The Wise Man and the Foolish Man

9 February 2012

My kids and I spent the night at my sister's house last night and so there is not a whole lot on the agenda today. My mom had asked to be involved with the homeschooling I am doing as so I asked her if she would mind doing a singing time with the kids.

We decided on the song "The Wise Man and the Foolish Man" from the Children's Songbook of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. My mom prepared a whole lesson around this song that started with the scripture passage the song is about and an explanation and discussion with the kids about what the sand and the rock and the house represents. Then she put a pile of dirt and a rock in her bathtub, each with a plastic cup balanced on top. She turned on "the rain" and we watched the effects of the water on the earth. We sang the song several times and watched some YouTube videos people had made with the song. It was very fun and the kids enjoyed it a lot.

I finally finished The Chosen by Chaim Potok. A very good book with an extremely meaningful ending. The remainder of the day was spent playing with cousins until 6:30pm when we drove home. We read two more chapters in The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett and then I settled the kids in bed and soaked in a much deserved hot shower. I am now going to settle down for the night and start reading Laddie: A True Blue Story by Gene Stratton Porter.

The Wild Garden

8 February 2012

Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday! I always (or nearly always) forget to take our garbage dumpster out to the curb on Wednesday! Good thing we have two dumpsters or perhaps that is a bad thing. Maybe if we only had one dumpster remembering to take it to the curb would climb higher on my priority "to remember" list.

We ran a few errands in the morning. I had to take Em in to get some of her immunizations and since we were across the street from the used bookstore I stopped in and bought a few more books.

My sister-in-law's sister asked me if I could give her a ride to a friends house so she could go searching for a car with him. She offered to pay my gas money and so I consented and also decided that since I had been planning on driving that direction tomorrow anyways I called my sister to see if we could just spend the night. I am very accustomed to the hour drive down there, but I will avoid it if I can. She said that would be fine so long as I helped her maintain the younger kids because she had some teenage girls coming over for a cupcake decorating activity. Before going to her house I stopped by the local thrift store to see what books they had and I was able to get a dozen books I have on my list at $0.50 a piece!

When the activity started I herded the kids downstairs (four of mine and three of hers). I knew there wasn't a whole lot for such rambunctious kids to do down there so I came prepared with The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I told them all that they could play and didn't have to listen to the story, but it would be nice if they could keep quiet so those who did want to listen would be able to hear. At the end on the first chapter I had asked everyone to be quieter a few dozen times. By the end of the second chapter I was essentially reading to myself so I stopped reading and just maintained the kids from getting into things they weren't allowed in. Ten minutes after I stopped reading A couple of the kids asked why I stopped. I explained that no one was listening and a few of them defended themselves saying that they had been listening. Perhaps I should have picked up the book again and continued reading at the chance that someone would actually have sat down and enjoyed it, but I felt I had been thoroughly ignored so I didn't.

After the girls left the younger kids were allowed upstairs to decorate the leftover cupcakes with the leftover frosting. We cleaned up and my kids helped my sister's kids with their homework. (I know! I was surprised too!) Usually I worry about my kids being a distraction to their cousins but my sister commented that tonight it was easier to get them to sit down and do their work than it regularly was. After they were caught up with their homework we all sat to read scriptures and have a family prayer.

I read my kids The Secret Garden, from the beginning. When they were all asleep I talked with my brother a bit about homeschooling. He loves to hear about it and wishes his wife would be willing to homeschool but she does not feel adequate to be able to teach them herself. He did buy A Thomas Jefferson Education by Oliver DeMille in e-book format while we were talking. Maybe then my sister-in-law will be a little bit more comfortable with the idea. Maybe not. Who but God knows?

P.S. I didn't have a chance all day to read The Chosen by Chaim Potok. I didn't finish it last night but I only have a few chapters left! Oh well, tomorrow is another day.

Religious Devotion

7 February 2012

I started reading The Chosen by Chaim Potok this morning and by the end of the day I was nearly all the way through it. Of course, that meant I didn't do anything else all day.  It was computer day for the kids and they were happy that I didn't restrict the amount of time they were allowed to play. Ah well, I will finish the book tomorrow and get the house fully cleaned then.

Usually my kids go a little wild when I spend the day reading (or listening to an audio book as it has been in the past), but this time they were well behaved. There was not fighting or arguing to speak of and the house was pretty well still intact by the end of the day. My little Em crawled around and played by my side while I read. She had a little bit of a fever and a runny nose; I'm pretty sure she is starting to cut her first teeth. The poor baby.

I am already looking forward to re-reading The Chosen as well and looking up all of the Hebrew and Yiddish words and phrases to find their meanings. The devotion the characters in this book have to their religious studies is astounding and impressive. I am going to try to incorporate at least ten minutes of scripture reading into our hour of reading time before bed. It will be a good thing not only for the kids, but for myself as well.

Weekend Nothings

4 & 5 February 2012

On Saturday we spent the day cleaning and running errands then spent our evening at Elisa's house. Today at church our lessons were on Gratitude and Charity. We wrote a list of 100 things for which we were grateful. The lesson on charity began with a discussing the parable of the Good Samaritan. This is a topic I have frequently discussed with my father, who is my mentor in the Gospel. Charity is the "pure love of Christ", it is giving to others and expecting nothing in return. When we can do this, then we know the love Christ has for us. I do things for my children that I do not expect to gain anything from. My joy is in their growing, their knowledge, the fruition of their lives.

Where the Buffalo Roam

30 January 2012

I feel like Charlotte Mason and Oliver DeMille hit me over the head with a frying pan of inspiration. I took the kids to Walmart today and we bought a bunch of craft items. Quiet activities they can do while I read to them at night so they don't bother each other and I can get through more than a few minutes of reading. The things I bought are as follows:

Popsicle Sticks
Lanyard (boondoggle depending on where you are from)
Friendship Bracelet Thread
Yarn
Knitting Needles
Crochet Hooks
Colored Pencils
Crayons
Watercolor
Paper (white and construction)
Drawing/Writing Journals
Pencils
Beads
Pipe Cleaners
Glue
Scissors

I am sure I forgot something(s) on that list, but that gives you a good idea. We also bought fruits and vegetables we could eat without having to prep (apples, oranges, celery etc) and drove out to Antelope Island which is only a five minute drive from where I live. I had never been there before. Don't get me wrong here, I have only lived here since November, so it's not like I have had a ton of opportunities to go there. Anyways, I decided to pay for the annual pass since I plan on going there often since it is so close and it lets me into all of the other state parks in Utah.

We went to Lady Finger Point and walked/climbed up Lady Finger Trail. The kids had a blast running through the brush and climbing up the rocks. We looked out to Egg Island were the seagulls go to roost. We got a pretty good look at just how big the island is from that vantage point. After we had our fun there we drove up to the Visitors Center and had a look around. Ra was a bit disappointed that it wasn't more extravagant than it was. Ah well.

We saw our first bison sitting around outside the Visitors Center, just south of the parking lot. We got back in the car and had something to eat then drove the 11 miles to the Garr Ranch on suggestion from the folks at the Visitors Center. It was really cold and I had only had the kids bring sweatshirts so by the time we got there and had a potty break the kids were ready to call it a day.

On our way back to the causeway I saw a lookout point we could drive to so I took a small detour there and had the kids pull out their journals we just bought and draw a picture about the island and write something about it as well. All three of them did a wonderful job. Ra drew the landscape scene from where we were parked, looking out over the Great Salt Lake. El drew the causeway leading up to the island and our car on it. Ca drew . . . well I couldn't make it out but he explained it to me and said it was dead fish that the animals killed. Ahhh boys.

I think we should spend the rest of the week at Antelope Island, at least a few hours a day. What a great experience and there is still so much to do and see there.

Weekend Rearrangement

28 & 29 January 2012

The weekend was fun. I spent a lot of time with the kids and hubby. We kept the house clean and rearranged our basement so that we could bring in our giant bookshelf from the shed. We finally took down our Christmas tree (we're lazy, I know) and moved our television back upstairs. The computers were rearranged on the wall opposite the bookshelf. Our book collection may be pitifully small right now but it wont stay that way for long. I found a great used bookstore called The ReAd Cat and I bought seven books while I was there. I would have bought a good deal more, but even at $3 a piece I have to keep an eye on my budget.

I have been reading a good deal and am just about 3/4 through my book. I should be able to finish it by Tuesday or Wednesday. I also read some more Charlotte Mason this weekend and I feel utterly reprimanded for my lack of structure in the dealings of my household. My husband has pestered me about keeping the house cleaner for as long as we have had kids, but I have always thought his request unreasonable. Charlotte makes it quite clear that my children will learn my bad habits (which of course I have always known) and will carry them with them throughout their lives. This thought in pertaining to housework and such has never interlocked until reading last night. I fear I have done a wretched job as a mother in regards to housework and responsibilities. This is what I will work on with the kids while I complete my 2 month self education primer with TJ Ed. I will work on being a better mother while I prepare myself to be their scholastic teacher as well.

I just need to follow Cinderella's lead and do my work cheerfully and not grudgingly. It will be easier that way, I am sure of it.

Inspiration

27 January 2012

Reading, reading and more reading. I have been reading The Lonesome Gods by Louis L'amour as well as Charlotte Mason's Original Homeschooling Series Volume 1 Home Education. I have to admit I am making much better headway on Louis L'amour's book than on Charlotte Mason's. Most likely because I am taking notes on the Charlotte Mason book. It is filled with very truthful and valuable information. I fear I will never be able to get through all six books in the series. Ah well, for now I need to focus on reading the books on my assigned reading list from TJ Ed, I have six books I need to read for that alone and hopefully do so in a 2 month time frame.

I also read a little bit more of Dracula by Bram Stoker to the kids today. We came across another food "Robber Steak" and decided to make it for dinner tomorrow night because we would have to go grocery shopping to get the ingredients and I wasn't in the mood to pack up the kids to go to the grocery store that late in the day.

Four years ago my husband and I were introduced to The Dave Ramsey Show on the radio and we soon bought his book. It was so full of common sense ah-ha's for us that it changed our lives forever and we spent the next thirty months getting out of debt living as God would have us live. When I read A Thomas Jefferson Education by Oliver DeMille and as I read Charlotte Mason's book(s) I have the same feelings. Charlotte Mason has so much information in her book it sends my mind reeling but gets me excited. This is down to earth, practical information that makes an enormous change in our well being, mentally, physically, and spiritually. I feel like I want to shout it out to the world from the tops of the highest peaks. My soul weeps knowing that an overwhelming majority of people will not accept such knowledge when it is presented to them and even more will not seek for it.

Whether or not people accept the knowledge is not up to me, however I can do my best to be an example and mentor to others so that they might see the fruits of my labors and want it for themselves. The old saying "You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink." has a whole new meaning to me now. I may not be able to make him drink, but I can inspire him and let him choose of his own accord what he will do.

Overcoming Our Computer Addiction

26 January 2012

It was computer day again today. My kids are used to being able to play on the computer for as long as they want, whenever they want so long as there is no homework. Well, since I took them out of public school I decided that we needed a more structured way to deal with the computer time. My husband and I decided that limiting their computer usage to 2 to 3 hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays would be a good place to start. 

I haven't set the best example for them on this as I played World of Warcraft from the time my oldest was only 9 months old until almost a year and a half ago. It was a hard addiction to kick. To entertain my kids while I played, and because children learn by example, each of my kids has been playing on the computer since around two years old. Now before you go and get all up in arms about how horrible it is that my kids start playing on the computer at age 2, let me tell you that I have been diligent in teaching them where they are and are not allowed to go on the internet. Which basically comes down to you can't go anywhere but Friv, NickJr, Poptropica, Playhouse Disney, and Starfall. (Starfall is an awesome website for preschoolers btw, my two boys taught themselves the alphabet and their numbers up to 12, without my input at all!)They know that there is big trouble if I find them on any other site that I have not approved.

All that aside though, I agree that we, as a family have had way too much time on the computer and not enough time playing together and being outside and active. Hence the drastic change. But of course, if I am to expect my kids to stay off the computer, I have to set the example. So I have immersed myself in everything I have known I should be doing for a very long time but have always for an excuse not to. Like doing laundry everyday and reading more books, keeping the house clean and orderly and spending more time actively doing things with my children. So, while my children played on the computer I cleaned the kitchen and did the laundry, taking short breaks in between to read my book, The Lonesome Gods by Louis L'amour.

I have never been a fast reader and in the past it has usually taken me several months to get through a 400 page novel. But I am determined to read this book in a week and it is nearly 600 pages. It is a big goal, but I know it is possible. I have done it before (when I read the first Harry Potter book I finished in in 2 days!) and I can do it again, and continue to do it from now on. It seems a little slow starting as I generally read fantasy novels it is taking me a little bit to get into the setting. Wild west is definitely different than enchanted forests.     

Booklist

25 January 2012

Today I read the appendixes in the book A Thomas Jefferson Education by Oliver DeMille and have found that I really need to take two months to prepare myself to teach my kids with this method. We went to the library and I let each of the kids pick out 2 books and I checked out my person list of assigned reading. The books I checked out are as follows;

The Lonesome Gods by Louis L'amour
Little Britches, Father and I Were Ranchers by Ralph Moody
The Chosen by Chaim Potok
Laddie, A True Blue Story by Gene Stratton Porter
Anne of Green Gables by L M Montgomery
The Black Stallion by Walter Farley

I started reading The Lonesome Gods first because several of my immediate family members love Louis L'amour and I had never read his work before. When I looked at the list of titles of 200 of the suggested classics I recognized most of them, though I am ashamed to say I had only read two of them and both of them before the age of ten! I have a lot to learn, but I am excited about it now. I have a reason to read these books. I will learn from them, they will be my mentors.

On a side note, at church on Sunday I was asked to be the coordinator for the 8-11 year old girls Activity Day once a week. I am excited for this opportunity to serve my community and to get to know the young girls in the neighborhood. Ra will be eight this summer and it will be a great opportunity for her to make new friends and for me to be able to get to know her friends as well. I hope to be able to use some of what I have learned from the TJ Ed and Charlotte Mason in these activities.

Heritage in Transylvania

24 January 2012

We read some more of Dracula by Bram Stoker. Based on the passage we read these are the activities we engaged in.

• Learning the German alphabet letters and the sounds they make.
• Located Transylvania on a map.
• Discussed the descriptions of the way people dressed.
• Looked up the recipe for Mamaliga and Impletata to have for breakfast tomorrow.
• Discussed punctuality.
• Looked up the meaning of various words such as missals.
• Talked in brief about levees and floods.
• We talked about twilight, dawn, dusk, sunset etc.
• We discussed what it is the siege a location.
• We talked about the fact that we have maternal lineage from Transylvania.
• We watched some tutorials about beginning family history searches.

Today was also our Free Computer day, each kids was allowed 2 hours of screen time to play on their favorite flash games websites. All in all not a bad day, but maybe not as productive as yesterday. I will finish up my reading of A Thomas Jefferson Education by Oliver Demille and then I will print out the pages I will be needing from my PDF copy of The Checklist by Cindy Downes. After tying up a few of these ends our lessons will be a little bit more focused. 

Dracula and Cinderella

23 January 2012

Today was our second day in our new homeschooling routine. Ra and I discussed the book we read yesterday, Cinderella by Henry W Hewet. Ra was quick to point out that their were differences between the book and the Disney movie. I explained to her that the movie was based on the story; the story was written first, then Disney made their own version of it. I explained to her that there are a lot of stories and movies that were originally written a long time ago and because it was such a well loved story, other people rewrite it and make it their own by changing little things. I will list the differences we came up with here.

• Cinderella's father was still alive in the book.
• The Step Mother did not play as big of a role in the book as she does in the Disney movie.
• Cinderella does not have friend mice in the book, she collects mice and rats and lizards from around the estate at her Faery Godmother's request.
• Cinderella goes to the ball on two different nights, not just one. 
• There is no backstory for the Prince in the book.
• In the book, Cinderella's Step Sisters begged for forgiveness when they found out it was her at the ball.
• Cinderella invites the Step Sisters to live in the palace and arranges for them to be married to dukes in the book. 
• The biggest difference we found was that Cinderella was extremely patient and loving in the book, even more so than the movie. Cinderella did not even so much as sigh at the tasks she was given to do. She happily helped her Step Sisters get ready for the ball and even showed them great kindness and went out of her way to be generous with them at the ball when they did not know who she was. An ultimate example of "turn the other cheek" and forgiveness.

The discussion that many stories we have now are adaptations of great literary works started Ra thinking. She loves the kids series Monster High, which if you don't know has a cast of adapted familiar characters. Some of them are Draculaura, Frankie Stein, Cleo DeNile, Deuce Gorgon, etc. She asked about them and I told her that they are all based on stories of monsters. Some are myths, some are novels, and some (Cleo and Nefra) are based on real historical figures. She asked if we could read Dracula and so, after warning her that it will get scary she sat next to me and we began reading.

• We made a map in Google Maps "My Maps" program that showed all of the cities Jonathon Harker stopped at on his was to Romania. 
• We talked about which geographic direction Harker was travelling. 
• We located the Danube River and the Carpathian Mountains on a map. 
• We talked about the difference in how long it takes to travel between the time this story was set in compared to modern days.
• We discussed the difference between dinner and supper because he makes a point of correcting himself in the journal entry.  
• We talked about what he meant when he said that the meal "was very good but thirsty."  
• We noted that "Mina" is probably his wife.
• We looked up the recipe for Paprika Hendl and Dumplings and made them for dinner.

All of that in the first three paragraphs of the book! I am extremely excited for this new approach to teaching. I will have to read ahead tomorrow before reading it with the children so that I can be a little better prepared. Other than these activities I had fun spending more time with the kids than I usually do. I decided that I would play with them and not tell them "no" unless there was something that I MUST do. It was an extremely fun day today.