Eating b’fast now. Headed out shortly. I wake up dreading the day, every school day. Ds is up and working. His grades are bad and he’s struggling to keep up with assignments. He needs more scaffolding, but refuses any help from me or Dh. I don’t have time or energy to be proactive with him; just helping with damage control as requested. He will likely not dress/play Friday night bc of his grades.

Church was fun!! Dh got my brakes done today and my car is nice to drive again. Did small housekeeping tasks. Settled in to read.

Afternoon was chaos and zero learning. Headed to church.

@TheReader I have the same problem with a computer! Neither my progressives nor my readers are right for that medium distance.

Forgot to pack silverware with my lunch, so I ate with two wooden coffee stirrers as chopsticks. Glad I packed a chunky lunch!

I love my white jeans and wear them anytime spring-fall. They are a good option when it’s summer weather, but I have to be in the A/C a lot.

@mom31257 You have a seriously busy day! My list: school church go home and fall apart

Mostly terrible day at school, but I am getting help from an experienced teacher on the classroom management stuff. Still very discouraging. Big health insurance snafu that needs to be sorted. Friday. Dh did make dinner! 😎🎉 Talked to an AHG leader about planning for an event I usually run, but can’t this year. To do: Email parents ✔️ School prep ✔️ Pack a lunch ✔️ Shower ✔️ Try to unwind before bed

Written for kids, but I like Steve Sheinkin’s books.

Good morning! School ✔️ Staff meeting ✔️ Check in on Ds, who is congested and doesn’t feel well. ✔️ Dinner is supposed to be managed by Dh? 🙄 School prep ✔️ Start on the coming week’s assignments? Clean a bathroom? Shower ✔️ Go to bed early!!

Turned in an assignment. Made dinner, lunches, and smoothies. Did some lesson planning. Ds had a giant meltdown when he realized that two large assignments are due tomorrow. He has a plan, which I think is a bad one, but he’s 17 and has got to figure it out himself. When he calmed down, I made some suggestions. Having a snack and going to bed. I dread going to school in the mornings. Every day is a failure.

Home from visiting Dd. It was good to see her apartment and hang out with her roommates. Feels fallish. About to sit down and finish my homework.

We drove over to see Dd today. Took her some stuff for the apartment and visited with her roommates. I am glad to have seen where she lives. We went to lunch at a Thai place, walked around campus, and got ice cream. A nice day. She is doing well, except that she hasn’t gotten a part time job yet.

Yes, this works in my life, but I know many women who’d say their Dh is their best friend or who have a female best friend. Everyone is different and seasons of life bring different friend arrangements. I never thought about Dh possibly being on the spectrum. I don’t think so, though he does struggle to have friends and build relationships. We married late and are very unlike. @HomeAgain My closest female friends are from church, so we have time together and share the same deepest commitments. Most are/were homeschoolers. Most have kids who are friends with mine. I have one long-time friend of over 30 years who lives in another state and who is like a sister to me.

I got up earlyish and wrote my second assignment. Still need to do citations. Having coffee and bacon now. Leaving in half an hour or so to go visit Dd. We’ll see her apartment, go out to lunch, and hang out a bit, returning home by late afternoon. Later: Ask Dh to make the dinner. Finish assignment and turn it in. Lesson planning for math and history. Pack my lunch. Maybe iron a couple things? Go to bed early.

@fairfarmhand We got about an hour of rain last night. SE Nashville. First rain in many weeks, over a month for sure.

For first grade our school day was: 30 minutes math (Right Start) 20 minutes reading (real books) 10 minutes writing/grammar (copywork/FLL) Lots and lots and lots of read aloud! That included poetry, stories, history, biography, science, art. Zillions of picture books. Lots of time outdoors, zoo trips, nature center, historical sites, an occasional art class, etc. We played lots of games all through grade school. Board and card games teach so many things! I love Right Start math games! Music was children’s choir at church. We started piano in 2nd grade and continued choir through 5th. She did ballet and swim lessons.

Morning Time: A Liturgy of Love by Cindy Rollins. Her podcast is good too. Teaching from Rest by Sarah Mackenzie For the Children’s Sake by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay

Ate an apple and pb. Got some ideas for my paper written down. Enough to get me started tomorrow. I will get up early and work on it for a while before we leave, then finish it up when we get home. Going to bed. I’m exhausted.

No luck with OneDrive, but did find the paper. Finished it and turned it in. Hooray!!!! 🎉🎈Technology is stressful for me. Next up: quick dinner Then work on the next assignment for at least an hour.

Got my Rx, but they didn’t have the one for Ds. So he has no meds for tomorrow and will feel awful all day Tuesday.

@TheReader That’s what google said, but I have no idea what or where One Drive is. Dh is trying now. I am going out to try again on the prescriptions. I haven’t been for a walk, seen my mom, or read a novel since this job started. I literally work all day every day, with short breaks for meals and personal hygiene. Starting next week, I will not get to worship with my family bc I need to go to early service to leave more study time in the afternoon.

The computer just disappeared my paper! 4 hrs of work down the drain. I was working in MS Word online bc my LibreOffice doesn’t have an APA template. My computer went to sleep while I was on the phone and I had to restart to get my cursor back (weird glitch no one has been able to fix). No paper. Supposedly saved online somewhere, but I cannot find it. No visit to Dd tomorrow. Have to do all the work over again. 😢😢😢 I hate my new life.

Church was good! Tried to get prescriptions, but the pharmacy was mobbed and short-staffed. Might try later today. Had a yummy lunch of leftovers. And more coffee. Settling down to get grad school work done.

OP, I found it very helpful to write out my philosophy of home education in the early years. There are a variety of ways to homeschool and it helped me eliminate approaches, ideas, methods, and materials that did not fit within my parameters. Doesn’t mean those things were bad, just not a good fit for my family. Also helpful, reading widely about home education. Books, not the internet. Long form thought.