You don't realize how fast time flies by while you're in the moment.
Time seems to drag on forever. You sit and think, God will this day never end?! You watch the clock hands move like they are slathered in honey, waiting just waiting for bed time so you can have a small about of silence in the house before you go to bed. But your work is not finished just because the little ones are finally asleep. You still have things to do before you can rest your head on your pillow and wander into dream land.
There are fish to feed. One pig and a demon disguised as leopard geckos to feed and water...and *gulp* handle so maybe one day they will stop biting so your son can enjoy his chosen pet. After the leopard geckos you sit in the floor nursing your bitten hand wondering why you endure the pain and torture of having a pet that bites you anytime you stick your hand in the cage and you remember that your son thinks the demon is the best thing in the world. You wash your hands and take your shower, check the computer one last time before heading to the bedroom for some rest.
Once there you realize you forgot something, which is inevitable. You get back up and grab what you have forgotten, in this case looking over that teacher's guide you've been meaning to do for a week now. You sit back down in bed discarding your chosen pleasure book in favor of the school material. Before you know it the clock says it is 3am and you've fallen asleep with the light on. You put the book away and turn off the light praying for sleep to come quickly.
Then another day starts. The boys are thirsty. They're hungry. They're bored. They're fighting. They're actually getting along, which means it is time to go see what forbidden thing they are doing. The house needs cleaning. School needs starting. You sweep while you teach grammar and wrangle your toddlers. The cat is laying in your dirt pile. Perfect, now you have to brush the cat off or he will just track it back through the house. Mop time is always fun. The toddlers are magnetically attracted to a wet floor when they have bare feet. Must be time for science then. Or is it math? No, it is time for boo boo kisses because even after you telling the small ones to stay in their room they have come barreling through the hallway to slip and fall on the wet floor and at least one of them will fall and smack their head on the floor.
My children are used to this routine by now. We've been doing it this way for 7 months. We do school when there isn't something else that needs to be tackled right this minute. Boo boos and ouchies always come first. Dangerous activity has to be halted before spelling can be considered. But somehow we still get everything done in a day...and before the public school bus arrives to drop off its load of students.
It amazes me at how much we are able to accomplish in a day at my house. Yes, we get side tracked, we get busy doing other things, we laugh, we dance, we play, and we learn. Spelling, math, grammar, social studies, and reading...we cover them all everyday somehow. And every now and then we even get to throw in some science, which is always our favorite subject because admit it, science is fun.
Our days aren't ever easy. We struggle every day to be kind to one another, to have patience, to be honest, to work hard, and to do our best in all that we do. We don't always accomplish our goals, but we always seem to get through the day without killing each other. Which in my mind, is a great feat when you take into account my toddlers. If they aren't fighting then something is terribly wrong.
Deacon is still hard at work on multiplication and reviewing subtraction in math. We haven't even touched division yet, but that will come when we are ready. He is working on proper nouns, pronouns, contractions, and the parts of a sentence in grammar. Spelling is more of a refresher course to make sure his handwriting is still improving for now, we will get back into spelling new words in awhile. Social studies is whoever we feel like learning about today, we keep it brief as it isn't as important yet. He's just started reading Carole Marsh Mysteries and he seems to be enjoying them. I want him to develop a love for reading so I don't want to push him too hard. Science is when we get to blow things up or see how they work. We love science.
Calen will be starting Head Start this year. I am not ready to homeschool another child just yet. Dallin may get to start Head Start as well if there is room for him. They take 4 year olds before considering 3 year olds. They will both be taking speech therapy from now until they no longer need it. Calen may also be taking OT for his fine motor skills, but I am unsure as to the score of his evaluation at this time. Calen is really excited about going to school. It is what he has been looking forward to for a few years now and was his main goal and reward in potty training. Dallin wants to go to school, but hasn't decided he wants to use the potty yet. He will hide in the hallway when he needs to go instead of using his really cute and expensive potty seat he picked out. This thing even sings...time will tell if he is ready or not.
As for me, I'm here. I'm surviving some days and thriving on others. I take it day by day. I wonder if I'm doing the right thing while at the same time convinced I must be doing something right. My children may fight and bicker, they may rebel on occasion, but overall they are well behaved, intelligent kids. Deacon is learning. He may not be on par with what he would be doing in public school, but at least I know he knows the information instead of being forced to move on without a full grasp on the topic.
I must admit, if it weren't for my Swappie friends I would have given up long ago. Do I get full support from family in regards to my homeschooling my child? No. I don't. Does my family mean well? Yes. I think they do. I have learned that in regards to my children, only what my husband and I think is best really matters. The advice and support I've received from The Swap forum is one of my most used and best loved tools during each day. So to my Swappies, I thank you.
