Like our friend in the photo, I spent the better part of last week flat on my back on the couch.  (Unlike her, however, my appearance would have scared off… well, anyone but my very loyal husband!)  Bronchial problems, sinus pain, aches, dizziness… I was a wreck.  To top it off, I had just started feeling better when a three-day migraine descended.  Amidst self-pity and sniffles, I realized that I still needed to make sure the kids were getting some schoolwork done.

As many of you already know, when we moved last fall, we got very behind in our schoolwork.  Not just a little behind, but weeks and weeks of missing checkmarks in my homeschool planner   I spent the dreary months of winter working hard to catch us up, so when I felt the viral beasties coming on, I decided that there was NO WAY I was going to let some little (ok, maybe not-so-little) germs negate all of our hard work.

As medicine-head descended, however, this was easier said than done.  I ended up having to triage.  By separating the boys work into "easy to catch up with" and "nightmare to catch up with" piles, I got some focus.  The "easy" pile included things like art lessons, read-alouds, science and memory work.  These are subjects/tasks that I can bunch up and get through many in one session if I need to. 

Math, Writing with Ease, and Grammar topped the "nightmare" pile.  I can't just hand the kiddos 10 backlogged math worksheets and expect them to do them in an hour or two.  (Frankly, I wouldn't want to to 10 math worksheets in one sitting:-)  I also have not yet taught the boys how to take dictation in fast-forward mode.

In my few moments of clarity, I glanced through their math to see whether I needed to teach any new skills.  I happened to get lucky because last week focused primarily on review.  So, I let them hit the school room while I collapsed on the couch for 30 minutes of recovery.

Possible snafu with this plan:  When I am in the school room with the kids, they stay on task and get the job done.  When I am otherwise engaged (i.e., hacking my lungs out on the couch), they are more easily distracted.  Solution: Put one at the school room table and one at the dining room table.  This avoids the whole, "Mooom, he's looking at me… whistling at me… breathing on me…!" scenario.

Throughout the day, I would alternate something out of the "nightmare" pile with something the kids could do on their own.  This way, the kids' brains did not turn to mush, and I didn't have to face down a huge backlog when I came out of germie-land. 

Triaging homeschool work when you are sick isn't a guaranteed way to eliminate sick-day backlog, but it will set you up for better things when you start to feel stonger again.  It also gives your kids some purposeful activity while you are down for the day.

Do you have a great tip on homeschooling when mom is sick?  Drop it in a comment!

I spent some time this morning peaking in on some fellow homeschooling bloggers.  Here's a quick wrap-up of some interesting New Year's posts:

Miscellaneous Musings of a 5X Mom points us to a 90-day Bible Challenge.  What a great way to fire up a study plan that may have fallen by the wayside.

Teri Dawn Smith at Homeschool Soul Mates encourages us to set homeschooling goals with our spouses, creating a united home education effort.

For you foodies, Organic and Thrifty shares some money-saving tips.  Peek around the site while you are there.  I found a terrific gluten-free granola recipe.

If you are guiding your children to make some resolutions, Behold the Lamb has a nice write-up of her children's resolutions.  A good example of keeping it simple.

Finally, for something homeschool-specific, Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers gives some good guidelines for mid-year evaluations.

That's it for now.  I wish you a blessed new year, filled with joy and peace - and just enough new challenges to keep it all interesting!

Professor Mom®

Planning - Your capacity for activity has changed.  Now is the time to take inventory of what you can do, when you can do it, and how it can be done.  Figure out what your big rocks are everyday.  Big rocks are the activities that need to get done each day.  Examples may be homeschool activities, making meals, or paying the bills.  Once you have established your big rocks, you can slot them throughout the day.  Decide when you have enough energy for each of your big rocks.  You may decide to homeschool first thing in the morning, taking breaks in between each subject.  You may choose to make all of your meals for the day while you get lunch going because you know that your energy will be low at dinner-time.  Paying the bills can be handled on Sunday afternoon when your spouse is home.

Support - Research shows that those with chronic illness who find a good balance between accepting the reality of their illness and remaining as engaged in life as possible are happiest.  Talk with your spouse and decide which items you need the most help with and then… let him help!  For example, you know you can handle daily dishes, dusting and laundry.  Doing the bathrooms, though, puts you over the edge.  See if you can offload that chore to a child or spouse.  A spouse can take over one piece of homeschooling, as well.  Maybe Dad would love to do science or history with the kids.  The result – great bonding time for them and quiet time for you at the end of the day.

Expectations – Anyone who has lived with chronic illness for any length of time knows that some interests and activities may need to be postponed to a different season of life.  Expecting your body to behave as it did before you became ill can only result in frustration.  Lots of it.  Instead, realize that although you can't do what you used to do, you CAN do other things.  For example, reading to your children is a great activity that results in bonding and learning for them and rest for you.  Keep your expectations realistic and positive!

These are baby steps on the road to homeschooling with chronic illness.  Starting small gives you a sense of control over your life.  Taking on a goal that is important to you can be terrific medicine! 

4RQZW3F54A4K