Family Portrait

The Baker Family













I love this picture. Every time I look at it I'm reminded of how truly blessed I am.

I am Legend

Leon took me to the movies today. He took me to see "I am Legend." The problem is, he already went to see the movie with Mr. Dale. It's really irritating when someone has already seen the movie and you ask, "Does he die?" but you don't really want to know. Only you know that he is the type of person who would want to know and would therefor tell you if you ask.

Anyway, he kept building up this move. Telling me how the movie "got him" and how often he jumped. He just had to take me. I think he wanted to be beside me so I would jump into his arms. Even knowing the truth, I went anyway. What can I say? I'm a sucker for anything Will Smith. I also like end of the world type movies. I'm fascinated by them. Drawn to them like a moth to a flame. He also bribed me with popcorn and coke. I was sold.
It turned out to be a fabulous movie. Absolutely fabulous. I don't recommend it for the squeamish or faint of heart. I certainly spent the hour and a half squeezing the life out of Leon's arm. I was shaking from the strain of trying not to scream in the theater. Sometimes it's fun to live in suspense. Especially when your big hunka burnin' love is sitting beside you and you KNOW he's not afraid of anything.
The drama part of the movie was very touching. And Smith's daughter (I heard it was his real daughter) was adorable. I cried a river.
I did walk away with some questions...
1. Why didn't the "darkseekers" eat all the lions and deer? I'm sure they stink. It's an island, for cryin' out loud. Where could the animals possibly hide?
2. Why on earth was he moving at such a snail's pace when he was trying to get back to the car. Hoping someone would come along and help??? Adrenaline much? Move FASTER!!!
3. I have plenty more but don't want to give away too much of the movie...just in case anyone is also weak for Will Smith.
So now...I'm sitting here and can't stop thinking about the movie and what I would have done...and I'm totally screwed...I'm at work...3rd shift...all alone...and it's dark outside...what was that?...who's watching me?...darkseekers anyone?...YIKES!!!

Kelsea's Birthday

My lovely little girl has turned into a young lady. She's 13 now. I can hardly believe it!!! She's having a little party to celebrate this big milestone. Several giggling gabbing young ladies will be gracing my house in a few short hours. I remember feeling so grown up when I turned 13!

When I turned 28 my mom asked if I started mourning my 20's yet. I didn't then but I am now. Having a 13yo daughter really changes how old you feel. Not that I'm feeling haggard or anything but I can't believe that I'm not even out of my 20's and already I'm mom to a 13yo. I will only be in my 30's when I start experiencing "empty nest syndrome."

On the bright side I will be in my 30's when all the kids move out! I do look forward to those days. Leon and I have never experienced marriage without children in the home. It will be exciting and new. Something more to look forward to.

I do love having a 13yo. She is becomming more and more companionable. We laugh and joke, make fun of eachother and sometimes just sit and talk about "stuff." I have a fabulous relationship with my daughter. I only hope to always be so close to her.

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About Me

This is the page where almost every sentence starts with "I".

I am living my dream. I am married to the most wonderful man on the planet. I have the best kids. I have a career as a homeschooling mom that is more rewarding than I could ever express in print.

Wife

I am married to my best friend and my lover. We have so many good times together. It is a very unique marriage because we are still best friends even after 5 kids, a crazy life, and many challenges life brings.

Home Maker

I love being home taking care of my family. I love meeting everyone's needs and having the time to invest in each person here. I love trying new things and taking on new challenges. Some of them I try to share in my blog.

Homeschooling

Homeschooling is one of the best things I have ever done for my family. I was very hesitant at first. I was partly afraid and partly selfish. Homeschooling would mean I wouldn't get a break from the kids for 6+ hours a day. It would mean very little time to myself. And frankly it would require more self discipline. I don't like to discipline myself.

While educating my own children, I have had to educate myself. I've discovered that I love learning. I am always hungry for knowledge and am almost never satisfied. We'll go off on wild tangents when inspiration strikes. "SOMETHING NEW! LET'S LEARN WHAT THIS MEANS!" I get to share this experience WITH my children! It just doesn't get any better than that.

My Future

I am still learning more about who I am and what I want out of life. One day I will have to hang that "homeschooling-stay-at-home-mom" hat up. I still have big dreams for when the kids are all grown-up. There are so many things left that I want to do. I would like to become a master gardener, or go back to school and start my own business. So many things...I'll probably change my mind at least a thousand times first.

About Me

This is the page where almost every sentence starts with "I".

I am living my dream. I am married to the most wonderful man on the planet. I have the best kids. I have a career as a homeschooling mom that is more rewarding than I could ever express in print.

Wife

I am married to my best friend and my lover. We have so many good times together. It is a very unique marriage because we are still best friends even after 5 kids, a crazy life, and many challenges life brings.

Home Maker

I love being home taking care of my family. I love meeting everyone's needs and having the time to invest in each person here. I love trying new things and taking on new challenges. Some of them I try to share in my blog.

Homeschooling

Homeschooling is one of the best things I have ever done for my family. I was very hesitant at first. I was partly afraid and partly selfish. Homeschooling would mean I wouldn't get a break from the kids for 6+ hours a day. It would mean very little time to myself. And frankly it would require more self discipline. I don't like to discipline myself.

While educating my own children, I have had to educate myself. I've discovered that I love learning. I am always hungry for knowledge and am almost never satisfied. We'll go off on wild tangents when inspiration strikes. "SOMETHING NEW! LET'S LEARN WHAT THIS MEANS!" I get to share this experience WITH my children! It just doesn't get any better than that.

My Future

I am still learning more about who I am and what I want out of life. One day I will have to hang that "homeschooling-stay-at-home-mom" hat up. I still have big dreams for when the kids are all grown-up. There are so many things left that I want to do. I would like to become a master gardener, and/or join the Knitting Guild and become a master knitter. So many things...I'll probably change my mind at least a thousand times first.

Friday

We've had a pretty nice week as far as school goes. My kids are all paired up for research projects. Kelsea-Joshua (working on crystals and other gems) and Zerrick-Ishmael (learning about black widows). I work with my 4yo who always chooses dinosaurs. This time I made him choose a type of Dinosaur (one we've never learned much about before) he chose stegosaurus.I figure we'll have gone through several different species before he's done with this stage. It's been a good way to get them more familiar with the non-fiction section in the library. Jeremiah knows right where to go get his dinosaur books anyway.

I have some materials to pick up this weekend for science experiments. Some are related to their research projects and some are not. I love doing the experiments together. It's better than baking cookies ;-).

We are doing great in our other subjects as well.

All over the Place

Man I'm so emotional this week. One minute I'm happy as a lark and the next I'm feeling so weepy over any little thing and later I might be a lousy crank.

My cat is looking alot better today. She is on day 3 of antibiotics. My mom thinks she has a sever infection and swollen sinuses. She said she might just get better with the meds.

My kids are having a good time not doing school right now. They have been playing all morning. It's fun to let them play and just listen to them. They are so creative. Have to be careful though. A house full of boys is breeding ground for all sorts of trouble!!! They are racing their matchbox cars. One of my sons was given a speedometer for Christmas. It's been a great toy.

My friend came over yesterday. The rain held up long enough for us to go walking. (My 13yo watches the littles while they watch Nick Jr ) We walked around the block and everytime we passed the house we said "naaa." and kept on walkin'. I needed that so much. I even got my friend to run--up hill! It was fun. It was good medicine for the soul. We walked 3 miles, then had lunch.

Well, coffee's gone. I'm off to start school.

Happy Valentines Day

Today we are going to relax and enjoy eachother. I plan to bake cookies with the kids, cook a good man lovin' meal, and make valentines.

My youngest is so excited about today. He snuck into my bed and played with my hair and whispered "Happy Balemtime's Day Mama! You are the bestest Mama."

The kids have their math, writing, and reading done for the day. We will probably snuggle up in the living room to read Tom Sawyer and enjoy cookies and hot cocoa.

My Poor Kitty

I have a very sick little kitty on my hands. Apparently she has an intra-nasal mass. Last night we spent a couple hours in the vet er. They couldn't do anything for her and it was basically a stinkin' waste of money that we could have saved to use towards testing. Her breathing was labored and she just didn't look right (probably lack of oxygen).

I don't want to say goodbye to my kitty. We buried my my brother in law exactly one month ago today. I can't take losing my kitty right now. Ugh. I just feel so awful. I can't believe my bil is just gone. I miss him. He was such a fun guy and loved us all very much.

Anyway, my friend is coming over and we are supposed to go walking but it looks nasty outside so it looks like we will just have lunch together. Still it will be a nice visit. I need company right now.

Reading and Expecting Packages

We are currently reading Tom Sawyer. It took some doing to find it at the library. I had to go to the adult fiction section. (What's up with that?) The kids are enjoying it though. I knew they would. We are also memorizing the Beatitudes. We are studying a new one every day and having some cool discussions about them.

I'm waiting on a couple of packages. I ordered some bibs for a friends baby gift. I also ordered my daughter and myself some Crocs. I can't believe I actually ordered the ugly shoes but they are sooo comfortable. I am only going to get away with wearing mine when I'm not out with dh.

The other package I'm waiting for is the free samples from Rod and Staff. I'm thinking of using their readers and may look into a few other things as well. I'm looking into simplifying my life a bit next year.

I can't wait till spring. I'm going to have a yardsale and have junk piled high in the sunroom. It is irritating me terribly. I want the stuff gone but we could really use the money. So I'm holding off on the household purge till spring. I do so want my sunroom back though.

Nice Weekend

think this was the first weekend in a very long time that we actually got to spend time at home~doing nothing! We were lazy. It was great! The guys played Monopoly while my daughter and I worked on our scrapbooks and watched Tales from Avonlea, Season 1 (on dvd). It was fun. Even Leon and the boys would pause their game to watch some of the better episodes.

I love to read LM Montgomery's books on Avonlea. My favorites are the ones with Anne-all grown up. Tales from Avonlea is cute. I would so like to have grown up in a town like that. I love the clothes and lifestyle; so simple and clean. Except, I start to think about all the hard work and I change my mind and enjoy the pleasures of the 21st century. I think I'll start reading the "Anne" series again. That is when I've gotten to the bottom of the stack of books I just got from the library.

Speaking of which, I'm reading the next book in the Torie O'shea Mysteries. They are written by Rett MacPherson. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this series. Basically, Torie O'Shea is a genealogist but a wanna be detective. She's a wife and mother in a small town in "New Kassel" Missouri (town is made up). Anyway, they are exciting and suspenseful but not in a "I can't sleep because there are things hiding in the dark now-what was that noise?!" kind of way. I can relate to the main character as a wife and mom. Well, I can probably go on and on about the series. I'm on pins and needles waiting for the next one (releasing the first week in March).

It's been a pretty lazy day today too. Dh is home and has been playing basketball with the kids for the majority of the afternoon.

Ugh. Yesterday was terrible. It was going well at first. Until I was getting my stuff together to leave our co-op and the kids came running in "Mom! We have a flat tire! What are we gonna do? Are we gonna drive on it? Can we blow more air into it?" A FLAT TIRE!!! I can't have a flat tire I haven't even finished half of my errands. I called roadside assistance. After my tire was changed, I took the van to the dealership to get the orig tire patched. Thursday school was over at 3:45 and I wasn't done till' 6:30.

I had to go pick my daughter up from my friends house (wasn't home for her to get dropped off after ballet) and then we went to the library. We met dh for dinner. He took the kids home and I went grocery shopping at 9:00 pm. I was determined to be HOME today.

So now here I am, sitting sharing a cup of coffee with my e-friends ;-) . Mmmmmm cofffffeeeeee. It's so yummy. I using Millstone's Breakfast Blend and Coffeemate Hazelnut Cream~sugar free. I've decided I don't like the sugar free as much as the fat free. I use more per cup with the sugar free. Still it's yummy just extra white.

I should be:
-doing laundry
-educating children
-cleaning my bathroom
-getting on top of kids to do their jobs
-organizing closets
-ironing
-filling out paperwork
-updating computer (calendar, HST, and Quicken)

But I'm not. Maybe later I will. Right now this is so much more fun. Don't get me wrong that stuff will get done...eventually.

Dh recorded last nights Grey's Anatomy for me. I haven't watched it yet. I sure hope it's a good 'un. He also recorded ER. Ya, that hasn't been so good lately. Rather boring actually. Last weeks was so so. Maybe this weeks was halfway decent. If not I'm takin a break.

Well, coffee's gone :-( , guess I'm off to actually DO something.

(currently listening to: Home by Blessed Union of Souls -track 1. I Believe)

Tax Time

Means time to plan next year's curriculum. This is as far as I've gotten:

2nd Grade:
Math: Saxon 2
Reading/Phonics: Library
Bible: Rod and Staff

3rd Grade:
Math: Saxon 3
Reading: Library/ Rod and Staff 5th grade reader
Bible: Rod and Staff
Grammar: Easy Grammar 3/4

7th Grade:
Math: Saxon 6/7
Reading: Library
Science: Apologia's General Science
Grammar: Easy Grammar (red book)
Writing: Write Shop

8th Grade:
Math: Saxon 7/8
Reading: Rod and Staff 8th grade Reader (child does not like to read so hopefully this will keep us going)
Science: ??
Grammar: Easy Grammar (red book)
Writing: Write Shop

I'm still deciding on history for all of us. So far we've just been following a timeline. I think I'd like something more structured and disciplined. Maybe Mystery of History?

For the most part I like to keep it simple. We do alot of other subjects together as a family. We love going to the library. We all read a ton of books except my oldest who would rather "do" than read. Even he reads a fair amount. I may add more or realize I'm forgetting something as I go. This is always a work in progress.

Thurdays

Today is probably the busiest day of my week. Since I'm already out, I try to schedule all of my appts and errands for today. I am such a homebody. I'd rather be reading a book to my kids. Oh well, I march on, too much to do. At least Fridays are much more peaceful.

So Thursdays mean Thursday School. The older two kids are taking a Write Shop class. The teacher has incorporated a fiction writing assignment for the kids. They came up with the plot, characters, setting, blah blah blah as a class. It was very funny because the girls keep directing it towards a romance and the guys keep killing off all the characters. Essentially everyone's story will be the same, except where they are filling in some story lines and flash backs. The story is about a pirate named Jack McLawrence (his given name was Jack McFlarty but the girls nixed that so they had to compromise) who is desperately, and secretly, in love with a girl of noble birth named Saphire. Her family is in trouble and he sets out to become the hero to win her heart. Jack's birthplace is Ireland and he's becoming quite the world traveler.--I think I'm enjoying this just as much as my kids.

Yesterday, after doing math with the kids, I fell asleep on the couch for 3 hours. I can't believe I did that. Not only were the kids perfect (the four year old was asleep with me) but 3 hours?! To top it off the house was clean! I'm so amazed. They are never that quiet when I'm awake and my house is NEVER that clean while kids are still awake. I almost wonder what they were up to, some sort of conspiracy I'm sure ;-) .

I've gone off coffee to prove to my husband that I'm not addicted. I'm stubborn and always get myself into these kind of things. Dh jokes "I think you're getting addicted to the stuff" "I am not, I'll prove it". So, I really am not addicted to coffee. The first week I didn't even think about it. I just really like a nice hot cup in the morning. It's soothing. I have been almost two weeks without a single cup. I miss my morning cup (or 2) of coffee. I especially enjoy sitting with my brew while on the computer. It's like having a cup with friends.

(Currently listening to: One Headlight by The Wallflowers)

Thursday

This week has been pretty good for math. I'm impressed with my 7yo--who has a memory like I don't know what. He has already memorized a large chunk of his multiplication table. I just feel bad for my 6yo who has a hard time and feels he has to keep up. He's gotta learn to fly his own ship some day.Today is errand day. I don't want to go anywhere. I wanna stay home and dig up some good books. We will probably go to the library today so that, at least, is some compensation.

Dentist on Monday?

I don't like waking up early on Monday morning. There I've said it. I'd much rather sleep all day. So why do I make a dentist appointment for Early Monday morning? I got a call a few minutes ago asking if I'd like to reschedule since I missed this mornings appt. I was so embarrassed. Barb (my hygienist) is so much better to me than I deserve. She happily rescheduled and even worked us in for later on this afternoon. I don't deserve that kind of treament. She should have charged me the cancelation fee and made me wait 2 more weeks.

BTW my kids LOVE going to the dentist. I don't get it, but they think it is the coolest place to go. They are truly disappointed when it's not their visit. I would think it was the toys or the sticker and dental paraphernalia. Come to find out, it's the whole "she uses power tools on my teeth" that draws their hearts. Yep...I have a house full of boys

Anniversary and Superbowl Sunday

I'm bummed about tonights game. My favorite team didn't go forward this year (Panthers). I had fun watching though. We always have a chili contest before the Super Bowl. My husband won the contest the first 2 years and lost last year. This year I'm pleased to announce HE HAS MADE A COME BACK!!! Yes he won first place again. The prize for 1st is a $30 gift card to...none other than...Chili's Restaurant! So dh and I will have another date night! Always cool.

Also today is the 8th anniversary of my wedding day. It doesn't feel like 8 years but then at the same time it doesn't feel like we've ever been apart. I love this man, my best friend. We come a long way and are completely different people than we were ~PRAISE GOD! My husband is an amazing man. he still knows how to melt my heart. Sometimes I look at him and still get butterflies.

To celebrate our big day (we were pressed for time because of the SUPER BOWL) we went to see Stomp the Yard. That was a great movie. I really enjoyed it. It brought back so many memories of skipping school to go see the step shows at Winston Salem State. Man those shows were amazing! My friends and I had so much fun!

Today has been an exciting day, so much to share. We had a guest at church today who has the gift of "words of knowlege". There were a couple who stood as a witness who apparently knew this gentleman from years and years ago. Anyway, after church dh and I went to this man and our pastor for prayer. The gentleman spoke some truths to Leon and I that, while hard to hear, were absolute TRUTH! It was such a blessing. This man didn't know us from Adam. But he knew things no one else in our church even knew. I'm looking forward to complete healing and a big change in season. GOD IS GOOD!

Well, I started this blog a year and a half ago but soon after I switched to Verizon Online who gives you a free website. So I blogged there for a while. Now I'm using a different ip and need a new home. Rather than start a new blog...I'll just pick Xanga back up.

Blessing upon you today,

Mandy

One Night With the King

The kids and I have been studying the book of Esther. It is a fantastic story to read as a family. My daughter has been enthralled with it and is reading it over and over. She thinks it's better than any ol' Cinderella story 'cause it's REAL.

Anyway, we've read several Bible translations as well as several story book versions. So of course when One Night with the King came out on DVD we HAD to rent it. Dd was very dissapointed that it wasn't more true to the Word. Poor girl. It was still a good conversation about Hollywood glitz and glam. She did think the came up with a beautiful Esther!

We've had alot of fund discussing possible beauty treatments and use of myrh. It's been so much fun. My daughter is 12btw.

The boys enjoyed this story too. Alot of action that they have been acting out in their play. My insightful 13yo did notice that the king is very unsure of himself (in the movie version). He didn't like that Esther kept questioning him. "That's not how it really was. Nope the real king wouldn't have stood for THAT!"

Ahh a house of boys...gotta love 'em.

Otherwise...I liked the movie. It was entertaining .

Schoolwork wise. My 13yo is finally getting where he is supposed to be for Math. My daughter? Not so much.

My other guys are too young to worry about "where they are supposed to be".

Tagged

I just saw that Bev tagged me on January 17. I'll try to come up with something...even though I DON"T think I'm weird ; ).
I was tagged by BevG.

THE RULES: Each player of this game starts with the 7 weird things about you. People who get tagged need to write a blog of their own 7 weird things as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose 7 people to be tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave a comment that says you are tagged in their comments and tell them to read your blog.

1. I eat Ketchup in homemade tacos. Actually I prefer to have just a plain fried corn tortilla shell w/ ketchup-YUMMO!

2. For fun, we put on fake tatoos as a family...and I LIKE it!

3. I'm excited that Growing Pains is playing on tv again ~I cried during one episode recently.

4. I change my socks 4 times a day.

5. Yahtzee is my favorite game.

6. I can play the game boy for hours!!! I mean HOURS and not get bored-I play it more than my kids.

7. I enjoyed childbirth. Of course I've never had any complications so it's easy for me to say that.

Easy Like Sunday Morning

We started getting the Sunday paper because I started playing the grocery game (still in trial phase will post on that when/if I decide to join). I've always wanted the kids to read and discuss articles from the local paper. Today I gave them their first assignment. I'm surprised but they actually enjoyed it. I just typed up about 7 questions for them to answer from an article that we all read. Why haven't I been doing this from the beginning? It was super fast and easy. We will probably be doing this every week now. I did think about subscribing to the daily paper but then that would just become another chore and I have enough to do as it is.

We are going to a friends house for lunch today. Sometimes it is so nice to just put school aside and go hang out with someone. I'm looking forward to the "girl time".

Ahhhhhh...I can not believe how much more at peace I feel. I'm still amazed at how clearing out a little junk can really clear up brain fog. I literally couldn't concentrate and was easily irritated. I felt like there was no room to work in; like everything was falling in around my head.

Well, after our visit with friends we will come home and get our math done. Then I will work on my scrapbook. It's been a long time since I've made room in my day for a hobby.

Link to the grocery game for anyone who is interested: www.grocerygame.com

Ahhh...Peace and Quiet

We've had a rough day. I had a ton of work piled up (papers to grade, bills, record keeping, etc) and the kids were restless. I really should have just let them outside to play. I was determined to get our school work done today. Oh well, next time they go OUTSIDE!!!! BEFORE they drive me crazy.

Later in the afternoon I had to carpool and then take my kids to Awanas. I am really enjoying the evenings to myself! The house has been quiet and I've gotten so much done. I rearranged some closets and cleaned up my paperwork. I still have quite a bit left but I've made such good progress.

I really need the new start on organization. I was living in chaos before my brother in law passed away. That week really threw us for a loop and before I knew it EVERYTHING was in complete and utter chaos. It has been terrible. I can't focus and don't know one end of the house from the other.

Now, I have all my homeschool stuff organized in bankers boxes (the big white cardboard ones with lids) and on the shelf in the laundry room. I tossed so much junk out. I also threw a bunch of stuff in the sunroom for a possible yard sale this spring. This freed up the entryway closet for my scrapbook stuff. Which then freed up the space in my living room where it was being stored. So as a result my livingroom is less cluttered. HA! It feels so much better around her already.

Anyway, I've been busy and am amazed at how much I can get done while the kids are gone for 2 hours! I was in a much better mood for them when they came home!

Calm Day

We stayed up really late last night playing games together. I think the kids went to bed at 12:30 and dh and I went to bed at around 2am. So, we all slept in late this morning. I woke up at 9 and didn't wake the kids till 10:15. I figured they needed the extra sleep and I got to get in a workout child-free this morning. It was nice.

I don't think we actually started school 'till after noon. We have been having a nice day though, in spite of the late start. We had our Bible study and I've been making time for them to study their verses and pledges for Awanas.

Speaking of Awanas...I did the program as a kid. I had alot of fun and all. However, as an adult I've become less and less thrilled with "child evangelism". Especially when they are targeted in the lower class communities. I believe it's the fathers who need to be equipped and saved so they can then lead their family into salvation. "For if I am saved my household is saved". I have always seen Awanas as such a program. Anyway...stepping off my soap box...I recently let the kids join a club. They are having so much fun!!! It really requires me to work with the younger guys and the older kids can work independently. I do help them with their drill but otherwise they are studying on their own.

While I still haven't completely changed my mind about child evangelism, I am seeing Awanas as a tool.

In Mourning

My brother-in-law died in a fire on January 5, 2007. It was a tragic loss for our family. We buried him on Saturday. This week we will be picking up the pieces of our lives and moving on. We will need to catch up on all the school we missed. Although, the kids did stay with another homeschool family while dh and I were away this past week. My friend included them in her school day with her own children. I'm so blessed to have such a wonderful friend. Still, we are behind on our own lessons.

Anyway, I may or may not be able to blog. It depends on how busy we get : ).

Looking Forward to Next Week

Yesterday went okay. We finished some school work at least. I don't know what it is. I can have the best of intentions and have everything planned. When dh is home we don't get anything done. At least never near what I plan to do and probably just enough to count it as a school day. We have fun though so who can really complain?

I'm going to give the kids their Latin quiz this evening. We get to start next week off on schedule. That is such a good feeling. "On schedule"...sounds like music to my ears.

I'm also looking forward to doing more Bible study with the kids next week.

My older ones are really growing in their personal study. Kelsea's been spending alot of time reading her Bible lately. She will start reading Beautiful Girlhood sometime this month. I've not found anything that I like as much for Zerrick yet. I'm still looking though. In the mean time I will have him keep up his journal as he reads on his own.

I've downloaded the Homeschool Tracker for the 3rd time. I've lost it a couple of times in computer crashes. The last time it kept having a bunch of errors. This time maybe I will get it to do what it's supposed to. I've thought about buying the upgraded version but am afraid of spending $40 and it not working. I do have a teacher's planning notebook. It just doesn't cover everything that Homeschool Tracker did. This time, hopefully, it won't let me down.

Ten More Minutes

...till school starts today. Dh is home today. It would be nice for him to see what we do on school days. Some how we always end up playing when he is off. I do plan to get our math, reading, writing, and grammar done for today. Then we will review for our Latin Quiz tomorrow. I want to set Zerrick up for science. I bought him Apologia's General Science on cdrom and then my computer shut down. Hopefully with a new computer he will be able to use it. I'm thinking maybe I should have bought it in book form.

Holidays Were Crazy Now I'm Sick

Ugh! I've been running a fever of 103 all day today. It's gone down to 99 now so I'm feeling a little better. Tomorrow we step back into full swing. Today we did literature. That's it. Literature. Which means we listened to The Return of the King on tape. Oh well I'm trying. I have been cleaning stuff out as I can. I'm a trooper. I figure dh goes to work whether he's sick or not to support us. I can work through being sick and at least go through stuff. It doesn't require much physical work. Who's gonna rest with the kids running around anyway, right?

I will probably start grading papers, for a co-op, tonight. I do have another week and a half before they are done. I worry about procrastinating to the last minute though and not having them done at all. So if I only get to look at one paper tonight it will be better than nothing at all.

Other than that? Nothing has been going on here. We basically cut out any extras for a few weeks and focused on the necessary. The holidays went well but man! time flew. We didn't do a whole lot of projects like dd would have liked to. We did bake alot of cookies though. I think there were just too many people to shop for. I liked it better when I made gifts for everyone. Though I don't think some of the people were as thrilled.

I needed that break from school though. I feel so much more motivated to get stuff done. I think it came just in time before burn out kicked in.