Our Curriculum Reveal

Well, it's HERE! Pretty much everything we need. I am so thankful and grateful that we were able to get all the books that I really wanted. I am going to be going through all the teacher's guides in the coming weeks and formulating our plans.

We have also chosen the following theme for our school this year...

STEWARDS OF THE LAND

I am hoping that this is evident by the curricula that I have chosen and through our emphasis on geography, history, the earth, and science. I want my children to have an appreciation for who we are, what transpired to get to this point, and what we must do in the future to protect the earth and it's history.

Here is everything all together...

Language Arts

We will be continuing on with the Explode the Code series and the Handwriting Without Tears series which I have previously posted about. There are two components that I have not yet ordered but will be doing so in the coming weeks. They are the Grammar, Spelling, and Writing programs from JacKris Publishing and a classical language program called English from the Roots Up. We don't need either right to start to I wasn't as concerned to order them right away. 

Mathematics

For mathematics our eldest will be starting the Math U See Alpha. Math was always a difficult subject for me so I am determined to give my children the best grasp of mathematics as I can. I am not going to rush through it and try to hit certain levels at certain times. That is not my concern. Rushing the concepts and the idea of "being behind" are not part of my homeschool. We reach milestones at our own pace. Come January though our middle one will be starting the Primer version to coincide with him turning five. 

Bible Study

Our Bible Study is the Great Adventure Kids which I have also previously blogged about receiving. 

History

I chose The Story of the World. Out of all the history programs I looked at this one best fit what I was looking for. This year we are starting with the Ancient Times. In years coming up we will be able to also follow the Middle Ages and Modern Ages. It is done storybook style. I chose to order the main paperback as well as the test book, the activity book and the audio cds. They also refer to the two Usborne encyclopedias on the top so I ordered those as well. 

Geography

For Geography we are going to follow A Child's Geography of the World Volume 1. This particular volume focuses on the physical geography of the earth. It is all about Exploring His Earth. In future years we will work through volume 2 (The Holy Land) and volume 3 (The Classical World). 

Canadian Studies

Our Canadian studies curriculum is quite possibly my favourite out of everything I ordered. Okay, not possibly, it IS! Being a Canadian I am big on knowing about our country. I did order the text Canada, My Country last year but it just wasn't the same without all the supplemental books, so this year we bit the bullet and ordered the all inclusive package (which also means each boy gets their own activity text). The resources included in this package are truly magnificent. I am thrilled with the collections of books on the provinces and the regional animals. There is the atlas, map, and card game. The picture book and story of the flag and Terry Fox are awesome. The best part?? The books to read with the kids, we can cuddle up and learn all about our country by reading stories that ring true to those who live in the different areas of our beautiful Canada. Ah, I love it!

Science

I am quite excited about our science this year. We are going with Intro to Science from Elemental Science. I posted previously about a great customer experience with them. This curriculum relies a lot on experimentation as well as the importance of nature study. I ordered the Instructor guide as well as two student books. I also opted to order the suggested supplemental resources and I am very happy that I did. They are all books I am pleased to have as part of our "library". 

Environmental Awareness

Here is our environmental awareness. In my previous post I also spoke  about ordering this set of materials. We opted for a family membership. I truly feel that all families, homeschooling or not, should go through the action guide. We are at pivotal points with our environmental history colliding with the future of the earth, all children (and adults) need to learn the importance of caring for our planet. 

In addition to the curriculum I ordered we have these as supplemental resources:

and for literature sake we have a lot of this...

We have quite a collection. Chapter books, early readers (some Dick and Jane even), picture books, books from different series, books from different characters (hello Pigeon and Scaredy Squirrel). You can also see we have some Star Wars, Bible stories, and a collection of Christmas books. And I SWEAR this shelf was organized two days before. 

I am also looking at some extra activities for outside the home. I am thinking about getting the boys into dance (like Jazz/Tap style). I am leery of them going into any martial arts (they'll just use it on each other). We are hoping to get a family membership soon for a fantastic local health/gym facility so we can keep up our level of physical activity through the winter. We also already have a family membership to our local museum so on days when it gets really bad outside we will take solitude in the Planetarium, Science Centre, and travel through time in the museum's Main Gallery. 

Additionally I have to hide in shame while I say that I am a libraryphobe. My kids are loud and librarians intimidate me. However I am pledging to take the kids to library this year, get them their own cards. Instead of fearing that that will turn the whole place topsy turvy I am going with the attitude that they will learn an important skill...being quiet ;) . I'll call the library before hand and set up a time where the librarian can give us a bit of an orientation so we know where to go, where to look, and what programs they offer that will suit us. PLUS I am hoping to meet some other homeschooling families there, I'll keep my eyes peeled for mum's with multiple school aged kids there in the middle of the day. 

What's Mummy Learning This Year?

Last year I posted a bit about what I was going to do along with the kids. Sadly I didn't get as much done personally as I had hoped so I will keep trudging away with my own spiritual studies and advancing of my own knowledge.

I do have one educational trick up my sleeve though. It all depends on financing but if things work out I will be applying to do a distance education nutritionist certification program. I am very EXCITED and PUMPED about taking that direction in my own education. It isn't set in stone yet as tuition is pricy but if things keep going as they have I am confident I will be starting my own studies before the new year. Can't. Wait. 

This about wraps it up. If I could add anything else it would be some education on the body and health but I think they are getting a lot of that already just through living. They know what is healthy, they know what is not. We'll get there.

Oh, and school supplies. Yep, I have to make a school supplies list. So far fat pencils and crayons are big on the list and the boys both LOVE those those pens with the five different colours. And paper, reams and reams and reams....

Oh, and a lesson planner. Must find a lesson planner. It never ends does it? 

If you made it this far KUDOS. I'm a wordy gal. I know it is just August 1st but I am so happy to have so much of this already taken care of. If you are searching for homeschool curriculum or sending your youngins off to school in a few short weeks I wish you all a wonderful and blessed start to a new "school year".

Orders Are Arriving

Yippee!! We've had a few orders arrive for our curriculum the last few days. It's all so shiny and new and I really love what I have chosen so far.

At this point we have had one set of supplemental science books arrive (plus a few board books for the little missy), our Math U See order, our labels (Mabel you rock!), as well as our environmental awareness information.

I would like to take a moment to mention what I am speaking about when I mention environmental awareness. When I was a child/tween I guess, it was the early days of recycling and push for environmental awareness (or it seemed that way to my child mind). At that time there was a small organization called Kids For Saving Earth (KSE for short). It was started by a young boy who went to the hands of God at an early age, but his time on earth was spent well as he lived his passion for taking care of the earth. His young message resonated with me as it was coming from a child to a child. To this day I have always remember the little KSE book I had as a kid and because I loved it so much (I seriously went through two at least from flipping through them so much). So I wanted to see if they were still around. THEY WERE!! And they have kits for different groups, families, and schools. I bought for us the family membership which cost $15 and included a whole selection of materials (activity books, cds, sheet music for their song, and certificates/pledges). There are several types of memberships (the individual is even FREE). Check out the KSE site for more information and to order a membership package of your own!  

Everything else is shipped or otherwise soon to be in our hands. Elemental Science, a few other science books, plus our world history and geography (both texts and supplemental books). I have had some great experiences already from both Elemental Science and Christian Book.

Based on my experience with Elemental Science I would suggest if you are in Canada to place an order by phone to get a proper shipping rate. The shipping on the web site was pricy but the books for well priced so I bit the bullet anyways. I was highly impressed when a representative emailed me saying they'd like to SAVE ME MONEY on the shipping, and they arranged a lower shipping cost, as well as THREW IN A STUDENT BOOK FOR FREE!! Within minutes I had a $30 refund to my paypal! I would say that gets an A+++ in the customer service department.

I was even able to order our Canadian Studies curriculum from Northwoods Press yesterday. This is really the piece de resistance of our curriculum choices. The books selections included in the bundle are amazing and very much in line with books I would want in our library to begin with. Seeing as it's shipping from inside Canada (I think Ontario) then it shouldn't be too long of a wait.

I do have another cart waiting for checkout from Christian Book but it is more so books for me, a few things for my own spiritual development so I'll be waiting on that for a while before I can finish it.

I am guessing (hoping, praying, fingers and toes crossed) that a lot of our material arrives next week. Fun mail week COMING UP!!. The latest I should have the most of everything is early August (perhaps the 2nd, but it's not like I'm obsessing on tracking or anything). I can't wait to take pictures of it all to share with you. I am really happy that we chose the direction we did. While I hemmed and hawed over and over again purchasing the Sonlight curriculum I feel that what I have chosen will give us the depth and variance of knowledge that I am looking for.

If you are a homeschooler like I am have you ordered or chosen yet? Please share some of your selections! If you AREN'T a homeschooler do you order books online for yourself? Are you an amazon addict like me?

Mini Update

Sometimes is feels like the days go by ever so slowly yet somehow the weeks fly by in a blur. We keep it real busy around our place. It is a little chaotic at times but we balance it with our family downtime as well.

Today though I just wanted to give an update on some goings on around here:
-I am busy working on my web site project, due to hopefully facebook launch in a few more weeks.
-We have ordered up the Bible curriculum (Great Adventure Kids).
-Things continue to progress with the renovation business, Daddy walking away from the previous company has been an amazing opportunity for us. Now he has the freedom to all his own work
-I have been working on the music for words I wrote in the early winter and I really have something great cooking, makes me cry every time I play it.

Something Big:
I have signed up to participate in the bodybuilding.com Strong to the Cor Challenge, big money at stake, participants judged by their transformation as well as their use of the bodyblogs and body space and workout tracking. So far really enjoying it! I also noticed only about 4500 people on the bodygroup for the challenge which means only about 4500 competitors, probably half men and half women. I'm going to work my literal butt off and hopefully WIN!!!! KMFX!!!!

Little Hurdles:
-We have some serious issues with our vehicles, the van and truck both need work done, and new tires.  That means big money. Good thing the business is doing well.

Things I am still waiting on:
-Ordering the items to make all the soaps and such. I have revised my cart so many times over and over but I think I have a manageable amount of this to begin. If successful I'll order more.

Hoping to do soon:
-I have a lovely green wool I'd like to use to make something summery. Found the perfect pattern yesterday (a lacey cowl) so hopefully I can start that soon.
-Get some pretty flowers for the pots we have for outside. Hopefully no one steals my plants this year :/
-Get the string lights and the bird feeder up in the back yard. Daddy needs to zip tie it all down. See previous point :/

Over and out :)

Bath Fizzies, Soaps, and Soaks OH MY

In my last post I spoke about getting healthier through what we put on, in, and around our bodies. Part of this is having to go the DIY route. While in the past we have cleaned up our act a bit by purchasing more environmentally friendly cleaners and body washes and soaps I feel we need to go that one step further.

By going the more DIY way I am hoping that it will save us some money down the road as well. I currently don't have the items I need to go about making my own body and household cleaners so I am going to have to do some investing. If there is one thing that I have discovered so far about doing things yourself is that you must invest at the start to reap the rewards later.

Luckily I have found a company online (located in BC) that specializes in selling exactly what I need. I have an order made up and hopefully can push the buy button in the next few days. I am really really excited.

Here is what I plan to order so far:
Essential Oils (eucalyptus, peppermint, grapefruit)
Fragrance Oils (muscle and joint blend, island tropics sampler pack, green tea)
Shea Butter Rebatch Soap
Calendula Petals
Calendula Oil
Jojoba Oil
Citric Acid
Epsom Salts
Dead Sea Salts
Goat Milk Powder
Surfactant Powder
Love/Faith/Hope Soap Mold
Witch Hazel Spray

I really had to reign myself in because the web site has so many fabulous ideas. I really wanted the pink rose petals and buds, and some herbs, and some clay powders, and, and, and.... But only so much at once. If all things work out well I will definitely place another order to play around with colours and herbals and such. It would be interesting to see how far I can go with this. I could make lotions, bubble bars, even candles.

Using all these ingredients my project horizon is:
Shea Butter Soap with Calendula and Jojoba oils (for Max's poor eczema)
Soothing Muscle Soak (for Daddy, he works so hard, he deserves a special relaxing treat)
Bath Fizzies (a variety, some with calendula added, some with essential oils added)

The essential oils I will also be able to use randomly for cleaning, for diffusing, putting on dryer balls, and many other things I am sure I can come up with. I am just getting started with learning about all the wonderful properties of essential oils.

All together with shipping my order *should* come to roughly $100. However I am hoping that this investment will last us a while. Especially considering that dropping $100 at Lush (one of my fav places) would only yeild a few bath bombs and soaps. Each thing I am ordering is in a small quantity (so I can test it out without buying a massive amount) but even those small quantities seem to be able to be broken down and used in several projects or in several batches of the same thing.

It seems my childhood fascination with playing with soaps and lotions (lotions and potions my family called them) may just serve me well.

The excitement of going down this path has me simply giddy. I can't wait to order and to receive and to make, and then of course, tell you all about it :)

Down A Healthier Path

As I have continued down my weight loss path we have made a lot of food changes. We have become a much more active family. And in doing this we have also found a wealth of information that takes us further into the rabbit hole of healthy living.

It is really quite surprising how simple one can live healthy. Step number one is definitely what you put into your body, that is the foundation. Step number two is what you put ON your body. Step number three is what you expose yourself to around your body. Lastly, what you put into your mind.

All these elements in, on, around, are what greatly affect your overall health. I am talking full physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. These aspects work cohesively together. When one part is down the rest get down.

When it comes to the body though we are doing ourselves so wrong. As I took away the chemicalized and processed foods from our diet I started looking more and more into the chemicals in other things around us. That has led to yet another shift in thinking.

Our skin is the body's largest organ. And we put chemicals on it. Every day. We wash ourselves with chemicals, we clean our homes with chemicals, we wash our clothes with chemicals. It is baffling how much out there is just....I don't even want to think about it.

Then we use different products to compensate for other things our body is missing. Low fat diet? Dry hair? Get whatever new chemical is going to give you softer hair. I am being 100% sarcastic there by the way.

While I am in no way perfect with any of this I can trying very hard to seek out as much information as I can on more natural and DIY living. Luckily living in the time of the amazing internets there are thousands of like minded individuals who I can learn from.

A massive change for me was discovering the Village Green Network. It was like I stumbled upon an amazing collection of bloggers. For realz. That is exactly what it is. A group of bloggers that share recipes for all things natural and DIY living. I am on the road and they have the map.

So far I have learned the following things:

-Essential Oils are the bomb yo
-Baking Soda rules
-Vinegar rocks

Funny enough with those three things you can replace pretty much every cleaning chemical in your home. While essential oils do carry their own risks by their nature alone when used properly they can be used in AND on the body. I am still in the research phase but the other day I washed my floor with water, baking soda, and tea tree oil and WOW it was the best thing ever.

I am also in the phase of discovering the amazing properties of coconut oil. While I LOVE it in all things baking I haven't ventured with it too much into what it can do for the body with topical application but there are many, many suggestions on how to use it (deodorant? toothpaste?). You can make body and cleaning products literally good enough to eat.

On the docket for my first DIY projects are going to be some basic household cleaning products, getting some soap nuts for laundry, making our own bath bombs, plus a whole host of other ideas. Even the fact that I can knit (sort of) and sew (again, sort of) fits quite well here. Some of these are even going to be great homeschool projects. I'm a modern pioneer over here.


So if you are asking yourself what you can do to improve your health in these areas I say get rid of anything and everything synthetic. That means foods, cleaning agents, unnecessary medications, and anything else that is causing you more harm.

Heal your body and mind and home. These are things that are making me very happy.

One Week Left

Last week I turned out being not as high as I thought and this week I accomplished a nice loss (my gain and then some).

There is only one week left. I am biting my fingernails. I am so close but there are a few others that are so close as well. I am going to work hard this week and whatever happens happens. Those that worked hard deserve to win. It is not an indication on how hard I worked. I know for myself where I really pulled through and I know where I wavered a bit.

I'm putting the hammer down on myself even further. Do not fear I am not doing anything crazy. I'm not seriously restricting calories. I'm not expending myself more than what is safe. I'm just being very obedient and disciplined to the plan. It is good practice really because what I am doing now I really think is what I'll have to do to maintain once I hit goal. I also have to pretty much say buh bye to my weekly points and really only EVER use them for special occasions. I am at the point of making healthy enough choices and planning choices in advance that even if I HAVE to get something while out I am more than prepared for it. 

Overall though I'm pretty happy. I'm down to 170.4. The major push for the last 20 lbs is certainly on. By the end of April I plan to be at the 150 I am aiming for. Can't wait to get there. I am feeling very confident about the next two months.

Day Before Weigh In

Tomorrow is weigh in day and I know I am not going to be surprised. I am a devoted weigh myself every morning type of person. While I know that isn't recommended I know that for me personally I need daily affirmation or daily guilt to keep me on track. Therefore I am not going to be surprised when I see the numbers this week higher than last week.

So all this week despite being 90% on target with everything I am still up. What is up with that?? It will be a big shocker to me tomorrow if I am actually down. And I'm not just going to be up a little bit, I'm going to be up by at least a few lbs. Perhaps my scale needs a smack, it has been acting drunk lately. Either that or a new battery.

We only have three weigh ins to go (including tomorrow) to finish up this latest biggest loser challenge and this is so not the time for some kind of silly yoyo plateau (rolling hills if you will). Really. It frustrates me because I have worked hard for every challenge and yet never win. If I weren't stagnating right now I could win. At this point though I really don't know. As of the latest numbers the leader is at about 9% loss for the round while I am sitting at 7.82. In order for me to win I need to knock off 6-8 lbs in the next two weeks which well, really isn't realistic. Maybe I can hope my biggest competitor has a slip up week or plateaus herself. Wishful thinking.

It has been difficult for me mentally as well because I am working out hard every day. I am for the most part being very diligent with my eating. I go off track sometimes regarding food choices but even then I still religiously stay within my points ranges. At this point my working out is actually working against me. What I lose in fat I am gaining in muscle which is a big part of why the numbers get funny. Too bad the competition wasn't based on inches lost as opposed to weight lost.

As it stands now I have only 25 lbs left to go to reach my overall goal. I am vey proud of the progress I have made. After this challenge I really will only have one more round to go and that one may prove to be the hardest as I get closer to my goal.

I am reminding myself that biggest loser challenges will come and go. I am in this for the fitness and healthy eating lifestyle long haul. Heck, I've even started drinking veggie fruit shakes in the evening. Still it would be nice to win, I really do need to buy some new runners.

But biggest loser challenge aside I still say I am doing very well. My choices get better every day. My body is getting toned more and more each workout I do. I am coming up to that last 25 lb push and I am really going to push. I have a plan and I am implementing it every day.

2013: Onward and Upward

While Christmas was awesome the very end of 2012 and the very beginning of 2013 has been slightly less than stellar. A nasty cold bug has claimed all of us. We came home from the farm to find our basement sewer drain is broken. The coffee maker inexplicably doesn't work. Then yesterday morning, new years day, my plans of making waffles was thwarted by plugged up sinks. But I say whatevs. Those are all still first world problems. We can buy medicine for our colds, I can drink tea instead of coffee, and as long as I don't let out much water at a time we can temporarily see past the sewer drain problem.

Thus I say ONWARD AND UPWARD. I see a many great things coming our way. If we focus on our plans and dreams then any other road blocks just become bumps in the grand scheme of things.

Here are my predictions for 2013...

-A lot of craftiness coming down the pipe. With my new found love of knitting and rekindled relationship with my sewing machine and my addiction to Pinterest I see so many projects. Where sewing is concerned there is potential for  curtains, slipcovers for the sofa, cute outfits for Evelyn (a great use for my stash of fat clothes), and quilts for all. Then there is the knitting of scarves and leg warmers, and gloves oh my. I put love into my cooking so why not throw some love into the things we wear and also dress our house with.

-Continued progress on my health and fitness goals. I started the new year at 179. I took my measurements today as well (Bust 39.5, Waist 37.5, Hips 45.5). I kicked off 2013 yesterday by starting the 30 Day Shred over again but this time with my new 8 lb dumbbells. With my workout DVD collection and the Sworkit and C25K apps there is no excuse for getting bored. My inlaws also moved into a new condo with a pool...hello free lap swimming. Don't forget about what fuels the body too. While we don't consume a lot of processed food there is still a lot of progress to made in the clean eating department. This will be an ongoing challenge for the future.

-More consistent blogging. I have so many posts that I don't finish and don't publish. I have a lot of ideas of things I want to blog on. I am thinking a lot on how to narrow down what topics I speak on. I want to provide more information from things I have learned. The trouble is fitting in when to write. That brings me to the next point.

-More organized living. We need to purge so much from this house. We need to bring less and less into this house. I already pitched a few bags of junk yesterday. Thankfully the Ikea opened a month and a bit ago so I am making plans on how all of this will happen. I also want to have our time more organized. In general I want to organize our lives so that there is less time wasted and more time spent just being together and doing the things we enjoy (such as blogging).

-MUSIC!! The tribute act that Daddy is in has garnered a lot of interest. So far they are signed to an agency already with other agencies on the horizon. We could potentially be looking at some big life changes come March. I also would like to further my musical education, work on my technique and theory to the point where I could do RCM grade 9 practical and harmony exams. That is just something in the back of my mind.

-Potty Training for Evelyn. She is showing some definite signs of readiness. Perhaps in another few months we will order up some cloth trainers and get that ball rolling.

-Continued homeschooling. Fall somewhat came and left and seemed like it was one long big sick day. Sadly we got nowhere in terms of what I had planned. The new year though gives us an opportunity to change some ideas, scrap a few things, and focus on a few others.

-Renovations and upgrades for the home. Our house is old. Over 100 years old. It is in much need of a makeover and not just a mani pedi either. The insides needs some upgrading, specifically the furnace and the finicky hot water tank (which likes to leak pour from the pressure valve every so often). Carpets need to be ripped up and floors either refinished or painted. Walls need to be painted. The back room has been on hiatus for almost two years. The bathroom could use some renovating. Then there is the kitchen. None of this comes cheap either so we will chip away at things as best we can. I envision a much nicer and more comfortable living space near the end of 2013.

So those are all the BIG things that I see coming up. There are also some smaller things I would like. More trips to the bulk food store. More tea. A new coffee maker. A new book series to read (specifically the Lily Bard Series by Charlaine Harris). A new printer (to replace the broken one). Bunk beds for the boys and a toddler bed for baby girl. Possibly throw in a some new bedroom and school room furniture (again woot woot for the newly opened Ikea).

In the immediate future we have Max's 4th birthday coming up and on Monday we will be "back to school". Oh yeah and that pesky basement plumbing issue to take care of.

 It is going to be a big year for sure. Onward and upward I say. Wishing the best to all of you in 2013.

Finally...A Christmas Post

I have been trying to write a dang Christmas post for well, pretty much most of December, and then again the last few days. I am going to finally try to hammer it out short and sweet (not usually my style, I'm a rambler).

In a nutshell...IT WAS AWESOME. But I have never had a Christmas that wasn't stellar. A good Christmas includes the right amounts of family fun time, tasty food, thoughtful gifts, and of course some spiritual reflection.

Leading up to Christmas we had some fun activities, art and crafts and little outings. There was the setting up of the tree. The making of the gingerbread house. Of course there was also the Fort Garry Brunch. We had a Christmas light drive. And because I am a smart Christmas shopper there was very little time spent in the malls. I enjoyed a few Starbucks holiday treats and snagged a few Davids Tea Christmas teas.

Christmas itself was the usual run down. Mass in the city with the kids early. Load up and drive to the farm. This year we managed to get to the farm even before the rest of the family was back from Mass in small town. I got the appy's fired up and once we were all together on the farm the Christmas Eve noshing began. Before bed we all stuffed each others stockings with some goodies. I even came up one more trip later to switch my mum's stuffers into the stocking that I made fore her. That and also set out some prezzies from Santa. Daddy put out the cookies and milk and the boys were met with a special treat in the morning...a note from Santa.

Christmas morning was perfect. We went through our stockings first. Marvelled over the awesomeness. My mum loved her stocking. My sister wore her headband I made her all morning. The kids LOVED their trinkets and toys and of course their Santa presents. Viktor received Luke Angry Bird and  an exclusive Angry Bird K'Nex Set. Max received a Batman costume set complete with cape, mask, chest plate and a stocked utility belt. Evelyn was treated to a Merida doll (from the Brave movie, we love it). I wish I could list everything the kids and us received in our stockings but with the immense generosity in our family it would be a pretty big list.

After the stocking carnage we always have breakfast. My mum makes this stuff called Land of Nod bread. She also always has those little boxed sugary cereals for the kids. There were boiled eggs and fruit. There was coffee, of course coffee. Once, after what seemed like forever (and not for just the kids) breakfast was finished and we moved into the family room where the tree and big show were. Everyone grabbed a spot and then the passing out of gifts began. Once all were given the opening began. The kids each got a perfect ratio of clothes to toys to games to books. One of my favourite gifts was the aerial framed photo of the farm. My sisters and I each received one. We brought home some pretty cool stuff. A clump o lump. A Perplexus. A few new Wii games (Hot Wheels and Brave). A stack of gift cards. Toms shoes for the kids. Star Wars stuff. Three pairs of jingle bells. A 4 in 1 grill. And a partridge in a pear tree. No not really that but you get the picture. That is just scratching the surface. Christmas in our family has always been a big deal.

Christmas day lunch is always fend for yourself. I fended for myself by making up a plate of leftover goodies from the night before. In the afternoon we mostly just sat around and played with and went through all the new stuff. I LOVE going through all the presents and thinking about how perfect and thoughtfully picked everything was. My family is full of generosity. Viktor and I set up his K'Nex set and it wasn't long until it was knocked down by the Angry Birds. At least it was set up to the directions once. My younger sister had a nap with Evelyn, my dad started his Double Double book that we got him. We also got in a FaceTime session with my older sister in Victoria.

It wasn't long until it was time to start cooking again. Christmas dinner was the usual. I love the usual. There is a lot of comfort in normality. We had turkey, dressing, potatoes, rutabaga, peas and carrots, baked perogies (in cream and butter and fried onions), sweet and sour meatballs, coleslaw, and can't forget the jello salad. My sister and I thought did give mum a hard time about no Angela's dessert though, only half joking though, we did miss the Angel's dessert. There was a very tasty lemon and lime torte for dessert.

After dinner we had our 2nd annual family bingo. The Sanfords cleaned house and took home all the prizes (except one which Rachael got). The grand prize was a whoopee cushion which Max won. My mum also read the kids one of their new Christmas stories. It wasn't long until everyone was ready for bed after a long and excitement filled day.

On boxing day we spent the morning getting things sorted around and repacked. Lunch was turkey and fixins leftovers. After lunch we loaded up the van and started the drive home. It is always nice to get home after being away a few days. While I love going to the farm there are stressful elements so being home is always more relaxing than the time away.

The last few days have mostly been lazing around home. We did have one trip out to spend some of our gift cards. I used my Davids Tea card to buy a little teapot and cup set. Daddy used his Mark's card to get a new pair of shades and a new wallet (he said something about starting a new year with a new wallet). I still have a Joe card and iTunes card left to use up.

Two things that have super sucked since coming home are:

A) Our sewer drain pipe has an issue. It is either broken completely or backed up or the top piece is broken. Either way it is going to cost a lot to fix. Either way it means we are on low low water usage. We aren't major water users in the first place but it mostly means limiting how much goes down the drain. Too much and we get overflowage. Looks like 2013 will be the year of a plumbing repair (in addition to an updated furnace and hot water tank).

B) We are sick. Like SICK. Each kid has cycled through the fever. We are all coughing, and sneezing, and sniffling, and congested messes. So far it has hit Max the hardest, poor guy was up to a fever of 103.5. Seems like the fevers have broken though. I'll be making up some hot lemonade soon.

Today is Daddy's first day back at work in a week. It was nice having him with us straight for that long. It will be nice too though to get back into our routine. I haven't worked out in about a week and the house needs to get back to it's regular daily mess (as opposed to holiday mess).

Oh and if you are wondering if Santa was good to me? Well, I was spoiled as usual. Daddy, I mean Santa, brought me a new pair of 8 lb dumb bells, the Brave Wii game (which I only have one level left) and a special something sparkly, a lovely Swarovski bracelet that is the perfect combo of rocker and sophisticated.

Just a few more days and we will be hitting the New Year. I am looking forward to 2013.

Old Timey Rhymes

A few nights ago I was laying down with Evelyn getting her to sleep and as per usual Max and Vik crawled in as well. Some nights I turf them back to their room and other nights I am content to let them snuggle in. This happened to be one of those nights.

The boys wanted a story but Eve was just about asleep so I wasn't going to be flipping on any lights at that point. It was dark and quiet and even my eyes were already closed. As I laid there I started to recite some songs and poems from my childhood. I am talking some golden oldies here. I thought I would share some of those classics here.

Five Little Monkeys (apparently there is controversy with this one, who knew??)

5 Little monkeys jumping on the bed, one fell off and bumped his head, mama called the doctor the doctor said, no more monkeys jumping on the bed.
4 Little monkeys jumping on the bed, one fell off and bumped his head, mama called the doctor the doctor said, no more monkeys jumping on the bed.
3 Little monkeys jumping on the bed, one fell off and bumped his head, mama called the doctor the doctor said, no more monkeys jumping on the bed.
2 Little monkeys jumping on the bed, one fell off and bumped his head, mama called the doctor the doctor said, no more monkeys jumping on the bed.
1 Little monkeys jumping on the bed, one fell off and bumped his head, mama called the doctor the doctor said, no more monkeys jumping on the bed.

Miss Polly Had A Dolly (lack of historical info...it MUST be old)

Miss Polly had a dolly who was sick sick sick
So she called for the doctor to come quick quick quick
The doctor came with his bag and his hat
And knocked on the door with a rat tat tat
He looked at dolly and he shook his head
He said " Miss Molly put her straight to bed"
He wrote on a paper for a pill pill pill
"I'll be back in the morning with the bill bill bill"

Shortnin' Bread (written by James Whitcomb Riley in 1900. The song is much longer but these are the words that I remember)

Mamma's little baby loves shortnin' shortnin'
Mamma's little baby loves shortnin' bread
Get out the skillet, get out the pan, Mamma's gonna make some shortnin' bread

Mamma's little baby loves shortnin' shortnin'
Mamma's little baby loves shortnin' bread
Get out the butter, get out the jam, Mamma's little baby loves shortnin' bread

Polly put the Kettle On (originated in England late 1700s)

Polly put the kettle on, kettle on, kettle, on
Polly put the kettle on, we'll all have tea
Sukey take it off again, off again, off again
Sukey take it off again, they've all gone away

Peak 313 Challenge Check In #4

This won't be a long post today. Last week was a VERY laid back kind of exercise week for me. I think sometimes everyone just loses a bit of gusto and you have to allow yourself that. It is what keeps you from mentally and physically burning out. It is NOT something that I overly feel good about however it isn't like I can do anything about last week now.

I only got physical activity 4X last week. Well, maybe 4.5X is more accurate. I got in a couple walks with the kids. We also had a couple very fun dance parties. Now THAT is cardio. They love it, especially when the get picked up and spun and flipped around. On the Monday evening I was also able to fit in a run through of some strength intervals (that is where the 0.5 comes in).

I am coming up on the last week of this challenge. It is a bittersweet feeling really. I have thoroughly enjoyed the push, the spiritual aspect, and also blogging about and sharing it. I hope to finish this last week strong in both heart and spirit.

Speaking about strength of heart...that brings me to last week's verse which I will share and leave you with today...

"Above all else, guard you heart, for it is the wellspring of life."

Proverbs 4:23

Peak 313 Challenge Checkpoint #3

I was somewhat under the weather this past week which really threw a wrench into many of my plans. One thing I neglected to do was cut and paste up my Soul Food verse as I did in the first two weeks. If I had done that I am without a doubt positive that I would have been much better prepared to withstand all the horrible food cravings I caved to last week.

See, last week's verse was all about cravings. Today cravings are around us everywhere. Every day we have more and more thrown at us. This applies not just to food but to things, belongings, and even people. "The cravings in the world-the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes, and the boasting of what he has and does-comes not from the Father but from the world." 1 John 2:16. It is amazing what some little visual reinforcement can do especially when that reinforcement is coming from the Word of God.

However, while I felt horrible all week and made poor food choices I STILL EXERCISED!! I pulled through. I picked up my socks, pulled myself off the couch and got up and at it 4X this week. Not my usual five or six but all things considered that four times isn't too shabby.

Monday- 1/2 hour interval jog (pushing that stroller again)

Tuesday-Yoga Meltdown DVD

Wednesday- OFF

Thursday-Music Video Exercise
This was a particularly fun thing to do. I just didn't feel like popping in the same old DVD and I am quite familiar with the majority of the moves so I made up my own circuits. The music video that Daddy made has three band mashups for a total of 5 minutes. This pretty much matched up perfectly with the interval system I am already familiar with. I chose my own cardio and strength and ab moves and worked through the video six times for a total of 30 minutes including my warm up and cool down. It was a lot of fun. I think I will do this a lot more often now.

Friday- OFF

Saturday- OFF

Sunday- 70 minute walk + 15 minutes strength

This week marks checkpoint three for the challenge. I can't believe it is already over half over. I hope it doesn't take long for another challenge to pop up. I love the additional motivation and accountability that it provides. I have a new verse to print off and I am praying to knock off five workouts this week.

Time to get Living And Active!

Peak 313 Challenge Check in #2

Today is check in #2 for the Peak 313 LivingActive challenge. I exercised 5/7 days last week with a mix of cardio and weights. So far I am feeling stronger both physically and spiritually. I really enjoy the "Soul Food" that goes along with each week. Last week's verse was,

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.

 Each day has enough trouble of its own"

Matthew 6:34

How true is that!??!?! So each day I focused on the exercise/workout/jog at hand. I didn't worry about what I couldn't do the day before. I didn't worry about how I would fit in fitness the next day. I even took the verse to heart for every moment. If I had to drop weights in Rep 1 I didn't worry about it and when Rep 2 came up I gave it even more. I have been learning lately to really let go of worry and to put myself into God's hands more. Amazing things happen when I am in God's hands.

As far as exercise went here is a quick breakdown:

Monday- Level One Extreme Shed & Shred

Tuesday - Level Two 30 Day Shred

Wednesday- 1/2 hour fast walk (pushing stroller)

Thursday- 1/2 hour interval jog (pushing stroller)

Friday- OFF

Saturday- Level Four Ripped in 30

Sunday- OFF

As you can see I took two OFF days this past week. Not so much intentionally but because I was literally OFF on both those days. My schedule and routine were whacked and I didn't get make the opportunities. This week I am really going to try to hit up six days again. Today feels like a jog kind of day, I may possibly round it out with some arms work. 

I have a new verse for this week too, it's a good one. It's about cravings (as I eat my square of chocolate). I look forward to sharing it with you next week. 

Homeschool Mother's Journal

IIIIIIIIIIt's Homeschool Mother's Journal Time.

In our homeschool this week...as usual I do a separate blog post on this. I do that almost more of a way for me to keep track. Plus I like the idea of being able to look back on my thoughts on how each week went. It is a learning process for me as well. In short, we had a bit of a lazy week but in the end some great seeds were sewn and we will be ready to get back at 'er on Monday. For a longer description please check out Homeschool This Week (Sept. 17-21).

Places we're going and people we're seeing...We saw our friend the geologist this week. He brought over some very neat and shiny rocks for the boys to check out to help introduce our earth science. Evelyn kept trying to pocket the fool's gold. It went over very well. We also had some nice evening outings that included fall evening walks, hazelnut lattes (for me of course) and pit stops at the park. 

My favourite thing this week...stocking up on tea. I am a bit of a tea nut. I love finely flavoured loose teas. I happen to live in decently close proximity (15 minute walk/5min drive) to a fabulous tea store in Canada. If you live in Canada and have a David's Tea nearby you MUST get there. I had intended on only restocking two of my favourites and trying one new but as usual I couldn't restrain myself. I restocked three (Pumpkin Chai, Fantasy Island, and Salted Caramel). Then I just HAD to check out their Fall teas. I picked up Banana Nut Bread (which has real banana chips in it) as well as Toasted Marshmallow. I have already made myself a Toasted Marshmallow latte and it was AMAZING! I drink tea on average two to three times a day so I go through it a lot. 

Things I'm working on...operation get the junk out of the house. It is pretty simple really. I am going through all those deep dark tucked away spaces (like closets and and basement corners of boxes and bins). I turfed out a contractor size garbage bag full of stuff yesterday. That was JUST from our bedroom closet alone. 

I'm reading...Colossians. I am enjoying the Good Morning Girls study so much. So far I am finding it affirming, refreshing, and inspiring. 

I'm cooking...hamburger soup for supper tonight. Mmmmm. I have the nice parmesan to sprinkle on top and we picked up a couple mini multigrain baguettes to go with. Totally perfect for the cold, gloomy, and rainy last few days we have had. It also makes a TON of leftovers so I am happy to have lunch tomorrow covered. 

I'm grateful for...my wonderful husband. Not a day goes by where I don't tell him how much I love and appreciate everything he does for us. He works in the sun and heat for us and in the snow and cold for us. Today he is out their in the wind and rain. A part of him enjoys his job but a greater part I know wishes he were already out on the road touring. All in due time. All in due time. 

I'm praying for...patience. Oh man do I need it. If I keep it in the forefront of my mind I do much better. It is so easy though to lose one's cool when one child if driving his hot wheels on the tops of canned goods, one is whining about not getting the cereal they wanted (which was already in the cart btw), and the baby is literally trying to scale her way out of the cart. I survived. And decided that shopping carts should also come with shoulder straps in addition to waist straps. 

I'll close it off with the last question...A photo to share...this was my view from the kitchen the other night. I love being able to look over and see my family enjoying the music. 

Homeschool This Week (Sept. 17-21)

It's Friday! That means it is time for another wrap up of our homeschool activities this week.

This week didn't have a whole lot going on. It became a bit more of a learning by living kind of week. We had a variety of things going on so I figured we would just flow with it.

Monday began with a visit from a dear friend. Hold tight and I'll quickly explain. He is one of my sister's besties. His dad is our dad's bestie. His dad is my Godfather. We chose him to be Max's Godfather (along with my sister as Godmother). Not only is he a friend BUT he is also a geologist. He is a super cool guy. He goes on geological digs most of the year (except when a volunteer forest fire fighter in the summer). So when our dear friend the geologist came over he brought us some rocks. We learned about igneous rocks, deep mining, fools gold, differences between hard and soft rocks. The boys just kept firing questions and he kept answering. Next time he visits he plans to bring some other rocks samples for the boys to look at. It was a great way to kick off our earth studies. We followed up a little throughout the week with some reading of See Inside The Earth.

In general geography we continued making some more circles. It is going to be fun putting all of them together.

Throughout the rest of the week we remained a bit low key. We hit up math a few times. Viktor worked through more pages of basic addition in his workbook. I am finding that the more basic the question layout the better he understands it. We will be doing some additional worksheets to solidify before we move on for sure. Max worked on his Number 2 worksheets. He really likes getting right in there (for short bursts anyways) so I am always printing off a variety of sheets for him to do.

At first glance it seems as though we didn't do very much in the way of Language Arts. We have yet to really delve into the phonics curriculum. I am not overly concerned though. We do a lot of reading. They really enjoyed hearing A Prairie Alphabet. It is even a childhood favourite of mine. This book serves double duty as well with both lessons in both LA and Canadian Geography. There are other versions as well I look forward to nabbing such as A Mountain Alphabet. Viktor also does a TON of spelling and reading prep with all the Angry Birds stuff he does. It is CONSTANT! He knows more words than even he thinks he does.

Max did some letter B worksheets this week. Same kind of thing as his number worksheets. Keep a variety on hand and keep them coming. He blasts through them.

Music class this week was comprised of a few rock out sessions with Daddy. Sometimes we will crank the iTunes, Daddy plugs in and plays along, and we, well, rock out. The kids play air guitar, someone starts plunking on the piano, someone is dancing and someone is pretending that two pencil crayons are drumsticks on a bench.

In our Daily Wind Up Viktor continued to record the temperature, weather, and moon phase (picture), in our log book. It is really neat now being able to look through and see the moon phases like that. We also discovered some neat NASA videos that show us the September sky and what planets, constellations, and events we can see and when. Very cool. Viktor kept pausing and playing the video so he could draw it all. I also had to start a log book for Max. He was none too impressed that he didn't get to draw the moon (don't know what I was thinking there).

Today is Friday!! That means our week is also done. Today was a grocery day. I am going to start altering things so that Friday is a free day. I need the one day a week to do our grocery shopping and whatever else needs to be done. Stores on the weekend are busy enough that they don't need our level of crazy added. At first I felt kind of guilty that I wasn't getting that full five day week but now I just figure we can call it Life Skills Day. They help make the meal plan, they help make the shopping list, they help look and shop for the groceries and other necessities.

This weekend holds some a lot of house cleaning and some a lot of finishing off of a few things that we didn't fully get through this week. I have a few tracer pages for both of them in a few subjects and we need get in some more dino unit. I got an email from my parents and we know what they have been up to so this weekend we will begin piecing some things together poster board style. We may do some nature walks to collect a few items for upcoming art projects. Hopefully by Monday we are further ahead than we are behind. Here's hoping.

Is it just me or is it really scary how fast September is going by??

Homeschool Mother's Journal Entry

This is my second Homeschool Mother's Journal Entry. I am already enjoying these. I enjoy the element of introspection. I normally don't have too much trouble looking within and deciphering my levels of oddness but this is different. I get to delve a little bit deeper. Here are my answers for this week...

In my life...we bid my parents farewell as they go on a long journey overseas. They will be gone for a month and visiting China, Vietnam, and Cambodia. We will follow along with their itinerary and check out our atlas and the internet to see where they are and what they are doing. Voila! Following Grandma and Grandpa on their trip becomes a Geography Unit!

In our homeschool this week...overall everything went well. We made great progress in our social studies units and got into our math curriculum. For more on what we covered this week please read my post Homeschool This Week (Sept 10-14) or my School of the Rock page where I will be chronologically filing our Homeschool This Week posts.

I am inspired by...the beauty of fall. I've had to stash my Birkenstocks and bring out my moccasins. I think the duvets are next. I love sweaters and scarves and cool noses. Fall flavours, colours, smells, and textures are invading my home!! I <3 fall. Thank you God for Fall.

Places we're going and people we're seeing...just our regular errands and seeing regular people. Nothing extraordinary. One thing for sure though is that we try to spread smiles and happiness where we go. A walk to the grocery store needn't be a chore. There is a lot to be said for making a conscious effort to enjoy life.

My favourite thing this week was...finally seeing the finished promo video for the bands that Daddy plays in. The videos were simply awesome. We watch them every day. The kids love dancing and singing along and pointing out when Daddy is on screen.

Things I'm working on...time management. I look at the hours in the day and I look at what I have to accomplish and while I know there is enough time I just can't seem to get things into the right time slots or segments. It's a juggling game. I'm working on it though. Experimenting if you will with what works best for us. I am not seeking a strict schedule per se but more of a general routine. We'll get there. Slowly and steadily.

I'm grateful for...my dear friend Becky. We met online over a year ago. We got to meet in person this past Spring. We chat online frequently, sharing ideas and stories. We have bonded over our similar age babies, faith, and our choices to homeschool. This past week she also started a blog. Please pop over to Raising His Children and show my friend Becky some love.

I'm praying for...the upcoming week. That it be filled with love and peace not only for our family but for everyone out there in the big wide world.

Now it is time to go and spread some happiness :)

Homeschool This Week (Sept. 10-14)

This will just be a short little review of what we did during homeschool this week. During the week it seems like we do so much but when I look back after we are out of the thick of it it doesn't seem like we did much of anything. I know we did accomplish some things though. Some activities we flew through and some made me feel like beating my head against a wall. You win some, you lose some.

I am approaching September with a very lax attitude. Not lazy. Lax. We are going through our subjects at a nice easy pace. Introducing things gradually so as not to blow anyone's mind yet.

Language Arts
So far we are just doing a lot of reading together and a lot of me reading out loud to the boys. I like to think that we are creating an environment for reading enjoyment. I am adding more discussion after our reading. Getting a little reading comprehension in there. This coming week though brings the introduction of our phonics unit.

Math
We began working out of our math curriculum. This is something that will require A LOT of patience on my part. I could sense right away where I was pushing too much. I must also say that I have already seen where more reinforcement is necessary and acted appropriately and sourced additional worksheets which I was immediately told were "so much easier". It wasn't that they were easier but presented in a slightly different way. That just goes to show how much difference a delivery method can make. And once again one of the beauties of homeschool :)

Max on the other hand took to his worksheets right away. At his level he is simply colouring but the concepts are there and getting nestled in his grey matter in a subconscious kind of way.

Social Studies
As always, my favourite. We continued working through our "Who Am I/Where Am I" unit. We made our Neighbourhood, City, and Province circles and after another week they should be ready to be assembled.

We also began our Canadian Social Studies Curriculum. So far we have begun to learn how to spell Canada and sing our national anthem (which we sing every morning). The boys also coloured a map of Canada. I continue to be fascinated at how they approach things. While I imagined Vik colouring the map how I would (orderly with each Province a different colour) he took to drawing the ocean currents and what I presume is the Trans Canada Highway. It may look like a mass of scrawl on the page but I know what he is doing.

Our dinosaur unit proceeded as planed with reading another chapter of our book, learning to spell Pteranodon and other relevant words and colouring a few pictures of the creature.

Science
We did not delve into our Science this past week. I am gradually introducing subjects and concepts this month and next week will bring on some science. I do not want to overwhelm anyone, myself included.

Art
We did a few little crafts this week. So far we are tailoring most projects to represent the season/holiday. For now we are focusing on fall crafts. The boys really enjoyed their Fall Tree Craft. Any free drawing or colouring they did was Angry Birds or Batman. Go figure.

Music
Nothing cooler than watching your Dad's own music video for music class. That's all I'll say about that.

There it is. Our week in a nutshell. Not too shabby actually.

Before I close I would like to make mention of something totally cool I found this week. I found CUSTOMIZABLE TRACER PAGES!!!! How cool is that?? I am busily compiling a list of all the many words we will learn with this resource. So far we used it for learning to spell Canada and words for our Dino unit. Max is doing an amazing job with the tracer sheets. To get your own tracer pages go to http://www.kidzone.ws/tracers/none/index.asp. Happy Tracing!

Back At It

It is official. Our 2012-2013 homeschool year has kicked off. The boys are excited. I am jazzed. This is a journey that my children and I are taking together. Even just yesterday watching them learn together brought tears to my eyes. It was a strong affirmation that YES we are on the right path. YES this decision is still the right one.

I could say I was surprised by how well our first days went but I'm not so much surprised as I am relieved. I set fairly low expectations (in a good way). I know there is a lot for the boys to take in. Even in public and private school the first few days are all about review, going over curricula and gearing the students up. That is what the last few days has been. Gearing them up and they are right revved.

I have to say too that there has been significantly less whining and rough housing as well. The structure and routine suits the boys. They need more focus and this is going to help them get it. We are getting our groove and I already feel more confident than I did last year. Maybe I just feel more prepared (found a way to lesson plan that really works for me). 

The vision that I have for our homeschool is taking shape before me and I am loving it. In just a few days I can already tell what some ideal strategies will be for making our homeschool a successful place for learning.

Such as but not limited to:

-Doing Math and LA when Evelyn is sleeping (this requires more concentration from both the boys and myself and I don't want them to miss out on anything, plus when it comes to math manipulative time having Miss Grabby Hands napping is just wise).

-Don't force the day to start too soon. I once had this idea that I could get up by six and have school going by 8. Nope, not happening. Am I bummed? Not really. I don't mind the extra sleep, we can leisurely get up, have a nice breakfast, kids get some early morning energy out. It also makes no sense to be in the middle of things when Daddy is leaving for work. Once Daddy is gone we get ourselves started.

-Don't start the day too late. There is a fine line between too late and too soon. If we start too late the boys have lost their "school drive" and quite frankly so have I. For example we started later today so I skipped our Wind Up. That sucked and nothing else felt right or flowed. Seems as though 9:30/10 is the ideal time around here. 

-Keep activities and lessons short. I think the longest we can probably extend something is to twenty minutes, twenty-five minutes tops with a sweet spot of probably just fifteen. Anything longer than that and I have completely lost my audience. I also have to keep them engaged the whole time or I lose them. 

-Religion class will become an evening activity. I think. I am not 100% on this yet but I feel that bible readings and prayers and learning about our faith make a perfect wind down activity before bed. I like to think that filling their little heads about God and Jesus before bed will make for nice dreams. 

-Don't Cram! Ease Up! Lay Back! Don't forget that patience is a virtue. I have to constantly remind myself to be patient. The more I push the more they will push back. Knowing what and how to push something is becoming a fine art and I am becoming a skilled painter. 

-Let go of perfection. Vik likes to do goofy things when working on sheets. He likes to do it his way. It may say make an X over something but he likes to circle it instead. It won't be unusual to see an angry bird midway through a line of 5s. I know that. I accept that. That is him and I accept him unconditionally. We can work through that. 

With those observations out of the way, how about a bit of a run down of what we did during our first three days. 

Wednesday

My sister had the boys for a sleepover on Tuesday evening (she took them to a corn maze the lucky ducks!).

I picked them up Wednesday around noon and we headed home for lunch which was homemade Mac & Chz with these. Perfect right? After lunch we got a few of our plans underway. We went outside and took our 1st Day of School pix and afterwards we did a little interview of what their favorite things were. This is something I plan on doing each year with them. Here is a peak of it put together.

Then the boys got to go through their buckets. Not so fast though. It was an exercise in listening to directions. I had them pull out specific things to put into their pencil cases and look at their scribblers and binders. Kind of like Simon Says. Mamma Says find your pack of crayons. Mamma Says find your eraser. At the end each were left with a bag of smarties in the bottom. Smarties for my smarties :)

After that we looked through the variety of books we were going to learn from and I told them about the things we would be learning about. They really enjoyed getting a look at the Earth Science book. Every day now (and I am sure until we actually do it) I am asked about doing the volcano. 

That was about it for our first day. Nice and easy. See low expectations.

Thursday

This was our first full day. The first day where we would really get into things. Some started smoothly, some rockier but everything we started we finished. We began with our Wind Up. Some people call this Circle Time or Gathering Time or Calendar Time. I'll have to do a post on that itself someday soon. 

Snack time followed our Wind Up. Then we got into our Social Studies unit "Who I Am/Where I Am" with a little project I picked up from pinterest. I look forward to sharing it when it is finished. Next we started our History unit about Dinosaurs. I am basing this unit off of the Magic Treehouse Book Dinosaurs Before Dark. We will be taking info from the book, fact checking it, doing some timelines, some colouring, some flow charts.

After that we took a walk around our neighbourhood (which isn't out of the ordinary but did serve a greater purpose in this instance).  We capped off our day with some math. I made a last minute change to my math curriculum plans and will have to fill you in more on that later too. 

Friday

As I said before we skipped out circle time and were behind all day. Evelyn slept quite poorly last night and was quite cranky all day with a very short nap which meant a lot of our plans for the day wouldn't get done. Really the only thing we did do was some more activities for our "Who I Am/Where I Am". Today I printed off the map of our neighbourhood and we traced out the route we walked yesterday. This whole unit is for them to develop a greater understanding of where and who they are in the world which will lead nicely into our October unit on Maps/Globes/Compass. 

We didn't hit math today or science or history BUT there in lies the beauty of this whole homeschool thing. IT DOESN'T MATTER. We will do the things we missed very casually over the weekend and be back on pace on Monday without feeling like we didn't get a break or feeling like we got behind. 

Next week is going to be a big week. A full week. This is where the testing of ourselves starts. Testing the limits, boundaries, strengths and weakness of our own person. It is also where the learning really begins. It is where happiness will be shared. 

Soooooo Behind....

Yup, that is me. Always behind. I am sure I could even be found procrastinating about procrastinating about something at some point. My room in high school and University was always cleanest during exam time. Hmmm, I wonder why?

I think it is because I am always thinking. I have a lot of things on the brain. I am easily sidetracked. There is always something that grabs my attention away. Perhaps on the verge of some kind of attention deficit (no enough to make it a disorder but it creates disorder in my life nonetheless). Then I tell myself it really is because I am a closet perfectionist. I deal with it best by just not doing something. If I can't do it perfectly why try. I see these traits in my son (perfectionism, lacks attention span, short fuse, obsessive, compulsive) no question who he gets it from.

Enough of the late night psycho babble though. I have excuses to lay down for my lack of posting:

-Getting ready for homeschool. Making lesson plans. Downloading and printing off resources and materials.

-Getting the laptop back up to speed. Yeah, that put me behind in a lot of things. The downed laptop threw wrenches in a lot of things and I am now finding myself recreating a lot of documents I had before. NOT fun times.

-Baby E has been a cranky sleeper. That has completely sapped all my evening time. I am on stolen time right now even. Daddy wonderfully helped her crank herself to sleep but it is a ticking time bomb as to when she will wake up. Crossing my fingers.

-Max has been taking late afternoon naps. Again. Every so often he dips back into this weird habit of having an afternoon nap. I am suspecting it is related to growth spurts. That leads to him not going to sleep well in the evening. Right now he is hanging out on the stairs nowhere near sleep. His late nights are later than I want to be awake.

-How about life? Yeah, pesky how life just gets in the way. Not even big things mind you. Just little things like laundry and dishes and cooking and kids. Believe me the number of pants I wash and the number of bowls and spoons we go through in a day would knock socks off, but I don't want to wash more socks so I won't say.

That really doesn't actually sound like much does it? Makes me feel even worse for not posting more when I see that what I have been doing doesn't amount to really anything.

Something I am trying to do though is create more order and balance. We are getting better though. Step one: The Mighty Meal Plan, has been going over swell. And step two: Implement Homeschool Schedule, should also go fairly decently. It will come together. It will come together. I will repeat that until it does. It will come together.

That is about it right now. I am procrastinating about doing the dishes right now, hence why I am writing :) and there is a kid on the stairs that needs to be led back to his bed. I have a few post outlines under way (more for the iHomeschool Blog Hop and Nature Project update to name a few) and a fun baking idea.

Part of the whole schedule/order/balance thingy includes allotting better time for blogging. I suggested to Daddy I need a few hours a week to get a coffee and take the laptop with me. We shall see about that one.

Our 2012-2013 Homeschool Curriculum

When it comes to curriculum planning for our upcoming year of homeschool I have been a busy bee. I have made up and changed my mind so many times. As soon as I think I have decided on the best course to follow I see something else and my interest is peaked. I have waffled between the shiny boxed curriculum and bare bones style single texts. I have had to keep my addiction to books in check. 

I have read and dogeared the pages of 100 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum and Home Learning Year by Year. In doing so I believe I have come up with some great ideas and plans for the upcoming year. Throw in a dash of ideas from Pinterest and I have high hopes for us.

Language Arts
Canadian Handwriting Workbook
Letter of the Week (from Confessions of a Homeschooler) *For Max
Phonics Pathways
Assortment of Readers (Usborne, Bob, and any other books that interests the kids)
Dolch Word Lists
First Language Lessons

Picking Language Arts curriculum has by far been the most challenging. I found it difficult to find things that would fit together right. First off there is just so much. Secondly there are a few different elements to Language Arts that needed covering yet no program would cover everything, and some only parts of things. At first I had two reading programs, a composition program, and a spelling vocab program picked out. I really thought about my own philosophies and decided to separate the wheat from the chaff. The above was what I came up with. 

I personally believe that the mechanics of writing followed by the mechanics of reading then the mechanics of the English language are the basic foundation to everything. Reading and writing are vital and critical. That being said I don’t think anyone requires fancy and fangled bells and whistles. I plan on us doing A LOT of reading and writing. Not just reading and writing associated with LA but in all subjects. I plan to draw on much of that for expanding our LA skills. Spelling, vocab, composition and reading comprehension will continue to evolve naturally as they already have. I just need the Phonics Pathways to guide me in teaching the phonetic code and the Dolch Word List to cover sight words and the First Language Lessons to give a foundation for Grammar. 

Mathematics 
Math U See Primer & Alpha

There is a great deal in the Primer level that Viktor knows. There are also a few things that need some tweaking and a few things that need introduction. The plan here is to blast through the Primer level between September and December and then move onto the Alpha level in January. This also means that I will already have the teacher’s guide and manipulatives for when Max moves up and so on. 

Social Studies
Canada, My Country
Personally designed curriculum 
Variety of Usborne Books

This is totally my thing. History and geography have always been right up my alley. World cultures? Anthropology? Bring em on. Had I actually finished my first degree (instead of all those humanities electives) and actually gone on to being a teacher this would be my subject area. With that in mind I think I have written out some pretty awesome plans for History and Geography. 

Seeing as how we are only looking at grade one right now we need only scratch some surfaces and introduce ideas (same thing for Science). I have broken down what students in grade one “should” learn and then based my plan on that. To enhance that we will be ordering a variety of Usborne books. I purchased a bunch of books from this publisher last fall and I fell in love. They are bright, big and my boys LOVE them. Plus I love the idea of using real books vs. texts for teaching. This way we can colour, read, build models, etc. Prior to each unit the boys and I will sit down and choose 3-5 books together that we will use. 

The reason I have chosen an official text for Canadian History and Geography should be obvious, it is our home after all, so I want to go just a little deeper. The Canada, My Country text will also be useable for future years and we can choose what to spend more time on and what activities and backup resources we want to use. 

Science
Personally Designed Curriculum
Experiments
Usborne Books

Just as in Social Studies it is all about introducing concepts and building on current knowledge. Just as I have done with Social Studies I have looked at what we “should” be learning and planned out my units throughout the year. We will do a similar thing with the Usborne books as we will be doing for Social Studies. 

I hope to also do lots of little experiments to reinforce our learning. For that we will look at a variety of experiment kits and the boys can help choose what we do (just like with ordering the books). I really want them to be a part of that process. They will become more excited than if it is “just something mum picked”.

Health/Phys Ed.
Personally Designed Curriculum

I know I don’t specifically want a text for this. We are already currently garnering an interest in healthy food and healthy activity. At this level all I am looking for is a little honing of the skills and ideas. I am in the process of making up our own unit studies and outline for this. 

Music/Art
Personally Designed Curriculum

Another one of our strongest points. We are musicians. Daddy is also an artist (added bonus). I have some similar ideas on planning out our Music and Art units. The first part of the year in each subject will be introduction to the elements and parts of Art (colour, shape, texture...) and Music (rhythm, temp, pitch...). The second part of Music will contain a unit on instruments followed by a unit on a selection of composers. The second part of Art will be choosing a variety of mediums and then studying within that (famous artists who used that medium, creating our own works of art, etc.).

When it comes to Music and Art I also have a few field trip ideas in mind. Such as a trip to the Symphony and a trip to the WAG (Winnipeg Art Gallery).

Religion/Character/Manners
Faith and Life Series
Kids of Integrity

The Faith and Life Series is the same Catechism series I learned from. I’m not entirely sure if it is the best but it is familiar and when starting something new, having something familiar is always good. It’s fairly simply set up. Teacher’s guide, student book, workbook. With the exception of the workbook I can use the other books in the future. 

Kids of Integrity is a study of character and a few manners. We will alternate between that and the Faith and Life Series and a Bible Study (which I am still in the search of).

Additional Resources: 
i Homeschool Network e-books Omnibus
Pinterest
Youtube

I follow a few different homeschool blogs. These ladies are tight. They are pro. The resources and blogs that have are top notch. Many of them also posted recently about the iHomeschool Network e-books Omnibus. It is a collection of some the best homeschool bloggers resources/e-books. Supposedly a $350 value for only $25. Included were a handful of resources I already wanted that for even just those few came to more than $25. I am not 100% sure how all of them will integrate into our curriculum but whether we use them now, next year, the year after, I already appreciate having them. 

I am a major believer that life and experience is a huge teacher. I have pinned so many activities and experiments. I was going to link a few of the ideas but figured it would just be easier to link my Homeschool pinboard instead. 

*A few words on Max:

Max is 3 1/2. He is at a preschoolish age and level. He has an interest in saying the alphabet, counting and pretends to read. He is ready for more learning. The only thing specifically for him is the Letter of the Week. I will be on the search for some very primary math resources but I anticipate that in Max fashion he will want to play with the Math U See manipulatives along with Vik. In addition to that he will be present for anything else otherwise going on. Without any prodding or pressing he has already absorbed a lot, this year he will sponge up even more. Even now he keeps trying to push his way into our soon to be school room telling me he wants school to. 

To conclude:

In reality I think this is a very simple and basic way to go about things. Real books. A few guiding texts. Mostly reusable and multi level books. No major investment up front (only a few minor ones). Gradual buildup of our personal library. Children’s involvement in the choosing of the books, experiments, experiences, activities, within the units I have laid out. Travelable resources. I don’t think I can go wrong with any of that. 

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Side Note
Some Learning for Mum

Do you think I would let my kids have all the homeschool fun? I don't think so. I love learning too. I love reading. I love expanding my mind. I also feel that there is no better way to lead my children to study than to do some for myself. Monkey see, monkey do. No reason why when they are doing their quiet studies that I can't do so alongside them and vice versa.

I am feeling a pull towards some personal and faith development. I plan to rev back up into my Catholic Home Study and will finally begin the Woman of Faith Study Guide Series (first is about Balance, fitting eh?).

I also said to myself, "Jessica this is a perfect time to Teach Yourself German". I have this course from when I went to Germany 7 years ago and it is begging to be picked up again. I know a lot of basics but need a lot of review. Plus I don't think it hurts to have the skill of speaking German in my back pocket.

Lastly, I do have some areas of study which I would like to expand on. I am doing some further research regarding Health and Fitness. I am not at a point where I can or want to formally go back to school but if I can find some free resources out there (which the internet is full of) I will take full advantage of them. I would also like to work on my classical piano chops a bit more. While I play music daily and am composing a lot these days my technical abilities have slipped in some areas (while furthering in others). Areas of interest here would be theory, harmony, and technique. 

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As you can see we are going to be busy. I know it seems like a lot crammed in but luckily we have the luxury of time. The children and I aren't confined to regular school or work hours. We can back off on some things and focus on others as required. This is also a plan to go over the full year. While we will take certain times off for holidays, birthdays, sick days, etc. we will be spanning our studies over 12 months instead of the typical 10. 

Wish us luck and say a little prayer for us and our year of homeschool and I will do the same for you, whatever you endeavours may be.