Schoolin'

Well, I figured today was as good a day as any to put up our "first day of school" seventh week of school photos!

 

It feels SO good to type out those words (seven.weeks!)

Last year, I think we hit week 7 in December.

 

 

A few lessons I have learned (the hard way) last year that I am trying (imperfectly) to improve on this year....

 

> Don't let the clock dictate life. We'll get done when we get done!

> Relationship over work.

 A lesson can be done (or not) another day, maintaining my relationship with my kid is most important.

> Let them go! My oldest has always had a voracious reading appetite. He always is reading ahead. Last year I was afraid he would read out of order or not have anything left to do after Christmas. This year I am just letting him go and happy for his love of books. On the opposite, one of my children can't keep up with the reading. I am giving myself (and child) freedom to slow down and not stress over checking it all off, but doing what is best for each child.

> Momma must spend some face to face time with Jesus before spending it with kids.

> It's ok to go outside the lesson plan and tweak things to suit our interests!

> Don't compare child to child. They are each learning at their own pace and that is ok!

> deep breathes, choose joy, enjoy it

> some days, you may just need to close up the books and try again another day.

 

 

Some days teaching your own kids is tough, but I am trying to remind myself (sometimes hourly) that these days are passing by at warp speed. I can look at these pictures above and see all these permanent teeth growing in, and compare them to last year, and gasp at the changes that have occurred right under my nose in one quick year. I don't want to wish away any minutes, even the hard ones.

 

Any other homeschooling mommas out there? What are your favorite lessons you've learned the hard way?

A Day in the Life of a Missionary Mom

I thought it would be fun to give you all a peek inside our days here in Africa!

Sometimes when I talk to people, I get the impression they imagine our lives as jam packed full of adventure and exotic things. Maybe that is a little bit how I imagined our lives would be also?

Although we have seen some really cool things and gone on some exciting adventures, most of my days are pretty much like a "normal" day that any other mom has bringing up her kids. Most of my days are spent in the village surrounded by exotic animals such as chickens, goats, and the exact same breed of dog.

This is a typical day for me......

>>> In the mornings I try and get up before my kids and spend some time with the Lord. I am always, always frustrated at myself when I don't get up and do this because I can tell a major difference in how I handle our days when I don't fill up on the Word first.

{Bible, current study-Beth Moore's Life of Paul, tea with milk and brown sugar (like my Malawian friends) and my beloved mechanical pencils}

>>> I am also slowly, and might I add painfully, getting back into the routine of exercising in the mornings. Exercising has always been an important part of my daily routine and I hate that it has fallen by the wayside in the last year. I know it is so important for my mental and physical well being. 

Not to mention my mood, can anyone relate?!

>>>I try and get all the kids up by 8. My kids are like their momma and love to sleep. The girls, not as much as the boys, but we have worked hard to get them to sleep 'til 8 most mornings too!

>>> After breakfast and chores, we head over to our home school room and get to work. Z is in 4th grade, G in 3rd grade, E in first, and A is in preschool (which means I have activities for her to play quietly so I can work with the other 3). I am really enjoying homeschool this year (for the most part). We got in a groove much more quickly than last year and having our own space, that is not on our dining room table, has been a game changer for us!

>>> We usually finish up school by 12ish. I typically will set the timer for 30 minutes and let the kids play outside, draw, or watch a movie on the laptop. While they are vegging, I use this time to sit down and write out emails to sponsors, enroll a child on the PM site, work on my to-do list, or write my lesson plans for tutoring later in the afternoons.

>>> Next, we eat lunch. Typically roasted hyena or grilled black mamba PB&J or grilled cheese, etc. Quick clean up of lunch and do some dinner prep.

>>> In the afternoons, I tutor our youngest group at Esther's House (Standard 1-3) . My girls usually come with me to class and the boys help David with whatever he is working on or draw/play inside.

Some afternoons we will swap and David will take the kids while I go out and do interviews for our community program or visit a guardian.

>>> After tutoring, I usually spend some time passing out medicine and answering all the, "Catherine, I have wound!" kiddos. Lots of little ones who want some hugs and band-aids. I will make sure all of our Skills Classes are beginning, our teachers have everything they need, kids are in class, etc. and then I head in the house to make dinner.

>>> Cooking here was a little bit of a learning curve as "quick throw it together meals" aren't really an option. Dinner from scratch takes a lot of planning and preparation.
We've been doing some canning which has been helpful at cutting down prep time!

>>> After dinner, we play outside with the kids on campus, do some more "nursing" type duties, enjoy games, watch a movie; you know, all of the normal family stuff.

>>> My kids take a shower before bed every night because you can take the dirtiest kid you have ever seen and multiply that by 10 and you have my kids.
I read the girls a chapter of their read-aloud book for school (currently Box Car Children) and they have lights out by 8:15-8:30.
We spend some quality one-on-one time with the boys and then they go to bed around 9.

>>> In the evenings I will get some more to-do's done for my jobs at EH or we'll do exciting things like work on our budget.

David and I  try to make a couple nights a week a "no work" night and hang-out and watch a move or just visit. It has been hard for us, living on campus, to set aside time for "no work".
After living here 11 months, we feel like we are settling into a good routine/balance.

I am thankful that our director and Mission Board support me being a wife and mom first!
I do have responsibilities here that I love, but I never want those to become more important then my job as being "mom".
That is my most important job!

So there you have it! Typical day in my world!

What does your typical day look like? 

School is Out

Well, since we are starting back to school in less than 2 weeks, thought I should wrap up last years school year.

Oh my, how my kids have GROWN.....

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

{oh my goodness, look how much my baby has grown}

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

The first day of school pictures bring back SO many memories. 

Our girls had been home 2-3 weeks and we were about to move to the other side of the world in just a few short weeks.

We have often said that this year has been the fastest year of our lives, but looking back at these pictures, it also seems so long ago. 

School this year was a little, ahem, rushed? 

We moved and then began school in November.

The name of the game was get.school.done!

By the end of our school year we were doing school 6 days a week.

Ain't nobody who thinks Saturday school is fun.

But, we finished and hopefully we learned some too (I know I have)!

We are excited to be starting in August this year. 

Hoping to take it slower and enjoy the process a bit more.

my kids are being deprived

There is something that can gnaw at me....even worse than the pesky mosquitoes of Africa. It's these little nuisances called "thoughts".

See, before we relocated our family {to the other side of the world}, a few well meaning people suggested that what we were doing was actually going to harm our children.

Satan LOVES to use seemingly "harmless" comments to fester in my mind until they seem to take over every thought. And I HATE that I let him do that to me.

Here's a little smorgasbord of thoughts that have been popping up lately in this ol' brain of mine:

"Man, my kids are really missing out. Baseball season has started and it looks like we will never.play.again!" (dramatic hunh?)

"my girls seriously would LOVE gymnastics, too bad we'll never be able to go to lessons"

"all of our friends are "graduating" to the next grade with cute diplomas and character awards to boot. My kids are stuck with me for a teacher in a class of 1."

"our cousins are on swim team this year, it'll be a miracle if we remember how to swim next time we get to the water.

"wow, every parent on Facebook is taking their kids on special field trips, playgroup dates, and enrichment activities. I don't think my kids have left the compound in a week."

and on and on.....it becomes really easy for my brain to throw a pity party about how deprived my kids are. When the brain goes, then my attitude goes. It ain't pretty.

And then, I  have to remind myself that Satan is a big fat liar!  I have to make an effort to preach some truth to myself.

Because in reality, this is what I honestly believe and am trusting God for with my kids:

my kids are getting to experience another culture, which is really cool. 

my kids get to see people worship God who don't look like them, talk like them, worship like them or think like them. they are learning that God loves ALL people and speaks ALL languages. 

we hope that our kids will learn that when you read the Bible and love Jesus, it requires an action. 

they get to see the Bible come alive here on a daily basis- widow's mite, woman at the well, prayer meetings that last all night, people who trust Jesus for every basic need.

they are growing a deep compassion as they play with friends who go home to a drastically different living conditions then what they (my boys) have ever seen before.

they are learning that they have a roll of caring for the orphan and the widow.....even at 4,6,8 and 9. 

they are learning that when you follow Christ (oh so imperfectly) that there is sacrifice, but deep blessing.

they are learning that sometimes it stinks to be the only person in a group who "sticks out" and hopefully that will develop into a compassion to include all.


they are learning to become each others best friends (slllowwwwly but surely)

So, even if we are missing out in cheering for our favorite catcher this season, I am trusting God that He will use this time in their lives to develop fruit in them that will last for eternity. 

School is in Session!

 

After Labor Day we decided we needed to get started on this whole school thing.

Add some structure to our day.

 

 

 

 

 

{yup, verdict is in, I officially have the cutest class}

 

 

Even though our curriculum is currently residing on another continent, we are making the best of it.

My little sister (ESL teacher) brought me the mother load of ESL (English second language) ideas and curriculum for the girls.

 

We are getting the hang of it.

 

 

 

About 2 weeks after we started school, in which I had been calling school "shule" (Swahili), Esther informed me on a random Sunday morning that school in Swahili is actually kafunda (sp?).

Pretty sure she will be the teacher by the end of the year.