Family in Feast and Feria

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Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Smiles from the Almost Four Year Old

Ds is really keeping us on our toes.

This week dh asked if we needed to give him his medicine, although he spelled out "m-e-d" to me. Ds started repeating the letters to himself, went to his LeapFrog Writing Desk, punched in the letters and said "Oh, you mean my medicine?" Yikes.

I need to spend some extra learning time with him, because he's really eager to start reading. We do little games here and there. I think I should do some phonics, but not quite sure where to start. I did buy the Bob Books from Costco, since I knew I'd need the series eventually. They are still wrapped in plastic in the dining room. He keeps begging me to open so he can read them. I told him they were for when he can start reading. "But Mommy, I CAN read already!"

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He's now into everything about knights. The original inspiration was from the Veggie Tales Duke and the Great Pie War. I heard dh and ds jousting down in the basement for a few days. At the Real Learning Conference I bought King Arthur and His Knights cd from Jim Weiss. The first time listening dh thought it might be over his head. After a few days we were discussing knights, and I mentioned that cd is all about knights, jousting, and swords. He then wanted to listen to it over and over, asking me questions like, "Now why were both men bloody when they jousted?" (I was not happy about the blood part -- I think that's the only mention of blood on the whole cd!) So I had to demonstrate that the lances hit both knights as they passed each other.

And we've pulled out all our books on any knights.

The silly book The Knight and the Dragon by Tomie dePaola

A more serious read, with captivating illustrations is St. George and the Dragon by Margaret Hodges. I've had this for a while but the text didn't interest him until now. And it's one of the books in Catholic Mosaic.

Another book we own, but I can't put my hands on right now is Joan of Arc, the Lily Maid also by Margaret Hodges. I know she's not a knight, but ds was asking "Mommy, where's the book with the girl who becomes a knight?" I was scratching my head for a long time on this question. He had to give me a clue that I read it to him in the bathroom. ;-) (Now that was months ago!) Another Mosaic book.

I need to expand this area. Are there any children's illustrated King Arthur? Anything you'd recommend for a child with a voracious appetite on all things knights?

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In my speech on the Liturgical Year in the Home I talked briefly about introducing saints. We only touch on them a bit in this house. We read books, sometimes I show pictures and just mention a small tidbit about a saint. At bedtime prayers we have a litany of saints we sing. The list is generally the same, with some alterations every evening. The question is always "Whose feast day is it today?" and after we tell him, he sings his name.

After giving the speech, I started wondering if he's really remembering. Am I doing a good job? I got my answer this month. When it was the feast of St. Lawrence, I talked a little about him, and how he died for his faith -- on a gridiron. I had some paintings that I showed him. Weeks later in our bedtime prayers, he asked "Who is the saint that got cooked? Oh yes, St. Lawrence!"

09:07 Permalink | Comments (4) | Email this

I'm Relieved I'm Still Southern

HT: to , who has just a touch of New Yorker accent and Maryan -- where's Connecticut?

08:31 Posted in Fun | Permalink | Comments (3) | Email this

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Memorial of the Queenship of Mary

Today, August 22, is the memorial of the Queenship of Mary. It falls one week after the Solemnity of the Assumption. We were able to go to Mass today, had lunch with some of my sisters and their families and my father. Tonight we'll pray the rosary together as family.

The Coronation and Queenship of Mary is a concept a little foreign to us Americans. We have no royalty, and our early War for American Independence was rebelling against the tyranny of the kings. So trying to meditate on Mary as queen comes a little harder for me.

Years ago as a teenager I watched an old obscure black and white movie. It was based in England, and the story centered around a poor, young motherless boy. He had always heard that the Queen is the mother of all in her country, that the subjects look to her as a mother. And since the boy had no mother, he searched out a way to meet his "Queen Mother", to experience her maternal love in person.

That aspect of the movie has stayed with me all these years. I found I could understand queenship much easier by understanding the maternal aspect of the queenly throne. The queen isn't some distant, regal person that we can't approach, but a loving mother for us all. And isn't that a perfect description of Our Lady?

And while meditating on these thoughts today, the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe came to mind. Here we have Mary appearing to humankind as a queen. And yet, her words to us were as a Mother:

Listen and let it penetrate your heart, my dear little son. Do not be troubled or weighed down with grief. Do not fear any illness or vexation, anxiety, or pain. Am I not here who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not your fountain of life? Are you not in the folds of my mantle? In the crossing of my arms? Is there anything else you need?

Meditating on her words and her motherly love is perfect for my spiritual needs today. "Do not be troubled" -- Thank you, dear Blessed Mother.

14:25 Posted in Blessed Virgin Mary | Permalink | Comments (1) | Email this

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Living the Liturgical Year at Home

I'm sharing the talks and handouts from my speech at the Real Learning Conference, like many of the other speakers have done.

I shared them on my other blog (I will make the permanent switch someday!). I also have it in .pdf files.

Here is Dawn's speech and handouts.

And Meredith shared her Montessori and More talk.

14:51 Posted in Liturgical Year | Permalink | Comments (3) | Email this

Monday, August 06, 2007

Real Learning Home Education Conference

I'm going to be a bit busy this week preparing for the final days before this conference -- it's this Saturday! I'll try to not get nervous about my speech! I can't wait to hear the speeches, shop a little, and meet all the attendees 4Real!

Real Learning Home Education Conference
Seton School in Manassas, Virgina
August 11th, 8:30 A.M. - 5:30 P.M.

Registration Fee: $25 (includes lunch)

Schedule for the Real Learning Home Education Conference

8:30 Holy Sacrifice of the Mass
9:15 Coffee and Donuts
10:00 Welcome/The Real Learning Philosophy - Elizabeth Foss
11:00 Living the Liturgical Year - Dawn and yours truly
12:00 Nature Study - Theresa
1:00 Lunch and Vendor Shopping
2:30 Break Out Sessions:

High School - Michele Quigley
Math - Janette
Montessori at home - Meredith
Special Needs - Mary Ellen

3:30 Question & Answer Forum - all speakers
4:00 It’s all About the Relationships! - Elizabeth Foss
5:00 Closing

The conference blog has more information on vendors, speaker descriptions, and location. Day-of registrants welcome, nursing babies only. I hope to see you there!

Can I ask for some extra prayers as I prepare for this? My health hasn't been cooperating lately to concentrate on my speech and final preparations. Thanks so much!

08:20 Posted in Homeschooling | Permalink | Comments (5) | Email this

I Needed This Reminder

Yesterday's meditation from Elisabeth Leseur in the Magnificat was exactly what I needed.

Rich in What Matters to God

We can show our Savior the depth of our love; we atone for past faults and offer the purest reparation...; we can also offer reparation for others, make our interior suffering serve others and acquire more inner strength. From a spiritual perspective, we achieve maturity, and as Saint Francis de Sales says so well, God weans us from the milk of infants to give us the wine of the strong. From experiencing every suffering and darkness of spirit, we discover a great joy in finally doing something for God, to show that we truly love him -- God, and not his consolations, which he lavished upon us not so long ago. The unfinished alleluia ends in a fiat that, in spite of all, is still joyful.

My God, I belong and always wish to belong to you, in suffering or in pain, in spiritual dryness or in joy, in illness or in health, in life or in death. I want only one thing: that your will be done in me and by me. More and more I seek, and desire to seek, only one end: to promote your greater glory through the accomplishment of your desires for me.

I offer myself to you in wholehearted interior sacrifice and ask you to dispose of me for your service as the most common, most useless instrument, in favor of those you love. Make me either passive or active, practicing in turn and as the hour requires the contemplation I love best and other good works according to your will.

Let me always be strict with myself, more gentle, loving, and helpful to others, to make you loved through me, always hiding my efforts, prayers, and mortifications. Make me very humble and draw my heart to yours, my beloved Savior and God.

I haven't been so quiet or loving in my daily crosses! This was a great reminder for me to pick up The Secret Diary of Elisabeth Leseur and finish the book at this time. The quote above was taken from Elisabeth Leseur: Selected Writings. I'd be interested in comparing the two books -- what other writings besides her diary is in print?

08:08 Posted in Mothering | Permalink | Comments (3) | Email this

Thursday, August 02, 2007

What Can I Say?

I've been working on a project of painting t-shirts for dh for the last few days. I finished up late last night. Because it was late, I didn't clean up my work space. Today I was either on the run or on the couch, so I forgot to clean again.

So just before bedtime, ds comes to me saying he can't get the gunk off his hands. The "gunk", I find out, is chocolate, and it's now wiped all over his shorts. I remembered I had left a piece of chocolate out on the table (don't ask), so I told him to throw it away. (To my relief he didn't eat it.)

We proceed with the bath, and he says that his arms hurt from the scissors. What scissors? Why, the ones on the dining room table, of course. It takes me a while to piece together that from my unclean work space he took the scissors, tried to cut the chocolate, and then in cutting he got his arm. Just little scratches, nothing dangerous.

I chastised him for getting into Mommy's stuff, of course. But then the conversation turns, because he looks at me in all sincerity and tells me I really shouldn't have left out my tools, but cleaned up my work space.

And he's right on all accounts. After all, chocolate and scissors have infinite possibilities and such a big temptation for a three year old. I'm such a bad mommy for leading him into temptation. ;-)

We both learned our lessons today.

20:30 Posted in Mothering | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this