DAY IN THE LIFE OF A HOME EDUCATOR - June 2022

June sailed by in a whirlwind of sun, rain, events, illnesses and goodbyes.

Lapbooks/Academics

So the lapbooks are out for the moment and I needed something to fill the void and make me feel like we're not just coasting. As this month was so busy anyway and we were fitting in last minute plays with departing friends, as well as navigating illness I mainly just focused on refreshing myself with all the resources I already have stashed away. It helped me to develop some ideas such as the rocks and fossils and spot where I had gaps. I have identified some ideal candidates to start using over the next month or two, likely as we get towards the end of summer.

What I read this month

Scatterbrain - Henning Beck

I adored reading this book, it is simply written yet still tackles complicated material explaining it in easy to understand chunks. I love learning more about the brain, how it works, how it affects our behaviour and also how it affects our ability to learn and understand. This book was right up my alley, looking at neurobiology and how the brain works for and against us. Super interesting and useful if you find the topic of human development as fascinating as I do.

Zen Habits Handbook For Life - Leo Babauta

A simple, easy to read 1-2 pages per idea on how to introduce more zen habits to your life. Some good takeaways and some less relevant to me but a great dip-into book nonetheless. 

The Heatwave - Kate Riordan

I do love a good absorbing fiction book and I've enjoyed Kate Riordan's previous offerings. I like how she develops her characters and creates intriguing mysteries in an atmospheric read. This didn't disappoint and kept me turning the pages. I know I'm into a good book when I constantly think of the characters and what they're up to and feel sad when I'm done as if I've awoken from a separate life I was living through the story. 

I'm looking for my next escape read so if anyone has something else they can recommend along these lines then please throw them my way!

Weather

A mixed June weather hit us. from regular residents I got the vibe that June is usually hot, dry and the perfect ramp up to summer (although I have also heard it referred to as Juneuary!), but not quite this year. In a dramatic turnaround from the scorching heat dome we experienced last year, this month was a more grey affair with a hearty mix of cold, rain, and some sun. I still found it much more predictable and consistent than the North West of England though so I feel it was quite a nice intro to summer myself!  

Weekly activities

These things happened every week:

• Meeting friends online to play Minecraft
• Finishing their art classes
• Skateboard lessons for JJ
• Cleaning the house

'Field trips'

Spotting wildlife at the skatepark

JJ has a weekly skateboard lesson and he was in need of some extra practice so we headed to his usual skatepark and had some fun spotting the local wildlife in between. 

Hungry woodpecker

Giant trees

Bridge Cultural Festival at Ambleside beach

Bridge Festival West Vancouver

We got a clear day so headed to the Bridge Festival at Ambleside beach, a great location for a festival! We had a scenic walk there to avoid the traffic and enjoyed the live music, tasty treats - big shout out here to Shameless Buns they do some seriously delicious street food! Then we strolled round the stalls, each with a different country theme offering information and activities from that culture.  Unfortunately, the kids didn't want to partake in any of the free activities on offer, which was a little disappointing, I would have been all over the flower crowns when I was their age! Their attention was a little diverted by the large (and expensive!) zip line that we didn't want to fork out for! Bah!   

Birthday adventure day out

The magical Fairy Forest at Redwood Park

A Birthday and what a great reason to get out and make a full day of memories! My husband is an avid coffee drinker and very particular about his brew so our first stop had to be coffee related. Everbean Cafe was our destination; a very popular coffee shop in White Rock. Next, we stocked up on picnic items and headed to the fairy forest at Redwood Park. What a beautiful place, so still and calm with an air of whimsy. We ate our picnic whilst the kids sampled the play area before searching the forest for the fairy houses. We discovered a wooden lodge and then the magical fairy house, hidden just off the path, crammed full of quaint little fairy homes lovingly painted by so many. 

Cute wood lodge

inspecting the fairy homes

                          

The final stop was to Fort Langley a recreated Fort from the 1800s. Such a great place to see a piece of history come alive. The staff were very knowledgeable and so clearly passionate about the stories they were telling. I particularly loved learning about how beaver pelts were a form of currency. The kids raced from one building to the next, reading some of the information, but mainly panning for gold and pretending they lived there.

The trader's window

Entering the fort

We rounded the day off with awesome burritos from Little Donkey and a walk back to the car via the Fraser river path. A busy but fabulous day.  

Cinema

Finally! My love of the Jurassic Park/World universe goes way back and so I've been (calmly) awaiting it to arrive at the cinema, and so having made sure the kids have watched all the films to date, we could head to the cinema to make me a very happy mum! Although I can see the deviation from the relatable characters and everyday people doing extraordinary things to action heroes and people doing crazy things that you know would send them straight to A&E in real life, I still enjoyed the fun ride that is Jurassic World Dominion. It was never going to top the original Park or World but it certainly had its share of great moments. Even the crappy seats we got too close to the screen and the (very clearly far too young for this film) noisy kids who managed to sneak inside and talked very loudly through the start couldn't dampen it for us and we're looking forward to catching it again soon.  

Thoughts on this month

June was an absolute whirlwind, it's like the world just picked off where covid started and this month felt so busy! It makes you realise that despite all the amazing things on offer, especially in a big city, you simply cannot fit everything in. This month we've learned that consciously picking and choosing the things we take part in rather than blindly cramming everything in is essential to feeling like we've made the most of what's on offer in an enjoyable way.