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Diary of a Homeschool Dad - Week 29

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The warmth has returned to the Houston area, and with it a semblance of normal as everything started opening back up.  I hope everyone out there is also getting back into their own particular groove! Sunday - Church wasn't very full coming off the big freeze.  Some of the classrooms had sustained damage, so all activities other than the actual worship service were canceled for the day.  The exciting news back home came in the late afternoon when the boil notice in our town finally got lifted.  I ran the faucets, replaced the water filter, and cranked up the ice maker again.  Everyone else in the house started going through clothes and closets to figure out what should get thrown out or donated prior to our next move. Monday - Something new and different on a Monday morning, and that is exercise.  Mrs. Geographist has been going to early-morning cross kick workouts and I decided to join her.  The grand master of the martial arts studio runs the class, so I was able to get some perso
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Diary of a Homeschool Dad - Week 28

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If you live in Texas or you follow the news, you'll realize this was a bizarre week (even by recent standards).  My heart goes out to all of those affected by the crisis which was kicked off by the winter weather we've experienced. Sunday - Happy Valentine's Day!  We really did our celebrating on Saturday, as today was supposed to be spent primarily at church.  After our morning service and Bible study, however, our schedule was adjusted as all afternoon and evening events were canceled.  We all went home and packed up, and once everyone had grabbed lunch we scooted down the road towards my parents' house.  With my dad still in the hospital, I thought the freeze might present difficulties for my mom and she would do well to have some companionship and help for a few days.  Little did we know we were actually saving ourselves from a significant headache.  The older girls had school canceled for Monday and Tuesday, so we figured on staying for two nights until things had
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Diary of a Homeschool Dad - Week 27

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Lots of random goings-on this week! Sunday - Apparently there was some big football game scheduled.  After church and Bible study, we got to hang around late with the kids for a Bible Drill party with the appropriate gridiron theme.  Pizza and cupcakes are a must!  I thought the games to help the kids remember their verses and passages were pretty cool, considering we're still doing things 6' apart.  Once we got home and did some light housework (and just a bit of office work) I watched some of the first half of the game, but got annoyed with it pretty quickly.  So I decided to just hang out for a while with my wife and chill for the evening. Monday - In addition to school and work, we also had a few chores to run.  I had upgraded my phone so it was necessary to return my old device, which meant a trip to the UPS store.  In addition, Whirly had to get a blood test to make sure her medication was doing well.  And any time a little girl has to get a shot, it seems right somehow t
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Diary of a Homeschool Dad - Week 26

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To say this week was all about family would be a massive understatement.  I can't articulate how wide the emotional swings have been this week, but we have all certainly learned a thing or two about the importance of a strong faith and support system when life gets tough. Sunday - We woke up in our hotel in North Carolina and watched our home church service on Mrs. Geographist's laptop.  There was apparently some disagreement about whether or not we should show up to my uncle's home, so we respectfully kept our distance and decided to do some sightseeing while we were in town.  We drove through Charlotte, taking in some of the local sporting locations such as the auto racing hall of fame as well as the local professional football and basketball team venues.  There was even a line for a drive-through Covid vaccine that I very nearly wound up driving into.  The weather was chilly and pretty drizzly, so while there weren't many opportunities to get outside, but towards din
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Diary of a Homeschool Dad - Week 25

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First of all, the blog hit 1,000+ viewers again in the month of January - I can never say thank you enough to everyone who continues to check in!  After two years of posting each week about various topics, it's great to see folks clicking the link on a regular basis. Sunday - We started the week at church, and then headed to grab some Cajun seafood at lunch (including some awesome dessert!) at one of our old favorite restaurants.  Once home, my mom alerted us that she was taking my dad to the ER due to discomfort from their auto accident.  Given his health history we were glad to hear there were no heart issues, but apparently he'd sustained a compressed disc and fracture in his back from the impact of their collision.  I intended to head to their house to help out, but after Mrs. Geographist brought Girly back from her youth choir rehearsal we opted for a Monday visit instead.  I helped out with Curly and Whirly's online Bible Drill, and wrapped up the day by preparing a w
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Diary of a Homeschool Dad - Week 24

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This week was marked by friendly reunions, national observances, and family heartache.  On a personal note, I've been reading the book of Job during Bible study and I found some of the words especially applicable to life right now.   Sunday - Our church schedule was back to normal this week, and once we wrapped up it was time to catch up with a friend.  A former co-worker of mine is a long-time musician and we had the opportunity to have brunch at a restaurant where his group was playing.  It was good to see him after a few months, and Mrs. Geographist enjoys his blend of music that is heavy on Texas country and 90s pop.  Oh, and the food was pretty good as well.  After getting home and relaxing for a bit, Mrs. Geo took Girly back to church for youth choir while I stayed home with Curly and Whirly to do Bible Drill.  Hopefully our virtual lessons can go back to being in-person when the calendar rolls over to February! Monday - The observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day meant no
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Diary of a Homeschool Dad - Week 23

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This new semester has been an interesting adventure so far - with my wife no longer going to a single school each day, she and I have been mixing up the responsibilities of teaching at home more frequently.  We obviously have different ways of approaching individual lessons, but I think it's a positive situation for Whirly as she's soon going to experience having multiple teachers each day when she gets back into private school next semester. Sunday - As an abnormal start to the week, we didn't go to church.  Our youngest had trouble keeping her dinner down the prior day so as a precaution we didn't go out in public.  She had no lingering issues, however, so it's likely just a side effect of her meds.  After streaming our service I also made a point of checking in with our online 5th graders - two of our teachers have been handling the virtual version of Bible Study every Sunday for kids who aren't making it onto campus, so it was good to see that crew for the f
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Diary of a Homeschool Dad: Week 22

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It was back to school time for everyone out there, as we've moved into 2021.  Sunday - After our usual morning routine, we got to add a new feature to our evenings: Bible Drill!  Our church has been doing this for several years now, and both Curly and Whirly are both involved this year.  This was actually the last thing we did with the kids at church before the Covid quarantine began last March, as Curly had her Church competition just before we left for vacation (and when we got back everything was shut down).  She was bummed that she didn't get to compete at the next two levels, which were Association and State competitions, so she's back for her final grade of elementary school to finish what she started. Monday - Mrs. Geographist had the final day of her long-term sub position, with the first weekday of 2021 being a teacher in-service day in the local school district.  All the girls stayed home with me while she went to transition her classroom over to the full-time tea
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Diary of a Homeschool Dad: Week 21

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Happy New Year!  I must have planned this out pretty well for my 21st week of the homeschool diary portion of the page to coincide with the start of '21, right?  Nope, just a happy coincidence.  I hope everyone reading this page had a great break and is ready to kick off an exciting year, full of optimism and promise. Sunday - Mrs. Geographist and I were on the road, heading out to the Texas Hill Country for a little anniversary vacation.  She got us reservations at a nice hillside BBQ spot in Austin for lunch, and we generally spent the day meandering up and down I-35, reminiscing about my college days in San Marcos, TX and our first few months of marriage there.  We drove past our first home together, a tiny duplex on the northern edge of town, as well as an apartment complex where we'd both lived.  The whole area has changed quite a bit, but there were plenty of memories.  The shopping is still a highlight - two outlet malls stand side-by-side, and we certainly burned throug
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