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I've done 4 loads of dishes today. In case you're wondering, when you have a family of seven -- 2 parents and 5 kids -- that homeschool and are at home for 3 meals a day, it is very easy to get behind with the dishes. Thankfully I have a dishwasher and 2 helpers, my 8 and 10 year old daughters. They've each helped to unload the dishes once today. My 8 year old even helped by rinsing the first load of dirty dishes. My daughters both hate loading. It is disgusting since so many of the plates and utensils aren't rinsed although that is the rule. So, needless to say, the crusty food or soggy food is really gross. For some reason I feel guilty assigning them this icky chore. I'm not quite sure why I feel guilty delegating it; I'll try to process that later. I've done several loads of laundry & I'll probably do at least a few more before going to bed at midnight. Loads of towels, comforters, bedroom rugs, kids' clothes, mom's clothes -- again, easy to get behind when you have a large family. Actually, I'm not really behind with laundry. I've been doing well with keeping up with it. Its just when its time to wash all the bedding, it looks like the garage has been taken over by piles of linens. We played outside for about a 1/2 hour today -- the fun was cut short after our neighbor came to the fence to warn us that he had seen a snake coming from our yard earlier. The backyard is is a magnet for local wildlife and along with resident raccoons, skinks, common fence lizards, and frogs, we have already had a few close encounters of the serpent kind. So far we've only seen gopher snakes, but with the weeds knee high in some places, I thought it would be best to play another day after DH goes at it with a weed whacker. We had scrambled eggs, sausage, and oranges for breakfast, chicken sandwiches for lunch, tangerines & chocolate shortbread Barney cookies for a snack and pasta and mini pizza for dinner. I bought the mini pizza crusts at the 99cent only store. 4 ready-made refrigerated pizza crusts for 99 cents was a great deal in my book! Topped with mozzarella cheese & leftover meat sauce from Sunday's spaghetti , it was a quick and frugal alternative to more costly delivery pizza. All I ate today was a bag of Hersey Kissables, 2 Entenman's plain donuts, & 1/2 of a mini-pizza -- still I shudder to count the points on today's menu. I joined Weight Watchers in January, but within the last 2 weeks, I've completely lost my "momentum". I missed last weeks meeting and I've not only fallen off the horse, but my foot is caught in the stirrup and I'm being dragged down the bumpy dirt road! Homeschool went well again today. Although I'm using the same Saxon math book for my 3rd and 4th graders, I have recently begun teaching them separately. I'm working with my 3rd grader first and then giving a more prepared and practiced version of the lesson to my 4th grader. They each learn differently, and I finally figured out that even though we may be studying the same or similar concepts, they learn better when I teach math separately. I'm hoping that if we can keep up the positive, one-on-one math time, that they'll both progress well. For language arts, they each wrote a short story and spent 1/2 and hour on studyisland.com. I worked with my 1st grader Saxon math, but we didn't get to work on phonics today. For science all the kids and I continued to learn about germs. I read aloud from Bill Nye's book, Great Big Book of Tiny Germs. Then we did a simple science experiment. |
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The life cycle of a butterfly is amazing to me. I marvel at how out of a tiny egg, comes a small but voracious caterpillar that eventually transforms into a creature so different from its origins that one can scarcely believe it is the same organism. I hope that my journey -- my turn on earth -- can be such a metamorphosis. |
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Last week I registered for paperbackswap.com . It is great place for book lovers to trade their unwanted books. I parted with great books that I no longer needed and in return received exactly what I was looking for. Definitely a win-win situation.
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In year's past I've shunned lists because I always lose momentum. Who likes to rummage through a desk in October and find a list of forgotten resolutions? However, I gave it some thought and realized that without some reasonable goals, how could I expect to progress? I'm tired of living in chaos (can't have anyone over syndrome) so many of my goals have to do with organization. With 5 kids under 10, homeschooling, and working part-time, its really easy to get behind and stay behind. 2009 is going to be year for progress. I'll update the list and blog about my accomplishments. Stay tuned. Things to do in 2009
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Today we're studying Martin Luther King Jr. |
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I don't want to offend any moms with this blog entry, so I will say that whether moms stay at home or work outside the home is a personal decision. That said, if there was some other way to make sure that our essentials (food, shelter, clothing, utilities) were paid, I would choose to be a full-time stay at home mom. Today is Thursday. This is one of the two days of the week that I work outside the home. Heavenly Father has blessed me immensely to have learned a skill that I can use to support our family. He has further blessed me to have the best clients a bookkeeper could ask for. That said, I still struggle with managing 5 kids, my home, and homeschool. I'm sure we all have similar challenges whether we work outside the home or try to balance church callings, service opportunities, or kids activities. I'm making progress and moving in the right direction. I have once heard that you can accomplish anything as long as you wake up early enough. Well, that is going to be one of my goals for 2009. I've made progress by going to bed earlier. However, today I didn't wake up until 7:30 and that wasn't nearly enough time to do everything I had hoped to do before leaving for work. I have put a pot of peruvian beans in the crockpot, put a pork roast in another crockpot, started the rice cooker so my husband has rice to feed the kids at lunch, wiped down the counters & stove top, & unloaded and loaded the dishwasher. The kids are up and they've eaten cereal. They've done 1/2 hour of exercise. They've helped to tidy the living room and dining area. I've printed up the next Math Mammoth workbooks for my 10 and 8 year olds. Since they print backwards, they are in the living room collating them so that they are in the right order. I've printed out some independent reading activities for By the Shores of Silver Lake and Little House in the Big Woods. My older daughter devours the Laura Ingalls Wilder books so we're using By the Shores of Silver Lake for her assigned reading this week. I'm hoping that the first installment of the Little House Series will prove just as interesting for my 8 year old. I'll leave by noon and while I'm gone, all of the kids will work independently on their assignments, projects, and Time4learning.com. I'll be back before dinner time. |
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Today is the first I have heard of the law recenty passed by Congress called the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). Its intent is to protect children from hazardous lead in children's products, but unfortunately it appears that the law makers have created a serious issue. The law will affect both selling and giving. I believe that it will dramatically hurt charitable groups and humanitarian efforts the most. Items sold in thrift stores, on ebay, at garage sales, craigslist, or even handed down from friends or relatives will be forbidden. I'm sure Congress did not anticipate the ramifications - is it reasonable to throw out all children's goods even if they are perfectly safe? I think our landfills are full enough! One of the members on a homeschooling message board forwarded the following infomation, and I am posting it in on my blog in hopes of increasing awareness of the issue. Dear Parents, |
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I am very pleased that my local YMCA now offers a Gym and Swim class for homeschoolers. In the past, they have collaborated with charter schools to offer programs, but it was exclusive to students enrolled in those charters. Starting last October, the Gym and Swim program offers a 50 minute art class followed by 50 minutes of sports and concludes with 50 minutes of swimming. The classes are during "school hours" - 8 am to 11 am. Today was our first day. My four oldest children are the only ones enrolled in their art class. Although we have done mosaics before, it was a nice way to start the day. My only suggestion would be to move the art class indoors as even in So Cal, the mornings are quite chilly. You could see our white, frosty puffs as we breathed and our fingers were numb as we squeezed the elmers glue onto the paper! My kids were apprehensive about the soccer portion of the program. As it turns out, all of them loved it. By the end of class, even my just turned five year old princess was dribbling the ball down the field proficiently. I wasn't sure it would be warm enough to swim in January since the pool is outdoors. However, the water was warm and the kids seemed fine until they got out of the pool. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the swim lesson and the instructor handled my four kids plus two others like a pro. We're all looking forward to next Wednesday. Maybe I'll even have a chance to work out while the kids are in their classes. |
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We decided to celebrate Epiphany this year or as it is called in Mexico, El dia de Reyes. During breakfast, we read about the wise men in Matthew chapter 2 and discussed the common misconceptions and myths about the wise men. I tried to make rosca de reyes (King's bread), but it turns out I'm a quick bread pro, but have a lot to learn about making breads using yeast. My husband said it smelled great. (I picked a recipe using vanilla and condensed milk.) He sampled it and claims it tasted good too, but I ended up buying one at a local panaderia (bakery). Strangely, it wasn't what we expected. Our taste buds must not be accustomed to the flavor of anise. However, the kids were happy to find 3 small plastic dolls within the bread as it is customary for only one small figurine representing the Christ child in hiding from King Herod to be baked inside. I read that whoever finds the doll is supposed to host the February 2, Candlemas merienda. It was a nice end to the Christmas season. Perhaps I'll practice on the breadmaking this year and make a mouth watering rosca de reyes next year. |
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We went to the park today. I met another mom there today. She has two kids - one 6 and another 3. Of course she asked the usual question, "Are all of those yours?" I only have 5 kids. We're certainly not the Duggars, but by I really enjoyed chatting with her. My kids played with her kids and we talked mostly about I brought stale bread to feed the birds and we talked while I broke the bread into small pieces. I really enjoyed learning how similar the Christmas traditions are in I feel a bit ungrateful to admit it, but I always feel a bit of post-Christmas let down. I think next year we will try to do the whole 12 days of Christmas ending on January 6 with Kings Day. Well since tomorrow is Dia de Reyes, I think I'll try baking Rosca de Reyes ( a sweet bread shaped like a wreath). Maybe I'll even leave some treats from the 3 wisemen in my kids shoes. Hmmm. I'm not Monk when it comes to germs, but the idea of goodies in their shoes isn't too appealing. Well, I'll figure something out!
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We went to the Stephen Birch Aquarium today. There was free museum admission ourtesy of Bank of America's Museums on Us program. You show your Bank of America debit card and get free admission for one on the first weekend of the month. We were set to pay $26 for the kids as we were expecting a 10% discount for showing our AAA card, but were pleasantly surprised when we were offered a 50% off coupon that we used toward 2 of the kids' admission. A guest didn't need their coupon and offered it to us! What a generous gesture. Every little bit helps! The kids had a great time. The aquarium is just the right size for short attention spans as it can be easily viewed from one end to the other in about 2 hours. Favorite exhibits were the jellies, lion fish, sharks, and tidepools. My 2-year old son loves Nemo and was excited to see a clown fish. Fun day! |
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Have you ever been pulled over by a police officer for speeding? Well last month, I was. He taught me a thing or two about a thing or two, but its not what you think. Of course, the experience was a reminder that there isn't any place that I need to be that requires me to drive like a bat out of he**. But more importantly, he was the perfect model for properly disciplining my kids. He pulls me over and says to me: 1. Ma'am can I have your drivers license and registration? 2. Do you know why I pulled you over today? 3. You were exceeding the speed limit by 10 mph. I'm going to write you a ticket. 4. Have a nice day. He didn't pull me over and yell at me: 1. What were you thinking?! 2. Do you know you were driving like a bat out of he**?! 3. I can't believe I have to deal with this today?! 4. I'm gonna write you this ticket because you don't deserve to have a license to drive! He was calm & unemotional as he dealt out my "punishment". That is the model I will strive to use the next time my 6 year old watches his 2 year old brother sprinkle an entire container of salt all over the laminate floor and then joins him in "surfing" through the house on the grit. ; ) |
Posted in Frugal Living
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"Are we poor?", asked my daughter a few days ago. She probably overheard one of many recent conversations where my husband and I were discussing our financial concerns. On the one hand, it would be easy for me to say yes. Afterall, I'd still be riding the bus if our car warranty hadn't fully covered the recent $4000 engine overhaul. We've never owned a home. We don't even have cable or satellite tv. We shop at thrift stores and gladly accept "hand me downs" from friends and relatives. Our neighbors would probably consider us poor. But, on the other hand, I have a cell phone, a quick broadband internet connection, & I certainly don't look like I've skipped any meals recently. My kids all have access to excellent healthcare; they've all been immunized and receive regular health & dental exams. While we don't have cable tv, we do have a DVD player. My homemaking duties are made easier by the convenience of a dishwasher, washing machine & dryer. My family always has enough to eat, a modest yet warm rental home, and adequate clothing. So my answer to my daughter was, "No we are not poor. We are richer than most of the people in the world." See for yourself here: Global Rich List. |
Posted in Science Experiments
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We've done float and sink experiments before, but this was one that the kids all loved especially Boo my 2 year old and even Tootsie my 10 year old. We filled two tall glasses with water. Then added about 5 tsp of salt to one of the glasses and stirred to dissolve. I asked the kids to decide which glass if any the egg would float in. They oohed and awed when the egg bobbed back up to the surface of the salt water. Then they each had a turn to perform the experiment on their own. We talked about density in the simplist of terms. I explained density as how closely the matter is crammed together. I drew 2 pictures with 14 dots - one with the dots close together and one with the dots spread apart. Although perhaps not scientific enough, it was the right amount of information to explain a concept without boring or overwhelming them.
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In If you throw a frog into a pot of hot boiling water, it will jump out. But if you put him in a pot with lukewarm water and slowly turn up the heat, he will boil. And so it is with this issue. It seems that over the course of many years, there has been a steady attack on morality to the point where a conservative Christian viewpoint on traditional marriage is now considered narrow minded and bigoted. The american public has been relentlessly pressured to accept, tolerate, and embrace alternative lifestyles. While, I harbor no ill will nor pass judgment on people who are struggling with the challenge of same-gender attraction, I do not agree with altering the traditional definition of marriage which is a sacred ordinance from God. Advocates and activists of this agenda, demand freedom of speech but are quick to try to shut down the opposition's right to the same. We posted a 'Vote Yes on 8' campaign sign near our mailbox. It has been defaced twice and stolen once. These activists have shrewdly turned their campaign into one of civil rights. According to them, a yes vote on proposition 8 is a yes for discrimination and a no for equality. As a member of a multicultural and racially diverse family, I do not believe that our conservative, Christian beliefs, values, and morality are narrow-minded or bigoted. I certainly hope and pray that morality prevails on election day.
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In the middle of my morning prayer, a very clear picture came to my mind. It was me, in prayer with the Savior standing behind me, his hand resting on my shoulder. It reminded me of a children's church song "If the Savior Stood Beside Me" by Sally DeFord. You can download it on her website or here. Though I am not a child, we are all children of God and this song really touches my heart: If the Savior stood beside me, would I do the things I do? --Sally DeFord I pray that I can live every day as if th Savior literally stands right beside me. I would make better choices, speak more softly, forgive more easily, and be prepared to return and live with him someday. So, just for today, I have everything that I need: the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the unconditional love of my children, the comfort that: |
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Romans 3:23 For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God Third Article of Faith: We believe that through the atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel. The other day, as I tripped over toys in the hallway, I felt prompted to teach my children another lesson about the atonement. I gathered the kids together and told them that there would be a candy "reward" for picking up toys. And they were off in a flash busily gathering toys. They looked under the couch, behind bookcases, beneath the entertainment center, behind the curtains - they scoured the house for lost toys. The kids proudly brought me their armfuls of toys, brightly beaming. Then we counted their bounty. One had 25, another 13, another 9, another 3 , another 11. "But",I said, "even though I could see that you all worked really hard, none of you were able to find enough toys to qualify for the reward. However, I will make up the difference and give you your reward just like the Savior makes up the difference though his atonement." It was a short and simple object lesson, but the kids seemed to understand. |
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We did a fun science experiment today. I had originally read about it somewhere, but couldn't find the source so after a bit of web searching, I found this site with a thorough explanation of the scientific principles behind the fun. This is what we did:
This is what we did as part II of the experiment:
This is what we learned:
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Today my husband came home with a mantis. He was out walking near the beach with his parents. We seldom see mantids out in the open, but this green mantis was walking on the asphalt. It started walking up my mil's shoe. My husband bent over and let it crawl into his hand and up his arm. He gently cupped the insect in his hand and brought it home in a plastic bag.
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Today the kids and I baked oatmeal raisin cookies and made banana banana bread . The house smells of cinnamon and spice - yum. I just finished bathing them and all five are squeaky clean and ready for church tomorrow. Our Primary Sacrament Program is tomorrow and the kids are really looking forward to it. All but the 2 year old have a small part which they have prepared and worked diligently to memorize. I still have to iron and lay out our clothes, but I'll do that before bedtime. The kids are watching Ice Age. We never really found out why m.i.l's minivan was out of commission. After an unsuccessful attempt at removing the alternator, my husband put it all back together & the car mysteriously started. He drove it to our mechanic where the alternator and battery were tested. They found that both the alternator and battery were fine. The mechanic tightened the battery connections and my husband jury-rigged a way to keep the battery from moving around as much while we drive. He assured me that the real problem was simply that the car was "flooded". I don't mean to doubt him, but I don't think that is the problem. This is an OLD minivan with nearly 200K miles on it. Its not like they were built to last. My husband thinks I'm being paranoid and melodramatic, but I feel like m.i.l's old minivan is going to keep leaving us stranded. My trusted and reliable Kia Sedona is still at the dealer. They say that they'll let me know by Monday whether they've confirmed that it was the water pump that seized and caused the timing belt to slip and then damage the engine. If they find that was the case, they'll cover the cost of the repairs under the powertrain warranty. Otherwise, I fear the cost of repairs will be too high for us to manage. Reluctantly, I told my husband that we ought to be returning the minivan that we borrowed. I was so touched that someone we didn't even know would trust us with his minivan, but I don't want to impose further. Having this loaner has been such a blessing - we were able to get to church last week and I was able to make it to all my business appointments. Today's... breakfast: pancakes lunch: grilled cheese sandwiches & oatmeal raisin & caramel cookies dinner: apricot & honey glazed spareribs, baked potatoes & banana bread |