Halloween on a Budget

Anyone who knows me, knows that lately my favorite phrase has been, "I can't afford it right now". I have never been a very private person about my humaness, along with all the life stories that go with it.

Money has been tight and at times, non-existant for us as of late...long story. Suffice it to say, it will all be OK as soon as we get this current job finished, so we can get paid.

I didn't want to deprive my children of Halloween decorations and fun, but couldn't justify replacing the old worn out decorations, considering the financial restraints we are currently experiencing.

So I broke out some of my Halloween themed magazines and found some really cute decorations that required only a little planning, a little effort, and a little time.

My girls and I made "Ghost Jugs" to line the walkway in front of our home. I notified everyone in the house, not to throw away any milk jugs, but to rinse them out and put them with the others. We saved bunches of plastic milk jugs. I cut a hole in the bottom of each with an Exacto knife. As I began the job of cutting out the holes, I quickly realized that someone had forgotten to "wash" some of the jugs! Nothing like old soured milk odor to get you in that Halloween, holiday mood! : )It reminded me of the phrase in "Thriller"...the funk of 40,000 years...lol. That was pretty smelly, but luckily I had plenty that were properly cleaned. The girls drew faces on the jugs, then we stuffed about 8 white lights (on a strand of 50, with bulbs about 6 inches apart ) into each of them and placed them outside to guard our home, through the long, Halloween nights.

What fun we had making them, how easy they were to make, and how proud are my girls to have been creative enough, to be the originators of such cute ghouls, to illuminate our front lawn.

I posted a picture to share with you how cute these little ghosties are. I hope to bring another easy, inexpensive Halloween decoration to you, that we plan to make with dowels, newspaper and trash bags. Keep watching for it...

How Do I Know If What I Am Doing Is The Right Thing To Do?

I am struggling with homeschooling. I don't know if what I am doing is the right thing to do.

How does one make a student CARE about his education? My son has been doing his typical mediocre work, where his studies are concerned. How do you motivate a person to do his best and take this seriously?

At this point, I am making him review his DVDs and retake quizzes UNTIL HE PASSES THEM, no matter how many times it takes. Is this the right venue? How will he ever be a self-sufficient person if I have to constantly follow behind and see that his work gets done? How will he ever feel "smart" enough, if I don't keep at him to LEARN these subjects that we have before us now, in order to lay the proper foundation for what is to come? This lack of knowledge will only exascerbate his difficulty in his future studies, if he does not master the material that is presently before him.

I don't know if I am enabling him to fail by staying on him to get this in his head or if I am dooming him by letting him fall short of what I know he needs to learn.
If I make him repeat this work, am I keeping him from maturing enough to do things on his own? Or, am I failing, as his teacher, by letting him fail and suffer the consequences?

I find myself at a loss and that is a place that is unfamiliar to me. I am so uncertain which is the proper path to take. If he doesn't clean his room, that will affect him for a time, but it will not alter his entire future, so I don't sweat that. If he fails, yet one more time on this school work, it could damage him in so many ways...both psychologically and physically, it can skew his future into something that he, nor I will be able to accept.

I am reminded of my English/Lit. teacher from high school. He would answer every question on our study sheet. He would give us the answers as he expected them to be, verbatim. There may be 100 questions on the study sheet and only 50 on the exam, itself. We HAD to learn all the answers in order to pass the exam, because we never knew which 50 we would find on that paper. If we did not make an acceptable grade, he would keep us in at P.E. or studyhall to repeat the test...until we passed with a grade, he thought appropriate. He FORCED us to learn the material or pay dearly for it in time spent taking the same test over and over. He is my inspiration for my theory of drumming this material into my son's head. But it was a different time then and I don't know if I am impeding my son's progress by holding him where he is, until the subjects are understood and remembered.

We are behind in his studies, but I am diligently working to get caught up. This has not been the school year either of us envisioned. He is even talking about the possibility of going back to school next year, so I know I am doing something right. By that, I mean this year has not been the piece of cake he thought it would be and that is encouraging.

I just wish I knew how to make him understand how this will affect his future. How it will impact his choices for further education, how it will make a difference in what career opportunities he will encounter, how it will matter to him someday, when he has a wife and children to support.

The one bright spot is this...I have learned from my shortcomings with my son and I am not repeating them with my girls. I no longer "do" projects for them, I no longer run home to get what they forgot to pack for school and drive the 13 miles, one way, to take it to them. Those days are gone and I know, they will be all the better for it. They are allowed to suffer the consequences of their actions and I am the soft place for them to fall, when things get hairy...the way it should be.

I don't think it is a parent's place to meet out punishment and discipline as much, as children grow older and become closer to plotting their own course in this big world. I think that the consequences they suffer at the hands of life (within reason) is usually all that is required. If the price life requires is painful enough to change their behaviour, then I am happy to be there to help them pick up the pieces and put it back together again. If life's consequence is too easy to overcome, discipline will be exacted by their parents.

My biggest fear is that I have coddled my son into a complacency that he will not be able to overcome. I pray that my wisdom has not come too late to be able to benefit him in the long run. That will be a difficult pill to swallow, indeed.

Successful Marriage-66 Years and Still Going Strong

I have uploaded photos of my parents for my niece, who is writing an article for a quarterly publication about families. This magazine highlights marriages that have lasted a lifetime...literally.

Her article is about my parents and she needed a photo of them, so Kristi...here are the ones I could get my hands on. I may have more,just have to download them to my computer. Let me know if these do not work! ♥