Oct. 11, 2008 - Report for Sept 22- Oct 10

This is a 3 week report in one because things were done a little differently around here for the last 3 weeks.  For the weeks of Sept 22 and Sept 29 Austin and Ceilidh spent a few days at Auntie's each week.  They did their independant work there mainly, though the second week I did send along spelling, grammar and History.  This gave me a chance to work on cleaning out my basement without stopping school for 2 weeks.  However on the days they were home those 2 weeks, and all of this last week we have been busy.

Sep 21 we held Isabelle's 1st Birthday party.  It is hard to imagine that a year has already passed since the chaos that surrounded her birth. 

I was really craving DQ Blizzard cake so the grown ups (well most of them) ate that, but Izzy and her uncle Colin ate this vanilla cake.  Of course she got spoiled with gifts and now that she has figured out how to open them Christmas this year should be entertaining.

I should actually back up a few more days, On Sept 19 Austin began Navy League Cadets which is for the 9-12 year old aged kids interested in Cadets.  The very next day they were picking up trash in Fort Edmonton Park, so I took the opportunity to take the others to Fort Ed as well as the Nature Center. I didn't get many pictures in Fort ed because we decided to take the wagon tour as opposed to walking through.  It was a 60 minute tour, 20 minutes through the park, 20 minutes to explore the actual Fort part, and 20 minutes through the park again.  These pictures were taken during that 20 minute middle time.

 

After making it back to the beginning the kids wanted to explore the train, which was closed for the season.

When we finished up at the Fort we waked down the path to the Nature Center.  I have to say despite it's small size I love this place.  The kids had a great time, we were the only ones there most of the time so even Izzy got to crawl around freely exploring.  We even went on a guided nature walk and found a nest made in the reeds by the pond and the kids got to try various berries the forest has to offer (something we would have only done with a trained guide because I don't know what is safe and what isn't).

As we finished up our walk it was time to meet up with the Cadets and take Austin home.  While he was a little sad to have missed out on our fun, he talked non-stop all the way home about all the new friends he is making in Cadets.

After all the excitement of that weekend, we were back down to work.  Monday and Tuesday were business as usual.  Then Tuesday night Auntie came and got the big kids, I didn't see them again until Friday afternoon.  In the time they were gone, I had bible study, and Hunter had swimming lessons, and as I mentioned above I started on the basement.  The following week they went to Auntie's again from Tuesday night until Thursday afternoon, giving me a couple more days to finish what I was doing in the basement.  Of course the basement is not finished, I own way to much junk, but I did clear a TON out and organized all of our craft stuff.  On the days the kids were home I tried to focus on Science, nature walks (while the weather was still nice) and bible study because Auntie can't teach bible or science because I beliefs are far too different.

By our home is a lake that the kids love to go to, this is a frequent site of our nature walks.  Exploring the fall leave, and watching the ducks and Muskrats can entertain them for hours.

It's amazing what happens with the weather in just a few short weeks.  It has dropped a whopping 20 degrees since these pictures were taken.  On that day it was 26 degrees, daytime high for today is 6! and from the bite in the air it won't be long before the snow flies.

Teaching the big kids of course is not the only thing I do during the day, Hunter recieves his Kindergarten instruction at home.  I try more often than not to have his learning be hands on, while he enjoys his workbooks, I do not believe a child that is only 5 years old needs to sit and do workbooks all day.  Instead I create sensory centers and table activities for him.

This is his "garden" center.  I found these worms at the dollarama in the halloween stuff.  In a small rubbermaid tote I put potting soil, the worms, silk flowers, and a small wooden rake.  He can use this to "plant" a garden.  He really enjoys this center.

The second center I made for him this week is a "Harvest" center.  In a round washbin I places Timothy hay(from the pet store), mini corn cobs (also from the pet store) and mini pumpkin decorations from the dollarama.  Next to it I keep a wicker basket, so he can harvest his fall crops.  When he tires of this center we will use the corn cobs to paint with.

I also made Pumpkin Pie Playdough for him (and the others) to play with, it smells so good

Pumpkin Pie Playdough Recipe

• 5 1/2 Cups of flour
• 2 Cups salt
• 8 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 container (1 1/2 oz) of pumpkin pie spice
• 3/4 Cup oil
• 4 Cups water
• orange food colouring (2 parts red, 1 part yellow) or wilton decroating paste in copper

Mix all ingredients together and cook over medium heat until lumps disappear.  Knead over floured surface adding flour as needed until smooth and no longer sticky.  This makes a HUGE batch, but with 3 kids who love it, having lots is a good thing

I also created a bulletin board for Thanksgiving and each day the kids told me something they were greatful for which I wrote on a leaf and added to the display.

Start of the week

End of the week

In amongst all the fun actual work was accomplished.  We worked on our science, here is Ceilidh working on her worksheets cooresponding to Mysteries and Marvels (Part of Sonlight science 3). 

The kids also wrote Acrostic Poems about Thanksgiving.  Austin Decided to focus on the dinner part of Thanksgiving, and has a little more to go to finish it.

Lastly we created a lapbook during our study of Genesis in our Bible study.  I got the idea for this kind of lapbook from a clip in you tube. I covered each section with contact paper and then taped them together.

Day 1

day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

Day 6 & 7

I think that pretty much sums up the last 3 weeks.  My bible study and the 3 older kids swim lessons keep our Wednesdays hopping, also Austin started guitar and Ceilidh started violin lessons again this past Thursday. The rest of this month is crazy busy which means my reports may all end up this long.  Have a Happy Thanksgiving Weekend!

• 1 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Sep. 12, 2008 - A week in Review Sept 8-12

Wow, what a week!  This was our first week of school for the year and we were very busy.  Overall things are off to a good start.  Austin is really applying himself already this year and I am very pleased with his happy attitude towards his work.  Ceilidh on the other hand acts as if I am cutting off her limbs when I give her work. Hopefully she will come around with a better attitude once she realizes the work is not going away.  Hunter is only doing Kindergarten so most of his day is still spent in play as it should be, with a few seatwork assignements.  Isabelle is even getting in on the fun occasionally, though 99% of the time she is happy to be off exploring and doing her own thing.  Here is a sampling of what we did this week.

Austin has just started MUS Gamma, Ceilidh should be starting with in a week or so.  Here is his most recent page.  I see he still has a couple problems on it to answer.

The kids use an English workbook called English Smart which is based on Canadian grade standards.  Austin is working through the grade 4 book, and Ceilidh through the grade 3 book.  Austin's assignment today was to read the story and answer some questions based on the story and make assumptions based on what he read.

Ceilidh has managed to do her phonics this week.  IT is not her favoite thing but she does it.  This week the focus has been on syllables. 

Hunter is using Handwriting Without Tears to learn his printing skills.  We are using the preschool book to get started.  He loves the current activities because it says to scribble and I am always telling him not to. In this assignment he was to scribble all the stars, the idea to to practice hand eye coordination at this point.

The older kids are using sequential spelling vol 1 they have now completed list number 37.

Three times a week the kids work on logic puzzles.  These are called logic links.  They use colour chips and clues to figure out the order they are to be placed in.  These are a huge hit.

Twice a week to do music appreciation using the following text as our spine. 

In french we are using Ecoutez, Parlez and are working through unit 1.

Spanish we are also working through level 1 in Escucha y Hablemos

Of course we can not forget Latin either.  We are on Chapter 3 of Prima Latina.  This is a sample of Ceilidh's work in this chapter from this week.

History has been a change for us.  We are back to using SOTW vol 1, because we didn't get too far in it last year.  We are still using the activity guide for map work and colouring sheets at the children's request but the older two are also doing outlining from the Kingfisher History Encyclopedia.  This week we were reading chapter 3, the first writing.  We used rubber stamps of heiroglyphics from the heirogylphics treasure chest to create cartouches and scrolls.  Austin also completed this weeks outlining and student activity pages.

For science this year we are using Apologia Elementary Astronomy.  I got the bright idea that we should launch a rocket as a way of "launching" our science study this year.  Today was the big day, it was beautiful out, very little wind.  So I hauled out the box to build the rocket.

Here it is all set to go

I put the baby in the stroller and we all head out to the open field that is behind my house.  The plan was to launch it before the school aged kids were out of school and all over the field. So I get it set up in the field and hook up the remote launcher.

The kids get ready and cover their ears

I start the count down 5....4....3...2...1...Blast off

Only there was no blast off.  Here is our rocket "post launch"

Yup it never worked.  So eitehr I did something wrong assembling it, or we got a dud.  As I was repeatedly trying to set this thing off, dark clouds rolled in so we headed back home and as we shut the door the rain began.  So much for the rocket launching on a beautiful afternoon.  I guess this proves you do not need to be a rocket scientist to homeschool your children.

Now while the older 3 are doing their work little Izzy also is doing her own thing.

Sometimes she sits with us at the table having a snack

Sometimes she is playing with her little climber in the livingroom

 

Sometimes she even joins us and does her own "work"

We finished off the week with a family movie night and watched Nim's Island.  Of course the kids think the Nintendo Wii we were given tonight is the best thing that happened all week.  Tomorrow I will be setting it up and letting them play to their hearts content while I clean the house and get ready for week 2 of school.

 

 

 

• 2 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Sep. 12, 2008 - Dental Hygiene...you're never too young to learn

 

• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Sep. 11, 2008 - Growing Crystals

This summer Grandma and Poppa bought Hunter a crystal growing kit while in Victoria. These are the pictures I took while the crystals grew, I just never got around to posting them until now.

Here it is when I first set it up

1 hour

2 hour

3 hour

6 hour and completely done growing.

The kids thought it was very neat to see the crystals growing.  The only downside is they are very brittle, and do not withstand a curious kitty.  Thankfully I got the pictures before all the crystals broke off thanks to Cheezie.

 

 

• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Sep. 10, 2008 - Baby Girl learns to Drive

Isabelle has recently discovered the toy cars in our yard.  She particularly loves this one. She still only goes backwards but she has a ton of fun anyway.

• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Sep. 7, 2008 - Aesthetics in the "school room"

I like to decorate my school area based on the season/topic etc In anticipation of the first week of school I decided to make ours have a more fall look and feel to it.

This shelf holds our Language arts manips and we keep our globe on top.  I placed a bamboo placemat on the top, then added an oblong wooden bowl holding 3 birch bark ornaments.  I bought these last christmas and just cut the loops for hanging them off.  I added a wreath of fall leaves at the base of the globe and fall bouquet in the vase.

On our Math cabinet I added a fall coloured placemat.

On our science table I added the same place mat I used on the math cabinet, then added some "worms" I bought at the dollarama from their halloween supplies.  They look and feel real.  I put our some decorative pumpkins and goards to use with the scale.  We add fresh fall leaves with our nature walks to examine with the magifying glasses that our set out.  The tree is made of birch bark and I thought it looked great so I added it.  The bones are ones we found in the woods during our camping trip this summer, the kids really like examining them.  Lastly there is a white dish with 3 spots in it.  The kids use the plastic tongs to move soy beans one at a time from one spot to another.

The last touch I added was to hang a couple prisms from the light fixture.  The other hanging item is an ornament made from feathers that I thought was pretty so I hung it up too.

This set up will likely stay until December 1 when I switch to a winter/christmas theme.

 

• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Jun. 11, 2008 - Year end

My how time flies.  We have been busy around here finishing up for the year.  We actually had our year end review back in May but I wanted to tie up some loose ends before actually finishing.  I can't believe how long it has been since I last posted.  We had a camera incident here where my eldest deleted all the pictures I had on my memory card so I can't post images of what we have been doing for the last few months.  We have taken a detour from our science studies to do life cycles, we are raising caterpillars and tadpoles.  We started with 2 caterpillars, 1 made it to pupa stage and we are currently waiting for the butterfly to emerge.  We started out with 10 tadpoles, 3 have died, 6 have back legs and a tail, one sprouted front legs over night and looks pretty cool.  The kids think growing frogs is the best thing since sliced bread.

At the end of this month we are headed to a week long family camp and the day after we return the kids start bible camp at the church.   I am going to be busy this summer planning next year's curriculum needs so I can start placing my orders to be ready to start as soon as the kids get home from Disneylans.

• 1 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Mar. 12, 2008 - Science Sunday

We managed to make it out to Science Sunday a few weeks ago, the kids had a great time learning lots, thouh Izzy was happy to just chew on her wrap.

 

• 2 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Feb. 12, 2008 - A Girl's Best Friend

If a dog is a boy's best friend than it stands to reason a cat would be a girl's best friend.  Cheezie our cat has made Ceilidh her owner.  She sleeps in Ceilidh's bed, gives Ceilidh hugs and kisses whenever she gets home, meows upand down the hallway for her if Ceilidh sleeps over somewhere else.  It really is sweet to see these two together.

• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Jan. 12, 2008 - Winter fun

Unbelievably for mid January the temperature was above zero today so we decided to go for a walk to explore the lake by our home.  Here is some shots from our fun afternoon.  I had hoped to snap some more pictures while they were climbing trees etc but the batteries died in my camera.  After we walked and explored and pet every dog that came along we headed back towards home, stopping off at teh convience store for a little treat.  It was a great way to spend some time together.  Baby was snuggled warm in her wrap and just looked around smiling the whole time.  With luck tomorrow will be just as warm.

• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Jan. 8, 2008 - Winter Carnival

Our church started hosting a fall family carnival last year.  This year it decided to host a winter one as well.  The kids had a great time, playing games, eating snacks and getting faces painted.  We even went for a hayride through the neighboring farmers field.

• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Dec. 27, 2007 - Baby's First Christmas

I actually had no time to really take pictures this xmas.  With 4 kids to keep track of while they open gifts and trying to open Isabelle's and mine at the same time I jut didn't have enough hands.  But I did manage to get these cute pictures of her. And yes those are earrings you see.

• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Dec. 22, 2007 - Little Potty girl

Some people think that if you begin potty learning too early somehoe your child will be traumatized.  WIth ELimination communication there is never a traumatic moment.  Take baby girl here for example, 3 months old and using the potty. 

Doing her business

Satisfied at a job well done

Now how can anyone claim early potty learning is some how detrimental to baby when you see a smile like that?

• 2 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Dec. 17, 2007 - Becoming Crunchy

Prior to having any chidren I had a plan laid out of how I would raise them and the things I would *not* do.  When I was pregnant with my first I went to work decorating a nursery and buying every product that baby could go in other than my arms.  After all baby would sleep better in his own room and would be spoiled if I carried him everywhere.  WHen he arrived so tiny and fragile I could not put him down.  There in my hospital bed he slept on my chest when I slept and in my arms when I was awake.  When we got home I would not let other's hold him, my arms felt empty without him in them.  Like they were made for this purpose alone.  Nature has it's way of making us do what is right for our children if only we are willing to listen and throw away any former thoughts that we thought were correct.  From the day he was born he slept in my bed and I wore him. I refused to have him circ'd even though my husband and I had agreed to it.  The sight of that tiny littl body who turned to me for comfort made mama bear come out with the threat of pulling a Bobbit on my husband while he slept if he allowed a circ to be done on my baby, my son is still intact. ;) When he was about 6 months old I switched him to cloth diapers purely out fo fear of the cost of diapers for 2 baby's (I was 5 months pg with #2 at that point).  I thought I was pretty crunchy.

Baby #2 came along and I continued to co-sleep, baby wear and cloth diaper.  This time I thought why don't I give breastfeeding a try since it didn't happen with #1.  I was sure I had reached my peak "crunchiness", what else was there that was "normal" to do and not off the wall.

Baby #3, I already knew how great co-sleeping, Cding, & babywearing were, I knew he would not be circ'd.  Bfing with #2 only lasted 3 months due to allergies but I was eager to try it again since I knew how important it was.  This time around my older kids were school age, and I started looking into homeschooling.  Do to life circumstance I chose to put them in ps only to regret it and have to deal witheth damage 2 years later when I finally made the choice to hs no matter what.  Again I thought I was pretty darn crunchy.  And again thought I was doing the only "normal" things when it came to natural parenting.  It was during this time as well that #1 was diagnosised and needed meds and that I decided that while meds were important I was going to start researching natural alternatives as well such as supplements.

Well Baby #4 is here now and I have reached a whole new level of crunchiness.  In addition to bfing(aiming for at least 6 months this time, hope for 1 year, in light of only lasting 4 months with #3), co-sleeping, baby wearing(and being obsessed with trying new holds in my wrap), cding, and hsing, I have learned a few more things that seemed weird to me previously.  Baby #4 is my non-vax baby.  Previously I routinely had my babies vax'd, after all that is what a responsible parent does.  Baby #4 had her 2 month shots and develped the encephalitic cry.  She had a glazed over "look" in her eye, screamed constantly for 3 weeks, became a different baby, then after 3 weeks seemed to snap out of it and be back to my happy smiling baby.  She will never have another injection and I am researching more and will decide about all the rest based on that research. 

We are practicing Elimination Communication with her.  I always said that those who potty trained little babies were insane.  But it is working for us.  We have only been practicing for a week now so I have more misses than catches but we are learning to communicate on a whole new level.  Her bottom is so clear, not having to lay in urine or bm for any length of time.  I can't believe I thouht this was insane.

After dealing with baby #3 speech delays and problems(and still dealing with them), I have decided to implement baby sign with baby #4 so that she can communicate with me before she is verbal.  Hopefully it will eliminate most of the frustration pre-verbal babies and toddlers get when trying to tell us things. 

I have learned that my methods of discipline are not working and am now backtracking to gentle discipline, which is more about discussion and reasoning than forcebly making the child obey.  I really wish I had taken GD more seriously early on with my 1st instead of following the "spare the rod, spoil the child" mentality. 

Who knows by the time baby #5 or more arrives I will be living off the grid, only eating organic and refuting all medical advice passed my way.  ANd you know what I hope I am, I have never been happier or more confident in my parenting than when I am doing what feels right and natural.  I think over all in an effort to be a  "civilized" society we have forgotten how to listen to our instincts and remain natural in our parenting styles.

 

• 1 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Dec. 15, 2007 - Stop taking my picture

So I finally got a new digi cam to take some picture of the kids.  Poor Isabelle I had virtually no pictures of her so I thought I would try to get a couple.  The day she smiled on cue for the first time I thought would be a perfect chance.  I got that precious smile but then the more I tried to see it again the more worried she got this is the progression of that photo shoot.

The smile

Aww mom your so funny

getting worried

NO more pictures please!!

 

• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Dec. 7, 2007 - Trip to the Museum

The museum was celebrating it's 40th birthday so it was free admission tih lots of neat activities.  They had people walking around in costume and if you stopped them they would tell you about the exhibit or animal they were dressed to represent.  We got to go behind the scenes and watch them prepare a ground hog to be stuffed(as in watched them skin it), we got to see more of the bugs from the bug room, learn about the botony department, watch them position a stuffed bird for display.  Ceilidh got to show her smarts by telling frogs and toads apart by touch(they were dead preserved specimens).  These are a few of the pictures from our time there.

A "tree" complete with bird nest

Giant Geode

Lightening struck this power line melting the copper cable inside.

Ewww, Mom it's poop!

I hate spiders, and this guy was no exception

I don't remember what these beetles were called, I just liked the colour of them

 

Ceilidh wanted me to get a picture of a diving beetle swimming around, those suckers are fast, that greenish oval shae to the right of center is the beetle

Leafy bugs

Stick bugs

Measuring diameter of this tree

 

No museum trip would be complete without a visit to the dinosaur room

Batgirl?? this was a cool costume  Funny story about the bat here.  When she was walking through the museum she had her wings wrapped around her.  Hunter only saw the blackness of it and the fuzzy ears and yelled "a Witch Bunny" ONLY his speech is delayed so it came out "Bitch Bunny".  How embarrassing!!! I had to quickly and LOUDLY translate to make everyone's nasty glares at the bad mother to stop.

My sweet empathetic Hunter, kept going up to the displays and saying, I am sorry my friend, I'm so sorry.  I caught a picture of him saying it to this fake fish.  When we spoke about it he said he was sad they were dead, not like his friends at the zoo. 

We did find the displays of live fish which I took a picture of for him

As you come out from under a "cave" where the fish are you will see this Kitty if you happen to look up.  After spending a lifetime going to this museum I have never before noticed it

A bear den.  Children can climb into this little hole to find a "bear" hibernating.  The above display is of a winter scene.

 

 

• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Nov. 26, 2007 - Lapbooking

Time to finally share pictures of our first Lapbooks.

Hunter's Fall book

The front cover.  As you can see he has made a mess of it, he loves to read it at breakfast so there is little spills on it etc.

Inside

Lift the flap with the leaf person and you see this.  Again pay no attention to the hot chocolate spills on it.

The older 2 did a lapbook about Egyptian Mummies

Front cover

Left flap

Right flap

you them open the right flap further, this is the cener the the right side(on the reverse of the upper picture)

• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Nov. 16, 2007 - What is your blog's reading level?

Apparently you only need to be at an elementary school reading level to read my blog.  SO either I am very simple minded or I actually am writing in a method that makes sense to everyone reading lol  TO find out the reading level for your blog click  here

• 1 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Oct. 26, 2007 - Natural dyes

We decided to try making some play cloths for forts, housekeeping center etc with homemade natural dyes today.  We used beets to make red and Tumeric to make yellow.  The tumeric is awesome for dye and the cloths turned out vibrant.  The beets, well let's jsut say teh cloth has a hint of pink but I think I am going to re-dye it with tumeric dye to make is more colorful.

The cloth simmering in the pots of dye

 

The Cloths hung up to dry

• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link

Oct. 14, 2007 - Dedication

I had the kids dedicated at church today.  Our church does not baptize someone until they are old enough to make that choice for themselves, instead we dedicate them to the church with a vow to raise them to know Jesus.  It was a beautiful ceremony which all the aunts/uncles and grandparents came to despite the fact they do not attend church.  We went out for chinese buffet for lunch afterwards.  Here is some pictures of today.

Myself, my kids and my parents

My pastor, myself and my kids

My mom thought it was neat that thye put the kids names on the screen while the ceremoney was happening so tried to take a picture of it, though it didn't come through very clearly.

 

 

• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link