More summertime fun to post...

but it took me forever to get the pics on the computer, and now I need to go to bed. So hopefully, that will come soon. For now, read our school post:) Can't believe the summer is over for us and the school year has started! It is a good thing:)

Polaris Press: The Beginning

We have started! We actually started on August 8th. Our first week was half-days with our Unit Study on Chocolate (from Amanda Bennett). Too fun! The kids slowly got into it and I would say 2 really good, positive school days. The others were a little rough. We topped the week off with a trip to the local chocolate factory where we didn't see any Oompa-Loompas but we did sample many tasty treats! It was yummy though I must say, gourmet chocolate is wasted on me. I like cheap chocolate just as much, or even more!

This week, we are starting in on a regular routine...which will probably change a million times between now and the end:) Here's the daily plan:

10am
Start with Read Aloud (goes with the unit study) and 2 vocab words a day (on index cards on a ring to keep throughout the year)

10:30
Unit Study (Amanda Bennett's Download and Go's) This includes writing, reading comprehension, history, science, art projects, etc....

Noon
Recess and Lunch

1:30
Spelling and Grammer (All About Spelling)

2:00
Math
Natalie-Alpha Omega Life Pac
Levi- Math U See with drills on the computer

2:30
Silent Reading (30 minutes)

*George is teaching Chinese on Wednesday nights
*I would like to fit in copywork using scripture mastery scriptures as soon as get the scriptures prepped and ready to go so that will fit in somewhere

So this is the ideal day. But there are many days when this just doesn't work out. Like Monday, we went to the zoo to kick off our rainforest unit study. Only reading was done at home. Wednesdays, we soon will start gym and swim classes at the YMCA and will have Lego Club and that will fill up the day. Thursdays, twice a month, we meet with our co-op group in the morning and that is in place of our unit study. And Friday is a field trip day, if we have one planned. Can I tell you, I just LOVE homeschooling!

A new post because I am so sick of seeing...

Potty Failure #2. So I will add potty training failure #3 to the list. This time, I wasn't taking no for an answer! The program was "Potty Training in One Day". It involved the usual rewards and such, but the new thing was a consequence when accidents occured. Potty Practice Runs we called them. 5 times, from different places in the house, the mom and PT-ing child run to the potty and practice. This worked once. From then on, he just collapsed and I had to carry/drag him around the house. Boo. We started Wednesday and on Saturday, I said, "Diapers or Underwear?" He said, "Diapers!" so that's where we stand at the moment. This was a huge power struggle and I wasn't up for it. He started having bad behaviors in other ways, to assert his independence and show his power. It was ugly. We are better now, though I am taking advice for PT round #4:)

Potty Training Failure

OK, this was time #2 and it didn't take. Granted, I had to prep for a camping vacation on Wednesday, so I put him back in a diaper, but this was after he played outside in poopy underwear for 30 minutes at Grandma's. I mean really. How can I potty train a kid who has no problem sitting in his feces for that long??? So, I think I will wait until he leads. It's just not worth the fight! Plus, with my oldest two, I waited so long that they just potty trained themselves. Maybe I am just lazy? Probably:)

Update on PT

Seth woke up this morning and said, "Do I potty train?" with a dry diaper!!! Yay!!! Maybe we have turned a corner here. Let's hope so:)

Just a quickie...

Potty Training this week. Yes, it's the second time for this kid. And hopefully, the last:)

Summertime!

I know I need to post, really, I do. But, I don't have the motivation to get the pics off the camera and who wants to read a post with no pics??? So, I will give you an update of what we have been doing with our summer and post pics later:)

Our summer will be about 6 weeks long. We plan to start back to school on August 8th. Here are a few things we have had fun doing this summer, in no particular order:

• Visiting with my brother and sister in law and their cutie kids last weekend. We always have so much fun getting together with them. My brother just makes me laugh and laugh!

• 4th of July! We had a packed day. Started with a church breakfast, then a neighborhood bike parade (complete with bounce house, pizza and a ride in the Hostage Recovery police tank thing), cotton candy with our good friends the Hansens (they made it!), on to canoeing in a near-by lake with Grandma and Grandpa Jones, home for dinner and then back out to the in-laws for root beer floats and a kickin' fireworks show. We may have overspent on fireworks this year, but, in my opinion, TOTALLY worth it! I love fireworks! We came home, put the kids to bed and went back out to light the rest of the big stuff. Awesome!

• Lego Club. This is our school year activity that we have continued and it has been great for the kids because the group is smaller than usual and nice for me, because I get to spend 2 hours chatting with my Lego mommy buddies! Love it!

• Parks. We have met homeschool and church friends at lots of different parks and splash parks. This has been so much fun to do and not have to worry about how we are going to get all of our school work done:)

• Went to the local public pool for the first time and the kids seemed to really enjoy that. Seth only had to pulled out of the deep end 2 times (he did have on a life jacket) so I consider that a success!

• Library trips. We have gone to a few summer programs they have put on and also have just enjoyed going and finding books. The kids are doing the summer reading program and have earned tickets to see the local minor league baseball team later in the summer. We love doing that as well!

• Planning a camping trip. We are going on Thursday and I hope it will be great. My family has camped since I was little, but we always went for 1-2 weeks way up north in Wisconsin. I don't even know what it's like to camp here, where it doesn't cool down at night and surprise thunderstorms in the summer aren't unusual. Plus, getting everything out for only 2 nights? I AM excited, I just hope it's worth it:)

• The kids have done lego camp, farm camp, and ballet lessons. Seth didn't get to go to a "camp", so the kids made a "train camp" for him one morning. They lined up all the chairs in the house to make a huge train. Then they all drew really cool train pictures that he got to hang up on the wall by his new big bed (he's on the bottom of bunk beds with Sam now). So cute!

• Hot Air Balloon competition. Friday, we went to see these hot air balloons in a city north of us. It was amazing! They stretched the balloons out all over this small airport and then filled them. They were probably 100 feet away from us. It was awesome! We met up with some friends who had saved us front row seats and it was seriously one of the most impressive things I have seen. I loved it! We didn't stay too long, but plan on going next year and staying for the whole evening.

• I helped bring a baby into the world. A miracle that I was so blessed to witness! I have to figure out how to become a professional doula, because honestly, this is my calling in life!!! I am so grateful my friend Abbey wanted me there!

• Girls nights. Movies, hanging out, eating, parties. Fun, fun, fun!!

So, that's what I can think of so far! I am sure that I have forgotten a bunch of things. My favorite part is being able to hang out with my friends and family. I miss this during the school year! Makes for a fun summer:) Hope you all are enjoying your summers as well!