Out my window: White and grey. 12 degrees. And it's only mid- November. Going to need to find a good Vitamin D supplement this winter :P
Clothing myself in: Black leggings, blue long sleeved shirt, grey fleece. MukLuk slippers that I've had for a year and are the best thing ever to happen to my feet.
Kiddos: Isabelle is going on a Schoenstatt retreat this weekend at the same place she went to summer camp. She is going with her two friends and she is very excited. It's from Friday night until Sunday afternoon. She is such a lovely girl and a big help to me, I am glad that she is able to get out and do something special.
Isaac and I have been further prioritizing his school and learning. It's been tough at times. There is just so much information. Only certain assignments are turned in, so we are working on focusing on those. His instructor and I met about ways to make his workload more manageable. I would rather him focus on a few assignments and really do them well than rush through a ton of assignments to get them done.
My Liam has such a thirsty mind. Even when his lessons are done, he reads. He reads everything. He loves maps. He loves his children's dictionary. We've been digging into his first communion prep and he has such good (and hard!) questions. I love him.
Adelle is really loving sight words. I think they give her a feeling of accomplishment. Things aren't quite "clicking" yet with letters and sounds but I'm not worried. She isn't even five and a half. I remember Issy was probably around (past?) six when it clicked and then she took off. I just love how proud she is when she reads her sight words- a real boost.
And my George is a never-ending bundle of fun. He has actually be very good (for him) at Mass the last few weeks. Maybe things are finally settling down for him. Shhhhh. Pretend I didn't just say that, okay?
In the kitchen: I have declared every Friday (or at least every Friday until it starts to catch up with my waistline) Cookie Friday. So far, we have had pumpkin butterscotch chip, oatmeal chocolate chip and mint chocolate chip. Joe also went on a bread baking binge this weekend and we ended up with two pumpkin and three banana breads. We also had cauliflower bacon soup and homemade BBQ chicken and sausage/onion pizza. It has been good eats in our house the last few days.
Crafting: I was getting tired of knitting the same four round pattern for inch after inch on Joe's sweater, so I took a break and made myself a hat. Love it. Now, I have a renewed interest in Joe's sweater. Only 3 1/2 more inches until I divide for the sleeves. I CAN DO IT! He requested it be done in time for Christmas. We will see.
Thinking about: Ah, never a dull moment in the house saga. So, the house showing on the day of my last blog post went well. They liked the house. They decided not to put in an offer, however, because they found out that the people with the current contract on it are friends of their's and they would be "bumping" them. Sigh. I couldn't even make this stuff up if I wanted to.
We also found out the same day that the owner of the Idaho house was taking his listing off the market. Because we will not be selling this house by December 15th and therefore unable to buy that one, we cancelled the contract. So that house is done. I am trying to look at it positively that there is something else out there, but it is mostly just disappointing.
But we are here, alive and well. Mostly loving homeschooling :) Excited for the holiday season.
Monday, November 17, 2014
Saturday, November 8, 2014
Journal: Short days, longer nights
Outside my window: Dark, mid- 30's. It is supposed to snow on Monday, perhaps several inches. Honestly, I was so busy at my day job and the restaurant, I am not really sure where summer went, so I can't say I am really ready for winter. It is really that time already?
Clothing myself in: Jeans, tennis shoes that are 10 years old, black Word on Fire shirt and a grey hoodie. Fancy schmancy.
Around the house: Showing today, so it is spotless. When we thought we were going to be moving at the end of September, we had Adelle staying in Issy's room in the basement and we were putting boxes in her room upstairs. Moving didn't happen, so we transitioned Adelle into the other room in the basement, right across the hall from Issy. It has been going fairly well, actually. They read together until Adelle's bedtime, I help tuck her in and Issy gets to go to her room and keep the light on and read or whatever for a while longer. And doesn't have to sleep with the little bed hog.
Since we didn't go much further on our packing, we moved the boxes out of the upstairs bedroom and put the desktop computer in it. We do a lot of our schooling at the kitchen table, but we also have "Posh Pink" room (named after the paint color) to do lessons in as well. Our house has an abundance of space, for sure.
Kiddos: Everyone is doing well in school. Isabelle and Liam have had the easiest time adjusting. Issy's school is very self-directed. I am there to touch base with, but she organizes her time and keeps track of her assignments. I keep an eye on her grades and answer any questions she has on lessons.
Isaac's has been more challenging. Isabelle's lessons are online, but she also has a book copy of her text. Isaac's lessons are all online and it is a. pain. in. the. butt. If he is doing a review and he wants to recap something, he has to click through old lessons. It has caused tears more than once. He is a hard worker, though, so he's hanging in there. Math is his favorite subject.
Liam's lessons are a short video and then either a project or worksheet. He is doing very well, though sometimes his mind wanders.
Adelle is making progress slowly but surely. I have to remind myself that this is the first time we have done formal lessons and she isn't the other kids. She recognizes a few letters and knows a few letter sounds. We will get there :)
And George is George- ever rambunctious, ever challenging, ever adorable and charming. Passionate. Great smile.
In the kitchen: Not really sure- need to make a menu. This week we had tomato basil and parmesan soup with rosemary bread, beef stew, refried bean burritos.
Crafting: Working on Joe's sweater. Finished knitting a hat I had started a year ago and gave it to my niece Eleanor, knit a cream colored cabled hat for myself but decided it would look better on my niece Felicia. Knit Joe a hat. It's that time of year.
Bringing me joy: a tidy house- a joy I wouldn't have known on a regular basis if we hadn't put our house on the market. Laundry that is washed, folded and put away all in one day. A thoughtful husband who makes me breakfast every morning and gets up with the toddler on his early mornings. Spending time with my oldest daughter. Kissing Adelle's sweet little nose. Seeing Isaac overcome his frustration to accomplish something. Liam reading Harry Potter to me. The way George gesticulates when he talks.
Thinking about: Oh, lots of things. We accepted an offer with a contingency from third couple that was interested. They still need to sell there house, so we will see. Our contract on our Idaho house is through December 15th, but it seems dubious that anything will happen by then. We did have a showing today, to a couple that is moving into the area, so I suppose we will see how it went. If nothing else, the house looks great.
The kids and I went to Kansas for 10 days in October. It was pretty great- no one got sick. Lots of time with family and friends.
Barring anything exciting happening with the house we are settling into life and school up here in Wisconsin for now. Lots of baking and learning and reading and Lego playing.
Clothing myself in: Jeans, tennis shoes that are 10 years old, black Word on Fire shirt and a grey hoodie. Fancy schmancy.
Around the house: Showing today, so it is spotless. When we thought we were going to be moving at the end of September, we had Adelle staying in Issy's room in the basement and we were putting boxes in her room upstairs. Moving didn't happen, so we transitioned Adelle into the other room in the basement, right across the hall from Issy. It has been going fairly well, actually. They read together until Adelle's bedtime, I help tuck her in and Issy gets to go to her room and keep the light on and read or whatever for a while longer. And doesn't have to sleep with the little bed hog.
Since we didn't go much further on our packing, we moved the boxes out of the upstairs bedroom and put the desktop computer in it. We do a lot of our schooling at the kitchen table, but we also have "Posh Pink" room (named after the paint color) to do lessons in as well. Our house has an abundance of space, for sure.
Kiddos: Everyone is doing well in school. Isabelle and Liam have had the easiest time adjusting. Issy's school is very self-directed. I am there to touch base with, but she organizes her time and keeps track of her assignments. I keep an eye on her grades and answer any questions she has on lessons.
Isaac's has been more challenging. Isabelle's lessons are online, but she also has a book copy of her text. Isaac's lessons are all online and it is a. pain. in. the. butt. If he is doing a review and he wants to recap something, he has to click through old lessons. It has caused tears more than once. He is a hard worker, though, so he's hanging in there. Math is his favorite subject.
Liam's lessons are a short video and then either a project or worksheet. He is doing very well, though sometimes his mind wanders.
Adelle is making progress slowly but surely. I have to remind myself that this is the first time we have done formal lessons and she isn't the other kids. She recognizes a few letters and knows a few letter sounds. We will get there :)
And George is George- ever rambunctious, ever challenging, ever adorable and charming. Passionate. Great smile.
In the kitchen: Not really sure- need to make a menu. This week we had tomato basil and parmesan soup with rosemary bread, beef stew, refried bean burritos.
Crafting: Working on Joe's sweater. Finished knitting a hat I had started a year ago and gave it to my niece Eleanor, knit a cream colored cabled hat for myself but decided it would look better on my niece Felicia. Knit Joe a hat. It's that time of year.
Bringing me joy: a tidy house- a joy I wouldn't have known on a regular basis if we hadn't put our house on the market. Laundry that is washed, folded and put away all in one day. A thoughtful husband who makes me breakfast every morning and gets up with the toddler on his early mornings. Spending time with my oldest daughter. Kissing Adelle's sweet little nose. Seeing Isaac overcome his frustration to accomplish something. Liam reading Harry Potter to me. The way George gesticulates when he talks.
Thinking about: Oh, lots of things. We accepted an offer with a contingency from third couple that was interested. They still need to sell there house, so we will see. Our contract on our Idaho house is through December 15th, but it seems dubious that anything will happen by then. We did have a showing today, to a couple that is moving into the area, so I suppose we will see how it went. If nothing else, the house looks great.
The kids and I went to Kansas for 10 days in October. It was pretty great- no one got sick. Lots of time with family and friends.
Barring anything exciting happening with the house we are settling into life and school up here in Wisconsin for now. Lots of baking and learning and reading and Lego playing.
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