Planting Children - Homeschool Blogger

Inspiring

Sat, 6 Jan 2007 16:01:00 -0600

"Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire."

~William Butler Yeats

Happy Thoughts

Thu, 4 Jan 2007 10:02:00 -0600

From an online calendar I got this year:

5 THINGS TO BE HAPPY ABOUT

• a meringue of dense fog
• dunking a doughnut
• foresight
• a cozy hotel room
• bright red poppy petals

A Tardy Hello

Thu, 4 Jan 2007 09:53:01 -0600

My apologies for being neglectful on this blog. I didn't realize I had any readers other than my hubby and a few kind friends. LOL!

I've been using my other blog (http://writersblock-susie.blogspot.com/) for regular blogging...and this one to talk more about our schooling.

Hmmm....I guess there's not much to report on the schooling side of stuff. We're plodding along with it, enjoying the triumphs and weathering the struggles. Sound familiar?

Feel free to pop by the other blog. Or check back here.... You never know, I might get inspired to keep up with both.

I'd love to hear from you either way. You're still very dear to me!!!

How Much??

Fri, 20 Oct 2006 06:00:00 -0500

So we're hanging out at a playground in Central Park last Monday (see this), and I got to talking to another parent about the schools in New York City. Seems it's a whole other world from what I'm used to. You get to choose the school your child attends, but you have to apply...and you may not get your first choice.

The one man I was talking to -- who happens to work as a special ed teacher in a New York City school -- explained how he and his wife were already applying to kindergartens for their daughter -- for NEXT year. He said the high school directory is as thick as a phonebook. And the research involved is incredible.

Interesting.

But what I found even more interesting is when he explained that the little "joke" in New York City is to ask a woman when she's pregnant if she's picked her preschool program yet. Apparently it's very competitive and very costly. A preschool in the area around Central Park goes for...are you ready??....hold onto your hats now....to quote Dave Barry, "I'm not making this up.".....

$30,000 a year.

Yep! (That's more than three years at my university rolled into one year of preschool!!) And people pay it because apparently their child has a better time getting into an Ivy League school as a result of the preschool he/she attended at 3.

Egads!

All I can say is: Thank God for homeschooling!!!

Homeschool Blues

Thu, 19 Oct 2006 20:49:00 -0500

I've been neglecting this blog lately....I could say it's been busy (ie. crazy!) with the beginning of school -- and it has. Or I could say that I've been a little un-inspired -- and I have (most of my blogging time goes here). But mostly I've been away because my heart isn't into homeschooling this year, and I've had to do a re-evaluation and figure out what's going on.

This is our fifth year of homeschooling, and I'm feeling a bit tired. I think Emily is, too. Sadly, this is Edward's first year, and he's completely psyched!

Still, we're revamping our schedule, thinking up a few incentives, and buckling down to weather this. Every road has a few bumps and potholes now and again, right? (Esp. if you live in Pennsylvania! LOL!)

Well, back to it. I've got a "whip" to crack! LOL!

Only kidding!

Quote of the Day

Tue, 19 Sep 2006 20:32:00 -0500

"There are three ways to get something done: Do it yourself; employ someone; or forbid your children to do it." ~ Monta Crane

An Emilyism

Wed, 13 Sep 2006 12:55:00 -0500

In the car, as we took Stuart to work, we were discussing Stuart "being in love." And Emily burst out, "You can't be in love, Daddy! You're married!"

An Edwardism

Thu, 7 Sep 2006 18:34:00 -0500

We're down in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, and we went for a walk around the docks of a little town of Manteo. The kids found some playground equipment to play on that was shaped like a replica of the Elizabeth II ship, the life-sized version of which was moored across the inlet.

Edward, 5, spotted a play telescope and told Stuart that they probably had one like it on the actual ship. Stuart pointed to a slide and asked if that was on the original ship, too.

"No," said Edward, very matter-of-factly. "But it would have been good for the scuba divers."

Observations....

Sat, 2 Sep 2006 14:13:00 -0500

Emily, the kindergartener, and Emily, the 4th-grader....

When did she grow up??

Note to Self....

Fri, 1 Sep 2006 07:53:00 -0500

Note to Self: Never, ever, ever decide to switch cyber schools a week before school starts and you go on vacation...but that's another story.

Okay. So noted.

Today was our unofficial "first" day of school. We are heading off to Nags Head, N.C., on Sunday (a slight delay due to Tropical Storm Ernesto). We're supposed to start on Tuesday (9/5), but we wouldn't be able to do our first day pleasures: a pancake breakfast followed by a "bus" trip around the block to our frontdoor. The kids really enjoyed that last year, and I didn't want to disappoint them. We'll start the bookwork at the beach next week.

They opted for uniforms this year, so we got a few. Don't they look cute?

Edward, kindergarten, and Emily, 4th grade

We used this morning to pray for our school year together, introduce our verse for the year (Psalm 16:11), and write our school rules. I also read the poem "The Owl and the Pussycat" to them. Edward liked the poet: Edward Lear.

It was a fun beginning to the year!

"You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore." Psalm 16:11