the worst phase ever

is happening right now at our house. Gavin is quite literally being the most difficult that we have ever had to deal with. Our kids have both gone through times were they were stubborn etc. This is brutal. He has to fight EVERY single thing we say. He raises his voice and talks to back to us constantly. We talk about the way he needs to act and he'll agree, but then he's right back to it. I don't know how long I can take it. He gave me a headache tonight, just from the tone of voice. He isn't whining at all, he talks to us like we're the kids and he's a nagging parent... I never had my own parents talk to me like that, I don't need it from my 3 yr old!
Anyway, sorry for the vent.
I can't wait for my sweet little Gavin to come back...

planning

Well, over the holidays I came up with a new way to plan our school days. It is working very well for us. I sat down and came up with all the subjects and areas that I wanted the kids to cover every week. I wrote a guideline for each day and what we would cover, a sort of masterplan. Then I typed up a sheet for each day to fill in the specific things we would be doing (what books we would read, what Math we would do, etc). Usually on the weekend, I will plan the next week out. I just grab a page for each day of the week and look at my masterplan and decide what needs to be done in each area.
Each day's page, books, notebooks and worksheets are all put together in file folders according to day. I just pull out all the stuff I need for that day and highlight everything that we complete as we finish it.
At the end of the day all the worksheets the kids do go into their own binder and we keep them as a sort of portfolio.

Some pics of the kids doing bubble painting:

desi

We think our dog has ruptured her cruciate ligament in her leg. If this is the problem, she would need surgery which would probably cost $1600 plus all the other costs, such as pain medicine, etc. She would have a long recovery time and no guarantees that it is not going to happen again or happen to the other leg.
Anyway, we will likely take her to the vet in the next day or so.
Ethan would be heart broken if we have to put her down. She is his girl, he talks about her all the time. The first thing he does every morning is grab his pillow and lay it beside her crate and talk to her. He keeps praying for her that she will get better.

A Few of My Favourite Things

Mine:
Settlers
Hot chocolate (still)
Dates with Perry
Hot baths

Perry's:
His new gamecube (yes, we are a little behind the times)
King of Queens
Settlers
Candy Cane Lane tea

Ethan's:
Dressing up
Bad guys (unfortunately)
Cheese
Babes in Toyland (the Disney original)

Gavin's:
Gumballs
Milk
Mister Maker (a craft show)
Getting his back stratched (and being very particular about where you scratch it...)

A Simple Woman's Daybook - January 3, 2009

Outside my window...the sun is shining.

I am thinking...how wonderful my family is.

I am thankful for...the fun day that Perry and I got to have for his birthday yesterday.

From the learning rooms...Ethan is learning place value.

From the kitchen...we need groceries!

I am wearing...jeans and layered shirts.

I am creating...more schedules for school.

I am going...to have fun tonight with friends.

I am reading...the Bible- Genesis.

I am hoping...I don't have headaches everyday forever...

I am hearing...the dishwasher.

Around the house...the Christmas decorations are now put away, *sigh*.

One of my favorite things...my husband.

A few plans for the rest of the week: the kids start swimming lessons again and have both moved up a level. Lots of school work, hoping to get back to routine. There are not a lot of plans for the next week. We have friends coming over for dinner and games and maybe time in the hot tub tonight. Maybe we'll take a trip to the library.

Oh, for summer!