Towels and Shirts

So by homeschool mom standards I may be behind the times, but maybe in general mom terms I'm on target or ahead of the game.  Or maybe it really isn't worth comparing.  We use KONOS Character curriculum as a supplement.  Some people use it as core and up kudos to them, because I don't spend that much effort in planning.  We are at the end of our unit on responsibility and there are checklists for to help evaluate what you can teach your kids.  Wow!  I've spent so much time focusing on the info about early colonists that I almost missed this amazing part!

We've been going over the checklists for the past few days and I'm not grading the kids, but I'm mostly just keeping these things in mind.  Today we had "laundry," on the checklist.  I never thought about it.  I have the kids put their dirty clothes in a basket or hamper in their rooms and the bathroom and they haul the laundry downstairs once a week and then deliver clean clothes to rooms when it is their chore.  Why did it never dawn on me to teach them proper folding techniques?

I can give you a hint... CONTROL.  There are certain things I like done just so, and laundry happens to be one of them.  Now I know people who have their young kids do all of the household laundry and act like they should win a merit badge for doing so, but that isn't my ultimate goal.  Over the past 2 years, I have never upped the ante for my kids on chores, though and maybe after today's lesson, it may just be time.  My husband knows that I'm, well a little particular on the way things are folded and my closet is organized by item and color.  O.K. I'm OCD!  This shouldn't prohibit me from teaching my children my OCD ways, should it?  

I brought a whole load of clean towels into the classroom and showed my kids how to fold them.  They had some nice ideas of how we can fold, but I told them to hold on to those ideas and use them in their own homes.  For now, we do it my way because they fit into the cupboards and drawers best this way.  After a few attempts, they actually did pretty well.  I admit, I was tempted to fix a few, but the stacks were neat enough that they didn't fall over, so I let them be.

The next load was done as well (yes, I let unfolded towels sit over the weekend, and the washer and dryer sat unemptied too), so I gave instruction on shirts, pants and undergarments.  They already know socks because they are hard to get wrong. They did a great job with each article of clothing and were actually excited for the next load!!  Wahoo!  Unfortunately, we had to do a little math, spelling and you know other school stuff or I might have them be my laundry slaves today.

Well, I'm glad to know that my kids can do laundry all the way through.  I need to do a few things now. First, I need to let go of some of my OCD or teach it to my kids.  I also need to learn a balance between giving the kids responsibility and letting them be kids.  I need to learn to be sensitive about time and place for just plain old fun!  They are not my slaves, but they are mine to teach.  Balance!  They one day will leave my home and need to survive in this world without me and the training began even before we home schooled.  My goal is to release my kids into the world and watch them thrive and not just survive.

Really I think I'm learning as much or more than my kids.  I thank God for the opportunity to train up my children.

Ha Ha! It's official, I have fallen behind!

Well it's not really funny, but what can I do?  This is the first weekend this school year that I haven't graded all of last week's assignments.  The classroom is a mess.  The lesson plans are drafted through Thanksgiving, but they're not in the grade book yet.  The Homeschool Helper app has been fantastic and worth every penny.  It does work better, though when you're caught up.  Last week's buttons are still showing up as red instead of green, and it's not because the kids aren't done, it's all me.  

So last Friday was a scheduled homeschool group bowling trip.  I made it so we would do character, math and spelling, then hit the road for a nice 45 minute drive to the activity.  The kids were excited to see and play with their friends.  I scheduled to help a friend at 5 and bowling was until 5 so I would have to leave around 4 to get back in time.  I didn't look at a map because I had the directions in my head.  My husband is laughing at this point if he's reading this.  I drove East and after about 30 minutes of driving and daydreaming, I realized that I should be going North by now, so I turn on the GPS.  It says to continue East for 7 more miles.  I keep going and after a few miles begin to realize that I would be going East to find another paved road to take me North so I can go back West.  No!  At this point, I look at the time I'm supposed to arrive at my destination and it tells me I have another 50+ minutes.  It is already about 2:40.  I don't have anyone's phone numbers in my phone, but I have extra directories in my trunk.  Why?  Because I'm the group's leader.  Now that's funny!  I finally get ahold of someone and tell them I just won't be making it to bowling.  Over 2 hours of driving for 30 minutes of bowling wasn't going to work.  So now I'm going home and I could catch up on grading and lesson plan entry, but no, I let the kids do wii bowling because they were disappointed.  I have continuing ed for my nursing license to do, so I start reading and start to doze off.  I set my iPad alarm to remind me when to help my friend because I can be there by 4:30 now and I won't be late.... If I turn on the volume for my alarm.  So I wake up in a start and wipe the drool off my face.  "Get your socks and shoes on!  We're late!"  I make it to my next destination just before 5.  Done by 9.  

So now the weekend is gone, I never caught up our homeschool stuff, but I've completed 15 of 30 CEU's for nursing and am well on my way to the next 5 being done.  I had a great time at church and fellowship group, bought groceries, babysat the carpenter who still didn't have the right parts to finish a door install started in July, and baked a dessert and bread.  I even got a Sunday afternoon nap which is why I'm still awake and blogging at 2 a.m..

If you've ever read someone's blog and felt inadequate, I bet you will feel empowered by reading this one.  School for us is still successful even though I told my husband last week that I felt like a failure.  My bathroom hasn't been mopped since... I don't know for sure.  My kids have been fed, there's clean and folded clothes in various places in the house and the bills are paid!  I'm just feeling blessed that we made it 1/4 of the way through the school year this time before I got behind.

Have an excellent week!  I intend to.