Summer is here but school is coming

This is my favorite time of year!  Not only has Washington warmed up enough to be comfortable by August but as a home school family we are well into preping for school to start.

All the back to school sales are on and I can purchase school supplies for 25cents to my hearts content!  Crayons, pens, pencils, paint, paper, books, glue and the list goes on and on and on.  It's a great time.

Each kid gets to pick the binder they want and a color theme for the year.  I use to purchase pencils of their color but that got a little crazy. So now they all have regular pencils but all the other stuff (scissors, protractors, rulers etc.) are in their color choice.  With 5 kids doing school it really helps when someone loses something during the year!

It also gives me a chance to really mess up our school area once a year.  I go through all my books and order the curriculum that I'm missing and thin out my personal book collection to match our family interest.  See I'm a total book person.  I love books (pretty sure I've mentioned that one before :-) ) But it's true, I love to have a large collection of books at my disposal for what ever my family might need.  But it tends to get out of hand ;-)

You can't see all the destruction from this picture but just trust me it has spread out of this room into others...kinda scary...but in the end I'll be happy to post a picture of our working "school" room :-)  Currently I am trying to sort through all my school books to move out what I don't need anymore....I haven't even begun sorting my "other" books but that too will happen this week.  I only have a short timeline to destroy before things have to be back in place again to maintain family sanity. (aka my Husbands ability to relax)

*And just for fun my large school book order arrived today so we're digging through that too.  Probably should have left the box closed until I was done but it's so much fun to get new books...lol


A few (many) hours later....

It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.  I actually got it done in one (long) day!  Now my book shelves aren't organized like I'd like them to be but I can do that later :-)  But things are where they should be and my husband who has been avoiding this room used the computer this evening!  I did pull out 2 large bags of trash, 2 boxes of recycle, and a box and a couple of bags to donate. 

But we are now ready! I actually added a book case to the right of the table for the two younger ones books and my stuff.  Each of the kids gets a shelf for their school supplies and books.  It really helps keep things in order during the busy school day.  It's like the color coding I do with their supplies, if they are missing something or a book is not on the shelf it's their fault and they have to take responsibility for the missing item.  This is a great thing for those kids who routinely leave things where they don't belong :-)

Overall a very productive day and the big kid's took care of the rest of the house so I can rest easy this evening and start a new project tomorrow :-)

Some people spring clean but I prep for fall clean....

Looking forward to learning lots this year:-)

College? What was I thinking?

So my lengthy absence from my blogging world goes right along with my theme.  

Learning as I go!

That seems to be the understatement of my life.

I went back to College!  I know I was shocked too :-)

I am taking the most amazing classes and in the end I will graduate in the fall of 2012 with a Massage therapy certificate.  I will be able to take the boards for Washington and Oregon (and pretty much any other state) when I am finished to be licensed.  But what I have discovered is that I LOVE to learn about the human body.  It's like watching the finger prints of God in all my books and classes.  Now I go to a pubic University so God is never mentioned but every time I give a massage or go to class I am reminded how special, different and amazing our bodies are.  The incredible detail every cell is amazing.  

And the God of creation knit each one of us together.  Wow!  

We are each uniquely made by a creator who loves us and has a plan for each of us!

I am taking Anatomy and Physiology and lab, Pathology, Kinesiology, Deep tissue,  and Clinics this quarter.  I've already completed A/P 1 and Lab 1, Massage 1, Medical Terminology, Kinesiology 1, Communication and Ethics. 

Here's the kicker....I'm gone 4 nights a week for school.  This would not be possible without the overwhelming support of my incredible Husband and kids.  We are able to make it work!

I'm loving Anatomy and Physiology even pathology is new and exciting (even if it's really gross...lol)  I don't know how that will change my educational focus but who knows maybe I'll look at being a Doctor?

Now I did have to make a home school change due to the amount of homework I personally have each week.  The kids have enrolled in WAVA an at home public school system.  I was afraid to change things up.  We've always used a strong christian curriculum and I wasn't sure what the public school would offer in the way of indoctrination.  I have been pleasantly surprised.  First I have to brag...just a little...the kids for the most part are way ahead of their peers. (kinda knew that to be true, but it's nice to know).  The curriculum with the exception of evolution isn't bad, it's engaging and fun. It was also nice to get all their supplies in the mail....including everything for science experiments and other classes. But what WAVA does really well are the Class connects on the Black board system.  The kids attend a few classes a week with other students and the teachers are very caring and fun.  So WAVA has great teachers! And our homeroom teacher is great too.

All in all the changes we've made in the last few months have been a lot of work but well worth it.  We have been stretched and grown a lot as individuals and as a family.  It's been wonderful!

I'll try to post more often of our adventures as I think I've got things kinda figured out.....lol....I wish.

Don't forget to learn as you go too....life is to special to miss!