I received an email from Family Builders Minsitry and it included this prayer that I wanted to share with you this Mother's Day. Happy Mother's Day to all.

     Did you ever stop and listen to creation's praise for our magnificent creator? In spring it is so much easy to hear than in winter. I love to hear the first spring peepers, watch the flowers poke their heads up for the first time as the sun beats down on them warming the soil, and feel the warmth of the sun as I clear gardens and plant seeds.

     Spring is absolutely my most favorite time of the year. It brings hope to see new growth after the long, snowy winter. It just reminds me that no matter how bad things look, there is always a seed of hope beneath the cold infertile soils of the trials and tribulations that face us daily and attempt to defeat us.

     I've had a few of those trials and tribulations over the last few months and at times have been so self absorbed that I've left God out of the picture. But through it all, He has continued to send me those seeds of hope.

Apr 1 ~ friends surprised us by bringing us dinner at home with some yummy deserts for kids
Apr 2 ~ Awana derby races, fun, first night out since being sick
Apr 3 ~ ds17 had successful week at TeenPact, elected representative, gave nice speech, celebrating my 43rd birthday, two nice emails from friends, calls from my four brothers and a very special friend
Apr 4 ~ ds17 had a successful public speaking class at the state house, celebrated with dinner out afterwards
Apr 5 ~ Family celebration of my dad's 73rd birthday, birthday call from ds20.
Apr 6 ~ one more day of rest, but finally feeling much better, able to get kitchen mostly cleaned up
Apr 7 ~ a beautiful bouquet of flowers from my sweet husband, email update and prayer requests from a special friend, caught up on some laundry, nice homeschool support group meeting, ds12 got an Amazon gift card offer for participating in homeschool language study
Apr 8 ~ my dear husband prolonging my birthday celebration yet another day with a beautiful picture frame full of pictures and a sweet card, finding out the insurance company will pay us $20 an hour for clean-up of the shop roof mess
Apr 9 ~ new leaves on my rosebush,
Apr 10 ~ sunshine, warm weather, even mud to prove that spring is finally here
Apr 11 ~ girls movie and craft night, decorating pillowcases with the dd8,
Apr 12 ~ lots cleaning done, visit from my sister-in-law
Apr 13 ~ back to church for the first time in several weeks, two new students in my class,my parents 54th wedding anniversary
Apr 14 ~ finding buds on a rose bush
Apr 15 ~ contract finalized and paychecks beginning to come in again, having money in savings to cover the deficit in the meantime
Apr 16 ~ hearing the spring peepers and knowing spring is finally here
Apr 17 ~ nice lunch with mother-in-law and ds12, nice visit at playground with mom
Apr 18 ~ ds12 got a $25 amazon gift card in the mail for participating in an online Spanish study
Apr 19 ~ family movie night,catching up on laundry, sunny day at the playground, ds5 patient while waiting almost an hour for his turn at a haircut
Apr 20 ~ preschool - 1st grade Sunday School class has doubled in size
Apr 21 ~ my dear husband sent me to the playground with the kids while he stayed home and washed dishes
Apr 22 ~ fabulous walk through the woods, unexpectedly meeting friends at the playground,
Apr 23 ~ dd9 and ds12 good time at Good News Club Rally, dd5, daddy and mommy nice picnic lunch at playground
Apr 24 ~ planting peas and onions with dd9 and ds5
Apr 25 ~ fun trip to the circus, feeding five of us two meals out for under $20
Apr 26 ~ dd's 9th birthday, family party with Nana
Apr 27 ~ forgot half ss material at home but able to improvise and still keep kids attention
Apr 28 ~ hearing from distant relative who is working on a family geneology
Apr 29 ~ calling to make appointment for routine physical and getting in the next day
Apr 30 ~ chance to work for three days to help pay down debt

      I don't know about you, but I am bursting with Thanksgiving for the return of Spring. It's been a long time coming, but 51 degrees yesterday and the appearance of snowdrops and crocuses give me hope that it is here to stay. I'm even thankful for the mud that graces our lawn. Here is my March edition of "Month of Praises." Why not get started today on your own "Month of Praises," It's a great way to look back and see how God is working and how He has so richly blessed you.

Mar 1 ~ whole family invited to dinner at friends house, first time ever
Mar 2 ~ friends, kids and my friends kids being friends with my kids
Mar 3 ~ God granting enough sales to work on plan to pay off debt quickly
Mar 4 ~ finding some great classical music cassettes on CBD for only 10 cents each
Mar 5 ~ knowing that things aren't truly important especially in the tragedy of a collapsed roof that destroyed a lot of sentimental and valuable items.
Mar 6 ~ My sweet husband takes DS12 to his coin club meeting so I can stay home
Mar 7 ~ homeschool convention, fabulous piano concert, chance to attend as family
Mar 8 ~ fabulous speaker at convention, great deal on Rosetta Stone Spanish Software kit
Mar 9 ~ great speaker from CareNet crisis pregnancy center and her inspiring personal testimony
Mar 10 ~ being able to pay extra on our debt to get it paid down sooner
Mar 11 ~ family dinner with ds20, game of Apples to Apples, watching creation science video together
Mar 12 ~ Early College for ME meeting with DS17
Mar 13 ~ DS20 up for dinner for last day of spring break,
Mar 14 ~ DS17 won a gold medal in the extemperaneous speech category at the state level
Mar 15 ~ DD8 practicing her reading alone in her bed
Mar 16 ~ peaceful day at home, chance to get kids room cleaned
Mar 17 ~ dear husbands expert basket making skills saved the day as I was unable to help dd8 make a basket kit that she got for Christmas
Mar 18 ~ finding out insurance will cover the items lost when the roof of the shop caved in
Mar 19 ~ new, faster computer, as an early birthday present
Mar 20 ~ brother with great computer knowledge to help get the kinks out of the new computer
Mar 21 ~ having enough money in savings to cover gap between cleaning contract renewals
Mar 22 ~ came down with flu, but still able to help hubby set up for Easter breakfast he is in charge of cooking
Mar 23 ~ Resurrection Sunday ~ hubby took kids to visit Nana, I slept, Easter e-card from former pastor and his wife
Mar 24 ~ still in bed with flu, but not too uncomfortable, ds5 plays quietly on the bed while I rest
Mar 25 ~ mom offers to do some laundry for us to help out
Mar 26 ~ cleaning contract renewed with a raise
Mar 27 ~ up for couple hours, but still need to rest lots
Mar 28 ~ mom does lots more laundry for me
Mar 29 ~ recovered from flu, still need lots rest
Mar 30 ~ nice long call from ds20, got antibiotics for pneumonia so will get some relief from shortness of breath
Mar 31 ~ ds17 to TeenPact, new sneakers for ds12 as a gift                                                                                                                                      

Feb 1 ~ ds12, ds17, and dd8 to an overnight snowcamp
Feb 2 ~ having alone time with ds5 all day, taking him out to breakfast and out to lunch
Feb 3 ~ email from friend who might be moving to the area
Feb 4 ~ ds17 filed his first tax return, great to have online filing and not have to fill out all the paperwork, getting a refund
Feb 5 ~ email from ds20 who says he's having his most creative semester yet
Feb 6 ~ 40 free homeschool samples from The Old Schoolhouse
Feb 7 ~ sledding again with the kiddoes, another great buy on an outfit for dd8 who is very hard to find clothes for
Feb 8 ~ ds17 attended first Speech and Communications class
Feb 9 ~ fabulous used booksale, got 63 books for only $29.00
Feb 10 ~ nice catered fellowship lunch at our church, fellowship time with friends
Feb 11 ~ super lunch with a very special sister in Christ, minimal damage to a car I backed into
Feb 12 ~ ds20 made Dean's list for the third semester in a row
Feb 13 ~ getting a valentine in the mail from my husband even though I see him everyday
Feb 14 ~ candlelight dinner with the family, being loved
Feb 15 ~ valentine date night with my hubby, sharing a meal instead of buying two, still having leftovers
Feb 16 ~ signed up and looking forward to our state homeschool convention which is being held in my area this year
Feb 17 ~ dad and ds12 time, got to go ice fishing caught a couple of nice pickerel, will make a great meal
Feb 18 ~ 10 pounds of shrimp for the freezer for only 3.50 per pound
Feb 19 ~ great buy on several smalled stuffed animals for Samaritan's purse Christmas shoe boxes
Feb 20 ~ ebay lowers it's media listing fees, and includes gallery pictures for free making it a little more affordable to sell
Feb 21 ~ alone time with ds5, dd8 to winter ecology camp to learn about tracking animals, identifying winter trees etc.
Feb 22 ~ ds12 and ds17 home safely from snowcamp, dd8 had great time at winter ecology camp
Feb 23 ~ having another truckload of firewood given to us, fellowship with friends
Feb 24 ~ sitting in evening service with my dear husband and hearing a great message about the holiness of God
Feb 25 ~ beautiful 40 degree sunshiny day, walk on the lake, playing snow baseball with the kids
Feb 26 ~ having federal self-employment taxes completed, e-filed and accepted by the IRS
Feb 27 ~ hearing 5, 6, and 7 year olds recite God's word at Awanas
Feb 28 ~ hearing from ds20 many times this week as we try to get college applications done
Feb 29 ~ Getting the address of a childhood friend I haven't seen in over 35 years

     "Our Creator has given us women a glorious station where we are to employ and invest the talents He has given us. When we recognize and fully embrace our calling, we are finally free to truly enjoy it; we're able to experience contentment in the uniqueness of our role and achieve overwhelming victory in our homes and lives!"

     "Using our gifts and talents to glorify God in our role as helpers to our husbands, all within the well-choreographed dance of home life, imparts a quiet lesson to a watching world and communicates true contentment in the loveliness of womanhood." (pg.35)

     "Jesus made himself of no reputation. He did not seek after degrees or recognition. He was content to stay in a tiny area and minister to a miniscule group of people whom the world viewed as insignificant. Kind of like a homemaker, under the authority of her loving husband, ministering to the children who need her." (pg. 40 - 41)

     His Bible is a testament to this fact. His Bible was full of bookmarks, 44 to be exact as well as many highlighted and underlined passages. He read the Bible. He studied the Bible. He had a passion for God’s word.

     Whenever he came to our house, he would always ask me what I thought about this or that. He was full of questions about the truths in God’s word. Sometimes I thought I knew the answers he was seeking and would share what I thought. Other times we would open the Bible and search for answers together. He was always seeking, always asking and today I am confident that he is directing all of his questions to Christ and finally being truly satisfied with the answers he is receiving. He is receiving the perfect answers from the mouth of his savior and not the flawed answers that our finite minds could offer.

     He was at peace with God and knew in his heart that when he died he would go to heaven. He wants that for all of us that are here today. He wants us all to turn to God in our grief and seek His comfort. I found a poem among his possessions that I want to share that I hope you’ll find as comforting as I do. The comfort is just in the knowledge that God is always there.

People will fail us, but God never does.

Hello God,

     It's been a stormy month for me emotionally and thus the reason for my absence on homeschoolblogger. It began with the resignation of our beloved pastor. It came as a shock and took me a few weeks to really accept and contemplate what this would mean for our church and my family.

     The culmination of the storm and what will cause the most change is the unexpected passing of my brother on October 21st. He was only 47 years old and died of a heart attack. We were all shocked and grieved and will continue to grieve for a while. One true blessing is that we have a large family and were all able to gather and share several times in the past week, as well as the knowledge that my brother is present with His Savior. For these things I am truly thankful.

Oct 1 ~ Beautiful changing leaves, long evenings, DH enjoying his Spanish class that he is taking
Oct 2 ~ DS16 does not have strep throat just a viral canker sore on his tonsil
Oct 3 ~ Hugs and nice talk with our Pastor and wife about their decision to leave our church
Oct 4 ~ Not having to go anywhere for the entire day, another truckload of firewood, DS16 invited to be assistant on a photo shoot
Oct 5 ~ A beautiful hike with the kiddos, seeing a deer
Oct 6 ~ hearing a heartfelt "you're awesome," from my husband first thing in the morning
Oct 7 ~ wonderful visit with pastor's sife after evening service, nice chance to talk and share sadness over their leaving at end of year
Oct 8 ~ A wonderful Columbus day hike and day at the ocean, beautiful, unseasonable weather
Oct 9 ~ took delivery of our new refrigerator
Oct 10 ~ getting our new refrigerator installed, not having to tear out walls, it just fit in the space that the old one was
Oct 11 ~ Amazing grace, and knowing God's grace follows us and helps us through each and every day
Oct 12 ~ getting everything prepared for our trip and being able to paint the kitchen floor so it can dry while we are gone
Oct 13 ~ getting to stay in a beautiful old farmhouse with awesome hosts, getting to meet ds20's room mates and feeling comfortable with who they are
Oct 14 ~ hike in NH with ds20, special extended visit all together as a family
Oct 15 ~ beautiful, uneventful trip home from NH, gorgeous autumn colors
Oct 16 ~ dh spent couple hours cleaning in boys room for me,
Oct 17 ~ got woodstove going, nice to feel the warmth of the woodfire
Oct 18 ~ Hearing from my brother that I have a new great nephew, and his first grandson
Oct 19 ~ Chance to work for three hours to make a little money to help with bills
Oct 20 ~ sharing a meal with special friends at church
Oct 21 ~ a large family to lean on when bad things happen
Oct 22 ~ calls and emails from friends, sacrificial offers of help
Oct 23 ~ beautiful letters delivered that ds20 and dh wrote to themselves when they were in the DR
Oct 24 ~ knowing people care, a call from ds20, a beautiful Calla lilly delivered to my door
Oct 25 ~ a caring community and the knowledge that my brother is no longer in his flawed body but perfected now in Christ
Oct 26 ~ beautiful service and friends to share our pain with, sunset walk on the beach and breakwater, a beautiful hunter's moon
Oct 27 ~ time spent with family and getting to know new family members
Oct 28 ~ the chance to just crash for a couple of hours
Oct 29 ~   a short visit with my nephew before he headed back to Washington
Oct 30 ~ getting a refund I wasn't expecting and leading from God to reorder my priorities and make room for closer relationships in my life
Oct 31 ~ fun harvest party hosted by a local church

     This has been a month of miracles and amazing blessings. The two that standout the most in my mind are the provision, free of charge, of enough firewood to get us through the long cold winter, and the provision, again free of charge, of a new refrigerator because ours quit.

     Our refrigerator has been on the blink for about a year now, bue we have always been able to give it one last push to keep it going just a little longer. We've had this regrigerator for about 15 years, maybe longer and we only paid about $25 for it second hand. So it's been a great refrigerator.

     Last week I went to get a glass of milk and it seemed warm but I didn't think too much about it. I just adjusted the temperature. The next day the same thing happened so again I adjusted the temp to a lower number. When it happened again on day three  I decided to stick a thermometer in there to see what the temp was. It was only 60 degrees so I had to throw a bunch of meat and mayonaise based products away.

     Friday September 28th I asked God for a refrigerator as there was no push left in this one. I knew God would provide, I just didn't know how. I fully expected my husband to come home on Saturday and say he'd found the perfect one at a yard sale for little or nothing. However, I was caught by complete surprise when a local appliance store called me up on Saturday and said that someone had bought us a refrigerator, all we had to do was come and pick out the one we want. I was completely overwhelmed and overjoyed. God is so amazing I cannot even begin to describe it.

Sep 1 ~ being able to keep in touch with friends from the Dominican Republic by using instant messatging and email.
Sep 2 ~ a morning walk before church
Sep 3 ~ summer hike at Dodge Point saw families of turtles, just a fabulous day
Sep 4 ~ Hug from a friend I haven't seen all summer, nice afternoon walk and prayer time, DS16 being offered work with a caterer off and on throughout the winter
Sep 5 ~ DS16 being trained as first ever Student Youth Leader at our church
Sep 6 ~ Successful Awana leaders meeting with lots of laughter
Sep 7 ~ Backyard cookout with campfire and smores, birthday celebration for DS5 and DS20
Sep 8 ~ DS20 had safe trip back to college
Sep 9 ~ A nice visit with my brother from North Carolina, Fellowship dinner at church
Sep 10 ~ DS20 able to live off campus for less than 1/2 what it would cost to live on campus, fabulous house with great roommates, nice beach with free use of canoe, kayak, and sailboat, also free fire wood to heat for the winter
Sep 11 ~ DS16 babysat while DH took me out to dinner; Prime Rib Dinner special for only 7.95, more than I could eat.
Sep 12 ~ 1st night of Awanas, good group of kids, my class mostly boys, Call from Dominican Republic- school children singing happy birthday to DS5.
Sep 13 ~ Unsolicited $200 check for next mission trip
Sep 14 ~ My back didn't hurt once all day
Sep 15 ~ DH took me back to the place where he kissed me for the first time, it was very romantic
Sep 16 ~ Had a wonderful birthday party for DS5 with his friends, finally found the second verse to the song "For Those Tears I Died."
Sep 17 ~ found a baby kitten outside
Sep 18 ~ got a free one month trial to Aleks.com a great math tutor. Was able to talk to Adrian and Alicia online for about an hour.
Sep 19 ~ got a second free one month trial to Aleks.com tha I can use with DS11
Sep 20 ~ Kids helped with laundry so I wouldn't have to carry it as I strained my back this week.
Sep 21 ~ My oldest turned 20 today
Sep 22 ~ DH took kids to DS11's soccer game so I could sleep in, didn't wake up until 12:30, friends delivered a fresh homemade pumpkin pie to us
Sep 23 ~ A great message at church in which we were encouraged to partner with God in our financial habits
Sep 24 ~ time in the evening to play Uno with DH and DD8
Sep 25 ~ Uncharacteristically 75 degrees today, beautiful morning walk and praise time with my God
Sep 26 ~ Beautiful evening, sat on swing with DD8 and DS5 and sang praise songs
Sep 27 ~ Grandparents who live right next door and were available to watch two younger children while I accompanined DS11 to the emergency room for a broken wrist
Sep 28 ~ Found some wonderful treasures at a library booksale including the teacher's edition to the Saxon Math book we are currently using for only 2.00.
Sep 29 ~ Call from Appliance store saying someone had bought us a refrigerator, all we have to do is pick it out.
Sep 30 ~ Our beloved Pastor has resigned, but the blessing is just knowing that God has something great planned for us and him in the future.

      Then, two days ago, our 11 year old son took the dog for a walk in the woods. He does this everyday.  There's a little brook out behind our house and he just loves to go and explore it. This time, as he was crossing it, he slipped and fell, landing with his left hand on another rock. He managed to get himself to the door and rang the doorbell than sat down at the picnic table. I could tell immediately that it was going to require an E.R. visit.

      I called DH who was out on a job just to let him know what was going on. Then I called my parents who live right next door to see if  DD8 and DS5 could come over while I took him to the hospital. When we got to the Emergency Room, we only had to wait about 5 minutes before they took him in to be seen. In that five minutes my wonderful husband showed up. He said he had a feeling that it was more than just a sprain and thought he should be there too.

      The x-ray confirmed that he had broken both wrist bones and they were at an angle so the doctor was going to have to set them before he could cast them. DS11 was so brave through the whole thing. The pain was very obvious in his features but not in his actions. He remained calm, though his body was shaking from the pain.

      The whole process of setting the bones only took about ten minutes. They gave him some anesthesia, sent us out of the room and called us back in within just a few minutes and already had the arm in a full arm cast. by Friday morning there was a lot of swelling so we had to go back to the doctors and have them split the cast up both sides to make more room.

      Other than that, the worst thing about the whole broken wrist is that he's had to quit soccer for the rest of the season. He is very disappointed about that. We did go to their game today and watch about half of it before he decided his arm was hurting too much and he wanted to go home. I think he was sad about not being able to play.

 Top Ten Reasons I love Autumn

Wouldn't you love to win a pencil drawing of one of your loved ones. And that’s what Carrie is giving away. Not this drawing. She wants to draw something for you. Someone, that is. She only does people. So here’s how it will work.

So here’s how it will work.

Leave her a comment, saying you want a groovy pencil drawing of someone you like or even love.

Post a short blurb on your site about this giveaway and spread the word.

Wait anxiously for The Official Day of Fall, which is September 22. She will end the giveaway then and announce a winner that day using a random picker thingy.

If you don’t have a blog, NO WORRIES! Just leave a comment.

Aug 1 ~ nice talk with youth pastor, promise of prayer, fireworks and free admission at the Lobster Festival
Aug 2 ~ finished work at church a day early
Aug 3 ~ beautiful card with rainbow bookmark from my secret sister
Aug 4 ~ 1-1/2 hour parade, cookout and slideshow of ds19's trip to Europe
Aug 5 ~ ds11 off to camp for a week, ds16 treated us to icecream at Super Scoop
Aug 6 ~ pictures from my niece and a new family website she created for keeping in touch
Aug 7 ~ call from Alicia, unofficial adopted daughter in the Dominican Republic, news that another trip is already in the planning stages for the same area in the Dominican Republic
Aug 8 ~ very encouraging comment from bubbebobbie
Aug 9 ~ two hours to myself to clean without interruption, an unexpected offer of childcare so that I can attend the next mission trip with my husband
Aug 10 ~ an unexpected small refund check from our family physician, which will allow dh and I a date night
Aug 11 ~ community block party hosted by an area church, free food, fun and backpacks for all kids attending.
Aug 12 ~ fabulous slideshow and testimonies by mission team that went to the D.R., hymn from the D.R. sung to us on our answering machine
Aug 13 ~ 2 beautiful hours home alone with my dear husband
Aug 14 ~ dh and ds16 brought home freshly caught trout for dinner
Aug 15 ~ dh shared with me how God had already returned to him money that he felt called to give to a struggling family in need
Aug 16 ~ playdate at the park and chance to catch up with a friend
Aug 17 ~ lots paperwork done, and bills paid
Aug 18 ~ being invited to join a prayer group that meets and prays for area youth
Aug 19 ~ long walk on the beach with my husband, spending time alone with dd8
Aug 20 ~ a lilac bush (my favorite flower scent) was given to us
Aug 21 ~ hike and time alone with ds11, card and inspirational book from my dear sweet secret sister
Aug 22 ~ beautiful flowers and card from my awesome husband
Aug 23 ~ being able to talk online with friends from the DR, received word that we could plan another mission trip to the Dominican Repbulic in the near future
Aug 24 ~ beginning my sixth week of weighdown and have lost 12 pounds so far
Aug 25 ~ dh helped me washing 4 large loads of bedding at the laundromat
Aug 26 ~ long heart to heart with dh, great day alone with ds4 playing games, watching movies, reading books, resting a sore back, while dh took others to folk festival and got to hear a Dominican band
Aug 27 ~ bad back all weekend but Chiropractor fit me in first thing this morning, dh did lots of dishes so I could rest
Aug 28 ~ time with dh and 3dc's at the playground
Aug 29 ~ two truckloads of wood given to us and the promise of more, back is much better, call of concern from sister in Christ
Aug 30 ~ having electric appliances when the gas runs out of propane and can't be replaced for a week
Aug 31 ~ received nice matters award for second time, found Light and the Glory for .25, no snow in my freezer this morning

     In my mind this description should be what blogging on homeschoolblogger is all about; Uplifting and Encouraging one another to greatness in our homeschooling and family life. Therefore, everyone should qualify for the award. Thanks to those who read my blog. I pray that it will always reflect Christ's Glory and be an encouragement to you and that in some small way I can be a blessing to those who read on a regular basis or just stop by once on their way somewhere else.

       Inside the envelope was a beautiful white card with gold embossed lettering. On the front it says "You Are My Happiness". On the inside it says "In this world of responsibilities and realities, having you to dream with and play with, to laugh with and love with, makes everything more beautiful... (tearing up). Isn't he awesome! Then he wrote "You are the Best! My mate for life!! I must be the luckiest woman in the world.

     I was tagged this time by Christlike, and was asked to list eight random things about myself. Oh well...I'll try.

1.  I'm not overly adventurous, but I love spontanaity. I once planned a getaway weekend for my husband, well...the plan was we would just take off and let the weekend plan itself. I loved it, he hated it...He likes to have everything planned out to the letter, whereas I like to take life as it comes, it's more exciting that way.

2.  I really don't like pets. I enjoy animals at farms, in the wild, at the zoo and at other people's houses, but I don't like having to take care of them, clean up after them, etc. We do however have a dog, a cat, and two rabbits. We've also had chickens, pheasants, guinea pigs, ducks, and parakeets in the past.

3.  I've always wanted to learn Spanish and Sign Language. When I was in highschool, I tried for several years to get the administration to introduce Spanish as a foreign language course. They finally did, the last half of my senior year when it was too late to start it as a highschool course. However, now that my husband and two oldest sons have been to the Dominican Republic on a mission trip, I have new motivation for all of us to learn Spanish, as it is a possibility that they, and I even I may return there for another mission trip.

4.  As a teen I had a crush on the driver of a UPS truck that frequented our neighborhood. I used to order things from catalogs and choose UPS shipping just so he would deliver it to our house.

5.  I have second generation dreams. After I graduated from highschool I used to have dreams that I wasn't going to be able to graduate because I hadn't completed my courses. When my first son graduated homeschool, I began having dreams that he wasn't going to be able to graduate because I hadn't gotten all of his portfolio work turned in.

6.  I love the water. As a kid I used to take every opportunity to explore or just sit by the brook that ran nearby my home. Now, I still love to sit by the water, whether it be ocean, lake or stream they all provide me with  a sense of peace and tranquility.

7.  I'm afraid of thunder, even more than the lightening. There's just something about the loud crashing of the thunder that sends me undercover everytime. Last year we went camping, and a thunderstorm struck in the evening. I felt perfectly safe in our flimsy little tent, but it was at that time that my daughter decided she needed to use the outhouse. "You want me to walk you to the outhouse in this storm, no way!" I finally relented and we ran to and from the outhouse as quickly as possible.

8.  My greatest desire, is to simplify our lives, get rid of most of our possessions, pay off all of our debt and be free to serve God without the pull of materialism.