So long.....

It has been literally years since I have posted anything here.  That is not unusual for me.  However, this year will be full of many changes.  My daughter has gotten her drivers license and is in her senior year of high school, still homeschooled.  My son is starting his third year of public school as a sophomore in high school.  We decided as a family this was a good thing for him as he wanted to play baseball in high school.  Last year, freshman year, he made the varsity baseball team.  I am beyond proud of him and his dedication to both school and athletics.  He carried a 4.0 gpa last year. He didn't have honors or AP classes but still he finished with a 4.0.  My daughter has been doing competitive dance for the last four or five years.  She has done well with school and deciding what she wants to major in at college.  She is looking at secondary education with a minor in french and psychology.  Or some combination of that.  She has a good head on her shoulders and is strong and kind.  I couldn't be more proud of either of them.  They are you typical teenagers with the occasional attitudes but for the most part are good, kind children.  Well hopefully over the next little bit I can start posting again.  Enjoy the long holiday weekend.

What do you think about the picture in the header?

What do you think?  Do you like it.  I do.  Thank you Chris for taking this picture of my babes.

Pause

The end of 2012 was not an easy one.  It wasn't terrible by any means but I just didn't feel like myself.  I think it was the fact that we were out of our routines with school and the household.  We were kind of  'flying by the seat of our pant's' so to speak.  It was hard to get motivated some days.  I spent the first few of days of 2013 pondering what I wanted to accomplish this year.  Many other families and women have a word that they use to keep the year in focus.  The words range from focus to family and everything in between.  My word for 2013 is Pause. 

I am sure you are asking why pause.  Several reasons.  I want to remember to pause to trust God and his timing.  I want to pause to listen to God.  I need to remember to pause before speaking harsh words to my children or husband.  I need to pause to remember to slow down.  Life doesn't need to go 90 miles an hour down an open highway every day.  Pause to reflect and rejoice in what I have rather than covet what I don't.  Pause to sometimes just drink that cup of tea and have a biscotti while petting our dog.  Pause to play a game with my kids, even with the nerf guns that I loathe so much.  Pause to actually listen to my children and their hearts.  They are growing so fast and I don't want to miss it.

So for 2013, my word is Pause. 

The One Where My Son Gets Kicked Out of Homechool.......Almost!

We have been in school now for almost five weeks.  As a homeschooler we are able to start when we want and take breaks when needed.  We like the flexibility it gives us for vacations, field trips, etc. One downside is when my children don't want to do their schoolwork.  This happens more often than I want to admit.  Monday of this week was a struggle for my son.  He did everything else but schoolwork.  He even told me that he saw no need for doing school work because he needed to spend the time practicing his pitching for the day he makes to Major League Baseball. 

Alrighty then. 

Can you see my mind spinning here?  I don't want to discourage his dreams but I want him to be realistic about them too.  And, let's be real here.  Boo (son) has a bit of an issue with pride and humility.  He is very prideful and not very humble.  We are working on it. 

After a few minutes (yes it was really minutes), I calmly told him that he would still have to do his schoolwork or he could speak with his father when he got home from work.  School was going to take precedence over any extra curricular activities.  If he couldn't get his schoolwork done there would be no baseball and he would be unable to go to the r/c flying field on Saturday with Dad.  Suddenly, the wheels started to spin and he was able to finish his schoolwork (Math, English, Reading, Handwriting, and Spelling) in an hour and a half.  What? He had been working on it since 10 a.m.  Seriously!! He finished it up about 10 minutes before Dad got home from work.  Dad and I had talked while he was driving home from work so he already knew the situation.  He gets home and I am fixing dinner, the kids are outside playing.  Dad has decided that Boo is grounded until Saturday.  Boo will also be sitting in the garage with Dad and get started on tomorrow's school work. 

Woah!! Dad is getting tired of it too!! Or maybe he is just tired of me complaining...yeah, probably that.

Needless to say, Boo had to sit in the garage instead of practicing baseball pitching.  He was able to finish his math that night before he had to do his evening chores.  Because Boo didn't get all of Tuesday's work done, Dad woke him up before he left for work.  6 a.m. Yep, you read that right.  Six o'clock in the MORNING!!! Whew!! That is early for a kid. 

Boo got up and finished his Tuesday work (as did his sister) and then he did the school work for Wednesday.  Now Boo is always working a day ahead.  If it isn't done by the time Dad gets home from work he will not be able to play baseball or go flying with Dad.  It has taken the stress off of me.  I know the steps I need to follow and when to get Dad involved.  Is it a perfect system? Nope. But it is working for us at the moment. 

We are also using a green, yellow, red card system for obedience and behavior.  Again, it isn't perfect but it does work for us.  I will write more on that a bit later.

Hope your week is going well!!

Blessings,
Sabrina

Time to dust this thing off.

I believe that it is time to dust this blog off and to start posting here more regularly.  Please feel free to follow along so that we can stay in touch.  I will be posting about homeschooling, parenting, and just general life.  So stick around and follow the life of a homeschooling family that is sometimes way too busy. 

My gifts

I received a gift today from my children.  Breakfast in bed.  Why?  Because they wanted to do something kind for me.  No other reason.  It isn't my birthday.  It isn't Valentines or mother's day.  It was just a Monday and they wanted to be kind. 

How many times do we, as busy mom, let these gifts pass us by?  My children have been an enormous help to me lately.  I had a really bad cold a couple of weeks ago and was in bed a good portion of it.  My daughter fixed breakfasts and lunches for her and her brother.  I got over the cold just in time to throw my back out the next week.  Monday afternoon I was letting the dog out.  I ended up in bed all day Tuesday and Wednesday.  Emmalee did all of the laundry.  Every bit of it.  Joyfully, too.  She separated it.  Put it in the washer and dryer and folded it.  Seriously.  My 10 year old daughter did this, happily.  She even put some of it away.  She finished it on Friday afternoon.  There wasn't even enough left to put another load in, a few stray socks, a towel, and a shirt.  Those items for some reason didn't make it to the laundry room earlier in the week.  What a blessing my daughter was during that time.  It got done and I didn't have to worry about it. 

You might be asking what my son was doing to help out.  He did a lot too.  Easier stuff like getting me water, fixing a sandwich for lunch, getting a dvd for me to watch, etc.  On Friday night, he actually fixed dinner.  Yes, it was a frozen pizza but he took the time to make it.  He put pepperoni on it, put in the oven and took out of the oven.  No, his dad and I had no idea Eoin was fixing dinner.  He surprised us. 

I have been blessed with wonderful children.  Yes, they have difficult moments but don't all of us have those moments?  I have been blessed more than I could begin to imagine.  I love my family. 

Oh, and for breakfast this morning, they made me a strawberries, cup of milk, bagel with cream cheese and a chocolate covered strawberry for dessert. 

We have to remember our blessings that God gives us every day.  They may not be easily seen, but we should look for them.

Have a great day. 

Creative gift ideas part three

Are you ready for part three?  Let's get started with this post and finish up all of this. Almost three months later.  I have been busy as most everyone else in the world is. 


Calendar Journal

I thought this would be great for anyone who has a new baby or even a newlywed.  You could also use this as a blessings journal.  The idea is to write down something (quickly) that happened that day.  You keep it for 10 years and each year you can look back to see what was happening each day in your life.  I actually made two of these.  One for myself and one for a gift.  I can't post pics until after Christmas because one is a gift.  I will include a couple of links to show the different versions people are making.  For dividers you could use greeting cards or even pictures to divide the months.

http://www.designsponge.com/2010/12/diy-project-vintage-postcard-calendar-journal.html

the blessing box design

http://www.lemusingsofmoi.com/2011/01/blessing-box.html

Another design

http://www.thegeekysaver.com/2011/01/inspired-for-2011.html


I am going to post this for now.  I might go back and edit it later.  I have found so many other things that would be cute and great gifts.  Not just at Christmas but for birthdays, anniversaries, etc.  I know that I have forgotten a few things but this will get everyone started thinking about fun, creative gift ideas for others.  Gifts should be from the heart not just because we feel the need to do so.