Here is A's first knitting effort, all done. Looks pretty, eh? I think it turned out really well, and I love the yarn she chose. I made one just like it, but more greenish. Now we've both managed to cast on and knit, and yesterday I figured out how to bind off. Woo hoo! I don't have much confidence yet for anything beyond a hat and scarf, and I'm not sure how many hats and scarves we can really use, but I'm excited, nevertheless. I have many knitting pros among my friends, so A and I are in good hands, in any case.

I just signed A and I up for an on-line Brave Writer course called KidsWrite Basic. I linked Brave Writer to her blog, because I think you get a better idea of her philosophy from her blog than her website, which is more nuts-and-bolts. A likes to write and frequently ask for help from me in the way of structure ("Let's have journal-writing time every day. You just say it's time and set the timer, and then we'll write for at least 10 minutes") or subject ideas ("I think you should have me work on an essay. What do you think I should write about?"). Unfortunately I've failed her on both accounts, so I'm hoping this course will not only give us some good ideas for improving A's writing, but will also help me give it the attention A is wanting and needing. 

M is a happy unschooler, though he does tolerate some mom-imposed math and reading (in small doses). He loves science, and I've started bookmarking websites for him that show science video clips, which he'd do all day if I let him (with a few Underdog and Tennessee Tuxedo cartoons thrown in from YouTube, thanks to his pop!). Here are some of his sites he's gotten a lot of mileage out of: Scenes from Nature, Robert Krampf, Newton's Apple, and Wired Science. And speaking of science, here's why it takes M an hour to do the dishes:

One day it is bubbles in glasses, another is spinning plates on top of the water, another is trapping air in glasses, it's always something. And water is always stone cold by the time he's done.