Happy New Year! I hope your new year has had a good start. Despite all the distressing news I read in the media, I am hopeful that 2020 will be a good year. I hope it will contain more good than bad. I believe that no matter how misguided some people may be, deep down … Continue reading January
It seems a bit crazy to think that exactly twenty years ago, I was ringing in a new century at the top of a sky scraper in India. I was spending a year in Japan teaching English as a participant of the JET Programme, and during the winter break, a friend of mine and I … Continue reading Twenty Years Ago
December, and especially the Winter Solstice, seems like a good time for reflection to me. With cooler temperatures, I want to stay home and curl up with a good book. Or write some poetry. I never get to do that, but it's nice dreaming about it. 😉 I know this time of year can be … Continue reading December
Looking back at my October post, I see that I promised to reveal the bird that my younger son was for Halloween. Well, here you go....he was a cardinal this year. I think this bird (his third bird costume and fourth Halloween being a bird) was inspired by a little cardinal friend we have. I'll … Continue reading November
You know how Amazon.com will make recommendations to you based on your previous purchases? Well, after buying some cello repertoire for my 10-year-old cellist, Amazon recommended the young adult novel Great Pumpkin Suite by Melanie Heuiser Hill. After reading the about it, I decided to check it out from the library. At first my 10-year-old looked … Continue reading Giant Pumpkin Suite by Melanie Heuiser Hill
Recently I read The Piano Tuner by Daniel Mason. It was published in 2002, and I think it was also turned into a movie, but I haven't seen that yet. I would recommend it for adults. I doubt I would have liked it as a teenager. It's set in 1886 and begins in London where … Continue reading The Piano Tuner by Daniel Mason
Every once in a while, I will look around my house at all the dust and clutter (sometimes with amusement; sometimes with angst), and I wonder if I'll ever make it to the other side of homeschooling. And if I do make it, will there really be more free time? More time to clean and … Continue reading October
When Stacey O'Brien was introduced to a little barn owl chick that had nerve damage in his wing, making it impossible for him to return to the wild, she knew she was meant to become his caretaker. Wesley the Owl is a heartwarming memoir that I believe both mature teens or adults could enjoy. Stacey … Continue reading Wesley the Owl by Stacey O’Brien
Chickadee by Louise Erdrich is the fourth book in the Birchbark series for young adults, and I read it out loud to my boys last year. We love this series, and I highly recommend it. You can find links to my reviews of the previous books on my book recommendations page, starting with The Birchbark House. … Continue reading Chickadee by Louise Erdrich
I don't always have the resources to delve deeply into a topic, but as far as the Islamic World, the thirteen-year-old and I have read over a few texts and listened to his dad's podcast on the topic, and I think that's good for now. We will eventually watch some Great Courses on Islam, but … Continue reading History Lesson Log #5: The Islamic World
