A Mother's Journal » They Were Strong and Good

Aunt Claire’s Yellow Beehive Hair

admin — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 19:01:36 +0000

What a cute book this is! And what a perfect go-along for They Were Strong and Good. It is all about family “memorabilia” and the family tree from the view of a young girl.

Aunt Claire’s Yellow Beehive Hair

by Deborah Blumenthal, pictures by Mary GrandPre

“After we’re so stuffed we can’t eat any more, the grown-ups push back their chairs from the table and talk and talk about the people I see only in old pictures.”

It’s well-written. The illustrations are adorable. As part of the storyline, the little girl describes how she puts old photos together with her own descriptions to make a beautiful family book. I recommend this book!

Lynn

Much Enjoyed and Much Yet To Do

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 15:39:47 +0000

So much to do today! I am working on the January newsletter for my website, The Healthy Homeschool. The goal was to publish monthly, but it’s not easy keeping everything done. (Tracy, I just do what I can in a day and then hope for another day. I like to stay busy, but alas there are only so many hours in each day! And I do use Mod-Podge.)

I am requiring each one of my homeschooled children to contribute something to the newsletter, so this should prove interesting. Joseph already has his contribution. We’ll see what Princess of the Universe comes up with. I’ll place a link when it’s done.

A couple of days ago my husband brought home a package of model airplanes for Miss Priss. She set to work putting them together yesterday. It was a good lesson in ReAdInG InStRuCtIoNs before starting something. That’s all I’m gonna say about that. She did get them put together, though, and they flew beautifully! That was her science lesson for yesterday.

Last night we started placing furniture in the new doll house. We put a tiny cuphook-type screw in the ceiling and hung our little paper lantern. I love it. The walls need some color and some art pieces, but we’ll tackle that in time.

It was just really fun to get back into playing. As you can see, one of the little woodland folk, Paisley, has been invited to come in and visit. She’s behaving herself. So far. Unfortunately, thanks to Michaela’s imagination, a Fisher Price horse went bucking wildly through the house last night and messed a bunch of stuff up, so we’ve got some clean-up to do tonight.

For our bedtime story we read Yonder.

This book is SO sweet. I, of course, cried at the last of it (like I always do with a good melancholy sort of book) and Princess of the Universe had to wait on the last few sentences while I got my sniffles under control. I cannot believe I have not seen this book before now. It would be an awesome go-along for Warm As Wool or They Were Strong and Good, because of the homesteading and strong family theme. It also has a theme of planting plum trees that grow and produce over time, so any orchard or tree or farming theme would work too.

Before going to bed, I couldn’t help but notice this. Bitty Baby looked to me to be a bit concerned that there was an alien in her crib, but this is a child’s world after all, so I guess it works.

On a gardening note, I have to step outside each day and see a bit of green. I am thinking of spring, but enjoying winter. Yes, I do realize what month it is.

I appreciate the herbs for producing even a little bit. I also noted many bright green dandelions in the vegetable garden. They will make a healthy infusion today.

And look poking through the ground! It would appear to be hyacinth or tulips. One would think that I would know, but I planted so much in this bed last year….

Rosemary, I love you. You have a touch of blue even in the coldest months. What would I do without you?

Just a couple more things. Diane, this

is the first film version of Hamlet that comes to mind. Do you have a recommendation? Anyone have a recommendation? I am going to pursue seeing a theatrical production of Shakespeare, but not sure I can find Hamlet this year.

Finally, my son Joseph said something this morning that I appreciated. He said when we lose, we look back and see what we did wrong. We note acutely what we could have done better. When we win, however, we sometimes go on without looking at what we could have done better. I want to remember this, in times of winning and losing.

Lynn

Keepers of Their Homes, Long Ago

Lynn — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 04:32:52 +0000

Every time I look at this pitcher, it has me by the heart.

From the late 1800s, with its crazing and cracks, how can it still be in one piece? I wonder who used it and for what purpose exactly. The stamp on the bottom includes part of the British Royal Coat of Arms, the lion and the unicorn, and yet this does not mean it was made in England. Around the time it was made there were American potters using the mark to make their wares look more British. There were also newly American potters, just over from England, using the trademark they brought with them, so to speak.

Was her pitcher from England? Was it American? Was she slender and frail? Perhaps stern? Or was she plump with a rosy face and a cheerful laugh?

Silly me. The time I spend wondering about things like this. It’s a miracle I ever get anything done.

Speaking of keepers of long ago, I lucked out and found a keeper of a book during my last thrift store outing.

It’s called Seven Brave Women, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it with Princess of the Universe. History is often told from the perspective of the many wars that mark our timelines, but this book tells history through the eyes of seven brave women who lived through wars but did not fight in them.

Me and my sappy self, yes I got all teary-eyed reading about women of long ago and how they worked and raised (and fiercely loved) their babies and lived through times I cannot imagine. It’s a simple concept — the author sharing personal stories of seven brave women in her family tree, but what an amazing book it turns out to be.

I love the illustrations, too. They are full of color and life. It’s definitely got a permanent place in my home library.

As a side note, it would be a great book to go along with They Were Strong and Good, in case you are doing a unit study of genealogy or if you use the wonderful literature-based curriculum called Five In A Row.

Lynn