Things are going pretty darn good in the Spear household. This week I have really been realizing how grateful I am for everything that we are able to do and everything and everybody we have in our lives. I think it's important for people to re-evaluate their lives every once in a while, to realize all the good things. A lot of times people, me included, focus on all the things they don't have or all the stuff that's going wrong but I think that's human nature, really. I tend to do that a lot.
But I am grateful for so much right now. Especially Brendon. :) What would I do without that guy? We've been married almost 10 years and and I'm still madly in love with that handsome man. :)
Tomorrow we are going to the beach for the day. My Dad and my brother are in a fishing tournament and we will be going to the weigh-in and then spending some time on the beach and maybe going out for dinner. I tried looking for a hotel today, thinking we could stay the night but everything is so expensive! I just can not justify spending $90 for a place to sleep when we live only 30 minutes away. I guess it's the frugal, tight-wad person coming out in me. I wish that sometimes I could just say "Who cares!" but it's so hard. LOL
Hopefully I'll have some beach pictures to post next time. Those are always my favorite. I guess it's the sun and the sand and the water - they always come out so perfect.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Sunday, September 13, 2009
I DID IT!
Four and a half months ago I began my journey to lose weight.
I started eating a lot better and started walking four miles almost every day (sometimes 8 miles in one day!).
My first major goal was to lose 20 pounds.
Today I finally hit my goal! WOO HOO!!
Now I only have about 10 more pounds to lose before I'm at my final goal and my ideal weight. Such empowerment!! :)
I started eating a lot better and started walking four miles almost every day (sometimes 8 miles in one day!).
My first major goal was to lose 20 pounds.
Today I finally hit my goal! WOO HOO!!
Now I only have about 10 more pounds to lose before I'm at my final goal and my ideal weight. Such empowerment!! :)
CAN IT WORK IN THE REAL WORLD?by Sandra Dodd
If unschooling can't work in the real world, nothing at all can. People will say,
"How will they learn algebra in the real world?"
Is there algebra in the real world? If not, why should it be learned? If so, why should it be separated artificially from its actual uses? "Why?" should always be the question that comes before "What?" and "How?" There is a Sesame Street book called Grover and the Everything in the Whole Wide World Museum. There is a "things under the sea" room and "things in the sky" room, but still each room is just a room in a museum, no windows, everything out of context. Then he opens a big door marked "everything else in the whole wide world" and goes
out into the sunshine. There is unschooling.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Book
I know that I've been quoting a lot of things on my blog lately and posting links to various web sites. I guess I go through little spurts of being infatuated with other people's words and thoughts and ideas. I suppose it also greatly depends on if I'm reading a book at the time. LOL
I'm in the process of reading this amazing book that I mentioned in my last post called Deschooling Our Lives. It is a great book that makes so much sense to me and really solidifies my passion for creating a child-led learning environment for Brenna, who is doing so, so great with it and is really flourishing as a person. She learns so much every day. Just the other day Brendon was watching a show on TV and they mentioned Big Ben. Brenna immediately told Brendon, "Hey, that's the big landmark in England - that big clock!". Not sure where exactly she learned that from (probably one of her websites she frequents) but we were both pretty impressed. She surprises us with things like that all the time.
Here's a paragraph from the book I'm reading that I thought explained things very well.
"People are learners. They are born already working on their education! They are born curious - and striving. How else can you explain the unbelievable development in the first few years of life from a pretty much helpless infant, with only the most fundamental communication skill, into a walking, talking toddler whose universe expands exponentially from month to month. They are born creative. No one at all has to explain learning processes to an infant. You can't stop them, and each one learns differently: how to roll over, or how to sit up, how to explore with their fingers, to stand, to walk, to say a few words and then a few sentences, and then express an infinite number of thoughts, many complex and abstract. Infants begin life learning in the ways we all use when we are learning for our own pleasure. They explore. They imitate. They experience. They build more complex world views from trial and error. It is simple to understand, but terribly difficult to accept, that the individual is best served at every age by allowing that native curiosity and creativity to be undeflected and uninterrupted; that the best schooling may be the schooling that least impedes the mind's free exploration of the environment."
I'm in the process of reading this amazing book that I mentioned in my last post called Deschooling Our Lives. It is a great book that makes so much sense to me and really solidifies my passion for creating a child-led learning environment for Brenna, who is doing so, so great with it and is really flourishing as a person. She learns so much every day. Just the other day Brendon was watching a show on TV and they mentioned Big Ben. Brenna immediately told Brendon, "Hey, that's the big landmark in England - that big clock!". Not sure where exactly she learned that from (probably one of her websites she frequents) but we were both pretty impressed. She surprises us with things like that all the time.
Here's a paragraph from the book I'm reading that I thought explained things very well.
"People are learners. They are born already working on their education! They are born curious - and striving. How else can you explain the unbelievable development in the first few years of life from a pretty much helpless infant, with only the most fundamental communication skill, into a walking, talking toddler whose universe expands exponentially from month to month. They are born creative. No one at all has to explain learning processes to an infant. You can't stop them, and each one learns differently: how to roll over, or how to sit up, how to explore with their fingers, to stand, to walk, to say a few words and then a few sentences, and then express an infinite number of thoughts, many complex and abstract. Infants begin life learning in the ways we all use when we are learning for our own pleasure. They explore. They imitate. They experience. They build more complex world views from trial and error. It is simple to understand, but terribly difficult to accept, that the individual is best served at every age by allowing that native curiosity and creativity to be undeflected and uninterrupted; that the best schooling may be the schooling that least impedes the mind's free exploration of the environment."
Summerhill School
It's too bad we don't have places like this in the U.S. This place seems pretty amazing with the way that kids are respected and treated as equals and have such freedom! I'm reading a book right now (Deschooling Our Lives) and read a little about this school and thought I'd do more research about it on-line.
Just wanted to share for anyone who's interested.
http://www.summerhillschool.co.uk/
*********************************************************************************
Well I guess I should have kept reading my book because I found out that there ARE schools like that in the U.S.! How inspiring and refreshing!
The Albany Freeschool
Sudbury Valley School in Massachusetts
Just wanted to share for anyone who's interested.
http://www.summerhillschool.co.uk/
*********************************************************************************
Well I guess I should have kept reading my book because I found out that there ARE schools like that in the U.S.! How inspiring and refreshing!
The Albany Freeschool
Sudbury Valley School in Massachusetts
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Another Great Read
I was reading this article on-line today from Psychology Today titled, Seven Sins of Our System of Forced Education. This really stood out to me (and of course I liked it because he mentioned unschooling LOL)
Thought it was worth posting on the blog. You can read the entire article here.
7. Reduction in diversity of skills, knowledge, and ways of thinking.
By forcing all schoolchildren through the same standard curriculum, we reduce their opportunities to follow alternative pathways. The school curriculum represents a tiny subset of the skills and knowledge that are important to our society. In this day and age, nobody can learn more than a sliver of all there is to know. Why force everyone to learn the same sliver? When children are free--as I have observed at the Sudbury Valley School and others have observed with unschoolers--they take new, diverse, and unpredicted paths. They develop passionate interests, work diligently to become experts in the realms that fascinate them, and then find ways of making a living by pursuing their interests. Students forced through the standard curriculum have much less time to pursue their own interests, and many learn well the lesson that their own interests don't really count; what counts is what's measured on the schools' tests. Some get over that, but too many do not.
Thought it was worth posting on the blog. You can read the entire article here.
7. Reduction in diversity of skills, knowledge, and ways of thinking.
By forcing all schoolchildren through the same standard curriculum, we reduce their opportunities to follow alternative pathways. The school curriculum represents a tiny subset of the skills and knowledge that are important to our society. In this day and age, nobody can learn more than a sliver of all there is to know. Why force everyone to learn the same sliver? When children are free--as I have observed at the Sudbury Valley School and others have observed with unschoolers--they take new, diverse, and unpredicted paths. They develop passionate interests, work diligently to become experts in the realms that fascinate them, and then find ways of making a living by pursuing their interests. Students forced through the standard curriculum have much less time to pursue their own interests, and many learn well the lesson that their own interests don't really count; what counts is what's measured on the schools' tests. Some get over that, but too many do not.
Fall Garden
Well the brutal South Texas sun baked my Spring garden about the middle of July and I had to pull up all of my dying plants. I guess not being able to grow for only two months out of the year isn't too bad. It could be worse I suppose.
So it's now time to re-plant and start my Fall garden. I am so excited and can't wait to start harvesting again. Nothing quite as awesome as sitting at the table and eating fresh veggies that you grew! No pesticides or fertilizers and all natural.
I planted my first round of seeds last weekend and everything is starting to sprout. I went outside this morning and saw tiny little signs of life in each square I planted in. This season I am growing tomatoes, carrots, broccoli, romaine lettuce, sweet lettuce mix, peas, green beans, squash and spinach. I've decided to space out my planting this time so that everything isn't ready to harvest all at once.
With the help of my brother-in-law, Kenny, I built a huge trellis for my green beans. Thank you Kenny!! He is my garden-growing side kick. LOL Can't wait to have my new trellis full of green beans! I think I will have an over-abundance of them since I planted 8 seeds but I have been reading up on freezing vegetables.
Anyway, here's a few pictures I took of my garden. I will be building another 4x4 or 4x8 box before next Spring. When I built these two boxes last Spring I told Brendon that "this is only the beginning honey!"
Before planting, with freshly composted soil.
Green bean trellis
Picture I took this morning of one of my little green bean plants. I think I just might have squealed a little when I saw that they had sprouted. LOL :)
So it's now time to re-plant and start my Fall garden. I am so excited and can't wait to start harvesting again. Nothing quite as awesome as sitting at the table and eating fresh veggies that you grew! No pesticides or fertilizers and all natural.
I planted my first round of seeds last weekend and everything is starting to sprout. I went outside this morning and saw tiny little signs of life in each square I planted in. This season I am growing tomatoes, carrots, broccoli, romaine lettuce, sweet lettuce mix, peas, green beans, squash and spinach. I've decided to space out my planting this time so that everything isn't ready to harvest all at once.
With the help of my brother-in-law, Kenny, I built a huge trellis for my green beans. Thank you Kenny!! He is my garden-growing side kick. LOL Can't wait to have my new trellis full of green beans! I think I will have an over-abundance of them since I planted 8 seeds but I have been reading up on freezing vegetables.
Anyway, here's a few pictures I took of my garden. I will be building another 4x4 or 4x8 box before next Spring. When I built these two boxes last Spring I told Brendon that "this is only the beginning honey!"
Before planting, with freshly composted soil.
Green bean trellis
Picture I took this morning of one of my little green bean plants. I think I just might have squealed a little when I saw that they had sprouted. LOL :)
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
A Person for Everything
Everyone has those people in their life who they can talk to about certain things. I feel so lucky because I have many who support me in all different areas.
Well my someone who I can talk openly to about attachment parenting, green living and unschooling is my dear friend, Tara. She totally "gets me". She is just amazing and is the epitome of what I should have been as a parent from the get-go. If only I had known better.... If only I had known the things that I know now.... things would have been so different when Brenna was a baby and a toddler. I'm just now figuring out the things that she says, "Yes, of course!" to and she has a daughter who is only one year old. How lucky. :)
She sends me so much great stuff via email and I love every bit of it. Articles, blog posts, tips for green living (which I am slowly incorporating in my life and loving it!!).... I look forward to all of it. Here's a great article she sent me a couple weeks ago that I thought was worth posting
http://zenhabits.net/2009/08/education-needs-to-be-turned-on-its-head/
It does a great job explaining how and why children learn so much more when they are not forced and how much benefit they get from that. Really makes you think a little about how schooling completely crushes a child's desire to learn.
Anyway, thanks Tara for being that person I need in my life right now.
Well my someone who I can talk openly to about attachment parenting, green living and unschooling is my dear friend, Tara. She totally "gets me". She is just amazing and is the epitome of what I should have been as a parent from the get-go. If only I had known better.... If only I had known the things that I know now.... things would have been so different when Brenna was a baby and a toddler. I'm just now figuring out the things that she says, "Yes, of course!" to and she has a daughter who is only one year old. How lucky. :)
She sends me so much great stuff via email and I love every bit of it. Articles, blog posts, tips for green living (which I am slowly incorporating in my life and loving it!!).... I look forward to all of it. Here's a great article she sent me a couple weeks ago that I thought was worth posting
http://zenhabits.net/2009/08/education-needs-to-be-turned-on-its-head/
It does a great job explaining how and why children learn so much more when they are not forced and how much benefit they get from that. Really makes you think a little about how schooling completely crushes a child's desire to learn.
Anyway, thanks Tara for being that person I need in my life right now.
Thursday, September 03, 2009
Things You Find in a Homeschooling/Unschooling House
Tables always full of books!
Bird nests and cool leaves hanging in baggies in various places
Table of Elements hanging in a 7 year old's bedroom (cuz she thinks it's cool!)
Gallon Girl!
A shelf full of more books and various art supplies
Messy room means creative play, which means learning
Map to keep track of and learn about where our fruit and veggies come from
And yet more books......
Bird nests and cool leaves hanging in baggies in various places
Table of Elements hanging in a 7 year old's bedroom (cuz she thinks it's cool!)
Gallon Girl!
A shelf full of more books and various art supplies
Messy room means creative play, which means learning
Map to keep track of and learn about where our fruit and veggies come from
And yet more books......
Wednesday, September 02, 2009
Recess (LOL!)
It poured down rain yesterday and Brenna had a blast playing in it. She was appalled when she found out that kids at school don't get to just jump up from their desks and run outside when it rains. LOL
(Pictures are kinda dark cuz my flash wasn't doing a very good job outside - should have just turned it off...... You can click on them to make them bigger.)
(Pictures are kinda dark cuz my flash wasn't doing a very good job outside - should have just turned it off...... You can click on them to make them bigger.)
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
No wonder....
It's no wonder why some people think homeschooled kids are not normal and neither are their parents. With all the negative news media portraying homeschooled families, I'd think they were all a little weird too if I didn't have first-hand experience with it.
Last week I read the article in the paper about the man who kidnapped that 11 year old girl in California (she was recently found after 17 years) and at one point he claimed to someone that he was homeschooling his kids. The article went on to explain how odd the children seemed, wearing long dresses and not hardly speaking at all and looking like little robots.
Last night I watched one of my recorded episodes of 20/20 and one segment was on parents who are way too involved in their kids lives. The mom they had on as their main interview person was one of those 'helicopter moms' and called her kids in college like 30 times a day, read their emails, sent them schedules she had created and drove 2 hours every month to do their laundry, grocery shop and clean their dorms. Guess what? Of course, she homeschooled her kids and they made sure to point that out right away.
Even on the reality show "Wife Swap" they've had a couple families who homeschooled. Were they seen as normal at all? Of course not. They were portrayed as these crazy, hippie people who seemed like they were missing a few parts of their brain.
This stuff is what most people see as homeschooling. For someone who knows nothing about it, they watch these shows and then assume that all homeschooled kids and families are a little out-there. It's frustrating to watch.
With as much as homeschooling is growing I just wish that I would turn on the television one day and see a great news segment on how wonderful and NORMAL homeschooling is. I'm tired of all the negative association with it.
Last week I read the article in the paper about the man who kidnapped that 11 year old girl in California (she was recently found after 17 years) and at one point he claimed to someone that he was homeschooling his kids. The article went on to explain how odd the children seemed, wearing long dresses and not hardly speaking at all and looking like little robots.
Last night I watched one of my recorded episodes of 20/20 and one segment was on parents who are way too involved in their kids lives. The mom they had on as their main interview person was one of those 'helicopter moms' and called her kids in college like 30 times a day, read their emails, sent them schedules she had created and drove 2 hours every month to do their laundry, grocery shop and clean their dorms. Guess what? Of course, she homeschooled her kids and they made sure to point that out right away.
Even on the reality show "Wife Swap" they've had a couple families who homeschooled. Were they seen as normal at all? Of course not. They were portrayed as these crazy, hippie people who seemed like they were missing a few parts of their brain.
This stuff is what most people see as homeschooling. For someone who knows nothing about it, they watch these shows and then assume that all homeschooled kids and families are a little out-there. It's frustrating to watch.
With as much as homeschooling is growing I just wish that I would turn on the television one day and see a great news segment on how wonderful and NORMAL homeschooling is. I'm tired of all the negative association with it.
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