1 hour ago
A pencil is scratching on paper, and numbers are being muttered under her breath. Occasionally she stops and asks me to clarify what she's supposed to be doing, but as I sit here waiting for my girl to finish a practice math test, I think this is as good a time as any to work on a homeschool-related post.
When I write about homeschooling, I occasionally get some good questions in the comments that inspire a whole other blog post, and that is what is happening today. Q&A posts are in the works for the next week or two. If you are ever curious about how I do something homeschool-related (or not homeschool-related, for that matter), now's your chance to ask! I will try to answer with a corresponding post in a prompt(ish) manner.
Here's the first question.
So I think you mentioned that Fridays are fun, does that mean you generally do the more academic subject 4 days a week?
Yes, I decided last year that we would assign one day a week to be our "fun day"! The way this came about is a long story. When I first started schooling my kids it took a lot of time to get our schoolwork done - for no other reason than that Wyatt and I weren't used to sitting down to do lessons. It took me a while to get into a daily rhythm I could stick to, and it took my kids a while to learn to focus and finish their lessons quickly. For the first year or two, it was all we could do to get through the basics, and I had no energy left for some more enriching and fun subjects.
Then the next year we joined a co-op, which we did for two years. With co-op taking up a whole day of the week, not to mention some of the things we had to do to get ready for co-op during the week, and we still didn't have much energy left for the "extra" subjects I really wanted to include. Things like music appreciation, Shakespeare, in-depth nature study, and science experiments happened very rarely, if at all.
I am very attracted to the Charlotte Mason and classical models of education (though I would describe our style as eclectic), and in both of those there is an emphasis on giving your children beautiful things to ponder, a "feast", if you will. We had no time for that sort of thing for the first several years of our homeschool, and it's one thing I was very dissatisfied with.
Last year, when we decided to quit our co-op, I realized that this was my chance to organize our homeschool in my own way, and I immediately remembered once hearing about doing a "Friday Fun-day". The truth is, it is still difficult to work in the beautiful extras on the same days that we are knee-deep in the "essential" subjects, especially when I have three (soon to be four) kids who need my help with some or all of their lessons. If we are going to have any time for what I deem "the fun stuff", I need to be really intentional about making it happen, and Friday Fun-day is the way I am doing that.
The way we make this work is by planning out our core subjects so that they can be accomplished in only a four-day work week during the school year. So I sat down with our math and reading and writing curricula at the start of the year to figure out how I needed to make that happen. For math, we had some wiggle room built into the number of lessons, so as long as we did four lessons per week, we'd be on track to finish in May. For our reading/phonics the curriculum only required two or three lessons a week. For writing/language arts, the curriculum we use has such short lessons, it is not a burden to double up one day a week to leave our Fridays free. And history and science we accomplish in 2-4 days a week anyway, depending on what we are studying.
Our Friday Fun-days are then free to get a little creative! Our favorite things to do are:
-Go on a nature hike. I have a ton of fun nature study resources, and this is our chance to use them. I mentioned some of our favorite nature study resources in this post.
-Do some music/composer study. I started out on this by using Kristi Hill's free music appreciation lessons - she has several on her website and in the archives of her blog posts, if you are willing to dig a little, and you can also sign up for her free "Music Lesson Monday" emails, which we have used on Fridays. We do "musical sketching", as Kristi recommends, and then read the information or story that goes along with the piece of music. My kids have learned to recognize different pieces of classic music from these lessons, and we actually signed up for one of her courses this spring. My kids seem to really enjoy it.
-Do an art/drawing tutorial. We like Art For Kids Hub on YouTube, and I have recently found some more nature-study focused tutorials for us to work through this spring. I have at least one art-oriented child, and learning to draw and paint is something she really wants to do. Friday Fun-days leaves us some space for that.
-Science experiments. When we do science during the week, it's mainly reading and notebooking activities, and we save the science experiments for Fridays! We went through Apologia Botany last fall, and this spring we are working through a few concepts from Building Foundations Of Scientific Understanding, which has really simple but effective science activities and experiment ideas.
-History read-alouds. This is something we have managed to incorporate during the week, but if I want to catch up, Friday is the day to do it! There are so many great historical chapter books and picture books, which I think is the best way to spark an interest in history for kids!
-See friends. It's important for homeschool kids to have opportunities to see their friends too, as every homeschool mom everywhere is reminded of by family members, grocery store clerks, and every random passerby (I'm not even really kidding). So we see friends frequently, and though we are pretty flexible with our schedule, playdates especially fit well on Fridays. If we can turn the visit into a field trip, even better!
Is having a weekly fun-day something we will do forever? Unfortunately, if my own homeschool experience is any guide, probably not. I know that when I was a homeschool student, as I got into my high school years my workload increased, and it would have certainly been more difficult to set aside a day each week for hands-on learning and extras. Which is all the more reason why I want to make time for a fun-day right now. Setting aside a day dedicated to subjects we may not normally include is one way I can keep our homeschool fun, give my kids opportunities to explore new things, and create memories with them that I hope will produce warm, fond feelings when they think back on it someday.
I'm going to hang onto our fun-days as long as I can!
It's getting to be that time of year when I start thinking about homeschool curriculum for next year. I think I am mostly continuing on with a lot of the same curriculum we've been using, but there are a few areas where I'll probably change it up a bit. I'm thinking of switching to a more structured history curriculum for my (soon to be) 3rd grader and 2nd grader, while still adding in the read-alouds we've been doing. I've done something similar with Wyatt's curriculum this year, using America's Story 1 as a spine, and adding in books from the BFB booklist. Textbooks are thorough, but there is nothing like a living book to bring history alive, and I wanted to make sure I was incorporating plenty of them. I've mostly been having Wyatt read these extra books on his own, but I was reminded the other day that it's beneficial for me to still read historical living books to him too.
I was reading one of Wyatt's assigned books to him. called "Of Courage Undaunted", about the Lewis and Clark expedition. He was having trouble getting into it, so I had him read some of it aloud to me, and then I read some of it aloud to him. I'm so glad I did, because I came across this quote by Meriwether Lewis:
This day I completed my 31st year, and conceived that I had in all human probability now existed about half the period which I am to remain in this sublunary world. I reflected that I had as yet done but little, very little indeed, to further the happiness of the human race, or to advance the information of the succeeding generation. I viewed with regret the many hours I have spent in indolence and now soarly feel the want of that information which those hours would have gotten me had they been judiciously expended, but since they are past and cannot be recalled, I dash from the gloomy thought, and resolve in the future to redouble my exertions and at least endeavor to promote those two primary objects of human experience, by giving them the aid of that portion of talents which nature and fortune have bestowed on me; or in the future, to live for mankind, as I have heretofore lived for myself.
I mentioned in my post a few weeks ago that I have been struggling through having more time for deep thought. You would think having more time for some good, hard thinking is a good thing, and in the wide view it is, but it's difficult to remember that when I spiral into hashing out a bunch of events from the past, regretting the way I've handled certain situations, or mourning the time I have sometimes wasted.
Since this has been my frame of mind lately, I was almost relieved to read this quote by one of our nation’s heroes, written when he was pretty close to my age, about how he had experienced and managed similar thoughts. I had assumed I was struggling through this because of the absence of social media, which I've admittedly used to numb myself from difficult thoughts for years now.
But maybe it's not so much of a result of leaving social media as it is the fact of being in my early thirties. Maybe this is the time that people usually evaluate how life has gone so far, how they could have done things better, ways to serve others more meaningfully in the future.
Knowing that someone else in history, well over two hundred years ago, worked through some of the same personal reflections that I am working through now, is comforting to me somehow. There is nothing new under the sun. People have gone through this before. Significant things often happen in the latter half of life, and misused beginnings don't doom a person to repeat the same mistakes forever.
I find it interesting that Lewis wrote those words when he was actually in the middle of the task for which he is remembered most. He bemoaned his wasted time while in the middle of what is considered his greatest accomplishment. It makes me wonder if he didn't see the importance of what he was doing at the time in exploring the Louisiana Purchase for his young country, or if he had some other accomplishment in mind as even more meaningful.
What did he do after that grand expedition? Apparently, according to the book, he settled down on some land and raised a family. And you know, I don't think he forgot about what he had written in the wilds of the Rocky Mountains. I like to think that in investing the rest of his future into his family, he did indeed further the happiness of the human race and advance the information of the succeeding generation, in all the hidden ways that every parent should.
March should have been a good reading month. I was reading a lot of middle-grade books for Middle Grade March, and we were stuck at home sick for a couple different weekends, which provides for a lot of reading time. Somehow though, I only finished nine books, which is good, but I expected to get through more! Thankfully the ones I did read were all winners, with one exception. You can read more below!
Princess Academy by Shannon Hale - This book is a bit like a fairytale meets The Bachelor (the way the Bachelor used to be, not the way last season was, ugh). Miri lives in a mountain village with her father and sister, and everyone in the village works in a quarry mining a stone called "linder". When the prince of the land becomes an adult, it is determined that he must choose a bride from Miri's village, and all the girls are taken to an old mansion down the hill for a princess academy. The plot of this book was really cute, a sweet coming-of age story as Miri sorts out her feelings of wanting to provide for her family by winning a better life for them, while also longing to be in her village and have a life there. I enjoyed it a lot. Content Notes: I will say there is one element in this book where an invented religion for this land is briefly discussed - the priests use some sort of magic to determine that the prince's bride must come from Miri's village. There is also a magical element to the linder that allows the quarry-people to speak to each other through their memories and songs. Because of those two elements I'd probably give my girls a disclaimer or talk with them about the book being fairytale-like before I gave it to them. I'd probably also give them my thoughts about the "religion" of this land and what the Bible says about divination. But it's a very minor mention in the book so it's pretty easily skipped over.
On The Edge Of the Dark Sea Of Darkness by Andrew Peterson - This is the first book in a series, set in the fictional land of Aerwear, where the lizard-like Fangs of Dang are oppressing the people and searching for the lost jewels that will give them power over the land forever. In the midst of all this lives a sweet little family, the Igiby's, with three children who explore and get themselves into trouble...until they set into motion a domino effect that has them running for their lives. The first part of this book was quirky and charming, and then the second part become very mysterious and action-filled as we find out more about Aerwear's history. What I loved about this book was (1) the funny tidbits hidden throughout, and (2) the really wonderful family relationships between the Igiby's. The grandfather is a gruff old man who protects his family well, the siblings learn more about taking care of each other and serving each other throughout the story, and the mother sacrifices for the sake of her children. I can't wait to read the next one! I'd probably let my kids read this one around 12 years old.
The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin - This is a semi-classic mystery novel, I guess for a younger crowd, but I would probably not let my kids read this until their teen years because of some of the spooky elements. A body is found in the old Westing house, and when the will is read it is revealed that the heirs have to compete to see who gets the inheritance. They set out to win, while also figuring out who may have killed Mr. Westing, and why he organized this crazy game. I really enjoyed the ending of this book, which I did not see coming. Content Notes: Some rather disturbing descriptions of corpses. I am sensitive to that sort of thing.
The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall - Several times while reading this book I had to put it down and gush to Derek about how charming it was, so you know it was good! This is a story of four sisters, and the new friend they make when they go to a summer cottage in the countryside for vacation. Different chapters are written from the perspectives of different sisters, and they range in age from 4-12. I just melted every time the 4 year old was in the limelight, because she reminded me so much of my little girls! I also related a lot to the oldest sister as I remembered my youth, and I think this was a good time for me personally to read this book. Sometimes you forget what it is like to be a kid, what adolescence feels like, and somehow Birdsall has captured those childhood charms and dramas so well. This is the sort of book I would have loved as a middle-grader - what am I saying, I love it now. I immediately ordered the next book to read upon finishing this one. Highly recommend.
The ABC Murders by Agatha Christie - Any Hercule Poirot books are automatically going to get high points from me, but I think this is one of the better Poirot books. Poirot receives an ominous letter, and then a serial killer starts killing victims whose names start with each letter of the alphabet. Poirot has to figure out how each of these cases tie together. It is pretty action-packed from the start, and the ending is so tricky! I always love how Agatha Christie weaves her mysteries. Don't try watching the Amazon Prime adaptation though - we got through about 10 minutes before I was too annoyed at how they were butchering the book to watch any more.
Number The Stars by Lois Lowry - This is a book about two girls living in Denmark when it was occupied by the Nazis. The Jewish people are starting to be taken away, and Annemarie's family helps her best friend's family escape to Sweden. I was worried this one would be sad, but I thought this book was so well done for children. It gave a picture of how the Jewish people were persecuted, but because Ellen's family escapes, it was still coming from a hopeful perspective. I am bookmarking this one for introducing my kids to some of the horrors of World War 2 in an age-appropriate way.
On The Horizon by Lois Lowry - This was actually a book of poetry, written by Lowry based on her own memories of World War 2, and particularly of being in Hawaii and seeing the U.S.S. Arizona a few days before it sunk. I found this book so moving, and even got teary in a couple parts - it brought back memories from when Derek and I went to Hawaii and saw the Arizona Memorial. It's such a sobering story and a sobering place, and this book gave proper honor to it. It took me less than an hour to read, and I'd definitely recommend it if that sounds interesting at all.
Lizzie Bright And The Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt - Well, this is the first of Schmidt's books that I don't like. This book is about a minister's son, named Turner, who has moved with his family into a new town in Maine. His father doesn't really believe what he preaches, and nearly everyone in this town is a hypocrite or uses religion as a means to gain power - particularly in this story to force some African Americans off a nearby island. Turner befriends a girl from this island, Lizzie Bright, and the expected drama ensues. When Turner's father finally stands up for his son and for what is right, it is inspired not by any true understanding of God or the Bible, but by his study of The Descent Of Man by Charles Darwin (an irony, since no matter how someone interprets Darwin's intent, much of the racism and inhumanities of the 20th century may be traced back to the ideas in that very book). Schmidt's books are never just a story, there is always an underlying meaning, which is part of the reason I have enjoyed some of his other books. Unfortunately at the heart of this book is a very cynical, negative view of Christianity and religion in general. So I was not a fan, and will not be handing this book to my kids.
Another Gospel? by Alisa Childers - This book is about progressive Christianity, and how the teachings of progressive Christian churches are deconstructing crucial Christian doctrines and shipwrecking the faith of many people. It's written from a memoir perspective, as Childers recounts her own journey of first being introduced to progressive theology from a trusted pastor. She was able to reconstruct her faith after questioning so many of the things she had believed, but I do not envy her the process - she went through dark seasons of doubt as she struggled to hold onto her faith when it was under attack. I think this is a critically important book as more and more churches are becoming progressive in their theology while hijacking traditional Christian terminology. In this book, Childers answers many common progressive talking points (reliability of the Bible, universalism, the "cosmic child abuse" accusation, etc.) and points us back to historic, biblical Christianity. Even if you are not struggling with doubt, you should read this book. It will bolster you against the attacks of progressive Christianity as it continues to gain a foothold, and help you understand what may be happening in some churches (maybe even yours). As a mom, this also gave me a lot of things to look out for as my kids grow, and encouraged me in building up their faith now, as they will likely face more of these kinds of attacks on the faith as they become adults. Highly recommend this one!
What have you all read lately? Did you try to read any middle grade books in March?
(This is what it looks like at our house right now - spring vibes, some grass poking through the pine needles, and patches of melting snow everywhere. It's been snowing every couple days for the last two weeks! I don't hate it.)
Currently...
Feeling...stuffed up, as of the time I am writing this post, anyway, maybe not currently as you are reading it (it's taking me days to write this post, guys, ugh). I had plans to get more posts in the blog queue last week, but then our entire family came down with a rather nasty cold. We ended up laying around on the couch and watching a lot of TV for the rest of the week. My throat first started to feel sore the day after I did an ab workout for the first time in months. Of course. So coughing was particularly unpleasant. I felt pretty horrible over the weekend and didn't accomplish a single thing except finishing a couple books I was reading. This is, unbelievably, the first real sickness our family has had in over a year, we had the sniffles once or twice this winter, but this was the first cold. Now I kind of want to go get an antibody test and see if this was IT, but I’m not sure it’s worth the hassle, so we may never know.
Looking forward to...Resurrection Day! I had grand plans to start a whole Easter-themed unit study with the kids last week, but bad colds kind of put a damper on those kinds of plans. I am trying to make up for it a little this week with Easter activity sheets, books about Jesus's resurrection (we like the Arch books a lot), resurrection rolls, some crafty projects, and egg dying. Oh, and we are also doing resurrection eggs (these ones). We'll go to an Easter event at our church on Saturday, though I'm still debating about the Good Friday service because gas prices just keep climbing. And on Easter Sunday we are going to a baptism service for some of our extended family. It should be lovely!
Arranging...a homeschool support/social group (at least attempting to arrange one). Last fall I had the idea that I wanted to get a little group together of the homeschool moms I know, to chat and visit and support each other, especially for any mom friends that were going to be new to homeschooling this last year. I was able to schedule one fall visit, but I dropped the ball a bit over the holidays. As the spring approached, I decided to get organized and put a park day or a hike on the calendar every couple weeks, inviting homeschool friends to join us. Unfortunately, our sickness put last week's park day on hold, but try, try again! Next week we are going to do a hike with several families, and I hope it will be the start of a fun group for all of us.
Craving...Junior Mints. I kept telling Derek last week, when I couldn't breathe through my nose, that I wanted Junior Mints, but neither of us were healthy enough to go to the store. Derek recovered quicker than I did and picked up some yesterday. They hit the spot.
Discussing...where and when to go on vacation. We have the hardest time nailing down vacation plans every year. Does anyone else have this (first world, I know) problem? First we have to wait for our tax return to see how much wiggle room we have in the budget. Then we have to decide how much we are willing to spend, then we have to see what destinations might fit in with that. We inevitably end up with two or three possibilities that we vacillate between for months. We can only go in May or in the fall, because of Derek's work, which makes things tricky for certain cooler-climate options. Another complicating factor is that we have never had a strong preference on the type of place we go - we like mountains, we like beaches, we like desserts, we just like to travel and see the country. We've done a beach vacation for a couple years now, so I'm thinking we should try something different.
Enjoying...these "hairdresser reacts" videos on Youtube. I can't help myself, they are just so entertaining to watch!
Preparing...for spring and summer nature study! As the weather warms up, I hope to spend a lot more time outside and learning more about our native plants and creatures. From the months of November to April there isn't much botanical activity in the mountains that is conducive to consistent study. The trees are dormant, except for the abundance of pine trees, and I feel like we've examined pine trees to death at this point. I'm excited for the birds to come back and start nesting (hopefully not in our eaves), for the first crocus to work it's way through the snow, and for all kinds of bugs in just a couple months. I am stocking up on nature guides, art supplies, and activity ideas, and I hope we can go on nature hikes at least a couple times a week this summer.
I might hop back on the blog to wish you all a happy Easter, but in case I run out of time - I hope you all have a wonderful Resurrection Day, celebrating that we have a RISEN Savior!
Ever since my kids have reached school age, it seems spring is the time when my mind turns to homeschool planning for the next year. As I look at our schedule, I am thinking over how next year will be different as I add another kid into the mix.
Around this time three years ago, I had a first grader and a bunch of preschoolers running around, and I remember thinking ahead to the next year and wondering "How am I going to balance schoolwork with two kids instead of just one?" And of course, two years later, I was thinking "How am I going to do school with three kids instead of two?"
Now I'm looking ahead to this coming fall and contemplating homeschooling four kids in different grades, but I feel less stressed than the first time I had to add a new kid into our homeschool day. Because the truth of the matter is, you kind of just figure it out as you go. Our pattern for the year is typically a difficult season of getting into a routine in the fall, the most disorganized part of the year, but sometime around the holidays we hit our stride and the spring runs smoothly...just in time for a wrench to be thrown into our rhythms when another of my children reaches school age the next fall. But even though we have messy months or seasons, we always figure it out.
I want to share a typical homeschool day in our family, but I also wanted to preface it with saying that no family's homeschool day is a necessarily a blueprint for anyone else. You can perhaps glean ideas from seeing how other people do things, but you are going to have messy days (or weeks, or months), and every year (or term) you might have to re-figure out what will work in that season. But that's what homeschooling is, figuring out how your kids learn best, and tweaking your school to be the best system for your own family. Just experiment, allow yourself to try different things, and you will find your own way of doing things.
Morning
6:30-7:30 - I wake up, hopefully before the kids, and quietly do my morning routine before heading downstairs. Even if the kids are stirring at this point, they know they have to stay in their rooms until around 7:30, so I sit downstairs in the chair in the corner of the playroom. I have a bookshelf in the corner that was supposed to be for children's books, but since this has become my morning corner it's filled with all my devotional and Bible resources instead. This is when I read my Bible (I'm working through this reading plan), and usually a chapter of some other Christian or theology book. (Right now I'm reading this one and this one.)
7:30-8:00 - The kids come downstairs, after they are dressed with beds made and rooms clean. I make breakfast as they trickle down the stairs. Usually I make oatmeal with fruit, but occasionally we'll have cereal or muffins.
8:00-9:00 - This is the hour I have set aside for morning time. I probably could write another post about our morning time routine, but we usually start with singing a hymn, then reciting catechism questions and Bible memory verses, then a "funny poem". After that we will sing another memory song (U.S. Presidents right now), work on memorizing a Shakespeare passage, do a grammar activity (I added this in because I feel like we are weak on grammar terms right now). Then I'll usually read through a Bible lesson (Bible Survey For Kids) or one of our history read-aloud (usually a selection from Beautiful Feet Books). Ideally we will start at 8:00 sharp, but if we are late I cut morning time short so we can still finish by 9:00.
9:00:-9:30 - When we finish morning time I give Wyatt his stack of school books (history, science reading, language arts workbook, cursive, Bible study lessons) and he'll go upstairs to work. Derek works from home right now, so he and Wyatt work in the same room together. Working in the same room with Dad keeps Wyatt focused, and it's the quietest area of the house. I have Gwen and Clyde do their handwriting workbooks, and Gwen works on language arts (this is independent work for them). While they do that, I clean up and get organized for the rest of the school day. The little girls often run off to play in their rooms during this time, or if it's a particularly rambunctious morning, I'll send them outside to burn some energy off.
9:30-11:00 - When I am ready, I call Gwen and Clyde from whatever they are doing (if they've finished their workbooks, they usually are off playing in a different area of the house), and I get them started on math and reading. These are the two subjects that require me to sit with the kids individually. I've done this differently depending on the day, but I may get one of them started on math (go through the lesson, then give them their worksheet), and then start the other child on math, so they are working on math at the same time, and then do reading separately. Or if one of them is busy or playing nicely, I may completely finish math and reading instruction with one child, and then call the other child for their lessons. Usually I can finish both subjects for both kids by around 11:00.
11:00 - When Wyatt is done with his other subjects, I call him down and we do his math lesson together. He is older, so his math lesson is usually more involved. After I've explained the concept, he works on his worksheet, and I check it before lunch. If either Wyatt or Gwen have spelling lessons that day, I will usually give them their spelling phrases while I make lunch.
Afternoon
12:00-1:00 - Lunchtime! I have been trying to read our "fun book" over lunch, which is a nice break in our day for everyone. Right now we are reading Adventures With Waffles.
1:00 - I get Georgie down for a nap (we are hanging on to nap time for all we're worth, but it usually ends up being more of a "quiet time"). Clarice will sometimes have quiet time in my room while Derek works as well - she snuggles on our couch under a blanket with her books for a bit. The big kids may work on their independent reading, or play quietly. After lunch I record what we've done for school that day, and I'll look over the kids' independent work - if they need to correct or redo something, they'll do it in the afternoon. If we've had a smooth, non-exhausting morning, I may feel motivated enough to put some extra subjects in the afternoon, such as science or composer study or history. But often we will save those subjects for our "Friday fun-day", and we will either watch a history or science related video in the afternoon, or just call it quits for the day.
I don't know how a typical day will look next year, with four kids doing lessons instead of three. I may have to shift some things around, and it will likely take me a couple months to find out what works best, but I know we will figure it out! I've found that if I just start doing what needs to be done, eventually some sort of rhythm emerges and we find our stride.
If I left anything out, or you have any questions about specific things, please let me know and I'll try to write about it in another post!
A Quote
“He must have forgotten that in the mind of a boy, a warning isn’t much different from an invitation.”
-Andrew Peterson, On The Edge Of The Dark Sea Of Darkness
(My boys, throwing snow in the air this last weekend.)
A Book
Since I just quoted it, let’s talk about the first book in the Wingfeather Saga! I read this book over the weekend, while it was snowing, and I loved it. We are introduced to the Igiby family, and their lives under the oppression of the Fangs of Dang, which are reptilian creatures that took over the land of Aerweair many years ago. Janner is the oldest, tasked with watching over his two younger siblings as they cause all kinds of trouble...until suddenly their quiet life falls apart and they realize there is much more to their family’s history than they thought. What makes this book is the completely quirky history of Aerweair, and the funny footnotes throughout. I am very anxious to read the next book in the series!
A Bit Of Nature
A snowy sunrise, the morning after we got two feet of snow (it doesn't look it because the snow didn't stick to the trees, but there was a lot of snow). One of these days I’ll put some effort into geting a different view for my “bit of nature”, but for now you get these shots from my porch. It’s cold out there!
A Recommendation
Since I only get to these posts every couple weeks, I hope you don’t mind if I include more than one recommendation.
First, I must reiterate my longstanding recommendation to update your pajamas every six months or so. Let’s be honest, after about six months to a year, most pajama sets start to look...grungy? Ill-fitting? Stretched out? They just don't look fresh anymore, and there is nothing like a fresh pair of pajamas! It makes me feel like I look cute in the evenings for Derek. He probably doesn’t care, but I think he deserves to not always see me in ratty pajamas (or maybe I deserve to not let him always see me in ratty pajamas).
(My newest pjs/lounge set, these were only $15 at Sam's.)
Next, I want to recommend this documentary on the life of Martyn Lloyd-Jones (free on Prime right now). I didn't know much about Martyn Lloyd-Jones before, and I was so inspired by his zeal and commitment to preaching the Word. We could use more of that today.
And finally, go watch this video from Matt Walsh, in response to a “Dear Abby” letter from a man who is disappointed that his wife wants to be a stay-at-home mom and thinks less of her for it (which, sorry-not-sorry, is so ridiculous to me). I loved Walsh’s point about the difference between phoning it in as a parent and parenting ambitiously. I agree that parenting is a highly worthy area in which to pour ambition.
A Moment Of Happiness
(Gwen, building a snowman.)
I realized on Wednesday that I had not given my children proper instruction on how to build a really good snowman. I struggled into my too-small snow clothes and went outside to demonstrate for Wyatt. Before I knew it, all the kids were outside requesting repeat demonstrations, and 30 minutes later a snowman representation of our family sat in the backyard.
Time well spent.
This day, Monday March 15th, has officially been declared a snow day.
Monday or Tuesday last week there started to be chatter about a "historic storm" that was going to blow in over the weekend. People were preemptively cancelling appointments, Sunday services, etc. Apparently the grocery stores were a madhouse (I will never understand this). It was supposed to be 2-4 feet of snow. Prepare yourselves! Don't panic, but do panic just a little bit!
All through the week, the meteorologists kept modifying the snow amounts down in 6-inch increments, but they still insisted the storm would be historic. So we made sure our flashlights had batteries and we had wood stacked on our porch, just in case the power went out. I had plans to hunker down and read and bake cookies on this historically snowy weekend.
The snow was supposed to start Friday night, so on Saturday morning I put on my glasses and looked out the window.
And we had maybe two inches.
I have to tell you, I was pretty disappointed. Where was the snow? What about my snowy reading Saturday? Call me weird, but I have a hard time justifying relaxing on the weekends unless I feel forced into it by the weather. If it's decently nice out I feel like I should be doing something productive.
I spent the morning reading anyway, in between shooting texts back and forth with a friend as we complained about the conspicuous lack of a "historic storm". The meteorologists kept saying, "don't let your guard down, it's still coming" (how do those guys keep their jobs?)! It finally started to snow in the afternoon, and to the weatherman's credit, it did actually continue for the next day and a half. By last night we had two feet of snow. So I guess they didn't have to keep modifying the snow amounts down by six inches after all (again, how do those guys keep their jobs?).
I am the first person to espouse all the benefits of homeschooling, from the important and academic to the frivolous and insignificant. Like the fact that we never have to wake up early if we don't want to, and I don't have to pack lunches for my kids every day (that's a huge benefit in my book). But one thing the public schools have on us is the fact that when it snows a lot, those kids get snow days. They don't have to do school at all, but most homeschoolers I know feel the need to keep up with their preset schedules and do schoolwork, even when there is a marshmallow world outside. We usually skip the snow days too, in favor of finishing earlier in May.
But today the snow is beckoning, and I thought, why should we not take a snow day? Who says we have to trudge through school when there are feet of white powder outside just begging to be formed into snow forts?
Hence, I've declared this a snow day. This amount of snow only happens once or twice a year anyway, and I am loathe to allow the schools to have any perceived advantage to my kids, even something as small as snow days.
The kids will be spending a large amount of time outside, I'm sure, after they finish their movie (yes, a movie in the morning - it's a snow day, after all). They started building some snow forts yesterday, and the snow will probably be just right for a snowman. I am going to bake muffins, have hot chocolate at the ready for the kids, read more books, and maybe finally get around to teaching myself how to embroider (I've only been wanting to learn how for the last year). Then maybe we'll watch something educational in the afternoon, or maybe we'll just build blanket forts and play games.
It's going to be the best-used snow day ever.
I hope you are having a good start to your week, friends! I'll be back on Wednesday with my Wednesday Five.
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