Our first day of homeschooling was surprisingly good. The time totally flew past.

In the Charlotte Mason method, the recommended lesson length for a kid Isaac's age is 10 minutes or so. The goal is keep the child's attention from start to finish so that the child can't form the habit of not paying attention. Then, as they mature, you gradually ( Read more... )

Isaac officially begins homeschooling today. In 3 minutes.

This is seriously fun. My oldest boy is in Kindergarten! I have spent four long years planning this -- reading just about everything I could get my hands on to create my own strange homeschooling mix of Charlotte Mason, Waldorff, and Montessori methods, picking out "living books", choosing ( Read more... )

This afternoon Isaac -- without my knowledge -- found a screwdriver. A real life screwdriver, not a toy.

While I worked away at the computer on my new LiveJournal layout (do you like it?), Isaac occupied himself quietly in his room disassembling his electronic keyboard, Percy the train (from a Thomas the Tank Engine set), and a couple of ( Read more... )

"Mommy, is today your period day?" Isaac asked ( Read more... )

We got Laying Down The Rails in the mail a couple of weeks ago -- a book compiling Charlotte Mason's thoughts on habits.

I am so amazed and thankful for this book. All you mothers should check it out!

We're starting first with Isaac and working on building the habit of cleanliness. In less than a week, we have seen a HUGE difference. And it's so EASY ( Read more... )

Isaac looked at me with pleading eyes. "Will you come jump with me on the trampoline ( Read more... )

This afternoon we visited Carol, a newly chrismated woman at our church who's been fighting cancer for the last two years or so.  Her wheelchair bound husband recently fell down a flight of stairs and is not doing too well at all.

It was my first visit to her house in the heart of Austin's Tarrytown. Pictures from their life filled just about every ( Read more... )

I'm not very proficient at taking pictures in dim light, but I had to share the most creative pumpkin I've seen in a LONG time (carved, of course, by my husband).


( Read more... )

...I gave birth to Isaac.  He came into the world hungry and nursed for about 5 hours straight, preventing the exceptionally mother-friendly nurses and doctors at Ashland Community Hospital from doing much of their post-birth routines.  They put him on my breast seconds after he was born, and then they left him there to suckle to his heart's ( Read more... )

Today is an off day.

Isaac awoke early and we let him roam around the house and backyard while we slept in until 10am. From about 9am until 10am, Samuel was intermittently awake and crying, so it wasn't as if it was quality sleep.

When Isaac came into our room after we got out of bed, he reported that he had gotten naked and buried himself in the ( Read more... )