Be Flexible

These words were in a caption on an exercise video I did yesterday: Be flexible. They apply to a lot more things in life than stretching you body. Two small words. Seems so simple. But, oh my goodness, it is so hard for me.  There's nothing else that makes it stand out so much as homeschooling my daughter. She struggles a lot in school and I'm coming to realize she's dyslexic. It's more noticeable in some areas than others. Most recently we've started multiplying multiple digit numbers. This is one of the areas that she just didn't "get" when she was younger. I noticed that she was having difficulty getting her columns lined up. I had a stroke of genius (or, so I thought), and had her turn her paper sideways so the lines could help her form her columns. 

It wound up looking like this:

Hmmmm. That didn't work out like I hoped. So, I went to the store and bought some graph paper. I searched high and low for it, too! I finally found it on the bottom shelf with other notebook paper stacked on top of it. Apparently, someone else could use a lesson in organization.

I did draw lines on the paper to give structure to the problem working area.

Not bad, huh? The most amazing part is, she went from about 50% accuracy to nearly 80%. What a relief!

I really do enjoy homeschooling, but I do have a rigid mind set and an idealized notion of the way things should go. It's a little hard for me to accept that just because things go imperfectly, it doesn't mean that it's an epic failure.

It's been a struggle this past week. I've been second guessing myself left and right and wondering if maybe I should just enroll her in public school. But, oh my, she's in 7th grade. That's a crappy year in school for most kids, especially kids with learning difficulties.

Soooo, here's me taking a deep breath and carrying on. I'm stretching myself to continue the good work we're doing and to think outside the box when necessary. I thank God, that He is a creative God and He blessed me with a creative mind. Now to exercise it!

Wee ones have so much to teach us

Anabelle is my 3rd daughter, my "I'm older, wiser and more capable than I was with the first two girls, so this should be a breeze" baby. When she was born, Staci was 11 and Katelyn was 8. That's a lot of years for "in the trenches" parenting. They're really good girls, so I must be a really good mom. Right?

Wrong! Not much has been easy with this child. The pregnancy was my most difficult. Morning sickness, modified bed rest, you name it. My labor with the first baby was only 8 hours, the second baby was 4 hours. I was not prepared for the 22 hours of labor with Anabelle. I never saw that coming! And then, she was so horribly tangled in the umbilical cord, it was almost not a happy ending. Childbirth is a miracle. There is so much that can go terribly wrong even at the last minute, that any delivery with a happy ending is nothing short of miraculous.

I was working part-time and had to go back to work when she was 6 weeks old. I was so blessed to be able to bring her to work with me, because we really needed that paycheck for a while. She was so sweet. I had a little nursery area set up for her in my office. I'd close the door to my office and she'd take nice long naps so I could get lots of work done.

Man! Those days are over! She's 22 months old now. She operates at full speed and full volume every waking moment. It's a struggle every day to get her to sleep for her much needed naps. She is such a tactile child and she wants to experience everything. She distracts herself from sleep with everything she can touch. The other day, I took all her toys away during her nap time. So what does she do? She sticks out her tongue and plays with it!! She's a clever one.

Today, I worked very diligently before her nap to put away anything that would be a visual distraction. Shortly after I put her to bed, I heard her playing in her room. When I peeked in at her, she had put on a princess hat and was reading a book all while talking on the play cell phone. I guess she couldn't sleep knowing those awesome things were in the drawer.

I wound up feeding her a snack then sitting on her bed and rocking her to sleep (like I've been doing a lot lately). In some ways, that annoys me to death. When it was nap time for my older girls, I told them to go to bed and they did. The end. This little one has been teaching me so much, the same old thing doesn't work for every child. If I have to rock her to sleep for every nap for the next year or so, I sure won't be sorry I did at the end of my life. So, instead of getting grouchy about it, I'm just going to pencil her nap rocking time in to my daily schedule. This time is so fleeting, I'm going to be thankful for these extra snuggle moments.

Hug your kiddos while you can!

Mariah

What does 13 years feel like? I can't describe in words. But, I can show it, partially, in pictures.


Whew, look how young I was!

Ferguson's Fhotos

Today my first baby girl turns 13. How can it be? I remember wondering when she turned ten, did we spend enough time at the park, on the swings, doing childish things? Has she enjoyed these early years of her childhood? And now, as she embarks on young adulthood, I wonder how best can I prepare her for all the challenges that are ahead? Is 5 years enough time to teach her how to balance a checkbook, discern integrity in fellow humans and possible future spouses, how to guard her heart yet love much (but, not too freely), how to love God and serve as she's called without getting trampled? Oh the joys and burdens of parenthood. What a privilege to birth this amazing child and do my best to train her in the way she should go. I should say "our" best. We wouldn't be where we are without my amazing husband :) It takes a special strength to live in a house full of girls (one wife and three daughters) without losing sanity.


Ah well, it's celebration time today!


Mariah

Welcome

Hi! Welcome to my blog. I've noticed lately that I have been making a lot of posts on Facebook. This morning, I decided to make a playhouse for my youngest daughter and I thought it would be fun to share the steps on Facebook. But, the more I thought about it, I realized that it's a lot of steps and pictures. Wouldn't a blog be a more appropriate sharing place? So, here I am. All because of a spontaneous craft for a precocious child.

See, doesn't she need a playhouse?


My mission today was a two room playhouse for 1.


I had two boxes about the right size.

I wanted a curtain door and, lucky me, I saved some homemade curtain panels from a previous house. I knew I'd be able to use that fabric again! I needed a curtain rod for the door, so I went out to the garage to see what I could find. Luck strikes again and I had a narrow piece of wood up in the rafters. That's thanks to the previous owner. 

I thought the curtain would slide easier if the wood was smoother, so I wrapped it in duct tape. High class, I know. Very functional, though :)

The fabric for the door also doubled as a peek-a-boo toy.







































It's good to keep the wee ones involved in our crafts, right? 

We had a successful trial run with the playhouse. I did decide that if this was gonna be a long term accessory to my living room, the mismatch wasn't working out. So I wrapped the smaller box in brown paper that I had left over from a painting project. We cut some holes in the side for windows, added the curtain door and there we have it, a two-room playhouse for one toddler. It will probably get embellished over time, but it fits the make believe need for now. It cost me nothing. Everything I used I had on hand from other crafts. And all 3 of my girls have played in it today. The oldest will be 13 tomorrow and she barely fits. I want her to love me forever, so I won't post the picture of her backside sticking out the doorway. 

Until next time! 


Mariah