New School Year!

Hello!  We are still alive!  Obviously life has been very busy.  I have been traveling around a lot this year, which has definitely moved us off our usual routine.  I actually calculated that from Oct 2011-Oct 2012, I will have been gone from the house for 15 weeks!  That's a lot!  However, despite all our traveling, the boys and I managed to put in a really good school year last year.  We mostly took a summer break and are now fully back into the school routine (except that we'll be away for most of the next three weeks, SO, yeah...)

Here are the boys yesterday on the Loudoun County 1st Day of School.  It was our 17th day of school, but that's a good thing since we'll be missing much of the next three weeks!

3rd Grade!  Can you believe it??

New 2nd Grader!

We are beginning our 5th year of homeschooling!  The first year (ok, first two) were pretty casual and we didn't accomplish a whole lot, but I think the kids have turned out fine. :)  We are still using the Sonlight Curriculum for the majority of our learning.  This year we are going to be starting Core D, which is American History, Part 1.  I'm excited about studying this core, especially since we live in Virginia, home to so much early American History.  We're actually starting the year by finishing last year's core, which I intentionally caused to run into the new school year, and by doing short unit study on Virginia.

This year we're going to be using Apologia for the first time.  I know so many people who just love this science curriculum, so we picked Astronomy and the boys are SO excited about spending a whole year learning about that, as they both already love the subject.  We're going to do it in addition to Sonlight's Science C, which will cover several other topics, but be less in-depth.

This year we're going to be focusing heavily on phonics and spelling.  Since both the older boys learned to read without really ever learning phonics, there are some gaps in their knowledge!  So, we're all going to learn this together....I hope.

Caleb is also going to be taking a writing class with other 3rd-5th grade home school boys.  He wanted to do it, so hopefully he will really enjoy it.  It's every Wednesday afternoon.  Wednesday mornings we'll all be participating in Community Bible Study (CBS) at CFC again.

And then we've got this little guy, who's 4 now.  He and I are working on learning the rest of the letters that he doesn't know and beginning phonics and letter writing basics.  He loves to listen in on the reading I do with the other boys and asks me often to define words he doesn't know, so he's learning right along with the rest of us!

Here's to a great school year!

Pacific Northwest Trip Part 1: Mt Rainer

The first two weeks of August were spent in the Pacific Northwest, as Philip returned to his roots.  We flew to Seattle, via Los Angeles, which was a delight to the boys since we got to go to an extra state.  It also meant that they were able to see the Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam and Lake Mead out of the windows of the plane.

This is how the boys were for much of the flights.  So much to see!

We spent our first night at Philip's grandma's house, then as the weather was perfect the next day, we decided to go to Mt Rainier on the way down to the Oregon coast.  It was the right choice and the highlight of the trip for me!  I have been to Rainier two other times, but never on a day like this!

Snowfields in August.  The boys were pretty thrilled to get snow and beach on the same day!

What a sight, huh?

The three hikers.  We hiked up about a mile, but we all wanted to go further.  Time and lunch demanded that we come back down when we did though.

This is Mt Adams, another very tall Washington peak.  As we were hiking, Andrew kept saying 

"Wow...this  is amazing!"

This is where we turned around.  We were very high up!  To the right of Philip's head is Mt St Helens.

We descended on a different trail.  This side was very green and reminded me of the Alps

We had a great time!  Fortunately, while the hike up took 1:45, coming back down was only 30 minutes.  Good thing since it was 1:00 and we were all hungry!  After this we drove the 3.5 or so hours to get to Seaside, OR, where we spent the next week.

Pacific Northwest Trip Part 2 - Oregon Coast

The original inspiration for this trip came from Philip who wanted to take us to the beach where he and his extended family used to vacation when he was a kid.  It turned into quite the family reunion.

We had great weather while we were there, but it was still COLD for the beach...as in low 70's or high 60's with wind.  Brrr....  But this didn't deter the kids!  They built sandcastles for hours every chance they got.

There was also lots of kite flying involved.  Joshua especially liked to help relaunch the kites.

Happy digger!

We went a few miles south to Cannon Beach a couple of times.  Here the boys are at the base of iconic Haystack Rock, which is home to all kinds of marine life, which you can see in low tide.

Haystack Rock

More sandcastle building at the base of the Rock.  Notice the attire.  It was COLD that day!

All the great-grands of Philip's grandma

We had a beach bonfire, thanks to Uncle Paul and Aunt Vanessa.  And of course, s'mores were involved!

Seaside, OR is considered the end of the Lewis and Clark trail.

This picture doesn't accurately show the color of the hydrangeas, but they were the most incredible dark blue/purple color.  Just gorgeous!

Crazy kids!

Great Grandma with the kiddos

Most of the family - Hines, Jones and Noble

We had a wonderful time with all the family!  There were even a couple of members of my mother-in-law's family who dropped by to join the fun!  We're so happy this trip worked out so well and are dreaming of what we might all do on our next big Hines adventure...Alaska?  Nova Scotia?  We'll see!

Pacific Northwest Trip Part 3 - Seattle and Vancouver

The last leg of our trip was going back up to the Seattle area, where we spent a few days with some dear friends, but on the way, we stopped at the recreation of Fort Clatsop, OR, where the Lewis and Clark Expedition stayed during the winter of 1805-1806.

 Writing with quill pens.  Harder than it looks!

 Then we drove a little further north to visit the Astoria Column, which quite high above the city of Astoria and provides quite the view.  Of course, there's no elevator, so we all took the 164 step spiral staircase.  It was not so much difficult as slightly scary, especially the up part!

One of the views from the top

Our dear friends, the Morrisseys, hosted us for a few days.  On Sunday, we took a trip in Seattle and visited the SPU campus, where Mayson, Laura and Philip met...and were I was later introduced to Philip while visiting Laura.  Here are the SPU-ites with their progeny.

Next we went to Discovery Park, which is my favorite place in Seattle.  You get a beautiful view of the Olympic Mountains over part of the Puget Sound.

We then headed downtown to the Pike Place Market to cruise around.  The boys were not impressed.

The next day we hopped back into the car and drove to Vancouver.  It's a very pretty city.  We spent most of our time in Stanley Park.  This is the Borckton Lighthouse, which is there in the Park.

After spending a lazy afternoon in the Park, we headed off the find the 2010 Winter Olympic Torch.  It was pretty cool to get to see it and it's certainly set on an incredible backdrop.

 The next day we went to the Vancouver Aquarium, our first ever trip to an aquarium.  Caleb was particularly thrilled to see Beluga Whales (behind him) for the first time.  We also saw a native kind of Dolphin, seal lion, sea otter, and African Penguins.  We spent several hours just watching the shows and presentations on each of these animals.

Then back to Seattle for two more nights.  Laura and I have been friends now for 17 years!

The Morrisseys currently have a one-eyed frog named Rocky that one of their daughters found outside of Costco.  He was apparently very entertaining.  I think they are all hoping he's going to eat a fly.

On our last morning, we went to a local park and met up with an old friend of the Hines family who really wanted to meet the boys.  It was a lovely visit!  

Then off to the airport we went for the most hectic and stressful two hours of the whole trip.  Bottom line: Sea-Tac needs more fast food restaurants and needs to better label where they are located for families traveling with four hungry boys.  Oh yeah, and we should have allowed ourselves 30 more minutes.

However, on the flight home the boys got to see the incredible mountains of Montana, Glacier National Park, the Badlands of North Dakota, Lake Michigan and Green Bay, Wisconsin.  Then, I am happy to say, it got dark and everyone just stayed in their seats. :)

Mission Successful!

In case you're all dying to know what happened as the result of our changing the way our boys earn treat and video privileges, I am pleased to report our plan was genius.  Suddenly, the boys' floors are always clean (except when they are actively playing), beds are neatly made, they are loading and unloading the dishwasher most of the time, folding the laundry and occasionally helping with other household chores.  Pure genius.  Since they are unable to have a treat or watch a video without having the points to pay for it and the only way to earn points is by doing the above, we have created a situation where work is required.  It makes them happy because they are still getting their privileges AND it has taught them to be a little more picky: i.e. if they don't love the treat options, they will save the points and not have one.  It makes me happy because I can see their carpets and they suddenly learned they WERE able to make their beds neatly! After all, a sloppy bed doesn't earn as many points as a neat one. :)  It's also made me more proactive about finding/leaving jobs for them to do, rather than just doing things myself.

In case you're interested, here's the system.  A few other notes on it.
1. If they don't have a clean room/made bed when we check, they lose the points they would have earned
2. If they lost a privilege during the day by bad behavior, they still have to pay the points as if they had gotten the privilege.

Rewards Chart

Treat After Dinner	10
Watch a Video	15
Exchange for Money                (50 points per dollar)

Point Earning Chart

Do 15 Minutes Worth of Chores, assigned by parent	15
Make Bed and put all clothes folded or hung in place	5/-5
Floor Clean, Books on shelf, Papers put away	10/-10
Set the Table (plates, forks, knives)	3
Clear the Table	3
Load the Dishwasher	3
Dustbust under Kitchen Table	3
Help make dinner	5
Unload the Dishwasher (5 for dishes, 6 for silverware)	11
Sort, Fold, Put away Laundry	10
Vacuum the entryway and kitchen with vacuum cleaner	15
Clean five windows or scrub walls and doors with cloth	20
Organize books on a bookcase	10
Clean the Bathroom (with Dad)	20
Organize and clean up toys in the basement	20
Memorize a chapter of the Bible (7-10 verses)	100

As for my productivity level, I have been doing better about staying on top of proactive chores, although the last two weeks have been bad Lyme weeks for me, so it has been challenging some days.  But I am working on it!

Grumpy

Anyone ever get grumpy about doing their job?  Don't judge me...I sometimes do!  Don't get me wrong, I love and enjoy many things about being a wife, mom and home maker.  BUT, most of the time I wish that my job description regarding the house read: "Keep from becoming a complete disaster and clean for impending company." However, I have been very convicted over the last few weeks that that's not actually what my job description says.  It actually says something more like: "Keep the house as clean and clutter-free as possible, while also teaching the children to live neatly and value organization."  Gulp.  Not doing such a good job with that.  But, I have had some light bulb moments recently.  Some of them are:

1. I am my most productive in the mornings.  This is why I have often felt I have to choose between accomplishing something or schooling the boys on a particular day.  I've realized this is because I really struggle to be productive in the afternoons.  It has definitely been made worse by the fatigue that comes with Lyme, but I think I have always had this tendency.  I often will get a "second wind" in the evening and do work projects then, but not always.

2. I need to do a better job of consistently doing general upkeep on the house so that the problem areas don't get out of control.

3. I need to do a better job of teaching my children to keep their things orderly and to train them to be helpers around the house.

4. I spend too much time "under the line" (i.e. quadrant's 3 and 4), according to Steven Covey's Time Management Matrix, see below.  While the matrix doesn't specifically speak to a mom who stays home with her children, you can figure out where most of the things that fill our days fall.  Some words to help further describe these quadrants are #1 Necessity, #2 Proactive and Productive, #3 Deception (they feel urgent, but aren't) and #4 Waste.

People tend to see me as a very organized person, which I guess is true in a lot of ways.  So, I do really well on urgent, important matters.  If something NEEDS to get done, I get it done.  Period.  Where I have been having a problem is with the things that would fall into quadrant two: proactive productivity, which in my house would mean general cleaning, organizing, de-cluttering and intentional time with the boys.

So, what I am doing to improve?  First, I've been honest with myself and raised the expectations for what needs to be happening around here on a regular basis. Second, I am "requiring" myself to do at least one "proactive" task a day, usually in the afternoon when I normally would not be productive.  Today that means cleaning the main floor bathroom before small group tonight so that it doesn't smell like a bunch of boys use it.  (They do, which is why it smells that way...)  Third, I completed a huge purge, de-clutter and organization of the older boys' rooms and we set expectations for how they need to keep it clean...tied to an incentive.  More on that later.  Lastly, I have committed myself to training my boys to be better helpers with the upkeep of the house.  The older two especially are old enough to help significantly.

So,the incentive?  The boys are able to "earn" the privilege of watching a 30 minute video and having a treat after dinner.  This system has been in place for a long time, but has generally been tied to them having reasonably good behavior and not "un-earning" the privilege rather than really earning it.  We've changed that. They are now on a point system where if they don't make their beds and have clean floors and surface areas at the end of the day, they lose points.  On the other hand, if they have done those things, they earn points.   But only enough to either have a treat OR watch a video.  If they want to do both, the will have to complete a work project to earn additional points by helping out around the house: cleaning bathrooms, organizing bookshelves, vacuuming, etc.

So far, so good.  I've been accomplishing things in the afternoons and making my way through some big projects around the house and the boys have been motivated to look for ways to be helpers, as well as to keep their own spaces organized and neat.  So, here's hoping this becomes habit and that if you happen to drop in on us on short notice from here on out that you'll find a mostly neat house instead of a mostly messy one!

While I'm Waiting...again

John Waller's song While I'm Waiting is another that has continued to resonate with me time after time.  Perhaps this is because the last few years have felt like one waiting period after another.  I was reflecting on this the other day and realized that this is probably true for a lot of people: we're always waiting for something.  This is not always a bad thing, but I think this song has most often spoken to me when the something seems impossible.  And that would be the case right now, in more than one situation.  God has laid something on our hearts that is Big and Dramatic and Scary!  And tied into it are so many pieces that are completely out of our control.  In fact, most of it is completely out of our control.  Now being somewhat of a perfectionist and control freak (ok, maybe not somewhat, but I really am learning to let go of things!), I strongly dislike loose ends.  When we decide to go on a trip somewhere, even months in advance, I can't stand to not have everything booked as soon as possible.  It drives me nuts when decisions take weeks or months to nail down.  But now, ahhhh, God is asking me to HANG for quite a while without knowing WHAT is going to happen and WHEN!  Can we say this is an opportunity to keep my hands off and PRAY?  I don't when I have ever felt so challenged to earnestly pray for God's direction and wisdom.

Now, granted, there are some things that we can do while we're waiting, and so we shall endeavor to be good stewards of this "waiting time" that He has given us so that when He says "It's time" we're ready to roll.

Honestly, the desire that He has put on my heart seems impossible.  With that in mind, I was so thankful when my Bible Study this week highlighted how God's ability to make the impossible happen isn't reliant on our ability to believe that He can do it.  He's not inhibited by lack our of faith.  Thank goodness.  Or should I say, Thank You, God.

I have seen over and over in my life that when God places a desire on my heart, He makes it come to fruition in His perfect timing.  And I trust that He will do the same in this situation, even as I sit here wondering (from a human standpoint) how that's possible.  But here's what I know from a spiritual standpoint:

-He will provide (Gen 22:14)
-He will fight for us (Ex 14:14)
-He will give us wisdom when we ask (James 1:5)
-He will work everything for the good of those who love Him (Rom 8:28)
-Nothing is impossible for Him! (Luke 1:37)

And so we move to a period of waiting...again.  And as the song says, we will serve and worship and be still as we wait for the Lord.