Hiya everyone!! I'm Liz and I'm starting this blog as a journal into our life as a blended family of 7. Trust me it has not been a picnic, although through the years it has gotten easier to manage!! I am engaged to my fiance and we have been together for over 7 years. We have a six yr old daughter together. I have a son and 2 daughters not from Chris and he has a son from a previous marriage. I know everyone wants to know why we aren't married right? Well we are working on it! We are in a totally committed relationship and we live together but marriage had just always seemed so complicated. Our thoughts are starting to change...We are thinking within the next yr to get married! We live in the Orlando area. Both of us have lived in Florida all of our lives. We hate it!! Definately too hot for us, but again...its complicated!! lol Our children are 14G, 14B, 11G, 9B, 6G.
Our children are nuts!! Our oldest 2 are both in high school honors/AP classes, and academics comes easily to them. My middle daughter, 11, has a comprehension learning disability and we have struggled with her for years to barely get passing grades. She is also our "trouble-maker". My 9 yr old son is brilliant!! Our daughter together is also showing signs of possible learning disabilities, but she is only in kindergarden, so I'll wait to have her tested until at the earliest next fall.
Due to the learning disabilities, behavioral issues, and a difficult time adjusting to middle school, I have recently decided to homeschool my 11yr old daughter. I have never done anything like this at all and until the past year, never would have considered the option. My daughter, we will call Lee, has dealt with bullying- physical and emoitional! Lee had to switch schools to get away from the group of girls that would threaten her and shove food in her bookbag while she was in the lunchline. Her grades were averaging c's and d's. Her withdrawal grades included mostly d's and f's! Chris has been very supportive of the decision to homeschool Lee. I was actually surprised considering Lee is the one who gives us the hardest times.
I stay at home fulltime with the kids....I do not agree with the fact that daycare centers should be responsible for raising children, while their parents work 50-60 hrs a week to afford a $500/month car payment. I just graduated with my AS in criminal justice and have spent extensive amount of time studying the efforts of non-participant parents in childrens lives. I am currently enrolled in my BS in criminal justice but will be transfering my major to Social Work very soon. Chris is also a student and is working towards his AS in business management. He also works full-time as a cook at a country club to support us. Which leaves our young family of 7 very broke. lol!! I do not have in our budget hundreds of dollars to purchase curriculum. I am tackling this curriculum topic head on and on my own. I was surprised how much flack I have gotten from family and friends regarding homeschooling Lee. I was expecting at the very least our family to be onboard....but that didn't happen. Both grandparents disapprove of my decision.
My plan with this journal is to help other parents who are experiencing any of the issues that we have faced over the years. I plan to update it regularly. Hope you all have a great night!!
God Bless- Liz
