Year Four: You Blink and Suddenly, It's December!

Exploration really is the essence of the human spirit, and to pause, to falter, to turn our back on the quest for knowledge, is to perish.

~Frank Borman

Y'all, I don't know what happened. I swear that yesterday was late August or mid-September at the latest. But no, it's December. Last you heard, we were traveling. Luckily, we survived it all! I can't even tell you everything that's happened since because I barely recall what all we did last week! 

Let's do a quick recap and call it a day, shall we? Great!

First up, September:

 My sweet world traveler! This was only the beginning of our adventure!

 Just because Mommy is away at school doesn't mean Mr. Sidekick gets a vacation! Although, school with Mimi seems much more fun!

 Tasty too. 😉

 We managed to see the first home game for Sooners before we headed back home. It was bright and hot but we got a win!

 Our travel adventures continued with a cross-country road trip! 

Schooling still got done!

 I cannot express how much joy it brings me to show him amazing things around the world. Above, is the Biltmore. Y'all, amazing. No other words. Oh wait, yummy! That's one because the food was fantastic too!

 Finally! Back at home and back to semi-scheduled days!

 We definitely needed some down time after all our travels!

 Yes, I'm still in school too and sometimes, we work on our school together!

This allows me to sleep at normal hours.

Non-computer learning happening!

 And then, October: 

 We spent a weekend at Myrtle Beach with Grandpa and Nana! It was an amazing and much needed trip for the whole family! 

For a little boy who doesn't like to color, he does wonderful things when he puts in a little effort.  

 Robotics! He got to help print this 3D coin and he's even printed a batarang for his Daddy since! He's learning about capacitors, current, power, voltage, and other words that I couldn't explain if I wanted to. He loves it though!

 Sometimes, we don't quite make it to the table to work in his workbooks! Haha!

His handwriting is slowly getting better! It's like coloring, with effort, it's great. We'll get there. 

Ok, more of October and November coming up soon! (I hope!) With our classes wrapping up, I will definitely have more time to devote to other things. Can't wait to show you more!

Year Four: Nice and Easy? That's Not How We Roll

How nice to meet someone so undeterred by things like…reality.

-The Lorax

And so it begins. We've waited for this day and spent the years before this preparing for this wonderful moment in time. 

KINDERGARTEN! 

I will admit, my little sidekick was disappointed in the beginning because we were continuing his education at home. However, I have made some changes to our plans and he has adjusted quite well. 

Not having to wear shoes to school is an obvious plus. 

First things first. My kid is a potato. His words, not mine. Oh to be five and ever so silly!

Now, for those big changes I spoke of. We are actually a part of the public school system. (cringe) BUT, we are online. I researched schools in the area and found none that met my (probably high) expectations. So, I switched directions a bit and searched for online schools in the area.

We settled with K12. It is still early days with it all so I won't give you my full opinion (yet). 

He does have a wonderful teacher and we are doing well keeping up with the schedule and curriculum. 

The boxes from the above picture were organized into the red drawers you see here. I had to make some room, please do not judge me from the looks of my closet! 

Now this, is more or less what we use on a daily basis. Seems like a lot but it really isn't so bad.  

 This is our schedule. Yeah, it made my eyes go big like that too.

Being a part of the public school system (still a little cringe) we are supposed to work a minimum of 6 hours a day since that is comparable to the hours he would spend in a physical school. 

Let me tell you a little secret: he doesn't spend that long on any of these projects so far. SHH!

You see, because I have homeschooled him since before he was 3, he knows just about everything we have covered so far. Because of this, he finishes his work with extraordinary speed. Which is okay with me because then we can play! 

And before you ask... No, I'm not having him moved to a higher grade and I don't want to because I feel as though he needs to mature a little more and I don't want him to be in a place where he'd be uncomfortable if/when he does begin school in a physical classroom. 

Moving on! Here is some of what we do with our school day:

Most subjects have an online and an offline activity. It gives us plenty of wiggle room for breaks when necessary and taking extra time when needed. 

Oh yes. We still play. 

 Sidekick is learning to focus, listen, have patience, and general ninja skills! No big deal. :)

Starting in October, he will be taking a weekly class in Robotics! I don't even know what all he will be learning but in his trial session, he played with robots, magnets, and computer bits to make lights and sounds. He's very excited!

 We have some traveling coming up next week. Mimi will be in charge of making sure he gets his school work done while I have an Intensive and attend class from 8-5 for the week. Like a "real" job. That's going to be a lot of adulting and I am unprepared. HA!

Once we are back home and settled, I will make sure to fill you in on the happenings. 

It's always an adventure!

Year Three: Week Five: Or So They Say

Look up, laugh loud, talk big, keep the colour in your cheek and the fire in your eye, adorn your person, maintain your health, your beauty, and your animal spirits, and you will pass for a fine man. 

"On The Conduct of Life" (1822) ~ William Hazlitt

Here is a quick recap of our days from around Thanksgiving until Christmastime. If you know me, then you know I could post MANY more pictures but here is enough to get by so I can catch you up on our days in the New Year. Enjoy!

 There is a wonderful place not too far from our home called Maymont. It is 100 acres that was donated to the people of Richmond by a couple, the Dooley's, who lived there until 1925. They have an interesting history and we love to explore the area. If you ever in the area, it is definitely a place to go in RVA. Click the link above to learn more; it is truly fascinating and great place to homeschool! 

Anyway! This is my sidekick, teaching fish about themselves. They also have turtles, otters, and environmental areas to learn about in the Nature Center. 

 Cousins! For Thanksgiving our cousin friends drove halfway across the country to spend time with us! It was wonderful! 

Since we are both homeschooling families, we did manage to wrangle the kids for a couple of lessons. Although, we pretty much just explored and let them play together. :)

These are their Turkey Feather Names! I can't find or remember where this one came from, there are many variations all over Pinterest but as I have none of them saved myself, we will just call this an original creation. 

 This was also a fun one! We worked in two holidays because...why not? The original idea came from HERE but I up'ed the ante a bit and had the kids work out simple math problems instead of just punching numbers. They did great! 

 After family left, it was time to prep for our travel days! We were about to spend a huge amount of time in a car so I wanted to give my sidekick some new things to amuse him. First up, an i-spy bottle! I had him pick out 5 objects, we used our seemingly endless supply of colored rice (made YEARS ago!), and a empty peanut butter container that I just KNEW I would put to use some day. :)

It worked out wonderfully and is still played with around the house. 

 For some reason, I don't have an after picture of this one. And if I were to take the time to take one and get it on here...well, you wouldn't be reading this now. Ha! I drew some mirroring projects (above), empty candy canes, and a blank tree for him to fill in during those slow times during our travels. It wasn't much but, it was enough to pass the time when needed. 

 Christmas at home was a stressful but happy time. Mr. Sidekick received many gifts and had a great time!

 After we got back home, it was back to work! We picked up with our writing and schooling in general to get back in the swing of things. 

 We also made cookies. Sidekick says he wants to be a cooker (i.e. chef) when he's 7 because then he will be able to open lids. Gotta love a child's thinking process!

 We also got some snow, which means we had hot chocolate! Also, we played Go Fish, puzzles, and every game in our closet while we were stuck inside. :)

Okay guys! There's a quick glimpse of the past few months. Blink and it's gone! 

Year Three: Week One: We Are Back At It Again!

I’m trying to do the best I can. I’m not concerned with tomorrow, but with what goes on today.

-Mark Spitz

Hello there! After a few months off, I have been able to prepare myself for another year of homeschooling my sidekick. I was going to take the year off, honestly. We had him in a part-day preschool, but for the cost vs. what they were teaching him, it was more like glorified daycare. While he loved going to school, I knew I could progress his learning more at home. So we joined a gym with a great kids program and signed him up for soccer. He still gets interactions and play time with kids his own age, I get to work out (yes, I'm still trying to be a runner), and we get to learn in the comfort of our home (and pj's), together. 

Take a peek into our new year!

We don't have a working printer at the moment. Which forces me to be a little creative with some of the activities I have planned. Case and point, drawing lines for him to work on his handwriting. He wrote the whole alphabet on his own. The hardest part was letting him do it all on his own but, I want a base reference for how he progresses throughout our school year. Now that he's written them all out, I can help him become more confident in his writing and lend a helping hand until the motions become comfortable.

He's just about to outgrow this table! Ugh! I love this table and chair set. It's perfect for him to eat, play, and have some good independent time. When we aren't using it for school, I keep colors, paper, color books and stickers so he can play whenever he wants or when we need some quiet time. :)

We are adding geography this year! I signed him up for Little Passports, where he will get a box every month and learn about a different country. We just received our first box and he's already reciting all the countries. He's also insistent on our return to Europe, which breaks my heart because I would LOVE to go back too.

Anyway! I found a great pack of cards with the 50 states and a state map for him to color as we learn about the country that we currently live in.

Week one's theme is always "All About Me" and reviewing what he knows. Again, no printer so I am without an adorable "All About Me" worksheet like those I have pinned on my Homeschooling Pinterest board. Sigh. Luckily, he doesn't really care and I am happy enough to use his journal. 

My four year-old sidekick loves numbers. Which has turned into a love for math. I do hope this love sticks around because his dad and I are not math lovers. He solved all these problems (using my fingers) on his own. Some of which, did not require finger counting... he's a little scary sometimes with the information he knows and retains.

 Traveling. While it makes our schooling hard, it is always worth it. We got time with our best friends so I repeat: always worth it. We spent one morning at a science museum where the boys got to pan for jewels and dig for fossils. They even got to keep their finds! It was a good day.

Our reason for this particular adventure was for my first half marathon! 2 hours and 21 minutes later, I sure felt like I earned this medal. I was lucky enough to have had a great friend to run with and her wonderful mother to care for my sidekick. 

Those three boys above can cause some trouble, especially stuck spending a morning in a hotel room, but Nana handled them lovingly and it was one less thing to worry about as we ran for what felt like forever. 

Traveling with him is so much fun! He is the BEST travel buddy. Seriously, I would take him anywhere. Planes, trains, automobiles, any adventure!

I found a Goldfish card pack (same day as the States card pack. It was a good shopping day.) and taught him to play during our flights. While it was hard to not cheat (as you can tell from the picture above!), learning a new game and playing together made the flight even more enjoyable. 

So, there's our first week! Well, technically our first two weeks but, c'est la vie. I still have much to share so check back soon!