What to do when your first grader is NOT an early reader? What to do when readiness is slow to arrive? What do you do when well-meaning friends and family fuss because it looks like this child is going to be behind? You take a deep breath and evaluate. Learning style of teacher and pupil. It is a constant question–what curriculum do I use? I used Seton for a very long time. It was not the first curriculum I tried back in the day more than twenty years ago when I first embarked on home schooling. I tried Kolbe (classical) … Continue reading
Tag Archives: parenthood
“The warp of that garment is life, all other issues are weft, and without the warp all you have is a pile of tangled threads.”– Ann Seeton All the social issues of the Catholic Church are good things, they are each only a single weft thread that weaves in and out of the warp threads and all together create a fabric, one that is, to borrow a phrase, a “seamless garment” BUT, one must never ever ever forget that the warp threads of that garment are life, and without life you haven’t any garment at all, you have nothing but … Continue reading
Today I spent a gleeful several minutes playing with my Little Crow, who is a sporting almost 2 years old, and a 2 foot diameter heavy duty yellow exercise ball that once upon a time was taller than the child who pulled it down and rolled it over to me, a wide grin and sparkly eyes expressing joy. I dribbled it like a basketball. Little Crow thought that was the best thing ever. Each time I stopped, small hands thrust the ball back against my knees until I dribbled it again. Giggles and jumping up and down in place, toddler … Continue reading
I like the title up there, but truth is, I have never found a satisfactory way to handle the stress of loneliness while staying home with small children. I enjoyed taking graduate classes and found that I could study genetics while sitting on the floor as the kids played around me. Getting out to class was really good for me and it helped me to feel very good when I was home with the little ones. I currently have a special interest group I joined and that is fun too. But the truth is that finding ways to support your … Continue reading
The Mom Job is great but even the most perfect vocation has its difficult aspects. For the mom who is at home all day with her beloved children, the biggest down side is loneliness resulting from isolation from other adults. It may be hard to believe that a woman who cannot even use the restroom without a train of toddlers joining her in the room could ever be lonely, but indeed, it does happen. Some of us turn on our favorite television to have the sound of adult voices. I particularly enjoyed EWTN and a smattering of cooking programs. I … Continue reading
THE WAY, “Written and directed by Emilio Estevez, THE WAY was filmed entirely in France and Spain along The Way of St. James, also known as “El Camino de Santiago.” ” [from the back of the DVD case], stars Martin Sheen, father of the director/writer Emelio Estevez. Its a family affiar of a film including cameos of several members of Martin Sheen’s family. I LOVED this movie about a grieving father, a fallen away Catholic, who walks the Way for his son. The movie included some interesting people, each struggling with their own pain, who join the main character along … Continue reading
BURNING INCENSE BEFORE IDOLS Our fight against the HHS mandate is only the tip of the iceberg. Caesar is determined to force all to bow before his idol. Caesar is determined to claim the authority to define religious belief for all citizens of the United States, first amendment be damned. Clearly, the days of Rome have returned complete with all the evils of abortion and infanticide in addition to the worship of the ruler as a god. CONTRACEPTION AND ABORTION AND THE EARLY CHURCH FATHERS We have a Church that preserves by the power of the Holy Spirit the full … Continue reading
Those final months of pregnancy are simply not fun. The feet and hands swell and are stiff and painful sometimes. Sometimes the face swells and feels like allergies have taken over–but it is just pregnancy. —The UP SIDE must be having something to offer up in my prayers! The belly is so huge you cannot reach your feet. This makes wearing shoes and socks a real trial.— on the UP SIDE, it is Ok to wear slip on sandals. Being tired all the time takes all the fun out of not having to worry about what you are eating as … Continue reading
6th Day of Christmas: Feast of the Holy Family Today we celebrate the Holy Family: Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus. The Church holds them up as the ideal for the family life of all people. This is a feast day that moves depending on which day Christmas falls on in the year and there is a nice explanation at the link in this sentence. Joseph, sensitive to the spirit of God, was guided by angels in his care and protection of the Christ Child and the Holy Virgin Mary. His role as protector included teaching a craft to Jesus so … Continue reading
It was inevitable that my vocation would include home education but I did not begin there. It all began back in college. You see, I graduated and my first job was at a small private school. My task was to teach arts and crafts and to plan field trips. I loved the work and decided to go back to school and add a teaching degree to my BA. THAT was a major turning point for me. I enjoyed the classes. I was NOT impressed with my fellow students. This was my first time to doubt the quality of education given … Continue reading