Just a partial list of some of the random things I learned in the past year. I learned:
* That I have a compulsion to have a picture included in every blogpost and that without my laptop, my photo sharing skills are severely limited.
* That I have a very strong attachment to my laptop, and how I have it set up, and I miss it terribly now that it's STILL being fixed.
* That it really is as great as I imagined it would be to visit and stay at other unschoolers' homes.
* That I am shy on-line, like in real life. I am very good with one-on-one conversations, but typically am pretty quiet in a group setting. I realized that I rarely post on all the lists I've subscribed to, because I feel it's just like speaking up in a group converstion. I have no problem, however, in stopping by people's blogs and leaving comments, which seems so much more like talking to just one person. So, I learned that my on-line personna is pretty true to my real life personality.
* That my kids and I can take really long road trips, and have fun in the car!
* More about the nature of God, and my faith.
* That I need to keep on learning how to be more patient, more forgiving, more tolerant and accepting, more bold, and more myself. It will never be a done job.
* That my oldest son would like to go to college.
* That my youngest son seems to have a natural talent for pottery.
* That my daughter was seeing the world in much less focus than most of us, and that she needed glasses. I shared her joy and excitement at seeing the leaves on the trees so clearly.
* How to live more frugally.
* How to knit, again.
* How to foster pets.
* That the current legal "system" can be used to enforce a parent's will (no matter how harmful) on a child.
* A bit about Facebook.
* That I'm not that crazy about Myspace.
* All kinds of new crochet patterns.
* That I'm not as opposed to plastic surgery as I thought I was. (My eyelids always feel so heavy!)
* How to live without prescription antidepressants (at least for now).
* That every year, without fail, I will hide some Christmas present, and not be able to find it for Christmas.
* That I very likely will always need my kids to help me with technology.
* That my son and his girlfriend celebrated their one year "anniversary".
* Embroidery, again.
* That I love looking at the clouds and taking pictures of them.
* That although I don't like apple pie, I love a cut-up apple steamed and topped with cinnamon.
* A little bit about Facebook.
* That I really can't drink coffee without getting headaches
* That I still love living in Florida, despite the appeal of many other places.
* That my true nature is optimistic and hopeful.
* How to make and can kumquat marmalade.
* How to needle and wet felt from wool roving.
* How to play and win at several versions of Solitaire.
* That I could hardly make a comprehensive list of all that I learned in one year, so it would be impossible to record all that my children learn in a year! And that's okay! :)
Happy New Year! Hope it's full of love, laughter, and of course learning(I know it will be. ).
