Moms Meet-WOW Summit 2013

A little while back, Hail Merry posted on their facebook page that they had been accepted as a vendor into the Moms Meet program.  I went and signed up without knowing much, because of my relationship with the ladies at HM.  To over-simplify the group, they are a product testing site that hinges on it's "ambassadors" making connections with other moms.  Over the last few weeks I've been poking around the site, applying for product testing opportunities.  I liked the idea of it (I've participated in lots of these types of things over the years and enjoy it) but I wasn't completely sure what was behind the Moms Meet name.

In my campaign signing frenzy, I won a trip to the 1st annual WOW Summit, hosted by Moms Meet in Philadelphia, PA.  Allan and I decided to make it a fun little family trip.  When we did our October budget, I wasn't sure we could pull it all off, but the Moms Meet people went above and beyond to make sure we could get there.

We started the 5.5 hour drive from our current residence in Northern New York on Sunday morning and got to the Sheraton in Philly in time to be the first ones at registration.  That worked out well because it gave us time to settle the brood in before I went down to the cocktail reception.  At check-in I got my name tag and bag for collecting goodies. 

The Sheraton in downtown Philadelphia is gorgeous.  The kids were quite impressed with the place, (as were we!)  We were, however very surprised by the valet charge.  Not that we would expect a hotel not to charge for valet service, but there are literally NO other overnight options for parking near the hotel.  So if you ever go, know that you will pay for parking and if you have a "big" vehicle (like a '96 Chevy Suburban, haha) you will pay extra.  As the kids and I travel this coming year, we will be sure to ask that before we reserve any rooms from now on.

 Our room had a great view of the bridge to New Jersey and some of the boats on the river.  At 4 stories, there aren't many other places taller in the area, so we got a great panoramic view.

At 6:30 I headed down to check out the cocktail reception in the hotel's restaurant.  They had a mashed potato bar set up for us Mom Ambassadors and some Applegate finger foods (all-natural deli meats and cheeses).  I wasn't sure what was gluten-free, so I stuck to the potatoes, which were super-tasty.

Zevia was a big sponsor for the Summit, so the cocktail party featured some of their "Zero Calorie Soda" in mixed drinks.  Not being a big drinker, I ordered the non-alcoholic Pinapple Upside Down Cake drink (cream soda and pineapple juice).  It was pretty good!  I have seen Zevia at our local Target before and have wanted to try it for a while, but to be honest, when something says "Zero Calorie" I tend to steer clear.  I learned a lot more about the company and product at the Summit, and I must say I am impressed.  I am hoping to talk to them some more about possibly doing a review soon, so keep your eye out.

I didn't know anyone and everyone seemed to be sticking to those they knew that evening, so I went back to my room early and wondered if I had made the right choice in coming.  Allan and I took the kids out for a drive around downtown Philadelphia (such an amazing place full of so much history!) and crossed the "big blue bridge" at their insistence.

It's free to cross into New Jersey, but you have to pay 5.00 to get back.  I think it's because New Jersey's gas is 30 cents cheaper than Pennsylvania.  haha  It was well worth it, though, we really enjoyed the drive and the view.  (and no, it doesn't seem my children ever get sick of driving around...they were made for this roadschooling stuff)

The next morning I was up bright and early and got to enjoy a breakfast with the fam before the Summit started.  Despite my reservations the night before, I was quickly proven wrong.  The WOW Summit had a lot of really fun speakers and as the day went on, I was more and more excited to be a part of this group of people.  Maxine Wolf is the CEO of MayMedia and kiwi, who is the umbrella over Moms Meet.  After hearing her speak and tell about her vision for the group, I feel the same way about being a Mom Ambassador as I do about being affiliated with Hail Merry.  Where there is a group of women focused on green-parenting without guilt I want to be!  Maxine is so laid back and kind and smart, as are the women she has surrounded herself with while building these different organizations, groups, whatever you'd like to call them.  I wish I had gotten a picture of her, but I was too busy writing notes and being excited about all I was learning.

 There were tons of giveaways at the Summit and the vendor room was packed with lots of goodies and product samples.  I wondered if the freebies would be the highlight of the summit, but they were certainly not.  I think I most enjoyed getting to know the faces behind kiwi and Moms Meet, (including the other Mom Ambassadors)

The vendor room was a lot of fun

But the speakers and workshops were a close 2nd to the new connections and networking that was done.  We got to hear from professionals (including a pediatrician and psychiatrist) who believe in the holistic approach to raising children.  This fits so well with our family's philosophy...those of you who have been around our blog for a while know that our son has had a lot of health issues that have required surgeries.  The last 2 surgeries saved his life, and we are far from anti-modern medicine, but we choose to do things as naturally as possible unless it is absolutely imperative that we resort to the medical field.  So can I just say that everything I learned about kiwi and Moms Meet made me that much more excited to be on board with them!?  No green-guilt, no holier-than-thou attitudes, just a lot of moms who want to know better and do better for their families.  SCORE!  These are my peeps, y'all!

Dr Drew Ramsey (psychiatrist) discussing the importance of a plant-based diet for good mental health

Allan and the kids managed to find some fun things to do after we all enjoyed a gluten-free lunch in Old-Town Philadelphia together.  

Independence Hall-currently closed to the public thanks to the gov't shutdown, but still pretty cool to see and getting caught in the rain was a big bonus for the littles

 Of course they had to learn the history of the city...what kind of roadschoolers would we be if we just locked them up in the room to watch TV?  (Okay, so there was plenty of that, too...it's all about flexibility, right?)

After our day of learning and sampling, there was a banquet for us with live music.  I was very impressed with the server who went out of her way to be sure my food needs were met (gluten free eating out is sometimes a huge bummer, I had actually been glutened at lunch earlier and not excited at the prospect of hurtingx2) I was also impressed with the band and most of all, I was impressed with the group of amazingly fun women I get to be a part of!

Oh my yum!  This was fab.

The server went out of her way to get me a separate GF desssert.  That's service!

I was sad when it was all over, but so happy to come home and implement some changes here on the blog that will help us be more interactive and useful for you.  (I'm still looking for a good web designer that isn't too expensive if y'all have any suggestions!)  I am always open for suggestions from you, so feel free to leave me a note about what you'd like to see from me in the future.  I have some ideas already about a cost comparison from our traditional living vs. on the road (thanks Heather!) 

I'm also excited to get in on some sampling campaigns and reviews.  Here's my plug...if you'd like to be a part of the Moms Meet community, (it's FREE and you get an excuse to share awesome products with your friends!) just click on THIS LINK and sign up.  I'll get 100 "points" for referring you and you'll be a part of a really neat group of ladies.

So to put a nice little bow on it all and say the same thing for the 25th time, I am so glad to have had the opportunity to get to know this group and I am looking forward to being a part of next year's Summit.

Of course, coming home with loads of goodies is always great, too! ;)

Skool Daze, Early Holidays & Trip Planning

The last few weeks have been full of planning, which is kinda nice considering we haven't been able to plan a darned thing in months.  School is going well, since we decided to utilize a laid-back approach.  I find myself wondering if we could possibly be done, going down my list to realize that yes, we did finish school in just a couple hours.  The kids absolutely adore their Bob-Jones math curricula and Violet even asks to do extra pages.  Violet is in a learning-spurt, which has been amazing to watch.  Her brain is making so many connections right now, which is the most rewarding part of homeschooling for me-watching them light up with learning. 

Part of her learning this fall will be swim lessons.  She was very apprehensive at first, but now she ADORES her swimming lessons.  She is disappointed there are only "5 Wednesdays left."

We make learning fun by using manipulatives and favorite characters to help.  haha (Spongebob, Patrick & the pineapple)

I have been a hair distracted, though, with trying to plan and doing things without an internet connection on a computer.  I finally sucked it up and switched our phone plan so that we can use a wireless hotspot.  Hopefully this means I can get my research and work done in smaller amounts of time during the day so I can focus more on having fun with the kids. 

Best backyard we've ever had.  I miss a garden, but it works.

This day Daddy gave kayak rides and we saw 4 watersnakes, curious about Corbin

As far as the planning goes, we are celebrating our holidays early this year so that we can include Allan.  I thought it would be a drag when I first considered it, but it's actually turning out to be really fun!  We will do our Thanksgiving in 2 weeks and our Christmas in a month.  It helps that it has been colder here in Northern New York, so it almost feels like winter (or at least the version we are used to from being in Texas)  It also helps to live in a country that puts out holiday items so early.  I know we won't have any trouble getting the things we want for our celebrations.  

Hot Cocoa on the porch because it's cold enough to do that!

Don't tell the kids, but we have a *really* big surprise for them...Can you guess? This will be their Christmas present (trip to be taken in December)

Sometimes I can feel myself getting nervous about the time away and I just start planning for our trip and then I feel infinitely better.  The kids are going to have an absolute blast, but I know I will too.

Sooner than that, though, we are scheduled to go to a blogging summit in Pennsylvania (I hope they can teach me a thing or two and maybe hook me up with a great web designer!) and Cape Cod for October.  I kinda bottle-necked us and we may not be able to make all this work.  Have you ever over-planned?  The hard part of it is that the kids adore traveling and really want to go everywhere we've mentioned.  I feel torn because on the one hand, I could keep my mouth shut about upcoming trips to avoid disappointment, but on the other hand I have a theory (proven to work with our kids) that if I share with them what to expect and when, they feel better about this crazy lifestyle we are living right now.  Actually, I feel better about it, too, when we plan interesting trips.

If you were considering an early holiday celebration, how would you go about it?  Where have you always wanted to visit?  Where have you always dreamed of taking your kids?   Any tips on Disney World with kids from veterans out there? 

Curriculum!

I have had a panic attack about every 3 days when the thought of homeschooling this year creeps up on me.  It's not that it's particularly difficult (uhhh..it is.  but not as difficult as I would have liked to make it our first year) it's just that I had no.idea. what we were going to do.  Violet is so different from GraceAnne and our lives are so different than they were 2 years ago. 

So after 60 days of panic, I knew that my requirements were these:

1. Few physical books, since we will have to fit everything in the Suburban as we travel
2. A traditional math curricula that could be challenging enough for GraceAnne, but simple enough for Violet.  Preferably from the same company so that I could get the hang of the teaching style
3. Integrated learning into daily life so that we don't feel consumed by the work
4. Non-traditional ways of learning because we are just a bunch of non-traditional people
5. Not completely reliant on technology, since I don't know if we will always have access to internet

I read a few blogs, researched unschooling, looked at online curricula, but answers were really eluding me, so last week I looked up the minimum learning requirements for their grades in Kansas.   First, can I say it was a huge relief to look at the lists and realize that the kids already had a lot of the stuff down?  If we are completely consumed with our travels this year, we will pretty much be okay.

Second, it really helped me to see that all the things they need to learn are so simple to integrate into daily life.  I have the benefit of being a "veteran" homeschooler at this point and I've learned countless lessons as far as what works for our family and what doesn't, but I still sometimes suffer from "it must look like public school or it doesn't count."  That is so not true it isn't even funny.  In fact, my kids learn better when I teach them to count collecting eggs from the hens or teach them to add fractions by doubling a recipe to share with friends.  In GraceAnne's case, she absorbs more from her books if she is sitting outside to read them with one leg kicked up over something and her head hanging downward.  Violet needs more relational teaching than a classroom setting allows for and Corbin?  Well, sometimes Corbin needs to be beaten.  (Totally kidding, no child abuse in *this* family)

Maybe I should have started off this way.  I have always read my magazines backwards and done my math problems backwards, there's something about thinking ahead to the end goal and then setting the plans that just makes me able to get a handle on it.  I probably could have spared myself a lot of stress, but at any rate, we've finally arrived here:

1. We have a lot of our Richard Scarrey books still, which the littles love to learn from.  I only have plans to order one Science book.  We will utilize the library wherever we are at for books we can't download on the nook.  The nooks will be our workhorses this year.  (we have 2 nook HD+ that we specifically got for this school year)
2. Bob Jones math has great reviews from moms with non-traditional learners.  I think the 4th and K courses will be perfect for us.  Thankfully math curricula only consist of 2 books.
3. I have practiced seeking more learning opportunities and asking lots of questions to engage the kids in their surroundings.  We live in a pretty historic area right now, so this has been very easy.  The kids are also very good at asking leading questions and love to learn.  Lucky!
4. We sing a lot of lessons.  Violet learns very well in song.  I let the kids dictate how the day will go for the most part.  i.e. "We have ABC and XYZ to do.  How do you want to accomplish this?"  That in itself is a great learning tool for kids.
5. The nook books will be downloaded, so we will have access to them even without a wifi connection.  The littles use ABCmouse.com and GraceAnne is going to keep a blog, both we can do at the library a few times a week.  Of course we'll have the physical books wherever we go and since we're focusing on integrated learning, that can happen anywhere with no physical tools.  

This year I'm going to be keeping track of what we do on different days and logging hours and whatnot.  Even though Kansas doesn't require us to do those things, (our home state for all intents and purposes right now) I want to make sure I have all my ends tied up nicely "just in case."

Oh, and for anyone curious, for 1st and 2nd grade, GraceAnne and I did Sonlight, which was positively, absolutely FABULOUS for her and for me.  It is definitely not something we can do right now because it is incredibly literature heavy (part of why we loved it and GraceAnne reads well above her grade level thanks to Sonlight!) and we just can't carry that many books with us on our travels.  But we do highly recommend the curriculum to others and it's a great way to get your feet wet as a homeschooler.  I call it "dummy-proof."  There's lots of room to be creative, but it's also all spelled out for you if you need that kind of structure/guidance.  We did actually consider buying the teacher's guides only and downloading all the books onto the nook, but we felt it just wasn't right for us this year.

So for fun, what do you think you would do if you were going to homeschool your kids from the road?  Would you stick to the 3Rs?  How would you integrate extra-curriculars?  What parts of it would scare you?  What parts do you think you and your children would really enjoy?