Back to paper and paste

Well, not really paste. I prefer less messy adhesives these days.

I need to convert my so-called scraproom back into a so-called guest room very shortly for a friend's visit next week. Of course, nothing ever inspires me as much as a clean work space.. and perhaps knowing that I shouldn't be making it messy!

Definitely the latter.

The arrival of new papercrafting related product also does a lot for inspiration. I received a wonderful box from Scribble Scrabble last week containing three new lines. With all this inspiration, I've been sneaking into the scrap room in spare moments and ended up with these creations (and a few more I can't shre quite yet). Unlike most of the previous releases, two of the lines are themed, a birthday line and a Halloween line. I admit that I normally avoid purchasing themed papers, but that is changing. Unlike themed papers I've tried to use in the past, these lines were so much fun and sooo very easy to use! The third line is called Lullaby of Birdland and is incredibly versatile. That's the one I used on the school layout and the piccolo layout... and I still haven't gotten into the leafy greens and the reds in this line yet... but hope to soon.

A New Journey

As of August 1, we have begun a new journey.

Rachel has started 7th grade in a brave new world. A world without dress codes. A world without finite deadlines. A world without homework!

Rachel has become a homeschooler.

There are so many reasons why we have decided to try this route. Nevertheless, it was very hard to leave her previous school. She started there as a 3 yr old in the pre-K program. We had thought that she would graduate as a member of the class of 2015. But, we did not just leave the school, we have left the conventional concept of school.

Technically, she is a distance learner. We've enrolled her in a fully accredited distance learning program aka an on-line school. She can work at her own pace, on her own time, at her own level. The flexibility is already a greater gift than we ever imagined. It's not just the flexibility of when she does her schoolwork and how much she does at a sitting, it's also the flexibility of the curriculum to suit her needs specifically. We are still working out the kinks and the specifics, but it is still early in the game. She is taking a traditional mix of courses- English, History, Math, Science, Health/PE (ballet), and French. But, what she would have difficulty getting in a traditional school environment is the variety of grade levels. She's taking a mixture of 7th, 8th and high school level courses. We've been making changes as we go.. she's been taking assessments and trying out courses, moving up a few levels (Math, Science, History) and down (French) as need be. I suspect we are reaching the end of the tinkering and she should be settled into her coursework for each subject by the end of the week, next week at the latest.

I should also add that it was Rachel's idea to start school this early, instead of waiting for the traditional September. Yet another illustration of the flexibility.

Note: The scrapbook page at the top of the entry uses a small fraction of the many patterned papers in Scribble Scrabble's very recently released "Lullaby of Birdland" line. More scrapbook pages to follow in a later entry. :D