This is a sticky post. Check below for new Treasured Chapters in our life!

Please check out my new website: www.write4homeschool.com. If you have high schoolers at home, this might meet your Language Arts needs. If you do not have high schoolers at home, or if you find the site is not a good fit, will you please pass a link to my site on to other homeschoolers? I would so appreciate it!

In Story of the World, we just finished learning about bards and monks and about how monks spent hours a day for years copying books. How they often drew elaborate and beautiful art in the margins of their books. Although I value the printing press and what it's done for the duplication of books, it is a shame that we've lost some of that beauty and uniqueness in books!

We followed our textbook study with an independent read for Alex of Fritz's The Man Who Loved Books. A cute story about the Irish saint Columba. Then we read Robertson's Marguerite Makes a Book aloud and enjoyed the beauty of the book as well as the story of determination, initiative, and responsibility. Following this, the kids got to make their own quill pens with which they then created their artwork. We began with just some ink a la grape juice concentrate, but upon demand I was forced to bring out the Kool-Aid and food coloring.

 

 

We went to a sub shop for lunch today after church. With such a large family, at small fast-food joints like this one, Mark and I get to be on a "date," which means we get our own table and the kids get theirs. I therefore don't supervise them as closely. Halfway through the meal, I noticed the Princess was busily (and much too quickly) wolfing down her Doritos but had yet to touch her sandwich. I removed the bag of chips and said, "Audrey, you need to eat your sandwich now."

"But Mommy, my mouf is too wittle!" she protested.

"No it's not, you silly girl!" I smashed her sandwich a bit to make it thinner.

She looked at it skeptically. "YES, my mouf AM to wittle!"

 

The crib has actually been gone for over a year. The sippy cups are all but gone. The diaper bag is history. As we celebrated Audrey's 3rd birthday today, I came to the realization that my baby is no longer a baby. I've known it over the last few months as I've watched her involve herself with her big brothers and sister and as she's jumped into her big girl academics. Then today she held up the lip gloss she discovered in her goody bag and exclaimed, "Oh! Wip gwoss! Perfect!"

My little big girl is such a sweetie--so affectionate, so full of life, such a character. I'm so proud to be her mama! And how I wish I could bring time to a halt or at least slow it down a little. Just so I wouldn't be speeding so quickly from empty cribber to empty nester. In reality, Empty Nester is just a blip in the future, so for now I'll just soak up all those precious kisses, hugs, and giggles.

The lips are a bit too big...we'll call her Arielina Jolie!

Well, I did it again: I made a schedule. I love schedules and lists and charts, and with good intentions, I spend hours before the beginning of a school year working on the perfect schedule that will make this home school run like a well-oiled machine. Problem is, we aren't a machine, so the "oil" is useless. Am I EVER going to get that?

The School Teacher in me is to blame. Well, that coupled with my type A personality. But the fact is, part of the beauty of homeschooling is that the schedule can be thrown out along with the standing in lines that takes up so much of the day at the institution we call "school". There are no bells that interrupt us right in the middle of a learning moment. There are no slow-ticking clocks above the American flag we need to watch when a subject seems to be tediously dragging along. We can spend as long as we need to on a particular subject, or we can move on if something just isn't working. My It's-a-New-School-Year-Schedule tends to force me into a school bell type environment, and it doesn't work. At least I'm getting it this year on the first day instead of wading through days of scheduled time slots before tossing it out the window!

Despite my Master Schedule, we did have moments today that worked. The boys' attitude was really good all day. Maybe they had a change of heart over the summer, or maybe I have just lightened up with the realization that not everyone shares my enthusiasm for all things academic. Thankfully, I can rely on Alex to understand my love of school. I want her to learn how to take notes this year, so I bought her a notebook for just that purpose during History and Science. She was so excited when I told her what it was for (what other kid gets excited about taking notes?!). Unfortunately, I forgot to give it to her when I pulled out Story of the World. She reminded me at the end of the chapter. She said, "Well, I'll just take the notes now." Kind of missing the point on the whole note-taking thing, but it's good for her to recall anyway. She also started Beowulf. Although she requested that I cover up the sinister picture of Grendel on the cover, she didn't bat an eyelash when I introduced her to big names like Hrothgar and Wealhtheow.

Following Beowulf, French, grammar, phonics, spelling, math, history, and geography came the highlight of the day. After school, we had our Back-to-School Party at Carvel where the kids get to help themselves to the self-serve Sprinkles. I'm quite sure the owners of the franchise, once they get to know us, will begin packing up the Sprinkle Buffet when they see us coming. Either that, or they may add Bowl of Sprinkles with Ice Cream Topping to the menu.

All little girls dream about the day when their Prince Charming will come and sweep them off their feet. I just don't recall that dream beginning at age almost-three! Audrey has a Princess coloring book (of course!), and most pages depict this fictional princess by herself...in different outfits, with her animal friends, on her horse, admiring herself in the mirror. Audrey was flipping through it this morning trying to decide which page to color when suddenly she stopped at one. Gazing at it, she exclaimed in a dreamy little fairy tale voice, "Mommy, I love dis!" Where had she paused? At the picture of the princess with her prince. Oi! Can this be starting already?

The Princess has decided she wants her ears pierced. I don't know what brought it on except for the discussion we had where she commented on my earrings, asked for some, and then listened with rapt attention as I explained that I had holes in my ears. It comes up every Sunday because I actually put on earrings on Sunday. No different today:

"Mommy, can I get my ears pierced?" she asks with those angelic eyes and sweet voice that doesn't quite enunciate the "r" in "ears", and she gingerly fingers mine.

"Not right now. We'll wait until after we're done swimming for the year," I explain because I know that goggles, pool water, and general aquatic horseplay will not bode well with sensitive ears.

I forgot about this morning's conversation until I was helping her get her swimming suit on this afternoon. As she struggled to make her hand meet the arm hole, she asked, "After we get out the pool, I get my ears pierced?"

What a sweet little girl. She is just much too adorable for words.

I'd have never believed you if you had told me 20 years ago that in 2008 I'd be married to a wonderful man whom I've known since he was a boy; that I'd have 4 amazing children with whom I would have the privelege of staying home; that I would be teaching these children preschool, 1st grade, 2nd grade, and 3rd grade. And that my idea of fun would be fighting traffic to then fight crowds in a crazy room full of eager vendors.

But life is full of surprises, and attending the Homeschool Expo today with two sweet, lovely, funny, and caring friends was a delightful way to spend the day. Of course, an added bonus is that the wonderful man whom I've known since boyhood was in charge of those 4 precious darlings. Yes, roaming each aisle, lingering over a shelf of books, spending way too much money, and then ending up at The Cheesecake Factory was simply as exciting as being a mallrat, hanging out at the beach, hiking up a mountain, or whatever else was intriguing to me 20 years ago.

My little Princess has turned into a bug...a pool bug! She decided she wanted to try one of her sibling's goggles. As delicate as she likes to pretend to be, I thought the goggles would pinch her face and we'd end up with a big poolside meltdown. However, once they were on, she refused to take them off, and...they actually boosted her confidence in the water! She's now enjoying putting her face in the water and even doing some paddling minus the ring with only her wings. We might have all 4 swimming by the end of the summer!

Jacob has been swimming now for about a week and is doing great!

Sea Monster!

Sometimes you just need a change. And my sweet husband recognizes that and thus brought us along on one of his trips. We've enjoyed Tennessee and mostly just the change of pace. Today we played the role of tourists and visited The Lost Sea. We had an interesting tour of enormous caves, and we also enjoyed a short boat ride on the largest underground lake in North America. Unfortunately, I still haven't completely become fluent in Southern, and I couldn't understand a word our guide said. I did, however, understand the word "guys" which he said incessantly: "So, guys, over here we have southern, southern, southern guys, and, guys, what they would do is southern, southern, southern guys." But, overall, we had a good time.

In addition to our cave exploration, the kids also had a chance to mine for some gems. Our bag of sand yielded several sparkling, colorful stones, so the kids were convinced they had hit the mother lode. As for me...spelunking and treasure--a welcome change of pace--I guess I hit the Mommy Lode!

 

Today has been a pajama day. Not intentionally. It's just one of those days. For all of us but the Princess. She insisted I get clothes out for her, and she was NOT happy with my selection. We had a little squabble over the shorts set I put her in, but as I explained to her, her strong stylistic preferences were not clear at the beginning of the summer and I just didn't purchase enough dresses for the girl to wear one everyday. It is summer after all. Shorts are acceptable.

It's been a strange summer. Usually we fill our summer to the brim with plans and activities, but we don't even have a family vacation planned until the end of August. I won't say it's been a boring summer, just a very lazy one...which makes it difficult to be motivated to do anything. Today, for example, being that it's Pajama Day and all, we could have eaten chocolate chip pancakes shaped like Mickey Mouse or something for lunch (you know, just to be creative and keep with the theme), but instead I let the kids talk me into watching "Tom and Jerry" over chicken and biscuits. Not that I'm complaining--I'm just happy they enjoy the good cartoons!

But I've been motivated to do little else today. In fact, I just realized Monday is laundry day, and all the dirty clothes are still in the hampers. (Really, can one successfully combine Pajama Day with Laundry Day? I don't think so.) Although Pajama Day has its merits, I'm hoping tomorrow we all wake up with a little more enthusiasm (and I'm mainly lecturing myself here). Because, just as the Princess has a limited supply of fancy dresses, the rest of us have only so many sets of PJs!

The fireworks were at the mall. As for us, we were in the Sam's Club parking lot. Last year, Audrey watched our homemade fireworks show from inside because it scared her, but this year she thoroughly enjoyed it:

Homeschool Curriculum Addicts Anonymous. Yes, it's time, time for my annual This is the Curriculum I'm Using Next Year post. And, as fair warning for you non-homeschoolers, I won't be offended if you don't read on as your eyes will likely glaze over before you even make it through my Language Arts choices.

I have to admit, I'm very fickle with homeschool curriculum; it's a problem I'm trying to grow out of, although I have a feeling it's not a phase, but rather, an addiction to curriculum and the necessity to try it all. At any rate, back in April I purchased Tapestry of Grace, which I considered at the time to be the end-all, be-all in classical curriculum. I also made a small promise to my better half that, if I made my purchase so early in the year, I would NOT change my mind. But then I received my Story of the World Vol. 1 back from a friend who had borrowed it for the year. I had forgotten how wonderful Story of the World is! And it's fairly cheap. Why did I spend all that money on TOG when I already have SOW? So I sold my TOG and am back to the Middle Ages with SOW. Looks like fun. Since it's been a year since we did SOW and Ancient Times, we are rushing through it this summer as review. So SOW is the spine of my next school year since we Classicals start with History and branch out from there. I am, however, "stealing" the recommended reading lists from TOG--great literature!

For Phonics with the boys, I'm sticking with good ol' reliable A Beka. It tends to be tedious for them, though, so I'll put my own twist to it. And for reading for them, it'll be Frank Schaffer books and whatever else I can get my hands on that is of interest to them. I want to focus a lot more this year on writing. Alex has been working through a McGraw-Hill book called "Building Writing Skills", and I really like it. I tweak it as well, and it works out great. We'll do a lot more literature this year and literature that ties in with the Middle Ages...beginning with "Beowulf" (Kingfisher Epics has a great kids' version). We'll end the year with Shakespeare.

As for spelling, I decided to give Spelling Power a whirl this year. I've started it with Alex and am not completely sold on it; however, I have made a commitment to at least give it more than a week! In addition, to Spelling Power, Alex and I will go through English from the Roots Up. I had considered teaching her Latin but then quickly reconsidered. Like I'll stick to teaching her Latin! I know my weaknesses and limits!

One of my weaknesses and limits has always been math. In fact, now that we're up to 3rd grade math, I almost bought the Teacher's Manual this year for our ABeka Math, but after reviewing the curriculum, I think I still have a handle on the world of mathematics at this level; I'll probably have to go for the TM next year, however. I have found ABeka to be the most straightforward and interesting curriculum for math, and the kids seem to enjoy it. I try not to let my, um, unappreciation for the subject of math show through in any way through my teaching, so hopefully they will all be much stronger in it than I ever was. 

Because I'm going to be doing so much planning this year, I decided to go with a standard textbook for Science. We're doing "Exploring God's World" from ABeka. I'll supplement, though, with lapbooks from Hands of a Child. In addition, we're going to do the ABeka Health program.

Geography will be in conjunction with History, although I'll be doing some one-on-one work on map skills using a Frank Schaffer book. I also intend to continue our trip around the world using the CMA Kids' Site. I love to do country units where the kids get to stamp their passport, place a new country on the map, do crafts, cooking, whatever has to do with that country.

And speaking of countries, I've agonized over whether we should do Spain or France for language. I know, at least in this country, Spanish will be much more useful for the kids, but quite honestly, I'm not a huge fan of Spanish (no offense). ¿I mean, what kind of language puts upside down punctuation at the beginning of a sentence anyway? So...I finally decided on French. One of the main reasons for my decision, is that I plan to talk my better half into making a concerted effort to converse with me in French at home...you know, to accomplish the whole immersion thing. Anyway, I found a GREAT curriculum (which, incidentally, also comes in Spanish should I change my mind). Easy French is based on the educational philosophies of both Charlotte Mason and Benjamin Bloom, two of my educational heroes, so what more could I ask for? Well, there is more: The creators of Easy French are very mission-minded, so the kids will memorize Scripture in French, and the company also has a rebate program where, if you send your used curriculum to Wycliffe for use with its missionaries, you receive a credit on your next purchase. So I admire their ideals, I love the samples I've viewed of the curriculum, and I impatiently await the arrival of my order!

So, aside from artist and composer studies which I'll put together myself, that's going to be our year next year here at the School of the Gifted and Quirky. Should be a fun ride. In the meantime, I made a promise to my better half last year that I would NOT attend the Homeschool Expo this year (are we sensing a trend here of hasty promises?). However, a dear friend of mine has decided to homeschool. She certainly needs a friend to attend the conference with her for the first time, doesn't she? So I've already forewarned my husband that this may be one a second promise I have to break. I'm quite sure I won't be armed with any type of budget or allowance. It will be a test of self-control. I think at HCAA, step #10 is: Go to a homeschool conference and do not spend any money. I'm not sure I've made it through the first 9 steps, so I am sadly unprepared. I may fall off the wagon, or the shopping cart as it were.

You can always tell when I've been working on my curriculum because I use up all of my writing energies on it with little to spare for our Treasured Chapters. I'm too lazy to even come up with a title for this post. And there is much to catch up on; however, today I only want to talk about the fact that I just sent my baby to camp (sniff, sniff). I have no idea how my parents sent me to missionary boarding school for 3 months at a time. This is just 5 days! And I know she's having a great time. She is in a cabin with at least two of her best friends, and by now she's no doubt best friends with the other 9 girls with whom she's bunking.

As for us...we're getting a little boy time (with a little dash of Princess mixed in). The boys' friend Jack is spending the night since his sister is at camp as well. They swam, played in the sandbox, had a picnic dinner outside, ate lots of ice cream and brownies topped with M&Ms, and are staying up well past their bedtime. Hopefully my baby girl is feeling equally as spoiled!

Yep. Definitely not getting the Mom of the Year Award after today. And I can't say I'm particularly proud of what I did. However, I did very much enjoy my relaxing hour all to myself. We had school today--we're making up for the couple of weeks I took off when I was preparing the house to sit on the market, generating absolutely no interest. We concluded our day by beginning a unit on healthy eating and the food pyramid. I explained each part of the pyramid to them, ending with the straight facts on good fats and bad fats and, of course, sugar. Following this, our discussion turned to exercise and the importance of daily activity like swimming and riding our bikes.

After school was over, I had a brilliant idea. Despite the sermon I had just delivered about junk food and exercise, I promptly bribed rewarded them with popcorn, candy, and a movie. What's worse, when they were all comfortably settled, popcorn in one hand and candy in the other, eyes glued to the screen, I carried out the rest of my master plan: I snuck out to the pool ALL BY MYSELF! And, oh, it was glorious! Lying there on my raft on the quiet water, disturbed only by the gentle ripples produced by the jets; the sound of the peaceful breeze interrupted only by the melodious songs of a multitude of birds, tunes I have never noticed over the squealing, shouting, and bickering of 4 children.

I knew it couldn't last for long, but I savored every moment of it and was lost in the rays of the sunlight. Just as I was drifting off, a loud rapping noise awakened me from my reverie. The knocking came from the window in the upstairs media room, a room which, unfortunately for me, overlooks the pool. I had been discovered. And it wasn't but a few moments until the movie was forgotten and 4 children were piling on top of me in the pool, turning my placid calm into delightful chaos.

So since I'm not vying for any super mom awards, the evil mama in me had to pause to pose this one question: Is this what it would be like if all the children were in school? I mean, I know they would be on vacation right now, but would my Mays and Augusts consist of hours of lazing around the pool ALL BY MYSELF. Not having to bribe reward. Not having to hide. Just me? Hmmm....On this I shall have to ponder!

Dear Toothfairy Boss,

Thank you so much for the opportunity to serve as your interim Toothfairy while you search for my replacement. Last night I completed Jacob Project II. While I nearly missed the deadline, I did complete the workorder just in time, and it turned out to be a successful project. Because of my success, I wonder if you might consider re-hiring me. I do so enjoy working with my clients!

I believe my previous work habits, which included great attention to detail, are returning, and I am more up for the job now. In fact, because of my attention to detail, I would like to point out a concern I have regarding all of my latest projects. Perhaps it is not my place to say, but I have some concern about our company finances as there have been so many back-to-back projects lately. In addition, just to give you a heads-up, there is a pending project for Michael. I estimate completion on this next Michael Project will be required some time this week.

I would be honored if you would allow me to take on the next Michael Project when it comes up for completion. I promise I will do a good job on it, and then perhaps we could consider my letter of resignation null and void.

Sincerely,
Interim Toothfairy

P.S. - In reviewing Jacob's workorder, I came across this photo. Don't I have the most adorable clients?

 

Imagination, Inc.
Department of Human Resources

To Whomever This May Concern:

Since 2004, I have held the position of Toothfairy. Although I am honored to hold this position, I feel my resignation would be in the best interest of my clients. In the past, I found it easy to concentrate in full on the task at hand; however, lately, I have done a poor job of completing each project and completing it well. On the Michael Project my attention to detail was lacking, and my customer was forced to expend extra time and energy searching for his dividends only to find them hidden in the recesses of his pillow.

Although I did have a successful Jacob Project just last week, on my most recent job, the Alex Project, again my customer awoke to find no dividends. I suggested she search in the recesses of Jacob's pillow as perhaps I simply had my last project in mind while completing this one. She turned up nothing. Finally, I directed her to the guest quarters where she used to take up her residence. I suggested that perhaps in my rush to get the job completed, I simply forgot she had moved. Thankfully, she discovered her dividends there.

So, in conclusion, it is with much regret that I am submitting my resignation, but I'm sure you will have no trouble finding a replacement who will serve these wonderful customers with a dependable sharpness of mind. If, on the other hand, you find no capable replacement, please do call on me when projects arise as I have developed a special relationship with my customers. Thank you for the honor of serving for 3 1/2 years.

Respectfully,
Toothfairy

I know every parent thinks they have the cutest, brightest, best kids in the world. But I really do. Yesterday I reluctantly promised the kids a pool day. Reluctantly because it's still a little chilly. I did finally make it in up to my waist, but I didn't last for long. So that left 4 children in the pool with me lifeguarding. I'm not sure how it came up, but Alex decided she wanted to teach Jacob how to swim. I watched with interest for over an hour as Alex very patiently worked with Jacob! "Watch me, Jacob, then you try." "First try it out of the water, then get in and give it a try." "You're OK. I'm right here if you need me." "Here, grab my hands. I've got you."

While Alex was working with Jacob, Audrey was floating around in her wings and ring. Michael decided to take her under his wing by leading her around, each of them holding on to the end of a noodle. She just ate up the attention from her big brother, and he was so gentle as he took her on an imaginary trip and communicated with her. " Now we're going to just pull over here for some gas, OK?" "Alright, all filled up. Let's go!"

It was so sweet to watch all four of them. Michael shone as a sweet big brother. Alex did such a great job and was a wonderful teacher. And...Jacob learned a lot! He's so close to swimming now and will venture into the deep end with just his wings rather than his wings AND his floatie ring. At one point, Alex asked me if we could go out for ice cream once Jacob has learned to swim. I said of course we could, or maybe we could even go to Chuck E. Cheese. That incentive got them so excited, I'm quite sure they're going to be begging for another pool day today.

I've seen it before. I'll be at the park with the kids, and looking around, I notice all of the children: some playing in the sand, others on the playset, and still others just chasing each other around. They're all wearing clothes that can take a beating, that can get a little dirty. Then I'll see her: a bouncy little girl who comes zooming down the slide and lands in the pile of dirt at the bottom. She's not dressed in her romping clothes; rather, she is decked out in a frilly dress and fancy shoes. And I think to myself, Why did that mother dress that poor little girl in those clothes? How is she supposed to have any fun in that dress? That poor little girl.

I get it now. No longer will I worry about whether or not that little girl is having in fun in her fancy schmancy dress. Because, you see, it was most likely her choice to wear that fancy dress. In fact, it is probably her request each and every day to wear a fancy dress. When it comes time to get dressed in this household, the Princess' request is always the same: "I wear my new dress?" Now, two months ago, she actually did have a few new dresses; I bought them for church. For church! Of course, now that she's worn her Sunday dresses over and over, they are rather old and tired so that when I pull one out, she responds indignantly, "THAT'S not my new dress!" Well, excuuuuse me, Your Highness! New or not, she'll take the dress over shorts and a t-shirt any day. And the fancier the better. The look of absolute delight that takes over her face when she is given an opportunity to wear one of her "fancy dresses" is priceless.

Where did this little girl come from? I am all about simple and comfortable. What I'm not about is fancy! No frills, ruffles, or lace for me.  But this little one? She is only happy when she's surrounded by fancy. And she's the first child I've ever known to be equally as happy over a gift of clothes as a new toy. Usually, the gift bags full of clothes from Grandma and Grandpa are the ones I ooh and aah over (because that's less money I have to spend to clothe these children), while the kids completely ignore them and turn their attention to new toys. The Princess? She looks at each new article of clothing very carefully and then wants to carry her new clothes around for the rest of the day.

All I can say is: If we move, the girl's gonna need a bigger closet!

Diapers are behind us. And, really, the Princess doesn't use a sippy cup much anymore either. So the diaper bags have been left behind as well. And as of last Tuesday, the 20th, I've got my little stair steps back: my older three are ages 6, 7, and 8. My baby boy is 6! My baby boy is 6. Just letting that sink in.

I was thinking last night about another sort of milestone we've passed. I was pondering this milestone around 10:30 last night when all 7 of the children were finally asleep. Yes, I said 7 children. Jacob had his birthday sleepover last night and invited three of his buddies over. We have always been proponents of the somtimes controversial "Babywise", so our children have always been driven by schedules. Throw off the schedule? You end up with a grumpy baby and a bad day for everyone. I realized last night, though, that we're finally past that as well: our children can have the occasional really late night and then be up early (early!) the next morning, and they'll be OK. Even my littlest one survives pretty well the next day. It's another milestone. Kind of a strange one to say I've passed, but just a reminder that they're all growing up very quickly.

Seeing Jacob interact with all of his friends last night was a reminder to us of how much he's grown over the past year--how brave and confident he's become. All of the boys had fun just being boys. I had nothing really planned, so they just enjoyed one another's company. I also didn't make the cake. Had I taken the time to make it, I imagine it would have been a little more masculine than the Care Bears rainbow cake I ordered from Publix. I removed the Care Bears and replaced them with Webkinz figurines since my boy had requested a Webkinz party. I think he'll need a manly construction or motorcyle-themed party next year to make up for the rainbows.

Rainbows or not, my boy has officially said good-bye to all things toddler, preschool, and kindergarten. Just another milestone. And I know if we blink too long, we'll be staring Pomp and Circumstance in the face. Better savor the moments while we can!