Growing Grateful Kids

I've been reading this book, growing grateful kids,  over the past couple weeks.  I checked it out from the library, but it's been such a good read that I'll probably end up buying my own copy.

 

If you're a parent, you probably have a mental list of character traits that you want for your kids.  Everyone's list may be slightly different, but they probably included things like kindness, compassion, honest, hardworking, etc... 

For me, included in my top 5, would definitely be gratitude.  Gratitude is a biggie for me.  I would be so proud if my kids could grow up with a real sense of gratitude as they walk through life.  And more importantly, understand WHO is the ultimate giver of all gifts.  None of the things we receive are because we deserve them. 

I like this book because it's a an easy read, practical and oh so relatable!  Susie writes alot from personal experiences and at the end of each chapter she includes practical questions for us to think about as parents, ideas on how to teach it, and a prayer.  Lord knows our kids learn so much more from what we do, than what we say.  Oh boy!  This is more than a parenting book because it's been reminding ME of how I can better live out gratitude in MY own life. 

I just finished the chapter on restraint.  The message in this chapter has stuck with me.  Here's a short excerpt:

"When we oversaturate our kids with the latest and greatest trinkets and toys, we actually ruin our children.  When we bail our kids out so they don't have to struggle, we actually weaken them.  When we make excuses for our kids so that they don't have to feel bad about their behavior, we deceive them into thinking they don't need a Savior.  When we lay down the rules and then change them because they are not convenient to enforce at the moment, we confuse our children and diminish our own credibility...  it's not such a bad thing to let our kids wrestle through difficult circumstances or to go without something they want or to face their own character flaws."

I think the part that spoke to me the most is doing the hard things, even when it is inconvenient.  How many times have I given it at the grocery store or at restaurant, just to make things easier?  To a larger extent, this is why homeschooling can be a huge challenge.  Constantly teaching, redirecting, and reinforcing character lessons definitely cuts into my "to-dos" and can be extremely inconvenient.  But obviously oh so worth it.

Ok... this has turned into a much wordier most than I usually write, but I thought this was too good of a resource to not pass along.  Gratitude in today's world of over-indulgence is a special treasure to possess and to work towards.

The Heart of Our Home

I thought I'd take a moment to share some of the changes we've made to our playroom over the past year as we embarked on our first year of homeschooling.  You can see what our playroom looked like before. 

The biggest change is that we took out the big toddler toys, a workbench and a kitchen.  I was sad to see those things go because it meant the kids were growing up, but I have to admit, the moments that we experience in our classroom/playroom now are so much richer. 

Sure, there's been plenty of tears shed over not wanting to do school, feeling discouraged, or flat out having a bad day.  But there's also been many priceless moments of excitment, incredible teamwork, accomplishments and creativity. 

There's nothing too fancy about our set up.  We reused our IKEA Docksta table from another room and simply moved some things around.  Many items are from Target's Dollar Aisle.  My favorite part of the room are the IKEA Trofast storage units we have.  SOO practical and not too bad looking either!  It gives me plenty of cubbies for organization, plus a place for me to spread out... I need my piles.  :)

Harmony.  How lovely it is when it happens.  :)

Mission Control.  Our main school wall with our calendar, places to display projects, word wall and wipe board. 
All our papers, math manipulatives, and some toys are stored in the bins. 

Our classroom/playroom from the door

Our reading nook

Typical week... letter of the week with a verse of the week. 

Now, over my 10 years of teaching 3rd grade, I don't think there was a single year that I didn't move things around.  So, this room will definitely be progressing and changing throughout the months and years!

Lastly, of course, this post is purely about logistics and how we have set things up for our first year of homeschooling.  Some day soon, I'd love to share with you why we chose to homeschool and why we are commited to do it for another year.  In a nutshell... it was something that I never thought I would do, but felt a calling as our oldest was ready to head into kindergarten.  It's not for everyone, it's not the only way, but it's the way for us, for now.  :) 

Rhythm & Routine - Family Schedules



(A little rhythm from my #2 )

Well, we're almost 1 month into homeschooling and overall, its going well.  I'm tweaking things every week, moving things around and following the classic teacher mantra of "monitor and adjust".  What I'm enjoying most is the structure and rhythm our new schedule has given our family.  Generally speaking, I tend to shy away from schedules only because if I make one, I make myself crazy trying to stick to it to a tee.  But for now, a schedule is a necessity and it has worked out really well. 

It is completely true what they say about kids... that they crave structure and routine.  And so do grown ups I'll add!  :)  My kids like knowing that there's a predictabiliy to each day and week.  We have preschool days, library days, bible study and coop days, soccer practice...  We're so much more intentional and productive with our time.  Before this, I felt like somedays we were all wandering the house (a house full of toys mind you) trying to find something to do.  Now, we have so many projects and things that need to be done, that idle tv time decreased dramatically.  When we do watch tv or want some downtime, we can do it guilt-free.

So... if a schedule sounds like something that might help your family, I rounded up a few resources with templates that you can download and customize (some for free).   

• iheartorganizing is a fabulous blog!  Tons of practical posts and many great lists, schedules, and templates for free and for purchase through Jen's etsy shop.  I'm sure you'll find something that will make your life easier here! 

• jonesdesigncompany.  I've written a lot about the beautiful work that Emily does through JDC.  She now has a monthly subscription program with new schedules, lists and templates every month.  How great it is to be organized and do it so beautifully! 

• lisawhelchel.com.  If the name sounds familiar, yes she was the 80s star in Facts of Life, but since then has been a great advocate for homeschooling moms and Christian families.

• familieswithapurpose.  I just discovered this site and it seems to have a large selection of templates and schedules that you can download for free. 

Let School Begin

the door to our classrom/playroom

Tomorrow will be the first day of school for my 2 boys, Micah and Ryan.  One will be back at preschool and I will be starting our very first day of Kindergarten at home with Micah.  Yes, we're diving into homeschooling!  (I may share later about our journey in making this decision to homeschool.) I write this post with excitement and trepidation.  It's a privilege to be able to start this new season of teaching my own kids after 10 years of teaching other kids.   I look forward to all the aha moments and special times of guiding their learning and shaping their character.  Will this be hard?  YES!  Is it hard not doing what everyone else is doing?  YES.  I'm not sure as to how this will all pan out.  I have a feeling this will be a year filled with many lessons on trust, humbleness, grace and patience and seeking wisdom beyond my own understanding... I wonder who's going to be learning more this year?  :) 

My reading material for the past week has been more this:

than this:

I hope to be able to continue to share this new adventure with you as part of this blog AND continue to carve out time for my love of interior design too.  God's wired me a certain way and I hope to be able to continue to live out the passions that's He's given me.  I truly find joy and purpose in sharing my musings and inspirations with you and it's so rewarding to know that I might be inspiring a few of you out there to live a bit more beautifully.   However... don't be suprised if my posts this week are a bit sparse.  :)

So tomorrow morning, we'll start our day off with a robust breakfast of green eggs and ham and then we're off!  Wish us luck!  :)