What a difference a year makes

When we made the shift from homeschooling to enrolling our three bigs in the local public school last year, I felt like a failure. In the weeks between registering our children and them starting class, I worried and fretted over what this meant for their futures, and how they would be treated by the school system and their peers, as well as more mundane concerns like getting up and out the door every day and school clothes and supplies.

I haven't blogged much over this last school year, and what I did write didn't address the kids' schooling. This year has been a roller coaster in many ways, but the kids' school has been a blessedly stable, positive experience. The twins' teacher was wonderful, and my dd's teacher was reasonably good. They are all now reading, which is a huge, huge improvement. My dd is now getting the additional help and support she needs to overcome her newly-diagnosed learning disability.

It is wonderful to now have other caring adults invested in my children's education. Homeschooling is an excellent option for many families, and the season we spent schooling together was good in many ways. But with my dh traveling extensively, dd having an undiagnosed learning disability, and three littles home, too, I just couldn't continue.

School began yesterday. My 9yodd is in 4th grade, and the twins are in the same 3rd grade classroom. 5yods begins kindergarten next Monday, and went in for an evaluation this afternoon. So far we like all the kids' teachers, and have high hopes of having another very successful school year.

And when I hear my dd read a book to me, or listen to the twins quiz each other on their spelling words, or see my 5yods write his name, I see them succeeding--and I am grateful.

Because a wedding can turn into a circus...

My sister got engaged this past weekend, and our family is full of much rejoicing and laughter.

My 9yo daughter is in Oregon, spending two weeks with our family there, so her auntie got to ask her in person to be her flower girl. She was breathless with excitement on the phone when she told me later, "And O and C get to be the ringmasters!!!"

4/365

Yesterday while setting up the church, my 8yodd helped watch the bass player's twin toddler sons, and today she was unexpectedly given a check for babysitting--the very first money she's ever earned! She's SO proud of herself!

School catch-up

Winter is still here, despite the calendar telling us Spring began last week. Another storm last night covered the ground in snow. The kitties were offended by having wet paws when they went outside this morning, and quickly shook them off when they came back inside.

School isn't getting done today. We managed Bible and English, and I think we'll at least get Spelling done once the little guys go down for their afternoon naps. I'm already planning on Saturday being a catch-up day, to make up for our abbreviated day on Tuesday with the unexpected doctor's office visit and emergency room run. So far it looks like we'll have one lesson each of English and Spelling, and two lessons of Math and History. I may try to do two Math lessons tomorrow, so Saturday is less stressful.

Since we've made the change in homeschooling curriculum to Bob Jones textbooks with the lessons taught on video, our three bigs have made huge strides in their learning. They are all now reading, with a lot of hesitancy, but definitely decoding the words in the stories in their readers and understanding the meaning.

Today's reader story was the first time I've seen my 8yodd read with confidence. The story had a fair amount of repetition, and once she read through the beginning section she was able to continue on with almost no help from me. This was wonderful to see. My 8yodd often struggles with recognizing that she's read a word before, even if it was in the previous sentence. Listening to her read through today's short story without hesitancy was a beautiful thing.

We can read!

Today marks a momentous occasion: the day my three oldest children officially became readers.

We've been working on their sight words and using their phonics lessons to learn how to sound out what they don't recognize, and today it all came together as they each read the first story in their readers.

I'm so happy I could cry.

This has not come easily. My daughter has struggled in learning to read, and because she is the oldest our entire experience of homeschooling thus far has been frustrating, to say the least. We're on our fourth phonics curriculum. And I'm afraid that in my concern that my daughter not be the last reader among our three bigs I've held back my two boys, who have been ready to take off for some time, now. Even today, my daughter struggled and hesitated, needing several minutes to decode the pages while my boys read the text easily.

It's hard to watch her fight for what came so easily to me. I was an early, strong, voracious reader. I can't remember a time when I did not love books. But it seems that my daughter takes after her Daddy, who also struggled with reading in his early elementary years.

So tomorrow we'll be reading the next story in our readers, and will continue on in the days that follow. And hopefully by the end of our school year, I'll have three children who love books and reading, and have moved beyond learning the mechanics to being fluent readers.

Turning eight

Turning eight required some flexibility on her part, but the substantial pile of gifts eased 8yo dd's pain in having to delay our traditional outing to Chuck E. Cheese. Dh's sick day extended into the evening and tonight we're expecting a snow storm, so it looks like we'll be spending Valentine's Day evening spending hundreds of tokens in the blinking, blaring kiddie arcade.

Because I was planning on us having pizza out, dd and I had to run out for some last minute birthday dinner supplies. She requested hamburgers, tater tots, and sweet pickles, and picked out a chocolate heart-shaped cake and Neopolitan and Root Beer Float ice creams. I pretended to be healthy by serving dinner with lots of veggie sticks and dip.

We watched Magic in the Water during dinner and after presents, and my poor Bug cried when the monster died. Much rejoicing when it was resurrected, though, and even more rejoicing over the Hello, Kitty diary from her auntie.

All in all, a very good birthday for the girl.

Birthday breakfast

Today's birthday girl requested waffles for breakfast, a treat usually reserved for Saturday mornings when dh mans the waffle iron while I fend off the ravenous crowd. With today being a normal weekday (despite dh needing to take a sick day and sleeping on the couch), I had planned on our usual cold or hot cereal. But who could turn down this girl for anything, especially on the morning she turned eight?

Whole Wheat Waffles

4 cups whole wheat flour

2 Tbsp baking powder

1.5 tsp salt

3 cups milk

4 eggs, beaten

1.5 sticks butter, melted (12 Tbsp)

Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, mix wet ingredients. Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour in the liquids, stirring together quickly until mixed well. Bake in waffle iron, taking care not to overcook.

Tip: Kitchen scissors are great for cutting up waffles for short people.