7QT: Winter Activities and Blahs

Did you know the 7QT link-up has a new home?  I've found a fun new blog to read!

Using this as a round-up for all the craziness life has had to offer us in the past week!

1.

 

C liked her homemade chicken nuggets.  We have loved this recipe for many years; I really should share it here.  Easy to make gluten-free, very inexpensive, and a great alternative to Mickey D's.  Unfortunately my kids have already been exposed to the addictive chemical they put in those McDonalds nuggets that makes you crave them fortnightly.

2.

Last Friday we took the train into the city to attend Artful Adventures at the MFA!

It was wonderful.

Donuts on the train!

 

Print-making was the littles' activity... carving a drawing into a piece of styrofoam, coloring it, and then printing it repeatedly on a moistened piece of watercolor paper

Abstract art was N's class... I don't have a picture of the final product but it was beautiful!

Snacks in the cafe!

 

Lunch on the train home

3.

We had eliminated all dance and gym activities for the fall, just because we had plenty of other things going.  It was mostly for my sake, I think... I didn't want to be carting girls around to too many activities while I was working out how to homeschool along with starting up my job.  Plus it gets expensive, you know?

But winter is a great time for getting exercise at away-from-home things, and so as the new year began I said that each girl could choose one activity to add.

L chose gymnastics, with her beloved Miss Becky that she had when she was two.

We had our first class last Friday and it was SO great.

When she was two, gymnastics was a bit tough, because the 4 PM class time meant we had to wake her up from a nap usually, or she hadn't napped that day and was a total bear.  In short, she was never in a very good mood at gymnastics time, although I think she would have otherwise enjoyed it.  They do have morning classes but nothing taught by Miss Becky, and I do agree with L that she is the most fabulous teacher ever.

But the afternoon schedule was not a problem this time around, as she greeted her old friend teacher with a hug and jumped right in.  I was amazed, watching through the window, and how much strength and confidence and agility she has gained in just two short years.  It was a joy to watch.

Here's a short clip of her on the beam... by the time I got my camera out the teacher was moving them on to the next activity.  I wish I had gotten the time right before this when she nimbly walked the length of the beam and then dove into the pit of foam without a backward glance (she wouldn't even do this from the floor when she was two, let alone from the height of the beam).

She cried when class was over.  She has been counting down the days to her next class today.

This was absolutely the best choice for her.  Time off from activities definitely helped us figure out which ones were the most loved!

4.

N chose swimming as her activity.

I have been so proud of N's bravery and determination.  I can tell that a few of the things they are asking her to do make her nervous (anything that involves putting her face in the water) but she courageously tries everything at least once.  She is also not afraid to stick up for herself and tell the teacher (politely, of course) when she is uncomfortable.  I have been really proud of her for that!  Her teacher seems to be striking a good balance, I think, between pushing her out of her comfort zone and knowing when to let her take a break.

She still comes out of the pool with a big grin on her face every week, proud of her accomplishments.    So although I'm watching like a hawk to make sure she doesn't get traumatized, it appears that hasn't happened yet!

Last week she jumped into the pool from the edge into deep water, with no flotation device.  HUGE.

5.

C chose her beloved dance class from last year.

It was so great seeing her teacher again that we have missed so much (C has been the most persistent in asking to return to dance, throughout the fall).  C is right next to her in the black leotard.  It is so nice to see C, who is so shy around most adults, feel totally comfortable and participate fully.  It takes a magical teacher to do that, and Miss Emily certainly is!

This class is called "open dance" because there's no commitment, no recital, you pay by the week, and you can skip occasionally if anybody's too tired.  Just perfect for little C.

6.

Despite this post looking like we are having a blast with all of our activities and learning, I think we have officially hit our homeschooling slump.

N definitely is feeling weary of her workbooks that she was so eager to do at the beginning of the year, and has a pretty severe case of the "I-don't-want-tos" right now.

Which makes me worry, because I'm a worrier, and the reason I want to homeschool is to inspire a love of learning in my daughter, not to force workbooks on her day after day.

But there are some things in life that simply have to be done even when we don't want to do them, so I feel the need to teach her that as well.

I have some ideas to change things up and tweak our activities so it's not all workbooks all the time, but that takes time and advance planning, which is something I don't have a lot of right now (despite the length of this blog post) with my online class starting up and grading coming back in full force.  Plus all the added activities.

I told M the other night that I'm not sure if she's tired out by our increased activities, and therefore has less energy for schoolwork, or if she's actually spoiled by the increase in free time to "just play" this year without being in school all day, and is outraged when I interrupt her and ask her to do anything.

Too much free time or not enough?  It should be easy to see which of those is happening, right?  But I'm finding it hard.

I'm leaning towards the latter, as the girls are happily playing Barbies right now and have been for over an hour, and this is an activity that happens quite frequently on mornings when we don't have activities.  We usually start school later in the day after a healthy dose of play time, and these days N is finished with the work she needs to do in 90 minutes or less, leaving plenty of time for doing whatever she wants.

No, I think it's just a case of the winter-time blahs.

(The scenery is beautiful around here, for sure, but it hurts to be outside.  We've had several nights in the last week of below-zero temps.  Tomorrow the wind chill is forecasted to be -14.  During the day. Ouch.)

An increase in sibling bickering has contributed to the problem and created increased irritability in all parties.

Did I mention that our house gets considerably smaller in the winter?  Our playroom and homeschool classroom are not heated (fail! should have thought of that when I set things up last summer!) and the porch that we love to play on is too cold this time of year without taking the time to bundle up.  So the places we can "be" at home are considerably lessened this time of year.  I mean, I can set up the space heater and all that, but it takes time and effort, and it usually seems easier to just bring books and supplies upstairs to the part of the house that's already warm.  Especially now that the girls are older and have more of their own ideas and individuality, I'm feeling the need keenly for more space for them to spread out.

Small problems, really, but when you're home with the kids day after day after day they can seem really big.

Our activities out of the house are helping, but it's still a problem.

Just thought I would give you a bit of homeschooling reality there.  Thanks for indulging me in a little whining.

7.

And just so we don't end on a depressing note, I'll include this story...

Yesterday N went downstairs to get her little sewing box before settling herself on the living room couch for our afternoon rest time.  About 45 minutes later, she emerged into the kitchen where I was doing dishes, and said, "I made you this potholder Mama."

*insert heart melting here*

Isn't it adorable?  It will be treasured.