Recent fun buys

I have had an unusual amount of time alone the last couple of weeks. When I am alone, my favorite thing to do is walk through the flea market. That usually means stopping by the bank before hand, withdrawing $10 or sometimes $20, and seeing what I can come home with. I really enjoy the challenge, cause I'm weird like that.

From my favorite flea market in North Carolina, I got an owl garden statue. She sits in my kitchen and I LOVE every mossy inch of her, especially for the fall time. She costs somewhere around $15, I think.

This week there were two occasions where the kids were all invited to play together for the afternoon with friends. As a result, I had two 3-hour chunks of time alone. Yesterday I went to my favorite local antique market and found this double tier metal basket for the kitchen. It was on sale for $20. I think it was a good buy because it is heavy and big.

And lastly, my very favorite purchase. I saw these little wonders at a friend's house. The windows in the front of our house do not have screens. It has always bothered me in the fall and spring because I can only open the back windows for fresh air. (In fact, the windows were painted shut!) These awesome screens are for just this problem! They pull open and fit in the window snugly, then you just close the window down on the top. If you have weather stripping on the bottom of the windows, there will be no gaps at all. Even if you don't, the gaps are small and wouldn't be a problem in cooler weather when bugs aren't around. We bought two of these screens for $6 each at Home Depot. LOVE them!! **Warning: Picture below from our bedroom contains cat-clawed curtains, peeled window paint from prying open painted-shut windows, and an outdoor window box with wilted flowers. I should obviously be spending my free time around here instead of browsing the markets!

Fall groove

We have finally nailed down our tracks and found a groove for the fall. Here is how our weeks generally look:

(Mondays and Fridays we are all at home in the mornings. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays Lydie Joy goes to preschool in the mornings.) My curriculum choices are here.

6:15- My shower and devotion (ideally)

7:30 Kids breakfast, devotion/Bible, chores, get dressed

8:30 Math, Spelling, Language (Phonics too for Joshua), Reading, Latin

*The boys need my help for about 45 minutes of this 2 hour period. They have become independent learners this year to an extent that I did not expect. I am so thankful!

(9:00 leave for preschool with school work in tow)

10:30 Outdoor break and snack

10:50 History/Writing or project

11:30 Science/Writing or project

12:00 Lunch and circle time

(Circle time is when we work on memory work: verse (trying to memorize the book of James this year), poem, Latin vocabulary and chants, geography (currently states and capitals), math flashcards, songs/hymns (currently America the Beautiful and Fifty Nifty United States)

1:00 Pick up Lydie

*Read aloud during afternoon snack or at bed time

*Book basket time while I cook dinner

**Fine arts Fridays: No history or science lesson. Instead composer study (currently Schubert), artist study (currently Shakespeare), seasonal art projects, geography workbook for map skills, drawing, logic puzzle, and adding our timeline figures to our timeline.

**We take our school in the car on preschool days. The boys keep their lap desks and pencils in the car all the time. I am amazed at how they can continue without skipping a beat! Our goal every day is to be done by 1:00.

**But we seem to take longer on Mondays and Fridays because we have no time constraints. Also, on those days I become Lydie's teacher, too. We work on Horizons pre-K workbook and Before Five in a Row books and art projects during the morning.

**Another positive change: I hired a house cleaning service! These helpers take an enormous amount of pressure off of me! I am SO thankful! Somehow a schedule that looked completely overwhelming a month ago has settled into wonderful, full, but manageable days! This is a good season!

"It rests well with the parent to consider well the tracks over which the child should travel with profit and pleasure."

~Charlotte Mason

Farm field trip

:: The boys' favorite: the corn maze::

"Cows are my passion. What I have ever sighed for has been to retreat to a Swiss farm, and live entirely surrounded by cows..."

~Charles Dickens

Homeschool highlights from September (belated)

History project: Wigwam

Science project: Mammal reports
Drawing project: The Mayflower

History project: Viking shipsLego Architecture sets Lydia Joy starting preschool Lots of road trips (with built in field trips) Field trip with our homeschool group (Beekeeper)

We got a slow start to school this year. We really didn't get into full swing until September. But September was a really great month academically. We learned a lot, got into a groove with lessons, and traveled a lot. On the down side, it was unusually hot outdoors and Andy travelled almost every week from Monday to Friday. But we enjoyed many days with other family or friends as a result, and that was a blessing. Glad for many highlights from September!

Fall foods

Yesterday I came home from an afternoon at the park with friends and decided I was in the mood to bake. My husband has been working so hard these past weeks, and I especially wanted to treat him. Sometimes I get stuck in a rut with a handful of the same meals. It can't be very exciting to come home to after a hard day.

So I took some fresh Italian parsley, Andy's canned spaghetti sauce from our garden, some fresh eggs from a friend, and some noodles and cheeses and made a lasagna. Then I took the loads of apples from North Carolina and made an apple cake and an apple pie. I grabbed some bread and beans from the freezer to compliment. A little music, some soft white candles, and I hope our kitchen table felt like a haven from the hard day and the chill outside. I am really looking forward to making homemade soups this season, too. There's nothing like a hot meal after a cool day!

Next week, along with apple cake, we will be pulling out some of these from the freezer for breakfast. I think that these baked goods, along with coffee, will make it hard to leave the table and start our day. Yum!

Simple apple pie

6-8 apples, peeled & diced

1/3 cup of sugar

1/3 cup of brown sugar

1-2 T of flour

a squeeze of lemon juice

2-3 T butter, melted

2 pie pastries *I used to make homemade crust. Now I prefer Pillsbury refrigerated crust.

Mix all dry ingredients. Line pie pan with crust. Put half of apples on top. Sprinkle half of dry mixture on apples. Put the rest of the apples on top. Sprinkle the rest of the mixture. Drizzle butter on top. Add the top layer of crust, cutting design in pastry. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

Houston, we have a problem

The other day the kids and I ran into some new friends from our homeschool support group. The oldest boy in their family is Jack's age. They talked for a minute and wanted to get together some time soon. On the way out I said, "Yes, we should definitely have Houston over for a play date soon. I think you two would have a lot of fun." J's reply was, "Mom, please do not call it a play date any more. Just call it "hangin' out." "

Later that day he made a strange comment to me. We were in the car, of course, and he said, "Mom, I hope I always believe in Jesus." Of course I asked for elaboration. He said, "Well, I have noticed that some of the teenagers at my church are strong Christians until they become teenagers. Then when they need to answer some of the bigger questions in life they act like they quit believing in Jesus. I really don't want that to happen to me." God bless his soul. I love that he is so humble as to not assume he is above doing rebellious things.

We talked about how a person that has a genuine belief in Jesus can not lose their salvation. When really hard things happen, they might make bad choices, rebel, question basic aspects of what they believe. But for the believer, God uses all of these things to draw them closer to Him in His own time. And the Bible says that if we continue to talk about what angers, confuses, and hurts us with God and one another, searching for answers and comfort through His word and prayer, that God will use all things for His glory and our good (and many times He does so without these avenues because of His amazing grace). We will always know that He loves and cares for us because the Holy Spirit is our Comforter. And he replied, "Oh. Well, that's good. I think I believe that, too. Thanks, Mom."

I am beginning to wake up and realize that I am not raising a little boy any more. Although he is about as innocent and naive as a ten year old can be, he is definitely a pre-teen now. Life is gradually changing around here!

*The recent picture above just melts my heart. One minute he is thinking about a childish game, and the next minute he is thinking about the immortality of God. Praying that we can provide a steady, warm, trusting environment for him as he continues to sort it all out.

Trip to the mountains

It's official. I love the mountains more than the beach. My heart is fickle and weak for the clean, sweet air, slow pace, appreciation for arts and crafts and music, and the spectacular views. And I am particularly in love with Asheville, North Carolina. Andy and I used to make a yearly trip there to stay with his precious Aunt Glenna every October. But for various reasons we had not been there in five years! We took advantage of Andy's work trip to Hendersonville, the town next door, and went with him last week. Wednesday evening we packed up dusty jackets from storage, mud boots and play clothes, and our school books and headed for the mountains. We had a wonderful 5 days. These trips are one of my favorite perks of homeschooling. When I feel a little suffocated from being with little people 24/7, I will remember how exhilarating it is to have the freedom to take our school on the road and see the surrounding states together with books in tow.

The perfect family hike: 2.2 beautiful miles

Apple orchard/organic farm trip

Our new favorite restaurant: The Fiddlin' Pig

::Bluegrass, bbq, dancing::

Hamburgers and s'mores in Aunt Glenna's backyard

My FAVORITE antique market: Screen Door

Imitating life

"They are free under authority, which is liberty; to be free without liberty is license."

~A Charlotte Mason Education

My friend Liz and I were talking the other day about freedom. We are both in our mid thirties, and learning more than ever what it means to follow Christ. We were talking about choices and God's sovereignty and the mysterious coming together of the two. And even more perplexing, our role in it all. We are amazed at how we sometimes have to start over and learn the basics of our faith. (But how we always walk away more deeply in awe of Jesus and his saving grace.) Grace and consequences, all wrapped up together in our journey to know Him.

With these things in mind, along with other issues, I sat down to paint. What a great little outlet to let it all overflow. I laughed at the product. A little butterfly, the perfect symbol of freedom. But while the word "free" and the butterfly were obvious, the actual art appears to be more of a paint-by-numbers than a freestyle piece of work. I never paint this way. I guess I was feeling like freedom in Christ, might not be completely free, or atleast not in the world's terms. We do not have the freedom to sin just because we are saved. Although our sin is covered by the blood of Jesus. We have the freedom to follow Christ (and mess up while doing so), and work out our individual faith in a personal way. And while this is freeing, it is not a complete free-for-all. My depiction of freedom wasn't wild and wavy, but colorful and full of boundaries. It was the perfect symbol of what I am learning right now.

Fun last days of the summer season

Last week we took our homeschool work on the road to enjoy a trip to Nana and Poppy's house for a few days. At one point or another during the three days, we got to see all of our grandparents and cousins, which is a real treat. Hopefully it was our last week of summer heat!

Family birthday dinner at Johnny Rocket's.

*How did Mimi skirt the camera? Sorry I have no pictures of half the family! I think my camera was put away by the time Uncle Ben, Aunt Kim, and kids arrived. Or else I was just pooped. :(

*Pink dress of Lydie's was bought by her Daddy to wear on her actual birthday, September 21st. *Stuffed puppy was given to her by our best friends, the Harpers for her birthday. It is well loved and affectionately named "Chocolate Chip" or just plain "Chip".

Homewood Park

Birmingham Zoo