The Creative Salad – Page 32 – Crafty fun and homeschool adventures in Sonoma County, California.

Q & A: The Choice to Become a Stay-at-Home Mom

I’m thinking about doing a new series of posts featuring ‘Questions & Answers’ since I receive so many emails from friends and readers asking me about my experience as a homeschooling mom that I’d love to share with you. Your questions don’t have to be exclusively about mothering or homeschooling. I’d be glad to answer anything (within reason!) that interests you about my life. Submit your questions (anonymously) here at formspring and I’ll pick out several to answer here on the blog. Thanks!

One question I’m frequently asked is how I reconcile being a highly educated woman that now works full-time as a stay-at-home mom.

I should preface my response by explaining that I personally believe that raising our children is the most important job in our society. For as long as I can remember, I wanted to be a stay-at-home mom so that I could be the one who brought up my children. (I even discussed this with David on one of our early dates to make sure that he was on board before I got serious with him!)

That being said, I didn’t neglect my education, nor make the decision to quit the work force and stay at home full time lightly.

I grew up in a house that valued education and life-long learning, and had well-educated female mentors throughout my life. I understood that college was mandatory, with graduate school being optional, but highly encouraged. I attended college at a small liberal arts school in the Midwest and then went to an Ivy League university for graduate school. After that I worked for a water resource engineering firm, supporting our family while my husband attended graduate school.

Now here I am, raising our daughter, staying at home with her. Do I no longer use what I learned in school? Do I feel as though my education is wasted? No, on the contrary, I believe that I use my education on a daily basis through critical thinking, scientific inquiry, and perpetual skepticism. Now that I am a mother, and a homeschooling one at that, I constantly rely on my education in explaining everything (EVERYTHING!) to our daughter.

Do you know how hard it is to concisely explain concepts like photosynthesis, death, electricity, and evolution to an inquiring four-year old? I don’t dumb down any of my answers for her and always make a point of using the correct language in explaining said concepts (thereby increasing both her understanding and her vocabulary). She often asks me questions to which I don’t have an answer and we scour the internet (or library!) together to gain a better understanding.

I find that I value and appreciate my education on a daily basis. I believe sharing my knowledge with my daughter, being there for her as she grows up, and introducing the world to her is the most important task of my life. I personally feel challenged and fulfilled, which is why I anticipate that we will be able to homeschool our daughter for the long haul. I can’t imagine doing anything else. (Now we’ll see how long she’s game for it!)

Have a question for me? Please ask away.

Making Art Collage Postcards with Kids

Here’s an art appreciation activity that introduces children to famous paintings; sparks conversations about composition, colors, and art imagery; and allows children to create art masterpieces of their own in the form of collage postcards.

I printed out pictures of some of my favorite paintings by Vincent van Gogh, Claude Monet, and Paul Cezanne for us to cut out and incorporate into our own postcard collages:

Our four year old daughter’s collage featured her own table adorned with flowers and fruit. (The woman in the collage is helping herself to a snack.)

I even made a collage of an outdoor scene:

I find it interested that we started with the same set of paintings and created two radically different collages. I love that there are infinite ways to do any activity. Imagination and creativity are such powerful tools.

How to Quickly Cook Dried Beans in an Electric Pressure Cooker

Remember that Christmas present that I was less than thrilled about? Well, I’ve been using it nearly every day. That electric pressure cooker was just the present I didn’t know I needed. (Thanks again, David!)

Here’s how I make a pot of beans. The prep takes five minutes tops, the pressure cooker does all the work (with the push of a button), and the meal costs pennies.

To two cups of dried beans (e.g. chickpea, pinto or black), add two tablespoons of olive oil, two garlic cloves (either whole to remove later or crushed for a more fully infused garlic flavor), two bay leaves, and a whole lot of freshly ground black pepper.

Add water, plug in the electric pressure cooker, press the “beans” function, and about an hour later the beans are done ready for burritos, chili, nachos or salad. (Don’t forget to season the beans generously with salt!)

I love a tasty, quick, and cheap meal, especially one our daughter enjoys helping with:

What quick meals have you been enjoying lately?

New Spring Header

Spring may have arrived weeks ago, but I’ve finally gotten my act together to create a new header for the blog. Please refresh your browser to see our Spring themed header in action.

This particular one features the bird nest on our front porch and a recent home-school activity, carving and printing with potato stamps.

I’ve also updated this page featuring our previous headers with additional information about each to keep for posterity.

Mud Pies

At least someone is happy about the gopher that has moved into the neighborhood. She now has fresh piles of dirt to play with every day thanks to its tunneling.