The kids and I have enjoyed a great 3 week break for Christmas.  Now it’s time to get back to work!  I am actually looking forward to starting back.  Even though it’s challenging to juggle school with a pre-schooler, toddler and new baby in the house, we seem to have better days when we do school.  I am forever changing our schedule and adding or taking away from our curriculum.  I am an organization junkie.  I LOVE to organize, so making daily schedules or planning out school plans is actually pretty fun to me.  If I can find the time for it!  So here’s a look at what we are doing these days.

7am            Wake-up and make beds
7:30am       Watch PBS
8am             Breakfast and Bible
8:30am        Get dressed for the day and morning chores
9:15am        Calendar time
9:30am        Math
10am           Grammar
10:30am      Morning snack and outside play time (weather permitting)
11:15am      Spelling and Reading
12pm           Lunch and History or Literature (Read aloud by me)
12:30pm      Afternoon chores
1:00pm        Handwriting and Science
1:30pm        Rest time
3:00pm        Afternoon snack and outside play time

That’s our basic school day.  Things obviously don’t always go according to plan.  During rest time, Foster, Katie and Theodore must choose something independent and quiet to do.  Parker lays in his bed and most of the time will still take a nap.  Jonah still just does his own thing. We have had an afternoon “quiet” time since Foster was a baby and we will continue it for as long as there are children in my house. As they get older, they will be able to read quietly or finish up school work from earlier in the day.  I have struggled in the past with feeling like maybe this was selfish on my part.  But I find that it isn’t only to my benefit but theirs as well.  On the days when they just go 100 miles an hour from 7am until 8pm they tend to get much more cranky and get in trouble more often.  Everyone needs down time, as a mom of little ones it is sometimes the first time all day that you can complete a thought, make important phone calls, or just have your quiet time with God.  I know there are some mothers who can get up at 4am and exercise and read their Bible, etc.  At this season in my life, that is NOT me. I am probably up at 4am but it’s usually because I am nursing a baby.  So for now, rest time is a necessity for me!

More tomorrow on what curriculum we are using and what we are actually learning!