A new year!

Hello Internet world!
We have been MIA on this blog, but I wanted to stop in and say we are still doing school! We took the month of December off (as is becoming a tradition) and did lots of fun Christmas activities and adventures. We went to the Nutcracker (all five of us) and then out to coffee and treats, we did lots of crafts and made many gifts, visited family and the kids even spent four days at Grandma's house in Oregon, without Mom and Dad!
So it is January again and we are back in the swing of school. We are studying Courage and have covered Old and New Testament "heros" (while reminding them always that Jesus is the true hero), and this week and next we will cover true and fictional heros such as Joan of Arc, Martin Luther, William Tell, and Sarah Noble. Then we will launch into a 5-6 week study of the Revolutionary War! I chose this unit because we spent a little time in the fall talking about our Founding Fathers, I wanted to have more time to study a similar time period.
This season also has seen a shift in our weekly schedule. If you know me well, you know I like routine and have a hard time breaking from it, so this was a challenge for me, but one I know is totally worthwhile. My bible study/women's group grew so large we replicated, which turned into a long and complicated process. My half began meeting on Thursdays instead of our usual Wednesday. It's going well so far. I've also been doing grocery shopping usually on Sunday nights by myself instead of Monday morning with the kids. WHY didn't I start doing this earlier? An evening by myself? It's amazing! Plus I don't have to push school out of a weekday morning when we are shopping. Additionally, after my semi-breakdown of Fall 2012, I started looking for some help. No, not therapy, but a mother's helper to come do some of my chores. We finally found someone who is a great fit for our family. She's 13, homeschooled, and a-ma-zing! She's been helping us about once a week for 2-3 hours and mops, folds laundry, or plays with the kids while I do a task.
So far our new quarter is going well. Pictures to come soon!

Presidents!

 We have been learning about presidents and voting this week and last. It's been fun! At playgroup last week we had an election on an issue: what to eat for lunch! First the kids registered to vote, "campaigned" for their viewpoint, and then got to vote in the booth! The options were mac 'n' cheese or grilled cheese. Mac 'n' cheese won!

 We also learned about the branches of government, and later added a card that says "president" under the Executive card. Obviously much of this is over their heads, but it's on display in the school room so hopefully over time it'll set in.

We have been learning about individual presidents and Caley has been working on a book about Abraham Lincoln. We've also learned how certain presidents are on our money. This week she really surprised me by doing most of her work independently on Wednesday while I was doing women's group. She did her math, some crossword pages, her editing page, independent reading, and her spelling work.

They're all doing great!

(Check out the posts below for more pictures I just uploaded.)

What we're learning!

 We are having fun learning about our Founding Fathers! So far we've covered George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin and James Madison. We have learned about the Revolutionary War, the Declaration of Independence, and more! Check out these pictures...


 With our friends Odessa and Dexter we made three-cornered hats and colonial wigs and then "signed" the Declaration of Independence after watching a scene from "John Adams."

 They made an elaborate Lincoln Log house and while Caley was playing her eyes lit up and she proclaimed, "I know why they are called Lincoln Logs! Because Abraham Lincoln lived in a log cabin!"

 They also architected a fort from the cushions and still make forts from the blankets almost every day.

Two weeks in!

It's been two weeks in the new school year and so far things are going well. It obviously hasn't been perfect, I've lost my shizz at least twice, we haven't done everything I planned on the day I planned it for, but we have been learning, having fun, reading lots of books, and doing life.

A few things I've learned:
1. Having a schedule really helps. I put together a schedule for myself and the girls. The girl's each includes the subjects they're doing each day (the same each day except art and music on Fridays), and mine includes my commitments and chores for each day. We have a big house and it's a challenge to keep up with the housework. So on my daily schedule I assigned myself one or two chores, taking into account I probably don't want to wash the floor the day before women's group (read: messy kids everywhere). So: Sunday- review school plan and prepare and plan meal/grocery list, Monday- grocery day, Tuesday- laundry wash and fold and clean bathrooms (alternating upstairs and downstairs for now), Wednesday- wash hardwoods, Thursday- vacuum all carpets, Friday- monthly chore like clean out car, fridge, or dusting.
2. This is my "job." When I think of homeschooling my children and running my household as a "job" it's easier to take seriously and keep my time sacred. This involves, mainly, saying no to things. Sorry, I can't do this-or-that, we have school. Obviously there are exceptions, and we're only 2 weeks in so we'll see how this realistically works out, but I am practicing being more "selfish" with our time.
3. Number 1 and 2 are easier when I have planned "Mommy time" i.e. women's group. My weekly gathering with other Christian women is essential to my sanity. It reminds me of who I am first and foremost: a lover of Jesus Christ. I adore opening up my home each week to upwards of 12 ladies and their children to study the Bible and build community. It's also essential that I have face-to-face interactions with others, as much as I adore my children.
4. Getting up earlier than the kids also helps. I am still working on this habit. The days that I do drag myself out of bed at 5am, workout, and have prayer time are usually smoother and easier to deal with. But I do love sleeping in. Hoping to refine this habit throughout this year so that's it's just second-nature.

Summer is drawing to a close...

I can see the start of school year 2012-13 on my calendar and am so excited to start on Tuesday! I have a lot of fun things planned for this fall. We are going to learn about the Founding Fathers, government, the electoral process and presidents! I am also going to attempt to be better about studying music and art with the girls, and keeping Wesley occupied during school instead of continually throwing food at him and pulling my hair out in frustration.

We've had a great summer. Busy, but not so busy I couldn't keep up. We balanced our busy weeks with some chill weeks. We didn't really go anywhere, but still took many day trips, although the kids did go to Astoria for two full weeks.

I have realized though that Caley may do better with a schedule like we have in school. She is 7.5 and over the summer started to do some of her old behaviors like refusing to put on shoes or complain that her clothes don't feel right. Issues I thought we had overcome. So I'm excited to see how she does over the next few weeks as we ease into a new structure to our days.

I also am going to make a better effort at being "selfish" with my/our time. If I say yes to anything and everything, school just isn't going to go very well. Examining my motives will be a discipline I get to work on.

Mommy's goals for this school year, posted here for my personal benefit (not to boast but to keep myself accountable):
-Wake up earlier than the kids (5am) to spend time with Jesus, workout, and get a head start on the day
-Keep "school time" sacred and not obligate our time to other things without good reason
-Make yummy, nutritious meals throughout the year, with healthy snacks throughout each day to keep the kid's minds sharp
(I'll add more to this list as the year goes on.)