Our first official day in our unschooling journey...

 I'm not sure if it would be considered and official start to unschooling as unschooling is not set by rules or boxes you can check, but if so, we have officially started unschooling. I am excited and nervous at the same time as I am tossing us into uncharted territory, without a map, checklist or rules.  Yet, I am looking forward to going and doing on a whim, to explore as the inspiration hits, and to do what I believe will truly work best for us. I have checked out multiple books, looked through many web sites and blogs, all on unschooling, and still feel as though I'm jumping ship and joining "those" people...and I'm completely thrilled about it.

I do not have everything figured out just yet, or know quite where this journey will take us or if it will even last the next six months. But at the moment we are all excited and ready to jump in feet first with everything we have.

The kids made me laugh yesterday morning as they wandered around for a time, asking what they should do, as they are used to having set assignments or a list of things to be done for school each day. They did enjoy having more time to relax and wake up in the morning before they began their morning responsibilities. After breakfast and more asking of what they should do and my reply of "What would you like to do?" they each decided on a project and jumped in.

Lady Bug decided to spend time working on corrections to a story that she and her youngest brother have been writing together, then she decided to start a new story of her own. She has always enjoyed writing and I love that given the opportunity to pick what to do, she chose to write. She even ended up so involved in her writing that I had to work to pull her away so she could eat lunch before we had to go pick up her little brother from his enrichment program on time. In the end, I think she spent a few hours working between the two stories.

Wild Thing, my middle son, decided he wanted to work on making his corn-cob pipes. While reading, "Frosty the Snowman" to the kids this Christmas, he decided he wanted to make corn-cob pipes just like Frosty had. So he took it upon himself to research how to make them and watched a few videos and read different articles often enough that he now has the instructions on how to make a corn-cob pipe memorized. He enjoyed picking ears of corn for us to eat and then cleaning them off and setting them in the window to dry. Then yesterday, he finished cleaning them off and cut them into smaller pieces and drilled the necessary holes. Now he only has to find, buy, and add the bamboo sticks to the pipes. In case you're wondering, cutting dried corn-cobs is much harder than you'd think, or at least harder than I thought it would be.

He is making one for his grandfather who does smoke a tobacco pipe, but as he doesn't want anyone to smoke Wild Thing said he is only making these pipes for decoration. He is very concerned about the health of other's, and often tries to find ways to encourage people to make healthy choices.

 He has always enjoyed hands-on activities, and is quite creative when it comes to finding projects to do. As soon as he gets an idea in his head, it's nearly impossible for him to change direction until he has had a chance to try, or build whatever it is that he is wanting to do. This is where letting go of the traditional "schoolish" thoughts are going to give him an open door to learning. 

After lunch, the kids both decided to work on some crafts they had going. Wild Thing worked on painting a wooden model of a pirate ship, or Black Pearl if you ask him, and Lady Bug made some cute picture frames out of popsicle sticks. Of course after all these projects were done, there was corn dust and paint everywhere, but there was also peace in the house and we all enjoyed the day. For that, I am very thankful.

While on the drive to pick up Little Man  the kids and I talked about our day and what they thought. We discussed what they thought unschooling was, what they would like to do or add into our unschooling journey, how they both felt they learned best, and what benefits unschooling may have long term. I was glad to have their ideas and thoughts on what they were interested in doing and how they may go about learning what it is they wish to learn. I also was pleased to hear how they thought unschooling may be a good fit for our family.

Every day and through every conversation, I feel more and more confident that this (unschooling) really is the best thing for us all right now. I watch my kids and see the spark in their eyes, and hear the excitement in their voices when they have the freedom and opportunity to follow what they are interested in, and it gives me the courage and faith that this will work out, somehow.

I have decided that to help me to be able to truly let go of the old thoughts on what homeschooling should be and the worries of what others may think, I am taking this month to focus on us all having fun and exploring what's around us. Lots of field trips, crafts and fun activities, reading just for fun, and making time to just enjoy each day and being in each other's company, that's the plan.

At the end of each day, as I have done since September, I journal about our day and add photos when possible, showing just how much the kids have done, learned, and experienced. After looking back through the journal so far, I see that the most memorable and educational moments are those in which we were away from the text books and "schoolish" things and involved in exploring and trying new things, reading for fun, and being creative.
I'm look forward to reading our journal at a later date and reading about the adventures we've had this year.

Tomorrow is the Homeschool Project Fair...

Picture of a corner of the mining town model the kids and I have worked on for
our upcoming homeschool project fair!

A peek at the display board for our unit study into mining.

 Tomorrow is the big day!
 Tomorrow we are having our 1st Annual Homeschool Project Fair!
 Everything is finally done and I can sit back and relax tonight (yeah right) right after dinner is done and cleaned up, dishes are done and put away, rest of laundry is dry, folded, and put away, kids are bathed and put to bed, and one last minute email is sent to the project fair participants, then, I can sit back and relax!

I am worn out and I'm not sure if my brain will still function after tomorrow but I have really enjoyed putting together this fair. I just hope that tomorrow goes well and that there are no issues! Most of all, I hope the kids enjoy this event and really get something out of it, as well as the public getting a chance to see into the world of homeschooling.

I will make sure to get back here soon and share some photos from the fair!
Wish me luck!

An ADHD Adventure...





ADD and ADHD, each can be seen as a curse, a disability, a blessing, or simply an adventure.
Our family has decided to see it as an adventure. Yes, this adventure often resembles a de-railing  freight train, but still, it's an adventure! And like all families with children, we have our good days and our not-so-good days.

I won't go into the long details, but a few years ago we, I, finally admitted, (hubby knew for a long time, I just took awhile longer to admit that he was right) that we have a child who has been blessed with ADHD. Yes, I say blessed, because I don't believe God curses anyone. I believe that we are given the opportunity to take our life and all the baggage, and make something of it, and to show others just what God sent us here for!

I know that each child with ADD or ADHD has a very different life. Some children are much more affected by their add/adhd than other children, and some are far more limited in their abilities than others due to add/adhd or other.

In our case, we have a wonderful young boy, who at 9 years old is incredibly busy, smart, very compassionate, and has an amazing imagination. On the other hand, he has a difficult time sitting still or focusing on school work. He is often distracted by noise, light, movement, or the thought that he might me missing something. He also has struggled with reading and writing for a long time.
Though this last few months he has improved greatly in his reading ability, and now will read...for fun! Previously, it was like pulling teeth to get him to read, and he could only get a few lines in before he was so frustrated that he'd give up. But slowly, we found ways to help him focus and to not have to work so hard to read. We worked, and worked, and worked together to read more and more, until finally he was comfortable reading on his own. Now, after his hard work, and finding a book that interested him, he is reading a large, for him, book and his confidence has soared.

Another area of struggle for him, is writing. He is able to write but has a very difficult time getting thoughts from his brain onto paper, he also has a hard time with spelling which adds frustration. What we have done to help, is when he is going to write something, I often will write, in his words, what he is to write on a small dry erase board. He then will copy that onto his paper. It really helps him get everything onto the paper. Otherwise, his mind is so busy that what he wanted to say, is long gone before he gets it written on the paper.

Today, he surprised me and reminded me just why I love homeschooling. His handwriting has always been rough, another struggle for him. Yet, today he was beginning a letter to his new pen-pal, and he worked so hard to make his writing neat and uniform. His letter looked wonderful! I was so proud of how hard he worked and how neat his handwriting was! I made sure to let him know how great he did. The best part was watching him smile at his own work, and show me each letter that he felt he wrote well. It was nice to see him have such pride in his work.

When children struggle with things like reading and writing, it's incredibly important to point out that which they do well, and to help them see how their hard work has paid off!

In our home, we have re-named ADHD from

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder to:

 

          A- amazing ability to  

D- do, see, learn, and

 H- handle all things

 D- differently

 

 



Weekly Wrap Up...

Weekly Wrap Up:  link up with: Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers

Praying for this week:
Health! For the last week we have all been miserable with a winter cold. The kiddos are finally on the mend but I, for some reason, am holding on to this cold. Now, I hoping a good housecleaning, once I'm up to it, will help keep hubby from catching this cold, and from any of us catching it again!

Also, praying for those who have so little and are out in this cold weather.

Thankful for this week:
For a warm home and the items we need to care for our family when they are sick. When the kids decided to all get sick at the same time, I was happy that I had everything I needed to properly care for them. With so many struggling, and many not able to get to medicine or proper food, I am truly blessed to have all I need for my family.

In our homeschool this week:
Not much! We spent the week, just being sick. Though, Wild Thing did put in a few Magic School, and Bill Nye science tapes we had. We also, watched a few episodes of a family living "of the grid" in Alaska. Then we decided to have a little sewing lesson. Lady Bug made a hat for her great-grandma. Wild Thing made two cat nip pouches for the cats. And Little Man made two pillows, one for me and one for him. So I guess we still had some learning, just not the typical lessons.

With a sore throat and voice that is trying to leave me, I couldn't even read to the kids. Normally, when someone is sick, that's when we catch up on our reading. Not this time!

In my life this week:
I was sick. I took care of my kiddos, and kept up with dishes, mostly. That's pretty much it! I didn't even read much. I'm going to have to amp up the excitement next week to make up for lost time!

In our house this week:
Laundry is pilling up.
The dishes are only getting washed once a day, if that.
The pets are convinced we have become part cat, spending the day laying on the floor in the sun rays, watching tv all day, and napping off and on.
The toys are making their way to our living room, yet, not back to their home in the boys' room.
The floor is not vacuuming itself!
School work is sitting left undone and neglected.
Ugh, next week is going to be so much fun!

Our nature walk this week:
This is an area we have neglected terribly. I think the last nature walk we had was in late November. For nearly a month before Christmas, we had at least one of kiddos sick. Which meant we weren't able to get out in the cold. We also had a few weeks that were extremely cold. No one played outdoors! Then, Christmas came and we were so busy, we didn't make time to enjoy our nature walks. January hit and we were trying to get back into a "normal" daily routine, and now we're all sick, again.

I think I am missing our nature walks more than kids are. They don't seem to excited to get back to our weekly visits to the nature center. I may have to change things up a bit to get them all excited once again.

Just for me this week:
Not much. I really want to get back into a good workout schedule. But, as I often do, I keep putting it aside and telling myself, "tomorrow." Which of course tomorrow never comes. I'm going to just have to say, "TODAY!" But not until I'm better and can cross the room without coughing!

How was your week?

Homeschool Our Way...

After the first few years of homeschooling and trying to stick to the schedules and routine of different curriculum's, we have moved into a very eclectic style of homeschooling. We've used many different resources and methods from different curriculum's and styles of homeschool. We have tried just about everything. Which as busy as it made our homeschool at times, we have also learned what works and what does not work for our kids. I have also found that I have a hard time sticking to another's set schedule or curriculum plans. Call it the rebel in me, but I'm not the best at following rules or plans of another. So we have gone from a strict curriculum schedule to a Charlotte Mason style, to unschooling, to unit studies, and everything else in-between.

 In this journey of discovery, I have found that we do best with a unit study style of learning. Meaning, that we pick a topic or time in history and focus much of our attention on that topic. Wild Thing especially learns much better this way, since he typically hyper-focuses on one topic at a time anyway. I feel that when we are able to dig deeper into one area of study and not have to divide our attention into many other areas of study, the kids and I all learn a great deal more. Yes, I am learning right along with my kiddos.

In December we decided to start, in January, a unit study based on Colorado history, important people of Colorado's history, and mining in Colorado. I spent quite a bit of time researching the books at our library to see what we could use. I also planned out a few field trips that would go along with our unit study, and some hands-on activities as well. We will read through many of the books, or skim through them, and use any other resources we can come up with.  My mom even joined in and has begun the process of gathering items and planning for us all to build a model of an old mining town.

With such a great library system here, I was pleased at how many books I ended up finding for our unit. One of my favorite books so far is a book of photographs dating from the late 1800's to the early 1900's in Cripple Creek and Victor. It has some amazing old photos and writings explaining mining and life back then. It's great for the kids to be able to see these photos as the towns looked long ago so that when we travel there in a few weeks, they will be able to have a visual comparison of the town then and now. Another favorite so far is a book of important people in Colorado's history. It has just a few pages about each person, so instead of trying to pick one person to focus on this time we are learning little bits about many people.

Along with the books, I have been looking for some documentaries on mining and life during the Pikes Peak Gold Rush. So far I have not found what I'm looking for but I have found a few short videos online about mining during the Pikes Peak Gold Rush. Wild Thing also found a series on Netflix about gold mining in the Bering Sea. Which was interesting to watch, as I had never thought about mining from the sea floor. . This is the part I enjoy, where the kids are able to learn from so many resources; videos, fiction and non-fiction books, trips, internet, and even family members. True learning at it's best.

Along with building a model of an old mining town we will be taking a trip to a mining museum here in town. We will possibly re-visit the Ghost Town museum that is near by as well. Then, at some point we hope to sit down with my grandpa and great uncle who worked in a mine years ago, and listen to their stories and ask some questions. This will count not only for school history, but it will be a great lesson in family history as well.  In a month or two from now, we have plans to travel to Cripple Creek and enjoy a personal tour with a worker from one of the active mines.  A tour, I will add, that may include watching one of their mining explosions. We are all excited to see something, even if it is the side of a mountain, get blown up. Not that I'm all that happy with the mining process, but it is still part of  our life history and future and I think it would be good for the kids to really understand where some of our society's resources come from.

That, not in a nut shell, is a bit about our homeschool at the moment.
I did not intend on writing a book, but if you made it this far, I hope you enjoyed learning a little about our homeschool. I will post pictures soon of our different field trips and hands-on projects.

25 Days of Christmas...ideas to do with your family.

Christmas traditions are one of the little things that make Christmas so special. Having an activity or special trip to look forward to each year adds to the excitement of the Christmas season. 

One of my favorite Christmas traditions we have is to make homemade ornaments each year. We often  make enough to take around to our friends and neighbors as well. This tradition actually started when I was a young girl. Every year my parents would give each of us kids a new ornament. This way when we grew, up we all had a nice collection of ornaments to take to our new home and decorate our own Christmas tree.  It was nice that first Christmas away from home to decorate my tree with ornaments I had grown up with and that held special memories. 

This tradition of a new ornament continues on with my children. Each year we buy a new ornament for the kids. As the kids and I love crafts, we have made our own ornaments each year as well. The first time we decided to make our own ornaments was after a trip the mountains to see the fall colors. We collected a bag full of colorful leaves that had fallen. We then brought them home and placed them in a book to flatten and dry. Just before Christmas we took out the leaves and covered them with clear contact paper and added a ribbon to the top, our first homemade ornaments. We still have them and love putting them on the tree each year. We have continued making homemade ornaments each year since, and plan to do so each year. 

This year we want to add in, among our other little family traditions, a 25 Days of Christmas tradition. 

We made a list of ideas and have chosen what we plan to do, but instead of throwing the list away, I thought I'd share the list with you. 

25 Days of  Christmas ideas:

1) 25 Books of Christmas

Wrap up 25 different Christmas or winter books, unwrap and read one each night starting December 1st, ending with your favorite on Christmas morning. 

The kids decided to do this one this year. We don't have 25 Christmas books yet, but we have enough Christmas and winter books to use. I love the idea of having to go looking for Christmas books to add to our collection. 

2) 25 Bible verses and Christmas poems to read each night. 

3) 25 songs of Christmas

Listen to a new Christmas song each night, learn the lyrics, and sing together as a family. 

4) 25 Christmas prayers

Each night, as a family, say a little prayer for those in need. 

5) 25 Cards of  Christmas

Make 25 homemade cards (or buy nice cards) decorate and write a Christmas note of love, peace, and joy inside. Then hand out to people you meet, one each day until Christmas day. Give to people in the grocery store, walking down the street, or standing on the corner.

6) 25 Goodie Baskets of Christmas

On your own, with friends, or a social group, make 25 baskets of goodies. Place cookies, candy, hot chocolate, mints, little cards or handwritten notes, or whatever you like, into the basket. Decorate and hand deliver to family, friend, neighbors, co-workers, or nursing homes. You can deliver one each day, or make one each day and deliver them on Christmas Day. 

7) 25 Christmas Letters

Write 25 handwritten letters to 25 people. Either hand deliver or send in the mail, one each day until Christmas. 

8) 25 Days of Christmas Joy

 Each day take the time to sit down and write out a joyful Christmas memory or thought. Read the list on Christmas day. Keep the list and re-read each year. 

9) 25 Days of Christmas Crafts

Make a different Christmas craft each day. There are tons of ideas online. Many are simple and can be made with items you already have at home. If you choose, give the craft as a gift to neighbors, friends, or family. 

10) 25 Nights of Homemade Gifts

Spend each night working on homemade gifts for others. You can pick one gift to work on each night, or a different gift each night. 

11) 25 Days of Gifting to those in need

Find a way to donate time, supplies, or food each day, to those in need. This could be as simple as doing something kind each day for someone less fortunate. Visit an elderly person, take a meal to a family who is struggling, donate to your local homeless shelter, volunteer at the soup kitchen, help a neighbor with their housework or grocery shopping, or invite a lonely neighbor or friend over for coffee or lunch. There are so many ways one can help. 

12) 25 Days of Silent Gifts

Each day do something for someone, secretly. Leave a card with a little cash on the desk of a co-worker who you know is struggling, pay a bill or part of a bill for someone ( you can donate to the local utility company and can specify which address you wish to help), leave a bag of groceries and a card (no name) on the doorstep of a neighbor, mail gift cards to those you know could use a little extra help, or leave small gifts wrapped (with note but no name) on another's door step. I know that some of these take a little money, but of you are creative you can come up with plenty of ideas that cost very little or nothing.

13) 25 Days of Christmas Appreciation

Make or buy Christmas cards, write a note of appreciation and a wish for a Merry Christmas and give to local charities, adoption groups, homeless shelters, police stations, fire stations, doctor offices, mail carriers, trash companies, or health care workers. Give the cards to those who care for your community. 

14) 25 Goodies of Christmas

Each night make a Christmas treat. Try to find Christmas treats from all over the world. Enjoy the evening together making goodies and learning the history and origin of the treat each night. 

15) 25 Days to Fill a Stocking

This may be something you do a little each night or you could fill 25 stockings.

Fill one or a few stockings with 25 little items. Depending on who you plan to give it to, fill it accordingly. For a child, fill it with small toys, crayons, candy, gloves, warm hat, and whatever else you can think of. For the homeless, fill with hygiene items, snacks, warm gloves, socks, gift certificates, and a card. For an elderly person, fill with snacks, cards from friends, lotion, little Christmas decorations, and gift certificates.

There is so much one can do to bring a little joy to others for the holidays. All it takes is for one to care for others and give their time to those in need. 

We have chosen a few of these to try, and will hopefully find a couple that can be our 25 Days of Christmas, each year. 

I would love to add to this list and share with others so if you have any ideas please leave a comment with your ideas. 

**Next post: Christmas party ideas for the kiddos. 

Weekly Wrap Up

 

In our home this week:

As this is the week of Halloween, the kids were talking about, thinking about, and dreaming about Halloween costumes and candy!

This year instead of my making them a costume, they each had a store bought costume. Though it was nice to not have to frantically finish a costume the night before the trick-or-treating frenzy, I did somewhat miss making something special and unique for my kiddos. Even though I didn't enjoy spending the money on their costumes, it was nice to just buy them and be done. The costumes didn't cost a great deal but I'm cheep and would have rather spent a bit on material and made a costume that would last a little longer than a few nights. Even with store bought costumes, the kids had a great time trick-or-treating and now have much more candy than should ever be allowed in the house.  

In our homeschool this week:

There actually hasn't been much school going on this week. Lady Bug and Wild Thing did each have their day at the homeschool enrichment program they attend as well as their fencing lesson earlier this week.

Yet, with one little one not feeling well, daddy home from work, and too many errands and projects going on, school was set on the back burner for the week. Believe or not, no one cried one bit about missing school. Imagine that, homeschool kids happy to play hookie from school too!

Next week, we will be back to our normal routine of school and chores.

Projects we worked on this week:

While hubby was home and the weather was still nice we took the time to get some house projects done. The backyard finally was cleaned out and it no longer looks like the field overrun with dry weeds as tall as the fence. The kids are now actually spending time out back and I'm not worried about them getting lost in the jungle of dead weeds. Ok, it wasn't that bad, but it felt like it.

Hubby also finished the sliding glass door we put in earlier this summer. The walls around it are now smooth and painted to match the rest of the room. 

I even sat down and decided on the kids' Christmas gifts from me this year.

Wild Thing has been asking for more camo pants since he has about worn out the last pair I made him. I have just enough material to make another set of pants complete with multiple pockets and maybe a hat or bandanna or camo pants for his stuffed bear. He will also get another pair of properly fitting church pants. Making pants for him is just about the only way to make sure his pants stay on. I can't find pants long and thin enough for him, so luckily I can sew and make him a few each year.

Lady Bug is getting a pink and green polk-a-dot blanket she's asked me to make for her for awhile now, as well as some more doll clothes for her Madame Alexander dolls. She had a dress pattern picked out but decided to wait until spring. Whew, thank goodness. It was a doozie of a dress, so I'm happy to have that off my shoulders until after the holidays.

My Little Man, is getting a stuffed bear and some pants as well.  I found the cutest stuffed bear pattern recently and can't wait to see how it turns out. He's excited about the bear too, so I really hope it isn't too difficult.   

What I am reading:

Not much other than a few blogs and a page or two of a book here and there. My brain has been going so much, I just can't seem to settle down long enough to really focus on what I'm reading. You don't even want to know how long it's taken me to write this post so far. I just can't seem to focus on any one thing for long.

What the kids are reading:

We actually have a few books going at the moment. We are reading, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Apple and the Arrow, and the boys and I just finished, The Sword in the Tree.

Little Man has been reading very well and picks different books to read each day. I love that he is still excited about reading and that he tries to read everything

Wild Thing is reading Halloween Fraidy-Cat at the moment. He still struggles somewhat with his reading so we are trying to find things he enjoys to read about and can get excited about reading. 

Lady Bug has been reading a variety of books, but not as much as normal, so we are going to have to get back to our daily quiet reading time.

Thought for the week:

"What is the difference between an obstacle and an opportunity? Our attitude tword it. Every oppourtunity has a difficulty, and every difficulty has an oppourtunity."

-J.Sidlow Baxter-

*I am working on a computer that is very grumpy and keeps turning off. So just blame any spelling or grammar errors on the computer, not on the half-awake mom who is just about to crash right here at the table.

Weekly Update...a little late

 

                                  

In our home this week:

This last week we have been going, going, going! I miss the days of staying home and having no where to go and nothing important to do, at least to do outside of the home. The kids are enjoying being busy because it is due to their activities that we are so busy.

At the moment the kids are all enjoying Kung Fu twice a week, and the two oldest, Lady Bug and Wild Thing are enjoying taking Fencing classes once a week. Add in Cub Scouts, the kids’ homeschool enrichment program they attend once a week, and our homeschool group and we are running quite a bit. Hopefully we can scale things down here soon. This mama is ready to stay home and just enjoy our days reading and homeschooling.

In our homeschool this week:

This week we wrote and published the first edition of our family newspaper. The kids and I decided a week or two ago that we were going to begin a new project to encourage the kids’ writing. I thought that a family newspaper would be fun and still give the kids some great writing and editing practice.

Each month the kids will spend a few days to one week writing, editing, and publishing their articles for our paper. In our paper so far we have, of course the front page where the kids will write a brief report of what they want to share about our life. Then a sports page where the kids will write about their Kung Fu, Fencing, or other sport like activities. We also have a school page where the kids write about our homeschooling.  Next, we have an animal news page, where the kids write about our pets or include interesting animal facts, and then we have our nature study page, where the kids write about our adventures with our one year nature study.

My youngest has the honor of writing the weather page, where he tells about the recent weather and then predicts what the upcoming weather will be like. For now he mostly dictates to me what he wants to say and I write it for him. But as we move forward he will be writing more and more of his own weather page, as well as helping on the other pages. Last but not least, we have a comic’s page. Lady Bug is our lead cartoonist and has created a very cute cat comic character that will be our main comic for the time being.

We have shared our first edition with a few family members and offered for those interested, to subscribe to our family newspaper.

On the healthy side of life this week:

Sadly, there is little healthy news to report this week. I have still not managed to get my sleepy self out of bed earlier than the boys, which is very early, so that I can get out and walk. So again, this will be my goal for the upcoming week. Wish me luck. Or maybe I should ask you to wish me good sleep, so that I can wake up rested and ready to workout.

I do have to report that I am still, nearly 3 months, free of caffeine! No soda and no coffee! I am also working on finding a tea that I like to replace my morning coffee. So far I’m finding that I’m still not a tea person. I will keep trying, because I do love having my hot drink in the morning.

On my reading list this week:

I have been so busy that I have not had my reading time each day as I would like. As a result, I am now in the middle of a handful of books. Normally, I try to limit myself to bouncing between two books. Yet, I have found myself with books I have started all over the house. Almost as if I have a different book for every room in the house. I need some quiet reading time soon so that I can finish a few books and concentrate on just one or two.

The book that is mention-worthy is another homeschool book I recently found, “The Joyful Home Schooler,” by Mary Hood, Ph.D.

For those just beginning the homeschool journey it’s a great book to look at before you start, if you’re a seasoned homeschooler, it’s still a great book. I agree a great deal with her thoughts on homeschooling and the way she educates her children.

She is also the author of, “The Relaxed Home School.”

 Thoughts for this week:

Go to bed early! Get a good night sleep! Then get up BEFORE the kids, so that you can have a few moments to your self!

I used to do this each day. I would get up before everyone else, read my Bible for a bit, and then go running. Looking back, this was the time when I felt the most relaxed and happy, not to mention how much healthier and thinner I was.

I think it’s time to make “me” time a morning a priority again!

Weekly Update

*Note:
As I am now left to write many of these posts on my Ipad due to my computer being headed to it's final resting place, please ignore all the odd writing, extra words in random places, and horrible grammar. This device is not kind to blog posting, and often has a mind of it's own and "corrects" my writing...without my permission!

Outdoors: 
We have enjoyed yet another trip to our nature center for week 5 of our one year nature study adventure. There are no pictures today, since I have not had time to download them off my camera. But I will make sure to share soon.

This nature study, or nature afternoon, is turning out to be more fun and interesting that I had thought it would be. I originally thought it would just be fun and educational and a great way to get us outdoors, but it's proving to be much more. We all are seeing so many new things we have never noticed before. This nature center is one we have been to many times, yet, I am finding that we didn't really "see" very much of it at all. We would wonder through and look around, but rarely did we stop and really look for or notice the incredible beauty and detail this place has to offer.

Today on our nature study, we ended up with some much cooler temps and some rain, but it still turned out to be a great time. We even discovered and enjoyed walking on a new trail we never noticed before. Along this new trail were a few other trails we plan to explore in the up coming weeks. This makes me think of how many trails we will find and how well we will know this place before the year is up. So much fun!

The kids are enjoying it just as much as I am, in fact I believe that Wild Thing is enjoying it the most. He absolutely loves going and is so excited each time he finds something new or recognizes some change in something he already learned about. Homeschooling at its best.

In Our Homeschool: 
The last two weeks have been a bit challenging. Hubby's work schedule has changed drastically, and he has been putting in a great deal of hours. Everyone is ready to pull each others hair out trying to adjust and figure out this odd new schedule. So, school has been a little different. Seem days are "normal" and others are, not! I was really frustrated at first, but I have reminded myself over and over  that this is the beauty of homeschooling, we simply work our life and school together.

I am again trying to get back to our more relaxed homeschool style, trying to let God guide our days instead of a us being ruled by a schedule or fancy chart someone else wrote for their kids or curriculum. And no, this doesn't translate into being lazy and not wanting to teach my kids. It's just our way of making homeschool and family living an all in one package deal, and trust me there is still plenty of learning going on!


New This Week:
The kids, Lady Bug and Wild Thing, began to take fencing lessons once a week through their homeschool enrichment program they go to each week. I knew they'd have fun, but oh my goodness, Wild Thing is over the top excited about this fencing class. He has decided, for now, that he wants to be a professional fencer (not sure the actual title) when he grows up. He is also convinced that he NEEDS all this fancy fencing equipment, which is not cheep at all!  He has even been looking up prices on Ebay for kids fencing gear.

Changes Needed: 
Our sleep schedule. Our sleeping schedule and meals are so crazy at the moment. With hubby's work hours and all of our activities we are getting up late, going to bed late, and running all over, sometimes all day, and I don't like it! As much as I like routine and schedules, you'd think I'd be able to keep us on a normal routine, but it seems as though all I keep up is the craziness that is our life. But I am still thankful for all this craziness, it means we are still alive and together as a family.

On The Healthy Side Of Life:
It has now been over two months since I gave up caffeine! No soda and no coffee for two months. I am now a recovering caffeine drinker. (smile) I have pushed though the first few weeks of headaches and wondering if giving up my morning coffee was worth it, but I am happy to say that it is very worth it.

I am now looking to try some herbal teas, since they have no caffeine, and taste less tea-like. I've never really liked tea but I really miss having a hot cup of something in the morning. If I don't work to fix this craving before winter gets here, I know I will find myself slowly creeping back into the coffee routine on those cold winter mornings. Which is something I don't care to start up again.

So this is where you come in.
I'd love to know what types of tea you enjoy (no caffeine) and what you add to them if anything. And which teas are the best for your health? Let me know your thoughts.

Thought For This Week:
Stop working so hard for tomorrow that you miss the gifts of today! Take a step back from planning, schedules, work, school, chores, shopping, cooking, and anything else, and just look at all the gifts in your life. I bet we would all find more than we would expect, if we took time to really look around.

God gives us one life down here. Don't waist it!

One Year Nature Study Adventure - Week 4



Week 2 Nature Adventure



Week 4 Nature Adventure



Each week we visit the same place first on our nature walk. We have a few spots that we make sure to photograph each time so that we can come home and compare the photos and see just how much everything has changed. The kids are noticing quite a bit of difference each week. I love that they are enjoying this nature adventure as much as I am. 

 The trees and bushes had an amazing rainbow of colors to show off. How many colors do you see?

We did find that our tree had changed but not a great deal. There are some leaves that are beginning to change color and the grass around the tree has begun to change to a dull brown.

Of course, the kids believe that our weekly trips to the nature center is for our nature study, but other moms will understand that it's only a cover for my true reason to get the kids out somewhere beautiful each week. It's the perfect photo op location for busy kids who are tired of mom snapping pictures all the time. 

With large trees and things to climb on the kids are constantly saying, "Mom, take my picture" "Mom, look at me." So it works perfect! And of course as a photographer, I am in heaven with such beautiful surroundings, and kiddos, to photograph each week. 

The wind was quite strong and had blown all the pond moss across to one side. If we had not been aware of where the pond waters began from previous trips, we could have easily mistaken the moss for swampy grass land and walked right into the pond. In fact Lady Bug's friend she brought along just about walked right into the pond not noticing that she was about to step into water and not on land.

The kids all decided to pose as explorers. Again, mom knows that in the right setting, kids want their picture taken. Especially if it shows them doing something cool or dangerous!

After learning about the monarch butterfly and the milk weed that the monarch caterpillar eats on previous trips, Wild Thing has been very interested in the milk weed plant each time we go on our nature walk.
With the wind blowing so much it was fun to watch the cotton like plant blowing around.

We decided to make our way down to the creek this time. We had not been able to get down to the creek or anywhere near it due to the recent flooding. It was simply too full and fast moving to risk getting close at all. So this time the kids had a great time investigating the river bank. Since the flooding is done and the river is back to normal, we will probably add this spot into our nature walks each week.

One the last bit of our nature walk we were please to see four deer off in the woods. The deer were only about maybe 25-30 feet out. They didn't run off but were very watchful of us and each move we made.
The deer were kind enough to stick around for almost 15 minutes before they decided to leave.

My kiddos! We have the explorer (Wild Thing) the curious one (Little Man) and a pre-teen (My Lady Bug).
Lions, and tigers, and bears, oh my!
 

 

We had a nice nature walk, even though the temperature dropped into the low *50's that day. Just last weekend we were camping in *80 degree weather, this weekend it dropped *30 degrees and there was even snow in Denver! This is Colorado and snow is a normal here, but not at the beginning of October! The first snow is usually saved for the end of October.

Another weekly adventure in our year long nature study is complete. I am hoping to get some kind of binder and start printing out pictures from our nature walks and putting together a nature adenture log of sorts. I think it will be a great way to see the changes side by side but to also have a great photo journal for us all of our year in nature.

Week 2 One Year Nature Study Adventure and Weekly Wrap Up Combo Post!

As we planned, we once again took a trip out to our nature center for week 2 of our one year nature study adventure. This week we went to the nature center with our little homeschool play group. While there the kids discovered these little monarch caterpillars. After seeing the beautiful monarch butterfly last week and learning about them the kids were thrilled to see the caterpillars before changing into a butterfly.

Even with only a week, to the day, between visits the changes happening were already noticeable. The grass was already changing colors and the trees had even begun to drop their leaves.

Our tree was still standing tall and quite beautiful. Here we did not see much change just yet. Though we are curious and excited to see how much it changes throughout the course of this coming year.

This week the kids were able to see a few turtles basking in the sun on a rock out in the pond, and a few hawks flying nearby, and plenty of little bugs. We were also able to observe the evidence of the recent flooding of the creek. Of course this opened some good conversations on the effects of flooding to even the littlest creatures.

Week 2 of our nature study adventure was a success. The kids enjoyed the trip as did I, and we are all anticipating our trip this coming week. I wonder what changes we will see this time.

Praying For:
Continued progress for health issues with one of my kiddos. We have seen improvement in the last few weeks and I am praying that we will continue to see progress!

Thankful For:
My family. I am thankful I have a wonderful husband who works so hard to care for us, and so that I can  stay home with my kiddos. And I'm thankful for my little kiddos. Even when they drive me crazy!

New This Week:
The kids have begun Kung Fu lessons two days a week and are really enjoying them. The classes are free though the homeschool enrichment program Lady Bug and Wild Thing go to each week. The free part is mama's favorite! I have been very happy with how much the kids have learned and able to do so far. I really like that they are learning not just the moves but how to use them in a self-defense situation. Even my little one is learning how to defend himself. Luckily, the instructor has made it very clear none of the moves are to be used on siblings or friends. Trust me, with these boys, that was an important rule he gave!

With our homeschool lessons each day, the enrichment program one day a week, Wild Thing's cub scouts, and our homeschool fun club, we are pretty busy. And people think homeschool families are unsocialized!
 Ha!

In Our Homeschool This Week:


(not my picture)


We also had a nice time with our homeschool fun club. We are meeting twice a week and so far the kids have met some fun new homeschool kids. We are planning some great tours for our fun club in the coming months. At the moment I am in the process of setting up tours at a local news station, the newspaper, humane society, and even a local trash company.

We are trying something new in our homeschool for the next few weeks.
Homeschooling has many challenges. Homeschooling three kids has triple the challenges. Most of which are easily dealt with or figured out, but lately trying to get all of our school done each day has been a bit challenging. So we tried something new this week. The kids all did their math and reading then we spent the rest of the day on history. We read from Story of the World, by Susan Bauer, and did some activities to go along with what we read. I think/hope that spending our day on less subjects but more time with each subject we do, will prove to work well for us all.

What were looking forward to:
One last camping trip before the cooler weather hits. Camping may be the one most enjoyed summer activity in our family. The kids have an absolute blast each time we go camping and are always begging to go back! I'm looking forward to sitting on the lake beach and playing in the water with the kiddos, and of course enjoying the late night camp fires and marshmallows.

We have yet another busy week ahead so I am praying for a smooth and enjoyable week ahead.