Vacation Education

  Just the recipe? Go HERE Whenever someone says, "Raid my garden?" I say yes. And, I take my kids along. We are not farmers, we are city people. We like living in town, just blocks from playgrounds and beaches. But, we also love to visit our country friends and see the bounty of their harvests. This week, we ventured out to pick pears. My teenage boys climbed up into the high branches to shake them down and then we all worked together to gather them up.  We put about 8 bushels worth into the back of our friend's pickup truck and then we packed up a bushel to take home. That's a LOT of pears. But, they don't last long, as is true with most fresh produce. You must use it up or put it up for the winter. We try to do a little bit of both. So, I usually start by asking the internet for recipes. This one from Taste of Home was our first choice to try and it was delicious.  I did make mine just a little bit differently than they did though. I used my Crockpot instead of...

 It took me many years to learn to be content in my own home. But, now that I am, it takes more to draw me out of the house than it did when I was young. After years of running to this sport or that, and to this lesson or that, I have very little desire to do such running, and we are careful to choose activities that fit into our life rather than trying to fit our life into a child's activities. One such program that has consistently felt worth the work is American Heritage Girls. This is the 6th year that we have been involved with AHG, and it is our second year with Trail Life - it's male counterpart. I do not just send my daughter, but I volunteer too. I am at every meeting, involved in every fundraiser, helping with every event - it is a commitment for both my daughter and me. There have been many social benefits to an all-girl club for my daughter who laments being home with four brothers and no sisters close to her in age. But, she is also learning skills and confidence a...

  In " A Thomas Jefferson Education, " DeMille suggests that we look not only to our heroes, but to the educators of our heroes to learn how they became the great men they were. So, with this in mind, I was intrigued when I came upon  The Dupin Stories. If you have ever had the pleasure of meeting Arthur Conan Doyle's character, Sherlock Holmes, you will certainly appreciate the character that inspired Doyle to create Holmes. Sherlock Holmes is not an entirely original character, but rather is almost identical to the character of C. Auguste Dupin, investigator extraordinaire. Both characters are acutely observant and shrewd in their deductions, but also have personality quirks that bristle those who meet them. Each character has a sort of sidekick that documents their exceptional abilities in solving crimes and mysteries, and then share those stories with us. Dupin is the creative genius of Edgar Allan Poe.  The Dupin Stories  is a collection of three mysteries solve...

Disclaimer: This post has to do with Vacation Education and homeschooling only in so much as I set an example of being a lifelong learner to my children, by always reading new books and looking for ways to learn new things myself. This particular post is a rant about a book I read and didn't like. Just FYI before you dive in.  I thought this book would be therapeutic. I thought it would address the nagging insecurities we all have about reaching for something great. But, it wasn't therapeutic at all. It was annoying, all the way through to the very end. I would have returned it to the library after a couple of chapters, except I have this thing about finishing books I start. I can count on one hand the books I've started to read and refused to finish. I want to keep it that way. I believe in giving an author a chance to make his point, to hear him out all the way to the very end. So, I gave it a chance, all the way to the end.  I wanted it to be hopeful. I wanted it to be w...

This post is a little different than what I normally write about. It isn't directly related to travel or homeschooling, but if you are passionate about saving money like I am, you may appreciate what I have to say here. And, sometimes, I get sick of hearing something so much that I get a bug in my ear and write until it's satisfied. Here is t he link to the article  from CNN that has me up and typing like mad this morning. It begins something like this: "... inflation can actually be a good thing for many working-class Americans, especially those with fixed-rate debt like a 30-year mortgage." She argues that your house is increasing in value while your mortgage payment stays the same. This is true. However, this would be happening even if the prices on every other thing you buy wasn't tripling in price at the same time. And, this ONLY applies to that specific situation - renters don't benefit, those with variable rate mortgages don't benefit. And, if your ...

 We started out on an adventure to see some baby ducks. We'd heard there were lots at the Horicon Marsh. We started out at the south side of the preserve, in the Wisconsin State Park section. The views from the Marsh were extraordinary. It is always good to get outside and see God's creation firsthand. It reminds me of how great a God we have, who not only made all of this, but watches over it, and keeps it moving in its cycles. The changing of the colors reminds us that time marches on. We get older, our children grow up, our time here is limited. It is good to be reminded of these things sometimes. Instead of seeing baby ducks, we went on the Storybook Trail. We followed clues, read the story, and then when we returned to the Visitor Center with the correct answer, we got a prize. We also visited the National Preserve Visitor Center and learned even more. We never did see any baby ducks, but we did see a little garter snake. I pointed it out and my daughter said, "Can I ...

Even when you're on a mission to get  15 states in 25 Days , you still have to make time for the little things. No matter how many things we see and do and how many experiences we make for our children, it is often the little spontaneous moments of joyful play that instill the happy memories we are trying to make.  Boston Common is the oldest public park in the United States. We learned this from our tour guide on the Freedom Trail Tour. It was established in 1634. The park itself was a British military camp prior to the American Revolution, and the ponds were used for grazing animals, and swimming holes for little boys too, whether the city intended that or not. The ponds were replaced in the 1970s with a modern splash & spray pool, then an ice rink was added the 1990s. The park itself has a long history of being a gathering place for events, festivals, protests, and more. We found the pond to be a lovely stop on our long walk on a hot August day. It was just right for sl...