Saxon Phonics and Other Things

We have all been under the weather, much like we were in February, which tends to bring my melancholy mood to the surface even more. 

Except I sort of enjoyed the excuse to stay at home all week. 

After talking with my friend who is a reading specialist, did I already tell ya'll this?!, I ordered Saxon Phonics first grade for Ada, and we are loving it.  No more tears; no more frustration; Ada asks to do school; thank you, Lord, and thank you, Lynn, for the suggestion!!  It is heavy on review from lesson to lesson, even reviewing the alphabet each lesson, so for most of the lesson, Ada feels very very confident, so even if she struggles a bit with the new stuff, she isn't struggling for the entire lesson.  It's like 85 % of the lesson is easy for her, and the remaining 15 % is a challenge.  It's been an answer to prayer, truly.  And we will never go back.  (I should mention that Saxon first grade is really more of a kindergarten level, at least right now.  We will continue the book through Ada's first grade year, and it should pick up in difficulty)

In fact, with John, not next year but the next, when he is four, turning five halfway through the year, I am going to do Saxon Phonics K as a pre-k program to get him ready for Saxon 1 in kindergarten.  We will continue to use Saxon 1 next year for Ada's first grade year. 

So, if there happens to be a reader out there who is a homeschooling mama to a child who isn't absolutely taking off with reading, Saxon Phonics!!!  Really, it's so great.  I repeat, an answer to prayer.

I can't believe we are almost to the end of the school year.  We only have three more weeks of CC!!!!  And I plan to homeschool through the end of May, and then I plan to fully enjoy our summer.  Live it up.  Lots of library and outside and pool and sprinkler and everything else.  I have never been so ready for summer.  I can't wait!!!! 

And these longer days that we are having (okay, the past two days have been doom and gloom, but before that) are so very good for the soul.  Sunshine and more sunshine does more for my mood than anything else.  Well, if I am out getting exercise in the sunshine that's the best mood booster of all.

Also, in case anyone is wondering, we have decided to stay here in our little house for a while longer.  The more we tried to get things in line to move, the more things weren't falling into place.  And all of a sudden, Scott and I both were very sure that we were just supposed to stay put.  And the longer we stay, the more I am happy in our tiny little space.  Of course I one day hope to move to a three bedroom home, but it has been eye opening to me that I will always prefer a small space.  A cottagey feel, if you will.  It's nice to come face to face with what actually feels like home to me.  (Okay, I wouldn't mind a cozy little cottage with a gigantic kitchen, but you know...)

The only problem with this small space is the serious lack of closet space.  We have two tiny bedroom closets, a linen closet in our tiny hallway (see the theme?), and, praise the Lord, a great storage/laundry room.  But, all four of us are sharing these two tiny closets, and that is about to drive me crazy.  I have been frequenting goodwill a lot lately trying to rid this house of stuff.  And I need to learn to utilize the storage space that we do have.  Always a work in progress.

We also recently took down John's baby bed, and we replaced it with a twin bed that we found on craigslist.  I am so thrilled with the transition, except, the bed takes up more space than the baby bed did.  Oh well.  I am also not going to try to make their room matchy matchy.  Instead, Ada has her pink, girly side, and John is going to have his boy side.  The eclectic look fits our house, anyway.  It helps that their wall color is so neutral.  I want them to each feel like they have their space even if it's a small space.

This post has no real point, I guess.  I just feel that never ending need to get it recorded, these small, yet so very significant to us, details of our life.  This moment in time, when it's us four, and we're crammed into this space, and life feels settled.  I want to soak in this feeling, drink it up.  These days of routine and homeschooling around our kitchen table and John and Ada playing and fighting and playing and fighting, and in the end it all adds up to a life that is so very rich. 

 Ada and Luke are officially pen pals.  Which takes care of Ada's handwriting lesson each week.  Two birds with one stone, right?

 Saxon phonics, we are forever grateful. 

Just so you know what John is doing during school.  Playing under my chair. 

Spring, you keep teasing us.  We think you're here to stay, and then all of this cold and rain.

Ada's "mixed-media" artwork.  Nature as art. 

Five MInute Friday: Home

so, obviously, I am doing five minute Friday on Saturday.  But, my time with the computer is few and far between these days, so I take the writing minutes as they come.  Here goes...




Home

Home is a small Alabama town, "where the mountains meet the lake," and that is how Ada knows we are almost there.  As we drive down the winding mountain roads, and the water comes into view.  "John, John, we're almost there!!" she cries.

Home was Friday night football, homecoming parades, cheerleading practice, and every small town cliche you've ever heard.  A graduating class of 145.  We didn't even have a private school in our town.  It's no Target and the square and driving to Huntsville on the weekends just to find something to do. 

It's memories everywhere I turn and feeling eternally 17.

More specifically it's a back porch, the summer night surrounding me with damp humidity.  My sisters and I on the porch swing, the glider, anywhere we can find a spot.  It's laughter.  So much laughter. 

But also

home is what I feel as I drive into Atlanta at night, the lights bright, the traffic heavy.  The thrill of a city, but not just any city.  Atlanta is mine now.

More specifically, home is a cozy red brick house two minutes from our town's square.  It's once again the feel of a small town, but this time with the benefits of suburbia.  Mostly, it's these children of mine.  Scott.  All of us tucked in tight to this house that was never supposed to be home.  But it is.  It definitely is. 

Her loves

I have spent so much time talking about reading and phonics and oh my word, I have worn my own self out thinking and talking and typing about it, so I have decided to show you some other parts of Ada.  Her strengths, if you will.  The things about homeschool that are going well.  Because, at the end of the day, I really am so thankful that we are doing this. 

 Okay, she loves, loves, loves math.  We are using Saxon Math, and I highly recommend it.  We opted for Saxon K, and I am very glad that we did.  If you are a math person, or your child has a really solid grasp of basic stuff, I am sure you could skip to Saxon 1, but I knew I would be more confident if we started at the very beginning.  Here we had a store, and Ada was having to buy things with pennies--so learning about numbers, the value of money, the cents sign, etc. etc.  Very basic stuff.

 Batman was also shopping at our store that day

 Another Ada strength--she is my free spirit, artist.  She adores ballet, dancing her way through life.  Just today, as she was holding on to my grocery cart as if it was the bar, and she was practicing some ballet move, I mentioned to her that a crowded Kroger was not the best place for ballet.  She loves to dance.  Loves it, and she cried and cried the other day when we had to miss ballet because we were all sick. 

Ever the artist, she also loves to put together outifts, accessories, etc. etc.  She loves to put on fashion shows, and her combinations are crazy.  The other day she layered two dresses, and when I asked her why she chose those two dresses, she said because it was two different patterns.  We weren't going anywhere that day, so I gave her free reign with it.

 And she loves actual art, as in drawing, painting, "sculpting" with play-doh.  I am impressed that she has realized on her own to try to copy things when she draws.  The other day, I found her sitting in front of the mirror drawing a self portrait.  And below is her drawing that she did from her copy work.  (For handwriting, I have her copy sentences from books that she can read.  To make it more fun for her, she is allowed to copy the picture as well--her idea, not mine).

 More math.  We do lots of graphs.  Who knew that graphs were such a big deal in kindergarten ;)  Ada loves it when we have to do graphs because they always involve glue.

 John is never far away.

 Here she was graphing her favorite winter activities--comparing indoor and outdoor.  It made me laugh because all of her favorite activities involved snow.  You know, all that snow we get every winter.

 What did we learn from our graph?  She had fewer outdoor activities.  Why?  Because there were only five outdoor activities.  Like I said, it's very simple math ;)

 Okay, I don't do anything at. all. official with John.  We do a lot of counting objects, picking out colors, etc. etc. as we move throughout our day.  Lots of reading books.  Well, what you see above is a brand new toy from Ann, and John loves it, so I highly recommend it.  Thank you, Ann!!!  It's a magnetic board with pattern blocks--by Melissa and Doug, fyi, and it comes with sheets that John has to fill in with the pattern blocks.  It makes a big mess, but it's one of those things that you can clean up really easy because it comes in a neat little package.  What I mean to say, is John can clean it up really easily, and he likes to clean up, so that works out.  And since I now know--one of those things I was clueless about--there are lots of pattern blocks and copying patterns in Ada's kindergarten curriculum, so I assume the above activity is a good preschool thing?

 And more art.  This is Ada's go-to throughout the day.  I keep plenty of plain white paper, and the crayons are out where either one can get to them on their own.  I keep the water colors where Ada can get those on her own, and she knows how to set all of that up by herself.  Any other paint, I keep up higher, of course. 

 Excuse the can of pringles in the background, Scott keeps pointing out to me that I need to "observe the background" before I take a picture.

And lastly, photography by Ada.  John, after baths and ready for bed, reading some of our new books from the library book sale today.  I got a bag full of books for 3.50.  I mean, lots of good books, Little House on the Prairie, Box Car children, and others, for 3.50!!  I am a bit of a book hoarder, though, so I probably need to stop going to these book sales. 

I am trying to see Ada as who God created her to be rather than who I imagined her to be.  I was also reminded this past week from a friend that Ada is only five--I don't really know what kind of student she is going to be, she's five.  So, I am praying for wisdom and discernment as I try to encourage Ada in the areas where God has already strengthened her, and as I encourage her to always do her very best, but not require her to be something that she isn't.  Right now, she is an emerging reader--who knows what that will look like in a few years--but here we are, and I have got to calm down about it!!!

Five Minute Friday: What Mama Did

Five Minute Friday:  "What Mama Did"




She was there.

I specifically remember sixth grade.  The year of an onslaught of hormones and mean boys and feeling incredibly uncomfortable inside my own skin. 

I wanted to hide away from the world until I got to the other side of that awkward adolescent year.

I didn't know anyone in my class that year.  The teacher was unfamiliar in my small town where everyone knew everyone--it was her first year there.  My own body and all that was happening was unfamiliar, and I was not graceful in the change.

I remember the end of those school days.  Those awful school days.  I would wait in that school yard, underneath those hundred year old trees, searching for the refuge of my mother in our hunter green van. 

I would climb in, so relieved to be somewhere safe.  And my mom would turn around, a smile on her face, and she would hand me an ice cold glass of sweet tea.  In a mason jar.  With a straw.

I loved sweet tea in much the same way that I love diet coke now, and she knew that.

And when my eyes swelled up from my horrible allergies, and I was a sight, not a good one, she curled my hair and applied a tasteful amount of make up to my swollen face to lessen the "damage" and even made appointments with allergy specialists.

And she was there.

She knew about the mean boys and the crazy, uncomfortable 11 year old changes...and I felt like a very young eleven year old on the inside, which only added to the confusion, and she didn't try to make it all go away.  She didn't go talk to the teacher about the mean boys or even try to make it seem unimportant or not a big deal.  She was just there. 

And she brought sweet tea in a mason jar.  And it helped.

p.s. oh how I wish I could now post my sixth grade school picture.  The very picture my mom took to the allergy specialist to show the doctor just how bad it could be ;)  I think that was the picture that went in the yearbook that year, which was just so appropriate.

Silence

My blog is so silent these days.

It's just that if I did blog, it would probably go something like this

reading, reading, phonics, complain, complain, potty training, complain, reading, more phonics, potty training, potty training going really badly, complain, complain, phonics, analyze the phonics and the reading, complain...you get the picture...so what do I do?

We are on winter break, sort of, this week?  Not really, because we are still doing school, but I didn't have to prepare for class this past Tuesday (do ya'll know that I "teach" once a week, which we call tutor, in Ada's class at Classical Conversations?), which was a nice break. 

I really can't think of anything else to say.  I think the things that I am mostly thinking about are either phonics and potty training, and along with that, how much I HATE being out of control ;).

or it's just stuff that isn't really blogging type stuff. 

We were also all sick for most of February, and it's been a lot of cooped up inside.  I might be feeling the wintery blues just a bit.  And isn't it supposed to rain tomorrow?  And I'm hormonal.  It's a fabulous combination, all of these emotions, that make me just a delight to be around.  Be very jealous of my husband and children and my in real life friends.

Tonight, while Scott and I were cooking pancakes and bacon for dinner (Scott is the pancake cooker here, and I needed a dinner that was cheap and that my kids would eat.  Sure enough, they cleaned their plates), Scott even made me list things I was thankful for.  Something we make Ada do when her attitude stinks as mine did.

I am thankful for Scott, Ada, and John.  This warm, cozy house.  Food on my plate.  Scott's job.  Classical Conversations and my homeschooling community.  Homeschooling.  Being at home with my kids.  My friends, who get to listen in person to my never ending analysis of Ada's reading ability.  They are all so patient with me.  Friends and family; I mean, I could list those two over and over again.  That right now, I am not experiencing any persecution.  Sometimes, at night, when I climb into my warm, super comfy bed, I think about Christians around the world who are in the midst of severe persecution and are separate from their family and their beds.  I am thankful for the comfort of my bed at the end of hard days.

So, really, phonics and potty training?  These aren't big problems when I look at the big picture.

Birthday Party, sort of

Okay, I am going to post a few birthday party photos (really bad photography, really, really bad), and then we can move on from the birthday ;) 

I planned to invite a few of John's friends over for a little Toy Story themed party, but I have been sick all week with a sinus infection and literally no voice, so I cancelled that, and we opted for just the four of us Moores.  We had dinner at Chick-fil-a, where Ada and John played on the play ground, and then we went home to a Toy Story cake and a few presents.  And, you know what, John was as thrilled over the evening as if we had thrown a huge shindig.  Seriously, he was, so lesson learned in keeping things simple!  Especially when they are as young as three!!  Okay, the photos and then a few things I want to remember about John at age three.

 His only request from the very first mention of his third birthday was a toy story birthday cake, so that is what he got.  And he fell asleep tonight with the Buzz and Woody figurines from the cake clasped tightly in each fist.

 John wasn't too thrilled about the whole party idea at this point

 Like I said, we kept it simple ;)

 But a little sweet tea perked him right up

 these are out of order, but above he is clapping because he blew out his candles, and below he is grinning so big because we were singing to him.  He loved it.

 Jessie!!  he said

And above is Mac, purchased with money sent from the grandparents and my aunt (plus Rex, pictured in the bottom corner).  He LOVED this Mac truck, which Scott picked out.  It was a last minute decision, because we were looking for a tricycle.  However, the tricycle shelves were rather bare, so we went a different route and will look again closer to summer.  The Mac truck holds his cars, and he can drive them around, but it also unfolds into a ramp which he can play with.  He ended up not even eating his cake because he wanted to play with the truck. 

And what do I want to record about my John at age three?

It seems that he is going to be quite the introvert.  His favorite thing right now is to climb up into his bed and play with his cars and toy story characters, and he prefers that none of us be in the room with him while he plays.  He can do this for a while.  He does love to play with Ada, though, and they are very, very close.  At home he can be very outgoing--silly, making us laugh, excited, but around other people he is much more reserved.  Even around extended family, especially when it's a large crowd.  He continues to love his blankies, and he now wants both of them.  It was supposed to be a back up situation so that I could switch them out if one needed to go in the washing machine, but he has managed to attach himself to both. 

He likes to read books, usually sticking with one in particular for at least a week.  He likes to count and can count to ten and some after that, missing numbers here and there.  He knows his colors, but I confess, he definitely doesn't know any letters.  He LOVES television, so I have to really, really monitor that, as it is easy for me to use that as a baby-sitter. 

His imagination is really taking off, as he begins to create little pretend worlds with his cars and toy story characters, and he often makes me have conversations with his toys ;)  He does love Kate Harman, as he mentioned in his birthday interview, as they spend lots of time together.  He also loves his cousin Andrew, who he calls Washer(?!), but he obviously doesn't see him a whole lot.  He talks about him, though.

He is still very small for his age, bless him.  He wears size 24 month pants and 2T shirts, and I will be glad to see what the doctor has to say about his size.  He is very active and fully of energy, though, so I don't really worry about it.  He really doesn't eat much, but then he'll have like three days in a row where he will eat three really good meals a day.  I try hard to stick to the no snacks between meals on the days that he isn't eating much, so I am trusting that it's true that he won't starve himself ;) 

He still takes a good two to three hour nap everyday, which I am super thankful for.  Ada and I enjoy that down time.  Or at least I do, Ada rarely enjoys any sort of down time. 

He is super attached to me, and I want to work on his getting more attached to Scott.  He loves Scott, but always prefers me over anyone else, which can be exhausting.  We are starting to have discipline issues with him, so Scott and I need to "crack down" on some things.  At age three, he is starting to resist us on just about everything, which I guess goes with the age.

Most importantly, though, we love that little guy.  He is my cuddle bug, and so, so funny.  And I pray, of course, that God turns John's heart towards Him.  That John will love God with all of his heart, mind, soul, and strength, and that God will direct John's steps all the days of John's life. 

Birthday Interview

It is time for the annual birthday interview.  Last year John was too young to answer the questions himself, but this year I gave him complete freedom.  And he ran with it.  He answered every question below with strong conviction and gusto, seriously.  It was as if he had been waiting for this moment in time to share his opinion on these things.  Here we go...

What is your favorite food:  French fries (this is so true.  John wishes he could live on french fries, potato chips, any type of snack cracker, and candy)

Favorite television show:  Toy Stories (he said it with an "s") (he also loves Dora and Diego)

Favorite thing to play:  Buzz and Woody (and his cars, and that is about it.  John really knows what he likes and sticks with it.  Right now, he loves to climb up in his bed and play with his cars and toy story characters.  He will occupy himself like that for a long time)

Favorite thing to play with Ada:  puppy (they take turns pretending to be the puppy)

Favorite thing to play with daddy:  monster (basically, John runs and Scott chases him, but John pretends that Scott is a monster.  John LOVES this game)

What do you want to be when you grow up:  monster (said with much gusto and in a "scary" voice), pause, ummm, no, puppy, yeah, puppy

Favorite thing to play outside:  pause, then with much expression, "ants, dirty ants on the floor that have wings" and then he proceeded to 'fly' around the room (I assume he was telling me about the ants that are outside?  He has never "played" ants before.  Really, he just follows Ada's lead outside--digging in the dirt, "playing soccer," running races, etc. etc)

Favorite snack:  applesauce, which he says, "sauce" (the things I can count on him to eat--strawberries, blueberries, any cracker, yes--applesauce, chips, french fries, any sweet, usually pb and j, usually yogurt, and that is about it.  We have a rule right now that he has to eat one bite of everything on his plate.  He is getting better about that, but there is still at least a small battle at each meal.  He eats a suprisingly, shockingly, small amount of food each day.  I just keep telling myself that he has a small stomach and doesn't need much food)

Favorite drink:  milk (which is really milk with carnation breakfast essentials mixed in.  It's his daily breakfast that assures me he is getting some sort of calories and vitamins each day)

Best friend:  Kate (true, but he is also starting to mention other little friends--Lincoln and Braden from church, and Bennett from CC)

Favorite book:  Toy Story (we don't ever read a toy story book, actually.  His favorite this week is a "Maisy" lift-the-flap book; last week we read Corduroy and Runaway Bunny many times every single day; it switches each week)

Favorite song:  I don't know (and he said that like it was a ridiculous question.  He has a teddy bear that sings "Jesus Loves Me," and he loves to lay the teddy bear on the floor, stomp on its stomach as hard as he can to make the song play and then dance around the room, other than that, he doesn't really know many songs.  My Bad!!!)

Coolest person on earth:  Kate (he said this immediately, no thought required)

If you could anywhere on earth, where would you go:  church (good to know he likes it)

Favorite Color:  Black

When you were little what did you do:  cooking

What is your favorite season:  spider (these were both answered with as much gusto and confidence as the others; he is living under the philosophy of, act like you know what you're talking about and people will think you do)

If you could have one wish what would it be:  chocolate (that sums up John's thoughts on food.  That is what he dreams of.  A life of chocolate).

This is already so long, that I will end it with just the interview and come back with a few more thoughts on my John a little later...