Wonderfully Abnormal Love for Golf

Golf does not come naturally to most people.  If you spend about 5 minutes with me on the course, it will be painfully obvious that I stink at golf.  I might fake it with my cute golf skirt and pink rolling bag, but the score card pretty much speaks for itself.  I'm terrible.  Mr. Wonderful is considerably better than I am when it comes to understanding and playing golf.  That said, you can get a pretty decent idea of what kind of hitter he was in baseball when you watch his golf swing (the ball is hit hard and everything veers to the left).  To sum it up, neither of us are quality golfers.  Yet somehow, we have a child who has a natural ability to swing golf clubs and hit balls.

Our oldest child has had this affinity for hitting golf balls since he was a year old and could swing his plastic Fisher Price clubs. At the time we thought it was so cute that we bought him his first set of real golf clubs for his second birthday.  We were those crazy parents who would take their toddler to the driving range.  Again, it was so cute to watch him swing and hit the balls. I don't think we realized the significance of the fact that our toddler was making contact and actually hitting balls like a real golfer.  When he turned 4, we noticed that he rarely ever missed making contact with the ball off the tee--in spite of his dancing and crazy footwork.  That was about the time that he started chipping balls off of our back porch into a neighbors' pools and landscaping.  So for his 6th birthday, we decided to send him to golf camp.

At camp, we were informed that he was wonderfully abnormal on the golf course.  I say abnormal, because a "normal" child on the golf course is one who has been sent to camp by his golf-playing parents to learn a game that does not come naturally to them.  Our child, on the other hand, loved every minute of being on the golf course and apparently has an unteachable "feel for the game."  It was absolutely hilarious to watch him swing his club like a ninja sword at one moment and then turn around a minute later and drive a one-handed shot over a creek.  And it's very weird to have a 5 year old explain how he is going to use his 9 iron to "tap-chip" his ball out of the rough and onto the green when all the other children are using their putters and then to see his plan work!

Considering that I'm having to read PGA golf books for parents to even understand the game myself, it's kind of crazy to think that I might have to caddy on the DFW Metro Jr. Golf Tour next summer (all children under 8 need to have a caddy) in order to keep up with my wonderfully abnormal son.  Something tells me that this is not going to be my first time to step outside of my comfort box for my kiddos.  I'm sure someone else will want to do something that blows my mind too: hockey, dance, art, etc.  But golf: could not have predicted that one.

Planning Out the School Year

 

We finally finished kindergarten math!  At first, I was really proud that my little guy whizzed through 85 lessons in approximately 4 months--because he wanted to.  And then I realized that when we start kindergarten FOR REAL this fall, he's going to need something to do.  My intention behind starting homeschooling in the spring was solely as an experiment to see if it would work.  I didn't necessarily mean to knock out a year of school in 1 semester. 

Now I have the dilemma: Do I rinse and repeat? Or do I forge ahead into the unknown realm of first grade with my kindergartner?  As I flipped through my lesson plans for the rest of kindergarten, I realized that all we really have to do to get caught up for first grade is to finish Phonics.  A few months ago, I would have told you that pushing ahead in Phonics was an absolute no-go.  We were shedding way too many tears in that department.  Then all of a sudden it started clicking!  After fighting through the short "a" sounds, he started to get the concept of how reading is supposed to work.  Suddenly, he was able to roll through the other short vowels.  So realistically, finishing the kindergarten Phonics lessons before school starts (we're following the more traditional after Labor Day schedule) is not out of the question. 

So I ordered first grade curriculum.  And I guess we're going to give it a go.  If I'm going to homeschool right, I'm going to have to go all-or-nothing.  No sense NOT pushing ahead if my guy can handle it.  If it turns out he can't, then there's no harm in slowing down as needed because we're already ahead, right?  I guess we're going to have to give it the old college try and just see how it goes.

For those of you who might be interested in what curriculum we're using this year for each subject, here is my plan:

1. Memoria Press: Bible, Phonics, Copybook & Bible Memorization, Math (they use Rod & Staff),  Cursive, Art/Music/Reading Enrichment
2. Apologia: Science, Exploring Creation with Zoology 1: Flying Creatures of the 5th Day
3. Story of the World, by Susan Wise Bauer: History Volume 1: From Earliest Nomads to the Last Roman Emperor (we're continuing this from where we left off this spring)
4. Christian Heroes Then and Now: Missionary studies
5. Fort Worth Museum of Science & History Museum School: science & history enrichment

The Co-op Question

I think it's funny that the first question most homeschooling parents ask when I tell them that I'm homeschooling is what co-op I'm using.  Then they're surprised when I tell them I'm not really into the co-op thing--at least not right now.  Co-ops are probably really useful for older children who desire a variety of activities or for children whose parents aren't comfortable teaching basic curriculum.  But let's be honest, my kindergartner doesn't need a lot of extra-curricular activities right now (we've already got tennis, golf, baseball, piano, and museum school), and I'm certainly capable of teaching elementary phonics, math, history, science, Spanish, Bible, and Latin.  It really doesn't take a genius to teach kindergarten or first grade curriculum, so I'm always amazed when people shirk at the idea of teaching their own child themselves.

Part of my reason for not wanting to hand off my kindergartner to an organized co-op or homeschool program where someone else directs the course work, curriculum, pace, and activities, is because handing off those duties totally defeats the purpose in homeschooling my kiddo.  The beauty of homeschooling is having the freedom to teach to YOUR OWN child. Sometimes that means that you take a big black sharpie and cross out the lesson that comes next in the textbook.  And sometimes that means that you call your potter friend at church and ask for a private lesson on pottery instead.  There is something very freeing in making learning fun. I know I sound a little hippie-dippy in my approach to school, but rest assured, the only hippie streak in me is that streak that loves Free People clothing.  I'm no flower child.

My other reason for passing on the opportunity to have an educational professional oversee my teaching of my child is that my son and I would both get really bored with this approach and probably really competitive.  Boy Wonder is a lot like his mommy.  And once he realizes that he and the other kids are going to be taking tests and learning the same things, he would delight in having his mommy teach him everything there would be to learn on the subject matter at hand.  And he and his mommy would get really ticked if he weren't the smartest kid in the class.  Talk about pressure on me!  I'm thinking that this isn't the healthiest approach for us right now.

Instead of focusing on someone else's idea for my son's education, I've realized that I'm actually cut out to be a do-it-yourself kind of homeschool mom.  I like the idea of providing my son with a classical curriculum, and I am also a huge believer in the Charlotte Mason approach to education: “Education is an Atmosphere, a Discipline, a Life.”  These styles go well together.  And they also don't lend well to the university-style of teaching which involves lots of homework.  Charlotte wanted education to be natural and in the proper context and atmosphere.  So, using Memorial Press' classical  curriculum in a Charlotte Mason way works well for me (and their curriculum uses lots of living books which would make her proud).

So no.  For now, we're going to pass on the co-op model program.  But who knows? Maybe we'll change our minds in the future and dive into a local group.  That's the beauty of educating your child at home.  You do what works and avoid what doesn't.

What Girls are Made Of

Baby G in the Flowers: Courtesy of K.I. Photography.

Sugar and Spice

Sugar and spice
and everything nice
that's what little girls are made of

Sunshine and rainbows
and ribbons for hair bows
that's what little girls are made of

Tea parties, laces
and baby doll faces
that's what little girls are made of

Author: Unknown

This past week, Mr. Wonderful and I were given grief by some family members about the fact that Baby G wears hair bows --bows that keep getting larger as she gets larger.  For the life of me, I can't imagine why this would bother anyone.

I think this poem that my grandma used to say to me sums up what I love about having a little girl.  Little girls are different from little boys.  They are, generally speaking, lovers of all things pretty.  They squeal and get jumpy when they see glitter and rainbows.  They giggle and clap when they spin in their fluffy dresses.  They ooh and ah when they see babies.  They like to have painted toes and walk in their mommy's shoes.  And there's nothing wrong with allowing little girls to be girls. Doing boy things with my sons is fun, but getting to experience the sugary and sparkly world of my daughter also brings me delight.

So yes, I suppose I perpetuate my daughter's girly ways by dressing her in fancy dresses and sparkly shoes.  I paint her toe nails and allow her to play with my necklaces and bracelets. I always coordinate her outfits with a matching hair accessory.   I have some how convinced her that sparkly is always better than plain.   And yet, she's not even 2 years old.

Baby G may or may not grow out of the fun, fluffy, girly stage.  She has plenty of opportunities to experience boy activities and sports with her two older brothers. To be honest, she throws a ball better than either of them did at her age.  So who knows, she may be our all-star yet.  But I'm not going to stop having fun raising my daughter as the princess she is just because other people don't appreciate glitter and rainbows and cupcakes. 

We're all entitled to dress our children as we see fit.  As a result, I'm doing my best to keep my opinions to myself about how other little girls are dressed and how their mommies raise them.  I have a different perspective on parenting a little girl than other mothers might have.  I've had my chances to do the boy mom thing for the last 6 years, and it is certainly loads of fun to live in a world of trains and balls and grass stains.  These days, however, I'm truly appreciating what little girls are made of.

Note: If you need recommendations on where to find some fabulous hair bows, please let me know.  These days, I'm somewhat of an expert.