tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79584063785370797742024-03-05T22:01:50.063-08:00The Cross Familyali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comBlogger50125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-75609966466318543072010-11-15T06:00:00.000-08:002010-11-15T06:00:12.999-08:00Taking a BreakI'm going to take a break from blogging here for the foreseeable future. If you need to reach me, feel free to email me; inetsupergrrl at yahoo dot com.<br />
<br />
Or, visit my regular blog <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><i><a href="http://alicross.blogspot.com/">here</a></i></span>.ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-14964179787333224062010-11-08T06:00:00.000-08:002010-11-08T06:00:06.975-08:00Happy Mom MomentsThis weekend we attended a <a href="http://www.blkstudios.com/">Bobby Lawrence Karate</a> tournament. The boys have taken karate for four years, even David and I did it for a couple years. Xander has competed at each of the two tournaments every years since they started. And for the first couple years, Charlie competed too.<br />
<br />
Then he got tired of always losing ~ of sometimes being the only one in his division who didn't win anything at all. Participation ribbons seem like a good idea ~ except when your brother is bringing home trophies and all you have is a box full of silky tokens. <br />
<br />
It takes a lot of courage to try again. Especially when you have so much proof that convinces you it's not going to be worth it. I was so proud that after a break from tournaments for a year, Charlie wanted to compete again. He's been showing more committment lately, and has been practicing more than he used to; but he still has a long way to go. I was so afraid he'd lose again, though, and any forward progression he's made would be lost. I prayed and prayed that he would have a positive experience.<br />
<br />
When it came time for Charlie to perform, I held my breath. I wanted so much for him ~ and was so afraid for him.<br />
<br />
He forgot most of his form, and instead of ending strong, like we'd practiced, he just kind of shrugged and left the ring.<br />
<br />
He forgot most of his weapons form, just kind of threw his hands up in the air, and left the ring.<br />
<br />
His last class, self-defense, was up. We'd worked hard on these, but we thought he'd be able to have Xander as his partner, and now he had to do it with a boy he didn't know and might not do the approach the same way Charlie'd practiced.<br />
<br />
His turn came up. And Charlie did GREAT.<br />
<br />
And, he won third place for self-defense!<br />
<br />
Xan placed first in forms, weapons and self-defense for his division (he's in a different belt class than Charlie.)<br />
<br />
So, here's my very proud mom moment. Believe it or not, it didn't end with Charlie finally winning a medal. As we were leaving, Charlie seemed sad. When I asked him what was wrong, he said he wished he'd given his medal to the boy who didn't win anything. There was one child there, one out of seven kids, who didn't win anything, who went home with only a participation ribbon. And Charlie knows exactly how that feels. He looked around for the boy, but he'd already left.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiopvNVnlrH09QmpmJCcgLv7uSoEpA4tBrz9GI1qkPAVODDumjnGLFc2kKJ2Zj9D02dl3JodjwPuE3PL3lS8kJ6-rzI-67wczfYWOvB6CSsrIvDXu5J17LYSgHH8KdpSnMnaY-DtDAyuBs/s1600/boysblk112010.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiopvNVnlrH09QmpmJCcgLv7uSoEpA4tBrz9GI1qkPAVODDumjnGLFc2kKJ2Zj9D02dl3JodjwPuE3PL3lS8kJ6-rzI-67wczfYWOvB6CSsrIvDXu5J17LYSgHH8KdpSnMnaY-DtDAyuBs/s400/boysblk112010.png" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> Xander & Charlie</span></div><br />
That was my proud mom moment. And it was a moment born out of all the pain Charlie has felt from so many losses. And then I thought, maybe losing isn't so bad after all.ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-29834227220103140202010-11-02T06:00:00.000-07:002010-11-02T06:00:12.156-07:00Book Review ~ The Unmotivated Child<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/272458.The_Unmotivated_Child" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px;"><img alt="The Unmotivated Child: Helping Your Underachiever Become a Successful Student" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173315291m/272458.jpg" /></a><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/272458.The_Unmotivated_Child">The Unmotivated Child: Helping Your Underachiever Become a Successful Student</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/158758.Natalie_Rathvon">Natalie Rathvon</a><br />
<br />
My rating: <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/128858193">4 of 5 stars</a><br />
<br />
<br />
I've read a lot of parenting books and a lot of schooling books (I school my two boys at home) and I've finally found the book that describes my child. <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
He didn't quite fit with the ADD profiles, nor any of the other psychological acronyms that would help me understand why my boy would break down in tears over a math problem. <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
He'd do great one day, and then everything would fall apart the next. I couldn't understand it! Finally, though, I have a glimpse into what's been going on with my son.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
I wasn't thrilled to discover that a lot of his problems might stem from a failure to securely attach to us, his parents, as an infant and young child, but ... I can't deny it's a possibility. As a premature baby, with time in the NICU and a very demanding attention-seeking twin brother, my easy-going, sweet baby was often left to wait until I took care of the noisier baby first. <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
The Unmotivated Child helps you identify whether your child is suffering from this particular problem and how to discover what brand of problem his lack of attachment has developed. It teaches you ways to reach out to your child, primarily using effective communication skills that are easy to understand--though implementing them might take a lot of practice.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
I'm looking forward to communicating with my son better and hope it will have a positive effect on his school experiences, and on his life in general. Mostly though, I'm just so grateful for a little insight into my own child who I love so much but just couldn't understand. <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1989930-ali">View all my reviews</a>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-50929941396191396882010-10-25T06:00:00.000-07:002010-10-25T06:00:00.209-07:00A Homeschooling BonusI finally figured out Order of Operations!!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIPAhD7Y94avaSfCMzFonRlfiky0U0d-neMqMVBLkAOWxZrH8ccmguMoNjIymz5OyvMUqV6kdGJhjcQ2v10XpTTFhWhApDP705jahi1JANRP3pIp0VYq8hemjBtCaoSH-YsIJxAklff9A/s1600/order.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIPAhD7Y94avaSfCMzFonRlfiky0U0d-neMqMVBLkAOWxZrH8ccmguMoNjIymz5OyvMUqV6kdGJhjcQ2v10XpTTFhWhApDP705jahi1JANRP3pIp0VYq8hemjBtCaoSH-YsIJxAklff9A/s1600/order.jpg" /></a></div>Seriously!<br />
<br />
All this time, and the order of operations was a mystery to me. I almost always got them wrong, and when I didn't, I had no idea how I did it.<br />
<br />
Enter: Homeschooling!<br />
<br />
You're kind of forced to face your own demons and step waaaayyy outside your comfort zone in order to help your child. I've learned more about grammar than I even knew existed. (Shh. Yes, I'm a writer, but I didn't know what it was called when I left a participle dangling!)<br />
<br />
But now I know that <i>and</i> the order of order of operations:<br />
<br />
Parenthesis first.<br />
Exponents, next. <br />
Multiplication or Division next, worked left to right if there's more than one.<br />
Addition and Subtraction next, worked left to right.<br />
<br />
I know, I know. I'm probably the only grown-up out there who did NOT know how to work these problems, but there it is. Yay for me!ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-57844305846224534252010-10-11T06:00:00.000-07:002010-10-11T06:00:04.894-07:00Sometimes New Is Not BetterOn Friday the boys and I had the opportunity to attend a field trip with our school. We went to Kingsbury Hall at the University of Utah to see, we thought, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Phantom_of_the_Opera">The Phantom of the Opera</a>. Nothing in the information we were given on the show suggested it was anything other than what you would expect.<br />
<br />
As a former professional opera singer, I was thrilled to take my boys to this performance. Phantom would have been a good choice to introduce my boys to musical theater. <br />
<br />
However, the Phantom, as I know it, was not at all what we got.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7uThB3-L7uXIrMZcB2oklNBUMczIfDG95si6wTkozVH-2Ggy0MaBSi66FDTtNHFOgLx43VlPMeYvssodhxPFSzcXwNkRkp9UuDZxvlyO9mebVBcTwDI7JAdZ2gnQoikvwpqPlAr1tBrA/s1600/phantom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7uThB3-L7uXIrMZcB2oklNBUMczIfDG95si6wTkozVH-2Ggy0MaBSi66FDTtNHFOgLx43VlPMeYvssodhxPFSzcXwNkRkp9UuDZxvlyO9mebVBcTwDI7JAdZ2gnQoikvwpqPlAr1tBrA/s320/phantom.jpg" width="213" /></a>Instead our senses were assaulted with a <a href="http://www.dailyutahchronicle.com/arts/phantom-a-medley-of-mediums-1.2355996">rock version</a> of the story (which in and of itself I wouldn't have had a problem with) written in the contemporary style of many composers, featuring dissonate chords and minor keys.<br />
<br />
In short, it was torturous.<br />
<br />
I thought the musicians, performers and singers were pretty darn great. A couple of them excellent, even.<br />
<br />
But there wasn't a single thing about the actual composition and production that I enjoyed. At all.<br />
<br />
At least we got to have a good discussion about music composition, performance and personal taste. Judging by the reviews, people have found this show appealing enough.<br />
<br />
And hey, we got a break from school work and were able to walk around a bit on the beautiful UofU campus. Which also gave us the opportunity to discuss silver linings. :)ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-73376982168496760642010-10-04T06:00:00.000-07:002010-10-04T06:00:05.302-07:00From Bad Mom to Awesome Mom ~ Getting My Child HelpToward the end of last year, Charlie really seemed to be getting a handle on math. So when he started school this year and was plugging along in math, I didn't question it. Everyone was happy since K12's change in math program that allowed for a lot more work to be done online.<br />
<br />
It wasn't until Xan came to me with some difficulties with his own math, that I realized I couldn't take for granted the guys were making their way through math without problem. There were problems all right.<br />
<br />
Except it wasn't Xan--he consistently gets enough questions right the first time around (80% or better), it was Charlie. The online checkpoints, and me being willing to relinquish my mom-smarts, enable Charlie to engage in some bad behavior.<br />
<br />
Basically, Charlie would go through his checkpoint (basically an end-of-lesson test) and fail it. Then he'd click the "review" button where he could see where he went wrong. Normally, the parent should go through the review with their child to help work through problem spots. Well, I was a bad mom and didn't know he was failing and reviewing and then basically just entering in the right answers as he remembered them from the review. *sigh*<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>When I finally realized my mistake, it was on Charlie's Unit 2 review. Once Xan alerted me to the problem (sometimes it's a good thing to tattle!) I sat down with Charlie to review where he'd gone wrong on his unit review test. Um, he didn't seem to know any of it. He claimed complete ignorance on even relatively simple math problems.<br />
<br />
Add to that some complaints about how stupid he is and how he'll never be able to do math ... and I realized it was time for me to do something.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1elFFM72e_ktspHHNbh7u6dBgBqago3UKmBAOm3YR69923jdOMfSmZn0zLOb29Lh3jAobdv52N3BZEdx0HwXgf1jXLd3xG0Rk013Nd-IXiM8hEqXkUeBK8O66NdVt4_CbXdxsTQyK_Yk/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1elFFM72e_ktspHHNbh7u6dBgBqago3UKmBAOm3YR69923jdOMfSmZn0zLOb29Lh3jAobdv52N3BZEdx0HwXgf1jXLd3xG0Rk013Nd-IXiM8hEqXkUeBK8O66NdVt4_CbXdxsTQyK_Yk/s200/images.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />
Thankfully, I have a good friend who is a former math teacher. For the last few years she's been working as a math specialist at our local elementary school, helping kids just like Charlie. And, even better for me (but bad for her), she was laid off this summer as our school district made drastic cuts in their budget. Meg loves to teach kids math and she, thankfully, responded with enthusiasm to my request that she tutor Charlie.<br />
<br />
I am so pleased and can't wait for her to come in and help my guy out. I'm hoping she'll start tomorrow, Monday. I only wish I'd paid better attention to what Charlie was doing sooner. BUT, at least it's only been a month. There's still time to really turn things around for him.<br />
<br />
He's also been invited to join in the <a href="http://www.readinghorizons.com/">Reading Horizons</a> program which promises to improve his reading skills exponentially.<br />
<br />
I am thrilled and excited for Charlie. I think this is going to be his year to really leap ahead in his academic abilities and especially in his perception of himself. That's a tremendous and lasting gift that could change his life for the better.<br />
<br />
So, I may have been a bad mom, but at least I can recognize my shortcomings and work to overcome them--and sometimes that means admitting that I can't do a thing, but finding someone that can.ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-87926402936457231042010-09-27T06:00:00.000-07:002010-09-27T06:00:10.363-07:00Field Trips Starting!One thing I love about K12 are the fabulous field trips. There's already been a couple activities, but October will give us the opportunity for an outing pretty much every week.<br />
<br />
This week, we'll go to the zoo. Then, we'll see Phantom of the Opera at Kingsbury Hall. A couple Halloween/Pumpkin Patch trips (which my boys are not quite too old for,) later in the month. The boys are excited for these adventures--it's just great to get out of the house sometimes and see the world around you.<br />
<br />
That's one of the greatest advantages homeschooling offers, isn't it? And K12 does it beautifully.<br />
<br />
I'm afraid we won't get too much school work done this week though. Monday we'll be at Primary Children's Hospital for what I expect will be at least half the day (our first appointment starts at 7:00 a.m. ~ oy!), for Charlie to see a cardiologist who specializes in Marfan's syndrom. Then on Wednesday both the boys will see their allergist for help with asthma and allergies. Then the zoo on Friday.<br />
<br />
Um, yup. Not a lot of time for school, but we'll do our best. That's another thing that's great about homeschooling ~ some weeks you just don't get a lot of schoolwork done and you know what? That's okay too.<br />
<br />
Have a great week everyone!ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-39797026613813448282010-09-20T10:00:00.000-07:002010-09-20T10:01:17.149-07:00So Why DO You Homeschool?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibxLh6d94FcS52UdtbByDMf53m_ZTTg3qsY-byndHobhknSsDH0twIKiy2CCi-YaJ0flniMA_KjbUE0cNtvEnWaO3t6c0-4X9eJkxjw3H8U3P_aN6FJp1Db2i6Yeew9CesLFy4BQ3qISE/s1600/k12-virtual-academy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibxLh6d94FcS52UdtbByDMf53m_ZTTg3qsY-byndHobhknSsDH0twIKiy2CCi-YaJ0flniMA_KjbUE0cNtvEnWaO3t6c0-4X9eJkxjw3H8U3P_aN6FJp1Db2i6Yeew9CesLFy4BQ3qISE/s200/k12-virtual-academy.jpg" width="200" /></a>This is probably the question people ask me most often. Here's what I tell them:<br />
<br />
Xan was one of those guys who was done his work far more quickly than everyone else. And then he would proceed to go around the classroom "helping". He got in trouble for being out of his seat. He got in trouble for talking all the time.<br />
<br />
Was his work completed? Yes. Was his work done correctly? Yes. And was he considered a "trouble maker"? Yes. <br />
<br />
Charlie was a guy who struggled with just about everything--even by the end of Grade Two he couldn't tell you the alphabet all the way through without hesitating, or even needing a reminder or prompt here or there.<br />
<br />
And yet, he was being promoted to Grade Three. Do you see a problem there? I sure did.<br />
<br />
Xan needed to be in an environment that would keep him actively engaged and challenged. Charlie needed to be allowed the opportunity to master his material. Both of these problems can be addressed by having my boys school at home.<br />
<br />
And here's how it works: Xan's done his school material most days within two hours. He gets to spend the rest of his day reading, playing on the computer (yes, I allow this as long as chores and school work are completed) and writing, or whatever he wants.<br />
<br />
Charlie, who used to get barely 50% on his spelling tests, now practices his words walking back and forth on the couch. Now he typically gets 100% on his spelling tests.<br />
<br />
My children are learning how to manage their time, how to recognize their own strengths and weaknesses, and they are mastering the material the public school was willing to pass with far less than mastery.<br />
<br />
I think I made the right choice. Totally.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Why do you homeschool? Or, why are you considering it? </i></span>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-65854483861856159572010-09-13T06:00:00.000-07:002010-09-13T06:00:01.972-07:00A Day in the LifeToday begins our third week in our third year of homeschooling and using the <a href="http://www.k12.com/">K12 virtual academy</a>.<br />
<br />
I almost didn't homeschool the boys this year. I felt like such a failure at the end of last year that I thought there was no way I could do it again.<br />
<br />
But, man. Am I glad I didn't give up.<br />
<br />
Because this year is already going so much better than the last couple years and I have every reason to expect that it will continue to go well. Of course we'll have our rough spots, but as long as the good outweighs the bad, it's all good, right?<br />
<br />
So, I thought I'd give a little glimpse into what our days are like right now:<br />
<br />
<b>8:00 a.m.</b> ~ Boys get up, one of them showers, they get their teeth brushed, tidy up their rooms, make their beds, go downstairs and get started on their chores.<br />
<br />
Their chores are: Feed and walk the dog, scoop the poops in the backyard. Unload the dishwasher. Take out the kitchen garbage (recycling and regular). Plus other chores as needed.<br />
<br />
Have breakfast ~ they prefer just cold cereal, so they get that themselves. <br />
<br />
They play on their computers until I'm ready to start school.<br />
<br />
<b>8:20 a.m.</b> ~ I exercise. Or at least, that's the plan. :)<br />
<br />
<b>9:45 a.m.</b> ~ Check my email, log in to the K12 site, settle in to start my day at the computer.<br />
<br />
<b>10:00 a.m.</b> ~ Usually around this time we're ready to start school.<br />
<br />
Right now we're only doing science, which we will have completed by the time we take our Christmas break. We'll add history to the core subjects in the New Year.<br />
<br />
We do a lesson of science together. We sit on the couch with my laptop, a child to each side of me. We take turns reading through the screens, then we do our science test in an open-book fashion.<br />
<br />
The boys then work through their lessons, with occasional help from me.<br />
<br />
<b>12:00 p.m.</b> ~ We break for lunch. The boys make lunch Mon/Tues/Thurs/Fri, and I make lunch on Wednesday. They each picked two lunches they'd like to make; I taught them how to make it, and now we have a menu for the week so each boy knows what and how to make lunch.<br />
<br />
Most days Xan is done school for the day by the time we break for lunch.<br />
<br />
<b>1:00 p.m.</b> ~ Around this time, or maybe a little earlier, we head back into the office and finish up school.<br />
<br />
And that's it! Pretty easy, right? Even if we have harder lessons on a day, there's plenty of time to get it done and still have our work completed before their friends get home from school.<br />
<br />
In the afternoon, I write for a couple hours while the boys play. Usually they like to play on their computers and I'm okay with that as long as they play with friends when the local public school gets out.<br />
<br />
We also have piano at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesdays and karate lessons a couple nights a week for a couple hours each night, and scouts once a week.<br />
<br />
I hope this helps put your day into perspective. <i>How do our days differ from your own?</i>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-15541356446762265532010-09-07T06:00:00.000-07:002010-09-07T06:00:04.845-07:00One Week Down, Thirty Five to GoAnd, amazingly, we didn't die!<br /><br />We didn't even cry ourselves to sleep every night!<br /><br />Charlie did cry the first two days, bemoaning his unwillingness to try at school, math in particular. But by Thursday he'd remembered, or realized, again that things are not so bad at all when he keeps a positive attitude.<br /><br />AND, we've done science every day and didn't hate it as much as we used to. Huzzah!<br /><br />So all in all, it was a much better first week than we'd even dared to hope for. I really had been nervous about homeschooling this year. I felt like I was completely sucking the previous two years and while the boys progressed, it was hard, hard work.<br /><br />Now, I'm sure you're thinking, <span style="font-style: italic;">well nothing good in life comes easily</span>. And that may be true, but let me tell you, it sure is fun to have a school day with smiles instead of tears.<br /><br />How about you? How have your first days been?ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-82761670853689765302010-08-30T06:00:00.000-07:002010-08-30T06:00:01.843-07:00Making a Schedule You Can Live With<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifm0Y6GersRO4ZxggSRG7blZNzUrbCYpJWjaKuzddQeUXuzNxRqc8TVRCbg8HuixF65kpZP1Rk-XcMh7qporvd7XgDpYmX75ZZQ_lR6nP0PwnVtIPjvJjBWOZHx4BlV1_OOnVgzMHHzBSR/s1600/watchface.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 172px; height: 129px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifm0Y6GersRO4ZxggSRG7blZNzUrbCYpJWjaKuzddQeUXuzNxRqc8TVRCbg8HuixF65kpZP1Rk-XcMh7qporvd7XgDpYmX75ZZQ_lR6nP0PwnVtIPjvJjBWOZHx4BlV1_OOnVgzMHHzBSR/s320/watchface.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511031005910723378" border="0" /></a>Well, today marks the beginning of our school year. I school my two boys at home--not traditional homeschool, because we use the K12 curriculum which has a charter here in Utah so we're subject to all the standardized testing (which means I can't break my kids--or at least, mostly!), but still, homeschooling none the less. As you can imagine, homeschooling, being a career writer (that's my fancy way of saying I'm not writing for a hobby, but for publication), and running a household with all the myriad responsibilities that entails and all the other stuff that go into making a life, starting <span style="font-style: italic;">today</span> I'm going to be busy. Or busi<span style="font-style: italic;">er</span>. ;)<br /><br />I've had some people ask how I do it. And the answer's simple: I make a plan.<br /><br />And then I always get asked: How do you make a plan? But that's not quite as simple.<br /><br />Still, I thought, since this is fresh on my mind, I'd share my schedule-making method.<ol><li>Make a list of all the different parts of your life. My list includes: health, family, school, writing, home.</li><li>Under each part (above) list what your daily responsibilities include. Mine says: HEALTH/exercise, FAMILY/family prayer, family scripture reading, boys' activities, WRITING/1hr, networking, etc.</li><li>Then, beside each responsibility or task, mark how much time you need for each. For instance, I need a solid block of an hour and twenty minutes for exercise every day, and an hour for writing plus an hour for networking (or more, lol.)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiGxkIbvzANSgzjBBWW1aJO1ag9pDvzBraktmMwc8gWFPY5cC1xbC4iFck4JHEQKtQRA6FsuGbuxKxlKZFMVO7uQPrs-Hr0eRn8m25HNSuBhtdMKAS-92mSiMU5ksLQxFYYVvewGgbEvsk/s1600/schedule.gif"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 196px; height: 174px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiGxkIbvzANSgzjBBWW1aJO1ag9pDvzBraktmMwc8gWFPY5cC1xbC4iFck4JHEQKtQRA6FsuGbuxKxlKZFMVO7uQPrs-Hr0eRn8m25HNSuBhtdMKAS-92mSiMU5ksLQxFYYVvewGgbEvsk/s320/schedule.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511030702065264258" border="0" /></a></li><li>Make a list the hours of your day on the left, then block off each hour on the right with your activities. </li><li>Remember that any good schedule is one that can flex as needed--your schedule is there to <span style="font-style: italic;">help</span> you, not hinder you!</li><li>Also remember, your schedule is yours. Don't worry if you think you do less than someone else. If it helps you manage your time, and more precisely manage what's important to you, then your schedule is working. Yay!</li></ol>And just one more thing. I had a wise and kind friend offer me some advice my first year homeschooling. When asked how she handles all the demands on her time, particularly those that come from other people, she said, <span style="font-style: italic;">"I just remember that a yes to someone else, is a no to my family."</span> That advice has helped me more than any other.<br /><br />So I say to you, whatever it is that's important to you, no one else will value it as much as you do. Stick to your guns and remember a yes to something/someone else, is a no to what's important to you. Protect your time and give value where it's due in your life.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">How do make sure the things you value most in life get the time and attention they deserve?</span>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-40390794604334119132009-09-14T19:37:00.000-07:002009-09-14T19:59:41.565-07:00Back in the Saddle and School EventsYay! I'm still here! It's kind of embarrassing coming back after so long a hiatus, but perhaps you'll imagine I was just taking the summer off. You wouldn't be wrong ;) Just maybe there's more to it than that. Like laziness. Lack of creativity . . . Hmm . . . I think I like the summer holiday idea much better!<br /><br />We started back to school "officially" the last week of August, though I can hardly say we've made a real good try at it yet. Between one interruption or the other, including school activities, holidays, vacations, and illnesses, we've managed maybe a handful of actual school days. Not to fret though, we are still doing just fine and I'm not at all worried.<br /><br />*grin*<br /><br />I'm very happy to say that already this year I feel like there has been much improvement. We all felt ready to take on our year and not a single moment of regret for our decision to homeschool again. When we started back, we intuitively tweaked our routine just a tiny bit and for the few days we've been schooling, it's working quite well for us.<br /><br />In general, I feel very relaxed and comfortable with my role in all this and the boys seem to have similar feelings. We're looking forward to a fun-filled and productive year. Yeah!<br /><br />As for activities, we've been to two so far, the storytelling festival at Timpanogas and the State Fair today. Today's was the best ever because (drum roll please) we made a friend! The boys made a friend and I made friends with the boy's mother and hurray! It made all the difference in our enjoyment of the day. Never mind that we got totally rained out.<br /><br />Last year I was a real wallflower at all the K12 events, but I'm determined to change that this year. I need friends. The boys need friends. Friends who are doing what we're doing. I'm very glad that today we made some real progress in that regard. Wonderful friends, too.<br /><br />Tomorrow we having nothing going on but school so I'm looking forward to getting some real work done. I'd love to hear how you are doing. Have you started back to school yet? How's it going? Did you change how you are doing things this year from last? What are you most looking forward to? What are you most dreading? I'll answer my own questions next time I blog. Have a good one!ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-67118949715877671592009-06-08T09:51:00.000-07:002009-06-08T10:14:22.013-07:00Looking ForwardI apologize for being a fair-weather blogger.<br /><br />But probably my lack of blogging about our school experiences is a good indicator of what’s going on here. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Nothing</span>. No schooling whatsoever.<br /><br />Oh, we met our 80% benchmark and were able to put in our order for next year’s materials. However, we so far are not doing what I intended to do, and that was to continue.<div><br />I thought it made perfect sense to do 80% during the school year, and then casually plug away at the remaining 20% over the course of the summer. That way, we wouldn’t have the loss of knowledge that so many students suffer from because of the summer break. </div><div><br />I tell myself that it’s all good. It’s only been a couple weeks since school ‘let out’ and it’s perfectly acceptable for us to enjoy a little holiday. I’m just worried I won’t follow through and get back to work when our vacation is over. We are leaving for San Diego this week and I hope that we can add some light schooling back into our life once we return.</div><div><br />In the meantime, these are the things I’m thinking about:</div><div><ul><li>I need to look into some schooling tips and advice for children with ADD. I found working with Charlie to be extremely difficult this year. If he was ‘in the mood’ or properly motivated/interested, he did great in school—if not, he did terribly. As in puddle-on-the-floor-crying-his-eyes-out terrible.<br /></li><li>Improving our school organization so that the boys can more easily see their materials. Cleaning out my drawers and stuff so I can better store their papers and such.<br /></li><li>Do some research into how to be a better homeschooling mom. <a href="http://sliceofpihomeschooljournal.blogspot.com/">LC</a> seems to enjoy really fun lessons with her girls. Similarly, Aly, has blogged about neat experiences she’s had while schooling her children. I don’t do any of those things. I am a very task-oriented person with no natural sense of fun. At least, not when it comes to teaching. I do what I’m told to do, nothing more, and sometimes less. I’m not going to expect miracles of myself (that was last year and I let myself down horrendously. I refuse to do that again!) but I do want to be prepared with a few ideas at hand in case the moment strikes me as right and I can add a little flavor to our lessons.</li></ul><div>I think that might be the biggest stuff on my mind right now. I hope to do better this next year. In fact, I know I will. I survived the first and hardest year of homeschooling with definite positives to shine the way into the future.<br /></div></div><div><br />Our home life is happier, less caustic, people are generally more loving and less argumentative. We have greater respect for one another. We like each other more. Personally and socially, this year has been the best one since I became a mother. Now we just need to work on enjoying those same wonderful benefits in our academic life too.<br /><br />What about you? Where are you at, as your school year draws to a close? Do you feel it went well? Are there things you will aim to improve this next school year? <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I just joined <a href="http://www.thehomeschoollounge.com/">The Homeschool Lounge </a>and would really like to increase my circle of friends who homeschool. I need to learn from you, I need your friendship.</div>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-60290628667791312632009-05-26T21:15:00.001-07:002009-05-26T21:15:23.126-07:00A Tag of Eights<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; "><div style="border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 3px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 3px; width: auto; font: normal normal normal 100%/normal Georgia, serif; text-align: left; ">It's been a long while since I've played a game of tag so when Shawntele tagged me, I was game (hardee har har.)<br /><br />Here be Da Rules:<br />1. Mention the person who tagged you.<br />2. Complete the list of 8's.<br />3. Tag 8 other bloggers.<br />4. Tell them they have been tagged.<br /><br />Eight Things I Look Forward To:<br /><ol><li>Getting my first book deal.</li><li>Losing the extra weight I'm carrying around.</li><li>Getting fit and being healthy.</li><li>Karen's photo shoot on Thursday.</li><li>San Diego with the family in June.</li><li>Seeing my sister again.</li><li>Finishing up Jump Boys and getting it into Shadow Mountain's hands.</li><li>Being a working, successful published author. :D</li></ol><div>Eight Things I Did Yesterday</div><div><ol><li>Slept in.</li><li>Had lunch with the fam at Red Robin.</li><li>Took the boys to see Star Trek and loved it--again!</li><li>Got rejected by a publisher.</li><li>Cried my eyes out.</li><li>Talked with friends.</li><li>Got hugged and held by my sweet honey.</li><li>Read a lot.</li></ol><div>Eight Things I Wish I Could Do</div><div><ol><li>Jump on a plane and visit my sister <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; ">right now.</span></li><li>Deal better with Charlie on his 'off' days.</li><li>Be more consistent in going to karate.</li><li>Be a faster reader.</li><li>Be a more creative homeschooling mom.</li><li>Sing in an opera production again.</li><li>Make a CD.</li><li>Be published, lol.</li></ol><div>Eight Shows I Watch</div><div><ol><li>Smallville</li><li>Medium</li><li>Dollhouse</li><li>CSI</li><li>Eureka</li><li>So You Think You Can Dance</li><li>America's Funniest Home Videos</li><li>Chuck</li></ol><div>Eight Friends I Am Tagging:</div><div><ol><li><a href="http://www.karen-hoover.blogspot.com/">Karen</a></li><li><a href="http://writing4me2.blogspot.com/">Shanna</a></li><li><a href="http://christinebryant.blogspot.com/">Christine</a></li><li><a href="http://shumphreys.blogspot.com/">Stephanie</a></li><li><a href="http://aficklepickle.blogspot.com/">Jeri</a></li><li><a href="http://kunz-4.blogspot.com/">Kristi</a></li><li><a href="http://lordsofthemanor.blogspot.com/">Jennifer</a></li><li><a href="http://nicholegiles.blogspot.com/">Nichole</a></li></ol><div>And there you have it! Crazy Eights, lol.</div><div><br /></div><div>As you can tell, I'm back ... sort of. No promises, but I'm slowly starting to feel like myself again.</div><div><br /></div><div>Don't be a stranger :) And if you haven't done it already, I'd love it if you became a follower. I'm a writer--I need constant reminders that I am loved ;)</div></div></div></div></div></div></span>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-71553139931744042862009-05-18T21:18:00.000-07:002009-05-18T21:19:08.115-07:00Taking a Mental Vacation<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; "><div style="border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 3px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 3px; width: auto; font: normal normal normal 100%/normal Georgia, serif; text-align: left; ">Hi ya Folks,<div><br /></div><div>I'm dropping by to tell ya'll that I'm not going to be blogging for a bit. Hopefully just a week, but perhaps longer. Or maybe I'll be back tomorrow. That's my prerogative, right? Keep ya guessing--that's my goal.</div><div><br /></div><div>Don't worry, nothing's going on ... I just need to have a clear head with my writing right now and I'm finding there are too many voices talking at once. I need to give everybody a chance to say their peace so I can figure out what the heck they're all talking about. It's so noisy in my head, I can't even hear myself think.</div><div><br /></div><div>So I'm going to go hang out with Me, Myself and I for a while, have some good heart-to-hearts, a regular ol' pow wow and see if I can't get some work done.</div><div><br /></div><div>Forgive me if I'm not posting--especially, forgive me for not visiting your own blogs over the next while--and in the famous words of Arnold a la Terminator "I'll be bahck."</div><div><br /></div><div>Till then, take care, adios, adieu.</div></div></span>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-7238503549932412332009-04-17T09:17:00.001-07:002009-04-17T11:12:25.775-07:00CompromiseIn any good relationship, it's all about the compromise. And home schooling is no different. You compromise when you'll do school and when you'll play. House work and school work. It's a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">relationship</span> of agreements and compromise.<div><br /></div><div>And sometimes when we compromise, we have to give up something we'd hoped for and be happy with something else. </div><div><br /></div><div>I really wanted to have all of our subjects completed to the required 80% by May 22<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">nd</span>. But with a few days off for spring break and for general spring fever craziness, we've fallen behind. Now, with testing next week and a writers' conference for me, we are very stressed trying to get all of our work done by the 22<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">nd</span> of May.</div><div><br /></div><div>Enter, Compromise, and let the stress-free living begin!</div><div><br /></div><div>Though it was my hope, I'm perfectly content to concentrate on Math and Language Arts alone for the next few weeks and work on History and Science through the summer. I had expected to do some schooling through the summer months, so really, this was an easy decision.</div><div><br /></div><div>Now we can relax a bit, concentrate on Math and Language Arts and enjoy our History and Science at a more reasonable pace through the summer.</div><div><br /></div><div>Next school year, I will understand much better what I need to do to help our school year run more effectively and enjoyably for all of us. I'm excited about that! I really enjoy home schooling, but I don't enjoy feeling stressed out and like I'm failing all the time. This first year has definitely been a challenge, but we've learned a lot and can look forward to a more fun and productive experience next year.</div><div><br /></div><div>Hurray for Compromise!</div>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-80397425750385131132009-04-15T10:52:00.001-07:002009-04-15T11:07:02.454-07:00Crying In My SoupIt's rainy and muddy outside and that's about how I feel inside too. <div><br /></div><div>Yes, that's right. I'm frowning. I'm whining. I'm crying in my soup.</div><div><br /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieIhVnvRY-NSe1LzzI6NLcyd_8KZqglkUZ6wxfpuAYvMjjPdUshBr7RZwq-aCcbuzjlZLlJw0qsRz04UR1RwtU187Ef4AECuKbovVKqqBRADHp1JCVleHFvj-ALtISsK9VLfK1tZWxr7U/s320/cryingman.png" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 222px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324978440895603842" /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I am feeling as dumb as my kids say they feel. I don't know how to teach them some stuff. I'm stumped, I'm stupid. They're stumped. They feel stupid too. We're having a stupid-fest here.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I even had to break down and call our teacher to ask for help. Which tells you one of my problems right there--I shouldn't feel like calling our teacher for help is a matter of "breaking down." She's there to help us, I should use her. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Umm</span>, no.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Charlie is having trouble reading directions on his tests. He can't seem to follow multiple directions.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Xander</span> doesn't understand front-end estimation--he wants to answer the questions properly, rather than estimating them. I have no idea what front-end estimation is either. I swear I never learned that.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The BIG TEST is next week and we haven't practiced for it at all. I suspect my guys might totally blow it. I've made them stupider this year. Or so I fear.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Of course our teacher, wonderful, awesome, Mrs. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Baggely</span>, encouraged me and tried to placate me, but I'm still worried.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">At this moment, I can't wait for school to be over and to be free of this enormous burden of guilt and stress--at least for a short while.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I'm not giving up, I'm not giving in. We will home school again next year. But for the moment, I'm going to enjoy a good <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">ol</span>' pout. So there. (she says with arms crossed on her chest and and her foot stomped on the ground.)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-28542781578421507442009-04-08T15:49:00.001-07:002009-04-08T15:52:05.868-07:00Spring Break!We are taking an extended Spring Break--not on purpose, but entirely by accident. I *think* our principle took into account a spring break in the figuring of our completion percentages but even so, I'm sad to think we might not make it now. We were so close. And it's not over yet, I know. We may *yet* be able to get it done. But I'm not sure. It could go either way, lol.<br /><br />Thing is, we've just SO needed a break. <br /><br />And so . . . a break it is.<br /><br />Officially we were only going to take this Thursday, Friday and Monday off because that's when the neighbor kids are off. But it's turned out that we've only worked a handful of part-days and just plain took today off. <br /><br />Oh well. C'est la vie, right?ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-7817606308432523882009-03-31T09:21:00.000-07:002009-03-31T09:30:29.649-07:00Taking Pride In What We Are DoingWhen I first started homeschooling, I was sort of embarrassed to admit what I was doing. At the local elementary school's book fair, I tried to slip in and out without being noticed. I held my head down in that age old "don't look at me" posture. Picture women from the polygamist compound caught on tape.<div><br /></div><div>It's taken almost an entire school year, but I find I can now hold my head high.</div><div><br /></div><div>We went back to the elementary school a few weeks ago for another book fair and man, I felt proud walking through those doors!</div><div><br /></div><div>I felt like a great mom, with great kids. I am proud of what we've done, proud of who we are as a family. Proud of our choices in a world where it's hard to go against the grain.</div>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-23454120180005911412009-03-30T10:55:00.000-07:002009-03-30T10:59:45.223-07:00Happy To Be Stuck With YouWell, the end is in sight and I find myself reflecting on the year, how it's gone, how I hope to do better, how I am so grateful.<div><br /></div><div>I am grateful for my children and for the opportunity we've had to be together this year. It truly has been a blessing for us. Logically, you'd think we'd be sick of each other by now, but strangely we're not. We are closer--not only me with the boys, but the boys with each other. </div><div><br /></div><div>We are happy to be stuck together.</div><div><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-8b0IKQxx2k&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-8b0IKQxx2k&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /></div><div>When David and I got married, this is the song we danced to. It's long been a happy memory for us, because no matter what life throws at us, at least we get to deal with it together. I feel that way with my boys. What an awesome year it's been!</div>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-6502865056540800312009-03-18T14:13:00.000-07:002009-03-18T14:29:07.636-07:00Activities<div>I think it's important for families who <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">homeschool</span> to get out there and participate in a variety of activities. I admit that so far, neither the boys nor I have made any real connections at these activities, nevertheless, that too is a work in progress.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Yesterday, our school had March Marble and Math Madness. This was probably the third K12 activity that we have attended, not including Tennis Club. It was the best one so far.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhObEwCVNT-AajH8TUldzatBu8S65IalDufUubuoXv5dEkIjatVydXU0aWYpMJBSvLAN7D0FnTB6_a8kZDE9fVJZIH2R2EFnubw-br1DhyTdY71k1xOlFe_a08C8A5du2XCYsNQcGlEpl4/s320/IMG_0195.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314642054518117106" /><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Charlie was the photographer for these shots of yesterdays' events.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div><div>Not so much in what we did (the boys probably enjoyed The Children's Museum best of all) but because we all made some connections.</div><div><br /></div><div>We met people we've seen at other events and were able to feel that friendly, comfortable sensation of belonging. We are very slowly building relationships and making friends.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>We need to do this a lot more, I think, so that those friendships can really stick. I think many families that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">homeschool</span> tend to get stuck in the comfort zone of their own home. It is so easy to do. But I think it's important not only for the children, but for the moms as well.</div><div><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUlMM0gjxRO58IlInjzkte0bmWW5rE7NLnmT-o_urLLAVER8PoiJuuKWeRnkY6__0bZLB3bG-RwjrHnnTHATkJMzU_8hP4i_FVAPqrQVc6Ce5SrPcRzYTs6JcIMljpGHHIZgEF-1a13TU/s320/IMG_0193.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314641839199494930" /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>Tomorrow I'll start going back to Tami's playgroup. She's changed the day from Friday to Thursday which makes me happy because it'll be easier for me to attend now. And I really need that association.</div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzEe-BddwpOIkOXb4lqa3M7fK7DpofM8aJCznGgl0wMmFQoNI_DifC32ik_y9a8hlZfmhctrKaShQH_ZMhCRLBliiBd5v1qf5u6tAE3ZrbYg-lWq9qNRifyXw7xrMnFNlpm0Zr1Fy2xcE/s320/IMG_0199.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314641549469971698" /><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Even the photographer needs to get in the picture now and then.</span></span></div><div>I encourage you to reach out and make some connections of your own. It's worth the effort. I promise!</div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6dTYzuuQ12FjB54nVxDffW0rtOOblosFg9OH3HJoZbgXp1S_c0xrzirvexWkaWkegF6xIsHXmcp2r1XsyTd113IWBQYt9SJI_t7NfQAKvSCP_i150T8OBVH6RMqt0sZlWNGjzGTcA54M/s320/IMG_0196.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314641291494660738" /><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small; font-style: italic;"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Xan</span> and his favorite gold marble which, unfortunately, did not make it home with him.</span></div>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-42450361978114669422009-03-13T10:33:00.000-07:002009-03-13T10:40:44.770-07:00FlexibilityLast time I posted I quoted my friend Tami who had commented here that she was caught up and was now cutting back on the amount of school she was doing. I thought that meant she was nearly totally done with their schooling. But I was mistaken.<div><br /></div><div>Tami only strives to reach that 80% benchmark K12 requires by the end of the year in order to order your next years' supplies--this is advantageous because it means you'll get your next years' supplies in July or August, rather than waiting until those months to even put in your order.</div><div><br /></div><div>Then, Tami has the ability to continue working that last 20% over the summer months with her kids. The advantage to doing that is that the family never entirely loses it's routine and the kids don't fall out of knowledge. </div><div><br /></div><div>At first, I thought I really needed that long summer break, but in closer examination, I think that could perhaps be detrimental to both the boys AND me. By only doing 20% of the course work over the summer (and even then it can be pretty laid back as everything that's accomplished at that point is just gravy, so to speak) we can still enjoy a relaxed summer without losing all the hard-earned knowledge.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, we've decided to follow in Tami's footsteps!</div><div><br /></div><div>We'll be homeschooling year 'round, doing 80% between August and May and 20% or less between May and August. </div><div><br /></div><div>I talked it over with my boys to get their opinion. Of course, they aren't thrilled at the idea of having to do school at all during the summer, but I also think they can see the positive side of it too. I think we can all agree, this is a win/win for us.</div><div><br /></div><div>I'll be sure to let you know how it goes!</div>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-55637614014946499672009-03-09T11:28:00.000-07:002009-03-09T11:36:42.098-07:00Decision TimeThe time has come to decide whether K12 is working for us or not. Should we stay with the program? Or should we try a different homeschooling approach? Or should we re-enroll the boys in a bricks-and-mortar school?<div><br /></div><div>And the decision is ... We will stay with K12.</div><div><br /></div><div>Amazingly, it really wasn't a decision at all. It just is. We are a K12 family.</div><div><br /></div><div>Though I was surprised by my boys' response. They want to stay with the program.</div><div><br /></div><div>I hope we have a better year next year. I feel confident we will. </div><div><br /></div><div>Did you happen to see Tami's comment from my last blog? She wrote:</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">"</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 18px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">We have caught up to where I want so we now adjusted our days to k12. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Tayler</span> will Tue Wed Thur Fri, and Tanner and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Teralyn</span> will k12 on Tue Wed Thur only. This gives them days to do other things. Gardening time is coming up next week and other things we want to do."</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 18px;">This year we really didn't figure out a good schedule for school until January. And the boys didn't grasp their responsibility in their education until perhaps this last month or so--thanks to Love & Logic.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 18px;">Next year though, I think we'll all have a much better idea of what to expect--not only from the program, but from ourselves. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 18px;">I kind of can't believe that I am going to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">willingly</span> take on another year of homeschooling, but I also can't imagine it any other way. This is just how it is. We <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">are</span> a K12 family.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 18px;">How about you?</span></div>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-73091543432487788752009-03-06T08:59:00.000-08:002009-03-06T10:16:05.063-08:00What's Working For UsIt's been a while since I've posted about our day, so I thought I'd thrill you with the details :)<div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpXegBiTPogQvV3F5nW9gD4GEFW6MjNqXkjCd94I7QsLsArbiTYffdn9NWboLKrmeIW7uR4-r7kiztHPJX-EIdqkpEH4D6ChNoX0sK-CFT3YfXkAScpvc84QZ_fg2xL1hZyqmHroejpQw/s320/IMG_0182.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310136517639727202" /><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Xander wanted a picture of him and Jack so it's here just because :)</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div>This is what I've been doing lately that has been working for us:</div><div><br /></div><div>Every weekend, I spend a couple hours (yes it takes me hours, I'm super slow though I'm sure) and go through each boys' lesson list to make them a schedule for the week. I could print out the weekly view sheet, but we found we liked to have little boxes they could check off for each item in the lesson.</div></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWpNvPRhXbgktmt741UJm0A6HtpIJLZpTbq_fkpGMwFtR2Zq7_DDuxGqZFqBy-XSMH8EQq3e6ecYuATvoq8DFemV_hBzY-RuNh9PRB9bYXWH3wtiO7sb4jnr-Ws-rEOcUxJ_Gd98ezoLo/s320/IMG_0181.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310136398636375746" /><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">This is Charlie getting ready to do a unit review in History.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">For instance, with K12's weekly view printout, you'd see the lesson title and number only.<br /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>When I do it, I put the lesson title and number, but then list below each item that needs to be completed before the lesson is done. So it might look something like:</div><div><br /></div><div>MATH 4:12</div><div><ul><li>online student activity</li><li>pig 235, 236 (we call the math textbooks the ugly pig books because of the pictures, lol)</li><li>big or small w/s (a worksheet)</li><li>assessment<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWwil1KezT1_5-IbLrVaNTq8nOEkm0gpoMzPx3b3AZNzr40B5Cfa95n3Cyqv2jNKmXUD6WhmVa7ZEQE1hQWyoTlsaxEAS5ASyE227eVMm-AZADqHcX6515srmlzNMwYy-1dlZyEJzFhgU/s320/IMG_0176.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310134698962182818" /><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Charlie's to-do list for this week. He or I check off the items that have been completed.<br />Sometimes he goes straight to the assessment, if he feels he can handle it.</span></span></div></li></ul><div>The boys are responsible for checking off each item as it is completed.</div><div><br /></div><div><div>I print out their to-do list with all the lessons they need to do for the week. Using columns, I can fit it all onto one page. They do six math lessons, eight language arts lessons (but in Xander's</div><div>case, it equals many more smaller lessons since the lessons are broken down into subject matter for him), four history, five science and several spanish lessons, each week. </div><div><br /></div><div>At the top of their page, I tell them how many lessons they need to complete each day. So they know they need to complete five or eight lessons a day, whichever it might be.<br /></div></div><div><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9rSNKqqwscv6Xqp80l3XZTQvmCdBPVOl-du4mLBUjuwN52CXFZ3-KjNpNP-LlGrCGbG2tfVQDkoNYMm4oAguCK1B7nzxyYach5N15inrmkoJNo_HbG2MJ1vHStw5OHP3BVJwXnlv8am4/s320/IMG_0180.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310136304496704482" /><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Xander standing in front of our school shelf.<br />They each have their own shelf, and I do too.</span></span></div><div><br /></div><br /><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9ngAE3YRly_SvzC-KRlXmP63Z6IATo3Py8k-AhEO8pdiwjhQMrwFI-FGcvy4Z69EB1Rubf9x1Jka2O63mi7Tw768K88DxgYHn2DPH8fq4g5ExTszLk8dOQTSYXZoNARJ7AFj5x4HO3eU/s320/IMG_0179.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310136172788665666" /><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Charlie having a bad-attitude day :)</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 10px; font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div><div>I also print out every one of their worksheets and such and file them in my "Secretary". That way, the boys can do many things on their own if they are feeling proactive.</div><div><br /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwOStsJ0ma7hWhQZQN2YDgIAXibvtE1zGcPUSMC2Hf585h2Ob2EJmUFEKWGnDZM7EaBoQC5_BF0oOorrY0qNqvHa57quQdg3og8O8EuBQJOr-tkxV6SsByBHII-mR1X-bW2VH0KVKtASE/s320/IMG_0177.JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310135028927042386" /></div></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggokoLKKK-Az-RxJx2DaaIHS13WZ59szMtV0JMQhZjQ3uEzaqI68YfcWiKBgZgsJh4-6hY6iMNPTx5v7-4Fqt_yVG1aqF01ZN5J4LKVN1h6d191GzDjd-dLUmQpXP4SLfTAqMZ55oNAgU/s320/IMG_0178.JPG" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310135235383003106" /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">On the left you can see the tabbed folders I use in my Secretary to keep handouts and tests for each subject. The boys can find their own stuff easily.</span></span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>We start our school day at around 10:00 in the morning, and go until 2:00 or 2:30 with a lunch break. The boys take fifteen minute breaks between every two lessons. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>And there you have it! What's been working for you?</div></div>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7958406378537079774.post-79898894618303306802009-03-02T11:05:00.000-08:002009-03-02T11:12:33.898-08:00A Love & Logic UpdateIt's been a couple weeks since my last Love & Logic class, so I thought I ought to report on how we're doing. <div><br /></div><div>And, we're doing great! At least, in regard to school, we're doing great.</div><div><br /></div><div>I've found it incredibly liberating using the Love & Logic approach to school work. The boys have complete control over what lessons they do each day (with the exception of History which I do only on Tuesday and Thursday) and they are in charge of whether they get done or not. I just need to show up, do my own thing at the computer, and be willing to help them/teach them, if they ask me. </div><div><br /></div><div>Some days, they goof off a lot and then find themselves without me to help and without any <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">privileges</span> to play <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">the</span> computer or play with friends.</div><div><br /></div><div>Those days are so sad.</div><div><br /></div><div>But, I'm okay with them :)</div><div><br /></div><div>The good news is, those days are few and far between and, come to think about it, haven't happened at all for the past week or so. They are learning how to make this program work for them.</div><div><br /></div><div>I still haven't sat down and figured out what could be the choices I give the guys for household stuff. Like how do you get them to brush their teeth? I mean, the natural consequences of not caring for your teeth are not ones I'm happy with so ... ??? I have no idea. I need to work on those things, but I'm happy to report that as far as school is concerned, Love & Logic has been a life-saver! </div><div><br /></div><div>Fully Awesome!</div>ali crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13023009704454279645noreply@blogger.com