Roberts Family Times
December 2002

Academics

The Roberts children are homeschooled. Here is a list of the work they have been doing over the past year.

KATIE has been focusing on math, science, and geography this year. In math, she finished her 6th grade book and is over half done with the Key to Algebra series. In science, she has passed with flying colors her tests on 4th, 5th, and 6th grade science. In geography, Katie presents a Country of the Day every day at supper. She started with Asia. Every day she presents a fact and the capital of the country. She finished Asia recently and to date the family has learned 5 European countries. Katie is also doing a daily geography quiz at www.funbrain.com/where/index.html.

JESSICA has been focusing on math, spelling and geography. She has finished her 3rd grade math and is now almost halfway through the Key to Fractions series. She does a 5-minute spelling test every day. She is also doing the Funbrain.com Where is that quiz. She is on level 1 Europe and Katie is on level 3.

JOSIAH has been working on reading and handwriting. Recently he finished his Alpha-Phonics and learned to read! His handwriting is getting better and he is reading like a wild man! He is writing some stories about a character he created named Space Pig, who is essentially an astronaut piggy! The Complete Adventures of Space Pig are here.

ANDREW has been working on the alphabet, counting, and writing his name. He can now write his name legibly without help and can do simple connect-the-dots and mazes and count to 15. Andrew also just learned to draw crosses and color inside the lines! Not bad for a three-year-old!

ALL the Roberts children have learned a lot this year. There's no doubt about that!

Katie Roberts
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About the Roberts Family

Scott Roberts and Patty Roberts have been married for over 15 years. Scott likes just about every sport under the sun, while Patty could read books for a week straight. She homeschools her four kids. Her kids, Katie (13), Jessica (12), and Josiah (9) have inherited her love of books. Katie has also inherited her father's love of sports (especially softball) and computers. Jessica is the artist of the family. She likes to draw, sing, dance, and perform. Josiah, the engineer of the family, has a blast playing with his Legos and K'Nex. Andrew is 4 and was adopted at the age of two weeks. He is cute, obnoxious, biracial, and adores vehicles! His car collection could rival for the largest in Missouri owned by a 4 year old! For more on him, see Person of the Year. The family lives in the thriving metropolis of Walnut Shade, Missouri, population 500.They have the second biggest white frame farmhouse in Walnut Shade. They moved there in 1996 after Scott Roberts was called to the ministry. They have lived there ever since.

Katie Roberts
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Jessica's Birthday

Jessica Lindsay Roberts, 11, had her birthday on Nov. 14, 2002. She had a wonderful sleepover party that was enjoyed by all. We interviewed Jessica recently about the events of her birthday party, which began on Friday night, November 15.

RFT: What sort of stuff did you do at your party?

Jessica: I had a sleepover party. We also went swimming at Settle Inn and had a treasure hunt and ate pizza!

RFT: Wait a minute. What is a treasure hunt?

Jessica: Let's see. A treasure hunt is when my mom writes clues on little cards and hides them all over the house. And she hides them outside some, too! The last clue leads to the treasure, which is always something from the $1 Shop for each person.

RFT: What foods did you have?

Jessica: I had apple pie, carrot cake, Neapolitan ice cream, pizza, and Sprite. For breakfast Saturday morning we had French toast, bacon, orange juice and milk.

RFT: Who did you invite to your party?

Jessica: I invited Devon Reick, Jennifer Hughes, Danielle Lee, Aimee Lambeth and Morgan Gaar.

RFT: What were some of the gifts you received?

Jessica: I received a total of (drum roll, please) $40, a BibleMan Shattering the Prince of Pride video, a new Bible, some Bloodhounds, Inc. books, jewelry, art supplies, a coupon book from my parents, and a poem from my sister.

Katie Roberts
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A Mom's Day (poetry by Patty Roberts)

First read the Bible, then walk to the gate.
Pray on the porch for a while.
Shower and makeup and all this long hair.
What will I do for some style?

Drag Jo from bed, eat breakfast and then
Try to keep everything going.
Fractions and Space Pig and algebra, too
Spelling and, "What’s Andrew doing?"

Daily chores, checklists, and errands to run,
Homeschooling records to keep.
Emails and phone calls and reading at lunch.
Hopefully Andrew will sleep!

Neighbor kids playing.
"Mom, what’s for supper?"
Wonder when Dad will be home.
Yangon, Mayanmar and Taipei, Taiwan;
All over Asia we roam.

Otters and Beavers are conquering Bridge.
Boys Moto Race for a while.
Bathtime and bedtime,
"Will you do me, Mom?"
Read, pray, and talk with each child.

Wrapping up details and watching the fire,
Talking of what we'll do next.
I'm not ever bored, and I am assured
That home with the kids is the best.

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Space Pig (fiction by Josiah Roberts)

SPACE PIG said to his family, "I have to be Space Pig. Goodbye, Mom and Dad!"

Space Pig was working in the space port when the space port went haywire. "Oh, no!" said Space Pig. "Oh, I will have to fix it." So he got on his space suit and went out to fix. When he got out to fix it, the space port blew up. Everyone screamed, except Space Pig.

Space Pig saw a tree tied to the space port and said, "Why is this tree tied to the space port?" The space workers said, "We do not know." And Space Pig said, "Cut the rope." The space workers cut the rope and the tree said thank you. And then the tree flew back to Earth to be with all the other trees.

Space Pig made a duplicate of his good side and it said, "Space Pig's good side, the only good side that is likely to do bad. Whoops! I just thought an evil thought."

K'Nex Man was in his flying saucer and him and his robot dog, Gotter, were on a trip to the space port. As he approached the space port, he saw Enemy P\5.A\9 approaching the space port. Boom boom it shot it. Space Pig, Gotter, and K’Nex Man zoomed to the rescue and BOOM BOOMED them.

The Complete Adventures of Space Pig
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Sports

Baseball

In baseball, the Roberts family watches the St. Louis Cardinals, the best team in National League Central and one of the four best teams in baseball. They also watch the Boston Red Sox in the American League. The Cards lost to the Giants in the playoffs and the Red Sox were 2nd in the American League East and did not go to the playoffs. But they'll be back next year!

Football

In football, the Roberts family watches the St. Louis Rams. Scott Roberts has been a fan since 1999, when Kurt Warner started as the team's quarterback. He likes Warner because he is an outspoken Christian. The Rams are third in NFC West standings and 21st in the NFL with a 5-8 record. Unfortunately, Kurt Warner will probably be out for the rest of the season.

Family Sports

The Roberts family has been active in sports this year. In softball, Scott Roberts’ church league team finished 5th or 6th in the playoffs. Katie Roberts' girls 11-13 year olds team finished 2nd in the playoffs.

In winter sports, the sledding was good on December 4-5, after a heavy snow of 8". Even Patty Roberts went down the Smart Lane hill three times. Neighbors Jerod and Carolyn Hill, Phillip Stearns (9), and Danielle (9), Justice (6), and Diamond (5) Lee also tried out the hill. A snowball fight occurred on December 5 with Scott and Andrew Roberts against Katie, Jessica and Josiah Roberts and Danielle, Justice and Diamond Lee. The final outcome was unclear. In February, Katie Roberts went on a 5-day skiing trip in Switzerland. Scott Roberts was green with envy!

The Walnut Shade Jr. Olympics were held on November 20-25. All the Lee children and all the Roberts children participated. Katie Roberts won the 100 yard dash and the 1/2 mile bicycle race. Josiah Roberts won the 200 yard dash, and Danielle Lee and Jessica Roberts beat Katie Roberts and Justice Lee in the soccer finals. In the Kickball kick, Katie Roberts and Jessica Roberts tied for first place, and in the Propane Tank Race, Jessica Roberts came out the victor. All in all it has been a great year for sports in the Roberts family. We hope that it will be as good in 2003!

Katie Roberts
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Thanksgiving

The Scott Roberts family continued a family tradition and spent their Thanksgiving at the home of Mr. and Ms. Alan Varner (Patty Roberts' parents) of North Little Rock. The Roberts family arrived there Wednesday evening and left Friday afternoon. For Thanksgiving dinner, Mrs. Varner served hot mashed potatoes, smoked turkey and ham, stuffing, and other traditional Thanksgiving dishes, including apple and pumpkin pies for dessert. Mmm! On Thursday afternoon, the family spent some time with Patty's brother David and his family. "It was really great to see our cousins again!" said Katie Roberts, 12. Their cousins are Cody (10), Haley (8), and Marty (7).

Another tradition that the family continued was the 'turkey feathers' sent out each year by the Jones family of Deerfield, Ill. Scott's sister and her family send out paper feathers to each member of their extended family with instructions for each family member to write on the feathers something he or she was thankful for. Then the feathers were sent back to the Jones family and taped up to a paper turkey on the wall. As this tradition reminds us, Thanksgiving is a special time, set aside for thanking God for all that He has done for us. As you read this, take a moment to remember to thank Him for what He has done for you. Because He truly is the Reason for the Season.

Katie Roberts
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Videos, Books, and More

The Book of the Year award for Adults goes to Kurt Warner's autobiography, All Things Possible. This book is more than just a great sports story. It is also the story of a man whose faith in God carried him through the tough times and through it all, showed him that "With God, all things are possible". A remarkable story of one man who grew up in poverty and rose to become the top player in the NFL.

For kids, the Book of the Year award goes to The Beginner's Bible Stories to Sleep On. Children will be delighted at the stories of kids just like them, who get lost in the mall or experience a scary storm, and are reminded of God's love for them through timeless Bible treasures like the story of Noah’s ark or Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Great for bedtime stories!

The best video of the year is undoubtedly BibleMan: Shattering the Prince of Pride. One of the most exciting videos in the BibleMan series, this is the story of the evil Prince of Pride, who threatens to destroy BibleMan's new Christian comic strip-and BibleMan himself in the process! Is BibleMan any match for a villain with an ego? Find out in Shattering the Prince of Pride, available from your local Christian bookstore.

The best computer game of the year is MotoRacer, an exciting computer game that features practice and racing modes, Reverse Mode, Pocket Mode and all sorts of awesome motorcycles that you can race against the computer or race by yourself. Great for kids 7-12!

The Roberts Family Person of the Year is Andrew Alan Roberts. Andrew is three [now 4] years old and was born in Nashville, TN on May 26, 1999. His mother was white and his father was black. He was adopted by the Roberts family at the age of 2 weeks. Andrew loves cars, trucks, helicopters, trains, and airplanes. His favorite pastime is playing Moto Racer. He sometimes does it for an hour at a time. Andrew is the father of Alex, who is one and looks just like his dad. Andrew is cute and talkative. It is suspected that he likes the sound of his own voice. Andrew is a member of a loving family. We are proud of Andrew. (click here for Andrew's life story)

Katie Roberts
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This page was last updated on Wednesday, June 9, 2004