I am ending my year  in the same way that it began:  in confusion,  with questioning.  It is nice, though, that in a year that was so full of tumultuous change  that some things remain the same.  This year  has had the constant thread  of  my not knowing how I want to educate my children.  There is also that constant of me wondering why it matters so much.  

     After having  the last four months  of educating my children in a relaxed mode,  I have to confess that I do like doing school this way.   It suits us.  Even though,  my brain  is screaming me  that I should expect  and do more,  my heart is telling me that this schooling mode is  fine,  at least for now.  I wish that I could trust my heart more.

     When I first started this homeschool journey,  I read  The Well Trained MInd.   This book screamed out to me that this was how I should educate my children.  I started out exactly in this way.  I was quite certain  that I knew exactly what Classical Education was all about.  I went about  in my arrogance,  following WTM  and feeling very smug  that I was giving my children an excellent education.   As time went on, though,  I realized that  WTM wasn't really working for us  and  that, maybe,  there were other ways to classically educate my kids.

      I am realizing  that the more I homeschool,  the less  I am sure as to what  Classical Education  actually is.   I hear all of these definitions  and they don't really ring true to me.   The one definition that  does hit home  is the one by Andrew Kern  of  The Circe Institute.   I don't have the exact defintion in front of me but, in essence,  it  is that CE is the attainment of wisdom and virtue  by nourishing our souls by all things that are  beautiful, true and good.   That definition has stuck with me  throughout the last few years.   Now, though,  I question  that that definition could be applied to any form of educational philosophy,  not just Classical Education.   So  what makes  this defintion more on the CE side than the other philosophyies. 

      I am more perplexed as the years go on.   I wonder why does it matter.  Just  teach them, for goodness sake.  Just go with your instinct and do what you feel is right.  I wish I could.  I wish that I could silence those voices  that are niggling around in my brain telling me that I am messing up.  The most recent voice  came from one of my e-lists.  This voice  relayed how her student, who is in highschool, does school from 7:30 in the morning  until 5:00 in the afternoon.        I'm sorry,  but  that is not what I want for my kids,  at any age.   Yes,  I want my children to be diligent in their school work,  to be hard workers, to show perseverance,  but I think that is taking it too far.  I also want my children  to live  and enjoy life.  That type of schedule  is a true example of  rigorous.  I hate that word.  Rigorous, to me,  is the antithesis of  Kern's  definition of  Classical Education.  Rigorous,  to my way of thinking,  means  sucking the life out of something (rigor mortis.)   I don't want rigorous  for my kids.   Rather,  I like the word,  vigorous.  That word   brings visions of filling up,  of instilling life.  This  word  is what I want for my kids.  I want their  days  to reflect that word.    I think I can give them vigorous  without being chained to the table for  8 or 9 hrs a  day. 

      My children are still young.  My thinking will probably change  as  they get older  and enter highschool.  For now, though,  I  think it is safe to say that I am a Classical Education  wannabe.   I don't think I have it in me  to go down the path  that other classical homeschoolers are on.   It just doesn't look like a place that I want  to travel.   I think I would like to mosey on down a path that I forge on my own.  Cutting vines  and  smoothing out  footpaths as I go  seems to  look inviting to me.   Making our own way and dancing  to the beat of our own drum  is, maybe,  the way that we should go. (Yeah, I know,  I have come to this conclusion before but maybe if I say it enough,  the words will stick with me.)   I like that word picture.  Now,  if I could just get those blasted voices out of my head.

I guess I am not as often as I would really like on this blog.   I find it hard to be splitted in two and between the business, homeschool, family, this blog and my review blog - I am a bit out of breath.

So to my friends on homeschoolblogger and others (family and friends reading about our life), I apologize.

As I said, my review blog is keeping me busy.   Wondering what books I would suggest to read, please jump to Canadianladybug Reviews! to check it out.  I am starting to expand my review experience.   Back in the Fall I reviewed a game called TriviaThon.   Quite interesting game actually.   I would recommend it to anyone - even the people who are not too fond of trivia type of games.    In 2010, I have already two extraordinary products lined up.    I'm becoming more bold and offer reviews to various companies.    Already I know two products are coming my way but I won't tell  you what it is yet.

On the family side of things, every one is healthy.    No H1N1 so far and no we didn't take the shot either...   That caused some tension elsewhere but I prefer not to expand on this.   Business is getting better slowly so I won't complain.  Problem is when you are in contracting, you work and sometimes you get paid later.   We are fortunate to have one third-party that pays every two weeks but most third-parties pay a month later.   So for one contract we are paid as we speak while the other... we wait. 

Jérémy, Jasmine and my husband has a birthday.   Jérémy was back in November while Jasmine and Daddy was not too long ago - respectively the 19 and 21 of December.  Also on the 19th, we (my husband and I) were maître of ceremony to the wedding of our friends Rachelle and Tyler.   This was the first time we were doing, the first time I saw a bride spinning at her own reception ( for 30 minutes) and the first time I heard Tyler speak in French for more than a couple of words.   He said his vows in French in honor of Rachelle - isn`t it cute?   I thought it was very impressive and very romantic.

As I write this, they are on honeymoon so we won't see them until next year I think.  

On the homeschool front - we are advancing at a steady pace.   Math U See is more than half way done for Alexandre and Dominic, and I don't feel as stressed as as I was in the previous years.  So I guess it's good.  The kids go to AWANA and have swimming lessons.   All are doing great at swimming even Jasmine who now jumps by herself in the water - mind  you I need to catch her...!

As you can see we survived our chaotic year on multiple fronts.  

I wish all a Merry Christmas.   For now I need to get some accounting done.... *grin*

Christmas is SOOOOO almost here!  LOL!  Between the wrapping and the cooking and the cleaning, my dear husband informs me this morning that we are going to rearrange our living room.  And I quote, "I am just tired of it being this way.  We have to move it around."  LOL (I think!).  So, we stopped our mass production of "NORMAL" Christmas routines and moved furniture.  The kids had fun doing their own thing for a few hours while we fixed the living room as this was their first day of Christmas break.

We haven't taken a long break in the past really because it sometimes just seemed too hard to get back in the habit of doing our work.  A few days is good, then I like to get back to at least doing a little something, even if we don't accomplish all the normal stuff until the Christmas excitement of presents, family, and friends starts to fade away.  But it is fine, when it is all said and done, we do a whole lot most days anyhow so I try not to worry too much.

What saddens me anymore is when I hear parents, especially moms (no disrespect to dads, I guess it is just because I am a mom), saying how they dread the school breaks and especially the summer break cause..............their kids will be home.  How SAD is that?  I love being with my kids and I actually feel guilty at times if I have to hire a baby-sitter to go to work let alone sending the kids off to school for the majority of the days of their lives.  Then to dread the kids being home for the little amount of time that they are home is not saying a lot; at least in my opinion!

Not saying in any way that parents shouldn't leave their children.  I too enjoy the quiet times and the few times that I get to go somewhere alone with my husband.  It is nice, but I always am glad to get back to my kids.  I just don't understand how people can DREAD being with their children.  My kids bring me a lot of joy and laughter.  It feels strange not to have to look behind me in a store and count heads to make sure they are all there (I also babysit a 3 year old girl in the evenings, so my kid count goes up to 5 most days!)!

So, with that said I am proud to say that I LOVE BEING WITH MY CHILDREN, every day, every school break, every weekend, and even every summer when there may or may not be any school!  I love helping them to learn and learning from our mistakes as we go.  I love my kids on good days and bad.  I love being a mother.  I hope that I am not alone in that, and I am sure that most of you all feel the same way.  In fact, it was loving my children that made me realize what it meant to have unconditional love from God.  And love is a powerful thing.

Did I get off topic or what????   But, nevertheless, I am still getting ready for Christmas.  everyone who reads this has a wonderful Christmas, and even those who don't read it; to you all have a very MERRY CHRISTMAS!  May God bless you all..........

     A few weeks ago,  I was thinking of  taking a blogging break  as I couldn't think of anything to write abuot  but, oh my goodness,  how things have changed in a short while.  I have so much to talk about now,  I could very easily  write two posts a day.  

     Last night  was our introduction to the world of Mystery Suppers.   My dear friend, Dee, asked if she could do a Mystery Supper  for my kids  as a way of celebrating Christmas with them.  I wholeheartedly agreed even though I had no idea what a Mystery Supper could possibly be.   I found out last night  and life will never be the same again. 

    When we sat down for supper last night,  my kids were given a menu  with  numbers and weird  animals  assigned to the numbers.   For example,  #1 was  a three-toed sloth,  #9 was a hippo,  #7 was a warty toad.   Everyone had to write down  the numbers  for what they wanted for the 1st course,  2nd course and 3rd course.  Dee  and I, the servers,  had a master sheet  with all of the strange animals listed and the foods that they represented  by its side.  We would take a plate and a person's  menu and then fill their plate for the 1st course  according to what they had requested.   Some of the foods were normal, like meatloaf,  mashed potatoes,  cheesecake.  Other foods were a bit strange  like gummies,  applesauce,  a toothpick.   Also listed on the menu  was crazy cutlery.  If you didn't  pick that as your menu choice  then you didn't get any cutlery  at all.

      My kids had a blast.   For one of her courses,  Missy had to eat cheesecake and mashed potatoes  with her fingers.   Mia,  for her first course,  had  cheesecake,  pepperoni and cheese kabobs  and applesauce.   Rocky had to eat  one of his courses with an icecream scoop.   I heard lots of hooting and giggling  while I was serving up their food.

      After the craziness was over,  then we had a treasure hunt.  Dee and her husband did such a great job with the clues to this hunt.  They really made the kids work for their treasure.   Some of the clues  had the kids  watching  scenes from  National Treasure,  looking up  cities from the atlas,  looking for clues in books.  One even had them searching for a clue in a Cap'n Crunch  cereal box.   It was very well put together.   The treasure was found in the washing machine.  It was Adventures in Odyssey  CD's for Rocky and Missy  and a Christmas Carol audiobook for Mia. 

      The kids had such fun.  I have to admit  that I had  a great deal fo fun, too.  I don't know why but it is fun to see adults and kids eating gooey food with their fingers. 

This is one of those ideas that is just too easy and just too cool.  I wish I could say that I came up with it, but I didn't.

I have always wanted to make crackers, but I don't want to spend alot of time on something that might not work, or might taste nasty.  This was quick and painless....

I made a 'normal' whole wheat (hard white grain) bread... instead of making loaves, I made them into baguettes.  These were probably 2 or so inches in diameter.

After they were cooked like normal, I let them cool and sliced them into thin-ish slices about 1/4 inch thick.  I then brushed each side with garlic oil and put them in my food dehydrator for a couple of hours on a medium heat setting until they were crisp and crunchy.

This was just too easy! 

The garlic oil is made by combining 1/3 cup olive oil, 4-5 cloves of minced garlic, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1 tsp (or more) of Italian seasoning.  Put this in a pan over medium heat and stir until the garlic sizzles.  Remove from heat and store if not used.

I'm using them as a base for hummus, a cheese ball, and, of coarse, spinach dip!

One of the perks of living in Georgia is that you can still garden in the winter....  Quite frankly, I am a pretty lazy gardener.  I threw some seeds out this past fall, and it amazes me that things actually grew.  Next week I'll be picking and eating my collards along with some kale and baby spinach that are shooting up.

This recipe actually was for a pumpkin cake, but because I went nuts and bought a ton of sweet potatoes on sale and needed to use them, mine ended up this way. 

They actually substitute pretty well in place of pumpkin, and I like the taste better as well.

2-1/2 cups soft white wheat flour

2 cups sucanat or brown sugar

2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon (or more)

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/8 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp cloves

2 cups of pumpkin (I cooked mine in the pressure cooker and then mashed it a bit)

4 eggs

1 cup olive oil

Blend together dry ingredients, make a well, and add the remaining wet ingredients.  Beat until smooth.  Pour into a greased 9x13 pan and bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes.

Frost when cooled with: 8oz package of cream cheese whipped with 1/4 cup of sugar (or honey, but I like mine white and it's not that much sugar).

Sorry the picture is messy, but I wanted to show a picture and we had eaten the whole thing except for this last piece.

     One of the many joys of teaching your own children is experiencing the joy  when they understand  something  that you have been teaching them.  When you see the light in their eyes when they  'get it.'  makes all of the  other  difficulties melt away.

     I experienced one of those joys yesterday.   Missy and I were doing math.  We are combining Level A & B  of RightStart  to  flesh things out  better for her.  We have been working on adding  for awhile now.  Missy  understands the concepts of adding  and can do it like a whiz if she uses the abacus  but  the actual adding facts are not there.   I know from working with the other two  that this will just take time for things to click so I let Missy use the abacus as much as she wants.

     Yesterday,  instead of using  the abacus  we used  tally sticks (glorified popsicle sticks) to show how to add numbers greater than 5.  Our first equation was  4 + 2.  I laid the 4 tally sticks out  and the 2 sticks right beside them.  I showed Missy how you could take the stick from the 2 and give it to the 4 to make it 5.  Then you would have 5 and 1.  Missy knows her adding facts with the number 5  from the poem  we have learned,  Yellow is the Sun.   When she saw the 5 and 1  she knew immediately that the answer was 6.

     When I moved the stick to the 4 side and she saw the 5 and 1,  her eyes expanded in surprise.  You could see the dawn of recognition  seep into her brain.   "Oh,  I know this!,"   she squealed.   I think she surprised herself  that she didn't have to use the abacus to arrive at the answer.

      She was able to do the worksheet  with the help of the 5's   because  she now  'gets  it."

A dangerous, homeless drifter who grew up picking cotton in virtual slavery. An upscaleart dealer accustomed to the world of Armani and Chanel. A gusty woman with a stubborn dream. A story so incredible no novelist would dare to dream it.

It begins outside a burning plantation hut in Louisiana.... and an East Texas honky- tonk.... and without a doubt, in the heart of God. It unfolds in a Hollywood hacienda..... an upscale New Your gallery..... a downtown dumpster... a Texas ranch.

Gritty with pain and betrayaland brutality, it also sines with an unexpected, life-changing love.

Found this book on a blog I read. They are going to read it for their book club starting Jan.1..... I finished it Sunday night. If you want to see a short video with the authors go over to Angies blog at http://audreycaroline.blogspot.com/

Mandies family came last night...... and loved it. Her  step-dad told me he hasn't been to church in 30 years .... and he thinks he will come back.....Little Bobbi J looked downright adorable in his little 3 piece suit! I am going to be  watching him every Tuesday now starting next week. The boys are so excited!