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Thursday Thirteen Ed. #64

Ed. #3 Thirteen of Firefly's Favorite & Soon-To-Be Favorite Fiction Books

1. How Green Was My Valley by Richard Llewellyn
2. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
3. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
4. The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
5. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
6. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
7. Short stories by Leo Tolstoy
8. The Yearling by Marjorie Rawlings
9. My Name is Asher Lev by Chaim Potok
10. The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis
11. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen (I'm in the middle of this one.)
12. My Antonia by Willa Cather (I'm reading this next.)
13. Okay, now you suggest a book!


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Blogger Friend School Assignment #4

In honor of the season, I thought we all could do something fun this week! I'd like everyone to share something to do with a pumpkin or pumpkin related. This can be a recipe, decorating idea, or if you are really creative "show" us on your blog :)

Set your tea kettle to boil! It's time for some special scones for the month of October!

PUMPKIN-GINGER SCONES

(Serves 12)

1/2 cup granulated sugar, divided
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons butter, divided
1 egg
1/2 cup pumpkin, canned
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger root, grated
2 tablespoons crystallized ginger, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Reserve 1 tablespoon sugar. Combine the remaining sugar, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Cut in 4 tablespoons butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Beat the egg in a small bowl. Add the pumpkin, sour cream and ginger; beat until well-blended. Add the pumpkin mixture to the flour mixture; stir until a soft dough forms. Turn out the dough onto a well-floured surface; knead 10 times. Roll out the dough into a 9 x 6-inch rectangle with a lightly floured rolling pin. Cut the dough into 6 squares with a lightly floured knife. Cut each square diagonally in half, making 12 triangles. Place the triangles 2 inches apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Melt the remaining tablespoon butter. Brush the triangles with butter and sprinkle with the reserved sugar. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Serve warm.

A Little Levity

Okay, I will admit that the facial recognition scan also pegged me as a Nancy Kerrigan look-a-like, which I did get comments about when she was in the news a lot and we were both quite a bit younger.

Ronald Reagan, though? I suppose it could have been worse...

Blogger Friend School Assignment #3

The internet offers a lot of treasures! It may not be in the form of actual gold, although I'm sure some could find some on the internet. Being a Blogger Friend is all about sharing our treasures. The assignment this week is to share your internet treasures. Below is a list featurning things that homeschooling moms might be looking for : information, support, ideas, or actual items that pertain to our lives. Each one of us holds some or all of these treasures that need to be shared. Take this list and add your "golden" treasured sites so that we may all share the wealth.

A website that you visit everyday: Ladies Against Feminism

First place you look for a book to buy: e-Bay

Favorite Homeschool Support Area: An Old-Fashioned Education

Homeschool site full of information that you use regularly: Ambleside Online

Site that you buy your new curriculum from: Rainbow Resource

Site that you buy your used curriculum from: Since we use "living books", we don't tend to buy much in the way of curriculum. So when we do buy curriculum, it is usually new and we buy it from either the individual publishers (ie. Math-U-See) or Rainbow Resource.

Site that offers frugal tips to save money: The Hillbilly Housewife

A site that provides good wholesome recipes: Allrecipes.com

An informational site that shows you "how" to: How Stuff Works "Home Channel"

A homeschool family website that you purchase from to support them: Queen Homeschool Supplies

A charity website that you support: Alzheimer's Association

Favorite Graphic site to get graphics for your blog or other things: I like to create my own graphics for my blog's template so that it a unique place that says something about me. There are a lot of great graphics sites out there, though, for those who don't have the time or inclination to do their own graphics. A lot of these sites used to be completely free as long as you linked back to their site and saved the images to your own computer. Unfortunately, people abused these sites and now the owners either charge for their work or they have taken down their sites. It is important to read the terms of use on sites that generously offer free graphics.

Site that offers an educational calendar listing important historical events and also to keep you informed on upcoming events. (ex: Fire Safey Week): The site that I use to keep me informed on upcoming events is my state's homeschooling organization. I encourage you to check out your state's organization for a calendar of events.

Site that offers Homeschool Freebies: As a "living books" connoisseur, I have come to appreciate sites like Project Gutenburg, The Baldwin Project, and By The Fireplace. Free books. For what more could I ask?

Site that offers any kind of Freebies: PaperbackSwap isn't exactly free, but if you have some books you don't want and are looking for some books you do want, this is the place to go.

A blog to read that is always full of humor: Amy's Humble Musings

A blog to read that is always full of useful information: The Hillbilly Housewife's Blog

A blog to visit because it is eye appealing and easy to read: KSMilkmaid's Blog is not only easy on the eye, but easy on the heart as well.

A site that you would allow your children to visit: We enjoy using Sheppard Software's site for free educational games (especially their geography games).

List any other sites that you would like to share that have provided you with a wealth of golden information.

If you are interested in Charlotte Mason and the original PNEU (Parents' National Education Union), Victoria Waters has worked hard to share the original curriculum with us on her site Charlotte's Daughters.

After yhou have shared your gold, please start "panning" for gold by visiting your Blogger Friends Classmates and leaving them a comment.

************** EXTRA CREDIT FUN************ Library Lines - Below is a quote from a book. Can you guess what book this is from?

"They had driven over the crest of a hill. Below them was a pond, looking almost like a river so long and winding was it. A bridge spanned it midway and from there to its lower end, where an amber-hued belt of sand hill shut it in from the dark blue gulf beyond, the water was a glory of many shifting hues - the most spirtual shadings of crocus and rose and ethereal green, with other elusive tintings for which no name has ever been found...................."

Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery

Thursday Thirteen Ed. #63

Ed. #2 Thirteen of Firefly's Favorite Educational Games

I've decided to do my take on Karen's list of thirteen educational games we enjoy since she so kindly asked what our favorites are.

1. Pilgrim's Progress (This is sadly out-of-print. Let them know you would like to see it back, if you are interested.)

2. Rummy Roots

3. Dutch Blitz

4. Ten Days in Africa (We really enjoy all of the Ten Days geography games.)

5. Smath

6. Backgammon

7. Tangoes

8. Authors (Check this site for other games like Explorers, etc.)

9. Pit

10. Quiddler

11. Scrabble

12. Zoombinis Logical Journey

13. Oregon Trail

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Blogger Friend School Assignment #2

Using the First letter of the Alphabet, describe things that are important or that will be descriptive of your personality. The hard part is to use only ONE word per letter.

is for Ambleside

is for Bible

is for Clara

is for Dresses

is for English

is for Family

is for God

is for Headcovering

is for Indolent

is for Jesus

is for Kitchen

is for Lily

is for Modesty

is for Nature

is for Old-fashioned

is for Photography

is for Quiet

is for Reading

is for Sweaters

is for Tights

is for Unfinished

is for Verity

is for William

is for Xylography

is for Yeast

is for Zinnias

Floral Alphabet by B.J.'s Design Shoppe

Blogger Friend School Assignment #1

I just joined a group of blogging, homeschooling moms at the Blogger Friend School. For my first assignment, as a new student, I was asked to introduce myself and to post a picture of my dream home. Since I already live in a dreamy house, I thought I would try to find something that would be really fun. Of course, I did. What else would you expect? I could just picture living in this house somewhere in the middle of the woods where no one would really expect to find any house, let alone this house.

There are queer people in the world - a great many of them - and it is not strange that there are also queer houses. Now, as our little book is made for everybody, it is but just that queer people and their houses should be represented in it. Very few persons, we presume, will desire to build a circular house, although it is the form, as geometry demonstrates, in which the greatest possible space may be inclosed by a given amount of wall ; but for the oddity of the thing, or because economy of space may be secured, somebody may wish to do it, and look for a design to adopt or imitate. Here it is!

This circular house, in many respects quite original in its plan, was erected by Enoch Robinson, Esq., at Spring Hill, Somerville, Massachusetts. No timber was used in its construction. The walls are made of plank sawed on a circle of 40 feet (the diameter of the house), nailed together, one above the other, in regular courses. The windows are made of four large panes of glass, in a single sash, which slides up into the wall, entirely out of the way. The inside blinds are arranged in the same manner.

The oval parlor is 24 feet long by 15 feet wide. The circular library, opposite, is 13 feet in diameter, leaving a fine front entry between these two curves. The kitchen, next the circular library, has a slate floor and walls of varnished white-wood. Between the kitchen and the large dining-room is the chimney and the kitchen and dining-room closets, so arranged as to occupy very little room.

On the second floor are seven chambers, two of them quite large, all opening into a pleasant rotunda, 13 feet in diameter, beneath the central skylight.

The accompanying sketch and plans will give a good idea of the general appearance and arrangement of this truly original and unique edifice.

Though made of the best materials, and of superior workmanship, this building was erected at an expense much less than that of a square house erected in the ordinary way.

First Floor Plan

Second Floor Plan

As you can see, I would have a very unusual house, indeed. Hidden away in the woods with ivy growing up its walls, I would be able to do all of my favorite things. Of course, I would insist that the library come with built in bookcases as anything less just wouldn't do. And one of those upper chambers would have to be converted into an extravagant bath.

As for an introduction, I really don't know what to say. I'm a homeschooling mother of two daughters ages eleven and fourteen. My husband and I have been married for eighteen years. If you poke around my blog long enough, I think you will find out who I am. So come on into my dream home and share some tea and scones with me. I can't wait to show you the library!

Goodbye, Miss A.

I loved my friend
He went away from me
There's nothing more to say
The poem ends,
Soft as it began-
I loved my friend.

~Langston Hughes~

Homeschool Resources

I've been tagged by Samantha over at Education Is An Atmosphere to list some of my useful things and even some of my most unuseful things.

When we started thinking about how we were going to go about this thing called homeschooling, Lily was a toddler. I was blessed to have stumbled across Charlotte Mason's ideas before I had to actually apply them to our "lessons". I remember checking out a big three-ring binder from the library that had page-protected page after page of homeschooling resources. The library didn't have very many homeschooling books twelve years ago and I was anxious to read whatever I could. I don't know who put together this binder, but I don't remember finding much of interest in it. Well, there was that one odd page with a somewhat plump, Victorian lady on it that I couldn't quite figure out. She was dressed all in black, it seemed, and could have been Queen Victoria herself for all I knew. I think the page may have been about some sort of conference that had long since passed. Whatever it was about, they weren't really saying.

When I went to a meeting of a small group of homeschooling moms shortly thereafter, I was handed a newsprint catalog of homeschooling books and resources from the Elijah Company. I went home feeling like a six-year-old who just found the Sears Christmas Wishbook. Sadly, both of these catalogs are now extinct. The nicest thing about the Elijah Company Catalog wasn't necessarily what they were selling, though. The catalog had a section about homeschooling and the different methods that were being used by homeschoolers. I had always thought that I would be an "unschooler" and that we would all just read great books together and go for long, nature walks and talk about the things we learned. I used to teach in a Montessori school before I had my girls, so I encorporated some of Maria Montessori's methods in our everyday life already. I didn't agree with all of her ideas, however.

While I carefully read through the different approaches listed in the Elijah Company catalog, I came upon the section describing the "Living Books" approach. It sounded just like what I already had percolating in my head. I wanted to read more. And so, I did. I bought For The Children's Sake by Susan Macaulay and the set of Charlotte Mason's books, The Original Homeschooling Series. By the time Lily was four, I knew what we were doing. I knew who that Victorian lady in the dark dress was. She was my new, best friend.

1) ONE HOMESCHOOLING BOOK YOU HAVE ENJOYED:

For The Children's Sake by Susan Macaulay. This was the first real, homeschooling book I read and it was a wonderful stepping stone into Charlotte Mason's actual writings.


2) ONE RESOURCE YOU WOULDN'T BE WITHOUT:

My camera. Documenting our life together includes many "homeschooling" moments. I cherish these as my children get older. Not only does it provide me with a record to look back upon, but it is also a source of comfort to me when I start doubting myself.

3) ONE RESOURCE YOU WISH YOU HAD NEVER BOUGHT:

I wish I didn't have to answer this question. Unfortunately, I must. A few years ago, I had a long-term illness that left me physically weak and emotionally drained. People voiced their concern that I might not be able to continue homeschooling. This frightened me even though I knew that God intended for us to homeschool. It made me feel threatened.

In my heart, I believe that homeschooling isn't about acquiring a set body of knowledge. It is not keeping up with anyone else's curriculum. It is about God's desire for your family. I have always believed this.

In a moment of weakness, though, I decided to purchase a math curriculum from a very popular, homeschool curriculum publisher. Everyone on the planet seemed to use this curriculum for all of their subjects. I knew that we had gotten a bit "behind" in our math during the year I was sick, so I was easily coaxed into trying out this more traditional, math curriculum.

I'm not sorry to say that it was a total waste of our time and money. It was, as I had surmised earlier in our homeschooling journey, not a good fit for our family.

If you ever have a time where you are not accomplishing your goals, try to remember that God may have different goals in mind for you and your family. In the year I was sick, my children learned more about compassion than I could have ever taught them by myself. They also learned to become quite independent in the kitchen and one of my daughters found she had quite a love of cooking. I saw my childen draw closer to each other; and I saw that my husband did, indeed, have a very sweet, nurturing side. As long as you are going to God in prayer and staying in his Word, don't doubt that his unfailing hands are in every part of your life.

4) ONE RESOURCE YOU ARE ENJOYING THIS YEAR:

Lily and I are using the Latin Road to English Grammar program for grammar, Latin, and vocabulary. We are having so much fun doing this together. The teacher and the student each have their own text and keep a binder for their work. I thought the program would be overly choreographed and I usually prefer for my children to work more independently, but this program has really brought the two of us closer together. I am finding that we have reached a point where we are truly learning together and it is extremely enjoyable.

5) ONE RESOURCE YOU WILL BE USING NEXT YEAR:

I think Lily and I may work through Christian Light's Home Economics course next year. My mother was an excellent cook, loved to can and freeze produce from her garden, and could sew. Unfortunately, she never taught these things to me. I am looking forward to working through this course with Lily and, eventually, with Clara, too.

6) ONE RESOURCE YOU WOULD LIKE TO BUY:

It's pretty sad when you can't think of a single thing you would like to buy as a homeschooling mom, but here I sit. I think that, as time goes by, I realize just how much I don't need out of all those pretty catalogs that come through my door. So, I suppose, it is not a sad thing afterall.

7) ONE RESOURCE YOU WISH EXISTED:

A clone of me who doesn't mind doing the housework and cooking.

8) ONE HOMESCHOOLING CATALOGUE YOU ENJOY READING:

Well, you have already read of my devotion to the Elijah Company catalog. Since it no longer exists, though, I would have to say that I don't really have a favorite catalog that I enjoy reading anymore. I used to like to peruse Lifetime Books and Gifts' Always Incomplete Resource Guide, but it is no longer being published. I tend to buy my necessary odds and ends through Rainbow Resource. Their catalog is not something that I really feel comfortable curling up with, though. It is as big as a major city's phone book and has just about anything pertaining to homeschooling. That means it has a great deal of things that I am not interested in at all. If you know what you are looking for, however, their catalog generally has some of the best prices.



9) ONE HOMESCHOOLING WEBSITE YOU USE REGULARLY:

Ambleside Online

10) TAG 5 PEOPLE:



Queen Shenaynay of The Beehive

Tim's Mom of Bona Vita Rusticanda Est

The Headmistress of The Common Room

Mama Squirrel of Dewey's Treehouse

Krakovianka of U Krakovianki

(If any of you have already done this, please leave a permalink in my comments so I can come see!)

If you would like to read other homeschoolers' posts, check out the Carnival of Homeschooling hosted this week at Homeschool Hacks.

Pictures from the Patch

The girls and I went along with some other homeschooling friends to our local, pumpkin patch for our yearly visit. I thought some of you might enjoy a few of the pictures I took. They put up a new slide this year, but I am sorry to say that I was too busy sliding down it to actually take any pictures. I get to have some fun, don't I?

Baaaah-d hair day

She smiles

Milking Sunshine

It's all about Mee-ee-ee-ee!

These little piggies stayed home

Thursday Thirteen Ed. #61

Ed. #1 Thirteen Things about Firefly

1. Over the weekend, we had a new queen-size bed delivered to our home. My husband and I have slept on a king-size mattress for thirteen years.
2. I discovered a strange man in my bed Saturday night. He claims he has been there for a long time.
3. On Monday, I got a really bad sunburn on the back of my neck while visiting our local, pumpkin patch.
4. Even at fourteen and eleven, my girls are not too old to want to go to the pumpkin patch, it seems.
5. You can get lost in a pumpkin patch.




6. I'm the one on the left. Miss A. is on the right.
7. Miss A., who happens to be one of my best friends, is moving far, far away from me.
8. This makes me terribly sad.
9. When I was growing up, my family moved about every two years. As an adult, I have lived in the same town for fourteen years.
10. I can say from experience it is much easier for the person who is moving away than it is for the one who gets left behind.
11. I ate an Arby's chicken salad wrap for dinner tonight.
12. I worked at Arby's when I was in high school and college.
13. This is my first Thursday Thirteen. Somebody, please, say something.


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