my journal

hi its me washington agen and i got my frist quote journal and  wrote in it

Counting My Blessings

This last week has been terribly challenging for me emotionally.  I've run the gammit of high's and lows and I realized that I was stuck on a low for way too long.  So I decided right then to put to the test the challenge to count your blessings when down.  Of course that decision was several days ago and I've been trying to make time to write everyday since, but better late then never, right.  This may be a little bit of a challenge for me until my mind opens and allows goodness to come out again, but I've got to stop the venom of self pity and feelings of failure from doing anymore damage to myself, my children, my sweet husband, or any others. 

1- Since today is Sunday, and this is most pressing on my thoughts right now, I'll begin with the fact that I was released from my teaching position in the Relief Society (that's not what I'm calling a blessing because I loved that calling and it caused me to grow so much), but I immediately was extended a new calling that...well, quite frankly...scares me to death.  I'm counting it as a blessing because, oh boy, is it ever going to make me grow and develop in ways that I wouldn't have pursued on my own.  I can't go into any details at this point, but I think I'd probably be more comfortable with any other calling (minus playing the piano) than this one I just received.  I'm not sure what the Lord saw in me to receive this calling, but it's definately one that I'm not prepared for and will grow from.

2- We will probably get financing fairly soon to buy a house.  YEAH!!!! Unfortunately, I don't think it will be this house.  We've lived here for over 3 years and been perfectly content and intending to purchase when that time came.  So why my (and all of my family members) discontent has been compounded so much lately, I'm not sure other than a message that we are not to buy this house. 
The functional & space inadequacies, frustrations with the distance & expense, and several other issues seems to be so much more important now then it ever has been before.  I'm seeing this as a blessing that we have endured the dysfunction so well for so long (God has made our burden light), and also the hope that we will get into a house that will better meet our needs. 

3- I've received a promise that my infection will be healed.  I've had this infection that is not only uncomfortable and potentially dangerous, it is highly persistent.  I've been to the doctor twice, had 2 dosages of strong antibiotics, has 2 surgeries done to drain it, had to pump and dump as well as train my baby on a bottle, used several herbal, oil, homeopathic remedies to keep it at bay; but still, this infection is alive and strong and building up for another need for surgery.  If it wasn't for the promise in a priesthood blessing and in my own personal revelation, I would be highly discouraged. 

4- I'm healthy by choice and it feels good.  Near the end of my pregnancy, my midwives suggested a fairly restrictive diet.  Normally, I would have had much failure in ability to abide to such a strict food source.  Then shortly after, I felt impressed to cut out all refined sugars from my diet for good.  With that we turned to whole foods - whole wheat, brown rice, honey, etc.  If I were to have tried or even necessitated this eating regime in 2010 - there's no  way possible I would have had the successes I'm experiencing this time around.  The Lord is truely blessing me with the ability to stand firm on this health issue and I'm so grateful because for years it was a terrible weakness almost without hope.  But as in all things, God is my only HOPE.

5- Washington is taking better care of his Diabetes.  We held a fast and invited all who wanted to, to join in our efforts to reach him in his ability to manage his diabetes.  We had many who joined and many helpful suggestions.  The number one most helpful thing has been my sister who offered to participate in twice a week coaching to help him create the habits of health that he is needing.  She has been absolutely amazing and truely an answer to my prayers.  We are still in the beginning stages, but his management has been so much improved, I'm again filled with hope. 

6- My educationally challenging child is finally...finally...making some headway in her education.  For some of my kids, I can find a hot button to - well - manipulate.  Or find a way to inspire them to explore knowledge and truth.  But I have this one child that has always left me feeling clueless and helpless.  I never knew how to help her to create the results that she and I both wanted for her success in this life.  But she has been putting in several long days of intense study, by her own choice, and I'm feeling the burden being lifted in regard to her success.  Of course, time will tell, but things are looking promising.

7- Although my time has been highly pressed, I have had success in two fairly important educational areas for me.  One, I taught the Wheel of Time class this last semester - which caused me to learn lots and prepare presentations (storytelling - not exactly my strong suit) every single week.  I couldn't plan the whole thing in advance and then lose interest half way through like I have in the past.  The other was participating in the Great Books class.  Attempting to study from this every week has been a challenge - yes, but so good for my self-confidence in being able to tackle this difficult of a class. 

8- Aristotle has shall I say - floored me - on several occasions recently with his calm and controlled responses to his children.  After 20 years he's changing on me and it's been fascinating to see him mature and grow spiritually.  He has been treating the kids almost better than I do and it's so refreshing to see his efforts to be on the same page as me, and conquer his natural habit.  I don't feel so alone in raising the kids and I'm really enjoying his genuine desire to do and be better.  I'm so grateful for such an amazing sweet husband and father.

9- I really feel bad that I did such a poor job of filling my shelves with food storage this year due to lack of canning time & resources, but I'm still in shock at the amount that we have gotten done.  We have many pigs that are keeping the freezer full, lots of corn from a contact that let us have it, good produce that can be used for the pigs, and sometimes case lot sales or groceries when we are running a little too lean.  The Lord has blessed us abundantly.

10- Probably my biggest blessing is my family.  I have amazing children who have a strong testimony of the gospel and somehow have not bought into a lot of the deceptive temptations that most teenagers struggle with.  My husband loves and pampers me and works so hard to provide for us.  We are learning and growing together in school as well and life's lessons.  Life is good.

Yep.  It works!  I feel so much more happy and optomistic.  I know good things are ahead as I improve the mistakes from the past.  Counting my blessings - who'd a thought.

Wheel of Time - Week 11 - Medieval Book Discussion

It is time for our book discussion for the medieval time period.  I'm sorry to say, that I think we were the only ones who had even started a medieval book - except in the case of Noah - he always seems to do what is asked.  As we began class, we talked a litte bit about some of the environments and atmosphere during this period then started right in on the craft.  I thought having them make a lapbook for the medieval time period would sumarize it fairly well, so that's what we did.  I had made a few copies of castles, famous people, and shields for their use and cut them out.  But the rest of their creation was entirely on their own.  I let them look through whatever resources I had (knights coloring book, castles, cathedrals, & the Story of the World Activity Book) & I made copies of anything they wanted in class on whatever color of paper they requested.  It kept me pretty busy but I think they had an enjoyable time.  One of the comments I heard just made my day.  Quote "This is the best class ever".   

Wheel of Time - Week 10 - 13th Century BC

This was another century where I just wasn't finding much to report.  Of course, there was a significant event (Moses) but it seemed to be the only one.  Weird. 

And as luck would have it, I had a minor surgery this week and so I couldn't even go to class.  My daughter, Austen, was good enough to step in and substitute for me.  And even on a day that she was giving a huge presentation in her Shakespeare class.  So from what I understand, she told them the story of Moses for this century, then made a hangman game.  Girls against boys.  She put a phrase, well... lines representing letters, up on the board, and if the team answered the event or other information regarding the picture drawn, they earned the right to guess a letter.  Once they figured out the phrase - they used the rest of the time just playing hangman.  So the kids got a fun way to  review what we've learned, Austen got some leadership experience, and I got to stay at home with the intent of resting and recooperating.  At least that was the idea. 

Wheel of Time - Week 9 - 17th Century

Before class, I had e-mailed that I would give a small prize to whomever would like to hand in a written report of their presentation.  My own children were eager to do so since they saw (and coveted) the prizes I had for the participants.  There were several written reports, several verbal and even spontaneous presentations.  I think every student stood up to share something at this point. 

Our 17th Century timeline entries began with the Dutch Golden Age.  The fine arts were at the highest point as well as industry.  The Baroque Cultural Movement needed a little explanation but some were aware of Baroque type music from their private instructions.  The Scientific Revolution was at its peak during this century.  But on the down side, The General Crisis that was mostly caused by conflict between protestant and catholic faiths, kept the nations in an almost constant state of war.  It was also during this conflict that brought about the King James Bible as well as the Jamestown Colony (John Smith & Pocahontas).  Two pretty amazing things that were done in spite of a pretty rotten king.  The last thing we discussed was the Mayflower Compact that took place with the puritans trying to prepare a safe environment for their children to grow up in. 

Our activity was a simple one of coloring a puppet to glue on a paper sack, but unfortunately, I forgot to buy the paper sacks.  Oops.

Wheel of Time - Week 8 - 1000 BC

By now, most of the kids are getting a little tired of the Wheel of Time landing on something in Ancient History and we were getting some groans that it happened again.  After a few presentations were given, we did a simulation to learn some history organizations.  I dumped several containers of colored pencils, crayons, and markers on a table.  Then I invited all of them up to the table to organize all them some way.  After they did it one way (I think sorting by color), I told them to organize them another way.  So they separated the different mediums.  Again, I told them to organize them another way.  This went on several times until they didn't think they could organize it any differently then they had before.  We brainstormed a little and found at least one more way before I put them away.  Then I compared the colors to the different ways in which historians organized all the information they found. 

I pointed out the obvious one that we use the most frequently - TIME - Millenia, Centuries, Decades, Years, Months, Days, Hours, Minutes, & Seconds.  Then I pointed out how to organize in TIME-ish manners (relating to a specific time trend but not limited to our calendar) - Dispensations, Caeculum, eras, epochs.  The still understood periods that depicted a CHANGE IN THINKING worldwide - Ancients, Medieval, Rennaissance, & modern.  Then I introduced an organization by DEVELOPMENT - Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age.  I handed out the timeline picture depicting the collapse of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age.  Similarly we discussed how history was organized by it PROGRESS or PROSPERITY  - Golden Age vs. Dark Age.  Here I hand out the timeline picture depicting the Greek Dark Ages when the mycenaean civilization died out and transitioned into city-states.  We discussed how PEOPLE were often the organizational method of choice - such as Culture (polynesian/Hispanic), or Religion (Jew-Gentile), or Nations, Families, or Tribes.  I handed out the pictures of King David (David & Goliath), King Solomon (Solomon's Temple), and the Division of Israel.  Finally we discussed how RULERS were often the method used to organize history - Such as Dynasties (Shang), Kingdoms (Israel), Empires (Roman), or labels (Victorian period).  I explained how Zhou Dynasty  was during this time period.  

I have to admit, this concept of how historians organize all the facets of events from the past was new to my understanding as well.  I actually enjoyed teaching this one because I got something completely new from it. 

Wheel of Time - Week 7 - 3rd Century AD

When the wheel landed on the 3rd Century AD, I was surprised to find that there really wasn't much going on during that time period.  It really wasn't looking good for the Christians at least.  In America, the End of the Zion people takes place as the peace that prevailed for almost 200 years after Christ's visit is replaced with pride and separation.  In Rome, the Christians begin holding their meetings in the dug out Catacombs beneath the city so that they can not be persecuted for their beliefs. 

After discussing these events to the Students, we found a secret symbol that they would use if they were in the same predicament as the christians.  Since the story wasn't very long, I used the rest of the time playing a review game.  I had previously put each of the timeline pictures in a container and so had them take turns pulling one out.  If they could tell me the story just by looking at the picture, they got a point.  If they could tell me the century it occured, they got another point.  If they could tell me what country it occured, they got another point.  I used this opportunity to have them color the world map in the beginning of their timeline and to color code it with the timeline pictures.   Most of the kids did fairly well so that was like a pat on the back. 

Wheel of Time - Week 6 - 18th Century

Up until now, we've only studied centuries during the ancient period - Before Christ.  So to make the jump to the 18th century gave an interesting perspective on recorded history.  Each country has major events that seemed to build on each other.  But it was way too much to try and cover it all in one hour. 

To add the the chaotic overkill, I and my baby were sick.  Most of the kids had a presentation to give, which was fabulous, but it took up a large portion of the class time.  So as I talked about what was going on in the world during that span of 100 years, I was rushed to try and hand out the timeline pictures, give a very brief accounting of the stories, as well as give instructions for the craft. 

I considered locating my family history names for during this century to show the students how to include personal and family history with stuying history, but as I began to list what names I had available, I filled an entire page of names before concuding it wasn't going to work in that format. 

In our Religion category, we learned about John Wesley who founded the Methodist Church. 

Under Inventions - I focused mostly on James Watt, who invented the steam engine; Eli Whitney, who invented the cotton gin and the interchangeable parts for guns; and James Cook for discovering Botany Bay in Austailia. 

Cultural category was loaded with musicians: Bach, Handel, Mozart, Vivaldi, & Hayden.  And also authors including Jane Austen, Daniel Defoe, Johnathon Swift, John Newton, Adam Smith, Thomas Paine, Goethe, Voltaire, & Gibbon.

And finally under political, we learned about the American Revolution, the French Revolution, & Catherine the Great.

And that's only what I decided to focus on.  There was so much more information but I just couldn't do any of it justice.  Our craft wasa simple making a US flag out of construction paper.  Simple - yes, but for some of the kids it made the whole class worth it,

Wheel of Time - Week 5 - Ancient Book Discussion

I encouraged all the kids to read a classic book of their own choice that took place during the ancient time period.  And then we would join together for a discussion - not on the same book, but the sameness of the lifestyles of the books we read.  We chose to read 'Archimedes and the Door of Science' since we started it awhile ago in math and never got around to finishing it.  It also made studying Archimedes in the 3rd Century BC seem like an extended study - so they got a little depth with their bredth. 

Class began with everyone showing their book that they read, and briefly telling the plot or points of the story.  Then we discussed what seemed to be common among all these stories and how these commonalities placed them in the ancient time period.  We also contrasted what was different - not so much different from ancient culture to ancient culture, but different from our time to that time.   

I outlined, briefly, what doctor DeMille did in his Cycles from the Classics CD.  Comparing nomadic to agrarian in whatever category the kids chose - food, clothing, housing, education, gov't, communication, transportation, etc.  I'll be brutally honest - this class was not as successful as the ones where we have engaging stories or interesting activities, but hopefully, again, it gave them perspective. 

Wheel of Time - Week 4 - 400 BC

You could tell some of the kids were getting a little discouraged that the wheel of time always seemed to land in Ancient History.  I personally love ancient history and so I'm alright that 4400 years out of the 7000 on the wheel are yellow (depicting ancient time period). 

We studied 4th Century BC this week - just a century before of what we had studied two weeks ago.  It was kind of interesting to go back to add the details of what happened before - rather than teaching chronologically.  But I'm convinced that this approach has brought about so many interesting insights and elevated perspectives from history that I'd never noticed in a chronological approach, that I'm grateful I'm offering it to my children, as well as the other students.  The focal highlights I picked this time include:

Socrates - Funny thing is, I had just finished reading Plato's Trial and Death of Socrates the prior week in my Great Books class.  It really opened up my understanding personally of these great minds.
Plato -Socrates student and Aristotles Mentor
Aristotle - Ironically, Alexander the Great's Mentor
Euclid - Associates with the great minds of Athens.  I put a sign above the door which read "Let no one ignorant of Geometry enter Here"
Alexander the Great - The kids liked the story of Beucephalus being afraid of his shadow.
Pharos Lighthouse - One of the 7 wonders of the ancient world
Book of Jarom - If I can find the exact centuries in the scriptures, I want to include them to correlate the histories.

Since most all of the century focused mostly on the great minds and philosophy of Athens, and even the spread of those ideas through Alexander, I decided to set up the classroom as Athens, Greece.  I set up a table of wares for sale at the open market, even buying foods that they would have eaten in Athens (grapes, goat milk, ww bread, figs, dates, olives-which I actually forgot to bring-, fish, & goat cheese.  We discussed what home life was like and what the children did in Athens and how their schools taught them.  We briefly talked about the temples built to the Greek Gods and Greek mythology.  How the men spent their days in discussion of philosophy and debate.  How the Athenian government (true democracy) differed from what we claim as a democracy.  How their courtroom operated - relating the trial and death of Socrates.  And how they drew in the sand and thought, and thought, and thought.  I'm not sure it came across as powerfully as I had envisioned it, but I think it went alright.  At least it broke up what seemed to be a developing monotony. 

Wheel of Time - Week 3 - 22nd Century BC

A pattern was beginning to take shape as we spun the wheel.  I would search all my resources, list what I considered the highlights (which was probably too much, but I found it all so fascinating that I didn't want to leave anything out).  I'd spend hours reading up more details on these highlighted points trying to own them enough to share with the class.  On Sunday nights (or Monday mornings if I forgot) I'd send out an e-mail to class members so they would have two days to study and prepare a presentation.  Then I'd find pictures to represent what I studied, shrunk them, copied (a lot of) them, and add a caption - print, cut, & paper clip. 

This week  was on 22nd Century BC - or 2200 BC to 2101 BC.  It still takes me a little while to wrap my mind around how that works, but I think some of the kids are catching on to the concept.  The highlights that I made timeline pictures were the following:

Aridification (who'd of thought climate would be interesting in the past - but it contributed to the end of some great kingdoms).
Old Kingdom Ends - Egypt and it's monumental time period of pyramids and mummies declines and passes during this century.
Middle Minoan Period - Bull jumping, King Minos and the Minotaur, First known civilization on Crete.
Epic of Gilgamesh - The very first fairy tale (that I think was dripping with tidbits of truth - half god, the flood, seeking immortality, etc.)
Biblical Flood according to Hebrew Calendar - It was so interesting to see the differences between calendars and how our history is mostly chronologically dated rather than specific dates.  I don't believe the flood took place during this century, but it was interesting enough to see the discrepencies in histories that I wanted to share.

I couldn't find a good activity for the kids to engage in during class - in fact I was quite frantic about it all week.  I finally decided on them playing the dot game to create a maze like the one under King Minos Palace to find the Minotaur and then draw a picture of how they envisioned Enkidu.  But the stories of King Minos and the Epic of Gilgamesh were so enthralling to the kids, that I forgot the need to engage them in an activity - I barely remembered to pass out the dot game/maze that I had created.  I love it when I can see the passion and interest in their eyes which is so different than the 'how are you going to entertain me today' look that is so common in kids today. 

Wheel of Time - Week 2 - 3rd Century BC

I was anxious to begin studying the time period the wheel of time landed on - 300 BC - so I could make preparations and be ready for the next week.  I thumbed through our history encyclopedias and at first thought all I could find was Alexander the Great.  So I envisioned a craft and something else to entertain the kids.  But as I continued to research my resources, I realized my understanding was inaccurate.  The 3rd Century BC actually is 201 BC through 300 BC and Alexander was in the 4th Century BC.  So I changed my search parameters and was deciding what to filter out and what to focus on.  Needless to say, I was having great difficulty.  Everything thing I read was exciting and important.  I couldn't decide if I wanted to focus on only one or two aspects in that century and really create a relationship with the story - or do a broad and brief summary of a many stories so as to make connections between them.  It seemed I was making this up as I went along even though I tried to plan everything out in the beginning. 

When I was reading in the scriptures for my personal study and ran across what was happening in 300 BC in the Book of Mormon, it was so exciting to connect that with secular history that I decided to go broad.  I made little pictures representing the stories along with dates to place in their timelines.  During class, I pointed to the place on the map and explained briefly what was going on their during that time.  This is what I came up with for the 3rd Century BC.

The Book of Omni - America
Asoka the Great - India
Ptolomy Dynasty - Egypt
Punic Wars - Rome and Carthage
Qin Shi Huangdi - China
Archimedes & Erastothenes- Greece

I brought along modeling clay for the kids to mold like the terra cotta army as I told them the stories, and coloring pages of Hannibal crossing the Alps.  I was intending to do a simulation but was afraid I wouldn't have enough time to get through all the stories. 

Some of the kids had difficulty gluing the pictures in the correct places in their timeline and others seemed to not even care about gluing them into the timeline at all - but a few caught on and hopefully will make memories with the stories. 

To spin the wheel, I had all the kids stand in a circle around the wheel and explained that we neededall of their energy in order to travel back in time.  They all neededto make a movement and a sound as we all became part of the time machine as we spun it.  I could tell that some of the kids thought it was retarded but I made them participate anyway.

All in all, the 2nd week was much better and encouraging.

The Wheel Of Time - Week 1

This year I have been keeping busy doing one thing I am very passionate about.  Studying history.  When I asked myself if there was any class I wanted to teach for my kids at iFAMILY, I realized that I haven't given the deep foundation of history with my current love of learners as I did for the older ones - so I considered teaching it.  And as most of my teaching experiences, I am so pleased with the things that I am learning - breakthroughs in understanding, making connections, and simple increased appreciation for lessons learned from history. 

Even though the semester is almost over, I thought I would post the summaries and log what has happened in my class.  The very first day, I was somewhat concerned.  Aside from the fact that Aristotle had not yet completed constructing the Wheel for my class, I chose an introductory game - Timeline Trivia - that was way over the kids experience and ability to play.  I thought it would be a good one, because when I made the game in our home, it was such a hit, that they begged to play it frequently.   But with a classroom of 8 to 12 year olds who obviously don't have much exposure to history stories - let alone trivia - it was a bad choice for an introductory game.  I even lost two students who seemed the most promising. 

With the blank stares and impatient to leave fidgeting, I kept promising that next week would be more fun.  Not a promising beginning, but it gave me the determination to try something new for the next week.

Savoring the Scriptures

We have been implementing our new and improved efforts to study the scriptures and I'm so thrilled with the results.

For years I have held morning devotional every day - without my husband.   Finally, I responded to the idea that we should include him - or more likely - encourage him to lead us out.  So in the evenings before saying family prayers, we've undertaken to read the Book of Mormon as a family - reading, discussing, marking, and testifying of its truthfulness.  Whew.  I felt amazing and proud of myself for handing that responsibility over to him.  I'm anxious for his growth as well and the families response to his leadership.  Granted, it is hit and miss due to his hit and miss work schedule but that is the plan in the evenings. 

And so our daily devotional shrunk... dramatically.  I wasn't sure exactly what to do during that time since we turned the family study time to the evenings.  We dabbled a little with scripture master and personal scripture reading for 5 minutes, but basically the substance of our starter was weak and meaningless.  I'd thought and played with the idea of customizing devotional activities for the special day child and had done it a little on Fridays - Joan of Arc's special day.  But the other day, I sat down to brainstorm how to study scriptures without it being simply scripture study and discussion.  How could I approach it so that my children get specialized attention for their needs.  I did a little research, made a master list, and this is what I came up with.

Daily:  Individual Personal Reading from the scriptures for at least 5 minutes.  (I'm hoping to work that up to 30 minutes.  Also, we are taking a conference talk and listening to it, taking notes, discussing. etc.  The neat thing is that when we do the same talk the very next day - it's as if it were a completely different address but we got different notes the next day.  Our intent is to clearly identify what the brethren are counseling us to do and then analyze whether we are doing it and implement an action plan to more completely follow the prophets voice.   This is going to be fun.

Mondays - Doctrines and Principles Day:  This is the day that we choose a doctrine and really get to the depth in research, analyzing what our understanding of the doctrine is and compare that with what the scriptures say.  We identify the underlying principles in a verse.  We analyze the scripture references found in their personal progress/faith in God/ or lessons.  We choose a subject that we've studied and give a talk and bear our testimony on it.  Eventually we will be making scripture journals and compile our faith promoting stories. 

Tuesday - Markings and Values Day:  This is the day that we learn how to mark our sciptures, not just the scripture mastery or meaningful scriptures, but putting titles on the top of the page, sectionalizing the entire chapter, color-coding, recording insights, stickers, and cross-reference notes.  We practice the rule of three (reading a verse or selection three times - recording more insight with each reading).  This is also the day that we recite our family value for the month and the scripture we have  chosen to represent it.  We find examples in the scriptures of that value being exhibited and then we find examples of ourselves exhibiting that value. 

Wednesday - Scripture Master & Hero Day:  Wednesday is our day away from home so we will use the travel time to memorize our scripture mastery.  Using a combination of flashcards, repetition, fill in the blank, first letters, and scrambled words.  We also are doing a combined Hero Study to make the people in the scriptures come alive and personal to each of us.  We've chosen to start with Esther and will not only do a biography study but compare her character with our time lifestyle choices (media, Sabbath, Friends, gospel principle application, etc.) 

Thursday - Storied Scripture Day:  This is the time that I read directly from the scriptures the account of a particular story, and while I read, each child is creating a story book - drawing and writing a summary of the story on folded and stapled pages.  Hopefully we'll have a large collection of little scritpure story books that the child has a relationship with.  We will also read from the scripture readers.


Friday - Scripture Snack Day:  Yes a snack, a treat of some kind that the kids get to eat as I tell the account from the scriptures in my own words, followed by a verbal testing of their understanding or application of principle discussed.  Sometimes the scripture snack (for my drama loving kids) will be re-enactment the story.  Sometimes it will be to play with some special toys during the story. 

We've only just begin this regime this week, but already our morning devotional is rich, filling, and spiritually satisfying.   So between evening family study and personally challenging  devotional, I'm hoping the scriptures will take on sweet personal meaning.

Adventures in Music

We chose to go with a theme for our adventure box this week and we chose to taste a little inspiration from music. 

 

Spiritual lives of Great Composers

Discussion of what the ancient philosophers defined music

Classical CD's & Bio's of composers

Listen to a wide variety of music and compare the spirit they bring

Invite a guest musician to perform here in my living room

Find samples of music from different locations and different time periods

Study the mechanics of instruments & how they create the sounds

Watch youtube videos of an orchestra performance & discuss the different types of instruments

Make homemade musical instruments.

Overview basic musical notations - fill in a blank staff & then play it (compose)

 

The Math of Kahn

Yes, I'm using someone elses title but it was just too good to pass up.  We've discovered a valuable free resource that is so inspiring.  Kahn Academy has over 22,000 youtube clips  (about10 minutes each) with explanations of most academic subjects.  These videos are not boring or uninformed as you sense Salman Kahn's mastery and passion of the subjects he's teaching.  Even though he is obviously well advanced in understanding the concepts, he can explain it to the student in the simplest and thorough manner.  Obviously, I'm in love with this concept. 

At first, I was thinking this might be something that Shakespeare could look into in her preparation for the GED test, but as I looked at all the subject matters, I got excited about learning some subjects myself.  And as I was working through the knowledge map so I could see where gaps in my math learning are, several of my children stood around desiring to have their turn to work on the problems. 

Yep!  I'm loving it.  Anything that inspires my children is worth a few moments of internet use. 

A Dollar Well Spent

I love 'Les Miserables'. I love that my mother had a relationship with it. I love the story line and its depiction of the transformation of the soul. I love the movie and in concert. I would love to actually go see it in live concert with my husband and older children. And I'm planning to actually read the unabridged book (one of these days). I was shocked to find out that Victor Hugo was not part of the Great Books.

So when I saw the sheet music for 'Les Miserables' at the DI for only $1.00, I quickly grabbed it and put it in the cart. Granted, it was only treble cleff, and the notes were huge, but I didn't care - I don't play the piano anyway (even though I took lessons all throughout my childhood). I would love to have access to the words to all the songs. I knew Wilberforce wanted the real sheet music but it was the best I could do.

For the past three days, not only has Wilberforce been tinkering around on the piano, but Shakespeare, Austen, and even Hypatia have consistently been fine tuning their rendition of these simplified masterpieces. I've been loving it. Our house is full of music and singing.

So often I buy a super expensive book or curriculum hoping to inspire my children to fall in love with the subject - but true to form - it's my passion and relationship with the subject that has inspired them. It was a dollar very well spent.

School on the Moon

I don't know how many times we've driven straight past it in the last twenty plus years, but this time we stopped. I remember going to Craters of the Moon for a grade school field trip and although I didn't really get anything memorable out of the experience, I always assumed we'd stop there as a family so my home schooled kids could have the same experience. And since it was between my home and my extended family on the other side of the state, we had plenty of opportunities that we didn't have to plan a special excursion. But usually we were pressed for time to visit relatives and exhausted and eager to get home on the way back.
So this time on our way to family camp, I promised myself that we would stop on our way back. After all, my oldest daughter IS 19 years old - she's not getting any younger. Even though it was raining, and we were exhausted and filthy after four days of camping, I pulled into the visitors center. After using the restrooms, and browsing at a few displays in the corridor, we worked our way into the gift shop. BOOKS! All my kids found something they found interesting and explored to their hearts content. Eventually we continued walking into the rest of the visitor's center displays and watched a few documentaries, read several plaques, and pointed out things on the displays. As we learned the history of the site, my kids questioned the scientists calculations when the lava flowed based on the inconsistency with the scriptures or how it might compare with events in history (such as the earthquake that happened when Christ came to America). I was impressed as my children were well versed in much of the concepts, plants, and wildlife that were depicted, as they had a relationship with it.
Soon we were invited to listen to a ranger give a presentation regarding Craters of the Moon. I was able to listen for a short while before my two year old lost interest and wondered off. After this the kids asked to learn more by watching another documentary. By now, I was tired and wanted to get the rest of the journey behind me, so we decided to postpone going on the trail for another day when I wasn't carrying an infant and it wasn't raining.
I think it's impressive the stamina my children have for learning. I know that when I was a kid - I was so anxious to leave and what I did have to sit through - I tolerated because I did my duty. But my kids seem to actually enjoy learning this stuff. I love homeschooling.

Cats

     c                                          c

  Cats                                      Cats

 I love                                   Cats so

much. Cats are small cats are soft and 

smart. Cats black and wight, yellow a-

nd orange, brown and tan, Green eyes

blue eyes        orange        brown eyes

small cats big cats  rare cat tabby cat  

 Pershin, Manx,      calico, shorthair,

   longhair, bu rimes, Rex cat house

         cats and Russian blue 

                I love cats

  

Thats My Bike

When my papa went on his mission, he had a companion named Pomatae.   Pomatae was a Samoan Samoans are big and strong.
        One time my papa's and Pomatae's bikes were stolen, my papa was mad but Pomatae only said "Its OK ossy the lord will provide." ( Ossy was my papa's Nick-name).  Latter that year my papa and Pomatae were walking down the sreet, when a  man came riding past on a bike.  Pomatae started  to run after the man on the bike, and yelled "HEY THAT'S MY BIKE."  The man jumped of and ran, the bike kept on going for a little and then fell.  Pomatae whent and picked it up and brought it back to my papa and said "See ossy the lord will provide."  My papa said to pomatae "Elder you just stole that bike."  Pomatae said in return "Its not his anyway

Character Olympic Training

We've begun our efforts to conquer the giants within.  At the beginning of the week, I invited Washington to begin his Olympic training.  We went aside and discussed what parts of his character needed strengthened or if he would like to improve on his stewardships.  After listing several options, he chose the one he wanted to focus on first - Cheerfulness.  He has personally struggled with this skill all his life and so hopefully this is a vital behavior that will produce positive results elsewhere also.   We discussed how the natural man may resist being cheerful (slothful, lazy, looking for excuses, etc.)  and how Satan and his followers know this is a weak spot for him and will exploit it every chance they get.   Recognizing that this flaw was not all his own fault seemed to encourage him to engage in battle with greater ferocity. 

So each time he has an episode where he may not be responding in a cheerful manner, the training takes place.  The first offense is usually running around the house 10 times.  If he is persistent in feeling sorry for himself, he adds 10 more times. 

     The results have thus far been a greater patience on my part in helping him desire to choose cheerfulness.  I have a planned response and we both know his intentions are noble even if his carry through is behind.  My abilty to cheer him on in his efforts and recognize his victories has increased.  
      He is getting some desperately needed physical exercise as well as a few moments to distance himself from whatever triggered the poor response in the first place.   This allows him to reconsider how he chooses to respond. 

SIMULATION / SHOPPING / SLEEPING / SWIMMING / & SO MUCH FUN - a weekend of firsts

The timing was right, the money was there - so we did it. 

Simulation
Aristotle called signaling it was time.  Galileo (me) had to pretend that it was a loud, instructive order from the priesthood to grab our 72 hours kits and evacuate in 10 minutes to meet him in Blackfoot.  Some of the kids were even in swimsuits - running through the sprinkler.  Shakespeare and Wilberforce were grabbing all kinds of items as I was trying to get the younger kids rounded up and getting out the grab-n-go lists for us to refer to as to what we needed.  I was impressed at the speed and clarity of thought that a few of the kids possessed.  The sad thing was I knew it was a simulation and I was running around in circles.  A few kids were panicked and Washington was going at a less than rushed pace, saying - 'I sure hope this is only a simulation'.  Eventually, we grabbed what we could within the 10 minutes and took off down the road.  On the hour drive, I explained that Papa couldn't tell me what was going on over the cell phone so we discussed what could possibly be wrong that would require us to evacuate when no one else was taking similar action as well as comparing our situation with similar scenarios in books.  When we picked up Aristotle, he was very serious (and a little impatient it took us so long) & told us to drive directly to the airport.  Once there, we all got out at the park across from the airport and debriefed and discussed what we can learn from this simulation.  You could see the relief sweep over Austen and Hypatia, and confirmed suspicions on the face of Washington, Wilberforce, and Shakespeare.  Joan of Arc and Enoch probably didn't think it any different from any time when we are trying to get out the door on time.  (Sad story - and we're more frequently late than on time).  As it turns out, we missed most of the extra items for Joan of Arc, Hypatia's 72 hour kit, sleeping bags, and all the food.  If we had done this mock disaster for a 3-day camp-out (as was originally the plan) we would have been very hungry campers.  But we did have ample water, socks and underwear, first aid kits, and towels.  I think it was a good thing to practice for an actual emergency as well as an observation how we respond during a crisis and what is truly important to grab. 

Shopping
Aristotle announced that we would be going to Lagoon from there and since most of the clothes we brought were a little too small - we were first going shopping for a new outfit.  We started with the youngest (excepting Enoch since we had enough for him) and bought new shorts, shirts, shoes, complete with sunhat.  Then we went to the next child on through to the parents.  By the time we finished finding what each family member wanted/needed we decided to not do the entire family at one time again - exhausting - but it truly was fun since most of our clothing come in the form of garbage bags that some angel of mercy gifted us as they cleaned out their closets. 

Sleeping
Some of my children have never experienced sleeping in a hotel and so the novelty of a TV and bathroom in the same room as their bed was quite a neat first.  Granted they got to share their bed with a sibling but for the older children, they got the room to themselves (attached to ours of course).  As is the case of most hotel visits, very little sleep actually occured, but the adrenaline from the excitement held us over.  The next morning, our family practically filled the lobby for the continental breakfast. 

Swimming
I know one is supposed to wait an hour after eating before swimming, but we were crunched for time, and since we didn't get to the hotel before the pool closed the night before, we went swimming immediately for about an hour and half.  Then we primped and got ready for a fun day at Lagoon.

So Much Fun
After stamping our hands with a bright flourescent ink - and getting our bearings in the amusement park, we entered the first ride.  My poor children have never even been to a state fair and except a trip to disney world over 12 years ago (my oldest child was only 6 years old), they have never experienced rides like this before.  So it was a good thing we started in kiddieland and the rides were not fear thrillers.  Gradually, we increased the magnitude of the rides and I was amused that Wilberforce was consistent at keeping her eyes snapped shut throughout the entire ride and the younger kids were eating it up.  She improved over time but it still was amusing.  Running from rollercoasters to centrifugal force rides to carousels to ferris wheels,  we went from ride to ride to ride.  The day was expiring faster than the ground coverage made - so it was agreed that we'd have to come again but instead schedule a 2-day trip.   The kids chose to ride 'Wicked' for their last ride and fortunatly it was my turn to stay with the baby cause I'm not sure I wanted to experience that extreme of a roller coaster.  Even Aristotle was taken aback by the instant zero gravity free fall (I think he really enjoyed the rush though). 

We ended the day by grabbing dinner to eat in the car, fueling up, and starting the long journey back home while being exhausted and full of memories.  On the trip down, we played games, laughed, and sweated (something is wrong with my vehicle and the A/C, windows, radio, cruise, & wipers aren't working).  On the trip home, we were quiet, cold (sun gone done and one window stuck open, one window stuck closed), and sleepy.  It was such a memorable trip and I'm so grateful we did it, even if the money could have been used for more practical uses such as pay bills.  It was the right thing to do and our family needed to feel that abundance and freedom in our life. 

Training Myself to Nurture

I really admire people, mother's especially, who are so gifted to recognize and acknowledge the good in those around them.  One who can look at a child's pathetic performance and the only thing they mention and/or see is their effort or progress which in turn uplifts and encourages the child.  I hate to admit it, but I've got hard-wired blindness to the good, when things are amiss - so aquiring or practicing this skill has been quite a struggle for me.  But I recognize the value of focusing on the positive and nurturing my sweet ones with recognition for their efforts and building a portfolio of victories.  In fact, one of the purposes for starting this blog was to practice regular efforts of recognizing the good in our own lives and in my children.  I may have been a little optimistic about my success at recording in the victory journal everyday, but it is happening occasionally.



I have, however, been more successful in training my children to focus on the positive verbally than through blogging.  In morning devotional, we each state at least one positive review.  Something good and positive that has happened to us, for us, or because of us.  We've been doing it for about six month's now and the kids are becoming fairly used to the routine, at least.  It's becoming easier for some of them to recognize the good - even if it is nothing more than 'getting their pre-flight done on time' or 'drawing a picture they are pleased with'.  There are those days when one child can't seem to find the positive about anything in their life and they are paralyzed.   Unfortunately, I've noticed that when they are paralyzed that I can't seem to see anything in their life worth being grateful for either and so I diligently search for something...anything... or work to create something to which might bring them joy. 



One thing we've started this week is a positive preview.  Hopefully this will be a time of goal setting, anticipation, and hope for good things happening to them.  Most of them state social events in nature such as 'playing with a friend' or 'going on a trip to town', but I'm hoping they will branch off into other passions and learning projects such as 'I'm going to write a thank you card to ______ for what they did for me,' or 'I'm going to do a science project today'. 

Now that I've had a little practice seeing the positive in my own life, I believe the next step in my journey is for me to recognize my children's effort, successes, and goodness. I'll be using this blog as a training tool to discipline my mind until it becomes more second nature.  Since I'm only writing a few thoughts per child I'll focus on the ones that each child seems to particularly have a struggle in.  This will be a little bit of stretch for me - especially in writing - but here goes.

     Wilberforce (is the miracle child that has a natural optimism to whom I look up to for inspiration.  She has for years written in her journal every night and only records victories, miracles, blessings, strengths, inspirations, and comedic incidences.  So maybe if I follow her example there is hope for me)   The other day, she informed us in a most decided manner that she intends to celebrate the fourth of July by entrepreneuring.  I never really thought of it that way before but it does have merit since that is what the founders established our free market society to do.  She also has been so diligent in her daily practice of piano that she sat down to try her hand at a simplified piece of Shubert - and it sounded fairly well.  Granted it was a little choppy but not bad at all for her first time through.  I'm so proud of her decision and example to teach herself to play the piano by practicing for a half hour each day.  She is an inspiration to us all.



     Shakespeare impressed us all as after an incident of explosive contention between her and her sister (over a bowl of ice cream) she spent some time praying and decided to treat her sister better.  The two of them have been almost inseparable for the first time since they were little children.  She also has been engaging in some love of learning projects on her own - simple and huge ones, but the initiative has been all her own.  There have been times that I worried about Shakespeare and just how she'll turn out, but then, out of the blue, she tackles something that far exceeds my expectation of her and put all my fears to rest for a little while.  If it wasn't for the uniqueness and (shall I say) strength of will of this daughter, I would have missed out on some of the most life altering and strengthening decisions of our entire family.  

     Austen gave an amazing impromptu lesson in our devotional this morning.  I'm finding that she is blossoming and growing at a phenomenal rate.  One thing she taught me was about her attempts to smile and make eye contact with most everyone she meets, and though I hadn't realized this particular trait before, she does brighten every one's day with her cheerfulness.  She is making courageous efforts to manage her adolescent  hormones and her childish habits.  When a report came that she usually keeps her side of the room clean by her roommate, I was deeply surprised by the news and beginning to think that she might be growing into some good new habits.  Yeah!

     Washington has spent the last couple of days with large keytones (which is very dangerous to someone with diabetes) and has been feeling really awful.  He's been handling it all like a trouper and courageously admitting his hand in the lack of proper managment.  Cheerfulness is something he struggles with a great deal, and so it's been amazing to see him resignedly accept this health trial in stride without throwing a pity party.  I've also noticed more frequent 'yes' answers and less 'no- not yet' answers when I interrogate whether he has finished his preflight, fed the pigs, or checked his blood.  I'm so grateful that he is making progress in being responsible.

     Hypatia didn't want to do the dishes tonight because there was a larger than usual amount to be done,  but she simply rolled up her sleeves and dug in.  She was cheerfully doing them and pleasantly surprised when I joined her to help it go faster.  What a treasure she is.  And when we brought home a new movie that she would previously have produced behavior unpleasant to those around her, she very graciously was pleased and excited without going overboard. 

     Joan of Arc is such a happy, sweet child that I'm not sure where she might be struggling other than in maybe eating nutritious foods.  But tonight, she did just that.  After several frustrations that she couldn't have a popsicle until she finished her dinner, she was resigned to eat several big bites.   She went to sleep before finishing it, but I'm pleased that she was willing to eat something that wasn't laced in sugar. 

     Of course baby Enoch is perfect, pleasant, and a joy in my old(er) age.  Rarely fussy, eats good, sleeps good, smiles almost to where I'm tired for him, I'm truly blessed to have such a good baby. 

Wow, I feel so much more genuine love and gratitude for my children.  I think this will be a very good thing indeed.

Storybook Treasures: When Grandma Came

I've never really attached myself too much with children's storybooks because we read so many and so many are not worth getting through once, let alone creating a relationship with it.  But in a desire to find books worth cherishing, I was thrilled to identify this book -  'When Grandma Came' by Jill Paton Walsh and illustrated by Sophy Williams as one.

Grandma has traveled the world over and  experienced exotic geographic location and witnessed the doings of wildlife in their natural habitats.  But none of these adventures compares to the excitement and wonder of a child.  As grandma explains each adventure she has participated in, she compares it to the adventure of her granddaughter.  Each page is a new stage in the granddaughters life - from infant, toddler, small child, and young child. 

I love the illustrations, the concept of childhood being the greatest wonder, and the poetic tone in portraying connections between the young and the old in a family.  This book captures the reality of nurturing a child as the joyful experience that it is.  The foundational development of a child's life is the greatest adventure anyone can experience in this life.

We're Being ALLITERATE

PERFECTLY PLACED 'P's

Galileo:  Practicing produces perfection, permanence, patience, preciousness, and power. 

Wilberforce:   Pillaging pirates eat pickled peppers on the porticus (porch) for prandium (lunch). [including a bit of latin],
 Panem et Circenes prevents personal prosperity.

Austen:  Pan prized his pink pipe.

Washington:  Peter Pan pecked a pair of purple pairs.

Hypatia:  A Princess purchased pink pants.

Joan of Arc:  The pretty pink dress on 'dat'

Growing Spiritually in the Spring

I've had a lot of events happen these last couple months that seem to be gearing me up for something, as I have felt closer and been filled with more desire to draw closer to the Lord than I have in a long time. 

Personal Progress
I've started working on my personal progress in earnest these last couple of months.  Every Sunday or during devotional personal study time, I work on it a little bit.  My 10 hour project will more likely be a lifetime project but other than that, I've completed all the FAITH requirements and have started DIVINE NATURE.  I'm hoping to encourage my girls to work on theirs without having to constantly remind them and hopefully I won't earn the medallion too much earlier than them. 

Revelation
I've loved my new tradition of reading the inspiring words of wisdom and progress on a few of the blogs that I'm following.  One theme that seems to be coming up frequently, is a greater awareness of the need for all, but woman in particular, to qualify for, receive, and respond to personal revelation.   Sister Julie B. Beck is quoted and pondered over repeatedly.  This has been a challenging area for me as I frequently see the Lord's interaction in the footprints behind me, but rarely recognize his guidance at the moment.  I'm happy to say that with concerted effort, prayer, and searching, I'm in the beginning stages of recognizing the Lord's intervention in my life at the moment that it happens.  Actually, I'm in awe at the amount of intervention I receive on a daily basis.  Now plans are being made on how to help my children recognize the Holy Ghost working in their own lives.

Service
I recently gave a lesson on the importance of giving service, and as most lessons, I got much more out of it than I'm sure anyone else has.  I have struggled with the ability to give service outside the walls of my home - money restraints, thoughtlessness, time constraints, unsure priorities, and just plain not in the habit of it.  So I've been making a concerted effort to do some type of service everyday.  Yes, I plan it on my to-do list.  I'm hoping with my prayers for opportunities, mixed with my attempts to heed promptings when they come and my best effort of seeking opportunities, that serving will become a strength and part of my nature.  But for right now, it takes a lot of work on my part.  Unfortunately, there are still a great many days that at the end of the day, the only thing I didn't get done was the service I had planned, but I do have some successes, and am confident that the Lord will change my nature if I'm persistent in my petitions. 

Passover/Easter
We were invited to join a friend for their celebration of the passover this year.  It was beautifully done and brought extra meaning to our own celebration of the Atonement when we partake of the sacrament.  I'm considering starting this tradition but still would like to create a family remembrance celebration with the restored gospel truths as the purpose.  We'll see what happens.  I had intentions of studying the last week of the Savior's life the week before Easter, but my intentions were swallowed up with urgencies and reactions.  And to make matters worse, I sunk into some type of depression because we were without funds to buy anything to put into the kids baskets.  I spent an entire day trying to brainstorm creative items to make to put in the baskets, but everything I could come up with still required some type of purchase.  So I shut down in regard to the holiday, and when my husband realized we didn't have any candy for the baskets, he spent $50 on junk easter candy that was supposed to go to a nobler cause.  By this time I didn't even care that he used our money foolishly, but I did feel a little guilty that I could have bought supplies to make something meaningful for a lot less money.  Hopefully next year will be more proactive regarding this holiday. 

Scripture Journals
One of my favorite inspirations I've received has been to begin a scripture journal.  In the past I've used notebooks or a loose leaf paper occasionally when I was clarifying something in my own mind.  I've also marked my scriptures or verbally discussed verses meaning.  But the transformation that has taken place from writing down the verse reference followed by a paraphrase of the principle/doctrine outlined and additional insights, thoughts, and questions has caused me to ponder the scriptures like never before.  I covered a composition notebook with fabric and it is exclusively for me to record my learning from my scripture study.  Whether this becomes a family keepsake/heirloom or just a tool for my own growth, I don't know but I am grateful for the sacred moments of pondering God's word and how it applies in my life.  I'm hoping to follow the suggestion and do it as a family so that I can teach my children to feast upon the word of God also.

Prayer Petitions
During Sacrament meeting, a speaker commented how we should emphasize a majority of our prayers in gratitude for answered prayers.  As I pondered this, I realized that I am not very effective at remembering what it was I prayed for and therefore was not expressing gratitude when my prayers were answered.  So I started taking my journal & pen with me when I prayed.  As I was communicating my desire, I would jot it down in my journal and over time have developed quite a long list.  The results have been surprising.  I not only can have a record of my requests so that I can immediately and frequently express gratitude but my petitions have been more consistent and the desire has worked in me as I ponder it more and deepen my dependence on the Lord.  Many times I review my list prior to praying (or during) and engage in a conversation with the Lord that is truely exersizing my faith more.  I am truely grateful. 

Approaching Zion
I watched a DVD called 'Celestial Education' that has opened my eyes a little wider to the purpose of my educating my children.  It explained the different levels of education as Telestial (compulsary, entertaining, minimum required - Star), Terestial (inspired, seeking truth, love learning - moon), and Celestial (Fulness of light and truth, guided by the spirit, mission driven - Sun).  I knew I had something with TJEd that was by far better than public school, but now I look forward to more fully incorporating the the Celestial Education into our schools so that we can be more effective instruments in building Zion, removing the curse, and fulfilling our pre-ordained missions. 
     When sharing this with my husband, we were also instructed by the bishop to look at 'another perspective' of family finances.  We only started the lessons but I'm so impressed at how it also put emphasis on our stewardship - versus ownership - to consecrate our earnings to the Lord.  I'm hoping as I study this more that it will help to change my heart to become the zion person the Lord needs me to be. 


Burdens Made Light
Unfortunately, Aristotle has been out of work for most of the spring, and as the wet weather continues, he still hasn't picked up a lot of sources of income.  This probably counts more as a blessing than a spiritual growth, but when I compare it to other times that we have been struggling financially, I can't help think that the Lord is helping us to grow, to be patient, and to exercise faith that he will provide for us.  Times have not been easy and we are doing without a lot of things.  I don't think I've made it into town for over a month.  But I have hardly noticed the hardships because it seems so insignificant compared to the blessings we've been experiencing.  I've also had an unusual amount of illnesses and incidents that I have put more trust in the Lord because of them.  A back ache because my back was out (couldn't even roll over or pick up my baby - let alone walk), pink eye (closed shut within 24 hours and very painful - and I might add very ugly), several colds and illnesses that spread throughout the family. 

Those are only a few of the highlights because as I grow closer to the Lord, it seems to affect and improve so many other areas of my life.  I'm truly loving the process and want to keep the growth happening.

SPICEE AWARD WINNER

We have a SPICEE Award Winner. 

Washington has completed all the tasks in each of the SPICEE categories before the last day of school and so, true to the contract, we will be entering the sliding doors of the Toys-R-Us store so that he can purchase a toy of his choice.  (Hopefully he'll choose something within our price range or we may have to put a dollar amount on it)

Washington completed the following goals this last semester.

S (Saintly) -  Morning and Evening Personal Prayers - 2 months
               -  Read Scriptures - 4X/wk - 2 months

P (Prosperity) -  Maintain Blood Glucose below 200 - 2 months

I (Inspired)  -  Structured Time for math activities
                  -  Structured Time for Language Arts Activities
                  -  Publish on Family blogspot - 3X
                  -  Read approved books - 2

C (Creativity)  - Complete requirements for all the Webelos Pins (20 pins)

E (Energy)  -  Regular physical Activity
                -  Brush teeth daily - 1 month

E (Entertainment) -  Plan a part of our monthly parties
                          -  Invite a friend to play monthly


CONGRATULATIONS SON!!!

Summer School - Zion's Trek, summer reading, & evening routine

Summer School has begun.  Our family set a new goal for the summer and it was practically unanimous.  We decided to focus on our health.  Initially there was talk of trying to lose so many pounds or inches, or even be able to do some pretty amazing physcial tasks, but I didn't like the feeling that was associated with that purpose.  I wanted the feel to be more of taking charge of our stewardship, our temple.  So we put a little religious twist to it so that our purpose for becoming more healthy is to be fit for the Kingdom as we trek from Hamer to Missouri to establish Zion.  

We calculated it to be about 1227 miles from here to there and so we needed some way to represent our progress.

A recent class on whole foods was our criteria for the journey.  We work toward our destination by doing the following things:
                      1)  Drink lots of water - 1quart for every 50 lbs we weigh
                      2)  Eat only whole foods - no refined sugars or processed grains
                      3)  Eat lots of Vegetables - 3 to 5 servings a day
                      4)  Physical Activity - at least a half hour 
                      5)  Retire to and Rise from bed Early in order to have quiet time for inspiration,
                            pondering, and study.

And since we wouldn't ever consider leaving a family member behind on a real trek, we are combining our efforts to make the journey.  It takes out the competitive edge but encourages everyones success and contribution.   Hopefully, we'll make at least 15 combined effort miles each day in order to reach Independence, Missouri by the end of the Summer (August 31st).

Summer Reading Program

My children are all excited about participating in the local library summer reading program.  The theme has to do with stories from around the world - so we'll be incorporating a lot of geography awareness in it as well.  And with a more relaxed summer school schedule, hopefully I'll really take advantage to spending more time reading story time books to my toddler and beginning readers.  Life always seems so busy at the other times of the year. 

We are currently reading 'The Hobbit' for our family read.  This one was Aristotle's request and he really is enjoying it - asking me to read after bedtime and even volunteering to do my dishes so that I can read it to him. 

Evening Routines
We've finally got the morning routine going on auto-pilot and so during the summer, we're focusing on establishing an evening routine so that when we get serious about studies again, we can focus on structured time of learning (rather than structured time that is continually being interrupted because we didn't get something done the night before).  Family rhthyms are so important but can sometimes be so difficult to keep maintained. 

Like our Pre-flight, we put the routine to music, this time a lullaby (since we are getting ready for bed).  So at 8:00 pm I start singing to the tune of Brahm's Lullaby.

                          SPICEE Mtg, Take a bath, Brush your teeth, Scripture Story
                          Family Singing, Family Prayer, and Family Record Keeping
                          Tuck in - Individual Prayers, with some time to read
                          Then lights out, pleasant dreams, while you're in God's care.

The Carrot and the stick during our training period is 'Stars to see the stars'.  I copied it from another family - when they do the evening routine (Post-flight) completely and correctly, they earn a star, and when they have earned the required amount, we take them to a movie theater.  If they don't have all the stars by the time someone else has, then that child will be staying home. 

Austen the Artist

And you thought Jane Austen was an author.  My daugher has fully appreciated her Christmas gift of art lessons this year.   I couldn't get the picture turned the way I wanted to so crink your neck a little to see it.

And for good reason becuase she has a lot of talent and definately has the passion for it. 

Art is her way of regrouping and refreshing herself.  Whenever she's a little frazzled, she picks up a pencil and begins doodling and although she may be gone (mentally as well as physically) she comes back acting and feeling much better.

These are just a dappling of her pictures.  We'll post more later.

Fraction lesson gone awry

"If you were to give this apple a number - what number would you give it?"  

I thought I'd have a simple object lesson to introduce fractions to the younger children.  But the older family members had to throw some philosophy into the equation.  Austen & Shakespeare said 8-9 respectively because they wanted me to cut it into pieces to share with everyone in the family.  Hypatia said 10 - then she admitted that she didn't have a reason for choosing that number other than it was close to the other numbers chosen.  Aristotle said "five - because when you cut into it, the star shape has 5 parts".  That got me thinking and I said "Three - because the core, the flesh, and the skin".  Then there was a discussion of whether the stem and the bud counted as a part in this sense and how the bud was the flower that had dried up.  As we examined it, we noticed that there were 5 petals.  Then we discussed how those were both fibonnci numbers - 3 & 5.  Washington chose "Six - because 5 parts plus 1 apple makes 6.  Wilberforce said "two - because it is on the second level of the food guide pyramid".   

After laughing about the interesting and varied perspectives, I said OK.  Think of this apple as the number 'one'.  If we were to cut this apple in half (as I slice it into two halves) - what number would you give it.  There were a few comments like 10 - double the 5 parts - no 9 becuase the stem is only on one side.  We observed the seed that got sliced in half and the tube like channels that fed the apple to grow.  Finally we continued on the dicussion of fractions that I had intended in the first place. ...

YEAH!  My kids are thinking out of the box - which means my lessons don't go as smoothly as planned but they are alot more effective at teaching them how to think. 

! Keeping it Positive !

Aristotle:  I didn't have to follow up behind all the kids to make sure they took care of the animals by themselves.  Progress.

Galileo: I am more successful at following my morning schedule!!!!!!!!!!!! Peace and Harmony are just around the corner because the morning routine is definately a vital behavior. 

Wilberforce:  I'm living  a slightly more active and healtthy lifestyle by walking regularly.

Shakespeare:  Woot Woot!!! The phone rang - it was for me.  I...was chosen... to be...an assistant counselor for the leadership retreat.  Yeah

Austen:  We got chicks!!!    And I got to watch two of them hatch. It was soooo amazing.

Washington:  I saw the pigs were out of water and I filled up barrell without being told to do it.  It's happening - I'm getting responsible. 

Hypatia:  I made a new friend with a girl who moved into our ward.