The Whole World....

 

The earth balloon came to BSC today.  And I could not give up the chance to bring Scarlette.  We looked and saw where we lived, where Grandma spent the winters.  Where Aunt Jodie lived.  And where Ms. Azlin is spending the summer.  We also saw where Santa lives.

 

If this comes near you, I highly recomend you go see it.

It is fabulous.

More Peas, Please!

Also, in my garden are peas.  Or perhaps, I should say there should be peas.

The day that the first little pod showed his green crispy head, I yelled out with joy, to all that could hear.  The peas are here!  That was my downfall...  The ears that this exclamation fell on are 4 and 2 years old.  And LOVE peas.  Being as young as they are, they are very short on the patience virtue.  So every day, they go into the garden to pick the peas.

Thus far, the longest pea (pod) I have come across is about 3 inches long, and still too immature to actually have peas in it!  Due to aforementioned 2 and 4 year old feasting on pea pods. 

I know I should not complain too much about a few toddlers fetching their own snacks during the day, and those snacks being the organic vegetables in our garden, however, I would like to at least have enough peas at some point this season to have with a meal, maybe some chicken with it?  maybe even enough just to sprinkle into a pasta salad.  At this rate, it seems like that is just a dream I have. 

Meanwhile...I say...let them eat peas.

My Garden

Every spring...well, late winter, I start my indoor seedlings.  My family has to do without eating dinner at the dining room table for a few months, as it is full of pots, and soil and seeds.

When it finally becomes warm enough in this New England weather, and often before so, I transfer them to the outdoor garden.  All seems fine.

Except, that I compost.  Composting is a great way to reduce the amount of trash you produce, and to put back into your garden organic material that will help it's fruitfulness...unfortunately, you also put back seeds.

My intention this year was to have a nice and orderly garden, I mapped out where the corn, the tomatoes, the peppers, the onions, the peas and the beans should be planted.

All worked well until about 2 weeks ago, when all kinds of plants began sprouting.  Now, I am unable to determine weather these are pumpkin, squash, cucumbers, watermelon, or gourds.  They are not in rows, they have no rhyme or rythem in their growth, they are just growing.

So, I am letting them grow. 

Tonight, as I was weeding around these plants, I thought to myself, that they are very much like children.  I was weeding and watering and fertilizing.  I don't know what they are going to be... maybe something good, maybe not.  But my job, is not to decide whether to weed or not, or pull them up or not, or to fertilize or not...of course I do... they are plants in my garden, and I will do everything I can to ensure that they are fruitful.  Just like kids

I will let you know what they yield..both my kids and my garden...when I know.

The Shack

 

I have just finished reading the book, The Shack, by William P. Young.  It came out last year, and was given to my by my Mom, after she read it.  My brother and my sister have also read it, and I purchased a copy for a dear friend of mine.

IT IS AN AWSOME BOOK.  AND I RECOMMEND YOU GET YOUR HANDS ON A COPY RIGHT NOW!!!

Click here to go to the website.

Will it change your life?  No. Will it change how you think about your life, probably. 

I don't want to write about it too much, for fear that I give away good plot lines.  All I can say is go and get a copy and decide for yourself.

A GREAT DAY FOR UP!!!!

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Get your own

Why unschooling is right for us?

About a year ago, when Scarlette was only 3 years old, many people were already encouraging me to get her into pre-school, or pre-pre-school (what ever that is). Warning me that if I did not start the search early enough, she would not get into a "good" school.

What is a good pre-school? I thought to myself? I was in the process of trying to find a good college for Briana! I wasn't really worried about Scarlette getting into an Ivy League pre-school. The more I thought about it, the more I realized I did not want her in school. I loved being home with both her and Jayden (most days). I did not want to toss her into the education system at the age of 3!

Briana and Hanna went to a total of 6 different schools through out the area, private and public. I was never really happy with any of them. Being a single Mom, and working 2 jobs proved it impossible to home school, and so, I had to deal with the useless homework worksheets, the projects that I mostly completed, the books that they had to read (even though we had already read them as a family), the waste of time, and the fustration that they had with trying to fit into the cliques. They learned the importance of a letter grade instead of the importance of learning something you love, and loving to learn.

They have both excelled scholastically, and some may think, "Why fix something that isn't broken?" "why not follow the same path with the younger children?" Because, although scholastically Briana and Hanna have done well, it isn't all about scholastics, it is about relationships within the family, the community. It is about learning what you want to learn; about the stars, or spaceships, or why snails don't have legs. It is about paving your own way instead of walking down the path of others.

With unschooling, I can let my child lead me. I can facilitate educating them, but in reality, they will be teaching themselves, how to learn, why to learn, when is the best time for them to learn, and they will not be punished, humiliated, or exasperated by the learning process. (hopefully)

I have realized just how short a child's childhood is, and to send my babies to school for 8-9 hours a day, then come home, do homework, bathe, eat, and get to bed early enough, will rob both me and them of their childhood. So for now, we choose unschooling.

I hope you enjoy our journey as much as we do.

A beginning, an ending and a whole lot of middle

I think that blogging is a lot like scrap-booking, long distance running or speaking a foreign language. Basically, that "I should have started years ago." and "How can I possibly start now?"

However, I imagine that now is as good a time as any.

My oldest daughter has graduated and is going away to college, I have decided that I am going to un-school my 2 little ones, and my husband wants to sell the house and RV full time. So a blog is a good way to keep in touch, share information, and muse over the inevitably interesting future.