Success!

Day One

Our first day of school in the home was a rousing success! The kids were enthusiastic and I thoroughly enjoyed being in teacher mode again!

At the end (well, it never really ends!), George asked for more--wow!

We are continuing after this little break with Social Studies before we meet Natan from his bus.

All four participated--Vinny and Natan just kind of wandered through and did what interested them--Mimi and George went whole hog!

Love my kids!

****

Going for my second adjustment tonight in the continuing saga of the back, throat, etc. issues.

Cannot take the Nexium or any other similar products as it turns out--very yucky side effects. So, I will see yet another doctor and see what kinds of food I should be avoiding, or what else I can do to take the swelling out of my vocal folds.

Have a horrible feeling that coffee may be a trigger--help!!!!!

Help!

OK.

Been to my regular MD--they ran tests for my thyroid and a host of other things.

Been to my ENT three times--am now on Nexium to stop my acid reflux which is not really having a tremendous effect.

Am shooting my nose with Nasonex twice a day.

Am avoiding ibuprofen and antihistamines.

Yes, I drink a ton of water in a day and have lowered my caffeine consumption.

No one knows why I have had laryngitis since 2007--started in the fall of that year and has been coming and going in different levels of severity ever since. There are times when I cannot read or sing to my kids. So, in my opinion, it is affecting my quality of life.

HELP!!!

My ENT, whom I like, just kind of held his head in his hands and sighed--he can see that my esophagus is irritated from the reflux, but he also sees that my vocal cords are swollen and on the verge of making a nodule--wonderful.

I am even seeing a Chiropractor...if you know me, you know this is a desperate situation!!

Any ideas? Suggestions?

Big Night!

Two major things last evening:

Natan spontaneously said the "Five Little Monkeys" rhyme at dinner...this is HUGE!!!!!!

Then, upon arrival home, Mimi pulled her tooth out!!!! Although excited that she received a dollar bill from the Tooth Fairy, she is a little pissed that the TF took her tooth.

Phew!

The free time we have enjoyed over the past six years has ended...

I am a mom of four, part time piano teacher, children's choir director, and now--full time Kindergarten teacher! Oh--and not to mention--house cleaner, cook, and resident bum wiper!

We are taking home schooling very seriously here.

This week we are getting used to the new schedule--morning lessons starting no late than 9:00, getting Natan on the bus mid-morning, lunch, free time, more lessons--throw in some piano teaching, piano practice for G and M, and then odds and sods!

Gone are the leisurely morning coffee and phone talks with Mum--they have to be put on hold until the evening...

Gone are the PJ days!

But we have a new kind of day--one filled with new ideas, new activities, reaching little milestones, and celebrating learning new things!

We are using a pretty popular standard curriculum which seems to be the choice for most. It was suggested by my HS guru that I combine this year and cover K and First--it looks like we may be able to do just that!

I no longer feel the trepidation I was feeling all summer--that was all school-related. We are all happy where we are right now...

Jason and I still don't understand people's anger toward our decision. No one has even asked "why" before berating us. Our pediatrician applauded our decision (yay!), which made me feel great simply because I respect her--she also knows our kids' histories better than anyone else and gets why we decided to do what we are doing...things are not always as black and white as people seem to think.

Now to teach some more piano lessons!!

Top Five Movie Picks

Top 5 movie picks in this house:

The Stoning of Soraya M.

A Single Man

The Greatest

Milk

It's Complicated

A Dollop of Daisy

Daisy had a great appointment yesterday at the vet--took Mimi & George with me. Mimi was in seventh heaven with two cats roaming free around the office. She wants to be a vet when she grows up so she can "have all the cats." Guess I won't be visiting her house! Sniffle...sniffle...achoo!

Daisy was great--needs a bit of instruction on the leash, but she is actually a sweet little girl. The only person who flinched during her fecal exam was George after I threatened to do one on him if he didn't sit still!

*******

School supplies are ordered, took a trip to the Schoolbox store (the mothership) and got a few more items. M and G are very excited about their first day of school. Jason encouraged me to start when his student return on the 16th, giving me more time to prepare which has taken a huge load off. I am not going into this lightly, as I am sure some assume. I have a plan book, as there will be weekly lesson plans to follow. The beauty is, we can spend more or less time on things as needed, and are not governed by the set time of 7:55-2:15 every day. I like the flexibility but still have to have a schedule.

Shout out to Claudette and Mert for their kind words--much appreciated!

Why?

I made a commitment to myself that I would no longer vent on my blog--that I would go back to using it as an online journal to share with my Mum, sister, and Aunt. I would put a password on it, but then my Mum and Aunt would never be able to access it--no offense, ladies!!!!

This is not a vent, but rather an expression of sadness and disappointment.

Jason and I figured that when we made the decision to educate at home, there would be flack from folks.

I just did not anticipate who that judgement would come from, although Jason said he is not at all surprised.

To clear some things up:

Over one million children in the United States are home schooled.

One of the main reasons to home school that we have read is that families want to be more of a family unit.

The more educated the parent, the better off the children will be. Cha-ching!

This is a decision that we have made as a family--if you are going to ignore or attack me, you darn well better treat Jason the same way.

Educating our kids and being a strong family unit are far more important than a friend or two.

The one thing that puzzles us the most is why people are so angry about this. What are they afraid of?

Jason is right: These few people do not matter.

He insists it is their loss.

I agree.

Made it!

Natan had a great first day of PK! He was excited to go, a little bummed that his bus was running late and had to be driven!

We met him as he came home on the bus--I could see his head over the top of the window, beaming and waving!

No hesitation, no anxiety...a kid who is where he needs to be for now.

And two very contented parents who know they have made the right decision for their children.

Ahhh....

First Day!

Ready for school!

Yes, Virginia..we are crazy!!!!

Yes, we have four children plus one on the way.

Yes, we are embarking on a "home based educational program."

Yes, Natan is entering Special Education PreK tomorrow.

Yes, we adopted Daisy yesterday--very playful little girl from Fayette County Animal Control!

Yes, some people think we're crazy.

And no, I don't care what they think!

"Thank you for your opinion, but we are doing what is best for our family."

Thank you, Sara, for my new mantra. It is indeed working!

Here is our new baby--very difficult to get a still photo!

Natan

We attended the orientation at Natan's school last night. Super nice teacher and Paraprofessional...he is very excited to be going on the bus every day and being in his own classroom.

Here he is in his new classroom with his teacher, Ms. Faith and his Para-pro, Ms. Carol.

Also signing Mimi up for Girl Scouts--hadn't even thought of this until I met a friend and troop leader last night. She is excited!

Jason and I have such a calm and good feeling about this year--very different from what we've been feeling over the past few months.

New day...

Lots of changes happening around here. All good. All exhaustively discussed over and over and over...

The decisions we make in this home are in the best interest of each and every individual, and of our family as a whole. We do not think we are above any one thing, we do not feel any kind of superiority. We just know what is in our heart and more importantly, our gut!!

Being a parent is about making the best choices for your children, even if those choices do not go along with what everyone else says you should do.

So, here is to being decisive and confident in a decision...and diving into every project with passion and no fear!

Mimi's 6th Birthday Montage

Today is Mimi's 6th birthday...time flies when you're having fun!!!!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Ode to Unca Dane

Sara, this is for you--I couldn't email it!!

Need a laugh??

Not the breast day ever...

Some of you out there may know of my plight in the bra area. I spent most of my pre-teen and teen years feeling self conscious and being teased about being flat chested.

Over the years, as an adult, I have come to realize that it really doesn't matter. In fact, I have come to see that I wouldn't want it any other way.

We hear constantly, "Be happy the way you are", "Beauty comes from within".

So I ask, WHY, when I walked into the Hanes store, was I bombarded by at least 500 bust enhancing, hugely padded bras?? And not one in my size.

I am not ashamed to be flat chested. People have laughed at me all my life for it. But why is that less acceptable than being a 38 or 40 DD--that seems unimaginable to carry around! And these massive bras were PADDED!!! What??

(FYI: In the men's section, nothing was padded. Perhaps men should start wearing padded underwear strung with wire and lift support...)

So, I was actually looking for a more grownup bra. Why am I not entitled to something pretty with color or satin or leopard print...why am I stuck wearing bralettes with no style?

I am being punished for having a flat chest.

Mimi did make a good point when we walked in the store: "Good thing Georgie isn't here--he's afraid of bras." And yes, he is!!!

More flags, more fun!

Spent today at Six Flags on a little impromptu jolly holiday! Walked around for over seven hours with no whining, no complaining, and no melt downs! We all had a blast, Jason got to ride some serious coasters, and the three big kids and I ended the day at 8:45 p.m. on "Thunder River"--soaked to the core!

I asked each of them what their high for the day was...Mimi said riding the roller coaster, George said, "Thunder River" and Natan said roller coaster. I will assume Vinny's was Thomas, where he had rocked it out earlier.

My high: Being reminded once again that I have these seriously amazing kids!

Now to drag Jason out of the pool and go to bed...

Forty & Sporty

Yesterday was Jason's 40th birthday! I managed to pull off a surprise party for him with good friends, GREAT entertainment provided by our good friend, Alan Ross, and my gift to Jason--a beautiful portrait by my dear friend and professional artist, Mary Liz Ingram of the "Jason Tree" complete with four pretty adorable kids!

The whole evening was fun, and Jason deserved every bit of it!

Check out Jason's birthday montage--points given for being able to guess the song title and singer--two of Jason's favorite artists:

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Dear Tim, I love you.

This is the REAL reason we drive 28 hours to Canada!!!!

Nothing beats Tim's.

This was the first one, right after we crossed the border from Maine to New Brunswick. Mmmmm....

Memories...

Photos from our recent trip home...with stops in D.C., Portsmouth, NH, Ontario, and Cleveland!

Our Canadian cousins in New Hampshire--hello!! Had a blast!!!!!!

Nana & Mimi on Papa's bench...that is Sara & Dwayne's osprey in the background.

With Auntie & Uncle

Hanging out with another cousin on the dirt pile!

"Oh yeah! Oh yeah! Oh yeah!"