Gotta pin it down!

I am going crazy trying to make the decision about homeschool curriculum for our next year of homeschooling. I am thinking about going the expensive route and just buying the ABeka kit for kindergarten and first grades. Kinder doesn't really have anything for science and social studies and stuff so I am thinking about doing it with both Elijah and Layton using the First grade stuff. Then as they progress I can just teach them both at the same time for most subjects except Math and Reading. This is not the DVD kit just the books and manuals. It may help that when I taught school my favorite math curriculum we used was ABeka.

There are just soooo many choices out there. I hate it. Right now though I just need it to be easy. All of it together. I think. I am still debating on just ordering Reading and Math through ABeka and then maybe using something like the units from Konos (http://www.konos.com/ ) AAAAGGGHHH!!! At least when I taught I had some curriculum handed to me and I figured out in my own room how to go from there adding my own little twist to it. I just don't want to be flip flopping from one curriculum to another EVERY year. I started out with Sing, Spell, Read, Write this past year with Layotn and we just didn't do very well with it. I really want to find something I can stick to and have some consistency for the kids in it.

I think that one day I would like to write curriculum so you think I would find time to do research and put my own together right now. BUT my stay at home brain is fried right now with 4 little kiddos 7 and younger and John traveling so much. I just need it nicely researched and handed to me.

I am really excited about this book that I am reading entitled "Managers of their Homes: a Practical Guide for Daily Scheduling for Christian Homeschooling Families." It really is amazing. It can be found at http://www.titus2.com/. It reminded me why as a classroom teacher with 22 children I could accomplish so much. There was a plan with small little blocks of time to write in EVERYTHING you needed to do. And you followed it or you got totally lost. And if things got off track one day you just gradually got back on track because every other day had a schedule. MOST importantly chapter two says...if you can't schedule a quiet time you can't schedule anything. DUH!! I have needed that reminder. I have been trying to just do it when I thought about it or when there was time. When is there time with a 7 month old, 3 year old, 5 year old and 7 year old in the house. You would think when they went to bed but sleep always seems to be the priority...at least when John is home. When he is out I fall into the rut of sitting in front of the TV so I don't feel so alone. Trying not to do that tonight. Trying to clean up so I can have some fun time with the kids before John gets home tomorrow afternoon. YIPPEE!!! And I am doing better on my quiet time. I am doing it before bed every night. NOT ideal but better than none at all. I am working on developing a schedule for our home that includes homeschooling, home chores, play time, individual spent with each child and some ME time. It can be done but it is gonna take some wisdom far beyond my own. Good thing I am reading in Proverbs about wisdom.