Happy Birthday #5 & #6!!!

 

 #5 and #6 both have March birthdays. They are about two weeks apart but for now a joint party is the easiest and neither of them care...so joint party it is!!!

#5 got to choose the theme since #6 doesn't know about such things or care yet, and he picked Batman! Worked for me...some yellow, some pink, some black...we're in business!

We had a great day celebrating our two sweet blessings. And a nice turn out of neighbors and friends and family.

Happy Birthday sweet monkeys!

We are in full swing Spring Break here. Cuddling and reading to dollies, building raised garden beds and rebuilding the chicken coop, playing with neighbors and visiting grandparents, volunteering at camp, dinner and a movie for mama and Mr. Wiedz, and mama's throwing in some reading time for #3 and #4.

All in all we are having a great week.

No More Classical School of Wiedz

Right before Christmas break Mr. Wiedz brought up a sensitive topic...what if we sent the boys to public school.

It was time. And I could feel it. If I'm honest I could feel it all last year too. But once Mr. Wiedz brought it up and brought it into the open it was time to deal with it.

So we talked. And we asked the kids. And I took some hard looks at where I think my identity comes from.

I had wrapped a lot of my identity in being a "homeschool mom". But that's not all I am. And that is not where God was leading us right now.

The boys were ready. They were making friends in our neighborhood and playing on teams in our community and making friends. They were ready for this step out into the world. #2 has thrived in public school these last couple of months...so ready was he to go out and be with people.

The little kids needed their turn. #5 and #6 had never had their turn with just mama. Oh, I took them out on dates. And snuggled them to bed. But during the day, I just got them busy so they could be out of the way. Now they have hours of mommy time. We do preschool stuff (watch for more adorableness about that) and play games and read books and sing songs. All the things that I was shoving to the side because of the pressing grammar and reading and projects of the big kids.

Lastly, I was sinking. I was losing myself to it all. And Mr. Wiedz saw that. He offered me a branch and helped me see a way out. I admit I have had a fair share of tears over making the decision and also with living with it. Interestingly I was reading Christ in the Chaos (affiliate link) about the time we were deciding all of this. Her whole point is we are not the "homeschool mom", or the "sports mom", or the "all-natural mom"...we are HIS. We belong to Christ and our identity is in the gift He gave us on the cross. That's the life line. 

So, the week before Christmas break I filled out paperwork, met with teachers, bought backpacks and enrolled the boys in school.

And the beginning of January, they went.

They love it. There have been some tears, some struggles, a lot of working hard, a lot of giving and compromising to fit in "the system" but it is working. We are all happy.

And we have made it to spring break! I have been looking forward to that all along!

Photo curtesy of #1 (follow her on instagram at sw_snapshots)

Best laid plans…that's what they say.

I'd gotten into a great groove these last few days.

Kids to the bus. A little break. Tidy up the bedrooms (open curtains, make beds, toss laundry down the chute). Treadmill for 20 minutes. Check out some blogs. Dishes. Snack. Preschool activities with the littles….you get the idea. 

A good day.

Today. Mr. Wiedz forgot a charging cable for his computer. His dead computer. Conference calls keep him from coming back himself (cause he totally would if he could), but make it necessary to go into town this morning instead of all that other stuff.

So here we go.

I'm kind of in the mood to blog again...I wonder if that feeling will stick?

We've made quite a few changes here in the World of Wiedz. I'll figure out how to share what's happening without writing a book...

I'll be back.