flynn011

I'm finally out of summertime holiday mode, and back into school preparation.  I've just about managed to put away all the camping gear, newly washed clothes, and seventeen packets of cup-o-soup, but now I have to tackle THE SCHOOL ROOM. Out go all the books about medieval history, and in come those about the Renaissance. Out go the papers, books, scrap books, and exercise books from our work last year, and in come the new folders, binders, composition books, pens, paper, glue, scissors, and boxes of crayons. What a mess in the meantime! Out with the old, in with the New But wait?  What's this?  You mean, things aren't as chaotic as they first seem? Guess who's got a new label maker? My hope is that more books on display in neat categories might encourage more browsing . Still not sure what I'll put in the drawers at the bottom.  These used to have activities and crafts, most of which the kids have outgrown.  They might be a perfect place for the art supplies th...

Ellie Firestone, the pen name of my daughter "Phoenix", has just published her sixth book on Kindle.  Super Sporty: The Curse of the Delba is the fourth in a series about super-hero, basketball-playing horses. For only pocket-money prices, the latest book is available as a Kindle edition and perfect for emerging readers or any pre-schooler who enjoys a read-aloud before bedtime. Buy it in the UK from here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Super- Sporty-Curse-Delba-ebook/dp/ B00ER7IRS4/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8& qid=1377538320&sr=8-2& keywords=ellie+firestone Or from the US from here: http://www.amazon.com/Super-Sporty-Curse-Delba-ebook/dp/B00ER7IRS4/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1377539173&sr=8-5&keywords=super+sporty+4 I'm just so proud of her in so many ways -- true to Charlotte-Mason-method homeschoolers, she finishes her school work in the morning, then spends her afternoons with her writing projects.   Whether it's drawing and colouring the illustrations, editi...

While many homeschooling families are starting their school year, or getting geared up to start, we're still in holiday mode, and preparing instead for a week of walking in the English Lake District. Garden Views at our Favourite Holiday Cottage in Ambleside, Cumbria, England Ten minutes from our house is Blenheim Palace, a World Heritage site that has not only a beautiful stately home to visit, but also a brilliant 4-mile driveway which encircles the park, taking us over picturesque bridges, through Ent-like ancient forests, and fields of baby pheasants which are just changing into their adult plumage. We decided to use this route for our training because we have an annual ticket to it, so we get in free, and because there are such good facilities at the beginning and end of the walk, especially ice cream! Exercising in Style! For three days, we tackled just a single circuit.  At the end of these walks, we stopped off at the walled garden and played in the maze, on the playground ...