Now that the weather has finally cooled off, my kids are playing “hobo camp” off and on all day. It’s an endless cycle of getting filthy, tracking sooty footprints through the house to the shower to get clean. Then staying inside for a few minutes before deciding that the hobo camp is calling again. I spent hours vacuuming and mopping floors yesterday, and am sore today which is a little bit sad. I either don’t mop often enough, or I am in very bad shape. Actually, it’s both.
Silas thinks we should take math off in the fall. I was thinking, yes, good idea. Until I realized that I think he says this at the turn of every season. And most weeks we only manage it for a few days anyway, and this is why we do math year-round. Anyway, how’s math going at your house? I don’t know what’s wrong with my kids. I always loved math. So nice and orderly. Everything works out. Tidy, tidy. I guess my kids didn’t inherit all my crazy?
We visited Robin Hood and Ivanhoe last weekend and they are doing great at their new home. We delivered a load of hay and straw and now they are all set for winter. And since we are down to three goats, we are thinking about breeding Tilly. Good idea, right? It would be fun to have a baby goat in the spring. I just have to remind my kids who are very keen on this idea that daddy won’t be home to help with the milking. They say that’s fine, that they will do it. Should I believe them?
I started a couple of new knitting projects: A little Puddle Duck for Mabel in my favorite green and an orange hat for Job’s birthday (orange is his favorite). The hat was a last-minute idea, and I probably should knit something very basic, but I came across this pattern and obviously have to knit it. Gabe says I shouldn’t bother because Pip (our puppy) will just destroy it like she did Silas’ blue sweater (another story, another blog post). I’m going to knit it anyway and hope for the best.
p.s. I think Mabel is winning over toddler Beatrix in the morning hair contest.
Lisa says
It’s so funny, I have that same hat pattern in my Ravelry cart.
karen says
I bought a steam cleaner for the tile flooring and I can’t decide if it is REALLY cleaning the floors without soap or am I just moving dirt around with a bunch of steam….my point is that it’s really easy and I am not sore. I just am not sure of the ‘clean’ I am getting.
Fall is here and it’s glorious!!
Teresa says
Beautiful photos. If you made the one of the kids in front of the shack black and white, it would look like it came out of the dust bowl era.
April says
These photos are just incredible, I can’t stop looking at them, the way the evoke a moment in time long ago…this story they create…just amazing. I’m always in awe of your photographer’s eye, the way you compose, process and create such magic in your everyday…
Thank you for sharing these lovely moments of your life….and for being so real with it all.
jill says
Despite being in good shape, I have a sore back today after being hunched over low sawhorses, removing paint from doors yesterday. I think it’s being 42, which is sad because I figured my 40s would be like my 30s, which were like my 20s…
I’m not even going to talk about the waves of love and hate with math around here, despite that I really like the books we use. I need to go scrape more paint.
Deanna says
As always, thank you for sharing your lovely family with us. Your children are very lucky to be growing up this way, using their imaginations! Love it!!!!
Elizabeth says
that is just a perfect picture of Mabel and messy hair! 🙂 Sounds like a lot of wonderful play! 🙂 God bless you dear one! A lot to keep up on! God keep you <3
Lana says
I love the way your children play! I mentioned to a friend whose daughter is looking for a family house that hopefully we will find a smaller house and be selling ours soon. I told her that there is an acre and half of woods for the kids to play in and she just gave me a blank look. It made me sad.
Toddler morning hair is my favorite and I love those pictures. It is a prime reason I love to go and visit the grandchildren. I love to see them when they first get up.
Marilyn says
I love the way your children know how to entertain themselves. They are so resourceful. God Bless.
Marilyn
Sandra Davidson says
Your children are all beautiful and so creative. That picture of Beatrix in black and white is gorgeous. neither one of my 12 year old grandchildren like math and both are boys. What can I say. ? lol
Marion says
Love the photos of the children at the HOBO camp.
Marion
Joan says
Your children know how to have a good time.
Joan
Rosie says
Oh hobo camp seems right up our alley!! The kids spent yesterday building various forts in the woods and I’m working up the courage to let them build a fire themselves… Probably not until after we demolish the giant burn pile!
Stephanie Hannah says
The blue sweater??!! Oh no!!! I had that happen to a pair of knitted socks and bonnet by our kitten. I could have cried. And take comfort about the out of shape thing. Can you tell me why I raced my 9 year old soccer star 4 times???!!! Yeah, I was in pain for a week. Lovely post as usual.
KAde says
That photo of Mabel…..What a gorgeous face – you captured it so beautifully!!
Nancy M says
Love Mabel’s morning hair!! I had actually figured it was coming inside from hobo camp which is adorable and I wish we had a camp like that. ? but my kids are all teens up to 20 so that’s not happening here. As far as math— oh I tried several curriculums when mine were young. Finally settling on horizons because it was a colorful workbook until about 6th grade & switched to Teaching Textbooks. That worked until my 20 year old went to Comm college & tells me it wasn’t thorough enough and that my youngest two need something more. So we no longer use TT and went to Saxon for Alg 1 & MathUSee Alg 2. Only reason for the difference is the Alg 2 using MUS is a co-op class.
Sarah says
That black and white picture of Mabel is stunning – she looks like a wood sprite.
Sarah says
That black and white picture of Mabel is stunning – she looks like a wood sprite.S
Kate says
I remember first doing geometry with my oldest daughter (who is now 29) and saying, “Look how this angle is equal to this angle because this line cuts the lines this way, and then (etc)… Isn’t that neat?” She looked at me like she wasn’t sure I was her mother. Most of my kids are average at math, but don’t really enjoy it. Most of them hate algebra. On the bright side, they all love to read, are imaginative and creative, very musical, and persevere. Those strengths and a calculator, will get them through life happily.
We’re moving for the third time in two years this weekend. (We didn’t plan for that to happen.) The youngest two have missed a good deal of book schooling, but we make up for it in our own ways. My sons listen to their online classes and audio books while packing. They learned a good deal about the process of buying a home by accompanying us to house viewings and the inspection and listening to us talk to the realtor and lender. We even relied on our high schooler to point our things to us that we might not have noticed at houses. Since it was going to be their (hopefully) last home, we involved them a lot in the process. It was a good learning experience for them.
I had a homeschooling friend whose daughters missed a great deal of schooling when their brother was being treated for leukemia. People suggested the parents send them to school, but the parents thought it was better for the girls to spend as much time with their brother as possible and to experience the process of caring for a loved one who is sick as a family. The girls eventually lost their brother and they never regretted getting “behind” in their education. They learned so much more than they could have gotten from a curriculum.
Jody says
I like this post so much. It might be one of your best! Don’t believe your kids. Ha! but maybe get the goat anyway. And what’s a floor for, other than to be walked on? We really might miss the dirt someday (too soon). And now I know what I liked about math, because you found the words for it–tidy, tidy! I’ve been trying to convince my son to see the goodness in math but haven’t yet converted him. I doubt he’ll care that it’s so nicely tidy, however. Oh well. Thank you for your writing and beautiful pictures. I put pictures of Mabel on my Pinterest board called ‘Behold’. Just because she’s beautiful.
Brigitte says
Love the Hobo camp. Our version was pioneers, but we didn’t rough it quite as much. So glad some kids still play like that.
Kathleen says
That black and white photo of Mabel and her morning hair. Total perfection.
Jordin says
Oh man. I wish I was confident enough to unschool. But, alas, I am not. So, school is an ongoing endeavour here as well.
I need to knit more.
Heidi says
Oh my goodness, Mabel’s morning hair!! Brings back memories of my own children’s hair woes (they’re now 23 and 26).