Surviving the First Week of School

I went to my writer's group with nothing. I've been so immersed in school I just can't get anything decent down on paper.
We're surviving this first week. The summer is such a relaxed time that it is difficult to get back into the classroom rhythm. My mother used to joke that you should never let your students see you smile until Christmas. Well, I'm my students mother, so I can't get away with that one, but classroom discipline is certainly much tighter than it is at the end of the year.
Our schedule is tough this year. Other years I've worked it out so that I had an hour or two where the kids were responsible for their education while I did other things that I needed to do. This year we have too many players for me to get a break.
We start with Mass, though getting the youngest to behave has been challenging. I'm determined to stick with it as I can't think of a better way for them to get their Bible time in and learn how to behave in public. Then we move on to a daily writing exercise and math drills.
Quiet school this year is pretty involved. 3 and 4 have worksheets to do and read aloud time. 2 is doing SOS. 1 is doing the Omnibus program and Saxon 8/7. I try to squeeze in a little time to work with 5 on shapes, letters and numbers, but it isn't easy.
Loud school is equally packed with Geology and Astronomy followed by Spelling Power. Shurley English is now being done on two levels. Then we're working through The Story of the World history curriculum. We are quite delighted with history and science this year, but then we always are. ;)
I'm also shoe-horning in Music, Art and Latin, but we don't get nearly as much time with them as I'd like.
The general reaction of the children has been one of delight. The new cottage bear decor was a tremendous hit. As was the large stuffed bear I found for story corner. He's been christened Snuggly Bear and he does do a lot of snuggling. 1 says her brain feels like its going to explode, so I think we're on track. If I can get through this week, it'll be a good year

Acceptance

It's a strange thing when you decide to be who you really are. Some people don't notice anything different. Some like the change, and some feel sick. But I suppose the most important thing is that you've finally accepted yourself, no matter how others might feel.

Christine Ansorge is a Catholic.

Saturday, I was confirmed in the Roman Catholic Church. The experience was one of the most beautiful and powerful experiences of my life. The only thing I might compare it to would be my wedding, which makes sense as they are both sacraments.
I don't feel up to discussing the confirmation and my first Eucharist. Some things must be treasured in one's heart.
What I do need to discuss is the daunting task of living out my new life. Once again a parallel to my wedding, you wake up the next day and all the weight of living out this commitment makes the struggle of committing seem inconsequential.
There are lots of ways for something to be daunting. You can be denied necessary resources to complete a task, such as the struggle the Israelites faced when they were told to make bricks without straw. You can be uncertain of your ability to complete the particular task you have been assigned, such as a physicist asked to perform in a drama.
I don't feel either kind of daunted. I feel like a child with musical ability who has been given a serious instrument. On the one hand, I am delighted--at last a real instrument that will produce real music. On the other hand, I am daunted--my abilities are not this developed. But the balance of the feeling is delight. I have years to practice and the practice is delight.
Thank you, Mother Church for accepting me.

The Dominoe Affect

It doesn't only go in one direction. After more spills and disasters than I care to recall or recount, I gave up and called Stanley Steemer to come and clean our carpets. The experience was amazing. We went out to do errands and visit the library and returned to beautiful carpets nice and clean.
Little by little we've been working from the carpet up to restore order and beauty to our chaotic and well-used existence. What a relief. Thanks, Stanley Steemer, for getting us started.

Telemarketing

I've been working publicity for the local Heifer International Living Gift Market. Overall, it's been a very rewarding experience. We've raised 700 dollars so far, and the event doesn't take place until October. Putting together a press kit to send to local media outlets was a fascinating learning experience, and we have at least one magazine working on an article about our event. But the most interesting job I've taken on so far has been telemarketing the event to area churches.
It sounded so simple at first. The Change for Kids Challenge is such a high-quality experience for families and children, that I was sure all I needed to do was get the word out. Turns out, it's not that easy. I'm gradually finding a phone script that gets a yes to more information more than it gets a no. It only took me about 200 calls to get it right.
My current challenge is figuring out how to improve the response rate once I get the information in the hands of the churches. At the moment my total call back success rate stands at one, and they were angry with Heifer. The good news is that I was able to help them move closer to their very noble goal of helping a village in Mexico by improving their connection with Heifer. No one has signed up for the Change for Kids Challenge because of my efforts.
I'm going to keep at it though. I'm learning the ins and outs of publicity from the ground up, and that's got to pay off somewhere in my life, somehow. Feeding the hungry is worth doing a little tough grunt work.

If I thought soap was evil...

Pancake mix is evil's evil twin. With the soap once you got it up the floor was clean. With pancake mix, it just feels like a never ending saga of implacable crusty stuff. I've got two hours into cleaning it up, and I'm still not done.

Yesterday was such a good day until...

We started with pancakes for breakfast.
Hit the pool for the first lesson.
Hit the library for our weekly visit.
Hit the pool for our second lesson.
Hit the library for a leatherbound set of Harvard Classics for five bucks post cash machine visit.
Had lunch.
Made calls for Heifer.
Worked on the school classroom
Moved the endless mulch.
Sat down for a little mom time.
Discovered half a bag of pancake mix spread all over the kitchen and 1/2 bath/laundry room and used for various scientific experiments.
Fun day.

Hope today's better.

Vi's Everything but the Kitchen Sink Potato Salad

5 lbs. small redskin potatoes that have been quarter or eigthed depending on the size of the potatoes then boiled until they are soft.
A large bag of matchstick carrots
one head of cauliflower chopped
one bunch of broccoli chopped
one can wax beans
one can green beans
1/2 of a small jar of sweet gherkins
8 or 9 Heinz dill pickles (They aren't much for an eating pickle, but they have the right texture for salads.)
9 boiled eggs, chopped
2 cups mayo
1-2 TBSP ketchup
1-2 TBSP mustard
1-2 TBSP of a good brown mustard with coarse grains

Use a gigantic bowl to mix this up. I use a Tupperware cake keeper turned upside down.
Enjoy.