Damian (to mom): I can't believe I have another loose tooth. I'm going to get a dollar from the tooth fairy.
Mom: Is that how much she gives you? That's a lot of money!
Damian (with a very bashful look on his face): I think it's because I'm so cute. Long pause. Christian only gets 50 cents.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Just a spoonful of sugar...
helps the probiotics go down?
Overhead from playroom:
Dr.: You'll have to take your probiotics. I have no idea what they are, but they should help.
Sounds of patient resisting...
Dr.: OK - then you need to take fish oils. That will definitely help.
Dr. Burstein would be proud.
Overhead from playroom:
Dr.: You'll have to take your probiotics. I have no idea what they are, but they should help.
Sounds of patient resisting...
Dr.: OK - then you need to take fish oils. That will definitely help.
Dr. Burstein would be proud.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Letting Boys Be Boys
Letting my boys be boys at this very moment means letting them shoot bottle rockets in the back yard. They should be inside finishing school work, but during their break they decided to drag out the hose and start shooting off a rocket. They should be inside doing science; instead they are outside experiencing science. I think the whole neighborhood is experiencing science along with them. Our hose makes this ungodly high-pitched sound when it's on - so loud that if I try to water the garden while Ben sleeps he sometimes wakes up yelling 'go swimming now!'. The water, coupled with the rocket launch, the air pump and the shrieking of 3 very excited boys is certainly being heard all over our small neighborhood. This is what many would call a 'homeschool moment'. It's what I call a break for mom, who really should be doing laundry...
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Simplicity
Homeschooling by its very nature comes with a lot of 'stuff' - schoolbooks, storybooks, craft supplies, science kits, history projects, books, books and more books! Add to that the fact that many of us are teaching 2, 3, 4 or more kids and you can imagine how much 'stuff' we can accumulate. Anyone who knows me knows that I am not really into the streamlined look of Pottery Barn. I love trinkets and color and collections, so it might seem odd that I have really been trying to embrace the idea of simplicity this Lent. It started with the regular feeling of being overwhelmed with the housework that many of us experience. In the midst of all the work it dawned on me that I spend much of my time organizing, cleaning and straightening up 'stuff'! Now I am not about to get rid of it all, but clearly when I begin to feel overwhelmed it is time to revisit each room and really try to weed out a bit. I mentioned in yesterday's post that I try to stick to a 10-minute cleanup rule. If I can't regularly straighten up a room in 10 minutes, even after it has been well organized, then it is too cluttered. Either way, I try to have regular decluttering and organizing sessions at our house - usually 2 or 3 times a year. There is something about this time of year that inspires me to let go. Let go of the stuff. Let go of the feeling of being overwhelmed. Let go of those things that are holding me back.
The problem is that it is hard to let go. I find that I often come face to face with fear. Fear that I might get rid of something and then need it. Fear that I might not have the money to purchase something when I need it. So my inclination is to hold on to everything that I might ever need! But then I wonder if I am trusting God. I once heard another homeschooling mom say that she never held on to stuff she would not use in the next year or two. She instead chose to trust that if God's will for her was to continue down this path, he would provide all that she needed. WOW! Did I have a big aha moment! It is one thing to be thrifty but we can really cross the line of not trusting in our Heavenly Father to provide all of the gifts he promises us, all in the name of frugality. Was I being prepared or simply fearful?
This morning I opened up "In Conversations with God" and much to my amazement this is the first line I read: "In this period of Lent the Church in this regard calls out to us frequently so that me may disengage ourselves from the things of this earth, and thus fill our hearts with God." OK, now I'm starting to get it. It's not so much about getting rid of all my stuff, though that helps tremendously. It's about being detached from the things of this world - my stuff. Detachment increases our capacity for loving God and others. Detachment makes us more aware of our desperate need for God. Detachment calls forth from us a generosity of spirit.
I thought God was prompting me to Simplicity this Lent, but now I think I need to add Detachment to that list. It may take a lifetime of Lents...
The problem is that it is hard to let go. I find that I often come face to face with fear. Fear that I might get rid of something and then need it. Fear that I might not have the money to purchase something when I need it. So my inclination is to hold on to everything that I might ever need! But then I wonder if I am trusting God. I once heard another homeschooling mom say that she never held on to stuff she would not use in the next year or two. She instead chose to trust that if God's will for her was to continue down this path, he would provide all that she needed. WOW! Did I have a big aha moment! It is one thing to be thrifty but we can really cross the line of not trusting in our Heavenly Father to provide all of the gifts he promises us, all in the name of frugality. Was I being prepared or simply fearful?
This morning I opened up "In Conversations with God" and much to my amazement this is the first line I read: "In this period of Lent the Church in this regard calls out to us frequently so that me may disengage ourselves from the things of this earth, and thus fill our hearts with God." OK, now I'm starting to get it. It's not so much about getting rid of all my stuff, though that helps tremendously. It's about being detached from the things of this world - my stuff. Detachment increases our capacity for loving God and others. Detachment makes us more aware of our desperate need for God. Detachment calls forth from us a generosity of spirit.
I thought God was prompting me to Simplicity this Lent, but now I think I need to add Detachment to that list. It may take a lifetime of Lents...
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Getting It All Done
OK, so the title of this post is a bit misleading. It implies that I get 'IT' all done. In fact much of 'IT' never gets done, at least when it comes to housework. I think I iron once a year - well slightly more often, but not much. And I found out today that a year is too long to wait to clean the ceiling fan in the kitchen.
When people find out I homeschool, the first question I often get asked is how I get it all done. So my first answer is usually, "I don't." I have, however, picked up a few tricks along the way, most of which I stole from Flylady. I am not a faithful follower; I do not follow her schedule every day, I spend too much of the day in PJ's and my sink hardly ever shines. (If this is all Greek to you, check out Flylady's website and you'll soon understand.)
But I have learned some valuable lessons from her. My favorite is the10-minute cleanup. When the house seems a wreck, I set the timer for 10 minutes and concentrate on one room. Usually I start in the Living Room since that is the first room people enter. I clear that room till the timer goes off - never leaving to put things away. This is the key! It is so easy to get distracted in another room. Instead, I place the things to go away in another room, in the doorway of that room. For instance, if there are a pair of my sneakers in the LR, I place them just inside the door of my room, NEVER ENTERING THE ROOM. This way there is no room for distraction. It is amazing how much I can get done in 10 minutes. I do this in each room of the house for as long as I have. Voila! The house is usually clean in about an hour! (some rooms take only 5 minutes). If we are having a party or company and more needs to be done, the whole family chips in. Multiply 10 minutes for each family member (ok - more like 5 minutes for 6-year olds) subtract a few minutes for bickering and another few for keeping track of a 2-year old, and the time really adds up.
The other thing I've learned much about from Flylady is decluttering. For instance, if it takes me more than 10 minutes to routinely pick up a room, it is too cluttered. Time to drop a few bags off at Goodwill. When it comes to the kid's room, when it gets out of control and they need to declutter, I give them each 3 bags. They have to fill one with garbage, one with stuff to put away in other rooms and one with give away stuff.
Well, there is a meltdown happening in the other room, so I'd better go. Check out flylady when you get a chance and remember that you're never going to get 'IT' all done. Just try your best!
When people find out I homeschool, the first question I often get asked is how I get it all done. So my first answer is usually, "I don't." I have, however, picked up a few tricks along the way, most of which I stole from Flylady. I am not a faithful follower; I do not follow her schedule every day, I spend too much of the day in PJ's and my sink hardly ever shines. (If this is all Greek to you, check out Flylady's website and you'll soon understand.)
But I have learned some valuable lessons from her. My favorite is the10-minute cleanup. When the house seems a wreck, I set the timer for 10 minutes and concentrate on one room. Usually I start in the Living Room since that is the first room people enter. I clear that room till the timer goes off - never leaving to put things away. This is the key! It is so easy to get distracted in another room. Instead, I place the things to go away in another room, in the doorway of that room. For instance, if there are a pair of my sneakers in the LR, I place them just inside the door of my room, NEVER ENTERING THE ROOM. This way there is no room for distraction. It is amazing how much I can get done in 10 minutes. I do this in each room of the house for as long as I have. Voila! The house is usually clean in about an hour! (some rooms take only 5 minutes). If we are having a party or company and more needs to be done, the whole family chips in. Multiply 10 minutes for each family member (ok - more like 5 minutes for 6-year olds) subtract a few minutes for bickering and another few for keeping track of a 2-year old, and the time really adds up.
The other thing I've learned much about from Flylady is decluttering. For instance, if it takes me more than 10 minutes to routinely pick up a room, it is too cluttered. Time to drop a few bags off at Goodwill. When it comes to the kid's room, when it gets out of control and they need to declutter, I give them each 3 bags. They have to fill one with garbage, one with stuff to put away in other rooms and one with give away stuff.
Well, there is a meltdown happening in the other room, so I'd better go. Check out flylady when you get a chance and remember that you're never going to get 'IT' all done. Just try your best!
Happy Birthday Ben!
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Why We Homeschool (Part 2)
I thought alot about homeschooling, even before I was married and had any children. I first heard about it on Focus on the Family many years ago and something about it just fascinated me. So when our first son was in pre-K, we started to talk more about it. Around the same time, his brother was born, and I just felt too overwhelmed to think about homeschooling. I didn't think I was organized enough and that I didn't have time with a newborn. Of course, now I look back and laugh. Any veteran homeschooling mom will tell you that Kindergarten takes all of about an hour a day! But of course, I did not know that at the time, so we decided to pursue other options.
We went to a couple of open houses at the local Catholic schools, but I was immediately turned off to the long days. Why the heck does a 5 year old need computers, Spanish, art and music in K? I mean we do art stuff at home and listen to music all day. I would rather he been in school for a few hours and just do the basics. Didn't anyone know about the 3 R's anymore? Though I never pictured my kids going to public school, I knew they only had half day Kindergarten, so we decided to pursue that option. And besides, we were in one of the highest rated districts in NJ. And we lived 5 houses and a path through the woods from the school. The only problem was that when we went to visit, I was turned off once again that the school was trying to accomplish too much at such a young age - only this time in a 2 1/2 hour day! That settled it for me. I figured we would just keep him home and teach him the basics, and hopefully teach them well.
Honestly, our decision was made without really reading anything about homeschooling. Over the next few months I did alot of research. I was surprised to find out that book after book was confirming our gut feeling - that it is better to teach the basics well and skip the 'fluff' - at least for now. What I also learned is that it is better to keep the formal education to a minimum at this age and let the child work at his or her own pace. Even now, as my second son is Kindergarten age, I do very little 'formal' sit at-the-desk kind of teaching. We spend a lot of time reading, which I've learned is really the best way for them to learn. Most of us were turned off to Science and History because they were taught from boring text books. So the backbone of our homeschooling is reading. We have a lot of books. And I do mean A LOT of books. I love a good book, and am quite picky about what my kids read. We do visit the library, however I find that the library gets rid of alot of their best books, mostly because many people prefer the newest Dora the Explorer book over the wonderful, old, falling apart books the library has had for decades. I learned to always bring a bag of quarters with us on our weekly visits, because we often came home with piles of discarded books! And an overflowing stroller! I think I lost most of my baby weight after Damian simply by pushing he and Christian and 20 pounds of books home from the library.
So we started on this journey we call homeschooling. We have since learned that it is not just a way to teach our children, but truly a way of life. Teaching extends far beyond the reaches of the kitchen table, which is the desktop for many a homeschooler.
We went to a couple of open houses at the local Catholic schools, but I was immediately turned off to the long days. Why the heck does a 5 year old need computers, Spanish, art and music in K? I mean we do art stuff at home and listen to music all day. I would rather he been in school for a few hours and just do the basics. Didn't anyone know about the 3 R's anymore? Though I never pictured my kids going to public school, I knew they only had half day Kindergarten, so we decided to pursue that option. And besides, we were in one of the highest rated districts in NJ. And we lived 5 houses and a path through the woods from the school. The only problem was that when we went to visit, I was turned off once again that the school was trying to accomplish too much at such a young age - only this time in a 2 1/2 hour day! That settled it for me. I figured we would just keep him home and teach him the basics, and hopefully teach them well.
Honestly, our decision was made without really reading anything about homeschooling. Over the next few months I did alot of research. I was surprised to find out that book after book was confirming our gut feeling - that it is better to teach the basics well and skip the 'fluff' - at least for now. What I also learned is that it is better to keep the formal education to a minimum at this age and let the child work at his or her own pace. Even now, as my second son is Kindergarten age, I do very little 'formal' sit at-the-desk kind of teaching. We spend a lot of time reading, which I've learned is really the best way for them to learn. Most of us were turned off to Science and History because they were taught from boring text books. So the backbone of our homeschooling is reading. We have a lot of books. And I do mean A LOT of books. I love a good book, and am quite picky about what my kids read. We do visit the library, however I find that the library gets rid of alot of their best books, mostly because many people prefer the newest Dora the Explorer book over the wonderful, old, falling apart books the library has had for decades. I learned to always bring a bag of quarters with us on our weekly visits, because we often came home with piles of discarded books! And an overflowing stroller! I think I lost most of my baby weight after Damian simply by pushing he and Christian and 20 pounds of books home from the library.
So we started on this journey we call homeschooling. We have since learned that it is not just a way to teach our children, but truly a way of life. Teaching extends far beyond the reaches of the kitchen table, which is the desktop for many a homeschooler.
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