New Schedule

Pace goes to school from 845-1130 M-TH, and 845-11 on Fridays.  Max goes to Preschool 9-11 M, W, F.  Pace's school requires parental involvement (40 service hours/year), and so I go to help out in his class every Friday during their learning center time.  I also contacted his teacher and asked if I could teach health/nutrition once or twice a month, and she loved the idea.  So before learning centers on the 1st and 3rd Fridays, I teach a little health/nutrition concept for 15-20 minutes.  It's really fun seeing Pace in his environment and he likes seeing me there, too.  I've gotten to know all his little kindergarten friends and a couple of the moms who are also there on Fridays.    

We have a snack after school, and sit at the table talking.  They are so excited to see each other after school, asking each other what they did at school, what letter they learned about, etc.  And then they play together for a couple hours.  I do my cleaning chore for that day, and then call them down to do their afternoon chores, and we do homework, workbook, Upstart, and or reading.  It's a good new rhythm.  

Pace drew a picture for his favorite school friend, Janeyi, a tornado with a National Geographic logo.  

Max still comes running when he hears me in the kitchen.  He especially loves helping me make bread.

Pace built a combine harvester

Since we instituted the chore chart and allowance, I bought the boys little wallets, and told them I am done buying them toys and things of that nature, except for birthdays and Christmas.  They have their own money, and they can bring their wallets when we go out and run errands and choose to spend it or save it.  (When we give them their allowance we first pay tithing, and mission fund, then the rest is theirs)  Their new most favorite game is playing "Store".

They run and get toys, lay them out behind a lego "store counter", and one is the store owner, and one is the customer.  "Hello, sir, how are you today.  What can I help you find?"  "Um, I'm an army guy.  I need an army truck.  How much cents is it?"  "It's 25 and a half."  "Uh, ok".  

Pace has all the coins and their worth down, but Max is still working on it.  Since he ran out of quarters, I told him he could pay me with two dimes and a nickel.  He spent some time trying to find the requisite coins...