Spring has Sprung!

This entry is a bit Jonah-centric, but these pictures are from the last couple weeks -- a few birthday party pictures, Jonah lost in a book, and some documentation about Jonah learning to finally ride his bike!
The final picture is my Dad hard at work on Mattie's room. When we moved into the house, there was a built-in dresser (oringinal to the house, I'd guess) in that area. Last year, we ripped up the old carpet, had new carpet installed, and painted. We also demolished the built in dresser. We've decided to put in a nice desk top, some bookshelves and a storage area up top. In this picture, Dad is doing the wiring for the outlet and for the light that will shine down on the desk area. What a guy!

Homeschooling Conference

Tomorrow is the local homeschooling book fair/conference/vendor fair. I have been making my list (of curriculum) and checking it twice!
I am going to check out the next set of Horizons Math (it's the program we've used since the beginning and we love it!)
Also going to look into purchasing The Story Of the World -- it's a combo history/geography curriculum.
Besides that, I think we're going to go with LLATL again for next year (Learning Language Arts Through Literature) -- 3rd grade for Mattie, and the 2nd grade one for Jonah.
Also going to stick with BJU Press Science (3rd grade for both), and I'm going to look for a handwriting workbook for both of them. Mattie is interested in learning cursive, so I think it would be good to start her on that.
I'd also like to pick up some audio books (usually they have good deals).
I probably won't buy everything I need for next year at the fair, but it's a great chance to look around, comparison shop, and get my hands on the actual books.
In other homeschooling news, I sent my paperwork in to become an official tester for the Iowa test, and I'm ordering those in the next few weeks for the kids.
I really feel like I'm testing them for my own peace of mind -- just to make sure they're "on track".
Well, time to hit the hay -- I have a busy day tomorrow!

My Boy

Every year, on their birthday-eve, we have a ritual of going through each kid's baby book and photo album from the first year of their life. We tell them about how they were born, the interesting events of the day, and how much we looked forward to getting to know them once they were born. It's both sentimental ans sweet to look back on how much they've changed and grown.
I can vividly remember NOT wanting to be pregnant only 5.5 months after having had Mattie! I cried for weeks, as Tim rejoiced. It wasn't that I didn't want another child, it was that I didn't want another child THEN. One of the stranger parts of my pregnancy was the predictions Tim and I made about his birth date, time, and weight. we wrote them down when I was about 6 months pregnant. I *predicted* Jonah would be born on March 15th, at 12:43 PM, and he would weigh 7 Lbs. 14 oz. -- the actual facts were that he was born on March 15th at 1:00 PM and weighed one ounce less. Mother's intuition!!!
Jonah was exactly the child we needed. His easy-going personality and smile, goofy faces, and cuddly temperment just fit right into our family. He adored Mattie, even when she steam-rolled over him as a toddler. I can remember having him in a bassinette in our bedroom, and falling asleep to the sound of him suck-suck-sucking his thumb. This little baby turned into a boy overnight -- rough and tumble yet sweet and empathetic to others.
Happy 7th Birthday Jonah Bean! I love you.

A Child's Point of View

The first response is from Jonah and the second is from Mattie:

1. What is something mom always says to you? "We're gonna do school" "I love you"

2. What makes mom happy? "When I do something for you like clean the table" "Me"

3. What makes mom sad? "When I say you're mean" "When we fight"

4. How does your mom make you laugh? "You tickle me" "You tickle me"

5. What was your mom like as a child? "I don't really have anything..." "You had big fat buck teeth" (Thanks, Mattie!)

6. How old is your mom? "31" "32"

7. How tall is your mom? "1 story" "10 feet high"

8. What is her favorite thing to do? "Read books" "Read books"

9. What does your mom do when you're not around? "Read books" "Clean"

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for? "Being the president" "Reading the most books"

11. What is your mom really good at? "Playing basketball" "Being a mom"

12. What is your mom not very good at? "Skating" "Ice skating"

13. What does your mom do for her job? "Watching a baby" "Watch Alana"

14. What is your mom's favorite food? "Probably hot dogs" (NOT) "I don't know"

15. What makes you proud of your mom? "*laugh* I do NOT know" "I don't know"

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be? "You would be Wonder Woman" "You would be someone from total drama island" (no clue about this one)

17. What do you and your mom do together? "We play board games" "We go shopping"

18. How are you and your mom the same? "Our noses..." "We like some same stuff like coffee."

19. How are you and your mom different? "Our eyes..." "You don't ice skate and I do."

20. How do you know your mom loves you? "Because you say it" "Cause you give me food!"

21. What does your mom like most about your dad? "She thinks he's cute." "You like him cause he's cute."

22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go? "Kalahari" "Florida" (neither...)

Sunny!

I was going to title this entry "Slave Labor" -- because of the crazy amount of housework I've done today. I really hate to let the house go too long, but no matter what I do, it seems like Wednesday is always the day to dig out from under the avalanche of mess that we create. Today alone, I've done 4 loads of laundry, vacuumed most of the house, taken out the trash and the recycling, run the dishwasher twice!, cleaned, organized, and dusted our bedroom, swept the kitchen floor, and cleaned the kitchen/microwave/stove. We even got some Math and Reading done for school... *Whew* Enough talk of housework!


We did get to go out and enjoy the weather today...we are looking forward to the predicted heat wave at the end of the week. Jonah and I played soccer in the yard, and some friends came over to play on the swingset for a while. The fresh air was really invigorating. I am looking forward to and planning for our little garden plot this summer. I planted a ton of hollyhocks in the area where we used to plant vegetables, and I know the soil there is really good, so I'm hoping for some beautiful results! My neighbor's daffodils are already coming up...and those are my favorite flowers, so that's nice to look at. I just can't wait till spring! I am really chomping at the bit over here. :)