We call it a project because there are lots of things going on here. We are a family of four living semi-rurally in our owner-built off-grid straw bale home, attachment parenting, homeschooling, farming and homesteading with two other family members on 10 acres. Our goals are self-sufficiency and sustainability as we prepare for the future while living joyfully in the present.
It's been nearly a month since the conference and we are still on the road. I'm finding it hard to get motivated to update my blog but I guess I should get after it. The conference.....Hmm, it's hard to know what to say. The place was beautiful--just stunning. We arrived on Wednesday just before lunch from our overnight in South Carolina. I immediately spotted some of my favorite friends from prior conferences and there was a lot of activity buzzing around the main conference center building. Unfortunately this was too much for Scotty and he began to melt down. Right away we had to get in line for lunch, walk through the cafeteria line, and sit down in a very noisy dining room with hundreds of other attendees. Way too loud and crowded, and the food was really terrible. So this kind of set the tone for much of the rest of the conference. Dan and Scotty were glad to see each other but they also ramped each other up so much that it became impossible for any of the kids or adults to have any down time. On top of this, I was trying to do too much (spend time with my friends, dance in the talent show) which put more of the burden on Chris to take the kids. Beth and Kevin were incredibly helpful and we were so grateful for that, but still it was a much different conference for us than last year.
Still, we did have moments of great fun. Salamandering in the stream was a big hit with Chris and the kids. Singing with Marji, Chris, and Sammy during the music jam was a blast. The dance turned out to be an unexpected highlight. Both Chris and I got to hang out because Scotty was doing pretty well that night. Meeting our new friends from Alabama was great. All in all I'm glad we went, although I'm not so sure about next year.
Between Nashville and the conference we picked up Chris at the airport in Charlotte and drove down into South Carolina to visit Aunts Frances, Hilda, and Lena as well as Grandma Jean who is visiting from Colorado. Here we are at the lake house, where the kids had a great time. Their favorite part was swimming in the lake briefly before it got too dark. My favorite part was a home cooked Southern meal prepared by Aunt Hilda. After several days of eating on the road it was just glorious!
Here are Frances and Grandma with those of us who were willing to pose for the photo.
We left last Thursday for our leisurely drive to the Live and Learn Conference in Asheville, NC. We have been traveling with Beth and Emma until today. Stops thus far have included Amarillo, TX, Seminole, OK, and Little Rock/Conway AR. In Amarillo we stopped at Cadillac Ranch and visited the Children's Museum. In Seminole we visited yet another children's museum. In Little Rock we stopped briefly at the farmer's market at the river, where I was disappointed to find that they were selling produce shipped from California! Then we stopped at the Peabody Hotel where we saw the famous Peabody ducks who start each day by riding down the elevator to the lobby fountain and end the day with a ride back up, waddling the red carpet each way. After the ducks we backtracked to Conway, where we had an offer from another homeschooler, Kim, and her family to stay with them in their beautiful home. What a fun time we had!
There are too many photos to upload so I put it into a slide show which will hopefully work here:
Like the music? That's my darling husband playing.
And since the quality in that video is pretty low, I'll put a few of my favorite photos up:
I set the trip odometer to zero as we passed the school by our house where the kids would attend if they went to school. As we passed, the children were being dropped off, weighed down by heavy backpacks. We waved them goodbye as we began our month long journey of learning our own way. We are somewhere between 1300 and 1400 miles from that school now as day four comes to a close. You can see some of the experiences we've had in the photos, but what you don't see is all the amazing conversations we have had! Some of the topics that we have discussed are:
energy: different forms, how it's used, nuclear, solar, fossil fuels, pollution
war: Iraq war, world wars, civil wars
inventors: Archimedes, DaVinci, Franklin
The concept of infinity: how lines are infinite and so are numbers. This arose from a question from Scotty who wanted to know if there were particles smaller than an atom.
Evolution--stemming from Scotty noticing that the chickens in the movie Chicken Run have teeth.
Gravity and other forces (hydrogen bonding, magnetism)
Voting--why people vote and how our state sends representatives to Washington DC
We have noticed the landscape change as we travel Eastward. We have crossed big rivers, including the Mississippi. We have met new friends and spent time with close friends. Eliza just this evening has learned to use her arms in swimming, doing a 4yo version of the freestyle stroke. She has been practicing her singing as well, asking to hear her favorite album over and over so she can learn the songs. She's also learned how to walk in flip-flops.
Me, I've learned how to create a slide show on my new Mac!
Things are changing around here! I used my new MacBook to take a photo of myself with my new hair. Because my birthday is this week and we are leaving for the Live and Learn Conference the day before, I decided to do something I've never done and go blonde! I had a great time at the salon with my friend Crystal and her stylist. It was the perfect way to celebrate my birthday.
So here's fair warning to those of you who will see me on the upcoming trip:
I just got your comment about lurking on my blog and I wanted to let you know that I'm thrilled to hear from you! One of our goals is to share what we know about sustainable living, attachment parenting, and homeschooling with whomever will listen so we are glad to know you are out there.
If you like, any lurkers out there can take this opportunity to comment and ask questions. I'll answer them all and I'd sure love to know who is reading.
Thanks for reading, and feel free to share with your friends!
There had been a bike ride for Hannah Jenner scheduled at this year's Live and Learn Conference but it was canceled due to logistical problems. Our tribe decided to have our own ride for Hannah, which benefits the Lance Armstrong Foundation, at our regular park day yesterday. We thought of Hannah and her family and all children who are affected by cancer. We thought about each other, our tribe-mates, our kids, our families. We enjoyed the day and felt how fortunate we were to be able to ride our bikes, trikes, scooters, rollerblades, heelies, or just walk around our favorite park on a day in late August just a few days before Hannah's birthday.
Beth did a wonderful blog post about the ride HERE.
Getting ready.
In this photo Crystal is taking a picture of me holding Hannah. Hannah rode around the park with us several times. I've been holding on to the part of Hannah that Diana shared with me last fall for nearly a year. I'm now ready to let her go and I'll do so on her birthday later this week.
This photo of Crystal on Sorscha's bike just cracks me up. I know what it's like to be all knees and elbows!
Sylvia volunteered to accompany Eliza on her trike.
Some chose a faster pace.
At the end of the day we decided to leave a little bit of Hannah at our favorite park. She will now be with us every week! Eliza chose to leave her Hannah blessing on the slide. Just as I leaned over to snap this photo, a cottonwood leaf fell next to Hannah's ashes at the base of the slide.
Thanks to Ben and Diana for inspiring us to ride for Hannah. It was truly a day to remember!
