Gloria in Excelsis Deo: {SQT} Spring Forward

1. Time Change

The time change is rough and made everyone out of sorts for days. But five days later, I've got four of six kids back on our regular sleep routines.

2. Bird Camp at the Botanical Gardens

Our only unusual outing this week was a delightful journey to picnic at the UNC Botanical Gardens and then drop off the oldest three kids for a half-day birding camp: click here to read about it!

3. Helpers

By the end of the day, I'm so tired and overstimulated by noise that I desire to be alone, but I've learned by trial and error that it's better to keep the little ones close via helping me cook than to let them run off to play because the lack of supervision leads to fights and mischief. And lately I've been thinking that the character flaws and bad temperament I have to "clean up" from using the TV as a babysitter are not worth it most of the time. So, the children help me cook often!

For one night of breakfast for dinner, I peeled the apples, the 6- and almost-8-year-olds cut the apples, and the 3-year-old had the job of picking up the pieces and placing them in the bowl.

Almost-8-year-old trimming fat off chicken

Making pizza with little boys

Reading a school assignment to his brothers

4. Latest Book

Joseph (6) is on a history streak, proving to prefer non-fiction just like oldest brother John. After we finished "Fifty Famous People" (1912) about famous people all over the world . . .

. . . Joseph selected to read "Stories of Great Americans for Little Americans," which is a collection of short stories about famous Americans published in 1895. He is thrilled with it!

5. Making Your Morning Productive

I appreciated reading the transcript of the Simply Charlotte Mason podcast: "Your Questions Answered: A Smooth Morning of Lessons," which I conveniently received in an email subscription. I can't see, to provide a link to the text for my blog readers, but I can direct you to the 18-minute YouTube video above.

Reading the suggestions from these experienced homeschooling mothers resonated with some practices that have begun working well for me after eight years of formal homeschooling.

At some point along the years, Mom has a mental "switch" in which she realizes that homeschooling is her job (I think of it as a profession!) and "I have to do this wholeheartedly to invest in my children."
Guard your hours at home because even one little appointment derails the entire morning.
Simplify and learn to say 'no' to activities and commitments that are not a 'resounding yes!' for your family.
Have a plan and a schedule, even down to details like where each child sits at the table. Spend 15 minutes each evening making sure your work areas are ready and you have what you need to teach what you've planned.
Teach your little ones boundaries.
Give your little ones special rotations of activities and toys; do not allow them free-for-all with toys or locations in the home. Supervise them directly.
Have time blocks or "spines" in your day (e.g., we all gather at 8:00 for prayer and announcements, and we all gather again at 10:00 for history and snack, and we all gather at noon for lunch).

6. Stations of the Cross

This week we made eight sets of Stations of the Cross and laminated them, so I won't have to do that again for years.

I appreciated reading this article over at Catholic All Year about how, in order to get the plenary indulgence for doing Stations, the pictures need to have crosses on them and one has to physically move from station to station. Read all about it, it's so interesting!

7. Miscellaneous

The boys are all about street hockey right now and my big 12-year-old is currently on a streak of rising early around 5:30 and he gets some schoolwork done, chats with me, and is out on the driveway in pads and on rollerblades practicing hockey at 7:00 a.m. in the dim dawn. It's pretty cool, I've gotta say.

Even the three-year-old has begun putting on his cute grow-with-me skates and scootching along with a hockey stick!