Some Quick Catch-Up Tidbits

Sorry I haven't written in quite a while. We really haven't been busier than normal, I've just been extremely tired with this pregnancy. Chalk it up to having three munchkins already, working parttime, homeschooling & just the regular day-to-day activities. The munchkins still get their daily quiet-time in the afternoon. While The Princess is down for her nap, the boys go to separate rooms to play quietly, read or rest. I've been taking advantage of this time to nap myself. The house looks like a few tornados have been through it several times, but at the moment, I feel that the rest is more important.

We started back to school this past Monday. Plans were to start last week, but Casinodad, The Archangel & The Princess were all sick w/ a touch of the flu & colds. Casinodad even missed four days of work - I've never known him to miss that many in a row. All are better now & for some reason, The Prophet & I were passed over (not that I'm complaining!)

I'm trying to focus more on reading w/ school this year - both read-alouds & The Prophet's learning to read. He's fought it so much for some reason, even though he does quite well. We started using the Pathway Readers series & he seems to be happy w/ them. All the phonics programs we tried just seemed to frustrate & bore him. The Pathway Readers were originally used in Amish & Menonite schools. The stories are wholesome & have opened up doors for discussion on their simple lifestyles. There are three readers for first grade & since we've gotten a late start, my goal is to do three stories a week. The Prophet has already done two for this week & keeps grabbing the book to read them to his brother & sister.

My mom watched the munchkins yesterday while I went for my OB checkup & grocery shopping. I left some work for The Prophet to do. When I got home, she said he had been using his fingers for his addition. She wrote out addition tables that she used when growing up. He seemed to like them. I think I might incorporate them into his lessons. A little extra math never hurt anyone & we'll stop that finger addition before it gets out of hand! (no pun intended!)

My OB appointment went well. My due date is Aug. 9. The baby's heartbeat is nice & strong. What a beautiful sound! I haven't gained much weight yet, but my pants are definitely feeling the squeeze! I'm not quite big enough for most maternity pants yet, but my regular pants are snug. I've been wearing quite a few PJ bottoms & lounge pants lately. My mom bought me a few maternity shirts at Kohl's last week. They were on sale & she couldn't resist. They are very cute. That's one thing I like about pregnancy - you can get away w/ some adorable outfits that you can't normally wear!

Peace, munchesmom