Of course there are many reasons! This week we attended a revival, we were out until 1030-1100 for four nights straight. There is no way we could have attended if the kids were in public school. Week two of homeschooling is such a blessing!! Just a short, sweet post to say God reaffirmed that in this season homeschooling is what works for us and our little ones!
The first day of homeschool is in the books! All I can say is that it was BLESSED! It went so well! Our kiddos loved it, I loved it, amazing! We were able to get tons done in math, a whole unit for EJ & G. We worked in our extra reading and accomplished much more than I had planned! Yesterday was one of the best days I have ever spent with my kiddos. Truly all God. HE knew it was just what we needed to kick off homeschool, and I am so thankful!
Our much anticipated, long awaited curriculum is here! Okay, so it took a week to get here, seemed like forever :). The kids were super excited to get it & check it all out! I love that it is actual books! Not text books or a ton a of worksheets but real books! After looking over this weeks activities, we made a mad dash to our library. Hollis acted like a freak show, honestly. Then add in Dawson, who hates going anywhere and screams like a banshee, it was wild. However, the big (EJ, G, & EG) were fantastic. Wynn was a doll, also. Moving on....we started at week one so it will be a long year. The plan is 5 days, it will take about 4 hours a day, in theory. We have had a lot of encouragement and our fair share of naysayers. I have complete peace about it. I will admit that our homeschool will NOT be perfect, but what is?!? Josh and I can't wait to watch our children grow in The Lord!!
Wynn is such happy content little man! He loves to be cuddled, nursed, and held! I ordered a new ring sling from Willow Tree Slings, I love it! It is the perfect fabric, length, and width. Wynn is also a fan. Wynn had a bit of a cold last week, thankfully he recovered quickly! His two month check up went well, he is perfect which we already knew ;). I never know the answer to all the how many times does he nurse and for how long, who has time to track that!?! Also, some of the best breastfeeding advice I ever received was when Emery Jai was a nursling. It is very simple, do not watch the clock, do not count how many times you nurse at night. Easy peasy. Seriously, I have no clue. It helps that we bed share (cosleeping now refers to baby in room but in their own bed). We didn't put up a crib, or even own a crib. During the day he naps in his swing. Wynn can roll over, hold his head up, follow to the midline, and do long division. He wakes up every morning at 4:50 on the dot. He wants out of the bed! I'm naturally an early riser, so it is perfect. Wynn & I get some alone time with God before the others roll out. Wynn mostly is called the baby, I believe it is because we called him that for 9 months not by a name. Old habits die hard. Nicknames are in the works, so far we have Winnie The Pooh (yep, hard not to go there), Brother Bear, and Fat Man. Wynn takes a bink on occasion, first of five who will. I tried with Hollis but it never really took.
The Anderson crew are registered, legal, official, homeschoolers! EJ, Guice, & Evergrace's last day was Monday. It was all a bit spur of the moment, that's how we roll. We have gotten tons of questions about our choice to homeschool. Our kiddos were doing excellent in public school, little overachieving geniuses ;). A lot of people turn to homeschooling when public school fails, not the case with us. It's really super simple, we want our children to have a Christ centered education. We just could not fit in bible study (as a family), family worship, scripture memorization, character building and simply pointing them to Christ while attending public school. We are super busy with church, we are there more nights than we are home. Most days our interaction with the children mainly consisted of barking orders to hurry. Also, I missed my children dearly. After much (although quick) prayer we submitted our request and contacted the superintendent to wave the 14 day waiting period. I have researched curriculum for years, honestly. I knew exactly what we would use, although no idea what to order. A huge shout out to my BFF, Lindsay for basically doing it for me :). We went with a classical curricula, heavily influenced byCharlotte Mason approach. Of course, Christ centered which is by far the most important. We are using Heart of Dakota and are super excited about it! I also attended our local homeschool co-op. I think it will be beneficial to the kiddos for making friends. hope to post frequently about our homeschooling journey!
Daws sure loves to eat! He has gained around 8lbs with us. He is talking more, has a ways to go to catch up to age level, we are believing that he will. Asking everyone to lift this little guy up in prayer! He has quite the road ahead of him, but we know God has GREAT plans for him!
Wynn is smiling and talking to his dragon fly mobile. He is such a sweet and happy baby! We are5 for 5 in that department! I am excited to hear his official measurements on Thursday.
A sweet picture from Pop & Nena's house. He stayed with them after Wynn was born. Hollis is potty trained, he has been off and on for a while. He had a huge issue with taking his undies off and pooping in the floor! He did this in public! We were eating at a pizza place that has a playroom for kids. Josh & I were having a nice conversation while the kiddos were playing. Hollis walked up with a napkin in his hand, he said "here's my poop momma!" We almost died! Walked through the whole restaurant caring poop in a NAPKIN! Needless to say, we haven't been back! Good news is he now uses the potty! Yay! The very first thing he said when he saw Wynn was "I'm gonna kick his butt". He still isn't Wynn's biggest fan, Hollis will say "where is your stupid baby?" He is such a cuddle bug, still sleeps with us. He has a huge vocabulary that includes a variety of not so appropriate words. Hollis hates wearing clothes & is normally nude. He loves animals, burgers, hot dogs, and his bubba (Guice)!
Transformation Thursday! Wynn is a chubster! Putting on the sauce in just six weeks! Wynn is a huge fan of the boob!!
We have a few new pets over the summer! Meet Charlie, the best dog EVER & Spike, a super cool bearded dragon!
Our September blessing became a very unexpected August baby! We welcomed Wynn 8/18/13, 37 weeks 1 day gestation! We were shocked! Looking back over my txt from that Saturday night are too funny! You would think they were from a first time Mom! Delivery was a bit rocky, I had a 3rd degree placental abruption. However, I'm great and Wynn is great, we are so very BLESSED! He was a tiny 7.2lbs! We have loved having a tiny one! We had to buy newborn diapers and clothes for the first time ever! He is growing like a weed! At 7 weeks he is around 13lbs! He loves to nurse:)! We are head over heels in love.
We are so very blessed and honored to have this little one in our family! We added him April 1st. We are unsure how long he will be, praying Gods will. He is our great nephew. Long story short, we went to court and got custody. He has come leaps and bounds, not the same child we picked up 7 months ago, glory! He fits right in!!
I. Am. Back. For real, for real. Lots and lots of awesome things going on I our family!! I can't wait to share all of them! We are a family of EIGHT! How awesome is that?!? Keep checking for updates! The best pic I have of the whole crew!
We have added a total of 6 critter's to the Anderson crew! We have two OUTDOOR cats Wolverine and Elinor. They started out inside but after seriously destroying my home the got they boot. They like it outside, honestly. That leave four. I blacked out and took the kids to a pet store. We ended up with two hamsters Sarah and Tom (named by Ever & Emery Jai). Guice, of course, picked out a gecko he named it
Samurai . Last but not least while NeNa & Pop were down for EJ's birthday they got Samurai a friend, Max the gecko. Poor Max lost his tail when Josh was getting him in the tank. Guice was so upset, we ended up writing an apology letter to Max. We explained that God made him that way, so Max could get away easily. Not until Guice called Pop did he believe it.
Whew, sounds like a lot! Good thing I quit my job gonna need plenty of time to clean...lol!
Our super amazing firstborn turned seven! Where on earth does time go? I can close my eyes and remember every detail of her TWO day birth (yes, I will always bring up the length of her labor :)). Emery Jai is working diligently building a relationship with Christ. I was very worried she was too young to "get it", she really does. I am so excited for her! I truly believe that salvation is the most important thing that happens, everything else is just bonus. She is super loving and working on controlling emotions (are we not all). EJ is crazy smart. Honestly. She has perfect grades in school! Yep, I am bragging. She loves art and excels at it, she attends the local art studio for lessons. She was also taking Jujitsu, she rocks it! Let's just say the girl has an aggressive side! She will start back in a couple of months once things slow down a bit.
Favorite Bible verse: John 3:16
Favorite Color: Blue
Favorite Food: Chicken & Dumplin's
What she wants to be when she grows up: Artist
Best Friend: Jesus
I did it! I quit my job! GLORY! This has been a long time coming, Josh has wanted me to quit for a year! I have been very stubborn about it. Finally enough is enough! I gave an open ended notice today. My boss was awesome! She is fantastic! She understood completely. I am so very relieved it is almost over! Working was fun, I am not gonna lie :)! It was so nice to hear "Great Job!" and other complementary things, and the paycheck wasn't to shabby either. However, at the end of the day I miss my kiddos. We have prayed and of course the answer was clear! Looking forward to renewing my SHAM card very soon!!
It is that time of year! I LOVE the new year! It is exciting and a clean slate! I have some awesome ones this year! I hope to update regarding all of my positive progress (I will also be honest concerning lack of progress :))!
Drum roll please!!
My one and only is put GOD first in my life day in and day out! Simple enough right?!!?!? I have included a few subtitles, if you will, to specify what that means to me.
*I am reading my whole bible in 90 days!
*Be a better steward of what God has blessed me with. This includes my relationships, health, time, finances, and belongings. Basically, taking better care of what I have.
*Focus on building positive God based relationships in my life. Speak LIFE into others!
*Spend time helping my Children grow their relationship with the LORD! Emery Jai gave her life to Jesus two months ago (Halleluiah!!!!!!). Truly no greater JOY! However, now the work has begun! Time to cultivate a personal relationship with God through prayer, reading his word, and worship! Also, LIVING in accordance to HIS will.
Whew, what a list! I can do all things when HE gives me strength! Again, can not say enough how excited we are to start a new journey in our lives!
This is it! The Anderson family is BACK! Funny enough that is the theme for our little family this year, getting BACK to basics! It is going to be a great year! We have some plans but are leaving the details up to God!
2012 was a hard year, no surprise there. However, we can see God's blessing in it. I have never been closer to my LORD! It is truly amazing! Also, Josh and I are closer than ever. We have walked through fire together and come out the other side much stronger as a couple.
It would take me all day to update and fill in the past year! 2013 is a fresh start in several area's of our lives, our blog will be the same FRESH! I am so sad of all the memories that I should have forever recorded! I am going to do a much better job this year, hand over heart girl scout promise!
