The Old Schoolhouse Magazine - Digital - Review

I have just spent some time exploring The Old Schoolhouse Magazine's Summer issue, not in print like usual, but in DIGITAL. Interesting, huh? I have a tendency to be stuck in a rut, so I am not normally impressed with new stuff until it has been around a while, but this is definately cool.

I do cherish my print version of TOS. I eagerly anticipate its arrival every month. This version, though, has so many more practical applications, such as clickable links for email and websites, that I think it is a treasure of its own accord.

Everything that is in the print version is here. The magazine is IN your computer. When you hover over page corners (or push the pgdn button) the page turns. All the cool author links are able to be followed without even getting out of your chair! Want to send an email to the author? Just click on the email address and you are ready to go. Want to view a curriculum publisher's website? You are right there, in the time it takes to think about it.

Granted, you can't really curl up with the digital version like I do my print version. It would be hard to stuff it into your purse, or drag it around in the car (at least I try not to abuse my laptop that way!) but when you are able to use your computer you are able to access your magazine and all of the advertisements and links that are available to you.

TOS is really staying ahead of the technology game with this new adventure. I can't imagine what these guys will come up with next! If you want to check it out, you can purchase a subscription or check out back issues at The Schoolhouse Store.

Sweet Dill Pickles

Canning "season" started for me today. After gathering for several days, I finally had enough cucumbers for a batch of sweet dill pickles. They are yummy and real easy to make.....and now I have 7 pints ready to go into the pantry.

Other things are growing well in our garden also. I really think that this is the latest that we have ever began harvesting. We have zucchini, although several of our plants have been killed by a mysterious bug. We are eating cucumbers, fresh tomatoes, jalapenos, green peppers and some onions. My husband picked us 4 okra pods on Friday and I fried them up in fish batter.....boy were they good! I can't wait until we can have a real batch. Three cabbages have managed to find their way to our freezer. We also have loads of little green cataloupes. Yummy!

God is good to provide for us this year. It was tough at the beginning, but our garden is sight to behold now. We will definately be eating well this winter!

Leland David

My oldest son, Leland David, turned 11 yesterday. Once upon a time, I didn't think that was possible. My husband and I sit and wonder where 11 years must have went.

Lee was born around noon on the 9th of August 1997. I was induced, and in labor for over 24 hours. There was talk of a c-section, but God allowed a natural, drug free delivery. He was precious and such a joy to us. He still is.

Lee is an independent, perfectionist sort. He loves taekwondo. His goal is to be a lawyer. I think that he will make a very good lawyer.

He loves God and believes in Jesus. He made his confession 2 years ago. He almost always tries to think of the other guy first.

Lee is the perfect big brother. He puts their needs and cares before his own more often then not. He is their defender, and protector. Wrongs against himself he may let go, but he doesn't tolerate a wrong against his brothers.

Lee isn't perfect, but none of us are. I am so very thankful for the last 11 years with Lee. I am reminded again of the wonderful blessing that God has given me by allowing me to homeschool. I can't imagine everything that we would have missed if he was gone all day.

Thank you for allowing me to "brag" about Lee. Yesterday was his day. We love you Lee!

The Schoolhouse Planner

I am pleased today to be reviewing The Schoolhouse Planner. As a confirmed planner "junkie", I have waited for the release of this planner with baited breathe. Honestly, I own almost every planner on the market for homeschool moms. In all of them, there are features that I like, but there does seem to be something missing. I am thrilled to say that this planner has everything that anyone could possibly need......and more.

Contained inside this e-book are informational sheets (such as states and capitals, weights and measure conversions), copies of great American documents (Declaration of Independence, American Constitution and others), household planning sheets as well as school planning sheets. The school planning sheets cover everything that you could ever need for school, all the way through high school. I especially like the 12 year curriculum tracker.

Monthly calendars are included along with holidays and listings of other important days for that month. Many educational opportunities are tied in with each month and resources for the study of those items are hyperlinked through the Old Schoolhouse Store. Shopping and planning couldn't be easier! It is my understanding that there are also monthly modules available (as e-books, the cost is around $8) that expand on the monthly educational topics. I am interested in seeing how these might fit into our homeschool.

The household forms look to be fairly standard. There are chore charts for mom and the kids (some with pictures rather than words for the non-readers) and things like packing lists and gardening layout forms (thank you!).

The best thing about this planner is that you have the ability to type your information onto the pages before you print them out. All of the forms can be personalized for YOUR family. I can't express how much this feature excites me! My planner will look professional from now on!

This planner is absolutely perfect. The creators took great pains to make sure that everything a homeschool mom could ever need is included. I feel that this planner is a great value for all the tools that it contains. I did have a problem with the downloading, as the file is rather large. However, The Old Schoolhouse Store's customer service department was fantastic in getting me an attatchment of the planner.

If you would like to see what the fuss is all about you can view the planner at The Old Schoolhouse Store . The cost of the planner is $39.00. This is an e-book so there is no shipping and you will be able to immediately have your planner to make this new school year the best ever.

Choosing Curriculum - Preschool

I was cuddling Little Bear this afternoon and thinking about how difficult it was for me to choose curriculum when we started homeschooling. I still have days when I just don't know what would work, but I am a lot more confident in my ability to choose what will work for my family.

I remember when we decided to homeschool. For our family, it wasn't an all or nothing decision. I wanted to homeschool; but my husband wasn't so sure. So we comprimised. We agreed that we would homeschool that year. It would be a preschool year since our oldest son was just 4. Then we would go from there.

I was ecstatic! I was terribly afraid that I wouldn't be able to homeschool and my husband had said yes! What a blessing from God! Now what?

After intense research I found several different "curriculums" that I wanted to use. All of them were several hundreds of dollars. My husband had a fit! I pieced together a hodge-podge of things and made it work. With two kids through "preschool" and looking ahead to another, here is my compilation of what is needed to preschool. Then I will share what looks interesting for those of you with larger budgets.

Necessary
Nothing. I know that sounds terribly simplistic, but if you are hard pressed to come up with any extra money for preschool then don't. Dig out some scrap paper, a pair of scissors, crayons, some yarn and glue and let them be. Let them sort and count with M&Ms and an egg carton. Use crayons for coloring and learning colors. Practice the alphabet song. Read the Bible together.

Useful
*A Bible story book - Yes, you can read straight from the Bible and I think that is a great idea but little kids like the pictures in a Bible story book while you read. Boys especially like the David and Goliath picture!
*Work books from Walmart - Or the dollar store, or where ever you are. They are cheap and will teach everything that the more expensive ones will. If your little guy hates pencils then skip them. We loved doing our workbooks, one page a day when they were 3 or 4 years old. They would show their completed pages to grandparents and be so proud when they recieved praise!
*Explode the Code primers (books A, B, and C) - These are available from Rainbow Resource. I loved the primers. My boys loved the way they where able to learn the letter sounds with almost no effort at all. They are cheap so that is a plus (there are 3 and I think they are around $6 a piece).

Interesting
If the budget allows, you might be interested in using the following:
MFW preschool options (there is one for 2-3 year olds and one for 4-5 year olds I think). These are mainly hands on activities. I look forward to giving these a try with my 3rd son.
Sonlight preschool core - We finally own most of these books, buying them a little here and a little there. These books are precious and I don't know any preschooler on the planet that wouldn't clamor for one more reading.

Applications
I thought that I would conclude this post with some ways to use these items with your preschooler. I always try to stick with the easiest ideas for mom, while adding the most fun for the child.
1. Try sidewalk chalk. The perks with this are obvious: the child is outside and you don't really have to clean anything up. If you live in an apartment, then take school to the park.
2. Have a letter of the week. We did this in various forms with both of my older boys, but I really see the wisdom in this now. They learn so much from this, not just in phonics/reading. Your child will learn relationship and how ideas can work together. I plan on starting this when Little Bear is 2 and going through the alphabet at least twice. You are not required to start with the letter A. I plan on starting with N for Norman and then moving on to L for Lee and G for Greg. Who wouldn't want to learn their letter? Or bubby's letters?
3. Count everything. I always hear people say that you should count the plates and silverware while setting the table. That's true but there is so much more out there to count! Count the cars that go by, the bugs in the yard, cats in the garage. How many people are in line? How many legs does that dog have? You could go on forever and it keeps your sanity. This is also a good activity when you are in the "never-ending-grocery-store-line".
4. Practice colors with candy. I know some people don't want their children eating a lot of candy and I am not advocating that your eat candy every day, but there is no better way to learn colors than by sorting skittles :)
5. Make a volcano with baking soda and vinegar. Google the instructions. Boys think that this is very, very cool and makes you the best teacher on the planet. Grow seeds into plants, or work in the garden. Get a pet, even if it is a goldfish. Living with and working on things teaches more than any book.
6. Dig in the sandbox. Write letters or numbers in the sand. Bury the toddler (we buried my 2nd son while he was sitting in the sandbox - that picture is precious - he was just 1).
7. Have fun. Don't forget to play. School shouldn't last any more than 30 minutes at this age. I didn't make my boys sit still for 30 minutes at a time anyway. We did a worksheet in the morning (5 minutes), then read a book in the afternoon (10 minutes), then counted something in the evening (5 minutes) and finished the day off with more reading at bedtime. No stress for you, no frustration for your child and the learning has begun!

Enjoy your children now. My little fellow (oldest son) turns 11 on Saturday. We don't know where the time has gone, but I am so very blessed to have been able to be with him every day. I can't imagine what I would have missed if he had been gone during the "school hours". All of the trials and frustrations of homeschooling have been worth every single minute that I am able to look at my oldest son and see his smiling face. I KNOW my son and who he is becoming. Relax and enjoy these years....they are truly over before you know it!

Back to School Blast

This is your last reminder to join us for Cindy Rushton's Back To School Blast this weekend. The speaker line-up looks fantastic. You definately won't want to miss this!

2008-2009 School Year - Day 1

What a title that is!!! LOL
Today was a good day. I made a lot of changes to this year's schedule. I wasn't sure if I would like it, or if the day would "flow" like it always did but it seemed to work out really well.

For the past......6 (has it been that long???) years, school mornings have contained english, foreign language, reading, math and drill work. Science, history, geography and literature have happened in the afternoon. I am sure that you can guess what happened to science, history, geography and literature as soon as something more delightful came along. Yeah. So I feel that we are behind in those subjects and feel that God wanted me to work our schedule to ensure that these subjects were covered with regularity.

Today, our subjects occured in the following order:
Bible
Read Aloud (literature)
History
Geography
Science

Then we moved into english grammar, spelling, handwriting, typing (new this year) and math. This took us right up to lunch time. I allowed the boys to take a break, run around some and do their chores while I prepared lunch. I will need to plan out lunches better though......we can't live on hamburger helper (can we???). After lunch, the boys did their reading and book baskets (see My Father's World for information on book baskets). They finished up around 2 p.m. but I was done at 11 a.m. and able to get some of my chores done. What a relief! I had visions of school lasting all day long! I think it helped that I set time limits for each subject and told the boys that they only had to work (diligently) for that period of time on that subject and then could put it away. What a relief to them.....they knew that the lesson wouldn't drag on forever and ever without end. Math was the longest time limit of 20 minutes. Most subjects were slotted for 15 minutes. Charlotte Mason advocates short lessons and I agree!

I will have to work on ways to entertain Mr. Bear during school time. He spent most of the morning trying to eat dog food, hitting his brother with a walking stick and wailing in disbelief that he would be contained by the playpen (baby jail) for any period of time. I was very thankful when he went down for his morning nap at 10 a.m. What a blessing that routine is! Any suggestions on what to do with a 9 month old would be greatly appreciated.

All in all our first day of school was a success. I enjoyed the day and even caught myself laughing with my silly boys. I thank God for the opportunity that He has given us to be together!

Curriculum Choices for 2008-2009

We will spend at least the first 3-4 months finishing up Sonlight's Core 3 for history and science.

English
Lee: Simply Grammar and Intermediate Language Lessons
Greg: Primary Language Lessons
Both: English from the Roots Up, Italic Handwriting, A Reason for Spelling, Type It

Math
Lee: MUS Delta
Greg: MUS Gamma
Both: Calculadders

Geography
Trail Guide to US Geography

Critical Thinking
Lee: Building Thinking Skills Book 2

Character Training/Bible
Lee: Boyhood and Beyond
Both: Plants Grown Up, Kay Arthur Study for Kids (James)

LATER IN THE YEAR
We will be adding:
Exploring Creation with Astronomy
Stargazing with a Telescope
Scrambled States of America
State History Chronicles Notebook
Library Unit Study
Shakespeare for Kids
Notetaking and Outlining
MFW 1850-Modern Times
Sonlight Core 4 Readers/History Selections

Lee: French
Greg: Spanish

I think that is about it. This year Leland will be in 6th grade and Gregory will be in 3rd grade. I am sure that we will add/subtract throughout the year and I will attempt to keep that updated. I classify us a charlotte mason homeschoolers with a classical bent :)

Today I am finishing up lesson plans for the 1st 6 weeks and getting everything set for the first day (MONDAY!!!).

Mission Accomplished!

Sorry I didn't post yesterday. My cleaning is complete. For today anyway LOL! Yesterday I cleaned all the surfaces in the kitchen. Today I cleaned the laundry room, swept/mopped the kitchen and laundry room and got most stuff put back the way I want it. And the kitchen table is almost completely cleaned off! That is a miracle around here! I am looking to buy a shelving unit for my kitchen and then everything will be perfect!

I love the feeling of a totally clean house. I know that our school year will begin a lot nicer with a clean house!

Tomorrow I look forward to posting about my curriculum choices for this year.

Wednesday Clean-Up

I noticed that I messed up yesterday's title! Oh well!!!!!

Last night Bear didn't go to sleep until almost midnight. That makes a very late night for this momma! So we didn't wake up until 8 a.m. We are becoming very late risers! We had ham and eggs for breakfast, started laundry and got to work cleaning off the desk. It has rained here for almost 24 hours now so the laundry went into the dryer. Momma finished cleaning the desk, straightened the boys bookshelf and made frozen pizza for lunch. I am tossing around storage solutions in my head for the kitchen. More about that tomorrow!
I finished cleaning off my bookshelf while baby napped and the older boys helped me move furniture and vaccum after he woke up. So now the living room is clean! One more room down.....the last 3 to go are the hard ones! I have folded and put away 3 loads of laundry (I mean that I folded and put away my, dh's and Bear's laundry. The older boys put their own away). The diapers are in the dryer. I still need to quick-pick-up the kitchen from the lunch mess and write a review for TEACH magazine. Then I am done for the day! YooHoo!!!!

Below I posted an article from my friend Cindy Rushton. She is getting ready to kick off her Back to School Blast. Be sure to check that out - you will love all the great resources that she has available.

Be sure to check back tomorrow and see how far I have gotten cleaning the last 3 rooms! These are the rooms that need the most work :)

Another Article

Psst! A Secret to Scheduling Success!
by Cindy Rushton
http://www.cindysaffiliates.com/go.php?offer=carieann77&pid=3

Want to know one of my biggest secrets to homeschooling the easy way? Want to know one of my biggest secrets to scheduling success? This one secret can make your daily schedule finally fit. It can end your scheduling frustrations forever.
I am not a "schedule by the minute" type of person. (GRIN) I fail with schedules like that. They don't meet my needs. My life includes too many areas that have different needs daily. Timed schedules just do not work for me.
So, what has worked for me? Setting up a framework to my day. This is one incredibly powerful tip. It can make a HUGE difference in your day as well. It just might be the secret that has alluded you through the years.
Wondering what I mean by a "framework" for your day? By framework, I mean a general flow to each day that includes all of the areas of my life that I juggle. But, how do I do that? Here are some quick tips:

1. Decide what should be included in your daily schedule. Look at what you are all about. Look at your goals, activities, values, priorities. Look at your husband's schedule--wrap everything around him. Look at what you need to include in your day to get everything done--quiet times, lessons, homemaking, read alouds, work, etc. This is important. Otherwise, you will include things in your schedule that may not be the very best choices. And...one big risk...you may never get around to the things that matter the most. Decide what really needs to be a part of each and every day for your day to be successful.

2. Decide the best time for the tasks you need to complete each day. This will help you get a good flow to your day. For me, quiet times are just best at the beginning of the day. Chores are great right after them--I need them completed so my brain can focus on the table time. Our business work and errands need to be done in the early afternoon. Read alouds are best before bedtime. You get the picture. When I tried to read aloud over lunch, we had so many distractions that we could never fit it in. Trying to work the business in the morning would never work...and of course, we couldn't take care of business errands at night. See how important it is to really look at the best time to get tasks done. Look at the best time for all of the tasks that need to be done. Look at the best flow to get everything done easily each day. You may not get this right at the beginning, but you will get closer and closer each day. You will love it!

3. Balance your day. Don't let any one area of your life get out of balance. Everything that we do in our day has a tendency to grow into a big time thief--homeschooling, homemaking, home business. Those important aspects of our life can easily grow out of their boundaries. While I love each of them, they can get rather exhausting if we don't keep them in balance with the other things that we have to do. The best way for me to stay balanced is to be reasonable about what I expect for each day, keep things simplified and easy, and keep everything inside of its time of the day. I don't mind those days that we want to dig deeper in a topic that we are studying. I also don't mind those days that we tackle a messy room. I don't even mind those days that we have a special business project that needs more time. But, if those areas were demanding extra time every day, it would be easy to get burned-out, frustrated and battle with our time each day. Want to make it work? Find a balance for your day.

4. Set up routines. Talk about a HUGE help for me. Without routines, things can get so frustrating every day--there are constant decisions, there is more strife in the family, there is no consistency. Routines help us to make things go faster, without the strife and struggle of figuring things out DAILY. Routines reduce the stress of making decisions daily. Routines help our children to know what to expect so they can move through all of the things that they need to do each day. Routines are crucial. They assure a smooth ride. They keep us on track. They keep us out of the ruts. They take us in the direction that we want to go. One of the toughest things I ever did was develop routines in my home. However, one of the most rewarding things that I ever did was develop routines in my home. When I got very, very sick, everything kept going. During those times that I have been stretched, things kept on going. All because of routines. Set up routines. Then, your children will know what to expect. They will learn what is next and next and next. The decisions will be made for you. They will be able to "just do it" with or without you. Set up routines for your family. Develop one set of routines at a time--look for the time of day that things go haywire. If it is morning, for example, look at all that needs to be done. Brainstorm. Make a to-do list for that routine. Write it out. Work it as a checklist until it becomes a habit. If you see other things that need to be added into that set of routines, add them. Tweak it until it is smooth. Then, move to the next troublespot. Do this for all of the times of your day. Watch to see how much it helps!

5. Prune anything that is not necessary. Truth is, we cannot do everything. What we do in our day keeps us from doing other things. It zaps our time, energy, strength. We need to be picky about what we add to our day. Every single thing that we do costs us something. We need to constantly prune those things that are not necessary. Prune anything that hinders, distracts. Be honest. Be ruthless. Prune. Even the good things! Go for the best!

6. Take the squeeze out of your schedule. Watch out for the squeeze in your schedule. Don't fill every minute of your day with something to do. Why? Because there are always going to be crisis situations, interruptions, melt-downs, delays. If we have our schedule maxed out, we will constantly be overwhelmed, overworked, and squeezed. Find ways to take the squeeze out of your daily schedule--cut out extra running, watch out for time thieves, prioritize your daily to-do's (and eliminate any that make the day too tight), cut out extras that are unnecessary, keep the day simple and easy. Keep a relaxed atmosphere. Constantly, take the squeeze out of your daily schedule.

7. Stay flexible! Stay adaptable! Actually, one of the reasons that we really want to develop a framework to our day is so we have more flexibility, so we have more "space" in our day to be adaptable. We want to be able to seize opportunities that come our way. We want to be able to slow down and enjoy our children. We don't want to miss teachable moments. These days just go by too fast. We want to enjoy every second. We want to make sweet, sweet memories. This requires that we stay flexible and adaptable. So, take the time to develop your own framework to your day. Do the tough work. Get your plans together. Work on these suggestions. Then, stay flexible. Stay adaptable. Grasp on to all that God has in store for you!
*******************************
About Cindy Rushton…
Cindy Rushton is the hostess of the Back to School Blast, her annual back to school fling for homeschool mothers around the world. She is recording Preview Chats for the Back to School Blast RIGHT NOW! Join her wonderful guests FREE for the next weeks as they count down to the Back to School Blast (August 8-9--BUT! NEVER ENDING because it is an ONLINE seminar!). Get your ticket NOW and receive her awesome A Quick Start for Notebooking Mini-Set FREE today! Check out all of the details here:
http://www.cindysaffiliates.com/go.php?offer=carieann77&pid=3

Current Reading

If you are intested, here is a list of what I am currently reading:

A Mom After God's Own Heart by Elizabeth George
Furry Tails: The Adventures of Cinnamon Persimmon by Tristan Perry, PhD. (just finished)
Sounding Forth the Trumpet: God's Plan for America in Peril 1837-1860 by Peter Marshall and David Manuel
Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola
KJV Bible - I am somewhere in Joshua

Clean-up Tuesday

Baby Bear and I got a late start this morning. When the alarm went off at 6 a.m. I just turned it off, rolled over and went back to sleep. We got up at 7:30 :)

So we didn't walk. But that's ok. We had ham and eggs for breakfast then picked up around the house and started laundry. Bear cried in his playpen while I hung out the first load. I got the older boys up at 9. They watched Bear while I hung out the 2nd load and then we got started cleaning their rooms. The playroom was first and didn't take very long. The bedroom, on the other hand, was a disaster! I hadn't cleaned these rooms for several month, relying instead on the boys to pick them up. While they may have been presentable on the surface, they were in terrible condition underneath. When I instructed Lee to take everything out from under the bed, Greg to take everything out of the (small) closed and I took everything off the entertainment center I about had a heart attack. The mountain of stuff on the floor filled the whole room and was at least 12 inches deep throughout. Oh my! I assured the boys that it wouldn't take very long at all to clean, all the while thinking to myself that we might never reach the end of it. We cleaned for about an hour before I stopped to fix lunch, leaving them to finish sorting toys. It took about an hour after lunch to finish cleaning that room and to vaccum both rooms and hallway. But they are done! We celebrated with watermelon after lunch and the boys were allowed to go to Grandma's house for a visit after completing a few other small chores.

I finished up the day by writing a letter, working up a spreadsheet for a project of dh's, folding and putting away laundry, and sorting and filing coupons. The work is done, baby is sleeping and I am enjoying a nighttime summer storm. I am thankful for the rain that will help the garden grow!!!! We think that the potatoes should be ready to dig next week :)

Tomorrow's agenda includes cleaning the rest of the living room, bookshelves and my desk. That will probably take all day, but if it doesn't then I am going to start MAJOR decluttering in the kitchen. Talk tomorrow!

Monday Clean-Up

Dh and I had a disagreement last night. As expected, that caused my day to begin in a less-than-ideal way. However, I spent considerable time seeking God today and have peace that the conflict will be quickly resolved.

Anyway, yesterday (Sunday) afternoon I spent a couple of hours sorting and organizing the clothes in my closet and dresser. I have 4 garbage bags that we are taking to charity today. I hope that the clothes that I no longer want or need will be a blessing to someone else.

Today, Little Bear and I walked 2 miles. Upon returning home I fixed egg burittos for us for breakfast and started laundry. After breakfast I hung out that load, started another (while Bear played in his playpen). Then I put bear down for his morning nap.

For my morning project I cleaned the back part of our living room. Our living room is very large 18x24ft. We have a sectional sofa that "divides" the room into the front 2/3 and the back 1/3. In the back 1/3 we have my desk, the boys bookshelf, Bears plastic dresser and changing table, 2 little school desks that we use to hold/use art supplies and most of the school books in rubbermaid totes or on a plastic bookshelf. You can imagine how cluttered this area becomes! I organized the art supplies into containers so that they would be easier to use (and move about the house if necessary). Then I organized the changing table and Bear's plastic dresser. I also "vaccum bagged" Bear's outgrown clothing and sent them to the garage. I didn't get to my desk, but that is almost a day's project all by itself! I rounded out my morning chores by hanging out the 2nd load of laundry. I love sun-dried laundry!!!!!

For lunch we had cube steak, fried zucchini and french fries. I had salmon patties, sliced cucumbers and fried zucchini. After lunch, I went out back, alone and spent some time talking to God. I returned to the house with some of the dried laundry feeling refreshed and renewed! Dh had blessed me by putting Bear down for his afternoon nap and then left for work. I spent the rest of the afternoon decluttering/cleaning my bedroom and folding laundry. The boys and I just ate a snack and then we are off to town to run errands and attend taekwondo classes.

Tomorrow we are tackling the boys bedroom and playroom. I imagine that will take all day! I will definately report back how that goes.

Saturday Clean-Up

I have been convicted of my laziness. I am lazy. There is no reason to sugar coat it. It is the truth. God is truly working on me. So, today I am cleaning. It is very frustrating to me that it seems like every time I clean, the house gets messed up in a different part before I am finished in the part I am working in. The truth of the matter lies in the fact that I spend one day a week cleaning (usually just one room - not the whole house) and then I grouch about how quickly everything is going to pot the other 6 days. My whole outlook on life has been frustrated, grouchy and overwhelmed lately. This is not how God would have us to live.
I made a list a couple of days ago of all the rooms in the house and the best order in which to clean them for a (between-spring-and-fall) cleaning :) Today I started in the boys bathroom. I gave it a good wipe down and cleaned out their cabinet, swept and hand mopped their floor. Then I moved into our bathroom. I wiped it down, cleaned the tub and shower, all the cabinets (but not the drawers) and countertops, swept and hand mopped the floor.
Those are my "deep cleaning" chores for today. Done daily chores include laundry, leftovers for lunch, quick kitchen cleanup, and put away groceries from yesterday. I still need to finish folding laundry, make a dessert for a cook-out tonight, choose songs for services tomorrow and file Walgreens rebate paperwork for July. As long as I am diligent, I know that I can get all that done!

After church services tomorrow I think that I am going to try to sort through my clothes (closet and dresser). That way when we go to town on Monday the bags for the resale shop will be ready. I also need to pick up some rubbermaid type boxes before I clean the boys' rooms.

I purpose to maintain the rooms that I clean before I start any new projects and daily chores will still need to be done. So I figure that it will take a week (or more) to get the whole house done. School starts back up here on next Monday so if the cleaning isn't done by then I will finish up on Saturdays until done.

I am thankful that although painful, God has shown me this sin area in my life and is willing to give me a second chance. God is GOOD!

An Article for You

Easy Record-Keeping for the Reluctant Homeschool Mom!
By Cindy Rushton
http://www.cindysaffiliates.com/go.php?offer=carieann77&pid=2

Record-keeping! Does your hair stand up when you think of record-keeping? Do you begin to grind your teeth? Did you feel like skipping this article just because it seems impossible for “EASY” and “Record-keeping” to ever go together??
Relax. I know that there is not a “one size fits all.” I know that in spite of how hard we may search, there is not a perfect system for every mom! That is OK! My prayer is that if you are in need of some ideas to make a couple areas a little easier or if you have no idea of where to begin, that you will find a few ideas as you come home with us to see how simple record-keeping CAN be. Ready for some quick tips??? Here we go…

--> Find what is mandatory. Every state and school district has differing requirements. Find other homeschool families in your area and see how each of them manages their homeschool records. Find the easiest way possible to meet the requirements. Make it as DOABLE as possible!

--> Choose what works for YOU. Every mom has her favorite method that works JUST for them whether a planner with reproducible pages… a ready to use planner… a simple spiral notebook… binders… a filing cabinet… computer… etc, etc, etc! Before you consider anything else, look at who you are. What makes you feel more comfortable? What helps you to feel more accomplishment? Whether formal or informal… detailed or not even written down… YOUR way is the best way! Decide what works best for you!

--> Document daily! Don’t let it build up. Jot it down throughout the day. When my children were little, I kept one journal for everything. I kept it out on my desk so I could just jot down what we were doing as we did it. It was amazing how much easier that was than even waiting till the end of the day. As they got older, I transferred this process to them. I had always made it easy. So, transferring it to them did not overwhelm them. I began this process by letting them keep up with their reading log. The rest was easy after that. They now keep their records just like I used to. At the end of the month and again at the end of the semester I go through making sure that everything is on target and also look to see how well they are keeping up with my overall schedule. Without good records, this would be impossible.

--> Keep all of their work in Notebooks. We keep ALL of our written work in a binder of some sort. Then, we take it further… we keep ANYTHING that can be pressed in binders. Anything left?? Yes! Then, we take pictures and keep THEM in the binders! (Hehe!) ANYTHING and EVERYTHING that can be studied can also be kept in Notebooks in some way. We keep anything that would expand a study and build a great collection of information on topics we study… great quotes, definitions about a subject being studied, diagrams, character sketches, pictures, coloring sheets, art prints, poems, Bible verses, narrations, Bible word studies, on and on! Our main reason for Notebooking in this way is that if our children are going to spend their time DOING something, it ought to be worthwhile enough for us to KEEP IT. This teaches them to value their work, do a great job on all they do, and that ALL areas of life are truly educational.

--> Scrapbook events, activities, fun studies, and projects! Scrapbooks/Yearbooks for what are REALLY doing throughout our school year is not only fun, but it helps to preserve the memories of ALL that we are doing in our family. There are just some things that our children are learning that are impossible to document without scrapbooking! Get out of the old “school” box and really document your family’s education. You won’t be sorry!

--> Use planning sheets designed JUST for homeschooling. Don’t let commercial record-keepers keep you from homeschooling with a lifestyle of learning! Look for printable pages that are designed just for the homeschool mom. You can find great options everywhere!

--> Buy resources that are designed just for you. We have an entire line of resources that we now have available through our bookstore. Check out our Make Your Own Brain-in-a-Binder Printables. It is designed specifically for the homeschool mom who wants pages designed for every area that must be balanced in the busy homeschool family. Also, check out other great resources by homeschool writers and even pages that are included in many homeschool books (we always try to include pages that we use in our books). Now, you may be like me. You may prefer to make your own planning pages. That is perfectly fine! You can tailor your pages to fit exactly with your family needs. Just be sure to use what works for you!

--> At the end of the school year, file all records together. This may seem to be a mute point, however this will save your brain! At the end of our school year, I gather everything together and add them into one big binder. I date the binder and store it away for my children’s permanent file. Be sure to pull all of your records together into a set and safe place. When you get discouraged along the way, just look back and see how far you have come—it will be a HUGE blessing!

Ok...So, Are You Ready?
So, what about you? Still scared about Record-keeping? Why not think through YOUR OWN way? Try your spin. Use what is easy, simple, and will give you more time with your little ones while helping to keep things in place for you. Most of all, find a way that can capture all of these precious memories of these days for you so you will have them to look back upon tomorrow! Have fun! EVEN with Record-keeping!
*******************************
Need MORE Help? Check out Cindy's New Organized Mom Super Set! It is full of great ebooks and audios that will help take you by the hand and plan the best homeschool year ever! Plus! When you purchase your set you get MORE help with record-keeping, organization, and setting up your home to learn--you also get access to Cindy's Organization 911 Seminar Set and her newest Seminar Set, Let's Get Organized for the New School Year.
Yep! Both! Complimentary! Get your set here: http://www.cindysaffiliates.com/go.php?offer=carieann77&pid=2

July update

I seem to be so very bad about updating lately. I do apologize. The baby is taking up some of my time, plus the garden, school preps, housework.....Oh My! I am hoping to get into the swing of things soon :)

I hope to shortly share our curriculum choices for the year and some review stuff that I have been working on. Also, this week is the last week to sign up for the Ultimate Homeschool Expo at the discounted rate! Those speakers are such a blessing to me as I walk in the morning.

Our garden is finally growing! So many of our neighbors have been harvesting and we have been jealous, but yesterday I picked 4 green beans and we have little tiny cucumbers, zucchini and spaghetti squash on the vines. We also have several green tomatoes! And a little tiny pepper I think. I ordered some seed for fall planting. I hope it gets here in time!

I have been decluttering school stuff. I sold some stuff on ebay, but ended up not making hardly anything after shipping. I think that shipping rates have went up recently. I know everything else has. I ordered flours, popcorn, honey, and oatmeal from our local food co-op and was surprised at how much the prices had increased. I am going to have to be more creative with our food budget I think. I am also trying to store some food for emergencies. I have been very blessed by a website HERE with a bunch of ladies (and some gentleman) that are helping me in my long term preparations. No matter what the future holds for each of us, it doesn't hurt to be ready for it!

Little Bear is almost 9 months old! I can't hardly believe it! He has started to take a few steps alone at a time.....6 is the most so far. We have some little kitties as well and they all entertain each other with chasing and stuff. The little kitties aren't smart enough to stay away from the baby though and he tries to squeeze the stuffing out of them.....or drops them when he is done......grabs them by the tail, etc. I spent an hour yesterday saying "be nice to the kitty, love the kitty, don't throw the kitty, don't drop the kitty, don't strangle the kitty, love the kitty". I was beginning to sound like a broken record! Luckily enough the older boys came home from grandmas and helped and Little Bear had to go to bed. Right now Bear and the grey kitty (with no name - we are hoping to find it a good home) are sleeping on the couch. Sleeping they seem to get along pretty well..........with very little stress for momma!

Well, I need to finish my chores and get lunch started before Bear wakes. I am going to be trying a sourdough english muffin recipe tomorrow. I will let you know how that goes!

Let's Get Organized for a New School Year!

Cindy Rushton is hosting a wonderful seminar this weekend; Let's Get Organized for a New School Year! I know that I need all the help that I can get! If you want to join us visit HERE for a ticket. Happy planning!

Later today or tomorrow I will post about our curriculum choices for the year. We have a lot of fantastic stuff planned!

Summertime and the Living is Easy

We are embracing summer here :) And having a wonderful time too!

The boys were at church camp last week and they are attending VBS this week. We love taekwondo, but I was so grateful to have a break from the constant running. Bear and I have stayed home most of the week. I have been cleaning, cooking, gardening and just enjoying my home and the people in it.

We have replanted our garden. Dh is probably finishing the planting right now :) Baby is napping so I am inside. I think that we may have a nice harvest in spite of the horrible spring weather. What a blessing that will be this fall!

I have laundry on the line right now and I am finishing the downloads from the Ultimate Homeschool Expo. The speakers are great!!!!! My little pink Ipod (thanks sweetie) that I received for my birthday has been a constant companion during housework and walks.

I am walking 2 miles a day most days. I am on week 3 of a low carb diet (South Beach). So far I have lost 13 pounds, 12 of which during the first 2 "hard" weeks. Boy, am I glad to be done with those! I know that with God's help and constant diligence on my part that I can lose this weight and be relieved of this burden. My knee is already feeling better!

Teach magazine (see sidebar for link) is running a special Homemakers set if you are interested in some encouragement in that area. The sale is until Friday night. I am hoping to get mine ordered sometime tomorrow. I could really use some encouragment in that area!

God has really worked on my heart about my attitude. I am so pleased to say that with HIS help I have been able to have a peaceful, joyful attitude all week this week. And there have been events that could have been stressful!

My little dog Sadie got out of the van at the park Tuesday without the boys noticing when they got in. We didn't realize until 15 mins. later that she wasn't with us. We went back to the park and called and called and called. A woman sitting on a park bench said that she had followed our van as we drove out of the park. That was bad news because we had left the park via the highway. Sadie is blind in one eye, almost deaf and isn't the brightest bulb in the bunch anyway....crossing a highway is not in her skillset. We called and called and called along the edge of the park and Greg was in tears because Sadie was all alone with no one to take care of her when we noticed a man across the highway with a black dog on a leash. Sadie! She had made it across the highway and to his place of business and he was looking for her owner! We were so blessed to have her with us again.

God takes care of the big things and the little things!
Have a wonderful day!

Time is Flying

I had no intention of letting this much time pass between blog updates. We have been so very busy.

Little Bear has become an accomplished crawler and he can pull up to furniture and "cruise" around the coffee table and couch. He has become very attached to Momma. He cries as soon as I leave a room! As part of my exercise routine we are walking 2 miles every morning and he really enjoys the stroller.

My birthday was Sunday. I turned 31. I just don't feel that old though :) Dh and the boys got me a cute little Ipod Nano, 8 GB....in pink. I am happily downloading audios from the Ultimate Homeschool Expo. It truly makes the morning walks more interesting.

Dh's cousin's daughter (this cousin is like a brother to Dh) got married 2 weekends ago. Dh and I made a lot of the food for the reception. We did dinner rolls for 200 people (240 Bavarian dinner rolls). What was I thinking when I volunteered???? But we got it done and the couple is happily married. The bride was our flower girl 12.5 years ago.

Lee is at camp this week. Greg and I rented Alvin and the Chipmunks from PPV this evening. It is such a cute movie.

I am working on my schedule and school stuff for next year. August will be here before you know it. We are bummed that the heavy rains cost us our sweet corn, green beans and other stuff. I really need to get out there and weed what is left. So much for stocking up! We will make do with what we get and be thankful for it. I feel blessed that our area only experienced temporary flooding. So many others are facing the loss of their crops and their homes. God will provide for us!

I hope to be back more frequently! If you are looking for some interesting reading, you can check out Candy's blog. She has been posting about have a joyful attitude no matter what your circumstances.

Have a good night!