James and I created another nature table yesterday. He's such a magickal kid, he has that natural quality that some kids have, of just *knowing*, ya know? Anyway, He put rocks, shells, pinecones, his wand, and a branch and stump from a fallen tree outside on his nature altar. He decided to put two candles on, one for God one for Goddess. He also felt it was necessary to put his lego gun that he had created, on his altar (calling it a Nature Gun to make it more palatable to mama...lol). AND, he felt it was very important to put his Vitamin C on his nature altar. It was very important to him. Originally he wanted the whole big bottle of Vit. C. on it, but then agreed to just put three out in a little dish (one for him, one for God, one for Goddess). I love to see him interact with his nature altars and now that he's a little older (4) I can place it somewhere that he can more easily access it and interact. He's free to add or take away from his nature altar. He can play at it or do nothing with it at all. I think his adding the Vitamin C was his way of bringing the Sun to his winter altar. :)





I'm really excited about doing some more active things with James. I love the Oak Meadow curriculum...it's so NOT a curriculum, NOT schooly, but has wonderful ideas, philosophies, and guides the reader in creating rythyms to our day. I also use the book "Circle Round" with my children, in the same way, for spiritual inspiration, ideas, and to naturally nurture my kid's little spirits. My "plan" (which will inevitably change because James will have a different idea) is to have a little Circle Time after our morning ritual of coffee/computer/cartoon/juice. I'm excited about journeying with another little one, who will be my last (as far as I know). What a lucky human I am!!

Erin and I watched "Romeo & Juliet" (the modern version) last night. It was really good, I thought. Tragic! We'll watch "West Side Story" tonight. It'll be interesting to compare/contrast the two.

Adam has come to the conclusion (on his own) that he doesn't want to play the war-themed video games that he's been playing. He's decided that although he knows they're not real, it just doesn't FEEL right to him and he doesn't feel it's something that he should play. Totally his decision and realization. What wonderful things happen when you trust your children.

wow, i haven't posted here since October!! that's pretty lame. lol

After her Homeschool Leadership Retreat (which was fabulous), Amber came home and was a little unsure of what she wanted to do next. After lots of discussion and pondering and listening to her soul, she decided to stick with her decision to try going to college. But, she thought that maybe she would just go to Community College and take random courses, work part time, and save to go on the Homeschool Leadership Retreat in New Zealand in Fall 2011. After the holidays, she was feeling restless and like she just wasn't DOING anything. Amber is one who needs to be learning, engaged, enriched, and out there. And, basically, she was doing a whole lot of nothing (save her usual solitary activities) up in her room. She was started to sink into her depression and was feeling really crappy. We had a long talk and I made some suggestions and she had some realizations and things have changed since then. Amber is also a person who needs to have a purpose and ever since she was a very small child she would make lists and schedules for herself. So, she started setting some goals and making some lists and things got better. She applied for lots of jobs, took a trip to florida to see her guy, and has been productive in the small projects and tasks she's been giving herself. In December sometime, she realized that Community College isn't really what she wants and that she wanted to go back to her original plan of attending Chatham College. So, we applied, spent a couple of months doing the financial aid stuff, got her transcript and resume together, she went to an optional interview (if you choose not to take the SATs), and we waited. Last week she got a letter of ACCEPTANCE!!!!!!! AND....she got a Trustee's Scholarship!!! I'm so proud of her. We're excited and she feels again like she has some direction. Amber is going to be a fantastic college student. It's just right for her. She's a very natural learner and one of those people who just glows when learning and really living life. She's very excited. And the best thing is that she UNSCHOOLED through all of school. WE UNSCHOOLED and had absolutely no problem getting into a good college when that was her choice. What an affirmation.

The other kids are doing great. Erin is quiet and indecisive and not sure where she is or what she wants to do. yeah, she's 15. :) Adam has chosen to do cyberschool and is doing really well with that. i think it suits him (even though he does complain every day). but, it's what he chose, so......and james is a little bright light buzzing around. he's a master lego builder and astounds us with his abilities and creations.

That's basically where we are. In a very small nutshell. Living, loving, and always learning.

updates

It's been quite awhile since I posted. I've never been good at consistently journaling or writing in a diary. sigh.

It's autumn, now, my very favorite season. I love spending time outside in autumn. The air is crisp and cooler, the colors are beautiful, farmers markets are plentiful and provide me with the things I need for canning, and I just have an overall sense of calm and preparation.

The kids and I have been doing more regular type school stuff, according to their request. They go through phases with the way they learn. Sometimes we are exclusively and radically unschooling and other times they want to sit down and "do Math" and "do History." I enjoy the flexibility and just responding to their needs at the time. Erin and I are continuing to work through the Consumer Math course that we got last year from Oak Meadow. We're reading Greek Mythology and she's still doing Geography (although I think her interest in that is kind of ending so I'm not sure how long we'll continue that). She also expressed interest in doing Chemistry so I found a book at the thrift store and we're going to dive into that. That should be interesting!! Erin is very interest in make up (she's considering being a make-up artist in the future...for movies and fashion) so she and her friend are learning about making mineral make-up, which is cool. Adam is interested in History and has expressed the need (not "want" since he hates it) to improve his handwriting and general writing skills....so we're doing that together. James spends HOURS (literally) building Legos which is really awesome. I'm really impressed at his ability at only 4 years old (and he JUST turned 4). That's what he spends most of his time doing. Obviously, I see no need for any kind of instruction or "lessons" at his age. Occasionally, he wants to do "lessons" because he sees his big brother doing it. So, we sit down and cut paper or play playdoh or color. That lasts about 20 minutes. LOL

Amber (18) is off in Portland, on her Homeschooling Leadership Retreat. She'll be back in November. I'm so happy for her and proud of her. She amazes me. I love watching her move out into the world. :)

Life is good, winter is coming, and we're content in our big old house. :)

So my oldest, Amber (18), has decided that she is going to...ahem..."train" my son, Adam (11). His training includes Writing, and I'm not sure what else. I'm really excited that they're going to do this together. Amber is a writer and is really fabulous at teaching. She and Adam have a great Chemistry and he wants to learn from her. He really dislikes Writing but wants to write better so this will be perfect. I love that she is willing (and excited) to do this. I think they are going to do a couple of days a week. Can't wait to see what they come up with!

We have also been rediscovering the Library. We love the library but I have the unfortunate disorder that makes it impossible for me to return things on time which results in my paying fees. So, we kind of just forgot about going. James and I (and whoever else wants to on any given day) have started going again and I love to see him discover the library. He really enjoys it. James has a passion for everything Robotic and we've been checking out book after book on that topic. It's pretty awesome.

I think we're going to join our local indoor pool, as well. We thought it would be a good fall/winter thing to do together and would be great for James with his sensory challenges.

The Summer is wrapping up but I love that we enjoy the WHOLE season at home and that we haven't had to abruptly put a stop to the fun. We're getting in our last days of swimming, hiking, and exploring. This weekend we're camping out in our backyard, just for fun. We're going to sleep outside, have bonfires, roast marshmallows, tie knots, explore, and learn lots, I'm sure. Life is good!

We love painting rocks!!!

James

James (almost 4) has suddenly become very interested and inquisitive. Well, he's always been curious and stuff, but I feel like he's entering this new phase of really wanting to learn about the world around him, as far as soaking in information, facts, etc. James has some delays, so this is happening for him a little later then for a lot of kids...he's on his own schedule...but what a joy to see.

Currently he's very interested in bugs and robots. The robot thing has been an obsession for awhile. Almost daily I'm taping things onto a piece of paper which is taped around his arm, to create lasers and guys and mechanical things to make him a robot. It's wonderful. James has always had a hugely active and intense imagination. He gets into character and he IS that character. He's not just pretending, he becomes the character and is that where ever we go for that time. He is very often a robot....he talks like a robot, holds his arms stiff, etc. So cute. He's also become very interested in bugs, in part because of the loud presence of Cicadas this summer. They are deafening and the other day he found the discarded shell of one...thus began his interest. We've hiked and hunted for Cicadas, played with them, gotten books on bugs, and most recently made a house out of a box for his Cicadas. He is proudly telling everyone about exoskeletons and how delicate they are. He is scouring the books we went and got at the library, full of bugs and big colorful pictures.

It's a joy. I'm really loving his litte brain and having the privelege to witness his growth and learning.

that "fall feeling".....

Why do I have that "Fall feeling" already? It's very strange. And, even though we're unschoolers, we seem to naturally still follow the cycles of the seasons and use the summer to really decompress and get even looser then we are normally. It's a strange thing since it's not as if in the Fall we get out our curriculums and start to learn....we're learning all the time....but in the Fall I still get this feeling. It's like an anticipation, a craving, a feeling that I need to make a plan or get back into that Fall/Winter rythym.

We aren't "sit-down-and-learn" homeschoolers, obviously. As free learners we are open to the changing moods, passions, and experiences that life brings us. But, there are those times when the kids WANT something a little more, I don't know, "school-y." We go through cycles with that, as well. Some months you'll find us in our PJs at 3pm, baking cupcakes or playing a video game. Some months you'll find us up and dressed, sitting at the kitchen table doing Math or some project. It's all child-led, all the time.

Currently, my children are telling me that we're entering a more "school-y" phase. (And, believe me, our "school-y" is still far from school-y *lol*). Adam is expressing a desire to "do History & Science experiments" and Erin is continuing to want more structured "lessons" in Consumer Math and Geography. Of course, these "lessons" will be on their time, when they feel moved, and not really on any schedule (unless they want them to be). James is showing signs of developmental readiness in some areas, so I want to follow him there, as well.

Back to my "Fall feeling"......do any of you know what that feels like? It's really hard to verbalize....it's this nostalgic feeling of preparation and like we're getting ready for something new. As a child, I know I had this feeling when school-time was coming. I loved getting new notebooks, pencils, pens, a lunchbox, shoes, and school-clothes. I think that even though we don't necessarily do those things the same way I did as a kid, I still get that feeling. But, why am I having it NOW? It's only just turning towards August! I do love the feeling, though. It makes me want to do papier mache and lapbooks, it makes me want to do Yoga with my kids and go to the library. For us, those things don't only happen between the months of September and June....but it is curious that I still get that feeling and that we are still more dormant and unfocused in the summer months.