from my backyard

We’re outside today, it being near-spring weatherwise, but without the inconvenience of bugs. Ah! These few weeks each year are among my favorites. The number one attraction in our backyard is the bare earth area under the big tree where everyone goes to Dig in the Dirt. Dirt Digging is a Very Important Endeavor, you see. This year, Gloria is old enough to join the fray and toddles around with a stick and a smile.

Everyone is happy and well! Bede has his yearly check-in with his psychologist next week. I’m looking forward to it. He’s made such great strides in his development this year. He’s gone from the second most dreaded autistic behavior – poop play – numeous times a day, to zero play with poop and well on the way to toilet trained. (The most-dreaded autistic behavior is self-injury, of course, which we have not dealt with here.) He also is learning Arabic (!!) and working on first-grade math.

The other kids are great too. Faith and Abby and I have been doing something academically structured every day, with great results. I worked through a period of Great Navelgazing Angst as I dithered over whether or not I was an unschooler, and gave too much thought as to what you, the internets, would think of me. Then I decided I don’t care what you think, because my kids love it and are thriving and begging for more. So there. Now we’re extremely relaxed Charlotte Mason people.

This is already so long, I don’t think many will read it.

Gilbert and Trixie play together all the time. At 4 and 3 they are delightfully matched and often argue but always make up. Gilbert is very interested in ballroom dancing and airplanes at this time, and Trixie likes teddy bears and Mickey Mouse. They are so cute.

Gloria wants whatever anyone else has, and they tend to give it to her because she’s so darn adorable. Ah, to be the youngest with five doting siblings.

It’s getting a little chilly outside, must be a cold front. Time to head in!

14 thoughts on “from my backyard

  1. i read it, twice!

    i love the Digging. it is in full swing here. there is an entire fortification being built out there! of sticks, dirt and rocks of course.

  2. I love your blog posts – long or short! And, my dear as far as i am concerned you are an unschooler meeting your children’s requested needs. Of course what i think and labels really dont matter…lol. We have been enjoying this amazing weather as well…digging for dino bones, of course!

  3. “Then I decided I don’t care what you think, because my kids love it and are thriving and begging for more. So there. Now we’re extremely relaxed Charlotte Mason people.”

    hahah I loved that part!! yes yes, who cares what the internets think! they aren’t your child’s mama. you are!

    I don’t know what I am. am I am unschooler? not exactly. am I a structured homeschooler? oh certainly not. I’m a misfit. I’m the girl who goes to yard sales and finds books from other homeschoolers which they discarded and search for things my kids would like to look at. and we go to the library. and I print out work sheets sometimes. and some weeks we just do household chores and some light reading. b/c that’s the kind of homeschoolers we are. πŸ˜‰

  4. I don’t know what ever gives you the idea that folks won’t read your “long” posts… And BTW, if you think this is long, you haven’t read *my* blog in a while! πŸ˜‰

    All your posts are interesting; your longer ones are that much more so. Keep ’em coming!

  5. Well, acting in my roles as an Agent for the Internets, I am going to have to give you some crunchy demerits for not being a full-fledged unschooler, Pheeb. πŸ˜‰

    I think you have to do whatever works for you and your kids. If they crave a bit more structure– great! And bring on more long posts!

  6. It sounds like everyone is doing so well. I’m glad to hear that Bede has improved so much.

    I’ve gone through lots of navelgazing with our homeschool, and still am not sure where I stand, but I’m trying and that’s what matters.

  7. I read it three times because I was putting one in the tub, making one eat their dinner and I had to keep starting over. :o) Arabic is so cool! Dirt digging is the funnest and I think I am a structured learner and teacher and Max is proving to thrive on structure…Eowyn, not sure yet.

  8. At the age of 19, I must admit that the prospect of looking after and teaching six children is a little daunting. I do love to read your blog posts, though. They give me some sort of hope that I will be a strong woman when I have my own children, and, though far off, makes me smile contentedly to think of little “me”s.
    So thank you for your blog posts, they’re wonderful to read πŸ™‚

  9. i am not allowed to say i unschool because my partner doesnt believe in it. so, sssshhhhh, we unschool, but have lots of textbooks lying about to reinforce it!

  10. I am so late catching up on my Other Blogs Outside of Xanga. I too, am dreading the bugs that are going to be coming soon, so much so that I have to hand in my crunch card and hose down the outside of the house with chemicals. Otherwise the biting ants and the roaches get to be way too much. Ants, that, I know from experience, will go straight for the diaper pail. Uh uh.

    Good to hear the kids are doing great!

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