I Love the IMAX

Everette has been really busy with work over the past few weeks (thank You, God), and worked all last weekend too,  so he suggested the family go to the Royal BC Museum and the IMAX. 

What a fantastic idea!!  So, off we went down the windy Sooke Rd (some of us battle with motion sickness, and this road isn't helpful in that department) heading for the city on another wet spring day.

We had to split up a little, as not all were willing partners in the trip to the museum/IMAX this day.  Surprisingly, some of the dc didn't want to see the movies but would rather wander around the city with their older sister, drawing journals in hand and little Laars in tow.  So, the bulk of us took in.....

Beautiful!!  I loved it.

I remember when in about grade 5 I did a school report on Orangutans, clipping gorgeous photos from National Geographic (my all time fav nature magazine) to grace my report.  Orangutans have always been one of my favourite animals.

The elephants were delightful also.  They have inquisitive personalities, and their emotional communication has always astounded me.

There were a lot of Oohh's and Aahhh's from our family, with the animals cute antics and the beautiful scenery.  I almost wanted to volunteer and go live with both of these ladies and their orphans.

Many of the family had already seen

 when Robert Lacey was here to speak and host Q&A in February.  But,  some who had seen it before wanted to see it again,  and some wanted to see it for the first time, so we did a switch-eroo and the rest of us wandered through the museum.  There is so much to see there, you just have to pick a different area each time and take in as much as is possible before the Little People's attention span runs amuck.  Today we picked Entomology Etc., where we got to view all kinds of insects (wasps, butterflies and moths of BC), and then checked out birds & their eggs, and mammals and their poops!  and I took the little boys for a quick detour to touch the Real Ice where the Mammoth is displayed so they could touch it "Just Once More".

 One of the best things we've ever done with funds to help with out children's education, is getting annual passes to the museum and the IMAX.  It's one of those Gifts that Keep on Giving!!

Forced Medications

My mouth almost dropped open and got stuck there attracting flies. I am in shock that this has really happened.

Detroit SWAT team assaults African American mom who refused to medicate her daughter with antipsychotic drugs

What is the matter with our western society? How did we ever allow such tyranny in our 'free' lands of America?

We are not Free.

Americans are not Free.

Canadians are not Free.

Not truly Free.

Not Free to chose for ourselves and our loved ones.

I am appalled that people are being forced to medicate their children. Pressured to put them on psychotherapy drugs.  Or to subject them to chemotherapy treatment under court order.  Or insist on inoculations under threat of legal action.

Just because the authorities are indoctrinated to believe that these poisons are actually good for people, and that parents are not smart enough to judge what is in their child's best interest.

I realized today, while reading these articles, that if I ever go to a doctor or take my children (not a common occurrence, thankfully) to see one, that if I have no serious intention of filling a prescription I should courteously decline having the doctor even write a prescription out.  In the past I've taken their prescription and just not had it fulfilled.  But maybe its even best to not take it in the first place.

Obviously, its a good idea not to be going to the doctor unless absolutely necessary.  In my opinion, there is a reason we say they are  practising medicine!  And I believe that we ought to be the specialist of our own body, and be educating ourselves  and our children on how to best take care of our bodies.

I personally believe that allopathic doctors are necessary in acute cases ie., emergencies.  But for anything chronic, they don't have cures --only bottles of 'band-aids'.  They aren't solving problems, but generally creating others via side-effects of their treatments.

This incident with Maryanne Godboldo  is ludicrous and appalling.  Somehow, this tyranny and threat must stop.

Think For Ourselves

Everette had our weekly 'coffee date' this morning. Its often the time we can connect and discuss the agenda for our Sunday afternoon Family Meeting with the children.

Sometimes we discuss his growing business. Or we discuss books we've been reading. Or how I'm dealing (or not) with school or family issues on a daily basis. Or some habits we need to address, or the growth we see in individual children.

This morning we actually talked quite a lot about our society of sheeple (people being gullible as sheep), and how we need to take responsibility for ourselves, and help our children think for themselves. I reminisced about John Taylor Gatto's book "Dumbing Us Down" we used for discussion at a homeschool group up island.  How we are conditioned in many ways to disengage from our world and do as we are told.

Then I came home to read this about the USA.... (Canada has very much the same system/mindsets as our cousins to the south) 

Last-minute budget deal narrowly avoids the Big Government shutdown America desperately needs to balance its budget

Can the ball be stopped?  Maybe. I don't think it will be.

But I will continue to think for myself (freedom of choice), and teach my children to do so for themselves.  We will not do as we are told "just because", or because "It's always been done that way".  We will discover for ourselves what is right, what is good for us and those around us (the world), and not just what seems like a quick fix for the moment.

We will care about the future generations: have a mindset of Seventh Generation as the natives did.

An 11yo with a Message

This 11yo homeschooled boy has got it right about Food.

(DPP) Not For Our Family

Photo Project (DPP) and a Writing Workshop

What a day of New Things for Me.

I've never been a part of a photo project but decided "What the Heck" so I'm doing it.

The whole month of December I am going to commit (as long as I can remember on a daily basis) to taking and posting a photo for the day.  Sounds simple, but here I am at 11 pm just remembering that I was suppose to get this up and posted.  And this is only Day One!!!

I know I'm plenty busy, but this appealed to my Creative Side.  The Side that is so often neglected because I'm a busy mom.  And because the Research side of me easily wins out when its helpful with my childrens' school work.  I can always justify the Research part.  But the Creative side seems.....well......somehow selfish.  I know intellectually that it isn't selfish. But a conflict inside makes me feel like its selfish.

But, I'm doing this.  I'm gonna take some pictures everyday, and even if I don't have time to say something or explain, I'm just gonna shoot and put it up here.  Starting Now!!

This is Sigmund Brouwer.  Yeah, looking a bit retarded here, but hey, he was talking about silent but deadly farts, or maybe it was about the spider crawling over his French teacher's head for 15 minutes while everybody stared (rather than listened), or discussing whether any of us would have told him if he had a booger hanging from his nose.
 
I've never ever been to a Writing Workshop, but today I had the privilege of taking Danaka, Maret and Toveli to one put on by Heritage Christian Online School where Sigmund Brouwer shared.
He is from Red Deer (& Tennessee) and spends his time writing, and speaking to homeschool and public school students to encourage them to change their approach and attitude towards reading and writing.

And it was a Wonderful workshop!

Sigmund was totally down to earth, entertaining, utterly honest with tact and huge amounts of encouragement.  We all left there feeling that we can certainly write a whole lot more, with fun, creativity, and purpose.  I know my girls had a great time.  It was an afternoon well spent.

We were all encouraged to Dream.  Get our imaginations going and get it written down.  The editing and spelling and grammar can all be tinkered with later.  But the important part was Story.  Get the Story.  Figure out who your audience is, then tell Story that will draw on the audience's feelings.

Whether its to make us sad, or worried, or get us to laugh, tell us a story that effects our emotions, or else we aren't going to be drawn into Story.



PS....if you want to join the photo project, check-out the green button on the left side there.

The Rabbit Came to Live at Our House

Peter that is.

As in Peter Rabbit.

We have had some Peter Rabbit books grace our home in the past here and there, but now, we actually own The Complete Tales of Beatrix Potter.  And I am happy!!  It was something I almost ordered this year (and the last few years) with the childrens curriculum, along with The Complete Tales of Winnie-the-Pooh but I put it off yet again.

And then today Everette and I stole away for a Coffee Break (unusual these days) and lo and behold, but he received some phone calls which gave me permission to sneak out to the adjoining New & Used Bookstore to spend my time wisely, and what do I find but the winner of childhood books in perfect condition at a fraction of the new price and voila, Peter came home with me.  And his stories have been read throughout the afternoon and evening in their entirety. 

When its called The Complete Tales, it really IS!  I didnt realize how much was edited out of the familiar versions I had read.  And now I really get an education in Beatrix Potters writings.  And so do my children.

And they are loving Beatrix's stories, right along with Mom.

Lapbooks

I heard about making Lapbooks years ago from other homeschoolers, but we just never did them at all.   I guess I just didn't see what all the excitement was about, and the children and I were busy scrapbooking our life.

But I now have a new appreciation for Lapbooks, and I see a spark that has ignited an excitement in several of the children, particularly Maret who has been busy working on all things Horsey.

Inside this refolded folder she has several small reports on pedigrees, common horse names for the USA and the UK, the top 10 Race-horses, etc.

And the exciting thing is that she is self-motivated to do the research, do tidy printing, and work tirelessly on something that ends in a project she can hold and proudly share with others.




Gaelyn, needing more help from mom, has also accomplished a few Lapbooks.  Hers are actually more of a coming together of work she's already done.  I just put it into a Lapbook form so she can show it off in a more pleasing presentation.

Here's her book on Parts of a Flower, and includes some info on the need for sunshine and water and nutrients that she narrated to Mom. There's also a cross-word she did, and some flower pedals she drew for a little math practise, and several different types of flowers she coloured along with a diagram of a flower that she labeled the parts.
The rose below was partially covered over (on purpose) when I was printing it off so she had to try and draw in the other part of the rose as to what it would look like.

This was a flip-up book Gaelyn did to help her with the Days of the Week.  So sweet what she drew to help her remember the names of the days.  Hard to see for some of them, but let me explain.
Monday is a moon and stars.  Good connection between Monday and Moon-day.
Tuesday is a pointing finger.  As in "I am choosing some candies.  Choosing sounds like Tues....day!"
Wednesday has a picture of swirling wind.  Wed  ~~ wind.  Sounds close to me!!
Thursday gets a 3, because it starts with the same beginning sound, Th
Friday has challah, because we often celebrate the beginning of Sabbath with the traditional braided egg-bread, challah.
Saturday is a day of rest, right, and we sit on chairs.  Sat.....on a chair.
Sunday, no brainer.  You got it!  It's a Sun.

Gaelyn had (close to) tonnes of loose papers that she was doing copywork on from Draw Write NOW! books, and I lumped the farm and other animals all together in an accordion type thing.....



and now she can flip through her writing and see it like a book (that's actually taller than her when it's all pulled out).  She has some simple drawings she can look at, too.

I've unloaded of most of our scrapbooking paraphernalia, which was hard for me but I did it, and so now the Lapbooking is helping me feed the creative side of me.  And its giving a real boost to the children as they see their hard work being displayed, as if it is treasured.

These are humble beginnings, but I know the children will get more and more creative, and more skills to keep them tidy and well displayed.  Mitchell and I worked on the Months of the Year, and are now collecting information for one on Ancient Egypt.  Gaelyn will be doing one on the Provinces and Territories of Canada, and Toveli will hopefully do something about plants (the bug hasn't hit her yet).  Danaka is actually doing one on some Maths Formulas to help her remember them, and likely something on the Elizabethan period.

If you are interested in checking out Lapbooks, there's loads and loads of stuff online, some free and some not.

Go for it.  We are having a blast.

Meet the Teacher

The childrens' teacher Miss Mac came to meet us for the first time, and as you can gather from the picture she was warmly welcomed by the children, and they enjoyed her reading stories and showing her some of the school-y type of stuff they've done recently.  It's been quite an adjustment going from unschooling to trying to do some school stuff to jump the hoops of being enrolled and having funding available to pay for some educational expenses.

Unbeknown-est to busily-reading Miss Mac was that Laars, sitting behind her, started to spit/blow bubbles and was fascinated at how they looked in the rays of sunshine coming thru the window!!

We fessed up later.  She had a good laugh.  All is well.

Thumbs Up for the House

wWe are moving to Sooke!

I heard from the landlady today and its all set for sometime next week.  Depending on how much cleaning and any fixing up she might have to do this upcoming weekend after the current tenant moves out, we will be residents in Sooke no later than Oct 1st.

Of course we are all excited.  Envisioning ourselves resident in the house isn't as cool as actually physically being there, but we'll practice patience for just another week!

Everette is excited to get his Victoria-area business going, and we'll all be working on our New Normal~ New Schedules.  So many routines get put on hold when you live in transition, and especially while we are staying with friends.  There are so many people to spend time with, more activities to do, less space, stuff unpacked, etc., so much goes by the wayside.  But in 2 weeks from now our family will be tweaking out how we want things done in our new house, and where we should store everything.  I love doing that.  And its a good thing, since Everette and I have had more than our share of moves.

Like I've mentioned before, I am excited to see what living a Minimalist lifestyle will look like for us at our new house.  It has much more floor space than I think we need, and a garage that doesn't fit our 15-passenger van and we don't own stuff to store in there (hallelujah!).  At present we don't even own couches or any living room furniture, and no kitchen table or chairs, or bar stools for the kitchen island.  So it will be sparse..... and lovely!!

And lots of places to store our books probably.  Books and games.  And we'll be setting up our infra-red sauna there too.  Everette's excited about that.

There are 2 bedrooms upstairs (besides the master bedroom) perfect for making a Boy's Room and a Girl's Room.  The obvious arrangement would be for the girls to take the pink room, and the boys get the girls room.  But those of you who know Maret know that she's going to be sleeping in the Boy's Room!!

That's it for the news about the house for now.  I can post pics when we get moved in.

Danica (she likes that spelling better than Danaka) and I had a good weekend in Vancouver area.  She joined me along with my Mom and Layne at a free event with Amega Global on Friday night, and then I spent Saturday at a training day while the 3 ladies shopped at Value Village and then Danica and Layne hit the White Rock beach for awhile.

Us girls stayed up way past my bedtime chatting which was enjoyable, and I got to sleep in Sunday morning and awoke to yummy smelling  (but absolutely not healthy) crepes suzettes made by mom.  Then Layne and I watched 'The Living Matrix' which was a fascinating documentary we had to keep pausing so we could discuss it.  Its all about energy fields, particularly about zero point energy field, and the amazing creation and functioning of our bodies.

The best part about going away is the coming home.  It's true.  I was a proud mama to find Everette brought 5 of the children to the ferry to pick D and I up.  The hugs and kisses are always so precious.  And I have such a handsome man to greet me.

I am Blessed.

More Update?.....I have a new site I'm building and will be moving some of my applicable posts from here over to there.  It's at www.crunchyminimalist.com but you'll have to give me a few days to get something up!  It's extremely minimalist (blank) at the present time (hehehe).

Much on my plate, actually.  Everette and I decided to enroll 4 of the girls for distance schooling. They are in practicality still homeschooled as they won't be attending a day school in a building, but this year we will be meeting goals of the ministry of education and being answerable to them with weekly contact and some portfolios throughout the year.  It will be more structured than we are used to, but I know that all of us can rise to the occasion, and in a weird sense I am looking forward to some accountability, not because I believe I need to answer to others about the successes/failures of my children (I do that before God) but because knowing that someone else is checking up on me might just be what I need to pull up my socks and do more of what I actually say/think I want to be doing.  I'm sure you all know how easy it is to procrastinate.  Easy as pie!!

Danica and Maret are both planning to take some online courses, and the rest will be facilitated by Yours Truly.

Minimalists

My new vocabulary word.

Minimalist.

I love it, and it seems to be fitting our family's lifestyle. And I think the transitions we've been going through both recently and over the past 3 years since we originally left BC are leading us to embracing Minimalist ideology whole-heartedly.  Seems we started choosing this minimalist lifestyle 3 years ago without having a label to give it. 

Maybe we wouldn't be at this place if all of our plans had worked out the way we originally planned. Maybe we wouldn't be making the changes on purpose that we are now choosing to make. Maybe this is another Beginning of Change that will change us forever.  And we will be forever Thankful for.

Anyways, by following the rabbit trail I somehow ended up checking out Everett Bogue's site where he shares how he "adopted a minimalist lifestyle, and discovered that a little can go a long way, if you choose to live the right way." Click here to view more details

And I know that near the beginning of the rabbit trail it was Tammy Strobel that got me hooked.  I read this article and then started following her blog, and now she has this Just-Released Book out which is so exciting.  Click here to view more details 

Then there is a book called The Minimalist Cleaning Method which is right down my alley because I hate the thought of using toxic chemical cleaners in my house, because its bad for our family, and its bad for the environment, and its bad on the pocket book.  And I love the look of space under my cabinets, which seems rare to see in the average person's household.

(Note: I've become an affiliate to the above mentioned books because I believe in their message and want to share it with the world.  Its not only for your own benefit, but for the world's benefit.  So, if you want to read them, please order them through my links so I can benefit from the sale.  Thnx.)

I'm feeling a bit like a child in a candy store.  I am tantalized by so much that I see here in the Minimalist lifestyle circle.  I stand in awe at their creativity, their thinking-outside-of-the-box, their ingenuity, their guts to march to a different beat.

It doesn't seem like such a big deal for me, in a sense, to march to a different beat.  It seems we've been doing that for along while now.  With home-educating for more than 20 years now, to having more than the average children, to unschooling, to leaving institutional church, and eating High Raw, home- and water-birthing, and, and........

So, not much more to becoming a minimalist........

Well...... change always includes some discomfort and work.

But its so exciting and rewarding.   

PS  Realistically, this will be more of a challenge with so many people to 'convince' in our household, but I think my dc are very, very flexible, and so willing to change to better the world and their own health.  After all, they've all basically given up raised mattresses for sleeping on and prefer something thin on the floor, like just a couple of blankets or a sleeping bag with blankets on top.  That's a huge hurdle for some.

Unschooling

Tea Party at School?

This morning for some odd reason I was recalling a conversation a few years back at a homeschool meeting where a mom was talking about how she has a weekly Tea Party with her girls as part of her homeschool curriculum.  I asked her "You actually consider that part of their curriculum?" to which she replied along the lines of "Absolutely!  I think it's important that they learn manners and how to serve one another."

This morning, just like back at that meeting, I was thinking how odd it is that we consider normal everyday events or life skills as needing to be taught as school curriculum. 

Isn't it strange to break our life down into little lessons to teach?  Shouldn't our children be learning these things thru life experience, living in family, living in community?  If our children are engaging with people of all ages around them, they should be learning by example many of the things that they need for being established adults.  Not necessarily on a time-schedule as set out by an 'educational board', but when the opportunity and the interest of the child arises. 

I think I might have a Tea Party today with Gaelyn who is looking for A Date with Mom after I was away for 4 nights, but I think we'll just use it to reconnect and enjoy each others company.  I think a Tea Party is a great idea to connect.  I just find it strange that we take that sort of thing and make it a course.  Like PE.  Isn't exercise best to just be part of life (both work AND fun?) rather than a course?

Unschooling......Living Life!

The Way This Big Family 'Home Schools'

Many people ask us how we 'home school', so I thought I might just throw together something to say about it.


First off, I'm kind of put-off by that label.....home school. First off, it implies that we do what they do at school, but instead of going some where's for the day, we do the same sort of thing here at home. (We don't.)

Secondly, it's with an assumption that 'schooling' of any kind is a normal occurrence, and that to not school is abnormal.

Thirdly, in the 'home school movement', our family would be considered more of the 'unschooling' group. Very un-bookish (re: textbooks). So, we aren't a typical 'home school' family.  (Not sure we are 'typical' in any sense of the word!)

Fourthly, the assumption is that children go to school, or do school, as a means of gaining an education.  As if nothing can be learned outside of the acceptable 'going' and 'doing'.  As if learning is something to acquire at a designated place, in an ascribed manner. Like filling a bucket up with something that is measurable (the whole reason for testing).  And one thing is considered more worthy to be acquired, and that worthiness is decided upon by.......Whom??

My philosophy, shall we say, is very simple.

We learn by being.

 By being inquisitive; curious. 

Being present in the moment. 

By questioning.  

By knowing there is never a stupid question.

We learn by experiences that delight our senses. 

Exploration, whether that is via books, or ones imagination,

or physically exploring a subject or place. 

We ingest information when we have an appetite for it,

not when it is forced.

My motto basically is "We Learn By Living".

This really is The Simple Life.  The life lived around relationship, more than accomplishment.  Motivated by relationship with one another, and with God, rather than a list of what one must know or do to be considered successful.

I know that I still have much to learn.  And what do I consider worth learning about?

LOVE

Read 1 Corinthians 13.  Known as The Love Chapter.  I can do all the wonders of this world, both physically and spiritually, but if I have not love...........I am nothing.  Really, 

Love is All We Need! 

 

 

(My philosophy is pretty much the same when it comes to my relationship with my Loving Heavenly Father. It is not about the doing, the going, the measuring. It's the being. I am His and He is mine. It's that simple. I just am.)

Question for You:  Do you have a motto you live by?

Free Books to Read Online

If you aren't aware, there are thousands of books available to read online for free.  Places like bibliomania.com
That's where we get some of our classic reads from.  Like at present I am reading aloud to Maret "Robinson Crusoe" by Daniel Defoe.

Although it isn't nearly as comfy as curling up on the couch with a book in hand, it certainly fits a bill for living a simple life for a book loving family who is frequently packing up and on the road traveling yet again.  And boxes of books not only take up alot of space, they tax the back muscles moving them here and there.  Other homeschooling families know full well the love of books and how hard it can be to part with these beloved-friends, but sometimes life calls for adjustments, and thinning down on books has been one of those changes we've had to endure.

But at least there is a way around the bulk of all those books.  I am thankful for those who upload wonderful books on the internet so we can meet new friends and old ones on electronic pages.  Not ideal.  But still wonderful.

Next on the list of "To Read" is Heidi. Requested by Toveli.

Question for You: What's next on Your "To Read" list?

My Kinda Math

I don't think God meant for us to sit in a classroom all day working out of textbooks and filling in blanks. There is so much to learn by doing, and engaging, and experiencing. And there's no stress, and such flexibility. That's partly why we are unschoolers who learn by living our lives and learning along the way. We love this lifestyle although we are aware it makes many people very nervous (especially some Grammas). It works for us.

One way to learn math in a fun and painless way is by utilizing what are called Living Math Books. There's a whole site Living Math devoted to that way of learning, full of tonnes of info, endless ideas, and wonderful reading lists and game suggestions.



Here's a Squidoo article on Transitioning to Living Math,
how one homeschooling mom moved from math curriculum to a living math style that worked for her and her family.


Question for You: How do you like to learn or practice math concepts?

Encouragement to Homeschoolers

MTV: "True Life: I'm Homeschooled"

MTV Series - "True Life: I’m Homeschooled"
Are you a homeschooler with a story to tell? If so, MTV would like to hear from you. Over a million American young people are home learners. But for those who aren't, homeschooled kids can seem mysterious, and often what's unknown about homeschoolers gets filled in with myths and stereotypes. On this episode of "True Life" we'll show what it's really like to be homeschooled and
we'll help break some of those misconceptions. Are you an athlete who has to do twice the work to get recognized? Or maybe it’s a challenge to get into the college of your dreams because your class rank is "1 out of 1"? Are you about to start or stop homeschooling? Whatever your situation or story is, if you or someone you know might be interested, we’d like to hear from you. Please include your name, age, location and phone number and email us at:
TLhomeschool@gmail.com

Our goal -- as with all episodes of “True Life” -- is to help MTV’s young audience understand why many young people, and their parents, choose to homeschool. We will treat the people who participate in this documentary -- and whatever educational, philosophical or religious beliefs they possess -- with respect. “True Life” is a documentary series that’s been on MTV for more than 10 years.

It chronicles the stories of young people in all kinds of situations, from global and political issues like conflict and natural disasters to personal achievements and family matters. "True Life” is not a reality show. Our producers follow strict ethical guidelines and carefully avoid influencing our subjects’ stories. It is also not a news show – there is no host, reporter, or narrator. We allow our subjects to tell their own stories in their own voices.

For more on “True Life,” visit: www.truelife.mtv.com.


Question for You: Do you enjoy Reality Shows?

Public schools stifle kids’ free will

just click on the title above and it will take you to an excellent article about homeschooling, but particularly about unschooling.

Question for You: What do you think about 'unschooling'?