My Daybook: 10th November, 2016

Outside my window…

it’s a cooler evening, the hot ‘bushfire winds’ from earlier in the week have been broken by fierce thunderstorms

I am thankful…

to have been able to enjoy the gift of motherhood, I’m most conscious that many women/couples suffer from fertility issues and so I never, ever take this gift for granted

I am thinking…

about the American election results, so stunned and yet not. Reading around, ‘listening’ to the average American it appears the votes weren’t necessarily a vote for Trump but more a vote against Clinton, a groundswell reaction against corruption. Fascinating

Learning all the time…

we began our annual bookfeast last week with Leaping into Literature, which then snowballed into a full blown book reading marathon for the entire family, which led to the reappearance of a beloved family ritual, The Bookworm. A ritual that is well overdue a fuller explanation so stay tuned

Celebrating the liturgical year……

we celebrated the Feast of All Saints a couple of weeks ago. In Australian the Feast of All Saints is no longer a Holy Day of Obligation, in fact we only have two Holy Days of Obligation and all Sundays, The Feast of the Assumption and Christmas

From the kitchen…

I’m still love, love, loving our new kitchen 🙂 Extremely grateful to have such a beautiful kitchen, I pinch myself daily

I am creating…

our children have been creating an incredible art gallery thanks to artventure. The quality of the watercolours they daily produce astound us, a post showcasing their artworks to be forthcoming soon

I am working on…

researching the best company for creating photo books, a task long overdue, twelve years overdue. There is sure to be upcoming massive Christmas discounts, but first I need to make a decision on the best photo books regards; picture quality, templates, price and ease of use. If any Aussies have any experience, opinions please weigh in!

I am going…

enjoying a slow weekend with no house projects occuring, well there are plenty of projects needing attending but we’re giving ourselves a few weeks to recuperate as we’re burntout out from the great Kitchen Remake

I am hoping…

to place our order for Saint Nicholas Day presents this weekend, each year we buy the children a Catholic fiction or spiritual book for St Nick’s. Then I’d like to turn our attention towards selecting and ordering all our Christmas presents early this year, in fact before Advent.  Whenever I’ve previously managed to do this Advent has been such a special time of Preparation

I am praying…

prayers of thanksgiving for the many blessings we enjoy in our life, prayers of petition for our loved ones needs

I am pondering….

a paragraph I read in Big Magic, paraphrasing:

In our twenties and thirties we worry about what others think, in our forties and fifties we no longer worry what others think, in our sixties and seventies we realise no one was thinking about us they were too busy thinking about themselves

Love it! Spot on

I am reading…

just finished reading my first Amanda Prowse book, What Have I Done? I can’t get it out of my head.  It’s harrowing, the theme is about domestic abuse, torture. In parts the book is gripping, well written, other parts the characters disappointing. I particularly struggled with the survivor’s children, she views them as wonderful children, I saw them as selfish.These ‘wonderful’ children for whom she sacrificed so much blame their mother when she was the victim

I am listening to……

the sounds of the children as they settle themselves in their rooms for the night; one wanders out in search of a pencil, another for a book, another for a last minute discussion

I am hearing…

thunder rumbling, another storm is brewing, I’ll have to turn the computer off soon, the iron in the surrounding hills attract lightning bolts that will fry the computers if they are left on during lighting storms

I am struggling…

to be enthused about lessons, a regular issue at this time of the year as the academic year draws to a close and the stinking hot weather saps energy. I have a two pronged solution, first to convince PC to cut a hole in the wall and install the airconditione, then implement our ‘Bookworm’ which will ‘save the day’, more on that soon

Clicking around…

I’ve read some great posts recently but as I haven’t managed to work out how to bookmark with the new diigo version I haven’t any saved.

I have one thought provoking, personally challenging post to share:

Memory Work (or “How I Once Was Lost But Now Am Found”) – Memory work is not about how many useless facts and disjointed speeches, chants, and poems can be crammed into a little brain.  The purpose of classical education is to foster wisdom utilizing the three (natural) phases of learning in the trivium.  The first of these is the grammar stage, in which young minds (up to about 6th grade) are remarkably capable of extensive memorization….When applied properly, memory work in the areas of grammar, math, poetry and literature, geography, and even history, will not hinder critical thinking and imagination, but will provide a foundation for further education, exploration, understanding, and expression…. I’m confident that intentional memory work is helping my kids create a mental structure that will serve and delight them (God willing!) for the rest of their livelong days.  

Around the house…

there are many projects awaiting but we’re currently in renovation recovery mode. However the list waiting is long, I suggested to PC that rather than tackle that daunting list with the crossing concept, perhaps we should start wtih a blank piece of paper and write a list of achievements instead

One of my favorite things…

my family; husband and children, time together.  We so enjoyed our family holiday treasuring our time together. To be sure there were challenges, namely meeting the needs and wishes of a wide age spread and the shortcomings of our holiday house and location, however the time together was precious, a shining memory created. We’re planning to make it an annual event

A few plans for this week…

we’re in the full swing of extra curricular activities; speech therapy and writing classes, swimming lessons and swim squad, dance lessons and dance concert practices. Thankfully I have three extra drivers in the house to assist when energy flags

A little peek at my day…

it’s been a lazy day today; reading, resting, recovering, just what we needed