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Cabin Fever

I figured it out! The grumpiness, the grouchiness, and the overall, "ARG-iness" of this week is probably due to a bad case of cabin fever! WOOHOO! I'm not losing my mind. Oh, the boys will be so relieved to hear that!

The older two boys are all healthy now. Smidge isn't getting any better. (But we're not giving up on him.) I need to find a new pediatrician, as we are currently without one. Our beloved ped was charged with child molestation a couple weeks ago. *sigh* That does make it a little awkward, ya know. Zorak is getting recommendations from the guys at work and we have to find a new one. In the meantime, Smidge is so tired and out of it that he has begun to look like Spicoli, which probably isn't good.

I steam cleaned our couch yesterday. That went well. Then I spot treated the carpets and... the carpet cleaner died. Ew! So right now, the living room reeks of a very strong chemical smell, and if you walk around in socks you'd think we're living with an angry cat.

However, there is hope on the horizon. Zorak is supposed to bring the Suburban to me in a little bit, so I can run all the errands that should have been run by Wednesday (at the latest!) And on Tuesday the temps are supposed to get above freezing at some point during the day! Yippee! We can sit on the porch and get some fresh air.

How do y'all combat cabin fever?

Kiss those babies! I'm off to snuggle my little sick monkey.
~Dy

Just When I'm About to Throw in the Towel...

I get this (see, Donna, I'm writing it down, too!):

James: Mom, did the Ancient Greeks really believe Athena was as big as the statue in the Parthenon?

Me: Yes, probably bigger.

James: Yeah? Well, our God is way bigger than that!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Happy Inauguration Day!

Today we're going to the Wonderful Neighbors to watch the Presidential Inauguration. The boys are excited, in the distracted way you get excited about events in your world when you're six and four. Smidge will be happy to run laps around their house. I am looking forward to witnessing history. (Yes, I know, we have one of these every four years, but we only have so many during one lifetime and I plan to enjoy each one since I'm no longer in that distracted stage, which, for me, lasted well past six years of age...)

Enjoy your day with your children, love on them and cherish them.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Game Reviews

We've begun our family time after supper again -- since supper has been ready earlier now that we're back in our groove.

Last night was Chinese Checkers, which was a huge hit with everyone (even Jacob had fun playing with the leftover balls). The boys woke this morning and immediately set up the board. That's a good sign.

We played Charades for Kids earlier in the week. It's a fun game, but honestly I wouldn't recommend spending the money on the Kids' version. Maybe it's us, but we prefer the all-out free-for-all, the ongoing guessing process, the working together, and the interaction of playing Charades more free-form. So, we kept the cards and ditched the game board (game board?? Yes, because there has to be one winner, doesn't there? Blech.) Much more fun our way, we think. *wink*

If you've never experienced a four year-old acting out phrases, and a six year-old trying to guess, you've got to come play Charades at our house! That's more fun than the game itself.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Combining The Well-Trained Mind and Robinson Curriculum

I get a few questions each month about how that's workin' for us. When my printer's working, the whole thing flows like a Class II river. Really. It's not that hard.

Now, I must add a caveat here: we eat sugar; I sit with my children; we do our things together. I answer questions. I don't know that Dr. Robinson would approve. (OK, I'm certain he wouldn't.) Do you know why we do things this way? Because I'm the Mommy. That's my job. We all like it this way, and are thankful for the enjoyment of learning together, living together and exploring together. (Not to mention the sheer joy of M&M's.) However, I'm not widowed, and not in a position where I have a need to make my children self-sufficient straight out of the gate. If something were to happen to me (like, say, a more permanent alien abduction), though, Zorak could sit down with the disks and, after a few pots of coffee and a new ink cartridge, pick right up with the boys and find a way to continue to give them a wonderful education.

Obviously, we aren't strict Well-Trained Minders, though, either. *sheepish grin* We use a combination of the two- and we love it. So, in light of receiving questions about this seemingly odd combination, I thought I'd write up our reasons for using both and how we make it work (and title it appropriately, so I can find it in the archives, unlike trying to track down the posts on "why we love Math-U-See", which has been, thus far, unfruitful.) So, here ya go-

I love the WTM because:
* it is rigorously structured, thorough, and produces the education Zorak and I most want for the boys. It goes deeper on content than any other program I've ever seen simply due to the four-year repeat cycle. Nothing is stale because each time you go deeper and broader, covering more and learning more. It's the education we wish we'd had. Having suffered through six full years of American History with no foundation in Western Civilization, I can say I know for certain that's not the way to develop competent citizens.
* The Well-Trained Mind does a better job of helping us prepare the boys for Citizenship and Statesmanship as adults than any other philosophy I've seen.
* I love the formal study of Logic, in all its forms. What a great way to corral a jr. high age child's natural tendency to question *everything*! That has a feel of, "Wow, God did that on purpose, didn't He?"
* Latin, which I don't consider optional in a Classical Education. Latin allows the brain to comprehend the logic and history in our culture. It opens the doors to the past in a way that translations do not. It creates a structure in the brain that I haven't seen replicated elsewhere, even in the harder engineering sciences. SO that's another point of TWTM that we love.

NOW, for what I love about RC! :-)

* The quality of literature for young minds, even for advanced young minds (or perhaps especially for them- as it's difficult to find higher level modern literature without delving into unsavory themes) is, for me, beyond value. The stories are phenomenal.
* The vocabulary is rich and varied.
* It's easy to follow and I love knowing that I can give the boys an RC book to read and not have to worry about them picking up sentence fragmentation (a la Magic Tree House), poor character emulation (a la most modern children's popular books), or encountering inappropriate content (such as premarital relations, dating- which isn't OK for a 6yo, anti-Christian themes... I could go on!)

*The science fits right in with how I prefer to "do" science for little guys. It's reading. They explore plenty on their own and don't need pre-made experiments right now. Right now they need exposure to the world around them, and RC's "science" books before the actual Physics book he recommends are exactly the kind of enjoyable, engaging, interesting stories that capture a child's imagination and open the door for discussion and exploration together after he's done reading. LOVE that aspect.

***And the biggie (this makes Zorak a bit twitchy to discuss, but if we're being honest here...) IF something should happen to me, RC would allow the boys to continue to be homeschooled. Admittedly, I'm the one who did all the legwork and research into homeschooling and curriculum preparation, so it's "my realm" by default. Zorak trusts me to make the best decision for our children that I can, and I did. But I don't know that he would have the resources available to teach three boys in the manner I've set up to do it. After all, I have all day, every day and thanks to his dedication and effort, I don't have to work. If I should die, he would have to take on my role as teacher, as well as picking up the slack everywhere else.

Since the boys are already familiar with RC, the transition wouldn't be that big for them. They would have to make some adjustment, because I just don't feel like they need to be quite as independent right now as Mr. Robinson does *wink* and I am admittedly a lot more involved, but at least it wouldn't be totally foreign. If they can read, Zorak can move them into RC. He could do it without having to learn all the ropes of the different programs. He can still give the boys a thorough, wonderful, academically rigorous education without me.

Finally, how we combine them!

We use Math-U-See for Math, Writing Road to Reading for Language Arts, Prima Latina for Latin, Plants Grown Up for Bible Study, SOTW for history. We use Robinson Curriculum for reading, science, vocabulary, and supplemental reading that corresponds to whatever else is going on.

Others may blend it differently. There is certainly room to maneuver without sacrificing the quality of education. It's a wonderful mix for our family and allows the perfect level of independent work and snuggle-time-work that I, personally, feel like we need. (The boys are 6, 4, and 1- as they get older, they will get more independent and will probably rely more heavily on the RC-style of independent study.)

I blend.

I print off and turn 'em loose.

Thanks for letting me put these thoughts in a more permanent place, so I don't have to re-type it so often. ;-) If you combine TWTM and RC, would you please share how you do it so that others can get more than one perspective?

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Idiot Criminals (PG for language)

Normally I read about the "Stupid Criminal" stories and shake my head. Tonight I'm writing one and am ready to rip somebody's head off.

Last night I spent several hours online with Hewlett-Packard's customer service, trying to fix my grouchy printer. I have to say the customer service rep was very thorough, patient and eventually determined that it may be a cartridge problem. So, since the cartridge is brand new and therefore still under warranty, he arranged to send one to us. Yippee!

Yeah, until tonight at supper when the phone rings. And it's somebody wanting me, by first name, and completely failing miserably at pronouncing it. (Sometimes having a unique spelling does help weed out the solicitors, *grin*, but she mangled it so badly that I honestly didn't think it was a derivation of my name in any of its androgynous forms. She finally attempted the last name and got it close enough that I figured they were shooting for my name.) Supposedly she was calling from HP, they sent us a black ink cartridge, yeah, yeah, and???

"Well, we need to confirm your credit card number so we can get that out to you."

*snort* *sputter* *gag* Excuuuuuuuse me?

Shyah, ok, primer on the term "warranty" for ya. That indicates you're shipping it at your cost, not mine. You're not getting my credit card number. *snort* Thanks, though.

"We need it for security."

*literally laughing in this gal's face* Yeah, I'm sure you do, and security is exactly why I'm not giving it to you!

"OK, fine. Good-bye." And she hung up.

Jackass.

However, this little foray into the world of the intellectually hindered is a strong reminder that while the moron making the call may not be smart enough to walk her way out of an ampitheater, somebody was smart enough to hack something, somewhere. *sigh*

Of course, nobody at Verizon is available to help me track down the call. Nobody at Hewlett-Packard is available to field questions or concerns. Thanks, guys! (I know, not their fault. I'm grumpy.)

SO, just a friendly reminder- keep your passwords secure, don't give our pertinent information over the internet, or on the phone. And certainly never share information with someone who has phoned you!

ARGH. I'm going to play Chinese Checkers with the boys. I'll be back to blog a real blog later.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Snow Day

Another wonderful thing about homeschooling is that you don't have to cancel school just because it snows. This morning we enjoyed our lessons while keeping one eye on the tantalizing snow flurries as they grew and grew. By the time there was enough to play in, we'd done math, Latin, and spelling/phonics.

Then we played.

Now they're cold and wanting hot chocolate. Mmmm, I hear a story coming on! And we didn't have to get in the car, go out on the big-scary roads, keep one ear glued to the radio for closures and updates! What a wonderful way to spend the day.

How do you guys enjoy your unexpected snow days?

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Mama Said There'd Be Days Like This...

(Sing it with me, everyone!)
There'd be days like this, my Mama said.
*mama said, mama said, yeah!*

We'll start with the good...
Today was a good day academically- math, Latin, reading, reading. (We read quite a bit today.) The boys nearly imploded when I stopped reading Old Granny Fox (Burgess) just as Granny Fox was in Farmer Brown's Boy's sights. But I placated them (and the need to do some cooking) by asking them if they thought she would get out of the situation, then supplying the necessary very big paper and many crayons for them to draw the scenarios they pictured. The results were truly fantastic. I laughed and giggled and enjoyed them thoroughly.

James' art work is gaining great depth: he used a darker shade of red to show her farthest two legs shadowed by her body, her body is positioned so she is leaping at an angle to the paper, and he included "motion lines" behind her to indicate that she was leaping (in case anyone thought she was falling, I suppose).

John's art work is along the impressionistic side, leaving tons of room for interpretation. The stories he makes to go along with the drawings, however, are rich, detailed, and generally involve some Tragic Act of Nature and a helicopter. Farmer Brown and His Boy didn't fare well in John's narration.

Oh, and the house looks great! John mopped the kitchen floor today. The mop is twice his height, and it was a struggle, but he did it, and it was beautiful! Not perfect in Martha Stewart terms, but I think it just shines. I know he did when he finished.

That pretty well concludes the positive portion of today. Thanks for tuning in.

****

Then the bad...

I think the high today was 20'. Two of three children are now expelling mass crud from their bodies at alarmingly high velocities (the Grapefruit Seed Extract is working wonders on whatever had lodged in their lungs, though, and I'm thrilled to see it coming *out*!) This combination of factors pretty much ruled out the long overdue library excursion I had planned.

Jacob is showing a rather pointed preference not to be located in his crib. When he is wide awake, he will lay down on the couch, on our bed, on the floor and pass right out. Not a problem. You can wash him, change him, roll him over like a little steam roller and he'll sleep right through it. But even from a deep, comatose-like sleep he will leap to full alert mode when lowered into his crib.

I'm inclined to go with it (after all, who wants to sleep where we aren't comfortable), except for the fact that, well, between him pinning me down and Zorak's Elbow of Death (which I can generally avoid if not under a small child), I'm really tired.

So, I'm thinking it's time for a toddler bed. Could it be? Now? Already? *sigh* He may be ready, but I'm not. quite. there. yet. Could it be anything else? Really?

And finally, the UGLY...

Our local homeschool group is taking meals to a homeschooling family that's facing some medical issues right now. This week is my turn. Today I prepared a truly lovely meal. It was a wheat-free, dairy-free, egg-free, soy-free, peanut-free, low vitamin-K meal that promised to be succulent and tasty! But then... *insert lost stare* I don't have *any* idea what caused it, but the chicken exploded! I mean that in a very literal sense. Zorak went so far as to approach me and say, "Erm, may I inquire what the chicken did?" I couldn't take that over! So tomorrow morning I get to call, apologize profusely for detonating their food and arrange to bring fresh, non-volatile food to them in the afternoon. *sigh*

Ah, well, I am going to do some math. The boys are over at the Wonderful Neighbors house, watching a movie and enjoying their kerosene heater before bed. Heat pumps don't work extraordinarily well in this level of cold. I got to stay behind and put the Smidge to bed, and am sure wishing we had a nifty kerosene heater to warm our tootsies by tonight! (See, I can handle the Elbow of Death because Zorak's body temperature rises at night- so he gets in first, warms my spot, and I get to enjoy all the benefits of an electric blanket with none of the side effects or concerns! Definitely worth the occasional bruised temple, trust me.) Zorak is over at the Wonderful Neighbor's, "watching" the kids. (I think the adults are actually gabbing in the kitchen, but that's the nice thing about having kids like these four and parents who are all friends!)

So, I'm thinking do a little homework, get an early bedtime, perhaps an early start tomorrow, and hopefully we'll be hosting a much better sing-a-long tomorrow night!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy