still here and busy as usual

well we've gone through a long season of illness and sleeplessness. that and everything else that goes into keeping a family of six running has left me too tired to write much. the idea of catching up is so daunting, that i'm just going to start with today.

during bean's morning nap today, dana and i started our school routine with a half-day. we worked on reading and handwriting this morning and as odd as it sounds, we both needed it. i loved being able to connect with him again and it's so satisfying for him and for me to see how much he's learning. even though we haven't done any formal learning times over Christmas break, he's been stealing away with books here and there and spelling out words for me to help him with when he gets stuck. reading isn't something i have to motivate him to do anymore. he loves it and i'm so thankful that i get to watch it all happen.

while dana did some independent work, janie and i filled out our calendar for january, drew a picture of the weather for her weather journal, and started her work on /i/ for this week. in the meantime, clara joy insisted that she get to do school too. i dug out some handwriting and early phonics sheets from an early learning workbook and she happily filled out 10 pages worth of information. she loves worksheets, which of course makes things easier for me when i'm working with the big kids.

later, we went to a friend's house for a playdate. the kids had big fun dumping out their friends' toys and making huge messes, while i got to catch up with a friend i see far too little of lately.

thankfully, tonight we're eating leftovers, so i'm currently sitting in the kitchen freezing my hiney off, waiting for matt and janie to get home so we can microwave some leftover goodness for dinner.

and i'm writing in lowercase... maybe it will save me time? maybe i won't spend so much time searching for the caps key? or mistakenly hitting it when i shouldn't?