AP Clothing Exchange

Here are some pictures of the mommies and babes who attended our clothing exchange. Enjoy!

AP Living Family Campout

The other day, Emily, Lisa and I were getting excited talking about planning an AP Living family campout. We thought this would be an ideal bonding time for our families. We can make 1 or 2 meals together, play, hangout around the campfire, etc. We could even make it an annual tradition.

The plan is to go for one night, arriving the morning of Saturday, April 17 and leaving Sunday, April 18. We are thinking of going to Doheny State Beach. We need to make reservations ASAP since things are already filling up for that time frame. I am not totally clear on the cost; it looks like it depends on the location. But it may be approximately $30-$35 per family. Also, the date is not fixed. We may need to change it if the campsite is already full by the time we make reservations.

If you think you and your family can come, please post a comment below, so we can make a campsite reservation. Also, remember to put your name in the comment if you have a profile like "mama bear" or "muffin man," etc., so everyone knows who you are.

Unschooling

This past Monday morning, January 11, we were graced by the presence of three articulate, knowledgeable moms of "unschooled" children.

Video from Unschooling Meeting:
What is unschooling?
What does a typical unschooling day look like?
How do unschooling kids learn to read?
How do you document what you do?
What are the challenges you face as parent doing unschooling?

"Unschooling" is a form of homeschooling, which our speakers described as "a natural transition from attachment parenting" and "letting learning happen". One mom described it as organic learning: not forced, but yet not hands-off, either. Primarily and probably most importantly, the focus of unschooling is simply to follow your child's/children's lead in whatever subject matter interests them at any given time. And the fun part, as one mom pointed out, is that you're with them every step of the discovery process, learning new things yourself, too, as you immerse yourself in information.

Recommended Books

• Unschooling Our Kids, Unschooling Ourselves
• Anything by John Holt including How Children Learn, Learning All The Time
• Sandra Dodds Big Book of Unschooling
• A to Z of Unschooling
• Alfie Kohn The Case Against Competition

Other resources the speakers' mentioned:

For a list of recommended unschooling/homeschooling websites click here.
For more information on how to apply to be a homeschooler/unschooler in CA, click here.

Here are a few pictures of the beautiful babies (and beautiful mommies too!) that were at the meetup today. Our Unschooling Guest Speakers were Karri Lewis, Katheryn Culwell, and Paige McKinney (you can find them on Facebook). Enjoy!

A Few More

Another Day in the Park

Here are some photos I took of our meet up on Monday, January 4th. Enjoy!