New Blog Design Coming!

Hey there! I haven't posted much lately for a few reasons: I'm busy painting and (still) unpacking. AND I've been working with a talented blog designer on a brand new blog design. Yay!

Why? you may ask. Well. Now that the girls are attending private school, I needed to refocus. My muddled thoughts were as follows:

• My blog had been about homeschooling and our family life, with a few book reviews thrown in and a few personal essays, as well. I thought for a few days about discontinuing the blog. After all, homeschooling and educational pursuits had been the center of my life, around which all other things revolved. Since we were no longer homeschooling, would I have anything of value to say? I don't know.
• And, supposing I continued blogging, should I start a new blog with a new name? I toyed with this for weeks. In the end, I decided to stay with The Bluestocking Belle, even though a few other options really tempted me.
• For a long time, I've struggled with a focus for my blog. Apparently, that's very important. Specialization, you know. And we are renovating our new to us house. So maybe I could focus on that. . . ? Well, after reading home decor blogs and renovation blogs and redecorating blogs, I've learned that different people have different gifts, and home decor is decidedly not one of my gifts.

Then it came to me that I'd lost myself in all this blog-musing and second-guessing. I'm never going to be a blogger with thousands of followers; I've never going to be known as a "________ maven"; and I don't really want to specialize my blog.

Essentially, my blog is my story, my family's story, and I will enjoy chronicling it as much as I always did. And if anyone learns anything new, is encouraged in any way, or simply enjoys reading about us, then that's a lovely bonus for me.

So be on the lookout in the next week or so for a brand new Bluestocking Belle.

Only it'll still be me.

On (Not) Maintaining an Online Presence When You're Away

I may have mentioned that we're away from our usual domicile for an extended stay in Maine. (Ahem. I think I've mentioned it about 100 times; but perhaps you missed that.) When I'm at home, I keep up a fairly regular online communique, via my blog, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, blog reading and commenting, email, and the like. In fact, in the last year, I've upped the ante in my online activities, for a variety of reasons. And I was under the impression that I'd be able to maintain that -- at about 90% capacity, so to speak -- while I'm here in Maine. After all, I have my laptop, which I take to the library for wifi connection, and I have my handy smartphone for regular FB, tweets, photo uploads, email, etc.

Well. Enter reality.

It's been more difficult than I'd thought.

For one reason, the girls aren't super excited to hang out at the library for more than two hours while I blog, read blogs, and carry on other online activity. I suppose I can understand that.

A few times, I've worked on posts at the cabin, writing them in Word and then copying them into my blog on my next trip to the library. That seemed really workable until recently. It seems that there's more of a vacation atmosphere at the cabin than there is at my "real" house. Quelle surprise, eh?

We have been visiting with friends. We've been boating, tubing, kneeboarding, and wakeboarding. We've been reading. My parents arrive tomorrow for a ten-day visit, and my cousin and her family arrive next week. We have lots of plans.

Perhaps this should cause me anxiety. Like other bloggers, I've read articles and posts on how to increase and keep readership. According to experts, I should write several posts at a time and then schedule them to publish over a period of days. Or I could solicit guest writers to post in my absence. I don't want to sound the death knell for my blog, do I?

Obviously not. I like my blog. I like to write. I like to provide interesting content for folks. But.

I wrote a post recently called A Celebration of Sabbath. If I really believe what I wrote (and I do), I need to be okay with sacrificing my online presence -- my virtual life -- for the blessings and benefits of living my real life.

So that's what I'm doing. While I won't disappear altogether, I'm going to downsize for a little bit.

And I hope you won't completely forget me.

Are You Looking Ahead to the Next Year?

About this time, many a homeschooling parent's mind turns to plans for the next school year. I know mine does. If you use a boxed curriculum, attend a virtual school, or just plan to keep on keepin' on with what you've already got going, then planning's a breeze. Or, if you're more like me, you start with a basic framework, add some elements, subtract others, touch it up here and there with some embellishments -- all in accordance with your vision for your children's education, your family's beliefs and values, and your children's learning styles/preferences.

For example, (I LOVE examples! I'm that kind of person.) folks with a literary bent may select a Charlotte Mason-style curriculum and then add in notebooking. Another family with a more classical emphasis (a la The Well-Trained Mind) may opt for extra hands-on activities or visual elements to their studies, such as videos or movies. And then the eclectically-minded choose from the entire smorgasboard.

So many choices! So much responsibility. It can be enough to make a mama lose some sleep at night.

I'm one who has a firm foundation, and that's Ambleside Online. I start there, and I mostly stay there. But I must admit, I'm one who likes to look over the smorgasboard. If you do, too, let me point you to Curriculum Choice, an excellent curriculum review website. (Let me hastily point out that I am in no way swayed because I'm a reviewer there -- I'm only a newbie!) It helps me tremendously to read what other homeschooling parents think about curricula and resources and what their experiences have been like.

Tip: If you're considering a specific curriculum or resources that hasn't yet been reviewed on Curriculum Choice, just Google the name of the product along with the word review. Bingo! A wealth of information at your fingertips.

Another idea: you've probably hung onto many of your homeschooling help books. I know lots of us re-read our favorites to inspire and refresh us anew. I flip through mine for highlightings, things I noted in the past and now we've reached the point to use. I see where I can add those items to our year's plan.

I'm an avid blog reader. Seriously, there's not enough time in my life to read all the blogs I want to with the level of commitment I wish I could devote. And I learn so much! I'm forever bookmarking blogs and websites on my Favorites bar.

Think of the blogs you most like to peruse for practical information and how-tos. (Aside: I know I "should" write how-to's for the sake of clarity, but I cannot STAND to put an apostrophe where it does not belong. An apostrophe shows possession; it does not indicate a plural. I beg your forbearance.) Then set aside some time to peruse those blogs. You may want to rise earlier than the children one day (or a few days) to give yourself this luxury. Read archived posts; click on links. I am almost always rewarded with gems when I take time to research my favorite blogs.

I have highlighted links to helpful homeschooling websites on my blog's sidebars. If there's one (or a few) that you haven't checked out, the planning stage is a great time to do it.

But the very first thing I do before I begin to plan is pray. I ask for guidance, wisdom in decisions, and rejuvenation on this journey. After that, I don't feel like the full responsibility of my children's education weighs on my shoulders alone. And that is a lovely, freeing feeling.

New Blog Design: Take Three

If you missed Take Two, I apologize. It was really elegant. So elegant, in fact, that it really wasn't me (if you'll excuse the grammar; sometimes perfect grammar sounds so stuffy). This is better.

I wonder if I'll ever say, "There! That's exactly what I wanted, and I'll never change my mind!"

I doubt it. New stuff is always cropping up!

New Blog Design: Take Two

Okay. Here's another blog design idea. I'm wondering if it's too sedate for me, though. you should kow this about me: I aspire to elegance and tend to fail. So perhaps I could convey elegance on my blog. Very few of you know how I really live. (Is that a dog hair on my pizza slice? Yes. Yes, it is. In fact, it's two dog hairs.)

See?