Getting ready for another year!

It has been a while (since February) since I have updated the blog.  This is mainly due to the following:

1. An epic flooding of our entire house in early February due to a busted pipe that completely threw our house into total mayhem for a couple of months.  (I will not go into the details because I just don't want to rehash some really bad memories.  It was truly traumatizing for someone with OCD tendencies such as myself.)
2. A really crazy month of May.  Ballet recitals, kindergarten graduations, birthday parties, etc.  It was fun but nuts.
3. And.....summertime laziness.  :)

But, it's time to shake off those summer time "lazies" and prepare for the new school year.

Our Little School Girl is not so little anymore.  She will be starting first grade this year!!  She's reading and everything now...it's so weird.  Time really does fly by.  And this year, we will be adding some pre-K activities in for Little Bit.

I am trying my best to keep it simple this year.  We are going to have so much going on this school year.  Right now, I feel like I'm slowly going up a roller coaster, butterflies accumulating in my tummy from the anticipation of the fast ride I know is coming up soon.  I know homeschool moms school multiple kids all the time but this will be my first year and I'm totally nervous. 

Here is what is currently on my plate for the fall:

1. Schooling both girls
2. Teaching two classes at our local co op (physical science and physics)
3. Taking Little School Girl to theater class once a week
4. Talking Little Bit to gymnastics once a week
5. Heading up Little Keeper Club
6. Working on my yoga teacher certification (and hopefully teaching some classes starting in October)
7. Tutoring the occasional straggling chemistry student
8. And....teaching Bible class at our local congregation

WHEW!  This isn't just going to be any rollercoaster.  It's going to be one of these!
 

 

 

It will be fun though and totally worth it.  Both of my girls are really excited.  :)

 

Just a few words about curriculum.  (In case your interested.)

 

For our Little School Girl (who will be in the first grade), I have decided to go with Moving Beyond the Pages.  Here's what I really like about Moving Beyond the Pages.  It is literature based and it's all planned out for me.  I love the fact that we will read a book and do lessons based upon the story.  Go here to find out more. 

 

For math we will be using Singapore Math of which I have heard good things.  We ordered it here through the Moving Beyond the Pages website. 

 

For Bible we will be using a free curriculum from Apologetics Press.  You can find it here if you are interested. 

 

That's it for Little School girl.  Keeping it simple this year folks.  :)

 

For Little Bit (who will be 4), I am using a free curriculum I found at Preschool Alphabet.  You can find it here if you are interested.  Basically, there are 26 already planned out lessons/ activities to do with your preschooler.  A different letter of the alphabet for each week.  I love it.  It's fun.....it's already planned out....it's FREE!  Can't get much better. 

 

That's it for curriculum talk.  I'm really trying to keep it simple this year.  Last year I planned all sorts of things but when it came to it, our Little School girl was a bit overwhelmed and things got a bit ugly for a while.  No, we are not a "child centered" home.  We do not let children dictate policy around here.  But I do want my girls to love learning and never grow tired of it.  I love, love, LOVE to read, learn new things and explore.  I don't ever want to push my girls so hard that they "hate school." 

 

Before I end this post, I would like to show you the highlights from our crazy life since I haven't updated for a while.  After all, the main purpose of this blog is to keep a journal for my girls to have and look back on when they are older. 

 

Here are the highlights from March until now. 

 

 

 

A trip to Missouri to see family

 

Learning to cook with Keeper Club friends

 





Field trip to the local University lab with the co op big kids....so cool.  

 

 

Little Bit's first hair cut  :) 

 

Spring time fun!

 

Easter

 

Co op Fun (Yes, that's me teaching with a grumpy kid on my hip.  I just love our co op!)

 

 

Homeschool fun

 

 

Learning manners and table setting with Keeper Club friends

 

Field day fun!  Check out how proud they are of those ribbon....lol!

 

Ballet recital

 (Our Little School Girl had to decided between ballet and theater this year.  She chose theater.  So no recital this year.  Kind of sad about that.  Aren't they so cute!)

 

 

 

Kindergarten graduation....Waaaa  :( 

 

Our Little School Girl got her ears pierced.  Mega, MEGA drama. 

 

Frozen birthday party!!!

 

 

 

End of the year Keeper Club party

 

Little School Girl finally decided to cut off her "Rapunzel" hair

 

Family reunion....we got to see our Meme!  :)

 

4th of July celebrations

 

 

Princess theater camp...so much fun!

 

 

 

 

Lake fun

 

Summer reading program at the local library....Summer of Science!  

 

And the highlight of our summer......the birth of a new little cousin! 

 

 

Isn't that the most precious thing you've ever seen!  What a way to end summer.  :)

 

 

 

That is pretty much our crazy life since March.  I hope you stick with us as I try and do a better job at the blog thing.  (Seems like I say that every time)  I have added new categories for recipes, Bible class and other things.  So be looking out for new blog posts.  And I wish all our homeschool, public school and private school friends a wonderful and blessed new school year.  Here we go again! 

 

Katie



Count your rainbows, not your thunderstorms

Last night, I had the honor to gather with a very small but very important group of women to me.  Someone said something to me at this gathering; something very commonly said to me that all the sudden stood out in a new light.  I wanted to take a few minutes to share something with you today.

 You see, I am currently a member of a small church of Christ.  I like belonging to a small congregation as opposed to a larger one.  I have been to larger congregations and while I have experienced lots of love in them, I did not feel that closeness that I feel with this smaller one. 

Our small group of ladies have started a once a month Bible study for women, for the old hens and the young chicks as my mother-in-law so humorously stated during the lesson last night, and I am very excited about it!  As we gathered around, ate a wonderfully delicious supper together and talked about issues that we Christian women face, I felt so much closeness from the fellowship with my sisters in Christ.  If you are a Christian woman, especially a "young chick" one, I highly encourage you to join in an effort like this.  We need as much encouragement as we can get in this world! 

Anyway, last night, after our meal and lesson concluded, we all talked and laughed for what had to have been an hour.  At one point, someone said to me "I admire you for homeschooling!  I could never do that."  I can not tell you how many times people have said this to me.  Not to put down anyone's attempt to compliment me, but I sometimes think it's one of those phrases people say when they really don't know what else to say.  You know, like "Well, we are praying for you!"  or "Let us know if there is anything we can do."  Don't get me wrong, I believe the intentions behind each of these phrases are very sincere and I was not offended in ANY way by the compliment.   In fact, I always reply with a very sincere thank you.  But I just can't help feeling like there is not much that is admirable about homeschooling. 

While writing this blog post, I decided to look up the meaning of the word admirable.  Since I hear the word a lot, I wanted to know exactly what people mean when they say this to me.  The online Merriam-Webster dictionary defines admirable as "deserving the highest esteem: excellent."  Wow.  Let me tell you.  As someone who knows me best, this is not me at all.  Homeschooling is a very non-excellent thing for me.  And there may be a bit of esteem involved but it is certainly not the highest.  I think outsiders, if you'll allow me to use that word, may think homeschooling looks something like this...
 

Or possibly even this....

 

 

But that is a different blog post altogether.  



But, I assure you, homeschooling in this family looks just like this...

Now, there's nothing admirable about that is there?  I mean, you may be admiring those sweet cat pajamas but other than that...nothing admirable.  I am constantly worn out.  There are days when I just want to completely throw in the towel, raise the white flag, jump ship, etc.  But I don't because I have help from the great I AM.  Without constant communication through prayer with God, trust me homeschooling would not be possible...at least not for me.  Our Little School girl is extremely strong-willed.  And Little Sis can make the worst messes I have ever seen.  I love my girls with all my heart but there are days where I literally have to take a break.  I will go to my bedroom or bathroom (wherever I can get away behind a locked door) and quietly cry my eyes out in prayer, usually while lying prostrate on the floor.  I'll beg God for more strength, more courage, and definitely more patience.  It's not pretty but it's effective.

While giving my usual, "Thanks!" and "It's fun but hard!" responses to this sweet lady last night, I remembered a quote I saw on Facebook the other day.  "Count your rainbows, not your thunderstorms."  I have no idea who said this but they are right on!  I am constantly learning to focus on those rainbows; relying on God to help us through those bad days and really, really enjoying those good ones.  When I start to think about all the rainbows that the thunderstorms of homeschooling can bring, it really does start to make the whole situation a little more admirable for me.  Snuggling with my girls every morning, spending so much time getting to know them and their sweet and funny little personalities, seeing all their milestones, achievements and AHA! moments, comforting them when they get a boo-boo....I could go on and on about all the rainbows.

If you are a homeschooling mom, then you will know exactly what the spirit of the post means.  If you are not a homeschooling mom, then maybe you now have a little better understanding of our lives as homeschooling mothers.  Definitely not admirable but definitely worth it. 

God bless!

Katie

November 2013 to January 2014

Inspired by a fellow blogger friend of mine and some spare time from our Louisiana "snowless" snow day, I've decided to take a few minutes to update our blog.  No school and no ballet today means I actually have some time to give this poor neglected thing some attention.

Homeschooling has been going very smoothly lately.  I think my little school girl (who is not seeming so little to me all the sudden lately) has finally accepted me as her "teacher."  I remember several times last year during our preschool time she asserted that she did not want her mommy as her teacher.  I think it might have something to do with our similarly bossy personalities crashing head on....a lot.  My little sister recently shared a quote with me about not calling little girls bossy saying instead that they have leadership skills.  I like that much better.  I love my little school girl for her "leadership skills" and I think she is finally realizing that her "leadership skills" will never win over her mother's.  She's learning respect....finally.  Which is a very important life skill, by the way! 

Along with finally learning some respect, our little school girl is sailing along with her other "subjects."  In fact, just yesterday we were joking about her wearing her "smarty pants" after reading several books to me all by herself!  Even little sis (who is now 3) is really starting to become interested in school.  I just recently discovered she can just about recognize all of her capital letters and knows most of their sounds!  Little sis is always so silly making us laugh with all her craziness.  She has just shown no interest in being serious about learning.  When asked what sound the letter A makes, she usually answers us with a raspberry from her tiny little tongue.  Now, she will actually tell us some letter sounds before resorting to the raspberry.  She is so cute. 

Anyway, I just wanted to take a few minutes to update the blog with our progress this year and some pictures from our holidays.  Now, I have to get back to preparing for our homeschool co-op tomorrow.  Now that our weather scare has been found out to be nothing more than just really cold air with light rain, I'm pretty sure it will be business as usually tomorrow for us. Take care if you are having some really bad weather and I hope you enjoy the picture update. 

 

 November 2013

 

 

 First Thanksgiving Feast with friends from our homeschool co-op

 

 

Me and my little sister at her 1st half marathon

 

Family time at the state fair 

 

Little Keeper Club...we collected canned food for a local drive and decorated pillow cases to send to our troops

December 2013

 

Ballet fun at the annual Christmas ballet....The Guardians of Christmas!  

 

Jack Frost...her favorite character!!!

 

Little Keeper Club Christmas Party!



 

Lots of fun family time at Christmas!

 

Decorating gingerbread houses

 

 

Decorating the tree

 

 

Visiting Santa!  Got to love the surprised reindeer in the background...lol!

 

Getting their annual ornament from Red the Elf

 

Time with goofy cousins

 

Walking in the woods behind my grandmother's house.  I used to walk in these same woods with my grandparents when I was a child.  I love this place. 

 

A fairy hat the Little School Girl and I concocted on our walk

 

January 2014

 

Going to see Frozen at the Boardwalk!

 

Back to school!  An activity to go with our book study of The Mitten.  How many stuffed animals can we fit into our "mitten?"

 

This many!

 

We found icicles.....in Louisiana! 

 

Making our own snow....since none will come to us.  A fun little science experiment using baking soda and shaving cream.

 

The Little School Girl's snowman

 

Pour vinegar over the "snow" mixture and you have a SNOWMAN MASSACRE!!! 

 

Fieldtrip to the science museum to see the Lego exhibit and other fun

 

Yes, that is a real snake.  Little School girl loved it.  Me?  Not so much.  I may have had a mini heart attack.

 

The Little School girl lost her first tooth on my birthday!  For some reason this is the only picture I got that day of her missing tooth.  I did get a hilarious video though. 

 

Another cute snaggle tooth picture with one of her ballet friends who also lost her first tooth recently.  :)

 

Our Cat had her kittens in January.  Lots of questions from the Little School Girl about that.  Anybody want one???

 

Not the best picture but that's some serious kitten cuteness there! 

 

Of course we spent time at one of our most favorite places....the library.  :)

 

A second field trip in January.  This one to the local weather station

 

And we wrapped up January with a yoga play date with some sweet friends

 

That is some serious yoga cuteness! 

 

Sorry for the lengthy post!  Hope you all are having a great February so far and I hope you are staying warm!

 

 

Katie