Tradition!

Last updated on: August 9, 2011 at 3:30 am By Tara Edelschick

Let’s begin with a shout out for Tevye. He rocks. Next, another shout out for Simplicity Parenting. It also rocks. Kim John Payne, its author, brings home again and again the importance of letting your children know who they are by teaching them “what our family does.” In addition to the daily and weekly rituals that anchor our family life, we have several yearly rhythms that remind us who we are. Each night of Advent, we use Godly Play materials... Read more

On Cloud Nine

Last updated on: August 6, 2011 at 11:40 am By Tara Edelschick

Here’s a question: Why do we let people who are math-phobic and functionally innumerate teach math to grade schoolers? My answer? For some reason, it’s perfectly acceptable to be innumerate in our society. People will casually tell you that they can’t add a fraction to save their lives. Imagine someone saying, “Novels? Are you kidding? I can barely read a comic book.” There are, of course, adults who can’t read. But no one thinks it’s funny. Every elementary school has... Read more

A Whole Lotta Prayer

Last updated on: August 5, 2011 at 3:24 am By Tara Edelschick

This week, I’ve been writing about what I am calling The Practice. Practices are those rhythms that give our children a sense of safety and calm that comes from predictability and limited choices. I started thinking about them after reading Simplicity Parenting. Last night, I wrote about our dinner schedule. Here are a few other practices: Nightly Prayers. If we don’t go up to pray for the boys at night, they holler down, “Someone needs to pray for us. We can’t... Read more

Breakfast for Dinner

Last updated on: August 4, 2011 at 2:26 am By Tara Edelschick

When I came home tonight, Ezra was crying. “We missed breakfast for dinner two weeks in a row!” “Yeah, Mom,” Zach jumped in to side with Ezra. “We need to have breakfast for dinner tomorrow, tacos on Friday, and pizza on Saturday.” Last month, when I read Simplicity Parenting, I was struck by how chaotic our lives are in contrast to the book’s vision of family. Much of our chaos can’t be changed, or we don’t want to change. Which... Read more

The Practice

Last updated on: October 29, 2013 at 8:35 pm By Tara Edelschick

I don’t remember what they were talking about tonight, but the conversation ended with Jeff asking Zach, “Where did we go last summer?” “Toah Nipi?” Zach wondered. Jeff and I looked at each other in disbelief. We were looking for Zach to say China – the month-long, multi-thousand-dollar, life-changing trip we took last August. Instead, what Zach remembered was what we do every summer, the week-long, several hundred dollar trip to the camp associated with Jeff’s ministry. That’s the trip... Read more

“Let’s Rock This, Bro!”

Last updated on: August 2, 2011 at 2:17 am By Tara Edelschick

Waiting anxiously at the starting line, Ezra turned to hive five Zach. Then, with a gleam in his eye and the optimism of eight-year-olds, he said in his best Superbowl locker room voice, “Let’s rock this, bro!” The boys competed in their first duathlon yesterday. They were skipping Sunday school. I was not, so I missed the big event. Andy took them, and when she told me what Ezra said, I could picture it perfectly. I could picture it because... Read more

In Need of Inspiration

Last updated on: July 30, 2011 at 1:31 am By Tara Edelschick

We’re coming up on a year. A year of homeschooling my babies. A year of other things to be sure – like blogging, and having an au pair, and finding out the boys have learning issues about which we were previously unaware. But everything else pales in comparison to deciding that Jeff and I could keep the boys home and better help them become who we thought they were made to be. As we finish the year, look over last... Read more

So, So Lame

Last updated on: July 29, 2011 at 2:37 am By Tara Edelschick

I just finished two days of training in the Lindamood Bell curriculum, Visualizing and Verbalizing. And after two days, what do I have? More plastic trinkets than anyone else in the class! That’s right, baby, I answered more questions correctly, and asked more insightful questions than anyone else. Each time I did, the facilitator gave me a prize. Once I understood that there were prizes involved, it was game on. No one would leave that conference room with more junk... Read more

Tactile Support

Last updated on: July 28, 2011 at 2:03 am By Tara Edelschick

I’m a sucker for anything that promises to help our homeschooling endeavor. Knowing I’m a sucker, I try to reign myself in. Which is why I only bought two tins of Crazy Aaron’s Thinking Putty. I really wanted to get three, one for me and one for each of the boys. But they were $12 a piece so I only got two. Occupational therapists have been telling me for years that the boys would benefit from some “tactile support” during... Read more

We Love VBS

Last updated on: July 27, 2011 at 1:03 am By Tara Edelschick

The following was this evening’s debrief of VBS. (VBS stands for Vacation Bible School, which is a weeklong, 3-hour per night camp, where kids sing songs, do crafts, and learn Bible stories.) Nafisa: I love VBS. Tara: Me too. Ezra: Oh yeah. I love VBS. VBS is soooo much better than school. School is boring. You have to do math and writing and blah blah blah. Like you have to do 2 times 3, and blah blah times blah blah,... Read more