Aug. 6, 2009 - Homeschool Co-op

The Homeschool Buyer Co-op is a free homeschooling organization for both new and veteran homeschoolers.  Co-op membership is free and confidential, and entitles homeschooling families to discounts from over a hundred educational suppliers.  They also sponsor "Group Buys" for curriculum packages that save homeschooling families lots of money. On the site you'll find lots of free information, such as databases of free curriculum, field trips, and educational contests and scholarships. Highly recommended.

Homeschool Buyers Co-op

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Aug. 6, 2009 - Top 10 Things Not to Say

(Borrowed - not sure the original source)

Top 10 Things NOT to say when asked "What?! No school today?"

10. Well normally yes, but this time of year I need help with the planting and plowing.

9. Goodness, no!!! I graduated 18 years ago, but thanks for the compliment!

8. No, we homeschool. We're just out to pick up a bag of pork rinds and some Mountain Dew, then we gotta hurry home to catch our soaps.

7. What?! Where did you guys come from?! Oh my! I thought I told you kids to stay at school! I'm sorry. This happens all the time. (sigh)

6. There isn't? Why, you'd think we would have seen more kids out then, don't you?

5. We're on a field trip studying human nature's intrusive and assumptive tactics of displaying ignorance and implied superiority. Thanks for the peek!

4. On our planet we have different methods of education. (Shhh! No, I didn't give it away... keep your antennae down!)

3. Oh no! I thought that today was Saturday...come on kids, hurry!

2. Noooooope. Me 'n Bubba jes' learns 'em at home. Werks reel good!

And the number one answer we should NEVER give to the question: "What? No school today?"

1. "The school said they couldn't come back until they're no longer contagious"?

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Jul. 29, 2009 - Homeschool Parents Unite!

I spend most of my mornings, with my Folgers, facebook & Fox & Friends. It has become more and more apparent to me, that the world considers parents as dispensible.

After reading Hold Onto Your Kids, by Gordon Neufeld, Gabor Mate MD, and Saving Childhood, by Michael and Dianne Medved, I am even more glad that we decided to homeschool.

Both books talk about the influence that the world, media and peers have on our kids. Peers have just about replaced parents as the source for children to get advice and direction. We are a nation of kids raising kids.

How much of that is because they spend 6-8 hours 5 days a week in a public institution with same age peers? Add to this that the majority of the kids are dropped off before school, and attend after school, spending a small amount of time in the evening with their parents, and we wonder why our kids are growing up too fast?

I don't buy the argument of "quality" time. I think being there to answer the questions as they arise, to guide, direct, and most of all love my kids through decisions, big & small, is more important.

Not everyone can homeschool. But, we chose this route at great personal sacrifice. We could be making 2 incomes, and our financial situation would be easier, my husband would be less stressed, and the girls could do all kinds of activities.

But, God gave us these 2 precious girls to raise, not to give to someone else to raise. And whether or not you agree with me, who is raising the kids who are in day care or school every day? Whose values and ideology will be instilled into these impressionable minds? Whose faith? Whose idea of freedom? Whose views on sex?

I know that my views are going against the flow of feminism, and what the world thinks is right. But, I was never, NEVER as fulfilled running a nursing home for 60K a year, as I am taking care of, and teaching my kids for $0 a year.

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Jul. 23, 2009 - The Venture into Pet Motherdom

It's been a while since we had pets. Our cat disappeared about 3 years ago, and since then we have strongly opposed new pets.

Slowly, I became aware that I wanted a pet as much as the girls. So, last week, we went to the local Animal Shelter to get a cat. The operative word here is "A" cat.

Our local animal shelter consists of fenced cages at this point, since they are still building the permanent facility. They do not charge and adoption fee.

We went with the intention of getting a grown cat. At least that is what I intended. There was a plethora of cats and kittens there, all putting their cutest faces  forward. I chose a pretty orange and white cat, fully grown. She is HUGE, but very sweet.

The girls wanted kittens. As a result we came home with one full grown cat and 2 kittens. Katie's is a grey striped kitten she named Tiger. Amanda's is a light orange/yellow longhair she named Peach. Peach was doubly blessed, because when we met the animal control officer at the shelter, he was bringing her in. She had just been dropped off as a stray. She never even made it to the cage!

It has been fun watching Topaz (or Fat Cat as she has been dubbed) get used to the house and the kittens. At first she hissed is they were in the same room with her. Now she only gets really ticked off when they play with and bite her tail.

The kittens play and fight constantly. They are so funny. Tiger chases the cursor on the computer screen, making in hard for me to see what I am doing. (I'll use that as an excuse explanation for any typographical errors).

It has also been interesting to watch the girls interact with their kittens. Tiger wants to be on you or play all the time. Katie gets tired of that. Peach is much more independent and Amanda wants to hold her constantly. Hmmm, maybe they should switch kittens....

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Jul. 13, 2009 - Pet Monday

Well, it has finally happened. John has finally agreed to us getting a pet. I am so excited!

I have a call in to the local animal shelter. They have a bunch of full grown cats and some kittens. I am hoping the officer will call back soon, and that the girls and I can go there today. The girls are at VBS this morning, and I would love to surprise them with a trip to pick out a pet when I pick them up.

I am hoping I only leave with one pet, but I have a feeling I may end up with 3.

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Jul. 8, 2009 - Listening to R2D2 scream....

My girls, especially Amanda, love to play Lego Star wars. They know it makes me laugh hysterically when R2D2 crashes and screams. Okay, so I am a droid sadist.

So, this morning, Amanda is crashing R2 over and over again, to make him scream so she can hear me laugh.


Ah, it is the simple things......

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Jun. 30, 2009 - Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

They don't know they are learning!

Yesterday each girl had a friend over for the day. We took the opportunity to head to the local science center, since we have a reciprocal membership. The big exhibit was about the Circus and the science involved.

When we first got there we all made the obligatory stop at the restroom. As is the case with most restroom stalls now, these had ads on the back, for the center's exhibits. One of the girls began reading about when the circus began and what it involved. Stealth learning instance #1.

We went into the main exhibit, which was about the Circus. They each got an opportunity to go up in a bungee harness and practice acrobatic flips. Each girl had to figure out what they had to do to make themselves flip over. Stealth learning instance #2.

There were tons of hands on exhibits, covering a wide range of physics, biology, chemistry etc. But they just knew they were having fun. Stealth learning at it's finest! So SHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

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Jun. 26, 2009 - The King?

Well, Michael Jackson has died. This is upsetting on several levels. First, he was a year YOUNGER than me. Secondly, we all grew up with him, and remember his music fondly.

Thirdly, and maybe only I feel this way - too much is being made about his demise. Sure, he was the "King of Pop". But the media attention and fan vigils just shows me that we as a nation have our priorities all messed up.

Michael Jackson was an awesome entertainer. Apparently he was also a tortured soul. But, he is not worthy of worship. No human being is worthy of such idolization. We tend to put celebrities on pedestals. We take what they say as gospel. We raise them to a level where no man should be raised.

2 other celebrities passed away this week. Ed McMahon and Farrah Fawcett. They were also talented people, but are overshadowed by Jackson's death. Maybe the attention given to their passing is more appropriate to human beings who also happened to have some manner of celebrity.

Maybe I am old-fashioned or a religious idiot, but to me this kind of worship is only appropriate for the  King of Kings, not the King of Pop.

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Jun. 24, 2009 - Jabberwocky

I think I have Alzheimer's. No, that can't be it. My doctor says if you think you have Alzheimer's - you don't. Maybe it's just senility.

Why did I wake up thinking about Lewis Carroll's Jabberwocky from Alice in Wonderland? Then my mind went to Ogden Nash - "I think that I shall never see a poem as lovely as a tree, perhaps unless the billboards fall I'll never see a tree at all." And that one about the purple cow.

There's got to be some short circuit up there for this stuff to surface from the deep recesses of my brain. Maybe it's chocolate deprivation....

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Jun. 23, 2009 - The Best Laid Plans of Mice & Moms

Well, I had great plans to take the kids to the Scheile Museum today for the presentation on turtles, frogs and snakes. Amanda is a budding herpetologist, and I thought it would be fun. Especially since we have a membership to another nature center that gives us free admission. We are all about free.

But, Katie and her friend from next door decided to camp out in the back yard last night. And, of course, theys stayed inside to watch the new episode of "Jon & Kate Plus Eight" and fight with Amanda. They bigger girls came in and commandeered Amanda's little bead design making thingy (the technical term), which she had started but not finished.

This of course distressed Princess #2 out immensely. The bigger girls took 2 hours to make elaborate designs on these bead making thingys. Then they wanted to use the iron to melt the beads into a permanent design. They, however, did not know what they were doing. Luckily, they stopped BEFORE they melted plastic beads allover my iron.

So, they took pictures of their designs, and gave then bases to Amanda who was tired and now whining loudly that she HAD to finish her design last night. Did she? Not.

So, since we were up late, we bagged the idea of going to the museum. THe pool opens in less than an house, so I am thinking that will be a good place to go.

I guess it's all about flexibility isn't it?

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Jun. 20, 2009 - Saturday

Well, we made it through another week, even though Mom had a couple of temper tantrums.

Yesterday, John & I celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary. Our neighbor kept the girls, and we went to our favorite "date" restaurant - Tijuana Flats. We even had a B1G1 coupon! LOL!

So here is the happy couple, 17 years, and several pounds ago.

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Jun. 19, 2009 - Attention all Facebookers!

Make sure and check out The Old Schoolhouse fan page at Facebook! Lots of great people, info and some surprises as well!

The Old Schoolhouse at Facebook

And while you are there, make sure you check out the 19 free gifts promotion. 19 great free gifts included with your subscription to TOS! My favs are the $10 Apologia gift card, and the Visual Manna CD.

TOS Summer Promo

Don't let this pass you by!

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Jun. 18, 2009 - There are Days I Miss Rosanne

I know June Cleaver is my Mom idol, but there are days the Rosanne Connor's mothering advice hits closer to home. Today would be one of those days.

Summer is in full swing, and the girls are as well. If they are not bickering, they are pinching, or touching or yelling or tattling. Or they tell me the dreaded.....I AM BORED!.

I'll never forget one of the Rosanne shows where Darlene & Becky were fighting. Rosanne told them, in her inimitable way, "I am leaving this room, and don't come out until one of you is dead!".

Drastic I supposed, but funny. Some days I need funny.

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Jun. 17, 2009 - Read the Book!

Getting Katie to read has been one of my big struggles and goals for our first year of homeschooling. She has latched onto Robin Jones Gunn's Christy Miller series, and is reading those with a vengeance.  She has finished all of those and is now onto the Katie Weldon series by the same author.

Oh, but I long for her to want to read some of the classic books. She has read Anne of Green Gables, and we will do the Prairie Primer next year so we will be reading all of Laura Ingalls Wilder's books.

Today, we went to the free summer movie (free if you don't count the exorbitant cost of popcorn!). The movie we saw was Journey to the Center of the Earth. While quite unbelieveable, it was entertaining, and referred back to the Jules Verne book many times.

At one point in the movie, the young main character is stuck and says "I wish I'd read that book.". It had been on one of his summer reading lists.

Alas, Katie was not inspired to read the book after seeing the movie. Sigh..... maybe someday.

Amanda did read a book aloud to me. She did well, spelling the words she did not know and making it all the way through. I am trying not to stress over the fact that she is still stumbling with her reading after completing first grade. She is only 7 still, and making progress.

I am praying that in a couple of years I will look back and wonder why I ever fretted about Katie's reading choices, or Amanda's proficiency. Until then, I can only pray, and soldier on.

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Jun. 16, 2009 - Patience....patience

I am finding that patience is one of the many things God is teaching me on this homeschooling journey. Patience with Katie when she balks at doing her work or mentions wanting to go back to public school. Patience with Amanda when she stumbles over sight words she knows when reading out loud.

But right now, He is telling me to be patient in buying curriculum. I have researched and made my list for next year. But, we have not purchased anything.

Last year we were blessed with curriculum from Book Samaritan (which apparently is no more), otherwise we would have been up the proverbial creek.

After our first year, I have a better idea of what each girl needs. Katie is way ahead of her grade level in everything, and finds everything, except breathing, boring. She loves the computer, so we are going with Teaching Textbooks for her.

Amanda needs more hands on work, so we are going for Math-U-See. I am going to use Rod & Staff for English, spelling and Bible - I like the emphasis and the cost is manageable. We will also do the
 Prairie Primer , which takes us through all the Little House books.

Now, back to patience. Flat out, we don't have the funds to go ahead and buy these items now. I am chomping at the bit to get things ordered and in so I can look over them and plan. But, God says wait. Ah, that patience thing again.

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Jun. 15, 2009 - Summer Time

We are back from vacation - our annual pilgrimage to Kentucky for a family reunion and a week's visit with my Mom.

The week did not start out promising, as my Mom wrecked her car on the way to the reunion. Aside from a bloody nose, she was okay - thank God. However, her prized 1993 red caddy  was totalled.

We spent most of the week dealing with insurance and trying to get her to decide on a new car. She finally bought one, but still isnt' in love with it.

We did get to check out the Louisville Science Center and the Louisville Zoo. The zoo now has a Sky Trail - which is a 2+ story climbing adventure. The girls had fun, and Mom had a heart attack. But, I am now learning to view all of these things as learning experiences for the girls.


John and the girls had fun trying to build a ball rolling tube at the Science Center.


Now we are back home and starting on our Summer Bridge workbooks, and reading.

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Jun. 1, 2009 - In the Good Old Summertime....

We have been doing school "lite" since we did our testing. Lots of field trips and fun things, some reading.

Now summer is upon us, we are getting ready to head out to a family reunion soon. I purchase the Summer Bridge books for the girls to work on each day. I was able to find a Christian version for grade 1-2, but not for 5-6. I think this will help us keep skills sharp without feeling like "school".

We are also doing some reading programs. Barnes & Noble always has one, and the kids get a free book when they read the required number of books. Barnes & Noble Summer Reading . And of course, TOS has one as well, which includes a lot of fun things like a scavenger hunt for freebies! Summer Reading Splash .

Our local library also has a summer reading incentive program. Each summer they have a big kick off, with lots of crafts. story telling and free books. Alas, we will miss it this year. But, we will be participating in the program.

This year the kids have a choice of a prize at certain hours read levels, or they can get book bucks and donate them for books to needy kids. Nice idea!

The library also provided a grade level list of recommended books, so I had the girls each pick one from their respective list to read.

My girls current favorties - Katie is loving the Christy Miller Series by Robin Jones Gunn. If you have read the Sisterchicks books, she is the same author. The books do deal with high school age issues, but from a Christian perspective.

Amanda loves Junie B Jones. I have to agree, Junie B is a riot!

My reading list includes mysteries by Joanna Fluke, The Piney Ridge Trilogy by Janice Holt Giles, The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society by Beth Patillo.

Happy reading!

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May. 7, 2009 - Another Day in Paradise

Well, we have lost steam since we have already done our year end testing. I was glad to hear another home school mom tell me they were in the same boat last night. Phew, now I don't feel so negligent!

Amanda has a playdate with a new homeschool friend today, and we are working on one for Katie. Maybe this will make the homeschool transition easier.

I am writing this while watching Fox & Friends. I just watched a tape of an exchange between Joyce Behar and Elizabeth Hasselbeck over evolution versus creationism. Apparently Joy Behar feels that those of us who choose to teach creationism are guilty of child abuse. Hmmmm.

Check out Tina's blog http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/momof7kids/685805/?#c1291967 , she has a great giveaway going on!

Blessings!

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Apr. 29, 2009 - Random Thoughts on Homeschooling

It is a lovely morning here. Already 67 degrees and going up to the 80's today. Looks like a good day for school outside on the deck.

The girls are still sleeping, one of the beauties of homeschooling. No rushed mornings, no cranky, tired kiddos. Plus, Mom gets some quiet time to enjoy the sound of birds singing through the open window. Time to thank God for his creation.

We tested last week. Well, the girls took the test, the results were Mommy's. Amanda is solidly at or above grade level - yay!. We need to work on reading, maybe try whole language instead of phonics.

Katie is at 8th grade level or above. My challenge with her will be finding curriculum to keep her interested, but not getting too far ahead! At least she is reading on her own now which was my major goal for her. Well, she knew how to read, she just hated it! Now she has a book, and opts for it over tv! Yay!

Yesterday we planted seeds. We enjoyed being outside for school, while the other kids were in a classroom. I love homeschooling!

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Apr. 21, 2009 - T Day

Today is testing day for our household. We opted to take the Woodcock-Johnson test at our local homeschool store, since it is our first year. I wanted to get an "expert's" feedback, and some direction as to where to go from here.

In addition, I thought the mostly oral test would be better for Amanda, since she stresses a bit over reading too much. I just have to get her to not be bashful, and actually answer the questions.

Of course, I am not really worried about how they will do, but how the results reflect on me and as teacher and a Mom. John says it doesn't matter, we'll just know where to head next year. But, it still feels like MY test!

On another note, I see the Secretary of Education is recommending an 11 month school year. Wonder if that would effect homeschoolers?

http://blog.mlive.com/taking_notes/2009/02/new_education_secretary_lookin.html

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