The French word for grapefruit is PAMPLEMOUSSE! Isn't that delightful?? I discovered this during my morning labors translating classic French poetry. Hah! Not really. I use grapefruit spray to clean my kitchen counters, and apparently, this brand sells well amongst Le French.
I just finished a novel set during the German occupation of France in 1941: Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky. It is a terrific story, well told, but it ends abruptly. Why? Because the author, before she finished it, was arrested and deported to Auschwitz, where she died. That is a punch to the gut, isn't it?
To lift my spirits, I next read The Magnolia Story by the ever-ebullient Chip and Joanna Gaines. They are just delightful, those two. It was inspiring to read about all the hard work that has led to their success.
Hudson had a history project last week. He presented the life of William Wilberforce to his class (note to me: make him put his costume back on and GET A PICTURE!!) and he and I read a young adult biography out loud (William Wiberforce: Take Up the Fight by Janet and Geoff Benge) and I have also been listening to the Eric Metaxas biography, Amazing Grace: William Wiberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slavery in the car on the school commute. So, things have been WILBERFORCE-INTENSIVE. I think Hudson was a little overwhelmed with all the minutiae of British parliamentary procedure, and a little disappointed that Wilberforce's only weapon was his voice. I also scared the children by watching the movie with them and weeping through the entire ending scene. Bagpipes. Bravery. Jesus. Perseverance. Thanks for the encouragement, good sir. (sorry, children of mine, that I can't reign in the waterworks.)
We listened to Rascal by Sterling North on the school commute. It was really charming.The kids now want a baby pet raccoon. Sasha says NOPE, NOPE, and NOPE. We are finishing up Little Women, and while I am enjoying it, I don't like it nearly as much as Little Men. I am not sure what we will listen to next. Maybe The Incredible Journey?
We have not been consistent with reading at bedtime, which is why it is taking us a sweet forever to finish At the Back of the North Wind. I don't think any of us would be sad to abandon it actually. I want to love George MacDonald, but it is work.
In an effort to keep up with Harper, I read 2 YA books last week: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba, and Listening For Lions by Gloria Whelan. TBWHtW is a true story of an amazingly inventive, tenacious Malawian boy who uses garbage to create a windmill that generates electricity. I loved it--such an incredibly hopeful story, though the chapters that describe famine are painful to process. LFL is also set in Africa. It's a novel, and the protagonist is the daughter of a missionary doctor and nurse who die during the flu outbreak of 1919. There is a birding sub-plot that didn't get as much attention as Harper and I would have liked, but we both enjoyed it. I am so thrilled that my friend Natasha, who leads Harper's book club, has been so intent on exposing the girls to quality books that introduce them to cultures so different from their own little microcosm. I see it shaping Harper's view of the world, and that is thrilling.
Helena and I are finishing up On the Banks of Plum Creek for school and THANK THE CREATOR, the grasshoppers have finally marched west, and we can finally pay off the boughten boards and real windows. Hudson just finished The Treasure Seekers, and the book party was last week. He dressed up as a bottle of Castilian Amoroso. To which I say bless our little classical education hearts. But sending a kid-sized bottle of sherry to a Christian school is a pretty SWEET moment, I can't lie.
I have also read a couple of self helpish/mothering books this month: Cleaning House: A Mom's 12 Month Experiment to Rid Her Home of Youth Entitlement, and I'm Happy For You: Finding Contentment in a Culture of Comparison, both by Kay Willis Wyma. The first one had some specific strategies I might try this summer. I bought Mere Motherhood: Morning Times, Nursery Rhymes, and My Journey Toward Sanctification by Cindy Rollins at the Circe booth at the homeschool convention. I've only just started it, but I think it's going to be helpful. I also just started a book about de-cluttering, and I think we KNOW that is going to fix all my problems right up.
Okay, enough. We took a hike at Cullinan Park last Saturday. This is one of my favorite views. Just my guys, strolling along.
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