Life

I've been terrible at blogging over here I feel like. So often I want to write and then get distracted by, oh life! I don't write a lot about our homeschooling life and don't know why, it's such a HUGE part of our life and I love it so much. I need to start blogging more about it! Trust me, my blog will not be all about HS but I will be adding in more. Right now I'm actually at a point of trying to figure out if I want to stick with what we've been doing or add some new things. I'm really intrigued by so many different curriculum's and it's just so hard to know which ones will fit our family, most of all which ones the boys will like. I have to start saying and looking at it as "boyS" because Jack will be starting a more "formal" schooling come fall time. We go year round, but in the fall is when they move up you could say to the next level/grade. I find myself drawn to FIAR (Five in A Row). I love reading, so there's a big portion of why I'm leaning towards it. I've come in contact via Internet with quite a few who do FIAR and seem to really love and enjoy it. So I'm pretty sure come fall we'll have this curc. and see how the boys do with it. If you have any opinions on it or other curic. please let me know. I think to give my children the best education I have to be open to trying different ones. I will say that expense does factor in. We're definitely not rolling in dough, and I also know I can give my boys an EXCELLENT education without spending tons of money.



One of the things I've been done poorly on so far this year is reading aloud to the boys. Chad reads every night to them, but that's separate. That's a bedtime routine. What I wanted to do this year was pick some books and read them aloud to the boys every day/evening, discuss what we read, and if we can do a project or craft that relates even better. But I will say it, having Emma and adjusting to having 3 under 6, and that last being under 6 months has been challenging. Jacob's very smart, reads amazingly well and from what I've observed (and discussed with other parents) he's well above other kids his age in his reading ability. Anyways he often does his homework at the dining room table and I'm sitting in the living room (it's really just one great room) rocking Emma, nursing Emma, changing Emma's diaper, playing with Emma, helping Jackson in some way...OK you get the point. I help and assist Jacob a fair amount, but he does a great deal on his own and I check over his work. He reads aloud, we discuss what he reads, we go over his math together and I make sure he understands what he's about to do then I check and make sure his answers are correct, he works on memorization of bible verses (AWANA), he has his spelling words, and that's a pretty typical day for him. We do have a new science curric. but we're waiting until Spring to start that. I try to take them to the library every couple of weeks to check out books, and we also use the chapel library as well. There's chores to be done, meals to be made, toys to be played with, and they get a little TV thrown in there as well. Then add in the sports our days and often evenings are filled...yet I am not feeling that I'm giving Jacob (currently) the absolute best education I could be giving him. I think in some ways although Jacob's NEVER been in public school (well he did go to a public school for his 1 yr of preschool that he was part of) my own schooling has me trained to feel that because he's not sitting doing 6 hours of school work, he's missing something. Never mind that he's getting more actual work done in half the time as a traditional brick and mortar school child is. Most of the time I don't compare or worry, etc...but there are times where I do. I know it's Satan attacking me. He does not want our family focused on Christ. He does not want to see our family feeling the joys and accomplishments that homeschooling brings us, he definitely does not want our children to hear and most of all LEARN the word of God during their "schooling" period! I have to remember that. I am determined to stay ahead of Satan and will not let him take this gift away from my children and our family. I will fight the doubts he seeps into my head.



With that, we're going to be giving our family an awesome "field trip" you could say! Being an Army family, and being so blessed as to live in Germany gives us wonderful travel opportunities! This weekend is Martin Luther King's birthday, so Chad has a 4 day weekend. I really wanted to go somewhere we have not been yet. I was thinking Chad wouldn't want to travel too far so I suggested places that were 4 hrs or less from here. The first one was Prague (said to be the most beautiful city in all of Europe!) and Salzburg (one place I'm dying to go to!!). Chad said "how about Venice"! I'm thrilled! We're heading out on our 6 1/2 hr drive early Friday morning (planning to be up and out between 4 and 5 AM....YIKES!) ***I'm NOT A morning person!****

We'll be down there by late morning. We're actually staying at Vecenza on the Army Post there and will take the train down to Venice. It's only 45 minutes away!! I'm so excited you have no idea! I have so much to do still before we go! I have to go the store and buy some snacks (going for healthy because I'm determined to lose weight and get HEALTHY!!), I'm using the money my parents sent me for Christmas to buy a larger memory card (At least a 4 GB), and some rechargable batteries. That reminds me I need to charge up our video camera. Thursday I'm going to clean the van, put Emma's new carseat in it (she's currently in an infant seat and it's time for her to move up to her Britax Convertable seat). I need to bring our suitcases up and get them packed. Make sure that any clothes we take does not scream AMERICAN (aka no American Flag shirts! LOL). On a good note, all my laundry is washed, being put away is a whole other task that will be done at a later time! LOL (It's folded!)



When we get home there will be plenty to do. Laundry of course, putting away all this clean laundry, cleaning up and getting rid of our bird cage (our cat managed to knock the bottom off the cage and kill the bird...we're done with birds at least until we move back to the states, I see no reason to be feeding Whisker's live birds that we paid for!). The playroom needs to be finished up. I need to shop for our friends son's birthday, as well as Jacob's upcoming birthday. I want to get my room all cleaned up, organized, and maybe rearrange it! :) We'll see how much I get done over the next few weeks!



Next time I blog will most likely be when we're back from Venice and I'll share pictures!