The Flu!

Being sick these days doesn't mean much other than I'm sick and things, like my rubber spatula, might end up being melted?

Hubby was making grill cheese!

Art Pieces To Study

Many homeschoolers like to do art studies and with means perhaps acquiring prints to use for those studies.  Many copyright conscious homeschoolers will not just go to google to print out images.  They don't do that because they want to honor copyrights. Plus many are also bloggers and look for ways to acquire images for their blogs.

Well, today I learned that the Art Institute of Chicago has released over 50,000 images of many artworks and pieces to the public domain and have assigned them the CC0 public domain designation. This designation means those images can be used for commercial and non-commercial reasons for free with no additional permission from the museum.  They do have some rules to follow, but if you are familiar with creative commons it seems to be the typical rules.

Images such as these:

Weddings, License, Officiant

So about a week ago on Facebook, I made a post about the low numbers of weddings at my church over the last year.

Living On A Budget

Many homeschoolers tend to be one income families, which means the budget tends to be tight, perhaps a little tighter than others. Over the years the one thing I have heard often is how can I afford to homeschool?

The biggest fear I think is how to transition from two incomes to one. Or, if they already live on one income how to afford curriculum and perhaps added expenses of homeschool groups, gym classes, music/instrument classes, etc.

Well first, determine what is truly needed and what is icing on the cake! Homeschool groups, gym classes, other types of classes and enrichment is nice, but it's really not necessary. If you can't swing it you can't swing it. There are plenty of ways to get connected with others -- it might mean you going out on a limb, reaching out to locals, and suggesting play dates.  This can be scary if you don't know anyone, but with social media it makes it's easier to find people.

Civil Air Patrol

Did you know there is such a thing as Civil Air Patrol open to all youth? I didn't know either until recently!  WP has been talking about her post-high school plans and that made me hit the keyboard and start googling and researching. That is how I stumbled upon the Civil Air Patrol.

We went and checked out the local squadron last night. WP made a rocket got to know the cadets some and has decided to go back next week.  They require you to go to 3 meetings as a visitor before you are allowed to join. So last night was visit 1 -- so if she goes back the next 2 weeks she can officially join.

Time Management; Self-Motivated

One of my goals with my children, now teens, is to encourage self-motivation and time management. I want them to be able to handle their own time. I feel this is an important life skill and sometimes they have to "fail" in order to get it.

We have been schooling now just over a month. My daughter has been told every Monday for the last several weeks to get on my computer to see her assignments and what is expected from her for the week. I use homeschool tracker to help record and keep track of our school records.

Anyway, this last week I decided NOT to say something to her on Monday. I decided to just let it be and see what happens. Well, nothing! Nothing happened. She did nothing in terms of school work and on Thursday night I think a light bulb went on because I got asked: "Mom are we going to do school at all this week?"

Simple Woman's Daybook: October Edition

For Today

For more daybooks check out Simple Woman's Daybook

Looking Out My Window: It's a breezy day. The fall colors are starting to appear on the trees.

I Am Thinking: How am I going to pay for my son's college? We are very proud of him getting accepted into the program and college he wanted. We just have to now figure out how to cover the cost.

I Am Thankful: That as for right now both kids seem to have some post-high school plans.  I'm not sharing my daughter's plans right now, because she has to flush some things out. However, I'm glad that she seems to have a plan.

Educated Mothers

Please present me the lady who decided, being prefectly educated, to have seven, eight, nine children - President Emmanuel Macron, President of France.

I realize that I might be late to the game on commenting on this, but it is something that just came across my social media feeds today. I might only have two children, but I'm friends with many well-educated women, who have seven, eight, nine or more children and they have been posting and commenting on this.

Seeing I hadn't seen or heard anything about this before my friends started to share pictures with the #postcardsforMacron I decided to look into this. What did the President of France say, why did he say it, where did he say it?

Reading Is Delayed

It's typical for homeschooling parents to freak out, get worried when their children show any kind of delays in learning such as reading. I know I have when it comes to my daughter, now 16, and her reading skills, or lack of reading skills in the early years.  We were told many things over the years. One year we were told convergence insufficiency and with some studying up on it I applied some multisensory learning.

While it helped, some we still didn't make any real measurable process at least not process in my eyes. She grew older and I grew even more leary that I wasn't going to find something that would help her learn to read. I remember at one point, I just downright frustrated with the lack of process that I just basically gave up. Well, not really -- seeing I still went in search of yet another program and ways to help her. However, I do remember clearly telling her something along the lines you have to do this, you have to apply yourself, it's on you now.  It was at that point I found sight phonics and basically had her do it daily. She went through the program nearly twice.

What is happening to the Church?

Sitting at Mass this morning and it was sad to realize that the church is actually empty. I don't know if it's the scandal, in general, that is the cause, our priest not being able to connect with families. I don't know.

Not only is Church empty, but the school associated with our church is closing as is half dozen others locally -- they are going to combine to make one school. Half a dozen Catholic schools have such poor enrollment that they have to combine to have one full school.

Reflecting on the school closing: Why? Why is enrollment so low? Is it the cost? I don't think totally, seeing all the other non-Catholic Christian schools are doing well. So what is it?

Well, as someone that has taught Religious Education over the years, therefore have access to the school and classrooms,

Ask What Not...

There was a time when a president was quoted saying:

My fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.

Here we are about over 50 years later and given the climate, I feel as if American's have done a 180. I feel like people live with the motto:

My fellow Americans, ask not what you can do for your country, ask what your country can do for you.

First Week: Homeschooling and Hospice

The first week of hospice and homeschooling is coming to a close. This week didn't go exactly as planned. The idea to start was I would help with my grandfather's hospice care on the weekends and other family members would help during the other times.

In short order, it became clear that other family members wouldn't be able to help out as planned, so I stepped in, with my husband's blessing, as full-time hospice care.

This has pretty much required WP and me to stay with my grandparents. Overall my grandfather needs are minimal but physically demanding. He doesn't have the strength or ability to move independently. So it requires me to be able to move him as needed mainly transferring from one place to another. It also requires helping out with meal times and things like laundry. Laundry is just mainly so my grandmother doesn't have to do the stairs. She could if needed, but with everything going on helping her out in those matters is good too.

Hospice: Homeschooling

Hospice is not a fun word. Many without saying more understand what that means. My grandfather was put on hospice last week. 9 days ago.

This has required me to help my grandparents out more and be there for them. ie. move in basically. I'm okay with this, my husband is okay with this, the kids are on board etc. It's not easy and some adjustments have to be made and continue to be made, but we are working our way through that.

Schooling is looking different, somewhat. More independent work, but also a change of scenery. Having to school hear at my grandparents with them on looking is a bit different.

Nothing like having your school on display 24/7?  I'm hoping they will see it's no big deal and even though its different for us school, even in the thick of hospice can still be done.

pray for us.

Home Management

My home management skills are better then what they were when my kids were smaller, but still not what I would like it to be.  I started out using many of flylady's ideas.  I like the idea of the control journal, but let's face it I'm a digital girl! I do much better with having everything on my phone, computer, tablet etc.

I even took on the job as treasurer for my son's scout troop and I use my phone and computer to manage the checking account and other documents associated with being the treasurer. It's nice, for example, I can pull up the information parents need from my phone while at the troop meeting.

Summer 2018

Summer is here and I'm getting ready to send Superstar of for the summer. Not just camp for the week, but for the whole summer and I'm unsure how I feel about it.

He is almost 17 now, man 17. I remember when I started blogging and he was only 7/8. He got a summer job at a BSA camp. He will  leave here this weekend and will be back right before school starts again.

As some of my followers may be aware I homeschooled him from 2nd grade to 8th grade and he went off to the local high school. Sending him to the high school was heart wrenching and still is at time. So him being gone all summer is hard, because I miss him so much as it is; I have grown to like summer because that means him being home, spending time with him, and now he's leaving.

Web-Princess will be here and it will much of the same with her around, although she's learning to drive so my summer will be filled with her doing some driving lessons with me, hubby, and driving instructor. Yay! I think - Superstar got his license last Nov, so this is my second summer in a row with teaching a teen to drive. You would think I had this all figured out, but like with everything over the years even though the kids are close in age they are 2 different people, with 2 different learning styles and I have to approach even  driving different with each of them.

I have also start thinking about what to do in the fall for Web-Princess and school.  Fall will be the start of her Junior Year. Fall will be Superstars Senior Year.

Sickness is Never Fun -- Childhood Memories

Illness is making its rounds here. It started with hubby, then WP got. Her symptoms seemed worst and her throat looked blotchy so I took her to the doctor yesterday. Diagnosis: Viral Layringitius with an ulcer on the throat.

Like many homeschoolers when illness strikes we just table school work. We prefer to do school work when everyone is well and can focus and think, which is a good thing because this morning I woke up feeling like crap. I have many of the same symptoms as everyone else: a headache, sore throat, stuffy nose, cough, etc. I, however, unlike everyone else, am limited on what I can take for medications. Many of the typical medications you would take for the cold/flu/respiratory issues I cannot take because of the cpap. I was advised not to take many of those things because they cause interference with the cpap.  I'm pretty much limited to saline nose sprays or other sprays natural sprays like (afflink) xclear and your typical pain medication. I can have cough drops which bring me to my childhood memories.

Here I am sucking on a lemon cough drop with methanol in the middle. It wasn't until I got to the syrup methanol center did the childhood memory come flooding back. That methanol hit me and I remembered my great-grandparents. They are gone now, have been for years.That methanol hitting my senses reminded me how they use to give us, my siblings and I, Hall's cough drops as if it was candy! I'm sure we shouldn't have had them like we did, but I remember being in their car and they being there in the center console and asking for them or them asking us if we wanted one.  I never faked a cough or anything they just freely gave them to us as if they were candy. I could get one, suck on it for a little bit, and then chew it up. -- oh my gosh. How funny is that that sucking on a cough drop today would bring back that memory.

My great-grandparents were good people. I remember them taking us to the park and being at their home. We mostly just visited with them and talking to them. They didn't have toys or things like that at their home. The only things they could offer us was water, prune juice, halls cough drops, and sugar-free gum.  -- I never took them up on the prune juice. In my childhood mind that was gross!

New Habits; Old Habits

Weight loss is something that has been a hit or miss for me. Mostly, a miss -- I tried various diets. I worked with a personal trainer. I got nowhere. Even my trainer was puzzled on why some days things I was doing just the week before was kicking my butt -- like really kicking my butt -- and why the scale wasn't moving. Sure, my diet wasn't "great", but it wasn't bad either.  After almost half a year with her, I quit. We were struggling to make the payments and with no results why was I paying.

I let it go and after several months, maybe a year or more I decided to talk to my doctor. That and I was slowly climbing in weight and becoming more and more unhappy.  Well, I talked to the doctor, told her what was going on: not being able to lose weight, being extremely tired all the time, lack of energy, etc. She gave me a couple of referrals: a family doctor that specializes in obesity and a pulmonologist that specializes in sleep disorders.

The pulmonologist took my info and immediately had me do a sleep study. The results: I have sleep apnea. Guess what if you have sleep apnea you have a hard time losing weight and you suffer from fatigue.  The obesity doctor listened to my story and told me she wanted me to do my best to start cutting carbs and added sugars out of my diet. She also ordered some blood work to be done. Results: Vitamin B deficiency, Vitamin D deficiency, and insulin resistance/high insulin (NOT diabetes my blood sugar is perfect). Guess what if you have those things you have a hard time losing weight and you suffer from fatigue.

So I have 4 confirm diagnoses that all have the same symptoms. All of which is a contributing factor to my weight, besides my own eating habits, and my constant fatigue, lack of energy etc. And those eating habits: Yes, my diet was a bit carb heavy some days, but overall, it wasn't so much food by volume. So cut the carbs, cut the added sugars, drink more water, start sleeping every night with a cpap machine and start taking the vitamin supplements and medicine for the insulin resistance.

All of this with the obesity doctor and sleep doctor started the end of April beginning of May 2017. So about 8 months. I have had ups and downs the last 8 months. Some weeks I have done better -- I was doing really good for a while, but this last couple of months especially since right before Christmas has been the toughest. I have slowly been slipping back into old habits. Late night snacks. Eating more then I should. I have watched the scale slowly creep back up. 

Overall I have lost, but if I continue to let these old habits creep back in I'm not going to see weight loss. I'm upset with myself for allowing my old habits to kick in and I find myself excusing it by saying "Tomorrow will be better!" "I will stick with it tomorrow."

Truth is -- tomorrow will never come. I know it won't.  I need to just grab it by the horns and quit making excuses and quit saying "tomorrow".

It took months to get to this point and I don't want to lose sight of the end goal. I have a long way to go but I need to do this.