Faith, Marriage, Motherhood, Homeschooling, Essential oils, Herbs, and Holistic Living
In April we celebrated our 13th anniversary. My aunt and uncle were visiting in late March, so we took the opportunity to let them have the kids for the day while we went out on the town. We went to our favorite restaurant, the art museum (my choice), and Lowe's (John's choice) :-D ! It was a lovely day, and of course filled with lot's of laughs (you know us)! I didn't get pictures of our excursion to Lowes. Maybe next year! :-D
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Updated...4/3/2017 Before we added on to our home this room was the master bedroom. It had red walls, and I had intended to keep them. I thought that maybe the red would stimulate thinking. Although we grown-up's loved the look, I began to wonder after awhile if the deep primary red was doing my kiddo's favors. The room was cozy, but none of us really enjoyed doing school in there for long, it felt very stuffy and we tended to carry our work to other rooms. I also noticed the kids seemed to get rowdier when in there. Sure enough, after reading around half a dozen articles about the best colors to enhance learning (like this, and this) I realized my suspicions were correct. Red may be far too stimulating for the kids, particularly the older ones, and especially for my ADD eldest. So last weekend while my husband perused the aisles at Lowes, I continued researching the best colors to enhance learning. One of the websites I found said that blue enhances thinking for math and science. It went on to say that green enhances concentration for history, study in general, and a bunch of other stuff that I cannot remember any more :-P (obviously I wasn't surrounded in green, lol)! So, after much deliberation and a visit with my Aunt Pam (who happened to be visiting) I finally landed on a compromise of the two colors and chose a lighter blue/green (also known as teal)! :-D Best of all, I was able to create the colors with paints I already had on hand! I believe I made a good choice changing things. As I was painting my daughter walked into the room and her choice of words describing the new color confirmed everything. "Wow! It's so much quieter in here!" Although white isn't recommended by one of the articles I read I did chose to leave the back wall and window wall white. They are mostly covered with maps and the like, and I wanted the white to "bounce" light all around. It worked too, it's so much brighter in there now! Although I loved the red, all the extra light is very much so worth the trade off. One of the issues we have always had in our homeschool is not having the space for enough desks for everyone. This led to one issue after another over the years! We have had the new school room space for several months, and I finally asked John if he could build some custom, built in tables. One thing we have noticed so far is how much more spacious the room seems! Further research revealed that orange is another great color for concentration. So I chose a pale orange for the desk tops. Later I learned a bolder orange would have been better, so I am adding bolder orange color pops throughout the room! I love orange! I used the Color Wheel Calculator to help me hone in on the perfect shades! And of course pinterest, lol! So far we are loving the changes!
Around four years ago a friend gave me the Charlotte Mason Companion. I glanced at it, but I didn't have space for more books, and at that time I didn't have time for more reading. So I put the book in storage. April is a big month for us. It's the month we purchase the coming school years curriculum. We have tried different curriculums year after year, always striving to find what works the very best for our children. One of the things we tried over the years was the Weaver Curriculum. It is a unit study curriculum covering pre-k through high school. I had to do a ton of tweaking to it, but it was one of our best years! Sadly our lack of space situation at that time prevented us from making the most out of the curriculum. And there was a lot of planning that went into it. Especially considering I had to tweak it for us. So the next year we decided to try textbooks again, and textbooks on CD. The CD textbook curriculum graded everything, and since it was all on the computer we thought that we had a win-win. Saving space and time, what could be better? That was one of our worst homeschool years. The year after that our lives were crazy as we were adding on to our home. I decided to try using a combination of textbooks along with methods I knew worked for us. The hardest part was planning again. I always felt so overwhelmed. We have done so much praying this spring about what would be best for the coming year. We decided that in April we may as well go back to Weaver. As I was brushing up on using it I started remember that with it there was still so much planning. Plus lot's of library runs where concentration and reviewing which books was necessary. Both were so difficult for me since John works all the time and I never have anyone to take the kids. And the fact that I knew I would need to tweak it for us again meant even more planning. But the vast array of books required for Weaver and hands on activities worked so well for the kids, so we wanted to make it work somehow. I decided that instead of library runs, we would just buy the books we needed. Hundreds of dollars worth of books. But it would be worth it for our children to truly learn and succeed and save running around time for me. My husband and I had many meetings and many prayers to look over things. He especially loved the Weaver concept even more then I. But he too was concerned about the planning factor. Finally he asked "Is there nothing like Weaver that has less planning?" Years ago I had glanced at My Father's World. The hefty price tags immediately chased me away almost immediately and I never thought about them again. I knew almost nothing about My Father's World curriculum but when my husband asked that question it came to mind. Together we went to the website. Instantly we knew it was what we were looking for. The books were books that even WE wanted, and we knew they were the kinds of books our children loved. And there was the Unit study factor which we loved. And all tied in with a little bit of classical education. Still, was it worth the money? I saw that it had a strong Charlotte Mason influence. "Time to look a little closer into this Charlotte Mason thing." I said to myself. The more I found the more I wanted to learn. Midnight rolled around. But I could not sleep, I was too excited about all I was learning. One of the videos I stumbled upon was an excellent video explaining the five types of schooling. It had a test to help people hone in on the best method for their family. After watching the video and taking the test it was all I could do to make myself go to sleep! I could hardly wait for morning so I could show my husband all that I had found. Next morning I showed my husband what I had learned, and the video. He took the test and scored the same as me! All of these years methods I was finding that worked best for my children were Charlotte Mason! And all the tweaking and extra planning I had been doing to Weaver, were Charlotte Mason methods! Even the math curriculum we found a couple years ago that is amazing for our kids is listed on the Simply Charlotte Mason website as a recommendation! That same morning, I asked my children separately what their favorite parts of school were. It was unanimous.
God has been guiding us all along towards Charlotte Mason methods. It's exciting to look back and see this now. Over the weekend I made just a few small changes to the school room to align it even closer then it already was to Charlotte Mason's ideas. I dug up the Charlotte Mason Companion and it's hard to put down. I highly recommend it! One of my favorite quotes from the book is; "She {Charlotte} taught that we, as educators of our children, must strive to work in co-operation with the Holy Spirit." I love this! I was elated to learn that like me, Charlotte felt that each child is a unique being, their own person. I love how she believed that children need time in the afternoons to pursue their interests, and then to be given books and materials in line with their interest so they can dig deeper. And of course the nature aspect of Charlotte's methods has me sold. This is something we were not doing enough of. I spent much of my childhood in nature. It was in the forests that Jesus became real to me at just five years old so I am a believer in outside time for kids. Charlotte Mason recommended structured mornings and nature walks in the afternoon where children can study nature and keep notebooks on what they find. I have a library at my children's disposal. And I assign books to them. But beyond this Charlotte Mason method recommends a book basket for reading time. With the basket children can pick through (books I've selected for a period of time for them to mull through). I never thought of this, and I love the idea!
This year we are going to do My Father's World since it has so much emphasis on Charlotte Mason influence along with the unit framework that we so loved from Weaver. Plus it also lines up almost identically to what my children expressed they love. I like that it has a bit of classical approach for the older years, I think my son will enjoy that being the history lover he is. I was thrilled to find much of My Father's World curriculum for far less on Ebay. So far I think I've saved around $200. I will fill in with additional "living books" like Charlotte recommended beyond what MFW sells, especially since we already have so many "living books"! I will keep them in Abeka Language Arts for now but I will be adding Charlotte Mason materials for copywork and what ever else I can get my hands on for L.A. In the meantime I will be learning everything I can about C.M.! We will keep you posted, but for now I am expecting our best year ever! If you homeschool, what are you planning to use in the coming school year? It's been awhile since I updated all my kids portraits. Some of the images in my living room were up to three years old! It was mainly the boys who's pictures hadn't been updated in awhile. I photograph a lot of little children, in fact I specialize in children's portraiture. But getting good shots of my kids is a different story. They always do things like squint so bad that you cannot see their eyes with the remarks like "The sun's too bright" (seriously? It was a CLOUDY day. Or they stomp and contort and twist their little bodies and faces like this...... Eventually I get these tough nut's to crack though. I did a whole lot of thinking before this session. I wanted beautiful images of my children, but I didn't want something ordinary. I wanted to capture their natures. I also wanted a look that would flow with our home and reflect elements and styles that we love too. Then it hit me. Brick. Our home is kind of a rustic/farmhouse style with an industrial twist, and I've been trying to sway slightly more towards the industrial vibe. I knew the brick would help with that. Sadly, this was the only one of my oldest and it didn't capture him as well as I would have liked. He has very sensitive eyes and the "sun" was too much for him. So we are going to go back and try to get some more soon! But after a couple good shots my middle boy suddenly decided to let his wild colors show! I have this feeling that he's going to be popular with the girls someday.... I tried so hard to get a good group portrait, but it didn't work out here with the brick....I did get this sweet candid though, and it's going to have a very prominent spot on the wall. I love it. God has blessed us immensely with this fun bunch! If you have time leave a comment if you would to tell them what a great job they did on picture day!
Or should I say "Daze"? That would be a little closer to how it's been feeling lately! We are all past ready for spring here. But for now it's nose to the grindstone. I think we all have spring fever though. It makes us laugh a little too hard at things like this in science.... I don't know who has had a harder school year so far. This little guy or mama. He did not like giving up his play time for school time this year. I know the feeling! He loved painting this pot for growing onions as a science experiment one day though. And I am learning how to use rewards as motivation... All year, at the end of each and every page, he asks "Am I done yet?". I was surprised by his attitude toward school this year because last year he had fun. I guess this school year the new wore off. That wasn't the end of the surprises for me this year though. Someone else decided they WERE ready for school. Lot's of school, or as he says after each and every page, "More." This smart little guy can sit for more then one hour straight. And he still wants more school. He's barely 4! And then there's the youngest... Have you ever taught with a toddler in the house? Kuddos if you have. Sometimes I don't know if I'll ever get used to it. But then again I didn't think I was used to all the noise that comes with this many kids until extended family comes to visit. They always comment on all the noise....and the funny thing is that my kids are quieter when we have company, lol! But busy toddlers have a way of "ruling the roost" so to speak. And eating school papers. Yes, I am serious. As dazed as I am, I must admit I am looking forward to April. It's the month that curriculum will be on sale and I will buy the next school years supplies. A lot of people don't know this, but homeschool parents pay for curriculum out of their own pockets. Yikes! Curriculum is normally one of the blessings for our family that I cover thanks to Shayla P. {Camera Artist}. In fact, all March long I am offering mini's at a discounted rate to raise money for next years curriculum, so if you need to update your kids portraits now is a great time! Just contact me here or at my photography page. This is our seventh year homeschooling, and this year has been exhausting for me. But it's been great for the kids academically speaking. We have found the perfect schedule and curriculum's for our family it seems!
There's always been something about the sound of a guitar. Something about it just melts away anxiety for me. My oldest son started teaching himself guitar a couple years ago. He's done impressively well. A few months back he began begging for an electric guitar. Specifically a "red" one. So I started saving up to get him one for his birthday. I knew that with the fall photography rush I'd be able to get him one for Christmas/his birthday. A couple weeks before Christmas I was in the process of ordering him a Squire by Fender. I wanted to get him a Les Paul. Dad said it was the best, and dad would know. My dad was a professional drummer for most his life until arthritis got the best of his hands. But the Les Paul was a bit out of our budget. As I was checking out with the Squire the phone started ringing. I quickly hit the "checkout" button and answered the phone. It was my step mama. "I wanted to let you know we just ordered Michael a guitar. It's a Les Paul."!!! At Christmas time my son had a pretty good idea this was going to be his present, but he was still over the moon thrilled. The really crazy thing is it's red. I never told Dad and Ma he wanted a red one. Isn't that ironic! Within less then two weeks he had taught himself another new song. He has taught himself six songs so far. He's getting quite good! And heavens, can the boy sing. He can belt it out. His new challenge is going to be singing and playing at the same time. As gifted as he is with music I don't imagine it will be too difficult for him. He practices for about an hour nearly every single day. Today we went out and got some shots of him with his Les Paul. Other things the Rocker loves;
We were not planning on remodeling the kitchen this year. But we recently found some serious issues in one of the main walls and it looks like an impromptu remodel is in store for us this year. It's kind of a bummer and blessing at the same time! A bummer because we were planning the funds for our first family vacation in years. But it will be a blessing because if we can get it done it will eliminate some issues we have been facing because of the problems in the wall. Bonus is we will have a lot more cabinet and counter space once it's done! And more outlets too! Currently there are only four outlets in the kitchen, which equals a lot of hassle! We've always known this remodel was going to have to happen someday. Cheapie Lowes cabinets were a massive blessing in the pinch we were in three years ago before The Woodworker had his woodshop. But they are just no match for five kids! And then there is the matter of the "vintage" wiring. Since we've been dreaming of a kitchen remodel for years I've pinned over 140 idea's, but so many of them are vastly different. I've never been able to decide what I love most! So I decided to give the backsplash a fresh coat of paint. I've fallen in love with white lately, so I decided to give white a whirl. I thought the Woodworker would hate it. I was so surprised (and happy) when he came in and loved it! Then I got a little carried away. I've always wanted to paint this hutch white. I finally did it. I was just sure the Woodworker would hate it too, but he always had said he didn't care if I painted it or not. I was thrilled when he walked in the house, noticed it immediately and exclaimed that he loved it! I love this wall. The walnut, the brick, the white....I think I am onto something here. After years of deliberation I think we finally fell on a plan that we can both love. I think we are going to use this wall for inspiration for the rest of the kitchen. Kind of an eclectic farm/industrial combo style. We have decided we both love copper. We plan to be incorporating it into the new design. Stay tuned! We will post pictures later this year when we get the remodel done!
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