Newest blog

I just started a new health blog that I hope you'll come check out:

Healthy Mom, Happy Family

I am going to be in a for a ride.

One: I've never disclosed my health status to the whole wide world before, and two: I'm putting myself on the spot (which is a good thing, actually) by almost tricking myself into getting healthier (after all, the whole world is watching). Or at least I like to think so.

Remember that post about being transparent?
Well, here goes.

To my health!

Tis the Season

Right now-- it's a brisk and chilly Saturday morning in Monterey and I'm at Starbucks sipping a tall Caffe Mocha...wondering about my journey for the upcoming year.
My first full year in California with my hubby and kids (remember, I lived here for 3 years with my parents when I was younger) will reach its full anniversary this upcoming February.  And now that we've overcome the initial culture shock, climate shock, sticker shock (house-hunting), and the kids are no longer out of sync with their surroundings and making new friends...I can finally say that we feel at home here.  For now.
And I can also say this: no matter where we  move and live, we will always learn to adapt and be "at home".  Although my husband is military (a navy reservist), we have never had to move in our full 10 years of marriage.  So this cross-country excursion gives me a true perspective of honor and respect for active duty military families who receive their post orders every 2-3 years or so.  And they're not just adapting to a new state even. Many are shifting their lives clear on the other side of the world- in Spain, Guam, Germany, England, Japan, and the likes.
I'm just sayin'...it makes me all the more grateful.
Moving to California I guess was not that big of a deal.  Yeah, things are definitely different around here out on the west coast, but after a bit of adjustment, you just begin to realize that people are people everywhere you go...and for the most part, basic issues are the same.
I am definitely learning a lot about the world, about people, about nature, about myself, about my family, about God.
Which leads me to the idea that I mentioned in another post, about finding my true niche in life.
This is the season.  I remind myself constantly that yet another has flown by and I haven't begun writing that book, or writing those songs, yada yada yada.  But it's not a guilty feeling I have.  Instead, it's more of a wistful wish-I-hadn't-procrastinated  feeling.  And now more than ever I feel the necessity of tapping into those interests I once enjoyed more often (yeah, before the kids).  But who says I can't keep loving my life just because I have kids?
So this year I am planning to redirect my focus a bit.  Not away from my kids, of course!  But maybe away from this blog.  The whole idea of "natural homeschooling" didn't quite take shape the way I'd envisioned.  Actually, the reason I started this blog was to chronicle my days as a homeschooling mom and my ideas about natural parenting.  Um...you tell me how many blog posts you can find here about the latter.
This blog is kind of a culmination of my homeschooling journey since 2007.
It's been fun.
And it has served as a creative outlet for me during the move to Cali.
But...tis the season for change.
What kind of change?
Hmmm...not really sure.  I have a few other blog ideas up my sleeve (as always!), and I hate to abandon this one.  Except, I'm just not sure if I want to journal so much about our homeschool (believe me, our thoughts about what homeschooling is and how it works for our family have changed dramatically since we've relocated).  Now, what our homeschool looks and feels like seems more of a personal family choice that I don't wish to blog so much about (with the exception of pics to our fun field trips).
There's really no easy way to explain that except that homeschooling for us has just become a really personal and natural extension of our family these past few months...and I'm becoming hesitant to share it all.  It feels so sacred, so "family-ish".  :-)  I know that's not a word.

Anyhoo.  Just thought I'd give you guys a heads-up.
I'll try to remember to post some pics of our first California Thanksgiving, and a community project the kids and I worked on.  Oh yeah, and some of our most recent fieldtrips out and about town.
I'm sure there'll be at least a few more posts before I shift my focus...so until next time!

The spirit of thankfulness

We are finally getting settled in. The kids have been enjoying their weekly Classical Conversations, we've found a few homeschool groups to plug into and we've made some real connections and friendships.  We found out that one of our homeschool family buddies lives only a block away from us, so we've been able to visit with them quite often!
Well...I'm glad we've gotten through October.  It was a month of decisions and I got off the rail a time or two.  Just a few weeks ago we were still struggling with the newbie syndrome, not knowing anybody in our new city and feeling completely unplugged.  The kids were complaining about being bored and I was seriously considering taking them to school.  That is until I visited a few schools during the season of "La Dia De Los Muertos" and realized the heavy influence Halloween would play on a given school day in October, given the Mexican cultural influence in our town. Maybe we're a little peculiar, but in our family we don't like to observe the occasion at all, and in fact, my kids find it offensive.  Even a simple trip to Walmart when all the Halloween decorations are out in the open bothers my 9 year old-- she'll run to the other side of the cart just to avoid having to pass the decoration.  Sounds extreme, but you never realize how spiritually sensitive younger (and even some older) children are until you expose them when they haven't been exposed.  I prayed for peace about continuing to homeschool, and what can I say.  I have all the peace and the strength I need to keep going in that direction for now...and the kids are back to a new norm.

Needless to say, November brought a breath of fresh air to our entire family...only four days in and I sense a beautiful seasonal change happening both in the natural weather and in the "spirit".  It's a great time of the year to focus on being thankful.
I looked at my daughter's Christmas list the other day and realized how extravagantly LONG it was (and how expensive most of the items were).  And my ears have been more attuned to the sound of complaining from the kids about what they don't have...and it makes my skin crawl.  It's to the point that I will not let it slide again.  So we're doing something about it.
After a talk about thankfulness I realized that my kids probably have never truly been exposed to those in need (besides our distant relationship with a Compassion International child Ny supports).
 It also came as a shock to my own system to walk out of the bagel store a few days ago with bagels for me and my kids...and walk right past a homeless guy in downtown Monterey who was digging through the garbage can to find a MYO yogurt someone had just finished off and tossed in.  He took it out and finished off the rest.  I kept walking to my car. I looked back.  I kept walking.  Then I looked in my own hands, realizing fully that I had just purchased three toasted bagels topped with yummy cream cheese.  Yeah, I was hungry and my stomach growled. I had to get my daughter to a doc appointment and needed a bite before we settled in a for a long wait and the bagel was my plan .  It was MINE.  And God said, "No.  You give to those in need and I will provide for yours."  So we did.  We backtracked our steps, gave him the bagel...and I will never forget the look in his eyes.  He said "thank you". Simple transaction, but powerful, because as I walked back to my car I kept thinking how good it felt to do the right thing.  And I also couldn't help but to wonder how in the world any society could solve a problem as complicated as homelessness.
From that moment forward, I have been thinking of ways our family can help our cities on the Peninsula...just contributing however we can.
We have a homeless shelter/soup kitchen nearby and I'm hoping to carve out a plan for our family to get plugged in with that soon.
Meanwhile, we have Thanksgiving coming up soon-- and I can't help but to wonder what this year will be like- not being with my parents and brother back home in Alabama - celebrating the holidays for the first time ever without them.  It will be different for sure, but trusting God that it won't be a lonely one.  He's sent us some great friends in the past 6 months who have really reached out to us in so many ways.

So I'm grateful for so much this season- new friends and old friends, family nearby and family far away, and the fact that God has blessed us with so much to be thankful for- like a new home and neighborhood, new educational opportunities for the kids (Classical Conversations), and mainly just the stability of family life together and the love we share with one another.
We've had some tough times these past 8 months or so, just trying to figure out our new identity in two new cities (and in a different region of the U.S. at that!)...but it's finally beginning to feel a bit like home.  Not the old home, but a new one.  The dust is settling, the hardest part of the transition is over, and we can finally breathe.  The kids are starting to feel more at home, and things are getting better.  And I am thankful.

We MOVED!

Okay, so we finally moved ...AGAIN.  And the mere fact that I am just now getting around to updating this blog should give you a clue as to how super busy and crazy it's been around here.
But things are settling down a bit now.
I'm done with most of my painting.

Oh, and here is a pic of our new California home (it's a bit hard to see the entire home from the angle I snapped the photo)...but it's a typical, modest California-style home in a pretty decent neighborhood about 25 minutes out from the ocean (which means it's warmer!!! Yippee!!)

(uh....ok...pic coming soon)

The girls are super happy about the climate change.  There are quite a few neighborhood and community parks, so that's always nice...not to mention I'm only a short 4 minutes away from Target, Walmart, Kohls, and the mall.
The local schools, on the other hand, are questionable (I'm sure the teachers are working really hard to get the delayed English learners up to par), but there is only so much a school can do within one academic year.
Private schools are decently priced compared to Alabama (can you believe it???), but we have chosen to homeschool yet another year.  Mainly because our constant moving is interrupting, and also because Ny has requested to continue homeschooling.
We found a Classical Conversations group in Monterey and quite happily paid the fee (one time fee of about $400, plus materials)...with the the idea that it was cheaper than paying that same amount monthly for private school.  We meet with the group once a week and Ny gets several classes (art, science, history, Latin, math) rolled into a period of about 3 1/2 hours with a specially trained CC tutor who is paid to teach the class.  We parents have to be present in the class to observe the methods and repeat them at home, and we participate by assisting the tutors in any way they need help.  I like it a lot and it is Ny and Z's one time during the week where they connect with friends for a few hours.
On Fridays we have a local play group too...I just haven't attended the one closer to our new town yet...so we'll check that out and see how it goes.

At this point, our biggest needs are meeting up with friends on a more consistent basis (Ny is at the age where forming and keeping relationships is really important...and it's tough when you keep moving...so that's one of her main needs right now), and getting some form of a consistent home + school routine together in our new house.  You know the drill- new environment, new rules, new routines to learn.  It's like starting all over again- leaving your former comfort zone of what to expect and creating and learning new ones.  So that's what we're working on - even simple things, like getting our kids back onto consistent bed time routines, and...ditching curriculum that doesn't work!
Yep.
We found that the Steck Vaughn spelling wasn't going so well.  Ny was giving the output, understood the concepts, but it bored her to tears.  She has finally asked me to not make her do it anymore.  After reviewing the book one last time, I agree.  So we're trying something new with that (we got these spelling bee flashcards and are just learning around 20 a week- definitions, roots, and spelling).  So far that is all I've got planned for spelling.  But that's another topic for another blog post.
How did Z take the move?
You know what?  All of the withdrawal she's been through this summer turned out to be one of those phases  where she perceived another major change was upon the family- and she was, of course, upset and didn't know how to express her feelings.  Well, thankfully, her silence has been broken, she's not as moody (in fact she's gotten pretty happy since she moved here and enjoyed all those days of sunshine and NO FOG!)  But now we're working on the 3 year old tantrum issues...but getting through that too.
I was talking to a friend this weekend who reminded how much children need consistency and how to tap into their best mode of learning (so for me, it's visual, and perhaps so for my kids too).  Meaning, if I have visual learners they are far more likely to respond to chore charts with visual cues than to my constant derailing and nagging about what they need to do next or haven't already done.  So I'm working on that bit.
Yeah.  Being a mom is a process.
I'll, of course, have more updates soon...
I've been thinking about plucking out a new blog that comes from a different angle other than home schooling.I haven't been able to quite give that much thought yet, though, considering how tied up I am mentally right now with just sorting through life.
For now, though, school is in full swing and I've got my hands full enough already,
Till later...

School Has Arrived

As much as I'd like to post pics of our school days, there is just not a lot to post right now considering we're mostly boxed up and ready to move any day now.  But I can definitely give you an idea of what our school days have been looking like so far.

We officially started up our homeschool two weeks ago.  The first week was probably the most difficult as we needed to sort out methods for making everything run smoothly.  At this point I think I have a reasonable system that works, at least until the move, and even then, it's versatile enough where we should be able to easily get to our things and keep our system running without needing an elaborate school set up.  Sure, it would be nice to have everything in place and be comfortably learning at a decent, well-lit desk with bookshelves for our material...but it's a no-can-do for now, and we've found that two medium sized cardboard boxes and a kitchen table work just as good!  At least until we move.

I'll post a page soon of our curriculum picks for this school year, but here's what our basic schedule looks like:
8:00- up, shower, breakfast, devotional with Daily Audio Bible for Kids
Block 1:  Language Arts (Grammar, Spelling, Writing Workshop, Handwriting, Literature)
Block 2: Math
Block 3: History or Science
Block 4: Art, French, or Music (music appreciation or piano lesson)

Once a week we introduce a "hymnal of the week".  I realized just how important it is for my kids to understand their roots and to learn many of the hymnals that were commonplace to me in my upbringing.  I don't want my kids to lose out on that.  Simple hymns such as "Just As I Am" aren't ever sung at most of the churches we've attended because we generally don't attend traditional services.  As much as we like the contemporary style worship, there is absolutely nothing that can replace the beauty of simple hymnals and I find it kind of...well...(shameful?) sad that my kids have never heard of "What A Friend We Have in Jesus".  Know what I mean?  So we started to introduce this concept of  a "hymnal a week" to reinforce that.  Mainly I just have Ny write down the words to the first verse only in her notebook, have her listen to the song online and learn it.  Then we sing it together.  Each week we learn a new one and review the older ones from previous weeks.

This year we're also studying California History...which I'm a bit nostalgic about it because I also studied California History in 4th grade! (We lived in Atwater back in the late 80's).  A friend is going to sell me her "My Golden California" curriculum which she says I can adapt to Ny's level. Until then, we're  using the plenteous resources available to us at our local libraries.
You wouldn't believe the TONS of info on your own state until actually deem it important to go looking for it...and boy is it everywhere.  Between the libraries' avid "state" collections and resources, the local museums and aquariums, and welcome centers,  I think we have enough resources at our disposal to keep us on California history for more than a year...but we're going to only plan on studying it until December.  We'll see where our interest leads us into the new semester.

For literature, we're reading classics and doing book reports.  Right now we're reading "The Secret Garden". I wanted to place more focus this year on teaching Ny to practice writing, writing, writing, and learning the elements of literature.  This means I've decided to go back to some curriculum which in the past I totally disliked (Shurley English) but with time I've learned to adapt to our needs (in other words, I don't follow the curriculum word for word!)  We're currently finishing up Level 2 with that. Yep, the same level 2 we started two years ago!  But that's okay, it's definitely on target for her now.

I dunno...what else should I say...
Oh!  Almost forgot...we are starting Classical Conversations in a few days- a total excitement hub for our kids since they haven't been in a "co-op" of any sorts since our move to Cali.  While CC isn't necessarily a co-op, it definitely will feel somewhat familiar to us (morning assembly and prayer) and it is Christian which helps me feel more at ease that we'll meet and befriend other families of faith.  The kids are just super excited!  And we'll go clothes shopping this weekend for a few more items (didn't I just buy Ny some bluejeans two MONTHS ago??!!!)

Anyhoo...
One more thing I wanted to add...
Probably even more than Ny, I am really excited about galloping around town to learn about California so if I ever sound super nerdy and start spouting off some facts about the history of Monterey, just know that I can tend to really GET INTO things.  Maybe overkill.  But I will be SURE to share with you EVERYTHING I learn about this state.  Yep.    Just thought you may want to be sure to stay tuned for the upcoming history lessons ahead.
All joking aside, I am seriously REALLY looking forward to this upcoming homeschool year (or months or whatever).  I have learned long ago to never plan too far in advance so the week and months that I have today with my kids in home education, I appreciate them all the more.  And if ever/whenever they do go off to some private school or what not, I can at least say "remember back in the days when we homeschooled?"

So, I want to make the most of the days ahead.

Bye bye summer break...

I can't believe school has started back already...but here we are.  I've been thinking about how quickly our summer flew. Brief recap:

My birthday- yay 34!

Visits to the Aquarium

Our local library's 100th birthday party

My hubby's birthday @ Bubba Gump Shrimp Company

A beautiful sunset on the beach

Fun on the coast

My daughter's birthday at Chuck E Cheese

Then there was Disneyland and American Girls and Ny's brief stints at ballet and Z's sudden realization that we were here in Cali to stay for awhile and her transitional probs.  (Glad to say things have settled down with her and she's back to her normal self again- talking, laughing, and amazing me more each day!)
Amazing how the summer quickly came and went.

But Back To School we are.
Next post, what our school is looking like these days.

Moving again.

Well, goodbye summer.
Didn't I just write a post only a while back entitled "Hello Summer?"
We started our homeschool back up this week and, yep, school's back in full swing for the Zinga clan.  I'm planning to write up a post soon on our curriculum for this year.
Anyhow, things are still constantly evolving in our home.  As you know, we just moved to Monterey (well, Pacific Grove really) about 5 1/2 months ago.  We've been living in an apartment right by the ocean and acclimating ourselves to the new climate, culture, and community (the 3 c's!)...BUT...there has been some missing elements to our family life here.

1. We suffer from sticker shock.  A growing family of 4 with kids living in a tourist-enabled city doesn't quite equal to "family friendly" in my book. (Imagine no Target...but you do have a Macy's.  No Chick-Fil-A...but you have a nice mom and pop shop that will charge you 3 times the amount for a chicken burger).  Time to relocate.
2. We miss the warm weather.  It's the middle of summer.  I am happy, ReALLY happy, if we can shed our sweaters because the temp hit 67 degrees. A far cry from last summer's 107.  Can you tell I'm slightly homesick?  Okay, not to the point of desperation...just a twang of "ahhh...remember the days".
3. Space.  Need I say more?

So, okay, I have an aggressive house hunter hubby, and he's really been wheelin' and dealin' to get us a home a few miles inland from the coast.  It's about a 20 minute drive from his work here and really, I feel it's the best of both worlds.  God is so good (and no, I didn't always feel so positively about this move at first, but I've worked it through it). We'll still be an active part of the community here - because, hey, let's face it, it's a BEAUTIFUL place to work and visit and have a lot of fun in- but we'll definitely lower our living costs and have more space at what will be our new place of residence.  Did I mention that we'll have a Target and Walmart?  Okay that's a big deal for me. Not that I don't appreciate what makes Monterey unique (kayaking and surfing on the beach, scuba-diving, surfing, paddle-boating, fishing, upscale shopping if you got the moolah, cycling, riding surreys, a good city transit, ethnic restaurants of all types, and if you're into wine - which I'm not- you can have a field day as each restaurant thinks their selections are better than the next)...so there are a lot of good things about this place.  But on to why we're moving...
Did I mention that it's warmer?  Plus we'll have more space.  And we'll be in a house and I won't need to use the community laundromat anymore.
 I'm a sight to behold- 5'0" woman lugging  backloads of laundry in my husband's military bag up and down a flight of stairs every week- oh, you better believe I'm looking forward to having my own washer and dryer again!!!!  (You never what you're missing until you miss it.  The next time I see my own washer/dryer unit, I won't be complaining about how much laundry I have-- I'll be breathing thanks to God that I don't have to go up and down a flight of stairs for 3-4 hours each week, waiting on my turn for the dryers which never dry properly and cost a pretty penny).  So I'm excited. :-)

As for our moving prep, at this moment our apartment is nearly boxed up.  We've been living on temporary mode these past few months anyhow since we knew we'd be moving again...so I didn't unpack everything to begin with...but I'm really surprised at how much I DID unpack.  Thankfully I kept all my boxes. 

As for homeschool, like I mentioned earlier, we started this week with Ny's 4th grade year, and Z is officially our preschooler.  Ny is really excited because she'll be starting Classical Conversations here in Monterey in a few weeks, and the cool thing is that there are a few families there who also live in the community we're moving to- so maybe we'll connect?
Connecting is still a major activity on my list of must-do's...I think because it's the only way I feel anyone can truly survive a move- whether it's to a new city or out of country. I'm finding that on days we don't go anywhere the whole family is cranky. Really.  It's just not our cup of tea...and I really do like being out a lot- exploring the sights and sound of the world beyond "home". There's so much history and culture to learn about here that we've decided for Ny's first semester we are studying California History.

However, Z has been having a really tough time lately with all the sights and sounds of Cali.  After 5 months of what in her 3 year old mind was one big vacation, she finally woke up to the understanding that we are here for a long time. When it dawned on her that our apartment is not a hotel and that we haven't seen her grandparents and her favorite friends back home in a really long time, she suddenly coiled into a shell and became our  baby all over again.  Lots of tears, not wanting to sleep alone, not wanting to feed herself or dress herself, and even lost interest in play...I tell ya, it's been a rough few weeks.  Then...she up and decided that she just didn't feel like speaking anymore either.  And that was the hardest of all of her symptoms for us to deal with. The day we quit hearing her voice, we knew there was a major problem and it hurt beyond hurt.  A friend of mine suggested that what she was going through may be very similar to grief.  Z was experiencing separation anxiety mixed with some fear and probably a dose of anger too, because she just didn't have it all sorted out yet.  My friend reminded me that in her small world, everything is larger than large, and her perception of the move was completely different than ours.  Whereas my 9 year old has come to terms with leaving her friends behind and is now making new friends and attempting to make the necessary adjustments to move forward, it doesn't quite work that way when you're just 3, and all you know is all you know.  And suddenly everything you see now doesn't add up in any way, shape, or form to the home you once knew.  Like the sights of ocean water on a beach and the smell of salt water in the air.  Or the sound of sea gulls, the feeling of cool, gusty breezes against your skin in the middle of summer.  What used to be your lone house surrounded by a huge yard to romp and play, collect rocks, and dig dirt has suddenly turned into a 100+ resident apartment complex featuring neatly numbered carports neighboring restaurants, businesses, hotels,and other apartments. Looking at life through her lenses, I am able to better understand what Z might be going through right now.
Granted, she is now talking to us again and eating just fine (praising GOD!!!!)-- although she still comes to sleep in our room some nights, and that's okay.  My main thing for her transition right now is just to help her to feel safe and to try to develop some form of routine for her.  Which is pretty hard right now (the routine part, that is), considering things won't be the same a few weeks from now after our 2nd move.  But we'll just have to take it one day at a time, one week at a time.
So, please keep us (and all our moving) in your prayers...and next time you think about us shoot out a small prayer on behalf of my kiddos and their transition into our new school year.
Hope you and yours are doing great!
Til next time...