Another year, another turkey, another year of thanksgiving in our hearts. I am so thankful for my life and everything in it. But it's the people I am the most thankful for. My sweet miracle babies that fill my heart with joy, my husband who provides for us and loves us so well, my family that help us create memories and traditions, my friends that give me such meaningful and special relationships. It is a blessed and wonderful life.
I thought to share my life I'm so thankful for, I'd do a smaller version of the "day in the life" posts I like doing every once in a while. This is the holiday version of that including Thanksgiving school :)
I like getting up before the kids, if I'm not too tired from the night before with a certain 5 year old that likes to wake us up multiple times a night ;) On a good morning, I get up before the kids and make them breakfast and enjoy a cup of coffee by the Christmas tree. And on a REALLY good morning, I get ready before them too. This morning was banana bread and eggs while I spend time in prayer for the day ahead.
The kids wake up when their bodies wake up. Eventually they all make it down to breakfast and then they get ready, make beds (supposedly, anyway), brush teeth, take care of their laundry and dishes, and then play while I do my own morning chores.
I love that our mornings start with snuggles, hot coffee, books, and a slow start to the day. There is no rushing, arguing, quick breakfasts, or stress (well, except on co-op days I guess). And I recognize that as a privilege and something I love very much about homeschooling.
A little dinner prep for me while the kids work on their "morning work", which is just something I have set out on the table every morning. It could be a puzzle, craft, science kit, or something we haven't done in awhile. Today, Isla was writing letters to send in the mail for "mail Monday" :)
Then we begin school... usually around 9:00. We start with a gathering time that includes poems, Bible verses, songs, videos, games, unit learning, and whatever else we can learn together as a family. Today we watched a video about the Wampanoag people, played "secret number" to practice greater or less than, sang songs with our instruments, and played sightword bingo.
Then the kids move to table time, which is where they work on individual work sometimes independently and sometimes with me. They both finished with an art video on this day. Isla is in a program called American Heritage Girls that has an entire handbook of things she can learn to earn badges. So we work on that during this time too, if we can.
After school, the kids get free time to themselves while I do more chores usually. Today I had to grocery shop (praise the Lord for instacart!), laundry, and restocking the pantry/fridge with my homemade grocery store from the basement :)
Soon enough, it's lunch time for all of us. After lunch, the kids begin their rest time. Eleanor lays down in her crib, but I'm afraid her days of actually napping are over :( Either way, we all get a minute to ourselves. The kids are allowed to play their little handheld games. Today, I actually had to pick up my once-a-month-order from Azure that arrives when they want and you just have to accommodate them. So I left the kids with Michael while I ran and picked that up. Azure is bulk, organic food and products and we LOVE it.
In the afternoon, the big kids and I do "couch time" where we snuggle up and read all the things. Then if they had a good morning during their independent work, they earn computer time where they get to play "Teach Your Monster to Read" which is a fun reading program. That's kind of the rest of their formal school for the day. I finish my afternoon with dinner prep (and I enlist helpers) and my most important chore- laundry. I fold all pajamas and outfits from yesterday and put them away. I do this every day and I never get behind on laundry this way.
It finally warmed up enough for us to get outside for an afternoon walk. We try to get outside every day, but as it gets colder that time usually happens in the afternoon for us.
A little more free time before Michael gets off work. I rarely hear "I'm bored" from my kids. They do a great job of chasing their little interests. They are usually deep in some kind of play, busy with an art project, snuggled up with a book or audiobook, outside with their friends, or off building something extravagant (both with magnatiles and couch cushions). I believe my refusal to entertain them, the huge chunks of free time, and their limited screens made them this way... but I'm still investigating this one. I also will offer them a chore if they tell me they're bored ;)
I try to give Ewan some one-on-one time every day. He needs it to function. Today, we played trains.
Michael gets off work between 3:00-4:00 (which means he comes upstairs) and the wrestling begins. In the summer, they would go outside and kick a ball around or work in the yard... but now they just wrestle in my living room and it usually ends in tears (*sigh*). I think it's how they all decompress from the day (what my children are stressed about, I have no idea).
Sooner or later, it's dinner. Dinner is kind of a big deal in our house. Everyone comes together and shares their high and low of the day, tells dad all about what they did, discusses the latest in their life, and enjoys a meal together. (And by "enjoy", I mean, whines about what I made and practices the art of sitting during the meal). Then the kids finish with their nightly chore of vacuuming or wiping the table and Michael does the dishes before we all enjoy a warm cookie :)
We finish with baths (if it's bath night). They get a short show after bath nights so we can brush hair and clip nails. Then we read a story, say prayers, and then the big kids get to play more of their handhelds before going to bed. Currently, Ewan is in our room so that means our bedtime is pretty early too.
And that's a day in our life. Simple and pleasant and my absolute favorite :)
**************************************************************
Co-op this month was a little bit of a bummer. I planned a trip to the history museum to learn all about the indigenous people of our area as we have been learning about the native people that played a role in the beginnings of our country. Unfortunately, my kids all woke up sick and I had to put someone else in charge while we stayed home.
The next co-op week was a celebration for our book club. We read The Wizard of Oz and spent the day in Oz as we earned a heart by writing cards to the cancer center, earned bravery by completing an obstacle course, and earned a brain by answering comprehension questions and doing puzzles. We also made tornadoes in a bottle and ate green food from the Emerald City. It was a fun day!
A lot of our days have been in preparation of the days ahead. More decorating, baking, Christmas movies, and all fueled by fancy coffee drinks ;) We even got to decorate Mimi's Bloomington tree and we only had one broken ornament :(
And then the final culmination of November... Thanksgiving week! But first... to start the busiest week of the year, Nana and Pop Pop offered to watch the littles so we could go on a date. Isla tagged along with us and we went rock climbing. We had a lot of fun while Michael showed us all the ropes (quite literally). It was a great way to start Thanksgiving week.
And then it was time! Wednesday began the prepping of the century. I caught myself multiple times asking myself why SO much effort was going into one meal on one day, but when the day finally arrived I realized it was all worth it. We spent pretty much all Wednesday cutting, cooking, peeling, tasting, and storing with a little break from some visitors. Uncle Ethan came all the way from Peru to say hello :)
And finally, it was turkey day! We spent the morning watching the parade and preparing the meal before everyone arrived. Michael's Grandma Fred, Aunt Cheryl, and cousin Jessie stopped by with some early Christmas gifts. It was nice to see them. And then we filled up on turkey, potatoes, and pie before watching football and lounging all day. It was a great Thanksgiving :)
The following day was our fifth annual Christmas tea. The Ready ladies go to the Mackinaw Tea Depot for delicious sandwiches and cinnamon tea. The girls love dressing up and we always enjoy seeing how the Christmas tree will be decorated this year. And it was also the boys's second annual duck pin bowling and pizza day with Pop Pop. They had a blast!
We ended Friday with a game night at Michael's Aunt and Uncle's house, but I didn't get any pictures.
Saturday we woke up to a blizzard and icy roads, but we decided the show must go on. We headed to Nana and Pop Pop's house for tree decorating, brunch, and new matching jammies. The kids look forward to their new pajamas every year.
Then it was back in the car and off to Mimi and Bupa's house for the final Thanksgiving! We had a lovely time with the June side, including Uncle Ethan. The kids played in the snow, sneaked treats, and played with the puppy! We enjoyed a big feast before heading home in the storm.
We made it home to a snowy wonderland where the kids played until it was dark. The next day we relaxed with more snow play. It was a wonderful, full, festive weekend.
And today it is Monday, December 1st, which is the start of Christmas school in our home. I'm prepped and ready to go, knowing it'll all go by really fast, I'm sure. To end, here are a few extras that didn't have a spot above :)
Comments
Post a Comment