We had a great week!
Wow, it feels good to say that.
We’ve been in a hard season, and it was so needed to have a reprieve. Saul worked the weekend, but was off on Tuesday, so we took the kids and my dad to the museum. Kind of a drive, but we packed lunches and snacks, and made a great day of it. We even got to see an IMAX movie, Deep Sea 3D. Olivia was pretty adorable, and kept reaching out to try and touch the fish!
The kids had a Valentine’s party at the Homeschool Academy on Wednesday.
This was the first year for the kids to fill out Valentines. They were pretty sweet, carefully writing out each classmates name, and attaching a heart sticker. Isaac was nervous about handing them out to the girls in his homeschool class.
This boy of mine already has his eyes on girls….
Saul and I stayed up late Wednesday night and wrote out Valentines to each of the kids, and then taped them to their doors. They’ve had a literal feast of candy since, and even got a special package from grandma and grandpa.
In Bible this week, we moved onto the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. The boys completed a very long cypher to figure out the verse for the week. Both of them surprised me and had it memorized by Friday. It probably doesn’t hurt that I bribe them with money. Whatever it takes to get the Word written on their hearts….
This week in history, the boys learned all about Colonial life for kids, which was hard and strict, and disciplined. I was hoping it would make their own life seem fun and easy, but alas, we are still dealing with a major case of the “dreary wearies”. Despite our consistent attempts to teach diligence (hard work with a happy heart) and to show it in ourselves, we’ve got a lone straggler who is dragging his feet in the matter. I recently read this article and it has helped change my perspective and also change our techniques. Seriously….where was this like 2 years ago?
For now we’ve simplified what we can, drawn clear expectations with appropriate consequences, and even increased the work load. Would you believe it’s working? I still can’t, because we’ve struggled with this for a long, long time.
This furry member of our family is growing quite large.
He’s not even 9 months old yet and already outweighs any cat I’ve ever had. To add to his bulk is a thick coat of long fur, which I’m sure will be a complete drag this summer while he sheds all over the house. He is very social and tolerant, and the cuddliest one of the bunch. We all still laugh at the tiny places he tries to nap in…
To say that Elaina was not unto school this week, would be an big understatement. (Can you feel how pouty she is in this picture?) She cried and threw fits EVERY SINGLE DAY.
I’m pretty sure it’s the reading thing.
She is hating it….
It doesn’t seem to matter how many fun ways I try to introduce new concepts to her, she just won’t budge. I am ready to put it on the backburner until I can buy a new program, that is cited as being a “gentle approach to reading for the reluctant learner". The deal is, she can read, and after a bit of working at it and loads of encouragement from all of us, she does quite well. The bottom line is she just doesn’t enjoy it.
This is such a change for me as the teacher, as both boys were eager and early readers. They probably had enough healthy competition between each other to be motivated to keep pushing forward in their lessons. I am trying hard to squelch any hint of comparising that I may be doing and remember that she learns differently than they do, and at a different pace too.
I’m scheduling an eye appointment next week, in case it’s a vision thing. But for now, we are back to doing theme work, and bouncing around different activities to strengthen her other skills, like math, writing, building thinking skills, and following directions.
Olivia was, on the other hand, very excited to participate in Tot School this week. Our new routine is working well for her and spaces out her independent play with more structured activities much better than before.
She is still loving puzzles and sorting activities, and asks to do some kind of art each day. Her listening skills have improved a ton, as well as her attention span, and fine motor abilities.
Ahhh…aren’t those eyelashes are TO DIE FOR?
I’ve put myself on a major technology fast. Partly because of conviction from my current Bible study, and partly because we’ve cancelled Comcast. I haven’t been on Facebook, or Pintrest for over a week, and other than the first day or so, I really haven’t missed it. I guess reading that a distant friend of mine has checked into Starbucks, or an uncle has tried a new recipe, or that a past co-worker is in Las Vegas, really wasn’t adding anything to my day, other than distracting me and robbing me of my time. Even this blog isn’t likely to get published until I can get somewhere with free WiFi, and since I have 4 loud little people to take with me, that isn’t likely going to happen any time soon.
All of my newfound “free time” allowed for some great eats, including these yummy Lettuce Wraps, Turkey Meatball Subs with Sweet Potato Fries, Rigatoni with Sausage, French Bread, Banana Bread, and Chocolate Zucchini Cake.
Another great thing about having a bit of extra time is Tea at 2:00, afternoon games, and a huge stack of books read with the kids. I love that it doesn’t matter what the book is, if I am reading aloud, I have a captive audience of 4.
I’ve also been working hard to get all of our literature packs done for our next unit. The problem is, I keep changing my plans as I get new ideas. But I do love this part of homeschooling! I really am a nerd that way…
Saul is home this weekend, and has been asking me what we should do for fun. The weather is supposed to be nice, so I’m hoping to get out for a family hike and a picnic. I also get to spend the evening with my awesome friend for her birthday on Saturday!
What are your plans?
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