Poetry Friday -- Morning

I'm not a morning person.

By nature, I'm the classic night owl.

I once happily sat up from 1-6 a.m. typing up a letter to a dear friend (I went through all of my old journals and compiled every entry about him, creating a chronicle of our friendship.) That seemed natural to me. I made it through several years of college without ever taking an 8:00 class. That seemed natural, too. I used to think one couldn't act truly human until sometime after 10 a.m.

But, my days of staying up late and typing till 6 a.m. came to an abrupt halt when I had children. Because children get up early, I've had to learn to get up early. And, when my children were very, very young, "getting up early" translated, for me, into "torture." They expected me to not only be awake but alive and alert and -- oh, my heavens -- to act like a good mommy. It's been an education.

And, over the years (and now that Ramona sometimes actually sleeps later in the morning) I've come to appreciate the beauty of an early rising that is accompanied by coffee and a bit of time to myself. I still don't get up at 4 a.m., like my wonderful morning-person-friend Margaret does (still staying up too late to do that) but I do love that tiny window of time in the morning, when it's just me, the coffee, and perhaps that cello on the radio that Billy Collins mentions in this poem.

Morning
by Billy Collins

Why do we bother with the rest of the day,
the swale of the afternoon,
the sudden dip into evening,

then night with his notorious perfumes,
his many-pointed stars?

This is the best—
throwing off the light covers,
feet on the cold floor,
and buzzing around the house on espresso—

Read the rest of the poem here.

Poetry Friday is being hosted today by Two Writing Teachers.
Find the whole round-up here.

Christmas Mosaic

Cay Gibson's new book, Christmas Mosaic is available now from Hillside Education.

This book is a wonderful resource for Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany. In addition to a terrific booklist and suggested activities, it offers essays from:

Margot Davidson
Kathryn Faulkner
Elizabeth Foss
Alice Gunther
Dawn Hanigan
Jennifer Miller
Gwen Wise

and, ahem, me.

Okay, so call me biased.

But, it is a wonderful resource and the kind of book I love to curl up with when pumpkin bread is baking and I have a cup of coffee by my side. I can peruse, dream and plan to my heart's content (and then, of course, uncurl myself and visit the library and the bookstore.)

I love to add new books to our liturgical year collections, and I have a feeling I'll find a few new gems in Christmas Mosaic. Thanks, Cay, for asking me to be a small part of this lovely project (my contribution is just one tiny essay) and thanks for all your hard work on this book. I'm looking forward to digging in!

I'm giving her an A+

The girls were having a snack and chatting tonight, and Ramona (we found out later) was trying to remember the word "attitude." She was demonstrating "a good one" and "a bad one" but we didn't yet know what word she was trying to recall.

"You know," she said, "it's like grammar, only it's the way you act."

A couple more Christmas ideas

Looking for handmade things? Rebecca at A Gyspsy Caravan has taken a "Handmade Pledge" and she has some great suggestions. Yesterday's links also include some homemade and handmade ideas.

Here are a couple more:

Doll Clothes Super Store has some very cute, very frugal clothes for American Girl dolls. The photos on the site are not of the highest quality, but the clothes are really cute. I ordered this matching set in blue for Ramona two Christmases ago, and she wore the dress for two summers. Betsy also loved this matching set. And, there are some cute historical outfits for the dolls here.

Kim Shenberger's Bookworm Bookmarks are beautiful. She has existing designs, or will create something to your specifications. I love her calligraphy (she created the Poetry Friday button, among many others.)

Ramona is up, so my time is up!

Oops! How did I miss this one?!

Lissa's post: "Best Gifts for Homeschoolers."

Off to add it to the post on Christmas shopping (and thinking that maybe I missed it because last night's post is time-stamped 11:49 p.m. and I should have been in bed?)

They're doing my holiday shopping post for me

There is absolutely no need for me to put together a Christmas shopping post. I've been thinking of doing one, but (as so often is the case) the more I thought about it, the more I put it off. And now, so many other bloggers are doing it for me. Thank you, kind women!

Check out:

Alicia at Love2Learn

Jennifer at As Cozy as Spring

Danielle Bean

Melissa Wiley's Best Gifts for Homeschoolers

That's why we homeschool

The other day, as the girls and I reviewed some of the things we've read about so far in our Middle Ages study, I stopped in the middle of my globe-pointing and said, "Well, of course, this isn't the only stuff that was happening during that time. Basically, we're covering a very tiny portion of what happened in European history. It would take years and years and years to learn everything there is to know about the Middle Ages."

Betsy, with gusto, replied, "Then let's take years and years and years to learn everything!"

Beorn the Proud

Our latest read-aloud:

Beorn the Proud, by Madeleine Polland, is set in ninth century Ireland and Denmark and follows the young lives of Ness, an Irish Christian girl, and Beorn, a pagan Viking boy who, in a raid on Ness's village, takes Ness as his slave.

The brutality of the Vikings is realistically portrayed from the opening pages: Ness's village has been destroyed, her family murdered. But we see, too, early in the story, a glimmer of hope for Beorn's future.

The clashes of culture, religion, and personality are deftly drawn. The power of slow but steady evangelization, the importance of knowing one's faith (in order to pass it on to others) and the beauty of conversion are at the heart of this story, which is also a rattlin' good tale of action and adventure.

Betsy gives it five stars. Anne-with-an-e enjoyed it, but perhaps not quite as much as Betsy did (though Anne was grateful for a female protagonist for a change, and is also looking forward to The Striped Ships. And, she's hanging on for all of our Joan of Arc reading.)

Planning for Advent

I'll be pulling our Advent plans together in the coming week. Last year's plans are here. Other past posts on Advent can be found here.

And, be sure to visit Mary Ellen Barrett's fabulous Advent and Christmas blog, O Night Divine. It's packed with ideas for preparation, celebration, gifts and more.

Feeling nostalgic

We have a little routine on Sunday mornings.

As we drive to Mass, we say a decade of the Rosary. Atticus concentrates on driving and I concentrate on leading the prayer. I ask the kids which mystery they'd like to contemplate and then they name people and intentions for whom they'd like to pray. Then we begin.

This morning, though, I must have been a little tired. As we pulled out of the driveway, instead of asking about meditating on a mystery, I said, "Okay, guys ... which decade would you like to meditate on?"

"Oh, I don't know," said Anne-with-an-e, "how about the 50's?"

Ramona's Pumpkin Turkey

wishes you and yours a happy and blessed Thanks- giving Day!

The grateful journey of Diane's heart

Margaret and Kristen beat me to the linkage, but if you haven't read it yet, run over now to see Diane at The Journey of a Mother's Heart for this these Thanksgiving thoughts.

They are so real, so heartfelt and so close to home.

Off to do a turkey craft with Ramona ....

Thanks, Diane.

Two laughs forward, one cackle back

Betsy recently informed us that she heard (somewhere) that laughter adds eight years to your life. (I just Googled this and still have no idea where she heard it.)

At any rate, the other day, we all shared a hearty laugh over something. Then:

Betsy: "Hey! We just added eight years to our lives!"

Ramona: "What?"

Betsy: "When you laugh, it makes you live longer!"

Ramona: "Do evil cackles count?"

What part of Thanksgiving are you?

You Are The Stuffing

You're complicated and complex, yet all your pieces fit together. People miss you if you're gone - but they're not sure why.

What Part of Thanksgiving Are You?

This, of course, makes no sense at all, but I'm throwing it in here because I haven't had time to think about that kindness post. (If you stopped by yesterday, you saw that I got one sentence written and then got interrupted ... then, I accidentally hit "Publish" instead of "Save." That post will be back when I've actually had time to write it....)

Thanksgiving Treasures

Last year, we were the recipients of a lovely honor. Our friends, Les and Leisa, sent us a letter announcing that we were among their "Thanksgiving Treasures."

Every year, each member of the family (mom, dad, and the four kids) chooses someone to be a "Thanksgiving Treasure." They send a letter to their treasure, explaining that they are grateful for that person's presence in their lives. They take the time to detail the things that make their friend special, and let the chosen treasure know that he or she will be prayed for nightly, as a candle is lit in the Les-and-Leisa home each night until Christmas.

Leisa explained that they came up with "Our Thanksgiving Treasures" to teach their children to hold onto that Thanksgiving gratitude and not let it get lost in the holiday rush. (And can I just say right now that I cried when I read their letter?)

I'd love to say that I followed up on this idea so completely that we have established our own Thanksgiving Treasure tradition. We haven't. Yet.

But, the beauty of this idea is that it's not too late. Les and Leisa's goal -- to carry the gratitude of Thanksgiving well beyond Turkey Day -- means that we can be reminded of our blessings all through Advent, too.

So, leave those Thanksgiving Trees up and get started on those letters!

Be kind

I have long, windy posts brewing in my head about this. They've been brewing for awhile and I'm longing for time to sit at the computer and write, write, write.

But before I can write ... I'm longing for time to think, think, think. I need to reflect and formulate and focus on what I want to say.

I want to link to the many different posts that I've read recently that talk about this very same, if simple, idea. Simple, but important. Foundational, really.

Be kind.

That will have to do for now. A day of cleaning bathrooms, vacuuming, baking brownies, reading to the kids, math, a volunteer project, and having company for dinner looms.

Maybe scrubbing toilets will afford a bit of time for contemplation. Maybe I can practice what I preach amidst the busy-ness.

Be kind.

One woman's coffee ...

... is another woman's sacrifice.

The other night, I headed out for a much-needed break.

Me: "I have to go out for awhile. I'll be back in a couple of hours."

Ramona: "Awwwww ... where are you going?"

Me: "For coffee with the other homeschooling mom."

Ramona: "Awwww ... do you have to?"

Me: "I won't be gone very long, sweetie."

Ramona: "Awwwww ...."

Two hours later:

Me: "Ramona ... I see that you pulled another one of your sacrifice beads. What was your sacrifice?"

Ramona: "You being gone."

Me: "Awwwwww .... "

Poetry Friday

I'm cheating today. I'm posting about a post that is a post about an alphabet book in poetic form.

Are you following?

Go visit Kelly, at Big A little a. She is hosting the Poetry Friday Round-up this week.

Then, go read her review of a new alphabet book by Steve Martin and Roz Chast. It's posted at Book Buds and, in her comments, I said this of Kelly's review (which is funny and right-on-target and totally in step with my own schizophrenic ways) :

I haven't seen the book yet, but I love the review, because it *sounds* as if it would be my reaction. Exactly. Roz Chast *is* a genius, and Martin *can* write. But, I have the same schizophrenic reactions to the "type."

And, I really do think Chast's angst is too angsty for children. I picture my youngest walking away from the book looking like a Chast character.

I love Roz Chast, but I don't want Ramona to go neurotic on me. We have enough of that around here without encouraging it via alphabet books.

Maybe I'll just ask Atticus to give the book to me for Christmas, and I'll hide it from the children. (Though, I must admit, we are all big fans of being in a quandary. So I guess we're hopeless.)

Have a poetic Poetry Friday.

Happy Birthday to Alice!

Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday dear (and we mean that, in every sense of the word!) Alice ...
Happy birthday to you!

We love you, Alice!


Have a beautiful birthday!

Love,
The Eds

A Centerpiece of Gratitude

This is a quick rerun of a post from last November -- sharing another idea for a fun and meaningful autumn/Thanksgiving display.

(from 11/21/06):


I took this idea from a parish function we attended last week. We were given a cornucopia to take home, with the suggestion that it be filled with symbols or favorite objects for each family member. We added a candle, a cornhusk doll and our scarecrow to complete our centerpiece.

Symbols chosen?

For all of us: A holy card with a picture of Jesus, the center of our lives
Atticus: Red pen (he's a high school teacher, you know) and tea
Me: A picture of the Blessed Mother, to represent being a Catholic mom, and a pen for writing
Anne-with-an-e: A ceramic puppy (she's an animal lover)
Betsy: A small, knotted one-decade Rosary
Ramona: A picture of me, because I'm her "favorite thing"

I love the way this simple but meaningful centerpiece turned out!

Ramona quips

Inspired by Crinkleroot, we headed out for a nature walk at a local lake yesterday.

Crinkleroot has a snake friend named Sassafrass, who pushes little piles of pebbles together by the seashore. So, yesterday, Ramona and I built pebble piles but Ramona didn't think hers were as nice as Sassafrass's.

"Well," I offered, "Sassafrass gets a lot of practice doing this kind of thing."

"Yes," said Ramona, "she does. When she goes out for her nature slither."

Ramona reads!

Ramona's independent reading is really taking off.

Currently, she's enjoying Cynthia Rylant's Puppy Mudge books. They are simple books (pre-reading/beginner level) and Ramona loves to read them aloud to her daddy and me. We're hearing quite a bit about how Mudge takes a bath, finds a friend, wants to play, loves his blanket and has a snack.





Another current favorite is Crinkleroot's Visit to Crinkle Cove by Jim Arnosky.

Crinkleroot has become quite a pal to Ramona. He's the next best thing to actually getting out into nature.





Also by Arnosky's alter-ego, Crinkleroot, Ramona loves 25 Mammals Every Child Should Know.

(Good for nature study and for reading skills as well.)




Another repeated check-out from our library is Beachcombing: Exploring the Seashore. Ramona adores anything about seashells (we must get this family to an ocean) and this book gives her plenty to love.



A number of Jim Arnosky's books are out of print, but they're worth hunting down. Check your library, or buy used.

And, be sure to spend some time wandering through his website. He has animal coloring pages, fact pages, and so many gorgeous books.

Just one more recommendation -- straight from Ramona (who just looked over my shoulder and said, "Oh! Mommy! You can't forget the lion book!") So without further ado, don't forget: the lion book!

Ramona offers hairstyling advice

"Mommy, see this curly comb? Don't ever try to use one as a curling iron. It doesn't work."

Time for that Thanksgiving Tree

Last year, I mentioned our Thanksgiving Tree.

Then, myriad moms joined me and created their own unique trees. I put them all together in this post, "A Forest of Gratitude."

It's not too late to make one -- lots of ideas in that forest, so meander through it and get started!

Back to World War II for a moment ....

My friend, Mary, at Our Domestic Church, alerted me to a fascinating new picture book. Visit Mary here for a full review of One Thousand Tracings by Lita Judge.

Thanks, Mary!

I'm ba-a-a-ck

after a quick trip to see some dear friends this weekend.

We ate, we laughed, we let the kids have their way. "Their way" included a trip to a mall. Which drained me. Malls drain me. Ugh. Give me a large, quiet bookstore full of old, dusty, used books, with nary a trendy store in sight.

But, it wasn't my weekend. It was theirs.

Now, I'm trying to catch up on life and blogs and such. Will be back tomorrow with something more interesting to say, I hope, than your basic mall-whine.

Poetry Friday

I can't remember who first introduced me to Billy Collins.

Which is fitting for today's poem.




Forgetfulness
by Billy Collins

The name of the author is the first to go
followed obediently by the title, the plot,
the heartbreaking conclusion, the entire novel
which suddenly becomes one you have never read,
never even heard of,

as if, one by one, the memories you used to harbor
decided to retire to the southern hemisphere of the brain,
to a little fishing village where there are no phones.

(Read the rest of the poem here ....)

Poetry Friday is being hosted today at A Wrung Sponge.

A Dream Come True?

Atticus would really love to visit Gettysburg. I would really love to meet the many very lovely women who are putting on the Family Centered Learning Conference, sponsored by Family Centered Press. My daughters would love to meet their pen-pals.

Can this dream come true?

Can I actually plan, organize, save the money and endure that many days in the car?

Stay tuned, as further details develop.

A pro-life book and a beautiful post

Visit Alice over at Catholic Exchange today. She has a beautiful piece up here.

It is opening in Nebraska!

Remember the whining I did in this post? Well, happily, I was wrong (well, not wrong exactly, but things have changed. That's the best way, by the way, to approach any situation in which one can be proven wrong. "No, I'm sorry, dear, it's incorrect to say that I was wrong ... circumstances have merely changed.")

Bella is coming to Omaha this weekend.

Ramona explains herself

Ramona: "Mo-o-o-om! Would you please tell Betsy that I am only trying to tell her what to do and that I am not mocking her?"

Son of Charlemagne

We just finished reading Barbara Willard's Son of Charlemagne. The girls and I really enjoyed it, and found it even more compelling than Augustine Came to Kent.

The life of Charlemagne (742-814), or Charles, King of the Franks, is viewed through the eyes of his son, Carl. Because we are seeing through the eyes of a child (and later, a young man) who loves and admires his father, one might assume that the portrait will be too rosy but Willard does a fine job of portraying Charles as a flawed and conflicted man and a product of his time. The order to kill more than 4,000 Saxons at Verden, for example, is presented in a relatively straightforward manner, with the implication throughout the rest of the book that the incident may have been one of the greatest sorrows of Charles's life. At the same time, repentance is never explicit and Charles maintains (and his son assents) that it was the only decision he could have made given the circumstances.

It's in light of such actions that the girls and I discussed the ways in which one can be "a product of one's time." In his history of the Catholic Church, Triumph, H.W. Crocker (in the section on Charlemagne) puckishly laments the passing of the days when "one could be both a Catholic warrior and a Frankish barbarian without contradiction." It's exactly that sort of contradiction that led to some good discussion here. The girls originally had no sympathy whatsoever for Charles, and were scolding him for his hypocrisies. By the end of the book, they judged him to be a man ("He was definitely human," said Anne) of greatness in many ways (who would not admire his deep love of family?) but also one who made a great many mistakes.

A book for children that can acknowledge and communicate such complexity is a treasure indeed. Highly recommended.

Ramona offers some observations

We were watching Tyler Florence make breakfast, and I was picking up a couple of tips to improve my pancakes (already much beloved by my children but maybe they'll be even fluffier when I first separate and whip the egg whites -- thanks, Tyler) and Ramona said, "Now, he's normal, unlike some people who always match their kitchens."

*****

I was helping Ramona fluff up her pillows in order to elevate her head and help her sleep better (we're battling colds and coughs here) and I said, "How's that? Is your head high enough?"

She considered it for a moment, then seriously pronounced, "I would suggest one more pillow."

*****

Despite her sometimes advanced articulation, Ramona cannot always tell a joke (she gets that from me.) Here's her latest:

"Where were French Fries first made? -- In France, where there are millions of them!"

Okey-doke.

*****

Be Not Afraid!

Suzanne at Blessed Among Men recently posted a question in which the reader wonders about "what ifs." The reader asked Suzanne if she ever worries about her children having to go to school (if Suzanne were to meet a premature demise.) The reader goes on to say that she (as a homeschooling wanna-be) gets hung up on the idea that her children's education would be dependent solely on her if she homeschooled them.

Suzanne gave a wonderful answer, and pointed out that no matter how our children are schooled, we parents are still ultimately responsible for their education. She also addressed the practical question of how to delegate various parts of a homeschooled child's education, thus relieving the parent of that sole responsibility.

But I keep going back to that "What If?" We've homeschooled for seven years now and it's a question that has crossed our minds. I'm sure most homeschoolers can say the same.

But, it seems to me that the question ultimately springs from fear.

Sometimes, people avoid homeschooling purely out of the fear that they will not always be able to homeschool, as if it's a course that, once embarked upon, cannot be recharted.

Homeschooling, like all choices, is subject to change. Don't fear it for its lack of permanent assurance. There's no assurance that the school of your choice will always be there, either ... or that it will always be safe or appropriate or properly staffed (or ... well, you get the idea.)

As for fearing that something could happen to me that would force my children into school: yes, it's quite possible. It could happen to any of us, at any time. If I should die tomorrow, my children will have to forge on -- no matter what kind of education they've had up to that point. Obviously -- and I know that the questioner understands this -- adjusting to life without Mom would be the real struggle and tragedy, and that would be enormous, no matter what. (On a practical note: if it's affordable, one might consider having enough life insurance on each parent so that in the event of the death of either, the other could continue to stay home.)

But, while adjusting to life in school would be a huge shift for my kids, I can't imagine deciding that they should adjust to life in school now, just in case they have to adjust to life in school later. God will help us handle "later" ... He wants us to make our current decisions through prayer and prudent discernment, not out of fear.

Decisions based on fear leave our souls trembling. There's no sense of peace. I don't think we can imagine applying this standard (of fearful "what ifs") to other life decisions: "I could marry him now, but what if he dies? Should I stay single, just in case, so that I'll never have to adjust to life as a widow?" I hope that doesn't sound mocking -- I assuredly don't mean it to. Suzanne's reader has a sincere, legitimate and very good question. She truly wants to know how homeschoolers answer it ... she wants to know how we deal with that fear.

The bottom line is that if I approach God in prayer and His answer calls me down a new and challenging path, I have to trust that He will help me through all the "what ifs" (which are very real and sometimes scary.) It's possible I could die tomorrow (as could Atticus, or my children, or a family member or friend.) Whatever happens, I have to trust that if I've reached my decisions with God's help then, when circumstances change, He'll keep on helping.

That's the long answer.

The short answer is the subject line: Be not afraid!

So, I'm sitting here at the computer, knowing that I should be writing. The kids are gone, I'm home alone -- this time for me to work has actually been planned and carved out for me -- and I should be working on that project that needs work.

So, what am I tempted to do?

Check blogs.
Write a blog post.
Clean the kitchen.
Organize the hall closet.
Bake something. Anything.
Eat Halloween candy.
Read poetry.
Make coffee.
Knit.
Read something. Anything.
Rake leaves.
Take a shower.
Plan schooly stuff for the girls for next week.
Organize the recipe box.
Work out.
Listen to Van Morrison. At a very high volume.


Or, I could just get to work on that project.

There's no official rule that I can't include Van, Halloween candy and coffee while doing that, eh?

It's just all that other vital stuff that'll have to wait.

Unschooling Voices #10

is ready, and it's here.

Go and enjoy the myriad views that make up the world of unschooling.

Poetry Friday: Got Emily?

Rather than post a single poem today, I'm directing you to a site I immediately fell in love with.

Michael Hartford's Daily Dickinson pairs an Emily Dickinson poem (a new one daily, as his name cleverly suggests, and I know all about clever names) with an original photograph, often with arresting results.

I love Emily Dickinson (as illustrated in all these posts in which I mention her) and now I'm off to see if I can get the Daily Dickinson gadget added to my sidebar.

Poetry Friday is being hosted today by Mentor Texts, Read Alouds & More.

Do You Love Literature?

Maureen Wittmann does.

And, she's written a book about how to teach core subjects with literature. For the Love of Literature, which Maureen humbly calls "a glorified booklist" is the result of a great deal of research. It includes about 950 titles, sorted by subject with age recommendations (including books for high-schoolers.)

I'll take that kind of "glorified booklist" and learn from it, thank you very much.

I'm a booklist junkie, and I'm adding this one to our library.

Visit Maureen here for details on a great prepublication discount that her publisher, Ecce Homo Press, is currently offering.

A happy and blessed All Saints Day!

I love All Saints Day because, as this article at Catholic Culture says, it fills me with hope.

Today, we feel the power of being surrounded by this great cloud of witnesses and we experience the hope and anticipation of one day joining them in God's presence.

And about last night? Well, for the record, we are a family that celebrates Halloween. It's become quite the Daddy-daughter thing over the years, with the kids and Atticus plotting out the best candy routes (amidst much giggling.) Of course I emphasize the Catholic roots and connections (yesterday we read about going "souling" or "soul caking") and we often refer to it as "All Hallow's Eve" rather than "Halloween" to reinforce what it really is.

We talk quite a bit about both All Saints Day and All Souls Day as they approach and about why we don't want evil-looking or inappropriate costumes. And then we have the chocolate-related fun.

On All Hallow's Eve, we usually go to the All Saints vigil Mass then head home and get into costumes (I always go as a homeschooling mom, but no one ever guesses what I am.) We often trick-or-treat at the local convent -- the sisters love to have visitors and see the kids' costumes. (One year, one of my favorite nuns dressed up as St. Jerome.)

Then, we execute The Plan: Candy Galore. Door to door, neighbors we know, the whole family together. The kids say, "Thank you! God bless you!" to everyone and the reactions range from delight and surprise to odd looks.

And, yes, I let them eat lots of candy, and I let them eat it for breakfast the next day and I rarely give any of it away or complain that it causes cavities. We just enjoy it. That's what feast days are for, as noted in this fun article by Jeffrey Tucker.

Last night, as she surveyed her haul, Ramona said, "You can never have too much candy."

I replied, "Well, sometimes you can have too much at a time, but ...."

"But," Ramona said, quite seriously, "you can never own too much candy."

Not on All Saints Day anyway. It is indeed a day to celebrate.