February 2019 Randomness...

It's been a wild week here on Drywood Creek! We had two major snow storms (about 15" total accumulation) and a very nasty stomach bug that took out all five of us. Thankfully, it was a fast mover and everyone seems to be on the mend.

We have one week left of our Winter Term. I'll be working on wrap-up posts after that time. One thing I will share now is that a couple of weeks ago, I did a major overall to Levi's curriculum and opted to begin Memoria Press's First Start Reading series. I will explain more in a future post, once we get our bearings. For now, I am pleased and we are off to a great start. If something isn't working for you, don't be afraid to switch it up...even if it is the middle of the academic year.

Have you heard about Common Place Quarterly? It's a new magazine written for Charlotte Mason moms. There are a variety of contributors, all current or former homeschooling mamas. Many of which, I've had the privilege of getting to know through a variety of home education circles and social media. The magazine will be published four times per year. You can subscribe per quarter or annually.

At the end of last year, I subscribed to three new ventures. One being Commonplace Quarterly, another Reshelving Alexandria, and the third, Forma. My first CPQ came mid week, just before I was the last to fall to the stomach bug. It was the light at the end of my very dark tunnel, after having a week of sick kids, including The Farmer, and then succumbing to it myself. I was in bed most of the day Friday, but so very thankful for my new magazine. It's delightful!! I'm still on the fence about Reshelving Alexandria and haven't received my first Forma magazine yet, but CPQ is a hit. I'm glad I ordered the annual subscription and may do a full review at another time.

I mentioned in my Fall Term 2018-2019 Wrap-Up that Ruben was in a farm accident the day after Thanksgiving. He was recovering nicely until Christmas time, when a staph infection caught hold of his leg. It's a rather long story at this point, but thankfully his infection has cleared. Unfortunately, he still has two drains in his thigh to eliminate fluid from that area. What we originally thought to be a hematoma, turned out to be a morel-lavallee lesion. This is where the skin shears from the muscle. Naturally, if there's any pocket in the body, it fills with fluid. In order for the skin to adhere back to the muscle, we must keep the pocket empty, not allowing fluid to collect there. Ruben has drained over five liters of fluid from his leg since Christmas and will continue to wear drains until his his output is minimal. We are hopeful that he will continue to heal. Please consider joining us in prayer that Ruben may make a full recovery.

Here he is dressed like a cross between The Michelin Man and a ninja heading out in the sub zero temps we had a couple weeks ago as part of the polar vortex that rocked the Midwest.

Lastly, with the cold, snowy weather, and sickness, I had some time to work through my inbox, reading past blog posts, and listening to various podcasts. Here are a few that gave me food for thought....

What is the Classical Approach to Phonics?

Homeschooling Middle School Boys

Why Gender Matters: An Interview with Dr. Leonard Sax

Charlotte Mason is Classical

Beautiful Feet Books new website

Worthwhile Questions

Misunderstandings, Writing Voices, and Five-Paragraph Essays

Shut Your Mouth and Change Your Life

I also recently finished reading Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen and am currently reading A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. How is your Winter Term going? Have you read any good books lately? Feel free to share in the comments below. If you're in need of some great living books, check out our sale lists. Proceeds go to help our family continue to home educate and provide shared content for the greater homeschool community.