400 Dollars

Update on the car is that our dealer will give us $400 for our van, it's a big problem that is going to need fixed and he only wants to put $500 into fixing it. If he takes the van he will need an additional $300 down payment. Our dealer is a wonderful person, we not just enjoy dealing with him but also just talking with him about other things, our girls think he is funny and enjoy being around him. So for now our plan is to try and get some money together so we can get the car before it is gone, and let him take the van. Like I said in my last blog, whatever God's will is. Yes, I like the car and think it would be good for us, but God sees the whole picture and for that I love.

Fire Safety and Vroom Vroom Vroom

School today is finished and alot was accomplished. Amongst all the things Brendlee accomplished we found time to squeeze a pretend fire drill in. Brendlee was so much fun. I began by telling her to get on her bed and pretend she was asleep, than I sounded a smoke alarm. At that moment I showed her how we needed to crawl on our hands and knees as fast as we could to our fire escape, which was our front door today. The first time we went through it, me and Brendlee do the procedure alone, and than the fun part came, when Daddy and sister joined in. I think I had just as much fun as Bren, as I began crawling on my knees, screaming "Fire, Fire", daddy even did some role playing by being asleep on the couch and we had to wake him up, with our panic voices!

Other than being finished with school already today we are awaiting to hear from our car dealer about buying a new car. Our big issue is our van being traded in, at the end of June our van broke down on the way back from a KC Royals game and every since than it has just sat there. Several people have looked at it, but most of them say we blew the engine, we are praying that we can get enough out of it for at least a down payment on another used car. I pray that God's will be done in this situation.

This is the car I am praying for!!!!

Learning to Sort

Today Bren and I worked on sorting. I sometimes wonder if anything I say or show her gets through. Well, something has I am so excited to share. I showed Bren before dinner how to sort red and blue counting bears,our colors this week and last week are red and blue. After dinner we began a project in gluing red firetrucks on one piece of paper and yellow firetrucks on another, our theme this week is firetrucks and firemen. About 15 minutes later Bren was having free center play and it was than I realized that she had picked up on how to sort between two different colors. When I looked back at her she was sorting her red firemen from her tan firemen!!! What a wonderful site, she is learning!!!!

Finding Balance in the Slow Pace of our Everyday lives...

To begin with I have no clue where to begin with writing this blog. I think for you to understand me I first need to explain some things. One, my husband is a police officer, and two I am a stay at home mom. Recently I have began homeschooling my oldest daughter, she is only two and a half, so the majority of her school work includes numbers, shapes, ABC's, not anything to difficult to teach, but at the same time takes alot of one on one time. Being a former preschool teacher, I know how important education is, and that you should begin as soon as you can in teaching the basic things. So therefore I have began teaching her, our home has a basement where we have set up school. It has been reinforced many times that downstairs is school and upstairs is home, and yes she gets so excited when we go downstairs because she knows that it must be time for school. I am sure you are wondering than, why mention that my husband is a police officer? AND that right there is where the balance comes in. Our lives are very slow paced, not alot of craziness from day to day, usually do the same things over and over everyday. I mean who with small children have extra time to throw so many activities into a normal day of, giving two baths, and taking one myself, changing diapers, potty training, preparing meals, cleaning up after eating, doing loads of laundry after loads of laundry, and picking up toys 10 times a day. Come on all I have time for is the normal things in life, by the time all of the normal things are done the sun has set, and the crickets are singing.
The police officers in our town change shifts every month. One month they may work a 7am-11pm shift and than the next month after that they may work the 11pm-7am shift. It seems that every month I am coming up with a new routine for our family. For those of you who know me I am very much about order and routine. I have such a hard time not knowing whats going to happen next, or leaving things in the air, I am such a planner. Beginning Brendlee this month in school has been a challenge in our family. Now this is not a burdening challenge just a challenge none the less. I have been trying to figure out rather to do school with her in the mornings, or do school with her at night, or the middle of the day, or when we get a chance, or just when Bob is working. It has only been taking about 2 hours to complete our simple lesson plans sometimes less. When we began I started out doing it in the morning but it just seemed that she missed that time with her father. Right now Bob is on the three pm to eleven pm shift, but next month it will be different.
I really feel that I don't want to take my daughter's time away from being with her father when she can at this point in life, I know one day it will not be an option but for now I choose not to travel down that road.
Yesterday and tonight I choose to do her work with her while Bob was working. Tonight it ended up being right before dinner and after dinner. Kinda funny time, who really goes to night preschool, but hey I guess with doing it at home I have that option. My only fear is that I don't want to get to the point of doing it whenever we get a chance, because doing it that way people seem to fall into the trap of not doing it certain days, because they feel they don't have the time that day. I know she is only 2 1/2 but my plan at this point is to home school all of my children and by the time Brendlee is old enough to be in Kindergarten I want to have our routine down pat, and know exactly what I am doing. I told you I was a planner. Teaching is my heart and I love spending this time with my daughter seeing her learn and I want to do my best at giving her the best education she can receive. Yes, I have my fears of failing, and causing her problems later in life, but I have to trust God that He will give me the knowledge and strength to do what is best for her, during her learning process. I pray everyday that God would show me what she needs to learn so that I can teach her.
I feel balance is so important in home schooling and even now I am trying to find it.

Not Me Monday

Recently I have been looking over many blogs and just a couple of days ago I ran into a blog by:



I have fallen in love with this blog and now today the owner began a new thing called:
So now I am hooked and here I go. By the way her name is Mckmama and her and her family needs our prayers. She will be delivering a son in a little over a month and needs prayers for complications and other issues dealing with the pregnancy. Her sons name is Stellan.

Thus begins my Not Me Monday!

1. Not Me, this past week I did not spend over 2 hours in front of the computer while my kids fought it out amongest themselves, Not Me, I would never allow my 2 baby girls to fight between one another over a cup of water, Not Me I would step in and do something, Not Me!
2. Not Me, I would never just place my kids in a tub and tell them it's a pool, Not Me, I would never use placing them in a tub as a reason for it being easier to clean them up after supper, Not Me!
3. Not Me, I would never stay up till 12:30 waiting for my husband to get home from work, Not Me, I need the sleep I am a mom for goodness sake, Not Me!
4. Not Me, I would never became addicted to blogging, Not Me!
5. Not Me, In one days time I would not call my mother 4 times, Not Me, she has better things to do than talk with me all day, NOT ME!!!