Meet Gab And Jill

I'd like to share a few of the short story books that I wrote for my kids many years ago. Back when they were small and I would have the liberty to pick out what to teach them from home. I drew my inspiration writing these short stories based from our daily mundane activities which transpired around our kitchen or school table. I took value from them by coming up with a list of vocabularies that would describe what ever we were doing at the moment. The list of vocabularies served as anchor to our stories.

I found this approach very useful in instilling love for reading in them at an early age as they found the stories relatable. Little by little they learned to read phonetically as they decoded the sound of each letter and blended them into words. 

While we filled our family library with a collection of colorful illustrated story books through time, I also felt it was necessary to come up with a set of our very own early readers' compilation of short stories without the pictures. I wanted for them to patiently learn how to blend the sounds of the letters as they were also encouraged to think imaginatively. 

My stories were open-ended so we can always enjoy a rich discussion after each reading time. I would let them decide how they would want our story to have a good ending. This became a useful supplement to my kids' reading and comprehension. So, teaching reading to our kids can be so much fun and engaging.

My lil "Nancy Drew"

My daughter was 3 yrs old when she started reading phonetically and when she reached age 4, she was already reading these books to me herself. We knew we have an early reader. Now she's hooked on reading the Nancy Drew Mystery Stories and would love to someday publish her own magazine for girls!

My son started reading these books a few weeks ago. I thought it was a thrill watching him as he read our own lil family stories. Knowing that he is a highly tactile and a kinesthetic learner, I would give him more time to read through a story as he acts out the characters as he pleases. Now, would that be a problem by me? Not at all, because by doing so, that's when I'd be able to gauge his reading comprehension. He is five years old. And I could care less if he struggled blending some words. It's music to my ears. 

One of his favorites is "Gab and Jill." The first time he read it, he puts his book down and asked..."Mom , is Gab and Jill, Ate and I?"

Note:  ( Ate - pronounced Uh-teh, Tagalog word, a title used to address a female sibling as a sign of respect)

Looking back, these story books have been very valuable to  me as I used them to teach  my  children  how to read.    Our memories    built  around  these  reading materials are so precious that I wanted to share them with you today.

Here are the links to my books. You may download and print them, it's FREE!!!

Gab and Jill

Unit 7 Story With Vocabulary

Unit 8 Story With Vocabulary

Unit 9 Story With Vocabulary

Unit 10 Story With Vocabulary

Left Thumb Up for "b"...Right Thumb up for "d"

This is a storybook I wrote about 7 years ago for our then unica hija, 4 year old Bethany. I wrote this book primarily to fill the need to have a set of non-illustrated story books to stimulate her imagination. I was intentional in teaching  her to read phonetically; decoding the sounds of every letter; blending them together to form words. 

It was totally the opposite during my time because I remember learning to read by memorization (like most of us parents did) with the help of picture books. I thought that bookstores these days have a plethora of picture books that use heavy illustrations from cover to cover so that kids have become overly stimulated visually, leaving no room for creating imagination. 

When I wrote this collection of short stories, apart from my daughter, I had a lil boy in mind. I envisioned him sitting next to his big sister and I while we do school at our kitchen table. But that had been yrs ago, and that boy came into flesh a year after I wrote the book. I'd asked myself if this is how it feels when you're able to live your dream. I thought of God's faithfulness to us thru the years. These are tough times but He has provided for our every need. He had been gracious for giving us the opportunity to teach our kids ourselves and to be able to have that freedom to choose the materials to teach them. 

I watched my son as he read his storybook phonetically. He was having a lil problem remembering which one is the "b" and which one is the "d." So, I had him do the left thumb up for the "b" and  the right thumb up for the "d." Problem solved.

My girl loves creating lapbook projects to showcase what she learned for the entire quarter. This would be her output project in Civics that we will compile in a portfolio to be submitted for evaluation and review to our homeschool provider in Manila.

Here are the links to my books should you want to sample them for FREE. Enjoy! 

Gab and Jill

Unit 7 Story With Vocabulary

Unit 8 Story With Vocabulary

Unit 9 Story With Vocabulary

Unit 10 Story With Vocabulary

Learning from Your Child One Page at a Time

For this Science lesson, instead of telling my boy to color, which he despised lately, I told him to just circle the pictures that showed how to take care of one's body.

BOY: Teacher, DONE!

MOM: Hmmmm...Can you explain why you think reading, like what this lil boy in the picture is doing, showed taking care of one's body?

BOY: What, Mommmyyy? He's taking care of his body.

MOM: Well, you did ok on all the pictures, but I'm just wondering how and why you think reading can also be a way of taking good care of your body as you would take a shower or brush your teeth or eat good food ?

(Mom was trying her best not to say "You're wrong" right away for her son's debatable answer)

BOY: Mommmmyyyy, right Daddy always tells us to read books because it will protect our brain? We needed to take care of our brain too. Right, Mommmyyy? Reading protects your brain...it also makes you smart too. Daddy always says that.

MOM: Oh, I see...I see...

BOY: I told you so.

These two photos above are sample pages of what you can see inside my girl's notebook in World History. She reads Mystery of  History Vol. 2. At the end of every lesson, she would usually narrate to me what she learned and discovered on her reading time. I would act as a student listening to my "Teacher" telling me a story, oftentimes, verbatim. I'm still in the process of learning the art of "not interrupting" while my child articulates her ideas.  Photo 1 shows men wearing plaid Scottish skirts while photo 2 shows young Marco Polo with specks of cinnamon powder around him.

Yes, we've moved out from our old schoolroom to this new spot at our kitchen. Moving out from our old school space was the next best thing to do to accommodate a pre-schooler boy that's highly tactile and kinesthetic; a boy who can't sit still, a  boy who kept asking for a  water break every 3mins, a boy 

 who needs to be strategically seated near the pantry for when he had to do his counting drill with manipulatives like MnM's, Kisses, Fruitloops, Cornflakes...

As Easy as ABC... Garlic Spaghetti...

Almost 2 decades ago, an Italian missionary friend of mine cooked for me a what she called "classic Italian comfort food" that's as easy as ABC to prepare and yet delightfully delicious and tasted expensive. I mean, to this day, remembering her kindness, cooking for a sick friend that I was, that really meant so much.

Down memory lane, here's what she did: 

1.     took a left-over pasta spaghetti from the fridge

2.     melted butter in a pan with a little drizzle of olive oil and stirred in the left-over pasta noodles

3.     got a medium-sized red tomato...pomodoro ehh...poked it with her finger on its base and sort of squeezed it with her bare hand so that the juice really oozed out as she threw it in the pasta while stirring

5.     cracked the egg directly in the pasta, stirring it well, turned off the heat

6.     plated for me...the poor hand-beaten pomodoro seated nicely on the center of the plate above the hill of my pasta grandiose, peppered...

The lesson I learned that day was invaluable; there's nothing like being cooked for by a dear friend especially when you're sick, it's like taking a paracetamol without the bitter taste; as a Filipino, trying to cook Italian, I sometimes over complicate things, and oftentimes it stemmed from my own insecurity and the feeling of intimidation because it's a foreign dish; and last, good pasta always come al dente, which literally meant with bite to your teeth in Italian.

My kids could tell if your pasta is good or the otherwise. 

Just days ago, we decided to have a quiet family dinner at one of the so-called Italian fine dining restaurants from our local neighborhood. We loved the location. We loved it that there was just us eating at dinner time on a Sunday evening while we "people-watched" the families flocking to the big mall across the street. We loved the ambiance, the soft lighting and the sweet music being played in the air. 

The servers were nice. We thought it was going to be a perfect night until our pasta was served. It was overcooked, stale, it tasted like it was thawed from long storage...how disappointing. So my kids, knowing that the money that went to pay for that dinner had been hard-earned, managed to finish their plates with occasional look of dismay on their faces. At length, we discussed over dinner what not to order in Filipino restaurants claiming to serve Italian. We concluded that if we wanted authentic Italian pasta, it's either we invite a true blue Italian cook to come over at our house or just D-I-O, Do-It-OURSELVES!    

Melancholic and Grateful

Melancholic - adjective; disposed to or affected with melancholy; gloomy

Grateful - adjective; warmly or deeply appreciative of kindness or benefits received; thankful               

source: dictionary.com

  

Euy and I learned two big words at school earlier this day that we thought were worth discussing together.

SCENARIO. Euy took a short quiz on vocabulary and got a score of 9 points out of 10 and was complaining about one word she had a hard time figuring out. She was given four word choices and was supposed to pick out the best word that would complete the sentence. This quiz was about knowing the meaning of words through context clues, no dictionaries allowed. She was a bit exasperated that although she found the quiz easy, this one word got in the way of her getting a perfect score. So we discussed THE word "melancholic." Her quiz says, "The girl was still___________ after recovering from her previous illness." "But Mom, they're not making any sense," Euy argued, putting blame on the book. "I never felt "melancholic" after getting sick. I've never felt "melancholic" before. I've always felt active and energetic after  getting sick. I don't think Noah ever got "melancholic" either."

I suddenly realized at this point that because my two kids actually have never had any major kind of sickness before apart from common colds and flu, she can't relate to the word. My quick response to her was that "Eeyore" was an example of a "melancholic" gloomy person. Her face lighted up. "If you've seen people that were sick for a long time, they get "melancholic" while recovering. I know what you're thinking, 'cause you and your lil brother never really got sick that bad, right?" "Uh, huh." I see a happy face.

What a blessing it has been for our family that since I decided years ago to make a career out of homeschooling them😀we've been reaping the benefits from that decision even if realistically speaking it has not always been easy. My daughter and I agreed that because we've been schooling at home, the danger of contacting diseases from crowded places has not been a problem. I get to cook healthy but simple food for them on a daily basis. And since it's the rainy season once again, we are kept dry while the learning never stops even when there's a stormy weather outside. We can always look out from our window and learn while observing. 

I liked our conversation.

Now,having said all that...how about being "GRATEFUL" for having homeschooled for six years and raising kids that don't have to know exactly how it feels to be "melancholic?"

A Few Of My Favorite Things

"When the dog bites
When the bee stings
When I'm feeling sad
I simply remember my favorite things
And then I don't feel so bad."
Maria
Favorite Things
"The Sound of Music"


Things that make me happy... just a few of them...

1. Twelve hours of uninterrupted sleep, zzz, zzzzz, zzzzzz. The last one I had was 2 decades ago.

2. Rising up every morning with my kids lying down next to me all cuddled up. I smell their heads, lay may hands on them to pray for them.

3. Two freshly cooked eggs sunny side up pls.

4. A cup of instant coffee that we have at the pantry now, one that says "7-in-one."

5. Scents of things: L'occitane hand cream and their Verbena cologne, Johnson's liquid baby bath color blue and white, Chloe rose parfum, my husband's outfit after a day's work.

6. Scents of herbs in my greenhouse: tarragons, oreganos, rosemarys

7. The thought of "shopping." Just the thought of it makes me happy already.

8. A homeschool portfolio I send over to our homeschool provider in Manila.

9. Christmas music in the air.

10. My kids singing A capella while playing with their toys, wrong lyrics make it even more perfect.

11. Laundry getting done while I check my kids' worksheets.

12. Catching up with my friends who happen to be family as well.

13. My family gathered around our old round table. TV turned off.

14. Baking with my daughter

15. Getting a few good books to read at Booksale

16. My husband cooking at the kitchen

17. Lounging at our family room after a day of work at school, feet up on our coffee table,uh huh, that's allowed here.

16. Bible verses, but there are tons of them!

17. People thanking God and telling you that they're blessed by "you"

18. Scrapbooks, digital and old-school, color patterns, shapes, the visuals

19. Bedtime stories with my kids...they're loving "Dr. Seuss"

20. When energy has subsided, and kids get ready to go to bed, then it's quiet tea-time with my hubby, we talk, we dream, we plan

22. ANSWERED PRAYERS...sometimes YES...sometimes NO...sometimes WAIT...

23. My lil boy orally reading his story books...slowly but phonetically...same boy counting his MnM's with addition and subtraction on the side...and by addition he pours the contents in the bowl...by subtraction he...you guessed it...eats them up and counts while chewing

24. Hubby winning the "Bragging Rights as the Best Golfer" at his workplace...he's a rookie...


25. 

God Bless The Anonymous Author Of This Poem...

Just recently, I came across this short poem that left me quiet for a awhile and thought about how my children view me as a Mom. This untitled poem is a sure tear-jerker but rubbed in a good way.


If I had my child to raise over again,
I would finger-paint more, and point the finger less.
I’d do less correcting and more connecting.
I’d take my eyes off my watch, and watch with my eyes.
I would care to know less and know to care more.
I’d take more hikes and fly more kites.
I’d stop playing serious and seriously play.
I would run through more fields and gaze at more stars.
I’d do more hugging and less tugging.
I’d build self esteem first and the house later.
I’d teach less about the love of power,
And more about the power of love
Anonymous

Minyang's "How Great Is Our God"

Some common misconceptions about our homeschooled kids are that they may lack socialization skills, may not adapt to group activities, may be too shy, introvert, anti-social, weird of sort, and so on. But my patient reaction would be that they should try to start a conversation with them and see for themselves.

Minyong (boy 4), is the type who always blended with the swarm. You would find him seated with a group of bigger kids just goofing around,and "chasing varmints near and far."*

Minyang (girl 9), is the type who would easily make friends and talked to people eye to eye.She goes to church with her colorful Sunday journal and highlighters jotting down notes.(That's without having to be told.) She blended just as well with kids of different ages.

Minyang being comfortable performing with her cousins CJ and Clarence. The boys give her the moral support she needed.

I'm wondering at times if she had ever become a baby. Had it been a very short period of time that she was so tiny, I held her in my arms to put to sleep.  I've always viewed her as a grown woman with a matching demeanor packaged in a 9yr-old girl's body. I would remind her at times to slow down and just enjoy being a kid.

*Quote from the book, "I Dreamed I Was A Cowboy" by Melissa Webb.

What To Do On My Staycation

First, what is a "staycation?"

"A staycation (also spelled stay-cation, stacation, or staykation) (in the United Kingdom: stoliday or holistay) is a neologism for a period of time in which an individual or family stays at home and relaxes at home or takes day trips from their home to area attractions. Staycations have achieved high popularity in the US during the financial crisis of 2007–2010 in which unemploymentlevels and gas prices were high. Staycations also became a popular phenomenon in the UK in 2009 as a weak pound made overseas holidays significantly more expensive.The term was added to the 2009 version of the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

Common activities of a staycation include use of the backyard pool, visits to local parks and museums, and attendance at local festivals. Some staycationers also like to follow a set of rules, such as setting a start and end date, planning ahead, and avoiding routine, with the goal of creating the feel of a traditional vacation."

As a homeschooling family, staycation had taken on a whole new meaning to us. On my staycation, it is best to COMPARTMENTALIZE all these little voices inside of me begging and aching to be heard. Alright, one at a time. Right now, I'm thinking from outside of our homeschool compartment, so, WALL.

1.Dust off my sewing machine and "road test" it with lots and lots of oil. Been awhile since I last created a masterpiece.(eh-hem) Maybe scrounge around for fabric materials and start making a wall quilt. Lately, I've been dreaming of kaleidoscopes of quilting patches falling off from our ceiling.

2.Organize, organize, organize...the clutter riotously tucked in our closets; the piles of stuffs which I cannot find a name for at the laundry area; set up a system at our lil school library including our DVD's, our family's document, old receipts, papers we can't get rid of.

3.Finish the scrapbook project I started creating last March for our 10th wedding anniversary mementos. My husband made a promise to finish it with me. He thinks that it should be a family hands-on activity (awwww...).

4.Bake more cakes. I see a lot of unwanted emotions being displaced as I sift and fold and blend and mix through the wet and dry ingredients.

5.Finish all the many a number of books I've started reading and bragged about at Goodreads. It's time to be consistent!

6.Give this blog a make-over, one that would look like a pro and maybe when I'm emotionally and mentally ready, create my own traffic and set-up my own on-line store that would sell my own organic soaps and herbs.

Gaga Over My Baby Part 2

One of the greatest rewards of being a stay-at-home mom is that you get to witness on a 24/7 basis how your baby or babies metamorphose from being "cute" to "superlatively cute". The development of their speech is critical especially for boys who tend to develop it later than girls. My girl who’s now 7 y/o, started mumbling one-syllabic words and humming familiar melodies when she was just 4 1/2mos. When she turned 1y/o, she could talk just like any of us adults around her. My boy, on the other hand, was the total opposite of his Ate. When my boy turned 1y/o, he could only say "Mommy" and "Daddy" and a few indistinctive words which probably meant I want this, I hate this, give me this, I’m pissed off…usually followed by fits of crying. 

Now that my boy turned 2, things have changed a lot with his speech. He would make sure every now and then that his message would come across and taken seriously no matter how they sounded. Unfamiliar the sounds may be to me, but from a toddler's perspective they were coming from somewhere known and understood. No excuses there. Just recently, I felt inspired to list down every lil word my boy developed. I must admit I felt thrilled each time I sat down and recall my boy’s growing vocab. Everyday is a work in progress decoding and deciphering his unique words. Re-discovering a new form of entertainment such as this fills my mama-heart with so much joy and it's FREE.

Noah’s Amazing Vocabulary and Pronunciation Guide

Names of Things

Duh-pee-tr - diaper
Duh-bee-deem - his blankie / “pangutungan” / just like Linus' security blanket
Perdee-guy - his long pants / long trousers
Wow-ey - flower
Wee-wew - butterfly
Kuh-kee-koh - tricycle or any wheeled vehicle for that matter
Koh-gay - Colgate when it’s brushing time
Eeed duh buk - read the book when he likes to read his books
Owie - when he gets hurt
Kee-koh kee-koh - twinkle twinkle
Gee-tawrrr - guitar
Koh-keh - chocolate
Luhl-luh - banana
Baa-baa - milk
Freeem - ice cream
Keyk - cake
Dee-dey - birthday
Baah-nee - Barney
Dee-jay - BJ friend of Barney
Bee-bop - Baby Bop
Eh-em - SM, the mall
Chooss - juice
Bee-bowww - rainbow
Sheee - sea or any body of water like river,- lake, waterfall ,Cup of water,- soup in a bowl, water in bucket and Basin
Aaht / cone - hot / cold
Shweesh wan - give me this one
Suh-seet! - that’s it!
Moh-morrr! - no more!
Tee-tuh - Fita biscuit
Guy - malunggay

Names of Animals

Doggie - dog
Hoh-see - horse
Eew - cat
Tsk-tsk-tsk - lizard
Poh-keee - monkey
Kee-ken - chicken
Fee-shie - fish

Names of Persons

Daddy - Daddy
Mommy - Mommy
Bee - Ate Bethany
Mee-mee - Tita Nini
Vreee - Tito Henri
Nunn-aay - Nay-nay for Lola
Munnh - Noeme, our helper in Puerto
Nehn-nee - Leny, our helper in Batangas

More to come… puyat na.

Find Gaga Over My Baby Part 1 Here