Old News

 Salad sprouts are growing beside the kitchen sink.  Batches and batches of doggy biscuits are cooling on the counters (the kids' afternoon handiwork).  And I'm catching up on old news here in the blogosphere.  I just couldn't move on with current news before I posted these.  Laughing Water had made it known for months and months that she really, really, really, really wanted a fancy recipe box.  So I put a bug in the Wood Artist's ear around Christmas time.  This is what he came up with. 

 The corners are beautifully dove-tailed.  Inside the lid it says, "Laughing Water's Recipes".  Well, o.k.,not quite, but you get the picture.  She is justly delighted!  The Wood Artist outdid himself yet again.

 Here's my growing-up-girl at a super bowl party.

Here she is again all dressed up to help her friends serve at a Valentine's Day banquet.  My next post will be about a private Valentine dinner she and Mr. Blueberry Eyes put on for us.  - Nanette

Laundry

 Here's an example of what I mean when I talk about having lots of laundry to do!

Oh, I guess this load comes with a helper!  This is what happens when its cold outside and you're hard up for entertainment! - Nanette

A Ski In the Night

If there is one thing I love, one thing that invigorates, yet relaxes me, its cross country skiing.  I found the pristine snow covered hills of the Palouse country absolutely irresistable last December while visiting family.  The Wood Artist snapped these pictures after I'd sliced through the perfection.

Lastnight, the call of the wild came again.  There would be a moonlight ski led by a ranger.  The winter winds were whipping and we really didn't know if we should attempt it.  I figured it would be cancelled.  We left the kids with Grandparents and decided to give it a try.  Imagine my surprise when there were 55 people waiting for the rangers!  We were in a relatively sheltered area where the winds were a non-event.  We skiid for 3-4 miles, hearing stories of nature and Native American lore.  The swish of 110 skis and the chk, chk of 110 poles, faceless rangers in the dark, telling stories was a charming experience! The moon never did show its face, but we had fun!  Next time, I think we'll go by ourselves, or with a small group.  We'll take the kids.  And we'll tell stories.

In other news, the winter is grinding away.  I'm having difficulty providing enough exercise for the kids.  Getting together with friends has been a bit sketchy this winter, too.  I'm learning a sad fact that when you commit to a debt-free lifestyle and the chips are down, friends you never thought would go away, do.  They stop inviting you to go along down-hill skiing or out to dinner.  You have to forego your kids' friends' birthday parties because they require an expensive hotel stay in another town.  Its isolating.  And that makes me sad.  Life comes with enough tough decisions without having to forego time with those you love.

On a positive note, our immediate family has had a very sweet, bonding winter.  We've turned to the simple joys in life - board games, stories, puzzles.  We've laughed together.  That makes us rich beyond measure. - Nanette

Of Pets and Coats (of arms, that is)

 We've been studying the medieval knights and lords and kings.  Making our very own coats of arms seemed the thing to go (especially since we had a book that told us all about it.)  It is quite a technical pursuit.  Each color has a meaning.  Each design has a meaning.  You cannot use certain colors on each other (because you might not be recognised quickly enough on the battlefield, for goodness' sake!)  Each person or family has their own coat of arms.  We learned that, even now, families can have a coat of arms.  In the process of our studies we learned that some of our relatives even have an official one on record.  We're still trying to obtain it, but in the meantime, the kids made their own.  The above is Mr. Blueberry Eyes' coat of arms.  The red stands for courage in battle, the blue, loyalty and truth.  The lion stands for courage in battle, also.

 Girls also had coats of arms, but since they did not go into battle, it generally had a more decorative, diamond shape.  If the girl was unmarried, a blue ribbon was tied at the top.  Towers represented protection or safety.  This is Laughing Water's coat of arms.

 We finally started getting back into our art curriculum and had lots of fun making color wheels last week.

 It was a review for Laughing Water because when she was in third grade, she took an in-depth art course.  It was, however, new for Mr. Blueberry Eyes (and me, too!)

 Here's a funny picture of Hong Kong kitty, sitting in her castle atop the entertainment center.  Yes, she always has a 'tude on her face!

A few weeks ago, The Mighty Hunting Hound ate chocolate.   We had to get activated charcoal down her and monitor her heart rate for three days.  Mr. Blueberry Eyes made a great little veterinarian!

Life has been confusing and up in the air for us lately.  We're not sure what our future holds and it has had me in a bit of a dither, hence, the lack of posts.  Maybe I'll make up for lost time soon!  - Nanette

Playing Around Again

I've been playing around again.  Let me know what you think.  Is the font too hard to read?  Does anyone know how to change the color of the frames around the pictures? - Nanette

Quiets Moments of Learning

Our home school year has been, well, interesting.  It has been fun, hard, frustrating, exhilerating, educational (imagine that!)  I tried not to photograph the bad days.  I apoligize if that seems inauthentic.  I don't think you'd really want to see us in tears. Here are some peeks into our year.

 Since we follow a quasi-classical approach, we are in the second year of Laughing Water's second trivium and the same in Mr. Blueberry Eyes' first trivium. That means we're studying medieval history.  For our literature, we are reading biographies/stories of people who lived around this time period.  Our first book was about Polycarp, early Christian bishop of Smyrna.  He was martyred for his faith.  In honor of his sacrifice, and to remind ourselves of the "sweet savour" our lives are to God, we burned a yummy scented candle each time we read the book.

 In science, we're studying botany.  Here are the scholars, toiling over their leaf classifications.  We also just mounted a huge seed  collection on a cardboard sewing board.  I'll try to post pictures of that soon.

 Early in the year, Laughing Water hurt her ankle and was forced to do her school in a convalescing manner (bother!).  The Mighty Hunting Hound didn't mind.

 Here's a closer shot of the  "poor, unloved" creature!

One of the aspects of education that I wanted to make a strength this year was art.  I haven't done as well as I had planned, but, we have done some cool things.  Here, Mr. Blueberry Eyes is working on a tracing/drawing of a Viking Longhouse.

Laughing Water also joined a drama class this year and is enjoying working up an excerpt of Peter Pan with her team.  She gets to be Wendy.

I really should get more pictures of our activities.  I think it would help me remember the good things when I worry about what we might miss.  - Nanette

"If Home Is Really Where the Heart Is...."

"Then home must be a place we all can share."  So begins a song  that helped celebrate the start of our home fourteen plus years ago.  I've had a week of being home - very little running, snuggling with a sick child, reading stories for long hours.  It has been delightful.  Perhaps it was this that prompted the question.  Perhaps it was looking at Old Faithful, curled up in the living room.  (For me, a collie embodies domesticity.) Or it could well be that we've borrowed DVDs of "The Waltons" from our library.  That family has certainly gripped our imaginations lately.

Whatever it was that prompted me, I posted a question on my Facebook page.  The essence of the question was, "What speaks domesticity/hominess to you?"  I received the most replies I've had on a Facebook update-ever!  Apparently, its a subject that is dear to everyone's heart. 

Their answers? Family.  It was the most frequently mentioned element of the world we call home.  Of course.  "Wherever theres is laughter ringing, someone smiling, someone singing...".  Children noises, quiet conversation.  Snuggles, tickles, debates, smiles.

Then there was the mention of bread baking, bowls of steaming soup, hot mugs of tea and coffee. Comfort. Communion.  Pets were highly esteemed as symbols of domesticity.  Community with a furry twist.

Others mentioned music, crackling fires, aprons, family feasts, mom's cooking.

It tooks several days for the comments to stop flowing in.  When they did, I noticed that there wasn't one mention of anything that didn't fit with a theme of nourishment, communion, a profound sense of peace and belonging. 

Funny how our culture is the antithesis of these.  And yet, we all know what we think it should look like.  Like Michael Oher in "The Blind Side",  insisting on sitting at the dinner table for Thanksgiving Dinner.  We long for it if we don't have it.  We treasure it if we do.  Perhaps that is why I got a record number of responses to the question.

"We will be together there.  Love will be our home." - Nanette