Scared Straight

We have had a little bit of a rocky week of home schooling. I was sick last week and we were behind in our schedule. Last week Maddy didn't complete any work, and was starting this week off in the same manner. By Thursday when I came out of my room and saw her playing Just Dance on the wii, I had had it! I calmly announced that I would be enrolling her in our local middle school in the morning. If she wouldn't do her work for me then she could do it for them. They could keep her in a room, at a desk, and let her know when she could break for drinks and restroom. She cried and begged and moaned and I think therr was knashing of teeth...And then the calm settled and she announced to facebook that she was going to school...and then the cute boy in theatre said he went there...and she got up the next morning and straightened her hair...and then we got in the car, and she said, "Are you really taking me to school??" She totally thought I was bluffing.. So we got to school, and I made her pose in front for her first school picture for the scrap book...


And I walked in the office told the receptionist that we were homeschoolers and I needed information on enrolling a student. He sent us to the guidance office, and I spoke to both the 7th and 8th grade guidance counselors. Maddy sat outside the door so the whole time she was sure I was enrolling her, and then she was called in to go over what a day in the life of an average student looked like. The counselor advised me to call the homeschool office to enroll her and then we were off. We went to breakfast to discuss how her life would be changing, and how cherry she had it making her own schedule at home. I finally put her out of her misery and told her she would not be attending this year, HOWEVER, if she did not take some initiative I would flunk her at her evaluation and then place her in middle school next year back in the 7th grade. Maddy was not in trouble so much for her quality of work, but lack of self motivation. I feel that a key part of being priviledged to study at home is to be self motivated in your studies and online courses...so hopefully this has made an impression!!

Day 3

I haven't had my coffee and it feels like it is 6 am due to the rain. I am tempted to crawl back in bed and steal a few more zzz's. I love a dark rainy day. I can hear the rain beat down on the tin roof of my chicken coop. There really isn't much more you can ask for except maybe a cup of coffee to miraculously appear. For years I have been saying I would buy a coffee maker with a timer so I wouldn't have to get up and make it each morning. But alas my coffee maker has yet to die and I'm practical like that!

* The kids are in the living room playing Just Dance 2 on the Wii. I am counting that as PE for the day, so see I am not shirking school.

* We finished the Giver yesterday, and I was pleasantly surprised. I had originally felt that the content was above Maddy's ability to understand. If we had not read it together I still believe it would have been. It is definitely a book that needs discussion and analyzing to fully understand. For myself I really had to analyze my philosophy of education. It was easy to disregard this book as too mature, and go on, however I have always taught Madeleine with whole living books. This one offered the opportunity to explore and broach many new topics. It was an introduction to what would happen if a society did not value life, and we were able to draw quite a few parallels to today's societal issues. So all that said it was a good choice for us.

* It has been a while since I have given a chicken update. We have six chickens in our coop. 2- red stars, 2- barred rocks, 1 australorp , and a white cochin. We are getting 4-5 eggs a day which is phenomenal for winter. The girls have all settled down and rarely make a peep. It's raining right now so I can hear them in the coop making a purring sound every now and then.

* My life is so boring right now. I am having a hard time thinking of anything to post... I have to go make some coffee, and then off to target for some valentines supplies.

Day 2

I have my cup of coffee, the dishwasher is going, and Maddy is finishing up the Giver for book club today. All that said I really should be sitting with Liv teaching Math/Spelling/grammar/science, or any combination of those. Her room does need cleaning so I'm not really wasting time...

* I have book club coming this afternoon to discuss a book I haven't quite finished, to a house not quite clean. Everyone has loved this book. Maddy loves it, however I am not sure that a lot of the ideology can be understood at their age, especially with parallels to our modern societal struggles. We have discussed a lot of new ideas and concepts, but I think another 2-3 years would have made this a really profound book for her. I think Sonlight has this scheduled again for us in high school so I am sure we will re visit this book with new eyes. But like I said she is really enjoying it.

* We are all well in our house now. We spent 10 days recovering from the flu. Usually I do not get really sick, but this time I was in bed for 5 days. It really helps to have a teeenager about. Maddy never caught the bug, so she was able to help keep the house from falling down. Mike also has the immune system of superman. He never, never, never gets sick. I think he may have a new appreciation for my job ;)

* I am so behind in school! A week and a half off the master schedule, which is written in ink, is making me crazzzy! (Look Amy, I used a which clause ;)) I purposefully lesson plan in ink so I would be more likely to stick to the schedule, however that also makes me neurotic about catching up and checking off! I am pretty sure I am going to drive Maddy crazy this week/weekend catching up.

* We are participating in theatre 3 nights a week right now. Maddy loves it, and Liv has found her groove. We are at a local theatre now, and it really has been a positive move. I think Maddy may attend theatre camp this summer. Right now they are practicing for their upcoming Beauty and the Beast performance. Maddy is a Silly Girl, and Liv is a wolf.

* I am planning my spring garden. I have had a horrible time getting spinach to grow this winter. I hope to get to lowes today and buy some new spinach seeds, some soil and some pots to start my seeds. Maddy left my seed tray with all my new packets outside in the rain, so I am not sure if they will even work :( I feel like I am behind already in the spring garden. Gardening here is so tricky. We have been experiencing erratic weather, and I am sure we will have more freezing before spring.

* I am seriously thinking about taking the sink out of my laundry room and adding a second washing machine...

* Some more household projects for the spring are: Ripping up carpet and laying tile/hardwood, painting my bedroom, painting a chalkboard wall in my hallway to the dining room, planting 500 million ferns in the front yard, finishing the fence to Mike's area.

Ok enough procrastinating, I need to go clean my house and make some goodies for this afternoon.

Facebook killed the blog....

I truly believe that facebook is the arch enemy of the blogger. I use to love racing to the computer anxious to see what all my peeps ate for dinner last night, who watched American Idol, and what was on for the days agenda. I would compose blog posts in my head while cooking, cleaning, often while in the shower. If only they had an App for that! You think it and then it's published ;) Then came the big "F" . Suddenly you knew what everyone was doing, when their birthday was, and their location at any given moment. It took seconds to scroll down the news feed and get caught up. You could do it from your phone, no longer chained to the computer. It was wonderful...the ultimate multi tasking tool for the busy mom. Often I had lamented how blogging would drag me away from schooling or waste the precious little time I had available. And ~**WALA~** along came facebook. It became easier and easier to neglect visiting my blog. I caught up with all my friends on one page. I could comment without typing in BOTSWANA. You could multi upload a file of PICTURES!!!!!!!!!! It was kind of like love... Not as personal as a blog, but a hybrid that was fulfilling my need at the time. Summer was crazy, I didn't need to be on the computer going down rabbit trails wasting my mornings, so my blog languished out in cyber space. Since I wasn't at the computer I didn't check my friends blogs. My phone still worked so I would chat but I am sure each time I didn't know an event they blogged about it was disappointing. I mean the best reason to blog is for an audience right?? But alas between cramming six virtual school classes, moving my sister home, and babysitting Jake, I needed a blog break for the summer. Well we can all agree summer is long over and I am ready to return.
The shine is off facebook, and I am ready for it to go away for a while. I truly do not care what everyone ate for dinner, just my peeps! I am going to take one day at a time and in order to get back in the habit post once a day for 30 days. By the end I should be back in the groove!

WOW!

I haven't posted in forever!

Hannah....

Rode Rocking Roller Coaster twice! And Space Mountain!! I can attest to this I was holding her hand on RRC!! She wanted me to offer proof since many know her roller coaster aversion! She has now conquered ALL of Disney's roller coasters.

*Thunder Mountain
*Space Mountain
*Splash Mountain
*Everest
*Rocking Roller Coaster


YAY Hannah!!

Olivia aka Pippi Longstocking

After enjoying the Children's Theatre rendition of Pippi Longstocking we have had a bit of a problem here at home...


Liv has decided that the Pippi life is for her. She has taken to wearing mismatched clothes, stomping around the house, climbing the staircase bannister and announcing that she has no parents.

During school today she said, "I'm Pippi Longstocking!" Stood up on her chair, and refused to do her phonics.

After giggling a bit and reminding her that I would wear out her stockinged butt, she ran off to climb the the ottoman and then jump off. I told her I would be calling her dad. To which she stated..."I HAVE NO FATHER" and ran off...........

oooh...I think Liv and Joe are conniving to see how far they push before their mom's end up in lifestream..

Netflix Instant play selections for the ancients- middle ages

These are all instant play selections

Crusade: A March Through Time
The History Channel- The Dark Ages- MUST SEE
PBS- InSearch of Shakespeare
Lady Jane- MUST SEE
Reign of Fire- just a dragon movie
PBS Egypts Golden Empire
PBS Greeks: Crucible of Civilization (long)
In Search of the Trojan War -GOOD
In the footsteps of Alexander the Great
The Hidden City of Petra
Clash of the Titans- older version

I will be adding to this since we are in the middle ages right now.

Netflix selections for History Early American - Civil War

This was some of the queue I had when we were in this time period. J- the Presidents disc was not on instant play but well wort having it shipped. Start from the bottom and it goes up in ascending order. I marked the ones I remember as being especially worth your time. It has been 2 years since we studied this time period so I cannot remember all the documentaries. I will list the ancients next. The Hunt for John Wilkes Booth Reconstruction: The second civil war GOOD A Prince Among Slaves Looking for Lincoln
Dr. Quinn: Season 2: Vol. 5
Dr. Quinn: Season 2: Vol. 6
Dr. Quinn: Season 2: Vol. 4
Dr. Quinn: Season 2: Vol. 3
Civil War Journal: The Commanders: Disc 1
Dr. Quinn: Season 2: Vol. 2
Kit Kittredge: An American Girl
Dr. Quinn: Season 2: Vol. 1
The French Revolution
Dr. Quinn: Season 3: Vol. 2
Dr. Quinn: Season 3: Vol. 1
Dr. Quinn: Season 1: Disc 2
Dr. Quinn: Season 1: Disc 4
Dr. Quinn: Season 1: Disc 5
An American Tail
Dr. Quinn: Season 1: Disc 1
Civil War Journal: The Commanders: Disc 2
The Last Days of the Civil War: Disc 1
The French Revolution- MUST SEE
Lincoln
Sherman's March MUST SEE
John Adams: Disc 1
Civil War Journal: Disc 1
The Farmer's Wife: Disc 2
Abraham and Mary Lincoln: Disc 2
Africans in America: Disc 2
The 1900 House
Africans in America: Disc 1 MUST SEE
Underground Railroad
Unchained Memories: Slave Narratives
Amazing Grace
Shackleton's Antarctic Adventure: IMAX
Ken Burns' Civil War: Disc 1
Krakatoa GOOD
Mystery of the Megavolcano
The Farmer's Wife: Disc 1
Abraham and Mary Lincoln: Disc 1
The Presidents: Disc 2
American Experience: The Orphan Trains
American Experience: The Way West: Disc 2
The Presidents: Disc 3
The Kentuckian
History Channel: The Alamo: Vol. 2
History Channel: The Alamo: Vol. 1
American Experience: The Way West: Disc 1
American Experience: Influenza 1918 GOOD
The Presidents: Disc 1
American Experience: The Gold Rush
History Channel: War of 1812: Disc 1
History Channel: War of 1812: Disc 2 MUST SEE
Sacagawea
Seven Alone MUST SEE
Ken Burns' The West: Disc 1
Christy: A Change of Seasons
Planet Earth: Complete Collection: Disc 3
Frontier House: Disc 2
Tall Tales & Legends: Darlin' Clementine
Frontier House: Disc 1 MUST SEE
Antarctica: IMAX
Planet Earth: Complete Collection: Disc 2
Planet Earth: Complete Collection: Disc 1
The Discoverers: IMAX
Journey to the Center of the Earth
Lewis and Clark: The Journey: Disc 2
Old Yeller / Savage Sam: Double Feature
Lewis and Clark: The Journey
Mars: The Red Planet Collection
Journey to the Center of the Earth: Disc 1
Me & Isaac Newton
MARS Dead or Alive: Nova
Benjamin Franklin
SolarMax: IMAX
Blue Planet: IMAX
Galileo's Battle for the Heavens
Colonial House: Disc 2
1776
Newton's Dark Secrets: Nova
Thomas Edison
Johnny Tremain
Colonial House: Disc 1 MUST SEE
Liberty! The American Revolution: Disc 2
The Revolution: Disc 1 MUST SEE
Liberty! The American Revolution: Disc 1
Founding Fathers: Vol. 1

Guilty Pleasures

After revealing my Dixie Chicks guilt to the world, I started analyzing it. I don't feel quite as guilty when I listen to Eminem on a rare ocassion. Is it because I expect him to be naughty? I am pretty sure his song White America, which was anti establishment and Bush went WAY beyond any faux pas the girls did. I am mulling it over...and will leave you with a tameish Em song on the playlist.

....JUST KIDDING!! My daughter gets on my blog and there isn't really a tame enough Em song for a 12 year old...or a 36 year old...

So what is your guilty pleasure? Veronica Mars??

7 Quick Takes

* I told you I would torture you with my playlist if no one sent in requests. The squirrel song is dedicated to Tiff.

* I feel sick. I think I am fighting a cold. I took a roll of toilet paper to bed last night...yuck... and now I feel yucky cause I'm cracked up on Sudafed. Oh, and in order to get my suda-crack I had to present a card to the pharmacist, my drivers license and sign a form stating I won't make Meth in my basement. I hope he caught my cold when I touched his pen!

* Why did the Dixie Chicks have to share their political beliefs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I really liked them, yet feel dirty each time I listen.........

* It must be a slow news week if I have to fill up one 7 takes with the Dixie Chicks. Ethan is doing great in Pre School this year. No time outs and he is ready to go every morning...So far pretty good on the sickness front too.

*I have been fairly productive this week. Last weekend I cleaned out three bedrooms upstairs. I was in the mood to toss everything and I did. Liv, I am pretty sure, will end up on TLC's hoarder show. I found ALL kinds of crap in her room. Stuffed in every corner, drawer, nook and cranny was garbage, rolls of toliet paper, wrapping paper, tape, broken pens, keys, makeup brushes, old toliet paper tubes, dried beans, and on and on it went...So after I got over my shock I decided if she had not played with it in the last 2 weeks it was gone. And then I went to Lowes and bought bifold door key locks so she has to play with a few toys at a time. And then I did the same for Ethan. Mind you their rooms have large walk in closets that houses all their toys hence locking up the closets. Mike and I had a good come to Jesus meeting about the yard work. He finally saw it my way that we MUST have a yard service. After having 2 snake encounters in the last couple days in which one ran over my foot. That might be a clue that your backyard needs to be cut, or the fact that it requires a bush hog and we live in a neighborhood.. I made soap on Sunday and plan to make a 3-4 more loaves of peppermint in the next week or so.

* School is good. We are way behind in VS Art. I hope to have Maddy catch up this weekend. Liv started a co-op and loves it. A field trip to the science center was a big hit. We went to see Pippi Longstocking at the children's theatre last week. And the kids are gearing up for their performance in The Wizard of Oz. Liv is a munchkin, and Maddy is a tree and a guide. Maddy also has a duet with a friend in the Christmas cabaret.

* And finally I was powerfully reminded how thankful I should be with just life in general. I met five children yesterday who embodied everything our kids did not have. No mother, limited food, no clothes, they worked with their father after school doing manual labor. Their father works night and day to provide for the kids. He is a friend of Mike's and hopefully we will be able to help this family. Please pray for this dad. He is managing 5 kids under 12 all by himself. I have a hard time managing three with a husband. He has no family nearby or a church family. He let me take the kids yesterday to the our church dinner, and one of the kids said in the car ride home that is was as much fun as she has had in a long time. A change in perspective can be so enlightening....

Playlist Edition

Sonya is not thrilled with my choice in blog music, so for a week I will take requests and put your fave's up on my playlist. Please do not dissapoint. The only rules are...it can't be older than the 70's (I do have to hear it, too), and it must be cool.

So leave me your song picks in the comment section...and then you won't have to hear "we use to be friends..."

OR better yet email me your song picks and then we can play a game guessing who chose which song...

Free Loading Chickens

!

My 4 baby girls are now 20 weeks or so, and I have yet to get any eggs. It took a couple of weeks for the coop bullying to cease. My older girls kept them on the roost most of the day for a week. I was sure they would never voluntarily get down. Now they are playing nicer, but no eggs.... My white cochin is so BIG, and she stays so clean. I would think white would get dusty but she always looks sparkling. I am taking them to "Farm Day" at the preschool so the kids can pet them.

I planted one garden box this weekend, and need to tear out the other eight so I can plant those.. I can't wait for a 10 degree drop in temp...It would make gardening, weeding, or just being outside so much more enjoyable.

First Day of Pre School 2010-2011

Ethan woke up with a cough!!!!!!!!! He has been blessedly well all summer and he woke up with his asthma cough today. It is getting to be fall so maybe his allergies are kicking in. I guess it is time to start up his medication regimen. Ughhh!

He feels fine and was very excited to get to school. YAY! Well I am off to start our homeschool day!

Summer Break is Over

I'm back!

Summer officially ends in 13 hours. Ethan goes back to Shawnie, Liv starts second grade, and Maddy continues with her never ending school year ;)

And I will end my summer long blogging hiatus! Is everyone ready for the 2010-2011 school year?


I will leave you with an end of summer picture....Bring on the FALL!

Long Over Due

I feel like I need to go to confession, "I haven't updated in almost two months!" And I haven't checked blogs in almost as long. I have avoided the blog world in order to get through the last few weeks.

In May we finished up preschool, I travelled to Amelia Island the first weekend with my sister and parents. The next weekend I took the little kids and mom up to Milidgeville to attend Sarah's graduation. Then I came home and was mixed up in the whirlwind of "Alice In Wonderland" the last play of the year. It turned out fabulously!! Then I went to the homeschool conference, and started planning our upcoming school year while still wrapping up the current one. In the midst of this I added Virtual School for Madeleine. There was quite a learning curve with the computer and getting used to the classroom format. Maddy is taking four virtual school classes this summer plus her math and history. So keeping the motivation going is a top priority. The kids all had a fever virus, a sore throat virus and then a stomach virus in the last two months. Ethan is having a rough patch. He is so busy and needs ALOT of supervision ;) He has cut his hair twice in the last month right in the front! He is also getting into all kinds of things around the house. It is a million degrees here so there has been very little outside play other than the pool. Last week I taught crafts at our VBS, Maddy & Liv attended Camp Allegro, and we had my sister-in-law and my nieces come for a visit! A crazy busy week! Oh, and I managed to house sit for a friend, paint my sister's room, and can about 8 quarts of tomatoes... Busy, busy I tell you!

Mike and I are going to get Lyns this week, so she will be home soon with that cute baby. We also had to give away our cat Miley last week. She was not working out having potty problems in inappropriate places. I am planning for a calmer July. The only obligation I have in July is a week of camp nursing towards the end o the month. I hope to get in some summer springs trips and another VBS or two. So there is your update, pics to follow.

Oh and did I mention Lola is coming to live with us?

Matilda Dress

Amy and I finished the dress!!!

Spring Concert