WRAD Memories

One of the main reasons that I haven't been writing over the past year (other than being really busy with cadets and my grandmother's ongoing history project....) is that things have been pretty crappy around here. I haven't really been feeling like I'm getting anywhere with anything- so how could I put a great spin on something that just seems to suck? In the past when I'd tried blogging (or journaling), it always seemed like I was just whining and complaining about the same things over and over again. And nobody really wants to hear about that, so then I just don't write. People have enough garbage going on in their own lives that they don't need to listen to someone else whine about theirs. But is that really where we're at? I know that there has been some backlash against this with the 'Bad Mommy' type memoirs and blogs, however, that's not really what I'm talking about. I think it's sometimes about being real and vulner...

Earlier this month I went to a Ladies Retreat. I was so excited to finally have everything work out (or so I thought) for me to go. A friend had told me about the speaker several years earlier and they had had some retreats in the past, but they were too expensive and I either had a little one that couldn't be left or Graham was working and couldn't watch them. Finally, I realized that Graham actually had that weekend off and I had his permission- so I signed up to go. Only after I paid did I realize that I was actually supposed to be really busy that weekend. Elijah had the Cadet 'Tag Days' that weekend as well as Graham's work 'Family Fun Day'. Yikes! I actually considered cancelling but figured that if God had worked this out for me to go, I should go. Besides, I figured that I needed this 'refreshing' break to rejuvenate me to be a better wife/mom/teacher (that was the speaker's focus). Notice how I put the 'refreshing' part...

Where to begin? This year has been crazy. Not just for me, but for a lot of my home schooling friends as well. I thought that going into year five of this home schooling journey was a bit of an 'arrival' of sorts. That just maybe I had 'made it' and was on to smoother sailings. Uhm.... no... Getting rid of the dog lifted a huge weight of the constant responsibility- but at the same time the heaviness was still there. Like a daughter who would break out into weeping fits when she thought about the dog and still asks me when he's coming back or when I will get another dog to replace him. I expended copious amount of time trying to deal with and train him- and getting rid of him signaled yet another failure that was emotionally hard to deal with. We also signed Elijah up with our local Air Cadet program and I have been volunteering with that as well. It's been interesting getting 'out' into the world again. For the past number of years our family ...

A few days ago I watched a video about distracted moms (by Carol Barnier author of the book "If I'm Diapering a Watermelon, Then Where'd I Leave the Baby?: Help for the Highly Distractible Mom"). I thought to myself, 'yeah, I guess I can get a bit distracted'. Little did I know that probably the next day I would realize just how bad it was. I was trying to explain some math concept to one of the boys and I noticed that his fingernails REALLY needed to be cut. It took EVERY ounce of self control to not interrupt what we were doing and go cut them that very second. I immediately thought back to the video. Yep. I'm a distracted mom. But something in what she said in the video really hit a nerve deep within. At first she thought that she needed to fix this distractability and become the Pinterest perfect home schooling mom. She had charts and list and everything possible to keep herself organized and on task. Only it didn't work because the...

September was a bit of a blur- which you probably noticed since I really didn't post much of anything during the month. Things and life had me distracted and I couldn't figure out which way was up. My 90 Days Through the Bible is taking longer than I'd hoped- mainly because instead of doing my reading every night I've been doing other things (like creating a Lego scrapbook for the boys. Pointless? Of course! Will they love it and fight over the 1 copy that I ordered? You betcha!). But doing things that I'm not supposed to be doing means that I have to say NO to things that I should be doing. Things that if they don't get done mean that days are really, really rough. Like figuring out a schedule for our school days, or even what we're supposed to be doing for school each day! Thankfully, after meeting with my home support teacher, I have a new plan for the work and I just need to figure out a schedule. And very timely, this post here ( Punching th...

It's hard to believe that the summer break is almost done. As I was thinking about getting ready for the new school year, I actually had a fleeting thought that I wished I could send the kids back to public school, just so I could get caught up on all the half-finished projects laying around the house and NOT have to get ready to teach them. Honestly, I had been counting down the years till my youngest entered full-time school so I could do just that- finish all my stuff and clean-up/organize my house. Then I think of James 4:3 where it says, 'you do not get because you ask with wrong motives'.  Ah yes, God. Homeschooling it is, then. Die to self, take up His cross. Repeat. Keeping it real, by the grace of God... Tammy

Finally, the last semester. I really can't believe that we've FINISHED four years already!?!?! Where has the time gone? Anyway, while the year may have started out well, I mentally bailed out near the end of May. I. was. just. done! After talking with Jeremiah's speech therapist I understood why- our brains do best on a regular cycle of learning and rest (a maximum of 3 months learning and then time off to assimilate and process the information learned). Unfortunately the January - June model of schooling doesn't work into that properly and so she seemed to think it completely normal for my brain to have shut down then (based on how long it had been since the spring break). She actually advocated for year round schooling (three months on/one month off). I'm seriously considering it. Well, for final term. This spring was a bit odd for us, since my husband actually ended up being off for six weeks due to hernia surgery. Geocaching with daddy- his first...

A couple of weeks ago I read this really funny blog post (found here  Worst End of School Year Mom ). It was really quite hilarious and so where I'm at these days. I have grand intentions every time I start something new. Things like school years, diets, exercise regimes, organizational to-do lists, schedules, habits, blog posts, etc. You name it and I'm pretty good at starting it- but finishing it, well, let's just say I'm not too good at that part. Elijah doing his first potato sack race at their school's sports day- he ended up wiping out and not finishing well. Trying not to come in last. For the past week and a bit (it's taken me a while to get this post written and up), I've had God gently nudging me with the scripture from Heb. 12:1-3: the whole thing about persevering right to the very end- putting my whole heart and soul into things until they're finished. Unfortunately, I usually peter out after completing only 5 - 10% of som...

It's June! Already!?! This year has really flown by. June marks the end of my 4th year of homeschooling. In some ways I still feel like a 'newbie'- like I'm just starting out, wondering how it all is going to work out and if I'm going to mess up my kids' education! When we first started out, our home school area was a corner of our playroom. Needless to say they were more interested in playing than school work. Just to make life more interesting (besides being pregnant with baby #5 when we started), we decided to close in the covered sundeck and create a bedroom & home school room. I did okay until we hit the drywall stage- I gave up doing any 'formal' schooling till it was finished. In other ways, I'm almost feeling like a seasoned veteran. I even have the occasional mom who is newer at this home schooling gig asking me, 'How do you do it?'. Oh my! If they only knew! Anyway, it's a question that even I have ask...

I went to my parents for lunch after church today. Several hours later it was time to pack up the kids and go home. Lo and behold, not one of them wanted to leave. It's really hard to compete with no screen restrictions and the pool- I mean really, why on earth would they ever want to leave? Since tomorrow is my wedding anniversary, my mom graciously agreed to keep all the kids so I can sleep in! What are the chances that I'll be able to do that now that I can? It really was a nice quiet evening. Graham and I could actually have a full conversation that wasn't getting interrupted every five seconds by either a scream child or nagging questions. We both reminisced about how this was our life before kids (and how long it had been since we'd actually been at home together, without a specific purpose to occupy us (like our never-ending reno's), with not even one kid around). But you know what? It didn't take long for both of us to agree that even in the mi...

I don't know about you, but I really don't like doing art projects with my kids. There are several reasons for this: 1.) I have a hard enough time trying to keep my house clean as it is and adding whatever mess might be generated from said art project will only compound that problem. 2.) Once said project is completed, where on earth am I going to put it? (refer back to point 1) 3.) Having multiple ages means either many art projects or absolute chaos trying to get different levels to complete the same project. 4.) Not only am I a bit of a perfectionist, but I've managed to pass this gene along to at least one of my kids- which means that there will be weeping and wailing from at least one person- and it might even be from a child or two. However, in my valiant attempts lately to reduce the amount of time that my children spend glued to a screen of some sort (thanks peers for introducing yet ANOTHER 'really cool game' to my children that they are now absolu...

Hey there, welcome! My name is Tammy and this is my blog. I'm married to my husband, Graham and together we have five kids: Elijah (12), Jeremiah (10), Samuel (8), Noah (5 1/2) and finally Rebekah (3 1/2). Yes, my kids all have bible names and yes that was intentional. I home school my boys and try to figure out ways to keep my daughter entertained without resorting to a screen (which happens more often than I would care to admit to anyone). I also now sell Creative Memories because I love taking pictures and I love telling the stories that those pictures represent. This blog will be about me, my life, my WRAD memories and hopefully all the things I learn along the way. Not because I think  I'm perfect and have it all together. Let me be totally honest with you- my house is a mess most of the time, the laundry piles never seem to disappear and I can't recall the last time I saw the top of my dresser (or desk, or some of my counters for that matter). So, why should you...