The Mindful Homeschool

I hurt my back about a month ago.  I was sitting on the living room floor playing cards with my 4 yo son and when I stood up, I hurt something.  Later that night I could not sit comfortably and I was in a lot of pain.  When I lay down for sleep that night, it was with fear of more pain and very little mobility.  Fast forward to today.  It still hurts.  It has gotten much better.  The intensity of the pain went away after about a couple of days.  But I felt that I needed to get it checked out by a doctor just to rule out any other issues and to help me with my recovery.  The doctor told me that I have a musculoskeletal injury and he recommended physical therapy.

So I am thinking about trying a session of physical therapy.  Maybe just one time.  I am curious what they will teach me and curious about what PTs do.  But I am also borrowing a DVD from the libary that I just love.  Or rather I love the teacher, Peggy Cappy.  Her DVD, Yoga for the Rest of Us: Back Care Basics has inspired me to start my own home practice again.  I have even thought about setting the alarm and getting up and doing yoga way before the kids wake up.  I know!   I am so inspired by her.  She is inspirational and she has dedicated her life to yoga and helping other people.  Her yoga is full of hope and positive energy and I feel that if I practice with her on a daily basis, I will not only heal but strengthen my back so I do not injure it again. 

I even bought a beautiful new Eco Conscious GAIAM mat at Target last night to celebrate my re-birth, if you will.  Can you tell I am excited?  Maybe I will even be able to drop those 10 lbs. or so that I gained over the winter, possibly from skipping out on my regular yoga classes. 

Namaste.

Things are a-changing around here.  We have been looking at moving to another house and neighborhood.  The time is right to move.  Interest rates are low and the houses that were not affordable to us years ago have come down considerably in price.  So … it is a no-brainer, right?  That, combined with the fact that the neighborhood scene has gone sour for us makes this a great time for us to move.  And we really could use more space, indoors and outdoors. 

But here is the dilemna: getting our house ready for sale.  We had a realtor (and her assistant!) visit our home last week.  She came to meet us and talk about our options and also give us tips on what to do before we list our house.   Oh my!  It was mortifying.  She looked in all our rooms and closets and tried, I think, to offer us advice in a gentle way.  Ummm.  It was hard.  I needed a few hours afterward to unwind.  She said that I had the patience of a saint when she saw the kid’s bedroom.  I guess it looked, uh, not so great.  She told us that people nowadays don’t look at houses and see the potential.  They want to move into a house that looks like something out of the Pottery Barn.  Okay….

So … we were told to replace our old kitchen appliances (easy), replace our light fixtures (okay), re-carpet, replace our tub, replace our old windows, paint, and DECLUTTER.  That was the embarassing part.  I don’t know when was the last time someone looked at our entire house, every room and closet.  Maybe when we moved in 12 years ago?  It was MORTIFYING!!!  When we have people over to visit we use the unused rooms as a way to store all of the extra clutter.  We could not even hide our clutter in the closets because she looked in them.  Well, not all of them.  But my dear husband offered to show her our walk-in bedroom closet.  Ugggh.

It was embarrassing for me to have two women I don’t know come into my house, my bedroom even, and look at the decorating (or lack thereof) and our piles of books and papers.  Double ugggh.  Well, we did make it through the event and I am wiser because of it.  And humbled.  It does feel good to clear out our house and I am looking forward to making our home even more lovely.  I just wish that current buyers understood all the charm that goes into a house complete with a back yard that looks like something out of Mrs. Piggle Wiggle.   Don’t your kids dig holes in your backyards?

I am not sure where this will lead us and maybe we will end up staying here.  There are many reasons to stay put.  But if we can find a house that would make for a better home, sayonara baby!   

As a parent you are given about 2 decades to teach your kids what you want them to learn.  Not just things like math and spelling.  Things like the importance of family, the importance of taking care of your body/health, the importance of play, the importance of living out your values, and being a good person.

Childhood is something you will never get back.  (Getting weepy here.)  I have heard that many veteran HSers regret that they did not take this time to enjoy being with their kids and wished that they had played with them more.  Instead they spent their time trying to fulfill some other person’s schedule and expectations.  I want my children to be life long learners and not feel that learning starts and stops with a clock, a school building,  a schedule, or a textbook.

I hope I don’t sound too preachy.  I certainly have more questions than answers and I am FULL of self-doubt MOST OF THE TIME!  If  my kids are “behind” anyone then they are probably ”ahead” in some areas too.  Like knowing who their parents are and spending hours of quality time with them.  Like learning how to live with siblings.  Learning how to catch a garter snake and carry it without fear.  LOL.  You name it.  And they are probably ahead in academic areas that PS’d kids would not be tested on.  Did you know what a mortgage was when you were in 2nd grade?  Did they teach you that in grade school?  Did they teach you how to compost?  Or any of the other strange and wonderful things that our HS’d kids are exposed to on a regular basis?  And when was the last time you heard a PS kid say they aced the exam on how to keep their 4 yo brother happy and content while mom was busy working on a project? 

Finally, I think of a quote I once read.  All learning is self-taught learning.  Not sure if I agree with it completely but it does make me think.  I often try to remember how I learned the things I did learn and why.  Which teachers were good teachers and which teachers I did not like and why.  I think a lot of what I learned was because I loved the subject or the project.  And I was blessed with some very good teachers, people who were caring and dedicated and passionate about their subject. 

I am constantly thinking about how to get my children to learn more.  And I spend a lot of time wondering if I am doing a good enough job.  If nothing else, we HSers are courageous.  It takes guts and faith to do this work.  It is NOT for the faint hearted.  We won’t know how well we have done the job until years from now!!!  But I do see glimmers.  My kids enjoy books and reading.  They love nature and are gentle hearted (most of the time!)  They don’t think of the library as “that place with the computer games”!  And they don’t think that school is the only place where you can get an education.   

I have lots of weaknesses.  Who doesn’t?  I sometimes wonder if they (and I) would be better off if they were in a traditional school setting.  I did have a near meltdown earlier this week.  Better now, thank you.  We are all just doing the best we can.  And yes, maybe the planets are out of alignment this week.  That would explain a number of things for me!   

Charlotte Mason would say that as a parent you need to lay a feast before your children and if so, they will end up being well-rounded educated individuals.  The trick for me is getting the feast on the table.  !!!  I am working on that. 

I know what I want for my kids.  I am NOT positive how I am going to get there or IF I will get there.  But for me, HSing sure beats having my kids follow someone else’s ideas of what it means to be educated.

End of rant.  

Lucy

I have not posted regularly for a while.  February was the month that the bad colds went through our family.  We were still recovering from them into the early part of March.  And then my back hurt me or I hurt my back.  Not sure which, or how, or why.  But I have had a back ache for about two weeks now.  It is gradually getting better and I even went to my Monday yoga class this week.  I am taking it very easy though.  I do not need that kind of pain any more.  I could not pick up things from the floor and even sitting on our soft couch was not an option.  I really want to know what I did that caused the injury so I can prevent it from happening again.  But until then, I plan to be very careful in my yoga classes, sit at the computer very carefully, and watch what I am doing with my back.

We went to the science museum today and saw some good exhibits; one was about water and another was about fear.  The kids had a good time and my daughter seemed to overcome her fear of movie theaters.  Yay!

My dear hubby just informed me to take a look at the Google website.  Their logo reflects the fact that today is the first day of spring.  The logo looks an awful lot like the hungry caterpillar in Eric Carle’s book of the same name.  It has been a long winter here and I am grateful for the change in season, the return of so many of our songbirds and longer days of sunshine and outdoor play time. 

Happy Spring!

Hey everybody,

Seeing as you are all my pensieve for my deepest and darkest thoughts these days (LOL) I thought I would share a few thoughts with you about my day today.  Today is/was my birthday.  I am sick with a cold, nothing too miserable, but my voice is finally going and would be gone if I were to talk anymore tonight.  DH made me  a scrumptious DF chocolate cake and gave me a beautiful card.  My 8 and 10 yo also spent a good part of the day making me a card.  I got a phone call/msg from my older brother.  I got a lovely card in the mail from one of my best high school friends.  We had yummy food for lunch and supper and the kids tried to make me feel special.  But I still feel like Charlie Brown looking in the mailbox for one more valentine.

We had our SOTW today and I had thought about cancelling.  Dh had taken the day off so that we could do something special and my kids and I waffled over whether we should do the SOTW meeting.  Yesterday afternoon they said they kinda wanted to go so I planned for it.  But in the morning they, esp. my 8 yo, started saying they didn’t really want to go anymore.  I had already committed to bringing some things so I did not want to cancel at the last minute.  We did go but it took a lot of effort to get the kids out the door.  And guess who got time to himself, something I seem to need more than anyone?  My dh.  He used the time to make me a cake, buy some groceries, and put together a sweet slide show on the computer with family photos.  

Later in the afternoon, I did take some time for myself and went to the mall to shop for some new yoga clothes and a new swimsuit.  I did not find anything to my liking that would also fit the budget so I ended up buying nothing for myself.  I did find some deals on some pants for the kids and picked up a few grocery items at the store. 

In the past we have taken short little vacations on my bday but this year we opted to celebrate at home.  Maybe that is one of the reasons why it seems so lackluster.  Anyway, I realize all that I have and I am grateful.  I am not the kind of person to make a big deal of myself (or my bday) and I am not sure why I feel the need to share all of this with you.  It is therapeutic somehow, I guess.  I know if I were in a ”paying” job of some sort I would probably feel more celebrated.  Maybe not.  I am sure that day is coming for me when I will need to get out of the house and get a “real” job and I will probably miss this quiet time when my kids and hubby were the people who made up my world.  Just feeling a bit under appreciated somehow.  And sick. And maybe hormonal.  Not really upset with anyone or any thing.  Just feeling a bit Charlie Brownish.

Thanks for listening. 

Well, it has been a month since I posted.  I was posting regularly then found myself unable to post anything.  Not because there is nothing going on over here.   On the contrary, there is lots to talk about it but it takes time for me to organize my thoughts.  And sometimes my thoughts are not things that many would want to hear! 

We toured a local florist/greenhouse yesterday and had a really good time.  I was happy that we were able to do this with a number of other homeschooling families.  It was so nice to be surrounded by flowers and cacti and other things that remind me that winter will eventually pass and spring is just a few weeks away.  We saw lovely fountains, huge topiaries, and even dined “outside” in their greenhouse.  The greenhouse has a lovely French cafe where one can purchase quiches, soups, baguettes, salads, pastries, etc.  I bought a chocolate pastry to take home to my dh.  It was covered in chocolate and had 18k gold decorating on it.  W, esp., really wanted to buy the cake and try it.  I think he thought he could somehow save the gold.  But it was nearly impossible because it was so thin.  Definitely worth the $5.oo just to be able to tell people that you have eaten gold!

My semi-local homeschool group is in the midst of some re-vamping.  There are some people, myself included, who are thinking of leaving the group to start a group that is less conservative and prayer-focused.  I am torn though.  I am just starting to get to know people and I like being part of a larger community, something I have missed for a while.  I want my kids to have opportunities to meet and play with other children.  I want to be able to organize field trips with other homeschool families.  I don’t want to be isolated from other HSers.  I want connections.  But … the group I am currently in does not fit me perfectly.  It sometimes contrasts with my own personal and political viewpoints.  It is a good 25 minute drive from my home and so it is hard for me to be active in it and set up playdates with other kids.  There is a part of me that wants to start a Charlotte Mason-inspired HS group in my town and I am still contemplating that.  I really need to figure out what it is that I want and need in order to thrive as a home educator. 

I am hoping I can come to some kind of conclusion about what to do this year in regard to the groups.  I really want to meet and connect with more HSers this year.

We are reading At the Back of the North Wind right now.  It is an appropriate choice given our cold weather.  Today the kids made a “heat fort”.  They set up a card table in the living room and covered it with blankets and sleeping bags.  Then they went inside with their flashlights and portable radios and snacks and giggled.  Then they came out and changed into shorts and t-shirts.  Then they went back inside the fort and giggled some more.  According to my older son the temperature reached almost 90 degrees F at its hottest.  The temperature in our house was a cool 65F or so.  I think the kids are onto something here!  My children said that they were so hot – it felt like summer. 

I may have to try this tomorrow.

I think these cold temperatures have frozen some of my brain cells.  Right now it is -3F.  It has been cold like this for about four days and I am starting to feel it.  I am trying to get my children and myself outside every day as Charlotte Mason would recommend but it. is. so. cooooold.  I think a warm up is in the near future.  Maybe my brain will thaw and I will be able to come up with something worth writing. 

Until then, I do need to share that my daughter has made great progress in learning how to knit.  She received a Klutz knitting book as a Christmas gift and has already learned how to cast on!  I am so proud of her.  She has been practicing this so much that tonight she told me her wrist was getting sore.

My 8 year old son has been listening to Harry Potter audio CDs and is the chief gardener in the house.  Today we picked up some strawberry seeds at Target’s Dollar Spot and watched the soil ”pellet” magically transform itself before our very eyes!  Now we have three strawberry plants, two pine trees, lots of snow (alyssum), and some herbs growing in our kitchen.  Not bad, eh?

My four year old is studying birds with me.  We have an old bird calendar that has all kinds of bird photos with the bird’s name written below.   He is getting really good at knowing all about the different kinds of woodpeckers.  Charlotte Mason would be so proud!  I know I am. 

My 10 year old daughter has been on a dairy free diet for about a couple of months now.  She really seems to do better without dairy.  She sleeps better, has more energy and is less irritable when she avoids dairy.  So overall, it has been going well.  It does take some extra energy and planning.  We cannot just feed our kids yogurt or cheese sticks or pizza when we want to do a quick meal.  We have not had macaroni and cheese or grilled cheese sandwiches for months now.  And being with others outside of our immediate family can get tricky.  It is hard to substitute some things and I have learned to bring dairy free snacks along with me whenever we go somewhere just in case.  Granola bars, gum, and dark dairy free chocolate are good things to have along. 

I am so glad that my daughter is committed to this.  She helps read the ingredient label whenever we try something new and she is even starting to try a few new foods that she probably would not have tried before going dairy free.  Recently she tried a little of our dairy free pizza (made by Amy’s) and she kinda liked it! 

I have wondered whether or not we should try a gluten free diet.  I have heard of many people who have gone dairy free and gluten free.  I plan to look into this diet more as time allows.  If nothing else, eating this way has made me much more conscious of the food we eat and hopefully has made all of our diets better.  We have even found some foods to be better tasting with almond milk as a substitute.  My older children have commented more than once that pancakes made with almond milk taste better than pancakes made the regular way.  And hot chocolate made with almond milk is delicious!!!

I plan to look for more products and recipes out there that are dairy free.  It is exciting to know that there are more and more products available these days.  I just recently read that Bob’s Red Mill is now selling a gluten free (and dairy free) line of products.  Yay!  So as time goes on, it is going to be even easier to eat healthier.  Definitely a good thing.