Revelation from seashells

For Mother's Day this year, my hubby booked a vacation to Atlantic Beach, NC. What priceless awesomeness that was!

For many, sleeping in on vacation is of primary importance. Unfortunately for me, I missed that memo and would walk along the shoreline with my coffee and camera well before there were stirrings in the place along side of me in our hotel bed.

My morning walks would consists of deep breathing and the quietness of the morning, which unfortunately evade our home in the early morning hours with our lovely boys. My prayer time would consist of rants, raves, frustrations, woes, pity me and fix my life kind of garble. But what I began to realize in my lists of what was uncomfortable and not satisfying in my life turned into something different.

Being a stay at home mom, the monotony of the day-in-and-day-out list of chores, and schedules can become, well, monotonous. Boring. Unspontaneous. Frustrating. Depressing. Pitiful. You get the picture. I do enjoying being able to stay at home. I am greatly blessed because of it. But when there are no words of thankfulness, or appreciation, or gratitude, the job becomes filled with bitterness and self-pity.

I was at that place before we left. My prayer times reflected that. It was becoming all to obvious that I needed a revelation or an epiphany, anything! I just needed an attitude adjustment!

As I was walking, I would look for the "perfect" seashell. They were all perfect in their own way, but I was on a mission for the "SPECIAL" one. We were there for 2 mornings and 2 evenings. Each day I would go in search of it. And every time I would not find "it", but I found new ones that were not there the day before. Or even just a few hours before!

Then it hit me! Although I was on the same beach, each time I would take the same path, the shells would be different. It occurred to me that this shoreline was my every day! But every day was different. There were different shells! Different things to see! Different things to explore! Shouldn't I be doing the same thing for me and my family! God wants to show me something new everyday, but instead I am looking down and wallowing in my pit instead of looking for something that is different!

The advantage that I have staying at home with the boys is that we get to share this experience together and enjoy creation around us! It is new each day! Just because my laundry pile doesn't seem to end. Or the dishes are never done. Or the fridge needs to be filled yet again, doesn't mean that I have to miss the newness of the day!

All this to say, enjoy the day, because with it brings new life.

Mercies Are New Every Morning...Lamentations 3:23

After going to bed last night I prayed this prayer. That the Lord would grant Turbo and I new mercy the next morning, because if it was anything like yesterday morning and subsequently the day that followed, Friday, April 15, 2011, would be the end of us...ALL!

Turbo has been aruging with me a lot on doing school work. Unfortunately/Fortunately for him, he thrives in a scheduled enviornment. So one little deviation from a set schedule and it throws him off his rocker! So yes, I will be living in schedule for the rest of my life...until that day when he is waiting at the end of a long aisle waiting for a beautfiul bride. It will be that day when I hand off my unending lists of schedules to her and wish her luck as I board a yaht ready to set sail for the Caribbean.

But I digress...

After the blow up, which really didn't seem to EVER end, I made new plans for the kid. It was that same story; different tune. He has a new plan for school. He has a new plan for the morning. He has a new plan for EVERYTHING.

New morning...yes, grace and mercy was restored to this home.

A new seat came in the mail yesterday that will help Turbo immensely while sitting at the table. I had to take away the special chair with the foot rest because Tank thought it would be super cool to climb up it and then even cooler to climb on top of the table, and cooler still to stand on the table. Bye, bye chair, take your place back at Nana and Papa Manor.

So when the new seat arrived, along with a new chewie, R.I.P. old chewie (WHERE EVER YOU ARE!) I could see a light at the end of the tunnel! New plans, new chewie, new seat....nothing can stop us now!!!!

The GRRR Factor

This morning, after a few days off of school, Turbo struggled getting back on task...as if I didn't expect it. We started out pretty good using our BOB books, and handwriting practice. When he chose to either do spelling or math, he chose math. When I opened the page, he immediately was turned off. Screaming, "I CAN'T DO THIS!!! I HATE IT!!!" Expected. "I don't feel good". Expected. "I'm hungry." Expected. "I don't like school!" Expected. Everything that was said and done was expected.

I sent him to his room to figure out how long he was going to argue about doing school. When he figured out that it would take longer to argue then to actually do the work, he gave in and came out to do his school work.

The cycle started over.

And over.

And over....

The proceeded for 8 cycles of this. GRRRRRRRRR!

Finally, in frustration, I sent him to his room. He was SUPER ANGRY at this point. I sat at the table and prayed...."LORD, TIE MY HANDS AND HOLD MY TONGUE CAUSE THIS BOY IS GONNA GET IT!!!!!!!" Then I heard the most peculiar sound. He was jumping on his bed. But not in fun, but in frustration and in anger! He was jumping HARD! After 30 seconds it stopped.

He exited from his room breathing hard and was visibly out of breath. He sat down and said, "May I please have a snack while I do my math?" I quietly got up, peeled him an orange and put it in a bowl while he went to work on using the number line for addition and subtracton facts. He completed 19 problems in 4 minutes flat; without a peep.

When questioned about him jumping on the bed, he said, "I knew it would make me feel better." (Proprioceptive impact)

Now, he playing on the kitchen floor with his new Lightning McQueen car in a happy mood. Disater averted. The Grrr Factor eliminated. Ideas on how to reinforce his bed frame commencing.

A Day in the Life...

It is difficult to post EVERYTHING we do EVERYDAY for our schooling. It is really quite boring. We use games, windows, computer, pencil & paper work, and crafts.



Practicing handwriting in a book that Tank must have thought was a coloring book.



Using the window for our math problems of the day (of note: this is out of a book for 1st/2nd graders). Turbo could not sit still and asked if he could write on the windows instead to help him keep focused....THANK YOU THERAPY!!!



Spelling is not his favorite thing. The workbook we have offers super small lines for him to write on. Instead, we take it to the window. I copy a bigger version of his lesson onto the window for him to work on. Here, he is focusing on ending sounds. It is funny how the maintenance people who are working outside will often wave to him through the window. He gets a kick out of that!


When we first started using Boggle Jr., he wasn't at all happy about it. He didn't like it. Mostly because he struggled doing it. We walked away from it for awhile and worked more on his letters and their sounds. He began using Hooked on Spelling and found that he COULD do spelling. When we came back to the game just yesterday, he did fantastic and mostly without any help!


This is his workbook that he has been working out of for math. Turbo has a brain for math. He just "gets" it. He gets the patterns, the numbers, the grouping, the spacial aspect...oi...I'm gonna have to learn some higher math here shortly just so I can teach him!!

Spelling:ReTHunk

Recently, I purchased Hooked on Spelling for Turbo to use in addition to reading practice. Since it was something he could use with the computer, I thought it would be a win/win situation.

Unfortunately, it doesn't move "as fast" as other games he plays on the computer...just perfect.

He is learning, and his spelling is getting better as he realizes word families, beginning and ending sounds, but the practice work is like pulling teeth for him to do!

Today, I had finally had it. He couldn't sit in the chair, he couldn't focus and stay on task. It was like we were catching rabbits all morning long! So we took to the window. In 10 minutes flat, he did an entire page of the practice work that would have taken us 45 minutes with pencil and paper.






I guess just changing a few things up and looking at things from a different perspective is all that it takes. I think we will be doing our spelling work on the window for a bit, huh?

Magic "C" Bunny

My dear sweet sister-in-law in the Czech Republic sent the boys puppets of the fantastic show Krteck for Christmas. One of his friends is this adorable bunny. In the Handwriting Without Tears program, there is the magic "C" bunny. They suggest wrapping a papertowel around your fist to make a bunny face. I suppose this lil' guy did a much better job teaching Turbo how to make Magic "C" letters much better!

Chore Chart

You know how sometimes you are just blessed with Mommy AH-HA moments?

Yesterday, Turbo kept begging and pleading, ok really he was just annoying asking, "Mommy, can you play StarWars Legos with me?" Now, before you start thinking, "Sheesh, woman! Play with the child!" This was after I played with him for 1 hour straight and it was only 11:00 in the morning! I sat him on the bed and explained to him that mommy has chores to do. If I don't do my chores everyday, then the family won't have clothes to wear, food to eat, or live in a clean house. Our house would be filled with germs and we would all be sick! Then with some prodding, he suggested that if he did some of my chores, then I would have time to play with him! AHH HAA!!! Finally! He got it!

So we sat down at the table and made a chart of 5 chores for him to do. Since he is 5, that is where we started. He will do one chore a day, Monday through Friday, much like school, and have Saturday and Sunday off, much like school. I cannot play with him until his chore for the day is done. If he completes all the chores for the week, he receives a quarter. At the end of the month, we will give 10% to church, 10% to savings and the rest he can spend however he wants. Granted, this is only his second day, but he seems to be interested!

KEEP WORKING, KEEP WORKING! (good thoughts, good thoughts!)

Stupid written on forehead

These last few weeks have been nothing but battles. We battle with meals, we battle with school, we battle with toys, we battle with baths, we battle with toy pick up, we battle...we battle...we battle.

It seems that when I ask something to be done, like don't SIT on your brother, please do not lick your brother's hair, I feel like I have to put on full amor just to meet the opponent!

Here is my biggest dilema: TOYS!

When buying toys, I make sure to buy open-ended toys. Meaning, it is not just a toy that will SIT there, but that he has to build something, use it, move it...yada. But unfortunately, TECHNOLOGY has taken hold of my precious baby and I can't seem to break him from it! I'm okay with SOME technology, he plays computer games everyday...from educational to "just for fun". But when he can't do that, he wants to watch T.V. or movies. When he can't do that, he plays his Leapster...all the while, I see dust being collected on the shelves filled with toys, blocks, cars, tracks, puzzles, books, playdough, basketball hoops...

When he does play his Leapster, he plays it for 5 minutes because he has either defeated the game, or becomes board...WHAT AM I TO DO????

Do I gather up his toys and resell them to make money to buy him a Wii or new Leapster games? Have I lost my baby to technology???

That is just one area of "growth" or "frustration"! The list is endless!!!

HELP! ANYONE? HELP!!?!?!?

H.O.P.E. & HOPE

Last week, I was able to go to a parent meeting about a program called, H.O.P.E., which is a Home Option Program for Education. As my husband and I sat down and looked at all, and I mean, ALL, the options for Kindergarten in our area, we were overwhelmed by all of the choices we had for Turbo. There were schools that were a good fit, and other that were not. There were schools that would cost money, and other that did not. We were bombarded with different "schools of thought", and it just seemed that we kept ending up back where we started: Homeschool. The only problem that we ran into was getting Turbo into an environment where there was a classroom setting. He is in AWANA, and that offered a good start, but what I was looking for was another adult, aka teacher, who was saying the same things I was saying in his academic life. That was, I wasn't the bad guy anymore, I had someone on my side :)

We had joined a few "co-ops" here and there, but none of them were giving us what my husband and I were looking for. Until H.O.P.E.

Beginning in August, Turbo will go to H.O.P.E. every Friday from 8 to 3 and will be in a Kindergarten class. It is as if he goes to Kindergarten only on Fridays. For "payment", I sign up to offer my time as there are many positions available. Hall monitor, lunch monitor, classroom helper, field trip coordinator...the list is pretty much endless. By paying a book deposit, which I will get back whenever I choose to leave the program, I can check out any of their curriculum that is available and use it for my own purpose at home to teach Turbo. My curriculum cost has been diminished significantly!

There are so many other wonderful things that H.O.P.E. offers that my husband and I feel so fortunate to live in an area where there are so many other homeschooling families and that the need was so great, for this to be a choice.

HOPE, has been given to us as we feel that homeschooling Turbo is the best thing for him right now. After his therapy and all of the hard work that we put into that, I couldn't stand seeing it "wasted" in a public school as he would get lost in the class of 28-30 other Kindergartners. I didn't feel it was his teacher's job to work with him, but it was mine. I was the one who went through therapy with him, not the teacher. But I also knew that I needed a break, we both needed a break from each other if this was going to be successful.

I have also begun focusing differently on school for him. My parents have so graciously offered us a room in their basement for me to transform into a schoolroom. It is a great space, and we love it there! Unfortunately for us, it is not a usable space at this time. Tank's morning nap is causing a glitch in our system. To get all 4 of us up and ready to leave by 7:30 so that we can get to their house for his nap by 8 is proving to be a hazard! IN EVERY WAY! Turbo is too excited to do school as he just wants to play, and now that Tank has tasted the goodness of Nana and Papa's house, taking a nap is proving to not be an option. In talking with my dad, the schoolroom is not in our season of school as of now, but the "playroom" is! Our little apartment is not big enough for life and play. But to have a space dedicated to play! OH! the joys of it! Especially in the winter time when going to play lands at fast foods or the malls aren't my cup of tea. First, because we don't have it in our budget to eat at the fast food place, (I know, we don't have to eat there, but try telling that to a 5-year-old who only has a few cuisines to choose from...) and play lands in the malls are a breeding ground when it is cold, rainy or not suitable for play outside. I swear, I walk away with one more kid each time...

I've been mulling through it, but I think it would be great for Tank, and Turbo too, to begin a playgroup there. Sure, it isn't a huge place to have friends over, but there is a TV, DVD/VCR, books, tables, pillows, crafts, train table, computer, toys, slides, cars to ride it, etc. that having another mommy over for tea/coffee while the kids play for a bit, seems much more enjoyable than doing life/play in our 900ish sq ft. apartment.

I really believe that our prayers have been heard, and HOPE has been given to our family as we enter into this season of schooling for both Tank and Turbo.

OT: Day 27/30

After the long Thanksgiving break, we have our final 4 sessions left.

Today, Ms. Renee introduced MoveAbout Activity Cards. These are much like his Stick Kid cards, but they offer more things to do with a simple things as an exercise ball for example.



Here, he chose to do cannon ball kicks as one of his activities on his cards.




Then he ran and played this game, Hyper Jump. Unfortunately, this game wasn't in the greatest working condition, so that idea had to be scrapped!

Moving on using the same Activity Cards, he chose to do a commando crawl.



And then the backwards push up on the exercise ball.


They continued to play some other games too using these cards. They seem to be very useful.

Next, we used the bolster swing. This swing proved to be very challenging as he had to use all of his core muscles to stay on.


Then, using a tunnel, pillows and the Wedgits, we built patterned pyramids. This, along with strengthening, gave him the proprioceptive feedback that allowed him to self-regulate before our session was over.



Ms. Renee inquired about my intentions for next year for Kindergarten. When I told her that I wanted to Homeschool him, she suggested that I also look into Expeditionary Learning Schools. I am going to have to look into these schools more.

OT: Day 25/30

This post is from last Friday's session.

It seems that too many days have passed since our last session and I fear that those recorded words were lost too! AHHHH!!!!

From what I can remember; however, it was a session pretty much like every session. They chose from the book, and made sure that there was a red, blue and green activity, in that order.

But the one thing that Ms. Renee was intent on doing was the monkey bars again. Since they sparked a fit/meltdown at the session on Wednesday, she wanted to make sure that his last memory loop was a good one, one that was a positive loop. Turbo has a horrible tendency to lay in bed at night and "loop" his day through his mind. Sometimes, he will even get stuck on a memory so much as to get up to tell me what he should have done, or has to tell me something, is frightened, etc.

She persuaded him to cross the monkey bars one more time, he did, and was able to move on. Not that he had a problem with that when he got home for the next few days, but it was important for me to see how it can become a problem if I don't leave it on a positive note for him. Once he gets older, this is something he will have to learn for himself, otherwise he can become an insomniac!

To bring his engine down, we played in the ball pit with a cover on it to block out all of the visual and auditory stimulation. She gave him a stuffed dog that vibrated when he hugged him. He didn't show too much attachment to it other than it was fun. We did deduct; however, that vibrating stimulation can almost be a curse to Turbo because it is so over powering to his senses.

One thing we did talk about was ADD/ADHD. As a mom, I might be in denial or might have a gut instinct. But as a teacher, something just doesn't sit well with me on the subject. ADHD is a problem with inattentiveness, over-activity, impulsivity, or a combination. For these problems to be diagnosed as ADHD, they must be out of the normal range for the child's age and development. Although I agree that Turbo has a struggle with inattentiveness, over-activity, impulsivity and even a combination. But what doesn't sit with me is that these characteristics aren't OUT OF THE NORMAL RANGE FOR THE CHILD'S AGE AND DEVELOPMENT.

First, HE IS A BOY! Second, HE IS FIVE! Again, I say, HE IS A BOY WHO IS FIVE!!! Ms. Renee agreed with me on that part. Using a bunch of scientific mumbo jumbo, which I understood at the time, but can't put it into words for reflective purposes now. The jest is that he is emerging into the stage where the difference between a boy who is 5 and a boy who is 5 with ADHD. It is here where the true markers of ADHD can be seen. With this, I agree.

I stuck out my neck far enough to test the waters and suggested that even if he does have ADHD, instead of medicating him, teaching him behavioral changes and modifications about his SPD (Sensory Processing Disorder) would be more beneficial in the long run rather than stuffing a pill down his throat and excusing his behavior as a diagnosis and hope that when he turns 13 that acceptable behaviors will shine through and all this will be behind us. Candidly, I believe she agreed.

Although I am not quite sure I can remember anymore of the session, this was the biggest thing that stuck out most.

As we get to the end of our sessions, my husband and I are coming to the conclusion that our lives will be filled with "plans", for everything: bath, mornings, watching kid shows, naps, etc. If Turbo does not live in a structured day, everyone fills it. So the question is asked: Live in a structured day or live in a day filled with chaos where it affects the entire family. Structured days are more tiresome, but fulfilling. Unstructured days prove to be more tiresome and definitely leaves you with the sinking feeling of a failure at parenthood.

The answer is clear, now if I can just live up to it! ;-)

No More Meltdowns

I've been reading this book by Jed Baker called, No More Meltdowns. This is a phenomenal book. Not only does it come from the perspective of SPD, but it also helps parents identify reasons/situations as to WHY meltdowns are occuring.

Here is an example: EVERY, and I mean EVERY night at bathtime, we have a struggle which turns into a meltdown. When Turbo gets out of the bath/shower, he thinks a game is being played and he runs to hide. WHY? WE HAVE NO IDEA! But in some way or another, he gets hurt. He thinks that this is the time to play! EVEN WITH MOMMY AND DADDY having "THOSE" looks on their faces. And inevitably, with our small living quarters, Tank is woken up. And to get a sleeping baby back to sleep before his big brother goes to bed in the SAME room, is virtuatlly impossible. Which could also be the start of why our nights are so long with Tank. He still isn't sleeping through the night...which is a whole other struggle.

Anyways, during my midnight readings of this book, because well, Tank is up!, I was reading a chapter about identifying the cause of a meltdown. Let me assure you, I KNOW what the cause is, he doesn't want to go to sleep. And I know that if were to take this struggle to Ms. Renee, I know what she is going to tell me: Make A Plan. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Not to disrespect her in any way, but am I really going to have to Make A Plan for EVERY part of this kids life? Probably, so just get used to it.

So this is our plan: I made a sheet that has all the steps he needs to take to get ready for bed. If he does all these steps without getting sidetracked, then he gets to read books before bed. I am fully aware that we will have some battles on our hands the first few nights because he is going to test the waters. So I am preparing myself! We will see what happens. Here is to hoping.

Gorilla, Mr. Peanut and 2 Spidermen....Meet our family

For Halloween this year, the boys dressed as Spider Men. Not that hubby and I had any intentions of dressing up to go to the Fall Fest at a local church, but when he found our ould Gorilla suit (yes, we OWN a gorilla suit) while cleaning out the garage, we just couldn't resist. We have had (or rather my parent's) a Mr. Peanut costume (Planter's Peanuts?) for years and years, so it was time to break it out again.

Our friends, couldn't believe that we of all people would dress up. HEY! We USED to be fun like that before kiddos came along. It is about time that our inner Party Animals came out! (Don't worry, we put those animals to bed at 9 pm)

But what I wanted to say was that Turbo (and Tank too) did AWESOME in a place where they usually would have a meltdown. Tank was way past his bath and bedtime, but did great! When we finally stopped playing games, we sat down on the floor in the Fellowship hall to eat hotdogs and nacho, he grabbed that hotdog and chowed down! Not small bites for me, mama...I'm a big boy now!

But this is where the real joy in both mom and dad's hearts set in: While in the Fellowship Hall to eat, we both looked at each other wondering how this night was to end. It usually ends up in tears and frustration while we battle Turbo to stay seated and eat. But then something popped into my head: BLOCK EVERYTHING OUT! GET HIM DOWN TO A GREEN/BLUE LEVEL! But do whatever it takes!

I quickly scanned the room for something, anything that would block out any visual/auditory stimulation but was appropriate for the situation. AHH HAA! I found a little cubbie hole in the corner of the room that was a perfect hide-away spot for him to sit in and eat. It worked perfectly! He sat in the cubbie hole, while I "blocked" entrance to it with Tank and me and Dad stood behind me. He ate his entire hotdog, drank his lemonade and had his cookie for dessert without any problems! Not once did we have to remind him to sit and eat. Afterwards, we played one more game and left without any incident!

PRAISE JESUS! IT WORKED!!!!!!! Oh I am so excited! We have strategies and they work!!!!

Handwriting on the Wall?

Part of therapy for Turbo is to begin to strengthen his hands so that he won't get fatigued when writing. I first used this "paint bag" on the table and then the floor. We didn't get any where with writing as we both struggled with keeping on task and sitting still.

This morning; however, we used it in a different spot: the sliding glass door window. I taped it onto the window so that he could still write on the bag and see through the glass. IT WAS A HIT!






I think this is how we will work on writing our letters for awhile!

Daily Schedule

Part of Turbo's OT treatment includes "Making A Plan". As I blogged before, Ms. Renee has a giant book binder that is filled with pages that has Velcro-ed pictures of different toys/activities available! Each session, Turbo is to look through the book and choose an activity to do or really to play on. It is referred to as "THE PLAN".

To implement the same kind of idea in our home, I tried various things and nothing worked:

1) Dry erase board - Turbo would erase the plan and draw on the board or Tank would try to eat it, and the plan would be lost anyways. (Scratch that idea)

2) Created a daily schedule on paper - too much paper, can't afford this plan to continue if the plan kept changing hourly for Turbo. (SCRATCH!)

3) Created a calendar for Turbo to look at - Really it was like telling him to read another language, he would look at me and walk away. (DOUBLE SCRATCH!)

4) POCKET CHART! YES! I used pocket charts all the time and I had one! Looking at it...Looking at it...Looking at it...YEP...GOT AN IDEA!!! (SCRATCH!!!!!! What was I thinking?)

Finally, I gave myself a good swift kick in the pants and a smack on the forehead - you know those types of DUH! moments!- and decided to do our "PLAN" the same way Ms. Renee does.

I made a WORD document and made a sequential order to our day. Looking back, I probably should have gone from left to right instead of top to bottom, but hey, I had a great plan - I didn't say it was brilliant!

Then I scoured the World Wide Web for images that fit our lives: Library, Grocery Story, Playgroups, Parks, School, Meal times, etc. I laminated everything, added Velcro to the back, and put a sticky Velcro strip on our fridge for Turbo to look through to make is plan and VOILA! My very own book of "THINGS TO DO"....but it is on the fridge instead...

CCC: aka CAMP CREEPY CRAWLIES!

Last week I had envisoned a week of bug watching, catching, reading, experiments, arts/crafts, etc. However, it did not go according to plan...does it ever really?

We started the week off with making T-Shirts:



Turbo made fingerprint insects, while Tank just got "CCC" - hey, he'd eat the paint if I wasn't looking!

I had the greatest intentions of investigating, worms, grasshoppers, ants, crickets and ladybugs. The first day, we were able to get part of the lapbook made on worms. However, there are no pictures because I can't seem to find it...Oi! There is just this one of Turbo cutting out some stuff about worms. On the up side, he did cut along the lines very nicely!


We were however; able to make a worm terrarium:



Unfortunately, at this point in time, I had forgotten all about it, and it is inside a box, stashed at the top of my closet right now...mental note: must get that before something terrible happens...don't want to think about all the possibilities!

Now, I am returning all 75 library books that I so painstakingly checked out so that we could have a plethora of information and surround ourselves with knowledge of the critter world. I have stackes of printed activities, ideas for ladybug fingerprint crafts hidden away beneath unpaid bills, probably covered in sweet potatoes with cheerios stuck to them. Ahhhh...another day maybe.

For now, we are off to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in the Springs, to enjoy feeding the giraffes...hmmm...maybe I'll stop off at the library and pick up a few books on giraffes before we leave....

UPDATE:
Okay, so I lied...here are a few more pics of the Turbo and Tank in their T-shirts...too cute if you ask me:

Bookshelf

A couple of days ago, in my attempt to take back my house from my vacation to Prague, I moved the half bookshelf from the hall into the living room. Every home needs a bookshelf to house the books you have already read or house the books that you intend to read, but just have never gotten around to it. Or in our case, books that we think make us look like intelligent beings even though we never have, never will and have no intention of reading...kidding...sort of...

ANYWAYS, in my attempt to take back the house and to prepare our family for the first official year of homeschool - KINDERGARTEN - for Turbo, I decided that he needed to have an entire bookshelf dedicated to his school stuff. So, those piles of books are just gonna have to find a new home, but that, is a different day.

His school shelf is now lined with educational board games, puzzles, workbooks, crayons, markers, manipulatives, matching cards, magnets, math games, etc. You name it-it's there. We are on the mission of slowly (and if you know Turbo, a transition of slow is necessary so that he won't break down!) creating an new schedule that doesn't include TV, excessive snacks, and independent playtime. Coupled with a lot of reading time together (OH! there is our library basket of books near the shelf too).

So the past few days, this transition is proving itself to be a smooth road. Not only did the TV not come on, but it didn't ask to come on. A feat in itself since we have had RAIN, RAIN, and oh yeah, RAIN forever! He did want me to play with him a few times, and I did, but it was amazing to watch him, without being asked, to go over to the shelf and pull out any and all kinds of games, school stuff, workbooks and begin working on/with them! The PLUS!?!? HE EVEN PUT THEM AWAY WITHOUT BEING ASKED!!!! WHOOOOO HOOOOOO!!!!! Turbo has made my day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So, any of you out there in cyberspace land, if you have any games, school stuff, etc that needs a new home, I would be glad to take them off your hands! As this bookshelf is going to be needing to be restocked and rotated throughout the summer and the school year!

And to think, I got this bookshelf, battered and bruised from the GoodWill. Huh...never thought such a gem could become so treasured in our home.

Getting it in Gear...

So this weekend, I spent a lot of time thinking about my lil' Turbo and Tank. I know that I don't have a ton of time with them...I hear it all the time...but I am beginning to feel that never-ending pressure of this reality! AHHH!

It seems that I am so scatter-brained lately that I don't know if I am coming or going half the time. Usually I just check out and hope for the best! (Don't we all?) I just don't get it, I used to be a planner! A very good planner! Now, i just hang by the skin of my teeth and pray to God that we are all there by the end of the day.

So this weekend, I had a bit of alone time. My dear hubby was off making some extra money, and I decided to buckle down and figure things out.

First off: Food...I have been using e-mealz. www.e-mealz.com has been the best thing that I have found in a long, long time. It creates a menu and a grocery list for you each week. DONE...now just have to find time to get groceries.

Next: School. I have been so overwhelmed by what is out there that I get so excited about doing stuff that I forget what I have and move on the to next. Hence...scatter-brained. So, I made myself say: "For the next 4 weeks, I am going to do this." If it doesn't work, then I'll move on.
I have done this with:
-Planning.
-Lapbooks.
-Themes.
-Bible Time.
-Memory verse.

Each week I am going to plan the week (meals included). Each week will include a theme, that will also conclude with a lapbook at the end of the week that will compile what we learned. Each morning at breakfast and before bedtime, we will read a story or two, or three from the Bible. Finally, each week, I will introduce a memory verse, that also has a song to help with memory.

Some of you may have realized that I have an addictive personality...Heh...meaning, I get addicted to things very easily. One that I have found that is something that I really believe our family can get into is Letterboxing (www.letterboxing.org or www.atlasquest.com). However, I find that I get too excited about finding a box, that I end up neglecting important things. So, along with my planning the week, I will also plan 1 or 2 letterboxing adventures. And once we have found the letterbox, then that is it for the week, no more until the next week. Plus, it gets us out of this tiny apartment and into the fresh air.

I am really excited about this week and me getting on top of things. I am really getting tired of this trying to keep my head above water thing...WHEW!

I've Been Schooled in how to do Schooling!

A friend of mine sent me this hilarious video on what it means to be a homeschooler versus being homeschooled. Just a funny video, I think!

And here it is...

This is it! It is here! My last day of having a wee little one in preschool. Today is Turbo's last day of school. Beginning Monday, I am officially, and intentionally starting to Homeschool him. I was talking with a friend last night about how us teachers have all of this information and know-how, but when it comes to our kids, we are at a loss. But by being intentional, I think we just might have a chance! WHOO HOO! There is hope!

I have gone out and bought little "workbooks", new pencils, and even a plan book for me. Nothing fancy, just a notebook where I can jot down notes and ideas for Turbo. I have made a portfolio for him so as to document his progress until the fall. My goal: for him to be Kindergarten-ready by fall. Not that I am going to start Kindergarten in the fall, which I could, but it is for me to know that he and I are moving forward in some aspect of his education.

One thing that has really helped him communicate better is his new "COLOR OF THE DAY" notebook. Each night at dinner, he chooses colors and documents his day. For example, the other day, he had a really, really good day, so he chose blue. Then he scribbled on the pages circles. I guess a really good day makes him feel like blue circles. Then I noted quips of what he said as he described his day. Maybe I should keep a color journal too. Hopefully I won't color RED every day with scribbles to show craziness! HA!

I am a bit discouraged on the Co-Op part. Although my partner in crime is in it for the long haul, which I am grateful, I do wish that there were more mommies. I guess God will bring those who he wants. I just have to be patient!

So, for my last day of freedom, what shall I do? Maybe I'll treat myself to a nice, quiet cup of Joe. Seeing how, this might be my last chance to have one, peacefully, for a time.