Experiments

Homemade volcano

Erupted a little faster than we planned....

Too fast.... he wanted to make another right away......better buy a fifty lb bag of flour to keep up with all these experiments.

We learned about fossils and how make our own.

Fossils turn into spear making.

Bry and Bodie doing some art work

Sister getting in on learning, but would rather learn about flowers than making spears.

Gettin In The Groove

Four weeks into school and I feel like we are really in to the groove of things. So far the process has gone smoother than I thought it would. It has been a challenge for Brylee, but she has started figuring it out as well. We still have our good and bad days there.

Bodie has fallen into the routine quite well, even gets upset sometimes if the order is changed.(like today I had a doctor appt so we did school after we returned) We had one day where he got frustrated and told me he did not like homeschool any more, but he got over it and moved on.

I have to admit I am enjoying the whole process. Yes, there are times that are frustrating as there would be no matter where he went. However, it is also a lot of fun to watch him learn and work through things he has a hard time with. I try very hard to allow him to get frustrated and to work through that.

Also, I have discovered that he is a little bit of a pefectionist. ( I am not so sometimes it is hard to relate) For instance, one day he was struggling with getting a letter written right. I had him watch me do it. (he already had written examples) It was all he could do to allow me to even show him and then he would not let me leave that example on his paper because this was "his work" Instead of taking it as a contribution to his row of letters and letting it be one less letter to write, he insisted I erase it so he could do it over. In some ways this is a great attribute, but it could also get him in trouble too. I want him to have the desire to do his best work, but I also want him to accept help when it is needed. I don't want him to get where he refuses help so much that when he really needs it no one is willing to help. It is a fine line and an interesting problem.

He gets to do lots of great experiments and I knew he would love that as he is very hands on, but I have been fairly surprised at how well he does sitting down and completing worksheets. Sometimes, I sit with him sometimes I don't depending on what it is. There are times that he takes longer to complete tasks then I think he should, but it may be my own impatience. Today, he was really getting distracted with his reading.....losing his place and not paying attention. I was getting irritated. Afterwards, I had two thoughts. One, he is reading a couple of paragraphs at a time with some big words in there. I should not be frustrated with him about that because truly it is great that he is reading right now period. Secondly, there is no reason we can't reread the same story tomorrow since he struggled. I am not under any kind of pressure to rush through this and don't want to make the mistake of making him feel that way either. At this point there is nothing that he hates to do and I do not want to make it that way either. Handwriting was a struggle at first because it is not very exciting, but because he is such a kid that thrives on routine, he has fallen in line with that as well.

Over all I am excited and feel that he is too and that makes it worth it for me.

What Do I Do With All These Leftovers?

So today I was trying to figure out what to fix for supper, lamenting over all the left overs in our fridge, and knowing that none of it really sounded good to me.  I suddenly remembered that I have a freezer.

I cook a lot really. Yes, sometimes we have hamburger helper, sometimes Glenn cooks, but over all I try to fix supper on a regular basis. I even have this great cookbook I got from Flylady.net called Saving Dinner. The problem is that all the recipes are for six people. That doesn't sound like all that much, but we usually have tons of food left over. 

Let's face it you can only eat the same meal so many days in a row before tiring of it so we have a lot of wasted food. Today I was looking at all this spaghetti I made the other day and thinking if we don't eat this soon it is going to be wasted.

Now why haven't I already frozen that? I have no idea. If I was better about freezing things then I would have more choices when I needed something fast to fix. Duh.

I don't write this blog so people can realize how slow I am really. I write it so if there are other people who struggle with the same things, they can realize they are not alone!!!

So if there is anyone out there reading this that has great tips on best freezer containers or ways to freeze foods please send tips! I should have been all ears when my mom tried to teach me these things, but believe me I am all ears now!

mommys struggles and snuggles: One More Way To Get More Organized

mommys struggles and snuggles: One More Way To Get More Organized: "Feeling kind of mellow tonight, probably just tired as I have been up late every night lately. I am trying to get our office (which has serv..."

One More Way To Get More Organized

Feeling kind of mellow tonight, probably just tired as I have been up late every night lately. I am trying to get our office (which has served as a storage room for quite sometime) cleared out so I can move Brylee in there a few months before her baby sister arrives. It has been a slow process. Why is it the more stuff you uncover the more crap you realize you have?

I don't know why for sure, but it really has been the last several years that I realized the importance of going through all of our stuff on a regular basis and throwing it out. Especially after Brylee came it became a priority because we have limited space.

I guess I am a slow learner, but I am slowly getting there. About two weeks ago I started having Bodie do ten minute cleanups in his room every day. All along I would just tell him to clean his room and it would take forever. I realized saying clean your room is kind of vague and overwhelming for a five year old. So I started setting the timer for ten minutes. I could tell if he had really been cleaning or just playing around. If it was hardly any cleaner, he would get another ten minutes. That really got his attention and he started going fast when I would set the timer. In ten minutes if he is really cleaning he can usually get most of his room finished. When I first started doing this he would whine and complain that he didn't want to clean up, but once it became the routine he has fallen in line pretty quickly. I do not expect perfection and we save the deep cleaning for Saturdays. On Saturdays I do have him clean under his bed and his train table......deep cleaning. I help him and we sweep and shake out his rugs and stuff.  This past Saturday he said," Momma there is hardly anything under my bed!" All I thought is why haven't I thought of this before?

The same thing goes for me. I feel like I am chasing my tail sometimes though. That is when I really started getting rid of stuff.....just hauling boxes off to the caring place. If we don't wear it, use it, or play with it then bye bye. I can't even hope to organize or do ten minute clean ups without clearing out the clutter. So with every box I haul off I feel a little closer to achieving my goal......maintaining a house with a little less mess.

mommys struggles and snuggles: Bodie's First Day

mommys struggles and snuggles: Bodie's First Day: "Bodie's official first day of school happened today, Sept 2nd. We got his books on the 1st and had a great time going through everything. He..."

Bodie's First Day

Bodie's official first day of school happened today, Sept 2nd. We got his books on the 1st and had a great time going through everything. He was very excited about one of  his science books because it has a section on tornados, and also loved his encyclopedia. It's got great picture of a lot of things that fascinate him, including, his favorite, a combine.

 

I stayed up late to go through the material, get my instructor guides in order, get my schedule lined out, and read all the notes and tips provided. It really is a lot of info to go through, and I was very impressed with the way they have things organized.

So, having most everything laid out ahead of time, we started today. I have to admit at the end of the day, I am really tired so I am feeling like he probably was as well. We made it through with only a few minor bumps, and I really think after a few days of getting used to how things are lined out it will run even smoother. Well, one can hope anyway.

I saved things like science (that is his favorite) and handwriting( the least exciting) and math for when Brylee was asleep so he had less distractions. Also, the science has a lot of fun links you can look up for extra information on the topic and that is also easier done when she naps.

                                                                   Bodie's   First    Day

When do I nap? Good question.....never, which is why I have to get off here before it gets any later and I find myself face down on my keyboard keys.