Our lives this week ...

The children keep telling me how quickly time is going.  Now THAT's scary .. that the children are noticing!  We're already planning what we'll be doing in early October, but my mind is still somewhere back in early August.

What I'm missing most, though, is looking at this blog I started and seeing that there are now gaping holes where I haven't been posting.  This is my journal!  This is where I come to look back and remember some of the things we've all done together as a family.  So ... I'm back and aiming to be here more often.

Chareen has been posting regularly about her weekly happenings, so I thought I'd follow her example to 'break the ice' again and help the thinking box tick over.

In Our Homeschool This Week:

* Maestro is writing up a research paper on Jules Verne, following the requirements from IEW.  I was asked by a friend, who lectures at Deakin University, how we are working with Maestro's writing skills.  He was very interested in what we described of IEW, so must share some links with him. One point that was raised, which we tried to employ with this paper, was working to a time limit.  Usually we allow as much time as needed for the best result, but at tertiary level, that won't be a luxury students have.  So, the goal is to achieve the best result in a given timeframe.  Maestro's paper is due tomorrow, and his rough draft is already completed today.

* I'm reading 'The Witch of Blackbird Pond' to Mariposa; a very interesting story.  I didn't expect the complex language which fills this story .. it's so rich in vocabulary and imagery!  Mariposa is seeming to follow this quite well though and has been asking for another chapter later in the day.

* In maths, it's Geometry for Maestro this term (just started with MUS) and Mariposa is learning about Decimals.

Helpful homeschool tips or advice to share:

* My no. 1 tip at the moment is to make sure lights are out .. and stay out .. at a reasonable hour to ensure everyone gets a good nights sleep.  Ha, ha, ha!  I don't think I need to say much more, other than people rummaging for food late at night keeps others awake.  Maybe I need to get a padlock for the fridge!

I am inspired by ...

* Lots of ideas I've been finding on Pinterest.  Yes, as of just a few days ago, I joined Pinterest and have been very happy pinning away.  So many bookmarks I had saved are now neatly pinned, and I've enjoyed FAR too much time checking out pins from others (all worth it, though! <>)

* A beautiful song I heard on the radio this afternoon was also most spectacular.  I had to jot down the name of the album and hope to purchase a copy soon; Storybook Journey with 18yr old singer Siobhan Owen. Such a pure, lovely tone! Sioban is a classical/celtic singer and harpist.

Places we're going this week:

* Tuesdays are regular horseriding lessons for Mariposa again.  She's not had lessons for the first 1/2 of this year, but she's back and preparing for her Level 1 certificate.

* Physio work for Maestro tomorrow, also.  He's been working hard with his dancing, and with lifting being a part of his ballet work now, he needs to overcome some shoulder problems and develop some strength.  After two sessions last month, there's already been some improvement, but more work will need to be done for a little while yet.

* We have a date rollerblading with a local group of homeschoolers this Friday.  It's a great time for the children to all spend a few hours together, including some games and inline hockey, while the mums sit and have a cuppa and chat.

My favourite thing this week:

Well, as I'm writing about this current week, there's not a lot to reflect on at the moment.  One thing I'm most proud of is that we've been using produce from our own garden again.  I've enjoyed the creative ways we've found to use what we've had so nothing goes to waste, like a silverbeet quiche full of fresh eggs.

Things I'm working on:

* The best ways to set up some wicking garden beds.  I've recently pinned some ideas I've found, but still need to figure out how the budget can work to accomodate this investment.  At least we'll have a few homeschooling subjects covered when we work on this: woodwork (making the frames), economics (when we look for the best purchase prices for the items), science (setting up the worm farm .. after making one), not to mention home economics once we cook the produce too.

I'm reading:

* Paul, A Novel, by Walter Wangerin Jr.  It's a fictional account of Paul's life, with the interpretation taken from a particular belief standpoint which is not my own.  However, I do like how some relevant historical circumstances of the time are explored, as well as some 'lesser' characters explored.  I'm only about 1/3 of the way through it at the moment.


I'll leave it at that for now.  My goal tomorrow is get the camera out and take some nice photos.  I don't know if we'll get many at horseriding as it's expected to be raining ... but we'll see. :)