Saturday 17 October 2009 - This Week in the Olive Grove

I am always amazed when God works things out ~ even though I shouldn't be!  October 5-9 was a planned academic break week, which worked out very well since we spent most of it in the hospital.  So this week we were back in the swing of things without having to play catch-up, and we had a great week.

• we started reading The Story of Dr. Dolittle and Just So Stories for literature
  
• Now We Are Six for poetry
  
• and The Struggle for Sea Power in our world history series
• we memorized the first four verses of Psalm 139
• I got my supplies organized enough that the kids could draw and play with modeling clay while I did our history and literature read alouds; they were quite excited about that.
  
• on Friday we did a little geography block with a story from Africa out of Folktales from Ecosystems Around the World, some songs from Africa from Wee Sing Around the World, and an African-inspired craft from Global Art.  The kids really enjoyed this ~ even the too cool 11yo boy!

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Friday 25 September 2009 - This Week (and last week) in the Olive Grove

We are winding down the year here in the Olive Grove.
We finished quite a few of our books over the past two weeks:

• The Wonderclock
• God's Marvels in Washington
• The Complete Book of Nonsense
• The House at Pooh Corner
• Lulapalooza finished his nature & history reads
• J~Man finished his science & literature
• Toodles finished Flower Fairies of the Trees

• The Complete Tales of Beatrix Potter
• When We Were Very Young
• Pilgrim's Progress
• The Awakening of Europe

• Spiced Apple Cider & Apple Pie Coffe Cake
• Candy Corn
• Pumpkin-scented orange candles
• Some Autumn Poetry
• Some crafting
• And, of course, Vivaldi

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Thursday 4 June 2009 - 25 Things

I shamelessly stole this idea from the Dominion Family Blog.

Here are 25 things that I have been doing of late:

1. reading more about unschooling (and arguing with myself)
   
2. re-arranging the furniture
3. walking in the mornings
4. watching L. four days a week
5. daydream-gardening
6. praying
7. trying to love my husband better
8. driving Frap to work
9. driving Frap home from work
10. feeling frustrated with myself that I still haven't finished reading aloud The Silver Chair
11. enjoying reading Edward Lear's Nonsense with the younger kids
12. feeling pleased with myself for keeping up with the reading aloud of Beatrix Potter, A. A. Milne, Howard Pyle, and M. B. Synge
13. neglecting Brahms
14. completely ignoring Cassatt
    
15. watching a pair of Barn Swallows
16. memorizing Psalm 8 with the kids
17. wondering if we might just be able to take some sort of actual family vacation this year
18. and if we can afford to
19. and if so ~ where?
20. watching So You Think You Can Dance
21. trying not to kill my ferns
22. head-blogging
23. tweaking our schedule/routine now that we are watching L.
24. enjoying the summer break from classes: the kids' gymnastics, dance, and robotics, and my Children's Bible Classes at church
25. trying to save as much of the money I am making watching L. as I can

So, what have you been up to?

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Saturday 23 May 2009 - Busy...busy...busy...

and just when I thought things were going to settle down and I could start being a real home-body again life got even busier!

A friend at church, K, is pregnant with baby #2.  Baby #1, L, (who is now a toddler) was born prematurely at 28 weeks .  K. is on complete bed-rest in hopes that little brother/sister will wait until due-date in late September.  Her mother-in-law is able to come over one day during the week to help, and some of the other ladies at church will be helping out occasionally.  For the most part, three or four days a week now, I load up my youngers with their books and other tid-bits at eight o'clock in the morning and go take care of L. and fix lunch for K. and maybe do a bit of (very) light housekeeping until about 6 p.m. when her husband finishes work.  Then we fight traffic (ugh!) home, eat supper, and try to get some of our own housework done. 

I really am glad that I am able to be a help to them at this time, and they are paying me which is a real blessing for us at a time when we truly need some additional income (I have been dreading the idea of having to get a part-time job!)

L. takes nice long naps, so we are able to get a good amount of our reading done then, and that is pretty much our formal academics.  Today's Latin Proverb of the Day was "Optimus magister bonus liber."  In English: The best teacher is a good book.  I guess that will be our motto this summer.

Some of this week's favourite teachers were:

• The Complete Book of Nonsense by Edward Lear
• The Discovery of New Worlds by M. B. Synge
• The Silver Chair by C. S. Lewis
• The Tale of the Pie and the Patty-pan by Beatrix Potter
• Winnie-the-Pooh by A. A. Milne
• The Wonderclock by Howard Pyle
• Flower Fairies of the Garden by Cicely Mary Barker
• The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald
• Young Edgar Allan Poe by Laura Benet
• Red by Ted Dekker

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Monday 23 March 2009 - This Week in the Olive Grove ~ Preview

We get back to academics tomorrow after a one-week break and a birthday holiday.  This post is really just a way for me to somewhat organize my thoughts and try to be on top of things in the morning. 

I have to take Sgt. Elf to work at 8:30
Back home  to get the younger three cracking and begin our Morning Time around 9

• Bible
• Poetry
• Bach
  
• 10-minute math
  

• History
• Literature
  

• a bit more Bach
• some craft time
• some cleaning
• outside play if it isn't storming

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Friday 13 March 2009 - This Week in the Olive Grove

We have had a good sixth week of our nine-week quarter last week of our first six-week term.  (ahem. remember last week I said, “I finally decided on a nine-week quarter rather than a six-week term”?  yeah.  anyway…)

Here are some of the highlights:

We celebrated O Special One’s 15^th birthday!

We read through chapter 23 in On the Shores of the Great Sea.

We watched The Trojan Horse.

We finished up the ancient world section of The Arts of Mankind.

We read chapter 2 of God’s Marvels in Washington.

We finished copying Psalm 96. (still working on memorizing)

We practiced two songs that the kids’ choir will perform with the worship team on Easter Sunday.

We started learning (with a plan to memorize)this Prayer for the Faithful by Saint Patrick .

Toodles finished Bible Reader 1, Unit 3 as well as The ABC Book of God’s Creatures.

The boys and I had a great time exploring our new Wall Chart of World History (well, new for us ~ found it Wednesday @ HPB for $7!)

The puppet team did a show at the library using a script written by J~Man! (He also did an impromptu magic act.)

Lulapalooza is reading King Arthur and Little Sir Galahad.

J~Man is reading Around the World in Eighty Days.

Nature notes:

Along the roadsides we see Engelmann Daisies in bloom.

Cardinals, Mourning Doves, and Carolina Chickadees have all visited our yard.

A full moon.

Rain! A cold front moved in and has brought us some much-needed rain, about 2 inches over the last two days.

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Saturday 7 March 2009 - This Week in the Olive Grove

Things are going along pretty well.  We have been consistent with our Morning Time and - to a lesser degree - our Afternoon Read Alouds.  I am experiencing again that peaceful sense of accomplishment that I remember from a dozen years ago when the older girls were little, and life seemed less chaotic.

I have spent a good portion of the last two days plotting out the next four weeks of our term.  (Yes, I finally decided on a nine-week quarter rather than a six-week term, [if anybody is even remotely interested] at least, I think that is my final decision ;~)

I have added some content to our studies, and to my sidebar as well.

Composer:       Johann Sebastian Bach       born 21 March, 1685

Poet:                    Robert Frost                                 born 26 March, 1874

Artist:                Vincent van Gogh                       born 30 March, 1853

J~Man and Sgt. Elf are away on a puppet training, so yesterday Lulapalooza, Toodles, and I managed another chapter in The Silver Chair; they did their readings, played some games, and engaged in some creative pursuits while I made a dent in the disaster formerly known as my kitchen.

It has been a good week.

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