autumn poem

Poetry. It is one of our most beloved lessons and is often read daily in our home. One of our poetry selections this month is from A Journey Through Time in Verse and Rhyme and has become quite familiar to us after reading it annually over the last few years. It really speaks to what is happening right outside of our window this time of year. 

Just today, as we sat at our table working on some math, we watched a blustery gust of wind sweep away what seemed like a whole tree-ful of orange leaves across our front yard. It certainly left our maple emptier and filled our neighborhood with a delightful scattering of autumn color.

Autumn Poem

Fall, leaves, fall;

Die, flowers, away;

Lengthen night and shorten day.

Every leaf speaks bliss to me

Fluttering from the Autumn tree

I shall smile when wreaths of snow

Blossom where the rose should grow

I shall sing when night's decay

Ushers in a drearier day.

Emily Bronte

smothered by praise

Last fall for our artist study, we enjoyed the six paintings of Pierre-Auguste Renoir. They were lovely and hung happily on our 'schoolroom' wall for the term along with one of my most favorite quotes from the artist that had to do with the idea that the only real reward for work is the work itself.

Our beloved Charlotte Mason held a similar belief and felt that children should be motivated by a naturally preserved curiosity and a love for learning rather than rewards and grades. She knew then what many modern researchers are now just discovering- that external motivators affect only the exterior, the short-term. To put it bluntly, rewards simply don't work.

This article, Five Reasons to Stop Saying "Good Job!", only confirms what so many others have already discovered. It was with mixed emotions that I read this, feeling simultaneously convicted and confirmed in my own behaviors and tendencies towards praising my children.

The author asks the reader to stop, look and listen and to notice how often we hear the words "good job" spoken from parent to child at almost every turn. I did just that and not only did I sit up and notice how often others around me are blurting out these words (almost unconciously, or as what the author refers to as a 'verbal tic'), but also how often I was turning this phrase in my own home.

I have become more mindful over the years of attempting to hold the space in my home with my presence and gestures and modeling of behaviors instead of issuing commands, praising, and talking, talking, talking at my children. This has been life-changing.

We have been in certain educational settings where children have been rewarded with candy and the like for memorizing facts, Scripture and for simply sitting still. It has never sat well with me and I can honestly say that we do not use these methods in our own homeschool and family life.

Perhaps because I have become so closely knitted to Charlotte Mason's methods of education that I knew better. Perhaps because I grew up in similar environments and it has left me sour towards such behaviors. Or maybe simply because my motherly instinct have told me otherwise.

Nevertheless, the article is worth the read, especially for those with small children. It seems to be that it is with these littlest of littles that we smother the most praise.

An Educational Manifesto

We resumed our homeschooling just after the start of the new year after a l-e-n-g-t-h-y break celebrating the birth of our new baby (beautiful baby photos to follow soon!), Nativity and all of the wonderful, warmth that the holidays bring. It has been very humbling, to say the least, to start back with less planning, less time, less energy and less (this one is tough) patience that I had previously had before the enormous and joyful task of caring for a newborn whilst looking after the physical and academic needs of my other four children.

However, I can honestly say that I'm not facing defeat or discouragement as I continue the task of home education. I truly feel hopeful each morning as I wake up knowing that providing a Charlotte Mason education for my children is not about preparing a perfect environment, cramming lessons, completing workbook pages or equipping my children with arbitrary facts so they can take an exam or preparing lectures to 'teach' them what they must know. CM is about educating the whole child and training the habit of attention. Above all, it is about helping them learn to choose what is right, true and just in this world and help them discover who they are in Christ.

I'm pleased to say that I have continued with my 'Mother Culture' over the last two months since our new baby arrived and have found bits of time to read and study Charlotte Mason's principles and many other wonderful, enriching things that I wish to share with my children (more to posts to follow on this topic!).

In reading one of my new, beloved books based on Charlotte Mason's Principles- When Children Love to Learn- I was reminded to read (or re-read) Charlotte Mason's An Educational Manifesto found in School Education on page 214.

Miss Mason believed that "studies serve for delight, for ornament and for ability" and that every child has a right to a broad, widely varied curriculum including living books and real things to nourish the soul on. She called these living books "mind stuff" or "mind food". Just as one pays careful attention to nourishing their child's body with proper food and rest, we should be equally aroused to the much quieter, but as important, needs of their minds and souls to be provided with excellent nourishment.

I will reprint An Educational Manifesto here and also provide a link to CM's School Education so more can be read if desired.

An Educational Manifesto

"Studies serve for Delight, for Ornament, and for Ability."

Every child has a right of entry to several fields of knowledge.
Every normal child has an appetite for such knowledge.
This appetite or desire for knowledge is a sufficient stimulus for all school work, if the knowledge be fitly given.

There are four means of destroying the desire for knowledge:––
(a) Too many oral lessons, which offer knowledge in a diluted form, and do not leave the child free to deal with it.
(b) Lectures, for which the teacher collects, arranges, and illustrates matter from various sources; these often offer knowledge in too condensed and ready prepared a form.
(c) Text-books compressed and recompressed from the big book of the big man.
(d) The use of emulation and ambition as incentives to learning in place of the adequate desire for, and delight in, knowledge.

Children can be most fitly educated on Things and Books. Things, e.g.––
i. Natural obstacles for physical contention, climbing, swimming, walking, etc.
ii. Material to work in––wood, leather, clay, etc.
iii. Natural objects in situ––birds, plants, streams, stones, etc,
iv. Objects of art.
v. Scientific apparatus, etc.


The value of this education by Things is receiving wide recognition, but intellectual education to be derived from Books is still for the most part to seek.
Every scholar of six years old and upwards should study with 'delight' his own, living, books on every subject in a pretty wide curriculum. children between six and eight must for the most part have their books read to them.
This plan has been tried with happy results for the last twelve years in many home schoolrooms, and some other schools.
By means of the free use of books the mechanical difficulties of education––reading, spelling, composition, etc.––disappear, and studies prove themselves to be 'for delight, for ornament, and for ability.'
There is reason to believe that these principles are workable in all schools, Elementary and Secondary; that they tend in the working to simplification, economy, and discipline.

need for more 'Mother Culture'?

Believe it or not, I've not really had a vacation from home schooling this summer. I have spent time each day diligently and deliberately planning the upcoming school year for my three school-aged children. It is something that brings me delight and putting together a well-intentioned plan inspired by the educational philosophies of Charlotte Mason is something that I view as a privilege.

And while planing my children's education and choosing how I will nourish their minds and souls, I have not forgotten (the most important part of homeschooling and mothering) to nourish myself as well.

Part of the Charlotte Mason method is something she referred to as Mother Culture, which is simply a habit which the mother-teacher puts into practice to ensure that her own mind and soul are being well nourished and kept to the best of their abilities.

Now this is not what the 'modern woman' might perceive it to be. It is not simply indulging in time spent away from one's children and spouse to splurge on something that may add a moment of pleasure's to one's day nor is Mother Culture simply a 'night out' to temporarily strip away the responsibilities that being a wife and mother bring with it. No.

It is instead quite the opposite. It is an embracing of one's current reality, that of being a wife and mother and teacher, and relishing in the sheer delight that one is participating in the highest calling on earth. And yes, it truly is the highest calling!

And just how can one mother who is pressed for time, scant on physical energy and often sapped of mental powers by the end of the day carve out time to feed her mind and soul? Well, books of course! Anyone who knows Miss Mason's work knows how highly she regarded good books (living books, real books, quality literature). She referred to them as food for the mind and even extraviganly compared offering a wide variety of living books to one's child as 'spreading the feast' before them.

Here are Charlotte's own words on Mother Culture:

"There is no sadder sight in life than a mother, who has so used herself up in her children's childhood, that she has nothing to give them in their youth. When babyhood is over and school begins, how often children take to proving that their mother is wrong. Do you as often see a child proving to its father that he is wrong? I think not. For the father is growing far more often than the mother. He is gaining experience year by year, but she is standing still. Then, when her children come to that most difficult time between childhood and full development she is nonplussed; and, though she may do much for her children, she cannot do all she might, if she, as they, were growing!...

Is there not some need for 'mother culture'? But how is the state of things to be altered? So many mothers say, 'I simply have no time for myself!' 'I never read a book!' Or else, 'I don't think it is right to think of myself!' They not only starve their minds, but they do it deliberately, and with a sense of self-sacrifice which seems to supply ample justification.

Mother must have time to herself. And we must not say 'I cannot.' Can any of us say till we have tried, not for one week, but for one whole year, day after day, that we 'cannot' get one half-hour out of the twenty-four for 'Mother Culture?'--one half-hour in which we can read, think, or 'remember.'

The habit of reading is so easily lost; not so much, perhaps, the power of enjoying books as the actual power of reading at all. It is incredible how, after not being able to use the eyes for a time, the habit of reading fast has to be painfully regained...

The wisest woman I ever knew--the best wife, the best mother, the best mistress, the best friend--told me once, when I asked her how, with her weak health and many calls upon her time, she managed to read so much, 'I always keep three books going--a stiff book, a moderately easy book, and a novel, and I always take up the one I feel fit for!' That is the secret; always have something 'going' to grow by. If we mothers were all 'growing' there would be less going astray among our boys, less separation in mind from our girls...

A brisk walk will help. But, if we would do our best for our children, grow we must; and on our power of growth surely depends, not only our future happiness, but our future usefulness.

Is there, then, not need for more 'Mother Culture'?"  Volume III, no. 2 The Parents' Review

Soda Bread

My older pair are at a point where they are baking independently now. It is an excellent state to be in. When they get the idea and inspiration to bake something- whether to satisfy their own sweet tooth, or to produce something gift-worthy- they set to work, recipe in one hand and will in the other.

Today they baked up a superb Irish Soda Bread. It was tasty and perfect. Butter and jam were both coveted options for spreading on this warm slice of golden perfection.

We had baked several loafs a few weeks ago during our celebration of Saint Brigid. We also churned butter, wove crosses made of rushes and read a bit about the life of this saint from Kildaire, Ireland. It was a simple day for our family that spoke both to the oldest and the youngest children, each in their own way.

little hands

Been trying to be more mindful of the younger pair in my home these days. So much of what we do for our homeschooling is geared toward those who are either fully or partially engaged in formal academics.

Balancing the spectrum of ages and phases within this family of mine is the toughest challenge for me, personally, as a mother and an educator.

In addition to our trusted stand-by's of salt dough, thick Lyra colored pencils, picture books, blocks, train tracks, and simple games, I've been adding in some other simple activities to feed the minds and souls of the littlest members of our family.

Here is a basic Montessori activity involving transferring, that all of my children have simply adored right at about this age (2 1/2 years old) and even younger (and older!). It is stunning how much concentration this activity calls out in a young child and the focused delight of taking care of one's spills is just so satisfying.

Watercolor painting is always a favorite activity, and one that all the children eagerly join in on whenever possible. Our painting boards and sturdy brushes make this experience even that much more functional and beautiful.

It has been such a blessing to have solid blocks of time this weeks when all four of the children have sat and painted together in between lessons.

Making bird feeders was the highlight of our weekend as we put to use the empty rolls of paper products that we had saved and covered them with peanut butter and bird seed. The boys were so delighted to put on their boots and coats, trudge out into the cold, damp night air, and help me hang our feeders on the tree branches!

It has often been said, that if the mother is not happy, then the children are not happy. Personally, in my home, in this moment, I am finding it quite the other way around!

new year

Our new year started with a burst of good health, peace and a lovely day spent with family. We took New Year's Day as a holiday and started back to school the very next day.

I must admit, it was difficult for me to get into the right frame of mind, difficult to make all of the usual plans and arrangements so as to have a nice, flowing rhythm to our homeschooling. So much to prepare, more mentally and inwardly for me than on paper.

So very much of how our day feels and how it flows depends on my inner life- my thoughts, expectations, emotions and energy level. What a task!

Well, here is a photo I took on New Year's Day of Luca wearing a pair of 'trousers' and trying out his first pair of suspenders. I can't help but smirk when I look at this.

feasting

Christmas has come and gone and the new year is peeking just over the horizon. Home again, home again after a trip up north to spend the holiday with family. I honestly did not leave the house for three whole days. A change of scenery and a lull in household responsibilities is simply enough to quiet mind, body and spirit.

We were blessed with a snowstorm and waking up to the stillness and serenity of the outdoors was bliss. Trees frozen in time, white powdery perfection magically swirling at their steady roots.

In the quest to find good soul food, we took to some reading while away. Like a knitter, with her needles and yarn, there are always books tucked in when we leave home. And this time was no different.

With a budding, blossoming 'new' reader, a struggling, patient veteran reader and a hungry-for-life toddler on my hands (not to mention the steady, curious eleven year old), we must always pack a wide variety of reading material. Like a perfect picnic, one must spread wide the cloth and serve up this-and-that, something-for-everyone, the sweet, the savory, the nourishing for everyone present at that moment in time.

For us it was D'Aulaires' Book of Norse Myths, some Frog and Toad, a how-to guide on knot tying and an artist study book for young ones, Touch Mona Lisa's Hair spread unhurriedly and joyfully at the feet of my children.

What a feast!

living books

One of the elements of a Charlotte Mason education is the deliberate goal of feeding the child's mind with quality literature and beautiful, noble ideas each and every day. This goal is accomplished much like one would attempt to nourish a growing child with three, balanced, healthy meals daily.

In addition to sitting down for wholesome, healthful foods at regular intervals, we also make it a priority throughout our day to feed our minds the most delectable, choice foods as well. What might you ask would be so deserving of such a high honor? Well, living books of course!

In Miss Mason's words:

"Our business is to give him mind-stuff, and both quality and quantity are essential.
Naturally, each of us possesses this mind-stuff only in limited measure, but we
know where to procure it; for the best thought the world possesses is stored in
 books; we must open books to children, the best books; our own concern is
 abundant provision and orderly serving."

In addition to regular lessons, my children always have a "best book" being read from each day.

Some of the titles that have been, and currently are being, soaked in abundantly are...

Animal Farm
Alice in Wonderland
The Sign of the Beaver
Five Children and It
The Chronicles of Narnia

And I just couldn't resist this beautiful cover illustration of the most recently read book by my daughter Sophia. Alice in Wonderland really is a feast for the mind- so many tastes, textures and flavors to take in!

Happy page turning!
 

my confession

I recently discovered a book that I now considered to be added to my list of invaluable resources, not only for homeschooling families, but for parents in general.

We have been a Charlotte Mason homeschooling family for over six years now and during that time I have made it my mission to read as much as possible about Miss Mason's philosophies regarding education, children and parenting. Many of her original writings are difficult to find and due to the Victorian prose in which they were written, even more difficult to assimilate at times (depending on the time of day during which I am reading them for me personally!).

Charlotte Mason believed that "Education is a discipline- that is, the discipline of good habits in which the child is trained. Education is a life, nourished upon ideas; and education is an atmosphere- that is, the child breathes the atmosphere emanating from his parents; that of the ideas which rule their own live" (Vol 2, p. 247).

In Laying Down the Rails, the author has brilliantly and gently put together bits and pieces of Miss Mason's writings regarding the importance of habit training in children. This book details more that fifty of Charlotte Mason's habits and pairs them with the corresponding excerpts from her writings. There are practical applications and questions for reflection at the end of each section as well.

After reading a few sections of this book upon our return from vacation Friday night, it seemed as if the scales were taken from my eyes and I was able to clearly and confidently see the habits that have been fostered well and sadly, not so well, in both myself and in my children. It was a defining moment for me as a mother.

It is so easy for me to lose the balance in home education, that is the balance between fostering and nurturing both the mind- through formal academics- and the spirit of the child- through character building, stories of saints, prayer and Scripture.

One of the struggles I face as a homeschooling parent is that of making an idol out of making sure that my children as up to par academically. At times it seems that the world is watching and waiting to see what my children know about history, what sort of math processes that have mastered and whether or not they are steeped in science experiences. Sadly, we have even been questioned- both the children and myself- about whether I have a teaching degree and what 'grade' my children would be in if they were to transfer out to school.

In an effort to put forth my best effort to emphasize the SCHOOL in homeschooling, I fear that at times I have taken off and set aside my hat as mother-teacher and instead dutifully donned my cap as schoolmaster in an effort to teach my children all that they should know academically.

Don't get me wrong, there is a lot of heart and soul in our home. There are times at which I see the tenderness and kindness between sibling pairs and know deep down that I have gotten it right, that my children are putting others before themselves and that love does truly conquer all.

But there are also times when I have been quick to overlook an offense that needed correcting, a chore done sloppily or a harsh word exchanges between brother and sister in a selfish effort to keep the proverbial ball (of education and lessons during our day) rolling.

Ugh. What a shame I have had to face in this realization of putting my children's minds above their hearts. For this is not the desire of my heart and I know that no matter what level math book my children are working in or how much rich literature they are being read nothing can take the place of a solid character.

So there you have it, my confession.

Honestly I am overwhelmed by all-encompassing task of watching over my children's hearts, souls, minds and bodies. How can one possibly cover all those basis!?

I know that one cannot and that  I must trust and depend daily and even momentarily on the power and strength that my Father extends to me. For it is He who has entrusted me with these precious children and I believe that He intensely desires to see me not tire of doing good with and for them.

summer's end

Summer's end is in sight. And although we have just returned from our 'summer vacation'- a lovely week away to a lake house in Vermont- my mind is turning towards the upcoming school year.

With our last week of summer looming on the horizon our house and home have taken a different turn.

Books are piled high on every flat surface in sight. Tin whistles, binders, history cards and science books lie within plain sight of my children. They are curious, trying their hand at blowing on whistles, flipping through books and peering over countertops to see what exactly the mysterious stacks hold. While I  have busied myself with last-minute orders from booksellers, late night readings of character building guides and sorting through thoughts on the 'one room schoolhouse' concept.

Fretting over our lack of storage, and space for that matter, has become a full-time job for me these days. The nagging urge to simply get up already and make that trip to Ikea so you can solve all your problems just won't leave me alone. I am not naive enough to believe that proper storage units will solve all of life's problems, yet the mission still tempts me.

Books are being swapped, traded, borrowed and mailed across state lines in an effort to complete our homeschool bookslists for the upcoming year. E-mails are coming in like wildfire as the all-consuming topic of several of my friendships turns towards book recommendations, insights on narration ideas and which history biographies have been successes. 

It is surely that time of year again...school's about to begin!!

summer begins

Yesterday marked the last day of 'formal academics' for my children and the beginning of a very sunny, wet and tasty 'summer vacation'.

We had the pleasure of being hosted by some new friends as guests for lunch and had a chance to experience the pleasure of watching some new ducklings settle into their new home. They are just as fluffy and yellow as I have imagined them to be!

The children picked some fresh sorrel from to garden to add to our potato and bacon soup. The lemony sorrel went so perfectly with the smoky bacon and comforting potatoes... certainly left us all feeling satisfied. With freshly baked sourdough bread and some slices cheese on the side it made an amazingly delicious meal.

We were able to take home some books to borrow as well. Summer reading is such an exciting prospect to me. I'm not sure that my children feel as enthusiastically about it as I do, but nevertheless there is some amazing, rich, inspiring reading material to keep us occupied over the next few weeks.

Today, Luca and I went to the farmers market and left with some delicious and nourishing items. One item did not quite make it out of the market... Luca devoured the ham, cheese and sundried tomato pastry on the spot!


We then headed spontaneously to a local strawberry field and picked our first quart of strawberries this summer. I gave the 'baby' berried to Luca to eat and kept the best berries to take home. We both left satisfied.

Summer indeed is upon us!

a full house

Please feel free to link over to the amazing online magazine Rhythm of the Home and read my article- A Full House- in the Summer 2012 Edition about homeschooling and balancing a multi-aged household. It has been an honor to contribute to this enriching and encouraging publication!

Read A Full House

Visit Rhythm of the Home

mother culture

Mother Culture. A beautiful phrase coined by Charlotte Mason referring to the idea that a mother has the duty to form her own culture that meets her specific needs; a culture that feeds her own mind  whilst educating, caring for and nurturing her own family. It is not only a beautiful phrase and a noble idea, but it is also a blog authored by the beloved author Karen Andreola.

A few years ago, I wrote about the ways in which I had created my own Mother Culture. It certainly changes with each season and phase of my life- depending on the time of year, my energy level, the amount of free time I have on hand and the specific interests and goals that I have on my mind.

Karen's book A Charlotte Mason Companion was instrumental in inspiring me and informing me to choose to give my children a CM education. This book was written from the point of view of a mother with a heart turned towards giving her children the very best in life. These ideas are beautiful and are not limited by finances or where a family is living geographically. So very inspiring.

As I stumbled across Moments with Mother Culture tonight I felt a swell in my throat and a tear in my eye as I read about this family's journey and how the 'children' are no longer children any longer. When Karen wrote her book, her children were small and at home and living peacefully and safely under their mother's wing. Now it seems they are grown and have families of their own... what a legacy!

neglected

Home Education is no joke. Nor is an education based on the philosophies of Charlotte Mason, the path that we have specifically chosen to follow in educating our children.

As I've mentioned before, a Charlotte Mason is a generous, liberal education that thrives on the idea that children's minds must be fed the best, most noble and beautiful ideas in order that they may grow properly and bloom into their full potential.

An education like this is simply not a "Three Rs" type of education (you know, reading, writing and arithmetic). It is so much more than that.

In the early year, alone, our children's areas of study include art, history biography, composer study, literature, poetry, natural science, geography, history biography, handwork, copywork, tales from Shakespeare and foreign language. Oh, and nature study.

Yes, nature study.

Nature study is to my homeschool  like dusting is to my housewifery skills- typically neglected but producing large benefits with very little effort when practiced!

It sounds simple enough, right, just pack up the children and head outside for an hour or so. Yes, simple, but not easy for me. Nature study seems to benthe most difficult to plan and implement in our current homeschooling environment for many reasons. And they all have to do with what I am choosing as priorities on any given day.

 Building nature study into our homeschooling rhythm requires very little- time set aside to explore a  particular natural setting, a pencil and a blank notebook. So why then does it feel like an enormous chore to me!?

I will say that we are outdoors every day for hours and that my children are no strangers to the wonderful natural world in which they live. I also know that when I do carve out the time- drop my to-do lists, the more 'formal' academics that I have planned for my children that day, and stop myself from putting in just-one-more-load-of-laundry and we actually do venture out into the woods-  that the experience itself is an enormous treasure.

This is where inspiration is needed and knowing that my mind and will thrive on beautiful ideas I realized that a little visual aid may be useful here. 

As a rule of thumb, I always bring my camera out with us on our nature walks, mushroom hunts or bark journeys (or whatever the outing may be) and am always so encouraged when I go back and look at my children in these situations.

Breathtaking. Real. Curious. Searching. Wet. Just a few words that run through my mind when I look through the photos from our nature study trips.

So without further ado, here are my visual aids, my perfect reminders for me to put down the Latin and the laundry this week and venture into the great out-of-doors!

pedaling

We spent hours outside today. Typically during this time of year there is a thaw that eases us folks here in New England into a muddy, chilly start to the spring season. But not this year. There is nothing to thaw out and no snow to melt into a mucky layer on our earth. What a mild winter it has been.

We spent time outside in between each lesson today during our homeschooling. I remember this time of year very well. The time of year when the warmth and sunlight are calling everyone outside to come taste and see that spring is indeed right around the corner.

There is a battle going on between duty and impulse; a war being waged on all the good intentions of a dutiful mother by the strong rhythm of the change in seasons. Try as I may to focus on the inside of my home- just one more load of laundry to put in to the wash, a floor in need of some serious sweeping, a house to be tidied- the call to be out-of-doors always wins out in the end. Who needs formal academics when their are lessons to be learned out in the natural world- lessons that are always engaging, never lend themselves to boredom and never require a Sunday night's time to plan out?

And as if it wasn't hard enough to push against the pull of three children yearning for their feet to hit the grass running, now I have a fourth pull begging with a sweet whine 'pease, side, pease, side' (please take me outside!).

I do believe the odds are against me.

And just tell me who on earth can resist a toddler wearing red rain boots who insists on wearing his big brother's fedora riding a tricycle?!

the true tasks

So one of the things that really struck me while I was away on our trip was that there is such a strong need for setting the tone and keeping the rhythm in my home on a daily basis. There is very little time to let down and let go.



I always feel like if I 'miss a beat' during our daily routines that something or someone will end up suffering in the long run. I realized how regimented I have become about certain things in my family life- going to bed with a clean sink no matter what, having my kids take their shoes off any time they enter the house, being on time with meals and bedtimes- and question which ones are vital to the functioning and wellness of our family and which ones are draining me of time and energy and joy.

For the most part I believe that having a time and a place for everything is vital to family life- especially home schooling family life with four children. But I am seeking to find the small places where a bit more joy, spontaneity and leisure can be had.

Again, it seems to all come back to the idea of balance. I am not sure I really believe in 'balance' as the world sees it. You know, the kind where you mix equal parts of work, family and 'me' time in and voila, you are left with a fabulous life.

I think that this sort of balance has more to do with the ebb and flow of the day for mother and children than the overall 'big picture' of a harmonious life.

I kept asking myself how I could bottle up all of the simple, quiet moments and bouts of really being in the moment while I was away on our trip and take them back home to bring into my life as a mother and wife and thought the answer would be easy and breezy (just relax and have fun or just smile more, right?!).


But it's not. It is about being even MORE disciplined and making even tougher choices about how I will spend my time. It is about true priorities over perceived priorities and what really lends itself to the joy, health and peace of my children and home.

I have to ask myself what myself and my family truly needs. It is a tough question no doubt and I am not sure I even have the courage to ask it just yet.

But I think that it will be a lot like choosing to put down my basket of laundry to sit on the floor and play the memory game with my five year old when he asks me to and really listening to my eight year old when he is explaining all of the slight variation in the sword handles he has drawn in all ten of his sword sketches.

I love order (let me say that again- I love order!) and am so very task oriented that I tend to make that the focus of my day all in the name of meeting the needs of my children. But isn't meeting my little ones' needs for emotional and physical connection with their mother a far greater and sweeter task than simply focusing on their physical, outward needs?

Don't get me wrong. I am super big on cuddling up with and kissing my children each and every day. Not a morning goes by where the words I love you are not heard four times by the time breakfast is finished.

But again, I am talking about the big picture and the inner working of the mother here, not just the outward gestures.

It is indeed and I know that deep down inside. But sometimes it is just so much easier to fold laundry than to really listen or to put plans my plans for an afternoon of errands aside for a chance to run in an open field.

But for now, instead of tackling it all at once, I will focus on the true, small tasks working to bring a bit of ease and joy back from the West Coast into my little East Coast home.

the kindergarten year

There has been lots of talk about kindergarten around here lately. Our third child, who has turned five in April, is starting his kindergarten year in just a few short weeks.

Then there is my sister, who is 'boldly' keeping her almost five year old at home this year for a kindergarten year, despite the pressure and incessant questioning of those in her community. This will be her first experience with homeschooling and I am so pleased to have her join me on this path.

There is pressure. There are expectations; expectations from strangers, friends and family. It is hard to know which path to choose. There are fears about short-changing our children or 'ruining' them by not giving them what they need. People ask what they will be learning. They ask if I have teaching degrees. They want to know if they will be able to go to school easily after being home schooled. They wonder if we stay home all day and if my children have friends.

I would like to believe that most of the questioning is coming from a well-intentioned place. I think that most of it is just plain curiosity about another way of educating one's children. But a lot of it is certainly coming from a place of disapproval and a sheer terror on their part upon meeting someone who is not 'following the rules'.

I have spent a lot of time reading, pondering, praying and discussing just what this kindergarten year should and could be like. We have done is differently with each child thus far and I have learned so much about what I believe homeschooling to be about. I know that it is more about family than school and more about character and habits than academics.

And so far I also know that I am certain it will be a year free of formal academics. I know that I want it to be a quiet, magical year filled with loads of time. No rushing. No pressure to learn to read. Very little seat work. Lots of time outdoors. Lots of time spent practicing practical activities. Many good stories. Time with family.

More than that, I want it to be a time when I dig deep to tap more fully into that well of patience, energy, wisdom and discernment. There is a reservoir I know that for sure, it's just the accessing of the resources that takes so much deliberation.

I am no stranger to having my children by my side during throughout the day. There is always someone eager to help in the kitchen; someone asking to pour the pancake batter or add the eggs. There is always someone who just needs to take out the art supplies and draw, paint or cut paper right after I've cleaned up the table. And always a child or two or three just itching to go outside to play even when it's wet, muddy, cold or steaming hot right when my mind is checking the laundry off of my mental to-do list.

But this is the life that I've chosen and what good is it if I cannot afford them the gift of time (and laundry)!?

I came across this blog post by Elizabeth Foss and thought it gave an amazing glimpse into what life at home with a young 3-6 year old might look like for those of us choosing to home educate.

busy hands, busy minds, busy hearts

Handicrafts or handwork is an integral part of our homeschooling and one that is sadly the first to get 'crossed off the list' when life gets ahead of me.

What Charlotte Mason had to say about handwork was...

1. The end-product should be useful. The children should not “be employed in making futilities such as pea and stick work, paper mats, and the like.”
2. Teach the children “slowly and carefully what they are to do.”
3. Emphasize the habit of best effort. “Slipshod work should not be allowed.”
4. Carefully select handicrafts and life skills to challenge but not frustrate. “The children’s work should be kept well within their compass.”

(taken from Home Education, p. 315)

The point of handwork is not simply to keep children busy. It is not crafts as we know it. It is something bigger- the ability to employ body (using one's hands), mind (planning and implementing the method, using focused attention, practicing coordination) and soul (thinking of how one's work will make the home more beautiful or thinking of whom they will give their work to as a gift of love).

I have kept a running list of the handicrafts we have experienced in our homeschooling over the years. Some of our best afternoons have been spent busily working on our handicrafts as a family!

making salt dough
whittling
watercolor painting
nature sketching with pencil
origami
woodworking
doll making
sewing
embroidery
practicing handwriting and cursive
beading
clay sculpting

wet-on-wet watercolor painting
wool felting
finger knitting
traditional knitting
corking
jewelry making
calligraphy
gardening
flower arranging
quilling
robotics
rubber stamping
spinning fibers
quilting

It is so easy to let this part of our education fall to the wayside in favor of making more time for 'real academics' like math, writing, grammar, literature and the like. But I must remember that there is more to education than these and really stay true to the philosophy of Charlotte Mason when it comes to spending weekly time with handwork, folk songs, hymns, artist study and foreign language.

I hope this post has inspired you as much as it has re-inspired me!

list of attainments

Sitting here tonight mulling over education. I now have three 'school-aged' children and am beginning to think about and plan a kindergarten year for Elias.

I want it to be magical and rich and full of out-door time. I plan on keeping formal academics to a minimum and want instead to provide him with context and experience upon which his future education will be based upon.

I have read Charlotte Mason's Volume 1 (Home Education) of Charlotte Mason's Original Homeschooling Series and someday hope to complete my reading of the other five volumes. They are full of ideas and principles that support true education and have really encouraged me to create an environment that is filled with good habits, plenty of time spent out-of-doors, full of rich and living ideas through quality literature and attention paid to the body, mind and soul of my children.

Of course though, I am only human, and my broken humanness is seen not only, but even more intensely, during our homeschooling experience. And although I strive daily for this vision, there are rare moments when I see the fruits of my labor coming to life and those are the moments that keep me traveling on this homeschool journey!


One of the lists that I read nearly five years ago still inspire me today as I read through it. It is a list of attainments for a six-year old child educated the 'Charlotte Mason' way.

It is old, perhaps outdated and 'unattainable' to some nowadays. But nonetheless, it is a pure joy and inspiration to read through!

"A Formidable List of Attainments for a Child of Six"

1. To recite, beautifully, 6 easy poems and hymns
2. to recite, perfectly and beautifully, a parable and a psalm
3. to add and subtract numbers up to 10, with dominoes or counters
4. to read--what and how much, will depend on what we are told of the child
5. to copy in print-hand from a book
6. to know the points of the compass with relation to their own home, where the sun rises and sets, and the way the wind blows
7. to describe the boundries of their own home
8. to describe any lake, river, pond, island etc. within easy reach
9. to tell quite accurately (however shortly) 3 stories from Bible history, 3 from early English, and 3 from early Roman history (my note here, we may want to substitute early American for early English!)
10. to be able to describe 3 walks and 3 views
11. to mount in a scrap book a dozen common wildflowers, with leaves (one every week); to name these, describe them in their own words, and say where they found them.
12. to do the same with leaves and flowers of 6 forest trees
13. to know 6 birds by song, colour and shape
14. to send in certain Kindergarten or other handiwork, as directed
15. to tell three stories about their own "pets"--rabbit, dog or cat.
16. to name 20 common objects in French, and say a dozen little sentences
17. to sing one hymn, one French song, and one English song
18. to keep a caterpillar and tell the life-story of a butterfly from his own observations.