A graduate school story

Here's a fun story for those that are or were grad students.  I sincerely hope you have never had an adviser like this.


http://www.credenda.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=206:heaven-taken-by-storm&catid=102&Itemid=122

Flu Shots

Kristy, Stephen, and I got flu shots yesterday.  I've been faithful in getting them since I had flu one time many years ago.  Stephen was scared, so I went first.  He was fairly brave though he cried a bit.  Soon after, he realized it wasn't that bad AND he got a sticker form the nurse and a rice crispy treat from dad.

I was thinking about this last night and realized I'm glad he's afraid of flu shots.  If a flu shot is one of the more scary things in his life, then he is in a much better situation than many other children in the world, even in our community  He has been spared hurts and traumas faced by many other children.  I am thankful for this for him, but sad for the many others.

Yes, still here

Yes, we're still alive.  Yes, we voted today.

First, the family update.  Kristy is at nearly 34 weeks and is BIG.  Her intuition says this baby is coming early.  I'm teaching a class this fall, so I think I'd better make the exam out early.  Also, I hope everyone understands if we don't get Christmas cards out this year on time.  Stephen is 6 now, and Lydia will be 3 soon.  I'll let Kristy talk about homeschooling, but Stephen seems to be doing fine.  He definitely has a math brain.  Lydia seems more social and talkative since being in preschool.

Due to how things get scheduled in the college, November is usually a really busy month for me.  However after some changes to how we do the electronic portfolios, that work came early in the semester.  Now I have time for all the other new tasks.  But, even when I come home exhausted, I remind myself to be thankful that I have a good job.

And so the election has come.  I cared more this time than previous times I voted.  I did a fair amount of research, even on offices I don't normally research like district court judges.  There were few races where I had a clear favorite.  Mostly, I either struggled between what I thought were two good options or two bad options.  I crossed party lines on a few.  Local politics are apparently very energizing and controversial to some around this area, if you believe the letters to the editor.  One local candidate said three was "civil unrest" in the county due to the incumbent.  I admit I hadn't noticed, outside the letters to the editor.  Still, one local race was decided by about 100 votes. Our state senator was elected by a margin of 200 votes.  The North Carolina General Assembly now has both houses controlled by Republicans for the first time since 1898.

Change is good right?  Our president said so about two years ago.  (Yes, I know what he really meant)

Homeschooling, here we come!

Well, Stephen is now "Kindergarten age," so our decision to homeschool is now "official." Our first day will be August 23. He has been in preschool for the past 3 years for 2-3 days/week while I worked. I'm done with my job, and I've been gently telling Stephen that once Kindergarten begins, we will be having school at home. He was reluctant at first, but thankfully, we have many friends who are homeschooled!

Here's a look at what we'll be doing!

Bible: The Child's Story Bible by Catherine Vos. We've been reading through this for a few months, and I like it! It's the level of depth I had been looking for since I felt Stephen had outgrown our other story Bibles.

Reading: About a year ago, we began The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading by Jessie Wise. I wanted to save money, so I bought only the book (the complete kit comes with already printed flash cards, audio version (I think) and a magnetic board with letters). Once we started reading I realized that Stephen needs the hands on experience. We hit a wall and took a break, I ordered a magnetic board with letters, and we should be on our way again!

Last week, Stephen got his own library card. He was quite excited! Our town is building a new library, so we'll definitely be making good use of that place.

When I bought Saxon K, I didn't know just how basic it was. Stephen has been speeding through it - it's like playtime to him. He loves the manipulatives and will play with tiles making patterns for quite a while. I plan to skim through the rest of the book, covering new things, and moving on to Saxon 1.
We'll be working through Mudpies to Magnets for science. We also have some science kits, which Stephen loves! He is certainly his parents' son...
I saw these workbooks at a homeschool conference and couldn't resist. I got a couple levels - just a little mental excercise. They'll be much easier once Stephen can read better and do them on his own!
I haven't done too much Stephen school with Lydia around. In the past, we have done everything while she naps, but that has turned out not to be Stephen's best working time. We'll be doing normal preschool things with her (and she'll be in a church preschool 2 days/week). Our big thing coming soon is potty training - oh boy!

Today's Checklist

Let's see how today went

• 1:30 am - get up with kids who are scared with the power out - check
• 8-ish am - get up with kids for breakfast, take care of sick Kristy - check
• lazy morning watching Gummi Bears - check
• keeping the laundry going - not really
• fix lots of different things for lunch for the kids that they don't eat - check
• drive 45 minutes to the nearest splash pad - check
• fun time wearing out the kids - check
• take pictures - nope, didn't bring camera
  
• drive back, listening to Paws & Tails (the kids liked it) - check
• stop for a "snack" at McDonalds and prove that daddy is a sucker - check
• put Lydia down for a nap - check
  
• mow yard - check
• shower and put self down for a nap - check
• be thankful Kristy is feeling better and making supper - double check

Hmmm...not bad.

Reading Lists

Lists of books to read combines two things that I've liked for a long time - reading and lists. One of my earliest ones was an attempt to read through all the Bobbs-Merrill Childhood of Famous Americans books in my elementary library (the older ones); I even kept a journal with a one-page entry per book I read. Well, I didn't finish that one, but I still remember a lot of the history I learned through them.


Another list was in high school - my 9th English teacher gave us a list of books commonly used in part of the AP English exam (here is a larger list). I used that list as my general reading list all through high school (didn't read all of those either, but I read a lot of great literature I might not have picked up otherwise). In grad school, to escape the constant science, I picked up biographies once more (not the Bobbs Merrill ones) and thought about reading through the US Presidents - that was in 2004, and I'm still on John Adams.

Now that I'm on the brink of homeschooling, I'm getting into new lists - lists to read to Stephen and Lydia and lists for myself to read in preparation. Also lists to buy for the future. With Stephen, I'm currently going through the preschool list in The Book Tree to find stories that he will like - a great resource!


Another list I'm adding to my lists is the Great Books. As I guide, I'm using Susan Wise Bauer's
The Well-Educated Mind: A Guide to the Classical Education You Never Had. This list hits on many of the works she lists in the recommended reading for the rhetoric stage (high school age) in The Well-Trained Mind, which I plan to use as a guide in homeschooling my children. I'm going through chronologically (her guide is organized by genre) and reading the second book, The Iliad. We'll see how it goes!