Friendly Competition

"Mommy, when it's summer again, will I be able to ride a big bike? One without training wheels?"
"Yep, I think you will!"
"Okay. When I do that, I'll bring a box of band-aids with me, so that when I get a boo boo, I can fix it up right away!"

Be prepared, people--bring band-aids. Plain and simple, that's why I don't clean my car. You never know when I may need an empty plastic water bottle. What if we are stranded in the middle of a forest, and can only find a trickling stream? You may be unprepared, and have nothing other than your two hands to cup together for a meager drink of water. But I, I will surely find an empty water bottle under some hastily colored pictures, discarded blankets, toys, and maybe a onesie, or two.

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A definite downside to homeschooling is the lack of competition, or motivation to work harder in order to keep up with your peers. I have found that due to Isabella's personality, she needs a little push, or a shove in order to ignite that motivation. I can drill it into her head that in order to be a successful citizen of society she has to learn how to read, and darn it all, she has to learn her math facts, but that's boring, and frustrating for both of us. Walter has reminded me on more than one occasion that as her preschool teacher said, "Isabella is a free spirit." She is, and I feel like I walk a fine line between dampening that spirit, and teaching her the fundamental building blocks of learning.

Frankly, motherhood runs rampant with feelings of guilt. It is so annoying. Am I doing this right? Am I a good enough mom? Are they learning everything they need to know? Am I spending enough time playing with them? Do we read enough? Am I fun? I mean, the list goes on and on. You could drive yourself crazy thinking about all of that.

All of that rambling to say that I suggested to Sarah that we get the girls together to play the "grocery game". It's simple, collect a bunch of random items, make price tags, give your child the coins they are learning, and have them practice counting money. In our case, nickels and dimes. The day before Maya was to come over, she was so worried that she would forget how to count by fives and tens. The two of us have played the grocery game many times, but now she would have someone else watching. The morning Maya was coming over, Isabella told me that while she was waiting for Isaac and I to wake up, she was laying in bed counting by fives. I was so excited--finally, she understood that her learning stretched beyond just the two of us, and practice is actually important.

She didn't forget how to count out her money. Maybe she stumbled a few times, but all in all, it was a good experience for her, and also good for her to see that she is not the only five year old who has to learn how to count dimes and nickels.