Eclectically Yours,

Weakly Report

                                 

This weeks wEaKlY Report is brought to you by the latest issue of Nat'l Geographic. Ms. D designed the cover. What do you think? It's typical Nat'l Geographic fare...bare chested heathens, uncivilized, lacking in education and schooling.

Well, this week was punctuated by the great Optometry visit, which I detailed extensively. And then, well, we decided to heck with it all, we're going to coast ourselves into March when we'll "really get down to business". As if unschooling isn't really business. See, it's that lack of trust in child led education. Sigh. More on that later. To that end we designed a prospectus with a list of objectives for the coming month. Things like "Let's not sleep in so much" and "Less talking about craft projects, and more doing", "should we start taking some walks?" and "the museum is opening up down the road!" and "let's get together with some other homeschoolers."

Ms. D really wanted nothing to do with school this week. In any way. Education in any form was not going to be maneuvered, even sideways, toward her vicinity. For example, this weekend we went to the Great Big City of Portland, ME and stayed overnight. The hotel had cable, of course, something we don't have. That meant Animal Planet and Discovery. Ms. D was so happy. (Of course, she didn't' see that counted toward life science.) Anyway, we were all happily watching Discovery until this show about Human Desire came on. That's right: Human Desire. It was about the mechanics of Love. The brain. The body. Interesting, fascinating stuff. Ms. D made her disgust very plainly known, despite the fact we were enthusiastic in telling her that this was a beautiful part of science and how incredibly cool and wonderful it is. She protested louder and louder. Here is an excerpt:

Dad: Ms. D, this is about human reproduction. It's a wonderful aspect of life and science.

Ms. D: (dead serious, she did NOT mean this as a joke) No...really...NO...I just ate.

We flip through channels and came full circle back to Discovery. So we tried again.

Mom: Fascinating...

Ms. D: (hiding face) AAAck I don't want school on the weekends!

She peeks through her pillow. She sees an actor portraying a man visually "checking out" women. (The idea being the science of what attracts one human to another) and she says:

"He is purposely trying to attract innocent women!"

After recovering, we decided to watch something else.

We were excited to find that a local museum is having a kids camp in April. The kids will be doing sculpture and painting. I was very pleased that Ms. Devi wanted to attend and was willing to do so without me. Her trip to Tanglewood last fall was a success in many ways.

So let me tell you about today, Friday. I basically crashed big time, with some sort of sino/naso/bronchio/sore throato/gastro/intestino thing. I just sat on the couch and read. David was in and out of the house trying to redeem a day that was shot before it started. Needing a new transmission. More on that later.

I kept trying to rise from my nap/reading/moaning/groaning to say "Ms. D, can I get you anything?"
"No, no mom, just stay put! I"m working on projects!!"

I'm afraid to step into the kitchen. Deeply, deeply afraid. Before David walks out the door he threw some food in her general direction and yelled to me "I promise I'll help clean up tonight!" And while I so much appreciated that offer, it didn't bode well for what was going on in the kitchen/dining/school room area of the house.

I was able to finish a book today as Ms. D amused herself. She basically had an old Barbie mini van and hot glued interesting pieces of metal, glass and wood to it. It sorta looks like Barbie went on some deranged road trip with her artiste boyfriend. And it looks cool. I"d love to show it to you, but the camera is lost, remember? Meanwhile she discovered that when hot glue gets on last years issue of House and Garden the paper sticks to the glue, making some really cool looking round pieces of art. So she started doing it on purpose and has an idea in mind for making jewelry. Then she made some stamps. Rubber stamps. She's been begging me to help her with the project. I didn't really want her to use all the "very sharp and pointy" tools alone so kept having her wait for me. Weeks go by. Months go by. And seeing  my weakened state she took her chance. She only told me when showing me the finished project. She totally didn't make the piece how I would at all. She figured out how to write words backwards without me showing her how to do it the "right" way. Can you imagine the nerve!!??  She is currently making her own "Cold Stone" ice cream by mixing vanilla, coconut and chocolate chips. She promises to sing if I tip her, too.

Yesterday we went to the library and a few amazing things happened. She explored the bookshelves on her own, I found a Calvin and Hobbes book (Val, homeschooling mom who has helped me a great deal with advice/input on Ms. D's eyes, suggested that comic book style things worked good for her kids)and she sat in a corner of the library and laughed to herself. That was SO cool to see her really and truly enjoying the library. So we have been listening her read Calvin and Hobbes to us.

So what else was on the Great Education Prospectus for March? More of the same really. It's pretty hard to make each week a hotbed of educational excitement. Reading, Writing, Literature, Art, History, Science, Volunteer Work, Music Appreciation, Piano Practice, Science, Creative Writing...well, you know the drill. Let us hope that next week when you check in for the wEaKlY Report, it will look all bright, shiny and new.

 

True Romance

On Regularmom's blog the other day, she posted a youtube clip from West Side Story. I laughed so hard at how dramatic it was. But boy, I love that movie. I cry at the end every single time.

I was first introduced to West Side Story via my mom's record album. She has the original. It's inscribed. My dad bought if for her. They saw the movie before they were married. And do you know what my mom said? "If I ever have a girl, I will name her Maria."

My first recollection of hearing that story involves sitting on my mom's lap in our Dodge Dart waiting for Dad to bring us ice cream from the Pink Pony drive through in Lancaster WI. My second related recollection is of listening  to the album in our living room. Olive green shag carpet. (We had a carpet rake for it so that the nap would all go one way) Dancing. Loving the song "Maria". This was in the days before VCR's. So it was a long while before I saw the movie and fell in love with Natalie Wood and her bracelets. With Rita Moreno's hips shaking through "America" and Richard Beymer (is he gorgeous or what?) singing my song. Later, my cousin and I would try to harmonize to "One Hand, One Heart" and I think we did pretty darn well, too.

Mom also had this wonderful Broadway version of The Sound of Music. Which I loved. I wanted to be those kids. But you know, somehow I never did relate to "How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria". And no one, but NO ONE, ever sang that to me. Nope. Never. And I never, EVER heard anyone rhyme "Maria" with "Diarrhea". Or try to sing Santana to me....or "Maria, Take A Letter..."

Notwithstanding,  here is the true love story.

And here.

And now, I leave you with some true beautiful sappiness in all it's glory. Because let's remember: It's all about ME.

Are You My Blurker?

Blurker (BLUR-kur): n. 1. One who reads many blogs but leaves no evidence of themselves such as comments behind; a silent observer of blogs. 2. One who reads many blogs but has no blog of their own; a blog-watcher or blog voyeur.

So I totally missed National De Lurking Day/Week/Month/Whatever. It was back in January. I was busy transferring all my stuff to Typepad and getting used to it. At any rate it's never been like me to fall in with what/when everyone else is doing stuff anyway. Unless it has to do with hair styles and fashion. That's entirely different.

And I know how I've mentioned I am entirely addicted to my statistics, as paltry as they are. It's so interesting to see where people are from, how long they stay, where they go. What drives you? Canada, Hong Kong, Mexico, Brazil for Pete's Sake!!! Someone in Brazil read my blog for two whole minutes! Why? And you from Belgium, you know who you are. Enlighten me, 'cause I think it's SO cool that someone in Belgium is reading my blog. I've never been to Europe. I'm so totally, disgustingly American in my geographical illiteracy that you could really help me. Tell me about Belgium for heavens sake! Enlighten my readers, too!

And there are some of you who come and actually go to other pages! You actually click on my curriculum links. What's with that? Even I am not interested in my curriculum. I posted it entirely out of boredom. You people seem to like my blog roll too. And I originally eschewed the idea of a blog roll. Go figure.

I also find it fascinating what sites some of you come from.  A lot of you are from various homeschool forums I visit and list my blog at. Getting googled is particularly interesting. Although those of you who stumble here that way don't stay too long. Imagine. You were looking for "denim jumpsuit" and found a picture of my husband. There are 12 of you who have actually subscribed to me. (None of which are my family....my therapist says that's okay.) Clearly you need my witty riposte in your life, daily. Many of you come from The Country Doctors Wife, or Chickens In the Road. After those opening acts, I'm sure I'm a bit disappointing, but some of you have actually stayed a bit.

So what I'm getting to here is the same thing I was getting to about a month and a half ago. All you blurkers are killing me. You're not commenting. I am terribly curious as to WHY you are here reading my drivel, and how you came to be here. And why do you come back, anyway? What drives you? Are you insomniacs? Do you homeschool? Are you looking for ideas of what to do when you visit Maine? Are you wondering if your child will ever read, so mine gives you hope? Does my haphazard- make- it- up -as- I- go- along homeschooling methods make you feel a bit better about yourselves? Are you related to me or are a friend and feel somewhat obligated to come here? I get that you stay because I am terribly of- the- moment and cutting edge in all ways that truly matter, but before that.

So this is YOUR CHANCE!!! Comment already. No, I'm not giving anything away this time. You have the sheer pleasure of knowing that you made my day and sated my curiosity and that of my readership. Now get to it. Below this post is a  link that says  "Comments". Click on it. Fill in the information. Leave a comment. Go away satisfied you did a bit of good today. And then come back tomorrow.

(And mom and dad, this SO means you too.)

PSSSTTTT: If you do nothing else, at least take the poll on the upper right hand of the blog! Inquiring minds want to know that, too!

My Husband's Disreputable Past

I think I have already shown you some compromising pictures of my husband here (scroll down) and I have titillated you with mention of a denim jumpsuit he actually wore at one time here.

Yet, the denim jumpsuit picture alluded me. I remembered it, but could not find it. It could have something to do with the fact that most of our belongings are still in a state 1500 miles and one U-haul away.

Imagine my complete surprise and delight when I found the picture! And where did I find it? Where you find anything and everything you are looking for, dearest readers. Google.

So now I can completely embarrass my husband yet again. Without further delay, without further ado, I give you, ladies and gentlemen, dear faithful readers (I think there are 12 of you,) stumblers upon my blog from foreign parts, and insomniacs all: Zeus!!



How completely funky is this circa 1976 garage band? Oh, wait. I am pretty sure they didn't even have a garage. While David was wearing this DENIM JUMPSUIT and clearly not getting haircuts at ALL, I was skipping merrily to first grade. Pony tails, braids and my Holly Hobbie lunch box. That's just wrong on so many levels.

Meanwhile, I know my readers want to know how, they too, can find embarassing pictures of their nearest and dearest by using Google. For now, that shall remain a secret, but I promise there will be more compromising photos of my husband in the near future with SECRETS of how you can Google for fun and blackmail!!

Lt. Dan Goes To The Eye Doctor

                                                         

Ms. D has always been kind of a mystery. Even when I was pregnant with her and she refused all efforts medical and alternative to budge from her breach position. I knew at that point this child was not going to fit neatly into a category of any type.

By the time she was "supposed" to start to walk she was scooting on her butt. You've all seen Lt. Dan from Forest Gump? How he "scoots" to get around?

That's what we called her. Lt. Dan. She got where she wanted to go and was happy doing so. But by 13 mos she wasn't pulling herself up onto anything. She was terribly content and not frustrated at all so there were no real big warning signs. And, as parents, we aren't the type to really be alarmists. We're more "she'll do it in her own time" kind of people, instead of the "my gosh does she have a label?" people. But by the time she was 15 months we had taken her to a round of Doctors. They were just as baffled, frankly. But in the end they came up with a vague kind of proprioception/sensory integration issues. I would read some of the issues kids with SID had and well, parts of them described Ms. D, but nothing like the difficulties these kids and parents went through. Ms. D's doctors couldn't even quite   label Ms D in the "dysfunction" category 'cause she wasn't that bad. So she had therapy for about 8 months and was walking before we knew it.  It's interesting because I can still see, as the doctors said "not a red flag, but more pink" in her physical activities, her picky eating, her sense of balance and so on. She's not as active because she truly doesn't seem to know "where" she is in her space. But I digress...

Fast forward to her reading delay. Hey, she's not interested right now I said when she was ages 5-7 and that's okay. That's the luxury of homeschooling/unschooling. No push. She's into other things. I read about delayed reading and academics and it makes me feel like that really describes Ms. D. Totally. She didn't have vision/reading issues. She doesn't squint. She doesn't have headaches, her vision is perfect 20/20 so I can't imagine there is a problem. Her first optometrist appointment when she was seven was fine. In fact, the obnoxious doctor said not to bring her back for two years. Then I read something by Val on a particular forum that I visit. Val was responding to someone who was concerned about her daughter's reading. Val mentioned trying to find a developmental optometrist. Val has one million kids and a lot of experience, so I tend to listen when she talks. Something about what she said clicked with me and I thought it might be good to look into. I had that bit of homeschooling mom doubt that perhaps because we don't go to public school something was getting missed. Despite the fact we've  visited the optometrist. Still, I almost didn't' make the appointment. Except David mentioned how if he reads regularly he can be a fast reader. But by and large he's a slower reader. Has to go over his words a few times. That made me think perhaps there is something hereditary that Ms. D may have picked up when it comes to tracking/teaming.

So I called aforementioned obnoxious optometrist. Gee, they don't know of a developmental optometrist in the whole state of Maine. That was too bad for my concerns, now wasn't it?  What is more they can't find my daughters records. I did what they could've done and googled. Except they would've looked helpful and intelligent in doing so. Instead they didn't. And I won't be going back. Oh, did my irritation at them just get in the way of this post? Sorry. By googling I found a developmental optometrist about an hour away and made the appointment. We went yesterday. And what follows is what we found out.

Ms. D has 20/20 vision. She has none of the signs of any problems. Until a few tests determined that Ms. D's eyes aren't working to well as a team. When it comes to things like reading especially. In fact, the kind Doctor showed me how if you took a pencil and tried to make Ms. D go cross eyed, one eye would wander away, not cooperating in following the pencil with the other eye. Kind of like this:

Yet Ms. D doesn't seem to have a lot of eye strain. She doesn't seem to be fatigued or tired after a particularly intense day of school. So who knew? After a few more tests the doctor said that Ms. D's eyes were not working as they should by HALF. By half. By half?? I couldn't believe it?? Where were the signs of this problem? A pamphlet I was given lists about five hundred million things to watch for like red yes, tearing eyes, crusty eyes, headaches, holds books to close, tilting head when reading, orients drawings on the page differently (what is different?? Isn't that creativity?) I couldn't find much that described her (surprise!) except these few: reverses letters when writing or copying, short attention span when reading, poorly spaced writing, and writes horizontally in middle of page. Out of five hundred million things to watch for, she has "sorta" four things. And that's just "sorta/sometimes" not always. And yet, the diagnosis was Convergence Insufficiency. Which is very common I'm told.  Was there any way I was supposed to catch this? Would've public school caught this? I'm not so certain. Because check out what this woman wrote to Dear Abbey, or Dear Pauline or whoever she is now...Click HERE for article. Ms. D is, not in the least, having these extreme problems as this woman who wrote Abbey/Anne/Whoever. Perhaps a school would've caught it. Perhaps not. Maybe she'd just be "slow" or LD.

The great and wonderful news is this: It's really easy to correct. Ms. D will need about 12 weeks of vision therapy. It's like therapy for the eyes. She may need more than 12 weeks but the Doctor didn't think so. The Doctor would like to do a few more tests to round out the findings and make sure there isn't anything else going on in addition to the Convergence Insufficiency. When checking in with Val again on aforementioned forum she also mentioned that we shouldn't necessarily expect major results right away, but that the differences would show a bit later. With Val's kids their writing didn't take off until almost a year after therapy. A few others chimed in to say how vision therapy totally changed there kids learning. There are some other wonderful success stories here.

So I am happy, happy, happy to find that there is actually something that could help Ms. D and her reading/studying skills. I was never that shaken up that she was behind. I've always seen progress. Even slow progress and that is what counted. The biggest flag to me was that I really have to keep with her reading/spelling writing or we'd loose it all. It seems once she learned words she struggled to retain them. But only with reading. If we were learning in other ways, say verbally, her powers of memory and retention are HUGE. Almost abnormally huge. She can remember and regurgitate most anything. Not only regurgitate, but she can come up with conclusions, inferences and discussions based on that learning. And her reading comprehension is stellar too. So something wasn't quite working with the reading, but what? Just a delay or something more? That is the ONLY clue I had that something may not be quite right. And really, how vague is that??

So I'm thrilled to find something that can help her and also feeling a bit like a bad mom. Which is typical for parents, is it not? And what is in the future for our little growing Lt. Dan? What other vague yet concerning issue will she come up with?

Meanwhile, the hereditary thing? Yup, said the doctor.   
Sounds like your husband may have similar issues.

Addendum: Because not everyone chooses to look at comments I am going to add this particular comment to the post, in hopes that it may help someone. I also think  Dominick agrees with me, although he didn't exactly come out and say so...you know, in so many words...that my first optometrist was indeed an idiot not so sharp on the uptake of my daughters eye health when a) not checking for this condition in Ms. D earlier and b) not being able to find a developmental optometrist in Maine. Again, I would hate to put words in Dominicks mouth, and disparage his fellow optometrists, but a man who sings tenor certainly must agree with me. 

There are developmental optometrists all over the world. Go to http://www.covd.org for more info. Also for up to date information on kids vision check out http://mainosmemos.blogspot.com.

I'm a Professor at the Illinois College of Optometry http://www.ico.edu and in private practice at http://www.nw.optometry.net..both URLs along with my blog offers lots of info...

Dominick

Posted by: Dominick M. Maino, OD,MEd, FAAO, FCOVD-A | February 26, 2008 at 10:50 PM

 

Tidal Learning

As one does, in the blogosphere, I stumbled upon a great description of what I consider "eclectic" schooling. I might be going out on a limb on that, and Melissa can correct me if I'm wrong.

Melissa Wiley, tired of trying to describe her homeschool methodology (I hear that..) coined her own term: Tidal Learning. Caught between her love of Charlotte Mason and her delight in unschooling she realized the tide of her families homeschooling adventures goes in and out and changes with the weather. I love that metaphor! If you're interested and want to read more check out this post. Meanwhile, Melissa has some further thoughts on tidal learning. If you'd like a catalog of her posts on the subject click here.

Lost:

I know, I know, those of you who actually watch the show are thinking "Another Lost fan! She's gonna blog about Lost!" I'm sorry to disappoint. I've actually seen 1/2 an episode once a long time ago. And I thought to myself. "No. I can't go there. I will become addicted and obsessed, because that is the type of person I am. I will wait for every single episode to come out on Netflix. The hype will have died. The discussion will be gone. It will be just me, a blanket, lots of chocolate and approximately 52 hours in front of me, and I"ll watch the whole thing at once. I'll get all the adrenalin shot at one time. I will not be a pawn of the networks leaving me hanging after every episode, every season. I laugh in their face." The thing is, I haven't gotten Lost from Netflix yet. So that is still in the future.

No, my dear, dear, faithful blog readers. My post is about something else entirely. It's about the fact that I am an anal retentive control freak who NEVER looses a single thing. And if I misplace  something, (Misplacing being entirely different than loosing something. Duh.) I hunt  it down like Rambo until it is found. And if it isn't found in 1.5 minutes I upset  enlist  the entire household into finding said object. Do you get that? I NEVER loose anything. Never. Ever. Everything has a place and everything to it's place. At all times.

So a weekend ago or so we went to my favorite restaurant in the whole world: MacMahon's in Camden. I needed a night out with a friend. So off we went. Well, Ms. D and David decided they'd like to go out too. Kind of a Dad and Daughter thing. (Gee, they never get THAT.) So where do they go? MacMahon's. We sat about five tables apart. It was fine. Really.We all ended up playing pool and listening to the music together. Would you like to see pictures? Of course you would,because blog readers must have pictures. And I'd love to show them to you. Really. But, getting back to the title of this post, I LOST my camera. Completely lost. As in: I can't find anywhere. The last I saw it we were lounging around taking photos of everything that moved, playing pool. And the next thing you know, two days later, I am searching for my camera remembering suddenly I last had it at MacMahon's. (I am a VIKING at retracing my steps. I can tell you every move I have made with an object that I am looking for. I can tell you the last minute I held it in my hand. That SO helps when it comes to finding lost objects.)

So I call the lovely people at MacMahon's and do you know what? They haven't seen it. At all. I called again the next day. Still no camera. I'm not sure they knew how to retrace steps and find missing objects in 1.5 minutes. I am not sure they were enlisting the help of all concerned. I am not sure they were actually as anal as I would be about it. But what can you do? I did the unthinkable. I shrugged my shoulders and said "oh well." Do you know how much therapy that would've cost to get to that point? Do you? And all it took was a lost camera for me to say "Oh, well." It served me well. It's now gone, that is life. Just like that. I became less anal in a matter of minutes.

But the problem is this: I can NOT blog you pictures at this time. Not until I get a new camera. I tried for a new camera this weekend and my husband mumbled something  about "not affording it at this time." Huh? Since when is money an object?? I mean, really. Then he said he wants to get a really major camera like our friend Kim. I'm sorry I don't have time to learn more than point and shoot. Oh, yes, I"d love to have amazingly wonderful pictures and learn all about photography. But I have a million and one other hobbies on the back burner, so I can't add photography to that list. Nope. All I want is a new camera and Photoshop. Then I'll be P.W.

But until then, my friends, I am going to have to post pictures of THE PAST. And photos from other websites. I will have to completely fake it when it comes to showing you our amazing life. At least for a few weeks.

Meanwhile, if you have a camera that you love, drop me a line and tell me about it. I need some ideas. And never, ever, EVER take your camera to your favorite restaurant and leave it there. Unless you want a new one.

Luckily, aforementioned, abovementioned, "friend Kim" took some photos from The Night of the Lost Camera. They are way cooler than mine ever could be. Click here to view.

Weekly Report (In A Sense...)

                                  

There are those who say "Unschooling wouldn't work for us, my child would just sit in front of the T.V. all day!"

It seems that this week, we set out to prove that thinking entirely true and correct. That's right. T.V. lots of it. If I see The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy one more time, I will scream. (Classic example of loving the book, hating the movie. Really hating the movie.)

However, there is hope in the air (see above little ticker/time line thing) and I have the sense, from reading other blogs that I am not the only one who has passed through some sort of mindless February funk. I have felt the sun shining longer, I feel my spirits rise. I feel like getting out of bed. Mostly. Almost usually.  Very much of the time.

Besides, my husband is taking us to the BIG CITY, this weekend. It's freezing and there is nothing to do , but we're getting out of this hellhole house!  That should see us into March quite nicely. And then we will get back into our routine of homeschooling like crazy. That's right. Math, Reading, Writing, Languages, Art, Music,Grammar,Penmanship, History, Science,  Piano, Museums, Co-ops, Field Trips,  Biting off Life in Great Big Chunks, Learning As We Go,  Sipping From the  Cup that is  Homeschooling Heaven blah, blah, blah....But until then...I can not even begin to share with  you our week. It's too, too, sad. Too depressing to know that I have entirely neglected my daughters education for something like a warm bed, chocolate, cookie dough, books and "mommy's blogging.."

Instead I give you: An Interview with Ms. D.
(One thing I've learned by visiting other blogs: When in doubt:Interview.) 

Me/Mom:What do you love best about homeschooling? Which subjects I mean.

Ms. D: I love History, Reading~well, I don't always love that~Writing, and Geography. I really like Geography.

M: What is your favorite thing about being home to school?

D: No bossy teachers who erase my work and tell me I'm wrong. Not putting up with bossy kids.

M: Isn't your mom bossy? (not the REAL bossy, but bossy in attitude)

D: Not as much as they were.

M: But that was only Kindergarten.

D: It happened. True story.

M: List your favorite things about your mom.(Shameless aren't I?)

D: Everything. She's pretty, I like her best with glasses. She's talented...

M: How am I talented? Are you just saying that?

D: Pretty much.

M: Go on...

D:...she's a good teacher, she has style, she likes to shop...I love her.

M: What's your favorite music to listen to right now?

D: I like the CD from Series of Unfortunate Events, Beethoven anything, and Jewel.

M: That's eclectic for sure. Any others?

D:Do I still have to be interviewed?

M:Okay, I"ll move on. Can you name some of your favorite books?

D: Series of Unfortunate Events, of course. Redwall/Mossflower, Rowen Hood Returns, Inkheart, and  Chasing Vermeer, oh yeah and  Poppy by Avi.

M: What do you like to do with your friends?

D: Make our own silly video tapes, watch movies, play board games, do our hair, play with  make up and take baths.

M: Take baths??!!

D: Ya, you know, a spa thing.

M: Right. So what do you like best about living in Maine?

D: I love being near the ocean. Smelling the salt water and the trees. I don't miss going by the Stauffacher farm in Wisconsin, it really smelled bad of cow manure (I swear she said this, people....)and I love the nature we get to see when we walk on the island, and chasing gulls, collecting shells and mussels, watching the lobster boats and taking ferry rides. It's just really pretty.

 

M: What do you  miss the most about Wisconsin?

D: Corn. Seeing the flat land and the corn is really pretty. I miss my Grandma and Grandpa, uncle and aunt and you know, my cousins, like Sophie. I miss Ellery. Alot. And Peyton. She's getting big. And Callie and Jacob are getting big too. I liked our home in Darlington because Dad had worked on it and it was ours. I miss Darlington 'cause it was a cute and small town. And Marilyn's Shop. I miss that shop!

 

M: Do you like Mom or Dad best?

D: Are we done?

M: Just answer the question.

D: I'm gonna have to say I'm closer to Dad.

M: But I am pretty and talented? With my glasses?

D: Yup.

M: Okay, one last question. What do you NOT like about homeschooling?

D: Science isn't my favorite thing in the world.

M: We never do Science. Okay not NEVER but hardly ever. Your scientifically illiterate.

D: I still don't love it.

M: If you could choose one thing you hate about....

D: You said one more question...I have stuff to do...

M: What are you doing...

D: I"m drawing...I've got this project I've been wanting to do forever.

M: I thought you just finished that.

D: No, that was my chocolate/orange cooking project. I'm drawing now. Can I go? Are we done?

M: Yes, thanks for stopping by. Did you want to jump on the couch and tell the world how much you LOVE me?

D: Huh?

M: Forget it.

YEEEE HAWWWW!!!

P.S. I used to date Paul McCartney. I'll bet you didn't know that.

Hope Springs...Sorta

It sounds like everyone is going completely crazy with this winter. My RL friends are hitting rockbottom. That is when I see them. We've all been cooped up for too long. I have noticed moms loosing it on various homeschool forums I belong to. (You know who you are...) I have noticed I am loosing it. Hot baths and hot toddies are all the rage for me lately. Seriously, I am depressed, anxious, lethargic and until today, hopeless.

Today hope sprung. It kind of started when Denise (Mom in Madison)posted about CSA's. The pictures were wonderful, and what with our garden last year a bit of a bust I thought that sounded like a good idea. I found one right around the corner from us. I had no idea it was even there! And then I noticed the days are getting longer. Really and truly. And daylight savings time starts on March 9th!! That is less than a month away, my dear readers! Then I got my DownEast magazine March issue. The home and garden issue. There is a wonderful article on Eliot Coleman. Eliot is the author of The New Organic Grower.  Take a gander at   his website and check out the gallery of photos. If that doesn't' give you hope, what does?

Wanna know what else gives me hope? (Of course you do...) I have always wanted a greenhouse. I have a friend up the road who single handedly made her own greenhouse (this may not sound that amazing until you realize she had four kids and one on the way..)In the winter she goes in the greenhouse and plays with dirt and soaks up the warmth. I want that. It's cheaper than Florida and better for you. The Downeast mag. had a link to this site. This is my year, people. I am SO hoping by next fall/winter we will have our own greenhouse and be able to eat fresh year 'round. With that in mind, check out another great book by Eliot Coleman. I am so ordering it.

And just think what that would do for cabin fever! When it happens and you are in the middle of the winter doldrums you have a standing invitation to come see me and my greenhouse.

Link O'The Day

I'm a huge ebay fan. Mostly I buy. Sometimes I sell. (I'm at 312 and 100%, thank you very much!!) Although, to be honest, I haven't bid for awhile. But when I really, really want something totally obscure,(see a dinnerware set from the 60's) nostalgic (see my mom's Sarah Coventry necklace that has disappeared years ago...) hard to find (Princess House saucepans that I LOVE)I go to eBay. Then there was the year my dear friend Carla and I bought all our anniversary gifts for each other exclusively from eBay. What fun that was! I used to shop for Ms. D's clothes exclusively from eBay, but now that she's getting just a bit more into the shopping thing, that will change.

I wasn't too surprised to hear of the proposed Ebay strike. The nickel and diming, frankly, doesn't make it all that worth it to me to sell.  While I'll always check ebay first, I was pleased to find a few other auction sites and thought I'd pass them on.

Bidville.com

Hibidder.com

Bidtopia.com

I have no experience with any of these, so caveat emptor!

Meanwhile, all this eBay looking has me on the grandest nostalgia trip of all: Avon. I remember when Mom got the HUGE Avon books.The were standard magazine size. I was around 7 or 8 and loved to look through them. It was the harbinger of Vogue for me. Better yet, my very best friend in the world, had a mom who bought her Avon lip gloss in those cool plastic containers made to look like fake gum. Or mini soda bottles. Or Chocolate Chip Cookies.  I could almost swear my best friend had this. Do you think it would smell like my childhood if I got it?

Somehow I think some things are better left on the shelf.

I leave you with this last thought friends...Is eBay going to be a distant memory in 10 years? Will our grandchildren wonder what this song was all about?

Ode To Amanda

On Amanda Soule's blog she has this lovely little post about the ten reasons she's moving out of her February funk and being joyful. Clearly, Amanda, you have not hit the dark side of forty yet. My advice for those at this point in their lives is plenty of chocolate, naps, and letting the children fend for themselves. I find the later really builds character. And if we want to build beautiful, full, lives for our children, character is a must.

But I am NOT a negative Nellie, not me, even in the depths of cold, dark, depressing, winter-will-never-end February. So I have developed my own "February Ten" in honor of Amanda, to show my sunny Julie Andrews side and celebrate the small victories of February.

Maria's February Ten ...er Six...

1. My husband cooks.

 


2. Down blankets and a child who takes a nap. (Is that two?)


3. A child who seemingly entertains herself. (Not sure
what's in those glasses, but I distinctly heard her say
"Shaken, not stirred.")




4. Fat Kitten Paws


5. Did I mention down blankets?



6.A child who likes to experiment in the kitchen. This
time with chocolate, raspberry sauce, and coconut.
If that doesn't move ones February Blues for about
two minutes, I don't know what does.

And while I don't want to go so far as to say Amanda was outright lying about the sun staying out longer....I will say it was slightly exaggerated. Here is photographic proof of the one day the sun came out SO FAR this February.

Is It ME?

No really. As I sit here and celebrate SUN and WARM WEATHER. (and am very sad I can't find my camera (read: lost) to show you I have a WINDOW OPEN!!)  I had to ask myself about this forecast. I think my blind faith and trust in the science of meteorology just flew out the window. See if you can figure out what part of this makes no sense:

Today... Partly sunny. A slight chance of snow showers this afternoon. Highs in the lower 40s. Southwest winds 10 to 20 mph.

(Hint: "They" stuck it in the middle thinking you wouldn't notice it. I'll make it easier for you.)

Today... Partly sunny. A slight chance of snow showers this afternoon. Highs in the lower 40s. Southwest winds 10 to 20 mph.

Is it me, or is that just completely out of left field??? Ya, I know it's winter, but c'mon, people!! It's forty degrees out, there is NO WAY it's gonna snow. I will NOT let it happen!!! Not in the first day of what promises to be beautiful weather, giving me hope...giving me the sweet taste of spring.

 

More Blog Rolls

I added a few more blogs to my roll in case you wanted an update. My blog roll has become official blog spare tire and morphing into blog fat. There are w-a-a-y too many to read. I homeschool so I can't keep up. HA! Who am I fooling? I homeschool which is why I can keep up. Today I called it unschooling. Or winter. Or I- am- so- sick -of- this -house- but- can't -move- from- this- house malaise.

In case you don't know what to click on when you get to the blog roll, let me give you a hint: I am bossy. No not me, the blog. I like her irreverence, her complete irony, her complete let's not take myself too seriously-ness. And I want her hair. Despite the fact she had a bad color. I know all about that. And I want to figure out how to add captions to all my pictures like she does.

At any rate, maybe it's cabin fever, but I thought I'd DIE laughing at this video she did. If you lived the 80's and are a woman of a "certain age" I think you can relate to it. Not that bossy is of a 'certain age'.

I don't care what bossy says, though, MY husband is John Cusack.

Okay, maybe not quite, maybe more of a Milton Berle. But it works for me.

P.S. My daughter, who is almost 10, has started her John Cusack obsession this year with The Journey of Natty Gann. I've already watched it 100 times. You know, for the story line.

10 Year Old Vet Assistant

My favorite sister-in-law sent me this link to a newsclip about a 10 year old girl who is assisting at a vet's office. I know that this hit the blogosphere I bit ago, so if you've already seen it, feel free to skip.

My SIL, Anna, knows that this is right up Ms. D's alley. She's always wanted to work with animals. When we go to the vet she asks permission to go in the back and see what they do. She asks to help, she asks tons of questions. She has books on animals and vet practice. Ms. D volunteers at the animal shelter, too. The video totally validated and inspired her.

Despite the nay saying online, I think that this is great encouragement for kids to pursue their goals and passions at a young age.  Yes, this 10 yr old took the course online. Yes, she is not even remotely a vet. Her mom has to be with her when she volunteers as she's too young to be at the office on her own and legally work. And I've heard negatives about the office that allows her to volunteer. But let's give that office some credit. They are allowing, with supervision, encouragement and on the job training, a young girl to pursue her interests. At a level that other kids could only dream of. This is apprenticeship. Which is a subject that I could go on and on about. I feel there is nothing better than apprenticeship in addition to or instead of 'higher education'. John Holt put it so much better:

“It is as true now as it was then that no matter what tests show, very little of what is taught in school is learned, very little of what is learned is remembered, and very little of what is remembered is used. The things we learn, remember, and use are the things we seek out or meet in the daily, serious, nonschool parts of our lives.”

Kim and Jason Make Me Homesick

Okay, this has totally and in all ways made me homesick. Homesick for Wisconsin. Homesick for summer. Homesick for Madison. Homesick for ice cream. (Although, to be fair Mainers are VERY ice cream oriented, more so than, Wisconsinites. Wisconsinites take their ice cream for granted. Mainers protect, horde, and connoisseur their ice cream.) And most of all, it's Kim and Jason's accent that's making me cry. In a good way.

Now get out there and cure Adultitis!! (see yellow link to left!)

Book Review

Book: Love Walked In
Author: Marisa De Los Santos
Progress: Finished

Review: Well, if I can put down my Kleenex I'll type. I just finished this book in a day. It was romantic, but not predictably sappy. It was brutally honest, without being too edgy or bitter. I believed my characters. See, I even called them "mine". That's how attached I got and how immersed I was. Just like the old fashioned romantic movies De Los Santos draws on, this book pulled me in and made me cheer for a happy ending. (I'm not telling.) And it also made me believe the story is continuing even though the book is done. What more could an author ask for?

Oh, you want a synopsis? Not just mushy "i loved it" stuff? Here is an excerpt from the back to give you the particulars.

"When Martin Grace Enters the hip Philadelphia coffee shop Cornelia rown manages, her life changes forever. .....Meanwhile, across town Clare Hobbs, eleven years old and abandoned by her erratic mother, goes looking for her lost father. She crosses paths with Cornelia while meeting with him at the cafe, and the two form an improbable friendship that carries them through th unpredictable currents of love and life."

Honestly, I didn't think I'd go for that whole "adults- life- is -changed- by -a -child" thing. Sometimes that plot ploy seems a genre of its own. But De Los Santos was seamless. I suppose it could be argued that the book is a bit too much like an old Hollywood glamour film. Naive and hopeful. Sigh. Yup. And I keep watching those old movies over and over again.

Weakly Report

                                 

                                             

2.20-2.14

Unschooling at it's finest. When I am experiencing a particularly wintry bout of depression/anxiety from which I suffer, I find unschooling fits in perfectly with the rhythm our lives take at those times. If I were to encourage Ms D, during these times, to do any form of sit down work, I would become a monster of control. I would be loading up piles of "homework", constantly pushing or controlling her every move. Unschooling suits us both better, especially then.

We listen to tapes of books and music. This week was Redwall. Again. I just love the audio of this book. Ms. D will have to do a report on that later. Ms. D has started to read more and more on her own. This week this is what she said: "Okay, since we're not doing any formal school today, I suppose, for you, I could sit down with that book on Abraham Lincoln and read, like, say three pages. I would do that for you." How very kind of her to go to all that trouble. Three pages is a big deal for Ms. D. One night she read out loud for David and I. We were surprised at the big words she tackled.

Meanwhile there was cooking,

...and photography...

(this being one of Ms. D's favorite pictures she took. She likes all the glass piled together)

....and sewing, and more cooking,

......and writing, and drawing, and  designing books and book covers, and some math and some science and some weather studies, (this being the one billionth storm)

....and geography, and piano,

....and a snowy owl that was SO close to our dining room window, we could see him so clearly!! Very cool. By the time I grabbed the camera he had flown across the street.  You can barely see him here.

And a fun creative day project....

And... recording, and music, and more reading. But all done  unschoolingly.

Ms. D is a homebody. I feel guilty that I want to be indoors all the time stewing in my fugue state so I'll suggest fun outings despite my sheer exhaustion at moving my body out the door. She most usually replies "Do we have to? I really want to finish my project." That being usually a craft or drawing project. Or this week she was writing music. Despite both of our desires to be indoors we usually get out five times or more a week, so that is good. We're both talking avidly about spring. Planning what we're going to plant, planning our trips to the beach, planning the sun beating down on our faces and light rain showers. We can't wait. And again, lest you feel sorry for the child who puts up with a imbalanced mother, here are some pictures of us. It looks like I'm torturing her doesn't it? And despite the fact it looks like she has had about a million fillings that is chocolate. I think I was tickling her because she had gotten into the chocolate without permission. Oh, so like her mother.

And despite the fact we are homebodies, we do love visitors. We had this wonderful couple over last weekend. It was delightful because they got snowed in and couldn't go home until the next day. Ms. D spent time perfecting various Pythonesque accents and taking bizarre pictures of herself and every one else.

David even took a day off during the week. We thought it was going to storm. And it kinda did. But it mostly rained. Here is our driveway. It's sunken. Tragically. Can you imagine this turning to ice? It's not pretty. We rent.

On his day off, David made a chicken dinner. Oh, so good. We made cookies. Ditto. And we read as a family some silly books, looked at house plans (see above renting situation) and generally hung around and were goofy. And some of us got to take a nap. There is a man in there.

Without realizing it, Ms. D has been doing copy work. I've always loved the idea of copy work, but we never pull it off more than once a week. The idea is your child is copying snippets from great pieces of literature and learning language, syntax, and spelling... all that good stuff. Well, Ms. D wanted to make her own version of a particular song. She had me print the words online and she spent several hours writing/copying her own version. The next day she was listening to a speech and taking notes. She was spelling words I KNEW we had never studied. Words like "soul" and "heart" and then she was hyphenating words of several syllables. I asked her how she knew those words and she said "They were in the song I was copying and I remembered how they were spelled! And you told me how to hyphenate words of more than one syllable, and I"m glad, because I remembered it." Well, well, well, so much for all my worrying and controlling.

And that, my friends and family, was our week.

 

Library Angst

I love books. I love book stores. Big ones a la Barnes and Noble or small local ones, it doesn't matter. They can sell coffee...or not. Used book stores are all the better. Give me a good library book sale and I am in glory.

That having been said, I have noticed lately that every time I hit our library I'm having severe angst. It has the same root as the very reason I LOVE books. There are so many of them, but not enough time. This used to make me feel like the world was my oyster, but lately it's given me this panicky feel. I think it has to do with homeschooling.

For example, I get into the library and start grabbing every book relating to anything we're discussing at home. Nature, pollution, Lincoln, art, van Gogh, spelling, Einstein, the water cycle, you name it. Then when I have armfuls of books I'll see something else and think " I HAVE to get her that,too, or I'll be neglecting her education!!" There is just SO much to learn!! And it all has to be learned TODAY!!! NOW!!!

This angst can be seen on the left sidebar where I've listed what library books we've checked out this week. Last week she started discussing the state of the oceans with a friend. This led them to start their own little "Save Our Oceans" campaign, in which they gave talks to their family members on how we can save the oceans if we just try a little harder.

So this week I grabbed some books on the environment. Did you know Inconvenient Truth comes in a kids form? And then I found this great Reader's Digest book for kids full of interesting nature experiments.Oh, wait then there is the book on growing up behind the Iron Curtain.  We haven't been discussing the Iron Curtain, but she should know about it, right? Here are some books on Abraham Lincoln. We haven't hit American History yet, but we just watched a documentary at home on Lincoln, so she should have this book. A new book on Museums, oh, I'll add that. By now the brow is sweaty. And what's this? A bio of C.S. Lewis? I kinda want to look that over, I've always wanted to know more about him. Over here is a really interesting book on Mysteries of Nature...that looks especially up her alley. At this point my breathing is irregular. Now panic is really setting in and I grab a few more books on the environment to make sure we REALLY cover that subject well, and on my way out I see another book that is a jumping off point to encourage kids to write. I'm flushed. This book is beyond her abilities and interests, but I grab it anyway because I might end up finding something that will help me in teaching her. By now the panic is really rising and at it's peak. I try not to look at anymore  books but one on Washington catches my eye and I throw it in the pile, but keep walking. Must. Make It. To. Checkout.....

I grab my library card and start checking my books out...but as I do I notice someone has just brought in Pocketful of Pinecones. I've heard raves about this book and I feel like I should read it. In a panic I add it last minute to my now "two bag full" pile of books.  AACK!

I made it out of the library. Finally. After an hour. Sigh. I love my library.

Book Review

Title: National Geographic's
Mapping the World: An Illustrated History of Cartography

Progress: Finished

Review: A delightful coffee table book and then some...

I'm not sure where I got the love of maps from. It certainly wasn't school. Maps in school confused me. I didn't understand "what all" was purchased in the Louisiana Purchase and I never quite figured out where Belgium was in relationship to anything else. And really, isn't that just like a typical American? I can safely say that below is what my "map view" of the world was like.

But maps themselves fascinate me. The idea that one person (or country) is laying down their whole known world. In relation to themselves. What do maps tell us about the person who made them? Their state of mind. Their....well...worldview.

Mapping the World is as interesting as it is beautiful.  And opened a whole new world of cartography to me.  The  book is broken down in sections: Section One: Emergence of Mapping Traditions. Section Two: Charting the Age of Discovery and Exploration. Section Three: Maps for Royalty, Nobility, Clergy and Merchant Princes. Section Four: National Surveys and Thematic Cartography.  Section Five: Maps for Everyone. Section Six: Satellite Imaginig, Digital Mapping and Virtual Reality.

As can be expected with anything by National Geographic the pictures are delicious. It deserves your perusal and for the map history lover in your life, it deserves to be bought.

Artful Blog Photos

On their blog recently someone mentioned (and I wish I could remember of the skiddy-eight blogs I read where this was mentioned. Probably yours.) that in order to have a cool and popular blog you really  have to have lots of pictures. I think I'm doing pretty good in that area. They also should be somewhat artful, (need some work on that one) and feature your feet. I'd like to add that the interesting and well photographed blogs I've visited usually also have a photo of the blogger photographing themselves in a mirror. I'm not dissing this, oh no, on the contrary. I'm a wanna-be, we all know that. So with all that artsy photographing in mind I thought I'd take a few pictures the other day. I give you "Maria's Artful Blog Photos"  (insert angelic voices here)

This is the ubiquitous foot photo. I love foot photos, frankly, and I see this as a start of something beautiful in my photographic future. I must title it. Let's see.... "Are You Going To Stand There Or Put Away This Laundry" sounds like it would work.

Next up: The blogger in the mirror photo. I LOVE this format even more so because I don't have to show my face! Would you believe I was wearing my glasses, had no make-up on, was still in semi PJ form, and yet look! Art!!

I discovered more art in the bathroom. I title this: :"Dirty Towel As Metaphor For My Life As Homeschooling Mother"

Oh, and my favorite, truly. I title it: "Note To Self: Buy New Towels After 15 Years" I swear to you I have had this towel since before I was married. I was living with my cousin Jenny and we bought these on sale at a local discount store (key words of our life then: Sale and Discount Store) Yet look how long these towels lasted....sort of....or not.

Oh, yeah, now that I have a taste of it, you can count on more artful photography from this blog.

Link O' The Day

If you are a homeschooling parent, I think you'll really love this link. In her blog, Irene, has hit a slump. Of course that is terribly negative. A Mid-Course Correction is what she calls it and rightly so. Throughout life we change course, try new tactics, invent, discard, and reevaluate. It happens all the time in the corporate world, too. So why not in the homeschool world?

I just loved this post. I think I particularly loved that I could, so, totally relate. The reasons she lists as to what motivated her to make changes are some of the very reasons that prompted me to eclectically school.

And now, without further ado....HEEEEEEERRRRRRES IRENE!

Green Speedo Goggles

Hair and Teeth

I suppose you may be wondering since I posted our agenda the other day, just HOW my hair turned out. Is it just the most ravishing "do" I've ever had? Does it make me look hip, of the moment and oh-so-chic? Okay, perhaps I'm getting too carried away. Is it an improvement at least. Let's go back in time a bit first.  In September I wanted to release the "real me" which I felt was curly hair. Long, curly, blowzy and slightly granola-esque hair. The hair do that all the girls at Whole Foods seem to have.



So I went to get a perm. I've had a million and one perms in my life. Some successful, (see my first one)  some not so. (see any given moment of the 80's) This "September perm", my first in probably three years,  was in the later category. Fried -to -an-electrical- wire- crisp would be the description that best describes what I ended up with. No amount of deep oils, moisture shampoo, moisture conditioner, moisture leave-in conditioner, moisture mousse or moisture ANYTHING was gonna help this bale of straw. At best it looked okay, at worst it looked terrible. Here's a close up of my perm at it's best. 

(Three months after "September Perm".)

I didn't like it. But wait! This handsome young man seemed to think I looked pretty decent!

Or maybe he was just amused by finding a elderly 40 year old  woman with a huge pile of hay on her head. (Perhaps its the fact I am the only one NOT making a weird face in this picture, by virtue of the fact you can't see my face.)

You know what? Forget me. Let's just get a better look at him.

You know, he SO dug my hair...and look! Here is someone else who liked that perm! He's not so bad himself.

But I digress. Despite the fact I hated my hair I am a girl who faces the consequences. So I let it grow. Chopped a bit of the ends off and waited.

(And while we wait let me give you more background. I am blonde. Most truly and emphatically blonde. Until my daughter was born. That girl messed with my hormones and from the minute I was pregnant my hair came in really really dark. No problem, I thought. I'm flexible. Adventurous. I went and asked the beautician to just dye my hair the color it was coming in. I can NOT describe to you the terror I had when I looked in the mirror. It just wasn't me. I couldn't find myself. The color was great, I'm all for brunette, but it just scared me. I have no other way to put it. So for the last 10 years I've been getting my hair "blonded" and fighting dark roots.)

So here we are to last week. I went in to my wonderful new hair dresser and told her my story. All of it. (Except for the part about the cute guy who seemed to like my hair at the wedding. The young one.) She understood and she said I have a choice. Perm and dark. Or straight and blonde. My course,  thick hair was not going to stand for both blonde and permed. I'm a big girl. I took it like a man.

So, we hacked off more length to get rid of the perm. And then we dyed the roots and crown a bit darker with just a few highlights. (If you are a guy and are reading this, I"ve lost you, haven't I? Just skip to the pictures) The majority of the hair is still somewhat blonde left over from last dye job. Slowly, over time, I will now be a straight haired brunette. I'm dealing with it. My choice has been made. For now.

I know you can't stand it any longer so here it is:

Oh, wait. That is me separating it into sections so I can straighten it. Let's try again:

Here it is in all it's straightened- semi -blonde -going -to- brunette glory!!

(I had to cover my mouth 'cause I didn't have any lipstick on. And my mom says I need lipstick because otherwise my mouth can't be seen in pictures. I was too lazy to put lipstick on.)

Whatdya think, huh? Check out the way it moves when I turn my head really fast:

Here is the side view  and it's pretty saturated with light. The color is more correct above.

(I covered my nose so it wouldn't stick out and look unsightly. It's kinda big. The nose. And the hair.)

Hey let's check out that movement one more time....let me just throw my head to the side again...

All in all, I would say I'm fairly pleased. A bit shorter than I like, but it'll grow.

Oh. Wait. What about Ms. D's dental appointment? It went really really well. She loves her dentist, but told the hygienist. "Could you be a bit careful. I have this one tooth that is, like, hanging from a thread and I'd hate for it to come out." Thoughtful look from hygienist. Under my breath I said "I wouldn't even try it if I were you...."

You know what happened the next day?

And The Winner Is.....

It's time, ladies and gentlemen. The Commenter's Challenge Award. The Challenge was very easy. All you had to do was comment on my now defunct blogspot blog. My faithful readership (let's see, I"m up to about 6 subscribers and four regular followers, I think!) and even a few who stopped by in passing rose to the Great Challenge.

We had a Terribly Official Random Drawing. Here are some photos so you don't think I'm making that up. I want everyone to know how completely fair it was.  

See? Here are the names on little pieces of paper.

Here is the Official Random Draw-er.
 

See, nothin' up her sleeve....

She puts her hand in the hat....

She randomly draws....

She squints....

She reads the name!!!

She is thrilled, shocked and now announces the winner...it is:

Stephanie from Ordinary Life Magic!!

Johnny, tell her what she's won!

Stephanie has won a great CD by the Puppini Sisters!! My husband presented this to our own family on a recent trip to The Big City. Since Ms. D was a baby and we rocked her to sleep listening to the Andrews Sisters we've loved this brand of swing. The Puppini Sisters have some great old tunes and some rather interesting covers of songs you know and love (we won't discuss their treatment of Kate Bush's Wuthering Heights which borders on blasphemy.) When I heard this CD, I knew it had to be my Commenters Challenge Give Away.

Stephanie, I feel sure you will the Puppini's if nothing more than to just say their name. One and all, don't forget to check out the Puppini website and Stephanie's too!

If you love Bloggy give aways, you simple have to check out Bloggy Giveaways.com.

That was a lot of fun, don't you agree? Don't you think I should do a give away every so often? Me too. Stay tuned, my dear readers, stay tuned....

Book Review

Title: Mouse Guard: Fall 1152
Author: David Petersen
Progress: Finished

Review: Ms. D loved this book for a number of reasons. First of all, it was about mice. As her own illustrations are mostly having to do with mice, this was right up her alley. Next, it was easy to read. It's in comic book format, but it's oh-so-much-more than a mere "comic" style book.  Thirdly, The Illustrations are beautifully rendered.The colors are rich and warm. Last, Ms. D loves history. In particular the Middle Ages. And the Mouse Guard is the adventures of a world of mice in the Middle Ages. Let me just let the book jacket tell you:

"Mice struggle to live safely and prosper among...predators. Thus the Mouse Guard was formed. ....They are guides for common mice looking to journey without confrontation from one hidden mouse village to another.

Follow the adventures of three of the Guard's finest-Lieam, Saxon and Kenzie-as they seek to uncover a traitorous plot against the Guard."

I thought that this might be a bit "dark" in nature to someone of Ms. D's constitution. She seems, for a 10 year old, to be very sensitive to anything with a great deal of "scary" suspense. She found this just the right mixture, however, of suspense and entertainment.

Mouse Guard will have a series of four follow up "tales" (heheh) to this book. Mouse Guard: Winter 1152. You can buy the tales separately right now, or wait for the release of the book.

If you are further intrigued, check out David Petersens Mouse Guard website: Mouse Guard.

Find the Light At the End of the Tunnel...

Bear in mind it has been snowing are sleeting for the past three days, on and off....

         Rest Of Today... Snow showers. Total accumulation of 1 to 3 inches. Highs in the lower 30s. Light and variable winds. Chance of snow near 100 percent.

Tonight... Partly cloudy with a chance of snow showers in the evening...Then mostly cloudy after midnight. Lows 17 to 22. Light and variable winds. Chance of snow 50 percent.

Saturday... Cloudy. A chance of snow in the afternoon. Highs in the mid 30s. Light and variable winds. Chance of snow 50 percent.

Saturday Night... Occasional snow. Moderate snow accumulation. Lows in the mid 20s. East winds around 10 mph...Becoming west after midnight. Chance of snow 80 percent.

Sunday... Partly cloudy with a 50 percent chance of snow. Highs in the mid 30s. West winds 10 to 20 mph with gusts up to 30 mph.

Sunday Night... Partly cloudy. Lows 10 to 15.

Monday... Sunny. Highs in the lower 30s.

Were You Born In A Barn?

"Do you think money grows on trees?"

"Does anyone listen to me around here?"

I'll bet you could name your own. "You'll poke your eye out!" The list goes on and on.

It is said, that the older we get, the more we can relate to our parents. This was my relating this week.

How many times did I hear this? "I am SO sick of picking up after you people!" Mostly when, for the skiddy eighth time, my mother picked something up that my brother, my father or myself could've picked up if only we had actually bent from the waist. I am convinced that it was the sheer fact that we just didn't think. 

Usually, I just figure. "Hey, I'm not nagging. I have it pretty doggone good. A husband who vacuums.

Who makes supper two nights out of seven. (And well presented, too.) And doesn't mind when I call cold cereal "supper".

When I ask Ms. D to pick up, she just does it. No balking. Usually."

So why should I complain about wet towels and dirty clothes strewn about? My part in our family is the daily household chores. Everyone has a part to play, right? We're one  big happy team, here.

But I almost lost it (until I figured it would be fodder for blogging) when I saw this complete lack of common sense and respect for my job as mother.

Can you see that?? That is a plate on the EDGE of the chair arm, people. (That is also a lamp with a seem showing, but since Martha Stewart doesn't read this blog, I'm okay) It's a precariously tipped plate, my friends. Let's get a closer look, shall we?

Yes, that's right. It's Annie's Organic Brand Raspberry Salad dressing with baby spinach. Organic or not, I'm thinking Annie's dressing is not going to come out of that chair none to easily, do you? I don't care if the chair needs reupholstering anyway and is a ratty old thing. That is not the point, young lady.
I was about to work myself into a really good lecture about how no one THINKS around here except maybe myself and the cats, when I saw this:

It's kind of washed out, but do you know what that is??? That is a CAT. On the counter top. On the CLEAN dish towel. Sleeping. As if I have nothing better to do than to wash down the counter top and spare clean dish towels. Sleeping!! On the counter Top!! Does anyone listen to me around here??!!

OH. Sorry. Did my yelling interrupt your nap?

In the end I gave in. I didn't say a word. And in a few minutes Ms. D came in from whatever she was doing that interrupted her spinach meal and picked up the plate (probably not thinking, "My goodness, that was terribly close to making more work for my dear mother!") and put the plate in the kitchen where it belongs. And as for the cat?

I'm pretty sure she's still there.

Weakly Report

                              


Weakly Report of: Feb 4-Feb 8

But first, a few paragraphs I'll title Grammar Conundrum. First Language Lessons doesn't really seem to be working for Ms. D. She dreads it. I think I mentioned that in my last Weakly Report.(Let me say I love FLL! It works great for me!) So where do I go to find a variety of homeschoolers who are sure to have a wealth of knowledge, experience, from all different walks of life and  different homeschool methodologies? The Well Trained Mind Forums, of course. Over 1500 members who are politely standing by waiting to help me. (Or sort of. That's kind of an exaggeration. They aren't actually waiting for me...) So I posted a thread titled: "Need Grammar Curriculum or Beating My Head Up Against The Wall." The wall in this case being Ms. D. And I got some wonderful replies. Some suggested Shurley Grammar, or Winston Grammar, while some touted Junior Analytical Grammar, a few suggested Rod and Staff Grammar. and many loved Growing with Grammar. I looked into each and every one of these, and here is what I've come to...or not.

Shurley seemed a bit too scripted for us. They also include tests, which I am not overly fond of for various reasons. And it has, well, "jingles". Ms. D tolerates the few "jingles" in FLL, but thinks they are babyish. Memorable but babyish. She's almost 10. I get that. So out Shurley went. Then I checked out Rod and Staff. Wow. Really wow. It's incredibly complete. It's highly detailed with lots of review. The teachers book has some scripting but not heavily, mostly as a guide. And while there are quizzes, it's presented in a way that is palatable. The only caveat with RS is that it is Christian based and I was looking for something more secular. However, from what I read on the samples online, it seems these would be easily modified if various "teachings" were not in line with your own beliefs. RS is on the back burner. Then I checked out Winston Grammar. I liked the multisensory approach, however, something about it left me cold. Call it a whim.  Meanwhile, I looked at Growing with Grammar. Now this was more our style. Simple, straightforward, obvious grammar. Short, sweet, easy to understand workbook form. Ah...no wonder the majority of WTMers loved this! GWG was on the front burner. Last, but not least, I check out Junior Analytical Grammar(JAG). While I had heard of this method, I was not overly familiar with it. Right away this method seemed to make sense. Here is an excerpt from the About Us Section that hit home with me:

"The grammar of our language is actually a rather small and       tidy body of knowledge. It has a beginning and an end, and it shouldn't       take forever to learn. It is already in our heads and has been since we       were small children; otherwise, we wouldn't be able to put sentences together!       The trick is to help the student access the knowledge already in their       head and organize it in a useful and comprehensive manner."

That's right. Why does Grammar have to be so all out complicated? And intense? And then I listened to The Product Info video. This woman was playing my song. The Hallelujah Chorus sang in the background. Mostly because my "gut" instinct about grammar an my child was validated. Deep down, I felt that Ms. D is only just getting a grasp on reading, penmanship and writing composition. That  naming the parts for what she is doing doesn't "click" with her because her brain isn't ready to take that leap yet. And what Erin Karl of JAG was saying is just that. Why are we starting kids before 4 to 6th grade with grammar? Oh, I'm not saying they are not capable. I"m not saying that if you are doing grammar with your first grader that is wrong...I'm just saying, for where we are at, this makes sense to me. I felt I had permission to trust my gut on this one. This touches on delayed academics. It just makes so much sense to me. Not in every subject, but I've seen Ms. D's interest grow in certain subjects and then she takes of like a house afire....in her own time. But I digress into a pet subject and what I'm really getting at is this: I will continue with FLL for the rest of the year. We will review throughout the summer here and there, and when Fall/Winter of '08 occurs we will delve into the 11 week course of JAG, with the possibility of a GWG workbook. If all goes well we'll move into Analytical Grammar. If it doesn't go well. I'm back to square one. Or maybe RS.

On to the week:

Monday: Ah, it was a typical Monday. It still felt like the weekend. Let's talk about that weekend! On Saturday (drum roll please!) we got a piano! Finally. We went to a great Music Store in Portland, Starbird. I never thought I would find another Ward/Brodt like in Madison but this is close! We choose to go with a Yamaha Digital. Despite my feeling there is nothing like an acoustic, we wanted to go with mobility and the option not to have to tune. Someday, we'll go "real" but we are very pleased with this. I tried a few out and while this one doesn't have a whole lotta bells and whistles, I really like it. More about that, and pictures, too, on this post.  Anyway, on Sunday Ms. D stayed over night with a homeschooling friend. She didn't come home until Monday afternoon. I spent most the day getting used to Typepad and the new blogging format.

Tuesday: Because Mr. D stayed home from work and the snow was coming down Ms. D seemed to think this meant no homeschool. We did get quite a bit done nevertheless. We went through our reading/spelling/phonics and our Grammar/Language Lessons. She also worked with penmenship. She's very excited that she is nearing the point to start writing cursive. Her writing is a bit all over the board, to be honest. Keeping her on the margins in neat rows is very difficult. She did some reading practice in her Evan Moor workbook. It was on the various Presidents. Washington, Lincoln and Roosevelt. She was flagging so David sat down to help her. Next thing I know the conversation had turned entirely to the Civil War and why it was fought, what Lincoln tried to do, John Wilkes Booth, the agenda of the south, the assassination of Lincoln and the results.

David then pulled a book out titled "The Day LIncoln Was Shot" that is from "his" library. The book describes the sights and smells of Washington in that time period. They had a blast! Although I wasn't sure what this was when I looked over their shoulder?

I don't know if you can see but Washington and Lincoln seem to have been defaced a bit. Not sure you'd get away with THAT in public school, little missy! However, by the time they were finished it was time to move on to other things. Ms. D had her first piano lesson which basically involved her trying to learn Fur Elise with no previous piano experience. So I sat her down to memorize the first two bars or so. We therefore had to learn how to use right and left hand, Middle C and some fingering so as to get a smooth sound. Suffice to say I am very very sick of the first three bars of Fur Elise.

Wednesday: Was there a Wednesday?? I think it just snowed. Ms. D learned that mommy isn't fun when she has a headache. She also learned how to record on our new digital piano. And she played and played. Despite said headache, which is probably why mommy isn't fun. The cycle continues. I keep feeling like we are coming down with something, but I said that last week. Perhaps it's an excuse. What I really think we are coming down with is this: We are plum SICK to DEATH of winter. And we have a moody tweenager in the house.

Thursday: Watched Copying Beethoven as we are studying him. Ms. D liked it okay. She thought it a little slow. Meanwhile, she concocted (there is no better word...) a recipe. She wanted me to share it, but with the caveat it is copyrighted so you have to give her the credit for it:

Ms. D's Mabel Recipe:

4 Tb Vanilla Yogurt

1 Tb  Peanut Butter

2 Tb Milk

1 dash Cinnamon

1 Tb Maple Syrup (real)

Stir ingredients together and use for dipping milk or dark chocolate.

Okay, I had my doubts when she showed this to me...but it's not half bad...

Thursday, late, Ms. D and Daddy watched a program on Northern LIghts. She didn't really want to but they seemed to really get into it.

Friday:  Okay, the bottom line is this. We've had a really crappy week. Remember the other day when I posted that I wanted snow. Ya, right. It's been snowing constantly since then. Be careful what you wish for. And there is no bright, happy, sun to come out and put a lovely glisten on the white flakes. I'm supposed to write about how wonderfully creative we all got while cooped up inside, or how we went and did adventures things as the snow fell softly to the ground.

Well, that's not the way it's going folks. Eclectically yours brings you only the brutal truth. And the brutal truth is that I am in some sort of fugue state/funky malaise/depression/SAD/irritable/ugly mood. And it seems that Ms. D is too, because whenever we sat down to work I got this look.

I got this look alot. And I'm at my wits end.

Everything this week seemed to be an utter and extreme chore for Ms. D. I tried to accommodate and not push, being cheerful and bright,respecting that hey, we all go through bad moods, bad weeks, we've all got cabin fever. But I gave up pretty quickly. Her sensitivity has gone into overtime in the past month or so. If, when we are in a hurry, I say "C'mon sweetie, let's get your coat on." She holds her hand up in that "back off" gesture and says "Okay.....okay...." and looks at me as if I've hit her hard and she's reeling from the shock. I first of all laughed at her when she did that. Oops. That didn't work. She got even more sensitive. Next, I asked her kindly and matter of factly to please stop acting like I just kicked a puppy. Finally, I asked David "Is it me? Do I not realize how I sound?" To which he replied..."Sometimes it's not what you say, it's the way you say it." Ouch.

So I"ve been working on it. But last night, I was trying my darned best and there she went again with that look that says I've destroyed everything she's ever held dear. And I lost it. I told her if she thinks I sound so awful, well, I might as well sound really bad and "GET YOUR COAT ON NOW!!"

Not the most stellar moment of my motherhood career. And I know this will pass. I know that I'm preaching to the choir and some of you do this in multiples of two. And I only have to worry about one child. And woe betide if I try to complain to another mother about this, as I did earlier this week. Just a wee mention of my trials. Not a rant. "Why don't you just put her in school?" Said in that way of "Well, it's your own fault for homeschooling, why are you complaining?" Yes!! That's it!! If I put her away from me for eight hours a day she will suddenly become less sensitive and moody! I will be able to tolerate her like the happy little mother I should be! Pass the Valium and freedom! And while I agree we both have cabin fever and it would be nice to have a wee break from each other, I don't think over 180 days in public school is going to do the trick. I think the person who said this to me took my silence to mean that she had given me something to think about. She didn't realized that my tongue was hard bit. I didn't want to say anything untoward. I didn't need one more sensitive person on my list to deal with.

So, we're half way through our day today and I'm ready to cash it in. Not sure, what with the snow, what I'm cashing it in for. Oh, if I were a creative mom I would say "Let's bake!" but I don't have a lot on hand right now to bake with. Let's watch a movie! No, we did that yesterday and besides we've watched all our Netflix. I think I will suggest sitting and reading the rest of the day. Maybe together. But you know what? I am tired. I am tried of trying to accommodate and be the perfect homeschooling mom. Cause I'm not. I'm just eclectically yours.

Guess What We Got?

Otherwise titled: Finally.

I'll give you some hints. It's digital. It came in a box. Big enough to use the packaging as a fashion statement.

Come to think of it, this child may have a future. I can picture this on the runway. Just get someone really really tall, and really really thin and prance. I think it would be a hit in chartreuse.
Okay, another hint?

It has 88 of these.

Yes, my friends, at long last it's happened. We didn't go authentic or "real", but we like it . I insisted on the piano having the right touch/action. It had to "feel" real. This Yamaha was as close as I could come. I bit more than we budgeted but I'm very pleased.

We purchased this at a really great store in Portland. Starbird Music. I was in despair that I would never find another Ward Brodt like we had in Madison. Starbird is smaller, but filled the need perfectly. The sheet music world was my oyster! When I went to find Ms. D a beginner piano book the names Thomspon, Schaum, and Bastian all greeted me like old friends. Ah, the feel of a music store.   I got Ms. D her beginner book, workbook, flashcards and myself a couple books on theory. Because for some reason I hated learning as a kid, but now have a passionate interest in chords and theory. Funny how that works, isn't it? Do you know the one reason I think that is? Because while I didn't play piano much after high school, my mom did. I loved listening to her play late at night while we were all in bed. It was comforting, but there was something neat about watching her learn a piece of music. To practice it over and over and over. I've read a lot of homeschooling/parenting books in the last few months and they almost all unanimously agree than children who watch their parents pursue a passion are more likely to pursue their own passions. To see the delight in doing so.

 

We had to get the Beethoven. Cause a piano isn't' a piano without a Beethoven. And Ms. D is really into Beethoven right now. Mr. B looks kinda grumpy, doesn't he?

Well, well, well, look who else is Mr. Grumpy Gills. Seems no one wants their picture taken, hmmm?

Well, everyone should just lighten themselves up a bit around here!

Not going to Mr. B? Well take THAT!!

There, that's better. A little humor goes a long way.

Mr. B found it especially humorous that I was trying to play the piano after 18 years. I detected a certain sarcastic smile on his lips. But I keep at it. I practice from an hour to hour and half a day.  And I've seen some improvement, already. But I freeze if someone walks in the room. I can NOT play in front of other people. I miss all the notes. Alone, I am Liberace. Okay, not Liberace. But I do try to be Tori Amos. I wanna play like her when I grow up.

And Ms. D. is learning to play. She wanted to jump right into "Fur Elise" so she is learning to play that by heart. Which has already taught her alot. Like proper hand position, and proper finger position. Meanwhile, we work on some basics like finding middle C.

And meanwhile, too,  when Ms. D and David are tucked in bed, I play a little.