Ten Days

We are just ten days from the official start of our next learning year. I'm up to my neck in paper, but I know what I'm doing with most of it. I've prepped and freshened our school room. I've shopped for what few supplies we needed and I've pulled together some First Day gift bags. I've worked on our daily habits and even loaded my i-pod with new audios, music and old favorites for our in between time listening pleasure. I've planned a birthday party for our last weekend, I fought through the coughing-hacking plague. We've nearly completed our summer list for all intents and purposes. And everyone...everyone...is getting restless. The true sign that all-things "play" gets old even when you're 4 and 8.

I still have to update our timeline; the figures are all cut out. I need to finish assembling our last lapbook from the previous year. I've got to finish a couple of great books I'm reading and do more deep cleaning sweep through my house, (sarcasm alert) because everyone knows you can't start school with things out of order (eyes rolling). I have a burning desire (also) to lose ten pounds, bake enough bread to get us through the winter, crochet everyone new sweaters, have all grey hair miraculously revert to it's previous splendor, and be 35 again (don't ask). But in all reality, I'll have to settle for everyone having clean underwear that day.

I'm facing up to the calendar I'd previously decided on. Starting this early does have it's down sides, but I'm pretty sure the frequent breaks will make up for it. I like all the things we're planning and pray that the Lord is in it all, going before us every step of the way!

Reflections From a First Year Veggie Gardener

We're midway (I guess) through our vegetable growing season and what do I have to show for it? A few goodies and a lot of gained knowledge! It's been a great experience for our family. There is most assuredly room for improvement.

We really want to try corn next year! Everyone's hankering for sweet corn. I'd also like to try seed growing and maybe find some heirloom varieties.

First off, none of my spinach grew. Not sure why.

Also, cauliflower is more hassle (bugs, bugs, bugs!) than it's worth. No yield yet. Takes up a lot of space too.

The one melon plant that we put in has gone nuts and may yield 100 melons, if the flowers are any indication. Some of the leaves are appearing to brown and dry. Not sure why. It's getting plenty of water. Maybe too much sun?

The lettuce was a hit, but 2nd crop went to seed way quick. Have to be on the ball with it. I probably planted too much (12).

Our Sweet 100's are awesome, but it's been difficult to harvest enough at one time for more than a taste. We'll plant two of those babies next year.

Ack! The Japanese Beetles love the greenbean leaves. They haven't affected the beans yet. I just didn't want to use pesticide on them and those bags just attract more!

The one pea plant is not producing very much; same for the green bean plant.

The lima beans started out well, but fizzled.

The broccoli came out great, but a lot of room for the amount of yield. Probably not worth it for the size garden I have. Rabbits ate one.

Big tomatoes just didn't come in this year. Not sure what happened. Maybe transplanted too late.

Need more strawberry plants. Blackberry bush doing well in it's pot. Not sure about the blueberry bush. Maybe next year?

No sign of any peppers yet. We'll see. None of my squash or zucchini grew. Second year in a row! Very frustrating. They have good soil, water and sun. Could be those blasted rabbits!

My vine plants need more room. The greenbeans and peas are all intertwined. The melon needs a lot more vine. The Sweet 100's could use a tall cage instead of the vine. We'll see.

Overall, for what I started out to grow, we're only getting about a fourth. That seems like a lot of waste. I need to read more.

Don't laugh, but one of the biggest frustrations has been figuring out when to harvest. The book I have doesn't tell you. I did find out from the web why all my tomatoes were splitting--I was waiting too long and they were over ripening on the vine. Problem solved! I'm such a green-horn at this green stuff!! :)

If She Only Knew

The word "hic*key" (excuse the *'s to prevent unwanted traffic!) hasn't been used in my house ever. The last time I probably heard it was 8th grade (public school, of course!). So you can imagine my shock and horror when I discovered a very large "one" on my daughter's upper arm. Speechless, I gasped and sputtered looking for the proper thing to say. "That" word was NOT chosen. Once we realized how it got there, we were stunned (to say the least).

It turns out, my 4yo daughter has taken a liking to su*cking on her own upper arms. She does this until a very pur*ple mark appears! This is definitely a new one on me. Why on earth she would take to that habit is beyond me. I promise you...she is getting enough to eat! After repeated warnings and appeals to quit, I'm down to pulling out the long sleeves in this 90 degree weather and getting (hopefully) my point across.

Ewww! My poor baby... What ever is it that's causes children to come up with stuff like this?!

It's just a phase. It's just a phase. It'll pass. It'll pass. It's just a phase.

Spell to Write and Read: "Learning Log" Notebooking Pages

We LOVE our Spell to Write and Read! We are just beginning our fourth year with it and after so much "practice", I'm finding there are a few things I like my own way.

Though we loved the primary learning logs, we do not like the black 3rd yr+ logs. Too much work for the results. So, in an effort to simplify, I've made my own necessary notebooking pages. These include "collection" pages that were not originally in the learning logs, but were suggested. Such as abbreviations, homophones, etc. Son has enjoyed "collecting" these words and categorizing them.

I'm making these pages available to anyone interested. I've also put the link in my sidebar. I hope that they will be of benefit.

We keep them in a three-ring report folder with a clear front. Son creates his own cover for each year which makes things more appealing to him. Some pages may require more than one page, and it never hurts to have a blank for some extraneous word collecting.

Please let me know if you "grab" these, and what you think!
*Link has been edited. Please re-try new link to file.

*These pages are not endorsed by SWR. Nor are they absolutely true to the program. They are my expression of how we currently use the program with our 8yo son who is very much the reluctant writer. These pages may be used for any spelling program or notebook. They are my more relaxed attempt to add back in some of the content of what was in the black learning log that we skipped last year because of writing.

Heading "Back to School"

I've been listening to Andrew Pudewa quite a bit lately, and I've particularly enjoyed all his insights into education, boys and girls.

One idea I heard today as I was listening to "What Are We Really Doing Here?" revolves around back to school time and, in particular, the thought process that some might go through in putting their children back into public school.

He suggests two things:
1. Borrow and read through the text books they will use.
2. Spend a full day in the classroom observing. That should be the least that you do to decide.

I find it interesting how many people over the years have asked if they could observe our school day to see how it works. Granted, homeschooling is not as familiar to most, but there seems to be a sense of disbelief that this "homeschooling" thing works. Our "trust" is so firmly planted in the "way" of the public school. It's familiar, therefore we "believe" in it. Interestingly, no one has ever followed through in observing our day, though being welcomed. Again. Many just don't want to believe it works.

So that is what I'm thinking about this stormy Monday morning as I come down from my treadmill listening.

The Literal Child

The literal child is upset by the idea that you should GIVE your HEART to Jesus. Wouldn't it hurt to pull out one's heart for anyone? Don't you NEED your heart?

This was the first indication that I had a literal child.

Then there was the toothpaste...

"DON'T swallow the toothpaste! It has soap in it and it's not good for you. Spit it out."

Hours later she is found washing her hands with toothpaste...because it has SOAP in it!

Oh boy!

Just Routine?

I was thinking about another chore routine the other day, when it hit me. The more diligent I become in caring for my family and our home, the less need there is for a system. Diligence, in this instance, has come to mean doing what needs to be done, when it needs to be done. And when there is time.

Over the years I've struggled with establishing a daily, weekly, seasonal way of "doing". I'm organized by nature, so this seemed a natural extension of that. Then I would become so frustrated with the inability to keep up. Especially in light of the many disruptions of life. I was always trying to overcome, and always falling short.

But, as I was having my moment of inspiration, I realized that everything does get done! If it's summer time and the trash cans need cleaned, it gets done. It doesn't need to be planned for the 4th Thursday of June each year! I look in the bottom of a can, say "ewww gross!" and send the boy out to the hose with that can and all the rest of them.

Whether or not my eyes are focused on keeping our home, and keeping the family well, is up to me. No plan can establish that for me. It has more to do with my desire to serve my family and be in obedience to the Lord.

At the same time, routine can be key. But habit can be better. Following a step by step procedure can be great, but I'd much rather spend my time in the kitchen in habit, rather than work. I'd rather our morning be full of the habit of "helps", rather than the drudgery of a list of chores. There is most definitely a fine line. I think I've found that line in my heart relationship to all that I do. As I've accepted and claimed my position as help meet to my husband, child of the King, and even mother to my babies, I've come to a place of peace in the doing. Where the blessings come from God rather than a completed check list. Thankfulness is key.

I was walking through Target yesterday, taking my little one to the bathroom (and we all know how fun it is to run from one side of the store to the other with a full cart, a ton more to do, and a child yelling she needs to potty!). We were moving quickly and all of the sudden I had an internal glimmer of what the look on my face must be at that moment. My heart became thankful as I realized she hadn't had an accident, she'd done what she was supposed to do--tell me. We had a cart of full of yummy fruit and things we needed (and even a fun new croquet set) that we could pay for. It was a beautiful day. We were together. No body was fighting (that came later at the grocery **grin**). Was there any reason to be glum? Just because of an interruption? Just because things didn't go MY way?

Ahhhh. Thankfulness! The habit that affects EVERYTHING! So while routine is peachy, habit is better. So here's a hardy farewell to all cleaning management "systems". May they never cause me strife again! Not to say that there is nothing good to glean from them. Not to imply that list making is bad. They, too, can be a useful habit. It's the slavery to them that changes the focus. May we learn good habits instead, and implement them. May thankfulness be the order of the day.

"O Lord, that lends me life,

Lend me a heart replete with thankfulness."

William Shakespeare

Back to School Gift Basket

Who doesn't enjoy the excitement of buying school supplies? I know I sure used to. Still do on occasion. As the years go by, however, I need a bulk of them less and less. But one thing we still treasure is the chance to gift our kids with a Back to School Gift Basket.

It's a tradition we began early on. I cleaned up in the $1 bin at Michaels yesterday and filled a couple of their neat, colorful plastic totes that are great for carrying your school work to the porch or swing-set tower. I'm sure I'll pick up a few more goodies for them, but we enjoy the tradition of surprising them on the 1st day of a new "year".

In God We Trust: 144 Years Ago Today

Do you know the story about our national motto? Some of it may surprise you! If interested, be sure to check out this article from Koinonia House.

Also in the news, the Jewish nation is preparing to rebuild. Rebuild the temple, that is. Lest you think this isn't big news, be watchful! The Abomination of Desolation that is foretold in scripture cannot take place until this temple is rebuilt.

Mat 24:14-16 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. "So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.

Scheduled Reading

I'm very excited about a plan I came up with to conquer our reading woes. Now, our reading woes are probably different than most. Ours are not related to whether or not we want to read, but the bloomin' fact that we want to read too much. Of course, the idea that there could ever really be TOO much to read seems ludicrous, however we love to read and have a LOT to choose from.

That said, and the very fact that most of our curriculum is literature based, we could easily drown in books. My solution involves using a blank calendar. I've chosen all the books that we will read for each subject based on availability and time. I've recorded one for read-aloud and one for son to read on his own, for each topic. I've assigned them days on the calendar based on the size of the book. Then I've split the number of pages by the number of days to read each title.

Now we know exactly what to read and when. There is no floundering in search of the perfect book. No forgetting I meant to get a certain book and having to settle for something else. And NO letting valuable reading time slip by! There are always two books being read. We've begun using this method over the last month and are very pleased. One thing I have realized though, is that I should keep Saturday and Sunday free for catch-up reading for there are days when reading doesn't happen. (I initially used those days for scheduling.) Of course, I want to bean myself in the head when that happens, but I'll try not to get to frustrated. I've been quite happy how willing he is to read on Saturday and Sunday, too. Reading is becoming more of a daily habit and less of a weekday school task/chore!

I made son his own copy of the calendar for his notebook so he knows exactly what to read and when. I did not break down the pages for every book, but will do so periodically as a gather them a month in advance. Overall, I'm hoping this will add to his ability to self-govern his time and responsibilities. We'll be doing that a lot this year as we add his sister to the fray.

I truly believe that this will keep us on track better time wise. We didn't finish our Truthquest volume last year because of not scheduling the subjects (why we are now reading history!), so I have great hopes.

A Notebook of Notebooking Pages

I love using the notebook method for our schooling, but there are side effects. One is lots of paper and copies. Another is the stacks that come with lots of paper and copies. Then there is also the lost or damaged paper and copies which leads to the replacement copies of the paper copies and that means more paper, more ink, etc. Whew! I get tired of stacks of paper. Worse than that, I get tired of constantly having to come up with notebooking pages. I would much rather plan for them and have them ready, even if it's a year in advance. This takes some organizing.

With some forethought I'm hoping to keep all those copies representing hard work on my part, organized and ready for easy access. I'm trying another notebook. This one I'm organizing by date. More specifically, by month. For some reason, organizing by subject did not work for me. I think that had to do with my subject notebook getting too big. I wasn't consistent in keeping things together and I didn't want to lug them all around, all the time.

I'm working hard to come up with notebooking pages for the various subjects and levels I need. This is not part of the job I enjoy, but part that is very valuable and necessary. I've learned that using notebooking as a criteria for selecting my curriculum can be helpful. For instance, this year's geography, "Trailguide to US Geography" also has available a multi-level notebooking CD.

I'll share more about our notebooking choices in the future, as time allows.

Despite What You May Have Thought...

Despite what you may have thought, summer is not a laid back, carefree, do no work time. Not even close.

Despite what you may have thought, you can't do everything--achieving all your hopes and dreams--in two short months. Not possible.

Despite what you may have thought, when you take the summer off from school, you are NOT taking the summer off. Plan, practice, prepare.

Despite what you may have thought, there is always room for improvement. Always.

Despite what you may have thought, God can still surprise you. He's like that.

Despite what you may have thought, you can actually watch a child grow in the course of a day. Scary.

Despite what you may have thought, I haven't dropped off the face of the earth. Almost, but not quite! I'm still here and though anything I've been doing on the computer has been fast and furious, I've still been reading your blogs (though not always daily) and thinking about you all. I have these little conversations with you in my head because I'm totally insane like that. With all the preparations I'm making for fall and all the "relaxing" I'm doing in the fabulous weather we've been having (between rains, that is), there just is little time for anything else right now. There really is so much to share. It just has to get from my head to the blog. We are 30 days till lift off. Still so much to do. Tune in!