A Day in the Life - Homeschool Blogger

A Woman on a Mission!

Sat, 25 Feb 2006 17:28:00 -0600

Wow, it feels so great to have a plan for getting in shape. I have honestly been flitting day to day, hour to hour with this vague notion of wanting to lose weight and get in shape but without any real idea as to what I should be doing to make it happen. I don't know if it is just age, hormones or what, but my metabolism just plain "ain't where it used to be"-- not that it was ever very speedy but I used to be able to shed a few pounds when I really put my mind to it. I have to confess that in the past year my weight has crept up a good 16 pounds or so and enough is enough! There are several reasons I need to get my health in order:

1. Because I have high blood pressure.
2. I can't afford to buy new clothes!
3. I want to be proud to take pictures with my family-- my children will one day look back and wonder why mom was always avoiding the camera!
4. I want to be a healthy role model to my children.
5. I want to feel more attractive to my dh-- he says I'm beautiful already ofcourse but I really want him to be like WOW!!!!

So today my plan got a HUGE kick start because my awesomely generous dh decided to get me a treadmill and not just any treadmill-- it is an AWESOME treadmill. It does the automatic incline, measures your heart rate, folds up, counts your steps, miles, calories, etc. It is dynamic!!!

In addition to the treadmill I have started a new diet system my dh and I devised together which essentially calls for me to eat frozen lunches and dinners, cereal for breakfast and a low-cal snack every day. I am also allowed to snack on fruit and vegetables, drink herbal tea and tons of water. This is what we came up with instead of having me do something like Nutrisystem which is just flat out too expensive.

It feels great to just feel like I have a solid plan in place and that if I stick to it faithfully I will see results. Pray for me that this is a success!!

Dial Up's Not So Bad After All

Thu, 23 Feb 2006 07:57:00 -0600

Well in an effort to save some monthly cash I downgraded our internet yesterday from DSL to dial up. I was incredibly unsure about this-- when we had dial up before it was soooo slow and I've become very used to the speedy DSL connection. Well I went ahead and took a chance (knowing I could reverse it if dialing up was just "too much" lol) and dh and I have both been very pleased with the change-- not only is it $22 cheaper per month (WOW!!) it is actually A LOT faster than we remember. I mean we do have to dial up and we do have to wait a few seconds for pages to load but it really isn't that big of a deal honestly. Woo hoo! Cash savings!

I am having my monthly pity party which I think is brought on by PMS hormones surging-- it is getting really comical. Once a month I am convinced that no one likes me, every one hates me and in fact everyone is out to drive me crazy. Well not everyone-- just my family and friends This all started right around when I turned 30 last yeart-- I turned 31 very recently and finally I starting to see the connection and realize that no, not everyone is changing their attitude on me-- it's me, it's definitely definitely me.

My husband had an interview for a new position this morning-- can't wait to hear the results!

Home school is rocking and rolling-- Jasmine's handwriting is improving and she did her first book report yesterday on an Amelia Bedelia book. Camille is mostly playing but I am having her focus in on learning one letter each day-- starting with the letters of her name.

Well lots to do, have to run!

New Schedule

Tue, 21 Feb 2006 07:38:00 -0600

Today I am implementing a new schedule that I pray will be good for the family-- I have arranged it so that now we have sort of "blocks" of time in which to do certain things in whatever order I want because when my schedule is too specific I just sort of mentally want to block it out and say "forget it". So here's the new plan:

7:00-9:00 Shower, dress, computer time, devotion, beds, wipe down bathrooms, start laundry, coffee, breakfast, dishes/clean up.
9:00-11:00 Home School Activities
11:00-12:00 Exercise/Walk/Playground
12:00-12:30 Lunch
12:30-2:30 Chores, weekly cleaning, daily to do list, switch laundry
2:30-4:00 Quiet Time/Nap for the girls, Computer Work time for me (marketing and freelance work)
4:00-5:00 Play with the girls
5:00-6:30 Vacuum, baths, pick up/put up, dinner, medications
7:00 Clean kitchen, family time (games, reading, etc)
8:00 Kids to bed, finish laundry, notebook check, clothes out for the next day

I may not be a fly lady but I think this will be pretty good! :-)

What's nice too is that if I finish everything ahead of schedule I can give myself a little treat like right now-- I finished the morning stuff quickly so I have a 15 min splurge time :-)

I am also committing today to eat only 1200 calories and to take 12,000 steps. Pray for me ladies!

Reflections

Sun, 19 Feb 2006 11:31:00 -0600

1. My youngest dd is not potty training well... I'm considering just scrapping the whole notion for now, going back to diapers and then broaching the topic anew say when she is three years old or so. It is just frustration and confusion as it stands and I am the one who is doing all the remembering-- I asked her repeatedly if she had to go potty last night and it was nope nope nope and then suddenly it's UH OH and wet pants. Again. For the millionth time. I am just feeling she must not be ready and that I've rushed things and that I just need to scrap it for now. Maybe that's wrong.

2. I am feeling majorly convicted food wise today. I have been having a "festival of treats" around the house lately... brownies, cupcakes, candy, you name it. I have been exercising a lot more but it's almost like my brain refuses to let my body make progress and sabotages the plan. And I fall for it time and time again. What I'm convicted about though is that my food situation right now is out of balance-- it has actually become somewhat of an idol in my life. I turn to it for comfort and that is wrong. I eat the wrong things and I eat even when I'm not hungry. I get angry at myself when I see the scale and make big promises and manage to be good for about half a day but then at some point my resolve crumbles and I'm back where I started. At church they talked about the idea of being "convicted" and our pastor said the next thing is to confess and repent so I am moving on to those steps and praying for the Lord to help me shake this unhealthy addiction to sweets.

It is cold in Ohio. Very very cold.

Sat, 18 Feb 2006 08:44:00 -0600

:-) I'm not actually in Ohio but here's the thing-- we're moving to Ohio (from Georgia) either very soon or at the latest within the next year. In order to mentally prepare myself I have been daily checking the weather in the area we will be living. Today it is 5 degrees. FIVE. DEGREES. Wow. I better stock up on some long johns, scarves and hats! LOL

On a lighter note, I am very happy with the new look of my blog! I am making a commitment to really utilize this thing-- especially to get out and read other people's blogs-- was doing that this morning and getting lots of VERY good ideas.

We are in the thick of potty training. Lord help us all. My hardwood floors may never be the same again!

I am testing out a new toy system to cut down on clutter-- I lock all the toys away in our spare bedroom nice and neat and then daily the kids can "check out" a basket full and during the day if they aren't playing with the toys they go back in the basket and at the end of the day we put them all away again back in the room. Hoping I can keep this up because it has done WONDERS for keeping things orderly around here. My two year old however is at work trying various ways to pick the lock-- she's a crafty one so I better keep on my toes! LOL

Update!

Fri, 17 Feb 2006 08:01:00 -0600

Lots has been going on but I just have not even been with it enough to blog like I wanted to-- I need to get better about this though because I think it will be very nice to have a written record I can refer back to about the ups and downs, what works, what doesn't, etc. I am getting in the groove in more ways than one:
1. I just finished the book Created to Be His Helpmeet and let me just say that book challenged me to PIECES. And it is funny because I have felt like I was in line with being submissive for a long time now but still-- there was a lot in that book that challenged me-- in very good ways. My husband is VERY happy with the changes in me that he has seen and I have to say we've both been just a lot more relaxed and happy so like the author says-- you put the practices to the test and you will see that it really does work. The biggest challenges for me have been:
    * realizing that it is better to be loved and be loving than to be "right" all the time
    * realizing how important my positive attitude is to our home
    * realizing how important it is to have fun with my dh
    * realizing how important it is to not come across as "holier than thou" with my dh (I ofcourse knew this but realized that somethings I was doing were violating this when I didn't realize it)
2. I just finished a new article for the magazine I write for-- it was about discipline. I begged my friend Violet/SchoolDaze to let me interview her () but in the end I decided to make it a personal more humorous piece rather than do interviews which my editor LOVED. It was truly divinely inspired like all my published writing-- I literally just sat down and wrote it from start to finish in about two hours. I am excited because I want to take this publish piece and start trying to market myself to other publications. The magazine is called Imara Woman and it will be on stands in March (in the Southeast US region)
3. Homeschool has been going VERY well-- I just assessed my dd's reading level and found that she is reading on a third grade level-- considering she JUST turn FOUR I am just blown away. I have heard that homeschooled children read consistently above grade level but I didn't expect it to be this far ahead. I didn't even know it was reasonable to start teaching her to read this young-- I have to thank Violet/SchoolDaze for that because she really helped me to put aside preconcieved notions of what my children "should" be doing and just commit to taking them as far as they are ready to go (did you know you did all that??? lol) We are getting into book reports, a unit study called "Me and My Body" based on a set of educational books that I bought a long time ago, and lots of handwriting practice (loving the book "Draw Write Now"). I would like to do more in the math department and physical education (either dance, gymnastics, or a sport) but an organized PE will have to wait until dh decides whether we are moving or not. It is uncomfortable to not know what the future holds but he can't help that right now and we're just giving him all the space he needs to figure out what step to take next.
4. Speaking of moving-- I have been whipping this house into shape and it's been taking lots of my time and energy. So far I have painted our kitchen, living room, bathroom, office, toy room, kids' room, hallway and stairwell (PHEW!!)-- all I have left now is the master bedroom, master bathroom, laundry area, garage and guest bathroom. Oh and then I have to call in someone for the foyer because I do know my limits! lol
5. I have been getting very active with the assistance of a pedometer-- I have been shooting for 10K steps daily--- that is about twice what I was getting in on a normal day and my body is FEELING IT. A friend of mine who is a trainer keeps reminding me that muscle weighs more than fat and that this will pay off in the long run but I want to see the scale move NOW!LOL

Well that about sums it up and we're on the run!! I'm excited because we are getting out of the house today to go paint pottery as a gift for dh's birthday on Monday! Should be fun!
Til next time!

Fresh Start

Fri, 6 Jan 2006 16:07:00 -0600

Well the holidays are officially over and I am all set to get back in the swing of things homeschool wise. Question-- is it homeschool or home school? I've seen it both ways and figure I should know that if I'm doing it, right?

I've had a tough time keeping up with this blog and another more general one that I started about the same time. I usually have a lot to blab about that is outside of the homeschool realm but I want to get more regular in posting here-- and also get more regular in gathering wisdom from other posters. I made a big trip to The Schoolbox today that was VERY FUN!! I at first was really wanting a big curriculum and I still do but since it is not in the budget right now I decided to make the most of the budget that I do have and got a bunch of stuff today to start the year off on the right foot:
* Art supplies-- paints, paper, brushes, new crayons, etc.
* A large dry erase calendar with themed labels for each month
* A large map of the United States
* A dry erase board for practicing manuscript
* A wooden abacus
* A phonics workbook
* A ream of primary manuscript paper
* Large beginner pencils
* A binder to keep all work in
* A lesson planner book
* A Bible memory verse book with lesson plan ideas

My inner teacher is very satisfied today :-) I have been making the most of what was on hand to this point but now that we have an official monthly "homeschool budget" I am excited to see how I can flesh out our supplies and start doing some cool stuff with the kids-- such as signing them up for a great gymnastics program we have near our house. I also want to get them involved in an Awana program that I've heard good things about near us. I have always always always wished that the beginning of the school year was really and truly at the first of the year so it is nice because now I can do it just like that if I want!

My oldest is really stunning me and everyone else with how quickly she is picking stuff up-- just a few months ago I wasn't sure she was ready to start reading and now she is reading multi-syllable words, has mastered sounds such as "ch" "sh" "ph", has many sight words down pat, has memorized at least three bible verses entirely-- she's is rocking and rolling! And she isn't even four yet! She will be next week though in fairness but still! My littlest one-- she is still a firecracker-- she loves to sing and dance-- we got her a keyboard for Christmas so I am going to attempt to teach her piano. She's getting her colors, letters and numbers down pat and getting the hang of potty training. She also really enjoys helping with cooking and chores, playing sports, doing her so-called "happy dance" (HILARIOUS) and finding unsuspecting people in the grocery store to holler "HI!!!!" at! :-D She's the life of the party wherever she goes-- too funny!

Til next time!

Making Peace With the TV

Wed, 23 Nov 2005 08:53:00 -0600

I was just recently telling schooldaze about this whole mental thing I've been through lately regarding the TV-- I have been guilty of being one of those moms in the past who would let the "electronic babysitter" keep the kids out of my hair for WAY more hours than I care to reveal :) Well I have changed my ways very much so-- I started by cutting back TV viewing to one hour-- just Dora and Diego after lunch that's it. Well then I was still disappointed because you would be AMAZED at how much advertising they pack in between those shows!! My three year old was rattling off all sorts of specific toys that she just "had" to have-- no thanks!! So off it went again. And then I remembered-- PBS doesn't have commercials so I decided to check out their website (www.pbskids.org) and it is great. I've made peace with my TV.

First I decided that if we are going to watch TV at all-- we are going to watch high quality television programs that are educational AND entertaining. Sure I know Dora has some educational merits but honestly the programs we're watching on PBS are so much more engaging, especially for my older daughter. The two programs that we've decided upon are Between the Lions and Reading Rainbow (I was sooo excited this show was still on the air, I always loved it). Between the Lions has so much good stuff about phonics, word families, great literature, etc. and what is even better is that on the website they have a curriculum guide that offers great supporting literature, activities, let's you know what sounds and word families will be focused on in upcoming episodes, etc. Reading Rainbow is great because they continue with certain themes through out certain episodes.

What is great about having these resources for me is that since I don't have a curriculum these shows and the supplementary materials offer me a free resource to build themed units around. I know as a teacher that repetition and extension are such great ways for children to learn so I am excited to see where this will take us. These shows won't be the bulk of my teaching by any means but it is nice to have a starting point to work from.

My daughter (3yo) finally said something about her "real" school yesterday-- we drove by it and she asked when do I go to school again? I told her well now we do homeschooling and I just waited to see how she'd respond. She was just quiet for a few minutes and then asked, "does that mean we get to make more puppets?" and I said yep! and she was satisfied. :-)

Dh is sold!!

Thu, 17 Nov 2005 17:59:00 -0600

Now I knew that my dh was okay with the idea of homeschooling but I think he's really and truly enthusiastic about it after last night!! When he got home my daughter was able to recite Joshua 1:9 and Proverbs 3:5,6 to him line for line!! Now that isn't all we've worked on this week but if one were to know my dh they would know that THIS is speaking his language. This is the kind of progress that really makes an impression on him and he literally got teary eyed when she did that. It was great.

My little one (the two year old) is picking up on things here and there and is getting a little better at being able to sit still and focus but she's not nearly as intensely focused as my other daughter (almost four). I am praying and searching for activities to engage her. I also need to find ways to have time where I can work with her just one on one because so many times my older daughter will jump in with an answer before my little one has a chance.

We are on a puppetry roll (thanks to schooldaze for that inspiration! :-) Yesterday we made a finger puppet theater out of a cereal box, we then made tiny puppets out of paper and popsicle sticks of pilgrims and then I let my oldest daughter make a background "set" which you can slide into the back of the box-- she decided she wanted to make one of church :-) It is very cute and they had a good time doing it.

My big thing right now is that I am kind flying by the seat of my pants-- I mean I have a definite schedule but as far as content-- no real set direction. I kind of want to work in themed units or even get my hands on a curriculum just for my own comfort as I get used to this. We didn't do a lot today because we had a long (and *exhausting*) afternoon at a Chuck E Cheese birthday party. I did find a GREAT book of Bible stories at the library yesterday and I think we'll attempt to do the first one this evening.

Until next time! ~Brandi~

Phew!!!

Tue, 15 Nov 2005 10:37:00 -0600

That WAS a lot to tackle in one day. As I was creating the schedule it didn't sound so out of control but we were all pooped by the end of the day! In a good way though. We all slept really well last night. My plan is to stick to that schedule three days a week and leave Tuesday and Thursday to let the girls play and for me to get caught up on house work (and internet time I must admit :-) and to prepare materials for our next day of schooling. I am praying over the fact that I don't want to make this too rigid for them but again, the teacher in me has got to have a certain level of order or I just can't take it. LOL

They had so much fun yesterday. We made little puppet stages and puppets of family members-- just pictures drawn on paper and taped to straws. They thought this was the coolest thing ever and have continued playing with them into today. We read a lot, sang a lot, did some workbook work, bagged up some leaves, did some cooking, went to the playground and my 3yo even attempted to do the exercise video with me! :-) It was HILARIOUS.

I was looking around online and found some neat plans to build a real puppet stage-- I know it will be more of my project than theirs but they can help paint it and I know we will be able to enjoy it time and time again so I think we'll give it a go! Woo hoo! :-)