Sagrets had this on her site and I guess I will have fun and fill it in too!

Since she did not 'tag me' but tagged the same as I did (see below)I will be Her or better yet Them since I take to myself a lot (an answer!)

Four jobs you have had in your life:

1.  Grocery store stocker, bagger & cashier

2.  Bank Teller

3 Mary Kay Consultant

4.  Director of Religious Education

Four movies you could (or do) watch over and over:

1.  The Sound of Music

2.  Star Wars (all)

3.  Christmas Classics

4.  Finding Nemo

Four places you have lived:

1. New York (Bronx)

2.  California

3. Maryland

4.  Hawaii

Four shows you love to watch:

1.  30 Minute Meals

2.  Survivor

3.  Trading Spaces

4.  NCIS

Four places you have been on vacation:

1.  Niagara Falls

2.  Bahamas

3.  Big Island, HI

4.  Bermuda

Four websites you visit daily:

1.  Homeschoolblogger.com

2.  Bank

3.  Notary Board

4.  Email site

Four of your favorite foods:

1. Chicken and Spanish rice

2.  Roast Chicken, cheese with Salsa & chips

3.  Lasagna

4.  Pizza

Four places you would rather be right now:

1.  Any island beach with a hammock and a drink

2.  Beach that I used to go with my friend in HI (cove)

3.  Hot tub with a good book

4.  Some really large homeschool bookstore with a coffee shop

Four bloggers you are tagging:

1.  Him

2.  Her

3.  Them

4.  You

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I have been searching the blogs for those homeschooling HS kids (young adults!). I just need to have some connection with someone. My D is still in 8th but she wants to continue. I am now officailly a single parent and I am curently self employed. I am not sure if I can continue that but I will try. If I don't I am not sure what I will do.

Mainly I just want input on transcipts, planning, etc. I feel so overwhelmed as it is. I would need something that would grade the basics for me. I just can't handle fulltime work (plus part-time since I would not make enough) and grading, etc.

Any ideas or connections would be helpful. My D also is very shy? Actually she has very low self-esteem (working on it) and does not like to go out. I have a hard time with her being involved with the outside world.

The youth group at our church is kind of clickish. She hates sports. I am not sure what to do to get her involved with other kids. The kids in our neighborhood are horrible. 

Well, I better get going for now. I hope I get some comments that are helpful!

Thanks

Desperate in MD 

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I was blog roaming and came across this.

Have Fun!

Found it at atypical homeschooling. I must say I hate math but I can't help but wonder how this ends!!!

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I am always amazed at how fast time flies. It amazes me also at all the time I have wasted. Every Sunday I am renewed and yet I am once again berating myself because I have not spent more time with my Savior. It is not like I don’t have the time. I am just always tired. It is not always a physical tiredness but at times an emotional or spiritual tiredness.

As the New Year approaches I have been reflecting on what I need to change. I need to stop procrastinating.  That seems to be my main problem. I need to be more organized and try to make my to-do lists more reachable. I need smaller chunks so I can have things to check off. Right now I tend to list in large sections. For example I took my cabinet doors down in my kitchen when I moved in. I started stripping them and the cabinets. I then got a job and was unable to finish. That was 4 years ago. I keep putting on my list to finish kitchen. This year I am listing it in sections. First all I need to do is sand the base. I will try breaking it down into smaller more manageable chunks.

Now I need to find a way to discipline myself and spend more time with the Lord. It is not that I don’t want to and I start every year off well. Even if I stray I get back on track. I just never seem to go for very long. Maybe I need a partner but it is hard to find one.

I tell my kids all the time that our relationship with the Lord is just like any relationship. If you want it to grow strong and intimate than you must work at it. Why can’t I follow my own advice?

I pray that at the end of 2006 I will reflect on a year of growth in my relationship with Christ.

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I come to the conclusion that I may not be a blogger. I love reading them. They also intimate me. I feel like I really don’t have any words of wisdom or anything. Then there is the blog I will read and think ‘Oh! I do that!’ or something similar. Now of course I can’t write about it.

I guess if I write everyday I could just right what is happening or what I have done…zzzzz. Yeah, boring!!! I will try again and see if anything blossoms.

It is still the morning here so not much has happened. My D is doing school work. Actually she may just be pretending since I let her friend (also homeschooled) stay the night. It seemed like a good idea at the time. 

I have decided that we need to buckle down with this because here in MD you have to register with the school. This year I signed up to have them come and check at the end of the year. I am not sure how that will go but I have friends who say it is pretty easy if you get the right person. I guess I will let you know in June.

My D is in 8^th grade. She is using different things but mostly Alpha Omega because she likes workbooks. I just got the Science on Switched on Schoolhouse (SOS) for her to try. Her friend uses it and likes it but my D hates the computer except for her games. Mostly she likes Sims. Anyway, I may have to go back to work next year so I need to have something she can do and have graded. I have been looking into the Academy (with SOS) and may do that. I tried to homeschool and work fulltime but it was too hard to keep up with the grading and I tended to slack in the accountability and we would get behind. If anyone has any other programs that are good let me know. I have thought of Christian Liberty Press (CLASS) and Abeka Video. She actually likes Abeka (except math) but I tend to hate it. Not sure why but I have to learn to seperate my own preferences. 

My D hates new things. She went to a Christian school (total 2 years) and they used Abeka. I think she would like the CLASS or Abeka because they are textbooks. I will have to check and see what the requirements are and what gets turned in, etc.

I miss my friend. Besides sharing ice creams and chocolate we shared ideas. We pored over those catalogs. We laughed and cried over the agony of finding the right one. We just knew somehow we would pick the wrong one and our children would end up handing out fries instead of becoming what they truly wanted to be.

I am hoping I will not have to find a job. Don’t get me wrong it is not like I am rich. I am an independent signing agent for loan docs (refinancing, equity, etc). I am also mobile so I go to the borrowers homes. It pays okay but doesn’t leave much time at home in evenings if it gets busy. My S is the one who pays since he is in public school. He is in 10^th and struggling. I wish I could find something I could do at home and pays well but I don’t have any real experience.

Oh, I still haven’t given any driving lessons. Too much school work and this past weekend we went to the movies (Narnia - GREAT movie). I am really struggling with the whole ADHD bit. He is so unfocused and forgetful. I did get an appointment with a psychiatrist that specializes in ADHD. He is all the way in VA but I need someone who knows what they are doing.    

Well, I have to go. I have a computer desk to put together (UGH!) and a tree to put up. We usually have it up already but things have gotten a little crazy here.

Until next time…

Same place…same channel.

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I took my son to get his permit. He now can learn to drive. I did this mainly because I need more motivational tools for my bribery ... oops I mean my positive reinforcement bag.

Keep me in prayer that I may find grace under pressure, patience under stress, and enough valium to make it a bonding experience!

If you don't hear from me after this weekend (our 1st lesson - depending on weather) it didn't go well.

I will gladly take any encouragement and / or advice. Please no 'labor' stories until after. I don't want to fear the contractions!

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UGH!!!!!!

Makes my brain itch!

sorry!

No Can Do...

Maybe sometime in the future!

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I am not sure what I want to write about. I guess some more background. I got separated from my husband when my kids were in the 6^th and 4^th grade. I knew I had to find a job so I put them in public school. I had homeschooled them both since pulling B out of K in Hawaii.

We were a military family and we were stationed there. I had met some homeschool moms when I was in Ca. before we transferred but I didn’t really think I could do it. At the time both kids were not school age anyway.

I should have gotten a clue that we would one day be on the homeschool wagon when I put B into preschool. I don’t remember how long he was there but it was under a week. B is very stubborn at times. He also has ADHD (not really very physically hyper just easily distracted). At this time he was not on any medication (I was still in denial – Oh, please no anti-drug comments. I have heard them all!). After the initial first days of adjustment some things happened at preschool that made me decide that it was not for him. 

The teacher wanted B to color a picture of a clown. Sounds easy huh? Well my precious boy never liked to color. He loved to draw. He said politely no thanks. She told him he had to if he wanted to go play. So while the other kids were  coloring (although a little outside the lines like any child that age – all very similar in color since she also told them what colors to use for each – supplying a pre-colored one of her own) he flipped the page over and drew his own clown.

When the teacher saw this she flipped it over and told him that he was not to draw his own clown but follow directions. I am sure by now he was getting frustrated and his mind was spinning on what and how he could get this done to play with all the blocks (his favorite). By now the other kids were done and allowed to go play. He colored-scribbled the clown’s nose red and declared it was done. She took one look and told him to finish it.  He scribbled the appropriate colors across the appropriate places and declared it was done. She knew it was not his best. She informed him she was going to have a talk with ‘your mother’ when she came. I am sure he just gave her that innocent, blank look before asking could he go play now? 

She then took the paper and wrote his name in all capital letters on the top of the page. This caused him to stop and of course correct her. He informed her that was not his name. She said it was and to go play. He said no it is not because the letters were wrong. She said they were fine and to go play. She must have gotten up and he took it and flipped it over to ‘his clown’ and wrote his name. Then he went to play.

When I came to pick him up she asked me to wait so she could talk to me. I sat and after the last child & parent left she told B to put all his toys away. B looked at her and started putting the blocks away. She filled me in on what happened (that is where I got most of the above details) and I stayed quite until she was finished.

I looked over to B and saw he was just sitting there. She looked and she said, “B, I told you to put the toys away.” He smiled and said, “I did put all the toys away (pause) that I played with.” She turned to me and informed me that my child was very rebellious and she had been dealing with this all day. I looked at her then at him and said to B., “B, can you please put the toys the other kids forgot to put away?” He smiled once again and said, “Oh, sure.” He then continued to put the toys away. I looked at her and didn’t say a word.

She was all flustered and turned to his paper. I took it and looked it over flipping it back over. The clowns were similar style. I then said, “Let me tell you how I see this. Yes, he should have listened to directions and did as you asked and for that I will talk to him but that are the kind of things you learn in PRE-school, Now, what I am more concerned about is the fact that you did not let him express himself. Did you even try to tell B, that he could draw his own after? Did you even encourage him to show you how well he could stay in the lines or knew his colors?” I also pointed out that she did write his name wrong. Flipping his paper I showed her that he knew to write capital for the first letter only. I also told her it concerned my that she didn’t. It concerned me that he chose to not do his best (he scribbled) when I knew for a fact he could stay in the lines. He was just following the other kids.

We never did see eye to eye and I am sure she was thinking she knew where he got his stubborn strike from while I was thinking she went a little out of the lines herself.

The next day when I came to get him he was playing and she was at story time with the rest of the kids. She said he did not wish to join them. One day she almost forces him to comply and the next she doesn’t want to try. She was letting him win. I knew she was not going to handle him well and decided to remove him. Although he missed the blocks he was happy to go home and draw.

By the way, on the way home B asked me, “Mom, did you see she went a little out of the lines too?”  Kindergarten wasn’t much better but that’s another blog story.

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I think I love having a blog. I can be faceless and tell all my secrets. I can share all the embarrassing moments. I can relive the fun,humorous, stressful and sometimes lonely moments of a single parent. But the thing I love the most is that maybe I can free up some room in the brain and then be able to remember some of the simple daily things that I keep forgetting!

I am a single mom. I just got divorced this past month. I have 2 teens.One girl and one boy. At times I wish I had more and at other times I am glad I am 'blessed' with only 2.

As a single mom I think I struggle the most with guilt. I am always feeling like I let my kids down. Although the divorce was not my choice I know I was also at fault. My ex (wow that is weird) did a lot wrong. Most of them were major no nos but I know that I was not the Godly wife I should have been.

I grew up in a family of women. My mom got divoreced when we were young and my father soon died (no connection). My grandmother lived with us most of our lives. I have one sister. My mom comes from a family fof 5 kids. Only one was a boy. All the ladies outlived there husbands.

Now you may see that I had no role models except for strong women (all with kids) in a world that had just started to stress 'women's rights'. In other words I grew up stubborn and set in my ways!

I find it hard to ask for help even from God. God is teaching me so much about myself.  The problem is getting my heart and mind in sync with each other.

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