Wednesday, July 5, 2017
Crazy world
I live in a society more concerned about lost animals (pets) than those lost from Jesus.
Thursday, April 21, 2016
Time to face the reality
We're finishing up our third year homeschooling. The first year we used a set curriculum through My Father's World and added in English and math. After that I went with a more laid back curriculum because I felt MFW had too much fluff. With 6 kids, 4 school age we struggle to get through basic necessities (math, reading, english, science, and history) let alone anything fun I want to do with them.
I have been working on getting them on computer based programs to ease some of the workload for me, but it just has not worked out. I have looked into many programs and even tried a few. So this is my acceptance of the reality that I am not going to be able to get out of going through each subject with each child every day.
We will probably school through the end of May and possibly in to June. I have a five week course that I need to take some time in the next year in addition to my regular course I will be taking to finish my Sociology degree so if we take some of summer off I can probably get that class taken care of. This class also requires some volunteer work so if they are out of school maybe I can get more opportunities.
I have just under 12 months of school before finishing my degree. I am getting a little burnt out on writing papers since it is 1-2 papers a week for most classes. I will get my associate of arts degree in May as I transferred a class back from Grand Canyon to the community college I attended in the past. Associate degree this year and Bachelors next year. As much as I don't like writing papers I do enjoy being in school. Gives me a drive to learn something specific.
Much of the reason I do not blog often is my school and school for 4 kids and entertainment for 2 kids takes up all my time. So until I find another moment.
I have been working on getting them on computer based programs to ease some of the workload for me, but it just has not worked out. I have looked into many programs and even tried a few. So this is my acceptance of the reality that I am not going to be able to get out of going through each subject with each child every day.
We will probably school through the end of May and possibly in to June. I have a five week course that I need to take some time in the next year in addition to my regular course I will be taking to finish my Sociology degree so if we take some of summer off I can probably get that class taken care of. This class also requires some volunteer work so if they are out of school maybe I can get more opportunities.
I have just under 12 months of school before finishing my degree. I am getting a little burnt out on writing papers since it is 1-2 papers a week for most classes. I will get my associate of arts degree in May as I transferred a class back from Grand Canyon to the community college I attended in the past. Associate degree this year and Bachelors next year. As much as I don't like writing papers I do enjoy being in school. Gives me a drive to learn something specific.
Much of the reason I do not blog often is my school and school for 4 kids and entertainment for 2 kids takes up all my time. So until I find another moment.
Wednesday, December 23, 2015
RV living is our new life
Someone said I should blog about our large family living in an RV, which I had considered, but was not sure when I would find time to do so. Well here we are. We moved in to our 32ft travel trailer on Monday.
We spent Monday loading it at the house, but while we were there we left some lights on and ended up killing the battery and blowing the fuses on the inverter. What is the inverter, well to me cause I'm not even sure that is what it is called it is the part that holds your whole ability to have functioning electricity without an alarm (that sounds like a smoke alarm) going off every time you use electricity. Well at first we just thought we had over used the electricity but it was dark and there wasn't much we could decide could fix it so the first night in the RV starting at about 5 AM every time the heat came on the alarm would sound. Well the kids slept through it until the 6:50 alarm when we were now all awake.
The other issue the first night was that Mason was very fussy and didn't sleep well. He slept with Tony and I the first night after trying to put him to bed with Zachary didn't work out. He was up every 30-60 minutes just fussing. Felt more like he was fighting for space. When Tony got up to go to work at 5 that morning I said he's sleeping somewhere alone tonight. Not sure how we'll work that out, but this doesn't work.
We are all woken by our electric alarm at 6:50 so I give in and decide we'll start our day, but remember I don't have full electricity. The water pump, the hot water heater, the heat all require it to function without the awful alarm. I give in to the alarm a bit because I need to have water to wash my hands so I can prepare breakfast AND COFFEE. Things that we plug in seem to work fine without setting off the alarm.
I make it through breakfast and Tony has to go to work as it is Day 1 of clearing days, but he's fighting the holidays during clearing as well. So I am going to be here at the RV with the kids and no working electricity. I do have a TV that works so we throw in a DVD. I decide it's a great time to test out the family shower rooms just one space over so I take Mason and Zander to shower with me.
Other than it being a cold room the shower is fine and Mason only touches the toilet a time or two.
Tony comes home and I make lunch and get Mason down for a nap while Tony works on repairing the electricity issue. I take Zander and Abbie for a walk around the RV park. Much to my displeasure when I return Mason is awake already. He slept maybe a whole 30 minutes, which he normally naps for 2-3 hours on a good night's sleep.
We pack up the stuff that needs to go back to the house and go back. We still have the house until the packers come on the 28th, but wanted to get all the kinks worked out in the RV before we moved in with no home option.
We do some laundry, grab things we've forgotten and then grab a snack and Tony takes the big boys to Karate. I come back to the RV and the water pump is on, but pumping nothing. I finally turn it off because it shouldn't run like that. I give it a bit and decide to wash dishes that didn't get washed at lunch because we had to turn off all electricity so Tony could work on the stuff. Well I get them all soaped up and then there is no more water. Nothing comes out of the sink with the pump off or on.
Now we have no water. I'm like what the heck? Tony comes back trying to figure out the issue with the pump, but can't so he just hooks up the hose to the port that bypasses the pump and deliver water to the sink. Fine I can cook like this but we can't leave it because it leaks off the connection.
We make it through dinner like that and then just turn it off. The RV park has nice shower facilities so Tony takes the bigger 3 boys up for a shower while I get the little kids to bed.
Other than limited water for teeth brushing and taking out my contacts tonight with alarm free electricity is better than the last. We also decided to change sleeping arrangements.
In the back of the RV is a twin over full bunk, then a almost full size pull out couch and the table bed. In the front of the RV is a bedroom with a queen size bed maybe feels small compared to my now king bed we bought when we moved to El Paso.
Night 1 sleeping was Zavier in the top bunk, Zander and Abbie on the bottom full, Zayden on the table bed, and Zachary on the couch bed.
Night 2 sleeping was Zavier on the top bunk, Zander and Zachary on the bottom full, Zayden on the couch bed and Mason and Abbie on the couch bed sleeping the other way so that I could divide it with a bed railing so that Mase has his confined personal space.
Sleeping was much better. Mase got up once, nursed and went back to his personal space. And this morning the water pump is working fine. We'll see what new adventures we can encounter today.
I joked with Tony yesterday that he was becoming quite the handy man as if he was preparing for us to buy a house one day.
We spent Monday loading it at the house, but while we were there we left some lights on and ended up killing the battery and blowing the fuses on the inverter. What is the inverter, well to me cause I'm not even sure that is what it is called it is the part that holds your whole ability to have functioning electricity without an alarm (that sounds like a smoke alarm) going off every time you use electricity. Well at first we just thought we had over used the electricity but it was dark and there wasn't much we could decide could fix it so the first night in the RV starting at about 5 AM every time the heat came on the alarm would sound. Well the kids slept through it until the 6:50 alarm when we were now all awake.
The other issue the first night was that Mason was very fussy and didn't sleep well. He slept with Tony and I the first night after trying to put him to bed with Zachary didn't work out. He was up every 30-60 minutes just fussing. Felt more like he was fighting for space. When Tony got up to go to work at 5 that morning I said he's sleeping somewhere alone tonight. Not sure how we'll work that out, but this doesn't work.
We are all woken by our electric alarm at 6:50 so I give in and decide we'll start our day, but remember I don't have full electricity. The water pump, the hot water heater, the heat all require it to function without the awful alarm. I give in to the alarm a bit because I need to have water to wash my hands so I can prepare breakfast AND COFFEE. Things that we plug in seem to work fine without setting off the alarm.
I make it through breakfast and Tony has to go to work as it is Day 1 of clearing days, but he's fighting the holidays during clearing as well. So I am going to be here at the RV with the kids and no working electricity. I do have a TV that works so we throw in a DVD. I decide it's a great time to test out the family shower rooms just one space over so I take Mason and Zander to shower with me.
Other than it being a cold room the shower is fine and Mason only touches the toilet a time or two.
Tony comes home and I make lunch and get Mason down for a nap while Tony works on repairing the electricity issue. I take Zander and Abbie for a walk around the RV park. Much to my displeasure when I return Mason is awake already. He slept maybe a whole 30 minutes, which he normally naps for 2-3 hours on a good night's sleep.
We pack up the stuff that needs to go back to the house and go back. We still have the house until the packers come on the 28th, but wanted to get all the kinks worked out in the RV before we moved in with no home option.
We do some laundry, grab things we've forgotten and then grab a snack and Tony takes the big boys to Karate. I come back to the RV and the water pump is on, but pumping nothing. I finally turn it off because it shouldn't run like that. I give it a bit and decide to wash dishes that didn't get washed at lunch because we had to turn off all electricity so Tony could work on the stuff. Well I get them all soaped up and then there is no more water. Nothing comes out of the sink with the pump off or on.
Now we have no water. I'm like what the heck? Tony comes back trying to figure out the issue with the pump, but can't so he just hooks up the hose to the port that bypasses the pump and deliver water to the sink. Fine I can cook like this but we can't leave it because it leaks off the connection.
We make it through dinner like that and then just turn it off. The RV park has nice shower facilities so Tony takes the bigger 3 boys up for a shower while I get the little kids to bed.
Other than limited water for teeth brushing and taking out my contacts tonight with alarm free electricity is better than the last. We also decided to change sleeping arrangements.
In the back of the RV is a twin over full bunk, then a almost full size pull out couch and the table bed. In the front of the RV is a bedroom with a queen size bed maybe feels small compared to my now king bed we bought when we moved to El Paso.
Night 1 sleeping was Zavier in the top bunk, Zander and Abbie on the bottom full, Zayden on the table bed, and Zachary on the couch bed.
Night 2 sleeping was Zavier on the top bunk, Zander and Zachary on the bottom full, Zayden on the couch bed and Mason and Abbie on the couch bed sleeping the other way so that I could divide it with a bed railing so that Mase has his confined personal space.
Sleeping was much better. Mase got up once, nursed and went back to his personal space. And this morning the water pump is working fine. We'll see what new adventures we can encounter today.
I joked with Tony yesterday that he was becoming quite the handy man as if he was preparing for us to buy a house one day.
Monday, September 21, 2015
Not just another field exercise...
After the accident that happened in the field in March 2015 to Capt. Jon Wynkoop no field exercise is the same for me, and I imagine many others who are in the field and spouses left behind. The Army Times released 2 articles about the incident. They took the time to get the reports and release them. These type of training exercises are becoming all to common. They are either short supplies or training for the mission to be completed safely or they are straight up doing something they have been advised against.
I pray for this family and the others who have faced similar experiences for our country.
This is another family that grew up not far from where I grew up and again an accident took his life, left his wife a widow, and children fatherless.
I pray that the next leadership we get to lead our country will take a moment and do what s/he can to make sure that money is not an issue for military training. They want military to be ready at a moment's notice to defend our country, which is their job, but let's equip them with the proper tools and training to stay safe during the training and then be ready to defend our country when needed.
I know these two families are not the only two, but they are two who shouldn't have been in the dangerous situations they were in.
Monday, August 3, 2015
Back to School...
Today was our first day back to school at Hannasch Homeschool Academy. ;)
Zander had his first official day of Kindergarten. He listened to devotion with everyone else, practiced reading some BOB books, and then played math bingo with the other boys. He also practiced writing a few words from the boys vocab work. He decided quickly he was done, but he did great for day 1. I think he prefers workbook pages so we'll have to aim for that a bit more.
Zavier had his first day of 3rd grade. He listened to our devotion, did his 5 vocab words, 2 daily skills worksheets, and then he and I took turns reading the first and second chapter of Pilgrim's Progress. He had a few moments of distraction, but quickly adjusted so that he could do what he wanted after school.
Zayden had his first day of 5th grade. He did his math, listened to devotion, did his 5 vocab words, and read 2 chapters from a book for school. He worked quickly so that he could go out and ride his bike.
Zachary had his first day of 7th grade. He did his math, listened to devotion, did his 5 vocab words, and read 4 chapters from Pilgrim's Progress. He says he wants to be in 8th grade, but we'll see how the 7th grade work goes.
Mason went above and beyond to get in to things while I was trying to teach and work with the big boys. I tried giving him things to play with that were fun, but after 30 seconds he was finished. However he's going to have to adapt to playing nicely and not being constantly destructive as this is the life he's going to grow up in.
Abbie wants to do preschool, which is great she's ready. I however am only one person and I want to make sure I'm working more one on one with the boys that in the past so that they stay focused and learn the materials they need to know.
We will receive the majority of our school books tomorrow and next week we will start full time school. The older boys made their own lunch and then played some games, before doing the activities they earned by listening and working quickly.
I am starting my 3rd class in college today. Feeling a bit burnt out going from one to the next with no break or down time. Beginning each class stresses me out a bit more because you have to learn the class requirements and get in a habit quickly to finish the 7 week course on time. However I got an extra grant for my schooling for $500 so this semester (3 classes/12 hours) will only cost $311 out of pocket which is a great blessing since we're living on one income.
Zander had his first official day of Kindergarten. He listened to devotion with everyone else, practiced reading some BOB books, and then played math bingo with the other boys. He also practiced writing a few words from the boys vocab work. He decided quickly he was done, but he did great for day 1. I think he prefers workbook pages so we'll have to aim for that a bit more.
Zavier had his first day of 3rd grade. He listened to our devotion, did his 5 vocab words, 2 daily skills worksheets, and then he and I took turns reading the first and second chapter of Pilgrim's Progress. He had a few moments of distraction, but quickly adjusted so that he could do what he wanted after school.
Zayden had his first day of 5th grade. He did his math, listened to devotion, did his 5 vocab words, and read 2 chapters from a book for school. He worked quickly so that he could go out and ride his bike.
Zachary had his first day of 7th grade. He did his math, listened to devotion, did his 5 vocab words, and read 4 chapters from Pilgrim's Progress. He says he wants to be in 8th grade, but we'll see how the 7th grade work goes.
Mason went above and beyond to get in to things while I was trying to teach and work with the big boys. I tried giving him things to play with that were fun, but after 30 seconds he was finished. However he's going to have to adapt to playing nicely and not being constantly destructive as this is the life he's going to grow up in.
Abbie wants to do preschool, which is great she's ready. I however am only one person and I want to make sure I'm working more one on one with the boys that in the past so that they stay focused and learn the materials they need to know.
We will receive the majority of our school books tomorrow and next week we will start full time school. The older boys made their own lunch and then played some games, before doing the activities they earned by listening and working quickly.
I am starting my 3rd class in college today. Feeling a bit burnt out going from one to the next with no break or down time. Beginning each class stresses me out a bit more because you have to learn the class requirements and get in a habit quickly to finish the 7 week course on time. However I got an extra grant for my schooling for $500 so this semester (3 classes/12 hours) will only cost $311 out of pocket which is a great blessing since we're living on one income.
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
Stitches for the baby.
My precious little baby had to get stitches today. He was playing in the bedroom so I could get some school work done and fell and hit his face on Abbie's bed. He bleed like crazy, so I quickly whisked him off to the ER where he got 3 inner and 5 out stitches. It was pure torture to hold him down while they stitched him up and it's going to leave a pretty bad scar. He however forgot about it right away and went back to being a rough and tumble toddler climbing and balancing atop things. This kid is going to be the worst one.
He played climb the couch as a game,while he giggled and looked back at me. I have no idea how to prevent this short of removing the furniture from the house.
Monday, May 25, 2015
Memorial Day
This isn't a day that affects me too much. It is usually just another day I get to spend with my own soldier. However this year after a tragedy that struck close to home has changed it for me. I cannot stop thinking about a young mom here that lost her husband in March in a training exercise. She has been so strong on the outside through it all, I can't imagine her pain that she is going through daily. May God be with her today and everyday as she lives on with his memories. He was a good man, who loved his family, and was a very dedicated soldier. So today I'm spending it remembering him and his family after their storm.
Honestly though there are not many days that go by and she doesn't cross my mind in some way. Her husband was just "in the field" with in miles from his home. Due to carelessness he was killed just shortly before he was to return home.
As a field artillery wife when I send my husband to the field, I'm never prepared for the goodbye. Sometimes he leaves so early in the morning I don't know he's gone and I certainly don't say goodbye or kiss him goodbye. He's so close that I assume he's safe and will be home shortly. He's not in a war, he's not taking opposition fire. He's out training and using new equipment.
After this tragedy, his leaving is just not the same. I make sure to say bye and to kiss him. The loss for this spouse and her kids has affected me and I didn't even know him more than being at the same party once or twice. Field exercises are not the same for me and I don't think they are for Tony either. I'm not sure how much he knows I think about accidents happening in the field, but all the time.
Honestly though there are not many days that go by and she doesn't cross my mind in some way. Her husband was just "in the field" with in miles from his home. Due to carelessness he was killed just shortly before he was to return home.
As a field artillery wife when I send my husband to the field, I'm never prepared for the goodbye. Sometimes he leaves so early in the morning I don't know he's gone and I certainly don't say goodbye or kiss him goodbye. He's so close that I assume he's safe and will be home shortly. He's not in a war, he's not taking opposition fire. He's out training and using new equipment.
After this tragedy, his leaving is just not the same. I make sure to say bye and to kiss him. The loss for this spouse and her kids has affected me and I didn't even know him more than being at the same party once or twice. Field exercises are not the same for me and I don't think they are for Tony either. I'm not sure how much he knows I think about accidents happening in the field, but all the time.
This is her announcement that she posted on Facebook. I had already heard that soldier was killed, but I had no idea who it was.
"Ok. It is time I make the worst announcement of my life. My husband, U.S. Army Captain Jonathan Frederick Wynkoop was killed yesterday morning during an field training accident. I see all of your messages, I hear all of your love, but honestly. Honestly I can't process these messages. My head is fogged. I am weary. I am not alone, I have help as I am still in Texas, and I know that I can contact anyone for help as need be. I will be. I love you all, but really I loved Jon the most. He was my everything. He was such a great example as a husband, father, son, friend, and colleague. His legacy will live on."
"Ok. It is time I make the worst announcement of my life. My husband, U.S. Army Captain Jonathan Frederick Wynkoop was killed yesterday morning during an field training accident. I see all of your messages, I hear all of your love, but honestly. Honestly I can't process these messages. My head is fogged. I am weary. I am not alone, I have help as I am still in Texas, and I know that I can contact anyone for help as need be. I will be. I love you all, but really I loved Jon the most. He was my everything. He was such a great example as a husband, father, son, friend, and colleague. His legacy will live on."
I'm not really sure how to finish this, but today is a day for remembering those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our country.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
