First day done!  My new Sonlight bag got lots of use, carting the books up and down the stairs.  My brain is tired!  I can only imagine how DD must feel.  She sat in a chair for a long time after school and listened to the Geography Songs CD.

Brief summary of schedule:
DD:  Bible, Math, break, Handwriting, math homework, oral composition and drill (MWF), Writing(T, Th), break, Spelling, Dictation or copywork,  Lunch and quiet period, Recitation, Reading, break, Science, History and Read-alouds.

DS: Phonics, Handwriting, (Math to start in Sept) interspersed amongst DD's subjects.  He also does oral comp, and listens to science and whatever else he is inclined to hear.

Me:  All of the above, plus strip and wash sheets, cook meals and cleanup afterwards, a bit of ironing and a bit of sewing, and prep for tomorrow's lessons.  I think I ran on adrenaline today.

Amazingly I got a great compliment today.  DD said it was "Fun!"  I don't think she has ever said that about school.  There were a couple of rough times--both around medication peak times--I long for the day when she no longer has to take medication for her seizures.

I've got everything ready for tomorrow--except me.  Wednesday we'll get a bit of a break because we have haircut appointments in the morning.

You can see Jen's blog for the contest information.  I thought the questions were interesting, so here goes:

1) Are you the worst homeschool teacher you know?  Or do you feel pretty confident in what you are doing?
I feel confident that we are doing the right thing for us, and that helps a lot, but a lot of times I find myself impatient or frustrated that things aren't going as well as I want them to be.  I think I still have a lot to learn in becoming a better teacher, but I am learning, and it gets better all the time.

2) What do you work on the most in your 'classroom'? Academics or Character Training?
Officially we work on Academics, but I have found that you don't stop being a Mom when the lessons start, and the Character Training is there all the time.  Sometimes I don't know who is receiving the most Character Training, my children or myself.

3) What is your chosen method of Homeschooling-- and are you happy with what you're doing? Charlotte Mason-- Classical-- Textbook-- Unschooling-- Unit Study-- Car Schooling--  Ecclectic --  or something else?
We are Ecclectic in our methods--mostly because I have found so many different things in so many styles that I like.  We do a little Textbook, a little CM, and I don't know what style Sonlight is considered to be.  I am happy with things this way, and like the ability to change our style as needs dictate.

4) How many kids are you homeschooling right now?
Two.  That's all I have.  DD is almost 8 and DS 4 1/2.

5) Were you homeschooled as a kid?
Nope.  Boarding-schooled mostly. 

6) When did you first learn about 'homeschooling' and what was your initial reaction? (horror? were you skeptical?  love at first sight?)
I was in nursing school and had to interview a teenager for a Developmental Psych course.  I chose a girl I had recently met in church. (She is now my dear sister-in-law.)  I was awed and amazed at her knowledge of history, and her ability to converse with adults.  (She had just turned 13, and I thought she was about 16 when I asked her for the interview.)  Then I met others who were homeschooling, and was hooked.  It was years later before I got to try it myself.

Thanks Jen.  I hope things pick up a bit for you soon.  I think learning goes in spurts--slog away at things for what seems like forever, and suddenly the light goes on.

HOW do I inspire my child to read?  She won't pick up a book on her own, unless it is for her thirty minute quiet time in which she is allowed to look at books on her own.  When I try to get her to read with me, she fights it, or tries to think of anything she can say or do to get out of doing it.  Sometimes she is so ridiculous in her lack of effort that I just want to give up.

I have intended for our reading times to be about 20 minutes.  Usually, we have only made it through a page or two in that time, and believe me, she hasn't been reading all that time.  She is adept at rabbit trails, and I get sucked into them more than I would like.  If I press on to about 45 minutes she usually reads better by the end of that time.  On a good day, which isn't often, she reads quite well, and I know she is following the story line.

I feel very frustrated.  I feel like she dreads reading, doesn't want to do it, doesn't want to learn, or just doesn't care.  I have spent three years giving her tools to help her read, and it hasn't worked.  I long for her to love reading, or at least like it.  She is a very imaginative child.  What exciting things there are to learn in books!  Now I am starting to dread reading with her, because I know it makes her unhappy, and me too.  What can I do?

I read to her nearly every day.  The children both love to listen to me read.  DH listens in too.  Those are enjoyable times. 

This is really hard for me.  As a child I loved reading, learned to read very early, and devoured books.  I can't understand how anyone could NOT like reading.

We are finally getting to the end of Saxon phonics.  It is a good course, very thorough.  My difficulty lately has been in getting her to apply what she is learning in other areas.  My only other complaint about it is that the lessons are lengthy.  It has only been by cutting a lot of the daily review stuff that we were able to get through it this year without losing some of our sanity.  It will feel so good to be able to do a number of shorter things in that time slot.

My question is why do some curriculum producers seem to expect you to spend the bulk of  your time with their subjects?  Sure, math and phonics are extremely important in the early years--maybe that is the reason.  But we are starting a new course next year, and in adding up all the little things they want you to drill in every day, the time has stretched to over an hour already.  I spent a good part of last evening trying to draw up a rough schedule.  I am struggling with trying to fit DS into the schedule, when DD still does very little independently.  DH practically volunteered to help with some stuff next year, which would take a load off me, but it would mean having to be even more flexible because of DH's commitments.

I do enjoy the planning though.  I am sure it will come together, even if we end up not doing some things every single day.  I just don't want it to be overwhelming--for either the DC's or myself.

Discount Home School Supplies is giving away a FREE microscope to one winner!  How do you enter?  All you have to do is cut and paste this information to your blog and leave a link in the comments section of Tami's blog.

This is open to the first 100 entrants!  So hurry!

Our sofa and chair both arrived today.  The futon frame is put away and the mattress is sitting on the floor--probably to go to the dump.  I don't like to dump it, but it is ten years old, and exceedingly lumpy.  I don't know what else to do with it.

I like our new look.  The furniture is so comfortable to sit on, and even though we bought both pieces from different places, the colors seem to go well together.

School is winding down.  I am counting the lessons in phonics and math left to finish.  Six for phonics and 9 for math.  We'll continue reading, and maybe science throughout the summer.  I am still waiting for my Sonlight curriculum to arrive--that won't be until at least the middle of July, after my parents make a trip to my sister's, and bring it back for me.

The children are playing happily outside, and I am in the mood to bake, so off I go.

1. How long have you been homeschooling?   We  have homeschooled since DD was 3 1/2. We did some preschool stuff then because she didn't have any siblings yet and needed something to do.
2. Had you always planned to homeschool your kids or was it something you “discovered” and wanted to do after your kids were of school age?  I was first introduced to homeschooling when I made friends with parents of homeschooled children before I got married.  It didn't take much convincing for DH to agree that it was okay to do, especially after DD was diagnosed with epilepsy.  I was afraid to put her in public school, and we couldn't afford private school.
3. Why do you homeschool, personally AND has it been worth it? Has it met your expectations? How much has your homeschooling experience “morphed” since you first began?  We have many reasons for homeschooling; the inadequacies of a public education, DD's medication and the flexibility that homeschooling allows, the feeling that her needs would best be met at home, among other reasons less easily defined.  It has met most of our expectations, and apart from finding that parenting doesn't stop when lessons begin, and that it is harder than I thought it would be, I love doing it.  I am a very by-the-book person, and it has been a slow process learning that I can tweak the lessons to fit us without robbing her of a good education.

My homeschool organizing and preparation space is 45" tall, and about 54" wide and about 16" deep.  At the moment I have a bookcase that is 29" tall, by 34"wide by 14" deep with two shelves, and it is too small.  I do my prep work on the top of the bookcase.  Dh would like me to have a cupboard in there that has doors to hide the mess (when there is one).  We have been looking for something ready-made that might fill the bill and utilize the space the best.  Does anyone have any ideas?  We've looked at entertainment units (small ones), bookshelves and everything else without much success.

Those who don't have a separate room or large space to keep school supplies in, please share what you use.  Those who do...well, you can share too.

I'll appreciate any comments.

Even though the kids slept in until about 8:00 this morning, I was still able to get almost everything I wanted done today.  And I am certain that all of it was due to DD's improved attitude.  I felt less pressure too, without trying to do grammar.

On another note--my Sonlight box has arrived!! At my sister's house in IN--boo hoo. At this rate I will have to wait until after my parents go down for a visit at the beginning of July to get it.  I don't know how I will be able to wait that long.  My sister lives 8 hours away--not easy to just slip down and pick it up. Why oh why didn't I just pay the extra to get it sent here? (Because, my voice of reason tells me, I have already spent a LOT of money.)  Hey Sis, can you come and visit me--before the end of June?

We went to a local greenhouse tonight ( Old Order Mennonite, I think) to get plants for our garden.  DH was so surprised to get 5 tomato plants and 8 pepper plants for $6 that he bought me two hanging bags of flowers too.  The flowers there were gorgeous!!!  And I want to go back for more, but I lack space to put them.  DH is planning to put in our small garden tomorrow morning while I clean house.  We will attempt to grow green beans, tomatoes and sweet peppers again.  All three have usually done pretty well in our small patch.

Yesterday we were working on Grammar, and DD's latest test took 40 minutes.  She knows the stuff pretty well, but just doesn't apply herself in keeping pencil to paper until it is done.  I also have to read everything to her.  I made a decision while she was doing that, to drop the subject until she is able to read and write fluently.  Doing it now will give us more time to work on reading before next year, and since she isn't able to write quickly enough to keep up with the writing assignments anyway, it doesn't make sense to continue.

I don't know why I don't see these things until I am burning out! I think part of the problem is that I am trying to plan next year with DS in the schedule and I am in a panic!  Four hours or more a day with DD roughly, and I don't have any time left for him.  I want to make life a bit more sinple for her, and for me, and maybe we won't be struggling as much.

One of my biggest problems lately is having to wake her up from a nap in the afternoon so we can finish school.  If she naps too long, she doesn't sleep at night, and then is tired the next day.  I think I need to abolish the nap.  But I also need to give her a quiet time, because her intensity about life tires her out and the rest of us too.

I need wisdom, folks.  I feel like I have been wrapped up in this issue this week, and it has made it hard to enjoy life.  The lovely thing is that the kids slept in this morning, and I had time to make this long entry.

Today was another rough day.  DD seemed to be struggling against everything I wanted her to do.  It was an effort to get her to sit up and pay attention.  We managed to get two subjects done for the day, and one halfway done, this morning. 

It didn't help that our lights kept flickering--many times.  The power finally went off at about 11:00.  That did in my lunch plans, and pretty much school as well.  DH called and the power company said it should be back on by 3:00.  The power was off downtown as well, so the local cafe where we sometimes eat was not an option.  I had wanted to go to Wal-Mart anyway today (20 minutes away in another town), so I called them, and they had power.  We went to Harvey's for lunch and then did some shopping.

DD didn't nap, but she sometimes doesn't and is okay.  After we got home, I had her do her Phonics homework, and it took almost 30 minutes (should take about 10).  I was nearly in tears of frustration.

I just don't know how to deal with such a strong-willed child sometimes.  She isn't working independently enough to just leave her there to do the work on her own.  That means that if she is slow, I am stuck, and not getting anything else done.  If that goes beyond about 3:30 p.m. I fall apart.

I love her so much, and she is so sweet.  She is also pretty sensitive to my moods (which have been an absolute roller-coaster lately!), and feels bad when I am down.

I am looking forward to starting Sonlight.  I really hope it works for us.  I love reading to the kids, and DD and DS both enjoy listening to me read.  I just don't know how to get the other stuff done.  How does one teach a child to view school as a challenge to be taken up, and not a chore?

Here is a photo of our Magnolia blossoms just before they dropped off.  I think I got them at their peak.  I don't know how much I distorted them to get them on here though.  I am still trying to figure out how this all works.


I ordered my Sonlight curriculum this afternoon.  I am very excited about it, and can hardly wait to get the books.  I will have to wait until either we or my parents make a visit to my sister though.  Edith, if you haven't found out by the time you see this, you will be receiving a box of books soon--and they aren't for you.

We topped that all off by having one of the worst afternoons in school that we have had for some time.  I think DD is going to have to stop having a nap.  It is hard to wake her up and get her going again, and she is having trouble getting to sleep at night.  Doing school in the evenings is not an option for me.  I am toast by 7p.m.!

On the other hand, this morning was great!  She finished phonics in 30 minutes without a single complaint.  Math went a little slower, but she still did very well compared to some times.  We got everything done this morning in a very reasonable amount of time.  This afternoon was the complete opposite, and I didn't accomplish half of what I wanted to do.  Oh well, it is Friday. 

Actually it isn't that early, but everyone else is still in bed, and it is quiet.  DD has been staying awake late in bed at night, so she is tired in the morning.  She got up when I did, but was grumpy, so I told her to go back to bed.  I haven't heard her since.  I love being downstairs alone in the morning.  It allows me to get my thoughts together better.

Yesterday after lunch, I heard what I thought was a cardinal singing.  He was close, and loud, so I stood at the kitchen door and looked for him.  I found him in the big spruce tree right behind my house.  He was just belting out his song!  Everytime he made his song, his whole body got into it!  And the branch shook!  It was fun to watch, and so beautiful!

I bought Writing Power to start using next year.  It has a lot of preliminary stuff that I have been reading through the last couple of evenings.  So far I have found it very interesting.  Has anyone used it?  It sounds like it will be really good.  I like the philosophy of letting children work at their own pace, no matter what "grade level" they happen to be at.

Everyone is getting up, so I'm off to start the day.

How do I convince DD that she doesn't need to object to everything we do?  How do I tell her that school is a part of life--something that has to be done?   If it has to be done, why can't we approach it with more of a positive attitude?  Instead of griping, why can't we just do it, and get it done, so we can do something else?  Sometimes she forgets herself, and actually enjoys something we do, surprises herself that she can do it without struggling.  I just wish we had more days like that.

She did very well at what she did this morning, but it wasn't very pleasant because I was dealing with attitude all the time.

This afternoon was better, and she did finish in a very reasonable amount of time.  But now she is pouting because DS doesn't want to do what she wants to do.  AAAgh!

We woke up to sunshine, blue sky, and cold!  There is frost on the car this morning.  I have a feeling it will be a challenge to keep DD going on school.  The children so love to be outside on nice days.  It reminds me of how thankful I am to be living here.  In our previous home, we had no back yard at all, and the front/side yard opened onto a very busy street.  I never let the kids out without me.

I went for a walk last night.  My friend's son is getting married in September, so we were looking at houses they have looked at.  Housing prices are rising dramatically around here at the moment, and houses are selling quickly.  It is almost unbelievable when you look at places and see how much they are asking, until I remember that where I lived before, housing prices were even worse.  It is a good time to sell--but not a good time for folks like us to buy.

We did school yesterday.  It was a challenge, as is often the case.  DD just doesn't want to do it, if there is something that looks like more fun to do.  We pressed on though, and got almost everything done.  And if I am going to do the same today, I need to get going.

for math this morning.  We had to use macaroni to introduce multiplication by fives.  I had counted out exactly the number I needed for the lesson, and so didn't have extras to munch.  I was planning on giving her a couple of pieces after the lesson, but when she grabbed the container to help herself, that idea was out.  That resulted in a 3-year old type tantrum, and the rest of the lesson was, um..toast, I guess.

I think I have decided to dump homework for the rest of the year.  Homework is the second side of the worksheets that Saxon thinks is necessary to cement the day's work in the mind.  There is so much cumulative review, and we are tired, and sometimes our other subjects suffer because we "have to get the homework done", and I am fed up with it!  So very soon, I will tell DD that she is free for the day.  I am not going to do it right now, because I am sure the screams of delight will put all other thoughts of what I was going to post right out of my head.

We saw our first Baltimore Oriole up close today.  It came to our suet feeder that is about 10 feet from the dining room window (someday I will learn how to post pictures).  We promptly found an orange and put out our Oriole feeder, but so far have not seen it back yet.  They don't usually want to fly low, so I was really surprised to see it on the feeder about four feet from the ground!  I plan to head to the store to get the rest of the ingredients I need to make our home-made suet recipe--Thanks again Jeannie Fulbright!