Bittersweet Ski Resort for Family Fun

Here's my attempt at a selfie with my daughter at the ski hill. I'm not sure that I would consider this travel since it's only 40 minutes from where we live. It is certainly family time.

This is what we do in winter. We ski and make the best of what Michigan has to offer. This is Bittersweet Ski Resort in Otsego, MI. It has a great beginner hill which includes a carpet, tow rope, and even a chair lift. I could spend all day on the bunny hill. But, my kids prefer the steeper hills so we move on to those. 

They also have a few blue runs that are great for the average skier. The black diamonds are a bit too steep for my taste, but all my kids love them!

The only warning I have is to watch out for snow boarders. For some reason they just plop themselves down wherever they please and it's like an obstacle course, especially on weekends. 

Being that we home school, we try to go when it's not so busy, like during the week days. 

Yes, We Kind of Home School

It's complicated. Usually when people ask you where your kids go to school, it's an easy answer. You say the name of the school or that you home school. That's it. You move on. Not us.

Last year we decided we needed a change. Public school worked out for many years. However, last year we realized it wasn't working so well for our family anymore. We decided to look at alternatives. Private school wouldn't change the crazy schedule that was burning us out. And I was very leery of winging it with home school because I knew I didn't have the time required for picking out curriculum that would suit my students.

In our neck of the woods a new opportunity opened up for us. A local charter school offered an online school with an iCafe where the students could go to as often as needed for help. In addition, they offered an hour of each class a week for the middle and high school grades. Elementary had an option to be on campus twice a week.

We decided to try this out for this school year. So, we are home schooling, kind of. The kids don't go to school in the traditional sense. Neither do they home school the way most kids are home schooled. Now try to explain that to someone. When I do, there are almost always a lot of questions that come up after that. Sometimes I just say we home school. Other times I say we do an online school. But then, when I tell my them I have to go pick up my kids from school they are confused. Like I said, it's complicated.

Now that we are over halfway through the school year, I have to admit that we are enjoying this change. We like that we are at home for most of the days. Being able to go to school a couple days a week is also great for everyone in the family, including mom. Speaking of mom, not having to be responsible for the curriculum or teaching all of it has been helpful.

All in all, kind of home schooling is working out well for our family, even if it's hard to explain.

Field Trip