Peaceful surroundings

Family vacation ~ beautiful clouds after the storm.

Booklist 3/09

Current Booklist

Math ~ MEP Yr 5 & 6
Grammar ~ Grammar Smart Junior & Grammar Smart Perfect
Literature ~ Ivanhoe, Scarlet Pimpernel, The Good Earth, The Great Divorce
History ~ Romans & Birth of Britain
Science ~ Earth Science
Poetry ~ Alfred Lord Tennyson & Keats
Bible ~ Strong's Concordance, Ephesians, Proverbs & Psalms
Art ~ Botticelli & Friedrich
Music ~ Liszt & Mahler
Shakespeare ~ Love's Labor Lost
Plutarch ~ Titus Flamininus
Computer ~ Mavis Beacon 9

Extras
Health ~ weight training, walking, skating
Life Skills ~ CPR, cooking, gardening
Hobbies ~ knitting, woodworking
Videos ~ Standard Deviants
Skill Bldg ~ Where in the World Carmen Sandiego, Crossword puzzles

Lesson time

Wow ~ 3 blog posts in a row. I must be back to my old self. ;) It has been a while since I've wanted to blog and today I wanted to update our school plans. I need to make certain I have a record of what we are doing, it helps in the long run. We are still using Charlotte Mason's methods and I'm looking forward to getting back to the books. I'll post our current booklist too.

Here is our current schedule ~ its simplified and I'm gonna roll with it.

09 ~ Lesson Plans
Sun – Bible Devotions
Mon – Home Eco, Health, Computer & English
Tue – History & Math
Wed – Arts: Art, Music, Poetry, Bible, Shakespeare & Plutarch
Thu – Science & Math
Fri – English & Math
Lessons and review in the mornings (7:30a-10:30a); Composition, free reading, drill, copywork and recitation in the afternoons (12:30p-2:30p)


How this looks daily:

Sun
8:30a ~ Devotions
~ write journal entry

Mon
7:30a ~ Bible Reading
8a ~ Home Eco
9:30a ~ Health - Computer
10a ~ Computer - Health
10:30a – 12:30p ~ free time/lunch/rest
12:30p ~ Recitation
1p ~ Copywork
1:15p ~ Literature
2p ~ Home Eco

Tue
7:30a ~ Bible Reading
8a ~ Bible Study
8:45a ~ break
9a ~ Bible Study cont'd
9:45a ~ break
10a ~ Shakespeare
10:30a – 12:30p ~ free time/lunch/rest
12:30p ~ Plutarch
1p ~ Art & Music

Wed
7:30a ~ Bible Reading
8a ~ Math – History
8:45a ~ break
9a ~ History – Math
9:45a ~ break
10a ~ Narrations
10:30a – 12:30p ~ free time/lunch/rest
12:30p ~ Recitation
1p ~ Math Assignment
1:45p ~ Reading/Narrations

Thu
7:30a ~ Bible Reading
8a ~ Math – Science
8:45a ~ break
9a ~ Science – Math
9:45a ~ break
10a ~ Narrations
10:30a – 12:30p ~ free time/lunch/rest
12:30p ~ Recitation
1p ~ Math Assignment
1:45p ~ Reading/Narrations

Fri
7:30a ~ Bible Reading
8a ~ Math - Grammar
8:45a ~ break
9a ~ Grammar - Math
9:45a ~ break
10a ~ Narrations
10:30a – 12:30p ~ free time/lunch/rest
12:30p ~ Recitation
1p ~ Math Assignment
1:45p ~ Reading/Narrations

Early to Bed, early to rise.....

Well, I've officially come to the conclusion that I must start going to bed early in order to accomplish what I need to and feel good about myself. I'm not resting and I'm starting to have some serious issues with memory. Hmm, thats never good. I managed to put my work schedule into my Blackberry incorrectly for today and was late to work ~ 3 hrs mind you. That has never happened to me before, I'm usually too early when I mess up. The sad thing is the rest of the week is in the schedule correctly ~ don't know what I did but I really messed this one up. LOL

I've been working on lesson plans for the past hour and I've narrowed down what we will get done in the next 6 weeks. I've decided to take little pieces at a time and see how it goes especially since I will have to rely on the library for the next few weeks til I've sorted out the storage and garage. I'll post tomorrow our finalized schedule and booklist ~ I'm liking what I've put together and am getting excited about reading alongside my kiddos, its been far too long since I did that. I will also be scheduling eye doctors appts for us all so we can enjoy our lessons. A literature based curriculum can be taxing on your eyesight but I've also planned some audio books so my auditory learner will be happy.

Well, got go to bed now ~ I'm taking Benjamin Franklin's quote to heart and I leave you to ponder it ~ Nite!

"Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man (or woman) healthy, wealthy & wise!"

~ '08 CM Conference ~ pt 2

During one of our evening chats, we discussed the Art of Knowing ~ Narration. In this group, a few of us discovered that we were allowing our children to summarize instead of narrate. The children were giving several key points but not actually asking themselves mental questions to produce a true retelling of what was read or heard. We also learned that we were not allowing true narration when we do alot of prompting or asking questions or interjecting with our experience before the narration had been completed. The child's brain wasn't being engaged and allowed to develop through the use of narration. In essence, we are to allow the child to narrate fully and once the narrator is satisfied, we can begin the great discussion. The great discussion is when all minds involved share their love and experience for a particular topic. It is highly used by great thinkers and considered a very enjoyable past time over great books.

I realize that I have been guilt of starting the “great discussion” before the narration or having them do something else which has resulted in either a poor narration or an overly emphasized one ~ one that has embellishments from others. This discussion has spark anew the desire to fully use CMs methods and I have embarked on a study to find out how to narrate so that I can effectively model this to my children. I don’t want summaries ~ they water down the retelling and I don’t want embellishments from me ~ they destroy the originality of the narrator.

So what is narration? We know its not summarizing or having a great discussion. Is it simply retelling what you’ve read or heard? Or is there more to this relatively simple method. I will be studying Volume 1 and 6 along with several Parents Review Articles. As I process this reading, I’ll share my thoughts.

I will leave you with a statement that I’m pondering found in PR Article Some Notes on Narration ~ “The less the teacher talks the more the class will have to think.” Now thats a very important point us homeschool moms need to grasp.

~ '08 CM Conference ~

This year’s theme was “From Rewards to Relationships”. All sessions were around developing the relational aspect of a Charlotte Mason education ~ not just the subject relations (Science of Relations) but personal relationships within the family structure. It was amazing to see the hearts of the parents and teachers being turned towards their children. This conference was truly divine providence. I was humbled by the thought that I had not been developing relationship with my own children but spending my time meeting our material needs and demanding excellence in academics. It really was a wakeup call for me but its not too late to change, thank God for that.

There is a lot to talk about so I think I’ll take it in parts ~ this will be part I. Using the questions provided for our processing times, I’ll share some of my thoughts.

*what has been presented at the conference that is challenging you?
There have been several things presented that I would say challenges me but the 2 that stand out the most is Education is an atmosphere and developing my relationship with God. When I began homeschooling, God being the center of it was all I talked about and envisioned would be the core of it. However, the truth be told the relationship part has disappeared and I’ve inadvertently made it another subject ~ very impersonal. I’ve allowed my home and school life to become impersonal, sterile and devoid of life. There is no atmosphere for learning nor developing a relationship with the Lord. The conference helped me to renew my thoughts and to see where I need to make the changes. I’ve been inspired to go deeper in the Word of God and CMs writings. I must find balance in order to do this right for my family and it all begins with me.

*what ideas or practices of Mason do you better understand?
Education is a life, a discipline and an atmosphere. I’ve come to the conclusion that my understanding of these was not as complete as I’d like. I didn’t really comprehend the following:
Education is a life ~ subjective (spiritually)
Education is a discipline ~ objective (physically)
Education is an atmosphere ~ relative (relationally)
~ taken from notes provided in breakout session “Education is an Atmosphere"
It all makes more sense now and how all four pillars (includes Education is a Science of Relations) must be present, working together to have a true CM education.

*how will the concept of relationship change the way you teach/parent from now on?
This conference has challenged me to return to the ways in which I know work and to rekindle the relationships I’ve begun with my children. One of the reasons I began homeschooling was to get to know them and to help them develop a relationship with the Lord. I’ve been sidetracked for quite some time but I’ve made a decision to follow my heart from now on and I will be doing things that create relationships. Some of things I must do are:
1) having tea time
2) read alouds
3) spending time with them individually
4) model for them what I expect rather than telling them what it looks like; and lastly
5) stand in the gap for them, fervently praying for them along with providing an atmosphere that will allow them to grow in favor with God and man (school scripture in action Luke 2:52b).
I see a lot of growth in my children and I know its from building relationships with them in the past 5 yrs but I also know it can be greater and that I need to ensure that I pursue this higher level.

*what ideas or practices of Mason do you want to investigate more?
Narration ~ to fully develop the art of knowing in each student
Education is an atmosphere ~ to nurture, admonish and equip them for their purpose
Education is a science of relations ~ to fully understand how that fits into the entire education and life

CMs writings were far beyond her time and I’m grateful that I have access to the resource at such time as this. I’m excited to be apart of a movement for the betterment of our children and to be apart of a growing community of loving, caring and awesome parents and teachers. I can do this ~ one step at a time.

How's it going out there?

Its going good here though I'm a bit tired. We are getting things caught up around the house and with school. My work schedule is starting to normalize now that we are open. Yes, we successfully opened our store and doubled our expected sales for the opening ~ Yeah! Lots to be done still and to learn also. I've been resting today and knitting like crazy ~ Sock Wars 3. I decided not to drop out. I'm working to take out my victim out before I receive my own deadly pair. heehee. I've been informed that I have at least 1 or 2 days before I will be terminated. Its been a blast and has taken some stress off.

Yesterday, we took a road trip to Owasso ~ dh, Da Boy and I had never been so the girls were our tour guides. We had a wonderful afternoon out ~ dinner, shopping and hanging out with each other ~ something we hadn't done in a long time. We've allowed our lives to become to busy and unstable that we miss out on these wonderful opportunities ~ they are growing up way too fast. Mother's day was good, I worked from 11a - 4p, opened my gifts and worked on the computer. Nothing exciting but restful. Today, I spent time w/the kiddos working on lessons and playing games. I lost most of them. LOL It was fun and I think they enjoyed it too.

Well, I'm off to finish working on my sock. Thought I'd pop in, say hi and check on some of my cyber-friends. Have a great week.

Nothing much....

is going on around here. I finished the emergency socks, finally. I'm so glad they are done but I don't have the energy or the motivation to do anything at the moment. I tried to knit a pr of baby socks ~ just frogged them. I tried to seem cheerful at our lovely knitting party ~ lys, which is now open on sundays but I really have the "blahs." Brownberry was talking about this recently and I believe I've got them really bad. Its not good since I've 2 new projects coming up that I really want to do ~ ISE6 and Sock Wars 3. They will require more than a blah attitude toward knitting I'm sure. I've not knitted a dishcloth in over a month and don't really have a desire to make one either. Hmm...whats this all about anyway?! I think I'm burned out and that would be ok as long as I get over it fast and soon. LOL

This week will be busy too ~ dh will be leaving wed for a conference til sunday. The kiddos and I will be here to hold down the fort since I'm not comfortable leaving them home alone when I'm over 22,000 miles away. They aren't old enough for that. ;D I will be working at the store this week hopefully only 2 days but with the changes going on I may get called in for my on-call shift. We have inventory this week too ~ so long night on wed. woohoo! (real sarcasm folks!) but overall it should be great and hopefully we will remember to celebrate the boss' birthday before we get to work. The day before may be better ~ I'll talk w/the girls about that tomorrow.

Daylight savings has put a damper on my mood too ~ I'm not fond of the early arrival of it or the length that it has now taken. It really messes with my biological makeup ~ you know the habit of it being just before Easter and after Labor day. I don't know who thought it would be a great idea to change it but I sure wish they'd put it back they way it was. ;D Anywho...getting ready for spring shall be an adventure for me since its been along time since I've done that. I hope to work on the yard more this year and plant a few veggies but time will only tell. The LPGA is around the corner and planning for the state fair. I hope that we are able to take a mini-vacation but at the moment it looks far, far, far away.

I will be attending the CM conference again this year though and I'm looking forward to it. Sk8Chick has decided to go w/me again which shall be a wonderful road trip for us. Speaking of road trips ~ we didn't take one this weekend since dh was asked to work his new pt. School wise ~ we are working slowly in math and science. The kiddos are doing wonderful w/English, history and Bible. I've been very pleased with their diligence and narrations. Tomorrow I'll have them type up some of them to practice typing and to work on sentence structure. I'm hoping to get my schedule a little more normal so we can have our one-on-one time again along w/tea time and our group readings ~ need to find my copy of Shakespeare and theirs, now that I think about it.

I'm very tired now and need to get up early tomorrow. I leave w/dh and Sk8Chick and hangout til time to go to work, will be a long day and won't make it to Knit Guild but I'll get the reports.

Have a great week!

Not much...

thats right ~ not much to report today. I did end up going to work for 5 hrs and doing some floorset work. Very dirty job but it has to be done. We are in the process are cleaning the store and re-arranging some of the product shelves. I don't mind since it will get the store cleaner and I like that a lot. I did participate in Wordless Wednesday ~ check it out here on my other blog.

On the knitting front ~ I am steadily working the sock though that 5hrs would have really made a dent in it for me. I will also loss another 5hrs of knitting time tomorrow for the same reason. Oh well, must not think to negatively and use my time wisely to get it done. Which means not spending hours online tonite. ;D All other projects are languishing in their respectively bags and I hope to get back to them next week especially so I can accomplish my goals for the month. I've added several new patterns to my queue on Ravelry and one day I'll make them, just you wait and see.

On the school front ~ we are progressing just fine. Both have finished 2 audio books this week and Riley is enjoying her "Story of the Greeks" which is awesome. I'm glad they are not complaining since that would make life very miserable around here. Da Boy started "Call of the Wild" today after informing me he already read it. Hmm...how did I miss that tidbit on the booklist. I'll check it out tomorrow and update my listing so he doesn't have to re-read too many more that he doesn't like anyway. Riley is re-reading Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm and will begin Where the Red Fern Grows on friday. I've a few others already lined up for their reading time and can't wait since some are to be read w/me. ;D

On the homefront ~ haven't done any of my FlyLady things but did manage to swipe the toilet and clean the bathroom sink. Tomorrow is another day and I will get it done.

I'm going now and will be back tomorrow or the next day. LOL Have a great one!

~ Warriors Update ~

The warriors are doing well, school is progressing slowly but we are almost back on track. I'm tweaking our schedule to get us in full gear but I can't seem to get myself into gear. heehee. Oh well ~ at least we accomplish what we set out to do each day and thats all that counts.

Here is our tentative daily schedule:

9a ~ Bible Study/History
9:30a ~ Math
10a ~ History
10:30a ~ Composition
11a ~ Break
11:15 ~ Copywork
11:30 ~ Science
12p ~ PE
12:30p ~ Lunch
1p ~ Music/Art
1:30p ~ English/Reading
2p ~ Chores

We will have tea times again but that will not start til the first full week in Feb. They will be volunteering on Fridays, so this schedule will be for Mon-Thur. We will have our poetry, shakespeare and handicrafts on Friday afternoons. I'll do a booklist after I finalize their literature selections. All in all, we are moving along well and planning is a breeze.

til next time ~ in the life & times of the Excelsior Warriors!

Weekly Update

Whew! its friday and the weekend is underway. There is alot happening around here especially on the homeschool and knitting fronts. I'm still excited after last night's workshop and can't wait to get started making myself some things. Louisa reminded me of all the things I learned when I sewed and how much is similar in handknits. I've considered the similarities before and even after reading my friend Robin's blog about her sewing adventures, I kept wondering how I could use the two together. Now I have the answers, thanks Louisa, and I can't wait to get started.

Regarding school ~ it has been a very productive day and nice way to end a somewhat productive week. I finally got my head on straight again about it and spent my planning time outlining our coursework. This will greatly help me in planning our books, transcripts and daily work. I am so excited ~ yes I said it again. You see, I've been working backwards to my natural organizational habits. I'm a trained organizer and I wasn't organizing anything to my own habits and skills. Therefore, I was losing ground, completely frustrated and losing things around the house. Now I've not found all the lovely books I've planned to use nor have I completely gotten myself organized but I'm on the road to both and that is the main thing. I will be working on a syllabus ~ getting them ready for college, a master booklist per term, rubrics and grading system ~ for the transcripts, and weekly outlines for myself to follow. I'm looking forward to these last few years with them and I'm going to make the best of them. I will need to plan field trips and internships too but for now we will do our schoolwork, volunteer and make use of our fitness center memberships ~ which is plenty for now.

On to the knitting ~ well I finished my Monkey peds, yeah me! I hope my best friend likes them and doesn't peek at my blog before I get them off in the mail. ;D I will cast on for my Madder socks today but not the Aurora beret ~ I am considering finding the recommended yarn since the Castello actually isn't the right yardage for the project. I think it would be very pretty with it but it would require me to spend another $12 to complete. I'm sure I could but it would have to wait til the 1st of the month. I don't know but I'll figure it out. I will also cast on for the SOTSii, the first hint was sent today and over the next 8wks we will get clues/hints to what we are making. I can't wait ~ my first stole in lace. This should be fun. I'll post progress pics by monday w/the specs.

Off to get Riley ready to leave for the weekend. I'll be back later but I leave you w/dh's plain vanilla socks.

Chow!

~ Goals ~

Wow its here ~ 2008 and I'm ready for it. On several of my groups everyone is discussing resolutions and goals. Challenging themselves for the new year. I've participated in a few of these and I wanted to make sure I posted my goals here. I find goals are easier to accomplish and you are motivated to fulfill them. They also can be elaborated upon and are foundations to doing more.

Goals for 2008 ~ well mine are actually goals for life since my birthday in November when I decided I needed to have something to look forward to each and everyday. Here they are in their simplest form:

1. Create and cultivate a simple lifestyle

2. Continue to challenge myself by reading a minimum of 2 books a month and doing puzzles

3. Develop my craft skills to include learning new ones

4. Spend more time developing relationships w/family and friends

5. Take time to pamper myself and rest

For the next 3 months, I will be working on small steps for my goals.

Goal #1

~ combine my blogs

~ spend less $ (which means fewer swaps)

~ make things by hand

Goal #2

~ use ebooks, audio books and mp3 player more

~ participate in book clubs/kals

~ complete puzzles during school

Goal #3

~ make a pr of socks per month

~ complete UFOs ~ colorplay vest :D

~ make a fitted sweater and hoodie for self

~ use lovely and growing stash

Goal #4

~ attend weekly knit-nites

~ start family game/movie nite again

~ have sunday dinners

Goal #5

~ spend at least 4hrs a week doing something for self

~ continue to get nails done

~ go to bed by 11p during the week (this is the hard one. LOL)

These are short and simple but will keep the focus on life goals not just quick fixes. I'm confident that I will see great results from my small efforts.

In other affairs:

We began school on thursday and will start formal lessons tomorrow. I will update on school once a week giving a brief overview. I am working on my notes for our local CM group and the online CMSeries study. In our monthly group, we are focusing on habit training which I need in our school and home. More on both of these later in the week.

I will also start menu planning again which will help w/simplifying my life. I will post those on either Sunday night or Monday morning, not sure just yet. In the past, it was on Mondays. I will be working on the blog template over the next week or two, combining my groups, links, friends list and webrings. I'm looking forward to having everything in one place though I didn't before. It definitely will be simpler though I will have more posts b/c I'd like things to be separate a little bit. ;D

I finished the first sock for both the Plain Vanilla and the Monkey Peds. They look very good ~ I tried them on and both are too big for me. ;D Thats good since they are suppose to be. Hubby loves his sock and can't wait for the second one. I hope my best friend loves the peds. I spent time this weekend taking pictures of my stash and uploading to Ravelry. I sent off my final swap packages and have one more angel package to do for the '07 swaps. I have officially decided to limit my swapping especially during the 4th quarter of the year ~ just too much going on and potential for error. It was not a very pleasant thing to have 2 of your packages to disappear, deal w/an ice storm, work 35+hrs a week at part-time job (though the $$ was a blessing) try to knit, shop for gifts/presents and get to the post office in a timely manner along with maintain a home, homeschool 2 teens and keep your sanity. Now I know others have done more but for me it seemed a bit much and I think I shutdown a few times though I made it through especially during the ice storm ~ the most peaceful time of the 3 months. I am looking forward to living simply just to restore that sense of peace.

Regarding swaps ~ I'm currently in one, "Sock It To Me Deux" which I'm enjoying (I'll post on my pal's socks later too). I found several that I'd like to do but I must let them pass in order for me to remain peaceful and actually live a simpler life. I've decided to limit my swapping to 3 a quarter for the first 3 and only one in the last. This should keep me plenty busy and it will be simpler to keep up with. I do plan to do lots of KALs, yeah for actually knitting. I'll update on that in another post, this one is long enough.

Have a great night all!

~ On the homefront ~

sounds ~ children coming in and out of house/dog barking/Handel's Water Music

doing ~ blogging/knitting and will be watching Jane Eyre pt 2 later

smells ~ pizza/fresh linen candle/oreo's (heehee)

plans ~ weekly menu/knitting/school lessons