Wait for it...

This is our 11th year living in South Texas. And every year sometime in mid-October when everyone else is talking about fall and folliage, my gentle husband comes home and plops himself on the chair to announce, "I hate this."

He's irritated because we're still running the a/c, the mosquitoes are still biting and it's 90 degrees outside.

I tell him to wait. Just wait for it. Soon enough, we'll remember why we endure this all summer long. This morning, it happened...

It's in the 70s, Fifi's finishing her vocabulary and math to the soft strains of Segovia's guitar and the little girls are...just being. Together. Outside. Happily. Imaginatively. Blessedly. I'm thinking there is a picnic in our immediate future.

Daddy called...

...and he said to give y'all recess for the rest of the day. Miss Mason would be proud, young ones.

Two new book reviews are up...

...on my book review blog.

We read a lot this summer. It's our favorite thing that always gets done.

Worth the Read....

This article by Sonny Scott, presumably a government schooler, about us.

"Methinks American middle-class people are uncomfortable around the home schooled for the same reason the alcoholic is uneasy around the teetotaler."

From the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, June 8, 2008

Hat tip: Mama Archer

This Moment...

...brought to you by these moments...

...as we made our way through this story...

There's a new review up over at my book report blog.

Spelling Drill

So *What* If They Can Read?

I still read aloud to them. All of them. It's one of the most faithful elements of our homeschooling effort, and easily the girls' favorite hour of the day.

It doesn't matter that they can all read for themselves. It doesn't matter that Fifi can devour 500 pages in the 5 minute ride from the library to our home. Reading aloud together--sharing a story, laughing at the funny parts, or...uh...laughing at Mommy voicing the funny parts--it's time well spent invested.

Children who listen to skillful oration of well-crafted literature speak better than they would otherwise, think better than they did before, and learn better than their neglected peers. I'm not a researcher; I'm just right.

I have a blog about it, you know. "It" being a running list of the books we have read, and why we will or won't read them again when the youngest of us comes around to the next level of learning.

There are a few recent additions over there since the last time I mentioned it. Just today, we finished one of my favorites. I'd love to hear your reading recommendations here, or your own opinions about the books listed over there.

Lock-Step

The alarm goes off while it is still very cold and still very dark outside.

I pull on my robe and shuffle across the hall to awaken Fifi. Thankfully, she is already up and in the shower, but I can see by the stack of textbooks on her desk that it was a long night. I wonder to myself how she's going to get through this day with little sleep, tedious classes to listen through, a violin lesson this afternoon and a babysitting job after dinner.

Next I wander over to the little girls' room and nudge Dumpling awake because she's a little slow to stir from her slumber. She's a grumpy waker-upper. Cuddlebug, on the other hand, awakens with a big grin. I spend too many minutes asking them to get up and get going before I finally give up. Now I'm making their beds for them and barking at them to get dressed and get downstairs for breakfast.

I realize that all the best moms in black-and-white with pearls and heels feed their families hot breakfasts of eggs, toast or waffles with o.j., but I don't ever remember seeing their kids race out the door in the dark to catch the school bus. Mine have to be at the curb at the unreasonable hour of 7:40 a.m.

I walk the little ones down the street and holler at Fifi to please remember to take her keys today because I won't be here when she gets home. I'm doing volunteer work today, and will be helping to train a new crew late this afternoon. They'll be eating take-out for dinner, 'cause I won't be home until late.

Once all the girls are gone, I get around to the daily chores. Cleaning, laundry, phone calls--and I do it with no interruptions. I could get used to this. No squabbles. No accidents. No questions. No needs. At least, none with which I have to deal.

I'm productive. I'm fulfilled. I'm enjoying adult conversation.

Right around lunch time, Fifi calls me from her cell phone to check in and say, "hi." Her flattering tone betrays an ulterior motive. I ask her how her day is, and she simply says, "Oh, fine." She wants to know if she can go over to her friend's house after school. I ask her if the girl's parents will be home. She tells me that she thinks the mom will be home, but she's not sure.

She says I should trust her more.

It's easiest to just keep the peace and determine to believe her. But to do that, I must stuff down what I know of being her age; I must reject the vivid memory of my many deceptions.

At 2:30, I drive over to the elementary school to pick up Dumpling from 2nd grade and Cuddlebug from Kinder. Cuddlebug isn't wearing the big grin that she was when I last saw her, and I ask her, how was her day at school? She bites back tears to tell me that two little girls in her class were whispering loudly to the children at an adjacent table--mean words about her teeth. And later, nobody played with her at recess.

I ask Dumpling what she's got in her backpack--it looks heavy. She says she has homework to do: math, reading, social studies. Later, I'll notice that her whole body is contorting to bear the burden of the books up the path to the front door.

A few minutes into the car ride to the babysitter's house, I hear Cuddlebug ask Dumpling to play with her. She has two little people puppets that she made in class today, and she offers one to Dumpling, but Dumpling says, "No. That's dumb," and instead pulls out the Gameboy that her Uncle sent to her for Christmas. Cuddlebug looks on, hoping for a turn that is never offered.

It's easiest to just keep the greater peace and pretend I don't see it.

As we pull up at the baby sitter's house, I pray a little prayer that the Lord would hedge His protection around my girls. I don't really feel comfortable with this arrangement, but it's as good as I could find. I mean...I'm doing a good thing in my volunteer work, right? Surely, I'm serving the Lord, so I can trust Him to guard their hearts with all diligence against the worldly influences that they'll be exposed to when the sitter's middle school children come home next hour...right?

It's just a few hours, after all. What could happen? I know that the other children will probably watch some television, but surely my little ones won't be interested, and will otherwise occupy themselves. And if the older children think it will be great fun to start a MySpace page for my girls, surely Dumpling and Cuddlebug will remember that Mommy has said, "No."

And even if, it'll be o.k. Surely. People do it all the time. It's just the way things are today.

I drop the girls and go get lost in my good feelings volunteering at the local women's shelter. Before I know it, it's 7 p.m. and time to head home. If I hurry, I'll get to kiss Fifi goodbye before she gets picked up for her babysitting job. She says she'll be home before 11:00. I meant to talk to her about something she said in passing the other day, but I guess that will have to wait for the weekend. I hope I won't forget.

I make myself a sandwich, take a shower and unwind with a tired husband in front of the newest pop culture addiction. I feel a little funny spending my time with such a ridiculous and frivolous past time, but I justify it in my own mind by telling myself that it keeps me connected with my kids. They love the show. It's all they can talk about as the finale draws closer.

As I climb into bed, I open my Bible and read--just a little. Mostly, I replay the day. My heart is heavy because I know my 12 year old is drifting from me, even if she knows well how to tow the line within the walls of our home. I try hard to convince myself that it is what it is. She's a tween. It's to be expected. It's part of growing up into an independent, productive adult.

But really, I wonder if the Lord agrees. Does it have to be this way? Is it to be expected?

My heart is heavy as I see my young ones are hardly friends since they started going to school and spending more hours with strangers than anyone else. The somewhat small age disparity between them has grown into a large chasm. They hardly giggle anymore. At least not with one another.

And with the exception of the occasional complaint, or grudging act of service, Fifi doesn't interact with her sisters at all.

And I want to cry. I just want to crawl into my prayer closet and...

*gasp*

I am mercifully awakened from my nightmare.

How a Night Owl Homeschools

It seems a popular thing to do right now to blog a typical day in the home or homeschool.

Typical. I take that to mean that of all the ways my days can look, this day is most common; which is not to say it is actually common as in often, but that maybe it happens this way at least 2 of my 5 days each week--the other three taking on completely unique descriptions of chaos, and looking as only a foreshadowing of a better day to come.

*exhale*

It is good to reassess. But I reassess a lot. In fact, I think this year I reassessed the amount of time I spend on assessing. In the past, I've spent way too much time making, but never successfully implementing schedules that would make Mary Pride proud, way too much time looking at (aka comparing) other homeschool blogs, and too much energy beating myself up spiritually for not having that perfect coffee-with-the-sunrise Bible reading moment. Because I hate coffee. And I haven't arisen for a sunrise since people stopped paying me to tell them the morning news on your FM dial.

So first, a disclaimer...

Sometimes I stay up too late, and then I lay asleep a little longer. Sometimes there is a dental, orthodontist, orthopedist or other doctor's appointment that throws the morning off. Occasionally, we choose to enjoy a field trip or play date with friends instead of book work. Sometimes it feels like all I do is chase a runaway dog or bark at her to stop barking in the backyard. And sometimes, if we dawdle during the morning, I don't get around to the gym until after dinner.

So, here it goes--give or take an hour...

7:50 a.m. Awaken and wait for my extremities to get the memo, under the guise of watching the news headlines--local and national.

8:10 a.m. Get up, make bed, dress in work out clothes, start reminding the girls about the dirty socks, too many books and toys, and lights on in their bedroom. Start praying to retain my joy in the midst of dirty socks strewn, too many books and toys and lights on in the bedroom.

8:30 a.m. Everybody is downstairs making their own breakfast concoctions: mostly buttered toast with fruit for the young ones. They love to do it themselves! I'll start my cinnamon (good for glucose) oatmeal and check e-mail while it's mushing.

8:55 a.m. I am finishing my oatmeal and wondering aloud why the girls take sooooooo long to get to this point. Then I give them the 2 minute warning and tell them to go upstairs and brush their teeth. I clean up the breakfast dishes.

9:15 a.m. Bible time: either our One Year Bible Blog Proverb and Psalm with discussion, or our Pictures from Proverbs; memory work; prayer time; sing together. It is the single most important way we spend time in our busy schedules; I can't recommend diligence in pursuing the mind of Christ enough! And when we neglect devotions, we starve. Spiritually speaking.

10:00 a.m. Fifi does independent assignments (creative writing, vocabulary, math practice); Cuddlebug and Dumpling take turns with Mommy at the piano for music practice while the other practices copy work (spelling, grammar, handwriting--all in one exercise).

10:15 a.m. Little ones switch.

10:30 a.m. Fifi gets the music room for piano and violin. Reading lessons/practice for Cuddlebug and Dumpling.

11:15 a.m. A little bit of early elementary math. Skip counting, game playing, etc. (Right now each girl is building flashcards toward memorizing all her addition facts through the 10s table.)

11:30 a.m. GO PLAY! I make and eat my own lunch before preparing food for the girls.

12:00 p.m. Lunchtime with a read aloud novel. This week, we're finishing up Around the World in 80 Days.

1:00 p.m. Lesson time with a brief activity (timeline notation, narration, exploration, etc.): History or Science...with an emphasis on History

1:45 p.m. Young ones PLAY! Fifi's lesson time: grammar or math

2:15 p.m. Head for the gym. Fifi's works out with me; little ones play in the nursery before the after-school rush arrives. :)

3:45 p.m. Shower

4:00 p.m. Chores or errands

5:45 p.m. Start worrying about dinner

6:00 p.m. Husband arrives home; gets clobbered by the kids; checks mail; pays bills

6:30 p.m. Dinner

7:00 p.m. Tell Dumpling, "less talking, more eating" for the 20th time as everyone else has already cleared their place and is beginning their evening chores (animal care and laundry duties)

8:00 p.m. Brush little teeth

8:15 p.m. One Year Bible Blog reading with Husband, nighttime prayers

9:00 p.m. Bedtime negotiations for "lights out" begins. All three girls read in bed for a time before sleep. Mom folds a load of laundry and starts a load of laundry (this is a great time to hear the Bible--I'm currently listening to Jeremiah).

9:30 p.m. Lights out for the girls; laptop time for Husband and me. Background noise usually consists of good music for the first half hour or so, and then recorded episodes of our favorite cooking shows or occasionally an old movie.

11:30 p.m. Husband makes first inquiry, "Do you want to get ready for bed first?" I always say, "No, you first."

12:15 p.m. In bed, lights out.

Hey. That's not so bad lookin' when you write it all down like that! You should try it, too.

Math Can Wait

This afternoon, when we returned home after dropping Fifi for her violin lesson, I thought I'd take that time to share a couple of remedial math lessons with my little ones.

But, they are quick. By the time I finished cleaning up the lunch dishes, these two were deeply invested in an acorn hunt and gather. And by now they smelled like it, too.

There was no way I was going to make them come inside and bend over worksheets and counting blocks.

Cuddlebug, my truest naturalist, found a couple of new friends. She couldn't catch the frog--he was too fast.

Dumpling plans to ask Daddy to grind these acorns into flour and make something with it. A batting of the eye and a flower in the hair for contrast never hurts, I guess...

A Day In the One-Room Homeschool 2007-2008

Tiany, at Less of Me, More of Him is hosting an homeschool open house! Thanks, Tiany!

A short intro about you

I'm a wife of one man for 19 years, a believer in Christ for 10, mother of three daughters aged 12, 7 and 5. We've been homeschooling since the beginning--this will be our 8th year.

Your Homeschool Day, what does it look like?

We rise, groom, and do some household chores before breakfast. Or, I can spend the balance of the morning nagging the girls to finish their chores in between this distraction and that. No thank you. You don't work, you don't eat.

The first thing we do after we fill our stomaches is fill our spirits and souls with God's Word. In the young years especially, knowledge of God, Godly wisdom and a strong sense of character are paramount. More important than math. Or science. Or even reading. We most often utilize Pictures from Proverbs curriculum with coloring books. It gives a good explanation of select verses, encourages memorization, applies a story from the Scripture (Scripture interpreting Scripture) and offers comprehension questions which we don't use as often as we do just plain narration, Charlotte Mason style. And it's very affordable.

If we're not already there, we need to move to the table now for handwriting through copywork--or dictation for my oldest. Our selections vary. Sometimes it's the passage we're memorizing that month. Other times, we'll write out a hymn we're learning, a verse a day.

Before I let them leave the table, I hope to consistently pop in the next cd lesson for this year's attempt to learn conversational Spanish through Speak in a Week. We did a class with other homeschoolers last year and it. was. a. bust. If you're not learning Spanish with phrases and some amount of increasing immersion, you're not learning Spanish. (Or whatever language for your region; I'm in San Antonio.)

After language, my oldest, 12 year old Fifi, and I tag-team the little ones: she takes 5 year old Cuddlebug for "sister-mentor time," in which she might help her learn a new workbook skill like dot-to-dot, word search or Sudoko. Meanwhile I take 7 year old Dumpling to the piano to supervise her practice and theory work. 20 minutes.

Next, Fifi gets the music room for at least an hour to practice violin (6 years @ many $ = top priority) while Dumpling previews her read-aloud book (that makes our lesson time smoother and shorter) and I sit with Cuddlebug for the next lesson in Teach Your Child To Read in 100 Easy Lessons. Then we switch and Dumpling comes to read a chapter or so on her level. Sometimes, Cuddlebug listens in too, other times she plays quietly with the kitten. Afterward, we're free to read storybooks together or practice math through games (Yatzee, Bingo, Rack-O, Blokus, etc.) or the occasional worksheet from our Math U See lesson cd.

This brings us up to "recess" time where I'll kick the kids outside for 30 minutes, scarf down my own lunch, prepare theirs, call them in and read aloud to them from (usually) an historical fiction while they eat. In the summer, we're definitely inside the house, but when the weather permits, we love to spend this hour outside on the patio. Maybe this year we'll venture out further with a picnic lunch. One step at a time, as LindaFay says.

What curriculum will you be using? Do you not use a curriculum? Do you homeschool for FREE? Tell us about it!

After lunch, I need to accomplish lesson time. The subject matter determines who should attend. Monday, I like to get Fifi's grammar and writing assignments introduced. She also knows to get started on the next vocabulary assignment. Tuesday, we'll hope get the math lesson under our belt (though Tuesday is ballet and orchestra, so it might be that we have to move this to Monday; we'll see). Wednesday we'll hit history and correlating geography hard, with reading assignments and map work on the side throughout the week. We have an excellent library system here; I can shop online and simply pick up the books when they've been pulled. It's like having a book butler! Thursday is the day I dream of making Science the priority because it has been seriously neglected until now and I'd like to start Fifi on Apologia next year. Friday will be a day for art lesson and appreciation, instruction in handicraft, literature and homemaking (which is code for we're gonna clean our house and relax with a good book).

Do you schedule your day to the minute or go with the flow with no real structure?

Last year I made a beautiful, repositionable-subject schedule map. Spent hours on it. Hung it up. And never looked at it again. I've decided that a daily to-do list, with a weekly overview will suffice. We'll get it all in as we can. And as He deems. I expect we'll be done around 2. And the rest of the afternoon will be swallowed up by doctors, dentists and other...things. Like laundry. And sewing. I do hope to start a weekly play group this year for the little ones, and a monthly book club tea for Fifi. I also hope to see a strong enough repertoire of music between the four of us to minister to nursing homes or hospitals. Maybe my voice teacher and her girls will join us? *hint, hint, Katherine*

I think I'm going to have to hit the gym in the early a.m. half of the week to fit it all in from now on. When I do go in the afternoon, Fifi will come walk the treadmill or eliptical with me; the "puppies" I'm not so worried about. They get exercise!

And it looks as if I'll have to accomplish the shopping -- ugh -- on Saturday morning. Unless Husband continues to be willing to pick up our daily bread on his way home. He's awesome that way.

Do you homeschool in a homeschool room, at the kitchen table, at a desk, in the park on the grass?

Whatever works. We try not to hunker down at the table if we don't need to be there.

Do you have any “must share” tips?

1. Remember it's a marathon, not a sprint.
2. Childhood is precious--let them play! Unstructured and often.
3. Turn off the t.v. and the computer. Use these helps very sparingly. The use of the phrase, "I'm bored" increases in direct relation to the frequency and duration of their use.
   
4. Use discretion; resist the temptation to teach little ones things they can't use and will only loose once they've fulfilled their duty as a trophy in your case, i.e. "My little Johnny can name all the Pharaohs in Egypt--in order." That time is better spent on teaching little Johnny to respect and protect the girls instead of chasing them with a big stick.
5. Oh! And one more thing! Blog it or scrapbook it. Take pictures. Keep a record. Do something that you can put your eyes and hands on; it really helps boost confidence that you're really, truly doing it!

Do you have a question or concern? Throw that in there too!

1. I'm always looking for new ideas for keeping little ones occupied during another child's lesson time.
2. And how much housework is too much housework for a 12 year old? What, specifically, are your child's chores and household responsibilities?

Homeschool Renewal at the Swimming Pool

It must be time to gear up for a new year of school home education. The reason I know this is because of the profound doubt I find myself entertaining at the slightest provocation. Satan is still the subtlest of all creatures that way.

Today, it came in the form of 20 adorable little girls and boys--right about Dumpling's age--who took over the shallow end of the neighborhood pool during our outing.

When they first got there, all dry and bright-eyed in their colorful bikinis, squealing with delight at the temperature of the water, I was a little irritated at the way they were takin' over the place concerned about being able to track my own two little bobbing heads amongst all those others. But after a few minutes, I didn't worry anymore. My girls were standing together, backs up against the side of the pool, watching the group like they would as many monkeys at the zoo.

And that, frankly, was a welcome reprive after nearly 2 hours of listening to the two of them ask me yell for me to, "Watch this! Watch this, Mommy!" in turn. But mostly not in turn. I must have read the same two sentences in R.C. Sproul's The Holiness of God a couple dozen times before I finally just gave up.

So there they were, still and staring. And as I watched Dumpling's face, I remembered back to the last time I caught that look of longing in Fifi's countenance when she was just a little older than her sister is now. It's the look of intrigue--profound curiosity. Because something is novel. New. Yet to be explored. The wonderful unknown.

Except that I do know. I think I know.

But boy...for a few minutes, those sweet children that Dumpling, Cuddlebug and I watched were so excited to be on that field trip from their day school or kid's camp or wherever they were coming from that nothing could steal their joy! They were cooperative and caring with one another, they shared rafts and water toys, and waved the better swimmers of the group off to the deep end.

"Who are these children?" I asked myself, "They are so cheerful and kind to one another.

"Hmmmmm. Dumpling is so social. I wonder...

Lord, I don't want to make decisions for these girls you've given into my care that are going to cost them something of value. Is this something of value? Am I...are we holding them away from a good thing?"

"Mommy?"

"Mommy?"

And I am jolted from my quiet angst by Cuddlebug who needs to use the restroom. Again. She is sopping wet, and so building a nest that I will afterward have to peel off her little backside like dried Elmer's on 3rd-grade palms is something I've looked forward to all morning. Again.

Good thing she's cute.

But then...a funny thing happened on the way back from the bathroom.

Familiarity had bred contempt. They had lost that lovin' feeling. These mysterious darlings in the pool had changed in the 20 minutes since they'd taken up residence. Nothing so terrible as to need to call them on, but simply the verbal residue of kids in the care of a 10-1 ratio. Ideas not worth having. Words not worth saying. The cliques began taking shape that inevitably showed up the loners and the runt in the litter.

And as I thought about it, I realized that I have one of each. I have three girls and I can imagine one as the confident loner, another as one of the popular girls and another as the one who gets left out or laughed at.

But that's not what God wants for these girls. And it's not what I want for these girls. And by His grace and provision, it's not what they know.

I don't want the work of the confident loner to be inhibited by the crowd. I don't want the popular girl to--even by association--contribute to the hurt of others made different from herself. And I certainly want to shelter the one who would take the teasing and lose herself in the midst of it all.

So God has been good to me again as I prepare to embark upon preparing for another year of learning. He certainly never shows me more than He's calling me to do right now, but He's ever faithful to show me that much. And truly, it's all I need.

When Ignorance Is Bliss and Perception Is Everything

Last night, Husband related a conversation had between he and 12-year-old Fifi in the car yesterday. They were driving past a video store when Fifi spied an extra-large window display for a movie: Hannibal Rising.

"Daddy, are you going to see Hannibal Rising?"

*incredulous tone* "No! Why would we see that?"

"Well, it's historical, isn't it?"

Of course, Fifi was thinking about this Hannibal while the movie was promoting a fictional evil.

Small Things

My darlings...

When you are grown
And doing big things,
Who will you be?
Where is this path to take you?

Will you be a frugal homemaker
That blesses her husband
With a lovely space to call home?
A place of calm and care, respect and regard
That he can't wait to come home to each night.

Will you educate your children at home,
Teaching them first to seek Christ's righteousness,
Trusting Him to then provide for your every need?
Helping your children see past themselves--
To be like Christ--
To look toward serving the needs of others.

Will you be an author
Who weaves her words to bring beauty
Or wisdom
Or companionship to her readers?

Will you be a musician
Bringing the most beautiful language of all
To large crowds or small congregations?
Will you invite youngsters into your home
And pass on your skill and knowledge as have
Musicians for thousands of years before you?

Will you design buildings
With wonderful rooms and stairs and drawbridges
As you do with your brissle blocks
And Lincoln Logs?

Will you offer your members an instrument of the Lord
For the healing of the sick?
Will you be the soul on the other side
Of the call button?
The one that comes running
To offer care, concern or comfort.

When you are grown and gone
And busy being the wife,
The mother,
The educator,
The writer,
The musician,
The mentor
The architect,
Or the nurse,

You won't remember
The hard work you're doing today.

It's the hard work of learning your letters,
And the patience you practice in writing your numbers.
You won't remember how long it took you to
Recognize the difference between "d" and "b" and "p,"
And you won't have any recollection of
How many times you sounded out "that" and "and."

You won't remember a time
When you didn't know
How to decipher the code of the musical staff.
You won't recall flashcards and drills and
"Naming the notes."

You won't remember feeding the dog.
Or cleaning the dishes.
You won't know what I'm talking about
When I reminisce about the months and years
It took to develop your habits of discipline.

And you'll wonder who I'm speaking of
When I amuse myself with the memory
Of your "little brain" and
How you tried so hard to make it grow fast
As you tried so hard to remember to pick up your toys.

I hope you won't remember how many thousands of times
I told you to take your thumb out of your mouth.

You won't remember your intricate block buildings.
You won't remember counting black beans
Or naming the Math-U-See rods...
One pea
Two carrots
Three little pigs
Four bananas
Five glasses of water
Six plums
Sevenilla
ChocoEight
Nine scoops of mint-chocolate chip ice cream

You won't remember copywork.
You won't remember making your first salt-dough map.
You won't remember when you first knew
That "ph" says "ffff," and that "tion," says "shun."

When you are grown and gone and doing big things,
You won't remember how hard you worked for every. little. step. here and now.

But I'll remember for you. I promise.

The Doors To Our Hearts

We've been reading through Revelation.

We must remember our first love. Hold tight to faith in the midst of tribulation and trial. Beware of false teachers. Defend the flock against the Jezebel--the self-proclaimed prophetess whose children are perishing as a proof of her wickedness. Awaken the dead church. Know that it is good in God's sight to be faithful with a little: be patient, endure, persevere. See ourselves through the filter of God's Word and ways; forget our earthly riches and seek to buy God's gold and be clothed in His fine white linen.

And today, we arrived at a word picture that even the littlest of us could image.

Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door,
I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
Revelation 3:20a

And then we each drew a picture of the door of our heart...

4 1/2-year-old Cuddlebug's door
looks a little like her favorite
summer fruit!...

7-year-old Dumpling's is very grand
in design and stature...

11 1/2-year-old Fifi's is beautiful;
just. as. I. knew. it. would. be...

It was a joy to sit down and do this one with them.
Notice the Savior's sandals by the door...

They Did What To The 6th Graders?

You know, sometimes I have to remember to cast my cares and take every thought captive to Christ. Sometimes, I worry that in telling my children the hard truth about God's holiness and man's depravity (as He leads, in His timing) I might be unnecessarily scaring them or worrying them over things of which they have no control.

Sometimes I am concerned that my hyper-imaginative protective tendancies are a burden to their whimsy. Sometimes, I'm even tempted to wonder if we're making the right decision in homeschooling the girls. Husband never wonders. Ever. But *shhhhh* my confidence in my own ability to discern the will of God in things like that is not as strong as his. It's good that he is the leader!

Anyway...and then I read something like this, and I am better about it. Much better about it all.

I Can Retire Now

My Fifi has taught herself to type simply by...well...typing. She's a real list-driven child. Our goal over the next 6-odd years will be to help her spend near as much time doing her work as she does making a list about it. *mumble* Of course, I've got to learn how to model that myself, I suppose.

In clearing out some of the unnecessary files from our word processor this evening, I found this document from Fifi:

Learning to Love Books -Week 1 of 3

In this section of the curriculum, we are starting to bring in some good books for the children to read and to develop a love of reading. These books are strictly non-curricular. There are steps that must be followed , but this is an easy way to start you child on a never-ending trip to the library. Let’s begin!

Step One : Prepare. There is nothing more frustrating than a teacher that does not have the slightest clue what to do. Put the books that you should read in a pile, write that list and read the book.

Step Two :Invent some activities that you can do with the child . That can range from doing a coloring page to spending a week in colonial times.

Step Three: Read the book with liveliness , put the voices of the characters to their face and do gestures . Every bit of description helps.

I'm great with Step Three. I'm trying not to take One and Two too personally. *smile*

At the end of it, she had started a list of reading tasks for her little sisters.

So, maybe it's time I take up golf?

Of Bugs And Bowel Movements Birthing Methods

Did you know that roly-polies are actually crustaceans, like lobsters?

Ha! Neither did I!

Did you have any idea that a garden snail's average life span can be as long as 5-10 years?

Whoa! That's quite a commitment.

Yesterday was such a fantastic Charlotte Mason lite education kind of day -- a homeschooler's dream, if you will. We didn't crack open any texts. We didn't do our reading lesson. And you know what? We just pretended not to remember about *gasp* our copywork and dictation.

This was a day that the Lord had made and we were rejoicing and being glad in it!

A very nice way to spend the first moments of the morning is enjoying the mama and papa bird that tag-team the breakfast duties to 3 screaming baby-birdies on the house hanging outside our kitchen window. I could watch those open-wide beaks atop scrawny necks peeking out through the little hole to the parent on the perch all day.

My littlest ones are pretty good creature wranglers and have been out for hours a day most of the past few weeks digging up bugs: Roly polies, worms, broken-winged butterflies and snails. I think snails are our favorite because they slide and slither and retract. And they're pretty cute too -- especially if you find one along with their spouse and offspring and build the family a little snail house complete with twig furnishings. *grin*

Yesterday, while I was Googling snails and learning about their operculum and remarkable lifespan, Dumpling came in with a roly-poly that was covered on her underside by many little white specks. I decided they must be eggs.

As I tried to focus my camera on such a small subject, and at such a close range, I discovered that the specks weren't eggs. They were moving. They were babies! The mama roly-poly was birthing her babies all over Dumpling's hand. (As it turns out, her egg sac was opening.)

So we marveled for a few moments and then I told Dumpling to take Mama Roly-Poly outside and set her down with her babies in the grass. A moment later, outside but still watching and marveling at what's happening in her hand, this 6-year shouts to me an exclamation of delight and awe...

"Mommy! She really is pooping kids!"

Titus 2:3-5

As I recorded my sweethearts this morning reciting the short passage that we have worked on this spring, I watched and marveled at the fact that this is not who they are; this is just an age they are passing through.

But who they are is in there, and in development. May this good word from God be true of them all -- and always...

Dumpling's Dance Recital

Baptists beware.

There is dancing up ahead, and I don't want to cause anyone to stumble into judging something that is more like eating meat offered to idols than it is actual sin. I also don't want to be the cause of anyone going against their own conscience. So, if you don't think you can help yourself one way or the other, *warm smile* maybe y'all better just move along for the time being.

We dance. The girls and I like the joyful expression of Davidic dance and employ it in our morning devotion time often. I realize that some may be offended by the very idea but my thinking is that people -- and especially children -- are going to move their bodies to music -- even the hymns. I've watched it happen. To stifle it is not to train up a child in the way she should go; it is to exasperate her. So, 'round here, we're teaching the girls to associate dance with modest movement and a heart of praise toward the Lord.

Psalm 150:3-5 says (emphasis mine)...

Praise him with trumpet sound;
praise him with lute and harp!
Praise him with tambourine and dance;
praise him with strings and pipe!
Praise him with sounding cymbals;
praise him with loud clashing cymbals!

We're not going to throw the baby out with the bath water just because the World has taken such a beautiful thing and made it a lewd and lascivious exercise in all that is an abomination.

Oh! *Ahem* Excuse me; there I go again.

These are the costumes that Fifi and I designed and sewed; it was hard, long, messy work...but such a blessing to have something to offer. And the girls all did so well. They practiced all semester to bring honor to God in this way. It was a delightful evening complete with refreshments afterward. Praise the Lord! The Lord is good.