Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Words and Wool

Part of my summer goals involves a good bit of knitting! Not only will the knitting provide relaxation, but also give me some necessary items for our trip later this summer.

I am making good progress on Ronnie the Fox. All pieces have been knit and I have begun sewing him together, which is always the fiddly, annoying part, but also very rewarding. Maybe by next week I'll have him finished!


I've also started a Wee Black Faced Sheep and he was super fast to knit so I'm actually already working on a cabled jumper for him. I just need to take time to sew him up!


And I'm back to sewing flowers for summer sales.


At our homeschool group's year end program my Knitting Club organized a sale to benefit World Vision and Voice of the Martyrs. They raised over $100! I'm so proud of them! And I enjoy our club times so much! I love working with girls.


As for books, here's what I've been reading:


How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk by Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish is a great, practical book on interacting with your kids! Why have I never heard of it until now? (And thanks to Catherine for recommending it!) Some of the major points covered are: empathizing with your child's feelings, how to get cooperation, letting your child experience consequences, encouraging autonomy, praising your child, and avoiding labeling your child. The book is filled with helpful scenarios and ideas. I took notes and it is the kind of book that wouldn't hurt being read every year. Most certainly an aid toward raising your kids in love and nurture rather than frustration.

We Are Sisters (Dee Brestin's Series) by Dee Brestin was a follow up book to The Friendships of Women. The book not only applies to friendships among women in general but also specifically to female siblings. I would certainly recommend it.

The Second Mrs. Gioconda by E. L. Konigsburg is a children's book focusing on the life of Leonardo da Vinci from the viewpoint of one of his servant boys. It gives a good description of what life was like in Leonardo's world although I felt the plot was quite thin. However, the children still seemed to enjoy it and I think it served to etch Leonardo into their memories.

  Well Fed: Paleo Recipes for People Who Love to Eat. Thanks to my friend Jess for recommending this book! I LOVE it! I think I will plan to cook from it all summer long! Each meals consists of some sort of delicious meat/protein and a variety of vegetables. Our family adds one starch to our meals. So far, I don't think I've had any real complaining from the children and I've loved every recipe we've tried. The Czech meatballs are especially delicious!

All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot. I've started showing the children this television series in preparation for our travels and so I thought I might pick this up and read it again. Who can resist heart-warming animal and people stories from the Yorkshire Dales!!

For more knitting and reading ideas, hop over to Ginny's Yarn Along.

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4 comments:

Unknown said...

I'll definitely have to look into the well feed Paleo. A friend bought my family a small share for an organic CSA farm, which runs for 22 weeks. Plus, we like eating meat, so that book may be helpful.

Jennifer said...

I love the picture of your homeschool club. I just started teaching some of my 4H kids, 4 of which are homeschooled, to knit. Everyone is between 8 and 10 years old and they are all having fun!

Amanda said...

Found you through Ginny's Yarn Along. I think your foxy looks good! I've found that Paleo cookbooks are an easy start toward Gluten Free cooking, which my family requires, so thanks for that mention!

Anonymous said...

Well done to the girls for raising such a handsome sum! We sponsor a child through World Vision and I think they are a fantastic organisation.

Your reading looks good too!