Revamp

Hey guys! A few of you may be surprised to see my blog back... I took it down for a little while as I wasn't in much of a blogging mood. :) I'm tinkering around with a few things on my blog right now, like backgrounds and new gadgets, so bare with me! I should be up and running again soon. :)

So Excited About BOOKS!

Tomorrow I should be receiving a big ol' package of books at my front door. :)

Chris changed his mind about homeschooling. Now next time you don't think prayer works, think again! A few years ago he thought the idea was insane (and that I was insane too, haha). "Homeschoolers are all nerdy and I'm not having nerdy kids!" is what I heard, along with every other (incorrect) reason he could possibly think of. All of my attempts to change his mind were futile and usually just ended up with me having hurt feelings. So I totally backed off, and prayed... a lot. I prayed that if God wanted me to homeschool, that he would change Chris's heart about it.

Kaydence has been attending a university-model school and we've been unimpressed. I do think it's the second best thing to homeschooling... but even Chris noticed that Kaydence was just doing everything I had already taught her the year before. We even noticed a slight attitude change... you know, the one that seems to come once your child goes to school, and now they're much more annoyed by younger siblings and things. Nothing too bad, but it's not what I like to see. I'm all about family unity. ;)

So I asked Chris about possibly homeschooling next year, and he said YES! I even heard him on the phone later on telling someone we were going to homeschool next year, and that I was a math whiz and had worked with Kaydence so much (which made me tear up because I didn't think he even noticed!) He did a complete 180 on his views on homeschooling... and I know that it's only because of the One who heard my prayers! :)

I've spent the last few years researching all types of curriculum, so I already had it narrowed down to a few choices. We used part of our tax return to invest in next year's curriculum... and my first order of Sonlight arrives tomorrow! YAY! For my non-homeschool readers, Sonlight is a company that follows the "living book" method of education. Basically, you learn most everything from reading GOOD books. This will make the basis of our history, geography, and literature. No more boring textbooks. I always HATED history because of those boring textbooks. I'm excited to actually learn (and REMEMBER) some history with my children now! And my children should finish high school being extremely well-read. :)

Kaydence and Laila will both be in the same Sonlight core, but will of course have their own seperate levels for math, handwriting, and reading. I'm soooooo excited to look through all the books tomorrow, and I'll have to try and refrain from reading all of them right away. They're for AUGUST!

Now while I do have a very academically-oriented reason for homeschooling, I can say that the thing I look forward to the most is being able to spend lots of quality time with my children. Life is way too short, and I want to make every minute count. I'm going to cuddle my babies everyday, until they think they're too old for cuddling... but eh, I'll still cuddle them anyway. At least some hugs! Come on now! Haha :)

Lead By Example (And Hitting Myself In The Head!)

I've always been annoyed about how technology seems to drive families apart. You see families where the kids are staring into their phone all day, or Xbox, or TV, or whatever. Tonight I was reading through the archives of one of my most favorite blogs, and came across this post: http://www.generationcedar.com/main/2009/04/1962.html

And then I hit myself in the head. I AM one of those people on their phone all day. I'm checking Facebook, emails, texting, visiting random websites, all throughout the day! Whenever I have a spare moment, I pull out my phone (which is always in my back pocket). It has become a HORRIBLE habit. A habit that I do not want my children to have! But they see me doing it!

So I must start leading by example, and not pulling my phone out all the time. Maybe limit myself to once a day? Maybe put my phone up and limit myself to computer only (which I normally don't get to until late at night!). Either way, I will quit allowing my cell phone to become a distraction and become a wedge between my family and me!

SO MUCH falls on a mother's shoulders. Her example to her children is one of the biggest factors on how her children are raised. If I have high standards for my children, then I must go above and beyond to model those standards myself.

Lazy Day!

Today I took an official "Lazy Day" that I really needed. The past 2 1/2 weeks I've been working out hard, and still trying to do everything at home that needs to be done. After bootcamp on Monday, I was the most sore I've EVER been! So today I took a healing day, haha. No running, not much housework, minimal cooking. I'll be back at the craziness tomorrow!

During my lazy minutes spent at the computer, I've been contemplating how to get my house in decent order. I'll definitely be spending the summer teaching the kids new chores. Until then, I need to make some cleaning rules and STICK TO THEM. Because if just one day is skipped, the house is in disaster mode again. Over the next few weeks I'll be teaching my kids some new HABITS:

-Cleaning up living room before nap and bedtime
-Cleaning up their bedrooms before bedtime
-Put things in their place when you're done with it! (They're so bad at just throwing trash on the floor instead of the trash can, throwing dirty clothes in the floor rather than the laundry basket... pretty much everything goes to the floor! Haha)
-No leaving the table until everyone is done eating. (I have roaming eaters, and a subsequent very dirty kitchen floor. I admit this is my own fault for not making the rule sooner!)
-Take plates/cups to the counter when you're done eating.

That's what we'll be starting with.

For myself, I need to de-clutter! There is A LOT that needs to go.

And I still definitely need wood floors, and I need to repaint the walls with a more glossy paint that doesn't attract fingerprints so well. Oh but I know someday I'll miss those fingerprints...

Give Him A Cow

Me: Look! There's a coyote in that feild.

Laila: Oh! I'm going to give him a bone.

Kaydence: Coyotes don't eat BONES...

Laila: What do they eat?

Me: Animals.

Laila: Oh. Well then I'll give him a cow!

:)

Chocolate Gooey Butter Cake

I made this cake last night, and it's disgustingly goooooood! My dad never eats sugar, except when someone makes this cake, lol. :)

Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!


Chocolate Gooey Butter Cake

Crust:
1 box Chocolate Cake mix
1 egg
1 stick melted butter

• Mix and push into 9x13 inch pan.

Filling:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
16 oz. powdered sugar (1 box)
2 Tbsp Cocoa
1 stick melted butter
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

• Whip ingredients until fluffy
• Pour into pan over crust
• Bake 40 minutes at 350 degrees

Dangerous Crabs

I wanted to share this conversation I had with Kaydence and Laila in the car on the way to school the other day. The innocence of children can be funny at times. :)

Kaydence: Mommy, where do zebras live?

Me: Well, some zebras live in zoos, and you can find wild zebras in Africa.

Kaydence: Where is Africa? Can we go there?

Me: Well, it's far, far away. We'd have to take a plane to get there. And I don't think I'd take you guys while you're young because Africa can be dangerous.

Kaydence: Why is it dangerous?

Laila: Does it have CRABS!???