Home School Life

My lucky 14-year-old Calvin and his 21 lucky classmates are off on their eighth grade trip in Hawaii. It’s been awhile since he’s been gone for so long and I’m starting to miss him.
His absence has me thinking about my parenting of him and what it means to be the parent of a teenager. The [...]

When I was a kid I remember having “freckle days” — days when my freckles somehow seemed more noticeable than usual. My Leo’s freckles were out today, and I somehow managed to talk him into getting in front of my lens.

At first he wasn’t sure.

Then he got a bit skeptical.

Then a little silly.

Then even sillier.

And [...]

My lovely day of solitude yesterday translated to lots of progress on my Hepburn sweater.

I’m so happy with this sweater. I think it’s finally going to be a handknit sweater that I’ll enjoy wearing. The silk/wool yarn is creating a lovely hand — not too stiff, not too flexible. I don’t usually think of this [...]

This morning I got home from a lovely visit to the Sandpoint Waldorf School. I had a great time teaching a group of fourth graders there.
As part of their Human and Animal block I brought them a lesson about spiders. It was a lot of fun to share things we already knew about spiders and [...]

It’s taken me a long time to figure out the importance of form in a child’s life. When I was a young, new mother my little one was the center of my universe and I felt that nothing was more important than his freedom to explore the world at will. Forget about the dirty laundry, [...]

2.22.2002 — An auspicious date if ever there was one. For our family it was especially so as this date marked the arrival of our little Leo.
Today my little star boy is eight years old. I love his birthday for the opportunity it gives me to remember what a gift he is. This little one [...]

Last night homework time rolled around and Alice could not, for the life of her, find her orange homework folder. We turned the house upside-down, called Dad to see if it was at his house and came up empty. Must be at school, we thought.
Tonight, homework time rolls around and I ask Alice if she [...]

It seemed to David that he heard voices singing in the wind among the olive trees, as though the trees themselves were singing, voices that sang not to the ear but to the soul. ‘He shall feed His flock like a shepherd: He shall gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them.’
I am reading [...]

I have had so many reminders lately of the importance of maintaining equanimity in my life.
All my life I have tended to live with an abundance of sympathy. I have a very easy time understanding the perspective of another person, and though this seems like it might be a wonderful skill, at times it has been difficult [...]

 It’s 6:30am and I’m sitting in my living room, the dog at my feet, the cool glow of the computer screen the only light in the room. Children are sleeping, the house is still warming up, I’m still in glasses and pajamas. I always forget how delicious early mornings are.
Feeling a little under the weather I [...]