Celebrating the 4th and Our Family

The day was tailor made for us.











We needed time to reconnect after the busy days of graduation, a houseful of friends, and brotherblogger's week away at Scout Camp.











We needed time to enjoy what God has placed in His wonderful world.













We needed time to play.










We needed time for each other!

Fun in the Sun

Life doesn't get much better than this.

Friendship,

conversation,

a sunny beach,

and shelter!

One more memory to treasure.

Shoes, shoes, shoes!

Precious memories are triggered by the simplest of things. Like the shoe pile by the front door last week while we savored every moment with our adopted cousins from A Circle of Quiet. This jumble of shoes is a symbol of the friendships forged in our loving home-group, of barefoot dancers in the back yard, of forgotten socks (whose are they?), and of the love and laughter shared among our families.
Thank you, dear friends, for this memory!
And when, once again, we say goodbye....don't forget your shoes...shoes....shoes.....

Highlights of Graduation Day

"Autumn Rain's Song" by Proud Daddy



A letter from Mamma



Presentation of Diploma


A word from the Autumn Rain

Dear Autumn Rain

This graduation day seemed unfathomable 13 years ago, when we opened that first exciting box of curriculum at our little house on Ganzan Way. And each year your eyes have sparkled brightly as we greeted the package truck bearing our increasingly larger boxes of books, books, and more books.

You’ve read voraciously over these years, all the while storing up your own tales to be told. Tales for you sisters and brothers, tales for Old Fashioned Daughters, and words of inspiration for your audience at the Autumn Rain. Now you’re ready to move on in this journey, to continue your learning life in a new setting.

I’m proud of the choices you’re making for your future. I’m grateful that those plans will allow you to live with us for a few years yet. But I will be sad come September when you will no longer be studying at my dining room table.

You’ve been our trailblazer on this adventure! Thank you for so willingly enduring all the trials and errors along the way. You’ve given me joy in the journey, a breath of afternoon.

I love you,
Mamma

Current Reads

While I haven't hopped on board the Summer Reading Challenge, I have added two new books by my bedside in the past week. "The Rock That is Higher: Story as Truth" by Madeleine L'Engle and "A Brighter Garden" with poems by Emily Dickinson and illustrated by Tasha Tudor.

Living and Learning

Living life has become all encompassing this week as I acquire a new skill, one that should be very useful over the next many years, the fine art of organizing and hostessing a graduation. I've attended a few homeschool graduations in the past few years, but this is very different territory being on this side of the celebration!

So, as much as I'm anticipating the grand event and as proud as I am of Miss Autumn Rain....I'm feeling a bit frantic (because I waited so long to pull the pieces together), a bit overwhelmed at the number of details yet to be taken care of, and a bit teary eyed at what all this signifies...the end of this young woman's days under my tutelage. Some professors out there are about to inherit a gem of a student, one who lives to learn, one who is passionate about whatever she sets her heart towards.

Northern Lights

The books referred to in my previous post, "Ulaq and the Northern Lights" by Harriet Peck Taylor and "SkySisters" by Jan Bourdeau Waboose, are both delightful picture books that relate legends that have stemmed from the northern lights.

Ulaq is a curious fox living in the cold north. His enchantment with the northern lights sends him on a quest across the tundra to discover what they are. His arctic friends join him, all telling him their own explanation of the lights.

"SkySisters" tells the story of two young Ojibway sitsers who set off across the frozen north, to Coyote Hill, anticipating the dance of the SkySpirits. The illustrations (by Brian Deines) in this book are especially dazzling!

I picked both books up at my local library. Keep in mind that these books approach the lights through mystical/spiritual legends and are not scientifically based at all. There is a factual note from the author at the end of "Ulaq" giving some explanation about the aurora borealis.

Enjoy the read!

The Journey Continues

Greetings, Friends!
The journey around His world is progressing quite nicely. Since our last postcard home we've travelled far and wide...through the layers of the atmosphere...around the globe naming the continents...and now learning of the 5 oceans that are really one!




















We've built a model of the atmosphere, done some additional reading of the Northern Lights, and the highlight of the study for the youngest traveller....scrapbooked our postcards home. The adventure is exciting and there is so much more yet to explore.






















We'll be in touch soon!

Sunday Tea

The front porch of Grammy's farmhouse was bathed in sunlight and warm smiles as we sipped tea together and shared our Sunday afternoon. It's always a treat to go visit my husband's Grandmother on the other side of the mountains. Grammy is 87 this year, still living in her own home, still knitting treasures, still serving tea when we drop in for the day.

It's so easy to let the busy-ness of our days keep us from making time to share an afternoon with Grammy...yet we are the ones to gain so much from the visit.

"Thank you for having us, Grammy," we say as we hug good-bye. "I'm the one who wins," she whispers in my husband's ear.



Front Porch Tea



Grammy and Autumn Rain



Grammy and Lavender and Old Lace

Going on a Journey

Summer is hovering very closely on the horizon of our days and with it comes a change of pace. To keep us moving along in our Learning Life this summer, my younger children and I will be journeying through Ann Voskamp's A Child's Geography.

The journey has actually already begun and so far has been a joyful excursion. I'm not generally a hands-on sort of teacher or learner, really I'm more the read-aloud sort, but while the pressure of other school work is low I thought I'd try to do as many of the included (although not required) activities as possible. And so as the children have been busily building globes and scrapbooking this adventure, I've been busily snapping shots of our travels to share with you.

The Paper-Mache Globes

Shaping globes

Hanging out to dry

Drawing the continents


Painting the globe

Adding the finishing touches

Proudly displaying the finished globe

We'll be sending you postcards of our journey all along the way....so keep your eyes on this postbox.

Celebrating The Autumn Rain

A Learning Life
is delighted to announce
the high school graduation of

The Autumn Rain

Commencement celebration to be held
Saturday, June 24th, 2006
4:00 p.m.

"Blessed are those whose strength is in you, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage." Ps. 84:5

This Week on Homestead

I'm not sure exactly what is taking shape on Homestead this week, but something is in the works and progress is what we like to see.

Snapshots of our Weekend Friendship Fest

Castle Crags as seen from the Vista Point


Fellow bloggers from A Circle of Quiet, The Autumn Rain, A Learning Life, and Lavender and Old Lace.


The parents responsible for all of the following.....


The Barefoot Dancers.

Basking in the Afterglow of a Beautiful Weekend

Yesterday, as I aired sleeping bags, returned unused food to the cupboards, and sorted filthy laundry--all the aftermath of a glorious weekend in the wilds-- a hymn kept knocking on the door of my heart..."For the Beauty of the Earth". Usually it's the first verse of a song that comes to my mind, but what was running through my mind while cleaning up was instead the third verse.

"For the joy of human love,
Brother, sister, parent, child,
Friends on earth, and friends above,
For all gentle thoughts and mild:
Lord of all, to Thee we raise
This our hymn of grateful praise."

Today I'm grateful for....

...my friend who calls my young daughter "sister",

...young men of three families uniting in friendship,

..."best friendships" that survive the distance and months between play days,

...and the joy of a shared moment while watching our young daughters explore God's creation.

The scenery was beautiful, the campfire cozy, but nothing compares to the beauty of friendships renewed and continuing to grow and enrich our lives.

Racoon Rolls for a Friendship Fest

Hungry campers, here they are! Ready for Sunday breakfast at Castle Crags.

Breaking Ground

May 24, 2006
The building process has begun! Here's what's taking shape out on our "Bit of Earth".

What We Need Each Day

Here is Charlotte Mason's philosphy adapted for our family by my 15 year old son.

1. Something to love
2. Something to do
3. Something to learn
4. Something CHOCOLATE

He has learned well from his mother!

Bob, the Builder, and Company

Regardless of whether the property is accessible and buildable, my husband is ready to move forward with the project. He would love to be building the actual house, but for this time he will have to be satisfied with building our shed/playhouse. The wall frames and trusses are ready and awaiting transport from our current home to the building site.

Counting The Days

It is with eager delight that this family is counting down the days to a Memorial Weekend camping trip. As a mom who doesn't generally relish the thought of camping and all the work (not to mention discomfort) that this will entail, you might well wonder why I would be joining in the count down. But this trip will be one worth the effort.

This trip will carry us south to the loving arms of our home group family (though unfortunately not all the members will be present). Together we will celebrate a birthday and sing 'round the campfire, break bread together and build a few s'mores, dance and tell tales under the starry sky...we will fill the cups of friendship to overflowing once again. What a joy it will be to share our lives without the internet separating us!

Thank you, dear friends, for making all the arrangements and giving this family something to look forward to. See you in 10 days!!!!!

Naming Susu

It has been my great pleasure over the years to be asked to name a few calves born over at Celebration Farm, where our dear Wisconsin kin live and learn.

First there was Lori's Betsy. Next came Moki...my #5's word for milk. And now Moki has her own sweet baby. The message arrived last week, "Aunt Lori, it's time for another name...Moki has a heifer."

Oh dear, I'm running out of ideas. We need something original, but it has to fit this little one. Something international? Let's continue with the milk theme. I looked up the Latin word for milk and discarded that idea. How about Spanish...Leche? That's not it either. So now I looked back in my past, to my days in New Guinea....Pidgin English for milk....Susu. Ah, just right. And here she is, looking as sweet as her name.

Golden Play Day

Please, may I pick some flowers?



Keeping Cool



Who's king of this mountain?

Making The Heart At Home

Hanging at the head of my bed is a beautiful heart ornament I received from a precious friend this past winter. As I look at it each day a simple refrain from a Madeleine video keeps flitting through my mind, "Home is where the heart is, the heart is...if the heart is home." Herein lies a problem...where is my heart at home?

I've lived a lifetime of moving. Pieces of my heart are scattered around the US with my brothers and sisters, scattered around the world with my parents and the friends we've made in our traveling. One would think my heart would be fractured to bits. But it must be made something like a starfish- able to regenerate the loss. The wonderful truth is this, there is no loss. Whenever I've given a piece of my heart away a piece has been knit back into it's place, to fill in that gap. It's the beauty of friendship in our lives.

Now as each week passes we are busy making our hearts at home in this new setting. Earlier this month we chose a church home and are working at getting to know the people God has for us here. My older children are attending a Youth Group full of wholesome young people sharing their lives with one another. We are resuming music lessons. Bit by bit the pieces of our lives are coming back together. Our hearts are making this home.