Bath Buddies

Yes, the floor was flooded after this. But a good time was had by all.

Happy 1st Birthday, Judah!!

"What could be more astonishing to witness than
the growth of her own children
from infant enigmas to their complex and definite,
yet ever-changing selves."
~Elizabeth Cunningham

I am astonished that a whole year has passed since our sweet Judah was born, right here in this house! And here he is, walking, dancing, laughing, playing jokes, rough-housing with Moses, reading books with Grace... *sigh*

Is every mother amazed by how quickly that first year flies by, and how in the blink of an eye their tiny baby grows to be a "complex and definite, yet ever-changing" little person?

Judah has grown to be a sweet-natured, curious, tough, happy, feisty, observant, joyful little boy. I am so thankful for every day I have been given with him! My heart overflows with love for this wonderful little boy.

In honor of Judah's first birthday, here's a montage of images from his first whole year of life. Thank you for being a part of his life, and ours!

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Birth Is Good

I came across this cool story of one woman's journey to birthing at home. I resonated with much of what she wrote, especially:

In fact, I am not a hippy. I don't buy organic, I drive a SUV-cross over thing, and sometimes I even vote Republican. When I chose a home birth for the birth of my first son, it had very little to do with what kind of experience I was hoping to have, and everything to do with wanting to avoid the cascade of interventions: the use of chemical augmentation in labor, vacuum extraction, forceps deliveries, c-sections. You know, the things that could be harmful to my baby.
...
So, I chose to birth my son at home. And it was a LONG PAINFUL EXPERIENCE. But you know what? Even though I had not set out to have a euphoric experience; even though his labor was the most painful and exhausting thing I have ever been through, it was my single greatest triumph and accomplishment. His birth was a testament that there is nothing you cannot do if you set your mind to it. I did get a medal. My award was a new sense of self-confidence, the likes of which I have never before possessed.

You can read the whole thing at the Birth Is Good blog!

Carnival of Homeschooling

This week I took part in a great blog carnival! For a whole passel of outstanding homeschool articles, check out the Carnivalof Homeschooling #162: Identity Crisis Edition, posted at Dewey's Treehouse!
Some of the articles include,

• Building a Sound Literacy Foundation
• Homeschooling Preschool
• Two Different Ways to Educate
• First Grade Language Lessons with Dr. Suess

And many, many more!