Random Talk / Sierra Pic / Hollister

Sierra.... Fall of 2013.... 9 years old

I love this girl's smile and her bubbly nature.  She is always skipping through the house and is what some refer to as a free spirit.  I would say she is "uninhibited".  She does not see limits usually.  She is confident.  She thinks she can do everything.  She has been telling me how to drive since she was able to utter her first words.  When my oldest was in public school and we would go to pick her up Sierra would sit behind me in her car seat and every time a car would move forward she would say, "Go!  You are going to miss your child!"  I would turn around and say, "I don't need a two year old to tell me how to drive."  It was really cute.  Not as cute the 1,000th time she would say it, though.  ;)  She is the kind of kid that can put together an outfit that you would think was hideous until you saw it on her.  She just has that flair... sort of a trendsetter type.  I never was a trendsetter, so I watch in amazement sometimes when she walks out in some unusual outfit that somehow works... on her.  She likes to be funny... and she likes to aggravate her siblings... only she does not always realize she is doing it.  She just has a knack for getting in other people's business and bossing them around and telling them how to do things.  She refers to herself as "the little momma" and she tries to do my job.  Caden is "her baby".  In fact, Sahara kind of was, too, but the little momma got tired of the "scream machine" (Sahara)... she still mothers her, though.  She just likes to claim the one that screams less.  She has confidence... and uninhibited confidence.  I wish I had a little bit of that... ummmm... wait... I do in some areas.  She has  a servants heart, but already she gets tired of people taking advantage of her because of it.  She is sneaky and likes to trick people for a good laugh.

That shirt she is wearing... I just want to say that we don't shop at Hollister.  In fact, we don't even walk in that store or Ambercrombie because of the inappropriate over-sexualization.  The reason she has that shirt is that my husband had his English students write letters to various businesses of their choice asking for free merchandise and Hollister sent a box of shirts for his students.  My kids have two of them.  For several years they wore them as nightgowns.  Now, they wear them as shirts.  We still won't shop there, though.  

So, I felt like sharing a picture and being rather random.  

Affording the Dream House with a Growing Family

As a family of seven people often wonder how we afford such a big home.  Some rare few will actually ask.  Ha!  The answer:  sacrifice.  It's simple really.... it's always been about financial wisdom and lots of sacrifice.

But I have to start a little further back.... like when I was a child.  My parents were raised poor and they did not want to raise their family poor.  They made some financial mistakes early in their marriage, had to get a consolidation loan, and they actually learned from that lesson.  They taught me and my brother by example how to manage money wisely.  Basically, we were taught exactly what Dave Ramsey teaches, so if you need in depth advise you might want to read some of his books, etc..  The main principle is don't spend what you don't have to spend and live withing YOUR means.  If you can't afford to buy snacks at the convenience store then, don't do it.  Simple.

So, back to the house.... I met my husband when we were both 19.  I was working at McDonald's and shortly after we started seeing each other I got a waitressing job.  I started building a house on my parent's property.  It was a cottage style house and was about the size of a small apartment (24'x26' with a 6' porch across the whole front).  I paid my car insurance, gas, and such expenses, and kept out about $20 each weekend for spending money and I put everything else back into the building fund.  It took three years to complete the house, but when it was done it was completely paid for.  I moved in  and shortly after became engaged to Cody and I lived there a year alone until we married and he moved in.  We lived there for several years and then, decided to purchase our own land and have the house moved. 

We had a plan to add on to the house, but my dad had emergency heart surgery and we decided that it would be best to sell the house and land and move.  We had our first child while living there at which point I stopped working outside the home.  That brought us to the location we are at today.  We sold the house and land for $40,000 and paid off the remaining balance on our land and put $30,000 cash down on our home.  Our home was foreclosure home that had been used as a rent house for few years with some damage that needed repaired.  We took the advice of our realtor and financed the house for 30 years to make sure we did not get in a financial bind.  I am so glad we listened to her because we had no idea what the utilities would be like in a 3500 square feet home that was over 100 years old.  Remember the other house was only 624 square feet of living space.  The 30 year loan allowed us to have payments really low and pay extra when we could.  A whole lot of income tax return money went towards extra payments when most of our friends were taking extravagant vacations.  We still went of vacations, but we chose frugal options and we had as much fun as anyone else was.

At some point I convinced my husband we were throwing money away on finance charges on our mortgage by showing him the statements showing how much had gone to finance charges.  This was the moment my husband got on board with frugal living.  We set a goal at that point to pay off the house in three years and we did it.  Mostly we paid an extra $10-100 on payments (which makes a huge difference) and started putting most of our income tax report into our mortgage.  We paid the house off in the 11th year of a 30 year mortgage!!!!!!

This was an amazing feat because of several reasons:

• I am a stay-at-home mom.
• My husband was a teacher.
• My husband quit his job at one point to try another career then, returned to teaching. 
• My husband went back to school to get his Masters degree.
• We added four more children to the family (and lost two).
• I had wrist surgery and Cody had surgery for staph infection.  There were probably other medical expenses, but I don't remember really.   ;)
•  After three years of applying for administration jobs Cody got an Assistant Principal job shortly before we paid off the mortgage.
• We also have been doing renovations since we moved in this house... some big, some small.  Some were as simple as a can of paint while others included adding a fireplace or finishing out the walls of half the upstairs.  We have replaced flooring at points where you could see the dirt ground below even.  Been we have chose wisely where to spend our money and where we could cut cost.
• And we continued to vacation a couple times a year.  {Hallelujah!!}

 So, it has all been sacrifice.  And I believe with all my heart that God honors sacrifice and He has filled in all the gaps.  When the numbers on paper did not make sense God made a way for all of our heart's desires.  He has taken care of us for that I am certain. 

Birth Posting, Sienna 4 months, Job Changes, & A New School Year.... Oh My!!!

So, my blogging in pretty sad these days.  Time is something I seem to always be short on.  One thing that is driving me a bit crazy is that I wanted to make one last post to the series regarding Sienna's birth.  I wanted to post about Caesarean recovery, but honestly I can't formulate good enough memories to put it down.  There were just too many drugs and too much pain.  I will say that my recovery was one of my hardest and was followed by a series of illnesses and setbacks even after I was back home.  It was a good 6 weeks before the illnesses all passed here and try as I might I just can not put together a decent blog post about it.  So sorry if I left anyone wondering. 

Next thought is that my tiny baby girl is no longer so tiny.  She is already four months old and I have been loving every ounce of her!!  My kids adore her, too.  I love watching all of them interact with her.  Caden is a bit rough, but she smiles about it (when she is not frightened... sometimes he startles her).  Savannah gets to hold her walking around some (with caution) and she has changed some diapers and clothing.  Sierra is jealous... not jealous of the baby, but that Savannah is allowed to do more.  Savannah is 3 years and 3 months older than Sierra.  Sierra is allowed to hold Sienna, but is not supposed to walk around with her or get her out of her highchair, etc..  She does it sometimes, anyway... and gets scolded.  Sahara loves to crawl in the baby bed and lay beside Sienna and play with her.  Caden does this some, also.  And yes, I let them.  Call me crazy, but I let my kids love on the baby as long as it is being monitored for safety and such. 

Our Summer has not been what I wanted.  Chaos has kind of been the mood around here this Summer.  I do not like chaos.  Goals have not been achieved and I am pretty sure I am the only one that cares.  LOL!  Only it really is not that funny to me.  ;)  But our Summer is coming to a close.  Normally, my husband would go back to his normal teaching job about a week before the students would.  That date would have been August 16th and that would leave us with almost a full month of Summer left.  That will not be the case this year because quite unexpectedly Cody got an Assistant Principal job at a local elementary school (Pre-K thru 1st grade).  It is very exciting!  His first official day of work will be August, BUT unofficially he is already working.  He interviewed on July 11th (Monday) and was supposed to find out the next day; however, within a few hours he got the call.  He signed the contract two days later on my birthday (Wednesday).  Then, he had a teacher workshop to attend the next day and went to work on Friday.  That was last week.  This week he will be working four days.  Next week he is supposed to work on Monday and be off the rest of the week, but we will see.  Other than the possibility of being off some next week our Summer has come to a close.  That's okay with me, though.  I am reading to get back to a routine!!  And it is pretty exciting that what we have wiated for has finally happened.  We could not ask for anything better!  ... and honestly we are having a hard time processing that this is reality because it is so stinking perfect!  God is good!

My closing thought is that I am prepping to get out schooling underway.  For the most part when Cody is at work we are at work/school.  It is just easier to follow his schedule because when he is home our schedule goes out the window.  And as I type this I wonder if that is the case for other homeschoolers out there.  Are you able to get school done when Daddy is home or does it just get too crazy?

First Day of School 2010 & Our Focus

Today is our first day of school. Sort of.... we are getting back in to our routine gradually. I realized mid-week that My Father's World recommends starting 1st Grade on a Thursday and after looking closer at the lesson plans I agree that is the best way to use this curriculum. Also, this is going to allow us to make a smoother more gradual transition into our year. Today and tomorrow we will only do 1st Grade with Savannah (4th) sitting in. There is nothing for Savannah to really do with us these first few days so we are focusing on character training with her. Our focus this week for her will be to not be a distraction. Savannah will do calendar time and those basic math activities and then, she can sit and read, etc. for this hour that I work with Sierra. Savannah tends to try to talk to us about what she is reading or show us everything which is a major distraction. I love that she wants to talk to us, but it makes what we are doing take twice as long. I think these two days will be a great chance for her to practice not being a distraction. As well, I want Sierra to learn to focus on her work and not allow the distraction to suck her in. During these days our focus with the two little ones is strictly character training. It seems some little boy thinks that every thing is to be throw wildly through the air like a grenade. So, Caden will be learning NOT to throw things and Sahara will be learning not to follow his lead in doing so. Caden will also be learning to clean up his messes, which is a big deal for him. He is still a baby in many ways and does not think clean up is "really" his job. Time to change that line of thinking. ;)


And because we do things just a bit different than everyone else this is all of the kids on our first "practice" day of school one day last week. Daddy was home still and let's just say that that week did not go as planned. The plan was to "practice" our school routine all week. It worked on the one day that Daddy was gone, but even on that day it was obvious I had to figure out really what I want this year to be like. I still don't fully know, but we will do this gradually instead of jump in trying to do school all day and burn them our before we get going good. I am thinking that next week we will step it up a notch with 1st grade and ease into some of Savannah's 4th grade. As the weeks progress we will add a little more to our day. I tend to try to take on the world from the beginning and end up in total frustration. This year I want them to love it... and it become their way of life... an enjoyable way of life. I will try to post more on that later and our curriculum choices, as well as, our extras (ya know.... what they call "electives" in public school"). We are going to have a lot of extras.

Our focus this year: Character and being helpers to one another while getting in some real learning.

1st grade today:
Calendar time and 100 day chart with calendar coloring time
Place Value cups
Days of the week song (I almost forgot the words ;) )
Letter Practice for A, B, C -- writing and sounds
Discussion of SCROLLS and the way they were used in Bible times
More Letter Practice for our scroll pages -- A, B, C
There was not a specific suggestion for books for today only that we do about fifteen minutes of reading, so we read:

• Zink The Zebra by Kelly Weil (about a zebra that is different.... the moral of the story is that is okay to be different)
• Smudge by Clare Newberry (about mischievious kittens... great charcoal drawings)
• Not THIS Bear! (about a little boy that is mistaken for a bear in his fur coat & hat on his way to visit his aunt)

And I guess I have resigned to the fact that we will be adopting a similar school year schedule as my husband's public school. I want to school year round, but it is not working well when he is home. I have wanted the flexibility of year round schooling, but it is just not working for us. Maybe someday. This does not mean we will be on their exact schedule. Public schools actually schedule in more days than required and so we will still take off most or all of December. Also, I am due to have a new baby the week AFTER his Spring Break, so we may have an extended Spring Break... who knows, but I am learning not to plan it all out too much and just roll with what life hands us.

Income Tax Time

Let me just say this... Income Tax makes NO SENSE!!! I mean, I love getting money back and I am quite happy to get these annual "bonuses", but this stuff is C~R~A~Z~Y! I remember when we did not have children and people we knew always got big money back, while we were happy if we got $100 back... or if we, at least, did not have to pay in. Last year we got a significant tax return last year, so we made some changes to our W-4 form, so we would get our money up front month to month. It worked out well this past year and even covered the cost of my health insurance premiums. It was pretty good year for us financially for a single income family with four kiddos and homeschooling costs (books, supplies, conference expenses). I have been feeling like we accomplished the goal... we made it through without incurring further debt with more expenses this year and less money than most people live off of. I decided in my little mind that our income tax return would be low and really that was the goal. I mean, so that we had more of that money throughout the year to live on and less accumulating interest for the government. If someone is going to make interest off it, I would like it to be me. ;) Guess what?! I did my taxes (TurboTax) and I was pleasantly surprised to see that we are getting more back this year than last year. That was fabulous and my husband did not even believe I was telling the truth... shame on him. ;) BUUUUUTTTTTT.... it is nuts! It makes no sense. We are getting back way more than we even paid in for the year because we have four kiddos. Seriously, did these laws really get VOTED IN? It is no wonder our country is in financial ruin because they do not understand the basic principles of math. You know 1 + 1 = 2... U. S. Government version is 1 + 1 = 10. LOL!

I have a theory.... it goes something like this and it is sooooooo simple. If you make money you get taxed a set percent across the U.S.. Everyone pays in the same and at the end of the year they divide up the overrage and return it or spend it on a voted on worthy cause. The other part of the theory is for the U.S. not to spend money BEFORE they have it. It is soooo simple. And yes, I know it will NEVER happen. Still my theory, though. ;)

TIP OF THE DAY: The Number One rule to get out of debt is:

Only spend money you have!!

If you don't have it, don't spend it!

And yes, that means loans and financing things...

it is simple.. if you don't have it, don't spend it!

School Spirit

Who says homeschoolers can't have school spirit?!!!!

We roar

for the our local Tiger team!

Look at these unsocialized homeschoolers! This was great for me (even though I would not have guessed it would be). It was great for me to see my kids and how social they really are. It just reaffirms to me that my kids can be homeschoolers and be social. Ironically, we are probably more social. We are not that family that just sits there in the bleachers staring at the field. We are constantly talking to others that we all know. Part of that is because I grew up in this town and went to school here. Part of that is that my kids are naturally social and talk easily to others. And the other part of it is that my husband is the very famous Mr. S (Middle School Teacher) in our town. His students scream with glee when they see him! Weird... I told him yesterday, "You do realize how odd that is don't you. Usually, students will run in the other direction when they see their teacher in public!" His students love him and it shows when we are in public.

Sahara is watching all the action. Caden is being a tiger.... Rrrrroooooarrr! As we were running out the door I thougth to paint their faces with little paw prints and such. They got all the special painting like they would at school (without having to sit in a desk all day).

Savannah wanted a tiger face with black nose and whiskers.... Meow! Sierra got little paw prints on her hand and face. She was so proud of her cool paws. Doesn't Cody look proud to be there with all his little munchkins gathered around?! We had a great time and the Tiger team beat the socks off their opponent!!! 53 to 13, I think... I don't really watch too much of the game. I was quite suprised to realize I had a little cousin on the field... Whooo-hoooo!!! I have a big extended family. Seriously, you just don't know much about their lives unless you are "in the know" (translation = gossip circle). I am so not "in the know". Anyway, at half-time I realized it was 9:30 !@!@!@! .... half-time!@!@! Oh my gosh, we got the kids in bed late that night. Speaking of half-time the Tiger group was awesome. My comment was that they must be working those kiddos way to hard this early in the season. I was impressed.

A great night for us unsocialized homeschoolers... (insert giggle)... I want to make shirts that say, "Homeschoolers have team spirit, too!"... but my husband gave me "the look".... maybe we will just get some that do not have the campus names... something with just a tiger and maroon and white. Or whatever.... So, do any of you out there go to any school events and show your spirit?

Getting To Know YOU Better

I was just wondering if everyone might enjoy sharing some information to get to know each other better. So, I think I will start with a list of questions and answer them below that. I think that will make it easier to copy and paste the questionaire. If you do not want answer a question just skip it... no problem.

1. How long have you homeschooled your kids?
2. Did any of them attend public school?
3. Did going into public school make it easier or harder to begin homeschooling them?
4. Do your kids attend co-op or other schooling (Pre-K)?
5. What activities do your kids attend outside of the home?
6. What do you drive (or what is your transportation method)?
7. Do you have another occupation?
8. What is your husband's occupation? Does he work a set schedule or shift work, travel, etc,?
9. Does your husband help much?
10. Do others help much?
11. What type of computer do you use, internet speed, wireless or wired?
12. Do you live in the country, town, suburb, or other? What state or region?
13. Do you like where you live?
14. Do you travel? Do you like to travel?

Okay, so I will start by answering my own questions. Also, feel free to add some questions that interest you. I will be happy to answer your questions. And PLEASE do not share any information that could endanger your family (address, etc.).

1. I have homeschooled my kids since November 1, 2008, so less than one year.
2. Savannah was in 2nd grade and Sierra was in Pre-K when I pulled them out. Two months into the year they had already closed school twice for hurricanes, so they had not really been in school much for the year. I think God may have been trying to tell me something because hurricanes hit our area when each of my girls were in Pre-K (and hurricanes aren't too common here... none in my life until Hurricanes Rita and Ike).
3. Sierra was not in school long enough to develop habits are have "set" expectations of what school was, so it has not affected homeschooling her. Savannah is totally affected by it. In some ways it has helped for me to see some of the techniques that were used to teach her and in a way sort of "teach" me to teach some. In many other ways it has hindered us because she has that idea of how school is and it is not all good. I know God had a hand in the wonderful teachers and public schooling that she experienced while she was in public school. She was always loved in her school and got extra attention that I know all kids are not fortunate enough to recieve. God placed (and moved her) in the very hands of teachers that could nurture her heart while I was not able to. Sierra, also... in her short experience.
4. My kids have not attended co-op or other schooling since we took them out of public school. We have changed churches to allow for more spiritual growth and I am happy to say that is working. At the new church my kids have more opportunites to do things like children's choir, etc., also. I have signed them up for co-op this year for the experience of being around more kids that are leading similar lives to theirs. I am not at all concerned about the classes, but I am sure they will enjoy those as an added fringe benefit.
5. This year our kids will attend church (Sunday and Wednesday, etc.), homeschool co-op, gymnastics (although I have enjoyed not going this summer), and I might check into 4-H. We tried Girl Scouts in the past, but our experience has not been to good with it. I might form a group of friends for some social time, if I get to feeling spunky, but don't hold me to it! ;)
6. I am in love with my van!!! Who knew that would ever happen?! I am a very practical person, so driving something "sensible" and boring is no surprise. I had a Dodge Caravan until I wrecked it in the mountains when I hit and ice patch, but I replaced it with a 2002 Toyota Sienna that I plan to drive until it falls apart. I actaully fantasy about something a tad bigger with a higher roof, a port-a-potty in it, and a bed! LOL! Weird, but I am sure you understand, right?!
7. Another job? Uh... who has time for another job!! I know some of you may have another income making job. I have in the past, but do not now. I keep my tax ID certificate current and claim some "sales", but I have not done much since I was pregant with Sierra. I have sold one-of-a-kind children's clothes that I made on eBay and locally. I had two booths in an Antique and Craft mall. One was for selling my handmade children's things and the other was a retail booth selling purses, windchimes, and various decor. Hmmm... and at some point I had an antiques booth, although I don't fully remember all that. ;) I am always finding something to keep me double busy, but I have learned to stop. Oh yeah, I have done the festivals and flea market sales circuit with my "ventures" as well. FYI: Local festivals are where the profits are at!
8. My husband is a public school teacher (7th grade English) with his Master's degree. We are thinking he may have committed job suicide when we decided to homeschool. ;) Maybe one day he will be able to get a principal position, but I am quite proud that he is willing to sacrifice his career potential for his family. He works Mon-Fri 8:00 am - 4:00 pm. Occassionally, he has to work a school dance or football session stand, but for the most part he is off when the students are out of school. He goes to work a couple of weeks earlier than the students at the beginning of each school year. Each summer he usually has a random workshop to attend. He travels to a conference 1-2 times a year. In the past he has taught summer school for a few weeks during the summer, but not this past summer. School starts back with his students tomorrow and he is always nervous, so he is acting weird today. By the way, his students LOVE him and he is a local celebrity in our town. Very cute!!
9. My husband helps with everything!!! He does dishes, laundry, bathes kids, braids hair, runs bedtime duty... the whole nine yards.... we are in it together and it takes more than me to get it all done. I really cannot rely on anyone but him. Others offer, but there are usually scheduling issues, etc.. Most the time I just don't ask rather than be told no. Cody takes a day off, if I have something I just absolutely cannot take the kids to.... very rare, though.
10. I have an older PC that runs XP that I gave the kids when I got my baby... uh, I mean, computer.... so sad, but I am so addicted to this thing. It is a pink Dell Studio laptop, all wireless, built-in video thingy for Skype, etc., has wierd things like a fingerprint reader, and way too much technology for my little brain. We are all wireless in the house now for printers, etc. and I love that. With the laptop I can cook and print a worksheet from the kitchen and take it with me where I go to rock the babies (usually my school room desk or my recliner). And my icing on the cake is that we have DSL through AT&T.... ahhhh, heaven!! They had to slow down my connection a bit right after I got it, but I can't tell and it saves me $10 more a month. I can click on your blog link and it loads before I can snap my finger!!! LOVE it!!! And I ask this question because I often wonder if anyone has to wait for my stuff on my blog to load.... that is why I recently deleted my music. I could tell it was slowing down my blog.
11. I live in a small town in Southeast Texas. The school here is a 3A school, although it was 4A when went to it years ago. I live in the "old town" area with the historic homes, although it has not been declared a historical area... not touristy here. My house is over 100 years old and I can walk to the vintage movie theater about three blocks away. It takes me five minutes to get to Wal-Mart or any other store in town and my husband has a round trip one mile commute to work. We are both from the country, but we are loving the convience of town life. Yes, we still fantasize about more land (we have one full acre here after buying and additional 1/4 acre) and such things on a DAILY basis. Just today we were pondering our options. My husband said we should buy some acreage just for recreation and I suggested that joining a hunt club lease might be more ideal and then, we could have four wheelers, etc.. I know God will open a door if he intends us to have "land"... even in the middle of town!! I am hopeful! :)
12. We love where we live, but as you can guess in the above answer there are some things we long for... nothing we need or can't live without. Our biggest thing is that our families, etc. all live 45 minute drives and two hour drives away. They all moved after we did, so it is not in our control. Also, two hurricanes in a three year period kind of got us freaked out, too. Hurrican recovery is not for the faint of hear, but I guess you have something to worry about everywhere you live... earthquakes, landslides, floods, tornadoes... you can't control all that stuff, so I think we will stay where God has us... unless he gives us a clear sign to move.
13. I LOVE to travel, but I am content to travel in the U.S.! There is so much to see in this beautiful country that I want to see it all before I move on to bigger things. We went to Cancun for our honeymoon, but we love to go to Colorado more than any other place. I have been to about half the states, but Cody has been to less. We love the mountains and we even talk about living there someday or packing up and just leaving. Who knows! Right now there are just some things that hold us here... family... and knowing that God put us where we are.

So, it's your turn and you can keep it short if that is more your style. You can answer in my comment section or do a blog post. If you do a post, come back here and post the link in the comments. And one more thing... don't make me have to tag you. There are some of you out there that I really want to know some of these things about!!! If you don't answer I am going to harass you tag you, if you are one of my "followers"! LOL!

First Day of School

We had a G~R~E~A~T first day of school today! I was so thrilled. I let it be a low-key fun day based on our new materials, new schedules, new expectations, and new habits (mine and theirs). I focused my energy on gently correcting behavior (most of the day... this evening I blew a fuse... confession). The kids truly enjoyed the school day and so did I.

Tomorrow Cody goes back to work and I will squeeze in some of their academic studies and a new technique for behavior/character training called "Imitators of God" that I purchased through www.heavenlyhomemakers.com (download for $2.95). It is so cute, so go check it out (and look for her free downloads as well). Each of my kiddos will be growing their own "tater" patch in our school room. Hmmm.... maybe I need to grow one, too. I also will start them out with a new Accountability Chart. I am kind of marrying "I Did My Chores" with "Accountable Kids" and my own ideas and later I will try to do a post on it to let you know how it all goes. I love both those programs, but I am throwing them together to get it going quick, but without losing some of the concepts that I love about making them truly accountable for themselves. I do not have time or energy to waste on checking off chore charts and I want something they can do themselves with less guidance than some of the other systems.

Anyway, I am off to dig around in some of their academic studies and see what I can get organized for tomorrow. I can't wait to have some time to share some of the MAJOR changes I am going to make in our homeschool. I already don't grade or test, so it is not that simple.... yep. I am gonna definitely be one of those weird homeschoolers afterall.... details later.... keep you waiting a bit.... :) Yeah, today's theme for my multiple posts seems to be about those weird homeschoolers! :) Goodnight! If I get a chance I might do one more post tonight..... crazy me!! What an exciting day....

School's Out For Summer... School's Out Forever...

Okay, well not forever and technically I am refering to my husband the public school teacher. We are going to be homeschooling year round with lots of breaks! And excuse the reference to secular music, but who can resist a song that most of us have sung at the end of every school year of our life! I am so excited because I am ready to gain some order after out trial run of seven months of homeschooling. It has really taken it's toll on our house, but now I have a clearer picture of what I want our homeschool experience to be like. It seems that my husband and I are on the same track ... at least, some. We went our seperate ways at the SETHSA conference with me hoping that we could come together at the end and collaborate what we had gained. It seems that may not have been the best approach and after I realized Cody was just "putting on a good face" for me I suggested we go in a workshop together... the last one of our final day. David Hazell was the speaker and the workshop title was "Developing An Independent Learner". Something you should realize about David Hazell is that you are going to get so much more from him than just what the workshop title states. That is how it should be. Yes, he gave a great cram-packed one hour presentation on "developing independent learners", but in the process he shared his ideas of how the home should be run, scheduling your day, financially preparing your kids, sharing the world with your kids, how to change you to change them, how to teach from different perspectives and ages, etc.. Cody really was on board with what David Hazell had to say and liked his ideas. I was to and that made me realize that many of our (Cody & I) ideas for what we want are the same. I know it seems we should already know that, but Cody and I both very different. I am structure... Cody is unstructure. I think that workshop made him realize that to have all the unstructured time you have to have the structured time. When you have a house full you have "marry" the two... structure marries unstructure... Shannon marries Cody.... LOL! So, if we can have that structure in the early part of the day, then we can have unstructured afternoons. Anyway, I think we can start our Summer restructuring this house! LOL!

So, when he gets home in an hour I am ready to get the ball rolling! I can't wait to collaborate on our ideas and really focus on what we both want for our family! I am very excited!

Conferences Is Over!

We are still in Houston at the SETHSA Conference, but it is over! Whew! No one mentions how tiring it is. I heard all about how it can be life changing and refrshing, but not about the exhausting part.

I have to say that I did enjoy it in the end, but it started out as kind of a let down to me. OOOOhhhh... did I say that?! I am being totally honest here, so I hope I do not step on anyone's toes. The first two workshops I went in were just not worth my time and it is sad to say, but it seems that much like the public school system we are so desperate to gain knowledge and encouragement that we will take anything we can get. I have never mentioned on my blog that I used to work for Region 5 Education Service Center in Texas in the Special Education & Pre-School department. I used to put together Conferences and Workshops for the public school system. Ok....Ok... yeah... my husband and I are a strange pair for homeschooling.... a public school teacher and an ex-ESC employee. Given my experience I know good speakers are few and far between. I think I thought that it would be different and better in the homeschooling world! And much to my suprise there were actually Presenters that were public school teachers who had never homeschooled. On day two for the first workshop I chose I got one of those.... Do I have to tell you how fast I walked out of that workshop! And after some thought I realized why the Presenters name was so familiar to me... I think the ESC had used her for workshops. Her information was good and useful and I will keep the handout, but I didn't come here for something I can get in a handout. I am way to informed for that. I want to hear from someone that can speak about the experiences I am going through! I am not writing this to focus on the negative side, but I think it has to be said that as homeschoolers we need to expect more! Make sure that when you got to Conference this summer or in the future that you GET what YOU go for! Keep your focus on what you want to attain and search it out... and don't be afraid to POLITELY walk out and look elsewhere. And on that note... I do not want this to turn into a rant so off of that and on with other things.

When I walked out of that workshop I meet two amazing ladies in the hallway. I did not initially realize that they had also walked out of the same workshop. We began talking and I got more from talking to them than they will ever realize. We exchanged names and email addresses and I so look forward to contacting them in the future! I also met another lady that just moved to Houston from Oklahoma and immediately noticed some common ground. I only wish I was nearby to offer her some support.... maybe through email will be enough. I can't imagine being a newbie homeschooler and new to the area, also. I think I can put her in touch with some people or just be a friend and that is all great. We exchanged email, also. My husband met some guys, but of course God will have to work a miracle because men do not exchange contact info. ;) It did my husband good to talk with some guys involved in homeschooling. Of course, now my husband is more aware of the nerdiness factor for male homeschoolers and we will be on a mission to make sure my son who is surrounded by girls will not be a "weirdo" (husband's qoute). Uh-hem.... I am totally on board with that, too. It is a great thing to be a Jesus Freak, homeschooling, individually different, and kind young man, but you can do it and look good at the same time.... ya know! My goal is not to raise a total "momma's boy", but rather to raise a man that can lead his home when the time comes. I challenge you as mothers to do the same. They are with us so much that this will need extra emphasis and even so much that I am going to have Man School for my Caden. Watch for coming blogisodes of Man School coming soon! LOL! ;)

What was good at the conference? Seeing other homeschoolers, being able to look through the materials on display, and the freedom to drag your kids along through it all without concern for what they SEE or that they are a bother to others. What I mean by that is that is nice to be around people that enjoy being around kids! The speakers that I saw that were good were Charlene Notgrass and Rosie Watson. And I will go into that more in a future post, but for now I "should be" packing, so I have to keep it short. The speaker that I saw that was GREAT was David Hazell. He is the co-founder and co-writer of the My Father's World Curriculum. Once I skeptically wandered into "a guy's perspective" workshop I went to all his workshops from then out! I did not expect it!!! I totally got more out of one hour with him that I got out of the entire conference. Awesome! I will blog about it all later.... gotta run before they kick us out of this place!! Hehehehe!!

Quick Thoughts

I seem to be on blog hiatus, but not really. I have even typed up some posts and had to stop mid-point. When I come back to it I just can't seem to finish my thoughts. I have commented less than usual on other blogs, but I am reading... and enjoying all of it. I am going to seem to be on a hiatus a little longer, because my family and I are going to the SETHSA Conference for our first ever home school conference. We are all so excited! I have been planning and packing and sorting through stuff.... deciding on curriculum purchases... making note of special things I want to check out at the conference.... all that stuff. I will have internet and my laptop (my precious laptop... Hehehe), but I am going to take this time to truly BE with my family. There will probably be times when I will be blogging, but maybe not. I love, love, love vacations of any kind.

Also, since my husband is a public school teacher he is home for Summer.... well, almost... He has to go to a three day workshop next week and then, he is done! So, we have lots of Summer plans and much to accomplish. I'll be busy and I have to stay away from my computer some to make hubby happy. :) Hmmmm... I might have to send him to the store on errands to blog. ;) Anyway, I am still here... just lying low for a bit!!!

Trying To Make Sense

I just realized that my April 5th blog entry does not really make too much sense in the closing sentence:

" In all seriousness the fact that we are "not limited" by public school for our kids combined with the fact that my husband is a teacher in public school will give us many freedoms. "

The first part of the sentence about my kid's is referring to location and schedules. The second part of the sentence about my husband is a reference to schedules, as well. I guess it also applies to location, if we did ever want to move.

So, now that we are as clear as mud you know I am only referring to

LOCATION and SCHEDULES.

My Husband is a Teacher.... We Homeschool PART 4

So, we are in the kitchen today and my husband says, "Ya know, we could live anywhere. Since we are homeschooling, we do not have to worry about living in a good school district." Apparently, it took him every bit of four months for this to occur to him! We are not planning on moving, but this is just something that I was suprised he is JUST NOW realizing.... that and I thought we have had conversations about that. Hmmm... he baffles me sometimes. :) In all seriousness the fact that we are "not limited" by public school for our kids combined with the fact that my husband is a teacher in public school will give us many freedoms.

My Husband Is A Teacher... We Homeschool PART 3

A couple of weeks ago I was contacted by a reader and the following is her email and my reply. I waited and saved it for a while to re-read and consider if it was appropriate to post. After careful consideration I believe it might be beneficial to someone. Suprisingly, I found it to be beneficial myself to re-read. LOL!

[From: "Reader" (name protected)= Hi there Shannon! I read your blog and really enjoyed it! I was wondering if you and your husband have found a job as a principal yet. I was really interested when I found your blog because my husband is a teacher as well. We are hoping for a baby soon, whenever the Lord decides! (thats a whole other topic for another time) I was homeschooled and had a mostly positive experience. I loved spending so much time with my family and I believe that my sisters would not be my best friends if it wasn't for all we went through together. I also enjoyed learning at my own pace and learning things I was interested in. I have so many precious memories from being homeschooled. Fortunately, my husband is very supportive of the idea of homeschooling, but we are both concerned how it will affect his career. He is starting his masters this summer and plans to pursue getting his principal papers as well. Brian, my dear husband, thrives in the school environment. He loves what he does and enjoys going to work each day. We don't want him to have to change careers if at all possible. But the big question is who is going to hire a principal whose own kids are not taught at school? We firmly believe that homeschooling our children at least while they are in the early years is so important. But with him starting his masters this summer, we are really looking closely at all this and trying to discern what the Lord would have for us. Any advice would be most welcome! Thank you for your time, "Reader" (name protected)

Me= Sorry to take so long to get back to you. I wanted to clear my head somewhat before trying to advise you in any way or share my thoughts with you. First, I am a new to homeschooling and pulled my kids out of public school in November. It has been a rocky beginning. Much of that I believe is because I was schooled through public school and up until now my kids have been. You just get this "programming" of how things are done that you have to break out of. The wonderful thing for you is that if you grew up homeschooled then you would not have to "de-program" your way of thinking. It is much like many other things in life... If you grow up being screamed at you will often scream at your kids.... being spanked then, you will spank... being hugged then, you will hug .... It is difficult to CHANGE. So, we are working on that "de-programming" and the kids and I realizing that it is OK to do things "different".... different is not wrong, it is only different! A simple example is that the first couple of weeks my kids would ask to go to the bathroom. I would tell them you do not have to wait, just go, and come right back. My older one was in school Pre-K through now (3 1/4 years), so when she does not understand she just sits there. I try to tell her to just ask me what she needs to, but she is so used to "waiting her turn" at school (and sometimes the teachers do not have time to help). For those reasons I would have to tell you that if you want to teach your kids I think it is best to start them out from the beginning. Once they get "programmed" it is hard to change. They are almost like little robots ... waiting in lines, waiting "their" turn, being given "busy" work, not getting really socialized, taught to eat fast, taught to not have conversations with others, etc. I am not saying public school is all bad, but I think they are just used to having to deal with a lot of kids. They have to do all that stuff to have order.

Anyway, I am rambling... about the "not getting really socialized" in PUBLIC school that I mentioned above. The biggest question you will ever hear if you homeschool is how are your kids going to get socialized. I admit it was my biggest concern, too. In public school they really do not socialize like the older generations did. I am 36 and when I was kid there was quite a bit of socialization going on. Now the kids usually are not allowed to speak at lunch time or in class. At recess they can, but there is very little supervision by teachers. They might have two people watching over 50-75 kids at recess and there is just no way to really do that properly. My daughter would come home and say, "My best friend said she is not playing with me." or "I don't want to play with you." Her heart would be broken and no one would intervene, because the teachers would easily not know about it. If this were happening at home we would immediately tell them that we do not want them to say those types of things. We would guide them socially. At school who can you depend on to do that for you?!

As far as how homeschooling affects us.... My husband has had his Master's for 1 1/2 years now and has not gotten the job he wants. We are quite particular I have to say, because we are wanting him to have a short commute still. We just started homeschooling, so that has had nothing to do with it, yet. In the future it may stand in the way of a Principal position. I would say that it is best to be supportive of public school. Let the people you talk to know that you are supportive of public school and do not think homeschooling is for everyone. I personally feel that public school is necessary, because most people today are not willing to make the sacrifices that they would have to make. Not everyone can teach or has the ability to teach. You would likely have a society full of illiterates if everyone homeschooled, which is why public school came to be. I am not saying that homeschool turns out illiterates... not at all. What I mean is that some people are really not bright at all and how would they teach their kids... imagine if they can't read or write, then how would they teach their child. We need public schools. On the other hand if you are able and can educate your kids and enjoy them, then why do it any other way?!

I think God has been working on me on this issue for a while... like a bad whisper in my ear saying, "Shannon, you should consider homeschool." I have brushed it to the side... tried to ignore it... thought it was a crazy notion. I have to be honest and say that when I made the decision to homeschool it was not because I was really listening to God. I did it to try to gain some sanity in my crazy life. I did search my Bible looking for proof that God would want me to do it, but I came up empty and I think that is because God knew I would not truly be listening to Him anyway. Notice I said I "searched my Bible". I did not say that I prayed about it, did I? So, one day I am talking to a friend and I tell her that I am having these "crazy thoughts" and have been thinking a lot about homeschooling the kids and she said, "Well, pray about it." So, a couple days later I call her and I say, "Well, I have to tell you that the reason I have not prayed about it is that I think will not like the answer. I think if I pray about it God is going to tell me to do it." That essentially is when I knew I would need to listen to God and homeschool my kids. I still did not pray diligently about it, but rather prayed just enough that God could begin to work on me and I decided to do it. I know it is what God would have me to do, but I have a long way to go! It is scary for me, but it is getting less scary. I am understanding that God's timing is soooo very different than the time on a clock. Almost overnight when I was ready to receive it God started pouring out proof to me that I should teach my children and not let others do it. I have gained a mental knowledge in just moments of time that I would have thought would take me years to really get. Suddenly, I am thinking why did I not see this when I "searched my Bible".... God reveals things to use in His timing and when we need it, when we are truly receptive, and when He wants us to have it. Even writing this now I am realizing that God is really using you to "talk to myself" and I am realizing that I need to wake up everyday and start it with praying about how he wants me to handle my homeschooling day and stop trying to "just do it my way or by the books".

I truly hope some of this is helpful to you. Also, if you start out homeschooling let me encourage you to do it all the way through the upper level. Why shelter and protect them and then throw them into that atmosphere when they are older. It would be like tending sheep and then, suddenly one day throwing them into the lion's den. Why go through the trouble of guarding their minds only to throw them into a situation that would potentially poison their minds. My husband teaches 7th grade English and loves it, but they have caught students having "relations" (s--) in the gym dressing rooms or restrooms. They have pregnant students or ones that think they might be. Just a couple weeks ago a substitute teacher was arrested at the school for his involvement in filming another adult with a minor (fortunately, not at the school). Teachers are sometimes not mentally "able" themselves and are at the schools teaching and yelling at the kids. The older years are very dangerous to their minds and they are exposed to innapropriate things by their peers.

I am closing ... I am sure there is more to say, but feel free to ask me more questions. I might actually post this in my blog in the future. I will not use your name, so do not worry about that. I am thinking that others might benefit from this, as well.]