Writer's Chair Views

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Out of Body

One of the greatest blessings in our new home is a sanctuary where I can read and write and think and talk and work and pray. It's tucked in over the garage and chopped into two rooms. The coziest room, where I imagine talking with friends over tea and indulging my appreciation for squishy furniture when I'm working, is toward the front of the house. I love being there with or without guests, but I'm all set up with tea and cookies should someone special drop by.

Going Blue

We are moving to Ann Arbor, Michigan. Kurt needed a better work opportunity, and he found it in a city we've often talked about for retirement. We'll have The Big House, and the University of Michigan for entertainment and enlightenment.  There are great schools for the kids, and the possibility of graduate school for the adults. All my research says that this is going to be a great experience, so why are we so sad?

Mea doesn't want us to crowd into her big adventure. No one wants to leave friends. We've put down deep roots here in Spring Lake. This has been a place of shelter and help. It is irreplaceable, especially all the people. 

There is too much...

A Taste of Redwall is coming down to a bunch of lasts, last rehearsal, last school to call, last reorganization of my paperwork. I've had a grand time and managed to float through other milestones and some unexpected and unwelcome stressors in one piece. I hope that God's will has been done, and that it will prosper, but it's out of my hands.

It's down to ticket sales and this weekend is our "Hail, Mary" and St. Zita, and St. Martin DePorres, and St. Anthony, and everyone else. It is maddening to work this hard for so little fruit. Pray for us, everybody! It's all that remains.

Fat Tuesday

I'm thinking about giving up the Beatles for Lent. They were my first taste of cultural butter, and the purposes it serves. My life had been one recording of the Life Action Singers after another. Occasionally, Doug Oldham or someone like him would take some risks, but not very often. My sister, with her musical ear collected an impressive knowledge of popular music from elevators and grocery stores. I was more inclined to return home to the safety of the Gaithers. 

Susan came over and for the first time in my life I was left unsupervised in my own home. Susan's sanctity was never questioned, so I was surprised when she recommended we ransack the record collection for contraband. We found The Letterman and were quite pleased with them. They were nice, but musically little different from Life Action or the other groups. From then on, any chance to ransack the records was a naughty little pleasure. That probably would have been the end of things if we hadn't moved to a suburb of DC. 

The kids in my new world not only listened to current rock and roll, they had sex and experimented with drugs. I was so lost. I had my first diagnosis of depression, and Dad pulled out all the stops--he rented Help! Mother would have nothing to do with it. Her disapproval filled the house making it all the more exciting as Dad plugged it in. It was hilarious, and the music was so fresh to us. After that, whenever it was all too much we'd get Help!

I still love Help! I love the Beatles catalog. Giving them up for Lent might not seem like big deal to some, but maybe there's a circle coming my life. While I'm not interested in a return to Life Action, maybe it's time for dry toast because I can, because of Lent.

Judith

My kids

St. Martin's kids

Co-op class kids

The people I fight for have a tendency to be short. The shortness gives me courage and permission to be clever, bold, and persistent--like Judith. I have continued my reading of the apocryphal books and next up was Judith. She's so strong that it's almost off putting. She consults no one, but God. She asks for no help from any person except her maid, and she pulls it off handing the victory to her army in one neat piece. I'm pleased for her, but my mind keeps reeling with what ifs. I guess desperate times require desperate measures. If you are going to follow Judith's example, it seems you must keep walking forward and never look back no matter how risky your plan. You have to know Who is walking with you.

In Bed.

Adding the phrase "in bed" to the fortune in a fortune cookie is one of my husband's favorite games.  I like to work in bed.  I like nice squishy surfaces, and our king mattress offers lots of room to spread out.  It also insures nightly cleanup as sleeping under books and papers is only appealing in college.  I have a desk that I love and work at occasionally, but a big project or a new project will almost always find me in bed.

Thanks to the snow day, my bed was covered in books, papers, pens, highlighters, my writer's desk, my iPad, and some Smurfs.  I was working out the literature class I hope to teach next year.  Selecting appropriate and interesting works turned out to be way more challenging than expected.  I thought I'd split the day with "A Taste of Redwall."  Thankfully we have another snow day tomorrow, because the following short list took me all day.

Crowhook Literature List for the Middle Ages

(I know the dates aren't accurate.)

525 Boethius The Consolation of Philosophy

529 St. Benedict The Rule of St. Benedict

660 Caedmon Caedmon's Hymn

731 Venerable Bede An Ecclesiastical History of the English People

975 unknown Beowulf

1140 unknown Song of Roland

1150 St. Hildegaard Physica

1175 Ibn Jubayr The Travels of Ibn Jubayr

1274 St. Thomas Aquinas Summa Theologica

1317 Dante The Divine Comedy

1320 Marco Polo The Travels of Marco Polo

1370 William Langland Piers Plowman

1385 unknown Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

1405 Christine de Pizan The Book of the City of Ladies

The Book of Deeds of Arms and Chivalry

1500 Machiavelli The Prince

1516 Thomas More Utopia

1563 Montaigne Essays

1588 St. Teresa of Avila The Interior Castle

1605 Miguel de Cervantes Don Quixote

Good things come to those who think

Dinner Reservations

Some ideas are stickier than others.  Sitting in church listening to the details of a new project to build a wall around St. Martin DePorres Orphanage got me thinking about Redwall Abbey and Martin the Warrior.  We could put on a Redwall Feast to raise funds.  The idea was so so obvious to me that I assumed it would put itself forward.  I waited for it to be announced so I could volunteer. 

The wall was finished and a new laundry was nearly complete, but the idea still had not been put forward.  In my mind the event was taking shape in ever greater detail.  It kept growing from "A Taste of Redwall" food-centered event to an immersive dinner theater experience.  I kept finding experts and scouting actors, all the while waiting for someone else to speak up for this idea.

Then I began to see that this is my baby, so I put it forward to the St. Martin's Kids committee at church.  They are a very practical group.  They loved the idea and had very helpful questions and 

suggestions.  We all decided to let going forward rest on getting the necessary permissions from the publishers of Redwall.  It was such an intimidating process, but in the end we were green-lighted by Jim Jacques, Brian's brother.   

Pregnant by the Holy Spirit, it's not just for Mary anymore.  

The Other Christmas

If you homeschool, preparing for school is a lot like getting ready for Christmas.  Secrets abound, rooms are off limits, lengthy discussions occur about what's festive and what's crazy.  I love it every year.  This year is the best year.

Studying the ancients takes one on a whirlwind tour through cultures and places.  Last year all we needed was a ship for the Age of Exploration, but for the ancients, we needed a Tardis.  Kurt and I had such a good time putting this together for the kids.  It's a huge hit with my most reluctant student asking me to start school half an hour early.

They had 3D Tardis, but it wasn't bigger on the inside. :)

The Dalek is there for motivation.  Motivation he happily supplies

These are the Tardis controls.  We collected them from thrift stores, antique stores, and whatever wasn't currently in use around the house.  Most items are non-functioning.  The drum set works.  Simon works.  We bought a weather station because we are studying weather first trimester.  We attached a holder for the iPad too.

My friend Janet Tyson helped create our Tardis interior.  I told her I wanted it to look like a theremin sounds.  She certainly succeeded.  We attached inflatable planets to the ceiling, but we can't keep the sun inflated.

This is the back of the Tardis controls.  It is also an arts and crafts depot.  My kids are growing up and can be trusted with paint and markers.  Hallelujah!

The time out chair and the Dalek's original home, but I thought it might be overkill.

The bulletin boards/portholes are supposed to have Mesopotamian items on them, but I can't find the timeline I was going to cut them from.  I guess the Tardis portholes are on the fritz until Egypt.

Video equipment for The Great Courses, the kid's books, binders and supplies, white board and storage,  drawers for copies and completed work in need of grading.

We bought this table when our oldest seemed too short for it.  We were right to buy it.  We'd never have seen it again and it cost us next-to-nothing.  We're doing Flannelgraph this year.  The Bible is ancient literature too.

All those book over all those years, they add up.  The planets continue across the ceiling.  My workstation is there in the corner.

Mea made this for the kids to get them to do their work within the time allotted. Everyone who does so gets a sticker to get them closer to the top.  With our fancy Tardis interior we are running out of wall space.

This is the most fun I've had in years.  The Tardis theme makes everything play and exploration.  What a wonderful gift from this other Christmas.

Not My Grandmother's Flannelgraph

Though it is her couch (long story involving six children, general destructiveness and fond memories).  Flannelgraph played an incalculable roll in my spiritual development.  The first time I heard the story of Christ's passion he was hanging from the cross on a deluxe flannel overlay background.  I made my first profession of faith the same day.  Given the choice of with Flannelgraph or without, even hardened teenagers opted for the charming cut out people in their inexplicable worlds and costumes.  Sunday School was the most frequent place for Flannelgraph use. My grandmother was an excellent teacher investing hours of time in her weekly opportunity to change hearts and minds.  She always used the church issued Flannelgraph that was actually flocked paper and sometimes she glued it down because she disliked the interruption to the story telling.

My mother had put off going through Grandmother's Sunday School materials because the items awakened such strong memories.  I came down to go through it with her.  It was inspiring.

My older girls had gone down with me, and on our way home we talked about our family's foray into Flannelgraph.  I bought a complete set of Betty Luken's Bible stories.  That is the crem de la crem of Flannelgraph.  If a woman was heading to the mission field, her friends would go in together to get a set as a parting gift.  The thing is die cut flocked paper is much easier to prep then cutting out hundreds of characters from felt.  The project ate three pairs of scissors before I gave up and let my dramatic personality make up for the lack of figures.

Grandmother's example has me giving it another try, this time with Mea's unexpected help.  We are having a great time trimming and conquering the sheets one herd of camels and many many Jesus' at a time.  I think Grandmother is very proud.

A Mother's Bucket List

A play friend was trying to convince me that being a girl was the worst.  He was getting very frustrated because I was too young to be unhappy about my gender.  Having exhausted all his arguments, he pulled out the big one, the dark secret of womanhood that sealed the horror of my fate. Making sure no grown ups were listening, he leaned in dramatically, "Girls grow up and have the babies."  I double-checked, and as soon as I was certain of what he was saying, I ran off in a rapture to ask Mother if it was true.  Blushing, rubbing her large belly with a loving hand, she confirmed it was true.  I was certain then, and I am certain now, women have the best deal.

I can see the end of my motherhood, and I want to finish strong.  Those childish daydreams of loving my babies deserve fulfillment, and I want my kids to have the deepest sense of being loved that I can provide.  With a project this important it helps to make a list.

1.  Keep the Creator/Redeemer first.  It's tempting to let him slide and the kids creep in, but I'll actually be the best mother with his balance and strength than I will without him.

2.  Love and take care of their dad, whether he likes it or not.  There's only one man in the world who can take full responsibility for my six, and they need him.

3.  Be certain that each one understands that they are so very special and unique.  Don't ever let a root of bitterness get planted between them.  Keep everyone safe and happy by loving each one equally, and teaching them to love one another dearly.

4.  Make cookies.  A little homemade love goes a long way.

5.  Have something else to do with yourself when it's time to release them into adulthood.

6.  Don't lighten up until the last one crosses the finish line.

7.  Be grateful as things get easier.  Don't cry about the right and inevitable events of parenting.

Doctor Who Decor

Decorating for school is so much fun.  I've done all kinds of things.  Last year it was a pirate ship for the age of exploration.  Stepping into the period every day was very helpful in feeling a part of things.  This year I want them to soak in the ancients.  We're looking at the period through history, art and literature.  Last time we studied the ancients I put up a bulletin board about Egypt, and that was it.  The trouble with the ancients is how distinct each group is from the others.  I could recreate a ziggurat, but it'd be obsolete as soon as we moved on to Egypt.  That many costume changes for one classroom seems exhausting.  We went to see The Wolverine today, anyone who knows Kurt knows that was a must, and they were selling Dalek cutouts.  It hit me.  We are time travelers this year.  The classroom is our Tardis.  They do sell Tardis cut outs.  If I really get crazy I might try to work out some kind of teal and orange scheme.  Maybe we could get a bunch of thrift store junk to make our own control panel.  I'll have to do some research, but I'm pretty sure the Doctor will be our companion.

Beastly Day

The National Zoo is always a good time.  It rained off and on all day, but we still got to see all the reptiles, amphibians, and pandas.  The family whistles were great, and the backpacks were helpful.

We enjoy the two sisters on DC Cupcakes, so we had to try some.  They are beautiful and beautifully packaged.  The variety they offer is amazing.

We were supposed to go to the Library of Congress, but no one wanted to go other than me.  Since I took a three hour nap when we got home I can't complain.

Packing Up

I'm always looking for a way to make things easier.  This vacation I've decided to embrace the joy of having them lug their own stuff.  Each kid has a backpack for their clothes and toiletries, and a small drawstring backpack for sightseeing.  In Washington, DC practically everything is free, any other town would have us broke the first day what with ticket prices and such.  The only place where DC really gets you is food and drink.  The sightseeing bag will allow us to mitigate this last struggle and give the kids a chance to record their experiences.  Each kid will have two Propel Zeros, one or two snack boxes, sketch book, and either crayons or colored pencils.  I figure we can refill the Propel bottles and get through a day without buying five dollar Cokes.  It's going to be an adventure.  We might as well be prepared.

Homeward Bound

We are going back to the beginning, and we are taking the kids!  Kurt and I met at Capitol Christian Academy in one of the Maryland suburbs of DC.  We did a lot of dating on the Mall, so we've always wanted to enjoy all those great sights with the family. This year is the year.  Mea will be off to college soon, and Jimmy is big enough not to get lost.  We're renting a house for a week, and I'm in planning heaven.  

The great thing about Washington is that almost everything is free.  The hard thing is that prices for food and drink are ridiculous.  We're conquering that issue with cheap drawstring backpack for the kids to carry water bottles and disposable snack boxes.  I'm thinking of throwing in a small sketch book, a pen, and either crayons or colored pencils, so when we take breaks they can download some of what they've experienced.  

We'll be wearing our family whistles.  Everyone has one so they can signal for attention or help. July Fourth will be our biggest test.  I'm packing lightweight games to keep everyone together and busy while we wait for it to get dark.  I saw the fireworks on the Mall once in person and it truly is spectacular.  I'm looking into glo sticks and other lighted objects to make the kids more visible at night.  

It is going to be an epic vacation!

Packing My Bag

I decided about three minutes after Mea was born that my grandkids would call me "Grammy."

The title honors my great grandmother without replacing her.  I fell in love with Granny as an infant. If she was in the room I cared for no one else.  When I was four, she came to stay with us after we lost my brother.  In one month she moved my mother from non-functioning despair to spunky assertiveness.  

The day Granny went home was such a lovely day what with Mother back from the dead and all.  I did fine until the last minute when Granny started walking up the gangway for her plane.  I jerked my hand out of Daddy's and ran after her.  "I need one for the road," I said.  She gave me one of her patented kisses and I ran back to Mother and Dad.

Granny was always filling my emotional bag with treasure.  Her keen awareness that after her life was done, mine would go on, led her to think about what she could send forward with me.   Sometimes it was physical things like a Children's Bible with a lovely note inside the cover or a gold watch for graduation.  She finished my wedding quilt before I finished high school.  Sometimes it was stories of all kinds from family history or experiences like a train ride. Sometimes it was special things to do with chldren, songs, recipes, games, crafting skills.  She said that I should always lose a game or two of checkers to young children so that they won't get discouraged.  I'll never know if she said that because I'd won.

I try to do the same things for my kids, but my success is not as complete.  I don't worry too much about that, after all these guys are only the warm up.

Briar Patch

Retreat! The drooling starts with a picture of a bed and a desk in a room, for me to enjoy all by myself. Usually it takes a full nervous breakdown for me to have that kind of luxurious privacy. It continues with various reminders that this is a quiet experience. Have I mentioned my six kids? Then there is all the property to explore, and the places for contemplation. St. Lazare's is located on the outskirts of the village where I live. Our motto is "Where nature smiles for seven miles." I'm looking forward to some nature. Free time to read and pray and write alternates various opportunities for worship, and I need to worship, especially in my quiet, introverted way. There will even be confession which is a great tune up right before Easter.
Lots of Jesus, lots of time to get back in step, this is the way it should be, and I don't have to be Brer Rabbit to know it.

Failures

 

I tend to write about things I find that I'm pleased with.  The disappointments merely collect in the lower cupboard waiting for me to decide when to completely give up.  Unfortunately Spelling Power had me fooled for three years.  All the research seemed to be in place, but no matter how long I followed the system, Rosie still can't spell.  It's the first thing that made me question the value of homeschooling curriculum

Veritas Press is great in that it values traditional literature.  It's horrible in that it values traditional perspectives.  I liked this because it had real chops, but then when I read through parts I found myself profoundly uncomfortable with the perspective on women.  There were other things too that set my teeth ajar.   It's a beautiful book.  It commends excellent literature.  It would fit right in back a century or two.

I like to teach the kids all together when I can.  It's an ideal that a number of curriculum strive for,but nothing got me quite as excited as The Weaver curriculum.  Based on a chronological tour of the Bible, all the subjects other than math were taught with all the kids in one class.  This was so exciting.  I just pulled out pages and we were all ready to go for the day.  The trick was, the only thing that was taught well was the Bible.  Everything else was sub par.  It took me two weeks to realize I'd wasted a lot of time and money.  We dug out old stuff from previous years and searched up inexpensive things to get us through.  Don't waste your money on this.  It's a good idea, but badly done.

Soft Wear

We ended our third week of homeschooling, and it's time to look at curriculum.  I'm loving it.  I may adjust Jimmy's work, but not until I give him a little longer to adapt to the Kindergarten work we're doing.  Everybody else seems to be on target.
The morning starts with Bible.  For a while I was in such a spin from all that had happened in my life I wasn't really sure what to teach the kids, but I'm settled in now.  The Big Picture Bible Time Line provides a coloring sheet while I read the kids a story out of the International Children's Bible.  We follow this up by learning prayers from the Catholic Prayer Book for Children.
Language A I divide and conquer.  My middles read books and write a summary of their reading in composition books.  Jimmy makes a stab at A Reason for Handwriting, while Peter and I work on his writing using Writing With Ease and First Language Lessons.  They are so simple and direct.  It makes our time together easy and fun.
Science alternates between Physics and Our Universe, a Teaching Company video, and experiments from Science in a Nutshell, Energy and Motion, from Delta Education  I have been shopping for the Science in a Nutshell kits since I was single, kindergarten teacher.  Kurt said this was the year, and he was so right!  When they say everything is in the kit, they mean everything including three great journals for the kids to record their observations in. Science has always been one of our favorites, but this year is a highlight.
Math A everyone is working on their own, except for Jimmy who will finish the sheet if I keep it moving.  He's also enjoying the manipulatives.  Peter is working through Horizons, but we put the girls on Switched On Schoolhouse for math.  They needed the immediate feedback and we needed the instant grading, so far it's a hit.
Lunch is my workout.  It leaves the treadmill free for Kurt in the evening and gives me an endorphin high to get through the afternoon.
History I have lost my Zuzu.  She is reading A History of the American People, which is one of my favorite general histories because the author is British and brings his British sense of humor to the task.  She is making a note at the end of each paragraph and seems to be understanding and enjoying the book.  The rest of us are plugging away at the third installment of Story of the World.  They are each writing a summary according to their ability, and I feel lucky if Jim will sit for the reading.  Thursday we all gather for our Early American History lecture from The Teaching Company.  Professor Linwood Thompson is terrific teaching the course in costume.  We can't wait for Thursday.  Teaching Company videos take some of the pressure off and I don't feel so alone.
Math B is more of Math A except for Jimmy who works on his Horizons Phonics with me.  Some of it he gets, some of it is way over his head, but every week he makes progress.
Language B is the middle's turn to be the center of attention.  We are using Write Source and enjoying the departure from the small publishers we usually purchase.  The curriculum is also used as a back up at Spring Lake Middle School which will hopefully ease their eventual transition.  Peter uses this time to read stories from vintage Open Court and to answer the questions in a comp book.
I end the day grading all the comp books and creating spelling lists.  I give individual feedback and keep track of who has homework, while they do their handwriting, from A Reason for Handwriting
I'm happy with this program.  It's something we can realistically expect to finish and to get good final results.

Thank You, James.

I am trying to read all the Great Books, plus Eastern books of similar intent and wisdom.  It's a daunting task, especially for some one who even her hobbies are other kinds of work.  A few years ago, I had nearly given up and then Jimmy finished potty training and  personal space and time began trickling back to me.  I still can't seem to get more than fifteen minutes in a row to read, but before it was ten.  Every step he takes toward independence sets me free.  I've been looking at the sad side for far too long, but it's time to look at the new hope.  Someday I will have all the time in the world to linger over books, and man, am I looking forward to it.

Hard Wear

This time of year homeschooling is all-consuming.  I kicked the kids out of the basement a few weeks ago and hung curtains to disguise the new things I was doing to freshen the space.  Last year we studied the Medieval period and the Age of Exploration always feels like a let down to me.  Jimmy is joining the crew this year and teaching a child to read is one of the most time-consuming teaching tasks there is.  We needed to be ready and inspired.  That's a lot of work in prepping the classroom and the curriculum.  I thought about going into all of it, but it's too much for one post, so hardware now, software later.  This will give me the opportunity to have tested the software for more than two days anyway.

These are Jimmy's shelves.  He's four, so technically he's in preschool.  I'm doing Kindergarten curriculum because he is so darn ready in every way but motor skills.  Motor skills I can work around, but working on kindergarten work with a 4-year old means remembering his attention span is a bit shorter, so you have to have wiggle time of all kinds and sorts.  Lucky him he's the last of six, and I've learned some tricks.  A nice display of a reasonable amount of toys is always good for this age. They can decide what they want quickly and clean it up quickly--on good days. Coloring pages and educational computer games or apps are great too.  Never count out participating in the fun subjects like science and history.  Jimmy took his turn rolling the balls down the ramps with everybody else.

We are off on our voyage.  Oriental Trading Co. offered this wallpaper for 32 bucks.  It has set the mood.  Every chance they get my kids are grabbing a bean bag and taking off in their imagination.  The bean bags were from Wal-Mart and are great bang for the buck.  This kind of grand gesture lets my kids know that we love them and really care about their school work and making it fun. In this case it didn't cost that much either.

  This is my desk where I work with the kids either individually or in small groups.  It's just right for the job.  The new set of drawers is streamlining classroom communication and grading.  Each child has two drawers in their favorite colors.  The top one is for picking up materials I want them to use.  The bottom one is for turning in the work they've completed.  The last two are for me to store photocopies, worksheets, etc.  On the white desk I also put out four manipulative bins that are mostly geared toward Jim but do attract the interest of the others.

The bins are the kid's lockers.  I have files in them in their favorite colors, one for each subject.  They also have their pencil cases and crayons, etc. in the front.  Wal-mart had great clipboards with a storage space.  It's not the same as my blue thing, but close enough.  Years of watching Mom haul one around has them pre-sold on using theirs.  We watch videos from The Teaching Company, so a video corner is a necessity.  Okay, Okay, I'll admit the blue bin under the white desk houses vintage Nintendo games, but it's only for the weekend, really.  The table we picked up at a school auction and those mid-century modern designs just keep on going.

The rocking chair is the first piece of furniture I bought for myself.  Since I was still single I was a very focused young woman.  The shelves behind the chair have our second set of The Great Books--you can't have just one--and a selection of fun books.  I've since added bins of toys for older kids, and the upper shelves are for art materials.  The three exercise balls are my new way of helping my wigglers stay on track.  They can sit on a ball instead of a chair as long as they keep working.  Hasn't worked yet, but Pete keeps trying.

I love teaching my kids and I'm just about over the hump.  All those years of trying to manage an infant or toddler while trying to meaningfully engage with my older children has left me extra capacity for this second half.  It's going to be a great year, and I haven't even talked curriculum yet.