Two blessings today. The first was my state of mind about forty minutes ago when I had just put Zarli down to nap, sent the children outside, was making myself a vanilla latte and getting ready to sit on the couch and breathe "ahhhhh......" I looked at the microwave clock: 2 o'clock. I thought of myself a year ago, feeling that same need for downtime after lunch , but instead having to wake my sleeping baby and load him and an often crabby Peter into the van for the one and a half hour round trip carpool drive. How different this year is, and how much better it fits into the natural rhythms of our family [read 'nap cyle'].
The other blessing is the kids "playing" outside. Today's history chapter was on the nomads settling down in the fertile crescent and building homes out of the material they had on hand. There were three activities to choose from, and I was so grateful when instead of cave painting (messy!) and sewing a game bag (messy!) they chose to build a shelter out of whatever they could find in their backyard (also messy, but outside). While they wondered what they could use for building, I remembered just in time that the butterfly bush needed a good whack job -- never did get pruned last fall. What delight over their faces when I told them they could have it for their very own. Self-serving? No way! This is hands-on history lesson; this is lifestyle education.
The nomads chose a site for their shelter.
A young nomad girl mixes mud to hold up the posts of her new home.
A small butterfly bush hut in the Fertile Crescent, c. 7000 B.C.
Nomads no more! 
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1 comment:
Very cool hut. I remember studying the Fertile Crescent when were homeschooling, too :-) I think I would like being a student at your school very much.
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