Tips for Homeschooling With Littles

So often I hear the question, "How do you do it?" Some people elaborate further and say something like, "How do you homeschool with so many children?" or "How do you focus on school when you have little ones around?"

Our days are not always perfect (not by a long shot!), and we don't always get everything done, but there are some things that I do to with the younger kids that help me get our homeschooling done with the older kids. I thought I would post a list now, so you could be thinking about implementing some of these ideas later.

• School in a room where littles can play. We used to do school on the dining room table, but inevitably I would end up bringing toys into the kitchen and dining room so the baby could be near us. We got tired of tripping over toys, (and now I have more kids!) so a few years ago we moved our school into the living room/play room. We had a table, some desks, and the piano in half the room, and toys in the other half of the room. When we were all working in the same room, it is easier to keep an eye on everyone (and keep the mess somewhat contained!).
• School at the dining room table.  Life changes, and now we are back to doing the big girls' core work at the table.  When the littles want to join us, I will take out paint with water sheets or watercolors, Color Wonder markers or fingerpaint, playdoh, WikkiStix, or good ol' crayons to keep them busy while I read aloud.
• Give them some focused time. Get the older kids started on a subject, then sit on the floor and do a few puzzles, stack blocks, read books, or play a game with the littles. If you give them 10 minutes of your attention, often they will be okay for the next 10 minutes while you help someone else.
• Give preschoolers and toddlers "school work". I don't do regimented "school" with preschoolers, but often the younger siblings don't want to be left out of the homeschool fun! When they are excited about learning, you want to encourage that. Some printables, a coloring book, or a workbook from the dollar store go a long way in making preschoolers feel like the big kids. My preschoolers also love Starfall.com, which they call their "homework".
• Make activity bags or bins to rotate. Put some time upfront into filling bags or bins with blocks, felt boards, foam shapes, things to stack or fill, or other activities. Rotate these items to keep your toddler's interest. Consider having them play with the items only on a blanket on the floor, to make it a more focused activity.
• Do more intense or hands-on subjects during nap time. Do things that need your focused time and attention, like science experiments, when the littles are down for nap.
• Do your read-alouds while nursing the baby. You are already sitting on the couch, why not invite the kids to join you and use that time?
• Give older kids a break. My older girls sometimes get a break in between subjects when they can play with the little girls. This teaches them responsibility and helps build their relationships while freeing me up to focus on one child if needed.

One key ingredient to homeschooling with littles around is flexibility. We've tried staying on a schedule, but things happen and then we just get flustered with being off schedule. It's easier for everyone involved if we just try to stay on task with short breaks in between, while allowing time for life to happen! :-)

What other tips do you have?
I am always open to more ideas, so please leave a comment!

Book Recommendations for ages 6-9+

I know how it is when you are trying to get your kids interested in reading.  Sometimes you need to try a few different series of books before you find one that clicks.  Here are several series that my kids have really enjoyed reading.

I have done a few other posts in the past with books we have read and recommend, and you can see those here, here and here.  I won't repeat those recommendations again here, so be sure to check out those links for other great book choices.

Series for Ages 6-9 (or as read-alouds)

Patricia St. John (author) books

 Meghan Rose series

LarryBoy Chapter books



 
A to Z Mysteries

 
 Calendar Mysteries by Ron Roy


Capital Mysteries by Ron Roy

 
Cul-De-Sac Kids by Beverly Lewis

 
American Girl Short Stories


Martha Speaks Chapter books

    
Cam Jansen or Young Cam Jansen books by David Adler


Nate the Great books


Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle books by Betty MacDonald


The Boxcar Children series (over 150 books!)

There's more to come!  I am working on another post with longer chapter books for ages 8-10+!

Do you have any recommendations to share?  

I'd love to hear them!  

Book Recommendations for ages 5-8+

As you've likely noticed, blogging has taken a back seat to life this past year.  A lot has changed!  One quick update is we are expecting girl #6 in June!  Yes, another girl, and we couldn't be more thrilled!

One of the questions I get asked a lot is what books my girls have enjoyed reading and that we would recommend.  It is so hard as a parent to keep ahead of your kids once their reading takes off!  Which books and series are suitable and appropriate for their ages?  I have searched high and low for a good book recommendation site (kind of like pluggedinonline for movies, but for books), but so far I haven't found one.  If you know of one, please let me know!  It would be great to have a searchable site with some details about content, etc.

Since I haven't found something yet, I rely on word-of-mouth recommendations from friends I trust.  When picking up a new book, I also read the back, try to scan a few pages throughout the book, and then hand it over to my oldest with the qualifications of "you know what is appropriate--let me know if this book is okay". So far she has demonstrated good judgment, we've had some good conversations about topics that are starting to come up in the "tween" books, and some books we decide to skip. Then she can recommend them to the younger girls! ;-)

I have done a couple of other posts in the past with books we have read and recommend, and you can see those here and here.  I won't repeat those recommendations again here, so be sure to check out those links for other good book choices.

Since I did those last two posts awhile ago, there have been MANY more books the girls have read individually or that we have read together as read-alouds.  So it is high time for a new post! Here is a list of books and series that I have tried to group into rough age groups, but you can certainly go outside these age ranges. 

Early Readers and Short Chapter Books (ages 5-8, or as read-alouds to younger kids)

• Chronicles of Narnia "I Can Read" early readers--a good introduction to Narnia for younger kids, or for them to read on their own. 

• Amelia Bedelia Chapter books--Everyone loves Amelia Bedelia, and now there's a new series of chapter books about Amelia when she was young!  

• Henry and Mudge (a boy and his dog), Annie and Snowball (a girl and her bunny, also with Henry and Mudge), Brownie and Pearl (a girl and her cat), and Mr. Putter and Tabby (an old man and his cat) 

• Arthur Chapter books--Arthur and his friends have adventures in elementary school.  Check the content of these for what you think is appropriate for your kids' ages.  

• Mercy Watson series--Mercy is a pig (a porcine wonder!) who has all sorts of funny adventures, and loves toast with a great deal of butter on it! 

• Berenstain Bears Chapter books--there are "First Time Chapter Books" and "BIG chapter books", about 85-105 pages.  Check the content.

There's more to come!  Stay tuned for more posts with longer chapter books for ages 6-9 and 8-10+!

Do you have any recommendations to share?  

I'd love to hear them!  

Prepping for School Freezer Style

"What's for dinner?"

The dreaded question.

Last year I participated in a freezer meal swap group and I loved it! There were eight of us in the group. We would decide on meals ahead of time, then go home and make one recipe x8 and put them in freezer bags. The next month we would swap meals and go home with 8 different meals for the month. That is two meals a week, and I really enjoyed the freedom of not having to think about what was for dinner. If I knew we were going to have a busy day, I would pull a meal out of the freezer either the night before or in the morning, then bake it and add a side. Voila! Dinner is served!

I won't be in a freezer swap group this year, so for the past few weeks I have been preparing for the school year by stocking my freezer little by little. On days when I have had a little more motivation, I looked around my pantry to see what I could make into a freezer meal. Other days I purposefully made a double batch of dinner in order to freeze one for later.

Some weeks chicken was on sale so I made some for dinner and then made up several different freezer chicken meals, either cooked or raw with a marinade. Other weeks hamburger was on sale so I froze taco meat and meatloaf. One day I didn't have any meat on hand, but I had noodles, cream cheese, and other ingredients, so I made homemade macaroni and cheese to freeze. Another time we had leftover diced ham, so I made a ham casserole to add to the freezer. Of course I've also made lots of rhubarb berry freezer jam, strawberry freezer jam, and strawberry syrup. Yum!

I love the ingredient search option on allrecipes.com. Type in a few ingredients you have on hand, and even a few you don't, and see what options you might have on hand to make into a meal!

Some days are whirlwind-like, but knowing I have a good dinner in the freezer ahead of time can save me from asking Ted to stop for some take-out on the way home. It saves money and is more healthy, too!

What kind of freezer meals do you like to make ahead? I have some recipes here you might like to try, but I am always looking for more ideas. Please share! :-)

Mothering Bracelets

I subscribe to a magazine called Above Rubies, a magazine dedicated to encouraging mothers, raising children, and healthy living. I recently found out about these Bracelets of Encouragement and wanted to share them with you. Each bracelet has a positive affirmation for wives and mothers to remind you of your calling as a wife and mother. These are the bracelets that are available:

I LOVE MOTHERHOOD
WE'RE A SMILING FAMILY
I'M A COVENANT KEEPER
I LOVE MY HUSBAND
I AM ABOVE SELF-PITY
MOTHERHOOD=ADVENTURE
I AM A NATION BUILDER
WORTH MORE THAN RUBIES

You can order just one bracelet with the phrase of your choice for $2.50, or you can order a bundle of 8 bracelets for $12. Better yet, you can customize your set of 8 bracelets and order 1 of each, 2 of one, three of another, or all 8 of the same! What a fun way to promote motherhood! Shipping is a flat $1.50.

Want an even better deal? Sign up as a preferred shopper and you will get an email with a code for 10% off!

Christian Fiction for Kids

H and G love to read which is great, but sometimes it can be hard to know what books are good for them to read, since I can't keep up with them. Here are some Christian Fiction series that we have found for them to read:

Young Cousins Mysteries, series by Elspeth Campbell Murphy. Fun mysteries with an emphasis on godly character traits. Very early chapter books, age 4-7.

The Three Cousins Detective Club, also by Elspeth Murphy. Similar to, but are longer than the above series, but still early reader chapter books. Age 5-8.

The Ruby Slippers School series by Stacy Towle Morgan is about 2 homeschooled girls who travel to different countries with their dad who is a missionary. They encounter a mystery in each book. My daughter H loved these books because the main character is homeschooled! :-) Age 6 and up. I believe there are 6 books.

Katie's World by Karen Mezek, about a young girl whose parents are missionaries, and she visits a different country in each book, encountering a mystery. Ages 6 and up. I think there are 6 books.

The Elizabeth Gail series by Hilda Stahl. About a young foster girl who is adopted by Christian parents and becomes a Christian. I read these books when I was younger and loved them, and my daughter loves them too. (H is 7 now). My only caveat--Elizabeth Gail does age in this series, so she does encounter love in the later books. So the first several books are fine for age 7 and up, but the later books you might want to wait. I think there are about 21 books.

The Spirit Flyer series by John Bibee (age 9 and up, I would think--my husband and I read these) Great Christian spiritual imagery, about a special bike that can fly. Along the series, the kids' eyes are opened to the spiritual realm and unseen battles that are being fought. There are 8 books, good for boys and girls.

The Mandie series by Lois Leppard--my daughter is about to start this series, and now they have movies out for the first two books, which our family has enjoyed watching together for family movie nights. I'm not sure how many books there are, but at least 40. Probably age 8-12.

And of course the Laura Ingalls Wilder books are great, and everyone knows about those, right? :-) But did you know about the Little House Chapter Books for earlier readers? These are books with shorter stories and chapters that introduce Laura and Mary in their earlier years. Age 4-7.

My Minivan is My Purse

Have you ever been to a baby shower or something where they played a "what's in your purse" game? I never win that game because I don't carry a purse. My minivan is my purse (but you can't bring that in to a baby shower).

To be sure, my minivan might look like something exploded in it (hey, I have 5 kids!), but I have just about everything you might need in there, and it's come in handy more than once! Some things were put in the minivan as a precaution, but most of it has become standard equipment because we "had a situation" (or more than one. . .).

Remember when we needed clean pants and underwear for G's muddy mishap? Not a problem!

And there was the road trip where F choked on a pretzel and threw up--then we needed a bucket and a change of clothes, countless wipes, napkins, and kleenex, plastic bags, and hand sanitizer afterwards!

I've got everything I can think of in my minivan. Kleenex, wipes, diapers, changes of clothes and socks, hats, sunscreen, bug spray, hand sanitizer, water bottles, snacks and containers, pens, CDs, magazines, books, toys, bags, an umbrella, emergency supplies, first aid kits, toilet paper, Tylenol, napkins, a bucket, a beach towel, a stroller, a baby carrier, jumper cables, and more!

What do you have in your minivan or car? Is yours as clean as a whistle, do you have everything under the sun, or are you somewhere in between?

Mommy Me Time

Being a stay-at-home parent is not an easy job. It is very rewarding, but it can be draining both emotionally and physically as well. It's important to make "me time" sometime during the day to recharge. For me, this is afternoon naptime.

Not all of my girls still nap every day, but they all go upstairs for "quiet reading time". I turn on a CD with soothing music and they all choose a pile of books (or for H and G, a chapter book), and they are expected to stay in their beds until the music is finished (about an hour). When the music stops, they are allowed to come down. This usually allows me an hour of quiet time to myself. I can read the Bible or a book, catch up on email or blog, make a phone call, get a chore done, or any other of a number of things. As long as I can do it by myself, without interruptions, I'll be a happier mommy when the hour is over!

With the addition of a new baby to the family, we're still trying to get into our new groove, but I know we'll be on-track soon. Everyone is more likely to be crabby if we miss afternoon nap. It is important, both for the kids and for me!

Sprint and JuiceBoxJungle have sponsored me to write about what "ten minutes" a day means to me. Sprint has just launched Gaming on the Now Network™, bringing you the first wireless 4G network from a national carrier.

Ergo Baby Carrier Clearance!

UPDATE: Someone left a post saying they never got their carrier from Yellbaby, so I'd recommend buying through the Ergo website instead.

Yellbaby.com is having a clearance sale on their brand new Ergo Carriers! They are $79 plus $15 shipping, making them just $94. Ergo carriers normally sell for $105 (with free shipping from several sites), so this is a savings of $11. We love our Ergo baby carrier. You can read my rave review here. We bought it after F was born 2 years ago and have used it a lot, even with M because it carries kids up to 40 lbs. We used it A LOT when we went to Disney World, as it is especially nice to use with sleeping children. Here are some pictures of us with our Ergo in action. (We haven't taken any new ones with baby J in the carrier yet, though we have used it!)

Me with baby F at the park, using the older style infant insert.

F helping Daddy rake leaves when she was about 5 months old.







Daddy carrying two girls! F in the carrier and M on his shoulders.












Me with F asleep on my back while bell-ringing last year.

Lunch Ideas

When I hosted my Go-Gurt giveaway, I asked you all to leave comments about what you serve your kiddos for lunch, beyond the typical peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and macaroni and cheese. I got some great ideas, so thank you! Because it's easy to get in a rut, I thought you might appreciate some new lunch ideas, too. Here is a list of ideas, some that were left as comments and some that I wanted to add as well. Many are variations, but new twists make things interesting! Yogurt, fruit, and cheese are common sides.

• Tuna mixed with mayo and shredded cheese, scooped up with crackers
• Homemade Hummus with veggies and crackers for dipping
• Ham and Cheese Rollups--deli ham and sliced cheese, melted on a tortilla
• Hummus wrap--roasted red pepper hummus on a tortilla, add ham, cheese, and lettuce
• Quesadillas--cheese between two tortillas toasted on both sides in the skillet; great for dipping in salsa, soup, guacamole, hummus etc.
• PBand J Quesadillas--PB in tortillas, toasted, then dip in jelly
• Pizzadillas--sauce, cheese and toppings in between tortillas
• Flautas--kind of like a rolled up quesadilla baked in the oven
• Peanut Butter, banana, and honey sandwiches (or try sliced apples instead of the banana)
• Rolled up peanut butter sandwiches--tortilla with PB, and try adding honey and cinnamon sugar
• Turkey, avocado and cheese sandwich.
• Breakfast for lunch--Omelets, bagels, pancakes with PB and J, scrambled eggs with cheese and veggies
• Supreme Nachos--use up leftover taco meat
• Fishsticks
• Chicken nuggets
• Mini Pizzas--use english muffins or bagels, sauce, cheese, toppings
• Homemade lunchables--Save a lot of money and sodium by making it yourself.
• Let kids get creative and make their own sandwiches--Mac and cheese and pea sandwich, cucumber-ham-cheese, nutella-banana...
• Noodles and frozen red grapes
• Different salads
• All afternoon we have a "snack tray" out with nuts, fruit, dried fruit, vegetables and sometimes pretzels, healthy cereal, etc.
• Tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich
• Chicken salad sandwiches
• Tuna salad sandwiches
• Mix in tuna or chicken with mac and cheese
• Small subs
• Ants on a log--peanut butter filled celery with raisins
• Polish sausage in a bun (or hot dogs)
• "Dinosaur Soup" aka spaghetti o's
• Pita bread pizzas
• Fried egg sandwiches
• Tortilla, refried beans, and cheese heated up in a skillet
• Egg tacos--scrambled eggs with cheese and veggies in a tortilla

If you have an idea that isn't listed, please leave a comment!

Free Movies All Summer at Regal Cinemas

Since 1991, Regal Cinemas has been offering their FREE Family Film Festival, showing free G and PG movies during the summer!  Every Tuesday and Wednesday at 10am, select movies will be shown. Select your state to find a theater near you and which movies will be showing on which dates.  We've done this in the past, and it's a great (FREE!) activity, especially when it is raining or really hot outside.

Thanks Saija!

Free Kids Bowling This Summer

Looking for a fun and frugal family activity for the summer? Kids can bowl 2 free games per day at participating bowling centers. My nephew took advantage of this last summer and had a blast! Find participating bowling centers near you.

Jellybean Easter Poem

Here is another easy Easter idea that you can do with your kids. Divide up jellybeans by color (a good sorting activity), put one of each into baggies (one-to-one correspondence), and then tie them up with a bow with the poem below attached. Deliver them to neighbors, librarians, classmates, relatives, etc. to share the real meaning of Easter.

Here is the poem, by Charlene Dickensen:

Red is for the blood He gave.
Green is for the grass He made.
Yellow is for the sun so bright.
Orange is for the edge of night.
Black is for the sins we made.
White is for the grace He gave.
Purple is for the hour of sorrow.
Pink is for our new tomorrow.
A bag full of jellybeans
So colorful and sweet,
is a prayer, is a promise,
is a loved one's treat.

This week Target has Lifesavers Jellybeans on sale for $1.88.
Use the $1/2 coupon here to get them for $1.38 each.
CVS has jellybeans on sale for $0.77 this week, but they don't have black or white in them. It looks like the Lifesavers Jellybeans have white, but I'm not sure about black.