Day By Day - Homeschool Blogger

New Website

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 18:39:00 -0600

I seriously doubt anyone has read my blog for a very long time. But just in case: I have taken the plunge and gotten my own domain name: http://morningtower.net

So, if anybody is interested, that's where all my stuff is now. Same subject matter, different format, new address.

Morning Priorities

Fri, 6 Oct 2006 07:50:00 -0500

I am NOT a morning person. I don't fully come to life until late afternoon. Doesn't matter what time of year it is, how much sleep I get the night before, or anything like that. Everyone told me that after I had children it would change. Nope! I still hate mornings.

But I still have to wake up in the mornings. We don't start our homeschool days at 7:00 am like so many other families I've read about, but I do like to be going by 9:00 or 10:00. Then we stand a chance of being done early enough for the kids to have plenty of play time in the afternoons.

So, I have a morning schedule. Well, more like a routine. I drag myself out of the bed, crawl downstairs and get myself a cup of coffee. Then I come straight to my computer and check my comics (Close To Home, For Better or Worse, and Garfield) and read my email. Usually I find myself reading all the emails that are trying to sell me something. Not spam, stuff I've actually subscribed to, like Pottery Barn, or Coldwater Creek. Stuff I usually cannot afford, but love to look at. Sometimes something will catch my interest and I'll actually click the link and give it a closer examination.

Then we muddle through breakfast (the kids know not to bother me until after my first cup of java) and get started on school. Sometime around late morning, right before Lunch, I find time to read my Daily Guideposts, and if I'm feeling really industrious, I'll read the Morning Prayer of my Magnificat magazine, and possibly even the Mass Readings for the day. But I'm already well into my day by then.

Now, I've always heard that one should start their day 'bathed in prayer', but somehow I have convinced myself that I am not awake enough to accomplish this first thing in the morning. But this morning, as I was staring at information on Toyota Avalons (which I am considering buying) it dawned on me that I could just as easily stare at daily prayers, readings and devotionals.

Yeah, I might not get the full impact at that point, but maybe it would sink in enough to make a difference in my day. I mean, I might not be able to utter profound or even intelligible prayers at that point, but I can absorb Godly information, right? And that can't be a bad thing!

So I think my goal for today is to try to find some Daily Reading stuff that can be sent to my Inbox. I know there are some really great websites out there that have that sort of stuff. I think I'll check CatholicMom.com first. :)

A Touch of Nostalgia

Sun, 17 Sep 2006 23:17:00 -0500

There are certain things that make me forget I am in the present. A scent of some long forgotten perfume, a song I've not heard in ages, or a crisp Fall day. I think maybe it's the amazing Fall weather we've been having the past few days. But somehow, I have managed to get stuck in the past. Al Stewart used to have a song called "Time Passages". I think it described this feeling well, though the only part of the lyrics I can remember is "there's something back there that I left behind". That rings true for me.

Every year, about this time, I have some wild urge to just up and drive into the sunset, quite literally. I live on the East Coast, and I have an almost uncontrollable desire to go to Albuquerque. That's really not so odd, since I was born and raised in New Mexico, and Albuquerque is on of my all-time-favorite places. And this time of year, I can practically hear the Indian Drums beating at the Fairgrounds, and I can all but taste the Indian Fry Bread. Ohhhhh. . . . and the breakfast burritos. There is no substitute. (Eat your heart out, Porsche!) I can imagine that the balloons are starting to make their appearances more regularly, until they come together in an amazing crescendo of color next month at the International Balloon Fiesta.

But there are other things I remember, too. Things that elicit some sort of weird uneasy longing I can't quite really put my finger on. Like watching the clouds roll off the Crest of Sandia Peak after a storm. Or laying beside the pool on a late desert summer afternoon and gazing into the brilliant blue sky (the likes of which can ONLY be seen here in the Blue Ridge Mountains this time of year). Or driving down Osuna, near the golfcourse just as the Aspens start to turn.

It's beautiful here, too. People come from all over the country to see the leaves here in the Fall. We call them "Leaf Lookers", and complain about the traffic. I have to confess that I am a part-time Leaf Looker, myself. But I should be a full-timer. I don't ever want to miss God's glory, and it is surely in full bloom in the mountains of North Carolina in the Fall. No, the leaves haven't really started to turn yet. Just a flash of red or yellow here or there. But you can feel the chill in the air, and there is a sense of urgency to put up the apples for the Holidays. Soon, the smell of woodburning stoves and fireplaces will fill the evening air. And the the leaves will blaze with color in a final dance of ecstasy before gently floating the ground. God's glory is rampant in these images, these annual rituals of nature.

So it is I find myself at times like this trying to chase the memory of the dreams I once had, trying to recapture some essence of who I used to be, back when my world was new and every possibility was probable to me. I was more secure back then, I think. The kind of security that can only thrive on innocence. Things seemed so much more simple back then, and my responsibilities were so much more casual.

Now, after almost 20 years of marriage five pregnancies and three children, I am not so sure about anything as I was then. I think the one thing I have managed to learn is that I know so little. (Wow. . . saying things like that is a sure sign of aging, isn't it??) But somehow, when I walk outside and feel the chill of an early Fall, some part of my youthful optimism peeks delicately into the reality of my 'Now', and the two merge, for a few brief but glorious moments.

Getting Things Organized

Thu, 6 Jul 2006 10:32:00 -0500

Since our house burned down last summer, I have felt like I was in an eternal holding pattern with our lives. We have been living in a very small rent house, with not enough room to file things in any sort of organized manner. And I've been hoping that we would be moved into our new home before it was time to order school supplies for next year. But. . . it doesn't look like that is going to be the case.

It now looks like the absolute earliest we will be in is by the end of this month, which, admittedly, is better than, say, October. But now I realized I am going to have to go ahead and order my school supplies and get started organizing them and getting my thoughts together before we move, instead of after. So, I am having to roll with the changes and redirect my thoughts.

I do feel more ready to start school than I have for the last couple of years, especially last year. Last year was really hard!! I know exactly what curriculum I want for each kid, and have ordered the book "Managers of Their Homes" (you can find this at http://titus2.com). I am hoping it will be in very soon, because I am anxious to start making out schedules and getting things in order before they have a chance to fall apart.

It seems like the last two or three years I have steadily gotten worse about staying on schedule and being organized. And honestly, that's not like me. My best friend always brags to everyone about how organized I am. I am really looking forward to getting back to who I used to be. I know I will feel more relaxed and happy if I get on a schedule and stick to it.

Alex is coming home from camp today, and Faith is coming home from Mom's. So tonight, for the first time in three weeks, we will have a full house again! I have enjoyed my time alone, but am truly looking forward to having my munchkins back. I realized last night that I must be missing them more than I thought, because we went to dinner at my best friend's home, and I spent more time talking to her 8yodd and 10yods than I did the other grownups! LOL

I am enjoying this blog, it really is helping me to get my thoughts out of my head! I have been sort of fiddling around with the idea of customizing my template to match my website. I think that is something I definitely want to do, just need to find the time. I also really need to set aside some time to get all of my web graphics off of the Charter.net space, and store them on Yahoo! or somewhere like that, because we are hoping that by the time we move home, our phone company will have upgraded their services to include DSL, and we won't have to rely on cable anymore for broadband access. That will rock, because the cable tends to go out a lot, and so then we don't have internet.

Well, I have a few chores to tend to before we head out to pick Alex up. Mom is going to meet us at the camp with Faith, then tomorrow night, we are all going to go see Pirates of the Carribbean 2!!! WooHoo!!

Happy Camper!!!

Sun, 2 Jul 2006 23:08:00 -0500

Well, today was a fantastic day! Alex has been at camp for the past two weeks, and isn't going to be coming home until next Friday. We have received three letters from him, all of them begging us to come take him to Mass on Sundays. (The camp provides transportation to Mass for their Catholic Campers, but he wanted us to come get him).

Well, last night my husband informs me that he wants to go pick Alex up for Mass today, because today was our priest's last Mass before he moves on to another parish. I thought it was a terrific idea, but we were unable to get an answer at the camp last night. So, my wonderful dh got up early this morning and drove the hour and a half to our son's camp, and brought him to Mass so he could say goodbye to his favorite priest.

It was a bittersweet Mass. I promised myself I wouldn't cry, but found myself bawling after the Homily. Father A has been such an inexpressable blessing to our family. We will miss him soooo much. I know I must be more upset than I fully realize, because I keep having freaky dreams about what the new priest will be like! A few nights ago I dreamed the new priest was a woman then last night I dreamed he was a young kid with long hair and tattoos! (In the dream I even called him "Fr. Dude"!!) So I guess this is something that freaks me out way more than I care to admit. Our new priest will be here I think on Wednesday, so I may go to Mass just to see him. And I think I will go to morning Mass on Monday and Tuesday, just because those are truly Father A's last days.

Anyway, Alex got to serve at Mass, and got to say goodbye to Father. And we got to see him!! And since his letters really hadn't told us much at all, I finally got to find out if he was doing okay or not. Well, he is doing GREAT!!! He loves camp, has made lots of friends, and is already talking about going back next year! I am sooooo relieved and thrilled!

Alex has always been a bit different. He doesn't like competetive sports, he dances classical ballet, cooks, knits, and is a total computer geek. We tried the private school route at the beginning of this school year and ended up pulling him out after the first semester, because the kids there made fun of him, and wouldn't welcome him in. The pricipal tried to tell me he had Asperger's Syndrome, and that's why the kids didn't like him. (My brother and his wife are both PhD Psychologists, and neither of them agreed with that diagnosis!) I think it was just that Alex has always been homeschooled, is extremely intelligent, and couldn't care less about girls yet! (Hallelujah!!!) He's still content to kill imaginary Orcs and Goblins in the woods with a 'sword' made from a tree branch. That is why I was worried. But he's doing great, and the counselor told my husband what a neat kid Alex is!! Of course, I knew that! ;) But it's always nice to get affirmation.

So this was, all-in-all, a fantastic day! I felt like I was walking on air after I got to talk to Alex and know for sure that he's okay. If anybody wants a good recommendation for a camp, I can't say enough wondeful things about Camp Timberlake in Black Mountain, North Carolina!

And at this point, I don't know who the happiest camper is: Alex, or me!!!

"Truth, Justice, and ALL THAT STUFF???????"

Thu, 29 Jun 2006 22:19:00 -0500

I am so angry and disappointed! I was watching World News Tonight last night, and at the very end, they aired a segment on the new "Superman Returns" movie. Apparently, Superman no longer stands for "Truth, Justice and the American Way". In this new movie, he stands for "Truth, Justice and all that stuff." Yeah, I'm serious. Superman is no longer an American!! (Which begs the question: What exactly IS he??)

They showed interviews with various people associated with making the film, and they all think this is a great thing. After all, this is a global market these days, so we need to keep in mind how all those other nations feel when they view American movies. Why, some of them don't even like us! (Imagine that!!) So, of course, we mustn't offend anyone, ever.

I cannot even begin to express how angry this makes me! I am a hopelessly patriotic American. I don't always like our elected leaders, but I always respect the office they hold. My great aunt taught me that. And I think she expressed a lot of wisdom there. We are Americans, and I am firmly convinced that we are the greatest country in the world. And, we gave the world the greatest superhero in the world: Superman. So, it only follows that he should still stand for "Truth, Justice and the American Way". If other countries don't like us, they don't have to watch the movie!! And, if they don't like us, why do so many of them try so hard to be just like us?

At this point, we are becoming so politically correct that we don't even know who we are. I am greatly saddened, and more than a little concerned about the world my children are inheriting. I guess that's why we homeschool, huh? So we can skip all of the PC garbage and teach our children that they should be proud of their heritage!

I will not waste my money on this movie. My children will not see it. I am going to fall back on the Biblical advice of St. Paul:

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." (Phillipians 4:8) I do not think this movie is true or honorable, excellent or worthy of praise!

Celebration of Womanhood

Tue, 27 Jun 2006 09:45:00 -0500

I have so many thoughts and ideas, and it is hard for me to remember that I have this Blog, and I should write about it all here! At least then it won't be floating around in my head anymore.

A few weeks ago my daughter and I went to a wedding shower. I don't care for showers, but I know how important they are to the bride/mother-to-be, so I go. And when it's over, I'm always glad I went. At this shower, they divided the guests into two groups, and played a game where each group had to decorate one lady with toilet paper, to make it look like a wedding gown. The results were quite creative, and downright entertaining!

Anyway, I was standing back and watching as my little girl joined in the festivities. She giggled with the other girls, and squealed with delight at the finished 'product'. I realized I was witnessing an important rite of initiation. This was her first experience with the unique sisterhood of women. This was, so-to-speak, a rite of passage. And she jumped right in with both feet.

I had to reflect on how important it is for her to celebrate her womanhood, even at the ripe old age of eight. In our culture, we have worked so hard to blur the boundaries between the sexes, that we too often miss the beauty and wonder of being exactly who God created us to be. I believe that we are all fearfully and wonderfully made, just as the Bible teaches, and that we should not be ashamed of who we are.

Woman are amazing creatures. We nurture life within us, and continue to nurture it long after birth. The feminist movement has robbed us of what makes us special. Women have fought for equality with men, believing that we must be like men to have that equality. But our power is different from men's power. Men have a strong, brute strength, and it is a gift, when used properly. Women are just as strong, but in an emotional sense. Ours is an inner power, and not to be underestimated. In our efforts to become equal to men, we have forfeited the wonderous God-given powers that make us uniquely femine, and in doing so, we have greatly diminished our beauty.

So I had to smile to myself as I watched my little daughter join in the dance with movements that are exclusively hers. She had a wonderful time, and for the first time, I really understood why showers are so important. It's not just the gift-giving. It's the bonding, the support, the fellowship. It is, upon closer examination, a celebration of womanhood, and the things that make us uniquely beautiful.

Taking a Mental Health Day

Fri, 24 Mar 2006 17:29:00 -0600

This is my first entry, and it is a result of me deciding to give myself a "mental health day". I have ignored the laundry, the vacuuming, and even the kids to a large degree. I just really felt like I needed to do some things for myself, and so I have. I updated my website, and just playing with that for a while was very cathartic.

Then I decided that I needed a new 'blog', so I have spent the last couple of hours trying to familiarize myself with this one. I think it has a lot of potential. I have realized over this past school year that I am, at my very core, a homeschooler. So a homeschooling bloggers community seemed like a good fit. :) We tried the private school route, and that was a wash. Just going and touring the local public elementary school was a traumatic experience for me. No, I am a homeschooler, and at my very worst, it's so much better than anything anyone else could give to my children. I've been homeschooling them for 12 years, and that is the one thing of which I am absolutely sure.

I have also learned, this past year, that all those extracurricular activities really don't make for a great homeschooling experience. In fact, I am beginning to think they can lead to its demise. Over the past year our lives have been so hectic that we have often not even seemed like a family anymore. Advent was such a sweet season, because almost every night we all got together around the Advent Wreath and read our devotions and prayed together. We didn't sing together this year, because my piano is still in storage, but just being together like that was so nice.

I wish I could say the same thing about Lent. But somehow, this Lenten season has not been as cohesive as I had hoped. I know it's a timing issue. Our new house is almost done, and the closer we get to being finished, the more time Gaylon spends working on it. And now Kendall is working with him when he's not in school. So I'm getting that scattered feeling again. But that's okay, because I know it's just for a short season. In just a couple of months we will get to move back to our new home, and things will start to get better. I am going to spend the summer nesting.

I think my kids need to nest, too. Alex and Faith are about to go crazy sharing a room, and there is so little space in there that there is really no way to keep it clean. They are gonna love having their own space again. We all are. And I can't help but look forward to the next school year, and imagine what it will be like spending the Holidays in our new home.

Right now, I am just 'going through the motions', doing the best I can to get myself and my children through each day. It is increasingly more difficult. I had to stop and remind myself last night when I was so exhausted and all I wanted to do was climb in the bed, that I was cooking dinner, not because I 'had' to, but because I love my family, and I wanted to take care of them. That made it much easier.

But the 'mental health day' was a good plan for today. And tomorrow should be really good, because everbody but me and Faith will be gone all day long, so I should be able to get lots done housework-wise, then I can play tomorrow afternoon. Maybe have plenty of time to work on that afghan. Or dig up some dead relatives on ancestry.com. Or sleep.