This week has been full of the same stuff as every other week! I'm not complaining, I enjoy almost every minute of it! But I would like to take this opportunity to get a few things off my chest.
1. How the heck do you motivate an extremely intelligent 8 year old child to do school work that he dislikes? Hayden really enjoys most of his school work, but he HATES math. I understand that completely. I was the same way. I understood it very well, I could do it very well....I just hated actually doing it. The difference between he and I is that I would do it really quickly to just get it over with while he takes the route of whining and complaining and taking an hour to do each problem. And with a two page worksheet everyday...you can see how this is not fun for me in any way, shape, or form. I love that kid with all my heart. But there are days I want to whack that math textbook right upside his head.
2. Why can't Americans just get along? The wonderful thing about our country is how we have the opportunity to make anything that we desire of ourselves. We can say what we want, live how we want, and decide who makes all the important decisions. I think that some people forget that there are other human beings out there who are not so lucky. Having lived in a third world country, I have a unique perspective on how terrific it is to be an American. I wish people would stop taking it for granted. I'm not saying my opinions are right and everyone else's are wrong, I am saying this: you are lucky you get to form your own opinions, America! Stop using them to crush other people into the dirt. I am sick of all the negativity and complaining. I am sick of people abusing their rights and privileges. I am sick of people thinking that their opinion is the only one that matters. I am sick of people taking outright lies and spreading them as truth because they read it online, so it has to be true. I am just generally annoyed at the American public right now. I know that some people are in really bad situations and that it's easy to hand out blame to those making the laws. And I absolutely do not agree with a lot that has been going on. But-along with all of our freedom (which is provided because men and women like yourself and I are out laying down their lives everyday without question or complaint) comes responsibility. People need to own up to it.
3. My body is a temple.....but it doesn't work worth a crap. I have been trying to lose weight. I started keeping track of calories and on the advice of my doctor cut down my calories to 1700 a day. I kept track of these calories. Even without exercise, I should have been dropping about a pound a week. I have lost and gained the same 3 pounds about eight times now. It doesn't matter what I do. It's not that I hate my body...I am perfectly happy with who I am. But I would like to feel great in my clothes. I would also like to walk around and not feel like people are looking at me and judging me for the way I look. It's endlessly frustrating.
On the flip side of my ranting, I am also thrilled about several things that are going on! I got my NOOKcolor updated and now it has apps. Not that I will use a ton of them or do a lot with it...I got my NOOKcolor because I love reading, not because I wanted to play games. But it's still pretty neat to be able to use it for something else.
Jeff and I are hoping to go to the movies this weekend. We would really like to see Thor. Hayden desperately wants to go, but I really don't want him to see it until we have screened it first. I figure it's rated PG-13 for a good reason and I don't want to be surprised by something in the middle of the movie that I wish he hadn't seen. Kids grow up way too fast as it is.
We got to spend this last Sunday outside for most of the day. Jeff tilled our garden and Dad burned a huge brush pile that we had in our backyard. Mom cleaned off our hillside and got rid of all the brush and salt from the plows this winter. If it doesn't rain all weekend, I'm hoping to put in another flower bed out front and start a few plants for our vegetable garden.
We went to a book fair yesterday and purchased all the kids' school books for next year. I know that some people homeschool without spending a dime, but we wanted books that would be similar to and better than what the kids would get in a public school, so our investment is pretty sizeable every year. But we don't begrudge a cent of it. It is for their future, after all. We use Abeka books and this year decided to go with the entire grade package for each of the kids. It cuts down on a considerable amount of lesson planning and book ordering for me, which is really nice.
We only have about four weeks of homeschool left after this week. It will probably take one more week to finish up portfolios and tie up loose ends, but the kids are very excited to be done. They are so excited about our trip to Virginia Beach that they talk about it almost constantly. At least once a day it comes up. I'm really looking forward to it as well. Even if it does mean that I have to wear a bathing suit....
Still not a terribly exciting life, but it's mine and I love it! Talk to you next week!
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