Have i even posted about starting *school*??!!
We "officially" started last week & it was wonderful. This has to be one of my best starts ever, where there is just this peace that we're doing what is right for our family. Maybe it's partly 'cause little Chewie is home too, starting grade 1. He was at public school for K ~ just like all the other kiddies did too, but it's so good to have him home.
i'll give a little run down for posterity of how i think this year will look, starting with the oldest & working my way down the line.
Chrysalis Academy ~ 2008-2009
Cai ~ grade 7
Cai's continuing with Saxon Math this year (8/7 pre-algebra)
She's also working through Science Focus 7 & loving picking out projects for herself to do (take a look at her cute blog to see the science quiz she made up).
Her language arts has a few different angles. i got her this cute book called Language Lessons for the Secondary Child by Sandi Queen. She loves it so far & i think it's gonna be a good fit. Along with that, she'll continue with Easy Grammar Plus & her Spelling Power that she's been working on since last year. Her language arts will also cross over with history. We're going to give our first go at Canadian History this year (as a big group) ~ after we read aloud together (we're starting out using The Story of Canada as our text & then after we read, they might have a writing assignment (1 sentence /grade) or the older ones might have to write a story about something that piqued their interest. (Cai wrote a story about the mutiny aboard Henry Hudson's ship ~ so good!). We're also continuing adding entries in our Sonlight Book of Time (a huge spiral bound timeline with empty pages to fill in as we see fit... very cool... i bought it my first year homeschooling & we've been adding to it ever since ~ it's getting nice and rounded out by now!) i decided to do a group bible lesson in the morning & our read aloud in the afternoon. For bible, i'm using a children's bible story book (Molls is involved in this too) as i didn't think my little ones know enough of those amazing bible stories well enough. This will be a good review for everyone i think. We're also having a 'sharing' & prayer time in the mornings. Our first read aloud is Little Pilgrim's Progress ~ this is tradition ~ every time a new student begins grade one at Chrysalis Academy (hehe!) we read this book. It's a favourite for our family & i've never read it without crying... i want to start (didn't this week) working again on our latin/greek flashcards. Cai would love a french program, but we haven't started anything yet & i can't see it happening this fall... :( We're also going to try to be a little more diligent with fiddling in the afternoons too. i've been so bad with this in the past couple of years. i'd love to get better at 'making it happen'.
Lifeskills are a focus this year too. Cai's main special chore is to gather up all laundry (including the dirty diapers) & get 1 load of laundry started in the morning. Doing 1 load a day seems to be perfect for our family. They're not huge loads, but we're always on top of it.
On top of these activities, Cai has a list of "options" in her book to choose from if she's got the time, incling, or desire :) These include:
memorization, handwriting, bible reading (she's 3/4 of the way done her bible), fun reading (Sloan never has her nose OUT of a book), exercise, baking (both Sloan & Cai bake our bread), art, gardening (herbs etc... indoors for winter), sewing, knitting, journaling, blogging, emails, awana, & fiddling (did i mention Cai got in after auditioning for the Bow Valley Fiddlers??!! Exciting times!!)
Sloanie ~ grade 5
Sloanie's continuing with Saxon Math (6/5)
Her science this year is a continuation of a book she started last year with Peyton, they do it together, it's called Science Made Easy & it's recommended for grades 3-4 & seems to work for mostly independent study. Her language arts *for now* is Englishsmart. i've got a book on order from Cher written by Emma Serl that i think will be a better fit, but LA is a strength for Sloan, so it doesn't seem to matter what i use ~ she enjoys it. She's also continuing with Spelling Power. For history, bible, fiddle & options, see Cai's list above. Sloanie's special chore is emptying the dishwasher every time it's done ~ (with Peyton) ~ seems to be a frequent chore at our house!
Peyton ~ grade 3
Sweet Peyton! Peyton is using Mathsmart for grade 3. She's also using this website to work on math drills as she'll be writing the provincial achievement tests at the end of this year. i really believe in speed drills anyway & i think it's a great skill to master. For science, she's working with Sloan on Science Made Easy. Peyton's using Primary Language Lessons by Emma Serl for LA (p-erfect fit) & is continuing with Spelling Power. She still needs to read aloud to me & for that, we're using a Spectrum book of Little Critter stories. For history, bible, fiddle & options, see Cai's list above. Peyton's special chore is emptying the dishwasher with Sloan.
Charter ~ grade 1
Charter's using Mathsmart for grade 1. i'm pretty sure that very soon, i'm going to start him with some simple drills too (he already likes the flashmaster, so i might just use that). For LA, Charter uses Englishsmart & i've got him using a Handwriting Without Tears writing program. He's reading to me using the 'I Can Read It' readers & he's already on the second one. ~ Later on in the year, i might get him started on science, but for now, he's not doing any. For, history, bible, fiddle & options, see Cai's list above. Charter's special chore is taking out the recycling to the garage & gathering up all the garbage's to take out.
Mollen ~ preschool
Molls is using scissors, crayons, pencils, paper & having fun. She's interested in her letters & numbers & likes to listen in on some lessons & stories. i like it when she does, but no pressure. Mollen's special chore is switching the laundry into the dryer (sometimes) :) She's learning...
Gage ~ baby
Gage is learning to be cute (perfect marks). Gage's special job is to remind us that *people* are most important... sometimes he derails things, but sweet boy is worth every distraction & delay he causes.

To help the children know what to do next, the 4 biggest have daytimers. In the front is taped their 'list' of things to do. If it has * after it, that means 'i need mom to do this', if there is no *, then they know they can do it on their own. Charter can only do handwriting on his own, but that's ok!! After they finish a subject, they write it down on that date in their daytimer. At lunch, we take a look at their daytimer & set goals for the afternoon (i write them in), "if you could finish up this & this, then that would be great" ~ gives them something to work towards... & if not, they can start with that the next day. This is something i'm including in their homeschool this year & it's called *time management* :) They kind of like feeling like they're in charge of their lives & education.
k, this is long & boring to probably everyone but ME!! hehehehehehe...
i'll have to make my housecleaning ideas & schedule a different post.
p

In case you didn't know this about me, i'm one of those moms who speaks in a high soft voice to babies. i tickle them gently with my fingertips & all the smiles i get are the soft spreading variety. Yeah, sometimes we get playing & things get a little rougher as i work for that little chesty giggle, but for the most part, i'm pretty girly. My sister Jess, on the other hand does the most outrageous things with my babies & has always been the first person to get them to laugh or smile.... She "rough-houses" the little ones till they're belly laughing & kicking their little legs for more. When she first gets going with my kids, they'll give her a look like she's an alien... but persistent she is, & in no time, they're laughing and squirming & having the time of their lives.
So, last night, Neil was out & all the other littles were in bed, 'cept me & little mr. entertainment. i had him sitting on my lap, playing with a roll of toilet paper that was still in the plastic. i pulled the toilet paper out & tapped his chest. *little giggle*... i pulled it out farther & made a little sound, 'boom' as i hit his chest... *double the reward*. Pretty soon, i was laughing harder than he was & the toilet paper would come zooming in & i'd hold him as he fell backwards on my bed screaming laughing...
babies are fun.

September 2008
For Hope.

One chubby cherub ~ seven months old ~
starfish hands ~ reaching, pulling
drooly chin ~ round dimpled cheeks...
bright eyes, sweet grin spreads as his eyes meet mine.

Where is my one year old?
Taking first trembling steps ~
Calling me, 'mamama'...
& feeding himself with dextrous paws...

One is as solid as the pen & paper i hold in my hands
The other ~ but a dream, a shadow, imaginings...

Softly his drumlike chest rises & falls as he rests in dreamland.
My seven month old son slumbers.

Softly... one by one... my fingers clenched 'round the memory of my child who should be one~ are released ~
What should be your first birthday passes ~ quietly...
There will be no cake
no song
no presents with bright coloured ribbons...

Sweet baby ~ the best gift i can offer you is that i carry you with me still. In the deepest parts of me, i still miss you & love you & long for the day we will make our home with the Father *who gave us to each other* & loves us so.

Happy Birthday baby Hope.
momma

On fatherhood.
There's a nip in the air. It's the last day of August & it still seems too soon for there to be that familiar chill, but there it is. This Saturday, we went to the pool, in lieu of our summertime outdoor fun. Last year, we accidentally went to a special "family day" at the pool & won a prize for the largest family in attendance ~ including a $20 gift certificate for the little eatery they have in the rec center. Neil decided since it was a drizzly day & we had errands to run after swimming, that we'd stop & use our certificate to get some munchies. The kids loved it ~ all sitting at one little table, while Neil & i sat with Gage at a table to ourselves. We were done & just visiting & playing with the baby. Neil was holding Gage & just tickling him & nuzzling his nose into his chubby little neck when i noticed a teenage boy ~ maybe 15? who was walking by. He stopped dead in his tracks & turned & stared at Neil & Gage. Neil didn't notice, but i couldn't help it as he was standing maybe 6 feet from us. i saw a look on his face that i can only describe as *hungry*. Eventually, he pulled himself away & sat at the farthest table from us ~ but still keeping his eyes on Father & Son.
Maybe it was my imagination.
Maybe i read something into the situation that wasn't there...
But it seemed to me in that moment that that big boy with messy red hair, dressed all in black ~ thought my sweet little cherub baby boy was lucky.
& he is.
i want to pray for fathers ~ that their hearts would be softened towards their children. God, give them eyes to see, ears to hear ~ & hearts that love.
My mom once said to me something to the effect that we need to be praying for the daddies as they're the ones who are "interfacing with the world on our behalf". i think this is so true ~ especially as i get to be a stay at home, homeschooling mom ~ & Neil's the one who gets teased about his big family & who has to worry about the fact that if we ever have another one, we'll have to buy a bigger vehicle, & where do all the dollars & cents go at the end of the month? Maybe all that 'interfacing' is too much for some men & that's why fatherlessness is one of the biggest challenges facing children today.
i am so grateful for my good man.

My mother in law is so cool.
This last time we were there visiting them, she said to me, 'turning 50 has been good for me'. Since she turned 50, she's let go of some of the expectations that others may have on her (or she may have on herself) & has learned to embrace some of the things that make her unique, rather than apologizing for them.
y'know how when your kids make something with play dough, they'll make a shape & then if they leave it, it dries in that shape & 'sets'. Sometimes i worry that if those silly specialists don't phone me soon about Gage's metatarsus adductus, that his little foot will 'set' & be so much harder to fix... Lots of days, i get out of the shower & before i know it, my hair has dried in some stooooopid way & it's 'set' like that for the rest of the day... (catching my drift here??)
i love that God has given me several older women to watch & learn from who have refused to be 'set'. They've remained teachable ~ even while taking on the responsibility of teaching. They've somehow been able to remain soft & malleable even though they've got so much wisdom & experience upon which so many would be willing to sit down, heave a sigh of relief & claim to have 'arrived'.
i'm thankful for my mother in law today.