Drawing Textbook

I really love art. It is funny, though, because I grew up absolutely terrified of it. I was convinced by the time I hit middle school that I couldn't possibly do anything even remotely artsy. I drew and drew as a young child, but during those awkward middle years, something changed. Perhaps someone said something rude. I don't remember. All I knew is that I could. not. draw.

And I didn't. Until I was married and on a whim, signed up for a college art class. Oh my, did I have fun. I often went early and left late, just to get in some extra time working with the teacher. And, at the end of the year, she actually bought one of my projects! Wow. I had forgotten about that until just now. Anyway, that opened up so much for me. I still am no great artist and I really have to work to draw and don't even ask me to draw from life because that is HARD. But, I enjoy it.

My kids were totally stuck in their drawing. They had been drawing the exact same stick people with circles for mouths that they drew at the age of 4. I tried in vain to get them to draw what they saw and not what they "knew". I wanted them to see that we don't actually have circles for mouths, nor do our arms look like sticks, etc. I knew we needed drawing lessons, but I didn't know where to start.

One day, I stumbled across a post on Baker's Dozen about Drawing Textbook. I placed my order and have been so happy with the lessons. When we first started, we flipped through the book and the kids started screaming that they could never do those later lessons. We just finished the book today. And, I'm happy to report that they have done wonderfully. I'm not sending them to art school just yet, but they've developed so much in their abilities. And, I've had so much fun going along for the ride.

Meagan's creations:
Caleb's creations:
And a few of my own:
Fun, fun, fun!

Big Book Review, Vol. 4

It's that time again...time when I sit down and record what I've read over the past six months or so. Once again, the actual number of books is much lower than I feel like it should be. Part of that is because I've got so many periodicals that I read, part because I've been totally into listening to the "Stuff You Missed In History Class" podcast (both current and past podcasts), part because I have a newborn for crying out loud, and part because the first book I worked on was a total monster of a book.

Here's the list:

Building Christian Character: A Devotional Guidebook through the Elements of Christian Character for Children and Adults by Blair Adams (image from first edition)

This was a heavy book, and I'm not just talking about weight. It was over 350 pages full of elements that make up Christian character, their polar opposites, and Bible verses pertaining to each. I understand there is a system available to use it in schooling that I'd really like to get my hands on. I often found myself thinking, "wow, I'd really like to have the kids memorize this list of verses," about a whole variety of character issues that still need polishing. Of course, I need my own bit of polishing as well...


Root Cellaring: Natural Cold Storage of Fruits and Vegetables by Mike and Nancy Bubel

A very informative book. Our new root cellar going in made it so that I needed to learn something about cold storage...Stat. I appreciated the logical layout of the book. I even got a good pumpkin pie recipe (using honey in the filling and butter in the crust) that everyone here enjoyed.





I also read the following books as a preview for Caleb, whose insatiable appetite for books has left me scrambling to find good books for him:

Our Only May Amelia by Jennifer L. Holm

Really enjoyable. It's about a Finnish family, a girl with 7 older brothers whose desperately hoping for a baby sister, and life on the Nasel River at the turn of the century. May Amelia is constantly getting into trouble, but she really has a heart of gold. I passed it along to Caleb.






The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss

The book must be out of print because I couldn't find it listed, except for used copies, on Amazon. It is about a Dutch Jewish family forced into hiding in WWII. The book focuses on the youngest daughter who, along with her middle sister, must stay in the upstairs room of a farm house. You do really get a sense of how maddening it would have been to be, essentially, prisoners. And once free, how awkward it would be to rejoin the world. I haven't passed it on to Caleb for one reason: language. The farmer they live with lets a few words fly that are unacceptable in our house. As far as exposure to Nazis go, the book is actually quite a gentle introduction to the atrocities. It is a shame that it is ruined by language.


The Fire Pony by Rodman Philbrick

I liked it. It totally made me want to ride horses. There is some intrigue in it...a past that haunts the main character's older brother. You never know exactly what happened, but you know that they have to keep moving to stay ahead of his past. The ending is good. I won't spoil it, but I felt it was a great ending to a kid's book. I did pass this one along to Caleb as well.






The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman

I must admit I was drawn to this one because of my fondness for midwifery. The description on the back wasn't too enticing, but I read it anyway. I really liked it. It reminded me somewhat of The Tale of Despereaux in that it is a simple story with deep underlying emotional growth for the characters. However, it is crass in places. True to the medieval time period in which it is set, there are several (maybe 4?) references to someone being caught with their breeches down, pinches, warm & sticky kisses, and the like. Nothing overly vulgar, but I will wait a few years before letting Caleb read this one if he gets it at all. I haven't decided that one yet. Does it pass the "Whatever is good, whatever is noble..." test? Hmmm.

Books we read for school:

• Walk the World's Rim by Betty Baker - Good story that inserts a fictional character into real history. When we went to learn the real story behind the book, we were amazed at how true to life it actually stayed. A hard look, also, at slavery and honor.
• Pedro's Journal by Pam Conrad - Diary of a boy on Columbus' ship. Great way to learn about life on a ship during that time and about Columbus specifically.
• Secret of the Andes by Ann Nolan Clark - Honestly, I had to trudge through this one. It doesn't happen often, but occasionally, I just can't figure out why Sonlight picked a certain book. This is my core 3 question mark.
• Incans, Aztecs, and Mayans by John Holzmann - We really enjoyed learning through this book. And, I've been amazed at what the kids have retained. In fact, Meagan often writes a number in the base-20 Mayan way after learning about it in the book.
• Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare - We all really enjoyed this one about a boy who is left to care for the home while his father is gone for months to bring the rest of the family back.
  
• Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare - Another wonderful book...one of those that the kids are chanting "One more chapter!" after each reading. The main character is 16, so I was a little concerned that it would be too mature for them, but they loved it. It is about a girl of privilege from Barbados who loses everything and is forced to turn to relatives in colonial Connecticut. She is accused of witchcraft and discovers who really loves her through it.
• Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes - We aren't finished yet, but it looks like it'll be a winner.

That's all for this year! Happy reading!

First Day of School

We started school today. So, ya, it's very early. But when the temperatures are 95 degrees, what else can you do? That is, that doesn't involve profuse sweating? Besides, we want to be able to take time off in both the fall and springtimes when we are really busy on the farm and the weather is nicer.

So, a couple of stats for those one of you who care. Caleb is in 4th grade and Meagan in 2nd. They are working through Sonlight's Core 2, which is a world history core, with some extras thrown in for good measure. We usually end up enjoying the books so much that we sometimes get ahead of the schedule, so I purposely sped up the books in order to incorporate some extras. They are on their own levels for language arts and math, of course. We are changing science up a bit this year. Last year, the experiments often got pushed to the side when other things came up. So this year, we are have 4 Mega-Science weeks sprinkled through the year where it'll be All Science, All the Time. We'll prep heavily for those weeks to get everything lined up that we need and then really enjoy ourselves. Here's hoping that works.

Abby is in "Getting into Mischief" 101. She'll likely ace the program this year. As she's become mobile, my world has changed. She's not crawling yet, but on these hardwood floors, it's quite easy to scoot around. And where scooting isn't called for, she just rolls to where she wants to go. It's really fun to see.

So what does all this have to do with that ridiculous (and ridiculously cute) picture up there? It was our little break from reality while doing school today.

CA courts have effectively banned homeschooling in CA

This is a real tragedy. A recent decision by a California appellate court effectively banned homeschooling in the state. It said that California law requires parents to send their children to school full-time or to be taught at home only by credentialed tutors. Unless to are credentialed, you may not teach your own children. The vast majority of homeschooling parents are not credentialed and therefore would be open to prosecution as truants and possibly even removal of the children on grounds of educational neglect. You can read about it here from a CA news source or here from the HSLDA.

There is an old saying, "As California goes, so goes the nation."

HSLDA has put together a petition to ask the Supreme Court to "depublish" the ruling. This would mean that the ruling would not be used as precedent for other homeschooling families. The petition can be signed by anyone, not just Californians, and they are hoping people across the country would show the Supreme Court how important homeschooling freedom is to them.

Please go HERE to sign the petition.

And please pray.

Legislative Day

We spent yesterday at the Nebraska State Capitol building. The NCHEA (Nebraska Christian Home Educators Association) organized a Legislative Day. The goal was twofold. We were to learn a bit about Nebraska's legislative system and we were to express our opinion about LB 1141 to our senators.

We were able to meet with Senator Heidemann from our district for a few moments and were encouraged to learn that he agreed with us: LB 1141 is a bad bill. He will not support it.

But even more encouraging was to hear that Governor Heineman is also opposed to the bill and assured us that if it happens to arrive at his desk, he will veto it.

NCHEA estimated that about 600 homeschoolers were there at the capitol. That is amazing and also a bit ironic since the public schools were closed yesterday due to snow. Even though we learned that this bill will not become law, it was so important for us to be there to show the representatives that we are here, we are involved, and we feel strongly about protecting our rights. I'm sure this will not be the last bill to be introduced that will threaten us.

Of course, there has to be one in every crowd. Almost everyone was dressed nicely, well-groomed, ready to present a good image. Then, there was the guy in a sandwich board sign. It was like right off the streets of Manhattan. The board said something about the eternal fires of hell. I can't imagine that even one person in the history of the world has ever been brought to salvation with the help of a sandwich board sign. I really don't see the point. Unless the point is to show your lunacy. Because that worked.

NE homeschooling rights threatened

I have some news about a couple of new additions to our farm, but I haven't written the posts yet. Besides, I wanted to include a few pictures of the newest members, but it was so incredibly cold and windy (after a high yesterday of 60, today's high was at midnight and it got down to 10 degrees...brrr!) that I didn't have the will to stand around and take cute pictures. And, I thought my camera might freeze up.

Anyway, there are more pressing matters on my mind. Nebraska homeschoolers are facing a real threat in the legislature. You can read more about LB 1141 here. I'm trying not to be distraught. Today has enough trouble of its own, right? But, at the same time, it both saddens and infuriates me when lawmakers attempt to infringe on my rights to raise my children as I see fit. I don't fear the law because I have something to hide. I fear the law because it takes away my rights as a parent. And any law that does that must be opposed. The older I get, the more I mourn the loss of the love of freedom that our country must have once had. I know they must have held that freedom close because of the lives laid down to secure and protect it. Today, we don't seem to get particularly worked up when rights are taken, and in fact, often willingly give our rights away. Don learned in law school that often "bad facts make bad laws". I don't deny that there are parents out there shirking their responsibility to teach their children after claiming their right to do so from the state. Or that there are parents who are hiding behind the label of "homeschooler" in order to do unspeakable things to their children. They are terrible facts. But, they don't justify a terrible law like the one proposed by Senator Schimek. I don't feel like I have the energy to fight this, but I must find the energy because it absolutely must be fought. Because I like it here and I don't want to move!

National Midwifery Week

This is National Midwifery Week. Today, the kids and I had a wonderful "field trip" corresponding to it.

It started with a tour of the Nebraska Capital Building in Lincoln. It was very informative & my cousin & her homeschooled kids accompanied us. Though they live in Lincoln, they had never been on a tour. The highlight for the kids was to go to the very top of the tower part of the building and look out over Lincoln from the Observation Deck. Caleb was also amazed at the age of the building, though it is younger than our house!!

Then, we attended the Proclamation Signing with the Governor. Meagan looked like she was being tortured. It was neat, though, to go up as he signed the proclamation for National Midwifery Week and get our picture taken with him. It was a very large group. It gave the kids a small taste of the way things work at the capital.

And, to top it off, we had a leisurely lunch with like-minded folks, from moms to midwives, nurses in training to senate staffers. It was comforting to be in a place where, when I said I was planning to have this baby at home, people showed happiness and understanding, rather than shock and amusement (or worse). It was nice to meet some of the folks from Nebraska Friends of Midwives, who I've been "speaking" with online for a few months now.

A proud moment

I have just got to brag for a second here. Meagan has been working to memorize Proverbs 31:10-31 for about 2 1/2 weeks now. Today, she said the whole thing. I'm in awe. I thought it would keep her busy for the entire school year!!! Whoops! I completely underestimated her. I'm so proud of her.

Back to school...yes, already!

We started back to school today. It is terribly strange to me to be starting school in July, but actually, there are some schools around here that are doing it! Frankly, I can't see why, in Arizona, we don't school through the summer and vacation in the winter. Summers are murder here. Our school break has consisted of WAY more movies, Nintendo, and computer games than normal because they just cannot go outside. If they do go outside, it's just too hot by 7:30am. They do go out occasionally in the late evening if, and only if, the sprinklers are on in the greenbelt & I've given them permission to soak themselves thoroughly.

Anyway, back to our school. We started now so that we can get 5 weeks done before everything gets packed up & we move. Only 44 days until we pull out of town now! We'll take 2 weeks off for the move and start back up on September 17th. There is a lot more work this year, with Caleb in 3rd grade and Meagan in 1st. But, I'm excited! Meagan is too, but Caleb says there will be too much work. I really have to work on getting him to not look at all work as drudgery. Just because something is a challenge, doesn't mean you can't enjoy it. He'll either learn that lesson very, very well, or we will all be very, very miserable on the farm! Lots of work there!

For school this year, we are doing a mixture of Core 2 and Core C from Sonlight Curriculum. One thing I really love about Sonlight is how it adapts so easily to multiple ages. This year is a study of World History. We'll be doing the Science 2 program as well, which covers batteries, the human body, and the weather as the main focal points. For math, Meagan is starting Singapore 1A and Caleb is finishing Singapore 3A. He'll be nearly through "4th grade" math by the end of the year, but it really comes so easy for him. I'll be working a little Miquon Orange book into Meagan's math program too, as I really liked the way that worked with Caleb. Meagan is waiting a little to begin the Language Arts program for 1st grade, as we are still working in 100 Easy Lessons. She can read quite a bit now, but I'd like to get her a little further in it before we start with the grammar and reading involved in LA1. Caleb is doing LA 2 Advanced, loosely, as I've added more daily writing assignments. And really, with Sonlight's LA, just as with their Cores, the number of the level is just that, a number. The program really can be geared to a variety of levels and ages. It's just a matter of expecting more and better work from the older child. This way, their readers still correspond with the scope & sequence of the Core program. We don't do much by way of a specific Bible program. We usually just tackle a book at a time and read through it and discuss it. For memory work this year though, Meagan will be learning Proverbs 31:10-31 and Caleb will be learning the book of Galatians. Yes, it'll be a tough job, but I know he can do it. We'll go as far as we can, but I'd like to get it done this year. And, Caleb will be learning how to cook this year. I really want to focus on this, as he is definitely old enough to do it and read the recipes. And, of course, we'll all be learning about gardening, food preservation, animal husbandry, and construction (lots of projects!!) on the farm this year.

It's going to be a fun and challenging year. And what's so great about it is that I get to learn nearly as much as the kids do!

School's out! School's out!

Well, we finished our school year yesterday. Whew, was that exciting! It's weird, though, because I've already been planning next year. It's not like I was excited to be done...just excited to be moving on. I seem to have this compulsion to FINISH things. Meagan will be spending the summer with Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. She is less than thrilled, but perked up when I mentioned that once she learned to read, she could read American Girl books on her own. It's all about motivation, people.

Actually, we will be taking a relatively short summer break. We'll probably start back up in early August since we'll be moving, having a baby, and adopting this year...things could get hectic, I suppose. But, it is so much fun to look ahead at all the books we'll read this year. Caleb has quite a collection of books in front of him...18 chapter books, some of which are fairly long. The other thing I'm excited about for next year is Scripture memorization. We've done plenty of verses & even a few chapters for Caleb, but next year, I'm going to have Caleb try to conquer memorizing an entire book of the Bible. I haven't picked which one yet, but it'll probably be a shorter one (though it WON'T be Jude, as he suggests!!) Meagan will memorize Proverbs 31. I'll probably try to do both with them, but with their little sponges for minds, I'm sure they will leave me completely in the dust. But, hey, I'll get the pleasure of seeing them hide God's Word in their hearts. And isn't that worth a little humiliation??? I think so.

Home School Mothers

This article was so motivating to me. I hope you enjoy it!

Beware the homeschoolers

We thought that this video was so funny. Enjoy!

Reading Daniel

The kids and I have been reading through Daniel during Bible time in school. I love Daniel. It's one of my favorite books of the Bible. (is that allowed? to have a favorite? I hope so!) I love how absolutely relevant it is for today. I love how faithful these guys were in a faithless world. I love the prophecy of times that have already come to pass and I love the prophecy that hasn't taken place yet. In fact, a Beth Moore study on Daniel just started at a friend's church & I signed up. It makes Tuesdays a little crazy & hard, but man, it's worth it. And, I know God has more to teach me from the book.

Anyway, so the kids & I are reading through it too. I explained the interpretation of the dream in Daniel 2, identifying what in history has already happened. They thought it was pretty neat. Then, for history, we started in on Greek News...a book that gives the history of the Greeks in a fun, newspaper style. We got to the part where Alexander the Great conquers pretty much the entire known world & we flipped back in Daniel to re-read that part of the prophecy. What fun to see Caleb's face as he saw God's mighty power and omnipotence in it. I just love God's word. What joy there is in dwelling in it.

One of my greatest joys

There are so many things I love about homeschooling. Things that I never thought of before we started, but now, are just a happy part of life. Things like the ability to make a dentist or doctor appt without having to worry about missing school. Things like being able to travel whenever we want and for how long we want (as long as Don gets off!) Things like having all these delicious books piled high enough to have completely filled 22 shelves, including stacking on top of each row, all for our pleasure.

But, one of the greatest joys I have being tackled by my children because they desperately want me to read another chapter. I can't explain the joy of them loving the books, loving the time togther, loving my attention, and loving my effort to read interestingly. To be literally piled on & knocked over in a mad struggle to gain control of the book & then to have them scream & laugh, trying to get me to keep reading. It's absolutely priceless. And, with homeschooling, I get to experience it over & over again. I wouldn't trade this for anything!

A trip to the donut shop

Ok, ok, so this might seem strange after my post a few days ago about how I don't eat sugar, but as I said then, I'm not maniacal about it! Just a little nuts.

Anyway, we read Homer Price today, chapter 3, about the donuts in the shop. So, we decided to take a field trip to Krispy Kreme. Now, if I was "Super Homeschooling Mom," and not just "Average Homeschooling Mom," (The costumes are color-coordinated, but mine's not as flashy. I do still have the cape, though!) I would have organized a tour of the facility among all my other homeschooling friends, setting up a clear objective, and perhaps ended the day with a trip to the library to look up facts on donuts. But, as I said, I'm just "Average Homeschooling Mom" and the extent of our day was to look through the windows as the donuts go down the belt & get glazed. We were given 3 free donuts (I didn't know they did that! I guess the deal is you get 1 free plain one when the HOT DONUTS light is on!) and bought 4 more for dessert tonight. Just to give you an idea of how rare a treat this is, Meagan (4yo) had to be reminded what a donut was & she didn't think she remembered ever having one! Anyway, they were yummy & the kids were impressed. And, though not the work of "Super Homeschooling Mom," I don't think the kids will be denied entry into college because of my sub-standard field trip! Of course, 2 donuts in one day may kill off some brain cells, but we'll risk it!