For a while now I have thought about the option of homeschooling. I have a variety of reasons including not wanting to adhere to the typical CDC vaccine schedule required by Virginia schools, not truly a believer in the SOL geared, no child left behind education obtained by US students these days (although I wont have to worry about the SOLs for a few years), being able to teach the same material in less time and having more time for extra-curriculars, can't afford private school for 3 kids, wanting to teach my kids a variety of subjects not offered in public school, worries about them being bored, and just wanting my child home with me.
I think the biggest thing that is pulling me in this direction is the curriculum. No languages are taught until the children are much older. Age 5 (or before) is the perfect age to begin a language. I am not a believer in homework at such an early age, but they have it, believe it or not! After 8 hours in a school, one would think a young child would be set free to enjoy the rest of the day! Yet, after school they have homework, swimming lessons, soccer practice, piano lessons, etc. Poor kids dont have time to be kids!
I feel some of the drawbacks for homeschooling my kids is the dedication and time it takes, the organization and adhering to schedules, not being sure about the home school cooperative, not feeling adequate to meet my child's needs academically (esp as he gets older and we need the cooperative even more), losing out on all that free ME TIME, questionable social isolation ("all home school kids are geeks" [which is okay with me!]), etc.
With the first-born I think every mother worries, worries, worries whether she is doing the right thing for this precious first child. Then the rest of the children sort of follow suit. We are sending Alexander to Kindergarten this year. We'll see how it goes. I definitely plan to be very involved. He may totally thrive in that atmosphere. He definitely loved preschool after the first year. I hope it is exciting and challenging for him. We'll just have to play it by ear! At least it's good to have options.
I know most people have pretty strong opinions about this sort of thing. I would love it if you would share yours!
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Monday, July 28, 2008
Pictures
I really wish I could be posting my card club cards but, since I havent even started them, I guess that wont be anytime soon. Tonight my goal is to get one set of the cards done. I only have until the first so I really need to get started!
Here are some pictures from the reunion yesterday. I didnt do too well as a photographer, trying to keep up with Andrew and everything. But I did get a couple cute ones:
Abbie with Andrew (she didnt know I got her, too!)
Trey looking all grown up
Emilie and Andrew (he was crying for me to take him)but had
actually been playing with Emilie for quite a while!
Maggie and Alexander (waiting for the porta potty to empty)
Abbie and Jackson (do they look alike or what?)
Abbie with Andrew (she didnt know I got her, too!)
Trey looking all grown up
Emilie and Andrew (he was crying for me to take him)but had
actually been playing with Emilie for quite a while!
Maggie and Alexander (waiting for the porta potty to empty)
Abbie and Jackson (do they look alike or what?)
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Strengthening Testimonies
We have had such a busy weekend with reunions! Fun but also very tiring and we got to be around a lot of our close family, and well, you know how that can be sometimes. Over all we had a great time. Saturday we went to Monterey to one of my Dad's reunions and that afternoon one of my Mom's reunions started in Franklin, WV. We were tired and Andrew was off schedule so we decided not to go to the reunion in WV until today. Arriving for lunch today we heard of the excitement that went on down the road from the reunion last evening.
Now, the place I am referring to is called Smith Creek. It is situated about 15-20 minutes from Franklin, in a gap between mountains, some of it being wider than other parts. Cell phones dont work. We are talking, rural. Beautiful, peaceful, but rural. Well, evidently it was around dark and the festivites at the reunion were coming to a close for the evening. The 205 people in attendance were packing up to leave, or had left already. My cousin, Adam and his sister's husband, Jim were pulling trunks or something with the farm tractor in the orchard at my grandfather's house. Jim had been on the tractor and told Adam that they werent doing it right and needed to figure out another way to do it. Adam jumped on the tractor and said that they just needed to go 'like this' and jerked the tractor some. The tractor then flipped completely over onto Adam. Jim said it was like slow-motion and he was helpless, not being able to do anything about it. The tractor landed on Adam's right leg. He had been "thrown" clear of most of the tractor although he says that he didnt jump, bystanders at the scene said that it looked like he had. Jim tried to pick up the tractor and pulled it up a little bit but Adam was caught by his jeans and couldnt get free. Jim couldnt hold it up very long and had to bring it down on Adam's leg again. Jim said when he did this, he could hear the bones crushing under the weight of the tractor. Adam screamed out in pain and thought he was going to pass out. He didnt know if he would make it though this unimaginable pain. Jim said he had to go get help, that he couldnt get this tractor off adam's leg by himself. He sped off in Adam's car down to where the reunion grounds are. This is about 1-2 miles down the road. He met Emilie (Adam's other sister) at the gate to the grounds and told her to get 4 big men. Adam's under the tractor. Emilie went running down through the field as fast as she could and the first person she saw was David Hartman, a wonderful friend, cousin, and priesthood holder. She said she could hardly speak but she told him that Adam was under the tractor and they needed men to help get the tractor off of him. Other people heard Emilie and one of them said, call 911! David and Leslie Hartman sped off to find Jim and Adam (Jim had already turned around and gone back to him) and Emilie, Abbie (Jim's wife, Adams other sister) and Charity (cousin) went hunting for a house that was open to call 911. My grandfather was at my aunt's house and his house wasnt open. But the house next to his which is also his but he rents out to another cousin, was open but the phone was all messed up. They had a ton of trouble getting the phone to work. Emilie finally got the phone to work well enough to get the 911 operator to pick up. She said it was so staticky that she could hardly hear anything. Emilie is an EMT and was "on call" that night so if there were any emergencies she would have to attend to them or "run" them in EMS services lingo. Nearly everyone in Pendleton county has a scanner and she heard on the scanner (someone else must have already gotten through to 911 but had the info wrong) that a pedestrian had been hit by a car near the Smith Creek Playhouse (in the same vicinity). So when the 911 operator picked up, Emilie told them what she had heard on the scanner and that they needed fire and rescue, that it was actually a tractor roll over and it was at Kermit Judy's place. The phone did not work again.
By this time tons of people had gone up to the orchard. Jim, David, Leslie, and another man whom I never found out his name, lifted the tractor off of Adam. He had to cut his jeans off of himself with a knife while someone else made sure he didnt cut himself (thinking his leg was numb). He was given a priesthood blessing in that field. I dont know what was prayed but there were about 50 witnesses I am told, that heard the prayer. They witnessed a miracle.
Adam was in a lot of pain. He rated it a 10 on the 0-10 scale. For those of you who have never used this scale or dont have a medical background, 10 means the worst pain you have ever experienced. Excruciating pain. The paramedic was able to give him morphine which alleviated a lot of his pain immediately. After arriving at RMH (an hour away) the doctor said, a tractor roll over? So it was a lawn mower? No one had ever seen someone get away from a tractor roll over with such minor injuries. He had a badly sprained right ankle and a contusion on one of his hips which his Mom said looked like a rug burn. Jim knew the tractor had crushed the bones in his leg. He had heard them crush when he had to lay the tractor back on Adm's leg. It is amazing that his injuries were not more severe. There were many people who couldnt sleep last night. Two of the men who lifted the tractor off of Adam, had fits of vomiting.
Today at the reunion, Adam sat in his lawn chair, surrounded by friends and family, keeping his ankle elevated, talking happily with everyone, looking good. Other than the wrap and brace on his ankle, no one would have been the wiser about the traumatic event that unfolded last night and ended with an absolute miracle. I feel so blessed to be a member of a family in which the gospel is so strong. That there was no searching for worthy priesthood holders to give a blessing to Adam. We are all so blessed to have either been there, or been witness to the story, and we are all so blessed that Adam continues to be alive with us.
Now, the place I am referring to is called Smith Creek. It is situated about 15-20 minutes from Franklin, in a gap between mountains, some of it being wider than other parts. Cell phones dont work. We are talking, rural. Beautiful, peaceful, but rural. Well, evidently it was around dark and the festivites at the reunion were coming to a close for the evening. The 205 people in attendance were packing up to leave, or had left already. My cousin, Adam and his sister's husband, Jim were pulling trunks or something with the farm tractor in the orchard at my grandfather's house. Jim had been on the tractor and told Adam that they werent doing it right and needed to figure out another way to do it. Adam jumped on the tractor and said that they just needed to go 'like this' and jerked the tractor some. The tractor then flipped completely over onto Adam. Jim said it was like slow-motion and he was helpless, not being able to do anything about it. The tractor landed on Adam's right leg. He had been "thrown" clear of most of the tractor although he says that he didnt jump, bystanders at the scene said that it looked like he had. Jim tried to pick up the tractor and pulled it up a little bit but Adam was caught by his jeans and couldnt get free. Jim couldnt hold it up very long and had to bring it down on Adam's leg again. Jim said when he did this, he could hear the bones crushing under the weight of the tractor. Adam screamed out in pain and thought he was going to pass out. He didnt know if he would make it though this unimaginable pain. Jim said he had to go get help, that he couldnt get this tractor off adam's leg by himself. He sped off in Adam's car down to where the reunion grounds are. This is about 1-2 miles down the road. He met Emilie (Adam's other sister) at the gate to the grounds and told her to get 4 big men. Adam's under the tractor. Emilie went running down through the field as fast as she could and the first person she saw was David Hartman, a wonderful friend, cousin, and priesthood holder. She said she could hardly speak but she told him that Adam was under the tractor and they needed men to help get the tractor off of him. Other people heard Emilie and one of them said, call 911! David and Leslie Hartman sped off to find Jim and Adam (Jim had already turned around and gone back to him) and Emilie, Abbie (Jim's wife, Adams other sister) and Charity (cousin) went hunting for a house that was open to call 911. My grandfather was at my aunt's house and his house wasnt open. But the house next to his which is also his but he rents out to another cousin, was open but the phone was all messed up. They had a ton of trouble getting the phone to work. Emilie finally got the phone to work well enough to get the 911 operator to pick up. She said it was so staticky that she could hardly hear anything. Emilie is an EMT and was "on call" that night so if there were any emergencies she would have to attend to them or "run" them in EMS services lingo. Nearly everyone in Pendleton county has a scanner and she heard on the scanner (someone else must have already gotten through to 911 but had the info wrong) that a pedestrian had been hit by a car near the Smith Creek Playhouse (in the same vicinity). So when the 911 operator picked up, Emilie told them what she had heard on the scanner and that they needed fire and rescue, that it was actually a tractor roll over and it was at Kermit Judy's place. The phone did not work again.
By this time tons of people had gone up to the orchard. Jim, David, Leslie, and another man whom I never found out his name, lifted the tractor off of Adam. He had to cut his jeans off of himself with a knife while someone else made sure he didnt cut himself (thinking his leg was numb). He was given a priesthood blessing in that field. I dont know what was prayed but there were about 50 witnesses I am told, that heard the prayer. They witnessed a miracle.
Adam was in a lot of pain. He rated it a 10 on the 0-10 scale. For those of you who have never used this scale or dont have a medical background, 10 means the worst pain you have ever experienced. Excruciating pain. The paramedic was able to give him morphine which alleviated a lot of his pain immediately. After arriving at RMH (an hour away) the doctor said, a tractor roll over? So it was a lawn mower? No one had ever seen someone get away from a tractor roll over with such minor injuries. He had a badly sprained right ankle and a contusion on one of his hips which his Mom said looked like a rug burn. Jim knew the tractor had crushed the bones in his leg. He had heard them crush when he had to lay the tractor back on Adm's leg. It is amazing that his injuries were not more severe. There were many people who couldnt sleep last night. Two of the men who lifted the tractor off of Adam, had fits of vomiting.
Today at the reunion, Adam sat in his lawn chair, surrounded by friends and family, keeping his ankle elevated, talking happily with everyone, looking good. Other than the wrap and brace on his ankle, no one would have been the wiser about the traumatic event that unfolded last night and ended with an absolute miracle. I feel so blessed to be a member of a family in which the gospel is so strong. That there was no searching for worthy priesthood holders to give a blessing to Adam. We are all so blessed to have either been there, or been witness to the story, and we are all so blessed that Adam continues to be alive with us.
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