"Oooh, ooooh, sunny days, clouds away . . ."
Ana (4) is crooning her own rendition of the Sesame Street song.
It brings a smile to my heart.
I can't control the clouds, but I can remember the sun.
My last post was mostly overcast, with just a glimmer of hope peeking from behind the clouds.
I hope this post will be full of sun, even if it's the watery and uncertain warmth that comes with early March.
"We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed."
2 Corinthians 4:8-9
I might be done, but I'm not finished.
Maybe I stopped, but I haven't quit.
I'm still on the battlefield, I just changed tactics.
Joshua 1:9 caught my attention yesterday in my Bible reading. Today it was quite literally a sign.
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| At the chiropractor for his first treatment! |
God has set so many confirmations before me in the past 24 hours. A friend sent a most timely reminder that maybe therapy should take the place of school for a while. The lady at the local homeschool book store advised we should focus on wellness first, I mused over the possibilities of Unschooling and God provided a generous gift from a dear friend so that we could go to the upcoming homeschool convention where Special Needs is going to be a major focus.
I know what I need to do now.
It's scary, but I'm letting go.
Letting go of the preconceived notions about what education should or should not look like.
Letting go of the pressure I have put on myself.
Letting go of the fear that I might disappoint others.
Letting go of the fear that I might fail.
And hopefully letting go of the pride. I was leaning very heavily on my own brute strength (stop laughing!) to power through. And that self reliance is not what God had in mind when He said,
". . . Not by might, nor by power but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts." Zechariah 4:6
". . . Not by might, nor by power but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts." Zechariah 4:6
I don't know how the next several months are going to play out. But I do have a direction to head in. I have some principles to guide me. None of it is very radical. Just a shuffling of priorities.
Today was a different day from yesterday.
I slept in.
Because we had to be at the chiropractor first thing, I didn't even try to have a Morning Meeting. We did a little school in the waiting room and then we went to the park. And then we came home. I've been writing, the kids have watched Myth Busters and done a few chores. I dealt with multiple major meltdowns from my sensory kid.
But there is more happening here than meets the eye. Things have been happening under the surface, I just couldn't see them because of all the clutter in my mind. Even though I have felt like I was making no headway whatsoever this week, that's not true.
Without my killing myself, here are the top learning achievements of our week:
Chore cards. Duggar style. Morning chores, kitchen chores, afternoon household chores and evening chores, one step at a time. They hang around the neck so that you can't lose them or forget that you are in the middle of chores.
Who am I kidding?
Of course they lose them and forget they are supposed to be doing chores! Still, it works better than anything else I have ever tried. If we can just be consistent, we might survive this season.
Turn them loose in the kitchen. Alvin brought me these lovely rust colored scrambled eggs. When I asked him what he seasoned them with he replied, "That stuff that no one likes to have on their tongue."
Say what?!
Turns out to be sriracha and slightly slimy green onions.
Yum!
Today was a different day from yesterday.
I slept in.
Because we had to be at the chiropractor first thing, I didn't even try to have a Morning Meeting. We did a little school in the waiting room and then we went to the park. And then we came home. I've been writing, the kids have watched Myth Busters and done a few chores. I dealt with multiple major meltdowns from my sensory kid.
But there is more happening here than meets the eye. Things have been happening under the surface, I just couldn't see them because of all the clutter in my mind. Even though I have felt like I was making no headway whatsoever this week, that's not true.
Without my killing myself, here are the top learning achievements of our week:
Chore cards. Duggar style. Morning chores, kitchen chores, afternoon household chores and evening chores, one step at a time. They hang around the neck so that you can't lose them or forget that you are in the middle of chores.
Who am I kidding?
Of course they lose them and forget they are supposed to be doing chores! Still, it works better than anything else I have ever tried. If we can just be consistent, we might survive this season.
Turn them loose in the kitchen. Alvin brought me these lovely rust colored scrambled eggs. When I asked him what he seasoned them with he replied, "That stuff that no one likes to have on their tongue."
Say what?!
Turns out to be sriracha and slightly slimy green onions.
Yum!
Habit Training. Good ol' Charlotte Mason. Pictured alongside the rusty, slimy eggs is the Laying Down the Rails handbook of awesomeness. This term (defined by me as six weeks) we are studying the Habit of Truthfulness. It goes so much farther than avoiding bald faced lies, y'all! This study is stepping on my toes! We are maintaining last term's habit of Obedience. Attention is on deck for the next term. Just one thing at a time.
Reading. Books are my love language. This is how I connect with my children. Unless I lose the power of speech, I have no plans to discontinue reading daily with the gang. I am enjoying the Simply Charlotte Mason history program. It's easy to take on the road and read in waiting rooms. It fills me with delight. The kids retain what we are reading and don't even notice that it's "school".
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| Waiting Room Science |
Delight Led Learning. I did not, repeat DID NOT assign Cy the project of searching for a tea that tastes just like coffee, research the options, determine the best price and source to purchase that beverage, research the ingredients and write a report on the medicinal properties of chicory.
He just did that for fun.
Alvin took apart a toy car and a toy gun, taped some wires to a battery and made a moving motor. He explained that the positive and negative sides of the battery pushed and pulled to make the motor move. He demoed this for me in the chiropractor's waiting room. I did not turn this into a science project. I just said, "Cool!" Turning fun ideas into a "learning experience" ruins it for everyone. They learn so much more when you just turn them loose!
Documentaries, drawing, reading, games are all ways the kids have managed to learn on their own terms during this hectic week.
Fitness. Cy is required to look up and participate with a yoga video every morning. He hated it at first. Now I see him strike stretching poses throughout the day as his muscles tighten. We have been to the park to play as well as hike twice this week. I plan on kicking the kids outdoors as often as I can this spring. Cy has a Vitamin D deficiency, so that's just one more reason why fitness needs to take priority over books. He is also participating in an online class about healthy eating habits as well as helping me keep up with cooking healthy Paleo meals.
Therapy. Be there. On time. That's all there is to say about that. It is an education in and of itself and takes priority over everything else.
Opportunity. There is a reason why this blog is called Chores of Opportunity. You have to fit them in the corners of the day, whenever there is opportunity. And it's not just chores. It's anything that is truly important to you. You can make it happen, just by looking for an opportunity and availing yourself of the spare moments that present themselves.
You fit it in, whatever "it" is.
You fit it in, whatever "it" is.
Just a few minutes here and there throughout the day add up.
This is how we are going to get the other subjects accomplished during this time of survival.
We will fit them in. Not stressing, not rushing, not worrying. Just steady, as we are able. A reading session here, a math work sheet there. A spelling page in the waiting room. An audio book in the car. And lots and lots of interesting conversations complete with impromptu Google searches.
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| Life Unfiltered |
My children are not broken. I don't have to heal them. They are who God has made them to be and I am who God has appointed to love and enjoy them.
I was made for this.
I was made for this.
"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them."
Ephesians 2:10
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