Pinewood Castle

Studio Recital

Dim the lights, sit back, and enjoy!

Sunshine performed Lully's Gavotte in a minor from Suzuki Book 2:

In Suzuki Book 4, students are introduced to concerto playing. This is the third movement of Seitz's Concerto No. 2:

 

Bravo, my girls! You have improved more this year than any other year since we began in 2004. God knew what He was doing when He gave you to us and to one another.

Weekly Wrap-Up

Minn-NO-snow-ta: We have little coating for a few days. Even though I don't miss the messy parking lots, I am longing to be snowed in for a day.

Downton: I feel satisfied and relieved by the way things resolved between Matthew & Mary. But - if Bates is really guilty and he used Anna for a little bit of happiness before imprisonment, then my opinion of him will plummet. It's so hard to judge his culpability since he plays the martyr so very well. And Sir Richard - will he leave the family alone or milk their scandals for all they are worth? Oh well, at least he no longer has power over Mary's chances with Matthew. If you don't know what to do with your Sunday nights now that Season 2 is over, Dawn plans to continue weekly discussions with Masterpiece Mondays. Dickens is coming!

Dancer: It was Observation Week at the ballet academy so I took some time out to see her in action. She was able to observe a Level 2 class (en pointe). I have no idea how long she will be able to continue both ballet and violin, but we are doing our our best to allot the time and money to make it happen. She is on the verge of two exciting milestones with each: vibrato and pointe. It would be nice to see her achieve both before narrowing her focus.

Sunshine: After a year of saving, she finally had enough money to buy her own American Girl doll. She chose Marie Grace. For some reason I chose to drive to MOA on a Saturday instead of ordering online. I'll know better next time.

(At our house, the girls save their own money for American Girl dolls. Not that I dislike them, I just don't like them. The books are formulaic and the merchandise is almost as as expensive as having another child. We do buy our girls Beautiful Girlhood dolls and all the clothes and books that go with them for Christmas and birthday gifts. The dolls are versatile and the books are about real life heroines. But there's something thrilling to a girl about American Girl dolls, and I'm happy that she's happy.)

Choir Boy: He spent the night at the choir building President's Day weekend for singing, team building and rousing music games like musical tic-tac-toe. I could not quite tell if the girls left behind missed him or were jealous, or a mixture of the two, but everyone was glad to have him back home - especially his baby brother. At least I think that's what all the horsing around meant.

Little Princess: Very day she says something funny, or at least in a terribly funny way. She saw her big brother juicing a case of oranges and a light bulb went on, "Oh, so that's how orange juice is made!"

Little Prince: We have nicknamed him Samuel, as in Samuel Morse. Long "ugh" sounds mean he wants something. Short "ughs" mean we guessed correctly. Here he his showing off his block building skills.

Around the House: I cleaned and organized the pantry and now we can walk into it! The two new red bins on the floor are for baggies and wraps that are open and the other one is for chips and crackers. The box in the middle is for unopened baggies and wraps - you get a lot when you buy at Costco.

Seasonal Fun:

Tax Return: What do you do with yours? We wanted to put on a deck (finally) but decided to save most of it instead. Almost all of it - I got a summer quilt and shams (20% off and free shipping at L.L. Bean), Lauri puzzles for the little ones, Extreme Dot-to-Dot books for the older ones, and a pretty new pot to replace an old cheap IKEA one.

President's Day cupcakes

The Chair of St. Peter with Papal Symbols (the child who get up and gets their chores done by 7:30 gets to sit there for the day - and serves the rest of the family - since the Holy Father is the "servant of the servants of God)

Lent Begins Again

Stay Tuned For: The Next Violin Recital.

Quote Corner

“Childhood is the most beautiful of all life's seasons.”

― Anonymous

From the Archives

Some ideas for Lent that don't include giving up chocolate and coffee.

(Even though that's a huge sacrifice and I usually do it anyway!)

 

Weekly Wrap-Up

Minn-NO-snow-ta: Ok, I admit I have one complaint about the mild winter we are having - the climate outside is not what I had imagined it would be when we finally got around to reading The Long Winter. What I envisioned: the children and I would be huddled under the sofa blanket in front of a roaring fire, two feet of snow on the ground, the thermometer reading twenty below, and pausing mid-chapter to console the children, "See, kids - it could be worse. We could be spending all day twisting hay sticks to burn for heat and grinding wheat in a manual coffee grinder a half cup at a time to bake our daily bread."

Out & About: No field trips or parties this week. The joy of a normal week at home even prompted me to cancel our plans to attend the next Young People's Concert.

The Little Princess: She's Little Bear today. Yesterday a jack-in-the-box, and the day before a pink princess.

Wheatless-ness: I think I almost won the kids over with coconut flour donuts. Now, if only we didn't have an egg allergy in the family baking would be a whole lot easier.

Brain Drain: It seems my letter to the music school was well-received. Hopefully we will never again knowingly be subjected to Nine Inch Nails masochism and gay rights cabaret at that particular institution. Seriously, though - what are people thinking? Did you see the Grammy Awards? We only had a glimpse before quickly changing the channel, but read about it later. Will this country ever regain a sense of common decency?

Politics: Maybe we can enjoy a little hope in positive change with the way the republican nomination race is going? Is anyone else excited about the possibility of a Catholic homeschooling family in the White House? What would it look like to have a first lady who is also a home schooling mom? This would be a HUGE change.

Books: I am totally smitten with - Pocket Full of Posies.

The author is the same talented lady who brought us Felt Wee Folk. I am sure that if all my kids were enrolled in school I could happily spend my days with wool felt and embroidery floss attempting these projects.

Pinterest: Well, I started! I can't say I'm addicted yet, but I can see the merit of saving paper and ink by not printing and filing all the neat ideas out there. Now I just need a huge blizzard to snow me in and provide a chunk of computer time.

Downton: Matthew: Even though you have creepy eyes and Mary doesn't deserve you, I really enjoyed watching the two of you dance and enjoy each another before Lavinia interrupted your bliss. But please listen to me - she loved you so much that she really wanted you to be happy without her. Being the only really pure female character in this series without ulterior motives, I believe her and I wish you would get over your guilt and believe her too. Lord Grantham: Thank you for stopping yourself from overtaking the maid. I know you have felt ornamental and ignored by Cora lately, but going further with Jane would have led to trouble and heartache for you both and obviously your daughters and staff give you enough drama without you adding your own. Be the rock that holds the family together, ok?

Milestones: Advanced Blue Belt!

St. Valentine's: Can I tell you how much I enjoy celebrating feast days at home with my children? We're making the love theme last all week.

Quote Corner

"Parents give up their rights when they drop the children off at public school."

- Melinda Harmon, Federal District Judge

Invention Club

Two kids + one free morning =

 

For St. Valentine's

Love this. Do check it out: My Valentine to Home Schooling at The Home School Mom.

Time for a Haircut

 

His sisters can't resist.

Sunday Refreshment

Have I told you how much I enjoy once-a-week blogging?

You can probably tell from my posts that I have been finding a little more time during the week for reading, creating, and even sleeping. Well, as long as sleep happens before 5 am. Sometimes the baby sleeps until 6:00, but not usually.

A little time for reading provides stabilizing bookends for my days - a chapter before I get out of bed in the morning and a chapter or two at night goes a long way and helps keep me sane.

Although Dancer seems to handle the stress well, our Saturdays in the city for violin lessons have been taking a toll on Sunshine and I. Saturdays used to be to be our day for a thorough cleaning of the house and organizing for the week. After some family discussion we decided to let "the girls" sleep in a bit on Sunday mornings while "the boys" make breakfast before Mass. My husband spoiled me this morning with a large mug of coffee and a chocolate peanut butter muffin (made with peanut flour) in bed while I finished The House at Riverton, watched some of CBS Sunday Morning, and caught up on some prayer time.

The refreshment continues this sunny afternoon with some tea and chocolate while I catch up with emails, blog reading, link exploration, scheduling, menu planning, lesson planning, and all the little details that are nice to have in place before beginning a new week. Tonight I plan to watch Downton with my husband, in our recently dusted bedroom (after the kids are in their beds) on clean sheets sprayed with essential oils and some chamomile tea. We all need a little bliss, don't you think?

Weekly Wrap-Up

Out & About: This week we ventured out on another field trip - this time to the Physics Circus, sponsored by the U of M and held at the convention center downtown. Since we usually favor the arts, it was about time we included a science outing too. All three big kid faces were shining brightly as they waited in suspense to see if the physics teacher suspended from a 20 foot tower would catch the billiard ball that was fired from a cannon as he dropped to the safety of a mat. The little ones were equally happy with the lollipop that kept them quiet and happy.

 

The Forecast:

thu	fri	sat	sun	mon	tue	wed	thu	fri	sat
feb 09 Flurry/Wind 37° 6°	feb 10 P Cldy/Wind 14° 2°	feb 11 Sunny 19° 7°	feb 12 M Sunny 29° 17°	feb 13 Cloudy 32° 22°	feb 14 P Cloudy 36° 23°	feb 15 M Sunny 40° 21°	feb 16 M Cloudy 35° 20°	feb 17 P Cloudy 37° 22°	feb 18 Snw Shwrs 35° 23°

 

Are the kids complaining? Yes - they want to go sledding and make snow forts.

Am I complaining? Nope.

Downton: The House at Riverton is tiding me over between episodes. The first half sings the same song as Downton - same time frame, same issues. The second half is much more about the roaring twenties and boy are they roaring.

Milestones: Karate Kid graduates to advanced blue belt next week. Sunshine landed the role of a servant (with several speaking lines) in the home school theater class. Dancer performed her 2nd ever orchestra concert. She is already chomping at the bit to audition for the next orchestra. Good thing she gets to sit for orchestra because she has taken to standing in fifth position while practicing. 

Brain Drain: A faculty recital we attended later that day was, well, let's just say it included adult content in between Handel and Paganini Caprices. I had to go home and write a letter to the CEO and COO to advocate that appropriate age ranges be printed on programs and advertisements for parents who actually wish to protect the age of innocence. It's been on my mind all week.

Book Club: In an effort to better understand the Egyptian times my 6th grader is studying I suggested Nefertiti. We met at a local art studio to discuss the book and create something with the help of some drawing guides. At first I was hesitant to even attempt to talk and draw at the same time, but somehow I found it incredibly relaxing and somehow produced this:

In School: We did not neglect art this week. The kids made really cool Valentines thanks to Art Projects for Kids.

 

In the Kitchen: We celebrated World Nutella Day!

In Blog-Sphere: There are new babies all over the place. Congratulations to all those who just gave birth or who are about to!

Quote Corner

"I suppose it is because nearly all children go to school nowadays, and have

things arranged for them, that they seem so forlornly unable

to produce their own ideas."

- Agatha Christie

Weekly Wrap-Up

Occupational Hazards: I have broken a toe for the third time since becoming a mom. This is such a painful and silly condition that I am seriously considering a pair of steel-toed boots to wear indoors. Homeschooling moms of many are just too busy and distracted with household management to move about the house gracefully.

Downton: Speaking of being a busy household manager, I've decided that I relate most to Mrs. Hughes. Yes, as much as I would fancy being an aristocratic tea-sipping upstairs lady, my life is definitely being spent making sure everyone is doing what they are supposed to and behaving themselves. My body is not suited for a corset anyway. Other than that - well, now that Matthew & Mary are now "safe" from expectations of marrying one another they are finally opening up and growing up. Daisy & William, the only couple in an appropriate position to marry, were cheered on by the family and staff, persuading Daisy to make a dying man happy against her conscience. While O'Brien and Thomas deserve boos and hisses, Vera just turns my blood cold. I suspect something very evil will happen concerning her character. Sybil must have heard me through the TV screen shouting, "Don't kiss Branson! Run the other way!" when he was in his manipulating mode. She listened to me this time, but I don't know how long she will resist that worm.

Standardized Testing: We had the Peabody man out for the 5th year in a row. Very interesting scores. Big gaps between reading recognition and reading comprehension, like six grade levels with one child. I was told not to be concerned - but still, I am concerned.I am itching to look around for a remedy.

Should test results really influence our educational focus or curriculum choices? Based on the scores of all three children (who scored at or above grade level - no worries really) I am considering changes in our math program, spelling, and word recognition. Just when I thought I had made some long-term decisions, now I will again be looking into Teaching Textbooks, All About Spelling, a Kindle for reading literature and/or  going back to the Memoria Press literature guides. The kids will definitely be reading out loud to me more often. Comments on this topic are welcome ; )

Technology: So far, the youngest (of the three oldest) seems to use his iPod the most. We figured they may as well get acclimated to the digital world bit-by-bit so they won't be totally lost in life. They are loaded up with math and geography games, dictionary/thesaurus, weather, maps, classical music, Wiki, a calendar, a metronome, voice recorder, etc. as well as K-9 protection and . I suppose we had better keep making baby steps this direction, though I am not feeling ready for each child to have thier own iPad. What I would like in the near future is a wireless connection from a laptop to the TV so we don't all have to crowd around the computer when I want to show them cool stuff.

I predict that by the time my kids leave home they will be fully digital - no CDs, DVDs, books or paper. Just think - no heavy book boxes to move! Me on the other hand - I depend on my hubby to burn CDs, ge fetch audio books, load up apps, make DVDs of our home video, and have yet to get around to using Skype or dabbling on Pinterest, which appears to be the hot thing, especially for bloggers. I am feeling way behind the technology curve. If I didn't have half my life let to live I would vow to stick with old fashioned books and CDs.

Mother Culture: I love this aspect of Charlotte Mason's philosophy - we homeschoolers love having the freedom to take time for re-creation, whether planned or serendipitous. This week we had two planned field trips and two social get-togethers. We attended an amazing production at CTC of Harold and the Purple Crayon - the animation and puppetry was a delight for all my kids, regardless of age. The Minnesota Orchestra's Young People's Concert featuring Pictures at an Exhibition was splendid as usual. This Saturday is our stay-all-day-in-the-city after violin lessons day. I am thinking we will grab lunch downtown, attend a faculty recital, then hear the William Byrd Mass at St. Agnes in the evening.

The Little Prince: After almost two weeks of weaning he has not forgotten about nursing. I guess this is why most moms wean earlier? He also has a body clock and temper like his sister. He goes to bed between 7 - 8 pm and wakes up crying almost every morning at 5 am. During daytime hours, even with  a two hour afternoon nap, he is just not a happy guy lately, but based on his response after a dose of ibuprofen I think he is getting some molars. Just when you think they have all their teeth in!

Wheatlessness: My eldest daughter is not adapting kindly to the changes in the kitchen. Resistance grows stronger each week. The deal is, I said, read Wheat Belly yourself, and then we'll talk. Plus, it's not like wheat is forbidden for the kids, I am just not using it so much since I'm finding great recipes in the Elana's Pantry almond flour cook book.

Around the Net: Google Reader is not as much fun without the ability to share links on my blog sidebar. If I could share some links, these are the ones catching my eye this week:

Love, love, love, Dawn's new set-up with her reading chair, corner desk, and family reading sofa all in one room - and it's not the family room! Oh, if we had that kind of space and light . . .

Love Rachel's "Lessons from Little House" post. It's almost enough to change my mind about letting the kids watch the DVDs of the TV show.

Love how Sarah is actually "Pinning it Down" - implementing ideas she has pinned on Pinterest.

Would love to have time to get started on Pinterest using Kara's How To Guide. Now I am on a waiting list for an invite.

Random Photo: It is spilt milk, and it looks like a bowlegged man.

Quote Corner

"Parents and families are the first and most important teachers. If families teach a love of learning, it can make all the difference in the world to our children."

- Richard Riley, former U.S. Secretary of Education