Weekly Wrap-up: A Day in the Life - Best Laid Plans

I always enjoy reading A Day in the Life posts of other bloggers. It's interesting to see how Moms and Dads structure their days, the HIGHS, the lows, and the in-betweens when juggling homeschooling life. So, here's a peek into Wednesday around Our Side of the Mountain!

6:25am-10:20am

:: yawn :: The alarm goes off on my cell phone. I accidentally tap the snooze button, but there's no more snoozing. The alarm is already set as late as possible. I dress and wash up quickly, wake up Jake, who grunts in response, then tend to the animals while he gets ready. I drive Jake to a family friend's house for the ride into town to catch the bus to school.

Back at home, I put the laundry into the drier, gather a couple eggs from the nesting boxes, and climb back into a comfy, warm bed to do some blogging and messaging with Thomas. Cati wakes and starts her day with breakfast, music and school. She enjoys the calmness of mornings when her little brother is still sleeping.

But the coziness of flannel and the purring of a contented cat lull me off to sleep...

10:20am-11:00am

Cati jars me awake and then Sam. I realize my dozing has set us off schedule and start readjusting my mental To Do List. There goes my "Best Laid Plans"! Cati finishes her Saxon Math test while Sam grabs a bowl of Raisin Bran. I correct Cati's test then gather "van school" and make a "bucket lunch" of turkey-and-cheese roll-ups, baby carrots, homemade pumpkin bread, and apples. At 10:45am, we head to Cati's band practice.

11:00am-12:20pm

While Cati is at band, Sam and I do "van school". Focusing on "van school" is a bit difficult for him, but otherwise the wait time is unproductive...and he complains about boredom. He watches his math lesson on my laptop and gets most of his problem set completed before Cati returns. We nibble on lunch, stopping at the convenience store along the way for milk and a few staples. (I'm not going through my day without Honest Tea!) While I'm shopping, Cati reads The Hobbit and Sam continues with his math problems. We're multi-taskers! We sing along to "Schoolhouse Rock" the rest of the way home.

12:20pm-1:20pm

I put the groceries away and check the laundry in the drier. Damp! I reset the timer and start the drier again. Cati walks home from the beginning of the road, listening to her music, then writes the second chapter to her story The Bridge to Celestia on Wattpad, an on-line community for writers. (How she types everything in on her android I don't know!) Sam finishes up his math and starts grammar and vocabulary on MobyMax and reads The Story of Davy Crockett, Frontier Hero while I speed-wash the dirty dishes and fold that load of laundry. (Am I the only one that loathes dishes?)

1:20pm-2:15pm

Sam and I work on Mobymax stories and literature, sharpening comprehension. Cati sweeps the floor then heads out in the drizzle to get our mail. While waiting for her to return, Sam vacuums then puts a new outlet cover on the wall I sanded and painted yesterday. Job finished! He spends a little time sanding down a wooden boat he made with Grandpa Lobster last week before playing Minecraft. When Cati returns she puts a new light bulb in a lamp and sets up a music "corner". (That girl loves her music!)

2:15pm-4:45pm

King Tut time! After reading the rest of our SOTW chapter, we watch "World Wonders: Tutankhamun" on You tube. I warm us up soft pretzels for a snack (as the kids didn't eat much of the "bucket lunch" I packed). They run off ASAP when it's finished, ready for "down time". Cati heads off to her bedroom; Sam returns to building on Minecraft. I have a "breather", type up our day thus far, and finally hop into a hot shower.

4:45pm-11:00pm

The kids' Dad picks Jake up from our friend's house and then spends some time with the kids. Cati bakes up frozen pizzas for dinner. Jake closes up the flock for the night. I head out to Bible Study and Fellowship with Thomas for the evening. Fellowship includes bible study, a wonderful dinner of chicken soup, biscuits and cupcakes, and social time. I arrive home to a quiet, content home.

At least until the tree snapped in the blustery wind...

As always, special thanks to these weekly link-ups:

Don't forget to check out my other blog posts this week!
Memory Monday: My First Home
Wednesday Hodgepodge: Edition 194
Wednesday Hodgepodge: Turning

And these freebies...
Simple Machines Notebooking Pages and Videos

A Peak at Our DAY: Session 4 Week 5 - A Day in the Life

Oh, gosh, it's been a while since I've done a Day in the Life post, hasn't it? I love reading how others spend their homeschooling days. It's interesting to see how different we homeschoolers are, yet, we all have a common goal of raising lifelong learners. So, welcome to Wednesday at Our Side of the Mountain!

In Our Homeschool this DAY
(Oh, and before you read about our day...I'll be starting up the Explorers Blog Hop again on Sunday. I'd love for you to link up ANY and ALL outdoor posts!)

6:30-8:30am  :stretch: I woke up with a cat laying on my feet. She followed me downstairs as I did some tidying up. (Dirty dishes, vacuuming and sweeping never end, do they?) I let the dog out, opened the coop and brought feed and water to the chickens and ducks. The animals were "bushy-tailed" this clear, chilly morning. :shiver: I ate applesauce-maple syrup oatmeal with honey tea for breakfast.  And then settled down for some Words with Friends and Facebook time.

8:30-9:00am Methinks the saplings played quietly in their bedrooms a little too late last night as I had to wake them up. Groggy, grumpy kids meandered downstairs for oatmeal or cereal while I scrubbed toilets. (Just keeping it real. :wink:)

9:00-10:45am White Pine plopped down on the sofa to read Ivanhoe and watch physics videos from Coursera. He's not feeling too spiffy so I gave him a dose of allergy meds. Sugar Maple, Balsam Fir and I gathered around the coffee table to learn about knights and samurai from SOTW. (I wondered when we would get to knights!) I photocopied a shield from the activity book and the saplings drew a picture to represent themselves (like knights did) and, after a brief Haiku lesson, wrote poems (like the samurai did). Then they moved onto math and after, while Sugar Maple showered, Balsam Fir finished up a Types of Animals science file folder game. And I re-vacuumed the livingroom as Balsam Fir left a trail of Coco Krispies through it. :sigh:

10:45-11:00am Break time! Balsam Fir "disappeared" upstairs to build with Legos (scattered around his bedroom like snowflakes in a blizzard) and White Pine started "Ken Burns: The War" (Netflix) (WWII) and pulled out his Biology Coloring Book. And Sugar Maple? She spent her time combing her hair. (Why? Don't ask me! :laugh:)

11:00-11:40am Balsam Fir and Sugar Maple switched doing Word Builder (spelling) on the computer and math facts on a free Kindle Fire app, and then Sugar Maple worked on her Science Notebook (comets) while Balsam Fir read aloud to me from Busy Times (Pathway Readers) and made "rainbow words" from words he missed. White Pine continued on with his history movie and Biology (until he fell asleep for 10 minutes and I woke him).

11:40-12:40pm My younger saplings headed outside for a romp through the snow AND mud, and let flock out to forage. (We free range under supervision.) I made BLTs with orange "smileys" and carrot and celery sticks for lunch, started the dishwasher and managed to poke myself twice with a steak knife, once on each hand. Talent! :wink: After lunch, I read aloud from Prince Caspian.

12:40-2:15pm Balsam Fir ran upstairs to build with Legos again, and Sugar Maple made banana bread, watched "Liberty's Kids" (Netflix)(Revolutionary War)  and practiced clarinet. White Pine finished up his movie and coloring and worked on plant adaptations and responses and invertebrates for Prentice Hall Biology and then "poop scooped" for me. (What a good boy!) I cleaned up from lunch, mopped, collected eggs, and started a load of laundry.

2:15-6:00pm The saplings walked to the end of the road to meet White Pine's friend - I'll call him White Birch -  as he got off the school bus and collected the mail. They played basketball with a soccer ball while the flock free ranged again, having banana bread for snack, before coming in for XBox football. Balsam Fir decided to be contrary and wanted SALAD and RANCH DRESSING instead, and watched "Top Gear". It's hard to argue with him when he's eating veggies! I hung laundry on the lines, made a Critter Sitter Care Card (for White Birch to care for our animals when we're gone) and then sat down for a breather with my book and Hot Cocoa. Have you read The Secrets of Mary Bowser? Great historical novel! White Birch walked home. And I whipped up dinner: buttermilk biscuits, scrambled eggs, ham, steamed broccoli, and pineapple chunks.

6:00-8:00pm Wind down time! The saplings caught dishes up for me while I was on the phone and reading e-mails. Then each of us went about whatever fancied us: video games, computer system research on-line, reading, SPINNING IN OFFICE CHAIRS, Facebook, patting the cat. Around 7:15pm White Pine and Sugar Maple locked the flock in for the night.

8:00pm-10:00pm We watched "Survivor". Yes, it's not the most "wholesome" show, but we do find it interesting to watch.  And then got ready for bed. Good night! 

A Day in the Life: Early Spring Edition - March 21, 2012

8:30am - Beeeep! Blue Spruce's alarm went off. What time is it? Yikes! A late start to our morning! Oops! I guess playing Words With Friends until midnight isn't the best idea if I want to get our day moving by 9:00am. ((wink))

9:17am - Sometime early this morning Balsam Fir attached himself to my side and fell back asleep. So, after a few minutes of tickling him awake, I got ready for the day and hung bath towels out to dry as Sugar Maple practiced her clarinet. That'll wake this crew up! LOL (She has 2 more pages to "pass" and she'll be a 2nd year clarinet!) Blue Spruce already left for work, White Pine had crackers and cheese and Balsam Fir had a Nutella sandwich. Yep! Grab-and-go breakfast this morning!

9:36am - The Saplings settled down to school after Sugar Maple and Balsam Fir stopped bickering over who sits where. ((sigh)) White Pine got a 100% on his on-line Earth Science test! Sugar Maple and Balsam Fir worked on Math (although Fir is in a TEASING-HIS-SISTER kind of mood today).

How Sugar Maple Feels About Long
Division

Teasing Mom with the Camera

10:00am - The floors are swept. I think we have more PINE NEEDLES inside the house than out! (Do I ever dislike stepping on them with bare-feet! Ack!) I pondered what to do about the "shoe situation" in the foyer, and stopped Balsam Fir from putting his cold feet on his sister to make her squeal over and over.

The Shoe Situation

10:20am - Balsam Fir helped me clear a clog from the vaccum cleaner. Again. ((sigh)) At least it was a wad of paper this time and not the usual suspects: LEGOS! And then he started his Math facts. Even with only a few windows opened this morning we heard one of the hens doing her thing from the coop. White Pine ran out to snag the egg and then started Grammar and Writing. Sugar Maple yelled over Balsam Fir humming, "T-H-R-O-U-G-H," practicing her Spelling words.

Using Magentix to Figure Out His Math Facts

11:08am - Oh, yeah - MY breakfast! A quick piece of toast with Nutella! Balsam Fir had a run-about outside and some chicken CUDDLE time on the couch. (We're kind of "kooky", huh? LOL) White Pine finished Grammar corrections - those diagramming sentences through him off! - and Sugar Maple finished up her Math word problems and Spelling, and started teaching Balsam Fir about the senses.

Cuddling with Cheeper on the Couch = Calmer Balsam Fir

Learning About Taste

11:57am - Why stay inside on such a beautiful day? I made us Bento lunches, packed up the cooler, threw some sand toys into the back of the van, and off we went to the state park.

Clementine, Cucumber Slices, Ham and Turkey Squares,
Cocoa Puffs Breakfast Bar, Green Pepper and Celery Sticks,
Low-fat Veggie Ranch Dip, Ritz Crackers, and Shredded
Cheddar Cheese

3:19pm - Phew! We went on a 3 mile walk through the state parks woods. Sweaty walking when it's nearing 80 degrees! We had a leisurely picnic lunch by the lake and then played in the sand. And yes, 2 of my crazy Saplings went SWIMMING! (They weren't the only ones taking a dip!) Just a couple weeks ago there was ICE on the lake!

Happy Retriever! Enjoying Some Swimming and Rolling in
Pine Needles

View from the Beach

View from the Beach

Along Our Walk. Those 2 Specks to the Left of the Fallen Tree
are Canada Geese

Balsam Fir and Sugar Maple Playing in the Sand

White Pine and Retriever Sitting in the Shade

3:25pm - Blue Spruce is home from his first job...with packages! Whoop! I got my mini ice cubes trays and started making Nutella FroYo Bites right away. 6 more eggs in the nesting boxes! White Pine went outside to do his Algebra while the chickens free ranged in the woods under Balsam Fir's supervision, and Sugar Maple settled down in the diningroom to do her on-line Grammar. And this Mama needed some quiet time!

4:13pm - Quiet time over! Blue Spruce headed off to his 2nd job, and I brought in 2 loads of laundry from the line and folded them, but not without taking a few minutes to watch the chickens taking dirt baths by the compost bin. Ever seen a chicken dirt bathe? Hilarious! LOL

Chickens Dirt Bathing, but Can't See the Dirt Flinging Here

4:49pm - The Saplings flipped each other in the hammock. (As one kid braced themselves in the netting, another one flipped it over.) Doesn't sound like fun to ME, but they laughed and laughed! LOL And then the chickens were ENCOURAGED into the run with dried-out spinach wraps.

4:53pm - Tired and a little grumpy, we got comfortable on the couches and watched National Geographic's "Climbing Redwood Giants" and "Liberty's Kids" while dinner cooked in the oven: Pizza Rolls and homemade baked fries. I forgot to pull out chicken or fish for dinner, but fortunately the kids are happy-happy with Pizza Rolls since we RARELY have them. What to have for a veggie?

7:04pm - White Pine closed up the chickens for the night while the other kids got the clean dishes put away and the dirty dishes loaded into the dishwasher. The younger Saplings took showers.

9:00pm - Bedtime! We watched "Survivor" and then headed upstairs. White Pine took a shower and read in bed while Sugar Maple went right to sleep. (She's SO good about going to bed on time!) Balsam Fir bounced around in my bed while I got ready for bed. Like other kids with SPD, it took Fir a while to calm his body for sleep despite an actively busy day.

10:37pm - Fir fell asleep and I stopped playing Words With Friends. Zzzzz!

A Day in the Life: Fall Edition - November 14, 2011

How about a sneak peak at a day at our house? 

Every day is different around there. We keep a semblance of a schedule each day, but it's not always followed precisely. Days flow. Learning and play happens. Isn't that how it should be? 

♫  Monday, Monday! ♫

7:30am - 9:00am: We rise and shine! Sort of. There's not a lot of shining to be had this morning. More dragging with half-closed lids and grumbled monosyllabic answers while filling cereal bowls and toasting toast. The aftermath of a busy weekend with travel and family. But by school time everyone is more lively and jovial. And dressed. Mostly. Phew!


8:30am-8:50am: Sugar Maple decided to practice clarinet and Balsam Fir made it a duet on the keyboard. This concert helped wake everyone up! LOL

9:00am - 11:30pm: School time!

11:30pm - 12:10pm: Bento Picnic Time! Have you heard of Bentos? They're Japanese "box meals" that some Moms have added  GREAT "twists" too. Now my Bentos aren't as creative as those ones on-line, but they still filled bellies for a fun game of 1-on-1 basketball!

12:10-1:30pm: School time!

1:30pm - 4:25pm: Chicken chasing time! Not really! LOL We free range the hens under supervision, which gets the kids outside for HOURS of sunshine and fresh air. Win-win, right? The Trees did Arts and Crafts at the outside table, drove matchbox cars on the driveway, shot baskets, measured out a larger SPRING garden space and started plans, and had chicken cuddles. (Yes! Chickens CAN be cuddled! LOL) After cleaning up from school and lunch, folding laundry off the line and sweeping, I settled down for a cup of steaming green tea. Ahhhh!

3:15pm-3:45pm: Sugar Maple popped inside to make a small batch of pumpkin spice cookies for snack.

4:25pm-5:30pm: Chores first, quiet reading after, followed by a "movie". Today the kids watched "Liberty Kids: The Intolerable Acts" on You Tube. I suppose this part of our day could be considered School Time too, huh? LOL

5:20pm - 6:00pm: Blue Spruce and Balsam Fir left to go on a Cub Scouts' "Go See" at the library where they learned a little local history.

5:30pm - 6:45pm: Free time for the older Trees while I made dinner: oven-roasted chicken with rice pilaf and steamed broccoli and cauliflower. When Blue Spruce and Balsam Fir returned from the library, we sat down to a family dinner.

6:45pm - 8:00pm: Balsam Fir took a MUCH NEEDED warm, sudsy bath while Maple Sugar took a shower in another bathroom. They settled in for the night at 8:30pm.

8:00pm-10:15pm: Blue Spruce,White Pine and I "hung out", watching TV, playing "Angry Birds" and reading. (Yeah, I know, "Angry Birds", but Pine plays a few games and then reads.) I got a jump on Tuesday by tidying the kitchen, diningroom and livingroom, vacuuming, and sweeping. White Pine headed off for a shower and bed by 10:00pm. Soon after, I called it a night too.

Linking up to these GREAT blog hops!

The Homeschool Mother's Journal: July 16 - 22

In My Life This Week
Clunk! Ssssss! Did you hear that? It's the sound of my tire going flat after running over a rock in the road. Fortunately it happened just 300 feet from the driveway. C and I were just coming back from town with a load of groceries. Phew! Guess who has new tires? Me!

Oh, and since my sinus and ear infection woes didn't go away, I'm on a stronger, longer antibiotic. Let's hope this does the trick!

The high, humid temperatures this week have been hard for me to handle all congested, so we did our swimming after dinner! Not only was the lake less crowded, but the water still felt GREAT!

In Our Homeschool This Week

S and I continue to work on his Hooked on Phonics: Learn to Read program. My goal is still to finish Level 1 this summer, and he has 6 more readers and about 12 pages to go in the worktext. It doesn't sound like much, but it can take him 3-5 days to finish a reader or a few pages of worktext. He's discovered that he can read words in other places now and is QUITE excited to show me! We'll review all his readers from the past year when we're done with Level 1. (And perhaps we'll have a new story video to share with you!)

I switched to Spelling Power with C, taking a break from All About Spelling. We're reviewing words and rules in Levels 1-2 to reinforce her learning. I decided to have her copy misspelled words on index cards and tape them to the edge of the TV so while she's "glued to the tube" those words will be there too! LOL She's not a natural speller so repeated review is needed. She'll get there though!

2nd Flower from C's Flower Bed

 And J just reads, read, reads...with some breaks for the History Channel, friends at the Rec Center and gardening! We're enjoying his peas and beans!

Peas and Beans from the Garden

An Insect on a Cucumber Blossum

Winter Squash is Growing

 I pulled out the Learn to Tie Your Shoe box and S worked on tying shoelaces. He needs some more practice, but he's getting it!

Here are the kids' favorite library books this week:

And don't forget to check out my post about our 2011-2012 curriculum! Click here!

 Places We're Going and People We're Seeing

• Rec Center for Kids Free Lunch, gym games and friends
• Multicultural Immersion Workshops at the library
• Swimming in the lake
• J hung out with  friends at an amusement park

My Favorite Things This Week
I ordered the rest of our curriculum for next year! I'm more enthusiastic than the kids and I can't wait for Box Day! (The kids aren't thinking beyond summer! LOL) 

And guess what? We found it! Our chicken coop! It's a DIY kit and will hold ALL our hens! Stay tuned for our chicks' "housewarming party"! (No more BARN SMELL in the house!)

Here's a new video of the chicks. Cheeper is 8 1/2 weeks old and the others are 4 1/2. They REALLY enjoy being outside! (You can hear the neighbor's dog barking in the background and her yelling at it! LOL)

Photo, Video, Link, or Quote to Share

 I did it! I figured out how to make a blog button. I think!  I'm not completely satisfied with it as I'd like something more whimsy with a mountain AND kids, but for my first try I'm happy.  Does anyone want to give it a try?

I'm linking up to The Homeschool Mother's Journal, Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers, Fun Tuesday Hop, No Ordinary Blog Hop, and Hip Homeschool Hop. Head over to read more homeschool happenings!