This week has marked our first "official" week back to school. If you ask many homeschooling parents they will tell you that the learning never really ends though. So far this week, we have been on schedule, completed our work and even had time for a field trip of sorts.

Yesterday was great, a day for all of the homeschoolers to get together, a chance for the kids to see each other and for the moms to reconnect. Share the latest and greatest finds and plan for the year. We had a few new to home school moms. All with that same look that I had last year. The one that says " can I do this" , "am I covering everything", "will I screw this up". I was able to pass along the same advice I received. It will all be fine, just breath and remember that nothing is permanent if something that you are trying doesn't work don't be afraid to change it. Now at the time this didn't help a lot but now some time later I realize that it was true.

One of our main topics of discussion was what everyone was using, where do we find our resources etc. So I thought I would link up some of my favorites here:

Resources -

http://www.freelyeducate.com/

Reading - Tommy Tales Reading -http://www.learningpage.com/pages/ewe_books/ewebooks_printable.html

Spelling - Spell by Color - http://mysite.verizon.net/jetted4/spelling.htm
Handwriting – CurrClick – downloaded handwriting packets

Classic Science - Life Science - http://www.eequalsmcq.com/ClassicScienceLife.htm

Americas Heritage an adventure in Liberty - http://americanheritage.org/AHEF_Elementary_Binder_08_National_2008.pdf

I have purchased the Full Curriculum books From Brain Quest as well as Comprehensive Curriculum of Basic Skills

Worksheets and Lesson Plans:

http://www.learningpage.com/

http://www.learningpage.com/free_pages/ewe_preview.html

http://ancientfaith.com/podcasts/series/the_chronicles_of_narnia



Planning and Tracking:

http://www.currclick.com/product_info.php?products_id=2174&it=1

http://www.themasterplanner.com/

http://www.vertex42.com/calendars/academic-calendar.html

http://www.homeschoolskedtrack.com

Many people say change is good. Others would rather die than make a change. Change can mean adventure or it can mean disappointment. I believe that change is inevitable. Everything changes, nothing stays the same. I feel like I have been in a perpetual state of change for a while. Changes in myself, changes in my family and changes in our situation. One of the first major changes was deciding to remove the twins from public school and becoming a homeschooling family. We started last February and continued through June. I can say with a large amount of surprise and much delight that thing went way better than I expected. We became casualties of a bad economy and dwindling job force and after barely hanging on for 6 months my husband was let go from his job. So now we are anticipating more changes, we are job hunting and possibly relocating, which will bring its own set of changes. Being somewhere new far away from where we've been for the last 15 years. Leaving friends and most importantly our "Patchwork" family behind. Figuring out how to survive with out my best friend and the kidlets who are like my own. Trying to meet the new changes as an adventure and not a fate worse than death. There are advantages to moving. Finding a stable good paying job in this economy is a miracle in itself. Being in a climate that is not nearly as hot and dreadful as here. The kids are excited about possibly having their first winter with snow. Meeting new people. Being closer to family and spending more time with their Grandmother who has stage 4 cancer and enjoying the time they have left with her. There are always going to be changes and it doesn't matter if we welcome them or not the are inevitable after all.

So this week we will be returning to school with a fresh routine and new outlook. Hubby will be traveling for his interview and we will be hoping that this will be the change we need most. My biggest change will be how I greet the changes not with fear or dread but with peace and calm knowing that how I handle the change sets the tone for everyone else. I will keep telling every one that "it will all be fine", "everything will work out" and "the only thing that matters is that we are all in this together". And once I have built their confidence, calmed their fears and soothed their souls, I will retreat to my quiet place and go about convincing myself of the same thing.

You never know what lies beyond the doorway if you do not open it and walk through it.

I was so excited when I was recently chosen to be a member of the Carmex Blog Squad. You see my son and husband are both addicted to Carmex! We can't keep it in the house! When my Package for review arrived I was blown away !
Carmex sent a fabulous Travel Bag filled with Goodies!






With a little help from vitamin E and aloe, Carmex Moisture Plus™ lip balm helps nourish and moisturize lips leaving them so kissably soft they will be hard to resist. Carmex Moisture Plus™ also contains 15spf to protect your lips while you are outdoors! I love the tinted version it is a perfect replacement for lipstick!



New! Carmex Healing Lotion – Use daily to soothe and protect dry skin. Non-grainy with a pleasant scent. Contains aloe and vitamin E. Us this anywhere skin feels dry, daily use will help protect and keep dryness away. Rich healing ingredients including Vitamin E, nourish and moisturize skin. This lotion is amazing! It nourishes the driest of skin. It is very silky and smooth with no greasy residue!



This fantastic kit came with an assortment of Carmex Lip Balm tubes, sticks and jars as well as 3 Carmex Moisture Plus sticks and one each of the Healing Lotion and Healing Cream. The bag very roomy and it came with 2 cute zipper pouches. This kit is valued at $53 and guess what? I get to give one away to one lucky reader!

How to Enter!
Leave a comment telling me if you use Carmex products and which ones. If you don't use them, tell me which ones you would most like to try!

Extra Entries

* Like Carmex on Facebook(1 entry)
* Follow Carmex on Twitter (1 entry)
* Follow me through Google Friend Connect (1 entry)
* Follow me on Twitter @busymom3 (1 entry)

Make sure to leave a separate comment for the entries you complete!

Deadline: Sunday, November 14 at 11:59 pm cst. I will use random.org to pick the winners so everyone has a chance to win. Please leave your email address in your comment so that I can contact you! The winner will have 48 hours to reply back before I draw a new winner. Giveaway is open to US residents only who are 18 years of age or older.Odds of winning depending on number of entries!

Todays Back to Blogging assignment is to re-upload a post that you wish more people had read and explain why it was important to you.

This post reminds me that even when you think all hope is lost, when you feel as though you are ready to give up that you never know what lies ahead of you. I experienced an honest to God miracle and I am fortunate to have two very special reminders that no matter what anything is possible.
When I was struggling to have children I felt so alone and isolated. I didn't know anyone who was going through infertility and I didn't have anyone that could understand how much I wanted to be a mother. I wrote this post for several reasons one was to celebrate the twins and the other was so that just maybe someone that was going through a difficulty or struggle would be able to find hope in my experience.

Heckle and Jeckle and realizing that somethings are
meant to be~

The one thing that I always knew I wanted to do in life was be a mom. After years of struggles and issues and having my sweet little Rorie I managed to get pregnant again. However, the universe had other plans and my sweet little angel was never meant to be mine. I still remember very vividly the pain and despair I felt, the loss that still goes with me sometimes. I had never before nor since felt that kind of pain and those closest to me know that I completely fell apart. My life and marriage was in shambles and then September 11 happened and every ones lives were turned upside down, things that seemed important evaporated in the aftermath and something else happened too. Those of us that were on the outside looking in were able to count our blessings and put our lives in order. In November my Husband started talking about trying to have another baby. I was against it, I was still having such a hard time coping with the feelings of my lost little baby, November was when my baby would have been born and I was so afraid to try again. After the first of the year hubs began to bring it up again and I was still very resistant. Valentines day was quickly approaching and Hubs was getting more persistent I told him I had no desire to go through the medicine and shots the rigorous schedules the temperature taking and tracking. So I gave in on a few conditions it was a one shot deal I agreed to try one more time. No medicine, no charts, absolutely nothing and if it didn't work I would never try again. I can honestly say I just knew it wouldn't work, Hubs had the flu and I had no idea if I could even ovulate on my own so I was feeling pretty confident at that point that I would have RoRo as my one and only. This is the point in which God laughed and I don't mean chuckled, I mean fell on the floor rolling around nearly pee your pants laughing, because a few weeks later I threw up and not just once. So of course the husband runs to the store to buy the pee test at which point I was furious because Lord knows I had single-handedly kept EPT in business for years and you can't buy just one so he came home with several. I waited a few days and convinced myself it was a stomach flu until I was late. So I took the tests all of them and the all came out positive. I was in shock and scared. I knew not to get my hopes up so I called the doc and went in for the tests. The first blood tests showed very low numbers so I was prepared for the worst and over the next two weeks I went in every few days for more blood work and on the final day Doc says, I think we need an ultrasound. I thought to myself, here we go again. We got ready, got a baby sitter for Ro and went to the Doctor. I assumed the position on the table and the hubby grabbed a chair and in comes the sweet little ultrasound tech and finds the babies, yes I said babies, there were originally three but there sat in my belly two little heartbeats strong and healthy. Needless to say Hubs nearly passed out and all I could do was cry there they were my two little babies. After a difficult pregnancy and a tense seven months my babies were born my little man at 5lbs and 6oz and my princess Lyla 3lbs and 1 oz. We were so blessed, they were able to come home after only two weeks even though everyone thought it would be months, they defied the odds. In just a few weeks they will be 7 years old. It doesn't seem like seven years. They are amazing little people . They are funny and infuriating, strong and sensitive they are each others opposites. They have balance and they bring us all more entertainment than anyone should have. And each time I look at them I remind myself that no matter how bad something seems, you never know what waiting around the corner for you and that there is so much truth in the saying, "When one door closes, another one opens".




This post is written to play along with SITS and their Back to Blogging event.
If you would like to join in then stop by and link up!

This week, I will be taking a look back at what got me blogging in the first place and get back to the root of blogging and that is making connections with people.
There is a contest to try and win a Turquoise Sky Washer and Dryer from Electrolux. Which I desperately need since I have just gone through my third washer this year!

This event is sponsored by SITS, Standards of Excellence, Westar Kitchen and Bath, and Florida Builder Appliances.

My First Post

Posted by Busymomsteph at 5:08 PM July 14, 2009

I have always wanted to be a mom, I was always the one that would rather be holding a baby than playing with my friends. We tried for a while with no luck to get pregnant and the after finally finding a couple of amazing doctors, just when I was ready to give up and accept that I would never have my own children I found out that finally all of the tears, prayers, injections, and meds I was finally going to have what I had been waiting on my whole life.

In May of 1999 I was inducted into this crazy fraternity called motherhood. After many years of hoping, wishing and praying my beautiful little girl made her entrance into this world kicking and screaming something she still hasn't grown out of. This amazing person that surprises me each day. She is funny, infuriating, creative, intelligent, all of these things that I can't believe I helped to create.

In September of 2002 my fate was sealed when my Twins came along and completed our family. They couldn't wait and arrived 2 months early but after only two weeks in the NICU they were able to come home. They are amazing, they fight, laugh, kick and scream at each other but still can't stand to be away from each other either.

My husband teases me all of the time saying that I collect kids like most people collect shoes. I have become the mom that all the kids come to, so now I have 12 co-children that call me NeeNee..I love this family that we have built, it is everything that I have every wished and hoped for.

I decided to start this blog as a way to keep of with all that goes on. My memory has not been very reliable and there are so many things that I want to pass on.

Last week I found out that I most likely have Multiple Sclerosis, I have been going down hill for the last 9 years. I have been to so many doctors and had so many tests and have not been able to find out for sure. I will not know if I finally have the correct diagnosis until I get in with a specialist. It was odd, I feel relieved almost because once we know for sure I will be able to better manage my life. I mostly feel guilty, I don't want my kids to grow up and feel cheated or like I have been a burden to them. My plan is to pull myself up by my bootstraps put on my big girl panties and make the most out of the good days.

When I first started blogging I really just wanted a place to keep up with life in general. I was going through alot health wise and needed an outlet. So here I am a little over a year later. I have gotten on and off the blog wagon several times. I found out I don't have MS which is great, but in the last year, I have found out I have a Pituitary Tumor, Thyroid Tumors, Fybrosistitis on my Eye Muscles and many other random things. I still don't have a difinitive diagnosis. I am trying desperately to live each day and not get bogged down in all of the illnesses.

My kids are still amazing and challenging, they are my world. This year I became a Macaroni Kid Publisher Mom. I love it. I think the one thing I would change about my blogging is defintely getting back on track I am excited about this challenge I think its just what I need to get back to blogging!


This post is written to play along with SITS and their Back to Blogging event.
If you would like to join in then stop by and link up!

This week, I will be taking a look back at what got me blogging in the first place and get back to the root of blogging and that is making connections with people.
There is a contest to try and win a Turquoise Sky Washer and Dryer from Electrolux. Which I desperately need since I have just gone through my third washer this year!

This event is sponsored by SITS, Standards of Excellence, Westar Kitchen and Bath, and Florida Builder Appliances,