Online Book Party and Home Tour!

Welcome! Come in and have a look around! I've been working really hard lately to get this place in order...


For the last several months, I've been slowly tackling the clutter in my house (with my mom's help). We did the linen closet, the pantry, the master bedroom closet, and the boys' room (though it's still not quite done). But the disorganized bookshelves all over the house were still bugging me.

Then I found my motivation -- I signed up to host an Usborne Books party! Figuring I better know what books I have -- and have a place for them -- before I go ordering a bunch more, I came up with a plan.

A couple weeks ago, my mom and I started pulling books off the shelves in the living room. The coffee table was already stacked with books that didn't fit on them. I needed a larger unit for the children's books.


Time to play Musical Bookcases! We moved a medium sized bookcase from the living room to the dining room because the tiny shelves holding our homeschooling materials were packed full...


The bookcase from the living room works much better. (That's a Halloween gingerbread house on top of the shelf, in case you're wondering.)


I swapped the play stove in the kitchen with a small red bookcase housing toddler books in the living room. Isn't this a pretty vignette? (Yes, those are the boys' Potions cauldrons.)


Then I moved this large bookcase that wasn't fulfilling its potential from my bedroom to the living room...

BEFORE:

AFTER:

The biggest change, though, was finally putting up artwork on the walls in the living room. My mom and sister framed family photographs for me as a Christmas gift two years ago, but the room still wasn't quite finished. My mother had these paintings, several by my aunt, sitting in a closet from when we had to move my grandmother out of her apartment. I love that it looks so much like her home used to...


My mom also hung my aunt's stitcheries of a vegetable basket and the 23rd Psalm in my dining room... they are so me!!


I was so happy to have this all done before my party last Saturday! I just wish you could have been there, too! Won't you take a minute to look at some books with me now? Sit a while and sip some tea! Or would you rather have coffee?


Thanks for coming! The book show closes at noon on Friday, so order soon if you see something you like!

Checklist for the New Unschooler

Well, I've got a sick, fussy toddler on my lap this morning, so this might be it for posting today.

I wanted to share this great article from Life Without School with anybody who's here because they're curious about or new to unschooling... Checklist for the New Unschooler. Becky gives 10 principles that are really the "How-To"s of making the most of unschooling -- eg. "Slow down and relax," "Make time for the things you enjoy," and "Choose the relationship over your need to be right."

That's just horse manure.

Every church has its quirks. The formerly-known-as-Episcopal parish we've attended for the last six years is no exception.


For instance, each fall we honor St. Francis of Assisi by holding an Animal Blessing service in the courtyard of the church. Pet owners bring their many dogs, the bravest of cats, the occasional reptile, and, yes, even horses to the afternoon service to have the priest say prayers and sprinkle holy water over the beloved animals.


Used to be, members of the parish would host a barbecue after the service. A barbecue of cooked animal flesh. Until our best friends gave up animal products completely a few years ago, and our small group decided to take over the barbecue and convert it. Save its soul, so to speak.

The Animal Blessing Barbecue went vegan.

We barbecue vegan brats and hot dogs, make German potato salad, and make sure the condiments are animal-friendly, too. Donations for the dinner go to the local animal shelter and Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. It's pretty cool.

Unless, of course, half the people go home without eating because they don't think they like vegetarian food.

You know what I think of that? You guessed it. It smells a little like the natural incense the horse above left on the sidewalk for the ceremony.

Something to celebrate!

Wow, I just noticed that my last post was my 400th!! Now, that's a milestone!

Though it doesn't explain where I disappeared to for the last two weeks... Sorry about that. We've been having too much fun around here, I guess!

Anyhow, how about to celebrate I actually POST this week? Say, like, every day? Otherwise, I could just write one really long, random post about everything we've been doing.

Nah.

COMING SOON! to A Homegrown Life... The 7-Hour Fast -- just ask your dentist! Fun Fall Field trips. Before and after: Living room makeover photos! Anglican Life: Incense or Horse manure? PLUS! How to kill your sweet pea seedlings in 12 hours flat. And... Homemade playdough: How much is too much for your toddler's tummy?