2014 in review

I can't believe this year is coming to a close so quickly! So much has happened, with lots of personal goals achieved and exciting trips. Here's a whirlwind summary of what we've been up to:

Maestro (age 16) started the year earnestly looking for options for his tertiary education next year. We travelled to a few places on their open days, as well as two VCE/Career Expos, but it took time to refine what outcome he actually wanted career-wise. Whilst finishing off his final homeschool year, he took on voluntary work at the community radio station and the local library. In September he went for an interview at the Radio Training Institute and was accepted into their Advanced Radio Course in Melbourne. As a parent to a homeschool graduate, I have to say that this is probably the most difficult part of the journey we've had.  There are a lot of options out there with Open Uni, TAFE, etc., but you really do need to find out where you want to end up and then back track. Each path has it's own set of entry requirements and it's really worth starting to look into this as early as possible in preparation for the year ahead. We may have needed him to complete VCE via Distance Ed. for some courses, whilst other only needed a STAT test.  The course he's ended up getting into required a sample of his work done, an interview and a copy of 5 mins. of his radio work done at the local station. At the end of this course he'll have credits he can use for any Bachelor of Arts, should he desire to follow up on journalism or television work in the future.


Mariposa (age 13) has really blossomed this year. She's been on a huge learning curve for most of the year and so much has fallen into place.  Horseriding was her #1 goal, with the option to do her first dressage exam at the end of the year ... and guess what?! She did it! Not only did she complete the exam with excellent marks, but she came 3rd in her Class (ages 13-14).  Next year, riding lessons will continue, practising more of her jumping.

Mariposa has also been busy learning some pottery and mosaic skills, plus her piano where she's made up a few of her own compositions now.  Piano and singing will also be pursued more next year.

In June, I went for my ABRSM grade 5 singing and theory exams. It was hard work at the start of the year finding the 'groove' to sit and work through so many study papers for the theory when it had been so long since I'd done anything like that (around 20 years I think!)  Thankfully it all paid off and I passed both exams with Distinctions .. yay!  I've only just gotten my certificates in frames and will have them up on the wall soon.

Papa (my husband) also did his first ever guitar exam and passed with Honours.  Woot! We're on a bit of a roll this year! (smile!)


We also took our very first EVER trip overseas as a family this year.  P&O Cruises took us on the "Bounty Adventure", travelling to New Caledonia, Fiji, Tonga and then Norfolk Island.  It was a long cruise of 16 days and not like anything we'd experienced before.  We met some lovely people, including some old school friends from my childhood (amazing how small this world is!).

Along with all the other regular entertainment and art lectures, there were four lectures on Christian and Bligh, and how Pitcairn Island, then subsequently Norfolk Island, were settled by the mutineers and their descendants.  The lecturer works as a curator at the Norfolk Island museum and was keen to share information when we told her a brief version our homeschooling story.  She highly recommended the book The Pitcairners by Nordoff  for anyone wanting to fill in their knowledge of this part of Australiana history. I was very pleased to find a copy of this book in our library when we got home, along with some BBC documentaries of Norfolk Island also.

Now it's the start of Summer break.  The children will be camping and staying away with grandparents. I'm taking some time to organise my piano studio for next year's lessons, as well as finalising plans for Mariposa's lessons. Lots of reading, gardening and quilting to do, and visiting with family.

Hoping you've all had a wonderful 2014, and here's to a fabulous 2015 very soon!

Until next time,
Catherine

Mar 1st Weekly Wrap Up

Autumn is definitely making it's appearance known.  Our car has had to go in for repairs, so on my walk back home I was enjoying the cooler morning, noticing the beginnings of leaf fall along the pavement.

Another sure sign of a change in the season is that the hens have begun their moulting. The chook run had a scattering of feathers everywhere the other day; it got me a little concerned hoping that a cat hadn't tried harassing the girls, but they were all safe and accounted for.   It's funny how both the black frizzles have started by losing their feathers under the chin first.

Moulting also means fewer eggs, so I'm going to start putting as many away as possible ready for winter.  Sorry neighbours, that's it for this season!

Let's take a quick look at what's happened this week.

In our homeschool ...

Maths for Maestro is a continuation of ways to prove triangles, and he'll finish this week's work with a review page of all that's been covered so far in this MUS Geometry book. Only a few more lessons and he'll have finished this book .. but that could take a couple of weeks still.  Mariposa's been practicing dividing decimals.  The use of large grid graph paper has been a wonderful help!

Our science lessons have revolved about safety and survival for Mariposa.  She's almost ready to read the first aid section, so I'm planning on pulling out some bandages so we can practice some simple techniques for making a sling and a splint.   Maestro's continued through with his early physics work and worked on friction.

We are reading Carry On Mr. Bowditch together, as well as completing the readers What's the Big Idea Ben Franklin and Phoebe the Spy with Mariposa.   Maestro's been learning about the Russian revolution, and has started reading The Trumpeter of Krakow which is set in Medieval Poland.

Mariposa has continued with her horseriding and is preparing for her Level 2 certificate now.  She's started learning about all the various horse colours, but after some discussion with the teacher, she now knows she needs to do a lot more research than she first thought.  A very creative picture presentation has begun.  I don't know if Mariposa's decided on making it into a poster or booklet yet, but I'm so glad she's just jumped right into this researching.  I've not had to give her any writing projects this week at all as this has been plenty for her to do.

Socially speaking ...

We've actually had a much quieter week!  No outings this week, except for those visits to nearby friends which the children have organised.  Eg: Mariposa's taking a walk with the dog with another homeschooler now and should be back by lunchtime.

A few friends have been discussing getting a girls sewing circle organised, so we're hoping to start that next term.  Meanwhile, I've scheduled an initial gathering for the middle of March where the girls can try out some flower arranging (similar to what I've done with Mariposa in 2011).  We just need to organise an alternative activity for the boys.

At home ...

Our broody hen we had back in December 2012 didn't end up hatching any eggs because they were 'duds'. She obviously wasn't happy about not having any little ones to raise as she's started sitting again.  I've ordered some incubated fertile eggs to pop under her, which Mum has graciously offered to bring over for me (thanks Mum!)  Once they arrive this afternoon, we'll put them under Miss Broody.  We should have chicks again soon!

The vegies are growing nicely in the pots too.  I went out and picked a nice bunch of silverbeet to cook up with some tomatoes for our breakfast.  Mmmm!

Also .. have to tell you quickly that we've started using water kefir!  It's been great for Mariposa's eczema.  I'll do a separate post on that soon as I've found out lots of information and had a month to try out favourite techniques.

I hope you all had a great week and have a lovely weekend.

Until next time,
Catherine

Horsecare Level 1: PASSED A+

A very happy Mariposa met me after her horseriding lesson on Wednesday afternoon.  She'd been steadily working hard on her research and presentation to pass her Level 1 of Horsecare.

Mariposa working with a 12yr old Arabian, named Spirit.

"These two are developing a bit of a bond", said the instructor.

Spirit often follows her around in the paddock and to the gate

after the lesson's over.

Besides showing she had the skills with basic riding and grooming, there was a written portion which needed completing. She didn't have to present it in a journal, but this road took her onto learning more about library and internet research skills, instructional writing, and how to use Word Processing.

The best book reference she found at the library was 

The Ultimate Book of the Horse and Rider, by Draper.  

It had excellent diagrams which she used to identify 

grooming equipment and parts of the saddle and bridle.

Well done darling!  We're so proud of you. :) xx

Last week's Weekly Wrapup

We're enjoying the warmer weather and getting out in the backyard so much more.  Lots of projects are happening depending on time requirements, who's available to help and what materials we already have on hand.

In the garden, I have a new gate ready for my sectioned off vegie patch.  It was a find at the tip's recycling centre and does need a new coat of paint, but it's up and the wire fencing will be done afterwards.  The vegies will have to all be container plants until all this area is completed and ready to be used properly.  Containers have had to be the main style of gardening since we got our little dog, Midgy, anyway, as he LOVES digging.  All my asparagus is now gone (sob!), so will need replanting ... but this fenced off area will solve all that.

The chook run will be shortened so we can gain back some of that wire fencing to use for the veggie patch.

We've disassembled the pergola in an unused area and are relocating it to become a pergola on the back of the house. What is currently just a window will become a sliding door, and steps down still need to be put in.  This side of our house faces north, so we're going to grow a passionfruit vine over it which will give us shade in Summer .. and lovely fruit!


On the homeschool front, we've got several topics going on all at once.

Maestro's working through Geometry with MUS.  We're learning all the different types of lines through a circle at the moment.  While Mariposa is finishing working through one of her Singapore Maths level 4 books and is doing review.  I'm debating about making a 'summary' book with her using Interactive Maths Journals.  When I visited Runde's blog, I got very excited about how to put this journal together ... very CM, and 'WHY didn't I think of this earlier?'   Please do go and have a look at how she runs her math classes.  She's very inspiring!

History has us almost covering similar topics.  Maestro is using Pandia Press for Early Modern History.  The reading requirement was The Witch at Blackbird Pond, which we've just finished reading a month ago.  We've now started the Iron Peacock and really enjoying it.  The vocabulary is sensational, and we could keep stopping to check each word out, but we read it through to the end and then pick a few to check.
Mariposa and I have just started reading  Johnny Tremain (one chapter in) and will continue with it this week.

One day a week, Mariposa is still doing her horseriding lesson.  She spends up to 3hrs there on that day, with 1hr on riding.  She's currently working very hard to pass Level One Certificate and has spent hours finding the information to put into a scrap book journal.  I'm loving that she's very dedicated and putting in so much effort for a good result.

Meanwhile, Maestro's spending most of his spare time with dance rehearsals.  He's been selected for a special group dance which required an extra 6hrs training on weekends.  The result is a very tired, and extremely HUNGRY boy, but he's enjoying the challenge.

I'm also working on a little crafty project as a gift to my singing student.  I'll show the end result tomorrow. :)

Until next post!
Catherine

Gymkana 2011

~  Mariposa's first Gymkana  ~

Dress up competition

Comfort reading

On cold nights, a book to read in the comforts of a cosy bed is very rewarding.

I found this book in our library catalogue, so put in a borrowers request. When it arrived, a quick scan through the pages had me looking forward to getting some time to read it. 

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: Our Year of Seasonal Eating is a writing about a new lifestyle, set in southern Appalachia, USA. Barbara takes us through her memoirs season by season, adding her journal investigative thoughts throughout. Moving from light, humourous conversation to political and environmental issues keeps the reading interesting.

Barbara starts with the first harvest season after a cold winter, when asparagus spears begin to emerge. We're still waiting for our first asparagus of the season, so by the end of chapter 2, I'm out there in the garden inspecting any signs of progress. No, it's too early here still.

Reading on, we move through the stages of garden productivity, when to expect what vegetable in it's seasonal order, and some recipe ideas shared. I'm now only in chapter 7, but the excitement of Spring's possibilities have whet my appetite sufficiently to start sorting through my seeds and seriously plan what we want to be eating in a couple of months.

I love the humour in the book, too. The light-heartedness side of family life, where personalities blossom with innocence, is a lovely side to read. I relate to her youngest in this book, as she sounds so much like Mariposa. Here's an excerpt from page 94 that I had to read aloud to my husband; it made us both laugh:

As weeks passed and her future on the farm began to take shape in her mind, Lily asked if she'd also be able to have a horse. Her interest in equines surpasses the standard little-girl passion of collecting plastic ones with purple manes and tail; she'd lobbied for riding lessons before she could ride a bike. I'd long assumed a horse was on our horizon. I just hoped it could wait until Lily was tall enough to saddle it herself.

In the time-honored tradition of parents, I stalled. "With your egg business, you can raise money for a horse yourself," I told her. "I'll even match your funds - we'll get a horse when you have half the money to buy one."

When I was a kid, I would have accepted these incalculable vagaries without a second though, understanding that maybe a horse was out there for me but I'd just have to wait and see. The entrepreneurial gene apparently skips generations. Lily got out her notebook and started asking questions.

"How mush does a horse cost?"

"Oh, it depends," I hedged.

"Just a regular mare, or a gelding," she insisited. When it comes to mares and geldings, she knows the score. I'd recently overheard her explaining this to some of her friends. "A stallion is a boy that's really fierce and bossy," she told them. "But they can give them an operation that makes them gentle and nice and helpful. You know. Like our daddies."

... and it goes on. Lily is a second grader, so a couple of years younger than Mariposa is now, but still so very much like her in character.

There have been parts I've related to Maestro also, but his interest in the animal world isn't quite as passionate. He really just wants to build things and experiment with his growing manly strength. When I suggested beekeeping as a possible interest, he squirmed with irritation at the thought of bees landing over him whilst collecting the honey. The idea of the money making side appealed though. Hmmm ~ that gets me thinking that there's usually a honey show happening here in August, so I may need to enquire about some type of 'excursion' to explain the practicalities of apiculture.

Scattered throughout the memoirs are her writings on issues, similar to those found in books I've already read, such as Food Inc. They are good reminders of why we should take care of what we eat and how it is produced.

Recipes are available on the Animal, Vegetable, Miracle website, HERE.

Now it's time for me to roll up my sleeves and get some practical work done outside, even though this morning's air is still so very crisp. Our fruit trees need pruning, and I need to make sure that the asparagus stays safe. Last year, our dog, Midgy, was the first to enjoy eating this vegetable, and I don't want that to happen again this year!

A change of direction : horseriding

Letting children make their own decisions can sometimes be 'testing'. I must admit that it's been a rough emotional road here for a bit, for all of us really. What I found most difficult, personally, is my daughter's innate love of dance disappearing. I can't seem to put my finger on one determining factor; it seems that there are several things at play here.

Mariposa does have a natural talent for dance. She's amazingly flexible, has excellent rhythm ... but a few things seem to have gone amiss. Over the years, she's been bumped up to join other girls of her ability, making her the young one in the group. This made her happy at the beginning, because she always wanted to learn the next more difficult thing rather than just going over the same material. Her request to join another more mature age bracket (the one Maestro is in, actually) just won't work. She's yet to turn 10, and they're in the 'under 16' age bracket. The group she was in seemed to be going through a 'silly' phase, talking (according to her) about nonsense and excluding her from conversations.

Bandana ~ Mariposa's horse on Wednesday.

What to do?! We allowed her to drop all but ballet at the beginning of the year. If a child has a natural talent, you don't want them to just give up, do you? But it became evident that our insistence was causing her so much anxiety and we had to yet again reconsider.

If we let her finish up with dance, we need to replace it with something else, and hopefully something that will not only bring back her spark, but present a few challenges to keep her interest.

"Can I do horseriding? PLLEEEEASE!"

Sigh! Another expensive endeavour.

Bandana - preparing for a ride.

Private lessons are a must before they'll let you join the group sessions, unless you can organise your own group for a mid-week session. The latter had been tried before and failed. The good news is that Mariposa had been to have some horseriding lessons before, so really only needed a refresher.

So, as you've probably already guessed, horseriding lessons have started. This week she has participated in a full week holiday program to bring her up to scratch ... and she's a very hard worker, and quick learner. I take her down to the stables at 9am and she's finished by 5pm.

Pillow - enjoying a spot in the late afternoon sun.

The challenges have come pretty thick in the first couple of days. Bad weather didn't help, which kept the children from riding. Stable duties and horse maintenance were on the agenda for most of the time. Thankfully the gale winds and rain has held back since Wednesday, which meant more riding time.

One of Mariposa's new friends, who lives just down the road from the school.

She brought her own pony along to learn about Natural Horsecare.

Mariposa has also made some new friends. When I arrived to pick her up yesterday afternoon, she was busy dancing around whilst sweeping the floors, singing some funny song. The girls were all laughing together, then everyone suddenly became serious when they noticed me there.

Completing chores at the end of the day.

I think tomorrow will be a day when Mariposa will enjoy a good sleep in. Despite the long day and cold weather, she's had a lot of fun. Deep down, I do hope that she won't dismiss dancing forever, but then it's quite possible she may. Meanwhile, she's happy and hopefully we can continue to accomodate her learning this way. (Yes, I'm opening up a new savings program for horseriding!)

Horse flicks

Roddy McDowell, Elizabeth Taylor, and Mickey Rooney all share one thing in common. Do you know what it is? Horse movies!

We've been enjoying some old favourites c/- some op shop treasure hunting. Flicka and Thunderhead (Son of Flicka) started the ball rolling, but now National Velvet is a certain favourite.

Black Beauty and The Black Stallion are still on the shelf, patiently waiting their turn to show their stories. I think they'll be waiting a little longer at the pace we're going.

I don't know what it is about young girls and their affinity with horses. I know it wasn't something in my blood, but Mariposa has certainly inherited something. We knew the interest was there before she turned three, because on her third birthday hubby and I bought her a little porcelain horse with a clear knowledge of the attraction.

It is just such a cute merry-go-round pony, and it plays music as it sways back and forth.

My mother-in-law grew up in South America, and there she used to help her parents raise and break in horses. I can just imagine seeing her galloping about, bareback, and her long dark hair trailing behind her. She's shared a couple of stories with us of her childhood, and I always end up with this certain image in my mind that I marry up from the stories and the few photos we have of her youth. See, there is something in the blood, but it's on the other side of the family!

This interest has led to a keen desire to have more horse-riding lessons. It's been quite a while since Mariposa has had one, primarily due to the cost. However, as she's now changing a few interests and I've taken on a couple more music students, we may be able to fit this in once a fortnight or so.

Meanwhile, I don't mind sharing the enjoyment of watching these classic films on an occasional afternoon. I think there are a few lines from National Velvet that I'm hearing echoed in play already. Oh yes, and I've also had a request for a dress that looks like Velvet's, "please Mum!". (smiles!)

Are there any other fans of horse flicks out there? What's one of your favourites?

Wordless Wednesday: giddyup!