Nine Months and Advent

Our little baby boy is 9 months old!! He's now on the move and we're all trying to keep up with him! He's made discoveries this week: toilet paper and cat food!  Levi loves to clap and say "so big" and his latest discovery is naming body parts: eyes, nose and mouth (he chomps his 8 teeth!).  Levi matches pitch and copies melodies. It's hilarious and a little shocking when singing him to sleep. He loves to sing!  He loves bells, puppets, drums, pushing around trucks, banging everything in sight, pulling off the Christmas Tree ornaments and putting on his socks.  He loves to eat, especially meat, and has discovered how to toss his meal on the floor. He is a joy and exasperation all wrapped up in one package.  (He still won't sleep) But we rejoice in his little life.

We've also been ever so busy with a Nativity play (we had Angel Gabriel, a shepherd and a sheep this year), lots of appointments (Lena's expander is all gone!), getting new glasses, playing music at church, learning to build a campfire and cooking out in the mud kitchen.  The girls have been diligently working through their lessons after Exam Week around Thanksgiving and we look forward to some quiet wintering days ahead.  Phoebe continues to learn a letter a week and we're up to J, just in time for Jesus as we prepare our hearts for remembering the coming of the Savior into the world. We're all a little weary around here after bouts of sickness and hard days but the weary world does indeed rejoice. As the days darken we rest and wait, again, for His coming. 

 

Capturing the Light

We've been in a whirl of activities around here, trying to finish projects and spend time outside as much as possible before "wintering" arrives. I can hardly believe Emmeline is eleven now and Levi is eight months old.  Our days have been filled to the brim with visits to see Nana who turned 99, a Hobbit Hole Cake, lots of make believe and dress up (I do believe we have George and Martha Washington below, along with Pinocchio and a Bunny), a visit to Font Hill Castle, our first ever Christmas Market and lots and lots of teething.  Phoebe attended her first ballet class and Levi got eight teeth. Amidst the sleepless fog that comes with teething we have found time to crunch in the leaves and capture as much light as we possibly can.  We've made it through exam week and are attempting to quiet our hearts as Advent approaches.  In the whirl of days and nights it's so easy to forget that we need stillness to remember what is true and good and beautiful in a world that is rather upside down. In my exhaustion of motherhood I think of Mary preparing her heart for the Savior. I think of Jesus "who had compassion on them" and healed the sick and gave them food. (Loaves and fish in abundance). I am reminded to find stillness in Him as I mother my little crowd and feed them dinner and help with teeth in the wee hours of the night.  Only then can I dance. 

 

Emmeline is Eleven

 

This dear girl is eleven years old and has been bringing joy and light ever since her birth. I will never forget the days before her arrival as we watched the leaves turn golden and wondered when our little miracle would come.  And here we are, all of these years later, watching our beautiful and tender hearted girl grow and blossom. Emmie continues to be a voracious reader and may perhaps know more details of books than I do. It is a joy to watch her journey towards womanhood and to share the rich world of literature with her, to watch her grow in the Lord, to question things and search out answers and to learn to trust her Savior more and more. Emmie has become quite the proficient musician and goes to the piano to play for pleasure know (always my biggest hope). She is teaching Phoebe to play and that is a special treat.  Her cello continues to blossom and she's enjoyed duets and chamber music. Emmie has great artistic talent and has been creating the most lovely portraits of people. She's also taken to making paperdolls and writing books for her sisters as gifts.  She has a wild imagination and it's so fun to watch it grow. Emmie loves to be outside and is always busy biking, playing in her fairy garden or the Forest Bakery Kitchen. She is becoming an independent cook in the kitchen and loves cooking historic meals or surprise treats.  She strongly dislikes reptiles, loves to sew and create, learned to drive the tractor and isn't afraid to get muddy. Emmie is faithful, gentle, and sensitive, always serving her family with a loving heart and taking life as it comes.  May God bless and keep you always sweet Emmeline, our dear heart and precious girl. 

Goodbye Summer, Hello Autumn

Coram Deo Academy is back in session and we're working hard at: "living in the presence of God, under His authority and for His glory". Phoebe is an enthusiastic addition to our daily rhythms and Levi is the newest to join (albeit he is so far not doing too well in sleep school). We have many exciting things to learn this year with a focus on the Civil War for our History, adding German into our French and Latin, starting Plutarch, reading Pilgrim's Progress in morning time together, ABC Bible Verses for Phoebe, a weather unit (hoping to make a solar oven), Geography based on "Around the World in 80 Dinners" (foreign meals with friends), Cooking through History (the girls are planning Civil War inspired meals), ballet at a new location, piano, cello, violin, Solfeg and 10 minute map drills.  Playful Pioneer's II Curriculum and Ambleside Online have already inspired us to build a volcano, create a hurricane, bake some unique meals, learn about whaling, refresh our New England States and read through The Landing of the Pilgrims. We begin our day with our "blessing hour" where we tidy our environment and help establish good habits. Then instruments and journaling time. The girls have become avid journal students and are painting in their nature journals, working on quote journals, Books of Firsts, Books of Centuries, Language Journals, and writing their own stories.  Phoebe has one on one time from 9-10 with Mama and then we join for teatime read alouds, poetry, narrations and prayer. It's always an adventure and I hope we never take it for granted that we are blessed in this way, to learn together as we march onward toward our eternal home. 

We got to go to Robert and Julia's wedding a few weeks back and celebrate with them. We made some special memories and Levi and Felicity were able to hang out together.  :) 

We had a special beach day with our friends and tried to eek out a little bit more summer before things really took off. Maybe this will be a new tradition! A few more swims, more gathering of herbs and flowers to grace our home, playing in the Forest Bakery, riding bikes, scooters and playing in the fairy garden seemed to take up many an hour.  Now we're launching full into Autumn mode and thinking about birthdays and wood stoves and tea.  But these are precious memories I want to hold close always.