1 – Anyone one else limping to the finish line this school year? No, I really don’t have to ask that. It seems like every homeschool mom I talk to is so over this year already and making plans to be done. So let me ask instead: anyone still going strong and being academically productive? Go ahead, speak up! We promise not to throw tomatoes at you — we won’t throw them hard, anyway.

We are still doing, but it is a struggle. I plan to go two more weeks, but it was three weeks two days ago. Ask me again in a few days and the answer could change again.

2 – Did you see that Sarah has put up audio samples from the book? I am so excited about the release of this one — it is just that good. There will be a PDF version, Companion Journal PDF and the four fantastic audio (I have heard two so far. You have never heard Andrew Kern like this — fabulous.)

There will also be a Kindle version of the book, but we’re not talking about that one. Stick with the PDF. When I told Sarah I would love to design her book, I mentioned I wanted to learn to format Kindle books and would be happy to do that one too. I mean, how hard can it be, right? Famous last words.

Kindle formatting is of the devil I tell you. After tons of frustration, I finally realized I wouldn’t be able to finish the job because Mac took bookmarking capabilities out of the latest version of Pages, and I sent it back to Sarah so she could finish it in Word.

Of course she had to start the formatting all over again because what I had done did not transfer in the file conversion. So get the PDF. You can print it out, and I left extra white space in the margins for jotting notes. (P.S. I am not saying the Kindle version will be bad. Knowing Sarah it will be just as it needs to be. I am just partial to the PDF.)

3 – Speaking of Kindle books (I don’t mind reading them.) I finished Jen Fulwiler’s Something Other Than God last weekend. Having been an off-and-on blog reader for years I figured it would be good, but honestly I was quite blown away by how good it was. This is the real-deal.

This is a woman who finally opened herself up to being found by God and then He came and found her. (Most people think that works the other way, but really it doesn’t. Jen’s story proves it.) Then He slowly leads her to deeper realizations about Truth as the story unfolds. Artfully told. Funny, of course. One of the best books I have read in a long time.

4 – Speaking of Kindle books (deja vu!) I am working on a little project of my own. It won’t have the inspirational quality of Sarah’s book or the literary quality of Jen’s, but I have decided to flesh out the material in my homeschool planning series and turn it into a (hopefully) helpful little work.

There will be a (curses!) a Kindle version, of course, but there will also be a lovely, printable PDF as well. And some audio (or video, I have yet to decide) to accompany. I have been taking notes of your questions and comments to guide the content, but do let me know what burning questions you have about homeschool planning, and I will find out the answers.

Release date on this project is TBD, but I hope to have it done before the end of June (famous last words) to be helpful for planning this next year.

5 – Switching gears, the Alabama National Guard has absolutely no regard for the sanctity of the Mother’s Day holiday. This is the third year in a row that they have messed mine up. Just had to get that off my chest, because I am grumpy about it.

6 – I am hosting a poetry tea party today! In a few hours to be exact. The kids are so stinkin’ excited. You’ll get to see more about this in our summer reading program. That’s right, Everyday Snapshots is hosting a summer reading program right here starting later this month and running through June.

More details are coming really soon, but you are going to love all of the fun activities, printables, and book suggestions we have planned. I would love to say it was my idea, but this was totally my friend Jessica (cakes and birding) who came up with this one, so you have her to thank.

7 – As we do wind down the school year it occurred to me yesterday that I probably needed to have some plan in place for the summer. The kids will go to VBS and then nature camp, but I could not schedule that last one until after my planned start-back date (no worries, they will still count as school days — ha!). But that means June stretches before us with few planned activities. I don’t know about your house, but at mine that means plenty of bickering if I don’t come up with a plan.

And then there is the little issue of me ignoring the kids and getting sucked into my own projects. So a plan is definitely in order. Right now the short list includes our summer reading program activities, the pool (obviously), craft store activities, library reading program activities, one additional library visit each week, the art program we never got to this school year, quiet audiobook time each day, board and math games, reading to mom time. I feel like I need more ideas. What will you be doing with your extra time this summer?

 

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