A Random Update:

* I will continue my Happiness 101 journey.
Here is (# 40)

I may have fun with all my boys, but my dear daughter knows how to melt my heart.

* Our house hunting continues... this is a very exhausting process as I spend all week gleaning homes, then the week-end we take the day trip down to look at those homes...and...nothing has been productive. There is hope though, as I am in contact w/ a lady from our hometown area who is looking for renters...yay... the size, area, and cost are perfect... so do pray that she likes us. =)

* I won't be posting a l.i.f.e. Academy outline for this month. Basically we are just wrapping up the details of last month, and reviewing for our year end State Testing.

* ditto for Learning w/ the Littles. Although, Andrew has shown much more interest in reading AND writing... yay! We are just playing random phonic-type games for now, along with some reading time. We are slowly packing up our school books to get ready for our move, thus life will be our lessons for awhile.

* Our Monday trips for Campfire & French lessons are wrapping up in a few weeks. We have loved our 2 years of French study; it has been a fun family study.

* I am looking forward to Mother's Day. With 5 boys and a non-romantic husband (no worries, I knew what I was getting myself into, lol), I don't expect much in the flower, card, & chocolate category. But what I do get is a full day of yard work out of everyone! This is priceless to me, as I love the jumpstart to face our summers. This year we will be blessing my mom by doing her yard. =)

*Guess what? While we were down hunting for homes, our Nick had a soccer game, AND it was sunny! AND I got burnt... on my nose, forehead, forearms, a bit on my neck, and my ankles (yes, ankles, I was sitting in the grass and my pants must of been scrunched up??) AND I am not complaining... nope... not at all... real sunshine is much more cheery than that liquid sunshine we have been enduring for months now!

*and speaking of weather... truly we are praying for all the victims of the recent tornado disasters some of the States have endured. It is indeed a crisis, and many people are still missing... May God's grace comfort them all.

Blessings,
Sheri

...and the Happiness 101 continues...

(#35) A husband that loves all things- "manly"- but still treats his only daughter like a princess.

(#36) finding a new friend (via blogging), where ideas can be pondered; where similarities and differences are shared. Personally, I don't know a large, homeschooling family. I know a (as in 1) large family, and I know several folks whom homeschool, but not both. =) So I am pleased to "meet" some lovely ladies who write about their days, knowing how very much I can relate to what they are sharing.

(#37) I *love* unconditional friendship... ya know... where you haven't seen someone in ages, and you can just pick up where you left off... I find it rare, but I am blessed by a few of them.

(#38) fresh-smelling little children after a much needed bath... anyone else sniff their children's hair after bathtime?

(#39) to blush simply because my husband is flirting with me... yeah, that makes me smile. ;^)

Happiness 101... (#29) Spring! ok..so really, it is very much still very wet here in the Pacific Northwest... but just for today it was dry. The tulip farm we went to was pretty, but definitely was not in "full" bloom! Katie-girl ended up being a tourist attractions for some folks from India. Katie almost blended in with a few rows of tulips.

(#30) A Sunday visit with my dear mother-in-law and sister-in-law. They brought our camera back to us... yay! (#31) We have a plan in the works for us moving at the end of summer... I am very much a planner... this makes me happy.

(#32) I woke up to the smell of bacon & eggs frying... Yumm!!! My wonderful husband made us breakfast *smile*

(#33) I find it humorous when my husband (or the older kids) finish doggy-doo duty only to have a dog "go" again... and the 2 yr old is very adamant to let them know.

(#34) I love it when I pretend to cook a meal, and it actually turns out well. =)
Roast Beef, Southern Fried Potatoes, & fresh baked bread
(I forgot to set out the salad-oops)

As we head into this fresh new week, may we all find things around us that make us SMILE...

continuing... my happiness....

(#25) Daffodils are blooming... yay! Ok, so if we had our camera back, Nick could actually take pictures of ours, but this lovely lil bunch looks much like our own. ;^)

(#26) Reading time with Andrew is (finally) becoming consistent. He actually asks now... and admittedly, it is a bit of an unconventional style. The "signal" is when Andrew asks me if I want to lay down with him. This is usually after lunch, and has landed in our quiet time... but it is priceless, quality time with him. He "practices" his word ladders (ba, be, bi, bo, bu, etc), then we lay down as I read out of an old-fashioned stories & rhymes book. Then he reads to me some Abeka phonic beginner books. This is all spread out amongst our king-sized bed, complete with the comfort of many surrounding pillows!

(#27) I went for a walk...all.by.my.self. =)

(#28) During these long never ending rainy days I decided to make some playdough for the kids- and added glitter to it. It added some fun to our afternoons this week! I layed out spring like cutters (flowers, egg, bunny, etc) for a theme, but mostly they made a lot of snowmen, pepperoni pizza, and worms! That's boys for ya, don'tcha think?

Happiness 101 What makes me smile...

This is our oldest son Joe and his girlfriend Amber. They make me smile.... We were out of town this week end; in our hometown to be exact.
(#15) Joe & Amber went out of their way to find out where we were, as to hang out with family & friends on a Saturday night. (#16) These two also showed up out-of-town on Sunday (after church) to join us for Nick's 2nd game of the day. The photo is of them waiting for us to get back from lunch.
(#17) Nick was asked to play soccer with his old hometown team since he was already in town. =) Great kids to hang out with, and I adore the parents too!
(#18) I was able to spend some down time with a good friend (Thanks Anna).
(#19) Our toddlers had a blast playing together. Her Dustin and my Bryson are about a week apart in age. Dustin REALLY likes us... that makes me smile! Enough so, that he broke out of his child-safety-locked house to join us in their RV (our hotel for the night). I guess he also ran after us when we left...like up the secluded driveway and down a country road...before his poor mama could finally catch him (Did I mention how fast he is? ;^)
(#20) Anna & her husband have a modestly LARGE home. Come to find out that they are renovating the lower level into a separate living quarters. Convenient enough, it will be finished around the time we should be moving back down in the area *cheesy grin* A win-win situation for us all.

Home Again...another school week...and some more rain....

(#21) Katie likes math again, and had a blast with learning the simple way to multiply double digits by 11. =)
(#22) Andrew is now my backseat driver... "Mom! That light turned red" (really it wasn't til I was through the intersection)...the very next light turns on me, and I bustle through another yellow light... "Mom! Yellow mean s-l-o-w down" ok Andrew, ok.
(#23) TJ always does the tedious chores around here. You know, the ones that everyone should be doing...like feeding the dog, taking out the trash, starting lunch... yesterday, when I said "whose gonna water the dog?" and everyone sat around like they didn't hear me... then TJ pops up off the couch extra-energetic like, and says "oo-oo- I'll do it!" (insert sarcasm) I found it funny.
(#24) Bryson has been sleeping in his own bed all night! woo hoo! (need I say more?)

Happiness 101... continued....



What makes me SMILE...



(#12) Fixing a middle child a personalized breakfast while the older siblings are gone. Now that was a hug worth earning. =)

(#13) STOMP A unique musical of sorts... we must have watched 2 hours of it. We, the parents, added to the fun by jammin' to our own beats w/ the Littles... that previous mentioned 'middle' child just looked at us strange. hehe. and yes, now I am clickin' a beat on anything in site, and I am going to drive that 13 year old son of mine crazy.

(#14) We are headed down to our little hometown in No Where, OR tomorrow. We get to visit friends, see family, go to our favorite lil pizza joint, and shop tax free. =) Nick gets to play soccer with his buddies in not one, but 2 games for their season opener on Sunday, which is a great way to end our week end.

Hope you all have a beautiful week end... I will be back Monday to continue to share my happiness...

THIS made me SMILE...

at least the last statement of the article did, hehe, as I have pondered that idea before

. *Note: Learning "how to test" , in my opinion, does not offer a quality education.

One of my kids/student bounces all over the place at testing time. One year he will be above grade level 3 years in a subject, the next 2 years behind; One year he excels at Math, bombs at Reading comprehension, the next year it switches...VERY inconsistent...

brilliant child in facts, common sense, & researching things that matter,
which has nothing to do with state mandated test results.

(#11) The FamilymanTodd Wilson, Familyman Ministries So the question at hand is whether to test or not to test.
DON'T DO IT!*
Tests don't measure actual learning and will either leave you and your child feeling like failures or give you a false sense of achievement. You homeschool, and your child is progressing just as he should. If your son is 10 and just now starting to read . . . great! If your daughter can't solve an algebra problem to save her life . . . that's fine. Some kids can, and some kids can't.
Standardized tests do nothing but identify those who do well taking standardized tests and those who don't. Besides, "they" came up with the standard, just a group of people who needed a standard because they were teaching millions of children. It is arbitrary and based on what "they" think children need to know (or what paid teachers need to teach in order to get paid).
Their standard shouldn't be your standard. It certainly isn't God's standard. Mom and Dad, God made you smart enough to get your child ready for adulthood. Don't use anyone else's educational standards, because every child's educational standard is different.
Be diligent, keep plugging, and teach your children while you enjoy them, and everything will turn out hunky dory.
I'm not kidding on this one . . . don't test.
Be real, Todd
P.S. Don't write me mean letters telling me I don't have a clue. Instead, write Nancy Carter and rebuke her for letting a shmoe like me on staff.
P.P.S. I'll be in Cincinnati at the Great Mid-West Homeschool Convention. First mom to my booth who likes my stance on testing (or doesn't) gets a free book of her choice.
*(unless the law requires it . . . and then move to a different state.)

hehe, keep keeping it real Todd! =)

*article from Old School House Magazine via Homeschool Minute

HAPPINESS 101

continued.... Things that make me smile....

(#8) I finished up Nick's high school transcript. YAY! I am so relieved to get that finished up... I just know graduation is gonna be here before we know it!

(#9) I took a nap with Bryson this afternoon. Warm, snuggly, relaxing... gotta love it!

(#10) Dear husband cooked up steak for dinner, and ofcourse all the boys were happy! Bryson eats a whole steak himself! A house full of well fed men makes me happy!

KEEPING IT REAL...

OK, so I stayed up waaayyyy to late with the teenage boys last night. They had plugged in a movie (at 1 am- my normal bedtime, lol), and I got sucked into watching it. It was a suspenseful movie, so at the end I kept asking a million questions, pulling my blanket up to my eyeballs, etc...when I realize that they are all asleep! I am the only crazy person up watching this thing... so I went to bed around 3. Needless to say, I was a bit off, and not feeling very organized today, thus the nap was fabulous!

HAPPINESS 101 ok..first of all, we had a fabulous day out. We went to SKY HIGH (an awesome trampoline place), went to Campfire, & had dinner and french lessons w/ Aunt Chanelle. Dear m.i.l. Michele made us blackberry cobbler for dessert... so technically, this whole day made me smile...cept we left "the camera" when we went home. So now you get blurry cell phone pictures for a week! Things that make me SMILE... (#5) Playtime hour with Grandpa before he leaves for work every day. The littles LOVE this! (#6) The way my kids work together and help each other out when we go to new places (ie SKY HIGH) (#7) When friends' of my children come to visit. We are 2.5 hours away from most of our friends. Lately we've seen a few. Bryson (2) was able to see Dustin (2) and his big brother Ryan. Katie & Andrew were able to see their bestest friends Monique & Aria. Today we have Corbin, who drove up to see Nick, but we all love to visit with him. =) Nick & Corbin were in the same class at school *K thru 3rd grade, and it has been fun to see them grow up, especially cuz they are both graduating this year! (*Nick began to homeschool in 4th grade) ...to be continued.... and why is my postings all clumped together??? I do not type it this way...good grief =)

HAPPINESS 101 GOAL: To post (everyday) the simple things in life that make me smile. I am taking this journey til Good Friday. This is my LENT, of sorts.

(#1) A dear cousin gave our family TOYS. Many keep-your-kids-busy toys! Yay! So today, Dad & Katie brought out one of the K'nex sets. Those are alot of pieces!

~ Dad is reading through the architect plans. =) Katie always has plenty of question to follow up with.

~ The final results! An amazing carnival ride, complete w/ people, motion, and sound! The Littles love it!

(#2) TJ is in the kitchen! Yay for me!

Fresh homemade chicken nuggets....yumm....

The family will LOVE this!

(#3) My adult son who checks in on me on a regular basis. He makes me smile!

(#4) My new laminator! This thing is awesome. It has a hot/cold adjustment. AND it was a great price at costco. purple cows is the brand. We do tons of laminating at our house: flashcards & worksheets are the most common. They are great for dry erase pens too! ~So, there you have it... on my way to 101 THINGS THAT MAKE ME SMILE!~