My new commitment to the classics. and ( Do I have a Jo? )

A month or two ago my oldest daughter and I stayed up late together, snuggled in my bed and watched Little Women.  My daughter watched it for the first time and I watched it with different eyes, paying closer attention to Marmee and how she handled her girls. We finished the movie completely delighted with our hour and half experience with the Marsh's.  It has been one of my favourites throughout the years and it was such a treat to get to watch it with my daughter!

Since that night I decided I was going to make the book Little Women a part of their required reading at some point in their schooling. Then I realised I had never read it and I feel that if I want my kids to read the classics I better have read them or be reading them myself.  So this year I have committed to immersing myself with more classic books of literature. 

Since that movie night I have read Little Women and I was profoundly struck by the value of family and the wisdom for life within the pages of the book. I feel like I missed out not reading it sooner.

 I look forward to when my girls read this book in the future for it is filled with wisdom for  youth as it is for me a women in the crux of parenting and will be a fun book to discuss with them. 

Norman Rockwell's painting of Jo.

After Autumn watched the movie she was taken by Jo's gift of writing and she herself has always enjoyed writing and coming up with stories. So one night about a week ago I found her up in her room frantically writing. The title of her story was Riches and Lace.  Even after she went to bed she wrote with her little flashlight until her 10:00 pm lights out. 

I love this picture of her, she was so deep in thought with her bins all piled high to form a desk and create a space for herself.



Now that I am done with Little Women I am looking forward to eventually reading Little Men and Jo's Boys as I was able to download them onto my kindle for free. When you live overseas a Kindle is such a gift!!! 

In my west corner learning from ages gone by,

Becky

After writing this post I came across this wonderful post on Little Women by Simple Homeschool:

Enjoy this link: Simple Homeschool: Little women

“If you feel your value lies in being merely decorative, I fear that someday you might find yourself believing that’s all that you really are. Time erodes all such beauty, but what it cannot diminish is the wonderful workings of your mind: Your humor, your kindness, and your moral courage. These are the things I cherish so in you. I so wish I could give my girls a more just world. But I know you’ll make it a better place." -- Marmee, Little Women” 
― Louisa May Alcott, Little Women

DIY Felt stick puppets for the Puppet Show (HS Journey & Journal #3)

Poems and Puppets will be our theme. 

We have picked out three poems from this lovely book; Poems for the Very Young, it is full of lots of sing songy poems that are super engaging. 

We are using felt, a glue gun and some doul sticks to make the puppets. 

I first had the kids draw out there puppets on a regular sheet of paper. 

They then cut out the picture and used it as their pattern on the felt.

I am trying to let the kids take the lead on this. 

They picked the poems and had to think through how many puppets per poem. 

I have placed Autty in charge of all things 'puppets' and Lydia in charge of the stage. 

Here they are testing out there first stick puppets. :) 

My remain nameless child who balked at this idea is warming up just fine and enjoying herself thoroughly. 

As of now we have 2 puppets down and 5 more to go, plus

memorisation and the completion of the stage. 

So far we work on this idea 2 times a week for the last 30 to 45 minutes of our morning...clipping right along. 

Poems and Puppets part #3....soon to follow. ;)

In our little west corner- creating puppets and memories. 

Becky 

You can check out how we made our stage here:  Part #1- Creating a Puppet Theatre

Bits and bobs I have been working on

Just wanted to say Hi and show you a little face lift to my 'idea book'.

This is where I write lists or sketch ideas of art pieces to be or not to be. 

It was just a plain notebook I had and added some grey scrap book paper to it about a year ago. 

Tonight I looked at it and thought how drab. So hopefully the new additions will inspire new ideas, creativity and cups of hot tea. :) 

Underneath my idea book are fun little quilting squares I randomly put together the other day. 

Here is what my living room table has looked like for the past week. :) 

I am determined not to put it all away until I have created something else..something fabulous, something full of color, something grand!  (my table might be looking like this for awhile ;))

Oh and here is my little incognito sewing/art supply cabinet in my living room.

  I can turn my living room into a creative space in a flash and then close it up really tidy like. :)  

Random note: 

This morning I woke up and pulled my chair over by one of my living room windows and watched the clouds move and make way for the bits of color left over from the sunrise.  As I talked with the Lord I tried to sketch what I was seeing over the apartment buildings all around... they (the apartment buildings) could not shut out the sky, the clouds the fresh morning glow. I am convinced that beauty can be found every where God is!  

Tonight I am going to try and create some beauty. Good night to you all. 

Becky in my west corner. 

Homeschool j & j #2 - Puppet Theatre and show Part #1

Hey. So I have been thinking for some time how fun it would be for a puppet show.  I have been saving this big ole box for some time and I belive the time has come for a little theatre. a little show. a performance of sort. to happen right here in our home. So watch and be amazed as we transform boxes and felt into an amateur display of the arts. :) 

We are going to take a few hours of school each week to plan and put together a puppet stage, homemade puppets and a story or poem of some sort for the script. We are hoping to have it all ready before our wonderful and dear freinds who have lived in this city with us for the past 8 years pack up and go home. We would love to perform it for them...so two weeks is our goal.

Here is Part 1 of our Puppet theatre in pics:

Cute kid waiting.

Cutting and taping. 

Testing it out.

If you are interested in making your own puppet stage like this check out this you tube video it is perfect! (just need a big box)

Make a Cardboard Puppet Theater

You would think that both my girls would be completely delighted with this project. Well not so...nope one of them (who I will keep anonymous) is struggling that the results are slow and it takes steps and planning to make it come together, she wants it to go faster. This is going to be a great learning tool for her in follow through and how forethought and hard work pay off. 

 This idea involves thinking thru steps, math, reading and crafting to name a few. Not to mention learning to work together.  So I am feeling pretty good about taking our school time and putting this together. We shall see how it all goes...as this momma also is learning that 10 yr. olds and 7 yr. olds have lots of great ideas that are sometimes different than mine and wearing flexibility is imperative. 

So long for now. In our west corner. Using another cardboard box.

Becky

tea/coffee 2014 calendar printable :)

Yes I am hopeless when it comes to a new printable calendar for a new year, and really one with a tea cup... well it simply must be shared.   So look what I found, pretty fun hey!! :) Enjoy like I am.

Happy New Year.

or

If you are interested in these fun printables I found them on 

Mein Lila Park here is the link: 

2014 calendar

Here is a full calendar if you would rather. It is a free download just click the link and it will take you to the original post. :) 

Elegance and Enchantment calendar 2014

Much care to each of you this new year. 

In my west corner ~

Becky

Tea cup cozy and blogging blues

My dear friend made this tea cup cozy for me for Christmas! Isn't it super fun.

I am confident that I have the funnest and cosiest tea expierence in my city. :)

 Do you want one? Sorry my friend, my tea cozy.

(yes that is green tea in there) ;) 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. :) 

We returned from the States just in time for the wonderful flurry of Christmas prep/Christmas and then New years. We are now feeling a bit challenged to get a good rhythm and rhyme to our days again.

While I was in the States I lost my nice camera. (I am so sad about it) I am struggling with wanting to blog because to me writing and pictures go hand and hand. I need color and I find it is through the lens of my camera. I have my phone to take pics and I am very somewhat grateful  for it, but it doesn't have the same effect for me.  

Knowing me my blogging blues will clear up. I have been blogging faithfully for 3 years now and it has been such a wonderful outlet for me.  Honestly I love looking over my posts and re-reading certain ones and seeing the pictures captured for that thought or idea and remembering. It is a journal of sorts and a fun story of my life in this little west corner. I truthfully don't want to let that go just yet.

At this point I feel a little bottle necked.  I guess what I mean is that there is so much happening in my life it seems to have made it hard for me to write because there is so much to write about and without the picture prompts it has made it harder, as the prompts and color help me express life. I have written 4 posts and left them almost finished in my drafts. 

Feeling Bottle Necked

Took this pic this summer when it was sooo hot and I

 was looking for things to be grateful for. 

Cold sparkling water in a green bottle.

What is bottle necking me: My mom's diagnosis of stage four cancer, my dearest friends leaving in February, my kids grief of there best friends of 8 years, homeschooling 2 kiddos this year, discovering a learning disability in one of my daughters, uncertain of our future and if we will move, realising that we will be the only foreigners in our town, trying to figure out how to improve my Turkish when I am home and homeschooling so much, aware that I haven't blogged-took pics- or created much of anything in a long time... well that's the surface. 

There, maybe writing that out will be like drain-o and unclog me! 

  ...and maybe after writing this post I will see my phone as a blessing and be content with what I have for taking pics. 

In my west corner,

Becky