Some pictures from a recent photo shoot. Oh, so hard to choose just one...or two...
HoneyBee: Age 6.5
Little Chimp: Age 3.5
Baby: Age 10 days

In a recent post, I promised to give more details on the sewing class I taught for our homeschool co-op this fall. It was definitely a work in progress as I've never done this before. My original plans were slightly ambitious, but we only ended up dropping one project in the end. There were two classes: 4-8 grade and 9-12 grade. Each class was one hour long. Here's what we did:

Weeks 1 and 2 were spent learning some hand sewing. I've read on several lists I've been on how important that can be, so we started with a small lavender sachet out of felt or fleece. We taught the running stitch, the blanket stitch, and how to sew on buttons. Showing others how to do something is an entirely different thing from doing it myself; it took some doing to figure out how to explain the blanket stitch.
Weeks 3 and 4 we worked on making aprons--starting with learning some very simple pattern basics and how to use a sewing machine. Some girls had experience using machines already, and some did not. The pattern was a very basic apron with a pocket. We used ribbon for the neck and waist straps.
The last two weeks we learned rotary cutting and strip piecing in order to make lined tote bags. Not all the girls were able to finish these during class, but most got at least the outside pieced and straps done.

It was a good experience and fun to plan. I am definitely more of a planner than a teacher though. One-on-one I can do okay, but a whole class of kids looking at me is a bit scary.

On the way home from vacation today, we swung by the PA grand canyon near Wellsboro, PA. One of the signs there is about 3 birds you often see in the area: the bald eagle, the turkey vulture, and the osprey. DH showed it to the HoneyBee and they talked about the birds and the differences between them.
As we were leaving, they reviewed the birds again in the van. The Little Chimp chimed in with his understanding of the fowl. When daddy asked about the bald eagle, the Little Chimp exclaimed, “They eat balls!” “No, they don't,” daddy said. “Some do!” was the Little Chimp's response.
We decided to move on. Daddy next asked about turkey buzzards (aka turkey vultures). “They buzz?!” interjected the Little Chimp. Trying to explain that buzzards do not buzz was fruitless.
So, now we know that bald eagles eat balls (later conversation determined that they are blue balls) and that turkey buzzards/vultures *buzz* like bees. The things you learn from a three-year-old.

I believe I've mentioned here before that we have decided to homeschool. Through much research the past several years, I have really been drawn to the Charlotte Mason philosophy of education. Thus, we decided to use the curriculum found at Ambleside Online. This is our first year of “real” school, as the HoneyBee is now in year 1 (aka 1st grade). We are currently in week 6 of the first term and things are going fairly well.
One of the main aspect of a CM education is narration. This is where the student is to tell back a story once he/she has heard/read it. It is not as simple a task as it sounds at first, and the HoneyBee was really balking at it. I was doing a great deal more prodding than I felt I should be and neither of us were enjoying it. So last week, we tried out something new I'd read about online: a narration jar. Instead of simple asking for her to tell me the story once we've read it, she now gets to choose a slip of paper out of a jar. This slip of paper tells her the manner in which she gets to narrate the story. Here's some examples:

• Create a short comic strip based on the reading.


• Act out events in the reading.


• Give a puppet show of one or more interesting parts of the story.


• Write and perform and original song that tells the story.


• Narrate into the recorder.


• ...and many more.

She loves this new method. So much so, in fact, that she was begging me to use it on things I wasn't planning to have her narrate. Narration has now become an enjoyable time instead of like pulling teeth. And it's enjoyable for both of us. The HoneyBee is so creative, that she comes up with some wonderful responses to some of these ideas. It has helped to improve our whole school day!

In addition to the history and literature readings each week, we are also doing Bible, learning a hymn (one/month), memory verses, poetry, handwriting (we're starting cursive this week because she *really* wants to learn “how to write with all the loops” ), math, Spanish, art appreciation (Raphael this term), and composer study (Bach this term). I'd really like to add in nature study soon too. Many of these aren't really study, just exposure at her age. We're finally starting to fall into a regular routine, but I'm not holding my breath for after the baby comes...we'll probably have to start all over again.
We also started Pizza Hut's Book-It program this month, for which I set the goal of 5 chapter books a month. The HoneyBee was so excited about it that she read 4 in the first 3 days...at which point I decided to also put a goal on the number of pages in each book. Number 5 is taking a bit longer.
And the local homeschool co-op is starting up again this week. The HoneyBee will be getting additional art, science, and gym (and socialization) there, and I got roped into teaching a sewing course to the older girls. I'll post on that later.

I'm not doing anything official with the Little Chimp yet, but he picks up quite a bit just being around while we do school. The HoneyBee also really enjoys reading to him--she's recently introduced her own story time for him--and they've created dramas together to act out some of the books we've read. The Little Chimp seems to be picking things up just as quickly and unconsciously as his sister did.

I finally did some sewing yesterday, for the first time in months. With other pregnancies, I've just worn pants to church most of the time, but this time, I prefer skirts. The problem is finding maternity skirts (esp. at reasonable prices) is next to impossible. So, after some online searching, I went to the thrift store and picked out two regular skirts in my size plus one matching shirt. That, along with 2 pair of jeans for Jacob and a small item for each kid was $3.00! I came home, tried on the skirts, traced my belly, cut that out, cut the panel out of the t-shirt (two panels from the one shirt), sewed it on, and violå! Two new skirts for less than $3.00.
Now I just need to catch up on the rest of my sewing...and since I've been recruited to plan a sewing class for the local homeschooling co-op this fall, my list of projects just increased by three.

On the homeschooling front, I'm tempted to give up on trying to teach the HoneyBee math (not really). She picks it up so much better when I just let her do things herself. We've been working on time and measurement the last couple weeks, but I picked up some library books on fractions for the coming weeks. Getting her to remember the time/measuring things we've talked about can be like pulling teeth, but she read herself one of the fraction books and is now in the kitchen experimenting with all my measuring cups and making very accurate predictions. As DH said when I told him, “Don't let schooling get in the way of her education.”
Along the same lines, yesterday Abby picked up one of the free read books for this year, Saint George and the Dragon, and read it. She then proceeded to plan a play based on it, casting herself as Una and Jacob as George. They practiced it several times yesterday, made up tickets for it, and were planning to do the final production last night. We ended up going to a concert at a local church instead, but I believe it's now on the schedule for tonight! I was amazed at the way Jacob cooperated so well and played his part...though he did start to get a little contrary after the third run-through.