Well, it has been forever and a day since I last posted. I hadn't realized it had been so long since I had posted anything but an entire semester has passed without any word from LibrarianMom. Since life isn't that exciting here, I don't have too much to report.

Reading Challenges: Last December I excitedly posted about several reading challenges I hoped to participate in. Well, I didn't finish. My intentions were good and I would like to read the books, but planning out all of my reading for a year at a time was too constricting. I would like to read the books I listed, but I like the flexibility of reading a variety of other things as well.

Afterschooling: This isn't happening to the extent I would like. DD is reading a lot more on her own which is exciting. Our reading isn't progressing as quickly as I would like which I attribute to dd giving herself a bath now instead of needing to be "supervised" like when she was smaller. But something is always better than nothing, and we usually accomplish something each week.

Life is pretty much not coming together in the way I would like. I hoped life would improve since dh changed jobs and no longer has a long commute. However, the house is still a mess and my personal and professional life seems to be at a standstill. Hopefully 2009 will look up.

The last book I finished was an "add-on" to my previously posted 888 listing. However, The Learning Coach Approach by Linda Dobson caught my eye and zoomed to the top of my reading stack since as a book from the public library it didn't have as long of a check out time. This title is unique in that it addresses the unique aspects of afterschooling which isn't written about much. I had previously read another title by this author about what the rest of us can learn from homeschoolers. Dobson makes afterschooling seem do-able to all people and just a natural part of parenting and helping your child succeed in life instead of an add-on. She emphasized adhering to the school curriculum fairly closely as using a coach model as the title suggests. This is where I differ from Dobson. I am finding that there are so many gaps in the school curriculum that must be addressed. Yes, there are times when you can use the school curricululm as a springboard, but there are other times when you need to go a completely different direction. However, I know that as my children's homework load and outside activities increase, how much I can do at home will diminish and will need to be carefully selected.