Weekly Wrap Up

This week was another successful week in homeschooling!  We overcame our first bad day obstacle on Thursday.  To say Kristen woke up on the wrong side of the bed would be an understatement.  Now, my girls really are good kids.  If anyone keeps the time out chair warm it is Lauren not Kristen.  Kristen is a pleaser and will usually listen if you just talk to her or tell her not to do something.  I don't say this to brag only to put into perspective what a bad day we were having.  By two in the afternoon I lost count how many times she had been in time out and came to the conclusion that the next time she would be going to bed for a nap.  Ironically our lesson talked about sharing, but she just wasn't in the sharing mood.  She didn't want to do school, everything was boring and it was the worst day of her life (which she kept repeating).  When I sent her to time out she would cry and say I didn't want to be her friend and I didn't love her anymore.  Not sure where all this was coming from, but I really thought...Wow!  She is good!!  I wasn't falling for it though.  But, we eventually worked through everything.  I was very happy for bedtime!

Next weeks lesson starts getting a little harder for Kristen.  These past two weeks have been basically a review.  I am going to start pushing her a little more, which is what I think she needs.  At least now I know where she is at on certain subjects.  Lauren continues to amaze me.  She is learning, which I really can't believe.  At the beginning she was having trouble sitting still and then in the middle of a lesson she would start talking to herself.  Now she is listening better and retaining the information I am talking about. I think she will really benefit with the one on one because I think that is exactly what she needs to learn. 

This week we talked about the concept of big and small and short and tall.  For Kristen we talked about Tall, Taller and Tallest and short, shorter and shortest, etc.  We made some sugar cookies and they got to cut all different size shapes out of the dough.  I ended up having to use the cookie cutter because some shapes were just too small that they would burn.  They had a lot of fun playing with the left over dough and in true Lauren fashion she rubbed it all over her face and up her arms.

 

Kristen is my neat perfectionist! 

 



They also made a family picture showing who was Tall and who was short.  Kristen had a mini meltdown because her hair didn't look right on her picture.  She wanted a ponytail, but that just wasn't happening.  Lauren actually drew her people all by herself.  She was so proud of her picture.

Kristen's picture

 

Lauren's picture

We also made our family out of craft pom pom's this week.  Lauren kept asking if we were making snow men and insisting that the pom pom family did not look like her family.  I have to agree.

Kristen learned about sequencing this week and reviewed all shapes.  This was Lauren's last week of the triangle.  We started learning about color's on Thursday.  To Lauren everything is either pink or blue.  Whether she really knows her colors is a mystery, but by the end of the day on Thursday she knew the color black.  Our biblical lesson was God being our friend and helping us.  I cut out the girls hands and wrote I Help on them.  They had to be helpful around the house and only got a sticker when they did something helpful without being asked.  When they got 10 stickers they would get to go to the park.  It was a great motivator for Kristen and she had most of her stickers by the end of the day.  Lauren didn't really care if she got a sticker or not, but by Friday morning she did get all of her 10 stickers so we went to the park.  The girls made a little friend named Sophia (who Kristen kept calling her Abby) and played with her the whole time.

   Oh and Kristen cut her hands out all by herself!

 

And, before I end, here is a picture of the girls with their new haircuts.  Kristen said she wanted long golden hair, so we just got hers trimmed.  I told her she could grow it long, but I was pretty sure it wouldn't turn golden.  As we were walking to the car after their hair cuts Kristen asked me if her hair looked longer.  How cute is she!

 

I didn't like how they cut Lauren's hair, so I had to re cut it the next day.  They had it shorter in the back and longer on the sides. It looked good, but once we got home it was flipped out every which way on the sides and just looked crazy.  I was very impressed with my hair cutting skills.

 

 

Growing

Who is sitting up all on his own....

This little man!

 

 

Who is taking a bath in the big bathtub...

This little man!

 

 

Who is holding his own bottle...

This little man!

 

 

Who is learning to play the guitar...

This little man!

 

 

And who doesn't have a single tooth...

Unfortunately this little man!

 

 

The County Fair

We took our annual trip to the Chesterfield County Fair on Friday night.  It was like a trip for us this year since we didn't live 5 minutes from it anymore. If there is one thing my kids remember from year to year...it is the fair.  We got there a little later than we expected, but still had a good time.

When we got there Kristen spotted the bouncy castle and then the weird bouncy ride thing beside it.  I have no idea what it is called, but you get harnessed up and attached to two poles and get to jump on a mini circular bouncy mat that is inflated. That is what she picked out to do first. We paid our money for both girls and waited in line.  I had some serious doubts as to whether or not they would actually do it, but it was the fair and we wouldn't know until they tried.  So I walked Lauren to her little bouncy thing giving her a pep talk along the way.  When we got there she was having no part of any of it.  She was not going to put that harness on.  So, we went back to the attendant, got our money back and then paid the money to get a ticket to the bouncy castle.  At this point Kristen had been harnessed, put on the bouncy circle and attached to the poles and was crying.  She realized she didn't want to do it either.  So, we got her unharnessed and got our money back and paid for a bouncy castle ticket.  We go to the bouncy house and get their shoes off and then Kristen says she is scared.  Really?  Is this how the night was going to go?  Well, then Lauren doesn't want to go in because Kristen isn't going in.  The girl at the bouncy castle said we could go get our money back.  By this time I was sick of waiting in line to get my money back, so I asked if we could just hold on to the tickets and come back later when they had time to adjust to all the fun-ness the fair had to offer.

  Kristen realizing it looked like fun, but only from a distance.

Next we went to get their faces painted.  I mean, nothing to be scared of there...that is if you like clowns with big shoes.  Lauren knew before getting to the tent that she didn't want her face painted, but Kristen was really looking forward to it.  I knew she would pick out the same blue butterfly from last year and she didn't disappoint.  While we were standing in line the little girl behind us picked out the exact same thing and was showing her mom what she wanted.  My very nosy 5 year old was all up in their convo, not that it was hard not to be.  The lady was a very loud and vocal mother.  So the mother says. "That is just too much stuff around your eyes."  I know I mentioned she was loud, but she was actually really loud and laughed after EVERYTHING she said.  I guess she thought she was just too funny.  The little girl kept insisting that was the one she really wanted and after the mother kept giving every excuse she could think of she finally settle on the "It's just too dangerous.  It will get in your eyes and burn"...laugh, laugh, laugh....because something getting in your daughters eyes and burning is just sooo hilarious.  Well, that is all Kristen needed.  She burst into tears and frantically says she doesn't want to get her face painted because it is dangerous.  Gee thanks for spoiling face painting for my child!  While I was trying to get Kristen calmed down apparently Dallas was crying.  When I look up the girl in front of us was leaned over the stroller trying to undo his buckle.  Now Momma Bear Michelle kicked in and I very politely yelled, "What are you doing!"  To which the young girl of eight says, "Oh, I'll hold him.  I am really good with babies."  What?!?  You are eight years old?  So, in order to avoid any other disasters, we got out of line and the girls decided to just get a balloon instead.  To the rides we went.  I have to add that along the way Kristen spotted a pink fuzzy blinking cowgirl hat.  Every 5 year old's dream!  Who cares about the rides, cotton candy or anything else.  She wanted that hat and that is all she asked for.

I thought it would be good to start with the Merry-Go-Round.  The least scary ride at the fair.  There were infants and grandparents on this ride!  Well, Kristen was scared of the Merry-Go-Round.  At this point I really needed someone to remind me why we paid to come to the fair.  Lauren reluctantly got on and after she got to going she realized she liked rides.  Kristen spent the whole time asking when we were going to get her pink fuzzy blinking cowgirl hat (big sigh). 

We then went to the spinning bears and Kristen and Lauren got on with Papaw and another little boy.  He looked like a spinner...I could see his need to turn that wheel gleaming in his eyes.  Panic set in as they closed them all up in the big purple bear.  What kind of mother am I to let Kristen's first ride of the season be one that was so scary.  It had disaster written all over it.  I mean, this is a girl afraid of Merry-Go-Rounds, bouncy houses and face painting....all the things little kids look forward to and now she is in a spinning bear.  I listened as closely as I could for the sound of crying and surprisingly...there wasn't any.  Now, the girls had this look of panic and indecision on their face, but they weren't crying.  Whew!  Of course, the first question after getting off of the spinning bears was "When are we going to get my pink fuzzy blinking cowgirl hat?"

The girls ended up riding all of the kiddie rides there and to be consistent Kristen asked after every ride when she was going to get her pink fuzzy blinking cowgirl hat.  We were going to ride the Ferris Wheel as a family, but the girls decided to bail on us at the last minute and ride with Aunt Do and Uncle Earl, which was probably best.  I don't like the Ferris Wheel, actually I despise the Ferris Wheel.  I can go 0-60 on any roller coaster in 3 seconds, go down hills, through corkscrews and loops...but please don't make me get on a Ferris Wheel (especially a double Ferris Wheel).  Every year I look at it and think it doesn't look bad, but I have come to the conclusion what the issues are.  It goes too slow, at some point I can't see the ride and it keeps going around and around in a circle.  I get very disoriented and this year was no different than any others.  But I survived the Ferris Wheel!  We ended the night up with Kristen actually getting into the bouncy house and having a blast (after she got her pink fuzzy blinking cowgirl hat).  Lauren was just tired and was asleep by the time we got to the car.   

 

Weekly Wrap Up

 



This week of homeschooling went great! I couldn't have asked for a better week...and to top it all off...my kids actually learned something! I was impressed with both girls and have come to the conclusion that they do not take after me when it comes to their learning abilities. I have to be honest...they get it solely from Paul. I mean, I didn't know that helium weighs less than air and that is why helium balloons rise! Wow! I also learned that if a child can't hop on one foot then they aren't ready for reading. Not sure how true it is, but hey....it sounds good to me. That means Kristen is ready for reading...Lauren is not. Anyways, we learned a lot of good things this week. Yes, I do mean we. It is sad when I have learned something from a kindergarten/preschool lesson, but I am not ashamed! Knowledge is wealth...right.

Kristen has embraced learning with so much enthusiasm and curiosity.  Actually, I think she just loves her "school box" full of crayons, scissors, pencils and glue.  The questions of the day, every day, are "When are we going to use our school box?", "Are we going to use our school box now?", "Now is it time to use our school box?".  I think I have heard every variation of that question at least 10 times a day. Every morning when I tell them to zip their lips and turn up their listening ears Kristen spends a lot of time turning up her ears.  She happily tells me that "They go up really loud for school."  (If only I could get them to go up really loud when I tell her to clean up).  This week has been mostly a review week for Kristen.  She has enjoyed doing the worksheets and I am very impressed with her writing skills, her ability to follow directions, her knowledge of some letters and her ability to recognize all numbers.  I have realized where she falls in learning and can now push her a little farther to learn more new and exciting things.  She really is a sponge taking in everything you say.  Nothing gets her more motivated than telling her when she finishes something she will get a sticker.  Oh, to have the only worry in life be which sticker you will pick out next!

(Don't be fooled by this picture, she is a lefty and I am finding it hard to show her how to write.)

Lauren ended up knowing more than I knew she knew. (Whoa, that's a lot of knowing in one sentence).  She knew big and small and could sort accordingly.  I am pretty sure she already knew the shape of a triangle, but we'll just pretend she didn't and learned it in one week.  On one activity I explained to her that she needed to circle the biggest picture on her worksheet then turned my head to help Kristen do something, when I looked back she had all the biggest ones circled.  I have come to the conclusion that she is one of those kids that you talk to and explain something to over and over, all the while she just looks at you like she doesn't understand...then boom...you realize that she comprehended what you said the first time...she just didn't want to do it.  She quietly takes everything in and is becoming good at getting me to think she doesn't know how to do it.  Just recently I learned, by telling her she couldn't get a brownie until she put things back where they went, that she does know how to clean up and where things go.  I would make excuses, "It's all too overwhelming for her" or "She really doesn't know where everything goes."  That little stinker had the wool pulled over my eyes, but not any longer.  I am on to her game and she might be undefeated but that's gonna change!

I had a lot of anxiety and felt very overwhelmed before starting homeschooling.  I was sure I was going to be bald soon because my hair was (and still is) falling out at a rapid rate due to stress.  In fact, my purpose in starting a week early was to see if it worked for us, and if not, to have time to enroll Kristen in school...just in case.  I didn't know how I was going to accomplish everything I needed to get done in a day (making breakfast, lunch and dinners, laundry, 4 feeding for Dallas, baths, teeth brushing, getting myself ready, cleaning, homeschooling, preparing for homeschooling, having time to spend with each kid).  As I said, it was all VERY OVERWHELMING!  But, I have found that I get all of this plus some other things done, and still have plenty of time in a day.  I am pretty exhausted come bedtime, but I have been sleeping better...that's a plus.  The most overwhelming thing was that it is a lot of responsibility on my shoulders.  I mean, if they don't learn the things they need to learn it will be my fault.  If they are behind, it will be because I have failed in some way to get them to learn.  I don't have a teaching degree, but read an article that said parents are the ones that teach their children the most important things in life.  Someone may sit down and teach them the multiplication table, but who my kids become in the future is because of what starts in the home.  That is so true and I want my kids to grow into good responsible adults who love the Lord above anything else. Hopefully we are on the right track.

This was the favorite activity of the week.  Painting!  Lauren painted for a good 30 minutes.  Maybe a future Picasso?

 

Lauren's circles and Kristen's letters. Both girls pretty much did these worksheets on their own.

Their pictures of what God's house looks like.  Kristen's on top and Lauren's on the bottom.  They loved them some glitter!



All About This Little Man

The title of this post sums up the way life is in the Harris house.  It is definitely all about this little man.

 

He has all the girls in this family wrapped around his little finger.  It is because he is just so darn cute!  I can't believe he is already 6 months old.  He has been in our lives for half a year!  My goodness time goes by fast when your taking care of kids. 

Dallas is a good baby, if you overlook the fussiness, which sometimes is very hard to do (just ask Daddy).  He likes to be entertained and nothing short of a circus or marching band is going to amuse him.  So, unless you are holding him, talking to him, tickling him, performing magical shows (as Kristen likes to do)...he is probably fussing.  To me the fussiness has just become background noise.  I try to look on the bright side, if he wasn't fussing I would probably think something was wrong.  Now, don't get me wrong, he doesn't fuss all the time.  He is quiet during feedings, naps and most nights while he is sleeping.  Morning time is generally his least fussy time, which is when I try to get most of my things done.  I feel like I have ran a marathon by lunchtime because after his afternoon nap it is downhill from there.  I used to say, "Once he can bounce himself in his bouncy seat, he won't be so fussy." Or "When he can sit in the exercauser, he won't be so fussy", but he does both things and is still fussy.  Now I have come to the conclusion he has been "teething" since birth and won't stop being fussy until he can sit independently and play with toys (which he can almost do).  It is better to think this way than to think I actually created this fussy little cute monster!  The good news is, when I pick him up he usually stops immediately.  The bad news...I just can't hold him all day long.  I actually have "that baby", you know the one.  Yep, that's him.  Motherhood is a learning process and I am still trying to figure out how to un-spoil a child.  I tell you, it is a whole lot easier to spoil them!

(Even his fussy face is a cute one)

Kristen and Lauren still adore him though.  Kristen is a big helper and can usually entertain him when needed.  Both are very good at sticking his pacifier in.  Although Lauren did say the other day, when she stuck the pacifier in and he spit it out several times, that "it's not working."  I just had to chuckle because that is EXACTLY how I feel sometimes.  Lauren, bless her heart, goes to get him a toy to try to make him stop.  Unfortunately, they are usually in the form of choking hazards, which I hope isn't on purpose!  So tomorrow I have the lovely task of cleaning out all of the little toys in the playroom.  Lucky me.

At his 6 month appointment he weighed 15 pounds 14 ounces.  He has slowed down in his weight gain and is now in the 25th percentile.  That is exactly where Kristen is, so at least we are consistent.  We started him on stage two baby food, which I like a lot better.  It isn't as runny and messy as stage one, but I still HATE the baby food stage though. He likes fruits, but doesn't like veggies so much.  I usually end up mixing them together at some point during his feeding.  He still loves his bottle though!  That's his "Fav" as Lauren says.  He can now hold his bottle, which works out really great for homeschooling.  He can also put his pacifier back in, which works out really great when he is taking a nap or going to sleep.  As long as he can see it, he will grab it and stick it back in his mouth.  I am trying to enjoy him to the fullest since there will be no more little Harris' running around after him. I am glad I have been able to watch him grow and hopefully...eventually....watch him grow into a quiet young man.

 

Homeschooling Day #1

Today was a success! It played out exactly how perfectly I had it pictured, in fact, it couldn't have gone any smoother!  When I woke the girls up this morning they both popped right out of bed super excited about it being "a school day", as Kristen refers to it.  The first thing Lauren said this morning was "my backpack".  No school day is complete without your backpack full of all the essentials (play hairdryer, birthday cards, play doctor's stethoscope, mirror, a cell phone, 8 hair brushes and an assortment of rings and bracelets).  I went all out for breakfast.  Instead of making the Food Lion brand blueberry muffins, I fixed the Betty Crocker Cinnamon Strudel muffins with crunchy cinnamon topping. Kristen said "Mom, I don't always like what you fix, but I sure do like your muffins."  Score!  Lauren was too busy shoving the muffins in to say anything, but a muffin is not complete with out some BLING and a cell phone!

(By the way....this was muffin #2)



Dallas slept for the first part of our lesson, which is what I was hoping for.  He went down for is nap without a fight, no fussing.... nothing!  Woke up while we watched our shape video and the girls had a snack.  He played very quietly in his exercauser then when we went back to the table for the rest of our lesson he ate his bottle in his bouncy seat and didn't make a peep!  Now that's the power of prayer people!!!  If God can quiet that boy down He is definitely an AWESOME God!

I thought I was going to have a problem with Lauren answering questions.  Her answer to anything you ask her is "I don't know".  This includes her name, how old she is, if she is feeling good.  Well, I quickly realized she was jumping on the "I don't know" train and I really didn't want to go down the track of frustration.  So, in my most loving motherly voice I explained that if she didn't answer the questions that I asked then she was going to have to go to big school with all of the big kids away from Mommy. Well, that got her talking.  Fear is a great motivator!

We did a lot of fun things today.  We learned about God giving us the gift of His beautiful world to live in.  We talked about all the reasons why we love daddy...and there are A LOT!  In fact, to show daddy how much we love him we are fixing a special dinner for him tonight.  Well, not too special, the kids just get to help me to show an act of service to him since he works so hard for us.  Lauren learned about a triangle and how to sort by color and Kristen learned about following simple written directions by looking at a picture and sorting and sequencing.  They drew a picture of themselves with daddy. We made a fish craft to practice cutting, specifically cutting a triangle.  We looked around the house for different shapes and I was very impressed with Kristen.  She brought me a book and said "This book is a square, but if you turn it this way it is a diamond and if you open it up it is a rectangle."  All on her own.  Maybe this is something a 5 year old should know, I'm not sure, but I was impressed that my five year old knew it!

After today I am very happy with the program we chose.  It is a bible based program designed for families with multiple children.  The curriculum we are using comes with preschool and kindergarten combined. Both Kristen and Lauren are learning about the same thing, but just at a different age level.  For instance, Lauren is learning her shapes, while Kristen is reviewing her shapes.  While one child works on an activity alone, you work with the other child and vice versa.  Both children are getting your attention when needed, but not sitting there getting bored while you work with the other one.  Although it says repeatedly not to add anything to the lesson...I have.  Not much, but just things I think my kids would enjoy (like the shape video, a specific craft or book from the library pertaining to the lesson of the day).  All in all I am very pleased with the program, how smoothly today went and what wonderful listeners my girls were.

Day #1 of homeschooling = SUCCESS!!!

Kristen working on her picture of her and daddy

 

 Lauren working on her picture of her and daddy

 

Evidence of a successful 1st day

 

No post is complete without a picture of this smiley face. He's not always smiling folks, I just only take pictures of him smiling.  In fact he has been pretty fussy lately.  Teething...maybe?

 

The girls playing on the front porch with sidewalk chalk, which by the way grates on my nerves just hearing the chalk rubbing the sidewalk.  Cringe!

 

Practicing drawing triangles.  Who knew you could incorporate triangles in so many parts of your day!

Happy 4th Birthday Lauren!

From this...

To this...

I can't believe it has been 4 years since Lauren was born!  She is getting so big.  This past year was a big year for us as she has overcame a lot of obstacles.  In November of last year she FINALLY got her feeding tube taken out.  I never thought I would see the day.  Her speech has really gotten a lot better.  At three she was saying a few words and now she is talking in sentences.  Just don't ask her a question because the answer you will get is "I don't know." She has made a lot of progress with her volume control.  While her paralyzed vocal chord is over compensating, she is learning to project her voice, so hopefully no surgery for her in the future.  I thank God for all He has brought her through and all the miracles he has worked in her life. 

She is still a big chocolate lover and I think she would eat cereal for every meal.  She loves loves loves Dora, but is starting to really like Olivia the pig.  She loves her baby brother and absolutely adores her big sister. She is a big cuddle bug and loves to rough play with Daddy.  She loves going outside and really loves blowing bubbles (now that she can do it herself).  She loves shoes and puts them on first thing in the morning and changes them several times throughout the day.  It amazes me how much she has grown.

Happy Birthday Lauren Boo! 

   Her Wizard of Oz themed Party



 A Wizard of Oz Party is not complete without Dorothy and Toto