I survived semester 1 !!!

I have been ordering new material, trying to finish existing material and praying for rest. I must say I have hit a wall with fatigue. Many of you know that I have Rheumatoid Arthritis...well, I think it is rearing it's head this month. I have had some medicine mis-haps and alot of aches. But- life goes on and so must Mom & Dad.

We finished out the last day of school, not with history or much needed math...but with Abby deciding that she wanted to write a book. We discussed it a little. We went to eat lunch at the Chinese place here in town and she discussed it with her friend, Evyn. She talked to Evyn about illustrating it, however, when we got home, she hijacked the whole thing and did it herself.

I must say, "It is a great little book." She used thesaurus.com to grab a couple of words, came up with all of the dialogue and i helped her color. She titled the book CHECKERED HILL.

She asked me if she could set up a "stand" in the front yard and sell her books. Now, let me be honest. I'm really not a good mom. I HATE doing things like this. Then she said, "I could sell my books and give the money to Jordan (her cousin) for her mission trip." What could I say?

So, out we went in the 500 degree heat to set up a "book stand". No kidding the first car that turned the corner bought a book. Several cars stopped and our friends sent some people over. All in all it was great. Our local paper came by and took a picture of her book and interviewed her...which was really cool.

Her first page reads, "Checkered Hill was an amazing town- in every way but one. The entire town was turned upside down."

If that peaks your interest and you want to buy one...I am sure that it will be available for purchase on Amazon.com in 10 or so years.

Now to the part of the post that I have been thinking about for the past several weeks. Someone mentioned in a casual conversation, that I over heard, that they "would not recommend homeschooling because home schooled kids are not very intelligent." I am using the word "casual" to describe the conversation because this person obviously did NO formal research.

"Research presented at the National Christian Home Educators Leadership Conference divulged that home school graduates far exceeded their public and private school counterparts in college by ranking the highest in 42 of 63 indicators of collegiate success. They were also ranked as being superior in four out of five achievement categories, including socialization, as they were assessed as being the most charismatic and influential."


"The median home school student in third grade out- performs 81% of the third graders nationwide."

"GES scores indicate the performance levels of home school students in terms of student grade placement nationwide. The median composite scaled score for fourth-grade home school students, for example, is 217. This is comparable to the median score expected of students nationwide in the ninth month of fifth grade. Compared to students nationwide, the median fourth-grade home school student test performance is 1.1 grade equivalents above his public/private school peers. By 8th grade, the median performance of home school students on the ITBS/TAP is almost four grade equivalents above that of students nationwide. Similar trends hold for all subject areas."

Now, these stats were gathered quickly...so I did not footnote my sources, however, my intent is not to present a formal argument. I truly do not care how people choose to educate/shepherd their children. I have two who are being homeschooled and one that is in a private pre-school. My kids are my responsibility and your kids are yours. My intent is to urge you to NOT listen to flippant comments and to NOT make them. As I have matured, I have discovered that that people will make choices for their families that I will not make for mine, nor do I agree with them. I might think that they are weird, out of touch or "unintelligent". It is my conviction, however, that I should actively engage these individuals in conversation. WHY? Because I could be wrong. I could be the one who needs to learn. I could be the one that God wants to change.

I could be the one who is really unintelligent.

Summer Lovin'

not the best picture - my Cingular phone is not the greatest- however...it IS a picture.

R & R

I left the family for a couple of days. Greg took off work for 3 days and my friend, Tonya, and I went to W for a little R & R. I was super excited about going. I spoke at an appreciation dinner for the Baer Foundation, which is a national foster & adoption placement agency. Daniel hooked me up and I had a great time. Last year, Carl planned the event and I truly feel honored to have been included. I left lesson plans for Greg so that he could teach Abby while I was gone. They had a great time and I must say he did not miss a beat. He is a great dad.

I slept through the night - 2 nights in a row. No one woke me up, crawled into bed with me or laid sideways between me and my husband. This, honestly, is probably the first uninterrupted night's sleep I've had in years. It was very refreshing. We stayed at Amy's house about 30 min. outside of W. Did I mention that she doesn't have kids?

It was so comforting to spend time with friends that I have not seen in so long.

While I was gone, my friend, Christy, who was suppose to go to W with us- went to a Homeschool Curriculum Conference. She dissed us in order to make an educated "choice" about curriculum. I am so glad that she did because I was really planning on using whatever she chose. So, here is the plan for the Fields Family, thanks to Christy:
A Beka Math, Rod & Staff for Spelling, Grammer & Reading, Story of The World for History (Vol 2), The Backyard Scientist for Science & Prima Latina for Latin. Greg will work through a K-2 Philosophy Curriculum with Abby & Ellie one night a week. I am going to post later on this philosophy curriculum. I am SUPER excited about it.

We have had a hard week. Not with kids or work...just circumstances that seem to shake our footing. I tend to forget that everyday life is home schooling in it's purest form. I was reminded this week, as little ears listened curiously to whispered discussions and little eyes watched as emotions flowed, that our children are learners. They listen to our inflections, watch our smirks and stares and observe the causes of our tears.
What did I teach them this week? That I am needy...of praise, approval & false security.
What did they teach me?
All of the above.

"Life is short...Dance!"

The past couple of days have been great in relation to homeschooling. Today was the first time, since beginning January 3, that Abby gave the thumbs up to "being at home". Now, that could all change tomorrow...but for now she is enjoying it. She enjoys the schedule and the interaction. Today for instance...we went to an estate sale with my mom at 10, then to the bank and Walmart. We came home, ate lunch together, put Zoe to bed for her nap and then started school. We made coffee...she likes Decaf Hazelnut...this is my mom's fault- not mine...I had Sumatra. We sat at the table and discussed the rules for sentences...Then she copied the rules....
1.Sentences always begin with a capital letter.
2.Sentences always end with the proper punctuation.
3.Sentences always have a subject and a predicate.
ETC...
Then she wrote some sentences, found some subject nouns, some predicates....things that I had to review in order to teach her. How sad is that?
She worked in her Math book...then we went outside and sat on the porch with our coffee and began History. As you know, if you've read my blog even once- History is completely changing my perspective on everything. I LOVE it.

Well, She LOVED today because it was our second day to talk about India. On the first day that we discussed India, she did her map work and her narration exercise and then we watched a video. When we lived in Waco I picked up this video for $1.99 at HEB called "Train Ride through India". It is super cool and she was captivated by it.

Today was about Hinduism. This was especially interesting to her because we are Christians. So as I began to read to her the creation account from the Rig Veda, which is their holy book, she was immediately interested. I love this part of homeschooling. We take very serious our responsibility to indoctrinate our children. I also believe that it is very important for them to know that there are millions of people who are just as deliberate in following their god as we are in following Ours. They have an entire system of belief, theology, and ritual. We may not adhere to it...but I want them to know about it. I want them to "interact with these ideas". I think that it equips them to listen, speak and discuss in a more thorough and educated way. We had a great discussion. It was one of those times that I will forever replay in my mind. She was so engaged and communicated some "truths" very clearly that I really did not think that she had fully grasped. And she laughed as she drank her coffee saying, "I bet no one else gets to drink coffee while they're doing their school work"...as if she had "one-upped" every 7 year old in town.

The day was a gift from God. It was the 7 year mark of my dad's death. I dread it every year. And the week leading up to it is not any better. I was 9 when my mom married Woody...and I consider him my dad. He is who my children refer to as PawPaw. He died when Abby was 8 months old and my other girls never met him, had their picture made with him or tasted his homemade biscuits...But they will know him. Ellie, my 5 year old, on almost a monthly basis says, "Will we see PawPaw Woody in the New Heavens and the New Earth? Will he be able to walk really good?"...and I always engage her on this subject...because it reminds me, too. I am thoughtful of the verse in Psalms that says "The memory of the righteous will endure for generations." I think that one of the major reasons that I NEVER had the question, "If I adopt, will I love the child as much as I love the children that I birthed?"...is because I never questioned his love for me. I mean, we did not have the same DNA or the same blood running through our veins...but I KNOW that he loved me.

As I reflected upon the day today- how my mom struggled to occupy herself, how I was constantly pushing back emotion, and about my own family I felt "real". That sounds so weak in this "therapeutic" culture in which we live...but it's true. I felt like the freakin' Velveteen Rabbit. Alive because I had been loved...and worn out.

We ended our day today, with what is becoming customary- "We are Family" blaring from the speakers and all of us dancing crazy in the living room. The girls were all jumping and spinning and holding hands...they were laughing and oblivious. They have no idea how brief life is. They will...but not today or tomorrow...probably not for years. I am glad. I am happy that for now, their world is "full". They exude joy,life and hope. This is the gift that our kiddos give to us...their prescence. They are here...and their "being here" changes everything.

Getting use to it...

I am starting to get use to the constant interruptions that come from the kids. I am actually finding alot of humor in them. We were in the middle of a discussion last week about divorce when Abby said, "Hey, did you know that you can't lick your elbow? No one can."
There have been several statements made during these "heavier" discussions that have led me to believe that, "Kids really only want the ONE question that they are asking to be answered."
If you are in the middle of a discussion about The Punic War and your child wants to talk about how "some animals eat their first born" I say "Go with it." I mean this lets you know for sure that they have heard nothing that you have said about The Punic War -other than the word "Punic"....the one word that they will probably misuse, in public, at a very inappropriate time.

It's been 10 days...

It's been 10 days since my last post but I feel like it has been 100. Greg took the laptop with him to Waco for 2 days and the other 8 have just been extremely busy. To start with, LG did start an all day pre-school. She is going 3 days a week and in all honesty, I can tell a HUGE difference since she has begun. She is truly being stimulated and the schedule is great for her. Abby is still swinging away at Golf. I think she is doing great. However, she LOVES swimming. That is her all time favorite past-time.
I have been looking this week at different home school curriculum for the fall. I will have a 2nd grader and a kindergartener this next year and I need help scheduling. My friend and I met with another home school mom this week and she brought all of her books down and walked us through her "stuff". She uses A Beka .
Now, not to offend anyone...I have always said that I would never use this material. I'm not really sure why. I think that for a long time it was the only thing on the market...so everytime I talked with who was home schooled they would say, "Oh, we use A Beka." I'm not sure why I walked away from it...because I really like it. I think maybe it's because some of the students that I encountered, who were home schooled as kids, did not seem to know how to "interact with ideas" well. I honestly think that it has more to do with the family than the curriculum. It's like a friend of mine says, "If the parents are weird, than the kids are going to be weird."
Anyway, I will continue to do the history that we are doing now, probably 3 days a week. And, I will continue with Latin...probably 2 days a week. I really liked the workbooks, teacher's guides, etc....But the selling point was that it has the daily lesson plans already done for you- and it has a joint schedule for a Kindergartner and 2nd grader- if you are school for both of them. I am so pumped about that!!! I am finishing this year feeling like I have left something out. I know from talking to a couple of teachers around here that that is normal even if you are teaching in the classroom.
I am really enjoying the time that I am getting to spend with the kids while we are reading, doing math...etc. I feel like I am making an investment in them that is more than money can buy. It is really hard when we have a "battle of the wills"...and I have thought, "If she were in the classroom, she would not be talking to her teacher this way." The good thing is that - when she does lash out at me or want to be defiant, I can deal with her heart immediately. If her heart is not dealt with...she has gained nothing.

Plus the fact that I have to take a difficult look at my own heart when I find myself being easily angered, wanting things done to suit me rather than an alternate "just as correct" way or impatient.

I have some funny stories to write as soon as I can block off a chunk of time to write them. Here's a preview:
1. "No sir, I want the DYSON and you can either come out to my van and get my credit card to pay for it or I will buy one online today." ( I bought it...and love it....but the ladybug bean bag did not survive.)

2. "Mommy,why are wedding dresses white?"
"Well," I said, "Because it stands for purity."
"Mommy, What is purity?" she ask while looking at a "princess" dressed in a white wedding gown.
"It means that you're not out kissing alot of boys before you get married." (maybe not the exhaustive definition.)
"Well...." "I...um...."- "What does pink stand for?"

more to come-

Golf!

I don't think that I have ever posted about my motivation for starting Abby in Golf lessons. I had a girl's coach tell me that it was "like the #1 under used female athletic scholarship at universities" across the nation. Now, I did not research her statement...but it "felt right". :) I mean, how many girls were you in college with who were on a golf scholarship? Let's see...for me, that would be NONE. The second reason is because her former teacher had mentioned to me, and I agree with her, that Abby tends to give up easy. If she sees other kids turning their papers in, even if she isn't finished she will turn hers in. She has a tendency to not want to persevere and learn new things. Some of this is her personality...some of it laziness. Reminds me of myself. So I thought a sport that takes patience to learn and causes you to compete against, well, yourself...would be a good thing.
So, I called a golf pro at our local country club...which is a whole other story...because it's in a town smaller than the one I live in...and she started last week. Greg and I do NOT know how to play golf. I tried to hit a ball once...and well, I missed. We told Abby, "Look, you don't have to like golf, you don't have to play it everyday...but you have to stay in it for a couple of years and develop this skill." I'm thinking $. I mean, we have 4 daughters. We are paying not just for college -but also for weddings. So, we are having to "plan ahead".
Because she is home schooled, we had our lesson at 9 a.m. last Thursday morning. This was great because their were only a couple of guys and some senior citizens out there. Let me be honest..I wasn't expecting much. She's 7...and has never held a golf club, a bat, or anything resembling a "club". Mel, her instructor, Abby and myself, got into the golf cart and headed out. It was freezing by the way. He showed her how to position her feet, her arms, hold the club...just a regular introductory lesson. I am not kidding when I say this....She hit the first 3 out of 4 balls that he put down, and remembered her form...and they were really good hits. He said that in 8 years of teaching there- he had never had an adult or child hit the ball on their first try after his instruction. She loved it...she wants to go everyday. He said that she could really develop into a good player with time.

Let's all pray that this happens...and mommy gets a new car.