Today was our first day of school, well, officially. I did not get up early like I should have but the rest of the morning was good! I came up with a schedule of sorts last night and so far it seems to be working. I know kids have sort attention spans so we did a lot of switching it up. Going between reading some to coloring to reading to flashcards and more writing or coloring. The kids of course were also asking for reading eggs on the computer, which they ended their homeschool morning with. This whole thing might work out :-) There were a couple of meltdowns of course but overall it was good. We also made homemade cinnamon rolls for breakfast and that is always a hit!
This past weekend wasn't that exciting, but Friday night was good. Friday night we went to a picnic for the Boone homeschool group we are going to join. We met and talked to some people and the kids had a nice time running around with other kids. I think it will be a good community :-)
The Bessman Family Blog....a little blog about our life
Monday, August 29, 2011
Friday, August 26, 2011
Crunch Time
This week has, yet again, been busy busy busy. A number of different doctors, dentists and physical therapy appointments have turned my weekend into a work and lessonplan-a-thon (at least it better be, with all I have to do). The big news this week can almost be looked at as a lack of news, or lack of improvement. After three physical therapy appointments last week and two this week, Ada's arm is not getting any better. Her surgeon, who we saw on Wednesday afternoon, said that all other movements are just what they would want to see and have full function, except for bending it. She can at most do about 110 degrees. In everyday life that is not that big of a deal, except that she is having to try to find a new way to put on, and take off, her shirts. Where it might come into play is with some exercises or sports she may want to do. I can't see her ever being a compentitive swim person now, though I'm not sure she would want to be. Softball and gymnastics may also be out. If she did want to do these sports then we would find a way around it but she probably wouldn't go pro. The big impact is solidifying for another reason why I am glad we are going to homeschool. I can just see a public school PE teacher yelling at her or tell her she is not trying hard enough, or ever punishing her (God forbid) for not being able to do pull-ups or push-ups with her left arm. Even if we had a note in to the teacher or a signed doctor note I can see it, at sometime, being an issue and an embarrasment for her. But, we will never have to worry about it and that makes me very, very happy.
Speaking of homeschooling, a question might be asked if I have done any of my planning for next week yet. The answer would be.....not really. That is on my large to-do list this weekend. Along with 14 hours of grading work (including what needs to get done today), making and canning applesauce, cleaning the basement and house in general and trying to find the motivation to do all of the above. Fnding the motivation won't honestly be hard or homeschool planning for next week (as I am only going to do a personal plan a week or so at a time, the overall outline for the year is done by our curriculum). I love planning, really I do, though that might make me odd. It is a switch to plan for different kids (well, sort of plan differently, it is yet to be seen how much different Maddie and Ada will need the plans to be overall) and to plan at a PK and K level compared to high school. All these different subjects as well, it will be interesting. But, I am very excited for Monday, as are the kids. I even had John move some furniture around last night to get a comfy reading chair in the homeschool room. Now, if only I could start getting up to work or work out when my alarm goes off I would be all set :-)
Speaking of homeschooling, a question might be asked if I have done any of my planning for next week yet. The answer would be.....not really. That is on my large to-do list this weekend. Along with 14 hours of grading work (including what needs to get done today), making and canning applesauce, cleaning the basement and house in general and trying to find the motivation to do all of the above. Fnding the motivation won't honestly be hard or homeschool planning for next week (as I am only going to do a personal plan a week or so at a time, the overall outline for the year is done by our curriculum). I love planning, really I do, though that might make me odd. It is a switch to plan for different kids (well, sort of plan differently, it is yet to be seen how much different Maddie and Ada will need the plans to be overall) and to plan at a PK and K level compared to high school. All these different subjects as well, it will be interesting. But, I am very excited for Monday, as are the kids. I even had John move some furniture around last night to get a comfy reading chair in the homeschool room. Now, if only I could start getting up to work or work out when my alarm goes off I would be all set :-)
Saturday, August 20, 2011
A new puppy picked out and canning...
As the summer winds down it just keeps getting busier around here. Yet again, I have found things to do besides my work. But, oh well, there is always tomorrow to catch up :-)
Since we promised the kids a puppy after having to take Chief back (see previous post), I have been keeping my eyes open. John was immediately thinking next spring, but as he says, once I get something into my head I can't rest until it's done. So, I've been looking at petfinders.org, craigslist and breeders sites. Breeders always seem to expensive, and knowing we need a puppy the shelters aren't being much help with a dog we know will be a large breed. Then Wednesday I saw an ad for German Shepard puppies. I contacted the person and their price was so reasonable since it was a mistake litter, and it included the first shots (something I haven't seen much of on craigslist) that we decided to do it. The girls and I went to pick out our puppy on Friday, though she won't be coming home until she is 7 weeks old in the middle of September. I am glad we went yesterday as the puppies were going like crazy and we had a few puppies to pick from. John and I wanted a darker puppy and the girls wanted a girl, so that left one. We have named her Abbie and the current home is already sending me update emails and pictures, which I love. Abbie has her own baby picture file on my computer already.
Another new and fun thing for the past 2 days is my first experience canning. I bought 45 lbs of tomatoes from a farm in our CSA group on Tuesday, though by Friday I had to throw about about 10-12 lbs due to moldy tomatoes. I still ended up canning 11.5 quarts between last night and this afternoon. The whole canning thing is making me a bit nervous and I hope all the seals are obviously fine by tomorrow once they have cooled down. But, I quickly learned my new pressure cooker with John's help and really like using it! This morning the girls and I hit up the farmer's market and a local orchard and bought a lot of apples. Tomorrow I am thinking of making and canning some applesauce, but we'll see if that happens tomorrow or later this week. Apple butter or pie apples is another option that I haven't ever made before that I might try to can. Perhaps I have gone canning crazy? Oh well.
Tonight we had a fun night at a party for one of our friends as he turned 30. Tomorrow I think John needs to work on the garage and we need to clean and I need to do some (or a great lot, maybe 8 hours if I can) of grading. But, I also know I have a week to get my first week's of general lesson plans done for our school year to start, and that picking away at my mind might make work impossible until I get those done. But, we'll see :-) One more busy week of doctor's appointments, dentist appointments, Ada's physical therapy and other odds and ends and then we officially start homeschooling. I am nervous but looking forward to the adventure that will start next Monday and last the next 14-15 years.
Since we promised the kids a puppy after having to take Chief back (see previous post), I have been keeping my eyes open. John was immediately thinking next spring, but as he says, once I get something into my head I can't rest until it's done. So, I've been looking at petfinders.org, craigslist and breeders sites. Breeders always seem to expensive, and knowing we need a puppy the shelters aren't being much help with a dog we know will be a large breed. Then Wednesday I saw an ad for German Shepard puppies. I contacted the person and their price was so reasonable since it was a mistake litter, and it included the first shots (something I haven't seen much of on craigslist) that we decided to do it. The girls and I went to pick out our puppy on Friday, though she won't be coming home until she is 7 weeks old in the middle of September. I am glad we went yesterday as the puppies were going like crazy and we had a few puppies to pick from. John and I wanted a darker puppy and the girls wanted a girl, so that left one. We have named her Abbie and the current home is already sending me update emails and pictures, which I love. Abbie has her own baby picture file on my computer already.
Another new and fun thing for the past 2 days is my first experience canning. I bought 45 lbs of tomatoes from a farm in our CSA group on Tuesday, though by Friday I had to throw about about 10-12 lbs due to moldy tomatoes. I still ended up canning 11.5 quarts between last night and this afternoon. The whole canning thing is making me a bit nervous and I hope all the seals are obviously fine by tomorrow once they have cooled down. But, I quickly learned my new pressure cooker with John's help and really like using it! This morning the girls and I hit up the farmer's market and a local orchard and bought a lot of apples. Tomorrow I am thinking of making and canning some applesauce, but we'll see if that happens tomorrow or later this week. Apple butter or pie apples is another option that I haven't ever made before that I might try to can. Perhaps I have gone canning crazy? Oh well.
Tonight we had a fun night at a party for one of our friends as he turned 30. Tomorrow I think John needs to work on the garage and we need to clean and I need to do some (or a great lot, maybe 8 hours if I can) of grading. But, I also know I have a week to get my first week's of general lesson plans done for our school year to start, and that picking away at my mind might make work impossible until I get those done. But, we'll see :-) One more busy week of doctor's appointments, dentist appointments, Ada's physical therapy and other odds and ends and then we officially start homeschooling. I am nervous but looking forward to the adventure that will start next Monday and last the next 14-15 years.
Monday, August 15, 2011
And the "new dog" is gone, not such a wonderful start to the week.
The new dog, Chief, lasted all about 3 days in our house. He was a sweet-heart and I have now been sold on Newfoundlands, however him and Lola did not get along. Maybe it was because he was an unneutered male, or maybe it was just him, but everytime any of the girls or I were near Lola or showing her the least bit of attention he would attack. And by attack I do mean biting and pinning her to the ground until I could pull her off screaming. The girls even got caught in the middle a few times. So, after this happened for the 6th or 7th (or 10th, I lost count) time during dinner Saturday night we took him back. Ada and Maddie were besides themselves with crying and screaming that they loved him, but we just couldn't have Lola going through that. The girls of course did not understand completely, and even the promise of a puppy would not sooth them. When we went to the new Orange Leaf in town they calmed down a bit, but were still sad. However, when everyone woke up Sunday morning they seemed fine, so noone is the worse for the wear, except for maybe poor Lola who is still yelping when we pet the bite marks on the back of her neck.
Today has been pretty laid back. I still have not been able to get myself out of bed to do work or work out before the kids wake up, but we have started to read again after breakfast. I really need to get myself and the girls on a better schedule that will lend itself to our homeschooling officially beginning in 2 weeks (yicks!). This morning wasn't too bad, however. The girls and I did some chores before breakfast, then read some and then the older two played their new learning game online. I bought a subscription to Reading Eggs for both Maddie and Ada through the deal they currently having going with Homeschool Co-Op and so far the girls love it! Of course they are only a couple of lessons in, but even if it doesn't truly work to teach them how to read it will be a fun game and a nice "between lessons" activity for one of the girls while the other is working on something with me one-on-one.
This afternoon I have been cranky though, with no children napping (and my capacity for ignoring the running around over my head not being the best today) and my own lack of being able to do work this afternoon, I am not the best one to deal with right now. Of course that didn't keep me from doing something to try to better my mood this afternoon, besides working. I saw yesterday that hip homeschool moms asked about blogs on a status update on facebook yesterday, so I went in and looked at the links this afternoon. And I added a ton of blogs to my already long blogs list to the right. That's okay though. Always looking for new ideas and to see how other people are doing, especially since we don't have any friends who homeschool (well, I do have one, but she lives 2.5 hours away).
Maybe tomorrow will be better for moods and schedules. Though that might not happen since I have to have two cavaties fixed tomorrow. Yuck, I hate the dentist! I wish my mouth wasn't so stupid with cavaties and such. I take fairly good care of my teeth and my mouth, it just doesn't like me :-( So, maybe Wednesday will be a better day? Here's to hoping!
Today has been pretty laid back. I still have not been able to get myself out of bed to do work or work out before the kids wake up, but we have started to read again after breakfast. I really need to get myself and the girls on a better schedule that will lend itself to our homeschooling officially beginning in 2 weeks (yicks!). This morning wasn't too bad, however. The girls and I did some chores before breakfast, then read some and then the older two played their new learning game online. I bought a subscription to Reading Eggs for both Maddie and Ada through the deal they currently having going with Homeschool Co-Op and so far the girls love it! Of course they are only a couple of lessons in, but even if it doesn't truly work to teach them how to read it will be a fun game and a nice "between lessons" activity for one of the girls while the other is working on something with me one-on-one.
This afternoon I have been cranky though, with no children napping (and my capacity for ignoring the running around over my head not being the best today) and my own lack of being able to do work this afternoon, I am not the best one to deal with right now. Of course that didn't keep me from doing something to try to better my mood this afternoon, besides working. I saw yesterday that hip homeschool moms asked about blogs on a status update on facebook yesterday, so I went in and looked at the links this afternoon. And I added a ton of blogs to my already long blogs list to the right. That's okay though. Always looking for new ideas and to see how other people are doing, especially since we don't have any friends who homeschool (well, I do have one, but she lives 2.5 hours away).
Maybe tomorrow will be better for moods and schedules. Though that might not happen since I have to have two cavaties fixed tomorrow. Yuck, I hate the dentist! I wish my mouth wasn't so stupid with cavaties and such. I take fairly good care of my teeth and my mouth, it just doesn't like me :-( So, maybe Wednesday will be a better day? Here's to hoping!
Thursday, August 11, 2011
T-Shirt Givaway
I read a lot of blogs (look at my list on the right, there's a lot of good ones) and one of them is giving away some T-shirts! The blog giving away these shirts is Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers and you can just click this link to get to their post. The T-shirts are homeschooling T-shirts and are from the website store for Great Products and my favorite T-shirt looks like:
The prices are good too, maybe my kids will be getting some new shirts for Christmas :-)
The prices are good too, maybe my kids will be getting some new shirts for Christmas :-)
Run to Iowa City, Visiting the State Fair and Getting a New Dog
With how busy our last couple of days have been, I have gotten nothing done for work, nothing. This means that my average per day for the next three days needs to be 6.33 hours of work (each day). Good thing it is supposed to rain and we have nothing planned until Sunday later afternoon and evening! However, with such a busy time, I have things to post about, yeah!
Yesterday morning started out in a rush as we were running late for getting the dogs and Camille to the vet for regular check-ups and heartworm tests. The reason for running late? Us taking 15 minutes to catch Camille as she has figured out noone can reach her when she is under the king bed, in the middle. We finally made it to the vet and Ada got pulled down by Harley in the parking lot, onto her face and bad arm. The bad arm she also fell on the evening before when playing tag with a neighbor boy. Screaming ensued, she said she couldn't bend it (though within a hour was back to bending in the minimal amount she has been able to since getting the cast off and pins out 2 weeks ago) and I was texting my mom and John. My mom went and checked with the nurse of her surgeon and by 11:30 we were on our way to Iowa City for X-rays and visiting a resident. The X-rays were not a big deal (if you ignore Ada throwing a fit) but we ended up waiting to see the resident for almost 2 hours! None of the girls ate lunch, except for random bits of food my mom and her friends found at their desks, and all were cranky by the time we got on the road for the 2 hour drive home. John had dinner waiting for us (bless him) at 7:45, when we pulled in, and our day ended up with not much to show for it besides being in the car and having cranky children.
This morning we got up, got ready, and headed to the State Fair. On the way we got a call from my mom who said she had an order in her hand for Physical Therapy for Ada's range of motion. Her current range of motion is being able to move her arm from about 10 degrees to 90 degrees, but nothing more, and most of the time she leaves it hanging limp like she is still in the cast. I think PT is needed and hopefully it helps, though she is already voicing her opinion of having to go. The State Fair was fun however, and Ada and Hazel got up to help Silly Sally (who they love) with several songs when we saw her perform. Maddie (and the other 2) got to see lots of types of animals and Maddie is already crossing her fingers our 5 raffle tickets will pay off and we will win the horse this year featured on the Avenue of Breeds. Maddie could look at animals all day (she is my daughter) but was happy that they got to pet pigs, horses, a day old pig, an hours old lamb and cows. The day at the fair ended on a cranky note as Hazel needed a nap and Maddie fell when trying to climb on a table to see the eggs hatching, but getting cookies and water in the car helped.
After the fair we headed to Indianola. I have wanted another big dog for a few years, and John and I have looked at a few dogs at shelters or advertised on craigslist, but nothing became of it. This past weekend I started talking with a women who said she had a very sweet 1 year old Newfoundland (a breed I love) for sale. The price was high, and though we did get them to come down a bit, it was probably still too much, but we went to look at the dog with cash in hand. When we got to their house I was taken with this dog for two reasons. One, he really is a sweetie, and two, I did not want to leave him in this house. The poor dog is covered, and I mean covered, with mats. His ears cannot lay right and he is walking poorly with his back legs (and can't really seem to climb stairs) because of these mats. I just cannot understand how he has gotten to this point, since the people have kept him up to date on vaccines and even updated a number of shots yesterday for us, but it is bad. On the way home I was making many calls to various groomers in town to see who I could get him into soon to shave off all his hair as that is the only way I see of getting rid of these mats. The house was also not that clean. The front room was a little tattered, but not bad, but as soon as we saw the "dog area" where they had doggie doors that they were offering me, I had to force myself to not show my disgust. The sliding doors were covered in mold. All three kids were with me and I really wanted to tell them not to breath. I couldn't leave him in that place and know we can give him a better life. The girls love him (except for his slobbering) already. The other dogs are not doing too bad with him. They are not playing yet, and Harley is not sure what to think of this huge dog trying to play with him and slobbering on him, but all is well I think in that area. The cats and the dog will need some adjusting. He had cats at his other house, but so far mine are not ignoring him enough and he wants to play. The only times we have heard him bark (and what a bark!) was with Sullivan hissing and swatting at him. I believe the dog is playing (even when he mouthed Sullivan, at least I hope), though the cats are not interested in playing. It will take some adjustment. But I think that Chief will be a good addition to this home, that is if I can get him name right as I keep wanting to call him other names (so does John).
Tomorrow my goal is to keep the peace between all the animals, between all the kids, to work and to get Chief's neutering scheduled. Hopefully all our trips and driving is done for a little while. That is until my mom and I go to Sugarland at the State Fair Sunday, so excited for that!
Yesterday morning started out in a rush as we were running late for getting the dogs and Camille to the vet for regular check-ups and heartworm tests. The reason for running late? Us taking 15 minutes to catch Camille as she has figured out noone can reach her when she is under the king bed, in the middle. We finally made it to the vet and Ada got pulled down by Harley in the parking lot, onto her face and bad arm. The bad arm she also fell on the evening before when playing tag with a neighbor boy. Screaming ensued, she said she couldn't bend it (though within a hour was back to bending in the minimal amount she has been able to since getting the cast off and pins out 2 weeks ago) and I was texting my mom and John. My mom went and checked with the nurse of her surgeon and by 11:30 we were on our way to Iowa City for X-rays and visiting a resident. The X-rays were not a big deal (if you ignore Ada throwing a fit) but we ended up waiting to see the resident for almost 2 hours! None of the girls ate lunch, except for random bits of food my mom and her friends found at their desks, and all were cranky by the time we got on the road for the 2 hour drive home. John had dinner waiting for us (bless him) at 7:45, when we pulled in, and our day ended up with not much to show for it besides being in the car and having cranky children.
This morning we got up, got ready, and headed to the State Fair. On the way we got a call from my mom who said she had an order in her hand for Physical Therapy for Ada's range of motion. Her current range of motion is being able to move her arm from about 10 degrees to 90 degrees, but nothing more, and most of the time she leaves it hanging limp like she is still in the cast. I think PT is needed and hopefully it helps, though she is already voicing her opinion of having to go. The State Fair was fun however, and Ada and Hazel got up to help Silly Sally (who they love) with several songs when we saw her perform. Maddie (and the other 2) got to see lots of types of animals and Maddie is already crossing her fingers our 5 raffle tickets will pay off and we will win the horse this year featured on the Avenue of Breeds. Maddie could look at animals all day (she is my daughter) but was happy that they got to pet pigs, horses, a day old pig, an hours old lamb and cows. The day at the fair ended on a cranky note as Hazel needed a nap and Maddie fell when trying to climb on a table to see the eggs hatching, but getting cookies and water in the car helped.
After the fair we headed to Indianola. I have wanted another big dog for a few years, and John and I have looked at a few dogs at shelters or advertised on craigslist, but nothing became of it. This past weekend I started talking with a women who said she had a very sweet 1 year old Newfoundland (a breed I love) for sale. The price was high, and though we did get them to come down a bit, it was probably still too much, but we went to look at the dog with cash in hand. When we got to their house I was taken with this dog for two reasons. One, he really is a sweetie, and two, I did not want to leave him in this house. The poor dog is covered, and I mean covered, with mats. His ears cannot lay right and he is walking poorly with his back legs (and can't really seem to climb stairs) because of these mats. I just cannot understand how he has gotten to this point, since the people have kept him up to date on vaccines and even updated a number of shots yesterday for us, but it is bad. On the way home I was making many calls to various groomers in town to see who I could get him into soon to shave off all his hair as that is the only way I see of getting rid of these mats. The house was also not that clean. The front room was a little tattered, but not bad, but as soon as we saw the "dog area" where they had doggie doors that they were offering me, I had to force myself to not show my disgust. The sliding doors were covered in mold. All three kids were with me and I really wanted to tell them not to breath. I couldn't leave him in that place and know we can give him a better life. The girls love him (except for his slobbering) already. The other dogs are not doing too bad with him. They are not playing yet, and Harley is not sure what to think of this huge dog trying to play with him and slobbering on him, but all is well I think in that area. The cats and the dog will need some adjusting. He had cats at his other house, but so far mine are not ignoring him enough and he wants to play. The only times we have heard him bark (and what a bark!) was with Sullivan hissing and swatting at him. I believe the dog is playing (even when he mouthed Sullivan, at least I hope), though the cats are not interested in playing. It will take some adjustment. But I think that Chief will be a good addition to this home, that is if I can get him name right as I keep wanting to call him other names (so does John).
Tomorrow my goal is to keep the peace between all the animals, between all the kids, to work and to get Chief's neutering scheduled. Hopefully all our trips and driving is done for a little while. That is until my mom and I go to Sugarland at the State Fair Sunday, so excited for that!
Monday, August 8, 2011
Maddie's 4th Birthday Video and our past weekend's happenings.
Maddie's 4th Birthday Video
Since coming home from WI on Friday we have been busy busy around here. On Saturday we went to Walker's birthday party, which was fun. The girls always love playing in parks and we enjoy talking with friends when we can. After that we quickly went home to change and do makeup/hair (all the girls required eye shadow and lipstick and the younger two wanted their hair flat-ironed) and then we headed down to Des Moines for Ryan and Emily's wedding. The girls were little crab-apples during the actual wedding, but the reception was a hit all around. They not only had good food, but they had a separate kids' food table. It is always good to go to a wedding where you can talk to family, and the girls love dancing for most of the night. Sunday (yesterday) was the Ames water park, which we always enjoy, then we had dinner with the in-laws since Nick was still in town.
Today was a little more normal, though I haven't been able to make myself do the work I need to do. I did not do enough during this past week being on vacation, so I need to play catch-up this next two weeks. I also got it into my head to upload all our pictures (naming, editing, and to shutterfly) today and making Maddie's birthday video. Of course Facebook would not let me load these types of videos anymore so we'll see if I can get it to work (above). When I proudly showed the video to Maddie and the other girls she started crying like usual for these videos. I need to stop picking such sad sounding song I guess.
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