Category: family life
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free fallin’ and fast cars.
The kids are now the following ages: 24, 19, 17, 15, 13. Yes, four teenagers and an adult. For the longest time, Chris and I talked about the day that this would happen. The day we would have to navigate life with teens. All the literature had told me how this was a time when […]
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wintering.
For those of you living in places where you see your breath when you exhale, and you don’t exalt in the joys of sub-zero weather by strapping on three layers of woolies to frolic in the snow-covered woodlands, then I apologize in advance for sounding obnoxious. I am freezing this morning. It is 20 degrees […]
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Near/Far.
Me: “Our organic tea tree essential oil has a strong refreshing scent, obtained by steam distillation of the leafs of organic Melaleuca Alternifolia trees, also known as ‘Tea Trees’.” Daughter: “Mom, what are you doing?” Me: “Avoid direct contact with eyes, If contact occurs, rinse well with water. Discontinue use if irritation or redness occurs. […]
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Vision.
Q: “Mom, how many fingers am I holding up?” Me: (Cue deep sigh of annoyance) “I am not playing this game.” Q: “Come on Mom, how many?” Me: “You know I can’t see anything.” Q: “Ok, but like, what do you think you see?” – Little did my son know the weight of that question […]
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Think outside the box. (Or use the box to do it.)
I posted this Twyla Tharp quote as a journalling prompt for my teens the other day: “Before you can think out of the box, you have to start with a box.” Sometimes you have to learn the rules or experiment within a safe container, before breaking them and venturing outside and taking a leap. Creativity isn’t […]
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F*ck The Brady Bunch…and John Mayer.
As we were all gathered in the kitchen prepping dinner, I watched my kids do their chores and cook in harmonic bliss, all with the usual hip hop beats in the background. Today’s choice: The DJ Filthy Rich playlist of Tribe. They were laughing and chatting as usual. I remarked to them, in a rhetorical […]
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A paradox and my “word” for 2020. (And no, thank goodness, it’s not “paradox”.)
I agonized over my 2020 word, my intention for another year and potentially the decade. It’s April already and I am so grateful for the word I eventually chose. As I contemplated my word for 2020, I thought about different things. I was opening a little independent learning centre and I was a little nervous. […]
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A Geometrical Family Activity.
Make a mandala. Make it on paper. Make it in the garden with things found in nature. For more details, you can read my old blog post. The Ancient India block, where we create mandalas, is one of my favourite blocks. As they draw a the mandalas, I tell the story of Brahma, Vishnu, and […]
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READ ALOUD.
Why the shouty caps? I can’t EMPHASIZE how important this activity is to do with your child of any age. I am reading aloud again to my five children: my 22 year old, my 16 year old, my 14 year old, my 12 year old, and my 10 year old. We are on Chapter 3 […]
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Re-post. A Love Note to Homeschooling.
I wrote the love letter at a time when everything in our life was up in the air. The only constant was our rhythm of learning. We had moved to Costa Rica and were in the middle of building our house and living in our fifth rental where all four kids were sharing a tiny […]