Every once in awhile I throw out a "how we do it" snapshot into how we work different situations as a bigger than average homeschooling family. What works changes often, but here's a new little gem that has been keeping us floating recently.
{To see more How We Do It posts, click HERE!}
Food seems to be kind of a big deal around here... With kids home all day, there aren't any lunches to bag, but there are 3 square meals to think of, plus all the snacks that keep our crew going. Often I feel like our kitchen just has a revolving door - some kids are still making toast for breakfast as i'm trying to do food prep for lunch. Food prep is interspersed with little ones needing my help with school, and a hungry baby who wants his lunch early. We barely get the kitchen cleaned it seems, when I realize it's supper time and that I've used all my culinary creativity for the day and I should have started early because this kid is babysitting, has gymnastics, is going to work, etc...
I decided I needed a food prep day - and I needed some help from my bigs. The day that we decided would work best was Sunday afternoon. We made a list of things that it would be nice to do ahead of time. Some of the things we do are:
soups: broccoli, potato, autumn
doughs: bread, buns, pizza dough, pie crusts, cinnamon buns
ground beef: meatsauce, seasoned taco beef, meat buns (stuffed buns), lasagne, chili, meatloaf/meatballs, enchiladas
casseroles (I've got a few "often do" casseroles that everyone seems to like).
chicken pot pie
pre-cook chicken breasts so they're ready to use
cookies, muffins (or even just a large batch of muffin batter), apple crisp, nuts & bolts
pre-cut veggies or fruits
a big pot of quinoa - (it stays nice in the fridge & can be pulled out for a simple salad with lemon & olive oil, salt & pepper dressing & whatever veggies are on hand).
i'm sure we'll add to this little list over then next while as we figure out what works & what doesn't. It's not intended to replace all meal prep, but it does give me a leg up on the week to have devoted a few solid hours once a week to get a nice little chunk done ahead of time. We decide what we're going to do before the weekend so we can shop if we need to - and then on Sunday, we're ready to roll. We pick a few things - (this past Sunday, we made 2 large casserole sized chicken pot pies, plus a little extra crust to make pies in jars for a snack one day and we made huge batches of both potato and autumn soup. We were also going to make muffins, but we ran out of time and energy, so we cut it short). This week - when lunch came, I could pull the soup out of the fridge to warm on the stove and make some fresh biscuits to go with. Easy.
Now that I have so many nice little women in my house, we divide the work and it's actually so fun to work in the kitchen with my people - not worrying if someone should be doing math or getting some other must-do school-day subject done. This week, charter & mollen peeled veggies, Cai made the pie crusts, I made the chicken pot pie filling, Sloan kept the kitchen sparkling so we didn't have to stop and clean and we divided the work on the soups. Pey was out with a friend, but she's often my extra set of arms when Elmer would rather be held than put down.
It feels like it takes a lot of energy to keep this family rolling - and with daddy on the road more than he's home, I've made it my goal this year to plan ahead, to ask for help, to look for the areas that are driving me crazy and to make my best effort to find solutions.
This one has been a gooder!
Showing posts with label how we do it. Show all posts
Showing posts with label how we do it. Show all posts
Saturday, September 28, 2013
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Are you ready for Christmas?
Wow - if i had a nickel for every time someone asked me that question...
i'd be able to afford Christmas.
Heehee... i'm just kidding...
But seriously - that question always makes me wiggle a little in my seat... what to say?
This year, i just smile & unblinkingly have answered, "yep!"
Even though i haven't bought a single present...
i have struggled with this one over the years - we have always done Christmas on a lesser scale than most, but this year it has shrunk to next to nothing.
i put out our tiny nativity & i'm actually enjoying it - & Cai & i have done & will do more baking for friends & family parties, but i'm learning that i'm good with being different.
i'm ready for Christmas - i'm ready for the candle light & the story of His birth. i'm ready for snuggling my little ones & eating cookies & going to my sister's house for a few sleeps. i'm ready to shout at the top of my lungs as we sing, "JOY TO THE WORLD!!!!!! THE LORD HAS COME!!"
(& pardon me if i grab my neighbour & sobbingly hug them as i sing it... it's just such. good. news.)
So - i don't have any presents... & i'm pretty sure there will not be many... if any... bought.
But the reason i answer in the affirmative when asked, "Are you ready for Christmas?"
Is because i am.
i'd be able to afford Christmas.
Heehee... i'm just kidding...
But seriously - that question always makes me wiggle a little in my seat... what to say?
This year, i just smile & unblinkingly have answered, "yep!"
Even though i haven't bought a single present...
i have struggled with this one over the years - we have always done Christmas on a lesser scale than most, but this year it has shrunk to next to nothing.
i put out our tiny nativity & i'm actually enjoying it - & Cai & i have done & will do more baking for friends & family parties, but i'm learning that i'm good with being different.
i'm ready for Christmas - i'm ready for the candle light & the story of His birth. i'm ready for snuggling my little ones & eating cookies & going to my sister's house for a few sleeps. i'm ready to shout at the top of my lungs as we sing, "JOY TO THE WORLD!!!!!! THE LORD HAS COME!!"
(& pardon me if i grab my neighbour & sobbingly hug them as i sing it... it's just such. good. news.)
So - i don't have any presents... & i'm pretty sure there will not be many... if any... bought.
But the reason i answer in the affirmative when asked, "Are you ready for Christmas?"
Is because i am.
Friday, July 15, 2011
laundry - how we do it... (socks)
k, i feel like a huge nerd even posting about organization - when i know there are a few organizational junkies that read my blog, but here goes... A few of you asked about my "system" back when i wrote my post about crowd control & socks - so i thought i'd like to post some of what i have found that works so that one day i can look back and remember what it was like when i was keeping this big machine of a family running.
A family of 9 with one in cloth diapers (though he has been wearing a lot of 'sposies lately!) creates a bit of laundry. i'm *so* blessed 'cause i have a nice big laundry room - & lots of helpers who make this an enjoyable task.
i'm not gonna even talk about sheets & all the extras - just our regular stuff for today.
Each morning, Cai gathers. There is a laundry hamper in Neil's & my room upstairs, a dirty ditty bag in Ephraim's room (my friend made it "custom" for me with funky butterfly fabric & it's HUGE with a big chunky zipper. i would bet it is the world's best ditty bag ever...) There is also a laundry hamper in the girls room in the basement.... there are often dirty dish clothes laying at the top of the stairs to bring down too... (just being honest here...)
After we get all the laundry from the whole house, we sort it & get in the first load before breakfast in the morning. (We do laundry almost every day - between 1 & 2 loads usually). We're a little more consistent during the school year, but even now - we try not to get too far behind.
On a school day, we'll get our morning subjects done & then someone will go down & switch it over before lunch. After lunch, someone is sent to go "restart the dryer - & empty the lint catcher" because it usually takes 2 times to dry... (we hang our laundry sometimes, but my racks have been too rickety to do it too much this year - all of Neil's jeans & golf shirts are hung so they don't get any creases - & anything i think will wrinkle or require ironing or special care gets hung too...) Ironing & me are not bff's.
Then we do our afternoon school. Midway, i get a child to bring me the dry laundry & another child to get hangers. While i'm listening to reading, checking spelling, smiling at baby... etc... i hang *everything* that can be hung & fold the bits that are left. i make 2 piles of hung clothes - one for upstairs, one for downstairs & it gets hung immediately. All that the children have to do is make sure their pants are put away properly. i find this is *much* easier than trying to keep *all* their clothes neatly folded in dressers. Neil also put in rungs in the laundry room to hang laundry on because Charter doesn't have a closet - & because it's always nice to be able to hang any extras *somewhere* - and nobody has the excuse, "i don't know where this goes!!" - 'cause if you don't know, you can always hang it in there.
*All the children's underwear and (folded) socks go into a big wicker basket that i keep in the laundry room & they have to come & find their own. This keeps my sorting and organizing to a minimum - & there's a lot of sock sharing goin' on at our house anyway.
*All mismatched socks go into a clear zippered bag to be sorted when we feel like it (usually once a month).
*All pants are folded (except for mine & Neil's - our are hung too).
i think my system works for me because *everything has a home*. Every mismatched sock is put away, and every t-shirt hung - even if it only gets put on the rung in the laundry room, it's tucked neatly away and isn't in a pile that will get kicked over & eventually put back in the dirty laundry pile without even being worn (don't pretend you don't know what i'm talking about! hehe).
i know our systems seem to always need some give & take - some changing & tweaking over time... but this is where we're at in this sweet season.
A family of 9 with one in cloth diapers (though he has been wearing a lot of 'sposies lately!) creates a bit of laundry. i'm *so* blessed 'cause i have a nice big laundry room - & lots of helpers who make this an enjoyable task.
i'm not gonna even talk about sheets & all the extras - just our regular stuff for today.
Each morning, Cai gathers. There is a laundry hamper in Neil's & my room upstairs, a dirty ditty bag in Ephraim's room (my friend made it "custom" for me with funky butterfly fabric & it's HUGE with a big chunky zipper. i would bet it is the world's best ditty bag ever...) There is also a laundry hamper in the girls room in the basement.... there are often dirty dish clothes laying at the top of the stairs to bring down too... (just being honest here...)
After we get all the laundry from the whole house, we sort it & get in the first load before breakfast in the morning. (We do laundry almost every day - between 1 & 2 loads usually). We're a little more consistent during the school year, but even now - we try not to get too far behind.
On a school day, we'll get our morning subjects done & then someone will go down & switch it over before lunch. After lunch, someone is sent to go "restart the dryer - & empty the lint catcher" because it usually takes 2 times to dry... (we hang our laundry sometimes, but my racks have been too rickety to do it too much this year - all of Neil's jeans & golf shirts are hung so they don't get any creases - & anything i think will wrinkle or require ironing or special care gets hung too...) Ironing & me are not bff's.
Then we do our afternoon school. Midway, i get a child to bring me the dry laundry & another child to get hangers. While i'm listening to reading, checking spelling, smiling at baby... etc... i hang *everything* that can be hung & fold the bits that are left. i make 2 piles of hung clothes - one for upstairs, one for downstairs & it gets hung immediately. All that the children have to do is make sure their pants are put away properly. i find this is *much* easier than trying to keep *all* their clothes neatly folded in dressers. Neil also put in rungs in the laundry room to hang laundry on because Charter doesn't have a closet - & because it's always nice to be able to hang any extras *somewhere* - and nobody has the excuse, "i don't know where this goes!!" - 'cause if you don't know, you can always hang it in there.
*All the children's underwear and (folded) socks go into a big wicker basket that i keep in the laundry room & they have to come & find their own. This keeps my sorting and organizing to a minimum - & there's a lot of sock sharing goin' on at our house anyway.
*All mismatched socks go into a clear zippered bag to be sorted when we feel like it (usually once a month).
*All pants are folded (except for mine & Neil's - our are hung too).
i think my system works for me because *everything has a home*. Every mismatched sock is put away, and every t-shirt hung - even if it only gets put on the rung in the laundry room, it's tucked neatly away and isn't in a pile that will get kicked over & eventually put back in the dirty laundry pile without even being worn (don't pretend you don't know what i'm talking about! hehe).
i know our systems seem to always need some give & take - some changing & tweaking over time... but this is where we're at in this sweet season.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
why i don't have a cleaning lady...
i have three reasons - (likely more, but there are three that pop to mind the quickest & with the most force). i have thought about this a lot in the past couple of years. Especially when i broke my kneecap when E was 5 weeks old.
i thought i'd get cleaning help then... but i just didn't end up doing it - & eventually i got better... & we got by... but through that experience, i came to understand a little more the battle that goes on in my heart every time i have thought about getting some paid help around here.
1. Inconvenience - we're home *all the time* using our house, homeschooling, living, napping, eating... when on earth would there come a convenient time to have someone extra come in to clean? Add to this the inconvenience of paying someone to come - & the nervousness i'd feel telling someone how to clean up our messes - & i'm left knowing that us & a cleaning lady are probably not a great fit.
2. It's part of my training. Juggling all my household tasks is doing an important work on my character. It's also a wonderful opportunity to train my little ones to contribute to our home and to keep ourselves in a semblance of order - at least most of the time. This is part of their education - and part of the responsibility i have. Keeping this job is the best way i know of, to accomplish those goals.
3. Why do i have to believe the insinuation that my house is supposed to be spotless *all the time*? Or ever? This is the most important point for me. Our house is "lived in" far more than most houses. We have 9 people living in a 1600sq ft house. We have children who are home year round - and a daddy who works from home. This home isn't for show - every single square inch of it is *used* space... Useful space should be just that - tidy, organized - (and pretty too, if i can squeeze it in - because beauty makes me happy...) but above all - we have to look at functionality & having our house perpetually 'show home ready' - is one thing i'm willing to live without.
So, yeh - i day dream about a cleaning lady on the days when the world seems to overwhelm, and i yearn for my house to be a peaceful oasis in the chaos of life... but for now... this is how... & why... we do it.
So, yeh - i day dream about a cleaning lady on the days when the world seems to overwhelm, and i yearn for my house to be a peaceful oasis in the chaos of life... but for now... this is how... & why... we do it.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
silent suppers
For Lent, we filled a little glass jar with little slips of paper. Each morning during Lent we pick one to help us in our observance for that day.
There are "5 minute tidies", or "no TV", or "bake something for someone else", or "plan a special dinner and invite company", or "spend 20 minutes extra on music". i try to talk with the little ones about taking the time to remember how these tiny sacrifices are to help us focus on our Jesus - and to look forward to remembering the Great Sacrifice he made for us...
Yesterday, the slip that was chosen read, "Silent Supper".
We always include several silent suppers because it makes neil so happy.
i figured it would be pretty challenging with a three year old and a one year old in the mix - and we prepped the littles that as soon as we said grace, that we would try to hold our words until the end of the meal.
Ephraim made little baby squeaks and noises - and there were a few insistent thrusting index fingers when people wanted to be passed the bread or needed more water, but for the most part, i was pretty impressed with our tiny fry and their efforts to keep supper silent.
Just as we were finishing, suddenly Gagey pushed his empty plate away and announced in a clear voice, "i don't like this food..." and got up and marched away.
We all burst out laughing - and the supper and the silence were ended.
& maybe to some little ones, this tiny formality is barren.
But maybe to others - there will be a seedling planted - a teeny arrow scratched in a dirt path, "This way, little ones... come this way..."
& then - the softening begins - and the hearts are made ready - to enter into relationship with their Rescuer.
And every effort - has value and worth.
There are "5 minute tidies", or "no TV", or "bake something for someone else", or "plan a special dinner and invite company", or "spend 20 minutes extra on music". i try to talk with the little ones about taking the time to remember how these tiny sacrifices are to help us focus on our Jesus - and to look forward to remembering the Great Sacrifice he made for us...
Yesterday, the slip that was chosen read, "Silent Supper".
We always include several silent suppers because it makes neil so happy.
i figured it would be pretty challenging with a three year old and a one year old in the mix - and we prepped the littles that as soon as we said grace, that we would try to hold our words until the end of the meal.
Ephraim made little baby squeaks and noises - and there were a few insistent thrusting index fingers when people wanted to be passed the bread or needed more water, but for the most part, i was pretty impressed with our tiny fry and their efforts to keep supper silent.
Just as we were finishing, suddenly Gagey pushed his empty plate away and announced in a clear voice, "i don't like this food..." and got up and marched away.
We all burst out laughing - and the supper and the silence were ended.
& maybe to some little ones, this tiny formality is barren.
But maybe to others - there will be a seedling planted - a teeny arrow scratched in a dirt path, "This way, little ones... come this way..."
& then - the softening begins - and the hearts are made ready - to enter into relationship with their Rescuer.
And every effort - has value and worth.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
homeschoolin' it - read alouds
A lot of people ask me what types of books i read to my littles when i read to them as a group. This has gotten harder the more children i have had & as their age span has widened. Some years i have separated them according to age to read to them - but i always found that the others were creeping around the corners, trying to be included too - so i usually look for things i can read to the oldest 5 together. Today, i thought i'd share some of what that has looked like for us this year.
i do individual reading with my emerging readers & my big girls are like sponges that absorb every book left open to their little tentacles... but big or little - each of the 5 students love to snuggle up in a blanket & listen to mama read.
This year, we're trying to read one chapter a day from the Bible - that has translated to reading since September: Proverbs, Jonah, Galatians, Hebrews, 1 John, Matthew & we're in the thick of Deuteronomy.
We're about halfway through our 2 history books that we're reading from simultaneously for our history this year - Story of the World & A Child's History of the World.
And then there's our read alouds since September:
Little Pilgrim's Progress
Treasures of the Snow
The Tanglewood Secret
Mr. McBrooms Wonderful One Acre Farm
Lumbercamp Library
Star of Light
Li Lun Lad of Courage
The Secret of Pheasant Cottage
The Family Under the Bridge
Rainbow Garden
Captive Treasure
You'll notice (if you're familiar with these books) that they're all a fairly easy reading level. i wanted to make sure that my littlest learners were engaged, and so i picked easy, shorter books. With my 2 little boys scrambling for attention, we don't always get a lot of time - but i'm trying to keep our habit & teach them that mama thinks this is a priority.
& so we finish off our first hour of homeschool together - snuggled in blankets around the fireplace - finishing hot chocolate & trying to shush tiny boys with little ones begging for another chapter before math starts.
i do individual reading with my emerging readers & my big girls are like sponges that absorb every book left open to their little tentacles... but big or little - each of the 5 students love to snuggle up in a blanket & listen to mama read.
This year, we're trying to read one chapter a day from the Bible - that has translated to reading since September: Proverbs, Jonah, Galatians, Hebrews, 1 John, Matthew & we're in the thick of Deuteronomy.
We're about halfway through our 2 history books that we're reading from simultaneously for our history this year - Story of the World & A Child's History of the World.
And then there's our read alouds since September:
Little Pilgrim's Progress
Treasures of the Snow
The Tanglewood Secret
Mr. McBrooms Wonderful One Acre Farm
Lumbercamp Library
Star of Light
Li Lun Lad of Courage
The Secret of Pheasant Cottage
The Family Under the Bridge
Rainbow Garden
Captive Treasure
You'll notice (if you're familiar with these books) that they're all a fairly easy reading level. i wanted to make sure that my littlest learners were engaged, and so i picked easy, shorter books. With my 2 little boys scrambling for attention, we don't always get a lot of time - but i'm trying to keep our habit & teach them that mama thinks this is a priority.
& so we finish off our first hour of homeschool together - snuggled in blankets around the fireplace - finishing hot chocolate & trying to shush tiny boys with little ones begging for another chapter before math starts.
Friday, December 3, 2010
living in the land of plenty...
i know...
i'm supposed to be out Christmas shopping somewhere or something.
But instead today i found myself purging a really big garbage bag full of excess from our home.
We're in a constant state of re-organization here. With 7 littles - there are always sneaky ways to make it seem like there's more room, to try something new, to rearrange, remove or redo.
Today, i decided to give our 14 year old a shot at having her own room, something that hasn't happened in 12 years.
We moved Mollen downstairs to a little mattress under Charter's loft bed. i'm not sure if it's permanent yet, but the shift caused some cleaning, organizing and purging, and it really struck me; because our family doesn't have a lot of 'stuff' by North American standards, and here i was with another big load to get rid of.
It's another one of the blessings to having a large family. We simply don't have the space to store excess - it *has* to go. Sometimes it's crap & it goes in the garbage (most often), sometimes it's decent and it gets handed down to friends or cousins...
& what goes around comes around...
we love a good bag of pass me downs around here...
Having my little crew has taught me to cling a little less tightly to things -
and a little more tightly to the One who gently shepherds us all...
i hope that He'll continue to strip away at my selfishness and pride...
making room in my heart for His fruit to grow...
i'm supposed to be out Christmas shopping somewhere or something.
But instead today i found myself purging a really big garbage bag full of excess from our home.
We're in a constant state of re-organization here. With 7 littles - there are always sneaky ways to make it seem like there's more room, to try something new, to rearrange, remove or redo.
Today, i decided to give our 14 year old a shot at having her own room, something that hasn't happened in 12 years.
We moved Mollen downstairs to a little mattress under Charter's loft bed. i'm not sure if it's permanent yet, but the shift caused some cleaning, organizing and purging, and it really struck me; because our family doesn't have a lot of 'stuff' by North American standards, and here i was with another big load to get rid of.
It's another one of the blessings to having a large family. We simply don't have the space to store excess - it *has* to go. Sometimes it's crap & it goes in the garbage (most often), sometimes it's decent and it gets handed down to friends or cousins...
& what goes around comes around...
we love a good bag of pass me downs around here...
Having my little crew has taught me to cling a little less tightly to things -
and a little more tightly to the One who gently shepherds us all...
i hope that He'll continue to strip away at my selfishness and pride...
making room in my heart for His fruit to grow...
Monday, October 25, 2010
read alouds
Read alouds are a beautiful part of parenting.
& such a lovely part of homeschooling.
We start with picture books & work our way up to chapters...
The Narnia Chronicles, The Anne of Green Gables series, anything by Meindert DeJong...
We watch for the Newbery Award Winner label - & give special consideration for the ones that won the Caldecott...
& just as we get to the best part...
a little war breaks out, some one's hungry, someone has to go to the potty, baby cries, & there's a loud discussion over who stole whose seat...
Reading out loud gets *hard* the more children you add to the mix. There were a couple of years there where we slugged through - sometimes reading louder, taking breaks - teaching the little ones that this is a priority & that we're not gonna give up.
But it amazes me now, how these books - these "shared experiences" - bond us together.
It's an easy way to do something right.
i usually choose books at about a 6th grade reading level & i do my best to find things that will hold the interest of my littlest learners, as well as my gangly jr. highs.
i don't give up immediately when littles are bucking this quiet time, but i'm learning not to push it either - a few minutes on a bad day is still something - & we press on, continuing our little habit & hoping for better days ahead.
This year, i have carved out a couple of times a day for our read alouds. In the morning we do quite a bit of reading for our group time... & at the end of it... before they sneak off for their age appropriate tasks - i gather them all around the fireplace & i read our latest novel to them.
In the afternoon, after we figure out how far we made it in the morning & how far we'd like to make it in the afternoon, we read again.
i'm hopeful that they'll learn from all the books we read during the day: history, poetry, bible devotionals, math, language arts & dreary grammar lessons...
& i'm hopeful that the extras that i tuck into the nooks & crannies - will serve to educate them as well. The stories that fill in the holes & act as both filler & glue - they give sustenance to learning & in our memory leave a comforting hue to these colorful days.
Read alouds are worth the effort - the blood, sweat & tears they take to make it happen.
They are worth the painstaking effort to create a habit & they're a big part of homeschool life here at Chrysalis Academy.
& such a lovely part of homeschooling.
We start with picture books & work our way up to chapters...
The Narnia Chronicles, The Anne of Green Gables series, anything by Meindert DeJong...
We watch for the Newbery Award Winner label - & give special consideration for the ones that won the Caldecott...
& just as we get to the best part...
a little war breaks out, some one's hungry, someone has to go to the potty, baby cries, & there's a loud discussion over who stole whose seat...
Reading out loud gets *hard* the more children you add to the mix. There were a couple of years there where we slugged through - sometimes reading louder, taking breaks - teaching the little ones that this is a priority & that we're not gonna give up.
But it amazes me now, how these books - these "shared experiences" - bond us together.
It's an easy way to do something right.
i usually choose books at about a 6th grade reading level & i do my best to find things that will hold the interest of my littlest learners, as well as my gangly jr. highs.
i don't give up immediately when littles are bucking this quiet time, but i'm learning not to push it either - a few minutes on a bad day is still something - & we press on, continuing our little habit & hoping for better days ahead.
This year, i have carved out a couple of times a day for our read alouds. In the morning we do quite a bit of reading for our group time... & at the end of it... before they sneak off for their age appropriate tasks - i gather them all around the fireplace & i read our latest novel to them.
In the afternoon, after we figure out how far we made it in the morning & how far we'd like to make it in the afternoon, we read again.
i'm hopeful that they'll learn from all the books we read during the day: history, poetry, bible devotionals, math, language arts & dreary grammar lessons...
& i'm hopeful that the extras that i tuck into the nooks & crannies - will serve to educate them as well. The stories that fill in the holes & act as both filler & glue - they give sustenance to learning & in our memory leave a comforting hue to these colorful days.
Read alouds are worth the effort - the blood, sweat & tears they take to make it happen.
They are worth the painstaking effort to create a habit & they're a big part of homeschool life here at Chrysalis Academy.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
The routine - for vanessa
i don't know if any of this is helpful - & please know that i don't AT ALL think i have it all together. Not in the least. If you could see me as i type with my greasy hair tied back & a huge baby barf dried on the sleeve of Neil's shirt that i'm wearing... you'd know... but i'm just writing out some of the *good* that is working for us. This post isn't about the bad (though, i want you to know it's there too!!) So, here goes, our 'routine' - how we're doing it.
The one thing i have learned in 9 years of homeschooling is this:
Your homeschooling is like a living breathing thing - it morphs from year to year - & the only way for it to keep working, is for you to keep flexing, changing & growing too.
Sometimes i get nostalgic for a certain era - when things worked a certain way. But from year to year, things are bound to change. Littles grow, babies are born & numbers go up, we get bored & need a change, we realise that sometimes we're just bangin' our head against the wall, we find something new & exciting & reject something that as it turns out, wasn't so interesting after all...
& so -
That said -
Because vanessa asked -
i'll post our routine that is working in the fall of this particular year with my little one room school house.
7-8 - wake up, coffee up, get food, fresh bums & the first load of laundry in.
8am - we meet at the table & hopefully in the next hour we accomplish these things:
*O Canada (1min)
*The Lord's Prayer (1 min)
*Poetry read aloud (5-10 minutes)
*latin root word cards (5/day) (10-15 mins)
*bible (right now we're reading a proverb a day) (5 minutes)
*Geography (i love my big map & geography songs!) (5-10 minutes)
*History (hillyer's a child's history of the world - *supplemented for the older ones by them reading independently from streams of civilization). (15 minutes)
*read aloud - as time allows - some days we have time & others not. I usually try to make the time for it. i like reading aloud in both morning & afternoon - that way it's more hit than miss..
*devotions - (leading little ones to God - gagey loves this) - (10 minutes)
*prayer - for our community, our church, our family, our daddy... etc... (10 minutes)
(*times are very approximate - i realize it adds up to more than an hour & we do often go over this hour... but just to give you an idea how it all comes out for us).
9ish - 10am
math. Cairo does her own upstairs, Sloanie helps Peyton with hers downstairs & then does her own, i clean up the table & help Charter & Mollen with math while entertaining the little dudes. This takes less than an hour (even for the bigs) - so that's why i'm ok with going over that first hour. Saxon for the older 3 & Jump math for the younger 2.
10-11am
We're usually ahead by now because Charter & Mollen don't take anywhere near an hour to do their math. As time allows over the next couple of hours, i usually finish all their (grades 1 & 3)school by lunch, but this hour is designated for "life pacs" for the older students (language arts - alpha & omega - which i probably wouldn't use again because of it's *too heavy* emphasis on grammar). Mollen uses "English for the Thoughtful Child".
11-12
Charter, Mollen & Peyton all still need to read aloud to me.
12 - 1 catch up laundry - make sure it's getting switched over, folded etc... get lunch, have a house tidy. At lunch, i pull out my daytimer & find out where everyone is at. Most of the time, the littlest 2 are done, or maybe only have little scraps left - & the bigger ones know what they still want to get done. Our afternoons are VERY loose - i did write a schedule for them, but we don't follow it to a T like we do for our mornings. As we finish eating, i pull out our read aloud book (right now, it's Treasures of the Snow) & read to them as long as i can. (Anyone who has ever tried to read in a room with a preschooler & a baby knows *exactly* what i mean by that).
1-2 - writing. Everyone has to write *something* for me every day. This really simple approach is working. Some days i assign a specific task, some days they just write whatever they want. For every book they read, i get them to write a simple book report - this helps 'cause Sloanie would like to read all day every day - this makes her take some time to process what she has read & *write down* her thoughts about it. It also gives them something to write about on days when she just doesn't know what to do.
2-3 - science. i'm using a book with Charter & Mollen that a friend lent me called Exploring Creation with Astronomy - i LOVE it - & so do they. (Thanks, Lisa!) Sloanie is using the Alberta science 7 text book & Cai & Peyton are doing science online.
By now - really, they're all just working on their own pace. They finish off tasks like: violin, french (rosetta stone - only Cai's doing this), blog, running at the park, special projects* (i can tell you about some of these another time - don't want to be toooooo boring...) etc...
As long as they have finished the 'afternoon goals' that we make at lunch time, i'm happy - & most of the time that happens.
i call this a routine & not a schedule 'cause there is *so much* flex in there. Peyton has a "video class" for her online science on Tuesdays at 10am, so she'll have to flex to fit that 1/2 hour class in. Sometimes Cai just does whatever she feels like - or practices violin for an hour in the middle of the day. i'm totally fine with that. i have 'monthly' goals for each child in each subject & i keep my eye on the calendar to make sure that nobody is falling behind. After Christmas, i usually make a new set of goals... sometimes making small fixes if i think something hasn't been working great in the fall.
The one thing i have learned in 9 years of homeschooling is this:
Your homeschooling is like a living breathing thing - it morphs from year to year - & the only way for it to keep working, is for you to keep flexing, changing & growing too.
Sometimes i get nostalgic for a certain era - when things worked a certain way. But from year to year, things are bound to change. Littles grow, babies are born & numbers go up, we get bored & need a change, we realise that sometimes we're just bangin' our head against the wall, we find something new & exciting & reject something that as it turns out, wasn't so interesting after all...
& so -
That said -
Because vanessa asked -
i'll post our routine that is working in the fall of this particular year with my little one room school house.
7-8 - wake up, coffee up, get food, fresh bums & the first load of laundry in.
8am - we meet at the table & hopefully in the next hour we accomplish these things:
*O Canada (1min)
*The Lord's Prayer (1 min)
*Poetry read aloud (5-10 minutes)
*latin root word cards (5/day) (10-15 mins)
*bible (right now we're reading a proverb a day) (5 minutes)
*Geography (i love my big map & geography songs!) (5-10 minutes)
*History (hillyer's a child's history of the world - *supplemented for the older ones by them reading independently from streams of civilization). (15 minutes)
*read aloud - as time allows - some days we have time & others not. I usually try to make the time for it. i like reading aloud in both morning & afternoon - that way it's more hit than miss..
*devotions - (leading little ones to God - gagey loves this) - (10 minutes)
*prayer - for our community, our church, our family, our daddy... etc... (10 minutes)
(*times are very approximate - i realize it adds up to more than an hour & we do often go over this hour... but just to give you an idea how it all comes out for us).
9ish - 10am
math. Cairo does her own upstairs, Sloanie helps Peyton with hers downstairs & then does her own, i clean up the table & help Charter & Mollen with math while entertaining the little dudes. This takes less than an hour (even for the bigs) - so that's why i'm ok with going over that first hour. Saxon for the older 3 & Jump math for the younger 2.
10-11am
We're usually ahead by now because Charter & Mollen don't take anywhere near an hour to do their math. As time allows over the next couple of hours, i usually finish all their (grades 1 & 3)school by lunch, but this hour is designated for "life pacs" for the older students (language arts - alpha & omega - which i probably wouldn't use again because of it's *too heavy* emphasis on grammar). Mollen uses "English for the Thoughtful Child".
11-12
Charter, Mollen & Peyton all still need to read aloud to me.
12 - 1 catch up laundry - make sure it's getting switched over, folded etc... get lunch, have a house tidy. At lunch, i pull out my daytimer & find out where everyone is at. Most of the time, the littlest 2 are done, or maybe only have little scraps left - & the bigger ones know what they still want to get done. Our afternoons are VERY loose - i did write a schedule for them, but we don't follow it to a T like we do for our mornings. As we finish eating, i pull out our read aloud book (right now, it's Treasures of the Snow) & read to them as long as i can. (Anyone who has ever tried to read in a room with a preschooler & a baby knows *exactly* what i mean by that).
1-2 - writing. Everyone has to write *something* for me every day. This really simple approach is working. Some days i assign a specific task, some days they just write whatever they want. For every book they read, i get them to write a simple book report - this helps 'cause Sloanie would like to read all day every day - this makes her take some time to process what she has read & *write down* her thoughts about it. It also gives them something to write about on days when she just doesn't know what to do.
2-3 - science. i'm using a book with Charter & Mollen that a friend lent me called Exploring Creation with Astronomy - i LOVE it - & so do they. (Thanks, Lisa!) Sloanie is using the Alberta science 7 text book & Cai & Peyton are doing science online.
By now - really, they're all just working on their own pace. They finish off tasks like: violin, french (rosetta stone - only Cai's doing this), blog, running at the park, special projects* (i can tell you about some of these another time - don't want to be toooooo boring...) etc...
As long as they have finished the 'afternoon goals' that we make at lunch time, i'm happy - & most of the time that happens.
i call this a routine & not a schedule 'cause there is *so much* flex in there. Peyton has a "video class" for her online science on Tuesdays at 10am, so she'll have to flex to fit that 1/2 hour class in. Sometimes Cai just does whatever she feels like - or practices violin for an hour in the middle of the day. i'm totally fine with that. i have 'monthly' goals for each child in each subject & i keep my eye on the calendar to make sure that nobody is falling behind. After Christmas, i usually make a new set of goals... sometimes making small fixes if i think something hasn't been working great in the fall.
Friday, September 17, 2010
how paige gives housekeeping advice...
If you don't have enough room for a new baby, you need to get rid of some of your stuff.
If your pots and pans cupboard is always messy, get rid of some of them.
If a drawer doesn't close easily or a lid close neatly, you need to throw away some of what it contains.
If your child's closet won't stay neat, get rid of some of their clothes.
If your child is reading a lame book that contains the phrase, "i never thought about having a slammin' body before" & the recommended reading age for that "christian" literature is 8-12... chuck it.
14 years of being married to the ruthless purger that my husband is has trained me to begin to live simply...
i value that simplicity.
i find homes for the things i need, i keep what i love & make room for people by getting rid of stuff.
If your pots and pans cupboard is always messy, get rid of some of them.
If a drawer doesn't close easily or a lid close neatly, you need to throw away some of what it contains.
If your child's closet won't stay neat, get rid of some of their clothes.
If your child is reading a lame book that contains the phrase, "i never thought about having a slammin' body before" & the recommended reading age for that "christian" literature is 8-12... chuck it.
14 years of being married to the ruthless purger that my husband is has trained me to begin to live simply...
i value that simplicity.
i find homes for the things i need, i keep what i love & make room for people by getting rid of stuff.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
allowances - how we do it
Neil & i couldn't figure out for a long while how to do the whole money thing. If we gave the children money - they would lose it or spend it on candy. Finally, we found out what works best for our family - & i think it's what we'll keep doing 'till this season runs it's course.
Our system begins when a child turns 8. Maybe that seems too old, or too young to some, but it's the age that seemed to make the most sense to us. Right now, we have 3 children who are under 8 - those little people can earn money by losing teeth, doing extra chores, or by having a birthday:) Other than that, we don't really give them any money. BUT, When a child (Charter - last week!) turns 8, part of their birthday present is that they get a bank account. Whoever is youngest gets $20 deposited every month - whenever another child turns 8, everyone gets a $5 raise. So, right now, Charter gets $20, Peyton gets $25, Sloan gets $30 & Cai gets $35. We've talked about a cut off date, but we didn't set one in stone... We did things this way for a couple reasons...
First off, our children do a lot of chores. We homeschool, so there are people in this house pretty much 24/7 - people making messes, creating havoc, laundry and dishes. There are always a lot of chores to do - & thankfully, there are also a lot of little hands making easy work. Their chores include the dishwasher, helping with laundry, diapers, garbages, recycling, getting the mail, cooking, general tidying and babysitting - the specifics of which probably belong in another post. i'm reasonably happy with the job we're doing keeping our little ship running pretty tight & tidy. i don't think it's unreasonable to expect our littles to work hard - & i like the idea that in return for their hard work, they're collecting a little bit in their bank accounts for future wants & needs.
Secondly, having 7 children, we know that it's going to be hard to help everyone in the same ways. We'd love to help with post secondary education, but i'm not sure what that help will look like - or what we'll be able to do. Weddings? Same deal...
Soooooo - they'll finish (home)school with a little nest egg - Neil deposits all the big girls' babysitting money in their accounts too - & the girls are sure proud of how much their accounts have grown. i'm sure over the next few years, they'll find other ways to earn money and to find ways to accomplish their goals - i hope we can help, encourage & cheer.
Our system begins when a child turns 8. Maybe that seems too old, or too young to some, but it's the age that seemed to make the most sense to us. Right now, we have 3 children who are under 8 - those little people can earn money by losing teeth, doing extra chores, or by having a birthday:) Other than that, we don't really give them any money. BUT, When a child (Charter - last week!) turns 8, part of their birthday present is that they get a bank account. Whoever is youngest gets $20 deposited every month - whenever another child turns 8, everyone gets a $5 raise. So, right now, Charter gets $20, Peyton gets $25, Sloan gets $30 & Cai gets $35. We've talked about a cut off date, but we didn't set one in stone... We did things this way for a couple reasons...
First off, our children do a lot of chores. We homeschool, so there are people in this house pretty much 24/7 - people making messes, creating havoc, laundry and dishes. There are always a lot of chores to do - & thankfully, there are also a lot of little hands making easy work. Their chores include the dishwasher, helping with laundry, diapers, garbages, recycling, getting the mail, cooking, general tidying and babysitting - the specifics of which probably belong in another post. i'm reasonably happy with the job we're doing keeping our little ship running pretty tight & tidy. i don't think it's unreasonable to expect our littles to work hard - & i like the idea that in return for their hard work, they're collecting a little bit in their bank accounts for future wants & needs.
Secondly, having 7 children, we know that it's going to be hard to help everyone in the same ways. We'd love to help with post secondary education, but i'm not sure what that help will look like - or what we'll be able to do. Weddings? Same deal...
Soooooo - they'll finish (home)school with a little nest egg - Neil deposits all the big girls' babysitting money in their accounts too - & the girls are sure proud of how much their accounts have grown. i'm sure over the next few years, they'll find other ways to earn money and to find ways to accomplish their goals - i hope we can help, encourage & cheer.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
single income lotsa kids - how we do it
It's not always easy.
Neil doesn't make a billion dollars a year...
We have moved to make it work, lived on less, eaten in more, vacationed at grandparent's houses. Our littles wear pass me downs & share bedrooms.
Neil has worked hard - i've done my part too...
But he has never...
ever...
made life about money.
He's as generous as they come -
stinginess is not in his vocabulary -
If some one's buying - it hurts his feelings if it's not him.
i love that about him.
i used to sweat the small stuff -
worrying if we could afford his generosity -
till one day it dawned on me...
Would i want to change that part of him?
Would i want two of *me* in our family?
Or possibly... could there be room for two of *him*?
i asked him if he could please take over finances and paying bills - & when he did - i felt a huge release... He was trustworthy, easy-going, conscientious... and smart.
i knew that he was going to take care of us... & so i quit second guessing him.
We had decided when we first got married that we both felt that there was value in having a mama be at home with the little people - & we agreed that we would do everything we could to keep me at home. (At least until they were all in school... haha).
We ended up having to make quite a few sacrifices to make it happen...
but we wouldn't change a thing.
Over the years, i made a few dollars - playing or singing for events, teaching piano for a short season... but there has never been a perfect opportunity for me to contribute in any real financial way to our household without sacrificing too much of what we're doing around here.
& i'm ok with that.
For now, i'll pour into this little crew -
not counting the cost...
Generously giving them beyond what i think i'm able...
taking my cues from my adored one -
& taking stinginess out of my vocabulary.
Life isn't about the money -
& gratitude is born out of that knowledge.
Neil doesn't make a billion dollars a year...
We have moved to make it work, lived on less, eaten in more, vacationed at grandparent's houses. Our littles wear pass me downs & share bedrooms.
Neil has worked hard - i've done my part too...
But he has never...
ever...
made life about money.
He's as generous as they come -
stinginess is not in his vocabulary -
If some one's buying - it hurts his feelings if it's not him.
i love that about him.
i used to sweat the small stuff -
worrying if we could afford his generosity -
till one day it dawned on me...
Would i want to change that part of him?
Would i want two of *me* in our family?
Or possibly... could there be room for two of *him*?
i asked him if he could please take over finances and paying bills - & when he did - i felt a huge release... He was trustworthy, easy-going, conscientious... and smart.
i knew that he was going to take care of us... & so i quit second guessing him.
We had decided when we first got married that we both felt that there was value in having a mama be at home with the little people - & we agreed that we would do everything we could to keep me at home. (At least until they were all in school... haha).
We ended up having to make quite a few sacrifices to make it happen...
but we wouldn't change a thing.
Over the years, i made a few dollars - playing or singing for events, teaching piano for a short season... but there has never been a perfect opportunity for me to contribute in any real financial way to our household without sacrificing too much of what we're doing around here.
& i'm ok with that.
For now, i'll pour into this little crew -
not counting the cost...
Generously giving them beyond what i think i'm able...
taking my cues from my adored one -
& taking stinginess out of my vocabulary.
Life isn't about the money -
& gratitude is born out of that knowledge.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Sunday mornings - how we do it
Sundays have really changed over the past year. That change has come about mostly because i've been doing a lot of music at our church... On the days where i'm helping out with music, i need to be at the church at 8:30.
Sundays *feel* different at our house. i get up, shower - my sweet husband gets up, puts on some music and makes the coffee. Sundays feel mellow. Cai showers & i get Gagey all changed, fed & happy... Neil & i have our coffee by the fire & the rest of the little ones roam around in various stages of readiness.
As 8:20 rolls around, Neil drives me & Cai & Gagey to the church (so that we only have 1 vehicle there). Sloanie holds down the fort for the 5 minutes it takes him to drop us off - in nicer weather, we've walked... but man, it's been awhile.
My little wonder woman has usually packed snacks & a sippy cup for her little sweetheart & her & Gage seem to enjoy the musical morning getting ready for the service.
Our service starts at 11 - so Neil & co. arrive a few minutes before that so that he can snag Gagey & the other littles can get to Sunday School. After the music part, Neil & i sometimes take turns with little man. He's feeling frisky these days, so he's not the greatest for sitting in church - but there's a family room where he can roam - or like he did today, he can rule the foyer, makin' eyes at all the ladies.
The part that stuck out for me from the sermon today?
Well, it's funny - 'cause it was more of a side thought than the focus of his sermon (Jesus our Redeemer), but he said (talking about Ruth) that a good wife can be like a crown & a bad wife can be like a cancer... the girl next to me looked at me & we raised our eyebrows. 'i think i'm like a cancer,' she whispered... half joking... 'no', i said... 'we're just really, really heavy crowns'.
We visited a bit - & our conversation fed me & reminded me that church is the body of believers. (Thank you, C).
After the service ends - we round up the troops & slowly find our way out to the van & home to leftovers or some other such lazy lunch... (today it was ham buns & leftover lasagne).
It's not always about the sermon, the music, the ambiance... It's about fellowship, edification, correction, and sharpening. It's about Jesus - learning more about Him - worshipping corporately - & showing my children that even in this far less than perfect congregation, God will show up & help us to grow.
i've heard this sentiment from other Christians - & i've found it to be painfully true in my own life: i love Jesus, but Church is hard...
Churches have bad reputations that they have earned. A lot of churches have sacrificed Truth for numbers, Jesus for a fallen man, ministry for money. Neil & i have struggled over the years wondering 'what's it all for?'
But for now - we've found our little spot. We feel like we have something to offer and that we are being fed.
So, Sunday mornings - that's how we do it. :)
Sundays *feel* different at our house. i get up, shower - my sweet husband gets up, puts on some music and makes the coffee. Sundays feel mellow. Cai showers & i get Gagey all changed, fed & happy... Neil & i have our coffee by the fire & the rest of the little ones roam around in various stages of readiness.
As 8:20 rolls around, Neil drives me & Cai & Gagey to the church (so that we only have 1 vehicle there). Sloanie holds down the fort for the 5 minutes it takes him to drop us off - in nicer weather, we've walked... but man, it's been awhile.
My little wonder woman has usually packed snacks & a sippy cup for her little sweetheart & her & Gage seem to enjoy the musical morning getting ready for the service.
Our service starts at 11 - so Neil & co. arrive a few minutes before that so that he can snag Gagey & the other littles can get to Sunday School. After the music part, Neil & i sometimes take turns with little man. He's feeling frisky these days, so he's not the greatest for sitting in church - but there's a family room where he can roam - or like he did today, he can rule the foyer, makin' eyes at all the ladies.
The part that stuck out for me from the sermon today?
Well, it's funny - 'cause it was more of a side thought than the focus of his sermon (Jesus our Redeemer), but he said (talking about Ruth) that a good wife can be like a crown & a bad wife can be like a cancer... the girl next to me looked at me & we raised our eyebrows. 'i think i'm like a cancer,' she whispered... half joking... 'no', i said... 'we're just really, really heavy crowns'.
We visited a bit - & our conversation fed me & reminded me that church is the body of believers. (Thank you, C).
After the service ends - we round up the troops & slowly find our way out to the van & home to leftovers or some other such lazy lunch... (today it was ham buns & leftover lasagne).
It's not always about the sermon, the music, the ambiance... It's about fellowship, edification, correction, and sharpening. It's about Jesus - learning more about Him - worshipping corporately - & showing my children that even in this far less than perfect congregation, God will show up & help us to grow.
i've heard this sentiment from other Christians - & i've found it to be painfully true in my own life: i love Jesus, but Church is hard...
Churches have bad reputations that they have earned. A lot of churches have sacrificed Truth for numbers, Jesus for a fallen man, ministry for money. Neil & i have struggled over the years wondering 'what's it all for?'
But for now - we've found our little spot. We feel like we have something to offer and that we are being fed.
So, Sunday mornings - that's how we do it. :)
Thursday, February 5, 2009
How we do it - family worship
Yesterday i touched on what is one of my favourite times of the day...
i know i talked a bit about it in 'the Mollen years' too -
It's something that just sort of morphed into what it is right now over the years.
i've had a ton of people say, 'i'd love to sit in your house for a morning & just see what it's like...'
(By the way, no, you wouldn't - it's a little like a nut house sometimes & we have lots of attitude, volume & tears - )
But we also have times to sing songs & Praise God. In recent months, i've been organizing my music a little better than i have at other times in my life. Usually, it has been sprawled in complete disarray over my beautiful piano... folders of worship music, mixed with Violin, Royal Conservatory & fiddle music - stuff i'm writing - or music that has moved me recently & i've gone online & found it - or i've been transcribing.
Lately i've been taming the chaos a little & i'm loving it. i love being able to find what i'm looking for when i'm looking for it.
So, in the midst of organizing all my music, i made a little folder for our family worship. It doesn't have all the music we've done over the years... but i'm just starting now & i'm building on it as things come up.
So, back to our morning... when we're done at the kitchen table (we do history & bible right after breakfast at the table) - we move over to the living room. Right now i use my piano - i also like to shock the littles & use the ukulele or the accordion (only when Neil's not home HAHA!! i'm horrible, but it's fun to make noises on different instruments... )
It's different every time we do it. Sometimes (most times) it's a lot of jumping & dancing & singing at the top of our lungs... Sometimes it's a little more reflective. There are times where i get them to line up in a row & i accompany them with music while they quote scripture they've memorized... (i love this... i know it's powerful for them too...) There are also times where we don't have any accompaniment & we sing at the table - or i'll make them sing a verse 2 at a time - duets make them a little less shy & i love hearing their little voices individually. i try to do as many "rounds" as i can so that they'll start to hear harmony parts. Usually i'll get Mollen to sing a solo & have the others sit & listen.
i thought i'd share my little list - it's not the be all end all, but maybe it'll have something useful for someone.
Our God is an Awesome God
Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho - (i made them all watch Mahalia Jackson sing this one on Youtube to learn it - that was a fun day...)
Shalom Chaverim (thanks, LD!)
Jehovah Jireh
I Will Sing Unto The Lord
12 Men Went To Spy On Canaan
Love the Lord Your God
The Lord is my Shepherd
Rejoice in the Lord Always
Peter & John went to Pray - (we have a tradition of acting this one out while we're singing it... hehe... )
Dona Nobis Pacem -(latin for 'give us peace' - fitting for our house... *sigh*)
The Happy Song
Molls usually throws in a rendition of Somewhere Over the Rainbow... i know... it doesn't fit in the category of worship music... but it fits in our little service just right...
i hope that one day i get it together enough that my littles are playing instruments too (we've had times like that too - when we've had stuff worked up well enough...) but for now, i refuse to have perfectionism hold us back.
Our stumbling, bumbling little offerings *will* be brought - & my hope is that our family's worship time serves to honour God & bring Him glory. i want my littles to grow up feeling comfortable with Him - in His presence... Safe to call on Him... not hindered by what looks normal to those around them... but free to respond to Him as He calls.
Sometimes in the silence after a song- i can still faintly hear the ringing of the strings in my piano - i close my eyes & in the hush - i know that God has met with us.
What a Good God we serve - who loves the little children & who hears us & has compassion on us & is willing to meet us where we are.
i know i talked a bit about it in 'the Mollen years' too -
It's something that just sort of morphed into what it is right now over the years.
i've had a ton of people say, 'i'd love to sit in your house for a morning & just see what it's like...'
(By the way, no, you wouldn't - it's a little like a nut house sometimes & we have lots of attitude, volume & tears - )
But we also have times to sing songs & Praise God. In recent months, i've been organizing my music a little better than i have at other times in my life. Usually, it has been sprawled in complete disarray over my beautiful piano... folders of worship music, mixed with Violin, Royal Conservatory & fiddle music - stuff i'm writing - or music that has moved me recently & i've gone online & found it - or i've been transcribing.
Lately i've been taming the chaos a little & i'm loving it. i love being able to find what i'm looking for when i'm looking for it.
So, in the midst of organizing all my music, i made a little folder for our family worship. It doesn't have all the music we've done over the years... but i'm just starting now & i'm building on it as things come up.
So, back to our morning... when we're done at the kitchen table (we do history & bible right after breakfast at the table) - we move over to the living room. Right now i use my piano - i also like to shock the littles & use the ukulele or the accordion (only when Neil's not home HAHA!! i'm horrible, but it's fun to make noises on different instruments... )
It's different every time we do it. Sometimes (most times) it's a lot of jumping & dancing & singing at the top of our lungs... Sometimes it's a little more reflective. There are times where i get them to line up in a row & i accompany them with music while they quote scripture they've memorized... (i love this... i know it's powerful for them too...) There are also times where we don't have any accompaniment & we sing at the table - or i'll make them sing a verse 2 at a time - duets make them a little less shy & i love hearing their little voices individually. i try to do as many "rounds" as i can so that they'll start to hear harmony parts. Usually i'll get Mollen to sing a solo & have the others sit & listen.
i thought i'd share my little list - it's not the be all end all, but maybe it'll have something useful for someone.
Our God is an Awesome God
Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho - (i made them all watch Mahalia Jackson sing this one on Youtube to learn it - that was a fun day...)
Shalom Chaverim (thanks, LD!)
Jehovah Jireh
I Will Sing Unto The Lord
12 Men Went To Spy On Canaan
Love the Lord Your God
The Lord is my Shepherd
Rejoice in the Lord Always
Peter & John went to Pray - (we have a tradition of acting this one out while we're singing it... hehe... )
Dona Nobis Pacem -(latin for 'give us peace' - fitting for our house... *sigh*)
The Happy Song
Molls usually throws in a rendition of Somewhere Over the Rainbow... i know... it doesn't fit in the category of worship music... but it fits in our little service just right...
i hope that one day i get it together enough that my littles are playing instruments too (we've had times like that too - when we've had stuff worked up well enough...) but for now, i refuse to have perfectionism hold us back.
Our stumbling, bumbling little offerings *will* be brought - & my hope is that our family's worship time serves to honour God & bring Him glory. i want my littles to grow up feeling comfortable with Him - in His presence... Safe to call on Him... not hindered by what looks normal to those around them... but free to respond to Him as He calls.
Sometimes in the silence after a song- i can still faintly hear the ringing of the strings in my piano - i close my eyes & in the hush - i know that God has met with us.
What a Good God we serve - who loves the little children & who hears us & has compassion on us & is willing to meet us where we are.
Monday, January 19, 2009
How we do it... swimming
i love getting an idea of how other families operate.
i was thinking as we were leaving the pool this Saturday that we've pretty much got 'how we do swimming' down to a science.
First off, the passes were a Christmas present from my parents - swim passes are an awesome, clutter free gift idea if grandparents are ever asking...
We make the kids change into their swimsuits at home & then we pack underwear for everyone. We pack 2 swim bags - one for the 3 big girls & one for Neil & i & the 3 littles. When we get to the pool, the 3 big girls can go to the ladies change room & we go to the family change room. (One thing we decided early on was that we'll only go for 'family' swim, not 'public' swim... It's much less crowded & there is a huge difference in atmosphere.)
i handle Gage & Neil helps Mollen into her 'floaty'. It's quick 'cause Charter & Molls already have their swimsuits on, so they just have to undress & they're ready. Charter is bouncing off the walls, but he's able to get himself changed & put his clothes in a locker. We bring our towels in & put them on the side of the pool. i usually take Gage - & because Mollen has a floaty & everyone else can swim well, Neil takes all 5 other kids to the diving board, or the slide... whatever. If he does laps with them, as they finish their laps, they'll come over to me & Gage in the kiddie pool. Sometimes we'll switch around a bit & Neil will take Gage - but Neil is so much more fun in the pool that the kids prefer swimming with him :) (Who could blame them? Their own personal Shamu...) & sometimes we'll all be swimming together - depending on how wiggly Gage is being & if he has a floaty on so he can be a little more independent.
Anyway, when we're just about done swimming, i run & get changed first while Neil holds Gage & all the littles get warmed up in the hot tub. Then i come back for Gagey & the 3 big girls go get ready themselves. Neil & i tag team the younger 3 - but it's a lot easier because i'm not trying to get changed at the same time.
We are seriously fast :) hehe.
When we get home - i have one of these (jabba from Ikea) hanging in my basement laundry room:
i was thinking as we were leaving the pool this Saturday that we've pretty much got 'how we do swimming' down to a science.
First off, the passes were a Christmas present from my parents - swim passes are an awesome, clutter free gift idea if grandparents are ever asking...
We make the kids change into their swimsuits at home & then we pack underwear for everyone. We pack 2 swim bags - one for the 3 big girls & one for Neil & i & the 3 littles. When we get to the pool, the 3 big girls can go to the ladies change room & we go to the family change room. (One thing we decided early on was that we'll only go for 'family' swim, not 'public' swim... It's much less crowded & there is a huge difference in atmosphere.)
i handle Gage & Neil helps Mollen into her 'floaty'. It's quick 'cause Charter & Molls already have their swimsuits on, so they just have to undress & they're ready. Charter is bouncing off the walls, but he's able to get himself changed & put his clothes in a locker. We bring our towels in & put them on the side of the pool. i usually take Gage - & because Mollen has a floaty & everyone else can swim well, Neil takes all 5 other kids to the diving board, or the slide... whatever. If he does laps with them, as they finish their laps, they'll come over to me & Gage in the kiddie pool. Sometimes we'll switch around a bit & Neil will take Gage - but Neil is so much more fun in the pool that the kids prefer swimming with him :) (Who could blame them? Their own personal Shamu...) & sometimes we'll all be swimming together - depending on how wiggly Gage is being & if he has a floaty on so he can be a little more independent.
Anyway, when we're just about done swimming, i run & get changed first while Neil holds Gage & all the littles get warmed up in the hot tub. Then i come back for Gagey & the 3 big girls go get ready themselves. Neil & i tag team the younger 3 - but it's a lot easier because i'm not trying to get changed at the same time.
We are seriously fast :) hehe.
When we get home - i have one of these (jabba from Ikea) hanging in my basement laundry room:
& the (big) kids hang up everyone's swimming suits & put all the towels through the laundry. i keep a laundry hamper in my laundry room that is just for 'swimming gear' - i keep all the swimsuits in it (so there is no searching for swimsuits in various drawers...) and all the goggles, floaties, snorkel gear, flippers etc... so it's quick to find & pack our swimming bags on swimming days.
So, that's 'how we do it' for swimming... Maybe there's an idea you can steal to make swimming easier for your family.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Feast of Tabernacles
Feast of Tabernacles ~ or Sukkot. i forgot to blog about our little celebration this year. It was supposed to be celebrated between sunset October 13, 2008 - nightfall October 20, 2008, so we picked a day during that week & gathered together for our makeshift, 1 afternoon celebration. Above are the blackberry muffins ~ our 'harvesty food' :) & C pouring juice for the littles who are building their sukkoth outside. We had 2 teams, one building inside & one outside.
Little sweetie girl carrying the cloud they used to play "follow the leader" with ~ since the Israelites wouldn't move without the Presence of God going with them, leading them with either a pillar of cloud or of fire. Little sweetie boy carrying the fire in the pic below.
We had a *short* lesson & sang a few songs ~ including one in Hebrew! (That was fun, LD!)
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