Our Rainy Day
Kimber
Okay, Deb. You've inspired me to share our day yesterday. :)
We awoke to the sound of rainfall outside. A slow, steady, relaxing rain that makes you want to lounge in bed all day. My daughter was snuggled up beside me and smiling sweetly from her dreams.
Mady (6) somehow talked her brother Alex (9) into painting her toenails (because he does such a gooooood job) for her. It was the cutest thing I had seen in a while........he was kneeling in the floor painting toes, while she sat in the chair looking like a pampered princess. I did find out later that it was actually a business proposition that got Alex interested. He was charging her 25 cents per toe/finger and he easily told me that she would be giving him $5 of her allowance on payday. :)
A while later, I found the kids sitting under the patio cover listening to the rain fall onto it. I could see the excitement in their eyes as they asked me, "Hey Mom, can we go play in the mud?" Now, I am sort of a perfectionist and I don't like things dirty. I usually don't intentionally let them get covered head to toe in mud, but I decided it is surely to be a learning experience, right? (we've been completely unschooling for 4-5 months now and I am still doing my best to deschool myself!) Needless to say, they had a blast. After the gigantic mud pie construction, they discovered how fun it was to rub the mud all over each other which of course, had to be removed by spraying each other with the water hose. After their subsequent showers, wrapped in their fuzziest robes, they had steaming hot chocolate for afternoon snack.
It wasn't long before something else fun was started. Alex got his Hot Wheels out and they had crash up derby in the kitchen floor. They used all the blocks, Legos, and Lincoln Logs to build towers to crash into. While Alex was building, Mady got tired of waiting and got out a math workbook and did a couple of pages. She had to have me check for accuracy as soon as she was finished (which of course my baby did wonderfully!) and then hang it on the fridge for all to see.
Then the fort building started. I truly guess I have lost the battle for the living room. We don't have a playroom so the kids have taken over my tastefully decorated living area. They had forts built from one end of the room to the other. Alex got out his video camera and started filming a sequel to "War of Wars" which he filmed last week for his Mimi. For his birthday last year, she got him almost every GI Joe doll and accessory available. She is in the Army Reserve and very military oriented. He filmed his dolls (excuse me, It was requested I use the term, soldiers........) ahem, ....soldiers in the midst of a ferocious battle. It was kinda Toy Storyish. Anyway, they were now doing a sequel with Barbie and her friends with the Soldiers. Barbie's house was eventually bombed (you could 'hear' the fighter pilots coming) but everyone made it out okay. Whew!
What a wonderful day for us all! I even had time to do some reading myself. We now have to plan Daddy's birthday party ....it's tonight....and people are coming over.......eeek! I guess the forts will have to be put away for another rainy day.
Kimber
Momma to Alex (ds9) and Madalyn (dd6)
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
We awoke to the sound of rainfall outside. A slow, steady, relaxing rain that makes you want to lounge in bed all day. My daughter was snuggled up beside me and smiling sweetly from her dreams.
Mady (6) somehow talked her brother Alex (9) into painting her toenails (because he does such a gooooood job) for her. It was the cutest thing I had seen in a while........he was kneeling in the floor painting toes, while she sat in the chair looking like a pampered princess. I did find out later that it was actually a business proposition that got Alex interested. He was charging her 25 cents per toe/finger and he easily told me that she would be giving him $5 of her allowance on payday. :)
A while later, I found the kids sitting under the patio cover listening to the rain fall onto it. I could see the excitement in their eyes as they asked me, "Hey Mom, can we go play in the mud?" Now, I am sort of a perfectionist and I don't like things dirty. I usually don't intentionally let them get covered head to toe in mud, but I decided it is surely to be a learning experience, right? (we've been completely unschooling for 4-5 months now and I am still doing my best to deschool myself!) Needless to say, they had a blast. After the gigantic mud pie construction, they discovered how fun it was to rub the mud all over each other which of course, had to be removed by spraying each other with the water hose. After their subsequent showers, wrapped in their fuzziest robes, they had steaming hot chocolate for afternoon snack.
It wasn't long before something else fun was started. Alex got his Hot Wheels out and they had crash up derby in the kitchen floor. They used all the blocks, Legos, and Lincoln Logs to build towers to crash into. While Alex was building, Mady got tired of waiting and got out a math workbook and did a couple of pages. She had to have me check for accuracy as soon as she was finished (which of course my baby did wonderfully!) and then hang it on the fridge for all to see.
Then the fort building started. I truly guess I have lost the battle for the living room. We don't have a playroom so the kids have taken over my tastefully decorated living area. They had forts built from one end of the room to the other. Alex got out his video camera and started filming a sequel to "War of Wars" which he filmed last week for his Mimi. For his birthday last year, she got him almost every GI Joe doll and accessory available. She is in the Army Reserve and very military oriented. He filmed his dolls (excuse me, It was requested I use the term, soldiers........) ahem, ....soldiers in the midst of a ferocious battle. It was kinda Toy Storyish. Anyway, they were now doing a sequel with Barbie and her friends with the Soldiers. Barbie's house was eventually bombed (you could 'hear' the fighter pilots coming) but everyone made it out okay. Whew!
What a wonderful day for us all! I even had time to do some reading myself. We now have to plan Daddy's birthday party ....it's tonight....and people are coming over.......eeek! I guess the forts will have to be put away for another rainy day.
Kimber
Momma to Alex (ds9) and Madalyn (dd6)
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Deborah Lewis
Kimber, don't tell that entrepreneurial son of yours people pay good
money to have mud smeared on them at expensive spa's! LOL. What a fun
family.
Our neighbor doesn't let her kids play in the rain. Dylan loves the
rain, in the summer when it's warm, and is always out in it. She came
over a few weeks ago with her littlest boy and told me... came over TO
tell me, that HER kids don't play in the rain because they could get sick
and she didn't think it was fair that Dylan was out there, right across
the street, where her kids could see, playing in the rain. I said, no
that's not fair that they can't play in the rain too, and I was amazed
about the illness because he's ten now and has never gotten sick from it.
She looked at her little boy and said, sternly, "GO HOME" and then told
me she didn't appreciate me saying stuff like that in front of her
kids... She didn't seem to think it was a problem that she was in my
yard, in front of my kid telling me WE shouldn't be outside because HER
kids weren't allowed in the rain.... well, whatever.
Your mud story made me happy. = ) You want to come and be my neighbor?
Deb L
money to have mud smeared on them at expensive spa's! LOL. What a fun
family.
Our neighbor doesn't let her kids play in the rain. Dylan loves the
rain, in the summer when it's warm, and is always out in it. She came
over a few weeks ago with her littlest boy and told me... came over TO
tell me, that HER kids don't play in the rain because they could get sick
and she didn't think it was fair that Dylan was out there, right across
the street, where her kids could see, playing in the rain. I said, no
that's not fair that they can't play in the rain too, and I was amazed
about the illness because he's ten now and has never gotten sick from it.
She looked at her little boy and said, sternly, "GO HOME" and then told
me she didn't appreciate me saying stuff like that in front of her
kids... She didn't seem to think it was a problem that she was in my
yard, in front of my kid telling me WE shouldn't be outside because HER
kids weren't allowed in the rain.... well, whatever.
Your mud story made me happy. = ) You want to come and be my neighbor?
Deb L
Deborah Lewis
***Anyway, they were now doing a sequel with Barbie and her friends with
the Soldiers. Barbie's house was eventually bombed (you could 'hear' the
fighter pilots coming) but everyone made it out okay. Whew!***
Someone posted to the list (this list?) about a GI Joe set you can get
now with a soldier in a bombed out Barbie style house. He'd taken it
over as a command post or something. Sound's like the inventor had your
son in mind!
My brothers used to fly over my doll houses and drop bombs. I sometimes
had to sacrifice my dolls to their POW camps. Sometimes I would find my
dolls entombed in great pyramids in the sand box, or hanging from the
light fixture in the closet. I'm sure a psychologist today would have
something to say about that. LOL.
Deb L, who still has some of those old dolls, even if they are battle
worn.
the Soldiers. Barbie's house was eventually bombed (you could 'hear' the
fighter pilots coming) but everyone made it out okay. Whew!***
Someone posted to the list (this list?) about a GI Joe set you can get
now with a soldier in a bombed out Barbie style house. He'd taken it
over as a command post or something. Sound's like the inventor had your
son in mind!
My brothers used to fly over my doll houses and drop bombs. I sometimes
had to sacrifice my dolls to their POW camps. Sometimes I would find my
dolls entombed in great pyramids in the sand box, or hanging from the
light fixture in the closet. I'm sure a psychologist today would have
something to say about that. LOL.
Deb L, who still has some of those old dolls, even if they are battle
worn.
Kate Green
>I could see the excitement in their eyes as they asked me, "Hey Mom, canwe go play in the mud?" Now, I am sort of a perfectionist and I don't
like things dirty. I usually don't intentionally let them get covered head
to toe in mud, but I decided it is surely to be a learning experience,
right?
This reminds me of when we first moved to Hawaii years ago. The two older
ones were about 5 and 3 and they decided to make one part of the backyard
into a mud garden. On one of their first days doing this they decided to
paint themselves from head to toe with the mud (2 very pale British kids --
completely naked). they were caked in bright red mud which we discovered an
hour or two later also left them stained bright red! They were kind of
muddy/streaky colored for about 3 days after that. After a few more weeks
they were so brown the future mud wars didn't show up as badly as at first,
Kate
Tami Labig Duquette
LOL, My son (when younger) pulled off Barbies head and threw it because he
thought she was using Ken (which was his doll) Later that day we played
badmitton (sp) with her poor ole head. My oldest, who is a feminist says
Barbie is a tramp :)
Had to share, even if it is an over-share :)
Peace,
Tami
'Namaste' is an East Indian greeting which means 'the light within me bows
to the light within you.' In other words, beyond our achy bones, our tired
feet and our multi-colored real life soap operas, lurks a dimension that is
more than the body, the persona, the ego and all the 'trappings and the
suits of woe' as Hamlet would say---a dimension where there isn't a 'you'
and 'me' but rather a synergy that is more than all that, a space for the
eternal to rest within the temporal.
thought she was using Ken (which was his doll) Later that day we played
badmitton (sp) with her poor ole head. My oldest, who is a feminist says
Barbie is a tramp :)
Had to share, even if it is an over-share :)
Peace,
Tami
'Namaste' is an East Indian greeting which means 'the light within me bows
to the light within you.' In other words, beyond our achy bones, our tired
feet and our multi-colored real life soap operas, lurks a dimension that is
more than the body, the persona, the ego and all the 'trappings and the
suits of woe' as Hamlet would say---a dimension where there isn't a 'you'
and 'me' but rather a synergy that is more than all that, a space for the
eternal to rest within the temporal.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Deborah Lewis" <ddzimlew@...>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, October 10, 2002 10:43 AM
Subject: Re: [AlwaysLearning] Our Rainy Day
> ***Anyway, they were now doing a sequel with Barbie and her friends with
> the Soldiers. Barbie's house was eventually bombed (you could 'hear' the
> fighter pilots coming) but everyone made it out okay. Whew!***
>
> Someone posted to the list (this list?) about a GI Joe set you can get
> now with a soldier in a bombed out Barbie style house. He'd taken it
> over as a command post or something. Sound's like the inventor had your
> son in mind!
>
> My brothers used to fly over my doll houses and drop bombs. I sometimes
> had to sacrifice my dolls to their POW camps. Sometimes I would find my
> dolls entombed in great pyramids in the sand box, or hanging from the
> light fixture in the closet. I'm sure a psychologist today would have
> something to say about that. LOL.
>
> Deb L, who still has some of those old dolls, even if they are battle
> worn.
>
>
> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
> [email protected]
>
>
>
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
>
>
joanna514
We had a great rain day a couple of weeks ago. It was warm, so I
told the kids to go out in bathing suits(didn't want a bunch of wet
clothes to wash). It was one of those really HARD down pours and
they stood on our front deck screaming with joy from the feeling.
It lightened up a bit and they took the umbrella from our deck table
and put it on the play set out back and made a fort.
They were out there for over an hour and my 5 yo came in with blue
lips(at which point I offered him a raincoat, but he opted for hot
chocolate instead). Amazingly, noone got sick!?
Playing in the rain is a thrill no child should be denied.
Joanna
told the kids to go out in bathing suits(didn't want a bunch of wet
clothes to wash). It was one of those really HARD down pours and
they stood on our front deck screaming with joy from the feeling.
It lightened up a bit and they took the umbrella from our deck table
and put it on the play set out back and made a fort.
They were out there for over an hour and my 5 yo came in with blue
lips(at which point I offered him a raincoat, but he opted for hot
chocolate instead). Amazingly, noone got sick!?
Playing in the rain is a thrill no child should be denied.
Joanna
Deborah Lewis
***Amazingly, noone got sick!?***
Well! What how about that?! <g>
***Playing in the rain is a thrill no child should be denied.***
I agree!
Deb L, who can't leave this room because Spider man webs have been strung
across the doorway and Dylan and his friend are sending Spidey sailing.
Wonder if someone will get me a diet coke...I guess I could slither out
on my belly...
Well! What how about that?! <g>
***Playing in the rain is a thrill no child should be denied.***
I agree!
Deb L, who can't leave this room because Spider man webs have been strung
across the doorway and Dylan and his friend are sending Spidey sailing.
Wonder if someone will get me a diet coke...I guess I could slither out
on my belly...
avgjean
I love all your rain stories. I am glad I'm not the only one :))
A couple of weeks ago, we were to have our first meeting of a Nature
Club that I just organized. I have just invited about 6-8 other
homeschooling families to go on nature walks with us once a month (I
go with my girls every week). Anyway, on the first day, I woke up
and it was raining! Of course, this being San Diego, it wasn't cold
or anything. So I called everyone and told them that we were still
going, but I would leave it up to them to go or not. Every single
person showed up! Even people with babies and toddlers. We went
for a creek walk, climbed rocks, splashed in the creek and got
rained on for three hours. What a blast. I am so grateful to have a
nice group of unschoolers around.
Jean
A couple of weeks ago, we were to have our first meeting of a Nature
Club that I just organized. I have just invited about 6-8 other
homeschooling families to go on nature walks with us once a month (I
go with my girls every week). Anyway, on the first day, I woke up
and it was raining! Of course, this being San Diego, it wasn't cold
or anything. So I called everyone and told them that we were still
going, but I would leave it up to them to go or not. Every single
person showed up! Even people with babies and toddlers. We went
for a creek walk, climbed rocks, splashed in the creek and got
rained on for three hours. What a blast. I am so grateful to have a
nice group of unschoolers around.
Jean
Deborah Lewis
That's a great story! Wish I knew that many people close by = ) willing
to play in the rain.
I'd love to hear how you organized the nature walks, did you just call
folks and say "hey, how 'bout this" ?
How do you decide where to go and do all of you just get yourselves
there, or do you have a van or what?
Homeschoolers always cancel summer park days here when it rains! What's
up with that?
Deb L
On Thu, 10 Oct 2002 23:00:44 -0000 "avgjean" <avgjean@...> writes:
to play in the rain.
I'd love to hear how you organized the nature walks, did you just call
folks and say "hey, how 'bout this" ?
How do you decide where to go and do all of you just get yourselves
there, or do you have a van or what?
Homeschoolers always cancel summer park days here when it rains! What's
up with that?
Deb L
On Thu, 10 Oct 2002 23:00:44 -0000 "avgjean" <avgjean@...> writes:
> I love all your rain stories. I am glad I'm not the only one :))
> A couple of weeks ago, we were to have our first meeting of a Nature
>
> Club that I just organized. I have just invited about 6-8 other
> homeschooling families to go on nature walks with us once a month (I
>
> go with my girls every week). Anyway, on the first day, I woke up
> and it was raining! Of course, this being San Diego, it wasn't cold
>
> or anything. So I called everyone and told them that we were still
>
> going, but I would leave it up to them to go or not. Every single
> person showed up! Even people with babies and toddlers. We went
> for a creek walk, climbed rocks, splashed in the creek and got
> rained on for three hours. What a blast. I am so grateful to have a
>
> nice group of unschoolers around.
>
> Jean
avgjean
--- In AlwaysLearning@y..., Deborah Lewis <ddzimlew@j...> wrote:
Well, I have to admit, that even though I love all the homeschoolers
around, the crowding of this area is hard to take some days. Also,
it can be hard to find "nature." For our Nature Club we mostly will
go to state and county parks in the area.
The way I got it going was this: I have been toying with the idea
of starting some type of co-op activities that would be friendly for
bringing preschoolers and toddlers along, since most of my friends
have these! I thought of doing an art day, a games day, things liek
that. I wanted it to be free and not require too much commitment
from people, since I always hate the feeling of waking up and
realizing I commited to some activity that doesn't sound good that
day! I asked around and everyone I talked to said it sounded great,
so I armed myself with two books:
Walking San Diego--it maps out easy to difficult walks all over the
county with info about native habitats, etc.
Sharing Nature with Children--an old book by Joseph Cornell that has
simple awareness and appreciation activities for kids. I will pick
out one or two activities each time, but I just leave it open to the
mood whether we actually do them or not.
Then, each week, my girls and I go check out one or two of the
walks. When we find one that will work for a group, we invite
everyone by e-mail.
Well, I was hoping to get two or three other families to share our
walks, but already I have eight, and more interested. Yikes!
Jean
>willing
> That's a great story! Wish I knew that many people close by = )
> to play in the rain.call
> I'd love to hear how you organized the nature walks, did you just
> folks and say "hey, how 'bout this" ?Hi Deb
> How do you decide where to go and do all of you just get yourselves
> there, or do you have a van or what?
>
Well, I have to admit, that even though I love all the homeschoolers
around, the crowding of this area is hard to take some days. Also,
it can be hard to find "nature." For our Nature Club we mostly will
go to state and county parks in the area.
The way I got it going was this: I have been toying with the idea
of starting some type of co-op activities that would be friendly for
bringing preschoolers and toddlers along, since most of my friends
have these! I thought of doing an art day, a games day, things liek
that. I wanted it to be free and not require too much commitment
from people, since I always hate the feeling of waking up and
realizing I commited to some activity that doesn't sound good that
day! I asked around and everyone I talked to said it sounded great,
so I armed myself with two books:
Walking San Diego--it maps out easy to difficult walks all over the
county with info about native habitats, etc.
Sharing Nature with Children--an old book by Joseph Cornell that has
simple awareness and appreciation activities for kids. I will pick
out one or two activities each time, but I just leave it open to the
mood whether we actually do them or not.
Then, each week, my girls and I go check out one or two of the
walks. When we find one that will work for a group, we invite
everyone by e-mail.
Well, I was hoping to get two or three other families to share our
walks, but already I have eight, and more interested. Yikes!
Jean
Deborah Lewis
Thanks for your thoughts.
I called some of the homeschoolers around here, not to many these days,
and no unschoolers, but none of them were interested. I thought it would
be fun for the kids but the moms just aren't into hiking, etc.
There have been park days here but they only last an hour and my kid's
just getting warmed up by the time the other kids are being dragged home.
We go anyway, and we have fun. = )
Deb L
On Thu, 10 Oct 2002 23:40:24 -0000 "avgjean" <avgjean@...> writes:
I called some of the homeschoolers around here, not to many these days,
and no unschoolers, but none of them were interested. I thought it would
be fun for the kids but the moms just aren't into hiking, etc.
There have been park days here but they only last an hour and my kid's
just getting warmed up by the time the other kids are being dragged home.
We go anyway, and we have fun. = )
Deb L
On Thu, 10 Oct 2002 23:40:24 -0000 "avgjean" <avgjean@...> writes:
> Hi Deb
> Well, I have to admit, that even though I love all the homeschoolers
>
> around, the crowding of this area is hard to take some days. Also,
> it can be hard to find "nature." For our Nature Club we mostly will
>
> go to state and county parks in the area.
>
> The way I got it going was this: I have been toying with the idea
> of starting some type of co-op activities that would be friendly for
>
> bringing preschoolers and toddlers along, since most of my friends
> have these! I thought of doing an art day, a games day, things liek
>
> that. I wanted it to be free and not require too much commitment
> from people, since I always hate the feeling of waking up and
> realizing I commited to some activity that doesn't sound good that
> day! I asked around and everyone I talked to said it sounded great,
>
> so I armed myself with two books:
> Walking San Diego--it maps out easy to difficult walks all over the
>
> county with info about native habitats, etc.
> Sharing Nature with Children--an old book by Joseph Cornell that has
>
> simple awareness and appreciation activities for kids. I will pick
>
> out one or two activities each time, but I just leave it open to the
>
> mood whether we actually do them or not.
> Then, each week, my girls and I go check out one or two of the
> walks. When we find one that will work for a group, we invite
> everyone by e-mail.
> Well, I was hoping to get two or three other families to share our
> walks, but already I have eight, and more interested. Yikes!
>
> Jean