The Brave Learner Conference

Friday morning I woke early. By 5am my mother had arrived to take care of my kids, my sister had arrived, and I was driving us to our friend Jennifer's house to pick her up. We were off on an adventure - The Brave Learner Conference, planned by Julie Bogart of Brave Writer fame - in Cincinnati. This was our homeschool mama continuing education for the summer.

We had a lot of fun talking and laughing on our drive. We made it safely to the Renaissance Hotel where the event was being hosted in the middle of downtown. It always amazes me how busy downtown in the city can be.

The conference details were spectacular. Beautiful tables, gifts, programs that had room for notes for each session, music, and people. The day was a mix of presentations by Julie Bogart interspersed with breaks, interviews, and music.

I came away with so many thoughts. Let me know if any of these resonate with you!

Kids think about the world differently than you do. Sit with that idea a moment. Think back to when you were a child. Looking back, can you see what went over your head, what you didn't understand in the moment, or what was important to you then, that as an adult wouldn't be the same? When I think back to childhood things were simple and more clear cut. I knew what I liked. I did things that I enjoyed. I have memories that still stick with me today, that at the time, were probably very small and simple things.

Support a child where they are, not where you wish they were. A simple example - no matter how much I may wish a particular child was already doing XYZ easily in a subject, the reality is, they are where they are. I can't force growth. I can support them where they are.

When my child is having a hard time with something I need to remind myself what that feels like. I need to go try something hard, right then. At the conference Julie had origami paper on our tables and invited us to make paper cranes. She had two resources we could use - a quickly moving video playing on a screen and printed image only direction (no text). It was hard! I gave up on the video because it was simply moving too fast for me. I really learn best with written instructions. That wasn't an option, so I used the printed images. They weren't as clear as I hoped, but with a little trial and error, I did end up making a paper crane. During the process I was uncomfortable, frustrated, and almost quit. The noisy room was distracting. It was a good reminder that what is going on with my kids when learning is so much more than the simple thing I think it should be.

If you want your child to love it, you need to enjoy it first. For example, if you want a child that loves the library, go to the library yourself and include them. If you want your child to love making music, make music yourself and let them explore instruments too. If you want them to love the arts, love them yourself.

Kid don't stop learning and growing when they graduate your homeschool. Give them a solid foundation and trust that they will continue to learn what they find a need for as an adult. They have a lifetime ahead to continue learning.

Now that I am home from the conference I am in the final preparations for our school year. Our first day is coming quickly!

A Large Family Road Trip

Last year we made plans for a family trip. For some families this happens regularly, but for us it is a big deal. Our last family trip out of state was 8 years ago when I was pregnant with child #7. We flew to visit my sister's family at a military base across the country - leaving behind grandma and grandpa who were going to travel with us, when Grandma broke her femur chasing after one of my little ones on slippery airport floors. Yes, really. She had surgery instead.

Lack of money, the expense of a trip, medical needs, handicap accessibility, and the reality of travel with a very large family kept us in Ohio. This summer was our last chance to do a family trip before kids start moving away for college, missions, or marriage. We saved our pennies and made our plans. We booked an entire floor of an old mission in upstate New York last November. Last week it was trip time. I would love to say it was an easy, perfectly smooth trip, but it was a lot of work, some unexpected issues, and a bundle of wonderful memory making.

Thursday morning grandma and grandpa arrived at our house and we loaded our 12 passenger van and their small car with everything for the 14 of us for 3 days. There was food, clothing, medical supplies, a wheelchair, stroller, snacks, glow sticks, new audio cds, and one backpack of activities for each child packed by the children themselves. It felt like unloading a clown car in the circus at each rest stop. A parade of 14 people, mostly children, stretching legs, using the bathroom, and then loading right back in the van to leave again. The trip from Ohio to New York is 6.5 hours without stops. It took us 8 hours.

We ran into some problems with the Airbnb (not clean, outdated/gross showers in some rooms, lack of air conditioning in a couple bedrooms and the living spaces in hot July weather even though we asked specifically about that when making our reservation, a fridge full of expired and moldy food from past guests), but we really had no other options. We made it work.

Thursday evening after we got in we drove 30 minutes to eat dinner at McDonalds and do a small grocery trip at WalMart in the nearest small town.

Friday morning we did medical care we usually do in the afternoons for an hour and a half, then got everyone ready to leave for the entire day. We drove an hour north to the Palmyra, NY area. Lunch was Wendys. Then it was time for sightseeing at church history sites (Smith Family Homes, the Sacred Grove, the Palmyra Temple, the Hill Cumorah Visitor's Center). We had a wonderful day.

In the evening we settled in to our seats to watch The Hill Cumorah Pageant, and outdoor performance on a giant stage with a cast of more than 700. It was amazing. After our hour drive back to the place we were staying it was 12:30am Saturday morning. Everyone went to sleep for a few hours.

The official Saturday morning started with another hour and a half medical care for Mason while everyone else packed everything, including lunches, and loaded vehicles. Then we were on the road by 9am heading to Niagara Falls. The only words to describe the falls are powerful and amazing. We had long, hot lines to wait in to get down to the Maid of the Mist, a boat ride that takes you around the bottoms of the falls. It was worth the lines!

The rest of the day was traveling home, eating our packed lunches on the road and stopping for dinner. We pulled in at our house at 10:30pm, 13.5 hours after we left the Airbnb in New York. We were exhausted, but happily so. Sunday was spent recovering, unpacking, and washing mountains of laundry.

Food we packed or picked up at a grocery store in NY:

• bagels
• bread
• milk
• Nutella
• oatmeal packets
• lunchmeat
• fresh fruit
• chips

Snacks we packed:

• candy
• pretzels
• oreo type cookies
• cheese crackers

Fun Fact: Eating out is not cheap for a large family. We ate out 4 times over the 3 days. The rest of the meals we packed or prepared at the AirBNB we stayed at. The restaurant food for the 12 of us (not grandma and grandpa) cost as follows:

•  McDonalds - $72
• Wendys - $73
• Dinner at the Pageant by the local Kiwanis Club - $71
• Ice cream at the Pageant by the local Kiwanis Club - $24
• Chick Fil A - $80 

June 21st to July 10th Summer Notes

Friday kids started to feel better - enough to start picking at each other. Tobias has gone back to napping as part of his recovery. We spent the day at home, quiet and resting. Sweet friends sent us flowers and a get well balloon.

Saturday Joseph and Emma returned from youth conference, healthy and happy. They had a great time.

Sunday everyone was well enough to go to church together. After getting a bit stir crazy after dinner everyone headed to the backyard to enjoy some sunshine and fresh air.

Monday morning the kids cleaned out the van. In the afternoon Mason and I spent a couple hours doing an appointment to get various braces adjusted. In the evening there was a used curriculum sale at the local homeschool group, where I found a few twenty-two good books to add to our shelves for $9. Well, I suppose only 20, because the giant two volume set of all the Sherlock Holmes stories Emma claimed for herself about three minutes after I returned home. She loves Sherlock Holmes and is well into the first volume as of Tuesday evening.

Wednesday and Thursday I have no notes. Friday we went to a game night at the church. The kids loved the different activities, indoor and out. Saturday and Sunday were quiet.

Monday was full of appointments. Just a typical day. Jason had to work, which is unusual, but would get Friday off instead.

Tuesday the big van got an oil change and other minor prep for our upcoming family trip to Palmyra, NY to see the Hill Cumorah Pageant, visit a lot of church history sites, and then swing by Niagara Falls on our way home. Makayla was working the farm and a farmer's market as usual. Joseph, Emma, and Daniel decided to bake chocolate chip cookies for the family and to share with our piano teacher. We had piano lessons in the afternoon.

Wednesday and Thursday have no notes.

Friday we went to our friends' home home for swimming, a late night movie (Monsters Inc.), and then fireworks. It was so much fun!

Saturday was errand day.

Sunday was church and then a family birthday party for Samuel, who turns 6 years old this week.

Monday was the final shopping for our trip. We also squeezed in a 3.5 hour appointment with Mason's bracing specialist trying to adjust his HKAFOs (standing braces). Unfortunately, it looks like it is time for new braces. That means an appointment with the orthopedic surgeon and the physical medicine doctor, x-rays, possible surgery plans (depending on the x-rays, we're tracking a few things), submitting request for new braces to insurance, waiting up to 6 months for bracing to decide yes or no, appeal if denied, then a month-ish for the custom braces to be casted, built, and fit. All while we try not to lose function living without braces or wear improperly fitting braces during this time and risk pressure sores. And of course if it is time for any of the leg surgeries on the horizon that plays into all of those timelines too. Ha! It is never dull.

Tuesday and Wednesday I have no notes, so I'm hitting publish. Next up - a post about our big family trip!