Wading through a Fog

I'm tired.

My eyes are heavy.

My arms and feet and shoulders feel as though they are dragging sandbags.

A few tears, but not many.  I think tears would be better.  More freeing than this heaviness that just pushes me to succumb to numbing sleep.

Grandpa died one year ago today.  The day he died I couldn't even remember my phone number.  I had to be strong, for my family, because that's what I do.  My family is dramatic.  I am not.  My family is loud.  I am not.  My family grieves with stories and tears and sadness and joy and everyone mashed in together.  I do not.

I need peace.  Quiet.  Solitude.  I need Him.

Today is a day for memories.  For love.  For sadness and joy.  For craziness and I hope some solitude.

The day I finally had a chance to process, to grieve, months after he died, I wrote this while sitting by his bench:


Things I've Learned from Grandpa:

~Work. Work till the job is done. No unnecessary breaks. Most breaks are unnecessary.
~If it needs to be done, do it. It doesn't matter whose job it is.
~No whining.
~If it hurts, cut it off.
~Love God. He loves you.
~Go to Mass on Sundays. And holy days. And when given the opportunity. Dress appropriately.
~Priests are people, too. So are nuns and brothers.
~Help people. Especially those that would be forgotten. Do it consistently and quietly.
~Always jump at the opportunity to go get ice cream.
~Lead by example.
~Peanut butter. 'Nuff said.
~"Deci" means tenth. "Centi" means hundredth. Math made so much more sense after that.
~Listen to your mother.
~Money: you can't take it with you.
~Family is to be treasured. Friends are the family you meet along the way.
~Do what you love. Share it with others.
~Life's funny. Laugh deeply and often. Greet it with a twinkle in your eye.
~Bedhead rocks. But comb it out before you leave.
~Do something nice for your spouse. Even when you argue, you'll get to show them love. Love might smell like coffee.
~An honest man looks you in the eye when you shake hands. You better not lie.
~Wear your grubbies when you go car shopping.
~Your grubbies can last forever.
~Give people the benefit of the doubt.
~Education is important. Don't squander it.
~Think. God gave you a brain, use it.
~Keep a notepad and pen handy at all times. You never know when you'll need them.
~Even if you don't like to read, support and encourage those who do.
~Learn how to fix things.
~If you can do it yourself, do. If not, don't be stupid, call in the professionals.
~The professionals work for you, choose wisely and pay fairly.
~Travel.
~Get outside. Golf, a walk, whatever. Just enjoy.
~Never forget. Our military members are peace keepers. The men and women who have died in service are the heroes. The "other side" are people too. Treat them as such. God and His people are bigger than politics. Politics is always there. Be bigger.
~Treat the flag with respect.
~Stand for our anthem.
~Pray for Ireland.
~Remember your roots. Roots are grown in community.
~Slainte!
~It's always a good time for some good Irish music.
~Generally, food is good. Don't be too picky. It's a blessing to have enough.
~Don't waste.
~When driving, brake and turn gently enough that a passenger reading an open newspaper won't crinkle the page.
~Keep your cool.

Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord,
and let perpetual light shine upon him.
May his soul and the souls of the faithful departed,
through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

Amen.

All About Reading, Level 1 - REVIEW

We've been scrambling to keep up with Baby Bird recently.  It seems she's ready to start reading... NOW.  She's 3 1/2.  Didn't really think we'd be needing phonics resources when our kid was still wearing pullups, but hey, kids are quirky.

I've sought the advice of many much more experienced homeschooling mamas, pored over curricula reviews, prayed, talked it over with hubby, dragged my feet, and finally settled on what to order.  We decided on two programs actually, but tonight I'll just include a review of the one that arrived today.  Mail... I love homeschool Christmas!

I read through the placement tests and chose All About Reading, Level 1.

If you order directly through the company you can request box art.  How seriously cool is that?

The goodies:

Please forgive the poor picture quality/location.  It's midnight and this is real life.



Initial Reactions:

•  Teacher's Manual
• Open and go - I'm going to want this spiral-bound or in a 3-ring binder.  I like binders but I want to be able to fold back one half so only one page is visible.  Mission.
• Table of contents: very clear on what will be covered, know at a glance if the readers will be needed
• Appendices:  AWESOME.  Includes all the key components I want at my fingertips
• Scope and Sequence of Level 1
• Phonograms taught in Level 1
• Full blending procedure
• Solving B-D reversal problems
• Words taught in Level 1
• Section 1, "What do you need?":  So glad it includes pictures of each item
• Clear, clutter-free pages throughout 

• Letter Tiles
• Seem sturdy enough for their job.  Like the color-coding.
• REALLY glad this person suggested attaching all the magnets BEFORE punching apart the letter tiles... she also has a fantastic review of AAR, Level 1
• Anyone else find mindless tasks like sticker-sticking and laminate-cutting relaxing?  Turned on some classical music (yay Pandora!) and chilled with a glass of wine for this job :)

• Readers (3)
• Exceptional binding
• Gorgeous black and white pencil illustrations
• Skill-appropriate vocabulary, not overly juvenile, would be appropriate for an older beginner reading student but easily enjoyed by younger audiences as well
• Student Activity Book
• Definitely to be used in conjunction with teacher's manual
• Clear, clutter-free pages all in black/white
• Heavy-duty pages

We chose this program is large part because it is supposed to be so geared toward multi-sensory learning.  Our daughter is young and wiggly - hoping this pans out!

American Flag Worktrays

DIY Science Kits

DIY Science Kit Experiments (pdf)

Newby Thoughts on Preschool Homeschool Materials

I've spent countless hours - way too many hours really - poring over homeschool materials.  I think we've figured out what we want to do for now, which is really not that much.  Well, not structured learning anyway.  Kids learn whether you want them to or not.  Any materials we choose to purchase or utilize at this time will be for our benefit as the parents and used mostly to keep us moving forward.  We will not require Baby Bird to do seatwork or set curriculum until such time as we deem it appropriate.

Below are some of my thoughts on three popular choices for PRESCHOOL homeschool curricula.  If you are interested in purchasing any of these materials, please note that the prices I've listed are for NEW materials.  I don't get any kick-back or anything, this is just information for sharing :).  Some materials (such as the Five in a Row Volumes) are available USED for more reasonable prices.
 

Sonlight (P3/4 or P4/5 - includes ALL the books needed) - $285 - $425

• can buy just the teaching guides OR find the reading list free online
• don't waste the money on materials available for free (or a few late fees) at your local library
• instead invest some time and a little cash in great hands-on long-term materials such as moveable alphabets, map puzzles, learning games, paper, binoculars, all-weather clothes, good shoes

Five in a Row (Teaching Guides Vol. 1-3) - $35 ea, total $105

• almost all the books are available at the library (a few are apparently hard to find because they're out of print)
• buy a good world map
• unless you love spending time and money laminating things, just buy the premade story disks
• go ahead and spend the money for the manuals.  they're full of great extension ideas for each recommended children's book.  no sense in reinventing the wheel!
• kids at this age really aren't ready for seatwork anyway.  let them get dirty. if they don't want to finish a book, fine - go have a tea party instead.  they'll learn more from interacting with you than they will from any book or curriculum.

Catholic Heritage Curricula - $79.75 (Preschool Core Kit)

• pick and choose certain pieces for now
• will use as our core starting in K (but using grade 1)
• most interested in their lesson plans - look like easiest and most flexible on the market!  again, why reinvent the wheel?

SUMMER Topics of Interest

We went to see Disney's The Lion King on stage this afternoon - INCREDIBLE!  My jaw hit the floor in the first minute of the production and I was as wide-eyed as our three-year-old all the way to the final curtain.  Amazing.  Gorgeous.  Breathtaking.  Intriguing.  Go buy tickets.  Now.

This show piqued both my and our daughter's interest in so many areas; we have lots of new and exciting things to explore this summer!

• Facepainting
• Batiking
• Puppetry
• Theater
• African Dance/Music
• Costumes
• Measurement
• Science Experiments: Ice 
• Flags
• National Anthem

I foresee a whole summer of learning about Africa :D

Favorite Books about... BEES

Eventually I suppose I'll get my act together and start logging our homeschool adventures in a portfolio or something of the kind.  However, for now I need a place to stash pictures and thoughts before I simply forget them!

We read... a LOT.  Generally I watch to see what's piqued Baby Bird's interest for the moment and just run with that for awhile.  We choose books from our home library and local public library, we may do some activities that somehow tie into the subject of interest, and we explore till we're ready to explore something else.  It works for us :).

Inspired by Five in a Row's suggested book The Bee Tree and Baby Bird's interest in gardens and bees, we spent spring this year learning all about honey bees.  Here are some of our favorite books about BEES:


The Bee Tree
by Patricia Polacco

 

The Bumblebee Queen
by April Pulley Sayre

Healthy Changes?

It's been 1 week since I decided my life needs a change.  I'm turning 30 this year (eek!) and am in the worst shape of my life - overweight, out of breath going up the stairs, chronic pain and fatigue, and the worst part is I just plain can't keep up with our daughter.  She's two.  There are no excuses.

After receiving some great encouragement and advice from friends and family I started back to tracking calories and trying to making healthier food choices.  Livestrong.com has a great FREE food and exercise tracker that I highly recommend.  I'm doing well on calories but it's definitely been an adjustment.  Baby Bird nursed till just a few months ago.  While nursing I was hungry all. the. time.  When she slowed down then weaned completely I just kept eating as if she was still nursing like a young toddler... not so good for my waistline.  I was feeling good about making some healthy changes.

Life has a way of throwing curveballs though.

The day after I announced my goal of getting healthier I felt the teeniest tickle at the back of my throat.  By Thursday all three of us had full-fledged nasty coughs, fiery throats, and aches all over.  Thursday was supposed to be my PCS work day... A whole day dedicated to cleaning, sorting, and packing while Baby Bird played with friends.  The ONLY day we had available to get that amount of work done without a little helper.  A whole day.  Spent coughing in bed instead of packing.

Well, the movers come in just a few days and the house still looks like a tornado blew through it.  Our suitcases aren't packed, the shipments aren't sorted, the fridge and pantry are still full of old food, and we're still hacking, coughing, and sleeping away our sickness.  We don't have TIME to be sick right now.

I'm trying to make some healthy changes in my life right now, but I think for this week I'd be thrilled with NOT SICK!

Oops, sorry.

Well, that was fun.  In an effort to make this blog address easier to type and remember I decided to change the web address.  It didn't occur to me till AFTER I'd already changed the address and entered a new post for 2013 that it would mess with my followers' blog feeds.  Sorry!

I've changed the web address back to the original:

meanderingsofaclutteredmind.blogspot.com


I will be changing it to a NEW address this Sunday, 6Jan2013:

drops-inabucket.blogspot.com

I'm sorry for the confusion; please let me know if you have any questions or run into any more glitches!

Home Preschool Journal

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2013 is starting with a bang for our family.  It seems every year we've experienced big change of one kind or another, but this year may take the cake.  My husband's enlistment runs up in just a few weeks and we still have no certain plans for where we're going or what we're doing.  We know God has only good plans for us and we're trying our best to trust and remain stress-free!

One thing we do know for sure is we will be homeschooling.  Long term.  Baby Bird is not quite three years old, but this is a lifestyle we've prayed about, researched, and discerned is best for our family.

I'm a teacher by training and by choice which is proving to be both a help and a hindrance.  We've been blessed with some fantastic homeschooling mentors over the last several years - families who have opened their hearts, brains, and bookshelves for us to grill ponder.  I don't think we would feel nearly as confident or comfortable with this choice if it weren't for them (you!).  One challenge for me, given all those years of teacher "education," has been letting go.  I'm glad we're getting a bit of a head start on this... I'm gonna' need it.

It took a whole year for me to realize that it just. didn't. matter. how many letters of the alphabet our daughter knew.  She was ONE.  I didn't have to write it down, or report it to anyone, or worry that she wasn't meeting the benchmarks for her grade.  Yeah, I can be a little stubborn reluctant to change sometimes.

However, as Baby Bird gets closer to compulsory school age I realize we WILL need to keep records of some kind.  It's also nice to be able to look back and remember the funny things she's said or done... or share stories with our family who gets to see her for only short snippets on Skype.

I know from experience that if I write down a lesson plan or even the most general of goals for the week something undoubtedly changes.  I don't want a record of what I thought we'd do, I want a record of what we did.  I've also learned that the more blanks there are to fill in, the less likely I am to fill in any at all.

I've dug through the internet and perused our bookshelves and have yet to find a good way for us to keep records without getting either bogged down with lesson plans (dude, she's TWO) or putting it off till some future date when we can finally pull out all the scrapbooking toys supplies and make a baby book.

So.  I made my own.  And I thought I'd share.  Feel free to print as many as you'd like.  If you share online please be nice and include a link back to this page.  Thank you!

LINK TO GOOGLE DOC

This journal will (I hope!) be the happy medium between needing a record and my laziness desire for flexibility.

We plan to use one journal per calendar year with a goal of filling out one sheet per week.  We might get ambitious and do more, but I doubt it.  Even if we do only one per month it'll hit the high points.  The front page includes a spot for a 4"x6" photo or drawing.  The "Important Things to Share" pages we'll likely put at the front and use to list whatever curricula we choose for that year and major events such as moves.  When we hit the need for more detailed records we'll switch to lesson plans or whatever works for us at that time, but I think we'll use this setup for a few years at least.

It's formatted to print double-sided and either spiral bind or hole-punch for a 3-ring binder.  Apparently my husband can't handle sideways text next to horizontal text so there are two options for the individual journal pages...  A happy hubby makes a happy home :).

Here's hoping we've found the balance!  May this year bring you and your family abundant blessings and joy.

"The Princess and the Kiss: Three Gifts of Christmas" Book Review

 

I purchased this book because our nearly-three-year-old daughter has taken a sudden interest in princesses.  I'm a tomboy through and through so this is all new territory for me.  I was seeking a Christmas story that would interest our daughter and this one caught my eye.  A princess book I might actually be able to stomach AND it's about Christmas?  I figured we'd at least give it a try.

Oh my word.

McDaniels' watercolor illustrations are fresh and delightful but what impressed me most was the story.  Ms. Bishop artfully weaves a fairy tale worthy of any princess storybook... but one that hits home and ever so gently reminds us of Christ and His story during this time of rushing and selfishness that has become such a part of Christmas in the US.

My eyes filled with tears as the princess and her family shared a new (to them) way of celebrating Christmas.  Their gifts are limited, but chosen with care.  They all learn, together, that even the most precious of gifts becomes even more so when shared.

Merry Christmas.

Why you should never trust your GPS in Japan

Distance to Destination:  13 km  (8.1 miles)
Estimated Travel Time: 37 minutes

LIES!!!!!

Actual Travel Time: 61 minutes.

With a cranky two year-old.  In the rain.

This is normal people.  As in everyday occurrence, not unusual, par for the course, expected.

And family and friends ask why we don't travel much...

On Colds and Nursing

I've been battling a nasty cold for 3 weeks and it's kicking my tail.  Unfortunately Baby Bird and Daddy have it too.

When we woke up this morning barely able to talk, my husband announced "We're going to Sick Call."  Yay for family togetherness.

3 doctor appointments, 4 hours, and 5 new meds later, we dragged ourselves in the door and flopped into bed.  Well, Baby Bird and I did - Daddy had to go to work.

One of the meds the doc prescribed for me is Sudafed.  The real stuff, not the over-the-counter stuff that does nothing.  She actually prescribed it 2 weeks ago when I went in thinking this cold was maybe strep (it wasn't), but I've only taken it maybe 3 times.  Sudafed works wonders.  However, it is also one of a small handful of cold meds that can affect your milk supply (Benadryl is fine in case you're wondering).

Baby Bird's already down to a handful of insanely short nursing sessions so any dip in supply could be a problem.  Neither she nor I are ready to stop nursing just yet.  I love that she's getting health benefits that simply cannot be replaced with anything else and it's the one time she sits and cuddles for more than a split second.  Baby Bird begs to nurse at certain times of day (mainly before and after sleeping) and often tosses in a few other random nursing requests throughout the day.  They're short but clearly meeting a need.

Enter Sudafed.

Doc says if I want relief from the coughing and non-stop nose then Sudfed's the way to go.  She knows I'm nursing and recommended staying hydrated, etc. to prevent a supply dip.  After a particularly painful hacking session I give in a take a round of Sudafed.  Just 1, nothing too crazy.  That was at 1pm.

7pm, time for Baby Bird to get ready for bed.  She potties, we read a book, she climbs into her PJ's and settles into my lap for her last nursing session of the day.

"There's nothing there!"  She opens her hands, palm up, and looks at me in surprise.

"Try again, baby."

"There's nothing there, Mama!  Where Mama milk?"

Well, crap.

Baby Bird crawls into bed, a little surprised but not too upset, and drifts off to sleep.

I go straight to the kitchen and down a glass of water.  And refill it.  And drink another.

If we're done nursing, I'm not thrilled about it but it's okay.  However, I am NOT happy that this cold and accompanying meds may be causing a rather abrupt end to an otherwise healthy nursing relationship.  I'll do my best to hydrate, etc. but booger.  Just, booger.

Solar Eclipse

Hubby woke me up this morning with "Eclipse time!"  A bit groggy, I followed him to the back porch and we were treated to this:

He had the brilliant idea to line up several sunglass lenses so we could actually look at the eclipsed sun.

I remember seeing the last solar eclipse as a kid, so this was pretty spectacular!  Baby Bird was a little less enthused:

She liked the pictures afterwards though and kept asking for pictures of the "moon" (i.e. the partially-eclipsed sun).

So cool!

Japanese Advice

One of the many reasons I love living in Japan.  This is an email snippet from our church choir director, who is Japanese:

Please don't catch cold, stay warm and healthy

(drink ginger tea or ginger soup is helpful these days....)

Make a good ginger drink;

Cut couple ginger slice, honey(or brown sugar), lemon(if you like) and add hot water.

Make good ginger soup;

Grated ginger, bonito, chopped long onion, little bit of soy sauce, add boiled water

Easy and healthy..... Stay warm

 I do believe I must now try these :).  Hope you, too, stay healthy and warm!

*Bonito is tiny flakes of dried fish, often used as a flavorful topping or to make dashi stock (mild fish/seaweed broth)

Reset Button

I am terrible at time management.  Always have been.  It's not so much that I don't know how to plan my time, it's that I have virtually no feeling of its passing.  When I was a kid it drove my mom and teachers nuts.  As an adult?  Let's just say it can become a major problem.

Enter The Internet.

The internet has most recently become my biggest time suck.  As in hours of my day gone.  Daily.  I couldn't even remember what it was I was reading.  Drastic measures were needed.

I waved goodbye to Facebook for the last week, swore off email, surfing, and TV, and limited my reading to the Bible and Bible studies I've been woefully neglecting.  A one-week RESET.

I'm here to say I survived.  It was challenging and refreshing.  I wish I could go longer but technology truly is the way we link to our world since a) I don't work outside our home, and b) It is the primary mode of communication both for our local community and our family on the other side of the world.

I'm trying to slowly reintegrate computer usage into my day but with some boundaries.  I started this blog because I needed a place to see my thoughts in print and to keep a little sanity in our crazy life.  It hasn't been working because by the time I wade through emails, Facebook, blogs, and surfing, the baby's crying, the dog's going ballistic, my husband wants to know what's for dinner, and I'm already 15 minutes late for my meeting.  I've been forfeiting peace and clarity for Facebook drama and a list of crafts I'll never finish in 10 lifetimes.

I've neglected friends and responsibilities, I've traded needs for wants, I've turned my priorities upside down.  If I've hurt you because of this I am truly sorry.

I'm moving on.  I'm putting my priorities back where they should be.  I'm (hopefully) growing and experiencing the pains that go with it but I know it's worth it.  That God is worth it.  That my family is worth it.  That my friends are worth it.

Please pray for me and know that I am praying for you, too.

Peace.

I'm Still Alive

So just a quick update, since I appear to have fallen off the face of the planet:

Life's been busy, or not, depending on how you look at it.

I LOVE staying home with Baby Bird and she's been tickling us left and right with the funny things she does and says.  She's entered the age of cute and silly but hasn't quite gotten to the defiant stage.  We're hoping to skirt around that one as long as possible!  We've dabbled in the idea of elimination communication (also known as infant pottying) and so far it seems to have paid off - we're "catching" more and more trips to the potty and therefore having to wash fewer diapers.  I'm a big fan of less laundry.  From the looks of things she may well learn independent pottying early - yay!  Of course now that I've said that it'll probably come back to bite me...

We're at the decision point for military career choices.  We have about a year and a half till our assignment here ends and the enlistment runs up at the same time.  Stay in?  Get out?  Go Guard or Reserves?  Move to Tahiti?  We have way more questions than answers right now but I think that's okay.  God is good and we know He has a plan, we just need to figure out how to listen!

I've always loved baking and recently started decorating cakes for friends' birthday parties and such.  It's been going well enough that *gasp* I'm working on starting up my very first home business!  Thrilling and scary at the same time.  I'm not sure our kitchen will ever be the same.  Did I mention this new line of business is absolutely terrible for my waistline?  Thank goodness for friends who are willing to sacrifice by tasting all my trial run goodies!

Well, that's us in a nutshell right now - busy but in a generally peaceful way, and trying to follow where God leads us.  Life is good and God's even better!

On Jesus and Peace in the Midst of Life

I think I needed this right now.  Hope it helps someone else too.


Peace!

Finding Peace within Chaos

Nothin' Like New Books

New Bible study for this year:

I'm giddy as a schoolchild opening up brand new books on the first day of school!  Or wait, was I the only kid that got excited about that...?  I don't know - I just love the smell, look, feel, unexplored territory of brand new books!

With all the internet chatter about the first day of school, especially the first day of homeschool, I wondered if I'd be as excited about new curricula each year as some of the families seem to be.  Well, given how I jittered about in anticipation opening my new Bible study I think that answer is yes, it'll be like Christmas every year!  Did I mention... I love books!

Well that was short-lived.

Nurse-in was canceled.  And not in a good way.  More details to follow.  By the way, anyone with experience with  breastfeeding in the military, please speak up, we could really use some words of wisdom about now.