Dreamland by Nancy Bilyeau

Title: Dreamland

Author: Nancy Bilyeau

Publisher: Lume Book 2020

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 386

Rating: 2/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Ebook

The year is 1911 when twenty-year-old heiress Peggy Batternberg is invited to spend the summer in America’s Playground.

The invitation to Coney Island is unwelcome. Despite hailing from one of America’s richest families, Peggy would much rather spend the summer working at the Moonrise Bookstore than keeping up appearances with New York City socialites and her snobbish, controlling family.

But soon it transpires that the hedonism of Coney Island affords Peggy the freedom she has been yearning for, and it’s not long before she finds herself in love with a troubled pier-side artist of humble means, whom the Batternberg patriarchs would surely disapprove of.

Disapprove they may, but hidden behind their pomposity lurks a web of deceit, betrayal, and deadly secrets. And as bodies begin to mount up amidst the sweltering clamor of Coney Island, it seems the powerful Batternbergs can get away with anything… even murder.

Wow that was disappointing. I was expecting a bit of The Night Circus tinged with The Great Gatsby. Instead, I got a meandering story of an unlikable heroine and her horrid family as they spend a summer by Coney Island. Not at Coney Island, but Coney Island. The Dreamland amusement park only has a few appearances in the novel, none very memorable. The author doesn’t take much time to describe the people or the scenery leaving me with very vague impressions. I was thoroughly bored by most of the book. It really only picks up int the last 20% or so when Peggy decides to solve the string of murders. But even then, I knew who the murderer was and didn’t really care. It was just boring…

Next up on the TBR pile:

The End of October by Lawrence Wright

Title: The End of October

Author: Lawrence Wright

Publisher: Knopf 2020

Genre: Thriller

Pages: 400

Rating: 2/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Unread Shelf Project; Modern Mrs. Darcy 2020

At an internment camp in Indonesia, forty-seven people are pronounced dead with acute hemorrhagic fever. When Henry Parsons--microbiologist, epidemiologist--travels there on behalf of the World Health Organization to investigate, what he finds will soon have staggering repercussions across the globe: an infected man is on his way to join the millions of worshippers in the annual Hajj to Mecca. Now, Henry joins forces with a Saudi prince and doctor in an attempt to quarantine the entire host of pilgrims in the holy city . . . A Russian émigré, a woman who has risen to deputy director of U.S. Homeland Security, scrambles to mount a response to what may be an act of biowarfare . . . Already-fraying global relations begin to snap, one by one, in the face of a pandemic . . . Henry's wife, Jill, and their children face diminishing odds of survival in Atlanta . . . And the disease slashes across the United States, dismantling institutions--scientific, religious, governmental--and decimating the population. As packed with suspense as it is with the fascinating history of viral diseases, Lawrence Wright has given us a full-tilt, electrifying, one-of-a-kind thriller.

I was so excited when this popped up on BOTM and the Modern Mrs. Darcy Summer Read Guide. I am always up for a good infectious disease book (fiction or nonfiction) and heard this one was a great ride a la Michael Crichton. This is akin to one of the bad Michael Crichton novels. Bad, flat characters that act completely off type many times. Too many convoluted storylines instead of one straight narrative. Lots of teaching the read about pandemics and viruses and politics and foreign relations and lots of other random things. This book was a complete slog and left me wanting to throw it at the wall. Boring and complicated with no likable anything.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Videos for Sanity

So here for this!

I might just have to watch this one.

Oh goodness yes! I cannot wait!

We’ll try anything with Nick Frost and/or Simon Pegg in it.

This looks weird, might have to watch it.

This might be interesting…

Seven Endless Forests by April Genevieve Tucholke

Title: Seven Endless Forests

Author: April Genevieve Tucholke

Publisher: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux 2020

Genre: YA Fantasy

Pages: 352

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Monthly Theme - May

On the heels of a devastating plague, Torvi’s sister, Morgunn is stolen from the family farm by Uther, a flame-loving Fremish wolf-priest who leads a pack of ragged, starving girls. Torvi leaves the only home she’s ever known, and joins a shaven-skulled druid and a band of roaming Elsh artists known as the Butcher Bards. They set out on a quest to rescue Torvi’s sister, and find a mythical sword.

On their travels, Torvi and her companions will encounter magical night wilds and mystical Drakes who trade in young men. They will sing rowdy Elshland ballads in a tree-town tavern, and find a mysterious black tower in an Endless Forest. They will fight alongside famous Vorseland archers and barter with Fremish wizards. They will feast with rogue Jade Fell children in a Skal Mountain cave, and seek the help of a Pig Witch. They will face wild, dangerous magic that leads to love, joy, tragedy, and death.

Torvi sets out to rescue a sister, but she may find it’s merely the first step toward a life that is grander and more glorious than anything she could have imagined.

Such a mixed bag for me. I loved the writing style, very lyrical. I loved the allusions to various mythologies and stories, especially the King Arthur thread. I loved the world building, so sprawling. But overall, I was very disappointed in the actual story itself. We are treated to an almost 400 pages road novel with tons of meandering flashbacks and stories. And yet, we don’t move the plot forward at all in those 400 pages. I was left thinking this was just the beginning. Where’s the rest of the story? The characters are very bland to the point that I couldn’t actually see any of them in my mind. And sometimes that sprawling world building allusions to various myths overwhelmed everything. Like seriously, they have be the “Vorse” and talk about dying and meeting again in “Holholla”? It got old pretty quickly. Disappointing read…

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Ship of Dreams by Gareth Russell

Title: The Ship of Dreams: The Sinking of the Titanic and the End of the Edwardian Era

Author: Gareth Russell

Publisher: Atria 2019

Genre: Nonfiction - History

Pages: 448

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: GR Random

In April 1912, six notable people were among those privileged to experience the height of luxury—first class passage on “the ship of dreams,” the RMS Titanic: Lucy Leslie, Countess of Rothes; son of the British Empire, Tommy Andrews; American captain of industry John Thayer and his son Jack; Jewish-American immigrant Ida Straus; and American model and movie star Dorothy Gibson. Within a week of setting sail, they were all caught up in the horrifying disaster of the Titanic’s sinking, one of the biggest news stories of the century. Today, we can see their stories and the Titanic’s voyage as the beginning of the end of the established hierarchy of the Edwardian era.

Writing in his elegant signature prose and using previously unpublished sources, deck plans, journal entries, and surviving artifacts, Gareth Russell peers through the portholes of these first-class travelers to immerse us in a time of unprecedented change in British and American history. Through their intertwining lives, he examines social, technological, political, and economic forces such as the nuances of the British class system, the explosion of competition in the shipping trade, the birth of the movie industry, the Irish Home Rule Crisis, and the Jewish-American immigrant experience while also recounting their intimate stories of bravery, tragedy, and selflessness.

Overall I was very disappointed by this book. I wanted a strong look at the events leading to the end of the Edwardian Era. Instead, I got a very convoluted narrative without a clear and concise voice. Often I got bogged down in the plethora of details. Not impressed at all.

Next up on the TBR pile:

We're Homeschooling! Planning and Schedule

Our Schedule

So now I have the supplies, it’s time to start planning and gathering everything I want to do. I’m a Type A planner that always feels better with a good plan going in. I’m always up for flexibility and change in the spur of the moment, but I need a plan to reference when things change.

My general approach to the days will be subjects flowing from one to another often integrated into one block. However, it’s always good to start with a basic schedule to map everything out. My first pass at scheduling our day looked like this:

As I started really putting together the curriculum, things didn’t quite work out like the schedule above. I ended up using a variety of items to help me plan each week:

• A Big Planner

• Weekly Pull Lists

• Blank notebook

• Book List Pages

• Unit Study Planning Pages

• Craft Supply List Pages

• A Year Calendar

Let’s start with the planner. I have a personal planner full of house tasks, appointments, meals, and other misc notes to myself. I didn’t want to cram in homeschooling, so I bought a cheaper planner. I sketched out a few different planning styles and ideas and this is where I landed.

First, I went through and mapped out all the big history chapters and unit themes (those are in purple). Some weeks, we won’t have a formalized unit theme, but that’s fine by me. I purposefully left a few weeks open to help me have some wiggle room as it becomes needed. I also notated what I needed to source and when (blue and brown). The orange notes are silly random holidays I found. We might randomly celebrate some of these. We will be having a mini party on Thursday August 13th for Left Hander’s Day. Arthur and I are both lefties! Schedule days off will be notated in pink (none in August of course!).

Then, I started diving into my weeks. There was a bit of writing and erasing until I figured out a system that made sense to me.

I broke down the columns into Podcasts (breakfast or morning basket time), Unit Theme (none extra for W1), Math, Biography (incorporated into one of the other subject blocks), Art/Music, History, Literature/Poetry, Computers/Philosophy, Science, and PE/Cook/Extra. I just started plugging in ideas or plans for the first week. Some come directly from Build Your Library’s lessons and some are just me throwing items on the plan. There’s not a lot of detail, but I can look at this planner and get an overall view of the week. This helps me wrap my brain around all the different subjects without getting overwhelmed in the details.

From there, I started writing a document with more details and notes. The document is a simple Pages document, but helps me flesh out all the stuff. It’s not a formalized lesson plan, but I don’t really need one of those. I just need to be able to check things off or refer to what’s coming next. This document includes links to videos and crafts as well as notes for vocab, supplies, and discussion questions.

From there, I started sourcing extra materials (books, videos, worksheets, etc) for the first two weeks or so. As I sourced, I inevitably ran across things that I can use later in the year. And so the folders on the computer and lists on paper began. I have lists of interesting picture books by broad topic (math, history, etc) and by time of the year. I have bookmarked links and various other resources. I started a weekly book pull list to organize which books I want to check out from the library. If I put them on hold about two weeks before the week I need, most of them should arrive for curbside pickup. I also use a simple blank notebook to make notes and such as I’m working on other things.

It sounds like a lot of planning, but that’s the way I work best. I like having a detailed plan to work from. Plans will change, items will be dropped and/or added, and things will go wrong. But my anxiety is tamed by spending time laying out what I want to happen. Now it’s time to actually get teaching!

We’re officially starting our homeschool adventure today. Next Monday, I’ll post a weekly wrap-up. I hope to do weekly updates highlighting our highs and lows on this journey.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - Brye "Lemons"

I caught this song on Alt Nation this week. Definitely giving me Billie Eilish vibes.

Life Right Now #27

As I look outside my window: A random storm blew in this early morning… and I was planning to weed the yard! Oh well. Right now it’s still very overcast and lightly sprinkling.

Right now I am: Prepping for the day

On my bedside table: Dreamland by Nancy Bilyeau; The End of October by Lawrence Wright

On my tv this week: We’ve almost finished the second season of The Umbrella Academy! Yes! and No! I don’t want it to end.

Listening to: The usual podcasts. Plus I’ve been listening to Hayley Williams’s album Petals for Armor on repeat lately.

On the menu for this week:

• Monday - Shrimp Burrito Bowls

• Tuesday - Sloppy Joes

• Wednesday - Maple Bourbon Pecan Chicken

• Thursday - Baked Potato Soup

• Friday - French Onion Pork Chops

• Saturday - Leftovers

• Sunday - Takeout Pizza

On my to do list: I need to focus on homeschool this week.

Happening this week: We’re officially starting homeschooling tomorrow! Hope it goes well.

What I am creating: I’m finally working on my Memory Planner again. Almost finished with June. Next big task is to format and print July’s pictures.

My simple pleasures: Hot coffee, feeling organized, pretty pens

Looking around the house: Some areas were cleaned up while others have acquired clutter. I need to reinstitute a weekly cleaning schedule. Over the week, J did clean the third bay in the garage so he could pull his car in (a friend is going to use our driveway to store a vehicle this week).

From the camera: We found some chairs in the forest this week…

Beach Read by Emily Henry

Title: Beach Read

Author: Emily Henry

Publisher: Berkley 2020

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 384

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Modern Mrs. Darcy 2020

Augustus Everett is an acclaimed author of literary fiction. January Andrews writes bestselling romance. When she pens a happily ever after, he kills off his entire cast.

They're polar opposites.

In fact, the only thing they have in common is that for the next three months, they're living in neighboring beach houses, broke, and bogged down with writer's block.

Until, one hazy evening, one thing leads to another and they strike a deal designed to force them out of their creative ruts: Augustus will spend the summer writing something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel. She'll take him on field trips worthy of any rom-com montage, and he'll take her to interview surviving members of a backwoods death cult (obviously). Everyone will finish a book and no one will fall in love. Really.

This one was a surprise. I was expecting a light-hearted romcom and instead I got a much more serious story involving a romance. Even with that shift, I loved this book. Henry has created two very human characters full of strengths and weaknesses. This was one of the most realistic romances that I have ever read. We have two characters with lives and backstory that come together and connect. I was completely along for the ride. I loved January and Gus both individually and as a couple. I ended up flying through this book putting aside laundry and cooking just to keep reading. So good!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Summer Bucket List Update #2

Things are still very much up in the air at the moment. Various places have reopened, but many with heavy restrictions. Our summer bucket list is going to look very different this year. No fun trips and very few outings to places. Instead, we are focusing on activities at home.

1. Visit Heron Haven

2. Comic Book Day

3. Make Ice Cream Sundaes

4. Hitchcock Nature Center

5. Read aloud 5 chapter books ✓

   • Oh Say, I Can’t See by Jon Scieszka

   • Amazon in the Afternoon by Mary Pope Osborne

   • Dolphins at Daybreak by Mary Pope Osborne

   • Buffalo Before Breakfast by Mary Pope Osborne

   • Tornadoes on Tuesday by Mary Pope Osborne

6. Board Game Day

7. Scatter Joy Acres

8. Finger Paint

9. Read 50 books (36/50)

10. Have a Backyard Picnic ✓

11. Weekly Sprinkler Time ✓

12. Go to the Zoo 5x (2/5)

13. Make S’mores

14. Tie Dye Something

15. Hopscotch in Driveway

16. Hike at the River

17. Complete Two Jigsaw Puzzles

18. Make Doughnuts

Next up on the TBR pile:

Agnes at the End of the World by Kelly McWilliams

Title: Agnes at the End of the World

Author: Kelly McWilliams

Publisher: Little, Brown Books 2020

Genre: YA Scifi

Pages: 432

Rating: 2/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Ebook; Monthly Theme

Agnes loves her home of Red Creek -- its quiet, sunny mornings, its dusty roads, and its God. There, she cares tirelessly for her younger siblings and follows the town's strict laws. What she doesn't know is that Red Creek is a cult, controlled by a madman who calls himself a prophet.

Then Agnes meets Danny, an Outsider boy, and begins to question what is and isn't a sin. Her younger brother, Ezekiel, will die without the insulin she barters for once a month, even though medicine is considered outlawed. Is she a sinner for saving him? Is her sister, Beth, a sinner for dreaming of the world beyond Red Creek?

As the Prophet grows more dangerous, Agnes realizes she must escape with Ezekiel and leave everyone else, including Beth, behind. But it isn't safe Outside, either: A viral pandemic is burning through the population at a terrifying rate. As Agnes ventures forth, a mysterious connection grows between her and the Virus. But in a world where faith, miracles, and cruelty have long been indistinguishable, will Agnes be able to choose between saving her family and saving the world?

I started reading this book and had such high hopes. The first part of the book intrigued me. I find cults to be fascinating and I was very into learning more about the inner workings of the cult. I was on the edge of my seat through Agnes’s coming to terms with the lies she had been told. And I was desperate to see her escape the cult. But then, the book started taking a turn… and I got very concerned about the topics of the book. The second half of the book is all about Agnes accepting God (yes, uppercase G) and following his plan. SPOILER In fact, the book ends because Agnes realizes that she can cure the virus by becoming God’s new prophet. I was not prepared for this turn. The book became a whole story about accepting religion, a very specific religion. I just couldn’t. By the time I realized where this was going, I was 78% complete so I finished the book. Now I’m wishing that I didn’t.

Next up on the TBR pile:

We're Homeschooling! Sourcing, and Buying

Once we decided our style and what we wanted to teach, I dove into the wild world of homeschool curriculum. There is so much out there, it can be easy to get lost. I jotted down some criteria to help me narrow down the choices:

• secular

• rigorous

• wide world perspective

• not necessarily all-in-one

• at least some physical items, not all online

• cheap (not necessarily the cheapest, but not expensive)

We didn’t create a strict budget, but I was mindful of the cost of various options to get the best deal for what we wanted. I also was mindful of systems that presumed continued homeschooling versus being able to dip in and out. I read a ton of blogs. I made multiple lists of options. I crossed off some items and added others. And eventually I decided on a collection of items and supplies to buy.

What We Bought

As we started buying, I knew that my eclectic approach would require coordinating many different sources and suppliers. No box curriculum for us! Even some of the more box-like items I purchased, I made changes along the way. Here’s what we have purchased for our homeschooling adventure.

Math

• Singapore Math 1A and 1B Common Core Edition - I bought just the textbook and workbook for each level. I didn’t feel it was necessary to buy the teacher’s textbook or test booklet. After receiving the materials, Arthur seems like he could jump right to 1B, but we decided to spend August and September doing a big review before moving up. We will probably buy 2A after Christmas if our schedule holds.

• Lollipop Logic Book 1 - I love the idea of teaching logic in a more formalized way. We’ll work through book 1 and if we like it, we’ll get book 2.

• TinkerActive Math Grade 1 and 2 - These will mainly be used as daily math practice pages, but I also love that they have STEM activities for each unit.

Language Arts

Arthur has started reading, so we don’t necessarily want curriculum to teach the basics. I wanted items that would build his reading comprehension and writing skills. The books in the picture will be used for daily ELA practice. I bought:

• SightWords for Grade 1

• Phonics G1-2

• Success with Writing G1

• Mad Libs Reading G1

• TinkerActive G1 English

• Sylvan Language Arts Success G1

• Beginning Phonics G1-2

• Spelling and Writing for Beginners G1

• Phonics for First Grade

Beyond the grammar components, we are planning weekly read alouds with discussions, daily poetry reading, and various picture books for night reading. Our first read aloud is going to be The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo. We happened to own the book, but most of our read alouds will be checked out from the library. (Here the libraries are closed, but they do offer curbside pickups of holds) Writing will often be incorporated into one of the other subjects.

Social Studies - The Hard One!

I went back and forth when it came to Social Studies. In schools, SS is often only taught 1-2 days a week for about 20 minutes each time. This is a travesty in my mind! I wanted something where we would be working with social studies (and science, see next section) almost every day. After wading through, we ended up buying Build Your Library Level 1. BYL is a set of 36 weekly lesson plans coordinating history, literature, poetry, science, and art. They were created by a homeschooler utilizing a more eclectic approach but grounded in Charlotte Mason philosophy. I liked the idea of a framework to keep me grounded, but like that BYL is very flexible. Most of our read alouds will be taken from the plans, as well as most of the basic nature science. I liked the history, but the spine featured, Story of the World, is not a secular spine. I searched around and found out that Pandia Press has created a truly secular version called HistoryQuest. Right now they have the ancient world released. So I bought that! The textbook, history told in a narrative style, and the study guide are in a pdf format (so no picture!). We are only printing the pages that Arthur needs to work with and keeping the rest on the iPad. I am switching around some of the chapters to make more sense of the timeline in my mind, but we will be following a lot of the activities and discussions provided. Beyond the spine, BYL has a book list of suggested volumes to purchase. I went through, pulled out ones that were featured for more than 3 weeks and seriously thought about buying them all. A took a moment to look at how they were being used and made a few changes. I ended up buying the volumes above to act as supplementary materials to the main HistoryQuest text. We will also be utilizing a ton of videos and internet resources for each chapter. And the library will be the main source of supplementary texts both fiction and nonfiction.

After thinking about it some more, I went back and bought Blossom and Root’s A River of Voices U.S. History curriculum. I was hesitant at first, but after reading more about it, thought it would be a good fit for us. The PDF’s cover 36 lessons from the earliest North American explorers to 1791. The big draw is that RoV is told from an inclusive standpoint. We get a majority of lessons featuring marginalized communities. We are planning on checking out the spines and suggested reading books from the library, but may end up buying some of theme as the year progresses. Using RoV with HQ, we are going to do split weeks. Most Mondays, Tuesday, and Wednesdays, we will focus on the HQ chapter. Most Thursdays and Fridays, we will focus on a RoV lesson. We will also have random weeks in there where Thursday and Friday is being reserved for a continent study. I’m really hoping this works!

• Curiositree’s The Human World - BYL had their Natural World volume in the book list, but I found this one at an outlet sale and decided to grab it.

• When on Earth - Great maps through time!

• Explorers - The illustrations are amazing and the bios are wide-ranging.

• The Kingfisher History Encyclopedia - BYL has Usborne’s version on the list. I found this one at an outlet sale and decided to sub.

• Ancient Civilizations History Pockets - I’ve alway loved this series, so I had to add this one to our curriculum. I might end up picking up a few different ones to supplement.

Science

Science will mainly be coming from BYL’s plan utilizing Nature Connection, but we will also be doing unit studies of various subjects. I know that there are science topics Arthur has expressed interest in (biomes for one) and some others that J and I want to teach (basic chemistry concepts, physics, etc). BYL’s science curriculum is very nature based and hands-on. That is a part of Charlotte Mason that I really enjoy. I want Arthur to be able to outside and connect to the Earth almost every day.

I also ended up buying Blossom and Root’s Book Seeds: Profiles in Science. This pack includes 6 two-week lessons featuring a famous scientist paired with a picture book, STEAM activities, art activities, and nature studies. I wasn’t going to buy B&R’s big science curriculum, but loved these small units. Our first Book Seed: Profiles in Science is about Charles Darwin. Perfect to align with Week 2’s History, Archaeology, and Evolution theme! I will be sprinkling these in throughout the year. I also ended up grabbing B&R’s Book Seed: Mittens and Book Seed: Rainbows for a discounted price. Two more little science units to add into our year.

• Animals of the World - Target Dollar Spot find for extra fun

• Tinkeractive G1 and G2 Science - This will be added lessons when we cannot go outside.

• One Small Square: Backyard - Featured in BYL lessons. Decided to actually buy it.

• Nature Connection - BYL science spine. I checked it out from the library and then decided it was a jam packed workbook that we had to own.

• Heroes of the Environment - Another BYL listed item. I found it for just a few dollars, so we bought it.

• Blank sketchbooks for nature journaling

Other Curriculum

We wanted to include a variety of subjects beyond the basics, so I scoured our own libraries for choices and then bought a few things. The items above are ones that I hope to sprinkle through our weeks. Art is not really listed separately, but we will be doing almost daily art either it’s a free create day, tied to one of our unit studies or history or literature other subject, or a more formal art history lesson (those will mainly come from online and library books). Similarly, music will be coming in the form of Classics for Kids podcast and supplementary library books. I want Arthur to gain an awareness of music through time right now, not necessarily a formal music education.

• Children’s Dictionary - This is for reference of course, but we didn’t own a physical one.

• I Can Draw books - I picked up these two for Christmas and we never opened them. They are going to be used for the occasional free draw day.

• Human Body Activity Book - Hoping to work this into our science curriculum on bad weather days.

• Philosophy for Kids - J picked this up a few years ago. I think it’s now the time to break it open. The book includes 40 large philosophy questions with readings, discussions, and activities. We will be tackling a question each week.

• Early Spanish - Target Dollar Spot find

• Measuring and Cooking - Another Target Dollar Spot find. We are planning on at least one cooking project a week. Sometimes it will relate to our units and other times it will just be helping me make dinner or cookies.

• Coding Book About Ruby - J really wants Arthur to learn coding soon…

• Q&A a Day Journal - Thought this would be a fun way to start our days.

Supplementary Curriculum

Over the past year, I have acquired a few more summer bridge style workbooks. These will mostly be used as math and language arts daily pages. Just 3-4 pages a day to keep up some skills.

• Basic Math Success

• Page Per Day Math Skills

• Time, Money & Fractions

• Complete Curriculum G1

• Summer Brain Quest 1-2

• Brain Quest 1

As for supplementary material, I have found a ton of free printables online and have even bought a few things from various educators on Teachers Pay Teachers. As we move through the year, I’ll be sourcing other items for specific lessons and subjects, but don’t anticipate a lot of big expenses moving forward.

School Supplies

I love back-to-school shopping! But I knew that I needed to focus on other needs this year. Still, I did grab some basic supplies for our upcoming year. Not all items are pictured above.

• Notebooks and paper - just a few of each including some grid paper, handwriting paper, blank sketchpads, and lined notebooks

• Dry erase boards - I found a blank one and one with lines at the Target dollar spot

• Dry erase markers

• Pencils - Ticonderoga of course!

• Glue sticks

• Upper and Lower Case Alphabet Stamps - For extra fun and for Quentin (prewriting)

• Dry erase pockets - Another Target Dollar Spot find! These are amazing!

• File folders - To make history pockets

• Highlighters, markers, and crayons

• Index cards - Used for a variety of things

• Rulers

• Post-it Notes

• Binders - To control the chaos!

Over the course of the year, I know I will pick up some things here and there, but we’ve mostly got our stuff in order!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for the week:

• These cooler temperatures are such a delight!

• So glad I scheduled a break week in between summer units and the start of our homeschooling year. I need a few days to gather my thoughts.

• Couple of dud books this week

Next up on the TBR pile:

Wicked as You Wish by Rin Chupeco

Title: Wicked as You Wish (A Hundred Names for Magic #1)

Author: Rin Chupeco

Publisher: Sourcebooks 2020

Genre: YA Fantasy

Pages: 432

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library

Many years ago, the magical Kingdom of Avalon was left encased in ice when the Snow Queen waged war. Its former citizens are now refugees in a world mostly devoid of magic. Which is why the crown prince and his protectors are stuck in...Arizona.

Prince Alexei, the sole survivor of the Avalon royal family, is hiding in a town so boring, magic doesn't even work there. Few know his secret identity, but his friend Tala is one of them.

A new hope for their abandoned homeland reignites when a famous creature of legend, the Firebird, appears for the first time in decades. Alex and Tala must unite with a ragtag group of new friends to journey back to Avalon for a showdown that will change the world as they know it.

Overall I really enjoyed this book. I loved the mash-up of various systems of magic and worlds from other literature. I loved the action sequences especially all those involving the Ice Maiden and the Snow Queen. It took me a while to get the hang of the terminology, but I did get the hang of it. The story was decent and set up the rest of the series pretty well. This one ends on one hell of a cliffhanger, so beware. Unfortunately, I am very tired of the trope where everyone other character knows what’s going on, while the main character is kept in the dark “for their own safety.” I really get so very annoyed by this in every book it appears. I just cannot. Why can’t characters just communicate the relevant information in any given situation? I can’t deal with the lies by omission. I am still debating whether or not to continue reading this series.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Redhead by the Side of the Road by Anne Tyler

Title: Redhead by the Side of the Road

Author: Anne Tyler

Publisher: Knopf 2020

Genre: Fiction

Pages: 192

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Ebook; MMD 2020

Micah Mortimer is a creature of habit. A self-employed tech expert, superintendent of his Baltimore apartment building, cautious to a fault behind the steering wheel, he seems content leading a steady, circumscribed life. But one day his routines are blown apart when his woman friend (he refuses to call anyone in her late thirties a "girlfriend") tells him she's facing eviction, and a teenager shows up at Micah's door claiming to be his son. These surprises, and the ways they throw Micah's meticulously organized life off-kilter, risk changing him forever. An intimate look into the heart and mind of a man who finds those around him just out of reach, and a funny, joyful, deeply compassionate story about seeing the world through new eyes, Redhead by the Side of the Road is a triumph, filled with Anne Tyler's signature wit and gimlet-eyed observation.

This was not the book for me at all. I’m not a fan of character studies or more specifically, character studies of very blergh people. Every page of this very slim novel was a slog. I just couldn’t connect to any characters or find any joy throughout the book. I just didn’t care about the story or the people in it.

Next up on the TBR pile:

We're Homeschooling! Research and Decision Making

As August approached, we started realizing that school was not going to look “normal.” . I kept waiting for the local school district to release some kind of plan that would carry a low enough risk to send Arthur to physical school. Unfortunately, the district never met my threshold. And so I turned my mind to really considering homeschool as an option. I started researching our state’s (Nebraska) rules and regulations when it came to homeschooling. Nebraska has a very low threshold when it comes to homeschooling. Basically you submit a form to the state with a birth certificate and you are good to go. Some states require the logging of hours, details on curriculum used, and other things. Nebraska does not. A point that I think is working in my favor (i.e. not quite having a cemented plan), but could cause large gaps in achievement for certain kids. That is a whole other debate and discussion that I’m not getting into right now. For my purposes, I submitted my documents to the state and turned to the hard parts…

How am I going to teach?

Thanks to my education degree, I did come to this question from square one. I know my education philosophy. I know mostly how Arthur learns (Q is still the wild card as he’s only 3). I had things to work from. To help me solidify my thoughts, I found a great Homeschooling Style quiz. My results were:

Score for Waldorf Education: 10 

Score for Traditional Education: -3 

Score for Unit Studies Education: 16 

Score for Montessori Education: 8 

Score for Thomas Jefferson Education: 1 

Score for Unschooling: 13 

Score for Classical Education: 11 

Score for Charlotte Mason Education: 18

I am most definitely an eclectic teacher and now homeschooler that loves to take elements from many different styles and mash them together. I will be taking some elements from Charlotte Mason, unschooling, and unit studies with a bit of Classical Education to create our plan.

Our House and Family Is:

• more interested in fostering a love of learning and a passion for knowledge than tests and grades

• atheist, but believes in learning about all cultures and religions of the world

• focused on exploration and discovery leading to more learning

• literature and primary source based (very few textbooks allowed!)

• not opposed to computer time and screen time to help support our lessons

• pro-science and rigorous inquiry

• (hopefully) going out into the world to learn

• supportive of daily free play and exploration

What will I teach?

With all these things in mind, I turned from the how to the what. My first step was to look up Scope and Sequence for first grade. This can give you a basic idea of the things taught in any given year. I pulled many S and S documents from a variety of sources and started jotting down ideas for our year. Math and Language Arts is covered in almost every plan I saw, but the other subjects are harder to find. I ended up just picking through many plans and choosing what I wanted Arthur to learn this coming year. Here’s a rough brainstorming draft from this phase of planning:

I consulted with J about my list, he added a few things (philosophy and logic), and we narrowed down the focus in a few areas. Once I had a big idea list, the next step was to research and source curriculum. And my goodness! There are so many choices out there. I’ll share what we decided on in Part 3.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - The Pretty Reckless "Death by Rock and Roll"

Give me more!

Wicked Intentions by Elizabeth Hoyt

Title: Wicked Intentions (Maiden Lane #1)

Author: Elizabeth Hoyt

Publisher: Grand Central 2010

Genre: Romance

Pages: 401

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: UnRead Shelf Project; Perpetual - NPR Romance

A MAN CONTROLLED BY HIS DESIRES . . .

Infamous for his wild, sensual needs, Lazarus Huntington, Lord Caire, is searching for a savage killer in St. Giles, London's most notorious slum. Widowed Temperance Dews knows St. Giles like the back of her hand-she's spent a lifetime caring for its inhabitants at the foundling home her family established. Now that home is at risk . . .

A WOMAN HAUNTED BY HER PAST . . .

Caire makes a simple offer-in return for Temperance's help navigating the perilous alleys of St. Giles, he will introduce her to London's high society so that she can find a benefactor for the home. But Temperance may not be the innocent she seems, and what begins as cold calculation soon falls prey to a passion that neither can control-one that may well destroy them both.

A BARGAIN NEITHER COULD REFUSE

I absolutely devoured this one! I was looking to start a new romance series, and noticed that I had the first two Maiden Lane books just sitting on my shelf. I picked it up and didn’t stop. I fell head over heels for Lazarus and Temperance. I immediately wanted to know so much about each of the characters. I was intrigued by the murder mystery and hoped that things would resolve themselves. Beyond the murder, I needed to see Temperance and Lazarus realize their feelings for one another. This book had just right moments of tension and sexual frustration. I was here for everything. I cannot wait to read the next one in the series.

Maiden Lane

• #1 Wicked Intentions

• #2 Notorious Pleasures

• #3 Scandalous Desires

• #4 Thief of Shadows

• #5 Lord of Darkness

• #6 Duke of Midnight

• #7 Darling Beast

• #8 Dearest Rogue

• #9 Sweetest Scoundrel

• #10 Duke of Sin

• #10.5 Once Upon a Moonlit Night

• #10.7 Once Upon a Christmas Eve

• #11 Duke of Pleasure

• #12 Duke of Desire

• #12.5 Once Upon a Maiden Lane

Next up on the TBR pile:

Life Right Now #26

As I look outside my window: It’s a bit overcast but should clear up and bring cooler temperatures. So ready for this!

Right now I am: Drinking some coffee, looking over my to-do list.

Thinking and pondering: Which color should I spray paint the school desk? Either a blue or a green…

On my bedside table: Beach Read by Emily Henry; Agnes at the End of the World by Kelly McWilliams

On my tv this week: The Umbrella Academy is back!!!!! I’m so excited. I really should pace myself, but a big part of me just wants to binge it right now.

Listening to: All the usual podcasts. Lots of whining children. It’s not been a great week…

On the menu for this week:

• Monday - Leftovers

• Tuesday - Shrimp Burrito Bowl

• Wednesday - Baked Potato Soup

• Thursday - Crab and Asparagus Soup

• Friday - French Onion Pork Chops

• Saturday - Leftovers

• Sunday - Cawl Cennin (Welsh Leek Soup)

On my to do list: I have a big list of smallish tasks for the week. Mostly just organizing everything and prepping for fall. And I need to drop some mail off at the post office and our absentee ballot requests at the election commission.

Happening this week: I made appointments for library hold pickup and a zoo day this week. And it’s grocery week. Otherwise, this is our break week in between summer school and homeschooling start.

What I am creating: I’m currently in the midst of refinishing an old style school desk I picked up for free awhile back. I have all my tools. Just need to get to cleaning, sanding, and then spray painting. Hoping to be done this week so Arthur can use it for homeschooling.

My simple pleasures: A smoky old-fashioned, listening to the rain, a good apocalypse book.

Looking around the house: Things are in pikes everywhere. This week is all about organizing and putting everything away from summer stuff.

From the camera: We went swimming last Tuesday. So nice!

August 2020 Life Goals

Let’s check in on July’s goals and my progress.

• Plan for homeschool through August ✓ - Some blog posts are coming with our plans, but I have finished the planning for the first two months!

• Read 20 books ✓

• Send out July cards ✓

• Make fall plan for home renovation and repairs - Fail. Trying to get J to nail down a plan is a bit difficult.

• Walk 30 miles on the treadmill ✓

August’s Goals:

• Read 20 books

• Send out Exchange Cards - 22 thank you cards to prep and send this first week.

• Walk 30 miles on the treadmill - Trying to keep this up!

• Start homeschooling! - We plan to dive in on Aug. 10th. Crossing our fingers that everything goes well.

Next up on the TBR list: