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Recently, I posted that Taliesin gave his first tithe. Well, Nathanael has also been saving quarters. He keeps them in a small box - a "tooth fairy" box, actually. Today we were getting ready to walk out the door for church. Before we did, he ran into the bedroom and grabbed his box to get some quarters to give as offering. So we counted his quarters and then took 1/10 of his money to give in tithe today. He even went to his children's church class late so he could put his tithe in the offering plate. I am very proud of him. I am just amazed at how he and Taliesin understand the importance of giving to others. Kandy
This year, we tied in the story of St. Patrick with our study of Biblical compassion. Taliesin and Nathanael had so much fun studying St. Patrick via books, a video, drama, and lapbooking. On St. Patrick's Day, we made Irish walking sticks, had an Irish lunch, and had our annual St. Patrick's Day parade! 
As I've written about before, Taliesin and Nathanael are both in dance class. They both love it! I have been having some concerns recently, though. This last week, Taliesin's teacher told the parents of children in the class that the kids need to work on their timing for their recital routines. Fair enough. However, when she added that all of the other classes of this age group have it down and she's a perfectionist; I have to question that. I see no problems with challenging the children (ages five, six, and early seven) to work on their routines and be the best that they can be. I do see a problem with making children this age feel not good enough. Maybe it has nothing to do with dance, but I have noticed that Taliesin has been becoming extremely frustrated the past few weeks. He does practice his dance a lot, which I'm glad that he enjoys doing that. But he is getting increasingly frustrated with things that he usually enjoys. For instance, today he was making an art project. He became angry and frustrated because he could not get it to look the way he wanted it to. This has never been an issue for Taliesin. He usually works and allows the project to direct itself. I do not want him to become a perfectionist. I want him to enjoy what he does. So I guess that is the questions for this post are: There is a fine line between challenging our children to be their best and causing irritation at expecting perfection. How do we know when we have crossed that line? What do you think? Am I being too picky? Is it just the unschooler in me that is too relaxed by others' standards? Kandy
Meet Taliesin's and Nathanael's newest pets: hermit crabs! They are having so much fun learning about how to properly care for them - lots of sand, fresh water, natural salt water, hermit crab food (including fruits and veggies), humidity, sponges, and extra shells. Their pets certainly teach them a lot about creating habitats. These guys (or girls) are now added to their list of pets - dogs, cats, rats, a guinea pig, a tree frog, fish, and sea monkeys.
