Shakespeare!
A lot of our plans for Shakespeare for Yena (7th grade) come from the Spring 2009 issue of Mater et Magistra, which includes excellent material from fellow homeschooling moms, and even a special Shakespearean tea from Alice Gunther, so I won't be posting those here....
A Marian Study for May
Note: This is a work-in-progress. 🙂 This is our rough outline for a Marian study we're doing in May, covering art, geography, religion, history and the liturgical year. It's a combination of ideas culled from the Blessed Mother Notebook Project message thread at the...
Homosexuality and Real Solutions
In Part 1, I talked about the band-aid solutions offered by popular culture being inadequate to address the prevention of same-sex attraction/homosexuality itself. Speaking to those causes listed by the Catholic Medical Association, I'd like to make the following...
Homosexuality and Band-Aid Solutions
Homosexuality is a deep, deep wound in the Body of Christ. It's not something that can be fixed with band-aid solutions. We need to get to the root of this wound, because that's the only way we can effectively deal with it, prevent it, and heal the Body of Christ. And...
Breaking It Down, 2013-2014
The other day I posted Yena's curriculum for this coming schoolyear and how we planned it. Today I'm posting a screenshot of the lessonplans-on-spreadsheet that I do every year for the kids. In 2011 I did a very detailed planner for my then-13-year-old who needed it....
Yena’s Curriculum (11, 7th grade) 2013-2014 / The Curriculum Planning Post
Haha. I was typing up the title for this post and had to stop and call Dad and Yena who are out on a biking trip (it's 7:35 am). I think I made a mistake somewhere along the line. When I was 11, I was in 5th grade.... Hm. I don't know if I accidentally made her skip a...
The BSA, Catholics, and Religious Freedom
Last year, my 17-year-old Eagle Scout came home every weekend in summer, bubbling with energy and ENTHUSIASM (that word is all-capped for a reason and Scouts will understand why), regaling us with stories of how he taught the young boys this and that at the Camp where...
Pears in Spiced Red Wine
I tried peeling my pears "decoratively", but I'm not that impressed with the way they turned out and wish I had just peeled them all the way. Won't be doing that again 🙂 5 Bartlett pears (Bartletts hold their shape nicely), peeled, and cored from the bottom. 3 cups...
Poulet Basquaise (Chicken Basque-Style) for St. Bernadette’s Feast Day, April 16
When we visited Lourdes in 2008, we ate a chicken dish at this restaurant, but I don't remember much about it except that it had a winey sauce with a bit of bite, and that it had peppers, which I disliked as a child but now love as an adult. So when I was looking for...
Salt Cod and Potato Salad for St. Bernadette’s Feast Day, April 16
Salt cod is one of those things that have always appealed to me. There are so many things you can do with it! You can put it in soups, flake and make fish balls/fritters with it, make into a brandade (my FAVORITE, except the family can't have it), add to a stir fry,...
Basque-Style Green Beans for the Feast of St. Bernadette
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon minced garlic 1/2 cup chopped onions 1/2 cup chopped red peppers 1 1/2 lbs. green beans, trimmed sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste 1/2 cup chopped Basque/Bayonne Ham, or Jamon Iberico or Serrano, or...
Olive and Anchovy Pinchos/Pintxos for St. Bernadette’s Feast Day
A Basquaise appetizer that's really easy to put together and takes no time at all. Plus, olives are soooo good for you. I inherited my mom's love of both anchovies and olives 🙂 . The hot peppers add that needed ZING. To make these, you'll need: an assortment of...
Annunciation Waffles (Allergen-Free!!)
Happy Feast of the Annunciation of our Lord!! We started the day with Mass, and hurried home anticipating breakfast, since Jenn tells us that the food most associated with this feast are WAFFLES. And I think our allergen-free formula's finally good enough to share....
Good Friday
And both the girls cried bitterly (though they hardly knew why) and clung to the Lion and kissed his mane and his nose and his paws and his great, sad eyes. Then he turned from them and walked out on to the top of the hill. And Lucy and Susan, crouching in the bushes,...
The Sacramental Dimension: Deep Conversion, Deep Prayer
The Sacramental Dimension The last part of the book is dedicated to discussing the Sacraments and how they relate to living the Be's. There is a reminder that the "plan" for deep conversion and deep prayer is a combination of divine grace and our cooperation with it....












