homemade laundry and dishwasher powder

 This post was first written and posted to my original blog, Which Name?, on September 26, 2008. Even the photo is old!

 

we are still working on reducing...our consumption, our clutter, our spending, and our use of environmentally unsafe products. one of the biggest ingredients in my cleaning bucket is baking soda. there are more uses than you can count for baking soda. there are entire books about it. yesterday, i whipped up a new batch of homemade laundry powder (mine is a 4:3 ratio of soda and borax, where half the soda is washing soda and half is baking soda). i put half of the batch in an empty (now recycled) animal cracker container for the laundry, and the other half in this adorable IKEA jar, for use as dishwasher powder. yes, i discovered the same homemade powder works great for both. while i was at it, i cleared a slow tub drain by dumping a cup of baking soda down, followed by a cup of vinegar. when that finished sizzling, i poured a kettle full of boiling water after it. drain clear. next...find a replacement for my less healthy shout and zout stain removers.

edited in 2010 to add:
All these recipes specifying Castille soap are new to me. The recipe I use calls for grated soap (and back when I began making it, they often called for Zote soap of Fels Naptha, both old school laundry soap bars), but I just skip it due to skin sensitivities. It seems to work just fine without soap. I think Castille soap is now being used because it is more earth friendly and people friendly, so if you want to use a soap, just grate a bar (or half) and add it in. In fact, you can use any real soap you like.

 

one small act

                                                                 Eco friendly lending library

I have, mostly quietly, plugging along with our Creative Light Less year in the form of One Small Act...my version of response to and resistance to the negative downfall that this country seems to be spiraling into. It doesn't need to be that way and I have knowledge and experiences to share, but feeling increasingly uncomfortable with online sharing, particularly on certain social media platforms. Social media has come a long way since I began blogging. From here to Facebook, then Instagram. Twitter to X (neither, thank you). TikTok (again, nope). Now Blue Sky and Substack. These last two are pulling in "my" people, but I am hesitant to add another platform, so here I am, back to my blog again.

So I might pop up more often here now. One small act daily.

 

Warehouse used sale that supports local resources

 

 

Volunteer trail work

pandemic-versary

 

One year ago, on this date, the kids, through a class with F's (and L's former) charter school, put on a theater performance of Macbeth. (F was a murderer and L was costume assistant.) It was an outstanding performance, happening after quick and concerned communications and changes in plans last minute, as the news kept turning up new information about a growing pandemic. 

 

Grandparents were missing from the audience, from an abundance of caution. The dress rehearsal and performance were the only things F had done in 2-3 weeks, having been sick. (Yes, it has occurred to us since that he quite possibly had it.) 

 

After a joyous performance (who knew Shakespeare's Macbeth could actually have a hint of humor?), our family headed home. Little did we realize that that would be it for a long, long time. L's hybrid school had already begun shifting students to remote learning and M's work told him not to come in. L's dance classes got put on pause until they could shift to Zoom, where it has remained ever since. 

 

Effective Friday the 13th, our entire area shut down and on March 17th, became the first in the country to lock down into "shelter in place." An entire year has unfolded, unlike any other. M has never been back to the office, working from a stool next to our bed. Holidays and gatherings have all been outside and masked. We had our first summer missing time at the lake. We got chickens. We survived the worst wildfire season in decades. We have biked almost weekly with grandparents for months. F grew. A lot.

 

We have been extremely careful, and we and close family are all still here (blessing), there have been so many silver linings! But the social distancing has taken a toll on our emotional, mental, and developmental health and growth.

 

For the past couple of months, this year's weekly Shakespeare class has been on Zoom, with F as Julius Caesar and L as costume assistant again. Today, the kids resumed a weekly, outdoor, masked soccer skills group that they have been part of for 6+ years, the first time really engaging with peers in months. It was good. 

 

One year, then and now. What is your story?

 

light - an autumn check-in

 

I hesitated using this photo. It represents so much for me; nature, seasonal change, hope, and light. But it was one beautiful day, tucked into weeks of unprecedented wildfire smoke and poor air, trapping us inside. It feels misrepresentative.

 

I have been missing from this space for quite some time. The general changes of life in the past year or so, coupled with the pandemic, have me moving further inward. But I have been thinking a lot about my word for 2020, Light, and today, as I folded some laundry, I had a sudden urge to come and post. I don't really have collected thoughts to share, but perhaps I am not alone, as my mind wanders through a chain reaction of emotions and awareness of a need for time to process. Time that is difficult to carve out these days, despite seemingly having lots of time. (We, as parents, have taken on every role, all at once. Even those of us who homeschooled before are not experiencing life in the same way. Our spaces are small and so compactly shared right now. Those of us with high needs children are left without supports we once had. Our children don't have time with mentors they adore. And more. It is hard.)

When I chose the word Light, it was almost a transitional word for me, because the other word I considered was Change. I didn't feel ready to do the inner work involved, yet, with the word Change, but I guess Mother Earth is having a laugh on me, because this year has been all about Change. But it has also been about Light. When I chose Light, the other word that paired with it in my mind was Namaste, which I have always known to mean "the good and the light in me, sees and honors the good and the light in you." 

Isn't this a year during which we have needed to continue to see the good in others and continue to have to reach toward, lean into, walk toward light, positivity, and hope?

There has been so much darkness this year. A pandemic, many deaths as a result, chronic after-effects for many who have survived, economic pain and instability, and climate disasters. Here where I live, 4 million acres of beautiful land, burned in wildfires, many killed, homes lost, and many more displaced. It keeps coming. It is the sensation of being knocked down, bruised up, and dragging ourselves up again to keep going. It is a year of grieving so much. I am not willing to give up on 2020 yet. There are too many holidays, birthdays, achievements, and goals to be celebrated and met.

With light and hope,

N

a turn around the sun, hidden behind smoke

 

 

I love you, sweet girl. With every passing year, I realize we are born who we are and grow into ourselves. Thank you for being you, making me a Mama, and helping me grow into myself. I appreciate you so much, and as I reflect back on this past year, this crazy, surreal year, I see you have grown so much, each challenge and joy, more into yourself. I love that. 

What an odd, yet special birthday this year. As we hunkered down at home, unable to celebrate with family or friends inside because of a pandemic, or outside because of wildfire smoke and poor air quality, we ate good food (chosen by you!), ever grateful for the simple bounty we have. 

 

 

changing rhythms: homeschool 2020 - 2021

 

This spring and summer have been different (replace with your own adjective here). Even for those of us who have been fortunate enough to avoid COVD-19, even for homeschoolers, life has been twisted on its axis. All activities, travel, social opportunities, and more have been changed or canceled. Exacerbated by the pandemic, our country has had to face a forever-existing racial divide. This year has taught many of us to expect change, be flexible, new ways to relate to and understand each other, and to truly value all we are privileged to have.

And here we are, mid-August, the coming school year looming (that is what it feels like to me this year) upon us. In past years, I have had breaks from my kids (and they from me) in the summer, time to think, clean, organize, plan. I've started the year ready and enchanted. I haven't had that this year and here we are, with (home)school (year 9!) starting tomorrow. (It's Sunday afternoon as I write this.)

Why tomorrow if I am not ready?

We homeschool through a public charter school. Actually, this year, we are homeschooling through 2 charter schools, which is part of the reason I am feeling unprepared. Our son's (K-8) charter technically began last week, but I know the school and patterns well, felt informed, and was able to start preparing early. Our daughter got into a charter school for her high school school experience this year and I didn't have much information until a week or so ago. The bottom line is that, as of tomorrow, both charters have begun and Lala Bug has her first math class.

Our kids are learning all the time. I am accepting that, while I hold Waldorf Education in my heart and mind, our homeschool is more of an us-school experience now. I know, with that in mind, that we can dive in tomorrow and adjust to our new groove, our new rhythm, more slowly.

This year I have a 7th grader and 10th grader! Both my kiddos have learning differences and one is additionally differently wired. In addition to the school year starting, we will begin a more thorough evaluation for one kiddo and resume occupational therapy for the other.

We will start our days with Together Time, during which I read a shared book, we might watch CNN10, read poetry, have important conversations, or do other shared activities.

Our 7th grader will be taking several classes online with our charter. This is not how I want to approach schooling for either of my kids, but this is an atypical school year, we know the school and teachers well, they have been thoughtful about what will work for the kids, and since this is our main homeschool community, he will be with friends, even if not in person.

Brown Mouse will be starting the year slowly, adding up to math, a writing group, Constitution class, crpytography, Spanish (he expressed enthusiastic excitement about this one), and a Shakespeare book group (Julius Caesar). This is plenty, so science will be nature study and playful experimenting to start. Language Arts, for him, is a set selection of materials to address his learning differences.

Our 10th grader, based on how distance learning did and did not work for her in the spring, will take 2 classes online, with the live online portion being only an hour for each class; Geometry and American Government. For English, we will be reading texts of my choosing and pairing it with writing materials to help her build and feel more confident with her writing. Science is Chemistry. Her charter teacher approved our covering chemistry through fiber arts, with the support of texts, some kits, and her grandparents (a chemist and a former fiber artist). She is excited about that. I suspect much of the rest of her time will be spent dancing (although not in person!) and working on various fiber projects. She has switched from knitting to sewing with the warmth of late summer, but is prolific with both, as well as other crafts. She's got some goals in this area.

And me? I am working to not forget myself in the mix. I am trying to remember to lean into my strengths, not sacrifice myself (and my energy) for everyone else, and that, for me, means ongoing work around expectations, limits, and boundaries. What better to model for my growing kids this year?!

Wishing you well as we collectively launch into a strange new, current normal.

August 2019

In August, stone fruits are so sweet.

Peach pie makes a special treat. 

~Nicola

 

 

Well, hello. I have taken a couple months off from blogging and it was so busy it zipped by! We have had a couple of months that were very much of a mix of summer travel and full home time that was not at all summer-like. In fact, some of our usual summer anchors have been missed entirely. August will be a mix like that, too, with some summer activities, but some school related events happening, as well.

 

 

Dates of Interest:




Instead of specific dates this month, I will just say that, this month, we are celebrating a family birthday, have some new-to-us homeschool support school appointments to attend, school 'start' dates on the calendar, a week of day camp, and meteor showers to enjoy!

Homeschooling:







June and July had a homeschooling rhythm broken by trips. Both kids were working on math and language arts programs through the summer and Lala Bug just completed an intensive coding class. In August, the support schools that we homeschool under will begin, although we still have a certain amount of flexiblity. With Lala Bug having graduated our long time charter school, our new situation for her will be a learning curve and transition for us all.

Self-care:


The kids are in an outdoor camp for a week and that is my summer 'vacation.' That is my one week to tackle projects for me, take deep care of myself (massage, haircut, naps, etc.), schedule appointments, read, write, lesson plan, and whatever else fills my cup.

Parenting and Family:

During the next few weeks, I want make sure we get some good family connection as well as fuel each kid with some special time. We are hoping to re-establish the rhythm of a family hike on the weekends. I know the transitions and changes coming are likely to trigger anxieties and I want to prepare for that.

Home life:

I mentioned in my June/July post that we have some major house work to do this summer and it is underway now. It is a bit shocking how long some of these projects can take, even when hiring others to help do them!

I hope your August is lovely and joyous!

May 2019

May brings sun and sandy beach swims,

Before the summer fog rolls in. 

~Nicola

Dates of Interest:

May 1: May Day. We make and deliver anonymous May Day bouquets. (Above photo.)

May 12: Mother's Day

May 27: Memorial Day

May 30: Last day of school (for our charter and I think us, too, this year. Lala Bug graduates our charter this year. Lots of feelings!)


Homeschooling:

April was very off-kilter with, and following, testing. Our one consistent piece through the month was an Outschool math class both kids did and enjoyed. At the end of the month and heading into the beginning of May, our literature choice is Esperanza Rising, which fits in beautifully with our other studies of the Depression (and recovery, and World War II) time period and is poignant for us as Californians. It is a wonderful book!

Fifth Grader: We are continuing with our language arts (Brave Writer and REWARDS) and math (Teaching Textbooks and Key To series), but this month I want to be heavy on nature/botany for Brown Mouse.

Eight Grader: We are continuing with language arts (Brave Writer and one-on-one support from our charter) and math (Khan Academy and Key To series). This month I want to end with a focus on business and entrepreneurship with Lala Bug.

High school...we have a general plan in place now (link to post). Now, Lala Bug and I will begin to shape what her homeschool courses will be and I will dive a little deeper into making sure we are covering what we need to for all of high school, from the very beginning.

Self-care:

If nothing else this month, I am feeling a deep need for some alone time. The list of things I really want to do that would help fuel me seems rather simple; keep increasing my morning journal and exercise time back to what it was, drink more water, finish a couple books I am dragging through, and resume meditating and the anti-inflammatory diet. Ha! That is quite a lot, really.

Parenting:

M and I have gotten a little more time to focus on us, which is good. We can feel and see the growth, positive and challenging, in both our kids, and we are having to discuss and coordinate new limits within our parenting. I am working on not feeling guilty when setting a limit or frazzled when there is push-back to the limit. This is all normal and good.

Home life:

Usually, I am an autumn-cleaning rather than a spring-cleaning type of person, but I can feel my highly sensitive self is deeply needing to clear and clean. I know this won't likely be my focus until school and soccer season are done, but a little here and a little there helps!

Crafting:
Endless projects here...new baby and end of school year gifts being made, house and yard projects being worked, science crafts being done, and long abandoned projects being picked up and finished!

Have a lovely May!

(This post was inspired by Carrie of The Parenting Passageway.)

April 2019

April brings the flaming weeds,

as gold bursts from California Poppy seeds. 

~Nicola

Dates of Interest:

As a family that homeschools through a charter school, this month our kids participate in various forms of testing. In addition, we technically have a spring break, so our April schedule and activities will be a little different than usual.

April is Poetry Month!

April 15: Tax Day

April 21: Easter

April 22: Earth Day


Homeschooling:

Moving out of March, we have really been in an amazing homeschooling groove. I know this will shift this month because of testing, but I am really okay with that, because I am needing a respite from the regular "to dos" of homeschooling as I really tackle (and draw the kids into) some home clear out and rearrangement tasks. While the kids are testing, I will be working on our home financial management and taxes, so this has been part of our learning conversation.

Both kids are in an online class that pairs design concepts (something they are both interested in, in different ways) and math. So far, it has been a hit.

Fifth Grader: Not too much change, although I need to bring in more science, his love.  He is using Teaching Textbooks and Key To workbooks for math and we are using games to review, although between testing and the online class, we may make little progress. We are definitely not going to finish the Teaching Textbooks lessons by year-end. We are continuing to use REWARDS to support his progress with language arts differences and using Brave Writer Arrow guides for literature and language arts.

Eight Grader: She has been working through Khan Academy and Key To workbooks for math (although we will likely cover less of these with the online class and testing). A success has been discovering she really enjoys the math more on a pad with a rubber tipped pen. She is getting a small amount of outside support for language arts and math and is also doing the Brave Writer Arrow guides with us. She blurted out the other day "We don't do enough history!" That's her love, so we will do a little more this month.

We have been narrowing down options for high school next year and I suspect will feel settled in a decision by the end of the month. At the very least, the most stressful aspects feel as though they are behind us and some very good family and one on one parent-parent and parent-child conversations have happened now.

Self-care:

My priority has been sleep and personal reading. I have done well with these, but I still haven't been sleeping all that well. While I have been less successful at consistently being up before my kids (Lala Bug rises quite early these days) and morning exercise, we have been great at getting out into nature for hikes as a family on the weekend, and this really fuels all of us. My goals this month is to take a few minutes daily to write and/or meditate to process all that has been happening and also to finish another book. (I am reading several at once.) I would also like to re-kindle the challenge of a photo a day.

Parenting:

Parenting, as always, is about connection, empathy, play, limits, listening, and love. I am working on talking less and listening more. Patience, love, and playfulness are what is needed right now with the kids, as well as encouraging loving kindness and empathy between siblings. I think mostly, M and I really need to pour some time and care into our relationship. Spouse and self can be the last to receive care when kids, homeschooling, work, commute, home repairs, etc. feel so dominant.

Home life:

We are making more progress on clearing, cleaning, organizing, and re-arranging. We have continued to have a lot of rain and have had pauses as a result. The fence is now down, we need to clear out fence debris, clean up outside, and plant new seedlings. We need to finish clearing out a room and have the flooring we selected installed. I hope we can do this by the end of the month. I have a number of items to donate or sell to make space we desperately need.

Crafting:
So much creating has been happening here, especially building and sewing! I foresee it continuing, which is lovely.

Happy April! Share what is happening in your life!

(This post was inspired by Carrie of The Parenting Passageway.)

March 2019

March brings our 'coastal snow,'

as flowers bloom and white petals blow. 

~Nicola

Dates of Interest:

March is the month dedicated to celebration of women. We will be reading extra stories of strong and unique women during read-aloud.

March 8: International Women's Day

March 17: St. Patrick's Day

March 20: Shakespeare performances day in our world

March 21: Holi

Homeschooling:

Homeschooling in a little smoother as we begin this month. We are through the application process with our oldest for high schools and are now waiting, talking, and making decisions. I had not anticipated how much stress and anxiety my girl would experience from participating in this process. Change is inevitable and hard.

For both kids we are going to shifting back into using Brave Writer Arrow or Boomerang guides paired with literature. We had taken a break while steeped in Shakespeare.

Fifth Grader: Not much has changed since last month's post! He is working on weekly homework for his Exercise Physiology class, as well as his Globe Theatre project for his Shakespeare class. He is using Teaching Textbooks and Key To workbooks for math and we are using games to review. We are continuing to use REWARDS to support his progress with language arts differences.

Eight Grader: She just completed her Shakespeare project and is working on memorizing lines so she can be an understudy for a couple of other characters, if necessary. She has been working through Khan Academy and Key To workbooks for math and she is getting a small amount of outside support for language arts and math.

Self-care:

I have been tired. My priority has been climbing into bed at a reasonable time and reading a little before sleep. There are so many other self-care things I want to be doing, and if I am honest, I feel like I deserve. If I stop and consider, there are little things I am doing...a hot shower (alone for 5 minutes of thinking and meditation), light exercise, listening to podcasts, and nature time, among others, but it is the time I have alone that is most meaningful to me. Recently, my brother came for an overnight and took the kids mountain biking for the afternoon, so M and I had a little conversation time alone together before he went for a hike and left me alone in the house. I did some clean-up, but it still felt restorative because I was by myself. I really haven't been getting this kind of time much. It is so important to know these things about oneself!

Parenting:

Parenting, as always, is about connection, empathy, play, limits, listening, and love. I am working on talking less and listening more. Brown Mouse just went away for a couple of days for special adventure time with Grandma and Nonno, leaving Lala Bug to get some special time with us. It was what everyone needed.

Home life:

We are making very slow progress on clearing, cleaning, organizing, and re-arranging, but progress in baby steps is still progress. We have had a lot of rain and we can see where we may need to pause until it is dry enough for us to haul some things outside, but also that items like roof patching and fence securing are getting bumped up on the list. M and I are working to carve out time to really connect and communicate with each other about all. the. things; kids, schooling, home, work, future, finances. We are definitely at a point where we are both feeling worn and changes are needed. I feel the winds shifting.

Crafting:
Lala Bug's itch to knit has been rekindled. I am pleased to see her creativity re-blossom. M has been making some tools for his shop that haven't required power, since his finger is still recovering from the table saw. Brown Mouse has been working on a model Globe Theatre for his Shakespeare project. Me? I have been mending things and decluttering my crafting area, readying it to be packed up for a room rearrangement.

And just like that we slide toward spring! What is happening in your world?

February 2019

In February we say good-bye

to the migrating Monarch butterfly. 

~Nicola

Dates of Interest:

These are some of the days our family is celebrating this month or simply things we are taking note of or interest in.

Birthday celebrations in our family!

February 14: St. Valentine's Day

February 15-18: Great Backyard Bird Count

Homeschooling:

Just to keep it real; homeschooling is hard right now. We are simultaneously trying to address some learning and developmental challenges, while planning for the start of high school next year for our eldest. It is clear the combination is bringing up a lot of intense feelings, worry, and confusion for all of us.

Fifth grader: He is working on weekly homework for both his Shakespeare class and Exercise Physiology class, as well as his project for his Shakespeare class. His chosen topic is the Globe Theater.  He is using Teaching Textbooks and Key To workbooks for math and we are using games to review. We are continuing to use REWARDS to support his progress with language arts differences.

Eighth grader: She is working on homework, research project, and practicing lines for her Shakespeare class. She is getting a small amount of outside support for language arts and I am trying to work with her on math. Right now, we are focusing heavily on emotional health and skill building.

Self-care:

This has continued to be very difficult for me. Due to high needs parenting, I think I have gotten depleted enough that I really need some deep care to restore myself. I am trying for daily exercise and deep breathing. (A practice of 3 slow, deep breaths, in through the nose, hold, out through the mouth. Breath 1 is just the breath. Breath 2, expanding and stretching my body. Breath 3, thinking "what is important right now?" and focusing on that.)  I need to increase my water intake. My journaling has been spotty. What I think I really need to address next is a therapist or new listening partnership.

Parenting:

Parenting and homeschooling are all so deeply woven together! I have been saying yes just about every time Brown Mouse asks me to play our made up basketball trampoline game. Laughter, connection, and physical exercise are wonderful. With Lala Bug, I am making myself available when she seeks me out and I am working to reduce the corrections and increase the positive comments. Following M's power tool accident and subsequent emergency department visit (he is okay!), our highly sensitive girl has really struggled with us. Fear is a powerful thing to a sensitive being that is both both teen and young girl in one growing, changing mind and body.

Home life:

We have made expectations more clear, limits more clear, and everyone is helping a bit more. This is something we will continue to work on! We have done a couple more chunks of purging and I have a load to bring to the donation place, although you can't see the dent! We also did a deep clean of our bathroom (we have moisture problems during winter) and you can see the difference there!

Crafting:

Brown Mouse has been building. He got interested in earthquakes again and made a shake table and some buildings. He has also been playing with his Tinker Crates. (These were a birthday present from us. They come from KiwiCo. I have no affiliation and yes, I would recommend them.)  M had to take a rest because of his hand injury. Lala Bug has favored reading over crafting the past couple weeks and I have been deep in paperwork during my "extra" time. So little crafting has happened. Just typing that motivates me to put out some crafty "morning invitations!"

Happy February to you all. I know many homeschoolers dislike February, but it is one of my favorite months. I think of it as a "red" month, full of celebrations, picking up a little cheer after "blue" January. It has been wet and cold here. We even got snow here in coastal California last night! Be well.

(You will enjoy Carrie's monthly The Parenting Passageway post, here!)

January 2019

My blogging friend Carrie, of The Parenting Passageway, writes helpful, inspiring, meaningful posts on a very regular basis. I read and nod along with so many. She often writes a post for each month discussing relevant dates and ways to honor and celebrate those days as well as the season itself. This month, she added what she and her children were covering in each grade she is homeschooling, as well as personal and home goals and activities. I loved reading it and thought it was a format of sharing I would like to try. So here goes...

In January we hope for rain

to fill our reservoirs again. 

~Nicola

Dates of Interest:

These are some of the days our family is celebrating this month or simply things we are taking note of or interest in.

January 1: New Year's Day - for our family, this is the last day of our holiday countdown and a day that M has off of work.

January 20: Total Lunar Eclipse - I am excited that the eclipse can be seen at a time our kids can be awake to see it! Rainy weather may affect us, but fingers crossed we get a glimpse.

January 21: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, observed

January 28: Journey North Mystery Class begins

Homeschooling:

After a very clunky few months, we are settling into a new and more predictable rhythm, which is very welcome!

Both kids are participating in a class and, ultimately, a production of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night right now. A lot of their lesson work stems from or is tied to this class, whether it be speech (learning lines), writing, or history.

Fifth grader: He is beginning to research and work on a project for the Shakespeare class. His chosen topic is architecture. I will help him narrow it down more as he explores his resources. He has regular/daily math he is doing using Teaching Textbooks and Key To workbooks. I am noticing some areas we need to review and/or gap-fill, so we are working on those, as well. He has learning differences with phonics, spelling, and writing, so we are using a program called REWARDS to support his progress in these areas.

Eight grader: She is also beginning to research and work on a project for the Shakespeare class. Her chosen topic is bookbinding in Elizabethan England. She is working on math daily using Khan Academy and Key To workbooks. We are also working through gaps. We have just gone through a lengthy evaluation for her and so are processing all we learned and making a plan for how to continue encouraging her strengths while adjusting assistance in the areas she needs more support.

Self-care:

My word for the year is present. My goal is to be mindful right now. A lot has happened in the past couple of years in our family that has affected my responses, reactions, and abilities to stay present. Also, we are having to do a lot more thinking and planning for educational changes next year. For various reasons, I have felt depleted and it has affected my health. So for self-care, I have resumed waking before everyone, getting a quiet cup of tea, and journaling. I have shifted my journaling prompts again, and having something fresh, helps. I am also getting daily exercise and M and I are re-establishing an at-home date night weekly.

Parenting:

One on one time for any of us (parent-child or husband-wife) has been ridiculously limited lately, so one of my goals right now is to make sure we are getting at least a little bit (that isn't connected to homeschool lessons). For Brown Mouse, this means remembering to pause what I am doing and join him in his play. For Lala Bug, it means joining her while she knits or crafts. And for M and me, it means those date nights I mentioned and a willingness to stay up later than my body likes, for at least one night a week, as his schedule and mine are a bit different. In addition, I have been mulling over Brown Mouse's social needs and supporting Lala Bug in building up the skills she will need for high school. We are still undecided about how/where she will be for 9th grade, so we have been touring schools and learning about the charter schools that serve homeschooled high schoolers.

Home Life:

I ended 2018 and began 2019 thinking a lot about my words for the years, shifting from happy to present. With my inner work toward happy came a foundation of work I needed to do around my expectations of others, limits/boundaries, and holding those limits with love. With a goal of being present, comes strength. All of that said, I have been doing a lot of inner work on my own needs, guilt, and what I am teaching my children through how I express all of this. Part of the result is that I am being clearer with the kids about the need for each of them to contribute more in our home, so I can be responsible for less. In addition, we are working towards some simple renovations (really, completion of projects started long ago) and a thorough purge and clean as we move toward re-arranging who sleeps in which rooms of our small house. This is long overdue and feels like a huge hurdle, so we are tackling a little bit at a time.

Crafting:

I simply don't have the time and energy I had when the kids were littler, to do the types of creating or writing I used to do. I know, it is a matter of how I choose to use my time. Right now, those pursuits are getting less of me. I have been reading for pleasure, I have been doing a tiny bit of knitting, and I have been taking photographs, which I love. Both kids are expressing an interest in photography, so I am considering signing us up for an online photo class. This would be something we could enjoy together, do in our own time from home, and also expose Lala Bug to online classes, which she will need to be familiar with in high school. We, as a family, have been crafting a lot, though. There was a lot of merry making leading up to Christmas and I have supported my very crafty children!

Well...so much January goodness. Although it is already mid-January, I have enjoyed sharing our plans. Maybe as we go along, I will also share what we actually did! If you care to share what is happening at your house, I would love to read it!

corner view: my room 1, before

I began blogging over 10 years ago. (I closed my original blog, Which Name?, to the public and stopping adding to it about 3 years ago.) Somewhere in the 11+ years I have been blogging, perhaps starting 8 or 9 years ago already, I was enmeshed in a lovely blogging community, one that was big and overlapping, like a beautiful online Venn diagram. One circle of that Venn was a group of bloggers from around the world that participated in Corner View. Each week, there was a theme, and we were to take a photograph of our corner of the world, to fit that theme, and share it on our blog. We linked up to each other's blogs. The themes were things like coffee, home, community, etc.

Now, on this blog, I am going to use a modified version of 'corner view' to share some photos of home. This summer, we plan to do some minor renovations and major rearranging in our home, so it occurred to me what feels like 'home' right now, might feel very different by the end of the year.

 This corner view is in my room, now. My dresser, pulled from my in-laws storage shed, each drawer lined with old maps. On the wall above, my growing curiosity cabinet, given to me by my brother. On the dresser, a driftwood beach candle holder (also from my brother), a mosaic mirror made by my girl, M's childhood piggy bank, my name scrolled by my grandpa when I was a child, an antique jewelry box given to me as a young teen by my parents, a plant from my best friend, and rocks. Always rocks with words on them. The ones in the shell have some of my word-of-the-year rocks and the ones in the jar were written on and given to me on my birthday from my family.

As I write all that, it amazes me that this one tiny corner view holds so many memories and shares so much about me.

52: 52

52 weeks of photos. A special moment during the week of December 24, 2017

And that's a wrap.

52: 51

52 weeks of photos. A special moment during the week of December 17, 2017

52: 50

52 weeks of photos. A special moment during the week of December 10, 2017

learning period 1: 2016

Home living, home learning...

I have over-thought and hesitated posting much about how we homeschool because we seem to be shifting and I don't feel as though we fit in any basket anymore. We are do-what-feels-right homeschoolers now, which looks a little like Waldorf (and feels like, for this Mama, at least, Waldorf at its roots), a little like nature schooling (Charlotte Mason-ish?), Brave Writer-ish, a little interest-lead, and a little mainstream.

While a lesson plan is helpful, I have learned that, for me, what I most use is a guide that helps me remember what I want to cover, how long I think it might take, resources I might like to use, and other activities and events I might like to include or might get in the way. Here is the plan I shared for this school year. I have already deviated!

 

We have just finished our first learning period of the school year. I don’t know that I have used that term before here on my blog, as I tend to go month by month. We school through a charter, which requires that each child have two work samples for each of five subjects (writing, language arts, science, math, and social studies) every learning period. Each learning period is approximately two months. We just completed our first learning period and I want to share a little about what we have been doing. I have blogged a little bit so far, here and here. (I should share that the charter has allowed me to try all sorts of different materials and resources that they have supplied. Some of what we are using now comes from our charter, but we are also budgeting for some items ourselves because they aren't covered by our charter.)

For Language Arts – I have been using the Brave Writer approach with both kids. With Little Brown Mouse, I am using the Brave Writer product, The Wand. His reading is improving steadily (in spurts), but I noticed certain aspects he hasn’t grasped well and The Wand is teaching me certain spelling and reading rules I didn’t know well enough to teach, so I am sharing these lessons with both kids! For Lala Bug, I am creating copy work from various books we are reading. Some of Little Brown Mouse's copy work comes from The Wand, some from other literature. All of us do free writing, we do semi regular poetry tea time, and we do daily read alouds together. For this time, I pull books I want them to hear, some chapter books, some picture books, all from a variety of subjects. Stories and literature play a large role in our homeschool. I do not assign reading. If there is something I want them to read, I read it out loud. Lala Bug is such a prolific reader, that sometimes I have to pull her away from reading, but the choices for that reading are not dictated by me. (That said, I will check out books and leave them to be discovered!) Both kids truly enjoy books and love our weekly library day.

For writing – This is also Brave Writer inspired. I am still learning my way through this, but I have one writer who is recovering from being reluctant, who chose a creative writing class through our charter, and is writing on her own a fair bit (and asking for my input)! The other is a reluctant writer who is willing to write little bits and pieces for copy work and free writing, which is also progress. He's got lots of stories and things to say, which I jot down when I am able. For mechanics (which is really the part of writing that is disliked here), I have begun teaching Little Brown Mouse cursive (using Handwriting Without Tears) and it has been a huge hit.

For science – During this first learning period, we learned a bit about the body and how humans grow and change through their lives, birth through old age. We also learned more about Monarch butterflies and their life cycle and we studied the moon (which touched lightly on some studies of astronomy and our universe.) I had planned to do some introductory physics this learning period, but we didn't get to it. We are using a variety of books (from our city library, our charter resource center, and our home library) and hands-on activities and explorations for science. The kids have really been enjoying Destinations in Science, an older story based science series, which we got from our charter resource center, but doesn't seem to be readily available anymore. They have continued to really like Mystery Science and we have also used a story set from Be Naturally Curious. I include nature study and exploration as part of science, which we continue to do naturally (something our family values), but I have really enjoyed the information, art, and poetry components of Exploring Nature with Children. It is well worth its price.

For social studies – I wanted to bring a little Ancient Greece to the kids, but for all her love of social studies, history, and geography, Lala Bug has had some resistance to learning about ancient civilizations. The timing was perfect, because the Olympics was a beautiful "in." We all really enjoyed learning about Ancient Greece through the lens of the Olympics. We read too many picture books and other stories to list them all. We enjoyed a version of Greek myths and the Magic Tree House Research Guide to Ancient Greece and the Olympics, both my Mary Pope Osborne. (So far, despite their popularity, the D'Aulaires myths books have not been a hit with Lala Bug.) When we came up for air after the Olympics, I shifted us into learning a bit about American government and the upcoming elections. We've read a smattering of books (we all spent a lot of time laughing out loud at The Kid Who Ran for President) and we have had a number of big juicy conversations. I am consistently amazed, pleased, and humored by how incredibly curious and bright our kids are. They have both asked some questions that have left me stumped and thoughtful.

For math – I had planned to bring review during this first learning period, and I have, but I am still having to tread carefully with math. My goal is to meet each child where they are and do so consistently. With math, I have a handful of resources and I am using what fits, when it fits. The following resources seem to be working well right now. I am using Making Math Meaningful, grades 1-5 for myself, as a teacher resource. I wish I had bought this earlier! With the kids, I am using a mix of materials, all fairly mainstream. Both kids always enjoy games for math, so I am trying to do more of those. (Games for Math and Family Math have been great resources.) Both kiddos are enjoying Beast Academy, we are occasionally using Khan Academy, Lala Bug enjoys math art (she's loving This is Not a Math Book right now), and for both kids (although it is primarily at Lala Bug's level), we are using Your Business Math, from Simply Charlotte Mason. (I learned about this from Kara Anderson. My kids chose the Sports Store math and one set is all I need for both kids.) I have and occasionally present Lala Bug with math from the Key To... series (which we are able to acquire through our charter school). She's not enjoying that as she once was, but it is very effective in teaching and slowly increasing the difficulty of important concepts, without having too much on a page.

Homeschooling isn't neat and tidy. It's here and there, with tears, with laughter, togetherness, wildness, fatigue, worry, excitement, enthusiasm, frustration, curiosity, exhaustion, and more, but it starts in pajamas, has rain dances and soccer balls tucked in the middle, and ends with hugs and snuggles. Not a bad way to learn.

give your child the world

We have been enjoying the resource Give Your Child the World, a wonderful book list (and more) of titles for children, by age, from around the world. This summer, shortly after the book was released, Jamie Martin, the author, launched a read along through her site, Simple Homeschool. We joined the challenge. Now, there is a link up for those who want to share. While we followed the challenge, reading a book from one particular region each week, I am not going to share the list of books we read for the challenge, simply because we didn't give it the depth we could have (and because I just want to share other favorites from each region). The book is full of amazing titles; many we have read, but so many more we have yet to explore. Thank goodness for the library! The book would make an excellent guide to an entire year of literature, cultural, and geographic exploration. (That is a hint for those who homeschool!)

For the link up challenge, a little about us, using the questions Jamie posted.

– Tell us about your family.
We are a family of 4; Mamma, Dada, 11 yr girl, and 8 yr boy. And a chicken. (Yup, just one. She is the last left of our small original flock of 6. She might be joined soon by some chicks and a rabbit, but only time will tell.) Our immediate extended family all live nearby, as well!

– Tell us about where you live and how long you’ve lived there.
We are in Northern California and we've been here forever. I (Mamma) started in the general area, moved elsewhere, and moved back. Everyone else has been here their whole lives.  As for this specific city and home, the kids have known no other!

– What do you think is unique and special about living where you do?
Where we live has incredible diversity. We are blessed with diversity in our population and diversity of people, who come from all around the world, and share a variety of cultural and lifestyle viewpoints. We love this.

– What languages are spoken there? If it’s different from English, can you help us learn a few common phrases?
So many languages are spoken here! English is the primary language, but no one looks twice if you are speaking Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, and variety of Indian dialects. Russian can also be heard here. European languages such as French, Italian, and German are a little less common here.

– What are some traditional foods there?
Diverse cultures, people, languages, and...foods! Where we live is known for excellent food. One can get good food from just about any culture, but this area is known for its amazing local farms, fresh produce, local cheeses, and wine.

– Tell us about the climate where you live.
It's varied here, so the weather should be no different! Because we are along the coast, with coastal mountain ranges, a change of a very short distance can mean the temperature varies. Our seasons are mild (no snow), but are noticeable. They are a little backwards, though, with dry, foggy, cool weather happening in the summer. 

– What does school look like for the majority of kids where you live?
For the majority of kids,  school is public school, 8am-ish to 3pm-ish, Monday through Friday, September through the middle of June. Schools are grades K-5, 6-8, and 9-12.

– What does school look like for your family?
We homeschool, so school looks like us! We are a Waldorf inspired family, but we put our own spin on it with a little Brave Writer, Charlotte Mason, and interest lead learning. We are wholistic learners who are supported by a wonderful charter school. (You can read more about our homeschooling here and here.)

– Are there any special festivals or traditions you’d like to tell us about related to where you live?
There are a number of events that happen in our urban area; there are tech events, Pride parades, coastal native historical celebrations, and more. Our family keeps it simple. I suppose we like events that celebrate with food and nature; harvest, apple, and butterfly festivals!


– If you ever had to move away from where you live, what do you think you’d miss most?
I think it would depend where we move, but things we would miss include family, friends, diversity, good food, ability to grow good food, access to amazing museums of all types, and more.  We (parents) would not miss the traffic, the cost of living, drought, and the inability to have a bigger garden/property.

– Do you have a favorite book that takes place in your region/country?
There are so many good books! We have some favorites for the United States (American Girl series, Laura Ingalls Wilder's series, and A Pioneer Sampler come to mind), for California, both kids love G is for Golden, and for the area of California we are in, both our kids really enjoyed Adopted by Indians, by Thomas Jefferson Mayfield.

We have really enjoying exploring the world through books this summer, we love to travel vicariously through family, who share their tales of travel and work in every continent, we look forward to diving deeper into other cultures in the coming months and years, and we really enjoyed sharing a little about ourselves!

summer learning

It is almost July and we have already nodded our heads to summer solstice, but I am only now catching up with the last month or two of spring and the fullness of the end of the year. Ours is not the typical fullness, although it had some aspects of your mainstream end-of-year wildness, including a ballet performance. Mostly, tiredness and a lack of desire to be online has caused my absence. Here is a post to bring me up-to-date!

Following our Alaska trip, Little Brown Mouse made a model of a glacier. This was self initiated and completed.

Lake Tahoe was beautiful at the end of May.

Lala Bug really wanted to make flower decorated cupcakes. So she did.

Above, Little Brown Mouse finished up his homemade go-cart, so he brought it to the last soccer class so all his friends (and tall big sister) could have a ride. 

We have just passed through the time of year when homeschoolers start asking one another "Do you school through summer?" For us, it is a grey area.

We school through a charter that supports homeschoolers. As a result, our "school" has a scheduled beginning and end time. Sort of. We are required to report to our charter school during the months school is in session and we do not receive money for activities when school is on summer break. Otherwise, I can be flexible with our schedule. For example, as long as we have work samples to submit for August, I can keep us on a "summer schedule." And, of course, I can keep schooling into June, despite our charter year ending before Memorial Day.

The kids asked if we could bike ride to a local historic site to do the Junior Ranger Program. Umm...yes!

Annual blueberry picking with our friends in the (California) central valley. Delicious!

Holy cow, we had a lot of plums again. So many another massive branch broke. We spent a day picking, pruning, cutting, freezing, and jamming.

Hay ride, anyone? Yes, but it comes at the cost of loading and unloading the hay from the wagon!

 

This girl has been reading a ton. On this day, above, she read 4 books, at least.

Sunset on Summer Solstice (a solstice alliteration) 

We didn't cover all that I had hoped to cover during the official school year, so we will continue to cover those topics, but it will be in a less pressured (self-inflicted as teacher) way. We will read stories and books, but might not do any extensive writing or other project, for example. We will do math and writing regularly, but they won't be long or deep assignments. (Lala Bug has taken to doing Beast Academy for fun, for example, and any writing counts right now.) Today, for example, we had a schooling day, complete with a walk, verses, writing, math, and then the kids got sucked into Mystery Science, which is fabulous hands-on learning fun (that we pay for). It felt like a pay day!

Learning happens all. the. time. (I.e., officially schooling or not, your kids (and you!) are still taking in, learning about, and processing the world around them.)

Summer reading! There are a number of reading programs and we invest happily in the library summer reading program available locally. There are rewards for the kids and, honestly, my kids are motivated just by the sticker sheet involved!

Life lessons. This is a favorite season to practice non-academic skills. I have a long list of skills we want to address with our kids before they grow up and move away on their own. They range from cooking to laundry to keeping a budget to changing a car tire. It is clear when they are or are not ready for a skill. Both kids were heavily involved in picking, cutting, cooking, and canning plum jam this week. They weren't ready to help with this last year.

And then there is the break. We need it. Actually, I think I need it more than they need it. I need the time and space and respite to unwind a little so I can re-center before starting to think about what needs to come next.

Happy summering!