This Bouncing Baby Boy is due in 11 weeks. That means I have only 11 "
Bless this Mess" days. And 11 weeks to finish up everything on my list of things to do before the baby is born. For a homeschooling mom of seven, this List is quite the thing to behold. But you can't see it; it is all in my mind.
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| The Weekly Schedule-for now |
The most important thing that I'm working on is school. Homeschooling five kids is a major undertaking, which is probably why people say, "I don't know how you do it!" And truly, what I manage every day is so complicated I don't even want to type it all out. But I have a daily schedule that changes based on the day and little tricks that keep things streamlined. I'm thinking ahead to the next school year and making my plans for curriculum and such. I have so many decisions to make about books and money, but I'm leaning toward another Parent Partnership Program. And switching math curriculum for Fiona. (I never though I would be the mom that owned four or five different math programs-why oh why do my kids have to be so different?)
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| My take on the Workbox system. Everything in one box. One box per person. |
We are going to continue to school through the summer simply because we started late and took a lot of time off. Some subjects are finished (Ian is done with History and Lit and Shane is done with math) but some, like Fiona and Evie's Language Arts, need way more attention. Daniel started kindergarten work not too long ago, so he is plugging along nicely. It only takes about 30 minutes to get through his school work.
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| Last Day of Math! |
Daniel totally surprised me with his attitude toward school. I'll write about that another day.
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| Works in Progress |
I'm knitting and sewing whenever I can because I know that 1) it will get too hot to knit soon and I won't have time in the fall to make them and 2) once this baby is born I won't have time to sit at my sewing machine. I just won't have time for anything but feeding eight children, school, and diaper changes. I'm knitting a February Lady Sweater (Google for images) out of yarn that I have had stashed since Fiona was a baby. I'm afraid the moths will eat it before I can actually use it, and it is the nicest yarn I have ever purchased. I only have 1 1/2 sleeves left. I'm also knitting a plethora of winter wool pants: something not pink or purple for the baby and something not shorts for Heidi. I'm taking existing pants that still fit around Heidi's skinny middle but are too short and adding length. The moths ate all of Daniel's hand-me-down wool.
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| Twelve diapers waiting for sewing (and a whole pile of fabric waiting to be cut out) |
Maybe next year I'll have time to sew the requested nightgowns and pajamas for my older kids.
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| Fifteen diapers needing snaps |
I'm also crazy busy in the kitchen. Mark and I are on another Whole30 for the month of May. With Whole30, there are very few convenience foods that are approved. Think about that for a moment. Almost nothing you can buy off a store shelf has ingredients that aren't hormone disruptors or bad for your gut or not inflammatory. Too many double negatives in that last sentence: I'll try it again... Almost everything commercially available contains ingredients that are bad for you in some way or another. This means we have to cook everything
everything from scratch. We mostly eat sautes that are light on meat and heavy on the veggies, so we do a lot of chopping. The kids aren't on Whole30, so we are actually cooking/preparing six meals per day. I've only gained 16 pounds with this pregnancy and can still wear my regular clothes from last summer.
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| Two days these towels sat in the washing machine and two days they spent on the line |
I have midwife appointments an hour away every two weeks. I take the kids to the YMCA twice a week, which is a good three hour chunk each time. Tuesdays we are on the road all day for dance and Scouts. I'm battling the insurance company to pay for the genetic screening test because I don't really have $8000 right now. The sun is shining on a regular basis so I'm back to line-drying our laundry. I've stopped going to my women's groups because I need that time in the evening to make dinner, catch up on missed school due to activities and appointments, and take a big fat nap that I totally deserve.
...it took me three days to finish this post...Down to 10 1/2 weeks....The clock is ticking...
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| THEY ARE TOTALLY WORTH IT!!! (Practicing their topiary skills. That bush is now a turtle. Can you see it?) |
And did I mention that I love my life? Like crazy? And I have the best job in the whole world?
