You can be glad I'm a book nerd. I'll read them and report back to you with the good parts. The best thing I got out of The Well Trained Mind by Susan Wise Bauer was her family's afternoon rest time. I do wish she hadn't played it so safe with the history curriculum she wrote, in holding back on giving God any glory in the way things go down over time.
But I love me some rest time, sistah.
Mrs. Bauer's homeschool children all have an hour to two hour rest time every afternoon. I'm embarrassed to admit to you that years ago, before I learned to really listen to and learn from my husband, he had the same idea. But I couldn't picture how that would work so I didn't follow his advice. I told him I was so sorry when I read the very same idea in Mrs. Bauer's book, which describes the way her family implements it.
It took a little effort for me, getting our children used to the idea at first. It took a few weeks for them to get used to it. It took some patience. They were little so I gave the youngest a sippy cup of milk. Something special to bribe, er, encourage her to stay in her room a while. They got to listen to books on tape from the library, or Bible songs, and that has morphed into present day playing video games for the older children. Our 5-year-old listens to Little House on the Prairie CD's a lot, or a creation science CD about Noah's ark.
During this lovely respite, I spend the first little while tidying up some from the massive whirlwind of the morning. In the early days of rest time, I would mop the floor and then I used to curl up on the couch and drink a cup of herbal tea and read my Bible. Now, I mop at night because people are sometimes coming and going during rest time. I stretch out on my bed these days and read my Bible, and sometimes take a nap while the baby naps.
With rest time to look forward to, your mind is thinking, "I can love on these precious ones until 2:00" instead of until Daddy comes home, or, for airline pilot or military wives, until bedtime. It's a really nice break that we are all used to in my family. It's an hour or two of quiet and peace in our home. It's some sanity action for mamma. Before we start dinner and the second half of our work day. And hey, if it's good enough for the Europeans who chillax every afternoon, it must be good enough for us.
But I love me some rest time, sistah.
Mrs. Bauer's homeschool children all have an hour to two hour rest time every afternoon. I'm embarrassed to admit to you that years ago, before I learned to really listen to and learn from my husband, he had the same idea. But I couldn't picture how that would work so I didn't follow his advice. I told him I was so sorry when I read the very same idea in Mrs. Bauer's book, which describes the way her family implements it.
It took a little effort for me, getting our children used to the idea at first. It took a few weeks for them to get used to it. It took some patience. They were little so I gave the youngest a sippy cup of milk. Something special to bribe, er, encourage her to stay in her room a while. They got to listen to books on tape from the library, or Bible songs, and that has morphed into present day playing video games for the older children. Our 5-year-old listens to Little House on the Prairie CD's a lot, or a creation science CD about Noah's ark.
During this lovely respite, I spend the first little while tidying up some from the massive whirlwind of the morning. In the early days of rest time, I would mop the floor and then I used to curl up on the couch and drink a cup of herbal tea and read my Bible. Now, I mop at night because people are sometimes coming and going during rest time. I stretch out on my bed these days and read my Bible, and sometimes take a nap while the baby naps.
With rest time to look forward to, your mind is thinking, "I can love on these precious ones until 2:00" instead of until Daddy comes home, or, for airline pilot or military wives, until bedtime. It's a really nice break that we are all used to in my family. It's an hour or two of quiet and peace in our home. It's some sanity action for mamma. Before we start dinner and the second half of our work day. And hey, if it's good enough for the Europeans who chillax every afternoon, it must be good enough for us.
RSS Feed
