I feel a rant coming on...

Today was better than yesterday, but that is not what I am going to talk about tonight. I have to get some thoughts off my chest, so watch out. I was thinking about this blog and our life lately and how my life is a bit more public due to writing about it every day and how I am resenting the fact that I have to make my life "look" like something in particular or I risk judgment from certain factions, and, and, and I don't like it. I know I am doing this of my own accord and no one is forcing me to write every day. That is not my point. My point is that if there were no such thing as children in school to have to compare my children's life to, I would not have this blog. If it were only about what we did everyday in our lives, which is ultimately how I see it, I would not feel the need to write about it publicly. It is about justifying to the world that our lives are real and whole and good, without school. If there were no such thing as school, it would just be life and there would be no need to say anything about it.

So, just to be clear to anyone out there reading this who does not understand unschooling, this blog will rarely if ever report my children doing anything remotely like what they do in school. Except if my girls take it upon themselves to do something that children in school might do. And except if I offer something, and they want to do it, that resembles schoolish stuff, but my motives will be far and away NOT what the school motive would be. We do not do school. I don't care what the kids in school are being forced to do. I know my kids are learning everyday and they have not failed to learn everything they have ever needed when they have needed it. They know they are smart and strong and capable and where they feel lacking, they know they will learn, in time. I have no fear.

I hope I have made myself clear. So don't go looking for school here. You won't find it and you won't understand what is here if you do. What is here is a family of people living their lives as they choose, hopefully enjoying their choices and undoubtedly learning something along the way. The living comes first and the enjoying comes second and the learning comes last. Life is too short, and precious, for me to be made to feel that I have some standard to live up to. So I vow to stop doing that to myself.

If you are someone who loves me and my kids and what I have said tonight has scared you, I implore you to get online, go to Google and type in "unschooling". Then commit yourself to read for an hour a day all that you find, until you have no more fear. Then, and only then, will you have the right to judge. And then, and only then, will you no longer see the need.

Bestest Day Ever!

I think we over did it yesterday. I fought it today and got more done around the house than I have in a week and when C came home tonight, he said I looked tired. I feel tired. I am getting this blog done and going to bed.

A wanted to do something all day, but she could not figure out what she felt like doing. Nothing sounded good to her, she could not even figure out what food to eat. I am not in top form myself so I was not much help. She wanted to bake cookies, and when I agreed she said she didn't want to. So, E and I baked up a batch of sugar cookies (I had dough in the freezer). The girls did play with their baby dolls for a while. E wanted to give hers a bath, so while I was in the shower, she gave her baby a bath in my big tub. I hope we can break out of this rut soon. At least we have the Life Learner stuff twice a week now. Friday we are going to the house of one of our members to play games, board games, card games, any games. Should be great fun.


A and I are going to go read our book. If my voice hold out, we might finish it tonight. I need a good night's sleep and maybe we will have more to report tomorrow.

Parks, Pottery and Patience

Well, we were well enough to go to our Life Learner event. I asked A this morning how she felt and if she was up to going and she insisted she was. After I got out of the shower, E was saying she did not want to go to the park, so I reminded her that M was going to be there. Her whole face lit up and she quickly changed her tune. Mind you, M is a nine year old girl and she enjoys E as much as E enjoys her. I love how the kids just don't think of age when choosing friends.

Our plan was to meet at a park near to where the pottery place was and play for a few hours and then head over to the pottery place to paint. Five families joined us at the park and we had a lovely time. It was a bit windy, but the wind was warm and it did not get too intense until it was time to go. The kids put on a couple shows for us, one of which we could not hear due to the wind and one which included pigeons and vampires. They collected pinecones and watched someone flying a kite. I should have thrown our kites in the van. Oh well, we will be ready next time!

As the time approached to head to the pottery place, the kids were less and less interested in playing and more and more interested in exactly how much time was left before we could go. I guess they were excited. One family could not join us because the kids had a yoga class and another family had to get home to get the car to the dad who works nightshift. This second family has a 12 year old daughter who really wanted to paint pottery, so I offered to take her with us and bring her home afterward. She and A are really good friends and the two of them were very excited to be going together. When the group of us got to the pottery place, we saw that it was closed on Tuesdays. Doh! I really should have checked into that before planning to do this. Lesson learned. So, quick thinkers that we are, we called another paint your own place and found out they were open and ready for us. Luckily it was just a few miles down the road!

The kids all picked out their pieces of pottery and painted away. A and E both picked little penguins. It was a good thing we went to the park first, because it took very little time to finish painting. The littlest kids were eager to do more and when painting second and third coats did not satisfy them, outside to run around the sidewalk they went. There were three of us familes left by this point and the kids were hungry, so we made the plan to eat together at this diner-type place which was right in the same shopping center as the pottery place. We payed and walked over to the diner.

The kids were just happy to be together a while longer and us moms were glad to have a few more moments to chat. Although we did not get much time to talk as we'd hoped. Eight kids, all under the age of 7, except for one 12 year old, in a booth at a diner does not make for a very peaceful dinner. It was chaotic, but memorable! There was one older couple sitting a few booths away from us who I caught looking our way a few times. I hoped they were not being disturbed too much during their dinner. As I was paying at the register, the gentleman was behind me and he commented very sweetly about the kids all looking like they had fun. And how us moms looked worn out! It was nice to get a comment like that, instead of the critical remark I was hoping to avoid. Kids are loud, and you cannot control them like our society thinks you should, so it was nice to have that acknowledged. I was proud of all us moms for how calmly and patiently we handled the chaos. We could have ruined the good time with one frustrated comment, but we held it together. As it was our kids will likely remember this wonderful night for a long time to come!

When will it end?

Ok, it is official, I am tired of sickness. I want to feel better, I want my kids to feel better and I want my husband to feel better. E really is the best of the lot, but she is stuck in with the rest of us. My poor husband has to go on with wage earning, and I must remain Mama, so no rest for the weary. And poor A, she gets so bored sitting around, being sick. It is times like this that I lose all but the barest remnants of my confidence in our chosen lifestyle. Which makes no sense, because it is times like this that our chosen lifestyle shines. We have the freedom, excepting our breadwinner, to slow down and take it easy when we need to. We do not have a stack of "have-to's" piling up on us as we recover from being sick. I should rest in the fact that my children are truely missing out on nothing if they don't "do" much for a few days or a week. Life has no schedule, no deadlines ( save death and perhaps reincarnation trumps that). Maybe it is just that little voice in me that says if I am not accomplishing something, I am wasting time. Got to stop that voice, because it takes me in the direct opposite direction of where I want to head. I want to learn how to be, not how to do. I want to know that I am okay just the way I am. And I want this for my children. I wish for them to never have to battle with voices in their heads that tell them they are not good enough.

Ok, let's see if I can prove to myself that we did have a good day today. I spent a lot of time sitting with the girls, knitting and watching their shows and even some HGTV. A had me set up her bed by the computer to play Zoo Tycoon. E played Neopets on the other computer for a bit and I shuttled back and forth between them, reading stuff and helping as needed. I found this link to a cool animated music video (very long download time but worth it!) and we watched it together. It has a very poignant message about the times worth remembering and the ones we wish not to remember. Once C got home, he took E out for a short ride around the block before dinner. After dinner, she put on a show for us, dancing to the music that their little electric piano plays. She about wore me out, she has so much energy! A wanted a bath, so we did that and since we started that early we had time for two chapters of HP. Almost done and we will start the first book that there has not been a movie for yet. I look forward to forming my own pictures in my head of the action in the next book and then seeing what the movie makers do when we see The Goblet of Fire.

Tomorrow is our Life Learner day. I am hoping, praying, wishing, willing with all my might that A and I are up for it. We are going to a park for a few hours and then going over to a paint your own pottery place. I really want to go, I need my friends and so do the kids! We will sacrifice our recovery schedule a bit if necessary, in order to live life to the fullest!

This would be a title

Another quiet sick day for this family. We were going to go to the hot air balloon festival this weekend, but due to our health status, it was not meant to be. At least it is an annual event. C offered to fly us to another event in a nearby town, so we might do that. I could take some pictures of the balloons from the airplane!

E was pretty much recovered, so she flitted about doing her thing, playing with the flubber in the play kitchen, watching movies ( My Neighbor Totoro), and playing Mousetrap with Daddy. A was a bit better, but she still needed to rest. She wanted to play Zoo Tycoon, so we made her a "bed" out of the diningroom chairs so she could play and rest at the same time. She made various zoos that had koalas and pandas and zebras and a Loch Ness monster in them. She spent some time at the Zoo Tycoon website, as well. At one point I was in my office making Christmas stockings (Hey N&J, I'm working on Q's) and E wanted to make a bead necklace. I set her up and we worked alongside each other for a bit. That was nice and I look forward to that sort of thing as the kids grow up. I admit I do not have the patience for all the help they need right now when making stuff.

This evening we started the process of emptying the pool. It has not been warm enough to swim for a while and the water turned a bit green last week, so swim season is over for this year. Time to find us a trampoline!

I was wiped out tonight, so C took over the bedtime routine. I had to pretend to be asleep so that they would go to sleep without me. C read to and snuggled with them. E was fine with it, but she did say that the first time she woke up she was coming to snuggle with "Mama's itchy arm". She has been obsessed with my forearms since she was a baby, rubbing them while nursing and kissing them when she needs a bit of comfort and connection with me. I do not understand the itchy part, but she says it is a good thing!

All in the Family

As is our usual course of events, we were all sick today. It seems to start with C who gets under the weather but can't let himself get sick because of work. Then E gets it and burns through it pretty quickly. As soon as she is looking good, A comes down with it, but she takes longer to get well. She had a fever today as well as yesterday where E only had it one day. Now, since it is the weekend and we both have each other for help, I woke up with a tickle in my throat and feeling out of sorts and C lets himself get all the way sick.

So, today was a quiet day. The girls watched movies and C dozed on the sofabed with them, while I puttered in my office/craftroom. I managed to get a lot organized and cleaned up, to make way for some Christmas projects. A tends to be up and about more when she gets sick, which is probably why it takes her longer to get well, so we made some more flubber since she missed out yesterday. E spent a good amount of time taking orders from C and me for food, which she would make out of her flubber and serve to us. This evening, we all watched a Netflix movie that arrived in the mail today. It was called Born Free and it was based on a true story of a lion cub who is raised by people and ends up being reintroduced to the wild. It was very sweet, even if the production left something to be desired. What do I expect for 1966? The girls enjoyed it, mostly for the many scenes of lions and other animals.

Sick Girl #2

Before I went to bed last night, A was moaning in her sleep and when I checked on her she was sitting up in bed, seemingly awake, but unresponsive to my questions. I layed her back down, covered her up and she fell back asleep. I figured it was her legs hurting her, since she had complained of aching legs last night. She gets them after a day of a lot of activity, running and playing, days like our Life Learner events. Anyway, she came into bed with me later and she was hot with fever, so I guess she did not avoid whatever it was that E had.

It was her turn to lie on the couch all day. She watched a little tv, but was also wanting to do the puzzles in the Top Secret Adventure kits she has. She worked on a few and looked at the books that come with them, each about a different country. She kept calling out to me, asking things like, "What does c...h...i...n...a spell?" She has been doing this frequently the past few days and I simply give her the word. I have learned from experience that any funny business like asking her what she thinks it is, or prodding her to sound it out, is met with stubborn indignation. When she asks a question she expects an answer, darn it. If she wanted to know how to sound it out, that is what she would have asked. Or if she wanted to know if the word was what she thought it was, THAT is what she would have asked. And I know this because she has asked those specific types of questions before.

I am continually amazed at the passion exhibited by my children's efforts to learn things. Of course, I am also continually thwarted in any effort I may make to "teach" them anything. They truely know their own minds and their learning is totally their own, as well. I shudder to think what would become of their passion if they were forced to put aside their own adgendas and comply with a standardized learning plan. Might they become mindless, purposeless automatrons, perhaps? Good citizens, I'm sure. What is the point of living then, I ask you?

Ok, off my soapbox. Not sure where that came from. Must have been lurking just beneath the surface...

E and I took advantage of A napping today to make some flubber together. You can make it with glue and a borax and water solution, but we have this cool paint that makes great flubber. Same basic chemistry, just great colors with no effort! For some reason, once a new batch of flubber is made, the first thing to come out is the plastic dinosaurs. They both like to play dinos stuck in the tarpits with the puddle of flubber.

E also requested that we make cinnamon buns, and I agreed that would be great. Once I got the dishes done (with E offerring to help since she knew that would get the buns started sooner!), I found a new recipe for sweet dough to try. It was the best ever, so light and yummy. We'll be making that recipe again. They were done after dinner and with Daddy home from his business trip this week, we settled in to watch the new episode of Avatar on Nickelodeon. It has been a family event each week to watch this show together since it debuted last spring. We missed our Friday night routine over the summer and were glad to see it start back up with a new episode this week. We've got a family thing for anime, starting with Spirited Away and continuing with all the rest of Miazaki's films. This show is done in true anime style. And it cracks me up, so it's all good.

It was nice to have my partner home tonight for bedtime, so A and I could read HP together and E could have Daddy time. Can you guess what they did? Whoooooooooo lives in a pineapple, under the sea?

Isn't it Ironic?

The more fun we have, the more I have to blog about, the more it feels like a burden to sit down here and do this. Sleep seems sooo much more attractive right now. Seven hours in the great outdoors on a beautiful first day of fall with wonderful friends will do that to you, I guess.

I'll give you the run down. We headed out to Red Rock this morning with all our pirate gear to meet with the Life Learners. It was a glorious day, cooler with clear skys. Six unschooling families joined us today, one of which was new to the group, which is always fun. The kids had a blast pretending to be pirates, hiding and finding the treasure chest full of booty, sword fighting, and talking like a pirate. They climbed the rocks and found secret hideouts, drew maps, and made pictures of the wildlife they saw (like the butterfly in the picture above). The grownups chatted and enjoyed each others company under the shade of a couple beautiful trees. We ate pirate food like hard tack (sugar cookies), maggot mash (rice pudding), Pirate Stew (vegetable soup), Grog (root beer), and dried meat (beef jerky). One family even brought along some homemade saurkraut, which was delicious! No scurvy for us, matey! It was truely a perfect day.

On the way out of the park, we stopped to say hello to two burrows that were grazing on the side of the road. We saw three more further down the road, mother, father and baby burrow. I was pretty worn out, so we hit the drive thru and came home to eat and get a bath, read a chapter and hit the sheets. E was asleep before I even got halfway through the chapter, and A was not too far behind, although she did wait till I finished reading.

It is days like this that make me so happy to be alive.

Recovery and Reflection

After getting a good nights sleep, E spent most of the day on the couch again, even though she was better and not really feverish. I had told her we would not be able to go to Red Rock if she was not better by the end of the day and that I expected her to rest all day to ensure just that. She agreed without complaint and started asking for food, and continued to ask all day. She was well on her way to recovery, which is good because when one of us is sick, it puts a hold on the rest of our lives. The immune system on that kid is amazing!

It was a nice day today, but we did not do much. I finished the daggers for the girls and made A an eyepatch, which she declared weird feeling and put it on her Build-a-Bear, Violet. We have gold hoop earrings and belts and scarves for our heads. We should be proper Pirates tomorrow.

A played her computer games for a while and kept asking me to come help her with things and before I could come, she'd wave me off having figured it out herself. People think the best way to get better at something is to work at it and practice. While I would agree that that works some of the time, for children, it seems to not be the best, especially when developmental skills are concerned. Stuff is happening inside their brains that has nothing to do with how often they try something. They are either ready or not. It has been months since A has played that particular game and she had trouble with the one area she asked for help on. Today, she assumed she would have trouble, but decided to try it for herself, and lo and behold she could do it. No Practice. She has consistently done things like that and so has E. It is so cool.

Tonight, I got the girls into the bath for a good cleaning and afterward we read Harry Potter. We are a little more than halfway done with #3. While I read, E flitted around, in and out, doing whatever tickled her fancy. A, on the other hand, was lying on my bed looking at her Top Secret Adventure books. She had pulled out the Sweden and Russia ones before the bath and while looking at one of them, she realized the picture of the money in the Russia book looked like some of the money C gave her. She "paused" me and ran to get her money, and she was right! She has a ruble. She said E had more because she liked the "castle money" so much (the ruble has a picture of a castle on it). It is a bit distracting for me to read to her while she does other things, but that is just how she works. She told me she likes to read in my room because there is more room to move. Since I read so much, I just never put reading and moving together, but since she is only listening she is free to do that. Thank goodness there is no school labeling her ADD or worse! From the time she was three, I knew she did not fit in a typical school setting and I am so glad for her that it has worked out for us to unschool. Glad for all of us!

Here are some pictures I promised last week:
A with the hornworm pupa and E surfing in the backyard.

Dashed Plans

Not much to report today. We woke up to rain, so the Pirate day at Red Rock was pushed off till Thursday, the first good day weather-wise. It seems it was a good thing for other reasons, mainly that E had a fever last night during the night and it was still there this morning. She burns through whatever bug she gets, so hopefully she will be better for Thursday. She spent most of the day asleep on the couch. We did get a chance to make some skull and crossbone flags for the pirate venture. I started on some daggers, but while waiting for cardboard layers to dry we started watching The Return of the King, extended version. That took up the whole afternoon/evening! So we'll have to finish them tomorrow. I enjoy rainy days because sitting and watching movies all day never feels like a waste of time when it is too wet to get outside. The energy of a rainy day seems to be rejuvenating and lends itself to relaxing and recharging. It was a good thing it was that kind of day, because having to sit with a sick kid on a nice day can drive me to distraction. It all worked out today for the best. I even finished my book! Loved it.

Pirate Princesses

Pretty quiet day at home for us today. I tried to get caught up with laundry and dishes. The girls kept themselves pretty occupied while I did that. We did sit down together to paint this wooden chest that I found in the garbage (the things people throw away!), to make it resemble a treasure chest for our Life Learner event tomorrow. It was going to be a simple trip out to Red Rock, but it went awry. Some Pirates have invaded the group and are forcing us to celebrate Talk Like a Pirate Day (which is actually today)! Oh well, should be a rowdy good time, arrr. So anyway, we got the chest looking ship shape and filled it with all manner of treasure we could find about the house, Mardi Gras beads (I wish I knew which ones were actually from New Orleans, or I would save those special), golden coins, and jewels. I imagine the kids will have great sea battles over our treasure, or hide the chest and make maps to lead us parents to the jackpot. I'll fill you in tomorrow, of course.

We spent some time in the backyard playing and digging in the dirt. A couldn't stand it anymore, she had to plant something. So I filled a planter box with dirt and gave them some flower seeds. I have no idea if they will grow ok this late in the year, but it can't hurt to try. While I was digging out some compost to put in the garden, I found two Hornworm pupas. We had been picking them off the tomatoes and throwing them to their demise in the compost. I guess the bigger ones just burrowed in and pupated. Now we have three pupa in the tiny bug box. I need to get them a more suitable container, with some dirt to cover them and a large space above to let them stretch their wings in when they emerge. I don't know why I am being so good to these tomato plant destroyers. Oh yeah, my girl's education. Yeah, that's it.

After dark, the girls wanted to watch a movie, so they put in this new DVD set we got the other day. The Secret Garden and The Little Princess in a combo set for only 10 bucks! How cool is that? They already love the Secret Garden, having seen it many times at my Dad's house, and we had recently rented the Little Princess from Netflix and loved it. I love it when the little girl says, "Didn't your Daddy ever tell you you were a princess?" Mine did not, or if he did, he stopped saying it by the time I got old enough to remember (fortunately, I married a man who recognizes my nobility!). But my girls know it to their core! E was figuring out what to wear tomorrow and she came out dressed all in pink and purple and ruffled skirts. She must be a Pirate Princess. She told me in the sweetest little voice she was going to say, "Arrr", sounding more like a songbird than a scurvey pirate!

Bouncing Baby Girls

We had a birthday party to go to this afternoon at 3pm and E woke me up this morning asking if she should go get dressed and ready to go to the party. I assured her she had plenty of time before she had to do that. At least when she did get dressed it was in a new outfit, one she had NOT worn for the past week! She loves this leopard print skirt I made for her and this penguin t-shirt so much, she won't take them off.

The party was for one of the girl's friends who they have known for as long as we have lived here, coming up on two years now. They live all the way on the other side of town, but we still manage to stay in touch pretty frequently. I really like the mom and the little boy is one of A's "boyfriends" or used to be when we saw them more often. She says he is just a friend now because she is in love with another boy, the one I mentioned before. There used to be a bit of a love triangle going on between A, the boy, and another friend, a girl. They were there today, but A had no problem playing with this little girl now, since they boy was out of the picture, love interest-wise. I think it is interesting how A can feel she is in love and knows who she wants to marry at age 6. I remember having "boyfriends" at her age and older, so I try not to laugh when she declares these things. I wonder how much of it is inbred in us and how much is identification with the adult behavior she sees all around.

They have a trampoline that the girls were looking forward to jumping on. Our plan is to get one to put where the pool sits, during the winter months. We figure we would not want to jump when it is blazing hot and we won't swim past, well, last week, as the temps are finally dropping, so we could swap them out. Anyway, I think the girls spent most of the five hours we were there jumping on that trampoline. I think we will be getting a good deal out of the money we spend on a trampoline. I got on it right before we headed home and had so much fun! I think I am looking forward to getting one as much as the kids!

Rollerskates, Rats, and Radishes

My darling husband had been out of town until last night and so today he provided me with a break. Let me sleep in and lounge in bed reading for a while. He took the girls out to rollerskate. When I came down to join the family, they were coloring together. After a while, he and the girls went on one of their Daddy dates. I stayed home and read my book (halfway done!). They came home with more of those littlest pet shop toys and a surprise for me. C called from the driveway to tell me that they were home and in a few minutes the girls would ring the doorbell. I needed to answer it so they could show me something. When I opened the door, there they were with scary masks on and a fake rat on their shoulders. Halloween is starting to loom closer and we are getting ready to have a party and do a haunted house with the Life Learners. It should be tons of fun!

This afternoon some of our friends came by to swap TV's with us. They had one that was given to them by the Dad's Dad and it did not fit in their house and we had the same one as one they already had which was rapidly dying. The one they gave us is bigger than the one we had and it has a better picture. The one they got is the same as what they had, just in working order. Good deal all around. I love the concept of freecycling and it is even better with friends!

After dinner we all went out in the backyard until it got dark. I messed with the garden, C messed with the pool, and the kids played in the sandbox with their horses. I got a portion all amended and ready to plant some seeds in. A was eager to plant, but I had to put her off for one more day. We will put in the few seeds I have on hand, but we will have to make a trip to the nursery to get more. The girls love to eat stuff right out of the garden. They will eat a green bean off the vine, but not out of the fridge! Same with peas, spinach, and lettuce. Carrots they will eat either way. Silly rabbits!

Fun in the Sun!

Our Life Learner event today was a success! It was chaotic and messy and loud and FUN! The kids all drifted back and forth between watching/making/checking out the sun themed stuff and just playing. Most of the kids had been here before and were very familiar with the toys we have, not to mention that they are all out where they can see them, so keeping them focused only on what we offered was not even a passing thought. We just went with the flow. The adults just jumped right in and invited the kids along for the ride.

Our solar balloon did not work, but it gave us some ideas about how to change the design if we were to try again. The sundials were fun and most of us went home with ideas to make more substantial versions, with plaster or concrete. The solar oven was completed at 4pm and in the short hour before the sun was off the backyard it heated water from 70 degrees to 115 degrees F! I'll be bringing it to the park and other suitable venues and have it cook us something each time. Some of the kids had the patience to hold the magnifying glass steady enough to burn some dried grass. Those that did not, got to see it burst into flames anyway.

The great thing about today was the way what happened today will continue for a while in the minds and lives of the families. The parents can take what we explored today and add on as it comes up in their lives. Just by being here, the kids got a foundation of information and experience about the sun, even if it was nothing they could recall on a quiz. The next time the same or similar information is before them, they will have a neural pathway to reinforce. That makes the info all the move available to them. Especially since this new info will only come about due to events relevant to their lives, not by someone else forcing a schedule of learning on them.

Transformations

Our hornworm pupated! He actually did it a few days ago, I just did not notice when. When I reached into the box to get him out to show the girls, his lower body section started wiggling. It freaked me out so much I dropped him on the counter! I thought they were in a hard case, but I guess not. Or maybe they start out this way and once their body is really in the swing of transformation, they get where they can't move. I wonder how long the pupa phase is. We will have to look it up and I would have today but I was busy with several things. One, I was getting ready for Life Learners to come over tomorrow (more on that in a bit) and two, I was making reservations for our camping trip next month. I tried to get one weekend and that was booked, so I had to check with some of the group to see if the following weekend would work. It seems to be better for some of those planning to come, so that is good. We are going to Zion National Park and we had such a great time last year, I am really looking forward to it!

So, our thing tomorrow is the first of our new and improved Life Learner events. We are going with a theme for this one and it is the sun. Some of what is planned is to make a solar oven, sundial, sunprints, a solar balloon (think hot air balloon, just way smaller and powered by the solar heating), play with prisms, crystals, and magnifying glasses, and we might even have one of those glasses that make it safe to look at the sun (like during an eclipse). I don't know what else people will bring but it should be plenty fun and exciting with just what I mentioned. A was too excited to sleep tonight and she said, "I can't wait to learn about the sun tomorrow!" I should pull out some books from our library to have on hand for questions the kids have. I'm sure I have some on space and the solar system. And there is always the internet!

This evening, the girls and I went out in the backyard and played around a bit. The girls watched and played with our kitty, who we let out only in the back for short periods. She was quite the wild cat, chasing bugs and stalking around. I messed with the garden, pulling up tomato plants and potting my thyme plant to make room for the fall crop. A was eager to plant something, so I promised we would get to it this weekend. Why is it I always get into doing something else when I have something I should be doing instead? I should have been cleaning the house for tomorrow, but I was wanting to overhaul the garden and make lipgloss, and clean my office and.... Anyway, I took some cute pictures and will post them later after we get through tomorrow.

Before bed we watched the last little bit of the extended version of the second Lord of the Rings movie, which we had started the other night. The girls kept saying, "I think this is a new part", but usually it wasn't. They just forgot the parts. I was pleased that every time I wanted to say that something was in the book, in case even the extended version did not have it, along came the scene. During certain scenes, A said that it was sad and happy at the same time. Like the battle scenes or especially the scene where Sam is telling Frodo about all the good stories, the ones that make you believe that there is good in the world worth fighting for. So, I guess those tears welling in my eyes were happy and sad tears! I love A's ability to cut to the chase. Such wisdom!

Psssst

Check out the new pictures I placed in previous posts!

Mayhem at the Museum

Our Life Learner event today was the Natural History Museum. We had six families join us for a day of exploring feathered dinosaurs, sea creatures, snakes, dinosaurs, Africa, the Rain Forest and early man. This place is a pretty small museum, but the kids always seem to have a good time. Probably because they have each other and they spend a lot of the day in imaginative play, using the objects in the museum as jumping off points for their adventures. They are seals swimming away from the sharks and killer whales, small dinosaurs avoiding the T-Rex, doctors healing people (or dogs?), lions and baboons and gazelle in deepest Africa.

One thing these unschooled children are not is quiet and bored in a museum. I can't show you a worksheet that "proves" what they learned today, but I can tell you they had a blast and what they did learn will not soon be forgotten. I learned that grouper are all born female and some change to males later in life. They were all fascinated with a display that backlight some shark eggs, where you could see the developing babies inside the egg case. Some had already hatched and were swimming in the tank, others looked like they were about to. And one was younger then the rest and his yolk and umbilical cord were clearly visible. Very cool!

After about four hours, the kids were getting a bit too loud for even our unschool parent ears, and the staff was giving us looks. Who knew Duck Duck Goose was such a exciting game? We took them all outside to a park next to the museum. After a moment of complaint from A that she was bored and this place was no fun, they all hit upon the idea to crack open seed cases from some tree and plant the seeds. They worked hard at this for the rest of the time. E kept running up to me and handing me feathers for her collection.

One family was in the process of moving and had asked for some help. My friend and I decided to come over to help a bit. We stopped to get a bite to eat on the way at a nice little diner-type place. The kids all had fun drinking milkshakes and eating together. Then we rendezvoused with the moving family and helped them by watching the kids while the parents worked. We stayed until 8pm and then headed home. After a snack and a shower, my two were more than ready to crash!

Sometimes I wonder...

why I even bother. I spent a good hour cleaning up the sprawl of Barbies across the family room floor, sorted them, got them tucked away in their cabinet, and even swept and mopped the floor. I swear I was done 2 minutes when E had the other cabinet which houses the Polly Pockets (and desparately needs to be sorted!) open and began filling the floor again with them. AAARRRGGGHHH. Well, at least I gave her a clean canvas to create upon, right? That will have to be my mantra today. Clean canvas. Clean canvas. Clean canvas. Are we feeling better yet? At least the missing Barbie stuff proved to just be hiding with the Polly Pockets.

The flip side of this coin is that the girls managed to play very well together today. All those toys had been jumbled up inside the cabinets, not looking very inviting to play with, for a long while. Once we got them out and in the spotlight, they wanted to play with them all. And they wanted to play together. Which has been a problem lately. A has not been too interested in playing with E, and as bossy and annoying as E has been lately, I can understand why. It is like A has got this new maturity and can not handle the lack thereof in her little sister. Yet. Or maybe E will find a new level soon and we will be out of this hairy place.

All this got me thinking of firstborn children and the role they fill. My mother was a firstborn and so was I. I was told all my life that she did not want to put upon me the burden that was placed on her as the firstborn child in her family. So she tried not to place too much responsibility on me to act the oldest (I say act because usually firstborns are often asked to perform above their developmental level). So, basically, now my brother thinks he is the oldest. It all fell onto him, I guess. Well, some of it, as I know I still fill the role to a good degree.

Anyway, I was thinking about how I ask so much more of A, knowing she has the ability and the development to handle more than E does and will for some time yet. But always reminding them that she is two years older, or E that she is two years younger when she wonders why she can't do something yet, seems to be bolstering those birth order roles. A is the oldest and E is the baby, and boy are they ever! I wonder how it would look if E had been born first with her personality as compared to A's. Is A so mature and responsible because she is 6, almost 7, because she is A, or because she is firstborn? Is E so much more to handle because she is 4, almost 5, because she is E, or because she is the baby(for now)? I wonder if I will ever be able to separate myself and my mistakes from (how I see) who my children are? That is, will I ever be able to not blame myself?

This will be short...

Quiet day, my brain is mush, and I have a new book (Eldest by Christopher Paolini) waiting for me upstairs! The girls spent some of their money today on some more of those little pet shop toys when we went out shopping. They rollerbladed this morning with Daddy. Ran around outside in the front yard and hooked up with a neighbor kid for a bit. I chatted with the mom. Read chapter 7 of HP 3. Many things we should have done, but did not. I guess we all needed a down day after our busy weekend!

I promised myself I would write every day as a discipline for myself and as a way to keep you readers happy. So, if my lame entry tonight is not exciting enough, sorry. At least I am here. There's always tomorrow...

Red Rocks

We decided to take advantage of the cooler temperatures and go to Red Rock today for some hiking. Also, I needed to check if a certain spot was open yet for the Life Learners event next week (it wasn't, so plan B will be in effect). We went to the visitors center and when we were walking towards the door there was a woman with what appeared to be a very large desert tortoise next to her on the ground. As we got closer she was saying to other people around her that the tortoise was dead and freeze dried and that she used it for a presentation earlier. I asked if the girls could touch it, since A was hanging on me asking me to ask. She said sure and both girls went up and touched the shell. A said it felt scaly. Then we headed in to revisit the visitor center. In the little museum they have, E was looking at a tank that held two types of lizards. One of them was active and digging around in the sand. E was right up next to the tank and had her hand on the spot where the lizard was. It looked like it was trying to dig out of the tank to either be with E or to attack her! She said it loved her.

We went outside to see if the non-dead tortoises where out of their burrows and one was. He entertained the girls for a few minutes and then we headed back to drive on to our hiking spot. A picked the spot this time. She wanted to climb on the rocks and play in the sand in our "secret" canyon. We had a great time climbing all over the rocks and picnicking on the soft cool sand in the shade of the canyon. Then we headed further up the trail than we have been before to do some more exploring. Lots more rock climbing was done and some cool spots were found. At one point we heard a strange noise and discovered a bunch of quail hanging out in some bushes below us as we peered over the edge of a huge rock. We also saw several little lizards.

Both girls were really into the climbing and hiking and did not complain once about being tired. I was actually the one to get tired first! While we drove home, A said she really liked hiking and that we needed to go hiking more. I guess they are finally getting old enough to enjoy the whole process. A and I made plans to come back on our own some weekend morning and go for a longer hike. She is growing up so fast!

Once we got home, we all crashed a bit in front of tv and computer. We were worn out. After we all recovered a bit, the whole family pitched in to clean up the house, which had managed to get very cluttered in three days. It was a good day.

Free Fun

Our homeowners association had a party in a new park in our community today. The ad for it looked fun so I suggested we go. They had pony rides and free food and a hayride and a live band. There were way too many people there and LOOOOOOONG lines for everything. We pretty much got some food (cotton candy, too!) and waited in line for the hay ride, which was actually a horse drawn cart-ish thing. It took forever, but the girls enjoyed it and said the wait was worth it. The horses were huge Clydsdale and Belgium draft horses. The guy who ran the ride said that the horses will remember a trail even if it has been years since they last walked it. They two that pulled the cart when we got on had just been hitched up and had not pulled it yet so they were a bit hesitant about where to go. He said they would be fine on the next loop and would remember it next year if they came back. I thought that was pretty interesting.

When we got home, I showed A how to feed her Neopets and play one of the games. Up until now, I have pretty much had the care and feeding of them. I hope she takes it over soon, cuz the poor things have been dying for far too long! C set up a pet for E today as well. She told me later in the day that she wished her Neopet could come out of the computer because it was sooo cute.

Near sunset we all went out front and the girls helped Daddy wash the cars while I polyuerathaned our coffee table in the garage. After they were done with that, the girls both got out their skates/rollerblades and wanted to go for a roll. So, as the day faded we walked beside them, one to an adult, as they rolled around the block. It was a beautiful night, with fall really hinting that it would like to settle in. Come on in, I say!

Monkey on My Back

I never knew how hard it would be coming up with titles for my blog entries! There is a story for this one and I'll get to it in a minute.

Today, C came home early from work, so it was kinda like a weekend for me. And good thing, too, because I was busy getting ready for a meeting for the Life Learners tonight. We are starting a new thing for the group and the parents got together tonight to discuss ideas and all. Basically we are planning more elaborate "stuff" for our get togethers, adding in a bit more excitement to the free play that the kids are doing now. Once a week we will do our usual park day/outing and once a week we are meeting in one of our houses to strew cool stuff for the kids to do/see/learn/play/touch. The concept of strewing is central to unschooling. As unschooling parents it is our job to show the world to our kids, show them the stuff they have not seen, offer the opportunity to try new things, etc. So, we strew stuff around for them to notice and pick up, ask about, try on, watch, read, etc. All with no expectations for what they will get out of it, or even that they will be interested. Life as a great big smorgasbord of learning! With trust that what is important to them and their purpose here will be discovered when the time is right.

While the meeting was going on, C and the girls were supposed to be upstairs, playing or whatever to give us adults time to brainstorm and plan. Of course, my kids, never having met a stranger and already knowing these moms very well, were having a hard time staying out of sight, let alone the conversation! E was crying at first because she could not handle missing out on the great party she assumed we were having. And A kept coming to the railing that looks down on the dining room table where we were meeting, and asking questions or trying to tell us something. I think it is really sweet how they just do not see a difference between adults and kids when it comes to friendship.

Here comes the story about the title. E came downstairs and came up next to me. I turned to her and she had this stuffed monkey, with very long arms that have velcro on the hands and feet, attached to her torso. Monkey on her back. She wanted to tell everyone what she wanted to do when she grew up, so I waited for a break in conversation and told everyone that E wanted to tell them something. She announced that she is going to be an animal rescuer. I guess she had started by rescuing the monkey. This new animal rescuer idea comes from them watching that new show, the Dora spin-off. The one they saw today had a Humpback Whale in it. On the show, they had the sound that the animal in trouble makes and they were figuring out which kind of animal it was. A heard the sound and said, "It's a humpback whale. I know that sound." We listened to whale song months ago on the internet. I couldn't tell you which kind of whale makes which sound. Go figure.

Toys, Toys, Everywhere

For a while now my guest room has been a dumping ground for that last bit of miscellaneous kid stuff that you run out of energy to put away properly when decluttering the house. And for a while now, A has been asking if we could sort it out and clean it up. Last night she asked if we could do it today, and I told her to remind me and we would do it. So this morning, before I even had my tea, she was lobbying for cleaning. I got myself fed and dressed and we tackled the pile. Both of the girls were a great help to me as we sorted and found homes for all the random toys. They even let me sort out some stuff for charity. The mess moved out of the guest room, into the hall and finally into their room, leaving order and peace behind. Once we were in their room, we got that cleaned as well.

Of course, all the stuff that belonged downstairs was now piled down on the dining room table. After a break for lunch, we even made headway into the clutter downstairs in the family room. I had moved the couch to look for something E had misplaced, and uncovered a swath of dust. Without saying a word, E ran to get the dustpan and showed me it full of dust after she had swept it up. She proceeded to go around the room to get any other piles of dust and crumbs she could find. Then she moved on to cleaning the front of the tv and putting away the pile of blocks they had made a castle out of a few days ago. All without a word from me. All throughout the day, A was saying things like, "I really like cleaning", and, "Cleaning makes me feel good", and, "This is fun!".

I'm very pleasantly surprised at how early my kids are fully participating in the upkeep of the house. They don't do much, but when they do help out, it is with a sense of fun and generosity. Just like everyone at unschooling.com and the email lists said they would, if you just modeled a helpful and joyous attitude about taking care of business. And if you asked for their help when you needed it and accepted no as a legitimate answer. Not that I haven't grumbled about the toys everywhere, or the paint all over the craft table, of course. My kids are turning out to be joyful housekeepers in spite of me, I guess!

We have a bit to finish up tomorrow, but I am pleased with how much we got done today. And incredibly blessed with two great helpers!

Quiet Day

Our big event for the day was going to the vet to pick up our cat. She had just been spayed yesterday and was ready to come home today. We dropped by the library first and swapped out books, gaining a whole pile of mostly animal books. E had asked for a book with mummies so we found one about Egypt. She fixated on a Pokemon chapter book with bunny-like pokemon on the cover, so that came home, too. Then we swung by the rec center for a class catalog, since the girls had asked for a dance class. A said she did not want to do ballet as she already knew how do do a bunch of stuff, but E said she wanted to. I found them a rythmic gymnastics class that accepted both their ages together and they went for it. So that will be on our plate for the next month or so. At the vet the girls looked at posters of dog breeds and pictures of "clients" while we waited for our kitty. When we were in the examination room with the cat waiting for the vet to check us out, the girls were very sweet to her. They cooed and stuck their fingers into the carry case to scratch the cat under her chin. She seemed to be doing fine and looked happy to see us.

The rest of the day was pretty quiet. We always need a down day after our Life Learner event! The girls discovered this new show on tv that looks like a Dora offshoot. It has Dora and a boy named Diego and they search for and help animals in need. The episode they watched today had sloths, three toed sloths to be exact. I was informed by A that three toed sloths are very good swimmers. I guess we all learned something new today! It was cute to hear E shouting at the tv in spanish whenever they would request "assistance" from the audience. I sat by the girls computer and knitted while A played her Spirit game for a while. She elected to play one of the games she had saved where she had not gotten very far into the game, even though she has one where she is almost finished with the game. She hasn't played it in a while, so I guess she wanted to brush up. But she wanted me there to read stuff as necessary. She did a lot of guessing correctly the words needed to navigate the game. She is getting better at pulling information out of a sentence or paragraph, even if she can't really read the whole thing. Won't be long now!

Park Day

It is always so amazing to me how much cool stuff can happen in one day just hanging out at the park. Today was our Life Learners park day. It was a hot but beautiful day and we were meeting at a park with a water feature. Three other families came to play with us. The kids played in the water for a while and swang on the swings and then there was a lull. One of the moms brought out a bag of balloons and the kids went wild. They filled them up with water and broke them on the ground or filled them but did not tie them off and squirted each other. They filled them very full and carried them around, pretending they were babies. They took the filled balloons down the slides with them, sometimes sending them down first to see if they would pop at the bottom. After a balloon popped at the top of the slide, they started making water slides by filling water bottles and pouring them down the slide. Here is a picture of A sliding down with her "baby".


I got this picture of a dust devil that kicked up while we were there. It spun for quite a while and sucked a lot of dust and garbage high into the air. While we were watching it A said,"I thought we did not get tornadoes here." After the balloons were all used up, the kids all headed off to find lizards and other creatures in the rocky border of the park. They did not manage to catch a lizard, but they said they saw two different kinds. They did catch a caterpillar and a butterfly and A said they saw a huge monarch butterfly, but it got away. There was a short fight over whether anyone should take the caterpillar home or if it should be released into the wild. E was looking at it and she said,"Look, it wiggles all around. It is a wild animal!" It ended up going home with one of the boys who wanted to look at it under his microscope. But he promised to set it free right afterward. My girls really lobbbied hard for it to be set free, which I thought was interesting since we have a hornworm caterpillar we are "raising" in the bug box at home. Maybe they thought the hornworm was better off captive than dead in the compost, which was where he was headed when they decided to keep him! My tomato plants are basically feeding him until he pupates, then out they go to make room for a fall crop.

The park has a demonstration garden that the kids wanted to see, so we made that our last stop before heading home. They all swarmed off the path and into a dry rock stream bed in the garden. I commented on how our kids all were very comfortable taking the path less traveled! It was another rich day of playing and learning for the Life Learners.

Tonight while laying down to go to bed A said," Mama, three things. 1. I am tired. 2. I am tired. And 3. I am tired!" She was asleep in 5 minutes!

(Un)School Choice

While I was out at the grocery store, C and the girls had a talk. They won't tell me what they talked about, but C did tell me one part. He said that A had thanked us for homeschooling her and said she really enjoyed it. I guess she is thinking a bit about her friend who chose to try out school this year. We have had some conversations about what school is and what it isn't and why her friend would want to go and why she might not want to go. I admire her parents for being so supportive of her choice, especially since her mom is the co-leader of the Life Learners with me. I can't say that I would handle it as well. Unschooling is about giving the child the freedom to make their own choices in life. So, ideally I would support my child's choice to attend school if they so chose. But like parents who make their kids go to school because they feel it is the best choice for them, I would be sorely tempted to make my child stay home because I feel it is the best choice. I guess the heart of this matter is how much do I really know what is best for my child, compared to what they know is best for them. Trusting that they know better than I do, or at least that they should have the option of finding out on their own, would be the real test of just how committed I am to an unschooling lifestyle.

But, so far my kids are happy homeschooling and so am I! Today I showed the girls a portion of a show that had seahorses in it, that we had recorded on Tivo one night after the kids were in bed. It showed the daddy seahorse "giving birth" to all the baby seahorses and then went on to show other creatures doing other things in the seas off the coast of Australia. A was all bubbly excited to see animals doing cool things and she said, "I love learning!"

Don't say I didn't warn you

Today was one of those days where everything was nicely balanced. It was relaxing, but "stuff" got done. It was quiet and we had social stimulation, too. One of my friends is taking a class for her masters degree and is very behind in the work. Her husband was on kid duty this weekend so we invited him and the boys over to swim, so she could get caught up. She is one of the moms in the Life Learners and the dad and my husband own an airplane together. Small world. The dads and kids all swam in the pool for a while and then moved inside for some playtime. They all play together so well, it was such a nice time. A and their oldest really like each other, so much so that A has said she is going to marry him. She even made him a bracelet out of oven bake clay this morning before they came over. It is very sweet to see them together. I really love the kind of friendships the kids are making with the LVLL kids. It is just so amazing to see them develop strong bonds with their friends and to be there to help them through the rough spots that all relationships have.


We finished HP book two tonight. A was so excited, she could barely sit still during the last chapter. I don't know why but the idea of reading the third book, or maybe it is just the fact that we read through two whole books already, is just so incredible to her. I think I have a bibliophile in the making. It has been wonderful to watch her acquire an understanding of the written word. She is very proud of the fact that she is figuring it out all on her own (I help and answer questions, but the learning is hers). When asked, in the future, who taught her to read, she will be able to say "I did!", and that, my friends, is the greatest gift I can give her. To know that she can figure reading out all on her own is to know that she can do anything she sets her mind to. And the best part is that the whole process has been seamless and effortless. She knows that learning is easy and fun and oh-so-rewarding.

If I had pushed it onto her back when she was three and a half, simply because she had the desire to learn to read, I know I would not be able to say it was a simple process. But because I waited until she was ready and doing it on her own, it has been simple. I think the only reason we think as a culture that reading is hard to learn is because so many kids are asked to learn it before they are ready. Not that anyone can learn something if they are not ready for it. The poor kids who don't keep up with their classmates are just labeled and made to feel there is something wrong with them when it was only bad timing that keep them from getting it like their peers. 99.9% of babies acquire spoken language simply by being immersed in their native tongue. And 99.9% of children could acquire written language if the only thing you did was immerse them in it, answer questions and maybe show them how the sounds and symbols match up, pointing out exceptions. For a very interesting read check out John Taylor Gatto's The Underground History of American Education, particularly chapter three Intellectual Espionage and just try to convince me schools know best about how to get people reading.

Books, (Sponge)Bob and Bootcamp

For the past few weeks (month?) I have been reading the Harry Potter books aloud to the girls, A mostly as E is not too into listening to a book without pictures at this point. I have tried unsuccessfully to read these books to them before, once when A was four like E is now, and then again a year ago with an audiobook. I think the difference now is that A is so close to reading proficiently on her own that she finally "gets" what books are for. She has enjoyed trying to follow my progress on the page and asks often what a word or phrase says. We are a chapter away from finishing the second book. A is very excited to read the third and fourth books to catch up to the movies. When we saw Charlie and The Chocolate Factory in the movie theater last month, we saw the preview for the fourth HP movie. This got A so excited that she asked to read the books. She is planning to go and see the movie for her birthday, since it will be out in November. We should have the book finished by that time, so she will have the experience of seeing a movie of a book she has read first. We have enjoyed seeing all the differences between the books and the movies. While I am reading, she will excitedly point out that "That's not in the movie!" when we get to an unfamiliar part.

This reading has been a bedtime ritual for the past month. Since E is not into listening, she goes off to do something with Daddy while we are reading. Lately it has been to watch Spongebob episodes recorded on Tivo. I don't know what it is about the little square guy that she is soooo attracted to recently, but it is all Sponge, all the time around here. I am glad we have Tivo so that we can record the shows we want to see, but there is only so much mayhem in Bikini Bottom a mother can handle in a day, not to mention big sister! I trust that she is getting something out of this, if only negotiating skills. She has to make deals with A about how many Spongebob's to watch before A can turn the channel to watch Animal Planet or Discovery Kids. Or compromise with me when I want music to listen to instead of tv. It's all good.

Today was a bit slower than the last few days, for the kids anyway, it felt busy for me with the baby shower and some shopping I did. I am trying not to hijack this blog talking about my own life. I do want it to be mostly about them. If I do go off about myself, I hope I have some point that relates to the kids or kids in general or unschooling or something.

Like the shower this morning. It never fails to chill me to the bone how people talk about and treat children without even realizing how disrespectful they are being. It is like we all totally forget what it was like to be a kid and can only see the world through our grown up eyes, with our grown up needs and our grown up expectations. My friend, pregnant for the first time got a book, from her mother I believe, called Baby Bootcamp: A Training Program for the First Six Weeks or somesuch title. I did not look at it. I just cringed at the idea that babies need to be trained, especially in the first six weeks. I have been to bootcamp. Bootcamp, or even the hint of bootcamp, is no place for babies. It was the most inhuman, disrespectful treatment I have ever recieved. The only thing that made it bearable, and sometimes empowering, was my grown up understanding of the game to play and the goal to reach. Newborns do not share even a smidgen of that understanding to benefit from whatever training a parent imposes, and will not until they are, well, grown up. Sometimes I wonder if my own effort and example with my kids is enough, when set against the tide of humanity who believes in training infants.

Toys, Theater and Tantrums

Busy day today. Started with me getting my massage (heaven! but I am sore now) and C and the girls heading out for a "Daddy date", which usually consists of lunch out and shopping to blow allowance money. The girls each got some more of these littlest pet shop toys, or whatever they are called. They are little animals with huge bobbing heads and they are actually quite cute despite my description. A is so into animals. I think E is just along for the ride since she wants to be like her big sister. Don't get me wrong, she loves her penguins, but I have a hunch animals are not the passion I see them being in A.

After we all got home, C played with the kids on our bed with their new toys (snuck in a short nap) and I emailed friends. I wrapped a gift and made a card for my friend's baby shower which is in the morning. I guess I picked a good weekend to start this blog, since we have so much going on. Usually life is not quite this exciting!

Anyway, we all got ready and headed out to go to a Ballet performance at an outdoor theatre at one of the state parks here. It was not a full ballet like Swan Lake or the Nutcracker or anything, but a bunch of short parts of various ones. It was actually quite good and I was surprized to see how much variation there is in ballet. Before the show starts people picnic on the grass that serves as the seating area. We got there early to get good seats and we ended up right down in front of the stage. I don't think I have seen a live performance of anything so close before. It was great to see the costumes and the facial expressions so clearly. The girls really enjoyed it. Before the show started they were running around dancing because the ballet dancers were doing their warm-ups right on the stage for us all to see. A was looking very polished in her moves and this little girl who they were sort of playing with asked her if she was a ballerina. She did look like she knew what she was doing! It was more her composure and grace than the actual moves. I guess she takes after her Aunt K!

On the way home E was crying because she was cold and wanted a blanket and a pillow, now. Then when we got home, she was hungry but didn't want what I offerrred. I was too tired to offer much! She lay on the couch crying and saying "I need somebody". C was upstairs and called down "She is pulling a Miranda". "In a good way", he quickly added! I am starting to really see and remember my own childhood enough to realize that E is just like me. So, I went over and did what I knew she needed me to do (since I have been there myself, more recently than I care to admit). I was nice and asked her if I could give her a hug. She got off the couch and grabbed my arm and we walked upstairs together with her apple slices. She happily ate her apples by the light of a glow stick while I settled A in and then fell asleep quite quickly. If I can just remember to treat her the way I like to be treated when irrational (PMSing for example), gently, I will be the kind of mother I wish to be.

The Rest of the Day

It was a good birthday. C came home early from work to start his four day weekend. None of us wanted to wait until after dinner to dig into the Carvel ice cream cake C and the girls had got me, so they lit some candles and sang to me and we all had a peice. It was as good as I remember from being a kid. Love those crunchy chocolate thingies! Since today is our wedding anniversary, I had pulled out some steaks for C and I to have for dinner. I set everything up, steaks and veggies, for him so he could "cook me dinner" on the grill, while the girls took a swim in the pool.

After dinner we got out the wedding album and looked at the pictures with the kids. Pictures of the hot air balloon at our reception reminded me that there will be a hot air balloon festival in town this month. We plan to go and take the kids for a tethered ride up in a balloon. The paper even said they were going to have a half filled balloon that we could walk around inside. That should be fun!

Our cat is in heat for the first time and I am regretting not getting her spayed sooner. Funny story though. Everytime she yowls, A says, "No boys for you, young lady". Not that she really understands just exactly what that means yet! Anyway, the cat is spending the nights in the garage until this feline maddness passes. She is scratching at the locked cat door as I type, trying to get in. Poor thing!

Well, I should get some rest since I have to be up and out of the house early (for me) tomorrow because C got me an hour long massage for an anniversary present. Yay!

Breakfast in Bed

I cracked an eye open this morning to see A standing by my bed, arms flung wide, beautific smile on her face. "Happy Birthday!" She gave me a big hug and said to let her know when I was not too tired for my surprize, then left my room. I lay in bed wondering at my luck at getting such a mature, thoughtful kid. After a while, she came back in and asked if I was ready. I said I was. She grabbed a pillow and tucked it behind my head, arranged the blanket neatly over me and ran out saying, "Don't get up". I heard her busy at something downstairs and in a few minutes she was heading up the stairs and told me to close my eyes. When I opened them she was standing before me with a bowl of cereal and a cup of water. Breakfast in bed! I'm the luckiest mother in the world! Now I can't wait til she can really cook!

It's my birthday and I'll blog if I want to

I told myself I would start a blog on my birthday and I did! Quick run down for those who don't know me. I'm Miranda, unschooling mom to A and E, married to C (for 9 years today, actually!). A is a 6 1/2 year old girl and E is a 4 1/2 year old girl, and I won't mention how old C is. I just turned 34. Today!

I guess I will just jump right in and give a rundown on our day today (actually yesterday). Today was a park day for the unschooling group that I co-run, hereafter known as the Life Learners or LVLL. I wasn't sure how many people were going to be able to come and I always get nervous that I am going to drive all the way there and not have anyone to hang with and the kids will be sad their friends did not come. Never happens, so I should get over that! Three other families came and we had a very memorable day. It was hot, but not bad if you stayed in the shade. The park had a measly water feature, but it worked, so getting wet was an option for the kids. They got wet a bit, but mostly played in the sand that was under and around the playground structures. They (kids ranging in age from 3 to 12) all spent hours building a big "life size" castle, which mainly consisted of a wall with a moat around it. But they could fit inside, so it was life sized. They took any and all empty water bottles or food containers we all had and carried water from the fountain to the moat. It actually filled up! I took some pictures with my new camera (my birthday present).


The park we were at was having a farmers market that afternoon and while the kids were working on the moat filling, the market people were setting up a couple bounce houses. It was $3 for unlimited bouncing, so we did it. I got some cool pictures of the kids bouncing with my camera set on sports mode. This is not one of the cool ones, as E is just sitting still, but it is cute anyway. They had a blast bouncing their hearts out. There were only a handful of kids there so the kids had the bounce house all to themselves. In the past, A and E have not wanted to bounce with strangers. More fun with friends, I guess!

After two of the families went home, A and E and their friend J went back to the bounce house, but not until we had all had some kettlecorn. Yum! There were a lot of people there with their dogs and the kids had fun saying hello to all the cute little ones. One family even brought their birds, two cockatoos and a parrot of some sort. We spent some time looking at the birds and E even found a feather from the cockatoo on the ground.

We headed home as the sun was setting. Just enough time for a quick dinner, bath and bed for two very tired girls.