Why does life seem to get busier when September comes? For me that's when "school" begins and we settle down to books. The reason I put school in quotation marks is because we try to create an environment in our home where learning is happening all the time. But we do focus in on the academics when September rolls around.
We do not use the conventional method of textbooks and workbooks so life isn't laid out in this neat package for me. We tutor our sons according to their personal needs. This takes a lot of searching and prayer on the part of the tutor..... who happens to be me. (See the previous post for one unconventional method of learning.)
So mornings consist of making breakfast and packing lunches first of all. This is no small task. We have a family of big eaters. This morning I made a ham and cheese omelet roll and a fruit salad with apples, pineapple, bits of banana, pear, and peaches robed in yogurt for breakfast.
We packed no lunches because there was a wintry mix falling and the day seemed unpredictable. The men went out to meet a truckload of doors that needed to be unloaded and I am wondering what adventures they are having. Soon after they left the mix turned to mostly snow and there are a couple inches on the ground now around noon. At least they have 4 wheel drive trucks.
But any other day we would either put some leftovers in a crock pot for them to take or if it's soup they prefer to have the slopping mess contained in Thermoses. Then we add to the lunch cheese, fruit, veggies/salad, a pastry, milk or something down that line. Not all of these every day.
We sit down for a bit of a devotional, kneel for family prayer, send the men off to earn the living and then tackle what needs to be done here. I often sit down with a cup of coffee after clearing the food away and listen to scripture for awhile while doing something with my hands. I listen to ten chapters a day. Getting up early is a pill for me so this time to sit, rest, listen and unwind is helpful.
Then I call the two youngest who have been reading, whittling, playing with cats, building with Legos, playing in the woods, killing a groundhog or doing some other thing of interest and we sit together to study the Bible. We are currently doing a study of 1 & 2 Timothy & Titus. We get into some interesting discussions.
After the Bible study we read a story book, taking turns reading aloud. One of the single most important ways of learning is to read aloud. Try it. You may discover many words you don't know how to pronounce or you might not even know what they mean. Reading aloud forces you to know.
After reading, we are ready to tackle some house & animal chores. The dishwasher needs to be unloaded and reloaded. Laundry needs to be started. It takes a daily doing to keep up with the piles of laundry. After reading of Laura Ingall's life, I think it would cut out a lot of work if we each had only two sets of clothing! And bathed once a week. And did the washing once a week. But ...hmm ...shhh ... whispering, "I wonder how they smelled?"
The animals need to be tended. Water for the cattle. (The cow gets milked before breakfast.) Water and food for the chickens. Water and food for the dog and cats. The fire needs to be tended and the wood box filled. Meal prep for the evening may need to be done. This morning I put a turkey in the oven for tonight and I want to make a cranberry jello salad. (Find my recipe in this lengthy post.) I'll make sweet potato souffle later on.
We have some more free time around lunch and thereafter until I get my bearings and know how to proceed. The boys might get a list of things to do together or they might each get their own list. Or we will all work together on a project. One day last week we washed all the windows on the outside. Another day we deep cleaned a room. Yet another day found us working on the wood pile, splitting, hauling and stacking wood. Okay, you know I wasn't splitting wood, don't you? I should be maybe, but I wasn't.
Does that sound like a day full? Till next time! Blessings to you.
I'm facing a blank page today with a mind that suddenly feels blank. Because I wrote a really good article I was going to post today and the stupid Google ate it! Just consumed it. The big ol' meany.
Well, now what?
I'm processing a lot of things right now and nothing seems quite ready for words.
So I'll just ramble about what's been going on here in the hollow where we find our home. And outside the hollow where life calls us; some of us daily, and some less often.
The sun is shining in our world! It really is. This morning I thought daylight seemed very long in coming. Then I realized there was a heavy cloud cover. It would be awhile until we saw sunshine.
This forenoon while we were reading together (the boys & I) there was a sudden downpour of sleet which quickly changed to rain. It rained awhile and then the power was suddenly cut off. We finished reading in the darkened room; then just as we finished and were speculating what to do without electricity, it came back.
But, truth to tell, I don't even know when the sun decided to come out from behind those clouds. Yeah, I know, it was the clouds that hurried on and there the sun was, shining like he was all the time and we just couldn't see him.
And the air is warmer! That "springtime feel" once again. Maybe if I can get past the mud, I'll go start some seedlings at my friend's house this week. Yesterday we needed 4 x 4's to get out of here.
While I helped one boy decide what to study today, the other was writing another story. Then while I helped the next one decide what to study, the first one studied.
Melvin wrote a grammar rule and illustrated it, worked on memorizing and read from a book about animals. Our Magnificent Wildlife.
Christopher read a whole book. I guess. He says he did. It seems impossible to me. But I think he's a speed reader. He read Madeleine Takes Command (204 pages)
Now he's started another, The Golden Goblet. We picked out four books for him to read this week. I asked, "Can you read that many?" He said, "Let's see how far I get."
My personal goal for this year is to read 30 books. I have never set a goal or kept track of how many I've read so I have no idea how realistic this is. I'd love to hear how many you read in a year on a normal basis.
The problems I experience with reading are these- 1) If I get into a captivating book, I have an extremely hard time doing the normal life things like, eating, working and sleeping. 2) If I try to read a deep book or one that is not so captivating, it is extremely hard to get into it while doing the normal life things like eating, working and sleeping.
Can you relate to my dilemma?
Austin is recuperating from a fall that sprained his wrist and banged his head. He wrapped his wrist and puts ice on it periodically. He bandaged the head. He is a silent sufferer so I don't always find out how much he's hurting.
He reports that there is marked improvement from yesterday. He was able to squeeze the shampoo bottle this morning and button his pants.
He is cubing a lot today with the one good hand. I wonder when or if he'll ever outgrow this obsession? I begged him to go relieve the calf who is staked out in the yard. Every time I looked out, there seemed to be a big branch accompanying his head, along the ground.
Austin confirmed that he was indeed greatly entangled with that branch. He was having difficulty with life while tangled up like that. He seems like a rather stupid creature.
Austin also did a bit of house cleanup and some basketball hoop shooting. I think he feels really hampered with only one functional hand. I know I would.
Thomas and I are heading, with a group, to PA this afternoon, Lord willing. We want to visit a teen Kid's Club evening in session. We are looking for options for the teens we know. Hopefully I'll have something to report on that later.
Thomas and Matthew went to the job this forenoon. The plumbers are there to do their work. This is another job where Thomas needs to fix another contractor's mistakes and finish work another started. It's appalling how many contractors will start and then skip off with the money, leaving the owner in a state of frustration.
All the hampers are full again today. I had emptied all four of them Friday. (I can't remember if ours was empty but pretty near, if not.) I'm sure you can relate if you have five children.
By the way, one pair of 34 length jeans fills the hamper about a quarter full. And 4 or 5 of them fill the washer. Four guys in the family wear that length. (Yes, the family picture on this site is sadly outdated.)
I think lunch wants me. Talk to you later....
Today I am thankful for...
...clothing.
...four wheel drive.
...rice.
