It's The Final Countdown!

No, not to the new year. Although that is true, too.

I have officially declared Mon, January 9, 2006 as our Official Beginning of Homeschooling!! Dat-ta-dah! That is also "Coming of Age Day" in Japan, if that means anything. Anyway, that gives me time to put away all the Christmas decorations after the 1st, straighten up and prepare the area I plan to use for our "schooling" and continue to prepare Parker for what is to come. He seems very excited about it whenever I talk about it. He wants to learn so much stuff! "what letter is that?" "how does it sound?" "can I help you cook?" "how does a fossil get made?" "why does food get 'bad'?" "are there kids in the cemetary, too?" "why do things die?" "how do I write my name?" "why do girls have boobies?"
Yes, he asked ALL of these questions and many more. And we are about to embark on something brand new to both of us. Something that will unlock a plethora of new questions. Something that may, at times, cause me to ask myself "why?" as well. I will just have to keep these thoughts in my mind when that happens:
~We don't have to get up earlier than I feel like to get to school.
~We don't even have to get dressed if we don't want to.
~We can go on vacation in October if want.
~Field trips can happen a lot more often.
~My kids will be getting constant, one-on-one interaction with their teacher--me!
~If there is a trouble spot, no one "waits" while the trouble spot is figured out.
~If there is a "that's easy!" idea, that child can move on without having to "wait".
~LOTS of hands-on activities which help solidify the idea(s).
~More playtime, fun time; less "stay seated, no talking". You know, the whole notion that homeschoolers lack in social skills is so ludicrous! When do kids get to socialize in public school? Did you know some schools don't even allow talking at lunch time?! Absolutely absurd!
~Many, many other benefits to mention.

Well, I wish I could "convert" everyone, but I know that will never happen. And I don't think poorly of those who don't homeschool. It's not for everyone. But it IS for me. So, please don't think poorly of me. Try to be open minded and trust that I am doing what I feel is right for my children and myself. Also, please know that my mother has a Master's degree in education and has taught most grades from 1st to 12th. She wholeheartedly supports my decision to homeschool and wishes she had done the same.

So, now that I'm off my soapbox (for now), please know that I am excited and anxious as I prepare for this new journey in my family's life.
Talk to you later,
Party Pascha

Thursday 13 for Dec. 29, 2006

Thirteen Things Party Pascha got for Christmas 1. First and foremost, a Gamecube. It's the only thing I asked for from Hubby, so I got it a few days early when he made me go with him to get it. I love it! 2. My brother & sis-in-law got me a card game called Quiddler. It's cool. You build words from lettered cards. There's even a solitaire version, so I can play when no one else wants to. 3. My parents got me a hanging pot rack. Something I desperately need. The house truly lacks storage space! 4. My sister got us a gift card to Rib Crib and put more $$ on it than I would have expected! Thanks, Sam! Tuesday night, all you can eat ribs, here we come!! :P 5. My mother-in-law got me a griddle to put over the burners on the stove. Finally, I can cook pancakes for everyone--at the same time! or eggs AND bacon (or sausage or BOTH) at the SAME time! Awesome. :) 6. She also got me the game: Name that Tune, 80's edition. Totally sweet! We already played it once. 7. My parents got me a nice wind chime. It's 5 feet long! With the wind we have here, I'm concerned for our safety if we hang it outside. :) Ammie got one, too. She already hung hers. I guess safety is no concern of hers. :P 8. My other sis-in-law (hubby's sis) got me a nice orange purse. Orange because we are BIG OSU fans. (that's Oklahoma State University for those who don't know which OSU I'm referring to) 9. My grandmother got us a "Smoothee-Bar". Well, that's what it says on the box. It's a smoothie blender thing. 10. My littlest sister made me some soap and some hairclips. Very cute. I like them very much. 11. My parents gave me some new sheets for our bed. 12. And I got a nice "going out" outfit from mother-in-law. 13. Various other "little" gifts like trivets and pistacios in jars. I didn't do this post to brag about what I got, I just received very close to 13 gifts and thought that would be a good TT. I hope you understand. :) I hope your Christmas or whatever holiday you celebrate was a good one. And may you have a VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR!! Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. Sleeping Mommy 2. Ivy Tied Up 3. Squashed Toad 4. "D" 5. Greek Goddess 6. uisce 7. jk :) 8. Yellow Rose 9. Agog and Aghast 10. mrs. fun (Leave your link in comments so I can add you here)

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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

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Thursday 13

I put this together late last night, but it wouldn't let me change the date like I usually do. Weird. Also, if you can't read it, try highlighting the post. I didn't have time to try to change the color of the words. Thanks.

Thirteen Things about Party Pascha 1. This may sound totally gross to some of you, but I love marshmallow creme on crackers. I'm one of those sweet & salty people. And that little unhealthy snack totally hits the spot sometimes. 2. I don't have a stocking for my daughter. She's 15 months (so she was here last year for Christmas) and I still don't have one for her. I made the three we have for us and my son. I would like for them to match, but I don't have the fabric anymore. Would it be so bad if I waited until next year to update the stockings? I just don't have time right now. 3. All this time (since before Thanksgiving) Parker has been asking for 2 main items for Santa to bring him. Yesterday he sees something on t.v. and says he wants that now. "Well Santa has already picked out what he's going to bring you. You can't change it now. Maybe I can get it for you for your birthday later." Him: "But I really want it for Christmas. I don't need the other thing." Me: "Well, I'm sorry, but I don't think he's gonna bring it." (ugh!) 4. Inlaws are annoying. Enough said. 5. I plan on homeschooling. My mom, dad, and littlest sister support me. The rest of them and the inlaws, too roll their eyes whenever it comes up and act like my kids are gonna be a bunch of social rejects who don't know a damn thing. First of all, why even say anything? Haven't you ever heard of "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."? And secondly, how can people be so ignorant? Homeschoolers are on the rise and so are their successes. On average, homeschoolers score higher on tests than their "regular" school peers. They tend to be learning at least 2 grade levels above their peers. And they don't miss out on anything. They actually have more opportunities for activities than "regular" school. (At least they do where I live.) Anyway, I'm just really getting sick of the negativity by others. I'm a smart person. I'm not an idiot. I'm not going to hinder my children's education. I'm trying to make it better. Enough said. 6. I love Christmas! I love the lights and the music. We got a real tree this year. I picked the kind with the really soft needles. I think it's called a white pine. BUT! I didn't realize not only are the needles soft, but so are the branches. We had to cut back and limit the number of ornaments we hung this year, because they pull on the branches too much. It's nice and simply decorated and I have to say I like it. It's pretty. 7. I don't like to wear shoes. Even in winter. In the summer I even drive without shoes. I LOVE being barefoot! 8. I don't care much for coats either. They're just too bulky. And I always need to take it off once I'm inside the car or building. So why even put it on? 9. I don't shave my legs from fall to spring. And my husband doesn't mind, because the longer I go without shaving, the softer the hair. So it's not gross or annoying to him. Plus, it's blonde/reddish so you can't see it THAT clearly. :) 10. I am a big time procrastinator! It's hard to break the habit, too. 11. I have a hard time making rules for my kids that I don't agree with. Just because other parents have those rules doesn't mean I have to. But they sometimes look at me like I'm from another planet. I just don't believe in certain rules. That's my perogative. Deal with it. 12. My sister-in-law says I'm too nice to people. I don't understand this. When I'm being "too nice" it's usually because I'm thinking of the 'do unto others' rule and I'd want someone to do the same for me. What's wrong with that? 13. I love kitchen gadgets. My new "want" is The Magic Bullet. It's pretty cool. Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. Jen's Horde 2. Running 2ks 3. Happy at Home 4. Musings from the Edge 5. Sleeping Mommy

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

What Classic Movie are you?

What Classic Movie Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

Interesting Quiz

Sleeping Mommy and Snoring Daddy are gonna be jealous, I think:

What Famous Leader Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

It's scarily true.

This house rocks!

I totally want to do this to my house! I got this from Crazy Momma .
Rockin' Lights

This is so cool!!

Maria has posted about this twice now and I'm just now seeing it. Too dang cool! This guy is trading UP from a red paper clip until he gets a house! Read all about it here.

Independence kid

In his new found quest for independence (he's finally figured out the pooping in the potty this week!), Parker attempted to cook his own food in the microwave. This morning, he went downstairs, got into the fridge for a piece of "be-yony" (bologna) and a hotdog, wrapped the hotdog with the "be-yony" and put it in the microwave. He then (as he later told us) pushed "all the buttons" and came upstairs. I was asleep during all of this and was awakened to the smell of charred something. As I was going downstairs, Parker says to me, "The be-yony is gross. It's scary."
Me: "Did you try to cook some bologna?"
Parker: "yeah. It's scary now. It's all black"
So I get to the microwave. It is totally charred. We are so lucky it didn't catch fire or something. WHAT are we going to do with him?!
By the way, the brown on the paper towel was already there, not from this instance. The item on the left is the hotdog. The be-yony unrolled to the right.