When Your Homeschool Day Gets Hijacked

The last few weeks have been going so much better as we've finally hit our stride and slipped into a rhythm that works well for this season, only to get hijacked...

...by the teething toddler.  Poor thing has been miserable as sharp bits of enamel and dentin make their steady outward push.  She has wanted to be held, rocked, comforted, nursed and fed on a rapidly repeating cycle...  She has desired 100% of my attention.  And that has rocked my precariously positioned rhythm.

Fickle-being that I am, I started to melt down inside.  The boys did too.  It is hard to focus on things like math when there is crying and mom is pacing around, only half-focused on the lesson...  Read-aloud time, my normal go-to during times like this, didn't even work.  Frustration grew - not at her, poor thing, but at the situation.  I found myself starting to grumble and looking for an escape.  Mercifully, the computer was not an option as she won't tolerate my attention being diverted to that bright beast.  In fact, she handles spelling lessons while I juggle her in my lap far better.

Have any of you ever felt like your day was hijacked? I know for me it can sometimes happen when a child repeatedly melts down in frustration, sibling bickering seems unending, we find ourselves in an unexpected financial situation with extra bills to pay or some situation crops up with a friend that deserves my prayer, but not my focused thoughts all day...

When any of these things interfere with what I need to be doing I sometimes flail about feeling defeated, but sometimes I listen to that little Holy Spirit nudge and seek to refresh my perspective.

He usually nudges me to do this:

Pray and release my concerns and circumstances to the Lord.

Pray for perspective.  It is a short, short season.  We have an opportunity to grow in compassion.

Pray for fresh eyes.  Life is beautiful, even in its mess and even in the midst of challenge. Necessity of the mother of invention. Focus in the midst of new challenges helps us find creative solutions!

Pray for renewed focus.  What COULD we get done that day?  How could we better capitalize on naptime? 

On this particular day, I grabbed my camera and searched for beauty.  I searched for tiny remnants of progress.  I looked to see where God was at work in our lives...

I calmed down, held my baby girl and focused on what could be done instead of what we could not accomplish...  And this turned around our entire day!  Everyone, even poor little Greta, felt better.
And I'm reminded yet again how much influence I have on the culture and atmosphere of our home.

 {spider diagrams for a writing assignment can be done while pacing!}

 {Auntie, Opa and a little cousin arriving for lunch help us relax and see the beauty as well!}

 

Linked to Titus 2 Tuesday and Hip Homeschool Moms. 

Teatime Talk and Popcorn Reading

Any other tea drinkers out there? Winter weather, even here in the Arizona desert, has a way of bringing out the teapots.  In this B.O.Y. heavy house, I try every once in a while to help civilize them.  My husband just rolls his eyes.  I look at it as a way to not only prepare them for marriage one day {ever seen Seven Brides for Seven Brothers?}, but also help bring in a little balance as their sister gets older.  Poor Greta, at 16 months, is already wondering around the house with a toy 6-shooter making 'pshhh' sounds.  She is in serious need of some genteel influence...

As we've embarked on our morning Bible study using The Dig, we've added 'tea-time' to the mix.  Our favorite right now is peppermint tea.  My busy young boys need something to keep their hands busy, so that their minds can listen and engage in our study. Tea-time is perfect for short sessions like this.

{They loved wearing their Safari hats in fitting with the theme of our devotional...  And my boys get their sense of humor from their dad - hence the mocking of 'dainty' manners.}

I'm a big fan of pulling out REAL tea cups.  I think it is good for them to have some experiences where they need to execute great care with things. Tea cups certainly fit the bill for that. Of course it always comes with a reminder to be so very careful.  The four year old is repeatedly told that he is excused from his normal chore of clearing the table afterwards. I can just picture him tripping on his way in to the kitchen and my beautiful china shattering everywhere.  Although after Skypping with my sister and her kids this weekend and seeing K2's effect on their tiny teapot, I'm having second thoughts...

As an aside, I never thought I would be a Kindle convert since I just love the feel of real paper in my hands.  But I have to say that I'm loving it more and more.   

For our afternoon reading time, we pop popcorn.  Remember when I posted about Popcorn in the Park and shared our Kettle Corn recipe?  We eat popcorn pretty much ALL the time now.  I blame it on my limited diet last year when I was gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, peanut-free, soy-free, etc... 

Well, this last August, I began playing around with blending my love of popcorn and chocolate.  Hence our obsession with chocolate popcorn.   While we normally go for plain popcorn with some butter and nutritional yeast added, we love our chocolate popcorn so much that the boys wanted me to share our recipe with you!

• 1/4 c coconut oil
• 1/8-1/4 c sugar {I've worked us down to 1/8 c. It is NOT sweet enough for Rich this way, so sometimes we add more!  I've also added a few drops of vanilla stevia we have!}
• 1/8 c cocoa powder
• 1/2 c popping corn
• salt to taste

We heat the oil in our stove-top popcorn maker and add two kernels. Once those pop, pour in the rest of the corn, sugar and cocoa powder. Stir regularly until it is all popped. When finished place in a bowl and add salt for that delicious blend of chocolate, sweet and salty!  

If you are making this for read-aloud time, be sure and reserve some for yourself, otherwise they will devour everything and you will get nothing.  Trust me on this!

So what are we reading right now?  Earlier this month we read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.  It was an amazing experience.  This last week we started reading a book about Johannes Kepler.  This is a bit of a stretch for the two younger boys {popcorn helps here}, but Xander and I are loving reading about this man's great faith in God, his love for science and his willingness to ask questions and challenge the status quo.

What are you reading right now?

 

* some affiliate links included.

Finding Beauty in the Chaos

Some days the messiness of life starts to overwhelm me...  But then sometimes, God gives me eyes to see the beauty, the creation, the memories that are made in the midst of the mess, in the midst of the clutter.

I'm thankful for the ability to recognize the door of opportunity.  I'm thankful for fresh eyes and a heart that sings at the sight God's goodness.  As I focus on the beauty the clutter tends to fall to the periphery.  And bit by bit, the boys are learning how to faithfully and consistently tidy up {as long as I consistently encourage them to do so...}

In the meantime, I'm soaking it up.

{poor guy had a run-in with the sidewalk after trying out his brothers new skateboard.}

 

For any of you ladies wanting to join us for the Luke Bible study and having some online accountability and/or doing The Dig Bible study with your kids on the same first chapters of Luke, I've set up a facebook group.  Looking forward to chatting with some of you and encouraging each other to draw close to Jesus and bring our children in as well!

When a Good Plan Goes South...

Ever had an idea that you were sure would be a big hit only to find it tank?  Homeschooling provides me many of these.  I like to keep our learning literature-rich, engaging, multi-sensory and as effortless as possible.  You know, the kind of learning where they don't even realize they are doing any active learning until later???

While that is my overall goal, sometimes an idea doesn't always come off as planned.  And sometimes you just need to put in some good, hard work whether you want to or not!

Case-in-point: Today.

Since you can't major on everything, I pick something that no matter what life throws at us that day, we try and get THIS done.  Our Phonics/Spelling program is my hill-to-die-on for this year for the bigger two. {Faithful follow-through in obedience is it for the four year old!}  

With the craziness of the holidays behind us, I find myself wanting to ease back into routine.  So this week, the boys started back with that. After a morning spent at the zoo, I decided to add a fun, {messy} twist to our spelling practice time.  Remember when I posted about our 'taking a snow day' a couple of years ago?  In the midst of their 'play' they engaged in some impromptu handwriting practice. As I prepared for our activity, I could hear the cheers of excited little boys!!! Plus, taking the pencil away and turning the handwriting in a more 'gross-motor' direction typically makes it easier for us to squeeze in more words than usual.

And really, what could be more fun than cookie sheets, shaving cream and some good ol' spelling practice?!?!?!

{Keegan's favorite picture.}

 

It was fun for the first couple of words, but the novelty wore off quicker than I anticipated.  Whining and complaining commenced, punctuated with the joyful boasting from the 4.5 year old that he got to play with dinosaurs...

The boys learned an important lesson: even if the 'fun' has dissipated, the work still remains and must be done.  Those that apply themselves get to play.  Those that don't, run out of time.  A lesson in perseverance and working hard.

Mama learned that maybe something like this might seem more rewarding when compared to the usual routine instead of the joys of vacation.  I'm planning a do-over in a few weeks!  Poor timing can derail even some of the best ideas.

Sometimes life's lessons are tough.

Thinking OUTSIDE the School Desk

There is just something about 6 year old little boys, or at least my 6 year old little boys...  They have a high desire to practice their spelling and improve their reading skills, but very little desire to pick up that little pencil.  The desire is especially potent right now because my middle son wants to join his big brother in playing Ticket to Ride.  But his reading skills need to improve a bit more before he can play completely on his own without help...

So penmanship practice took place largely outdoors this summer - even in our intense summer heat.  ICE kept us cool for about 15 minutes before we meandered back indoors, leaving our words to quickly fade away.  Even the 8 year old begged to do his spelling words outside too afterwards!  The four year old lasted a couple of minutes before abandoning ice in favor of his stick horse and some far-off battle.  And of course Greta is pleased to be wherever we are and happily played next to us...

The beauty of homeschooling is that you don't have to be tethered to a desk.  We can go outside, write with ice-cubes, spray messages with squirt bottles and take advantage of any and every location imaginable!

Have you taken your learning adventures into any new venues lately?

Planning for the Unplanned

Delighting in the adventures of the day. Recognizing their value and promise.

Yes, there are days I feel overwhelmed, under prepared and ill-equipped.

But I serve a God who is all-powerful, all-knowing and never gives us more than we can handle.

Learning happens all the time. Education is an atmosphere. Training opportunities are at every twist

and turn of life's journey.

Sometimes, these opportunities don't fit in the neat and tidy box that we like to call 'SCHOOL'. But they are very real and of far greater value than the sit at a desk with a text book.

Sometimes it is chasing butterflies outside. Sometimes it is learning how to get along with siblings. 

Sometimes it is learning responsibility and how to properly do chores. 

All are blessings. All are rich with opportunity and promise.

We just need eyes to see it.

“Today is a gift that is why it is called ‘The Present’!”

Today I record those unconventional learning moments in my lesson plans.  While they were not 'my plan', they happened.  Those lessons had value.

In those moments when I wonder what we are doing, what they have learned, I look back and read through what I've recorded in our 'Spontaneous Explorations' category.

Today it was learning conflict resolution and the 'give and take' necessary in making {sibling} friendships work.

Today was learning the why's and how-to's of washing the barf bucket.

Today, it was a discussion of Hagar and Ishmael and how it relates to the Arab-Israeli conflicts that continues to this day. Gotta love having a reader who now asks questions about news headlines.

And I need to remember these moments.

Because they count too.

Rainy Day Play

As the rain pitter-pattered down, I settled into a chair on the back porch with my hands wrapped around a mug of warm soup. My precious two-month old is napping inside.  Warm fills me while the wind nips at my arms, chilling them.  I slowly breath in the lovely smells that accompany a desert rain.

Meanwhile, boys race around the yard on {stick}horseback.  First they round up cattle and drive them to the train station.  Then they are off to the races - steeple chasing and coaxing other great stunts from their {stick}horses.  This is the last week of our horses unit and they are entranced with all that they have discovered.

It is a rainy day, a lazy day and yet always, always a learning day...

To live is to learn and they are busy at this work of learning - incorporating it into every aspect of their play, tapping into that creativity that God placed inside each one of them and honing their relational skills as they navigate working together.

Rainy days have a relaxing, calming effect on all of us.  Inside, the 5 year old pulls out our Global Twister map, the continent boxes and an assortment of other toys for some impromptu geography review.

Penguins take up residence in the antarctic regions, always on alert for predators like the leopard seal and the killer whale.

A discussion arose about the Liberty Bell which relocated from its original placement in western Canada to its rightful position in New England.

And Xander spent time studying his sister.

Apparently rain doesn't have a calming effect on everyone because these moments were soon followed up with some conflict resolution training as the three year old came in and laid claim to half the toys...

Life is all a learning experience, isn't it?!?

Goals are Meant to be Held Lightly...

(a just because pic.  My birthday boy.)

Well, at least when it comes to goals we set for our children...

Why?  Their development and life's circumstances are simply unpredictable.  I'm always so tempted to have very lofty goals for both myself and my children.  It is one thing to set them for myself.  It is always amazing what I can push myself to do if a goal is set before me.

When it comes to our children though, this can have very unpleasant if not disastrous effects.  I've seen it taken to extremes and sadly experienced bits of it myself.  There is so much going on in their little brains and especially when it comes to things that are developmental and academic need to proceed with caution.

Requiring something of our children that their brains simply aren't wired for yet is unfair to do.  As such, when I'm setting goals, I've learned to be careful to take into account normal ranges of development and then be ready to hold my goals lightly and take each children on an individual basis.

So when a good friend asked me a couple of weeks ago how I did on meeting my goals for last semester after I shared my goal sheet with you all, my face brightened when I told her about goals we had met and how exciting it was to see growth.  While several goals weren't met, I felt very comfortable with our semester.

There are a variety of reasons why we don't always meet our goals.  Sometimes the timing just isn't right.  One of my spiritual goals for Xander was to discuss the importance of communion with him.  He joins us for singing and the message on the last Sunday of the month.  I feel that it is important that he see how the body as a whole worships each Sunday instead of simply going to a Sunday School class all the time.  I assumed that he would start asking questions or showing an interest in communion since we take part each Sunday.  But he didn't.  Since he didn't show an interest and due to his young age, I chose to drop this goal.  Communion is something that is a bit abstract and I don't see any benefit to rushing this too early.  I want to wait until there is interest that will drive his desire to understand and seek to participate in this special time.

With other goals, we saw definite growth, but by no means 'arrival'.  Character goals tend to line up here.  While our overall goal this past semester was to grow in obedience, I'll be the first to tell you that they have NOT mastered that one by any means.  Was there growth?  Yes.  Probably most importantly, it helped me stay focused on that aspect of their training and patiently having that expectation with them.  Obedience is a central character goal that will be staying on my two younger boys goals for character development this fall.

Life situations also lead to the tweaking of goals.  We ran into problems with one of our children lying a lot.  So of course, this took center stage as something that we intentionally worked with him on.

With academic goals, I also try and make them open-ended during these younger years.  Instead of saying that I wanted my oldest to progress to reading __ kind of chapter book by the end of the semester or progress to ___ point in our spelling/phonics program, my academic goal for him was to focus on reading.  I knew that he was at the age where the wiring is usually falling into place for this to easily happen and I kept it open-ended.  It was our special focus.  So if there were exceptionally busy days or days when some of the family was sick, and we could only cover math or phonics for the day, we chose phonics.

Now chores...  :happy sigh:  Having specific goals this last semester was so incredibly helpful.  While they don't do it perfectly, I'm pleased as punch that my kids now know how to separate laundry and fold/put away/hang up all of their clean clothes.  With a fourth little person due to add her laundry to the pile, I'm ever so thankful that I have efficient little helpers!

So what are our goals for this semester?  Well here are a few of them...

Spiritual: fairly consistent across the board.  When I prayed about this one, "Daily Bread" is what kept coming to mind.  We are working at incorporating short Bible readings into our daily meals.  So far, we've been most consistent with this at lunch.  (I'm sure pregnancy hormones are coming into play here since I have a serious NEED to be in the Word halfway through the day.)  Our simultaneous goal for the semester is to have a 30 minute window set aside for time in the Word and prayer.  The two older boys are very excited about having their personal time with God and we'll just have to see how the 3.5 year old takes to it.  I guess if nothing else, he'll get 30 minutes of quiet room time. :)  And since waking up before the rest of the house to spend time with the Lord won't be feasible this semester as we go into newborn/mommy survival mode, I'm hoping this will give me some focused time as well.  (Then again, I'm holding everything lightly since I have no idea about my little girls needs or personality, how I'll react to moving to four children or how much 'training' my 3.5 year old will need with learning how to play or read his little Bible 'quietly' w/out setting out to distract his brothers.)

Chores: Teach Xander how to make oatmeal so that he can help with breakfast prep several days a week.  Keegan will focus on emptying the dishwasher daily and Trey will help with silverware.  I also need to help Trey to become more helpful and consistent during clean-up times.  (hahaha, he's not the baby anymore and his days of getting away with things are over.)

Academic/Physical: After re-reading so much on brain development over the last 6 months and the importance of movement I want to incorporate a lot of skipping, hopping, galloping and other gross motor activities into our lives.  With a new baby, I'm sure there will be plenty of energy that will need outlets.  And all of that tumbling, climbing and playing does so much to wire their brains to learn.  My goal for the two younger boys is to encourage this as well as LOTS of read-aloud time.  Fostering those important brain connections that wire the brain to learn and building vocabulary are the two biggest things one can do in the early years to prepare little one's to learn.  I have a whole list of ideas on ways to do this in my Reading-Readiness Activities handout that is also linked up top in my Cultivated Learning page. 

Keegan has pretty much met most of my expectations of what I want him to cover in kindergarten in a huge spurt of growth this summer, so I'm planning on just following his lead on phonics/math for the rest of the year.  He's pretty driven and wants to keep up with Xander, so I'm very comfortable going with whatever pace he decides to set.  For Xander, my goal is routine with him.  With being 7 now, aside from the time we take off after the baby, I'm working on getting him into a steady routine with his core subjects (reading/spelling/math) and a more formal routine for the day.

Well that's just a peak.  I know that this semester even more than any other's that I'll need to hold everything lightly and continue to pray and seek the Lord as we proceed. 

I'll sign off for now since I promised my husband that I'd be good and go lay down again...  It has been a day full of contractions and laying down usually calms those down.  A trip downtown to the Children's Museum with 116 degree weather proved to be a bit much, I guess...  With the due date just a month from now, we are all getting excited to meet this little girl!

Setting Goals

As I've said before, I love setting goals and casting vision.  It really helps to keep me focused!  I'm also a big 'to-do' list person.  Can anyone else relate?  There is something just so satisfying about checking things off...

Continuing in the tradition of my mother, I've been in the habit of making 'semester' evaluations since I was in college.  It is nice to take some time to sit back, pray and take stock of where I am at and what direction I feel the Lord is leading me towards in many different areas of my life.  Now that I have children, I've taken to setting semester goals for them as well.

Because we seek to live integrated and holistic lives, my goals for my children encompass far more than just academics.  We write down our priorities and goals for each of our children in the following areas:

• Spiritual - I pray about how to reach each child and help them draw closer to Jesus.  In this section, I outline areas that I would like to see them grow or things I would like to relay to them.   For instance last semester I hoped to talk to my oldest about communion, have opportunity for a clear gospel presentation with my middle and help my youngest start talking to God (prayer).
• Character - It is tempting to me to work on character development in a variety of areas, but that can easily get overwhelming and the impact is lessened if we are not focused.  So I try to pick one character trait per child to focus on specifically while allowing for life circumstances to certainly give clues to needed adjustments.  This last semester, obedience was a huge theme in our family and coincided nicely with our curriculum which is based around character traits and focused on this trait.
• Academic - While there are many things that we learn and explore at any given time, I've found it helpful - especially with core academic subjects, to have a special focus.  I try to always be mindful to make sure that goals and expectations are attainable and age-appropriate.  It is easy to get ambitious in these areas and set goals that our kids brains simply aren't wired to do yet.  Doing flashcards with your 3 or 4 year old in an attempt to get them reading early and reducing them to tears is one example that comes to mind... 
• Chores - With the arrival of our chore chart, this has become so much easier to keep up on.  I try and pick a new chore skill that I want my children to learn how to do per semester.
• Physical - Especially since I know how much movement and exercise play into other aspects of their lives - like neurological development and future academic success, not to mention burning off an abundance of energy allowing everyone to stay sane, I like to set goals for this area as well.

Of course, I don't leave myself out of the equation.  At the bottom of this sheet, I have a section for myself with areas to write goals for my roles as a child of God (spiritual), as a wife, as a mom, for my home and physical.

As I look back at last semester's goals I'm quite please, overall, with progress made and aware that some of our goals I failed to work on or are ones that are simply still in process.  But it sure is nice to have a general game plan.

I plan on unplugging for the next week or two and spending focused time in prayer as we seek His will on what our family needs to be focusing on.  In the meantime, I thought I would share my goal sheets with you all in case you might find them helpful.  I've included a one page goal sheet for 2,3 or 4 kids + mom as well as a sheet with more room to write if you want a separate sheet per child.  I prefer to keep one sheet with all of us on it and place it at the beginning of my lesson plan notebook so I can reference it often!

I'd love to hear how you set goals and any approaches you have found helpful as well.

I'll be back in a week or two...

SEMESTER GOAL SHEET download!

The Myth of the Mom Who Has It All Together...

This week I read an absolutely FABULOUS post over at Preschoolers and Peace titled, "I Can't Do This Homeschool Life" where she answers a reader's question about what to do when everything seems to be crashing in and there is no one to talk to, especially those homeschool mom's who 'have it all together.'

That last part is what stood out to me.  I'm not quite sure why we do this as women, but we tend to often look at others and believe the myth that everyone else 'has it all together.'  This is true in the general motherhood department as well as when you are homeschooling.  Sure every woman has giftings in certain areas, but no one has it all together, all the time.  It just isn't humanly possible and I think most of us would readily admit the truth of that in our lives.

As a woman, my emotions are constantly fluctuating.  As a mom, life circumstances can drastically turn in the blink of an eye.  The combination of those two...  Watch out.

Have any of you found yourselves gazing lovingly at your children and just pinching yourself that God has blessed you with these precious little souls only to have the moment come crashing down when there is a sudden meltdown or sibling argument?  Or maybe it seems like the chaos will never end when you are in one of 'those' little seasons???

  

{one of those, "mooooooooooooooooomy" whining moments that cropped up during an otherwise normal photo op on Mother's Day.}

What I've found, though, is that sometimes we have stronger moments than others and we can lean on one another and support one another when one of us is having a rough day.  It is so nice to have a few friends to lean on in our weakest moments.  My prayer is that I can be one of those women to my friends and in turn be humble enough to reach out when I need support...

When a sister is struggling let's try and keep a few things in mind:

1) Listen.  When we are struggling, oftentimes it just helps to be heard.  A year and a half ago I was walking through a difficult time with my youngest.  At not quite 2, he was just one of those {adorable} dangerous kids that gets into everything and leaves a path of destruction in his wake. {Think dark lipstick art all over my carpet...}  At my wits end one day, I called a friend and brightly told her that "I loved homeschooling." Then my voice took an ominous turn when I blurted out, "But seriously, could I just put Trey in daycare."   Now of course, deep down I wasn't really serious.  But it sure helped to voice my frustration and get that off my chest.  I actually felt a lot better and we were able to laugh {somewhat} at his latest escapade before I pulled myself together to face the rest of the day. I needed someone safe who could listen and wouldn't judge me or go blab about my weak moments to others.

2) Empathize.  It helps to be honest with one another and let others know that we struggle too.  We need to be real with one another...  It is amazing how many people I shock when I tell them that my mom felt like throwing in the towel so many times during our homeschool years.  It was so bad once that we were ordered to put our shoes on while she collected her purse and proceeded for the door to take us to the local public school...  They are shocked because she and my father were state homeschool leaders and she regularly counseled families as they started and continued on their homeschool journeys.  Surely someone like her 'had it all together' and never had doubts or bad days...  The truth is we all do.  It always helps to know we aren't alone.  

3) Pray for them, right then and there.  We all need God's fresh mercies that He pours out every day.  A friend that cares enough to stop right there and pray for you is such a precious find.  I've had a few friends that have done that for me over the years.   This has been one of the most helpful things anyone could ever do to help.  It draws my attention back to God and I am usually much calmer and able to hear His direction on how to proceed.  It cuts right through the emotions in the ordeal and helps me sort out my heart and the situation.

Parenting in general and homeschooling especially, is REALLY hard work.  When it gets rough at my home, I'm constantly telling myself that I can do it.  God wouldn't call me to something if He wasn't going to make a way to not only survive, but thrive.  I cry out for mercy, guidance and a huge dose of patience.  I then take a deep breath and move forward, one faithful step at a time in the direction that I feel God is leading me. 

We need to be able to extend grace to ourselves and to one another.  We cannot expect perfection, but we can turn our eyes to the one who is perfect.  He is always faithful to carry us through.

And seriously, if you've had a rough day in the mommy or homeschooling arena anytime recently, I can't recommend her post enough.  It is a beautiful reminder to turn to Jesus and the truth found in the Gospel or who he is and who we are in Him.

What would you add to this list?  What do you find helpful when your emotions have taken over or circumstances are really overwhelming?

Time Flies...

I cannot believe it has been over 10 years now since I finished highschool. I was reminded about it this Thanksgiving as a year ago, we were at Rich's 10 year high school reunion.

What did mine look like? Oh wait, there was none. If I had, it would have looked something like this! ;)