renewed energy

This past week was the public and private school's winter break, supposedly a chance for kids to enjoy Maine's outdoor winter activities such as skiing, ice skating, ice fishing, sledding, and snowman building. Unfortunately, due to only 30 inches of snow the entire winter (average at this time of year is over 80 inches), there wasn't any snow to play in south of Aroostook County (waaaay up north) until Saturday morning. Up at the farm we got about 3 inches, enough for Maggie to build a snowman and me to do a little tromping in the woods to observe the beautiful surroundings before running 9 miles at the Sub5 donut run.

The rest of the week the kids rode their bikes, played lots of board games, practiced the piano, and wrote book reports. Yes, three of the children needed to work on Seton's dreaded book reports and Will had a huge 20 page geography project due Monday morning. I stuck to my guns and did not let the children shirk, no matter how much they protested, and St. Benedict, St. Joseph, and St. Augustine's virtues have been analyzed and typed up. I have to say that despite my own groans and moans about Seton's writing assignments I have discovered that they do teach the children to write a good solid 5 paragraph essay over time. Will can write one pretty easily now and is making straight A's at his fancy Catholic school.


Due to our break I can see the progress that each child has made over the past 5 months and am encouraged that they are learning and I am surviving another year of homeschooling.        

taking a hiatus

Between attempting to get 4 children's schooling accomplished in the morning, driving same 4 children down to the public schools for art and gym, driving down to town to pick up Will every afternoon, and helping Will work on his geography project on PowerPoint every evening, I don't have time to think, much less blog right now. If we go up to the farm sometime in April then I only have a month or two left of this out-of-control schedule. 

I have realized, perhaps a little too late, that taking that one step into institutional school has made my older children realize that they want more than doing school at home. Of course, the girls haven't been involved in as many activities here as they have been in the past: no CCD, no Little Flowers, and no ballet. So, it seems likely that we will be sending them to Catholic school this fall. I won't exactly be fancy-free with the little boys in 1st and 3rd grade and Julia Ellen still the rambunctious toddler. My days will still be spent homeschooling and potty training, washing dishes and folding laundry, but my evenings will be filled with helping with homework, exhorting children to practice the piano, and making sure their clothes are ironed for the next day. It seems that my circumstances will take another turn and I need to trust that God will give me the strength to accomplish whatever is put in front of me and the practical knowledge to say my plate is full.

Julia overload

No, not my Julia, but Julia Child. Last weekend I watched Julie and Julia, which was cute, despite the unnecessary occasional swear word and then proceeded to hit the library for every Julia Child book on the shelves. 

I read the novel Julie and Julia, which I didn't care for since every chapter showed that Julie was suffering from a serious case of BDS (Bush Derangement Syndrome) in the 2001-2004 time frame she was writing as well as exhibiting an unhealthy fixation on foul language, ingesting large quantities of booze, and her friend's sex lives. But now I am simultaneously reading Julia Child's biography and a collection of letters between Child and her penpal Avis Devoto, which are both fascinating. I also checked out THE book: Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and am finding that all this reading about complicated cooking techniques is prompting me to bake a homemade yellow cake requiring buttermilk, heavy cream, and orange zest with white chocolate and cream cheese frosting for Mary's 12th birthday tomorrow. Schoolwork is cancelled in honor of her big day and we will be making valentines as well as dirtying every bowl in the house to make her birthday dinner and dessert.

time to fight back

I could write a long essay about the religious liberties being attacked by the Obama administration by this HHS mandate, but I as I told the nice lady who answered the phone in Congressman Michaud's office, "I've been meaning to write a letter for days now, but I have 6 kids and I had to lock the door just so I could have enough quiet time to simply call my political representatives." I was pleasantly surprised by her enthusiasm over my call, "I know it is a lot of ask a Democrat to oppose Obama, but this is a clear violation of the 1st Amendment." Richard Malone is one of the 80% + bishops in the country who have made statements and written letters against this mandate to violate one of the tenants of our religion. 

The decision to implement a contraceptive mandate on nearly all of the nation’s health care plans is a blatant and capricious affront to conscience rights and religious liberty. This mandate shows a complete disregard for religious freedom, as guaranteed by the First Amendment.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act requires nearly all private health insurance plans to cover contraception and sterilization prescriptions as “preventative services” for women. Contraceptive coverage includes drugs that are known at times to result in an abortion.

Although the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services claims the Act exempts religious organizations, the reality is that while parishes likely would be exempt, other Church-related institutions such as Catholic Charities, Catholic hospitals, nursing homes and schools would not qualify since they serve a wider population.

I ask that you too find the 5 minutes to call your Senators and Congressman and tell them to represent Catholics who find this from on-high pronouncement unconscionable. 

that was short-lived

On Friday night I picked out Karate Kid (the 1987 original version) for movie night. The premise is that bullies can not be pacified, they will continue to come after those they see as weak. One must give them a reason to show the former victim respect, which in the film comes after Daniel defeats his nemesis in a Karate Tournament, despite injury. 

The Susan Komen Foundation could learn a thing or two from young Daniel, that to give into bullies such as Planned Parenthood does not earn respect or show strength. What women who are fighting for their lives desperately need are both of these qualities. If they can't get them by example from a supposedly women's empowerment group, then why does it exist? 

baking success #2

Last night we had homemade chicken noodle soup and ate 2 loaves of my new discovery, No Knead Artisan Bread. 

On Tuesday morning I made delicious cinnamon rolls. Maggie took one bite and exuberantly said, " Oh, Mommy! You have to promise to make these again. These are soooo much better than the ones from the can!" I can imagine, as it takes about 1 minute to crack open the Pillsbury ones and throw them in the oven, whereas these took 2 hours from start to finish, and that was with the dough all ready in the fridge. But they were worth it and I plan on getting up early and making more on Saturday. (I only remembered to snap a picture after 6 rolls had been snatched off the platter so it makes enough for 5 children to have seconds and Mommy to have 1)

  
The pizza was a big hit as well and actually more convenient than bread machine dough as it was already in the fridge and I didn't have to plan at least an hour beforehand to have the dough made.

Baking is such a great project with the snow coming down outside and the roads too icy to drive on (I don't want to miss out on my no-accident present!), especially rolling out dough on my new granite counters (aren't they pretty?) and baking in my new gas oven. 

a small pro-life victory

I was thrilled to read this article this morning: 

"In what looks to be a break between two organizations dedicated to women’s health, a national breast cancer awareness group said it would stop providing funds to Planned Parenthood centers for breast cancer examinations and other breast health services.

Susan G. Komen for the Cure, a leader in fundraising for breast cancer research and famous worldwide for its iconic pink ribbon, said Tuesday that it was halting all partnerships with Planned Parenthood affiliates because of recently adopted criteria that forbid it from funding any organization under government investigation.

In September, Rep. Cliff Stearns, R-Fla., launched an inquiry to determine whether Planned Parenthood uses public money to fund abortions. Planned Parenthood receives federal money but cannot use it to provide abortions. (Yes, but if they receive federal money for other "services" that frees up money for abortion, plus you don't think they do those abortions for FREE, do you?)

Komen has a long history of providing funding to various Planned Parenthood affiliates for such services as manual breast exams (Wasn't there an ad that proved that PP does not do mammograms? Yep, and here it is.)and referrals for mammograms and biopsies to check suspicious lumps for cancer. Although that money is not used for abortions, the KomenFoundation may have yielded to demands from antiabortion groups to sever its ties to Planned Parenthood."

baking success

A few weeks ago I read a novel called Friendship Bread. While the story was entertaining, the recipe at the back of the book that the story was premised on sounded intriguing so I xeroxed the recipe and started my own batch of sourdough. After 10 days, I mixed up a batch for pancakes and found that they didn't have enough "lift" to be able to get a spatula under. I threw the whole mess away after a very long cleanup of my kitchen. 

This morning I gave another recipe a try, a No-Knead Artisan Bread that has people raving. I copied an article about it in Mother Earth News in 2009 and decided to finally give it a try. With public and private school cancelled for the day, I let the kids sleep in (Will slept until 10am) and with the only noise being the sleet rattling on the windows, mixed up the simple dough. After a 2 hour rise, I shaped a small round loaf, let it sit for an hour on the pizza peel, and slid it into the oven. The result was a small perfect loaf of bread that looked like it came from a fancy bakery. It was gone in a matter of minutes after I cut off a slice and we made another loaf, which disappeared just as quickly as the first. It seems I have found the perfect bread, crusty on the outside, chewy on the inside. The master recipe seems to be only the tip of the iceberg so I will be checking this one out from the local library and seeing if I can even make perfect pancakes with it as well. 

3 cups warm water
1 1/2 TBL yeast
1 1/2 TBL salt
6 1/2 cups flour
cornmeal

Pour warm water into a large bowl, add yeast and salt, then mix in the flour all at once until it is uniformly moist. Cover loosely and let rise for 2 hours. Sprinkle cornmeal on a pizza peel and sprinkle the dough with flour, pull off a grapefruit size piece. Gently stretch the dough around to form a round ball and place on the peel, leaving it to rest for an hour. Preheat the oven to 450 F for 20 minutes with a pizza stone on the center rack and put a pan on the bottom rack to hold water. Slash the top of the dough with a very sharp knife. Slide the bread dough onto the stone and pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan below. Quickly shut the oven door and bake for 30 minutes or until the bread is brown and sounds hollow when you thump on it. Allow to cool before slicing. Refrigerate the rest of the dough covered for up to 2 weeks. 

I'm just about to go into the kitchen to attempt to make pizza with this dough, which I usually make in the bread machine and tomorrow am going to try my hand at sticky caramel rolls.    

(update: for pictures of my pizza, bread, and cinnamon rolls: baking success #2)

upside down prayers

Every evening before bed we all kneel in a semi-circle before a small crucifix and pray for a quiet night, ask each of our patron saints to pray for us and say the Our father, the Hail Mary, and the St. Michael prayer. We used to recite many more prayers, but with the little ones flopping about and two exhausted parents, eager to get children in bed, we have pared our family prayers down to the basics for the time being. Julia Ellen wanders about, first sitting on my lap with her little hands folded just so, with thumbs crossed, and perhaps taking a breather on Will's lap, before clambering up on the big blue armchair, where she flips herself upside down and positions her hands again in prayer. I have learned to close my eyes at this point so I don't start a contagious giggle fit. 

Yesterday while waiting for Mary to emerge from her elementary school gym class, I was flipping the radio back and forth between Glen Beck and EWTN. The Catholic station had just started praying the luminous mysteries of the Rosary, so I flipped it back to Beck, but Julia Ellen piped up from the backseat, "Hail Mary, Amen. Hail Mary!" so I quickly switched stations and we spent the next 10 minutes listening and praying along with the radio. Julia Ellen might not assume the most pious pose when we pray, but she does recognize the words and obviously loves praying and going to Mass.      

Reason #897 to homeschool

 The federal government is quietly collecting massive amounts of personal information on all children, starting at age 5. Over time, the files available on each US citizen will be able to be used in Orwellian ways we can't even begin to imagine. 

Privacy experts say the problem is that states collect far more information than parents expect, and it can be shared with more than just a student’s teacher or principal.“When you have a system that’s secret [from parents] and you can put whatever you want into it, you can have things going in that’ll be very damaging,” says Lillie Coney, associate director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center. “When you put something into digital form, you can’t control where that’ll end up.”

According to a 2009 report by the Fordham University Center on Law and Information Policy, some states store student’s social security numbers, family financial information, and student pregnancy data. Nearly half of states track students’ mental health issues, illnesses, and jail sentences.Without access to their child’s data, parents have no way of knowing what teachers and others are learning about them. US News

My favorite comment:

Just like the old Soviet state schools. They're coming to your neighborhood too. Data collection, personal information on the parents and family members. YOU can't see what they put in there, can you? GESTAPO sounds pretty familiar too. Revolt people. Don't furnish information, give the wrong SSN, and make sure you kid tells you what the teachers are asking them. Raise hell with your school board and get in their faces. Make them squirm and sweat. 

There is more. The College Board is experimenting with requiring digital DNA ID cards for students taking the SATs. (But somehow it is discriminatory to ask for a photo ID to vote)

It begins with mandatory pre-registering at a student’s home school with official legal ID documents only.

“All of that is uploaded to an I.T. system of wireless connections called the ‘CLOUD,’” Dr. Hayward said.

The student’s unique digital DNA code is created and assigned to an ID card with covert authentication marks printed onto it. Proctors can verify instantly with a simple UV light and smart phone scan.

“Now you can compare the image on the phone with the image on the ID card, and the image of the student,” Dr. Hayward said. CBS

Does this remind anyone else of the rumblings of a totalitarian state? My favorite comment:

Since they are now wanting to collect student academic data in a permanent record maybe they can just compare what they think a student’s score should be to what the results are and then surmise that a student was someone else! In fact, why have an SAT at all? Just tell every student what they can do with their life and what they will achieve like in the Soviet Union. Obama and his minions need to go before we are all treated like caged animals. Life liberty, and the pursuit of happiness not DNA identification, strip searches on planes, etc. This country has gone to the dogs – and taxpayers are forced to subsidize these dogs who receive generous Federal benefits. 

things I've learned this winter...

1. If the snowplow truck is coming, quickly run to the other side of the road.  (luckily I didn't have to learn this one the hard way)

2. Stacking wood is much easier in September than in December when you have to kick the pieces because they are frozen to the ground or in January when they are hidden under a layer of snow.

3. Your body can't differentiate any temperature under 0 F.

4.  Even "real Mainers" get excited when the daylight lasts until 5pm, as opposed to dusk at 3:30pm in late December.

5. Maine really does look like the cover of the LL Bean catalogue, the trees all beautifully flocked with snow, the ice fishermen in their little huts, the skiers in their adorable hats. Swooshing through the woods on my cross country skis, with the snow gently falling I feel like the cameraman is just behind a tree ready to put me in an advertisement. 

6. Wool mittens keep your hands warmer than fancy gloves. 


7. The basement is going to be 60F no matter how much oil you use trying to heat it so you might as well bring all the schoolbooks to the living room and work on the floor in front of the wood stove. 


8. The best way to feel warm is to eat hot soup, drink hot cocoa, and read aloud books about really cold winters, such as Julie and the Wolves or The Long Winter.

I never got a push present...

despite delivering 6 children, some completely without drugs, but I am "pushing" for a pair of .25 to .50 ct. sapphire earrings if I don't get into an accident between now and Spring. This being my first winter driving in the snow and ice, with no 4-wheel drive, I have hinted enough that I deserve some sort of prize if I make it to May without running off the road. 

The other morning I almost lost my sparklies when a yahoo in a big truck came racing up behind me, but the joke ended up on him when he gunned his engine and almost slid right off the hill. Slow and careful, that's my plan for the next 10 weeks so I can collect. 

Weather forecast: another 4-6 inches starting tonight. 

I think I broke my tailbone

It was my own fault and now I have to buy a new sled to boot. 

All afternoon yesterday I took turns taking little children down the toboggan and one of the plastic sleds while racing the others down our very long downward sloping backyard. The intermittent rain made a thick crust of ice over the snow, adding more speed to each run. Everything went well until I got the brilliant idea of building a little mogul so we could catch some air. Timmy and I went racing down the hill, and on the third try hit the bump head on. We both went flying, Timmy landing on the soft snow and my fanny coming down firmly on the front of the sled. My impact extended a small crack halfway down its length. I still hurt this morning and now have to shop for a couple of new boards at Walmart. Will and Mary instructed me on which style to purchase, but I'm afraid if they go down any faster then they will go right into the woods and hit a tree. No, sledding might not be the smartest or most dignified thing for a mommy to do, but it is certainly more fun than washing dishes or vacuuming.    

snowed in

Yesterday we experienced a rather small blizzard and everyone stayed nice and cozy inside around the woodstove as the wind blew in from the north. The kids attempted to sled down the hill, but gave up after 20 minutes, the snow just blew down their collars and up their noses. I went out in my parka with fur edges (thank you Melinda for the useful hand-me-down!) and shoveled 1/3 of the driveway by hand so Tim could pull into the driveway after work. I doubt I would have finished before it got dark (4:30pm), but thankfully, the lady next door who was snowblowing her driveway came over and completed ours. We certainly are going to drop off some fresh baked lemon bars and ginger cookies today as a thank you. We have a snowblower attached to our lawn tractor, but I haven't got a clue as to how to work either machine so the handy snowshovel is the only way I can clear snow. A snowblower can't be any more difficult to figure out than a huge tractor, but learning to drive and mow on a beautiful sunny day in June is far different than learning to manipulate the blower direction in the blinding snow at 20F. 

Due to the kid's public school classes being cancelled we started the day off very leisurely, I didn't even know that Will was still home until 9:30am.  All the children finished their schoolwork, including Will, since we just pretended he was still being homeschooled. The rest of the day we watched movies, visited with the neighbors, read books, and played on the computer. Today will likely be much of the same, sans Will, but at some point I will bundle them all up and send them outside to sled and build forts. 

Almost all their schoolwork is already completed, lately they have started wanting to do their work "early" by sitting down in the evening and finishing page upon page of phonics, math, and spelling. It does make a rather long day for me since yesterday morning they did school and then last night were at it again to complete today's assignments. But I'm not going to complain since I didn't have to track down a single child to stay on task. It certainly is freeing to know that besides a few subjects, all we have to complete today is practicing the piano, leaving the whole day open to bake, clean, snuggle near the warm woodstove, and gaze upon the winter wonderland outside. 

quilting again

After at least a 12 month hiatus, I set up a little sewing area in the schoolroom downstairs and Tim has almost finished putting together my quilt frame. I have several tops that need to be quilted, but the project I'm working on now is a t shirt quilt for another homeschooling mom's son. I made one for her older son a few years back, but have really enjoyed putting this top together. Susan sent along some lovely baseball fabric, enough for the sashing and outer border (and I mean just enough). 

Perhaps I can solicit other orders in our area, there must be dozens of greeks and jocks at the local college with dresser drawers overflowing with t shirts that they would like made into a memento of collegiate days. It is so exciting to open the box of shirts and contemplate different layouts, which leads to the nervousness of them cutting apart (after all, you can't put them back together), and gradually progressing to a neatly finished top. Next I will piece the backing and roll each part onto the frame and slowly quilt it all together. A contrasting binding and a small label on the back will result in folding the completed project into a box and mailing it back to the sender. It must seem almost miraculous from the other end, sending a box of old shirts and receiving a warm colorful bed covering with memories from past years gracing the cover. I'm happy to be quilting again, especially with enough room to spread a project out on the floor to admire my efforts.     

Will's first week

After a week of waiting outside in the van to drive Will home, helping him a tiny bit with his homework, buying yet more school supplies, and reminding him about 10 times every evening that just because he started private school doesn't mean he can stop playing the piano, I have to say that we are doing/have done a more than adequate job homeschooling our children. The rest of the year in pre-algebra should be easy since it all seems to be a review of what we have covered so far this year, the teachers have been very impressed by his work ethic, and he proudly boasted at having the largest necktie collection in the 7th grade (his new tie featuring the planets was a big hit with the science teacher). 

 Will's first ever "first day of school" picture

Will's "away" school attendance has been a major change for everyone in the family and there is a touch of jealousy for his being around other kids, getting special foods for lunch, and the attention he receives at dinner (after all, I know what everyone else did all day). Tim has to leave earlier for work to drop him off and I have to take an hour out of every afternoon to pick him up. But the main purpose of this endeavor, keeping Mommy sane, is being accomplished. My mornings are spent more pleasantly than they have in years and some days the other 4 children are finished with their work by 11am. 

I have to say that our homeschooling curriculum is much, much more rigorous and authentically Catholic than the top-notch school he is now attending, which is why we are still supplementing his courses at home and of course still homeschooling all the younger children. Do I feel guilty for putting him in school? Maybe a little, but every family has to reevaluate the academic choices that best work for each year and each child. Parents constantly have to say no to opportunities due to lack of time, interest, or energy. Every kid can't be simultaneously involved in the arts, music, academics, sports, Scouts, volunteering in the community, field trips, home economics, trades, and the hundreds of other options available to school age children. 

Homeschooling Will has been a wonderful experience, a heady challenge, and a daily search for the truth. Whatever his future academic career might include, I do not regret for one moment the 8 and 1/2 years of homeschooling my boy.