First Day of School

Ostheimer Squirrel 

Deirdre and Jonas on their new Daddy built natural playgroup. These are her hop logs! 

Today was our first day of homeschool! It went over without a hitch. I keep pinching myself in disbelief since it went so well and we ALL enjoyed it so much. Last night I was a bit nervous because I take teaching any children, my included, seriously (since it my profession). But that all melted away as we sat down for circle time with a song, a monthly poem, followed by a finger play, story, discussion, and verse. 


Our weekly theme is squirrels, nuts, and preparation. I cannot go into too much of the specifics since we are using a copyrighted curriculum, however I added in an extra bible story and weekly bible verse about John the Baptist who prepared the way for Jesus Christ to complement our preparation theme. 


Jonas enjoyed most of it. He came and went, which is fine and what is expected of a one year old. He loved the puppet story and songs. He even mimed the finger play! 


Deirdre was mesmerised and quite into her "school time". She called me Mommy-teacher the entire day! Ah it warmed my heart. I am so glad we prayed over this choice and that the Lord has blessed it. I cannot wait for that time tomorrow, and neither can the kids! 


Also on another good note, I finished knitting my apples! Whoopie! 

We also began our new Autumn menu tonight. Very healthy and crunchy but we like it so far (and we were pretty healthy to begin with). Its good motivation for me .

Nuts we've found and a home grown pumpkin! 

Quite time light. 

Lots of art displays! 

Tomten and the fox looking at each other, per Deirdre request. 

More Baba Yaga, but she calls it Hansel and Gretel. 

New playroom art. 

Runny Noses and Busy Bees

Our first week is on squirrels and gathering. 

Things are gearing up around here for school to start. Since Deirdre and Jonas are not getting a traditional first day of school, since we're homeschooling, I am trying to make it as special as possible for them. One of the ways in which I am doing that is making half of our dining room a 'school room'- which will be covered up until Monday for their first day!  It is complete with a little library, a reading nook, a small table, an easel, a seasonal nature table, and other daily charts and art displays! (I promise to update the photos as I finish it up and have better light) 


Today I was able to finish unpacking a few leftover boxes from our move as well as clean! Thankfully I have a nice mother in law whom lives close by. So getting this room set up has been a breeze now and all its parts have been located.


I am also excited to start our co-op next week as well with my dear friend Anya and her little ones. We will be meeting two days a week and rotating weekly lesson teaching. The Waldorf curriculum we decided to use is called "Little Acorn". Its perfect for preschoolers of all ages. There is something in each lesson for Jonas as well as Deirdre, so that neither of them will get bored or left out. It also provides lots of extra activities and crafts to choose from so that you can pick and choose. The creator focus in the curriculum is also a plus since we are Christians. So since the curriculum allows wiggle room, I am able to add verses and biblical stories where I see fit. Not to mention we're also introducing Latin and French familiarity and our ABCs since Deirdre asks me daily to learn how to read. So we will go with!    


My works in progress list is ever growing. Currently I have:
-Knitted pumpkins
-Knitted apples
-Quilt bindings
-PJ pants
-Aprons (For me, DD, Craig, and Jonas)
-Autumn dress (Deirdre)
-Autumn outfit (Jonas)
-More PJs for Jonas and Deirdre
-Halloween wall hanging and costumes
(Not to mention I already have a list to do for Christmas presents!). 


Phew. So needless to say I am going to be busy but I think that list in manageable. I also have some volunteer work to do that I am very excited about. 


However- per the title of my blog- cold season has started early here! Please pray for me since I have had a nagging little cold for a few weeks now. Nothing too bad but enough to make me feel tired and yucky! 

The Tomten and the Fox, their Hunter's Moon gift 

Hansel and Gretel 

Autumn gnomes and some trees I made. 

The children's books. 

The nook

Jonas' fabric

Deirdre's fabric

Daily Verse: 

Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? – Psalm 85:6 (NIV)

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual birthed by Soulemama. A single photo - a few words - capturing a moment from the week or month. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see!

Jonas discovered dipping his pickle in his ketchup is the best and smartest thing ever. Taken on Ocracoke Island at my favorite restaurant. 

A New Crisp Breeze

Tomorrow is the day that the Autumn edition of Rhythm of the Home comes out! In it you will find my wood burning gnome tutorial as well as my giveaway. Yep, that right I have a giveaway! Thank you for all your support and feedback. I am truly blessed to have this space.

Jonas and my mother. 

Loving the sound in Buxton

Our last days of Summer on the ferry ride to Ocracoke, NC.

Before Irene hit, we enjoyed our last hot summer picnic by the lake. Since then our days have noticeably been cooler and less humid. Trust me, I will not complain, however I am always sad to see Summer leave. The older I get the more I seem to prefer Autumn. I still feel the going-back-to-school rush that I got as a little girl when I noticed that first crisp breeze. Autumn also vividly reminds me of when I fell in love with my husband and of our long night walks in November. 


So as we enjoy the last wisps of Summer, I also welcome my old friend Autumn. With him I welcome many many changes, both exciting and a bit scary. But that is what I love about the changing of the seasons. No matter how well you know them, our walks through them year after year still forge a new exciting path. 


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Before I end, I just want to thank all of you for thinking and praying for us and the East during Irene. We were without power for about three days, yard is a mess, and one tree is half fallen- however we are safe! 


During this ordeal, a few voices have risen up decrying the "hype" about the hurricane, and I feel a need to address that. We all experience nature differently based on where we live, what stage of life we are in, and how connected we all are to the world around us. 


For some in my community, Irene was a disaster. I think we'd be remiss in comparing one to storm to another, because again while Katrina was more catastrophic, Irene was just as heartbreaking to those whom experienced loss of life or property this time around. And by comparing these two storms, one can demean the legitimate loss of those whom suffered due to Irene. 


A young boy was crushed to death near to us, due to a tree falling on his bedroom. If I was his mother, Irene would have been the worst thing to ever happen to us. So with that being said, please friends let us all think before we publicly decry the media for covering Irene so much or 'making a big deal about it'. I am so thankful that it turned out to be weaker and shudder to think what it could have been if she had not and if we had not been prepared for the worse.