Our home in a freak fall snowstorm.
We are in a new house, a house we love and are so happy to have moved to, but wow -- getting to this point, where I now have a bit of free time to write about it -- that's been tough. I really was not prepared for how difficult it would be to move during the school year.
We put our house up for sale in June. It is a lovely little townhouse, but with only 3 bedrooms (small ones, too) and 4 kids, it was time to go bigger. And since a bad economy is a good time to buy a house, we went for it. At the end of July we got an offer and found our new home at the end of August. We had 14 days between closings. I thought having 2 weeks to move would make the whole process run smoothly and allow time for me to homeschool Gabby and tend the other kids' needs as well.
WRONG! The 2 weeks went by like nothing and we still had boxes everywhere and nowhere to sit (small house -> big house = not enough furniture). The first night we slept here, we didn't have enough time to set up the beds, so our bedroom became a true "bed"room: we had all the mattresses spread across the floor and all slept together.
Throughout this time, I was able to fit in very little schooling. Even Bri ended up missing 4 homework assignments over the course of the month. I don't think I had ever had to sign a missed homework slip for her in the past 5 years! Now, 4 in a month! The poor kid cried over the last 2 of them. She's responsible but still only 10. A 10-year old needs some support in getting homework done. An occasional "did you get your homework done?" goes a long way.
Gabby has been a huge help with the move. We would not be so well unpacked now if not for her. One day we organized the garage. It was stuffed so full, you could hardly walk through it. We moved all the boxes to the rooms where they belonged. It took the whole afternoon and was heavy labor. Gabby didn't complain once.
Doing schoolwork, though -- that's involved some complaining. Everything was too hard or she didn't know what she was supposed to do (5 minutes after me explaining what she was supposed to do). She was an angel to help me and a bear to teach.
But what can I expect? I had no interest in school either with the house in such a state! We are cut from the same cloth, this girl and I.
Well, now we're moved. Unpacked, mostly, a new couch (someplace to sit) and we are making a greater effort at schooling. Gabby should finish a nice paper puzzle of the cell in the next few days and complete our unit on Animal Farm as well. Halloween brought the culmination of her month-long study of Little Women. I'll post about that this week. I'm trying to be a better mom to everyone. I am even checking Bri's homework sheet every night.
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