It's Spring in the GWN

It's Spring, finally, in the Great White North. How do we know this? Daddy asked eldest son to find his baseball mitt, I gave the car a swish (really is was more than a swish, but I will call it like it looks. They were REALLY dirty from a long, mushy meltdown) and garage sale and "for sale" signs are popping like dandelions.

One of the other sure signs of spring? Curriculum fairs! Yeah! I am still processing from our local, non-sectarian, fair and am praying fervently for the grace to attend the fair in the lovely city of Minneapolis, MN http://www.mnconference.org/. With God's generous grace, I'll fly to hear Andrew Pudewa and Danielle Bean, among others, inspire and encourage.

I wanted to add a couple notes from a slightly less than postulant curriculum fair go-er. I discovered that curriculum fairs are mountains of info to be admired and selectively scaled. One tip I read recently helped me a great deal. Find out who is going to be there and research what they carry. Keep a list of things that look like they need some hands-on research.

It sounds simplistic and perhaps time-consuming. However, I knew that Borders Books and Music would be at the local fair. I knew, too, I was looking to get Susan Wise Bauer's newest offering http://www.susanwisebauer.com/books.php. When I asked their representative if she could bring it to the fair, she did so and was able to sell every copy she brought, as well as order the corresponding curriculum to be carried in the store. This may sound silly, but in AK, knowing that I can go and look at a piece of curriculum and buy it at the teacher's discount--and not have to pay postage!!! Well, add a coffee and you're in mini-teacher-inservice territory.

Second, prepare for the curriculum fair the way you did for the ACT test. (I lived and went to college in MN--we didn't need to even take the SAT!) Go to bed early, eat a good breakfast (attend mass--they didn't offer THAT before the ACT) wear your comfies...and enjoy the experience. Bring a tote or backpack and the list you made when looking at the vendors. Bring a snack and consider letting the kiddos have a day with a trusted someone. It's a long day for them, especially toddlers. You'll especially appreciate this when you come home and they've had a nap.

Thirdly, never forget that no matter how much or little you have for resources, or time to incorporate new "fixes", remember who is the Lord of your little school. "It is vain that the laborers build it..." Trust that He will guide you--if you ask for guidance--and inspire you and provide all that you need for your saints in training. They're all his resources, anyway.

Spring is God's gift to us; to recover from the winter, to breathe freely again, to rejoice from our long fast and to revel in HOPE! Hope for heaven, hope for handwriting, hope for finishing the race. Happy (still) Easter!