Our Typical Homeschool Day

Hi there!

It’s 4:30 pm in our household, and the school day is over. I’ve planned something quick for dinner, so I happen to have a few minutes to write this post. Today was a good one as far as getting all our school work done (this doesn’t always happen), so I figured I’d walk you through our day.

We started this morning pretty lazily (ok, that was all me). The kids had some new coloring books and other goodies from their visit to the police station yesterday, so they started playing and reading as soon as they woke up. I was still recovering from some very short nights earlier this week, so I half-slept in a bit more than usual.

Once I got going, I asked the older 2 kids to go get dressed while I got myself ready, and my preschooler continued playing on the floor. Then I asked them to set the table for breakfast while I got my youngest dressed.

After breakfast, I asked them to unload the dishwasher. As they did that, I sat down to update our accounts and check to see how our spending was matching our budget (we’re doing much better, but we still need to rein in our dining-out a bit). Realizing it had been more than half an hour and the dishwasher hadn’t been touched, I asked the kids again. They usually do this chore happily, but not today. Once they started though, they finished quickly and we were ready to start school.

We started with a quick lesson from “Manners Made Easy” by June Hines Moore. Then we did a few lessons from “First Language Lessons For The Well-Trained Mind: Level 2” by Jessie Wise. I tend to only do each subject once a week (except Math, which I do twice), so today I taught 5 of the lessons from “First Language Lessons.”

I found early on that I don’t do well teaching the same 5 – 10 subjects every day. So I learned that I would rather have one or two longer lessons, once a week. And my kids seem to respond better to that as well. During this time I gave my preschooler a busy box (or two) so he could play without interrupting. This never goes perfectly, but it does work well enough.

After we finished my 2 subjects, the kids have independent study in Reading, Memory work, and Piano. For the next 3 hours they worked on those and other softer skills, like working together, communicating clearly, and building and creating. All this activity included a break for lunch and recess, during which they proudly built a snowman, without adult help, by working together. I’ve found that sending them outside for recess before lunch works well for me. Today I made soup and hot chocolate to warm them up once they came inside.

Around 2:30 pm, I put my preschooler down for a nap and the other 2 did a little more reading and playing independently. They had already finished their other subjects, so I didn’t mind what activity they picked as long as it wasn’t TV. Realizing that he had finished his schoolwork early, my second grader asked to go on to Khan Academy and practice his computer programming. He’s really enjoying this “extra” schoolwork and gets so excited about his animations.

Now it’s 5:00 pm and I need to get supper going. My husband is usually home just before 6:00 pm, so we’ll eat around then.

I hope your day was great and filled with Blessings!
Sarah

True Feminism is About More Than Position

True feminism doesn’t match well with the world’s feminism. While I do believe the goals of feminism are noble, I can only see the degradation of a woman’s true power through the current tendency to jockey for a greater position or title.

I understand that in all attempts to improve something, people and even societies usually go past their mark to an extreme, before returning and finding the sweet spot. In fact, this swing can happen multiple times, like a pendulum, before resting in the center. However, I think it is time for the voices of women on the other side of the spectrum to be heard in order to bring the pendulum back closer to the center.

So, what do I feel is missing in modern day feminism? —

Only the source of a woman’s greatest power and influence:

Motherhood

Through motherhood, women are at their highest level of influence. Women guide and direct everything about the little lives for whom they are responsible. We teach them what to believe in, what is important, what to learn. We groom them, nurture them, steer them in the directions they will follow their whole lives. We have all power over their little lives, if we are willing to give up all thoughts of self. They notice when we care for them and respond by following the path we lay out for them.

Now I know, I’m describing a perfect, theoretical child. I know as well as the next mom, that every child at some point (usually around an age ending in “teen”) decides to rebel against the best laid paths of mom. And usually this rebellion causes endless sleepless nights to the poor overwhelmed mother. This being understood, many children will still return to the patterns and programming built in by said mother. For better or worse, mother remains the most influential individual in most people’s lives.

So I propose that as women, we need to speak up more about this powerful position and help those around us to understand and support it more. I know that as we come to understand it and exercise it better ourselves, either as a biological, step, adoptive, foster, grand, part-time, surrogate, or unofficial (including teacher, aunt, nanny, next-door neighbor, mentor, etc.) mother; that we will empower our gender all over the world to become stronger and more influential.

Blessings!
Sarah

 

Photo by Suhyeon Choi on Unsplash

Small Steps Can Heal the World

Hi there,

Do you struggle, like me, to know if you’ve helped heal the world at all today?

There are great and terrible evils afflicting us in these days, and I wonder often if I have done anything to help. And even more, I wonder if my small deeds and small prayers have made anything better.

These are troubling times we live in, the world around us is seeming to go mad, even our own loved ones in some cases (like mine). The attacks of our adversary are hitting closer and closer to home.

I don’t know about you, but visiting with my loved ones over the holidays was a discouraging experience. I have family who used to be my closest allies, who now throw nasty little jabs into our conversations. Worst yet, I worry that I am guilty of the same. After all, can’t they see that their position is just plain crazy?! But of course they can’t see it, in fact, they think the same thing about me.

The fundamental divide that is wedging itself between us, encompasses every aspect of life. Once upon a time, not that long ago, you could have a civil conversion with anyone about anything as long as you steered clear of politics and religion. But now nothing is safe, not sports, not the weather, not what you had for supper, and not your little girl’s favorite color.

The constant debate is exhausting. I’m worn out. I want to reach across the divide and draw my estranged family members closer to me, but I also want to run away to a quiet farm in the middle of nowhere and not emerge till the Savior comes.

So I do what I can, I ignore and forgive the snide comments. I overcome the urge to avoid my relatives. I attempt to walk with Grace. I try to help us heal, even if it’s only a little bit. Maybe if we all do a little bit, we can close the divide a lot. After all, “by small and simple things are great things brought to pass.”

Blessings!
Sarah

 

Photo by Mikito Tateisi on Unsplash