Continuing to enjoy and experiment with my new camera

Colorado is a sunny place and we are fair, fair people.

Drinking...

drinking . . .

water too low to reach. . .

Hey, I'm hanging out here, not bothering anything, but I did notice your water is almost gone. Weird.

The Simple Woman's Daybook -- Thursday, June 10, 2010

Check it out here.

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...bright green sunniness

I am thinking...that it's going to be a full, crazy rest of the month

I am thankful for...a childcare job this evening & Keely, who has made me feel very loved and wanted lately

From the learning rooms...lots of new blogger techniques and ideas

From the kitchen...apple oatmeal bars for breakfast, a little later this morning hopefully some granola bars to freeze for camping

I am wearing...a white tank top with a glittery fairy that I love -- sadly, one of the straps is torn almost completely off -- also, a pair of flannel boxers that I'm pretty sure belonged to my high school boyfriend.  Naturally.

I am going...to my friend Holly's this afternoon for goop and reading

I am reading... The Undertaking: Life Studies from the Dismal Trade by Thomas Lynch -- just starting it.

I am hoping...that tomorrow goes smoothly as we settle in to our house-sitting house.

I am hearing...The Trial of John Walker Lindh by Hot Buttered Rum on Pandora

Around the house...I rearranged the top shelf of one of our cabinets and it makes all three of us quite happy (much easier to get things in and out).

One of my favorite things...hammocks

A few plans for the rest of the week:  massage on Saturday, perhaps seeing my husband's aunt and cousin, my daughter's Theater Explorers class, and enjoying house-sitting!

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...(I really shouldn't have rediscovered cinnamon sugar toast...)

Learning at Home: A Mother's Guide to Homeschooling by Marty Layne --Take VI -- Burnout

I was so pleased to hear from Marty Layne after she recently read my posts about this book.  I mentioned to her that I thought I had a bit more still to say about the last two chapters and I will try to do that now.     Though homeschooling/unschooling is still a definite possibility for our family in the future, our daughter has been in school for the past 8 months (she is now out for the summer).  And yet I continue to be struck by how much this book spoke to me -- again, because the way Layne thinks about education, learning, children, and parenting merely reflects the way that she thinks about and approaches life in general.

Chapter 8 deals with burnout -- and talks about learning to resolve and be comfortable with conflict (both internal and external) as a key way of preventing burnout. Layne raises a point that I'd never consciously thought about but that, upon reading it, seems like an obvious and basic truth -- "Mothering in and of itself can be rife with inner conflict . . . Experienced mothers . . . often think perhaps they ought to be doing something other than what they are doing" (p. 158). 

When one adds homeschooling to the mix, it's no wonder that there is a potential for burnout!  Homeschooling parents have to balance the role of supportive parent with the role of challenging teacher.  "The work that I ask my child to do will have an impact on my relationship with that child . . . weigh the necessity of that work against the necessity of maintaining a positive relationship with my child." (p.162)

One of the reasons I've been so drawn to this book is because it leans toward the unschooling side of things -- perhaps only slightly, but the slant is there nonetheless.  The following excerpt from Chapter 8 illustrates this for me:  "Once each child mastered the ability to read, write, and do math, my 'teaching' as such was over.  I no longer assigned or asked them to work on any specific learning tasks.  Instead, I help them to pursue their interests." (p.162)

Because each child is different, Layne suggests that, as your children begin to read, you ask them if they would like you to correct them.  Some children will want someone by their side, want to know that they are doing it "right".  Others may rather work on their own and ask for help only occasionally.  Layne says that even the act of asking your child what she would prefer may make working together easier.  

Layne is very aware that different methods work for different children/families at different times/ages.  If homeschooling starts to feel like it's not "working" for your family, she encourages you to take the time to reassess your ideas and options . . . "it's okay to stop doing something that you have started to do.  It is not one of life's rules that you must finish an activity when once you've started it" (p 164).  In fact, Layne says this is one of the advantages of homeschooling -- you have the freedom to make changes!  "We need to give ourselves permission to change; to no longer take part in things that we thought we defined us."(p.166)

I believe that it is very easy for parents who are at all trying to make conscious decisions regarding their children to feel defensive of their choices.  Because of this, I appreciate Layne's open attitude regarding education -- that "homeschooling does not invalidate schooling nor does schooling invalidate homeschooling" (p166).  She compares this to going shoe shopping -- you wouldn't expect everyone in your family to fit into the same size shoe -- and in fact, assuming you have children that are still growing, you will expect different sizes to fit them at different times.  

Layne ends the chapter with some additional ways of combating burnout, mini-vacations, and tension reducers:

• reading (to self and children)
• knitting/needlework
• journals [blogging :)}
• running/walking/physical activity/stretching/dancing
• find a support system
• make sure all hunger and thirst needs are met (yours as well as your children's)
• go outside
• blow bubbles
• meditate, pray, or visualize (Layne has found that doing this in the shower helps her stay awake :))
• let go of the idea that "a mother should . . . "
• get enough sleep
• take time to enjoy your children -- look them in the eye and see the love that you share

Chapter Nine is her concluding chapter and I'll just share two book titles she recommends.

None of the Above:  Behind the Myth of Scholastic Aptitude  by David Owen (deals with the SAT)

John Bear's Guide to Non-traditional College Degrees

Thanks again, Marty, for an inspiring and challenging book for any parent!

All quotes from Learning at Home used with author's permission:   www.martylayne.com

Fifth Annual 48 Hour Book Challenge: Finish Line

(Photo -- L to R -- books I read, books I'm still working on, books I didn't get to)








Time spent reading/reviewing:  27 hours, 3 minutes, 18 seconds
Time spent cheering others on, etc:  3 hours, one minute, 27 seconds
For a grand total of:  30 hours, 4 minutes, 45 seconds

Books Finished:  4 (only four?! I think the audio-book slowed me down some.  Not to mention resisting the urge to pretend I couldn't hear my family talking to me;)) 
Take Good Care of the Garden and the Dogs by Heather Lende
I Am the Messenger  by Markus Zusak
Double Identity by Margaret Peterson Haddix
The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins  (this was an audio-book that I started before the challenge so it's up to each sponsor if they want to count it in the book total! It was nice to finish it up, so thanks to Keely for the motivation!)


Still working on:
Num8ers by Rachel Ward  (so close with this one --page 265 out of 325)
The Sixty-Eight Rooms by Marianne Malone (just barely started this one but I think my daughter and I will enjoy it)


My sponsors thus far:
Lutheran Lisa $1/book  = $3
Sara Sara and Raj Sara $1/book with a $10 minimum =$10 
Amber Owen Amber $2/book = $6
Dara who I haven't met yet Dara $2/book (and an extra $10 if I can get my hands on To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis...) = $6 and an extra shout out for loaning me the perfect timer! (still bummed I couldn't get To Say Nothing of the Dog -- maybe next time!)
Keely tiny dogs Wiley and Halston Keely $10 for finishing the audiobook of Woman in White by Wilkie Collins  (been listening to this one with my daughter -- this'll be a good incentive to finish it up!)  =$10

Beth's Mikaela $10 to read Double Identity by Margaret Peterson Haddix!  (She knows I'm a BIG MPH fan.) = $10 RECEIVED

For a preliminary total of =  $45 

To be given to Alpine Valley School -- www.alpinevalleyschool.com

What the rest of my household was up to:

Note the books on the windowsill, the cat who thinks he's a dog, and the daughter with the extra short hair on top of her head.  Imagine my husband sleeping, reading, preaching, or at the art museum!

Twenty-two hours, 27 minutes, 19 seconds

Definitely time for another post! 

I've slept twice this challenge -- I found it harder to avoid that with a 48 hour challenge as opposed to 24.  But I'm looking forward to jumping in and going full force for the rest of the day!

Sped through Double Identity by Margaret Peterson Haddix yesterday afternoon, as I suspected I might.  If you've not read anything of hers, you should!  I'd start with either Running Out of Time or the Shadow Children series.  One quote to share from Double Identity (I know it's not the first time someone has said something along these lines, but I still like it): 

Science and religion deal with different questions.  Science is how things happen and religion is why.  The problem comes when people forget what they are asking of whom.  (p.117)

I have two discs left and then I'll be finished with The Woman in White as well.  Need to beef up my number of books read before the challenge is over, so I have a lovely amount to give to Alpine Valley. Getting ready to start Num8ers by Rachel Ward.  When my daughter wakes up, we'll probably try for some more of The Woman in White. 


Finished: 

Take Good Care of the Garden and the Dogs by Heather Lende
I Am the Messenger  by Markus Zusak
Double Identity by Margaret Peterson Haddix



My sponsors thus far:

Lutheran Lisa $1/book
Sara Sara and Raj Sara $1/book with a $10 minimum
Amber Owen Amber $2/book
Dara who I haven't met yet Dara $2/book (and an extra $10 if I can get my hands on To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis...)
Keely tiny dogs Wiley and Halston Keely $10 for finishing the audiobook of Woman in White by Wilkie Collins  (been listening to this one with my daughter -- this'll be a good incentive to finish it up!)

Beth's Mikaela $10 to read Double Identity by Margaret Peterson Haddix!  (She knows I'm a BIG MPH fan.)