Weekly Review - Homeschool Co-Op Open House

In our home: My rib is continuing to heal.  I was still restricted this week on what I could do.  Jared has worked hard making up for my lack.  He deserves a vacation!  Mr G turned 11 months this Wednesday.  I cried as I looked back at his baby pictures.  How can he almost be 1 already?  This time last year, I remember feeling like I would never hold him.  And now I have been blessed with 11 months with my son.  What a precious, precious gift.

11 months old!

Mr N thought it would be a good idea to put on my make up while I thought he was sleeping.  Not good!  He was literally covered in lipstick and powder, and put my hair product in his hair.  I still love him!

The mess I found

In our homeschool: This week we attended the open house put on by our homeschool cooperative.  Miss O was in a princess ballet, and Miss R completely surprised us by being in a dance with her art variety class.  They were both so sweet.

Miss O in her new Rapunzel dress Jared bought her for her princess ballet - $5 clearance sale!  Love it!

Co-op has been great this session.  Miss R was in a nature class, and two art classes.  One of the art classes was all about creating - from an "I'm Special" box, to a diorama.  It was very hands-on and crafty - two things I'm not too good at, but she loves.  We were so blessed she could take that class!  The other class was all about different mediums of art - singing, dance, drama, etc.
O was in an American sign language class, the princess ballet, and a class on the days of creation.  They both have started to make friends.  While they are at their classes, I get to be in the nursery with my boys.  I love caring for all of the babies in the nursery and getting to know the other moms who are in there with me.  For one class I also get to be in Mom's Room - a "free" hour to chat and encourage one another...oh, us moms are good at talking!  =)

In our homeschool this week Miss R has finished up her study on God's Names and started one on prayer.  She has also finished up her main science book.  I have made plans for our last month of school. Crazy!

What's Working: Nothing new to report here.  It has been good to get back into morning Bible time with the kids and I sure do miss being physically able to clean and play afterwards.

What's Not Working: Well, maybe "not working" is too harsh, but I do want to experiment with how I schedule R's books.  Being our first year, I followed AO and SCM's recommendation on spreading books out, for students to savor them rather than devour.  But, I may have spread them out too thin.  Most books we visited one time/week.  So, for the next month, I want to try focusing more closely on a book for a whole week and doing "projects" with the book (like in The Heart of Wisdom Teaching Approach). The "plan" (always subject to change!) is to do history for a week, then the next week do science.  Then I will evaluate if I liked this grouping better/she got more out of it.  We shall see!

She gets it! (and a story by Miss R)

I was thrilled to pieces grading R's math sheet last night.  Our math curriculum uses a mastery approach and focuses a lot on mental math.  R is a quick learner, and usually this program has worked well.  But, being the perfectionist that she is, Miss R has a tendency to get frustrated with math if she can't get it right away.  I will have her take a break until she can calmly think through the problem and talk it through with me. Sometimes she can arrive at the correct answer, but she can't really tell me how.  On those days I have questioned if maybe this is just too much for her.  But on the other hand, I think it is a good character-building activity for her to work through this because things do normally come so easy for her.  And I do want her to be able to think mathematically, not just spout out math facts (as important as it is to learn those math facts!).
Well, this time she didn't need any help.  No tears.  And she not only arrived at the correct answer, she was able to show how she got there.  She's getting it!  It's working!  It was like a light bulb went off in her head.  I am just so thankful to God for helping her, and so proud of my little girl for working so hard!  I was seriously so excited I couldn't fall asleep...yes, I am a homeschool mom!

Great Job Miss R!

Today we started something to help with mental math that I wish I would have learned.  Take 8+4.  It's much easier to add 10+2 mentally, so we take 2 from the 4 and give it to the 8, making a ten.  Then there are 2 left over from the 4 to add to the 10, making 8+4 = 10+2 = 12. (Okay, yes, it's obvious, but I don't remember learning this!)  Anyway, I was a little nervous about how this would go over.  My little author not only got it, she told me she wanted to write a book called Math Stories and she would write this story:

Once there was an 8 who went to the house of the 6.  "Knock, knock," he said.  The 6 opened the door.  "Can I have two from you to make me a ten?"  asked the 8.  "Sure," said the 6.  He gave 2 to the 8.  Now the 8 was a 10 and the 6 was a 4.  And when they are together, they make 14!

Oh, I loved this!  =) 

Weekly Review - A Mother's Helper

In our home - This week was quite different for us.  I hurt my rib from coughing so hard, so I was unable to do my normal activities.  Jared had to work, of course, so we brought in a "mother's helper"...my friend's homeschooled daughter, to help.  She was wonderful!  She lifted the baby for me and played with the kids, allowing me to rest and heal.  The children loved her.  I'm really going to miss having her around! 
I have always said I wish I could get away and just read for a day or so.  Well, this week I have been reading, reading, reading and I'm actually tired of it!  I feel like I hit information overload.  I hope I will remember this and be grateful that I have the ability to work and be productive!
Jared has worked so hard this week keeping up with the children.  I appreciate him so much!

In our homeschool - R carried on this week.  She's getting close to finishing up some of her books.  O is almost finished with preschool.  I have been planning and purchasing for next "year" (which will begin after we finish 'this year" since we school year-round).  Some of my packages have started arriving - oh, it is so exciting!  There's nothing quite like receiving a brown box filled with new "friends".  I can't wait!! 

What's Working - This week I've tried to take some advice to slow down and really see each of my children.  They are growing up so fast.  Jared and I were talking about finding a new home for the toy kitchen in the basement play room to make room for a train table for the boys.  The girls don't really ever play with their kitchen anymore.  How did that happen????   Anyway, in trying to savor my time with the children, these memories are among the top of the week:
Baby G - Standing by himself without using any prop to get up.  Smiling with his toothless grin.  His gorgeous brown eyes.
Mr N - Dancing to bagpipe music on my Kindle Fire.  Trying to do his own "Riverdance".  Calling my mother's helper "John" because he kept forgetting how to say her name. 
Miss O - Her quick wit.  It rained this week and we were playing a game we made up called "I wish it was raining (fill in the blank)...and I will bring my (fill in the blank) umbrella."  Jared said, "I wish it was raining hamburgers and I would bring my plate umbrella" and O says, 'Haha!  You got a girl toy!" (As in a Happy Meal girl-toy).
Miss R - Her creativity.  When my mother's helper was here, they made paper bag puppets and put on a puppet show.  They even wrote a little script.  O was involved as well.  N made a choo-choo train puppet.
Miss R also came to snuggle with me last night as she had a bad dream.  She never does this.  I love snuggling.  Someday she won't want to, so I want to remember these days.

What's Not Working - Even though we school year-round, I'd like to be able to finish when the schools around here do.  There's something mentally frustrating to me feeling like we'll never finish the year up.  I think I'm going to go through what we have to do yet and maybe double up in some areas so we can feel that accomplishment of finishing in good time before we start the new year. 

Weekly Review - Silly O

It's Friday!  What a good week it has been!  Let's see...
Family - This week my older brother and his son L(4) came to help out my parents.  (My dad is healing from a knee replacement).  My kids had a blast with their cousin.  They played and played and played.  They left Wednesday morning and then we had co-op Wed. afternoon.  Thursday was our 9th wedding anniversary!  A friend watched our kids so we could go out for some Thai food, ice cream, and shopping.  Today the kids have been watching The Wizard of Oz for the first time.  R has been comparing it to the books.  They still have a little bit to finish this evening.

Homeschool - We actually got quite a bit accomplished this week, despite our busyness. The highlight for R was finishing Escape from Goshen for history.  The ending was wonderful...definitely my favorite part of the book.  The characters had just crossed the Red Sea and saw the Egyptians drowned.  They broke out in praise and you could just feel how wonderful it would have been to actually be there at that time.

In our preschool, we've gotten back to being more consistent with doing things in the mornings:  Bible time right after breakfast followed by the letter of the week.  This week was "W".  Mr. N is catching onto the letter sounds even though we really do this curriculum for O.  Speaking of Miss O...she is so goofy!  I was talking to her today about preschool and the things we have learned and these are the (crazy) answers she gave me...complete with a silly grin.
Me: What sound does the "W" make?
O: d...d...d..
Me: Goofy!  You know!
O: haha!  d....d....d...
Me: Okay, let's try another.  What sound does "D" make?
O: mmm..mmm...mmm
Me: What sound does "M" make?
O: d....d...d
Me: (tickles O) what is the first letter of the alphabet?
O: B
Me: (tickles O again) What did Noah do?
O: He died.  And he said the letter "M" says "k...k...k"
Me: (tickles O again!)
R enters and asks: Mom, can I have a pretzel?
Me: Sure.  (to O): You can have a pretzel, too, if you tell me what letter it starts with.
O: "p...p...p"

Yes, she DOES know her letter sounds and the order of the letters and how to count and the major Bible stories.  But this is what this child does - she loves to be silly.

I love you Miss O!  You goofy girl!

He's Alive, He's Alive, He is Risen from the Grave!

Happy Resurrection Sunday!

A Curtsy for you!

Pretty girls

Silly Sisters

Matching Brothers - Baby G's shirt is actually a onesie - one of the cutest things I have ever seen!

The Fab Four - 6, 4, 2, 10 months

One more try!

Jared and me...the first attempt I had the camera on "video" instead of "photo" mode...we had a laugh at how old we're getting!

Miss R came with me to visit Grandma

And Grandpa...not how he planned to celebrate Easter...poor guy.  He had emergency surgery on his knee replacement yesterday. 

Weekly Review - Good Friday Edition

In Our Family
This week we plodded through illnesses once again.  It has to end soon, right?  Jared has been "super-husband" to me.  I pulled a muscle coughing, which doesn't sound that bad, but it really, really hurt.  I haven't been able to do much housework (anything involving bending or moving) and he has been a champ at helping me out.  Our oven broke on Monday and he ordered a part for it and fixed it Thursday after it arrived.  So, the poor guy was all week without his helpmeet and without his oven!  Baby G went to the doctor yesterday and was diagnosed with a virus.  They did an x-ray to make sure he didn't have pneumonia.  We are now all breathing and healing!

Baby G (10 months) decided this week that he would stand on his own!  This was bittersweet for me - my last baby nearly a toddler!  He was so proud!
Mr N (2) has been a delight all week.  It is so good to have him healthy again.  He made me laugh the other day as he was playing on my Kindle Fire and I realized that he knew the difference between a pentagon, a hexagon, and an octagon.  Jared and I were talking about it last night and we had to think hard which shape had how many sides!  Kids sure do humble us with how quickly they can catch on to things!
Miss O (4) is always our little sweetheart.  She visited Grandpa, who is healing from knee replacement surgery.  My mom said she was telling him how bad she felt for him.  She has such a compassionate heart.
Miss R (6) has finished The Wizard of Oz series and I am now looking for something else for her to read.  I have some ideas, but just need to get it organized.
I finished reading Ishmael by E.D.E.N. Southworth. This book is a must-read if you want a fresh look at what makes a real man. So different from what's on tv and such nowadays. And it's free on a Kindle.  Can't beat that!  Now I'm reading the sequel.

In Our Homeschool
As far as homeschooling, Miss R (6) did a lot of work independently. We were able to work together on Wednesday, which was a good reminder for both of us how much we love to do lessons together.

The highlight of our week has been today, Good Friday.  It started nicely for me - I woke up before any of the kids and was able to spend some time reading my Bible and praying over our day.  As I was reading, I came to the passage describing the crucifixion and noticed the different times that things occurred.  Jesus was arrested during the night.  On Friday morning, at 9am they crucified Him.  I always knew that He suffered, but didn't really connect in my mind how long He suffered.  He didn't die until 3.  That is a long time to be suffering.  I had remembered reading in Celebrating the Christian Year by Martha Zimmerman about an idea to make the house dark on Good Friday as something tangible for the kids to remember.  So, with that idea in the back of my mind and the Scriptures I read this morning, I was ready for the day.

I got the kids up a little before 9, and told the girls that at 9am is when Jesus was put on the cross, so I wanted them to think about that.  They came pretty solemnly to the kitchen table for breakfast.  Before I served them their morning oatmeal, we continued to read in He Is Alive by Helen Haidle.  (This book is perfect for the ages of my kids and the illustrations are breathtaking.)  We stopped after reading about the crucifixion at 9am.  Then we ate and went about our day.  At noon, we came back together and I read to them about God darkening the sun from noon-three.  We closed all of the curtains.  We talked about how Jesus had been suffering on the cross from 9-noon already and about all of the things we had done in that time...we had played, written, cleaned, etc.  And that whole time Jesus had been suffering.  I explained that it was day time, but God had darkened the sun when all of our sin was put on Jesus.  I also explained that we would not be opening our windows to let the light in until 3pm.  At 3 we read the rest of the story, ending when Jesus gave up His Spirit to God, and died.  Then we opened the curtains again.  Miss R drew a story of the cave with a big stone in front of the opening to remind us that from now until Sunday, Jesus was in the tomb.  This has been a sobering way to remember His sacrifice.  It was good for me, as well as the children, to experience in our own way, how long Jesus was on the cross, suffering for us, before He died.  Now we wait for Sunday.

Big Weekend!

This past weekend was a big one for Miss R!

On Saturday, she participated in her first ever piano recital.  She played "My Clever Pup" and did such a great job!  She was the second one to play and was very brave!

 

After the recital, I told her I was taking her for a surprise.  She had no idea what we were doing, and was very excited when she found out - we were going to see the Duggar's!

 

They were in town doing some campaigning and made a stop at my parents' church to share their testimony.  Michelle Duggar was at home with some of the little ones who were sick.  But, Jim-Bob and the children did a wonderful job.  First they sang and played their instruments.  Jinger is AMAZING at the piano!  I had no idea!  Then Jim-Bob shared his life story: how he and Michelle grew up, how they both met the Lord, how they met each other, how they came to the decision to let God plan their family size, and how they came to have their own reality show.  Afterwards, we were able to meet them and take pictures. 

 Here I am with Miss R, my good friend Sarah, and Jim-Bob! 

 Then on Sunday, Miss R sang her first solo at church!  She did a beautiful job!  I asked her if she was nervous and she said that she was a little nervous, but not as much as she had been at the piano recital because she knew the people watching her at church.  I was happy that she felt so comfortable with our church family.