First Day NOT Back to School

I actually did it, I've been thinking about it for so long and it finally happened.  My kids woke up on the first day of school and....we didn't have to go anywhere.  We parked ourselves in our dining room and did a full days work of homeschooling.  It went pretty smoothly for the first day, I got to experience first hand how my kids SOAK up knowledge!  I was super boring, I focused on the basics, and yet they were awesome with it all.  I really hope this is the precursor to how life will be.  I know we will have our ups and downs, but for the majority I would love to have more days like this than the other way around.  We had Art today and for our lesson we did First Day of School photos.  We were going all over the yard trying to find the right lighting, we tried different positions until we could get a semi-professional pose.  It was so funny how much Miriam was getting into it, before I could say anything to the person I was taking the picture of she was behind me saying, "Straighten your back, pull your shoulders down, drop your chin...etc."  It was awesome!  I think I got some pretty good pictures, and here they are:

 Of course I couldn't leave Charlotte out, and yes, she is running around in the street in her pj's.

To celebrate our first NOT back to school day we ate dinner al fresco!  I absolutely LOVE when the weather is nice and we can eat outside.  The lights are a bonus.  The kids truly felt special and I was filled with love for each of these beautiful spirits Heavenly Father has trusted me with.  I can only hope and pray that He will give me the continued guidance to be the teacher He wants me to be, and the teacher that they need for many years to come!

A Birthday to Remember

Even though Hannah turned the big 5 last week, we finally were able to have her party last night.  She has been talking up Chuck E. Cheese for the past year!  I can't tell you how much I hate this place; video games, children running a muck, a giant rodent...but since my kids are limited to which birthdays they actually get a big party (1, 5, 8, 10, 13, 16) I was acquiesced to oblige.  I was, however, impressed with all that was included in the party package.  And also since that meant I didn't have to entertain or clean up after the party, Chuck E. Cheese has earned a gold star in my book.  That has not changed my mind what so ever to quickly saying 'No!' when Hannah asked this morning if we could go back today.  LOL!  Here are some pics from the evenings festivities:

She got a cool crown, that she wore the entire time.  It had 8 extra tokens, and she used every single one!

Miriam's duck face

Hannah's friend Elsa playing air hockey with her Dad.

Elsa's brother just chillin' with Chuck.

Charlotte has quite the throwing arm, she got at least two balls in the other lane, LOL!

The party crew getting ready for the show.

This was a bonus in  my book, I knew the mouse would come out for pictures, but what I didn't expect is that he was going to come party with us.

Hannah with her cake, and I feel I have some 'spaining to do.  When I asked her what kind of cake she wanted me to make, she said she wanted a Chuck E. Cheese cake because she "Wants to know what they taste like."  "Well, you are the birthday girl." I replied through gritted teeth.  It was good enough, and at least I didn't have to do the cleaning up afterwards...see! no bitterness here...

Rocking out on her awesome balloon guitar!

A cool medallion, which is hanging right up with Theo's and mine's running medallions.  Hey, it's a great achievement to make it to 5!

Blowing out the candles

Dance off with Chuck!

Time for poses!!

Charlotte has got to be my only child who hounds these fuzzy ginormous abnormal animal costumed people.  I thought Chuck E. was going to have to file a restraining order against her.  Here she photo bombed another little friend of Hannah's who was trying to get her photo with him. *Sigh* Sorry Lexi, she has issues!

This was another bonus, they have this Ticket Blaster that she got to stand in and the tickets swirled around as she tried to catch as many as she could.  I was feeling anxiety that she wasn't getting many, (I think she ended up with around 8, and that was with 3 stuck in her hair) I was afraid that she would be bummed that she didn't get many.  But there was a catch, this was just for show and she actually got 1,000 tickets afterwards! Phew!

Opening presents!

I think she fared well, two games, a My Little Pony plush doll with white glitter polish.  I didn't mention that we got her the My Little Pony castle with Princess Cadence and Shining Armor wedding set for her birthday last week.  Polish was the first thing to go on when we got home last night, she slept with Twilight Sparkle and this morning she couldn't wait to play her new games with her sisters!

She's telling her friends thanks for the gifts, Lilia is in the background and the little boy is Josh.  We had a really good turnout, plus it helps to have a big family so just in case there really aren't a lot of kids we give the illusion of a big party!  She had a blast and was so happy her friends could be there to enjoy it with her.

Thanks Chuck E.!!  You have redeemed yourself in my book.  See you in a few years...at least...hopefully...

Reinvention of the Wheel

With the start of homeschooling my kids I wanted them to get used to doing work around the house.  Before I had divided the chores by days for myself and did the work while the kids were at school, but then what ended up happening is that I was doing ALL the work.  With my kids being exhausted after 8 hrs of sitting in school, piano, sports, Boy and Girl Scouts...we just didn't have time to enforce any chore activities.  So the first thing I wanted to do this summer was get my kids used to doing chores.  I came up with 2 chores to do everyday; dishes and laundry, and then added 2 chores that would alternate; vacuum and kitty litter and then 1 chore that needs to be done only once a week; dusting, windows, bathroom, clean microwave and fridge, and wipe down floor boards.  (Once Charlotte gets old enough to be assigned a chore I'll have to modify it, until then she's my little helper.) 
I had seen these job wheels before, but I wasn't sure at first how to even make it fit all 4 of my kids. The versions I'd seen had the names on the outside and the same chores everyday that would just rotate through the names.  But because of my weekly chores, alternating chores and daily chores I found it harder to get it organized.  Finally I realized that I needed to put the names on the inside on a smaller wheel to go around instead of vice versa. 
I thought I was even pretty clever with the icons I drew on the wheel, this way even my little who can't read yet will know what their chore is, and they are really cute if I do say so myself. 
I have encountered an odd twist to the chores that I wasn't expecting...apparently all the kids prefer the kitty litter chore and will even bargain with one another so they can get it.  I know why they want to do it, it's because it's the fastest chore!  If it's not a kitty litter day they will try to trade and bargain to get what chore they want.  I had to put a stop to that because it was just leading to fights and me referee-ing WAY more than I wanted to.  The whole point to creating this wheel was that I wouldn't have to deal with the whining and bickering over chores.  But now that I have laid down the No Bargaining Law that put a stop to that.
I'd have to say that I'm loving this idea and I just get all giddy when the kids run to the wheel to see their chore just so they can do it and get it over with without any extra thought on my part.  Love it!

To Home School or Not To Home School

That is the question...

I have done a 180 in my thinking as a parent.  Maybe it had something to do with the fact that Tobie is inching closer and closer to my height, (not hard to do with my 5'2" frame, but still) or the fact that my little buddy, Hannah will be starting Kindergarten this fall or maybe the rash of scary public events.... Whatever it is my thinking has changed and I want my kids around me.

I used to say I had kids at an early age and had them all close in age so that I will still be young when my youngest is old enough to be kicked out of the house, which I think is still a good plan, but what I'm realizing is that is going to be sooner than later.  All the hard nights of baby feedings are over, my older kids are getting more and more independent therefore demanding less of me physically.  I'm a year away from not having to change anymore diapers, after 12 straight years of changing diapers it is finally coming to an end.  But instead of celebrating and counting down the days when I can send the baby out the door to public school I find myself missing my children and dreading the day when the younger two will be out of the house.

I've been doing a lot of research lately into it, and I've been talking to my friends that homeschool.  I've joined some local homeschool groups trying to make local connections for support.  But I still can't seem to make a definitive decision to actually keep them home.  I know it stems from being afraid that I won't be able to do it.  Will I be able to keep up with my 6th graders school work?  Can I teach him the math skills he needs?  Will it be stimulating enough for my 3rd grader who already devours books and has found a love with the piano?  Will my new Kindergartener have fun and will I be able to teach her the fundamentals of reading?  And then there's Emma, my soon to be 1st grader.  She's having some issues that has sparked several teacher/parent conferences.

She's really good in class, her conduct can't be criticized although I wish she would act that way at home.  Her teacher tells me that she seems to have good comprehension and math is one of her favorite subjects.  But for some reason she is unable to retain letter names and sounds, she even turns around, saying POT instead of TOP.  I suspect dyslexia, but in the last month or so she seems to be coming around and starting to read much better.  I think she may be starting to get the hang of it, so it leads me to believe that she is just learning at a different pace than her peers.  But the other challenge with her is her explosive tantrums.  She is constantly combative with Theo and I.  For example, the other night we got 3 different flavors of Italian Ice from Rita's but we told the kids they only get one flavor.  The other kids accepted that, but Emma flipped!  She was rolling on the floor screaming, so I sent her to her room where she continued her ranting.  This is normal behavior for her which is why I'm nervous about having her home for school.  Wednesday I had another meeting with the teacher, teacher aid, Counselor, Nurse and another Teachers aid that I'm not really sure why she was in there.  I started sharing my tantrum woes with Emma, and the ladies started to give me advice, which I understand they are just trying to help, but most of their advice was stuff I already had heard of and tried.  I had mentioned to her teacher I was contemplating home school, so she asks me in front of the other ladies if I was still considering it.  I told her I was and that set the other teachers off asking 'why?'.  I told them we are just too stressed!  We get up in the morning and I rush my sleep deprived kids out the door, then the next time I see them we are rushing around to piano, sports, girl scouts and boy scouts.  I feel like the time I spend with my kids is rushed and stressed.  The nurse just seemed flabbergasted and was like, "Why don't you just cut back on after school activities?" and I feel why do I have to sacrifice the fun stuff that my kids WANT to do?  They love those after school activities, what I need to cut out is the time spent at school!  Then they asked, "Do you think Emma will listen to you at home?".  I felt insulted, yes she is difficult and we clash, but I'm her mother, she will listen to me!  It sounded like they were insinuating that she only listens to them.  Then I had a little epiphany, they used the phrase, "she's trying to get your attention" a lot and I realized that she only gets stressed out Mommy.  I'm stressed when I send her to school, and I'm stressed in the evening and all she wants is my time.  But while they are in school I have NO time!  But if I keep them home I can be the one to teach them and nurture them in a stress free zone.

I'm feeling committed to the idea now thanks to this meeting, even a little excited about the idea.  I really hope that I will be able to do this, I know it will be hard and a lot of work, but I want to spend more time with my kids.  Everyone tells me to cherish this time because it goes by so fast, I don't want to miss my kids' childhood because we were too busy with school.  If it doesn't work out I can always send them back to school and we will have to find other ways to de-stress, but if I don't at least give this a try I'm going to be always wondering what if.  Pray for me guys!  

Ikner Thanksgiving Thankful Tree

 Tonight we had FHE.  I had seen an idea on Pinterest to make a Thanksgiving thankful tree that they mounted on the wall and added leaves with things the kids were thankful for each day leading up to Thanksgiving.  By the end of the month you would have a tree full of leaves all with things the family says they are thankful for.  It's a great idea, but for someone who is steered by instant gratification that just seemed a little drawn out for me.  Instead I got the idea to do the tree and use everyone's hands as the leaves, the idea is to keep the tree displayed all year round, then next year make a new one and compare to the last years.  Over the years we can see the kids growing through their hand prints.  They loved the idea of tracing, cutting out their hands.  It will be fun to see how big their hands get next year!  Here is what was written on the hands:
Charlotte:  Binky, Special Blanket
Hannah: Friends and Family, Sisters and Brother
Emma: Family, Grandparents
Miriam: Family, Mom and Dad
Tobie: Video games, Legos, Internet, Mom and Dad
Kara: Happy Children, A Wonderful Husband
Theo: Family, Scriptures

Then we ended the night with some hot chocolate with marshmallows.  All in all, a good night with minimal yelling at the kids to be quiet and stop beating each other up. Success!

Accountability Project Day 9:

Pre-Breakfast:
1 cup warm water with lemon and honey
1 cup water with White Flood
Breakfast:
1/2 Grapefruit
Activia
Lunch:
Chicken and Cabbage
Post Workout:
1 cup Coconut milk
1 scoop Whey Protein
Snack:
1/2 Grapefruit
Choffy with Truvia and FF creamer
Dinner:
Taco salad (minus the taco part)
Diet Soda

Workout Routine:
5 mile run

Mommy Truths

I love these ecards on Pinterest.  This is so true.  Just yesterday Charlotte screamed and cried and threw herself on the top of the toilet lid, (good thing it was closed) just because she wanted to get in with me. 

Except I don't even have the luxury of closing the door for some peace, the genius that installed the bathroom door put the door catch on backwards, so the door won't close properly. 

Yay me...

Tobie the Zombie

Summer has started which is Halo Heaven for Tobie! We make him earn time by doing chores, and each chore is only worth 30 minutes of play time. Anything from practicing his piano to scrubbing the bathroom, and he will do it all without any complaint if it means he gets his Halo fix.

It just might be Halo Heaven for me to. =)

The Power of Moms

I have been meaning to post THIS ARTICLE for some time, I can totally relate to this. I love Pinterest and I've been a blogger for years. But I guess the constant stream of other peoples accomplishments has started to take its toll.

Many nights I have had that same conversation as this lady with Theo. I have felt inadequate as a Mother and Wife. Was I doing enough? That was the constant question on my mind. Several times Theo has tried to convince me that I am enough, and that is all they need. But I didn't really believe him, I didn't think he really felt the pressure of being a good mother. Not until I read it from another mother's perspective did I realize that I am not alone, and I need to stop trying to do MORE, I just need to be me.

Miriam and Boys

When this little beauty started Kindergarten I just knew she wasn't going to have any trouble academically. Some people say they can't believe how fast their kids grow and start school. Not with Miriam, she has been school ready 2 years before Kindergarten. When it finally came time for her to start it was such a feeling of relief and not just by me, but by her.

What I wasn't ready for was the little boy crushes. Oh, not from her, but apparently this little girl is quite popular with the boys. She has them buying her ice cream on Fridays, and others giving her their juice boxes at snack time. Then there was this one little guy who dared to make her HIS girlfriend! She came home and told me all about it, very matter-of-factly, not in a boy crazy giddy way. Thank goodness! I informed her that she can't have a boyfriend until she turns 16. My little Miss Rule Keeper took this news in stride. If it's a rule, she will abide. She lives for rules and structure. That's just how she thinks. (For now anyway, right!?)

So the next day when I picked her up from school I asked her if she broke it off with what's-his-name. She confidently answers:

"Yep, I told him he wasn't old enough for me yet."

Oh, geez! Well, at least she got half of the concept right.

A Successful Family Home Evening

Our FHE was on teamwork.

Lesson Not Learned

Tobie is starting a new phase in life. The annoying disobedient, defiant, back talking snotty phase. I loose my cool on a daily basis due to his sarcastic quips and hissy fits. Last night I thought I had the opportunity of a lifetime to teach him the important lesson that you better come when Mama calls you.

We had our quarterly Relief Society Meeting last night. It was really good overall, even though I have started fighting a really bad head cold and Theo was out of town for the evening which means I had to bring the kiddies with me.

When our evening was over and it was time to head home I started rounding up the kids. I say it all the time, but trying to get your kids to do what you ask all at the same time is like herding cats. They always go in different directions. I'm usually pretty good about getting them under control and out the door in a timely manner...usually. Last night I had all my girls ready and waiting, but where was Tobie?

He was running around the church all sweaty and yelling like a lunatic. I hollered at him to get in the car, that we were leaving. So he does the obvious thing and runs into the Primary room and shuts the door, still screaming like a madman. I sent Miriam down the hall to tell him to get a move on. She tells him several times to come until finally I tell her to just leave him and lets go.

I get the girls all strapped in the car and we wait....and wait....and wait. I came up with an idea to move my car so when he DID come out he wouldn't see the car and freak out a little. So I move the car and wait....and wait...and wait. Still no Tobie.

Then I got an even better idea, I'm going to leave him for real! Of course I wouldn't leave him without a way home, so I pull up to the door and a Sister was coming out who just happens to pass my neighborhood on her way home. I stage the scene telling her to go talk to him and let him know that she just saw me pull out of the parking lot, but not letting him know that I set him up a ride home. I pull out with my girls feeling very proud of myself for thinking of such a grand scheme that would certainly teach this boy a lesson.

I got home, get the girls out and wait for this Sister to bring him home. They finally arrive. I'm expecting red puffy eyes filled with tears and a heart full of repentance. Instead I find a nonchalant boy who thought it was cool to ride home in this Sister's front seat because she is able to turn off the airbag. *SIGH*

She told me when she went to get him and told him that I had left, she asked him didn't his mother tell him to get in the car? His response...."No, she didn't tell me even once!".