Art lessons...

We had our first art time in school last week... We are slowly working into our full schedule!!

The kids did a great job !!

Keepers of the faith --- 2013/1014

We started up our Keepers of the Faith this month andI am very excited about it!!

We are focusing a little less on sewing this year on more on preparing for emergencies, training the older girls in babysitting, and serving others!

Last week we we started learning about Emergency Preparedness.  We leaned about getting ready for a hurricane.

 We also made a candle out of normal household goods!  

Each family has a binder with our evacuation plan, important phone numbers. List of things to take/pack, plans for our pets and lists of things to do in order to get ready!

This week the older girls spent time going through a child care curriculum and the younger girls  started learning the art of floral arrangement!

We think they did a great job!!!

We ended our meeting with Gingerbread the two older girls had made!

As days go by...

We have been very busy.  Very!  I must admit I am growing a little weary.  Not the doing so much as the going!  I have NOT been home very much at all! 

But all for good reason...

 

We have had a park days with friends...

Reading a lot

Taking new VOICE LESSONS from a new voice coach.  (Even by the end of the first lesson-- I was in awe and thought worth it!)

Going square dancing. 

Doing geography.  

Training the dog.  

Drawing....

Have I mentioned singing???

Visiting with friends!!

Seeing unusual pets in a friends neighborhood!!

Playing lots of Chess...

Having game day with fellow home schoolers... 

Did I mention drawing???

Being sweet sisters....

Did I mention reading???

Getting a math lesson from a retired algebra teacher... Blessed!

Did I say busy!!!

And that is just a taste.  :0)

Tim Hawkins...

On Dave's side of the family we have four September birthdays.. We usually go out to dinner, but this year instead of dinner this year we all went to see Tim Hawkins perform live.

I. Laughed. So. Much.

We are huge fans of Tim Hawkins.  And seeing him live was a huge deal for the kids!!

They talked about it for weeks!

We had special VIP passes that allowed us to meet him before the show and have a question/ answer session.  It was fun and he is just FUNNY!

After the show the kids stood in line to get their passes signed. 

And then they got their picture taken.

We walked away from the show even bigger fans.  It was the wrap up of a GREAT birthday week ( really week and a half!)

Car schooling

Mondays we are gone all day.

All. Day. Long.

But, school is still happening!  We need to work out a few kinks, but we will!

It is imperative to our schooling success that we not lose Mondays!! So to insure that we don't the kids have to take work with them and some of it is going to happen in the car!

Like today while waiting for Daddy to get out of work- we did a read aloud and the kids all worked on individual work also!

I am determined to NOT fall behind this year!  We have so much to cover and we just have to keep up!  I understand emergencies, or sickness or occasional instances of missing school time but really for the most part this year we are sticking to our guns!  Hence Kaitlin being up right now finishing her "homework" math assignment that she didn't complete earlier! 

And here is Matt trying to finish it so he won't have "homework"!  

It's all going to get done! 

Sanctus Real Concert

Kate and I had an opportunity to go to a Sanctus Real concert with friends.  I am so glad we did. 

  I left feeling refreshed! I needed that praise fest!  And truly that is what the evening was-- the lead singer, Matt Hammitt spoke and truly His words were God speaking to me, through Him.  I just needed the reminder, that I am loved, that I have a purpose, that I am forgiven and that I have to lay it down at HIS feet.  

  

I am so glad that we chose to go and thankful for God sending me encouragement and I know that this is going to follow me into our school week.  

Oh. My. Word.

You would think I had never spoken to my children about how to clean something up, how to place a paper in a folder, how to start an assignment when asked to, how to follow a simple command.

They have reverted to infancy.

I am fine with some leeway given the fact it's the first week of school.  I am good with some grace and some understanding... But the last three days have been ridiculous!  

My prayer for this year... Pray more but yell less is the goal.... 

I have yelled, cried, threatened, made good on my threats, punished, explained, condoned more than I should have, and PRAYED.  A lot. 

I don't think I am asking too much- I haven't even given them their school load!  Basically they have done math, put together a binder, made a poster and had some discussions (that I led and had no answers that they had to know).

That is it.

First Day of school... 

Emily -- minus one out right disobedience about doing a math sheet has been fine. It is Kate and Matt!  The two I HAVEN'T WORRIED AND FRETTED OVER FOR MONTHS!!!!!! 

So this weekend- as they are grounded.. We are working on establishing routines, writing out school assignments, getting chores caught up so they stay on track, and lots and lots of PRAYER. 

School Daze...

I feel like I am in a school daze!! 

I have organized.. and then organized some more!!  

My teacher binder--- with all our Tapestry of Grace, Emily's science, our art plan and other misc.

Art planned through Thanksgiving.  I have my doubts that all this will get done but I have a plan!!

Emily's science for the year-- at least a plan is in place and since this was taken I have 3 months all unit planned all out.

 

This is our big calendar to hang on the wall so activities are visible to those students who need to be reminded to get their stuff DONE if they want to go!

And in case I forget ad midst the daze.. God is driving this bus-- not ME!

Countdown to the new school year...

There is really only one day until we start so that is not much of a countdown... But I have been too busy, or too sick or blogger has been too broken for me to blog!! 

So I am blogging on my phone.  Boo.

Anyway, Wednesday is the big day.  I am not ready.  I don't even have all our books and I am freaking out inside...however I am just going to remind myself that:

I like easing into subjects slowly.

There will be hiccups with the new curriculum. 

It's all good

And everything will get done. 

We have plenty of work to do!! They will not be "school work less"!  So tomorrow as I print, copy, bind, organize, and ready things I will just remind myself of that fact!

Our school picks are not that different from the past few years with the exception  of changing to Tapestry of Grace from Sonlight.  

So I don't feel overwhelmed by the majority of the curriculum-- we won't speak about Tapestry of Grace in this post quite yet!

I am planning to be pretty structured this year. Yes, you may laugh, but a girls gotta have a plan, right!

I mean Kate is in highschool!  This is serious.  I have 4 years! FOUR!  There is no messing around!

This is our new and improved school room. It was not 100% done at the time of the pictures.. But I am very happy with it right now!  We shall be spending MANY, MANY hours here this year!

Well maybe I will just send them away instead.  :0/