Homeschool at Heart

How awesome is THIS?! 

Not much to say about it except — Jim’s GOTTA build this for me!  Or I’ll try do it myself & he’ll have to fix it.  Brilliant!

I *really* hate sending them off to school in the dark, all sleepy and grumpy. We are not morning people, not any of us. Duncan physically cannot fall asleep before 10pm, no matter when he goes to bed, no matter what the routine. His body does not work that way. The girls have a hard time too, although they don’t have as hard a time waking up as he does. And me — anything before 7am should just be against the law. I know, I know, I’m mostly libertarian and do not want the gov’t nosing in my private sleeping arrangements, but really what is so goldarn important it needs to happen that early?

Getting kids up after only 8 hrs of sleep (most need more like 12) is just wrong. Sending them off to someone else to learn is just wrong. Not being with them all day, missing them as I sit at a computer screen all day is just wrong.

Don’t misunderstand. I love my job. I love the people I work with — literally. My boss is my preacher, pastor, mentor the other ministers are close friends. This is a dream job for a working mama — if you want a job. News editing and camera work is getting thinner and thinner for Jim. His 3-4 days/week is one of the heavier schedules up on the wall in the breakroom at his station. He has told me he’s committed to me coming back home, but I just don’t see that happening. He’s almost 50 — I’m not sure what kind of career move he can make at this point that won’t be several steps backward financially and would still keep me working.

I just miss my kids. I miss watching them ‘get it’. I miss snuggles & waking up slowly together & just BEING with them. I hate rushing & scheduling & homework. I hate stupid assignments that make them cry to even contemplate hurdling them, even if they do get it eventually. I hate that IF they want to do any kind of activity, we have to be out every single night. I hate that we are very rarely together as a family. I hate that the limited time I’m home with them is spent griping and nagging and cleaning and fussing and complaining.

I hate how much I hate it all. Because it is our reality right now and I *need* to find a way to make it work better. THEY need me to make it work better. I can’t spend their childhood wishing things were different. It’s not fair to them.

. . . another blog post!  Nothing pithy, introspective, or particularly wise here.  No grandiose proclamations of grand resolutions.  Just a quiet resolve to be better to people, to hug my kids more, to yell less, to keep up on the cleaning more, to invite people into my home more (made possible by the aforementioned cleaning), and to make sure there is always clean underwear and socks in the dresser drawers.  Also, to spend time at work more wisely, to keep my heart tender with compassion with those who come seeking help either financial or spiritual, and to stay my quirky, strange, open-book self – remembering to leave the ‘church face’ in the desk drawer.  I think that’s enough to aspire to for the next year, don’t you?

OK, the idea of a parody of Grandma Ran Over by a Reindeer is funny enough.  But when it involves the TSA . . .

Grandma Got Molested at the Airport

(Thanks Ron & Liese!)

Me: Yeah, I know it’s a hokey sweater; I only wear them once a year. Besides, at least it’s not a giant snowman!

Jim: No, just his testicles hanging from the zipper.

I removed the pom-poms.

As an avid non-workout-type-person, I’ve figured that having 4 kids, one of whom is nearing 3 years old, is enough workout for any mom, right? Except that I don’t eat particularly well — not particularly poorly, but not particularly well. And I sit at a computer for 8 hrs/day for work, and a couple more hours for fun. NOT a good equation for optimum health and fitness. There was that year or so about 12 years ago that I played around on the Bally’s LifeCycle circuit, but that doesn’t count as a workout really either.

So, when Michael O’Neill of His House Fitness sent out an email to local churches looking for a space for his latest class, I figured “Hey, I should do that!” Our church (my workplace) wasn’t really suited for what he needed, but he ended up going with one that is literally 3 blocks from my house. Perfect. So, Monday and Wednesday this week I got up at 5:30am, ate a banana, and headed over for my 6:00 torture session workout. No, I didn’t walk, I drove. Yeah, I know.

WOWZA!!! Monday morning was beyond tough. I almost hurled. I did cry, but I finished. Monday daytime wasn’t too bad as far as pain, but becoming upright Tuesday morning was a bit of a challenge. This morning was not as hard as Monday, but still beyond my abilities. That’s OK, by the end of the month, I’ll be able to do it all. I’m hoping to lose some weight, but more than that, just FEEL better. We are modifying our diet for the month — and most importantly — it’s all about working on God’s temple. So it’s all got a spiritual side to it as well. I’m loving it. Well, moaning & groaning & loving it!

So that was getting fit.

About the same time I got Michael Beau’s email, I started reading on GCM about Carol Tuttle and Dressing Your Truth. It’s all a little sketchy to me — I don’t have a lot of time to watch the videos — but it is VERY intriguing to me. Some of the ideas, I have always implemented by instinct, but some — let’s just say I’ve admired & tried to be something I am not way more than my clothing budget could really afford.

Today, I happened across this giveaway at Thrifty and Chic Mom on Facebook, so I wanted to share it with the couple of readers I have left. The whole DYT thing is a very interesting concept — why not delve into it with a free profile system?

I’ll be back to blog more about my health, fitness, and beauty journey!!! Just wanted to drop these links and say HI again!

All 7 Deadly Sins Committed at Church Bake Sale

All 7 Deadly Sins Committed at Church Bake Sale
(why can’t I imbed it using the imbed code from the site?)

I decided a few weeks ago that it was way past time for us to get some pictures done of the kids. We’d done the church directory photos, and a Wal-Mart shoot with my mom and sisters and their kids when Fiona was just months old, but we hadn’t had our kids’ picture taken since Duncan was born! A friend of mine posted some beautiful shots taken by a local photographer (incidentally, her neighbor), and I decided to take the plunge.

She was running a special on sibling groups, as she built her portfolio, and did I have a group of sibs for her!!! Yesterday we packed up a few props and drove one block over to our little local “cultural center”, an old farmhouse and barn from the early days of the town complete with gardens, old wagon wheels, picnic benches, all kinds of neat background items.

We went after Fiona’s nap to capitalize on her non-crankiness. But when you’re 2 months away from 3 there isn’t a lot of non-cranky time, lol. And Moi had just gotten back from a middle-school church retreat; she was overtired and not just a bit cranky herself. Tae had ideas of how she wanted the whole thing to go . . . which of course it did not. And Dunc just wanted to play with his Legos.

It was a beautiful day for October in Michigan. In fact, it was a beautiful day for August in Michigan — and we were dressed for October. That is to say, it was a bit warmish. Again, adding to the cranky factor.

I was convinced by the time we went home that she was really going to have to work to find any usable shots . . .

And then I saw the first shots she posted.

How can they get any better?

I’ve been pretty much a Facebook gal for the last couple of years. Working and parenting full time doesn’t leave much time for blogging. But sometimes an idea or discussion starts rattling ’round in my brain, and I need a little bit different outlet than FB affords. I’d like to start doing more blogging over here. Let’s see how it goes . . .

Really quickly, because I’m at work and shouldn’t be on here — Carrie over at Books & Movies is giving away the children’s fantasy novel The Purloined Boy. Head over to get your entry in!

I know I have been dreadfully neglecting this blog, so I thought I’d try NaBloWriMo to get kick-started again.

This is why my blog is neglected – kids in the tub calling me.  I’ll be back to write some more!

OK, averted disaster, though my 2yo is now running the house nekkid.  What can I say, she loves some nekky time.  She is such a hoot these days.  Her sense of humor is developing — and with the wackos in this house, there’s only one direction THAT can go – warped.  She loves the PSYCH game.  She offers up candy, her sippy, the remote, whatever, and then when you reach for it, she yanks it back and giggles maniacally.  Hmmmm, wonder where she learned that?  Her sibs are learning that whatever you’ve teased a toddler with will come back to bite you in the butt tenfold.  Sometimes literally.

I should give updates on everyone else too since it’s been so looooong.  Moira is in the 5th grade at a fine-arts charter school and loves it.  One huge blessing is that her teacher homeschooled her children until she put them in that same school in the 5th grade!  So she really understands Moira’s struggle — and my issues with letting go of control in certain areas, lol.  We communicate via email and it’s going great.  Moi’s classmates are way more diverse than in our local elementary — I think Caucasian may actually be the minority.  She loves drama (did she have a choice?) and music, and her favorite subject is Language Arts.  She’s into a lot of the same stuff I am — dragons, fantasy stuff – she even asked to read Twilight, although I don’t think it will be that interesting once she gets into it.  She and Duncan performed at their school talent show; she sang Miley Cyrus’ Party in the USA and Duncan beat-boxed to it.  They performed to a backup track while most of the other kids just sang along CD’s, so she had a nerve-wracking moment where she lost her place and stood staring in the lights.  Duncan lightened the moment with a “Come on, Moi, SING!” and Tae sang out from the audience until Moi found her place.  She was mortified, but all her frieds thought she was so brave to finish up.  I told her she’d NEVER be that nervous again, for sure.

Taeryn (Tae now) is in 4th grade at the local elementary since they don’t have an opening at the charter yet in the 4th grade.  She is doing awesomely.  Her biggest challenge is math, since we went with a late-math model, but she’s catching up pretty well.  Our blessing here is that her teacher goes to our church and has known her since she was 2.  Tae is very comfortable asking questions — and I’m very comfortable Facebooking her or calling her to see what’s going on and if Tae needs any work at home.  She just finished a cheerleading clinic with a performance yesterday.  I’d post pictures, but my camera is dying and the lighting was HORRID.  She did well, of course.  I can’t imagine having a cheerleader in the family, but I can deal with it, lol.  Taeryn used to be such a frou-frou ballet pink type girl — she’s turning into more of a hot-pink punk style kid.  I love it!  My in-laws are a little taken aback, but what can you expect from a girl who’s favorite band is Superchic(k)?  We got tickets to a concert this fall and boy were we on the best-parents-ever list for a while!

Duncan’s at the charter.  He had a bumpy start, behavior-wise, but he’s settled in now and has stayed on “green” for two weeks now.  He’s  chatterbox and – get this – a bit of a clown for attention.  He seems to enjoy school and is doing great learning his letters & numbers.  He’s learning Spanish too — the other night he asked that we sing all the colors in his Rainbow Song in Spanish!  And he got most of them before I did.  (I could not remember orange for the life of me!)  He loves his music and drama classes as well.  OH and he started Karate this fall.  He’s the oldest in his class, so I think we’ll move him up to the next one after this 8-wk session is over.  We remind him often to be a leader, not a follower, and it’s showing often in class when the littler ones are running crazy and he’s standing on the line where Ms. Tanya has instructed them to stand.  He’s growing up so fast.  They all are, and I often catch glimpses of the young women and young man they’re growing into.

Jim’s still at the news station, barely.  He’s usually scheduled 2-3 days/week but they often call him in other shifts.  It gets exhausting waiting to see if he’s going to get any more hours, but we do thank God he’s got a job at all.  We’re in the Detroit area, remember, jobs are few and far between.

I’m still working as the church secretary (thus my neglectful bloggage).  In fact, last week they upped my hours to full time.  Sadly, it’s because they’re having to let go our administrative minister.  He’s doing OK with it, but it is still sad.  The economy blows so badly here.  This area was the first to get hit by it, and I think we’ll be among the last to recover as well.  Last year, Wayne County was second only to the main county hit by Katrina for people leaving the area. But Detroiters are fighters — just look at the Lions!  They’ll never quite trying.  We’re here for however long God keeps us here, and we’ll make the best of it.

More bloggy goodness to come tomorrow, I’ve got to get some lunch on the table.  See ya round!