Fantastic New Homeschooling Resource!

First things first.  Logan is doing exceptionally well with homeschooling.  I know that pulling him out of public school was absolutely what he needed.  But I was at my breaking point.  I thought that I wanted to throw out every homeschool book that had ever been created and toss him back into the public school system next year stop homeschooling.  I was feeling like, if he was behind, it was my fault and the burden of my child's education rested solely on me.  And I tend to overanalyze and overreact so it was constantly over my head.

So I enlisted the help of my trusty 'ol Google and came upon a website:  www.time4learning.com
Let me just tell you.  It's amazing.  I feel like an enormous weight has been lifted off me.  Given, this was our first day using it but it was absolutely fantastic.  Logan actually wanted to do more school.  Now, that's definitely something he's never asked for before.  He's excited about tomorrow.


Here are some of my favorite perks:

• It's very inexpensive.  They're having a special now where it's $4 for the first month and $19 and some change for every month after.
• You can deactivate your child's account for summer or vacation and pay a reduced fee without losing any of their running academic records.
• They give you a running record of their grades on all completed activities.
• It's FUN for the kids!
• You can cancel at any time.
• It's very parent friendly.  Parents set the amount of time the child has to do schoolwork and when the time is up the child is permitted to play approved online games.
• Extremely easy to navigate.
• They provide the ENTIRE homeschool curriculum and lesson plan.  It's all in order.  It's completely organized and easy to use.
• The graphics are great.  They aren't cheesy, poorly photoshopped, clip art crap.  They're good, bright, colorful graphics that are fun to look at and keep my kid (and this is a challenge) engaged.

Now, this doesn't only have to be for homeschooling parents/children.  This would be something wonderful for a summer refresher for kids or even a supplement to another form of education (public/private school, etc..).  It's fun enough that the kids won't think they're doing work.

Anyway, just wanted to share my awesome find of the day.  Hopefully some of you (especially parents who are struggling just a bit with homeschooling their children) will be able to utilize it.

PARTY TIME!

Today my little boy turns six.  SIX.  I swear it feels like he should still be a baby.  The time just goes by too quickly.  He's growing up.  And what a fine fellow he's going to be.


So, in honor of his birthday I would like to share a few of the things that make my beautiful boy so special:

• He loves everyone.  He thinks everyone is beautiful in some way.  EVERYONE.  I have never once heard him make fun of someone or make someone feel less than awesome.
• He is the sweetest soul I have ever known.  He is so kind and empathetic.  If someone's feelings are hurt, so are his.  When a person cringes in emotional or physical pain, he cringes right along with them.  I've never met a kinder human being.
• He CARES about other people.  Like, when he says "How are you today?"  he really wants to know.  He isn't asking because it's socially expected.
• He doesn't like to get dirty.  Never has.
• He works below grade level but he works so incredibly hard.  It touches my heart to see how much of himself he pours into trying new things.
• He has a TON of energy.  He could make one of those English serious soldiers laugh any day.  I'm certain of it.  
• He thinks farts are hilarious.  As long as he's the one doing the farting.  Otherwise, they're atrocious.
• He is the best big brother a sibling could ever ask for.  If how he deals with big brotherhood is any indication of the kind of father he'll someday be, then I have to say he's going to have the most blessed kids on the planet.
• He's thoughtful.  He doesn't do something without thinking of someone else.  EX: When he was in public school the children got to go to the "Treasure Box".  He could have gotten one toy or two pieces of candy.  He REALLY wanted the toy but he got the candy so his sister could have some too.  
• I love to hear him pray.
• He rarely gets angry but when Laney ripped the story of Adam and Eve out of his children's Bible he screamed "NOW HOW ARE WE GOING TO KNOW HOW THE WORLD BEGAN?!?!?"
• He chooses his battles.
• He doesn't complain.
• He knows exactly what he wants and he sets and attains his goals.

He's a very special little guy, there's no doubt about it.  Happy Birthday Sweet Boy.