Handy Homeschooling Tips

Binders make great places to store art and school work...

 Earlier in August I had grand plans to start official school early.... I know because these photos were dated Aug. 5th.  Where did the time go?  And what is official school?  Perhaps I should just call it "work at the table time" because somehow that always feels official.  This year 2-year old sissy made her own binder because she wants to do "school" just like the big kids.

Indoor Recess gets creative...bowling with a giant package of paper towels...

Love all things "Melissa and Doug" brand..

 My Mother-in-Law sent a bunch of these sturdy plastic educational place mats up in a package this year and they are wonderful tools to use when teaching or reviewing numbers and skip counting.

End of the hallway "school" storage...

 Keeping all of your items clearly labeled really helps.  If you have toddlers in the house, put drawers up and out of reach.  Soooooo much less temptation and eaiser to put things back at eye level for older kids.

The central hub...

 So over the years I have found that keeping a whole lot of people working together is a full time job requiring management skills.  Other then trying to remember to laugh and smile more, a home management binder is a must.  I always have some sort of planner each year but this year I printed one off one for free at http://strangersandpilgrimsonearth.blogspot.com

I love having one binder to grab and go anywhere in the house and beyond and have everything at my fingertips.  I know, I should have a smart phone to do it all for me, but I'm a tactile learner and need to flip pages and write things with a real pencil and hear the sound.  It sounds like I'm getting something done other than just winning the "cleaner upper pick-up after everyone" award.

My Office in a Box

Did I blog about this already?  This has been so handy while living daily life with nursing baby, reading to little ones, putting out fires, etc.  I store my home management binder in here along with my Bible, a current book I'm reading, a magazine article, Thank-you cards to write, a blank notebook and pen, an advertisement or whatever is currently floating around and doesn't have a home... this could get dangerous.

So when I get a moment to nurse baby I grab one thing out of that basket to work on.  I always know that I have a place to store my planning calendar, ideas that pop into my head, Christmas list plans, things to write about, school goals for the kids, doctors and dentists numbers, etc.  It's just so handy and so small that it makes me feel that life is under control because it all fits into that tiny little box. 

So, the reality, of course is life is so huge and wonderful and amazing and scary all at the same time that I need to know it can all be put away and dealt with another time, perhaps tomorrow if it's getting to late, or the next hour after little ones are down for nap, or maybe in 20 min. after we go for a walk, or when I can think straight when other people are out for their walks.....

I posted a page here Overwhelmed Offices?  It's got a photo of our dry erase board and blank wall calendar.  Yes, I keep one calendar blank just so I can look at it and breathe....empty spaces make me feel like everything is going to be OK when life gets crazy.  I'm not sure why but I need to look at one nice calendar with nothing at all written in the squares.  It reminds me that life is wide open waiting to be filled and to be careful about what I fill it with.

I am trying to show how and not show off...this just works for me.  I try to glean from others and implement new ideas and strategies to running my home more efficiently.  Some days I feel like I've really got it together and other days.... WHAT AM I DOING? rings through my brain.

Then I remember I'm just walking the path God has set before me.  I don't walk alone.  When I rest in His peace I enjoy everything, even the business of being available to so many human souls at the same time.  When I fret and become impatient, I loose that joyfulness and become edgy and irritable.

Oh that I could stay teachable all my life... oh that my children would forever learn new things....and that through it all we could be tenderhearted, loving, and forgiving one another daily.

Color Me Birch Beautiful

Looking up hill towards the greenhouse...

Yellow leaved splendor...

Breathtaking, golden and lacy delicate

Our mini mountain view framed by birches...

Our trusty watchdog gazing out on yon birch forest..

I tried to capture the beauty of this birch wood forest that surrounds our home.  Impossible.  It was a perfectly cool and crisp day; the warmth of golden sunshine streaming through the trees.... I silently walked snapping a multitude of pictures. 

I worshipped my Creator who designed such splendor and beauty.  He is amazing.  The depth and layers and colors are beyond describing.  When the breezes gently swirled, the leaves fluttered upon the rocky driveway. 

I tried to remember the science behind why and how leaves change color but somehow it didn't matter anymore.  I didn't care as I was lost in this breathtaking beauty all around me. 

The moment is gone, it is now dark and late and my memory fails me once more... but the questions and curiosity remain... we will read and learn again about the amazing transformation of plants and animals when undergoing a seasonal change. 

There's a time for research and there's a time for rest.  I'm so glad there's time for both.

Moose Hunting Territory...

Many Hands Make Light Work

Bringing in the harvest...



Carrot anyone?

 Last week we drove out to help our friends with harvesting some of their garden and butchering 12 of their chickens.  They are real Alaskan homesteaders and have an amazing story of how they met and have worked their land.  They even have an underground barn for their goats.  They are producing an incredible amount of food off their land as well.

Dunk, dip, and throw on the Barbeque...

 Just a joke... the barbeque happened to be in the picture and was not really used at all that day. 

Biology class 101...

Homesteading Mama with an iron stomach...

Finally... the last chicken!

What a joy to be able to work and help one another out.  In return they filled up the back of our suburban with garden produce and fresh meat.  It was such a good experience for all of us to spend a day with our brothers and sisters in the Lord. 

When we get to know one another outside of the church setting it helps us to understand and appreciate one another.  It helps us to see what life is like in someone else's shoes.  It helps us to know how to uphold one another in prayer.  It builds friendships and makes memories and grows our faith in the Lord.  What a wonderful blessing to be part of the body of Jesus Christ here on earth!

The Gingerbread Man Travels the Alcan

Would you like a copy of our story?  We’ll be traveling the Alcan for the umpteenth time in a few weeks… yes, we’re taking the Gingerbread Man with us on our adventure along with all seven children.  Hopefully we’ll live to tell about it. 

If you’d like to read our self-published children’s book (unless we can find a publisher crazy enough or willing to take us on) guaranteed to be filled with fun, laughter, probably a few tears and great photos of our trip down the Alaskan-Canadian highway, reserve your copy today…

Why the Gingerbread Man?  He’s cute, he’s edible, and he doesn’t take up much space…

How shall we bake him? And with what ingredients shall he be created? And where will we bake him?  Will he really come alive and can we talk him into coming with us?  These are questions which we hope to answer in the coming weeks and post his birth or should we say, Bake Announcement, online. 

 We hope to fund this trip in this lighthearted way as well as give you something in return, our story in book form.  Is anyone interested?  Tell your friends and have them tell their friends.  Some of you will be in this book depending on where you live along the way and whether or not I can talk you into permission to photograph.

More to come...

 

 

 

Ode to Fireball

A rare quiet moment for "Fireball"

I went to the grocery store today with my 5 1/2 year old little boy, lovingly nicknamed "fireball".  I'd never considered the grocery store an adventurous place.... until today.  Sure glad I had on my high top leather hiking boots. Are "high tops" still a word today? 

Anyways,  it saved my ankle from being broken... just my calf was smashed, yes by the grocery cart driven by my dear boy.  The only thing I remember him saying after he rammed the back of my leg was, "THAT was scary." 

No, he didn't say "excuse me, I'm so sorry, are you O.K.?"  He didn't really even feel that bad about it... but he never did it again and the entire rest of the trip he insisted he be right beside me instead.  Safer for the both of us. 

It didn't stop him from doing wheelies, luckily BEFORE the eggs were put in.  It didn't stop him from swerving sideways, or skidding to a halt.  When he jerked the front to see what would happen and the only thing that fell were the bottles of milk, he was satisfied. 

I'm not sure why a little boy must know the answer to the law of "for every action there's an opposite and equal reaction."  BUT  he tests it everyday!  Surely once or twice is enough?

He is such a unique individual!  I love him for being him. 

I honestly had the most memorable and fun shopping trip of my life, ever, with this little boy of mine.  I'm beginning to understand that he's much happier being in charge of something, such as a grocery cart.  He enjoyed finding things to put in the cart to help me out. 

You might be wondering why I allowed him to push the cart in the first place?  I had wee little baby brother in my arms.  He doesn't like his car seat and rarely falls asleep in it.  So I explained to fireball that he had an important job to do and he did it.  I could tell he felt very proud to be depended upon in this way.

When we finally made it alive to the front of the checkout lane, he loaded up all my groceries without being asked twice and I had the nicest visit with a new Mom right behind me. 

Oh, I remember the days... looking back at those little baby pictures of my fireball, just tonight and realizing that I had NO IDEA what was coming.  How does God do it?  How is it possible to wrap up such might and power in a little package?

After my grocery trip adventure, we were driving home and out of the blue, fireball who's sitting right beside me in the front of the suburban says, "Mama.... you're a good Mama."  Oh, my heart sang!  No reward could have been sweeter. 

I'm learning to cherish each of my children for the way God created them.  He does have a plan, purpose and design in mind for them.  I'm his handpicked woman for the job.  As much as we feel like we fail and as many times as we feel successful, it comes with the job.  It means we're human and we're parents. 

"Fireball.... you're a good fireball and I love you."