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Many Hope Chest readers have said how much they enjoy reading little glimpses about the crazy Knowles home, so here goes! I’ve tucked in some teaching tips, organizational ideas and inspiration.
First of all, if I want to work on the computer, I often have to type with baby Melody (almost 6 weeks old) in a sling, jiggling my knee to keep her happy. She has been a fussy little girl lately. We are switching her back to soy formula to see if that will help. She still loves to nurse, too, so I get a lot of reading done! Another thing I can do while nursing is help the kids with their school work. They set up a folding chair in my bedroom next to my recliner, or I nurse her on the couch. The other day she kept crying and crying. I turned on the vacuum cleaner, and she settled right down and went to sleep. This happened three times in a row, so there must be something calming about that noise, obnoxious as it is. My friend Alicia says she tape recorded the sound of the clothes dryer to play for her fussy baby. Right now, thanks be to God, Melody is content in her little blue baby seat, with an occasional rocking from my foot.
Naomi (4) and Ben (2) love the swing hanging from the magnolia tree in our back yard. Last time we were out there, Naomi chanted the numbers up to 50 with me as she swung back and forth. Then came Ben’s turn to count to 10. I would say a number as I pushed him back, and he would repeat it as he came forward again. Between that and playing Hide and Seek, he can now count up to 12 by himself. Way to go Ben! This reminds me of some activities I did when our older girls were little. I wrote the numbers 1 - 10 and pieces of paper and laid them out in a row on the floor. We would count as we hopped alongside them. Then I would give them flash cards with numbers to match to the papers. Finally, I would give them a bunch of small objects, and have them count out sets to put on the corresponding number pages. When they got older, I would lay out addition flash cards in a path on the floor, and let them move their toy cars or plastic animals along the path as they completed each problem. I need to pull some of these activities out again for our little ones!
Rachel (14) has been indoctrinating little Ben into the joys of classical music. She plays CDs for him and has taught him how to say the names of great composers. A recent session went like this:
“What is Bach’s name, Ben?”
“JOHANN! ’EBASTI’N! BACH!”
“Great! Now what is Mozart’s name?”
“WOLFGANG! AMADEUS! [pause to think] I’M-A-SWEETHEART!”
Rachel takes a bi-weekly biology class, where they have been collecting and culturing different kinds of bacteria in petri dishes to see how it grows. On Thursday, she filled two jars with pond water to prepare for next Tuesday’s in-class experiment. These activities are so eye-opening and relevant when I think of the bacteria-infested flood water in New Orleans, which we‘ve heard about on the news. ICK!
Rachel’s first reading assignment from James Stobaugh’s world literature guide was The Epic of Gilgamesh, a book length legend from ancient Sumeria. Her sister Mary (18), who is overseeing writing assignments this year, told her to write a book report on it. Rachel found a format for this in Diana Johnson’s excellent manual Home-Designed High School, and started the composition with a synopsis of the book. Before she turned it in to Mary for final grading, I helped her adjust some of the grammar. For this task, Rachel handed me a red pen. She knows that many teachers use a “friendly” color like purple for making comments on student papers, since red ink is often perceived as harsh and corrective -- but she said she doesn’t care about self-esteem and would rather use red because she can see it easily.
I like to see things easily, too! My 42 year old eyes NEED reading glasses most of the time now. I even bought my first pair of bifocals so I can look back and forth from Bible to preacher when I’m at church. Hmmm…. Should it hurt my self-esteem that I have to wear granny glasses or that my hair is going gray faster than I can pluck it out? Oh well, I have a newborn, so I guess I still qualify as a young mommy! Seriously, though, I have made some changes to my appearance in the past week. A friend gave me a gift card to a nice salon. It‘s very rare that I ever get a professional hair cut, so my daughters convinced me to try a shorter, layered style. It looks pretty cute! I also got a first-ever manicure, which has motivated me to stop biting my cuticles as much. Inspired, I asked for hair and nail supplies for my birthday (which was Wednesday). Mary took the younger kids to Wal-Mart to pick stuff out. Then I bought some skin care products so I can get going with a new morning routine for the “new me”!
Actually, gray hair aside, I think it’s rather fun to have kids ranging in age from cradle to college. I love to cuddle Melody while chatting with Mary about her classes. Her honors philosophy and psychology professors also teach courses in feminist theory. They would have a field day if they found out about her weird old-fashioned mama! Mary is pretty up to speed on what is going on in the world at large, but it’s still a bit of a culture shock. She is most disappointed that her philosophy syllabus spends so much time on mostly obscure African and Asian material, and so little time on Western thought (i.e. Ancient Greek/Roman and later European and American). I encouraged her to view it as an opportunity for cross-cultural intellectual stretching, but I guess she’s more of a classical-loving student than I thought. One of her teachers asked the class, “Why are you here?” Mary and I automatically think of this question rhetorically, as in, “What is your purpose in life?” Other students, however, gave more temporal answers like, “Because I need this class to graduate…” Noting this semantic ambiguity, the class launched into a philosophical definition of terms, such as, “What do we mean by the word HERE?” Speaking of which, why is Mary HERE at the University of Central Florida when she’d rather be at The King’s College (www.tkc.edu), a classical Christian school in New York City? Well, despite the generous scholarship offers, we still couldn’t afford it, and I just couldn‘t see her living in the heart of a big city. UCF gave her a full scholarship plus a cash stipend to enroll in their Honors College. She facetiously refers to their liberal secular worldview as “getting poisoned for free”! It’s good to know she has some Christian spunk in her. I trust she’ll make the best use of the time that she, in the God’s providence, has HERE on the UCF campus. I’m glad she’s HERE because I like pondering the meaning of life with her late at night when the kiddos are in bed. I am hoping, however, that she’ll be able to attend the college-level World
Journalism Institute (www.worldji.com) at King’s College for three weeks next May. She really appreciated the high school WJI (which has since been discontinued) at Bryan College last summer. (Mary also tutors a few middle and high school students in literature and writing. If you live in the vicinity of Casselberry, Florida, Mary is thinking about accepting more private-session students. You can e-mail me for more information.)
My Aunt Kathy, who lives in Pennsylvania, called a few weeks ago to let me know that she and Uncle Henry would be in town for a Donna Dewberry painting convention. Last time she had seen us, at my brother’s wedding a year ago, my younger children didn’t seem to know who she was. This time, she wanted to make a lasting memory for them! They showed up with 3 dozen bars of Dial Pure and Natural white soap, a dozen bottles of craft paint, a bottle of Modge Podge and a bunch of brushes. Aunt Kathy showed the kids how to do the One Stroke painting method (http://www.onestroke.com) which she teaches in a craft store, and had them practice on wax paper. Then she brought out the soap. Uncle Henry had previously coated the smooth side of each bar with Modge Podge. After the kids painted designs on the soap, he coated them with it again so that the paint will stay on until the bar is gone. In years past, we have also made our own soap, the easy way. We buy the chunks of glycerin soap at Michael's Crafts, melt it in the microwave, add dyes and scents, and pour it into soap molds shaped like hearts, flowers or sea shells. Our kids have always enjoyed this craft. Either kind of soap craft makes a great Christmas present. Try it!
Julia (16) used some of the leftover craft paint to transform an old vinyl-covered dinette chair into a work of art to match the bedroom she shares with Mary. She has always preferred hands-on projects over books, but is doing well in her first semester of college classes, as well as the geometry and anatomy tutorials at church. Last night when we were at the Deluge youth meeting at church, I was so pleased to find that she had taken the initiative to go welcome some adult visitors from another state. They were shocked and delighted at how friendly the Metro Life teens were to total strangers. I take it for granted, but I guess it’s pretty rare in the world at large.
Lydia (10) is a cross between a classical learner and a hands-on learner. The other day, when we were rearranging a room to accommodate two computers, she measured all of the desks and tables and helped me draw a diagram of where to place them. When we began to move everything into position, I discovered that she had rounded her measurements and things might not fit exactly. Fortunately, we also hadn’t accounted for furniture being three-dimensional, and the desk top was high enough to overlap the adjacent table. Phew! Lydia often sets up a card table in the living room so she and the boys can do workbooks while I sit on the comfy couch nearby and answer questions. The card table is also a great place for Joanna (12) to beat me at Scrabble!
Andrew (8) and Micah (6) are thriving with the Adventures in My Father’s World curriculum (www.mfwbooks.com). For easy access to the resources we use each day, I bought a small white plastic cart with 3 drawers. The top drawer is for our notebooks and pencils, the middle drawer for the texts we use from week to week, and the bottom drawer for the library books we will use for a single week. I figured I could wheel it out in front of the couch each day. Unfortunately, one of the casters keeps falling out. I think the frame of the cart is cracked underneath from the weight of the books and the drag of the carpet. Oh well, it’s still a great way to organize our stuff. I love the AMFW curriculum because of the daily/weekly lesson plans which incorporate most of the school subjects. This week, we learned about Native Americans and stars. They also memorized a verse about Jesus being the Light of the World.
I want my kids to start memorizing Scripture more, so I’m trying to set the example. As a newlywed, I memorized the entire book of Titus; my goal now is to relearn smaller chunks of it in the English Standard Version. Where does a busy mother of 10 find time for this? I prop the Bible up on a pillow on my lap while I nurse Melody in the rocking chair! One of the passages that strikes me is Titus 3:1-2. “Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people.” Can you imagine if every member of your household lived by these verses? What a transformation that would make in our daily lives! The book of Titus is a whole curriculum in interpersonal communications and life management. Of course, our family has a long way to go in this area. The other day before leaving for my haircut appointment, I told the kids that I would give them a treat if they behaved themselves AND if they cleaned up the house while I was gone. A child (who shall remain nameless) incredulously replied, “Be good AND clean up? BOTH?!?” Sigh… A really long way to go indeed…
Thad found a marble in his car yesterday, bringing back memories of his early childhood living in the Bahamas. His family didn’t have much money then, and the only toys he can remember from those days were marbles and tops -- simple pleasures! My younger kids can spend hours building huge block masterpieces on the living room floor. I don’t know why I bother keeping many other toys around! We all have so many amusements these days, and so much of it is just clutter. This is such a constant battle for me. I had a few “junk bins” to sort through yesterday, and wasn't looking forward to it. I did get the kids to help, so it wasn’t as bad as I thought. I need to clean out my bedroom closet, too, but I’ll save that for a day when I have a bigger chunk of uninterrupted time. (Like when Melody grows out of her fussy stage!) Keeping organized is so much easier when there is less STUFF! Thad also tells of when his family moved to a Massachusetts ski lodge when he was 8 or 9, and he had to scrub industrial size pots and pans in the lodge kitchen. That’s where his work ethic started! He’s always finding something productive to do, which is a great example to the rest of us.
Our final glimpse takes us into MY kitchen. As part of the Titus admonition to be “ready for every good work” and “busy at home”, I’m easing back into some of the more intense housecleaning duties. Most of the time I can tune out the grime, but there’s “a time and a season” to be a white glove cleaning fanatic, too! (After all, I do admire a good work ethic!) Last week, my kitchen cleaning mania began rather innocently with dumping the crumbs out of the toaster. But once I got started with the cleaning cloth, I just couldn’t stop! Over the next few days, I tackled the stove hood, microwave oven, outsides of major appliances, refrigerator door shelves, silverware drawer, door frames, and much more. The kids got into the act, too. Joanna mopped the floor and taught Micah how to scrub the grout with an old toothbrush. Lydia bleached and scoured the sink. Naomi and Andrew wiped the lower cabinets. I am grateful for their help! When I think of the flooded homes and hungry survivors in the hurricane zone, I am especially thankful that my kitchen is clean and dry, with full cabinets and running water.
That's a glimpse at our home, though I have spared you some of the more insane moments! |
