the striped rose

Stash and Stashability

2012-01-25T08:24:00.005-05:00

I don't have any amazing progress or finishes to show you, so I thought I would share some views of my stash with you. I love making piles of charts and rearranging the "stitching order." These are some that have been at the top of the pile for a while.

You all know how dutifully I have been working on Anonymous Women by Sheepish Designs.

Yesterday, I put her aside when the mail carrier delivered some fabric for Bridget Power Sampler by Of Female Worth.

Unfortunately there was a stain on the otherwise lovely 40 ct Angel Hair, so back it will go. But the linen for Renaissance Garden by Goode Houswife looked perfect, so I thought about starting it.

Whenever I see Renaissance Garden, I think of 1762 Canterbury Tapestry by Barrick Samplers for some reason. They are very like and very unlike to my mind. I have the fabric and could have started it.

But the birds were singing yesterday, and the bees were buzzing, and the day was unusually mild for February.(ETA: Thanks, Barbara! It is January! lol) So I considered English Cottage Sampler by Chessie and Me.

or Awake the Dawning Day by Blackbird Designs.

As you can see, I was spoiled for choice. With all this vintage-y goodness spread before me, my capricious needle may another stab, as it were. I sat myself down in my car in front of the ballet studio and stitched this.

I suppose I will always have a spot in my heart for Cross-Eyed Cricket!

I found this freebie in one of the newsletters at Stitchville USA. http://www.needleartworks.com/stv/nwsltr/svnwsltr.htm

Sewing Class

2012-01-23T08:54:00.002-05:00

This weekend we went to a craft store. The girls chose some Valentine fabric for little pillows I have in mind made from a Sampler Girl freebie. I mentioned to Nutmeg that it would be cute to stitch up a few for her a couple of her besties. She misunderstood; I was suggesting she stitch them! Maybe we will stick to candy this year...

I divided my weekend stitching time between Mary Queen of Scots and Anonymous Women. I picked up a few DMC colors I was missing and so was able to stitch some of the "fun bits" of Anonymous Women, in particular that big glow-y flower. I stitched it incorrectly. I decided to call it personalization and leave it.

This will be the week the girls and I conquer the sewing machine. If we can get past Latin, French, Math, Composition, et al. hmmmmm....

Because I Love You...

2012-01-21T19:08:00.005-05:00

...and nothing says love like a Sheepish Designs chart...

http://www.yankeecrossstitch.com/default.aspx?Page=FREECHARTS

(mine)

I hunted down what I believe to be the last Sheepish Designs freebie on the internet! I stitched this a few years ago, and my chart is too ratty to share! This is the "Peace to all who Enter" Angel. Download it and save it while you can.

You are welcome. ;)

Tweet Tweet!

2012-01-18T21:53:00.001-05:00

Alright, the title is lame.

Here is my first ornament finish of the year - not the first ornament start, no that has already been laid aside.

I confess, I chose a design I knew I could easily finish in an afternoon. As I stitched, I was constantly aware of what an excellent designer Paulette of Plum Street Samplers is. The design is small, yet filled with detail. I stitched this on 32 count antique ivory with the given DMC conversion.

Here is Hector guarding my progress on Sheepish Design's Anonymous Women. I really like this more and more. This was designed by Cindy Bradford, now of Little by Little Designs. As I stitch the bottom portion, I seem to recognize the hand that designed Ann Pennsylvania Peacock. Maybe that is just fanciful! I would love to hurry and finish this up, but I have dutifully laid it aside to work on another piece or two. My definition of rotation is getting looser by the day! ;)

Stitching Progress

2012-01-14T11:58:00.000-05:00

Happy Saturday to you all! I don't have any big stitching news, but I didn't want anyone to be scared off by that last homeschool post!

Here is my current progress on Papillon's Mary Queen of Scots, GH's Easter Rabbit, and Sheepish Design's Anonymous Women.

Hope your Saturday is full of stitching!

Weekly Report 9 January - 13 January

2012-01-14T10:57:00.014-05:00

This was another eventful week here in our homeschool! Highlights this week include the vet discussing revolting dog things with the children (science-check!), a delivery from Rainbow Resources, a new 6-week composer/artist study .... Read on, Dear Reader, read on!

My parents gave me a gift certificate for Rainbow Resources for Christmas. The order arrived this week, and I am looking forward to livening up these winter months with new lessons and books. Monday we started our new 6-week artist/composer study: Rembrandt and Vivaldi. I love a new beginning with a new plan. I never know whether the end result will meet or exceed the plan.

Rembrandt

Our first picture for study is Tobit and Anna.

This is from an episode in the Book of Tobit. The righteous Tobit has become blind, and his faithful wife Anna is working and brings home a goat kid. Rembrandt has painted the couple after Tobit accuses his wife of stealing the kid and then asks forgiveness. We had a Sunday School lesson on this in October for Raphael the Archangel's feast day. I hoped this would be fresh in the girl's minds. St. Raphael, who is the angelic guide to Tobit and Anna's son Tobias, is a favorite of mine and Jerry's. This archangel leads Tobit to the wife God intended for him, and prayers are often prayed that, by the power of God, St. Raphael will lead you to whom you seek. Jerry had a St. Raphael prayer card that he carried with him for some time before he met me. We have decided St. Raphael's feast on October 24 will be our "Valentine's Day."

Even if you are not interested in this book for religious reasons, I strongly recommend familiarity with it if you plan for you or your children to study art history.

Resources I plan on using for Rembrandt

Now, don't freak out about the number of books on my list! It is not all necessary! I have collected many of these books over a couple of years from my favorite used book seller for $1-$3 each. Some I have purchased on the Amazon Marketplace for under $1 plus the standard Marketplace shipping of $3.99. An incredible variety can be found if you hunt and hunt for months and years BEFORE you do a lesson. I don't have any where near this many books on any other artist, but Rembrandt books were easy for me to find. I just want to show you what is available if you look around (or check your library.)

The focus of picture study in grammar and middle school is on the PAINTING itself, not the artist or his times. Some of the books I have are for me to read (and educate myself!) and pass on the information to my children in conversation. I know my children would be mortified if I hauled a few books to the museum and walked around reading out of the book! I hope (one day) my children appreciate me walking around the museum and whispering to them funny stories and sad histories related to the artists and their works. My children want us to tell them things in conversation; they want to be treated like maturing human beings. Eventually, my children can read the art histories for themselves. I love my Kindle, but I cannot imagine studying art history on a screen.

Many of my books are ex-library. I hope they can still be found on many other library shelves!

General Art Histories

*The Story of Art by E. H. Gombrich (I think I paid around $6 total)

A classic work for generations. You can read about the various editions and choose the one for your purposes.

*The Story of Painting by Sister Wendy This is an enormous coffee table hardback rich with color. Because I care neither about the original dust jacket nor the black line drawn across the bottom end, I was able to purchase it for $20 and free shipping. Some of the paintings cover 2 pages and are good for detailed study.

*The Annotated Mona Lisa by Carol Strickland

I love the sidebars! I love the comparative charts! A "Crash Course!"

Anthologies for Children

*Lives of the Great Artists by Charles Ayres

If you hang out on homeschool forums long enough, you will notice other homeschoolers posting "deals and steals." I think this book was on special pricing for $3 or $4 and free shipping at one time. The selection is limited to 20 artists from Giotto to Van Gogh. The book is over-sized which allows for pictures large enough to study. There are sidebars throughout such as "Why don't you..." and "Did you know..." The artists covered are covered well for $4.

*Stories of the Painters by Amy Steedman.

This book can be found from $20 to $100. Mine was $20, in beautiful condition, and with pages still uncut. Many of Amy Steedman's books are in the public domain and can be found in many places online such as The Baldwin Project and Librivox.org. This book is apparently not in the public domain. Sometimes I see 1910 as the date and sometimes 1938. I love this book. I love Amy Steedman's writing style and the color plates. As always, Steedman's stories begin with childhood. These stories make a nice read-aloud over several days for grammar and middle school students.

*Masters of Art by David & Emily Kales 1967

I spotted this book at a friend's house. Her librarian MIL passes along "discards" to her. I read several selections and then immediately turned to the computer. I found it on Amazon for $0.30 plus $3.99 shipping. I plan on using this book for middleschool outlining and written narrations.

*Young People's Story of Fine Art by V. M. Hillyer and E. G. Huey

Hillyer and his works are legendary in the homeschool world, but because of decades of revision and updates, I never know which editions to choose. My favorite online used book dealer, Linda's Used Books, had several individual titles in his art series for $3 each. She was selling the homeschool library that belonged to a friend. I have rarely paid $3 for a used book before, but these have been worth it. These are from 1970, and have color pictures and text suitable for both reading and outlining. (Nutmeg has written several narrations from the Architecture book - I highly recommend it as well!)

Specifically Rembrandt

*Picture Study Portfolios published by Simply Charlotte Mason.

I purchased the Rembrandt because I felt I needed "handholding" as I embarked on this journey. A booklet is included that gives detailed information (with quotations from Charlotte Mason) on the purpose and form of CM Picture Study, as well as an adapted biography of the artist. In the case of the Rembrandt Portfolio, the biography was adapted from Amy Steedman. Eight large, glossy, sturdy prints are included. This would be an option for someone who does not have ideas about which pictures to choose. (I like none of them.) Finally, the portfolio includes a list of other books for further study. Here I found the title of a middle school novel called "Night Watch." I have been unwilling to pay $15 for it on Amazon though. I'll keep searching...

*Hanna in the time of Tulips

a picture book by Deborah Noyes

*Introducing Rembrandt by Alexander Sturgis

$1.50 ex-library book, middle school

*Rembrandt and Seventeenth-Century Holland by Claudio Pescio

This ex-library book I bought from Linda has come in very hand this year as we have studied the 16th and 17th centuries. Several other artists from this time and place are covered as well as political and social aspects of the society. It is over-sized and contains good pictures and illustrations. The large, detailed illustrations of the canals, dikes, and windmills were invaluable as we studied events in Holland's history. There is a lot of information here!

*Eyewitness Art: Looking at Paintings

I have had this ex-library book for several years. It has interesting information on wide range of topics.

Composer Study

Our Composer for this 6-week period will be Vivaldi. The children are already familiar with some of his music; Jerry and I listen to it a lot. The focus will be putting the name, face, and a few facts with the music.

*Classical Kids cd and Teacher guide Vivaldi's Ring of Mystery

*The Music Masters Series cd The Stories of Vivaldi & Corelli in Words and Music, $4 ?

*Lives of the Musicians Good Times, Bad Times (And What the Neighbors Thought), used

*I, Vivaldi a children's picture book written by Janice Shefelman, used

*Anna Maria's Gift A Stepping Stone Book by Janice Shefelman, used

I worried that this last book might upset 7-year old Buttercup. The first chapter deals with the death of a beloved parent. I then remembered that most of Buttercup's imaginary games begin with orphans whose parents have died of the cholera... Yes, Buttercup has been steeped in classic children's literature, in large part due to Librivox.org.

I am considering reading the chapter on Vivaldi in Victor Chapin's 1969 The Violin and Its Masters. Perhaps I could glean some interesting bits of information and pass along to our violinist, Nutmeg. It is something to keep on hand for high school at any rate.

In addition to these resources, we will be listening to my husband's impressive Vivialdi collection as well as some Vivaldi pieces found in the Beethoven's Wig cd series. We love those at our house!

Geography

Some time ago I purchased a download of Beautiful Feet's geography program using four of the Holling Clancy Hollings books. I did not want to spend the money on the maps hoping I could use some I already had or could find on the internet for free. Using my gift certificate, I bought the Beautiful Feet maps that go with the program. Each of the four maps is 24" x 18" and printed in two shades of brown on cream cardstock. I really think these maps are necessary to the program; the size will allow the child to include and observe so much detail! Nutmeg was very excited when she saw the maps, less excited when she saw the first book, Paddle to the Sea. I think she will certainly be able to handle one lesson per week.

Greek

I also purchased Elementary Greek: Koine for Beginners volume 1 of a 3-year program. It is New Testament or Koine Greek. Now, I know this is perhaps controversial. I know that Attic Greek is preferred in Classics departments. I know it is recommended that one study the more difficult, Attic, before the simpler, Koine. I know.

BUT-

1. My primary goal with this subject is for my children to read the New Testament as written and to understand the nuances and idioms.

2. My husband is studying New Testament Greek.

3. There are many homeschool Koine Greek programs for non-Greek-reading parents to choose from. Attic - not so many.

4. I got a Rainbow Resources gift certificate. This program was on their damaged/bargain page. That's how I was raised to shop. :)

I'll update again in the coming weeks and let you know if these resources are livening up our homeschool through the winter months!

Hope you found something useful!

WIPocalypse January

2012-01-09T08:27:00.008-05:00

Greetings, Fellow WIPocalypse Stitchers! For this month's full moon, the Full Wolf Moon, I finished Stitcher's Prayer by CHS. I started it in the last week of 2011, so it was hardly a WIP that had been long in Stitching Limbo. But a WIP is a WIP, and a Finish is a Finish!

I also have made some progress on Susan Rambo. I started her as soon as she appeared in SANQ last summer. I am stitching her on Exemplar with DMC threads, some are my own conversion. I love her, and want to see her hanging proudly on my wall, but I have a serious case of Stitcher ADD. I hope to show you more progress by next month.

This is a new start from yesterday, so it is not on my WIPocalypse list. I am going to spend 2 more days on it to complete a rotation. I don't want it to be on a WIP list or a UFO list one day!

ETA: This is Anonymous Women Sampler by Sheepish Designs

I am looking forward to seeing your progress!

Time for a New Start!!

2012-01-07T12:54:00.004-05:00

I am doing a Cross Stitch Rotation this year. Yep. I just got a little side tracked, but I bought a little calendar to keep records so I can get back with the program. 1 and 2 January I finished A Stitcher's Prayer, and 3 and 4 January I dutifully worked on Susan Rambo. 5 January, instead of finishing a 3-day rotation on SR, I chose to start Souvenir de France, a freebie from the Blackbird Designs blog. I used a cream-colored scrap of fabric and DMC 924. I knew I should have chosen a ribbon first and then selected a matching thread, but I didn't. Now I will have to settle for a thematic match instead of a color match. Nutmeg started learning French last summer, and I thought it would be a cute little pillow or pinkeep for her. (I would also like to purchase or borrow French Lessons by Birds of a Feather. I'm not paying 80$ for it on Ebay.) I finished Souvenir up this morning. As I note that in my little calendar, I see that I should work on SR again today. But I don't want to. I want to start something new...

I have some natural light fabric that I think is the correct size for Anonymous Women Sampler by Sheepish Designs. If I can locate my DMC 3011, I will start this after I feed lunch to the Fam. You know I love Sheepish Designs, don't you? So I don't need to go on and on telling you about my SD obsession, how I watch and wait and snap up the designs where ever I find them, how I flip through the charts in a huge binder before I sleep at night (counting sheep- haha-sorry), how I called Dawn Bradford last summer and begged her to release all the designs digitally....yes, I really did. She was sweet to me, but she has moved on...

I also plan on ordering some 40 count linen from Terri at The Stich Store to begin Bridget Power. She's gorgeous. *sigh*

She is also huge. Look at those flowers! Look at that altar! My favorite things in a sampler - how could I resist?

Now look at this.

Jerry and I are going to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary next month. We have a little trip planned, but I don't know if he will be able to leave Hector. What do you think?

Oh, our wedding anniversary! Now I remember that I wanted to stitch Tanya The Sampler Girl's ' Jane Austen & Me...the Emma Project for our anniversary. Hmmm....better get stitching!

Homeschool Weekly Report 2 Jan to 6 Jan 2012

2012-01-06T17:32:00.010-05:00

We started back formal homeschool and music lessons this week. It felt good to sit at our little school table, and have a routine. It felt good, but it was very draining. I am going to fortify myself with no driving and lots of stitching this weekend because dance classes start next week. A little voice in my head frequently commented, "Isn't it nice to take a long break in the middle of the day, or even two breaks, and do some subjects in the late afternoon?" Even with no rushing off to dance, it was impossible to get everything done. Latin did not get done. Science got done a bit. History got done a bit more. Math, grammar, art, and composition got done A LOT!

I had one last thing I really wanted to introduce before we moved on to our next Artist Study. Paintings and Painters are our main focus, but I would like to introduce other art forms occasionally. To finish our Degas study, we read Degas and the Little Dancer and looked at Degas' sculpture "The Little Dancer." Buttercup colored another page from Masterpieces: A Fact-filled Coloring Book.

We did not get everything done with this Artist/Composer round that I had envisioned. I am trying to look at all the resources as "options I can choose from" instead of as "boxes I need to check in order to feel good about our experience." We drew ballerinas, we listened to different pieces by Tchaikovsky, Nutmeg worked on a Tchaikovsky piano piece, we went to a school day at a theatre for what we thought would be an abbreviated Nutcracker (It was a disappointment), we discovered new books about Degas and Tchaikovsky, Nutmeg noted the men in her Book of Centuries, and we even managed to tie Young Indiana Jones in by watching an episode where Picasso argues with Degas about art! I keep telling myself this is exposure, this is enrichment, it is not meant to be the end-all-and-be-all Culture Experience!!

We did some "hands-on" art as well this week. Nutmeg grudgingly did an assignment or two out of Artistic Pursuits- we are giving it another try, but we still have not discovered its "magic." Buttercup experimented with positive and negative images. (We haven't quite figured out how we want to display them.)

How to Teach Art to Children is still my favorite art program we have used. I remember having so much fun doing it with Nutmeg. Nutmeg also remembers it fondly and frequently asks to be included in Buttercup's lesson. Today they were each given three sheets of paper and three blue circles. The assignment was to make the circle part of the drawing in different ways on the different papers. Nutmeg's all had a Harry Potter theme, of course!
Buttercup also drew a tiger while I read to her about India. I know it looks like she misspelled tiger, but it was her little joke - a tiger growls "grrrr!"
India was our history focus this week. Yes, we are only on week 11 of Story of the World. I am past hyperventilating about that. Occasionally I do hyperventilate about other things though, like Social Studies. Now, I couldn't tell you what Social Studies is off the top of my head without a lot of "um's" and "you know's." Homeschoolers seem to pooh-pooh Social Studies. We always look at the geography, religions, foods, current events, etc. of any country we encounter in our history texts. But sometimes, sometimes, I get the Social Studies Bug- enter the Weekly Reader Social Studies Skill Builders Grades 4-5. I bought it used somewhere or other, and I pull it out now and again. This week Nutmeg did a few multiplechoiceinterpretthegraph-type worksheets about India and global energy use. She came downstairs so indignant that we Americans use more energy than we produce! Her reaction was so charming that it made my half-hearted purchase worthwhile!

I want to introduce you to a few more members of my Stinky Book Collection.
I am indebted to Jenn of Wildflowers and Marbles and Angela of MommyLawyer/Gratia Plena Academia for sending me down so many rabbit trails! I go to their blogs (and Angela's house) and rifle through their book collections, jotting down titles and authors as fast as ever I might. I have come to appreciate the uncluttered, simply illustrated books of the 40's, 50's, and 60's that can still be found at used book stores and sites. Sometimes a child (or parent) really needs a good, technical graphic or an up-to-the-minute text. But sometimes, sometimes, the parent and the child want to savor a book that does not overwhelm with flashy graphics (that remind me of MTV videos of the 80's and 90's) with text hidden here and there all over the page! I also appreciate the tone of many of these books. They seem to be written for children who have or at least appreciate an attention span longer than 2 minutes. I grabbed a handful that we looked through this week and include them here if you feel like going down some rabbit trails of your own!

Myths of the World Padraic Colum 1930
Getting to Know the Ganges Welthin Soni 1964
The Story of Peter Tchaikovsky Opal Wheeler 1953
All About the Symphony Orchestra Dorothy Berliner Commins 1961
Christmas Trees and How They Grow Glenn Blough 1961
Masters of Art David and Emily Kales 1967
The Golden Geography Elsa Jane Werner 1952

Those are some of the highlights from earlier in the week. Today is 6 January and we celebrate The Feast of the Epiphany!

May all your comings and goings be in search of Truth!

First Finish

2012-01-03T08:08:00.001-05:00

I was hoping this would be my last finish of 2011, but it turned out to be my first finish of 2012! I finished "Stitcher's Prayer" by Barrick Samplers/CHS last night while watching more of Agatha Christie's Tommy and Tuppence on Netflix. This is the year I get serious about blocking and framing. Yep. This. is. the. year. As opposed to all those other years I said it - this is the year. I think this piece will be a good piece to start with: it is not that much bigger than the pinkeeps I have made, and there is no finger nail polish spillage to try and hide.

Now to get going with my rotation! To start, I have included several WIP's and one BAP (or Big Hinney Project, if you prefer) that I committed to at Becky's Stitching Hive. I plan on adding pieces after each cycle. I also plan on taking a few Prairie Schooler and BBD smalls to work on in the car. We'll see won't we, but I am happy with the start I have made!

On the Third Day of Christmas...

2011-12-28T10:52:00.002-05:00

I know today is the 4th day of Christmas, but yesterday, on the 3rd day, I went to a LNS!!!! I told myself I was only there to buy fibers and fabric, and that's what I did. It was difficult, but it helped that 1. I had purchased a rather large pattern of the Bridget Power Sampler that morning (here's a link to a great photo http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/photo/2597435540085030495BtHxGk), and 2. as I looked around the shop at all the stock in the store, I began thinking my stash was... well let's just say competitive.

So I settled on 4 patterns to "kit up." My husband had taken the girls with him to spend his REI gift cards. Boy, did he regret that! While I waited for him to try on every pair of 5-finger shoes in the area (with negative comments from his children), I sat down with the lady at the shop and stitched. I started "Dear Friend," a Reward of Merit by Blackbird Designs. I had to pick out every stinkin' stitch because, apparently, I cannot count! When I returned home, I started "Stitcher's Prayer" by Barrick Samplers. I have been wanting to stitch this for ages, but I couldn't find colors I liked for the flowers. Now, I'm a DMC girl, and I planned on using the DMC conversion, but 522 and 524? Sea foam flowers? I don't think so. But 931 & family weren't right; neither were 926 & family. So I told the lady at The Stitch Store, "I need heeeeellllpppp!" We pawed through and rejected the called-for Needlepoint Silk, then WDW, Gentle Arts, Caron, and Crescent Colors, and FINALLY I settled on Needlepoint Silk Williamsburg Blue 323 and Jade 522. I am willing myself not to fall in love with NPS!! ;)
Hector, my little Cookies and Cream, says hello. Why do I have a Coleman sleeping bag on the couch? Who knows?

I will leave you with a few of the pictures I have taken during Christmas. Now to get back to "Stitcher's Prayer!"

Christmas Stitching...well it's red and green at any rate

2011-12-22T09:06:00.003-05:00

I am resisting the many urges to begin a Christmas sampler. I have stacks of Christmas designs, mostly Blackbird Designs, that I would love to begin. But I am anxious to finish something sometime soon. At any rate, the reds and greens of Ms. Rambo are satisfying to stitch this time of year.

Goals are my downfall, but I keep toying with the idea of stitching Christmas designs all through 2012. That should last until about January 2.... :P

Thoughts of my grandmother

2011-12-20T13:09:00.005-05:00

Trying to organize some of the many thoughts, memories, and stories going through my mind...

My grandmother: sitting on an enormous pile of stuffed animals in Nutmeg's closet while having a tea party.

My grandmother: opening a telegram during WWII wondering whether it was her husband or one of her 5 brothers.

My grandmother: always arriving with gifts such as fake vomit, fake doggie-do, or the old "fly in the ice-cube."

My grandmother: mourning the death of her little daughter on a Christmas morning.

My grandmother: going trick-or-treating with her grandchildren - wearing a costume and mask.

My grandmother: waiting to hear from her sons in two different wars.

My grandmother: laughing so hard she couldn't speak, tears coming from her eyes.

My grandmother: sitting in a wheelchair, unable to make herself understood, trying to tell us with her eyes.

My grandmother: being slapped full in the face by my dad's pet monkey. she could never tell the story because she would start laughing too hard.

My grandmother: wiping off her lipstick on the way to visit her mother and telling her children not mention going to the movies.

My grandmother: rustling plants in the mountains with my grandfather.

My grandmother: mixing up dressing in a large dishpan. she always made with onions and without.

My grandmother: always having something good under that metal cake holder. we laughed when she used such a large knife to cut the cake.

My grandmother: always filling an old pie plate with scraps for various dogs, cats, and birds.

My grandmother: always rooting a bit of this or that in a pot of soil or a jelly jar of water.

If you have a moment to pray...

2011-12-20T12:11:00.004-05:00

Please say a prayer for my grandmother Christine.

"Acknowledge, O Lord, thy creature not made by strange gods, but by thee, the only living and true God: for there is no other God beside thee, and none that doeth according to thy works. Make glad the soul of this person, O Lord, with thy presence, and remember not her old sins and excesses which wrath or heat of evil desire may have aroused. May the heavens be opened to her. May the angels rejoice with her. Into thy kingdom, O Lord, receive thy servant. May St. Michael, the Archangel of God, prince of the heavenly hosts, receive her. May the holy Angels of God come forth to meet her, and conduct her to the city of the heavenly Jerusalem. May the blessed Peter the Apostle, to whom were given the keys to the kingdom of heaven, receive her. May St. Paul the Apostle, who was counted worthy to be a chosen vessel, assist her. May St. John, the chosen Apostle of God, to whom were revealed the secrets of heaven, intercede for her. May all the holy Apostles, to whom the Lord gave the power of binding and losing, pray for her, May all the saints and elect of God, who, in this world, suffered torments in the name of Christ, intercede for her, that loosed from the bonds of the flesh, she may attain unto the glory of the heavenly kingdom, through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen."

The Sampler Menagerie Blog

2011-12-11T23:00:00.005-05:00

I feel a bit sheepish - ha ha- about this post. I started a new blog( 5 minutes ago), The Sampler Menagerie. It is nothing fancy (boy, is it ever nothing fancy!), but I hope with your help it will be an interesting place to visit with a cup of tea. My vision is a blog dedicated to the charming and odd, beautiful and downright weird animals that appear on samplers. By samplers, I mean reproductions and those done in an old-fashioned style. My definition is fairly flexible: the piece need not have an alphabet or a pansy band. I am just trying to avoid photograph-like reproductions of a current pet. Will you join me? Will you help me grow this tiny half-baked idea? Let me know in a comment, and I will send you an invitation. Then search your stitching, and take CLOSE-UP photos of the animals that captured your heart with their breathtaking elegance or their homeliness only a mother could love! More information on posting can be found here

The Sampler Menagerie

I hope to meet you there! :)

I hit the 1/2 price jackpot!!

2011-12-05T15:14:00.007-05:00

I have made the tiniest bit of progress on Susan Rambo. I chose to use DMC 500, 501, and 3013 as the main greens.

Saturday, while visiting my grandmother's nursing home, we drove by a cross stitch store. I have not been in a cross stitch store in ages!! My mother had told me marvelous tales about the shop's 1/2 price bins, and they did not disappoint! I was thrilled to add to my Carriage House Samplings collection. Some of the charts I had considered before - I loved them, but not in a full-priced kind of way. The lady and her husband who owned the shop were VERY kind, especially considering that I arrived 1 minute before they closed, had them drag out and then rejected all their 40-count fabric, and stayed for a LONG time. They closed up shop around me, and I do not exaggerate when I tell you their keys were in the door as I left! It was a very nice treat!

28 November - 1 December 2011

2011-12-01T21:18:00.027-05:00

Homeschool is usually a bit rough around here after more than two days off. This week, however, Nutmeg let it slip that she had missed school! Can it be? Is she learning to love learning in spite of me? Nutmeg has an early morning violin lesson at a nearby college. Sometimes Louisiana Man is able to take her, and on those occasions, Nutmeg and her daddy go have a cup of coffee ( I think Nutmeg has a hot chocolate or chai) and read for a few minutes before he goes to work. Nutmeg mentioned she realized she missed school while watching the college students writing in notebooks. I hope that is the only habit she picks up from them! ;)

Artist and Composer Studies

This week's Picture Study is brought to you by the Metropolitan Museum of Art Calendar. Our family looks at this calendar every single day! Some weeks it saves Picture Study when an artist happens to show up on a day I didn't prepare very well. So here is Degas' Woman with Ibis, or some similar title.

While I type this, the girls are listening to Tchaikovsky: The Mystery Box in the Attic, while they draw ballerinas from How to Draw Ballet Pictures. This is actually how I picture homeschooling; I needed to document the moment before it evaporated! ;)

History

We do other subjects besides art and history, but these two subjects have been the more blog-able lately because they are more photogenic. (You don't really want to see pictures of math worksheets or hear how Nutmeg thought she was just supposed to copy the answers onto her fact drill sheets from the one she did the day before.)

We are on day 75/180 of school and are on chapter 8/42 of Story of the World volume 3. (Perhaps I should spend more time on math.) Anyway, we read chapter 8 of SOTW and did the suggested mapwork. I cut circles of different colored construction paper, and the girls glued them on the map of Persia as a I read about the various empires that had conquered and ruled there. It is a really nice visual and hands-on project. Are we going to memorize the names and correct order of conquerors? No.

I also read to the girls a few chapters about the Middle East from V. M. Hillyer's A Child's Geography of the World. Both girls did written narrations as well as drew camels. Nutmeg also had an additional Hillyer reading from his art series. She read and narrated a section on Islamic architecture. Yes, I edit as I read, choosing current terminology and adding current events.

Here is the beauty of a Book of Centuries: the various figures we study in history (it is not always possible or edifying to study in strict chronological order), the artists and composers we focus on, as well as current events that should not be ignored can all be visually organized in one place.

Here is one more picture, a Homeschool Room Reality Shot.

Advent Playlist

2011-11-27T17:26:00.005-05:00

I love hymns.

I absolutely love hymns. There are a great many I never finish singing in church because I get a bit too emotional. When I became Anglo-Catholic 16 or so years ago, I studied the hymnal and was amazed to discover so many "holiday" or holy day hymns in addition to the beloved Christmas carols. Palm Sunday hymns are actually some of my favorites for the year! I hope my children grow up feeling the same way about Easter hymns, Thanksgiving/Harvest hymns, and other feast day hymns as most of us feel about Christmas hymns - there are so many treasures spread throughout the year.

Last year, I made a playlist of advent carols. Many of them were pulled from Christmas albums or are traditional hymns that mention the Second Coming. Some are simply traditional songs full of legend and symbolism. I am particularly drawn to songs that have many versions such as "The Cherry Tree Carol." Our family enjoyed the playlist last year. The girls probably would have preferred "Run, Run, Rudolph" and others of that ilk, but I hope over the years they will develop an appreciation for the songs that Christians have sung for generations and not yearn for the tunes blared at the mall. Although, Nutmeg told me she heard "Ave Maria" at the bookstore this weekend; that is a definite improvement over "Last Christmas I gave you my heart..."

I am sharing my list from last year in hopes it might encourage you to create your own or share your favorites with me that would fit the general theme of anticipation.

Veni, Veni, Emmanuel Memoria Press ( I need a longer version)

Down in Yon Forest a version by Bruce Cockburn and one by Kathleen Lundquist (I'm actually not sure why I put this on the Advent list...hmm...)

The Angel Gabriel Maddy Prior

Gabriel's Message Sting

The Seven Rejoices of Mary versions by Anonymous 4, Loreena McKennitt

The Cherry Tree Carol versions by Sting, Anonymous 4, The Baltimore Consort

Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence Rose and Thistle Band

People Look East Al Petteway & Amy White

Creator of the Stars of Night Caroline Bowles

Lo How a Rose E'er Blooming Sting

Maria Through the Thornwood Goes Custer Larue & Ronn McFarlane

Lo He Comes with Clouds Descending Maddy Prior & The Carnival Band

I'm off to search iTunes; I hope to hear from you about your favorites!

I Cross-Stitched!

2011-11-22T13:21:00.001-05:00

Yes, I am amazed too! I don't even want to do the math to figure out when I stitched last.

This week we are HOME, and I plan on stitching some more this afternoon.

This is Susan Rambo from SANQ. For some reason or other, I decided to change around some of the colors. I obviously thought I would recognize the colors months later so I did not jot down my changes. Argh. I'm not even sure I like the changes I made, but I am not picking anything out!!

I'm going to heat up my coffee, watch Mapp & Lucia on Netflix, and get stitching!

Weekly Report 14 November - 18 November

2011-11-18T07:33:00.015-05:00

It has been an interesting week to say the least!

Saturday

Louisiana Man helped me with science. I am intimidated by science projects and experiments. Louisiana Man engineered a balance and hung it from the ceiling fan/light. He thought it was an improvement on the design in the book and triumphantly called me to come take a look.

Louisiana Man: And people wondered why I got a Master's degree!

Michele: Um, Honey, your Master's was in Anglo-Saxon literature.

Louisiana Man: Yes, and it broadened my mind.

Michele: 'K

Then it was off to the first of two birthday parties this week. Never fear, Mommy Lawyer's husband kept the peace with his pink light saber! ;)

Monday

We got a bit of extra work done on Monday because Nutmeg had no violin lesson. It is amazing how much time is spent on driving around here!

There just happened to be a Degas painting featured on Monday in our beloved Metropolitan Museum Art Calendar. I was lazy and decided that would do for the week's Picture Study. Then we read Degas and the Dance. It is a wonderful introduction to the artist and some of his works. I am hoping that my little ballerinas will continue to look through it in the coming weeks.

We went light on art this week, but I do have more Degas activities planned.

I recently discovered Anna Nilsen's books, and Nutmeg has enjoyed solving the puzzles in two of her books. We have had the game Art Shark which is also by Nilsen. I hope we can start playing it this coming week.

Nutmeg is still perfecting Tchaikovsky's piano piece Mazurka, and we listened to Tchaikovsky Discovers America by Classical Kids.

Tuesday

Tuesday's school work included the "usual suspects." We began SOTW vol 3 chapter 7 and learned about tobacco and "unwilling colonists." The girls were not thrilled about the pictures I found of smokers' lungs. They weren't thrilled about the pictures of healthy lungs either!

Buttercup did a fantastic book report on Magic Treehouse's Thanksgiving on Thursday. I have a love-hate relationship with this series. Make that like-hate. The writing is abysmal, but the stories are just so darn handy for history and even science! I hope Madeleine Takes Command and the stories on her iPod will balance out Magic Treehouse!

Wednesday

Wednesday was a big day at our house! Nutmeg got braces!!!

Doesn't she look cute? She is still excited about them, but she is uncomfortable. It is amazing that we can see progress on certain teeth in the first couple of days!

Thursday

Thursday was a special day for Princess Buttercup: she had her fall piano recital. She did a great job playing Alligator Walk. Her class also sang two class songs and played an ensemble piece. For the ensemble piece, the class was divided into two parts. This helps them with auditory discrimination. In the middle of the piece, they accompanied themselves as they sang in Solfege (do-re-mi). It never fails to amuse me when I notice all the moms, including myself, tapping their feet, nodding their heads, mouthing/whispering the counts or notes, and occasionally letting a "shhh" escape on a "rest!" It is amazing how invested a mother feels about her child's recital piece!

Then it was dinner with my parents who came to the recital, and a trip to one of those frozen yogurt places where you load your healthy, low fat frozen yogurt with every imaginable candy and confection.

Friday

I hope today will be a stay-at-home-day which is actually rare in the life of a stay-at-home, homeschooling mom! I plan on a few video segments from Discovery Education on Degas, and maybe we will check out the conservation of mass with sugar cubes and water.

Here is one last picture from the week. When you hear my children complain that learning Latin is a chore, think of this picture of Buttercup learning Latin, and don't feel too sorry for them!

Weekly Report??????

2011-11-04T09:03:00.016-04:00

It's just always something, isn't it? I thought this would be the week that I got everything back on track after being sick. Well, this turned out to be Teeth Week around here! The girls had a dental cleaning on Tuesday (the morning after Halloween - eek!), and then the orthodontist had a cancellation so we took the appointment. We sped 20 minutes south, and learned Nutmeg definitely needs braces. Her teeth really aren't crooked, but they are not aligned properly. Poor Nutmeg was mortified when the orthodontist looked at her teeth and said, "Mom, we have problems!" X-rays and photos were made, and Thursday we had the official consultation and made appointments for braces. I also need to call the bank - between braces and dance costume fees, I will need a new box of checks! :P

Homeschool...homechool...homeschool...Oh, I think I remember! Isn't that when you load the van up with books and binders, sharp pencils and Cheetos, and play some classical music and ask for oral narrations as you drive around three counties?

No, I'm not joking.

Yes, it really was that bad.

Art is our memory of love. The most an artist can do through their work is say, let me show you what I have seen, what I have loved, and perhaps you will see it and love it too. ~Annie Bevan

Somehow the girls managed a few violin and piano practices. We have to put the puppy Hector outside when Nutmeg plays violin. See the video that may or may not be at the bottom of this post. Buttercup has a piano recital in two weeks, and Nutmeg is working on Tchaikovsky's Mazurka for her piano lesson.

We are studying Degas and Tchaikovsky for six weeks in anticipation of The Nutcracker. There are so many great books for children about these two artists; it was really difficult to come up with material for Corelli. This week we listened to The Story of Tchaikovsky (Alright, so the music we listened to in the van was not classical, strictly speaking.) I have to say, I did not care for much of the music. Rubinstein described some piece as "clumsy," and I have to agree.

The girls did Picture Study of this painting by Degas.

It is wonderful to be here in the great state of Chicago. ~ Dan Quayle

This week we read chapter 5 of SOTW vol 3. Yes, we are behind, but I do not regret spending extra time on French Canada and Native Americans. That will lay a good foundation for the upcoming French and Indian War as well as provide material for a comparison of relations between the Natives and the different colonial powers. Chapter 5 was Japan and Hideyoshi. Now, I know that SOTW was intended to be fairly neutral and that neutrality is of course impossible in a history text. However, I was a bit surprised to learn what was left out of the account of Hideyoshi - his horrible persecution of Christians. As I read the chapter aloud, the girls kept asking, "Is he a Good Guy or a Bad Guy?" I didn't know; I supposed it would make a great deal of difference whether one were Japanese or Korean or Chinese. As I looked up dates to record on our books of centuries, I realized that it was Hideyoshi who was responsible for the 26 Martyrs of Japan or Nagasaki Martyrs. You can read more about them here. I think that settled the girls' question for our family.

We are looking at Japan and some of it's famous landmarks for geography this week. I am also trying to use Trail Guide Geography again. I just need to make it a habit.

History is the witness that testifies to the passing of time; it illumines reality, vitalizes memory, provides guidance in daily life and brings us tidings of antiquity. ~ Cicero

This week I spent a lot of time working on my Book of Centuries timeline. I realized some time ago that I did not have the room for the wall timeline I had envisioned, not to mention it kept falling off the wall! I spent time reading many blog posts and articles about Charlotte Mason-inspired BOCs. I finally went with a template from Notebookingpages.com. I was just going to write down dates as I came in contact with them, but it was just so addictive that I followed many rabbit trails! I also put my collection of ~~trash~~ old Teaching Company catalogues to good use.

The TC catalogues are good for many things. I frequently pull out and laminate charts and maps.

I am helping Nutmeg put together her own BOC with the same template as I choose for myself. I ordered a landscape binder for her from Home School in the Woods.

Those were some of the highlights this week!

Boo!

2011-11-02T14:45:00.007-04:00

I am slowly and gratefully getting back into a groove. For about two weeks I was sick with "a little" pneumonia and a sinus infection. I'm not convinced the sinus infection is gone, but I am feeling much better. So many things went undone; I missed a masquerade party, several of the "parent observation week" dance classes, school work, housework...

I did manage to throw a Halloween "Dessert and Charlie Brown" party. Somehow I got the house clean and went on a baking spree (I was on antibiotics, so the cookies were safe!). We did not watch Great Pumpkin; the children were too busy running around, and the adults had plenty to chat about.

There has not been much time for stitching. There has been plenty of running around making sure costumes and hair were perfect for Halloween!

We had a great Halloween! We usually go to our town square for trick or treating. We always run into so many people we know, see all the kid and pet costumes, and do not have to worry about cars and children in the dark. The "group" we were trick or treating with changed throughout the night, and our dinner reservations fell apart, but we had a great dinner with a great group of people in the end. We were seated outside, and we just about froze - thank goodness for Irish coffee! :)

I keep thinking that now Halloween is over things will slow down and get back to "normal." A quick glance at my planner shows birthday parties every weekend, orthodontist appointments, Latin quizzes, holiday gatherings, and, at some point, Christmas shopping! Somehow I need to find time for that Solomon's Temple sampler on the new SANQ!

Merry Christmas, Belle Watling?

2011-10-22T14:32:00.003-04:00

I was able to get in quite a bit of stitching this week while I was too sick to do anything else. I finished up three more ornaments for Christmas. We decorate our tree on Christmas Eve, but I was thinking of decorating an Advent Tree this year with Old Testament themes. I have been going through various Mary Beale publications and finding many must-stitch ornaments!
The story of Rahab has always intrigued me, and the above ornament is a highly stylized symbol of that Old Testament episode. It is so highly stylized that it makes me think of Belle Watling's apartments in Gone with the Wind! ;)

I enjoy Mary Beale's color schemes, although I usually hold my breath a bit as the first few garish colors meet on linen.

I have had quite a bit of stitching and tea this week, although not under the best of circumstances. Fortunately I have occasionally felt well enough to go out with the puppy and enjoy some autumn sunlight. Hope you all have relaxing, sunny weekends!

Well, knock me over with a feather...

2011-10-18T09:57:00.001-04:00

I have cross stitch finishes!

I was in a major cross stitch rut. I was working on an autumn design, and I messed up. I know it can be fixed, but I was just annoyed. But this weekend I jumped back in the saddle. Nothing like a new project to cure the stitching blues! First I stitched Tanya's newest ornament from the 2011 JSC ornament issue. Then I searched through my JCS ornament magazine collection. I probably could have stitched 3 or 4 ornaments in the time I spent going through those magazines! I finally chose a Little by Little design from 2001. The colors are so much brighter than they appeared in the magazine photo! I picked out a Mary Beale ornament to work on this week while the girls are at dance. I just need to find a lighting arrangement for the van.

Hector the pound puppy is doing well. He is healthy and happy and loves his new family. Every mom needs more of this in her life!

That's better!

The Weekly Report and ...The Dog

2011-10-09T08:10:00.009-04:00

We had a family hike to a waterfall last weekend, and that served as nature study for the week.

We did all the usual things, and then some.
I decided to stretch chapter 4 of SOTW vol 3 over 2 -3 weeks. Nutmeg is reading a book from the Vision series about Kateri Tekakwitha, and I am reading Madeleine Takes Command aloud to both girls. We covered Champlain this week, and plan on Henry Hudson for next week. We are also reading other books about Canada. We are concentrating on the French missionary work in Canada, and the differences in the French relations with the Native Americans and those of the English. Nutmeg is doing Canada map drills while Buttercup is doing drills on oceans and continents.

I think I have finally figured out how to incorporate Lingua Latina into Nutmeg's latin studies. I spread the Latina Christiana II work over the week, and added short readings and workbook exercises from Lingua Latina on two days. Nutmeg loved LL last year, but I just could not work it in. This year she does not like it a bit, but I am focused on "eating the elephant one bite at a time!"

We do Saxon math. We do Saxon math. We do Saxon math. We do Saxon math.
There is really no way to make that exciting. I just have to believe that it covers all the bases! I can throw together history with a good spine, and I can choose and discuss literature, but I just don't get math! I need something to rely on, and that is Saxon. Buttercup is breezing through Saxon 2 which is a review year. Nutmeg is still using 5/6. I ordered Life of Fred Decimals and
Percents to see if we can break some plateaus. I'll let you know how that goes.

We finished reading aloud 101 Dalmatians to Buttercup and began Wind in the Willows. She is a bit worried about the Wild Wood, but otherwise seems to be enjoying it.

Then there was yesterday...

Nutmeg performed with her dance studio's Ensemble at a local fair.

And somehow, this happened.

I don't really know what to say. ;)

Weekly Report 25 September - 30 September

2011-09-30T07:32:00.018-04:00

I noticed that I have made several post in a row about homeschool and none about needlework. I have not picked up a needle in weeks, well, I have picked up needles: off of the floor, sticking out of the carpet, still stuck in the right shoulder of my shirts...

We have gotten quite a bit done this week. I am exploring several Charlotte Mason methods I am learning about from Ambleside Online, Simply Charlotte Mason, and most importantly the 4Real Forums. I have been skipping around through Charlotte Mason' original series, and like many others, I am discovering her writings are quite different from what I had thought about "The Charlotte Mason Method." There are several blog posts around the 'net challenging the common assumptions about "gentle education." I find it very interesting, although I still find The Well-Trained Mind methods most appealing.

The most intriguing CM method is "slow reading." "Slow reading" or "savoring" appeals to me because I like to start many books, but it also goes against everything I have read or heard about reading! I always thought it was better to experience a book in as few sittings as possible.

This "slow reading" or "savoring" has given me new ways to incorporate extra books into our schedule. The emphasis is on the child having time to really consider what he has read as well as make connections on his own. I have spent much of my planning time going through all my resources on a topic, and noting all the page numbers of related topics. Now I am considering that finding the relations is the student's job, not the teacher's. In addition to our science studies, Nutmeg is independently reading and narrating other books twice weekly. Right now she is working her way through How and Why Wonder Book of Chemistry. Next I plan for her to read through The Mystery of the Periodic Table and It's Elementary:How Chemistry Rocks Our World. These books, I hope, will make a pleasant change from the 2-3 days a week we use God's Design Science: Properties of Matter and Properties of Atoms and Molecules.

I also feel much freer in our history studies. We use Story of the World vol 3 as a spine, and K12 Human Odyssey vol 2 for Nutmeg to outline and go a bit deeper. I worked hard over the summer to build a novel into almost every week; now I see the extra readings do not have to match exactly the readings from the history spine. If the children read or listen carefully, and narrate they should be able to connect information over time. This is the theory, and I am intrigued.

"Slow reading" has not worked in every subject. One recommendation I see often is for students to encounter a small section of Plutarch once a week. This appeals to me since we are preparing to study the American Revolution and the Founding Fathers who themselves studied and were influenced by Plutarch. A bit of Plutarch a week is plenty for Nutmeg and for me! But Shakespeare? Sometime soon I do want to read through some of Shakespeare's plays with Nutmeg, but for now we are going through the retellings by Charles and Mary Lamb. I found a recommendation to read 3 pages twice a week. This week Nutmeg obediently read 3 pages of the 12th Night retelling on Tuesday and Thursday. I later discovered that she had gone on to read the Othello retelling on Tuesday and another retelling on Thursday! 3 pages was just not satisfying to her! :)

Buttercup has been working hard this week as well. We finished reading Not Just for Ducks:the Story of Rain, and she continues to read aloud in her Christian Liberty Nature Readers. She enjoys reading her Seton Religion for Young Catholics 2, and this week we added a daily reading from Seton's Reading Comprehension 3 which contains bible stories. She is very pleased to read aloud from a "third grader book!"

Buttercup was less than pleased about our Nature Studies this week: Mushrooms. She is horrified by mushrooms! She wants them all out of our yard NOW! Nutmeg, who usually must be dragged outside, is enchanted by 3 mushroom growing in a triangle and wants to keep an eye on them. Something tells me Buttercup is going to destroy it if I am not vigilant! ;)

We did so many other things as well: studied drawings by Rubens and drew faces using pastel chalks, worked our way through a fascinating book about the adventures of John Smith, piano, violin, the art detective book, played with the boys next door...

Today we plan to make a model of the fort at Jamestown, make some autumn nature plans, and maybe sneak in a video about fungus. Who knows? maybe I will be able to coax the girls outside for some more fun with fungus! ;)

Weekly Report 19 September - 23 September

2011-09-23T07:54:00.014-04:00

Jerry's parents came from "out west" to visit us this week. I am so thankful that our homeschool schedule allowed the girls to spend lots of time with their grandparents! I did not take pictures for some reason, but I believe the girls have many sweet memories saved in their hearts.

Very little school got done, according to legal requirements, but there was much enrichment. Both girls learned to ride bikes without training wheels in the past 10 days. Nutmeg has never been much interested in bikes. When she saw her little sister zooming about without training wheels, something clicked in Nutmeg's brain. While Jerry and I were at a wedding this past weekend, Nutmeg called us to tell us she had learned how to ride without training wheels on her sister's bike. Guess who has a new bike? ;) The secret, by the way, is finding a gentle, grassy slope, and letting the child learn what balance feels like.

Buttercup and I took a very wet walk and observed different forms of spider webs and different kinds of evergreens all bejewelled with rain drops. Buttercup also informed me of her desire to have an ant farm. I said yes, meaning a contained, purchased ant farm. Buttercup misunderstood, and I caught her heading out with a plastic container... Let me know if you have ant farm recommendations!

We also had an unusual Nature Sketch experience. I kept seeing these gorgeous sunflowers on the side of the road. I pulled over, and the girls observed and sketched...looking out the car window! I wonder what Anna Botsford Comstock would think!

The girls and I also sketched this cleome from our garden. Buttercup and I collected and scattered the seeds, but Nutmeg does not like to touch Nature these days.

Cleome is commonly called "spider flower," which reminds me of a story that I forgot to tell you, Mom. 2 weeks ago, while driving the girls from music, I heard gasps and sputterings from the back of the van culminating in the following:

"You have a spider on your head!!! AAAKKKKK!"

"Girls, that is not funny. You cannot play tricks on the driver!"

"We're not lying, Mommie! You have a spider on your head! Look in the mirror!"

Gentle Readers, I looked in the rear view mirror. There was a rather bulky arachnid on my head rest.

I switched into Super Mommie Mode. (Unlike that long ago day before children, when I just jumped out of the car and let the car plow through the garage door,) I waited calmly at the red light and then turned into a parking lot and divested myself of the wee beastie. Ick.

Composer and Artist Study got pushed back a bit this week. We still had last week's pictures displayed and listened to Corelli in the car, but we did not get to to the reading and narrating I planned. I can't be sad about an extra week of Rubens or Corelli though! We are doing picture study on the painting of this lady today.

The sun is shining this morning after a night of much-needed rain. I think Buttercup and I will read Not Only For Ducks: The Story of Rainthis morning. I learned about this series on this post.

I hope you all had enriching studies this week!

Weekly Report 12 September- 16 September

2011-09-16T07:13:00.034-04:00

Weekly Report in Which Michele Justifies the Relevance of Certain Subjects

If you have ever mentioned that you homeschool, you will, no doubt, have been queried on that most pervasive bugaboo Relevance, e.g. "How is a dead language or the stories of Dead White European Males relevant to today's world?" Some may ask these questions merely to keep the conversation rolling. Others really want to know, "How will they earn money from knowing that?" Again and again I hear questions about the link between this or that language or this or that subject with future financial gain. Well, that is what tech schools are for: learning specific skills for a specific career field. But my kids are in 2nd and 6th grade, for crying out loud! Surely this is the time to explore all the world has to offer! As an English Major (we often speak of that as though it were a profession with its own Tech School) I could not be bothered with monocots and dicots (I learned about them last year with my daughters). Now is the time for my children to explore the oft-neglected corners of the world to discover their own interests.

Exploration and discovery are important in themselves, but they also provide the content that is organized and later written and spoken about~ the writing and speaking skills so often lamented in this country. At the top of my History syllabus, I have this quotation by Susan Wise Bauer,

History is the training ground where the student learns to organize and evaluate information.

My, my. Learning to organize and evaluate information~ in which field would that not be relevant? I think I will use that as my response to questions about what we do at home all day. "We learn to organize and evaluate information."

We cannot measure the influence that one or another artist has upon the child’s sense of beauty, upon his power of seeing, as in a picture, the common sights of life; he is enriched more than we know in having really looked at even a single picture. ~Charlotte Mason

Picture study and composer study are going great! I chose some works by Rubens and sent them to Shutterfly. I received my prints on Wednesday; some were 8 x10, but some would only print as 5x7. Nutmeg's exclamation when she saw this was priceless!

Both girls loved it immediately, and were happy to hear I would later hang it in the playroom.

Nutmeg and Buttercup studied the picture, then turned it over and described the image they held in their minds. They each colored a simple coloring page while I read from a truly timeless treasure: Amy Steedman's Stories of the Painters. I cannot find this book available in the public domain; sometimes I see a publication date of 1910 and sometimes a date of 1938. I found a copy on Amazon for $17. It is so beautiful I almost cried. It has Amy Steedman's wonderful biographies, color plates, as well as some black and white illustrations. Some of the pages were still uncut!!

The girls made narration pages, and the picture was placed on the kitchen table for the week.

Composer study has consisted of listening to works by Corelli, and listening to The Stories of Vivaldi and Corelli in Words and Music. Next week we will do biography readings and notebooking about Corelli.

If you would understand anything, observe its beginning and its development. ~ Aristotle

Back to my relevance soapbox: We study History. Yes, history, that stuff that happened thousands of years ago, last century, last week, 5 minutes ago. It matters. We jumped into the history cycle in year 2. When we reached the American Revolution in year 3, I realized we were studying the influence of Rome and Greece on American thinkers and architects without our having studied what the culture of ancient Greece and Rome was. That is just one "light bulb" moment I've had. Historical context is necessary for the understanding of current events. Now repeat that 3 times. :)

This week we continued to study the ravages in the wake of the Protestant Reformation. We discussed Iconoclasm in The Netherlands and its effects. We watched a Rick Steves travel video on Amsterdam complete with a trip to a "red light district." I now recommend pre-viewing it first. Ahem. Buttercup enjoyed Katje the Windmill Cat and Don Quixote and the Windmills. She narrated and illustrated both books. I do realize Don Quixote is a Spanish story. We were studying The Netherlands' independence from Spain, so I thought Don Quixote and the windmills was a perfect fit.

Nutmeg is working her way through a retelling of Don Quixote by James Baldwin. I am trying to convince her that the more challenging vocabulary and sentence structure are an antidote to the Star Wars books she is so fond of reading.

She has been also practicing 2-level outlines using a library book~ outlining and Shakespeare Study! :)

A language must die to be immortal. ~G K Chesterton

Latin happens where it happens.

We are all meant to be naturalists, each in his own degree, and it is inexcusable to live in a world so full of the marvels of plant and animal life and to care for none of these things. ~Charlotte Mason

How often have I driven down a road, desperately trying to get somewhere else, never knowing I was leaving these beauties in the dust?

I found these in the back of a friend's yard on a nature ramble with my daughters and hers. The girls sketched, while I looked through field guides for identification. I settled on tick trefoil, but I am not sure which one. "You have the best weeds!" I gushed while asking permission to come back later for seed pods.

I am looking forward to cooler weather and more nature rambles!

Weekly Report 5 September - 9 September

2011-09-09T08:31:00.015-04:00

A quick word about last week: We went to the Georgia Aquarium last Friday. We spent our Science and Nature Study time on marine animals particularly beluga whales and rays.

One of my favorite animals we saw was this guy - he could be a lesson plan by himself!

We have gotten quite a bit done this week. We did only one chemistry experiment, but we did some nature sketching on the front lawn and read books about clouds. The clouds were amazing yesterday! We could really see their flat bottoms. ~~O, you lucky clouds!~~

Nutmeg has been doing her K12 Middle School French consistently, but we have not been as consistent with Latin. I need to work on better scheduling for language.

Buttercup is reading everything she gets her hands on! I found 2 volumes of Veritas Press' First Favorites on my shelf, and I am letting her do them. I know they are for first grade, but she is enjoying them, and I bought them, so... She did her first official book report this week; it was a "literary narration" al a Susan Wise Bauer. We started Story of the World vol 3 which begins with the Spanish in South America so I choose The Magic Treehouse: Afternoon on the Amazon. Buttercup read it and narrated. I don't think that series is brilliantly written, but it is engaging and usually corresponds to some history or science lesson. She also chose an animal from the book to read more about and draw.

Both girls are also learning about St. Rose of Lima this week to go along with their history studies. I read from Ethel Pochoki's One-of-a-Kind-Friends, and Buttercup narrated and labeled Peru on her map. Nutmeg is reading this book, and we hope to do her literary narration this weekend. Nutmeg also completed an activity from a Weekly Reader Social Studies workbook that featured a lesson on the Amazon. I plan to implement Trail Guide to World Geography. I could just kick myself for letting it lie on the shelf for almost a year since I bought a used copy on the WTM forums! I read through it last night while Nutmeg danced her heart out. It consists of "5-minute drills" and optional activities to take things further. Once again, I had planned to keep geography so simple! I planned to only use these maps, with this post as my guide. Then I added Mapping the World with Art by Ellen McHenry. All I can say in my defense is Nutmeg loves geography, and the resources I have chosen are all fabulous!

Last year, I had great plans for music and art appreciation. They were so great, in fact, that they seemed impossible to accomplish. This year I have decided to try the neo-Charlotte Mason techniques that I have been reading about for years - they just seemed too simple! DUH! Simple is what I need!

It seems that Charlotte Mason recommended studying 1 artist or composer for 1 term to allow the child to become familiar with the artist's or composer's style. Parents say this enables the student to form relationships with the pieces and also to recognize works by the artist that they have not formally studied. This method aims for depth, not breadth. I avoided this method for years because "it doesn't cover enough." I am finally ready to admit I cannot fit everything in anyway I try!

I choose 6 artists and 6 composers from the time we are studying 1600-1850. I am already prepping myself to accept that the artists and composers will not always match the history curriculum and that that is just fine. Following a more condensed version of CM's original picture and music studies, we plan to study both a composer and an artist for 6 weeks. There is no particular connection to the pairings.

weeks 1-6 Rubens and Corelli

weeks 7-12 Anthony van Dyck and Vivaldi

weeks 13-18 Rembrandt and JS Bach

weeks 19-24 Vermeer and Handel

weeks 25-30 Gainsborough and Haydn

weeks 31-36 Edward Hicks and Mozart

I really am trying to keep it simple. Too many options keeps me (happily) chasing down rabbit trails, and (unhappily) not accomplishing learning time with my girls. Here are some of the links to blogs and other resources I have found informative and practical.

Dawn's blog has a wealth of information on artist and composer studies with book reviews and lesson plans.

Simply Charlotte Mason shows just how simple and effective picture and composer study can be.

Here is a great video introducing picture study.

Mater Amabilis also has a good explanation of picture study.

ETA: Composer worksheets

This is a series a friend introduced me to. I have listened to the Corelli cd, and found it very pleasant and informative.

I really enjoy downloading free books on my Kindle. There were so many great books written for children about art, music, history, science etc., and they are now in the public domain as ebooks or available to read online. Amy Steedman is a favorite for both saint stories and artist biographies.

When They Were Young! is a good one by Steedman that has many artist and composer biographies.

This week we studied this picture by Rubens. That worked well with our history studies.
I know nothing about art; I am so excited about learning along with my children! I really enjoyed picking out pictures by Rubens. ~~Boy, was he handsome!~~

Is "keeping it simple" easy or difficult for you?

Finish and New Start

2011-08-25T07:51:00.001-04:00

Jerry and I started watching Midsomer Murders on Netflix - again. This time, Netflix's instant viewing unpredictability was a good thing - they have added more Midsomer Murders. Last night I started stitching 'The Harvesters' by Little House Needleworks. I don't have the overdyed orange called for, but I have decided to use one of the dozens of overdyed oranges I have on hand. I also plan to change the little boy into a little girl to represent my daughter.

Cue the Count from Sesame Street: I have 1, 1 lovely Christmas ornament - Ha! Ha! Ha!

Only 11 more to go to meet my Christmas ornament a month goal! WhooHoo! ;) hmmm....

Colonial Stitching

2011-08-24T07:44:00.002-04:00

I have big plans for this design by Little House Needleworks! I need to get some more acid-free foam board and get blocking!

I always set a goal of 1 Christmas ornament a month. So here is a start on my 1st ornament of the year in month 8. Hmmmm, I don't know if I will catch up! This is a design from Tristan Brook's 'Christmas in the Colonies.' I love the colors!

It is so difficult this time of year - I know I should be doing Christmas stitching, but the slight, very slight, nip in the air this morning makes me want to pull out the autumnal stitching. What are you working on?

Weekly Report 15 August-19 August

2011-08-19T07:56:00.003-04:00

"Children are made readers on the laps of their parents." ~Emilie Buchwald

Nutmeg finished St. Thomas More of London this week and wrote a literary narration a la the Well-Trained Mind. I was apprehensive about this exercise. Tuesday, I fortified myself with the WTM, questions from a lecture, and an audio of the lecture itself. Thursday, I took a deep breath and discussed the story with my child, then asked her to write about 2 or 3 of the things we had discussed. Susan Wise Bauer was exactly right about the parent needing to remain firm and extract the answers from the child! Whew! Nutmeg is now reading The Shakespeare Stealer, and we will follow the same pattern of discussing and writing.

I am using one of my favorite grammar resources with Buttercup: Oral Language Exercises It is simple, yet effective for practicing good speaking habits. Buttercup is also enjoying 101 Dalmations as a read aloud. There are so many interesting little details not in the movie!

"History will be kind to me for I intend to write it."~Winston Churchill

History is a driving force in our learning style. At the top of my history syllabus I have this quotation from The Well-Trained Mind, "History is the training ground where the student learns to organize and evaluate information." That strikes me every time I read it. In high school I took an AP history course; I received my college credits, but I cannot claim to have organized and evaluated anything in particular. On the one hand, I am frustrated that I did not learn "enough" in middle and high school. On the other hand, I am relieved to think that my children will, Deo volente, have many years of learning and discovery after their formal schooling as I have had.

As I prepare to teach American history this year, I am rediscovering my text books from that long ago AP course. I detested them. I always relished the story of history, the narrative, not the documents and letters from which the narrative is derived. The Well-Trained Mind puts greater and greater emphasis on primary source documents; in high school, the readings are almost exclusively primary sources. I understand now that children need to be taught gradually what to do with primary sources and also why one should do anything with them at all. It is a disservice to the student to spend 8 or 10 years reading regurgitations in a history textbook, and then to be handed a book of the letters of the Founding Fathers.

With all that in mind we will be using primary sources this year. We also have begun looking at history books critically and discovering the bias of the author. This week we looked at several different books and their treatment of Mary I, Elizabeth I, and Mary Queen of Scots. We specifically analyzed the wording used to describe Mary I's imprisonment of Elizabeth I vs. Elizabeth I's imprisonment of Mary Queen of Scots. The bias is astounding and often subtle. I consider this a critical exercise. We also explored truth vs. whole truth as we looked at the motivations for the epithet "Bloody Mary." She alone is held accountable to history for her actions, without putting her actions in the context of what was going on in all parts if Europe. (She wasn't the only Tudor to execute religious dissidents - that doesn't make her executions good, but she shouldn't be the only monarch branded with such a grisly sobriquet.)

Arts & Crafts

I purchased Kids Knitting, and Nutmeg is revisiting yarn and needles. I hope that this time both she and I can progress beyond one-stitch scarves! Several years ago I bought Catch the Sewing Bug! I am going through it again in preparation for starting it next week. Sewing machines stress me out - probably because I hate reading instruction manuals! Now I have a Cunning Plan - I will train my girls to use the sewing machine. Then they will be able to thread it for their mommie and make all of her needlework into pillows! Ha Ha!

Filling in the Gaps

We use our state's library system to the full; I frequently request books from all corners of Georgia. I teach the girls how to find things and encourage a wide range of interests. Lately I have been discouraged that Nutmeg has checked and rechecked out stacks of Emily Rhodda books and Stars Wars Enyclopedias to the exclusion of anything else! I am finally putting the library suggestions in the WTM into practice. This week the girls were required to check out a book about any science topic, one art/artist book, one biography, and one history or geography book. I have also subscribed to Nature Friend magazine. The library books and nature magazine are my two new strategies to "fill in the gaps." There are many benefits from studying one period of history or one branch of science per year. The downside is, of course, the long periods of time before (formally) revisiting the information. I am renewing my efforts to compensate for this downside with these additional readings.

The Joy of Numbers?

Math is not my favorite subject. Since the beginning of our homeschool journey, I have tried not to pass on that intense dislike to my children. Unfortunately, Nutmeg has it in spades! She is still struggling through Saxon 6/5. We lost our DIVE dvd last year during the move; I have finally forked over the big bucks to replace it. I am not a math teacher. I really, really hope this new dvd will help Nutmeg power through math!

This weekend I will be putting the finishing touches on my learning plans for next week. I would love to plan further, but every time I try to plan more than a couple of weeks in advance, something happens. A unexpected appointment, errand, or visit is sure to present itself! :)

Coffee & Stitches

2011-08-13T11:45:00.004-04:00

Growing up, I was not especially keen on coffee. 14 1/2 years of marriage to Louisiana Man has done much to change that! ~~Louisiana Man makes coffee so thick and dark it looks like pipe sludge.~~ My newest start will look beautiful (one day) framed in my coffee nook with Paulette's coffee freebie.

I was feeling so confident after finishing a WIP, 'The Mermaid,' that I dug around and found 'Mary Queen of Scots' (sans alphabet) by Papillon. I emailed and requested the french version of Mary's motto. It is so pretty! Why, oh, why did I ever put it down?

I am itching to start both the above and the below designs from Brenda Keyes' Traditional Samplers. I checked it out from the library 2 weeks ago. I haven't started either yet, so I might need to recheck it or purchase a used copy somewhere! The colors in my pictures aren't great, but trust me, both have beautiful color combinations!

I am also working on kitting up some small travel-sized projects to take along now that the girls' activities have started. Nutmeg was asked to join her dance school's competitive dance team. One mom told me they spent 12 hours one day at competition. Sounds like stitching time for me!!

Weekly Report 8 August-12 August

2011-08-12T08:43:00.008-04:00

For my stitchy friends: Don't despair! I have some new projects to show you tomorrow! If homeschooling posts cause your eyes to glaze over, check out my finishes on the previous post, or scroll down and read about Buttercup's library tantrum. ;)

"If Music be the Food of Love..." ~William Shakespeare

Monday we started with violin. We have a new violin teacher this year; beginning next week she will be teaching 10 minutes from our house. This summer we have been driving an hour. She has a completely different approach than Nutmeg's former teacher - this one is all about technique. This has been a bit stressful for the entire family. Instead of listening to pleasant tunes, we hear odd, scuffly noises as Nutmeg tries to come to grips with a new bow hold, new bowings, and some other new things I forget. It's different...but Nutmeg is being a trooper about it. Thursday Nutmeg met her new piano teacher. I think they are going to be a great team! Buttercup starts her piano program next week; she cannot wait to get back to her class!

"The past is never dead. It's not even past." ~William Faulkner

We are valiantly trying to finish Story of the World volume 2. I added so much in to our syllabus last year, that I knew we would never finish on time. When I start to worry, I try and appreciate that I have chosen to teach history in 3 cycles of 4 years each. No lasting damage will occur if we study Mary Queen of Scots at the beginning of Year 3 or the end of Year 2. Indeed, it looks as though she will be our bridge between the two years.

This week we briefly covered Luther and the Tudors. I chose not to use the Story of the World chapters for these topics. I used All Ye Lands for Luther, and The History of England for Catholic Children from 1850 for the Tudors. I also was able to just talk to my children because this is an area I have read quite a bit about. Nutmeg is reading St. Thomas More of London. I think this book will pull the various ideas and personalities of this time together and anchor them in her mind. Nutmeg also wrestled with creating a Tudor/Stuart family tree. And yes, we could not resist the grisly "divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived," chant. **shudder** For me, those women come alive in the pages of Alison Weir's The Six Wives of Henry VIII. God have mercy on their souls!

I really wish there was some sort of Shakespeare Club around here. Let me clarify that: some sort of Shakespeare Club that someone else planned and executed - My plate is full! Shakespeare is covered in SOTW vol 2, but as an English Major, I believe he is always relevant! I think Year 3 (1600-1850) is an even better time to concentrate on the Bard and those who performed his plays. I have three Folger Library books Shakespeare Set Free, but I have yet to figure out how to make them work for my girls. They are definitely designed for a group setting. I would love to think I have the extra time and organizational skills to put together some awesome Shakespeare curriculum that could be used by large or small families throughout one year. Do all homeschooling mothers fantasize about putting together and selling life-changing curricula?

Many times my teaching becomes paralyzed as I wait to discover or create, and then implement the perfect lesson plan. "The perfect is the enemy of the good" is not my favorite sentiment, but it is often true in homeschool. So while I dream of writing a fabulous Shakespeare curriculum, I have a basic, simple, and tentative plan: We will listen to one retelling by Mary and Charles Lamb while we drive to piano on Thursdays. On Fridays, we will look through a book about Shakespeare's life, and attempt one or two of the 21 activities from Shakespeare for Kids

This is not an exciting plan.

Until an exciting plan presents itself (or until I stop sleeping and create the perfect Shakespeare curriculum), this will ensure my children have some acquaintance with the Bard.

Yesterday we read a beautifully illustrated retelling of The Tempest by Bruce Coville. In the car, we listened to the same story retold by the Lambs. After that we listened to Airs and Dances of Shakespeare's Time. This album is one of my favorites, and the girls recognized it immediately. Now, they can add and connect Shakespeare's name and immortal words to the music already in their mental files. Today we are making a pomander from Shakespeare for Kids.

"English: A language that lurks in dark alleys, beats up other languages and rifles through their pockets for spare vocabulary."

With a couple of exceptions, Language Arts continued much as it always does around here. Buttercup received her first Rod & Staff spelling book this week, and is very excited. She seems to want to work straight through like she does with her Explode the Code workbooks! She must listen during school: Yesterday, while I was on the treadmill, I saw her sitting at my place at the school table drilling her "class" (very likely Jar-Jar Binks, Heidi, Hyacinth Bucket, and Harry Potter) on pronouns!

Buttercup had a dramatic turning point a month or so ago. My mother signed Buttercup up for the summer reading program at the library. Buttercup accrued many hours listening to books on tape and to her family reading to her. One day at the library, I told her she would be checking out three library books to read. She proceeded to throw a whopper of a tantrum! "I hate books!" "I hate reading!" Book-laden Nutmeg fled to the other end of the library. My knees began knocking, and my book-filled life flashed before my eyes. Librarians looked at us over the rims of their glasses. It was mortifying.

Suddenly Buttercup stopped. "May I have your card and go to the check-out desk by myself?" "Uh, um, OK, sure." She grabbed some books from the shelf and marched herself proudly up the front desk. For the rest of the day, she would say, "Don't interrupt me - don't you see I have my nose in a book?" I don't know quite how it happened, but Buttercup has become a Reader!

Next week I hope to write more about our science, art, and handcraft studies.

Cross Stitch Finishes

2011-08-10T08:28:00.006-04:00

It is amazing that I found some stitching time this past week! I finished "The Mermaid" by CHS. I changed 'Margaret Mailey' to 'Margaret Mary' just because. I thought I was stitching it for Nutmeg's bathroom, but now I am not so sure. LOL!

I have been attracted to Darlene O'Steen patterns for years, and have collected several. Her small designs are incredibly complex! She always includes stitches I have never dreamed of! This is the first time I have done queen stitches with two colors per stitch! I left out some of the satin stitch on the blue backstitch band. No matter how many times I tried it, it just looked messy.

I have mentioned before that I spent (and still do spend) hours poring over my mom's old cross stitch magazines from the eighties and early nineties. I am still amazed that in so many issues, among the patterns for geese with ribbons, geese with laundry baskets, geese starting the first day of school, and geese baking pies, I occasionally find a truly timeless design such as one by Darlene O'Steen or this design by Kandace Thomas. I can't wait to start it although I don't know what the last word of the second line says. I assume it is "was," but that is not exactly what the chart says.
My mom also gave me another "vintage" design this weekend. I would like to start it also.

A special thank you to my stitching friends for being patient and understanding about my homeschool post last Friday. I will only post them on Fridays, and the title will always be "Weekly Report. Feel free to skip if that is not your cup of tea! :)

Weekly Report 1 August-5 August

2011-08-05T08:07:00.028-04:00

Beginning
I like to think of this past Monday as the first day of our new school year. The truth is we never really ended our previous school year- we just slowed way down for summer. Year-round learning aside, the idea of a fresh new start on Monday August the 1st is irresistible and rejuvenating. We only had formal learning for three days this week so the girls could spend a long, last summer weekend with my parents. However, this short week was necessary to establish new routines before the ~~insane~~ driving to dance and piano classes resumes next week! And so I armed myself with a fresh custom-made lesson planner and 20 ounces of ~~Silk french vanilla soy creamer~~ coffee and headed down to the school room.

Philosophy

There seem to be two common responses when anyone hears that I homeschool: "I could never homeschool," and "What is your homeschool philosophy?" Well, I sometimes respond to the first, if you help your children with three hours of homework per night, you are homeschooling!
My response to the second is generally a deep, thoughtful, "I dunna know." The labels mean different things to different people, and I certainly do not spend my precious time researching the labels! I am attracted to the ideas and methods I read on Charlotte Mason-inspired blogs such as Evlogia and Wildflowers and Marbles , and while I implement some ideas, I can't say I am a CM homeschooler by any means.

All along I have wanted my girls to have a rigorous, challenging, and what I think of as traditional education. My ideas of traditional education were formed by a lifetime of reading 19th century novels. ;)

My mother had been a high school English teacher. She has always been a great reader. In fact, I remember my dad telling us semi-jokingly not to let Mom get hold of a book or she would never make supper! (My father is a great reader also. In order to physically get to my father, one must navigate stacks and stacks of books!) When I was in high school, I frequently found 19th century classics lying on my bed. My mother told me she wanted me to read and enjoy them before a teacher ruined them for me. I did, and in those books I found girls who learned Latin, needlework, catechism, ~~tuberculosis~~, drawing, and French. How lucky they were, I thought!

My philosophy has developed quite a bit since those days! I was introduced to The Well-Trained Mind at very beginning of our journey. I have clung to it, all the while freely adapting, disregarding, forgetting, and rediscovering its principles.

I would say I have much in common with my friend Angela the MommyLawyer in matters political, religious, teaching, etc. Yet, with the same goals in mind, we often choose different curricula and materials. All this to say, I find it impossible to define my homeschool philosophy. I want to form my two girls into God-loving, deep-thinking, respectful, creative, honorable, joy-filled young women. A tall order indeed! Although we do "drill, baby, drill" Latin vocabulary and math facts, my favorite moments this week were spent knitting on the couch while Buttercup read to me. I have had the new pleasure in the last few weeks of sitting in the living room cross stitching with my two little needleworkers!

Curricula

We are still finishing some of our math and grammar from last year; that seems to be our modus operandi! Nutmeg continues Saxon math, Rod & Staff grammar, Writing With Ease, Seton Religion for Young Catholics, Wordly Wise vocabulary, and Latina Christiana II. Buttercup also uses these series.

Other resources are added in, and loved or disregarded as necessary. Currently Nutmeg is trying Winning With Writing. She started in the fifth grade level and is finding it very simple and satisfying so far. She is breezing through the lessons; I hope it gets more challenging. We continue reading aloud Marigold Hunt's The First Christians as an addition to our religion studies. It is chatty and quaint. The girls have maps of St. Paul's journeys from Homeschool in the Woods whereon they trace the journeys of the Apostles and deacons.

History and Science are the subjects that require the most planning and researching. In fact, planning and researching never really end! For History, we will loosely follow Susan Wise Bauer's Well-Trained Mind recommendations using The Story of the World volume 3. This will be Nutmeg's 2nd cycle and Buttercup's 1st. Nutmeg will also be using K12 Human Odyssey volume 2 for outlining and extra reading. We also have a wealth of books from the time period 1600-1850 that I have been adding to since we studied it four years ago. I am looking forward to revisiting some old favorites and including Buttercup in a "Boston Tea Party." I do add quite a bit to the Story of the World for this time period: much more information about the American Colonies and the War for Independence including the very different experiences in the Southern States.

This week in history we studied Michelangelo. We will continue looking at his works for a few more weeks. I read aloud from several books including Amy Steedman's Knights of Art which is available free online. Then the girls crawled under the school table for a small taste of painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

Our science this year will be chemistry. I learned last year that I cannot piece together my own science curriculum. That is not where my talents or passions lie. Too often, I become paralyzed by too many resources, too many options. I am going to be following 2 books in the God's Design series, Properties of Matter and Properties of Atoms and Molecules. No, this in no way means I have hitched my wagon to YE, nor do I find mention of YE in these particular texts. What I find is simple yet engaging experiments in an easy to follow text. I was very pleased to find that this curriculum focuses on kitchen and body chemistry as well as the Periodic Table. Some of the experiments I am looking forward to are making soda pop, making perfume, and experimenting with flavors. This week we ended our earth studies with readings on icebergs and glaciers.

My planner is much more comprehensive this year, but I am already thinking of things to add to next year's! At the tops of my history and science syllabuses, I included the appropriate grade-level expectations including reading, narrations, and outlining, as well as inspiring quotations all from The Well-Trained Mind. This will be my 6th year of homeschooling with the WTM, and I think I am going to actually follow it this year! ;)

2011-08-02T18:40:00.001-04:00

I just really cannot think of a title! I have not quite finished Margaret Mailey; I got very little stitching done on our beach trip. I really am enjoying the combination of colors, but I am ready to start something new.

The girls have decided they need Hogwarts scarves for the winter. Nutmeg wants Griffindor, and Buttercup wants Hufflepuff. Today while Buttercup read to me, I started a scarf for myself in anticipation of cooler weather.

I am giving my readers fair warning: I am going to resume Homeschool Friday Weekly Reports this week. If you are uninterested in homeschooling posts, please bear with me! This blog has twisted and turned over the past 4 years. It has been my intention of late to keep this blog a refuge for my stitching identity, but I have missed Weekly Reporting. I intend to only do one homeschool post per week so do not fear! :)

Progress and Giveaway Link

2011-07-15T08:22:00.004-04:00

Why did I choose a design with so much stinkin' blackwork? I hate the backstitch family, but I keep being seduced by blackwork! Argh! Nutmeg calls this "the one with naked people with sprouts growing out of their bodies."

Here is my former progress on 'The Mermaid Sampler' by CHS. I don't remember when I started this or why I stopped, but I plan to finish it during an upcoming beach trip.

I planned to hang it in Nutmeg's bathroom. She seems to want an ocean theme, but I would like to gently steer her away from her dolphin shower curtain toward a more vintage feel. I must tread very carefully here! Yesterday, she turned her nose up at this design, and said she much preferred Prairie Schooler's 'M is for Mermaid." Well, that shows excellent taste, but I don't have that fabric on hand!

Shenandoah Sampler is having a giveaway on her blog - check it out! :)

APP

2011-07-13T09:55:00.003-04:00

Yesterday, I finished up the date and a few leaves on 'Ann Pennsylvania Peacock'. I have drooled over this design for years, and she did not disappoint! I love the combination of colors, and who could resist that paper face? I made plenty of mistakes, especially pulling the striped band in the middle of the house too tightly, but it will all be alright, I'm sure. I used the called-for threads, but I changed the fabric to 32 count.

I am in two minds about stitching the names on samplers. Of course this design is not a reproduction. I like stitching my own name on my own work! But sometimes the name really is part of the design. This design solved the problem by leaving a space for my initials before the phrase "her work for Ann." I really loved that!

Last night I started a design I have been considering for years. I actually hunted it down on eb@y, after having seen it in an old JCS of my mother's. I wasn't sure that I liked the verse, but it is growing on me. My favorite bit is the little people. It says 'men' on the chart. Whether they are men or women, I still felt a little silly stitching THAT particular eyelet. Ahem. I have stitched 1/2 a dozen naked little A&Es, and stitched their little nipples without batting an eye, but a crotch eyelet? LOL! But Darlene O'Steen is the Master (or Mistress, if you prefer) so it must be alright! ;)

For years, before I had my own stash, I spent countless hours poring over my mother's old 80s cross stitch charts and magazine. I have found (and added to my own stash) many timeless treasures such as designs by Prairie Schooler and Darlene O'Steen. I feel like I am so far behind, not only because I am just now finishing to "Ann PP," but also I have so many older charts I wish I had done decades ago!

I may have already gotten beach stitching out of my system. ;) I pulled CHS 'Margaret Mailey' out of one of my many large and overwhelming WIP piles. I plan on stitching her during our upcoming beach trip. But I will take a couple other pieces just in case I feel fickle.

Back to the Beginning

2011-07-11T14:07:00.002-04:00

Do you see the differences between the first two pictures? 3 buttonhole stitched flowers, 3 eyelets, a bird beak, and 2 initials. That's it. That's what has been holding this up for....4 years! Wow!

This morning, I finished off a freebie beach design from The Sampler Girl. As I stitched, I thought about the very beginning of this blog I named The Striped Rose. I began this blog as a place to show off a H@rry P@tter freebie designed by The Sampler Girl in 2007.

Click here, and scroll down for my very first post which is also my very first Sampler Girl post

As I continued to stitch, I began thinking how familiar the combination of greens was, and realized GA Mountain Mist and Bayberry were originally purchased for this Blackbird Designs chart.

Here is the link to my start on 4 years ago!!!

I blame it on those pesky buttonhole stitch flowers; they terrified me then.

Today, they took a total of about 5 minutes.

Another Quick Beach Stitch!

2011-07-11T09:36:00.001-04:00

Can you tell I am in beach mode? ;) It won't be long now!

This morning while listening to Nutmeg practice violin, I finished this summer freebie by Tanya The Sampler Girl. Stitching to a metronome is not pleasant!

This is a 2011 freebie available on her blog. Tanya left the fabric and fibers up to the stitcher, so I chose WDW: Pebble, Cinnabar, GAST: Mountain Mist, Sea Spray, Bayberry, and DMC: 950, 3862.

Here is a photo of a super-yummy cake I had this weekend at a friend's birthday cookout. She got the recipe from a recent M@rth@ Stew@rt magazine. It was a big hit with adults and children alike! In fact, My Louisiana Man said that next year he wants it for his birthday cake! GASP - He is changing from yellow cake with chocolate frosting to something new and different? What was in that cake? :)

Quick!

2011-07-07T23:48:00.001-04:00

It is way past my bedtime, but I just had to finish this design! I have been looking at this free chart by The Sampler Girl since 2005!!

I was trying to go for a faded palette, but I may have gone over the top with the purple. Ah, well. I used GA Bayberry, GA Raspberry, DMC 3866, OWS Virtue Teal, and CC Plum Paisley.

Good Night!

Summer Projects

2011-07-06T19:38:00.002-04:00

I just finished the final stitches on 'Land of the Free.' Well, I have not decided where my initials will go. If I were clever, I would try to frame it in this wreath that has been hanging under my mantel.
This design is the perfect size, by the way. It is small, but includes several specialty stitches.

If you can get a hold of a copy of "The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady," I know you will be inspired. I have seen this book on several homeschool blogs where the ladies display a page of this book for the children to look at during the day. This is the a facsimile of a 1906 natural journal with paintings, verses, and records of things seen each day of the year.

Here is an update on my ongoing Pantry Project. So far, I have cleared out all my seasonal candles, potting soil, and Mod Podge to make room for all these glass jars from W@l-M@rt and T@rget. My plan is to have super-cute matching labels for each jar. I am also eyeing more baskets to keep paper products, grab-and-go snacks, etc.

This is my training ground for The Ultimate Organizing Project - The Craft Closet!

Baby Steps! ;)

Happy Birthday, USA!!!

2011-07-04T20:26:00.001-04:00

For my patriotic stitching today, I began Blackbird Designs' 'Land of the Free' from the July 2011 Cross-Stitch & Needlework magazine. The design calls for Belle Soie with no conversion given, so I just pulled colors from my overdyed cotton collection. So far I have used WDW Scuppernong, WDW Blue Jeans, WDW Raspberry, WDW Cinnabar, GAST Harvest Basket, and CC Whatley Woodlands stitched on 32 ct antique ivory. I have stitch many Americana designs over the years, but I have given them all to my mom. I am thinking about keeping this one for myself. ;)

I think I have gotten over my APP block. I can see the finish line - which is probably the real reason for starting a new design today.

It has been a thundery, steamy 4th down here in the 13th Colony. The girls were heartbroken that they did not get to swim. We made a double batch of Ri$e Kri$pie Treat$, and we played a game of Ha$$y Po$$er Clue. It is definitely more complex than the old Clue with some clever twists.

God Bless America, Land That I Love!!

Seeing Red

2011-07-01T10:43:00.001-04:00

I finished this french marking sampler from the Summer 2011 S&ANQ while I was avoiding Ann Pennsylvania Peacock. I used DMC 3831 and 356.

I think I finally found a pretty good match for the sampler thread on Ann's dress. It still stresses me though. Look at the warped band on the house. I can't decide whether it bothers me enough to actually rip it out and restitch it though!

Dance Shoes, Stitching Blues, and Other News

2011-06-06T15:30:00.001-04:00

The other news first: My dining room looks as scrupulously clean as it will ever be. I just wanted to document that. What is not pictured is the odd assortment of jumbled items I removed from the table. I still don't quite know what to do with that.

The roses on the table were tokens from my parents for my two ballerinas. Buttercup danced three numbers in each of two performances, and Nutmeg danced 6 in 2 and 8 in 2 others. I think. My body, mind, and spirit are still trying to recover. What with the costumes, shoes, drama, hair glue, drama, fast food, and did I mention DRAMA, I am still trying to process the weekend. Here are a few pictures. Just know that I could make this an extremely long recital post, but I am saving room for some stitching.

And this is the piece that has given me the stitching blues. This lovely design is the reason I have not stitched in weeks. (besides the fact that I had a nasty incident with the food processor blade last weekend.) I started with a new skein of Sea Spray and it is too green. It just makes me feel sick for some reason. I have become paralyzed and unable to work on any project now.

Surely I will get to a needlework shop before the end of summer. Surely they will have a slightly less green Sea Spray. Surely this will not be the end of my stitching life. (Surely I will be more careful around the food processor in the future.)

Days of Our Lives

2011-05-04T12:11:00.004-04:00

I posted this rough draft of our day on a homeschooling forum. The question was "What does you day homeschooling a middle school child look like?"

7-8am: Repeated attempts to drag dd10 out of bed. She takes 6 dance classes a week and gets home at 8:30 pm most nights, so I do want her to get as much sleep as possible.

"Do we have to do school today?"

Breakfast: Lots of "But we always have cereal! Can't you make waffles? Can't you makes biscuits?" (I do, as a matter of fact, often make a hot breakfast)

Mommie has coffee with Silk vanilla soy creamer and freshly grated nutmeg.

Girls unload dishwasher and feed pets all the while relating Star Wars trivia.

"Do we have to do school today?"

"How much school do we have to do?"

Girls practice piano ("Do you want to see me play it with my toes?"), and dd10 does violin.

"Can't we just not do school?"

Mommie: "Down to the school room!"

"But I have to go to the bathroom/I'm still hungry - may I have Cheetos?/ I need to change - this is itchy/ What are we having for supper?/ I bet Luke Skywalker did not have to do Latin"

Mommie pours more Silk vanilla soy creamer in her coffee.

Down to the school room where the downstairs cat Dorothy, aka "Dorf" lives.

Many attempts at Latin, Math, Phonics, History, Science, Grammar, etc interrupted by cat knocking over glasses of water, cat rubbing indiscreetly on school books, children running screaming from the table because a ladybug has landed on the far side of the table.

"Do we have to do school today?"

Mommie - "Go outside and walk around the yard few times!"

Mommie seriously considers drinking Silk vanilla soy creamer straight from the carton.

dd10 "dd6 is distracting me; may I take my work upstairs?" translation - may I go to my room and write a Star Wars book, while listening to my iPod and eating cheez-its?"

Mommie brings down yogurt, cheese, and whole grain crackers. Cat sticks her face in yogurt; girls hoot hysterically as cat grooms her pink-coated whiskers.

dd6 whispers to the thin air beside her before she writes down each answer, because Luke Skywalker is telling her the answers.

Mommie suddenly realizes what time it is and hurries everyone up stairs, throws a bag of bread at dd10, and instructs her to make sandwiches. "We always have sandwiches! Can't we have ravioli or quesadillas?"

Mommie considers taking a shower, but settles for washing her face and applying concealer under her sleep-deprived eyes.

Mommie grabs a protein shake, loads the car with the girls and a laundry basket full of books, and heads to town. The girls take various music and dance classes, while mommie "carschools" the other. A mad dash home for supper or to the sub shop depending on the day.

Home: Mommie considers a cup of evening coffee to help her stay awake until bedtime, and settles instead for a swig or two of Silk vanilla soy creamer. Play recital pieces once more; recite Latin lesson to Daddy. Tell Daddy about Jabba the Hutt's son. Family Prayers, and we are done!

Not quite: dd10 wakes up with growing pains. Dd6 is "lonely" and comes in to bed.

We're all in the bed.

Then the alarm goes off, and we do it again.

Royal Stitching

2011-05-01T16:18:00.000-04:00

We dvr'd the royal wedding, and we watched it over a breakfast of scones and tea. I dragged out the Royal Doulton - I will forever hear Hyacinth Bucket's voice when I think of R D! I made a scone recipe I found on the King Arthur Flour website - very appropriate. Friday and Saturday, I stitched the Royal Wedding design by The Sampler Girl - with a few changes by me. I wanted to include interlocking initials for Will and Kate, but I did not plot it out very carefully. I was so impressed by W & K that I really felt compelled to include a pair of hearts. I hope you don't mind Tanya!

I had planned a Jane Austen Day to celebrate the royal wedding, but as I finished 'At Pemberley' I knew I must stitch the wedding design. So I stitched away listening to 'Barchester Towers' on my iPod. Then it was back to reality with carting the girls to dance lessons. ;)

Happy Easter!

2011-04-25T13:31:00.003-04:00

I am finally getting around to posting some pictures of 'Susan Rambo.' I'm not sure why I felt the need to change some of the DMC colors, because now it seems I am constantly adjusting!

I am blogging right now because this little angel is now sitting at the table refusing to eat her lunch because it is 'horrible poison.' Ahem.

Nutmeg received the Sacrament of Confirmation yesterday. It was a beautiful Easter Day! I somehow managed to take a few pictures of my daughters and nieces without smears of chocolate!

Saturday

2011-04-02T15:42:00.005-04:00

Happy Saturday! This is the sunniest, windiest day ever! I have never seen such wind without a tornado watch. It was not the best day for yard work, but it had to be done. I came in an hour ago with dirt in every pore! Jerry and Buttercup are still out there. I feel a bit guilty inside watching 'I Love Lucy' with Nutmeg, but I will get over it. ;) I need to put some more work into Susan Rambo. I am starting to wonder why I started such a huge project!

This is a picture of our front room. It is supposed to be a dining room, but we decided to use it as a library. We had a quick family tidy-up this morning, and I am very pleased with this room. Ursa is pleased with it also! This is her favorite room. In the evenings, we say family prayers in this room. Ursa always comes in for prayers and nuzzles us. Our cat Merlin, The Heart of Darkness, also comes in while we say prayers- he plants himself between us and our home altar and cleans his nether region - vigorously. Jerry and I think it is good training for the children to learn to pray amid distractions! ;)

I hope you all enjoy your weekends!

And the Winner is...

2011-04-02T10:40:00.001-04:00

Congratulations to Ellen! Send me your address, and the Virtues chart will be headed your way! :)

Rambo

2011-04-01T13:03:00.005-04:00

I started 'Ann Pennsylvannia Peacock on 35 ct, then quickly remembered why I don't like 35 ct: 2 threads = 2 thick, 1 thread = 2 skimpy. So I started Susan Rambo on 40 ct exemplar. Ahhhh...feels good! I am using the given DMC conversion - mostly. I always fall in love with the colors in the photograph which are not always the actual colors. The greens in this sampler are definitely soft blue-greens. I am trying 50, 501, and 502, but I am still playing with the combination. Please don't tell me how awesome silk threads are! ;) I am not ready to take that plunge!

Tomorrow morning, I will be drawing a name for the Sheepish Designs chart on the the previous post. Leave a comment there to be entered!

Trying yet again....

2011-03-30T09:10:00.010-04:00

Last night I finished 'Simple Guidance." (pictured above)
Out of necessity, I am starting the giveaway over. The prize is the same (I hope you can see the picture this time) and it will end on Saturday at 10 am eastern.

I will be giving away the above chart of Virtue's Ways on Saturday morning. Just leave a comment on THIS post! If you want your name entered in the drawing twice, just leave me a link to a post on your blog advertising this giveaway.

I don't know what the problem was between Picassa and Blogger. I did not have much time to figure it out because our internet connection went out. The guy finally came this morning. I know there are many vexing things in this world, but high on my list of vexations this week was waiting on hold and hearing the recorded message tell me over and over again that I could find the answers to my questions if I would just go to the help section of their website. Well, not if my problem is NO connection! Hello!

Fingers crossed as I press 'publish post!'

Are they showing up now?

2011-03-28T13:14:00.002-04:00

Sorry for the picture trouble this morning. I can see the pictures on both posts, but Picassa is behaving strangely this morning. Maybe I will have to keep trying! The Giveaway is still on!

It was a crazy birthday weekend, and I did not get much stitching in. Here is the progress I managed to make on Sheepish Design's 'Simple Guidance'

Here is the birthday giveaway I promised last week. One lucky stitcher will receive a chart of Sheepish Design's 'Virtue's Ways.' Leave a comment on this post, and I will draw a name Thursday morning. If you would like your name entered twice - just let me know that you have announced this giveaway on your blog.

Bonne Chance!

2011-03-28T10:06:00.001-04:00

It was a crazy birthday weekend, and I did not get much stitching in. Here is the progress I managed to make on Sheepish Design's 'Simple Guidance'

Bonne Chance!

Adam Alone

2011-03-21T09:17:00.003-04:00

I have finally finished 'Adam Alone' by Sheepish Designs! I have been dreaming of it hanging on my wall for some time now. My mom has offered to have a couple of things framed for my birthday - great motivation to finish this already!

Now for the close-ups:

Excuse you, Merlin!

Merlin, please!

Alrightie! Now that Merlin has been so kind as to relocate his fat, furry fanny...

OOOHHHH.......

AAAHHH...

Yesterday, I started another Sheepish Designs.

Stay tuned for a giveaway in the next day or so!

Now I am off to snuggle that demanding cat.

Monday

2011-03-07T14:33:00.002-05:00

I finished up 'Scottish Alexandria' a few days ago. I have been making myself work on 'Adam Alone' by Sheepish Designs. I love it, but I have done the easy bits, and now only the hard bits are left.

As a special treat for stitching Adam's one-over-one, I started 'Canterbury Tapestry' by Barrick/Carriage House Samplings. It is teeny-tiny on 40 count!

I don't know how much stitching time I will have this week - Tuesday is the annual Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper, Wednesday is the Ash Wednesday service, and Thursday is a homeschool outing to a ballet performance. In between, I will be cleaning, teaching, taxi-ing, and planning lessons and Lenten meals. I'm tired just thinking about that! I think I need a cup of tea and just one more pre-Lent butterscotch blondie!

Nothing says Spring like...

2011-03-01T15:12:00.004-05:00

Pumpkin muffins? Okay, maybe that is a bit of a stretch, but I needed a quick, portable, semi-healthy snack for the girls this afternoon. And then I spied a bag of chocolate chips, and it just went downhill from there.

Here is my pumpkin muffin recipe in case you have a few more weeks of chilly weather whatever the daffodils and calendar may say.

Pumpkin Muffins

3 cups King Arthur White Wheat Flour (this is what makes it healthy before you add in all the sugar!)

1 1/2 cups white sugar ( I have a friend who only uses 1 cup; when I tried that, no one ate them.)

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp cloves (I like to actually taste the spices!)

1/2 tsp nutmeg (I am totally hooked on freshly-ground nutmeg - especially in my coffee with vanilla creamer.)

1/2 c oil

1/4 - 1/3 c buttermilk

3 eggs

15 oz canned pumpkin (Surely all the sugar cannot cancel out the Vitamin A!)

optional ingredients: walnuts, dried or fresh cranberries, currants, and chocolate chips. (My grandparents like it fully loaded; my immediate family does not.)

And then, you know, you mix the dry ingredients together. Then you mix the wet ingredients together. Then you combine them, adding more buttermilk if necessary. Bake at 350 until done. :)

Today, I baked some in muffin-top pans, sliced them open, and stuffed them with chocolate chips. They were a big hit! A smooshy big hit!

My heartfelt sympathies go out to the friends and family of Lisa of the Primitive Needle.

Every day is a gift.

Cart Before the Horse

2011-02-28T14:48:00.001-05:00

I have been working on 'Scottish Alexandria' by Tanya, The Sampler Girl. I love this design! I have been drooling over it on Tanya's blog for some time. It looks good wherever she puts it.

Instead of just finishing it already, I frequently take the unfinished piece around the house to see where it should eventually go. Here are the top three sites I picked today.

1. My bed with the Ralph Lauren comforter I have had since I was 17. Ahem.

(My mom bought another several years ago, but RL has obviously made a dye lot change, so I prefer the old ratty one.)

2. (Well, this is actually #3) the red chair in the front room, aka "The Library"

3. (this is actually #2, maybe #1) This antique chair in the corner of the dining room.

Of course, if I would just finish it already and actually pick out the backing fabric and, oh, I don't know, have it made - we might be able to make a better decision!

In other news, my baby got her ears pierced! It was traumatic - for me. I have done everything I could to protect this child since the day I got the positive pg test. I say "Look left, right, and left again!" in my sleep. And then I drove her to a store and paid someone to poke holes in her ears. It was barbaric.

Look at that smile.

Hmmmm... I still think it was barbaric.

A few stitches

2011-02-24T08:19:00.003-05:00

I finished stitching Tanya's Irish pinkeep last night. I want to finish it as a pillow so I added a dividing band down the center. I used DMC with one color change: 407/3373. I made a little more progress on 'Scottish Alexandria." I love those letters!

The girls made a little craft which they insisted be displayed on the mantel! It is a "pop-up" of a medieval kitchen - fun!

Today is our 'long' day: lots of driving, finding ballet tights and piano books, eating healthy, sustaining snacks. I hope to sneak in a few more stitches - I hope you are able to as well!

Keeping It In The Family

2011-02-19T23:22:00.002-05:00

I always seem to notice I have not really finished a piece only after I have posted a finish! Here is Lucy Lyons Willis' free chart from 2006 - minus one shamrock! ;)

I next turned to Mrs. Willis' daughter, Tanya The Sampler Girl, for more shamrock-inspired stitching. I plan on making this into a pillow and not a needlebook, so I added a dividing band down the center.

I don't trust myself, family, or cats to keep a pillow clean enough for non-color-fast threads, so I am using good old DMC with one color change. I don't mean to shock anyone into thinking that I am systematic enough to actually begin at the top and stitch my way down - oh no! I just was missing the called-for color of the words which make up the middle of this design.

So I had to start another design tonight! I finally began Tanya's 'Alexandria.' I had to pick a DMC thread (777) to replace the Apple Fritter. I hope I have chosen well - it calls for a lot of that color!

I think I am finally to tired to stitch any more tonight! I love a bunch of new starts!

Top o' the Morning

2011-02-19T08:26:00.004-05:00

I hesitate to make stitching goals because that is an open invitation for me to NOT meet those goals! I have, however, made one hesitant goal for 2011- to stitch seasonal designs the month BEFORE the holiday or season. I stitched a couple of Valentine designs in January, and now I have almost finished a design for St. Patrick's Day. I have been stitching a freebie by Tanya's mommie, Lucy Lyons Willis. Wow! I should really get a special little treat for that! I would love to take a little solo trip to a nearby quilt shop to find some shamrock fabric. Maybe after a morning of stitching (and vaccuuming, laundry, and cookie-baking), I might venture out. I really want to finish this this morning - I hope you get in a lot of stitching today!

Finish! What Next?

2011-02-16T17:06:00.001-05:00

This afternoon, between loads of laundry, I finished 'Victorian Ribbons." I have been thinking of designs in threes lately- what would make pleasing wall groupings. I can picture this design blending well with several designs!

So now -the big decision - what to start next? I could of course drag out any number of WIPs - but I don't see that happening. I cannot decide on the same design two days in a row!

I was going through my The Sampler Girl file searching for 'Scottish Alexandria,' when I spied an Irish freebie by Tanya's mom. That got me thinking about Irish/Shamrock/St. Patrick's Day/Spring designs, so off I went on another rabbit trail. Now I have a dozen Irish designs in one stack and 'Scottish Alexandria' in another. 'Scottish Alexandria' has been leaping out at me from pictures on Tanya's blog - it looks good wherever she places it. So what to do? It's a thinker.

"Wake Me at Half-Past May"

2011-02-14T13:10:00.002-05:00

This quotation from Toad and Frog has been much on my mind lately. The weather is downright balmy all of a sudden - a welcome change from one of the coldest winters we've had! These two designs are calling my name - they look so fresh and springy.

I would like to finish 'Victorian Ribbons' before I make a new start. I keep thinking this design will be as close to the Bristol orphanage sampler or Jane Rees as I will probably get!

This is usually such an exciting time of year as I plan and replan my vegetable and herb gardens. This year, however, I am still waiting on garden beds, and cannot get motivated to start seeds. I am in a gardening funk.

Buttercup and I took a nice long ramble through the neighborhood while Jerry took Nutmeg to have her sore throat checked. No violin or pointe class for her tonight!

It was a crazy weekend. Our dog had a seizure Sunday morning, and that was a reality check - our beloved dog is 15. She seems perky this morning, comes clattering to the kitchen when she hears dishes rattle, and snuffles around in the sunshine.

Will it be heart-shaped brownies, cookies, or cheesecake for dessert?

The Winner is....

2011-02-08T09:11:00.005-05:00

Congratulations, Deb!

Never fear, my friends! I just might have a few other duplicate charts squirreled away for another rainy day!

I finished 'Lady Love' on Sunday and worked a bit more on 'Victorian Ribbons.'

(I changed the blue from midnight to tartan plaid. It is quite a bit mellower.)

I even dragged out 'Adam Alone' and worked on the one-over-one.

One would think that I would jut sit down and finish this one. One would be mistaken.

Today is my 14th wedding anniversary. We have big plans: homeschool, orchestra rehearsal, ballet, tap.... :)

Weekend Stitching & Giveaway Reminder

2011-02-06T08:22:00.001-05:00

Here is my weekend stitching on 'Lady Love.' I am really enjoying this design.

Nutmeg is reminding you to 'stay on your toes,' and not forget to enter my Giveaway! Scroll down to the previous post, leave a comment there, and become a follower of this blog! :)

Giveaway!

2011-02-04T08:04:00.007-05:00

Since y'all have been so patient as I drone on about my first cross stitch love, Sheepish Designs/Antiques, I thought I would reward you with a giveaway.

In my frenzy to aquire all designs by the beloved SD/A, I sometimes wind up with a duplicate chart or two.

This is 'The McCarthy Sampler, fourth exemplary' designed by C. Daly of Little by Little fame.

The chart is clean and unused, although there is a price written in pen and also a price sticker on the front. (Should that be "There ARE a price and a price?)

The verse reads, "Love the Lord and he will be A tender Father unto thee."

Giveaway Rules:

1. You must be or become a follower. It sounds as though there should be a wicked laugh after that sentence, but really you just become a follower of my blog. (That still sounds a bit scary.) (It reminds me of a button I had on my jean jacket years (and years) ago that read, "Don't follow in my footsteps; I think I stepped in something.")

2. Leave a comment on THIS post. The winner will be drawn at random, but out of curiosity I would like you to include which Sheepish Designs/Antiques you have stitched and a rough count of how many Sheepish Designs/Antiques charts you possess. No, this is not a cunning plan for me to stalk you and trick you out of your SD/A charts! ;) I just thought it would make for interesting comments!

3. Mom, you may comment, but you may not enter. You no longer have any Sheepish Designs charts. If you start to miss them, I will let you borrow my binder on a trial basis every other weekend. BTW, thank you for "letting" me pilfer your charts! :)

4. BTW, I will draw the winner on Tuesday, February 8 at 9am Eastern time. (February 8 just happens to be my 14th wedding anniversary with Louisiana Man)

Sheepish Designs

2011-02-02T12:24:00.002-05:00

I started two designs by Sheepish Designs.
I LOVE Sheepish Designs!
I love SHEEPISH DESIGNS!
I LOVE SHEEPISH DESIGNS!

I love them so much I sleep with a binder full of their charts under my pillow. Well, I keep the binder by my bed at any rate. I keep the charts in numerical order. I will not part with these charts. Some people collect pottery faces with buck teeth. I collect Sheepish Designs. Please ask Dawn Bradford to release her patterns in digital form! There are actually a few I do not have.

Back to my new starts: I have long wanted to try 40 count fabric and see what all the fuss was about. I love it. I have done quite a bit on 35/36 before, and this is better. I changed the colors on Victorian Ribbons from 3722 and 223 to 221 and 3722. It is still more pastel than I would prefer, but I think I will stick with it.

I will close with my very favorite Sheepish Designs design. This was in a magazine years ago. I added the bargello in the grass.

PS (I love Sheepish Designs)

Thankful for a Finish!

2011-01-31T07:55:00.003-05:00

I finished this up while watching Downton Abbey, then I worked some more on Tanya's DA freebie. I was so psyched when I read that there were 7 episodes of Downton Abbey in season 1. I was sad to learn that they had been combined into the 4 we saw here, and that will be it for this year!

It is difficult to get moving on this cold rainy day. And I am supposed to figure out how to sew the ribbons on Nutmeg's brand new pointe shoes. I will probably just cross stitch them! ;)

(I used colors I had on hand, DMC Ecru, 3371, and Holly Berry, Lancaster Red, Weeping Willow)

Twisting the Night Away

2011-01-29T09:18:00.001-05:00

Last night, I began another Beth Twist design, "Let Us Be Truly Thankful, the Valentine edition." I wanted to start it right away, so I just picked some colors I had on hand. Beth is working on the March edition for this series right now!

I would love to have a wall of cross stitch pieces that I could change out through the year. Has anyone used command strips to hang cross stitch? I wondered if that would be a possibility. That way I would not have to worry about nail holes as I changed the arrangement around.

I hope you all have great weekends and get in lots of stitching!

Stick a Fork in Her - She's Done!

2011-01-28T11:09:00.002-05:00

I realize this is a little anti-climatic after yesterday's picture, but a finish is a finish and deserves a post! This is Unna von Bergen 1869, a freebie by Beth Twist.

I am amazed how much I love this sampler! Crazy colors, idiosyncratic boo-boos - but it works!

Thank you, Beth!

When One Gets This Old...

2011-01-27T13:53:00.002-05:00

When one gets this old, apparently one no longer feels the need to hide the evidence.

I made a pizza, fed my children, and went up for a shower. This is how I found our 15-year old dog, Ursa, upon my return downstairs. Yes, she is awake, and quite aware of my presence, but apparently unconcerned. There was a time when she would have crawled under the dining room table, racked with canine guilt, after a garbage raid. Apparently, those days are behind us.

I was not going to blog again until I could proudly show you my finished Unna von Bergen. She is not quite ready, but I wanted to show you a picture of stitching in case Dog with Empty Cheese Wrapper is not your idea of high art! ;)

D.A.

2011-01-23T19:23:00.000-05:00

Have you checked out Tanya The Sampler Girl's newest freebie? Hurry, hurry! We are an hour and a half away!

I love the motif she used in the corner, but I thought I would try my hand at a representation of D. A. I need to keep tinkering. Right now, it looks like Gotham City, or a bat. I plan on backstitching some lines to represent windows. Not quite sure. Hmmm...

"Toot Sweet"

2011-01-21T17:08:00.004-05:00

I know, I know. But this design was very quick to stitch, and it is very sweet. Toot- well, we just won't go there. ;)

This would make a great, quick Valentine's gift for a teacher. Since I homeschool, I'll just give it to myself!

I plan on putting in some serious stitching hours on Unna tonight. Although...

Now I am off to pound the treadmill and listen to some more of Moby Dick. I just cannot quite decide if hearing "The White Whale - Thar she blows!" while I huff and puff is inspiring or demoralizing. ;)

Fickle

2011-01-20T11:53:00.003-05:00

During the snowstorm, I was happily stitching away on Agnes Scott. When the girls' activities resumed, I told myself I needed a smaller projected to carry around in the car. I started the intriguing Unna von Bergen. Well, today I decided I really need an even smaller project to carry around. I mean really - I now love Unna too much to expose her to the same perils I would not dare expose Agnes to! And Valentines is right around the corner....

So I whipped out this ancient Prairie Schooler leaflet. It seems like they will be perfect for an afternoon of ferrying the girls to music and dance class.

I do feel the tinsy-iest bit ashamed. I have been on a blog-reading-binge lately, and I know most of you would already have Unna finished, framed, and hung! Call me the poky little puppy!

I wonder if I could finish all four little PS designs in time to hang from my mantle for VD? Perhaps you all could encourage me? Should I promise to show you a picture of my craft closet if I don't get them finished? No, my mom saw my craft closet yesterday, and she would probably drive over and finish them for me to spare the family shame!

Yesterday was a baking day. There was a LOT of this...

A pinch of this...

And, well, yes, some of this:...

Ain't She Purty?

2011-01-17T09:41:00.008-05:00

Sorry. I don't know where that came from.

Alright fine. I know exactly where it came from! Moving on...

I am loving Unna more and more as the crazy colors mingle on the fabric. I hope to finish her as I sit waiting on the girls to have their lessons.

By the way, Nutmeg is taking six dance classes, violin, orchestra, and her piano/voice class. Buttercup is merely taking 3 dance classes and piano/voice. I may be headed around the bend....

Yesterday, I made a quick stop at Mi@ael$ - their new spring things are out! This pillow case was 3$ - it has a nice zipper in the back and fits a 16 square pillow form. I think I may need a few more....

I love the dollar baskets full of junque! I bought a few little things. Wouldn't they make lovely gifts at a bridesmaids' or ladies' lunch?

I was thinking about putting a magnet on the back of the little dish, and turning it into a needle minder. I am so full of clever ideas, but sadly lacking in follow-through....

I am seriously considering starting this Sheepish Antique. Seriously considering it.....Seriously.....

Did you all have good weekends?

Ha! That makes me think of the Dowager on Downton Abbey, "What are weekends?" :)

Red and Purple?

2011-01-15T10:38:00.007-05:00

For three whole, entire days I really believed I was going to work on Agnes until either she was finished or my fingers bled. I thought she was the most beautiful design in the world and could fulfill my every stitching desire. And then I came upon this freebie from Heartstrings Primitives and I was seized with a desperate longing to stitch purple and red together. And mismatched greens. And blues and other purples. And a weird mustard-y-brown.

The story of this little sampler is AMAZING! Why do these things not happen to me? ;) At any rate, I am stitching Unna von Bergen 1869. My color scheme is even more lurid than the original being that I cannot properly read a chart. *sigh* But I don't think it really matters; it is the sheer gutsy-ness (am I making up words or just spelling them wrong?) of these colors mixed together that astounds.

Here is little Nutmeg curled up under the warmest blanket in the house drinking ----COFFEE!? I need to have a word with Louisiana Man!

"The House of the One Gable"

2011-01-14T08:49:00.005-05:00

Snow days are vacation days here in Georgia. I may live in a higher elevation (the battering winds attest to that (We have moved to yet another Wuthering Heights!), but a few falling flakes unfit me for work let alone, snow on the ground for a week! That being said, I have stitched to my heart's content this week! It has been a good long while since I have done this much needlework. (Yes, Mom, your grandchildren have been fed, and I think they have had a bath or two.)
The above picture may not look like grand progress, but it was a pretty intense bit of stitching. It was more intense because I was listening to Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The House of the Seven Gables." Sometimes I laughed out loud, and sometimes my heart beat fast and my needle flew faster! Agnes' house has only one gable, but I think she is better off than the inhabitants of that well-gabled house.

I wanted to show you my coffee nook. I was so happy to find that this house had a butler's pantry! It looks a bit sparse because I share the space with my husband who is always on the look out for gratuitous bits of Frou, as in frou-frou, or is it froo-froo?
You may have noticed that I am not the type who rushes out and frames or otherwise finishes my work. I am sure there is some psychological name for that as well as a financial one! ;) One day, I want Paulette's coffee freebie to grace this space. (it is upstairs with a piece of foam board cut and ready for the stretching)

This ancient piece does hang in the pantry. I still love it.

I wish you could join me for a morning of stitching and coffee!

Snow Days

2011-01-12T14:36:00.002-05:00

I have marveled at the bright reds and greens on Scottish samplers for years now. Those are certainly cheery colors on snowy-cold days. I have made some progress on 'Agnes Scott' by With My Needle while listening to the wind try to out-howl the children. This is more snow than the girls have seen in their lives, and they are thrilled to be living in a neighborhood with young boys across the street. We have had to put a stop to them chunking ice at each other more than once. I suppose they were thinking, "If snow ball fights are fun, then ice chunk fights must be terrific!" Hmmmm...

This is NOT normal winter weather for us! I want them to enjoy it as much as possible while staying as dry as possible. Hot soup and cornbread is the perfect fare this week!

Glob@l W@rming

2011-01-10T08:04:00.000-05:00

Nutmeg got H@rry P@tter Clue for Christmas. It is more complicated than the original, but it makes for a fun winter evening!

How much snow have you gotten this year? It is so beautiful!

Christmas Cheer

2010-12-30T15:05:00.002-05:00

I managed to get well enough to add a bit of Christmas around the house! It's nice to be catholic and be able to leave the decorations up while the rest of the world is busy taking theirs down. ;) If you can't get yours packed up, just tell people you are celebrating the 12 Days of Christmas!

I totally let the girls do the tree. Next year I might need my own...

My mom bought these houses for me and my sister. I love looking at the dates...

Taking a popsicle break

2010-12-19T18:18:00.007-05:00

I have been very sick this week. It is not the flu, but it is pretty crummy nonetheless. And it is requiring a lot of popsicles.

Today I started a Mary Beale ornament, "Mary was espoused to Joseph." I have never been much of a snowman or santa Christmas stitcher. I usually prefer a religious or nature theme. Although I am beginning to like some of the Mary Beale repeated patterns too.

The ornament below was intense! There are a lot of stitches in that little ornament! I love bargello-style designs, and I can never resist Carriage House Samplings. If you remember this ornament from 2005, you know it was charted to say "Dec. 1804." In my sinus infection-induced fog this morning, I thought I would just freehand "Christmas" and see how it fit. I still cannot believe it fit perfectly - and on the first try!

Jerry has run to pick up pizza and calzones since I don't need to do any food prep! Pizza, stitching, "A Touch of Frost," (a mystery series) antibiotics, and then BED!

I have enjoyed looking through all the pictures with your Christmas decorating. I thought I would show you how much I have done this year. Hmmmm...I don't think this picture will win me any awards.... ;)

Have you seen this?

2010-12-15T09:01:00.003-05:00

Another ornament done. Well, not quite. I suppose I need to do a bit more before I can hang it!

Speaking of ornaments, have you seen Linda Wallace's trees? Here are two links to a tour of her trees. They each show different things.

http://tennesseesamplers.blogspot.com/2010/12/decorating-with-samplers-for-christmas.html

http://www.marybeale.com/images/lwallace/

One day, one day.....

What a busy time of year!

2010-12-13T19:40:00.003-05:00

Today was a snow day for the public school, and we took the day off here as well. There was the slightest dusting of snow on the ground, and powerful, bitter winds whistled around the house all day. Between loads of laundry, I finished stitching this ornament by Plum Street Samplers.

Yesterday, I kept my nieces for a few hours. This little sweetie likes to feed a bite to the doggies and then take a bite herself. I would have stopped her, but I was busy taking pictures!

Saturday morning, Nutmeg had a recital; she played the Nutcracker March.

After the recital, we raced home to get things ready for Nutmeg's 10th birthday party. The theme was Star Wars.

Last week there were 4 ballet recitals. This coming weekend looks a bit lighter with only a double birthday party and a neighborhood White Elephant Christmas Party...

First Finish in the New House

2010-12-08T15:32:00.004-05:00

It's a small one, but such a cute one! I love adam and Eve designs, and this one is so sweet and quick! I used DMC because I want to display it as a small pillow or pinkeep. I worry about spilling something on hand dyed threads.

Here are some random shots: Carnations my parents brought the girls at their ballet recital.

A new rug for the "library." (from Tar-zjay)

And last, but not least, Buttercup's lastest fashion experiment.

What to stitch next?

I actually stitched!!

2010-12-08T09:14:00.001-05:00

I have had the hardest time getting back into stitching after our move. There is just too much to do, but I could not resist startng Tanya's newest Adam and Eve design. I am using the DMC colors, and I was worried that the brown was too red. Then I realized I live in Georgia, and dirt IS red! ;)

I am usually very senstive to scent, but this year I have been enjoying various wintery scents throughout the house.

Did I already show you this picture? This sign was already hanging in the dining room of this house. I begged for it. There is just something about that sign... ;)

Maybe I will get in some more stitching this afternoon. My latest vision is of a basket of Adam and Eve smalls!

I do plan on stitching again soon...

2010-11-01T10:58:00.001-04:00

But this will have to do you for now!

We moved....mostly

2010-10-29T09:49:00.000-04:00

We are still moving, with no end in sight! This is our new home. I will upload some more pictures when I find the camera cord!

We went to the local fall festival. I sat on a bench to people watch, and my husband bought these monstrosities for our children!

The Square is always beautiful, and they go all out decorating for Fall.

Cross Stitch? Not lately. I look forward to a stitching day soon, but first I need to get the house more settled. I did start a new blog - African Violets....Again! Look for it on my blogroll. There are no pictures now (AWOL camera cord!), but I hope to upload some pictures from my glory days (300 plus violets!) soon. Always room for another obsession, right? ;)

Getting Ready...

2010-10-10T20:46:00.003-04:00

Notice how I put the Halloween-y cross stitch BEFORE the Christmas one? Attention, business I saw on Green Street! Take down your Christmas wreath! It just looks plain silly in October!!! But this Raven design by Plum Street Samplers might stay up year 'round!

I just put the last stitches in Shepherd's Bush's "Far Away," that was published in the JCS December 2001. I might do a BBD Halloween next- if I can stay awake! Last night, Nutmeg had a friend spend the night - I can't imagine how little sleep they got! The little sisters did not get a slumber party, but they got bowling and vampire teeth and seemed pretty happy with the deal!

Question for Smart Needlework People

2010-10-01T14:14:00.002-04:00

This lovely cross stitch and a companion piece of a partridge/pheasant/turkey/peacock bird were, until quite recently, hanging in my late great-grandmother's home. Ahem. I leave it to your imagination as to how they are now in my possession. ;) Anyway, they were done by my grandmother quite some time ago. My question is - what is to be done? I am sure there is not a single acid free product in the whole shebang. I do not know if the dark brown streaks are dirt or acid damage. I wouldn't put my money on the threads being color-fast anyway. With today's craze for vintage and shabby, I would not hesitate to leave them as they are except for 1. I don't want them to deteriorate, and 2. My grandmother would "have a duck" if she saw them hanging in my house looking "dirty." So - where do I go from here?

Rainy, Chilly Day

2010-09-30T11:43:00.002-04:00

I finally finished the "Scottish Companion Sampler" published in The Gift of Stitching (digital) magazine. I changed the green and the brown. I just could not resist doing this when I saw the boating scene at the bottom!

I started and finished this a couple of days ago. I don't know why really, probably because it was designed by Darlene O'Steen. It was in an older JCS ornament issue. I kind of like it and kind of don't. And now I see I haven't quite crossed all the stitches.

WoooHooo! Look at my amazing progress on "Far, Far Away" by Shepherd's Bush! I started it last night, but really I feel to yucky with allergies to stitch. I also want to stitch the next band to hide my threads under, but did not have that color.

Last, but never least, is Merlin. Can you guess what that is hanging out of his mouth? Look at the bottom of my last post for a hint! ;)

Will She Like It?

2010-09-25T12:51:00.005-04:00

Well, I finished "Williamsburg Lady" by Historic Stitches. I personalized it with some of the highlights of a friend's trip. I also filled in some spaces with BBD stars and a Tennessee sampler dog. (Now I wonder if I should have made the BBD stars yellow.) Mommylaywer, let me know if you hate it, or if it is not your style - I won't be heartbroken if I get to keep it! ;)

I bought a small bag of buttons at a "junque" shop this week. I have them in mind for a design by Cross-Eyed Cricket. I have spent a lot of time arranging and rearranging them, and it occurs to me I should stitch the design first!

I'll close with a shot of our kitty-witties. You know, I love my sister, but she has to clean her own ears!

W'burg Lady and My Ladies

2010-09-23T10:20:00.001-04:00

My in-laws left about an hour ago, and I am trying to get the girls back to Latin and math. It is not going so well, so I thought I'd escape to the blogosphere! I made some progress on my version of "Williamsburg Lady" by Historic Stitches. I stitched some a couple of evenings while we introduced my in-laws to the "Foyle's War" detective series.

Yesterday we went antique/junkin'. This is how Nutmeg goes Junkin'!

On Monday, we all went to Brasstown Bald, which is the highest point in Georgia. The visitors' center has some really nice, informative displays, so this was definitely a homeschool trip!

The wedding was beautiful, although it was swelteringly hot! I am rather proud of this picture of Buttercup and my niece, BabyCakes.

Well, I need to go "put the grip" on Buttercup, as my parents say.

On another note, our 14-year old dog, Ursa, is having a terrible time. We are vegetarians, but we of course feed our obligate carnivore pets regular pet food. Ursa is half deaf, half blind, and half crippled, but wave a bit of the rotisserie chicken (we got for my in-laws) - and she can haul some tail across the house! Who knew that it could work such wonders! I guess I will be buying rotisserie chicken now!

Today

2010-09-17T12:12:00.003-04:00

How was that for a snappy title? Really, it should have been titled "This Minute," because that is as far ahead as I can think. If I thought any further ahead, I would be confronted with the facts that today at 5 I have a long-overdue eye exam, at 6 the girls need to be at my cousin's wedding rehearsal, at 7 we are invited to the rehearsal dinner, tomorrow is the wedding, and on Sunday my in-laws are coming to stay for several days. Other facts: my house is a mess, my yard is scary, Nutmeg has not finished her math, and Buttercup has been in a MOOD ever since she woke up, and right now they are fighting over which one gets to use the bathroom first, because of course they want to use the same one. So, rather than deal with these daunting realities, I have choosen to dust off my camera and blog.

I have finally finished something - CHS Be My Love! I also started another mermaid design my CHS. I am again fascinated by the color combination!

None of my friends in-real-life read my blog, so I am going to post a piece I am stitching for a friend. She and her family are taking Colonial America trip. Yesterday, I saw my "Williamsburg Lady," and I thought it would be perfect! I do not know if it is her style, or if she will even want it. So I plan on giving it to her for Christmas - like next week. If she does not want it, she will be getting another cookbook for Christmas! I have shifted and added and otherwise adjusted the design. In place of the alphabet, I have stitched "Williamsburg" and "Jamestown" across the top. I plan on stitching "Yorktown" down the right-hand side. I changed the colors to DMC, because stitching with silk stresses me. I think I may add a dog/cat/rabbit on the right side of the lady, and perhaps a little something under the bird.

Hmmmm....I always get my best stitching/cooking/crafting ideas when some unrelated deadline is approaching!