Thomas, who is just shy of five months, has made his modeling debut.
7-year-old: Do you have a crush on anyone, Mommy?
Me: Yup.
7-year-old: I think I know who.
Me: Who do you think?
7-year-old: Jesus!
4-year-old: Yeah. It’s definitely Jesus.
I actually had their daddy in mind, but I’ll take Jesus as my main squeeze any day.
This exchange reminds me of the beautiful quote from St. Augustine:
“To fall in love with God is the greatest of all romances; to seek Him, the greatest adventure; to find Him, the greatest human achievement.”
After one of Madeline’s homeschool co-op days she confided in me that there was a little girl who some of the other children were excluding. Madeline admitted that this particular child didn’t always listen well and that it wasn’t always easy to be extra nice to her. I encouraged Madeline to stand up for this girl and to do her best to include her during their free play time and lunch.
Following her co-op this week, my daughter hopped in the van and immediately told me that she tried to be nice to this child, but she threw a carrot at Madeline during lunch. I explained that sometimes when a child felt excluded or was worried about fitting in, she might not act like themselves but that Madeline should still be kind even if the girl wasn’t always nice in return.
“Love your enemies,” I added, hoping to turn this into a lesson rooted in Scripture. But then I realized that this little girl probably shouldn’t be thought of as an enemy just because she tossed a carrot at Madeline.
“Not that she’s your enemy,” I hastily added.
“No,” Madeline agreed. “It’s not like she’s Darth Vader or something.”
So much for a Biblical lesson.
The Star Wars obsession continues.
In fact, we couldn’t resist buying these Yoda Robeez shoes
Then my uber talented sister-in-law made Madeline a Star Wars dress!
Here’s a closeup of the pattern:
My toddler’s baby has made a miraculous recovery.
And for those of you who read that post right after it was published, I am so sorry for all the typos. I was appalled. I think I fixed everything now; however, the way my brain is working these days, there’s no guarantee. Sigh.
4-year-old: You tell me to please obey you, but you never obey me.
True dat.
I know I regularly discuss most of my children’s abysmal sleep habits, and I suspect some readers are probably convinced they don’t sleep well because of something I do (or don’t do). Maybe there’s some truth to that, although I did have one child who, until recently, was an amazing sleeper and one of those babies who started sleeping through the night all on her own at about five months. (She’s been having some nightmares lately and has been a bit more wakeful than usual.)
However, I also believe children are born needing a certain amount of sleep. Some also have more tenacious personalities and will resist sleep with terrifying zeal. Now my Madeline (the 7-year-old) still doesn’t need a lot of sleep, but she goes to bed easily and sleeps in until 8ish every morning. So there is hope for any of you who give birth to insomniacs like I do!
Now my baby and 2-year-old? Well, we’re not there yet. Not even close. (Madeline started sleeping through the night regularly at about 5.)
Can you imagine waking up in the middle of the night and finding your toddler in the room you call a library with all the lights on, reclining on her back, “reading” a book?
This is a true story. My husband has a video on his Smartphone to prove it.
“What are you doing, Mary Elizabeth?” he asks when he discovers his little girl wide awake, perusing books.
“Reading.” Like, duh, Daddy.
“It’s 1:15 in the morning. You need to go back to bed.”
“No! I reading my books!” your little insomniac-bibliophile argues.
I suppose we should be glad she was looking through books even if it was way, way, way past her bedtime.
Thanks a million to everyone who shared their insight and encouragement after my last QTs with regards to my ongoing homeschooling discernment. I’m feeling much more at peace with everything, and I’m pretty sure we have made our decision for next year. I’ll hopefully post about it one of these days.
I did have a few more questions for some of you more seasoned homeschoolers out there. First off, anyone have any opinions of Kolbe Academy? Right now I design my own curriculum, blending Charlotte Mason and classical education philosophies. I really want to continue to have flexibility, and I’m particularly attached to Singapore Math. Yet, I also recognize that having support might alleviate some of my stress. I’m not sure if I’m ready to go this route, but I figure it’s worth exploring.
I’m also curious if there are any other homeschooling moms who are too tired (lazy?) to do lots of crafts and/or science experiments. Are my kids missing out? We read together a ton and do simple art activities like painting. I used to do more, but my 2-year-old makes such a big mess that I tend to dread craft time, but I don’t want to exclude her. And, no, she no longer naps. She gave up a daytime snooze up months ago. Anyway, I’m clearly just looking for more affirmation (I’m a junkie for it, I’m afraid) that I’m not ruining my kids by not sending them to school where they’d be sure to build igloos with sugar cubes and do all sorts of cool stuff besides spend their days (and sometimes nights) reading books.
That’s enough from me now. May the force be with you.
Have a wonderful weekend!
For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!
I like Kolbe Academy, and they call it classical, but I’ve never figured out why that is. I’m sure someone else knows. I like all their texts, but I’ve recently gone back to MODG. I started out with MODG and gradually drifted from certain texts to Kolbe’s choices with different kids until I was doing a complete mish-mash of stuff which was fine, but hard to keep track of. This summer, while struggling with a child “failing” science (Kolbe), a friend who is a MODG consultant explained the whole philosophy to me and it made perfect sense, so we’re switching back to MODG for my last 2 kids. Except for math. We switched to Singapore 5 years ago and love it. In fact, I just bought an app for the ipad which helps her with the bar models.
My father, a university professor, says that all homeschooled kids “miss out.” But so do the school kids. He said every child comes with gaps in their education. I’m sure that crafts is the least of your worries! Keep it simple and manageable, and if you can’t manage anything, that’s fine, too. I’m very “crafty” but there were many years where we didn’t do much because of the mess.
Well, that was long. I hope some of it’s useful!
Sara recently posted…Pinning it Down #3
Thank you for the reminder that gaps in education are inevitable and not the end of the world. Your dad made an excellent point, and your comment was very useful!
Kate Wicker recently posted…7 Quick Takes: The “Mommy has a crush on Jesus” and More Edition
Sara and Kate– I use Singapore as well and was wondering if either of you combine it with any other math curriculum. A couple friends of mine use Singapore as well as Saxon and in this subject, I never know if my children are learning all thEy should:)! Not really a math person! Do you feel Singapore is pretty complete and thorough? I love it and don’t really want to do anyhhing else right now.
Kate, what about one craft a month? Just to ease your own mind:) I help organize crafts for the preschoolers at our co op and I find that No Time for Flashcards site does a great job of creating very simple crafts that I always seem to have the supplies for sitting around (I’m not one to run out to michaels weekly!) you might want to check it out if you never have.
Also, just IMHO, every family has its own unique interests, right? My husband is a musician and so our family makes music on a daily basis, with the kids visiting his studio and doing various recordings and performances just for fun all the time. They are immersed in his world of music. A friend of mine, on the other hand, has a natural interest in science so she does experiments with little effort regularly. We hardly ever do. I don’t think that this means that my kids won’t ever lean toward an interest in science– like the other comment, I think books are enough to spark an interest! Nor do I think that families who may not have a “musically inclined” parent are at a disadvantage. I think exposing kids to good recorded music of quality is enough to do that. Also, like yours, my c hildren are all under 7 and I think it’s sometimes hard to imagine, for me anyway, that they will someday do almost everything independently– like not need my help with something every other minute:) they already surprise me everyday with things. My daughter made dinner for us the other night and while it wasn’t gourmet, it fed us all and filled us up and wasn’t half bad! I leave a lot of the craft stuff up to her to initiate– from the organizing to the cleanup. And so she does it because she knows it probably won’t get done otherwise. I don’t know you personally, Kate, but your kids seem pretty amazing! I am sure they you are giving them exactly what they need because after all, God gave them to you, knowing your interests and strengths:)
If you ever want to chat, via email or whatever, I would love to chat more about “what our kids are missing” as I often have similar fears. My husband teaches at an excellent, small private school and I’m often wondering what my kids would be doing if they went to “real school” with him everyday. He always has good encouraging words for me, though. There are definite advantages and disadvantages and I think it’s always good to make a pros and cons list to see which advantages are more important to you and your family! Blessings to you!
I’d love to email/talk sometime, and I so appreciate your and everyone’s encouragement and feedback.
As for Singapore Math, I find it to be very thorough and complete. I occasionally supplement with drills and/or use some manipulatives I was fortunate enough to receive for free. We also have an abacus (another freebie we received from an aunt of mine who homeschooled), and I’m starting to learn how to use that for my little ones.
I have a friend who has his PhD in mathematics. His wife homeschools, and they rave about Singapore as well and say it’s the best program out there. However, I know that it doesn’t work for every family or every child.
That’s a challenge with homeschooling, too. There are so many great programs out there. It can be daunting to choose from everything and to find the right fit for you and your child(ren).
I had a friend email me about Mother of Divine Grace. I use a lot of the books recommended in that curriculum. She said she’s been very happy with it and the flexibility as well as support it affords. I think I’ll research that, too.
These mini conversations over here have been very helpful to me. One thing that’s been missing since I moved was a lack of support. I used to belong to a Catholic co-op where I made a lot of friends. Whenever I was suffering from those twinges of inadequacy or doubt, I had someone to cheer me on. That’s important for all moms – no matter what route we choose.
Kate Wicker recently posted…7 Quick Takes: The “Mommy has a crush on Jesus” and More Edition
My 3 yr old saw the picture of your daughter and said, “She’s beautiful! Let me see her face.” and leaned over my computer to get a good look. So cute.
And Lydia was right – your daughter is absolutely lovely – especially in that Star Wars dress!
Oh my, that dress is just so funny! I love it!
I’m in the mindset now of having to choose a premade curriculum for our kids. I was picking and choosing (and still do a bit) but I now sort of follow Angelicum’s curriculum (without being enrolled yet). Kolbe was my other choice. We also use Singapore math and I really like it. The little things that I would change with either curriculum are not enough for me to go through the yearly (monthly) struggle of switching programs/methods/books/etc. Right now for me, it’s a sanity saver because I think no matter what I pick I will always be looking at someone doing a different program and be thinking, “I should be doing THAT.” Kolbe seems very solid but a tad bit more parent intensive than I wanted (yep, I’m that lazy).
And for me, I think science seems to take care of itself. When you stock lots of good books in the house, both fiction and non, my boys take it upon themselves to do experiments and build. So much of it they are learning intuitively through their play and exploring that I don’t feel I need to worry about it too much. At least, that’s what I tell myself ;)
I’ve gotten a bit better with doing more directed crafts this past year but I definitley don’t think it’s necessary. I, too, sometimes suffer the guilt of all the fun things they’d be doing in a school, but there’s a whole lot they do at home that they wouldn’t be in school. The crafting and creating thing seems to also sort of take care of itself. I think a huge part of that (for us) is that we don’t do t.v. and we greatly limit the toys (amount and type) that come into the home. So crafting, creating, playing are just what they know and do.
Definitely not an expert here, but I hope that helps a bit!
Mary recently posted…Yarn Along
The Star Wars dress is awesome. I remember at that age one of my favorite dresses was blue and had octopuses(octupi?) all over it…sometimes putting a sciencey/sci-fi twist on something girly just makes it extra fun!
I wouldn’t quite call my toddler an insomniac, but he definitely seems to need less sleep than I do, which can be frustrating. The other day he went to bed at 8:30, which seems like a fairly normal bedtime, so the next day he woke up before 5:30! We went right back to letting him stay up until 9:30, lol. And I guess I need to learn to tolerate coffee!(I hate the taste of it. So far the only coffee I’ve found I’d willing to drink is a peppermint mocha latte from Starbucks, which contains I think 6 pumps of syrup per shot of espresso, lol)
Crunchy Con Mommy recently posted…French Bread
Hey Girl!!
What a great post! I loved all your things -especially Jesus as your main squeeze. HEHE! (What a witness to you kids!)
Well – you know our homeschooling story. We switched to K12 out of mommy worry about teaching everything, tiredness, and a new baby. It has worked for us wonderfully with the planning done for me (and even a script when needed!).
With the little baby, and our schedule, we have NOT been doing all the projects or fun experiments…and Lovely is GREAT. She’s doing well. I found that if I save some of them for a holiday break or summer..it enriches the “down time” we have by getting the academics out of the way. Learning in the home one on one with you at this age does so much – the projects/enrichment are just extra. In a classroom – I would want to see more projects for my child to give them more skills while at school and a new pace – but since we are at home, she gets that by doing other hands on activities around the house, or a field trip. It evens out.
Praying for your discernment!!! Much love!!!
(Oh – I’ve heard good things about Kolbe…but have no idea personally.)
(Oh again – Madeline is just so lovely, inside and out. I would love Lovely to be so sensitive to the needs of others! Tell her Lovely sends hugs!)
I adore the dress too! LOL! WOW!!
ViolinMama recently posted…March for Life
Oh I gave up on crafty stuff a while ago. I’m pretty sure I would have given up on homeschooling if I hadn’t. I do keep art materials out for my kids (they’re all big, though- 6 and up, so this works. probably won’t work as well once we have a toddler underfoot, unless we organize it where she can’t get to it…). So anyway, my little artsy one is always watercoloring or coloring or collaging or something, but mama-led projects are few and far between (like, once or twice a year even).
It’s all good. The kids don’t even seem to mind. I think if Mama is more happy and peaceful, everyone is more happy and peaceful, even without elaborate sugar cube pyramids and glitter on every surface.
We’ve taken a much simpler approach to history and science, too, which means I can focus basically on the core (religion, language arts, math), and we have a lot more time in our day for just normal stuff (you know- laundry, errands, playing with friends, me laying around reading and acting like it’s the pregnancy that makes me so lazy) ;).
We read books from the library for science and history. I’m just starting to use IEW’s writing program, and the kids can use what they learn there to write about what we’re reading in history and science. We talk about what we’re reading. It all seems to stick, even without fancy projects and lapbooks and experiments. I’m just not all that convinced that mama needs to be constructing elaborate plans to make it all worthwhile. Mama needs to be peaceful and happy! And I’m not so much like that when I’m running around like a madwoman, trying to be a homeschooling diva.
Anyway- I’ll continue to pray for ya. :)
Hugs!
Sarah @ Amongst Lovely Things recently posted…500th Post ~ A Giveaway!
“If Mama is more happy and peaceful, everyone is more happy and peaceful, even without elaborate sugar cube pyramids and glitter on every surface.”
I think I might print that out and post it downstairs in our school room! ;-)
Kate Wicker recently posted…7 Quick Takes: The “Mommy has a crush on Jesus” and More Edition
Thank you for this Sarah! For a homeschooling mom with all littles, you’d be surprised at how much your sentiments inspire me! The whole idea that if something we feel like we ‘should’ be doing could possibly cause us to forgo the whole thing makes so much sense to me but I have never thought of it like that. You words bring me joy!
Kate, thanks for starting the conversation.
How cute are those shoes!?!
I’ve never used Kolbe, but if you want to keep homeschooling give yourself permission to investigate all the options. When I first started, I imagined us just snuggling on the couch and reading. Now some of my kids aren’t snugglers and I discovered for me to do anything at all, I need a fairly detailed daily checklist. So far I’ve been writing my own checklists, which do make the days much smoother, but it takes a lot of time to write them out. Every year I think about signing up with someone who will tell me what books to buy and when to do what. I haven’t done it yet, but I am seriously consider buying a few detailed plans for next year even if I have to make a few modifications.
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Jordana, I do exactly what you describe. I have a checklist and plan that keeps us somewhat in line. Sometimes it’s tempting to have more of the work done for me, but I also love being able to choose all my own books, etc. I’m just exploring all my options at this point.
Kate Wicker recently posted…7 Quick Takes: The “Mommy has a crush on Jesus” and More Edition
#5: I quake in my shoes at the day my young’un gets to that level of cognition. Yikes! And as for the Star Wars lady, I was thinking the same thing. LOL
Kathleen Basi recently posted…7QT: Of Moles and Munchkins (mostly)
Oh I feel you on the kids not sleeping thing. We have three kids who don’t sleep through the night, a 3.5 year old, almost 2 year old, and a one month old. Lately the almost 2 year old has been waking up for the day around 5, which is killing me. Thankfully she does still nap, but my oldest doesn’t. And my husband can’t get up with the 2 year old most days because if he gets out of bed the 3.5 year old wakes up, and well then I’m stuck with two overtired, cranky kids for the day. ugh. One day they will sleep, right? I’m always amazed at these people who just put their kids to bed and then they don’t wake up until morning, really, what is that like? Clearly we were not blessed with sleeping children, but we love them all the same. I’m pretty sure my husband and I are incapable of actually sleeping for more than 2 hours without waking up anymore. Even if no one wakes up, we do. Hoping you guys get some sleep tonight.
Mary Elizabeth the bookworm insomniac is priceless!
I love what Sara says about the inevitability of gaps. I don’t remember doing art projects at my private Catholic elementary school. Maybe we did, and it’s just too long ago. Still, I don’t think they are all that necessary. Plus, keep in mind that just because you aren’t doing any crafts this year doesn’t mean that you might not do some next year… or the year after. I’m not a very crafty kind of person myself. I let the kids play with the art supplies but we very seldom do anything that is mommy-directed. I think every single time we have I’ve blogged about it. I never let those photo opportunities go to waste; but I can imagine that an outsider might think we do that kind of thing all the time.
I keep reminding myself not to make the mistake of thinking things will always be just like they are now. Even if I were to keep having children at the same rate so that I always have a toddler, the total family dynamic is very different when the older ones are older and more self-sufficient so things won’t always be so very hard as they are with only little ones. So what seems so hard this year may not look so impossible next year.
I guess I would also ask if the root of your homeschooling anxiety is really because you think Madeline is unhappy and what you are doing is truly insufficient for her well-being or because you are comparing what you are doing to what other people are doing? There is always going to be someone else doing something cool and worthwhile that you aren’t doing, including hypothetical teachers at hypothetical schools that you aren’t sending her to right now.
Melanie B recently posted…The Feast of the Conversion of St Paul—a Rabbit Trail
I am so glad you have reopened the conversation on homeschooling, this is exactly the dialog I need to hear right now. After sending my daughter to school for two years, at one of the best schools in the area, that is if test scores and sports trophies are what you care most about, we have finally though fearfully of course made the decision to homeschool. If you think missing out means kids getting bullied, being made fun of for their mom packing a healthy lunch and being told by a teacher to “handle it” when some kids were playing dynamite and guns during lunch instead of rock, paper, scissors, then yes you are missing out. All I know is that I sent my sweet, innocent, God loving 5 year old to kindergarten last year a joyful, optimistic child and she now cries almost daily because of the mean things kids at school do to her or others. I have been in weekly conversation with the teacher about these issues and I love her, but she can’t hear, see or know all of the things that happen during the day and though she is managing it well as can be asked, it isn’t changing the children’s behaviors. I am all for my children learning how to interact when faced with difficult social situations, but not to the point where it is wearing away at her person. I am frightened of homeschooling for all the reasons expressed, that I will somehow fail or that my house will be a train wreck with my 4 and 2 year old interfering or not getting enough mommy time. But I have to firmly believe that this is what God is calling our family to do and that the holy spirit will guide me. The alternative, sending her back to this negative environment and my 4 year old to kindergarten next year seems far worse a gamble. I had plans for pursuing my health counselor career more in the years to come, but I believe it this is God’s will it will all work out for the best.
I have been looking at the Seton homeschool curriculum and Mother of Divine Grace. I feel that as I start out, having a spoon fed curriculum might relieve some of my stress, especially while the children are so young.
God Bless you All.
Okay, #1 and #5 had me cracking up!
And this is my very first year homeschooling, but already I’ve given up on the idea of impressive art projects and science experiments. There are a lot of reasons we’re homeschooling and I can still achieve all those objectives without bending over backwards to make something *FANTASTIC* all the time. I know what we’re good at- reading. Talking. Writing. So that’s what we do. Trust me, my girls went to public schools for years. The projects are not THAT amazing or educational, seriously. Not at all like the stuff you see on t.v. :)
I’m also toying with the idea of going with a more structured curriculum next year. I’m designing myself this year and it’s going okay, but I’ll have a newborn next fall and I think less lesson planning will be ideal for us too. Take off some of that pressure, ya know? I look forward to seeing what you choose!
Dwija {House Unseen} recently posted…7 Quick Takes Friday: The Gross Edition (mice? diapers? barf? yep.)
We have just recently entered the world of Star Wars too! It is definitely an obsession! About 95% of Riley’s conversations involve something Star Wars related! Good luck with homeschooling discernment, I’m sure that you and God will make the best decision for your family. :)
Oh, and we use Mater Amabilis (http://materamabilis.org/ma/the-curriculum/level-1a-2/) for our curriculum guide. It’s a Charlotte Mason style curriculum for Catholics. It allows you to pick your own math program. I’ve made some adjustments in history, geography, and science because we go to Catholic Schoolhouse (it’s like Classical Conversations for Catholics) once a week and we follow their subject guide. However, I love using Mater Amabilis as a core guideline.
Ok, Kate, you have to check out this video from The Piano Guys. I think Madeline may just love it:)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgAlQuqzl8o&feature=youtube_gdata_player
(and then just for fun, if you haven’t seem the piano guys before, check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cgovv8jWETM&feature=youtube_gdata_player. Breathtaking. )
Oh my. We loved it. Thanks for sharing that with us. My girls are saying, “Play it again, Mommy!”
I gave up all the crafty/project/lapbook style long ago! My two boys just wanted to learn the basics, then get on with life and so did mom!! I have kept my kids home for 14 years, not so I could be super-teacher, but so I could instill my values (all about Jesus!) into them and many other reasons that have nothing to do with academics. I moved from “Teacher” to “Administrator” and I choose my curriculum based on that factor. In other words, I buy curriculum they can do on their own, with a little instruction from me, but no prep work on my part.
Don’t feel guilty or lazy, just do what works for you. If you try to do it all, you’ll give up.
Go to my blog and read “Why I use Textbooks” (under the homeschooling label) and maybe you’ll be inspired:)
Debbie recently posted…Looking Back
Believe it or not, I am the kind of homeschooler Debbie describes, more of an administrator, not a teacher. When my kids were little, I taught them how to read, inspired a love of reading (some a little later than others but we still got there) and then watched them go. They will find the subjects they love, you will find a way to gently persevere through the subjects they don’t love and arts and crafts will come and go. I’m sure I seem like a very arts and craftsy kind of mom, but I’m not. I am an artistic person and the crafts or projects we do are things I really want to do. It’s like when you get an idea for something to write and you work it out in your head and you organize it, figure it out and then you just have to sit down and write it. That’s how some art or a craft is for a creative mom like me. (Right now, I have a terrible itch to start crocheting a blanket I saw and the only that’s stopping me is that I can’t hold my little Cupcake and a crochet hook at the same time. Yes… I tried. It didn’t work. ) But that’s how God made me and I can’t really change it.
I went through a phase where I tried to find more little projects for them to do, things they would have done in school (egg carton caterpillars and glitter covered styrofoam balls) and at the end of the year, I ended up with a box of glitter covered trash. They didn’t want to keep anything. I didn’t want to keep anything. So we chucked the whole thing and that whole mindset. My kids have learned about the Indians and Pilgrims without ever having stapled a construction paper feather to their head. They have learned about volcanoes without ever mixing baking soda and vinegar and have explored the ruins of Pompei and Herculaneum without ever dehydrating a chicken. Those kinds of projects might work beautifully for another family. You have to find what works for you!
And heck yeah… your kids are going to have gaps in their education no matter how they do their learning (at home or at school) because learning is a life long process. I guess you just have to decide which gaps you are comfortable with and which you aren’t. I’m OK with certain gaps as long as I know that I’ve instilled in my kids the desire to keep learning and how to find the answers when they want to know them. Ask yourself… what incredibly meaningful projects did you do in elementary school? Did growing a bean in a plastic cup change your life? What are the lessons you really want them to learn? Would they be more entertained in a school setting? Sure… because as a former school teacher I can assure you… schools are mostly about entertaining and distracting all in the name of “education”.
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