Sep 28, 2010

On the road....

Fall is by far one of our favorite times of the year. We love the colors, the cooler weather & all the yummy fall scents. I didnt think it was possible to love it more than we already do until last week. Then I got the dreaded call from Scott that he would have to go out of town for the week. No that didnt make me love it more. However the realization that we would not see Scott for a week led us to planning an overnight camping trip near where he was working. Thankfully he just happened to be working near somewhere known for its history & beauty.... Cumberland Gap National Park.

So a day after Scott left we packed up the camping gear & bikes and headed to Wilderness Road Campground. No video games allowed!! On the 1.5 hour drive we learned about different states and reviewed our math. We also laughed, sang & the kids tried setting fire to themselves with a magnifying glass. Believe me that only lasted until they realized that it actually can burn you. I dont think they even missed their video games. Once we got there we set up camp which by the way made me very proud of the both of them. They worked really hard.Then we went on a bike ride around the campground.

After a visit to the local Walmart where we suprisingly learned about the history of coal mining in the area we stopped for a much needed lunch break. I joked that our school cafeteria just happed to be a Dairy Queen.


The kids were not amused with my jokes or my picture taking.



Oh well I always say... good parenting=frequent humilation.

With belly's full we headed on to the visitor's center.There we learned about the Wilderness RoadDaniel Boone and the importance of the Cumberland Gap to western expansion.





We also had some fun dressing Lotus up in early pioneer garb.


At the gift shop we picked up some carved redbud & cane whistles for the kids to (annoy mom with) play with. Then we drove up to the pinnacle and learned about the history of the civil war in Cumberland Gap . Of course the only picture I got from up there was this one & this doesnt do it justice..

It was beautiful and the kids & I had fun exploring the woods around this, but the trip wasnt just about us having fun. It was about getting to see dad. So after this we headed back down into town and picked up Scott from his hotel. Im quite sure that the guys working with him thought I was crazy for driving to see him way up in Kentucky, but the kids (& mom) miss their dad when he's away. At least that's my excuse and Im sticking to it. Scott didnt seem to mind and in fact loved getting to ride bikes back at the campground and take a 3 mile hike which led to petting & feeding a bison nearby. Yet again I didnt have my camera for this one.

Later we cooked veggie burgers and relaxed fireside before taking him back for the night. He would have stayed, but road foremans must watch out for the crew. That and I told him the tent was too small for him to stay. Hey I had no idea he would want to stay. As funny as it might sound we woke up in TN, explored KY, then went to bed in VA all in one day. We were less than 10 minutes away from each other, but in a whole different state. 

As you can see we had a full day, but the story doesnt end here. Sadly I must save it for a later date because Im tired just thinking about it again. Til then......

TO BE CONTINUED


Sep 17, 2010

The udderstory....

  We just got back from Sweet Water Valley Farm's "Udderstory" grand opening day and we have a belly full of cheese. Lets just put it this way if all our field trips were like this then we would go on field trips every day. Their was facepainting, dairy tours, tractors, animal exhibits, inflatables, games, haybale maze, grilled cheese, chips, hot dogs, Dipping Dots, Mayfield ice cream, sodas, and music. All for FREE!!! Yes, everything was free and in whatever quantities you wanted. It was awesome & loads of fun.

  My favorite part outside of the free food was seeing the cows get milked & learning about how its done. Truly amazing process. Plus we learned that 90% of the milk from the dairy goes to Mayfield distibutors just down the road in Athens which means it's local. The other 10% goes to make their cheeses which are delicious. Im pretty sure that we sampled at least 10 different varieties today and boy was it good. However now I am on dairy overload..... middle aged belly's do not do well with too much dairy.The kids on the other hand where in cheese & ice cream heaven.

  The best part of the day for me as a parent was the staff. They were super friendly and knowledgable.... our teen age tour guide got down and talked to the kids at their level and went out of his way to make them feel welcome. A rare treat with teens today, but not at all rare there on the farm. Everyone was beyond nice. So next time your in the mood to tour a dairy or buy some really good cheese than stop in or check it out online. You want be disappointed and you will be supporting TN farmers. Its good all around. Its especially good to be able to teach your kids about farming & buying locally all in one field trip.

Sep 16, 2010

More nitty gritty and other boring stuff....

As I said Im using this as our online school journal which means I have to add the boring stuff. So here it goes.....
This week Lotus went through a few chapters of the Story of the USA and learned about some other early American explorers such as Desoto, Cabrillo, Gartier, Estaban, Coronada & Cabot. She learned about the reasons behind these expeditions & the cost to the African & Native Americans who helped build this country. Her favorite part came today when talking about the lost colony at Roanoke. She had some very interesting ideas about their disappearance, but I added my own... aliens. She didnt buy that. Way to think critically Lotus. We also did a virtual tour of Jametown.
She also worked on rounding numbers, counting money and giving change. She aced all her work and they are proudly displayed on the refrigerator.
Killian stuck to working on math and reviewed his division skills which he struggles with. However after working together he flew through these and is obviously ready to move on.They arent displayed, but he made sure to share them with dad. He would not admit he is proud of himself for all the hard work. He also shared with us as I taught Lotus her history & geography. Its like a refresher course for him.
Together we read some more of Witch of Blackbird pond which led to some great discussions. We also continued to work on our grammar skills through dictation and our listening & reading skills through narration. Its amazing to see how much they pick up with these simple lessons. Overall the week was a busy one filled with life skill lessons and many more real life applications during our shopping trips. I still cant quite talk them into exploring roadkill, but come on imagine how cool that would be and we carry gloves in our car. Oh well maybe next week. Tomorrow we are off to the Sweetwater Valley Farm for a field trip and some fun. 

Update....

An update is in order..... the last time I posted I was struggling with Killian, but a lot can change in a week. That very night I realized something; I had not been spending the time in prayer like I had been. In fact with so many things going on I had let many aspects of my spiritual life go by the wayside. I wasn't reading the bible, I wasnt worshipping with all my heart. I had got so busy that I was forgetting to turn to the one thing that offers me comfort & strength. I had taken my relationship with Christ for granted & I was feeling the weight of stress upon my shoulders. However as I tend to do, I was denying that I was feeling any stress at all. One of my favorite one liners is, "Im fine!" when in reality I can be breaking apart. Thankfully through talking with some friends I was able to realize what I was missing. I was missing him. I was going through the motions, but not letting God inside my heart. Well that night I let it all out to him. I cried out to him on my knees & turned worship practice into actual worship and he was faithful to take the weight of it upon his shoulders.
So.. back to the update. I cant say that Killian was suddenly healed of his lack of diligence, but I was inspired to be more diligent myself. I was restored to the place which led me to homeschool in the first place.... Killian does need help & I can help him with God's help. Its in my job description Deuteronomy 6:7...
"Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up."
Of course they were talking about the commandments, but for us its all of scripture and its scripture that teaches us the wisdom that helps us in our daily struggles. Even our struggles with learning. The point is we are in this together. It want be fixed in a few months, but we are making progress. I already see the difference, but first on our agenda was outlawing the use of the words "I can't!". I informed the family that this is basically a cuss word in to the ears of God. I know I've been telling him that for a long time & he has patiently shown me, "Your right, you cant, but I can!" (Newly banned words in the Masters home... freaking, crapt & I can't.) Im sure I will have to do a few push-ups over one of these in the near future.

Actually first on the agenda was impressing them on my heart. Second was outlawing the use of "I cant". Third was waking up and doing what needed to be done. It was taking one day at a time and sometimes one minute at a time. It was realizing that if Killian was saying "I cant", well then that was the lesson we needed to be working on at that moment. We brought him home with the realization that we are not just trying to get him to graduate. We are raising them both to be people able to take care of themselves and their families. We are raising them to be healthy in heart & mind. We are raising them to love God enough to give their best. All the other stuff will come, but not to the detriment of who he is or who we are as a family. Our character is just as, no its more important than head knowledge. All the intelligence in the world means nothing if your heart is not in the right place. Hopefully at the outcome of this adventure we will be able to say that we are all more book smart, but most importantly that we are wise.

Sep 9, 2010

Working for God....

We worked hard today & still need to do our reading of "The Witch of Blackbird Pond". However we managed to finish 2.5 in Lotus' math & worked on long multiplication & short division with Killian.

Lotus seemed to understand rounding & estimating, but I would like to continue working on this while shopping this week. I am also going to give her problems while carschooling. Plus I am going to add some review pages to a math box to be done as extra credit. 

Killian made simple mistakes while doing the multiplication such as adding or multiplying wrong, but overall he seems to have grasped the concept. However these simple mistakes are what concerns me the most. Today we once again fought because Killian gives up too quickly & says he cant do something or he rushes through his work. This is not something new by any means. We have struggled with it since he started school.

Today he had a list of what needed to be done & he just sat there saying, "I cant do this!" about one of his assignments. However he hadnt even bothered looking at the book or even trying. To put it in perspective, the assignment was to copy Collosians 3:23 from his bible into his prayer journal. Copywork is something I have explained before to him & he knows how to use the table of contents. He just didnt want to be bothered with it. He wanted me to explain it to him, but I know this is not really the problem.

The problem is that Killian only gives just enough to get by. He does everything with mediocricity unless of course its something he wants to be doing. I will be honest I dont know how to fix this. I have taken away things. I have punished him. Nothing seems to make a difference. The funny thing is the verse he was copying was about working at something with all your heart like your doing it for God. We had just talked about it this morning, but its not real to him in his heart. Its just words.

I completely understand that struggle. Heck I struggle with it everyday, which makes it even harder to deal with. I want to give my best, but I dont feel like I gave my best when dealing with this situation. I lost my patience when he needed direction. I explained to him that I get fustrated because I know he's capable of more, but Ive said this before & nothing seems to change. I need Gods guidance in this & a lot of prayer, because I know that this one negative habit will affect his whole life. Ive seen it in my life & in Scott's.

Their are a lot of people in the world that have learned to just get by & have missed out on all God had planned for them. I dont want this for Killian or Lotus. I want them to live power packed lifes that find their strength in their God. I want them to "work as if their working for God & not man" (Colossians 3:23) and find the contentment that comes from living "serving".

Sep 7, 2010

Needs improvement

 One of the worst things about being home with the kids is not being able to tell what is really a problem & what is just the kids not wanting to do their work. The kids are always tired and their really is not any reason for them to be. Im not sure if the problem is their just bored. I try to make things exciting, but the fact is some work is boring. It's work that just needs to be done & that is a very important life lesson. Not everything is fun! Laundry is not fun, going to work is not fun, paying bills is not fun, but it is a part of life that has to be done. How do I instill in them the values of excellence & diligence?

On the plus side of homeschooling is seeing firsthand what they need to work on, but for my own benefit I need to make note of this and refer to it often. For instance today I have noticed that Killian has problems with reading comprehension, but his listening skills are very good. If its read to him he can answer with no problem. Kinda of strange to think Killian has good listening skills, but this lets me in on the fact that he does understand when asked to do something. Although he would have me believe he doesn't.

I also noticed that Lotus is struggling with her reading comprehension, but her listening skills seem to be a bigger hurdle for her. If I read aloud a story to her she has a hard time narrating it back to me. Mostly this only seems to be a problem when it comes to literary reading.

I also have noticed Lotus making the same spelling mistakes. (i.e. silent e, th, changing y to ies in past tense form & y that makes the e sound at the end of a word). Killian however does wonderfully with his spelling, but his sentence structure needs to be worked on.

Already today I taught Lotus some skills when reading textual info, but I plan on using some methods to improve her listening skills which should also help with her reading comprehension. We used some of them while listening to the reading of "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" today.