I am REALLY good at avoiding things I don't like. Perhaps I honed the skill as a young child with six siblings, you couldn't really tell I wasn't doing the thing I disliked, there was always too much other stuff going on in the house! Right now I am avoiding 2 seperate jobs: going through a HUGE bag of clothes given to me by someone that has been gracing my oldest daughter's bedroom (and she is being so understanding about it!) and cleaning out MY bedroom. I need to clean out a corner where things get piled that have no other home, move two chairs out and give them away to someone and move an old recliner that my dh does not want to part from and a rocker made by my dh's great great grandfather into that space. Not particular hard jobs, just not fun either.
Did you know that blogging is a good thing to do while avoiding work? And so is reading blogs, so get off your computer and go do something would ya? You might give me some incentive to do my something if you do!!!
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Homeschooling: The Back to school meeting
Every year, I sit with the kids before we start school and discuss our school routines. I normally have a routine sketched out before we sit down. This usually comes from the previous years routine and some notes I made at our "end of year meeting". The end of year meeting is normally a quick talk with the kids about what they liked about their school year, what they disliked and what they would like to see changed or added to the next year. I make notes of those things, either on paper or in my head and then sit over them for the summer months.
This year our Back to School meeting lasted well over two hours! It was a great time of discussion and revelation with the kids and I think I got more from this meeting than I have ever gotten in the past. The reason the meeting was so successful, may be because we are much more relaxed and rested coming off of this summer than ever before either. We watched copious amounts of TV (I know, bad for you, but relaxing non the less) and generally rested. WE had water park day once a week and several play dates with friends. We planned nothing and did nothing most days, and I do mean NOTHING! We barely left the house except for water park days, church days and weekly shopping. I am actually looking very forward to beginning our school routine.
I set a relaxed and friendly tone for the meeting, I brewed some tea for everyone and we sat in our freshly cleaned living room (I always THINK better when things are neat!) and chatted about the new school year. We discussed everything from screen time (time in front of the TV and computer) to wake up time and lunch routines, evening routines and outside play. We discussed projects they would like to do. Some very productive decisions came out of the chat and the kid's ideas to solve problems were plentiful. I gave them a good bit of leeway in solving the problems that they had last school year and was open to their ideas. Of course some things are not going to change that they would like to see change but isn't that always the case?
Some things they created solutions for:
*morning routines taking too long... sometimes due to laziness/slow work performance and sometimes due to oversleeping...so they will move some of the routine to an evening routine and try to work with that.
*snack time mid morning... this has always been a problem for me. Breakfast and lunch are so far apart, that we need a 10 am snack but I would forget frequently to prepare the snack in time, so it was either skipped which left us grouchy or fixed too late which disturbed lunch. The kids are going to try having "Kid of the day" (our program for managing many things in our home) choose and prepare a simple snack at 10 am. This idea to me was genius.. the snack can be chosen the week before and tacked onto my weekly menu, if any prep needs to be done they can do that either the Saturday before or the evening before, though most snacks will only need to be placed on plates and glasses of water made.
* lunch time clean up and break.... too many problems to name with the way we were doing lunch and handling a break. Our core subjects and one on one time with mom are all done in the morning with interest led and fun subjects happening in the hour or so after lunch. I've tried several routines for handling lunch that gets the lunch made, kitchen cleaned and everyone gets a half hour of free time before regrouping for those fun subjects. We have had no luck getting this down. The kids came up with a great routine with some suggestions from me: Lunch together while listening to our Spanish CD. Clean up together, then 30 minute break.
I am eager to see which solutions they found will work in practice and which ones will need tweaking as we go. I am hoping that since they were such a big part of the planning of the flow of our days that it will be an easier transition from the lazy and relaxed days of summer back to our "school" routines.
This year our Back to School meeting lasted well over two hours! It was a great time of discussion and revelation with the kids and I think I got more from this meeting than I have ever gotten in the past. The reason the meeting was so successful, may be because we are much more relaxed and rested coming off of this summer than ever before either. We watched copious amounts of TV (I know, bad for you, but relaxing non the less) and generally rested. WE had water park day once a week and several play dates with friends. We planned nothing and did nothing most days, and I do mean NOTHING! We barely left the house except for water park days, church days and weekly shopping. I am actually looking very forward to beginning our school routine.
I set a relaxed and friendly tone for the meeting, I brewed some tea for everyone and we sat in our freshly cleaned living room (I always THINK better when things are neat!) and chatted about the new school year. We discussed everything from screen time (time in front of the TV and computer) to wake up time and lunch routines, evening routines and outside play. We discussed projects they would like to do. Some very productive decisions came out of the chat and the kid's ideas to solve problems were plentiful. I gave them a good bit of leeway in solving the problems that they had last school year and was open to their ideas. Of course some things are not going to change that they would like to see change but isn't that always the case?
Some things they created solutions for:
*morning routines taking too long... sometimes due to laziness/slow work performance and sometimes due to oversleeping...so they will move some of the routine to an evening routine and try to work with that.
*snack time mid morning... this has always been a problem for me. Breakfast and lunch are so far apart, that we need a 10 am snack but I would forget frequently to prepare the snack in time, so it was either skipped which left us grouchy or fixed too late which disturbed lunch. The kids are going to try having "Kid of the day" (our program for managing many things in our home) choose and prepare a simple snack at 10 am. This idea to me was genius.. the snack can be chosen the week before and tacked onto my weekly menu, if any prep needs to be done they can do that either the Saturday before or the evening before, though most snacks will only need to be placed on plates and glasses of water made.
* lunch time clean up and break.... too many problems to name with the way we were doing lunch and handling a break. Our core subjects and one on one time with mom are all done in the morning with interest led and fun subjects happening in the hour or so after lunch. I've tried several routines for handling lunch that gets the lunch made, kitchen cleaned and everyone gets a half hour of free time before regrouping for those fun subjects. We have had no luck getting this down. The kids came up with a great routine with some suggestions from me: Lunch together while listening to our Spanish CD. Clean up together, then 30 minute break.
I am eager to see which solutions they found will work in practice and which ones will need tweaking as we go. I am hoping that since they were such a big part of the planning of the flow of our days that it will be an easier transition from the lazy and relaxed days of summer back to our "school" routines.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Homeschooling: Box day!
Someone recently mentioned that to homeschoolers "box" day should be a holiday and I have to agree!
I received my big order from Rainbow Resources yesterday and it was one of the busiest days of the week. Our box came while we were eating lunch and I stopped eating to unpack it. Yes, I did! We proceeded to take out the Prof. Noggin's History card game that I ordered as a surprise for my kids and played it while we ate! No one wanted to stop, but I had to leave to go grocery shopping.I got home with exactly 45 minutes between that and Vacation Bible school. I gathered a few things to look through on the ride to church (a 30 minute car ride) so I got to play with my school items a bit. BUT then I stayed up late when we got home to look through the rest. How come our boxes always come when we are the busiest? Anyway, here are some initial thoughts on the things I ordered.
Prof. Noggins card games: We got the History of the US and also U S Geography. These were a surprise for school for next year, because, let's face it, you have to throw a little something special in with every order eh? The kids and I played the History game while we ate lunch and I was very impressed. The cards are sturdy and the questions are interesting. Even the easy ones had a few that I could not answer, I'm sure I learned that information at some point but I could not recall the answers to some. I can see this being such a great "interest grabber" and foresee us using this card game as a game as well as just using the cards to quiz each other. I took a peek at the Geography and asked the kids one question and immediately figured out that we need more work in geography! LOL
Balancing the Sword: There are two books plus cd in this set. It has questions to ask for every chapter of the bible. I normally just read and discuss the bible with the kids during breakfast and thought this would be a good tool for when nothing jumps out at me to discuss. I tried the sample chapter questions with them a while back and when I recently asked them if they wanted to just continue reading and discussing like we have been doing or if they would like to have some questions that we could answer together as a group, they all three voted for the questions. From the first look at this book, I like what I see. The pictures and graphs are nice, detailed black and whites. Almost every question has references, so I can encourage my older two to do some independent reading to reinforce the questions that are more pertinent. I have not used the cd yet, so I will try to come back with a more thorough review when I have used this a while
Learning Language Arts through Literature RED: Since we used LLATL last year, I am already very familiar with the program and I did a review a while back, so I will just give some thoughts on the red, and not how the whole program looks. One thing I wish was that it was more geared to 4 days a week, like the older books. We tend to use Friday for life skills, extra activities like art and poetry, tea time, and such that I am wondering if it will be hard to incorporate the Friday portion of LLATL Red into our day. There is enough meat and information on Friday that I don't' think I will want to skip it. Having said that, I really like the layout of the red program. It is laid out more like it's later counterparts. Of course I did the same thing this year that I did last year with the blue... when I looked at the readers I could not imagine S. reading them, but the blue turned out to be easy for her, so I'm sure she will advance fine with the red. I also ordered the read aloud package this year and I am so glad I did. I love the book, some of my favorites are among them and I am glad to have them in our library.
Artistic Pursuits K-3 Bk 1: I was originally going to get this for my 7yo and then get the next level up for my 10 and 12 year olds. When evaluating our time, I decided that I did not have enough time to do two art books right now, and after reading a bit more on the website decided to get this and use with all three for a while. I am hoping that it will be a good introduction to art and we can advance the older two kids if they seem interested. Having flipped through the book, I am pleased with my decision. It will be a great introduction to art. The activities are not too young, though I know that my oldest will breeze through them, but I still think she will consider them fun. The book is not written in a "babyish
style so I am not concerned that the older two will feel talked down to. Since this is their first experience with art other than some observations at the museum and interest led drawing, my first impression is that this will be a nice, quick, once-a-week curriculum that we will all enjoy.
American Heritage Desk Dictionary and Thesaurus: I need a small dictionary that I could keep handy on the table or end table, as M. is starting to do more creative writing and using both the dictionary and thesaurus to aid her in that. My two dinosaur dictionaries are large and cumbersome and somewhat out of date not to mention that they are separated into two volumes so if you need to look up a work that starts with "A" and a word that starts with "T" you have to pull them both out and it gets frustrating. In addition, the only thesaurus we had was children's thesaurus and it did not provide adequately for M's needs. After much searching I found this one and ordered it. I am very please with it. It is hard back, and a good size. The font, while small is not too small and the definitions are very easily read and short enough that when we need to copy one, it will not be overwhelming. The thesaurus portion is on a split design at the bottom of the page and highlighted grey so there is a distinct difference between definitions and thesaurus. The book lays flat when opened and will be a very nice reference. I am extremely pleased with this purchase.
A reason for handwriting: I am not too fond of handwriting books and I have struggled with what to do for my two oldest who both want to write in cursive, and also my youngest who needs a good bit of practice for manuscript. In the past I have used Handwriting without tears, which I liked but never lasted very long, the kids would finish the book in record time, and I was left using quotes, which I enjoy doing but are time intensive. I decided to give these workbooks a try this year, and they seem okay. They are exactly what they say...handwriting books that give practice. I am holding off a decision until we see if we like them. I do like the quality of the books and like that there are enough volumes that I could get a different cursive book for each of my older two...
LLATL Green: Having used the Tan for M last year, the green is just what I expected. Again, I love the pace of LLATL and it is a good fit for my oldest. I also ordered the book pack for the green as well as the orange which my son will be working through and I like the book selections for all of them. I'll post a review when we are finished.
That is all for now, I will give my thought on other resources as they come in. This year it seems like we are purchasing more than in a long while, I guess it just fell that way. Plus we are investing in our home library more this year, so many of the things we are buying now will be used for years to come with subsequent kids.
I received my big order from Rainbow Resources yesterday and it was one of the busiest days of the week. Our box came while we were eating lunch and I stopped eating to unpack it. Yes, I did! We proceeded to take out the Prof. Noggin's History card game that I ordered as a surprise for my kids and played it while we ate! No one wanted to stop, but I had to leave to go grocery shopping.I got home with exactly 45 minutes between that and Vacation Bible school. I gathered a few things to look through on the ride to church (a 30 minute car ride) so I got to play with my school items a bit. BUT then I stayed up late when we got home to look through the rest. How come our boxes always come when we are the busiest? Anyway, here are some initial thoughts on the things I ordered.
Prof. Noggins card games: We got the History of the US and also U S Geography. These were a surprise for school for next year, because, let's face it, you have to throw a little something special in with every order eh? The kids and I played the History game while we ate lunch and I was very impressed. The cards are sturdy and the questions are interesting. Even the easy ones had a few that I could not answer, I'm sure I learned that information at some point but I could not recall the answers to some. I can see this being such a great "interest grabber" and foresee us using this card game as a game as well as just using the cards to quiz each other. I took a peek at the Geography and asked the kids one question and immediately figured out that we need more work in geography! LOL
Balancing the Sword: There are two books plus cd in this set. It has questions to ask for every chapter of the bible. I normally just read and discuss the bible with the kids during breakfast and thought this would be a good tool for when nothing jumps out at me to discuss. I tried the sample chapter questions with them a while back and when I recently asked them if they wanted to just continue reading and discussing like we have been doing or if they would like to have some questions that we could answer together as a group, they all three voted for the questions. From the first look at this book, I like what I see. The pictures and graphs are nice, detailed black and whites. Almost every question has references, so I can encourage my older two to do some independent reading to reinforce the questions that are more pertinent. I have not used the cd yet, so I will try to come back with a more thorough review when I have used this a while
Learning Language Arts through Literature RED: Since we used LLATL last year, I am already very familiar with the program and I did a review a while back, so I will just give some thoughts on the red, and not how the whole program looks. One thing I wish was that it was more geared to 4 days a week, like the older books. We tend to use Friday for life skills, extra activities like art and poetry, tea time, and such that I am wondering if it will be hard to incorporate the Friday portion of LLATL Red into our day. There is enough meat and information on Friday that I don't' think I will want to skip it. Having said that, I really like the layout of the red program. It is laid out more like it's later counterparts. Of course I did the same thing this year that I did last year with the blue... when I looked at the readers I could not imagine S. reading them, but the blue turned out to be easy for her, so I'm sure she will advance fine with the red. I also ordered the read aloud package this year and I am so glad I did. I love the book, some of my favorites are among them and I am glad to have them in our library.
Artistic Pursuits K-3 Bk 1: I was originally going to get this for my 7yo and then get the next level up for my 10 and 12 year olds. When evaluating our time, I decided that I did not have enough time to do two art books right now, and after reading a bit more on the website decided to get this and use with all three for a while. I am hoping that it will be a good introduction to art and we can advance the older two kids if they seem interested. Having flipped through the book, I am pleased with my decision. It will be a great introduction to art. The activities are not too young, though I know that my oldest will breeze through them, but I still think she will consider them fun. The book is not written in a "babyish
style so I am not concerned that the older two will feel talked down to. Since this is their first experience with art other than some observations at the museum and interest led drawing, my first impression is that this will be a nice, quick, once-a-week curriculum that we will all enjoy.
American Heritage Desk Dictionary and Thesaurus: I need a small dictionary that I could keep handy on the table or end table, as M. is starting to do more creative writing and using both the dictionary and thesaurus to aid her in that. My two dinosaur dictionaries are large and cumbersome and somewhat out of date not to mention that they are separated into two volumes so if you need to look up a work that starts with "A" and a word that starts with "T" you have to pull them both out and it gets frustrating. In addition, the only thesaurus we had was children's thesaurus and it did not provide adequately for M's needs. After much searching I found this one and ordered it. I am very please with it. It is hard back, and a good size. The font, while small is not too small and the definitions are very easily read and short enough that when we need to copy one, it will not be overwhelming. The thesaurus portion is on a split design at the bottom of the page and highlighted grey so there is a distinct difference between definitions and thesaurus. The book lays flat when opened and will be a very nice reference. I am extremely pleased with this purchase.
A reason for handwriting: I am not too fond of handwriting books and I have struggled with what to do for my two oldest who both want to write in cursive, and also my youngest who needs a good bit of practice for manuscript. In the past I have used Handwriting without tears, which I liked but never lasted very long, the kids would finish the book in record time, and I was left using quotes, which I enjoy doing but are time intensive. I decided to give these workbooks a try this year, and they seem okay. They are exactly what they say...handwriting books that give practice. I am holding off a decision until we see if we like them. I do like the quality of the books and like that there are enough volumes that I could get a different cursive book for each of my older two...
LLATL Green: Having used the Tan for M last year, the green is just what I expected. Again, I love the pace of LLATL and it is a good fit for my oldest. I also ordered the book pack for the green as well as the orange which my son will be working through and I like the book selections for all of them. I'll post a review when we are finished.
That is all for now, I will give my thought on other resources as they come in. This year it seems like we are purchasing more than in a long while, I guess it just fell that way. Plus we are investing in our home library more this year, so many of the things we are buying now will be used for years to come with subsequent kids.
Friday, July 11, 2008
fridaysfeast.com
fridaysfeast.com
Appetizer
When was the last time you had your hair cut/trimmed? About 4 weeks ago, I am staying short (above my shoulders) right now.
Soup
Name one thing you miss about being a child. Getting to hang out with my brothers and sister everyday!
Salad
Pick one: butter, margarine, olive oil. Well, I have to pick butter, I know olive oil is better for you, but I prefer old fashioned butter.
Main Course
If you could learn another language, which one would you pick, and why? French... I have always wanted to speak french.
Dessert
Finish this sentence: In 5 years I expect to be…STill homeschooling my kids! Preparing M. for college, hopefully doing a lot more travelling. My youngest will be 12 , my middle will be15 and my oldest will be 17.
Appetizer
When was the last time you had your hair cut/trimmed? About 4 weeks ago, I am staying short (above my shoulders) right now.
Soup
Name one thing you miss about being a child. Getting to hang out with my brothers and sister everyday!
Salad
Pick one: butter, margarine, olive oil. Well, I have to pick butter, I know olive oil is better for you, but I prefer old fashioned butter.
Main Course
If you could learn another language, which one would you pick, and why? French... I have always wanted to speak french.
Dessert
Finish this sentence: In 5 years I expect to be…STill homeschooling my kids! Preparing M. for college, hopefully doing a lot more travelling. My youngest will be 12 , my middle will be15 and my oldest will be 17.
Parents PLEASE.....
Teach your kids to sit through a story without interrupting. I am BEGGING YOU!!!
Okay, so it is vacation Bible school week. I normally run "games" but this year I decided to be a "crew leader" which essentially means that I get to take a group of kids around to different stations and interact with them. A lot of the kids that attend VBS do not attend our church, They are friends or neighbor children of our regular church kids. It is so fun to get to be with these kids for a week. You really get to know them well as you lead them around to the different activities and you see and hear lots of things about their lives. It is an opportunity that I am grateful for.
Having said that... I discovered something this year that I had not know previously. I have worked with children in various positions throughout my life. I discovered early on that I LOVED to be with kids. Perhaps it is because at 4 ft 11 inches tall, I will always look like the perpetual kid, but nevertheless, my talents lie with interacting with children. As the years have progressed, I have seen trends establishing in our current generation of children that have enlightened me. Some of these trends disturb me, some frustrate me, some I find amusing... but the one I discovered this week has me angry.
Our stations at VBS include things like games, crafts, snack and an adventure, bible-related video. The kids do love those things and do fine for all of those activities. Also included is an interactive Bible story. Our story leaders use props and involve the kids by having them act out things. These are not boring drawn out stories, they are intriguing stories drawn from the most interesting book on the planet, the Bible. Last night, for instance the kids pretended to be Christians in flight from Roman guards after Jesus' crucifixion. Of course they enjoy things like the wind and waves of being on a boat in a stormy sea with Jesus, or crawling into the smelly belly of a whale(complete with tuna odors!) BUT when it comes time for the story leaders to do a 10 minute discussion of the lesson, the majority of these kids could not sit still and be quiet long enough for our leaders to finish a sentence! More than half of the children present simply refused to listen without talking. There were numerous interruptions, without bothering to raise their hands. The leader had to regain their attention so much that the gist of the story was lost in all the commotion. For those kids who were trying to sit politely and engage in listening to the story, it was VERY frustrating. When asked to answer questions, these wiggly worms would ramble off stories of their own that had no bearing on the message or content of the nights subject matter. It was a very sad and frustrating thing to watch. I also quizzed other leaders and discovered that my group was not the lone rangers in this, it was a trend for the week.
So, please, if you have not already done so, would you turn the tv and computer games off and read some books to your kids? If they try to interrupt then PLEASE teach them the manners to hold their thought, AND Tongue, for just a minute so you can finish the page/chapter/book? I am begging you?
I have to wonder how these kids get anything accomplished at school. And please don't tell me that you have to be homeschoolers to learn this. Or that the mom has to be a stay-at-home mom (or dad) to teach these things, and that it is a product of society's fast pace. My brother's kids are some of the most well behaved kids I know and both their parents work full time. It is not the situation your family is in that produces kids who know how to behave in each situation they find themselves... it is training your kids in how to act that makes all the difference; and THAT takes time and energy.
Please parents, if you haven't done so yet, invest some time and energy into your kids. Not so that I will have an easier time with them at Vacation Bible school, but so that they will have the best possible life that they can live.
Okay, so it is vacation Bible school week. I normally run "games" but this year I decided to be a "crew leader" which essentially means that I get to take a group of kids around to different stations and interact with them. A lot of the kids that attend VBS do not attend our church, They are friends or neighbor children of our regular church kids. It is so fun to get to be with these kids for a week. You really get to know them well as you lead them around to the different activities and you see and hear lots of things about their lives. It is an opportunity that I am grateful for.
Having said that... I discovered something this year that I had not know previously. I have worked with children in various positions throughout my life. I discovered early on that I LOVED to be with kids. Perhaps it is because at 4 ft 11 inches tall, I will always look like the perpetual kid, but nevertheless, my talents lie with interacting with children. As the years have progressed, I have seen trends establishing in our current generation of children that have enlightened me. Some of these trends disturb me, some frustrate me, some I find amusing... but the one I discovered this week has me angry.
Our stations at VBS include things like games, crafts, snack and an adventure, bible-related video. The kids do love those things and do fine for all of those activities. Also included is an interactive Bible story. Our story leaders use props and involve the kids by having them act out things. These are not boring drawn out stories, they are intriguing stories drawn from the most interesting book on the planet, the Bible. Last night, for instance the kids pretended to be Christians in flight from Roman guards after Jesus' crucifixion. Of course they enjoy things like the wind and waves of being on a boat in a stormy sea with Jesus, or crawling into the smelly belly of a whale(complete with tuna odors!) BUT when it comes time for the story leaders to do a 10 minute discussion of the lesson, the majority of these kids could not sit still and be quiet long enough for our leaders to finish a sentence! More than half of the children present simply refused to listen without talking. There were numerous interruptions, without bothering to raise their hands. The leader had to regain their attention so much that the gist of the story was lost in all the commotion. For those kids who were trying to sit politely and engage in listening to the story, it was VERY frustrating. When asked to answer questions, these wiggly worms would ramble off stories of their own that had no bearing on the message or content of the nights subject matter. It was a very sad and frustrating thing to watch. I also quizzed other leaders and discovered that my group was not the lone rangers in this, it was a trend for the week.
So, please, if you have not already done so, would you turn the tv and computer games off and read some books to your kids? If they try to interrupt then PLEASE teach them the manners to hold their thought, AND Tongue, for just a minute so you can finish the page/chapter/book? I am begging you?
I have to wonder how these kids get anything accomplished at school. And please don't tell me that you have to be homeschoolers to learn this. Or that the mom has to be a stay-at-home mom (or dad) to teach these things, and that it is a product of society's fast pace. My brother's kids are some of the most well behaved kids I know and both their parents work full time. It is not the situation your family is in that produces kids who know how to behave in each situation they find themselves... it is training your kids in how to act that makes all the difference; and THAT takes time and energy.
Please parents, if you haven't done so yet, invest some time and energy into your kids. Not so that I will have an easier time with them at Vacation Bible school, but so that they will have the best possible life that they can live.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Life: Busy busy bees!
We've been very busy this weekend. Our niece celebrated her seventh birthday on July 4Th so we spent the day at her parents home. Good food, good fellowship and great fireworks. I got so tired of helping kids light fireworks thought that I was seeing double when I looked for fuses. And did you know that you can no longer hold smoke bombs in your hand to write your name on the sidewalk. They are made completely differently than the hard outer shelled smoke bombs of my youth (or even my NOT SO youth). And I am pretty sure that the sparklers don't last nearly as long, even if they do change colors and various other fancy tricks.
On Saturday we had a night out with friends from church. Bowling and dinner. Bowling was a hoot! It has been a long time since we've been bowling and it showed in our scores (which I will not share with you no matter what!) Except for the stunning embarrassment, we had a great time. Dinner at Cracker Barrel, since it was very close to the bowling alley. Once again, I am not all that impressed with Cracker Barrel. It is Mallory's favorite restaurant, and I have to admit that when we have been on vacation and not getting home cooked food a lot, then it's definitely on my list of places I like to go, just to get some home cooked food. Since we haven't been on vacation and I tend to cook almost every night when we are home, it isn't my favorite place to go. The service left a lot to be desired, the waitress was kind but the food was not brought out to our table on a good time frame. By the time the last member of our party was served the first had been finished eating for some time. I did enjoy my meal, though I usually like to eat at restaurants that serve food that I normally won't fix at home. The conversation was great and I really enjoyed myself.
Church this morning and lunch at Las Palmos, the kids couldn't let us outdo them by eating out on Saturday and not taking them to eat out today eh? I got a seafood Chimichanga,yum!! It WAS good, and definitely something I wouldn't cook at home.
Water park day tomorrow, everyone is excited, since we missed last week due to an ear infection that Daniel was suffering from. Also Vacation Bible School starts tomorrow night so it should be a fun and very busy day.
I will be M.I.A. on my blog and probably message boards and email most of the week.
Hope you all have a great week!
On Saturday we had a night out with friends from church. Bowling and dinner. Bowling was a hoot! It has been a long time since we've been bowling and it showed in our scores (which I will not share with you no matter what!) Except for the stunning embarrassment, we had a great time. Dinner at Cracker Barrel, since it was very close to the bowling alley. Once again, I am not all that impressed with Cracker Barrel. It is Mallory's favorite restaurant, and I have to admit that when we have been on vacation and not getting home cooked food a lot, then it's definitely on my list of places I like to go, just to get some home cooked food. Since we haven't been on vacation and I tend to cook almost every night when we are home, it isn't my favorite place to go. The service left a lot to be desired, the waitress was kind but the food was not brought out to our table on a good time frame. By the time the last member of our party was served the first had been finished eating for some time. I did enjoy my meal, though I usually like to eat at restaurants that serve food that I normally won't fix at home. The conversation was great and I really enjoyed myself.
Church this morning and lunch at Las Palmos, the kids couldn't let us outdo them by eating out on Saturday and not taking them to eat out today eh? I got a seafood Chimichanga,yum!! It WAS good, and definitely something I wouldn't cook at home.
Water park day tomorrow, everyone is excited, since we missed last week due to an ear infection that Daniel was suffering from. Also Vacation Bible School starts tomorrow night so it should be a fun and very busy day.
I will be M.I.A. on my blog and probably message boards and email most of the week.
Hope you all have a great week!
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Family: Update on Mallory
I thought I would post an update on Mallory. She was officially released from the doctor about a month ago to resume all activity on her broken leg. The initial accident was in January, so it was a long (very long) hard road for her. She lost some weight with this injury and SHOT UP in inches during this time so she is very gangly looking now. Of course she eats like a bird so I am concerned about her gaining back some of the weight. She is as tall as I am, so she has really added several inches in the last few months. It is interesting to look her in the eyes when I talk to her. At 12 she is no longer a child but a young lady really and starting to act it, becoming much more mature as the days pass. The leg, particularly the ankle has been giving her some trouble. She runs with a different gait. When she uses the leg alot; like walking the many steps at the water park, or running around with her sibling, it will ache. I have noticed her becoming much more careful about what she chooses to do. So, while she is doing really well, there are still lingering affects and I guess there may be for some time to come.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Krispy Kreme Bacon Cheeseburgers
Instapundit.com (where I always find the most interesting things from the web in one place) has got me rolling tonight. This post and the one previous both came from there. I guess it is time to go to bed and stop reading blogs, but this one you just HAVE to see. (Greg, if you are looking, whadda ya think? Wanna meet up for some burgers!)
Al Dente: Almost (In)Edible Photo: Krispy Kreme Bacon Cheeseburgers
Al Dente: Almost (In)Edible Photo: Krispy Kreme Bacon Cheeseburgers
A Table-Sized Weight Bench for a Shoebox Sized Apartment | Popular Science
A Table-Sized Weight Bench for a Shoebox Sized Apartment | Popular Science
This just cracks me up! Wait honey, move those Hor d'oeuvres, I feel the need to pump some iron!
This just cracks me up! Wait honey, move those Hor d'oeuvres, I feel the need to pump some iron!
Life/education: Audio books for free!!!
I was recently made aware of a very nifty little tool that is available through many public libraries. Overdrive is a company that provides audiobook downloads for free with access through your local library. All you need is a library card and a computer. (and I am assuming you have a computer or you wouldn't be reading this blog!) Here is the link for you to check and see if your local library is a member of the Overdrive community. Overdrive has hundreds of titles with many classics and children's literatuer choices. Check it out, and BTW, if your library is not listed don't hesitate to check libraries near you. My local library is not a part of the Overdrive network, but I have borrowing priveledges at the main library system in the large city close to us and it is a part of the overdrive netwrok. Marc has found MANY authors that he enjoys listening to in the short time that we have been aware of this and the kids and I are currently listening to several audiobooks ourselves. You have to download a small program to get the books from the Overdrive system to your computer and then the process is as easy as 1-2-3.
What a great service!
What a great service!
Homeschooling: Answering THE question
WEll, if you have homeschooled long (or even short) then you have been asked THE question. Actually, THE question comes in all forms but it basically means the same thing. Different forms of THE question that you may encounter: 1)I could never homeschool (which is really a veiled question asking "How in the world do you homeschool?")2) Are you still homeschooling? How is that going? 3) do your kids like homeschooling? 4) HOw do you like homeschooling? 5) How does homeschooling work? 6) (Posed by those who are accustomed to stating exactly what they mean) "You must be nuts" (which really means, "I can't stand to be around my kids for 5 minutes let alone all day") ;-)
I have answered these and other questions posed by the curious, the friendly, the interested and the only being polite crowd. I find my family closest to me does not even ask, maybe because I talk so much I generally tell them everything they want to know and many things they could care less about in the course of our normal conversations. But I have many aquaintances that I will run into periodically that ask; either out of true interest or just to fill that awkward void at the beginning of a chance encounter at the grocery store.
At the beginning of our homeschool I was so self consious that I always answered this question in the same way. Pasting a smile on my face and saying "just great!" everytime it came up. Especially if the acquaintance was someone I knew from my tenure substituting and working as an aide in the local private school. I had to prove my ability right? I had to defend my precious husbands honor for his allowing us to educate our kids in this crazy way! I simply had to ensure that others know how smart my kids are and how wonderful homeschooling is, right? To tell the truth, that answer, with the fake pasty smile always got the same result. The other person would nod their head numbly, return the pasty smile and quickly change the subject or the direction they were headed... away from me. perhaps they KNEW that nothing every goes "Just great!" NOTHING. And I think we ALL know that anything worth doing generally goes VERY WRONG at times while we are working out how to do it!
I decided a while back to do something dangerous. Completely wild and out there! I decided to start being honest when I answer THE question. GASP!!! "NO", you are saying, "nobody wants to know the truth! They are just asking to be polite!" Well, that is the case sometimes, but I have found out since "coming out" that the reality is that lots of people DO care. And when I open up and am honest in my answer then it gives a humanity to homeschooling that my pasty smiled false sense of peace did not portray. Now when people ask how it's going I tell them. I don't bemoan my mistakes or pour out my fears, but I do tell them the truth in a nutshell. I tell them that We love homechooling and we hate it! That it is scary and fun! That I worry over what resources to use and pray about challenges that we face. I tell them that when I'm not freaking out, I'm having the time of my life! And yes, I do both, FREAK OUT, and HAVE A BLAST!
Do you know what I discovered? People appreciate the truth. I have found since transforming my answer that I will stand in the aisle at the grocery store longer with a acquaintance that I haven't seen in a while. That once I tell them I struggle but perservere, they open up and share their fears, joys and life. They see our homeschool and family differently and they see that homeschooling isn't some perfect alternative that they can not attain, but a choice that works for some families. Generally they accept that we are just different, not weird like the thought, but different and it's all good!
Now of course some people will always think we're crazy... those people don't even ask about it... To those I give the pasty smile as I pass with my kids in the store and politely discuss the weather.
I have answered these and other questions posed by the curious, the friendly, the interested and the only being polite crowd. I find my family closest to me does not even ask, maybe because I talk so much I generally tell them everything they want to know and many things they could care less about in the course of our normal conversations. But I have many aquaintances that I will run into periodically that ask; either out of true interest or just to fill that awkward void at the beginning of a chance encounter at the grocery store.
At the beginning of our homeschool I was so self consious that I always answered this question in the same way. Pasting a smile on my face and saying "just great!" everytime it came up. Especially if the acquaintance was someone I knew from my tenure substituting and working as an aide in the local private school. I had to prove my ability right? I had to defend my precious husbands honor for his allowing us to educate our kids in this crazy way! I simply had to ensure that others know how smart my kids are and how wonderful homeschooling is, right? To tell the truth, that answer, with the fake pasty smile always got the same result. The other person would nod their head numbly, return the pasty smile and quickly change the subject or the direction they were headed... away from me. perhaps they KNEW that nothing every goes "Just great!" NOTHING. And I think we ALL know that anything worth doing generally goes VERY WRONG at times while we are working out how to do it!
I decided a while back to do something dangerous. Completely wild and out there! I decided to start being honest when I answer THE question. GASP!!! "NO", you are saying, "nobody wants to know the truth! They are just asking to be polite!" Well, that is the case sometimes, but I have found out since "coming out" that the reality is that lots of people DO care. And when I open up and am honest in my answer then it gives a humanity to homeschooling that my pasty smiled false sense of peace did not portray. Now when people ask how it's going I tell them. I don't bemoan my mistakes or pour out my fears, but I do tell them the truth in a nutshell. I tell them that We love homechooling and we hate it! That it is scary and fun! That I worry over what resources to use and pray about challenges that we face. I tell them that when I'm not freaking out, I'm having the time of my life! And yes, I do both, FREAK OUT, and HAVE A BLAST!
Do you know what I discovered? People appreciate the truth. I have found since transforming my answer that I will stand in the aisle at the grocery store longer with a acquaintance that I haven't seen in a while. That once I tell them I struggle but perservere, they open up and share their fears, joys and life. They see our homeschool and family differently and they see that homeschooling isn't some perfect alternative that they can not attain, but a choice that works for some families. Generally they accept that we are just different, not weird like the thought, but different and it's all good!
Now of course some people will always think we're crazy... those people don't even ask about it... To those I give the pasty smile as I pass with my kids in the store and politely discuss the weather.
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