So it begins....

It's official....we are a homeschooling family! Our first day of homeschooling was Monday, which I know is a bit early, but we wanted to get a jump on things. The girls were quite excited to sit down at the kitchen table and fill their little heads with new knowledge. At least that is what I am telling myself. I think they were more excited to "go to school" with bed head and wearing play clothes.

We are starting back to school slowly. Since this is our first year of homeschooling I didn't want to overwhelm the kids or myself. So, we kept it simple this week. We only covered Bible, Science/Health and History/Geography each day. We will be adding in Math next week and then Reading/Phonics/Spelling the week after that. Kind of a slow and steady approach.

I have surprised myself and I find that I am actually enjoying the whole process. I love knowing exactly what they are learning because I have so many opportunities to discuss it throughout the day. For instance, Annie is learning about the importance of balanced nutrition and staying hydrated, so it's neat to be able to talk about that while preparing lunch or dinner. We are also keeping a chart to note whether or not she is drinking enough each day. We found out yesterday that she is a bit dry so today we will try harder to stay hydrated.

I have also gotten the chance to learn some new things! I am now an expert on the state of Kentucky! Well, maybe not an expert, but I certainly know enough facts to win the category on Jeopardy! Did you know that we have a state wild animal? It's the gray squirrel! Who knew? Well, I do now! I also learned that the word "Kentucky" comes from an Iroquois word that means "meadowland"...makes sense to me. The funny thing is that the Iroquois Indians never lived in Kentucky. They simply passed through on hunting trips, yet somehow our state name is linked to them. Odd, huh? See what I mean? I am learning too! It's so neat!

I have also been keeping busy with cooking. I bought some zucchinis that are as big as my arm so I have been making zucchini bread to freeze for the winter. Lily has been my little helper. If I could just figure out a way to keep her fingers out of the batter......

I have also been making chili! I LOVE my homemade chili and nothing tastes better on a cold winter day than a bowl of hot chili and a piece of buttered bread. Yummy!

So, the week is flying by. We are learning and cooking, which happen to be two of my favorite things to do. Lucky me!