The End of Summer Break

... well, at least it is for the Thoma family. Yes, tomorrow we will be taking a dive back into school lessons. I am really looking forward to it actually, and the kids seem like they are as well.

My husband and I wanted the kids to really enjoy their last weekend of their break, so Friday after Chris (that would be my husband) got in from work, we took the kids to Enchanted Island Amusement Park. We always have a great time whenever we go there, plus during the summer, it's only $5 a person for everyone to get in, and you can't beat that! The kids rode themselves silly! They made daddy ride too of course. I did get to ride on the train with the kids, but lets face it ... there isn't much for pregnant mothers to do at an amusement park! After the kids had been on a few rides, we then took a break at Splash Zone, the little "water park" area of Enchanted Island. The little ones had a ball playing in the water and running through it as it shot out of the tiny holes in the ground. At the end of the day, they had worn themselves (and daddy) out.

Yesterday, they did their usual Saturday activities; climbing trees, building forts outside, playing in the sand box and on the swings, etc. Well the kids have been asking us and asking us for weeks now when a particular movie called "Shorts" was going to start playing. They saw the trailer for the movie one day during their TV time, and they have been anxious to see it ever since. Well, the movie was to start playing Friday, or so I thought. It seems that the release date for the movie was changed from August 7th to August 21st, so the kids will have to wait a little longer to see that particular film. So, I gathered them all together yesterday and told them that they had a bit longer to wait for the movie "Shorts", and I asked them if they were interested in seeing anything else. I knew what they were going to say before I even asked, "G-Force." I had seen previews for the movie and though I thought it was cute in premise, but it didn't really strike me as something that I would want to sit through, but, for my kids I will do anything. My husband and I rounded the gang up and took them to see it and to be honest, the movie wasn't quite so bad. The kids actually really enjoyed the film, especially with it being in 3-D. Lilian, our 1 year old, isn't very fond of being in a dark theater full of people yet, so she stayed with my parents.

Today was just another typical Sunday. Everyone got up, ate breakfast, got ready for church, went to Sunday school, regular service, and here we are. We are about to sit down and have dinner, and then everyone will commence on getting their baths, a story, and then off to dreamland they will go. All and all I believe that we had a really wonderful summer, and a great last weekend of summer break. Now, it's time for us to jump back into the realm of education, the greatest adventure of all!

Exactly One Week!

As of today, we have exactly one week before homeschool is back in session. We have had a wonderful summer. We went to lots of festivals and fairs, museums, the zoo, and of course, we visited family and friends. I try to make the most out of their summers and incorporate learning where I can.

Micah is drawing towards the end of an era and he's a bit torn up about it. All of our children take ISR lessons during the summer. For those who don't know what ISR is, it stands for Infant Swim Resource, and it is a swim program that starts with infants, ages 6 months and accommodates children up to 6 years of age. At first the babies just learn how to float and how to communicate to get someones attention if they were to say, slip into the pool. As they progress through the program, they learn many more swimming and safety techniques. Unlike other programs, the kids learn how to swim clothed because, most of the time if a child does slip into a pool and no one is around, they aren't in their swimsuit. So Micah has been attending these classes since he was 6 months old, but since he is 6 now, it will be his last summer of ISR. I'm just so glad to have found such a program. Our kids love to swim, and this program has taught them not only how to swim, but how to survive in the water. He's a bit torn up about it now, but next summer I'm sure he will be involved in something else that will have his full attention.

As for me, I'm finishing up our school schedule and looking ahead in the subjects to see where I can fit in some fieldtrips for certain topics. I think the kids are really excited about jumping back into the swing of things and moving on to new topics and areas we haven't covered. I will have one first grader, two pre-kindergartners, and two preschoolers. Of course, I have already read through all of our materials and I think the kids are really going to enjoy this year. I've been working on putting together some extra little experiments and hands on activities for them as they love that sort of stuff.

So the babies are due in October and many are wondering how I'm going to fit that in. Well, I've done it before. I am not going to cram in materials and overload the children. I have made a schedule and plan on sticking to it. My husband will be taking over lessons during his paternity leave which is a week. We have been sitting down in the evenings after he gets home, going through the curriculum that we should be on around the time of my due date. Being that this is not the first time I've had a baby during the school term, the kids pretty much so know what to expect, the older ones anyway, and they know what I expect of them. The main thing is for me not to overdo it. We may have to have some lessons in my bedroom or in the living room so that I can be on the couch, but honestly those are the best lessons ... the ones where I am snuggled up with our children. Plus, it's good to have a change of scenery sometimes. I remember how when I was school, I wished we would have class outdoors or something. I just wanted a change of scenery, and that's what I do for our kids. We have had classes outdoors, at the park, by the pool, or just in another room of the house.

So that's all for now. It's only 8 AM and the kids are already wanting to go outside in the heat and humidity. I guess it's better they go now instead of when the sun is in the middle of the sky. Well, until next time, God bless!