Sunshine

The temperature hit the low 50s here today. Ahhhhh, Spring. I took the kids to the park. We had a dance party in the living room. It is amazing what a little sunshine and activity can do for one's perspective.

This afternoon was much better than yesterday, or even this morning, for that matter! Hopefully tomorrow will be even better!

Re-entry day

The weekend past was spent playing lots of fun games, including the newly discovered Mine Craft. Much, MUCH fun was had. But that means this morning was bumpy, at best. The kids were whiny. "I can't do it!" was uttered more than once. Both kids spent some time adjusting their attitudes away from me. I tried to lighten the mood by playing music and dancing in the kitchen! That backfired and made Kiddo grumpier because he was torn between finishing his chores and getting started on his school work and dancing. It didn't matter that I gave him permission to dance instead! When he did finally start dancing, he wanted me to do something I had been doing with Kutey, but he was too tall, back to grumpy. Then he wanted Kutey to stop dancing. When I said he couldn't do that, back to grumpy. I was about done. We managed to muddle through our schoolwork, somehow. It took longer than it should have, but we did it. Now I have Kiddo logged into CurrClick's LEGO Club and Kutey is looking at the St. Patrick's Day books from the library. We have made it through "Re-entry day."

What is "Re-entry day?" When I was first homeschooling (three and a half years ago!), I referred to Mondays as "Re-entry day." They were often rough. There were sometimes tears (mine and kiddos). Sometimes very little was accomplished. I blamed it on the weekend of unstructured fun. Not that our school days have a tremendous amount of structure. In fact, there is often very little. There is more now than ever before, because I have two officially school-age kids, but still it isn't what most people would call structured. But still, the weekend is different. The kid refer to it as "Daddy's stay home days." That should give you some idea of the tone of weekends. The kids use it as a time to absorb as much Daddy time as humanly possible. It is great, but it tends to make school and Mommy boring in contrast. Re-entry into the regular week is messy and bumpy. Tomorrow will be better, Wednesday even better. Re-entry day, though, makes me look for chocolate. Lots of chocolate.

How do you handle Mondays?

Lucky

Kiddo is ill today. He doesn't get sick often, which is great, but he has a sore throat and a honking cough that woke him in the middle of the night (2:33 am to be precise). He slept until nearly 11 am! He has mostly lounged about since then. We played LEGO Hogwarts (my favorite of the LEGO board games we own), but he hasn't done much else.

Kutey, on the other hand, was up at 8:30, snuggled with me, ate her breakfast, and dove right in to her school work. By the time Kiddo got up, she was done with what I wanted her to complete today.

She is also being a very good sister. Kiddo has but to ask and she is on it. Want crackers? She'll get them. Water? Sure! A blanket from your bed? Absolutely. My kids help each other out a lot. They are close. But seeing Kutey so willing to help her brother out, not because I am making her, but because she wants to, makes me feel so lucky. Lucky that my kids actually enjoy each other much of the time. Lucky that they get to spend so much time together. And lucky that it hasn't backfired on me and made them despise each other!

Funny Hiking Humor

Cristina over at Homespun Juggling posted today about hiking and making up puns about hiking. I was laughing as I read them. Maybe you'll find them humorous as well!

Weird Weather...

I just used a broom to sweep the snow off my driveway. It is highly unusual that we get that little snow. This winter is so weird!

Better Caffeinated

Me, that is. I am so much better with caffeine. Really. I even tested it this morning.

See, I was grumpy, and grouching at the kids. School is much more painful when you are crabby! So I decided to have a cup of tea, chai to be more accurate. I love chai. I started drinking it, and suddenly the world was brighter. Seriously. We floated through the morning, blissfully working on school, which was done--get this!--BEFORE LUNCH! Yep, that's right, we worked everything on the schedule before lunch! I could hardly believe it. There was much less complaining, and I was so much less crabby.

So I have decided to embrace it. Caffeine, after all, is a small vice to have, right?

I love garage sales!

Where else can you get all this for less than $17?!?!



30 items. That's less than 60 cents an item!

This may not seem very important, I know

But it is, so I'm bothering telling you so*!

It is almost 50 degrees here. 50! Woo-hoo! My car said it was 50 yesterday. Two days in a row! There is hope for Spring yet!


*Yes, that is Dr. Seuss. Yes, maybe I have read the Sleep Book 1 or 2 times....

A few of my "favorite" questions and statments

We have been homeschooling now for 2 1/2 years. I can't call myself a rookie anymore, but I certainly do not feel experienced! Homeschooling is an ever-changing, ever-evolving kind of thing. New challenges and new joys abound.

Often when I meet someone new or when I run into someone I haven't seen in a while, the topic comes up. Usually because I have kids in tow in the middle of what is termed a "school day." Kiddo has become very good at responding to the inquiries of why he isn't in school with a simple "I am homeschooled." The inquiries that follow, however, are always directed at me.

These are some of the more common questions I am asked. I try to answer without being offensive. Homeschooling is our choice. I respect that it is not for everyone.

"Isn't that a lot of work?" Well, yes and no. Yes, educating my children is a lot of work. But it is also a lot of play. I don't have to work on homework with them when they come home from school, completely exhausted, with no desire to do anything. I work with them when they are at their prime. I also get to see them learn. I get to witness the ah-ha moments. And I know when they are struggling and we need to take it slower or take a break from something all together. I am only teaching 2 kids. I don't have a classroom of 25. Yes, it is work, but it is a very different kind of work.

"How long will you homeschool?" I don't know of too many homeschoolers who can answer this one. My usual response is "As long as it works for us." The last time I was asked this question, just last week, the follow-up was, "Even through high school?" Well, yes, if it is still working for us, we will. There are so many resources out there these days for homeschoolers. I don't have to know everything to educate my child. There are co-ops, virtual classes and schools, comprehensive curricula, and tutors available should we need them. Honestly? I rarely look that far ahead. It is working for us now, and that is what matters.

"My kids would drive me nuts!" I totally understand that. Homeschooling is not for everyone. Honestly, there are days when my kids drive me nuts, too. There aren't many of them, though, and it is usually me, not them. I love hanging out with my kids. I love hearing their ideas and their stories and their discoveries. The good days outweigh the bad moments for me. But I TOTALLY understand that it wouldn't work for some people. Good thing it doesn't have to.

"Are there other homeschoolers to get together with?" Um, yes. Loads of them. Especially since we live in a major metropolitan area. Homeschooling gets a reputation, mainly among non-homeschoolers, for being isolating. I disagree. If anything, I feel more connected to my community now than I ever did before. I know far more of what is available out there than I did before I started homeschooling, and we take advantage of more.

There are also non-homeschoolers to get together with. We see our public school friends when they are off from school, after school, and on weekends. What's more, my kids interact with people of all ages. As this question was being asked of me this week, Kiddo was following my sister around while she worked. He was respectful, didn't get in the way, and was learning the whole time. There were not two people in the room who are the same age, either. 6 people, 6 different ages. That is the real world. I don't worry about whether or not my children are learning how to behave with other people. I know they are. I witness it every day.

If you are a homeschooler, you have likely heard all of these questions. Do you have standard answers? Are there others you find yourself answering repeatedly?

Quidditch/dodge ball

My kids are playing some sort of quidditch/dodge ball combination game in my family room. I think it needs to be spring. SOON!

The last time

I just put my four-year-old to bed for the last time. Tomorrow she turns five. Five! FIVE! I can't believe it. Five. What a very short time it takes them to get there. What fun it is to be a part of. Tomorrow Kutey will be five. And I will just have to accept that there is nothing I can do to keep them little forever.

What about this one...

Would you rather your child watched Sp*nge Bob or Arthur (you know, the PBS Kids show?)

And yes, this is another serious question! I am trying to figure out exactly how out of touch I am...

Would you rather...?

Your child be interested in Sp*nge Bob Square P*nts or Harry Potter?

(Yes, this is a serious question!!!)

Cleaning between the couch cushions

No I didn't find any money (sadly).

I found 6 pens and 4 pencils.

No wonder I never have a writing implement! The couch eats them.

A little sunshine

Sometimes, when it is really cold outside, a flower can make all the difference. This was taken yesterday at the zoo. There might be more to post...

Weekend Recap

We had a great weekend.

The kids spent the night at my sister's house on Saturday. The kids adore Auntie J and Uncle V. She doesn't have children of her own, but is the best aunt a kid could have. She is also generally our babysitter of choice. We took them to her house mid-afternoon on Saturday and left them there until a little before the Super Bowl yesterday.

In that time, they went cross-country skiing, ice skating, and sledding! They also baked cookies and played soccer and river rafting on the Kinect. I can barely get that much fun into a whole week! It is no wonder they love Auntie J and Uncle V.

I have no picture of any of this, since I wasn't there. I did get to eat the cookies, and hear the stories. Apparently Kutey is quite the dare-devil. The hill they sled on is quite large, and Kutey insisted on going from the top. Uncle V went with her twice, but then she went on her own. Not to be shown up by his little sister, Kiddo went to the top, too. From what I hear, he would have been content with the half hill, had Kutey not desired more.

We joined them all at Grandpa's house to watch the Super Bowl. We had way more food than we needed, but the company was great, and the game turned out to be pretty good, too! I really did not care who won. I do have to say, however, that if you turn the ball over 4 times, you really shouldn't win a game that big.

While the kids were off having fun, Hubby and I went out on a date! We should do that more often. We went to The King's Speech. Fabulous, fabulous movie. And not just because I like Colin Firth (Mr. Darcy, don't you know). I learned a lot about the history of Great Britain, and it made me want to learn more. It was extremely well-done. I did feel rather old, however. It is entirely possible that we were the youngest people in the theater. After the movie we went to dinner at a Thai restaurant we enjoy, but the kids do not.

We all came home last night ready to begin a new week!

This made me laugh!

This made me laugh!

Probably because I am here, too. And I would rather be in Hawaii.

The hits just keep on coming!

January really needs to just end already!

Hubby came home from work sick.

That makes 3 Wednesdays in a row that someone has been sick, along with one random Monday.

And yes, I realize the first of those was not technically in January. I'm taking it out on January anyway.

I have never used this much Lys*l (which I dislike immensely, but when you are trying to avoid passing a crappy illness around the house again, you call out the big guns) in this short of an amount of time.

I want to throw open the windows and have us all breathe different air! But this is Minnesota. And it is winter.

All I can do is sigh. And walk around with a disinfecting wipe in my hand.

Random

• L (5) arrived this morning (I babysit him and his sister and brother) not at all himself. I think he is getting a cold, and is therefore a little "flat," as his mother described it. He got better, but is still not himself.
  

• Kutey must be going through a growth spurt. She had an accident in the bathroom today, all over the floor, which only happens when she is growing. The floor had to be cleaned and Kutey got a bath a bit earlier than she might have liked.
  

• Her accident resulted in a magnificent scream, which woke C (3) from his nap. He was extremely displeased to be awakened thusly, and had to go to the bathroom, too. He dislikes the downstairs bathroom, but I was still trying to get the upstairs one cleaned up (and Kutey was still there). I sent him downstairs with his sister (7), but he protested and ended up peeing on top of the toilet and in his pants. Sigh. Another bathroom to clean...again.
  

• I let them all watch Bob the Builder, because I needed to persuade C to calm down (he was unable to breathe he was crying so hard and long) and persuade him to put on the dry clothes I had for him (they weren't his. He has a thing about having his own clothes). It is the first time in the 5 months I have watched them that I have resorted to this tactic.

• Kutey has been in AT LEAST 6 outfits today. I can't figure out where each of the previous ones has gone. That will be fun later.
  

• My hands are so dry that they hurt. Washing them 40 times today has not helped.
  

• January is my least favorite month. This is not endearing it to me any more.
  

• Also, it is snowing. Again. Those of you who like this should be here. I'll trade spots with you if you are somewhere warm and sunny.

• It can only get better, right?
  

Just like my kids!

I love Homespun Juggling's comics. She hits the nail on the head so much of the time! I can't relate to the cat antics, having never had cats, but that matters little. Her latest comic could have been a snapshot of our days. Go read it. I'll wait.

My kids don't like large groups. Honestly, they don't like crowds of any kind. Kiddo has been known to sit with his hands over his ears while waiting for a play to start, or even at the Orchestra Hall concert we went to last month. In the summer, if a park is too crowded, he will often ask to leave, or to come back when the kids are in school, no matter how fun the park is! It isn't that he isn't social; he loves to hang out with a few other kids at a time. Too any people, however, not his thing.

Kutey doesn't mind noise and groups as much, but she is also more clingy in those situations. She sat on my lap for the orchestra concert last month, and for most of the play we saw last month as well. She doesn't vocalize her displeasure with large groups, but I know she gets tired and irritable more quickly in large groups.

I love this quote from the post:

"The only problem was that we often met extremely unsocialized children in the playground and other places after school hours."

Yep. Not always, and not all children. Often enough, however. That is also not to say that I haven't met homeschooled children who are unsocialized as well. It is just more likely in a larger group that you are going to encounter them. And the outing will go from OK to bad.