Michael's Main Lesson Block: Poetry

Michael, sharing a funny Shel Silverstein poem with his sister.

We've been doing the second of two books I bought from Moving Beyond the Page, and I'm just as underwhelmed. The 9-11 year old Poetry book is really just a series of worksheets and I don't think I'm going to be using Moving Beyond the Page again.

What I do like about it is the supplemental books is uses. Love That Dog by Sharon Creech is a wonderful story about how a boy comes to relate to poetry and to a poet, Walter Dean Myers. My America: A Poetry Atlas of the United States has selections from Lee Bennett Hopkins with illustrations by Stephen Alcorn, and really ties in US geography with poetry. Finally, R Is for Rhyme: A Poetry Alphabet by Judy Young introduces kids to poetic styles from A to Z. My only complaint about these books is that, with the exception of Love That Dog, they mostly use kiddie poems rather than "real" poetry, I suppose under the supposition that kids can't handle adult poems. Silly.

Michael did write some lovely poems in the main lesson, though, and I'd like to share them.

I bet you can guess what inspired this one.

So much depends
Upon an old old hammer
Frosty cold
In the toolshed.

A NEWSPAPER
A newspaper is like a voice,
Telling me who should win the game
Or what the government is going to do,
And when I get the comics
The voice tells me a joke.
The newspaper is like a voice.

PENNSYLVANIA (An acrostic)
Plains of grass
Entering here you gasp
No state is better
Not even Georgia.
Someday please visit
You may want to stay forever
Lovely cows in fields
Very wonderful, you shall say
Another state just would not do
Not one could have such prowess at farming
I think its football teams play well also
Awesome place to live

SUMMERTIME IN WILLIAMSPORT
I always liked summertime
Where I could waste all my time
And watch TV until the clock hits nine
Or go to a friend's and play away the time
Instead of learning to read and write
At school and when it's time to go home
You get some homework
Then time's spent multiplying numbers by 10.
I wish the whole year was summertime.

Haiku
Fireworks flash at night.
Cheering Americans sing--
The fourth of July.

A SATURDAY AT MY HOUSE
A Saturday is always crazy for us.
Everything is always rush, rush, rush
And then my brother throws a fuss.
Oh, we're busy on Saturday!

My mother can't handle four kids
And three have basketball games
And then when we lose, nobody says
"Oh, such a shame! Such a shame!"

It always makes me like
The hours locked up in a school.
But compared to a Sunday at our house,
SATURDAYS RULE!

Pantry Challenge: Day Six

Phew! Now we're back in business!

Breakfast was muffins from La Leche League's fabulous Whole Foods for the Whole Family cookbook. We had ours with all-fruit, and it was delicious! Our grocery outlet often has King Arthur's whole wheat and unbleached white flour for 79 cents, and I have quite a bit of that in the deep freeze still.

Morning snack was whole grain crackers and some yummy cheese from our local Amish store.

Lunch... lunch was lovely. Down in the deep freeze I found 2.35 pounds of ox tails I bought from the Amish store because... um... because... well... I don't know why. Because I thought I could do something traditional food-ish with them and because it was only $1.50 for 2.35 pounds. In my Little House Cookbook, I found a great recipe and made a delicious stew for lunch. I actually only followed their directions for making the broth, and then added organic alphabet pasta (50 cents a box) and tons of green beans, peas, and corn.

For afternoon snack, we had smoothies. You see, I had this brilliant idea-- let's pick our own fruit and freeze it! Which I did, and then promptly forgot all about it. Do you see now why this pantry challenge is necessary?

Dinner was delicious-- mashed potatoes, asparagus (again, frozen on a whim), and London broil (buy one, get one). For desert, I used some canned plums to make a plum crumble. Everyone loved it. The kids said if I was on Top Chef, I would win, which is complete and utter bull, but still, lovely to hear.

A Day in the Life

I woke up to a grumpy boy who just wanted cuddled. No, not my husband-- Daniel! It was so sad, because I really needed to get out of bed and he kept saying "Mommy! I neeeeeeeeeeed you!" And really, what mother's heart can resist that? Finally, Michael and Katie Grace piled into the bed (Nicholas was already there) and distracted him, and I was able to sneak downstairs.

I made the breakfast muffins and got the ox tails on the stove to make broth. Michael unloaded the dish drainer and Katie Grace started on sorting the laundry. I also brewed some iced tea. When the muffins were done baking, I went up for my shower. While I was up there I also managed to put away my laundry and the two little boys laundry and straighten out our night table. I'm trying to do a tiny bit of our room each day.

Back downstairs, breakfast was over and the laundry was all sorted. The kids worked on taking it up and I dressed Daniel and finished the dishes, and our day was off to a running start.

First on the agenda, after devotions and morning prayer, was Story of the World. We worked on a map of the American Revolution and learned about the three branches of American government. I don't know why this fascinated the kids, but it did. Well, the older two. Daniel and Nicholas were in the living room playing with balls.

Next,we worked on the first step of this beautiful Nativity painting. Everyone painted, even the littlest ones.


Michael and Katie Grace got started on their independent work and Daniel and Nicholas and I had our Advent circle time. It was lovely. I love how the Advent wreath and the ever-increasing lighting of the candles is such a concrete representation of getting closer and closer to Christmas!

I worked with Nicholas a little. We're telling a lot of "joining stories," rudimentary addition really, and he's shocking me with how much he gets it. I could write a whole post on Nicholas, but he's my most... immature? still incarnating? wild?... child of them all. He's a smart kid, but very much in his own little world. We're doing fingerknitting with some nice chunky wool, and he finished the bookmark he's making for Daddy for Christmas. He's so proud!

Nicholas went off to work on his own and it was time for Katie Grace's main lesson-- Joseph and dreams and learning to find averages, oh my! She drew beautiful illustrations of Joseph's dream and the dream of the baker and the cupbearer.

A quick snack of crackers and cheese, and it was back for Michael's main lesson. We're doing Moving Beyond the Page again, and again, I am underwhelmed. We'll not be buying any of the units again. Today we talked about free verse and how a poet uses words to set the mood.

In between main lessons, I sorted through coupons and made short work of my big pile o' stuff. I also worked on our lunch stew and did a few more loads of laundry.

Lunch was yummy. Much better than yesterday's chemical dogs. We cleaned up a bit and then read another chapter in The Silver Chair. And then... we were finished. Michael had orchestra and I had intended to teach Katie Grace some piano, but I had a headache and elected to take a short nap instead. Tough to do with Daniel climbing all over me, but I managed.

We've switched things up a bit, putting the group stuff in the morning rather than in the afternoon, and it's made a huge difference. I hope you had a happy, peaceful day as well!

Advent, week 3

The third light of Advent is the light of beasts--
All await the birth, from the greatest and in least.

Michael's Persuasive Letter

FROM: Michael F*****
TO: Annette F*****
SUBJECT: Persuasive Letter

Dear Mom,

I really would like you to get me a Raider CS-35 for Christmas. Really there are certain advantages of you getting me this gift. Point One: If you me the Raider, I won't be pester you anymore to buy me one. Point Two: You won't have to take me to Toys R Us to buy one. One final point: I promise I will only play with it upstairs with friends or at a friends house. Please consider.

Love,
Michael

Duly considered and rejected. Sorry, kid.

Natural healing for ear infections

'Tis the season.

Every year around Christmas, it's like the plague around here. I exaggerate not. One year everyone--including Daddy-- had chicken pox, another year it was bronchitis. We had an outbreak of head lice, and pink eye that made everyone's eyes swell shut, followed by a bonus round of "Guess Who's Allergic to the Eye Ointment?" (That would be Michael for you kids playing at home). Last year everyone was throwing up. The year before that? Baby chest x-ray! It's like Santa Claus brings a sleigh-full of germs.

No matter was the yearly ailment is, it almost always brings ear infections. My oldest is especially susceptible. He had seven (SEVEN!) ear infections by the time he was five months old and, while I know for a while they were handing out tubes like candy, they actually did Michael a lot of good.

I am motivated, however, to dig through my resources and make sure I have my natural healing staples for ear infections on hand.

Homeopathy: We've never had any luck with homeopathy for ear infections. This site does give some recommendations for homeopathic remedies for ear infections.

Nutrition: We really limit dairy and sugar during ear infections. None of my kids drink milk, but we limit other dairy when they're in the midst of an infection. Breastmilk is not dairy, of course, and nursing can really help a sick little one. For all kids, I make sure they're well hydrated, drinking plenty of water and herbal teas.

Herbal: Most of our herbal interventions take the form of eardrops: garlic and mullein oil, warmed beforehand, not only can help an ear infection but also make your little one smell delicious, as if they should be served up with a salad. I never, ever give drops if the ears are draining.

Vitamins: Vitamin C, of course, is essential to add whenever there's illness. I also like to give a low-dose zinc supplement.

Antibiotics: Typically, this is the first line of attack when treated conventionally. I really avoid these at all costs, especially since they've been shown to be rather ineffective. If I do resort to antibiotics, I try to have the child on a weeklong course of acidophilus.

Other Comfort Measures: A warm cloth or rice bag on the ear can really make little ones feel better. I'm partial to the herbal animals myself. And of course, lots of cuddling and loving!

Do you have ideas for treating ear infections naturally? I'd love to hear them!

Pantry Challenge: Day Five

Ugh. Rough day. Feeling poorly. Brief post.

BREAKFAST: Cereal stockpiled from a big sale along with apples and oranges.

SNACK: Was going to be apples and cheese, but someone ate all the cheese. *is grumpy* So instead we had fruit and crackers.

LUNCH: I was made of fail. I had turkey corn dogs in the freezer, and I used them. Then again, maybe not so much fail, because I bought them for moments like today, when all I really wanted to do was take the kids to Micky D's. As bad as chemical dogs might be, that would have been worse. Besides, some kind church ladies sent home a huge tray of fresh veggies and the kids really chowed down on those. Daniel really likes red pepper. Who'da thunk it?

SNACK: I don't remember. They must have eaten something though, because they didn't come whining for food.

DINNER: Still not feeling great. DH offered to go buy a rotisserie chicken but I was all "NO!!!!! We have to eat something from the pantry!!!!!" So I made a yummy chili and-- in a moment of inspiration-- threw in a bunch of leftover veggies. Peas, corn, some carrots-- not only did they not notice, they told me it was the best chili ever. I served that up with some brown rice and they were happy as clams.

Tomorrow will be better. Hopefully.

Santa Lucia (minus the crown)

Pantry Challenge: Days Three and Four

Ah, the weekend! How I love you!

This weekend was especially busy.

Saturday morning, Michael had a basketball game at 9:30-- he won!. Before he left, we had a breakfast of eggs-to-order and scrapple with maple syrup. If you have a judgment on scrapple, I don't want to hear it. I'm a Lancaster County girl at heart. And then it was off to Katie Grace's basketball game-- she tied! I'm telling you, it's the scrapple (stockpiled from the Mennonite surplus grocery store).


Lunch was leftovers. I told you we do a lot of leftovers on the weekend!

Next we had to rush the kids out the door for our church's Parents' Afternoon Out. Thankfully, we finally have a full church staff and we didn't have to stick around this year. Yay! We actually got to go out on Parents' Afternoon Out! We came home and spread out the Christmas gifts to see what we still needed and then we headed out.

First stop was the thrift store, where I had spied a lovely wood television armoire. I have wanted one of these practically forever. We didn't have a TV for a bit, and then we had one but kept it in the closet, and it's always bugged me that you walk in our living room and see the television. But not anymore! It's my Christmas present.

Then it was off to Target and the mall. Oy. We got one gift we needed, but no others. It was just overwhelming.

Back to the church to pick up the kids and then off to our third basketball game of the day. Nicholas won! After a quick stop at the grocery store, we were off to a birthday party at a church friend's house. So dinner was taken care of.

Today was Santa Lucia Day. I will admit that when I was at the store yesterday, I picked up a tray of cinnamon buns. I actually had a recipe I meant to use to make homemade buns for today, but see above. We weren't home for more than a half-hour at a time! So, for breakfast it was terribly unfrugal, unhealthy, unhomemade Santa Lucia-ish buns.

For lunch, I was back on the Pantry Challenge bandwagon. Tortellini with sauce and cheese and garlic bread.

Dinner is up in the air. If we don't cancel evening activities at church, we'll be eating there. If we do cancel evening activities at church, then... um... hmmm... well, I'll have to come up with a plan, won't I?

I hope your weekend was all the things mine hasn't been-- relaxing, peaceful, and ice-free!

Pantry Challenge: Day Three

Ah, the weekend! Generally we do a lot of leftovers on Fridays and the weekends, and today was no exception.

For breakfast, I made oatmeal and we sweetened it with plum or blueberry all-fruit, leftover from yesterday. Add a little fresh fruit and milk for those that wanted it, and you're ready to face the day.

Morning snack were yummy pretzel crackers from Aldis and the rest of the pumpkin bread from yesterday morning.

For lunch, we had--you guessed it!-- leftovers! Also, another advantage of our little Surplus Grocery Outlet is that they often get international foods, things that we would normally not try. They had some little heat-and-eat packages of Indian food, 2 for a dollar, and I picked up some Mutter Paneer with basmati rice for us to try. Michael really liked it!

Paneer is actually Indian cottage cheese, and it seems fairly straightforward to make, so we might try that sometime.

Afternoon snack was fruit and cheese with Daddy while Mama went to the dentist.

This evening we're splitting ranks. Katie Grace, Daniel, and I are going to the homeschool co-op Christmas party. It's "bring something to share," so we made one of my childhood favorites, tuna dip. It's just cream cheese (I bought a bunch when they were on sale, 2 for a dollar, and froze them) mixed with a can of tuna. Served with crackers, it's really yummy, and thanks to that Flips deal at Target, we have plenty of crackers. I'll also bring some whole grain crackers along as well. This also makes a quick and tasty lunch. I'm also bringing along some soda I picked up for a dollar a bottle.

The big boys and Daddy have a church event. I had actually forgotten about our evening plans and was going to make homemade pizza for dinner, but we changed the plan so that Daddy can just heat up a frozen pizza. Next week, homemade or bust! Friday is always, always, always pizza night at our house. It's a law. And I always keep a frozen pizza or two in the deep freeze for those times when life gets away from me. Because while it might not be the healthiest option, it's still a lot better and a lot less expensive than ordering it out. So tonight, it's pizza and salad for the boys while we're at the potluck.

We'll be having lots of goodies at the homeschool party, and the big boys will be having lots of goodies at their Christmas party. A good time will be had by all.