• Jul. 8, 2009
Photo Tag

I thought this sounded like fun when I stopped by Leslie's blog.

If you want to do it this is what you should do:

1. Go to Your Pictures on your computer
2. Go to the 8th folder
3. Go to the 8th picture
4. Post that picture on your blog and the story behind it

Have fun!!!

Pretty self explanatory isn't it?  My 8th folder was "Easter" and then I chose the first folder inside that of "2006" and then the 8th picture.  This makes the kids 4 and 1 1/2!    Punkin' was enjoying her first year of getting to dye eggs by herself while dad just hung onto Sweetie Boy to keep him from cracking all the eggs as he toddled by.   Fun memories.

If you choose to do this, please let me know!

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• Jul. 5, 2009
Keep on Learning!

Here's the reason we homeschool!  These two beautiful creations from God are worth it!!

Summer just keeps going and thankfully I have been able to spend a lot of time entering lesson plans into my tracking/planner program.  Feels so good to be so far ahead of the game this year!!  Both kids will be using Alpha Omega's Horizons for Reading, Writing and Math and we will mostly use KONOS for our "together school" that covers everything else.  We will begin with the Obedience Unit.

Currently we are still working through our Art Treasury book and we just began our South America "Continental Hop."  Am having both the kids use the Usborne palette to work on things such as vowel sounds, beginning reading and math concepts.  Gotta keep the learning going!

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• Jun. 15, 2009
Avercamp Artwork

Another fun day copying an artists style!  This is from Hendrick Avercamp and he used watercolors.

Punkin's above and Sweetie Boy's below.

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• Jun. 14, 2009
The Angels are Rejoicing!

More people have professed their love for Christ and have followed His command to be baptized.  My dear, sweet daughter was one of those.

The church we attend had a very nice picnic/baptism service out at the lake and the storm held off for the event.  Punkin' said, "God is making sure the rain doesn't come until later mommie."  I think she might have been right!  She wanted the Children's Pastor (Sara) to be the one to baptize her and one of her best friends (Grace) was also baptized at the service.

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• Jun. 14, 2009
The Threat

PARENTALRIGHTS.ORG

The right of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children has been recognized and upheld for centuries. But there are dark clouds on the horizon.

Today parental rights are coming under assault from federal judges who deny or refuse to recognize these rights. Adding further danger to the child-parent relationship, international law seeking to undermine the parental role is advancing on the horizon. Together, these threats are converging to create a "perfect storm" that looms over the child-parent relationship.

In the early 1980s, a landmark parental rights case reached the Washington State Supreme Court. The case involved 13-year-old Sheila Marie Sumey, whose parents were alarmed when they found evidence of their daughter's participation in illegal drug activity and escalating sexual involvement. Their response was to act immediately to cut off the negative influences in their daughter's life by grounding her.

But when Sheila went to her school counselors complaining about her parent's actions, she was advised that she could be liberated from her parents because there was "conflict between parent and child." Listening to the advice she had received, Sheila notified Child Protective Services (CPS) about her situation. She was subsequently removed from her home and placed in foster care.

Her parents, desperate to get their daughter back, challenged the actions of the social workers in court. They lost. Even though the judge found that Sheila's parents had enforced reasonable rules in a proper manner, the state law nevertheless gave CPS the authority to split apart the Sumey family and take Sheila away.¹

DANGEROUS PRECEDENT

Parental rights are under attack in our nation, with the first threat originating from within the federal court system. As this story illustrates, a growing disregard for parental rights has been spreading within the courts of our nation.

Across the country, many judges are beginning to deny the vital role of parents in the lives of their children, instead inserting the government into a "parental" role in a child's life. This dangerous assertion is leading to the severance of the child-parent relationship in numerous instances across the nation—removals that cause unnecessary pain to both children and their parents.

A thirteen-year-old boy in Washington State was removed from his parents after he complained to school counselors that his parents took him to church too often. His school counselors had encouraged him to call Child Protective Services with his complaint, which led to his subsequent removal and placement in foster care. It was only after the parents agreed to a judge's requirement of less-frequent church attendance that they were able to recover their son.²

HANGING BY A THREAD

Not all judges hold a low view of parental rights. Some, like Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, believe that parental rights are among the "inalienable rights" of Americans enumerated in the Declaration of Independence but they are finding it increasingly difficult to rule in favor of parental rights when it is not explicitly included in the language of the Constitution.

In Troxel v. Granville, the last major parental rights case heard by the Supreme Court, Scalia himself voted to deny parental rights the status of an enforceable constitutional right. And other federal court judges are following in his footsteps, citing a mounting belief that no right can be protected by the federal courts unless explicitly stated in the Constitution.

The dwindling support for parental rights found on the federal level has opened the door to a growing, blatant disregard of parental rights within the lower courts of our nation. Parental rights violations are on the increase across the country, as courts exchange parental involvement for government control in the lives of America's children.

The right of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children is hanging by a thread.

A West Virginia mother was shocked when a local circuit judge and a family court judge ordered her to share custody of her four-year-old daughter with two of the girl’s babysitters. Referring to the sitters as "psychological co-parents," the justices first awarded full custody to them, only permitting the mother to visit her daughter four times a week at McDonalds. Eventually she was granted primary custody, but forced to continue to share her daughter with the sitters.

When her case finally reached the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals in October 2007, the beleaguered mother was relieved to finally be granted full custody of her daughter.

In their October 25 opinion Supreme Court justices wrote that they were "deeply troubled by the utter disregard" for the mother's rights. One justice referred to the mother’s right as the “paramount right in the world."

Chief Justice Robin Davis summed up the case in one simple question."Why does a natural parent have to prove fitness when she has never been found unfit?" he asked.³

THE THREAT FROM INTERNATIONAL LAW

The precarious state of parental rights within our nation is reason enough for serious concern. With cases like these filling the courts, every parent should be concerned about the protection and preservation of their rights.

But another storm is rapidly forming on the horizon.

International law that seeks to empower the government to intrude upon the child-parent relationship is becoming an increasing threat. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), a seemingly harmless treaty with dangerous implications for American families, is approaching possible ratification by the United States.

If this treaty is made binding upon our country, the government would have the power to intervene in any child's life to advance its definition of "the best interests of the child." The scenarios that could occur—and are occurring—as a result of this dangerous notion are both manifold and frightening.

Under the UNCRC, instead of following due process, government agencies would have the power to override your parental choices at their whim because they determine what is in "the best interest of the child."

In essence, the UNCRC applies the legal status of abusive parents to all parents. This means that the burden of proof falls on the parent to prove to the State that they are good parents—when it should fall upon the State to prove that their investigation is not without cause.

A SHELTER IN THE STORM

There is only one solution to this approaching storm: a constitutional amendment that places current Supreme Court doctrine protecting parental rights into the explicit language of the U.S. Constitution. This amendment will shelter the child-parent relationship from the coming storm, ensuring that parents have the right to direct the upbringing and education of their children.

No government, regardless of how well-intentioned it might be, can replace the love and nurture of a parent in the life of a child. Parents care, not because their children are "wards" for whom they are responsible. Parents are willing to brave danger and sacrifice, hardship and heartache to ensure the best for their kids.

Learn more about protecting parental rights through a constitutional amendment, and join the campaign now. We must not wait until it’s too late. Take this opportunity to sign the petition to protect parental rights today.

PARENTALRIGHTS.ORG

 

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• Jun. 9, 2009
Artist #2

I just think this artist series is too fun!  Today we studied about Katsushika Hokusai and here are their attempts at creating his style.

Punkin's is above and Sweetie Boy's is below.

They were supposed to be waves in the sea but our bubble wrap was too hard to pop!  We painted the entire bubble wrap and then placed our white paper on there and gently rubbed it to catch the paint. 

Also caught a cute photo last night of the rabbit and one of our goats just hanging out together.

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• Jun. 8, 2009
Summer Learning

Have chosen to continue with some learning this summer instead of completely taking a break for school.  Punkin' is still finishing up her Spelling (should be done this week) and Sweetie Boy wants to "do Kindergarten" so I've been using my Usborne Learning Palette with him for pre-reading skills.  We are finishing up our Australia safari (they wanted to keep going until all the animals were done) and I've started them working through an Usborne art book that has 22 artists and then step-by-step instructions on how to recreate their styles.  So far we've made it through Van Gogh.  Anything with paint is always a hit!

Sweetie Boy's work above and Punkin's below.

We also had my brother and sis-in-law out for a couple days and that was very fun.  The kids were quite the characters at dinner one evening at our favorite Mexican restaurant.

This coming weekend is our homeschool convention at long last!  Sweetie Boy will stay with grandma and pop-pop for 2 nights as he isn't old enough to attend the children's conference.  Punkin' is attending the conference for her third time and she always looks forward to attending.

Other than all that we have added a calf to the barnyard.  Rosetta was born June 1 early in the morning.

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• May. 18, 2009
Planning for Next Year

I finally had time this afternoon to sit down and figure out what we need for the next school year and actually got most of it ordered.   For our next year we will be using Horizons for Math, Reading, Spelling and Penmanship.  We will use KONOS (I need to order Vol. 2) for our "together school" which covers Science, History, Literature, etc.

This will give me a year to sort out what to move towards regarding Language Arts for Punkin' (for 3rd grade) as Alpha Omega's Horizon series ends at that point except for Math & Penmanship.  I printed out testing forms for her to take and it appears LifePac's are a year behind the Horizon work.  I've had some recommendations of materials to look into from some of you here and from some other people but know I can't make a snap decision over the summer.  Unfortunately many of the vendors won't be at our homeschool convention next month due to the economy (they are picking and choosing where to spend the time and money this year) so some I won't be able to look through so it will be hunting the internet for examples.  So if you have the time please let me know what has worked for you!

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• May. 12, 2009
May Madness!

Taking advantage of the kids playing out in the barnyard with the goats and new baby chicks and poults!  Yes...that's the new word of the day...poult.  Punkin' wanted to know the real name for baby turkeys!

So why was I gone for too long again....

Homeschool Group.... We just finished up with our Friday School group last week so I was busy helping get things put together for the talent show.  It was fun and am sad to see our gatherings end for the summer.

Books.... I've been getting going with my Usborne Book stuff and am now ready to dig in and get started within the libraries and schools.  I'm also going to contact local homeschool groups about a summer reading program.  I've had several great home shows and am excited that I am finally ordering some of the school books that I started this for in the beginning!  Can't wait for that 3 volume reference set and microscope kit to arrive!  I also ordered a great set of art books.

School.... Punkin' is finished with her penmanship, will finish Math this week and that leaves Reading & Spelling to get done by next month.  Sweetie Boy has enough left to get through this month also.  We've had fun with the Continental Hop series that is being developed through CurrClick and are now undertaking Australia.

Planning for next year.... We will be attending our homeschool convention the second weekend in June and I need to figure out what to do for the kids when Horizons ends with everything except Math.  Hoping AO will be there so I can see the LifePac stuff but will also hunt through all the booths for other suggestions that some have made.   (Thank you Belinda!)  I plan to buy a second volume of KONOS this year along with their Horizons materials for 2nd grade and the replacement workbooks for Kindergarten.  Need to spend more time getting KONOS lessons in the computer for next year!

Turkey parties with friends... We have our second one on Saturday.  This one requires less work as it is a smaller group.

Gardening.... Punkin' and I finally finished planting yesterday.  It was a great Mother's Day gift as dh borrowed the rototiller on Saturday so we could all work on the raking and weed shield on Sunday afternoon.   I then took Punkin' with me to buy plants and we had fun getting everything planted.

Pygmy Goat.... Cocoa finally had her baby and that was a rough delivery.  dh had to pull the baby out and there isn't a lot of room to work with on a pygmy!  Vanilla is so cute and lively.  She doesn't realize how small she is as she takes on the cows as playmates.  Here's Punkin' with Vanilla and her mama.

Sweetie Boy has really begun to have an interest in learning to read and that is exciting!  He is also doing wonderful with his writing....mostly capitals so far but very legible.  He is amazingly talented with his drawing and wants to put names on each as he makes them for someone else and you can read it when he's done.  He is soooo excited that he will be learning to read next year in school.  He is also doing very well with his addition and subtraction.  He still gets them mixed up (the + and -) only because of a lack of focus, but he has it figured out!  He will turn 5 the end of August.

Have the kids signed up for summer swimming in August as well.  They are so anxious to just have the wading pool out to play in but it still isn't warm enough for that yet!

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• Apr. 18, 2009
So busy...

I just can't seem to get her lately!  We've been busy with the usual things.  I believe it is the warmer weather, light longer in the evening and gearing up all the spring/summer yard work that is taking some of the computer time away.  And my book business.  I just started up with Usborne Books (love them...wanted more for our home library) and have been figuring out how to fit that in with everything else.

We're seeing the end where school is concerned.  Punkin' just finished her penmanship and should be done with spelling, math and reading by the end of May.  Sweetie Boy has about 2 months left and just this past week has taken off with writing.  He no longer just wants to practice them...he wants to write words and he can!  He asks how something is spelled and then writes it without help.  He's made some major leaps...exciting!

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• Mar. 30, 2009
Getting Back to Normal

All I can say is "Whew!"  I needed some normal in my life!  On the school front... things are back on track.  We finished our Iditarod study and it was fun following the mushers we chose one the map we made.  We had two that finished in the top 20 and two rookies.  We are going to meet with our Vet next Thursday to talk to him and see pictures he took while he was there!

Next comes sheep and weaving.  I headed to the library and brought a stack of books home for reading and research.  We plan to go to a friends place next week to have her daughter show us her sheep (she shows them in 4H and has won many 1st place and more prizes with them) and talk to the kids about them.

Punkin' has been asking that we go to another continent since Africa was so fun so need to see what I can throw together on Australia.  I believe that was the second in the Continental Hop series with CurrClick.com.

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• Mar. 20, 2009
Life's Just Been a Little Crazy

Can't believe it has been a month since I even visited here!  We've lost 2 out of 3 dogs, survived the 7th birthday party, had a 5 day visit from MIL and SIL, birthed 13 kids in the pasture (lost 3 of them), helped my dad through carotid artery surgery, made it through the kids' spring musical rehearsals and performances, and I've been getting my Usborne Book business up and running.  How's that for one month?  Oh...did I mention 3 of the goats had to be assisted with their births (breech, stuck....) and we nursed one for two days during the surgery stuff and then a bummer lamb to replace the kid that died?  The bummer lamb was sick too (didn't know it when we brought her home) so that took a lot of time too.  Finally I can say at the end of this week that I've had more "normal" days around here!  And none too soon.   I was worn out!  So let me share a few "kid" photos from the barnyard just because they make me smile!

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• Feb. 21, 2009
The Birthday Party

This event was so nice and Punkin' loved every minute of her special time.  Thought I'd just drop a few photos to mark the occasion.

Out for pizza dinner on her actual birthday.

Ready for the party!

Blowing out the candles on her Care Bear cake.  (I made it!)

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• Feb. 18, 2009
A Memorial for Dottie

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• Feb. 16, 2009
Happy 7th Birthday!

My "baby girl" is turning 7 on Friday.  Part of me is so sad to see her growing up so quickly and another is proud of what a wonderful individual she is becoming.  The "birthday week" started with a trip to the dentist....no cavities!  Then she met with a pastor to talk about baptism.  Her daddy took her and evidently she blew the pastor away with her knowledge of the scriptures and what it meant to accept Jesus into your heart.  So one day we will have a baptism...not sure when she'll be ready for that.

We will be having her party on Saturday and she has requested roast beef with homemade mac & cheese for the dinner.  Her adopted grandparents will be coming and her grandma and auntie from CO will be driving up for the event as well.  A Care Bear cake has been asked for...the pink one with the hearts...and that will be an easier decorating project for me!

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• Feb. 5, 2009
Africa fun

We are currently doing a unit study on Africa for "together school."  The kids have had fun making a passport, creating a house and tie-dieing paper.  We've played games using animal cards... Memory and The Watering Hole.  We learned to play Mancala.  But I think the favorite thing for both are the stories that we are reading.  So many of the African tales deal with animals or people tricking each other which causes lots of laughter in this house.  We still have some fun things to do while learning about the animals and habitat.  Monday we begin our safari!

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• Jan. 30, 2009
A Memorial for Gus

This is our sweet basset hound Gus. 

We rescued Gus in March of 1997 when he was about 2 years old.  He had been horribly neglected so we nursed him to health planning all the while to find him a good home.  Well, we did.  OURS!  He had  such a fun personality and was so sweet we just couldn't let him go.

We allowed the vet to assist him to the Basset Hound Rainbow Bridge on Tuesday, January 27, as the poor guy had spent a day and a half just trying to breath.  He couldn't do anything without it just completely exhausting him.  Hated to let him go, but at least he didn't suffer in his last days.  He had a long and happy life.  Bassets typically live about 10 to 11 years and he made it to 14 or 15.

We didn't realize how much he was underfoot until he was gone.  He was always there.  Always curious.  Always playful.  Always in trouble.  Always sweet and loyal.  We miss him terribly.

The other two bassets mourned in their doggie way for a couple of days as well.  Shelby just began eating again Friday and last night Dottie decided it was okay to lie down in Gus' spot in front of the heat vent in the dining room.

So Gussie this moment is for you.  We will miss you always!

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• Jan. 23, 2009
All one can do is pray.

This is how I feel after three days with our new President.  I was not surprised by any of the actions as these are the things he stood for prior to being elected, but I was saddened and found myself going to God out of sorrow for what a mess His beautiful creation is becoming.  I pray that He can work good through all the mire.  I pray that He can work on the heart of our President and his staff.  I pray that He will continue to give me peace in the midst of my concern for the future, frustration and sadness.

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• Jan. 13, 2009
Learning about Abuse and Prevention

This week for "together school" we are learning all sorts of things about being healthy and safe.  So far we have begun an experiment to grow bacteria (YUCK is what Punkin' said to that idea.) and have had fun setting up an Emergency Room.  Here are pictures of the kids playing E.R.  Sweetie Boy is driving the ambulance and transporting patients.  They got creative and brought in dad's scooter that he uses to work on vehicles.  Punkin' was the nurse and I became Dr. Trosk.  Who knows where that name came from! 

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• Jan. 13, 2009
A Day at the Zoo

Yesterday Sweetie Boy asked if we could visit the zoo.  I made it happen only because he rarely asks for anything and it was the nicest day we were going to have all week.  We had all been wanting to go see the new African Village that had been constructed too so it was a fun time.  Here are some pictures from our outing.

In the African Village hut.  Another structure was of a house.  This was especially impacting as we sponsor a little guy in Zambia.  She was surprised at the size and the type of things they use for sleeping, etc.  A good life lesson!

On safari!

Here are the new giraffes.  They are about 2 years of age.

The King of the Jungle!  He was VERY noisy during our visit.  Punkin' was a little nervous at one point when he came right up to the window we were looking through and let loose with a roar.

And of course we took time to play on the Jungle slide near the tropical rainforest.

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