Back to life + rose petals

Suffice it to say we've been extraordinarily busy for the past year. The last six months were particularly intense and when the flu arrived at our home in September, followed by a hospital run, our manuscript deadline,  photoshoot, the Spiral Garden end of year rush, and a house full of family visiting for Christmas, we abandoned more structured home educating days and embraced our unschooling ways again. Long days (and nights!) of work sat alongside owlets undertaking their own exploration and projects, meeting with us to discuss and reflect and assist as we were able, and peppered with the odd trip to the beach or play at the playground, while I frantically responded to emails on my phone. It wasn't what any of us felt was ideal. It was a slog. But we got all the jobs done and survived it in relatively good spirits. And now we're slowly creeping back to life as we knew it before. Slowly remembering there's a garden to feed us. Remembering the mending pile, the preserving season, the books to read, the wardrobes to reorganise, the tax to do, pictures we've forgotten to hang in their proper places as we've moved through a year doing only the basics.

This week the owlets requested a return to the more formal elements of their learning-filled days, that they've come to love. Workbooks and reading and discussion, art activities and exploration are where it's at for them. And the focussed time we spend together is dear to all of our hearts. It's still another couple of weeks before the Tasmanian school year begins, but we have the freedom to take holidays and end the year as we please, so we follow the enthusiasm when it arrives. On Monday at about 9.15am, we decided it was time.

We began with the regular milestone photo by the front door and a sprinkling of rose petals and cheers as owlets wandered back inside, filled with excitement and renewed energy. I gave myself a sprinkling of petals and owlets cheered loudly for me too, because we're all in this together. Then we gathered at our little round table, which was set with a jar full of flowers, a candle, and some new writing materials for the year. We've decided to use folders this year, because paper isn't wasted like it  often is in the unused pages of exercise, scrap, or main lesson books. The owlets chose their favourite Lyra pencils to write and draw with, and we took a little tour through the books and subjects they've asked to work with this year. I'm a fairly relaxed planner, but I've been gathering interesting resources and making plans for the owlets for the past few months, checking in on their own plans and wishes.

Big Owlet has asked to spend time delving into science, art history and witchy things. She also wants to improve her understanding of mathematical concepts, learn to write academically, gently explore literature, and poetry. Little Owlet is so inspired by storytelling right now, so Ancient History is where we'll begin with her, alongside the shelf full of books she's likely to devour this year. She's keen for some scientific learnings too, with a Harry Potter inspired slant of potions, astronomy and herbology. Tiny is desperate to read, keen on maths, and into whatever her sisters are doing, with a practical focus, and lots of play.

This far along in our home educating lives, we know with some confidence, what works for us and what doesn't. We also know to be flexible, and that you often can't plan the greatest opportunities to learn, and that the most valuable lessons usually come from life. Tangents are meant to be followed. So we began with the plan of science and craft on Monday. Astronomy for Big Owlet, biology for Little, chemistry for Tiny. Then Little and Tiny set about painting some small cardboard tubes to create families of people, before looking through my grandmother's button collection to find her old earrings. Tiny learnt to crochet, and Big began making prototypes for her small business. Before long, the owlets were catching up with their friends via Skype, while I snuck in a couple of hours work, emailing customers and fulfilling orders, as dinner bubbled away on the stove. Tuesday was much the same, with english, herbology, and the hours of gardening and cooking that seemed to happen as part of that, including spontaneous ANZACs and jam making for Little Owlet, who made what is probably the greatest backyard apricot and vanilla bean jam of all time! 

Life is full, messy, busy and ridiculously lovely right now, and I'm so glad we're finding more time again to notice it. So glad to spend my days with these owlets. So glad they're choosing to spend their days here together. And I'm aware of how soon these precious days will be behind us. A beautiful blur of questions, cups of tea, conversation, love, pikelets, creativity, and rose petals.

Beyond Unschooling

If you've been a reader of this blog for some time, you'll know that our main approach to owlet learning and living has been through unschooling. We've always followed their lead, since they were very small. Aside from that little moment of Steiner kindergarten for Big Owlet, we've just lived life and helped the owlets learn what they needed, when the needed. It's been beautiful and amazing, and a huge learning curve for us in observing and letting go and trusting that they will learn when and what they need. We wouldn't have it any other way.

As we stepped into last year, however, the owlets asked for more. They felt they wanted a plan mapped out for them. They wanted to learn more, explore more. And they wanted to work. Big Owlet was particularly keen to see where she was at and if she was on par with the peers that she knew at that Steiner kindy so many moons ago. But she was also adamant that she didn't want to go to school. She loves the freedom we have at home. Loves the ease and convenience of being where everything she loves and needs is, all day. All the owlets do - who doesn't?

So we set about finding structure and work, but balancing it with freedom. And we arrived at Oak Meadow. We've been using the Oak Meadow curriculum for Big Owlet for almost a year now. Little Owlet has also darted around the grades, then taken some time to focus on gardening, and she's now back on board and into her third week of a new year. Tiny began puddling around with her own "special books" (Oakmeadow Kindergarten) half-way through last year and is now into week three of Grade One.  I spent the first three weeks of this year planning and finding extra resources and mapping out our year. We're all in and we have a daily rhythm and we're working hard on all the things every day. Who even are we? Essentially we're still following the owlets' lead... Unschooling with book guides? Haha! It feels like the same life, but with different hashtags.

So how did the owlets measure up? Well, there were a few new concepts that curriculum based learning introduced. We found that the writing component of the program was challenging - there's so much writing! So we've been working through slowly, picking and choosing. We began at a level that covered much of the history learning Big Owlet was after and she's now at exactly the same place as those Steiner kindy peers. Little Owlet needed a little extra time with hands on work before she felt like settling down to bookwork. Her spelling needed some help, so using a formal program has done wonders for her confidence. Both bigger owlets can read very well, despite very little input from us. It really has just happened with time, patience, lots of reading aloud on our part, and effort on their part. Maths… well there are quite a few concepts which the owlets hadn't encountered yet. But they learn new maths concepts extremely quickly, so with Khan academy and extra time chatting it through with Huz, we've got them covered. Science - well, the Owlets find all those unschooling years and the way we live, observing and exploring, mean they have a great grasp on nature and science.

The beauty of the Oak Meadow program is that from Grade 4 onward, it is written to the student, so the owlets can work somewhat autonomously. The program is rather extensive, so they pick and choose the projects that really appeal to them and we supplement with extra outings, books, films and performances. And some days we put it all aside because it's a perfect beach day and there's so much learning and living to be done there.

I'm so glad for our unschooling years. They mean we learn creatively and resourcefully. They mean that I don't stress over skipped days or push things that the Owlets don't find interesting or essential. They mean that I know we'll get to where we need to be eventually, trusting the process of living and learning, together in partnership. Whichever approach you take, and whatever you decide to call it, that's really what it should all be about, after all. That's where the real learning is.

How's your year going?

I'll be sharing a little more of our learning adventures, past and present, in weeks to come. 

Have a gorgeous week.

Much love, 

~ Lauren. xx

Rhythm, Surprises and Tiny.

It takes extra special effort to keep active, see friends and be present in the real world in the depths of winter. It's so easy to be swept along by the cocooning, short and fire-filled days. The desire to draw inward and snuggle by the fire and read a book can see days roll into weeks. The need to see friends can in some ways be met through social media, while owlets can choose spend hours with their friends on Minecraft, on days where venturing out seems all too hard. It's like having little portals to view the outside world, from the comfort of our couch. Regular jobs drag us along in a rhythm of bare essentials before we retreat. Before long, 4.30pm rolls around and the sun sinks as we stoke the fire and proclaim the day done. By midwinter, it takes extra motivation to break out of that cosy rut. Something special to get us rolling along again. Our three motivations each day are rhythm, surprises, and Tiny.



By 6am most mornings, Tiny is usually nudging me out of bed. "I'm hungry", she whispers, and we slip down the hallway to switch on the lights, feed the meowing cats and turn the heater on. Then we fold the clothes on the rack and chat about things while we decide what to have for breakfast. Tiny is like a tiger and when she's hungry or not engaged in an activity, she roars. Breakfast and lots of things to do are a priority. She's at that magical age where the world is opening up to her and she's full of awe and wonder. But on these winter days, it's so easy for me to get swept along with what needs doing, so the balance can shift and we forget to pause and play.



Owlets love surprises, so we like to mix things up with last minute day trips and thoughtful things. This week, I made Tiny a seasonal table, in a space we created a couple of weeks ago during a furniture re-shuffle. It's been such a long time since I paused to create something to draw her attention and she adored it. The magic of soft candle light, gentle colours and delicate things to admire and play with. It was like pressing the reset button on our winter, while giving her my full attention for a moment. Sometimes that connection with one owlet is enough to have all of us working together more harmoniously again.




Tiny and I have been sparkly snowflake making, reading Snowflake Bentley, face painting, having scones for lunch, building with clay, playing sleeping queens and chess, watching the sun rise on the beach… The two bigger owlets have been inspired to join in too, so our days have had a revived hum to them. I've been more present, which has been fun and tiring and so wonderful, as we all restore a little bit of balance and unfurl a bit. Sorry shop, sorry blog, sorry house, sorry knitting, sorry garden! There's fun to be had!

How are you coping with winter? Is it super cold where you are right now? 
Do you have a way to reset and get your week back on track? 
Do you have a seasonal table set up? 
What works for you? 

~ Lauren xx

The Importance of Home Days

We're pretty busy people. Busy by choice and busy because we're chasing up all the things we're so passionate about. Mostly we're busy because we're hunting for fungi this time of year and wandering though the bush any chance we can get. I suppose that makes us not so much busy as at play. But we take our play seriously.

The stereotypical image of the isolated, unsocialised homeschooler is not a reality we've ever witnessed.  Where we live, there's so much on offer in the home educating community, and in the natural world around us, we actually have to put our collective foot down to grab some space amongst it all.

The balance of our adventuring days, and classes and outings and co-op days, is our home days. These are the days where we go very slow. Our in-breath. This is our daydreaming space. This is the space where we get stuff done and each explore what it is we each love to do. These are pyjama days, where the questions flow before breakfast ends. These are the days when the owlets delve into their preferred mediums for relaxation, learning and play.

Usually you'll find Big Owlet making art.

Little Owlet will, at some point, be working with her favourite wooden spoon.

And Tiny Owlet will be stacking blocks, or putting them all in a line up the hallway.

I'll be floating around all of them,  helping keep them in orbit, if they need me. I'll be reading with one or all of them. Or working alongside them on my own projects. Sometimes I'll be cooking vast quantities of food to keep them fed and our evenings easier. Lately I've been looking at the piles of surplus stuff in our lives. Things that have seemed to accumulate mysteriously. Home days are a beautiful opportunity to assess those. They're a wonderful opportunity to get out in the garden too, and observe, explore, work and play. There will be screens watched and played on, arguments resolved, friends chatted with, pets played with, chooks cuddled, berries foraged, spills wiped up, washing done… and by the end of the day, the house will probably be trashed before Owletpapa arrives home. A family effort will set it (almost) right before dinner and we'll catch our breath before setting about doing it all again. These are the days that slip by quietly, full of beauty and challenge; everything and nothing much at all.

Home days are a moment to pause and gather ourselves up for the next adventure. But they're also an opportunity to just be ourselves, in our own little nest, without the distractions of commuting and routine driven by external forces. They're an opportunity to grow and learn as individuals and also to work together, in a collective effort, to do what needs doing. And there is so much that needs learning and growing and doing! To us, home education and even permaculture are about anything but being at home all the time. But gosh we'd be lost without our home days!

Do you manage home days often?
Maybe you're travelling and call them something else?
Or maybe you don't spend much time home at all and you like it that way! 
Are home days important to you? 

~ Owletmama. xx

Tiny's Bedtime Basket

Here's the thing about Tiny Owlet. Tiny is fierce and loving and so very funny. And she is busy! Always doing something and she loves to be in on whatever anyone else is doing. She's active and playful and she doesn't miss a trick. But she doesn't know how to switch off without a fight.  She'll tell you she's tired, but she'll resist any attempts to help that transition to bed happen. She wants to run to bed covered in paint or tomato sauce, in the nude, and breastfeed until she falls asleep, however long that may take. Which is perfectly fine, except it's MY bed she's sleeping in and it's ME that gets covered in tomato sauce. And I'm not too keen on that. She wants a book too, but not the one I've chosen. Or the one she's chosen. And she will not ever, never brush her teeth. And we neeeeed her to brush her teeth. Tiny is very three. 

In thinking a little about three year olds and remembering what they like, I've returned to rhythm and ritual to help smooth gentle transitions. I'm remembering the time we spent reading story after story each night with Big Owlet and how Little Owlet still won't go to sleep unless I say "sweet dreams". Like her sisters,  there is a time each day when bed suits Tiny best, she just needs a little help and a few cues to remember how to do it. I'm also watching her energy levels and how to keep her balanced so our evenings are calm and peaceful... 

On evenings where she's still not tired (perhaps we've had a quiet day at home), we go for a walk before bed. 

On evenings where she's a bit rough and ragged and shouty and overtired, we have a long, quiet bath together. Some one-on-one time to stop and slow right down and talk and sing and whisper and cuddle… With soothing oils and epsom salts and rose petals and all the fixings for a peaceful night.

Here's the thing about three year olds. They like to be involved in the job. In charge. And they like gear. Kits go a long way when you are three. So, to help smooth Tiny's transition to bed, we have her bedtime basket. She started it. One evening, she shouted at me that it was bedtime and headed down the hallway with a basket full of books. The next night, I grabbed the basket and suggested we fill it together. She chose some books and the water/oil hourglass thing that she's taken to staring at. The next night, I presented her the basket with pyjamas in it. Right now it looks like the basket you see above. In the basket are: 

• Pyjamas
• Tiny's hourglass toy
• A little friend to keep her company while she brushes her teeth
• Books - sometimes I choose them, sometimes she helps

So we go to the basket, put on pyjamas, take the little friend to the bathroom and brush her teeth, hop into bed, look at the hourglass thing, read a book and zonk out. And there's not a scream or a shout or anger or frustration. Just calm. And quiet. And a sense of getting the job done and an all-over sense of peaceful relief (from both of us), when she snuggles down finally, happily to snooze. 

Sweet dreams, Tiny. xx

Do you have any bedtime routines in your home?

Does no routine at all suit you better?

What does bedtime look like in your nest? xx

A day in the life...

So many owlets we know went off to school today. Facebook lit up with all these gorgeous smiling faces off to their places of learning and new adventures ahead. The rite of passage of first-timers and their older siblings commemorated for all to see... I could hear the collective sigh of relief of some mama friends, happy to be back to their usual rhythms of lunches, drop off, pick up, hang out... Rhythm can be such a comfort and hard to hang onto when you're enjoying the freedom of summer holidays. That constant out-breath. 

We carried on today, doing our usual thing. We've been keeping (albeit a little loosely) to a rhythm that has brought a considerable amount of calm to our home. Balancing in-and-out-breath in that Waldorfy way, working with head, heart and hands... It makes sure everyone gets a break or attention when they need. Sometimes it all goes out the window, but that's ok... We've wafted in and out of it over the years and this is how things seem to roll best for us during the day... So I thought I might share it... 

Early Morning. 

The owlets were up at sunrise today, dressed and out the back door, excited to resume a game from the night before, called wolves and  panthers... or something like that. Huz and I stayed in bed procrastinating for as long as possible before Little Owlet dragged Huz out to see the crepuscular rays poking through the clouds. I got up too... eventually. When I finally work out that going to bed early is a good thing, I'll be sure to get up early too. Promise. 

Breakfast. 

Somehow it arrives at the table and we all sit around and light a candle. Tiny likes to make us hold hands and sing a rousing rendition of "Blessings on the Blossoms" before we eat and chat about our day. Owlets clear the table as we kiss Huz goodbye. 

Mid-morning.

Big Owlet and any other interested owlets sit with me at the table and we spend some time researching her project of interest. Right now Big Owlet is doing a version of a Steiner/Waldorfy main lesson approach. We wander off on tangents lots. She spends time reading, writing and drawing in her book.

Little Owlet and I read a small book or verse for her to base her recipe of the week on. If she's feeling motivated, she begins writing a recipe down for her cookbook. Or we pop into the kitchen and cook her recipe. Usually she mixes this with playing with Tiny Owlet. Today they're on a bus. 

Morning Tea

Usually outside, with fruit. Sometimes around the table with teapots and pikelets. Time to run around outside while I hang washing and potter in the garden. Tiny collects the eggs. She's usually nude.

Late-morning.

Handwork. This might be knitting, pottery, building things out of boxes, art, woodwork, cartooning, felting... whatever we feel inspired to work on. On Wednesdays we usually spend some extra time in the garden working on our nature/art journals. On Fridays Big Owlet usually focuses on art. 

Lunch.

We flop on the lounge and watch a movie or documentary while we eat lunch. Usually I try to make it tie in with whatever we've been talking about that day. 

Afternoon.

We go for a walk in our neighbourhood. Sometimes along the beach. Sometimes to the community garden. Sometimes to the cafe for milkshakes. Everyday is different and everyday we find something new. 

Late-afternoon.

When we get home we put the kettle on, grab snacks and head for different corners of the house for some quiet time. Often the Owlets will hop online and play Minecraft with friends. Tiny will pop Peppa Pig on the iPad and wander between that, toys and the occasional visit to me. I check emails, work on Spiral Garden and research ideas for things to do with the Owlets if I need to. Sometimes Huz comes home early and he and the bigger Owlets head off for Kung Fu training or Big Owlet takes a drama class and the other owlets and I visit the library and meet up with Huz.

Evening.

I pop on dinner, Huz arrives home, we eat and help a very tired Tiny get ready for bed.  Most days, the two bigger Owlets relax after dinner and head to bed a while later. Sometimes an Owlet will stay up for some one-on-one time with us. Usually Huz and I work and watch something lighthearted before crawling to bed much later than we should.... and we begin again. 

Unless tomorrow we decide to go to a friend's place or the beach all day. Or we spend the day with all our buddies at co-op. Or we get carried away with cooking or drawing or watching movies or something else... And that's the best thing about it. The freedom to change it up when we want to. Comfort and freedom. In and out breath. Balance. 

Variations on a theme...

We learnt a whole lot last year. Not just about the world outside our little nest, but about the world inside it. As our owlets get older and reach for more independence, we learn and shift. Like how we play musical beds all the time. We meet their (and our) needs.

Last year we explored letting go all over again. Owlets spent days upon days at play, making new friends and strengthening old friendships. It was a wonderful life-learning experience. Most of it happened online. We thought we'd see how long it'd last... Minecraftschooling. How long they'd want to keep playing/watching all day (and I mean ALL day). They went hard. They learnt to touch-type and play online parkour. They figured out some tough mathematical puzzles and negotiated friendships. Oh, they learnt. They learnt lots. And we were always around to guide them (we learnt lots too). It was great! They didn't want to do anything else in their waking hours.



But underneath it all there was this strange, underlying... boredom. Our owlets seemed to be waiting for something. And yet not. If we were out, they'd count down until they could get back to playing and rage if it felt like too long. We'd suggest going out or trying something new... a craft activity or baking or an outing... anything... and it was met by this overwhelming sense of *meh*. They were grumpy lots. They didn't know what they could do without some direction or entertainment. Unless they were online. They were bored, but it was an unsettling kind of boredom. And despite one out of the three owlets being able to self-regulate, even she was caught up in it. It was almost dependency. It was all a bit much.

They'd forgotten how to daydream. 

This worried us. Daydreaming and boredom are big friends of creativity, in our book. Boredom isn't something to be afraid of usually. It pushes you to be creative. To be perfectly honest, we adults fill quiet moments with screens too. We work online. We organise social outings online. There's no time to be bored or daydream. No time to be quiet. Always, always busy.



We had a family chat about all the things we hoped to do this year. It wandered into what we'd like to do in years to come. Hopes and dreams and all that stuff you talk about as a new year approaches.

Big Owlet wants to be an artist. Little Owlet wants to cook. Tiny Owlet wants to be a tiger. And so we talked about how they are and can be all those things NOW. That they can work at them and master them and perhaps do them for a living (tiger may be tricky), but they have to DO them. We pointed out that right now, at that moment,  they were skilled online gamers, which is totally cool if that's what they want to be, but they seemed bored with it. Like it was their job. Not their passion. Turns out we were right.



They needed balance, just as we do. And they just weren't equipped to find it on their own yet. They were ready for a push. Big Owlet was ready for a challenge. She identified gaps she found and didn't know how to go about filling. From birth, this owlet has adored routine. She loves the comfort of order and a programme. Which is, I suspect, why screens appeal so much.



If you were to label it, we'd probably have one sort-of-waldorfy-homeschooler, one unschooler and one radical-or-bust unschooler. But we don't have to label it because it is what it is. And how it looks now will most likely look different next month. I'm being a bit careful about the words we use to describe what we do these days. And I'm ignoring the voices out there who try to package it and tell me how it should look. Labels are unhelpful other than to help identify a tribe. And, wonderfully, thankfully, we have found it.

So we're working with variations on a theme. We're life learning, living and loving. And doing what we want and need for now. Looking out for each other so there's time for all the good stuff. So far, so good.

seasonal delight :: rocking our world right now...

Apples... As a treat, or breakfast, or a snack... Anytime... Fresh from the Huon Valley.
Peeled and cored on the "spinny thing"...



Sauteed with butter...



Lots of butter...



Served with farm fresh milk. Delivered to our door, by the farmer himself...



Candlelight. Time spent together. Snuggling by the fire. Sunlight through windows...



And lashings of fresh cream...

Remembering quiet days as winter approaches and finding space for each other, within our nest... That gentle in-breath, settling into a rhythm after a long, wild Summer and early Autumn. Finding abundance and luxury in small things, simple things.

What's rocking your world right now?
How do you find simple abundance in your nest?

xx

Today and tomorrow...

Today was one of those special kind of good days... There was a certain calm that I haven't felt in a long time... even though I was outnumbered three owlets to one, today we found balance. And it was good. I'm recounting it so I can work out how to make that happen always.

I woke after not much sleep, feeling awful, and cancelled all plans for a stay at home day. Owlets happily obliged and we went about making breakfast. We ate at the table this morning - perhaps that was it? The bigger owlets then moved onto their morning work - animal husbandry, followed by scaling the dizzy heights of mount foldmore. Then they began the formal part of their day - Minecraft.

Tiny and I pottered, washing and tidying... The house was pretty clean to begin with (that might have been it), as it is in our always-decluttering home... Tiny forgot the screens (ooh, maybe it was that?), and I remembered the bigger owlets' toddler days with fondness as we pottered and chatted together... Then we nibbled on our morning tea platter made from what was left in our empty fridge... And then  Tiny napped.



Big Owlet and I figured out some Big and Important Minecraft Stuff, while Little Owlet asked me how to spell every word that came to mind... I sewed two stitches and finished one hair clip for an order I'm working on. And I had a cup of tea - sign of a good day right there.



Tiny woke, played with playdough, painted nude, bathed (as one does immediately after painting)... and we spent the afternoon trampolining, then lolling, reading and boobing and waiting for Huz to come home.




There were tears and bruises and bumps today. There was frustration and tiredness. But today I remembered to respond with empathy. I remembered to keep communication open and flowing. I remembered to slow down. And wait. And hug them all. To give them my time, and take some for me (just a snippet). And to just enjoy it for what it was... Yes, that was it.

How have your days been lately? 
Do you manage many home days?
Do you like to slow down? 

Here's to a peaceful Friday. xx