Cultured Home 2017-2018

19506 SE 138^th Pl   Renton, WA 98059

Cultured Home builds virtues and life skills through experience.

Classes are held on Thursdays in the East Renton Highlands, near the Maple Hills neighborhood, and 15 minutes from Issaquah.

8 -10 am Math Lab will be taught by Samantha Zistatsis.  Instruction will be customized to the students enrolled in the class.  Samantha has a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and has taught at Renton Christian School for the past 8 years. 

10-noon Conversational Spanish for the Beginner with Juanita Cazares.  Juanita is a native speaker of Spanish.  Her training in Early Childhood Education, years of experience working with elementary students, and professional expertise in translating materials from English to Spanish are a great combination.

12-2 pm Continuing Spanish with Juanita Cazares.

3:30-5 pm  Art in Many Forms is taught by Deena Rumsey.  She has an A.A. in Fine Arts and believes that art is beneficial to all as it allows the expression of emotions in a healthy and productive way.  The class age will be from 9-16 years old. 

Each class is $75/ month         Materials Fee: $50 for Art in Many Forms only

Last Sunday of the Month

2:30-3:30 Farm Life Tours Sunday afternoons are a delightful time to learn how God has created the order in our world through humans, animals, plants, insects, and soil.  Nathan and Kathy Rausch will teach this through their own experience and success in running a farm.   This is a free event!

3:30-4:30 All Age Sing Along This community event will follow the Farm Life Tours.  Kathy Rausch has a Master’s in Music and will lead the singing.  This enjoyable time will focus on Folk Songs.  This is a free event!

For more information or questions, email: info@culturedhome.com

All the dates for the class and events are placed on the attached calendar.

CH 17-18 calendar

2017-Cultured-Home-fall-class-registration-updated 9-5-2017

We are thrilled to announce classes will be held in Art, Spanish, Math, Farm Life & Music!

Cultured Home is focused on building virtues through the Fine Arts. 

19506 SE 138th Pl, Renton, WA 98059

(About 15 minutes from downtown Issaquah, near the Maple Hills Elementary)

Starting in September, on Thursdays…and running through May, 2018, the teachers of Cultured Home are developing virtues through Art, Spanish, Math, Farm Life & Music. Each teacher is looking forward to investing in your child, culminating virtue and learning together.  Each class will be 1.5-2 hours long.  The monthly rate is $75 per student.  Art In Many Forms will have an additional materials for each semester.

THURSDAYS

TIMES                                                               CLASSES

8:45-10:45 a.m.                                                    Math

12-2 pm                                                                 Conversational Spanish for the                                                                                                 Beginner

4-5:30 pm                                                              Art in Many Forms

DATES

        2017                                                                                         2018

Sept. 21 & 28th                                                                   Jan. 11, 18, & 25th

Oct. 5, 12, 19, & 26th                                                         Feb. 1, 8, & 15

Nov. 2, 9, 16, & 30th                                                          Mar. 1, 8, 15, & 22nd

Dec. 7 & 14th                                                                        Apr. 19 & 26th, May 3 & 10th

Farm Life Tours: Free to All ages, held on the fourth Sunday of each month from 2:30-3:30 pm (see dates listed below)

Community Sing Along for all ages, focusing on Folk Music.  Held on the fourth Sunday of each month from 3:30-4:30 pm

Dates for Farm Life Tours and Community Sing-alongs:  September 24th, October 29th, January 28th, February 25th, March 25th, April 29th, May 2oth, & June 24th

Please click on the links below to register for the class!

2017 CH fall class registration

The Teachers’ bio page is coming soon!

For more information: email info@culturedhome.com

THANK YOU FOR VISITING CULTURED HOME!

MAY YOUR DAY BE BLESSED AND ENRICHED WITH CULTURE!

What a glorious day! Thursday,  March 23rd, the sun was shining brightly and the warmth was embracing us.  A few  wispy clouds floated in the sky as we walked in a lush field, patiently awaiting Mo (aka Maurine), the cow as she was showing great signs that her calf would be born that day.  It was a calm, life-giving process to watch her give birth to her 8th calf…HE is a brown bull.

Mo giving birth

Mo cleaning her new calf

It’s a Bull!

He looks to be brown!

SPRING IS ALMOST HERE!!

How do we know? Eggs! Eggs! Eggs!

My very first experience with chickens has occurred and they actually do lay eggs!  I, Deena, was getting quite discouraged, along with my hubby and the kids but on February 28th, my daughter ran into the house to announce…WE HAVE 2 EGGS!  The house was in a state of sheer excitement!  So, our girls are doing their jobs.  We have collected 14 eggs ranging from a nice brown to green to white.  Boy, are they yummy!

With the help of the Rausches, this has been thrilling for our family.  This leads me into the whole reason that we even have chickens…soy.  Hmm, who would have ever thought that it really wasn’t the egg that was causing my daughter’s stomach to hurt but the feed that the chickens were given.  Almost all chicken feed is soy based at about 17%.  I found this very interesting and started to ponder if that was the root of my daughter’s stomach aches…and it was.  The Rausches & Rumseys feed only organic, soy & corn free feed to their chickens which leads to no tummy troubles and very pleasurable children.

2012 through 2016 was a season filled with life’s ups and downs, which limited our ability to keep the Cultured Home website current, but we are thrilled to be back, now!!  We are so looking forward to 2017!  We are excited to announce that we are partnering with Deena Rumsey and what a blessing to do this together.

LOOK…..Summer Classes, are here and will teach how the soil, animals, and most of all, people live in a healthy ecosystem!  It is truly amazing how if the soil is healthy, every living creature benefits.

Look forward to new updates on a regular basis on Harmony Harbor (our farm), which houses The Music Barn and Cultured Home classes…those names could only speak of blessing and enjoyment in LIFE!!

Here I am working with my axe to chop up some freshly cut alder trees harvested from one of our pastures.  These were from ~30 trees that were prepared for our pollard demonstration.

A coppice is when trees re-grow quickly from live stumps, which are harvested about every 5 years.  A pollard is when the tree is cut from a stump that is tall enough to be out of reach of the grazing animals.  It is an excellent way to quickly grow wood, improving soil while continuing to provide shade for the animals and grass in the pastures.

The coppice attempt a few years ago failed because the animals ate the young alder shoots.  I’m excited to track the progress this year!

In the mean time, the wood harvested is drying so it can help heat the house next winter.

Intro to Sustainable Family Farming

Is it possible for a family to produce nutrient dense eggs, milk and meat without being full time farmers?  If you are interested in growing more than a garden on your property, or are dreaming of getting started on a few acres, we’d love to encourage you!  Come join us as we share the joys, challenges and surprises we’ve had as we’ve made the transition from urban life to urban farming since 2005.

Location:
19506 SE 138th Pl
Renton, WA  98059

Contact Nathan or Kathy for detailed directions or other questions
425 306 5679
Nathan@culturedhome.com

Continue reading →

I’m getting good at getting this stuff spread.

On Sunday, June 3rd, I applied 13 bags/520 lbs in less than an hour using my “flower pot” technique.  I fill 2 plastic flower pots with gypsum, hold one in each hand and shake them as I walk to evenly spread a 10 ft swath.  I started doing this because it could be done in the rain, but I’ve continued it because it’s about 10 times faster than using a 22 inch drop spreader.

On Saturday, June 9th, I applied 17 bags/680 lbs to cover most of our remaining pasture & grazing area.  There are 5 bags left and a little more space remaining, but I’m glad to have the bulk of the work done, and more than 3 acres covered with 1200 lbs.  I thinks that’s pretty good for 2 hours work with 2 pots and a wheelbarrow!

Why gypsum?   Our soil test showed we had very low sulfur levels.  Since sulfur is part of all proteins, and it’s got to be there to grow good enough grass to support animal health.