My Life in Review this Year

Over the last year, my life has taken quite a turn. We moved. The girls started private school after six years of homeschooling. I went back to work. I'm hear to tell you, that's a lot for a girl like me, who enjoyed her life as it was. It's required a lot of dark chocolate to get me through.

If you've been reading my blog, then you know our new house, lovely as it is, demanded a complete overhaul. It was built in the early 80s, and NOTHING had been updated or changed. There were (okay, still are) gouged, nail holes, and pushpin holes in the walls. All trim was dark stained, as was the carpeting! We immediately had new carpet and hardwoods installed. Then we later had the popcorn ceilings scraped on the main floor. I painted the kitchen cabinets. We painted the kitchen, dining room, foyer, and living room. There's still a lot we could do, but with college only a mere four years away, we're starting to prioritize.

The change from homeschooling to private school last year was a big one for us. The girls enjoy the school, which is a university model school. They attend classes on Tuesdays and Fridays, and then they complete assignments at home the other days. I'm pleased with the course of study. Our elder daughter, Amelia, who began high school this year, also goes on Thursday mornings for student council meetings and yearbook. Last school year was a big transition for all of us; this year has been much smoother so far. I miss homeschooling, though. I enjoyed the lifestyle; and, as a lifelong learner, I enjoyed the study we did together. To be honest, I also miss being the top boss. I'm no longer in complete charge.

I went back to work, too. For the last several years, I've been dabbling in writing. I'd had an article published in The Old Schoolhouse magazine and another in Impart online magazine. I'd had two storied published in an online children's magazine (now sadly defunct) called Fandangle. I wrote reviews for that fantastic homeschooling website The Curriculum Choice. I took on a few freelance editing projects. And I worked here and there on my own manuscripts. Oh, and I blogged.

Then some friends from church approached me about working with their company as a writer. When I was duly employed (pre-family), I worked in the newsletter industry and also in corporate communications, so this was right up my alley. I took on a couple of clients, which has now grown to several clients for whom I produce monthly email newsletter articles, website content, email blasts, and the like. I've also continued freelance editing. I now spend several hours a day on my various projects. And laundry, grocery shopping, schlepping kids to and fro, cooking, washing up, sweeping, scrubbing toilets, etc. You know.

So my life is different now than it was for several years. It's taken some getting used to. At first, I wasn't sure I approved. But I've settled into the new normal.

I plan to better schedule my blogging time. When I blog, I'm practicing my writing, I'm chronicling our lives together, and I'm reaching out to a sphere I don't necessarily inhabit physically. I think that's neat. I have also found that when I don't blog regularly, I miss it. I compose posts in my head that never see the light of day. then I feel unproductive and lackluster, no matter how many loads of laundry I've washed or how I've planned out our meals.

I guess I'm weird that way.

More later, on books I've read, things I've been pinning, and other stuff!

In the Land of Magnolias

We have these mysterious trees in our back yard. Our back yard, it should be noted, has been left on its own for more than 20 years. We have plans for it, but at the moment it is still au naturel. There are LOTS of trees. However, there are several trees that have been a mystery to me for years. I say years because we also had one or two in the back yard of our last house. At this house, there are younger trees of this species and older, taller trees. And they have a distinguishing feature: their huge leaves.

Earlier this spring, Himself told me that our neighbor reported to him that these trees bloom with large white blossoms in early summer/late spring. "We've always called them wild magnolias," our neighbor said.

We live in the deep South, where magnolias abound. The variety we're used to down here is the Southern magnolia (magnolia grandiflora), and there are lots of those in our neighborhood. But they look nothing like the trees in my back yard. The shape of the tree is different and so are the leaves. So I shrugged at this bit of news and then forgot about it.

Until a few weeks ago, when Himself pointed out a blossom to me. It was high up in the tree, best visible from our second story deck, and gorgeous: large, creamy white, and waxy looking. Just like a magnolia.

So I Googled "wild magnolia tree," and bingo! I discovered that these trees are indeed magnolias. After doing a bit of research, I have tentatively identified my trees as bigleaf magnolias (magnolia macrophylla), due to the size of their leaves. Another possibility is the Fraser magnolia (magnolia fraseri), but its leaves are not quite as large, so I went with macrophylla.

According to our neighbor, the flowers have a lovely perfume, in keeping with their magnolia-ness. Sadly, the flowers on our trees are too high for us to smell. The flowers are also few. I wish there were more blooms! If it weren't for the flowers, I'd never been able to ID these trees.

I'm always excited when I make a nature discovery, whether it's a bird, flower, or tree identification. I'm sort of a nature nut when it comes to those kinds of things. Last week in the car, Tiny Girl said with an exasperated sigh and a smile, "You're always pointing out clouds!"

What can I say? Nature makes me happy!

Have you ever seen bigleaf magnolias where you are?



Linking up with:
Inspire Me Tuesday at A Stroll thru Life
Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style

BirdSleuth: A Great Resource for Birdwatching and Nature Study

As you may already know, we are dedicated backyard birders. As a form of nature study, birdwatching is easy and inexpensive and fun. You can even take the leap into the field of citizen science with the Great Backyard Bird Count and Project FeederWatch, both programs from Cornell's Lab of Ornithology.

I recently came upon another Cornell resource called BirdSleuth. This is wonderful! Read my full review over at Curriculum Choice. . . .

Giving Up on My Hair

If you know me IRL, then you know my hair. It is curly and it is red. According to one friend, she can always find me in the crowd at church, thanks to my hair. The color part gets help these days as I approach "a certain age," but I will not go gentle into that particular good night.

Several years ago, I wouldn't go gentle into the curly night, either. When Himself and I met, I used the round-brush technique to dry my hair. Every. Single. Day. Since I have a lot of hair, this took a considerable amount of time. As well as a toll on my hair. But I was committed to straight hair.

On a camping trip during this same period, I decided to let my hair dry by itself after I'd showered. A friend was amazed. "I didn't know you had curly hair!" she exclaimed. I guess I shocked her. Really, curly hair can be a bit startling, especially if you're not expecting it.

However, not long after Miss Priss was born, I gave up straightening my hair. Shocking, eh? I know, but I was busy with other things. I didn't have the time to mess with it.

But I didn't give up messing with it entirely. Over the years, I sometimes dried it with a blow dryer and then put it in hot rollers in an attempt to control my curls. Other times I wore it short. I've coated it with gels, pomades, de-frizzers, curling balms, pomades, etc.

The thing is, everyone in my family of origin has curly hair to varying degrees except my mama, whose hair is stick straight (and she has kept it permed for decades). And we've all messed with it. Curly hair is versatile, since you can wear it straight, wavy, or curly, depending on how much time and effort you feel like investing in your hairdo.

But I recently had a revelation. I came upon Lorraine Massey's book, Curly Girl, at a used bookstore, and I bought it. Massey has a interesting viewpoint: stop fighting your curls and just go with it. Oh, and ditch the shampoo. According to Massey, shampoo is awful for curly hair. There's a difference between cleaning one's scalp and cleaning one's hair; and curly hair requires a different method than straight hair due to its molecular structure and moisture needs.

So I've been trying it. I've shampooed once in two weeks so far, and I concentrated on my scalp only. It's taking my scalp a while to get used to no shampoo. But I can already see some benefits -- at least, enough for me to continue with the experiment. Here's a recent photo of me (well, mostly my hair). (Thanks to Tiny Girl for her photographic expertise):

In the interest of truth in journalism, I used a dryer with a diffuser to finish things off, a method of which Massey approves.

Before the experiment, I only washed my hair about twice a week anyway, and I may eventually return to that method. I'll have to wait and see.

What I won't return to, however, is fighting my curly hair into submission. As Popeye used to say (and probably still does), "I yam what I yam."

Medieval Illuminated Manuscripts -- Online

Photo credit

I'm always on the lookout for wonderful online resources that enrich our lives, particularly in the artistic or historic sense. I found two marvelous resources to share with you.

I have a fascination with illuminated manuscripts. On my first visit to London, I was crushed to find out that the Lindisfarne Gospels, a must-see on my trip, was off display at the British Library. A polite sign invited me to return in the fall, when it would be back on display. I wasn't going to be in London in the fall! Aaarrrgh!

So on my second trip to London four years later, a visit less than 24 hours in duration, I hightailed it for the library to feast my eyes. I admit I gazed (probably longer than necessary) upon the revered pages, marveling at the detail, the care, and the beauty of this amazing work.

Here is some information from the British Library website about this manuscript:

The Lindisfarne Gospels, one of the most magnificent manuscripts of the early Middle Ages, was written and decorated at the end of the 7th century by the monk Eadfrith, who became Bishop of Lindisfarne in 698 and died in 721. Its original leather binding, long since lost, was made by Ethelwald, who succeeded Eadfrith as bishop, and was decorated with jewels and precious metals later in the 8th century by Billfrith the Anchorite. The Latin text of the Gospels is translated word by word in an Old English gloss, the earliest surviving example of the Gospel text in any form of the English language, it was added between the lines in the mid 10th century by Aldred, Provost of Chester-le-Street. Today the manuscript is once again bound in silver and jewels, in covers made in 1852 at the expense of Edward Maltby, Bishop of Durham. The design is based on motifs drawn from the decoration of the manuscript itself.

On the off-chance you are not planning to be in London any time soon, you, too, can feast your eyes on this gorgeous work of art (and history and art history) by visiting the British Library's website and its amazing "Turn the Pages" online gallery. This gallery utilizes Adobe Shockwave, so you'll need to download that free application beforehand. But it is SO worth it. "Turn the Pages" features a Magnify function for an up-close look at the details. Another fabulous element is the Audio option, which offers interesting information on the manuscript. Or you can click the Text option to read the same information. Not every page of the manuscript is part of the "Turn the Pages" gallery, but the cross-carpet and opening pages of each gospel are on view.

However, if you don't have Shockwave, you can also view the pages here. For a quick view of the art pages only (no text), Wikimedia Commons offers these nine images.

For more information on the Lindisfarne Gospels, visit the British Library website and run a search for "Lindisfarne Gospels" to hit the motherlode. Here is a quick link to a bit of background. Also, Wikipedia offers an informative entry.

And, in case you ARE planning a visit to London this summer, don't look for the Gospels at the British Library; they'll be at Palace Green Library in Durham, to be displayed alongside the St. Cuthbert Gospel. So plan a jaunt to Durham. I've been there, and it is worth the trip. The cathedral alone (the final resting place of the Venerable Bede) is worth the trip.

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Photo credit

I was beyond excited to learn that Trinity College Library Dublin now has the Book of Kells available for viewing online. While all pages are uploaded, there are no scholarly comments as of yet. Here's an excerpt from the library's website on the Book of Kells exhibition:

The Book of Kells (Trinity College Dublin MS 58) is celebrated for its lavish decoration. The manuscript contains the four Gospels in Latin based on a Vulgate text, written on vellum (prepared calfskin), in a bold and expert version of the script known as "insular majuscule". 

The place of origin of the Book of Kells is generally attributed to the scriptorium of the monastery founded around 561 by St Colum Cille on Iona, an island off the west coast of Scotland. In 806, following a Viking raid on the island which left 68 of the community dead, the Columban monks took refuge in a new monastery at Kells, County Meath. It must have been close to the year 800 that the Book of Kells was written, although there is no way of knowing if the book was produced wholly at Iona or at Kells, or partially at each location. 

It has been on display in the Old Library at Trinity College Dublin from the mid 19th century, and attracts over 500,000 visitors a year. Since 1953 it has been bound in four volumes. Two volumes are on public view, one opened to display a major decorated page, and one to show two pages of script. The volumes are changed at regular intervals.

For some quick views of pages from the Book of Kells, check out this Wikimedia Commons page of images. And for a thorough (and excessively glowing, IMHO) exposition, read this article from Wikipedia.

Since I have no firm plans to visit Dublin, the online exhibit of the Book of Kells is really a blessing. It's not quite the same as viewing the real thing in person, but it's the next best thing. I look forward to the addition of scholarly explanations added to the website!

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Online resources for museum pieces are invaluable for history study and art study. Not only do they give us access to items thousands of miles away, they also give us means to compare similar objects. For example, a worthwhile project for older students would be to compare the Lindisfarne Gospels and the Book of Kells. How are they similar? How do they differ? Why were they created? Do their disparate ages have something to do with any differences? Do their respective histories have any bearing on their condition today? These are just a few areas of inquiry that pop to my mind (before I've had my coffee).

Of course, seeing these priceless artifacts in person is the peak experience. I imagine the hands that have touches the pages, now protected under glass and low lighting. Hands that worked quietly and surely, hands that smoothed pages before a sacred service, hands that seized roughly in a desperate effort to flee from raiders, hands that worked to restore the ravages of age. . . . 

Perhaps an online study will whet your family's appetite to plan a trip!

Strengthening Your Marriage

Every time I hear of a married couple divorcing or separating, my heart hurts. It seems marriages are dropping like flies, even in my church.

I stumbled upon this excellent article on how a Christian woman can strengthen her marriage and wanted to share it with you. Even if your marriage is stable (I consider mine to be), there may still be bits of wisdom here for you. In fact, I recognized myself in a few items. For example, I need to guard against complacency.

We live busy lives in an busy world. There are many demands on our time, attention, energy, and resources. Even so, may we never forget to actively nurture our marriages.

Photo credit: Caucas' / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-SA

Letting Go of "Normal" Expectations for Life

Do you find that, like me, you tell yourself, Next week, we'll get back to a normal routine? Or After Christmas/New Year's/spring break, etc. we'll get it together? I don't know about your life, but in mine, it just doesn't happen. When I look back at all my weekly reports that begin, "This was a weird week" or "Things didn't go as planned this week," I have to laugh ruefully.

The fact is, it's a weird week when things do go as I expected and planned.

A few weeks ago, I read a post by Mrs. White on her blog, The Legacy of Home. Her words really spoke to me.

Life never lets up.  We often say that tomorrow, or next week, we will fix our routine.  Or when things calm down, we will get back on track. But life will keep throwing us something new to juggle.  The goal is not to wait until things are better, but to do them in the middle of the challenges. 

Well, amen and amen! What a perspective.

I have to admit, friends, that I often let my school plans get derailed by life. That's not to say that I throw in the towel at the first sign of distress; but I have a hard time staying on track in medias res (as per  Greek dramatics).  I lose sight of my short-term goal (as in, lessons to be completed) and find myself backpedaling.

One beauty of homeschooling is, of course, its forgiving flexibility. In times of trouble, illness, and great stress, we can adapt our plans to match our more limited resources. Yet this same flexibility can be a drawback when we continually adapt/rework/put off our school plans due to yet another unexpected event, big or small.

Homeschooling is truly a lifestyle. We educate our children in life, not just schoolwork. They learn -- by watching us -- how to handle the mishaps and unexpected surprises of the everyday. Are we teaching them that upsets have the power to derail our best efforts and plans? Or are we teaching them to roll with it?

As a woman of faith, I want to teach my daughters that God is never surprised by events that spring up, unlooked for, in our day-to-day lives. "Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans," said John Lennon. Put another way, life is what happens no matter what our plans.

I can't keep living for the day when things get back to normal. This is normal. We're all living in the now. So the question is, now that I've made that my reality, what am I going to do about it?

• Take a hard look at our daily schedule and how we spend our time. Are the girls wasting time? (Yes.) Am I? (Ditto.)
• Make more intentional decisions about how we spend the time we have. Can we better use our evenings? Does Tiny Girl have to be at the barn early in the afternoon or could she go later?
• Make room for more flexibility when needed. Could we stretch out the readings on this or that book without getting so behind we'll still be reading it this July?

That's where I'm going to start. Once I get going,I may discover other ways I can ensure that my lesson plans don't get flung into hiatus when life happens.

What about you? Have you found ways to absorb the unexpected in your day-to-day living? If so, I'd love to hear about it!

My Article in The Old Schoolhouse Magazine!

I am so excited! I have an article in the most recent edition of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. Here is a link directly to my article, "The Spelling Apologist: Why Good Spelling Is Essential and How to Select the Right Curriculum."

This is a fabulous issue, friends. And you can read it online for FREE! How fab is that?

                                                                                                                                                 

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December 2012

Books That Add Richness to World War II Studies

The girls and I recently read about World War II. Our history spine, Story of the World, volume four, gave us a solid and broad understanding of events leading up to the war's outbreak, the war itself, and the aftermath. I always look for good books to add depth to our learning, a richness if you will, to provide more meaning for the girls -- and me.

Here's a list of books one or both my girls have recently read:

• Summer of My German Soldier, by Bette Green
• The Upstairs Room, by Johanna Reiss
• Snow Treasure, by Marie McSwigan
• Number the Stars, Lois Lowry
• Don't You Know There's a War On?, by Avi
• 10 Days: Anne Frank, by David Colbert
• Anne Frank: Her Life in Words and Pictures, by Menno Metselaar and Ruud van der Rol (You can read my review of this excellent book here.)

For my part, I read The Devil's Arithmetic and Briar Rose, both by Jane Yolen, and Sarah's Key, by Tatiana de Rosnay. The latter is an adult book, but would be perfectly suitable for high school-aged students. Both of Yolen's books are very well written, powerful, and gritty. However, I decided to wait until my girls are older to assign these titles.

Of course, when one thinks of holocaust stories, The Diary of a Young Girl, by Anne Frank, and The Hiding Place, by Corrie ten Boom, tend to top the list. Again, I decided to wait on these until my children are more mature. We do own a CD audio theatre production of The Hiding Place, which we will listen to very soon.

I recently found a great blog called The Children's War. Written by Alex, this blog is an annotated bibliography of children's and teen's books about World War II. Nip over for some fabulous reviews and book ideas. But be warned: you could end up spending some serious time!

Have you found any great World War II titles you'd like to share? I'd love to hear about them!


Caveat: Some of the books my daughters have read contain objectionable language. To my mind, the language used fit the situation and character. Use your own discretion for your family.

And the Wall Comes Tumbling Down

That would be the Berlin Wall, in 1989.

A bit of background: The girls and I read about the Marshall Plan in Story of the World, volume 4, today. The chapter details how the Allied Powers divided Germany into two counties: West Germany as a democracy, to please England, France, and the United States; and East Germany as a communist state, to suit the Soviet Union.

Travel between the two countries was quite easy until the communists noticed a large dip in their population, particularly among the more educated set: doctors, university professors, lawyers, and the like. In 1961, in the middle of the night, a barbed wire fence was erected through the middle of Berlin. Overnight, families, friends, and neighbors were divided, prohibited from visiting one another. Over the years, a more permanent structure went up, a concrete wall 14 feet high.

But in 1989, that wall came down.

I remember this event. I recall watching on TV the jubilant Germans dancing in the streets, chiseling away at the wall, hugging one another and crying. So I immediately thought: YouTube.

There are quite a few short videos of such celebrations, some TV news reports, and some longer documentaries available on YouTube. Tiny Girl and I watched several. She herself watched a 40-odd-minute documentary and enjoyed it very much. Here's the link.

As always, do not turn your children loose on YouTube. Comments are not mediated, and foul language abounds. But what a wonderful resource for recent historical events!

Before They Push Their Boats from the Safe Shore

Photo credit

Earlier today, Miss Priss finished reading Jack and Jill, by Louisa May Alcott, and she quite enjoyed it. At the end, she called me into the family room, where she was curled up under a blanket on the couch, to read aloud to me the last paragraph. We both thought it was lovely and wanted to share it with you. Perhaps you'll be inspired to add this book to your children's reading list.

There are many such boys and girls, full of high hopes, lovely possibilities, and earnest plans, pausing a moment before they push their little boats from the safe shore. Let those who launch them see to it that they have good health to man the oars, good education for ballast, and good principles as pilots to guide them as they voyage down an ever-widening river to the sea.

Words both wise and true, don't you think?

I have been considering today that the second sentence ought to be my mission statement, since I serve as both parent and teacher. As we all know it is far too easy to get turned aside by the minutiae of life. Often, I allow the tricky trivialities to have too much power in the day to day. These little tempests in teacups are tricky because they seem important -- critical, even -- at the time, but are mere and momentary distractions, blips in the big picture.

If I reduce down to the essentials those things I want my children to carry with them when they push their boats into the stream, it comes to this:

• Your faith is not only the foundation of your life, it is the structural support. Stand firm in its truth.
• Your education is a lifelong pursuit. Never stop learning.
• Your principles define your character. Strive to be Christ-like in all you do.

But if I say all this and don't live it myself, then all my words are like chaff in the wind. Do I live like my faith is the structural support in my life? Do I pursue my own education? Do I exemplify Christ in my life? My answers, as always, tend to be, Not as much as I want to. Not as much as I need to.

How much better we'd all be if I focused on the essentials and not the ephemera; if I talked less and lived more; and if I welcomed in grace and ushered out the useless pursuit of perfection.

What a blessing that would be.

Shakespeare As It's Meant to Be: In Real Life

On Sunday evening, we visited a Shakespeare playhouse in our town to see Macbeth (that is, the Scottish Play). This was a first-time event for all of us in one way or another. Himself and I had never seen this particular play, and the girls had never seen Shakespeare on stage. So we were all excited. Plus, this theatre serves food -- really good food, as we discovered -- so we were extra excited.

I'm of the mind that Shakespeare should be seen and experienced, not read. Reading Shakespeare plays is boring. I know; I've read more than my fair share. And there's a perfectly good reason that the plays are boring to read: they are plays. Shakespeare wrote them to be performed on the stage. That's the whole point.

Shakespeare comes to life on stage. The actors of course give life to a mere character. But in an even greater sense, the words come alive. What looks archaic and foreign and impenetrable on the page becomes clear in real life.

We talked about the story on our drive home, and I was greatly pleased by how much the girls understood. But if I'd read the play aloud to them or, worse yet, handed it to them and said, "Read Act One, Scene One, and get back to me," the results would have been far worse. Never mind the huge resistance I would have faced!

That being said, once you've seen the play, it might interest you to read it. Now you have a "movie in your mind" to go along with the words on the play. When you read "Exeunt," you'll recall that the players thundered off the stage, swords glinting, in that particular scene. Or you may remember Lady Macbeth speaking the phrase "the milk of human kindness," and, since you recognize it as an idiom, you can read her soliloquy and further explore its use.

On the flip side, you might want to read a play to prepare yourself for seeing it. Shakespeare's minor characters are often not named in the play itself. To keep yourself from wondering, "Now who's this guy?" during the play, bone up a bit first. But even in this case, I advise reading a No Fear Shakespeare version (or another modern English translation) or even a story version, such as Edith Nesbit's or the Lambs' adaptations.

We all had a fabulous time. The girls are still talking about their favorite parts. They can't wait to see another Shakespeare play and are already planning which to see. Much Ado About Nothing and The Tempest are high on the list.

How great is that?

P.S. Jimmie has written a most wonderful Squidoo lens, Shakespeare for Children, packed with tons of resources and ideas. Don't miss it.

I'm linking up with:
Hip Homeschool Hop
No Ordinary Blog Hop

Had An Epiphany Lately?

According to people who study such things -- (let's stop right there. Do people actually study these things, or do computers just spit out data? That's what I'd like to know.)

Anyhow, according to people who study such things, true epiphanies are very rare. Here's Wikipedia (that font of all knowledge) on the matter:

An epiphany ... is an experience of sudden and striking realization. Generally the term is used to describe breakthrough scientific, religious or philosophical discoveries, but it can apply in any situation in which an enlightening realization allows a problem or situation to be understood from a new and deeper perspective. 

The girls and I have been studying Archimedes's principle. His Eureka! moment is considered a scientific epiphany.

Back to Wikipedia:

Epiphanies are relatively rare occurrences and generally following [sic] a process of significant thought about a problem. Often they are triggered by a new and key piece of information, but importantly, a depth of prior knowledge is required to allow the leap of understanding.

I'm considering the very real possibility that epiphanies are God in disguise. Perhaps when it's time for someone to know something, God makes it happen.

If you're wondering what got me on to this subject, I'll tell you. I was thinking about literary epiphanies, sudden realizations that occur in literature. (Yes, I really was. This is just what I do. Now do you understand why Himself calls me weird?) Wikipedia mentions James Joyce's use of epiphany, and that put me in mind of his short story "Araby." But the one that always comes back to haunt me is the grandmother's epiphany in Flannery O'Connor's short story "A Good Man Is Hard to Find." Have you read that one? Like most of O'Connor's work, it's strange and highly unsettling. But memorable.

So I thought I'd do a bit of research on epiphanies. And I learned something.

I love it when that happens.

Robert Frost: Fragmentary Blue

We began our term study of Robert Frost, one of my favorite poets. Much to my delight, the girls enjoy his work, too.

One of the most wondrous things about Ambleside Online is that it introduces us to literature we might otherwise have missed. For example, all three of us were happy to have "met" poet Paul Laurence Dunbar last year. But I am also pleased to acquaint my girls with old friends, such as Frost.

And my heart goes pitter-pat when I learn more than I thought I knew. I love to be surprised like that.

Images courtesy of Foter.

Here's a Frost poem that was new to me (perhaps not to you, though).


Fragmentary Blue

Why make so much of fragmentary blue
In here and there a bird, or butterfly,
Or flower, or wearing-stone, or open eye,
When heaven presents in sheets the solid hue?

Since earth is earth, perhaps, not heaven (as yet)--
Though some savants make earth include the sky;
And blue so far above us comes so high,
It only gives our wish for blue a whet.

Service Learning: Hands-On Opportunities to Reach Out to Others

Service projects. Community outreach. Service learning.

We all know these are good things. We want to make a difference. We're called to make a difference. But where do we start? And how do we go beyond the canned food drive?

Help is here! Read my review of The Complete Guide to Service Learning at Curriculum Choice!

A Day in Our Life -- At Least for Now

We are still at the lake, but we started "back to school" two weeks ago. Since summer's in the air, I like to keep things light, refreshing, and different.

Each day, the girls complete a math workbook page as a review. We also read from Abraham Lincoln's World, which we are about to finish. Yesterday, we learned about Louis Pasteur and Joseph Lister and discussed their impact on medical practices of the day. We then read from either This Country of Ours or "Brutus," from Plutarch's Lives. We are just about to complete those, as well.

Today is "Scope Day." We have checked out a neat telescope from our town's library. It's clear today, so I'm hoping for good viewing tonight. There is not much light pollution where we are, so even without a telescope, we can see much more of the night sky than we can at home.

Tiny Girl found a butterfly's wing on our deck table this morning. We brought along our new microscope, which has yet to leave its box (!!!), so we're going to take a look at the wing with the microscope. I'll post photos later.

Our life at home is busy, activity-filled, and, now that the girls are in middle school, more academically rigorous. We don't tend to have or take time to venture out. While we're in Maine, I look for things to do and places to see.

Yesterday, we visited the Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village in New Gloucester. It is the last remaining Shaker community in the world, and there are five Shakers who live there. Volunteers and hired employees help run the community. Miss Priss had wanted to visit here for two years since she read Lois Lowry's Dear America book, Like the Willow Tree. The main character and her brother are sent to live at the Sabbathday Lake Shaker community after her parents die in a flu epidemic in 1918.

 A view of down the road at Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village

We took a guided tour of the village, which was very informative. (Miss Priss related to me later that she knew much of the material already, but I did not.) None of us knew that the Shakers invented the roll-up shade, circular saw, and the flat straw broom!

As part of the tour we were able to go into some of the buildings. The worship building was built in 1794 and is still used today. Visitors are welcome to attend the Sunday service at 10:00 AM. I wished we lived nearby so we could experience worship with them!

House of worship

Interior photographs are not allowed. I wish I could have snapped a few photos for you. The dark blue painted trim is original and in fine shape. Shakers enjoyed painting the interior elements of their buildings. The three colors used most were the dark blue, a dark red, and a very popular mustard yellow. The ministry house sported a light aqua blue interior trim as well.

The Girls' Shop, where the younger girls lived and worked

We enjoyed a special exhibit on the children's lives at the village. Often, orphans or children whose parents fell on hard times were brought to the community to live. We learned about Sister Mildred Barker, whose widowed mother took her to the village when the child was seven. When her mother returned to collect her, nine years later, Mildred chose to stay. At 21 years of age, Mildred decided to become a Shaker herself, and signed the covenant. She died in 1990. Sister Mildred was an important figure in Shaker music, and she was also a poet. Here is the first line from her poem, "A Prayer":

I am so small alone, and weak,

Defeat I often see;

But by the strength of Thy right hand,

A conqueror I'll be.

The community still functions as a working farm, keeps an orchard, and sells goods in their store. It is certainly not the successful concern it was back in its heyday, but focuses now on preservation and education. Also, their herb garden provides much in the way for herb and spice sales, sachets, and TEA! All are reasonably priced. Here's a link to their online herb catalog.

At the store, we purchased two CDs of Shaker music; a kitted hat for my niece; and two bottles of homemade flavorings: mint water and rosewater (with recipes!).

The store, which smells wonderful!

I was surprised to see Highland cattle, which I'd only seen in Scotland before. The girls were delighted as well.

Sheep, too!

It was quite a fantastic and enjoyable day. If you're ever in the area, make plans to visit. You'll be glad.

So there's a look at A Day in Our Life! When we get back home, we'll hit the books hard. But doesn't everybody enjoy this style of learning, too!

Hammer and Sew: Making Our Own Journals in a Bookbinding Class

A few months ago, I got interested in bookbinding. I perused several websites and blogs, reading over their how-tos and studying photos. Ultimately, I decided this was an activity I'd never do on my own, so I gave up thinking about it.

So imagine my delight when I saw that our library -- which has always had an outstanding children's summer program -- was offering a bookbinding class! I signed us up immediately.

Two Crazy Women, a Maine-based educational partnership, conducted the class. There were quite a few folks, young and older (thank you very much) alike. I appreciated the way Pam and Amy prepared for the class. All our materials were ready for us, but we participants actually did the work of making our own journals.

Here, Miss Priss hammers holes into her first "chapter," more formally called a signature.

After hammering, we stitched the signature pages together with -- get this -- dental floss. You can, of course, purchase much more expensive bookbinding materials, but why would you? Then we hammered and stitched two more signatures, and then stitched the signatures together, as Tiny Girl demonstrates below:

After stitching everything together, we selected our cover materials. Here is what Miss Priss selected:

Next, we glued the material to thin cardboard, then the signatures to the cardboard, and lastly, the wallpaper pieces to the inside covers of the journal.

And here they are!

Will we ever do this again? I don't know. It was a LOT of work, especially for those of us new to the craft. But we are all pleased with our results.

Traveling? Don't Go It Alone: Online Maps and Apps Get You On Your Way

We are car travelers. Himself drives, and I navigate. Most of our trips are under eight hours, but every year we drive to and from Maine, a three-day journey. In the past, I've always visited our local AAA office and had them create a TripTik for our route and also gathered Tour Books for each state we traverse. (You have to be a AAA member, which we've been for years. I can't recommend membership highly enough.)


Enter the internet.


Two years ago, I took advantage of AAA's online TripTik creator and made my own. Using click-and-drag, I could personalize our route, just in case we wanted to go a different way than the default route. This sounds easier than it is. Sometimes the click-and-drag assumed a certain route, and I'd have to really zoom in and fiddle around with the settings. According to the AAA employee I spoke with recently, they have the same problems in the office! Once I got the route just the way I wanted it, I printed out the TripTik, three-hole punched the pages, and secured them in a notebook. Voila!


This year I tried something different and used MapQuest's Directions to plan our route. By entering in various destinations, I was able to personalize our route. I was also able to print out maps to my preference, zooming in when I needed more detail and zooming out when something more general would do. I found MapQuest's click-and-drag function easier to use than AAA TripTik's.


Hard copies are great, but in this era of smartphones, apps are also a way to go.

AAA offers free apps for both Android and iPhone. I was able to download the TripTik app without giving my AAA number or any other information, so perhaps you can, too, if you are not a AAA member. This came in quite handy for locating gas stations and hotels.

I also used my Google Maps for my Android. My phone came with this app, but you can also download it. This was great. When we hit a spot of creeping traffic, we were able to find an alternate route around the problem.

Hungry? The TripAdvisor app has a Near Me Now feature. We've used this lots of times with great success. These free apps are available in many platforms.

And don't miss this one: the free USA Rest Stop Locator app. There are several of these types of apps from which to choose. Just run a simple Google search to find the one you like best.

IMPORTANT: Make sure you have a car charger for your phone. These apps eat up batteries!

With these tools at your fingertips, car travel is both easier to plan beforehand and manage while you're on the road. What could be better?

Happy traveling!

(Aside: I have no idea why some of the text has a different background color. In editing mode, it looks exactly the same as the other text, and nothing is different. )

Using VARK to Strengthen Educational Experiences in Your Homeschool

One of the best things about homeschooling is the opportunity to tailor educational experiences to a child's preferred learning style. A classroom teacher, no matter how hard he or she tries to create a multimodal environment, simply does not have the time to attend to each child individually. But I can.

I've read quite a few learning styles books over the years, but I found it difficult to zero in on my daughters' preferences. They've always enjoyed my reading aloud to them, so I chose a literary-based educational model. I added in other activities to mix things up. We rolled along.

I'm happy to report, however, that I recently discovered the VARK system, which offers both adult and young person's questionnaires. Now that my children are older, I thought it would be interesting to see their own responses to a learning-style assessment. I also wanted to discover my own preferences, just for kicks.

 The VARK (Visual, Aural, Read/Write, Kinesthetic) evaluation consists of 16 questions, each with four response choices, of which a responder may select any that match his/her perception. This particular component of the questionnaire is fantastic. I think I only checked one box on perhaps two of the questions; on all the others, I selected more than one response.

But VARK is more than just nifty, fun, and helpful in making the learning experience more meaningful for each of our children. VARK goes one step further: each modality has a helpsheet that suggests specific study skills and methods for that particular preference:

• Intake: ideas for absorbing information
• SWOT (Study without Tears): study skills and techniques
• Output: performance, e.g., tests, exams, assignments, presentations, etc.

For example, the Read/Write helpsheet suggests for SWOT that someone with that preference might want to rewrite his or her notes; read those notes silently over and over; rewrite ideas using other words; and rework charts, diagrams, and the like into written statements.

I found the FAQ section to be particularly helpful. Spend a few minutes browsing around there to get a feel for the philosophy behind the VARK system. To get a better understanding of the four modalities and the multimodal preference, read over the VARK Modalities page. None of these is too long or technical; in fact, I found them informative and fascinating.

You have the option to purchase for around $16.00 US a more detailed (typically seven- to eight-page) personal report of your score. I downloaded the two-page sample report and decided that the free academic helpsheets on the website were enough information for us at this point.

Our styles, you ask? I scored a strong Read/Write preference (13), with a fairly even mix among the other three modalities (around five/six). Miss Priss came out quite strong on the Aural side of things, whereas Tiny Girl is multimodal with visual leanings.

Pop over to the VARK site and take the quiz yourself. Have your older children take it, too. And then let me know your results. Were they what you expected, or was something out of the blue?


Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Enjoying Poetry with Your Children: Online Resources

Photo courtesy ToniVC via Foter

People have a lot to say about poetry. I found perusing the web for poetry resources to be a daunting task. It's impossible to read or even locate everything. However, I've highlighted below some resources that are most promising -- to my mind, anyway.

Silvia Vardell's blog, Poetry for Children, is a powerhouse of information. Her Poet Links list will introduce you to active children's writers you may not know. Perhaps you'll find one whose work delights your children. And you.

This page from the University of Lethbridge in Alberta suggests numerous books and websites on teaching poetry, as well as ideas for teaching and enjoying poetry. Developed by the Curriculum Laboratory, the page offers ideas for classroom centers, which homeschooling families could easily adapt. I especially like the prompts to spark an interest in children writing poetry of their own. Some of the listed websites and books are more pedagogically philosophical than necessary for my purposes, but lurking underneath this veneer are great suggestions and inspiration. I loved discovering Georgia Heard and her books!

Don't miss Poets.org, the website of the Academy of American Poets. Its drop-down menu, For Educators, provides a wealth of information, tips, resources, and plans. The site is also a good source for poet bios. I enjoyed the audio files of poets reading their own work. Hearing Robert Frost read "The Road Not Taken" or Dylan Thomas read "Do Not Go Gentle Into that Good Night" is a not-to-be-missed experience.

Teaching Student to Write and Read Poetry, a free ebook published by Jefferson County (KY) Public Schools for high school-aged students, is available here. I downloaded the PDF file and have only glanced at the contents, but I have high hopes based on my first look.
The Poetry Foundation website has a children's poetry section (look under the Resources drop-down menu) with book picks, a poem of the day, and articles on children's poetry. Here's the article that caught my eye: "Home Appreciation," about -- you guessed it -- homeschoolers and poetry. The website offers a FREE poetry app, too. And the Learning Lab (also under Resources) is packed with helpful and useful content.

While you're making your plans for next year, take some time to explore poetry. These resources can help you hone in on poets, explore poetry teaching methods, and discover family favorites. As always, use your discretion in making poetry choices for your family. What suits one family may not suit another.

This list is by no means exhaustive, nor was it meant to be. Use it as a springboard for your own poetry adventure. Click links and Google book titles (or poets or poem titles) to see what you might find. I found this poem at the Poetry Foundation website. I liked it, and perhaps you will, too:

The Ocracoke Ponies
by Jennifer Grotz
No one saw the first ones
swim ashore centuries ago,
nudged by waves into the marsh grasses.


When you look into their faces, there is no trace
of the ship seized with terror, the crashing waves
and the horses’ cries when thrown overboard.


Every afternoon you ride your bicycle to the pasture
to watch the twitch of their manes and ivory tails
unroll a carpet of silence, to see ponies lost in dream.


But it isn’t dream, that place
your mind drifts to, that museum of memory
inventoried in opposition to the present.


You felt it once on a plane,
taking off from a city you didn’t want to leave,
the stranded moment when the plane lifts into the clouds.


That’s not dream, it’s not even sleeping.
It is the nature of sleeping to be unaware.
This was some kind of waiting for the world to come back.