• Math: Jump Into Math by Carson-Dellosa Publishing : I’m using 3rd and 4th grade levels. It may seem odd since my children are going into the 5th and 6th grade. In my opinion, math is math. It’s all about learning certain concepts. I mean, isn’t multiplication – multiplication no matter what grade your child is in? If this seems way to easy, then I’ll buy some more materials. I’m all about keeping it simple until they are ready to delve deeper.
• Spelling: Spelling Connections by Zaner-Bloser : I’m using 5th and 6th grade levels.
• Cursive: Handwriting by Zaner-Bloser : I’m using 5th and 6th grade levels.
• Grammar: Spelling Connections, Practice Book for Grammar, Usage, and Mechanics by Zaner-Bloser : I’m using 5th and 6th grade levels
• Literature : Wonder Stories by Remedia Publications
• Journal: All About Me, Revised Edition, A Keepsake Journal For Kids by Linda Kranz
• Social Studies: World History For Us All : A project of San Diego State University In collaboration with the National Center for History in the Schools (UCLA) A project of San Diego State UniversityIn collaboration with theNational Center for History in the Schools (UCLA)

• Science: 3rd Edition of Inquiry in Action : A project of the American Chemical Society Education Division Office of k-8 Science

Along with all the curriculum listed above, we will also be using various other things too. My kids have 2 extra multiplication/division fun workbooks to go along with their math. We will be visiting the library often and they will be given the opportunity to read at their leisure. I’ve debating back and forth about having my children read certain books, but that’s not real life. I love to read, but that’s only because I can choose what to read. I can’t help but feel like forcing someone to read outside of their interest will only develop a sour attitude toward reading, especially for those kids who rather not be reading a book at all.

I use the Wonder Stories for something fun to talk about. The stories are no longer than a few paragraphs (one sheet with 5 questions). It’s all about things you’ve always wondered about, but didn’t ever learn. It’s a way for me to check their reading comprehension and their ability to read aloud.

Our grammar books are very small, but I will use their journal and spelling to increase their grammar skills.  Last year we began a study of our states. This year I hope the kids learn and retain the knowledge of what all the states are and how to spell them correctly. On top of that we will try and learn their capitals. I’m very exciting about this, because we use this knowledge in our home business.

If I had to change anything with the books I’ve bought for homeschooling this year, I’d change the spelling and grammar books. I didn’t consider the books wouldn’t have come with an answer key and to buy the teacher’s edition will cost over $100. I could have bought and might still do it a cheaper book with the answers.

Well, school starts on Monday and I am so happy about it.  We have lost our routine during the summer. I tried getting up early, only to be aggravated by the baby crying for me to go back to bed. She’s really spoiled by me sleeping beside her. As I write tonight, she’s laying beside me on the couch asleep. I’ve had to stop a couple of times and hold her a minute.

Before the baby, I spent most of my time playing on Facebook or my Xbox 360. Since the baby has been born, I’ve spent most of my time whining about being sleepy and tired and not being able to do anything without holding a baby.

Thanks to a few fellow blogger moms, I’ve discovered a secret. At first it didn’t make sense, but I would swear by it now. As a full time stay at home mother to a new baby and two homeschooled children, plus having my Sweetie at home 24-7, I needed some time to get stuff done without the whole family underfoot.

The secret: Get up at 5 a.m. or at least 2-3 hours before everyone else.

That’s right. Does it seem absurd? Don’t judge it before you try it. I’ve been practicing this for a few days now and I never want to sleep late again. It has solved many issues I was having. The first couple of days I used the extra time to organize a plan for housekeeping and managing my home. After I got my system setup, I started working on implementing it.  Now I have a clean kitchen, living room, and bathroom all day. I haven’t been doing it long enough to completely clean all the rooms in my home, but the most important rooms are being managed with little effort. I have more time to read blogs and the new books I bought on managing your home.

Bonnie’s Household Organizer by Bonnie Runyan McCullough

Totally Organized by Bonnie McCullough

I’m hoping that getting up early will give me some quiet time and some work time. Another thing that I’ve picked up from reading on other blogs, you should treat housework like a job. I’m a real good worker when I have worked for other people (which seems so long ago). I try to remind myself as I work on cleaning – if I were paying someone to manage my housework, what would I expect from them? Keeping with the idea of a job, it helps to stay focused on what I need to do.

Getting up early has been good for my mood too. I am not as resentful about the other people in the home who seem to have all the freedom in the world to do what they want to without having the huge responsibility of caring for a baby at the same time. I was beginning to be a real meanie. I felt angry when I had to carry the baby on my hip while working in the garden or cooking a meal. You can become pretty jealous watching other people going about their day being able to use both hands to complete their projects.

The baby sleeps fairly well in the early morning. The first couple of days I had to stop more times than I wanted to and nurse her back to sleep, but I think she finally decided that it wasn’t worth being awake that early. I still have to go in there a couple of times, but she has gotten better about me not being in the bed with her (yes, the baby sleeps with me and has from day one).

Out of the 5 prompts, I want to write about this prompt:

3.) I know my kids really love me because…(inspired by Sarah from Lit And Laundry)

Here are 10 reasons I know my children love me…

1. When they see me laying in bed when they get up in the morning, they will ask me if I’m sick. I’m usually the first one up and already cleaning the house way before they crawl out their holes.
2. When we get a spare moment to visit a book store, they roll their eyes and sigh real loud, but they don’t cry and bang their heads on the floor in an attempt to get us kicked out.
3. Out of nowhere they will come and give me a hug and tell me they love me. This is not happening as much as it used to. I think my babies are growing up.
4. My kids offer to share everything with me. They will give me a drink or bite of anything they have. Unfortunately, when Motormouth (age 11) offers; I cringe inside. He still eats everything like a slabering two year old.
5. When my back itches in places I can’t reach, either of my children will scratch it for me without expecting anything in return.
6. When my kids and I go on our day adventures, they always seem to have the happiest faces (especially when we stop to eat). I’m glad they don’t hate to go with me all the time.
7. My kids do their chores and most other things that I ask them to do and they do it without cussing me out. At times I feel like Motormouth is borderline, but he does what I ask. I think it says something when your kids respect you.
8. If there is only one of a certain kind of food or drink left in the house, they will ask me if I want it before they take it.
9. Princess will make me homemade cards for special occasions and place money in them. She is real stingy with her own money, so it’s a big deal when she does this.
10. When we sit and watch t.v. I usually end up with them trying to squeeze into my chair or on the couch with me. Princess loves to do this more than Motormouth. With the baby, she doesn’t have room in the rocker with us.

I’m really proud to have a wonderful bunch of kids.  When I get tired and sleepy, it seems overwhelming. However, when I’ve had sleep and can think beyond a pillow and a bed, I can’t help but want to spend some time watching and listening to each of them.  They are pretty good. My Sweetie and the two older kids are working on me to have a fourth child. When I sit and think about how great my kids are doing, it’s real hard to say no. Late at night when I’ve been awakened for the fiftieth time it’s a different story.

Out of the 5 prompts, I want to write about this prompt:

2.) Divorce Dreams…a tempting alternative? A disaster to be avoided? Ever an option? Advice? What’s your take?

I had divorce dreams for a long time back when my older 2 children were very small. I even decided to follow through and get a divorce from My Sweetie. I had pictures in my mind about being able to work where and when I wanted to (yeah that happens when you have to schedule around daycare and taking days off with sick kids). I saw a house in my dreams decorated completely in pink and white (I was stupid). I imagined being in complete control of my future and discovering what I really wanted out of life. I thought I’d magically find a better Mr. Right who would cater to my every whim and support all my decisions no matter how small (very selfish of me).

Reality of divorce dreams: they become nightmares. I had to work my ass off to make ends meet. I remember thinking that My Sweetie was stingy with money (saving it for a rainy day). Many times I felt like he liked to control the money because he was the one making it while I sat at home with our babies. In the real world, shit happens and sometimes you need more money than your last paycheck. He was right about putting the money up and not spending it as we got it.

He was also right when he said that I should enjoy being at home with our children and not having the worry of paying bills. Once I was divorced, I spent many nights laying awake in the bed worried that if I missed another day of work that I wouldn’t be able to pay all of my bills. I hadn’t experienced that feeling when I was married. I took that part for granted. My Sweetie carried that worry (and he still does today) all by himself.

I remember divorce dreaming that I would be able to clean house on my schedule without someone asking me what I had done all day. (Eyes rolling)…every housewife loves to hear how it looks like they’ve accomplished nothing all day. Anyone with 2 kids under the age of 4, 18 months apart, knows that you can finish one cleaning job only to repeat it several times in one day, while trying to finish the other chores.

I remember divorce dreaming that I would be able to read every night before going to bed with the lamp on not having to worry about waking My Sweetie up. I could see the piles of books on my nightstand. In reality those books collected dust. When I was ready to go to bed, I was too tired to hold the book and my mind wouldn’t have been able to get into a book thinking about all the responsibilities that I now had on my shoulders.

My Sweetie and I were divorced for 2 years before deciding that we had learned enough from the experience to put our family back together. He no longer asks me what I’ve done all day. You see during our divorce, we split the time with our kids a little differently. Some of the months we decided the kids would stay 4 days with him, while I worked and then stay 3 days with me while he worked. I would come home from work some days and sit with the kids at his house, so he could get extra hours at work. We both got to walk in each other’s shoes.

I don’t recommend divorce, because it’s pure hell, but it was the biggest learning experience of my adult life. I appreciate not being burdened with the finances and My Sweetie appreciates someone else taking care of the kids and the house.

It will also help with planning, I hope. With no baby coming (well there better not be) this school year should be easier on us all. I got a bit crabby around November and December of last year and the beginning of this year I was so sleep deprived that I didn’t even know my own name most days. It’s a good thing those 2 little people are old enough to read a planner and do the assignments on their own. I guess the alternative, My Sweetie, being the teacher helped to encourage a bit of independence.

Speaking of My Sweetie, he’s heading on a 2 hour journey with his parents to a funeral home. His uncle died a couple of days ago. I hate funerals. I haven’t lost anyone close enough to me that I see the point in dragging the pain out for days with a bunch of people slanging snot that I don’t even recognize. It’s cold and mean, I know. I think people deal with death differently. When I’m hurting emotionally, I prefer to curl up in bed and cry alone. I don’t like hugging and handing out tissues to everybody else. On the flip side, if it was (I hate to say this) one of my children or siblings, or people real close to me (not very many on this list), I would probably feel some kind of comfort to sit next to their body for as long as I could.

I try to wash at least 1 load of clothes each day. Several years ago I would do all my washing one day a week, but my Sweetie pointed out that it would be easier on me and less likely to stress me out if I would do it one load a day. I’m not so sure about how I feel on this. I never have clothes sitting in a basket waiting to be folded, but I always feel like I’m behind on laundry. So for old times sake, I washed a few extra loads and got my clothes sorter nearly emptied. I felt a sense of accomplishment in doing this. I’m not ready to do it all in one day again right now. My baby girl would make it impossible to finish. It took me all day just to balance my checkbook the other day.

When I got pregnant with my last baby and even right after she was born, I was telling everyone how I would like to have maybe one more baby before I call it quits. After many days and nights of losing sleep, I don’t want to think about going through all that again. If there’s one thing that I love most in this world (excluding my kids) it would be sleep. I’m an evil, loud, and mean momma without enough sleep. I will yell at you for even the smallest of infractions. I will try to ignore every plea for attention. I will try to hide in the shower and sometimes even in my van for just a few minutes of peace. I will eat more sugar and drink excessive amounts of caffeine only to become more angrier when the sugar high wears off and I can’t go to sleep (thanks to a baby who thinks that one and half hours of sleep at a time is enough).

My Sweetie, who doesn’t get why I can’t sleep at night, suggests that I learn to tune out the constant demand of my baby wanting to “lay on the ninny”. I’ve become so flustered lately. I even broke out the can of powdered formula the hospital sent home with me. I was sort of hoping that sky would come apart and angels would fly down from heaven singing hallelujah songs when my baby grabbed the bottle and sucked it dry then fall into a deep sleep for about 8 hours. None of that happened. She looked at the bottle full of curiosity and even allowed me to place the nipple into her mouth. She took a tentative suck, then another. Then she pushed the nipple out with her tongue and out come the formula all over her shirt.

We tried for several minutes before I had to change her wet clothes. This was followed by a very long nursing session on the bed where I tried to nap for a few minutes. It’s all coming back to me now why I hadn’t had a baby in 9 years. Unless I enjoy, which I don’t, the constant whining and crying of a baby, I must hold my baby and play with her.

I didn’t have enough to do so I’ve created a Facebook group for women who aren’t motivated enough to cook until their family is starved enough to make their own feed the children video for late night television. It’s basically a club for us women who’s always being asked, “What’s for supper?”. I make out a list of the meals we’ll be eating the next 7 to 10 days, but I do many repeat meals. I admit that I play with recipes every now and then, but I usually stick to the easiest and fastest.

Whenever we receive food from outside sources, you can hear my family making the oohs and aahs like they’ve never eaten before. My kids have begged to eat at the neighbor’s many times.  I think possibly I need to adjust my cooking style and at least give them a new flavor twice a month. Tonight I cooked pinto beans, fried chopped potatoes, macaroni, and cornbread. I admit that we have this about 2-3 times a week.

What’s For Dinner is going to be a fun way to get back in the apron and try again. It works like this…I assign you 2 cooking buddies. You pass a recipe to one of your buddies for them to cook. They must post a picture of the finished product on Facebook for the rest of us to see and learn from (whether it be what to do or not to do). While that cooking buddy is busy working on the recipe you’ve chosen for them, you’ll be working on the recipe that your other cooking buddy has assigned to you. The coolest part is that at any time you need a different recipe for whatever reason, just send a request to your buddy and let them know you don’t think that one is right for you or your family.

Our goal is to work on fixing 2 new dishes a month with your buddies. I will change up buddies after 2 rounds unless you specify otherwise. It’s a great way to meet other mommies and have fun cooking at the same time. We will also be hosting a group recipe. Once a month the group administrators will post a recipe for everyone to try and post pictures of. You don’t have to do the cooking buddy to do the monthly recipe. Heck you don’t have to do anything but sit and watch the rest of us play in the kitchen.

I’m thinking about working on something that will allow everyone to post their plans for breakfast or supper if they want to that is. It might help the rest of us decide what we want for the family meal in our own home. I hope to see some of you join us.

Click here for a copy that you can revise to suit your own needs Grocery Inventory or click here for a pdf version grocery-list-pdf. I guess you can finally say that I’m tired of my magnetic shopping list notepad that clings to my refrigerator (for only a few days at a time before someone has to piece it back together). I did however revert to taking one of the sticky papers and put it directly on my refrigerator, but I don’t like it still. Mainly it’s because when I get home from the grocery store there is always something that got left off my list.

I have been using this inventory list for about a month now and I love it. When I run out of something, I’ll just mark it on the list. Before I go to the store, I get out the list and look at each item and check to make sure I don’t need it. I took the original that was created by Keep and Share and changed it to match what my family purchases. So far so good. If I can just get the store to stop moving things around so I don’t have to walk every aisle over and over. I’m thinking my next project will be to notate what the signs say over each aisle and see how often they get moved around. It is possible that I’m incapable of remembering it from week to week.

So for you list lovers – visit their site or snatch a copy from me. Let me know if it helps you or not.

Out of the 5 prompts, I want to write about this prompt:

1.) Ask someone who loves you what one of your weaknesses is.
(inspired by Summer from Le Musings Of Moi)

First thing this morning I asked my Sweetie about what he thought my number one weakness was. This almost resulted into a fight where I ignore him and withhold food from him for a week. After much thought I knew he was telling the truth. He says that I never know the right thing to say and I always manage to say the thing that makes people think I’m being a b*tch. I was stupid enough to ask for examples. He was dumb enough to give me some examples.

Recently our UPS driver told us that she wouldn’t be doing our deliveries any more. I asked her if she found a better job. My Sweetie and her looked at me like I had 3 heads. She informs me that she was being transferred to another route. My Sweetie said that I made her job look lowly by making that comment. It took me some time to see what he meant. I never thought that her job was beneath any other job.

I mentioned to my mother that we should check on pricing a dumpster for a month so we could do some heavy cleaning of her garage and home. My mother was offended that I thought her stuff was junk and needed to be thrown away. My Sweetie thought it was outrageous that I would mention it all. What can I say? She has become a hoarder from too many years moving from here to there.  I thought it would make her feel better to have less things to keep maintenance on.

I would put a few more on here, but they are about some friends of my Sweetie that I managed to hurt their feelings (some I didn’t mean to). Just in case it opens old wounds, I’ll just leave it at that. I may get brave enough one day to open up about them.

If you have time, drop in and visit Mama Kat. She’s the mastermind behind these wonderful prompts.