Never Say Never...

Hey, Y'all! I thought I'd share on the blog a little about how I ended up homeschooling my kindergartener. And, hopefully, will continue to be able to homeschool for the foreseeable future. I mean, I was a public school teacher. I was a product of public school. I liked school as a kid. My mother, my aunt and my grandmother were public school teachers. What is wrong with public school? And I always thought the only people who homeschooled their kids were wackadoos. Oh boy! How I realize now that was completely wrong! I believed all the stereotypes and myths about homeschooling. It was my own ignorance. I just didn't understand. A few of my experiences with homeschooling did not help. Growing up in my small town, I didn't really know anyone who homeschooled. As a teacher, the few times over the years that I received a new student in my class that was homeschooled they were usually fairly behind academically. One year during a conversation with a parent over her child's frustration with math, the mother said that she didn't like math, so they didn't spend very much time on it. Aw man! For sure, it CAN be done badly, but it doesn't have to be that way. 

A Visit to Magnolia Market

 One of the perks of being home with the kids this year and homeschooling is being able to go places and do fun things whenever we want. During the week...even when it isn't a holiday. Not in summer when it's blazing hot. Avoiding the crowd. I love this! We had a super fun couple of days this week with our little road trip to Waco, home of Magnolia Market, The Silos, and Chip and Joanna Gaines from Fixer Upper. (I love them!) 

For the Love of Reading

Hey, Y'all!  We like reading around here.  Right now, we read a lot of picture books.  I really want our kids to grow in their love of reading and become lifelong readers.  You are never too old for picture books, so we will never give those up.  But I've been thinking that maybe I'd like to introduce A to chapter books.  Well, I've taught 4th and 5th grades for the last 21 years, so I didn't really know where to begin with chapter books for a 4 year old.  So I did what any teacher would do...turn to Pinterest! 

We got out of the house...

Oh my goodness, Y'all! I started this blogging thing and then I went MIA. I got really busy with the kids at home and starting our homeschool year, and I had some technical headaches with our computer situation. I started this Sweet Summer string of blogs (here, here, and  here), and  now we are no longer in summer mode. I am one of those people though that CANNOT let things go unfinished, so...here is the end of it...

Growing Responsibility:

Hey, Y'all!  Another part of my summer plan was to help the kids grow in responsibility.  

I wanted them to:

1. Make their beds in the morning. 
2. Set and help clear the table.
3. Clean up their toys.

Hey, Y'all!  I have really enjoyed the summer at home with my little ones.  I wrote here about what my challenges would be and what goals I had for the summer.  I wanted a plan to help keep me sane and to minimize bickering and unhappiness. Two of my goals were to read everyday and have some educational fun. What did that look like?

Hey, Y'all!  I hope everyone has had a fabulous summer filled with fun memories.  I have had a wonderful summer at home with my littles!   I ended the school year on maternity leave, but as a teacher, I'm used to having a very structured day.  I have read or seen the headlines to countless articles on Facebook that tout how good it is for your kids to be bored.  Well, I get that and I don't want to be my kids' summer cruise director, but I have a 4 year old, a 3 year old, and a baby. In addition to fun free play, I have to provide at least SOME activities in order to save my sanity. Looking back at the last couple of summers, I realized that my time with the little people at home could have been even more enjoyable than they were if I had had a plan.  

Before summer arrived, I thought about my challenges: 
     1. A baby in addition to an active 3 and 4 year old
     2. My kids cannot free play ALL day...*I* need some structure, and my kids do better knowing what the plan is.
     3. Screen time cannot take over.

I also made some goals for us:
     1. Read everyday.
     2. Have some educational fun. 
     3. Help the kids grow in responsibility.
     4. Get out of the house.

So how did this transfer into everyday life?  

Stay Tuned...

Linking to... i choose joy

Back to School 

Hey, Y'all!  Today is the first day of school for teachers in my school district, so my teacher friends are returning to work. They are attending meetings, getting their class lists, making copies, and working on their classrooms. 

I'm not there though.