Preparing For School With An Ex-Super Mom & My Homeschool Schedule

(This article contains Nicholeen’s daily home and school schedule for this coming year & a video of how she makes a yearly plan forthe family.)

We have all heard the term “super mom” before. Some people have a positive association with the term. They think, “Wow, that lady is amazing. I want to be a super mom like her.” And, some have a negative association with the term. They think, “Oh, she’s one of those crazy super moms.”

Well, whether you love or hate the term, the idea does suggest something. Moms do a lot! Sometimes moms do too much and need to slow down and focus on what is most important.

Let’s face it, it is just too easy to run around all day and miss the “good stuff” in life; like reading with the children on the couch, playing games on the carpet, teaching a young one to sew, or painting at the park. These are the moments which bind us together. I have noticed for a long time that quality of time has a lot to do with quantity of time. In fact, without quantity, quality is frequently not as binding for the relationship.

I usually get a craving to do an inventory of my life with the change of each season. However, my two biggest inventories of the year happen in August to prepare for the school year, and in January to prepare for the New Year. If you are like me right now is the time to look at what needs to be focused on for the school year, what clubs or classes your child will be involved in, and what new responsibilities you want to take on to support family or community.

Having these regular inventory times keeps me analyzing what is really best for me and my family. It keeps us balanced.

Recently, I was able to hear Carl Wall talk about the the analogy of the wind mill. Mr. Wall talked about how those big wind mills we see making energy on the side of the roads are great examples for our lives. A few of his points were incredibly poignant. Carl Wall said:

“We are like the wind mills which create power…The wind is like the adversity in our lives….We must face it to generate power for ourselves and others…The blades of the mill must be exactly balanced to work properly…If they are not balanced the wind mill wrecks…We also need to have balance in our lives so that we don’t wreck…If we are out of balance we can’t create that much power…”

”Wind mills have breaks…They are only built to go so fast…If a wind mill goes too fast it doesn’t make as much power…The mills have breaks to make the most power possible…The slow turning creates power which others can use…We also, should not run faster than we have strength or we will not make as much usable power for ourselves and others around us…We need to apply the breaks for increased power…”

Here is a video of an out of balance or non-breaking wind mill wreck. I’m not sure which problem this wind mill had, but you get the idea.

Here is a video of me doing part of my preparing for school inventory, followed by some of the things we said no to this year and some of the things we decided were most important.

Things we said no to:

*I said no to two extra-curricular groups I have taught for a number of years.

*My husband said no to being the president of his singing organization.

*I decided not to direct a play this year.

*My children are saying no to some friend time because they are not going to be in as many extra-curricular groups and classes.

Things we said yes to:

*Lots more time together!

*We said we would be part of planning a family reunion for next year.

*We decided to have a Family History day. Every Thursday we are going to research our ancestors, learn about their lives, and what was happening in history when they were alive. It is our exciting approach to history.

*We decided to have a small Spanish group for my two youngest children.

*We decided to participate in Tiger Cubs for our youngest son.

*We decided to do more family camp trips

*We decided to go visit all of the counties in Utah for our Utah history/geography study and our field trip Fridays

*We decided to study World geography and do reports on a country or important world figure each month.

*We are having a family writing day each week when we share our writings and talk about it what can improve our writing.

*We are going to have a monthly family book discussion about one of the Family Books we are reading.

*Monday will be science day for the young ones.

*We are still going to sing a lot. We love singing as a family. Remember this one peck-family-sings-what-family-629

*We decided that evenings as a family need to be protected more.

These are the new things. Of course we do other regular things like music lessons and regular school stuff, getting Quin his driver’s license, and church stuff.

Our Daily Schedule

This is a copy of the Peck Family Schedule for 2011 – 2012. Of course it may vary from time to time. We realize it is important to take regular breaks from schedules to keep everyone feeling refreshed.

Take a look: Peck Family Schedule

Super Moms

I have a new take on super moms. Super moms are the kind of moms who do less of the social stuff to do more of the family stuff. Super moms are the kind who take time to consider and plan carefully before they commit the family to something time consuming. I am trying to be that kind of super mom. Not the kind who sees more of her car than her child’s face and hands. I’m not perfect yet, but as the years go by we find more and more happiness as a family as I keep my life in balance. When I am balanced the whole family becomes more powerful. Just like the majestic wind mills you see as you drive down the highway.

Buy Nicholeen’s book here.