Random Thoughts

We leave for Mexico in TWO DAYS!!! Laundry is done and we are almost totally packed. I can't believe that we're going on vacation again. This is so unlike us. Jamaica in September, Disney World in December and now Cancun. It's crazy! This is the last vacation for a while. I foresee the next vacation being a staycation.

We can't wait to see the Lizard King. It still overwhelms me sometimes how much I love him. Being apart for so long is the hardest thing I've ever had to do.

I wandered away from unschooling for a while. It was immensely helpful in showing me that unschooling is the right path for us. With my whole heart and soul, I truly believe in unschooling. It is an amazing thing. I am grateful to my friends in real life and my bloggy friends who have helped me to find my way back to unschooling.

I want to know why some family relationships are so difficult. (I'm not talking about LK or Princess.) I also want to know why I trust relationships too soon and divulge my safe place, rendering it not so safe anymore. Then I wonder if I just shouldn't care and then deal with the repercussions.

I just discovered "Heroes", the TV series from back in 2006, on Netflix on Demand and am totally addicted.

We break ground on our new house the Monday after we return from Mexico. Princess wants to be an architect when she grows up. She and I will be setting up chairs to watch the process and progress.

I recently discovered that I am an introverted extrovert. Now I have to figure out how to find my balance. It is something that I have been struggling with lately.
When we were in Florida, I thought I would blog everyday but we were exhausted. I plan to blog from Mexico, but we'll see what happens. I don't know that I'll be reading everyone's blog everyday. I know you all will understand my absence. Right?

Hi, my name is Shady Lady and I am a TV addict.

...a recovering TV addict, mind you. Before I had a child I would turn the TV on the moment I woke up in the morning and watch while I got ready for work. I got home from work, turned the TV on and it remained on until I woke up at some point during the night and turned it off.

After Princess came, I continued to watch and probably watched more. What else is a TV addict to do during middle of the night feedings, right? As she got older I limited my TV time to after she fell asleep. TiVo makes that easy. I was proud of myself because I watched so much less TV - only 2, 3 or 4 hours a day.

I’m not sure what happened, but when we got back from Florida I started going to sleep about 15-30 minutes after Princess fell asleep. I have been using this time to read. I remembered how much I love to read!

I just finished The Way of the Peaceful Warrior by Dan Millman. Great book! I recommend the book. I also recommend the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon, my favorite author. After reading her I had a hard time finding books that held my attention. She is an amazing writer.

The way she describes a scene and characters, for me her books are like no other. Her characters, specifically Jamie….sigh… Fortunately, I found my own Jamie. My Jamie even has red hair like the Jamie in the book. If you are looking for a book with a little bit of everything you must read the Outlander series.

There are six books out now with three more planned. (They must be read in order. Email me if you need help with the order.) It was supposed to be a double trilogy, but Gabaldon found that she couldn’t finish the story and needed to add three more. Yay! I’ve decided that I really need a Kindle to be able to read her books though. They stopped putting them out in traditional paperback and the trade paperbacks and hard covers are just to dang heavy! Still, I love them!

I am about half way through the latest book with the 7th book due out September 29th. With my new found love of reading I am looking for some good books while I wait for the next Outlander book (An Echo in the Bone). I have a wide range of interests and I’m open to fiction or non-fiction if it’s a good read. Please share your favorites, your top recommendations, your must reads with me. I love a good read and look forward to your recommendations.

Slightly Radical Unschoolers

There is a wide range of unschoolers. There are those who simply unschool learning. At the other end of the spectrum are radical unschoolers. This is where unschooling encompasses the whole life. Children are given the same power and choices as adults. Both of these options work. There are also many people who live their lives somewhere between these two options.

We are a family somewhere in between, probably closer to the radical side but not totally radical. Lately I've experienced the radical unschoolers who can't accept that you can choose to be a little less radical or for some not radical at all and still be an unschooler.

We tried the total radical unschooling gig. Our daughter was a mess. She thrives on structure and without it she falls apart. This doesn't mean that we structure her whole day. She just needs to know what is going to happen in her day. She needs a plan. She needs to know what she can expect.

We are more radical when it comes to TV and bedtimes. There are almost no limits on TV. She watches as much as she wants, but the TV is off for most mealtimes. There are of course exceptions, for example, when we eat while watching a movie. We try to get into bed by 8:30 but that doesn't always happen. Our usual routine...we head to bed at about 8:30 and Chloe watches TV until about 9:30 (most of the time). Then it's time for her to settle in and go to sleep so that I can have my TV time. She has the option of going into the living room and watching on her own. She never chooses to do that. Truthfully, by that time of day she's tired and wants to sleep.

With no TV limits, she will turn the TV off to go play or help me in the kitchen or something else. Some people, even my husband, are often surprised by this. But with no limits, turning the TV off is not a big deal.

When it comes to food, well, that's a different story. Our daughter has "eating issues" for lack of a better term. She is five now and just started eating in July. Yes, she has been eating for only four months. Before that she drank only milk - raw milk so it was more nutritious, but only milk. Okay, she did it some food: Goldfish crackers for a while, then corn chips, then rolls or bagels. Yes, that was the extent of it.

She ate baby food as a baby, but rejected solids and slowly phased out the baby food. She developed a fear of food. We worked with many professionals and maybe some of it did some good. The real turning point was when (against the recommendation of professionals) I talked to my daughter and told her that she needed to start eating. I told her our concerns for her health and development and she understood.

It has been a slow road, but we are working on this together. I need to set more limits for her around food because if I don't she will eat only bread and rolls. Based on the recent discussion on our local unschooling list I shouldn't do this. I think it would be irresponsible of me not to. I do give her choices and she eats only things she likes. On occasion she does have to try a new food, but she only has to take one very small taste.

For the most part there are few limits in her life. We do have principles:
respect
safety
kindness

If we follows these principles it should all be cake...right? ;)