Resolution Number One

So first, after identifying the parts of my life that needed a bit of an overhaul I made my first resolution to be more organized.  After Christmas we went through all the toys here and at Memere and Pepere's and culled out ones that could be donated, recycled or otherwise removed from the premises.  We reorganized and then did the same to clothes.  I undecorated the first few days after Christmas and completely cleaned the house.  I organized parts of the kitchen that kept attacking me, including, finishing yesterday, the kitchen/pantry closet.  Over the "Christmas vacation" I organized my materials and plans for what I want the kiddos to learn over the next couple of months.  I sorted, planned and otherwise made my lessons as easy as possible to do.  I found several craft projects and recipes to try with the kids, and made the learning space much easier to use.  I now know what we have, what we need, and what I want to accomplish.  I am also ready to continue this new manner of organization.  I am tired of being stressed, and unprepared.  It sucks.  So the new me will be organized and attentive and working smarter, not harder.  Part of this is to get up every morning, dress in real clothes, put on a little makeup and some jewelry as if I wasn't staying home.  It makes each day more focused on getting things accomplished.  In my mind it makes the day start earlier, and therefore it makes me get going.  It also improves my outlook, which makes it easier to accomplish more.  Strategy for successful homeschooling number one:  Set yourself up for success in anyway possible.  This means mentally preparing yourself in addition to physically preparing things.  Plan ahead, and allow for things to not go as you hope.  But also understand that staying home is hard work, like any job, and respect that job more than you would any other.  Respect yourself, your children and the life you have chosen.

Moving on, we are practicing with scissors this week.  Each day we are doing cutting practice with safety scissors.  We cut out a letter and glue it next to the picture that begins with that letter.  Mason is pretty good with holding the scissors, as is Eliza, but CJ is the best at using them once I get his hands positioned correctly.  Today he sped through his, and he glues so neatly.  We also today, did a shape book.  They trace and color and identify a shape, on the next page count them and color the number it says to.  CJ went right through it, tracing carefully, coloring really well, counting, and never making a mistake.  It totally blew my mind.  He is so ready for more.  Mason got really tired, and wasn't really into it, and Eliza needed a lot of attention and reminders to finish, not to mention she really was not ready to trace even remotely neatly.  CJ also was able to identify shapes that did not belong in a group by counting sides of the shapes.  He even identified octagons that did not look like stop signs.  He understands that the number of sides tells you what the shape is.  He also was able to explain to me why a shape didn't belong very succinctly.  Eliza was able to identify what didn't belong, but didn't have the vocabulary to explain it.  Mason had a difficult time with it, since there were some shapes he didn't know, like trapezoid and pentagon, so he and I spent some time just identifying and recognizing shapes using a puzzle, and our posters, and some books I have on shapes.  We will try it again tomorrow and review what we did. 

Back to the resolution on organization.  I know I am flip flopping topics, but my brain is a bit in overdrive today.  I have been getting morning clothes ready the night before, as well as breakfast dishes etc.  I do dishes as I dirty them, always start the day with an empty dishwasher, and try to keep up with the laundry.  I am planning all meals ahead, so that there is no scrambling, and saying what on earth are we going to eat?  As I am blogging, my chicken is smoking in my stovetop smoker, barley pilaf is simmering in the rice cooker, veggies are roasting in the oven, and I made the salad when the kiddos were napping.  I feel like supermom, simply because I am not overwhelmed with what needs to be done.  Today when we went to play outside, I made sure drinks were ready for when we came in, and while we were out there we all got some good exercise, and we cleaned up the yard.  When we came in we did our "lessons" and read some books.  The kids had some play time inside, and then Mason napped.  As he wakes earlier than my two he is often down for a nap earlier.  While Mason slept CJ and Eliza helped me make lunch and we watched Mickey Mouse Clubhouse in Wonderland.  We listened to Here Come the ABC's while we ate, as we have been for many breakfast and lunch times over the past several days.  We had lunch, CJ and Eliza went down for a nap with no complaint, and they promptly went to sleep. 

We had been having trouble at night, where we are all tired, and the kids get crazy.  It was driving Rich nuts, so we instituted a game time each evening, where we all play a board game, puzzle, card game or one of the kids' video games.  Last  night was Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Yahtzee.  Night before was Hungry Hungry Hippos.  Night before that was the Goodnight Moon puzzle.  After nighttime milk or juice, we do bath, brush teeth, use potty, read a story, play a game, sing a song, then sleep.  This has removed all the stress time from before bed, and has made Rich and I much happier at night.  It is all about attitude.  I have decided to look positively at things more, and so things bother me less.  Including the nighttime craziness.  Organization resolution has helped a ton here. 

So tomorrow I will tell you all about my next resolution, so stay tuned . . .