Robyn Dolan's Blog, page 2

Arroyo Seco, New Mexico Adventure

Before moving in to care for my Dad, we RV’d full-time for 3 years. First posted on my former channel, Catholic Traveller, here is a short video from our Arroyo Seco New Mexico Adventure, featuring the town, La Santissima Trinidad Historic Church, and Rio Grande Gorge Bridge.

New Mexico is full of quirky little towns and Arroyo Seco is no exception.

La Santissima Trinidad Historic Church was built in the 1830’s on the spot where several villagers had a vision of the Holy Trinity.

Local legend tells that one day, when the families went to work in the fields, they
told their children not to leave the area in case of an indian raid. The children of
course, wandered and came upon two men, one older, one younger. They told
them they lived further down the valley. The children asked the men why they
were not afraid of the Indians, and the men told them that a white dove that was
perched up in the tree above them warned them when people were nearby…

That night, the children told their parents of the incident. This concerned their
parents, and the next day the whole village began following the stream that led
down the valley to make sure the men were safe. One of the children saw the
white dove in the trees. The bird flew out of the tree and lit on a sharp stone. The
stone was glowing. When the villagers turned it over, they found a statue of… an
old man and a young man with a white dove above them. They decided that this
was where they would build their church, and they dedicated it to the Holy
Trinity… the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit…

We couldn’t see inside while we were there, but it was interesting to inspect the
gravestones scattered around the churchyard, and the renovated adobe
architecture.

The town of Arroyo Seco

is full of little eateries and boutiques. The Homestead
Garden features an 1860’s cabin and waterfalls. Christmas decorations were still
up when we visited. Arroyo Seco Mercantile offers a selection of vintage articles,
toys, local artisan handcrafts, souvenirs, and religious items. Francesca’s
boutique offers lovely southwestern couture.

Rio Grande Gorge Bridge

was awarded “Most Beautiful Steel Bridge” in
1966. It was dubbed the “bridge to nowhere” during construction because there
were no funds to finish the road on the other side.

Thank you for coming with me on this adventure. For updates on my music, writing, and general shenanigans, please sign up for my FREE newsletter in the sidebar. To help support said shenanigans, hit the “Donate” button, also in the sidebar, which will take you to Paypal. No subscription necessary.

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Highland Holiday Piccolo solo with Long Beach Chamber Music Group Christmas Concert 2022

My 5 minutes of fame, lol! Here is my Happy Holidays to you: Highland Holiday, with Long Beach Chamber Music Group. One of my favorite groups to play with!

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Sunday Morning Music for Advent – O Come O Come Emmanuel

Played on flute, in chant style, this is meant to be meditative and reflective. I miss the traditional Catholic hymns and Sunday Morning Music is my way of keeping them alive and sharing them.

Read on for links to the lyrics and a little backstory on the hymn.

O Come O Come Emmanuel

1. O come, O come, Emmanuel, And ransom captive Israel, That mourns in lonely exile here Until the Son of God appear. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

2. O come, Thou Wisdom from on high, Who orderest all things mightily; To us the path of knowledge show, And teach us in her ways to go. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

3. O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free Thine own from Satan’s tyranny; From depths of hell Thy people save, And give them vict’ry ov’r the grave. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

4. O come, Thou Dayspring, come and cheer Our spirits by Thine advent here; Disperse the gloomy clouds of night, And death’s dark shadows put to flight. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

5. O come, Thou Key of David, come, And open wide our heav’nly home; Make safe the way that leads on high, And close the path to misery. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

Based on the “O” antiphons

written in the 9th century in Latin, for the monks to chant in the days coming up to Christmas. O Come O Come Emmanuel was translated into English by Anglican priest John M Neil in 1851. It is traditionally sung to the Veni Emmanuel tune.

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Beginner’s Mind – Review

Beginner’s mind by Yo-Yo Ma

A memoir by cellist Yo-Yo Ma but short and sweet. And generously interspersed with his wonderful playing. Beginner’s Mind is a concise and quick listen about his background and life experiences along with inspiring philosophies of life. Read by the artist himself and very enjoyable.

I have been a fan of Yo-Yo Ma for many years and so was interested to learn more about him. I could have listened to his stories for much longer. Especially with his exquisite playing included. But I was not disappointed. Even if you are not a musician I think you will find Ma’s story entertaining, enlightening, and enjoyable. His journey of self-discovery and the evolution of his life and career are likely to resonate on some level with all. From child prodigy to a human being pursuing a meaningful purpose. Yo-Yo Ma’s insight and music delight.

Beginner’s Mind was included with my Audible membership. This is not a paid review.

Beginner’s Mind is an Audible Original, written and narrated by Yo-Yo Ma. Playtime 1 hour, 32 minutes.

©2021 Yo-Yo Ma (P)2021 Audible Originals LLC

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The 20 Minute Homeschool

The 20-minute homeschool – Part 1 – self-directed learning

How long does it take to homeschool every day?

20 minutes. Of your time not 20 minutes of your children’s time. Because, especially if you’re working full-time (or even part-time), you don’t have hours to spend on details that children should be able to handle themselves. They can dress themselves and brush their own teeth, right?

The key to success here is self-directed learning. And getting there in 20 minutes a day is the first step in this journey. This is what makes it possible for you to keep your sanity, your home life, and your job. Or set up a new job. Yes, you CAN work and homeschool and I will show you how to do it in 20 minutes a day.

Step 1: Self-Directed Learning

What is self-directed learning? Simply, it is where the child knows what he has to do for the day and just jumps in and does it on his own. Then you come in and make corrections and hand it back to the child. They redo it if necessary or they are done and go on to the next assignments tomorrow. That’s in an ideal world. But how do we get there?

The Robinson family were experts with this.

When Mrs. Robinson died Dr. Arthur Robinson had to keep his job as a scientist and professor in order to pay the bills and raise his six children, ages 17 months to 12 years old. The children were remarkable in that they took upon and divided among themselves the household and farm tasks. They followed the curriculum and routine their mother had set up and eventually tweaked it to be even more efficient. 

Dr. Robinson would correct papers and hand them back in the evenings when he was done with his work. For more information on the system and how the now-grown Robinson children fared, you can visit the Robinson curriculum site. I’ll be sharing some of their ideas here throughout this series along with other systems and tips that I have used personally or that have worked for friends of mine.

My children took a more circuitous route to self-directed learning.

But we got there. It was easier with the youngest, as he was always homeschooled. 

In my next post in this series, I will show you how to start your children at any grade level towards self-directed learning. Beginning with the 3 R’s: Reading, Riting, and Rithmatic.

For more info on how to homeschool check out my book:

The Working Parent’s Guide to Homeschooling, by Robyn Dolan. Available in Kindle and paperback versions on Amazon and other e-reader and paperback versions at books2read.com or your favorite retailer.

Check out the video on YouTube.

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I, Eliza Hamilton – Review

I, Eliza Hamilton, by Susan Holloway Scott

Much like Hamilton and Peggy, there is a lot of historical imagery here with beautiful descriptions of costumes and daily life. However, it is heavily slanted towards historical romance and that is just not my jam. After her initial dislike of him, Eliza comes across as very dependent upon Alexander Hamilton’s approval and attentions.

Martha Washington and Katherine Schuyler (Eliza’s mother)

are portrayed as strong, independent women. Why not Eliza? Eventually, through hardship, betrayal, heartbreak, and forgiveness, Eliza does transform into that kind of strong, independent woman I can respect.

As the title suggests, the story is told through Eliza’s eyes.

Author Susan Holloway Scott does a fantastic job imagining Eliza’s possible thoughts and feelings as she relates what her husband experiences and the events around her. Ms. Scott offers insight into Hamilton’s political career and Eliza’s support for him behind the scenes. Especially her efforts to uphold her husband’s reputation after his untimely death in the infamous duel with Aaron Burr.

Although I preferred Hamilton and Peggy, I Eliza Hamilton is also well researched and not without its merits. And for the more romantic tragedy-inclined reader it is well written and certainly deserving of a place in the homeschool library. I recommend this book of historical fiction for ages 15 and up due to more mature content.

I listened to I Eliza on Audible and enjoyed Saskia Maarleveld’s narration.

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How do you Eat an Elephant?

How do you eat an elephant?

Everybody knows the answer to this right? Bonus points if you do. Just in case you don’t: How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

I’ve been having a bit of caregiver burnout lately.

And my overwhelming to-do list has subsequently gotten even longer. But this week I have been buoyed up by the success of sewing the beaded trim onto my 1920s/30s dress and decided that if I could succeed in finishing that project I should try to finish another one.

The biggest elephant in the room right now is in my bedroom.

I sold off my livestock and left my Arizona ranch nearly nine years ago to RV full-time. Six years ago I moved in with my dad as his full-time caregiver. As a result, I have a bunch of stuff in bags, boxes, and bins, stacked in my bedroom that needs to be organized or gotten rid of. I really had good intentions of doing it right away but there it still sits. And it certainly must be bugging me even though I think I’m ignoring it.

This past weekend I started with magazines. The ones I am keeping I have put in binders and relocated them under the bed until such time as I can declutter the area in front of the bookshelves where they are going to belong. So now I have an elephant under the bed as well…

Next is to find a place for my sewing stash which is what is blocking off the lower bookshelves where I want to put the magazines. I think that will be in my closet but my closet is full of other junk. So I need to take this one bite at a time. I think this week I will decide on a location for my sewing stash and put it there. If I can accomplish that I will have another success under my belt.

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Detachment

Detachment

Detachment is a challenge.

More so as a family caregiver than as a medical professional. When I worked in home health care as a certified nurse’s assistant it was much easier to be detached emotionally from a patient with whom I did not have another relationship. As a caregiver to my dad, it’s an entirely different story. Even though I have been out of the house for more than half my life, that family dynamic thing starts up within days of being together again. What is “that family dynamic”? It’s the whole back and forth of when you were growing up. I can’t speak for persons who were abused as children. That’s not what this is about. But it’s like the thing that happens when siblings get together. And when I get together with my parents. When my mom was dying, we were just renewing and healing our relationship. I felt like we finally became friends. With my dad, he has dementia, whereas my mom was sharp as a tack until she could no longer take her insulin and needed morphine for her pain.

Old habits die hard.

My dad loved to push my buttons to get a reaction out of me. To see just how much I could take. I suppose to toughen me up. What does it mean “push my buttons”? It means to antagonize and passive-aggressively taunt a person even when you can see that they are uncomfortable or upset. And then act as if you have no idea why they are so upset. It is passive-aggressive bullying. And don’t get me wrong, I love my dad and consider it a privilege to be able to take care of him at this point. But I’m just saying there’s that father-daughter friction there where we just kind of fall back into the relationship of my childhood. No matter how many years I have spent in self-help and therapy and trying to change my reactions into choosing my actions. I have to constantly remind myself not to waste my time placing blame. But to assess and own my part in the situation and work on my own behaviors.

To stop reacting and choose my actions.

We learn so much when we come home and take care of our parents. It is uncomfortable and sometimes painful. But I am confident that going through these occasional trials will help me to become a better person. And I am grateful that dad puts up with me in the meantime. And wait a minute I also put up with him, don’t I?

Self-Care for Caregivers

I want to take a quick minute to plug my friend’s book Self-care for Caregivers by Jennifer Sermabeikian. It is a 60-day accountability journal with excellent practices and suggestions for taking care of yourself no matter what kind of caregiver you are. And also to give her a shout-out for inspiring me to share a little bit of my caregiving journey as encouragement and help for anyone who feels like maybe they’re not doing a very good job. It’s hard work and you are doing the best you can. For lots of inspiration and edification also check out Jenn’s YouTube channel Living Jen.

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Hamilton and Peggy!: A Revolutionary Friendship – Review

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Hamilton and Peggy!: A Revolutionary Friendship, by L. M. Elliott

I’m totally geeking out on this book!

Not only is it well written but I’m finding that the author is well versed in my love – English country dance. Her descriptions of the dances and the costume of the era are captivating.

If you are a fan of the Broadway musical Hamilton,

if you enjoy American History, and especially if you don’t – this is the book for you! It is a “living book” that brings life to those dull and dry dates and events we had to read about in textbooks.

This book of historical fiction

is about the friendship between Alexander Hamilton and his wife Eliza’s sister Peggy. Peggy’s close relationship with her sisters is well documented. Author Laura Elliot’s writing shows that she has done her homework. The book takes an interesting look at Peggy’s possible and factual role in the Revolutionary War and the founding of the United States of America. And also her possible influence on her sister Eliza’s marriage to Hamilton. Peggy is portrayed as an early feminist during a time long before women were accepted or acknowledged to be leaders and influencers.

Amid the “what-ifs” and some perhaps fanciful notions of what goes on with the main characters, are portrayals of daily life researched through original letters and journals. Sprinkled throughout are actual letters from Hamilton, Eliza, and Peggy to each other, which helps lend credibility to the story.

Although the lesser role of women and the lesser credibility given to the role of women in history always irritates me, the respect shown now and then by the men in this story is refreshing. The frustration of the typical women’s role is palpable in the interactions and conversations between the sisters and the internal dialogue of Peggy.

I recommend this book for ages 10 and up. I listened to it on Audible and very much enjoyed Cassandra Campbell’s narration.

Hamilton and Peggy!: A Revolutionary Friendship, by L. M. Elliott, (c) 2018, Harper Collins Publishers

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A Big Mistake and More Heartbreak

1/24/2022 Monday

All of a sudden the old journal entries that I was going to post seem pointless. I went to the pound just before Christmas and adopted two dogs who got along fine for about 3 weeks. Then they started having daily vicious fights. I tried every recommended technique to break them up but the only thing that worked was two people each getting hold of one collar without getting bitten and waiting for the dogs to let go of each other’s faces to pull them apart. This was not going to work over the long term which is what it would take to gently train this behavior out of them. And keeping them separated in kennels or with muzzles just seemed too cruel. So I had to return one to the pound.

Another heartbreak.

But my consolation is that the one I kept is an absolute joy. Cookie Monster is a white boxer. She came with kennel cough and unspayed. Also severely underweight. 40 pounds for a fully grown boxer. She looked like the skeleton dog at the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland. By the time I brought her to her first vet appointment she had gained 5 pounds. But she was still being treated for kennel cough. At her next appointment, she had lost a couple of pounds but that was right after the week of dog fights. She has been spayed and I hope she is on the road to a healthy future.

She follows me everywhere.

Right now we are working on getting in and out of the RV. She was too terrified to get in while it was running but she can now get out while it is running. She is becoming very good at waiting at the door before going in or out of the house or the RV. We’re not taking walks until she recovers from the spay but she did very well on the ones we took before she had the procedure done. She is so tiny that when she pulls it’s not a big deal. The no-pull harness helps a lot. We are working on socialization with the cat right now. I believe that is going to take forever. She does not have a barking problem thank goodness. But she does really want to chase that cat. She is also quite fascinated with this dancing I do with these funny little boxes of people on the computer. She has even tried a few little dance steps with me.

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