:: on a tuesday afternoon

We got a very, very late start today. As in we completely skipped Morning Meeting. Which, if you're a mom of preschoolers, you just know that's asking for trouble. The littles always get to 'do school' first. Always. But not today. So, we skipped Morning Meeting, and went straight into Astronomy and American History. We notebooked about the Sun and made our cover pages and notebook pages for part one of American History: History? Why? (which is why I was so quick to come up with some pretty great quotes on why History is important on Facebook today. they were right in the lesson. you're welcome Dad and Mike) We talked about the theme of our American History series, "I believe the United States of America is the most remarkable nation that has ever existed. No other nation, in the history of the world, has ever provided so much freedom, so much justice, and so much opportunity to so many people." Good theme. I'm happy, happy, happy with our History. Very happy.

Wesley refused to nap today. Wesley refuses to nap every day. So, instead we played Sorry. I have no idea how to play Sorry. But Wesley assured me he did. "You draw a card Mom, and move your piece the number on your card." Oh. Works for me. We'll just call it Sorry Math. While Wesley and I played Sorry Math, Zach played Catch the Milk Jug. Then my mom called and chatted with us for a while.

By the time I got off the phone with my mom, everyone else was up from naps and we headed outside for some Nature Study. Not really. But Benjamin and Judah were studying a tree pretty hard. We really did go outside to play Football, though. Because my sons are obsessed with Football. And bacon.

I got some really neat shots of Zach and Judah on the deck. But not of Korinne. Isn't her braid cute? My girls make me smile. Even though they won't let me take their pictures anymore.

At the end of the day, I was so tired from skipping Morning Meeting and faking Nature Study that I was only able to make my signature dish for SUPPER. Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup. And I only did that half way, it was really just toasted cheese bread and Tomato Soup. But it was gobbled up. And I learned that half my kids' favorite soup is Tomato Soup. How?! did I miss something so wonderful as that all these years? You'd think I was preoccupied with laundry or something.

:: happy tuesday! ::

:: on a monday morning

Early in the morning, five boys found their dad's food magazines. And because they are his sons, they got all excited when I said they could get them all out and look. And look they did. For a long while. Ooohing and aaahing at all the good things they could choose from. Their list is long. And it includes many things with bacon. Because they are his sons. :)

Kylie made bread. For the second morning in a row. She had made two loaves on Sunday, so excited to try a new recipe. And it flopped. And she was so disappointed. She said she knew it wouldn't turn out right, because it didn't smell right. Honestly, it wasn't bad. But it wasn't hers. So this morning, she went back to tried-and-true ... and was happy. As were a bunch of her hungry, homemade-bread-loving siblings (and her mom).

We finally started our Astronomy study. We read all the way through Lesson 1 (don't get too excited, it was pretty short). We skipped the mnemonic sentence to help us memorize the names of the planets, and went with a song. We're pretty good at memorizing with songs. TJ copied his notebook page straight from the YouTube video. Happily. (I dare you to watch. You'll sing it all day, and know the planets too!)

Baby is teething. Three at once this time. Which is better than four, but still rough. This non-expression of his is pretty constant ... sleep is not. Poor baby. He's still so cute. Couldn't you just kiss those sweet cheeks off? Me too.


:: happy monday! ::

saturdays {in october} are for sharing a scary story

the little old lady who wasn't afraid of anything from Kathi Bailey on Vimeo.

The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything
Linda Williams

about us

hi, I'm Kathi ... an army wife, blessed momma of eight, challenged homemaker, children's literature lover, vanilla coffee drinker, tidal homeschooler, expert laundress, amateur photographer, sometimes blogger, library patron, and Jesus follower.

I'm happily married to Brian ... he calls me princess, cooks dinner sometime,s and teaches math to our kids. He works full time for the Army Reserves, and is attending Seminary in hopes of being a Chaplain.

We have eight children,

Zacharias Eugene ... born February 18th, 2012. Zach spends his days crawling, saying da-da ('say Momma Zach, say Momma'), nursing and eating bananas and only orange veggies, oh! and he shares his bed with me and Brian.

Judah Wayne ... the (almost) 3 year old. Jude spends his days wreaking havoc on our little homeschool, singing, reading stories, and playing with play doh.

Benjamin Richard ... the 4 year old. Ben spends his days putting paper in his notebook, escaping vegetables, wearing a buzz lightyear costume, and consuming as much sugar as possible.

Wesley Ray ... the 5 year old. Ray Ray spends his days trying to hang with the big boys, speeding through his school work, drawing baseball cards, and riding his bike.

Tyler Joseph ... the (almost) 8 year old. TJ spends his days sorting his baseball cards, memorizing sports stats, getting as many hugs as he can, protesting school work, and watching as much TV as his anti-television mom will allow.

Connor Scott ... the 10 year old. Bubba spends his days drawing, studying his college football preview book, neglecting trash day, dawdling through school work, and planning his weekend according to what football games are on.

Korinne Shea ... the 12 year old. Rin spends her days reading, and reading, and reading. She occasionally does school work (she writes stories well ... go figure), and she enjoys baking, knitting, and has a pinterest addiction.

Kylie Sierra ... the 15.5 year old. 'Sissy' spends her days loving on the littles, trying to get all her high school work done, practicing piano, quoting jane austen, and trying to stay focused. On anything. For more than 4 minutes.

... ... ...

I love my life, and pray earnestly for tomorrow. This little blog is our book of days, I hope you enjoy your time here as much as I enjoy sharing it.

daybook, october 4th

Outside my window... it's dark and cool right now. But the days are still warm. Too warm. Not quite Indian-summer-ish. But definitely still summer. I try not to think of the cool autumn temperatures that I'm sure our family is experiencing at home. Or the beautiful, colorful trees. Or the smile driving by Shaw Farms would bring.



i love that i caught Benjamin laughing at her

I am thinking... that it's for certain I'll never make it through this daybook before Zach starts stirring. He's been asleep since 7:30-ish. It could almost be a record. Sleep, little baby, sleep.

I am thankful... for our new, safe neighborhood. I met another neighbor today. A lady, about my age, who we thought *must* be divorced. No. She is a widow. And spoke of her husband, Jeff, with a sparkle in her eye.

In the kitchen... I made a chicken devan tonight. It was yummy. But more exciting was the little Recipe Notebook I made once the kids were all in bed. I've just been throwing recipes in a binder for years. Now, they are all organized. And pretty.

I am wearing... my sea-green moon and stars jammies. I am in bed.

I am creating... oh, I already said this. I'm pretty proud of my non-creative self, so I'll say it again. I created a Recipe Notebook. I also covered another composition notebook I'd been using to take down blog notes. They look so much nicer covered.

I am going... I will probably take all the kids to WalMart tomorrow. Judah got his birthday card from Mamaw and Papaw today, and I've pretty much decided he can spend his gift money on whatever he wants. Which will be a Hawkeye action figure. Or maybe Captain America on his motorcycle.



letters and phonics have proved to be a little much for the Kindergartner ... so we're not stressing, and spending more time on the fun things. things already mastered. so as to not overwhelm.

I am wondering... how that trip to WalMart will go with all the kids. Storytime Tuesday morning was enough to kill me. Really. I swore we'd never go back. And the library is my favorite place.

I am reading... Keeping House: The Litany of Everyday Life (excellent), Anne of Green Gables, Jesus Calling (for kids), and many different Read Alouds to the kids.

I am hoping... that Judah is able to ride the big wheel/trike/bike we bought him for his birthday. He wanted a Shark Attack bike, but we couldn't find it. So I showed him a few different Radio Flyers on Amazon ... and let him choose.

I am looking forward to... the weekend. Pizza and a movie tomorrow night. A birthday day Saturday. And resting Sunday.

I am learning... the planning side of homemaking. This house is so much bigger (more to clean, but easier), and our washing machine is so much smaller (more loads to wash), and our grocery budget needs scaled back.

Around the house... I still cannot find the box with all my autumn decorations and books in it. I'm hoping we find it this weekend, so we can makes things a little more festive.

I am pondering... "The week has this written all over it: God only allows pain if He’s allowing something new to be born" -AV

A favorite quote for today... as I was making my Recipe Notebook, I thought of all the time I've spent in the kitchen the last few years with my girls ... cooking the recipes I was going through and organizing, and I thought of my favorite Dolly Parton quote, “When I was a little girl, I always wanted to be in the kitchen because it was warm, and that’s where my mother was. You never lose that feeling.”

One of my favorite things... Friday night's easy dinner. Pizza. Sometimes the take out kind. Sometimes the frozen kind. Tomorrow night's is the frozen kind.

A few plans for the rest of the week: Judah turns 3 Saturday. *THAT* is all the (big) plans we need!

A peek into my day...
 




i'm sorry. snack time could not get any better when you're sharing with this guy!

autumn book basket

Storybooks:
Move Over, ROVER! by Karen Beaumont
:: The rain is pouring...it's a good thing Rover is snuggled up safe and sound and dry inside his doghouse. But slowly, one by one, some friends show up looking for a cozy place to wait out the storm.

Pumpkin Moonshine by Tasha Tudor
:: Sylvie Ann sets out across her Grandmummy's cornfields to find "the very finest and largest pumpkin," so she can make a pumpkin moonshine (jack-o-lantern). But when she finds the perfect pumpkin, it's so very big, she decides to roll it home...which causes quite the predicament.

The Tale of Benjamin Bunny by Beatrix Potter
:: Because I have a Benjamin. Because I love Beatrix Potter. Because it mentions a scarecrow.

The Berenstain Bears and the Spooky Old Tree by Stan and Jan Berenstain
:: Three little bears, with light, stick, and rope...do they dare go into the spooky old tree? (This is about as 'spooky' as we get here. I hear the audio book is wonderful...too bad it's only available in audio cassette, for $50!)

The Surprise from Frog and Toad All Year by Arnold Lobel
:: It's October, and Frog and Toad decide to secretly surprise one another, by raking the other's yard. They are both happy...to have done a good deed for their dear friend. I *love* this story.

Hush Little Baby by Sylvia Long
:: You can check the link to read my previous review of this sweet, little book. What Mama doesn't want to show their little baby the harvest moon?

and our new book, this autumn:

The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything by Linda D. Williams
:: "0nce upon a time, there was a little old lady who was not afraid of anything! But one autumn night, while walking in the woods, the little old lady heard . . . CLOMP, CLOMP, SHAKE, SHAKE, CLAP, CLAP. And the little old lady who was not afraid of anything had the scare of her life!"

Read Alouds:

Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder
:: The most fall-ish one in the series, in our opinion. It's been read over and over by my three oldest, and the boys all *love* to listen on audio book as they fall asleep.

The Courage of Sarah Noble by Alice Dalgliesh
:: An easy, sweet little story about a very brave little girl, and her new friends. Sarah and her father finish building their new home in fall.

Poetry, Songs, and Nursery Rhymes:
Leaves by Elsie N. Brady
Gathering Leaves by Robert Frost
I'm A Little Scarecrow (I'm A Little Teapot)Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater

:: Happy Reading in autumn! ::

circuses and evening sun

Today while reading My Book House, I discovered that TJ has a fear of circuses. He gets that from me. We do not enjoy Dumbo. Does anyone enjoy Dumbo? What *is* with that whole elephants on parade scene? Scary.

We didn't have tea time this afternoon, we had chocolate milk time. With graham crackers ... which we dunked into the chocolate milk because you do not have to use tea time manners if you're not actually having tea time.

We spent the late afternoon outside sledding down the hill on boxes again, playing with the kitties, and taking a walk (or road march ... whatever). When we got home, we moved to the back deck where I snapped a picture I love of all the kids, and then another one of the view of the neighborhood and beyond from the deck.

As we were getting ready to set the dinner table, I noticed the evening sun shining through the front windows. And it made me happy. The poor massacred flower on the table, however, makes me sad.

Happy Sleeping,
kathi

a full day

This morning we did bible study. Without Brian. It seems almost wrong to do it without him, but he needed to get ahead at work this week, so he left exceptionally early each morning. But tomorrow, he'll be staying for it. And it made my heart sing when he reminded the girls to get their reading in before going to bed.

Little Bitty is all over. And when you're frantically getting everykid ready to head out for most of the day, you need to put him somewhere safe. And stationary. Because he. gets. into. everything. And is super fast about it. *this morning, I chose his highchair. In the family room. Where he could watch The Lion King.

Our first stop was Storytime at our new library. Our library that is the size of a small hospital. The selection of material within the walls of this library is like nothing I could have ever imagined. They had absolutely every title that was looked for. (it is, however, missing that cozy feeling we still have for our library in Jonesboro) I took the Littles into Storytime. If You Give A Mouse A Cookie, and If You Give A Moose A Muffin. Miss Kim, the new Story Lady, was excellent. And there was some singing and dancing too. And! ... at the end, they didn't do a craft. Oh no! They got a beanie baby moose. Really. And Miss Kim even gave one to the boys to give to 'their baby'. So, now we have four little mooses (?) floating around the Bailey Home. One is named Andy Dalton.

We left the library, and got lost. But I stayed calm and reminded everyone that getting lost in a new place is how you get to see all the neat things that are in the new place. It worked on everyone but my paranoid child, Kylie. Who kept reading the street signs to me. In a 'freaking out' voice. I texted Brian a few times, enough times to where he finally just texted me to meet him at the Chick Fil A by his work, and he'd get us all lunch. Good deal. Get lost, get lunch. It's one of those neat places that have outside tables, and the weather was perfect, so it was really nice and picnic-y. (and I hadn't told the kids that he'd be there ... so it was fun to see their faces when he pulled in)

We finished our day out with a trip to Sam's. Yes. We did. Me ... and eight kids. In Sam's. It went remarkably well. Until the end when some old man mistook Korinne for the older sister. Kylie is getting tired of that, and Korinne only just passed her up in height. Sorry chicky.

I made BLTs for dinner. Then we all headed outside to play a little before baths. I suggested a bike ride, but Connor reminded me that they hadn't played football all day ... so football it was. ... and some baby feet.

Sleep Well,
kathi

singing in the rain ::

 

 

The first few pictures are from Monday and Tuesday. It rained. A lot. And the kids were out in it most of the afternoons. So much so that our neighbor, Rhonda (who we just met for the first time today. Actually, she's the only neighbor we've met), said she saw them playing outside in the rain, and texted her husband that they HAD to come over and meet us. I'm so glad that she thought it was fun, and not terrible-crazy. She also invited us to church. But I think we're headed back to the one we visited a few weeks ago. We all loved it.

Today, I looked outside to find all the kids drawing on some of the eight million boxes still laying in a mountain-sized heap in our garage. Upon calling Judah and Benjamin in for their baths, I realized that they were all out there drawing with Sharpie markers. So, we will be visiting that church again, with colorful little boys. ... I also took a few pics of them 'sledding' down the hill on some boxes. But they were blurry.

I also snapped a few of Zach in the tub. He's a bathing maniac. I literally need a raincoat in there. I wanted to share his largeness with all of you. He is by far our biggest baby ever. I love him.

We also seriously need to go to the grocery store. For tea time today, we had to have plain tea with only sugar, no cream. You would have thought I was poisoning them. So, being the good mom I am, I suggested putting marshmallows in. And they did. ... we also had popcorn. Yum. Anyone want to stop by for a spot of marshmallow-y tea and popcorn tomorrow? Maybe it will rain again, and we can all go out and sing in it, while Rhonda watches from her window.

{ pretty, happy, funny, real }

{ pretty }

 

a South Carolina sunrise

 

 

{ happy }

 

tasting homemade chocolate icing for the first time

 

 

{ funny }

 

having tea time ... while college football is on the TV behind them

 

 

{ real }

 

'reading' Little Pea to Mr. Ribit ... reading, and reading, and reading to your kids makes READERS!

 

 

homeschool: how it's going, how it's not ...

You'd think I would consider myself a homeschool veteran at this point. But I don't. I actually still consider myself a homeschool newbie. Very much a baby homeschool mom.

I still struggle with the most basic of  homeschooling things ... like curriculum, schedule, lesson planning (what's that?).

However, I'm choosing to not focus on my lack of good-homeschool-mom-abilities. And instead, I'm trying to stay focused on our homeschool method:  a lifestyle of learning to love learning, and continuing to learn throughout all of life --- reading lots of  books (picture books, poetry books, history books, fun books, bible books) --- running and hollering and playing outside --- focusing on creation-based HisTory --- listening to music (Christian music, folksongs, classical music, toddler music, hymns) and drawing and coloring and cooking --- talking and arguing and discussing and praying --- and asking ... "What do YOU want to do? What interests YOU? Let's focus on a few of those things. Let's be productive. Let's live interestingly."

Some days have been full of academics, some days have been full of play and passion-following. Some days have just come and gone. I'm trying my best to ensure everyone is getting to and through the basics. Adding in just a few challenges. Throwing in some fun, some unexpected. Seeking balance in it all. Putting Him first, and throughout. Using what we have, letting go of what we don't. And breathing. And living. And soaking it up. Not taking a moment of it for granted. Grateful for this opportunity.

And praying I don't blow it. Lord, please. I don't want to blow it.

hello. from south carolina.

Hi. It's me. Popping in for just a moment to say all is well.

:: I am making a house a home.

:: I am establing routine.

:: I am doing double laundry in a tiny washing machine.

:: I am teaching a brand new kindergartner his letters.

:: I am deciding what's worth the time and money.

:: I am putting my family first.

:: I am making a house a home.

... things have gone slowly. But *finally* there are no boxes in view. School books have arrived.  Brian has gone back to work.

... and as I walked up the stairs tonight to put the kids in bed, I was tired ... but comfortable. Like I'm home. Finally.

* We'll talk more tomorrow.
Love,
kathi

ps ... I'm really too tired to upload any pics tonight, but you can check out my Instagram photos in the sidebar to see what we've been up to today.

7 days until the move { new home sneak peek }

We have just 7 short days left in the little town of Jonesboro. We're pretty much all set for the move. I have to set aside all our 'necessities' Monday evening, our packers will be here Tuesday, they will load everything onto the truck Thursday, we will clean our tiny, little house for the last time Friday, and then pull out for a brand new adventure in South Carolina on Saturday morning.

We have a new home waiting for us. God is so good. And He provides.

We've been invited to a sweet church by a new friend.

We have 'met' many families from the girls' AHG troop. We've joined a homeschool group. Brian has talked to his new Commander. And I've looked into the library, homeschool choir, YMCA (Homeschool PE?!), ballet class, Lego Club  ... ... and will prepare our 2012-2013 homeschool papers for the new district this week.

It's close.

I'm hoping to spend the week gathering memories and thoughts and life lessons learned while here, and sharing them if there is time. A goodbye of sorts. To our life here. That has been so full.