I have not posted in a while, but many posts and photos are coming soon!
Himself took the week off, so we've been trying to cram in activities with him and our French student, Vincent. This weekend we're off to a wedding, then it's back to reality.
Happy Free Slurpee Day, everyone!
Earth
Ticker
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Friday, July 03, 2009
It's a Boy!
Today we pick up our French student, Vincent! He'll be staying with us for four weeks so he can immerse himself in American culture and improve his English skills.
BA and I figured it's been about three years since we've had a French student stay in our home. We're excited for this opportunity to practice hospitality! I'm glad he's here for the 4th of July, a truly American holiday!
BA and I figured it's been about three years since we've had a French student stay in our home. We're excited for this opportunity to practice hospitality! I'm glad he's here for the 4th of July, a truly American holiday!
Thursday, July 02, 2009
Quote of the Day
"We are so in-tuned with our dysfunctions, hurts, and idiosyncrasies that it often prevents us from growing up, because maturity is tantamount to hypocrisy in a world that prizes brokenness more than health."
- Kevin DeYoung in Why We're Not Emergent
- Kevin DeYoung in Why We're Not Emergent
Monday, June 29, 2009
Headaches: A Year Later
Back in April of 2008, I began this journey to rid myself of headaches. The results are in.
1. I lost about 18 pounds. Now I seem to fluctuate a pound or two but overall have kept it off.
2. The endless cycle of headaches is now permanently changed. Sometimes I can't keep one from coming, but if it does I take Naproxin at night, go to bed, and I'm FINE the next morning. No more days and days of headache!
3. I find I crave healthier foods. I still love tortilla chips and eat those once in a while, but I find if I eat too many processed (even slightly processed) foods I feel kind of blah. The Vitamix has come in so handy lately! I'm so thankful it's summer and so many yummy fruits are available.
(I tried to make a green smoothie and it came out an ugly brown. Any tips?)
4. If I mostly stay away from the foods that bother me, I find an occasional tasting of a forbidden food has no effect. This, sadly, does not apply to chocolate. Chocolate still gets me, every time.
All in all, I'm so thankful for how great I feel. I can go on a trip and not be terrified that I don't have excedrin with me (both regular and PM, mind you). If I do get a headache I know it won't cripple me for days.
I probably need a new wardrobe because my pants are too loose. If only my bank account could match this bonus!
1. I lost about 18 pounds. Now I seem to fluctuate a pound or two but overall have kept it off.
2. The endless cycle of headaches is now permanently changed. Sometimes I can't keep one from coming, but if it does I take Naproxin at night, go to bed, and I'm FINE the next morning. No more days and days of headache!
3. I find I crave healthier foods. I still love tortilla chips and eat those once in a while, but I find if I eat too many processed (even slightly processed) foods I feel kind of blah. The Vitamix has come in so handy lately! I'm so thankful it's summer and so many yummy fruits are available.
(I tried to make a green smoothie and it came out an ugly brown. Any tips?)
4. If I mostly stay away from the foods that bother me, I find an occasional tasting of a forbidden food has no effect. This, sadly, does not apply to chocolate. Chocolate still gets me, every time.
All in all, I'm so thankful for how great I feel. I can go on a trip and not be terrified that I don't have excedrin with me (both regular and PM, mind you). If I do get a headache I know it won't cripple me for days.
I probably need a new wardrobe because my pants are too loose. If only my bank account could match this bonus!
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Here's the Plan
When planning for school, I find it easy to make a chart of four years, look at the requirements for high school graduation, and fill in the blanks. I leave room for electives because I know those will be geared toward their future interests.
Once I made Tyler's four year plan, it was a simple process to do the same for both Kelly and Glenna. While their friends may be stressing over which classes they should take in high school, my girls have no worries! Mom's got a plan.
I had to laugh when I found a schedule I had made several years ago for Glenna, year by year, ending with her graduation in 2014. The last entry was this:
2014-2015
JoAnna
Sleep. The entire year.
At this point, I'm not so sure the end of my homeschool journey should be one long nap . . . I'm thinking it should be one long celebration!
Once I made Tyler's four year plan, it was a simple process to do the same for both Kelly and Glenna. While their friends may be stressing over which classes they should take in high school, my girls have no worries! Mom's got a plan.
I had to laugh when I found a schedule I had made several years ago for Glenna, year by year, ending with her graduation in 2014. The last entry was this:
2014-2015
JoAnna
Sleep. The entire year.
At this point, I'm not so sure the end of my homeschool journey should be one long nap . . . I'm thinking it should be one long celebration!
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Homeschool Curriculum Roundup
Most homeschool bloggers are talking about curriculum because this time of year we are tossing out the old and bringing in the new.
After 11 years, this will be my FIRST year without KONOS. Why?
1. Glenna has been using KONOS her entire life. She has literally done everything (some more than once).
2. Kelly will mostly dual enroll. No KONOS needed there.
3. Glenna remembers every stinkin' thing she reads and has since she was 4. After all the wonderful, foundational KONOS projects and discovery learning, she's ready to take that and move on to a more literature-based curriculum.
The other reason is that we want to get in as many high school credits as we can, since she'll need 4 years of a foreign language in order to pursue her desire to be a librarian. We wanted to get at least one credit in Spanish while in 8th grade. Her science, math, and Spanish will all be for high school credits and take most of her time.
I will be forever thankful to KONOS and the fabulous learning experiences we've had for 11 years! My children were pointed to a godly character trait every day and have learned so much about Him and themselves because of it. This also means we say goodbye to the wonderful co-ops and activities. Treasured memories indeed!
By the way, Jessica Hulcy was released from the hospital on June 23rd! She still has a lot of recovery to do, but she's home! Wade directly credits God and the prayers of many for her recovery. Check here for the whole story. Read the journal to see her healing process!
We will also be saying goodbye to Math-U-See, another amazing curriculum. Because of MUS, I have understood math for the first time! It figuratively saved my life. However, I have found that I'm unable to use it to teach Algebra. I've never learned Algebra, have a horrible time understanding it, and know I must go to outside sources for help in this area. (Hey, one academic subject out of many isn't so bad, huh?) I highly recommend it for all levels through Pre-Algebra, as well as for Geometry. Fabulous. Plus, if you "get" Algebra, go ahead and use it for that as well!
So, what are we using next year?
For the first time, I will be taking advantage of Florida Virtual School. I'm excited that the girls will be doing their classes at home, but they'll have the help of video lessons and teachers who will guide them over the rough spots. The teacher also calls once per week to check their progress, and they may call the teacher at any time if they are stuck on a problem.
As I mentioned, Glenna will be using a literature-based curriculum this year for social studies. This is how Glenna learns best! Rather than a boring textbook, she'll be reading literature and biographies with Beautiful Feet Books as her guide. She'll have writing assignments and activities through BF and will keep a journal. I'm SO excited about this, and so is Glenna! We have already received her first year and the books are . . . well . . . beautiful. :-)
Other sources include science again with Mrs. S, and this year she'll take English with Mrs. R! The whole reason I started teaching is because Mrs. R never knew from year to year whether she would continue teaching. I wanted to make sure Glenna had the same excellent instruction that Tyler and Kelly had, so I learned the IEW method myself. Now Glenna's old enough, and Mrs. R is still teaching!
So, here's the plan for next year:
Glenna
Bible - Discovering Christ-Like Habits by Deeper Roots
Algebra I - Florida Virtual School (FLVS)
English - Mrs R! (Glenna has waited so long for this!)
Science - Apologia Physical Science with Mrs. S
Social Studies - Early American and World History by Beautiful Feet Books
Spanish I - Florida Virtual School
Kelly will spend most of her time dual enrolled. She only needs US Government and another elective to graduate, so she can soak up as many of the "free" college classes as she can to earn both high school and college credit.
Kelly
ACT test every chance she gets!
Full-time hunting for scholarships and grants!
Driver's Ed - Florida Virtual School
Freshman Comp I - (Local community college)
Student Success - (Local community college)
US Government - (Local community college)
Algebra I - FLVS (shh . . . she doesn't know this yet)
And there you have it. The one of the beauties of home schooling is the ability to tailor the curriculum to meet the needs of the student. This eclectic approach has always worked well for us. I'm so excited about starting our 12th year!
BA remarked that while her homeschool duties have increased with the addition of her youngest into the mix this year (5th grade, 7th grade, and 9th grade), my duties have decreased remarkably.
Oh? You noticed!
:-D
After 11 years, this will be my FIRST year without KONOS. Why?
1. Glenna has been using KONOS her entire life. She has literally done everything (some more than once).
2. Kelly will mostly dual enroll. No KONOS needed there.
3. Glenna remembers every stinkin' thing she reads and has since she was 4. After all the wonderful, foundational KONOS projects and discovery learning, she's ready to take that and move on to a more literature-based curriculum.
The other reason is that we want to get in as many high school credits as we can, since she'll need 4 years of a foreign language in order to pursue her desire to be a librarian. We wanted to get at least one credit in Spanish while in 8th grade. Her science, math, and Spanish will all be for high school credits and take most of her time.
I will be forever thankful to KONOS and the fabulous learning experiences we've had for 11 years! My children were pointed to a godly character trait every day and have learned so much about Him and themselves because of it. This also means we say goodbye to the wonderful co-ops and activities. Treasured memories indeed!
By the way, Jessica Hulcy was released from the hospital on June 23rd! She still has a lot of recovery to do, but she's home! Wade directly credits God and the prayers of many for her recovery. Check here for the whole story. Read the journal to see her healing process!
We will also be saying goodbye to Math-U-See, another amazing curriculum. Because of MUS, I have understood math for the first time! It figuratively saved my life. However, I have found that I'm unable to use it to teach Algebra. I've never learned Algebra, have a horrible time understanding it, and know I must go to outside sources for help in this area. (Hey, one academic subject out of many isn't so bad, huh?) I highly recommend it for all levels through Pre-Algebra, as well as for Geometry. Fabulous. Plus, if you "get" Algebra, go ahead and use it for that as well!
So, what are we using next year?
For the first time, I will be taking advantage of Florida Virtual School. I'm excited that the girls will be doing their classes at home, but they'll have the help of video lessons and teachers who will guide them over the rough spots. The teacher also calls once per week to check their progress, and they may call the teacher at any time if they are stuck on a problem.
As I mentioned, Glenna will be using a literature-based curriculum this year for social studies. This is how Glenna learns best! Rather than a boring textbook, she'll be reading literature and biographies with Beautiful Feet Books as her guide. She'll have writing assignments and activities through BF and will keep a journal. I'm SO excited about this, and so is Glenna! We have already received her first year and the books are . . . well . . . beautiful. :-)
Other sources include science again with Mrs. S, and this year she'll take English with Mrs. R! The whole reason I started teaching is because Mrs. R never knew from year to year whether she would continue teaching. I wanted to make sure Glenna had the same excellent instruction that Tyler and Kelly had, so I learned the IEW method myself. Now Glenna's old enough, and Mrs. R is still teaching!
So, here's the plan for next year:
Glenna
Bible - Discovering Christ-Like Habits by Deeper Roots
Algebra I - Florida Virtual School (FLVS)
English - Mrs R! (Glenna has waited so long for this!)
Science - Apologia Physical Science with Mrs. S
Social Studies - Early American and World History by Beautiful Feet Books
Spanish I - Florida Virtual School
Kelly will spend most of her time dual enrolled. She only needs US Government and another elective to graduate, so she can soak up as many of the "free" college classes as she can to earn both high school and college credit.
Kelly
ACT test every chance she gets!
Full-time hunting for scholarships and grants!
Driver's Ed - Florida Virtual School
Freshman Comp I - (Local community college)
Student Success - (Local community college)
US Government - (Local community college)
Algebra I - FLVS (shh . . . she doesn't know this yet)
And there you have it. The one of the beauties of home schooling is the ability to tailor the curriculum to meet the needs of the student. This eclectic approach has always worked well for us. I'm so excited about starting our 12th year!
BA remarked that while her homeschool duties have increased with the addition of her youngest into the mix this year (5th grade, 7th grade, and 9th grade), my duties have decreased remarkably.
Oh? You noticed!
:-D
Friday, June 26, 2009
Three in One!
As much as I'd love for this post to be about the Trinity, it isn't.
You guys are just going to have to take that one by faith, like the rest of us.
The Three-in-One that I'm so excited about is from Aveeno. I have discovered the wonders of tinted moisturizer!
It's a moisturizer.
It's tinted.
It has SPF 15.
Three-in-One!
I actually find myself putting some makeup on in the morning because, HEY, it's already in the moisturizer. From there it's a short hop to some blush and mascara. Lookin' good.
The SPF 15 is a must, but HEY, it's already in the moisturizer!
Now instead of three separate products, Himself is so thankful that I'm only buying one.
Makes room in the budget for ice cream.
You guys are just going to have to take that one by faith, like the rest of us.
The Three-in-One that I'm so excited about is from Aveeno. I have discovered the wonders of tinted moisturizer!
It's a moisturizer.
It's tinted.
It has SPF 15.
Three-in-One!
I actually find myself putting some makeup on in the morning because, HEY, it's already in the moisturizer. From there it's a short hop to some blush and mascara. Lookin' good.
The SPF 15 is a must, but HEY, it's already in the moisturizer!
Now instead of three separate products, Himself is so thankful that I'm only buying one.
Makes room in the budget for ice cream.
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