Finally Getting Caught Up
Things have been so crazy lately, with all of the things that have had to be done. Now that I finally have had a moment to sit down and relax for a minute, I thought I'd write a post about what has been going on! 
A really nice friend of mine, April, who is a fantastic artist (see her website here), wanted to help our city in some way after having seen the destruction the tornadoes caused. She set up a group called "We CAN" (Care about America's Needs), and within one month was able to raise $300.00 to go towards care packages for those affected by the storm! (they are right now collecting funds for Joplin).
She sent the money to me on May 28th, so I took the kids with me and we went to the dollar store and bought 50 sticks of deodorant, 50 bottles of toothpaste, 50 bars of soap, 50 bandaid packages, and 50 shampoos, 50 razors, and we put them into individual bags, and took them to "Connecting Cullman", which is a volunteer group which is distributing goods to those who need it.
Here are Bonnie and Ian, when we were at the checkout lane with all of the goods. The kids absolutely LOVED getting all of the items and putting them in the shopping cart. They couldn't believe they were allowed to just pull so many things off the shelves and put them in. It was like an adventure for them.
Noah was insistent that he be the only person to help me bag the items. He thought it was so much fun, and did a really good job! He and Bonnie wrote little notes to put inside the bag- they said things like, "God loves you", and "Have a great day!"
This wasn't all that we used- there was also a friend of mine whose close relative owns a toothbrush company- she generously sent me 123 toothbrushes, and some dental flosses! So we put them in the bags as well!
On another subject, we have been using Switched on Schoolhouse for Caleb's schooling for the last week or two. I have to tell you- it is a life saver!! I am one of the least organized people you will ever find, which makes this perfect for me. SOS keeps track of your child's attendance, lets you set up your school year and then automatically adjusts your calendar the way you want it and gives the children assignments each day. You can login to the teacher account to see how much time it takes them to do each assignment, plus you can see their grades, and you know when you need to grade something yourself (things such as essays, the teacher needs to grade on her own). I am notified every time Caleb completes a quiz or exam. It is SO easy and Caleb has really enjoyed the program so far.
On the lessons, the child can choose to read to themselves, or there is an option to let a teacher read it to you (a recording), and there are games and other activities that help keep it fun and not dry. Another thing I like about it is that you can buy the curriculum according to your child's needs- I bought all subjects for Caleb in 7th grade level except for his math, which was Algebra 2. This was perfect for us!
We bought Bonnie's set of CD's and it just came in yesterday...so she'll be starting with this program tomorrow. I am looking forward to using it with her too. I only wish that Switched on Schoolhouse had this curriculum for younger grades- it starts at grade 3, so Noah will have to wait before he can move on to this program.
In other news, here are some art projects I've worked on lately. I unfortunately haven't taken pictures of everything I've done (hard to remember to take the pictures sometimes!) but these are a few:
This was a portrait done for the same friend who donated the toothbrushes for tornado victims. These are her beautiful children. This drawing is a 14" x 17".
This portrait was to be completed for Father's Day. I finished it two nights ago just in the nick of time!
And yesterday, I painted this mural for a local Crisis Pregnancy Center. I think this looks really neat and I might have to do something similar in our own house!
As you can see, my tummy is pretty big now! I am going to be 31 weeks tomorrow! How time flies...really, it seems like every day another week has passed!
Anyway, these are some of the things we've been up to lately. Have a wonderful Father's day!!!
A really nice friend of mine, April, who is a fantastic artist (see her website here), wanted to help our city in some way after having seen the destruction the tornadoes caused. She set up a group called "We CAN" (Care about America's Needs), and within one month was able to raise $300.00 to go towards care packages for those affected by the storm! (they are right now collecting funds for Joplin).
She sent the money to me on May 28th, so I took the kids with me and we went to the dollar store and bought 50 sticks of deodorant, 50 bottles of toothpaste, 50 bars of soap, 50 bandaid packages, and 50 shampoos, 50 razors, and we put them into individual bags, and took them to "Connecting Cullman", which is a volunteer group which is distributing goods to those who need it.
Here are Bonnie and Ian, when we were at the checkout lane with all of the goods. The kids absolutely LOVED getting all of the items and putting them in the shopping cart. They couldn't believe they were allowed to just pull so many things off the shelves and put them in. It was like an adventure for them.
Noah was insistent that he be the only person to help me bag the items. He thought it was so much fun, and did a really good job! He and Bonnie wrote little notes to put inside the bag- they said things like, "God loves you", and "Have a great day!"
This wasn't all that we used- there was also a friend of mine whose close relative owns a toothbrush company- she generously sent me 123 toothbrushes, and some dental flosses! So we put them in the bags as well!
On another subject, we have been using Switched on Schoolhouse for Caleb's schooling for the last week or two. I have to tell you- it is a life saver!! I am one of the least organized people you will ever find, which makes this perfect for me. SOS keeps track of your child's attendance, lets you set up your school year and then automatically adjusts your calendar the way you want it and gives the children assignments each day. You can login to the teacher account to see how much time it takes them to do each assignment, plus you can see their grades, and you know when you need to grade something yourself (things such as essays, the teacher needs to grade on her own). I am notified every time Caleb completes a quiz or exam. It is SO easy and Caleb has really enjoyed the program so far.
On the lessons, the child can choose to read to themselves, or there is an option to let a teacher read it to you (a recording), and there are games and other activities that help keep it fun and not dry. Another thing I like about it is that you can buy the curriculum according to your child's needs- I bought all subjects for Caleb in 7th grade level except for his math, which was Algebra 2. This was perfect for us!
We bought Bonnie's set of CD's and it just came in yesterday...so she'll be starting with this program tomorrow. I am looking forward to using it with her too. I only wish that Switched on Schoolhouse had this curriculum for younger grades- it starts at grade 3, so Noah will have to wait before he can move on to this program.
In other news, here are some art projects I've worked on lately. I unfortunately haven't taken pictures of everything I've done (hard to remember to take the pictures sometimes!) but these are a few:
This was a portrait done for the same friend who donated the toothbrushes for tornado victims. These are her beautiful children.
This drawing is a 14" x 17". This portrait was to be completed for Father's Day. I finished it two nights ago just in the nick of time!
And yesterday, I painted this mural for a local Crisis Pregnancy Center. I think this looks really neat and I might have to do something similar in our own house!
As you can see, my tummy is pretty big now! I am going to be 31 weeks tomorrow! How time flies...really, it seems like every day another week has passed!
Anyway, these are some of the things we've been up to lately. Have a wonderful Father's day!!!
Posted by Bethany at 6/12/2011 7:36 AM 
Categories: My kids and the cute things they say and do, Pregnancy, pregnancy, Cute things my kids say and do, Homeschooling, Random Thoughts, homeschooling, Parenting, murals, my kids and the cute things they say and do, Family, Drawings, Murals, Art
Categories: My kids and the cute things they say and do, Pregnancy, pregnancy, Cute things my kids say and do, Homeschooling, Random Thoughts, homeschooling, Parenting, murals, my kids and the cute things they say and do, Family, Drawings, Murals, Art
I've been wondering how you guys were! Thanks for the update!
BTW... Father's Day is next Sunday.
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Ha too funny! I have been thinking for the last month it was going to be on the 12th! I just found out today when I went to church that it wasn't till next week! I guess I did get that portrait there in time for sure. Hurray~!
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Hi. Thanks for the update. I couldn't help be notice you said that Caleb is 10 and starting 7th lessons??? Wow that's advance. My 9 yo is public school and starting 4th grade in the fall. Does homeschooling have age levels or do you keep going after one level is done?
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Thanks for the kind words, Fran! He is actually 11 now (will turn 12 in January 2012). We homeschool year round, so they don't get a summer off, never have. Once they finish one grade level, they move right on to the next one immediately. Caleb is in 7th for everything except math in which he is doing Algebra 2. That's what I love about homeschool...that it is so flexible and kids can learn at their own pace. They don't have to be at any certain grade at any particular time. See, Bonnie is still in 3rd grade level, and is almost 10. She doesn't learn as the same pace Caleb does. I love Switched on Schoolhouse...it has saved me so much hassle and frustration!
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