Astronomy

This year Caleb is in grade 7. One of our main lesson blocks for grade 7 is astronomy. We use the Charles Kovacs book, Geology and Astronomy, and The Constellations - Stars & Stories, by Chris Sasaki.

Caleb really enjoyed this main lesson block and loved the fact that his main lesson book had black pages.Last year he did not want to write at all, and this year he is doing it with ease.


Every Thursday for two months, we woke up early to plot the sunrise. It was interesting to see what happened.

Maths

Yesterday we were making some beautiful maths formula cards.

We used our wet on wet paintings that we have done through out the year.

Area = Base x Height
Area over* Base = Height
Area over* Height = Base

Distance = Speed x Time
Distance over* Speed = Time
Distance over* Time = Speed

*or divided by

Crashing

Well I must say that I have definitely neglected my blog! It has been a really busy year so far for me.

I have been exhausted most of the year and to be honest I do not know how I have managed!

Three months ago I went to have reflexology. My friend Robert is a reflexologist. He said that I have a lot of stress in my body. He also picked up thyroid and stomach problems. Besides that the treatment was fantastic.

I have been feeling so run down, exhausted and grumpy. It was getting worse as the months ticked by.

Two weeks ago I went to an iridologist. She was phenomenal! She asked if my appendix was removed. it was when I was 12! I have an under active thyroid. My adrenal glands are under too much pressure from stress. My liver, kidneys and gall bladder are all taking strain. My digestive system is not functioning properly, and to top it all off I am anemic and have candida systemically.

She was surprised that I was able to do every thing that I do. According to her I should not be able to get out of bed!

The first plan of action is to get rid of the candida. She has put me on a very restrictive diet and given me a herbal tincture plus a very good pro-biotic to take. She says it should take three weeks to clear.

I need to eat more protein and if that doesn't help soon enough then I will get some chelated iron to help the process.

The pro-biotics will help the candida and my digestive problems.

The organ problems are hormonal, so we will look at treating for that next month.

The adrenal system taking strain is because of my holding in stress, and she suggested kick boxing, screaming into a pillow or something similar! Not sure about this one, but I will ponder it! When I feel a stress attack I have got a smoothy recipe that I am to make and drink.

So, all in all, I need to stop getting stressed!

Life

It is the middle of the year. We are on holiday and we all need it!

This has been an interesting year and one of the busiest that I have had in a long time.

I have been studying Thai massage to be a practitioner and to be a teacher. I am a practitioner now and am building up a client base. I love healing people and working on people.

I am schooling three children using the Waldorf pedagogy. I use most, if not all of Melisa Nielsons curriculum (http://waldorfessentials.com/). This year Caleb and Hannah have basically been self studying. I plan their work and put it in their diaries. They have done well academically but the craft and art has been lacking big time. Sheth and I school about two hours every morning.

I am starting a new programme that Melisa has called Thinking, Feeling, Willing (http://waldorfessentials.com/tfwfaq/). I am so excited as I feel it is going to get me on track again. Getting to do more art and craft with the children is my aim. Getting us back into the beauty of life and not just the drudgery of every day boredom.

I love having my children around me, I love teaching them and nurturing them. I love my family and want them to prosper and love life. Greg and I want to bring up happy well adjusted adults. This is not such an easy task to do, as we are finding out.

Rhythm, love, patience, boundaries and consistency are all very important when we bring up our children. This gives them a sense of being wanted, loved and being part of the family. This gives them security and comfort.

As the children get older they become easier yet much more difficult. With two children at the early teenage stage we definitely have a lot of attitude around here. As they get older my patience has grown in leaps and bounds.  

This holiday we are going to relax,  have fun and get back into the beauty of life

Thai massage again

I have started to do craft markets with the Thai massage. I love working at craft markets. The atmosphere and vibe is great. The children and Greg also love going for the day.

I do markets at the different Waldorf schools. I do this as I homeschool using the Waldorf curriculum and feel that this is a great way to have the kids around certain aspects of Waldorf. The organic foods, the beautiful art work and the down to earth people.

I also do house calls. I charge more for these as I factor in my travel.

I do not do Hawaiian massage at the markets as you need to remove your clothes for this massage. It is the most wonderful, relaxing massage if done in a quiet place.  

Now I just need to build a client base.

Thai massage

This is the first time that I am writing about me. Normally my life is the children, their schooling, knitting for them or other family and friends and my husband. I love all these things with a passion or I would not do any of it.

Last year I hit the middle age crises stage! Well when I went into it deeper, Rudolf Steiner talks about this and he was dead on right down to the exact month.

Me, being a person who doesn't wallow in self pity, started to make plans. I made lists and lists and more lists. Then I prayed, never ceasing, as we are told to do. I wrote lists about things I wanted to study or businesses I wanted to start. I would get frustrated as we have no money for any of the above. And, I prayed more.

My dad asked me if he could come stay with me for a while as he has got a lovely lady friend and they were coming to see us. I am always happy to have people, so said yes.

Dad and Maureen came for dinner. Dad was staying here and Maureen with her friend.  

Maureen was going to be teaching Thai massage and LomiLomi Hawaiian massage while they were here, so that she could cover the cost of the trip.  

I joked with Greg and asked him if he had money on the credit card so that I could do the training. Maureen asked if I was serious and when I said yes she told me she would gift me with the training. I was ecstatic to say the least.

It took a lot of planning as I homeschool, but as this was something I really wanted - I made it work. Dad looked after the kids. I planned all their school work and had it ready for them.

I did about a month of training, coming home exhausted, as it is physical, and I was learning about muscles I had forgotten existed in my body. I had a lot to read and try to retain, and I was finding it quite difficult. I had last studied 18 years ago. I was marking and checking Caleb and Hannah's school work in the evenings, eating and going to sleep exhausted. I was enjoying myself intently!

What I did:

1. Thai reflexology foot massage

2. Thai introduction

3. Thai level 1

4. Thai level 2

5. Traditional Hawaiian massage level 1

6. Traditional Hawaiian massage level 2

7. Traditional Hawaiian massage level 3

               

Wow what a blessing.

Now the work began. I had to do my case studies.  I got really overwhelmed as I had done all the courses back to back and now I had to somehow sort it all out in my mind. So, what I did was start doing the case studies for the Thai introduction  massage. When I got those done, I sent them off to Maureen who by now had gone back.

I then did my case studies for Thai foot massage, and then for Thai level 1 and then level 2. By this stage the massage was part of me and my love for it was growing daily.

Greg bought me a beautiful chocolate brown leather massage table for my Hawaiian massage and a floor mat for my Thai massage.

Maureen came back a couple of months later and I helped her to teach Thai massage at one of our local international beauty colleges. This just helped settle it all for me. I love doing massage.

Last week we went to see my oma who is turning 88 this week. She told me that my great opa had also been a masseur in Holland. And, that my opa's brother, who now lives in America, was also a masseur until he retired. They did Traditional massage.

So the conclusion that I have come to is that massage must be in the genes.