Oil Museum of Canada

Yesterday was an incredible day. A friend from the theatre company called to say "it's cold, but the ground is frozen and the sun is out, let's go on our tour today". I was thrilled as she is a member of the family Fairbank, one of the founders of oil in North America.

Remember the show dallas? Jr Ewing was a fictional character on the show, but he existed for real in these parts. Given the right conditions, and you can smell the sulphery sweet stuff for yourself. there used to be five or six derricks in my very own backyard back in the late 1800's. And, yes, you do get used to the smell after a while, and yes, I have tasted it. Just yesterday as a matter of fact. Yesterday, the boys and I became unofficial hard-oilers thanks to our gracious hostess Sylvia Fairbank. Ok, so she had to do it first, and it was unbelievably salty (and also sweet) and oily but it made for an incredible birthday surprise for Jonam. And boy was it cold out there!

She took us to the Oil Museum in Oil Springs then off to see the jerker lines still running smoothly, on her brother's property on Gypsy Flats Road and Gumbed Line (no. I am not making those names up). The technology is still the same as it was in 1860. No need to change much except the addition of electric motors (only three horse-power each). Charlie Fairbank is the last living oil baron, still producing, from a long line of those hard-working families that made the initial discovery. He produces between 1/16th and 1 barrel of oil daily. It used to run anywhere between 5 and 10 barrels a day back when things were good. Fascinating stuff. Information overload. It will take me a lifetime to learn as much as Sylvia tried to teach us yesterday. I love her zest for life and her willingness to talk to us about days gone by. And she is always smiling. And she happens to love the kind of education my boys are privileged to receive at my hand. As a matter of fact, our heritage firehall home was once owned by her great uncle.

While driving in her car yesterday afternoon, Evan said "this is so much better than school" and, simultaneously, Sylvia and I said "this IS school!"

This summer marks the 150 anniversary of the first commercial oil well in North America. We tried the spring board just yesterday. 1858 in oil town. Jonam is in a play called Alice in Oil Town (the history of our town based on Alice in Wonderland) and I am in Perils at Petrolia, or: Dastardly Doings at the Derrick or: Foiled by Oil. My play runs Easter weekend; Jonam's is in April.

Hope you can come see us this year. You won't want to miss out. And if your foot accidentally gets stuck in a gumbed? Well, we have a spare room just waiting for you.

how did he get to be thirteen?

My oldest is now, officially, a teenager. I am not in denial, just a little taken back. I know, I know, we all have the same number of years to plan for this, but it still snuck up on me while I wasn't looking. At least he still loves to play Lego ... only now it's usually weapons or models from movie scenes and involves simple motors and definitely blows up and ultimately becomes a low-budget flick on youtube.

I am starting to find crumpled tissues and reading glasses in my pockets much more often ...

only yesterday, I thought, at the Brock Monument near the falls
just last month. where does the time go? happiness is ... the future

Macbeth
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Macbeth is among the best-known of William Shakespeare 's plays, and is his shortest and bloodiest tragedy. It is frequently performed at both amateur and professional levels, and frequently adapted. Often regarded as archetypal, the play tells of the dangers of the lust for power and the betrayal of friends. For the plot Shakespeare drew loosely on the historical account of King Macbeth of Scotland by Raphael Holinshed and that by the Scottish philosopher Hector Boece.[1] There are many superstitions centred on the belief the play is somehow "cursed", and many actors will not mention the name of the play aloud, referring to it instead as "the Scottish play".

Talk about tragedy.
While I was in University, one of my all-time favourite classes was, you guessed it, Shakespeare. Sister Corona informed us on day one that the final exam would be on thirteen of the fifteen plays we were to study. My roommate at the time, working on her Masters Degree, suggested I choose thirteen of the plays to read and forget about the remaining two. Focus was the key. She was correct. I aced the class due, largely, to my intense love of his plays and my keen interest in theatre in general. One of my most loved works of his is the tragedy of Macbeth.
Today I read aloud to the boys from Lamb's Tales of Shakespeare as is the custom on Tuesday. They were pretty shocked that I would read this grim and gruesome tale even to myself let alone OUT LOUD. I must have climbed the cool homeschooling mom ladder today. It was certainly not due to the glasses I wore whilst reading. It definitely had to do with the myriad of voices I used.
I thought I might also quote my favourite line from this adaptation
The king entered well pleased with the place, and not less so with the attentions and respect of his honoured hostess, Lady Macbeth, who had the art of covering treacherous purposes with smiles, and could look like the innocent flower, while she was indeed the serpent under it.
Seriously sagacious, perfectly perspicacious, greatly guileless, unusually unstable, Tuesday teatime.

my students worked like mad again this morning and were able to get a lot done on their lino. I am, of course, quite proud of their accomplishments and hope DickBlick offers another chance for us to display the end results. I didn't win anything last year, though having 24 students in our own home was reward enough (not to mention I was able to purchase my very own block press). this year, I would like to offer my students a reward for working hard and think that having your work displayed online is a great one. I also enjoy seeing the work of thousands of other students from all across the U.S.

here is a display of week four ...

hardtack habit?

Nope. I don't think I will make this a habit, but we did have a good time making this recipe especially since it is Cheaper by the Dozen learning again today, this time from Chapter 12 the Rena. I know I may be biased, but we are having a blast learning this way. I may have finally found a niche. here is the website

American Civil War Recipes and Cooking


and here are the results. I am eating mine with homemade strawberry jam as I type. homeschool hardship for sure

tuesday teatime in front of the fire

I have been a long time proponent of charlotte mason, and an even longer-time proponent of tea (rumour has it I have been sipping the nectar of the gods since the tender age of three, with copious amounts of milk, in a bottle. I have long since cut back on both milk and bottles but never on tea) so, here we are, artfully staged in front of our woodstove.

anything I can do to entice tennessee to come this way ...

you know you're a homeschooler when ...

Your almost thirteen year old son wakes up and says "I had an awesome dream last night."

and it was about going to a library.

(Heather, if you are reading this, he was specifically referring to YOUR library, back "home", in St. Thomas, where the children's section is HUGE, and has EVERY book you could ever want.)

imitations

bestsister sent me a link to this post today. I love the simple yet powerful message in the following sentences: So if I were to say to the Lord, "Watch this!" while I do the equivalent of a lopsided somersault on the living room floor, He would say, "Wow! Good job!" just like I say to the small persons who perform such exploits for me. They haven't got all of Olga Korbut's moves down yet. I haven't got all of Jesus' moves down yet. But that doesn't stop my heavenly Father delighting in my attempts to imitate Him. child-like faith, child-like obedience, child-like trust that someone is watching all the time, faith that is fun and freeing.

late last night

late last night
I came to a bit of a conclusion. I cannot do everything on my own. wow. so I ordered a science curriculum package and when it arrives, I will put all the things I have gathered for science WITH it and it will, hopefully, be a wonderfully fruitful marriage. I am a writer of literature study guides, not science ones. It just took a while for me to finally decide to do something about it, and no, the kids won't fail because I took my time. They have barely even noticed.
Then, this morning, I received a few e-mails regarding my seriously stuck question and I put some of the words to an image in my mind and thought maybe you would like to share in that with me.


DECISIONS



ah yes the biggest issue we all face...how do we really know what the best plan is ... you will never really really know ...  all you can do is listen and try to hear to the best you can, to discover all you can about yourself and how what you decide will affect those who love you.

just a simple geography lesson?

Lesson 2 ~ Assignment ( Geography, Province to Province, Donna Ward )

Pick one of the products listed below. On a piece of lined paper write about each stage of production needed to complete the product.

wooden desk clay plant pot newspaper loaf of bread

Here is oldest son's report:

Loaf of bread, cycle of manufacturing

Primary: farmer grows grain and sells to manufacturer

Secondary: factory throws away wheat from farmer, uses genetically altered wheat, makes bread, sells to store

Tertiary: grocery store buys bread, sells to customer

Primary again: farmer buys bread, savouring flavour of "home-grown" wheat.

thinking about homeschooling?

My friend e-mailed me this week asking for some kind of presentation she could give to a group of parents at her children's Private Christian school. Some of them are considering homeschooling as an option (likely after graduation from grade eight) for their kids and this is what I wrote back to her.

For me, it was a whole lot of research and prayer. Here are some websites you can check out.

http://www.studentsforlife.net/ontario.html
http://www.thehomeschoolmagazine.com/
http://www.donnayoung.org/forms/help/newbie.htm
http://www.ochec.org/
http://www.homehearts.com/beechick.html

Louise House is always willing to talk with and help Mom's choosing curriculum and she is right in Goderich, in a wonderful store.
http://www.learninghouse.ca/

"Blair Warner", remember her from the show The Facts of Life? She, Lisa Welchel, has written some really great books, one entitled "So You're Thinking About Homeschooling?" that covers a lot of the basics and is available from Focus on the Family, or probably even Chapters. As a matter of fact, Chapters has quite a selection of books to read about beginning homeschooling. The Public Library would be another great place to start.
I asked around at West London Alliance church and Mindy (bless her heart) had me over for tea and had asked a bunch of homeschooling Moms to bring over their particular curriculum so I could look it over when I was just beginning.
The big homeschool conference will be coming up, in Kitchener, in April, and it features speakers and curriculum vendors.

To the Mom considering homeschooling:

I would personally say that the two biggest determining factors, seriously, are these: do you really feel God is asking you (calling you, if you want to say that ) to do this? and do you really love spending lots (like, ridiculously lots) of time with your children? You need to know that God is asking you to homeschool because there will be times, maybe even every day for a while, that you experience doubt or frustration, especially if your children have been previously schooled elsewhere. It is a big adjustment for everyone, not just Mom. The kids need time to just "be" and not have to perform for academic reasons for a while, even a few months. They need time to adjust, more-so if they have been in a Public setting as opposed to a Christian school setting, where the parent could even purchase the same curriculum that the child has been used to.
Realize that you, Mom, will now be wearing all hats all the time, without the breaks from your children that you have been accustomed to. Also, many times others, though well-intentioned, do not always understand or appreciate the fact that you are not just "at home relaxing" and you cannot come over at a moment's notice for tea or lunch ... you have children that need your attention. You are now both teacher and homework helper. It can be tiring to say the least.
Hopefully you have family and friends to support you. Do understand, as well, that not everyone will understand or even appreciate what you are trying to do through homeschooling. You will be challenged ... and you will also be rewarded.

Home really is cool. (thanks for asking)
p.s. and if you're really lucky, no one will even be able to tell that you homeschool! (don't tell the Mom's this one, though!)

Kristina

this being our second full week back to school (though we started in our home on the 2nd) I thought I would post some pictures of what we're up to. Jonam begins rehearsals for Alice in Oil Town tonight (and rehearses three nights a week for two hours each time), as the White Rabbit. I, myself, went to an audition last night for Perils of Petrolia, a melodrama celebrating our town's oil-rich heritage. 2008 marks the 150th anniversary of the discovery of oil in these here parts. I haven't decided yet if I will accept a role, but it is awfully tempting at times.

here is a quick snapshot of the projects we are working on at HIGH Day, on Monday mornings.
two puppets, who need faces and mouths glued in etc, a project on piranha's (not so easy to find information), a movie script which will take until May to write and film, and a book that will be illustrated and bound. I will update with pictures as the work progresses over the next six weeks.

thursday throwback, camp pioneer

this will be a busy day today with school lessons to do, cleaning to complete, and rehearsals for two of the four of us. this morning, thinking about getting ready to do school, I was remembering back 18 years ago, when I was 18. It doesn't seem possible that I am correct in saying that, but nevertheless, I was likely suffering withdrawl. I had spent the summer of 1990 across Lake Erie, in New York State, working as a camp counselor with a great staff. One girl in particular was introduced to me, to be my friend, and we were inseparable the whole glorious summer. I don't know where she is now, but I hope to re-connect with her one day.

Rachel from Rochester. Someone took took picture of us while we were unaware. I think I was looking across the water thinking about my own beach back home. I am on the left. we have our arms around each other and the sun is setting. glorious summer.

Then there is the photograph of the whole lot of us. I am holding Rachel's hand. It was an amazing summer of growth for me. Being away from everyone I knew was perfect. I remember my mom calling the pay phone (there was one in the office but you weren't likely to get anyone there so you would call the pay phone and whoever happened to be walking by would answer it, then run to find the person being asked for. It was quirky now that I think about it but seemed quite normal at the time)

Anyway, mom was calling to tell me I had been accepted into the University of Western Ontario. I had thought I was going back to High School for grade fourteen. (You have to be from Ontario and over the age of 30 to understand that one) I had many mixed emotions, but I did go to Uni. and I did get my degree.

Camp Pioneer. I had to sing Oh Canada to receive any mail. I had to run around the dining hall a lot for having my elbows on the table. I was a sleep walker and would end up outside my cabin freqently. Rachel and I ran the beach every morning and refused dessert regularly. I had just finished a year of rowing at school and she was a serious swimmer. I discovered I was allergic to dogwood fluff. My boyfriend never did come to visit me (wasn't Neal). I cried a lot.

I never wanted to leave and couldn't wait to go.

The counselors stole pizza every orientation night and snuck up into Hillman Hall to watch Saturday Night Live (it was on at ten pm in New York State!) We would also get caught around 10:45 every orientation night by the night watchman who threatened to have all of us sent back home. Part of us would have liked that. It was anything but an easy summer but I would do it all over again.

friday freefall, my memory of tennessee

My memory was jogged by an e-mail this evening. here is my friday freefall ...

I miss the weeks we had in tennessee, the very first time, when no one knew who we were and we knew no one. there were no expectations for our free time whatsoever, and neal and I forged a bond that has not been broken since and hpefully never will be.

It was intense freedom.

anxious for nothing, but still full of questions

anxious for nothing, but still full of questions
I have renewed hope. Both because it's a new year and, (not that He is a new God) because I have a new way of seeing Him. My perception is, slowly but surely, being transformed to see the differences between faith and trust. I recently read something by James Dobson that shed huge amounts of light upon something I had been struggling with for over a decade. I love it when someone else speaks so succinctly that it all falls into place, well in to my cranial reasoning anyway. I am sure my heart is also following suit.
It is not difficult for some of us to believe that God is capable of performing mighty deeds. After all, He created the entire universe from nothingness. He has the power to do anything He chooses. Having faith in Him can be a fairly straightforward thing.
To demonstrate trust, however, takes the relationship a step further. It involves the element of risk. It requires us to depend on Him to keep His promises, even when proof is not provided. It is continuing to believe when the evidence points in the opposite direction.
This is hard enough some days in my homeschool journey especially when I am seriously believing we will continue to homeschool through high school. That is not the popular decision around this county (which I have said before is just geographically huge) to say the least. Most people, if Dutch in heritage, send their kids to a private Christian school about a 45 minute drive from here OR, if not Dutch in heritage, the nearest Public High School does the trick. Why, after all, would a Mom consider homeschooling when it finally gets "serious". Funny that.
Add this element of faith moving into trust in my other life, that not pertaining to homeschooling, and I have some serious issues to face. This is when I am glad for family and for-real friends and trips to Barrie ... no one expects me to figure it all out in an instant, but they know I'm all about the adventure.
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jan. 1, 2008 new year, new start

I spent a ridiculous amount of time awake last night praying through my regrets. now, before you go calling me a legalist, it was actually entirely cathartic and peace-inducing. just me, my blankets and my God, sweetly calling to remembrance those things that I thought I had dealt with which actually needed to be laid at His feet for good. the whole process took about an hour or so, and it left me fresh to tackle today's task ... refining the schedule for this next term of lessons.
now, before we embarked on our Christmas break of sorts, my oldest got out the Farmer's Almanac for 2007 and did a handwriting analysis. ok, so now I am a heathen. but for those who actually know something about me, here are the results:
you are expressive, extroverted. you have avoidance of the past (see above), a communicative nature, courage in facing life. goals are important (ask my children what we discussed on the way home last night, being new year's eve). you enjoy the spotlight, have imagination, strong willpower, optimism, fickleness, lively wit, original mind, thirsty mind, critical, practicality, caution, good judgement, conflicted between keen mind and yielding nature.
right on the money (not that we endorse gambling of any kind in this house). it made me chuckle when I came across my forgotten place in Elaine Cooper's book When Children Love to Learn
Looking at what is to be taught throughout the years of schooling can be an overwhelming task at times as we see examples of delayed and accelerated learning. These are two extremes to avoid. The attitude of not introducing a discipline of study until children show an interest allows children to limit themselves according to what they know, as well as to acquire a debilitating habit of acting according to feelings. By contrast, the accelerated approach looks at learning in the realm of conquest rather than as a natural affinity in relationship with the world.
this has certainly proven to be my biggest homeschooling struggle. my interest in unschooling methods which seem to produce such spontaneous adventures and my desire for structure and routine. not all of life is a rollercoaster ride ... there lies much of the mundane in a month. if only soap operas where this good ...
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beautiful, bethany dillon