To them it's called play, to me, it's called work!

So my advice to ME, and to whoever else out there in blog world can use it; play while it's still play and hope that it never becomes work!!!!!! Maybe I should be writing this post for the kids! (Anyone under the age of 30) For the rest of us though, we have to work 5x as hard to do what children do easily through natural play! Truly, they are my teachers in so many ways. All I have to do is watch and listen and I learn so much about so many things. I love being a mom!

My girls love to join me in my yoga (non religious) practice. I can not help but be amazed when I watch their ease and agility to do something that brings puddles of sweat from me! They just look at me and grin. I know they love 'showing me up.' And they do a great job at it!

Ahhh, the energy of youth.

Me, in a tree? Upside down on a trampoline? Yeah right!

Yoga, naturally for children

I love seeing my kids moving. Especially of their own initiative. Getting our bodies moving is so good for our minds, bodies, and spirits. I must admit though that it is yoga I prefer for my girls. No intense pounding, jumping, stress, or beating up of our bodies as other workouts can bring or even some sports. It's not competitive at all and that's nice. They can feel good about where they are at the moment and know that yoga is a practice and each day brings new beginnings. In this, patience and acceptance is also being learned. My older girls love practicing yoga as well as my younger ones and I am of course the very encouraging mom! I love it myself. In fact, as of late I have been slowly giving up my more intense workouts and trading them in for yoga. (except for Jillian's new kickboxing workout. love it) I have been looking into yoga and the benefits of it more seriously lately than I have ever done and I am impressed with what I'm learning. Especially when it comes to yoga for children.

It helps relieve stress, increases energy, enhances concentration, (we really need that!) it builds strength and focuses on the overall body. We have found some really need yoga dvds at the library for kids and they are a hit. Children are naturally very flexible but in some things they might not be using correct positions which could in time result in structural imbalance. One of the dvds uses songs, stories, games and even animal poses to teach yoga to children. As children regularly practice yoga it gradually brings a respect and awareness of their bodies and encourage them to have the desire to take care of themselves which of course leads to healthier little bodies as they grow. I have seen it my own children since they began practicing. One thing I am hearing often when served a beverage or food is, "Is it all natural and good for me?" As a mom I love the awareness that they are getting and the desires to take care of their bodies and truly seeing them as the temple of God and actually wanting to take care of themselves.

For some folks, yoga is also a form of worship. For us, when it comes to yoga our girls are taught of the benefits that the practice of yoga can bring to their minds and bodies. Such as, endurance, relaxation, strength, flexibility, and focus. We are careful to choose dvds that do not go into the spiritual aspect that some practices of yoga bring. Because in the end, all things are brought back into one in the Lord and for that reason is why we do all that we do. To bring honor and glory to Him.

We found this really fun book at our library and the littler girls can be seen during the day lying on the floor, book open, mats out, and trying to imitate the poses. Yoga with stories.

May was here, but now it's gone!

April came and went, and now MAY? Really? I can't believe how time flies! I tried to capture May as well as I could. The month of May made for, so far, 4 really sick kids. One boy and 3 girls were down. But of course, as usually happens, not at the same time. It has been a weird thing for sure. Extremely sore throats and bad headaches. As of right now I have 2 more that are in the beginning stages of what will most likely last 5-7 days if previous history repeats itself. Sleepless nights, cups of warm lemon and honey, cold wash cloths on foreheads, and of course the usual crying and discomfort that come to children when they are under the weather. Praying for better health for June!

Big sister Makenzie giving loves to sister Mary.

Tea parties are a constant around our home. With 5 young girls you can't have too many! Mostly our tea consist of juice, chocolate milk, or as in this case, a warm, (not hot) cup of organic chamomile herb tea with a spoon of honey and pumpkin muffins.

Our Miss Kaydee made these amazing little cakes for one of our teas this month. The light glaze on the top was the perfect touch!

My boys made the best calzones ever! Emma whipped up some pizza dough for them but the rest was done by the 'expert' hand of these guys! They learned how to make them while in CO from their cousin Derek. They loved them so much that now they make them about once a week! Pizza dough, pepperoni and cheese. Roll up and spread melted butter and garlic on top and bake them. They informed me that now they like pizza without sauce!

My little silly face maker can drop anywhere, anytime! I know it wouldn't work for me!

Mary has been and still is our official silly face creator!

I don't even think Aaron noticed his little sister Mary playing games with him until he was ready to get up and move to another room! I'm amazed to see how some things don't even faze a person. Aaron being the strong boy that he is can easily handle the game his sister is playing.

And here are my sweet twins all dressed up and ready for their very first church dance. We teased one of the older boys that they should 'escort' his little sisters but he got embarrassed and teased back. However, he did go and enjoy himself but I'm sure there was no escorting going on!!

Ah, our first homemade summer butter batch. Not as yellow as June or July butter but it turned out wonderful. Next time I think I will sour the cream and try a cultured batch. But no matter the color it tasted delicious on this bread!

EEEEKS! Makenzie just HAD to take a picture of me the other day when I finished on the treadmill. She told me I looked like a combat soldier wearing that 20lb weight vest. I only wore the vest for 1 mile out 5 and I was sooooo ready to get it off. I kept saying, hurry, hurry, snap it and be done! It made her smile that I put it on my blog. As for me, it made me blush!

These books have been so fun. It's been interesting reading about homes and kitchens from the past. Times have come a long way since then.

The view from my chair!

This is my first attempt at mobile blogging. And what better post can there be for the first mobile blogging experience? Nothing other than a view from my comfortable chair as I watch seven active children working out all at the same time!! I was having the best time watching all the arms and legs flying and listening to huffing and puffing. Truly an enjoyable way to spend 1/2 hour of my day!

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Oops! I was caught so red handed!

The Homeschool Mother's Journal

For the week of Feb. 13 - Feb. 17th, 2012

In my life this week....I have had more time to read to the kids than normal and I am really enjoying it. I have been enjoying this even more than reading books I am personally interested in. I sometimes struggle with staying focused and on track with all the things on my plate but as of late I have been praying for more focus and I'm seeing the fruits of those prayers everyday. In the end there is only so much that matters and that is the time I spend with my kids; in reading to them, taking time to train them, instruct them in their homeschool lessons, having quality chat time, and enjoying doing activities together. There can be so many distractions that take us away from our families and I have been determined to fine tune my attention to the best of my ability towards home and hearth.

In our homeschool this week....I'm proud to say that I actually got some handicraft projects incorporated into our days. I should rephrase that - A handicraft project!

We had 5 of them but one must have taken up legs and walked off!

A peek at our classical writing class. The model looks a bit rough around the edges but much work goes into these! We identify all of the parts of speech throughout the week by circling, underlining, checking, etc. Each week we focus on a different Aesop's Fable as our model to analyze. We cover vocabulary, spelling, dictation, copywork, parts of speech, elocution as each child reads aloud their model and we go on to discuss the fable in depth and talk about how we can apply it to our own lives. Each of the children has their own copy to "mess up." On the right Janai colored her picture of Abraham from out lesson in Christian Studies.

Helpful homeschooling tips or advice....Here's a 'tip' for a couple of the very best artsy type books I have found. They are full to the brim with awesome ideas.

I am inspired by....My daughter Christie and her resolute faith in the Lord. She prays, she patiently waits and listens, then moves forward with a clear mind resolved to do the will of the Lord in her life! Something I am always foggy on. Waiting, hearing, knowing for sure.........

Places we're going and people we're seeing....This statement gets me every time! I'm sure every time I post my Homeschool Mother's Journal it will always stay the same. - Staying home! (Does the grocery store and church count as places we are going?)!!!!!!!!!!!

My favorite thing this week was....Watching 4 of my kids sweating it out with Jillian Michaels. Typically, only the boys workout but since they finished with P90X they've wanted to try something new so they started doing Jillian's workouts. The girls decided they'd jump in just for the fun.

What's working/not working for us....Setting aside ALL movie time until after dinner has been helping us a ton. We only have the abilities to watch movies of our choice which is great but not when one child finishes with their school and decides to watch a movie. That always interferes with the other kids. Just knowing there is a movie on somewhere creates a loss of attention. Even though the movie is on in another room. So now, NO movies until all school and chores are DONE!

Questions/thoughts I have....This one just kills me!! It's a new twist on the same ole story of trying to get a new roll of toilet paper changed out once one is empty. Around here we have a certain someone, or someones, not sure yet on the who is doing it. What happens is that once the roll is empty, the cardboard roll gets taken off and thrown away but then they put the holder back into place before putting another roll on it. And yes, 99% of the time there are fresh rolls on the shelf which sits right next to the holder. Yep, this one has me baffled for sure!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Things I'm working on....Making sure the motorcycle gets out of my dining room and doesn't return! Our son's new toy just could not possibly spend it's first night outside in the cold! He told me I was a being a good trooper to let him have the opportunity to sit and look at it without freezing his little b*m off outdoors! And of course everyone HAD to sit on it! I would like to add - First there is NO carpet in our house! Second, eons ago when hubby and I were first married and had 2 small children we lived on the bottom floor of a condo in Colorado. He bought a motorcycle and just couldn't bear leaving it outside all winter with no garage or anything and he brought it indoors. (after MUCH discussion, coaxing, and buttering up to me!) We had a second bathroom that was never used since our children were so small and one in diapers as well and I guess I really didn't see what it would hurt. You know what they say?The apple doesn't fall far from the tree!

I'm cooking/baking....Need I say more?

I'm grateful for....The latest small snowfall. We've not gotten nearly as much as we have in winters past and I worry about ground water come spring. We've still not had one day of sledding as the shortage of snow has made it impossible.

I'm praying for....Faith

A photo or quote to share - William Penn told the Russian Czar, Peter the Great, that "if thou wouldst rule well, thou must rule for God, and to do that, thou must be ruled by him." Penn also said that "those who will not be governed by God will be ruled by tyrants."

I've always loved this picture of oldest daughter and baby number 11

My new journey with yoga

There was a time not so very long ago that when I heard the word 'yoga' only one came to mind: HIPPIE!! I don't know why either, just some weird mindset I fell into. At any rate, once I began doing Jillian Michaels workout several months ago I was introduced to yoga through her Yoga Meltdown dvd. Either I'm now a 'hippie' or not I don't really know but I can sure tell you that I am a huge fan of the practice of yoga. Combined with weekly workouts of strength/circuit training and cardio workouts yoga adds a nice touch all on it's own. Even power yoga can feel like you've just done yourself the hugest favor you can do to your body!! Here are some of the many benefits the practice of yoga can give you:

Increasing flexibility

Increasing lubrication of the joints, ligaments, and tendons

Messaging of all the organs of the body

Complete detoxification

Excellent toning of the muscles

To read and understand how this can be visit the link HERE

But these enormous physical benefits are just a 'side effect' of this powerful practice. What yoga does is harmonize the mind with the body and this results in quantum benefits. It is now an open secret that the will of the mind has enabled people to achieve extraordinary physical feats,, which proves beyond doubt mind and body connection.

Yoga through meditation works remarkably to achieve this harmony and helps the mind work in sync with the body. How often do we find we are unable to perform our activities properly and in a satisfying manner because the confusions and conflicts in our mind weigh down heavily upon us? Moreover, stress which in reality is the #1 killer affecting all parts of our physical, endocrinal, and emotional systems can be corrected through the wonderful yoga practice of meditation.

In fact yoga = meditation, because both work together in achieving the common goal of unity of mind, body, and spirit - a state of eternal bliss. More on this HERE.

So I don't know all about the mental stuff going on with yoga (nor do I think I care!) but I can tell you that the physical benefits I have found by practicing it have been awesome. My husband and my children practice yoga as well but mainly for the health benefits of it. I have seen much improvement in many areas over the months of my yoga practice. My favorite yoga dvds, in fact the only ones we have tried are P90x yoga, Jillian Michaels Yoga Meltdown, Bob Harper's Warrior for the Yoga, and The Biggest Loser Weight Loss Yoga. All workouts are considered to be Power Yoga and are not typical of what we all think of when we think of yoga. Definitely some great workouts.