It has rain so much in the past 3 days, we feel like we need to take a boat instead of a car.   It is only a 30% chance of rain tomorrow and I hope it goes the other way.  Yes, I know that we need the rain.  But we also need some sunshine and some fresh air. My dc are going crazy from staying in the house and so has their mama.  Is is possible to get cabin fever in the summer time?  If it is, we all have it.  My house feels damp.  We live in a very old house and when it rains the whole house feels wet.  I have not even try to mop these last few days.  On days like this it takes forever for it to dry.  Also there is no keeping up with my dh's mud covered shoes.  So my mop has had the last few days off.  But it better get ready come tomorrow it is back on the job.  Hope everybody else is staying dry!

Blessings!

Hope

I have a neighbor that I love very much.  She has always been so nice to us.  But she drive me crazy at times.  She can not understand why we homeschool.  No matter what is going on we always have this same conversation.

First we have the hellos and the small talk.

Then she will start in about homeschooling. Right now she wants to know if we are going to hs our dd.

My N:  So is Rose going to Kindergarden this year?

Me: Yes, she is going to be a Kindergarder this year.

My N: Oh! So she is going over there.  (She then points to the school.)

Me: No, she will go to school at home.

My N: (With a shocked look on her face) Oh! Well I thought that you would let her go to school with other kids. I though that she would get to go school. 

At this point I just smile because she will never understand why we homeschool.  And I have told her many times.  And this usually ends the conversation. 

Why do people just not let it go that I homeschool.  I could do many things in my life.  Many bad things and people would never have a problem with it.  But homeschool is the one issue that people just want to fight me on.  I don't undersand it. 

So why do we homeschool?

Well first and foremost because God told us too.  Before my oldest ds went to school, God was leading me to hs.  I remember coming from town one day and I felt a pull to hs.  I quickly pushed it out of my heart.  So I send my ds to school.  He had a hard time.  During the end of that year again I felt God leading me to hs.  But again I pushed it away. 

1st grade was worst then K. The school wanted to test him for learning problems.  See the school they were in got money for each child they have with learning problems.  So they tested him in Oct but we didn't get the results back till April.  Of course they could find nothing wrong with him.  During that time I prayed, "God if JJ fails the first grade, I will hs."  Guess what?  He failed! 

So the next year we began to hs.  Well it didn't go good, like most first years do.  Well about 2 months into, I quit.  I sent them back to ps.  Well it was a living nightmare.  I knew that I had stepped out of God's will again.  So after 3 months I brought them back home again.  And that is where they are today.

I use to tell people these long reasons on why we hs.  But I don't anymore.  I just tell them because God told us too.  I love having them home.  Yes, there are days I want to run and hide.  There never seems to be enough money or time.  But God always provides.  Not just finances but whatever we are needing.  There is a reason for them being home.  I feel honor to be a homeschool mom.  I am so glad that God called me to do it.  And I am so glad that I finally listened.  Even if God had to hit me in the head again and again.  Thank God that He keeps hitting us until we get it.

Yes, my neighbors, family members, and even my pastor thinks we are crazy.  But that is okay.  I rather be crazy and be in God's will then be "normal" and out of His will.

Blessings!

Hope

I know that we are the last people to see this movie.  But we watched it last night.  And all I can say was, "WOW!".  It was the best movie I have seen in a long, long time.  I wanted to read the kids the book first, but gave up because they just wasn't into it.  Now after they have watched the movie, they are ready for me to drive into the book.  And I can't wait either.

Blessings!

Hope

I have been praying a lot about the boys and their reading.  A couple of weeks ago my pastor wife past around paper to everybody.  She then told us to write on it one thing that we are struggling with.  Well I could have wrote the whole page. lol  But I didn't!  I wrote that I worried about my boys reading problem.  She then prayed over our request and told us to give it to God.  After that she past around a trash can and told us to throw the problem away.  When I did, I felt such a release off of me.  From then on everytime I have worried about it, I remember that I gave it to God.  He is leading me though this and He would lead me to what I need to do. 

The other week I was reading about a mom and her worried about the ps reading method.  One hs mom said that she use the "Scaredy Cat Reading System".  I did a search on it and came across the website.  It is created by Joyce Herzog who has worked with learning disabled children.  She created a reading system for the students that she taught.  I ordered the demo dvd and watched it.  From the first words that she spoke I felt as if she was speaking to me and my boys.  So this weekend I will place an order for it.  After going on the message board at http://www.joyceherzog.com/index.html I am going to start with Level 1.  I really feel at peace about this.

Well I better get this day started.  I have lots to do and very little time to do it. 

Have a great day!!

Hope

On May 1st of this year, we will begin our 5th year homeschooling.    This will be new to us because we will do school during the summer.

I am very happy on one hand and very sad on the other.  I feel like I have failed in so many ways. My two boys are still having a hard time reading.  JJ my oldest is doing fine and I know that he is catching on great.  But my youngest son, Sam, struggles so much.  He wants to read so bad.  I panic at times that maybe he will never read.  But then I pray and I feel at peace.  After much praying, I know there are a few things I can do. 

1. Be consistent!  Read everyday 15 to 20 minutes!  And we set the timer and helps him to know that when it rings it is time to stop. 

2. Go at his pace.  I have try to push at times.  I guess I thought the faster we go the quicker he will read.  But it is not true.  So he tells me if we need to slow down.

3. Give him encouragement!  Let him know that he will soon read and it is okay if it is not today.

4.  Pray, pray, pray, pray! 

5.  Know that God lead me to homeschool and he will see us though anything. 

Now JJ needs all of this not for reading but for math. 

As I said this will be summer school for us.  But the breaks are too long and we spent weeks reviewing.  The boys are having a hard time with this.  But we will just do the basics.  I am also hoping that we will have very few "I'm bored" days. 

We will see! 

I am very happy because in August my little girl, Rose, will start school.  She is the only one of my dc who will not attend ps.  She is so happy and can't wait.  She loves to write and pretent to read.  She is still learning her abc's and her numbers.  Rose loves to do school with her brothers.  I ask her the other day where her school was at.  She said, "Here, Mama".  And pointed to our "school" table. 

I got most of what I need for the summer.  Need to do a quick order this weekend.  Until I get what I need we are going to use free worksheet sites.  I will make a list of what we will use this summer tomorrow.  I have to go to bed now.  I am very tired and it is 2:21am.  That reminds me!  I need to get in the bed at a better time. 

Good Nite and God Bless!!

Hope

I have been sating here for awhile, not knowing what to say in my first entry. My name is Hope and I am a wife and mother. I have been married for almost 13 years to a great man. I know that God puts us together. It has been a lot of ups and downs but I have found that it has only made us stonger.  It is so funny but we are not a like in a lot of ways.  From the music we listen to to the food that we eat.  But it works for us.  We learn a lot from each other. 

We have 4 children.  Three here on earth and one that was born into Heaven.  We have two boys (ages 11 and 10) and a girl (age 4).  We began our homeschool jouney back in 2002.  I am getting a litte more comfortable with it all.   But I have to admit most days I am as lost as I was that first day.  I do know that God is guiding me on this way and I have very thankful for that. 

Okay I have made this longer then I thought I would.  Get me started and I can't stop.  Can't wait to get to know everybody. 

Hope