HOMESCHOOL DAY ON ICE

There are those homeschool day discounts that prove to be worth their while. Though I'm not one to search these out often on my own, every here and there a friend will encourage us to go. It was a fun day today on the ice with friends.

 

  Olia was the surprise of the day.
It was her first time on the rink and she got right in there with the instructor's games, making new friends and all! :)

Olia, you're so fun!



 Thank you, friends, for getting us out on the ice this Christmas!

'Tis the season!

"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."
Isaiah 9:6

IN THE KITCHEN

Our kids have always loved time in the kitchen...What kid doesn't?!

 

Last year when Aida discovered her love for History in the Baking, we started to take our time in the kitchen more seriously. There are real life advantages in allowing children to explore food preparation in the home...
and homeschooling allows us ample time for such delicious fun!

 

The other day, Elka and Noble paired up all on their own and put together a healthy feast for lunch. They were beaming at their accomplishment! What stood out most was their attitudes as they worked together and served our family. One of my favorite blessings from homeschooling is watching siblings big and small work through life together. It's beautiful!
 

 

What a blessing homeschooling always proves to be...even in the kitchen.

 

 

 

 

 

 "Give us each day our daily bread."
Luke 11:3

SLICING POTATOES

All I did was slice open baked potatoes...

 

That's all I did.

But as soon as the steam swirled free, I breathed in damp black top, felt the sting of wondering who to sit with at lunch, tasted the chili and sour cream at the end of the cafeteria line. I remembered the lunch lady's fingers, gloved and singed with each piping russet. I remembered how I always felt bad for her. Thick and quick the memories rushed.

 

I went to public school from kindergarten through 12th grade. It wasn't all bad. Some of it was quite good. But, when I think back on those 13 years of my life, what I remember most are the relational things...both positive and negative. When I think through how my schooling experiences left marks on my life, I'm grateful for how the Lord has used them, but I'm also grateful for some of what my kids won't experience for having been homeschooled.

 

True, God uses struggles and growing experiences for our good and His glory.

 

He is faithful to do so.

 

And yet, what a blessing to bypass some of that which chips away at innocence. 

 

Deep thoughts linger today simply from slicing potatoes.

It seems God works through many means.

 

"I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil."

Romans 16:19


JESUS FILM SCHOOL

Some days we sit with paper and pencil.

Other days we experience learning through life.

Some days we study the tide pools in our textbook.

Other days we explore our local tide pools in swim suits.

Some days we read educational materials.

Other days we watch.

 

This is the variety that makes homeschooling so enjoyable.
Learning can be difficult at times, but I know I learn most when I enjoy the input,
so we do our best to also make learning enjoyable for our kids.

 

Today was a watching/reading day. We started with a history DVD as I had planned. As we discussed it's content we ended up on a rabbit trail which segued into the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
This, in turn, led us to the JESUS film (which I had not planned), a blessed detour for our day indeed!

  

We popped some popcorn, added a few candy corns (since fall is in the air), and snuggled up to watch the most important story ever told. We were able to watch nearly the whole film together, though we chose to fast forward through some of the brutality when Jesus was mocked and flogged. I didn't want the kids to miss the depth of it all, so we did watch some of the hard-to-watch scenes, and it seemed to make an impact.

 

Though we're all familiar with the stories of Jesus' life, they never cease to stun us. Some of the kids were moved to tears and seeds were planted...again. As parents, we sow and sow and pray and pray. We expose and instruct and teach and train and we beg the Lord beckons their hearts to His.

 

Since watching the film, the kids are all dressed up as shepherds, wise (wo)men, Mary, and a donkey at the moment, playing out what they absorbed today. This is education. In fact, it's the MOST important education of all...the spiritual education of hearts, the tilling of eternal soil (not to mention teamwork and playwriting to boot!).

 

 

We're cultivating heart-soil over here today. Nothing matters more to me in my time spent educating my kids. It was a privilege to share the gospel with each one of them again today and I pray the Holy Spirit infuses their souls.

 

Feeling grateful for our JESUS film school.

 

 (Note: The version we watched of the JESUS film was a bit
shorter than this full length version and edited of some content.)

(This is the full length children's version of the JESUS film.)
 

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, t
hat whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but in order that the world might be saved through him."

John 3:16-17

ABEKA & BOB

When it comes to curriculum, I like simple. HUGE surprise, I know.
In a family as complicated as ours, simple reigns, and this applies to most things...including curriculum.

 

When it comes to curriculum, I also tend to like "tried and true". I know what I buy and that's what I buy. I know what we'll use and that's what we use. I know what works for us, so typically I don't do a ton of branching out with the basics.

 

We use A Beka for elementary school language arts. Though sometimes the worksheets can feel cumbersome, they definitely hit the basics using Scriptural references, colorful pages, and readers with a spiritual emphasis. We don't always do every single detail per page in the older grades because some of it is quite lengthy, but I do have a sense of thoroughness by the end of each year with A Beka. It's a yearly staple. 

 

 

I also love the good ol' Bob Books.

 

Though not quite as colorful as A Beka, my early readers always enjoy them. The stories are witty and {simple}...which carries weight around here as I've already pointed out.

Thus, the Bob Books are keepers.

 

 

Those are my two elementary age curriculum highlights for today.

I loved how little Nova was looking on as Olia worked through her lessons this afternoon.
It's amazing how much the younger ones absorb by simply being around...another homeschooling perk!

 

Less is more for us when it comes to core curriculum, so I like to make the most of our purchases and how we spend our time in the books. I definitely don't want to dabble around too much or waste resources and efforts. With each school year that passes, I realize more concretely what works best for us with longevity and I'm thankful for some of our staples...including A Beka and Bob.

 

In other news...FALL is finally here!

 We were pretty excited today to buy PUMPKINS!!

 

 

HELLO FALL!!

 

"He changes times and seasons."

Daniel 2:21

AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC

 

Yesterday, we ventured out to the homeschool day at The Aquarium of the Pacific.

Only $6...such a great deal!

 

 

It was a fun and educational time for all!

 

 

The sharks were a highlight, as were the Japanese spider crabs we had recently learned about after our crab catch of the day this summer. Though these were smaller than the giant ones we read about, it was still really neat to see them in person and sort of feel like we knew them firsthand.

 

 

I think one of my favorite moments was the look on Boden's face when his daddy actually got one of the birds in the aviary to land on his arm! (Why am I surprised? He is, after all, the bird whisperer!)

 

 

Heroic!

 

 

Why is he so calm? If only there had been a video camera on me today as I tried to shoo a bird out of our house...again! Of course, this time my bird trainer husband wasn't home to help/laugh at me. Anyway, that's another adventurous story altogether. (Why do we get so many birds in our house?!)

 

Anyway, back to the aquarium...

We were filled with wonder at the beauty of God's creation under the sea.

 

 

I was filled with wonder that our tribe of children did so well for the day.

I think we've officially crossed some hurdles since our adoption last year! Yay!

 

All in all, it was a blessed day filled with lessons from the Lord, both spiritually and educationally.

Surely, we'll be looking forward to the same outing next year.

 

"All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made."

John 1:3



BACK TO SCHOOL

 

We're "back to school", though truly I never felt like we had left.

 

For us, life is school and school is life and even a spontaneous decision to build a loft
as a team this past week fits the learning bill around here and equals "school".

 

Perspective.

 

 

It's been a less than traditional reentry into the 2013-2014 school year, but as I reflect, I wouldn't have it any other way.
THIS is the reason we homeschool!

 

To think outside the box and discover exciting ways to learn, to come together as a family and acquire more fruit of the Spirit, to go with the flow and learn flexibility, responsibility, creativity, teamwork...
these are benefits that come with homeschooling.

 

We're making some BIG decisions these days, some to do with adding more children to our family. We're making it work and seeking to glorify God in the process. We're choosing to see that we have room in our hearts and room in our home and God's confirmed this decision through various sources repeatedly.

 

We can see that He has been on the move...and thus, so have we!

 

 

So, today as we sit down with paper and pencil, I choose to enjoy the normalcy. But, never fear! I'm on the lookout for another unconventional method of knowledge-absorbing potential just around the corner. What will God teach us this year??

 

 

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise."

Deuteronomy 6:4-7

SUMMER READING

We LOVE books.

 

 

I definitely consider reading one of our top priorities in education and I pray I might instill in the hearts of my children a deep love for reading over the years. Naturally, some will enjoy this valuable tool more than others, so when the library is hosting summer reading incentive programs I jump at the chance to participate.

 

 

It's encouraging to see even my kids who've historically been more resistant to read (mainly because it's a challenge) perk up and READ and READ and READ simply because there's a bookmark reading log and reward in sight.

 

Genius!

 

 

I'm not huge on charts and the like, but when the librarian handles the painstaking details,

 

I'm in.

 

 

(Thanks for the ever-rare "Mom in action" photo, Brodie! Ha! Can you just feeeel the pearls of perspiration as I PRAY my tribe of children doesn't completely obliterate the serenity that IS the library with our less than ambiguous presence?? Ahh...the exhale that takes place when we ALL make it safely {and quietly} out the front door.)

 

Though, I do love the library.

 

And, who knew a kid's meal at Rubio's could bolster such discipline?!

 

 

There's something to be said for charting progress and this summer we've found the library summer reading program to be just what we've needed to kick start a new school year filled with enthusiasm to read.

 

 

For most of us anyway...This guy prefers to rearrange the library's landscaping!

 

 

Thanks, library!

 

 

Thanks, Rubio's!

 

(Insert mental photo memory here of our table full of children all sitting proper
with their VERY OWN kids meal right after our big day in court. It was really fun!)

"Let the wise hear and increase in learning."
Proverbs 1:5

{ACCIDENTAL} CATCH OF THE DAY - HAWK

OK, so we have this "tradition" around here of acquiring uninvited National Geographic type house guests when Brodie is at work. I'm talking about snake lizards, rats, insects, and birds of various types...

they all love to invade our home specifically when Daddy is gone.

 

But not this time, THANK THE LORD!

 

So, the other day when Brodie and I were upstairs we suddenly heard the kids shrieking in the kitchen.

Being that shrieking (to our dismay) is not a terribly out of the ordinary raucous around here,

we took our time to see just what the commotion was all about.

 

"Bird! Bird! There's a bird in the house!!!" they all yelped.

 

Now, we've had birds in the house before (again, always when Dad was at work), but I could never have imagined just what had flown in this time...and gotten himself trapped behind the bread box in the kitchen window:

 

 

Let's just say...shrieking justified. Check out this guy's claws!

 

 

 Hello!? It's not like we live in the middle of nowhere (though how I wish we did!).

We live in a (much too) normal suburban neighborhood and yet
this is who came for a visit right through our backyard sliding glass door.

 

He thrashed about in our kitchen bay window, trying everything he could to get out until finally he got himself stuck.
Poor guy! Poor us too...
How do you get a gigantic hawk/harrier/who-knows-what kind of jumbo size bird of prey out of the house??

 

Fortunately, Brodie WAS home this time (my hero!) and little did I know I'd married a natural born bird whisperer. Without a blink, my trusty husband whipped out his handy dandy closet dowel and got the [huge!] bird to perch on it. What?!

 

{Please just imagine the amount of shrieking by this time...}

 

Then, he swooped the poor frightened little [BIG] thing back out the same way he'd come in.

 

 

Oh my! It was definitely a sight. That's him up on the basil plant he mutilated in all his hysteria. I'm just glad he didn't fly into the front room of the house or up into the bedrooms!

 

Anyway! Need less to say, it was a bit of excitement for the day and now we have another impromptu research project to boot thanks to our {accidental} catch of the day!

 

HAWK?  HARRIER?  HEN HARRIER?

 

(I think we've narrowed it down to one of/all of these.)

 

Here's a video of a hen harrier which we've come to learn is a type of hawk.

Looks pretty similar to our house guest:

 

 

And more birds of prey in slow motion flight. Beautiful!

 

 

"Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?"         
Matthew 6:26

SENSING FALL

The senses of fall are upon us.

 

Store isles once brimming with floaties and bubbles now team with binders and pens.
Vacationers pack freeways for summer's last hoorahs.
Finally, beaches return quiet...soon.

 

Propane runs out. Thoughts of thyme, rosemary, roasted veggies, and soups simmering all the day indoors warm my core.
I can almost taste the beauty of children lined up around kitchen table, absorbing knowledge intentionally.

I see, smell, feel, hear, taste the offerings of fall.

 It makes me want to buy school supplies...bouquets of newly sharpened pencils.

 

So, out today I go...gathering paper and pencils and crayons with fresh tips.
I'm glad to stock up for the year. Though summer still reigns, fall peeks around the corner and emotions get jumbled again.

 

Fall.

It's a time of new beginnings every year. And, a time of sorrowful endings past.
Having lost both of my parents in September invokes the same memories every time.
I haven't escaped it yet. But with loved ones lost comes gratitude for what was.
Legacy spurs me on.

 

Endings, beginnings, goals, decisions, excitement, reluctance, new, tried and true,

glue, read, think, organize, gather, bake, study, teach, learn, relearn, hold on, let go,

remember, move past, disciple, invest, retreat, regroup, stock up, Thanksgiving,

potato soup, cornbread, chili, oven roasting, pumpkins, porridge, play, love, PRAY...

just some of the words that come to mind in this season of sensing fall.

 

"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven."

Ecclesiastes 3:1