLA)

Shakespeare Class

The students were assigned to make masks during the week to bring to class

They used the masks to get in character

This is part of their actor's training
Some made fairly simple masks

Some were very creative

and others very complex!

Hanging out during lunch break - always incorporates music

Lunch Break

Several of the students play the piano VERY well! They really inspire each other!

The Principles of Leadership Class have created a GREAT line dance!

Each of the students contributed to creating the dance steps

Meanwhile... the TJYC Class is busy writing essays

They studied John Brown this week...

and learned to look deep into their own hearts and motives

and to base all their decisions on truth and light - not just passion.
These are an amazing group of youth!

This is Sue's TJYC class - Thomas Jefferson Youth Certification

TJYC is a 3 semester course that incorporates writing, literature, history, government, and leadership. The students can earn college credit for this class - some high schools even give up to eight credits for this course. It is intense! They have written some amazing essays so far!

Here is what they study for Level 1 - First Semester:

Read and discuss biographies of Martin Luther, Patrick Henry, Abraham Lincoln, John Brown, Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr. - along with documents written by these famous men - Luther's Defense at the Diet of Wyrms, Henry's "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death", Lincoln's Gettysburg Address & Second Inaugural Address, Brown's Final Address to the Court, Gandhi's "It's a Sick World", King's "I Have a Dream", and finally the Declaration of Independence.

Afterwards they write essays on each of these men addressing some very difficult issues and penetrating questions.

Along with reading all of these biographies, they read and participate in a colloquium on the following classics: "Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens," "The Walking Drum," "The Chosen," and "A Tale of Two Cities."

They also have four lectures on Leadership Education encompassing the following: the 3 Systems of Education, the 4 Phases, 5 Environments, 7 Keys, Scholarship Ladders and the Liberal Arts, and 6 Keys to Personal Influence.

Finally, they have a written final, an essay exam, and oral exams by a panel of adults. And that's only the FIRST semester!