What I Learned in 2008

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. ).