Some pics from a recent visit of a good friend.

Mothering and Daily Frustrations

Today my 2 1/2 year old thought it would be entertaining to flood the kitchen floor with the garden hose, cheered on by the hysteric screeches of my 8 month old.

Thats his thing lately, performing for the laughs of his younger brother and the antics are getting wilder and wilder, bringing us to todays latest.

I wonder if other moms can stay calm and steady when this kind of happens, but I certainly couldnt.

My whole day gets thrown for a spin, and its never returns to normal. I find that so frustrating, how I can get so affected by my kid's antics. Its like they are ganging up on me. Im sure I only birthed them so my life could be more difficult?

My husband took the top of the tap off, the part you turn to open it. That should stop it happening again, for a while.

When someone asks you 'What about Socialisation?"

A lady I know asked me this the other day and just a few days later I came across this article "Reshaping the Puzzle to Fit the Pieces"
by Mark and Helen Hegener and two paragraphs seemed to sum it up nicely:

" Most of us are familiar with the old argument against homeschooling that runs along the lines of "If you keep your children out of school and teach them at home, how will they ever learn to fit into society?" The underlying and not so subtle message is that if you don't go with the flow you'll ruin your children and they'll grow up to be social misfits with no hope of ever leading normal, productive lives.

There's one small but highly significant point that often escapes these naysayers, even though it's usually standing right in front of them. Homeschooling parents hear the beat of a different drummer. They don't necessarily want their children to be molded into today's society but to find their own place within it. They usually have much more interesting hopes and dreams for their children."

Nice eh! I often have wanted a savvy answer for the socialiation question, especially when it comes from a sarcasti or ignorant person. I can just see it now " Well... to be honest, I actually have higher hopes for my kids".

A great homeschooling resource

I can across this great homeschooling site Besthomeschooling through Home of Mothering Magazine (a great website on natural family living with an awesome discussion board)


I read through a couple articles and totally felt this was something I should share. Its a great resource for any family whos beginning the journey of home education.

A couple quotes from one article that stood out to me:

"What I've seen over the years is that homeschooling is most successful as a way of life when we can manage to let go of the limiting notion of a separate activity called "homeschooling." Although there are many important things to learn (and to study) about the world and about our lives, learning can and does thrive quite abundantly and naturally without a structured schooling format. Children want and need their parents to be parents, not home school teachers. The greatest joys and successes seems to come in just being, learning, and growing together in mutual respect, and that can take many forms that have no categorized name."
From: Considering Methods & Styles of Homeschooling by Lillian Jones

And this is a great gem of insight:

"When we adults think of children, there is a simple truth which we ignore: childhood is not preparation for life, childhood is life. A child isn't getting ready to live - a child is living. The child is constantly confronted with the nagging question, "What are you going to be?" Courageous would be the youngster who, looking the adult squarely in the face, would say, "I'm not going to be anything; I already am." We adults would be shocked by such an insolent remark for we have forgotten, if indeed we ever knew, that a child is an active participating and contributing member of society from the time he is born. Childhood isn't a time when he is molded into a human who will then live life; he is a human who is living life. No child will miss the zest and joy of living unless these are denied him by adults who have convinced themselves that childhood is a period of preparation.
An excerpt from 'Notes On An Unhurried Journey' by John A. Taylor, from the same article.

What insightful words. We forget so easily that because a young child does not have the vocabulary or everyday skills that an adult has, that some how they are less, and not a human being in thier own right, but something that needs to be moulded and taught.

What is this blog about?

Welcome to my blog.

I will discuss and share our journey trying to live as far as posible from the system/establishment set in place by our governments.

What this means for us so far:

-avoiding the medical establishment for events such as birth and sickness,

-avoiding the use of TV and other usless media such as newspapers and entertainment magazines in our home,

-avoiding the politically correct diet and eating the way our ancestors did,

-not subjecting our children to the dumbing monotony of an engagement called school,

-raising our children in such a way and employing methods that have been used for thousands of years.