Officer Daddyman is in police training all week and sleeping down at the training center (it’s about two hours from here), so I’m flying solo with the three kids. Not only that, but my first line of defense, Nana and Papa, are on a much-deserved anniversary trip to the beach. It’s my first week alone with the kids since we’ve started homeschooling, so I’m a little nervous!
The first day has gone smoothly thus far, with a little hangup over Captain Science’s use of the word “scandal” in his history assignment — the rule is “don’t use a word if you don’t know the meaning,” and he didn’t know the meaning. Even after looking up the definition, he didn’t understand what the big deal was about Julius Caesar’s “adulterous relationships with married women” — and I did not enlighten him! Roman history is colorful, to say the least. I’m hiding A Day in the Life of Ancient Rome from his, as I don’t want to explain about some of the methods of execution. Being, ehem, loved to death by a bull to recreate the conception of the minotaur before a live studio audience? I’ll skip that lesson and the subsequent therapy bills.
I managed to successfully get everyone schooled, run my errands, and am now trying to decide what to feed them, before heading over to feed Nana and Papa’s cats (and possibly hitting Target for an additional stocking hanger for our mantel — five people, five stockings, but only four hangers currently, you see). I’m trying not to feel too down about Daddyman being gone all week, our undecorated half-lit tree (stupid pre-lit trees with stupid shorts in their stupid wires), and the fact that there’s still so much work to be done on the house before the holidays and our post-holidays guests. Oy! Humbug.
I’m getting a little worried about splitting Rome in half with the holidays like we’ll be doing. Will Captain Science retain everything over a two week break? Will he retain anything? Will we have to redo what we’ve done? Maybe I should make some trivia cards and pretend it’s a game, but really it’ll be homeschooling. Like that cookbook where they hide the vegetables in the cupcakes so kids don’t know you’re feeding them something other than white flour and sugar. And seriously, what kind of dumb idea is that cookbook, anyway?
Digression, for the win. It’s only Monday, and already I’m cracking up!
I am developing a game plan for the week, and that game plan is “keep them as busy as possible.” We’re going to run errands, go to meetings, do anything we can to stay active. We are going to be on-the-go-schoolers this week, because I cannot be cooped up in this house with our snaggledy-lighted naked tree like some sort of shut-in, just because it’s too damn cold for the kids to go outside barefoot (which, yes, they whine about). I have outlawed whining this week and declared that any “didn’t get my way” crying fits will result in laps run or times out, depending on the age of the child (Babypie excluded). I shall broker no crap this week, thank you ever so much.
Off to stuff the children full of some semblance of dinner before Babypie’s nap is over, then loading them all run them around to sleep. At least tomorrow is the La Leche League meeting, so I don’t have to concoct any entertainment (or lunch). Maybe I’ll make Captain Science sit in, take notes, and call it a science lesson. Maybe I’ll just trot my children out as an example of either evidence of breastfeeding’s link to increased intelligence or a warning of how extended breastfeeding and babywearing can turn into a scary snowball, rolling downhill into full-blown homeschooling hippie crunchiness. We shall see.
I actually read that “hiding veggies” cookbook and it was quite interesting. I was highly tempted to pick up a copy. My aunt made chocolate zucchini cake last summer and Bobby inhaled it! I was so shocked at him eating veggies that I had to tell him. He stared at me in horror, then stole the last piece of cake.
Good luck being on your own this week! I totally hate it when that has to happen
We eat plenty of foods with unusual foods in them (my mom makes a mean sweet potato cake), but I can’t imagine doing it just for the sake of hiding it! Liam would feel so betrayed.
A counselor once gave me a cool trick for whining. He said that whining never accomplishes anything, but crying is helpful. Therefore, I give my children a Little choice : “You can’t whine, but you can cry if you need to.” Seems to work like a charm for me – Ravelle either pulls herself together and into present time, or, if she has need of a tension release, she can cry in my arms and tell me what is really bothering her after she’s had her fill of tension release and has gotten somewhat clear of it.
LOL. You’ll survive this week, but I feel for you. It’s tough when the support system goes on vacation without you.
Ahh, aren’t there some movies on Rome your son can watch over the holidays? He won’t forget it all in two weeks. Course if he is anything like my children, you’ll find him sneak reading his history book after the first week off.
Started the homeschool journey w/my 3 (11, 8 and 4) this past August, too. Thinking about the “time off” question and wondering if you have any suggestions for what to do for when illness strikes! I am cooped up in my bedroom a whole floor away from the kids b/c I think i have flu. We just came off a 2-week vacation as we had our Nana and Poppop come visit us. (We live overseas and visitors from home are an easy excuse for a vacation.) So having just got back into the swing of things I’m struck with either the nastiest cold ever or it’s flu. And my new resolve to stay on track is wavering. Well, not my resolve, but my kids’ resolve to stick to it even when Mom is down for the count. Hubby is doing what he can to keep the little brother out of big sisters’ hair, but they still distract themselves and each other with the greatest of ease.
What would you do to keep Captain Science on track if you were stuck in bed and had the energy of a wadded tissue?
I like to have things set up so Officer Daddyman can direct at least part of the day’s lessons if I need to sleep in one day (with a baby, this is always possible). I have my history lesson plan written up for the whole current topic (right now, Rome). It has page numbers for reading and the questions I expect Captain Science to answer in his essay. He’s very capable of reading, taking notes, and writing with minimal oversight at this point. I love having things like Life of Fred, where I can just set him loose — he will cover up the answers, read the chapter, do the work, and then check his work all on his own. Have some go-to work available. We can always do an Editor in Chief or Logic Countdown lesson if we need filler.