Southern Fried Family

Monday, March 4, 2013

I am "that" homeschool Mom...

I am "that" homeschool mom.

The one who doesn't fit in homeschool groups,

because I have a child in public school.

The one who doesn't fit into public schooling groups,

because I homeschool.

Yet, I do not consider myself a "public school mom",

because, I homeschool. It is just what I do.

One of my children goes to public school, to receive some education.

That being said, I think most of what she learns comes from her time here at home.

Why do I even care about "labels"?

I don't have a clue.

But the fact is, I do.

I shouldn't want to fit in (and in many ways I don't).

But still, I do wish that I didn't feel so alone.

In the homeschool community there is often a stigma associated

with those who have children in public school.

I guess it is a sense of superiority because "we" believe we have

chosen the best way to educate a child.

I know this is true, because I have seen it.

I have also been guilty of it.

I am still guilty of it.

Even though I have a child in public school,

I think it is beneath her and the inferior way for her to be educated.

Why is she there then?

Well, that story is long.

I will save it for another day.

It has to do with her desires,

and my husband's (and my) desires to not make her bitter.

I often find I am ashamed to admit that I have a child in public school.

No one has shamed me,

but because I believe it is best to keep children home for their education,

I am ashamed of myself for allowing one to be away.

Now, I said there was a stigma in homeschooling circles about public schoolers.

That is true.

However, I believe it to be more true in general public.

They don't understand homeschoolers.

They still think they are "weird",

even though more and more people are discovering it is NOT weird.

In fact, it is very natural.

We teach our children every day, regardless of where they get their formal education.

There it is, just a confession from "that" mom.

The one caught in the middle.

Troy Says: On the Human Body

What happens to food when you eat?

It gets all munched up inside your stomach.

What makes boogers?

Whenever your nose gets dry, the boogers gets, umm, uh...all dried snot.

Why do we fart?

Because thats just what happens to gas.

Why do people have different colored eyes?

Because that's just the way God made them.

What makes people have different hair colors?

Don't you get it Mom? God made us all different.

Why do we have 10 fingers and 10 toes?

So we could have on each hand and foot.

Why do we have tongues?

To eat and drink. Because, your tongue helps you chew your food with, um, your teeth and your tongue. And, that's it.

Do you think helps us talk?

Well yeah, because it just works along with our teeth to make us talk.

Why did God make different skin colors on humans?

I don't know. I think we're all the same on the inside.

What would happen if we didn't sleep?

We'd all die. For sure.

What does a brain look like?

It might look like a glob of skin with blue and green veins attached to it.

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Every Blogger Needs a Blogging Planner: Review of Mama Jenn's 2013 Blogging Planner

I have never been a very organized blogger. I mean, I keep a running list on my phone of things to blog about, and reviews that need to be done, but there is not really much rhyme or reason to my method.

Because of joining up with Mosaic Reviews, I have a land of new opportunity in front of me. This opportunity requires that I be a bit more organized in my blogging. What would the best tool for this be? To find a blogging planner that would help me to achieve the needed organization. I was directed to several sources for planners, and I chose Mama Jenn's 2013 Blogging Planner.

Image from Mama Jenn

Why did I chose this particular planner? Well, first off, it was pretty. Additionally, it appeared to be very thorough (and it is). But really, it is all of the different pages and features that I loved. Did I also mention that it is free? FREE!!!

This planner has so many features for each month:

(each month has a different colored daisy)

~Blog Calendar

~Blog Planning Page

~Giveaway/Review Page

~Monthly Blog Post Notes

The Planner also has these bonus pages:

~Year at a Glance Calendar

~Monthly Blog Statistics Tracker

~Future Blog Post Ideas

~Notes

This is a shot of one of the monthly calender pages that I had used.

For me, the monthly calendar pages were the most helpful. It gave me the "big picture" so that I could develop a more cohesive theme.

This is a shot of one month's worth of pages.

If you print her planner as it is, you get one of each of these pages. For me, from now on, I will print multiple pages for my "Blog Post Notes" (which she also suggests doing on her page). This could be the same for giveaways/reviews, but I don't do that many, so one is enough for me at this time.

Here is a shot of a couple of the bonus pages.

One with future blog post ideas, and the blog statistics page.

The "Future Blog Post Ideas" page is another I would print more of, because this list could end up really REALLY long.

Because I am a member of a review team, the blog statistics tracking is a must for me, so this page will be especially handy. However, even if I weren't, I think it is an excellent tool to gauge the reach of your blog.

This planner has ended up fitting all of my needs as a blogger. One Mama Jenn's page, she talks about binding this planner. I did not bind it, and this works best for me so I can spread the pages out and cross reference. I keep them in a dedicated "blog" folder though, and that fits my needs perfectly.

If you would like to get a copy of this planner for your own, head on over to Mama Jenn's blog and grab one, for free.

I completed this review as a member of the Mosaics Review Team. I was not compensated in any way for this review, and all of the opinions are my unbiased opinions of this planner. To read more reviews on other planners, please click on the Mosaics emblem below.

Monday, January 14, 2013

It is my pleasure to announce...

It is my pleasure to announce...that I am now a proud member of the Mosaic Review team.
Mosaic Reviews is about so much more than homeschooling. As it says on their site, it is about everything you use or need in life, not just stuff specific to homeschoolers.
Since our life has changed, yet again, I find this to be a great fit for our family. At its very definition, "Mosaic" fits our family.
Mosaic (def)- a combination of diverse elements forming a more or less coherent whole.
So now, a little "update" on us and what we have going on.
We have added two new family members, though they are just here for a season. We have Ms. A who is 2 years old, and Baby D who is 5 months. They are our foster children, and we are loving this crazy wild adventure of loving them through a rough spot in their life.
I am still homeschooling Troy full time, and loving every minute of it. I also do some pre-schooling with Ms. A, and she does quite well.
As for the teens, well, they chose a local school with an intense focus on academics and career training as their path of education for high school. As much as this distressed me, my husband has wisdom in knowing that allowing them their choice may pay off in their performance. He was right. They are excelling in their studies. Michaela is pursuing academic & sporting achievements, while Tucker is working on the welding trade. He has already competed and was part of a team that won Grand Champion on a smoker they welded. Wyatt is part of the varsity soccer team, and has enlisted in the Army. He ships out in July, before he even turns 18. I have also seen them grow individually in their walk with Christ since they have started attending school away from home. I am grateful for their loving Christian teachers, counselors, and principals.
You can check out Mosaic Reviews here: http://mosaicreviews.com/

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

An update on our family and schooling...

Homeschool is a journey.

It is what we believe in.

When our teens appealed to us to attend a school outside of home, we prayerfully considered it.

And, in the end, made the decision to try a different sort of school this year.

This school is a advanced pace high school with many electives and community involvement requirements. The teens are excelling there, and at this point we are okay with them being there.

We still "after-school"them. Which means, we require work outside of school and work on things that the school does not work on (such as Apologetics).

We are absolutely still full-time homeschooling Mr. Troy.

He is doing so well to overcome his challenges and is finally reading AND writing.

This is amazing seeing as though we found out that he was legally blind just a year ago.

Also, he has always had developmental delays, and his motor skills are still quite lagging.

He works so hard every day and I am amazed at his progress!

As for news as a family, we have certified to be foster parents!

We have not gotten any placements yet, but they say it will be soon.

We will have two, under the age of two.

FUN FUN!

I'm Baaaaaaccckkkk!

I had taken a break from blogging, while prayerfully examining what the scripture 1 Timothy 2:11-14 was saying when it said women are to "be quiet".

I feel I have found a balance where I can share thoughts and scripture, without "preaching".

I will go back to my eclectic blogging style, blogging about my family, my homeschooling, my schooling outside of the home, the products we use, the places we go, and our many adventures.

(lol, adventures? maybe not.)