Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Mathematics 2 (Term 1)

Summer always goes by in a hurry. This is our 3rd year homeschooling and the school year now seems to pass just as quickly. Here I am beginning my reports for Term 1.

Math is David's favorite subject. He finds it easy and quick. It is the easiest subject for me to teach. We are continuing to use "Math U See" curriculum which I love! There is a DVD for each lesson which we watch together. If David needs more instruction we go over it further on our white board but this is seldom the case. There are also lots of online resources on the Math U See website. Each week we cover 1 lesson which consists of 12 worksheets and 1 test. There are also unit tests and each week also reviews the previous weeks so that it all stays fresh.

David is currently working on lesson 8 and will have completed 10 lessons by the end of term 1. These lessons cover the following:
1. Place Value
2. Sequencing; Word Problem Tips
3. Inequalities
4. Rounding to 10 and Estimation
5. Multiple-Digit Addition
6. Skip Counting by 2
7. Addition with Regrouping (Carrying)
8. Skip Count by 10
9. Skip Count by 5; 5 cents=1 Nickel
10. Money: Decimal Point and Dollars
Many of these lessons we covered in kindergarten and Grade 1 so they were review. David caught on to the new lessons easily. Estimation and Regrouping were both completely new to him. David does well on his tests. He completes them without help which allows him to feel confident and allows me to know if there is anything we need to work on. He often gets all the answers correct. He sometimes gets one answer wrong and the most he has gotten wrong on a test is 2. This is where we see his perfectionist side come out! He really doesn't like to make a mistake. He is learning to check his work.

A+ from Mom
Good Job David!

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Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Rebekah's 1st Year


Click here to view this photo book larger
Shutterfly baby photo books are the perfect way to preserve your baby's precious moments.

I just finished and ordered Rebekah's Baby Book. I've used Shutterfly before and I have been happy with them. Because life is busy with 4 I worked on Rebekah's book online, one month at a time. I would recommend this method to all busy Moms. You can journal while it's fresh in your mind and if you dedicate one page per month it is easy to just add your favourite pictures at the end of each month. Here it is for anyone who wants to view it online. I should have the hard copy in my hot little hands in a few weeks time. "The days are long but the years are short."

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Pumpkin Picking

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This year we tried the AppleBarn Pumpkin Patch in Abbotsford for the first time. We have been 2 or 3 times to the one in Steveston. We enjoyed it and it was nice to experience a different farm. Highlights compared to Steveston are the petting zoo, giant bouncy mat (although it was out of order) and Pony Rides (if you want to pay extra). Our kids were pretty leery about touching the animals so we ruled out Pony Rides this time. Don't get sucked in about the "Zip Line"... it is just a glorified playground pulley). A plus is the store where you can buy fresh apples and fresh apple juice (called apple cider). Downside is it was expensive... the pumpkins cost more too. But it was a really fun family day, great weather and not too crowded.

Monday, October 7, 2013

Tad Lake - Thanksgiving 2013

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This year we were able to make a second trip to Tad Lake for our 2nd annual early Thanksgiving. It was a lot colder then last year but that made for a new kind of fun. The kids did well and are really settling in to the cabin and camper being home away from home. The new family picture isn't the best shot we got but I will likely be using it for Christmas cards so I thought I would save it for now.
It was nice to see Fall settling into the Caribo. It's much different then our fall... no reds... just greens and golds. We were fortunate to see some different animals this year. A hare, 2 swans, cows and squirrels (okay cows and squirrels we see here). Jonathan also got to see a Doe and her Fawn when he was out hunting... two bad it wasn't a Buck! Oh well, maybe next year Honey! The week went by so fast. I didn't even manage a quad ride this time around but we were blessed to be surrounded by nature, fresh air, family and lots of yummy food... who could ask for more?

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Comments

It was brought to my attention that a word verification was needed to leave comments on this blog. I have changed the settings so it is no longer required. Once you leave a comment it will require me to verify it (because we also get SPAM) and once I have approved the comment it will be visible on the blog. Thanks for your Comments because they encourage me to keep blogging!

Monday, September 16, 2013

September Kids Update

David lost his 3rd tooth this month (with a little help from me). His adult tooth was growing in behind it but the baby tooth was holding on tight. A few weeks after the dentist said it would be out in a matter of days I took matters into my own hands. He will probably loose his 4th tooth next month as it is wiggly as well and the adult tooth is growing in. His front adult teeth are growing in a little farther back then I would like but I am hoping they come forward on their own. Apart from that he has started Grade 2 (at home) and is doing well. He has days where he wishes he could do away with school altogether but when he has his mind set he gets his work done very quickly. He would much rather occupy his time building Lego and K'nex. Mondays and Fridays are very busy. He starts his week with swimming lessons and Bible Study Fellowship (with Grandpa Rob) and finishes off with Community Class (had decided not to do this but changed my mind again) and Friday Night Friends, Sports Camp.

Angeline is now 4 1/2. She has been waiting anxiously to reach this stage since she turned 4. Next on the list is turning 5. She is eager to learn to read but not so eager to take directions from Mommy or anyone else. (Might have "fun" homeschooling her when she starts kindergarten next September). She knows what she wants and when she wants it. She likes to tell everyone what to do. She wants to be older so much that she is always trying to do grown up things which has been getting her into a lot of trouble. All in one week she cut Samara's hair, filled the laundry machine soap dispenser, filled the tub with Johnson & Johnson (2 minutes after I lectured her about the laundry soap), added oats to our porridge that had already been cooking and shampooed Samara's hair (what's left of it) with my face wash (that's jus what I remember... the rest of it is a bit of a daze). She often means well and can be very helpful looking out for her siblings, helping with chores and she keeps us all on our toes!

Samara bounces back and forth between Angeline's sidekick or victim :) I can see how she gets stuck in the middle not being big enough for some things and being too big for others. She is potty trained which helps a ton but bed time is still a bit of a struggle. She recently saw a paediatric ear, nose, and throat specialist because of her LARGE tonsils and has been put on a waiting list to have them removed. He surgery won't likely take place until she is between the age of 3 1/2 - 4. Her talking has really picked up since June... sometimes we can't get her to stop! Her favourite shows are "Dora" and the "Lego Batman" movie. She likes to sing and is looking forward to "Moms & Tots" starting up this week.

Rebekah. I can't quite decide what my bigger challenge is right now. 1)Angeline's Experiments or 2)Weaning Rebekah. We thought we were weaning Rebekah in August but it didn't work out like we had planned. I don't mind that she is still nursing (she is only 13.5 months) but she is getting up about 4 times a night and I am tired! It's hard to come up with a game plan with her. I think our next step is to sleep train her, just not sure when or how we are going to do that. Her walking has gotten much faster over the last month and she has also discovered climbing. She got onto our white kitchen garbage can without standing on anything else. She is often up on a stool peeking on the counter and has also climbed into our cupboard, toy bin and onto our white cabinet. She LOVES music... particularly the first song on the kids VBS CD from this year. As soon as it comes on she stopes what she is doing, gets a huge smile on her face and starts dancing and clapping.

Jonathan and I are doing well. We recently discovered a dating journal we kept so that was a lot of fun to read through and we are looking forward to celebrating our 8th wedding anniversary next month. Sorry... no pictures for now but I may try to do a picture post soon now that I've got the writing complete.

Sunday, August 25, 2013

Cousin Freya

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On Thursday we said good-bye to cousin Freya and Aunty Lauren who were visiting us from England this last month. Uncle Brent went home 2 weeks ago but we enjoyed our visit with him as well. Jonathan and I both had lots of cousins growing up so it is a bit sad for us that our kids don't have the same novelty. Your cousins are your first best friends.
Here are a few pictures from our visit. We miss you already and we look forward to the next time we can all be together. Thank you for making the long trip to come spend time with us.

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Tad Lake July-August 2013

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It has been almost 2 weeks since we retuned from a wonderful week at Tad Lake. I have a whole album worth of favourite memories that I could post so it was hard to narrow it down to a select few. The first is one of my absolute favourites... David catching his first frog. To me this is a classic boy milestone which both warms and tears at a mothers heart. My son is growing up so fast. Also love the picture of him with Daddy when they've just got back from "playing" in the mud. He was so proud of how dirty he managed to get.
Angeline loved spending time with cousin Freya and we've collected lots of cute photos of them together. By the end of the trip she was also driving the kids car on her own.
Samara enjoyed spending time in the play house, going for walks and riding her run-bike. She isn't as fond of large groups as the older two but she soaked up lots of one on one.
Rebekah really enjoyed all the time outside, and many naps in the comfort of grandparents arms. She spent lost of time practicing walking and enjoyed all the praise she received.
We all enjoy the quality individual and group time spent with family.

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Together at Tad Lake

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On Saturday we returned from a week at Tad Lake. We all had so much fun and it was great to have a chance to spend time with family including Jonathan's sister Lauren, her husband Brent and their daughter Freya who are visiting from England. I have LOTS of great pictures and fond memories some of which I hope to share but for now I thought I would just post a few family pictures. Hope you also enjoy the Cake Smash pictures of Rebekah in my previous post. It was special to celebrate her first birthday while we were at the cabin.

Cake Smash!

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Friday, August 2, 2013

Happy 1st Birthday!

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Happy First Birthday to our littlest LOVE! These pics are from a celebration a few weeks ago with her Birthday Twin... more Birthday pics to come soon.

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Nothing New for 1 Year...

I first read about not buying anything new for a whole year in my "Today's Parent" magazine.... months ago. I must say it tugged at my heart as something I wanted to do with my family and when I talked to Jonathan about it he was very enthusiastic to say YES (I think he saw instant dollar signs on the backs of his eye lids) $$. I want to start in January 1, 2014 and finish December 31, 2014. I know, I could really start now but the New Year always feels like a new start for me so that is what I am planning to do. Another reason I don't want to start just yet is that I don't want to do it alone. I would like to see 10 people commit to doing it too. I HAVE mentioned this idea to a few of my friends, none of whom seemed very enthusiastic but I would like YOU to think about it and get back to me.
Here is the article I read a few months ago that got this idea started:
Click HERE to read the article
This is certainly not a new idea... when I was searching online to find the article there were lots more that came up.
I will be Blogging along in my journey and you can find my posts under the label "Nothing New"

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

11 months

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Rebekah is almost half way through her 11th month and it is hard to keep track of everything new. For starters she is eating more both in quantity and variety. Some new things she has tried recently include mushrooms, zucchini, cantaloupe, watermelon, chicken nuggets, ribs, cows milk and even greek orzo salad. She likes almost everything she tries but doesn't seem to be a big fan of raspberries (yet).
She has taken her first steps but is not walking (if that makes any sense). She will take a few steps when coaxed (sometimes) but continues to be cautious. She recently learned how to go down stairs and simultaneously discovered the process for "getting down"on her own from pretty much anything she isn't strapped into. She loves climbing on and off her mattress, Samara's toddler bed, the fireplace ledge and our kids picnic table. She amuses herself by standing on soft surfaces (couches or beds) and throwing herself down on her bum. This sends her into a giggle fit after about 3 rounds which always results in the hiccups. Another favourite game is "ball." We will say "pass to David"... "pass to Mommy" etc and she is very accurate! She loves all the big girl things she can do and the proud grin she gets is adorable. She has 3 words so far... "Mom", "Dadda" and "Nana." We will have more of an update when she has her immunization appointment in August but she weighs about 21 pounds and seems to be doing well.
Who ever decided to refer to babies as "bundles of joy" really nailed it. She is JOY wrapped up an a cute little package. She makes all of us smile. We love her so much!

*In the second picture there is a striking resemblance to my sister Mandy when she was a baby.