No More TBD

Our contract is signed! Our close date is decided! We are officially buying the house! Also, I got the job at Floor & Decor as their in-house copywriter. I'm still not entirely sure what that means or how much work I will get, but together with Baxter's raise, it should be enough to make ends meet! God is providing! This has been one of those "hairs on your head" kind of moments for me. We trust God to intervene when we are desperate. We cry out to Him when we are in danger or for the sake of a friend in need. But when changes are looming on the horizon, I don't fully trust Him to take care of the little details and He always does.

Nothing is certain, of course. Anything could happen to make this path more or less difficult but that could always be the case. We only have today. I think that it is especially difficult to think only of today when you are buying or selling a house because is requires planning and forethought. After going through what we went through last year, I also question our decisions a little more. So I am taking these last details as a sign that we are making the correct decision to buy this house and that I definitely need to homeschool again next year.

I am really excited about two things. First, I LOVE to decorate. The older I get, the more I wonder why I didn't choose it as a career. I spent the whole drive back from Athens decorating our new house in my head! Some we will do right away and some will have to wait due to cost, but I have a dream of how I eventually want the house to look and I'm so excited about seeing it through! Secondly, I am so tickled that we will be homeschooling again next year. I have really grown to love homeschooling and I am positive that it's the best thing for them right now. I am so glad that I can make this decision instead of having life make the decision for me.

We will be officially through with our school year next Thursday. Expect to see a lot of updating on PTO Blog now that I'm not giving it up. I want to share my curriculum decisions and expectations for next year. 2010 is really shaping up to be a year of forward progress for us! Praise God!

God Isn't Finished With Me Yet

The Lord is still at work here. The past week has been awesome. I finished my resume and applied to two positions that I am actually qualified for. I also attended a mom's night out with my homeschool group friends. I really enjoyed my time with these ladies and I left feeling that I would truly miss them next year. As excited as I have been to jump back into work full-time, it got me thinking. One thing I have realized during this job search, is that many of the jobs I'm looking at are telecommuting ones. That is fabulous. I telecommute now and I'm good at it. I stay motivated, keep on task, and finish my work on time. AMTC's clients are very happy with my work. I know that I could handle something larger in the same vein. Perhaps I could take on more work while continuing to homeschool? With homeschool academies and other options all around me, it is definitely a possibility.

Also, Baxter is having his yearly review this week. It was going to take place at the end of May, so I'm taking this as a sign of divine providence that they are having it now. We know he is going on salary and we know he is getting a raise. What we don't know is how much of one. How wonderful would it be if he comes home with a salary large enough to maintain our standard of living while taking on this mortgage? I know God will provide. I know He will set me in the direction He wants me to go. Nothing is set in stone yet. I know that I would love to continue to homeschool if I can. I have an entire curriculum picked out if I get to use it. I also have other options open to me, including public school. I have a trusting heart. It's an exciting time to be at the precipice of something.

My prayer today is for strength for my husband, that he may know the words to use and the actions to take and that he may glorify God in all his success. My prayer is for my children to continue to take the highest priority in my personal life because raising children is the most important job in the world. I also pray that God will sustain us through all the changes that may come and that we will not turn away from the path He has set for us.

La Femme

I am taking a wonderful Sunday School class right now. It's been a long time since I was in Sunday School and I am really enjoying it. When I was a child, my dad used to drop me off at the covered door on the side of the church each Sunday for Sunday School and it was often the highlight of my week. Suddenly, I feel that way again for the first time. The class is about biblical womanhood. What an interesting subject. The lady that invited me to the class kept apologizing after the first week, saying how I was probably expecting a more interactive experience and instead got lectured at. What she doesn't know is that I enjoy lectures so I loved it. It focused on church doctrine and I couldn't have been more pleased. What better way to get to know a church quickly than to learn their full doctrine on your second week visiting! Like I told Katherine, I could have spent weeks visiting, wondering if something was going to come up that would make me want to stand up and run out of there. Now I have a good picture of what they're all about and I have no argument with their outlook -- so far, so good.

The second week was so interesting. It focused on the impact of the feminist movement on the evangelical woman - and on the church. It's such a huge topic that she really only had time to explain the timeline of the feminist movement and highlight its' impact. Still, I found myself gaining a lot of insight into my role in the family and where I can find the answers I'm seeking right now. I would love to find one of the books Sharon is using to teach this class. I plan on delving into this subject at length.

My thoughts are turning here this morning as I prepare to apply for a job. Yesterday I composed my resume and searched for copywriting jobs. I found two great ones that I'm qualified for. I was a little taken aback by that. Now, it seems that it's really going to happen. I'm really going to go back to work. I'm finding myself excited at this prospect. I was made with a purpose. I was made to spread the gospel where I can, when I can. I was made to be a help-mate for my husband and a teacher and nurturer to my children. That doesn't mean that I must stay home and continue on this path at the demise of my family. As much as I would love for us to be able to get by on Baxter's income alone, the reality is that it is impossible. We have been tracking our spending for several months now and I am really aware of what comes in, what goes out, and what our future financial needs are. Secondly, the house that we can buy is a real opportunity that I can't ignore. If this house had one more bedroom we could make it work a bit longer. However, having a son and daughter has its' challenges. One of them is a need for separate bedrooms as they get older. With Abby now 7 and Ford 5, that need is more and more palpable each day. So, why pass up an opportunity just because I thought we fit one social paradigm? I must be ready for the changes when they come.

So, what is Eve's role? What does helper really mean? This question makes me think of those times when my kids are really trying my patience and getting "in my way," only to explain to me that they're "helping" me. Help is only helpful when you're doing what is needed. Baxter doesn't need me to stay home right now. He needs me to help him financially. Back 150 years ago, before the Industrial Revolution, women and men helped equally in their homes and on their farms for subsistence. Only with Industrialization did men leave their homes and work outside for money, leaving women and children home to perform necessary chores and later leading women to feel less valued in their role of homemaker. I have never felt that way. In fact, I think if I were paid for what I do now, I'd make well over six-figures. I see going back to work as a necessary component of where Baxter and I would like to be financially. That said, I don't resent this change. I see it as part of God's greater plan.

I know that this will bring with it a new set of challenges. I pray that God helps me to prioritize my life in a way that would please Him. I pray for the safety and well being of my children and that I heavily consider all schooling options before I make a final decision. I pray for God to give me vision and clarity in this process. I pray that I may find the job that He has out there for me, one that will allow me to continue to head up my household and enjoy the aspects of domestic life that I love.

I *heart* Blogging

I've been keeping up with work nicely since the shift to PM. I haven't had much time for creative writing yet, although I did get a great brainstorming session in one night. I added another layer to the characters that will really bring them to life. I think the past few months of life lessons has definitely seasoned me some more. Plus, I've learned from great writers like C.S. Lewis, that dark themes and struggle is just as appealing to children as it is to adults. I don't want to create something that's so full of sunshines and smiles that you'll want to vomit after reading it. I want something more realistically-unrealistic.



I've also been spending some much needed time updating my homeschooling blog, PTO of One. I'm finally able to see what's working for us and what's not. That was the whole point of starting that blog! However, getting through the last 4 months in one piece was of paramount importance. It's nice that I can finally go back and pick up where I left off and see a nice picture of what we've done so far. I had a really rough Monday and I spewed venom all over the pages of PTO. If you look for that post, I deleted it...sorry. I think I needed to take a step back and concentrate on what we've accomplished so far. Once I started doing that, I realized that we had a lot to be proud of. If you need some great ideas for a geography unit study or are interested in my reviews of the curriculum and books we've been using this year, make sure you visit from time to time.

Time Crunch

Well, my 3-4 hours is really more like 2 hours at night -- unless I want to stay up until 12:30 writing. I guess I could do that when I'm really into it. However, considering that Baxter sleeps right next to the PC, that wouldn't be very nice on a work-night. So, I just finished writing about hamburgers - 20 pages about hamburgers (oh, and biscuits too). I'm still catching up on what I missed while my computer was out sick and will probably be doing that all week long. Perhaps next week will be lighter from my paid-gig and I can take some time then to focus on creative pursuits. I guess we'll see how it all works out. I did manage to write 1,000 words of bitching today on my homeschool blog. It's not really supposed to be about that but it was just the sort of day I had. Homeschool Mamas -- you know what I mean. It felt great to moan in a place where no one else is likely to hear me. I'm convinced that complaining is a great reason to blog. Once you get it off your chest you can move on. We were able to move on after my post and had a fairly successful day. I think that time and pressure is getting to me a little bit. I also have a great fear of my children not performing as well as they should and that it would all be my fault since I'm their only teacher. I know that's crazy but it's the truth.



Other stuff going on around here: I'm helping organize and host the Valentine's party for our homeschooling group. Tonight something came over me and I volunteered to face-paint. I explained that I am not really experienced with this and have only done it in the past for their old preschool so I hope they don't have their hopes up. It's looking to be a challenging week ahead but I'm ready to tackle it. Do you always have time for everything you want in your life? Are there things you're leaving out that you shouldn't?

Down on the Farm

A look back at the weather...



Monday: Beautiful



Tuesday: Fair to partly cloudy



Wednesday: Thunderstorms all day



Thursday: Pleasant



Friday: Clear & sunny







As you can see, the week went mostly well for our little homeschool family. Wednesday was frustrating, but we have had days like that before homeschool. In fact, I think we had more of them before homeschool started. But, I won't drag you through the mud with me. Let's focus on the good times. Endless joy, right?



Monday was great. We started off our week going to a friend's farm. They are local growers of organic produce and their place is literally about 5 minutes from my house. That tells you just how out in the sticks I really am! We were invited to "help ourselves" to an overabundance of green beans and boy did we! We filled a small basket and had I brought a larger vessel - would have had no problem filling it up. I think we gathered that from two or three plants alone. Anyway, the kids were smitten with the idea of being on their friend's farm and asked a lot of questions about what it would be like to live on an actual farm. It was a great learning experience for us. Despite the fact that we wore jeans and long socks and heavy shoes, Abby still managed to find the ants we were forewarned about and suffered several nasty bites. Still, that didn't ruin our day and we snapped and enjoyed our beans with a roasted chicken and black eyed peas. Mmmmmmmmmmmmm.



The Lewis' have a nice little spread and I have to admit, I envy the lifestyle. Their kids have a vast wilderness to play on compared to our microscopic yard. Although easy to keep "tidy", I am becoming disenchanted with the idea of having to take my kids somewhere in order to really play outside. How nice it would be to open the door and send them out to get good and dirty before we begin our studies every day! I definitely think they wouldn't have much of a problem sitting still after a good romp in the grass, chasing locusts or butterflies. Abby still wants to milk a cow and we may have to work that into another week later in the year if we find a good place. But, thanks to Lisa and Geoff, we had a great start to our week of study.



Other great moments - Abby strugging through and finishing Green Eggs and Ham, Abby learning to count by 10s, Ford helping me snap green beans, playing mummy on the playground with both of them and remembering just how truly sweet my kids are.



BTW - I promise to write something non-homeschool-related very soon! Sorry if you're bored!

Homeschool...Here We Come!

Two nights ago, Baxter and I made a decision that seems last minute; but was actually simmering long ago. We decided not to go ahead and send Ford back to preschool this year. Taking inspiration from Jen, Beth and others and adopting a "what's one more" approach, I realized that it was really the best thing. So, as we began our first official day as a homeschooling family, I had two at the dining room table.

What once seemed daunting and terrifying turned out to be absolutely wonderful. We were very successful today. We had already completed reviewing the phonics and math skills she acquired before this year. Today we set out to learn something new. We began with a devotional which was really more of a lesson on imagery than anything. Using a book I found called Images of God, I taught them about God as a light image (light of the world etc...) and then they made pictures of something they loved that they never wanted to be in darkness. Then we discussed the calendar and sang songs about the days of the week and months of the year and I had her copy the date from my dry erase board. Abby watched two videos on NatGeo online to introduce her to people of Ancient Civilizations. Next, we headed off to the library for storytime.

We had a nice time there. They are both very comfortable at the library and really enjoyed themselves. I picked up some books that we needed for the rest of the week and I allowed them each to pick out two books each. As soon as I got home to make lunch, Abby went straight to the bag and pulled out her new basic reader she picked out. She sat down on the sofa and started reading it. I know she couldn't read it all on her own but she was enjoying the book independently and without my suggestion ----SUCCESS!!!

Later, we read through a book about the Ancient Greeks to get ready for tomorrow and finished off her day with a letter to her pen-pal, Alex. Ford participated in most of the activities in his own way and enjoyed it too. When he couldn't do what she was doing, he played on their vtech notebook or with Mr. Potato Head. It was so much fun that I'm actually looking forward to tomorrow!

I love my kids!!!

Hurricane Lesson

So tomorrow is Labor Day, but we don't have a lot of big plans. It looks like we're going to watch the hurricane make landfall and I wanted to use it as a lesson. I found a great link to free NASA videos about the birth of hurricanes. Abby is pretty intrigued about the naming system and I think I'm going to help her go through the alphabet and come up with some hurricane names of her own. (She thought Katrina was a "cute" hurricane name!) I may have to dig a couple of 2-liters out of the recycling and make a bottle-cyclone too. I guess we're starting our week a day or two early!

A Change In Perspective

So, this is how it really was...

I've mentioned before that I was, indeed, homeschooled during 5th grade and Middle School. Eons ago, my mother pulled me out of Teasley Elementary and for reasons unknown and unexplained to me at the time, she kept me at home. When I started as a Freshman at Campbell High School, everyone was a little bit curious about the whole homeschooling thing. It must have seemed strange to them at the time - it was 1990 and not that many people were homeshooling back then. In fact, most of the other kids that I met were the very stereotypical ones in home-made clothes and such. People had all sorts of assumptions about me. One thing was true among their ideas - I was very sheltered. It wasn't that hard for me to make friends there; but when you're fourteen, things seem difficult anyway. I think I was angry at my parents and I was also struggling in math, which probably was my Mom's doing. I started to really discount the whole homeschooling experience. I made it clear that I was doing very well in all of my other classes despite having been homeschooled - like it was some miracle that I was able to keep up with the work or something. What I left out for my peers were the great learning experiences I had as a homeschooled kid. I left out how my favorite days were spent at the big library in Marietta, just browsing books until I found a subject I wanted to learn about. I left out the part about my Mother practically dragging me out of there because I was so engrossed in the wealth of information available. I left out the fact that I sometimes read three books a week and started Shakespeare in 7th grade. I knew everything there was to know about government and politics because I read the newspaper and discussed things with my parents. I'm not saying that everything was rosy and perfect - we still had our issues, believe me. Still, I haven't been fair. For years I have been leaning back on those old responses to my peer's criticisms. I can't believe I'm admitting this, but I'm still letting people like Chad Plunkett shade my story of what homeschool was like. Only now, I don't care anymore. I'm not trying to fit in. I guess I'm just used to being on the defensive. The truth is, it was very good for me. I felt little or no social pressure during those crucial years of development. I was never concerned with who my friends were. When I went on to high school, I found friends in all sorts of groups and did a pretty good job of floating above the clique system.

When I became a parent, I delved deep into the subject of "parenting" and examined my own parents with a microscope. I guess I've never really stopped. Deciding to homeschool Abby has forced me to really examine my feelings on this subject as well. Of course, the day is fast approaching when I will be waist-deep in teaching Abby and all of this speculation and conjecture will cease. Once we've started, I think it will be hard for me to find the time to write much about what's going on. I am glad to have gotten all of this off my mind. Now I must get to the more important work of finalizing lesson plans - and thanks to all of you who left comments and sent me emails about my homeschool plan for the year - your encouragement means a lot!

A Woman For All Seasons

I like to think of myself as a "well-rounded" individual. I have always enjoyed sports, intellectual pursuits, clothes and makeup, art, music, movies, books, languages, food, loud concerts and absolute silence. I think most people are like this. I think they enjoy lots of different things - but have a limited amount of time for them. My kids are the same way. That is one thing that homeschooling is really good for. Abby has time for everything. Since schoolwork will only take a small amount of her time each day (no time wasted being shuffled around, watching other kids getting disciplined and waiting for things to get started) she can get on with the things she loves most. I have a few other homeschool moms out there who read this and you've been wanting to see my plan for school, so here it is -

School will take place from 9 until 11:45 each morning. Every day we will focus on reading and lettering, plus basic math skills. She will be learning how to write her full name, address and phone number as well as the days of the week and months of the year. She will be learning about temperature, weather and the seasons. We will be continuing her allowance and guiding her about money management. She will learn how to tell time and we are going to introduce her to French with the Muzzy program. Every week, she will study one of Aesop's fables and practice drawing (which she LOVES). We will also have fun art projects weekly to tie-in to the units of study.

Here are some things she will be learning about:

Conservation

Ancient Civilizations

Introduction to Government & Politics (election season after all)

Charity and Giving

Religous themes throughout the year

Anatomy

Life Cycles

Sewing

Architecture

American History and Culture

Problem Solving and Following a Plan

I know, I know - she's just in Kindergarten - but all of this is getting scaled back to her learning level and will be WAY COOLER than whatever they are planning on doing at Whit Davis this year.

We will be tending to our ant farm, building an earthworm habitat and a bird house. We will be watching a tadpole grow into a frog, caterpillars grow into butterflies and seeds grow into vegetables. We will be going to the High Museum, Mayfield Dairies, the Michael C. Carlos Museum of Egyptology, Callaway Gardens, The GA Aquarium, The Zoo and the Coca Cola Museum. We will be visiting a working commercial farm and going pumpkin, strawberry and blueberry picking throughout the year. I am also trying to find a candy company we can tour so that I can help her find the answer to the age old question, "Mommy, how do they make lemon drops?" Plus, after school, she will be enjoying all of her favorite extracurricular activities - tennis, soccer, art classes, yoga sprouts and choir.

I'm so excited! I want school to start now!

Time Time Time

Things have been kinda crazy around here lately. I went ahead with Miss Charlsie's Closet, my online vintage clothing store, am still writing up a storm for AMTC, and I have agreed to build a web site for a new business Baxter and a few partners are forming, REO Consultants, LLC. Needless to say, I've been busy. My online sales are going well, although it has been more time-consuming than I realized. I love the vintage clothing thing. I just sold a blue chiffon dress with feathered skirt that I was in love with. It is the kind of dress that makes you say "OOOOOOOOO" when you pull it out of the closet. I wanted to try it on; but realized with my first auction that I part with things easier if I haven't seen myself in them. It's kind of like the theory that if you live on a farm, you should never name your pigs -- but a little sexier. It ships off tomorrow along with some opera length kid skin gloves, two gorgeous painted wide-brim straw hats and a pair of pink marabou mules that I'm shipping all the way to Berlin to a man with a shoe fetish. It's just fun. With all of this going on, you would think that I would be so excited to ship my kids off to school next week. Well, I'm not. Not even close.

If you know me well, you know that I am very particular when it comes to my kids. I research strollers, bikes, shoes, shampoos. I scrutinize underwear. Don't even get me started on food. I have become so picky with what my kids eat that I would probably drive most of you crazy. So, imagine what I was like over the past 2 to 3 years when deciding what school to send Abby to. I have done online research. I have studied demographics. I have taken the tours, talked with teachers at every school and grade level, consulted parents and completely bored my husband to tears. I have read every newspaper article that has to do with education in the last 3 years. I have gone back and forth between public and private and then between which private and which public. I made firm decisions, only to rescind them. Finally, I committed. We chose Whit Davis Elementary school, public but with a good reputation. We registered. We talked it up to Abby every time we passed it by. We told everyone who asked, this is where she is going...

Well, not anymore. I really think my indecisiveness was symptomatic of an underlying problem. She is stressed out. She is not that happy in school. She wants to please us, but she is worn-thin. The past year was very difficult for her. She experienced loss in our family twice with the death of both great-grandmothers. She fell very ill from the flu and missed a month of school. On top of that, somewhere along the way she missed something there. Somewhere, she picked up the idea that reading is boring, that she doesn't like it and she would rather not try. None of that is acceptable to me. Weighing my options for the upcoming year, I have made the decision to home-school her. I'm going to take one year and see what happens. I have my reservations (mostly time-related) but if I don't have 3 hours a day to spend with my child, something is terribly wrong. So, I recently learned to juggle, now I have to learn how to juggle a little better. I'm going from soft balls to bowling pins. But I can do it, right?

So, I'm taking a break from the store while we have a short vacation up in the mountains. I'll get my curriculum together and get ready to dig in my heels.