Another Homeschool Graduate

Ron and I were so blessed to spend a recent weekend with our son's family, celebrating our granddaughter Eve who is graduating from high school! We were able to attend her Senior Gala & Violin Recital . . . SO special! 

It was a quick trip, but it was filled to the brim with the best things. We were grateful that all of the pieces of the puzzle fit together to allow us to go.

On Saturday evening, we had a yummy meal featuring Hawaiian burgers, followed by a time of singing and playing instruments. Delightful!

We had a pre-recital outing at Beans in the Belfry, a fun coffee shop that is in an old church building. There was live music, delicious coffees, and good times with our people.   

We were back home in time for everyone to get ready for the gala. Look at these beautiful sisters! Nora (left) accompanied Eve's solo piece at the recital. So special! 

Our sweet senior posed with her parents. We are so proud of their homeschooling journey! Eve is an accomplished young woman, and she is also a kind and compassionate soul. 

The gala featured a delicious dinner, a slide show of pictures of the seniors, and remarks from the seniors and their parents. Then the formal recital began. 

Eve solo piece was "Violin Concerto in Hungarian Style in A Minor, Op. 2." It was so beautiful and we were bursting with pride and joy!

We all rode back to Ryan and Sarah's house and then we had a time that was as meaningful as the recital. 

Since they do not have family nearby, and they are not a part of a homeschool group in their new home, Ryan and Sarah had chosen not to have a formal graduation service for Eve. But after the little girls had gone to bed, Sarah read aloud letters of recommendation that she had written about Eve for college applications. Beautiful! Then we all had the opportunity to talk about Eve, which was easy to do, and we applauded her accomplishments. Finally, the conversation turned to education in general.

If you're a longtime reader here at Thinking About Home, then you know that I homeschooled my children for twenty-eight years and that I loved it with all of my heart. I am passionate about the lifestyle that homeschooling allows. My youngest graduated six years ago  . . . but I still miss the homeschooling way of life. Of course, I am busy with other things, but I miss the joy of learning side by side, the feast of ideas, the discipleship, the time spent together, the purpose. 

But that night, as we sat philosophizing together, I could "see" some of the return on our investment in our children's lives as they have carried on that same investment in their own children's lives, and I felt a deep satisfaction. No, I am no longer directly guiding anyone's education, but the truth hit home that I have had some part in sowing the seed for generations that follow. 

Congratulations to Eve, our fourth grandchild to graduate from homeschool! Blessings on your next steps, sweet girl!

And these words, which I command you today
shall be in your heart. 

You shall teach them diligently to your children,
and shall talk of them when you sit in your house,
when you walk by the way,
when you lie down, and when you rise up. 

Deuteronomy 6:6, 7

Things I'm Thinking About . . .

In A Charlotte Mason Companion: Personal Reflections on the Gentle Art of Learning, Karen Andreola suggest that each day a child should have:

    ~ something or someone to love

    ~ something to do

    ~ something to think about 

I agree with that! But now that I am no longer in the business of directing a child's learning through homeschooling, I also believe that those are good principles for anyone . . . throughout life! 

Here are a few of the things that I have been thinking about recently . . . 

💡THE MERLIN APP 

I suppose this is not so much "something to think about" as it is an aid to knowledge, but it certainly spawned some thinking this week. Mom, my sister Linda, Bekah, and I went to the cemetery to put a wreath on Daddy's grave for Father's Day. While we were there, we heard a bird chirping over and over and we weren't sure what kind of bird it was. I remembered that I had downloaded the Merlin app a few weeks ago after a few recommendations on Instagram, so I decided to give it a try. The app quickly identified the singer as a Northern Cardinal, a common bird in our area. I should have recognized  call, its but I didn't and I realize that I don't know many birds by their sounds. Over the next few minutes, Merlin also identified a Carolina Wren, a Brown-Headed Cowbird, a Chipping Sparrow, and a Great Crested Flycatcher. Their calls were not as loud as the cardinal's, but the app picked them up and we noticed the sound when it did. How much I have missed! Now I am inspired to listen more attentively and to learn to recognize the calls of the birds in my area. 

💡GIVING A CHILD SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT

Even though I no longer homeschool my own children, I find it fascinating to watch my grandchildren learn. I use the word "watch" because sometimes it seems exactly that . . . as if you can see that lightbulb turn on as something grabs their imagination and they start thinking about it. 

We have a weekly video call with our daughter Kati's family. (Rabbit trail here: I am so thankful that, as much as I love Little House on the Prairie, I do not live in a time before such things as video calls! I am grateful to see those grandbabies across the miles every week!) 

Back to my story. On a recent video call, Caleb (5) and Ellie (almost 4) were telling us about seeing a bear in the movie Balto. We proceeded to talk more about bears, including the fact that Ellie was a bit of a grumpy bear that day because she hadn't slept well the previous night. Then I remembered the poem about Fuzzy Wuzzy and recited it for the children. As soon as I began, Caleb stopped wiggling and gave me his full attention. (I was "watching" him learn right then.) 

A few minutes later, Caleb surprised us by saying the poem himself . . . after hearing it one time! Ellie was saying some of the lines too. So I have decided to read or recite a poem for them each week while interest lasts. This week's was "The Purple Cow" by Gelett Burgess. 

💡A QUOTE ABOUT REMEMBERING

My Bekah is an old soul. Of course, she has always been around people older than herself. Ron and I were ages 44 and 40 when she was born. She has three older siblings and the oldest is 20.5 years older than she. Also, Ron is the fifth of eight children, so her aunts and uncles are also older and she has grown up hearing about Social Security and retirement and colonoscopies and the like. On the flip side, she has always been around babies too since her first nephew was born when she was 20 months old and she now has fifteen nieces and nephews. All of that to say that Bekah has had exposure to a broader scope of thoughts and culture and ideas. 

Since Bekah started college, we have had many conversations about "common knowledge." It is surprising that many students have not read, watched, or even heard of books, movies, historical figures and events that we consider "common knowledge." We have discussed the fact that if you only know what has happened in your own lifetime, and if you are only familiar with modern thought, then you have missed a vast amount of knowledge! Are you truly educated? 

I came across this quote yesterday as I was reading Beyond Mere Motherhood: Moms Are People Too by Cindy Rollins. 

Remembering is one of the most important things we can do for our present and our future. Remembering is not looking back only, it is carrying those things past into the future for the preservation of culture.

I love that, and it gives me something to think about!

💡THIS VERSE

Our ladies' Sunday School class has committed to memorizing one Bible verse each month. I made a phone wallpaper for this month's verse so I see it (and think about it) multiple times a day.

Thanks for joining me on this meander through my random thoughts! I'd love to know what you have been thinking about! 

In an attempt to catch up on my Gathering the Moments posts, I just posted 
Gathering the Moments | March 2025
Gathering the Moments | April 2025 

I hope to "gather" May soon! We'll see . . . 🙃

Gathering the Moments | April 2025

April was a busy month for us! There were three events on three consecutive Sundays, requiring a whole lot of thinking and a whole lot of planning and lists galore. Menus . . . decorations . . . entertainment/games . . . set up . . . details, details, details. Fortunately for me, we began with the biggest event and each one got easier. 

🌷 The first Sunday, there was a family reunion for Ron's side of the family.

The week leading up to it was full of activity. Ron was off for a couple of days, and we took a day trip on one of those. I filled in as the main teacher of our ESL class, We went to two theater performances: one on Friday night to see a family friend and another on Saturday night to see our daughter Kristin and our grandchildren Owen and Maddie.

I wasn't sure I would get it all together for the reunion, but somehow we pulled it off! One of the highlights of the day was singing karaoke . . . and laughing like crazy! 

🌷 The second Sunday of April was Bekah's birthday.  

It was a joyful day of celebrating our "baby" on the 24th anniversary of her birth. I shared more party details and photos ~ here ~. 

I have told Bekah's story several times over the years, but if you're new here at Thinking About Home, you can read it ~ here ~. It is a story of hope and rejoicing! 


🌷 The third celebration was Resurrection Sunday.

As I said, each gathering was easier to plan, so Resurrection Sunday felt like a breeze! We had a wonderful day . . . from Easter breakfast to our church service to a holiday meal with Kristin and family and my Mom. (Bonus: all new Lindt lamb foil creations!) 

So if April had a theme, it could be . . . 

GATHERING

for there were many

or . . . 

RESURRECTION DAY MUSIC

because I played this playlist all. month. long. 

or . . . 

PINK

because those grocery store tulips lingered awhile and showed up in many photos 

and because the Judas tree (that was a descendent of a tree that Ron's grandmother once had) was in full bloom, 
and the bleeding heart bloomed,

as did the pretty circle of azaleas that were planted by our house's former owner.

as did the redbud tree that we planted last fall, a memorial gift in honor of my Daddy, gifted to me by a dear friend 

or could the theme be simply (and profoundly)  . . .  

GRACE

because that explains every gift and every good thing.
Grace. Free and undeserved favor. 

Gathering the Moments | March 2025

 

~ EARLY SPRING BLOOMS ~

here, there and everywhere

(They are so welcome!)

some inside, some outside

some real, some faux

~ AN AFTERNOON WITH JUDAH ~

~ CONTINUATION OF A PROJECT ~

that we started in January
(I gave you a peek in February.)

 ~ CORNED BEEF & CABBAGE ~

~ FRESH EGGS ~

gifted from a friend
(Love those colors!)

~ DISHES ~
added a few spring-y dishes to the plate rack

~ A SMALL PARTY ~

to prepare for a big party
(a family reunion for Ron's side of the family)

~ MY MONTHLY CAT PHOTO ~
We take oodles of photos of Manzy.
(Is he photogenic or is he our "baby"?)

~ A COUPLE OF DAY TRIPS ~

one with my friend Barbara

(antiquing; lunch at an old inn)

and one with Ron
(shopping and lunch in a seaside town)

~ A SPECIAL ANNIVERSARY ~

They celebrated by biking the 184.5-mile C&O Canal towpath!

~ AND A SWEET GIRL'S BIRTHDAY ~

   And that was our March!