Last week, my husband’s mom passed away, so everything turned on its head. We had to take care of urgent matters and skipped homeschooling here and there. However, lots of learning happened.
Our son got his previously scheduled haircut.
Legal matters, household management, family relationships – it all came in full focus. The kids were learning fast and we were, too. Sometimes you learn what to do and other times what not to do. Continue reading
Last Tuesday, the unthinkable happened: my husband’s mother passed away. It has been a whirlwind of shock, grief, legal matters, cleaning her home, and homeschooling. When death hits, we learn what really matters.
Finding humor in any situation, our daughter posed with a wooden mask we found while cleaning her grandmother’s house.
My husband needs my support, but he also tells me to homeschool as much as possible, so the kids do not get too far behind. We drop everything as needed and we homeschool as much as possible in the time left over. Continue reading
We are still recovering from fall allergies and sore throats – at least my daughter and I. My son drove himself to the weekly hike, which was actually a picnic at Metcalf Bottoms, since other members were under the weather, too. Of course, he only has a permit, so I had to be in the car with him. I hung out with them for a bit, but then I came home and straight to bed. One of the ladies brought him home.
This raccoon showed up on our patio to eat the food we feed our outside cats.
It’s amazing how much bed rest can do for a sore throat and cold symptoms. I spent the next two days in bed and read a lot. We skipped church, as we did not want to share our germs with anybody. My daughter and I also skipped a bondfire we were planning to attend with the middle schoolers from the co-op. It may not be contagious, but you never know. Ragweed allergies and colds have such similar symptoms. Continue reading
Annabel Streets grew up in Wales without a car or public transportation, so she walked everywhere, sometimes for miles. She is not afraid to walk or write about it. In her book, 52 Ways to Walk, (Amazon Affiliate link) Streets encourages us to find innovative ways to get outside and move.
She found 54 ways, but her editor said they should stop at 52, one for every week of the year.
How ironic is it that her name is Streets, right? Well, we can all do better when it comes to exercise. Streets quotes many research studies which show the benefits of walking for the body and for the mind. Continue reading
Diana Waring interviewed 50 homeschooling families in the 1990s and wrote a wonderful book about it – Things We Wish We’d Known. (Amazon Affiliate link) Learning from other people’s mistakes and victories gives us such an advantage. I am a big fan of learning from others who have gone before me.
I am glad I finally finished this book, which I started 10 years ago.
Some of the details may be dated, like books on tapes. But otherwise the advice feels as fresh as anything I have ever heard in a homeschool convention workshop. Besides, one just has to replaces “tapes” with “audiobooks” and, really, it is the same tool, the same advice. Only the technology has changed. Continue reading
Week 5 revolved around getting a new cat from an ailing relative and medical appointments: the six-week orthodontic checkups for the children and the yearly physicals for the parents. Also, the weekly allergy shots our daughter gets. On top of that, our son had a lingering cough. We had to get it checked up. The doctor said “fall allergies” and no antibiotics needed.
Our son trying to study with his new buddy, OC, nearby
I am still recovering from the stings I got in the National Park two weeks ago. I cannot lift much – my elbow hurts. This has worked out great, because I got the kids into the kitchen more than usual and they cooked under my supervision. Continue reading
Just another thrilling novel by the master of crime mystery, 10 lb. Penalty by Dick Francis (Amazon Affiliate link) kept me turning pages. Ben Juliard, the protagonist, would love nothing more than to work as a jockey after high school. Instead, his father offers him a job on his staff, in the political world. Ben must accept this job because, well, it’s complicated. And I would not want to give away too much of the plot.
When a horse wins a race, they weigh it down by 10 lbs for the next race as a penalty.
People try to murder his father, so Ben has to grow up quickly. Ben uses everything he knows about life, weapons, and the horseracing world in order to unmask the culprit. Continue reading
The Danger by Dick Francis covers a series of kidnappings in England, Italy, and the US, in the horseracing world. Andrew Douglas, a private detective who specializes in finding victims and negotiating with kidnappers, helps solve all these crimes.
I highly recommend any thriller by Dick Francis
Douglas and the firm he works for know a lot about kidnappings. Usually, the criminals target the wealthy. This private force of detectives and kidnap specialists collaborate with the police to save the victims. Sometimes the police cooperates with Douglas’ firm. On other occasions, the police hate taking orders from an organization which flies under the radar. And things do not end up so well. Continue reading
And… the trend continues. We had to cut our studies short this week as well, because on Monday we returned from camping around lunch time, and on Friday we left for Nashville in the early afternoon, for our son’s cubing competition. Never a dull moment.
Our five-person roof top tent sits over a trailer my husband designed.
We really enjoyed camping over the Labor Day weekend. Nature is good for the soul, but several things happened during this trip also, which bonded us even more as a family. I would not say everything that happened was easy to take, but that is exactly the point. Challenges bring us closer together. Continue reading
Bolt by Dick Francis is a thriller set in the horseracing world of England. Kit Fielding, the main character, works as a jockey who races for a wealthy couple. Without wanting to, he turned into a detective, to help them escape a business partner. On the other hand, somebody is killing their horses “humanely,” with a bolt-gun.
Another horseracing thriller
Over these two plot lines, we also read about a love story. Kit and the niece of the wealthy couple, in fact, are engaged. Continue reading