But he's so social!!! How can you homeschool?

Ugh, how many times have I heard that since we started telling folks we were going to homeschool Music Man. People, that was the problem!!! He was TOO social at school! Music Man loves people. He loves to watch them, to see what they are doing, to mimic them. He gets super distracted just going to wash his hands before a meal. When you put him in a classroom (even a small one with only a few kids) he wants to see what each one is doing. Then another teacher comes in or the bell rings to change classes. Or it is time for a different activity. Then the speech therapist will come get someone for class. Oh the distractions in school-school!

Music Man needs quiet to concentrate. He needs to be one-on-one with a teacher or his assignment. He excels at the computer and concentrates hard when it is something he is interested in. The issue with school-school is that he cannot concentrate on something fully when there is so much going on. His resource teachers did the very best they could with him, but they had more than just him to teach. He couldn't be the center of attention with them. But he can with me!

Printable Telling Time Worksheets

Printable Telling Time Worksheets

All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth

Farm Boy finally let me pull his top tooth on Thursday evening. It has been loose a good while, but he was afraid to let me pull it on out. I had to promise him a whole dollar in order to pull it tonight but it came out easily thank goodness! I was really getting concerned it would fall out and choke him! The other one is also loose so he may be singing "All I Want for Christmas" this year for real!

Music Man's teeth usually came out because the permanent teeth were coming in. Farm Boy is losing them way before that so he ends up with the large gaps that most kids have when pulling teeth. This one actually looks like a crater it is so large!

Little Drummer Boy, Part 1

Music Man had his first drum lesson on Wednesday this week. He did so awesome! He listened intently to his teacher, Danny Garrett. He tapped on a practice pad and learned about the values of a whole, half, quarter and eighth note! Seeing him excited about learning make my heart skip a beat and made me nostalgic for band class. I so wanted to be a band director and hate I put down my contrabass once I left high school. Anyway, he's happy drumming and has kept rhythm perfectly since he could move. More to come ....

Homeschooling Special Kids Group

I created a new email group today for those homeschooling kids with special needs in the Athens, GA area.


http://groups.yahoo.com/group/homeschoolingspecialkids/

New Look

You have probably noticed things looks a little different. :) I love our new template, Falling Maple! Maples are one of my favorite trees and this time a year in north Georgia is incredible! When I saw this blog template, I knew I had to have it! I am working through the ins and outs of this new template and will hopefully have it completely functional by the end of this weekend. It comes from an awesome designer, Lena, who owns Simply Fabulous Blogger Templates. If you are a blogger who has to rely on the generosity of freebies, check her out!! She is amazing!!! She also has very inexpensive customizable premades, Premades with Purpose, to help raise money for their adoption expenses. Go read her story and buy a template, even if you don't need one! :)

Undershirts Under the Jammies!

My latest stress saver is having Music Man and Farm Boy put their undershirt on after their baths at night. Living in a older farm house with no central heat means mornings are chilly! The boys often complain about having to take off their warm jammies even after we heat up the room to change clothes in. We save time, stress and whining by putting their jammies on over an undershirt at night. It keeps them warmer on chilly nights and I don't have to listen to "I'm coold!!!" We personally love the Hanes Tagless. One Hanes Place has great prices too!

Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day

Today is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day, a day we can remember those babies gone from our life too soon. Please light a candle in your time zone at 7:00PM to remember all babies who were lost before they got a chance to live.


If you are in the Monroe, GA area, please join us at the Historic Courthouse tonight as we gather to pay tribute to our little ones.


Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Historic Courthouse

Monroe, GA

7:00PM


*Rain or Shine!*

The Zoe Foundation Charity

I had the pleasure of speaking with an incredible mother the end of last week. Out of the grief of losing her daughter, Zoe, she formed The Zoe Foundation Charity which will be providing funeral expenses to families who lose babies at or before birth. They are still in the beginning stages of developing their website, but they do have their first fundraiser planned for this coming Friday night in Savannah! If you are in the area and would like to participate, please contact them directly.

Zoe Foundation Charity

Pregnancy Loss Remembrance Day Service

Photo by natalicek

The public is invited to remember all babies lost at or before birth on

Pregnancy and Infant Loss
Remembrance Day
Candlelighting Service

Thursday, October 15, 2009
Historic Courthouse Square
Monroe, GA

Remembering Your Baby
www.rememberingyourbaby.org
770.207.1443

Homestead Academy: Calendar Math

We are beginning with the very basics of math (well, of every subject really!) Here is Music Man helping me organize our newly laminated calendar. He is putting them in number order and we will add them to our calendar later today.

FOM Dance - Dance Therapy for special needs children, Athens, GA

Noah is loving his dance therapy! They meet on Monday evenings from 4:45PM -5:30PM at Freedom of Movement Dance Academy in Bogart. Dance Therapy is offered free of charge for individuals with special needs! It is such a blessing for the kids and their families! Not only do they have a fantastic teacher, each student has their very own helper/assistant!! Please check them out if you are interested in dance classes of any kind!

FOM Dance - Dance Therapy for special needs children, Athens, GA

School-school

You may hear me talk about school-school occasionally. This is our term for public school. When we began exploring the idea of homeschooling, our boys would say things like "are you talking about real school or homeschool?" I had to quickly nix that line of thought and coined our new way of talking about public school. I did not want them to think of homeschool as not real or even pretend school. This comes, I guess, from the fact they both started in public school. *sigh*

Woo Hoo!!! We're back!

We finally have internet access again! I am so completely thrilled!!! I'll be blogging again regularly! So much has happened that I haven't blogged that I don't really know where to start. I'll begin sorting through posts and get them up as soon as possible. Jason has also started a blog.

Save the Date: Pregnancy and Infant Loss Day Oct 15

I have reserved the Historic Courthouse in Monroe, GA for our Pregnancy and Infant Loss Day Remembrance Service. Remembering Your Baby has hosted a service for the last two years in Hernando, MS. This year I will be hosting it in Monroe since I live here now.

If you are in the Hernando/Memphis area and want to volunteer to host the service, please let me know ASAP! I would love to see it continue to be help there!

All Heart Photography: The Chandler's

We had pictures done in July when one of our closest and dearest friends came for a visit. Here is a link to the full session (on her blog!)

All Heart Photography: The Chandler's

Happy Birthday to My Little Sis!

Today is my little sister's 34th birthday! Happy Birthday, Gyp! You are a wonderful mom, a dedicated daughter, loving aunt and awesome sister! I love you so much!

Two Weeks Down and 36 to Go!

No, I am not talking about a pregnancy!! We are two weeks into the school year and it has been a challenge already. My challenge is mainly due to Farm Boy being in public school while Music Man is at home with me. Music Man and I are doing great, (though he still asks (a lot) if he can go play while we are supposed to be doing our schoolwork.) I’ve been reading a lot about homeschooling and the consensus is, for those who do not homeschool from the beginning, that it takes one month (or more) for each year that a child was in public school to de-school and get into homeschool mode. Homeschool is so different. It is not stressful though patience is definitely something I am learning! Music Man thrives on routine so though we do not have to have every minute planned out like a classroom in public school, I do attempt to follow a schedule so he is in a routine. (I think I've found a great system - to be posted early next week!)

Our garden has become a challenge as well as what is left of it is ripening quickly and ready to be “put up.” Then there is the challenge of getting my night owl up for school, snuggled (hope he doesn’t grow out of that for a long time!) fed, dressed and to school on time while getting Music Man ready for our day as well. I can’t very well visit Farm Boy’s school in my pjs so I also have get myself somewhat presentable before we leave the house in the morning.

Farm Boy has to be at school no later than 8:25AM. We try to get out of the house around 8:00AM so he has a little time to “visit” before school starts. Music Man and I get back home around 8:30AM and try to start school about 9:00AM. I would love to start sooner, but usually we have to finish up a few chores before we can get started. We work until noon and then break for lunch. He usually wants to lay down after lunch and naps until we have to get Farm Boy from school. Music Man reads to me and we review in the car on the way to get Farm Boy and then they snack in the car after Farm Boy gets in. I give them a bit of free time when we get home. Farm Boy has the option of joining us at 4:00PM for afternoon reading time (he usually does) and then we break about 5:00PM for the evening. Occasionally we have to working a little longer in the afternoon depending on start time in the morning.

We will soon be adding our extra activities to the schedule: Upward Soccer for Farm Boy, Dance Therapy for Music Man, small group and hopefully drum lessons for Music Man – we are still working on that one. Anyway, that is an update in a nutshell.

New Code Names in Blog

I have decided to make my blog a little safer for my family and keep them a little more anonymous to the outside world. This also negates the need for password-protecting my site and allows people I do not know the opportunity to read it without having to subscribe with permission. For those who have been following my webpage-turned-blog since my oldest was a baby and we kept everyone up-to-date on his accomplishments, it may be a somewhat of a challenge to get into the code names I have chosen. Hopefully the picture key will help you keep up with who is who though I think they are pretty self explanatory if you really know my kids. :)

So without further ado, I introduce you to:

Music Man


Farm Boy

For ~Joeli~ on Her Sixth Birthday

Butterfly 2
Originally uploaded by Cupcake Land by ShamsD

Do not tell me she is in a better place -
Her place is here with her mother.

Do not tell me that God needed her -
God made all the angels he needed before time began.

Do not tell me you know how I feel -
You have not buried a child.

Do not tell me to get over it -
You never get over losing a piece of you.

Just tell me you love me.
That you remember her.
That you are here for me.
That you wish there was something you can do to ease my pain.

There is nothing you can do but it helps to hear you say it and to know you care.