Homeschool Books and Materials: Singapore Math to Memoria Press

I opened the door to my daughter’s room Friday morning, camera in hand, to tell her that she needed to help me get some pictures for my blog, and this is what I saw, just inside her door: We’re not taking dowry offers yet, so don’t even ask. Anyway, my idea was to use the blog to answer the question that I so often am asked, “What do you use for homeschool... Read More

Seedlings at the Kitchen Table

I planned, prepared, and sat down to write my blog this week. I was ready to start the post with something along the lines of “Directions on How and When to Plant Indoor Seedlings.” It was designed to impart to my readers my vast (ha!) knowledge of the varying qualities of potting soils, proper moisture for germination, and even a few invaluable tips on window placement and... Read More

Spiderman Cracks Under the Pressure

“I’m thuper thtrong, Mom!” Villains, beware. I don’t look forward to the kids outgrowing their mispronunciations. Last week I had a perfect opportunity to get a shot of my son in his hand-me-down spiderman pajamas and blanket cape. He was being a boy, chasing his shrieking sisters like a true superhero. I passed the moment by, probably because the floor didn’t... Read More

Awaiting the Ascent

Our family went on a rope-climbing trip on Camelback Mountain Friday afternoon, and I thought it’d be a good opportunity to introduce all of them onto the blog. This is my husband, leader of many such expeditions. He’s a world history teacher, and runs the Adventure Club at his high school. Here, he gets his harness on, ready to climb. My husband checks my oldest... Read More

New Soil

This week marks the end of one phase of my life. Saturday, a moving van is showing up, so that my husband and I can load up our few belongings and transport them to our new home in small-town, south Kansas. This week has been crawling by, feeling much like one feels at the top of a roller-coaster, knowing the rush is coming soon. Paint colors have been picked, garden plans have... Read More

Mischief

“I’m sowwy, Mom.” It was a tearful apology. She shouldn’t have been climbing on the counter in the first place. A Band-Aid for the pinprick of blood on her heel, a word of caution, and she was on her way – and off the hook. I liked that cup, outdated as it was. I remember it sitting with its match on my dorm windowsill in college. Usually it was full... Read More

My Blogging Break

This week is a blogging “break” for me (really… you’re not seeing this post). No worries, there’s lots to read, thanks to other family members! My brother set us up with our new self-hosted “spot” for the site, which really will make this blog’s existence so much happier in the long run. This week’s task was getting everything... Read More

Finding Life

My older sister and I have talked at random in the past several years about starting a blog together. I ended up starting this one last year, just to learn a new hobby and deal with the isolation of mountain life and early motherhood. It was only a matter of time, though, before I called and begged, “Um, Julie, is it time now?” Julie cuts straight to the heart of a matter... Read More

Close to Eden

As I was thinking about my beginnings in gardening, I suddenly felt an acute empathy for so many people in my life who claim that they simply “don’t have a green thumb.” Most of them use stories of pathetic, wilted, porch-grown tomato plants and neglected, forgotten, (and thus) deceased herb pots as evidence of their lack of the “gardening gene.” I believe my empathy comes... Read More

The Deep-Dish Pizza Recipe

Someone asked for the deep-dish pizza recipe from this morning’s post (photos on that post). I’m cutting and pasting it from an email to my sister a couple years ago, with a few minor edits: Annie, Here’s my deep-dish pizza recipe. You realize when you ask ME for a recipe, you’ll get lots of details! 🙂 The pizza crust recipe I found online [I’ve made a couple... Read More