School Books have Arrived!

  
           The school books for next year have arrived!  Getting them here was interesting.  The books were at my parents while we tried to figure out how to get them here.  I posted on Facebook that we were needing someone to bring a bag for us, and there was a lady coming two days later who was willing to bring an extra bag for us (we paid for the extra baggage).  My parents got the bag of books up to her the next day, and then she flew to Kenya the day after that!  She left the bag at the Methodist Guesthouse in Nairobi, and it was there for two weeks.  Bill picked it up while in Nairobi this week, and he returned today with it!

                                 I don't know what it is, but I just get very excited about new school materials!

Maybe it's the possibilities, all of the clear, unmarked pages.... or thinking of all that the kids (and I) are going to learn in the upcoming year. 

            When I was school age, I loved the start of the new school year.... freshly sharpened pencils, new textbooks, and a fresh start.  I guess I still feel that way.

      Of course, we aren't done with the current school year, as of yet.  But, we are REALLY close to finishing, hopefully we'll be done within a few weeks. 

Then, comes the joy of "summer break" (it's the rainy season here), before we start up again in August.
                                 
                            School can really start to drag towards the end of the year, and you start to feel like your homeschool is "limping along", so to speak.  I look forward to a break, and then beginning again with a fresh outlook for the upcoming school year.

                 

My Call to the Home

    
       When we first came to the mission field, I knew I was called to the mission field.  I had felt that from the age of 12.  We went to language school, and placed Katrina, then 3, and Heather who was 9 months old and still nursing into a pre-school on campus while we went to class for 7 hours a day.
      After language school, with the urging of our mission team, I was just as involved with ministry as my husband.  I hired a nanny so that I could focus on the cultural learning courses and language tutors each day.  We put Katrina into a preschool and I even taught at it one day a week to help with the cost of tuition.
     When we returned to the field after our first furlough, suddenly things were changing.  We weren't a part of the mission team we first came with, and were working on our own. 

      But, something else happened.

God called me to stay at home.

 

  I remember the specific moment... I was sitting in the car with the girls who had fallen asleep on the way home.  I was praying, talking to God and listening.  I felt him specifically telling me that for this time in my life, I needed to focus on the kids and the home.  That other ministry things would come again, but for this time in my life, they were my ministry.

 

        That year, was a very stressful year for our family.  We moved twice, we had interns (two married couples that lived with us in our house), we had a visiting team, I found out I was pregnant and we weren't sure where to have the baby, we had to help close out the mission work of a fellow missionary.   During all of this turmoil, I knew that I had to be the rock of stability for our kids.   God had called me to do it.

 

       During this time, I also started homeschooling Katrina for the first time, for Kindergarten. 

 

  But, more importantly, I was working hard at making the children feel safe and loved in the midst of all of the turmoils of mission life!

 

 

     Since that time, we have had many more moves, more changes, more teams.... and I have not yet felt the release from the call that God gave me sitting in my driveway all those years ago.

 

                     So, for now.... my ministry is my family.  Yes, I do other ministry, but they are my main focus, until God tells me otherwise.

Is Technology a Benefit or Detriment for Homeschool?

            What are your thoughts on technology and it's use in homeschool?


  For us, we use technology in homeschool, with a balanced approach.

Our 6th grader listens to the Bible on an iPod touch while doing seatwork.  She goes onto the computer for spelling and math games, and she also does a Phonics training everyday on the computer called Lexia. 

      Our third grader uses spellingcity.com to learn her spelling words, and does a typing game everyday to practice typing.

      Our Pre-Schooler plays an educational game on the computer most days.

Katrina learning guitar from a computer program.

 
   It is a balancing act, and it can be easy to fall into the trap of letting them use technology too much.   Our kids are very creative, imaginative, and love to bake, sew and other things.  But, if allowed, they would sit in front of a computer or TV all day.  I try to limit them to half an hour during school and half an hour after school for computer time.
        
         Yes, I allow technology in school....

   .......it was raining today, so gym time was done on Wii Fit.  (the laundry hanging on the banister is because it's raining and nothing will dry on the clothes line).

           Where do you draw the limit for screen time in homeschool?

Are Homeschooling and Boarding School Mutally Exclusive?

Usually when you think about homeschooling, boarding school isn't a part of the picture, right?

 

I mean, homeschooling is all about being together as a family

 

and boarding school is about

sending your kids AWAY.

 

 

 

    Right?

 

 

            Not always.

 

   When living in East Africa, sometimes the culmination of your homeschool career is to go to boarding school for high school.  My husband went to said boarding school, as did his brother and his wife.  As did many other missionary kids from years past, present and future. 

 

      I always said I would never send my kids to boarding school, when I found out that this was a common option for missionaries in East Africa. 

              But, what if my daughter is asking to go?!

 

 

 

 This was not in my plans, and God knows I never wanted to send my kids away.... but what if it isn't Sending Them Away?   What if it's Letting Them Go?    

 

                               Our final decision isn't made yet, but we are looking into our oldest daughter starting boarding school in a Christian boarding school in Nairobi in 8th grade.... which would make next school year her last year of homeschooling.

 

 

 So, how do I reconcile homeschooling my kids with boarding school?

 

 

                                            Good question.  I'll let you know....

Sick Days in Homeschool

Doing schoolwork on the couch

 

  Yes, I'm THAT mom... the one that makes her kids do their school work even when they're sick!  If they aren't throwing up, or on their death bed... I make them do some school work. 
            

                            One reason is that the day is awfully long and boring when you are lying on the couch, too sick to get up and play.  Doing school work helps the long hours go by more quickly.

                 Another reason, at least for me, is that we have already taken off so much school by this point that if we miss anymore school we'll be going until July... so we must press on!

   One benefit to me of homeschool is that if the kids have a mild fever I don't have to make the decision about whether or not they are "sick enough" to stay home or have to decide when it is that they are "well enough" to go back to school.  Those things are always tricky to me.

    
             

Happy Easter!

Easter is in 2 days!  One reason that I like to raise my kids here in Tanzania is that the commercialism during holidays is almost non-existent.  There wasn't any Easter baskets, or candy on sale in the stores, although I did buy the kids some candy.  We haven't gone shopping for new Easter outfits, but have picked out our nicest clothes that we have to wear.
  

             Our Easter celebration will be having Easter baskets with candy (mostly from Grandma) and finding eggs before church, then going to Moshono Christian Church. After church, they are serving a meal of rice and beans for everyone at church.  We have a guest visiting this year so he'll be joining us a well.  That night, we'll have a steak dinner and Skyping with family.  That will be it.  And, honestly, I kind of like missing all the hype of the Easter bunny, gift baskets, having to dress to the 9's for church... and getting to focus on the meaning of Easter.  We have been talking all week about Passion Week and what happened each day.

           That is what really matters this Easter, that Jesus died for us and rose to save us from sin. 


       It's fine to remember and celebrate that with candy, eggs, clothes, and parties as long as it doesn't distract us from what the real meaning is.

Carving out Time for Yourself as a Homeschool Mom

 When you homeschool, it feels like you are surrounded by people (mostly your offspring) ALL the time, from dawn til dusk and sometimes in the middle of the night too!  I'm an introvert, and I cherish time to myself... so...
                           HOW DO YOU FIND TIME TO YOURSELF?
 Here are 5 ideas of ways to steal some precious moments alone to help your sanity!

     Get up before the kids do!
This one is vital for a productive day, I feel.  Even though we are pretty relaxed about when we get up, I make sure I am up an hour, or at the very least 1/2 hour before the kids.  This gives me time to pray, read the Bible, exercise if I'm ambitious, and clear my thoughts before it "hits the fan". 

      Stay up later than they do.
  At night, I put the kids to bed around 8pm.  My older daughter doesn't sleep til about 9pm, but she has to stay in her room and play or ready quietly.  My husband and I can talk, watch TV; if I had a really stressful day I'll just zone out with a book or on my computer.

       Saturday mornings are for sleeping in!
  The kids know not to bother me on Saturday morning.  They know how to make toast, and turn on a movie... and to leave me alone until I emerge!

      Shopping day is MY day
  When I go grocery shopping, I take along a book or my Kindle and go to a restaurant and order a coke and have a half hour to myself before shopping.  This works because Bill can stay home with the kids.  I do recommend shopping alone or with only one child at a time if you can possibly do so, it's a lot less stress.

      Tell your kids to Go outside and Play!
   While I'm cooking dinner, I like to have some peace and quiet in the house.  It's also when all the neighborhood kids are out.  So, I send the kids outside for the hour that it takes to make dinner.  It's good for them and me.  If not outside, send them to watch a movie while you cook.

    Have a nice day!