Life as Mrs. Emerson

 This semester we have embarked on a fun new adventure.  It's called Before Five In A Row!  One of my desires has always been to pass onto my children a love of reading.  Before Five In A Row builds a foundation for children to love learning by reading classic children's literature and enjoying activities that go along with the book.  BFIAR is the first book in the Five in A Row Series and is aimed for children ages 2-4.  I am teaching through BFIAR at co-op each Wednesday and we also enjoy "rowing" a book every week at home.  I'm hoping to share some of the activities that we complete to go along with each book.  Eva is 24 months old and Eli is 5.5 years old.  I have also added some additional older activities for Eli since he is already reading. Blueberries for Sal is the first book that we have "rowed" and I must say it is one of my favorites.  I picked this book to read first in hopes that I could find fresh blueberries to enjo...

 Let me start by saying that I am not an artist.  In school it was probably my least favorite subject.  Nothing could send me into a panic faster than being told that I had to draw or paint something.  I was happy to oblige any teacher who wanted me to study for a test but ask me to do an art project and I would rather write a paper.  That being said I plan on never telling my children.  I hope that they will inherit their dad and grandmother's artistic abilities.  For now my plan is to continue purchasing real art supplies and making sure that we carve out time to use them at least once or twice a week.  This was my children's first experience with pastels and they were quite a hit!     I picked up a nice set of NON-TOXIC pastels at JoAnn Fabrics last week.  (It is my understanding that many pastels are toxic so please be careful when purchasing.)  The kids really enjoyed creating their own masterpieces.  My co...

Evangeline helping me study anatomy.  I have now reached the half way mark in my semester so I thought I would give an update on how my two classes are progressing.  I am taking a Nutrition class on line and Anatomy and Physiology I in person two nights a week.  One night is lecture night while the second night is just for the lab.  It's really the equivalent of taking three classes.  I spend about three hours a week studying for the Nutrition class and about ten hours studying for the Anatomy class.  On test weeks I try to squeeze in a few more hours but that doesn't always happen. I have been a student as a mama before so in many ways studying and balancing my various roles is old hat.  In other ways it is completely new ball game.  I now have two children and a lot less free time.  :)  I have a lot more competing for my free time these days.  I also don't think that Eli was ever sick while I was a student.  Having a si...

The happy hubby insisted on taking my picture on my first day of school.  If you have noticed a small lull in my writing on the blog it is because a new adventure has begun in our family.  This mama is going back to school!!!  The end goal is to become an ibclc lactation consultant.      Brandon and I have thought about this as a possibility for our family for years.  I have always been interested in the health care field and I am really passionate about breastfeeding so this seems like the perfect fit. This semester I am taking two classes: Anatomy & Physiology I Lecture & Lab Nutrition & Wellness The nutrition class is all online and I attend the A & P class twice a week in the evenings while the happy hubby hangs out with the kiddos.  So far I have spent  10 hours on Anatomy & Physiology homework/studying and 2 hours on nutrition since classes began on Tuesday.  On my first day of A & P the tu...