Week 3

My littles have overcome my lethargy today and insisted on 'doing school'. Out came the Horizons math books. I love doing math with them, they are super enthusiastic and I think they really appreciate the quick lessons and the definite beginning and end of the work. My 6 year old is adorable as he has to add teeth or a pacman around every greater than and less than sign in each lesson!
This week is week three of our year and the first that my husband has been at work. I hate to admit that I have struggled with motivation already. I think that my constant of exhaustion due to being in the last few weeks of this pregnancy and not sleeping, is a definite contributing factor. The older boys have completed their assignments though, and the littles and I have done a little each day, as well as kept up with our reading.
I have made executive decisions to let them keep playing when they are getting along and to spend lots of time in the sun and pool while the weather allowed. Especially since it has been cold and wet, and the weekend looks to continue that trend. My husband and I both feel that this is one of the lovely freedoms that homeschooling allows. The freedom to take advantage of sunny weather and moments together. The freedom to take breaks in our days to play, chat or share a warm pot of tea. Yesterday, I took off for a mid-afternoon date with my husband as we did a little dream-building and planning. I love our home educating lifestyle!
My husband and I have also been a bit lax with our eldest two as their friends are still on summer vacation. They have been allowed lots of freedom to hang out with their friends and take part in activities. My eldest is headed off to do some event preparation work with some family friends who have a production company. If he does well, it could maybe turn into occasional work for him. And as a homeschooler he has the freedom to work when other kids have to be in classes, as long as he keeps up with his studies.
Anyhoo, I am feeling excited and hopeful as I look towards the coming months. It looks like my husband will be working close to home, teaching and therefore home every night. Meaning he will continue to be a large part of the school part of our lives and I am so thankful for this big change. It means that not all the responsibility falls on my shoulders. I can facilitate their learning and do most of the implementation, but he can help keep us accountable and even help with marking!
I am also enjoying doing Sonlight once again. Having everything scheduled out, without giving up my weekends to do that, is simply amazing. All the kids love checking off their work each day with the date stamp I bought. I think they get a real sense of accomplishment out of that. And my 12 year old is loving doing the 4 day a week schedule, because he knows if he keeps up with his work that he can take time off to do what he likes. He is doing a fantastic job.