Lists

I have a very detailed planner into which I put all of my daily goals and things to do, and it usually works very well for this.  But every once in a while, for some unfathomable reason, I fall deeply behind on all the things and need to write myself A List.  A big list.  Sometimes, as it is currently, the list is several pages long - but lest you think I'm important let me assure you it's mainly a giant brain dump where I just get everything out on paper that has been rattling around in there for weeks.  The last Big List was before the baby was born, which is very typical for me - nothing makes me turn into a crazy list making woman more than imminent birth.  This list, I have no idea, I guess I've simply been lazy for too long.  Here we are, with three pages facing me down.

It helps to have a time limit set on The List - and I am challenging myself to finish it off before this coming Sunday - 5 days until the Sabbath and those 5 days will work me to the bone, I can assure you.  Some of the tasks I might be able to pass off to others, but some - go through all of the boy's clothing to find gender neutral pants the girl can wear, plan out the gardens, make soup for an ill lady in our church, etc. - are only going to get done by me.

Easter

Like every Christian parent out there, I have spent the last while thinking about Easter and how to make it *special* for my children...in other words, how to talk to them about Christ, what kind of traditions I want to make sure we have, what sort of amazing foods I'm going to prepare, even what their Easter baskets will hold and how they'll look on Sunday.  Now, here it is, Easter, and my hopes for the picture perfect time are not going to come to fruition, and I'm totally okay with that.  I'll tell you why; I've learned that you need to have realistic expectations.

My 'must have' Easter list included new clothing for everyone, washed, ironed, and beautiful and all of our family posed for a picture.  I accomplished new clothing for the children, but not for my husband and I, and I skipped pretty shoes for the girls.  The clothes are washed, and it's possible they'll be ironed, and someone will take a picture of us.

I intended to produce Martha Stewart-esque baskets, which did not happen.

I had several cool Easter crafts lined up - what we managed to do was dye some eggs and decorate Easter cookies with store bought icing.

And so on.  It isn't important!  I have been working all Lent at learning to be more mindful and contemplative and now, faced with Easter that doesn't look like my plans, I'm okay.  We discussed the Easter story, which was the most important part anyway, and I spent a reasonable amount of time doing 'Easter stuff' with the children, without totally upending my daily life, and I touched on the traditions.

Throwing away

After the birthday party this past week I had a whole bunch of gift bags sitting around.  Guess what I did with them; I threw them away.  It's true!  I don't keep gift bags, or wrapping paper, or lots of elastics and plastic bags.  I don't keep stained tupperware or clothing.  In fact, there's a lot of stuff I don't keep that other people might think is wasteful.  It's just that I don't need those things piling up in my house and making me make choices about where to keep them and so forth - I like throwing them away, and I get to be more intentional about what stays.

My goal is a peaceful house, not a cluttered one.  I want only a few things, so that I can find them and maintain them and enjoy them.  I don't want six sets of dishes because I don't need them, and I don't want to store them.  But life is what it is, as well, and I do have clutter and stuff all over the place sometimes, and that's okay, too.  I just keeping going along.

Peace

This past week was a real downer of a week for me - introvert wise.  I like space and quiet and a bit of peace occasionally, and instead we had a double ear infection with the baby, and very little sleep, and some cranky toddler behavior and not one but THREE days of birthday stuff for the newly five year old.  "I've had too much birthday" he told me yesterday.  So overwhelmed.  We both were, my little mini-me and I.

So it's going to come as no surprise that I'm thrilled that a NEW week has started.  New, without any mistakes in it, and oh, I need a fresh start from the short temper and the stress.  So we're getting back on the horse today with a clean house, because if you're ever in need of a change that will quickly give you a different attitude - I have personally never found a more effective method than cleaning your house.  You wipe up the stickiness and the dust and the popcorn and you are, in fact, wiping your very heart clean.  And there you have it, at the end, a peaceful place.

Peace.  Silence.  Snow falling everywhere.

Oh, and bikes.  Because there was a birthday bike.

Teething

The nine month old is teething HARD and we're all incredibly sleep deprived and staggering around.  Oh, gosh, baby, stop crying and go to sleep.  Last night at some point in between doses of Tylenol and nursing and rocking she cut the tooth through the gums, hallelujah.  Still a temperature and great unhappiness, so we're off to the doctor today.  I'm anticipating the next few meals to be made entirely out of raw vegetables and sliced meat.

Tuesday

Every single Tuesday this happens; we hit the ground running and don't stop until we finally fall, exhausted, into bed.  Except today is even worse, if that's possible, because we're trying desperately to get out of the house and go to the Big City in order to get groceries, buy socks and underwear for the children, and renew our auto club membership.  All of this takes Time, and Time is of the essence here because we've got to be back here by one.  Which is why, if you were to peek in my kitchen right now you'd see me hustling around with a towel on my head, getting the children to eat their Red River cereal with maple syrup and Put On Clothes and pack the diaper bag and and and.

Whew.  Yesterday was a bit of a write-off.  I wanted there to be something I could accomplish but really it was just a day of moving one step forward and two back.  I even got the diapers hung on the line...and then it rained.  So, really, nothing worked out.

Oh, not that's not true.  I did get some work done on my son's new sweater.

Guilt Free Learning Notes

Here's what homeschooling is looking like these days!

With nicer weather coming on we're focusing a lot on getting outside - this winter's cramped indoor lifestyle has weighed heavily on our family, I'm afraid.  We visited a Mennonite farm last week, and this Saturday we have a horse drawn sleigh ride booked and next week, hopefully, a trip to the sugar bush.  We try and incorporate a little lesson, or at least some chatter, into each of these outings.  Nothing crazy intensive.

Closer to home I'm still trying to get the children out every day for some fresh air and exercise, which isn't really *school* per se, but is pretty beneficial.

We're reading aloud quite a bit; the current chapter book is The House At Pooh Corner, and we try and do a chapter a day.  The boy is totally sitting still for it, which is great!  We're also reading a chapter from a first grade A Beka reader, and this is the boy's favourite reading part and my least favourite.  The chapters are small, and are non-fiction and followed by a few questions.  I love the idea of encouraging active listening skills, and non-fiction is really appealing to both of us, but the writing style is just so...boring.  And the topics are boring, too.  I wish there was something cool and neat along the same lines, but we haven't found it yet.

I'm seeing big improvements over how he's forming his letters (so clear!) and the letters he remembers.  His pre-reading is coming along so well I wouldn't be surprised if we were looking at phonics work this September.

Finally, I'm doing my best to maintain the outings we have had over the winter - a Sat. craft day at the library, a library day with storytime on Tuesday, a Bible Club Tuesday night and a Wed. play group.  Lots of interaction with other children.  We're also doing the occasional craft; this week we made sun catchers and boy, was it fun.