School Time Check In

In my update a few weeks ago, I included a snippet about our homeschool and promised to post a more detailed description of what school time looks like during this first season and

THE WAIT IS OVER. 

We are coming off the heels of a two week school hiatus due to illness in the first week, then just trying to get motivated again in the second. By Monday of week two, I had declared it a "mental health" break and decided to resume this week. Because I can. 

I did my planning and prep on Saturday, which included printing new materials, pulling out all of the supplies for each activity, setting the shelves (details below), and taking a trip to the library for books and a movie. Big Girl could hardly contain herself when she saw that I was in the school room without her. She wanted to "do sool" NOW, but I like to build the anticipation for her a little, so I saved everything for Monday morning!

A typical school session lasts about one hour, sometimes more or less, depending on every single variable that comes with having two children two and under. I have several activities that we try to get to every day (I call these "non-perishables" because they can be used again and again), four to five that can only be used once (dot work, coloring sheets, paint projects), sensory materials, a few toys/games/puzzles, playdoh, and BOOKS. Oh, how we love books. 

Every day is a little different based on what she is drawn to; for this season of homeschool, my goal is exposure rather than mastery (here's a great post about this concept). She has her favorite things (playdoh, sensory, dry erase) that we do every day without fail, some others that I can usually talk her into (dot work, color cards, shape cards), and some that she's just not feeling on any given day (any of the former). But that's ok with me! We are totally Big Girl led, Mom facilitated right now. 

I am using Tot School Printables during this pre-pre-school time with Big Girl. I chose it in the beginning because it was one of the only free programs I could find for two year olds. Carisa from 1+1+1=1 (who I mentioned here) is a former professional educator and, like me, believes in following the cues of your child in homeschool. It is a common belief that two is too young to start any type of schooling, and I fully agree with not starting before a child is ready. That is the best way to cultivate a life-long hatred of learning in a child. But as Big Girl's mom, I knew the time was right. She was soaking up any information I was giving her and was very interested in books: two good signs of readiness. 

Tot School Printables are printable sheets that loosely guide your child in basic letter recognition, vocabulary, math, and fine motor skills. The program focuses on a letter, word, color, and theme for each week. One of my favorite aspects of this program is that Carisa blogged through it when she used it with her daughter. It's so helpful to see how she uses the materials and what she adds to each theme. 

TSP is a "toe in the water" for those who feel ready to begin with their toddler. It is NOT the only thing we do, but it provides a good foundation to build the rest of our learning time on. I don't use them all, and I've built up to the ones I use now--I think I started with about four and added them as Big Girl and I got comfortable. 

For TSP (which is "Table Work" in my planner), I use pages 2, 3, 7, and 14 as dry erase practice. I slip these into sheet protectors at the beginning of the week, and we usually start our day with them because it's where the bulk of our letter and vocabulary work happens. I use the color cards and shape cards once or twice a week each. With those, we might color, cut, and glue them (below), or we sometimes slip them into a slit in a coffee can as we name each one. We use page 6 along with a few others (like this one) as dot work, which she completes with do-a-dot stampers or sometimes stickers. I recently added page 13 for lacing practice and a fun puzzle. 

A photo of my planner is the best way to begin an explaination of what we do each day. It's my lifeline! Every thought, idea, reaction to an activity, plan for the future, and funny thing Big Girl said goes into it. 

The week shown is "Jj is for Jellyfish." That week, we focused on ocean life, the color Pink, and of course, the letter J. Along the top of the pages are sensory/motor focuses for both Big Girl and Baby Sis. I recently began pulling some activities for her during our play time, and writing them here helps me keep them varied. 

Under each day of the week is a list of activities we completed, along with a description of how it went. Success/enjoyment is denoted with a check mark, and refusal is marked with an X. This is not a plan for each day; it is a list of what we completed in order, the time it took us to finish, and her reaction to each activity. I like to think of it as our educational journal. It's already been so fun to look back on the early weeks and see how much we have both learned. It will also be helpful when I begin TSP with Baby Sister or if another mom needs help with certain activities.

The yellow sticky note in the bottom corner is a list of all the activities I have prepared for the week. Because I follow Big Girl's lead, I don't plan every day for the whole week. Rather, I write down everything I have available, then check it off as we complete it. The "perishable" activities usually have a day of the week suggested because I try to spread those out, but those aren't set in stone either (noticing a trend yet?). I began this system one day when I had a super attractive substitute teacher. MisterKidd facilitated school time for me one Saturday, so I jotted down all of the activities available and had him check them off as he completed them, along with the more detailed description for each day. Now I do this every week for myself, and it's easy for him to just take over if that happens again. 

The sticky note categories are based on what's available on or near her shelves: Sensory, Toys, Trays, Books, and Table Work. Each is based on the theme for the week in some way. For example, this week is "Mm is for Mouse," and we are focusing on the letter Mm, the color blue, and small mammals (*shiver* this is not my favorite theme). Our shelves represent each of the catergories based on the theme(s).

Top shelf: Supplies  This bookshelf is very near Big Girl's desk, so I have things we use every day like writing materials, the dry eraser, and the Lysol wipes. 

Second shelf: Sensory  This tub has a sensory base and filler that is changed out weekly. I'm just starting to dabble in this, so I've only done a few, but she LOVES it. Pouring and scooping are her favorite things to do. This week, I hid several different Mm's in dried beans and added a spoon and cup for her to play with. I've used straws cut into small pieces and dry pasta in the past, and next week is cotton balls. Here's a great post on sensory bases. 

Third shelf: Fine Motor Skills  On one of the trays, I have a fine motor activity. This is one of my favorite things to come up with because it can be anything to get her fingers moving. Cutting and Gluing practice is pictured above; I drew a large "M" on the blue sheet, and she cut small pieces of paper to glue on the "M." Here is a list of fine motor skills that I draw from when preparing these activities. 

Fourth shelf: Books  What can I say that will appropriately convey the importance of literacy? I don't believe I could do it justice in a thousand posts. We have books available for our girls in every room in the house (yes, even the bathroom), but our school time books are centered around our theme in some way. This week, there are books with mice, books with "Mm," and books with both. 

Fifth shelf: Toy/Game/Puzzle  Toys are some of our most useful learning tools. We try to buy toys that are open ended and encourage pretend play. A good rule of thumb is that the child needs to tell the toy what to do, not the toy telling the child how to play. I might include homemade beanbags, lacing beads, our tool set, some beads from our pop-arty bead set, or a puzzle on this tray. It's kind of a catch-all for whatever I want to include that week. This week, we have a small "moon" puzzle from a large set of word puzzles I have. 

Big Girl has access to these shelves during our entire session, but I do encourage her to clean up one thing before she moves to another (the trays help with this) and to focus on her table work if that's what we're doing in that moment. 

I hope that rather than being overwhelmed, you are inspired by this huge amount of information. Keep in mind that it has taken me over six months to incorporate all of these activities. I've done research, tried some things, axed some things, and adjusted a hundred times to get to this point. If you are ready to get started and you choose one thing you are comfortable with, your little one will be excited to "do sool" too, no matter what you choose. :)

I would love to answer any questions you might have about, well, pretty much anything, but especially my homeschool day! Be on the lookout for a planning week post in a few weeks where I set up our new calendar time and plan for life after Tot School Printables with Big Girl!

Dear Future Husband

Dear Future Husband,

I expect everything, but you'll be lucky if you get anything from me. 

I need flowers, jewelry, gifts, respect, and maybe you'll get sex, but certainly not dinner, because I don't cook. 

I intend to be treated like a queen, but get used to the idea of being treated like a servant in our marriage. I can say whatever I want, do whatever I want, and that has to be ok with you. 

But make sure you watch your tone, and don't forget that even when I'm wrong, I'm right. 

When we argue--what am I saying?? We won't argue as long as you remember your place. I don't need suggestions or advice, and I certainly don't need correction. 

When I need you to be strong, make sure you are, then be ready to go back to your place on the stoop in front of the door. 

Your only benefit in this marriage is my body, but it's mine to give as I please, and don't forget it. No, that doesn't objectify me.

Dear husband, we will have children when I decide I want to, because it's my body that does the work. You get no say in this.

We will live where I want, because I work, too, so I pay half the bills and half the mortgage. 

If you forget any of that, then I'll leave and take the kids, because they're mine, too.

Everything we have and everything we are is equal. We're exactly the same. 

But mine's a little better. 

Love, 

Meghan Trainor and the Millennial Women

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ShlW5plD_40

Update

It's been five months since my last post. With two tiny tots, 1500 sq feet to manage, and a husband to feed, clothe, and love, my blogging time is limited. The time that was once used for blogging during Baby Sister's morning nap time is now used for homeschooling with Big Girl. So here are a few tidbits on the last five months in the Kidd home. 

Homeschool with Big Girl

Our homeschool adventure began in the last few days of 2014. We started out pretty well with tons of zeal...for the first week. During that time, I took note of some changes that needed to be made. Namely, Big Girl needed to be harnessed. Ha. 

The second week was pretty choppy, the third week even worse, and then came...the plague. Each member of our family had one illness or another for the entire winter and into spring, from common colds that lasted a month to multiple ear infections to stomach bugs all around. 

By spring break, we had gotten through most of our sickness, and I was ready to get started again. We have just completed week nine, and Big Girl lives for "school time" now. I am so amazed by how quickly she's learning. She is sponging everything she's exposed to. 

In an upcoming post, I'll share my goals and objectives for her during this season, links to my resources, and a sample of what "school time" looks like for us. For now, here's a look back at the beginning of our homeschool journey.

Gazelle Intense (Mostly)

I last left you with a serious cliffhanger about our financial plans. We've made great progress so far in 2015 and we're on track to be finished with Baby Step 3 in Dave Ramsey's 7 Baby Steps to Financial Freedom by the end of this year! 

In the last post, we announced our brand new debt free status. Since then, we've been sticking to our budget, putting back our spare nickels and dimes, and selling off all our junk and some of our good stuff (including MisterKidd's recently paid-for truck) to finish our fully-funded emergency fund.

God has been so gracious to give us the tools to be better stewards of our money. I try not to remember all of the resources we've wasted over the years that could have been spared through better planning. We could already be giving like no one else. But His plans are best, every time. 

Put Not Your Trust in Plexus

There is a phenomenon happening. You've heard the chatter and seen the posts on social media. You know as few as one and as many as a dozen people who are "drinking the Koolaid." 

MisterKidd and I strive to be good stewards of our time, our marriage, our kids, our money, our home...you get the idea. We try to be mindful of the fact that everything was given to us as a gift, and we need to do the best we can with it. (P.S. We for sure fail often.) One area we had been neglecting for the past couple years was our bodies. Two pregnancies in two years is hard on a woman's body, so a man appropriately sympathizes...

We got serious about our health in January by doing tons of research and eventually settled on a modified paleo diet (our rules: grain-free, whole foods, and little to no sugar). We did so well for the first few months and lost THE INCHES (we don't have a scale, so I'm not sure about lbs), but we could not kick the cravings. If one of us was weak, the other was right there in full support, true Adam and Eve style. 

And then came Plexus.

I've been through a few different phases with this whole Plexus thing: indifference, annoyance, curiosity, interest, waiting, and finally, trying it. I vow this very moment not to become a Plexus blogger, so my mention of it will be succinct, starting now with three thoughts:

1. I'm not trying to lose hundreds of pounds or treat a major illness or issue. I just want to be healthy. I know I can say no to myself and do pretty well on my own. Two sizes in four months proves that. But I've been hearing some talk about "leaky guts" that intrigues me, and I want to be the best version of myself that I can be so I can do the most good work for others. 

2. I'm interested to see what healing my possibly leaky gut will do for my overall health. Chasing having two toddlers is draining for sure, but do I have to want a nap every. single. day? I've heard so many success stories from people I trust who range from slightly crunchy like me to as green as can be, people with very serious conditions who now feel better than they have in years from healing their digestive systems through using Plexus products.

3. Plexus is not Jesus. It is not a source of joy or salvation. It can do nothing for your heart in regards to eternity. The Gospel is still the point, the means, and the end of everything. Plexus is a tool, much like food, used to sustain us in this life until we no longer need these sinful bodies. 

Today is Day One for MisterKidd and me on this Plexus journey. I'll let you know if anything worth mentioning happens...

If you feel like hopping on the bandwagon with me, send me your questions and I'll get you an answer. You can also order here if you're ready, like, now.

#stopfacebookingyourperfectlife

Today was the first day of school for my Big Girl.

Yes, I can read a calendar. 

No, she didn't magically age three years overnight.

We are starting some "play with a purpose" now that Big Girl is two. She has breezed through recognition of upper and lower case letters with little effort on my part, so I know she is ready for more intentional learning. 

I have been researching, planning, and preparing for months, just waiting for her to be ready. I have dreamed about this day in great detail...

We would get up early and eat hearty, delicious, and frugal egg muffin cups from Pinterest for breakfast. Baby Sis would go down for her morning nap just after I finished the dishes so I could focus on Big Girl during "school time." After taking a "first day of school" photo by the chalk board, Big Girl (in her MudPie outfit and gigantic bow) and I would head downstairs to the designated schooling area of our house. We would then engage in age-appropriate and exciting learning adventures based on my carefully selected and slightly modified curriculum, which addressed language, math, fine-, and gross-motor skills. 

But that didn't happen. 

After staying up two hours too late getting my materials ready,

I was awoken 20 minutes after falling asleep by not one, but both girls, who proceeded to wake every few minutes for the next few hours. I lost all concept of time and woke for the day an hour after I had planned. I discovered a cranky Big Girl with a runny nose and a Baby Sis who was already napping. I was losing precious minutes of her naptime! I scrawled a "first day of school" flag on the board and begged Big Girl to stop crying long enough to take a decent picture ("I can't want to say keys!").

We helped Dad out the door just as Baby Sis was waking up 45 minutes too early. I decided to give up on the schedule I had planned for the morning. I made breakfast, which was rejected by my honest toddler, sat Baby Sis up with a new toy, and presented Big Girl with her brand new Tot Time Notebook.

The dry erase portion of the lesson started out ok...then she moved on to the binder, the lap tray, her hands, and her face. Big Girl 4, Mom 1.

We plugged through the rest of my plans fairly well, put Baby Sis down for her actual nap, and then headed to the garage for gross-motor time: Hop on Aa. This was a big hit--but it was mostly me carrying her from one A to the next!

Our first day of school lasted less than an hour total, including the time it took to rock Baby Sis back to sleep (twice). Tomorrow, I will modify and adjust some of our activities based on my reflection of today. Tomorrow, I still won't get it right, and that's ok.

God has given me the opportunity to be here with my girls every day, the knowledge to educate them, and the grace to look to him when I fail as a mom and a teacher. My messy-haired-Minnie-Mouse-pajama-wearing toddler, my unpainted and unswept garage, and my failed plans are not Pinterest-worthy.

It was the perfect day.

[Title credit to my sweet friend, Kerri, and her hashtag.]

I'm not gonna pretend I like the beach

Cruises are a big deal in the middle class right now. So is misusing prescription drugs, but I digress. Stereotype: middle-aged parents, teenage children, newly-weds, retirees trek to the coast from our landlock, board an insanely large vessel (Titanic is leaving Netflix this month--catch it before you book), float away to somewhere foreign, and instagram our brains out. I see these pictures and, depending on my mood, think either "how nice that you get to take a vacation" or

"I'm not gonna pretend I like the beach. Do you really like the beach? Sweat and sun and sand where not even daylight belongs. The salt wrecks my hair, the tan sunburn lasts a week, the shopping sucks. Don't pretend you like that t-shirt you paid $25 for that cost 50 cents to make. Why do we do this to ourselves, America? Is this to fulfill some weird desire to step outside your life here in the deltamountainsontheriver where you have to watch the news to know how to dress your kids tomorrow? Do you need to feel exotic? That's a lot of money you just promised to Capital One for some crappy instagram pictures. You can't really like the beach..."

Mister Kidd and I celebrated our wedding anniversary this week, and as usual, we spent a lot of time reflecting on our marriage.

[Implied Reader: But, weren't you just talking about the beach...? What's that have to do with your marriage?]

Hang on. I think I have a point around here somewhere.

Four years and two days ago, I became legally attached to the person I had been figuratively attached to for the four years before that. It was great and wonderful and fun to finally be able to have sleepovers with my best friend. The "honeymoon phase" was filled with so many new things. I thought, "If the first year is the hardest part of our marriage like everyone says, we'll be ok."

But over the past four years, we've learned that "everyone" don't really know what they're talking about. The hardest part of your marriage is not the first year, not a period of time at all. The hardest part of your marriage is fighting.


Fighting to love your spouse well.

Fighting for intimacy when you can't stand to see his stupid face anymore.

Fighting for joy when you want to take all the bill money and run away.

Fighting yourself and your pride when you want to rule him but you know it's his job to make the best decision for you, and he actually wants to, and he does. Every time, so far.

Fighting to keep him first in your heart after you create some people out of thin air and let them live inside you for the better part of a year.

Fighting to please God in your marriage rather than yourself. Or even him.


I've learned over the past four years of marriage (an eternity to some, a week to others) that the "honeymoon" not only doesn't end, but it doesn't even have to exist. You can always be enamored with each other. You can always be friends. You can always have the "spark." Culture doesn't think so, but culture wasn't told that it would be hard work, so it settled for unhappiness and unrest. It goes to the beach once a year for satisfaction, to feel fulfilled, renewed, young.

I have resolved to make the beach out of my little lot on a busy avenue in the suburbs. I don't have to board a ship to get that fleeting feeling of adventure and youth--I feel it every day at about 3p when I hear a truck pull in the driveway. I will seek God and choose to find my fun and rest in my husband.

But, y'all. Those towel animals. Am I right?

[Disclaimer: I am not condemning those who actually enjoy the beach as a vacation. I do challenge you, however, to make sure you actually like it and not just go because you think you should.]

If You Give a Wife a TV...

I'm eating my words and chowing down on a nice slice of humble pie. I hate to hear I told you so, but...

We recently started Dave Ramsey's 7 Baby Steps to being debt free. Millions of Americans are thousands of dollars in debt. We only have a measly couple thousand (except our home), but our frugal family wants that debt dead and buried. 

MisterKidd and I are already "gazelle intense" with everything we do. Since starting our debt free journey in June, we are well into Baby Step 2. It has taken serious discipline and a lot of saying "no" to ourselves to get here. Along with trying to save money, we've been looking for ways to earn more for our cause, including selling some of our stuff.

Enter: Serious Regret

I was doing a pre-move/debt free purge one day, and I set my sights on the bedroom TV. "It's so decadent to have two televisions," I thought. "We just need to read more books." I had been trying to talk MisterKidd into selling it for some time, but he always insisted that we used the TV more than I thought. We were dangerously close to completing Baby Step 1 at that point. So close we could taste it.

Marriages are made of opposites: a spender and a saver; a nerd and a cool kid; an introvert and an extrovert; a pack rat and a purger. I'm definitely the purger in my household, so I'm usually the one who goes on the selling sprees. Because we were trying to live like no one else, he finally agreed, and I posted it online that day. 

I sold it for way less than I wanted, way less than it was worth, but more than I had before I started. And then I felt the sting.

I'm not a TV junkie by any means. Some days (when I'm not postpartum and trying to keep a toddler occupied), it doesn't even get turned on. But I like to see a few Gilmore Girls episodes when I'm folding mountains of clean laundry on my bed. And I have a few "sick movies" that work better than any prescription ever could.

I sheepishly admitted my regret to MisterKidd, and he was very gracious (Ahem. "I knew you'd miss it!"). 

So the lesson I've learned is that there's a difference in having a 60 in TV in every room of your house and sitting huddled in the dark with no creature comforts in the name of being debt free. The balance is a tiny little TV in the bedroom. 

But if you give a wife a TV, she'll need a DVD player to go with it. Because I sold that, too. 

Tuesday Tidbits 10/7

It's Not Tuesday

Tuesday came and went this week without a new post here on Beautiful Functional. I'd like to say it was because I was busy all day doing something exciting. That's not true. I also didn't have any kind of emergency in my household.

It's not that I was too lazy to write. It's not that I was uninspired. I was even ready to reveal Tuesday Tidbits' new graphic that I created using Canva.

This week's Tuesday Tidbits is going up on Thursday because on Tuesday during "writing time," I was holding a sleeping baby. Baby Sister is going through an I-need-Mom-all-the-time-or-I-will-whine phase. And really, y'all, who would rather stare at a computer than try to burn that smooth, sweet face into their memory for all of eternity? Not this mama.

This is why I don't put on makeup. 

Is Scentsy wax toxic? Asking for a friend. A short, curly-haired, Frozen-loving friend. 

I spend tons of money on teething helps. Toys to chew on, pain relieving medicines, organic tablets, jewelry forged in the fires of Mordor, even an expensive giraffe, who recently released a series of novels. What helps when nothing else will? A good, clean knuckle. 

Blog Fun, Part 4

I've been highlighting a few of my favorite blogs on Tuesday Tidbits for the last several weeks. This week, it's Carisa from 1+1+1=1.

This site is a recent find, but it has quickly become a must-read for my homeschool planning. Carisa is a former Kindergarten teacher turned homeschool mom, and she blogs about what works for her family. She originally coined the phrase "Tot School" for kiddos who are too young for traditional Pre K materials. Because I'm overzealous and ready to get some structured fun time in with Big Girl, I've been looking for direction on where to begin with "under 3's." There are literally thousands of pages of content with ideas for materials and activities that are developmentally appropriate from birth to 3 (and beyond).

Signing up for her newsletter gets you the download link for her eBook, Where to Begin with Tot School, for those of you who, like me, get overwhelmed and excited like a puppy that has company (ha).

Tuesday Tidbits 9/30

A Major Holiday

Yesterday was National Coffee Day, and I celebrated like I never have before (because I never have before). My record for the day: 3 cups in my "coffee bowl," 3 spoons of sugar, 2 drops of Pumpkin Spice Creamer, and 4 zaps in the microwave (true mom status).

I have coffee in my blood. My dad drinks at least one pot a day every day, even in the middle of summer.  I learned to brew a nice pot of Folgers when I was knee high to a grasshopper (oops, my country is showing).

So when I saw National Coffee Day trending on Twitter, it got me thinking about all the things I love about the black gold.

• Coffee has the best nicknames. Java, brew, cuppa, go juice, jolt, mud, et al.
• Coffee makes you get up and go. It may be mental (although the withdrawal headaches suggest that it isn't), but I feel like I could conquer the world after my morning cup(s), or at least conquer the Monday. I've heard Plexus Slim has the same effect, but coffee is much cheaper, and we're tryna be debt-free, y'all. 
• Coffee is like a woman. No matter how you dress her, she's always a woman to Billy Joel. There's a coffee for every taste. Latte, cappuchino, triple shot, sugar, whipped cream, mocha, caramel, frozen, iced, black, never ending possibilities, with or without a fantastic cookie to dip. If you don't like coffee, you haven't tried hard enough. 

I've been thinking about wishing for a Keurig. Pros/Cons for daily drinkers?

Put not your trust in football. 

With all the things I love about Fall, there are some that are not at the top of my list. One bandwagon that I could never get on is football. 

I grew up in a small town with a small school. It was so small that we didn't have a football team, so no Friday Night Lights for me.  My dad was not particularly into sports, so we didn't spend every weekend and major holiday watching ESPN. He was too busy cleaning deer to watch football. I married a football fan, but we abstain from cable, so I've missed out there, too. In conclusion, I've had no reason to make sports a part of my life. 

I know that many people, however, do not miss a chance to call the hogs. They talk about player stats and game highlights like they were actually on the field. When the team hurts, they feel pain. And then my Facebook news feed feels pain. 

So fans, fair-weather and die-hard, I want to offer this caution as we enter football season: remember that it's just a game, it's just a hobby, it's just a fleeting moment in time, and it is not something to sin over. 

Remember to commit yourself to Christ during this season as earnestly as you do any other time of the year (or more). Don't forsake gathering with the church to gather with your team of choice (in person or in spirit). Where your news feed is, there also is your heart. Don't forget to boast in your Savior rather than a group of students who have talent for a game that pays for their college. Enjoy this season, but don't put your hope in it. 

Are you a superfan? How do you find the balance in enjoying but not abusing your hobby?

Blog Fun, Part 3. 

Next up on my weekly blog roll: Crystal and her posse from Money Saving Mom.

As the title suggests, this site has saved me tons of money. What started as the small blog of a homeschooling mom has grown into a huge business for Crystal, her husband, and her employees.  She and her group scour the internet for the best deals in grocery, health, and beauty.  There are tons of articles on shopping, meal planning, stockpiling, couponing, recipes, home management, and home finance. I pretty much eat this website for breakfast.

Some of my favorite content from this site includes:

• The list of free ebooks they post several times per week.
• The "52 Different Ways to Save $100 this Year" series from 2013.
• The "We Paid Cash" stories--it CAN be done!
• And the daily "this is free or cheap" posts that inevitably pop up.

Check this blog out and watch the dollars roll in, or at least stay warm and safe in your pocket.

I Volunteer as Tribute.

MisterKidd is spending time with his friends tonight (smoke a pipe, talk about Jesus, pound your chest), and there is only one thing on my mind.

Homeschool.

I have voluntarily chosen to be solely responsible for all of the Kidd children's learning endeavors from now until college. I think my head is going to explode from that pressure.

As I have mentioned before, I have a degree in education. I've always wanted to be a teacher.  I didn't just play baby dolls as a little girl; I lined the baby dolls up, gave them worksheets (bad pedagogy, I am now reformed), and took grades. I loved going to school, reading, and doing homework, and I couldn't wait to have my own set of little people to teach. College came, and choosing my major was a non-issue.

At the same time, I knew God was calling me to stay home with my then non-existent children. It was always my hope to spend my time managing my home and raising my children (yes, I knew this as a single college freshmen). So I was curious to see how those two dreams would coincide.

Duh.

MisterKidd and I love the idea of child-based education. Not so much, "OK, kids, what do you want to learn today?" But more like tailoring the education to the child, teaching them to be adults in the world with us by letting them be in our world. Teachers are taught in teacher school to teach the child rather than the subject, but that is almost impossible when you have 80 students for only 9 months, then you give them up for another set of 80. There is only so much relationship-building and life-altering that can happen.

The solution was clear. These not-yet-born kiddos would be formally taught at home. I have the education and the resources to make it a great experience. We discerned that this was God's plan for our family. Then, God gave us the family.

With Big Girl's 2nd birthday approaching, I am dipping my toe in the water of teaching her some skills that are more academic. I have been researching online, asking friends who homeschool or plan to, and praying (a lot), but this is flashing in my mind like a big, gaudy neon sign:

I AM NOT EQUIPT AND WILL NOT SUCCEED IN TEACHING MY CHILDREN.

Internal Rant: What did I sign up for? I can't teach them everything they need to know BY MYSELF in only 18 years. It took about 50 people to teach me all the things I learned. I have a degree in Mid-Level Education, like 9-14 year olds. Maybe I should get some kids that are 10 and teach them how to construct a paragraph. How can I teach these babies how to read??? Why didn't I major in Early Childhood and then just wing it after elementary til they went to college? That would have been more streamlined. And there is so much information out there. What's crap? What's gold? What should I buy? What should I make? What am I going to use all those toilet paper rolls I've been saving for???

*Sigh*

But then I remember that Big Girl knows "A." And the other day, she made a mark on the magnadoodle that kinda looked like an "A" and called it an "A." I can do this. I taught her "A," and I'll teach her more letters, and colors, and numbers, and with prayer and patience, we will complete this fabulous journey that I am 100% called to and on my way to being equipped for. It will be hard and confusing and amazing to mark all over these blank slates that God has entrusted to me.

Feel free to encourage...

**Update: This. http://www.notimeforflashcards.com/2012/04/15-recycled-paper-roll-crafts-for-earth-day.html

Tuesday Tidbits 9/23

Fa-La-La-La-Fall

It's the most wonderful time of the year.  Today is the first day of FALL. Leaves, pumpkin spice coffee creamer, candles that smell like baked goods, and thermometers that say, "Grab a sweater, Brianna."

I've been reading the "extended forecast" to MisterKidd everyday for the past few weeks, and we rejoice over each cool front. This was our conversation yesterday:

B: High of 78 today and tomorrow! And tomorrow's the first day of Fall!
MK: Yesssss. You know God made this time of year for us, right? He said, "Here you go, Kidd family."

*Swoon.* Soulmates.

Another fantastic thing has happened this week, and it's only Tuesday. I got fluff mail yesterday. It's when the mail person plays ding-dong-ditch at my front door, and there's a box of goodies on my stoop.

This particular parcel was full of seasonal treats. I am very fond of Christmas (ask anyone). The theme of this fluff mail has got the Frank Sinatra blaring at my house. These diapers are so cute, I may not even let my littles pee in them.

Fluff Mail

Yeah, those are owls in top hats and scarves. Can you die from cuteness?

It's not humility.

I've been thinking about this concept lately. I don't have it fully formed, but I got an inkling that I need to ponder.

I have been noticing the confusion of self-deprecation and humility in the church. There is a difference in putting yourself down and putting the focus off yourself. The line is getting blurred, particularly among Christian women. We don't appear more humble by highlighting our own flaws at every turn or tearing down our own character. This is the opposite, in fact.

Humility is thinking of yourself less rather than thinking of yourself poorly or not at all. In aiming to be humble through self-deprecation, we actually think of ourselves more as we strive to tear ourselves down for the sake of others.

MisterKidd asked me to put Philippians 2:3 on our chalk board so we could think on this verse for a few weeks, and it fits perfectly with what I've been thinking lately. "Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others as more significant than yourselves." 

There is no loophole from conceit to meekness, or from self-centeredness to humility; there is only the remembrance that we are God's treasured possessions, made in His image, and we are called to consider others more and first if we are His.

Blog Fun, Part 2

This week's blog highlight is Emily at The Anderson Crew.  She is a SAHM of six kiddos ages 2 to 10.

I've been following this one for a couple years. I think I originally came across it on Pinterest. At that time, she and her husband were in the process of adopting a little girl from Ethopia, so it was awesome to follow their adoption journey as it was happening.

A lot of her posts are about daily family stuff, her use of Young Living EOs, and the women's ministry she and some of her friends started (Flourish).

It doesn't hurt that she has awesome style, and her home is that bright white DIY with pops of color that I love.

I don't know about you, but I'm feeling Twenty-Four

It's loud here at night. Not loud like it is at our new house on the corner of Train Tracks and Busy Avenue. The loud is quieter: bugs, cows, the occasional car, maybe a coyote or two, and the train way off in the distance.

I'm home. Maybe not "this is my address, where my clothes hang in the closet and I have full decorating say," but "memory" home, where they loaned me a room for a couple decades and trained me to be a grown-up. 

What better place is there to celebrate my birthday?

MisterKidd coordinated with my mom for a birthday weekend. We loaded up our kiddos and headed to the country for two full days of "Whatever you want, Brianna." It was magical. 

On Friday, I spent most of the day in my pajamas, catching up on episodes of "The Pioneer Woman Cooks" that my mom had DVR'd for me. We also got to meet Daniel Tiger's new baby sister, Margaret. (No, I'm not kidding. MisterKidd and I were more excited than Big Girl to catch this episode.)

The evening was spent at one of our favorite places. We eat at this restaurant for almost every major holiday. Endless shrimp, Sangria, cheddar biscuits, good conversation, and my best friend. 

We love this place. We love the food, the live lobsters, the expensive bill. We usually love the Seafood Specialists, but this time, we were disappointed.

MisterKidd and I both have a past waiting tables (it's actually a part of his "present"). When we're at restaurants, we are simultaneously more gracious because we know how hard it is and less forgiving because we know what it takes to give great service. Our poor server was just not good. It started with her taking our order with another table's dirty dishes on the tray beside her and ended with her coming by our table three times after our dishes were already cleared, promising she'd "be right back with the check." We felt so sorry for her. 

Our delay caused us to be an hour late for the mall. We spent about an hour shopping before the stores started to close, which reminded us of our slow, sad service. But I got some sweet threads at the only store in the mall that didn't close at 9pm, Mom's Mecca. 

The next day, on my actual birthday, my mom, my big sister, and I went to lunch. Alone. Without kids. We love our kids, but it was a blast to just talk about grown-up stuff (so grown-up of me to notice). We got some fall scented goodness at Bath and Body Works and Strawberry Shortcakes from a local fav on the way home. 

Birthday weekend: Success.

Now that I'm a mama, I have a new view of birthdays. The only thing I want to do on my birthday these days is hang out with the lady that made it happen (and maybe the dude that helped). That day means something totally different to her than it does for everyone else. It's the anniversary of the day that she did a great and totally selfless work for me, the first of many.

Happy 24th Birthday, Mom. 

Tuesday Tidbits 9/16

Dream Clean

I've been wanting one of these since my big girl started eating solids. After every meal and snack, you can find me on the floor with a wet rag, mopping up the crumbs, drips of drink, and hunks of food that did not make it into Big Girl's tummy. 

Kids learn by repetition. So I caught Big Girl doing this one day:

I was simultaneously proud of her mad cleaning skills and completely scared to death that my life is the one she's watching while she's building her own life. 

Those days are over, my friend. Over. I made a purchase yesterday at Mom's Mecca (Target) that will change my days for the better. 

Bam.

Sanctification, by God. 

The struggles and joys of the SAHM life are innumerable. Love: spending my days with my sweet kiddos, watching them learn, and pouring into them the love of Jesus. Un-love: diapers, crying, and no time for myself. Comme ci, comme ca. 

All of this, along with the fact that he totally floats my boat, makes me really look forward to MisterKidd's arrival in the afternoons, so much that we have fallen into a pattern of "he comes home right after work no matter what." I'm not trying to be a dictator, and to my knowledge, he doesn't feel oppressed. But I've noticed it lately, and it's been bugging me. 

So God started doing what He does best. I've been chatting with Him about this feeling, and we've come to the conclusion that I need to be more gracious with MisterKidd's time. Like, not helping him manage every second. 

Taking care of littles is hard, but we're in this together, so I want to be flexible with him and supportive of his free time and hobbies, as he tries to do the same for me. We're parents, but we're also people. People that might snap if they can't just run to Lowe's to get a screw for their bow. 

Blog Fun, Part 1

I have a few favorite blogs that I've collected over the past few years. These are real women (sorry, guys) that post their lives on the internet, and I have fun keeping updated on their DIY projects, trips to the zoo with their large family, money saving strategies, holistic health tips, homeschool ideas, and delicious food. Incidentally, all of these women are believers, so I get a good dose of Jesus when I check in once a week when the stars and the nap times align. 

Over the next several weeks, I'll link to my favorite blogs on my Tuesday Tidbits post so my four or five readers can check them out. 

Up first, Kelly at View Along the Way.

If anyone wants to sneak into my house and make it over to look exactly like hers, feel free. She has awesome style; everything is so white and crisp, with pops of color, yard sale finds, and outgoing DIY flare. Her voice is so fun and playful. 

Bonus: She cloth diapers her kids, and she and her husband paid off their house in 5 years while following Dave Ramsey's principles for money management. As a new homeowner, this is serious inspiration!

Check out her blog, and let me know when you're coming by to paint so I can casually run out for errands.

Tuesday Tidbits

It's not me, it's the Crock Pot.

I have this Crock Pot. I use it because I'm a SAHM and I'm supposed to. My food is not always good. 

I try recipes from cheap cookbooks, recipes from nice cookbooks, recipes from my hero, PW, recipes from my other hero, Mom, and recipes from the internet. 

Oven food: good. Stovetop food: good. Microwave food: good. Crock Pot food: sometimes good. 

Why, Crock Pot, why? I will admit, I take some liberties with my food. I don't set a timer. I leave out and/or substitute ingredients. I loosely follow recipes. But why are my Crock Pot meals mediocre?

As I stared into the Crock Pot watching my Shredded Tex Mex Chicken cook too fast (yet again), this thought popped up like a whack-a-mole: it's not me. It's the Crock Pot. 

Who has one they love? Sell me, sister. 

Mom Porn is still Porn.

I'm going to say this, and all the feelings are going to happen. Anger, apathy, agreement, plus some that don't start with an "a" and will throw off my alliteration. 

"50 Shades of Grey" is not literature. It's pornagraphy in a neat, socially acceptable package. It might be marketed along with other New York Times best sellers, but it truly does promote sexual abuse and devalue women. 

I was working on my Swagbucks videos to earn some dollars (ok, not so much watching as letting them play. I confess.) I picked up my phone and caught a glimpse of a movie trailer. I don't remember what drew my attention, but I finished the video. What I saw made my stomach turn. This is not a picture of a healthy sexual relationship between a woman and her husband. 

"But have you read it? The book is always different than the movie."

No, but the book jacket tells me it's not something I want to hide in my heart. I remember everything I've ever read. Literally. I also have a great imagination. If I did read it, even just to review it, it would still affect me. Something that has the potential to alter my worldview and my relationship with my husband so greatly doesn't need to be in my mind. (For more info on how this could happen from reading a book, email me.)

"I can read it and still not agree with it. We read for entertainment."

Both of those statements are true. I am a Harry Potter fan from way back, but I'm not hanging out in my bedroom practicing magic. MisterKidd and I have discussed this concept over and over in regards to our kids. What can be redeemed through discussion, and what should be rejected entirely? 

The difference is in the heart of the characters. That's what we take with us after we close the book. Harry Potter's heart is for his friends and family. His choices reflect a servant who regularly makes sacrifices for the people he loves. Is he perfect? No. But I can share the Gospel with my kids through that fact. Christ is THE sinless savior, and he really lives. From what I know of the main character of "50 Shades of Grey," his choices are those of an abuser. The theme of the story tells our hearts that it's desirable to be taken advantage of and manipulated. 

Phillipians 4:8 tells us to fill our minds with things that build us up and bring us closer to God. Reflect on this, Christian women, when you consider what to use for entertainment. 

Head over to the Gospel Coalition for an actual review of the book. 

http://thegospelcoalition.org/article/fifty-shades-twilight-and-teaching-young-women-to-desire-abusers

...of whom I am chief.

This article. Moms, stop taking yourself so seriously. Laugh at yourself, and learn from veterans, too, not just peers. 

http://www.theonion.com/articles/new-study-finds-link-between-breastfeeding-always,36823/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=SocialMarketing&utm_campaign=LinkPreview:1:Default

Pride and Prejudice and Parenting

As the good book says, "money is the root of all evil."  Well I say, we can often substitute "pride" for "money." Just call me Tevye. As much as I hate pride and see it as one of the most off-putting characteristics, I am guilty of it (of course).

I'm prideful about my marriage. I'm prideful about my education. I'm prideful about some of the choices I've made in my adult life. Recently, I am most prideful about my decisions in parenting. 

I have mentioned some of my greenish, semi-crunchy tendencies. Most of the green choices MisterKidd and I make are related to parenting. Our choices are carefully thought out, economical, and, more often than not, against the current social norms. Our "try hard" family waves them as a brightly colored banner high above your head. 

Enter: pride. 

When we were planning to start our family and living off MisterKidd's IHOP income while I was in college, we began researching ways to spend less when raising children. Everyone knows the biggest expense is diapers. So our first introduction into this crunchy lifestyle was discovering modern cloth diapers. 

"We can buy 20 diapers and wash them every day and it will SAVE US HOW MUCH MONEY?"

Newly married. Poor. Idealistic. We were sold. 

40+ diapers, several stints in disposables, many wash routine troubles, and two babies later, we are still loving our fluffy bottoms and the money it keeps in our budget and out of Pampers' wallet. 

We are ALL into this cloth diapering business, advocating (tactfully, of course) when we can and finding comraderie with others that choose cloth. However, it has been a bit of a learning curve with our extended families, who either used disposables exclusively or are more familiar with old school flats. And my try hard-ness makes me stubborn and defensive when it comes to decisions that I've made outside the norm. 

I recently took a road trip with my parents (sans MisterKidd), the first one ever with my girls. Road tripping with two under two is no easy task no matter how much help you have, especially without my duck dynasty look alike, who knows our routines well. And I was determined to use cloth on the trip. I am comfortable using it. No, it's not a hindrance. Yes, we will have to stop more, but that's just how it is. I. Will. Not. Bend. 

We were not even 45 minutes from home on our 9 hour drive when the first leak happened, as they often do in the car seat (hey, I never said cloth diapering was without it's struggles). 

Brianna's Three Second Internal Monologue:

"Ugh. Why is this happening? I double stuffed the pocket. I used bamboo because it's extra absorbent. Now they willl continue to think cloth diapers suck. It's up to me to advocate for the entire cloth diapering community, and I've let them all down. I have so much to prove. But 9 hours of stopping every 45 minutes equals...way more than 9 hours. Plus we will have to stop so I can nurse Baby Sister. Ok, fine."

You see, my try hard family is also a super logical family. Seriously, if logical thinking were an Olympic sport, MisterKidd could fill the bathtub with gold medals. 

It didn't make sense to stop that often, deal with the leaks that were bound to happen, and tbh, I didn't want to have to wash and care for my dipes on vacation.

I let go of some pride and got diapers that would be used once and then thrown in the trash. And it was so freeing. Not because I truly hate CD's or because I secretly wish we bought disposables regularly, but because I was making the best decision for my kiddos in that situation and letting go of my pride. Nobody wants wet pants for 9 hours straight. 

A few days later (after an incident in which two different tables were rude to me at a restaurant for having a crying baby and breastfeeding said baby) my mom dropped this little nugget of wisdom: 

"You don't have enough time to stand up to everybody. You are too busy raising kids."

That was it. I will stick this in my pocket for whenever I get fired up about breastfeeding and delayed cord clamping. Do I think these decisions are best for my children (and yours)? Yes. Is it the end of the world if you don't and I do? Not in the slightest. Do I have to personally school every rude old lady on why breastfeeding should be normalized? No. I just want to feed my kids, diaper their bottoms, and teach them to be adults in the world with me. Just like most everybody else. 

(This post was supposed to be called...) Justification for Sin, Brought to you by the Internet

I was on Facebook before bed last night, just a-scrollin', when I came across an article from Huffington post called "Dear Mom on the iPhone: You're Doing Fine." 
http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/5648388 
Above the link was a picture of a mom on a park bench.  The photo was taken from behind, but the posture of a woman looking down at her phone was unmistakable. 

A quick glance at this title and this picture was all it took for me to get that twinge of annoyance, and I felt myself begin to climb onto my soap box.

I have many soap boxes, or "hills to die on," which is a common symptom of being part of a try hard family. This particular box is called "Dear Internet: Stop building comraderie amongst those who fall into a certain sin and giving them fuel for the justification of said sin in their lives through touching blog posts."

When I saw that title and that picture, I was reminded of the time we took our big girl to the park with a new, shiny, red ball. [Note: do not take toys to the park that you do not expect to share with random children.] Not five minutes after arriving, a little boy zoomed by and tried to slap the ball out of my hands. I was shocked! The callousness of this five year old! Where was his mother? On her phone. Smh (retroactively). Later, this same child caught the ball mid-throw and ran from MisterKidd as he asked for it back. Mother's location and status: bench, phone.

This open letter to moms on phones at parks reminded me of that experience and my annoyance with mothers (and fathers) who aren't intentional with their children. A day at the park is the perfect opportunity to connect with your little ones and make memories. This mom was squandering an opportunity to hang out with her bad little boy. 

Furthermore, I was frustrated with the fact that the Internet has become a place where misery can find all sorts of company and one wrong man can find a whole host of friends. After reading this article, that mom on the phone at the park will feel justified in her actions and never repent of this nasty neglect. 

So I reached the top of my box, chest out, shoulders back, nose high in the air, and typed this title for my blog post:

Justification for Sin, Brought to you by the Internet

And then I thought, "I'll read the article, just for kicks."

[insert embarrassed emoji here]

The premise of the article was "don't judge the mom on the phone." Basically, it was another valiant effort in the campaign against the "mommy wars," which are true and real and lie deep inside all of us mommies. 

This mom could have been working, checking in with a friend, or just getting a brain break with a few levels of Candy Crush. She could have been doing the "Watch this, Mommy!" dance all morning and just needed a minute while her kiddo played. 

Chest deflated, shoulders slumped, head hung, I'm climbing down from this box and onto another, a more beneficial and necessary box called, "Be humble, show grace, and stop being mean because parenting is so hard."

So here's my own little note to that mom whose little boy was terrorizing us at the park:

Dear Mom of Bad Little Boy,

Happy Saturday.  Kudos for taking your kid to get some fresh air. He's been in the classroom all week and needed to release some energy. You work hard, too, and it's good to get out of the house together. 

I know you're working on manners right now. Just like any other skill we teach our kids, it's so hard to stay on top of. It seems like every moment is another opportunity to teach, none can slip by, and you can't find a minute to rest your mind when you're together, or all consistency will fly out the window.

I'm sorry I didn't offer to let him play ball with us. I'm sorry I didn't go over to chat with you while our kids played together. I'm sorry I judged your entire family from one hour at the park.

I don't know your journey or your struggles because I didn't ask. You are probably trying hard, just like me. 

"And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak,

be patient with them all."

1 Thessalonians 5:14

Have you ever had an "I'm better than you" moment and later got a serious wake up call? Tell me about it in the comments.