Love You Forever

Tonight before bed we read "Love You Forever."  After I finished reading it, I told Yusuf that one day hes going to be big and have a wife, and kids, and a house, and a car, and a job and hell be busy but he can never forget about us.  And then I was telling him about how Momma and Baba did so much for him when he was small: play with him, wash him, feed him... and Yusuf added:  vacuumed for him.  Then I told him how when we get old he will have to take care of us.  We also spoke about the dua from the Quran which translates as " Oh Allah take care of my parents like they took care of me when I was small."  Within a minute Yusufs face went red and his eyes filled with tears and he barely managed to get the words out, "But Ill miss you."  My heart sunk!  I told him its okay to feel sad and that Ill miss him too, but well always be a family!  Then more tears flowed as he told me that hell miss us when we die.  (This is when my tears started to come too)  I told him that we have to be really good muslims and make dua so that we can go to Jannah and be together forever and how well never feel sad in Jannah.  He asked me if his grandmother will take care of him when we die.  I told him inshaAllah we wont die until he is older and by then he will be able to take care of himself.  But for now we are together and we should be happy for that.  I also said that no matter what happens Ill always love him, and that Allah is the Only One who will be able to be with him all the time and Allah will always take care of him.

It was not an easy conversation, but I am grateful it came out.  I think we both learned some important lessons.

Yusuf, may Allah swt always keep your heart soft towards your parents.  We will make mistakes, but we have and will always try our best to do whats right.  May Allah fill your heart with mercy towards us especially when we are older.  And may Allah allow us to be a means of Jannah for you, Ameen.

I love you forever.

Camping

The boys checking out the water

Yusuf and I canoeing and saying our evening athkaar <3

Baba showing the boys how to make a camp fire

Ibby chasing Yusuf and his new friend

Playing at the beach

Alhamdulillah last weekend we had a wonderful family trip camping (in cabins, not tents).  We went with ten other families.  It was a blast! Yusuf really enjoyed it!  He made a new friend, went swimming at the lake (3 times), went canoeing, had camp fires, roasted marshmellows, ate smores, went on hikes, saw a huge snake, chased racoons (he was more brave than I was!), played soccer, enjoyed the food and company, stayed up late, slept on the top of a bunk bed and... survived the 5 hour car trip.  Alhamdulilah!

Waste Management and Botanical Gardens

Last week we went to the Waste Management place which was really interesting! We learned about all the different things you can recycle, how the landfill works, how we should compost, how we should try hard to avoid things going into the landfill, how they make soil out of compost and how landfills have birds of prey to prevent seaguls from over crowding the place and also carrying the garbage around the city and spreading disease.  We had a school bus for all our homeschooling friends and after that we went to the botanical gardens.  The kids also had fun there, the program was really cute for kids complete with digging for bugs and feeding chipmunks.  Alhamdulilah for a great day! 

Fire Truck Visit

Have I ever mentioned how much I LOVE our playgroup? Mashallah we do some pretty awesome things!  This week we had a fire truck come to one of our houses for a presentation.  It was super cool! The fire fighters were really friendly.  They showed the kids all around the truck, let them sit inside and best of all, hooked up the hose to a fire hydrant and let them play in the water.  They finished it off with coloring books and driving away with their sirens!  We were really impressed = )

Train

 

Last night we read one of our favorite bedtime story books called Hold Tight!  Its a super cute book mashallah.  And because I had cleaned out my closet and had an extra box laying around I told Yusuf we could make something today.  He chose a train.  

7 dumb mistakes people make when homeschooling

By Diane Flynn Keith, Editor of Homefires, Author of Carschooling

We all make mistakes — especially in homeschooling. In fact one of the most satisfying pastimes is to listen to the tales that homeschool parents tell about the mistakes they have made along the way — and to realize that they not only survived, but are thriving. Just as they did, you can learn from their mistakes. I have been listening to these storytellers at homeschool Park Days for years and have assembled some of the most common mistakes in an effort to save you the trouble of making them yourself. Here they are:

1. Unrealistic Expectations
   New and veteran homeschoolers alike frequently start the homeschool year with unrealistic expectations. You'll recognize the high achievers — they plan to cover the national curriculum standards for grades 4-8 by Christmas, and cover all 4 years of high school by June. (Any of you who have ever tried to get through a Saxon math textbook in 18 months will surely stand in awe.) Kids and parents in this marathon suffer from burnout often within weeks of the starting point.
   On the other end of the spectrum are those who don't expect much at all — the under achievers. With no goal, no plan, no thought to developing a rich learning environment for their children -- they start off the year wishful that learning will "just happen," but find themselves frustrated and floundering in late October, when the kids are bored to tears, climbing the walls (literally), and mom is disappointed that the "homeschooling" just doesn't seem to be working.
   The key, of course, is balance. Work with your children to develop and maintain a realistic vision and plan for their learning adventures. With a practical goal and plan, you might actually avoid the next dumb mistake…
2. Over Scheduling & Under Scheduling
   In homeschooling there are things to do, places to go, and people to see. You could keep your calendar packed with field trips, co-op classes, and park days all week long -- only to find after a few weeks of dragging the kids to every museum exhibit in town that they are begging you to stay home. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of field trips may be constitutional rights, but there is such a thing as doing too much. Conversely, activity deprivation can stunt growth and development. It is important to expose our kids to the bounty of life and a wealth of learning opportunities — but within reasonable limitations. Just as kids need varied and stimulating activities, they also need peaceful solitude and unstructured time to learn and grow.
3. Ignoring Child Feedback
   
   
   
   Your children are the best barometers of how the homeschooling is going. Trust me, they will give you lots of feedback. Listen to them. If your daughter throws the spelling workbook on the floor and tearfully screams, "I hate this - you can't make me do it!" — I would say that's a definite clue that the subject, the materials, the method -something - is wrong and isn't working. Back off. Throw it away or put it away, but get rid of whatever is causing the misery. (By the way, this is standard practice among successful homeschool families who frequently discard materials that didn't work at curriculum swaps.) On the other hand, if your son's eyes sparkle with interest, enthusiasm, delight and happiness when he is working on a project or activity, that's a clue that whatever he is doing is working. Keep it up!
   Remember, kids don't resist learning — they resist schooling. There is a difference between "schooling" and getting an education. Listening to feedback will go a long way to helping you determine the best learning style, method, approach, and materials to use with your child. Which leads me to the next point…
4. Over Spending
   When I began homeschooling I purchased several complete curriculum packages at about $400 a pop, in an attempt to find "the right" resources for my kids to use. While many would think this a gross indulgence (and a dumb one, at that) consider my perspective: I had opted out of private school and an annual tuition of $7,000 a year to homeschool. Spending $1,200 for curriculum seemed like a bargain! The real kicker was this — my kids hated every one of them! The rigidity of the structured texts and time simply did not appeal to my sons. That was not the optimum environment in which they learned best.
   
   So, I took the advice of another homeschool mom. I ditched the curriculum, went to the library, and brought home books — mostly Newbery Award winners and historical fiction. I read to my kids for the rest of the year. Occasionally, we'd play math dice games, take in a free museum day, go for nature walks, and build impossible structures out of old boxes and packaging materials set aside for a rainy day. The cost? Free. (Okay, I paid about $49 in library fines that year — but you get my point.)
   The compulsive obsession to purchase "good materials" so that our kids will get a "good education" can overtake the most penny-pinching of parents. The truth is, you cannot buy a good education. So guard your pocketbook. When you do spend money for curriculum products try to make sure that they support your educational philosophy, and are something your kids will truly use and enjoy.
5. Isolation
   Picture this: It's Park Day. A homeschool mom packs her 1991 mini-van with lunch, snacks, water, sodas, sports equipment, a lawn chair, a picnic blanket, a book to read, Pokémon paraphernalia, a sewing project, a box of used books and curriculum to loan to other homeschoolers, and depending on the weather and activities taking place before, during, and after park day (spontaneous or planned) — a change of clothes for each and every one of her three kids. She loads the kids in the van, drives 40 minutes to the Park, and unloads the van. A few hours later she reloads the van and drives home in commuter traffic. She performs this migration from home to park and back again week after week. What is wrong with this woman? What compels such odd behavior? The answer is socialization. Take a look at some of the benefits her family receives from performing this ritual:
   
   • Her children have the opportunity to meet and play with other homeschooled kids. Friendships develop which lead to other socialization opportunities. Also, the kids don't feel "weird" or self-conscious about homeschooling when they have frequent contact with other homeschoolers.
   • She meets other parents. Friendships are forged. Sometimes a new friend will become a mentor who provides information, resources, support and an all-important sounding board to discuss concerns with — and share successes.
   Attending Park Days and Support Group Meetings deflects the feeling of isolation — the kiss of death in homeschooling. You need support and encouragement from like-minded individuals. For rare families whose circumstances truly prevent support group and park day participation, I would suggest the following:
   
   • Subscribe to several homeschooling publications.
   • Attend a homeschool conference annually.
   • Get a homeschool pen pal.
   • Participate in homeschool chats and email communication via the Internet.
6. Thinking You Can Do It All
   The short answer is — you can't, so don't try. The longer version goes something like this… There are more important things than laundry, housework, paying bills, grocery shopping, and all of the other mundane tasks that interfere with homeschooling. If these things are critically important to you then you better follow the advice of homeschool icon Micki Colfax, "lower your standards."
   First of all, homeschoolers spend lots of time at home. They are not out of the house all day. The place is going to look — to put it gently — lived in. The kitchen counters will be transformed into a science lab, the walls will be plastered with maps, time lines, posters of presidents and the periodic table of elements, and books will be stacked everywhere. When friends visit just unapologetically clear a path through the toys and games on the living room floor.(If they are homeschooling friends, they will understand.) One mom told me that when it gets to be too much, and she just can't stand looking at the mess, she packs up her kids and visits her sister for a day or two. When she comes home she has a fresh perspective and can begin to clean the house — at least, she can imagine a place to start.
   In my house, it's the laundry. I've trained the boys to put a load in the washer, transfer it to the dryer, and then take it to the couch for folding. Unfortunately they haven't got the hang of that folding part yet — so the clothes often remain in a pile until ready for use. As a result, my kids have that linen-look-rumpled-thing going on even when they wear wrinkle-free clothing. When company comes we just shove the clothes on the couch back into the dryer — and return them to the couch when the company leaves.
   All homeschooling families establish their priorities and set parameters for what they can and can't live with. Most of us develop a quirky solution or two (that our mothers would never approve of) to ease the demands on our time.
7. Proselytizing
   You have convinced yourself that home-schooling is the way to go — and now you want to convince everyone else. Sorry, but homeschooling is not for everyone. If you insist on confrontations and defensive posturing with every friend and relative who says, "What are you, nuts?" when you tell them you homeschool, you will alienate them all.
   One homeschool dad told me that his sister (a schoolteacher) came unglued when he announced he would be homeschooling the kids. Rather than debate the merits and pitfalls of homeschooling, he simply said, "I know it's not the choice you would make — and I know it's not the right choice for everyone. But for us, in this situation, it's an option we are going to try for awhile — to see if it works. If it doesn't, we will try school again." Do you see what he did? He diffused the predicament. He didn't try to sell her on the idea, and he didn't bad-mouth schools and teachers. With a few simple words he allowed her some dignity, while claiming his own.
   The real proof is in the pudding. Your kids will undoubtedly prove to nay-sayers that homeschooling is working just by being themselves. Their positive attitudes and intelligent conversations will win over the most curmudgeonly homeschool opponent. You don't need to be a homeschool zealot. Peaceful demonstration will help you win friends and influence people every time.

All of the dumb mistakes described above can be avoided, but it is more than likely that you will experience one or two of them on your own. It is my sincerest wish that if you hit a pothole along the homeschool road, you will do what thousands of others have done before you — pick yourself up, dust yourself off, learn from your mistake, and continue the journey — arriving at your destination will make it all worthwhile.

Arabic Math

We havent been doing much sit down homeschooling lately. But we did recently do some Arabic Math. We did addition with plastic eggs in bowls. Alhamdulilah Yusuf did really well. And of course Ibby had to help. = )


We havent had

Science Center... 4th time this year

We bought a membership for the science center and alhamduliah were getting good use out of it. This was our fourth trip since January. This time we went with Baba and we also went to the IMAX which Yusuf really enjoyed. Ibby was a little overwhelmed and stayed in my lap with his eyes half closed. But by the end of it he was waving to the fishies... we saw "Under the Sea." We also visited the reptile exhibit and kids' section.

Lakeshore

One of our favorite activities as a family is visiting Lakeshore. The boys LOVE skipping stones!

Soccer

Yusuf is apart of a muslim soccer league this summer and hes really enjoying it alhamdulillah. He really enjoys being goalie.

Garage Sale

Once again weve been keeping super busy and I havent had much time for myself, let alone the blog. So heres what weve been up to. We recently had a garage sale to raise money for our playgoup. Alhamduliah we raised over $100 and the kids had a great time. Yusuf's favorite part was selling lemonade. He also loved giving people change. Three weeks later hes still talking about it = )