Homeschool, baby wiggles & spirited little girls

I totally forgot I was even running this blog {just being honest!}, Life has been so busy in the last month.

We began homeschooling Tristan, the baby in my belly likes to move {a lot!}, Piper is talking a ton.  Suffice to say, it is NEVER quiet in this house.

Homeschooling is amazing and I can't believe I ever said that I would never be a mom that homeschooled.  We have so much fun and watching him learn is amazing!  We do field trips {we went to Seattle on the train, Twin Rocks Camp, got to see the Reptile Man, The Ag Fest etc}, we go to Sandy First Class {co-op} each week and hang out with other kids, go swimming etc.  He never misses out on time with friends he had at public school and is making new friends left and right!

When he first came home he wasn't reading easily, he just finished a 90 page book.  We started him with 1st grade curriculum to see how he would fare and he is doing great; adding, subtracting, fractions, spelling, reading (even compound words).  This is in no way, shape or form a knock on the public school system.  In fact, Tristan's Kindergarten teacher is probably one of the kindest people I have ever met.  This was just a very personal decision we felt we needed to make to make sure Tristan thrived.  And he is!

We are 24 weeks along now, baby #3 is a move and a shaker, mainly in the middle of the night when I am laying down.  It may move more during the day but we are so busy I really haven't noticed.  We can't wait to meet this little pumpkin and begin life as a family of 5 {FIVE!!!}

Piper, is insane.  I mean spirited, enthusiastic, dramatic, determined, kind, sweet and full of life!  She keeps us on our toes.  Her desire to find a way to do whatever she wants will never {and I do mean never} cease to amaze me!  I was struggling for a while to figure out how to parent this little soul, she is quite different than Tristan.  My friend Bethany told me about a book called Raising Your Spirited Child.  It has changed how I view Piper and how I teach, love on and raise her.  It's a little "worldly" {if that is even the right word} for me, but like any book, you have to take what you can from it!  I have loved reading this book and have found the patience I needed with Piper {through the book and a TON of prayer!}  So if you have a little on who challenges you, this is an easy read and may help!!

What have you been up to?

Simply Amazing!

I've discovered something amazing.  Are you ready for this?  Monthly meal planning!  Do you do this?  I never think beyond the week I am in.  Every Wednesday I sit down and plan my weeks dinners and make my grocery list and then on Thursday we hit the grocery stores.

But no more!  I subscribe to Confessions Of A Homeschooler and last week she sent out an email about her monthly meal plan (you can see it at the link above).  I thought, 'I'll give this a try', and I sat down and customized her meal plan for our family to include breakfasts, snacks (am & pm), lunch & dinner for an ENTIRE month for all 4 of us.  Then I wrote out weekly grocery lists (a separate sheet for each week).  On my first week of the month grocery list I included things I could buy for the whole month (meat & bread, that I can freeze, frozen fruit, pre packaged snacks etc), that means I could go to Costco and shop my heart out!

I keep my weekly grocery lists up on my clipboard by my computer so if anyone in the house thinks of something they can't live without they can put it on the list for the applicable week.

I was super impressed, I got a months worth of meat, snacks, frozen fruit & bread for $221 and that means I'll most likely be spending about $30 a week on veggies, milk & fruit.  I'm quite happy with this as it should lower our grocery bill from $600 a month to about $450!  Not only will I save money but I will be spending a lot less time preparing my weeks food and shopping!

Seriously check out her blog on Monthly Meal Planning, it will change your life!!