This Week

In Our Home
Most things are pretty organised at the moment, so this week I'll only need to do the regular cleaning as well as:
* Prepare the fortnightly menu
* Change the carbon in the fishtank
* Tidy the linen cupboard

In Our Garden
Lots to do here, and the warm weather has me itching to begin! New plants to put in this week include my favourite wattle Acacia Baileyana Purpurea; 4 English Lavenders; 4 French Lavenders; a Sasanqua Camellia; and most exciting of all - a Nectarine tree! Yum, can't wait to eat those! Last weekend I dug over an extension to an existing bed where the cherry trees are. Using the pickaxe and spade was hard work, but has given a satisfying result. It's still a bit early to put in most of the summer vegies, and it's quite likely August winds and a cooler snap will chase the current warm & sunny days away, but this week I'll be planting seeds in the propogator so they will be ready to plant out in another month or little more when the ground will be much warmer. We will be getting our 3rd water tank soon (thanks to Tony's dad) and I plan to site the new vegie beds nearby. I hope it all happens soon so that I can plant my seedlings there. I've already started praying that rain will come to fill the tank as soon as it is in position!

In Our Homeschool
We schooled through the recent school holidays so that we can take time off when Tony has some holiday's at the end of this month. This week we'll be continuing with
* Maths
* Spelling
* Copywork (1 question & answer per day from the Westminster Confession in their best handwriting)
* Computer Skills (Sarah - Microsoft Excel. Daniel - Microsoft Word)
* History (Ancient Greece this semester)
* Music (Sarah - piano and Daniel - electric guitar. Daily practice 5 days per week, plus their weekly lesson outside the home.
* Sport (Sarah Karate; Daniel Karate and Soccer)


We Are Reading
Tony Bible: 2 Samuel
Debbie Bible: Psalms
Bible Read Aloud to children: the Gospels

Tony: latest Creation magazine plus some booklets loaned him from an acquaintance who is connected with the Philadelphia Church of God. Tony is also researching on the internet their core doctrinal statements, so that intelligent conversation can be conducted between them both in the future.

Sarah: Saddle Up Thoroughbred Horse Stories by Christine Pullein-Thompson

Daniel: Jack Russell Dog Detective by Darrel & Sally Odgers

Debbie: The Measure Of All Things by Ken Alder. I've been reading this for a couple of months, which is a long time on one book for me - but it's been interspersed with all the gardening and chook raising books I've been devouring lately. The Measure of All Things is quite a fascinating account of 2 French scientists (Delambre & Mecharin) and their expedition in the late 1790's to measure the shape of the world and thereby establish the metre, which was to be one ten millionth the distance from pole to equator. They hoped that this measurement would be used instead of the arbitrary systems decided upon by monarchs. Apparently,18th century France had a staggering 250,000 different units of weights and measures!
Quote:

For seven years Delambre and Mechain travelled the meridian to extract the single number from the curved surface of our planet. They began their journey in opposite directions, and then, when they had reached the extremities of their arc, measured their way back towards one another through a country quickened with revolution. Their misson took them to the tops of cathedral spires, to the summits of doomed volcanoes, and very nearly to the guillotine. It was an operation of exquisite presicion for such violent times. At every turn they encountered suspicion and obstruction. How do you measure the earth while the world is turning beneath your feet? How do you establish a new order when the countryside is in chaos? How do you set standards when everything is up for grabs? Or is there, in fact, no better time to do so?

After 7 years, they met in the fortress town of Carcassonne, and from there went and presented their data to an international commission meeting in Paris, their moment of triumph. Napolean Bonaparte actually said of it, "Conquests will come and go, but this work will endure."
In the course of the author's research, he discovered that there is also a story of intrigue and deception - a story of scientific error and "the agonising choices it forced upon men and women of integrity." It turns out that despite Mechain's extreme caution and exactitude, he committted an error in the early years of the expedition and upon realising his mistake, covered it up. Afterwards, so tormented by his secret knowledge, he died in an attempt to correct himself. Only after his death did his collegue Delambre choose between loyalty to his friend and his science.

Here is what I find quite astounding: according to today's satellite surveys, the metre calculated by Delambre and Mechain falls roughly 0.2 millimetres short! "It may not seem like much, but it is enough to matter in high precision science" The author says that, "this then is a tale of error and its meaning: how people strive for utopian perfection - in their works and in their lives - and how they come to terms with the inevitable shortcomings." As mentioned, I'm finding it quite fascinating and do recommend it as an interesting book about the beginnings of the metric system.


I'm Pondering:
* Downsizing my wardrobe. It's bulging at the seams and somedays I still think I have nothing to wear, which is quite ridiculous! Do I really need this many clothes that I don't even wear? I'm attracted to the idea of owning a dozen outfits at the most. Modest and serviceable ones. To go ahead with this would be a ruthless purge that I really need to be sure about, as it would be most UN-frugal to replace them in future.

*My spiritual/ministry goals for the second half of this year. This is a follow on from the DVD series our church family is watching by Reggie McNeal called "This Present Future; Six Tough Questions for the Church"

All in all it's another busy week! Some hard work which should prove productive, some exercise, some good nutrition, walking with the Lord, some intellectual pursuits ... and a birthday thrown in. Yes, Lacey (eldest daughter) will turn 29 years old this week. HAPPPY BIRTHDAY LACEY !!! xxooxx Here is a recent photo of the very beautiful Lacey as bridesmaid at a recent wedding, with her Dad.