I confess that I hadn't really been paying attention to the dates. I knew that today was the eleventh, but I wasn't really thinking about the connotation of what today actually meant. I was more concerned with getting my applesauce and blackberry jam entered at the fair on time, and getting James off to school.
So I was broadsided when I got all of the tribute emails in my box this morning. I just sat down and cried as I remembered where I was at the time this had happened. My husband and I were living out in the middle of nowhere, with no TV or computer access. We were newly pregnant with our first child and if I remembere correctly I had either just had my National Guard drill for the month or it was coming up. I can distincly remember ironing my uniforms when Carey called me and told me what had happened. The iron fell to the floor and I can remember spending the rest of the day crying as I listened to the radio. You have to remember that no only was I upset with what had happened to all of those brave men and women, I was also wondering when we would go to war and I would be going as well. It was actually another few years before my state activated her troops and in the end I didn't go to Iraq only because God had other plans for me. He decided to send me Meradydd instead I was meant to stay home.
It's weird to realize just how much time has passed, that it's been seven years already. James is 6 and we have four children instead of just expecting the first one. Life has gone on and we have moved forward. Still, the shock, horror, grief and those complete influx of feelings I felt that day linger and will never be forgotten, although, I didn't see any pictures until the next day when Carey brought home the paper. It seems like yesterday as I remember the sound of the iron crashing to the floor and the sound of the dead line as Carey and I were cut off. So I am not ashamed to admit that I cried as I remembered.
Although it's hard to watch, there is a good tribute here, America Attacked.
In celebration of "the white cloud's intricate maze, And the blue sky's beautiful sheen," I am hereby announcing SmallWorld's In Just-spring Mudluscious Poetry Contest. It's really quite simple. Just copy and paste this orange-lettered spring green lettered section onto your own blog along with a poem that in some way celebrates spring. (Copy the contest photo above if you want, as well!) Leave me a comment with a link to your contest entry. The poem doesn't have to overtly use the word "spring," but it should in some way evoke the feeling of spring. If you don't have a blog, just leave a poem in the comments.
I'll be running this particular contest until April 10, so you've got plenty of time to find just the perfect poem. I will randomly choose a winner, who will receive a box in the mail filled with some of my favorite spring things (think gardens, good smells, and prettiness, unless the winner is male, in which case, scratch the good smells and pretty things)
This sounds like fun. Now, I'm unable to find my little book of sundry poems I've written over the years and I'm not great at writing any off of the top of my head. However, this immediately made me think of a post I did last month. I had put together a slideshow of pictures I'd been taking around town of spring blossoms. I also included a poem by Robert Frost that had just shouted the joy of spring and the heart glad in it's return. As well, a small quote by Algernon Charles Swinburne that seemed quite appropriate for a slideshow of spring blossoms. Instead of reposting all of that here, or totally messing with a post that I did before this contest even started, I am linking to that post so that you may see it in all of it's original glory. :D You still have a couple of days before this ends, so grab a couple of interesting spring poems that speak to you, and head on over to Small World to post about them!
I had to laugh when I found this yesterday morning. This is a song from a recent movie, Enchanted. I have yet to actually see this movie so I was surprised when I came across this quite by accident. I wish I could have little helpers like that. Well, in fact I do, but they're not nearly as helpful. My little helpers like to just sit there and stare at me when I ask them to do something.
Watching this, and seeing the wide assortment of animals going about their business, it made me think a little about hygiene. But at the forefront of my thoughts, was running a scene from Ratatouille, one of my favorite new movies. Towards the end of the movie, the main character rat Remy and his clan have overrun the kitchen and they're doing all of the cooking. And it begins by all of the rats getting a "bath" by going through the dish washer! LOL
Happy Working Song
All right, everyone! Let's tidy things up!
Come my little friends
As we all sing a happy little working song
Merry little voices clear and strong
Come and roll your sleeves up,
So to speak, and pitch in
Cleaning crud up in the kitchen
As we sing along
Trill a cheery tune in the tub
As we scrub a stubborn mildew stain
Pluck a hairball from the shower drain
To that gay refrain
Of a happy working song
We’ll keep singing without fail
Otherwise we’d spoil it
Hosing down the garbage pail
And scrubbing up the toilet
Ooh!
How we all enjoy letting loose with a little
"La-da-dum-dum-dum"
While we’re emptying the vac-u-um
It’s such fun to hum
A happy working song
Hmmm
A happy working song
Oh, how strange a place to be
Till Edward comes for me
My heart is sighing
Still, as long as I am here
I guess a new experience
Could be worth trying
Hey! Keep drying!
You can do a lot when you've got
Such a happy working tune to hum
While you’re sponging up the soapy scum
We adore each filthy chore
That we determine
So friends even though you’re vermin
We’re a happy working throng
Singing as we fetch the detergent box
For the smelly shirts and the stinky socks
Sing along
If you can not sing then hum along
As we’re finishing our happy working song!
It's said that no matter where you are, you are always in precisely the correct spot you are meant to be in. We are all here to learn and experience and while we may not always understand why certain choices were made and what the outcome will be or even WHY something had to happen the way it did, it just does.
Last fall, certain events happened, that although they extremely upset me and the balance of my life, they led directly to where my family is in relationship with everyone else at this precise moment in time. It has led me to discussing my life and... frustrations therein of things not going they way I'd like with an ordained minister who has helped me immensely by just being there to listen. It has landed us on the path that took James to his big brother, or mentor if you will and I'm so pleased with that. This has been a hard winter for all of us, but for James especially. Because of his speech delay, he's found it hard to make connections with other children, regardless of age. He does enjoy interaction with other people and he likes our excursions around town be it Church, group activities, even shopping, he's usually happy to jump right in but he has no one special.
A reticence has been noticed in some areas, namely the skills of reading/writing and math. That has us all concerned. Not because he's behind. Behind according to whom? To whom is he being compared to? No, I am concerned because of how it affects him. It breaks my heart as I watch him get frustrated because he can't do something that his siblings can and close his wonderful mind off from learning. Circumstances have made him rather shy and he doesn't like new situations very well. And now, both of his speech pathologists have thrown a new spanner into the works and brought up the idea of Auditory Processing Disorder. Huh? Basically, although his hearing is perfectly normal (we had it tested), things get garbled in their transferance. So for instance, sounds that are similar such as ch and sh sound exactly alike. A lot of background noise is bad. Etc.... And here's the worse part about it. James is not even six yet and testing is not performed until a child is at least eight years of age. Oh, there is a screening test that can be performed that will raise flags if this may be a problem, in which case we at least have some options to work with. And even if he does have this, I can't just let him float around for the next two years doing nothing until we know for sure. Neither can I just let him slide backwards and get even further behind. So it has led to quite a dilema.
How to interact with James? His reading program isn't working. While it came highly recommended by a speech pathologist, James is just having too much trouble with it. I do like the program, and I'm using it successfully with my four year old. It requires me to not only teach the sounds (instead of names) of letters, it has me break the code down to help them reassemble it. It sounds harder than it is but it actually makes quite a bit of sense. I enjoyed reading the book before I started implementing it in my curriculum. But James can not differentiate the sounds and then put them back together. So, for instance pig, with each "sound" said at one second intervals sounds like a garbled mess to him and he looks at me like I have two heads when I try this with him. He can not "see" the word. It is frustrating him no end that he can't do what he thinks he should be able to.
And then there's math. He can not count. He has a phenomenal memory, but he can't get past 5. We have tried games (Hi Ho Cherry-O is his favorite), we've tried songs, etc. For One Two Buckle My Shoe, he has memorized all of the little rhymes, but he won't go past the number 2. :( When we tell him to start it, he'll say the first stanzy no problem. We tell him good job, etc. and then we ask for the next one. He immediately pops off the next rhyme, but not the numbers. No matter how we phrase it, when we ask him for the next two numbers he just will not do it and it leads to lots of frustration on both of our parts (and usually crying and a tantrum on his). For games, he counts his cherries as he moves them around but he rarely gets past 2. It's usually 1, 1, 1, instead of 1, 2, 3 and I just don't know what to do anymore.
The good thing though is that as all good things must come to an end, you also never know when a new door will open full of opportunity. Within the last 48 hours I have learned of two programs that may help my little man precisely in the areas needed. I was told of Fast ForWord and it looks great. It's right up James' alley. Here's the bad news for that one though. It's not offered directly to home schools or individual consumers. :( I have to find a local speech pathologist that partners with the company. Or find out if it's available in the local school district. Sigh... Still, it has given me a small ray of hope and questions to start asking. And then there's math. I was also told of the RightStart math programm today and it looks like it just may work for us. It's not based on rote counting, it's very visual, and based on groups of fives. Unfortunately, it's expensive. The good news though is that the woman who told me about it is willing to loan me hers. Whew... So, at least maybe I'll start seeing progress in that area soon.
Oh, and then there's David. This is just one more path that has been discovered because of past circumstances. Talking to our Church's intern minister has helped a little and as I discussed my frustrations of James' situation and how every thing was leading to a dead end, a plan slowly formed. James needed to get out of the house more, away from his siblings with one on one attention. This is no easy task. His father started taking him out for an hour on Saturday but I still wasn't really seeing the results needed. Oh, they enjoyed their time together but James wasn't getting any happier. He needed someone completely away from the household to give him a break; o recharge his batteries if you will. Everyone loves their families but sometimes you just need to get away from them for a little bit. So started the quest for a mentor. This has been some months in the planning and I'm so pleased that it finally came to fruition. I contacted our Church's youth group and I found a young man interested in spending time with James. And he's awesome. The coolest thing? James loves him. He's seen around Church before, but today is the first time that they actually spent time together. It was at Church so they could be supervised in a controlled and safe area. This way, we could make sure James liked him and was comfortable with him before he started taking James out for an hour or so a week for whatever activities they have planned. Success! James was a bit shy at first, but we got him to greet David properly and in the end, he happily took off outside with him and enjoyed the time spent. And he's been talking about David nonstop for the rest of the day. For a child that is uncomfortable in most situations and can take a while to warm up, the rate of thawing with him was phenomenal.
Finally, I feel that connections are being made and things are starting to look up. Spring has sprung, hope is born anew and there are so many new opportunities waiting.
Hope Abides
Hope abides; therefore I abide.
Countless frustrations have not cowed me.
I am still alive, vibrant with life.
The black cloud will disappear,
The morning sun will appear once again
In all its supernal glory.
An hour without power. At face value, it doesn't seem like much. But we as a society have become so used to power at the flick of a switch that we feel lost without it. An hour you say? It doesn't seem like much when one turns the lights out for (hopefully) eight hours every night when we get that much needed (and well deserved) shut eye after a full day of chasing little ones around and well... just living.
However, if you think about it, there is never no power somewhere near you in these modern times. It could be as close as your alrm clock or even as far as your closest neighbor in case you happen to a be a super conceitnious crunchy green mama. In which case, you have my deepest admiration.
There are familiies living completely off of the grid, but they still have power of some sort wether it's solar powered, wind propelled, or perhaps person generated as in this case. Something is almost always running and we've grown accustomed to the quiet hum in the background from the computer, the fridge and freezers, even the quiet tick of clocks. So much so that we completely ignore it. Unitl it's gone. And then, it can be... unnerving.
It was certainly an exciting experience last night for my little rugrats when the lights went out for Earth Hour. I grew up in a rural area that frequently expereinced winter blackouts. So I'm an old hand at this and already have a decent supply of oil lamps and candles put by, although, digging this all out tonight showed me that I'd miscalculated on the amound of oil that I had as well as that I'd forgotten ro replace a chimney broken in our last move. Still, it was a novelty for the young of this household. We laid out the rules regarding open sources of flame (the children quikly learned not to touch after sucking on singed digits) and then happily settled down for dinner. Yes, we were quite a bit behind on that. :( Today was very busy and two sick little girls didn't help any.
So, as we ate our simple meal of thick homemade soup & fresh buttered rolls, I reflected on what a blessing power is. Still, I realized that to the children it was a big game as they tried to toast their bread over the flame or Kitty sang happy birthday and tried to blow it out. LOL James just didn't understand why I said no to the query of turning the big overhead lights on.
He could never understand what it's like to literally have no power. Not when he could still hear the refrigerator humming softly to itself, the heater kick on in the background and the sound of a TV from next door. Our society is so far removed from the ancestors of less than two centuries ago that marveled at eletric lights that we have grown complacent and even dependant upon them.
Even as I write this the old fashioned way with pen set to paper and my eyes strain in the flickering glow of a lamp, I can hear the tick of a clock that we forgot to unplug and I wonder if the people who live in a world of excess and are completely reliant on their microwaves, phones, electric clocks, computers, their game consoles & TV, even a refrigerator, will know how to exist in these changing times of an emphasis on less is better.
Oak Meadow's annual spring sale has begun! It will last from now through June 30th. For those that don't know, Oak Meadow is a wonderful Waldorf based curriculum and my kids really enjoy it. If you're interested in this curriculum (or are even returning for another year) take advantage of these savings while you can. Prices are going up this fall! :(
20% off all K-8 curriculum and teacher manuals
10% off all enrollments, craft kits, high school curriculum
This is a great magazine that I just discovered today. And what does Barefoot Books have with it? Spring has sprung and Barefoot Books is excited to announce their partnership with Brain, Child: The Magazine for Thinking Mothers!
They are wanting to partner with organizations that provided for moms and dads what they aim to bring to children - content that piques our interest and keeps us reading!
From Barefoot Books: "Filled with essays, debates, fiction and reviews, Brain, Child isn't like any parenting magazine we know of; each issue is like that friend you call when you're upset and just the sound of her voice calms you down."
Brain, Child editors say, "We all know that motherhood takes you places - and we're not just talking the pediatrician's office or the soccer field. Whether they're places thought-provoking, poignant, or just plain funny, Brain, Child is the magazine that actually goes there, too. And whether you've been a mother for ten months or ten years, we're betting that Brain, Child, like motherhood, will surprise you with the places you never expected to go."
Brain, Child looks to be a very enjoyable magazine. It is kind of hard to judge from only reading a couple of articles online from the current issue. It's nice to be able to sit down with a physical copy in ones hand and slowly page through looking at pictures, reading excerpts here and there and avoiding the adds. However, that being said, of the four articles available to read online, I thoroughly enjoyed all of them and they all made me think. Isn't that nice? I don't remember the last time I actually wanted to pick up a magazine (National Geographic and the Smithsonian don't count) that I enjoyed reading, let alone one about parenthood. All of the parenting magazines out there disgusted me a long time ago because they never deal with issues that are important to me. They were always advertising equipment so far out of my price range it's like they're from a different planet and the articles rarely applied to me. Well, no, I take that back. I've always enjoyed Mothering's articles. Anyhow, so it was refreshing to sit down and read information that applied to me and my situations right now. Oh, and even my husband enjoyed the articles! How cool is that? So, check out Brain, Child and see for yourself.
Oh, and don't forget. In celebration, Barefoot Books has offered FREE shipping for this weekend!
I discovered this article about girls and teen pregnancy through this months Imperfect Homeschooler newsletter. In Denver, there are girls asking for a month of maternity leave from school. Certainly their body needs time to heal after a birth and they need time to bond with their little one. I find this disturbing because so many girls are becoming pregnant while still in school and this is such a large widespread problem that it even needs to be addressed.
Ok, quite by accident I just found this really awesome site. You can view Santa via live web cam inside or outside his office located in the Arctic Circle, Finland. You can write,or email santa(great for last minute for little one's to ensure delivery).You can order a letter from Santa although it's too late in the year to receive a Christmas one from him. Instead you would recieve a Winter letter with Santa wishing everything good for the starting year with hopes that the recipient continues being good during the whole year, until Christmas 2008.Or you can even plan a visit in return to X-mas someday. Hope if you have little one's or "big" kids at heart you'll find this as enjoyable as my little ones and I did. This really keeps the spirit alive after viewing. Enjoy! Happy Holidays everyone!!!
The live cameras and webcam's are found here. When I viewed the webcam, it was in the middle of the night since they're 10 hours ahead so all I saw was Santa's office brightly lit and no one was around. :(
Write a letter to Santa! You can use email or snail mail.
Even if it is a tourist trap, just the thought that something like this exists is really cool and I'd love to see it some day.
It's hard to believe that it's been four years since I stayed up all night curled up with a blanket in my rocker reading a good book while drinking hot cocoa and eating a whole bag of my favorite iced animal cookies (and not realizing I was in labor). He is our artistic free spirit that dances to the beat of a different drum. He loves bright bold colors and patterns on soft silky fabrics. And he lives up to the name of moneky very well. He's curious about everything and rarely sits still. He's got a surprising strength hiding in those skinny little arms of his and can pack quite a punch as his brother has discovered to his dismay. He has changed and grown so much in the last few years.
He's grown a lot, although, he's still our skinny little monkey.
He's 35 pounds and 34" tall
He still has no butt but his pott belly is smaller.
The beautiful copper hair he was born with is now a strawberry blonde.
He's still my little hypochondriac.
His favorite colors are orange, green and purple
He loves magic, and likes to dress up a lot. For Halloween he was a witch (wizard) and he chose a wizard bday party.
He loves listening to books
He's very enamored of a small felted green creature named Grasshopper.
He learned how to pedal his bike this year.
He can count to 10
He loves to color and draw
He's learning how to write his name
He's very independant and loves doing things for himself
He has moved three times
He loves music of all kinds, but especially enjoys opera
He also loves making music and will daily choose an instrument from the basket. He often choose a harmonica or reede whistle.
He's very inventive. Just the other day he used the end from the teapot spout for an inpromptu whistle to add harmony to whatever song that was playing. He did a great job (and I never realized that little thing could work as a whistle)
Happy birthday dear Charles,
We sing now to you.
Happy birthday dear Charles,
May your wishes come true.
Check out last years post to learn a little more about him and see a couple more cute pics.
For all that feel able, please light a candle or send some prayers and healing light towards two little ones, Andy and Christian, who were badly burned over the weekend. They both have extensive third degree burns over thier little bodies. Christian is in critical condition and they aren't sure he's going to make it. His whole head, back, legs, hands were burned and he's currently on a ventilator. If he does make it, there is concern that he will be blind. They're in the Seattle Heyburn Burn Unit. Both of them will need extensive skin grafts over the next year. Christian is only a little over a year old, and Andy is two and a half.
I am sure most everyone has noted the "Under Construction" post I did a month ago. Wow, has it really been that long? I never meant it to take as long as it has, and it's still not quite complete. Then again, homeschooling is a journey that is never really over, and I'm finding new links to add all the time. For some time, I had been dissatisified with my link menu on the right of the page. It was just such a hodgpodge links and graphics that I didn't think anyone could find their way around. I couldn't and I designed it! LOL So I took advantage of Image Chef's awesome free service. It allowed me to create custom graphics in just seconds. Granted, their selection really isn't that huge yet, but I was satisfied with the images I settled on. So here's a quick run down on the different categories now.
The Family Circle stayed the same, as did My Recent Posts
The Cottage is all links pertaining to this site, such as my RSS feed.
The Cottage Garden are sites that are mine specifically (such as blogs, Myspace, etc.) or sites that I especially like and may be involved with somehow.
The Hearth pertains to site for spirituality and homelife.
The Referance Shelf is a list of sites pertaining to homeschool laws, news, teaching methods, etc.
The Kitchen Table is curriculum. I thought this quite appropriate since that is where, my family at least, does most of their lessons (when we're in the house, anyway). I'm still trying to figure out how to break this one down further because it's quite a hodgepodge. If you have any ideas of a cottage type name that would work in this area, please throw it my way. Right now it includes complete accredited systems, items pertaining to specific areas (such as Scaredy Cat, which is phonics), etc. Like I said, I'm still finetuning that area.
The Reading Chair are sites that have online books, mostly in their entirety, in either a PDF, MP3 or Word Document format. A lot are also not downloadable, but you're still able to read them online, print them off, etc.
Our Read Alongs are some books that I especially chose to read aloud to the kidlets over the next week or so. Most will tie in the season, any upcoming holidays, something we are studying (such as history, geography, etc.) and other stuff along those lines. Sometimes a book will stay longer if it's an especially long book, such as the original Peter Pan, which we are reading to James right now. These are nowhere near all of the books that are read to our children, just ones I wanted to make sure are read in any given week.
The Craft Cupboard contains sites for crafts and other fun activities.
The Supply Cupboard is just that! Lots of good stores to order supplies, be it fun science kits, lesson books, silks, etc. These are all stores that I have personally ordered from. My Affiliates will also be found here. Also, although it isn't listed there, all books I list linking back to Amazon is under an affiliate program.
Blogs are the blogs that I enjoy reading . I have to have a good excuse for not folding the laundry. :D
I'm also playing around with the idea of "James' Curriculum" where I would list any specific curriculum books we're using this year, as well as the teaching methods I'm using.
Now Added:
James' Curriculum is a list of curriculum and books that James is using this year.
The Den is a list of fun curriculum and lesson ideas.
Random Books is just that; a list of books I randomly grabbed from my home school shelves. I will leave these up for approximately a moth before switching them for fresh selections.
This morning, I enjoyed popping into Jamin's blog to see what they've been up to this week. I enjoy visiting several times a week and there's always something interesting going on. Today, I was excited to learn about a new blog (to me) called Melissa's Idea Garden. Jamin enjoys it with her daughter because the author often posts really cool stuff about animals. That made me interested in itself but what really caught me were the ebooks that Melissa has written about animals. I have chosen to be really big on Nature at this time, and it use it in a lot of my lessons with James. So to find out about some amazing books about animals really made my day and I just had to check them out. Of course, right now I can't afford them, but they sound awesome. I got really excited when I noticed the author had a contest running to win a copy of one of her books. So, of course, I had to enter that one. :D
I then went on to explore further and did find out some cool stuff about crows. Then I discovered that another blog was also running a contest for a collection of Melissa's ebooks at Laura's. Alas, that one ended yesterday. :( But I still hung around long enough to see various other links to contests that were going on but weren't particularly interesting to me. However, when I happened upon a link for a contest to win Herb the Vegetarian Dragon at Crunchy Domestic Goddess, I got very interested. I've been trying to find out more about this book for some time ever since I first saw mention to it on one of my forums but couldn't find out anything. So, of course I had to enter that one, too. I also enjoyed exploring the publishers site, Barefoot Books. They had a lot of awesome books and I already have a lengthy wish list. :D On top of that list, besides Herb the Vegetarian Dragon, is The Barefoot Book of Blessings. I love finding new sources of books for the kidlets, and it's even better when the books call to you. Then you'll be sure to enjoy reading the books to the kids just as much as they'll enjoy hearing them. I have absolutely fallen in love with Barefoot Books. The stories in themselves look wonderful, the illustrations are rich and vibrantly colored and some of the ideas are very innovative.
Have fun looking around a few good blogs. If you enter any contests, good luck!
I found this amazing video today, posted on one of my favorite blogs ~ Eco Childs Play. The Vegetable Orchestra performs music solely on instruments made of vegetables! They use carrot flutes, pumpkin basses, leek violins, leek-zucchini-vibrators, cucumberophones and celery bongos. This is totally amazing and I never would have thought that a carrot could be a flute! This might be an interesting experiment to try with the kidlets.
Learn more about the Vienna based vegetable orchestra here.
In a word, yes. That's the biggest thing that I worry about our schools today. Children are not treated as separate personalities and cherished. Our children are born with limitless possibilities but by the time they're five, we ourselves have limited them. Encouraging a child where he excels and helping him with his problem areas is a very delicate balance act. Children aren't challenged, and helped when they need it the most and unfortunately that's the biggest failing of schools today. The children are never taught how to learn, let alone create anything of their own. Thousands of boring worksheets are generated that are only thrown away and forgotten as soon as they come home. Most artwork the children do is usually cut and paste or something along those lines. There are always guidelines and instructions that must be obeyed and if your finished item doesn't look exactly like everyone else's, yours is considered wrong. In most instances you are not allowed to substitute colors, mediums, sizes, etc. You are not allowed to be yourself and learn from yourself and rather are pushed and shoved into a mold that does not allow for expansion.
S. Walden of Walden's Wits sums it up very well: "The public education model was designed to meet the needs of the industrial revolution. It was not designed to create great poets, artists, dancers or playwrights. What amazes me is the quantity of entrepreneurs and other creative thinkers that are coming out of homeschooling. Could it be the individualized education opportunities, the self-motivated learning, or the student to teacher ratio? In a word, yes. Homeschool students are among the first to be able to work in a flexible education environment in over a century in America. Creativity is embraced and parents have the option of teaching them dance, pottery and music on an equal footing with math, language, and science. While Sir Robinson is on a quest to see this change in the public schools, it is happening already in homeschools across the nation. I believe homeschooled children will be better equipped to meet the challenges of the 21st century because, in part, they are more creative and capable of articulating their ideas."
I started this topic because of two videos I recently found that had me really sit down and ponder the whole thing. Basiclly, why was I homeschooling? Both of these movies are very thought provoking about our public school system, and really about any school system in the world although I must admit that our schools are much higher on the list of schools that I DONT want to send my children to.
My youngest son is a free spirit. He's very creative & artistic and he hates to sit still. He's always into stuff and making huge messes but he also learns a lot along the way and some of his observations have really amazed me. One woman that came to visit recently told me that I needed to keep a firmer hand on him or he'll have problems in school. What was he doing? He had gotten the art supplies out of the cupboard and had proceeded to paint a beautiful watercolor. He also put everything away again although I admit I needed to go back through a little later to be sure he'd cleaned the brushes properly and the lids were tight enough on the paint tubes. This woman was horrified to see him get stuff out without asking as well as that it was the "good stuff" (by that I mean expensive watercolor paper and real water color paints). She acted as if she thought we were wasting it on children. She also didn't focus at all that he was expressing himself quietly or that he proceeded to put stuff away on his own. It's all about stepping outside the box and ignoring authority. What authority? What was so wrong about my young preschooler getting out something to amuse himself with? If I felt like getting out the supplies to paint a picture I would do so, so why shouldn't he? He was not exceeding his boundaries. He knew it was ok, what was in bounds, and what wasn't (i.e. the glue gun or the knife drawer). The woman flat out said that he'd be labeled a troublemaker and that it needed to be nipped in the bud now if didn't want a juvenile delinquent on our hands. That really angered me but I can see this taking a turn I hadn't meant so I'll step down from the soapbox. :D She had come for some sort of in home program for children looked interesting and I had signed the children up for. I did not make another appointment.
My oldest son had 11 months in the public school system, 9 of which he was reasonable happy with. It was the last 2 months in the system that totally messed him up. He has a speech delay and almost all of the progress that he made over the last year was lost in those two months. He learned bad words, the phrase "I hate", and he increasingly became more violent as well as withdrew from everything he loved. The day he came home and slammed his much smaller brother's head into the pavement screaming that he hated school and school made him sad was the day we yanked him from the program. He was barely understandable and the most he'd said in two days. How could this happen?
I talked to other parents and I was horrified to learn several things that his teachers never told me. One of which was that James had been labeled a troublemaker and a fighter. The other children were picking on him because of his speech problems and were actually physically hurting him but the teachers only ever disciplined him when he lashed out to protect himself. When I learned of this, I quickly confronted the teachers. Why was my child the only one to be disciplined? And why had they never told me? They replied that they didn't tolerate violence of any kind and they saw no reason to trouble me. My child has been labled a trouble maker, which will follow him his whole school career (if he goes back to the public system) and coloring all teacher's views about him here on out and they saw no reason to trouble me? They never did conclusively answer why nothing was ever done to the other children. By these actions, they directly encouraged the violence as well as said "you don't fight back'. If you're being attacked (whether verbal, mental or physical) that you just take it. If it's happening, it's almost as if you deserve it. They told me that he would never sit still and that he never did anything right. For instance, one day they were told to color orange flowers but he wanted to do a red one (his favorite color) and he was actually disciplined! For choosing to color a flower a differant color and making the picture his own.
It's been 8 months since this time, and it's like night and day. We have started a Waldorf based curriculum from Oak Meadow and James is thriving. We still have our moments but I was especially gratified about two months ago when he wrapped his skinny arms around me, smiled his big gap toothed grin and announced, "I like you, Mommy". Not I love you, which he says all the time, but I like you. That right there made it so worth it to finally see my son happy and whole again. We've gotten passed the hurdle that had been thrown at us and have progressed even further down the track. His natural leadership abilities are now showing through and I hardly see him (when we're not doing school). He's made several friends and spends most days outside on adventures. He now spends more time being innovative (figuring how to help his father carry dresser drawers outside that were as big as he is is one instance), creative and just flat out learning then he ever did in a traditional school environment. There is something going on every day and he remembers it! He actually seeks his father out at the end of the day to speak of it. He is being allowed to pursue his interests and we're seeing HIM as he is. Not a small child to be ignored but as his own person with his own dreams, hopes, obstacles that he's struggling with, etc. It doesn't matter how small they seem to us; to him they must seem very big. Of course, in this time we've also had more drawings/paintings/sculptures than we know what to do with, paint/marker/crayons on the walls/windows numerous times, several experiments going on around the house at any given time but he's happy. He's learning his letters, dance, nature, piano, knitting, recorder, photography, botany/gardening, foreign language (German & French), painting, drawing, counting, some math & logic, etc. He has absolutely no workbooks. And he's thriving. For his age group, he would be learning very little of this in a public school but all of this is what he's interested in and has chosen it himself!
This first one done by Raising Small Souls is my favorite one and really sums it up quiet well.
This second one is education guru Sir Ken Robinson makes an entertaining (and profoundly moving) case for creating an education system that nurtures creativity, rather than undermining it. It's 20 minutes, but well worth it.
Recently, I have been knitting a small gnome for my daughter but I've run into a snag with a couple of bits in the pattern that I don't understand. I originally found the pattern online but now I can't remember where I got it. So I've been scouring the net for it, and in the process looking at many many sites selling gnome patterns. Naturally, I look at the whole site while I'm there to see if there is anything I can't live without. :D So I've seen lots of kits to teach children how to knit. And they're all girly! And while my very effeminate Charles would have absolutely no problem with this, James does. I can't expect my son to learn how to knit by making a bright pink scarf or a cute little clutch purse. And while some of the kits that I have found do have a rainbow mix of yarns, and the basket/bag don't scream girl, the patterns do! Seriously, someone needs to come up with kits made specifically for boys. Now, I really don't care if my boys wear pink & purple or play with dolls. That's not my beef. I'm upset that most manufacturers all assume that the only people learning how to knit are girls. This goes for adults too. None of the kits I have seen are put together with men in mind. And yes, I do know men that knit. In fact, one of them is a very good friend of Carey's. Every weekend, they play D&D together and while they go adventuring, Nate knits on a cabled scarf that he's been working on for about a month. And while I'm sure that there are kits out there for men, I have never seen them online and they aren't carried locally.
Lately James has been very interested in learning how to knit. He keeps trying to knit with my needles, which is no big deal, except that he keeps choosing needles with projects on them! So, I decided to get him his own set. Even if he's not really ready to learn how to make stitches, he's interested enough that it won't hurt to have a set of his own that he won't get in trouble for messing with. Even if he just sits there and winds yarn around the needles and nothing else, he's still learning.
I did finally find Reggies Dolls, a waldorf inspired store. They carry small sets that include a bag, a ball of yarn, a set of children's needles, and some verses to help the child learn and the prices are very reasonable. Most of the knitting kits are very feminine, while a very few are neutral, and one obviously masculine (green camo). I have inquired the owner about providing more sets appropriate for boys, and she's looking into it. James chose a kit that came with a very pretty yellow striped bag and a blue variegated yarn.
However, after I bought the one from Reggie, I did find an awesome kit at Magic Cabin that's gender neutral. The complete kit comes with Kids Knitting (project book), a celestial print bag, needles, 4 balls of wool yarn in your choice of two different sets of colors: cool (blues, greens, purples) or warm (reds, oranges, yellows). Oh, and if you don't mind a pink lining, The Land of Nod has a cute little basket with some pretty yarn. For those of you that are interested, they also have a neutral crochet kit that's really cute. I have also found this one from New Zealand. The kit will knit either a ball and a pig, or a ball and a cat. Either of which will work for a boy. And the pretty woven bag doesn't scream girl either. So, I'm a little mollified that I was able to find a few that would work with a boy.
I have a few ideas rumbling around in my head so perhaps I can come up with a few kits myself to fill this need.
Ok, so this has pretty much turned into a large list of all amusing things that my children have gotten up to. This is mostly for family that is keeping up with the kids through this, as well as for me to keep track of it all. I can print it of, and some day say "Look, this is a silly thing that you did back when". :D
Curling up with my two daughters and taking a nap. This was especially special because it had been a long time since my oldest daughter fell asleep in my arms.
Watching my three oldest children mosh out to Wierd Al's new song, White and Nerdy without out a care in the world.
Charles took a shower with me and I put my shower cap on him to keep his hair from getting wet. He spent the whole time right under the shower so he could hear the sound of the water hitting the plastic cap. He did dance around some as that changed the tone and he had a blast.
Watching my two boys quietly taking turns gently blowing/kissing (not sure which) on each others arms. The looks on their faces were so quiet and restful. It was nice for once that they weren't fighting.
Flour fight! Ack, I wanted to strangle them but I wound up laughing instead. I was on the phone and James asked me if he could make a sand castle. I should have asked him what he meant to use as a medium, but it never entered my head. So, I came into a kitchen full of laughing children and flour everywhere. Not one surface escaped, it was even on top of my hutch and inside of my oven! It took forever to clean up (that stuff is very pervasive), especially because I made them help. But it's still a fun memory. Not many children think to make a castle out of flour.
James and Charles "playing" Grandma Sue's piano and singing along with wild abandon while Deedee boogied and sang beside them.
Kitty and Avi (he's only 2 weeks older than she is) burbling, blowing raspberries, giggling and cooing at each other over a small wooden toy while I and Avi's mom drank cocoa at a local cafe.
Deedee blowing kisses at me!
Kitty and her 6 month old cousin Jordan sitting on Poppop Ernie's lap and holding hands. It was adorable and I so wish I had a camera.
James and Charles got to meet Curious George! The loved giving him hugs and talking to him.
Charles told me he loved me. We had gone to visit Poppop and Umma. He was snuggled down in his sleepingbag with his water and two G.I. Joes when he surprised me by hugging me, giving me a huge wet and sloppy kiss before saying "Wuv you, Mommy."
Holding Kitty in my arms while Deedee blows kisses at her from a couple of feet away.
James using my mechanical coffee grinder to make "cookies". Somehow, he managed to take it apart in the process. It took forever to figure out how it went back together, but we still enjoyed our cookies.
Deedee running around in my witch hat from Halloween. It's way too big for her and the tip falls over to the side quite rakishly.
James trying to teach himself to knit and totally ripping out the project that had been on the needles. LOL. Thank goodness that it wasn't the almost complete blanket for Kitty but just a small purse for Deedee that was only partially started. I guess it's time to get him his own set of needles.
Deedee stealing my tea but then sharing it with her brothers. They all took turns passing it around while I watched from the door. Sigh.....good thing it was cold.
James took care of Kitty all by himself. She was crying and I was unable to get up the stairs immeadiately. James took it upon himself to go up, bring her down (small heart attack), lay her on a big fluffy pillow, take her wet onesie off (Deedee had poured water on her), and proceeded to change her diaper. (LOL, I had to readjust the dipe later.) He then put her in the swing, turned it on for her and gave her a small toy.
Deedee yelling go at every stoplight, wether it was green or red.
James jumping into every snow bank and making snow angels in every expanse large enough on our way to his speech therapy. We always walk.
James and Charles playing dress up. James tied a large scarf that belonged to my great grandmother around his shoulders, and Charles wore a silky sleeveless oriental style top. LOL, the top was big enough for a tunic on him.
Kitty got to meet Santa! We even got a smile out of her although, not for the camera.
The boys helped me grind up the nuts to make nut flour for the lebkuchen. They had a lot of fun with this one. We wound up with nuts everywhere, and it took twice as long but it was worth it. They were very proud of themselves as the flour was dumped into the mixture.
Deedee dumping out every game and looking up at me from the middle of the heap and saying "HI" in a very sweet, chirupy voice. Sigh.....It took forever to straighten all of that out.
Kitty was given a wooden toy in the shape of a bee for an early Christmas present. She kept hitting Deedee over the head with it.
When it comes time for giving gifts, choose quality over qauntity. Decide how much you have to spend, and stick to it. You don't have to spend the same amount on everyone to make it "fair". If you're like me, you don't leave the prices on the gifts anyway so they have no idea how much or little you actually spent on them.
This year, my husband and I have decided to give our children each three gifts, period. One of which will be a homemade pair of jamma's (they got to pick out the material). And there are three things that we bought for all of them to share because not only are they fun, but educational as well. A subscription to Highlights High Five, a nice tabletop wooden easel, and a small toy piano by Melissa & Doug because all of them love music, but especially the piano (we went together with other family members on this one). The gifts are being chosen with the receiver in mind. For instance, my oldest daughter Meradydd is only 1 1/2. We chose a wooden ring tower (you know, those towers with rings of graduated sizes) and I'm making her a small wool felted purse. These are all age appropriate for her, plus, her favorite thing to do right now is to put things in containers and then pack around the container, which is where the purse comes in.
I've lost count of how many times I was dissapointed as a child and recieved something I absolutely hated because my parents didn't really pay attention to me and understand me. (This was before I got past my selfish ME persona.) Of course there are several items I held onto anyway because I was a packrat and now I absolutely love them. But the point is, if Jimmy loves airplanes, get him something to do with airplanes, not that cool drum set you would have loved as a child. Or if Leila loves bright colors and patterns, don't get her something understated and lacey. Spending your money wisely and choosing something they love will mean the differance of the item being played with, worn, etc and collecting dust on a shelf and the money being wasted.
And for heavens sake, DON'T get your child age inappropriate toys. You do not need the injury or death of a child to forever mar this beautiful season. We all like to think our little angels are advanced for their ages, but the oral stage and small parts don't mix.
Along this note, we'll be making several items to send to family with our Christmas pictures. A homemade gift is always more precious. Here are two that we'll be doing.
Cassette Tape Recordings
Yes, I know. Terribly old fashioned. However, hearing the voices of small children is always precious, especially during this season when we yearn to see family that is far away. Regrettably, none of my fathers side of the family has seen any of my children so this is a must. My father always seems to wriggle out of taking one with him when he flies back to visit. LOL...After last time, I don't think he'll dare to do that again. Grandpa and Grandma were extremely put out, to put it mildly. This will contain general news of family happenings, as well as the children talking, singing, whatever.
Yarn Ornaments
These are super easy and lightweight. All you need is yarn, scissors, glue, ribbon, wax paper or freezer paper (if you use freezer paper, be sure to lay it plastic side up), tape, and a small paper plate or bowl. I bought some cheap yarn at Walmart in Christmas colors that had been wound with sparkly silver cord, so thse are going to be really pretty.
Cut your yarn into several various lengths, approximately 2 - 4 inches long. Lay out a length of wax paper and tape it down. If you plan on only doing a few, a piece a couple of feet long will work but if you plan on doing a lot, cover a large surface. Pour some glue onto your plate. For each ornament, dip your yarn into the glue and lay it on the wax paper. Overlap each piece of yarn until you're satisfied with your ornament. Let them dry, simply peel it off of the paper, loop some ribbon through it and voila! A beautiful ornament that your child poured all of his creative ability into that you can cherish for years to come.
For an older child, you can use templates. Just print out several simple black line pictures and tape them under the wax paper. Simply outline and fill them in with your yarn. If you use more than one piece of yarn, be sure that they overlap. You could use trees, bells, stars, angels, etc. In fact, DLTK has pages that you could use for templates here. Martha Stewart has a cute yarn snowflake ornament.
I love robins. Their little red breasts are always so cheerful and pretty. They have always heralded another turning of the wheel and the return of the sun and spring. Seeing my first robin is just as wonderful as seeing snowdrops! Both are cause for celebration in this household. Well, today I learned of a couple of nice legend thats tells how he got his red breast.
The legend reads that the robin was originally a plain, dull brown bird. Mary requested that it fann the dying embers of the fire in the stable to warm the infant Jesus. The robin got too close to the flames and singed its breast feathers but carried on fanning the embers with its wings until the fire burned strongly again, and as a mark of its diligence, all robins have since had red breasts.
Another pretty legend read that when Jesus was dying on the cross, the Robin, then a simple brown, flew to his side and sang into his ear in order to comfort him in his pain. The blood from his wounds stained the Robin's breast, and thereafter all Robins were born with the mark of Christ's blood upon them.
Here are some fun robin facts
The American male robin has a brighter, richer red on it's breast than the females making it easy to tell them apart.
The European robin is the national bird of Britain
Strongly associated with Christmas
The American robin and the European robin are two different birds and not to be confused.
An American robin can produce three broods a year.
The musings of my childrens journey in the wonders of love, life, and spirituality. Love, Live, Laugh, and Learn. That's what it's all about. Welcome and blessed be.
* Carey ~ Beloved husband that puts up with everything.
He's majoring in history, loves to read, play D&D and Mech Warriors.
* Ami ~ Me. Busy teacher and housewife. I love to spend
time with the kids, read, garden, cook, knit, sew, make my own soaps
and salves.
* James ~ Our oldest at five. He loves to build with blocks, enjoys the guitar, adores robots and believes he
can't live without his trucks (and skateboard).
* Charles ~ My little monkey! Our youngest son at four, he
is the most precious gift ever recieved on a birthday.
He's a wonderful, sunny little guy that's very inquisitive and artistic.
* Meradydd ~ Our oldest daughter at three.
An opinionated and exceedingly bossy little girl with a temper to match her copper hair.
My little fashion diva that loves shoes, furlies, & hair pretties.
* Kathrynn ~ Kitty is my 1 year old little angel. She's a beautiful, mellow little girl that's extremely patient but is also starting to show her claws.
An hour without power. At face value, it doesn't seem like much. But we as a society have become so used to power at the flick of a switch that we feel lost without it. An hour you say? It doesn't seem like much when one turns the lights out for (hopefully) eight hours every night when we get that much needed (and well deserved) shut eye after a full day of chasing little ones around and well... just living.
This goes for adults too. None of the kits I have seen are put together with men in mind. And yes, I do know men that knit. In fact, one of them is a very good friend of Carey's. Every weekend, they play D&D together and while they go adventuring, Nate knits on a cabled scarf that he's been working on for about a month. And while I'm sure that there are kits out there for men, I have never seen them online and they aren't carried locally. 
![wind propelled](<p><img height="114" alt="" width="216" align="left" border="0" century="" oil="" src="http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i150/amis11/forest%20cottage/HerodLampLitRt.jpg" />An hour without power. At face value, it doesn't seem like much. But we as a society have become so used to power at the flick of a switch that we feel lost without it. An hour you say? It doesn't seem like much when one turns the lights out for (hopefully) eight hours every night when we get that much needed (and well deserved) shut eye after a full day of chasing little ones around and well... just living.</p>){kind=link}