I LOVE Target

It's hard to keep me out of Target! Given the excuse .. whatever it maybe .. whatever needs to be bought .. I'll choose Target every single chance I get if there is even the remotest chance they may stock it! Today's list included new soap dispenser and craft sticks - check and check again as I crossed them off my list. But how delighted was I to see that their dollar section stocked items I knew I had to have - concertina folders, for $1, really? You know those have got to be at least $5 at Office Depot, right? And while I was at it .. spare dry erase markers and erasers AND State Flash Cards and workbooks .. we'll be covering the founding of each one of this beautiful country's states during Adventures so these will be fun supplemental material .. all for $1 .. gotta love Target.

Well here we go ..

August is upon us and when we return from a short beach visit with family we will be jumping into our first year of homeschooling. How am I feeling? Excited? Nervous? Cautious? A bit of all of those ... but most of all just ready to get started. 

We made this decision toward the beginning of the year and I have had a good head start on getting ready for our "school" year. We visited a homeschool fair, I talked to every homeschooling momma I could think of, whose opinion I trusted, stocked up on school supplies, curriculum and extra books are bought .. we are ready. 

Am I dreading anything? Kind of. I am a people pleaser at heart who does not walk around openly discussing my opinions or thoughts on day-to-day events but at the same time .. I do have strong opinions on everything from politics to religion and in this case .. education .. but am conscious of those around me and don't always just come out and blab what it is that I am unhappy with or what I truly feel about something .. so I am dreading dealing with the opinion of others as the news trickles out that we are deserting public school .. where we have been in for the last three years and are "going it" on our own. Should I care? Probably not .. but I do and I am not looking forward to that aspect of it. For the few people that I have told, I find myself telling them the answer I think they might want to hear, or more often than not ... the answer I feel will get them off my back the quickest. Because, truthfully .. our reasons for homeschooling are vast .. multileveled, multifaceted and it may take a novel to convey them all to a reader, or at least hours or conversation. Please don't misunderstand, if someone wants to sit down and genuinely hear why we are doing what we are doing without passing judgment, with no preconceived ideas and who may even have an interest in this choice, then I will gladly sit down with them and set aside a couple of hours for that. 

We gave public school our best shot. We live in what the state of Texas has deemed to be an exemplary school district. My daughter was in school 3 years, my son for 1. And having not grown up in this country I wanted to see, for myself, what America had to offer. I strongly believe you should not criticize something you have never experienced or been a part of. And during those three years we met many people we loved, no one thing turned us off the system per se  but now .. having observed, having participated, we feel there is so much more to be had out there and are ready to take this route. Of course there is so much more to it then those few sentences but I think that gives a brief overview for now. In hindsight it is funny how God's timing is so evident - I was not ready to homeschool 3 years ago, 2 years ago or even a year ago. And actually, I think I can be quoted as having said, I will never homeschool. But through His perfect timing, people placed in my path .. through past experiences, conversations I now realize this was what He was leading us to. 

SO ... here we go ..

Here's my curriculum picks for the coming school year 2012-13.

Both: 

My Father's World Adventures - bible, history, geography

Sweet Pea - going into 3rd

Math - Lifepacs

Handwriting - Christian Light "I Can Write Cursive"

Spelling - Rod & Staff

Reading - BJU (readers and comprehension pack)

Language Arts - Rod & Staff

Little Pest - going into 1st

Math - Alpha and Omega, Horizons

Handwriting - Christian Light "I Can Write Manuscript"

Spelling - freelancin' it

Reading - BJU (readers and comprehension pack)

Language Arts - Alpha Omega Lifepacs

Sweet Pea and Little Pest loading up their school boxes for the
new school year

Our hall closet is organized and sorted .. this is where also where all our work books are housed

The beginnings of our book basket and a "small" selection of the books we'll be reading

More of our books, readers that we can't wait to get stuck into and did I mention new bibles and magnets?