A Fly On My Homeschool Wall

We tried to have school, but I was so unable to focus on anything that I gave up.  I couldn't get myself to make simple assignments.  Even reading aloud left me breathless and exhausted. We went on an outing on a weirdly warm January day. I left Dad with the kids at a playground and walked over 4 miles trying to kick labor into gear.  No luck. My mental state of being was bad.  It didn't matter what I knew with my rational mind.  I was sleep-deprived, exhausted, unable to breathe, unable to think, unable to laugh or find any sort of perspective.  I felt serious depression/anxiety fluttering around the edges of my brain.  I recognized the signs of needing help because I've been down that road before.  I needed the baby out NOW. But he didn't come out. I took the kids to their Explorer's Club meeting.  We all made valentines to be delivered to local Meals on Wheels recipients.  The kids churned out over 100 valentine...

This week will forever be remembered in our house as the week the baby didn't come. During the week the older girls did the barest of basics for school each day:  personal scripture study, reading journals, and math.  The little guys were free to immerse themselves in creative play . . . and they reveled in it.  Every day (except Monday) we went on some sort of outing to keep me from going crazy--I've never been pregnant so long before! Over the weekend Dad, S12, and I fell victim to the stomach bug the rest of the family had last week.  So on Monday we recuperated.  I had irregular contractions all day.  The littles were busy, busy, busy playing, but I wasn't really tuned in to what they were doing.  At one point as I passed the dining room I noticed a puppet show going on: I was intrigued, so I stepped into the room to get a better shot, and I discovered that they'd spent the morning creating "Fun Land." "Pupit" theater. An...

image credit A reader asked me about our back-to-school interviews.  Honestly, they're so simple that it's never occurred to me to write about how we do them.  But here goes. :) We have these interviews because my older kids work almost completely independently these days.  They just pick up their crates of school stuff, go to work, hand their crates back to me for me to check stuff, and repeat the next day.  I can completely lose touch with what's on the kids' minds if I don't make a concerted effort to listen .  They will often offer their opinions about their work as they do it, but I might not be actively listening if they're complaining while I'm in the middle of a reading lesson with H5 or making dinner before Dad goes to work.  The interviews give me a chance to focus on one kid at a time and take their opinions seriously.  Mid-year Interviews: After any break from school I sit down individually with each kid and her (so far they're...

Monday we started the day with a hearty Dad-breakfast.  He cooked up hash browns, eggs, and sausage patties, then served them all with a gallon of orange juice.  He loves to do it; the kids love to eat it; and I thought it was a fun final-day-of-vacation sort of thing to do.  After chores and breakfast, we had back-to-school interviews.  I didn't want to do them; I felt overwhelmed and exhausted at the thought of them; I'm glad we did them.  Now, no matter when the baby comes, we've organized ourselves for the semester, and the kids can carry on. Life goes on a lot the same as it was before the break. *J11 asked to continue her penmanship lessons even though her penmanship is truly beautiful.  Who am I to say no? *M12 and S12 dumped their language arts lessons.  We'll look for a substitute sometime later, but for now they're reading and writing daily in various journals, so I'm not worried. *E14 asked to start Latin (a new subject), and ...

 Sunday was the last of the year.  Here's J11 in her special outfit that her sisters helped her coordinate so she could wear her Christmas boots to church.  It was I3's last day in the nursery.  Next week he joins primary--the regular children's organization at church.  It was also M12 and S12's last day in their primary classes.  Next week they will join Sunday School.   Dad was home from work, so he was able to take the older 3 to the youth fireside at the Bishop's house.  It was about the Middle East.  One of the girls in the youth group just moved here this very year from Cairo, Egypt, so she had a lot to offer the discussion.  I grilled my girls about what they learned because I was curious, but they were too focused on the social aspects of being together with the other youth to answer any of my questions. Monday Dad and I ran some errands after my appointment with my midwife (I'm registered at the hospital and she s...