What do they do all day?

I am fairly new to the homeschool scene. In the short time that I have been homeschooling I have had some people ask: What DO you do all day? So here a little sample ofa typical day here at Clan Morrison Homeschool.

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Fridays:
4:30 am- I awake and go to the gym for my morning workout.
6:00 am- I come home and get Mike up and off to work. I clean up anything that wasn't cleaned the night before and start breakfast.
7:00 am- I get Jordan up first and feed him breakfast.
8:00 am or so- I get the Conor and Emma up if they're not up already.
8:30 am- We start school.
1030 -11 am- We usually finish school around this time. Sometimes we watch a documentary.
11:30 am- Time for lunch.
12:30 pm- Quiet time. Its time for naps and just being quiet.
2:00 pm- We go pick up the other "extra" kids from school.
3:00 pm- We get back from getting the kids and start any homework they have.
4:00 pm- I start picking up and getting ready for Mike to get home.
5:30 pm- Other kids leave, I start dinner and we start winding down for the evening. We take this time to talk about our day and watch our shows or whatever.
8:30 pm- Conor and Emma's bedtime. Mike reads a story and get them situated.
9:00 pm- Jordan's bedtime. He takes care of himself. This is also the time Mike and I lay down to talk or watch a show.

Some days are spent differently. I don't have a set schedule when its our "off" time and on Wednesdays its a little different because I clean for my mom. I also try to take several field trips a month. Whether its the park or the zoo or something special I try to get out as much as possible. We use our front porch a lot.

With that said we've had some hiccups along the way. Nothing is perfect or ever goes perfectly to plan. I like having a schedule set up but there are days where it goes out the window. I like getting up early to get things done before everyone else. Some may think its selfish for me to go the gym first thing, vanity and all, but as the one who does the majority of the housework, pays the bills, makes the menu, does all the grocery shopping and takes care of the laundry I think taking care of my body is just as important if not more so than housework. 

I really like being home all day with the kids even though I may complain about it. There are days where all I feel like is someones maid, cook or servant. Homeschooling is a challenge but few things worth it are easy. I'm not saying anything bad about those who don't homeschool please don't think that. I'm just saying that it works for us and I wouldn't have it any other way.

First 6 weeks Down

We finished the first six weeks about a month ago but Im just now taking the time to sit down and talk about it.

We started school in mid-July. I had everything ready. I had plans to start Conor on pre-school but we havent progressed very far. I can get to that more in a bit. We started out the school year pretty strong. We had a few set backs and have taken less field trips than I would have liked but all in all the first 6 weeks were good. I use a free homeschool tracking system that lets me grade his work and track it too. Jordan did good for the first 6 weeks. Averaging A's and B's. I know a lot of homeschool families dont use grades for various reasons. I like to use them because it gives me a clear vision of how hes progressing. If hes passing the tests I feel like hes "getting it."

As far as Conor goes we started out okay but he slowly lost interest in what we were doing. About a month after we started school I started a babysitting job. The boy that Im watching during the day is 3 1/2. He is really not interested in school so Ive just been letting Conor and him play. For now that is working. I have some hooked on phonics stuff and some websites I plan on using in the next few months for him.

My husband and I had a long discussion about whether or not I should be homeschooling the kids into highschool. He thinks that I wont be able to do it because I dont know high level math and science. But I am trying to get into a local homeschool group to have help in this department. I truly believe this is what I am supposed to be doing. Hes also concerned about them having a childhood. I told him that compared to most homeschooled children my kids get a lot more than others. I try to make a point to get out as often as I can. Winter will be a little challenging because of the weather but I still want to get out and do things. Thats why I want to join the group. They have all kinds of activities and parties and such. All ages and lots of fun. I dont want my kids stuck in the house or only in the backyard. Theres a whole world out there I want to explore it.

Well thats the first 6 weeks. Ill try to get the next 6 weeks down as soon as we get done. That should be around the first of November or so.