My father always said I couldn't walk and chew gum at the same time. I would have argued with him, but I was too busy falling on my face. Despite my lack of coordination, I have been pretty lucky. I have only ever broken three bones in my lifetime. The first time I broke a bone, I was in my early twenties; it was my ankle. I was taking the stairs two at a time at work, and rolled my ankle, landing on it, from one step to the ground floor. I broke my foot in three places. (My friends' response to that? "Don't go there, anymore!" Get it? Yeah, it wasn't that funny then, either). After that, over the years, I have broken my little toe, twice. The first time, I hit my son's Rescue Heroes fire truck. The second time, I slammed my toe into the Lego table, and I went one way, the toe went the other. Let me just say: "OW."
Honestly, though, when I twisted my ankle this weekend by taking a wrong step from the sidewalk into the flower bed, it really, really hurt. I have spent the last few days icing it and finally went to the doctor on Tuesday because I feared I had broken my foot. Thankfully, I managed to save the iPad from plummeting to the cement in what would have been a certain death. The fall I took instead was a small price to pay, but I paid dearly. The verdict: severe ankle sprain. I actually pulled some tendons. The doctor gave me a brace and I am supposed to gradually start bearing weight on it. But for now, I am mostly confined to the couch with my foot up while everyone else around me is a whirling dervish trying to accomplish what is day-to-day routine for me: cleaning, cooking, taking care of pets, driving kids where they need to go... You would think I am enjoying this, but I can't. I don't do well being waited upon. And I really don't do well watching other people work and not accomplish things to my standards. So I am constantly getting up to do things, and my family is constantly making me sit on the couch again. Very frustrating.
When I do venture off the couch, it's slow going. I can't walk fast at all, I sort of shuffle around, dragging my bad ankle behind me. Right now, I am looking at a least a few weeks of the "zombie shuffle." So much fun. I sit on the couch, and the cat lies down on the blanket next to me. With the walking stick and the cat I am one shark tank away from being a super-villain, I suppose. I would also like a trap door, please.
Still, all is not lost. At least I match my toenails, now. It's something.
As the school year winds down, I am reminded of an exchange I had recently with a colleague. We were discussing our blogs and our families, and school came up.
“Oh, that’s right, you homeschool. When do you finish?”
That question took me by surprise, not because it was asked, but because I wasn’t sure how to answer it. I mentioned something about summer, and how we had activities planned, and changed the subject. I don’t think she even noticed. The truth is, I never “finish.”
You know that awkward review time that teachers have for the first couple of months after summer break? Where they can’t really teach anything new for fear the kids don’t remember what they were taught the year before? I don’t have that. I learned long ago that my kids don’t retain much over the summer if we take a 2 or 3 month break. So? We don’t break.
We scale back, maybe. Do less than we would normally, but we keep on keeping on. And my kids progress. Don’t get me wrong, we do all the fun things over the summer that you do. We go to the park. We go to the beach. We swim. We just do our school first. And sometimes, we even do it at those places. It keeps my kids in a routine, and when it comes to autism, routines are good.
If I gave my son a months’ long break? I would never get him back into schoolwork again. He is all about what he always does and a week of the same thing means it's a habit. He needs that structure. If I allowed my little one to take a break that long? We would lose much of the ground gained in her reading and math. She continues to see her speech and reading tutor throughout the summer. She also does vision therapy.
I suppose my oldest would be fine; but I have never had to push her academically. She pushes herself hard enough for the both of us. But she putters around and will finish her Psychology and get a jumpstart on her math for next year. I also expect she will pre-read some of the books for her government class next year to make it a bit easier.
How does year-round school work, you ask? Don’t the kids get burnt out? Not really. For once, we don’t worry about taking a break here and there. I take a break for almost a month around the holidays. (we always keep our foot in something, to keep up routine) and if we want to take off on an impromptu visit to the grandparents in another state for a week, we can. If we travel, we can throw in some area history, or a museum visit.
Here’s the thing: homeschooling isn’t just schooling at home. It’s a way of life. It’s a way of looking at life, to see what you can learn. Every experience can teach us something. My daughter learned to count at the grocery store. My son learned about life science through gardening. Is it more work to live this way? I don’t think so. I am actually one of the least-motivated people you will meet, to be honest.
I attend homeschool conventions and think, “When would I have time to do that? Formal planning doesn’t work really well here. At the beginning of the year, I do a master lesson plan for each child. We rarely finish it on the schedule I set. That’s not the point. The plan is the point. And we eventually do get done with those books, and those lessons and that plan. We just move on to the next plan. I am a learner. I am happiest when I am learning. I want my children to discover that joy of “Aha! I didn’t know that!” Showing them that learning is a way of life is how I do it.
Today dawned cold and rainy. I think there is some confusion as to our locale, hello? If I wanted to live in the Pacific NorthWET, I would move to Seattle, which is about as cool and hip as you can get, if you don't mind being a duck and/or being suicidal wet the majority of the time.
I personally do not like being either, so I live in beautiful, sunny (hello?!) Southern California. So. Anyway...the bunny decided he doesn't like moist fur, so he waited until after noon to hide the eggs. And he was sneaky. I sent JNerd out out with JBean to get cookies for Easter brunch with our extended family. Then with the help of JBug, the eggs were "dealt with" and placed just so. Then I left in the van with JBug and JBear, calling JNerd so that he could return and she could "find" the bunny's handiwork. I came right back because I "forgot my wallet." Mission accomplished. I don't have one picture because I was protecting my camera from the wet conditions. But take my word for it, she had fun.
Afterwards, we headed over to my sister-in-law's who generously hosts all 18 of us for brunch. My ultra-cool brothers-in-law supplied amazing cocktails, which always makes things better. Good food, good conversation...I am very fortunate to have the family that I do. There is no way I can get a picture of all of us, so here are a few of the kids.
Seems I am always apologizing for not writing more often these days. I have a really, really good excuse this time, though. So be nice to me, I am an emotional basket case currently.
Poppy, my Newfoundland, is now 13 months old, and it was time for her to be spayed. I did all due diligence, and trust my vet implicitly. We decided, at the same time, to do what is known as a "gastropexy" which is basically a stomach tack. The stomach is moved about 1.5 inches, and stitched to the abdominal wall. It sounds barbaric, but I assure you, it is actually helpful. Some background:
Broad-chested dogs can have a problem that we refer to as "bloat." This means that the stomach fills with gas, and cannot escape. Often when this happens, the stomach twists, which is called torsion. It cuts off the blood supply and you have roughly a half-hour to get the dog to the vet, or you are going to lose her. Bloat is a concern, because we really don't know what causes it. Some say elevated feeding bowls, some say bowls on the floor. Too much water, stress... there are many thoughts, but no one really can pinpoint which dog will suffer from it. So while we had her there for her spay, we went ahead and had the gastropexy done, as well. If it keeps her alive, it was worth it.
Now that you know that, you will better understand the next part. The day we brought her home, within two hours I could tell she was in pain. So I drove the 30 minutes back to the vet's office to get her medicine. That first night, she was drugged out of her mind, but didn't have a lot of pain. By Friday, she had some pain but it seemed mostly controlled. She wouldn't stop licking, so we bought a "cone of shame" and put it on her for nighttime, since we couldn't watch her while we were sleeping. The rest of that night, she would alternatively wake up crashing around, or just stand and refuse to lie down. For two nights now, I have been awoken with an adrenalin rush because she refuses to settle for long. I am exhausted. Luckily, today is Saturday, and JNerd let me sleep in once the dog finally collapsed into sleep.
Skip to now. Today, Saturday, she is in pain. Panting, and standing, pacing a bit. She is eating, so that's good. I drove to the vet's office again and picked up an anti-inflammatory, to try bring down the swelling. Poor thing will lie down, and then jump back up quickly. I think the incision or the razor burn are very uncomfortable. If she isn't better tomorrow, I will be bringing her to the vet. She is absolutely NOT herself, at all. I wish there was more I could do. Her meds are delivered via vanilla ice cream, the thing she loves more than anything in the world. At least there is that bright spot in all of this. But honestly?
I am not a fan of the holidays. I know, hard to believe, right? My mother is a huge lover of the Christmas season. She would bake for days, shop, and stay up all night to wrap presents on Christmas Eve. Her packages were works of art. The magical mornings of peeking at the tree while it was still dark to find that Santa had been there and artfully arranged the presents are some of the best memories of my childhood. And I want my children to have that, I do. And I try to do all of the things my mother did, but I just...can't. And so. I pretty much hate Christmas.
Every year I tell myself it will be different. I will start earlier. I will have a better attitude. But by mid-December I am usually stressed out, ready to curl up in a fetal position, and wait for it all to be over. Instead, I pull myself up, give myself a good talking-to, and finish the preparations at the last minute amidst much self-loathing. It isn't fun.
And this year? Is going to be even less fun. My eldest, JBug, goes in for spinal surgery on the 15th of December, which means I have to have everything done TEN days earlier than usual. She will be in the hospital for at least five days, but should be home for Christmas. So I will have little time to scour the shops, maul the mall, or gilt the gift. I have to just get it over with quickly.
So on that note, I am trying to get into the spirit faster than usual, which is why I found this little video of Newfoundland dogs dressed up for Christmas and carrying things in carts. I hope it brings you joy.
What do you do when the kids are fighting and the dog won't listen to you and you can't find your favorite shoe and you are running late? If you are crAZY, like me? Why, you attend the circus, of course. Nothing like a dog and pony show to make you realize how easy your life is, yeah?
So,Wednesday night, we piled into the car, and on the way stopped for what we hoped would be a quick bite at McDonalds (yeah, I know, but we were out of time). It took 15 minutes and the fries still weren't ready. In exasperation, I got my money back. I was really nice about it, and didn't mention that I was a blogger. The same could not be said for the woman next to me. She announced, rather grandly, for all to hear that she was a blogger and that everyone reads her, and she got FREE tickets to the circus, and they were premium seats... really? How come I have never heard of you? Why aren't you part of Blog Crush? Why haven't I seen you at events? On twitter? Orange County bloggers are tight...so you couldn't be that "famous." Really? This is how you want bloggers to be represented? Because you are giving them a bad name. Act thankful, for cheese and crackers! You aren't owed these perks because you are a blogger. You are given a privilege. And don't forget it. I never do. It could end tomorrow. And guess what? I would still be writing. Because? I am not in it for the free crap. I write because I love it. Can "review blogs" say the same?
After what amounted to dinner (the kids ate the burgers without fries.I inhaled half of my pukeburger in the car on the way there), we hightailed it to the Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus at Honda Center. We got there just in time for the pre-show, and posed for a picture. (Did I mention that my JBean is afraid of clowns? And look what she did.
This year's show, Funundrum, took its cue from other big-ticket productions like The Lion King and Cirque Du Soleil. With music, special effects and the standard circus-y acts, the show was updated for the fickle audience our children have become. Video games, cable tv and big-budget blockbusters have conspired to erode family events like the circus. But you wouldn't know it. Opening night, the place was packed.
My kids really enjoyed it, and that's what it's all about. This isn't your father's circus, anymore. While I found some of the show forced, the kids oohed and aahed over the elephants, the Ringmaster, the trapeze. And seeing their faces made it worth the time for me.
You can go, too!
Take the whole family to Barnum’s FUNundrum…MOM Discount extended to include weekend performances!
Family 4-Pack of tickets $48
Regular ticket prices - $15, $20, $25
To redeem, use code MOM by phone at 1-800-745-3000 or online at Ticketmaster.com to redeem your savings!
fine print:
(Savings do not apply to Circus Celebrity, Front Row and VIP seats. No double discounts. Service charges and handling fees may apply.)
Have fun!
T,
who thought my life was a dog & pony show
I didn't get paid to write this. I was given tickets to the circus, though.
- Posted from my iPad
It was the poodles. Small, furry piles of whirling dervish. They jumped through hoops and pranced around in their floofy white and grey coats all pretty as you please. They were eager to perform. And we were eager to watch. With a flourish, the trainer raised her arms, and the dogs came flying over her head. The audience gasped, then clapped. It was to be expected. We were at the circus.
And this year, we get to go again, as Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey come to Orange County in July. And, in preparation, there is a contest.
Nominations are currently being accepted for “The Barnum Award,” a Southland search to honor three stand-out kids who are making a difference in our community.You can nominate a child between the ages of 8-14 who is demonstrating the entrepreneurial and philanthropic spirit of P.T. Barnum. Nominating is easy, by answering a few brief questions on the online application at The Barnum Award. First, second and third place winners will receive cash prizes to continue their service. The award ceremony will be on opening night at the Honda Center, July 28th.
And..as if that wasn't enough, you can get discount tickets!
MOM Ticket Discount –
The multi-ticket discount returns this summer, with a special $48 Family Four-Pack Offer on select performances or $4 off single ticket prices on select shows. The discount can be redeemed online at www.ticketmaster.com or by calling (800) 745-3000 . To redeem, use the discount code “MOM”.
T, who says send in the clowns
I did not get paid to write this, but I do get tickets to see the awesome poodles.
I am starting a new "thing" here at Send Chocolate Now... vlogging! Yes, I, your intrepid hostie will be regaling you with my vim, vigor and viciousness silliness about once a week. Or so. If the kids cooperate. Or something.
Without further ado... Sweet Bits.
These are the voyages of the Mom. Her lifelong mission: to explore some time to herself. To seek out some peace and some quiet. To boldly do things alone.
Today found me, at 5:30 in the morning, lying sleepless, waiting for my dog to die. I listened to her breathe, and prayed it wasn't Parvo. For those who don't know, Parvo is an extremely serious disease in puppies. Attacking the digestive system, it causes bloody diarrhea and vomiting. It hits hard, it hits fast, and it has about a 70% survival rate. Puppies that are unvaccinated mostly die. Puppies that are vaccinated can still get it; Poppy is finished with her vaccinations. There is no cure, once the dog develops the disease. Hospitalization, I.V. hydration and antibiotics are about all that can be done. Then nature takes its course.
I remember when I was a kid, my brother had an amazing boxer puppy my dad brought home from a friend. The pup was about 5 months old, and developed parvo. It was horrific. He couldn't stand, he was shaking, bloody poop and vomiting a foul brown liquid. He was gone within 12 hours. So, with Parvo, time is of the essence, and I was panicked, waiting for the vet to open. I didn't want to overreact, but I was concerned. Earlier in the night, Poppy had very loose poops. On the kitchen floor. Then, the pup who has been sleeping through the night woke up twice, once at 3:30 a.m. to poop and again at 5:30 a.m. She didn't make it outside that time, she just couldn't hold it. Lethargic and not very hungry, she just laid on the floor.
At one point, she was sleeping so soundly that she didn't look like she was alive. I revisited that moment of horror I used to feel when I brought my newborn home for the first time, would wake up and think, in a blind panic, "The baby is not breathing!" Crib death was a huge fear for me. The fact that I had a friend with a newborn who died of S.I.D.S. made the possibility even more real to me. But, of course, they baby was always breathing, it was just hard to tell sometimes.
Enter today. I called my puppy's name, and she didn't respond. I fought nausea and panic, and shook her, and she slowly raised her head, looking at me blearily.
I called the vet, as soon as they were open, and we headed down there. It's a bit of a trip from here, but at that point, Poppy had perked up a bit, and I wasn't quite as worried. The vet did a test for parvo, for gardia (a parasite) and for cocchia. She was negative for parvo, and for gardia. Still waiting to hear about cocchia. In the meantime, we are resting her digestive system and she isn't happy with me, because she isn't able to eat. I gave her some of the broad-spectrum antibiotic that the vet gave us for her, and she seems to be doing a lot better.
I questioned what caused her stomach upset: new foods, a trip to the dog park, stress.
The mystery was solved when JBear found a small, finger-sized bag of mini m&m's that were mostly gone. Aha! Chocolate is anathema to dogs. It is toxic, due to the theobromine in it. They can get very sick, and even die from getting into chocolate. And I had been soooo careful, but we think she found this bag wedged in between the cushions of the chair. We have no idea when she would have eaten it, because she is watched constantly. But eat it, she did.
While I recognize that I probably seemed like a paranoid first time mama, I am still glad I took her in. Absolutely better safe than sorry when it comes to puppies. She is feeling better, still a bit droopy. And.. $250 later, that was one expensive bag of m&m's.
I am bringing over my articles from Examiner, in the hopes that they may help or give you information you need or were not aware of. I start with dyslexia, because my son has it, and now we think my youngest may, as well. So it is a subject I know a bit about.
See if this sounds like your child:
He is very bright, but doesn't meet his potential.
It takes him longer to do his homework then you think it should.
His penmanship is messy, floating either above or below the line.
His spelling is almost indecipherable, vowels are almost nonexistent.
He is behind in reading and/or math, has had extra help and his academics just aren't improving.
If this sounds like your child, you might want to check out dyslexia.
Dyslexia is not recognized by many school districts, and chances are you will be told it is a "medical diagnosis" that the school isn't prepared to make. They may instead guide you to remediation for the individual areas in which your child is behind. This may work. But understand if dyslexia is the problem, it is not just merely an academic issue. It is a question of how your child's brain works to process information. Language is processed differently; Broca's area, responsible for speech production, and Wernike's area, responsible for understanding spoken language, have neurons connected differently. the Right Hemisphere of the brain is 10% larger. So there are actual physical differences with dyslexia. This can cause sequences, such as a reciting the alphabet, counting or rote memorization such as multiplication tables to be very difficult. It isn't the child, it's his brain.
Most parents are under the impression that a child with dyslexia will have trouble with spelling, and that's true. But there are so many more symptoms. The most common and publicized symptom is reversal of letters, but not for the reason most think. The child doesn''t see the word backwards. Due to their visual processing problem, that is often present with dyslexia, the child sees the word the right way, but writes or reads it wrong. Don't panic, if your child reverses letters early as they are learning to read and write. Many children do this. The concern would be if the reversals continue past the first couple of years.
Some other symptoms include:
* oral language (stuttering)
* articulation issues (trouble with L's, R's, M's and N's, S, sh, ch)
* auditory processing in how many sounds held onto
* significant auditory discrimination problems
* phonemic awareness problems
* reading difficulty (in processing language with his eyes)
* writing difficulty (language with hands, penmanship)
* trouble tying shoes
* difficulty with left & right
* difficulty sounding out new words
* can read a word fine on a page, then turn the page and not recognize it
There is no hard and fast test for dyslexia. But if your child has some of these symptoms, you may want to pursue help from an educational psychologist. Or, you can treat the symptoms with some coping skills. I am working on a pst about the various interventions available for the treatment of dyslexia. Stay tuned!
I thought it would be fun to revisit some of my earlier posts, from years ago...just to get an idea of how far we have come. So, I present:
"They're yukky!"
I looked at my second born, my son, as he sat there, wiggling, lip curled and looking askance. Maybe if he didn't look at them, they would disappear.
"I know you think that, but they are good for you. You need to eat a couple."
He didn't answer, but returned his attention to his plate, pushing his fork around with disinterest. Suddenly, he brightened. "I don't really have to eat them. It's not the law."
I held back a smile. "Well, actually, it is a law. Kids under ten must eat at least 1 bite of vegetables. It's California state law."
I nibbled my nail while I waited to hear his answer. He regarded his plate, then me. "Even peas?" he asked. "Yes son, even peas." I almost felt badly at the untruth I was spreading, but hey, a kid has to eat his peas!
He sighed heavily, then picked up his fork. "If I was President I wouldn't have to eat these," he said.
"I am pretty sure even the President has to eat his peas, too. I think it's the law."
"Well, the President breaks the law, right? He could break the Vegetable Law. After all, he listened to other peoples' phone calls without asking."
Oh oh, thought to myself, now you've done it. The kid clearly hears talk radio even when you think he's not listening.
I made a mental note to refrain from listening to talk radio when he is around. Kids don't need to be burdened with the politics of grown ups, really. And President Bush's actions, as confusing as they are for adults, must be completely flummoxing for a child.
Again, I sit here, left wondering, what do I tell my children? When I explain to them we all have authorities over us, that's just the way it is, how do I explain that the President believes himself to be above the law? And since the President is such an Everyguy, and every kid can be President, what possible recourse do I have when my son refuses to eat his peas?
by the way, I did tell my son there is no such law about peas. But the law for corn still stands.
It's been a little over a month now since Poppy came to live with us and all I can say is... wow. Wow, that she's such a sweet-natured obedient pup. Wow, that she requires so much work. Wow, that she sometimes doesn't want to listen. Just like kids. She has grown so fast! She is huge, already.
Still, it is so nice to have her with us. She has a crazy period around 9 at night, when all she wants to do is chew on the leash when she is taken outside. We are working on it. I am in the process of getting her enrolled in puppy classes, but so far she is doing quite well. She will sit, lie down, shake and even heel most of the time. We are still working on "come" but she is getting there. She does "leave it" and "off" pretty well. She is just squirrelly at times. What do you expect? She's a pup!
No one can handle her as well as I do. Even JNerd has a bit of trouble at times, but she will come around. What's hysterical is to watch how she obeys JBean! JBean is maybe 40 lbs. soaking wet. Poppy is 41.3 lbs as of Friday. But JBean says, "SIT." and Poppy sits. She will allow JBean to lead her by her collar to me. I don't really let her walk her yet. That may be soon. She really has an aura of power about her. And to think...JBean used to be afraid, bordering on phobia, of dogs!
Poppy has been good for us all. I have learned to actually get up in the morning, something I hate. But when 40+ lbs. th-thumps the bed next to you, as front paws end up on the bed and tongue lolls in your face? You get up. And pretty happily, I might add. I really look forward to our morning walk after breakfast!
So, all in all, it is working out well. I enjoy her, and she enjoys my treats. No really, she likes us all.
It's true what you've heard about Newfoundlands: they drool. And they shed (though she hasn't started, yet!) She has started to drool, so that's fun. I am doing a lot of laundry. Woo! Slimy jeans! I knew the risks. And talk about loving water? I have two bath towels in the kitchen to mop up water when she inevitably dumps or spills her water dish...on purpose. Yep. She loves to be wet. What's one more special-needs member of my family, you know? Besides, look at this face! How could you not love this?
And as, JBear says, Puppies are a lot of work. But puppy kisses are more than worth it.
One of the best things about homeschooling is that my kids have the opportunity to explore the things they are most interested in. JBug plays the piano, completely self-taught. She isn't a concert pianist, but she can play what she hears and likes. Pretty impressive.
On Friday, she held an impromptu photo shoot with her siblings. These are her pictures, taken completely by her...I just did a bit of photo tweaking. Clearly, she has an eye for photography, as well as an ear for music. Artistic, much?
What's better than kissing your brother? Making him grimace while doing it!
Autism Awareness month is almost half over, and if you don't already have your autism awareness t-shirt, what the heck are you waiting for?! Yes, I know we are already aware of autism, but believe it or not, I still run into people who don't know about autism! No, really. I swear. Like the sweet grandma at the grocery store who thought my daughter was just "overtired." So our job is not done, friends. I don't know about you, but I often don't want to have to tell people in so many words about my kids. I let my shirt speak for me. I know, I know, I don't have to tell them anything, but work with me here...
All the cool kids are wearing them… don't you want to be one of the cool kids? Well? Don't you? That there is my son, and he is the coolest of the cool. I didn't plan to have him wear red, it Just Happened. I enjoyed taking the pictures with him. He was a really good sport, as usual. He is used to Momma's bizarre bloggy requests. A t-shirt picture was easy! This is where I got mine…isn't it snazzy? Fits well, and hey, it's red! (yes, I know the "official" color for autism is blue, but I never claimed to like boxes much. Well, that is, unless they are small, blue and velvet and contain jewelry. Barring that, I think the red looks pretty good, don't you?
You know you want one! Go. Now. And just to sweeten the deal (because, after all, I an nothing if not sweet) Cheap? Shame on you! You can enter the following code for 10% off ANYTHING on the site Custom T-Shirts..but you know what you really want is an autism awareness shirt, right?
just enter the code at check out!
sendchoc10
T, who figures her favorite color this month is red
I was not compensated for this post, but I did receive a really cool t-shirt
picture taken with Canon T1i. Edited with Picnik which makes my photos look like a rock star. Or pro level. Or something.
Homeschooling can be a lot of fun. What? Stop laughing, no really. I mean, the times I lie awake at night worried that my son can't do Algebra and my daughter can't read well enough are just a million laughs. The stress and responsibility I feel when it seems the kids cannot function academically, socially or behaviorally the way I believe they should, well, it makes me want to drink. And I am not talking about Tang or Milk here, either. Send Mama a martini!
Often, though, when I feel like I have reached my limit…when I think I am doing my children a great disservice by schooling them at home and that they would be better off in a public school setting, with all of its weaknesses and the lack of placement for higher-functioning autism/Asperger's? Well,the kids go and make cognitive leaps, seemingly overnight. Almost like they have to prove me wrong. They show me that it isn't that bad, and that it always gets better. Or, you drink. Something the kids didn't show me. And just an aside, I talk about drinking, but do very little of it. It doesn't make a very good coping mechanism, to be honest. Karate works better. And yoga. And screaming. In the car, with the windows up. By myself. I tried it once with the kids in the car, and they flipped out. Thought I grew two heads. Note to self: save the theatrics for alone time, mama!
In any case, I have been laboring over my daughter's lack of reading fluency. This week, JBean started to read. And she did it the way her brother did…which is what I kept telling myself, even as I second-guessed her progress. "She will get there, and it will seem almost overnight." This is my wakeup mantra when I want to close the book on the whole homeschool experiment. One morning she woke up, wanted to read with me. I obliged. One hundred pages of Dick & Jane later? She is finally a reader, in her own mind. I knew she could read, but she didn't want to call herself a reader, she thought she wasn't "good enough." Yes, she read all of those pages in one morning, and was still rarin' to go when I called No Joy and begged for a break. My ears were tired!
This morning,needing an audience for her newest parlor trick, she waylaid Poppy, our pup, to show her what she had learned. And, as they say, a picture is worth a thousand words:
So. I will keep homeschooling my children, because I believe that it works best for our family. They will continue to do outside activities and lessons and we will treasure this time together. They will grow and mature, and continue to trust themselves, as I try not to undermine that. And we will continue to love one another. That is, when we aren't wanting to hurl Nerf darts at one another. Although, now that I think about it...that could work. We'll just call it P.E. Kids need P.E. don't they? What did I do with that blasted Nerf gun?
T, who learns so much from homeschooling her children
"Life. slightly dark, cheaper than candy, and half as sweet."
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