Homegrown Adventures

Large Family Homeschooling: What Our Day Looks Like

2015-07-26T20:22:00.001-04:00

Over the years, our routine has changed according to the needs of our family. Previously, my focus was on the order of daily events rather than the times of day they were occurring. This worked method worked well for us. My kids always knew what to expect next.

When we began foster care, I knew we'd need to create more structure in order for our large family, and new children with special needs, to thrive. We currently have a sibling group of 3, while previously we had a sibling group of 4. Sorting out a schedule and learning large family logistics took some time. I still don't have it all figured out, but I do believe we have a thriving homeschool as we enter our 6th year.

One change in our schedule this year is that we are taking a break from all sports and evening activities, besides church and foster care related events, until the spring. This frees up our evenings for family time.

We're also trying out a tv free living room for the year. We haven't had cable in years, but I still felt video games and Netflix were becoming distractions. The kids were surprisingly on board when I suggested a tv break. We'll see how they are feeling when winter boredom arrives!

The first video below explains how I've structured our homeschooling days. The next video gives a glimpse into our first day of school. I tend to schedule more time for lessons than actually needed so that we aren't rushing through the day. The last thing I want is for my children to feel overwhelmed. I want them to love and enjoy learning, and being together as a family.

Large Family Homeschool Schedule:

Our First Day {DITL Vlog}:

Happy homeschooling!!

-Jenny

Our Homeschool Room 2015-2016

2015-07-19T21:38:00.000-04:00

You can see our homeschool room in previous years by visiting these posts:

2012-2013

2013-2014

Only a few changes have been made to our school room since 2013. We've freshened up the paint, added a desk, and purchased two dry erase boards. One of the boards is for Classical Conversations. I used washi tape to divide it into 6 sections for the different subject areas.

For our latest tour, I decided to make a video for you all. We still enjoy and get plenty of use out of this space. Learning also takes place throughout our home and community. The world is our classroom, but it's nice to have an organized space and place for our materials.

A Day in the Life

2014-02-14T11:12:00.000-05:00

Welcome to a day in our life. Our weekly routine pretty much stays the same, but each day looks a little different. On Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, we go to various co-ops around town. Field trips are mainly scheduled on Fridays, and we try to keep Wednesdays commitment free.

Our homeschooling method would be described as eclectic. There are many wonderful approaches to homeschooling, and pulling from different methods works better for us than trying to fit into one style.

Today is Thursday, a Valentine themed day.

7:30 AM: Despite not falling asleep until 2:30 AM, I am wide awake. My alarm is not due to go off for another 30 minutes. I decide to throw in a load of laundry, and text CJ (husband) until he gets home from work. By the time he’s here, our children are awake. He oversees breakfast and morning chores while I take a shower and get ready.

9:00: Isabelle, the kids' friend, arrives for the day. The 3 girls (1^st and 2^nd graders) start on the workboxes they can do independently (Calendar notebook, practicing spelling words, handwriting, journals, and math since we aren’t learning a new concept today). Samuel, my 4^th grader, reads his Bible and completes a Logic puzzle.

10:00: Valentine craft time- Sarah picked out a butterfly craft for everyone to do last night. We also used scented watercolors to make heart maps.

11:00: Everyone grabs a book to read, or finishes up their Language workbox.

11:45: Lunch- Since we have 3 children, each one is responsible for helping with clean up after one meal and one snack. Samuel does breakfast, Sarah does lunch, and Madelyn does dinner. We used to rotate who did what meal, but there was too much arguing.

During lunch, I read the Bible, and a story about the history of Valentine’s Day. Then I take care of more laundry before we head out the door for co-op.

12:30PM: Leave for co-op- Thursday’s gym co-op is about 25 minutes from our house, so I bring along a science dvd on the heart. The girls are currently learning about the human body, and you know, it kinda fits in with the Valentine’s Day theme. The kids also grab a few books to read for the ride home.

1-3:00PM: While the kids are having their Valentine party, I find a spot at the church to finish up lesson plans for the upcoming weeks.

3:30PM: Back at home, details of the party are still being shared as everyone looks through their Valentine boxes. Eventually, the girls run off to play while Samuel finishes up his last few workboxes and a science experiment using magnets. We discuss what he’s learning about World War I in history.

4:15: Isabelle gets picked up, and I declare a quiet time until 6 PM. Their instructions are to read, play quietly, or write/color quietly. I also try to read during this time, but they are anything but quiet. We’ll try again tomorrow.

6:30PM: Dinner- CJ makes tacos while the kids help me straighten up the house. Our craft bin is a disaster, so I pull everything out and organize it.

7:00: This is the time CJ and I would leave for small group on Thursdays, but it’s canceled tonight, so we watch Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy as a family.

8:00: Showers, books, prayers, then bedtime for kids

9:00: Once everyone is tucked in, CJ and I have about 30 minutes to talk before he leaves for work.

10:00: While I’m gathering supplies to wrap Valentine’s Day gifts (snacks and a coupon book), I notice our loving Labradoodle has thrown up all over the downstairs bathroom. Lovely. I grab some cleaning supplies and get to work.

11:15: Gifts are wrapped and set out for the morning.

12:15AM: After making sure everything is ready to go for school tomorrow, I go up to bed. Tonight I’m asleep by 1:00AM. I love being a homeschool mom!

Homemade Scented Watercolors

2014-02-13T14:12:00.001-05:00

This simple watercolor paint recipe will leave your child's artwork smelling lovely.

All you need is:

1 tbsp kool-aid drink mix

1 tbsp warm water

1 container per color (we used a muffin pan)

Mix the water and drink mix together.

We used our watercolors to make heart maps for Valentine's Day.

How to Make Snow Ice Cream

2014-01-06T14:14:00.000-05:00

Samuel, my 4th grader, wrote a how-to essay on making snow ice cream. This is a quick, simple recipe that my kids can't get enough of!!

Making Snow Ice Cream

by Samuel

Have you ever been snowed in without a sweet treat? You can make snow ice cream in a few simple steps. Here's how!

You will need the following ingredients:

4-6 cups of fresh snow
1 cup of milk
1/4 cup of sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla
toppings (if you prefer)

You can find the snow outside. You can find the rest of the ingredients at a grocery store if they aren't already in your cupboard.

Follow these steps to make snow ice cream:

First, collect snow in a large bowl.
Next, add in the milk, sugar, and vanilla. Mix everything together with a spoon.
Now, scoop ice cream into a smaller bowl, add your toppings, and enjoy!

Our Family: A First Week Peek

2013-08-23T01:33:00.002-04:00

This is my wonderful homeschooling family of 5. CJ works in the US auto industry, and I am a stay-at-home mom/teacher of 2 princesses and 1 superhero. Homeschooling was something I desired to do for my children even before I became a mother. Growing up, a couple of close friends were homeschooled while I attended a public middle school. My parents weren't sold on the whole concept of homeschooling at first, but after begging them, they finally agreed to give it a try during my high school years. Best decision ever-- I LOVED homeschooling. Through this great choice, new friendships, and a Christian curriculum, I was led down a life-changing path to accepting Christ. So, basically, the 5 of us think homeschooling is awesome. :-)

My children are 4th, 2nd, and 1st graders this year. Our friend's kids join us to learn and have fun, so if you see a random 4th and 5th child occasionally on the blog, that is why.

Here are the kiddos, along with highlights from the first week:

Holding up fingers to represent the grade they are in

Madelyn, our baby, is a 1st grader!!

Samuel is our oldest. The archaeologist career idea stems from an Indiana Jones phase.

Sarah will be an AMAZING artist and mom. Her creativity puts my Pinterest boards to shame.

I include file folder games in their math workboxes for extra fun and review.


We'll call this recess ;-)

Wordly Wise 3000

School may have started, but we are not passing up sunshine and pool time!

He loved this experiment using batteries to light a light bulb. (photobomb courtesy of Sarah)


Zoo days

Happy Homeschooling!!

Not Back to School Blog Hop

Our School Room...The New New NEW One

2013-08-14T19:39:00.000-04:00

We are entering our 4^th year of homeschooling (I’m including the year of home preschool we did in that number)!!! Each year our learning space changes a bit. You can go here to check out our past rooms.

When house shopping time began in the spring, we knew we wanted 4 bedrooms and a place to keep our school furniture and supplies. I am not one who can cope with school materials all around the house. Last year we had to rent out a smaller house while we lived in Ohio. Our dining room table and kitchen served as our school area. We made the best of it, but it wasn’t ideal for our family.

We came upon a house in April that we fell in love with…a perfect-for-us forever home with a nicely reduced price tag. The downstairs had a lovely open floor plan with a room that could easily be turned into a school area. When you walk into the house, it’s the first room you see, and I like it that way! Its original purpose was to be a formal dining room or living room. Yeah, I can totally live without either of those. We don’t have formal gatherings in our home…ever. Anyhow, we finally sold our previous house after 16 months of trying to get rid of it, and bought the perfect-for-us one. It belongs to us forever…or until CJ retires and we move someplace with warm temperatures year round. I can also totally live without experiencing snow and winter ever again. A girl can dream!

The new school room DOES get used. My kids may not stick to it all day, but they use it plenty enough to be well worth having the room. They also use the family room, back patio, and bedrooms. The school room is our starting place, and one by one they'll leave if they need an extra quiet/cozy space to read or concentrate.

The spice rack bookshelves off to the side of the 4x4 Expedit hold our books we're using for the week.

The white baskets hold our readers and read alouds.

Our dry erase board is a sheet of white panel board from Home Depot.

You might recognize our furniture if you are familiar with Ikea, or read COAH. Her room totally inspired me, as you can tell, I copied a lot her ideas. Yeah, I could have been more original, but the outcome would most likely have been a disaster. All props for creativity go to Erica.

The walls in our room still need painted. Coming up with the right color has been challenging. The kids want something loud and bright, I prefer a shade that won't give me a headache first thing in the morning. Until we come to a compromise, they'll remain white.

Another space the kids prefer is our playroom (4th bedroom upstairs). Madelyn spends a lot of her time in here making ~~messes~~ memories.

So, there you have it! A new house and room for many new homeschooling family memories!

Not Back to School Blog Hop

Curriculum Choices 2013- 2014

2013-08-07T18:57:00.001-04:00

Well, I disappeared from blog land for a bit. For those of you who don’t know already, we moved back to Indiana in June after spending quite a rough year in Ohio. Life has seasons of ups, downs, chaos, and peace. We are in a very content, peaceful place right now. If you aren’t happy for us, you truly don’t have our best interest at heart. We’ve moved forward, and that has meant leaving some people behind. There's no room for negativity in our lives! Thankfully, most have been loving and kind, and we love them right back. :-)

Summer will be coming to an end for us with school starting on August 12. There are still several more pool, zoo, and park days in the near future, but we have to get an early start on lessons in order for us to take most of December off and still finish in May. The plan is to go someplace south for Christmas…as in Disney World. Yes, Disney during one of the busiest times of the year, I know. We’re crazy. I have a breakfast with the princesses booked, so hopefully everything will fall into place! If not, oh well. There are plenty of other (cheaper) southern places to visit...and if you think of a good one, let us know!

For the 2013-2014 school year, we’ll be using Sonlight Core B/C and Core E. Sometimes I look at other curriculum choices and think, “Oh! That looks neat!!” Some of you moms are so creative! Until Sonlight stops working as wonderful as it does for us, we’re sticking with it. The books, scheduling, and way everything is set up just fits perfectly for our family. I love how the lessons plans are already written out for me, and I can choose to add to them or remove certain things as necessary.

Samuel – 4^th Grade

Sonlight Core E: Bible, History, Geography, Science, and Language Arts

Grammar Ace

Worldly Wise 3000: Vocab

Spelling Workout E (He’s an excellent speller so we won’t be focusing on this subject too much.)

Handwriting Without Tears Cursive Success (my opinion…best handwriting program EVER)

Teaching Textbooks 4: Math (really wish I would have chosen TT5, he has started the TT4 lessons and finds them way too easy—he likes a challenge)…I love Teaching Textbooks because the lessons are all on the computer, and grading is done for me. So simple!

Sarah and Madelyn- Combined

Sonlight Core B/C: Bible, History, Geography

Sonlight Core A: Science (finishing up from last year and then maybe we’ll do some unit studies)

Wordly Wise A: Vocab

Draw, Write, Now (adding this in just because it’s their favorite)

First Language Lessons 2 (supplementing with this as needed)

Sarah- 2^nd

Sonlight Grade 2 Language Arts

Saxon 2 Math

Evan Moor Daily Paragraph Editing

Abeka Spelling 2

Handwriting Without Tears Cursive

Madelyn- 1^st

Sonlight Grade 1/2 Language Arts

Spelling Workout B

Handwriting Without Tears

Horizons Math 1 (only using this because we have it from last year, otherwise I’d use Saxon)

There you have it! We'll also be doing a co-op, gymnastics, lego club, and field trip groups. I'm looking into piano lessons, but have to wait and see how busy we are with what we're already signed up for.

Happy homeschooling!!!

Not Back to School Blog Hop

Pumpkin Pie Playdough

2012-10-28T22:10:00.000-04:00

You can always count on playdough if you're looking for a fun, cheap, and easy way for kids to have some creative time. After our most recent experience, I've discovered my kids are finally old enough keep everything on the table. I have many, many memories of playdough ending up in socks, smashed into the floor, beaten into the table, and tossed across the room :). Ahh, good times with toddlers.

PUMPKIN PIE PLAYDOUGH

4 cups of water

5 1/2 cups of flour

8 teaspoons cream of tartar (Don't have cream of tartar? Substitute with white vinegar...just use 3x the amount...thanks Natural Parenting Tips! )

3/4 cups of oil

4-5 ounces of canned pumpkin pie spice

2 cups of salt (I ran out after 1 1/2 cups, and the playdough still turned out fine...can you tell I was not 100% prepared to have a homemade playdough night? ;)

orange food coloring

Mix ingredients together in a pan over medium heat until you have a dough consistency. It will be gooey and runny until it becomes dough. My arm began to feel like it was going to fall off while I was mixing, so once it became dough, I let it cool and mushed it with my hands to get out the leftover flour globs. You, however, are probably much better in the kitchen than I am and won't have this issue!
Play, play, play!

Our pumpkin family

Sarah made a mask.


Pumpkin Man: Laser eyes, and razor sharp claws...Watch out Frosty!

This recipe made enough to fill up a gallon sized ziplock bag. Moms, join in the fun! Playdough is entertaining for all ages!

Enjoy!

Just an Update {Sonlight Core A Weeks 5-8, Family, Apple Activities}

2012-10-26T23:57:00.000-04:00

Family Update

The stomach flu invaded our home for a few weeks…that’s right…weeks. Each time someone would get sick, I’d go into a cleaning frenzy to stop the germs from attacking, only to have someone else come down with the bug days later. Somehow we are still on schedule with school, but 4 field trips, 3 weeks of AWANA, and co-op days had to be cancelled. Let me tell you, doing apple themed activities and then having to cancel the big finale apple orchard trip was a huge disappointment for the girls. Once everyone showed signs of good health, I called around to reschedule, but u-pick apples and tours just so happened to be finished the day I called! Bummer!! We went to to the park, and played with the caterpillars in our yard instead.

For the time being, we aren’t going to attend our co-op regularly until CJ recovers from his back surgery, which is scheduled to happen at the beginning of November. He is currently extremely miserable and in terrible pain, so keep him in your prayers.

In other health related news, Samuel was diagnosed with a blood disorder last month. At a routine well-check with our new pediatrician, Dr. S, I brought up the horrible nosebleeds he has on a fairly regular basis. I had mentioned this several times to our former pediatrician, and he was never concerned. However, Dr. S thought that he should see a hematologist. After two appointments, blood work, and months of waiting, we finally got a diagnosis. His condition is not life threatening, but he was pretty bummed when he found out he won’t be allowed to play soccer or football. I am relieved that this is a treatable, minor disorder.

Now onto happy news…

Samuel is doing excellent at the private school he is attending this year. He is maintaining all A’s, making new friends, and enjoys his teacher and classmates. There are pros and cons to having him in that setting, but my anxiety has pretty much subsided. It helps that I’m involved in the school’s parent group and volunteer on Friday afternoons. Samuel still joins our monthly evening homeschool group activities. And no, we haven’t ruled out homeschooling him in the future.

Sarah and Madelyn finished up soccer. Madelyn was the kid doing ballet twirls, somersaults, and singing while she was supposed to be playing the game. Sarah was eager to participate and learn. They both were fun to watch… for different reasons. They‘ve decided to join an American Heritage Girls troop (Samuel will be doing Cub Scouts at the same time). Somehow, maybe due to the name, they are under the impression that this is some sort of American Girl club, so AHG is now the coolest thing ever. I’ve tried to explain that the two aren’t related, but I’m pretty sure they are tuning me out. Either way, they are having fun, making new friends, and learning.

School Update Weeks 5-8, Apple Themed Activities Part 1

During weeks 5-8, we covered a lot of material. We’ve now studied the Vikings, Early Missionaries, Medieval Times, the Incas, and ancient China. I wanted to go more in depth with the Incas than what Sonlight includes, but the girls were eager to move on to China. Maybe I’ll find a way to sneak in more Inca time down the road! I've been using the camera less and less, not because I don't want to capture these wonderful moments, but because when we're in "school mode," pausing to go into "mom-photographer mode" feels like a distraction. The camera usually only comes out one or two days a week. The downside is, I can't look back through photos to remember details of certain moments...which makes trying to write about 4 weeks of school difficult...even with lesson plans in front of me :).


Sarah loves Draw Write Now...mostly the drawing, of course!


matching ending sounds

As I mentioned in our family update above, we did some fun math and literacy apple themed activities. There were so many activities to do in the pack I purchased that I'm saving some for when we read about Johnny Appleseed later.

Next week I will be cramming in the rest of our fall and pumpkin crafts. Pinterest gave me more than enough ideas! E

Weeks 3 and 4 Highlights {Sonlight Core A}

2012-09-27T19:53:00.001-04:00

I didn't stop to take many pictures during weeks 3 and 4. Here are the moments I did manage to capture...

BIBLE

We memorized Colossians 3:20, Mathew 7:12, and learned about Joseph and his brothers. I will always remember Samuel telling me this story when he was in preschool, exclaiming (in the cutest 3 year-old boy voice ever), “Those mean brudders got blood on his beautiful, beautiful coat!!” The girls used bingo dot markers to make colorful coats for Joseph.

Madelyn said, "Oops! He put on his Christmas coat!" haha!

HISTORY

Weeks 3 and 4 focused on Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. Samuel decided that the rich people must be extremely lazy since they had slaves to do everything for them, but he did think lying down for meals and eating with fingers was very cool.

Madelyn and Sarah made Olive leaf crowns.

HEALTH

We discussed different emotions, and how to deal with people making us angry or sad. Sarah wrote about being happy and sad in her journal.

READING

The girls acted out a scene from Goldilocks and the Three Bears.

Madelyn decided Marlie needed to hear a story while she was eating...

MATH

Madelyn worked on addition problems using her Math-U-See blocks.

Week 2 Highlights {Sonlight Core A} and a Cookie Unit Study

2012-09-07T19:39:00.001-04:00

Week 2

HISTORY

Our focus was on Ancient Egypt. Interesting fact: Ancient Egyptians would shave half of their eyebrow off when their cat died. This expressed how upset they were.

BIBLE

We read about Abraham, Isaac, Jacob & Esau. Our memory verse was Acts 16:31, and the song that helped us memorize the verse was very catchy. :) Let's just say memory work wasn't a problem for us!

SPELLING/LANGUAGE

Sarah used Melissa & Doug wooden letter beads and pipe cleaners to practice her new words. Since she loves this activity, I left the beads and other supplies in her spelling workbox all week so she could access them whenever she wanted.

We worked on story sequencing, similes, and wrote a paragraph about family.

Here is what Sarah had to say about our family:

“Our family likes to spend time together. We play games, clean, paint, and watch movies. We love to read and go places like the zoo. Being together is important to us.” :)

SCIENCE

These lessons have been so enjoyable because they are simple, hold the girls’ attention, and have fun activities to go along with each topic. This week we played a quick game of animal charades. Can you guess what Sarah is?

...an octopus of course! ;)

HEALTH

For Health, we talked about what made each of us special. The girls discussed how they were alike and different, and what special gifts they’ve been blessed with. They made self-portraits…Madelyn was pretty amused with this activity.

COOKIE UNIT STUDY

This past week we took a small break from Sonlight to do an Amanda Bennett cookie unit study. C.J. was off of work for the week, so I did not want to attempt a regular schedule. Madelyn suggested that we invite some friends over to make cookies, so we had a fun week of baking and learning about the wonderful history of cookies. Does anyone know that song that Dora sings when she's mixing chocolate? Bate Bate Chocolate? Yeah, the kids sang that repeatedly...as in over and over every time someone picked up the mixing spoon lol. Thanks for the Spanish lesson, Dora!

Week 1 Highlights {Sonlight Core A} and More

2012-08-27T21:22:00.001-04:00

We survived the first week of school! I decided we would go ahead and continue using the workbox system this year. I really think it makes a HUGE difference in keeping our day running smoothly. Sarah and Madelyn each have their own rolling cart with 10 boxes. Some days we use all 10, and other days we may only use 6 or 7.

Sonlight Core A has been amazing. So far we just L-O-V-E the material we are learning. Not to mention the staff was great over the summer when it came to answering questions and helping me order the correct materials.

Read about our curriculum choices to see what we'll be using this year.

WEEK 1 REVIEW:

BIBLE

For Bible time we discussed Creation through God’s covenant with Abraham. On most days I’ll provide the girls with a coloring page that goes along with what we’re learning. Journeys through Bible Lands (Candle Discovery Series) is not included with Sonlight, but we use the maps to help us get a visual of where people lived and traveled. Our memory verse was Romans 3:23.

HISTORY

This week we studied dinosaurs, and the first people, food, clothing and shelters. Sarah and Madelyn constructed dinosaurs using blocks and Zoobs. We watched videos on dinosaurs and cave paintings. Afterward, the girls became cave painters and used feathers to create animal paintings. Sarah used her Loop N Loom to practice weaving.

The book she is using to get ideas from is Dinosaurs by Gail Gibbons

Madelyn with her very unique looking Pterodactyl.

READING AND WRITING

Sarah is currently using first grade readers. They are pretty easy for her, but we’re still working on building her confidence in this area. Madelyn reviewed You Can Read: A, And, See, The, and letter F tracing. I’m impressed with how hard Madelyn is trying on her Handwriting Without Tears pages. She is getting better every day.

Sarah is enjoying Draw Write Now Book 3. I ordered 3 more books in the series because Madelyn wanted to do one once she saw how much Sarah liked her book, and I know Sarah will want to complete the whole series.

We are currently reading The Boxcar Children #1 together. Chapter books still don’t seem to hold Madelyn’s focus for very long unless she can fidget with something, or color, while I’m reading. Sarah sits, listens, and soaks up read aloud time.

I also read Henny Penny and the girls retold the story in their own words and drew pictures of the characters. They listened to the audio book of The Kissing Hand. I found a craft and poem to go along with the story on Pinterest.

SPELLING

-at family words and sight word "the"

Rainbow writing

MATH

We covered ordinal numbers, before and after, number order, and counting by 2s.

SCIENCE

We use one science curriculum for both grades to make things easier. This week we discussed vertebrates and invertebrates.

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS

A fuzzy caterpillar (which has been named Catapilly) joined our family this weekend. It lives on our back patio in a bucket full of leaves, grass, and any other bugs the girls can find. Madelyn pets it like a puppy and insists it smiles when she talks to it.

Our Routine

2012-08-27T02:06:00.001-04:00

When it comes to our daily routine I have learned that, for our family, we thrive more on the routine aspect rather than specific times of day. Life happens when you homeschool. Math cannot always start at 9:30 like you’d like it to. Flexibility is important because you just never know when a play date or field trip will present itself!

My alarm is set for 7 AM during the school week. I, however, am a snooze button hitter. C.J. is not. My snooze button hitting annoys him. His alarm is set for 7:20, which is when we both decide to crawl out of bed to get Samuel ready for school. The girls usually hear the commotion and wake up shortly after. Guess how many morning people we have in our household? ZERO. So, even though we get off to a slow start, we (usually) are ready to pick up the pace after breakfast.

C.J. takes Samuel to school while the girls finish getting ready and doing their chores.

At 9AM school starts at home. We use and love the workbox system!

Our school day starts with the Pledge of Allegiance, calendar time, Bible, and History/Geography. I am noticing that this seems to be Sarah’s favorite time for learning. She retells everything she learns during History to Samuel, so at least I know the information is being retained! After we’re done with these subjects, the girls take a snack break.

Next we have a big block of Language Arts and read alouds, followed by lunch sometime between 12:30 and 1PM. If we get done with LA early, and we almost always do, they’ll play outside until we’re ready to eat.

Starting in September, we’ll have co-op on Tuesdays and Fridays, so the morning routine will be rearranged a little on those days.

C.J. makes lunch unless he has to go into work early. I use this time to do laundry.

After lunch, we finish up the school day with Math and our special subject (Science, Heath, Art/Craft, or Computer). Sarah and Madelyn are then free to play until we have to pick up Samuel from school. Sometimes I’ll have them sit and read together. It all depends on whether or not we have time to pick up a toy mess before getting Samuel.

Once Samuel is home we have our afternoon snack. At 4PM he is supposed to start his homework. This is usually a huge battle that I don’t look forward to. When homework is FINALLY done and checked, I race to get dinner on the table, everyone fed, and the kitchen cleaned up before heading to soccer practice 3 evenings a week. When Samuel IS cooperative about doing homework, he has time to go outside with Sarah and Madelyn and play with neighborhood friends for a little while. The days we don’t have soccer are much less stressful. AWANA starts in September, so that will only leave our Friday evenings free for a little while. I would much rather raise active children than couch potatoes any day!

Soccer is the last activity of the day before our bedtime routine. We have one final clean up time, snack, bath, teeth brushed, reading, and prayer time. I like to start these things at 7:30, with the intention of having everyone fast asleep by 8:30-9PM. After 9, I do my evening chores and plan for the next day.

While this routine works wonderfully for us, I do wish I was a morning person instead of a night owl. It's 2AM and I'm wide awake! That 7AM snooze button will be here way too soon! :)

The First Day (3rd, 1st, K)

2012-08-21T11:50:00.001-04:00

The new school year is officially here!

Samuel is in 3rd grade at a private school. I must say, the house feels so strange without him here with the rest of us. :( I really wish we had the option of something in between private school and homeschooling for him, such as going to school 2 days a week and being home for the other 3. Oh well, for now he's there, and I'm here missing him!! Open house was last night, so we got to meet the other classmates and families. The school seems wonderful. The other parents were very kind and more than willing to answer the hundreds of questions I had.

Sarah is so thrilled to be a first grader at last!

Madelyn was messing around in the bathroom when Samuel left for school. When she missed the chance to say goodbye, she cried dramatically for a good 20 minutes. Here she is all teary-eyed for her first day of Kindergarten (the day did get better quickly!).

I cannot believe my youngest is now is Kindergarten!! She is still so tiny and has a cute little chipmunk voice.

When I grow up, I want to be a(n):
Sarah- artist, mom, and ballerina
Madelyn- Jasmine (the Disney princess...this has consistently been her answer for awhile...oh dear!)

The 3 rules we came up with this school year are:
1. Be kind and helpful.
2. Be a good listener.
3. Have fun!

This year, I want to learn more about:
"the world and the Bible"- Sarah
"chipmunks"-Madelyn

A place I would like to visit:
"the zoo and pumpkin patch"-Sarah
"the zoo and apple picking place"-Madelyn

More to come on our first week of school! We're off to a great start!

Our Transforming Classroom

2012-08-13T00:28:00.000-04:00

While the "totally turq" room was not our actual first learning space, it IS the first room that we referred to as the school room. This room used to be Madelyn's room. Before that, two other bedrooms and the dining room took turns serving as play and learning areas when the kids were younger.

When it was time for a "school room," we started with this:

The problem with this space was that the desks did not allow me enough room to sit and work with the kids if I needed to. They ended up not getting used very much, and the dining room table began serving as our school area.

However, I still wanted to get use out of this room. After seeing the school room post at Confessions of a Homeschooler, I basically decided I would just copy that (minus the swivel chairs-- after buying the 2 red ones, I quickly learned swivel chairs are a bad choice!) rather than trying to come up with something original lol. I loved her ideas!!

COAH has details on what and where to get this furniture. I STRONGLY suggest buying the craft storage thing for the middle of the table because those table tops need something good and heavy to hold them down. If not, and you don't have the drawers positioned right, they will fly up and cause chaos (screaming children).

We all loved the new look of our room. If it wasn't being used for school, the girls would sit in there and color. The table and craft holder was also a big hit with their friends. The change was good.

Then we had to move. Our current home doesn't have a 4th bedroom or extra room, but it does have an unfinished basement where all the white furniture is now set up. The kids do play down there and still use the table, yet the unfinished basement feels too much like a jail cell and very little like a pleasant learning area.

This year the dining room will be serving as our school room. It's a work in progress, and I won't be doing much to the area because this is a temporary home. We still aren't sure where we want to end up permanently. What I DO know is the next house we buy will have a separate room for our classroom...we want our white furniture school room back!

My Thirty-One bag serves as my classroom on-the-go. There's a file folder and binder inside to hold everything we need. I LOVE the pockets around the outside for extra storage. I'm not sure what I'm putting in the fabric bins yet, so they aren't labeled.

Our Sonlight readers!

This is my planning area...one of my favorite spots of the house :).

The Staples Desk Apprentice is awesome...and huge! I'm still deciding whether to break out our workboxes again this year, or just use binders. Decisions, decisions...

There you have it. Our classroom is always transforming to fit our needs.

2012-2013 Curriculum Choices

2012-08-06T17:34:00.002-04:00

Summer is coming to an end, which means a new school year is just around the corner. The biggest change this year is that Samuel will be attending a private school while the girls continue to homeschool. This change was not in our plans until very recently. In fact, I had all of Samuel's curriculum purchased, labeled, and ready to go. He was thrilled about using Sonlight, so we were pretty much all set for an Aug. 13 start date.

As I've mentioned before, he has had a hard time adjusting to our move. He is also my moody, strong-willed child that has made life pretty difficult for everyone while he's dealing with this change. We finally had a long talk and came to the conclusion that he would attend a private school for one semester, and then we'll decide where to go from there.

I am having mixed emotions about this decision. This morning I woke up feeling like it was all wrong. All I know is that school supplies are purchased, a tuition payment has been made, and uniforms are getting ordered. I'm hoping that I'll feel better about this by the first day of school.

With Samuel going to school, I changed our year-round calendar to his school's calendar to make things easier. We'll be starting the new school year on August 21st.

Sarah and Madelyn will be doing their first Sonlight Core (Core A) this year. We are all pretty excited to dive into some great books. Here's a look back at our "box day." This box included Samuel's Core B&C which will now be set aside for the girls to use in the future.

Can you feel Sarah's crazy excitement? lol

Sarah (1^st grade)

Reading/Language:

Sonlight Language Arts with grade 1 & 2 Readers

Explode the Code 3,4,5

All About Spelling Level 2

Writing:

Handwriting Without Tears

Draw, Write, Now: Native Americans, North America, The Pilgrims

Journaling

History/ Geography:

Sonlight Core A

Roadtrip USA

Math:

Horizons Grade1

Science:

God's Design for Life

Health/ Safety:

Horizons Health Grade 1

PE/ Music/ Art:

Co- Op

Spanish:
Co-Op

Other:
Typing Instructor

Madelyn (Kindergarten):

Reading/Language:

Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons

Sonlight Language Arts with grade K&1 readers

Explode the Code 1, 2

You Can Read

All About Spelling Level 1

Writing:

Handwriting Without Tears

History/ Geography:

Sonlight Core A

Roadtrip USA

Math:

Finish up Math-U-See Primer

Horizons KB

Science:

God's Design for Life

Health/ Safety:

Horizons Health Grade K

PE/ Music/ Art:

Co-Op

There you have it! I'm seeing some fun field trips pop up on the group we're members of, so this year is sure to be awesome!

Madelyn's 5th birthday PAW-ty!

2012-07-24T23:30:00.000-04:00

These puppies are now in loving homes. :)

Madelyn L-O-V-E-S dogs. Any kind of dog...large or small, ferocious or cuddly n' cute. They all bring her joy that cannot be put into words. When she's not ~~torturing~~ loving our big pup, she's pretending to be one herself. So, it came as no surprise that she wanted a puppy party for her birthday.

We celebrated her special day by inviting family and friends over to our house for lunch, cupcakes, and ice cream. The kids decorated paper bags that held their stuffed puppies they named and "adopted," adoption certificates, puppy chow (cocoa puffs), and free puppy coloring pages I found on the internet. I got most of the ideas for this theme off of Pinterest (of course)!


Paw prints: Junior mints and chocolate chips

Sign: scrapbook paper and puppy party printables

Madelyn’s 5^th Birthday Interview

What is your favorite color? Pink
What is your favorite toy? Alvin & the Chipmunks stuffed animals
What is your favorite fruit? A clementine
What is your favorite tv show? Dora the Explorer
What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? grapes
What is your favorite outfit? My Hello Kitty shirt
What is your favorite game? Pet Pals
What is your favorite snack? Trail mix
What is your favorite animal? doggies
What is your favorite part of school? learning
What is your favorite book? Olivia
Who is your best friend? Emma
What is your favorite cereal? Every last one
What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play
What is your favorite holiday? Christmas
What do you like to take to bed with you at night? My big doggy
What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Every last thing
What do you want for dinner on your birthday? Broccoli
What do you want to be when you grow up? Jasmine (the Disney princess lol)

Dear Madelyn,

You are a teeny, tiny girl with a BIG personality. I think the nurse said you are in the 8th percentile for weight and height. I'm beginning to think you'll never outgrow your 3T clothes, your love for Dora, or your cute chipmunk voice :). Your days are spent playing hard and praying hard. I am glad we are getting over the I-must-sleep-with-every-toy-I-own phase. That wasn't a very fun battle. We both know you had no intention of ever sleeping on those nights. Wherever you are, your big sister is nearby. The two of you share a room, toys, books, an ornery brother, and a special sisterly bond.

You are adventurous, funny, strong, and bright. You test your boundaries at times, and have the "I'm sorry, feel sorry for me" teary-eyed expression down. It usually works, especially if you use it on Dad:).

I hope turning 5 is every bit as special as you thought it would be. You are a beautiful little girl, or I guess I should say BIG girl, right?

There are 5 things that I always want you to remember to do, even when life seems hard...

Love God, love people, live simply, scatter kindness, and care deeply.

Happy 5th birthday to my small-but-mighty Madelyn!

Love,

Mom

Hello Again, Ohio

2012-06-28T22:05:00.003-04:00

Goodbye Fort Wayne house!

Well, our family of 5 has been in Ohio for about 2 months now. CJ moved and started his new job in January, and the rest of us followed in May. Living apart for 4 months was not so pretty at times. By mid-February, I had probably the worst attitude possible about our situation and wasn't a very pleasant person to talk to (especially if you were married to me, haha) In order to keep myself from just totally losing it, I had to let go of the "what ifs" and think positive. Our house is still for sale, but so far we are getting by fine with having to pay for two houses. Hopefully there will be buyer soon! There are times when I surprisingly do miss Fort Wayne. We met some great people there-- probably the most kind and caring friends I've ever had.

Since we were completely looking forward to our big May 1st move, the kids did really well with saying goodbye to the old house. There were no tears, only pure excitement to start a new adventure. They've all made new friends and have been having a lot of fun. Samuel is having issues with the many changes that have occurred this year. He thrives on routine and is very strong willed, so it is going to take some time to adjust to a new house, a new church, and not seeing Dad nearly as much as he used to. Keeping him on track has been exhausting to say the least.

CJ is enjoying his job, which is good considering that's where he spends most of his life.The other day he told Samuel he gets to work with robots, so if you ask the 8 year-old, his dad has the coolest job ever. His back has been giving his trouble, but the newest round of injections have at least taken away the shooting pain down his legs.

Here are some highlights from the past 6 months. They include school, trips to Ohio, and a lot of fun & play...

Samuel was supposed to create some addition problems for Madelyn using the cubes. As you can see, he decided to build a gun instead. Life with boys!

This is a Mystery of History project. They had to come up with a name for a new animal just like God had Adam do.

Valentine shadow matching

Making out Valentines


A SWEET party with friends

Leprechaun traps for St. Patrick's Day

Jellybean graphing


picking strawberries

Samuel is 8

2012-03-01T22:35:00.002-05:00

Samuel turned 8 in February. We chose not to have a big party this year due to the drawn out, stressful process of relocating to Ohio. Instead, we invited a few family members over for cheesecake and opened some presents. Among the gifts were a few new costumes, Legos, and books.

Samuel still loves dressing up as different characters and getting his sisters to join in the act. Some recent favorites are Super Mario characters, Indiana Jones, Alvin and the Chipmunks, and Star Wars. Their creativity continues to put a smile on my face.

Samuel's 8th Birthday Interview

What is your favorite color? green
What is your favorite toy? Legos
What is your favorite fruit? apples
What is your favorite tv show? iCarly
What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? turkey sandwich
What is your favorite outfit? jeans and Diary of a Wimpy Kid shirt
What is your favorite game? Star Wars for DS
What is your favorite snack? peanut butter crackers
What is your favorite animal? lion
What is your favorite part of school? reading
What is your favorite book? Diary of a Wimpy Kid series
Who is your best friend? I like all my friends the same.
What is your favorite cereal? Multi-grain Cheerios
What is your favorite thing to do outside? play Frisbee with Marlie
What is your favorite holiday? Thanksgiving
What do you like to take to bed with you at night? my pillow pet
What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? pancakes and eggs
What do you want for dinner on your birthday? chili
What do you want to be when you grow up? US Coast Guard (he changes his mind every month)

Dear Samuel,
Oh my, you are such a strong willed, energetic boy with one exhausted mother! I hope that when you are faced with peer pressure, you will use this as a strength to stand firm and make good choices.
You are great at completing your morning routine and chores quickly, and will often offer to do your sisters' chores for them in order to earn extra money. I love how, at the age of 8, you behave more responsibly than some adults we know! Keep up the hard work and determination and you will go far!
Your imagination impresses everyone you meet. You have always been full of interesting ideas. When you were 3, you would always walk around saying, "I have a great idea..." and the things you would come up with made me think you just might be a genius! :) I may be biased though! If there is ever a problem, you will come up will a million ways to solve it.
Samuel, you are loud and crazy at times, but there's a sweet side beneath all that boy-ness that still likes to snuggle with mommy :).
Wherever you go in live, I will be there offering tons of love, support, and advice...whether you like it or not!

Love,
Mom

Sarah is Six!

2012-01-23T16:37:00.003-05:00

Sarah turned six this month and we celebrated by spending a week visiting family and friends in Ohio, and had an art party before coming back home! Since she received plenty of new art supplies for Christmas, I gathered up what we already had at home so that we only had to buy food and paper plates for the party.

Art table:

Coloring caddy: markers, paint pens, crayons, felt and foam stickers, construction paper, coloring books

Paint caddy: watercolors, finger paints, paint bowls, paint brushes, paint smocks, large white paper

Once the table was set up, the kids we able to paint and draw as they wished. One thing I forgot to do was take pictures of the finished masterpieces! Very creative minds were at work!

C.J. made two rainbow cakes with vanilla frosting and Sarah decorated them. :)

I found this birthday interview on a blog, and it's definitely something I want to continue doing with all three kids as they get older. You're supposed to ask the same 20 questions every year on their birthday, add a photo, and make it into a keepsake book. So, for Sarah's 6th birthday, we began this new tradition...

Sarah's 6th Birthday Interview:

What is your favorite color? pink and purple
What is your favorite toy? Barbie Fashion sketch book
What is your favorite fruit? Clementines
What is your favorite tv show? Wild Kratts (PBS kids)
What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? ham and cheese sandwich
What is your favorite outfit? My whole closet!
What is your favorite game? Crafting Mama
What is your favorite snack? peanut butter crackers
What is your favorite animal? peacocks
What is your favorite part of school? doing Explode the Code
What is your favorite book? If You Give a Moose a Muffin
Who is your best friend? Kaylee
What is your favorite cereal? Rice Krispies
What is your favorite thing to do outside? play in the show
What is your favorite holiday? Christmas
What do you like to take to bed with you at night? my pillow pet
What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? pancakes
What do you want for dinner on your birthday? chicken noodle soup
What do you want to be when you grow up? a mom and an artist

Dear Sarah,
Six years ago, you came into the world with what appeared to be a smile on your face. Daddy noticed right away, and the nurses joked that you were already wrapped around his finger. We named you Isabelle Hope, but as I kept looking at you, I realized you were not an Isabelle. Daddy agreed. So Sarah you became, and a princess you will always be.
Six years later, you continue to always offer a warm smile to those around you and make friends wherever you go. When you learn something new, you usually try to teach Madelyn whatever you learned, remaining calm and patient the whole time. You are so helpful and creative!
Every moment spent with you is a moment I treasure...okay, that is totally from an Aerosmith song, but it's the truth! I love you through your good and bad moments...sometimes those bad moments don't seem so bad an hour, day, or week later. Last week, at dinner, I asked you what the best part of your day was. You responded with, "Seeing you, Mommy!" That made my heart full, especially since we are rarely ever apart. I'm glad you enjoy our time together and don't get sick of seeing me 24/7! You also usually ask me once a day why I look so happy. Well, one reason is because God made me your mother, and you my daughter! What a wonderful blessing it is having you in my life!

Happy 6th Birthday, Sweet Sarah!! I love you!

A Snowy Day

2012-01-21T14:38:00.001-05:00

"Mom, why did you dress us like we're going to Antarctica?"- Samuel

3-Letter Words: Reading, Stamping, Building

2011-11-10T13:31:00.002-05:00

Last night I went to print off Read! Build! Write! Mats only to discover our printer was low on ink. No printer ink and class the next morning?! I guess that’s what I get for waiting until the last minute to prepare materials.
Before the school year started, I had picked up a ton of paint color samples for different lessons I had in mind, so I got those out and made up a bunch of 3-letter words we’ve been working on.

Next, I cut 8.5X11 cardstock in half and wrote the words in marker at the top. They were color-coded according to the paint samples.

Instead of having Madelyn and Sarah write the words out, I got out our alphabet stamps for my little stamping addicts.

All materials fit on one of our magnet board/cookie sheets.

Madelyn sat and admired each of her finished cards.

Materials:
Cardstock
Markers
Alphabet stamps
Stamp pad
Paint color samples

Fall Sensory Bin and Crafts

2011-11-02T23:01:00.003-04:00

This fall themed bin contains:
Red scoop and bowl (Dollar Tree)
Pumpkin and leaf table scatter (Target $1 spot, I think)
Leaves (Target $1 spot last year)
Pumpkin and leaf cookie cutter shapes (Dollar Tree, I think)
Mini gourds (Dollar Tree)

Making “fall soup” was something the kids came up with during one of our days using the bin. Basically, they’d scoop different contents into the bowl, stir it up, and ask if anyone would like a try.

They used the different colored leaves to make patterns.

Some days I added in a pumpkin tray, easy grip tweezers, and mini poms to keep this little guy busy while I worked with the older kids.

On Halloween, while everyone else was trick-or-treating, we stayed in and had some fun of our own.

We painted with corn, and mixed yellow and red paint together. Sarah informed me that they learned all about color mixing long ago on a Dora episode. Thanks Dora! We marble painted pumpkin shapes…minus the marbles lol. I used a golf ball instead. Even though they are a bit harder to control, they leave a really neat textured look.

Thumb and finger print spiders turned out to be much messier than I had anticipated. Maybe we’ll try it again when the youngest turns 13 ;).
Sarah and her friend made wonderful Christian pumpkins.

While our crafts were drying, we enjoyed some “creepy crawler” pudding (gummy worms, oreos, vanilla pudding) that CJ had made with the kids while I was at work.

Happy Fall!

Sneak Peek: A NEW New Room

2011-10-11T14:03:00.001-04:00

Remember when we transformed Madelyn’s old bedroom into our school room back in February? Well, since the school year began in August, this space hasn’t had much use. The desks, as much as I love them, allow little room for me to sit with the kids and guide their learning process. By the end of the first week of school, the dining room table started serving as our main learning area. I liked being able to see what everyone was working on, and I could multi-task much easier by all of us being at the same table. I began brainstorming about how to make changes to the school room in order to make it work for us.

One day, a magical blog post at Confessions of a Homeschooler gave me a great visual of what I could do to our room. I became so obsessed with her school room, on top of having a great reason to go to Ikea, that I checked the pictures out several times a week for almost 2 months while making a list of items I liked and wanted for us. CJ agreed to an Ikea trip at the end of October/early November. After waiting patiently for about a week, I began to drive him nuts with my begging and he agreed to go sooner. Lining up a babysitter beforehand worked in my favor.

BEFORE:

Saturday we drove to Cincinnati and back. I spent that evening helping my friend put together my furniture. By “helping” I mean I talked to her while she did most of the work. I did manage to put some furniture together by myself on Sunday because deep down I actually do enjoy this type of work…it’s a productive way to take out frustration. Here is where we are at so far:

SNEAK PEEK AFTER:

CJ still has to hang a white board, maps and posters. We also need blinds or curtains. The light is blinding in the morning!

Can’t wait until everything is finished! I’m happy to have my dining room textbook and worksheet free again!

Homegrown Adventures

Large Family Homeschooling: What Our Day Looks Like

Our Homeschool Room 2015-2016

A Day in the Life

Homemade Scented Watercolors

How to Make Snow Ice Cream

Our Family: A First Week Peek

Our School Room...The New New NEW One

Curriculum Choices 2013- 2014

Samuel – 4th Grade

Sarah and Madelyn- Combined

Sarah- 2nd

Madelyn- 1st

Pumpkin Pie Playdough

Just an Update {Sonlight Core A Weeks 5-8, Family, Apple Activities}

Family Update

School Update Weeks 5-8, Apple Themed Activities Part 1

Weeks 3 and 4 Highlights {Sonlight Core A}

BIBLE

HISTORY

HEALTH

READING

MATH

Week 2 Highlights {Sonlight Core A} and a Cookie Unit Study

Week 2

HISTORY

BIBLE

SPELLING/LANGUAGE

SCIENCE

HEALTH

COOKIE UNIT STUDY

Week 1 Highlights {Sonlight Core A} and More

Our Routine

The First Day (3rd, 1st, K)

Our Transforming Classroom

2012-2013 Curriculum Choices

Madelyn's 5th birthday PAW-ty!

Hello Again, Ohio

Samuel is 8

Sarah is Six!

A Snowy Day

3-Letter Words: Reading, Stamping, Building

Fall Sensory Bin and Crafts

Sneak Peek: A NEW New Room

Samuel – 4^th Grade

Sarah- 2^nd

Madelyn- 1^st