Welcome 2018!
Our Year of Learning in 2017 was a great success. There wasn't really much to measure it by--we didn't have specific challenges or adventures to check off, but the overall goal for the year was to pursue learning and education, and we certainly did that!
Kate started homeschooling, which was a big learning experience for our whole family. She is officially a kindergartner, enrolled with Inspire Charter school, where we do most of our learning at home, and personalize her other classes based on her interests. She attends an Enrichment Academy once a week which is like a few hours of "regular school". It's all homeschool kids and they work on reading, cultural projects, math, writing, and art. They have recess and bring backpacks, etc. Kate also attends the Love of Learning homeschool co-op here in Rocklin once a week where she takes a Kinder Creators class and a Learning with Legos class. She LOVES her teachers and has been making new friends. Between homeschool and primary classes at church, Nora and Avery are the friends I hear about the most.
Edwin isn't officially in school yet, but he homeschools right along with us. :) I make projects that will go along with Kate's but be more at his skill level. Edwin likes watching Kate work on her ABC Mouse or Math Seeds lessons (online subscriptions for learning games). Counting, tracing letters, art, cooking, and gymnastics are just a few of the things he really enjoys participating in.
Jon started off this last year looking for work. We had just moved back from Idaho and needed something desperately. He found a job at Placer Title in May, and has mainly been focused on working there since. He did begin a PhD program in September of 2017, but priorities were quickly shifted and he withdrew his enrollment a month later. Learning full-time through a formal program is just not where our family needs are at right now. We were disappointed that he would have to give up the PhD, but the individual learning, reading, and growing from home can always continue. Jon just finished designing the fourth issue of the From Sac literary journal, and has a full non-fiction novel draft in the editing process.
Steph started off last year working two part-time jobs and working out at a gym, doing yoga and trying to pursue a teacher training program. While at the gym she was able to participate in a nutrition workshop and learn how to meet her goals of becoming a nutrition coach. She signed up for Precision Nutrition's certification program in October, and has not been able to complete a chapter yet. It's been very discouraging. Thankfully it's a "work-at-your-own-pace" online program.
During the summer of 2017 we moved into a different rental house, living with Steph's mom, we started homeschooling, and Steph has been working part-time on and off all year. Family budgeting changes and time management put the serious yoga pursuits on hold (going to a studio/gym and paying for a teacher training is just not feasible), and while Jon has continued to look for better work, we are sort of stuck, making do with what we have. It has slowed us down, but hasn't completely squashed all hope for educational progress.
I think we learned the most this year personally, and about our family. 2017 was a hard year of just "getting by". It didn't feel like we were really moving forward in any direction. Maybe a little bit backward, and laterally. It felt a lot like scrambling to survive. But landing in a stable place was ultimately the goal. And we're in a place where we can develop routine, so that's nice. We're looking forward to 2018 getting back to goals and being able to focus on something else other than where we're going to live and how we're going to pay for it.
Steph has some potential sewing classes in the works and gets her braces off in a few months! Hopefully a YTT will turn out to be accomplishable before December. ;)
Jon is teaching Paper Arts one day a week at the Love of Learning center and has a Creative Writing collaboration class coming up in the fall. We're excited about getting more involved with the homeschool community we have found.
Kate has told us that she is never ever going to quit gymnastics (although she has seemed to recently develop a fear of heights) so we will see where her interests continue to grow! She is getting better at writing and reading--all at her own pace! She has also told us for years now that she wants to play the drums, and thankfully we know a really good local teacher. ;)
Edwin is finding his loves and growing a ton. He is comfortable at gymnastics, which has been a huge breakthrough! He has also recently reverted back to taking a nap every day, which NOBODY is sad about! He will be 4 in a couple months, and I can't believe my baby is so big. :'( His "most favorite" present from Christmas was a "little bee-tar" (little guitar, aka ukulele). We're excited for music lessons in Kate and Edwin's near future. :D
Thanks for following along with our little family while we figure everything out. We hope you all are having a beautiful start to the New Year!
Family Theme of 2018, announcement soon ;)
