Happy 4th Of July To All My USA Readers

Found this fun activity on the Focus On The Family page, going to work on this once my teenager wakes up...lol...not sure when that will be...

Worried About Socialization In Your Homeschool?

Thinking of homeschooling your only child? Or many you have more than 1 and you worry about socialization, read on....
When we first started home educating 6 years ago (has it REALLY been that long?) I worried and worried about socialization. Now as my dear homeschooling friend Christine says "My kids don't know a stranger!" I would totally agree. Even with our son being an only child, he is chatty, bubbly and full of all sorts of chatter. He is able to converse with toddlers, little kids, elementary & junior high kids, high school & college students, grown adults, the elderly and so many more types of people. His pediatrician and him discuss gardening and their love of sauteed zucchini, garlic and olive oil...lol. Yes, my son and his doctor sit around and discuss the finer things in life during his well checkups. He gets lot of comments on his phone etiquette and how he handles himself in various social situations. I think that comes from him being in many different situations throughout the day.

He does struggle to understand how other kids around him that are in the "school" setting are embarrassed to answer questions, say "I don't know" & "I dunno" all the time, are embarrassed to get up and speak or afraid to speak up about things. So he does see a difference in himself and other kids, but is this really a bad thing? Our son has been interviewed on radio & TV, he has written newspaper articles as well as being interviewed by newspapers. He has given many different types of speeches to a variety of audience ages, he has done piano recitals and played piano at church. Yes he has flopped at times, but has used those as learning experiences. He figures that he is young and learning. What a blessing to not be bummed out, but to think on "How can I do this better next time, what would I change or how can I use this experience to further my learning?"
HipHomeSchoolMoms has a pretty HIP article on socialization and the only child. Check it out before the new school year starts.

Have you socialized your child today?

 

Homeschool Mom Treat

I like to find myself some sort of small treat to perk me up through the school year. Last month while in Indiana I found the perfect back to school goody for myself.  We were at the container store when I found these little gems.

They are called Magnetic Dry Erase Talk Bubbles and they retail for $6.99. You can get them right here Magnetic Dry Erase Talk Bubbles. So very cute!! LOVE THEM! I have been writing chores on them for our son. They have perked up my day. See what they can do for you.

Love homeschool science "Solar S'mores"

It's so HOT that we are making smores in the sunshine!  A fun science experiment that brings in weather & climate, cause & effect, observation skills and some fun summer time memories. Nothing like schooling year round, it doesn't even feel like school!

Try something fun with your child today.

Happy Summer.

Moe



Pantry Challenge January Round Up

Let me count the ways that I bombed this past month in the Pantry Challenge.....lol. But I had fun and hope you did too.

For starters DO NOT EVER shop for groceries after being under anesthetic..lol. I felt so well after my upper and lower scopes that we decided to shop at Meijers (remember I love that place!), I wandered through and blew a cool $50 some odd dollars, can't find the receipt now. Got some wonderful produce (did I ever tell you how I just love Meijers produce? I think it's the lighting!).
My dear husband pushed the cart dutifully up and down the isles for me as I plucked things off the shelf (who knows what!) and dropped them into the cart. What on earth was I thinking? That is right I was not in my right mind and what did that paper say that I signed before surgery? "I will not make any financial decisions for 24 hours." I wonder now, does grocery shopping fall under that category? I think so! That brings me up to $122.09 for the month.

Then another $49.56 at the local grocery store this was sort of a woe is me shopping trip, I had to do the prep for my upper/lower scopes (drink the nasty stuff to clean your insides out) and I wanted to treat myself, so I bought my favorite soda Canada Dry, my favorite kool-aid drink TANG, the good ice pops (not those nasty cheap watered down ice pops......lol). Since I knew once the tests were done I would be back on a gluten free diet, I got some Lenders Bagels and Thomason English Muffins, no generics for me on those! I also bought the good juices to drink during my prep time, nothing like Welches White Grape Juice $4.50 a bottle and Mango Peach Juice. Those items added up very quickly. $171.65 for the month.

Then on 1/30/12 I ran to the store real quick like for milk & chicken (remember I did not want to butcher our laying hens so I had to buy chicken)........that cost me $23.76.
They had milk on sale for $1.50 so bought a few of those,
Cannelli Beans on sale for $1.00 a can, I stocked up on those since I can sneak them into a lot of things..lol
Tyson Chicken was on sale for $1.99 lb.

January 2012 cost us $195.41 for three people, doing homeschool math that comes to an average of $65.14 per person for a month or an average of $48.85 per week. I was hoping for less, but I know that I could have done without the $50 bucks spent on surgery day, I am still kicking myself for that one! I am thankful for what I saved and did not spend with being gluten and dairy free, I could have spent a lot more $$ on fancy products.

How is your February going on the pantry challenge? I am going to just keep on going with it and see where it leads me. Remember if you are not gluten free or dairy free you can still use my recipes (comment if you have questions about them), just use whole wheat or white flour and regular dairy and butter in the recipes.

If you are new around here we are having a Pantry Challenge, here is how it works.........It's easy, before you head to the grocery store, shop your freezer, refrigerator and cabinets to see what you can use up. For the first 3 weeks I try to only buy milk, butter and bread, since I usually have an abundance of canned fruits and veggies on hand. If you don't have chickens you may need to buy eggs :-p Make a family game out of this, let the kids pick some can goodies from the cabinet, find some meat in the freezer and go from there.
Moe