The week we moved, again

On Monday we moved, again. Hopefully this is where we will stay until we move to England. We are back in the mission house and it is the closest thing that the kids have to home at this time. I think it is providing a bit of stability for them.

Yesterday, I got the last of the boxes that we had stored at friends' house and so now we have all the books we need for school except for the DVD that went missing.

We do school at the kitchen table. In our previous house we had a room off the kitchen that was the school area and I do miss that. We could leave our books piled there and we had all our books there. You work with what you have and here we have a kitchen table. I just realized that there is a table in the dining room. Now I will ponder if I want to move there.

We are moving through Mystery of History Volume II and enjoying it. This week we read about the Apostles Creed, Diocletian, and Constantine. We do history together. I don't do anything special for Miss K. J does a bit more reading related to the history we are studying.

One of my goals for J for this year is that he will more independent in his planning and work. I have given him a guideline that tells him how many lessons/assignments he should do per week. It has been slow and I think I need to continue but not expect that he will get to that goal in a week or two.

Here he is at his desk working on math. He looks very studious in this photo.

Miss K continues to only want to do a tiny bit of school. Keeping her on task and working is a challenge. She will do a bit and then ask for a break which doesn't work because I have a challenge coming back and so does she.

J and I were talking and he was remember the lapbooks and other fun things that we did the first years in school. He was also remembering the DNA which someone posted to Pinterest and so the one day that I do school with my kids in their pj's and now the whole world can see it. So I have been thinking about what fun activities I can add into our day. Maybe I should look through my Pinterest boards and see what I have pinned.

J has a soccer game this weekend and the kids have AWANA. My goal is to finish unpacking and get a creative activity for next week.

That is about all that happened this week here.

Beth

Math-U-See Alpha Update

We have been using Math-U-See with Miss K for about a year. I was watching her do her math today and thinking just how much she is learning and I think Math-U-See gets quite a bit of the credit for that.

Here is just a bit of background information. We began math with Saxon Math K and that worked great as there is no writing. Miss K loved the meeting book. She knows the calendar and will tell you what day and what month it is. I love Saxon especially up to Saxon 3 but as I moved further in Saxon with JP I realized that Saxon was not going to work long term so I began to look at options.

Knowing that hands on things would work best for Miss K. Math-U-See states that they teach for concept, emphasizing memorizing the facts. I knew that Miss K can memorize and I do think that she needs to memorize the facts. Someday we might get to the point that we need to use a calculator but at this point she is able to learn her facts. Math-U-See also teaches to mastery and I felt that was something that she needed. I felt that I needed to make a switch earlier rather than later so last year I made the switch. I am still using Saxon 1 along with Math-U-See except for right now as Saxon is in storage and someday we will be reunited with all our things.

We began with Alpha. Miss K loves watching the DVD. I have found that I really do need to sit with her and watch the DVD so I now what is being taught and some of the terms that are used.

We are moving slow as I want to make sure that she has the concepts down. She has learned the blocks and knows what color each of the numbers are. Of course, she loves 8 which is "chocoeight".

Since we took the summer off, we have been reviewing and going back through some of the facts making sure she has her facts down.

At this time she know her + zero facts and her +1 facts. We are working on +2 and along with that odd and even numbers. She needs more review than the workbook gives so I just write some of the problems on a page for her. This morning she was pulling the blocks out of the bag and lining the numbers up and figuring the problems herself. She got all eight problems correct using the blocks.

We are slowly working our way through Alpha but we are taking it slow to make sure that she understands and knows her facts. I have been impressed with Math-U-See and do think this will be a good fit for her for math.

I do at times wonder about other things. There are two other curriculums out there for special needs. One is TouchMath and another is Numicon. I have looked at these online but the price of TouchMath stopped me from considering that further. I have been interested in Numicon which comes for the UK but at times it has been hard to find here in the US. At this time Math-U-See is working so we will continue with this.

One other resource is the book Teaching Math to People with Down Syndrome and Other Hands-On Learners. It has been quite awhile since I looked through that book. I seem to recall that was a bit beyond where Miss K is at this time. It sits on my shelf as a reference though right now it is in a box.

One of the challenges that I have is reviewing what she knows on a regular basis so she doesn't forget that. Some of the things that she knows at this time include the following:
Telling time on the hour
Counting by 10's
Plus zero facts
Plus one facts

We are working on but have not mastered including the following:
Telling time on the half hour
Counting by 5's
Counting by 2's
Plus two facts

There are a few troublesome areas including the following:
Counting to 100 (yes, I am just going to ignore the fact that she can't do that and wait until it happens)
Getting the teen and -ty numbers confused (17 and 70 or 18 and 80 which I can't decide if that is a math problem or a speech problem)

So that is where we are at this time with math.
Beth

When I grow up,

"When I grow up, I want to be a teacher like you." Miss K told me that this morning.  That made me happy to hear.

Normally she says she wants to be a cocoa pilot which is a co-pilot because she knows her brother wants to be a pilot so she figures she can fly with him if she is the co-pilot. I think a cocoa pilot sounds sweet.

Sometimes she says she wants to work in a pet store when she grows up.

It does change from time to time, just like most children.

I do wonder at times what she will be when she grows up. She has normal child dreams of what she wants to be when she grows up. Some days in the back of my mind when she tells me these things I wonder, "will she be able to?" Then I remind myself I can't limit her. I need to help her become all she can be using all the gifts and abilities that God has given her. I need to teach her, train her, love her, push her to excel.

I remember when she was born there was some grief and some questions wondering what God had planned. One thing that kept through the years is that Down Syndrome was not a surprise to God. He knew all along and it is part of his plan.

So just as when she was born it was not a surprise to God, her life is part of his plan and so we will wait and see what God has planned for her. I need to keep my eyes fixed on God. It is hard at times not to worry about what will happen, where will we be living, what will she do, will she always live with us, and so many other thoughts of the future. There are so many questions.

I do wonder what she will be when she grows up. We will just enjoy this today and trust God for the future.


Beth

Woofi

Before we left Grandpa and Grandma's they gave each of the kids a Woofi. Woofi is a special puppy, he is a missionary puppy. Woofi is able to go places where others might not be able to go. He brings a message of comfort but even more a message of God's love and what God has done for us. The collar has the colors of the wordless book.

There is a book that tells a bit of the Woofi story. Grandma read the book telling about Woofi's journey to become a missionary puppy. Woofi became the puppy for a little girl that was going overseas with her family. I think that is something that my kids can relate to.

Miss K is enjoying her Woofi. I was impressed with the quality of the dog. These are nice and soft and perfect for cuddling. Each Woofi purchased gives a Woofi to a hurting person (it is not just limited to children). There is a post card that you can write a message on for the person that is receiving the Woofi you donated.

J is checking out the ears. One ear reminds you, "Jesus loves you." and the other says, "Precious are the feet who bring Good News."

Woofi has traveled with us to the West Coast and will continue his journey.

Thank you, Grandpa and Grandpa for the puppies.

Beth

Am I doing enough?

A friend and I were chatting the other week and this question came up. I don't remember if we were talking about diet and exercise or maybe it was homeschooling but the question came up, "Am I doing enough?"

I have pondered that since then. I thought about the times that I have thought that. Some times that creeps into my thinking by the enemy to distract me from what I should be doing causing me to think, "oh, I should be doing this instead." Some times it is sent as a discouragement, causing me to just want to give up because I can't do it all, I can't do enough.

So when the question, "Am I doing enough?" comes,  I need to pause and think about what the is causing me to do. That question could be a time to pause and consider my priorities and make sure I am focusing on what God is asking me to do at this time. My focus can change at times and so I do need to evaluate and change. This summer as we were traveling my focus could not be the same as when we are home day in and day out. Honestly, I can't do enough and really should not try.

Now when that question comes up I try to pause and ask what God wants me to be focusing on and even how much does he want me to do. If I am doing that, then I know that I am doing enough. I need to trust God knowing that he is at work and has a plan.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lead on your own understanding." Proverbs 3:5 ESV


Beth

Five Years Ago

(This was supposed to be posted on the 26th but didn't get finished)

Five years ago we met a quiet little boy. He really didn't say much that afternoon. Maybe because he didn't know what was going on and maybe because he didn't speak English.

He has said that was the happiest day of his life. Five years ago we met J. He gained a new name, new family, new language, new culture, new way of living and new hope. He didn't know what all he was getting into but he still wanted to experience that. The same is true for us when we trust Christ for our salvation.

He once told me how he wanted to play soccer with the big kids at the orphanage but they told him he was too small. Now he is able to play soccer and love it.

In the past five years I have learned a number of things.

Our plans and dreams are not always God's plans for our life. There is quite a bit more that happened that I don't share here publicly but I will say that God's plans are good and sometimes they hurt but we need to keep trusting and obeying and allowing him to use us.

In many cases you cannot parent an adopted child the same as a biological child.

I have learned that I need to keep praying and trusting God.



Beth

Happy Anniversary

Ten years ago today we were married. It was a nice fall day with just a few leaves on the ground. The day was beautiful outside so we could take outside photos.

We had about 12 weeks to plan the wedding from when he proposed to when we got married. We were trying to fit it in between me finishing grad school and also making sure that S did not exceed 180 days in the US. We had originally planned to get married on a Saturday but the banquet facility had an opening on Friday so we changed it to a Friday evening wedding. We had chosen the Cloisters for the wedding and we could not interfere with visitor hours so we had to be married after 5:00 when it was closed for the day. We were married in the meeting house that was built in 1741. We did photos before and enjoyed the beauty of the grounds there.

So in the past ten years we have done quite a bit

Lived in three different countries and are waiting for our visa to move to a fourth country.
Changed mission organizations once.
Added two children to the fun of our lives.
Finished one degree, way to go Dr. B.
Flown around the world two different times.
Driven across the USA three times.
Drank hundred of cups of coffee together.

Prayed together and dreamed together about what God is asking us and calling us to do.

So as we celebrate today I am thankful for you and look forward to all the God has for us in the coming years.

Happy Anniversary.


Beth