Beautiful Girls

We had each girl's picture made recently. They were all so good. Here are just a few of the ones we bought.

I don't know how to make these look better since they had to be scanned. But I love the pictures and the girls in the pictures. I'm so glad we had Betsie's picture made pre-haircut. And that is Mary Evelyn's dog Foster with her. Notice he is all dressed up to match her! And Rachel is becoming such a grown up beautiful young lady!

Starting Strong

I know that the real test will be in finishing strong, but for now, I am SO thankful for the way our school year has started. Tomorrow will be day #10 and I am very pleased. Rather than blog about the details of our week (which are pretty similar to week #1 except that I botched a science experiment and had to majorly adapt a craft project), I want to post about why this year seems to be working so much better than previous years.

1. Bribes - There you go. You think I'm kidding? Last Friday the girls had ice cream for LUNCH from Bruster's because they had 5 good school days in a row. Not sure yet what the reward (better word than bribe) might be tomorrow, but if all goes well in the morning, I need to come up with something really soon! Maybe we can just go swimming or something like that.

2. A set start time - We have started each day at approximately 8:45 (with a couple of exceptions) and that has helped tremendously. Consistency always helps but I am not always so great at providing this important element. But we have done well for 2 weeks and I can see how valuable consistency really is!

3. Keeping the girls together for most subjects. This is the biggie for me and it was one of the main reasons I switched to My Father's World. Last year I felt like I was doing two different school times. (I was.) I taught one and then the other. Then I did one level of Five in a Row with one child and another level with the other child (on a good week!). So if I was trying to teach Rachel, I had two other children to possibly interrupt or get into mischief or whatever instead of just one. Keeping the older two together for most subjects means only Betsie has to be directed. And most of the time she is working out of her own little school box. I did remove the scissors from there by the way. I am going to post our general routine at the bottom of this post.

4. Tons of prayer. This should probably be first. Maybe it wasn't such a bad thing to be nervous about this year. It sure sent me to my knees! And God has been so faithful to allow me to see some fruit already this year!

5. Staying off the computer until the afternoon. And staying off the phone too. My Father's World recommends giving your children your undivided attention in the morning. This seems so obvious, but I confess that I have not always done this. I would get started checking email and then maybe blogs or whatever else. And what were the girls doing during that time? Drawing, collecting bugs, fighting, playing together, watching TV (which they are not supposed to do until after school but who can blame them when I was being such a poor example?). We always got school done, but sometimes not without a fight since I often had to drag them away from something they were enjoying! I think this is one of the essentials to my being a better manager and teacher this year. I blew this the other day (not too bad) and I saw how big of a no no it really is.

Okay, back to #3...I have so far found a few things that have helped me manage to get most of our work done in approximately 2 hours in the mornings. So here is our basic morning routine for school as an FYI to others who may be using My Father's World with two children. It's a routine, not a schedule, so I am just listing the general order that we usually do things.

• Geography. We do this part together.
• Math. This is where I found something that is WONDERFUL! Teaching Textbooks has allowed Rachel to be an independent math student so I can work individually with Mary Evelyn. Mary Evelyn uses Right Start which requires me to be right there with her. It is SO COOL to get math done with both girls in one shot. If one finishes earlier, I have an amazing ability to make her review like crazy until the other is done allowing us to keep going with our little routine.
• Handwriting practice. So far they have just been practicing the letters of the alphabet with Handwriting Without Tears but soon they'll be copying character qualities from Hero Tales.
• Science. We do this together. If there is no science in the schedule for that day, there is usually art or something like that to do together.
• Now I split them up a little. Rachel has book basket time while I do language arts work with Mary Evelyn. Then Mary Evelyn has book basket time while I do language arts work with Rachel. Language arts includes spelling, language lessons, phonics lessons, etc.

All that can be done in about 2 hours. In addition to those two hours, they have some independent reading time in the afternoon. (as in sit somewhere comfy and just READ a book!) And in the evenings we do the Bible lessons/devotions and read chapter books to the girls. That takes quite a bit of time and is a nice way to wrap up the day. But it's all included in the lesson plans.

We have several more weeks before we take a break so I am still praying hard. I really want to be a good steward of the time I have with my kids. So many things easily distract from our school time so I am trying to be very protective of our mornings. I can't wait to see how much more we all learn next week!

Long Overdue Pictures

Maybe you remember this post, where I said that we had pulled the carpet from the big girls' room and put up bunk beds. At the time my camera was not working so I couldn't post pictures. So this post is simply an update. Please overlook some of the messies in the picture. We live in this house!

Jason ripping the carpet out of the closet. There are hardwood floors under there!

Rachel helping

The bunkbeds are here!

And here is where they will go!

All set up!

And here they are a month later. Rachel has created quite a space up there for herself with shelves, memory board, a lamp, and who knows what else!

This is the rug I ordered after we removed the carpet. It is more purple than I expected so it may end up in Betsie's room after her carpet is taken out. (Her walls are purple.) But for now it looks fine and cuts down on the stomping!

Week One Exploring Countries and Cultures in My Father's World

We had a great first week of school. We went a little light on the three R's and will hit those a little harder next week. I wanted the girls to enjoy their first week back so we focused on the fun stuff. We did still do math, spelling, handwriting, reading, etc...just not in heavy doses and a lot of it was review.

We started our week last Sunday night with the first Bible lesson. We talked about how God made and loves ALL people all over the world. And we began learning John 3:16 (which was new to Mary Evelyn but review for Rachel). On Monday morning we prayed together and went on a prayer walk around our neighborhood. I wanted the girls to see that God loves the people all over the world AND right next door too! Plus I learned from our experience with occupational therapy that some kids learn better after some physical activity. (We always start Mary Evelyn's math lesson by counting to 100 while she swings as high as she can on the swingset!)

Our curriculum is My Father's World and we are doing year one in their five year History cycle. It is called Exploring Countries and Cultures. It is a year long geography course which serves as a great basis for learning history in the coming years as well as giving children and parents an appetite for world missions. (Those of you at North Hills know this goes perfectly with our summer World View curriculum for kids...so cool!)

These first two weeks are an introduction. We are learning about maps in general as well as learning the names of the continents and oceans. We talked about hemispheres, the poles, directions, and the equator. The cool part is that both girls memorized the names of the continents (thanks to a catchy little tune!) and can locate them on the map!

One of our fun activities was making the poster pictured above. Rachel wrote John 3:16 out for us and the girls cut out pictures of people from National Geographic magazines. They also put a small picture of our family on there. This poster will be displayed above our world map in the school room for the whole year...it's the theme of the year.

The girls also enjoyed our science this week. Probably because they got to draw, one of their absolute favorite things to do! Three days this week, I read them a couple of pages from the Usborne Living World Encyclopedia. Then they got to illustrate something they learned and write some sentences about it. I have heard some complain that there are not enough science experiments in Exploring Countries and Cultures, but I was never great at that anyway so this is just the right pace for us. There are SOME experiments (we have one or two next week actually) and the geography is very hands on, so we are happy as can be. With all of that and science at our TWO co-ops, I think drawing is just perfect...and about all I can handle! Their science drawings get filed into the science section of their notebooks. We'll also have a nature journal, which we will work on weekly.

This is Mary Evelyn's picture of a gecko from one of the science lessons. She dictated her sentences to me.

A world map that Rachel labeled with the oceans and continents. We'll add to it next week.

There was more but those are the highlights. I joined the My Father's World blogring so I will try my best to blog about our school year. If you prayed for us last week, THANK YOU! I was a little anxious, but it went so well.

Stay tuned this weekend for updated pictures of Betsie and the haircut that takes your breath away!

How Can A Little Girl Break Her Mommy's Heart?

By giving herself a haircut! All three of mine have done this. And now Bestie has done it twice. But tonight's is by far the worst of all. Time is the only thing that can repair this hack job I'm afraid. You can laugh, but not too hard. And we have a family reunion AND an adoption travel group reunion coming up! Big heavy sigh...

Doesn't she look awfully proud of herself?

(I considered using my prayer request and for sale tags for this post...)

First Day of School

It went well! We will add in a few more subjects as the week goes on, but this was a nice start.

Tagged - How I am Feeling

My friend Heather tagged me. I am supposed to share 6 words to describe my feelings. Okay, I'll try! But like you, Heather, it might take a few more than 6 words!

1. Dirty - Our hot water heater isn't working. I'd really like a shower. Hey...you asked!

2. Excited - We start a new school year in a week. I just pulled copies of activities we will need for week #1. I also hung the big wall map. On day one the girls will have their pictures made and apply for their pretend passports. I hope they enjoy this curriculum...I think it looks great!

3. Frustrated - Goes back to the no hot water thing. And is it just me or do a lot of my posts deal with something being broken around here?

4. Loved - A long weekend with my husband was just what I needed after a pretty hard week last week.

5. Relieved - Betsie is sleeping pretty well in her big girl bed. The transition from the crib to the toddler bed was a bit of a nightmare. I was dreading the move to the real bed. But she has slept pretty well the last few nights and I am SO relieved! As much as I love the little darling, come bed time, I really want to say nighty night and not see her again until the next morning. (Now if she could just figure out part 2 of potty training.)

6. Nervous - I really want to have a good school year with my girls this year. Last year was such a challenge. If the first few weeks go well, it would be SO encouraging to me. So I am a little nervous, but at least I am sure that the girls are where they belong for another year. (Prayed pretty hard about it for this school year...wasn't so sure there for a while) So if you think of us next week, we'd be thankful for any prayers for our first week!

*update: We have hot water! Got it last night around 7pm and didn't even have to replace the hot water heater...although that happening soon is a real possibility since ours has outlived its life expectancy. But we're all squeaky clean! Yippee!

No Camera=No Blog

Seems like everything I want to blog about needs a photo. I'm realizing that without pictures, my blog is pretty bland! Sorry! Hopefully I'll have that remedied soon.

Two Years!

This is the little one we met in China two years ago today. These photos were made in her home province (Hunan) just 5 days after we became her parents. She had been going through the attachment process pretty well and was comfortable with Jason and me but not others. During the photo session, there were about three people trying to get her to smile by shaking rattles in her face and making goofy noises, etc. She started to cry instead of smile. Jason couldn't take it anymore. He scooped her up and told everybody to leave his baby alone. (They couldn't understand his words but I think they understood that he didn't want her upset anymore.)

We did end up with some beautiful pictures and I got a glimpse of how much my husband loved his new little one and just wanted to take care of her. He wanted her to know she was always safe when he was around.

I can't believe it's been two years. I am so thankful to have my little Ying Hong. Happy Gotta Day, little one! And Happy Gotcha Day to Caroline, Julia, Mikayla, Abbie, and Hannah...oh and your moms and dads too.

Back to School? Already?

It seems like summer just began, but we start school in just a little over 2 weeks. It is SO HOT here that we might as well do a morning of school work and then SWIM in the afternoons. I have been coloring boundary maps for a geography game and I need to have our new wall map laminated. And if you notice Wal-Mart's big school supply sale, let me know! I like to have all that ready when we start if possible.

I am a little nervous about starting a new curriculum. It feels like moving to a new town. I am excited but it will be very different than what we have done before. One of the books I am excited about using with My Father's World is called Window on the World. It is just the sort of thing that Jason loves so I might save it for him for family devotion time if he wants to use it. A couple of times a week, we'll read about a certain people group around the world, look at the photos in the book, find where they live on the map, and pray for them. (Specific prayer requests are listed in the book for that group.) Jason and I were saying last night that we don't want this to just be an assignment. We want to approach this resource with the excitement and faith that God will hear our prayers for those people and that maybe one day we will see the fruit of that in Heaven.

Dead Camera Battery

Well, I really wanted to show you pictures of the newly decorated big girls room. However, my camera battery died and something is wrong with the charger...so no pictures. Bummer. I vaguely remember getting the charger wet so I am guessing this is my fault.

I was going to post pictures of their cute new bunk beds and hardwood floors.

Two years ago we moved Mary in with Rachel and the poor child has been sleeping in a trundle bed all that time. She thought that was just fine, but I am glad she is in a real bed now. She has the bottom bunk because her dog sleeps with her. And Rachel likes having her own little space that the dog and the little sisters can't really get to very easily.

Jason worked so hard to rip the carpet out of the room before we picked up the beds (we found them on Craigslist) and I must say he did a nice job. I have ordered a rug that will hopefully cut down on the echo factor. Imagine three loud girls and their squeals bouncing off the walls.

Since I can't show you any pics of their room, how bout a pic of their rug from the rug website?

Yep...hopefully I'll get that battery charged soon...

School Supplies!

Jason thinks I am weird for enjoying new school supplies and storage containers and that sort of thing. He's never actually called me weird (over this anyway)...he just doesn't get it. But I know for a fact that other homeschool moms understand!

So next year we will be making geography vocabulary word cards. The teacher's manual suggests writing the word and definition on an index card, illustrating, and filing in a card file box...then of course reviewing often. But at Wal-Mart today I found these nifty little notebooks for index cards. They already have 50 index cards in them and you can buy refill packs with the holes of course punched in just the right place. So I bought one for each of my two students. Yippee!

The first assignment will be to decorate an index card and then slip it into the little sleeve for the cover. That's right, the fun here never ends.

Betsie and the Blocks

This is a lame attempt at keeping my blog current. Betsie and I played with blocks yesterday and I took some pictures so I'd have something to put here. Maybe when our new school year starts back, I will have more to say!

Our building...which she called a grocery store, Mimi's house, and a church at different times as we were building it.

No, we haven't perfected the art of sitting in a lady like manner just yet.

Time to knock it down!

Re-entry sure is hard

I mentioned that Jason and I went to a marriage conference last weekend. We drove down to Florida and had two nights in a beautiful St. Augustine resort while attending the conference. Saturday night is the scheduled date night. We drove into St. Augustine and walked around in the shops, had dinner at one of those really cool hole-in-the-wall but yummy restaurants, and just enjoyed being together.



The conference itself was wonderful. It was a Family Life Weekend to Remember event. We attended one about 8 years ago. Both times were good but this one was more intense for us. I won't share details here, but I'll just say it was needed and very valuable for us. I highly recommend it for ANY married couple, no matter how long you have been married and no matter the condition of your marriage. I have wanted to blog about it, but I have decided that it was just too personal and I want to keep it between my beloved and myself. Anything I would feel comfortable sharing can be found on the Family Life website...great speakers, names of sessions, etc.



We got home around 9:00PM on Sunday night. We came home to our sweet, sweet girls and were so happy to see them. But the older two had sunburns and Rachel was running a fever. She continued to be sick until Tuesday night. Betsie was clingy and whiney and needed a day or so to re-attach to us. Mary Evelyn was so sweet and gave us a welcome home picture she had made and some applejacks (she said she knew the drive would make us hungry...LOL!), but by Monday morning we were battling a bit. Mary Evelyn was not remembering what it means to honor us as her parents and I confess it was pretty hard to keep my cool a few times. By Tuesday night I decided she and I needed to do something fun together. So I took her to a movie and things have been a lot better since. (not perfect, but better) By the way, I loved Kung Fu Panda...and I am not always a kid movie fan!



Rachel is better but now I am sick. Jason was sweet enough to make sure everyone had breakfast and was settled before he went to work this morning. Plus he made me some hot tea to soothe my raw throat before he left. I do love that man! I think I just have a cold, but colds seem to feel worse the older I get so I am resting a lot...at least until we have to be at swimming lessons this afternoon.



So we are back in the trenches but trying to apply the lessons learned and the old reminders we were given this weekend. I am thankful for the time we had together, for a husband who initiated the whole trip because he is committed to our oneness, and for parents who are willing babysitters. And I am thankful that God is with us in real life.

To All My Five in a Row Friends

(Warning: Those of you who have never been involved in an online community may find this post odd.)

Thank you so much for your encouraging words both on the boards and in private emails or notes when I said I was leaving the boards. It's just time. I have been using FIAR and it's boards since 2002 (I think.) and have come to care deeply about the people I have met there. A few close real life friendships have resulted from my time there and I feel so blessed by that. And some of you have become very good email friends as well. I'm glad to know that I can still communicate with you outside of the forums.

A few things led to me deciding to post my "good bye." The first is obviously that we will be using My Father's World as our core curriculum beginning in a month. And I know Steve and Jane did not establish the FIAR boards for people who use other curricula. Those boards are about so much more than homeschool curriculum so it's hard to leave, but I think it would be wrong to stay. True...I might use Before FIAR with Betsie here and there, but that will not be the main focus of our homeschool so I feel I need to step back. However, I will be watching to see which Fold-and-Learns are released for Before and I hope to use a few of them with my tiny little student.

Even though I might use Before FIAR sometimes, I still chose to leave because those forums are such a draw for me and I want to be online less when we start our new school year in a month. David Hazell of My Father's World suggests that your children receive your undivided attention in the mornings. I know if I did that, we would accomplish a whole lot more. So I want to stay off the computer on school days at least until after lunch. Posting a goodbye thread was a way to make myself stay off those forums in order to accomplish more at home.

Jason and I attended a Family Life Weekend to Remember conference last weekend. And I really just feel the need to give more of my time to my husband and our girls. I'll still be online, but I need to be online less.

Thank you again for your sweet words. You are a blessing to me and I have learned so much from you. I will forever be grateful for your kindnesses to me when we were adopting. You prayed and rejoiced and even helped me decide what to name her! I remember logging in to FIAR from our hotel room in Changsha (see how strong that draw is!) and seeing a post titled "Jen has Betsie!" with lots of happy tears and hopping icons and so many rejoicing over our special gift. You have no idea what that meant to me. And then when I got sick with mono just weeks after coming home, I received get well cards in my mailbox and even some muffins and fruit on my doorstep from one of those real life buddies. You gals are amazing. And those are just a few samples of how you have blessed me.

So be sure to check in here and be sure that I will be checking your blogs too. I don't want to lose YOU. I just need to be off the forums.

Praying you all have a great summer full of sweet memories with your families.
Love,
Jen