Protecting the Heart of the Home

Posted by Donna Simmons

When our children are little, it can be reasonably easy to create the kinds of rhythms and forms in our homelife which support their growth and which nurture our family relationships. Having sit-down meals together, saying a verse or blessing…

The Wonder of the County Fair

Posted by Donna Simmons

This weekend is the Vernon County fair, held at the old fair grounds on what was obviously, once upon a time, the edge of town but has now been swallowed up by our little strip mall (and admittedly corn fields…

Preparing for a New Academic Year

Posted by Donna Simmons

It can feel like an overwhelming task to consider planning a new academic year of homeschooling for one child let along multiple age children. When Donna asked me to do a guest blog on this topic I asked her to…

The Darkness of The Dark Knight

Posted by Donna Simmons

Last night I watched The Dark Knight with my 16 year old son. He had seen it in the movies a year ago and raved about it ever since and wanted to watch it with me. So we did. So this…

Is Childcare as Good as Mama-care?

Posted by Donna Simmons

Every once in awhile I have one of those “Emperor’s New Clothes” moments – you know what I mean. In this story, the emperor is gullible and gets taken in by two con-men who claim to make him the most…

Revisiting Jean Liedloff and the Continuum Concept

Posted by Donna Simmons

The very first book that I read that set me off and running on the road to “natural parenting” was Jean Liedloff’s The Continuum Concept. Having devoured Ina May Gaskin’s Spiritual Midwifery and militantly given birth to my first son…

Destructive Children Come to Play

Posted by Donna Simmons

We had a great thread on the Waldorf at Home on line discussion group recently, started by a member who needed help managing when neighborhood children would come to play – and would trash her house! The following is an…

Boundaries

Posted by Donna Simmons

One of the biggest challenges of life is the struggle to understand boundaries. Everywhere we meet another person, every social encounter we have, we meet boundaries. What is my boundary – what am I comfortable with? What is your boundary…

A Change of Clothes

Posted by Donna Simmons

Recently, in church, I sat considering why it is that some parents do not insist that their children dress nicely for church. Obviously, there are issues with getting up late, avoiding an argument and so on….but I wonder if perhaps…

The Need to be a Cling-On

Posted by Donna Simmons

One of the most important reasons for parents to create a lifestyle which values slow over fast is that it supports good health. Cooking meals from scratch, growing one’s own vegetables or taking the time to visit a farm or…