On the Agenda

Before our school year is over, I sit down and figure out what in the world we're supposed to be doing the next school year. You would think it would get easier as the years go by. Yeah. I wished it worked that way. There are a couple of used curriculum sales that I like to hit in May, so it's good to have a plan. Only, we know how well I follow a plan. At one of the sales, I actually put back all of the stuff I had picked up for the boy's literature and changed tacks. The big girl (oh my heart) won't be schooling with us this year. The boy and the baby are at the stage where we can do several subjects together, so that helps. Here's what I did:

• I already know that the boy and the baby girl are going to have bible and German together. I'm not sure what we're using for bible yet, but I do know that we'll finish an Acts study we started towards the end of our last year. After that, it's wide open. German is Power Glide and we're restarting that. Last year was a bad year for foreign language. As in, we didn't foreign language. Ugh!
• The kids will be using Mystery of History, Volume II for world history. I like that it has activities for different levels. I'll be mixing and matching them through out the year. I'm hoping to keep current on the timeline. I think it would be cool to have it around the kitchen and living room. We'll see. The book is huge and just a bit intimidating, so I joined a page on the social network. That has been amazing. I feel much more confident about something we've never used before.
• For literature, the boy will be using a Progeny Press study guide and a Memoria Press study guide. The PP will be Beowulf and the MP will be The Odyssey. It fits in with the time period of the history. I'm a little excited for the boy. These are a different type of reading than what he's used to and I think he'll like the storylines. He'll also be using Cliff's Notes to help with whatever we don't get and to give him some background information. The baby will be using a study guide from In the Hands of a Child for Island of the Blue Dolphin and a Progeny Press study guide for A Wrinkle in Time. I am a huge fan of PP, but there wasn't one for The Odyssey. I have both PP and HOAC for Island of the Blue Dolphin, but I want to get the baby out of her comfort zone.
• Science this year is A Beka Biology. Both kids will be using it this year. The baby will be an 8th grader and she can get high school credit for it. I'm not worried about this one since I taught this at co-op a couple of years ago. This should be easy peasy.
• Grammar is Rod and Staff for the baby and A Beka for the boy. I like both programs but I have to admit that R&S is my very favorite for teaching grammar, hands down. It is clear and concise and I like the way it's put together.
• Math this year is A Beka for both kids. Algebra for the baby and Algebra 2 for the boy. I had looked at a couple of different things for the boy, but went back to A Beka. It's what he's used to and I think he'll do fine with it. The baby will get high school credit for algebra, so let's just start marking things off now! Woot!

So far, we don't have any plans for a school co-op. I'm kind of glad because that frees up some time. We'll be looking at new dance studios this year as well. I think I know where we're going. It's closer to the house than our previous studio and that saves us some time. I'm not sure what that schedule will be like so I need to keep that in mind. Hubby and I decided that we need to get used to a new studio before we commit to a performance or competition team, so that's off the schedule, thank goodness.

I'll wait until we get back from our summer trip before I start planning. You have to know, though, that I am champing at the bit. Lesson planning is one of my guilty pleasures. I am so weird.

Have a great day.

A Nip Here, a Tuck There

I am way behind on blogging. We just got done with recital, which is another post, and I have a little down time. But this blog is about science co-op. Ready?

One of my favorite things to teach is biology. I was so excited for one of my kids to get old enough for biology and the big girl got there first. My favorite part of biology besides the edible projects? Dissecting. This year we dissected a grasshopper, a perch, a frog, and a starfish. I won't show you any pics of the perch. Even I think they were yucky. And some of the pics of the frog may not be suitable for all audiences.

This poor guy never had a chance. We had 2 specimens and the kids were broken into 2 groups. I mixed and matched them for each lab so no 2 groups were the same. Their grade depended on each other and every one had to handle a different part of the lab. For the most part, that worked very well.

And then the teacher tells the left handed kid it was her turn to handle the right handed scissors. Because I'm smart that way. But she did it anyway.

Yeah, the pics just get a little grosser from here, so it's time to move on to the next victim specimen.

This one proved to be a little harder for the group. Just trying to get through the exoskeleton proved to be a chore. But they did it.

Part of the lab was to draw the legs and various outer features. There are some super talented kids in my class.

I liked the starfish. It was a little harder to distinguish some of the outer features, but the rest of the lab was way cool.

I had the best time teaching biology to this group of kids. We had the best discussions, and some not so good conversations. We covered a ton of material and they hung in there when it got a little boring. And, really, who doesn't like a class where you get to cut up dead things?

Have a great day.

Biology, One Bite at a Time

Science co-op is over. I had a great time! I hope the kiddos had a great time and learned lots of stuff. I have to say that we started out a little rough. We started with plants. Honestly, I was as bored as the kids, but we got through it! Once we got to animals and human, things picked up.

I am not a research project kind of gal. That is not my style. I do, however, like to eat. The kids had a few projects to do, but they were all of the edible variety. We made edible replicas of plant cells, nests, and, as a final project, the kids could pick any of the pictures of the chapters we had covered and make an edible representation. They all did an amazing job! Here's some pics:


These were the plant cells. I was a very bad teacher and only got this one pic! The good thing is that I got 2 projects in 1 shot. There's the cookie at the bottom of the pic. It's chocolate cookie and candy representing the various parts. At the top of the pic is R's representation using chicken enchiladas! His mom, K, knew that there would be LOTS of sweets (and there was), so she encouraged something else. Yea for K! It was so super yummy!!

These are the birds' nests. I really liked this project. We used pretzel sticks for sticks, crushed shredded wheat for grass, m&m's for stones, string cheese for string, and chips for paper and fabric, and almond butter for mud. Again, a fun project that will hopefully help them remember about nests and their purpose. And the fact that a bite of pretzel, cheese, and m&m is super good together.

And our final projects. You want to talk about a bunch of sweets! And some amazing projects!

This is the integumentary system. Skin to you and me. Chocolate cake...mmmm...

I tried to turn this, but apparently, it didn't work. This is Rice Krispie treats posing as a skull and the various lobes. Great job!!

 This would be DNA. Also known as marshmallows, licorice, and toothpicks. Love it!

Blood vessels! Celery as the vein, peanut butter as plasma, red candies as red blood cells, yellow candies as white blood cells, and banana chips as platelets. I could have eaten them all!!

I'm very proud of the kids. There was much, much conversation, lots of tangents to talk about, and learning, learning, learning! I'm going to miss the class even though I see the kids all the time.

Have a great day.

Stretching...

We are in our last official week of school. Glory, glory, hallelujah! The end is almost here. Come April, I have had all the fun I care to have. There is still a couple of weeks of science co-op, and as long as we have that, the kids are going to finish their math. The big girl dragged her feet with her Algebra II, so she has some summer school to do. Here's what's been going on in a random style blog.

• Science co-op is winding down. It has been a blast teaching biology. I had a great time and I hope the kids learned tons. Biology is one of my favorite subjects. Next year is chemistry for the big girl and the boy. My chemistry background is horrible so I'm glad there's a different teacher for that class. The baby will be with the youngers. They are going to do earth science next year. I'm actually looking forward to that. It helps I only have to teach once every 5-6 weeks. I have no idea what I'll do with the free time. Oh, you know that's not true. There will hopefully be much, much reading going on.
• There was a used curriculum sale in our little town. I was hoping to find some of what I need for next year, but no such luck. There is a huge sale in a neighboring town. They consistently have over 200 people selling their books. I don't need much, but if I can find it for super cheap, all the better. I already know of 3 things I have to buy new, but those are inexpensive. Hubby is taking the day off to chauffer me and a couple of friends to the sale.  
• We are about a month away from recital. All of the dances are coming along and several are done. I'm excited to see the costumes. It's one of my favorite times of the year. The company number is almost complete. It is going to be so much fun. The big girl has been helping in a half/half class. The girls are 5-6 years old and the class is a half hour of tap and a half hour of ballet. They go on right after the company number this year. They are too cute!
• Summer camp and summer dance start shortly after recital. The big girl will start pointe this summer. She is so excited. The big girl and the boy also get their week at camp. I wish I could have gone to camp as a kid. The baby is champing at the bit to go. One more summer and she's in.
• Summer reading is always in our summer plans. We missed the last 2 summers because of traveling, but the kids like the programs that are being set up. We usually sign up at a couple of different libraries and pick and choose the activities.

Just a few more days and we are free. Mostly. I just want to go to Disney!

Have a great day.

Flower Power

I've been teaching a biology co-op one afternoon a week. I am digging it. Biology is one of those things that more fun with a crowd. It's the experiments. Who wants to dissect alone? Well, serial killers, but we aren't talking about them. We haven't gotten to the dissecting part yet, but I am working on it. We're getting closer every week.

We started with the plant unit. There is a lot more to plants than I remember. Some of it, I'm not sure I wanted to know, but I do now, so there you go. It was actually kind of cool. I might take one day before Christmas break and we may do the microscope labs we didn't get to do during the plant unit. Hmmmm, there's an idea. Anyway, we did the big collection and identifying and labeling lab. That was one of my favorites when I took biology, all 3 times.

To celebrate the end of the plant unit, we had a party with edible plant cells. The kids had to make edible representations of the plant cell to share. We had pizza and cookies and, wait for it, chicken enchiladas. Those things were super good. We also took a field trip to a local botanical garden. My family had been before, but some of the kids and their families hadn't. I gave the kids a sheet they had to fill out to prove they didn't sleep through class. They all did very well.

And, of course, there are flower pics:

Such a great place to go. All the plants were labeled so you knew what they were. They have several gardens set up. They have a native plants, a southwest garden, marshlands, butterfly garden, and more. The part the kids liked the best? The maze. They played hide and seek tag. At least nobody came running to tell us we couldn't come back! I call that a successful field trip.

Have a great day.

Daybook

Hubby's almost done making tortillas, which means breakfast, so let's get started, shall we? Music's rolling, lights are dimmed, and queue:

• I am listening to: Godsmack right now, but who knows what will pop up next. The kids were on restriction  from electronics for a week and today is the day they get them back. I have to be honest and say I can't remember what they got put on restriction for, since that was longer ago than yesterday. Anyway, The TV has finally come back on and I don't want to hear it. Yuck. Oooh, now I'm listening to Snap! I got the power!
• Around the house: The pig sty has returneth. I miss July when the chores were getting done. But, we started school and science co-op, so there goes what little time we had for that. It's really not as bad as I make it sound. For the long weekend, hubby has a list of chores we need to get done. Yea, chores! Not really. I despise chores and I wish I had a chores fairy. The most exciting news is that we just celebrated the big girl's birthday. She turned 15 and we spent the day at Disney. Duh. We all had a good time, but you probably already knew that. Guess what she gets to do now? Learn to drive. That is hubby's job. I told him I carried and birthed the babies, he gets to teach them to drive. That seems fair, don't you think? Heaven help us.
• For the holiday: Ha! I added a new category! We don't have big plans. We're talking about going to the beach. Hubby wants to metal detect after 4,000,000 people have been there for the weekend. We just bought a grill. It's a little $20 table top. We haven't had a grill in almost 2 years and we wanted one. Burgers're going on that thing this weekend. I. Love. Grilled. Burgers.
• From the schoolroom: It's been a bit of a rough start for us. We started at the beginning of August so we are about 4 weeks into it. It has been a huge adjustment in workload for the big girl. She was using FLVS for Latin, but she dropped that class. What a big, giant cluster of mess that is! If you haven't used the website, it is not user friendly at all. The lessons seemed to weave back and forth, but never long enough on one topic to make sense. Her teacher was really nice. I have heard horror stories about some of the teachers. Gives me shivers. She will take driver's ed from them because I hear that's pretty good. I have high hopes. The boy and the baby have a heavier word load this year, too. I added vocabulary to their day. There was always vocabulary in their language arts, but I didn't feel like it spent enough time reinforcing the word. They're both using Wordly Wise 3000. I used it with the big girl when she was in the 5th grade. Love it! They are both learning Latin this year. They get science at co-op, so that kind of freed up a spot. So far, so good. They both seem to be enjoying it, so yea!
• From the dance studio: We start dance next week!! I cannot even begin to express how excited we are about that. There are just no words.
• And don't forget Stella: Stella is 6 months old now, closing in on 7. She is not the teeny baby anymore. She is so big. She can set her head on the dining table. We don't let her keep it there, but good grief. She is super smart. She and hubby were chasing each other yesterday. At one point, she reversed on him so many times, he had no idea where she was going to come from. I watched the whole thing and I had no clue! She's learned sit, lay down, show me your belly, and off, darn dog, get down! She still follows hubby like he saved her life. She has even made friends with the neighbor's dogs. They run up and down the fence line, chasing each other. She won't get to go play for real until she gets Bob Barkered. We still can't get her to stop barking at Mr. D, our neighbor. He even brings her cookies! Maybe one day.

I think that's about all I have for now. Tortillas are ready and I'm hungry.

Have a great day.      

Bookish

I'm just going to dive right in. Everybody got your floaties?

• I am listening to: Well, until I started blogging, I was listening to thunder. There's a storm all around us but not quite over us. It's raining all around us. Kinda cool, actually. Now my headphones are plugged in and my play list is shuffling it's heart out. The kids are holed up in a bedroom somewhere watching videos on YouTube. Yes, I know what they're watching and I really do know where they are. I think. Uh. Oh.
• Around the garden: Some success, some failures. We seem to be the bell pepper masters. They don't get ginormous, but they have some decent size to them. We almost can't get them to quit growing. I found tobacco worms the other day on one of the plants. They chewed the tops off of most of the stalks. They will never do that again. I looked at the plant yesterday and they are already growing new leaves. Yes! Our okra in one planter is beautiful. The plants are anyway. I'll be excited to be able to pick. And of course, we have lettuce and spinach growing like nobody's business. Well, except for yours because I just told you. We have them growing in stages. We have what we're picking now in the aero system that hubby built, soon to be picked in the tower, and seedlings in the other half of the aero tower. We also have chard, baby bok choy, sweet potatoes, and strawberries. The strawberry plants were bonuses as they just showed up in the garden one day. Awesomeness!
• Around the school room: Out with the old, and in with the new. All the new books are in the appropriate drawers, waiting for the first day of school. The big girl has been registered for her Latin class. We're just waiting for her to be assigned to a classroom and a teacher. Co-op day and time have been set. The big girl and I have made lesson plans. A school supply list has been made. I have some ideas for field trips that have to do with our biology. Believe it or not, even the kids are ready to start school.
• From the kitchen: Tonight is make your own pizza night. I've been in kind of a cooking rut lately. I get that way, usually in the summer. I'm done, over it. And then, a couple of months later, I get my second wind. Come on, second wind!! I did make some brownies the other day that were super delicious. I added peanut butter to them. They were so good, I had to make a second batch. A few months ago I learned how to make a really good roux, which is a base to gravy and some sauces. I use it for everything. Macaroni and cheese seems to feature prominently in the requests for dinner. I use the roux to make the cheese sauce. I added mozzarella to it the last time I made it. Holy cow, that was good! Other than that, I'd rather make a phone call or reservations.
• Outside my window: Weirdness. Weather cracks me up. The storm that was around us has moved. Now it's gray out the back windows and sunshine coming in the front windows. Mother Nature is a woman, you know.

That's about it for now. I need to go cut veggies for pizza. My belly's growling.

Have a great day.   

Lucky No. 7

One of my favorite things is to sign on to Blogger and see new blogs. It just makes me happy. Mine have had the shades drawn for a little bit, but let's see what I can do to change that.

1. Summer dance. Oh, I love to watch my kids dance. The baby is taking ballet and hip hop this summer. This is her first exposure to both. She loves them. That makes me happier than you could ever know. Our hip hop teacher makes my heart go pitter pat. She is awesome and creative and she makes me smile. Ballet is not that mamby pamby stuff you think it is. You should have seen the big girl's class sweating it out today. Oh. My. Giddy. Aunt. I have to say that I was jealous. Sounds weird, I know. Just watching them made me wish I could move like that. The big girl is also taking tap. Her first class is this week and she's a little nervous. The boy is taking ballet and hip hop. His first hip hop class was today. He rocked it. I am so proud of my kids stepping out of their boxes.
2. Summer camp. My two big kids just got back from camp. They love going to camp and I love sending them! The boy had a "primitive" cabin. That meant the bathrooms and showers were in a separate building from where they were sleeping. The big girl had a cabin full of girls she knew and some new girls. Her cabin counselor was one of the cabin counselors she'd had her first year of camp. 4 years ago. What is that?!? How could that much time have passed? The boy came home with a gaga ball wound on his hand which is much better than the goose egg he came home with last year. The most important part of camp: they come home on fire for God! The passion is amazing and I pray it stays with them forever!
3. Summer reading. Yeah, that hasn't happened. We normally join 2 or 3 library programs, but summer dance and summer camp is what we've been focusing on. We're reading, just not with the library. We finished A Wrinkle in Time before the kids left for camp, so now we need a new after dinner book. Hubby and the kids are asking for the next 39 Clues book. On to the library website I go.  
4. Summer bowling. We signed up for Kids Bowl Free. If you haven't, do it. We pay for shoes and that's it. There is a group of us that plan a date and get together. It has been great for the kids and great for the mamas. If we an all make it, we do. If not, we don't. It has been a mucho, mucho good time.
5. Summer cooking. We are at the dance studio quite a bit this summer, so I've been making lunch and taking it with. And sharing. So far we've had black beans and rice, chicken salad, and chicken spaghetti. Tomorrow, I'm making a 7 layer dip (with 6 layers) and tortillas. Hubby was a sweetheart and made tortillas tonight. The big girl shredded a huge block of cheese. I made guacamole. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.
6. Summer school. Yeah, when is that going to happen? It's not. But I am planning my little heart out. I am facilitating a biology co-op starting in the fall. I am sooooo looking forward to it. I'm a freak, I know. I want to have a plan to start with and see how our dance schedule falls in to place. There may be a lot more crock potting going on. Oh, and I learned how to use the timer feature on my oven! That comes in handy, let me tell you what! The big girl has a ton of work to do this year. We did cut down her online classes from 2 to1 just to see how the work load goes. Hopefully it goes well...
7. Summer yuckiness. Lots of stress in our home this season. We were working on getting our home loan modified. It didn't work the way we wanted it to for a while, but that is finally settled and done! We breathe a small sigh until September when it becomes final. We are on probation until then. Mother's Day was so hard for me to get through. I absolutely miss my mom. There is a hole on my heart that is the size of the universe. And then there was my birthday. The last time I spoke to my mom was my birthday last year. Blech!! 9 days after my birthday, she was gone. I have just been one big bundle of nerves and bitchiness. To top it all off, I've been stress eating. I have done very well with that for the last year and a half, but throw that ugly cocktail together and I had to wash it down with something. That something turned into everything I could shove in my mouth. I've gained 10 pounds, but it feels like 50. Here's to season's past, and the end to stress eating. Please. And thank you.

Well, winner, winner, chicken dinner! I made it to 7. Who would have thunk it could happen? Me, really, because I had a list. Me and my stinkin' lists. But, if I don't write it down, it didn't happen.

Have a great day.

Daybook, 'Cause I'm Tired, but I Want to Blog

Oh, I would love to say this is a quiet day. It kind of is, but there are chores that need to be done and my house is a sty. We've spent 3 going on 4 days being lazy, lazy, lazy. It's time. But first, I blog, because I really don't want to clean my house.

• Around the house: as mentioned in the opening paragraph, it's a sty. There's 4 loads of laundry on my love seat. Stella has chewed her duckie until the stuffing has fallen out and she refuses to vacuum it up. The dishes are overflowing the sink even though I already loaded the dishwasher once. I will not mention the huge pile of curriculum I need to take pictures of and post online to sell or the way I have to dig through the pantry to find anything or the fact that I still need to clean out the recital bag. Crap. I think I just mentioned it. Well, there you go.
• I'm listening to: something I swore I would never listen to. There are tap shoes tapping in my house. The big girl will take tap this summer for summer dance. The only problem is that she'll miss the first week because of camp. She also wants to try out for company so that means she has to have tap. Which she's never done. The boy, the baby, and I are teaching her some simple, basic steps to get her ready and hopefully keep her from getting too far behind. So, because I love her dearly, I'm letting them tap in the house. Thank goodness for iPods and earphones!
• From the garden: something is eating our tomatoes and it better not be you!! Something has taken to gnawing parts of our growing tomatoes. If they would finish one, I would be OK with that. Nope, it gnaws a good chunk out and then goes to the next. We tried neem oil and a pepper spray, but it rained. And rained. And washed it all away. We haven't tried again because it's been raining every afternoon. The next few days should be good and dry so we'll try again then. The lettuce in our tower is amazing!! I go out every day and pick some for us and trim the ugly leaves for the chickens. There's not much ugly out there, but I do what I can. The chickens are loving it as much as we are!
• From the kitchen: with the 4 day affair that recital is, there was much driving through, but not much cooking. I have more than made up for that. Hubby, too. Sunday morning, hubby got up bright and early and made us pancakes. That man makes the best pancakes. Ever! Last night I made a turkey and lots of stuff to go with it. Hubby asked if it was Thanksgiving already. Homemade hamburger helper has become a staple in our home. This time I added carrots and broccoli so it was a one dish meal. It was really a couple of dishes, but that's ok, too. The frig is loaded with leftovers, so I shouldn't have to cook today.  
• I am reading: Over a Thousand Hills I Walk With You by Hanna Jansen. It is the story of a young girl from Rwanda that lost her entire family. Holy cow!! I can only read it in bits and pieces. My heart aches. Our after dinner book is A Wrinkle in Time. I tried to get the big girl and the boy to read it and they both declined. Grrrrrrr. I figured the only way I would get them to is to make it our after dinner book. We are all enjoying it. Just goes to show, I do know what I'm talking about. Most of the time.
• From the schoolroom: Not much! This is part of our summer break. I decided not to summer school. We'll be at the dance studio a couple of days a week and nobody will want to school when we get home, specially me. This summer will be the summer of PE and fine arts. Bowling and dance on our schedule and a trip or 14 to Disney. The most pressing thing I have to do right now is get the portfolios together for the kids' annual eval. I'm working on it! We did a lot of work this year. Next year will be no different. I've already put the new stuff in the school drawers and have made a list of school supplies we need for next year. Pencils are NOT on that list. I must have hundreds.

That's about it for now. I might take a nap. After the laundry gets folded and all the unexciting, but very necassary chores get done. Or I might wait to that stuff until after my nap. Yeah, you know where this is going. Sweet dreams!

Have a great day.

Changing and Rearranging

So, how many times can I change my mind about the next school year? As a woman, about a million before we actually start. We haven't even finished this year. The good thing about that is that we are down to 3 days!! I scored a huge deal on curriculum. I mean GINORMOUS. I sold the Apologia we had from co-op last year. I had been meaning to post it, but I was lazy. Within a few hours of finally getting it listed on a couple of resale sites, I had a buyer. And within a day, I bought a box of curriculum for the same amount I got from selling the science. It's BJU Press, which I have really come to like. More importantly, the kids dig it. I got just about everything I would need for 10th grade. The set included world history, grammar and composition, literature, biology, Spanish, and bible. Holy cow!! And after talking to the kids about next year, they wanted a change, too. Well, ok. Here's what we're doing this time. As always, watch for updates, because I'll probably change my mind. Again.

• History:  The big girl was going to do American history. I absolutely love, love, love teaching American history. But the big girl wants to study world history. Doh! Fine. Good thing I just happen to have some. There will still be additional reading for her, because I am a mean mama that way. The boy and the baby were going to do state studies. I figured it would coincide with the big girl. Yeah, no. They want to do a study of Ancient Greece. The boy is very much into Greek mythology, so how can I say no when he looks at me with those big, brown eyes? Like this, "NO!" But I didn't this time. After talking to the baby about it, she agreed. So, world history for the big girl and Ancient Greece for the other 2. But there will be American history next year, dangit, if I have to strap them all to a chair!!
• Language Arts: As much as I love history, I wanted to be and English teacher. The English language is so convoluted and hard to get through. I figured if I could help even one person navigate it, then yippee. I guess I'm helping 3. Score! I was going to use A Beka's World Lit, but we are going to use the BJU Press for her. I like the way it's set up. I like the info that's in there. I like that it makes her think a little more. She is also going to use the Grammar and Composition. She hasn't had much of either, so there you go. With those 2, however, I don't think she's going to have much time for the vocabulary I have for her. That stinks, but if there's time next year, she can use it then. Or, I have it for the other 2. I am looking for the A Beka Grammar and Composition II for the boy. He hasn't had much of that either and I think it would do him good. I have the teacher's manual and even had the opportunity to buy it last year and didn't. If I can't find it, I'll drop back and punt.    
• Science: I am running a science co-op for high school biology. I had the most amazing biology teacher and loved it. I have some friends that are not comfortable with the upper level science and I am cool with that. My friend M will be teaching the younger kids, which is 4th-7th grade. I had planned to use a plethora of science unit studies I've downloaded over the years for the boy and the baby. Instead, they'll participate in the co-op. And, really, it takes one thing off of my shoulders. Yea for that! I am going to need something off my shoulders.
• Summer School: I had planned to start when the 2 big kids got back from camp. Now, I'm thinking about summer dance. It's just 3 weeks, and the classes the kids would take would only be one day a week. It would give the kid a chance to try something that they may be interested in, but not sure if they want to invest a whole year to. The big girl is thinking comtemporary, the boy is thinking jazz, and the baby is thinking hip hop. The boy has taken jazz before, but not with Mr. Matt. He has learned so much in 4 months of spins, leaps,a nd jumps with Mr. Matt, he may take jazz again next year, but he wants to try the class first. That would mean dance one day and school 1-2 days a week, but only for three weeks. I want to take July off since we start school in August. So maybe no summer school. Oh, I know the kids will be incredibly upset. Actually, I would get the Mom of the Year Award if I cancelled summer school. Well, crap.  

Not much changed, but enough to make me scrap my original plans. The big girl and I are going to sit down one day after camp so she can do a mock lesson plan. She'll be putting together her own lesson plans next year with some help from her mama, at least for a little bit. We are hoping to take a mini vacation this summer. Just a couple of days somewhere away from the house. A little down time before we start the mad rush that is our school year is always much appreciated. A month on the beach would be amazing!!

Have a great day.

Lessons Learned

I got a new computer!! You cannot even begin to understand how happy I am. I got a laptop so I can take it with if I need to. It has been a search, that's for sure. Hubby and I have become research people. Before we would just get what we wanted and if it broke, oh well, get another. Not anymore. I finally got what I wanted. The keys feel great under my fingers, they're spaced right, and it's easy to navigate. Love it!! But that's not what this blog is about. When I got the computer home and got it set up all I could think about was how I couldn't wait to blog. So, here I go.

This has been a school year. We aren't even half way through and I am tired. I'm not tired of homeschooling. I'm just tired. Come the end of the day it's all I can do to not pass out on the couch at 7 pm. Some nights we aren't even home at 7 and I still want to sleep. I have to admit I fell asleep at piano lessons the other day. I was sitting on my friend's couch, and there I went. Good grief, I hope I didn't snore. The big girl and her friend were standing right next to me talking. That didn't stop me. The baby had about 15 minutes left and my body decided to take advantage of it.

I used to lesson plan for months at a time. I planned from the beginning of school until Christmas break. Why? Because I was a lunatic. It was also much easier then. I was only schooling 2 kids. The baby was still a toddler and played in her room or colored while she sat at the table with us. The curriculum was easy to plan. 2 pages a day in every subject. Just follow the book. We also didn't have as many activities as we have now. We only had 2 dance classes, park day, and church. We were done schooling by 11, 12 at the latest most days. Oh, how things change. Now when I lesson plan, I plan 2-3 weeks at the most, but not more than that. Things change in this house too quickly for that. Now we're at 7 dance classes, park day, piano, veggie co-op, church, field trips, girls club, book club, Pokemon club, and I know I left something out, but I have no idea what that would be. I fill out our schedule before I even start planning. I had to get a copy of my menu planning paper and fill it out with activities and what subjects we would do on what days so the load would be school light on activity heavy days and school heavy on activity light days. It takes me at least an hour to lesson plan.

One reason for the time consumption is the curriculum we are using. The big girl is using A Beka for everything but bible. I used to despise that curriculum. It was boring and dry and not for us. Amazing what you'll use when it's free. I have to say, though, it is not what it used to be. It is engaging and detailed and the big girl likes it. The hardest part is the detailed part. There is so much information. I do have the lesson plans that came with each subject, but they are made for school. We aren't school. We don't have homework. All of our work is homework. I mostly follow the lesson plan, but there are some things I have to change. You should see the chapter review in geography. It would take the big girl at least 2 hours to complete. In school, that would be class time, then homework. We don't have that kind of time. I broke it up over 3 days, then test day 4. We are 5 day a week schoolers now. We only do math and bible on the 5th day, but anything that didn't get finished has to be done on Friday. If not, that means Saturday school for whoever didn't finish. Yuck!! Nobody wants to do that. They do sometimes, but nobody wants to.

I sit with everyone for almost every subject. Bible we do together. The boy and the baby have history and science together, so that gets knocked out pretty quickly. Then I sit with everyone, one at a time, and we go over math. When math is done, it's time for language arts. The baby is using Rod and Staff for grammar. Oh, how I wish we would have used this so much earlier! I cannot say enough great things about Rod and Staff!! Since the baby hasn't really done alot of grammar, she likes when I sit with her. The boy and the big girl are doing literature based studies this year. I have found that if I don't sit with them and talk about the story or go over the questions, things don't stick in the brain like spaghetti to the wall. And I need to add grammar to the mix for the boy. Ok, fine. Then there's geography and science with the big girl. I know that she's smart enough to do the work on her own, and she does. We do the reading together. I do try to assign just the reading part to her on busy days and then the question parts on not so busy days. Most of the time, that works.

We still have to get chores done. Saturday has become errand day and Sunday has become chore day. The exception is those chores that have to get done every day. Feed and water the chickens, gather eggs, and unload the dishwasher get done every day. Every couple of days, someone needs to get a load of laundry in there. Whoever does their laundry then has to get it folded and put away. Lunch is important. We break every day for chores and lunch, which takes about an hour to an hour and a half. Some days work goes with us when we go to activities. It either gets done in the van or at the activity.

 One reason we gave up science co-op was because I felt like I had to shove a week's worth of info into an hour I didn't really have to shove it into. I had to make sure they were familiar with the info and they were ready for co-op day. It was too much. Now I feel like I have some control. I can spread the information over a week. We can take our time and get it done. I know that the big girl understands hers and the boy understands his. I don't have the pressure. We don't have to make that a priority unless it has to be. If there's something that's more pressing we can focus on that. It's like the weight of the world. Well, at least I feel like one world is lifted off me.           

By the end of the day, I am exhausted. My brain is mushy. Poor hubby thinks I've forgotten who he is. I really haven't. I'm just tired. We were talking about it tonight. School is a priority for us. Gone are the easy days of done by noon and sleep til 3. Not that I ever got to nap that long, but still. The big girl is a 9th grader. It is very important to us that she do well with her school work. I have cut out all I can for her. It's as light as it can be. The boy is now in middle school. His work isn't going to get any easier from here on out, either. The baby is asking for more work and she's about to get it. BUT, it's work that she can do independently. I like that. She's going to start some critical thinking activities and handwriting. All I need to do is grade it. Yea!

I am already planning curriculum for next year. I wish it was something that I could do over the summer. No it isn't. Who am I kidding? I have an addiction to curriculum. I enjoy the lesson planning. It's like a puzzle. It keeps my brain moving. That's why I like loading the dishwasher. How much can I get shoved in there without overloading it? Crazy, I know. But, what did you expect? It's me. I have some guidelines for high school I have to sort of follow, but I still have lots of leeway for the boy and the baby right now. And really, this is just a stage of life we're in right now. It won't be this way forever and I am embracing every second I can. I may gripe about it, but I'm hanging on for dear life.

Have a great day.

Cheater, Cheater, Pumpkin Eater

We have had a couple of days lately that just haven't worked out as planned. School has kind of turned into the same situation as paying off our cars. You would think we'd have more money every month since we paid them off. No, it's more like that's less we have to come up with. We quit science co-op and we no longer have bible study, so you would think we would have more time. Not so much. Crazy how that works, huh? Because we are pressed for time and have some late nights, it means crazy cooking or a lot of crock pot cooking. We all know how much I love my crock pot, but sometimes, I need a break. 

The last couple of weeks, I've made "cheater" meals. I either didn't have everything I needed to make dinner or I no longer use some of the ingredients or for some reason I just didn't have time for the recipe. The first was stuffed peppers. I did use peppers from the garden. They are so lovely. The one thing that has consistently produced are the peppers. You should see our sweet potatoes and yukon potatoes, but they aren't ready to harvest yet. My recipe for peppers calls for instant rice. I'm sorry, I'm Hawaiian. I can't use instant rice by law. It's really my own law, but it's there. I was going to use brown rice, but I still have some sticky rice from when my dad came to visit and it needs to go. I will eat it all if it doesn't. I cooked the rice because if it didn't cook completely while the peppers cooked, they would have been awful. I don't like crunchy rice and I wasn't taking a chance. I also didn't have fresh tomatoes, so, gasp, I used canned. Cool your jets, people. You know it was the good stuff. Since everything was cooked when it got put together, I didn't have to cook it as long. It also didn't seem as time intensive. I put it all together and put it in the fridge. When hubby got home with a couple of the kids, he popped them in the oven to warm up. They were scrumptious.

Mexican chicken is one of my favorite things to eat. Some of the ingredients, however, make me cringe now. I had leftover chicken that needed to be used. This was another thing I could put together and cook later. And once again, since everything was cooked already, it just needed to be heated. I used blue corn chips, They are so good. I layered chips, chicken, Rotel ( I know, don't judge.), more chips, and Provolone cheese. I sprinkled the chicken with some cumin and oregano and a little cayenne. Not too much cayenne since the Rotel more than made up for the spicy. I should have added a little chicken or veggie stock to add a little more moisture, but I didn't think about that until I was eating and it was a little dry. As I was putting it together, the big girl asked if there was enough for everyone to have thirds and fourths. Darn it, no, but next time there will be.

And, last but not least, I picked up a pie pumpkin at veggie co-op. Just one, but it makes a lot of pumpkin. I am going to process that bad boy today. I have visions of pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin cake or pie, and maybe a little pumpkin in my coffee. I'll make my own darn pumpkin spice latte. Take that! I'm really the only one that likes pumpkin flavored things. Except when I make them with fresh pumpkin. Then it gets eaten faster than you can say "Peter, Peter". It's all in the ingredients you use, I have found. My family is not big on sweet potatoes or Brussel sprouts, either, unless I cook them. I think it's because I sprinkle everything with extra love. 

That's all I got for now. I think I have time for a second cup of coffee. I wish that pumpkin was already done. Tomorrow is another day.             

Have a great day.

You Win Some, You Want to Dump Some

It has been a very busy couple of weeks for us. Finally I have a minute to sit down. Of course, Revolution is on, so I'm blogging during commercials. So far there haven't been any, so I'm doing what I can.

My dad and step mom came to visit. It was nice. They haven't been to our home since we moved here. We hadn't been to there house in about 5-6 years. It was a nice visit. One little snafu. My dad and I got into it about homeschooling and me being stubborn. Well, it takes stubborn to know stubborn is what I always say. Anyway, I'll repeat what I said to him. I don't give a damn what anyone thinks about our decision to home school. It wasn't anyone else's decision but mine and hubby's and we made the right one. We went and had ice cream and to the park. There's this little place across from the park that has a lovely dreamsicle ice cream. I could have eaten my weight in that stuff. We went and ate sushi. And the kids got spoiled at the big box store. So did I. And it was nice. It was good to see them and great to spend some time. It was a much needed break for us.

The kids and I have decided that we do not like our science curriculum. We have been using Apologia: Exploring Creation with Physical Science. I can guarantee you that I won't use anymore of their science curriculum if it's written by the same man that wrote this one. At one point today, I could have stabbed my eyes out with my pencil. Good thing I wear glasses and have a barrier between my eyes and the sharp, pointy end. Do we really need a paragraph explaining that when you have a chemical symbol with two letters, the first letter is capitalized and the second letter isn't? Do we have to repeat through 4 chapters that the chemical formula for water is H2O? The first experiment in chapter 4 is the same as the experiment in chapter 1, except using Epsom salt and not baking soda. I'm all for review, but repeating over and over is something else. And he doesn't know when to stop talking. We just need to hang in there a few more months until co-op is over. Lord, give me strength.

I didn't get much sleep last night. About 3:30, my eyes popped open and they didn't want to close until about 5. Not good. About 5 this afternoon, I couldn't take it anymore. I made it to the couch before I kind of just faded away. Hubby came home and took the boy to dance. I finally rolled off the couch about 6:30 to make dinner. I had something else on the menu, but realized yesterday I didn't have everything I needed. So I made it up. We had meatballs, zucchini and carrot ribbons sauteed in butter and garlic, and sweet potato biscuits. EVERYONE ate the biscuits. They were lovely. I'm going to make more and post the recipe. Hubby told me he doesn't like sweet potatoes (he really doesn't), but he will eat them any way I cook them. He feels the same way about Brussel sprouts.

I've been picking books for the kids. They still get to pick their own, but I pick something outside their comfort zone. The boy has read 2 of my picks and really enjoyed them. He's already asked me to pick another. He also found a new author he likes. The baby has liked my picks as well. She has been on an American Girl kick for a couple of months now. I picked some cute books for her. The big girl isn't real happy, but she's reading her book because she's a good girl. I'm not sure what I'm picking next for her, but it will be way out of her box. That's the way I roll.   

And now I'm rolling off to bed. I am wiped out and Revolution is over.

Have a great day. 

Aaaaahhhhhh...

Sometimes I let anxiety get the best of me. Ok, maybe more than sometimes. Case in point: freaking out about our schooling and our schedule and how in the world the two were going to mesh. Well, actually, except for an impromptu trip to buy dance shoes and run errands, it's meshed very well.

We have had a couple of days that just seemed like we couldn't get any work done at all. It was one road block after another. It was driving me crazy. There was no reason we should be working at 3 in the afternoon. Sometimes, it be's like that, to quote Pink. Really, though, that should not be our norm. I'm going to keep an eye on things and see what else needs to be tweaked.

It doesn't help that the kids are each taking two dance classes. We hadn't even started and I was worried we would have to drop classes already. Science is taking a huge chunk of time for us. Bible study got moved to a different day and we had not one night off during the week. Not one. Panic set in. And it brought a bag, like it was going to stay for awhile. Well, crap.

Guess what? Stuff happens and things change. Sometimes that's good, but sometimes not. Sometimes it's a combination of things. Here's what happened.

I cancelled bible study. We showed up, but nobody else did. I was expecting that. I had gotten messages and texts from the kids that normally showed and others that they weren't going to be able to participate. I gave it a try just to see if anyone was going to make it. Nope. 6:30 came around and we turned off the lights and left. As much as I absolutely loved facilitating that study, it was almost like a weight lifted off my shoulders. I didn't know how we were going to be out 5 nights a week and still function the next day. We don't have to. We have a night off.

Dance! The kids started this week. Everyone is loving their classes this year. I love, love, love to hear "I had the best time!" all the way home. If it were just one of them, that would be one thing. It was all of them. After every class. The class times are late enough, too, that if we need to school a little longer on certain days, it is all good. We have the time. We are out quite a bit, but I'm going to see if we can move one of the classes. There is a jazz class right after the baby's tap class that I'm going to see if she can try. If she does well, that cuts another night out for us.

Our impromptu trip was because the baby told me the morning of her tap class that her shoes were too small. Off we go to buy tap shoes. The kids got the majority of their work done while I was in the shower. They also swapped laundry and folded towels and packed dance bags. If they can do that, I think it's going to be ok.

My only concern at this time is science co-op. It's not even co-op, it's the work load that goes with co-op. It takes us quite awhile to get through the lesson at home. The kids need to know the lesson before we get to co-op. Then it gets reviewed there and the labs are done. The next week, we finish the chapter and test. There is so much info in the books. And we have to do it all. Except last week because I was tired. I haven't been sleeping well. I skipped the last 2 or 3 pages. Guess what they talked about in co-op? That went well. Or not. I don't like the way the information is presented in the curriculum we're using. The man that wrote it likes the sound of his own voice. He uses "thus" and "nevertheless" in almost every paragraph, but not always the right way. I think someone has a confidence issue.

Piano is going well for the girls. I think the boy may start. I'm not sure. He hasn't shown any interest in getting back to guitar or playing or practicing. We thought maybe drums, but we're still not sure. That would mean acquiring a drum set for him to practice on. I told him to pick one, but he hasn't made a decision yet. We'll see where he ends up.

I feel better about the extras working with school now that they've all started. We are taking next week off. My dad and step mom are coming to visit! Yea!! They'll only be here for a few days, but we are so excited. It has been about 4 years since we've seen them. Then we go back at it. Tomorrow is Rock the Universe! Group 1 Crew and TobyMac are going to be so happy to see me. I mean, I'll be so happy to see them. Long day, very early morning and sleeping til noon. I'm taking a breath. And out...aaaahhhhhh.

Have a nice day.
          

And, Big Sigh...

I am starting to feel just a tad overwhelmed. I usually stay pretty busy. When we have a day where we can sit around in pajamas, we relish it.We are about to go into overdrive, but I'm not sure I'm gonna survive.

Our curriculum choice this year was based on the fact that I got most of it for free. It's good stuff, don't get me wrong. Free is not a reason to use it if it doesn't work for my kids. What's the point, really? The issue is that it is A LOT of work. There are some days we are still working at 3 in the afternoon. What kind of junk is that? Granted, the days we did that we got started just a little later than normal, but this is not the point. Even on days we do start on time, we are still schooling into the afternoon. Now we throw dance and girls club in the mix. Oh, yeah, and book club for the kids. Good thing that's once a month. And Latin. I'm ordering that this week. What have I gotten myself into?

A big giant ball of stress, that's what I've gotten into, dang it. There is so much we have to do that isn't together. What we do have together is taking some time. I have cut back as far as I can. There are some things that just can't be cut down anymore if we're expected to actually work. I mean, I could always just sit around all day and not do anything. Yeah, that's gonna happen.

Added to that is a strict "no going out to eat" until November. Hubby and I are putting ourselves on a pretty tight budget for the next couple of months. We want to see where the money is going and how it's getting there. That means menu planning and lots of cooking. Good thing the kids need to learn how to cook. There will be a couple of nights a week that the kids and/or hubby are going to make dinner. There is just no way around it. I do have a stack of recipes that they picked out. I added the Better Homes and Gardens Recipe app to my phone. Hopefully I can get some good ideas from that. I also sat and pulled a bunch of recipes from magazines today. I needed to get rid of the magazines, but I wanted the info in it. I pulled some pretty good vegetarian recipes and some I can make vegetarian. I like those. I do have a menu for the rest of this week. Please let it work.  

My dad is coming to visit! Yea!! I'm not sure if my step mom is coming or not, but it'll be good to see her, too. That will be the only exception to our "no going out to eat" rule. Dad wants sushi. Who am I to disappoint? I have some meals planned for next week, but we'll see how it goes. This will be our last hurrah for a little while.

I need to research and gather info on a couple of field trips. I got a request for the chocolate factory again. I am so in to that, let me tell you what. And then the beach? I say, yes, and thank you. When are those supposed to happen? I told the kids I would try to schedule a day every few weeks so we can go to Disney. Doesn't that sound lovely? Why, yes it does. I'm not sure when those days will be. I think they call them Saturdays.  

This, too, shall pass. I feel a little overwhelmed because we haven't started extras. I'll have a better idea of what kind of time we have. I think that's why we haven't found a groove yet. We don't have everything we need to groove. That starts this week. So ready for dance! I'll have a better picture of our schedule when that happens.

Right now, I'm gonna take it day by day and not put so much added stress on everyone. It's that whole trickle down thing. We have one week to get through, vacation after that, then a settling in period. Oh, to settle. Taking a breath, and big sigh.

Have a great day.
 
 

Plugging Away

We have been steady at it for about 3 weeks now. We've made some additions, and some subtractions, and really we're just trying to find a groove. My dad is coming to visit in about 2 weeks, and there will be no school that week. Here's what we've got going so far.

• The baby says she's bored. OK. I can fix that. Really, poor thing doesn't have that much to do. I have a few more workbooks she could do, but I don't want her to just do busy work. At the park the other day, one of the moms had some Rod and Staff language arts. So I got it. Rod and Staff is a curriculum I have wanted to use with my kids for awhile. The only place you can get it is the Rod and Staff website. Which I forget about when it's time to order. Anyway, it's grammar. Ooooo, the most dreaded of the dreaded subjects. I like the thoroughness of the curriculum. It has a lot of extras that come with it that we may or may not need. I always read the teacher's manuals (I'm weird that way) and it said that 120 minutes should be set aside for this. I'm not gonna, but the baby won't be bored anymore. 
• The boy is having motivation issues when it comes to his guitar. I think because he doesn't have anyone to just sit and play guitar with. He hasn't picked it up in over a week. Probably closer to two or three. It breaks my heart. He enjoyed the lessons so much. My dad is supposed to be bringing his ukelele with him. I'm hoping it helps the boy. Then we can get back to it. I'm thinking about putting him in piano with his sisters. Or maybe drums. I just don't know.
• The science we are doing for co-op is very time consuming. We work on it for about an hour, then we go to co-op the next day. But between the exercises and the reading, good grief. We could spend an hour and a half on it and probably still not get everything done. We go over half of the chapter one week and some experiments, then we finish the chapter and test the next week. I'm starting to think we may have to test at home. Then there's the chapter review. I use it as a test prep. If we have time. It is wearing me out. 
• We got all the shoes we need for dance. I finally found a white shirt for the boy. Just a plain white shirt. You could not imagine how hard that has been. The big girl has her leotard and tights. The baby has been set for awhile. She couldn't find her jazz shoes. One day she had them. The next day they were gone. Crazy girl. I found them under my desk. I have no idea and neither does she. The best we can figure is that she was wearing them while she was playing on the computer.
• We desperately need a new computer. This one is old, loud, and we can't always access all the websites we need to access. It gets very frustrating. At least we can use it for history. It's better than nothing. 
• I made stuffed shells for dinner. They were lovely. Everyone agreed they should go in the keeper pile. I'll post the recipe later. I looked through the stack and realized I have a lot of cooking to do. I made veggie stock. I'm going to make turkey stock in a few days. I also need to make cream of broccoli soup and maybe cream of chicken. I need them for two casserole type dishes the kids picked. Then there's the sweet potato crescent rolls. Oh my giddy aunt, they look amazing! I cooked a chicken today and deboned it so I have chicken and stock ready for soup and dinner. And I got a butternut squash at co-op. I am the only one that likes it, and I don't always. I do like butternut squash soup. We are going to have a couple of dreary days and soup is good on dreary days. I might make the rolls with the squash soup. Can you imagine? I think I'm drooling.     

I think that's good for the run down. I need to go put my stock away now that's it's cooled some. I think I may flip through my Better Homes and Gardens. I almost feel my kitchen mojo coming back.

Have a great day.        

The Run Down

On several of my friends' blogs, they are listing what they are using for the upcoming school year. In all my ramblings about planning and extras and co-ops and time, I'm not sure that I've done that. If I have, you get to see it again!

• Bible: God, What's Your Name? This is a Kay Arthur study that lets the kids find out what the different names for God are and what they mean. I love this idea and have wanted to do this as a bible study for a couple of years now. It's the only subject this year that we will do all together. I'm a little sad about that.
• Science: Apologia's Exploring Creation with Physical Science. This is what the big girl and the boy will be using for co-op. There will also be experiments with every module. Yea for experiments! I'm actually excited for that part. Their notebooks are set up and ready to go. God's Design for Life: Animal Life is what the elementary kids will be using. I'm actually looking forward to that as well. It was the science we did 3 years ago and the kids really enjoyed it. We will supplement that with The Complete Book of Animals and a lap book.
• History and Geography: The big girl will be using World Geography with Political and Cultural Profiles by A Beka. I was given this curriculum and I used to despise A Beka. It was dry and uninteresting. I really like this one. It's not dry and it has more information than one can possibly learn in one short school year. It will definitely be a challenge for the big girl to get everything done. Good thing she doesn't have to. The boy and the baby will be using Story of the World, Volume 3. The boy is specially excited. This has been his favorite history curriculum and he is glad to be getting back to it. This may be the last year we use this curriculum. Or I may start all over with the baby since she was 3 when we started. That's weird to think about. 
• Math: The big girl will be using A Beka Algebra. We were disappointed with her algebra curriculum last year and finally went back to pre-algebra for her. Her original pre-algebra just did not prepare her well enough for algebra. I hated to do it, but sometimes you have to. The boy will be using Bob Jones Math 6. It's just a straight forward sixth grade math. It has some colorful pages, but we're moving away from "I must be entertained by my curriculum". No, you need to learn. Might as well start now. The baby will be using LIFE Pacs. They worked well for the boy and I think they'll work well for the baby. I just couldn't find anything else that I thought would work for her. 
• Language Arts: The big girl will be using Themes in Literature by A Beka. She started this at the end of last year. It gave her an idea of how it would work for this year. There will be a lot of reading, that's for sure. I get to read with her so I know what the heck I'm teaching. The boy will be using book studies this year from Total Language Plus (The Whipping Boy) and Progeny Press (Mr. Popper's Penguins and Carry On, Mr. Bowditch). This is the first time we've used TLP, so we'll see how it goes. It seems very thorough. I have used PP before with the big girl and she enjoyed them. It didn't over power the story with lots of activities just to have activities. He may or may not finish all three. That's ok, too. I'm hoping he gets at least 2 of them done. The baby girl will be using Spelling and Poetry 3 by A Beka. At least for now. I would like more spelling, but there are only 5 lessons for each group of words, and most, if not all, look like they can be completed in the first day. It doesn't use all the words. Or if it does, it only uses each one once. I may switch her to Wordly Wise, but I really want to see how this works with our schedule. And, of course, I have tons of grammar and reading comprehension workbooks. We'll see what happens. 
• Latin: We will be using Memoria Press's First Form Latin Series. There are four books in this series and we could use them all. We'll see how the first year goes, but we're pretty excited about it. 

That's the rundown of our curriculum for the year. There's so much in my lesson plan book. I've scheduled the first two weeks and we start next Monday. The baby asked why we start in August since it was part of summer. I told her because we take off May, June, and July. We may start before schools and a lot of our friends start, but we get done sooner, too. Here's to a great school year. I hope yours is amazing!

Have a great day.         

School Blogging

My computer has gone off the deep end. It is beyond it's last leg. The last few days it wouldn't power on. I get lucky every now and then. Right now I'm lucky and it's on, so I am blogging. We are waiting until it gets closer to school starting so hopefully there'll be a sale. And maybe, I'll have a coupon. Things were pretty dicey these past few weeks so here's the run down of the good, bad, and ugly.

• We are doing science co-op this year. There are 5 families involved. I am excited and nervous all at the same time. I need to put notebooks together for the two big kids. The baby is going to be in a group of younger kids. They'll be using a different curriculum from the olders. It's going to be so much fun. I'll be teaching every 8 weeks I think. We already have a tentative schedule put together so that helps tremedously.
• The baby will be involved in Girls Club again this year. She had the best time last year. I try to let each kid participate in an activity that their siblings aren't involved in and this is hers. My friend M put a schedule together that runs until after Christmas break. Thank you! That helps me get everything on the calendar and in the lesson plan book. The baby is ready to get back to it and seeing her friends on a regular basis again. 
• The kids will get to take two dance classes this year. I think, because we have so many activities, and a couple of new ones, that I may skip dance this year.  It's just one more thing. I might just pay by the lesson instead of pay for a month and not be able to make any of the classes. The kids are ready. We had to skip dance this summer so we could go to Texas. The boy is taking tap and hip hop. He's gonna wear my shoes. He has big feet, but me not so much. I really hope he needs black tap shoes because that's what mine are. The big girl wants to take ballet and jazz. Hair in a bun every week. I have flashbacks of putting a bun in a 5 year old's hair. Thank goodness she can do her own bun now. The baby is taking tap and jazz. She loves her some tap dancing! She has shoes for both of her classes, too. Recital is going to be awesome!!
• I am a little nervous about our upcoming school year. There is so much to keep track of. I have schedules for everything printed out and in at least three calendars. I have my master calendar, my phone calendar, and the lesson plan book. I know at this point what day and time two of our activities are going to be. We don't get our dance schedule until the beginning of August. I am hoping for classes that take place on the same day. Same time would be a huge bonus, that's for sure. Then we have to plan guitar and piano. Chores still have to get done. And the chickens are a huge chore every day. Our schedule is full and we haven't even started school yet. School? When do we have time to do that? Taking a breath, taking a breath.
• We started a youth garden. One of the girls in our youth group wanted to start a garden. So we did. It's taken us a while to get our stuff together, but we finally got the square foot forms together and seeds started. Planting day will hopefully be in about two weeks. I need to keep an eye on the seeds and make sure they're germinating. We started 2 kinds of pumpkins, bell peppers, tomatoes, spinach, snow peas, and something else I can't remember right now. We would really like to get enough supplies to build at least four more forms. That would be awesome.  
• And because I am not crazy enough, I am thinking about flag football and cheerleading in the winter. Our church is going to start a league after the NFL season is over. The boy wants to play and the baby is going to cheerlead. I am nuts. And my kids will be soon. It sounds crazy, and we spend a lot of time in the van, but we only do the activities that my kids want to do. If it ever got to the point that it was too much, we would drop something. We have before and we will again. My kids mean more to me than "Look how much stuff we can do!" But when the activities stop, we all look at each other and twiddle our thumbs. We do not do downtime well.
• We are participating in an Arts and Music camp and VBS that our church is running. The big girl and I will volunteer and the boy and the baby get to participate. The boy asked if he could help with VBS. He is part of youth now, but he will age out of VBS after this summer. I remember when the kids participated in at least 4 VBS's. Those were the days. Homeschoolers refer to it as mom's best friend. Kids are gone for a couple hours a day. We make lots of plans, but really only get naps done. Sometimes, that's the most important thing to accomplish. 

We didn't get all of our summer plans accomplished. We didn't even get half of them accomplished, but we had a rough start. The pool is up and running, we still have our Disney passes, and I'm trying to plan some field trips. I'm exhausted. Is it summer yet?    

Revamped, Maybe

You would think that once I'm done with a school year, I could take a break. But, no, I am nothing if not obsessive. Good grief. The ink is barely dry on their evals and I've already changed half a blog about what we're doing next year. Here's to changes!!

• We may participate in a science co-op. I have a meeting next week with a group of friends to talk about a science co-op for our kids. Most of the older ones are 8th and 9th grade. They are using a different curriculum than the one I have but they are basically the same. I perused them both and the only difference is font and layout. I bought the new one anyway. If I have to teach it, I want to be up to speed on the curriculum we are using. Just makes it easier. We would only meet once a week and we would each teach a chapter and then do some experiments. That's really what I wanted a co-op for- to share the experiments with someone. All three would participate, but they would be seperated into two groups. We're not sure what to use for the youngers, but I have a ton of stuff I'm taking to the meeting. Hopefully, we can get things to work day and time wise. And I miss using the "Co-op" tag for my blogs. 
• No summer dance for us. Mermie has been quite sick and Big Sis is a little overwhelmed. I want to be available in case I need to go. And yesterday, hubby found out that one of my front tires is seperating. My dance money just bought two new tires and a front end alignment. We are all disappointed. I was going to get my tap shoes back on and the big girl was (finally) going to take ballet. The boy was going to get reacquainted with ballet, and my tapping baby was going to hip hop her way through the summer. But in the fall, we are still on track for two classes each. We'll see what our schedule is like if we add science co-op.
• We may only participate in one set of programs for summer reading. I need to get online and sign everyone up at the various libraries. One has two programs that two of my kids would be incredibly interested in. One is a creative writing workshop that lasts several weeks. It's at the biggest of the libraries that we go to. The big girl has always been a great writer. Creative writing was her language arts this past year and she did a great job. I would really like for her to get some input from someone else, though. This is right up her alley, I think. I figure she'll attend two or three and we'll go from there. The other thing is Pokemon club for the boy. It's normally a different day of the week, but I guess for the summer they add it to summer reading. It's the same time as creative writing. And that leaves the baby, who is going to spend some time reading with her mama. I am so looking forward to that. We are working on her reading skills and speech. 
• We changed the baby's math. I had bought a curriculum I really like and have always wanted to use. I got it super cheap from friend. As I was looking at the curriculum when I was organizing the kids' school drawers, I realized that the lessons have no directions with them. It is the lesson pages and that's it. It is totally dependent on the teacher. This is not the year I need that. With three different maths, I needed something that was self-paced and would allow the baby to get started until I can get to her. And in third grade, it's just buildng on skills they already know. I still have some of the boy's math from third grade. I bought replacement workbooks for what the boy had already used when I ordered the new science. I feel much better now.   

I know one thing for sure, I will have to be super organized this year. I'm hoping for lots of dance classes on the same day for multiple kids, music lessons in the afternoons, and gas prices keep falling. We start school the second week of August. I'll have our dance schedule by the first week of August and hopefully everything else, as well. But what will probably happen is that I'll change my mind about something. Again. I know me so well...

Have a great day.

Scheduling Conflicts

Well, I did it. Why? Because I am a sucker. Because I want my kids to have access to things that I can't teach them. Because I love them and I want to give them everything they want. I don't just so we're clear. That would make them spoiled. That isn't my job. But what are we talking about? Filling up our schedule. Again. Like I said I wouldn't do. If this were my other blog, I would say a dirty word. I sure wish this was my other blog right now.

We are back to dance this year! So happy about that! Between the money and the potential move, we sure missed dancing. This year is a little different though. The baby is taking tap. She is so good. I'm so proud of her. She absolutely loves it. This year I'm taking hip hop. I just could not do another afternoon, but I'll get to that later. I am really liking it. I knew I would. The big girl is back to hip hop this year. And the boy is taking jazz. At first we were three days in town. Not happy about that. And the boy's class is early evening. If he works hard, she'll move him back to his regular class. The big girl got moved out of her class into a different one. That worked because now we have three classes in one day. Great. Just in time to fill it up with something else.

The girls are taking piano. Hubby likes it when the girls are practicing when he gets home. Love to hear the house full of music. I asked the boy if he wanted to play piano. He said no, he wanted to play guitar. OK. That doesn't hurt my feelings either. He starts this week. He is champing at the bit, ready to go. A friend told me that at one time, the boy's guitar instructor also gave banjo lessons. Really?!? I am so checking that out. That may be something you hear me blog about in the future. Can you imagine? The only problem with the piano and guitar lessons is that they're in the morning. Just trying to adjust a little to that. I think I almost have it figured out. You should see my poor lesson plan book. So glad for pencils and really big erasers.

The big girl has a performance with the praise band coming up. They are playing at our youth director's club house in his subdivion. I invited my BIL and his family, but his wife is singing that night as well. Gonna miss a great time, let me tell you what. Let me know if you want to come and I'll give you details. I am so proud of the kids in the band and what great progress they have made. For some reason, I'm having issues getting the video off my iPod, but when I do, I'll post it for you.

Uh oh. I just realized that the big girl sings, dances, and now plays piano. If she plays her cards right, her brother may teach her how to play guitar. Then there's the banjo. Maybe. That's going to take awhile to process. Where are those dirty words when I need them? Oh yeah, next door at the adult blog.

And speaking of my beautiful, talented oldest offspring, she is now the proud owner of a cell phone. It was supposed to be free, but hubby wanted the warranty, just in case. I concur. She does need a case for it. We were a little pressed for time when we got the phone. We'll get one soon. She is a happy, happy girl. I don't know about her mama yet. Don't ask about her papa. He's dealing with it in his own way.

No co-op this year for us, except of the veggie kind. The baby does have a girls' club that she belongs to. My friend M is facilitating. It's almost like Girl Scouts, but not really. They aren't a member and pay dues or anything like that. They don't camp, either. Thank goodness for that! The baby girl loves it. I like that it's right before her dance class. We knock out four activities in one day. Then we just have three more weird days to get through. Technically, I guess every day is weird in our home.

We are back to being busy. A lady at the park said she didn't know how I got through our schedule with as much as we have packed into it. Some days, I don't either. But I do.

Have a great day.