We're All Individuals

Of all the wonderful blessings of homeschooling, I think my favorite is "being there" as my kids find their own way, develop their own habits, and indulge their own interests. To that end, I have tried to give them a varied and relatively free childhood, with plenty of different experiences from which to draw when pursuing those interests. After finding some interest(ing) items in the bathroom, I decided to take the camera around the house to catch the interests that the kids leave as evidence around the house.


Paul likes to stay in his room, quietly building with LEGOs. He'll come out with some new masterpiece to show me, from time to time. I took a quick photo of his bed, strewn with LEGO as usual, but also saw that his copy of Twelfth Night was there, too. I'm sure the director of our play will be happy to hear he has been memorizing his lines! I know I was! I can't wait to start rehearsals.



Annika, my neat, organized child, has a lovely collection of points ("arrowheads")...her interest in archeology is indulged by friends and relatives who bring her their finds (or purchases) when they visit areas of archaeological interest. Since she does not leave things around, it's harder to tell what she has been working on...but this display drawer is evidence! And her script is being used by Paul. Her lines? Probably all memorized at this point, so Paul, who mysteriously misplaced his script, is using hers. Fortunately, she is a good sport about it...


Trip has been working down in the cellar all week (school vacation--he attends a Catholic high school, but was unschooled through 8th grade). He cleaned it out quite well, and put all of his projects on a table. He also installed two more lighting fixtures down there, and basically organized the whole place. It's great! SO, on his table, one can see the remnants of his latest projects, including a propeller belonging to a real fuel-powered RC plane (he got it used with pieces missing, but is sure he can make it fly), bits of wire and telephone equipment, and it looks like he might have found a way to defeat the Daleks. Call the Doctor (scifi.com link)!

Libby...oh, Libby, Libby, Libby! What are that score and baton doing in the bathroom?? Ah. I see. You were conducting in the mirror. Good idea. But I bet the humidity in the bathroom is too high for books, and that they should not be left in there, right? BTW, folks, if you are looking for full orchestral scores for a great price, check out Dover Publications. At any given time, there are 5 or 6 of these Dover scores kicking around the house, often on chairs, on the floor, on the dinner table, and in the bathroom. Seems they are so useful, they never make it back onto the shelf. I mean, hey, you never know where you'll be when you get the urge to conduct, right? (Dover publishes those Shakespeare scripts, too. And many, many other great products.)

Life here is never dull, but it does require someone maintaining order. I am not sure I am the right person for the job, but here I am. I'm off to nag a bit--those clothes that were supposed to be put away by someone two days ago are still on the washer. Two kids owe e-mails to adults who have done them a favor. That puppy needs to be walked again (and again). As if that were not enough, there are two performances for Libby and three auditions over the next week and a half, so she needs to practice, which takes her out of the chore schedule (besides that she works four days a week, and has a college orchestra one night, chamber rehearsal another...on and on, but all good excuses).

I heard a rumor after Mass that some of the kids are going sledding at the golf course this afternoon. Trip has a lot of homework that he let go this week so he could organize the cellar. And at least one kid wants to go to a friends house for the evening...no wonder things are left undone, all over the house! Does it ever stop?