Obsession

Boo is obsessed with babies. She loves everything about them. She was telling me today how excited she is to have a baby of her own. It's so funny how their little minds work. "Will I have to have a sleepover at the hospital?" She asked me. I told her yes, she would most likely have to stay at least one night. "What if they turn out the lights?" I told her not to worry, it was up to her how bright she wanted her room to be. She went on to tell me everything she would need before she brought her baby home. She also said that if Buster scratched her new baby then he would have to go to time-out! I laughed. If Buster scratches a baby of Boo's he's going to need a lot more than time-out. I love her imagination. In due time she will have a baby of her very own.

One Down...

I have so much to blog about, but understandably I have been much too busy this week establishing our new routine and getting myself and the kids used to things. We had a really great week. I am amazed at how much work I spent on lesson plans that will be thrown out the window...well in the trash....I'm not gong to litter. The kids found their groove right away. They are such eager learners and that helps me out considerably.

So far the hardest part has been occupying Buster the tornado. Poor guy is so excited when he sees me dragging out all of the art supplies only to be disappointen when he is removed from the scene. It seems as though the newness of it all is wearing off though. By today he was much less disruptive. It helps that the girls find him comical and seem to work right through his antics. I hope to be more detailed soon, but for now I need to get some rest. I am fighting off a cold and don't want to spend next week miserable!

Our Curriculum

Choosing curriculum proved to be a much more difficult task than I had originally thought. It took me months of pouring over reviews and samples to choose. We haven't started yet so I can't say we've made the right choices but I like what I see so far. We actually have started this one and I love it. Midge is on lesson 75 and she can read! She can read well. She turned 5 in February and will be doing K this year. I love this book. I read reviews on both sides and decided it was inexpensive enough to give it a try and it wouldn't be a huge deal if we hated it. I'm so glad we did! The lessons are short and entertaining for her. She asks to do them everyday.

We are using this book to study the Bible in our first semester. I really like it as well. I've read most of it and can't wait to start as a family.

This was probably the toughest choice I made. There are so many options available for language arts and I really had no idea where to start. I really liked the idea of a literature rich program that was all inclusive. This fit the bill. I bought the girls books all one grade level ahead due to their reading levels.

This was an easy choice for me. I love the colorful, spiral approach. When it comes to math I take it pretty seriously. I want the girls to have a firm and disciplined approach to this subject. It doesn't get any easier so laying the foundation is very important to me. I love the supplemental worksheets Horizons includes.

This was another very tough choice. I wanted a histoy program that we could all use together. When I finally came upon TruthQuest it was love at first sight. In my opinion there is quite a bit of prep work involved. I had to go through each unit and decide which books we would read together and which books the girls would read independantly. Then I had to see which ones were available at our local library and purchase any of the ones I just couldn't live without. I'm excited though. We also purchased the binder builder from A Journey Through Learning and we're all excited for that. Both older girls will complete a binder, notebook, and timeline. Midge will listen in on books, complete crafts, activities, and color pages.
This was the girls choice. Again I wanted something we could all do together. They wanted to learn astronomy. It was win win. We also bought the journal for Chiggie and the junior journal for Tea and Midge.

Overall I feel great about our choices. I can't imagine we'll make it through without finding some cons, but I think that's what it takes to figure out what style you prefer. The little girls will also continue with Karate class and we will be swimming once a week. The older girls are taking a little break after spending 12 weeks working on the musical.

Back to School Series: School Area

We start a week from tomorrow. I am both nervous and excited. Mostly excited. I know there will be kinks to work out and that's mostly what I am dreading. I have spent a great deal of time planning and organizing and I'm not really looking forward to re-vamping anything. This is the area where the girls will do the majority of their seat work. We will in no way be confined to this area, but it will definitely keep the materials from spilling over into the rest of the house.

The is the early elementary calendar corner we created. The little girls really love. They will take turn presenting the month, day, and the weather.

All of their core subject books and supplies are kept in these carts. It keeps things organized and I am hoping it will help them to be more independent eventually.

This bookshelf holds my books and other resources and supplies that I don't want them having unlimited access to.


I will be using this little white board (I'm hoping to get a bigger one soon) to write spelling words and copy work on for the little girls. They have a miniature version to work with as well.

I brought the bean bag chairs in for them to sit and read quietly (shhh! I can dream) while I work one on one with whoever needs it at the time.


This basket by my desk holds library books that were specifically chosen at appropriate reading levels for each child. This is an effort to avoid wasted time searching for something to read.

For now, I think we are pretty much ready. It's hard to tell what else we may end up needing when it's the first year. I don't want to go overboard and end up with a bunch of things we don't use anyway. Stay tuned this week as I will also be posting about our schedule, curriculum, outside activities, and where each child stands right now!

We Survived!

We survived the musical, the performances went wonderfully, and now we are free! I have so much to post about, but for now just a brief synopsis:

• This week was lazy


• Next week cannot be lazy


• I have much work to do to prepare for school


• We start August 22nd


• I am very nervous


• The kids are very excited and beg daily to just start already


• Buster is sleeping 12 hours at night


• It is lovely


• We are sleeping in until 10 every morning


• The late nights are starting to get to me


• I am tired of the heat


• We still don't have our central AC fixed


• I love Fall but am dreading Winter


• The kids are already talking about Halloween costumes


• I wish life would just slow down a little!

One Down...

Three to go! Tonight was opening night for "The Music Man." It went incredibly smooth. I was working in the green room and was amazed at how well the kids knew their cues. It made my job very easy. I heard lots of laughter and clapping coming from the audience and I can't wait to watch tomorrow night!

Happy August

The Tooth Fairy is working overtime keeping up with just our kids lately. Tea lost another tooth yesterday. She looks so darn cute though!

We are wrapping up the play and it has been an insane last couple of days. We've been leaving the house around 4:30 and getting home around 11. Luckily we are sleeping in, but still everyone is off with such an odd routine. 5 days, just 5 more days!