I thought I'd need so little time for planning our homeschooling this year...and in a way, I do. But I thought having a head start would cause me to be done so much more quickly. I had a head start because I had way more material planned last year than we could have accomplished in three years. And I thought I didn't need to buy anything for this year, having been given much, having much leftover from Katie, and having bought a little workbook here and there when I'd seen them. In fact, I didn't really need to buy anything. So I didn't go to the homeschool curriculum fairs that happen every summer, and I thought I was safe. Then my friend Lanae wanted to go to the used curriculum store that's within a long day's outing from here. I have been there a few times, and she hadn't; it's her first year of homeschooling, so I was happy to take her there.
It went well. Her husband watched the boys, who were delighted to be together, and Lanae and I were free to peruse the way-overstuffed shelves at our leisure. I kind of like going to this place, if only because it makes our place look sparsely furnished in comparison. You almost have to tunnel through it to get to the stuff you want. They could triple the floor space and still have it plenty full. They always surprise me with the stuff aside from just books; there are video and audio tapes, computer games, maps, art supplies...you just have to see it to believe it. Going in that place was about as dangerous as a sewing store used to be for me back when I could imagine finishing a project I'd started. I still have too much fabric that I never started sewing!
There was one thing I was truly hoping to find, and I did; Plants Grown Up, which is a Scripture-based character-building book for boys. Tim won't likely be doing Awana this year, and this will be helpful in taking up the slack. I also found a small, simple publication that will make Washington State history much easier to cover. I found three historical music tapes that I'd always wanted when Katie was little and could never afford; they were cheap there. Tim loves these types of songs, so this will enrich the year's music appreciation and add some dimension to our history studies. There was also Geography Wizardry for Kids which is so full of wonderful social studies ideas. In addition, I bought about 8 missions biographies by publishers and authors I have come to appreciate, and a few study guides to go with some of them. All in all, it wasn't very expensive to buy all that I found, considering I will use most of it more than one year and it's most of what I bought for the year. I spent a little over $100 for all my stack of things. It will make this year that much more fun and interesting, and for this year's schooling costs, I know and appreciate that I'm getting off easy.
So I'm incorporating these things into this year's schedule, and while I love the fact that it makes the year that much more interesting for both of us, I'm not getting off as easy in my planning as I was hoping. But I am awaiting the start of the year with greater anticipation!
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