stopping for tea

Its been a week.  A busy week.  A week of firsts.  A good week.  Our first day of lessons began Monday.  Bit by bit we are settling into a rhythm, and my confidence grows.  The girls seem to be loving it.  I still cringe a little when I see the school bus pass by, often asking myself, "Am I really doing this? Can I really do this?"


To offset the three R's (reading, wRiting, and aRithmetic) I am trying to add in some really fun things. This is absolutely essential for Hannah (5), otherwise I start to lose her.  As part of our Charlotte Mason curriculum we are studying the poetry of Walter de la Mare, and I thought it would be fun to include a little tea with our verse.


Poetry tea01 


We dressed up ( yes- we) in our fanciest, most jeweled fluff and sat for some reading.  It is amazing how much the girl's manners improve when they are served like "real ladies".  We're talking napkins on the lap and all!  Both older girls chose a poem to memorize with the hopes of reciting it at a family gathering later this fall.  Our little tea time was fun and I vowed to make it a weekly event.


So all of those August/September babies seem to be arriving right on time- three in the last week!  This has proved somewhat challenging as I try to juggle midwifery with homeschooling (and homemaking, and gardening, and canning, and...).  Funny enough, a long night spent away welcoming someone else's baby makes me all the more anxious to get back to my own.  I am thankful for my Husband and my friends who have filled in all the gaps for me.  And after the deliciously chubby, 10#  large headed, baby boy born last night...you won't hear me complaining about much anytime soon!


In fact, I am in a semi state of bliss right now.  In a matter of hours I will find myself alone with my spouse of 10 years now, receiving spa treatments, eating gourmet food, sipping fine wine, wearing plush white robes, soaking in our own private jetted tub, and eating the chocolates left on my pillow.  Can you even begin to beat that?  Don't wake me!


I'll be back next week!