Oh so much to say....

Well, we have had a busy week!!!!  We spent Thursday running errands, including getting the kiddos to the dentist for a routine checkup, which was way over due!  After that, we spent the afternoon catching up with an old friend - we all had the best time!!!! 

Then Friday we spent the afternoon with my husband's uncle, who we have not seen in 7 years!  Though my youngest was too little to remember, we last saw this uncle and aunt when she was 8 months old, she was the most excited to get to visit with them again!!!!!  We spent the whole afternoon and evening visiting and went out to dinner.  It really was terrific to catch up!!! 

In the misted of all the visiting, we nearly forgot that we were leaving for a camping trip the next day and still needed to pack!!!!  So, we quickly gathered our things, went to bed, and rose early the next morning to head out camping for three days with my oldest's Girl Scout troop. 

We had the most amazing time!!!!  We went hiking, learned archery, and learned how to do a low ropes course, all with the most fun EVER!!!!  It was so nice to get away from the hustle and bustle!!  It was relaxing and fun all at once!  It was a little warm in the afternoons, but the evening and morning were PERFECT!!!! 

We got back home Monday, and had a BUSY day Tuesday.  I had a meeting first thing in the morning, then my oldest had another dentist appointment to fix a tooth, and then I had another meeting!!!  In between, we managed to meet and buy a new puppy!!!  Today, it was nice to just be home!!  It rained all day, and was the perfect time to just be home!!!!  We cleaned the house and did school work - it was perfect!!!!! 

Can't wait!!!

I can't wait for next week!!!!  Even though it is going to be a busy week, I can't wait to get some new school stuff and start planning a new approach to some of our learning!!!!  I really feel this will give us better results and help me step back with my oldest and fill in some "holes" in her learning - gaps that got overlooked in public school, but this teacher notices and wants to change!!!!!!  The last of the stuff should get her tomorrow!!!!  Can't wait!!!  It will probably be the week of the 13th before we are able to start anything, since we will be gone this weekend and have a TON of stuff next week, but I still can't wait!!!!  I pray this will make a huge difference for my girls!  I'll let you know how it goes!

Camping...

Well, we are preparing to go camping with my daughter's Girl Scout troop, and we are all SO excited!!!!  We are going to a new camp this time and will have the opportunity to do some new and different activities, including archery and rope climbing!!!!  I love how Girl Scouts allows my girls to try new and different things!!!  It is awesome!!!!!  So glad we are a part of it, and have such an amazing leader who is willing to step out and lead these girls down some different paths!!!  Thanks Ginger!!!!

On my bookshelf...

I am still trying to figure this blogging thing out!!!  I keep trying to add a list of links to the side for this, but keep getting an error, so until then, I thought I would just post what is on my bookshelf.  I have dedicated to continually be reading a chapter a day in a book for myself, my marriage, and my parenting.  So, I am reading the book "Character Makeover" for myself.  It has been a real eyeopener, exposing me to humility, which I never really understood before.  I have discovered that I also have issues with pride, though not the boastful type.  I self-sabbatoge, but it is a type of pride, because I an cutting God down and not trusting him with the greatness of his power when I do this (ouch)!!!!  For marriage, I have been reading "The Power of a Praying Wife".  This has been an incredible book for opening my eyes to how my hubby sees some things and why he has an issue in some areas.  Men and women just look at things different!!!!  Prayer is the best way to allow God to work on you, your spouse, and your marriage!!!!!!  Pray continual for all aspects of your life that matter!!!!!  For my parenting, I am reading "Have a New Kid by Friday" (thanks Erin).  This is not so much about changing your kids, but changing the way you handle situations.  It has been really intriguing to see how this works!!  Just thought I would share!
Staci

Homeschooling curriculum

Well, I guess I should take a minute to tell you a little bit about our family.  I have been married to my husband for 15 years.  We have two girls, 10 and 7, who are in 5th and 2nd grades.  They have attended public school until this year.  We had several issues arise last year that "woke me up" to what they were dealing with in public school.  I had no problem with their teachers and the quality of education they were receiving.  I just did not like the negative influences we were experiencing with some of the other children!!!!  It seems this generation is not being taught the basics at home - respect, care for others, morals, etc.  God laid it on my heart in December of last year and I prayed about it.  Every few weeks something else happened that reinforced my desires to bring my kiddos home - from events at school, to things my girls would say, to services at church and things that came up in my devotional time with God.  I think it is the best decision I have ever made!!!!


We started homeschooling this summer.  We started by working on Math, Reading, and Language Arts over the summer.  We started out using Christian Light Publications.  Now, in August, we have started full force.  We are doing a state study - learning information about all 50 states in the order they entered statehood.  We are doing Apologia Zoology 3 - my girls wanted to learn about land animals, so I figured that is where we would start.  We also do a word of the day, on this day - interesting facts, and word ladders.  We are doing "What is the Bible all about for young explorers" for our Bible study along with a book of Bible stories. 

The journey of homeschooling can be quite overwhelming!!!  I never imagined all the curriculum choices and various things you could do!!!!  But we are getting it!  I have spent so much time researching as many of the choices as I can!!!  We started with Christian Light because some of our homeschooling friends use it.  I like it, but my girls didn't like it at first.  I have one who does good with that type of learning (workbook style) and one who doesn't.  So I have been looking at other options when we finish what we have. 

So far, I think we are going to switch to Wordly Wise for vocabulary and go through spelling rules and focus on each rule with a group of words for spelling.  We are going to finish Zoology and the state study.  After the state study, we are going to learn about how the government works and study past presidents.  For math, I am thinking of using Math-U-See.  I like the hands-on activities it incorporates.  I think for reading we are going to do independent and group reading and Tickettoread.com.  This is a great reasource for reading comprehension.  They do a good job making it fun!  We will continue our word of the day and on this day facts.  We will continue Bible stories, but when we finish that, we are going to do "What is God?" by Apologia.  I can't wait to start this!!!!  The girls LOVE Bible time!!!!  I'm also looking for a good character study for us to do to reinforce HOW we behave correctly and WHY.  I'll keep you posted on what I find!  We are also going to do some typing skills and piano.  We also plan to incorporate field trips into our schedule, which I can't wait for! 

Let the journey begin...

Welcome family and friends!  I thought it would be nice to document our new adventure homeschooling!  The moments fly by so quickly!  I don't want to forget anything!  So come along and join the jounrey with us!