Sorry I have been MIA. It really wasn’t my intention to leave you hanging high and dry here. I have a litany of excuses I could offer (including a bout with the flu — for everyone), but honestly “really busy” just about covers it. So for your enlightenment on what has been pulling me away, below are seven blog posts I could write today if I had the time. Maybe over the next few weeks I will get the chance to write the full versions.

1) Heartfelt Homeschooling – Our days had devolved into checking off a few boxes by doing worksheets, and we had lost our enjoyment of learning and each other. I recently totally switched up our priorities and things are improving rapidly. We are still working out the kinks and finding a routine, but a post is in the works.

2) Potty Training 101 – Told you I’ve been busy. My methods revolve around waiting until after age three, heavy bribes, and a naked bottom, but it works pretty quickly. We’re at a week and for all intents and purposes good to go. (A related post to this one would be “Dealing with an Irrational Three-Year-Old.” I have no tips for that, just frustrations. I am convinced that the perfect torture for Mr Spock would be forcing him to babysit a three-year-old for a few hours. A more illogical creature there never was.)

3) How to Survive with Your Husband Away – Matt has been away a lot this winter. It makes for exhausting days when he is gone. Unfortunately I am becoming an expert, and might have a tip or two to share on how to make it survivable.

4) Math with Games – And I mean completely with games. Our math issues have been documented this year. At this point, I have totally abandoned traditional curriculum and am back to Math on the Level — except we are completely covering the concepts by playing games. And it is going amazingly well.

5) How to Start Your Own Classical Co-op – Oh yes. A few other local homeschool moms and I are collaborating on our own co-op for next year. It’s a huge project, but oh so fun to plan, especially with my talented partners. And it is going to be an awesome co-op if I do say so myself. I can’t wait to share all of our ideas. (See? Busy. Really busy.)

6) Be a Force for Good in Your Local Homeschool Community – I think this is important, though it can be exhausting at times. I do think that if there is nothing exciting going on for homeschoolers in your community, then it is probably because no homeschooler has ever asked. So I ask, a lot. Right now I am working with our local library to get some homeschool programs started. We are in the early information-gathering stage, but I have high hopes. We have some exciting field trips planned for spring, and friends and I are also venturing into learning parties for kids. Our first one is filling up fast and is all about learning to tell time. I can’t wait to share it with you. If it goes well, I want to do another about money later this spring and who knows what else we might do…

7) Confessions of a Whole Foods Kitchen Newbie – I am really making an effort for us to eat less processed food and more real foods. We are making baby steps in that direction, but I am feeling so much better about the foods we eat (most of the time). So I am doing things like grinding wheat, baking bread, and I even tried my hand at making butter (not really a sustainable practice in cost or effort, but it was neat to try).

So there you go, the seven blog posts I could write if I had the time. As for the requisite photo? Yeah, I haven’t had time for that much either these days. My last iPhoto import was from St. Nicholas Day — December 6. That is just shameful!

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