200th post

I could have come up with something really awesome for my 200th post. But did I?

No.

Why not? Well, if you really must know, it was because I was WASTING TIME this evening and I didn't know that it would be my 200th post (because I don't pay attention to such things). I can't even say that it's because it's the Bookworm King's birthday and I was hanging out with him - though he is right here next to me, fingers blazing on his own keyboard, working on stuff for a seminary class that he has tomorrow afternoon - Happy Birthday, Honey. I was truly wasting time ... being a bookworm.

I was going through the new arrivals at BookCloseOuts and putting anything that we'd love to have (and don't already own) in my cart just to see what the total would be. I don't have the money for all of the things I picked. I went through Children's Fiction and Children's Nonfiction new releases - and that was all.

But I broke my shopping cart. Now it won't load. So, I've wasted time, and now I don't have the list of things I would order if I could - but I can't, so I won't.

And NOW I'm wasting YOUR time with this ridiculous 200th post, so I think I'll stop. May the next 200 be more worthy of your attention.

Relaxed foreign language education

We've been studying Spanish very informally around here. I have been refreshing my memory - in my pre-mom life, I got a bachelor's degree in Spanish, so it's in there somewhere. The Bookworm King speaks some, but not a lot. But we want to teach this to our kids.

While Rosetta Stone's Latin American Spanish is on our wishlist, it is Price-y. We must save many pennies.

So, in the meantime, we are doing what we can. We have both the English version and Spanish translations of our boys' favorite children's books, like Good Night, Moon and The Runaway Bunny, and we want to get more of them - and we will as time flies by. We also have Flip Flop Spanish 1 and the Twin Sisters Productions Spanish Songs on mp3. And these are delightful. The Spanish Songs have a delightful beat and are actually sung over and over. The Flip Flop lessons are simple and short.

We keep the audio files for the past three Flip Flop lessons and two of the Spanish songs (one new, one review) in the Schoolwork playlist on our iPod (along with the current hymn, folk song, composer sample, and some things like "I'm a Little TeaPot" that my toddler does need to recognize and I forget to sing to him. Since we have to drive about 20 minutes to get anywhere we go, we listen to the playlist once a day. We occasionally review vocabulary: counting goldfish in Spanish, naming colors in the room, etc.

You all, you should have see the shock on my mom's face when (2 year old) #3 ran up to hug her and said, "Hi Gramma! Como estas?"

Totally cracked me up.

All by himself....

Tonight, #2 was in my lap after I'd read to him (all 70 pounds of him was curled up on me), and he said, "Mama, I have a secret."
"Can I know it, or is it your secret?"
He said, "Sometimes I read all by myself."
I said, "I know, Bear. I've seen you. That's pretty cool."
"Will you read me one more story, even though I can read?"
"Yes...

Narration of Charlotte Mason's original works: Volume 5, Section 4

4. Dorothy Elmore's Achievement (in 5 chapters)

In a Nutshell: My Summary
Don't focus on the ugly things of life. Exercise your Will to change your thoughts instead.

My Narration:
Chapter 1
Dorothy Elmore arrives home from school to the delight of her adoring family. She has been gone for two years, and they are all thrilled at her return. She is a beautiful, intelligent, graceful, well-mannered young lady. She is admired by her siblings, and is quite the leader of the family: "...Wherever Dorothy ran––no, she went with a quick noiseless step, but never ran––about the house to find out the old dear nooks, we all followed, a troop of children with their mother in the rear; their father too, if he happened to be in. Truly we were a ridiculous family, and did our best to turn the child's head. Every much has its more-so. Dorothy's two special partisans were Elsie, our girl of fifteen years, fast treading in her sister's steps, and Herbert, our eldest son, soon to go to college. Elsie would come to my room and discourse by the hour, her text being ever, "Dorothy says." And as for Herbs, it was pleasant to see his budding manhood express itself in all sorts of little attentions to his lovely sister" (vol. V, pg. 42-43)

Chapter 2
A month passes - in that month, Dorothy has her own way in everything. There are no disappointments to speak of, and she is consistently pleasant to be with. But then, one day she can't use the family carriage when she would like to, and she gets in a snit about it - she gets all pale and limp. Today, we'd say that she's depressed. And in Christian circles, her selfishness and self-pity would probably be whispered about and never pointed out to her. But her mother senses that something is amiss in Dorothy's heart. A doctor is called, and he prescribes good nutrition and exercise and rest for Dorothy, and the family works to see that it happens. Dorothy is again the center of their attention and sees that they all love her dearly.
" The doctor came; said she wanted tone; advised, not physic, but fresh air, exercise, and early hours. So we all laid ourselves out to obey his directions that day, but with no success to speak of. But the next was one of those glorious February days when every twig is holding itself stiffly in the pride of coming leafage, and the snowdrops in the garden beds lift dainty heads out of the brown earth. The joy of the spring did it. We found her in the breakfast-room, snowdrops at her throat, rosy, beaming, joyous; a greeting, sweet and tender, for each; and never had we known her talk so sparkling, her air so full of dainty freshness. There was no relapse after this sudden cure" (Vol. V, pg. 47).

She comes out of her funk for five weeks before another disappointment sends her into another funk.

Chapter 3
"To make a long story short, this sort of thing went on, at longer or shorter intervals, through all that winter and summer and winter again" (Vol. V pg. 48). Her siblings noticed the pattern before her parents did, and her mother says to her father, "remember how perfectly well and happy she is between these fits of depression?... Each attack of what we hav ecalled 'poorliness' has been a fit of sullenness, lasting sometimes for days, sometimes for more than a week, and passing off as suddenly as it came" (pg. 49-50). At this point in the story, we learn that Mom Elmore knows this behavior of Dorothy's well because she has battled it herself. Dorothy is dwelling on things that didn't go her way and resenting those who did not bow to her desires. We learn that Mom had these same habits until she was finally cured of them by motherhood. Once she was no longer focused on her Self and constantly thinking about how the world wasn't fair to her, she was able to stop having such sulky fits. Dad wants to talk with a doctor-friend of his about the situation before they discuss things with Dorothy.

Chapter 4
"Now, every fault of disposition and temper, though it may have begun in error of the spirit in ourselves or in some ancestor, by the time it becomes a fault of character is a failing of the flesh, and is to be dealt with as such––that is, by appropriate treatment. Observe, I am not speaking of occasional and sudden temptations and falls, or of as sudden impulses towards good, and the reaching of heights undreamed of before. These things are of the spiritual world, and are to be spiritually discerned. But the failing or the virtue which has become habitual to us is flesh of our flesh, and must be treated on that basis whether it is to be uprooted or fostered" (pg. 59). The doctor explains to Mom and Dad that Dorothy has been allowing herself to dwell on the wrong things - offenses, disappointments, what-have-you - until that has become her habit. Now she is thinking about those things for extended periods of time without realizing it, and that is causing her black moods. He tells them that he thinks he has a cure for the problem, and that she'll be her old self within a few months, but he needs to speak to her first.
The cure: "Ignore the sullen humours; let gay life go on as if she was not there, only drawing her into it now and then by an appeal for her opinion, or for her laugh at a joke. Above all, when good manners compel her to look up, let her meet unclouded eyes, full of pleasure in her; for, believe, whatever cause of offence she gives to you, she is far more deeply offensive to herself. And you should do this all the more because, poor girl, the brunt of the battle will fall upon her" (pg. 61).

If they had dealt with the matter long ago, they would have "never have allowed the habit of this sort of feeling to be set up. You should have been on the watch for the outward signs––the same then as now, some degree of pallor, with general limpness of attitude, and more or less dropping of the lips and eyes. The moment one such sign appeared, you should have been at hand to seize the child out of the cloud she was entering, and to let her bask for an hour or two in love and light, forcing her to meet you eye to eye, and to find love and gaiety in yours. Every sullen attack averted is so much against setting up the habit; and habit, as you know, is a chief factor in character"(pg. 61-62).

Chapter 5
The doctor talks to Dorothy, telling her this: "When ill thoughts begin to molest you, turn away your mind with a vigorous turn, and think of something else. I don't mean think good forgiving thoughts, perhaps you are not ready for that yet; but think of something interesting and pleasant; the new dress you must plan, the friend you like best, the book you are reading; best of all, fill heart and mind suddenly with some capital plan for giving pleasure to some poor body whose days are dull. The more exciting the thing you think of, the safer you are. Never mind about fighting the evil thought. This is the one thing you have to do; for this is, perhaps, the sole power the will has. It enables you to change your thoughts; to turn yourself round from gloomy thoughts to cheerful ones. Then you will find that your prayers will be answered, for you will know what to ask for, and will not turn your back on the answer when it comes" (pg. 66).

Weird sleeping arrangements

I just thought I'd tell you that all of my children do have beds. Several of them have more than one.

However, they all prefer to sleep in the same room. And #2 and #3 prefer their Cars blow-up beds to their real mattresses and bedstands. It must be something about Lightning McQueen. I don't know.

But in spite of our having another bedroom with loft-style bunks in it and this little nursery having a comfy twin bed in it, they prefer the floor.

I don't understand it. But maybe, when I was six or when I was two, I would have.

So, for the moment, we're going with it. As long as they stay on their respective beds and s.l.e.e.p. (preferably all night long), it's fine with me.

Expeditionary Learning

Today was the first day of public school in our neck of the woods - so, being the rebels we are, we took the day off (as much as a homeschooler ever does) and went out to play. We went on an expedition to a far-away-but-still-local park and had a fantastic time exploring and learning on the playground.

My brother is doing his internship for his Master's program (we're rather proud of him), and said internship takes place in a school near his university that focuses on "expeditionary learning." Know what that is? Most homeschoolers do. It's a fancy term for "unit study" - the use of one topic across many or all areas of study. We are rather fond of unit studies here - they just seem to happen - so I'll just tell you that we are glad to know that we're riding the crest of the education tidal wave.

ANYWAY... Today, we went to the park. We talked about all kinds of things:
Like nutrition

telling time,
How a backhoe works
balancing a scale
the importance of focusing on what you are doing:
pendulums,

gravity - and whether the heaviest or the lightest slides the fastest
and centrifugal force.

And that was our day at the park.

I'm tired.

And so are my children:

Fastest Chef in the ... well, in this kitchen

We had a lovely day today. Bookworm #2 was invited to an event with Mimi, so he was off with her for much of the day. #3 and #4 and I went to Target with Gramma. That was great fun. There was actually time to look at things and not just throw necessities in the cart and sprint for the registers.

We had a nice browse and bought some underwear for #3, who is so proud of his recent accomplishment. There is still some issue with the... um... brown... side of things, but he's very capable of keeping dry and getting closer to getting the... um... brown... in the potty every day. He picked out boxer briefs like his big brother wears - some solid boy colors and two pair with Lightning McQueen and Mater on them. He thinks he's big stuff now.

We came home for naptime and then when #2 arrived, we finished up our schoolwork. We've got a field trip planned for tomorrow, so we had two short school sessions today to accommodate those plans. Then I sent all three boys out in the (fenced in) backyard, and I followed shortly. We saw a spider spinning and a dead cicada. We put the cicada in a baggie, and we hope to share it with #2's buddy who is afraid of bugs. It's pretty cool looking. It isn't often that we actually see a cicada - we usually just hear them.

I stepped in the house for a few minutes, amid much protest, believing that I'd join them in a few minutes. I finished a kitchen task while watching them through the window. It was a peaceful moment - kind of the wonder one experiences while watching a circus. Where do they get their energy? I stepped out to the freezer to grab some peas to go with dinner....

and I discovered that the door was open and the freezer well-defrosted. Blessedly, this is the side of the month where it is full of milk and not meat. We just went to the dairy Monday, so it was full and the milk had barely thawed. I left it to refreeze and dealt with the four large (Sam's sized) bags of frozen veggies, two small bags of French fries, and a bag of fish sticks.

I tossed the fish sticks. They had been in the door and were completely thawed. I cooked five pounds of green beans and steamed five pounds of broccoli and microwaved a pound of peas and baked the fries.

Needless to say, we'll be eating our veggies this week. It all came out well. And it was quick - I couldn't believe it when I looked at the clock and realized that I'd cooked 15 pounds of assorted veggies in 32 minutes. Time flies when you're...working hard. I was watching the boys the whole time I worked since I can see most of the backyard from the kitchen. They were having a blast, and #4 was toddling along with the others - just as sandy and muddy as they were. At one point, they were all in our (tiny) sandbox. I couldn't find the camera fast enough to get a shot of it, but I'm sure it will happen again.