The PERFECT Blog

Have you ever noticed as you peruse blogs that everyone seems to have the most perfect life? Especially when I stumble upon a homeschooling blog of a devout Christian..."Oh, I have 10 kids and we are just loving every minute of it!" "I got up at 4 today and baked muffins, gathered eggs from our chickens, washed the floors, worked out for an hour and prayed in my Bible" "Joe Jr. has written his own encyclopedia and he's only 7!" OK, that was a bit much, but HONESTLY. This is what you will find and it is a bit depressing. Why? Because it isn't reality. If it is, let me know- I must be a terrible mom.

My alarm is my children, crawling all over me begging for breakfast at 7 AM while I try to hide under my pillow. Breakfast is often a bowl of cereal, and those floors...well, I wouldn't eat off of them if I were you. Of course, my kids do- 5 second rule and all that- and I bet that those blogging moms would be appalled. I try and hit the gym 3 times a week but most weeks I drag myself there once and hope that it is enough. Life isn't anything like a blog. Life is full of frustration, worrying that you are doing everything wrong and praying that your children turn out OK. Blogs can be so superficial- you let the world think you are doing OK. You don't tell them about your problems, you create this guise of perfection. I am guilty as well. I surely don't want to air my dirty laundry for the rare person who stumbles upon this blog by mistake; however, I hope to be honest.

Whats the deal with Star Wars?

As one of two girls, I never watched Star Wars growing up. I saw it once on a date in middle school and I cannot for the life of me tell you what it is about.

I can name 5 or 6 characters, but do not see what all of the fuss is about. Sorta like the Beatles. All you need is love...all you need is love...all you need is love, love- or is it that all you need is someone else to write your lyrics for you?

With that said, I am now a mother of 2 boys who gravitate towards weapons with a passion. When my older son was building with some tube shaped blocks a couple of weeks ago, I pleaded that he make something constructive- not a weapon. I said, "No guns, no swords, no knives." Down to the kitchen I go... soon I hear the yell of my younger son darting down the stairs followed by his brother who has made...an AX. Yep, an ax, which of course he was swinging at his brother. Granted, it was plastic but it was rather forbidding looking.

Today, my older son decides he wants to become a droid (apparently a S.W. character). He taped paper around his arms, legs, and chest and was shooting people with a rolled up sheet of paper. He then proceeded to tell me about the different movies, the toys he wanted from the movies, and would not stop talking. So what did I do? I turned on Star Wars. :)
Here I am, enjoying a rare moment of quiet as my baby naps and my older child becomes more obsessed.

Autumn Fun!

We decided to visit a local pumpkin patch a few weekends ago to experience some fall fun. We enjoyed a hayride, met a calf who was only a few weeks old, stuffed a scarecrow, and more. The boys had a blast petting the animals, except for the goats....one goat decided it didn't like our boys and tried to horn them! There was a bubble maze and we each got to pick our own pumpkin. It definitely got me in the spirit of autumn!!!

Loose tooth already!

My baby...OK, I know he is technically not a baby at 5 years old, but he is MY baby, has a loose tooth! This is his first and man it is loose! So, first the training wheels on the bike come off and now this. When I saw that tiny little tooth wiggling around in his mouth, it brought tears to my eyes. I remember when that tooth first popped into his mouth and already it is ready to go... sigh.

I feel so blessed that I was there with him today to watch his excitement-that I am always with him and Preston for every experience.

1st week of homeschooling...

Well, it is official. We have started to homeschool! We started a new math program today, called Math U See. We are using the Alpha level. Today we started talking about the place value of numbers. Aidan can add and subtract but doesn't understand WHY 30 is bigger than 20, only that it is. Aidan is learning his continents, where to find them, and today we talked about Asia. We have been working on our Hooked on Phonics for reading and Aidan is doing well. This week we talked about plants and their uses, differences, etc. for science. Aidan learned some Bible songs about the Creation and Adam and Eve, as well as a song to remember the days of the week. It has been an interesting start. I am sure we'll find our groove soon.
He is finishing up his soccer season in a few weeks and will start with basketball for the first time. I hope to get him started with piano lessons in the next week or so as well.