Carta de Amor a los Mal Informados

En menos de 7 días, 2 personas me han dicho cosas más tonta sobre homeschoolers.
Aún más tonta es el hecho que conozcan mis hijos, pero todavía tienen la necesidad de decir el más ignorante de cosas.

1. ¿Tienen amigos y cuando tienen la oportunidad de socializar?

¿En serio? ¿No conozcan mis hijos? Conozco adultos que son socialmente torpes (ejem) y han estado alrededor de gente sus propias edades desde preescolar hasta la universidad. Mis hijos tienen la oportunidad de estar cerca de personas de todas las edades, géneros, clases, razas y nunca han tenido un momento incómodo. Se adaptan a cualquier situación.
Mi hija adolescente fue a una escuela de ladrillo y mortero por la primera vez este ano y sabes qué fue lo primero que notó? Los grupos de niños que sólo salían con chicos que parecían de ellos, vestido como ellos, y estaban en el mismo grado. Ella no podía entender por qué estudiantes de 8vo grado no estan "permitidos" a sentarse con los alumnos de sexto durante el almuerzo. Estoy orgullosa de decir que ella se sentó con todos. Viajaba de una mesa a otra era la forma en que mi mariposa social pasó su tiempo durante la hora del almuerzo.
¿Cuántos niños puede hacer eso?
De hecho, vaya a su página de Facebook y elegir cualquier persona al azar que usted tiene en su timeline y desplazamiento a través de su lista de amigos. Apuesto a que tiene más de un amigo cuyo amigos miran como ellos.
La socialización de hecho!
No es que haya educadores en el hogar que pueden estar bajo las paraguas de lo que los medios han retratado a ser educadores en el hogar.
Créeme.
He conocido a muchos, pero mis hijos, no es uno de ellos.

2. ¿Están aprendiendo algo? Ellos no pueden aprender en casa! Eso es una locura. ¿No te cansas de estar cerca de ellos durante tanto tiempo?

Ese tipo de pregunta que me hace reir tanto.
Recuerdo cuando mi, entonces 1er grado, se fue a la casa de los abuelos para el día llevandose libros en el bulto de Hello Kitty. Estaba leyendo La Serie de Eventos Desafortunados. El abuelo se sorprendió que supiera ella leer. Cuando llegó a casa esa noche y me dijo como paso el dia y me dijo que sorprendidos estaban que ella sabia leer. Ella, en torno, le miro bien a los ojos del y dijo "¿qué se creen que hago todo el día?"
Tal vez pensó que comiamos chocolate y mirando episodios de I Love Lucy todo el día. A una edad temprana les enseñé la cantidad que realmente puede amar a su biblioteca y todas las maravillas que puedes encontrar en ese gran edificio grande. Allí fue donde mi chiquilla salio de su cochecito y descubrió el pasillo donde se puede aprender todo lo que usted siempre quiso saber acerca de los insectos.

Por supuesto, es mucho de trabajo. Una madre comentó lo mucho que digo "nosotros" cuando hable de la forma en que hacemos la escuela en la casa. Trabajamos a partir de las 8am hasta las 3:00pm.
Nos tomamos descansos y tal vez caminamos por el bloque durante nuestro dia.
Nosotros aprendemos sobre la historia del mundo.
Nos encantó la lectura de los clásicos de Mark Twain.
Sí. Yo digo que mucho digo "nosotros".

Ni siquiera voy a pedir disculpas por no tener la niñera en el speed dial.
Por supuesto, tengo mis momentos en los que necesitamos tiempo a solas.
Gracias a Dios por la YMCA donde durante los últimos 10 años, mis hijas tenían clases de ballet, gimnasia,  natación, actuación y clases de baile.
Esta Mami ha tenido mucho con ella misma.
A medida que avanzo en otro año homeschooling con mi chiquilla, no me arrepiento.
Bueno, por lo menos puedo tener un lote grande de chocolate todos los días.

Our Wordless Wednesday

Are you really prepared?

Yesterday the lights went out for about 5 minutes.  I panicked!  I am not prepared in case of an emergency.
I am prepared food wise.
Plenty of snacks and boxed drinks.  Flashlight and extra batteries.  Extra battery for my cell phone.
What I am not prepared is mentally.
I freak out if we have a tiny shake.
Okay not tiny for me.  They are all HUGE to me.
I'm a New Yawker.  The most shaking we ever get is in a train.  I do remember one in 1986 (?).  I remember not being able to sleep at all.  The birds, cats and dogs were especially noisy hours before the quake.  I thought I was going to die.
Mentally I am not prepared for anything disastrous.  I scream and cry.
I really need to get my shit together.  Two out of three of my kids still living at home and they do not need to see me losing my shit because the lights went out or if we have a little shaking going on.
Or if the a/c decides not to turn on.
Seriously.
So, I am going to start calming myself down.
That means not on the verge of tears when the phone rings after 10pm (casting directors, producers, directors?  Please call me early when you need my kids on set.  You will give me a heart attack. :-)   )
Or if I hear rumbling because of an earthquake or if a truck is going by and I think it's an earthquake.  True story.
Staying calm is something I need to practice. Maybe yoga breathing and not hyperventilating breathing.
~~~~~
Over the weekend I decided to tweak my bean stew in the crockpot.  I usually just cook it over the stove but we were really busy this weekend and I wanted to come home to food.  All I had to do was make the rice and dinner was ready 20 minutes after walking in through the door.

2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp minced garlic (use less if you're not a fan)
1/4 cup sofrito
1 cup tomato sauce
2 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup alcaparrado
2 cans beans (any will do.  I made mine with red kidney beans)
1 tsp adobo

Heat the oil in a saute pan.
Add the sofrito and tomato sauce and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes.
Add the garlic and saute for 2 minutes.
Transfer to a slow cooker and the rest of the ingredients and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
You can totally double this recipe and freeze half.

Enjoy!

First Day of School

I kid you not when I tell you that a stay at home mom on my street was having a party at 8am this morning!
Classes in the elementary, middle and high schools start at 8am so I can only guess someone was celebrating the first day of school and it wasn't a child.
Today I sent my teen off to her first year of high school.  She showed me her outfit she had chosen as her debut to the high school.  A lavender off the shoulder tunic with one of her favorite skinny jeans.  She looked so cute today with her wavy and slightly curly hair.
Pray she has an awesome first year of high school.
She auditioned back in Spring to be part of the high school's glee and she was called in.  Super excited she is!  I hope it's everything she was hoping (minus the drama from the show) it to be.  She will be doing a lot this school year.  She still volunteers a a co-leader for the local AWANA club, part of the library teen club where she will help decide on activities for the teens, auditions and filming as much as her schedule allows.  On top of that she will continue taking acting classes and dance class and go to as many high school games.
She is such a wonderful teenager.  Friendly and unlike many teens, she doesn't believe she is in a higher status than others.  She is not your typical teen.  Her preference is to be behind a book and her favorite app is Good Reads.

Over the weekend I made a huge pot of beans and rice to celebrate our last summer before everyone is off to school (husband started last week and the tween is homeschooled).
Sent the huz to the Cuban store to get some Caribbean ingredients that are not normally found in our local grocery stores.  Yeah.  We're special.

Habichuelas Guisadas

2 tbsps olive oil
1/4 cup sofrito
1 cup tomato sauce
2 cups vegetable stock
1/4 lb peeled and diced West Indian pumpkin
1 cup alcaparrado (you can add as little or as many as you want.  I don't like to bite into one but it does enhance the flavor)
2 16 oz cans beans (you can use just about any whole bean. I used red kidney beans)
1 tsp black pepper

Heat the oil in a large pot.
When heated add the sofrito and tomato sauce and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes.
Add the water and pumpkin.
Bring to a boil and add the alcaparrado, beans, and black pepper.
Bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.

I actually doubled the ingredients to last us for a few more days since were are trying to get back to a school day schedule.

Enjoy!

and



GO NITROS!

Public Letter to the Misinformed

In less than 7 days 2 people have said the dumbest thing about homeschoolers. Even more dumb is the fact that they know my children but yet have the need to say the most ignorant of things.

1. Do they have friends and would they have opportunities to socialize?

Seriously? Do you not know my kids? I know adults who are socially awkward (ahem) and they have been around people their own ages from kindergarten through college. My children have the opportunity to be around people of all ages, genders, classes, race and never had an awkward moment. They adapt to whatever situation is thrown at them.My teenager went to a brick and mortar school for the very first time and you know what was the first thing she noticed? Groups of kids that only hung out with kids that looked like them, dressed like them, and were in the same grade. She just could not understand why 8th graders were not "allowed" to sit with 6th graders during lunch break. I'm proud to say she sat with everyone. Traveling from one table to another was the way my social butterfly spent her time during her break. How many kids can do that? In fact, go to your Facebook page and pick any random person that you have on your timeline and scroll through their friend list. I bet you have more than one friend whose friends look just like them. Socialization indeed. Not that there homeschoolers who might be under the umbrella of what the media has portrayed homeschoolers to be. Believe me. I've met A LOT but my kids, are not one of them.

2. Are they learning anything? They can't learn at home! That's crazy talk. Don't you get tired of being near them for so long?

That type of question makes me laugh so hard. I remember when my then 1st grader went to her grandparents house for the day carrying a stack of books. She was reading the Series of Unfortunate Events. The grandfather was surprised she could read. When she came home that evening and told me I asked her what did she say. Ever the quick one she responded "what do you think I do all day?" Maybe he thought she ate chocolate and watched episodes of I Love Lucy all day. At an early age I taught them how much you can really love your library and all the wonders you can find in that great big building. There was where my tween would climb out of her stroller and discovered the aisle where you can learn all you ever wanted to know about bugs.

Of course, it's a lot of work. One mom commented on how much I say "we" when talking about how we school at home. We work from about 8am or so until about 3pm. We take breaks and maybe walk around the neighborhood during our school day.We love learning about world history.
We loved reading classics by Mark Twain.
Yes. I say WE a lot.
Like we had a rough day with school. We are taking a mental health day. We can't wait for (fill in the blank) vacation.
I won't even apologize for not having a live in nanny or a nanny on speed dial.
Of course, I have my moments when I need alone time. Thank God for the YMCA where for the past 10 years my daughters had ballet, cheerleader, gymnastics, swimming, acting and dance classes. This Mami has had plenty of me, myself, and I time.
As I go into another homeschooling year with my tween, I have no regrets.
Well, except I wish I can have a large batch of chocolate everyday.