Another Year Begins!

And so begins another year of morning lessons! Since the girls have been done since the Tuesday before Memorial Day weekend we are all feeling very ready to get back at it. Looking forward to another incredible year of learning together! xo 

Happy First Day!

Emma's standing in fifth position since she's in fifth grade! 

 I just adore these signs! 

 The Ingalls family keeps watch on the roses for the Rose Ceremony. 

 There is nothing like a new set of colored pencils to start the new lesson year! 

 A little first day of lessons photo shoot (with the gorgeous signs my dear, dear friend Cher hand lettered!), followed by our traditional first day of the new lesson year Rose Ceremony, followed by organizing main lesson binders and filling pencil rolls made for a very full morning for the first day of lessons this year! And after all that, they dove right in to their first main lesson block of the year too! It's lovely to be back to lessons and our autumn rhythm, I have the feeling this is going to be one of our most amazing years yet! xo 

Rose Ceremony Day

And so begins another year of morning lessons! Since we are always done with morning lessons by Memorial Day weekend we (generally) make it a point to start lessons again sometime in August. With the girls having two straight weeks of musical theater camp earlier this month we put off starting lessons again until today. And so, after everyone was dressed and ready for the day we gathered in the living room, put this beautiful song/video on and began our rose ceremony. Each girl crossed into the new lesson year and was, as is our tradition, given a rose and a love note. It is a beautiful and gentle way to start the new lesson year, and with it our autumn rhythm, too.

This year was the first year that the girls were not surprised by their new lesson supplies. Unlike years past where I would buy their supplies without them knowing this year they came with me and chose their own things. New scissors (since they aren't four years old anymore, which I'm pretty sure was the last time we bought kid scissors), new planners and journals, and new main lesson books (which they decorated the covers of today). While I have always enjoyed surprising them on Rose Ceremony Day with their supplies for the year, there was something fun about watching them choose what they wanted too. A new tradition for these older girls of ours, I suppose you could say.

So, regardless of how your family learns, be it at home or at school, we wish you all the most wonderful of Not-Back-to-School and Back to School weeks! May this year be full of many wonderful experiences, adventures and teachable moments to last a lifetime! xo

Rose Ceremony Day!

 

For the last few years, it has been our tradition to start the new year of morning lessons with a Rose Ceremony. Inspired by this video, and though traditionally done to welcome the grade one students into the Waldorf school, we fell in love with the beauty of this new beginnings ceremony. Roses and notes of encouragement are given to the girls, and then we spend some time checking out the new materials that have been bought for them for lessons for the year. It's been two years since they last had new colored pencils so we felt that a new set for each girl was in order. "Oh, mama, there is nothing like new colored pencils!" was stated by the girls as they filled their pencil rolls with them and then used them to decorate the covers of their main lesson books . And Emma, who has been waiting for her own fountain pen since Grace was given hers last year, was thrilled to see she had one waiting for her today, too! It was a lovely beginning to a new year of morning lessons! Much goodness is awaiting all of us, and we are ready to see where the adventures take us! xo

Rose Ceremony Day

Rose Ceremony day for us signals the start of our autumn rhythm. Roses are given (from sister to sister) along with love notes from mama and papa. Last year was the first year we experienced this very sweet tradition, and while it's traditionally done to welcome students entering first grade in a Waldorf school we decided to make it our own and have it be what shifts us into our autumn rhythm. Much like this post says "back to school" doesn't apply to us, but we do so love this time of year, and it really is lovely to have something that signals a change in the rhythm of our days, too. The girls have been looking forward to this day for weeks now, and I think it's safe to say it was all that they had hoped it would be! 

You know you're a Waldorf kid when your morning lesson supplies consist of a new pencil roll (for your lovely colored pencils), chalk, a chalk board, and (for Grace) a fountain pen! 

She was so excited to try out her lovely new fountain pen that she dove right in to a little cursive writing!

And in honor of Not Back to School Day a little ice cream was in order! The microcreamy was very quiet while we were there!

Regardless of how your family learns, be it at home or at school (or even a little of both), we wish you all the most wonderful of Not Back to School and Back to School weeks! May this year be full of many wonderful adventures, experiences and incredible memories to last a lifetime! xo

Morning, Noon And Night

Today we began our week with a lovely new tradition- a Waldorf inspired Rose Ceremony. I had read about this ceremony on various blogs that I frequent and couldn't shake the feeling that this was a tradition that we needed to add to our world too. With this notion on my mind and heart it worked its way into my soul even more when I saw this video of one school's Rose Ceremony. Maybe it was the song, or the sweet grade one students walking over to their grade eight buddy to receive their rose, whatever it was it just about did me in (and if I was that emotional over it I can only imagine what the mamas and papas of the kids were like).  So, roses were located, a sweet message to each girl was written and we welcomed a new year (and a new tradition) together today. 

After our sweet start to the day, the afternoon found us at Hopkinton State Park with other area homeschoolers for the Not Back to School gathering. It was a stellar afternoon spent with some kindred spirits and their sweet children. Kerry over at City Kids Homeschooling is one of my most favorite mama bloggers. To have the chance to finally meet in person was such a blessing! We have long known that we were kindred spirits and to spend and afternoon visiting only offered further confirmation of that fact. Through Kerry (and this gathering in general) today I am honored to have had the chance to meet Tracy from OFFKLTR. How she and I had not met in person before is beyond me but I am so very glad to have met her and her sweet girls today. Another kindred spirit indeed! Here's to the beginnings of a new circle of friends! Let our gatherings be frequent and plentiful! 

This evening brought the first day of the new dance year and with it Emma's first lost tooth! We had been waiting for this tooth to fall out for some time now, but especially for the last week where it was beyond loose. Leave it to Em to lose her first tooth at dance while practicing kicks! So tonight, the tooth fairy will be visiting her for the very first time. No doubt she will wake covered in glitter tomorrow morning and feeling just a smidgen older than she felt when she went to sleep tonight. What an amazing start to the week. I don't think this day could have been any more wonderful if it wanted to be! xo