This is our learning room, I love this space. I’m finally getting some order in here. Previously, there were books everywhere and I could never find anything. There is nothing more frustrating, when you are looking for a specific book and it’s nowhere to be found! Ever experienced that before? We have also bought desks for each child to work at, we tried having everyone at one large table but that didn’t work at all. These desks were a lucky find at my favourite local thrift shop, they have a history and have been crafted from sold Kiaat and Oak wood, I just adore them…
Green!
Caiden and Kye will be starting hockey this Saturday, it’s the beginning of the winter sport season here in South Africa. They are so excited, today we went out to buy sticks, shin guards and gum guards etc… They are really looking forward to it. I’m happy they are taking up a new sport, Kye is also learning to swim, we go once a week for lessons and he loves it!
Hello!!
As I’m writing this post, the rain is pouring down outside, it’s a welcome relief from the rather sweltering heat that we’ve been experiencing over the last few days. I must also just say that directly above my head where I’m sitting writing this post, a rat has passed away in the ceiling. We cannot reach this rat as there is too much insulation in the way and he’s too far away from a trapdoor. As you can imagine, the smell is in here is RIPE! As soon as I’m finished writing, I am going outside for fresh air.
Erin has recently started playing guitar again, she loves it and writes the most beautiful songs.
What are you going to do about the rat??? I couldn’t leave it there, might give me nightmares. :)Such gorgeous pictures, it just looks so beautiful there. You look beautiful too!!
:))
Oh Sara, I don’t know what we can do about the rat, we really cannot get to it, we live in a very old house and all the electrical cables in the roof run along the base of the trusses, the insulation has ben put on top of that and we can’t go walking around up there. I know it’s not a great situation but there’s nothing we can do, we really can’t reach it. We will just have to wait it out I suppose, the smell is too awful though.
You are so kind, thanks about my photo Sara:)
xo
Hi Linda
What about standing on a ladder and using a vacuum cleaner to suck the rat out? Please take a look at my blog and tell me what you think, I knitted a sweater for my pet rabbit Winston. you might be interested in having a look at his photos.
Love your blog.
So nice to see your green while we are having winter…but my daffodils are up so spring is coming!
The approach of spring must be wonderful Donna!
Well, hello! Ugh! why do vermin have to crawl in hard to reach spots to die?
Children, everywhere, seems to be the same 😉
hello! what a lovely post linda, i feel like i’ve just stopped in your home for a nice visit! your learning room does look like a wonderful place to gather, and all the children with their activities, such a happy journey you are on.
Thanks dear friend:)
xo xo
Hi Linda, It’s raining here in Melbourne, Australia too, yay – its been so hot and dry here/ My three kids all play hockey – its a great sport im sure your kids will love it. xxBrenda
Thanks Brenda, I can’t wait for them to start on Saturday:)
You have such a lovely home, Linda (leaving aside the rat!). I mustn’t, but do, envy you the space you have!
I read with interest about your homeschooling, as youngest really, really hates school. It is just not the right environment for him to learn, so I am considering homeschooling. Your blog is very inspiring to me.
Thanks Lise:)
Jen used to battle at school when she was much younger, it went on for a few months and then we made the decision to homeschool her. Our other little ones were also keen to homeschool and so they came home too. It has been the best decision for us.
Rodents in the insulation can be an exercise in Waiting It Out, that’s for sure, Linda, I hope it smells less as the season cools off and the heat dissipates. Once while managing a card store I had a mouse die inside the wall. I thought of all kinds of destructive measures-my husband dangled a fish hook down from the crawl space and snagged it. I was amazed at his ingenuity and the lack of destructive tendencies he has compared to my “cut holes in the wall” spirit.
What a lovely picture of you !~! Do you live in the suburban part of So Africa or are you in the more rural area ? I came to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2000 after many decades in smaller towns-it’s been quite an adjustment and I love the cultural diversity all around me every day. We just celebrated Chisnes New Year this past weekend with huge parades and lots of fireworks. Happy Year of the Snake !~!
What a pretty young woman you are. You always seem to be so centered. Hope your children realize how fortunate they are to have such a neat Mom! Beautiful yarn…sorry about the stinky dead rat…cat is falling down on the job!!! :)))
We had a field mouse die in an impossible dead space in our wall once. Since it was a brand new house we were loath to tear out a wall. Surprisingly the smell vanished after about 2 months. Hope yours was a baby rat. This is a temporary inconvenience. Your beautiful home and yard more than compensate for an occasional nuisance!
We had a field mouse die in an impossible dead space in our wall once. Since it was a brand new house we were loath to tear out a wall. Surprisingly the smell vanished after about 2 months. Hope yours was a baby rat. This is a temporary inconvenience. Your beautiful home and yard more than compensate for an occasional nuisance!
I’m fascinated by your life on the other side of the world. I was torn about homeschooling my son, but left him in school. I think he was torn about it, too, but in the end I think he made some good friends he’d have missed getting to know otherwise, and had some really interesting experiences in school (and some bad ones, for sure). From the descriptions of your activities, it always seems like your children are getting a really diverse and interesting education at home. It’s a toss up. Both ways work. I can relate to the rat problem; we had a mouse die in the wall. Just had to wait it out till the smell went away. Only recently I discovered that peppermint oil (on cottonballs) will deter mice if you spread them around the house. No idea if it would repel a rat, though. Well, you can always cheer that the darn thing is dead. Can’t wait to see your finished knitting project. Seems like we were only just watching your Spring unfold, and now it’s almost time for our Spring to spring (east coast US). None too soon for me.
Hi Linda, love this post and the inspiration to change the name of my school room to the learning room.
Glad to see life is good for you.
Nicole
The guitar was my voice, too, at that age. It is more than good to have an instrument that allows your heart to speak. I love your learning room. We had one, too, but it was never so elegant and classic as yours is. As to finding a book – I must have hundreds of them, all over the house – no, maybe a thousand or more. And strangely, I can find almost any of them within five minutes. But I have been longing for more book shelves, as I have stacks that have formed over the last few years. Every so often I cull. But I hate to do it.