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Friday, July 3, 2009

Tot School

Tot School


Summer is here and I am struggling to find one on one time with Buttercup. I started doing Tot School with her a few months ago while the boys were in school with the intention of establishing a routine with her that we could continue once I started homeschooling the boys. I didn't want to leave her to play all day with out some focused time with me. I know it will be easy to put a dvd on for her and that's something I don't want to resort to on a regular basis. Tot school is not really school, it is just focused play...We have had a blast exploring new activities.. most of my ideas I have found around the internet...I set out trays with different activities and she chooses which she wants to do and for how long. I usually let her do things on her own while I watch, but sometimes I will demonstrate and let her copy me. Sometimes she plays with something completely unlike I expected she would but is fun to watch her learn and try new things. Here are some of our favourites so far:




(LiLi joined us one day!)

My aim over the summer is to try and have tot school at least twice a week with Buttercup.. no pressure, but just so she stays in the routine. I am making a list of skills I want to cover with her and looking for things around the house and at the dollar store to help reinforce those skills. Once we begin our homeschool schedule I think {hope} we will be able to work tot school into our day.

For other tot school ideas see 1+1+1=1 !

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Little cracks and big holes

My week has been a little crazy ... started with a portion of our ceiling falling in.




Thankfully no one was injured and the both the crack in the roof and the hole in the ceiling have now been repaired.

I started thinking about the big hole in the ceiling and how it was caused by a little crack in the roof, which evidently had been there awhile. I am guessing that whenever it rained the ceiling got wet but always had enough time to dry out before the next downpour, so we never knew it was there. But with the constant hard rain rain last week, it never got a chance to dry out and became heavier and heavier with water until it could take no more and could do nothing but create a huge gaping hole... And a BIG MESS!

How much are our lives like that. Sometimes we have a little crack-- some area that we need to address, an area we are either not aware of or not letting God touch and fix (because sometimes the fix is painful). We allow the devil a foothold into or lives when we don't address the crack. It may seem harmless at first or even for a long time but eventually it weakens us and weighs us down and then we are left with a gaping hole which then has to be repaired. It is at that time that we finally surrender. But think about how much could have been saved if we had just dealt with the initial crack. Are there any cracks in your life? Ask God to reveal them to you and if there are any, allow him to patch them up with his love, grace and mercy...remember, it initially may be painful, but far less painful than a big gaping hole.