A Busy Week Is A Good Week

I love weeks that are busy, at least those that are busy teaching my kids. The subjects whir by and with each lesson, I feel myself brushing those cobwebs out of my brain.

I think if you don’t homeschool, you probably have no idea what I am talking about. Remember that feeling of a new job when it just starts to make sense and you realize that you really know enough to avoid getting fired and your brain is busy and happy? Well, that is how it feels for me every day that I homeschool my kids.

When they were little, the challenge was to figure out how to motivate them and maintain the group’s focus in spite of different learning styles and interests (plus for a year of that time we had a baby nephew in our home who created his own distraction from homeschooling).

Now that my kids are teenagers, the challenge that keeps me busy is figuring out how to keep up with them. This week was one of those weeks when I just barely managed it.

I found myself, midweek, reading Dante’s Inferno in the living room aloud. We read pretty much all literature aloud, and after working through Wesley Callihan’s lectures on the Aeneid (and listening to him say time and time again that great poetry needs to be read aloud), my kids decided that great literature needs to be heard.

So, there I was reading through the third-to-the-last Canto (or chapter), and once again I got lost. I kept reading aloud, and I found myself feeling so pleased that I finally figured out the meter of the book-long poem and finally figured out how to pronounce most of the Italian names, that I once again forgot to pay attention to the story… until we got to a horrific description of sinners encased in ice (which frankly is only for the strong of stomach and definitely not for younger children!). When we were done, I had to ask my kids what happened in the section. Not because I was checking their reading comprehension, but because I really did not know.

My kids just began their high school years and that means I have four more years of struggling to keep up with my kids. And that means four more years of letting ‘busy’ sweep those cobwebs out of my brain.

In the meantime, I will be blogging through the alphabet for the next 26 weeks as the co-host of a weekly linkup…

It begins next week on Thursday, and it would be great to have you participate. If you are underwater-busy and don’t think you can make it all the way through, not to worry… just link up when you can. We are laid back about it all and just want to have some fun blogging and reading other blogs as we move through the alphabet. You can check out my great co-hosts too – Amanda from Hopkins Homeschool and DaLynn from Biblical Womanhood.
“A” is next week and the linkup will open Thursday, Oct 12.
More details are below in the Blogging Through the Alphabet Post…

https://www.byebyebrickandmortar.com/2017/10/05/blogging-alphabet-begins/

Now, I am sure that everyone loves a Giveaway! I got the opportunity to review a new CD from Jeremy Camp called “The Answer” and my whole family loved it. And, I am hosting a giveaway for the CD that runs through October 12. So Enter in the post below to get a gift of some fabulous music!

https://www.byebyebrickandmortar.com/2017/10/05/jeremy-camp-shared-the-answer-with-my-teens-a-giveaway-a-review/

There are loads and loads of great books out there, but how do you choose a new read without a glimpse into how another homeschooling family, with similar values to your own, liked them? Well, I started a monthly series called, “Off My Shelf” where I provide a short review and memories of how my children liked a pile of books that I just grab off our shelves. I have books for every age, including babies, and also one for mom. So hop over to the post (below) and take a glance through some great books, off my shelf…

https://www.byebyebrickandmortar.com/2017/10/03/off-shelf-october/

Finally, we all have had our troubles with math at one time or another (except for one young man I know who was reading advanced math books as bedtime reading when he was only six or seven – but he is truly special!). And as homeschooling moms we have probably all heard, “But Mom… Why do I have to learn Algebra?” So I have an answer to that question as well as some resources for you to arm yourself so you are ready when your kids ask that question next time…

https://www.byebyebrickandmortar.com/2017/10/02/mom-learn-algebra/

Now, here are some of the books and products we are we are working on…

Places I Linked Up This Week

Drop by and read the posts of some great homeschooling families at this week’s Homeschool Highlights hosted by Kym @ Homeschool Coffee Break! And read through the great posts at Weird Unsocialied Homeschoolers’ Link Up as well! …and check out the great weekly wrap up posts linked up at The Homeschool Post! …and great posts link up at the Finishing Strong blog hop at Blog, She Wrote that focuses on homeschooling middle and high school children, and of course the Encouraging Hearts & Home Blog Hop!

And Now, Join Us in linking up with my Friday Funnies, Flops, and Fails Blog Hop below!

Did you have a flop or a fail in your homeschool this week? Maybe something happened that was just too funny!

Share it here in my blog hop – let’s show all those homeschooling moms who think that homeschooling has to be that Pinterest-perfect activity ALL the time what homeschooling really looks like!

Homeschooling can be messy and there may be tears, and your laundry absolutely never, ever, gets done! But it still is the absolute best thing you have ever done and the best life you could possibly imagine for your kids and for you, right?!

And now, I would love to hear about your week! Was it busy? Did you do something really fun with your kids? Was it a disaster? Did you discover the secret to keeping the kitchen clean while homeschooling? (If so I really, really want to hear that one!)