School Time Again......

So it's that time again. School has started up and each of the kids have gone through their share of the nerves getting ready for it. We went to meet the teacher night last night. The girls were both pleased with their teachers and their classmates. Haley's teacher is the same teacher she had from first grade and I'd be lying to you if I said I wasn't happy. Mrs. Larson was wonderful then and I'm sure she is none less than that this year. She is also accompanied this year by one of favorite classmates from last year, Ragan. The girls are fashion divas and talk on the phone every chance they get. Haley did wonderful on the first day of school as her and her friend Ragan graced the school with their presence decorated in zebra print. Jaymi absolutely loved her class at meet the teacher night and could barely contain herself getting back to that class. She started this morning with her absolute best friend, Jenna. The girls were absolutely adorable walking through the halls holding hands looking way to small to be there. Letting Jaymi go to school on her first day of kindergarten wasn't even the hardest part. The hardest part? Lexie was so upset that everyone was going to school but her she wouldn't even look at her daddy on the way home. She ran into the house, climbed in her bed and cried. It broke my heart. She wanted to go so bad. She went through the list and tried to reason with me by letting me know she knew her name, her shapes, her colors, numbers, and even her "affabet". She even promised to be good if I took her back. It completely killed me to see her so sad. I am hoping that tomorrow will be a better day for her. For now, enjoy our first day of school pics. Lexie was playing moon sand this morning when we finally got the tears to stop but you can still tell she wasn't happy.

School Days

It's that time again. School days are almost here. We've managed to get all of our school supplies purchased for both girls, as well as lunchboxes. We've gotten most of Jaymi's clothes with the exception of a few pairs of pants, back pack, and shoes. Haley we have only picked a few things. Hopefully, it won't take much more to complete our task. Things have been moving fast pace here as we get our home ready for our new school schedule, Girl Scouts, doctor visits, and other things. I have been a horrible blogger this year, but I'm hoping with the girls at school, I can get better. On a happier note, we did get up early and took the girls to see Disney's A Christmas Carol Train Tour.

As I am trying to get my new photography business off the ground, I must say that I have become quite the fan of PhotoShop. I realize that it allows me to take away all the imperfections that can be seen on a photo. One of my favorite resources for Actions is a well known site within my circle of photographer friends. CoffeeShop has an OUTSTANDING collection of actions to use with almost every different version of PhotoShop. If you haven't had much experience with actions, I'd recommend you stopping by this site now.........

Well, I suppose I'm a few days late with this post. Will anyone notice? Probably not. We made it back from our Disney World trip. It was so remarkable. We arrived in Orlando, FL, on Sunday around 4:45pm. By the time we caught our Disney bus back to the resort and got checked in it was almost 7. The girls were tired but too excited to stay in so we caught the boat to Downtown Disney where we proceeded to pay double for what our family normally eats at McDonald's. The lego store was top on Dad's list and after going and bumping into so many people we decided that other than the bins stocked full of every color, shape, and size block and the incredibly large lego figures, we could have delt without that trip.
Monday was our first park day at Disney. We had lunch reservations at Epcot so that's where we headed. It was filled with Mickey and pals, the storybook princesses and Kim Possible Missions at almost every country. The girls had great fun. Tuesday was tiring. We went to Magic Kingdom.... and apparently everyone else did too. It was so crowded with people wall to wall. We enjoyed things like Cinderella's Castle & Golden Carousel, It's a Small World ride, Mickey's Place, Minnie's House, the High School Musical Show, a sword fight between Peter Pan and Captain Hook, and more. We were in lala land. Wednesday we spent the entire day at Hollywood Studios. Of all the things we did there, the girls liked the Disney Playhouse on Stage the most followed by the after hours dance party. We reserved Thursday for Animal Kingdom, but by that day the girls were so tired of walking, they decided to stay at our resort and hang out. Since it was their trip and we were equally tired, we complied without a fight.

Something I've learned about Disney trips.... never go in the summer. The next time we go it will be during the fall or winter when the weather's significantly cooler. The heat was no where near what Texas heat has been in the past, but never the less it was still pretty hot when you couldn't find shade. This made it extremely difficult for the girls to enjoy themselves when waiting in any line. Something else I highly recommend is booking your trip through Disney. Resort guest get extended park hours on select days. These days are provided to you when you arrive at your resort. The dining plan is a must. It makes it easy to hand over your key to the world card (also your resort key) without having to worry about change and cash. Not to mention, some of the meals we had could get costly if you wanted a sit down meal. The dining plan saved our family of five money for sure.

I also say I'll blog more tomorrow, but lets face it, I'm a mom and never know when I'll have the time to do anything I desire. We'll see I suppose. Future blogs will include more on our non-homeschooling efforts as well as getting prepared for next years adventures. TTFN as my friend Tigger would say!

Yes, it is a day worthy of two posts. Now that summer has officially began in the Carty household, we are gearing up toward our summer vacation at Disney World. Billy and I are super excited because the kiddos do not know we're going yet. It has been rough making calls to confirm things and pick up last minute trip items with them hovering thinking something big is about to take place. Sugar Booger is brilliant and picks up on suspicious behavior. The force is strong in that one. I have felt like Agent 007 around here trying to get our flights verified, bags labeled, and dinner reservations made. I just got off the phone to get our flight confirmation number so I can verify what terminal it leaves out of. I see, in the corner of my eye, a handy link to check the weather to our destination and what do I see? Rain, yep rain, all 5 days we are there, there will be rain. Of course its only a 30% chance, but its everyday none the less. So here I am, in the middle of dry heat in Texas, telling my kids we have to get ready for hurricane season and go buy rain coats/ponchos for them to take on the trip. Yes, I have to pretend like there will be play time in the middle of a hurricane just so I can get rubber boots and ponchos. This is my luck I tell you. Keep watching for updates, its going to be fun.

So we've decided not to homeschool next year. It was a tough decision to make and one we didn't take lightly. We had hoped to homeschool this upcoming year, but when my soon to be kindergartner got a taste of what public school was all about she's was in it completely and ready to go. I don't have the heart to break hers. As for my official third grader, she's content with coming back since she's gotten good news that she will have her 1st grade teacher for her 3rd grade year! She's super excited about that. It was the last day of school today. The kids were happy and extremely entergetic; the teachers appeared to be equally if not more excited. All in all, I think it was a great year filled with tons of smiles and memories. It was our first year at this school with a new principle and I do believe she did a great job at managing the school. My first year as a PTO parent is completed and I think I may be returning again next year for some more fun! First order of summer business: to sleep in on Friday morning!!

How does your garden grow?

For mother's day I requested to build a garden. We have been talking about it for a while now and I'm not sure what made me want to do it this weekend. Maybe its because I keep seeing a learning opportunity my children are missing, I don't know. We all loaded up the truck on Saturday and drove to our local Lowe's to pick up material. We gathered are landscaping timbers, soil, and all the veggies we wanted to plant. I didn't want to wait on seeds to grow, so we went with a combination of different things. We picked up seeds for watermelon, cantelope, lima beans, green onions, and carrots (at the request of my 5 year old). We picked up some veggie plants as well such as green bell pepper, jalepenos, cucumber, strawberries, and squash. I think we have a wide variety and I'm sure before the end of the year we'll expand on it. Have a look at our new 4'X8' garden box.

In the kitchen, down the hall, by the front door, against the wall?

So last night my husband (Big Papa) and I were talking trying to weigh the benefits of homeschool against public schooling. We have finally reached a decision on whether or not homeschooling is right for our girls. We have decided together that we would take a year off of public school. Our oldest, Chunkey Monkey, will be in the third grade next year. This is also the year she begins TAKS testing if she remains in public school. TAKS testing stresses her out tramendously. We're talking adult stress too, biting her nails, chewing pencils, and even tears. I truly believe that we should relieve this stress for her to keep her as happy and healthy as possible. Our middle daughter, Sugar Booger, will be starting Kindergarten, making it easier for her to be adjusted to homeschooling. Our youngest, Squeekers, will be considered Pre-K in public school, however, because where we live its not a requirement, children are enrolled based on income. Meaning, my husband and I, even though I do not bring in any income, make too much money, and our child doesn't get that learning opportunity.

We are setting realistic goals for us to meet during our first homeschooling year. I am more than sure we will find that our children are overall much happier and still well adjusted. However, we will re-evaluate the situation at the end of the year and decide then if we want to continue homeschooling or put them back in the public school system. I'm sure this time frame will be the much needed time frame to convince my husband that we are doing the right thing for our girls. He still has his doubts.

Now that we've made this decision we must decide where to hold class. I have one month of public school left and three months of summer to get our affairs in order. We considered having a desk for each child toward the back of the living room, but this means we would have to move them up each morning for class then move them back at the end of our school day. Not our favorite idea, but it is definately a possibility. Our next idea is to hold class in the kitchen. Since this truly is where I spend most of my time, this sounds much better to me. The table we currently have will not allow enough space for lessons. We have always talked of getting a breakfast knook type kitchen set. I believe we may do this before its all said and done as this will allow enough for all the kids to work on their stuff without whining about their elbows touching.

Let the organization process begin, Project Carty Homeschool is underway.

To homeschool or not to homeschool? That is the question.

It's been a month or so that my husband and I have been discussing the homeschool debate. I am probably more for it than against it than my husband might be at this time. I would like for our decision to homeschool to be completely made before the middle of the summer. This would allow me time to either enroll my children in public school (our school district requires enrollment of every child, every year) or to purchase curriculum for my new third grader, kindergartener, and preschooler. I would also like to know whether or not I need to plan to attend the homeschool conference scheduled locally in August. I have just about finished both homeschooling book and feel confident that I am more than capable of homeschooling my children. Of course the plan always sounds good until I go to execute it. I have faith though that God will see us through this just as he has with other trials in our family's life.

Just for share, here are two of the packaged curriculums I found more affordable for the budgeting homeschool family. These are also on our list we plan to select from. We are still deciding if we homeschool whether to purchase a boxed curriculum set or mix and match to get all the subjects.

Timberdoodle- Bare bones foundation of core subjects with still room to add extras as it suits your family.

LifePac- Biblically based science, math, reading, etc, all the core subjects you need for grades K-12 with add on electives.

But what about "socialization"?

It's the age old question. I've heard it several times at the brief mention of homeschooling my children. Should we decide to homeschool, and that question is still up in the air, I'm sure we will hear it again. I'm almost certain I wasn't the first to have been asked and I'm positive you'll be asked everytime you meet a stranger who wants to know why you are running around town when your children should be knee-deep in school work while attending public school.

It is not that I believe kids are not social in public school, because believe me, my oldest daughter comes home and receives a number of phone calls throughout the evening from friends. I do believe they are not as "socialized" as we have begun to the think in society. From the start of the day, of at least elementary, they are saying the pledge, taking attendance, putting away backpacks and lunchboxes, and taking care of other things. They'll do a few assignments together, maybe some independent work, then before you know it there spending 20 minutes in the hall having a class potty break. Then its back to the class for some more administrative things and a little bit of classwork. At lunch, they can talk, but only to the two kids sitting on either side of them. If they eat fast they have just a few extra minutes to talk to their neighbors. Then its off for another potty break and more classwork. Recess is only about 15 minutes here, so they don't really get much time to socialize then either. Now most would say what they lack at school with friends they can make up after school and hang out with friends. In our family's case, there is no time for friends afterschool because of all the homework we must do prior to returning to school the next day.

My point is that at least with homeschooling they learn to work with others and all different ages, not just a room of all kids the same age. They learn from life experiences not just what's in a book. We can all face it, in real life, you don't go to work in a building with ALL 25 year olds doing the same work. You could possible have a supervisor who is younger or older. Not that you would need to satisfy another's fears of homeschooling and socialization, but if you felt your children were not getting the social part of life then you could always sign up for other outside organizations. Good examples of these are 4H, Boy Scouts, and Girl Scouts. There are also homeschool groups all over Texas that you should be able to find one that suits the needs of your family in your area.

In conclusion, socialization fears will not be a factor in our decision to homeschool. We are more worried at this point of what our school district will be like in a few years. We will review everything we've learned before making a decision. Check back soon for a list of compiled curricula.

Texas State Homeschooling Law

I mentioned when I found out more I would post to share it with all of you. Today I read the chapter from the Homeschooling for Dummies book regarding the legal matters of it. What I have found out is that in the state of Texas it is perfectly legal to homeschool your child. Here parents operate their homeschool with the same status as a private school. Just as private schools do, parents have complete freedom to regulate themselves. No daily attendance requirement is set as long you are teaching a basic knowledge of math, reading, spelling, grammer, and citizenship. As your child proceeds to higher grades and becomes college bound, you will find yourself doing more record-keeping compared to the earlier years.

More legal information can be found through the Homeschool Legal Defense Association.

Our homeschool journey started with us driving to The Woodlands area tonight to attend a homeschool gathering. It was advertised in one of my yahoo groups as an introduction to homeschooling for the beginner. What we soon found was that there was no information to be found on how to get started or how to pick a curriculum. We did find however, that if we do come across a subject we are not comfortable with or with little knowledge of, we can sign up for classes offered by other organizations. A valuable resource I am sure, but we are not sure it is one we will use.

We still have not decided whether or not we will homeschool. We are in the beginning stages and are really looking for information regarding homeschooling laws, requirements, curriculum, and the basic ins and outs of homeschooling.

Upon leaving the gathering, we realized we knew nothing more than we knew before we walked through the front doors. With this, we decided we'd drive down the road to Barnes and Noble. We were two parents on a mission. We were looking for any and all information to get us on the homeschooling highway. What we found were two great books we think are going to get us on the right path to making a well educated decision for our family. First up, Homeschooling for Dummies, a wonderful reference to everything you wanted to know about getting started, and The Homeschooling Book of Lists by Michael and Mary Leppert, a guide on teaching methods, curriculum suppliers, state guidelines, tests, transcripts, and more! We feel so far, we have the right tools for the job. I'll post more as soon as I make headway on either book.

Our first step into the homeschool journey starts tonight. We will be attending a local homeschool curriculum fair to see what's out there. We'll be looking not just at the curriculum, but homeschool support groups as well as other homeschooling options. We've lost respect and confidence in our school district this year after a traumatic incident occured at the local high school with my neice. We have not made up our minds just yet on whether or not we will homeschool our three girls but our journey begins here, today.