Apologia Live Retreat

Last weekend, Erin and I attended the Apologia Live Retreat in Austin.  It's a retreat/conference for homeschooling moms designed to offer encouragement in the good, the bad, and the ugly of homeschooling, wifehood, and mommyhood.  I stumbled across the retreat info at the end of our first week of homeschooling and felt like it was an answer to prayer since I was already discouraged.  Let me tell you, God did not disappoint.  This retreat was A-MAZING for me.
Erin, Poppy, and I headed to Austin on Friday afternoon.  We checked into the hotel, napped, and then headed down for dinner.  When we registered for the retreat, they promised us lunch on Saturday.  In reality, they surprised us with dinner Fri, breakfast and lunch Sat, and at least 4 snack times!  It was great!
There's so much I want to share and remember about the trip...I'm not sure how to put it all on here...I think I will just list the helpful tidbits I got.  WARNING: it could be long!

• Adjust to life.  be flexible with real life.  Remember that child training always trumps the ABC's.  I needed to hear this.  Our life has been crazy and academics have fallen by the wayside a bit.  I also may need to take a time out for some child training: respect, manners, no fit-throwing, etc...
• Learn to Listen: To the Lord.  Be in the Word daily, both alone and with your kids.
• Invest time in your children.  Quantity of time gives way to better quality of time.  Investment in your kids leads to less boredom.
• Every child is different and learns differently.  Adapt to those needs.  Adjust curriculum for each child so they are equipped for the race God has for them.
• Don't plant a lemon tree and expect lemons in a week.  I definitely expected lemons after 1 week of homeschooling!
• Developing a loving relationship with your children: find ways to let him know I love him, encourage him daily, know the proper place for loving discipline, and know the importance of a loving husband-wife relationship
• A child's behavior is a reaction to our parenting.  Hello, wake up call!!!
• Discipline: Set the rules of the house and be consistent.  Don't attack the person; attack the sin. 
• Don't bribe.  It leads to ill-behaved kids and doesn't work longterm.  I am so guilty of this!
• Rewards are positive reinforcements.  They are unexpected.
• Encouragement results in emotionally healthy children.  Criticism is the opposite of encouragement.
• Order of priorities:  Love first, laughing second, learning third.  Definitely had mine out of order.
• Kids need to see us worshipping God everyday.  They also need to see us on our knees before Him.
• Kids need to see my love story with my husband played out in front of them.  They need to see us respecting him and serving him. 
• Loving our kids=discipline.  Disciplined kids=lovable kids.  Set a high bar here.
• Train your children to like each other; make them work out issues together.  Your children's testimony to the world is that they actually each other.  Thankfully, we don't have a problem with this yet.  It makes my heart melt when I hear Reef say to Poppy, "You're so pretty."
• Laughing brings your family together.  God has a sense of humor.  Choose to laugh.
• 5 things for your kids to learn about: God's love, about truth (Christian world view), about God's world with awe and wonder, about their role in this world, and finally about academics.  Academics is the crown jewel; it comes after we build the relationship.
• We need to be sure that we are first teaching our kids about God's love, the cross, and the truth.
• 4 steps to an independent learner: Show them the task, do the task with them, they do the task with you, they do the task.

I think those are the main highlights I want to remember.  The most profound thing I learned (or finally realized) is the reasons I chose to do this.  I needed to hear that I'm not homeschooling to make my kids the smartest or most advanced.  I'm homeschooling so that I can control what they are learning and who they're learning it from.  God has given me the opportunity to use homeschooling to raise up the next generation of disciples, and He will use them in amazing ways!  I can't wait!!

A rare opportunity...

for a picture of all 4 of them together.  Yes, 2 of them are in Halloween costumes, but I'll take what I can get!

One last swim

We thought swimming for the year was done in September, but our neighbor across the street invited us to swim a couple of weeks ago.   We decided to go for it since we knew the big boys would LOVE the water slide.

 We were right.  It was L.O.V.E.  They really wore Troy out with all the catching them at the bottom of the slide.  Unfortunately (and frustrating for me), it seems like Reef has already forgotten how to swim :(

 Liam and Chris joined us for the swim too.  He was not a fan of the slide.

And Lachlan wasn't really a fan of the water at all.  It was just too cold for him.

Another day on the driveway

As the weather continues to be nice, you will still find us on the driveway most afternoons.

Lachlan has a love for this trike.  And those frog sunglasses.

 Poppy is usually napping but was up early this day.  Don't you love that headband?!

In the next week, I hope to get a picture of Jonas; he's riding his big boy bike with training wheels now!

Look closely

That's right, those training wheels pictured in my last post are gone!  It all happened so fast that we really can't believe it!  Troy had been working with him, but Reef is a perfectionist and got frustrated after only a few try's.  We promised him a new, bigger bike once the training wheels were gone.  On Monday, while his brothers were at school and Poppy was napping, Reef and I headed out for some practice.  After only a few times with me hanging on, he took off without me!  He was so excited and proud of himself and hasn't looked back!

A sure sign of fall

At the Gibbins-Torres compound, a sure sign of fall is that you'll find our crew on the driveways riding bikes!  This week, with the temps finally under 100, that's where we've been!

Jonas still loves his balance bike.

 Reef's still working those training wheels...

 Lachlan got a helmet in the spring and loves wearing it while being pushed on his bike.

 Love this face Liam makes!  He loves this rocket and keeps up well with the big boys!

 Poppy hangs out wherever...This day, it was on the floor of the garage.  Yeah, I'm a good mom..

Jumping Bean-ette

Poppy didn't want to be left out of all the jumping action, so we got the jumperoo down from the attic.  She's a fan, especially when a brother comes by to entertain her!

Jumping Beans

On Friday, Erin and I decided to treat our boys and Poppy to a sonic lunch and trip to Milberger's Nursery.  For Halloween the nursery sets up a hay maze and bouncy castle.  No one liked the hay maze, but the bounce house was a big hit. 

I climbed in for some pictures while Poppy napped with Erin.

The 4 Musketeers

Reef loved doing flips!  He tried it later off the couch; it didn't end well...

Lachlan didn't want to get in at first but was all smiles once we got him in there.

Jonas was impossible to get a good picture of.

We had a great time and will definitely be going back soon!

Tower of Babel

Reef and I studied the Tower or Babel last week.  Jonas joined us for a craft (great cutting practice for them both!) and helped us make the Tower out of blocks.

Later in the day, robots took over that tower!  I love their imagination!