Saying Farewell to MLC

Dear Mindful Learning Center Members and Friends,

It is with great regret that we announce that we will not be continuing with Mindful Learning Center.

This was not an easy decision.  A unanimous vote to dissolve MLC was reached by the Founding Members after a thorough discussion of our group’s sustainability and future potential. While it has been a true blessing to meet with many homeschool families over the years, we have decided to close the co-op permanently.

We sincerely thank all of you who have been part of MLC during the past three years, and we wish you success and happiness in your homeschool journey.

Sincerely, 

Lisa, Leah, Jo, Penny and Jenny

Note: We will leave our Facebook page open until September 1, to allow members to connect with each other, before disabling the page.

Membership Application - Join or Renew TODAY for 2016-17

Hello!  Hope your summer is going well so far!

Well, we are already gearing up for another great year at MLC!  

Our online Membership Application form has been updated and is ready for the 2016-17 year.  

We would like to ask all of our members, who know they will be returning in the fall, to please fill out this form as soon as possible.  It only takes about 2-5 minutes, and it would help us tremendously to begin getting our ducks in a row for next year.  

We only have a few short months to get many things accomplished!

Thank you!

MLC Planning Meeting THIS Friday, May 20th - Please Attend

WHAT and WHEN: 
MLC is having a Planning Meeting THIS Friday, May 20th at 10 a.m. 

This will be our 2nd attempt to hold a Planning Meeting.  The first meeting (held last Friday) had a surprisingly low attendance, with only 2 people replying by email -as requested- that they could not attend.  Roughly 1 member from each TEAM attended, with the Founding Members accounting for 1/2 of the attendance.  

WHO: 

We would like to see as many returning members at this meeting as possible.

If you are unable to make it to the planning meeting, please send us an email at MindfulLearningCenter@gmail.com, so we can be sure to connect you with your other team members at some time. 

We realize that many of you are busy during this time of year or simply have little desire to help with the planning process of our co-op.  Both situations are understandable and recognized as a hurdle to jump every spring/summer.  However, we would like to be clear that in order for this co-op to run smoothly, the tasks of planning and execution should fall on every single member.

WHERE:
We will meet at the Dream Land Playground near the beach located in Lake Manawa State Park in Council Bluffs. Here is a link to Google maps for directions.  Bring a blanket or lawn chairs, and a picnic lunch if you like. There are restrooms on site.

HOW:

After we have settled in at the park, and the children are playing nicely with their friends, we would like to present each Team with a small packet of information to get you started.  It's very well laid out and super easy to follow.  Basically, fill in the blanks and your Team has officially 'planned' next year!  There's nothing to it, it's fun to get the creative juices flowing and bounce ideas off of each other.

So, go ahead, create a Pinterest board, grab a notebook, and search the web for  homeschooling co-op ideas and bring those ideas to the park!

Hope to see you all there! 

Picnic in the Park (1st Team Planning Meeting)

Hello!  We miss you all!  

With busy Spring schedules, wouldn't it be nice to take a break to see some familiar faces?!

MLC is having a Picnic in the Park on Friday, May 13th at 10 a.m. We will meet at the Dream Land Playground near the beach located in Lake Manawa State Park in Council Bluffs. Here is a link to Google maps for directions. Bring a lunch and a blanket or lawn chairs. There are restrooms on site.

We would also like to use this park day to begin planning for next year!

After we have settled in at the park, and the children are playing nicely with their friends, we would like to present each Team with a small packet of information to get you started.  It's very well laid out and super easy to follow.  Basically, fill in the blanks and your Team has officially 'planned' next year!  There's nothing to it, it's fun to get the creative juices flowing and bounce ideas off of each other.

So, go ahead, create a Pinterest board, grab a notebook, and search the web for  homeschooling co-op ideas and bring those ideas to the park!

We would like to see as many returning members at this meeting as possible. If you are unable to make it to the planning meeting, please send us an email at MindfulLearningCenter@gmail.com, so we can be sure to connect you with your other team members at some time. Communication is key! Thank you!

UPDATE - Location Change for Friday's Party

We have a new location for Friday's Summer Kick Off Carnival!! Yay!! Huge thanks to Penny for working this out at the last minute.

Please join us at Breezy Lodge at Arrowhead Park near Neola, IA.  It's just a few minutes off I-80 at the Neola exit:

29357 310th Street, Neola, IA 51559
Directions: Take I-80 to exit #23 (Neola exit), left on L55 one mile

Each family will need to pay a $2.00 daily park use fee upon entering the gates. From there, just follow the signs to Breezy Lodge. We'll still have a kitchen, bathrooms, meeting space, huge deck with picnic tables, etc.

Same time, all other details remain the same as our original post. 

We hope you can still join us!!

URGENT - Change for Friday's Party

URGENT UPDATE about the Summer Kick Off Carnival this Friday, April 15:

Unfortunately, we will NOT be able to hold the party at St. Paul's as planned. We are working on a last-minute change of venue, and will post another update as soon as we have a plan. 

In order to give everyone as much notice as possible, we're going to send this out both as a blanket email and as a web post, so you may get this message twice. 

Watch the website and email for further updates - we'll let you know the new plan as soon as we can.

Announcements 4.8.16

Today was our last class day of the school year. THANK YOU to all of our wonderful member families for the work, creativity, dedication, flexibility, and good humor you've contributed to MLC this year. We are grateful and humbled to be working alongside so many fantastic people, and we appreciate all the effort you put into helping us create a good experience for all of our kids.

Next week is our summer kick-off party. If you plan to come but have not signed up, please do so BY TONIGHT.  We need a head count so we know how much food to buy. We still need helpers with several games and activities, and we are also asking families to bring a dozen cookies or the equivalent if they're able to do so.  Full details and an RSVP form are at the original post HERE.

We have a few end-of-year housekeeping details to point out:
1. If you have any receipts for which you need reimbursement, please give them to our treasurer Penny no later than the party next week. We need to close out our books for this year.

2. If any name tags have made their way to your house, we'd appreciate it if you could bring them back next week, as well. The fewer new ones we have to buy next year, the better.

3. If you or your team have any classroom supplies that belong to MLC, especially non-consumable/reusable supplies like scissors, please also return those to us by the party next week. We'd like to sort through what we have and prepare to turn supplies over to next year's teams. The more supplies we can retain and reuse, the more money we save.

Speaking of teams, if you plan to return to MLC next year and have not yet chosen a team, you can do so on the TEAMS tab of our website. Choose the age group you're most comfortable with, and 'stake your claim' early! Details on park days/planning meetings will be posted soon.

Finally, we're asking current MLC member families who plan to return next year to fill out a new membership form as soon as you're able. We start with a clean slate each year, so we ask you to fill out current information every time you renew your membership.  The simple form can be found under our MEMBER tab. 
       CORRECTION: the membership application/renewal form can be found under the APPLY tab. The Member tab linked above lets you sign up for the Team of your choice.

MLC's Annual Summer Kick-Off Carnival

WHO: Calling MLC members of all ages!

WHAT: Our Annual Pre-Summer Carnival - There will be scooter races, flag football, face painting, and several carnival games with prizes.

WHERE: UPDATE: Location has been changed to Breezy Lodge, Arrowhead Park, 29357 310th Street, Neola, IA 51559

WHEN: April 15, 2016 from 10 to 11:30 am.

RSVP: Members MUST RSVP for this event by APRIL 8th using the form below. (If you are reading this inside your email, you will need to visit our web post to RSVP.)

ADMISSION: We are asking that each family please bring 6-12 treats to share.  This could be fruit, finger foods, cookies, brownies, bars, etc.

Lunch will be provided - hot dogs, chips and beverages!

YOUR HELP IS NEEDED:

This event will require many hands to be successful.  On the RSVP form, please choose an area where you would like to help.  Thanks!

RSVP BY APRIL 8th!

03.11.16 Announcements

• Our Term 4 Field Trip is this coming week, but has been moved to Thursday, March 17. Details are available on the original post. Please RSVP as soon as possible if you plan to attend.

• There are now no scheduled MLC events for Friday, March 18.

• We do meet for regularly scheduled classes on Friday, March 25m which is Good Friday. Please see our CALENDAR for a list of remaining MLC events this spring. 

• Our Summer Kick-off Party is next month. We could use around 15 adult and/or high school age volunteers to help with games and activities. Details including an RSVP form and volunteer sign-up form will be posted shortly.

• Thank you to all parents who were able to attend our informational meetings during classes last Friday. For anyone who was not able to join us, we will be repeating the meetings during both first and second periods on March 25. If you are planning to be part of MLC next year (and we hope that you are!) please try to attend that morning if at all possible. We're talking about our plans and changes for next year - ideally, we'd like to have a parent from every family attend. 

March 17th Field Trip - Nebraska Humane Society

MLC Members will be heading out for a field trip to the Nebraska Humane Society on Thursday, March 17th, at 11 am.  

This is a behind the scenes look at how they operate the humane society. The tour is an educational experience that will cover many topics. The tour will take 45 minutes to an hour.

It is recommended for grades 2 and up, but they are willing to accommodate our group. (We just ask that 'littles' be carefully watched.) 

Date: Thursday, March 17th (NOT Friday, as previously planned)

Time: 11 am (please arrive 10-15 minutes early, so our tour can begin at 11)

Location: Nebraska Humane Society, 8929 Fort Street Omaha, Nebraska, 68134

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO ATTEND THIS TRIP, PLEASE RSVP BELOW!

Announcements 02.26.16

Just a few quick points to note:

• No MLC classes next Friday, March 4.
• Classes resume in two weeks on Friday, March 11.

• If you have photos from MLC events this year that would work well for the Digital Scrapbook/Yearbook project, please email them to MLC's regular gmail account as soon as possible.

See you in two weeks!

Announcements Feb 1, 2016

Just a few quick reminders:

No classes this week, Friday, February 5. 

If you would like to join us for the February 12 Valentine's Day Party, we need your RSVP no later than this evening. We are still in need of a few adult or high school age volunteers to help with crafts and activities.

If you would like to join us for the February 19 Field Trip to the Shrine Circus, we also need your RSVP no later than tonight. Please take note of the special situation outlined in the original post, and be watching for further updates.

Term 4 classes resume on Friday, February 26. 

Some students from the 3rd-5th Grade class on Council Bluffs History have asked for this link to a cache of old photos posted online by the Council Bluffs Public Library.

Field Trip to the Circus - Feb. 19th

MLC is joining the circus going to the circus!!!  

On February 19th, the Shrine Circus has invited us to attend their performance at 1 p.m. The Shriner's have decided to sponsor our admission, so this event is free of charge for MLC families.

While it is free for us, it is important to note that many sponsorships and donors to the Shrine Circus have made this possible.  We are grateful for their generousity and kind invitation to this event.

IMPORTANT NOTE:
This performance has been designed for those in our community with special needs and/or physical disabilities.  They have been kind enough to allow our homeschool group to join them for this performance.  It is only because the Shriner's feel we are capable of keeping our kids under control that they asked us to join them for this special event.  If you plan to attend, please be mindful of those needing extra care or time in moving about the building and while seated.  Again, this program is designed for them and we are simply guests at their event.  Please talk with your children about kindness and respect for those with physical and/or mental disabilities while at this event.  It is important that we represent the homeschool community in a positive way.

DETAILS: 

• Circus performance is on Friday, February 19th at 1pm. at the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs.
• There is a posibility that we might be offered an optional 'behind the scenes' tour prior to the circus.  There is also a possibility that this won't pan out.  More details will be posted here on this website post as they surface next week. 
• All members wanting to attend, MUST RSVP by Monday, January 1st.  This is just a few days away, so please RSVP right away.  (I apologize for needing such a quick turnaround, but we were not able to confirm our invitation until yesterday.)
• Those that RSVP will need to obtain their tickets from Lisa Orsi prior to the show.  It is unclear if an emailed copy will work, or if you will need to make arrangements to pick those up.  Either way, tickets are required for this performance. Ticket information will be posted next week right here on this web page.
• RSVP BELOW (If you are reading this in your inbox, the RSVP form will NOT appear, you need to go to our actual website posting to RSVP.)

Valentine's Day Party - Feb 12th

Hello!  MLC will hold it's annual Valentine's Day Party on Friday, February 12th, 2016, at 10 a.m. at the Council Bluffs Public Library.  This party will be in place of co-op classes that day.

This event is FREE to MLC Members, but you must RSVP for this event if you plan to attend.  This will ensure that our party planners have enough goodies for each child.

Each child is asked to bring 20-30 cards for their peers.  These do not need to be store-bought.  Please encourage your kids to make their cards!  Last year the kids had a blast at this event!

This party is for kids of all ages.  While some of the activities and crafts are geared for the younger kids, we encourage all MLC students to come and join the fun.  Older students could certainly help facilitate all of the activities that are simultaneously going on in one room!

If you would like to join us for this event, please RSVP below by February 2nd.

1/8/16 SNOW CANCELLATION - NO CO-OP TODAY

While the Council Bluffs School District may be open, MLC has decided to close our doors today.

Due to the road conditions we will NOT have co-op classes today, January 8, 2016.  

We will resume classes next Friday.  Stay safe and warm!
If you have friends who attend MLC and may not get this message, please call them.  Thank you.