Happy Birthday Jamie!

Today is Jamie's birthday! I haven't really seen him today, but soon he'll be home to a few surprises!

Jamie is exactly 5 days younger than me. It is an ongoing joke year after year. I always say that his mother was late and mine was early and if you view life at conception then he is really older. But, then he aggravates me about being "old" for 5 days out of the year. That'll never change!

Jamie is the absolute best man I have ever met! He treats me like a lady, is a good provider, loves us, has a great sense of humor, is smart, has his priorities in life straight, encourages us, is a great role model for the kids, handsome, is a vessel for the Lord to teach through, and most of all he loves the Lord with all his heart, soul, and mind. He is the whole package and I sometimes sit and just ponder the blessing that God has given me in my husband.

I love him lots and I can't imagine my life any other way. So, I wish him the happiest of birthdays today and I know that we'll have many more together! I know that when God made Jamie, he was thinking of me!

Here are some pictures of Jamie being Jamie....

His favorite beverages (coffee and Mountain Dew):

He loves music:

God has used him in might ways in the ministry and I know that we have many more years ahead of us!

He loves to be a big kid!

Family man!

Who Needs A Toy?

When you have a globe?

The past few weeks, we've not only been nailing down curriculum choices, but trying to decipher what we need for our homeschooling experience. So, we went and purchased a globe this weekend. It'll make that study of the solar system that much more meaningful for Micah, even now.

The kids will look at it and try to find different countries they are familiar with. They like the "bumpy" places and talk about how big and little things are. They are having fun learning already and we haven't even started formal lessons with all of them.

It is exciting to see our homeschool becoming more and more "real" as the stuff rolls in. My bookshelf is still quite empty, but not for long!

Can I fall over now?

I'm so dead tired, but of course, I sit here awake, because I'm wired from the weekend. Why does that always happen?

Yesterday was the homeschool convention and it was a good day. We took 2 workshops, saved shipping on one publisher (about $15) and then I got a $15 coupon for visiting another publisher that I was already going to order from. So, it was good just to browse around and get familiar with some of the different curriculums and such. I'm a researcher, so I had already chosen all the texts for next year, but it was good to just pick them up and thumb through them.

That evening we went to a sweet sixteen party for one of our young ladies at church. She is a very sweet Christian girl and I know beyond a doubt that God will do fabulous things in her life (he is already!). I look at some of these kids at church and just hope and pray that my kids will be that great! We are very fortunate to work with a really great group!

Today was the most exhausting day of all. Of course, it was the dreaded "spring forward" time change. Jamie was asked to preach at a church that was 2 hours away, so we left at 7:30 this morning. Google and TomTom both took us down some of the strangest roads and I almost felt like I was driving through Gatlinburg with all the hills, valleys, curves, and swoops. Not fun! We did make it in plenty of time though and we got to experience worship at another church. I think it is good to do that every now and then anyways. It was a very nice little country church though.

In between services, we went to Murray to visit with family. Or rather, they visited with us. We made one pitstop at my sister's and then told everybody where to find us. It was just too little time (and just too much) to trek to everybody's house separately. I have not seen my family since Christmas, so it is always nice to catch up face to face.

We are tired though! Actually, I think we are going to call the girls in sick tomorrow. They have GOT to be exhausted!!! I'm also very SICK of fast food! We've been forced to eat 3 fast food meals this weekend. BLECH! I just want to drink water and eat lettuce tomorrow or something. Ok, probably not, but it makes me feel so gross!

So, that was our weekend in a nutshell. I think I'm going to call it a night. It really feels like one of those days that should've been about 2 or 3. Too much!

A Good Week with a Busy Weekend Ahead!

It has been a good week in the Hughes house. Nothing too exciting to report. We started a new routine this week, and everything has gone quite nicely. Micah is completing his first week of homeschool. He is happy, content and I hope he has learned a lot. It is amazing to me how much material we can cover throughout the day and still have our evenings free. He hardly knows what to do with himself in the evenings now. It is very nice!

I got to attend "Muffins with Mom" at Highland with my big girls. I don't have a picture (sorry), but it was a lot of fun. They were so excited and we got to spend Tuesday morning together eating muffins and chatting in the school cafeteria. They are both great girls!

Chloe is just her usual crazy self. She is so articulate these days, and seems to be gaining new knowledge every day. They are just little sponges at this age! Her favorite thing to watch and read and learn about is dinosaurs. She knows names of dinosaurs that I never even knew until she took interest. She knows what they eat and different things about them. It is kind of funny.

Micah doing school:

Chloe watching her favorite show (Dinosaur Train)and apparently some yoga poses:

This weekend is going to be incredibly busy! I look forward to it, but dread it at the same time. Tomorrow, we are headed to Evansville for a homeschool convention. We are going to take a couple of classes and hopefully look through the curriculum we have chosen. We think we have things nailed down for next school year, but just want to make certain. It is so hard to choose! I didn't realize how many choices there were for curriculum until we started looking. That is a good thing, because everybody is different, but it makes the decision a little trickier. I can't hardly wait to get my hands on the nice curriculum for next year!

Saturday evening we are headed to a Sweet Sixteen Birthday party for one of our youth girls. She is a very sweet young lady (the entire family is) that we've gotten to know quite well over the past couple of years. I'm her teacher twice a week and she is in the youth band that Jamie supervises. Who doesn't love a Sweet Sixteen bash?

Sunday, Jamie is preaching at another church. He has revival time at Walnut and we are using the opportunity that God has put before us. The only "catch" is that we lose an hour (the dreaded 'spring forward' time change) and we have to drive quite a distance to get there. Jamie preaches both services, so it is going to make for a long exhausting day where we will probably not get home until almost 10 or so. Monday morning is not going to be pretty around here. If I wouldn't look suspicious (and I totally would!) I'd let the girls skip. Poor things!

I'm just praying for some energy this weekend. Or perhaps, I need to load up with caffeine instead. I know what Jamie will do!

Our First Day of Homeschool

I guess I did something right, because here was the result:

And, ladies and gentlemen, this picture was taken before 8:00 pm! I can't even remember the last time Micah fell asleep before that time. 8:00 is standard bedtime around here, but it is usually after at least 2 children get back up for something. So, our goal is always to have them asleep by 8:30-9:00. HAHA! He was wiped!

Today went well though. You know something? I have my happy-go-lucky child back! I almost want to think I was imagining his shift in mood. But, was I? Jamie and I have both observed the same thing. Since we made the final decision on Friday, Micah has been happier, laughing more, and generally more at ease all around. I think the changes were just so subtle that we hardly noticed them until they disappeared. It kind of makes me sad to think what he must have been feeling on the inside that he may not have even been able to put a voice to. Some of the shifts I think we just attributed to him being a "tween," but now I'm thinking that there was always more to it. He is a good kid and he deserves the best! He has always been such a fun little person to hang out with. Now I get the honor of hanging out with him 24/7.

So today, we accomplished so much! I can hardly believe that we were able to accomplish so much in such a short period of time, actually. I'm just so used to him going to school 7 hours, then having 2-4 hours of homework on top of it. It was amazing! He enjoyed himself and was so relaxed and excited. He got up this morning ready to work and was ready for whatever I handed him. It made me even more excited to be teaching all 4 of them in August! It is so neat to be able to teach them first hand from the word of God on a daily basis.

We did go to the school to pick up his things today. It was a bit awkward for me, but I was nervous about it already, so that didn't help. She was very nice and gave Micah a hug. I always just assume that most public educators don't really "get" homeschooling, so I guess that was part of my awkwardness. As an Elementary Education graduate from a state university (and from a small town), I used to have my own thoughts about homeschooling and my own bias and hang-ups about it. God can truly work a miracle in one's heart and mind. That's all I can say. We did walk out of that 4th grade classroom today different than he left it on Friday.

So, our journey begins...

Sooner Than Later

It has been a rough few weeks. Well, a rough couple of years in the school department, actually. Micah had just completed the 2nd grade when we moved here. I guess, in my mind, I thought, 'it is so much easier to change schools now than in a few years.' Micah was "Mr. Popular" at his last school. We used to get tickled, because every teacher, student, and lunch lady knew who Micah was out at North Elem. We'd get stopped in Wal-Mart by frirends and everybody would greet him when he was walking the school halls. Then we moved here...

We knew it would be different, but I was very optimistic. My children are very social and Micah doesn't meet many strangers and is not the least bit shy. Within a couple of months, we realized the transition was going to be a little bumpier than we had anticipated. We were still holding out that things would even out and he'd find his place. It is tough being the new kid in class.

Last year progressed from being ostracised to name calling to being pinned up against a wall. The sad fact of all these is that he was also punished in almost every scenerio. What did he learn? He learned to keep his mouth shut with the school staff, because they didn't do anything and he wanted to avoid punishment. Who could blame him? We talked with teachers, principals, assistant principals, etc and while things seemed a bit better by the end of the year, I really just think that it just wasn't as severe.

So, this year, we were again hopeful. He started out really well and we really liked his teacher. She was much more personable and down to earth. But, again, it has been a slow progression from "kids will be kids" to "Ok, keep your paws off my kid!". It escalated rapidly in the past few weeks. He has been made fun of, whispered about, left out, called names, pushed, grabbed, and also gotten in trouble for things that he has not done.

Jamie finally called his teacher last week, because we wanted to straighten some things out. He was being punished and basically was told that he wasn't telling the truth. I can tell you right now. Micah doesn't lie! He has always been very truthful even if that means fessing up to something that requires punishment. We thought things might be better.

God had called us to homeschooling about a month ago. We were trying to make the transition as smooth as possible for everybody. We thought finishing out the year would be good for closure and it was already February, so it didn't seem like a huge deal. The past few weeks Micah has come home crying 4 out of 5 days a week. He is not a crier, so when he cries, he is very upset. It is not for attention or to get his way. He cries when he is hurting.

We told him a couple of weeks ago that we might homeschool him earlier if this pattern kept up. It was just too much. Every day, I sit here and worry about what kind of day he was having. We also talked to him and told him that if he said, "I want out" that we'd get him out immediately. We left the option open. He is 10, not 2, and I didn't want him to look at homeschool as a negative thing. We'd talk about it daily, but we never really pushed him one way or another.

He got in the car yesterday with tears streaming down his face. He was telling me about how he was treated. I was gulping back tears myself as we were driving down the road. He finally said, "I'm 98% sure I want to homeschool on Monday". I explained to him that if we got him out, that it was for good. Jamie came home early, we talked to him a bit more and we made the final decision. Jamie took the proper paperwork up to the board office before they closed on Friday, so there is no turning back now!

Micah is thrilled! It may be my imagination, but he seems more relaxed today too. It is really only 3 extra months of homeschooling anyways, so it isn't a huge deal. It is an odd time of year, but I really don't care. I have to protect, educate, and take care of my children. I'm not sure we have done so hot of a job with that by sending him off to that place for 7 hours every day. It is over for him! We can all breathe a sigh of relief!

The girls are finishing out the year as planned. They are having a good year and while I'll be homeschooling all 4 of them next year, there is no point in pulling them right this second. They understand and are fine with it.

Just for the record, this was not the reason we decided to start homeschooling in the first place. There were many many logistic reasons, but it was 100% a calling by God. No doubt in my mind whatsoever about that. The calling isn't about bullies, homework, or anything else. It is about HIM and only HIM and we will do it for HIS glory and nothing else.

So, we went today and picked up some books to finish out the year. They won't be the fancy curriculum like next year, but they will do in a pinch. Jamie is putting together a bookshelf as I type this too. It was much needed and on our list of things to buy anyways. We also found some cute little lap desks since we have no room for "real" ones that the kids will be able to use for work.

So, I guess we will be official homeschoolers on Monday. It should be interesting. More importantly, Micah will have a smile on his face at the end of the day!!!

I also contacted one of my good friends last week who is the creator of the Bully-Free program. He is a great Christian guy and emailed me back and is sending me a book for parent tips. He went through this with his son. I have thought about that family a lot the past couple of years. His son eventually died as a result of trying to find a sense of belonging. You can read his story on the website.

I really don't know why Micah had a target on his back. I really don't. It breaks my heart and makes me not understand people. I think that people have always been bullied, but kids now are bolder than they have ever been. It also saddens me, because I can tell Micah that God created him special all day long, but if he is hearing differently 7 hours a day, his self esteem suffers. It will take a bit of "deprogramming" to get him back on a positive self esteem probably.

Just pray for us as we begin our journey. We are very excited!

Upward Cheer is Over!

Saturday was Hannah's last game. She has really blossomed in confidence and skill through the last couple of months. She started out pretty shy, intimidated, watching the other cheerleaders to make sure she was doing the right moves, and not very loud. She ended up being one of the loudest ones, looking straight forward, confident, and leading cheers! This is a big deal for a shy little girl! I was very proud of her! She really had a lot of fun!

Here are a few pictures from her last game. I think I'm finally learning my new camera too, which helps:-)

Cheering:

Halftime Cheer:

Hannah and Coach Nicholette:

Nicholette is only in high school, but she did a fabulous job with the girls. They all really came a long way under her coaching. She was patient, loving, and encouraging. She taught them a lot of cheerleading skills that will help them if they pursue this further. She had them cheering the entire game and had them coordinated and focused. They were the best group of girls that we had seen out there as far as skill. The kids just loved her!

On another note, Jamie and I were invited and went to our first local homeschool group meeting Monday. This will be the same group that we will be involved with next school year. It was sort of awkward, because we are the newbies and it can be a bit intimidating being around some people that have literally homeschooled for 15 or more years. But, I'm hoping that my kids can make a ton of new friends! It is an exciting time and while we may be a little nervous about all the logistics, we know that God will be holding our hands all the way. 3 more months of public school!