No Sorta' Weekly Report Here

I think I might... maybe, sorta, kinda... be a Weekly Report Dropout. Not exactly a total dropout, but at least until my reinforcement arrives and I'm not in a peak season at work, I'm going to have to do Every-other-Week-ly Reports. Now, I'm picturing a 50's diner-café movie scene with me in a poodle skirt and Frankie Avalon teasing me about blogging schoolwork. "W.R. Dropout. Go back to homeschool..."

We are about 3 months into our school year and I'm ready for some tweaking. Who knows, maybe I'm just feeling like a big ol' quitter this week (what with hiring help, being a W.R.D., and now this...) but since adding in my new language arts plan, I need to adjust a little. Copywork has been a big hit. They are picking up a great deal of language nuances - word spacing, capital letters, those pesky marks at the ends of sentences, etc. I think copywork is oft an under-rated thing. Until implementing it, I hard a hard time recognizing the value in copying what someone else wrote. Now, seeing how my boys' writing confidence has blossomed, how their speed has greatly increased in only a month's time and just their willingness to take risks and write words on drawings - well, I see tremendous value.

Because of this, I've decided to focus more on copywork. It's a risky move, but I feel it's so worthwhile a tool that I'm banking on it. I'm going to use copywork as spelling, vocabulary and writing for 1st and 2nd grade. I'm still going to continue OPGTR with Picasso. But FLL is out. SWR is out. Memorizing the parts of speech isn't sticking because it has no practical application to a 6 and 7 year old. They are still so focused on the mechanics of writing that parts of speech, any type of style, mean nothing to them. They will have plenty of time to learn what a direct object is when they can write easily and fluidly.

But, in exchange for this, I'm upping the copywork. I want Einstein doing one sentence a day from Happy Scribe, 1 sentence a week in history, and 1 paragraph a week from our read-alouds or, alternatively, from a lit-based copywork book we have that features sentences from books like Narnia, Charlotte's Web and Mr. Popper's Penguins. Picasso will stick with copying 1 sentence 2-3 times a week until OPG is done, and I'll move him to 1 sentence daily as well. He currently skips the history copywork, but when OPG is done, I'll add that in too.

I've also blogged a little about Einstein's math. I wasn't sure if he'd understand Sudoku, since it's technically logic not math, but he seems to like it. He did 2 Sudoku puzzles this week, played some multiplication games, did another chapter of Primary Grade Challenge Math. We're also liking Singapore's Intensive Practice. It may seem redundant to have him do 2b IP, but IP requires a different kind of thinking and I see a lot of value in the type of problem solving it requires. So with a trifecta of IP, PGCM, and Sudoku - I think we've found a winning combo for a few weeks' intermission until we start 3a.

Picasso is still working happily through Singapore 1a. His pace is slower than what I'm used to with Einstein, but I think for a brand spankin' new 6 year old his understanding of the concepts is much more typical for his age. I'd like to add Singapore's Challenging Word Problems after Christmas. Unless Singapore starts to move too fast for him, I don't think I'll add Horizons in for him until 2nd grade. While I think having 2 different math programs does a broader student make, he seems to have the right amount of work right now with just PM 1.

We're enjoying Gulliver's Travels as our read aloud. The language is a lot more complicated than I remember it. Stopping for summaries and narrations mid-chapter seems to be helping them grasp Swift's, well... Swift-iness. The boys seem to like how it feels like a conversation. Since it's a first-person narrative, it reads almost like a diary. It's the first read aloud we've done in first person. Gulliver's Travels is also an amazing demonstration on the evolution of language. English has changed a lot in the nearly 300 years since the book was first published. Here's an example from the first chapter:

"These people are most excellent mathematicians, and arrived to a great perfection in mechanics by the countenance and encouragement of the Emperor, who is a renowned patron of learning. This prince hath several machines fixed on wheels for the carriage of trees and other great weights. He often buildeth his largest men-of-war, whereof some are nine foot long, in the woods where the timber grows, and has them carried on these engines three or four hundred yards to the sea."

That requires a great deal of deciphering for 6 and 7 year olds. But their drawings demonstrate they are getting some of it. If nothing else, they are hearing very rich vocabulary and a bits and pieces of a story that sparks wild imagination.

(Incidentally, spell check struggled with some of Swift's words, too!)

Well, this sorta turned into a weekly report after all, didn't it? No pics though. Ah well, I spent all my "free time" this week working on a cookbook for work. Don't ask. ;)

Break Down of "Super Mom"

You all know her - a SuperMom. She's the one with the well-mannered children who are both polite and do well in school. She balances work, chores, charity, faith, family time and spouse time seemingly flawlessly. Her laundry is done, her bed is made, and her children's closets only contain clothes that fit and are in the current season. Her house is always spotless, even if you need to drop something off or pick it up with hardly any warning. She knows the best deals, the best restaurants and has the perfect occasional baby-sitter.

How does she do it all?

I am a work-at-home mom. I homeschool my boybarians, check in daily with my employer (lucky for me, both of my bosses are incredibly wonderful to work for) and run the household. I officially work 20 hours a week, but it's never cut off there - especially in peak season like right now. I do manage to clean the kitchen daily and throw my kids a few scraps of food several times a day. We pick up the main living spaces. There are no toys, books, or junk allowed outside of their rooms or basement.

But SuperMom I am not. I work in yoga pants and flip flops most days. I drink a lot of caffeine. My kids look at me strangely when my head's not sporting a pony tail. I'm all about the one-pot dinner, or better yet, crock pot meals. Take Out, in my opinion, is pure genius. If you threaten to drop in at my house, I would be positively mortified and probably not answer the door without adequate warning. I need at least an hour before guests. Preferably 3. My kids' closets vary between 2-3 seasons outdated, and if they don't grow much that year sometimes the stuff never gets updated until they do. I don't make my bed 6:7 days a week, and can't rightfully ask my children to do so. My kids think pajamas are something you can change into when you wake up, as long as you didn't sleep in them. Trouble most often wears either a top or a bottom but catching him in both is a good day. The boybarians are always barefoot, usually wearing capes, and often underpants on their heads. They usually arm themselves with light sabers, vacuum cleaner parts, parts of Halloween Costumes past, and anything else that resembles either a weapon or a superhero accessory. Laundry is often prompted by shouting from a boybarian closet admitting he's used his last pair of underpants on his head for a costume, and no longer has any for the parts they were intended to cover. Picasso wears a blanket/cape nearly every day. Einstein recently decided shirts make him "too hot" and Trouble still wears his underpants backwards - allowing him to see the super cool design meant to cover his bottom, but creating a total wedgie in back with his buns hanging out, and making the front sag. More times than I'd like to admit, the beds have been stripped and the linens piled high so the boybarians can make forts or a soft place to land when they run and jump. It is never quiet here. Ever. In every single one of my many work conference calls, I gratefully praise whomever invented the mute button because I'm sure I can credit my continued employment to him/her.

So I finally admitted I'm not catching up. I need reinforcements. My darling, darling husband finally broke down and hired someone to come help around the house a few times a month. I could kiss her, but... well... that would be an awkward way to start a new job, doncha think? Well, maybe just a little smooch - but only on her first day. *grin*

I feel such a huge sense of relief. Thank you Handy Man. You're the best. I'm so grateful for the time that will free up. What a gift time is! Relieved and grateful - and it's absolutely worth admitting I'm not SuperMom.

Weekly Report 10-11

Finally! My weekly report. As a reward for your patience I uploaded *lots* of pictures.

These last two weeks have been definite lessons in schooling during distraction. We had every possible interruption, noise, distraction, anti-learning atmosphere imaginable - yet we still managed to get a fair amount done. Admittedly, these past 10 days of school won't be ones for the record books.

We had about 6 men here everyday. Each man has some sort of noisy tool - saws, mallets, nail guns. Our walls were shaking and pounding as we tried to work. And my boys were so impressed that the guys spoke a whole 'nother language. "What are they saying, Mom?" "Can I go count to ten for them? Please Mom?!" My kids would have sat on the stairs just listening to the exotic sounds of foreign tongue all week if I'd have let them. Monday we had a 3-hour long doctor appointment. Then on Friday, we had our pest control guy here (armed with a "spider web catcher"; a personal hero to any boy who loves critters) and both UPS and Fed-Ex guys came within 10 minutes of each other to bring our birthday boy his gifts. Prior to their arrival, I had to spend way too many minutes on the phone with the lady at the UPS office giving directions to our somewhat secluded lot.

So what was all the noise about? Well, we are no longer completely The Scourge of the Neighborhood! The Hardy Plank is up. They should be done next week with trim and cedar shakes in front. Gone forever is Tyvek wrapping! The house is really looking like a house now instead of a construction project. Granted, we still have no landscaping, so the dirty looks from Mr. PerfectlyManicuredLawn across the street still continue. Ah well, we can't win 'em all. We are really nice people - I swear. There's got to be a life lesson in being despised for shrubbery, right? We are also getting the basement framed. Up until this week it was nothing but cement and insulation. The boys used it to ride their bikes. Now we have the makings of walls. Having this project done would nearly double our living and storage space. Saaa-wweeeeeeet - more place for books!

So here it is, the "Opus of the Distracted" - Picasso first, then Einstein:

Thanks for visiting. Come again soon!

Celebrating Picasso

Six years ago, our nation was still reeling. Images of lost Americans, plane hijackers, airport security images, speculations of conspiracy... and lots and lots of raw emotion flooded the TV, radio, newspaper and internet.

The world wondered how such a thing could happen? Americans felt a new kind of familiarity to terror and loss on our soil. People questioned if America had changed forever.

It was September 20, 2001. And I was 9 months pregnant.

The contractions I felt while watching the CNN coverage on 9/11 had thankfully subsided. I did not want my child to be born on a day people would associate with sadness, loss and foreign terrorists. When it was discovered baby was breech and would not turn, my doctor scheduled a c-section. It was decided that an early Saturday morning baby he would be.

So, two days later - September 22, 2001 - we welcomed a beautiful 7 lb 9 oz, blue-eyed baby into our family. And despite the history of the time around his birth, we felt confident that this gorgeous boy would grow up knowing love, security and peace.

On Saturday we celebrate this child again. Happy Birthday, Picasso! We love you so much.

Vrroooom Vrrrooooom!

Before heading off to Kansas City, I was told that the Bikers for Babies event there is huge. I was expecting a lot of bikes and a lot of black leather.

I was not disappointed.

This year more than *8,500* bikers showed up - most decked in black leather, bandannas, chaps and boots - to show their support for America's most fragile and most innocent little ones. Seeing 8500 cars parked in a single place is impressive, but seeing 8500 revving, loud motorcycles is something else entirely. It was impressive.



Most impressive - these biker dudes and this event raised not 1/2 million, but over $600,000 for the March of Dimes and their fight to save babies! That is an impressive amount of money for a single day in this fantastic Midwest city. I also got an opportunity to meet one heck'uva mover'n'shaker, Ed Hale. Ed and his posse of bikers raised $70,000 for this event. And how'd they do it? They didn't secure big corporate backing - they did it dollar by dollar, *dime* by *dime*. Ed, you are one upstanding guy! We should all be so generous and charitable.

Ed Hale with Trouble and Princess Leia. Ed raised over $70,000.

Oh my! How's that for dedication?!

As the mother of one of the babies who benefited from the life-saving research funded by March of Dimes grants - I realize how precious each and every dime is and what it can mean to the life of a child and to his family. I was touched by everyone who participated, volunteered and raised money for this event.

As an employee I was impressed. But as a mother, I was humbled.

It was also my friend Dainty's birthday. She was the hostest with the mostest.

D - Thanks for letting Trouble and I crash. Hope your birthday was as fantastic as you are. We had such a nice time with your family. Hugs to Princess Leia and Little Ewok.


Me, Dainty and Ms.S - it was a weekend away with the girls (and Trouble!)

Trouble poses with Dainty and Princess Leia.

Oh - and I rode on a bike for the first time ever. Eek! Am I a biker babe or what? Next time, I'm totally getting black leather chaps. You can laugh at how out of place I look in my dapper yellow MOD Staff shirt. ;)

Coooooool Running Errands - We Met an Olympian!

I had a class at the Apple store tonight. Apparently, the iphone is so smart you need a class to use it. ;) Anyway, while there we stopped by B&N and who was there?! We got to meet former 3x Winter Olympian and now author of a children's book, Devon Harris, from the famous 1988 Jamaican Bobsled Team. Most of us probably think of "Cool Runnings". Mr. Harris is now a motivational speaker and is a daddy to 4. In fact the fourth one is so new, she wasn't even in the credits of his book at his book signing. What a nice guy! He was sweet enough to pose for a picture and told the boybarians to always follow their dreams. He even talked them through his book, saying the guys had to run track, lift weights and practice on wheels. I think my boybarians were so impressed by his Jamaican accent, they forgot to pay attention.

So, until we meet Iowa's local star-athlete and 2008 Olympic hopeful, Shawn Johnson, Devon Harris is the closest we've been to an Olympian.

Math Stuff and Biker Dudes

I promise to come back with a weekly report soon. I haven't taken pics yet, but I'm so pleased with Happy Scribe copywork. Rave, rave, rave. Because they have a topic - such as birds, planets, or history - Einstein and Picasso aren't thinking about the writing itself but focusing on the topic and that has made some, well... Happy Scribes. ;)

Einstein has finished his second grade math books. I spent the last couple days looking over the third grade stuff. I don't think it would be too challenging for him, but looking ahead I do fear he is going to outpace himself before his logic-solving abilities are strong. I've decided to spend a few weeks, perhaps even a couple months doing the Intensive Practice, Zaccaro's Primary Challenge Math and a few extra pages from Horizons all while solidifying the multiplication and division facts. We'll spend some time with fractions, graphs, measuring, money, telling time - all which he considers "fun stuff" because there's not much problem solving involved at this level. Perhaps around Christmastime I'll feel better about jumping into the 3rd grade materials. He is only 7. Perhaps someday I'll regret slowing him down a little, but such is the risk for the oldest child, I suppose. I'm learning how to do this right alongside him. I can only do what I think is best and hope it's for his long-term benefit.

This weekend Trouble and I are off to see Princess Leia and our friends The McTriplets at a big Bikers for Babies event. I've never been to this one, but last year they raised almost half a million dollars for the March of Dimes, and there is something about tough guys with soft hearts that gets me. Also, my friend McTriplet Mommy will be speaking and telling her boys' stories to the crowd. Hope those tough guys packed their Kleenex. Those McTriplets are amazing little boys.

Picasso is getting glasses on Monday. This has been a few weeks coming. Once he started reading daily (when we started "first grade" in July), I noticed his eye has been crossing. Amblyopia and strabismus are nothing new to us, Trouble has them and is also cross-eyed without glasses. Isn't it odd such a thing would strike twice in the same family? Picasso is not at all trepidatious and very much looking forward to picking his very own pair.

I'm Just "Mom"

I think sometimes we move from one chapter in our lives into another often without being fully cognizant of it. I stood at our kitchen island today, sipping my hot coffee and looking at my boybarians and it dawned on me - I am not the mom of babies anymore. I have not even one diaper in my house. There is no crib set up in the corner of a nursery. We don't even own a sippy cup anymore. Since 1999, it seems my life has revolved around pregnancy, nursing, babies, diapers, sick babies, potty training, bottles, sippy cups and diaper bags. And now, none of that exists here anymore.

I'm strangely not regretful. Yes, I miss little socks and tiny onesies. I miss the smell of freshly bathed babies' heads. But I really feel like this stage is such a good one for us. Everyone in the family is healthy, our doctor appointments are fewer and farther between. My children are getting independent, more self-reliant and need "Mommy" less often.

In fact, a couple days ago my 7-year-old called me "Mommy" and was quickly chastised by his 5-year-old brother.

"Mommy?! You call her 'Mommy'? Only babies say 'Mommy'."

And just like that, I was demoted. I could see the wheels turning in Trouble's little noggin. He is certainly not a baby. I tried to quickly protest, "No... babies don't say anything at all. Older babies sometimes say 'Mama'. I think Big Boys can say 'Mommy'!"

But it was too late. The damage had been done. There are no babies in my house, no one has called me Mommy since that discussion - and now I'm just "Mom".

I *heart* Free Stuff!

If you love free stuff as much as I do and you have an iPod or an iPhone, I have recently discovered a whole slew of fantastic FREE resources. iTunes has added a new section called iTunes U which allows Academic Institutions to post professors' lectures, guest lecturers, audio files, etc. And the University of South Florida has created a wonderful k12 resource section filled with audiobooks, audio-poems and audio-stories for kids ages 3 to 103!

To find it, simply:
- Open iTunes program
- Click to go to the iTunes Store
- Click on iTunes U on the left sidebar
- On the lower left sidebar is a list entitled, "Universities".
- Find and click University of South Fl[orida]
- Click on the icon of the little boy, "College of Education".
- In the center bar, find Lit2Go:Audio Files for k12
- It automatically opens the Spanish language resources. Click the grade above.

For example, in Gr3 you'll find files for Aesop's "Hercules and the Waggoner" and several poem from Robert Louis Stevenson, for example. In Gr4 you have many of Aesop's fables, several of Beatrix Potter as well as all of "The Secret Garden" by Frances Hodges Burnett. Wow! The list is extensive. You will be able to download the files and save them. Even if you don't have an iPod you can save them to your computer and play them from your desktop.

And the learning isn't just for kids. You can listen to lecturers from Yale, Stanford, among others for your OWN listening pleasure. Yay for FREE!

And because my boybarians are so stinkin' cute I can't *not* post a pic!

Weekly Report - Week 9

This was the first week implementing a new Language Arts plan. I am just beaming with excitement over both the quantity and quality of the writing Einstein and Picasso did this week. Compared to their usual reluctance to write anything, this week was a huge success, so many of the pictures focus on their copywork and writing. The pictures start with Picasso's work then go into Einstein's. We also included a little tree frog that we spied. He was taking refuge from some nasty Midwest weather by handing out on our door. He's still there, 3 days later.

Cat's Out of the Bag

Thanks to a certain "anonymous" commenter (who happens to love me!), the beans are spilled. Today was my birthday.

We spent the day doing things we usually don't. The boybarians, who don't have TV privileges during the week, turned into TV zombies gobbling up as much Cyberchase and Star Wars as possible. I did have to work for a few hours, but did so in my yoga pants and pony tail - relaxed and comfy. I took a relaxing jacuzzi tub and stayed in until my wrinkled fingers could absorb no more. Handy Man made dinner tonight, tortellini and a pan of brownies. We had hoped to catch the end of the NFL opening season game, but our satellite is knocked out because of hail and storms.

Ah well, a quiet night curled up with pages of a good book sounds better.

Thank you to my dear friends who sent their well-wishes. It was a great day.

Makeover Contest Results!

Here they are, the highly sought after (humor me!) Before & After pics of Jenny's blog makeover. If you remember, Jenny won the first ever LWM3B contest. Jenny's first blog had such cute little people, fun stories of her family and kids' work. But it had a generic Blogger header and needed some personality.

The name of her school has the words "light" and "shadow" and I knew playing with light is one of the most challenging things a designer can do. And when that designer is brand-new-novice like me, well, it was a fun challenge. Her school colors are green and purple. The baby blanket background is a nod to her future pupil, her unborn child. Here are the results! You can go see her blog live here.



Stay tuned! I will be hosting another blog makeover soon. And this time, I'm using a Random Integer Generator so Handy Man won't have the pressure of choosing my winner. Phew!

Oh, Give me a Home...

Apparently those who celebrate a 'Day of Rest' on this holiday don't have three small children. ;)



To celebrate the holiday weekend anyway, the boys requested a trip to see some of the wild animals at a park near our home. We saw elk and buffalo (bison? anyone know the difference?). Einstein sketched what he saw. Check out Daddy Elk's rack - my neck hurt just looking at him.





In other menial news, our Einstein has outgrown his current booster chair. And while that hardly seems news-worthy, I can't believe he is big enough for this step. His new seat has only a place for his bottom. Nothing behind his back; just enough of a boost to allow the seat belt to lay across his chest. I felt so much safer when my babies were strapped in their 5-point-harnesses. =?

We are back-to-school this week! Week 9 for us and our first week at folding in the new language arts plan. Einstein will also be finishing up one level of math and moving into the next (Singapore 3a). History this week is learning about Buddha and Islam, with our project being about the 5 pillars. We actually have 2 chapters planned for 7 days, because my small rural-Iowa library doesn't carry many age-appropriate books on world religion. We'll be relying on Google to help us.

The Anatomy of a Boybarian Bath