We have decided to home school Hailey. *GASP* you say? Yes, tiz true. We are excited and a little nervous but it should be fun. For those of you wondering why in the world we would even consider homeschooling, here is our list of reasons.

1. The one size fit's all public school system isn't one size fits all. When I mean by this is TJ struggled in school because he was bored. He was too smart for his own good and was bored by the way it was taught and the things that were taught, therefore he didn't turn in his homework and didn't participate in class. I struggled in school because I am a very visual, hands on learner and I couldn't sit through classes. They never kept my attention very long and I didn't understand much of what was taught because it was lecture style. We want to cater to her learning style to maximize her learning potential. The public school system doesn't have that flexibility.

2. Being in the military and moving around every few years isn't conducive to a steady education. Being home schooled will provide a system where we know exactly where she is, what she's learned and hasn't, and can continue her education without breaking every time we move.

3. The teaching in all the subjects has become so political and revisionist that they're not even learning what really happened or is happening. We want our daughters to be well rounded with truth.

4. The fact that my daughters can be giving birth control or taken off school grounds for an abortion without our consent is a serious problem. Not just that but kids use to bring a permission home to be signed by the parents for sex education. Now they just do it.


5. Last but most certainly not least, Hailey craves knowledge and we don't want to kill her excitement and awe by shoving her in a classroom.

We plan on taking it one year at a time.

Paradise

In the last few months my emotions have been up, down, sideways and inside out. I've hardly seen the back of my eyelids, and the house has seen better days. However, I've never been happier and I owe that in part to our little Lilah. It started out rough with Lilah and her colic but she's stopped screaming for 5+ hours at a time and is now a happy baby that sleeps peacefully and smiles often. Here are some pictures I took a few days ago of how our days have been lately. Paradise :)

"I judge you"

I love her smart little bald head

sweet dreams

sissy lovins

Silly belly button

I finally figured out where Lilah's Silly Bellybutton came from.


One of the seven dwarfs lost their nose and somehow it magically appeared on my daughters tummy!

See the resemblance?

Eurwangni Beach Trip

Who's the genius that thought it was a good idea to go to the beach for the weekend? I am that genius. We left a pile of food for the cat and off we went.


Day one -

TJ showing off our neat-o hotel.
Isn't he the cutest guy in the world?


I don't know how I'm every going to be able to sit in another tub again without longing for this one. It. Was. Awesome. *sigh*

We found a bunch of crabs along the beach.

Hailey wasn't so sure about them at first. Notice her little toes curled into the sand. Adorable!

Warming up to the idea...

Such a brave little thing.

I love that he loves them.


Of course, we had to build sand castles in the sand :D It was the bestest sand castle in the world.

She was thinking great things.

My scrunched up happy smile. I love him.

Isn't this THE awesomest pink tent EVER? Yep. Hailey picked it out. Poor TJ.

Day two -

It was pretty hot the second day we were there so yes, that's TJ with a nursing wrap around him. No he was not nursing the baby although I might pay oober amounts of money to see him attempt.

Who is in love with the beach? This girl.

This is where I was most of the two days we hung on the beach. Lilah stayed cool and I got to relax. Win win.

I think there's a song about building sand castles in the sand. If not, someone needs to make it because I definitely wanted to sing a little song while I was taking these pictures. It was that magical.


Our silly little cute face head fell asleep like this after day two of pure fun.

I love that yummy tired feeling at the end of a fun filled day.

Day three - We basically woke up, ate donuts, played at the park a bit and headed home.

A classic shot of our family. TJ was trying to figure out the camera.


I love this photo.



I love donuts. I love mocha. BAM! Smack them together and this is what you get. Mocha crunch donuts. Pure goodness.

Hair was not done, teeth were not brushed and coffee was not drunk. Beautiful.

Aaand Lilah just pooed all over my lap...welcome home :) I love my life.

Don't judge the sleep deprived

Being sleep deprived really sucks. I mean really. But if I can't laugh about my situation then I'd go crazy, just ask my husband. Unfortunately for poor little Lilah, I get my giggles out on her. She IS the one that keeps me smelly and sleepy so it's only fair....right?

Meet "silly bellybutton." Hailey named it, can you tell? She came to us a few weeks after Lilah was born and she's growing like a weed.

She can be many things. A doctor for instance.

BTW - This was taken at about 3 weeks. Scroll down for the new and improved fat girl Silly Belly Button.

BAM! She doubled in size. And she's cold and naked. Hailey thought she needed clothes.....

So we put some on her....

Don't judge me! I can't be held accountable for what I do when I'm functioning on little to no sleep!

FYI - Lilah is perfectly healthy. It's just a herniated belly button. The doctors said that it should go away by the time she's two. Nothing to worry about for me. Lilah on the other hand has much to worry about. She has a crazy, sleep deprived mother that has absolutely no problem posting this on the internet for future boyfriends to read. Once on the internet, always in the internet...poor kid.

Engrish

So, you know how we Americans think it's super keen ( ) to tattoo our bodies or wear neat-o shirts with Asian lettering? Yea...it's SO not as cool as we think it is. I promise. Here's something that I came across last week that made me laugh so hard that I HAD to buy it.

Cute far away right?

Hrm, pay no mind to the unfolded laundry in the background....

What have we learned today students? When you think it's cool to tattoo your body with words you can't read, make sure you check the translation with a reputable source because you're probably walking around looking like this.

But at the end of the day, I still love this country.