Monday, February 28, 2011

miscellany monday

Grrrrr! I'm a little late (okay, a whole day) getting this post up. Our lovely internet connection has decided to be moody the last couple of days. I was able to get this post typed up just in time for it to decide to go down again, so I didn't get it posted last night like I planned. Oh, well. Better late than never, right? I'm so glad that Carissa left the linky open this morning so I could still link up!

This is another new blog hop for me! I'm joining up with Carissa at lowercase letters for her miscellany monday. Head on over there and join the fun!

Miscellany Monday @ lowercase letters

1.
I have a bunch of sickies at my house right now. Landon woke up feeling crummy on Friday. I took him into the doctor and got meds for strep. Yesterday, Cheyenne was complaining of a headache. I had one too, plus a runny/stuffy nose. Chey didn't have any other strep symptoms, so I thought maybe we just picked up a cold from the doctor's office (am I the only one that happens to?). This morning, she was still complaining. I took her temp and it was 102.5. Then, Sierra woke up looking sickly as well-although she'll never admit it-and running a low fever. I took them in and got a strep test and, of course, they were both positive. So, I've got 3/4 of the kiddos on meds. I still think mine is a cold. Hopefully, Dakota will avoid this round of sickness. I really don't want to go back in to the doctor tomorrow.

2.
Speaking of the doctor, when she was writing Cheyenne's prescription, the PA asked Cheyenne if she wanted liquid or pills. Cheyenne, thinking it would me her seem more grown-up, asked for pills. I don't remember her ever trying to swallow a pill, but I figured it was about time for her to learn, so I went along with it. NEVER. AGAIN. First of all, the pills are HUGE! Even I wouldn't want to swallow one. Cheyenne tried and tried to get one down, but she couldn't. It ended with me being very frustrated with her and her throwing up in the kitchen floor and again in the bathroom. I can't get her the liquid form until the doctor calls it in for me, but I did get the pharmacist, reluctantly, to tell me what her dosage would be so I could give her some of Sierra's. At least she didn't have to wait to get started on the meds. But, really, what was that PA thinking giving those horse pills to a 10 year-old?

3.
Daniel's been gone for work since Saturday morning. We've done okay for the most part, although it's been hard to be sick and take care of the sick kids. I don't know how you ladies who have husbands who are deployed for months at a time do it! You amaze me! I used to be really scared to be home by myself (well, to be the only adult at home) at night. I've gotten a lot better lately though. The only time I really get scared now is when I let myself stay up too late. Then, I start hearing things and making myself nervous. Last night, I just couldn't make myself go to bed and I ended up being up until around 2. I was all set to go to bed around 1, but there was a big crash in the laundry room and I got freaked out. You see, the laundry room has a door that leads outside (it's actually the door we use most often). I couldn't see it, though, because the door between the laundry room and dining room was closed. So, it took me about 30 minutes of staring intently at that closed door (why do I think that's going to change anything?) with my cell phone in hand to get brave enough to even approach the door. Then, I crept into the dining room and placed a couple of chairs in front of the door (again, why did I think that would do anything) and stood and stared at the door some more. I finally convinced myself that it was nothing and went to bed.
This morning, I went into the laundry room to find that some stuff I had stacked on the dryer had fallen over. There was a kitchen timer on top of the stack, which is what made such a loud noise. Tonight I have promised myself to be in bed by 11:30 (I'd better hurry!).

4.

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Come and join me tomorrow at Lynnette's blog party! It's going to be so much fun. I can't wait to meet some new blogging friends and learn more about some of my old ones (well, not old, but ones that I've had for a while, you know). My post is almost ready. Is yours?If not, head on over there and get the questions and get ready to link up!

Wow! This post ended up being way longer than I had planned. I guess I had more to say that I thought. Have a good night! See you at the party tomorrow!

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Homeschool Mother's Journal 2/26

The Homeschool Mother's Journal


In my life this week...

Wow! It seems like this week flew by! We've been on a more regular schedule this week and it has been nice.
On Wednesday afternoon, I had a doctor's appointment. Daniel took the day off to watch the kids, so I had most of the afternoon to myself. I love being home with my kids, but a break once in a while is nice too.

In our homeschool this week...
We pretty much got all of our schoolwork done every day this week! That's quiet an accomplishment for us! I'm really hoping that it carries over into next week as well.
Cheyenne is just about to finish her first math book and she's excited. We'll finish it up next week and then start the next book the week after.

Places we're going and people we're seeing...
We took the kids on a hike on the ranch on Tuesday. It was fun! Cheyenne found an old tortoise shell and Sierra found lots of interesting rocks to bring home. After all the cold weather and being stuck inside, it was so nice to get out and explore. It's so nice to live in a place where we'll be able to do that often.

My favorite thing this week was...
Landon had a worksheet this week with the words "on" and "in" where he had to match the word to the picture. I had it sitting on the desk next to me while I checked my e-mail. He walked up next to me and started sounding out the words. Then he pointed at the pictures and said "on, in, in, on. Okay I don't have to do that now because I just did it by myself." I was so proud of him! I am so thankful to be home with him so I can be the one who's there when he learns to read!

What's working/not working for us...
I've gone back to giving the older girls a list with all their assignments and having them complete what they can individually. They work on that while I work with Landon and Sierra. Then, later in the afternoon, I sit down with them and just review what they worked on and do Spelling Power and a read aloud together. Then, Dakota goes back to what she was doing and Cheyenne and I work on math and reading. We seem to get so much more done that way.
What's hard for me when we do it this way though is keeping up with looking over their work/grading papers. I'm still working on a better system for those things.

Homeschool questions/thoughts I have...
I'm starting to think about next year. I'm planning on doing some things differently and using some different curriculum. I'm wondering how some unit studies would work for us. I feel like we're really strong in reading and math-more so reading than math-but not so much in Science and Social Studies. The kids all do Tae Kwon Do at least twice a week, but that's the only PE we have right now, so I'd like to add more of that as well.

A photo, video, link, or quote to share...
This picture is from our hike on Tuesday. We had so much fun!

Friday, February 25, 2011

Five Question Friday 2/25/11

Woohoo! It's Friday! Normally, I don't get that excited for Friday because our weekends are pretty busy with Tae Kwon Do classes and church. My "weekend" days are Tuesday and Wednesday because we don't have anything going on except church on Wednesday evening. But this weekend, Tae Kwon Do classes are cancelled, so we have Saturday off! We'll have people here doing some work on the house, but we don't have to go anywhere! Hooray!



1. Can you drive a stick shift?
When I was in high school, I had a car that was a stick shift. I had so much fun in it! We got an automatic when I was a sophmore in college and have had one since, so it's been a few years. :) It would probably take a little while to get the hang of it again.

2. What are two foods you just can't eat?
#1.Cooked spinach!!!! Yuck! I can't even look at it. I LOVE raw spinach in a salad, but NEVER cooked!

#2.Black Eyed Peas! We used to eat them on New Year's Day for luck or something. I cannot stand them! No matter what you do, you can't disguise that taste either. I've tried smashing them and hiding them in mashed potatoes, ketchup, holding my nose. Nothing works! Good luck is not worth having to eat them. I'll take my chances. :)

3. Do you buy Girl Scout Cookies? What is your favorite kind?
Until last year, I always had at least one daughter selling cookies. Between our order, the cookies that somehow never got delivered (there's always that one person you can't track down), and buying an extra box or two to get to the next level of prizes I always ended up with way too many cookies. My little cousin is selling them this year, so we may buy a box or two from her but that's all.
My favorites are tag alongs and samoas. Yum!

4. How do you pamper yourself?
Pamper myself? What's that? If I have extra money (ha!) it goes to the kids. I would much rather do something nice for them than myself. Someday when they're grown, there will be time for me.

5. What is your nickname and how did you get it?
My nickname is mom or mommy. My kids gave it to me when they learned to talk.


Well, I'm off now to make a doctor's appointment. Landon woke up with a sore throat, upset tummy, and fever. I'm guessing it's strep. Crossing my fingers we can get in this afternoon. I really don't want to have to sit in the waiting room at urgent care.

Have a great FRIDAY!!!!!!

Thursday, February 24, 2011

A new blog hop!(new to me anyway) Thursday Five

I've been enjoying reading Pamela's posts at Troop Petrie for the Thursday Five for a while and I finally decided to link up too. Head over to Flip Flops and Combat Boots to join the fun!

This week's words are:
Outstanding
Refreshed
Adored
Cheerful
Cool

My kids are doing an Outstanding job in Tae Kwon Do! Tonight Sierra is testing for her purple dragon belt. I am so proud of them all and so glad that we decided to enroll them in Tae Kwon Do instead of another sport.

For the first time in weeks, I feel refreshed this afternoon. Sierra and I did her reading on my bed this morning. When we were finished I stayed there and napped for about 20 minutes. It was just what I needed today!

I totally adored my time at church last night! Normally, Landon goes with me to service while the girls go to class but Daniel was home last night so he decided not to go. So, I got to go to service by myself. I don't really mind having him with me because he's pretty good during the service. But once in a while I enjoy just going by myself with nothing to distract me. It was great!

Monday evening, while the older two were at Tae Kwon Do, I took the other two and went grocery shopping. We went to a store that we don't normally go to and it turned out to be a great experience. The cashier was so cheerful! I think she actually enjoyed her job. She smiled and talked to the kids and gave them a sucker. We will definitely be going back there again.

The weather the last week or so has been in the 70's . It's been wonderful! We went for a hike on Tuesday and took our jackets because it was a little cool. But we ended up taking them off once we got moving.


That was fun! I think I'll be linking up again next week!

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Friday, February 18, 2011

Five Question Friday 2/18/11

Did anybody else wake up with crazy allergies this morning? Ugh! I slept so well last night until I woke up at 5:30am sneezing. And I don't just sneeze once or twice, I sneeze for like five minutes straight. Time to break out the Netipot I think.

I know one thing that will make me feel better today-Five Question Friday with Mama M! Woohoo!

1. Have you worn the same outfit more than one day in a row?
Sometimes I do. It really depends on how long I wore it the first day and whether or not I'm going somewhere where the people may have seen me the day before. I know that most people wouldn't even remember what I was wearing, but still. Also, if I don't take my shower first thing in the morning, I'll usually just put on my clothes from the day before .

2. If you had to choose any LARGE city to live in, which would it be?
I really don't think I could handle living in any large city. I'm pretty happy with my small town life. I wouldn't mind going to New York City for a visit, though. But not for too long.

3. Fly or drive with the kids on vacation?
We've never flown anywhere since we've been married. Partly because we don't go on many vacations and partly because flying is too expensive. From all the horror stories I've been hearing about airport security, I think we'll just stick to driving. Of course, if someone wants to send me on a vacation to Hawaii or Alaska, I might be willing to change my mind. :)

4. What is your idea of "spring cleaning"?
I don't think I've ever officially done "spring cleaning" before. This is the year, though. My plans are to clean out everyone's closets and switch out winter clothes for summer clothes, finish unpacking all the boxes that are still sitting in corners around the house, clean the house from top to bottom-inside and outside, and get rid of anything we don't need or use anymore. After reading all that, I think my spring cleaning may last through summer and fall too!

5. What is the best book you have ever read?
This is a tough one. I think if I had to choose my all time favorite book it would be this one

I don't know what it is about that book, but I have read it over and over and never get tired of it. I also love the movie-the original, not the remake, though it's good too.
Of course, if you ask me this question again tomorrow, you'll probably get a different answer. I have lots of favorite books.

Okay, I'm off to get the kids some breakfast and get our school day started. Have a great Friday!

Friday, February 11, 2011

Five Question Friday returns!

I've been missing Mama M.'s five question Friday so much! It feels good to be settled in and back to the old routines-the good ones anyway.



1.
Would you rather be on ABC's Extreme Home MakeOver or TLC's What not to Wear?
Actually, neither. I love the idea behind Extreme Home MakeOver and the stories always make me cry. They definitely pick people who are deserving of a brand new home. However, I think they go a little overboard on the houses they build. It would be nice to see them do a little less on each project so that they could help more families.
Plus, we just got a new house and I love it!
I could never be on What Not To Wear because there is no way I could spend the amount of money they do-hundreds of $ for a pair of shoes??? No way! Not even if it was someone else's money. $5,000 could clothe my entire family for several years with money to spare.


2. Do you have any tattoos?
Nope, never will.

3. Do you tell your kids about things you did growing up?
Um, which things? Some things I do tell them about and some things I haven't yet. I was really a pretty good kid, so there's not a lot to tell. There are definitely some things that I would do differently, though, and if the situation arises, we will talk about those things.

4. If the traffic signal turns yellow, do you stop or speed up?
It depends how close I am to the light and if there are any cars at the intersection (oh and if I can see any police cars or not).


5. What's your preference: chocolate or chips?
How about CHOCOLATE CHIPS?! That would be my choice.


And there you have it. My Five Question Friday answers. Can't wait to check out everyone else's answers for this week! If you want to see what everyone else had to say, just head on over to Mama M.'s blog!


Also, would you please add Mama M. and her family to your prayer list this week? They lost a dear family member last week and I know they would appreciate it.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Homeschool Mother's Journal

I found a new link-up this week that I am really excited to participate in. It's from The Homeschool Chick and it's called the Homeschool Mother's Journal. Each week, you just answer 6 little questions and link up. Pretty easy! I can't wait to read about some other homeschool families. I'm still new at this and I know there is a lot I can learn from the experiences of others.
So, here we go!
The Homeschool Mother's Journal
In my life this week...
We have been snowed in since Tuesday this week. I didn't even step foot outside the door of my house until this afternoon. The kids went outside and played in the snow on Wednesday, but it was so cold that they could only stay out a few minutes. They said the snow wasn't good for snowballs or snowmen anyway, so it wasn't much fun. They haven't even asked to go out since then.
All this snow also means that Daniel hasn't been able to go to work this week. We are praying that the roads clear enough that he can get to work by Monday at the latest.

In our homeschool this week...
We actually got a lot of work done this week. We took Wednesday off because it was Sierra's birthday, but we made up for it by doing 1 1/2 days each on Monday and Tuesday, plus a little work on Saturday.
Landon is working on the letter 0 this week. I'm so impressed with how well he is picking up the sounds and even beginning to sound out words!
Sierra finished up the creation story in her reader and worked on the stories of Adam and Eve and Cain and Abel. She's doing really well with sounding out the words and learning the sight words. The biggest thing that I'm working on with her is building her confidence. She looks at me after nearly every word to make sure she got it right. I think it will come with time.
Dakota and Cheyenne are learning about Norway this week. We began the Geography Game for Europe and found out that all three of us have some work to do learning those countries! Even Dakota, the geography whiz, missed a couple of them.

Places we're going and people we're seeing...
We haven't been able to go anywhere or see anyone this week. We are crossing our fingers that the roads will be safe enough for us to make it into town for church and tae kwon do in the morning.

My favorite thing this week was...
My kids handled this week really well. There was surprisingly little arguing and almost no complaining of being bored. Other than schoolwork, I had to do little to keep them entertained. Being home this year has helped them learn how to find themselves something to do rather than always having to have me finding things to keep them busy.

What's working/not working for us...
I really love Landon and Sierra's curriculum. I am not, however, in love with the older girls' curriculum. I think next year, I will switch it up a bit and not necessarily use a "box" curriculum. I am learning lots about other things that are available and I think I will give some a try.

Homeschool questions/thoughts I have...
Since all of the homeschool families I know are "online friends", I have tons of questions! I'd love to spend some time with an experienced homeschool family and see what their day is like. Sometimes I feel like I'm doing everything wrong or not doing enough. I'd love to sit down with an experienced mom and learn about her daily schedule.

A photo, video, link, or quote to share...
I can't believe my baby girl turned 7 this week! It doesn't seem possible!

That was fun! Can't wait to head over and see what everyone else has been up to this week!