Within the Lines

Today...

Today,  I've decided to get back to more consistent blogging.  I've set it aside now for several months for a variety of reasons, but I'm longing to write more consistently.  Hopefully, time will allow it.

Today, I was up at 5:30am, jotted notes about today's schooling, and walked 1 1/3 miles on the treadmill.  Got a load of laundry started before heading for the shower.  After showering, I ate my breakfast of grapefruit and muffin while listening to my husband do morning Bible story with the kids (they had breakfasted while I was showering).  One day soon I hope to record one of these devotions; they're so fun!  A while back he introduced a sock puppet named LoneFeather (a rooster friend of his that has only one feather).  The kids have now created their own sock puppets to join the fun.  My son(5), with the help of Gramma, created "FunBunny".  He's very particular about the name.  It is not Funny Bunny, or any other variation!  My daughter(9) created "Rosa" yesterday.  Rosa has a strange hair style made from a milkweed pod. 

After devotion and chores, it was time for school.  Today was daughter(2)'s day for her morning visit with Gramma (next door).  Daddy took her over while I began laundry and older two did some exercise on trampoline.  I did some calisthenics with the kids and then we headed to the craft/school room.  Our school day begins with recitation; today's recitation was the Pledge of Allegiance, a memory verse from each kid, and the books of the Bible (we're up to Daniel).  Since we were a bit behind schedule, I skipped the Kids4Truth online devotional and Spanish, and we began today's social studies which was an ancient history reading/study concerning the early peoples of India.  After reading and discussion, the kids did a (history) coloring sheet while I went to pick up youngest.  When I returned, it was time for language arts.  Daughter(9) had a couple grammar worksheets about making nouns possessive, then headed to the computer to do her spelling lesson (list taken from Spelling Power) at SpellingTime.com.  (I am a complete fan of this site.  Daughter loves spelling now because of it, and the other kids usually run to be in on the fun when she's doing spelling.)  Meanwhile I worked with son(5) on an AlphaPhonics lesson.  He's very proud of his reading!  After reading the lesson and working on difficult areas, he was assigned to write a sentence of his choice from the lesson.  While he worked on this, I read Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? to daughter(2).  She loves that book, particularly when the animals grown and snarl and trumpet and flute.  Son(5) did a math worksheet after writing his sentence, and then was allowed a "recess" to play an alphabet computer game.  Daughter(9) completed grammar and spelling and a math worksheet from MUS.  Then she was ready to give son(5) his recorder lesson and complete her own guitar lesson (using an instructional cd).  They came up while I was making lunch to show me how son(5) is also learning to strum the guitar.  They were very proud of their "show".

After a lunch of leftover chicken pilaf, daughter(9) went next door to Gramma's to do some work for her.  She wants to earn money for a horse.  She took brother and sister with her so that I could go check a neighbor's house as she has to be out of town right now.  It was a nice drive, to be out, clears the head.  I returned to "Gramma's" and dropped off some things for her to sell on ebay and picked up my beloved children.  Daughter(2) was jumping up and down at their sliding door when she saw me coming.  That just makes my day!

Now they are napping (well, oldest is reading); I am writing, and need to go get things done.  Fortunately tonight's dinner is the easy one -- waffles.  But I need to fold clothes, straighten the house, check daughter's math sheet, and a million other little things that never count enough to get on the list.