I have always loved taking pictures. When the kids were little, I loved recording milestones and every day joys to share. I was that geeky mom with the huge camera bag , constantly changing lens on my film SLR. With no real training, I was still able to get some great shots.
But digital cameras and instant images were all the rage. My hubby got me a nice Canon Power Shot, which has a lot of great features and is easy to use, without lugging all the lenses, etc. I had just finally begun making the switch over to the simplicity of it, when it happened: my camera was stolen.
Or, I should say claimed. My hubbys little digital work camera was stolen. He borrowed Girlie's small digital. She, however, was taking a digital photography class, and had to take and submit weekly photos. She "borrowed" mine, and I haven't seen it since.
PHotography was a great addition to our curriculum. It got both of us out, looking at the world through different eyes. Each week, the focus changed, as did our own lens, as she sought color, line, frame, shape, etc. Moreoever, we both realized how much fun it was to have a hobby we could pursue together.
Still, I am feeling more than a little bit put out to be the chauffeur on all her shoots and stand around with my twiddling my thumbs. This year, she has chosen to continue learning more advanced techniques in photography, and I'll be darned if I am going to miss out.
The nice part about a designing a photography course are the many resources available. In most areas, we are lucky enough to have a local camera store that offers a great variety of classes are reasonable prices, and many are free. Most community colleges and art centers also offer non-credit courses to take.
We also found two texts to start in the "From Snapshots to Great Shots" series: Composition by Laurie Excell and Exposure by Jeff Revell.
Last night, Girlie and I took a photo class for summer sun/ beach photos and fireworks. Again, she had the camera, and I got to take notes. My hubby didn't let me get far into the story (whine) about my 'stolen' camera, before he shared a secret: the family is getting me a new camera for my birthday. As we are taking all these courses and trips for shoots, I even get it early!
So a fair warning to my friends and family, if you see me coming, prepare to "Say Cheese!" This blog will be much more interesting with great photos attached!
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Cooking up a summer course...
After thirteen years of homeschooling, I have grown to live for summer as much as any kid. I truly believe both teachers and parents alike need to switch gears for a while. In summer, I want to read, craft, sun and swim with abandon.
Imagine then, how my heart sank when my darling Girlie came to me few weeks ago asking for me to help her with a course over the summer. "I only have two more years, and I plan to be working part-time. I don't want to overload myself, but there are too many things I want to learn," she said thoughtfully.
The brat in me was tempted to stomp my feet, close my eyes, and cover my ears while shouting "La,la,la. I can't hear you." I resisted my tantrum, as the responsible educator in me knew I should be proud of her initiative and maturity. With trepidation, I asked what sort of course was she considering.
"Cooking."
Oh, baby! What a great idea.
Cooking is one of those skills children learn almost by osmosis from other June Cleaver-esque moms. We all know the type: aprons tied on as they stand dreamily behind their Kitchen Aid mixer in their gleaming white kitchens. Doe-eyed children surround them, taking turns measuring and adding wholesome ingredients, patiently awaiting their reward of licking the bowl.
I am not one of those. I work long mornings in the office, and we rarely begin school before 10am. In between teaching and planning her lessons, I am grading papers from or lesson planning for one of the multiple classes I teach. In late afternoon we are often rushing off to get errands and housework done. Some nights, I even rush out to my other part-time job.
As such, cooking has lately been given the same concern and thought as a load of laundry. Far too often, what I am doing is more like defrosting and reheating. And the truth is, I really hate it. As a young wife and mother, I took great pride in the meals I gave my family. I worked hard to find my way around a kitchen, because I was too busy with sports and activities to learn when I was her age. I can't tell you how many times I have regreted that choice.
A cooking course in the summer, when the days were less full for both of us, was a perfect idea. I dug through all my cookbooks. I searched online for a curriclum. NOthing really fit.
In a panic, I suggested the amazing international cooking class offered at our co-op. The teacher is such an amazing and versatile chef I fantasize about being reincarnated as her husband. Girlie wisely said "And that would be great for dinner parties, but I need to learn every day skills."
We sat down and talked about her goals. She wants to be able to create healthy, tasty meals for herself and the family. She wants to know how to stock a pantry, and about the right equipment. She wants to be comfortable when she reads a recipe that she can handle all the steps.
I pulled out my copy of Martha Stewart's "Cooking School." It is the closest any book comes to a curriculum, but it is organized like classes independent of a real-life experience. I can just picture me, with my best Julia Child imitation, stating "Today's lesson will be on creating homemade stocks and broths." There is a lot of useful info there, but still needed a different format.
I understand that Girlie is also about the product. She wants to make things that people will be eating. And while there is something to be said for learning skills, they would be so much more valuable is taught while making a meal.
We took a trip to our local book store, and stumbled across the most perfect book.
How to Cook without a Book, by Pam Anderson. As I read the introduction, I knew this was the practical guide we needed. Her concept is simple...learning the basic skills to open your fridge and pantry, pull out staples, and create a warm and filling meal. She teaches the basic skills with individual foods, then extends the options with combinations of seasonings, sauces and spices. Instead of long list of ingredients and never-ending instruction found in most cookbooks, she teaches you to think about cooking the way our mothers and grandmothers did.
I grew up surrounded with great food. My mother was one of those amazing Italian cooks that put up shelves of homemade gravy (sauce) without ever using a recipe. Her mother made rack upon rack of homemade pasta, while entertaining and never using a recipe. My Dad's mother was the sort who had only two dozen recipe cards in her collection, all special cakes and holiday cookies, for everything else she had committed to memory. Thankfully, I wasn't too late to recognize this and did spend a half dozen summers learning how to "put up" the garden's bounty from her, and sat writing down three generations of verbally passed-down recipes for the first time.
We are approaching this whole course spontaneously. Last week, she had a lesson on rubs and grilling, and helped Big Daddy make a variety chicken. On Sunday, Girlie made the pasta salad. Through that recipe, we discussed and practiced knife skills and different vegetable cuts. Last night, she used a great recipe for chicken fried steak from Pioneer Woman Cooks.Through that she learned about breading, and how to make gravy.
She is using this adorable recipe card creator for each meal she makes, to make her own collection of tried and true favorites. She's going to take photos as well, to attach to the back. We're keeping a log of skills learned as we go along, as well as a log of entries for the local homeschool czars.
There are a lot of awesome video clips online from famous chefs that teach varied skills that can help enhance things, and are often much more fun than boring old mom all the time. (She has a huge crush on Curtis Stone, I've discovered!). I moved my stacks of recipe books for easy access, so she can look for inspiration when she wants to try something new. And the whole process has inspired me to slow down and enjoy cooking again.
I think we are, in fact, cooking up a lot of fun!
Imagine then, how my heart sank when my darling Girlie came to me few weeks ago asking for me to help her with a course over the summer. "I only have two more years, and I plan to be working part-time. I don't want to overload myself, but there are too many things I want to learn," she said thoughtfully.
The brat in me was tempted to stomp my feet, close my eyes, and cover my ears while shouting "La,la,la. I can't hear you." I resisted my tantrum, as the responsible educator in me knew I should be proud of her initiative and maturity. With trepidation, I asked what sort of course was she considering.
"Cooking."
Oh, baby! What a great idea.
Cooking is one of those skills children learn almost by osmosis from other June Cleaver-esque moms. We all know the type: aprons tied on as they stand dreamily behind their Kitchen Aid mixer in their gleaming white kitchens. Doe-eyed children surround them, taking turns measuring and adding wholesome ingredients, patiently awaiting their reward of licking the bowl.
I am not one of those. I work long mornings in the office, and we rarely begin school before 10am. In between teaching and planning her lessons, I am grading papers from or lesson planning for one of the multiple classes I teach. In late afternoon we are often rushing off to get errands and housework done. Some nights, I even rush out to my other part-time job.
As such, cooking has lately been given the same concern and thought as a load of laundry. Far too often, what I am doing is more like defrosting and reheating. And the truth is, I really hate it. As a young wife and mother, I took great pride in the meals I gave my family. I worked hard to find my way around a kitchen, because I was too busy with sports and activities to learn when I was her age. I can't tell you how many times I have regreted that choice.
A cooking course in the summer, when the days were less full for both of us, was a perfect idea. I dug through all my cookbooks. I searched online for a curriclum. NOthing really fit.
In a panic, I suggested the amazing international cooking class offered at our co-op. The teacher is such an amazing and versatile chef I fantasize about being reincarnated as her husband. Girlie wisely said "And that would be great for dinner parties, but I need to learn every day skills."
We sat down and talked about her goals. She wants to be able to create healthy, tasty meals for herself and the family. She wants to know how to stock a pantry, and about the right equipment. She wants to be comfortable when she reads a recipe that she can handle all the steps.
I pulled out my copy of Martha Stewart's "Cooking School." It is the closest any book comes to a curriculum, but it is organized like classes independent of a real-life experience. I can just picture me, with my best Julia Child imitation, stating "Today's lesson will be on creating homemade stocks and broths." There is a lot of useful info there, but still needed a different format.
I understand that Girlie is also about the product. She wants to make things that people will be eating. And while there is something to be said for learning skills, they would be so much more valuable is taught while making a meal.
We took a trip to our local book store, and stumbled across the most perfect book.
How to Cook without a Book, by Pam Anderson. As I read the introduction, I knew this was the practical guide we needed. Her concept is simple...learning the basic skills to open your fridge and pantry, pull out staples, and create a warm and filling meal. She teaches the basic skills with individual foods, then extends the options with combinations of seasonings, sauces and spices. Instead of long list of ingredients and never-ending instruction found in most cookbooks, she teaches you to think about cooking the way our mothers and grandmothers did.
I grew up surrounded with great food. My mother was one of those amazing Italian cooks that put up shelves of homemade gravy (sauce) without ever using a recipe. Her mother made rack upon rack of homemade pasta, while entertaining and never using a recipe. My Dad's mother was the sort who had only two dozen recipe cards in her collection, all special cakes and holiday cookies, for everything else she had committed to memory. Thankfully, I wasn't too late to recognize this and did spend a half dozen summers learning how to "put up" the garden's bounty from her, and sat writing down three generations of verbally passed-down recipes for the first time.
We are approaching this whole course spontaneously. Last week, she had a lesson on rubs and grilling, and helped Big Daddy make a variety chicken. On Sunday, Girlie made the pasta salad. Through that recipe, we discussed and practiced knife skills and different vegetable cuts. Last night, she used a great recipe for chicken fried steak from Pioneer Woman Cooks.Through that she learned about breading, and how to make gravy.
She is using this adorable recipe card creator for each meal she makes, to make her own collection of tried and true favorites. She's going to take photos as well, to attach to the back. We're keeping a log of skills learned as we go along, as well as a log of entries for the local homeschool czars.
There are a lot of awesome video clips online from famous chefs that teach varied skills that can help enhance things, and are often much more fun than boring old mom all the time. (She has a huge crush on Curtis Stone, I've discovered!). I moved my stacks of recipe books for easy access, so she can look for inspiration when she wants to try something new. And the whole process has inspired me to slow down and enjoy cooking again.
I think we are, in fact, cooking up a lot of fun!
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