Happy Halloween

This year the children decided to dress as the cast from Peter Pan. This was a great choice because each one could pick almost any character and still be considered part of the theme. Thus we had...

Olivia as Wendy

Quinton as a pirate

Collette as Tinkerbell

Grace as Tiger Lily 

Dominic as Peter Pan

And Xavier as a Lost Boy

My mom made most of these incredible costumes. Oh, my children are so spoiled by their incredibly talented Nanna. They dream and she acts as the Fairy Godmother, fulfilling their Halloween wishes. This year Olivia contributed by sewing her own lovely costume under Nanna's watchful eye and Quinton carved authentic wooden daggers and guns for the boys. Both of them impress me every day with their skills!

I wish I could convey the excitement and glee with which everyone approaches Halloween. Pure, pure joy! They dance and prance, giggle and joke while preening for their pictures. 

It's a tradition. I don't know if Halloween is even possible without the Murphys. 

Good friends are such a blessing, especially those willing to dress according to the theme!

Before heading out to trick-or-treat, everyone gathered for a potluck party. The clubhouse was decorated to the hilt and we enjoyed many deliciously ghoulish dishes.

These glass lanterns accompanied our traditional carved jack-o-lanterns. They are painted mayonnaise jars!

The bounty. 

Thankfully, most of our candy will be donated to the marines through our thoughtful orthodontist, but before that happens, the sorting, haggling, and consuming must commence. 

Middle Ages: The Long List

Here's my really big list for our Middle Ages history study.  I've pulled these books from Elizabeth Foss at Serendipity, Story of the World Vol. II, History Odyssey, and Reading Your Way Through History. I've tailored it to my Little Girls in grades first and third, as well as, my Big Kids in grades six and eight. Since we just finished trotting around the globe, learning about many different countries and their histories, I focused our study this year on the European Middle Ages. If a chapter is listed without any further reading, then we will listen to the chapter from Story of the World but not explore it any further. My hope is to present our learning on the blog again in little units as move through time. This worked very well last year and helped to keep me accountable. It will also be a great resource for when we return to the glorious Middle Ages! This list is my jumping off point, but I will list all the books that we actually used and any highlights in the unit reports.

I can let you know, since we are already well into our studies, that there are some great stories here and very fun projects to be accomplished by all age levels. Our year is off to a great start!

One more item: I have cross referenced the Story of the World II with History Odyssey Middle Ages Level One. That is why you see all the conflicting chapter information. If I really get my act together, my plan is to cross reference STOW, HO, Children's History of the World, All Ye Lands, The Old World and America, and The Kingfisher History Encyclopedia. Wouldn't that be a sight to behold! Don't hold your breath on that one. :-)

Okay, here it is, straight form my word doc. I have not polished it for perfection as it would never be published if I tried to do that. Also, there are few authors listed, so please feel free to email me if you have any questions. Enjoy.


Little Girls

Big Kids

All

L = Library

B = to be Bought   

H = Have

HO = History Odyssey

B- The Story of the Church

H- The Old World and America

H- Kingfisher History Encyclopedia

H- Story of the World II

H- A Child’s History of the World

H- Story of the Middle Ages (audio)

Ch. 1 The Glory that was Rome (Ch.1 HO)

1 week

H- Aesop’s Fables

L- Roman News

Ch. 2 The Early Days of Britain (Celts) (Ch. 20 HO)

2 weeks

H- St. Patrick (395 -461 AD)

H- Brendan the Navigator

H- Tim O’Toole and the Wee folk

H- Favorite Medieval Tales by Mary Pope Osborne

Beowulf (500’s AD) Stories of Beowulf Told to Children (audio)

http://www.myaudioschool.com/?p=3990

H- Flame over Tara (St. Patrick, 432)

H- Beowulf the Warrior

H- Between the Forest and the Hills

Ch. 3 Christianity Comes to Britain (Ch. 4 HO)

2-3 weeks

H- The Holy Twins (480 – 547 AD)

H- Pascual and the Kitchen Angels

H- Brother Bartholomew and the Apple Grove

H- Across a Dark and Wild Sea

H- Marguerite Makes a Book

L- The Man who Loved Books by Jean Fritz

L- The Church: Life in the Middle Ages by Kathryn Hinds

L- Calligraphy, Illuminations (look at library)

H- Augustine Came to Kent (605 ad)

B- St. Benedict: Hero of the Hills

H- St. Benedict: Father of Western Monks

A Medieval Alphabet to Illuminate (Coloring Book) find pages online

Ch. 4 The Byzantines (Ch. 2 HO)

1 week

H- Saint Nicholas: The Miracle of St. Nicholas

*B- The Legend of St. Nicholas by Demi

L- Byzantine Fashions (look at library)

How the Monastery Came to be on Top of the Mountain ($$$)

Ch. 5 The Medieval Indian Empire

Ch. 6 The Rise of Islam (Ch. 5 HO)

1 week

H- Mosque by David Macaulay

H- World Religions by Usborne

Ch. 7 Islam Becomes an Empire (Ch. 6 HO)

1 week

H- Aladdin and Other Favorite Arabian Night Stories

H- The Arabs in the Golden Age

L- Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves

H- The Beduin’s Gazelle (1302)

Ch. 8 The Great Dynasties of China

Ch. 9 East of China

H- Little Pear (Japan) for fun

Ch. 10 The Bottom of the World

Ch. 11 The Kingdom of the Franks (Clovis) (Ch. 3 HO)

2-3 weeks

L- The Duke and the Peasant: Life in the Middle Ages by Sister Wendy

Arthurian Legend Unit

Stories of King Arthur’s Knights Told to Children (audio)

http://www.myaudioschool.com/?p=4411

 Favorite Medieval Tales (The Song of Roland)

·      Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

H-  King Arthur and His Knights (audio) Weiss

H- Merlin and the Making of a King by Hodges

*B- The Kitchen Knight by Hodges

H- Arthur of Albion

H- Otto of the Silver Hand

H- Black Horses for the King (5^th Britain)

H- The Story of King Arthur and His Knights

(Break for Christmas)

Ch. 12 The Islamic Invasion

L- Three Golden Oranges by Alma Flor Ada

Ch. 13 The Great Kings of France (Charlemagne) (Ch. 3 HO)

1 week

L- The Marvelous Blue Mouse

L- His Majesty’s Elephant

H- Son of Charlemagne (768 – 814 AD)

Ch. 14 The Arrival of the Norsemen (Ch. 7 HO)

2 weeks

H- Who were the Vikings?

H- Leif the Lucky (1000 AD)

H- The Vikings – Landmark Book

H- What Life was Like When Longships Sailed

H- Beorn the Proud (800’s AD)

L- Sword Song

H- The Story of Rolf and the Viking Bow (1000 AD)

Ch. 15 The First Kings of England (Ch. 8 & 10 HO)

1 week

H- CHOTW Ch. 56 Bibles Made of Stone and Glass

H- Cathedral by David Macaulay

H- Cathedral Stained Glass Coloring Book

H- Who in the World was the Unready King?

H- Art of the Middle Ages

H- The Little Duke

Ch. 16 England After the Conquest (Language, Feudal System, Castles) (Ch. 12 & 14 HO)

(William the Conqueror, 1066 AD)

2 weeks

H- Living in Castle Times

H- A Medieval Feast

H- Castle Diary

H- The Whipping Boy

H- Castle by David Macaulay

H- The Secret World of Hildegard

H- Understanding People in the Middle Ages

H- If ALL the Swords in England: A Story of Thomas Becket (1170 AD)

L- A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver (King Henry II)

H- The Hidden Treasure of Glaston (1171 AD)

Ch. 17 Knights and Samurai (Ch. 13 HO)

2-3 weeks

H- The Sword in the Tree

L- Knights in Shining Armor by Gibbons

L- Good Knight, Good Knight

L- The Bravest Knight

L- The Making of a Knight: How Sir Earned his Armor

L- Bearskin

H- Barefoot Book of Knights

H- St. George and the Dragon

H- Knights Treasure Chest

B- The Red Keep

B- The Samurai’s Tale (16^th Century, Japan)

Ch. 18 The Age of the Crusades (Ch. 18 & 26 HO)

2 weeks

L- Chanticleer and the Fox

H- Saint Francis (1181 – 1226 AD)

H- The Minstrel in the Tower

B- Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales by M. Williams

L- Saladin: Noble Prince of Islam

B- Canterbury Tales by Cohen

L- El Cid by McCaughrean

B- Francis and Clare: Sts. Of Assisi

H- Big John’s Secret

Ch. 19 A New Kind of King (Ch. 19 HO)

2 weeks

B or L- Dick Wittington and His Cat

B- Favorite Medieval Tales by Mary Pope Osborne

B- The Adventure of Robin Hood and His Merry Outlaws by McSpadden

(1167 – 1216 AD)

H- The Apple and The Arrow (1290 AD)

H- The Three Musketeers and Robin Hood (audio)

B- St. Elizabeth’s Three Crowns

H- St. Thomas Aquinas

B or L- 1215: The Year of the Magna Carta

B or L- The Magna Charta by Daugherty

(Break for Easter)

Ch. 20 The Diaspora (Ch. 16 HO)

Ch. 21 The Mongols Devastate the East

Ch. 22 Exploring the Mysterious East (Marco Polo)

Ch. 23 The First Russians (Ch. 25 HO)

Ch. 24 The Ottoman Empire (Ch. 36 OH)

H- The Great and Terrible Quest (Late Middle Ages)

?- The Siege of Constantinople by McNeese

Ch. 25 The End of the World (Plague)

1 week

H- The Door in the Wall (audio)

H- The Duchess Bakes a Cakes

L- Master Cornhill (1665, Black Plague)

?- The Black Death by Hahn (search for bubonic plague books at library)

Ch. 26 France & England at War  (100 yrs War) (Ch. 11 OH)

1 week

B- Joan of Arc: The Lily Maid by Hodges (1412 – 1431 AD)

H- Joan of Arc by Poole

H- Trumpeter of Krakow (1461 AD)

B- St. Joan (Vision Book)

Ch. 27 War for the English Throne (War of the Roses)

(Ch. 22 HO)

1 week

L- The Apprentice (Florence) by Llorente

H- Adam of the Road

L- Catherine Called Birdy (13^th)

Ch. 28 The Kingdoms of Spain and Portugal

2 weeks

L- Three Swords for Granada

L- The White Stallion of Lipizza (Spain, Renaissance)

L- Isabel, Jewel of Castilla Spain, 1466

L- I, Juan de Pareja (1660, Velazquez, Spain) (audio cd)

L- Shadow of the Bull (Spain LIT) (audio cd)

H- Nacar the White Deer

Ch. 29 African Kingdoms

Ch. 30 India Under the Moghuls

Ch. 31 Exploring New Worlds - ?May skip

H- Columbus by D’Aulaire

L- The World in 1492 by Jean Fritz

H- Brendan the Navigator (486 – 578 AD)

B- The World of Columbus and Sons

Ch. 32 The American Kingdoms (Ch. 35 HO)

Ch. 33 Spain, Portugal, and the New World

Ch. 34 Martin Luther’s New Ideas (Ch. 40 HO)

Do ch. 34 & 36 together, 2 weeks

L- A Medieval Cathedral by MacDonald

H- The Old World and America

H- Mary Bloody Mary

?- Luther, The Rest of the Story (audio, St Joseph Press)

Ch. 36 Reformation & Counter Reformation, 1560

(Ch. 37 HO)

B- St. Thomas More (Vision Book)

Ch. 35 The Renaissance (Ch. 37 HO)

Do ch. 35 & 37 together, 2-3 weeks

H- Who in the World was the Secretive Printer?

H- Michelangelo

H- Da Vinci

H- Da Vinci Art Book

H- Rembrandt

H- The Story of Painting by Sister Wendy

H- Great Artists

L- The Second Mrs. Giaconda (Leonardo de Vinci, 16^th C)

H- Leonardo Da Vinci- Landmark Book

Ch. 37 The New Universe

**Look for Catholic resources on Copernicus and Galileo

H- Galileo and the Stargazers (audio)

Ch. 38 England’s Greatest Queen (Elizabeth I) (Ch. 41 HO)

1 week

H- The Public and Private Worlds of Elizabeth I

H- Mary Bloody Mary

Vision book entitled Edmund Campion - Hero of God's Underground by Harold C. Gardiner to gain a Catholic perspective of the Catholic persecution during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

Ch. 39 England’s Greatest Playwright

L- The Shakespeare Stealer (1601)

Ch. 40 New Ventures to the Americas

Ch. 41 Explorations in the North

Ch. 42 Empires Collide

She Smiles

Marie Claire at Two Months

I love it when the babies begin to smile. It melts my heart every time to see their eyes focus in recognition and a slow, faltering grin spread across their face. Marie is no exception. Seven times I have been blessed to watch sweet joy unfold for the first time. Seven times blessed.

Marie has kept her sweet mellow temperament. She sleeps through most nights (hurray!) and quietly observes the day. Truly, she is an answer to my prayers especially since this...

great galloping gallump had refused to sleep for the first year of his life. 

Yes, an answer to my most fervent prayers.

Do you know how hard it is to take a picture of just one child? There is always another mischievous face trying to get in on the action. I have crop out little hands, shoo away interlopers, and finally concede that there is no such thing as a quick photo of one. There is always another waiting for attention, perched upon the counter top. It makes me smile.

Summer Time Again...

Before I have procrastinated for so long that it would be ridiculous to post, I am going to share more of our summer time fun. This is a little photo intensive as I just threw it all in together.

The Garden

Our gardens were beautiful this year. Golden sunflowers towered above all our glorious squares of carrots, spinach, lettuce, broccoli, tomatoes, potatoes, pumpkins, sweet peas, zucchinis, squashes, strawberries, scallions, and beets. Whew, writing it all down brings back a flood of memories: round with baby planting square after square of carrots, rounder with baby pulling weeds, about to pop with baby harvesting our bounty. 

The children were particularly taken with the sweet peas. They loved hunting through the vines for fat pods promising sweet surprises. I never cooked a single pea for the littles ate every last one while standing under the sweltering sun.

Gracie was the leader of the garden marauders. Oh, the pillaging of the strawberry and carrot patches. Little people were constantly eating dirt encrusted produce. What fun!

I planted all those sunflowers thinking that they would shade the tender spinach leaves thus extending the growing season. They did their job spectacularly! A little too well in the end as we had more sunflowers than anything else, but I cannot complain when the mistake was so beautiful.

 Wet and Wild

Our dear neighbors once again opened their pool to our family. I don't know what we would do without their generosity for my children absolutely love to swim. They are actually little fish disguised as small human wrecking machines. The disguise is pretty convincing!

They played endless rounds of Marco Polo.

 (I do believe those are called ducks-out-of-water.) 

Olivia has the longest legs, amazingling long legs!

 Poor Xavier has his work cut out for him if he is to get her in.

 Flying with the Greatest of Ease by Grace

Get Ready...

Get set...

Go!!

Quinton, you crack me up!

 Summer Storm

I know other parts of the country have thunder showers everyday but it is so novel to have one in southern California that I just have to take pictures. I love the moody skies and warm rain. I love the children frolicing in wetness and laughing at this gift from the heavens. I love the brief break from scorching dry heat.

Stephen and Blaise took advantage of the coolness to run and run and run.

Quinton swung in the trees.

 Marie Claire made a little excursion outside to watch all the antics.

Even Olivia romped with the little ones on this delightful wet afternoon.

I love to look back on all those smiling faces and remember the amusements of summer as we waited in joyful anticipation of the birth of Marie Claire.