Any other silly moms?

[roanna]

I am embarrassed to say this because I am still new to homeschooling but I neglected to schedule breaks for school. We schooled pretty much through the summer and then started doing SL in September and we didn't take any breaks.

 

My son started doing poorly in spelling when he had been doing great. Started spelling words without vowels, not interested in school in general. Then all of a sudden it hit me that we haven't taken any breaks. I felt so bad. So we took a week off and during that time I scheduled breaks for the rest of the year.

 

He has taken off again on our first day back yesterday.

[quark]

I don't schedule breaks. If we need a break we just take the very same day or the next day off. Or we will take three days off to read and watch documentaries...there's lots of learning in all those activities too. We have homeschooled a number of years now and are slowly seeing less and less of a delineation between school hours/ days and free/ break hours/ days. It becomes a lifestyle.

 

Don't be hard on yourself! Life happens! :001_smile:

 

One thing I have learned is that if he is feeling hard-pressed for a break, something is not right with our choice of materials. When we have a good choice of resources, the son is very energized to work and doesn't need (doesn't ask!) break days or free days. It might take some time to figure out the best fit (it took me 5 years to find the almost perfect level and fit)...but it's something to consider. Good luck!

[8filltheheart]

When I first started homeschooling, I didn't create a school calendar and simply took off random time whenever we wanted to. The kids and I both ended up getting burned out and overtime I realized that performance ultimately suffered for it. When they knew/know that they have to work hard for x # of days, they are more productive and they look forward to their free time. (It also keeps me going b/c I know I have time to catch up on life.)

 

Now one of the first things I do is plan our school yr. I do let our weeks off be sort of flexible (shifting forward or backward a week) in case things come up. Our school yrs have been better for having a semi-fixed calendar.

[SorrelZG]

I don't schedule breaks either because I never know when we're really going to need one until we need it. Also, it's usually me that needs the breaks - DS does not appear to benefit from breaks. What I will do is change things up and in that way we can keep going and get somewhat of a break simultaneously.

[Embassy]

This is the first year I have scheduled breaks. I like it better. Last year we took too many breaks at the beginning of the school year. We were inundated with medical appointments. That put us behind so we didn't have any days off for a long time after that. When I sat down and counted we actually caught up and finished a day before the local schools.

 

This week we have a 3 day week because we have family visiting. I scheduled an extra day off around Thanksgiving because I knew we would be gone and everyone would need a day to relax before starting school again. I have days or a week scheduled off here and there, but I move them around to a different spot in the month if necessary.

 

I've tentatively planned to allow medical appointments to not disrupt our days. We have field trips on weekends and some medical appointments during the week so I figure it all balances out.

[LisaKinVA]

I do a mixture. We plan a break Thanksgiving week, because my in-laws are going to be here. We plan a break from Christmas to New Years. I planned "days off" for field trips to DC, and I plan breaks around times I have stuff going on (running concessions, or other major events I'm responsible for).

 

Beyond that, we have to stay flexible. When one kid is sick, we'll do a lighter day (mainly because the rest will soon be down with it). I can't plan sick days, so I just make sure we're in school enough, so they don't matter. I know that once we are in full summer mode (really just July), little school will be done. August is spent finishing up, and planning out the new school year.

 

We school way more than 180 days, but I don't count (thankfully, I don't have to. When we did have to, we schooled about 230 days a year...

[roanna]

I was really hoping someone would share something else silly that they have realized they did.

 

I think we are on the right track now for our scheduling.

[quark]

I was really hoping someone would share something else silly that they have realized they did.

 

I think we are on the right track now for our scheduling.

 

Oops! I might have inadvertently started the ball rolling on scheduling.

I do SO many silly things...TOO MANY to list...don't know where to begin. :tongue_smilie:

[Black-eyed Suzan]

I have a bunch, but I'll share the latest one. :tongue_smilie:

 

I forgot to eat yesterday. At 6:30 pm I had a horrible headache and was actually feeling nauseous when I realized that all I had had to eat since 7 am was a small salad.

 

Who is this crazy person who is trying to educate my children? She can't even feed herself! :laugh:

[momtoamiracle]

I was so silly that yesterday I plugged my phone in to charge, and the electricity was out. I didn't realize what I had done until it came back on.

[roanna]

if anyone needs another laugh, I was preparing dinner and my almost 3 year old daughter got a hold of my mascara. She looks like she has a black eye/Groucho Marx eyebrows.

[Cosmos]

Today when doing our French lesson, I went to the kitchen get my ipod that has the audio dialogues loaded on it. When I came back to the living room, I found myself staring at the cordless phone in my hand and wondering why it wasn't speaking French to me.

[roanna]

Very funny!

[ccolopy]

Yep. Silly mom here. One morning a few weeks ago, I got up at 7, dressed, made coffee, wrote out DS's checklist for the day, got DD's books ready and started some laundry. When 8 o'clock came around and DH hadn't come down to get ready for work, I put two and two together and realized that it was Sunday. :blush:

[Dmmetler]

I don't schedule breaks-we take them when we travel and when we need them. Which ends up being at least one week a quarter when we travel with DH, and most of the time from Thanksgiving to New Years. So at this point, I'm guessing we're going to be on a break for about...uh...the next month??

[serendipitous journey]

RE silly: am totally sleep-deprived here 'cause the tot has a cold and has been waking up a. lot. I know I did tons of idiotic stuff the last two days -- DH said so, and I remember laughing ruefully at myself -- but I can't REMEMBER any of it. sigh.

[boscopup]

Well, in the last week...

 

One night, I put DH's plate in the microwave to keep it warm until he came in from mowing. After the rest of us sat down to eat:

 

Me: "Did you put Daddy's plate in the microwave?"

DS1: "No, you did."

Me: "I did? Really? I don't remember doing that..."

DS1: "Short term memory loss." :lol:

 

Then Sunday night, we came home and were eating dinner. I realized I should put one of the dogs outside, and then noticed he was already outside. So again:

 

Me: "Did you put Dax outside?"

DS1: "No, you did."

Me: "I really don't remember doing that!!! Not again!" :lol:

 

At least I haven't put fridge/freezer items in cabinets or pantry lately. The time I put a bag of frozen broccoli in a drawer and didn't find it for a few days... Oh, that was an awful smell!

[MissKNG]

I'm pretty silly to think I can outsmart dd6.:tongue_smilie:

[quark]

Hah, reminds me of something DS 10 said the other day. We were working on some challenging word problems. Often we will both work on it and then compare methods/answers. I finished first that time and DS said, "Hey you finished quickly, good job Mom!". :lol: That struck me funny. Like who is running the show here? Apparently not me. :D

:lol: Sounds so familiar!

[quark]

At least I haven't put fridge/freezer items in cabinets or pantry lately. The time I put a bag of frozen broccoli in a drawer and didn't find it for a few days... Oh, that was an awful smell!

 

:lol:

 

This helped me remember one of my silly episodes. One afternoon, I was marinating some chicken for grilling later in the evening. At the same time, I remembered that I hadn't checked my mail box in 2 days. I remember grabbing my keys and exiting the house through the garage to check the mail box. I don't remember what happened in between marinating the chicken and remembering to collect my mail and grabbing my keys.

 

I come back into the house, sorting my mail. I throw the junk stuff into the recycle bin. Another memory lapse. I sit down to check email. Maybe about an hour later, I suddenly remember that I was marinating chicken earlier! I can't find my chicken! I look in the fridge...my keys are there. But where's the chicken? I finally realize I left it in the garage. Luckily, it was just an hour gone so that chicken was still good to go for grilling later. Luckily, I hadn't left the chicken in the mailbox!

 

I've done a few things like this even before I had a kid. Not the first time my keys have been found in the fridge.

[Storm Bay]

The day I don't pull at least one silly mom episode, I'll try to remember to post here & let you know.

 

I don't schedule breaks because they happen far more often than I would like due to the many things that come up in our lives. Okay, I don't schedule breaks outside of holidays.

 

My first plan, way back when I started had plenty of break time, and it was to school 4 days per week, 3 weeks per month so I could keep my house in order because my eldest is highly gifted and needed so little time (it is a fact that she is hg and a very quick learner for academics & could easily have done this.) How well did it work and how long did it last???? Scroll down & find out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol: What on earth was I thinking??????? It didn't work or last, and my housekeeping, which wasn't perfect, went downhill.

[Julie Smith]

I don't schedule breaks. We also rarely take them.

 

Then 'school' here is very short. It can get done in about 30 minutes a day. Perhaps breaks will become more important when the days get longer.

[momtoamiracle]

Well, in the last week...

 

One night, I put DH's plate in the microwave to keep it warm until he came in from mowing. After the rest of us sat down to eat:

 

Me: "Did you put Daddy's plate in the microwave?"

DS1: "No, you did."

Me: "I did? Really? I don't remember doing that..."

DS1: "Short term memory loss." :lol:

 

Then Sunday night, we came home and were eating dinner. I realized I should put one of the dogs outside, and then noticed he was already outside. So again:

 

Me: "Did you put Dax outside?"

DS1: "No, you did."

Me: "I really don't remember doing that!!! Not again!" :lol:

 

At least I haven't put fridge/freezer items in cabinets or pantry lately. The time I put a bag of frozen broccoli in a drawer and didn't find it for a few days... Oh, that was an awful smell!

 

 

Are you a Star Trek fan? I'm watching DS9 on Netflix right now. Didn't get into it much when it first ran but now I am.

[TGHEALTHYMOM]

:lol:

Recently, Sleep deprived, grocery shopping, starving, used coupons, waited too long for supper (in the car) with dd12, who was tired and begging to eat.

 

BAM was near, and I went for coffee, and a short break.

I was needing to nurse my baby badly and she was home.

 

I jokingly said I should lock my keys in my van and call dh to come and help us and buy him supper.

 

Joking... but as soon as we got out I realized my keys were inbetween the seats and I had hit the lock button.

I also immediately remembered that I had been in a rush and left my phone at home.

 

We went in and immediately found the "magazine" area and borrowed a phone from an employee ;) How timely!

 

Dh did not answer his phone.....:confused: voice mail did not come on....so, I called my phone... and my dd9 answered!!

 

Finally I told dh I had locked up the van, and he said he would be right over, with the baby!

 

We waited, had coffee, hot peppermint cocoa, looked through some books, and started getting worried... looking out the window for a while longer... no phone... finally I saw him, and went right out.

 

He told me he could not find his keys to my van...:tongue_smilie:

 

I was upset at myself, but he told me to "see God in it" and was very calm.

 

I asked him to go make sure he couldn't get in it somehow... a window may be cracked..

 

He called a locksmith: who was going to come for $60!! All I had left was about $60 for food. So....

He went over to the van... came back and said the van's side door was unlocked! He had already called the locksmith back to cancel.

 

I forgot to mention, that as soon as we got in BAM we saw at least 10 police and emergency vehicles go by in the direction we had to go to get home. I kept thinking we must have avoided danger.

 

So, I nursed the baby, and drove his truck to get more groceries, and he took the van and some kids home. And the groceries!

 

That night I had been to Kroger's and run into a hs mom I had not seen in over 2 years. She shocked me by being so nice and informing me we both have 8 children!

 

Then at the checkout at the last store we went to, the cashier said he couldn't wait for his mom to have her baby, and he is one of 7!

 

I couldn't help being more thankful for these people who did not judge me, and encouraged me.

 

And the next day in the church nursery, I found dh's keys in the diaper bag:lol:

Edited November 9, 2012 by TGHEALTHYMOM

[roanna]

Cute story

[boscopup]

Are you a Star Trek fan? I'm watching DS9 on Netflix right now. Didn't get into it much when it first ran but now I am.

 

Yes, our other dog is Kira. ;) DS9 is my favorite Star Trek series.

[momtoamiracle]

Yes, our other dog is Kira. ;) DS9 is my favorite Star Trek series.

 

 

 

I'm liking it more this go around. It is nice there are many I haven't seen or don't remember so it is like having a whole new series! Avery Brooks is really brilliant as Sisko.

 

 

Didn't care for Enterprise much...loved Next generation and Voyager tho.

 

have you seen the show Captains Log on Netflix? they visit with all the Captains. Really good.

 

 

 

You can always spot a ST fan, our email is twotribbles. :001_smile:

[boscopup]

I'm liking it more this go around. It is nice there are many I haven't seen or don't remember so it is like having a whole new series! Avery Brooks is really brilliant as Sisko.

 

Sisko is one of my favorites too!

 

Didn't care for Enterprise much...loved Next generation and Voyager tho.

 

Love Next Generation. Voyager was kind of silly, but I still enjoyed it. Enterprise, I didn't care for the first time around, but watching it more recently, I liked it better.

 

have you seen the show Captains Log on Netflix? they visit with all the Captains. Really good.

 

Haven't seen it yet!