That week we went camping {week 24}

Monday  Monday was a good day at CC.  Long of course.  But it was a good day


Tuesday  Not sure what we ate for breakfast, but man, we just KILLED school on Tuesday.  Everyone was done by 11:30!  AND we got started late because of an early doctor appointment that I had.  Everyone was on task (especially my normally pokey Cade) and we flew through assignments.

Of course, when your daughter wants to brush your hair, you stop what you're doing (school) and let her.  Because it feels soooooo good.

And here's Jack practicing piano.  My Daddy would be so pleased.  And yes, the piano is currently in the middle of our living room (it hasnt' been moved back to it's place in the dining room since the wood floors were redone).  We're still trying to decide if there needs to be a rug under the piano or not.  So until that decision is made, the piano stays in the living room. Right in front of the TV.  Ugh.

Wednesday  We made up for all that Tuesday efficiency on Wednesday.  It was kind of torturous.  By late afternoon, I called a halt to the day; it was clear that we weren't going to be getting any more work done.  Plus it was really nice outside, and it won't be too long before it's too hot to go outside and play. 

Thursday  We were easily distract-able Thursday.  But we pushed and pushed to get our work done.  We wouldn't do school on Friday as we would be leaving early to go camping for the weekend.  So if work was going to get done, it needed to get done by Thursday.  Bad attitudes abounded.  It was ugly.

General Thoughts  Cade has an oral presentation for Essentials on Monday.  He is extremely nervous about it.  1, it's in the park and there may be bugs (he's scared of bugs).  2, it's public speaking, and most people are afraid of public speaking.  I pray that he is prepared.  There's nothing like having to do a speech and not being prepared for it.

That week that was back to normal {week 23}

Monday  CC was on Monday.  It was nice to get back to it after being gone for 2 weeks.  While it was a long day and I was pooped by the end, it was nice to be back.  I'm somewhat contemplating being a tutor for CC next year (tutor is what they call the teachers at CC).  Not sure if this is a ludicrous idea or not.  I need to do more research (ie: picking the brains of current tutors).  Becoming a tutor would help defray almost all of the cost of CC, which would be a pretty big deal to our budget.

Tuesday  We got started on time Tuesday morning and got quite a bit done.  Workers came to finish putting furniture and carpet back after refinishing our floors last week.  There is dust EVERYWHERE from our floors getting refinished.  But the wood sure does looks great.  Now if we can just get rid of the dust...

 

Cade, daydreaming when he should have been doing math...

Wednesday  For some reason, we had a hard time working and concentrating on Wednesday.  None of us were focused.  By mid morning, we were getting on each other's nerves.  I had a doctor appointment at 11:20, so that was a wonderful excuse to put a stop to the madness and finish school.

Thursday  We managed to struggle through Thursday with somewhat wild behavior.  By noon, two kids were done, so I was pretty much done too.  :)  

Friday  Friday was good until one kid got grounded from that night's sleepover plus two weeks of no video games.  Then it all kind of went downhill.  But we managed to get almost all of our work done.

General Thoughts  I have no general thoughts for this week.  So there.

:: Spring Break ::

Last week, Scott and I were able to drop the kids off at the in-laws in Missouri and head to Eureka Springs, AR for a little rest and relaxation.  Here are a few pics from our adventure:

This is a view of Main Street in Eureka Springs.  The picture in NO WAY communicates the cuteness and compactness of Eureka Springs.  The main town is nestled in the valley between "mountain" peaks (read: BIG HILLS) and is full of shops and restaurants.

When we arrived in Eureka Springs, our treehouse wasn't quite ready for us.  So we hung out outside the office of the treehouse cottages and read for a bit.

 

There are apparently two sections to the cottages.  The original section, which is where the office is located along with 3 treehouses, is right off the main highway that leads to and from Eureka Springs.  I'm glad we didn't stay in the original section; I would think it would be loud.

Instead, our treehouse cottage was located on 33 acres of wooded hillside on the outskirts of town with 4 other cottages.

Here is a panoramic picture of the inside of our treehouse:

The weather was fairly mild.  Mild enough to sit out on the deck and enjoy an ice cold Mountain Dew.

And of course there were pretty magnificent sunsets.

There was a 1.5 mile walking trail across elevation that led down to a natural spring and cave.

It was a very relaxing week.  Full of sleeping, reading, and eating.  Alas, we had to come back to reality and pick up the kids.  Here the boys are playing basketball on the driveway.

All in all, we probably won't be going back to Eureka Springs.  It was a very tiny town, and there wasn't much to choose from restaurant-wise.  While being in the treehouse cottage was definitely neat, the extra cost to stay in it wasn't worth it.  Once you're inside, it feels like any other cabin in the woods. 

But I'm glad we went.  We feel very refreshed and ready to tackle the rest of the semester!

That Week that was Post-Surgery {week 22}

Monday  Monday was declared an ice/snow day by the local ISD, so we didn't have CC.  I'm not sure I would have gone to CC anyway since I was just 3 days removed from surgery.  I felt fine, but CC is such a long day anyway, I think it would have exhausted me.

So the kids and I ended up doing a modified day of school at home(to give them and me something to do).

Tuesday  Tuesday started well.  We instituted a new behavior chart similar to one seen in public school classrooms.  The kids have a clothes pin that they clip on to whatever color/behavior they are currently exhibiting. 

The laminated behavior chart has helped the kids realize where they are at behavior-wise and what is expected of them.  We had one kiddo slip down to "warning" on Tuesday.  But a little while later they were able to get control of themselves and step back up to "ready to learn".  And if the kids want to retain TV/electronics privileges for the day, they have to end the day (or have spent the majority of the day) on "ready to learn" or "awesome".

I have to brag on Cade a little bit.  He did an AWESOME job Tuesday of synthesizing some information from two books to create an outline that he's going to use for a research paper for CC.  He started out slow on Monday, but by Tuesday, he understood what to do and was able to do it all by himself.  I was so thrilled. And he was incredibly proud of himself and saw the value of doing hard work.

Wednesday  After a quick errand, we got started a little late, but got to work quickly.  I was really proud of one kiddo that lost control of their emotions but then promptly got themselves back under control.  Again, the behavior chart came into play (they got moved down to "warning" for losing control and crying when words would have sufficed; they then got moved back up to "ready to learn" once they had recovered and used words to voice their frustration).

Thursday  We got started off really well on Thursday.  Including doing some math drills.  Upside down.

Since we got started this week on Monday (because we didn't have CC), we pretty much finished up most of our work by Thursday.  Which was a wonderful feeling.  Kind of wish every week was like that.  But I'm not going to open that can of worms (Is CC worth it?).

Friday Basically we had just math and spelling tests to do on Friday.  So early start to spring break!  YEEHAW!

General Thoughts  I feel like we've really hit a groove recently.  Behavior has been a lot better.  Kids know what is expected of them and they (tend to) do it.  Homeschooling, while draining and still a sacrifice, has become more enjoyable.  I no longer think with dread about next school year and all the fun things I could be doing with my time.  But wait.  Don't get me wrong.  I still, from time to time, think about all the things I could be doing with my time if I weren't homeschooling.  And I still wish sometimes that I got to send my kids out of the house early in the morning to catch the bus and not see them for 8 whole hours five days a week.  I'm human.  Sue me.  But I don't think about those things much.  I am actually starting to enjoy spending large amounts of time with my kids.

*gasp*

Does that mean that I didn't enjoy my kids before I started homeschooling?  Of course not.  But spending seemingly endless hours of time with them was not high on my list of fav things to do.  Because we now spend so much time together, certain behaviors and characteristics in them (and me) needed to be addressed to make this homeschooling thing doable.  And because these behaviors have been addressed during school time, the kids are (typically, not always) better behaved for non-school time, too.  It makes home life and motherhood more enjoyable, peaceful, and joyful.  Talk about your win-win-win (h/t to Michael Scott).

Next week is Spring Break (can I get an hallelujah!?!).  Scott and I are dropping the kids off at Scott's parents in Missouri and heading over to Eureka Springs to stay in a tree house for a few days.  "A TREE HOUSE?" you shout/ask.  Yes a tree house.  That looks like this.

 Soooo excited.  Hopefully I'll have some good pics to share when we get back.