Back to School
Posted on | August 31, 2010 | 1 Comment
As with most educational institutions, school has begun in our household. This is our third year homeschooling. What’s funny is, every now and then, when I start to lose confidence and question my goals, I always get some sort of sign that reminds me why Troy and I decided to homeschool. The last one was this excerpt from a book I’ve been reading …
“In our schools, grades K through 12, students are not so much educated as trained to perform well on standardized tests. They aren’t taught to think for themselves, question, or be curious. They’re encouraged to accept what they’re told without hesitation.”
- Poetry as Spiritual Practice by Robert McDowell
The book is about incorporating poetry into your daily life so it’s quite an unusual place to be reminded of why we lost faith in public schools.
Anyways, this year is a tough one because aside from teaching Mica, it’s the first time that Rinoa has a full formal curriculum. You can read about Mica’s subjects and her thoughts on homeschooling here. As for Rinoa (who’s only 5 years old), except for second-grade Math, all other subject she’s taking are first grade level. And she’s loving it! Her favorite subject is history! (Would you believe?!) She begs to have history if it’s not scheduled for the day. It’s making Mica, who hates history, crazy!
To keep me sane during school days, I’ve dedicated a 2-hour break in the middle of the day called “quiet time”. During this time, Mica and Rinoa can do whatever they want as long as they stay in their room. It works well for us – it keeps us refreshed and ready for afternoon lessons. It’s especially important since they now have gymnastics class almost every evening.
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Here are a few more glimpses of summer days as the last of them roll by.
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| Ok, this is the face of someone who’s having lots of fun and not wanting to leave a really awesome picnic. |
Feliz Party Dress
Posted on | August 20, 2010 | 3 Comments
This one I actually started three months ago but I had to give it a rest because I was getting frustrated with it to the point that I was ready to shred it to pieces – lol! Last week though, I decided it was time to finish it. And I’m glad I did because Rinoa said it’s her favorite so far.
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The Feliz Dress is a two-layer dress – a full-skirted underdress topped with a shorter, pinafore-style overdress that’s open in the back. Rinoa absolutely loves the back and wishes she can wear the dress with the back as the front. I was going to add trims to the dress but got kinda lazy, so I’m saving the trims for a future attempt at another Feliz Dress.
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| What can I say? Another perfect outfit for twirling! And she does love her twirls! |
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Feliz is a perfect summer dress but once it starts getting cold, it can be layered with a long sleeve shirt and leggings. That’s what I call versatile! :)
Dortje Pants in Pink Corduroy
Posted on | August 19, 2010 | 4 Comments
Now that I know how to make a pair of Dortje Pants, I felt the urge to make more and have some fun with it. Here’s the second one I made in pink corduroy with flower print accent and lots of ruching. Very playful!
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What I love about the Dortje Pants is that it’s perfect for active children! It has a faux fly and elastic waistband which makes it look like real zipped-up pants with the ease and comfort that young children require. It also has full pockets in the front and back just waiting to be stuffed by its lucky wearer. {Rinoa loves ‘em!}
The Dortje Pants
Posted on | August 18, 2010 | No Comments
I’m back chugging at my sewing machine, whipping up a fun, playful wardrobe for my youngest daughter who is difficult to shop clothes for. In the process, my sewing machine and I are fast becoming best friends – lol!
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As with the Insa Skirt, my patterns are based on the book Sewing Clothes Kids Love by Nancy Langdon and Sabine Pollehn – a book I highly recommend. I have no garment-sewing experience before the Insa Skirt but this book makes it very easy to sew clothes.
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This is the Dortje Pants which was so fun to make. When I bought the fabrics, I meant to make some pajamas but I loved how the pants came out that it didn’t feel right for it to be worn only at home. I paired it with a Brooklyn Tank Top which I had to make twice because the first one was kinda snug when I tried it on Rinoa. My bad! I forgot to fit it on her before I sewed all the seams.
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The only trim/embellishment I added to the pants was this pink ribbon around the waistline. This is the first pair of pants I ever made so I wasn’t comfortable with the frou-frous yet. At this time, I was just hoping for a wearable garment – lol!
| “Mommy, why are you taking a picture of my butt??!!” – Rinoa |
Mica’s Blogging. Heck Yeah!
Posted on | August 17, 2010 | 3 Comments
Like I always say, it’s never too early to start building your personal brand and hone your entrepreneurial skills. {She’s also planning on selling handmade jewelry in her blog. So watch out for that!}
Please give my 13-year old daughter some online love and pay her blog a visit at www.micaredington.com.
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Geek Gardening
Posted on | August 15, 2010 | 4 Comments
My husband Troy promised me he’ll do a post about his veggie gardening method experiment and here it is …
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| GEEK GARDENING by Troy Redington |
Ahh Gardening. We’ve been trying for years. It started years ago really. Johwey is an amazing cook and always in need of herbs. We were constantly buying basil, parsley, cilantro, thyme, and rosemary, and constantly using half-ish of the package and letting the rest rot away. Growing our own seemed like a cost effective and great-tasting hobby. We started small, with a few containers of basil, parsley, and rosemary I believe. It stayed alive for at least 2 weeks on our patio before dying a sad sad death. We didn’t have a clue. Over watered? Under watered? Hell if we knew. We kept trying, summer after summer.
Last summer, we had even higher hopes. We had two tomato plants, a watermelon plant, two basil plants, a parsley, and a cilantro. Things started off great. The basil was thriving, as was the parsley and cilantro. The tomatoes were ‘meh’ – as was the watermelon. One day at work, I get a panic call from J … “There are weird bugs on the basil!”, she shouts over the phone. Within 12 hours, our basil plants had been completely consumed by the satanic little Japanese beetles. Those bastards. The tomato plants failed miserably – producing a whole one tiny tomato. The parsley died, and the cilantro turned to wood. We still suck, but we’re getting a little better.
Still determined to grow my own stuff, and recently getting addicted to bell peppers, I spent the winter months researching geekier growing techniques. I was trying to find an affordable entry into hydroponic growing when I discovered a product called the EarthBox. This miraculous product couldn’t be overwatered or underwatered, it had a reservoir that used a sub irrigation system to wick moisture throughout the soil – the plants take as much water as they need, when they need it, which apparently produces very healthy plants and lots of fruits. I researched it, and sure enough, the reviews were raving. Hundreds of people produced amazing gardens with the EarthBox. I even found videos of farms using EarthBoxes, hundreds of them, to organically grow vegetables. One problem – a single EarthBox is $65. Certainly worth it, and a fantastic investment – but being a Fatwalleteer, I had to explore cheaper options.
I found a similar product, called the GrowBox. It was cheaper, but the reviews weren’t as good and had some complaints of mold and mosquitos. I’m not a fan of mold, or mosquitos, so I started looking into DIY options. I started on youtube and found some interesting looking options like the Global Bucket. The problem I had with that was the look, buckets are ugly. Additionally, one bucket = one plant. I figured I could get more plants with the same amount of dirt with another option. Enter the DIY Earthbox (That’s actually not the plans I used, but its darn close and I can no longer find the one I used.)
I built 3 boxes, similar to the ones in the plans. Each box is made from two 18-gallon bins, one water basket (or collander), one short piece of 1.5″ PVC pipe, one straw from a Disney princess challice (stole it from Rinoa). Total cost was about $30 bucks. Time drilling and dremeling, about 3 hours total. Each one holds about 3 cubic feet of potting mix which set me back another $50 bucks.
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The great thing is, everything is self contained. The fertilizer is inside, and doesn’t pollute or run off. The top is covered with garbage bag material so there’s no weeding, no bugs, and no evaporation of the soil moisture. I fill each one up with water once per day. There’s no over-watering, as each box has a drain in the side. The soil is always moist, so the plants drink as much water as they need.
One box has six pepper plants, which so far have produced 16 absolutely delicious red peppers – and there are at least 20 more waiting to ripen. Another box has two Roma tomato plants, which have produced 8 beautifully vine ripened tomatoes (two of which were taken by the evil squirrels) – There are at least 30 more waiting to grow and ripen. The third box has a purple pepper plant and about 12 sugar snap peas.
The work involved in building was actually pretty easy. It was a little messy, but totally worth it. These things make gardening easy. All of the plants are thriving, and producing more veggies than I thought my black thumb was capable of.
Summer Days
Posted on | July 19, 2010 | 5 Comments
I have been quiet, I know. Summer days have completely taken over me. My family and I have been basking in the glorious sunshine and hanging out with old and new friends. Usually I’m away exploring new territories in the summer but this year, since we’re still training Dexter, I’m simply enjoying being able to go out in my flip-flops, discovering how wonderful our backyard is (thanks to Dexter who needs to go out every 2 hours), and connecting with some amazing neighbors.
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| Scenes from our summer garden. |
In our garden, Troy is successfully growing some fresh, juicy produce with a homemade self-contained gardening system. Did I ever mention I was married to a geek? I’m sure I did. He still owes me a blog post about it {ahem ahem} so I won’t show what the system looks like. What I can show is some of what he’s been growing. Unlike our prize watermelon, these ones are delightful to the palate.
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In other news, Mica and Rinoa have been busy with their summer activities. Rinoa is taking a break from dance and is busy with gymnastics in the morning and swimming lessons in the evening while Mica is still ice skating but is also doing some off ice training this summer which includes ballet, dance performance, and jumps.
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| Here’s Rinoa in her tumbling class. It was taken in the second floor viewing deck behind a dust-filled glass. Before I got the right camera settings, she had moved to an obstructed location. So this is the best I can show for now. |
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| Last week, Mica skipped her off ice training to spend time with some friends. They spent their days swimming in a quiet, peaceful lake near her friend’s house. (Photos taken by Mica’s friend.) |
Alas, not all summer days are fun. For one thing, I have sun allergy – too much sun exposure and I get itchy, red rashes. I know I can’t win. In the winter, I’m blue and in the summer, I’m red – haha! And the past few days, Rinoa and I haven’t been feeling well. My nose is clogged, my eyes are watery, and my throat is sore – feels like I swallowed a large frog which got stuck on its way down! But I’m sure all these ill-health will pass soon.
How are you spending your summer days?
Life with Dexter
Posted on | July 8, 2010 | 13 Comments
We’ve had Dexter for almost two months now. And even though it took me a while before agreeing to having a dog in the house, I must admit that I’m glad we have one now. For one thing, it’s teaching my girls responsibility. For example, Mica wakes up early in the morning to take Dexter out in the yard. She also takes care of feeding Dexter and making sure he has fresh water all the time. Rinoa helps train Dexter with simple commands and makes sure he doesn’t pee in the house since he’s not completely potty-trained yet.
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Dexter is just so full of personality that it’s really hard not to love him – even though he chewed and destroyed my living room rug yesterday. {Grrr!} He’s definitely a part of our family.
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As you can see, he loves to cuddle! He would rest his head on one of our laps and just fall asleep that way.
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For those torn between pleasing your kids with a pet puppy and not liking the idea of added responsibility, I say give it a go. You’d be surprised at how much it completes the family. Of course, you’d have to give up the idea of maintaining a picture perfect house but, if you have kids, then that ship has sailed a long time ago. {wink}
Fireworks and a Viking Game
Posted on | July 6, 2010 | 1 Comment
Happy Independence Day America! It’s funny reminiscing how, when I moved in the U.S., it felt weird watching fireworks on July 4th when I grew up watching fireworks on New Year’s Eve. Now it seems so natural – fireworks in the summer.
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We spent the day hanging out with great friends who introduced us to Kubb, a Swedish lawn game also known as Viking Chess. And of course, we spent the afternoon playing a few rounds while our dogs (we had three total) ran in and out our play zone. It didn’t take long for me to realize that I sucked at the game! Even Mica was better at it than me. Maybe it’s because I’m throwing with my left hand – haha! I know, I just need to practice.
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How was your fourth of July? I bet you’re suffering from bug bites as much as everyone in my family.
Crocheted Mary Jane Shoes
Posted on | June 24, 2010 | 11 Comments
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Catching up on some saved tv shows with the family. So while watching an episode of “So You Think You Can Dance”, I crocheted a pair of shoes for Rinoa using worsted weight yarn and jute for the sole. (I got the pattern on Etsy.) I made a pair for my 1-year old niece as well and it’s on its way to New York. Mica’s is still in the works – saving that for another episode.
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© 2006-2010 Johwey Redington.
Please don't steal my text or images, it's disrespectful and you'll be subjet to karma! If you want to use any of the images, please email me for a written permission. Thank you.
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