Homeschooling A Houseful

Homemade bread for our large family

2019-03-06T14:12:00.001-08:00

making bread has been a huge part of my life as a mother...

here’s the problem, don’t start making homemade bread, unless you plan on doing it forever!!! Once you eat homemade bread, it’s didficult to eat store brought breads!!! Even some of the nicest, most expensive, they just seem so dry and bland.

That being said, I can make all our bread for our family of 11 (currently in the house) in about 15 minutes! (Not including the rise and bake time) I usually make it on the weekend, and then again around Wednesday or Thursday each week. Whenever I make it, I incorporate it into our dinner that night. Usually making 3 or 4 loaves of bread and 1 pan of rolls- for dinner. You see if you don’t do that, you’ll end up eating all of it the first night, right!!! No one can resist hot, fresh, homemade bread- especially with melted butter!!! 💖

So here’s the recipe, I know you’re all dying to have!

This should make about 5 loaves of bread, or a mix of bread and rolls

6 cups of warm water (you want the water like warm, think nice warm soothing bath)

3 Tablespoons yeast

1-11/2 cups of gluten (gluten is what gives the bread it’s elasticity, and ability to stick together)

3/4 cup sugar or 1 c honey (if using honey, it may take mode flour. The dough will be more liquidy)

Put those in your mixer, or bowl. (Yes I did hand mix our bread in the beginning. It was a great arm toner! But may it’s a lot of work) lightly mix these together and let sit. You want to see bubbles, sort of foam looking to form. That means the yeast is activated and “awake” so to speak.

Then add

7-8 cups of flour (lately I’ve been adding almost 9-10 cups. My grinder is only gridding fine right now.

2 Tabelspoons of salt.

You want to add the salt with the flour. The salt is what makes the yeast stop activating, so to speak. If you add the salt to the yeast, omit sort of kills it and makes it not rise as well

Knead for 7-10 minutes. You want it to be well kneaded and slightly warmed up. The kneading helps that.

Oil your pans well. Form the dough and cover with a towel to rise. You want the dough to double in size. Turn your oven on to preheat, 350 degrees

Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Our current ovens bake weird. I start the loaves at 350 until the tops brown, then I turn it down to 300 until the sides are finished. Our current ovens are a bit difficult. The heating elements are on the top, and it’s definitley a different baking style then I’m used to.

Bread is served! Enjoy!!

Simple Morning Time Geography, for the whole family.....

2019-03-05T16:41:00.000-08:00

In our Morning Time we will be reading some fun and educational picture books to begin our family geography lessons. Yes I'm just starting this now, in March.... sometimes that happens. We've been studying geography in both our Good and the Beautiful Language Arts, and also our Mystery of History Lessons, so I don't actually feel bad about this!

First up, for our World Geography.

I decided to start with a general world geography book.
I chose

Somewhere in the World Right Now
by Stacey Schuett.

This book is alot of fun. It discusses different geographical areas, showing some amazing pictures. It mostly talks about the time zones and international date line. I thought that would be a nice introduction, and something we haven't really discussed a lot.

We started our week off with this beauty, on Monday.

After we finished our morning time, and headed to our school room. You see, we meet on our couches, in our family room for a lot of our morning time, especially our readings. It's simply more comfortable.
Once we get to our school room, I give everyone 1 minute to "study" the map of Europe, answer key. Then we do a one minute map drill of Europe.

I used the first 2 maps on this site.

I put them both in 1 plastic page protector, with 1 showing on each side. So they flip it to look at the answers. During the "study" time I sit with my 8 and 7 year olds, and we study together. I just focus on one area, a couple countries, until they know it well.

Next Up, USA Geography

Again I thought we should begin with a general American Geography Book, something to just hit on the United States as an area.
For this I chose

A is for America book
by Devin Scillian

a sleeping bear press book.

I love these books, and will be incorporating them into our USA geography lessons.

This is planned for our Wednesday Morning Time Loop.
I am excited to share these beautiful books with my children each week.

I printed these maps for our timed USA States drills. These are done the same way as our European Map drills, described above.

My original plan was to do one picture book for a European Country a week, and 1 State a month.

I plan on using the sleeping bear press books for our USA studies, and these lend well to reading the same book for a month. I plan to read the entire book each week, then read the side notes and facts a couple letters a week to finish it by the end of the month. The amount of letters will depend on the amount of information per letter.

I don't feel my original plan will work for the European Countries. I feel a different picture book a week, for a European Country may get a bit overwhelming. I may try to find a fun European Atlas, or book about Europe in general, to read. I know there are many choices for that. I just need to spend some time looking.

and that's it folks....
our morning time, geography lessons. I will plan on sharing the books I use each month, most likely on my instagram account. So if you don't follow me there, go do it now!!! You don't want to miss the treasures I have, and hope to find!

Free Easter Crossword Puzzles...

2019-03-04T14:32:00.003-08:00

It's time for Spring Planning, and Easter Prep... It's not too far away, honestly.

Easter is April 21, this year.

The Easter Season is almost here!

Let's celebrate by practicing to spell some fun words in an Easter Crossword Puzzle.

Easter Crossword Puzzle

Answer Key

Hop on over to Education.com for more learning resources and printables just like this!

and Happy Easter Planning

Laundry, A system we use, and love....

2019-02-19T20:05:00.000-08:00

Laundry, well it's one of the to do's on every families to do list, that is not a favorite.... I've never known anyone to say,

I LOVE LAUNDRY

sure some of us say I love empty laundry baskets, or I love when my laundry is all done.

I do laundry, I don't complain about it, much... I just have accepted it, so to speak.

How do we manage our laundry?

I prefer to do all our laundry together. I don't like to share my laundry machines with everyone. I've tried to have set rotations or wash days for each child, or sometimes a group of children, maybe by room. However I found that was alot more headache for me. Remembering whose turn it is, or what day we are on, what rotation we are with. What happens when we have an off day, or a busy day, and laundry doesn't happen that day.

We are able to do all our laundry for our house of 9 kids, plus towels and cloths, together. If I run atleast 2 loads a day, I am typically able to keep up with our laundry. Along with a sheet rotation. I like to have 2 days of kids clothes and house towels to 1 day of parents clothes. I also prefer to wash our sheets on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays if needed. Sometimes I have teens wash sheets on the weekends, when I'm busy with errands and house keeping.

I typically start a load in the morning, during my morning routine. Typically I read my scriptures, have my morning time and devotional time, then I move to my room, to tidy my bedroom and make my bed. As I pass by the laundry room, I start a load, then it's on to my morning routine... getting ready, dressed and exercise. By now we've had our breakfast and started our morning chores. Usually about now, I am able to either switch the first load, or start my first load if I forgot to earlier!

We then move to our morning devotional and morning time, then before we start into our homeschool routine, and my busy time of teaching and guiding my little crew, I swap the load again. We are typically done with our independent studies and my one on one teaching time by 11:30-12. At this time we begin our lunch prep, at this time I'm able to swap my load again.

We eat lunch, while having a read aloud... best time for a read aloud, LUNCH TIME!!! Everyone's busy eating, and listening! :) Then we have a clean up time, and listen to an audio book, for quiet time. After that, I should have got through atleast 2 or 3 loads of laundry!

I don't typically sort the clothes, they go straight from the dryer to a clothes basket. I also don't buy many clothes that need extra prep, aka I do not like to iron, and try to stay away from any fabrics that might need to be ironed!!! I actually don't even own an iron right now! However it's about time for me to get one, hubby has some nice shirts for work, that need an iron now and then. I do try to lay out any shirts, blouses, dresses or clothes that need to be laid flat to help with wrinkle ease. I also like to wash these types of clothes together, as my last load of the day. I'm more likely able to hang them up right out of the dryer, later in the afternoon.

Then to the sorting. Usually this happens either right after lunch, during after lunch clean up, or later after our family lessons are finished while the kids are doing their daily chores.

(the white basket with unfolded clothes, are to be sorted. The colored baskets are for bedrooms, for kids to sort. The towels are sorted around the baskets in piles based on location. Clothes folded on the floor belong to the youngest 3. The boys put theirs in the white basket to put away. Youngest daughters is added to the daughter who shares a room with her, to be put away.... hopefully with her help)

Then the folding and sorting begins.... I fold all our towels, and washcloths, sort them by the location they belong. I also fold all my husbands clothes, and mine (which are typically washed on a separate day, but sometimes things get washed with the kids) I also fold for and with my 3 year old, 5 year old, and 7 year old. Yes for some reason little ones love to fold clothes!! Go figure! I sort these by how they are sorted in their drawers, pajamas and undies, pants and shorts, and shirts. I'm a pretty simple lady, I don't go to the extreme of outfit sorting, if we are going out I double check our appearance before we leave! I also like to allow my kids personality and independence in their clothing choices.

While folding I sort the other clothes by room or gender. My teen son in 1 basket, my 2 teen daughters in 1 basket, and my 8 & 10 year old sons clothes in the last basket. I sort my 2 daughters and 2 sons into 1 basket and let them do the final sort, because it's quite confusing sorting their clothes, they are close in age and size. Once I have them all sorted, my younger helpers gather their clothes to baskets and go put them in their drawers, and always inform everyone else, laundry's done. I stack these in a basket, in piles by drawers... as mentioned above. Bathroom towels are put away by the kid who cleans that bathroom. Usually my little helpers help put away cleaning cloths, and kitchen towels.

Everyone does the final sort, then fold and put away their clothes. Return the baskets to my room, and

TA DA laundry is done, for today.....
ready to begin again tomorrow!!

Now when I say I swap loads, or start laundry, this can mean I instruct someone to do it, too. The I in the article, is more of a team effort, and we all help with the rotations, sorting and folding. On busy days, we meet up in my bedroom, sit around the baskets and start sorting... it ends up in more of a laundry throwing party of sorts, but it works.

Weekends, I don't do laundry unless for some reason we are backed up or if I need to do blanket washing or extra washing... weekends are for teens to take care of their needs.... the machine is shared on the weekends.

Free 3 digit subtraction fun....

2018-09-17T06:02:00.000-07:00

Some days you just need a little change in the routine or a quick way to review a new concept.

One thing I've noticed about homeschooers, is they don't typically have that hate of worksheets from the worksheet/busy work overload.

If your child is needing help with three-digit subtraction, then I have just the right freebie for you! Your kids will have fun with these cute leaf themed, three-digit subtraction worksheet freebies.

For more math fun, or fun free worksheets visit Education.com

Three-digit Subtraction Worksheet

ANSWER KEY

Happy Homeschooling.... you got this!

Memorizing Multiplication for the year....

2018-08-06T16:20:00.000-07:00

This year I have decided to focus on our multiplication facts.

My 10th, 7th, and 6th graders will be reviewing them, While my 4th, 2nd and 1st graders will be learning them.

My younger 2 boys, really enjoy memorizing things, ANYTHING... so why not get this stuck in their heads, now? If they learn them, great if not, it will be knowledge they will use later when they do learn them.

I am made a binder for the younger 3.

I printed one sheet of each of the times tables, here. These are in page protectors, and they will fill them out each day, using a dry erase marker. We will work on one table a week, moving 1-12 and then starting over again. If they get to knowing the facts really well, I'll switch them to a timed drill.

We will also learn a nursery rhyme skip counting song, from planing playtime. I am also hoping to add some fun games that I may find.

I also downloaded these. I used the 1-12 tables. I made 1 with the rainbow table, and 1 of the blank tables for all the kids.

They younger kids will use these for games and practice that we will do throughout the year. The older kids will use these as their answer keys for correcting each others drills, and they will fill out the blank chart once a week.

I printed timed tests for the older kids, here. I plan on having 4-5 timed test throughout the year. I will start with one at the beginning of the year, one at the end and then 2-3 more throughout the year. These will be used as assessments.

Then I started to print out weekly drills for them to do. This was getting really old, really fast! So I looked around for a pre-made, printable facts drill. I purchased 1 min. Timed Drills on teachers pay teachers. It's a 1 year program. I love the way it's laid out. It's also such a simple concept, which is what I really wanted. It took awhile to set it up, and figure it out... but now it'll be a nice grab and go type program!

And many years ago I printed and made a Multiplication Sundae printout. (Similar to this one.) The idea will be, that once everyone has learned their facts... we will have an ice cream sundae party. Hoping for team work, and friendly competitiveness with this one. Let's see, how it goes!

That's it, lots of fun and easy ways to help us memorize our facts!!!

My Happy Planner.....

2018-07-11T20:30:00.004-07:00

I'm a planner nerd, you know the type... they get all googly eyed as they walk down the office supply aisle.

Can't help looking at color coded.... well everything.

And planners, well they own too many, and never stop looking at them!

NERD!!

Yep that's me!

Enter,

the Happy Planner, the Create 365, the Me and My Big Ideas Planner.

(yeah it's known by all those names!)

Do you see this beauty.... I am in love with it!!!

This is the Big Happy Planner, the Big size, not classic or mini.

I purchased the horizontal, Big sized regular planner.

Let me just explain the layout.

I use the top section for our family life planning. Things like outings, classes, lessons, parties with groups, and the likes. The first hand drawn line, at the bottom of the top section is where I write down who's sheets are being, or should be, washed every day. My goal is once a week, but well life happens. It's there to just remind me, what I need to do. I will probably even draw one more above that for the "extra" cleaning jobs I want to do each day. I just haven't got there yet. This would be the "extra" "deep" cleaning things I try to accomplish. I usually figure out what I need to do through out the month, usually there are a few weekly things, and then the rest is filled with monthly tasks.

(I can write a post on that, later if there's interest)

The second section. The first hand drawn row is for our due dates and notes section. In this section I write down dates I give to my older kids. How many times have I said, I want you to finish this assignment by the end of the week or by next Tuesday, and then completely forgot!! Especially as I am teaching High School, and Middle School- I'm finding my memory isn't as great as it use to be... and a gentle reminder is amazing.

After that area, I have space to write our Science Lessons for the Grammar Kids, in our case the younger boys. This is where I note the lesson, experiments, videos and such. I teach the younger kids from the same subject as the older kids are using. Last year we used Elemental Science, we are leaning towards this again, for the upcoming year.

My last section is used for our family daily lessons. We typically do History 2 days a week. Last year we also did Art one day, and Nature Study the other. I typically leave Fridays unplanned, and if we don't have out of the house activities, we will play a game.

The "weekend" sections of this third section I use for other things, too. I use one for Science Notes for my older kids. Usually just noting the lesson, and if there's something I thought of to add to it... maybe a video or something. They do these independently throughout the week, or work on it together. The last part of this section is for next weeks notes. This is where I write things I need to copy for next week, supplies I need to get or books I need to gather.

I also continue the columns to the bottom of the page, making one more small section at the bottom. (not pictured) This is where I plan our meals for the week. I only "plan" our dinner meals each week. We eat the same things every day for both breakfast and lunch. I write them in the daily columns, but I don't always make that meal on that day of the week. I just check off what I make each day, and try to plan to our weekly schedule.

I use the top section weekend boxes to write out our weekend plans. We don't typically have planned, activities for the weekends, it's more of a go with the flow idea! :)

On the Left side of the planner is a Notes section, that's where I scribble things that I need to do, or remember. I use to use that for a grocery list, but found it didn't function well for us.

That's it!!!

Why do I love this planner?

*The layout! I love the 3 horizontal boxes!

*The size! I love that it's the size of a regular sheet of paper. Also I can hole punch paper or printed lists and place them directly into the planner

My friend gifted me the punch!

* Removable pages! You can easily remove pages and replace them, or put them into a new planner the next year. I always have lists, and notes and things I want to use every year. I don't want to write those out every year to put them in my new planner.

*Thick pages! The pages in the planner are thick! They hold up to my chaos, in more ways then one! I also love the lined pages and the graph pages- the graph pages have been so useful.

*I can flip the planner open and fold it all the way over, flat. So it is only 1 sheet wide. This is so nice when walking, or writing at a meeting or a parkday.

*It fits in my purse!! Just barely, but it does!!!

Fourth of July, Unit Plans

2018-07-01T12:15:00.001-07:00

Many Americans don't even realize why we celebrate the Fourth of July. It's a sad fact of our society and educational system.

Most Just Want to Celebrate, for any reason... just Party.

Interesting Website

I plan on putting together a mini unit this week

Here's a few suggestions and ideas I found.

BOOK SUGGESTIONS:
These are 2 I own, and plan on using.

The Fourth of July Story

American Patriotic Primer

ACTIVITES:

Learning Hand Signs to the Preamble

Constitution Writing Prompts, Worksheets and Activities

Printable Patriotic Quilt

Literature Guide, it's free with a 7 day free subscription to the site.

Independence Activities, tons of fun activities and suggestions

Patriotic Lapbook Templates

Declaration of Independence Mini Unit

TRIVIA GAMES:

Trivia Game, from IMom

Trivia Game, from Make and Takes

Stay tuned to my Instagram Account, and I'll post fun pictures and info about it there.

What's for Dinner? Taco Salad.... Easy dinner....crowd pleaser....

2018-06-21T17:55:00.001-07:00

What's for Dinner?

I ask this often, too often. I am not always the most on top of our meal plans... and sometimes I have no idea what I'm making when I go shopping. Yes, I know what I need to make something, but I don't have any creative, yummy meals planned. I know it's bad... ends up with me running to the store way too often to get that one item, that ends up being 10 items, and then I'm out $50... when the item I needed was only, $5....

Please tell me... you know what I'm talking about!?!?!

So if I don't have anything planned, I simply have meals I know I have the basics for and can typically put together, with everyday items I would buy.

Entering one of "those" meals... the no stress, no thinking, simple dinner but everyone loves, kind of meals.

TACO SALAD

This is a picture of a very simple taco salad, but here's the thing, it's has so many variations, so many optional ingredients. Which may or may not consist of what's in your pantry, or if you feel the need to make a quick shopping trip..... and hopefully sticking to the necessities!!! :)

I like to cook my meat earlier, and let it have a few minutes to cool. I cook roughly 3 pounds of ground meat, typically turkey, sometimes beef and sometimes one of those mixed with sausage. Like I said, what I have on hand.

I season my meat with

Salt

Cumin

Chili Powder

Garlic

Onion Powder

a little Cayenne Pepper

Then to make a basic salad.

Lettuce, Tomatoes, Olives

to make it Taco Salad

We add

Shredded Cheese

Olives

Avocadoes

Onions

Corn,

usually I add frozen which I "thaw" in a bowl of hot water, and drain thoroughly.

Toppings

Typically Ranch Dressing,

sometimes homemade sometimes store bought.

Salsa

Sour Cream

Guacamole

Then Take Doritos Chips, crumble on top.... and you're done...

YUM!!!

(I forgot to take a picture of the finished assembled meal)

This is how my daughter who was leaving to babysit did her's

TO GO!!

St. Patricks Day Freebie

2018-02-20T07:17:00.001-08:00

Anyone else on the lookout for some St. Patrick's day fun? Education.com has offered my readers with another spelling freebie. These are such great ways for kids to work on so many of their language arts skills.

Gear up for St. Patrick's Day with this themed crossword. Put your knowledge and spelling skills to the test with other spelling resources at Education.com

Clover Crossword

Answer Key

Enjoy! And an Early Happy St. Patrick's Day to all!

Our favorite Language Arts Program.... and a freebie

2017-11-10T12:52:00.001-08:00

Hey everyone, just wanted to take a moment to mention our new Language Arts Program, and may I add one of the best decisions I've made in my homeschool career.

We LOVE the Good and Beautiful Language Arts Program! After 15 years (give or take) of homeschooling I finally found a curriculum that is the right mix of structure, review, and phonics blends for our family. Not only that, but it's kid approved!

The following is from a recent email sent to all users of the curriculum, from the founder of the curriculum, yes a homeschool mama. This is so honestly spoken! I feel her testimony and her love for this, along with the everyday burnout and overwhelming feelings that homeschool mama's feel. We love the good and the beautiful company, and all the work they put into every sing piece of curriculum they offer. This is not something that is just thrown together or simply reproduced through the grades. This is ..... amazing!

Here's my Kindergartener, reading his read aloud.

This is a picture of my Kindergartener, passing off his spelling words.

A Message From Jenny Phillips

Dear Friends,
When I started The Good & the Beautiful, I just wanted to release this curriculum that I felt could really help homeschool parents and children. I didn't really want the "business" that would have to come with it, including a continually growing team of employees, the inventory and purchasing for over 60 items that we have printed, payroll, customer support for hundreds of thousands of users, and so on. It is not easy. So why do I continue doing it? I want to share with you what keeps me going, and I hope it will remind you of the reasons you keep going when homeschool gets hard.

Meet my son Sam:
Sam is 7 years old, and he and my other four children ARE the main reason I started this curriculum. The results of using the curriculum with him have been everything I desired for Sam. Whenever I think I can't keep the curriculum going, I think, "What I am going to use with my SAM. I have to do it!"

Meet my daughter Gracie:
When I first started homeschooling, I thought this adorable girl was going to be the death of me. She need a curriculum that didn't exist--nothing worked for her, and she often threw her pencil across the room in rebellion. I became good at ducking. When I started creating my own lessons for her that connected learning to beauty and meaning, she ate it up and blossomed. A few years later, this little lady is now so easy to teach. She has become a little author, a lover of poetry, a lover of beauty, and a huge lover of good and beautiful literature. It makes my heart sing. When I think, "Do I really have the energy to create high school language arts," I think, "GRACIE will need it. I have to do it!"

And since I've shared this with you all, you can have a freebie too!
Click on this link to get The Good and The Beautiful Book List, for Free!!!
This is only good until, 11/11/2017~ So Don't procrastinate!!!

And while your visiting the website check out all the wonderful curriculum they offer!

Why do I love this curriculum?
Let me just list a few simple things:

*It's Christian Based. The founder of the company is LDS, however she didn't include the LDS beliefs in the curriculum. She wanted to keep it Christian based, and open to anyone wanting to bring religion and righteousness into their studies. She offers free LDS supplements in the History program, I'm not sure if it's offered in other subjects.

*I love that they offer the curriculum for free upto I believe grade 5! I would not recommend printing it each year, as it's such a beautiful curriculum. It has beautiful pictures throughout, and well the cost to print it and bind it.... not even worth it! However, I loved that it's free. I did print it at the beginning of the year to try it out. How many times have you "looked" at something online, and thought THIS IS IT, I HAVE FOUND THE BEST CURRICULUM EVER!!!! Even a couple weeks, maybe even a couple months into it... YES IT'S STILL THE BEST.... until one day you find yourself regretting it!! Oh man have I done that, I've even suggested curriculum to people, and then found out it's actually not what I thought it was. With the free option, you can simple print it, or only print the worksheets to take it for a "test drive" If you don't like it.... it's ok you're not out a bunch of money!

*The phonics is taught phonetically. I know this is one of those topics amongst homeschoolers. Some feel it's the key, some don't. I feel it's important. I've actually seen the difference in teaching reading phonetically vs just letting them read. I know, atleast in my family, the struggle was worth every ounce of energy it took!!! :)

*The fact that the language arts isn't just language arts. My kiddo's LOVE that they are not only learning grammar and language arts, but also art appreciation, and geography along with some history! Multi-tasking is one of my favorite words!

*It's just as it says, good and beautiful!! I don't worry about handing a reader to a child and saying read it. I know this company has put so much time and energy into choosing the best books, art and learning available. I also love that they mix older readers or stories with more modern. There is such a beauty in the older classics, that isn't in the modern books.

*There's variety! No one wants to sit and do grammar worksheets every day! Not only variety, but review.

That's just a few of the benefits of this curriculum. We are also using the History 1 and I hope to give a review of it later, as I don't feel I've used it enough to give a good and honest review of it.

Don't forget your freebie! And even if you missed it, check out the website, the good and the beautiful and check out the free curriculum anytime (as long as they are able to offer it for free!)

FREEBIE..... education.com!

2017-10-30T16:44:00.002-07:00

Hello Mama's!!!

I was recently approached by Education.com, to share with my readers a

FREE

Word Scramble Worksheet!

These came at just the right time, as I currently have a 4th grader, that is FINALLY coming around to reading, and found an old word scramble book. He has been having so much fun with it!

I also have a 1st grader who likes these, and you know he has to keep up with his brother.

Then lastly I have a Kinder, who needs to keep up and do everything they do too. Plus the reading practice is, well FUN when its in a scramble!!!

So guys, check out this website, education.com and

nurture your child's language skills with this kayak-themed word scramble. Make learning fun with an assortment of spelling games available at education.com/ !

Word Scramble Worksheet

Word Scramble Answer Key

ENJOY!

Wiggly Boys, Wiggly Boys...what to do with all those wiggly boys?

2017-08-10T08:27:00.001-07:00

and Girls!!!

So those of you who don't know me personally don't know that I have 4 boys in a row. Ages 8, 6, 5, 4 and a toddler 20 month old girl.... who might be mistaken for a girl in a skirt! What can I say, she was raised by those 4 boys! Plus I have 2 older boys, who use to be little boys. And a couple other wiggly girls all in one house!!!

In my opinion it's fine to let them be wiggly, to let them use that energy they have, because a lot of the time they just have a ton of built up energy they need to have used!

I thought I'd collect a few tips and ideas for teaching wiggly kids.

*If you are trying to practice reading with them, and they can't sit still long enough to do a lesson, make a deal, for every page they read they will earn 2-5 minutes of "recess" or "free play" right after their lesson. This should be changed to their age and ability. So it could be page, paragraph, sentence- word or flashcard. I like to say you have to sit until the lessons done or maybe give a specific time frame, such as we will do reading for 20 minutes. Then as they get better at sitting and reading, you can adjust those times and goals. Make it a positive, you are learning so well and doing so good, I think we should set a new goal.

*Break it up! Don't expect the wiggly ones to sit for hours doing their work. Let them have a break or do something more active in between. Even the simple act of moving to a computer or to a couch will change it up for them.

*Many homeschool moms allow kids to play with blocks or quiet toys while reading aloud. I prefer not to do that, too many times those quiet toys have become loud toys during our read aloud. I like to use snack time as read aloud time. If their mouths are full, they can't really talk! I will also have kids color or draw while I read aloud.

*Make sure you are using their needs as you go through the day. If a child is really struggling with a case of the wiggles give them something they can do, actively. If they are practicing math facts, let them do it outside on the trampoline, or even walking in a circle.

*Stick to a routine. I have found my wiggly kids, do better knowing what to expect.

*Add multi-sensory tools into the mix. Play games, add activities, do hands on, act out stories, or pull out the legos and let them listen to a CD while playing. Listen to educational CD's in the car.

*Add in sneaky learning, as I like to call it. Place books out that you want the kids to read, maybe you sit down and read it one day and then leave it somewhere they can. Put maps and eduational posters in their rooms or playrooms. If someone asks a question, don't just answer it, teach it. Papa Bear has been fishing in Alaska, so in stead of just saying he's in Alaska we could find it on the map, look at some Alaska books or you tube videos. No lesson plans, just simply answering their questions!

Hope that helps, and if you have any other suggestions, I'd love to hear them. I actually keep a list in my planner all about wiggly kids! Ideas or thoughts I have, things we've done that helped. It's just a simple list of ideas, because usually when they are all wiggly, I can't think straight!

A Flexible Plan laid out for the new year.....

2017-08-03T07:04:00.003-07:00

When you tend to be an OCD Planner Mama, it's difficult to work with the normal chaos of a homeschool life.
Babies and Toddlers,
Illness and Sick Days
Vacation and Spontaneous Activities
Feeling Overwhelmed and Burned Out

Can you honestly plan those things into your day, into your life?
NO.....
because would you plan those things into your life, if it was your choice!
Well I'm sure we'd all plan babies and toddlers, but they'd have their behavior more on our schedule!

I love having a plan, I love knowing my plan, but having that plan and knowing that plan, can also cause such a stress when things, aka life, happen. Over the years of homeschool I have learned, I need a plan and a routine, I (along with some of my children) really work better with that in place, yet when my plan is out of sequence, or off schedule, it feels like a weight or a burden. My answer is simple, because when you live in organized chaos, like I often feel, I need simple, I crave simple!

I LOVE the idea of scheduling throughout the year, a more inspired school plan, however just finding that time to be inspired as a busy mom, and let alone using that time to plan school---well doesn't happen. However when I feel an inspiration, or I need to change the plan I've laid out it's ok, because the way the plan is... um planned, allows for flexibility!

Here's the simple idea.

*I plan in an undated planner. This planner could be dated, and I just white it out. See I haven't found a planner I just love for every year and every season of my life. I have used regular planners, school lesson planners even to my own simple creation. I figure out how many weeks of school I need to accomplish for legal reason, or maybe even personal reasons. For me that's between 30-32 weeks of school in a year. I then write week 1 across the top of my planner, and the days of the week become days 1-5, 5 days of the school week. So one week day 1 could be on a Monday, while day 1 another week could be on a Wednesday or even a Friday. It doesn't really matter the number of the day to the day of the week.
When I came to that realization, it was a game changer for me.

*I only plan homeschool in my homeschool planner. Because I don't plan school to a dated planner, I can't combine my outside of the house life with my school life, just as sickness, vacations and/or learning opportunities don't change my plans. They may change our days but not our plans. They may even change our lessons, but not our "plan". I hope that makes sense. I may find a great learning opportunity, maybe a field trip or community activity I really want to participate in. Maybe before or even after this said activity I want to chase some "bunny trails" or things that were sparked. I can and I do, and then when we are done, I just go back to the "plan" I had planned.
If someone calls last minute and wants to come visit, and also really wants to tour your location, or you just really want to hang out with them during this time, it's ok. Say YES! Once you are done with that visit, you can just pick up the plan, and begin where you left off.

*I plan any homeschool activities I know we will be a part of into my plan. For instance if I know we will be participating in a weekly, bi-weekly or even monthly activity, that is part of our school time- that is added. So let's say we are participating in a weekly co-op this year, I take one day of the week from my planner and simply mark it as co-op day, then any planning I need to do for our weekly co-op can be planned in that section of my homeschool planner. Does it matter that I may be planning our co-op on day 5, but we actually go to co-op on Wednesdays? No. Often times we will also be a week ahead on our co-op classes, then our homeschool lessons, and not always because we didn't do school for a week, it could be we missed a day, or it could be we decided to take a field trip and didn't do our family lessons for a day, or maybe we even took a field trip and came home the next day and did a family lesson about that field trip. Or it could be we were sick in between co-op classes, but attended the 2 co-op classes in a row. It's fine! And if it really bugs you to have that happen, then don't plan your co-op classes along with your regular homeschool lessons- because it will bring that feeling of doubt, and the "I'm not keeping up" in the back of your mind. Simply make a different planner or planner page for your co-op planning.

*I only plan our family school activities in this planner. Classes I will be teaching to my family, or the majority of my family. I do not plan our daily lessons here. Often time when we come home from an activity I will still have the kids do their daily lessons, things like math or reading. I have independent studies sheets for each of my children that all their daily lessons are tracked on. I do these in the same manner, with a day 1-5 instead of days of the week, and week markings instead of months. This planner is used to plan our morning devotional and morning loop, history and science family lessons and maybe a family elective.

*I prefer to have a space to mark the dates on all my daily columns and weekly pages. This is simply to keep myself accountable, to myself. I will also usually jot down why we had a discrepancy on our dates. So if we had a field trip I will just jot that somewhere in between the two columns. This is only for myself, and helps to keep those "I'm not doing enough" thoughts out of the back of my mind, or maybe to help push them farther back.

As you can see I'm still deep in my planning and organizing. I still have many blank spots! So back to my planning.

So that's it, my simple planner for a flexible plan amongst my organized chaotic life!

a REALITY CHECK in planning......

2017-07-14T07:56:00.000-07:00

Well it seems to be the time of the year when many are homeschool planning. I am seeing posts and links everywhere, with tips and advice and so many ideas! Yes, even I am in this mode here. It just must be that time of the year!

So as I'm planning, the first day is always hard.

I have dreams,

I have visions,

I have ideas

and....well

Oh so many!!!

I literally start thinking, how can I add more hours to my day?

Let's see we could start our day, at 4:00, no that doesn't mean everyone will be cranky and tired. Definitly not, and especially not me!

Then we could school until 4:00- I mean the neighbors can't really plan until then anyways, by the time they get home, have a snack and work on school or home responsibilities, right?!?!

REALLY, REALITY CHECK!!!

Then I decided, no what I need to do is edit, sort and maybe even subtract!!!

For some reason as a homeschooler, I think that our school needs to be extra special, at all times and in all ways. It needs to be super cool, amazingly awesome and at ALL times! Yet in the mist of all that, life is well life!

I mean come on how many of us think that every moment of our life is just that?

EXTRA SPECIAL, AT ALL TIMES AND IN ALL WAYS!

SUPER COOL

AMAZINGLY AWESOME

ALL THE TIME!

Last time I checked a mom's everyday chores and responsibilities are NOT there!

(laundry, changing diapers, doing the dishes, mopping the floors, and especially cleaning the toilets!)

Last time I checked a dad's everyday responsibilities are NOT there!

(boring meetings, paperwork, restrictions, traffic and oh taxes!)

So let's face it, homeschool needs to be extra special, super cool, amazingly awesome, but only sometimes, and sometimes it's just plain work!

Do you Summer School?

2017-07-10T14:58:00.000-07:00

We are a Summer School Family. Here's the main reasons why I choose to year round homeschool our houseful.

First off I completely agree with public school moms, after a couple weeks of a summer break the kids are bored! They start complaining, being mischievous and/or driving me crazy!!!

We like routine, we like routine with flexibility. Hence I like to year round school, because often in the homeschool world things come up last minute, or we just need a break one day when it's been a difficult week, or maybe it's the first nice/warm day of the spring- and let's face it no one wants to be inside on a day like that! Yes in my book, all those days can be and are included in schooling my houseful, however I still like to know where we stand in our curriculum and in our goals for the year.
So if I know we have an entire year to complete something, not a school year, I feel more relaxed!

I also detest having to review everything you learned last year!!! REALLY! If you have to review it, did you really learn it!?!? Now I get reviewing things you've learned and especially facts- but feeling like the first 15-20 lessons in every math curriculum is dedicated to relarning things, not reviewing, but yes- relearning! In our household when you start a new math or grammar level, you get to start with the unit tests! If you can pass it off you move to the next unit test until you found "the good stuff!" The new material!

I also hate that feeling of just getting a child over a hump, especially learning to read or decode, figuring out their math facts or a math topic or killing a moment where someone is into a specific topic- and then having a feeling that we need to revamp the schedule or rethink somewhere else- to fit it all in, when in reality I want to fit it all in! And with a year round school year, you can chase a bunny trail, and then come back to where you are, and know there's still plenty of time!

Vacation time! We can vacation how and where and most importantly when we choose! We also like to live on "Dad's schedule" That way when dad's off we can be off! Also I believe it teaches a good work ethic, along with helping my children find joy in the simple things. If life is life you find joy in simple things- like a day off or park day.

Sick days, we obviously can't plan those! Along with sick days, I've had 11 children! Homeschooling and pregnancy is difficult, along with homeschooling with babies and toddlers. We need some flexibility during those times in our lives.

I also like to take long breaks around holidays, especially Christmas, Easter and Thanksgiving.

I think we also take the idea that life is school to a whole new level! I want my children to see school and learning as a part of their life. That it is what we do, it is important and learning is everything and everywhere. If we take a summer break, and it's considered a holiday, then wouldn't you dread going back to school? I want life to be both work and a holiday, and for it to happen in a more natural way.

And amazingly we still have plenty of time for play, and guess what we even enjoy and cherish that time!

I will be preparing a post on how I plan with flexibility! So I don't feel I'm behind, or feel like I need to rethink our schedule anytime we get sick, need a break or decide to enjoy an activity I didn't plan on.

Essential Oils, in my houseful!

2017-06-19T09:22:00.002-07:00

I have been an Oil'er for years, actually I believe it's been a good 8-10 years!
I love oils, I use them for medicinal purposes, aroma purposes, and emotional purposes.
I won't go into purposes, or things I love, necessarily because, well there's so many recipes, advice, and blends out there. I use many different oils for many different reasons, and well whenever we have an aliment, I simple search for an oil, if I don't already know one.

What I will get into is Essential Oil Companies.
I've investigated oil companies, and read may blogs about what oil companies are out there, and their business etiquette, origin of their oils, and of course cost vs quality. I won't get into all the info here, but this is a wonderful blog series about many popular companies, essential oil showdown series
While the companies I prefer, are not on her list, or even really compared on this blog series, I did take many of her questions and concerns and applied them to the companies I already used and liked.

So here's a link to the two companies our houseful uses for essential oils.

First is Plant Therapy
This link will take you to a nice post about the company, their oils and the quality. I like that they list where the oils are grown, when you click on an oil in the shop it lists the origin of the ingredients. They do research on the farms and ingredients before they begin using that resource. Plant therapy, offers reward points on all orders you make, and those can be used towards your oil or accessory purchases.

Next is Eden's Garden
This link will take you to a nice about us page. When you click on a oil in the shop, and then the detail link it will give you all the info on the ingredients used and their origin. They do research on all farms and ingredients as well. Eden's Garden also offers reward points on all orders you make, along with a few other reward benefits. They do offer a refer a friend reward bonus, so if you decide to order from my reference here, please use the above link- and send me some rewards!! They also give extra reward bonuses, for your birthday, following them on Instagram and Facebook and setting up an account and once you order certain dollar amounts of oils.

Also if you sign up for both companies email lists, or
follow them on Facebook and Instagram, they both send out specials and offers on a regular basis.
So from the research I've done, along with the many wonderful bloggers who have done research for me, I feel these companies offer a high quality product, for a low cost!

Here's 2 of my favorite blends from these companies. These are blends specific to these companies, ones I've not seen from other companies.

Harmony, from Eden's Garden- I LOVE this one!! I diffuse it and wear it, like most ladies wear perfume!

Calming the Child, from Plant Therapy- I love this one too!! Love it for my kiddos, and also sometimes I wear it too! I love to spray it on our bedding and diffuse it during quiet time!

Hope you enjoy, and become an oil'er for life!!!

PS- the only compensation I may receive from this post, is if you choose to use my refer a friend link above from Eden's Garden. Otherwise, this is just one friends recommendation to another friend!

Should my children learn to learn independently??

2016-11-04T13:19:00.002-07:00

Recently there was a discussion about independent learning on a Facebook group I follow. One mom was upset and tired of feeling like her children couldn't follow through with a given assignment or directions unless she was right there, they would get distracted and/or start playing. She also spoke of her children not listening while reading aloud too, and too often she felt like she was talking, and NO ONE was listening!

One of the comments on this post, suggested that homeschool mom's shouldn't expect their children to learn independently. Public school children are not working independently, nor do children typically like to do things they don't want to. So if you are asking them to work on something they dislike, then of course they'd rather not do it.

Since Independent learning, is so important to me, and how I honestly have homeschooled my 11 children, over the past (technically) 15 years, somewhat sane. I thought maybe I should just write a blog post about it, because Facebook is not the place to write my "novel" answers! Sometimes I think I'm simply too long winded for Facebook! :)

First off, this happens! It happens to the best of the best of Moms. Honestly we are dealing with children, or teenagers- there's built up energy, not enough energy, too many emotions and or hormone changes! So even if you figure out the perfect plan, or the perfect way to make independent learning happen, there will still be those days.

So here's my first thought, yes no one likes to do things they don't want to. I surely don't want to do the laundry everyday, clean up the millionth mess my toddler made, not change the tenth dirty diaper of the day. I surely don't want to pay my mortgage or my utility bills. These things simply must be done, and are simply part of my responsibilities. There's no one there to nag us to do them, except when you realize all your clothes are dirty, or the company sends you a late bill. Sure I could just say I enjoy shopping so much more than I do washing clothes, so let's just go buy something new to wear! Wouldn't that be fun!!! Until tomorrow when you realize that now you just have one more outfit to wash, and honestly you didn't get anywhere, you just made your load larger.

Well I could just allow my children to only learn what they want to, completely. Would they learn, Yes. (though I wonder if some of them would ever learn anything past how to build with Legos!) Do I want them to learn things they love, definitely!! So how can I do this? Simple don't plan your school days so full, that there's no down time. Don't over plan what you want them to learn, to make sure they learn everything, only to overload them so they don't learn anything. Plan to have them learn their basics, their core subjects. Give them time to still explore and enjoy their interests.

One way to do this, is to give them guidelines. You need to study science for 30 minutes, 2 times a week. I only asked them to study science, the topic is their choice. The project is their choice. Everyone has to like atleast one thing in science, nature, astronomy, earth science, gardening, or maybe engineering.

Well how do they know what they want to learn about, or what might interest them? Simple I spend my family teaching time exposing them to greatness. I use our family learning time to expose them to a wide range of topics and ideas, usually we simply read and discuss. I don't do many activities during this time, unless it's art or a science experiment. Sometimes I have a notebook, but even then it's simple and not something that we won't get through in 15 to 20 minutes. It might be something we discuss and then I give directions on how to do, or allow them to study that idea or topic in greater depth.

There are core subjects that I want them to do everyday such as reading, writing and math. Those things I have curriculum for and they do a lesson a day- by themselves. Then they report their scores, or put them in a pile to be graded later, however that subject needs to be done.

My second thought, is simple... to learn to be an independent learner, the children must be "taught" how. This may seem silly, but everything we do, we had to learn. How do I do this in our homeschool? I make a very basic chart listing what I expect to be done. I make these for all my homeshooled children. Yes, even the ones that can't work independently yet. The are simply learning the way that we homeschool. They are learning how to use our chart, and mark things off, and getting use to the structure and routines around here.

That's how I do it, simply because I like organization, I like reminders, I like to have it all written down so I can look and say, yes you're done.

My third thought is I am consistent with the concept that until your schoolwork is done, you don't have independent learning, you don't move on. We accomplish our have to's first, and then our want to's. Along those same lines, we don't "play" until our learning time is done. We have a learning time, which simply means no friends, no screens until that time of the day is done. Screens are allowed, when asked permission and they need to have a specific need or idea they want to study online. This is their time to either explore their own interests, or to gain a love for each other and family.

Some children learn this quickly, while others may not. Some figure it out, if I get up get my chores done, start my school and then get done, I have more time to do the things I enjoy. Some are feel lifes not fair when they are spending their free time/ free play time doing school still. Some need to spend a whole day sitting at the table, dawdling and doodling, day dreaming before they get the idea that if you get your have to's done first, you have more time for your want to's. Which by the way are usually the things your spending your time daydreaming about in the first place. So if you want the time to put those "dreams" into action, or answer those questions you're thinking about, then put your energy, and thought into your responsibilities first.

And lastly if your children are not sitting and listening to you while you are reading aloud to them, then it's time to teach them to respect their elders, and especially their Mother. If we are reading aloud and someone isn't listening, I simply stop and say I will not go on until I am the only one talking, or it's Mom's turn to talk right now. This is also something that we must teach our children. Children can and will learn how to sit and listen, they can and will learn how to respect those around them, not only their leaders/teachers but also those who are sitting and listening. It is an important character trait that often times is skipped. Be consistent with your consequences and you will gain a great reward, of obedient and loving children.

It's Planner Time, organized chaos.......

2016-06-24T08:13:00.001-07:00

Anyone out there wondering how I keep our calendar(s) organized?

Trying to keep up with all my little (and big) A's is a wonder at times! I don't know what happens, but all the sudden when your kids get older, like teens and preteens, they have calendars all their own! They have activities and clubs and all the sudden they think they need playdates again!! LOL!!

So here's how I handle my life of organized chaos. I love that saying :) It really is how I feel our life is!

First I have a paper planner. There's just something about writing that I love. I jot notes, and thoughts and such on there. I also write all our plans, and calendar events there. I love, love, love paper planners. I've tried to delete it from my life, but I always miss it!

However what I don't like about paper planners, is carrying it around everywhere. My paper planner is HUGE! I have everything in it. I currently love the Mormon Mom Planners, Mothers who Know. (they do offer one that's non-denominational too) I LOVE the layout of it. I purchased the downloadable one last year, and printed it out just the way I wanted it. I use these to also schedule our homeschool, and do a weekly family and weekly homeschool schedule. This planner speaks to my organized, OCD heart. I love the set up, the layout, and all the extra's included. I love that it has space for me to "think out loud" (or write out loud!) I also love that it has space for Sunday Thoughts, and FHE, along with a place for me to focus on a topic, scripture, or thought that week.

I typically spend some time on Sunday Evenings, planning our weekly devotional, and take alittle time for me, to plan our week and spend some time with my Heavenly Father, in prayer to plan our week. I attended a conference years ago. (I bet it was the first real homeschool conference I ever attended!!) and the speaker, spoke of taking time to spiritually plan your week. Time to focus on what is not just needed to be done, but also time to focus on what He wants you to do this week, too.

I have really enjoyed having it all in one. If you purchased a regular planner and didn't have school and live all mixed up in one, then I'm sure it wouldn't be so annoying to take with you everywhere.

So to help, I also use Cozi on my IPhone. I love the layout of Cozi. I typically just add calendar events to cozi. Just the classes, outings and such. That way if I am at a park day, and we want to plan a future activity, I can. Then I come home and update the written planner.

I love the extra's you get with it too. These are just the free extra's too!! I love that I can save recipes in the recipe box, and then add them to my calendar as meals. This is a new feature, and it's been so nice. Once the recipe is on my calendar, I can click on it and it will take me to the website to see the recipe. I can also add my own recipes. One day I will take the time to set up a blog of all our favorite recipes, and then I can just link to that! I have a friend who has a family recipe book blog, and then she always has all her recipes in one place, and can "see" them even when she's shopping!

I also love that I can have my shopping list on there too. How many times do you run off and forget your list!! I use to keep my list on my fridge, and write on it whenever needed, worked great, until I left without grabbing it!!! Then I'd call one of my teens, and ask them to text me a picture of my list!! :) However, I can't cross off the items like I can on paper! Yes, that bothers me!

Cozi, speaks to my OCD organized life too. It's color coded. I've used that feature for color coding my kids, but also at busy times in our life, I color coded my activity. So school was one color, church another, life another and maybe the active kids. The possibilities are endless, once you open the box to a new idea.

So 2 calendars, yes! But it keeps me up to date, and up to speed wherever I am!
I also take time in my Sunday Planning, to update both calendars. Making sure both state the same activites. Sometimes I think yes, I am going to one planner, but there's always a reason, a pull for both. So far I haven't overscheduled myself or planned 2 activites.

and that my friends is how I keep life organized in all this organized chaos!

Homeschool giveaway!

2016-02-10T06:30:00.002-08:00

An amazing giveaway!
from mystery of history!

Picture Study... Artist Appreciation Ideas

2016-02-09T15:53:00.000-08:00

I'm BACK!!! Been Busy, and well haven't been scheduling in my time to do this, so here we go- let's try again!!!

I was just getting ready to prep my family artist study, started a google search for ideas, and..........
BAM!!!!!
Look what I found!

FREE PICTURE STUDY GUIDES!!!!

love it!!!

So how do I use these in our school?

In our Morning Times. We study one artist a month, and look at up to 4 pictures throughout the month. One week we try to draw, paint, or sculpt like them. One week we learn about the artist's background. The other two weeks we look at and "investigate" the artwork.Very LOW KEY, and SIMPLE!!! I use a lot of the Charlotte Mason approach to Picture Study's.

My idea is to
a- inspire
and
b-expose

.... from there those who love art will do it naturally, those who don't, won't!

Oh and just to keep it all real.... we are just starting these up again, after over a year of not doing it!!!
SEASONS LADIES!!! SEASONS!!!!

answering curriculum questions......

2015-12-10T05:18:00.000-08:00

Recently I made a comment to another homeschool mom, a new homeschool mom, and well I like it!! She is a new homeschooler, and was asking what specific curriculums everyone uses. My comment went something like this:

"It's not the curriculum that's the question. The question is, how you and your children learn, what goals you have for your homeschool, why you homeschool, those are the questions. After you find the answers to those questions, then the question of curriculum is easy!"

I would recommend you write out a list of "why we homeschool" and refer to this list, often. I also would recommend that this list stay handy always, it's always open for editing and adding to. Things change, as you work along the journey of homeschool, motherhood, and well life in general- things change. Keep your mind open to those changes and allow them to better your life, as you move through it.

I would also recommend you read more about philosophies and personalities LONG before you start worrying about curriculum. Make your choices off who you are, and who your children are.

how we get out the door OR to the van, safely.......

2015-10-03T19:33:00.000-07:00

How we manage to get our crew out the door!

With school starting and extra curricular activities, and Co-ops, along with regular life, we need to be able to move our crew out the door and to the van, oftentimes through a parking lot. Parking lots are dangerous, let alone one where everyone's trying to leave at the same time, such as a Co-op.

This years school crew, the kids who go places with me and are involved in these activities are ages,

15, 13, 12, 9, 7, 5, 4, 2, and new little princess in November.

or very close to that age :)

Let me also just point out that the ones 7, 5, 4, and 2 are all boys!

Yes that matters! Even though some girls can be like boys, boys are still boys!

So here's what we do, let's look at our co-op, as that's one that everyone goes to, and everyone brings supplies and bags, plus Mom brings supplies for classes too.

In our Co-op we designate an area, or corner to be our dropping place. As you enter there's a large entry hallway, that leads into a large open gymnasium. There are bleachers in the gymnasium, but other than that it's a walk way and gathering area. All the classrooms are off that area. I choose to place our families things in the gymnasium area. Why? As people are coming and going, the entryway, while large, can easily get very congested. Also there are toddlers wondering around, and in a tighter area, they tend to want to explore in others things rather than run wild along the gym floor :) Also we just find a seat in the gym area to eat our lunches. So if our spot is right there, then we can meet there for lunch distribution too.

This year, the gymnasiums floors were refinished, so we have been asked to walk barefoot or with socks only there, so all shoes are removed too. For this, I will have a tote to put our shoes in next week. That way we don't have shoes ending up everywhere! I will also bring our youngest son slippers. He has a shoe issue, he has to wear shoes everywhere, except when we get into the van- then he's happy to take them off, go figure! I am hoping that if those slippers are only wore at co-op they will feel special, and he won't bother others shoes, or be upset that he doesn't have his on!

Along with backpacks and school supplies and class supplies needed throughout the day, we have to pack a lunch. My kids enjoy being able to have their own individual lunch boxes, so I've purchased them one at a local thrift shop, the DI. That way once everyone has their food, we pray as a family, and the youngers are all sitting and eating, older children can go sit with friends if they'd like to.

So now we've been there from 9:30-2:30 and it's time to go home. It's CRAZY!! We have over 20 families in this co-op (I believe) lots of littles and lots of children who want to run and play, and mom' who want to get home, and toddlers who are cranky and want a nap! Along with remembering to get everything and help put things away and somewhat clean up, there's a ton going on. We do have a clean up family, who we pay a small fee to stay and get everything clean.

Here's our plan:

My last class I teach is nursery and the nursery and younger class, ages 4-7, are having a PE time. So I am able to let the little ones run and play, and the other mom's who help teach nursery and I take turns gathering our supplies and things and cleaning up the toys in our nursery room. I gather my things to one pile, in that room. Then I play with the little boys and girls in the class. When everyone's done we meet at our spot where we keep all our things. Everyone grabs their own backpacks and lunchboxes, all the way to the little 2 year old. The two littlest boys have tiny little backpacks I found, just so they feel special! Plus they have crafts or color pages they do in class too.

Then the oldest is the youngest child's buddy, and the second oldest takes the 2 boys- ages 7 and 5. I do that because, often I have him grab something to carry too, so he can walk behind those two boys and make sure they are safe, but can hold something else in his hands too. The 12 year old takes the 4 year old, as he needs a hand still. And the 9 year old carries more things.

Then we LINE UP! This is one thing my homeschool kids have learned is to line up! I lead, or my oldest daughter if I will be a few more minutes. Each child walks in order of age, except for my 13 year old- he takes up the rear. So for a visual

15 year old with 2 year old

12 year old with 4 year old.

9 year old- who carries extra things

7 year old- who carries if needed

5 year old- who carries if needed

13 year old- who carries extra thing, and makes sure everyone stays in line.

They walk to the van, put their backpacks and lunch boxes in the back, put all children into the van. The two girls, ages 12 and 9 start buckling up carseats, and making sure everyone's buckled up. My 15 year old and 12 year old, head back into the building for the rest of our supplies.

Nice and orderly! That's how I like it!!

Then once we are all in, all last minute conversations are done. We close the door, and do a roll call. Yes, we roll call whenever we are leaving a group setting! Even though typically someone else notices another sibling not in the van, it's just for my own peace of mind! :)

Then we are off!!! Watching out for running kids!!!! :)

This is how we go grocery shopping as a family too. I have a cart, with 1-2 small children in it. The older children hold hands with the younger (if needed, or if they aren't in the cart) and then we line up. Only difference is that the 4 year old is right behind mom and the cart, and we line up youngest to oldest. Then we have mom leading the way, and still aware of the younger children right behind her, and the older children behind to keep the line straight and moving forward.
If we don't line up, then we look like a mob coming!!! :) Trust me it can feel overwhelming!!

And that's how we get out the door, or to the van safely!!! Hopefully some of those tips will help, as you are trying to get a crew moving in the same direction!!! I've done this with just younger children too. I buddy them up, and have them line up 2 by 2!

let them SOAR......

2015-10-02T14:00:00.003-07:00

Earlier this morning as I was having a moment, ok I was actually having a bath! Trying to soak some of the pregnancy pains out of my back and hips :) Oh if it were that easy! I had a thought strike me, an AH-HA as some might call it!

It's interesting how each child has a pure genius, yet some may not seem to be so much of a genius!!!

Ok so that's not exactly something new, but it has hit me at a time that I needed it, again.

As I was sitting there, thinking about my 13 year old, and how "far behind he is in "school"" A thought struck me, honestly it was inspiration given by my Heavenly Father- as the peace it brought afterwards can only be from him. This thought was purely simple,

YES, but look at what HE CAN DO!!!

I started letting my mind wander and thought, yes so true, it seems the children who have the book smarts, don't have the street smarts. While those who can figure things out, and are hands on- get in there and get it done- don't typically have the book smarts.

While to the world, one appears to be a "genius" while the other appears to be "hopeless". Though both are truly geniuses. We need both in the world, and we have both in the world. And some those adults, who appeared to be "hopeless" children have become world "geniuses" as adults. And WHY? Because, when they were younger they had people, usually family, but sometimes others around them who saw that "genius" and they just loved, and cared for and encouraged them. They kept their self esteem high, they fought with and for them, and then one day they watched them soar!

Spreading my ideas!

2015-09-30T10:45:00.001-07:00

I am somewhat new to all this, but I am going to start a facebook page, for my blog! homeschooling-a-houseful is now on facebook!

I am sure I'll have a learning curve with all this! So be patient!!!!