Back Exercises

Because fencing is a high impact sport, different joints get hammered. One of the best way to keep from getting injured, is to strengthen and stretch the high risk areas. Knees, hips, ankles, wrists and back are some high risks areas that have a lot of potential for being injured. Here are some of my favorite back exercises and stretches for fencing:

                                             

                                        

My Four Most Recent French Assignments

Hi everybody! In addition to English 10, Biology, Computer, and Geometry, I am taking French I this year. I use Rosetta Stone and Duolingo for the bulk of my course, but I also get some extra fun tossed into the mix. Both last week and this week, I had some really cool assignments that I wanted to share with you guys.

The first assignment I had was to write a children's book in French. This was probably the most fun of the four assignments I completed. I wrote a children's book with a little boy named Claude
Dubois and his two friends. In my book, we find out what the three children do on each day of the "semaine" or week. As I artistically challenged, my illustrations turned out to be stick figures. Lucky for me, it was French class and not art class.

My second assignment was to write a letter in French. I wrote a letter from the same little boy, Claude Dubois. Claude tells his pen pal all about his pets, his friends, his school and what he likes to do.

The next week, I got to pick from a list for my third and fourth assignments. I picked to bake a french recipe as one of them. I chose to make gougeres which is a kind of French cheese puff. They had a very egg like taste and were very light and airy. Unfortunately, they fell as they cooled. This resulted in them not having the hollow center generally associated with gougeres. Here is a picture of how they should have looked.

 

My final assignment was to listen to some French classical music. I chose to listen to Erik Satie's Gnossienne: No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3. Here they are as played on the piano. 

                                     

Tera's Top Twenty Tips for Injury Prevention

From my previous posts, I suppose my readers have figured out that I am serious about my training. As a fencing athlete, I have experienced quite a number of minor injuries that kept me down for at least a few weeks. Because these set-backs have really hindered me in my training, I have recently been researching injury prevention for athletes. Here are twenty top tips.

1. Stay hydrated.

2. Try balance exercises.

3. Get 7-9 hours of sleep.

4. Warm up before a workout.

5. Cool down after a workout.

6. NEVER skip stretching.

7. Ice sore joints and muscles before they get too serious.

8. Check your form during workouts or drills.

9. Try yoga.

10. Try pilates.

11. Take one or two rest days during the week.

12. Maintain a proper diet.

13. Don't ignore the pain.

14. Wear proper gear

15. Do joint strengthening exercises when involved in high impact sports.

16. Listen to your body.

17. Choose a level place to train.

18. Don't neglect back exercises.

19. Understand the exercise before you do it.

20. Work up to where you want to be.

Computer Class

So, last summer, my mom terrified me with two words: COMPUTER CLASS!!! I need creepy music here. I have never been fluent in computer language. HTML terrifies the heck out of me. Pop-ups on our desktop or laptop are a nightmare. I'm also not of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc., hence, social media was a mysterious phenomenon.
However, I have to admit, computer class has been pretty enjoyable. Mainly because HTML has been denied Access to our class. (Access! You see what I did there? Huh?) But seriously, in this semester we've learned how to use Powerpoint, Access and the major social medias. I'm looking forward to next semester when we learn how to use Word and Excel. Also, we've been using the technology section on a website called www.gcflearnfree.org. It has many tutorials and videos that have helped us a lot.

10 awesome movies!

This is a follow-up post to "20 of my favorite books". I like to watch movies, too! :) These are in no apparent order. I am one of the few teens of my acquaintance who genuinely enjoys old movies. So, there just may be a few old movies on this list. There are also a few movies that betray the fact that I'm still a kid on the inside. Without further ado, here are 10 movies that I, personally enjoy:

1. Shop Around the Corner (My number 1 favorite movie!)

2. The Inspector General (Danny Kaye is probably my favorite actor.)

3. White Christmas (Danny Kaye again!)

4. Woodlawn

5. Peanuts (CHARLIE BROWN!!!)

6. My Fair Lady

7. Mulan

8. Beauty and the Beast (The only Disney princess movie I have ever enjoyed.)

9. Royal Wedding (Fred Astaire's dancing is amazing in this movie!)

10. Box Trolls (I admit, this is a weird one. I'm not really sure why I find it hilarious.)

Friends

What do these famous duos have in common? 

Han Solo and Chewbacca

Frodo Baggins and Samwise Gamgee

Bert and Ernie

Bob and Larry, and the list goes on. 

You got it! They're all friends. 

Now, I know that "unsocialized" is a trigger word for many homeschoolers. Believe me, I know many homeschoolers who are the furthest thing from unsocialized. I,  myself,  am not the most social person in the world. When I go to a party or some other kind of social gathering, I'm usually the quiet one in the corner. Even so, I do have several amazing friends that I value highly as some of the best gifts God has given me. 

But just what makes a friend? Now, I am not talking about acquaintances. I'm talking about what makes a really good friend. 

Well, without further ado, this is my criteria for a good (awesome) friend:

1. Someone you can talk to. They know how to listen.

2. Someone who will help you draw closer to God.

3. Someone who will pray with you when you really need it.

4. Someone who will laugh with you.

5. Someone who will be honest with you.

6. Someone you can trust.

7. Someone who will encourage you.

8. Someone who will stick with you through thick and thin.

9. Someone who believes in you even when you don't believe in you.

10. Someone that you can be goofy around. They won't look at you like you're crazy. In fact, they'll join in!

Anyway, that's what I look for in a good friend. Don't forget that these points go both ways. In order to get a good friend, you have to be a good friend!

A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

Proverbs 17:17 

20 books of my favorite books

I've always liked to read. Some of the books on this list are not exclusively "girl books". Because I have two younger brothers, I have been in many sword fights, rubber band wars and backyard battles. As a result, I happen to be a fan of quite a few swashbuckling adventures. Well, without further ado, here are 20 books of my favorite books that I think every girl should read.

1. The Bible

2. Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery

3. The Story Girl by Lucy Maud Montgomery

4. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

5. Little Men by Louisa May Alcott

6. Persuasion by Jane Austen

7. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

8. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

9. Billy Budd, Sailor by Herman Melville

10. Shakespeare's Sonnets

11. The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

12. The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis (This is actually 7 books in all, but they aren't long.)

13. Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis

14. The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom

15. The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien

16. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

17. Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss

18. Redwall by Brian Jacques

19. The White Gypsy by Anette Lyster

20. At Home in Mitford by Jan Karon