Nights 3 and 4, were worse than nights 1 and 2 :(
Night 3 (Sunday night), Sage woke up at 11:30pm, and 3:30am. Both times, I fed her on one side, and put her back to bed. Both times she went right back to sleep. Good on the going back to sleep part, bad on the waking up twice part.
Night 4 (Monday night), Sage woke up at 10:30pm, 1:45am, and 4:30am. Do you see the getting worse part?? She woke up THREE times last night! :( Again, all three times, I fed her on one side, and put her back to bed, and she went right back to sleep.
SO, I am thinking I am going to have to add another week into my "night weaning" plan, that will consist of nursing when she wakes, but only for 2 minutes. I really don't want to cut her off cold turkey by just stopping the feedings, but it doesn't really seem like only feeding her on one side is making a difference, so I will have to try something in between!
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
First Day of Homeschooling!!! :)
Today was our first day of Homeschooling! :)
Jade was up and dressed by 7am, ready to get started! lol! She was a little disappointed when I told her we weren't starting for another 2 hours - I needed time to get everyone else up and dressed, everyone fed, and Sage down for a nap!
So just before 9am, I got Sage down for a nap, and I got everyone else to the table to get started!
Jade started with Spelling, and the triplets started with a worksheet on the colour purple (we have been working a bit on colours over the summer, and purple was where we left off). The triplets then each did a worksheet on the letter A and the number 0. By the time we were done all of that, we were 40 minutes in, and the triplets were getting restless. I realized how long they had been sitting and working for (I was AMAZED that they lasted that long!!), so I told them they were done, and sent them downstairs to play.
***I DID have more stuff planned for them to do, but I realized that I planned too much for them, so I will have to revise my plans!***
Next, Jade moved onto Math. This proved to be a bit of a struggle, and was the main reason things took so much longer than I thought they would. You see, when I picked a Math curriculum for Jade, I picked one that is on the more advanced end. But when I started looking though it, I realized that there is quite a gap in what Jade was taught in school last year, and what she is expected to already know (aka - what she should have been taught last year) for this curriculum. But we plugged away at it, and got it done! She quickly did her cursive writing, and by that time it was 11:30am, so we decided to take a break and have lunch.
We finished up lunch, got Sage down for another nap (she slept for an hour and a half in the morning), and started on Jade's Little House stuff. After another 1.5 hours, we were done!
Poor Jade started to get a headache during Math, and despite giving her Advil, it turned into a migraine by mid-afternoon, so that kind of put a damper on things :(
Overall things went well, although it DID take longer than I thought it would, a LOT longer! It took 4 working hours to get *almost* everything done, as opposed to the 2 hours that I thought it would take. BUT, it WAS only our first day, so I am sure as we get into the groove of things a bit more, things will take a bit less time.
Jade's stuff :)
The triplet's stuff :)
Pencil Cake #1
Pencil Cake #2
I made pencil cakes to celebrate our first day of school! (I got the idea from another homeschooling mom's blog!)
Jade's "first day of Grade 3" picture!
Cole's "first day of Preschool" picture!
Kadance's "first day of Preschool" picture!
Hayden's "first day of Preschool" picture!
Sage's "I'm just so damn cute Mommy had to take a picture of me too" picture!
The Fab Five ♥
Everyone's work for the week
Kady working ♥
Jade working ♥
Jade was up and dressed by 7am, ready to get started! lol! She was a little disappointed when I told her we weren't starting for another 2 hours - I needed time to get everyone else up and dressed, everyone fed, and Sage down for a nap!
So just before 9am, I got Sage down for a nap, and I got everyone else to the table to get started!
Jade started with Spelling, and the triplets started with a worksheet on the colour purple (we have been working a bit on colours over the summer, and purple was where we left off). The triplets then each did a worksheet on the letter A and the number 0. By the time we were done all of that, we were 40 minutes in, and the triplets were getting restless. I realized how long they had been sitting and working for (I was AMAZED that they lasted that long!!), so I told them they were done, and sent them downstairs to play.
***I DID have more stuff planned for them to do, but I realized that I planned too much for them, so I will have to revise my plans!***
Next, Jade moved onto Math. This proved to be a bit of a struggle, and was the main reason things took so much longer than I thought they would. You see, when I picked a Math curriculum for Jade, I picked one that is on the more advanced end. But when I started looking though it, I realized that there is quite a gap in what Jade was taught in school last year, and what she is expected to already know (aka - what she should have been taught last year) for this curriculum. But we plugged away at it, and got it done! She quickly did her cursive writing, and by that time it was 11:30am, so we decided to take a break and have lunch.
We finished up lunch, got Sage down for another nap (she slept for an hour and a half in the morning), and started on Jade's Little House stuff. After another 1.5 hours, we were done!
Poor Jade started to get a headache during Math, and despite giving her Advil, it turned into a migraine by mid-afternoon, so that kind of put a damper on things :(
Overall things went well, although it DID take longer than I thought it would, a LOT longer! It took 4 working hours to get *almost* everything done, as opposed to the 2 hours that I thought it would take. BUT, it WAS only our first day, so I am sure as we get into the groove of things a bit more, things will take a bit less time.
Our homeschooing cupboard
Jade's stuff :)
The triplet's stuff :)
Pencil Cake #1
Pencil Cake #2
I made pencil cakes to celebrate our first day of school! (I got the idea from another homeschooling mom's blog!)
Jade's "first day of Grade 3" picture!
Cole's "first day of Preschool" picture!
Kadance's "first day of Preschool" picture!
Hayden's "first day of Preschool" picture!
Sage's "I'm just so damn cute Mommy had to take a picture of me too" picture!
The Fab Five ♥
Everyone's work for the week Kady working ♥
Jade working ♥
Sunday, August 29, 2010
2nd night, and 11 MONTHS OLD!!!
First of all, I CAN NOT BELIEVE my baby is 11 months old!!! :( WHERE has the time gone?!?!
Last night was another good night - actually it was better than the first night! :) Sage didn't wake up until about 2:15am. I fed her on one side, and although she was a bit upset when I didn't feed her on the other side, she didn't cry, just whimpered a bit. I put her back in her crib, and she went right back to sleep!! She didn't get up again until about 6:15am.
I am SO glad the first two nights have gone so well, and I am really hoping that I can get her sleeping through the night again really soon!! :)
Only one more month until my baby is a year old :(
She is growing up and changing SO much lately! Today she started waving, and she is SO close to crawling!! She scoots around on her bum or tummy, and she pushes herself backward, but she can't seem to figure out how to move forwards! lol! I will try to get it on video in the next few days :)
I have decided on a "ladybug" theme for her birthday! I am really excited, and have been busy making plans :)
Tomorrow we are starting homeschooling, so watch for a "first day of school" post!! :)
Last night was another good night - actually it was better than the first night! :) Sage didn't wake up until about 2:15am. I fed her on one side, and although she was a bit upset when I didn't feed her on the other side, she didn't cry, just whimpered a bit. I put her back in her crib, and she went right back to sleep!! She didn't get up again until about 6:15am.
I am SO glad the first two nights have gone so well, and I am really hoping that I can get her sleeping through the night again really soon!! :)
Only one more month until my baby is a year old :(
She is growing up and changing SO much lately! Today she started waving, and she is SO close to crawling!! She scoots around on her bum or tummy, and she pushes herself backward, but she can't seem to figure out how to move forwards! lol! I will try to get it on video in the next few days :)
I have decided on a "ladybug" theme for her birthday! I am really excited, and have been busy making plans :)
Tomorrow we are starting homeschooling, so watch for a "first day of school" post!! :)
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Time for an Intervention!!
I've decided that it's time to get Sage sleeping through the night!!
If you remember, I thought I had it good, way back when she was 2 months old, and started sleeping through the night - 10 to 12 hours - all on her own! But then for some reason, at 4 months she stopped, and she has never gone back to sleeping so good.
For quite a while she was getting up once, typically around 10 or 11pm, nursing, and then sleeping through until 6:30ish. I was okay with that.
But lately, she has been getting up 2-3 times a night, and it is really starting to wear me down!!
She goes to bed around 7pm, and is usually up between 10 and 11pm, then again between 2 and 3am, and then sometimes again between 4:30 and 5:30am. She is usually up for the day around 6:30am.
Sage is almost 11 months old (tomorrow actually!), and I can't even start to think about the weaning process until I have her sleeping through the night.
SO, after seeking advice from a blogging/Facebook friend (Thanks Jennifer!), this is what I have decided to do:
For about a week, whenever Sage wakes up to eat at night, I will nurse her, but ONLY on one side, and then put her back to bed, and let her fuss/cry it out until she falls back asleep. Then, after a week of that, when she wakes up, I will go into her room, soothe her (I haven't decided yet if I will pick her up or not, we will see when the time comes!), but I will NOT nurse her.
I am hoping that after she realizes that she won't be getting fed when she wakes up, that she will stop waking up!
I started last night, and things went about as well as could be expected! I lucked out with the fact that she only woke up once, around12:30am. I got her out of her crib, nursed her on one side, and then got up to put her back into her crib. She was instantly mad, because she still wanted more to eat! I put her in her crib, gave her her soother, and went back to my bed. My plan was to leave her for 10 minutes, and then go back in and comfort her. But by the 10 minute mark, she was only intermittently crying. I didn't want to go in and get her started back up again, so I left her. After about another 10 minutes, she was finally back asleep, so it took a total of about 20 minutes. Not too bad, but I was glad I only had to do it once! lol!
Tonight I will be onto night two, so we will see how it goes! :)
If you remember, I thought I had it good, way back when she was 2 months old, and started sleeping through the night - 10 to 12 hours - all on her own! But then for some reason, at 4 months she stopped, and she has never gone back to sleeping so good.
For quite a while she was getting up once, typically around 10 or 11pm, nursing, and then sleeping through until 6:30ish. I was okay with that.
But lately, she has been getting up 2-3 times a night, and it is really starting to wear me down!!
She goes to bed around 7pm, and is usually up between 10 and 11pm, then again between 2 and 3am, and then sometimes again between 4:30 and 5:30am. She is usually up for the day around 6:30am.
Sage is almost 11 months old (tomorrow actually!), and I can't even start to think about the weaning process until I have her sleeping through the night.
SO, after seeking advice from a blogging/Facebook friend (Thanks Jennifer!), this is what I have decided to do:
For about a week, whenever Sage wakes up to eat at night, I will nurse her, but ONLY on one side, and then put her back to bed, and let her fuss/cry it out until she falls back asleep. Then, after a week of that, when she wakes up, I will go into her room, soothe her (I haven't decided yet if I will pick her up or not, we will see when the time comes!), but I will NOT nurse her.
I am hoping that after she realizes that she won't be getting fed when she wakes up, that she will stop waking up!
I started last night, and things went about as well as could be expected! I lucked out with the fact that she only woke up once, around12:30am. I got her out of her crib, nursed her on one side, and then got up to put her back into her crib. She was instantly mad, because she still wanted more to eat! I put her in her crib, gave her her soother, and went back to my bed. My plan was to leave her for 10 minutes, and then go back in and comfort her. But by the 10 minute mark, she was only intermittently crying. I didn't want to go in and get her started back up again, so I left her. After about another 10 minutes, she was finally back asleep, so it took a total of about 20 minutes. Not too bad, but I was glad I only had to do it once! lol!
Tonight I will be onto night two, so we will see how it goes! :)
Thursday, August 26, 2010
"Baby"
A few days ago, Sage started to really take an interest in Kadance's baby doll. She was examining it, hugging it, and kissing it! ♥
Today she was playing with it again, and when I said "Are you playing with the baby?!" she replied with "Ba ba!"
My sweet baby girl said "Baby"!!! ♥
I think we will have to get her her own baby doll for her up-coming birthday, and maybe next year for her birthday, we can give her a real baby! ;)
Today she was playing with it again, and when I said "Are you playing with the baby?!" she replied with "Ba ba!"
My sweet baby girl said "Baby"!!! ♥
I think we will have to get her her own baby doll for her up-coming birthday, and maybe next year for her birthday, we can give her a real baby! ;)
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
De-cluttering.........again....or still?!
I am on another de-cluttering kick, and this time it has lasted more than a couple of days! lol! I am still convinced that if we can seriously pare down our material possessions, life will be simpler. Less stuff means less to clean, right?!
One of my goals for this school year, is to keep life simple. This includes "stuff", and making sure we have less of it. Somehow we seem to accumulate SO much, and most of it is not needed. SO, this week, I have been working on the kitchen.
One of the reasons I don't really enjoy cooking, is because we have a small kitchen that lacks counter space, pantry space, and cabinet space. So I have been busy clearing out stuff that we really don't use or need. So far I have done the pantry, the top of the fridge, the cabinet above the fridge, and all of the upper cabinets except for the one above the stove.
I figure if I can continue to do a little bit each day, I will eventually get it all done! :)
One of my goals for this school year, is to keep life simple. This includes "stuff", and making sure we have less of it. Somehow we seem to accumulate SO much, and most of it is not needed. SO, this week, I have been working on the kitchen.
One of the reasons I don't really enjoy cooking, is because we have a small kitchen that lacks counter space, pantry space, and cabinet space. So I have been busy clearing out stuff that we really don't use or need. So far I have done the pantry, the top of the fridge, the cabinet above the fridge, and all of the upper cabinets except for the one above the stove.
I figure if I can continue to do a little bit each day, I will eventually get it all done! :)
Friday, August 20, 2010
Nursing ♥
I am enjoying nursing Sage SO much, that I NEVER want to stop! lol!
When Jade was a baby, I planned to nurse her for a year. But around 8 months, she bit me a couple of times, and I decided that was enough of that, and I weaned her.
When I had the triplets, I tried to nurse them, but they were too little, and I didn't have any help during the day, so it was just too hard, and didn't end up working out. I was VERY disappointed.
Being able to nurse was one of my big reasons for wanting another baby. I enjoyed my nursing experience with Jade, and I REALLY wanted to be able to do it again!
When we had Sage, I planned on nursing her for a year. I have REALLY enjoyed nursing her. It is SO convenient (no bottles to warm, or formula to mix - trust me - I did my fair share of that with the triplets!), and it is SO bonding. Nursing enables a closeness that ONLY a mother and baby can have.
I love the way my baby looks lovingly into my eyes while she is nursing. I love the way she covers her eyes with one hand, and plays with her ear with the other, especially when she is tired ♥
I want to clarify, I AM NOT bashing or putting down anyone who chooses not to, or can't nurse. I believe it is a very personal decision, and every mother must do what she feels is right for herself and for her child.
As we are approaching 11 months, I DO NOT feel ready to wean. If I was to be done by a year, we should have already started the process by now. We have not. Sage still nurses around 5 times a day, and usually once at night. I am still totally nursing on demand. I have been trying to get her onto a sippy cup, but it is a slow process. She is JUST starting to eat real food better. So until she can drink out of a sippy cup, and consistently eat real food, I can't even think about weaning her. And I'm okay with that.
So when am I going to wean her? At this point, I don't know. Probably in a few more months. I know at some point I need to let my baby grow up, but I am just not ready yet. Maybe if we get pregnant with another baby it will be easier, but for now, I am going to continue letting my baby be a baby, and continue to enjoy the special bond that only her and I have ♥
...and the way she covers her eyes ♥
When Jade was a baby, I planned to nurse her for a year. But around 8 months, she bit me a couple of times, and I decided that was enough of that, and I weaned her.
When I had the triplets, I tried to nurse them, but they were too little, and I didn't have any help during the day, so it was just too hard, and didn't end up working out. I was VERY disappointed.
Being able to nurse was one of my big reasons for wanting another baby. I enjoyed my nursing experience with Jade, and I REALLY wanted to be able to do it again!
When we had Sage, I planned on nursing her for a year. I have REALLY enjoyed nursing her. It is SO convenient (no bottles to warm, or formula to mix - trust me - I did my fair share of that with the triplets!), and it is SO bonding. Nursing enables a closeness that ONLY a mother and baby can have.
I love the way my baby looks lovingly into my eyes while she is nursing. I love the way she covers her eyes with one hand, and plays with her ear with the other, especially when she is tired ♥
I want to clarify, I AM NOT bashing or putting down anyone who chooses not to, or can't nurse. I believe it is a very personal decision, and every mother must do what she feels is right for herself and for her child.
As we are approaching 11 months, I DO NOT feel ready to wean. If I was to be done by a year, we should have already started the process by now. We have not. Sage still nurses around 5 times a day, and usually once at night. I am still totally nursing on demand. I have been trying to get her onto a sippy cup, but it is a slow process. She is JUST starting to eat real food better. So until she can drink out of a sippy cup, and consistently eat real food, I can't even think about weaning her. And I'm okay with that.
So when am I going to wean her? At this point, I don't know. Probably in a few more months. I know at some point I need to let my baby grow up, but I am just not ready yet. Maybe if we get pregnant with another baby it will be easier, but for now, I am going to continue letting my baby be a baby, and continue to enjoy the special bond that only her and I have ♥
I LOVE the way she plays with her ear ♥...
...and the way she covers her eyes ♥
Thursday, August 19, 2010
FINALLY - another tooth!!
After cutting her first two teeth at 6 months, Sage hasn't had any more teething activity, until now! :)
A week or two ago, I started to see the white under her gum, and then just the other day (Tuesday), I noticed that it had popped through!
I have been SO lucky with all of my kids, that NONE of them have been bad teethers! I literally don't know that Sage has a new tooth until I catch a glimpse of it when I am feeding her, and put my finger in her mouth to see if it is actually through!! I am REALLY hoping that the rest of her teeth come in as easily as the first 3 have! :)
A week or two ago, I started to see the white under her gum, and then just the other day (Tuesday), I noticed that it had popped through!
I have been SO lucky with all of my kids, that NONE of them have been bad teethers! I literally don't know that Sage has a new tooth until I catch a glimpse of it when I am feeding her, and put my finger in her mouth to see if it is actually through!! I am REALLY hoping that the rest of her teeth come in as easily as the first 3 have! :)
(You can see the bit of white on the left side of the picture. In the picture she is upside down, so the tooth is really on the bottom left side of her mouth!)
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Discipline
I will be the first to admit, I slack off when it comes to discipline.
Jade was SUCH a good kid (and an only child for the first 5 years), that I never really had to discipline her. The triplets on the other hand, are a totally different story! lol! Because there are 3 of them the same age, there is a lot more bickering, toy stealing, hitting, bugging, etc, then you would get with 3 kids of different ages. So in reality, I could CONSTANTLY be punishing someone for something. But lets be real, I can't spend my entire day disciplining. I need to "pick my battles" - so to speak! BUT, I tend to let it go a little too far, and let them get away with more than I should.
For a while we were doing a "time out chair", and it was actually working really well. But it was a bit of a pain, because we were using their chairs from the table, so we were constantly moving chairs around, and eventually I just got tired of it, and stopped. Lately we have been trying to just send them to the end of the hall for a time out, but it has NOT been working. They won't stay there, they run away, they peek around the corner, etc.
SO, I have decided to go back to a "time out chair", this time getting specific chairs, that are ONLY to be used for time out. Superstore had the little kid size patio chairs on sale for $4, so yesterday, I picked up 3 of them. I have explained to the kids, that these are going to be our "time out chairs". Whenever they fight, whine, don't listen, etc, they will have to sit in on of the chairs (I got 3 for the times when I need to discipline all of them at once!), for 3 minutes. If they get off the chair before the timer goes off, they will have to start their 3 minutes over again.
I am hoping if we can get back to proper discipline at home, they will stop acting up so much when we are out, where it is harder to discipline them.
Wish me luck! :)
Jade was SUCH a good kid (and an only child for the first 5 years), that I never really had to discipline her. The triplets on the other hand, are a totally different story! lol! Because there are 3 of them the same age, there is a lot more bickering, toy stealing, hitting, bugging, etc, then you would get with 3 kids of different ages. So in reality, I could CONSTANTLY be punishing someone for something. But lets be real, I can't spend my entire day disciplining. I need to "pick my battles" - so to speak! BUT, I tend to let it go a little too far, and let them get away with more than I should.
For a while we were doing a "time out chair", and it was actually working really well. But it was a bit of a pain, because we were using their chairs from the table, so we were constantly moving chairs around, and eventually I just got tired of it, and stopped. Lately we have been trying to just send them to the end of the hall for a time out, but it has NOT been working. They won't stay there, they run away, they peek around the corner, etc.
SO, I have decided to go back to a "time out chair", this time getting specific chairs, that are ONLY to be used for time out. Superstore had the little kid size patio chairs on sale for $4, so yesterday, I picked up 3 of them. I have explained to the kids, that these are going to be our "time out chairs". Whenever they fight, whine, don't listen, etc, they will have to sit in on of the chairs (I got 3 for the times when I need to discipline all of them at once!), for 3 minutes. If they get off the chair before the timer goes off, they will have to start their 3 minutes over again.
I am hoping if we can get back to proper discipline at home, they will stop acting up so much when we are out, where it is harder to discipline them.
Wish me luck! :)
Big Girl Food!
Sage is FINALLY starting to eat big girl food - aka - regular food that we eat!! YAY!!
She has resisted food for SO long, and she has definitely been my most difficult, picky eater!! She WILL NOT eat baby cereal. She didn't start consistently eating baby food (the stage 1 pureed kind) until around 8 or 9 months. Even then, she has been very picky about which flavours she will eat. Only green beans, carrots, sweet potatoes, sweet potatoes with turkey, and any of the banana mixtures. The only other thing she has been eating is multi grain Cheerios, and Gerber puffs. I have tried her many times on the chunkier baby food, but she WILL NOT eat it, so I have given up on it.
I have been trying to get her onto finger foods. She is very picky, and even when it seems she likes something, she will usually really only eat a few bites of it, and then start throwing it on the floor, or stashing it in her highchair!
Finally, last night at dinner, she ate enough "real food" to count as a meal, and she didn't need any baby food after!! Then again, this morning at breakfast, she ate enough blueberry bagel that she didn't need any pureed fruit!!
As she is approaching a year, I have been starting to get a bit panicky about the fact that she really doesn't eat much. I am SO happy that she finally seems to be coming around, and liking more things!!
She has resisted food for SO long, and she has definitely been my most difficult, picky eater!! She WILL NOT eat baby cereal. She didn't start consistently eating baby food (the stage 1 pureed kind) until around 8 or 9 months. Even then, she has been very picky about which flavours she will eat. Only green beans, carrots, sweet potatoes, sweet potatoes with turkey, and any of the banana mixtures. The only other thing she has been eating is multi grain Cheerios, and Gerber puffs. I have tried her many times on the chunkier baby food, but she WILL NOT eat it, so I have given up on it.
I have been trying to get her onto finger foods. She is very picky, and even when it seems she likes something, she will usually really only eat a few bites of it, and then start throwing it on the floor, or stashing it in her highchair!
Finally, last night at dinner, she ate enough "real food" to count as a meal, and she didn't need any baby food after!! Then again, this morning at breakfast, she ate enough blueberry bagel that she didn't need any pureed fruit!!
As she is approaching a year, I have been starting to get a bit panicky about the fact that she really doesn't eat much. I am SO happy that she finally seems to be coming around, and liking more things!!
Monday, August 16, 2010
2 more weeks!!
2 more weeks until we officially start homeschooling!! Public school starts on Tuesday, August 31st. I prefer to start on a Monday, so we are going to be starting on August 30th. I am very excited, and can't wait to get going! :)
I am also a bit nervous, as I have very ambitious plans of how our schedule is going to go. We have been totally laid back all summer, so it is going to be a big change for all the kids (and me too!)
I am planning on having everyone up, fed, dressed, and ready to start school by 9am. 9-11am will be school time. This should be enough time for Jade, but if it's not, we will adjust as needed. For the triplets, I am going to start VERY loosely. I have a bunch of workbooks for them, to start working on numbers, letters, etc. I am planning on doing a bunch of short burst with them to start. So, for example, they might come to the table at 9am, learn the letter A, do an A worksheet, then they might go to the living room and do a puzzle or look at a book, then a little while later, they might come back to the table and do another worksheet, or a craft, or color. I am not going to make them sit at the table and "do school" for two hours. That would never happen! BUT, they will have to do only quiet activities for those two hours, so that Jade can concentrate.
The afternoons will be open for other activities. We are putting all 4 of the older kids into homeschool swimming lessons, and I am going to sign Jade up for homeschool PE, and homeschool Art. I am still trying to decide if I want to sign the triplets up for a gym class or not. We will see.
So, we are pretty much all ready to go! I have our first week all prepped and planned out, and each weekend I will prep and plan for the coming week. I am really looking forward to being able to do what I want/need to do, when it is convenient for me, and NOT having to work around the school schedule!
I am also a bit nervous, as I have very ambitious plans of how our schedule is going to go. We have been totally laid back all summer, so it is going to be a big change for all the kids (and me too!)
I am planning on having everyone up, fed, dressed, and ready to start school by 9am. 9-11am will be school time. This should be enough time for Jade, but if it's not, we will adjust as needed. For the triplets, I am going to start VERY loosely. I have a bunch of workbooks for them, to start working on numbers, letters, etc. I am planning on doing a bunch of short burst with them to start. So, for example, they might come to the table at 9am, learn the letter A, do an A worksheet, then they might go to the living room and do a puzzle or look at a book, then a little while later, they might come back to the table and do another worksheet, or a craft, or color. I am not going to make them sit at the table and "do school" for two hours. That would never happen! BUT, they will have to do only quiet activities for those two hours, so that Jade can concentrate.
The afternoons will be open for other activities. We are putting all 4 of the older kids into homeschool swimming lessons, and I am going to sign Jade up for homeschool PE, and homeschool Art. I am still trying to decide if I want to sign the triplets up for a gym class or not. We will see.
So, we are pretty much all ready to go! I have our first week all prepped and planned out, and each weekend I will prep and plan for the coming week. I am really looking forward to being able to do what I want/need to do, when it is convenient for me, and NOT having to work around the school schedule!
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
YAY Jade!!!
Today, my big girl learned how to ride her bike without training wheels!!!
YES, she is 8 years old, which is kind of old to still have training wheels, but in her/our defense, she has never really shown much interest in riding a bike until this Spring/Summer. In the Spring she started riding quite a bit (as did the triplets!), and we decided our goal was for her to be able to ride without training wheels by the end of the summer! She has been practicing and practicing, riding up and down our street almost every day! This afternoon I was outside watching her, and I noticed that she was totally balancing, and not actually using her training wheels at all! So we got Gairod to take off her training wheels, and off she went - just like that! I am SO proud of her, and she is SO happy! :)
After supper tonight, we got the triplets and Sage to bed, and Jade and Gairod went off on a bike ride! There's no stopping her now!!
Here are some picture as they were leaving:
YES, she is 8 years old, which is kind of old to still have training wheels, but in her/our defense, she has never really shown much interest in riding a bike until this Spring/Summer. In the Spring she started riding quite a bit (as did the triplets!), and we decided our goal was for her to be able to ride without training wheels by the end of the summer! She has been practicing and practicing, riding up and down our street almost every day! This afternoon I was outside watching her, and I noticed that she was totally balancing, and not actually using her training wheels at all! So we got Gairod to take off her training wheels, and off she went - just like that! I am SO proud of her, and she is SO happy! :)
After supper tonight, we got the triplets and Sage to bed, and Jade and Gairod went off on a bike ride! There's no stopping her now!!
Here are some picture as they were leaving:
Monday, August 9, 2010
Waskesiu Lake, July 2010!
Okay, so I know this post is long overdue, but to be honest, I have been so busy trying to catch up on reading everyone elses blogs, that I haven't had the time to actually post on mine! lol! :) So here is a really big, picture packed, post!
We left for Waskesiu Lake, SK on Friday, July 16th. We had a pretty good time, and managed to do almost everything on our "To Do" list, which is really good considering we had about 8 or 9 things on there, and only 11 days, some of which were rainy!
I do have to say that by the end we were ready to come home, and had decided that next year we will NOT be staying with my parents. There were 11 of us staying in their small cabin, which means it was ALWAYS hot in there, and space was squishy.
It was also difficult to try and coordinate everyone to get out the door to go do something. It seriously took 3 adults and one baby (Mom, Dad, Christine and Lily)longer to get ready and out the door than it did us with 2 adults and 5 kids. We would rather stay on our own, in our trailer, so that we can do what we want to do, and not feel obligated to wait for other people!
Also, it was a real eye opener as far as the whole "my mom, my sister, Lily" situation goes. My mom acts like she is the second parent to Lily, and it was frustrating and hurtful to watch her outright favour and dote on Lily, and NOT treat my kids the same way. I also got to see how much she just does for Lily, without my sister asking her to. This is a key point because my mom spent the better part of last school year complaining to me about how much she has to do for Lily/take care of Lily/parent Lily. Now I am seeing that yes, she does do a lot for Lily, but she is not always asked to do it. A lot of the time she just jumps in and does it - like a second parent would.
A prime example: One day Gairod and my dad were out fishing, and I was getting the kids ready to go for a walk. I was rushing around, getting snacks, and drinks, and getting sunscreen on five kids. My mom saw me getting sunscreen on the kids, and instead of asking me if I wanted any help, she asked my sister (who was getting herself ready) if Lily needed sunscreen on, and then proceeded to put it on her. I was hurt that she helped my sister, who really didn't need help, instead of helping me.
SO, long story short, we WILL NOT be staying with my parents anymore, and I WILL NOT listen to my mom complain about my sister all year again!
Other than the "political" stuff, we had a good time. The weather was for the most part good, and the kids had a good time hiking, fishing, going to the beach, going for walks, riding their bikes, going for ice cream, and much more!
As promised, here are some pictures:
On a hike :)
Watching TV early one morning.
Fishing!
My fish bite!! Okay, maybe I better explain this one! lol! Gairod caught a fish, and he brought it into the boat, into the fish bucket, and bonked it on the head to kill it. Well apparently this fish didn't want to die! So it jumped out of Gairod's hand, landed on the seat, and bit my leg!!!
The fish that bit me!! LOL!
Sage and Lily eating the bread that was supposed to be for the ducks! lol!
Feeding the ducks ♥
Hayden roasting a wiener :)
Lily and Sage visiting :)
Gairod and Cole - Like father, like son! ♥
Hayden hand feeding the deer that wandered into our picnic site. Apparently this deer hangs out here, and people feed her all the time! :)
Fishing, again!
Hayden's Perch!
Cole's Perch!
Kadance's Perch!
Sage's first dip in the lake! ♥
Cole's first time tubing!!!
Hayden's first time tubing!!! (Thanks to Auntie Chris for riding with them!)
We left for Waskesiu Lake, SK on Friday, July 16th. We had a pretty good time, and managed to do almost everything on our "To Do" list, which is really good considering we had about 8 or 9 things on there, and only 11 days, some of which were rainy!
I do have to say that by the end we were ready to come home, and had decided that next year we will NOT be staying with my parents. There were 11 of us staying in their small cabin, which means it was ALWAYS hot in there, and space was squishy.
It was also difficult to try and coordinate everyone to get out the door to go do something. It seriously took 3 adults and one baby (Mom, Dad, Christine and Lily)longer to get ready and out the door than it did us with 2 adults and 5 kids. We would rather stay on our own, in our trailer, so that we can do what we want to do, and not feel obligated to wait for other people!
Also, it was a real eye opener as far as the whole "my mom, my sister, Lily" situation goes. My mom acts like she is the second parent to Lily, and it was frustrating and hurtful to watch her outright favour and dote on Lily, and NOT treat my kids the same way. I also got to see how much she just does for Lily, without my sister asking her to. This is a key point because my mom spent the better part of last school year complaining to me about how much she has to do for Lily/take care of Lily/parent Lily. Now I am seeing that yes, she does do a lot for Lily, but she is not always asked to do it. A lot of the time she just jumps in and does it - like a second parent would.
A prime example: One day Gairod and my dad were out fishing, and I was getting the kids ready to go for a walk. I was rushing around, getting snacks, and drinks, and getting sunscreen on five kids. My mom saw me getting sunscreen on the kids, and instead of asking me if I wanted any help, she asked my sister (who was getting herself ready) if Lily needed sunscreen on, and then proceeded to put it on her. I was hurt that she helped my sister, who really didn't need help, instead of helping me.
SO, long story short, we WILL NOT be staying with my parents anymore, and I WILL NOT listen to my mom complain about my sister all year again!
Other than the "political" stuff, we had a good time. The weather was for the most part good, and the kids had a good time hiking, fishing, going to the beach, going for walks, riding their bikes, going for ice cream, and much more!
As promised, here are some pictures:
On a hike :)
Watching TV early one morning.
Fishing!
My fish bite!! Okay, maybe I better explain this one! lol! Gairod caught a fish, and he brought it into the boat, into the fish bucket, and bonked it on the head to kill it. Well apparently this fish didn't want to die! So it jumped out of Gairod's hand, landed on the seat, and bit my leg!!!
The fish that bit me!! LOL!
Sage and Lily eating the bread that was supposed to be for the ducks! lol!
Feeding the ducks ♥
Hayden roasting a wiener :)
Lily and Sage visiting :)
Gairod and Cole - Like father, like son! ♥
Hayden hand feeding the deer that wandered into our picnic site. Apparently this deer hangs out here, and people feed her all the time! :)
Fishing, again!
Hayden's Perch!
Cole's Perch!
Kadance's Perch!
Sage's first dip in the lake! ♥
Cole's first time tubing!!!
Hayden's first time tubing!!! (Thanks to Auntie Chris for riding with them!)
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