Three States I Would Like To Visit by Avonlea

There are three states I would like to visit someday. It would be exciting to go to new places. The states I would like to go to are: Vermont, Massachusetts, and Maine.

The first state is Vermont. I enjoy snow and there's lots of snow in Vermont. Next, is Massachusetts. Cape Cod in Massachusetts has beautiful scenery. Lastly, is Maine. I've seen pictures of Maine's beautiful fall leaves.

I would like to visit these three states someday. I would like to travel to Vermont, Massachusetts, and Maine because their beauty makes me gasp.

The Children's Hour by Annie

"Between the dark and the daylight,

When the night is beginning to lower,

Comes a pause in the day's occupations,

That is known as the Children's Hour."

*Longfellow

This poem has been making the cinnamon roll circuit of my mind lately and has finally arrived in the middle. The middle being where action takes place.

There was little I needed to revamp for school this semester, fall went very smoothly (despite a very thorny Rose). The only curriculum things I altered were spreading a week of grammar out to two weeks (filling in with more journaling and poetry), and adjusting a few things on Avonlea's checklist. Avonlea really loves languages and cajoled me to let her take Spanish. She also is very interested in calligraphy. So I bought a Spanish course and a calligraphy book and gave her free hand in them.

The only major change I added was the addition in my day of a Children's Hour. I ask things of my children all day. They, for the most part, obey without grumbling. So many times when they ask me to do something with them I have a legitimate excuse, "Sweetheart, my hands are covered in chicken grease right now," "I don't really think a bike ride in 30 degree weather sounds appealing," "I hate monopoly." etc. So....I told them on Sunday night, that I am setting aside 3-4pm every day for them. NOT for their education, NOT for their nourishment, NOT for their laundry or dust-balls, but for THEM.

So this week, Avonlea, Grant, and I finish afternoon school, get the babes out of quiet time and discuss what we are going to do with our hour. The first day we played sardines (like hide and seek) for the whole time, Tuesday we played red-light green-light, mother-may-I (which I discovered they had never heard of), and duck-duck-goose. Today, they wanted to bake brownies.

So for one hour, I am theirs exclusively.........and it's the best spent hour of my day.

The Christmas Stocking by Avonlea

It all started by Mommy telling us we weren't going to have stockings this year. Instead, we decided to earn money for little children in other countries so we hung up our stocking for them. We started in early December and by Christmas Eve our stockings for the children were bulging. We opened the stockings up on Christmas Eve night and had ...... $960.86 for the children from different countries! We were so excited! We each got $160.00 to spend. I spent it on a goat and two chickens for $100 plus a fishing kit and another pair of chickens for $65.00(Mom gave me five extra dollars) and so we'll make some people happy for Christmas. It makes me feel joy in my heart to share with other people.

Christmas Break

We took three weeks off for Christmas break this year. The kids worked really hard during the fall and I wanted to reward them. I also wanted to focus on different types of education. It is often quoted that "learning is a lifestyle." Sometimes that concept can be hard to grasp. I think of it in the same way I think of cooking. I usually cook my tried and true, I always have the ingredients on hand recipes, but sometimes I branch out and make something wild. Either way eating is consistent around here. It's automatic, yet it requires planning and diligence. So with schooling.
We do the tried and true, daily work and I see mental growth in my children. Then we take a break, go somewhere fun or do something different. The three focuses of this Christmas break are literature, social graces, and philanthropy. I discovered a newish book entitled, Read For The Heart by Sarah Clarkson. Sarah is a young girl who made a compilation of her favorite books. I went through it with my laptop on my lap and my library card in hand. Saturday, the weekend before our break started, everything was in, and it was Christmas before Christmas. Avonlea and Grant have been imbibing all sorts or good literature and Rowan has fallen in love with the Billy and Blaze series.
The second thing we are focusing on this season is social etiquette. Really, December is the best month of the year to work on this. All it entails is preparation. If I take the time to prep my kids on where we are going, how to address the people we'll be seeing, and tips on ways to make others comfortable and happy, our social engagements go so much more smoothly. They are learning that if an adult (or anyone really) asks them a question they are to ask one back after answering. We have gotten huge reactions (which is sad) over this in the grocery store. The cashier asks the kids, "How are you today?" They respond, "Good thank you and how are you?" Inevitably, the cashier freezes, stares is disbelief and comments on how rare it is for kids to care or even answer! This has led to some wonderful conversations between the cashiers and my children. The cashiers feel valued and my kids see how little it takes to bless another.
We have brainstormed together this season for ways to bless people. The kids participate in the planning and the execution. We have a Christmas stocking hung at the fireplace where they deposit all the money they make from extra chores. We'll count it on Christmas eve and use it to buy a cow or a chicken (depending on the amount) for a family in a third world country. We danced at a nursing home. We're babysitting a family of kids so the parents can go out shopping. We picked out and wrapped presents for a struggling family. At Christmas opportunities abound and it's such a joy to draw our children into them, to open their eyes how they, even they, can show God's love to others.
So I try to teach these things but I can really only model. The Holy Spirit will be the one to truly instruct their hearts. So I pray and I do all in my power to alter the menu and make it appealing for little appetites. God please give them appetites for You!

The Craft Table by Annie

The first semester of the school year is almost at it's end.
It's been a very busy, full semester. No complaints of boredom, that's for sure!
However, as the holidays and the cold come, I feel they need a new venue for their energy.
I did a craft table a few years ago and it was a huge success. Sometimes I show them some fun projects they can try. I might leave out needles, thread, popcorn and cranberries. Maybe strips of colored paper and a stapler. Sometimes cardboard and straws and directions for fairy wands. Or maybe nothing but stickers and crayons and stuff......

They end up making all of their Christmas presents for their family and friends. And as you can see by their smiles, they have a great time doing it!

Counting Books by Avonlea

We found out an amazing fact! We're counting all the books, to see how much we have. Me and Grant counted 1,634 books in the basement. We still have 2 storys up to do. Pray for us!!! I alone had 164 books that were mine. WOW!!!!!



I love reading good books. Some of my favorite books are Nancy Drew, Daughters of Faith, Jack and Annie [Magic Tree House], Moccasin Trail, and tons of other nice books!

Grant's Photos

Grant's assignment on Thursday was to take 10 pictures. The idea was for him to take pictures of the reasons he loves being at home and home-schooled. He will write his reasons under the pictures.
I like playing with my sister at home. I like listening to her music.

I like tackling my cat. He's fun to play with.

I like catching food for my frogs and I like to play with them. I catch flies, crickets, spiders, and soldier bugs.

I like to feed my big frog crickets and watch him eat them. He's fun to hold.

I play with my dog lots. We have races. Her name is Winnie-the-Pooch.

This is Tim and Monk. Tim is the dog and Monk is the monkey (it's really curious George). I like throwing them.

This is Guinevere, my cat. I like to play with her, she's very nice.

This is my very nice mommy, I love her very much. This is little Rosy. It is fun to kiss them.

This is my brother Rowan. I really like to play with him. I like to throw stuffed animals at him and I tackle him.

This is Tim again. He is my favorite stuffed animal. I had a no platelets and Nancy Jackson gave him to me and when they looked at my platelets again I had just the right amount.