An apple for the teacher, although mine prefers an iced mocha

Today is the official "first day of school" (although we knocked off a few lessons last week, just for practice). I feel much better about it this year, because I have a solid plan in place. Last year was kind of a disaster at times.....sadly.

I thought I would share some of the things we will be doing differently this year (in case any of you actually cared--haha!). A few of you are using the K-12 program like me, so this may give you some ideas......

{1} We are doing our lessons block-style.
In other words, we do all of our lessons for a particular subject for that week on the same day, rather than spreading them out over the week. I found with teaching 2 kids and trying to watch 3 preschoolers, this worked out better. My kids seemed to retain more because we finished up ideas or specific subject matter all at one time. So our weekly schedule looks like this:

*Monday: Math (3 lessons) and Art (2)
*Tuesday: Language Arts (5)
*Wednesday: Science (2-3) and Music (2)
*Thursday: Math (2) and History (3)
*Fridays: Extracurricular :-)

As you can see, I split the math up because it is a new, more involved curriculum this year. This will be easier for me and the kids! I love how this way of scheduling works out for us.......it took alot of the pressure off, and made it easier for the kids to concentrate.

{2} I offer more incentives this year.
Last year, I tried to keep them motivated to work hard, but I was not consistent and frankly.......my incentive program stunk. ;-) This year, the girls have two different ways they can earn "prizes" for working diligently:
* Whenever they finish a lesson, they can put a sticker on their calendar. For every sticker, they earn 10 minutes of computer time. So potentially, they could rack up 50 minutes of computer time a day, which is beyond exciting for them! (Hopefully they will continue to be obsessed with computer games for a long, long time. lol)
* The second way they can earn a reward is buying keeping their candle lit. What??? My homeschooling friend gave me this idea.......buy each child a jar candle, and light it at the beginning of each school day. As long as they are working hard, with a positive attitude, it stays lit. But if they slack off or have a disrespectful attitude, their candle gets snuffed. The goal is to burn your candle all the way down--then you can pick a special "dessert date" with Mom or Dad. They are very excited about it, so this just may work out!

{3} We will be having cooking class once a month, as well as a monthly field trip and sports lessons of some kind.
Because the girls are older this year, and have been removed from "normal school" for a whole year, I want to make sure we are incorporating time with their peers. I want them learning to work with others, and to experience some of the normal parts of school, like field trips. I have 4 friends who are taking on homeschooling this year also, so it should be fun!

{4} Our schoolroom is more "user-friendly" this year.
I set everything up differently this year, and switched the girls to work spaces on our big table. This works better for all of us, as I can sit next to them and help them at the same time.
I also set up a reading area, with a beanbag chair and a CD player, where they can read or listen to music/stories on head phones while they are in between lessons. I am hoping this will cut down on the "too much time on your hands" situations that popped up last year, and caused classroom chaos.

I am very excited for this year, and very thankful that God led us to this opportunity. Although it has its "moments", I wouldn't trade it for anything else right now. I love being able to shape my kids' lives through every part of the day, and love the opportunity to incorporate Biblical truth into everything they are studying. Now if we can just keep on schedule this year.......

Hello, my name is Sarah. And I am a pansy.

As you have noticed, I gave my blog a little facelift. Blogger has all kinds of cool new things you can do, to make your blog look a little more "fun". :-) I am a sucker for those kinds of things......I spent a good hour trying to figure out what theme I wanted. In the end, one of my daughter's friends helped me decide. She thought my blog should look like Toy Story. hahahaha! It made sense.....

I thought about changing the name of my blog also. I really do not have toddlers around anymore. But as I contemplated the change, it made me very sad.

I don't have any more toddlers.

My kids are growing up so quickly. Those stages that I thought would last forever are not. And as I had my babies, people always said (in a knowing voice, which always slightly irritated me) "Enjoy every moment--they grow up too fast!" And I always thought, "Yah people, well I am not overly sensitive and emotional like you pansies".........
But now I get what they were saying. Those moments that you thought would be around forever are not, and my kids are becoming new people all too quickly, and I am going to miss those changes if I do not take the time to see them.

I am one of those "pansies" now.

So I am leaving my blog name as is.......I still have toddler-ish wisdom to share sometimes.......and frankly, I want to remember my kids as toddlers. I want to look at the name of my blog and remember that 6 yrs ago, my oldest was just a toddler. Every time I get on here, I want to remind myself that my kids are growing up too fast and I need to savor every moment and take every opportunity I have to teach them and guide them.

So.......Toddler World is here to stay.
(But it may get the occasional face lift....we all like to look good in our old age, right?)

We ARE that homeschooling family.....kind of.....

I intended to blog about our homeschooling "journey" all year.....obviously that was a pipe dream of mine. ;-) Things just got way too busy, and that was the last thing I was sitting down to think about.

But now that the school year is almost done, I can sit back and take a look at the last few months.

I must say that after a school year of teaching my children at home, it turned out much differently than I ever imagined it would! I came into the year with preconceived ideas of homeschoolers, of how school should "look" and of how I would be as a teacher. Some of my preconceptions played out as I thought they would, but most things look completely different to me now.

After this year, I am by NO means an expert on homeschooling. But I do think that I have learned a few things, that might be of help to those contemplating homeschooling. It is often an intimidating step to take, and it always helps to know others have gone through the same thing and have found ways to cope.

Here are 5 things I discovered along the way this year.....things that may or may not help you as a new homeschooling family. But if you are anything like me, it is just nice to hear someone else say what you are thinking or feeling or wondering. ;-)

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1. You must choose the right curriculum/program for YOU. You will get lots of advice from everyone under the sun about "the best homeschooling curriculum" to use........but what works for one family might not work for you. You need to be fully convinced in your mind of what you are looking for and then seek out the curriculum that supports that. Several factors to consider when looking for a curriculum:

*What kinds of extracurricular subjects do you want your children to study?
*How much time will you have and what type of learning will your schedule support?
*What is your budget for buying homeschool materials?
*How "hands-on" do you want to be in the prepping/lesson planning part?
*Do you want a curriculum that is all-inclusive (meaning only from one place or publisher) or do you want to use different resources for different subjects?

2. You need to give yourself lots of prep time before the school year begins. Homeschooling is a totally different animal than sending your kid off to school everyday. You must be prepared mentally and environmentally (meaning, having your house prepped for homeschooling). We did not plan on homeschooling until 2 weeks before we started, so needless to say---I was NOT prepared! By second semester, I had worked out a system and organized the school area but it was kind of too late. We were so far behind by then that I still felt a bit overwhelmed. Next year, I will have everything in place BEFORE school starts, so that we can begin on the right foot.

3. Homeschooling is more productive if you engage your children in outside activities and in cooperation with other homeschoolers. By this, I do not mean that it is imperative that you be in a school co-op or something similar......but I do believe that kids need contact with the outside world. lol
Because I provide childcare in my home for several friends, this limits the amount of time we can go on field trips, etc. We do attend church regularly, so my kids had steady social contact every week, as well as playing with the (many) kids in our neighborhood. But next year, I am going to make sure our schedule allows time for us to meet up with other families, thus providing my children with interpersonal contact within an educational setting. I think it is good for children to evaluate themselves in comparison to others at times. We all need this, right? :-) If you only learn and study around your family, you may come to believe that your way is the only way, and that is not true by any stretch!

4. You need to make your teaching schedule work with your family's schedule. As I mentioned before, I babysit children in my home. Because of this, I had to take a "non-traditional" approach to a school schedule. I tried to do the 8-3 thing for awhile, but it was not working out. So I rearranged what subjects I taught on what days, and fit classes into slots that I had free throughout the day. And as long as I know my children are progressing and comprehending, I can stick with this schedule because it leaves us all feeling less frustrated.
That said though, your children DO need structure. So making your teaching schedule "work for you" does not mean that you throw all scheduling out the window and allow things to happen as they will. Children thrive under consistency and structure. You need to find a balance that will work for your family while teaching your children life skills about schedules for when they go out in the world alone.

5. I have learned much about my children this school year. Being your child's teacher allows you to learn about their learning style and to observe first-hand how they initially understand things. It also allows you to see their strengths and weaknesses and makes it possible for you to encourage or work on those areas. But being your child's teacher also means that you are the one who has to fight with them (at times) to do their work. :-) Make sure that you are prepared mentally for the challenge of teaching, and plan regular times for yourself to get away in the evenings or weekends. You will need time to re-group and de-stress. And always keep your child(ren)'s progress in mind.......your job is now to make sure they succeed educationally. The balance between parent/teacher roles can be tricky at times, but if you go into homeschooling with an awareness of that, you will do fine!

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These are just a few of the things I have learned this year. It has been a hard year, but I have learned so much about myself and my children. I think our family has grown closer, and I have had opportunities to teach my children things that I never would have, if they had been out of the house all day.

As I mentioned before, homeschooling is not for everyone. But if you are considering it as an option for your family, be sure to evaluate these areas before you make your decision. And make sure that your family avoids the stereotype of.........HOMESCHOOLER. ;-) Here is what I mean.........

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will.....majorly tick me off!

My two oldest Es are 16.5 months apart.

Yes--you read that right. We are crazy....we have already fully embraced that. Thus why our middle and youngest Es are THREE YEARS APART. ;-)

Anyways, the girls are slowly becoming friends. They are at the right ages now where they can pretend on the same wave length. They are sharing a room again, which they seem to enjoy. They have even started teasing each other about boys.
Wait, what??? *sigh* Yes, it is true.

But they still have many moments where they fight like (rabid) cats and dogs. I now know what the so-called "cat fight" between women truly looks like! They are terrible to each other!

I have really been struggling with finding a good approach to this fighting. Like I said, they really do love each other, and when they are getting along, it is so precious. But then there are the other times. I want to find a way to minimize this bickering and slapping and screaming and hitting and shrieking and.....oh sorry. Can you tell it happens often? :-)

I read this excellent article this morning, which really pointed out some good things. We have also been memorizing some Bible verses about kindness and interpersonal relationships. But I wanted to know--how do you handle conflicts between your kids? Do you jump in and break up every fight? Do you try to smooth it over with psychological reasoning? Or do you just let them pound each other and hope for the best? Inquiring minds want to know.......

Put on your big boy undies and stop crying!

Soooooo.........

Potty training has commenced for the littlest E here in ToddlerWorld. I'm not gonna lie....the first 2 days there were no accidents, and I had started writing my pottytraining manual to share with the world.

Then comes Day 3.

Two poopy accidents, one wet one, and seemingly no remorse for either of them from Littlest E. Hmmm. Now we are on Day 5 and the trend continues.......
But I am not turning back. I tried other methods with my girls, and they did not turn out so hot. In fact, I almost committed myself somewhere after Middle E's experience. So after counsel from a new friend who has 7 children (who is going to argue with someone with that many children?!), I decided to try the "only underwear from this point on, no matter the destruction that ensues" approach.

I should not complain--it really has not been as disastrous as I imagined. Things could be worse....somehow......
And the prize of a trip to CHUCK E. CHEESE **heavenly voices singing** is constantly discussed, which shows me that he is at least thinking about it. :-)

We just have to get over the "fear of pooping in the potty because I rather like the feel of it squishing in my underwear" problem.......

It's all trial and error....with lots o' Bible thrown in

I have been very convicted about my parenting lately. I know I have done the wrong thing in many circumstances.....I ought not to dwell on that fact. But I do need to learn from those mistakes and grow! That is my goal this year--take the mistakes that I KNOW I have made and change them, using Biblical principles that I know are true.

As I was dwelling on this goal, I was convicted about the amount of time I spend praying for my children. I DO pray for them, but not often enough and not specifically enough. Next week (after I have actually found it amidst my numerous files ;-), I will post a list of verses that you can pray for your children. I love using Scripture to pray for others---it is God's truth spoken back to Him.

I stumbled across this poem by Amy Carmichael on another blog. It is such an awesome way of wording what my heart's cry is for my kids. I hope it encourages those of you who are mothers....

For Our Children

Father, hear us, we are praying,
Hear the words our hearts are saying;
We are praying for our children.

Keep them from the powers of evil,
From the secret, hidden peril;
Father, hear us for our children.

From the whirlpool that would suck them,
From the treacherous quicksand, pluck them;
Father, hear us for our children.

From the wordling’s hollow gladness,
From the sting of faithless sadness,
Father, Father, keep our children.

Through life’s troubles waters steer them;
Through life’s bitter battle cheer them;
Father, Father, be Thou near them.

Read the language of our longing,
Read the wordless pleadings thronging,
Holy Father, for our children.

And wherever they may bide,
Lead them Home at eventide.

Is your stable "kid-friendly"?

I am on a quest for a "kid-friendly" Nativity set. The Little People one is top on my list.....I just can't bring myself to pay full price for it. ;-) So I have been waiting.....

What Nativity sets do you have? Do your kids like them?

I need Nativity help!

Making me feel old...

My baby....my first, tiny, colic-y baby.....turned seven years old on Saturday.
I really can't believe that we have been parents for 7 long years. And I still feel like I have no clue what I am doing! (lol) Do you ever come to the point where you know what you are doing?

The poor thing was thrown into a household run by two first-borns.....and expected to survive. Surprisingly, she has this far.....and has been instilled with much first-born stubbornness
to aid her in this task. :-)


Big E is a blessing, a challenge, a joy and a whirlwind in our lives. We are so thankful for her eager spirit, her desire to help, and her love for people.

We love you, Big E, and are proud of the person you are becoming! :-)

I LOVE kids! (I think........)

As of yesterday, Toddler World got a whole lot crazier! As if we did not experience enough chaos, poopy diapers, sippy cups, temper tantrums, and Noggin shows in our life......I added two more kids to my childcare venture. Which brings my house up to 6 children under the age of 6. AAAAHHHH!

Yes, I was slightly delusional when I agreed to this plan. Yes, the vision of extra money filling my bank account did cloud my thinking. Yes, I imagined that my early childhood degree would take care of any "problems" I might encounter......

Unfortunately, I had blocked out of my mind the YEARS that I spent wiping other people's kids' noses and doling out snacks and coming up with endless craft projects in daycare. I also forgot my promise to myself to never do childcare in my own home. I had also forgotten my lack of patience or my non-existent child-proofing skills.

But it is too late for thinking back now......the deed is done. I am now an official home childcare provider (minus a cute name, because I do not want others to find out and think I am up for taking their children :-). I must now look to the future--the future filled with snack schedules, and nap rituals, and art supplies, and endless Goldfish crumbs, and piles and piles of diapers and wipes.

I do love kids.........sigh. That is why I am doing this.

(Well---and with two house payments right now, the money was alluring.....if I am to be honest) :-)

One of those days

I had a fabulous post all typed out and ready to publish yesterday for Mommy Monday, but I wanted to upload a picture to finish it all out. One problem: my incompetent computer (for some reason) must not like my photo program, so it shuts down everytime I try to download a picture. I cannot begin to describe how frustrated I am at the moment......if any of you have any advice, please let me know!!!!

This photo-downloading problem has made today's post less than perfect also. It would have been a much funnier documentary on "a day in my life" if I could have posted a picture of the star of this story.

Oh well. You can try to imagine.......


The story starts this morning, as I began my day with a small sinkful of dishes that needed to be washed. But as I was running the water, I noticed that it did not seem to be heating up. Curious.
My husband came out of the bathroom to report that the shower was not warming up either. Down to the basement.......hmmm, the water heater seems to be turned off.

Step back in time a few months...... Our middle child, in true middle child fashion, has some quirks in her personality. (If you are a middle child, I am sorry to offend you but it is true--you all have a stereotype!) She can often be found playing by herself, doing weird things, and she is very quiet--some would even say sneaky--about her doings. She spent the weekend at my in-laws' house last winter, and while playing alone in their basement, "happened" to turn their furnace off. They discovered this in the morning after they awoke to a 54 degree house. It was thought a coincidence, merely an accident. Until the next time she stayed at their house and it happened again.

Now fast-forward to this morning....as soon as my husband realized that the water heater was turned off, our suspicions turned to our middle daughter. She swore up and down it was not her, but we still have our doubts. Not to worry though--everything was back to normal, the dishes got washed, and my hubby had his steaming shower.

Until several hours later, when I happened to meander past the water heater and decided to take a look at it. I figured I should know what to do if it ever turned off . Curious. It was off again.

The afore-mentioned child in our family was again questioned. Again she swore innocence. Now I was beginning to breathe threats.....

Several hours later I decided to take my 3 kids (plus my babysitting kid) for a walk. The entire 30 minutes of walking she alternated between crying loudly that she was tired and yelling angrily that she couldn't keep up with me. Then she would hold onto the stroller and drag alongside, making my pushing chore twice as hard. By the end of the walk, she was definitely not my favorite child.

But to top off my day with my dear middle one, she pulled one more prank that got her dessert taken away and sundry other punishments. In the middle of a wild and harried dinner (Daddy was watching a recruit play tonight and was not home to help calm the storm), dear Middle Child decided to take a break from playing with her spaghetti and head to the bathroom. She was in there for a very long time, and finally emerged without washing her hands. So she was sent back in to finish her bathroom duties. After another 15 minutes in there ( I kid you not, and I knew that it signaled catastrophe, but I could not go in and check until I had cleaned up the smallest monster), I finally went in to see what the hold-up was.

She was scrubbing the bathroom sink with her toothbrush. Not a big deal, you say. No, except that it was dripping with hand soap, which was also slimed all over the sides of the sink and the faucet. And she still had half of her supper to finish.

It was the last straw. I am sorry to say that I yelled. Loudly.

She still gave me the sweetest kiss as I tucked her into bed. As we always say at our house, "it's a good thing she's cute!" :-)

It's only the beginning

Well, she did it.

Our oldest passed her entrance test for kindergarten last week. How can I already have a kindergartener??? Next, she will be heading off to college. (Yes, I am becoming one of those parents who goes around telling new moms, "Watch out! Time flies by--they grow up too quickly.") Because it is true.....she was just a chubby little baby. And now she is picking out school clothes and deciding what kind of backpack will be "perfect" and feeling nervous about making new friends and wondering who she will sit by.

It was very cute when I took her to meet her teacher and be tested. As we were driving up the driveway, she piped up from the back seat, "Mommy, I am very nervous about my test." Poor thing--we hadn't really explained anything to her. After she found out that it was just to show the teacher what she knew, she looked a little less tense. :-)

So begins a whole new step in our parenting adventure: SCHOOL. I know it is only a matter of time until she is smarter than me. (She already thinks she is.....)

Clean up on aisle....well, the whole house really

Here at Toddler World (despite what Daddy would say), we keep a relatively clean house. I say "relatively" because we have the occasional piles sitting around, the usual crumbs under the baby's highchair and--at times--dress-up clothes completely covering any walking space in the basement. But I hate dirty counters and bathrooms and honestly love to vacuum and like to have order in the general living areas--so the Toddler house would appear clean if you walked in and gave it a quick glance.

The problem lies in the fact that I have been doing all of the clean-up myself. Now, Mr. PacMan will occasionally step in and vacuum....usually when company or his mother is coming over.....but he is willing to help out--that is the important thing. Mario (the oldest) will often kick into OCD mode and fly around her room or the basement, putting everything in its place. (Or rather, in the places she feels they should be. OCD.) But the majority of the housework has been done by me.

That has changed.

I have a dear friend who just happens to be a professional organizer, and she shined some light into the dark recesses of my brain. She always has great tips or thought-provoking articles on her blog--check it out if you get a chance--but awhile back she posted about the importance of getting your children involved in housework. I'm sure some of you are thinking, "Duh, leader of the ToddlerWorld! Of course your children should be helping with chores!" I know, I know.....I am well aware of introducing your children to responsibility, etc. I have just been too lazy to implement their help.
But like I mentioned before, that has changed. Last week, encouraged by Paula's tips, I made up a big-time chore chart. I broke all of my weekly household chores into days, and drew up a chart--complete with daily chores for my children.

And let me tell ya---it is working FABULOUSLY! I feel so "together" and peaceful as I go about my household duties, knowing that I have one whole day to complete each one. And the girls LOVE helping out. As soon as I tell them what cleaning chore it is for that day, they rush to help out. I do not know why I did not think of this sooner. (Well, actually I do know why:
1) laziness
2) procrastination
3) density of the brain and
4)previously the age of my children, which is the only legitimate reason.)

Here is the finished result...... and no, I did not take art in college. So be quiet!

It is working so well, I am a little frightened.
What is the next area I will competently organize? Toddler World may never be the same with this power......