Home School - Month 1

(making cave paintings for Art and History)

Whew! What a month it has been! I'm exhausted in ways I didn't know possible, but soooooo thankful for our decision to keep the boys at home. We have been able to spend precious moments together as a family before Hubs deploys.
Our first week was a little bit trying. I think that besides getting used to school at home, we had a number of other things going on in our family and the stress level was very high. Also, we had to tweak some of the curriculum. We're still using the stuff I described here. We just had to adjust some of the leveling and pace. Once all of our activites started, extroverted Gator was much happier. I think he felt trapped for the first couple weeks before we got to see people other than each other. Mostly, it has been me learning how to manage my ever-present household duties, mothering, and now teaching. We've really settled into a great rhythm. We still have hiccups, but they are all managable.

Monday, Wednesday, Thursday mornings:
7:15-8:00- PE with other home school families (when we can make it)
8:00-8:30- breakfast, morning chores
8:30- review memory work (AWANA verses for both; poems for Gator; days/months for Bull)
8:45- handwriting/spelling/grammar (videos/PBS, phonics, games, letter practice for Bull)
10:00- breaktime, Monkey's naptime
10:00-12:00 - math, science reading (tangrams, math games/manipulatives, and some formal lessons for Bull)
12:00- lunch with Daddy!

Monday and Thursday afternoons:
1:00- finish up science, history (formal instruction is done at this point)
2:00- reading time (Gator)/quiet time (Bull)/naptime (Monkey)
3:00- snack, playtime
5:00- dinner
5:30-6:30- Gator's football practice on Thursdays (Hubs coaches the team)

Wednesday afternoon:
1:00- occupational therapy for Bull, science/history for Gator
3:00- Musikgarten for all three boys
4:00-6:15- library and dinner
6:30-8:00- AWANA

Tuesday:
9:00-12:00- PWOC (I'm teaching Precept's Marriage Without Regrets), Gator has assignments (memory work, handwriting, science/history reading) that he completes in the home school room at PWOC, Bull has a blast in the preschool room, and Monkey smiles in the nursery.
12:00- lunch with Daddy!
1:00- spelling, grammar, review assigned reading (Bull plays)
2:00- reading time (Gator)/quiet time (Bull)/naptime (Monkey)
3:00- snack, playtime
5:00- dinner
5:30-6:30- Gator's football practice (Hubs coaches the team)

Friday:
7:30-8:30- breakfast, morning chores
8:30- review memory work (AWANA verses for both; poems for Gator; days/months for Bull)
8:45- handwriting/spelling/grammar (videos/PBS, phonics, games, letter practice for Bull)
10:00- leave for co-op
10:30- Art class for Gator and Bull (taught by local college students)
11:45- Presidential Physical Fitness Program (coordinated/coached by a home school mom; Hubs comes to help)
1:00- lunch with Daddy!
2:00- science experiments, history timeline and special activities

(Glider experiment)

I know that this will undergo many revisions in the coming months as Hubs leaves, Monkey grows, and Gator and Bull advance. This is what is working right now. And I'm happy to say that we're pretty much staying on track with what I had laid out in my lesson plans (which are written in pencil!).

9 months old

My sweet baby boy,
You are now nine months old. I would like for you to slow down please! It makes me a little bit sad that you will be one year old in a very short three months.
You crawl and cruise all over the place, and leave evidence of your presence. I'm constantly side-stepping and sometimes tripping over toys, books you've pulled off the shelf, magnets that are no longer on the refrigerator, recyclables that are waiting to go outside, and shoes that you've pulled out of the shoe bin. And wires - you love wires! I have caught you about two steps up the staircase, so there are gates at the top and the bottom of the stairs. You'll stand for a few seconds on your own now too.

You love a bath now, but still only for a few minutes. We have to keep the lids on the toilets closed and Duchess' bowls are another favorite. You also like Duchess' kennel...a lot (so did your brothers and just about any other kid that comes over!).

You're doing better with solid foods, but it's still slow-going. You like peaches, pears, applesauce, sweet potatoes, and bananas. You're not so excited about peas, green beans, or carrots. I have to sneak them in with the sweet potatoes or trade bites of fruit with bites of green veggies. You gag and complain every single time they enter your mouth. I've made most of your food - it's so easy! And so cheap! I've been using some of these recipes by a friend from my childhood. I am looking forward to experimenting with some more! We're going to be working on your sippy cup skills over the next month also.
We need to have a talk about a little problem we've been having for the last three weeks. It started because you were teething. You have your two bottom teeth now. However, you are not currently teething, so you should not be waking up at 1:30 and 4:30 am anymore. Last night you actually slept until 3:00 before crying. We have to work this out quickly, because Mommy is very tired right now! On the other hand, you've fallen into a very regular schedule of napping - what a relief! It's still hard on some days to get you down for both of your naps, because of your brothers' activities.
You started clapping the day that you turned 9 months old. Sometimes you get so excited that your eyes get really big, your arms are wide open, and you shake. It makes me laugh every single time! We've been attending a Musikgarten class once a week with your big brothers. You love it! You tap along with the music and play the instruments like a pro!

Your hair is growing and keeping its curl. And your eyes are looking more and more green. I really think that the color will settle on some shade of hazel. The other day you had a blue shirt on and your eyes were blue again! Who knows?! Regardless, your eyes are so smily and melt my heart on a regular basis.

We're going to be embarking on a new adventure together - cloth diapering. It seems very silly to me that I haven't done it before now, especially since we're at home so much. I'm still doing some research, so we won't be starting quite yet. It will be soon though!
We'll be embarking on another adventure too. Your Daddy will be deploying soon. He switched units to serve some different Soldiers who need him. We've been very busy getting prepared for his departure. I wouldn't mind if you started walking before he left so he could see you take your first steps. But you take your time. You'll grow up soon enough!

You are such a content baby. I am so glad that you're mine. Your smile can light up a room!

We love you so much!

We're still here!

I promise! We've been getting into our new rhythm of home schooling. Things are going well. I'll be updating within the next two weeks with pictures from our recent trips, reflections from my first few weeks of being a teacher, and a Monkey-is-9-months-old post. For now, here's a picture from our first day of school to hold you over!