Addictated

After watching Dumbo, my kids wanted to know how Dumbo made a square bubble. I told them that he didn't really, but that he had consumed alcohol, which had mistakenly fallen into his water trough. So he only thought he was blowing square bubbles and seeing psychotic pachyderms. Anyway, a discussion ensued in which we talked about the effects of drugs and alcohol on the body, including nicotine, illegal drugs, caffeine, and alcohol. We talked why people would do that even if it detrimental to your body (I told them because it makes people feel different, ostensibly "better"). Later on in the day Aleah revisited the subject and said "Why would anyone want to be addictated to something?"
I thought the word was apropos. When we are addicted, we are enslaved and, as such, "dictated" in our actions. Who do I call at Oxford's?

Term A, week 2 mulligan

School went well this week. Some things I did to make it go more smoothly for me:

-We started each morning by going for a run or walk. We're training for a 5K in Nov.
-Started the school day with devotional- I am using the new nursery manual. It's simple, to the point, and teaches basic gospel doctrines.

-Mr. Man and Princess take turns playing with Noodle while I work one on one with the other child. This not only engages Noodle, but gives me specific time with each child for school. This really was a big deal this week, Noodle loved it, and we got so much more done!

-Workboxes were planned each morning. There was no waiting for me to fix them up.

I was really pleased with how well things went. I like the Math-U-See curriculum, but Mr. Man sometimes gets distracted with the blocks. I also discovered I was giving him too many problems at once. He could do them all, but it would take him FOREVER! - I think he was overwhelmed. So we started giving fewer at a time. It seems to be better.

We are doing Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and the kids made a crocodile with shining scales this week. It was fun, but I am not sure I really like the book. (I have never read it before.)

Trigger Happy

So this is my first week of "being happy." I have to say, it is going well. I know it has only been four days, but that is a good start. I know that actually changing who I am is going to be a long process, and there are many, many steps along the way. I know that there will be not happy days. But I am happy for these past four days, that really, have gone well. I have noticed that there are some things that are INCREDIBLY HARD for me not to be angry/upset/sad/furious about. I call them my "triggers." Admittedly, I probably have more than I should. Some of them I feel fairly justified in (as much as you can justify anger). Anyway, when those triggers happen, man, I have to work HARD to not let them ruin my day. It is one of those steps to being happy, for sure.

If you wanna be Happy

I have been thinking lately about being happy. That is something that I would like to be more often. I know that some people are happy all the time- it just seems to be part of them, their personality. I, however, seem to be or see myself as not that kind of a person. I seem to be more serious and stern. Being happy and carefree is not an easy thing for me. I often fear ( and rightly so) that I am just an old stick in the mud who has forgotten to have fun. What a sad thing- as life is wonderful!
For me, when I wake up in the morning, it will have to be a conscious choice to be happy. I know that things are going to go wrong in a day. I know I'll have to change stinky diapers, I know there will be messes, tears, and ugliness. So why not accept it, laugh about it, and move forward to make the best of the day? If I make the choice to be happy, perhaps those things won't be such a big deal anyway- right? Hopefully, if I make that choice often enough, it will become habit and part of who I am. I want my kids to remember growing up with a happy, loving, and most of the time- fun, mom and home.
Awhile ago I had a post about perfectionism, and I think that not being happy is part of expecting perfection in all things. I get so caught up in doing things (or my children doing things) right, or well, or perfectly that I lose the joy of doing anything. Don't get me wrong, it is great to want to do things well, but not great to expect perfection always- we are all learning. I know to that some days will be hard, but I can still choose to look on the bright side of things.
So this is my choice I am going to choose happiness!

Farewell to Summer

It is the end of summer here in the Midwest. We have the air conditioning off and the windows open. The leaves are tinged with colors and in the morning when we go walking, we need sweaters. We even enjoyed our first fall campfire with s'mores.
I was looking for a new blog design, and found some really cute fall ones, but just couldn't put them on yet. I think I feel a little more wistful for summer this year than I usually am. I'm not ready for the changing season. Usually I am so glad when this time of the year rolls around- I love the fall! I don't know if it is because I spent a lot of summer inside with Muffin, or I didn't really do any gardening this year, or because we didn't take a family trip, maybe it's because this summer was pretty relaxed - I'm not sure... but here is a sad farewell to the glorious days of summer.

And We're Off!

We started school this week. We went a few weeks into June this spring, so I could start late in September. It has been interesting getting things going again. There is no real "schedule" as we just work around Little Misty and Noodle. I haven't pulled out the workboxes yet, but hope to for next week. This week we did a "preview" of our curriculum and did one or two lessons from each source. Here's a rundown:
Math-U-See (Alpha, Beta, Gamma)
History of Our World with Story of the World activities
REAL Science
Artistic Pursuits
First Language Lessons
Michael Clay Thompson's Grammar Island
Write Source
Orton-Gillingham for reading
Books for sure (there will be others): Alice in Wonderland and Little House in the Big Woods
Handwriting practice books
A friend of mine divides her year into weeks and terms, and I like that. So this week is Term A, week 1.
I am really liking Math-U-See and the History of Our World. The others I haven't gotten too far into (at least for this year).
Today, Mr. Man wrote a paragraph ALL on his own. Last year, he would tell me what he wanted to say, and I would write it. Then he would copy the paragraph. This would result in LONG sessions at the table of him not writing and me cajoling. Today, the same thing was beginning to happen when (Eureka!) I told him to just write down what he wanted. We had already gone over the elements of paragraph. I let him go. It was amazing. We also didn't worry about spelling AT ALL. It was amazing the things he wrote down. That was a great lesson for me- let him do his own work!

2 months old

Muffin- is now two months old. Here is a slide show of her these past 8 weeks. It is funny how they can be so young, but already she is an integral part of our family. I can't imagine life without her here. She is smiling a lot- it lights up her face and ours, too. She has long, lean arms, legs, and fingers. Her intense blue eyes are captivating. She loves to look at peoples' faces. Today she found herself in the mirror and gave herself big smiles. It was so cute to see her grin at herself. We love her and think she is wonderful!

Sleep is Like Chocolate Cake

Have you ever had a piece of really good chocolate cake? Moist, good frosting, maybe some berries?
You have a piece of that delectable cake.. It is SO GOOD. You have some more. You eat as much as you can- and enjoy every bite. But then, the cake is gone. You remember how good it was. As time goes on, you remember less of what it exactly tastes like. You have a vague memory that it was really good. But you can live without it. And then, someone gives you one more bite of that delicious cake. But just one bite. Then it is the only thing you can think of.

Sleep is like that. And when finally you get that cake again- it is oh so delicious!