tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-123164142024-03-28T22:29:39.624-05:00Learning in Freedom"...the only problem about dancing on the head of a pin is all those big gaps between the electrons..."Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.comBlogger104125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-89354255364614449912012-02-19T17:07:00.005-06:002012-02-19T23:13:05.998-06:00Like mother, like child<p>I woke up and started the coffee, like I do every morning. While I was waiting for the coffee, I decided to find a snack. I reached into the fridge to retrieve a jar of That Green Sauce. My next move was to grab a bag of chips – not just any chips – SCOOPS.<br /></p> <p>Scoops are my favorite tortilla chips because they serve as mini edible bowls for my other favorite food -- green sauce. My tummy was rejoicing but then I heard a little voice ask, “Is this the smart thing to do? Isn't there a healthier choice?”<br /></p> <p>When that little voice nags at me, I usually answer it with, “Who cares!?” This time, however, I thought about how I haven’t been able to button my jeans, even though I have been working out. When I mention my exercise program, people look at my waist and ask me, “YOU …do P90X?” “Yes,” I confess, “once every week or two.” </p> <p>Thinking about how I haven’t been able to button my jeans, even though I work out regularly, I reluctantly put the jar back into the fridge. I was shocked at myself for minding by better judgment. My tummy was sad, but I made myself a bowl of Old Fashioned Oats flavored with peanut butter, local honey, pecans, and cinnamon. I ate it, and I felt really good about myself for making a better choice and not just “all of the above.”</p> <p>About that time, my ten year old walked into the kitchen. He opened the refrigerator and grabbed the jar of That Green Sauce. I wondered if he had an inner voice. As he grabbed the bag of Scoops and began to fill one with green sauce, I decided to intervene. “I was about to eat That Green Sauce for breakfast, but I figured it wasn’t the healthiest choice. I had a bowl of oatmeal, instead."<br /></p> <p>He ignored my voice and kept filling up chips with green sauce.</p> <p>"I figured that chips wouldn't help me level up. So I made myself a healthy bowl of oatmeal."</p> <p>Nothing.</p> <p>"A healthy breakfast should act as a shield of protection around my health. I’m getting health points.”</p> <p>“Do you mean stamina?” <br /></p> <p>“Yes.”</p> <p>“OK. Make me a bowl.”</p> <p>Even though he had chosen “all of the above” I was glad that he had an inner voice. It’s my voice, for now, and it’s on the outside of him, but I’m hoping that one day he will replay it in his mind when making a decision.</p>I hope that the words I use around my children, the words that will become a part of their internal dialogue, are positive and encouraging rather than the types of words that would replay in their minds and torment them long after I am gone.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-q7_iGzMe5C8/T0HTSs-0hWI/AAAAAAAAApY/CtLXgZ3AQQs/s1600/greensauce.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 293px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-q7_iGzMe5C8/T0HTSs-0hWI/AAAAAAAAApY/CtLXgZ3AQQs/s400/greensauce.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711078120748254562" border="0" /></a><br /><p>I find it interesting that he and I have the same food cravings. We love spicy foods! Did I tell you that he will eat Blazin' wings at Buffalo Wild Wings?</p><p>Do you think that we develop these food preferences before we are born? <a href="http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200011/taste-mother-child">Taste: Like Mother Like Child</a> - "Infants learn what foods are safe by flavor cues in the amniotic fluid and mother's milk..." (I found that link when looking up whether or not I should use a comma up there in my title.)</p>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-22241964139828167702012-02-14T09:43:00.000-06:002012-02-19T10:16:24.957-06:00"What if God is The Big Bang?"Happy Valentine's Day!<br /><br /><a href="http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap090214.html">The Heart Nebula</a>:<br /><img style="width: 707px; height: 585px;" src="http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/0902/IC1805_Daniel_rc800.jpg" alt="" /><br /><br />Speaking of love, my ten year old, Christian, has developed a fascination with Astronomy. He recently completed all the episodes of "<a href="http://movies.netflix.com/WiMovie/How_the_Universe_Works/70211549?trkid=2361637">How the Universe Works</a>" on Netflix. He asked so many questions during each episode, usually answered by the host as his question was being voiced, that I had to pause the show to let him verbally brainstorm. You know that a kid is passionate about a topic when they interrupt (isn’t that an insulting word to use in this context?) with questions and thoughts. "Interruption" is a good sign!<br /><br />After we had finished viewing the available programs, he was hungry for more. We looked through other shows and documentaries on the topic of Astronomy. While browsing, his interests almost departed distant galaxies to return to earth to spend time with dinosaurs, but he settled on an episode of <a href="http://movies.netflix.com/WiMovie/Where_Did_We_Come_From_Nova_scienceNOW/70170758?trkid=2361637">NOVA’s "Where Did We Come From"</a> hosted by Neil deGrasse Tyson. (I love Neil deGrasse Tyson. He said something in an interview that has really stuck with me, something which had the impact of "<a href="http://www.victoriaadvocate.com/weblogs/learning-in-freedom/2009/nov/23/creationism-vs-evolution-rant/">roach explaining the internet</a>.")<br /><br />It just so happened that after we watched the first episode, Neil deGrasse Tyson and Bill Nye were at the White House taking questions about science. I asked Christian what he would want to ask Neil deGrasse Tyson, and he said, “What if God is The Big Bang?”<br /><br />I am sorry to admit that I was scared. I still am.<br /><br />I’m scared that some adults would see that question and respond from a place of “Uh oh, this child believes in a creator” or “Uh oh, this child believes in the Big Bang.” I don’t trust adults who have a spit back answer to every question that is asked or adults who believe they have it all figured out. We don’t. I’m scared that some adults don’t have the bravery or honesty to admit with genuineness, “I am not sure, but those are interesting thoughts.” I think it’s important for a child to have a sense of wonder. I don't want him to wait until the program or lecture is over to ask questions. I don't want his curiosity to be discouraged.<br /><br />We went from learning about <a href="http://www.victoriaadvocate.com/weblogs/learning-in-freedom/2012/jan/12/fibonacci-numbers-triskaidekaphobia-and-the-mayan-/">Fibonacci numbers</a> and The Golden Ratio to watching shows about pulsars, quasars, black holes, galaxies, planets, moons, dark matter, white dwarfs, red giants… You can imagine my excitement (because of the visual connection) when I stumbled onto this image:<br /><br /><img src="http://mathematicianspictures.com/images_275/275_FI_CREDITS_75PCMATHPICS.jpg" alt="" /><br /><br />Christian’s favorite painting has always been Vincent van Gogh’s Starry Night. One of NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day featured an altered image of Starry Night, <a href="http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100615.html">A Starry Night Scavenger Hunt </a>:<br /><br /><img style="width: 738px; height: 588px;" src="http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1006/starrynight2010_warner.jpg" alt="" /><br /><br />He has asked for a telescope for Christmas or for his birthday. I hope that his new found love isn't like a Hollywood romance and I hope that he stays curious!Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-16521961380156115132012-02-02T15:15:00.004-06:002012-02-19T09:52:28.975-06:00"The Tebow Bill" and Local Homeschool SportsTim Tebow, quarterback for the Denver Broncos, was homeschooled while he was the star of his local public school football team. In Florida, where he played high school football, home-educated students are allowed to participate in public school activities. Some states even allow home-educated students to pick and choose courses from their local public schools.<br /><br />Though homeschooling is legal in all fifty states, only a dozen states allow homeschooled students to participate in public school activities. There is a bill named after Tim Tebow which would allow home-educated students in Virginia to participate in public school sports. Read more about “<a href="http://www.chron.com/sports/article/Tebow-bill-clears-hurdle-in-Va-House-committee-2912653.php#src=fb">The Tebow Bill</a>.”<br /><br />In Texas, there are no laws addressing equal access. It would be the choice of an individual district whether or not a home-educated child would be allowed to participate. <br /><br />The local homeschool community has a competitive homeschool sports program. <a href="http://victoriacobraathletics.com/">The Victoria Cobras</a> compete against local public and private schools for practice. Though they have a fledgling football program, the Victoria Cobra Athletics recently hosted The 13th Annual VCA Homeschool Basketball Tournament. Several homeschool teams from around the state came to Victoria, Texas, to compete over several days. Watch the news report: <br /> <object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" height="390" width="480"><br /> <param name="movie" value="http://imgsrv.intertechmedia.com/image/flash_players/new_07062010/singleshot_video_4x3.swf?xmlURL=http%3A%2F%2Fcrossroadstoday.com%2Fplayer_xml.php%3FstationId%3D2659%26collectionId%3D919%26stnPageId%3D12058051&styleXML=http://crossroadstoday.com/pages/vict_PlayWindowPlayer_919.xml&episodeXML=http%3A%2F%2Fcrossroadstoday.com%2Fplayer_episode_xml.php%3FvideoEpisodeId%3D36349%26collectionId%3D919%26stnPageId%3D12058051&emailFormURL=http%3A%2F%2Fcrossroadstoday.com%2Femail.php&embed=yes&autoPlay=yes&mute=no&playerUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fcrossroadstoday.com%2Fpages%2F12058051.php%3FcollectionId%3D919"><br /> <param name="quality" value="high"><br /> <param name="menu" value="false"><br /> <param name="autoPlay" value="yes"> <param name="embed" value="yes"> <param name="mute" value="no"> <param name="allowScriptAccess" value="Always"><br /> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><br /> <param name="wmode" value="opaque"> <br /> <embed src="http://imgsrv.intertechmedia.com/image/flash_players/new_07062010/singleshot_video_4x3.swf?xmlURL=http%3A%2F%2Fcrossroadstoday.com%2Fplayer_xml.php%3FstationId%3D2659%26collectionId%3D919%26stnPageId%3D12058051&styleXML=http://crossroadstoday.com/pages/vict_PlayWindowPlayer_919.xml&episodeXML=http%3A%2F%2Fcrossroadstoday.com%2Fplayer_episode_xml.php%3FvideoEpisodeId%3D36349%26collectionId%3D919%26stnPageId%3D12058051&emailFormURL=http%3A%2F%2Fcrossroadstoday.com%2Femail.php&embed=yes&autoPlay=yes&mute=yes&playerUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fcrossroadstoday.com%2Fpages%2F12058051.php%3FcollectionId%3D919" quality="high" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/index.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" menu="false" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" wmode="opaque" height="390" width="480"></embed><br /> <br /> </object><br /> <br /><br />There are also tournaments at the state and national levels for homeschool teams. The Victoria Cobras will travel to Frisco, Texas, for the <a href="http://www.thssbc.com/">Texas HomeSchool State Basketball Championships</a> on February 24-26th, and then to Springfield, Missouri, for the <a href="http://nchclive.com/">21st Annual National Christian HomeSchool Basketball Championships</a> on March 19-24th. <br /><br />I’ll try to post updates from Dallas and Missouri. ;)<br /><br />Some homeschool families feel that since they pay the same amount of taxes, they should have the same amount of access to public schools. Other homeschoolers disagree, and wouldn't want to risk giving up their educational freedom. <br /><br />What do you think about home-educated students participating in public school activities?Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-84024143650261341072012-01-13T10:02:00.005-06:002012-01-13T10:24:27.299-06:00Fibonacci Numbers, Triskaidekaphobia, and the Mayan Calendar<img src="http://web.me.com/paulscott.info/maths-gallery/2/36.sunflower.jpg" alt="" /><br /><br />Yesterday, we watched a lecture from "<a href="http://www.thegreatcourses.com/tgc/courses/course_detail.aspx?cid=1423">The Joy of Thinking: The Beauty and Power of Classical Mathematical Ideas</a>" on Fibonacci numbers. Fibonacci numbers, or nature’s numbers, are numbers that are created by adding together the two previous numbers in the series starting with 1 and 1: The sum of one and one is two, one plus two is three, two plus three is five, three plus five is eight… The Fibonacci sequence is 1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21,34,55,89,144… <br /><br />Anyway, the lecture was really interesting and Professor Edward B. Burger, Ph.D., explained how these numbers were revealed in nature. He demonstrated this by counting the seed-spirals of a sunflower, the tiny floret-spirals in the face of the daisy, and the spirals created by the bumps on the exterior of a pineapple and pine cone. Counting the clockwise spirals and then counting the counter-clockwise spirals gave us different numbers, but all of those numbers were Fibonacci numbers. <br /><br />Vi Hart has a wonderful doodle video, "Doodling in Math: Spirals, Fibonacci, and Being a Plant [1 of 3]" demonstrating this in a much more entertaining and visual way:<br /><br /><iframe width="540" height="380" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ahXIMUkSXX0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br />The next lectures in our The Joy of Thinking course will continue on with Fibonacci numbers, the Golden Triangle and the Golden Ratio, so I probably should have waited until we watched those lectures to share this information with you, but I couldn’t resist. The lecture inspired me to look for these patterns in nature, but I was noticing them this morning as I prepared breakfast in my kitchen. As I cut open an apple, I noticed five seed sections that created a five pointed star, and I counted eight sections in the orange, and three seed-sections in a banana. Hey, we are a family of five! I guess we are a Fibonacci family. (Well, we are a household of four now that one has moved away to college, but I will be taking him ONE box of goodies THIS week-end.) <br /><br />Anyway, the Fibonacci numbers got me thinking of this Friday the thirteenth. I was thinking how silly it would be to suffer from triskaidekaphobia, because not only is the number 13 a beautiful prime and sexy Fibonacci number, but the Mayans believed the number thirteen to be sacred. <br /><br />This Friday 13th has Fibonacci all over it. Friday is the 5th (work) day of the week, the 13th day of the first (numero uno) month in our calendar year, a year whose digits add up to five… January is the first month of the year after our calendar rolled over to begin the new year, much like the Mayan calendar might simply roll over and start anew on December 12, 2012. <a href="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/12/111220-end-of-world-2012-maya-calendar-explained-ancient-science/">End of World in 2012? Maya "Doomsday" Calendar Explained</a><br /><br />Do we fear the world will end each New Year ’s Eve? <br /><br /><img src="http://media-cdn.pinterest.com/upload/7951736811784564_Qm3hdXk2_c.jpg" alt="" />Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-90991696519790096452011-12-19T11:31:00.012-06:002011-12-24T09:30:27.347-06:00Jolly Rancher Vodka (gift idea)Speaking of trying to be more healthy...<br /><br />I am made a few batches of <a href="http://mixthatdrink.com/jolly-ranchers-vodka/">Jolly Rancher Vodka</a> for a few of our lucky friends and family members.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://mixthatdrink.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/finished-e1304399500481.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 557px; height: 303px;" src="http://mixthatdrink.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/finished-e1304399500481.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br />Of course, my batch doesn't look that fancy because I used the small 12 oz. mason jars. I added about 20 Jolly Ranchers to each jar, so we will see if my guessculation was accurate: <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-G0NGF3Qxo4o/TvDYLLxQNxI/AAAAAAAAAnc/RqCq-YUTJnE/s1600/IMAG0733.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 557px; height: 303px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-G0NGF3Qxo4o/TvDYLLxQNxI/AAAAAAAAAnc/RqCq-YUTJnE/s400/IMAG0733.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5688284016018470674" /></a><br /><br />For directions on how to make your own Jolly Rancher Vodka and other fun infusions, visit and browse Mix that Drink's website: <a href="http://mixthatdrink.com/jolly-ranchers-vodka/">Jolly Rancher Vodka Tutorial.</a><br /><br />If our attempts fail and for some reason we are embarrassed to give away our Jolly Rancher Vodka as gifts, I hope to have a girls' night out where we dispose of it all appropriately. =P<br /><br />...I'm sure I am secretly making a few jars for me and hubby. ;) ;) ;)Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-10340882863598284782011-12-19T09:46:00.005-06:002011-12-19T09:54:23.506-06:00Jump Start on New Year's ResolutionI thought that I had decided on a New Year's Resolution. A few family members and I had toyed with the idea of taking "The Vegan Challenge.” The Vegan Challenge is to eat vegan for a whole month. No meat. No eggs. No milk. No cheese. No YUM!<br /><br />A New Year's Resolution that would only last one month? Sounded good.<br /><br />The Vegan Challenge - the new year - would start off with a trip out of town to a store that I have never heard of in search of products and brands that have never resided in my pantry.<br /><br />With a picky family of five, I decided that going vegan, even for one month, would be too much of a challenge for me THIS YEAR.<br /><br />I searched for a NEW New Year’s Resolution. I found a site that shared one famhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifily's challenge to eat non-processed foods for one-hundred days, <a href="http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/">100 Days of Real Food</a>. This site has a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/100daysofrealfood">Facebook page</a> where fans can take the ten day pledge. Ten days? That's less than one month! I figured I could do that before the New Year! It’s never too early to eat healthy, right?http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif<br /><br />The Facebook page featured a yummy looking breakfast/brunch recipe, <a href="http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2010/08/16/recipe-crepes-for-breakfast-or-dessert/">Whole-Wheat Crepes</a>. No special trips for this recipe or challenge. All of the ingredients were familiar.<br /><br />Avoiding processed foods for ten days is still challenging, but much easier than totally going vegan for a whole month. Baby-steps…<br /><br />I announced to my house that we would eat a healthy breakfast. I explained the benefits of avoiding processed foods. I decided to make crepes to prove how delicious healthy can be.<br /><br />There was one moan.<br /><br />I opened my refrigerator to retrieve the milk and eggs to prepare our healthy breakfast when I found a surprise. Hubby had picked up McDonald’s on his way home from working nights.<br /><br />One person was ecstatic.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QK7UOmqj-q8/Tu9dWgiwU3I/AAAAAAAAAnE/rm5qyNnnAOY/s1600/IMAG0719.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 239px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QK7UOmqj-q8/Tu9dWgiwU3I/AAAAAAAAAnE/rm5qyNnnAOY/s400/IMAG0719.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5687867495666439026" /></a><br /><br /><br />The End<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Additional Thoughts: <span style="font-style:italic;">I think it would be very hard to be vegan in America. Most of our food products contain ingredients derived from animals, even foods you wouldn’t suspect. For example, marshmallows are not vegan friendly. You would think that an innocent white-as-snow marshmallow would be safe for everyone, including vegans, but the common popular brands use some type of ingredient derived from PIGs. “The squishy parts” as a Facebook friend explained it. This renders marshmallows not only off limits for vegans, but off limits to people trying to eat kosher or vegetarian!</span><br /><br />I haven't given up on Veganism. I am thinking of adding a Vegan Night, right along with Italian Night or Mexican Night. I will have to plan Vegan Night for the evenings when hubby is working nights.Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-60740820726187840492011-07-03T12:33:00.007-05:002011-07-03T13:35:30.250-05:00Fireworks in Port O'Connor July 2, 2011<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ICKuCxhBpFI/ThCxOnv-XjI/AAAAAAAAAlA/9Jbta4-XeZo/s1600/272665_2208520496142_1341331819_32557287_5137061_o.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 191px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ICKuCxhBpFI/ThCxOnv-XjI/AAAAAAAAAlA/9Jbta4-XeZo/s320/272665_2208520496142_1341331819_32557287_5137061_o.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5625190799332236850" /></a> <br /><br />Yesterday, we went to my grandpa's beach house in Port O'Connor to watch POC's annual Independence Day fireworks display. I took three gallons of Red Diamond sweet tea and two huge watermelons. My Grandma-Ethel had already purchased two gallons of Red Diamond ice tea, so the sweet tea tooth must run in the family! <br /><br />Many interesting conversations took place last night. My grandpa told us the many ways to test a watermelon to determine sweetness. They were all new to me. He even told us that if you pick a watermelon and place the stem in sugar water, the watermelon will absorb the liquid and will taste extra sweet! Since I pick my watermelon from the big box in HEB, I have to use my favorite technique: I play the watermelon like a drum and if it sounds hollow, I will purchase it. <br /><br />Another topic of conversation was reincarnation. I explained to one of my cousins that our most recent pet tragedy prompted me to share the concept of reincarnation with my nine year old. "Reincarnation is the belief that even when a body dies, the spirit continues to live. When a spirit leaves the body, it goes into another body. In fact, if we go to the pet store and buy another hamster, there is a small chance that..." My cousin immediately took the baton and finished my thought, "...the hamster you buy will be the same hamster as the one that died!" <br /><br />;)<br /><br />Anyway, we sat out on the porch talking and eating hotdogs and drinking tea until the sun went down. Then we walked to the beach and found a place to sit so that we could get a better view of the fireworks.<br /><br />After the city's display was over, the people in the beach houses started their own shows! There was screaming and smoke...<br /><br />As we were leaving, we got to see people being arrested. Everyone must have had a good time! <br /><br />Anyway, here is a short clip of the end of the POC fireworks display:<br /><br /><iframe width="325" height="449" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/zI1WQO3zDoA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br><br /><br />I still have two huge watermelons. Where to go?Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-15478585291221680522011-06-12T11:58:00.004-05:002011-06-12T12:51:59.122-05:00Another boring post.Yesterday, the whole family worked on the landscaping around this house. We are thinking that we might just stay here, but we are going to fix this house up the way we like it and not wait until we are putting it on the market. That was the mistake we made with the Tanglewood house. When we put the Tanglewood house up for sale, we finally did all the updates and improvements that we had put off for the ten plus years we had lived there. The things we wouldn't do for ourselves. We tiled the floors, replaced the gold double ovens with stainless steel double ovens, changed out all the kitchen appliances, replaced the gold kitchen counter-tops with tile, and even put texture and fresh paint over the walls that still had paneling. Wait, there's more! We replaced the shop doors, re-textured the entryway, replaced light fixtures, and even - REPAINTED THE OUTSIDE OF THE HOUSE! Let's just say that I didn't want to leave after that. <br /><br />The one thing we DID do for ourselves while we were there was gut and update the master bath. It had the fanciest 12 x 12 tiled shower in town! Unfortunately, it had the fanciest tiled LEAKY shower, and we fixed that before we left too. We also let the kids pick out the paint color for their rooms and we had to paint over that. I don't know who would want a house with crazy room colors. One bedroom had two walls painted red and two walls painted blue and another bedroom had two walls painted purple and two walls painted green. That's what you get when kids pick the color: indecision. My room was painted orange - UT orange - and we painted over that, too. I miss my orange room! When my reading lamp was on I felt I was surrounded by soft candlelight. <br /><br />While hubby and I were doing yard work, we found a doggie septic system in our back yard. Yeah. I didn't know that such a thing existed.Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-3640698619603021052011-06-09T09:44:00.012-05:002011-06-09T10:45:56.045-05:00Catching UpWe are going to look at a house we can't afford today. It has some acreage and my mom would like to put some of her horses on it. That means she might help us buy it. We don't need that much land. <br /><br />The house only has three bedrooms, but Matthan is going off to school next year to major is Psychology/Psychiatry. We could afford to send a kid to Victoria College, but our house hunting turned to downsizing once we understood how much his college would be... Psychiatrist = medical school.<br /><br />Did I mention I need a job? Yeah. Because I have travel plans! Hubby and I are coming up on our twenty year wedding anniversary and we are dragging the whole family with us on a cruise to Jamaica, Cozumel, and ... somewhere else. We are leaving out of Florida.<br /><br />After *planning* a trip for five to England and France, the top of the line cruise seems affordable. (Did I mention that *planning* is my favorite part of vacationing, schooling, cooking...) Planning is dreaming. I love dreaming.<br /><br />I figure if I work part-time and put everything into an account, we can travel more and consider it SCHOOL. I don't want the kids to think that THIS - Victoria, Texas - is it. Recently, my daughter (14) had some jealous-teen drama and I reminded her, "You are about to be on a cruise with rich boys from around the world. Do you really want a boyfriend? Tell the boys that you want to remain single because when you travel, you want to be free..." It's advice I wish I could have been given, but I was stuck in the country in an even smaller town, just trying to get out. <br /><br />We took the kids to The Oak Room for the first time the other evening. My daughter said, "I will never eat at McDonald's again!" The duck was everyone's favorite. I can't wait to go back! <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OX555eOJFr8/TfDjOsVLYWI/AAAAAAAAAk4/DqBy3HQgRsA/s1600/259334_2161592964440_1385053917_32549663_2548897_o.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 239px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OX555eOJFr8/TfDjOsVLYWI/AAAAAAAAAk4/DqBy3HQgRsA/s400/259334_2161592964440_1385053917_32549663_2548897_o.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616238576888668514" /></a><br /><br />Trips for FOUR will be more reasonable. Which is why I want to travel more. I was going to write a whole post on WORLD SCHOOLING the other day, but I got too busy. I'm still working on a recipe for itisi.<br /><br />Land. **BEGIN DREAM** Maybe I can train horses again... Teach horseback riding lessons! Have a FREE SCHOOL in the country that revolves around equine management or training, breeding, and showing horses. **END DREAM**<br /><br />I would like to substitute-teach because I do not want a full-time job. I already have a part-time job: parenting and housewifen' (yeah, it's really only a part time job if you do it right... or wrong, however you want to look at it). As far as homeschooling, the kids are old enough to read the instructions, work the sample, and complete the work on their own. I only have to plan, motivate, and check.<br /><br />Hubby tore his calf muscle playing basketball with the homeschool high school boys. This, after declaring that he "didn't feel old," though he had just turned forty. I guess if I ever want to do P90X again I better not skip the Yoga. Now I understand why Yoga is important... S T R E T C H without breaking.<br /> <br />My friend's husband passed away. I spent the night at her house the first night and I've been spending much time with her. I think she's going to be looking for a house soon, too. She also wants to travel. Hopefully, when our girls graduate high school, we can plan a senior trip - for the girls, not us - to Paris. Our girls are the same age. That's what I want to do when Kelsey graduates high school - big trip. It's what Matthan did when he graduated. <br /><br />I hope she keeps up with her French! I gave up. Information tends to leave my brain, and new information doesn't tend to stay.<br /><br />The kids' passports are on their way! Then we will all have passports! YEAH! I hope it serves as valid ID for PSAT... I had to get a Texas State ID for Matthan when he took his PSAT.Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-22828672293765607262011-05-16T13:31:00.008-05:002011-05-17T09:09:46.419-05:00Good Idea: Gradeless schools!We gripe about what all is wrong with our schools and forget to point out when a community tries to do something right. <br /><br />Here is an article about a school that focuses on a student's ability instead of focusing on age or grade level. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/05/14/education.gradeless/index.html">School Teaches by Ability, not Grade Level</a><br /><br />It makes sense to focus on ability instead of age. We know that children are different and develop at different rates in different academic areas. A child might be ready to move ahead in one area while still needing improvement in another. A gifted math student might be delayed in reading. This type of approach allows a child to soar where he is gifted while receiving remediation where improvement is needed. Students are not passed on to the next grade with "gaps" in their learning. Focusing on ability allows a more "individualized" education - an education tailored to fit each child. <br /><br />There is a local homeschool support group, Tailor Made, which offers support for parents who are trying to give their child a unique or "tailored" education. The founder explained, "You wouldn't buy one-size-fits-all clothing for your child; you would find the clothing that fits him best and alter it when needed." I'm sure she did a better job of explaining it. <br /><br />I think focusing on individual development instead of age or grade level is a good idea! Grade-less schools deserve an A.<br /><br />P.S. When I saw the mention of the boy who wasn't sure what grade he was in, I thought that usually it's the homeschoolers who aren't sure what grade they are in. My fourth or fifth grader gets a deer in the headlights look when he's asked what grade he is in. "You are in third grade in reading and sixth grade in math, so I guess that makes you about fourth or fifth grade." Most of the learning materials that I use in my home are not designed for a specific grade level.Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-68292970461902405482011-05-16T11:17:00.009-05:002011-05-16T12:51:19.765-05:00Our testing culture is like......manipulating symptoms to diagnose a disease and then blaming the doctor for the disease. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XWvF-LWIRTc/TdFj7CEtM7I/AAAAAAAAAkk/YsfRzD5lCRI/s1600/thosewhoteach.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 129px; height: 130px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XWvF-LWIRTc/TdFj7CEtM7I/AAAAAAAAAkk/YsfRzD5lCRI/s400/thosewhoteach.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5607372876873020338" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Here is a rant (meaning I don't expect anyone to read it) that just goes on and on:<br /><br />I think our testing culture is ruining education. Education should be child-centered, especially childhood education, and not test-driven. I think we give our state mandated tests too early, too often, and that we depend on them too much.<br /><br />Is the goal of these yearly tests really to improve education? No, the purpose is to judge teachers and punish schools. Since the tests are not able to improve education, and can actually harm it, think of all the time spent learning test taking skills, why do we support the tests? Do educators create these tests? No, the people who create the tests are making six figures while the teachers who are judged by those tests are not. Testing has become a multi-million dollar industry while our small schools are being closed and teachers are being "contract not renewed." Are public schools just about supporting the testing industry? The politicians who push these tests and the people who make the money from these tests, usually didn't attend public school and do not send their own children to the same schools where these tests are administered. I think the community should protest these tests. <br /><br />I don't know if this is true for Texas, but in some states, tests are given three times a year - a practice for the practice test - and sometimes the tests take six hours to complete. Could the test be measuring a child's attention span? I think in Texas we just have the one mid-year practice TAKS. That's a lot of time spent not learning. Whose education is it? I think students should protest. <br /><br />I understand the need for tests, like the PSAT for scholarships or the SAT or ACT for college admission, or subject SATs for credit, but for tests like the TAKS to actually control and shape our educational system - insane. The test is driving the curriculum and publishing companies. Our dependance on these tests are making the very thing we focus on, obsolete. <br /><br />Tests are not an accurate measure of what a child knows. It's a measure of how well the child takes tests - a measure of test taking skills which can be taught - and a measure of attention span. Is the purpose of schooling to prepare students for tests? Is that the goal of public education? To produce good test takers?<br /><br />There are all kinds of factors that affect a child's performance on a test, knowledge of basic skills is a factor, but not the only one. Sleep, anxiety, culture, and nutrition - attention span - can affect a child's score and then a teacher is judged or a school is judged by those factors? Factors that are out of a teacher's control.<br /><br />Used correctly, tests could help a teacher determine a student's strengths, and could give an educator a hint as to how to tweak teaching methods to help the child. But, these tests are not to help students, they are to compare, track, punish, and pit schools against schools and even countries against countries. <br /><br />I think we give the state mandated test too early. We teach kids more and more earlier and earlier hoping that they will be ready for the test by third grade. The test is driving our scope and sequence. Late readers cause alarm instead of being allowed more time to mature, physiologically, which is not an indicator of intelligence or knowledge. We want the physiological development to speed up for these tests. Not all children develop at the same rate. <br /><br />I'm for a test maybe right before Junior High, maybe before high school, and before college. But testing all year long every year as if the goal of schooling is really testing - is insane! <br /><br />But, I'm sure, as usual, I am the one who is really insane. I don't think that things should be done just because "that's the way it is done." <br /><br />I would provide links and edit this, but I have so much more on my plate today. I think we are leaving for College Station tomorrow and we might watch a baseball game while there...Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-413606964019597722011-05-14T17:47:00.010-05:002011-05-14T19:03:48.049-05:00Let go my EVOIt was wild taking all the drama of the VicAd comment section with me to my nine year old's soccer game this morning. I imagined all the fights happening in the bottom of my purse. Yes, I finally got one of dem der fancy phone-a-ma-jigs. I'm still in the explore-tweak-play phase, so bear with me. I'm finding it hard to type in complete sentences or to keep a thought in my head for very long. Also, the keyboard on this laptop seems gigantic now that I have grown accustomed to typing on the display screen of my phone. <br /><br />My husband and I both upgraded to the HTC EVO from phones that were so old we were laughed at by everyone in the store. How old were they? My phone had an antenna. (My daughter upgraded to a Samsung Triumph.) <br /><br />I love the EVO because it is similar to my iPod Touch, which I liked, and which made me doubt that I would like any phone but the iPhone. I have to admit that I love my EVO! The apps that enjoyed on my iPod, I now have on my EVO.<br /><br />The negatives are that it's not holding a charge as long as my old phone. I can't stick my new phone on my iPod dock. (I love listening to Pandora Radio through those speakers.) The EVO won't replace the iPod in that regards. Also, the EVO is pretty big and won't fit into my phone holder that I strap on my arm when I go walking. Ok, I only go walking three times a month... I secretly want an iPad, but it ain't going to happen on my salary. =P<br /><br />I can't find anyone to Skype with and no one to stalk on Latitude, because everyone here is now addicted to Angry Birds. My husband and my nine year old have been playing day and night (one night and one day) since we bought the phones. I even downloaded Google Chrome so we could install Angry Birds on my laptop. That kept the nine year old off of my EVO.<br /><br />Here are two pictures that I took with my laptop of me with my phone taking a picture of me:<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bYyQOGmSm0M/Tc8IZ6jO7DI/AAAAAAAAAkU/ba5ls6Ri0qo/s1600/newphone2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bYyQOGmSm0M/Tc8IZ6jO7DI/AAAAAAAAAkU/ba5ls6Ri0qo/s400/newphone2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606709302406343730" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0GqvFfq49HE/Tc8JX-KYZSI/AAAAAAAAAkc/s-FTrMm4ddM/s1600/newphone3.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0GqvFfq49HE/Tc8JX-KYZSI/AAAAAAAAAkc/s-FTrMm4ddM/s400/newphone3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606710368527738146" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bYyQOGmSm0M/Tc8IZ6jO7DI/AAAAAAAAAkU/ba5ls6Ri0qo/s1600/newphone2.jpg"><br /></a><br /><br />That sounded really narcissistic... <br /><br /><br /><br />Now I have to follow hubby to Port Lavaca so that he can pick up the van that he will drive to fire school. I'll use my EVO like a Garmin on the drive there and back - just because I can.Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-51837128652220857702011-05-05T16:16:00.014-05:002011-05-05T17:42:34.761-05:00Thoughts on BorgLord's PostWell, I should say, my COMMENT that was too long to actually submit on BorgLord's Blog, <a href="http://www.victoriaadvocate.com/weblogs/resistance-is-not-futile/2011/apr/28/how-do-i-know/">How Do I Know?</a>. It was really in response to the comment thread and not to BorgLord's Post. I don't care if he is an atheist. I do care that "fighters" see everything as an opportunity to engage in what they love: THE FIGHT. <br /><br />Do nonbelievers come to believe when fighters fight and argue? I think it's counter productive. Knowing that fighting to convince someone of your point of view, even if you just KNOW that God would agree with you, only turns them off from what you are trying to get them to believe, means that your only goal in arguing is to FIGHT. Sometimes I want to fight. =P But, to do it as a representative of God, makes me against God. Right? Wanna fight? <br /><br />I did post two or three sentences from the last paragraph on the comment section.<br /><br />"Faith is the evidence of things NOT seen. Science is man trying to understand the physical or the things seen, or observed. I think it's wrong to use the Bible as a science text or to tweak scientific observations based on its literal translation. <br /><br />Those who argue that the bible is the word of God have to admit that it was physically penned by men who had limited scientific knowledge. The message to them was not one of science. Even if that message was of science, they would not have understood. They would have a roach-like understanding.<br /><br />I love the synagogue-explanation of trying to explain creation/evolution: "It would be like trying to explain the internet to a roach." Humans have such limited knowledge before the Creator. Imagine the roach trying to explain how the internet works to other roaches. There wouldn't be comprehension so an accurate picture wouldn't be shared.<br /><br />An example: in the bible it says that the earth stands still and it can not be moved. For years that made good scientists, ones that admitted to belief in a heliocentric solar system, "heretics." That type of literal translation stunts us.<br /><br />Recently, a lady stood up during a lecture by Bill Nye and shouted, "We believe in God!" because he said that the moon (the lesser of the two lights) was not actually a light source, but a reflectant.<br /><br />I think that if you want science (physical) to line up with or prove your faith (things not seen) it's a sign that you have no faith, unless you think that the message of the bible was one of science. I don't let "the inspired word," as shared by humans thousands of years ago, dictate my understanding of modern day science."Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-21378952457683579722011-05-04T10:10:00.016-05:002011-05-04T21:58:58.726-05:00Innovative or Orwellian?I don't know if the phrase, interest driven learning or individualized learning, had been coined, or if it was a popular subject of discussion in the late eighties, but Isaac Asimov was describing the concept in this 1988 interview with Bill Moyers: <br /><br /><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/CJAIERgWhZQ" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" width="425"></iframe><br /><br><br /><br><br />That's not the amazing thing about the interview. Computers weren't in every home at the time, yet Asimov envisioned how this technology could revolutionize learning. <br /><br />Has his vision been realized with the availability of the internet and with the many sites created for autodidacts or independent learners? Sites like <a href="http://www.hippocampus.org/">HippoCampus</a>, <a href="http://www.khanacademy.org/">Khan Academy</a>, <a href="http://www.apple.com/education/itunes-u/">iTunes U</a>, <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/">BBC Languages</a>, just to name a few. Independent and *pure* interest driven learning is possible. <br /><br />Today, if we want to know about anything, we just search it on the internet, like Asimov described. We don't even have to buy the book, the floppy disk or the cd-rom at the store. Whole courses are available online - most are free. Maybe Sci-fi writers ARE able to see into the future. <br /><br />Some feared that computers would "dehumanize" learning, and Asimov answered that. I think this technology would become cold and impersonal *only* if it were forced, uniform, controlled and the knowledge gained from it, tested with a one size fits all test. That would make the innovative seem Orwellian. <br /><br />I think, as a society, we've outgrown the one size fits all type of education that was once so convenient. Technology has allowed for higher quality conveniences. We have the opportunity to make learning a unique experience for each person, based on their "bent." The interviewer asked, "What if I only want to learn about baseball?" Asimov answered, "That's alright...The more you learn about baseball the more you might grow interested in mathematics to figure out what they mean by those earned run averages, the batting averages, and so on... you might, at the end, become more interested in math than baseball, if you are following your own bent..." He sounds a little like John Holt and the many unschoolers I've encountered over the years. ;)<br /><br />Do you think his vision of learning via computer (the way he described it) was innovative or Orwellian? I think the distinguishing factor is Freedom. <br /><br />I also think that, contrary to what Asimov said, it could replace school for the independent and motivated learner.Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-48544642804575164462011-05-03T16:54:00.005-05:002011-05-03T22:53:26.725-05:00Tuesday (Homeschool Drama Party)<p class="MsoNormal">Today was the end of the year homeschool drama party at the park.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Tots to teens played basketball, volleyball, tennis, or soccer for several hours.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Lots of playing.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">My nine year old played so hard, that one of his tennis shoes ripped almost in two.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>When he showed us his broken shoe and told us that he needed a new pair, I said, “ I’ve seen several homeschooled kids running around with duct tape on their shoes.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It’s almost a fad.”<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>My daughter agreed and began to name a few of the homeschooled high schoolers who were guilty of sporting the fashion.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">As soon as we got home, my son found some duct-tape and was about to tape up his shoes when I reminded him that we had leopard print duct-tape somewhere.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>He couldn’t find it so I had to add it to my grocery list.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">One of the homeschool moms had brought eggs from her farm to the park and I was lucky enough to scratch off one of the items on my grocery list.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Off to the store for fancy duct tape and the rest of my groceries (minus the eggs) and then to soccer practice...<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">*I ended up buying the camouflage duct tape.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4s9wO3jHbjo/TcDL7gGAP1I/AAAAAAAAAkA/tnAiA4kQ3Qs/s1600/drama.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 167px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4s9wO3jHbjo/TcDL7gGAP1I/AAAAAAAAAkA/tnAiA4kQ3Qs/s400/drama.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602702159536734034" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;">Kelsey in "Mission Possible"</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-39420151027995232732011-05-02T15:29:00.004-05:002011-05-02T15:53:14.347-05:00Monday MondayToday, I opened all of the windows to bring the outside in. I thought that since the windows were open, it was a good time to clean around the frames. No telling how many insect carcasses now reside in the bottom of the vacuum cleaner bag.<br /><br />I love it when all of the windows are open because I can hear the birds and the wind chimes. It’s windy enough that I can also hear the trees. The only problem is my nineteen year old playing Call of Duty Black Ops. I mostly hear machine-gun fire and the occasional dove. <br /><br />I should be making the kids finish up school, but my spring cleaning was contagious. My daughter removed the screen of her bedroom window and is cleaning the glass with Windex. My nine year old built a car for his hamster out of a paper-towel tube and Tinker Toys. His hamster loves to go inside of the tube just as much and as quickly as she likes to exit. He is upset that she won’t poke her head out and stand still so that it looks like she is driving the little makeshift car. He even sang, "Doo da dippity."<br /><br />Osama. After the news of his death, one of my Facebook friends posted, “is wondering what sort of childhood Osama bin Laden must have had to turn into the man he was.”<br /><br />That's food for thought.Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-18133583374281377102011-04-25T08:29:00.003-05:002011-04-25T08:55:13.466-05:00Easter EggsOur inspiration:<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ybABDGfPkH8/TaM0-FOVaLI/AAAAAAAACNY/P24nBBugeGw/s320/egg1.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 306px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ybABDGfPkH8/TaM0-FOVaLI/AAAAAAAACNY/P24nBBugeGw/s320/egg1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Our interpretation:<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xUd8LnBrHPs/TbV35a9-5gI/AAAAAAAAAj4/Piu86rhKfIw/s1600/eggs.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 290px; height: 207px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xUd8LnBrHPs/TbV35a9-5gI/AAAAAAAAAj4/Piu86rhKfIw/s200/eggs.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599513540080625154" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Notice the blue egg at the very top of the image? Christian decorated one of his with a battle ax. I thought that was cute. These aren't Faberge eggs, but we had fun Easter morning with crayons and food coloring. We are planning on making deviled eggs and tuna salad with our "art." Christian suggested that we decorate all the eggs that we buy from now on.Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-28812210145018177492011-04-23T11:36:00.000-05:002011-04-23T11:37:52.521-05:00Crumbs for Breakfast?This morning, my nine year old and I woke up shortly after 6:00am. Though he's usually the first one up, he’s not accustomed to waking up that early. He walked to the kitchen windows, looked outside, and shouted, “Wow! I’ve never seen it look like this before!” I told him that he should go sit outside on the porch and listen to the birds. I think all the doves in town congregate in the oak trees around this house. (I’ve shared the tragic dove story with you all.)<br /><br />I have a little rule in my house: the early bird gets to choose what we will have for breakfast. This morning I asked my son what he wanted, and reminded him that we had sausage, eggs, and tortillas, for his favorite morning meal, taquitos. At one time, his favorite morning meal was Deviled Eggs. After the Deviled Eggs phase, he played chef and made us all breakfast. He prepared what I can only describe as migas*, but instead of using crumbled tortillas, he made his migas with Fritos. I thought it was crazy, but then one day while looking through the Come to the Table cookbook, I found a recipe called Frito Eggs on page 285. No way!<br /><br />This morning, my rara avis was in the mood for noodles, “spicy noodles.” Maruchan Instant Lunch was the breakfast of champions this a.m. I’m ok with it, because an equally fast and healthy meal that he will eat is made with a rotisserie chicken from H.E.B., a bag of flatbread, and a Caesar Salad kit. We call this Caesar Chicken Wraps and we load the bread with the chicken and the yummy green salad. It's usually difficult to roll or fold.<br /><br />I tell my children that if they don’t add some color to their meal, their body will make bricks. =D<br /><br />*Today I learned that the Spanish word, migas, means "crumbs."Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-81353686689154247022011-04-22T11:15:00.003-05:002011-04-22T11:21:06.191-05:00Dream:My items were being scanned at the checkout of H.E.B. Plus as I woke up. This was another dream that created a storyline around the sound that pulled me out of sleep. Before I had placed my items on the conveyer belt, I was walking around the store wearing a hat that was three feet tall. I wanted to laugh out loud as I imagined what the other customers were thinking as they looked at me. I tried to keep a straight face. A man sporting a head of disheveled hair gave me an inquisitive look, and I told him, “You have strange hair.” I was projecting in my dream. =D<br /><br />Before I had selected the tall hat, I had tried on others. I was looking at my reflection in the glass doors of the frozen food section. I remember thinking that the hats were similar to something Lady Gaga would wear.<br /><br />Before the hats, I was sitting at a table in a restaurant when my Aunt Lucy came up to me and said, “Grandma’s kidneys are failing.” She put her head on mine and I could tell that she was very tired. I asked Lucy if she could help me with Kelsey’s prom dress, which I remember thinking was selfish even in my dream.<br /><br />I can’t remember much before that.<br /><br />***<br /><br />Looked at some houses yesterday. The kids fell in love with one on Riata, but I think it's too small. Where will we put MY books and HIS tools? I sure do miss our old Tanglewood home! He had a 20x20 workshop...Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-2772770160840022352011-04-15T11:07:00.004-05:002011-04-15T12:14:28.109-05:00Yard HuntingWe are getting ready to go house hunting. We have been in this house for almost two years. It's not that we are unhappy with our home or this neighborhood, in fact, I doubt that I will ever find a house I like as much as I like this house. I picked this house for me, big kitchen and a heaven of a back porch. <br /><br />Did I mention that my heaven of a back porch was pretty much our back yard? My lovely home is basically an over sized patio home. Perfect for my favorite activity: lounging around reading books, but not conducive to my family's active life-style. <br /><br />As soon as we moved, our needs changed. First of all, my daughter developed an interest in basketball. She went from being anti-sports to a sportaholic almost overnight. This house has a sloped drive-way which left us no choice but to set up her basketball goal on the curb, which means that she plays basketball in the street every day. That's fine, because this street has hardly any traffic, but I would rather have a flat driveway for her 24/7 hoop shootin'. <br /><br />Also, my youngest put on some weight around his mid-section and has become an avid gamer. This alarms me because I've never seen any of my children this sedentary.<br /><br />Active families should be on the other side of John Stockbauer OR they should have an over-sized backyard.Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-88958553816087474232011-04-01T10:57:00.006-05:002011-04-01T11:28:38.525-05:00More on Dreams<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_9Za_IA3hoVs/Sp6k-_iW7XI/AAAAAAAAAOg/TnrfxyZJcuw/s400/sleep+paralysis.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 261px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_9Za_IA3hoVs/Sp6k-_iW7XI/AAAAAAAAAOg/TnrfxyZJcuw/s400/sleep+paralysis.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br /><br />“Jaime had never realised that trees made a sound when they grew, and no-one else had realised it either, because the sound is made over hundreds of years in waves of twenty-four hours from peak to peak. Speed it up, and the sound a tree makes is <span style="font-style:italic;">vrooom</span>.” Good Omens<br /><br />I hate it when, in my dream, I am lying down or viewing the dream-world from my bed. Maybe it is another symptom of sleep paralysis, only instead of being totally conscious while unable to move my body, my unconscious mind is restricted by the placement of my physical body. How is that for a role reversal? <br /><br />That happened to me last night; I dreamed that I was lying in bed staring at the ceiling. A vine poked through the ceiling and began to grow straight down to the floor as if the sun was below me and the sky was the earth. I was amazed in my dream that I could witness the growth of the vine. I thought that maybe this is what happens when I am sleeping – I go into slow motion as time around me goes into fast forward mode. <br /><br />I saw that another vine was growing up from a pot sitting on the floor. The two vines stopped midway and began to spin around as if blindly feeling for the other. Finally, they connected and began to tangle and grow towards the right side of the room. The vine that had come from the ceiling suffocated the vine that grew up from the floor and this was very disturbing to me. The vine I had watched in amazement caused me to forget about the vine that I was to nurture. It was my fault and I felt guilt and remorse. <br /> <br />I’ve wondered if dreams are symbolic or if they are so literal that we are forced to give them too much meaning. I remember a dream I had as a little girl after a bout with a stomach virus. I was dreaming that my step-dad was chasing butterflies with a butterfly net. I emerged from that dream to my mother saying, “Tony (my step-dad) caught your bug.” That always fascinated me. Why, in a dream state, would my mind interpret the dreaded “pukes” as a beautiful butterfly? Literally, my step-dad had caught my “bug” which was symbolized as a butterfly? <br /><br />I did go outside this morning to check on the landscaping. I often pull and redirect passion vines from roses, but this morning I attempted to pry tight tendrils away from my grapevine and ended up just yanking the aggressive vine out of the dirt. I had redeemed myself! <br /><br />Which makes me wonder: What does poison ivy look like again?Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-10053489266721041772011-03-20T21:31:00.004-05:002011-03-21T11:31:29.649-05:00Making MoneyYesterday, while I was washing dishes with the television tuned to TLC, my nine year old said, "Mom, we should build a machine so that we can make money."<br /><br />"Really? What type of machine should we build?" I love it when children come up with creative ideas. Children are natural entrepreneurs.<br /><br />"A machine that makes money."<br /><br />He didn't want to build a machine that could do something useful and that we could sell, he wanted to create a machine so that we could print counterfeit currency. I assumed that he came up with the idea after the program about the man who had won five million dollars in the lottery. I guess, in his little mind, it would be easier to just print money than to win the lottery. The two are probably just as ethical, in his mind. Who knows?<br /><br />I asked him what he thought would happen if we did print money. His said, "We would get rich."<br /><br />I told him it was illegal. He said, "We wouldn't get caught."<br /><br />"So, as long as we don't get caught you would be happy with printing money, even though it's against the law?"<br /><br />"Yes."<br /><br />I didn't judge. Mainly, because a part of me was busy spending...<br /><br />A few hours later, I asked him again if he wanted to make money. He said, "We can't." I was relieved that he had come to that moral conclusion on his own without my help. Children are natural learners, after all. I was proud of myself for avoiding didactics.<br /><br />I asked, "Why can't we make money?"<br /><br />"We could if we lived out in the country."<br /><br />The truth is, he has "made" money before. He turned our dining room into a restaurant and created menus for his customers and even "made" money so that they could purchase food. Does a restaurant like that exist? "Here's fifty Chili's Bucks, have a nice meal."<br /><br />Now, isn't that the kind of person you would want "making" money; The kind of person who would give it to you?<br /><br />Guess what this is:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://sfcitizen.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/go8f7418a.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 450px; height: 300px;" src="http://sfcitizen.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/go8f7418b1.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-39786141387575927352011-03-18T12:08:00.001-05:002011-03-20T12:14:27.418-05:00Patchwork of Springs (not too silly)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/Calia_secundiflora_flowers.jpg/220px-Calia_secundiflora_flowers.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 220px; height: 176px;" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/Calia_secundiflora_flowers.jpg/220px-Calia_secundiflora_flowers.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br />Our Texas Mountain Laurel has been adorned in purple cascading blooms. The scent always takes me back to Southwest Texas State University (Texas State), as there was a long walkway seasonally walled by the lavender flowers. The trek to class was an event when the little trees were in bloom. When the air didn't smell like the river, it smelled like the grape flavored powder from Fun Dip and Pixy Stix candies.<br /><br />The breeze brings the yummy fragrance into the house when the doors to the backyard are open. If I close my eyes I can imagine myself back on campus. I remember some of the characters I encountered on the way to class. I remember the frat guy who wore base; I remember the mean Prozac PETA girl, and I remember the fighting stallions.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.txstate.edu/virtual-campus-tour/tour-stops/stallions/contentParagraph/0/content_files/file1/stallions.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 425px; height: 255px;" src="http://www.txstate.edu/virtual-campus-tour/tour-stops/stallions/contentParagraph/0/content_files/file1/stallions.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br />I miss living in a place where you could safely, and without destination, walk from evening until sunrise, and where you could, without guilt and with a few new acquaintances, eat breakfast before finally going to bed. I miss the guy in the dorm beside ours who would play Eric Johnson’s “Cliffs of Dover” so loud that we could open our windows and hear the music as if it were playing on the stereo in our room.<br /><br />I wonder why I was in such a hurry to get out of the dorms and into an apartment. Looking back, dorm life was the best part of college, though I hated it at the time.<br /><br />I wonder what I was thinking when I chose a Saturday morning class as if I would actually attend a Saturday morning class. Only I can boast that a lack of common sense was the reason I failed Philosophy.<br /><br />It’s amazing how a scent can gather up old memories and press them together at the folds. For a brief second I can see right through the fabric to all of my springs, but they quickly fade and wilt like the flowers on our Texas Mountain Laurel.Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-1630919875359979292011-03-05T09:35:00.003-06:002011-03-06T09:57:44.845-06:00Saturday Silliness (dream)<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://allforthegreatergood.com/Salvador_Dali_-_The_Dream.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 0px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 487px; height: 312px;" src="http://allforthegreatergood.com/Salvador_Dali_-_The_Dream.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Salvador Dali "Sleep"</span><br /></div><br />The sound of thunder woke me up this morning. Remember that earthquake of a thunderclap? Anyway, I was in the middle of an audio-dream. Do you ever have audio dreams; the dreams that are more verbal than visual or emotional? It’s as if someone is talking to you in your ear - real time. It’s not always associated with a story or a plot. Sometimes, the words conclude a dream, like a punctuation. I don’t always remember the actual dream, but sometimes I will remember the parting words.<br /><br />This morning my dream ended with a voice saying, “Some people wake up to light and some people wake up to wind…” just as the thunder was pulling me out of my sleep.<br /><br />At first, I thought, “Silly unconscious brain! You forgot about how some people might wake up to sound!” But, after I thought about it, I realized that when you are experiencing something, it speaks for itself. The fact that it was happening to me completed the thought. “Some people wake up to light, some people wake up to wind, but you will wake up to thunder!” How cool to become a part of the narrative. Wait, I already was, it was I who was dreaming.<br /><br />It’s very windy right now. If the wind woke you up, I guess you were one of the people who woke up late! Lazy!<br /><br />Isn’t that fun? My dream made me didactic. =P<br /><br />That concludes my little post on "Saturday Silliness." But, before I go, I have to share with you something my nine year old told me:<br /><br />Last night, while watching a play put on by the junior high homeschoolers, I leaned over and whispered something in my nine year old’s ear. He put his hand up in front of my mouth and whisper-screamed, “Mom, your breath is burning my eyes!” Isn't that sweet?<br /><br />It wasn’t onions, I promise, it was my menthol cough drops. I’ve been hitting the cough drops like an addict lately. I've been coughing for three to four weeks since the flu. Seriously, it was the cough drops!<br /><br />P.S. Don't you think it's hypocritical of me, unemployed and all, to call someone sleeping in on Saturday "lazy?"Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12316414.post-62884084746958042972011-02-12T10:20:00.009-06:002011-02-27T00:07:34.240-06:00Unschooling Anthem (song)<img src="http://www.amysteinberg.net/look/ma22.jpg" alt="a sample of Amy's art" /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Artwork by Amy Steinberg</span><br /><br />I am fascinated with the unschooling philosophy. I think it is a nice compliment to my natural parental instinct: bossy control-freak. I guess I like to think that the unschooling philosophy balances me. <br /><br />I would love to attend a conference like the <a href="http://www.liferocksconference.com/">LIFE ROCKS! Radical Unschooling Conference.</a><br /><br />On their website they say that <a href="http://www.amysteinberg.net/">Amy Steinberg's</a> song, "Exactly," from her album, "Must be the Moon," is becoming their anthem.<br /><br />I always thought that the perfect song to describe this alternative educational philosophy was John Lennon's, "Imagine" or Pink Floyd's, "Another Brick in the Wall." Freedom is a big enough place for many anthems. <br /><br />I wanted to share the song "Exactly" because the lyrics are amazing and part of the song reminds me of slam poetry. Slam poetry put to music. A worthy anthem.<br /><br />Here is Amy singing "Exactly."<br /><br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/eqZYd2UCfI8?rel=0" allowfullscreen="" width="480" frameborder="0" height="390"></iframe><br /><br /><br />Exactly<br /><br />i am exactly where i need to be<br />i need to be exactly where i am<br />i am a blessing manifest<br />i can undress the moment<br />naked time unwinds beneath my mind<br />and from within i find the kind of beauty<br />only i can find<br /><br />i am exactly where i need to be<br />i need to be exactly where i am<br />i am surrendering so willingly<br />to be the perfect me inside this now<br />and truly how else could it be<br />destiny she blesses me<br />destiny she blesses me<br /><br />when i try to fight or run<br />i only wind up back at square one<br />when i think i know what's best for me<br />fate she takes me back<br />to exactly where i need to be<br /><br />i am exactly where i need to be<br />i need to be exactly where i am<br />i am divinely timed and shining brightly<br />yes i believe that there's a purpose just for me<br />yes i believe that we are light<br />and we shine infinitely<br /><br />i am exactly where i need to be<br />i need to be exactly where i am<br />i am not aimlessly existing see<br />i am in perfect harmony with universal energy<br />and i am truly free when i accept my own divinity<br /><br />look at me look at me closely<br />what exactly do you see<br />if you are paying attention you will now begin ascension of the mind<br />why, because if you look at me just right you will see a kiss<br />for it took a kiss to make this breath exist<br />the intersection of my mother's and father's lips<br />to touch twist and perfect what came next to produce me<br />look at me and you will see the breeze<br />the breeze it took to shake the leaves to make<br />my mother's hair move, my father dare touch it and say<br />please may i have a kiss<br />yes the breeze made me exist<br />and if you want to get even deeper into this<br />when you look at me you will see a cloud<br />the cloud it took to form the storm to shake the leaves to<br />inspire the liplock - yes a raindrop will pop up out these words<br />you heard me right<br />if you look at me close enough you will see a dark stormy night<br />and what is night without it's polar opposite of sunlight<br />so if you watch the way my hands sway<br />you'll see the light of day<br />and everyday is a testament to the sediment of the earth's core<br />it's ever spinning enormous force so if you look at me just right<br />you will see a spark of the source<br />but the most fascinating thing about this, and it's true<br />is that if you look at me close enough, you see you<br />it's only what you perceive how you believe the space between<br />you and me<br />that creates reality<br />so when i sing you can feel it<br />when i cry you can heal it<br />when i speak words you can be the words i speak by singing with me<br /><br />peace love free<br />peace love free<br />peace love free<br /><br />and when i am alone and full of fear<br />i just remember the rising sun always appears<br />everyday miracles that i see<br />well they take me back to exactly where i need to be<br /><br /><br />* * * * * *<br /><br />I hope that you are exactly where you need to be!Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01722801117481334969noreply@blogger.com0