Old and New

Today's a pretty big day for me.  First of all, we are closing on the sale of our house in Fort Smith.  It's very bittersweet.  Financially, I am SO grateful to have sold it so fast and without having to pay a hefty commission.  But my heart is still sad.  That was our longest-lasting address since getting married almost 15 years ago, so a lot of our hearts, souls, and memories are tied up with that house.

Sigh.

The other big news is that I'm guest posting over at Hip Homeschool Moms again.  Hooray!  (If you are stopping by from HHM, Welcome!  I promise I'm not usually this melancholy.  :) )

I think it's no accident that my guest post coincides with closing on our house.  I wrote the post a few weeks ago without a posting date, but it's all about the sometimes-disappointing expectations surrounding things that are "new."  God knew that I would need to be reminded of some truths today, and I hope that He will also use it somehow in someone else's life.

I would be honored if you clicked HERE to go over and read my post.  Thanks for stopping by!





This post may be linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary, Pieces of Amy Other days: A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

Before and After

Hi, faithful readers!  I really appreciate those of you who take the time to stop by my Home On the Web.  It's so gratifying (and a bit surreal, and very humbling) to know that people actually read my words.

I'm hesitant to post these pictures because they might come across as a bit "braggy."  However, several people have asked for updates on our new house.  Personally, I love seeing before and after pictures of real houses, but if you don't, then feel free to stop reading now.  I'll never know.  :)

Our house is still very much a work in progress, but we have mostly completed the living area (it's all one big open space for the kitchen/dining/living, as you'll see) and the office/homeschool room.  Some of the pictures aren't the greatest.  I'm still trying to master taking good pics on my phone.

Kitchen before:

Kitchen after: 

(I'm still wanting to replace that rather hideous fluorescent light.)

Dining area before:
(The turquoise was along half of that wall, to the right of the fireplace.  I actually liked the color, but it didn't coordinate with anything else that we have.)

Dining area after:

Living area before (complete with TV on the floor):

Living area after:

(Remind me to do a post sometime about the cabinet under the TV.  David is particularly proud of that DIY project, and I'm very pleased with how it turned out.)

The verse above the window means a lot to me because of all our moving around.  It's very hard to see in this picture, but the pictures along the window are maps of the cities/areas where we have lived, roughly in chronological order.  (Sometimes we backtracked - for example, we lived in Knoxville, TN two separate times with two other places in between.)

Now on to the office/schoolroom.  Some of you may recall this picture that I posted on Facebook when I was choosing the paint color:

While the majority voted for either the third from the left or the large square, I confess that I stuck with my original opinion and went with the fourth one.  I love it!  I was afraid it might be too dark, but the color makes me happy, happy, happy!  (And since I spend A LOT of time in this room, that's a good thing.  :) )

Before:

After:

The cabinet to the left of the piano came from our last house and will likely be hung (horizontally) above the piano.

Pictures via Pinterest and Etsy.

Before:

After:

Before:

After:

So there you have it!  The bedrooms and bathrooms are all still "builder beige," and the backyard jungle seems to grow visibly each day, but I am enjoying the process.  I'm certainly no Martha Stewart or Erica Bartels (Hi, Erica!), but I really do enjoy decorating (once I stop constantly second-guessing myself!).

So what projects are you working on?  Got any before and after pics to share?

When God Clears His Throat

My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought!

My sin, not in part but the whole,

Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, oh my soul!

~"It is Well with My Soul," Horatio G. Spafford, 1873

There's nothing quite like parenting to teach you about God's love, His correction, and His perspective toward us who are His children.  So many times when I am talking to my children, I hear God "clear His throat" as if to say, "Hello?  Are you hearing yourself?  This is what I have been trying to teach you."

Cases in point:

"Obey first, then ask questions."  Hmm.

"Sometimes you just have to go with the flow, even if you don't understand where we're going."  Sigh.

"Could you just trust me, please?"  Ouch.

Being Nathan's teacher allows me to know him in ways that I might not have noticed otherwise.  One thing is that it really bothers him to get a question wrong.  He can't stand it.  Usually, he just wasn't paying attention or got in a hurry, but sometimes it really is something new that he needs to learn.

Now, it's not that I want him to become flippant about mistakes.  He does need to put forth his best effort.  I just don't want him to become paralyzed by a fear of failure.

I continually explain to him that learning involves going beyond what you already know, and that it's OK to not know everything.  I've told him that, if he already knew everything in the 1st grade book, we would skip ahead to the 2nd grade book.  As his teacher and parent, my job is to challenge him - not to break him (I don't give him things to do that are ridiculously above his level) but to enable him to grow and learn.  If we just keep going over the same things that he already knows, he may feel super-smart, but he won't really be learning anything, and then later when the big challenges come, he won't know how to deal with them.  (I know this from personal experience.)

I find myself saying to him, "Nathan, I love you.  I'm you're Mama - the person who loves you more than anybody else on the planet (or at least tied with Daddy).  I'm not angry that you missed that question.  I will never be angry at you for making a mistake as long as you are trying your best.  I'm here to help you learn."

And today, God cleared His throat again.

I don't have to earn Jesus' love and approval.  He's not going to throw me out of the classroom for making a mistake.  He does expect me to obey and follow Him, and He is going to challenge and stretch me, but He's here with me, helping me to learn.  It's OK for me to not know everything.

He's not marking my permanent record with a big, red pen.  My permanent record has already been marked with a blood-stained cross.  It is finished.

When I make a mistake, I may have failed temporarily, but not permanently.  With His love, teaching, and guidance, I can learn from that mistake - "Go, and sin no more."

Ironically, it often seems easier to accept His eternal love and approval than to accept His daily, here-and-now love and approval.  Nathan trusts me as his Mama for the big things.  Trusting me in his phonics lesson on Monday morning is a different story.

I trust God for the big things.  Trusting Him to guide me during that same Monday morning phonics lesson is sometimes a different story.

May we both learn from our mistakes, not stay buried there, and move on in His power and grace.  May we both grow to trust Him in the big things and the small things.  May I not become flippant about sin but also not become sidelined by feelings of current failure or fears of future failures.

Oh, for grace to trust Him more!

 This post is linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary, Pieces of Amy Other days: A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

So Excited!!

When I first started seriously considering homeschooling, my sister (already a homeschooling veteran of a few years) gave me a copy of The Old Schoolhouse magazine.  If you've been a part of the homeschooling world for any length of time, you've probably heard of it.  It's always full of helpful and interesting articles from the "movers and shakers" of the homeschool movement.

This past January, the magazine switched from 4 issues per year (print and digital) to 12 digital-only issues per year.  An e-mail was sent out asking for writing proposals on a variety of topics to be covered during 2012.  I decided to give it a shot and was shocked when they accepted my proposal!

Now, I'm certainly not a "mover and shaker", especially in the homeschool world.  In fact, I'm still brand new.  But one of the topics to be covered in the magazine was online learning, and I do know a bit about that.

Today, the May 2012 issue was released.  See if you recognize anyone on page 98.  ;-)

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, May 2012

It is such an honor to be included in this publication.  Oh, how I hope they'll let me do it again sometime!



This post may be linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary, Pieces of Amy Other days: A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

Homeschooling: Lessons from the First Year

Have I mentioned that I homeschool?  Funny, I talk about it all the time on Facebook, but I haven't mentioned it much on this blog.  Hmm.

Hi, my name is Laura, and I'm a homeschool Mom.

As the title indicates, I'm still a "newbie."  Since we are (for the time being) doing school year-round and I started last June, we're about to wrap up our first full year.  Being still so new at this, I'm hardly an expert on anything ... except starting.  I guess I'm now an expert on getting started and surviving the first year.

 Here are some things I've learned so far:

1.  There are so many choices!

It's overwhelming, really.  First, I felt pressured (inward, not outward) to define my style: traditional, Charlotte Mason, unit study, Montessori, eclectic, unschooling, and so on.  Then for each style, for each subject, there are so many curriculum choices.  Yes, this is a good problem to have, but for a chronic undecider like me, it can be a struggle.  (This almost certainly puts me in the "eclectic" camp.)

Thankfully, so much can be gleaned from the Internet from the comfort of home.  I found some wonderful bloggers with equally wonderful materials that got me off to a good start.  I especially liked when they would post what curriculum they were using because it opened my eyes to some materials I didn't know existed.

2.  I'm a lot less structured than I thought I'd be - and it's OK.

When we first started, I had elaborate lesson plans worked out.  I had activities my children and I would all do together, some things just for Nathan, and some things just for Megan, with a careful plan for how to alternate spending individual instruction time with each child.

That lasted a couple of weeks.

First, I figured out pretty quickly that Megan just wasn't ready for much structured learning.  Then, I realized that Nathan was ready for more advanced topics than I had originally prepared.  So we adapted.  We're all much more relaxed, and it's better.

3.  I'm more comfortable one-on-one with each child than when they are together.

We still do some things all together, but most of Nathan's work is done with just me, and I plan to do the same with Megan this coming year.  This is kind of surprising to me because, as a college math teacher in the classroom, I'm much more comfortable lecturing in front of the class than tutoring an individual student.

4.  Everyone has an opinion!

When you tell someone that you're a homeschooler, people automatically make assumptions.  (I think most people immediately picture Michelle Duggar.  I admire many things about her, but she and I are quite different.)  Relatives are the ones most likely to express opinions.  Fellow homeschoolers, ironically, are the least likely to express them.

Nevertheless, here are my opinions on my least favorite parts of homeschooling:

• The rest of the day.  The actual time spent "doing school" is the easiest part of my day.  But not only am I the teacher, I'm also the lunchroom lady, janitor, hall monitor, school nurse, secretary, and bus driver.  (However, I get to date the principal, so that's a nice perk.  ;) )
• Trying to balance homemaking, homeschooling, and working from home.
• I hate crafts.  There - I said it.

Here's what I love about it:

• Getting to weave the Lord and the Bible into everything we do.
• Watching my children learn.
• Seeing my children continue the strong bond they have with each other.
• Hearing my children pray for the nations of the world.  (I LOVE that one of Nathan's first questions when we learn a new country is, "Do the people there know about Jesus?  Do they have the freedom to go to church?")
• Knowing my children on a new level.  For Nathan in particular, I have a much greater understanding for how he learns, how he responds to challenges, and the topics that excite him.  I'm looking forward to knowing these same things about Megan.

It has been a challenging first year, but I'm so glad we made this choice.

Do you homeschool?  If so, what have you learned this past year?



This post may be linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary, Pieces of Amy Other days: A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

My Favorite Apps - Part 2

Image from img.skitch.com

One of the main reasons I began wanting an iPad (or similar tablet) was because of the many educational apps that were being used by other homeschool moms and school teachers.  I had hoped that, at the very least, they would provide an educational diversion for Megan while I was working with Nathan, and vice-versa.  It has far exceeded my expectations!

Truthfully, I use the iPad more than anyone.  Last week, I wrote about some of my favorite apps that I use personally.  You can read about those here.  Today I'll focus on the ones that Nathan (age 5 - Kindergarten) uses most frequently.

Geography:

Stack the States
Stack the Countries
Nathan and David love to play both of these together in the evenings.  Megan even gets in on the action!
Google Earth
We love "flying" to the different countries that we study and being able to "visit" key landmarks.

Math:

Nathan is in Kindergarten this year, so most of these focus on basic addition and subtraction.
Math Bingo
He loves to play with the Bingo Bugs when he completes a round.
K12 Counting Coins
K12 Counting Bills & Coins
Math Fact Blaster (very basic "flash card" type of app)
Math Garden
This is a fun way to build speed on the basic facts of addition and subtraction.
Motion Math Hungry Fish
Motion Math Zoom (great for learning about the number line)

Astronomy:

NASA
This is a beautiful app with lots of information, NASA TV, videos of launches, etc.
GoSkyWatch
Hold the iPad over your head and the app will tell you what stars, constellations, etc. are located above you (or on the other side of the Earth you if you hold it down).

Phonics:

Word Bingo (same premise and company as Math Bingo above)
Sound Sorting (grouping words by beginning consonant)
Tic Tac Toe Phonics
Simplex Spelling
Montessori Crosswords

Other:

King's Apps Telling Time (basic, but effective)
Build a Train
Nathan LOVES this one.  You create your own train, choose a track, and watch it run while you make different sounds, toggle the track switches, and adjust the speed.
Trainyard EX
This one involves using logic to lay out the track that will get the train(s) from the start house to the destination, going around obstacles and avoiding other trains.
Creationary
This one is by Lego and involves spatial reasoning.
Simon Says
Still a classic.  :)

We have others, but these are the ones that he either chooses or I assign for him to do in order to work on a specific skill that we are building.  The vast majority I got for free.  Most others have a Lite version that you can try out before deciding whether or not to pay for the full version.  (I have quite a few more on my AppShopper Wish List, and I'm waiting for the price to drop.)

These are all iOS apps, and most can also be used on the iPhone or iPod as well as the iPad.  My guess is that most have counterparts for Android tablets and phones.

Got any recommendations for me?  I'm always looking for new ones.

Stay tuned for My Favorite Apps - Part 3 (The Megan Edition)!



This post is linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie, Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family, Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary

Getting Lost in the Details

Well, as usual, it's feast or famine when it comes to blog posts. I either have too much to say or not enough to justify a post - at least in my own mind. But here I go anyway.

First, I've been getting caught up in the details of my blog the last few days - tickers, colors, fonts, etc. I think it's the home decorator in me wanting to come out. Since we currently live in a beige-walled apartment, there's not much room for that side of my personality. I LOVE picking out paint swatches, finding fabric to make curtains, envisioning the layout of a new place. Maybe I'll get to do that again before too much longer.

Second, I'm getting caught up in the details of making big decisions long before they're actually here to be made. For example, amongst the many wonderful blogs I have discovered over the last several days, I've found at least one person doing homeschool with their toddler. Yep, I needed one more way to feel like a dismal failure as a mother. Anyway, the thought has occurred to me that, before I decide to take on homeschooling (a decision at least 2 years away), maybe I should try it on a smaller scale. So off to WalMart we went, in search of craft projects and various other manipulatives. I enjoy teaching math to college students; preschool just doesn't come naturally to me, but I've got some great ideas, especially from 1+1+1=1 and their Tot School. We'll see how it goes.

Meanwhile, I haven't accomplished much else today. But there's still time. I'm thinking of trying a new recipe from The Pioneer Woman. Her Strawberry Shortcake Cake was a success on Saturday, so I'm hoping her Chicken Spaghetti will also go well. And who knows? I might even have time for a bit of decluttering. :)

[Update: The Chicken Spaghetti was a big success! Try it yourself!]