Tag Archives: mom

Comet Stargazing and Home Education Log

Dear reader,

This week we woke up our kids very early and took to the darkness outside looking for the comet A3. We saw it, too. It was an amazing sight even though it only lasted a few seconds and we all saw it (except for the two toddlers).

Lilli and Vivi wrote journal entries about it. Lilli, a perfect memory with 0 errors or need for improvement. Vivi in gorgeous letters. She needs to work on the legibility of her writing, but she has chosen incredibly beautiful decorated letters, which I love and I told her, I will have to copy some of her incredible letters.

My focus will be on practicing with Vivi so she can improve the legibility of her writing while keeping her wonderful letter design. I enjoyed her work so much and I was full of pride.

Lilli researched and taught us what a comet as well as a, meteor shower is, wrote this in her journal.

Both Lilli and Vivi drew the comet.

Home Education Log: Learning activities with our kids

This is not an entire list.

We discussed our ancestry, DNA, DNA tests related to ancestry, neanderthal DNA in humans in research, history of our families which interested and intrigued our oldest kid.

We did Halloween inspired art and crafts.

Alex drew a ghost and many more cool drawings. He was inspired by documentaries and videos we watched on the history of Halloween.

We watched documentaries about the history of Halloween, kids stories, and more on this topic.

I finished a Halloween paper doll: I love fashion illustration and I incorporate it into our art activities.

This lovely fashion witch was designed in 2014. Back then my illustration skills were beginner level, but the dress designs were gorgeous. With my new skills, I drew a new doll and copied the same exact dresses, added the witch hat and broom.

We found old art of mine and discussed my art progress at which point I took advantage and gave a speech about improving one’s skill. I allowed the kids to see my bad beginner art that I am ashamed to show today and explained how I learned to draw figures by watching experts and used that fuel to inspire them by assuring them they too will be much better in their art.

I helped the kids finish Math worksheets they did not finish during their week.

We studied the Celts, specially regarding our own Celtic roots.

Lilli and I did Math: skip counting, addition, multiplication, and division.

Vivi and I worked on addition.

The kids have been sick, so we have not been to Jiu-jitsu class. They have been playing in the yard and “working in the garden”.

The kids read children’s books.

Lizzie and I wrote a poem together (she created the story) and she did the ending in prose using many words that start with g. Then she wrote the poem by hand. Her intention was to improve her handwriting of the letter g and she succeeded, her g was beautiful after such practice. She will be choosing her next letter to work on and we will repeat this exercise.

Lilli started the new Duolingo Music course.

Lilli returned to her Duolingo Spanish course.

I created children’s songs inspired by Lilli. Lilli created pictures to go with the song. I added AI music to the songs. We sung and sung and danced.

Lizzie decided to write a song. She created a story and we will be working on turning it into a song.

Lilli, Lizzie, Vivi worked on Math, Science, Grammar, Art on Outschool.

Links

https://phys.org/news/2023-10-neanderthals-inherited-genome-now-extinct-lineage.html

https://phys.org/news/2024-09-archaeologists-ancient-neanderthal-lineage-isolated.html

And you, would you share your home education efforts with us?

With love,

Eve

Things to do before the baby arrives

My baby arrives in less than a month and as you can guess I have been nesting for a while. I am now in the process of creating a list of things that I need to do prior to the arrival of the baby as well as things that I’ve already done. Since I could find no better way to do this, I am blogging about it, hopefully somebody else will benefit from this but if not then know that I am doing this as a reminder to myself.

Things to do before the baby arrives:

  • Buy wipes
  • Set up the crib and bassinet in my bedroom
  • Install the car seat
  • Pay midwife fee in full
  • Get breast milk pump and storage bags
  • Finish packing hospital bag with my stuff (for when I spend 5 days in bed/ giving birth at home, not going to hospital, it’s really my healing bag): work in progress
  • Pick out baby’s first day outfit
  • Decide on newborn photo ideas and pick out outfits: work in progress with my daughters
  • Have ready to eat frozen foods for first 5 days
  • Fill pantry with essentials for first 2 weeks
  • Waiting for delivery of few more essential oils: arrive in 2 days
  • Get rose 🌹 essential oil (because I’ll love it and have never had it before and the baby’s middle name is Rose, it’s meant to be) I have a doTERRA membership and get free points I can turn into free oils, have 50 points, getting another 50, track when 100 points are available and get oil (might happen after baby arrives but during newborn stage)
  • Get my older children ready: chores for baby’s arrival and mommy healing time, getting ahead on school work, cleanup and organization of their room before grandma visits, who is taking what pictures and videos? They want to be involved in the home birth so I’ll give each jobs such as taking care of and helping their toddler brother: work in progress
  • I obviously need a massive burrito from Chipotle after giving birth (doing this for years), arrange for delivery or pick up probably food for the entire family
  • Clean and sanitize bathroom where baby is to be born, do changes need to be made to decor? How does the vibe feel?: Work in progress
  • Create a sacred baby birth space (tied to item above but slightly different)
  • Go through midwife giving birth items needed list and source all
  • Prepay bills so I don’t have to deal with them during the first two weeks of birth
  • Place vitamins, supplements, essential oils and other self-care items of mine in my healing bag (hospital bag)
  • Plan ahead for 5 days in bed
  • Prepare diaper changing station
  • Get ready for breastfeeding: breastfeeding tea, breastfeeding pillow
  • Ideally finish additional baby DIYs but not needed and I’ll be on it during 5 days of healing in bed, yet work in progress
  • Stock up on single-use items such as paper plates, plastic forks and spoons, paper cups so we don’t have to do the dishes during first two weeks
  • Set up a budget
  • Write a birth plan: I have a lot of things in my head but it’ll help to actually write it down and go through it with my midwife and family
  • Clean my carpets
  • Take maternity pictures
  • Choose birth day outfit: in know I’m going to wear my magical yellow dress in this date but no blood please. I usually birth totally nude 😉 lol but this time there’ll be birthing pictures and videos and since I’ll be showing my butt (and who knows what else) I won’t show my boobs too. I’ll probably get some coconuts and fashion a bikini top!
  • Do special things with my children until the birth day: work in progress
  • Garden and leave the yard looking nice: lots of work yet work in progress
  • Enlist family members to take pictures of the newborn baby: children are on it
  • Get older children ready: do their laundry, get their favorite snacks, and favorite foods, review school schedules, inform teachers of expected delivery day, register for next school year this week
  • Clean up phone memory and my phone and my husband’s for all the cute baby pictures and videos
  • Who is cutting the umbilical cord?
  • Prepare for toddler boy: enough diapers formula and activities, have his favorite toys
  • Prepare for movie night for when the children need to take a break: daddy got this
  • Get library books for the big girls who love to read for when they need to take a break, prepare crafts and activities for them
  • Set up 2 essential oil diffusers: 1 in my bedroom, 1 in my bathroom and fav essential oil station
  • Get visitor room ready for mom to visit: clean, organize: work in progress
  • Finish cleaning and disinfecting downstairs “visitor” bathroom: work in progress
  • Do all laundry

Things I’m grateful I have completed before the baby arrives, as of now, this list is growing and the first one shrinking:

  • Ensured I have enough baby clothes for a newborn and in a basket in the closet 3 months old clothes: collected little outfits that my other babies worn that are still good, received gifts, purchased items. I have enough. I also have older baby clothes in a bag in my closet and a storage of toddler clothes in storage under my bed
  • Finished 4 baby DIYs, working on 3rd
  • Washed and organized the baby clothes
  • Washed baby blankets and crib sheets
  • Bought diapers
  • Decorated matching boxes for baby nursery storage, separated folded newborn clothes, stored socks, bibs, burp cloths, etc
  • Chosen a baby name
  • Bought baby bottles and bottle brushes
  • Packed baby clothes, blankets, diapers in “hospital” bag which it’s really my healing bag (no hospital for me)
  • Bought favorite essential oils
  • Have hospital plan just in case and because my midwife said it was time
  • Prepared postpartum care items for myself: my Midwife already delivered a Care pack and I have a stock of pads and oils, and lotions I love for this time
  • Chosen a pediatrician
  • Set up hypno birthing playlist and getting used to the meditations
  • Spending all the rest of this time learning about labor and hypno birthing which is helpful and soothing
  • Set up a diaper station downstairs. I did this for my last baby and it was a huge hit everybody uses the drawer including the baby who’s now a toddler. The way I did it was clear a drawer lined it and filled it with diapers, diaper cream, baby clothes so that the baby could easily be changed and little socks I did the same for the new baby next to the last baby’s drawer which is still in use
  • Reviewed discharge and care information packet from midwife and will discuss with her on today’s appointment

At a glance I can see it he done list is much smaller than the to do list. I’m excited to work on these things which is the great part and now that I have this in writing and publicly, I really love to be here editing this post. I love it when I come read my lists and there are a lot of items that can be moved from the to do list to the gratitude list. I’m feeling great also.