4 months and counting down...

Tim got his official orders Friday so the gears are starting to turn for our upcoming move. I am looking forward to being closer to relatives, having several options for attending a nearby TLM, and belonging to a Catholic homeschool group. There is a lot to do between now and our move date including finding a house, finishing up the school year, organizing, and packing. Likely we will do the same as we did last summer: move, unpack in record time, and hit the road for Maine. Hopefully the apartment will be completed by then, I think the heating system is being installed this week.

The kids are excited about moving, they like looking at pictures of houses on-line, saying, "Get that one."
"Well, that exact house might not be available by the time we go up to pick one out, but I'll keep your suggestion in mind."

I don't think the idea of packing up all their stuff and saying goodbye to their friends is as traumatic as it could be, we haven't really put down roots and they are focused on the final move in 3 years to the farm, "How old will I be when we get ponies and a dog?"

I have been asking the same question for the past 12 years, "How old will we be when we finally get to settle down and never move again?" Military life is hard but at least there is the pride of serving one's country, the little quiver in the throat when singing the National Anthem that makes it all worthwhile. My grandfather served our nation for over 25 years, my father fulfilled his payback time, leaving my mother to deliver her first child alone, and together Tim and I have done our bit. Whenever things get tough, including these days of him not coming home until 8pm most nights he says, "It could be worse; I could be deployed."

Pray with me for families who have loved ones deployed, on the battlefield, or on unaccompanied tours, all far from home.

California homeschooling parents scared

The recent court ruling in California has been a shock to legal groups such as HSLDA as well as California homeschooling parents. Essentially the judges say that unless a child goes away from home to school he or she is legally truant.

A California appeals court ruling clamping down on homeschooling by parents without teaching credentials sent shock waves across the state this week, leaving an estimated 166,000 children as possible truants and their parents at risk of prosecution.

The Second District Court of Appeal ruled that California law requires parents to send their children to full-time public or private schools or have them taught by credentialed tutors at home.

"California courts have held that ... parents do not have a constitutional right to homeschool their children," Justice H. Walter Croskey said in the 3-0 ruling issued on Feb. 28.

"A primary purpose of the educational system is to train school children in good citizenship, patriotism and loyalty to the state and the nation as a means of protecting the public welfare," the judge wrote, quoting from a 1961 case on a similar issue.

Training is for dogs and horses, not for children. How could these judges assume that homeschooled children are not taught to be good citizens? Their parents don't vote? They don't call on their state representatives to support legislation? They don't have any desire to serve their country? What rot!

The ruling was applauded by a director for the state's largest teachers union.
"We're happy," said Lloyd Porter, who is on the California Teachers Association board of directors. "We always think students should be taught by credentialed teachers, no matter what the setting."

The teacher's unions want NO competition, no free market, no accountability at all. At first they pull in new members by scaring young teachers about the promise of legal counsel in case of lawsuit-happy parents, and then use their huge bargaining power to influence politicians and judges so as to eliminate any threat from their monopoly in the market.

Brad Dacus, president of the Pacific Justice Institute... said the appellate court ruling has set a precedent that can now be used to go after homeschoolers. "With this case law, anyone in California who is homeschooling without a teaching credential is subject to prosecution for truancy violation, which could require community service, heavy fines and possibly removal of their children under allegations of educational neglect," Dacus said.

Homeschooling parent Debbie Schwarzer of Los Altos said she's ready for a fight.
Schwarzer runs Oak Hill Academy out of her Santa Clara County home. It is a state-registered private school with two students, she said, noting they are her own children, ages 10 and 12. She does not have a teaching credential, but she does have a law degree.
"I'm kind of hoping some truancy officer shows up on my doorstep," she said. "I'm ready. I have damn good arguments."

The public school system will not allow Bill Gates to teach computer science, a physician to teach biology, a engineer to teach mathematics, or a published historian to teach US History because they don't have a teaching certificate from a college or university. No exceptions. A degree costs about $15,000 to obtain, most of which is wasted in classes that teach theory, child development, and classroom management. Education programs usually attract the least intelligent students, because it is so easy. However, they are not stupid since teaching is an almost guaranteed job for life with good pay. (I did obtain a Masters in Education (3.78 GPA), but am proud that I have a real undergraduate degree. While teaching I was amazed at how many public school teachers had to retake the National Teachers Exam, which is so easy I scored well above average. I also admit I don't consider myself all that intelligent partly 'cause I quit earning the big bucks to teach my own children.)

Michael Smith, president of the Home School Legal Defense Association, said the ruling would effectively ban homeschooling in the state.
"California is now on the path to being the only state to deny the vast majority of homeschooling parents their fundamental right to teach their own children at home," he said in a statement.

But Leslie Heimov, executive director of the Children's Law Center of Los Angeles, which represented the Longs' two children in the case, said the ruling did not change the law.
"They just affirmed that the current California law, which has been unchanged since the last time it was ruled on in the 1950s, is that children have to be educated in a public school, an accredited private school, or with an accredited tutor," she said. "If they want to send them to a private Christian school, they can, but they have to actually go to the school and be taught by teachers."

Heimov said her organization's chief concern was not the quality of the children's education, but their "being in a place daily where they would be observed by people who had a duty to ensure their ongoing safety." (link to article)

Yet again, these judges blatantly show that the purpose of spending billions each year to school children is not to give them an education, but to warehouse them so parents can work, to oversee them to observe neglect or abuse, and to indoctrinate them into being mindless workers and consumers.

This is the reply of Homeschool Association of California to the calls of many worried parents. In other words, "we are doing the best we can, just sit tight." (h/t to Danielle Bean)

quilt top finished

There is no way I can quilt this 100" square monster on my little Bernina so I will fold it up and take it to Maine and have the nice ladies at Nancy's Quilt Shop quilt an overall pattern for me. It is certainly a lot cheaper than burning out the motor of my machine, which I did to my poor mother's Singer while in high school.

One day I would love to set myself up in business selling quilts, quilting on my own long-arm machine, and selling wool batting from our own sheep. I just have to get the sheep, figure out how to shear, learn how to quilt with a long-arm...

aaargghh!

Don't ya hate it when you write a really moving, piece about your love for country, with funny bits about the kids, and Blogger eats it? Yes, I was one of those college students who never backed up any of my term papers and a few of those got eaten too at the last moment.

I will never learn.

field trip coming up!

Since Tim is working the most horrendous hours these days (he has seen baby Timmy for 10 minutes since Sunday) and we have been offered a place to stay in downtown Washington DC, the kids and I are going to take a road trip in a few weeks.

Since we only have about 3 days, unless we skip Friday Enrichment, so I want to make it simple and fun.
Any suggestions for little-child friendly, simple for mom places to go in Washington DC?

Museum of Natural History
Smithsonian (which one?)
National Zoo (though this might be too much- Metro, long walk, then walk around the Zoo)

Did I mention I need simple? One mom, five kids, strange sleeping arrangements, lots of antique furniture to keep safe... The whole thing is making me nervous already.

Carnival of Homeschooling

This week's carnival is being hosted by Palm Tree Pundit.

move over baby mozart, meet baby st. augustine

The Curt Jester is one of my favorite blogs for all Catholic things funny. Here is his new parody for Catholic babies: a St. Augustine line of products to help babies be well versed in proper Church teachings and liturgy.

We have many great books in our Baby Augustine store such as "Baby's First Catechism", "Moral Theology for Toddlers", our very popular "Read the black, do the red", "The Spirit of the Liturgy for 3 to 5 year olds"...

Baby Augustine also has great toys like St. Peter's Keys which will provide your child hours of fun "binding and loosing."

an apology

It has been pressing on my heart that I was too harsh to Danielle Bean about her encouraging attitude and advice over the past few weeks of Lent. She must have her hands full, full, full with a household of sick children and snow almost up to the rafters while trying to manage her house and homeschooling. She is truly a gifted and holy person and it was unfair of me to criticize her for not being whining and negative on her blog. I recall she wrote a long time ago that what she writes about is sometimes the only positive thing that happened that day. I can understand and am ashamed at my rudeness. I doubt that she read my original post and doubt she will read this one either, but I'm sorry just the same.

home renovation

When I was growing up I would spend many hours playing with this dollhouse, arranging the tiny gifts around the Christmas tree, smoothing the sheets of the bed, setting the table with miniature dishes. Technically it was my dollhouse, but it was so large it was kept in my Grandmother's dressing room for safekeeping.

It is a unique piece, made for the daughter of the CO at Bremerton Naval Shipyard by the workers there in about 1932. Every time I look at the little fixtures in the bathroom and the stone fireplace I think of the gentle hands of the men who made it. The little girl, Augusta Boatwright grew up and gave it to my great aunt for her two little girls, Ann and Katherine. They didn't have any children so my Grandmother rescued it out of the basement, hosed it down and asked some folks who rehabbed dollhouses for help. They lovingly painted and papered the walls, stained the floors, and painted some of the furniture. My mother cross stitched rugs and coverlets and my auntie Ellen contributed the paintings.

After many years I became too old for childish things, so the dollhouse was again in sorry shape. I pitched out all the junky furniture and gave Mary new pieces over the past few Christmases and birthdays. Recently I started trying to repair some of the damage and decided that the peach living room and aqua bath needed a bit of update. The bathroom walls gave me a hard time, the paint kept streaking so finally I sanded and primed them, purchasing an entire quart of primer when I only needed about 4 tablespoons!

Here is the finished living room:

I made several new bedcovers and pillowcases for the bedrooms.

This is the bathroom all finished:

exercise alone won't keep you skinny

Girl Scout cookies are dangerous. Even more dangerous is selling Girl Scout cookies. All 7 boxes of Thin Mints have disappeared from our pantry, and most are now resting on my hips and backside. I don't know what they put in those things, but when there is a green box anywhere in the house I can't think of anything else but that alluring voice beckoning, "cookies... come and get us...cookies are calling."

I have gained 5 pounds over the past few weeks from those tasty treats, despite giving up Coca-cola for Lent. That is on top of the 5 pounds I am over my goal weight. Running 3-4 miles a day can't possibly overcome the pounds of sugar I am shoveling in so I have to do something drastic.

STOP EATING GS COOKIES!

NO MORE M&MS IN BED!

NO MORE CHAI LATTE!

I'm going to need a lot of willpower, Easter candy is filling the stores and I haven't bought any. Once I do so I might start hearing that voice again, "robin eggs...yummy crackly candy... you know you want it..."

Oh, it didn't help that I dropped the glass shower door on my foot last night and my toenail is purple and swollen. I can't go running until it feels a little better.

actual and perceived reality

Last night I had a vivid dream in which one of the children spilled a box of gumballs across the living room floor. We cleaned them up, but found Timmy toddling with a piece of the candy in his mouth. In super slow-motion he tripped and fell onto his tummy with the gumball lodging itself in his windpipe. I saw him struggling and turning blue, at which point I suddenly awoke and shot blot upright in bed, "No!"

My mind could not escape the image of my precious baby dying in front of me so I closed my eyes and prayed, "Please, dear Lord, save my child, help me save my baby." In my imagination I wrapped my arms around his tummy and jerked upwards in time to see the imaginary gumball shoot across the room and roll under a chair. The reality of knowing that Timmy was sleeping soundly in his crib did not change my perception that he was in grave danger and needed to be rescued.

And so it is also the case when reading other mom's blogs. What is presented in a series of posts is not necessarily what is going on in that person's home and homeschool. Lately I have read more than a few blogs where everything is idyllic, the children are perfect angels who love to do math problems, chores are completed without grumbling or pay, they never buy kid's meals at fast food restaurants, the houses are constantly immaculate, and the mothers never raise their voice. Even Danielle Bean's blog throughout Lent has been exclusively syrupy sweet, "I love to snuggle my baby, isn't life grand?"

Now perhaps these folks do have Better Homes and Gardens homes and cheerful children who always do as they are told the FIRST time, but I doubt it. When I visit homeschoolers I notice that they too have toys all over the living room, that the art project from who knows when hasn't been cleaned up, and there are children squabbling in the backyard. My house is just about average in terms of organization of books and craft stuff, the floors have crumbs and goo despite sweeping and vacuuming daily, and there is always a huge pile of laundry to fold on my bed. My kids bicker and pick on each other, and I feel like I'm doing well if I don't tell them, "You are driving me to drink!" more than 3 times a day. (even though we don't have any booze in the house) I can't feed my family of 7 on $50 a week, posting arranged shots of my grocery haul and receipt totals. I don't think many of us can do most of these "super homeschool mom" stuff since posts about organizing, needing hired help, getting kids to do their chores, and simple exhaustion are the longest and most anguished discussions on bulletin boards. So, as you roam the internet, remember that what is perceived is not always reality and to keep gumballs out of your dreams.

science outing

Yesterday I piled the two older kids in the car and we headed out to the 8th Annual Physics Demo Show, Energy All Around Us at UNC. I felt old and a little out-of-place as we hurried through campus, stepping around all the 20-somethings enjoying the spring weather. However, once inside the lecture hall I was back among regular folks, who oohed and aahed as we watched exciting applications involving types and conversion of energy. We watched the Vandergraph machine lift hair on end, make tin plates and Styrofoam peanuts fly through the air, and light up a fluorescent tube bulb so it looked exactly as a light saber in Star Wars. Will got to ride a homemade hovercraft, and we jumped when they lit a container of alcohol and air on fire. I certainly enjoyed and understood more about physics in that one hour than I ever did in my many high school and college science classes. Short events like this one are great opportunities to expose the kids to different interests with little effort or cost.

a pro-life victory

I was absolutely thrilled to see this in my inbox this morning from our good friend Debbi Vinnedge. She has worked tirelessly in the fight against vaccines using aborted babies. Please pray with me for the widespread use of this company's products and the elimination of immoral technology.

Biotech Firm To Provide Ethical Alternatives to Aborted Fetal Vaccines

(Seattle) In a victory for pro-life families around the world, AVM Biotechnology LLC (AVM Biotech) today announced their decision to provide ethical alternatives in the fields of biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and vaccine development.

Dr Theresa Deisher, AVM Biotech Research and Development Director and founder stated, “We will be working to bring commercially available, morally acceptable, vaccines to the US market and to use existing technology to produce new morally certified vaccines. Revenues from the vaccine business will also further the research, development and commercialization of morally certified therapeutics in other areas of medicine as well.”

The announcement was an answer to years of hard work and prayers for Children of God for Life, a pro-life organization that has battled to bring moral alternatives to aborted fetal vaccines to the US market for nearly a decade.

“There are no words sufficient to express our deepest gratitude to Dr Deisher and AVM Biotech”, noted the group’s Executive Director, Debi Vinnedge, who was also named to AVM Biotech’s Advisory Board for vaccine development.

While most vaccines and medicines are produced in an ethical manner, several are manufactured using cell lines derived from aborted fetal tissue with no competing ethical products available. Vinnedge noted this has left concerned pro-life families in both a difficult and unjust position.

“For too long parents who want to protect their children without compromising their deeply held pro-life and religious beliefs have been coerced into an unnecessary and unjust moral dilemma,” she stated. “No one should be forced to choose between these two fundamental human rights.”

Both organizations hope that the news will spark members of Congress to move forward with their Fair Labeling and Informed Consent legislation, a bill that would require full disclosure from the pharmaceutical industry whenever aborted fetal or embryonic cell lines are used in medical products.

“Every consumer, whether pro-life in philosophy or not, has the right to know if human fetal cell contaminants are present in the drugs they receive”, noted Dr Deisher. “Consumers should be informed and empowered to make the best health care choices for themselves and their families. Surely, if we have the right to know what is in our fast food, we should also have the right to know what is in our medicine.”

AVM Biotech intends to further assist in this effort by certifying that its therapeutic products are not discovered, screened, evaluated, produced, or tainted in any way by the use of electively aborted human fetal material, human embryonic material, or any other unethically obtained materials.

creative writing dialogue

Yesterday, after Mary had a lesson on quotation marks, she and Will huddled together and wrote the first chapter of a story. I read it aloud during dinner last night, Tim started laughing during a coughing fit and almost fell on the floor. Apparently I am the only one that has escaped catching the kid's cold from last week.

Imagine if you can this in pink ink and in lovely cursive:

"Hi, i'm Will," said Will, "how are you today."
"fine thank you," said Mary, "how are you?"
"fine. but what is your name?" said Will.
"Mary," said Mary.
So it went on like this for eight years!

So finally Will said, "I think I should be going now."
But we haven't gotton married yet! said Mary.
"I know," said Will, "but I MUST go now, my country needs me."
"But for what?" asked Mary.
"for clown acts of course."
"for what?"
"clown acts."
"clown acts, baa"
"clown acts, baa nothing"
and this for another eight years more.

(to be continued...)

jumping up and down with joy, then a pause...

This morning I was perusing my favorite blogs while the older children were copying handwriting and came across the headline: Portland, Maine: Bp Malone implements Summorum Pontificum

"Yes! Yes! Yes! Thank you God," I hollered as I jumped around the room, kissing each of the children on the head, "A Latin Mass in Maine again."

The kids startled and then started laughing at their mother, who looked like a complete lunatic. But my worry over where we would go to Mass once we moved to our farm has been pressing on my heart for several years. Why couldn't we just find a town that already had a TLM? Well, we considered the idea of traveling around looking for a farm in the midwest, but decided to pray and trust that somehow God would provide. But when I found out from Karen, a devout Catholic mom of 13, that the elderly priest who was saying Mass in Portland was retiring with no plans for a replacement coming from the bishop, my panic surfaced again. What would we do? Sell our farm and move? Going to the local parish is not an option; if you looked up the words "liturgical abuse" in the dictionary you would find a picture of this church.

Now Auburn is not next door, but a 2 hour trip to Mass was not uncommon 80 years ago and we will manage it. I am so thrilled that the Bishop Malone has extended this olive branch to lovers of the TLM and we will do what we can to support Father Parent's efforts.

Dear Friends of the Noon Mass at the Cathedral:

As you may be aware, I have been endeavoring to provide for the implementation of the motu proprio Summorum Pontificum on a more stable basis and on a more extended basis in other locations in our diocese in addition to Portland and Newcastle.
I am please to announce that as of July 1, 2008, Father Robert Parent will serve as chaplain to the persons attached to the extraordinary form of the Roman liturgy residing in Southern and Central Maine. Father Parent is a native of Lewiston and a priest of the Melkite Catholic Eparchy of Newton, Massachusetts. He enjoys all the ministerial faculties of the Latin Church. Currently, he is the administrator of Our Lady of the Rosary Parish in Sabattus and St. Francis Mission in Greene. He will continue to reside at his family home in Auburn.

After July 1, he will be responsible for Sunday Mass in the extraordinary form here at the Cathedral and at the Basilica of Ss. Peter & Paul in Lewiston, and in whichever additional locations may be possible either on the weekends or on weekdays. He will be available for the celebration of the sacraments and sacramentals, including funerals, as needed where the provisions exist for these celebrations. The faithful having recourse to Father Parent will remain parishioners of the parish where they live. The jurisdiction of the chaplain extends to Mass and confessions of such persons. Jurisdiction for the other sacraments and sacramentals would be obtained from the proper pastor of the place where the individual lives.

The chaplaincy will be funded through the donations of the faithful at the Masses celebrated by Father Parent. The chaplaincy will exist as long as there is sufficient funding to meet its expenses. This budget is being prepared and will be communicated to those who will be benefiting from his ministry.

It is my hope that this will allow for greater access to the extraordinary form of the Roman liturgy. I am grateful to Father Parent for accepting this new position. I count on your support and encouragement to him as he begins his ministry among you.

May God bless you with his peace. Please know that you are in my prayers.

Yours sincerely in Christ,
Richard J. Malone
Most Reverend Richard J. Malone
Bishop of Portland

However, the more I meditate on this and read such posts as this one, the more I realize what a crummy deal we traddies are getting. We are expected to shell out for the privilege of driving hours and hours to attend a grudgingly given Mass. A Mass the Pope made a large effort to encourage. There is a huge disparity in income between city and country folk in Maine and the threat is apparent, if we don't put out, we will never get another chance at a TLM. The two Masses will only be 30 miles from each other, neglecting the other 33,900 square miles of Maine.

St. Athanasius and St. Benedict, pray for us.

Spring has sprung!

Here in North Carolina the daffodils are starting to bloom and the robins are pecking in bright green yards looking for juicy worms to eat. It is also the time when the children begin to complain about wearing turtlenecks and want to switch over to short sleeves. So, earlier this week I waded through the blue Rubbermaid bins and emptied each child's dresser drawers looking for gaps in their upcoming spring and summer wardrobes. Luckily I had plenty of hand-me-downs and thrift store items stashed away so our "to get" list was pretty short:

3 solid t-shirts size 4
1 dress shirt size 5
2 pair khaki pants size 4
1 bathing suit size 4
2 pair footed jammies size 2
2 pair solid shorts size 8
1 dress shirt size 10
girl socks
little boy socks

This afternoon I hit the children's consignment store first (everything was 50% off!) and Target. I found everything except the bathing suit and a pair of pants for less than $65.

While I did splurge on a pair of pink quilted snow boots for Mary and 2 pair of footed jammies for Will to grow into (they fit me now), I think the children have been economically equipped for the warmer days ahead.

successful Low Mass

This morning we headed out for the hinterlands to attend the only weekday TLM in the diocese of Raleigh. The priest, Father Betti, is a pleasant fellow who is trying hard to learn his Latin and has his hands full at the altar. I certainly don't want to appear like a know-it-all intruder, but it was painful to watch folks stand through most of Mass because they didn't have any direction. To remedy this for the short term, I typed up a one page instruction sheet and brought it along. (Father approved it first) Happily, I saw people reading it and trying to follow along and other than having to announce at the Offertory, "please be seated," it was a vast improvement. My children did their part by being angelic and so were rewarded with lunch and ice cream at Chick-fil-a. Over time both the priest and congregants will learn the rubrics and I will be grateful that I was able to help in some small way to expand the Traditional Latin Mass.

homeschool carnival

The Homeschool Carnival theme over at The Daily Planet this week is political parties. This fits well into my car ride listening the past few weeks (and for who knows how far into the future).

I borrowed all 70 Teaching Company's History of the United States lectures from the library on CD. Right now I am hearing about the aftermath of the War of 1812 (lecture 22). It has been fascinating connecting all the dots I was taught in public school and finding out the causes and effects of policy decisions, elections, and scandals. Whew! I wrongly thought US history was just dry facts about a bunch of dead folks!

food prices on the rise

I have noticed while pushing my cart through the grocery two times a week that costs for food have risen in the past year, eggs have shot up in price from $1 to $2.60 a dozen, making me long for the day when I can raise my own Chanticleer chickens.

Luckily for our family's pocketbook, I have actually spent less money on groceries due to implementing the pantry system of shopping, originally found in Amy Dacyczyn's Tightwad Gazette book. By combining sale items with coupons and building up to a 12 week supply of shelf items bought cheaply, you can save 40% or more on your bill. Some folks think that it is too much work, or the sale items are things they don't need, but even make-everything-from-scratch folks use yeast and flour, and who doesn't use shampoo and toothpaste? (if you don't, please don't come too close) Now we are getting official word from the government and the food industry that prices will continue to rise, making cost-cutting efforts at home all the more worthwhile.

“I think we need to tell the American consumer that [prices] are going up. We’re seeing cost increases that we’ve never seen in our business.”
The comments highlighted ...that rising agricultural prices have reached a stage at which the impact will be felt not only on fresh food but will also filter through the supply chain and raise the cost of processed food.
US agriculture officials forecast that food inflation will rise this year at an annual rate of 3-4 per cent, warning that the risks were skewed to the upside. Last year, food inflation rose 4 per cent, the highest annual rate since 1990.
... wheat prices had previously moved from $3 to $5 a bushel without significant pain for consumers. “But now the wheat price has jumped to nearly $20 a bushel. These large increases will show up [in consumer prices].”

Some links to sites I utilize:

My sorority sister Genna's site specializing in saving at Harris Teeter and Lowes: grocery deals and meals. Since her first day of marriage she has kept all her shopping on spreadsheets so she can honestly say that she has saved $20,000 in groceries over the past 9 years.

coupon mom is a free site that gives breakdowns of each store and combining sale items with coupons. I tried the $1 for a month deal at the grocery game site, but found that the lists didn't come out until a few days after the sale fliers, resulting in finding empty shelves when I started shopping. Often items that were supposedly "on sale" were not, leaving me frustrated. Using a fee service encouraged me to shop at lots of stores "to get my money's worth" resulting in long shopping days and cranky kids. Quickly I realized my error and have since settled on Kroger and Harris Teeter as my weekly stops on Monday and Wednesday. I especially like to pick up a pretty bouquet of flowers at Kroger from the discount bin and HT is known as "the balloon store" to my younger ones for good reason. Most grocery stores have savings friendly sites so you can click on items from the flyer and print out a list from home.

The thrill of seeing "You saved 45%" on the bottom of your receipt, or hearing from the cashier, "Wow! You really know how to work those coupons girl!" is enough for me and the little effort I put into it is so worth it to our bottom line.

Try it, and I promise you will get hooked.

race results

This morning it was 45 degrees with a dense fog that made me think I had been transported to London. Why was I awake and driving downtown at 7am on a Saturday? To run 4 almost perfect 7:30 min miles and come in 2nd place in my age group. Did I stick around for the award presentation and the free beer at 9:30? I don't think so, since I had to redeem my Valentine's Day gift from my dear husband: a manicure, my first in over 15 years. Boy, my dry, flaky hands feel good and look so pretty.

Thank you sweetie!

tuberculous ward

Maggie whining, "Charlie is going to cough on me."

Will muttering under his breath, "Why does it matter? We're all sick already."

I have had eager takers for Dimetapp Elixir so Sunday morning we will assess who is well enough to attend Mass and who is staying in the bed.

St. Blaise, pray for us.

teaching the facts of life

I have always been of the "tell kids the minimum" school when asked questions such as, "Where do babies come from? and How does the baby get out of your tummy?" Will and Mary don't know anything about s*x at this point, which does make teaching the 6th and 9th Commandments a bit difficult. I knew there will come a day when I would have to address the issue, but both Tim and I feel strongly about keeping children innocent and safe while they are still children. One of the myriad of reasons I was in favor of homeschooling was allowing my kids to not be exposed to a s*x saturated culture while still in kindergarten.

Well, it seems that even as homeschoolers we can't be left alone to decide what is appropriate for our children. A month ago I was approached by a neighbor, a retired psychologist who offered me a book for the kids. Assuming it was an old picture book, we waited outside his house and then proceeded to sell him a box of girl scout cookies. He handed the paperback directly to Mary and I waited until we were out of sight before I flipped through it. "Oh my!" It was a 1970's manual on s*xual education that had pictures and at least one paragraph that condoned a practice that is against Catholic teaching. I tossed it directly into the trash can without a second thought. I was flabbergasted with the nerve of this man who thought he was being helpful by giving my child information that is my job as a parent to teach. When we delivered the box of cookies he asked what I thought of the book. "It goes against our religion's teaching and wasn't appropriate." A few days later I found that he offered a similar book to our 15 year old babysitter as she was walking home. She mentioned that perhaps he had written the books and that is why he felt free to pass them out.

I thought the whole thing was very strange. After all, do you go offering books on homeschooling to your neighbors? But I was polite. However, as a result of this exchange, I have this nagging feeling that I need to have a plan to teach them about puberty, change, where babies come from... but don't know if I should get a good Catholic book on the subject, or just keep being honest but minimal in my information.

Any been there, done that from you moms with older children??

The battle over sex education in the United States continues, with some parents of students at a New Jersey high school challenging a programme that uses peer instructors. School district administrators say that New Jersey law requires them to teach a comprehensive class that addresses abstinence, safe sex, dating violence, HIV-AIDS, and how alcohol and drugs affect sexual decision-making. But one of the objectors says her 14-year-old son was uncomfortable with a session in which a student taught the class how to put on a condom, using a banana.

Last year there 244 disputes over sex education across the country, up from 204 in 2006, according to the lobby group the Sex Information and Education Council of the US. Programmes limited to teaching abstinence until marriage and not promoting contraception have been popular in many states, which receive federal funding for them. Chicago Tribune, February 20

appreciating dressmakers

Introducing Nikki, the American Girl doll Mary received from her fabulous Auntie Cheryl for Christmas. Last week Nikki was given several new pairs of shoes and a new nightie in honor of Mary's birthday, but still the girls were clamoring for more clothes for their dolls. So... despite the fact that I have only sewn clothes for myself that didn't involve zippers or buttons (leaving elastic waistband skirts and jumpers) I decided to attempt a dress. The fabric store had Simplicity patterns on sale this week for $1 and I bought several as well as elastic and lace. Why I began with this hard a pattern is beyond me, but after completing it I recovered enough to pull out some of the other envelopes to see what our next project will be.

"Perhaps a lovely and simple pair of pants?" I enquired.

"No, a tutu for Samantha," Maggie cried, "it is my turn!"

I'm going to need a LOT more practice runs before I can attempt sewing a leotard in stretch fabric for a 18" doll.

St. Anne, pray for me.

Carnival of Homeschooling

This week's Carnival of Homeschooling is up at Homeschool Blog Awards.

Maggieisms

Our 5 year old is always surprising me with gems like these:

On the switch from sleeping in pull-ups to underpants, "I know God helped me stay dry last night."

"You know Mommy, I bet God loves people talking about him."

"If you commit a mortal sin, you go to Hell when you die... Don't do bad stuff Will."

As a mother knows her children better than anyone else, save God, I think Maggie might be the most likely of my brood to have a religious vocation. She is sweet tempered, always looking out for other folks, and thoughts of God seem to be forefront in her mind. Just as I have tried to nurture Will's gift for all things mechanical, I will do my best to guide and nurture Maggie toward what could be her calling.

knowing and teaching grammar

I am so grateful that there are on-line communities of homeschooling moms to give one another encouragement and support as well as spread the message about this superior method of education. However, one thing really frustrates me and that is horrible writing and grammar from these same moms. After all, if they can't differentiate between accept and except, advice and advise, there, their, and they're - what are they teaching their kids? I cringe when I see blatant misspellings in people's posts, especially when they describe how they have put together their own homeschool program because others are too difficult. "After all," they claim, "I ended up just fine not knowing all that grammar and diagramming stuff." Yes, public school teachers are little better, with many who can't write well, have to take the NTE several times in order to pass, and in at least one case, have taught for years without knowing how to read or spell. But as I was reading the Seton Yahoo group lists, I came across this from a mom and just had to laugh:

I am using the xyz sixth grade syllabus, depending on the option that one chooses it does do formal sentence diagramming. What I mean by formal it the lines with the words on it some slanted underneath etc. The other option for grammar through xyz does a more modern way of sentence diagramming. xyz does stress that one learns there grammar.

Let me just say I am grateful we start 1st grade with homophones and teach diagramming beginning in 2nd grade. Please, please check your grammar and spelling before posting on the internet, poor wording reflects badly on the rest of us homeschoolers.

(this said with my spell check busted from overuse. If you find errors, please let me know!)

reading circle

Reading God's Harvard, A Christian College On A Mission To Save America was a strange experience. I knew a tiny bit about Patrick Henry College from weekly missives in my email box urging me to send my homeschooler to debate camp, summer classes, and goverment classes on-line, but not much more. I have great respect for Mike Farris and the other lawyers and administrators of HSLDA and the college, but have always been a bit put off by their evangelical zeal that rejects those of other religious viewpoints.

The author of this year and a half long study of the college is Hanna Rosin, a religion writer for the Washington Post. While I can understand Mrs. Rosin's outsider-looking-in writing style as she is a cultural Jew and I am Catholic (neither one of us would be admitted to PHC), her contempt and condescension throughout this book is uncalled for. Her unprofessional sneering at the school rules, the student's political aspirations and dissapointments, any weakness in the character of anyone at the college is so blatant it makes a reader question if anything in this book is true or is it just a liberal hit job. Every page is peppered with her incredulity that these Christians actually believe the Bible and attempt to live up to a moral code.

I think this book illustrates the most to me is not the collision of the administration's and faculty's ideas of what a liberal arts education should look like, but the utter contempt of today's media toward all Christians who want to influence society. If we want to retain sexual purity then we are called Puritans or Jane Austen era wanna-bes. If we want to homeschool for any reason then we are lampooned as narrow-minded dictators in our homes. The liberals don't want us to choose our own paths through this life, they want us all to be like them: free from moral constraints and free from God.

Happy Valentine's Day!

A week or so ago our schoolroom looked like a tornado had touched down, leaving pink and red shredded bits all over the floor. As usual it was my fault, since I had signed up our family to make Valentine's for 18 other Catholic homeschooling families on the Ora Et Labora board. My suggestion that we make 1 big card for each family was firmly voted down because then Mary couldn't make cards for the girls by herself. She threw herself into the project with an organizing zeal never before seen in a 7 year old. She assigned cards to her siblings, "Will, make a card for John, he is 9 too. Charlie, stamp these horses on this card for Ben, he is 3." I was instructed to write out phrases they might use such as "God bless you" and "May love fill your home, your heart, and your life," so she wouldn't make spelling errors. She methodically added to her pile of "girl cards" and announced at 3pm that she had finished all 24 cards. Well, the rest of the crew had given up hours before, leaving me with 19 cards unfinished. But we worked together to finish them up and mailed out all the manilla envelopes in time to arrive in far off Hawaii and Oregon tomorrow. I warned the other moms, "They might not be of Hallmark quality, but they are from the heart."

So, if you get a handmade card from a small person in your life, thank them for all their work and love and thank their parent who bought the supplies, spelled Valentine correctly, and stood in line at the Post Office. We loved the opportunity to show you how much we love and cherish you.

overwhelmed

There are periods in every mom's life where she just is completely buried by responsibility such as at the birth of a child, illness, or a big move. However, there are also times when everything should be going smoothly with school, lessons, and housekeeping routines melding together but the slightest change sends everything careening off into chaos.

In the past two weeks we have added several activities to our weekly routine and it has sent me into utter exhaustion. A priest in a nearby town started offering the Traditional Latin Mass on Tuesday mornings, which involves getting everyone up, dressed, and out the door by 7:45 and not returning home until 11:45, leaving no time for school. Will and Mary's Friday enrichment classes started last week, also eliminating school that day. While I want to support the priest's efforts (as well as offer our sacrifice to God) and want the older children to attend some fun classes with new friends, I have been collapsing into bed at 8pm most nights and still tired the next morning. I really feel like I just had a baby or moved overseas or something equally dramatic.

Likely I will get in the groove just as as we get ready to move. That is the way of the military spouse, but I'm certain there will be other obligations and activities to overwhelm me at the next base as well.

Carnival of Homeschooling

Is up at About Homeschooling. I think this was last week's edition, this week's is up at The Voice of Experience.

happy birthday Mary!

Saturday night, right when Will came in to kiss me goodnight he said, "I forgot the banner." It has been his job for several years now to hang a huge sign from the mantelpiece wishing happy birthday greetings. It amazes me that he always remembers, mostly because this is a child who still can't remember to get dressed and brush his teeth without 9 reminders and a threat of no breakfast if he doesn't comply. I shouldn't talk because while I remember to get 6 people's teeth brushed every morning, I have forgotten about the tooth fairy's obligation to put money under the pillow so many times that the children started leaving reminder notes on my bedside table.

Mary had a lovely gift opening extravaganza with clothes for Nikki, her American Girl doll as well as a cowgirl hat with pink leather cords. After supper we lit the candles and all sang the Happy Birthday song with Will's piano accompaniment. All in all, it was a good birthday.

As she gets more mature Mary reminds me of the best and worst of myself, helpful, caring, but apt to be bossy and display a hot temper. While I struggle every day with my faults, I hope and pray that if carefully nurtured and encouraged she can become much more good and holy than her mother. She will certainly need it, declaring her life's ambition to be a mommy of 8.

great Scouts!

This morning is the Cub Scout pinewood derby as well as Girl Scout cookie pickup. Tomorrow is Mary's birthday, Mass, and more Cub Scouts. I thought walking around selling these cookies was difficult with the 3 little ones, but add in a wagon overflowing with boxes of yummy cookies they are going to want to eat...

I'll surface in a day or so...

my little gentleman

Today Will and Mary went to school for the first time. While they have been to programs like storytime and CCD, today they had to change classes. Mary seemed a little shy when I dropped her off at Fun with Drawing while Will sauntered into his Strategy Games class and immediately started playing chess with a little girl.

I worried the most about Mary on the drive home, would she find the right room # that I scribbled on a scrap of paper in purple crayon? I was immensely pleased when at pick-up Molly's mother told me that she watched Will walk Mary to her room for Ballet before he went upstairs to Essentials of Physics. They are both learning things, including increased independence and looking out for their siblings.

clothes storage

Over at Danielle Bean's blog there was a discussion last week as to how to store and pass down clothes with many children. I figured out that I needed to organize the clothes after I started bringing home clothes for the kids to grow into from the base thrift shop. As a manager I was "paid" in discount bags of clothes and since there were more stuff than room, I felt free to help myself. Rubbermaid bins with gender and size marked on the side have helped tremendously over the years. When a child goes through a growth spurt in the middle of a season I can rumage through his/her bin and find something right away. A seasonal sorting day helps me to determine what is needed to fill in each child's wardrobe.

While folks with few or widely spaced children may wish to give away most of their clothes each year, I have found it useful to hold onto possible sentimental items. I guess I got it from my mother. A few months back we found this dress, the only smocking project she ever finished. As a child I was unimpressed by my mother's talent and hard work. Mary, however, is making up for it, she has worn it every Sunday for 3 months straight. When I asked her to please wear a different dress she started crying.

"Why are you upset? Do you like it because Mommy used to wear it?"
"Yes, but..."
"Is is because the dress reminds you of Grammie?"
"Yes."
"I miss her too sweetie. Why don't you wear it to help us to remember to pray for her at Mass today."

I guess it doesn't matter if everyone at church thinks the child only owns 1 dress and the rest hang in the closet unworn. Mother made it to show her love for me and Mary wears it to show her love for both her Mommy and her Grammie.

recipe for bruises

Maggie, "I have lots of boo-boos."

Charlie, "I do too. (poking around to count) I have 3."

Maggie, "I have 16!"

Mommy, "Boo-boos heal and then you are all better."

Charlie, "I don't want them to go away."

Maggie, " You can always get more.... Just run into something."

a bit of a letdown

Yesterday afternoon our family got dolled up and drove to Sacred Heart Cathedral in Raleigh for the second schelduled High Masses after the Pope's letter Summorum Pontificum, freeing the Traditional Latin Mass. The crowd was a little sparse due to the conflict with the Super Bowl, but I was relieved that we would not be so smushed in the pews. However, when the priest, Father Betti came to the lectern and stated that he had recently been trained at the FSSP Seminary in Denton, Nebraska and this was his first public Mass, I began to get a little antsy. The bishop extinguished all but two of the candles on the altar and when I turned around at the start of the Processional I realized there were no servers. No responses at the Foot of the Altar, no bells at the Sanctus, or even at the Consecration, and when the time came for the Communion of the Faithful there was no one to hold the paten. (an elderly gentleman who is in the choir at Sacred Heart in Dunn filled in) Mass was transformed from a spiritual high the month before to a confusing 90 minutes of pure silence. No one could hear much of the Mass, and if I didn't know exactly what was supposed to happen when, I would have been in complete agreement that the Novus Ordo Mass was the norm for good reason.

Afterwards I told the priest that if he had said that he needed a server, likely 40+ men and boys would have gladly volunteered. But he said that he trained to offer Mass with no servers. I might have put my foot in it when I told him that we were coming Tuesday to his parish when he will offer the TLM and my son Will would gladly serve. It dawned on me (with a little assistance) that in his 1 1/2 years as an altar boy, Will has only served a few times alone and those times with an experienced and gentle priest.

What have I done to my poor little boy?

Well, we will practice the responses and cues for the bell today and get to the church early so he can decide if he wants to try. He is not yet 10 and hasn't worn a cassock in 6 months. Perhaps I was too hasty in my offer, but if he decides to try and messes up we can offer it up to God just as well as if he did it perfectly. Please pray for Will as well as Father on Tuesday.

quilting update

I have just finished a scrappy pinwheel baby quilt that used quirky scraps like balloon and crayon fabric. I recall pinning the blocks to the wall in our house in Italy, so it must have been started a year before Mary was born. I always find conversation prints irresistible in the store, but find it very hard to put them in an actual quilt. Of course the scrap basket is now overflowing again with these cute fabrics, but want to start a more adult project this time.

The new quilt I have in mind is a Union Star arrangement I have made two times for friends and have always wanted for our own home. This one will be larger and will have 4 stars across and down. My busy bee helpers, Mary and Will and I have pressed and sewed all 24 alternate blocks in just a few days.

My goal is to make the entire top only using fabric from my existing stash. You can see that the shelves are stuffed, so much that I could likely make 100 quilts from them. Since it was such a good experience sending out my last big project to a long-arm quilter I will take it up to the local shop in Maine to have Miss Nancy put it together.

my kid is smarter than I am

And he is only 9.

Yesterday while reading a science lesson about force, the diagram showed a water wheel in a stream. I pointed out how the water turns the wheel and turns the shaft to power whatever machine is hooked up to it. Will said, "No, Mommy, the water turns it the opposite direction, see?" He then drew me a blow-up diagram of a water wheel so I could understand it better.

On the same day he studied the LEGO Technic book and constructed a candy dispenser even though we still have not gotten the extra parts bag in the mail. (due tomorrow)

At this rate, I think that my future will include hours of driving my child to college classes when he's 12. I'm sure I'll do better in teaching him biology than physics, after all, I know lots about child development!

city quiz

Found this over at rosetta stone. I guess it is a good thing that we are moving to Maine, I'll be pretty close to my "ideal city."

You Are Boston

Both modern and old school, you never forget your roots. Well educated and a little snobby, you demand the best. And quite frankly, you think you are the best. Famous people from the Boston area: Conan O'Brien, Ben Affleck, New Kids on the Block

What American City Are You?

red vader?

We have been immersed in Star Wars mania due to the fact that Will received the 3 original movies on DVD for Christmas. Every afternoon, after school and piano practice are complete and the babysitter arrives, the children can usually watch a movie. I feel sorry for the teenage girl who watches them, after all, I feel overwhelmed by them most days. If they are staring at the screen for an hour or so, at least I know it is something I picked out.

But I had to cut off Star Wars after Charlie started throwing homemade LEGO bombs down the stairs and Maggie asked for the tenth time, "Can we watch the baby bears?" Will came up with this outfit after discovering we own no black dress up clothes. He made the light saber from red cellophane and a wrapping paper tube.

Celebration

We recently honored St. Timothy on his feast day since two members of our house are named after the Saint. My main contribution was to make a cake in honor of the event. Meanwhile, Will constructed an enormous sign and Mary wrote a letter, complete with envelope addressed to, "Mr. Daddy and Timmy C., room first, from Miss Mary C, room 3." The children had the lovely idea of writing "pray for us" on the cake. Well, since I used most of the minuscule tube of white frosting gel on spelling out St. Timothy, I didn't think I had enough left to write it all, but I managed to squeeze out just enough to finish the last letter. It was delicious and baby Timmy ate his piece all up.

Carnival of Homeschooling

Last week's carnival is at Alasandra and Her Cats. Here is this week's carnival at Tiffany's.

I can't do it

Quit blogging that is.

After a year of writing every day about our trials and joys as a largish Catholic homeschooling family, it seems to have become a part of my life. Perhaps I won't write every day, but I can promise more color since Tim bought me a digital camera and I can post pictures much more easily now.

ta-da!

Yesterday I realized that one of Tim's work colleagues was expecting a baby any day and I hadn't yet made her a baby quilt. Mary, my big sewing helper, and I selected a pattern, picked out a dozen pink fabrics and cut out and sewed the quilt top. Mary did a great deal of the sewing, though I did have to take out a few wonkily pieced seams. Today I basted, quilted it in a big meandering stipple pattern, and sewed on the binding. The back features a quote I found in a book about motherhood, "The most important handshake of your life will happen when your newborn infant's tiny hand grabs hold of your index finger."

Not bad for 2 afternoon's worth of work.

sometimes it doesn't pay

Earlier this week I hit the local thrift shop for a bit of fashion rejuvenation. While they don't have a good selection of children's clothes, they do have cheap and good quality women's wear. I found some sweaters and a pretty red knit dress from Talbots, as well as 2 skirts, 10 pieces in all for about $40. While waiting in line I picked up a few magazines for the children and a LEGO Technic Klutz book to build simple machines. Since the bag seemed full of various bits I figured Will would find in interesting and purchased it for $2. However, when I got home and presented it to him, he found that almost 1/2 of the parts were missing. His distress at not being able to make a single machine led us to search LEGO's website and attempt to email to a local mom who's son is immersed in building Technic creations. Finally, Will found a Klutz website address and we found the exact bag of replacement parts we needed for $10. So my bargain turned out to cost $13, still less than the new price, but not quite the steal I had originally thought.

let's eat some doughnuts!

This Saturday I am running in the Krispy Kreme Challenge 4 mile run. It sounds like more of a fun event than what I am used to, basically you are to run 2 miles to the KK store, eat as many or as few doughnuts as you would like, then run the 2 miles back. There is a competitor class where you are required to eat a dozen hot, glazed confections before you start back and the rules state that you should try not to upchuck on the course. I passed on that, since while I can easily eat 12 of the little fat balls, I didn't know if you were allowed milk or water alongside.

It will be an interesting race to say the least, and I promised the children I would bring home some doughnuts for them. I have a feeling I won't be interested in chowing down with them afterwards.

12 Original Glazed Krispy Kreme Doughnuts

2400 calories
1200 fat calories
144g of fat
36g of saturated fat
60mg of Cholesterol
1140mg of sodium
120g of sugar
24g of protein

furiously writing

Not me, Will.

For the past 3 years I have coaxed this child to dictate book reports or write short paragraphs about his likes, activities, and adventures, only to hear agonizing groans every single time. This year has been especially disheartening because Seton lesson plans contain weekly writing assignments in English as well as a 4 paragraph book report in Reading. I did see glimmers of encouragement when Will wrote several letters to his auntie, even addressing the envelope correctly. But today! Today I was presented with a scrapbook, complete with a homemade cover, in which he is journaling his activities.

"I woke up early and played with timmy. I went into mary's room and got her flashlight and gave it to timmy and then saw daddy turn out the lights. So I did horse rides with them and then got out of bed. And I remebered my "days story" so I started righting."

Does this mean that the next writing assignment will be met with joyous accolades? I doubt it, but now I know he is capable of writing much more than I previously thought and I won't let his excuses wear me down quite so much.

found this under Mary's bed:

DAYS CHART

1 Brush teeth in morning and eveing.

2 Make bed before going down stairs.

3 get dressed.

4 take laundury down stairs and do it.

5. Say prayers,

6. Eat breakfast.

7. Do more laundury.

8. Go play.

9. Pracktcs the Multapacachin tables.

10. Make lunch.

11. Eat Lunch.

12. Do more laurndury.

13. Go play.

14. Do more laundury , if is anay more.

15. Go play.

16. Take shower.

17. Put Charile to bed.

18. Read a little.

19. Say prayers.

20. Go to bed.

NOTICE

this chart is Mon-Fri only.

(notice that #7: Do school is nowhere on the list.) If she actually did 1/2 of the actual work on this chart I would be able to lie on the sofa and eat bon-bons much of the day. Unfortunately, I am the one who does most of the laundry, though Will does some days and both kids carry the basket up the stairs and dump it on my bed. I recall making these kinds of lists when I was little, but she is much more ambitious than I ever planned on being.

I needed a conk on the head?

This morning our little scholars finished up the 2nd quarter by 9:30am so I decided to first clean up the house a bit and then head over to the library. I had ordered a few CDs from The Teaching Company and then was advised to see if the local library had others on the shelf. Well, they do, so we pulled up in the parking lot to discover (for the 3rd time) that the library does not open until 2pm on Fridays. Since 10 other cars pulled up while we were there, I realize that I was not the only citizen to forget these new cost-saving, yet aggravating measures.

After I stepped out of the car to at least put our stacks of books in the book drop, I jumped over a puddle and hit my head on the side view mirror. The smacking sound could be heard all over the parking lot, "Are you okay?" "Yeah, okay," I mumbled and then went around the other side to hold my head and cry. It hurt so badly that both Will and Mary got out of the car to give me a hug and put the books away for me. A few hours later I am feeling a better, but still a little sore. As I am pretty casual about the kid's pains and boo-boos, "It's not bleeding, you will be fine. Now go play," I think this will remind me to be more kind to my children when they are injured, as they were to me today.

Of course

this is the weather when we are paying for two properties to be snowplowed. The driveway to the farm has to be kept clear for the builder and we agreed to include yard work in the lease for the house in town because the tenant is a little old lady.

New England's first major winter storm of 2008 snarled the Monday morning commute with heavy snow and closed hundreds of schools.
Following the snowiest December on record in some parts of the region, and a spell of spring-like warmth, meteorologists said as much as 14 inches of snow was possible in southern New Hampshire and areas west and north of Boston.
Hundreds of public and private schools canceled classes for the day in anticipation of the snow in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Connecticut, Rhode Island and parts of eastern New York.

A High Mass that lifted hearts and inspired souls

This afternoon I packed the girls into the Jeep and took off west to the town of Greensboro following the latest sighting of a Traditional Latin Mass in central North Carolina. Motu Proprio fever has taken off here with a monthly High Mass in Raleigh and several training sessions for priests set up by FSSP, as well as other Tridentine Masses scattered across the state.

Father Robert Ferguson filled in several times at St. Benedict's in Chesapeake, Virginia and the parishioners were very grateful for his enthusiasm and love for the Catholic faith. Currently, I understand, he is teaching at Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary and also training groups of diocesan priests who want to learn the Extraordinary Form. This evening's Mass at Our Lady Of Grace was to show priests and faithful alike what a wonder and inspiration the Mass can be and it proved to be so. From the first note sung by the talented choir and the separate men's schola, the music lifted all our hearts to Heaven. The majesty of Mozart's Coronation Mass Gloria, the depth of Haydn's St John of God Mass Credo, the loft of HJ Steward's Sanctus was certainly some of the most beautiful music ever created for the glory of God. This was not just a Gregorian chant dialogue High Mass (which is extraordinarily beautiful); this brought to mind the singing of the angels.

There were some rough spots like when a few dozen folks didn't understand the rubrics and insisted on standing throughout the Gloria and Credo, even after Father sat down, and when many people started leaving during the final hymn. Also, most of the women did not cover their heads in imitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in both her maternity and modesty. But the chatter I overheard as we headed back to the car, "Wasn't that the most beautiful thing you have ever experienced?" pushed the little irritants aside. I am so grateful to be coming out of the desert of the past 40 years and personally experiencing the re-birth of the Church.

Thanks must be given to Father Parkerson as well, who assisted in distributing Holy Communion to the full, but not uncomfortably packed crowd, and to the bishop of Charlotte, who I think was in attendance. May our hearts and minds focus on Our Lord and his sacrifice for us. May many souls be brought to Heaven from this Mass and the others like it to follow. Let us all pray for Our Holy Father, good priests like Father Ferguson, and seminarians who want to learn the Mass of the Ages.

a good story and a goodbye

Once upon a time there was this girl who had four friends.

She loved the 4th friend the most and adored him with rich robes and treated him to the finest of delicacies. She gave him nothing but the best.

She also loved the 3rd friend very much and was always showing him off to neighboring kingdoms. However, she feared that one day he would leave her for another.

She also loved her 2nd friend. He was her confidant and was always kind, considerate and patient with her. Whenever this girl faced a problem, she could confide in him, and he would help her get through the difficult times.

The girls 1st friend was a very loyal partner and had made great contributions in maintaining her wealth and kingdom. However, she did not love the first friend. Although he loved her deeply, she hardly took notice of him!

One day, the girl fell ill and she knew her time was short. She thought of her luxurious life and wondered, "I now have four friends with me, but when I die, I'll be all alone." Thus, she asked the 4th friend, "I loved you the most, endowed you with the finest clothing and showered great care over you. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?"

"No way!", replied the 4th friend, and he walked away without another word. His answer cut like a sharp knife right into her heart.

The sad girl then asked the 3rd friend, "I loved you all my life. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?"

"No!", replied the 3rd friend. "Life is too good! When you die, I'm going to marry someone else!" Her heart sank and turned cold.

She asked the 2nd friend, "I have always turned to you for help and you've always been there for me. When I die, will you follow me and keep me company?"

"I'm sorry, I can't help you out this time!", he replied. "At the very most, I can only walk with you to your grave." His answer struck her like a bolt of lightning, and the girl was devastated.

Then a voice called out: "I'll go with you. I'll follow you no matter where you go." The girl looked up, and there was her first friend. He was very skinny as he suffered from malnutrition and neglect.

Greatly grieved, the girl said, "I should have taken much better care of you when I had the chance!"

In truth, you have 4 friends in your lives: Your 4th friend is your body. No matter how much time and effort you lavish in making it look good, it will leave you when you die. Your 3rd friend is your possessions, status and wealth. When you die, it will all go to others. Your 2nd friend is your family and friends. No matter how much they have been there for you, the furthest they can stay by you is up to the grave.

Your 1st friend is your Soul. Often neglected in pursuit of wealth, power and pleasures of the world. However, your Soul is the only thing that will follow you where ever you go. Cultivate, strengthen and cherish it now, for it is he only part of you that will follow you to the throne of God and continue with you throughout Eternity.

I have been thinking a great deal about time and what I choose to do with it. Right now I choose to homeschool my older children, care for and nurture my younger children, run, read, and work on a writing class. In the past 6 months I have neglected my other great love of quilting. I can't both blog and quilt as both take up the precious daily hour I carve out for myself.

It has been said many times after someone found a quilt of Jane Austin's making, "The world would be better off if she had written another book rather than spent her time making a quilt." I think it would be better if I make more quilts than write. So, I will continue to read up on other's homeschooling exploits, and may occasionally post, but I need to get back to my passion for color and design, for crafting something that will warm the body as well as the soul.

homeschooling doesn't have to be hard

From the beginning, I didn't find homeschooling to be a difficult thing. I do however, find managing many little children, and organizing a household while homeschooling a more challenging task. It helps to start with a good attitude, realistic expectations, and good resources.

There is such a thing as thinking and analyzing too much when it comes to picking resources to use in schooling. On-line forums are full of moms asking, "What is the best spelling program? What math series do you use?" The responses offer dozens of different solutions, "We use XYZ series and it works! Jainey now loves to spell." The poor new homeschooler is left in the same place she was before with no clear-cut solution to her selection process. Usually it is better to not get on the do-it-yourself merry-go-round and just dive in head-first with using an in-the-box program. It seems that it is already enough work to sit down and cover the material with all the children than to add in finding the "perfect" books for each subject, making up lesson plans, and determining grades. Sure, some people are super-organized and use guides such as Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum, but I have found it easier to stick with a good program like Seton and supplement with extras when needed.

So, to respond the statement below, "Its not an easy thing to do," I would say the ease or difficulty of homeschooling depends on how hard you make it.

The state's number of home-schoolers has grown about 6 percent to 9 percent annually during the last decade, according to Raleigh-based North Carolinians for Home Education, a volunteer organization that supports home schools.
Parents say reasons for home schooling their kids vary as much as the dozens of teaching programs available to them. Of the estimated 68,707 home-schoolers enrolled statewide, 67 percent are in home schools with religious themes, according to the state's 2006-07 report.
Others, like Lockard, are dissatisfied with public and private education options.

Starting a home school is easy, but parents caution newbies to do some research.

While getting started is simple, running a home school is time consuming and costly due to lost income, says Waxhaw's Keith Holmes.
"It's not an easy thing to do," he says. "You have to educate your child, and you have no one else to blame."

Frankly my dear, I don't give a ...

A quick scan of the new books at the library and I found another good story, Rhett Butler's People, by Donald McCaig. The author was selected by the Margaret Mitchell Foundation to write this 500 page novel, showing one of the most famous literary romances of all time from other character's perspectives. The book aligns with Gone With The Wind, but giving us the thoughts and backgrounds of Ashley, Melanie, Belle Watling, and of course Rhett Butler.

This is one of those books you shouldn't start right before you go to bed, because you might end up like I did, creeping downstairs at 11pm to find out what happens next. One chapter follows the next and so before you know it, the clock strikes 2am when you close the cover. Even though a bleary eyed day awaited me the next morning, I didn't regret it because it was such a delightful read.

what are you doing here?

This is what happens when two people who don't follow God's Laws #6, #8, #9, and #10:

WARSAW (Reuters) - A Polish man got the shock of his life when he visited a brothel and spotted his wife among the establishment's employees. Polish tabloid Super Express said the woman had been making some extra money on the side while telling her husband she worked at a store in a nearby town.
"I was dumfounded. I thought I was dreaming," the husband told the newspaper Wednesday.
The couple, married for 14 years, are now divorcing, the newspaper reported.


God didn't give us the Ten Commandments to be mean, he gave them to us so we could be happy. It is said that a married couple who practices NFP cuts their risk of divorce by over 50% and it is said that married couples with many children are less likely to divorce as well. This is perhaps because both the husband and wife are striving to follow God's law and not be selfish. People who give of themselves to God and their neighbor are happier and assured they will never find their spouse working in or patronizing a brothel.

Carnival of Homeschooling

Is up at Red Sea School.

a boy and his cars

There is nothing more sweet yet anxiety provoking than tucking in a 3 year old who insists on sleeping with a red Jeep under one arm and a VHS operating video with a cover shot of a Jeep flying over a dirt pile under the other.

Why do I have this feeling that one day, not too many years from now, I will have to hide the keys so the boys will not take off 4-wheeling in the woods? My placid sheep and cows might not like that too much. I did read an article in the Jeep magazine (it comes for free, we don't subscribe or anything) of a guy who bought 100 acres of Maine woods for trails and jumps for his Jeep. Maybe he could share?

are you letting your kid wear that?

This past weekend I made my usual weekly run to the local library, where we are very grateful there are plenty of new and exciting books on the shelves. The town in Maine where our farm is located has a tiny, century old, stone structure that only seems to house dusty tomes from the 1950's. I don't think they have bought a new book in 20 years, so it seems that I will have to either make updating the library my new volunteer project, or I will have to travel 30 minutes to the big city and peruse the thousands of new volumes donated by author Steven King.

One of my finds this past trip was Girls Gone Mild, Young Women Reclaim Self-Respect and Find It's Not Bad to Be Good. While I thought it was well researched and well written, I think the author went a bit over the top in her assessment of how skanky our culture has become. Either that or having no TV, no newspaper, and no child in the public school system has insulated me from the general culture.

Wendy Shalit covers the gamut from preschoolers playing with Bratz dolls and wearing clothes fit for a lady of the evening, to the college scene of drunken hook-ups replacing old-fashioned dating. While I know that many parents let their children dress in hooker clothes and many sorority chicks do bounce from one sleepover to another, there are alternatives for the rest of us. We don't have to buy clothes at stores that cater to that element, we don't have to send our children to colleges that have dual gender dorms and unisex bathrooms. We can purchase clothes at thrift stores (my favorite) and children's consignment stores (they have high end stuff cheap), from catalogues like Lands End and Hanna Anderson, and on ebay. We can send our teens to colleges that strive to retain some semblance of excellence in the academic and social realms, and we can refuse to donate money to an alma mater that has gone completely over the edge. We must vote with our feet and our pocketbooks, otherwise what Mrs. Shalit describes might come to pass for the majority of our youth.

Tridentine High Mass at the Cathedral

This afternoon we piled everyone in the van and headed to Raleigh to Sacred Heart Cathedral for the first High Mass held there in likely 40 years. I heard about it on the Internet at the blog Summorum Pontificum, which links to all things related. Weighted down with 5 missals, a sippy cup, a baggie of Cheerios, several rosaries, and a tiny photo album chock-full of holy cards we slipped in the door 30 minutes before Mass was to begin. We have found it prudent over the years to get to any Mass early if we want to all sit together. By 4:20 there wasn't a single seat left and people filled the vestibule and lined the outer walls. It seems a great many came out of curiosity since less than 1/3 of the women wore a veil and many folks didn't seem to be able to follow the order of the Mass. I tried to help one older lady in front of me find her place in a missal she obviously had been given for the occasion, but after 20 minutes she and her friend seemed to give up in frustration and left.

The beauty of the Cathedral seemed made for this evening. The stars on the ceiling seemed to sparkle extra brightly as the choir, brought in from Sacred Heart parish, sang the Kyrie and Credo in harmonious chant. The organ seemed to belt out with extra vigor the Sanctus, and the parishioners sang with gusto the Processional, We Three Kings. The bishop gave a short homily, mentioning that starting tomorrow 15 diocesan priests will be training to say the Extraordinary Form. He said that he thinks the Pope would be pleased at the generosity of these priests to provide the TLM throughout the diocese of Raleigh. While next month's High Mass likely will not be quite so grand, with 5 priests and the bishop in attendance, or so crowded, it will continue to be the most perfect offering that man has ever given to God. I am grateful to have participated in this historic occasion, but more pleased at the possibility that the Mass of the Ages will spread and touch many more hearts than just those tonight.

talking or not talking

I recall when my first child was in utero I read every pregnancy book available cover to cover. It didn't matter that I had an ultrasound showing 1 little sac, I even read the book on twins, "just in case". So, when he finally arrived I naturally started reading What to Expect The First Year. As Will grew I became more concerned about the little boxes each month stating what an infant that age was supposed to be accomplishing. While my baby was a cheerful boy who slept through the night, sat up, and eventually crawled and walked, he didn't say any real words. In fact, I have in his baby book a list of 10 words he had said at the age of 2. Some of the words he had only said once, but since he followed directions, "Go get the ball," "Bring Mommy the block," "Clean your room," (just kidding on that last one) Tim was not at all concerned. But I was convinced that something was wrong and it didn't help that the Italian day care he went to once a week thought there was something wrong too. So, I signed him up for testing and speech therapy and finally before we came back to the states, at almost 3 years old, Will started jabbering and really hasn't stopped since. There wasn't anything wrong with him, he just talked late.

Now, I am afraid we are about to start the same emotional roller coaster again with baby Timmy, but this time I likely know more about child development (expressly the development of my brood) than the pediatrician. Timmy has a well-baby check on Monday, his first in a great many months since it fell through the cracks in the move, trip to Maine, and Mother's death. According to What to Expect The Toddler Years, he should be using 3 words, point to a desired object, build a tower of 4 blocks, walk up steps, take off his clothes, feed a doll, and identify items in a book by pointing. Well, he can't do any of those things and I know the pediatrician will ask about these or similar skills. While there is that remnant of fear that something could be wrong with him, I know that my happy, expressive boy is normal indeed. Normal in this house where his every need is anticipated by 4 children eager to make him comfortable. I remind myself not to compare his skills to other babies and to enjoy the peace, such as it is, because before I know it, he too will be whooping and hollering with the rest of them.

creativity day

A few months ago, I heard about a store, called The Scrap Exchange where you could find recycled and overstock art supplies really cheap. Then a few days ago, Will complained about the lack of stiff paper after his little brother and sister had destroyed his construction paper mailbox he had made the day before. He had put a lot of time into it, complete with a latch to shut the door and I felt badly, since this sort of thing happens more frequently than I would like. We drew some diagrams of ways to keep a new mailbox out of reach, using a pulley. I figured I could satisfy my curiosity and promised him that we would go shopping on Wednesday.

The store was easy to find, even with a couple of missed turns, but I was disappointed at what we found inside. It was basically thrift store bits all in bins and barrels you could pick through to fill your $7.50 bag. With a little scrounging we did find some treasures: upholstery scraps for bedspreads and curtains for the dollhouse, some glittery sticker paper, yarn for our knitting frames, but there was a lot of junk that I had to be firm about not making it into the van.

When we got home the schoolroom turned into a colorful madhouse with Will sawing away on a cardboard tube to make a pulley, Mary cutting holes in pink fuzzy fabric to make a front pack baby carrier for her American Girl doll, and Maggie and Charlie waltzing around in dress up clothes complete with their new gold tone broken watches. "Jewels!" they pronounced grandly.

When Tim came home he was inundated with little voices calling, "Daddy, come look at my room!" The girl's room was decorated with a new Manet poster, a hammock for a doll, and a primitive elevator. In the boy's room was displayed a poster of a Greek statue and the finished 3 sided mailbox. He was very impressed, except for the holes in the wall.

This morning I am sitting in the schoolroom, preparing for another day of math and reading, science and spelling, surrounded by paper bits and fabric scraps. I have decided that Creativity Day is going to be followed by Clean Up Day so we can get back to some order and peace.

Carnival of Homeschooling

The second anniversary edition is up at Why Homeschool. In the past year there have been over 2000 posts by over 300 bloggers in the carnival, really giving good ideas, encouragement, and laughs about this wonderful educational method. Please post a thank you to Henry and all the other Cate family members for starting the carnival and keeping it so well organized.

resolution run

This morning I got up early and headed out for yet another 5K. It was a gently sloping road race, with a long downhill the last 1/2 mile. With several u-turns it was easy to count the number of women in front of me, but I kicked hard at the end and blew by 2 of them for a 23:14 finish. I came in 3rd for my age group, but I really did well in the estimating my time contest. I guessed 23:15 and came in 2nd with a $10 gift certificate to the New Balance store as the prize. Since my footwear is over a year old, I know what I am getting for Valentine's Day: baby needs a new pair of shoes!

Happy New Year!