April Fool's Surprise Cookies

Several years back we started a tradition of giving "surprise" cookies to some friends on April Fool's Day.  Basically we make sugar cookie dough, chill it, roll it out, and cut it into small circles,.  We put a "surprise" in the middle of one circle, cover it with another circle, and press down the edges.  For surprises, we use whatever we have in the pantry.  We've used jam, chocolate chips, caramel, peanut butter, goldfish, raisins, carrots, etc. . .  We bake them like normal cookies, and when they are cool, we frost them with buttercream frosting.  We try to mostly do hershey kisses or some kind of suprise that people will like, and maybe include just one or two unusual things on a plate.

The first year, I wrote a REALLY awesome poem to go along with the cookies, but of course I lost it, so we just write a letter now instead.  It goes something like this:

Dear friends,

Happy April Fools!  We brought you some SURPRISE cookies to brighten your day.  What’s the surprise?  Take a bite and find out!  

Love,
Us

P.S. For those of you with food allergies, cookies MAY contain one or more of the following: peanuts, strawberries, milk, chocolate, ketchup, soy sauce, pickles, cheese, popcorn or anchovies.  


I don't know if the people who receive them like them, but the kids have a lot of fun making them, and that's why we do it.  

April Fools!

Our house is full of fools on April 1st.  Rather than playing pranks on each other, I tend to fill this day with silliness.  My kids think it's lots of fun, mostly.  Here are some easy things you can do to have a silly April Fool's Day.  

The night before, while the kids are sleeping, switch some of the clothes hanging in closets with their sibling's clothes.  I've always wanted to put Maren in Joshua's bed and Joshua in Maren's, but I've always been to afraid they'd freak out if they woke up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night.   

Breakfast silliness - Put out mixing bowls and serving spoons for the kids to eat their cereal with; sure to get some laughs.  When the kids were littler and I used to pour their cereal for them, I would pour the cereal into their cup and pour their orange juice into their bowl. Maren thought it was hilarious.  Joshua screamed.  Can you tell which child is the sensitive one?

Lunch time silliness - Make your sandwiches with the bread in the middle and the ham and cheese on the outside.  Once I made the kids hotdogs, but in the bun hiding under the ketchup and mustard was a carrot.   Last year I had made jello in glasses and put a straw in it before it gelled.  The kids thought it was juice, and were delighted when they discovered the truth.  They still talk about that prank.  

Other fun things to do on April Fool's day include saying things like "Get in the car kids!  We're going to grandma's!" or "Who wants ice cream?" followed by the "April Fool's!" and evil laughing.  

Read for Japan part 2

After the disaster in Japan, we were talking with our children about what had happened, and about how God has given us so many blessings and that we would like to share with those who had lost so much.  We talked about ways we could help, and discussed ways we could earn money to send to our church's humanitarian aid fund, and came up with the idea to ask family and friends to pledge cents for pages read on a certain day.  You can read the letter I sent out, explaining how we came up with the idea here.

The day before, to prepare for our "Read for Japan" service project, the kids and I went to the library and checked out a bunch of chapter books and some picture books of Japanese folk tales.  We tried to find some nonfiction books about Japan but they were all out.  We also went to the grocery store and I let the kids pick out some snacks - granola bars, goldfish, dried mangoes, easter candy, etc . . .  The kids went to bed excited to start in the morning.

We started reading Wednesday morning at 8:30, since that is when we usually start our homeschool.  I had printed out a couple of scriptures on service, and the kids and I recited them and talked about service.  We hung up a sheet of paper to record the books read, and the kids picked out a reading spot and made it comfortable with pillows and piles of books to read.  I also had put up a list of all the people who had pledged money.  

I knew Maren would be able to read for long periods of time without stopping since that is what she does on a daily basis, but I was a bit concerned about Joshua's staying ability.  To help him, I devised a system that would provide snack incentives and also help us track minutes read.  When we were ready to start, I set the timer for 15 minutes, and when it went off, each child got a star sticker on a construction paper bookmark.  I had typed up a list of the snacks that we had bought and gave each snack a star value.  Some snacks (like apples) were free, and others cost between 1 and 6 stars.  I made the snacks that I didn't want them to eat too much of be more "expensive".  When they wanted a snack, I would cross off the stars it cost on their bookmark.  

Reading in 15 min. increment also allowed for Joshua to take breaks when he needed to and Maren could keep reading.  When he was ready to start again, he would wait for Maren's 15 min. to be done, and then he'd join in for the next 15 min.  There was a lot of enthusiasm and reading done before lunch, but I could tell the kids (especially Joshua) were starting to tire.  After lunch, the kids ran outside and played for a long while.  When the kids were ready to start again, I cut the prices for the snacks in half to help with motivation.  I also started taking turns reading with Joshua; I'd read out loud to him for 15 min. and then he'd read by himself for 15 minutes. 

Even though we didn't track his pages, Christopher
and I read lots of books together too 

Joshua stopped reading about 3 and Maren read until 3:30.  We figured this was a good stopping point since we had to leave for some afternoon activities.  I wrote down how many pages were read in the book they were currently reading and we added up our pages.  In the end, Maren and Joshua read 1, 276 pages, and at 47 cents a page, had raised $599.72 to give to our church's humanitarian aid fund to help with relief efforts in Japan.  I sent out an email to our friends and family who had pledged and let them know how many pages were read and thanked them again for supporting us in this effort. 

can you tell she's excited?

Maren said: "I know it was doing good service and I feel happy that we raised so much money to help the people who got afflicted by the earthquake and tsunami.  I'm glad that people donated money to help.  I'm really glad we did it." 

I was happy to get my kids involved in service and get them thinking outside of self.   Reading books worked for my kids because that's something they like to do, but there are other things you can do as well.  My friend Bryn is doing a project baking and selling cookies with her girls.  You can try either of these projects or find something that fits well with your kids. 

Again, a big thank you to all who pledged and helped my kids feel the joy that comes from serving others.  

"Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." Matthew 25:40

"And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God." Mosiah 2:17

Last minute rainbows

I wasn't going to do anything for St. Patrick's Day this year.  I put leprechaun kisses on the kids' faces last night, but other than that, I was done.  But the kids really wanted to do something festive, so we made these simple pudding rainbows and the kids thought they were really fun.  We mixed a box of vanilla pudding, separated it into 6 mugs, added food coloring, and layered it in our drinking glasses.  We added a couple big and many small marshmallows for clouds.  I wanted to use whipped cream, but the kids don't like whipped cream (isn't that strange?) so we opted for marshmallows.  I think they turned out pretty cute, and now we're all ready for dessert tonight.

Read for Japan

Dear Family and Friends,

We were talking to our kids at lunch about recent events in Japan and how we wanted to donate money to our church’s humanitarian aid fund to help with the recovery efforts there.  We told them that they could also help by earning additional points on myjobchart.com (which is where my kids track their chores and earn allowance). We’d give the kids extra chores to earn points which they could then turn in for money to donate. The kids were enthusiastic about helping and we got started right after lunch.  However, as we were mopping the floor together, Joshua started complaining, and asked if he could be done yet and just go read.  I said no.  He said “But mom, I get points for reading, too!”  And I thought, well, that’s true.  We give our kids 100 points (or a dollar) for every book read. Then I thought maybe we could expand this a bit, since there are really a limited number of chores the kids can do around the house, and ask family and friends if they would be willing to pledge money for pages my kids read in a day. So next Wednesday, since we don’t have anything else scheduled, we are going to have a  “Read for Japan” day dedicated to reading and earning money to send to the humanitarian fund.  This will give my kids an opportunity to serve and will help strengthen reading skills.  If you would be willing to help us out in this and pledge a little money so our kids can feel like they are really earning something and making a difference, that would be great.  Maybe just a penny a page, or a penny every 10 pages, or anything would be great.  I will send out an email to those who pledged on Thursday letting them know how many pages were read and then you can pay in whatever way works best for you (paypal, in person, by mail). We’ll give the money to our kids and they can turn it in at church the next Sunday.  I know this will be a positive experience for them and they will remember the feeling they get from serving others, and hopefully continue it in the future.  If you would be willing to pledge, just email me or comment here.  Alternatively, if you have kids of your own, or don't know me or my kids, maybe you could set up a reading day for the kids you're in charge of (let me know if you do!), and we all can give a little more.

Thanks

Erin

(Note: I'm not seeking money from complete strangers.  This is mostly being funded by extended family, but I just thought I'd share the idea in case anyone else would like to set something up for their kids.  Thanks!)

St. Patrick's Day

I can't remember if they're chasing Katina because she was the Leprechaun
or because she forgot to wear green

I don't do a lot leading up to St. Patrick's Day in our house.  March is more about basketball than anything else when you live in Kentucky. But I do try and do some fun things on the actual day of St. Patrick's day. I don't know what we'll be doing this year, but here are a few things I've done in past years.

Leprechaun kisses - Last year on the night before while the kids were sleeping, I took a small shamrock stamp and green ink and put a "leprechaun kiss" on their cheek.  They thought it was quite fun to wake up with a stamp on their face.  Maybe I'll do multiple stamps this year.  I wonder how Maren would react to a face full of shamrocks that don't wash off right away.  heehee.  I also tried a trail of shamrock confetti as a leprechaun trail for the kids to follow when they woke up, but it ended up just being really messy to clean up afterward.  Not worth it.

Rainbow Treasure Hunt -  I took colored construction paper (one piece for each color of the rainbow), folded it in half, wrote activites they had to complete before finding the next color clue, and taped them up around the house. Some of the activities were fun or silly games, and some were chores (aren't I mean?) but at the end, they were led to a "pot of gold".  I'm trying to remember what I had as a prize, but I can't.  hmmm.  I'm sure it was extremely clever.

Leprechaun Tag - Easy, fun game.  One person is the leprechaun. Every one else tries to catch them.  If you catch them you get to make a wish and then  you are the leprechaun.

Gold Hunt - A couple of years ago I cut out a bunch of circles on my sizzix machine (remember those?), wrote numbers between 1 and 5 on them, hid them around the house, and had the kids hunt for gold.  After they found it all, they had to add it up.

Other than that, I guess we just wear green and eat green food.  I always thought the rainbow cakes were pretty.  Maybe we'll do something like that this year.

How We Homeschool

playing superspies

We are now in our 3^rd year of homeschooling, and each year we have done it a bit differently.  The first 2 years were very relaxed; mainly, my daughter read a lot of books, worked out of a math workbook, and we played a lot.  This year we have been a bit more structured about it since my oldest is now in 2^nd grade and my son has started kindergarten.  I thought I’d share how a typical day for us goes, in case you’re thinking of homeschooling and wondering what it might look like, or just curious  as to what goes on in our crazy house.

Typically, the boys get up around 6:30.  Maren sleeps longer. I used to try and wake her up early and make her practice her piano and violin before we started school, but I’ve realized she’s just happier if she sleeps until 7:30 so I might as well let her.  We get dressed, eat breakfast, and play during this time before school.  Sometimes Joshua will want to get a head start on his schoolwork so he’ll go ahead and practice or do his math workbook.  Maren drags her feet and will try to read a book in her room instead of getting dressed.  I try to focus on the little boys at this time since they don’t get a lot of attention during schooltime.  

We start school at 8:30 with our “homeroom”, which involves reading the scriptures together, singing our hymn of the week, saying a prayer, reciting our scripture of the week, and calendar things.  We also talk about our value of the month and a couple of times a week I’ll read a value story out loud while the kids work on their handwriting papers.  I generally print my own handwriting papers off of my computer using a lined and dotted font  I have.  I have also used the books “Draw Write Now” which my kids really liked.  Once we got to a certain point though, my son started getting really upset that he couldn’t draw the pictures as well as he wanted, so he would shut down and throw a fit.  It was best to switch back to tracing for a time, and we’ll try the “Draw Write Now” books again in a little while.  Maybe once or twice a week I’ll have the kids write in a journal and they can count it as handwriting if they write neatly enough.  

Each day I write a list on the white board hanging in our school room of what each child needs to finish to be done with school. This helps avoid resistance and melt downs from my son.  Joshua’s list will usually look something like this:

Piano

Scriptures

Homeroom

Handwriting

Computer

Mommy time (read books, play games together)

Math – flashcards/puzzles

 -  workbook

Read by self - 20 min. 

Science

Maren’s schedule usually looks something like this:

Piano 

Violin

Scriptures

Homeroom

Handwriting

Punctuation sheet (a couple times a week)

Typing or email

Math – Timed test

 -  Logic

 -  Workbook

Music theory (a couple times a week)

Science/History

Computer/non-fiction reading

Grammar/Language Arts

Mommy time

Maren gets mommy time as a reward for getting all her other work done, and we will do something she chooses.  A lot of times she just likes to cuddle and talk.

While they are working independently, I work with Christopher on his alphabet and counting. Maren and Joshua can pretty much do their work in whatever order they like unless it’s something they have to do with me, in which case they do other work until I’m ready, or if it’s all done they can read or do puzzles.  They like checking off their work on the white board as they go.  

For typing, we use Type to Learn 3.  Joshua does this sometimes, but mostly Maren.  We use the Singapore Math books, supplemented with various math games and activities.  Maren’s working on her multiplication tables so she does timed tests occasionally to try and pass off tables and earn prizes.  We have a computer program called Music Ace Deluxe that Maren and Joshua do music theory practice with.  I bought a workbook of logic puzzles called “Perplexors” by Mindware and Maren really likes to do these. We use the “Story of the World” for history, and for science I have been just picking subjects and checking books out of the library.  We’ve studied forms of matter, simple machines, magnets, electricity, and are currently learning about habitats.  For our language arts, I bought the Grammar Island/sentence Island etc. . . curriculum from Royal Fireworks Press.  So far, Maren and I are liking it.  

I try not to stress too much about their curriculum right now.  I think it’s most important at this point for them to love reading and learn how to think and puzzle things out.  Once they can do those things, they can learn most things they need to know from books.  So if we only get through practicing instruments, homeroom, math, and do some reading, I call it a good day.  If everything is going smoothly and we’re able to get through everything, great!  If not, oh well.  I’m not going to stress about it.  They’re young. They’ll be fine.  They learn a lot from reading.  

We take a quick snack break around 10, and then are usually able to finish our school day by lunch - about 11:30.  Joshua is usually done before that and Maren sometimes has to work a bit after lunch if she’s been dilly-dallying.  After lunch we do quiet/free time, and then we can do crafts or other activities after I’ve had a chance to recharge. After about 3, when they baby’s up from his second nap, we go out to either our afternoon activities or to play at the park or go for a walk.  If it’s too rainy we’ll have a movie day or just more free time.  We eat dinner around 5 and then it’s clean up, get ready for bed, and reading time.  If we’re all cleaned up by the time daddy gets home, and if daddy gets home before bedtime, we play the wii together, which the kids love.  

We use myjobchart.com for the kids to check off their chores each day and earn points.  Once they’ve done all their morning chores, they can use their points to do various activities, like video games, computer, TV, etc . . . or they can save up their points and turn them in for bigger prizes or money.   I also take points away for behavior that is not acceptable in our family, like hitting, saying no to mommy, pushing over desks while throwing tantrums, etc . . .  Since we have discussed such consequences ahead of time, it makes disciplining easier.  I also give them extra points for finishing books and doing extra work around the house.  The kids like earning points and it has been a good motivator for them. 

Whew.  That’s how the days go in our house.  Sometimes.  

The Good and Bad of Homeschool according to Me

(I know not all children are the same and not all families are the same. This is how it works in my family with my children. Obviously homeschooling isn’t right for everyone so don't take offense. None is intended.)

I often get asked why I decided to homeschool, and thought I would share my reasons for keeping my children home.

I never imagined myself a homeschooler. When my oldest was almost 5 I was upset she had to wait another year to start Kindergarten because I thought she was so advanced. But as the time drew closer for her to finally go, I began to be sad that she would be gone all day, and I started to look around for a half day kindergarten since they only have full day public Kindergarten here. I found one at a private baptist school and signed her up to go to half day preschool 3 days a week so that I could have priority registration for their half day kindergarten the next year. She attended the preschool and loved it, although at this point she was already reading and it was mostly just a social activity for her. After several months of the driving back and forth, buckling the boys in and out of the car, and working our lives around her preschool schedule, I realized I didn’t like it. She didn’t need to be there, it interupted our home life, and the boys missed her, so I pulled her out of preschool before the Christmas break. Then as it became time to register her for Kindergarten, I realized that she would not miss a thing if I kept her home from school. I could teach her just as well if not better at home, and thus it began.

That’s how I started homeschooling. Here are the reasons why I continue, in no particular order:

Making our own schedule - I love the freedom of starting and ending our days or taking days off when we need to. We can take vacation whenever Jason has time off and not when the school system says too. Places are less crowded when we go because most kids are in school. If we are sick or didn’t sleep well the night before, we can start later in the day.

quantity and quality together time - Now obviously I don’t KNOW this, but I would imagine it would be difficult to have a lot of positive interactions with my kids if they were in school. You see them at the worst times of day - in the morning, when they’re tired and you’re trying to hurry them off to school, or in the afternoon - when they’re tired from a long day at school and you’re trying to get them to do homework, chores, and practicing while you’re trying to make dinner. We have lots of time together at home during the best hours of the day and our relationships are positive. Of course, they are still young, but I have high hopes that it will continue when they’re older.

Including the gospel in our studies - Our day begins with our “homeroom” class, where we do a bit of calendar and then we talk about our picture of the week (from the gospel art kit), recite our scripture of the week, and sing our hymn of the week. Then we say a prayer to begin schooltime. I love it! It makes a nice start to our day.

Sibling relationships - My kids have lots of time to play together and practice getting along. There is still some fighting of course, but I also hear things like “That looks great, Joshua!” or “I love you Maren!” accompanied by hugs several times a day. They enjoy playing together and helping each other.

Teaching - I figure even though I have 4 kids of varying age, it’s still a better ratio than in a classroom, especially if there are trouble makers who require much of the teacher’s attention. I’m able to teach to my kids needs, focusing on what they struggle with and lightly reviewing things they do well.

Time - School doesn’t take as long when there are fewer students in the class, less waiting for other kids to get done, no waiting in lines, waiting for teacher to discipline other students . . . So there’s lots more time for other things. Maren is an avid reader and loves having the extra time to read her books.

Recess - The kids have much more time to run around and play during the day, inside and outside. And when I notice my kindergartener is starting to get overworked, I just send him outside to regroup before he acts out.

Afternoon activities - I can enroll my kids in lots of “afterschool” activities without feeling overscheduled because we’re home all day long. By the afternoon, the kids are usually ready to get out a bit.

Music - There is more time to practice. My daughter takes both violin and piano lessons but if she went to school she’d only be able to do one (actually, she might like that consequence of going to school). Plus we are able to get in with the teachers we want because we’re able to go to lessons while other kids are in school.

Homework and testing - Don’t have to do it

Field trips - we can take off on a fun field trip whenever we feel like it or need a break from our regular routine, and it’s usually not crowded.

But of course there are not fun things about homeschooling, and things that make it hard. These are the things I struggle with:

Organization - If you are a super organized and disciplined person, this might not be hard for you, but I struggle to keep up with filing things away and keeping track of what we’ve done and what needs to be done in the future.

Housework - Our house is messy and not nearly as organized as I’d like it to be. Since we are all at home and are all making messes, it gets messy quickly. Plus by the end of the day I’m kind of tired and it’s hard to motivate myself to pick up. Hopefully as the kids get older they can get more involved in this part of life

Going crazy - I’m with my kids all day long. Sometimes I lose my patience. Sometimes I go a bit crazy, especially if the kids have been arguing and disobedient. I send them to their rooms for quiet time an hour a day so I can be alone, and occasionally I’ll get out at night to the store by myself.

Social life - My social life suffers as a homeschooler. I have 4 kids with me all the time, plus we do school in the mornings, so we don’t get invited to play groups. Some people even think I’m a bit strange for homeschooling. I don’t worry about my kids socially. They play with other kids at church and afterschool activities. Plus we try to invite kids over to play occasionally.

My time - I don’t have time to pursue my other interests since I’m so involved in my children’s schooling. It’s a sacrifice, but I know in giving up something good I am getting something better - more time with my kids. I think having my children home at this point is better than crafting or sewing or working outside the home.

Errands - Grocery shopping and running other errands is difficult and interupts the school day. I usually go grocery shopping at night once a week when my husband’s home. Doctor and dentist appointments also interupt schooling and are annoying but have to be done.

Church service - Visiting teaching is very difficult as I don’t want to go in the morning when I’m schooling and people don’t usually want all 4 of my kids invading their house anyway. So much of my time is taken up for schooling kids that I’m limited in what I can offer the church in terms of service outside the home at this stage in my life.

Homeschooling will be what you make of it. You can stress out about it and hate it or you can relax and enjoy it. Sometimes when I’m having a hard week where I think we’re getting nothing done and the house is a mess, I have to remember why I’m homeschooling - which I think is because I like being with my kids. So we take a break and read books together, or dance, or act out a story, or go on a walk, or play play-doh, and just remember that we like each other. My kids continue to enjoy being schooled at home, but if one of them wanted to go to school, we would let them try it out.

For me the postives outweigh the negatives for homeschooling, and I do enjoy it. Kids grow up so fast, and moms always say that once the kids are in school the time just flies by. I guess by keeping them home I’m trying to slow it down a little, and make memories together. I don’t know that we’ll always homeschool, but for now it feels right. Of course we pondered and prayed about it, and we felt that homeschooling was an okay way for us to go. Only you can decide what is right for your family. I say if you’re thinking about it, try it! It’s not going to hurt to pull your kids out of school for a semester or a year. If it doesn’t work out, just throw them back in.

I think that covers pretty much all my thoughts on the subject. Different homeschoolers will have different opinions and struggles, but this is how I feel. If I think of anything else I’ll add it in. Any questions?