I'm a Christian, stay-at-home, homeschooling mom, married to Jay for 20 years. We have 3 beautiful children - Ben, 18, Lindsey, 5, and Allison 2, and a wonderful Westie, Chester. I love to read, watch football, knit and crochet, and listen to podcasts on my iPod. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/coffeebean/ en-us Homeschool Blogger Sat, 20 Sep 2008 14:23:00 -0500 Sat, 20 Sep 2008 14:23:00 -0500 This was Lindsey on Thursday.... And this was her on Friday..... And there she goes..... (Are you shocked???)  Yes.....Lindsey started public school, half-day (afternoons), kindergarten on Thursday.   (School started the day after Labor Day so she missed not quite 3 weeks.) I have learned in this life to never say never.  Not just about this, but many other things.   I may not have said it aloud but I have thought it to myself :  "My child will never again go to public school."   Not that things were terrible when Ben went.  He went to PS for kindergarten and first grade and then I homeschooled him through high school.  Pulling him out was not in reponse to anything about the school at the time, it was all about how I saw the benefits of homeschooling and wanted to try it.  It went well for the most part.  The high school years were rough because of all the changes in our life (2 adoptions and all that went along with them including the active child at the end!) but overall we had a very positive homeschool experience and I enjoyed it. I wrestled within myself these past few months whether or not to homeschool the girls.  I had been so looking forward to it almost since we first brought Lindsey home.  But I began to have my doubts as the time got closer but because I am such a believer in homeschooling, I pushed them aside, and also pushed aside my husband's opinion that maybe it would be better to send Lindsey to school.  I won't go into all the details as to why we made this decision right now.  But now that it has been made, I feel SO good about it.  I feel this is the best thing for every member of this family right now.  Of course I am open to homeschooling her in the future, but we'll see how life goes.  We will take it one year at a time, but because of the reasons we put her in, I have a feeling she will be in school for a number of years if not all the way through.  But who knows what life will bring and what will happen?  There is no sense in making decisions for the years ahead until they get here.  I just plan to be open minded and willing to do whatever we feel is best, whatever God is calling us to do each and every year. Lindsey wanted so bad to go to school.  She desperately wanted to ride the bus.  Those aren't the bottom line reasons we decided to send her, not by any means.  But they were huge factors in the "pros" of sending her column.    Now if the opposite were true, if she did not want to go to school, if she would have dreaded going or anything like that, we wouldn't have sent her.  I'm so sad when I hear of kids who are miserable in school, especially those being bullied or picked on, who have no choice but to stay because their parents won't look for other options, or maybe don't feel that are other options.    I'm not talking about normal "first day jitters" which I will say Lindsey had NONE of - she was raring to go.  When we pulled into the school parking lot the first day (I took her and picked her up the first day, she rode the bus the second) I asked her if she was excited and she said "I'm more than excited!  I'm FANTASTIC!"  She is going to LOVE school.  She already went on a field trip yesterday to an apple orchard (which she called an "apple torchard") and she was thrilled.  Her teacher is super nice, I met her on Wednesday and talked to her on the phone later that day. So now that I'm not homeschooling, homeschoolblogger probably isn't the best place for my "new" blog!  ARGH!   As soon as I figure out what I want to do, I'll be starting a new general blog somewhere else.  I'm thinking of trying Wordpress, something other than Blogger, just for something totally new and different....yet again.  I'm sorry!   This has been crazy.    Thanks to all of you who have followed me here and left comments.  I apologize that I still haven't replied to or acknowledged most of you individually.  I will get caught up one of these days and will write back.  I'll let you know when I have a new home! ...1/2 hour after I wrote this entry.....I have a new blog!  Come visit me at: Eileen's Blog http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/coffeebean/592778/ Sat, 20 Sep 2008 14:23:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/coffeebean/592778/ THANK YOU to everyone who has left me such nice comments so far!  I really appreciate your visiting my blog and letting me know you were here. I have a question for anyone who uses homeschoolblogger - on my blogspot blogs, when someone commented, I could click on their name and it would bring me to their profile so I knew who they were and where to visit them.   There is nothing to click on here, and there are a few of you who left comments without signing your name or giving me your blog URL, and I have no idea how to get back to you.  Does anyone know how to configure it so I can click on the name of the commenter to find them?  Is this even possible? Just in case I can't figure this out, or until I do, can I ask a favor - if you leave a comment can you sign your name, and blog URL if you have one?  Thanks again to all of you and again I'm sorry I haven't left many comments back to everyone, but again I am so far behind and now that we started kindergarten I'm even busier.  I am not ignoring anyone!  I will write about how our first week went this weekend (I hope!)    Eileen P.S.  The NFL regular season starts TONIGHT!!!!!!!!!!     I am way excited! http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/coffeebean/585035/ Thu, 4 Sep 2008 11:31:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/coffeebean/585035/ Lindsey loves to have the spotlight and I'll be sharing a lot about her and what we are learning this year, but  we can't forget about little Allison!   Just over 2 years ago we received a referral for a 10 month old little girl in Kunming, Yunnan, China who had a heart condition called atrial septal defect (ASD).   We had just put our names on the "Interested Families List" for special needs and since Jay has a heart condition (aortic insufficiency) we indicated we would accept a child with a heart condition.  Just about a month later we saw this face... ....and said yes we would accept her referral!   We left for China on October 26 and  Allison became our daughter on October 30, 2006.  We brought her home and had her checked by a pediatric cardiologist and found out her heart was just fine!  No defect, no need for further visits.  She did have torticollis which has since resolved and she has been a very healthy little girl. Allison has a fairly severe speech delay - she is about a year behind with speech and is somewhat immature/slightly delayed in her overall development.   But she is making great progress!  In January when she was 2 years, 3 months old, she only spoke one or two words.  But now she is up to over 60 words and adding new ones all the time.   She has been receiving speech and occupational therapy for the past year through the county's Birth to 3 program.  On October 11 she will turn 3 and will then be helped by the public school system.  Even though I am a die-hard homeschooler I am willing to do what I think is best for her and I think the speech class will be of benefit to her.  Starting on October 13 she will go to speech class for a little over an hour on Monday and Wednesday mornings.  A little school bus will be picking her up right in front of our house and dropping her off there too.  I will be asking for prayer that it goes well when the time comes!   I can't imagine sending my little "Pie Pie" off on a bus by herself but the other option is driving her myself and by the time I dropped her off and came home it would be about time to turn around and go pick her up.  This way I will have some time one-on-one with Lindsey to do schoolwork together or  do things that are just hard to do with Allison (the human tornado) around.   Allison loves to get into mischief, climb, push things around like a stroller (baby or her own), get into mischief, play outside, and get into mischief.     She is a sweetie pie though and we are blessed to call her our daughter. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/coffeebean/582569/ Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:40:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/coffeebean/582569/ I have decided to participate in the 101 Things in 1001 Days project.  From this website: The Mission: Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days. The Criteria: Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part). Why 1001 Days? Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities. ***************** So here's my list.  It's not in any particular order of importance or when I plan to do anything - this is the list as it came to me.  I "borrowed" quite a few things from other people's lists and came up with a lot on my own.  Some are very important "must dos" and others are just things I want to do.   Is anyone interested in doing this with me?  If so, let me know!  Then I can cross #6 off my list. Start Date:  September 1, 2008 End Date:  May 30, 2011 Get highlights in my hair. Learn fair isle knitting. Watch every episode of Family Ties on DVD. Knit 10 pair of socks. (0/10) Knit 3 items for charity. (0/3) Get someone else to do this 101 things in 1001 days with me. Get a pedicure or a manicure for the first time. Learn CPR (take a class). Try 5 new recipes. (0/5) Save $100 in change. Buy something from etsy.com. Buy something from eBay. Get up to date on Ben's journal and keep updated. Get up to date on Lindsey's journal and keep updated. Get up to date on Allison's journal and keep updated. Print pictures from 2nd China trip and put in an album. Buy a swimming suit. Buy a dress. Over a period of one month, cut most of the sugar out of my diet. Read Lick the Sugar Habit to help with this. Buy a Wii. Complete a lifebook for Lindsey. Complete a lifebook for Allison. Finish Lindsey's 100 Good Wishes Quilt (or have someone finish it). Collect squares from friends/family for Allison's 100 Good Wishes Quilt. Finish Allison's 100 Good Wishes Quilt (or have someone finish it). Finish scrapbook for Lindsey's 100 Good Wishes Quilt. Finish scrapbook for Allison's 100 Good Wishes Quilt. Go to a drive-in movie. Learn to play bridge. Memorize 4 chapters of the Bible – 1 OT, 1 Psalm, 1 Proverb, 1 NT. Clean out the refrigerator/freezer once a month. (0/) Completely declutter bedroom and make it more warm and inviting. Go on a date with Jay once a month. (0/) Take a picture of me and Jay, or the whole family, every month. (0/) Get 2 professional family portraits done. (0/2) Go to Disneyland. Attend a wine tasting/tour winery. Call my friends June, Penney, and Rosemary. (0/3) Clean/organize hall closet 3 times. (0/3) Completely empty, clean, and reorganize kitchen cabinets. Print pictures from the computer and put in albums from 2004 to present. Declutter: sell or give away 101 material items I own. (0/101) Make an amigurumi character (crochet). Open a savings account for both Lindsey and Allison. See 3 movies in the movie theater. (0/3) Attend a fiber festival (i.e. Stitches Midwest or other). Photograph girls on the 30th of each month.(0/) Take a “how to knit a sweater” class and finish one sweater. Reorganize recipe binder. Plant a small garden. Read 2 of these classics (Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, Emma, Sense & Sensability) (0/2) Try 10 recipes from American Wholefoods Cuisine (0/10) Listen to 2 audio books. (0/2) Knit something from each knitting book I own as of date of the start of this project. (0/5) Do my Westie puzzle. Eat out at 5 new restaurants. (0/5) Sell all my cloth diapers. Sell Ben's homeschool books. Take a multi-vitamin every day for a month. (0/30) Complete the Couch to 5K running plan. Host Thanksgiving dinner for my sisters and their families. Take Lindsey to 3 movies; Allison to 1. (0/3) Go to the Wisconsin State Fair. Send 10 cards in the mail “just because”. (0/10) Buy something for a child from the WalMart tree every Christmas. (0/) Spend an entire week without getting on the computer. Go through all my books and keep only the ones I really want, give the rest away or sell. Sew a purse. Sew summer dresses for my girls. Stop having Quakes for breakfast and start eating something more appropriate. (don't ask!) Get a new camera. Have everything possible stored in Rubbermaid tubs. Go to a corn maze. Go to the Milwaukee Zoo and stay overnight in Milwaukee. Purge old files and totally redo my filing system. Learn to locate all major countries and bodies of water on a map. Go for a bike ride 10 times. (0/10) Knit 10 projects from my 2008 Pattern a Day Knitting Calendar. (0/10) Buy myself a leather jacket. Find and buy an old Bible at an antique or thrift store. Go to a Milwaukee Brewers game. Teach someone to knit (probably Lindsey but maybe a sister or friend) Subscribe to a knitting magazine. Make a will. (I know, I know, it's terrible that we don't have one yet.) Go one week without spending any money (not including bills that are due that week). Watch 10 old movies (1950's or earlier). (0/10) Learn to french braid the girls' hair. Stay in bed until noon one Saturday morning. Learn to wear a little makeup (for occasional use, I'll never use it on a daily basis). Complete Bible studies using all the methods in my Rick Warren's Bible Study Methods book. (2/12) Brush Chester twice a month. (0/) Host an all day Game Day at my house. Buy a new Packer t-shirt at the start of every summer. (0/) Get a new Packer sweatshirt. Write to Laura P. Organize my loose knitting patterns binder. Take the girls to Heckrodt Center. Participate in “Gimme Your Stuff”. Finish reading through The Message Bible. Read Devotions for Homeschool Moms and take notes. Find a TV series on DVD that I like and watch complete first season. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/coffeebean/581020/ Mon, 1 Sep 2008 09:30:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/coffeebean/581020/ Thank you to everyone who has visited my new blog and commented to let me know you are here!     Because I've been so busy setting up this new blog and working on my 101 Things in 1001 Days list (more on that in another post) I am WAY behind on reading blogs.   I will try to get caught up soon! So here we go!  I will begin homeschooling Lindsey the day after Labor Day as we always have done.   I plan to take her out for breakfast as I always tried to do with Ben too on the first day of school.  I started homeschooling Ben in 2nd grade so homeschooling from the beginning is new to me.  Pray for us!  Lindsey loves to write and be read to, is smart and eager to learn, but can be difficult at times (those of you who know her personally know what I'm talking about!).   And Allison is a busy little beaver, still getting into trouble at every opportunity.      So this is going to be interesting.  But I can't wait! We are going to be using Sonlight's P4/5 curriculum along with Handwriting Without Tears and the optional Get Ready for the Code workbooks.   I tried Sonlight the very first year I homeschooled Ben but I was so new and didn't know what I was doing yet and it didn't work out for us so I sent it back.  We went on to use a hodgepodge of materials over the years which worked out well at times but not so much at others.  I have determined this go around to try to stick with one thing as much as possible to avoid floundering around and to keep things consistent.   I will be flexible, though, to stop using something that isn't working and try something else if need be.  But I do want to stick with Sonlight as much as possible.  Reading to Ben was my very favorite part of homeschooling Ben, and Lindsey loves to be read to.  I love that every day is laid out for you so I don't have to always be figuring out what we'll be doing next.  I think Sonlight is going to work out great for us this time.  I have been on the forums since Lindsey was about 18 months old waiting for this day! Here are some pictures of Lindsey on "Box Day" which was last week Tuesday.  (Forgive the quality of the pics, I desperately need a new camera!!!) Thanks again for joining me on my new blog!  I promise I will be over to visit yours soon! http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/coffeebean/580882/ Wed, 27 Aug 2008 08:20:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/coffeebean/580882/ Welcome to CoffeeBean's Corner! Why the new blog?   I currently have FOUR blogs!  One was originally started to record our 2nd adoption journey and then turned into a blog where I mostly posted pictures of the girls but occasionally talked about other things.  The second was started to record what was I was reading and crocheting.   It was also easier to connect with other readers by having a blog dedicated (mostly) to reading.  Then I learned to knit and I created a blog to talk about my journey as a new knitter and post pictures of what I was making (and again to connect with other knitters).  I also have a sewing blog that I only posted to a few times due to the fact that I rarely sew!  Now that our adoption journeys are complete and I am ready to start homeschooling Lindsey, I wanted a place to share what we are learning, our struggles and our successes, and to connect with other homeschoolers.   Instead of having 5! blogs, I decided to combine everything into one blog here.  I'm hoping that with everything in one place, it will be easier for me to post more often. Why the name "CoffeeBean's Corner"?   My username on the Sonlight forums is CoffeeBean - I love love love coffee and my nickname when I was younger was "Bean" (Eileen Bean, get it? LOL).   Since I'm hoping to really focus on our homeschooling journey here on this blog, I decided to bring that name over here. So welcome to my new home!   Come back soon, I have lots of things in mind to post about including what we are planning to do for homeschooling this year, what's going on in our family life, updates on what I'm reading and knitting, and a new project I'm going to be starting called "101 Things in 1001 Days". Have a great day! http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/coffeebean/579239/ Sat, 23 Aug 2008 14:28:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/coffeebean/579239/