A Day in the Life

Happy Tuesday!

It occurs to me that one day I will have to do one of these not on a Tuesday. Always, on Tuesday I post about oatmeal because Tuesday in Oatmeal Day.

Shockingly enough, our day started with oatmeal. Oatmeal, as usual, was followed by room cleaning and laundry. We find predictability helps our days go well.

After Daddy went off to work, we started our school day with devotions. Because the month of January is dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus, we're doing a Bible study based on the names of Jesus. Today we talked about Immanuel, God with Us. We looked up the meanings of our own name, which was great fun.

We read a little more in our American Revolution for Kids book. Today was the Battle of Bunker Hill. We learned about the Minute Men and had a little friendly competition to see who could get dressed up and ready for "battle" in a minute or less.

This is where we part ways. Michael and Katie Grace go off into the dining room to begin their independent work, and Nicholas, Daniel, and I have circle time. This week we're doing the Winter Movement Journey circle from Winter Seasons of Joy.
Here's the strong sun melting the tall, tall snowman. And the ending of our winter circles is one of my favorite.
My heart swells in joyfulness.
My spirit dwells in peace.
My body rests in quietness.
Our circle time has ended. Goodbye!

Daniel went off to have a tea party with Danny Boy and Hibbit.
And Nicholas began his time with me. We're reading the fairy tale Spindle, Shuttle, and Needle this week and learning to recognize the letter N. When we got out the form drawing book to make straight lines and slants, Daniel joined us again.
Snack was cheese and crackers.
And then it was time for Katie Grace's main lesson-- the life of Jesus and the parable of the good Samaritan, with a side order of learning about volume.
Michael's main lesson followed-- botany and a little lesson on circumference.
Daniel and Nicholas, meantime, were having an awesome time with the marble run.
Lunch was sandwiches, and Katie Grace helped by making chocolate milk.

After lunch, we all helped tidy the downstairs from the morning's festivities. This was followed by read-aloud. We've finished The Boxcar Children and moved on to The Sisters Grimm.

Daddy showed up about now to take Katie Grace to orchestra, and this is where we broke with our usual routine. The children received Lego Rock Band for Wii for Christmas, but we didn't have a guitar. We ordered one on Ebay, and it finally arrived today. Generally we have a "Wii is for the Wii-kend" rule (get it? Heh.) but because they've been waiting sooooo very patiently, they each had a go on the new Wii game. 4 songs each. They were very happy campers. I, on the other hand, had to listen to "We Are the Champions" 12 times. Ah, a mothers sacrifice!

We tidied up the winter nature table, adding a new snowflake garland Katie Grace made. While they were playing, I also caught up on some computer stuff, worked on cleaning out the giant basket o' stuff you can see in some of the pictures, and had a little Bible study time.

By now it was 4 o' clock, and time to clean today's zone: the steps, the hall, and the kids' rooms. Then Katie Grace was off to ballet and the rest of us had dinner.

Another day in Paradise!

Confessions of a Crafty Failure

I want to be crafty. Really, honestly, truly, I do.

But I'm not.

I don't know if it's lack of skill, lack of innate ability, or lack of confidence, but much as I would like to be a arts and crafts kind of girl, I'm just not. I seem to have a predisposition to not following instructions. When this is accompanied with a general lack of talent, the results just aren't pretty.

I'm OK with it, mostly. I can sing. I can act. I can direct a choir. Just don't ask me to paint the sets or sew the robes.

Still, I'd like to set aside some time for crafty creativeness. And so, with the new year upon me, I dragged out my tattered and well-used Managers of Their Home book, known in large family circles as M.O.T.H.

Caveat: I recommend this book with reservations. The author writes from a much more conservative position than I come from. She has very strong feelings about discipline, scheduling babies, and traditional gender roles. But when I set that aside, she has fabulous ideas for organizing and caring for your home, especially if you have a larger household.

While her schedules are strict "every 15 minutes" affairs, my schedule tends to deal more with targets. From the time I wake up until 8:30 AM, I'd like to get in a quick 8 Minutes in the Morning session, a morning devotion, breakfast, shower, and personal care, a quick kitchen tidy, and a jump start on the laundry. At 8:30 we start school and all it entails, and at noon it's lunch, dinner prep, and a downstairs tidy for all. By 1:00 I like us to all be settled in for a read-aloud, and then in the early afternoon I try to fit in any music help for the kids (piano lessons, tuning instruments, helping them learn choir stuff) and a little bit of planning and prep for school and household stuff. I also like to check in with God around this time. By this point, He and I usually need to have a nice chat. This is where I also tucked in a bit of time for sewing/crafting/scrapbooking. Around 4 we all come together to do our deep clean. Each day has a room assigned to it. 5-ish is dinner and clean up, 6:30-ish starts some family time and bedtime routine.

See that sewing/crafting/scrapbook time? Yep, I did it. I made space for something important to me. Yesterday I cut out the pattern pieces for some pants for Daniel and a jumper for Katie Grace. Today, I was firmly resolved to do some crafting, except...

I have no idea what to make. Five billion bookmarks, and not a clue where to start.

Sigh.

I'd like to have something handmade for each child for Valentine's Day, and maybe something for the hubby as well. If you have suggestions for easy, Annette-proof gifts for a two-year-old boy, a six-year-old boy, an eight-year-old girl, and an almost eleven-year-old boy, I'd love to hear them.

Our Trip to the Maryland Science Center

Thank you! Helping Haiti

Thanks to those of you who purchased Seasons of Joy this past weekend, I was able to donate $80 to the America Red Cross's Haiti Relief and Development Fund. Thank you so much!

Meal Plan Monday: A two week plan!

This is a bit of a rerun from a Note I made on Facebook, so please forgive me if you've read this before!

Some of it looks not so filled out. We tend to fill out breakfast with fruit and toast and juice. Lunches always have fruit and veggies, usually served with ranch dip, and they're always welcome to peanut butter and jelly if they're still hungry. I have tons of stuff for sides and veggies at dinner-- if all else fails, there's plenty of brown rice, potatoes, and whole grain pasta that we get at the grocery surplus outlet. I also have a pretty full baking cabinet with all the basics stocked up, and that helps.

WEEK ONE
MONDAY
Breakfast: Bread omelet
AM Snack: Fruit
Lunch: Beef and veggie soup
PM Snack: Homemade chocolate chip oatmeal cookie
Dinner: Spinach manicotti

TUESDAY
Breakfast: Oatmeal
AM Snack: Cheese and crackers
Lunch: Sandwiches
PM Snack: Homemade pudding
Dinner: Spiced lemon chicken, noodles, green beans

WEDNESDAY
Breakfast: Graham gem muffins
AM Snack: Homemade honey whole wheat bread with homemade jam
Lunch: Mac and cheese
PM Snack: Veggies and dip
Dinner: Crab supreme

THURSDAY
Breakfast:Grits
AM Snack: Air-popped popcorn
Lunch: Grilled cheese and leftover soup
PM Snack: Homemade brownies
Dinner: Broccoli soup

FRIDAY
Breakfast: Eggs to order
AM Snack: Homemade soft pretzels
Lunch: Leftovers
PM Snack: Wacky cake
Dinner: Pizza bread

SATURDAY
Breakfast: Gingerbread pancakes
AM Snack: At the Pinewood Derby
Lunch: Leftovers
PM Snack: Granola bars
Dinner: Denny's (Kids eat free night)

SUNDAY
Breakfast: Cereal, fruit, and toast
AM Snack: At church
Lunch: Leftovers
PM Snack: Kids choice
Dinner: Salmon Loaf

WEEK TWO
MONDAY
Breakfast: Cheddar Omelet
AM Snack: Fruit
Lunch: Homemade minestrone in the crockpot
PM Snack: Homemade molasses cookies
DINNER: Spaghetti and cheese, broiled tomatoes and mozzarella, salad

TUESDAY
Breakfast: Oatmeal
AM Snack: Cheese and crackers
Lunch: Sandwiches and leftover soup
PM Snack: Monkey bread
Dinner: Meal-in-One in crockpot

WEDNESDAY
Breakfast: Homemade oatmeal muffins
AM Snack: Homemade brownies
Lunch: Shells stuffed with tuna salad
PM Snack: Veggies and dip
Dinner: Beans and sausage

THURSDAY
Breakfast: Cream of Wheat
AM Snack: Cocoa Popcorn
Lunch: Tuna dip and crackers
PM Snack: Homemade pumpkin oat bread
Dinner: Bacon-potato chowder

FRIDAY
Breakfast: Eggs made to order
AM Snack: Granola bar
Lunch: Leftovers
PM Snack: Homemade cake
Dinner: Homemade cheese pizza

SATURDAY
Breakfast: Cornmeal pancakes
AM Snack: Kids' choice/take to church with us
Lunch: Leftover
PM Snack: Fruit
Dinner: Roast chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans

SUNDAY
Breakfast: Cereal, toast, fruit
AM Snack: At church
Lunch: Leftovers/packed lunch
PM Snack: Kids choice
Dinner:Chili beans and rice

Circle Time: A Winter Movement Journey

In my pre-Waldorf, pre-Mama days, I was a preschool teacher and did graduate work in early childhood education. Back in the day, circle time was a pretty academic affair. We had a calendar, chose jobs, participated in show and tell, presented lessons, reviewed our ABCs and 123s, planned out how we would spend our mornings.

A Waldorf-inspired circle is quite a different proposition. Rather than dwelling in the head, its center in the child's body and heart. We move, we sing, we dance, we explore whole worlds in our imagination. It's not that learning doesn't happen-- when we sing songs that count down melting snowmen, for example, we are learning number concepts, and when we move to the beat of a song we are learning to control our bodies-- but it's not an "in your face" kind of experience. One of the things I love most about Waldorf is that it trusts the wisdom of a child to internalize concepts, even those not explicitly taught. Those ideas nestle deep in a child's imagination, seed-like, taking root and growing when the season in right.

For the last two weeks, we've been immersed in a Winter Woods circle. We got to know our animals friends, the bunnies and fishies and squirrels and bears, and how they prepared for the winter. We ice skated without ever leaving our living room, moving in straight lines and curves and spirals. We squirreled away beanbag nuts and found them again, and had a marvelous time.

This week, we left the woods and the animals and journeyed back to our warm homes. We put on pretend mittens and gloves and boots and went on a winter movement journey. We built snowmen and went sledding and had a snowball fight.

And, as always, we're learning too-- not only things like a song to help us put our mittens on and how to exercise inhibitory control over our bodies or how to count down from five as our jolly fat snowmen melt, but also things like how to take turns and how to exist and move without running into someone else's space. We're learning how to pause for a quiet moment of reverence and how to love one another by showing respect and gentleness and care.

Wishing you a peaceful week of winter joy...

Helping Haiti

I know yesterday I said I would be offline for a few days, but I did want to share this.

I will be donating 100% of all Seasons of Joy purchases this weekend to the American Red Cross. Pass it around!

Shhhh...

I haven't felt like I've had a whole lot to say this week.

Haiti is weighing heavily on my heart. I feel so helpless and so hopeless, and I almost find myself longing for the days when around-the-world news was not a click (of the dial... of the channel... of the internet...) away. But I know this is selfish-- not knowing about the news doesn't mean that it doesn't exist, of course-- and so I force myself to look at the images, listen to the stories, hear the ever-growing tally as losses are counted. Anything I could possibly do seems to small and worthless, but of course, I know this is not helpful either.

I'm also finding myself getting angry: angry at politicians and celebrities and spokespersons saying stupid things, trying to make their points on the backs of so many innocent victims; angry at well-meaning friends who share false information without taking a moment to find out whether or not it's true; angry at the inevitable scammers and swindlers and vultures who always swoop into situations like this, picking the bones of other people's tragedies for their own selfish gain.

On top of that, I've been engaging in some not-so-healthy behaviors, staying up til 1 or 2 AM each night, not doing anything of significance. I haven't been diligent about going to the gym or praying or getting ready for school the next day, and both my household and my state of mind has suffered. I haven't been taking my vitamins or eating healthy food or even getting a few minutes of sunshine every day.

One bright spot-- in the middle of the week we all packed it up for the day and went to Baltimore. Daddy had to be there to tour the distribution center for Kathryn's Closet, and our membership to the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry from vacation this summer meant that we got to visit the Maryland Science Center for free. We packed our lunch to keep costs at a minimum, and treated ourselves to dinner at Ikea, a store I love but rarely get to visit. The day trip was lovely, but it made getting into an already rough week even more difficult.

Another bright spot-- meeting with the other mamas in my co-op last night, laughing about denim jumpers and garden gnomes and crazy brilliant children whom we are honored and blessed to shepherd through their learning years. It was wonderfully silly and relaxing, until another homeschool mama who has bucketfulls of my respect asked me "What is your goal for your children at the end of homeschooling?" and I found myself stuttering that I had never really thought about it. Sigh.

I've also found myself thinking a lot about this post over at The Snail's Trail, and the pressure we Mommy Bloggers put on ourselves to be perfect. I find myself inundated with ideas and activities but no time to do them, and it frustrates me almost as much as the knowledge that as long as I am holding myself up to the measuring sticks of the other amazing mothers out there on the internet, I will never be good enough.

And so, I think it's time to close up the old laptop for a few days and reconnect with my family, my purpose, my rhythms and routines, but most of all with my God and with myself. It's time to reign things in and think about why I'm doing all this.

It's time for a little quiet.

Weekend Round-Up! A day late and a dollar short

OK, I'm not actually a dollar short. Thanks to Dave Ramsey and Financial Peace University, we're actually about one month away from paying off all our credit cards except one (curse you, Lowes! *shakes fist*) But that's neither here nor there. Here are some blog posts that caught my eye last week...

Speaking of $$$, Crystal over at The Thrifty Mama had a great article on stocking up at rock bottom prices to save. If you're new to stockpiling (or even if you're an old pro!) you should definitely check this out. Get Rich Slowly has a post on the best time to buy practically anything.

I found great inspiration for car organization over at The Mommy Organizer.

Our Little Nature Nest had a lovely blog post on putting together a math basket. I definitely want to put one of these together for Nicholas!

And finally, some stuff to try...
Homemade bubble bath at Skip to My Lou
Felt strawberries from Mr. Monkey Suit
Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies from Treasures for Tots
And I've mentioned the uppercase rag letters from Happy Together before, but now she has lowercase letters as well!

See you around the Blogosphere!

Thoughts on Joy

Joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls. ~Blessed Mother Teresa

Joy increases as you give it, and diminishes as you try to keep it for yourself. ~Norman Vincent Peale

"Joy delights in joy." ~William Shakespeare

"One of the sanest, surest, and most generous joys of life comes from being happy over the good fortune of others." ~Robert Heinlein

"I do not teach children. I give them joy." ~Isadora Duncan

"Joy is the echo of God's life in us." ~Abbott Coumba Marmion

"Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." ~Psalm 30:5