Archive April 2011

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Home Schooling: It's Not For Everyone (but could it be for you?)

I’m a veteran. Not the military kind, although I do love my country dearly and honor and respect those who have chosen to serve it as a career. But I’m talking about a different sort of service: an ‘educational’ one … “Home schooling” to be exact. After a 20-year career of teaching our four kids at home and a 4-year hiatus to take a professional sabbatical (during which time I also explored other educational alternatives), the Mountain Farmgirl is back in the saddle again, teaching her youngest son at home. It’s not for everyone … could it be for you?

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The Sweet Taste of Springtime

We may be getting a foot and a half of snow today, but nevertheless, it’s springtime in the mountains … and that means the days of ‘Maple Madness’ have arrived. As the days get longer and the sap continues to flow, old-fashioned buckets (as well as the more modern plastic tubing) adorn the New England trunks of our mighty maple trees. Join Mountain Farmgirl Cathi Belcher as she talks about this sweet seasonal ritual, tells you how you can do it yourself on a small scale with your kids (you don’t need fancy equipment), and shares some of her favorite maple recipes.

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Cathi Belcher

Cathi Belcher,
an old-fashioned farmgirl with a pioneer spirit, lives in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. As a “lifelong learner” in the “Live-Free-or-Die” state, she fiercely values self-reliance, independence, freedom, and fresh mountain air. Married to her childhood sweetheart of 40+ years (a few of them “uphill climbs”), she’s had plenty of time to reinvent herself. From museum curator, restaurant owner, homeschool mom/conference speaker, to post-and-beam house builder and entrepreneur, she’s also a multi-media artist, with an obsession for off-grid living and alternative housing. Cathi owns and operates a 32-room mountain lodge. Her specialty has evolved to include “hermit hospitality” at her rustic cabin in the mountains, where she offers weekend workshops of special interest to women.

“Mountains speak to my soul, and farming is an important part of my heritage. I want to pass on my love of these things to others through my writing. Living in the mountains has its own particular challenges, but I delight in turning them into opportunities from which we can all learn and grow.”

Column content copyright © 2010– Cathi Belcher. All rights reserved.

Mountain Bounty

“Keep close to Nature’s heart ... and break clear away once in awhile to climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods, to wash your spirit clean.”
– John Muir

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