35 Weeks, Free Games, and more!

Time to link up Five Things for Friday!  Here is my list:

{1}

35 weeks.  We’ve made it to 35 weeks pregnant!  Six more days until our ultrasound, the one that is likely to send us into the NICU a month early.  We’re still praying God has intervened and Mason’s hydrocephalus has not increased so he can stay in the womb for a few more weeks.  Either way we’re feeling peaceful because God planned this all out long ago.  He’s got it covered, we’re just along for the ride.

{2}

Winter in a large family means weeks on end of sickness.  Seriously, no matter how much hand washing, sanitizing, bedding laundering, and doorknob scrubbing I do they share germs.  The worst is that instead of all coming down with something at the same time they spread it out.  One or two begin to recover from a week of illness and the next one or two get sick, only to be repeated by the rest in the following weeks.  Nobody even has to get sick twice and we can cover about two months.  It’s exhausting.  We haven’t really quit going to church we just refuse to bring our germs and share with the rest of the ward.  You’re welcome. 

{3}

Homeschool goes wonderfully.  I can’t always say that, but this week was great.  We’re well into Castle Diary with lots of narrations and notebooking depending upon age.  Math has been done.  Reading, writing, and so on – all done.  Sign language practiced. 

It helps that I know we’re winding down for a big break.  Whenever baby Mason arrives we take time off, sort of.  Confused yet? 

I’ve been working the last week to print out a mix of pages for my children to do with Grandma while I’m in the hospital for weeks.  She wants to keep the routine going and have something to help fill up some of the morning hours.  I’ve searched the depths of my computer files and the internet for fun yet educational pages. 

Makayla, for example, will have some critical thinking pages, analogies, and geometry.  Joseph and Emma have more of Starfall’s reading and writing journal, mazes, and patterning pages to name a few.  Daniel gets letters, shapes, and mazes. 

There are also other activities and games, art supplies, and fun.  So while official homeschool will cease for at least a month there will still be learning to do.  A change is as good as a break, right?  

{4}

We’re enjoying our Christmas ABC’s scripture study as a family.  We’ll be doing the letter P tonight and have found a routine – instead of telling the children the word for that night they have to listen closely to the scriptures we read to hear it knowing only the letter it starts with.  We’ve read a in all sorts of places but the favorite so far was out on the porch one night with the Christmas lights glowing.  It was a little chilly, but fun. 

{5}

I’ve just found hundreds of free educational online games, activities, quizzes, and articles for kids plus some games free to download for homeschoolers and educators at Sheppard Software.  It’s a treasure trove of fun to liven up learning!  I need to do a lot more exploring of this site over the weekend.