I am a teacher. Certified for 1st-8th grades and experienced in classroom and home school settings. I love teaching and find that most things I do in my life include teaching in some form or another. This explains why I love blogs that are about home school. Today I read the blog, My Life in the Domestic Church, and she was writing about how they do summer school, which is merely a variation on how they do school year round. Excellent post so be sure to go read her blog. I could relate to what she wrote about doing school … Continue reading
Category Archives: Parenthood
St. Josemaria Escriva is a favorite of many people I know, especially me. So it is a wonderful joy to me that we are celebrating the Baptism of our newest family member on June 26th, Feast of St. Josemaria Escriva, who passed into the hands of God on this day in 1975. The prelate of Opus Dei writes a letter each month to the members of Opus Dei, and I find it highly edifying. Bishop Javier Echevarría is eloquent: The whole month of June is filled with significant dates, for the history of Opus Dei as well: the ordination of … Continue reading
I recall as a child sitting down to the TV with my parents and siblings and the family dog. Even with only the three stations our antennae could pull in, there were shows that a family could watch together that did not include gratuitous sex, violence, or swearing, lots and lots of swearing, and adult themes were very limited until after 8 or 9 when the kids could be expected to be in bed. I’m not anti-Television. I am a kid of the TV generation who grew up watching family shows in the evening before being sent off to bed … Continue reading
I have recently discovered the joys of browsing the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Online Collections. It began with my favorite time period and region to study which is Byzantium during the reign of Basil II. Someone pinned a photo of a bracelet from around that period on their pinterest page and I saw it and followed the link to see more historical information on this artifact. Thus began a several day, every spare moment, fascinating walk through the website. I pinned lots of bits of fabric from around and before my period to aid in finding embroidery patterns that would … Continue reading
I am delighted with the Statement by the Holy See Delegation. I blogged about it days ago. Today I re-visit the quote I used from that document. It is edifying to read it again. The Catholic school assists parents who have the right and duty to choose schools inclusive of homeschooling, and they must possess the freedom to do so, which in turn, must be respected and facilitated by the State. Parents must cooperate closely with teachers, who, on their part, must collaborate with parents. —Statement by Holy See Delegation Parents “have the right and duty to choose schools inclusive … Continue reading
I sometimes wonder if other moms sit holding their babies, nose planted on the top of the child’s downy soft head, smelling them. I love the way this baby smells. I have no idea why. I cannot recall sitting and smelling any of my other children when they were babies. I cannot recall noticing their scent at all. Today, I spent my time snuggling and smelling the littlest child. He simply always smells good to me; I wonder if he will still smell good when he is bigger and racing around outside in the dirt and heat? Will I find … Continue reading
I firmly believe in Catholic home school materials. Not so much for indoctrination, but because it is important to me to demonstrate to my children that our Faith is to inform every area of our lives and this includes our learning. Catholic science texts, for example: I LOVED using the books from SETON because along side the usual science materials they included sidebars with little blurbs on famous scientists and their Faith. It was wonderful, I grew up a science geek, so I love everything science, and having a science book that showed my kids how it was really truly … Continue reading
The Vatican’s Delegation to the UN gave a boost to the rights of parents to direct the educations of their children, including homeschooling. This statement further clarified that portion of the Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church which pertains to the educational options open to parents. Parents, struggling to fulfill their vocations, finding home school to be the best choice for their children, rejoiced at the attitude of the Delegation from the Holy See when they read in the statement that the Delegation insisted on the rights of parents to choose homeschooling without interference saying that “they must possess the … Continue reading
I am disappointed that I was unable to attend the Catholic Home School Curriculum Fair this weekend as I had intended. This Fair is the work of Immaculate Heart of Mary Homeschool and Parent Conferences, and co-hosted by ARCH, and University of St. Thomas. (ARCH=Apostolate of Roman Catholic Homeschoolers which serves the diocese of Houston-Galveston) I am doubly unhappy about having missed two talks by Joseph Pearce whose books grace my shelves and whose work I find edifying. Oh well, one doesn’t get to choose when a stomach bug will come along to mess with one’s plans and I am … Continue reading
Catholic Home School Conference this Friday and Saturday in Houston TX. There are not a lot of home school conferences that serve Catholics. Few Catholic curriculum providers are invited to have booths at the other home school conferences. Few Catholic speakers are invited to give talks at other home school conferences and certainly none that are boldly Catholic in their choice of topics. We ignore this prejudice because we recognize that for most non-Catholics it doesn’t even occur to them that the prejudice might be offensive. We accept that none of our good Catholic Curriculum providers will be advertising in … Continue reading