Dec. 4, 2008 - Blogger Friend School - #112
Assignment: Write about your favorite ‘faith food’. Tell about the books of the Bible that you read that help to build your faith..nurture the seeds of faith inside you.
My favorite encouraging book from the Bible is Nehemiah. When God gave him the vision to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem, he did not waver. From all sides, he was harassed, yet he never gave up. Instead, he made sure that "those who built on the wall, and those who carried burdens, loaded themselves so that with one hand they worked at construction, and with the other held a weapon. Every one of the builders had his sword girded at his side as he built (4:17-18)."
Nehemiah never forgot that God was his strength. He said, "Hear, O our God, for we are despised... (4:4)"
"Our God will fight for us" (4:20).
"Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands" (6:9b).
My husband and I were just chatting tonight about one of our harder-headed ones. There are times when we feel as if we are just talking to the wind with this one. Will we ever succeed in doing anything but pushing this one into the life of a criminal?
"O God, strengthen our hands!"
Parenting is not for the weak of heart, and I have to admit that there are times when I feel weak. There are times when I lay down the law about some issue and the kids look at me as if I have lobsters coming out of my ears. Sometimes I think, "OK, am I being the freak here? Is this the right path?" That's when I call my husband and have him reassure me that I am not the freak. ;-) And then together we say, "Our God will fight for us!"
Nehemiah never gave up. He never lost the vision of the job God gave him. He worked through the internal and external strife and overcame all as he relied on God for protection, help and encouragement. And what else can we do, but keep our noses to the grindstone and persevere in what we believe God is leading us to do with our family. And while we work, we will keep our "swords" (the Bible) at our sides to encourage us and "strengthen our hands" for the work.
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Oct. 18, 2008 - Blogger Friend School - #106
Assignment: Post your favorite fall recipe/recipes to share. I love trying new recipes, do you?
I absolutely love finding a good recipe. One of my favorite resources for this is Tammy's Recipes. Her family eats just like mine. I think we've only made one recipe that my family was lukewarm about.
Last October, a friend gave me some Pumpkin Butter she found at a little shop somewhere. I grew up eating Apple Butter, but had never heard of Pumpkin Butter. It was SO GOOD. So this year I am going to make some for gifts, and for us to eat here at home.
I don't have any pictures yet because I just started today. I found a great pumpkin at SuperTarget for $4.99! It was a good, dark pumpkin. The dark ones are the best for canning and other recipes. In the past, I have cooked the pumpkin in the pressure cooker, but today, I had my husband just cut the pumpkin into fourths. Then I wrapped it in foil and baked the pumpkin. Tonight I will puree the pumpkin in my food processor, then tomorrow I will make the pumpkin butter. Here is the recipe I will be using:
Pumpkin Butter
3 1/2 cups fresh ground pumpkin or canned pumpkin purée
2 1/2 cups light brown sugar
1 lemon, juice and grated rind
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
If using fresh pumpkin, mix with sugar, lemon, ginger, cinnamon and allspice in a large bowl. Let stand at room temperature 8 to 10 hours
Transfer to a heavy saucepan, add 1/2 cup water and bring to a boil. Simmer on low heat, stirring often, for 40 to 60 minutes, to desired consistency. (With canned pumpkin, mix ingredients in heavy saucepan; bring to a boil and simmer on low about 20 minutes, to thicken.)
Pour mixture into hot, sterile, 6-ounce canning jars, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Seal with sterile, 2-part lids and rings, as manufacturer directs, processing 10 minutes in boiling water bath. Cool; adjust seals.
Makes five 6-ounce jars.
To find some other good recipes, go here!
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Oct. 9, 2008 - Blogger Friend School - #105
Memory Verse: Matthew 28: 20 - Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world. Amen.
Intro: Never Leave Home Without It (Marketing Credit: American Express) Diapers, bottles, wipes, bibs, pacifiers, extra clothing, cell phone, PDA, ipod, iphone, credit or debit cards … what would you never leave home without?
Assignment: In the memory verse Jesus tells us that He will never leave us, not even at the end of the world. He assures us in this verse that He will be with us and that means through everything we go through in life. I thought it would be interesting to write about the things we would never leave home without. For some it might be baby needs, others it might be a gym bag and bottle of water, and for some it might be your Bible and a notepad or small journal, maybe even your son or daughters favorite blankie! I’d like for you to write about something that you would never leave home without.
I usually try to leave as much at home as I can. I really hate purses and if I can, I put my debit card in my back pocket and go! I usually leave the diaper bag in the car to have on hand in case of emergencies. I do not carry it around with me unless we're going to be gone on an all-day thing. No cell phone, no bottles, if someone needs extra clothing, they're out of luck....no hand sanitizer.....no PDA......we have an iPod, but mostly use it here at home for audio books......I guess that's it! ;-)
The down side to all of this is that I don't know how many times I've washed my debit card, or lost it because I took it out of my pocket and put it....somewhere??? Once I found it under my 2nd son's bed. He thought it was one of those fake credit cards that we all get in the mail. Fun! Is it just my kids, or do yours call dibs on those fake cards? Ya know, I didn't have that kind of entertainment as a kid. ;-) Anyway, that was the most nerve wracking loss because it took almost a week for us to find it. All that time, my husband would shake, shake, shake his head at me when I had to ask him to use his debit card. I don't know how many times I have said, "If you had put your spelling book on your shelf, WHERE IT BELONGS, you would know where it is." sigh. Sometimes we need to learn our own lessons, eh? ;-)
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Oct. 3, 2008 - Blogger Friend School - #104
Assignment: Have you done something crazy in your homeschool? Do you fingerpaint with your toes? Do you let your children do your hair? Do you wear your pajamas during homeschool? Oh, the list is endless, but it’s up to you and how much fun you want to have.
Well, I guess I'm no fun cause I can't think of one wacky thing we have done during our school hours. Although I wonder what *I* would look like to a fly on the wall during school. I know that I have literally banged my head on the table in sheer frustration, turned beet red while biting my tongue to keep from saying the wrong thing and tried, more than once, to cook dinner, talk on the phone, hold my baby on my hip and do a spelling test all at the same time. Clowns are not the only ones able to do a juggling act.;-)
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Sep. 25, 2008 - Blogger Friend School - #103
Assignment: How do you keep energized so you can get it all done? bouncy music? treat it like a workout? Do you use a schedule?, a housekeeping binder system? luck of the draw system?.. or is this an area where you need encouragement? Do you need God’s help to keep order and beauty in your dwelling place? Take this week to tell us how You diligently keep going with your housekeeping chores.
I am a fairly new mother of five children. I told a pal the other day that I was still trying to get into a groove with it. My youngest is 9 months old. Motherhood makes us holy, right? Yup. And it's also very humbling. I am one of those Born Organized Gals. I love multi-tasking and everything in its place. A clean house really contributes to my sanity. But I've had to call "uncle" at this point in my life because I just can't keep up with everything and it's hard to take. But I've got an 8th grader, 5th grader, 3rd grader, a 2 year old who is already pressuring me for school (I've been gathering lapbooking stuff for him to do and that kid eats it up!) and that Very Squishable 9 Month Old I've already mentioned.
This afternoon, the oldest three were out in the backyard pelting each other with acorns and I thought, "I can dust the living room!" Not! :-) Enter that 2 year old, wanting to do "my schoolwork." As an aside....I spent a good 4 1/2 years as a homeschool support group leader rolling my eyes at ladies who were trying to homeschool their kids at 3. Really, I still think 2 and 3 is too young to be stressing over "school" but this kid begs for it, and he loves it, and I'm keeping it simple with lapbooks. SOOOO......I got to dust the living room a little bit, but Henry and I got a lot of coloring done on his blue, red and green car for his transportation lapbook. We also counted a lot of wheels. A lot.
It goes like that for me every day. Just when I think I'm about to have a sec to fold some laundry, or clean the kitchen floor, something comes up. Not that our house is completely crunchy. The thing that saves us is chores. The three oldest really contribute quite a bit to the cleanliness of our home. They really are a blessing to me! And I do set aside time in the morning to complete at least one self-assigned chore before we start with the official business of schoolwork.
It's difficult. I'd like everyone to think that I run a tight ship with a perfectly clean house. It's hard when my neighbors stop in for a chat and the house looks like a tornado swept through leaving all the piles on my desk intact. ;-) Very, very humbling. I have to remind myself that I'm doing what I'm supposed to be doing. Spending time teaching my kids, hanging out with them, developing a relationship....that's my goal. The clean house will come later - I think? ;-)
Here's Henry hacking away on a piece of paper. He could sit and do that all day...
But that picture is to stall the uploading of the other pictures. Here are my laundry piles that I get to once or twice a week. Here's the pile in the corner of the living room.
The corner of my bedroom....
And here's the lovely laundry room.
A verse that comforts me when I think about all that I am not getting done is Isaiah 40:11. "....He gently leads those that have young." I read on a blog a couple of weeks ago this sentence: "The Lord is being merciful to me." That one sentence hit my heart hard. And every day since then, God has recalled that to my memory, and I've been able to look around and see His mercy towards me. I may not be able to keep up with life the way *I* prefer, but God's way has been much better - especially on those days when I give in to His way, rather than fight it.
To view other Blogger Friend School entries, go HERE. :-)
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Sep. 18, 2008 - Blogger Friend School - #102
Assignment: This week I want you to do something for someone else. Do you have a neighbor that needs you? Do you know an elderly person or single mom that could use you? What about the homeless? Pack even one single sack lunch and give it to someone in need. Do you know someone in blogland that is struggling right now and could use a note from you about how much you care? Pray about this. Let God put on your heart the perfect thing for you to do for another. Now, here is the kicker…I DO NOT want you to post about what you do. Whatever you choose to do is between you and God. Our rewards are in heaven, not here on earth, Mathew 6:1. I want you to post about how doing this “act” made you feel. Was stepping out of your comfort zone in this area as hard as you thought it might be? Could you see the gratefulness in their eyes? Hear it in their voice? Tell it from their typing? Do you think you might make doing things like this a more regular part of your time? If this is an area that you are already active in, tell us how you feel this has impacted your life.
If we do it right, life - REAL life, lived to the fullest, should constantly bring us out of our comfort zones. :-) Here's a wonderful example of that from one of my favorite books, Stepping Heavenward.
I went down into the kitchen, put on my large baking apron, and began my labors; of course the doorbell rang, and a poor woman was announced. It is very sweet to follow Fenelon’s counsel and give oneself to Christ in all these interruptions; but this time I said, “oh, dear!” before I thought. Then I wished I hadn’t, and went up, with a cheerful face at any rate, to my unwelcome visitor, who proved to be one of my aggravating poor folks – a great giant of a woman, in perfect health, and with a husband to support her if he will. I told her that I could do no more for her; she answered me rudely, and kept urging her claims. I felt ruffled; why should my time be thus frittered away, I asked myself. At last she went off, abusing me in a way that chilled my heart. I could only beg God to forgive her, and return to my work, which I had hardly resumed when Mrs. Embury sent for a pattern I had promised to lend her. Off came my apron, and up two pairs of stairs I ran; after a long search it came to light. Work resumed; doorbell again. Aunty wanted the children to come to an early dinner. Going to Aunty’s is next to going to Paradise to them. Every thing was now hurry and flurry; I tried to be patient; and not to fret their temper by undue attention to nails, ears, and other susceptible parts of the human frame, but after it was all over, and I had kissed all the sweet, dear faces good-by, and returned to the kitchen, I felt sure that I h ad not been the perfect mother I want to be in all these little emergencies – yes, far from it. Bridget had let the milk I was going to use boil over, and finally burn up. I was annoyed and irritated, and already tired and did not see how I was to get more, as Mary was cleaning the silver, and had other extra Saturday work to do. I thought Bridget might offer to run to the corner for it, though it isn’t her business, but she is not obliging, and seemed as sulky as if I had burned the milk, not she. “After all,” I said to myself, “what does it signify, if Ernest gets no dessert? It isn’t good for him, and how much precious time is wasted over just this one thing?” However, I reflected, that arbitrarily refusing to indulge him in this respect is not exactly my mission as his wife; he is perfectly well, and likes his little luxuries as well as other people do. So I humbled my pride and asked Bridget to go for the milk, which she did, in a lofty way of her own. While she was gone the marketing came home, and I had everything to dispose of. Ernest had sent home some apples, which plainly said, “I want some apple pie, Katy.” I looked nervously at the clock, and undertook to gratify him. Mary came down, crying, to say that her mother, who lived in Brooklyn, was very sick; could she go to see her? I looked at the clock once more; told her she should go, of course, as soon as lunch was over; this involved my doing all her absence left undone.
At last I got through with the kitchen the Sunday dinner being well under way, and ran upstairs to put away the host of little garments the children had left when they took their flight, and to make myself presentable at lunch. Then I began to be uneasy lest Earnest should not be punctual, and Mary be delayed; but he came just as the clock struck one. I ran joyfully to meet him, very glad now that I had something good to give him. We had just got through lunch, and I was opening my mouth to tell Mary she might go, when the doorbell range once more, and Mrs. Fry, of Jersey City, was announced. I told Mary to wait till I found whether she had lunched or not; no, she hadn’t; had come to town to see friends off, was half famished, and would I do her the favor, etc., etc. She had a fashionable young lady with her, a stranger to me, as well as a Miss Somebody else, from Albany, whose name I did not catch. I apologized for having finished lunch. Mrs. Fry said all they wanted was a cup of tea and a bit of bread and butter, nothing else, dear, now don’t put yourself out.
“Now be bright and animated, and like yourself,” she whispered, “for I have brought these girls here on purpose to hear you talk, and they are prepared to fall in love with you on the spot.”
This speech sufficed to shut my mouth.
Mary had to get ready for these unexpected guests, whose appetites proved equal to a raid on a good many things besides bread and butter. Mrs. Fry said, after she had devoured nearly half a loaf of cake, that she would really try to eat a morsel more, which Ernest remarked, dryly, was a great triumph of mind over matter. As they talked and laughed and ate leisurely on, Mary stood looking the picture of despair. At last I gave her a glance that said she might go, when a new visitor was announced – Mrs. Winthrop, from Brooklyn, one of Ernest’s patients a few years ago, when she lived here. She professed herself greatly indebted to him, and said she had come at this hour because she should make sure of seeing him. I tried to rescue him, as I knew he would be thankful to have me do, but no, see him she must; he was her “pet doctor,” he had such “sweet, bedside manners,” and “I am such a favorite with him, you know!”
Ernest did not receive his “favorite” with any special warmth; but invited her out to lunch and gallanted her to the table we had just left. Just like a man! Poor Mary! She had to fly round and get up what she could; Mrs. Winthrop devoted herself to Ernest with a persistent ignoring of me that I thought rude and unwomanly. She asked if he had read a certain book; he had not; she then said, “I need not ask, then if Mrs. Elliott has done so? These charming dishes, which she gets up so nicely, must absorb all her time.” “Of course,” replied Ernest. “But she contrives to read the reports of all the murders, of which the newspapers are full.”
Mrs. Winthrop took this speech literally, drew away her skirts from me, looked at me through her eye-glass, and said, “Yes?” At last she departed. Helen came home, and Mary went. I gave Helen an account of my morning; she laughed heartily, and it did me good to hear that musical sound once more.
“It is nearly five o’clock,” I said, as we at last had restored everything to order, “and this whole day has been frittered away in the veriest trifles. It isn’t living to live so. Who is better for my being in the world since six o’clock this morning?”
“I am for one,” she said, kissing my hot cheeks; “and you have given a great deal of pleasure to several persons. Your and Ernest’s hospitality is always graceful. I admire it in you both; and this is one of the little ways, not to be despised, of giving enjoyment.” It was nice in her to say that, it quite rested me.
At the dinner table Ernest complimented me on my good housekeeping.
“I was proud of my little wife at lunch,” he said.
“And yet you said that outrageous thing about my reading about nothing but murders!” I said.
“Oh, well, you understood it,” he said, laughingly.
“But that dreadful Mrs. Winthrop took it literally.”
“What do we care for Mrs. Winthrop?” he returned. “If you could have seen the contrast between you two in my eyes!”
After all, one must take life as it comes, its homely details are so mixed up with its sweet charities, and loves, and friendships that one is forced to believe that God has joined them together and does not will that they should be put asunder. It is something that my husband has been satisfied with his wife and his home today, that does me good.
Visit other Blogger Friend School entries HERE.
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Sep. 10, 2008 - Blogger Friend School - #101
I am SO enjoying the Blogger Friend School assignments! If the assignment below sounds like something you would like to do, check out the Blogger Friend School site and join in any time you wish!
Assignment: This would be a good week to tell about your worst struggles with a lifestyle of homeschooling. Tell about something you’ve struggled with and how God’s mercies gave us the strength to get past it. Also, share any curriculum/homeschool methods that have been a relief to you, i.e., a particular Teacher’s Manual or Homeschooling method that’s been easier for your family. Talk about how you felt when the burden was lifted and Oh, What a Relief it is!
It didn’t take long for me to know what my worst struggle in homeschooling has been. It’s ME. ;-) What’s the quote……motherhood makes us holy? Something like that. It’s easier if we don’t fight the whole way down the road! I have had to drop so much baggage along the way, and still have a long way to go. What’s so frustrating is that most of the issues I’ve had are petty when compared to getting to be at home with my kids all day, every day.
Like a clean house. With six of us at home every day, it just can’t happen. And I want the kids to automatically know how to dust, vacuum, or load the dishwasher. Taking the time to show them has been something I have had to make myself do because my first instinct is to say, “you go load the dishwasher, I’m going to go fold the laundry.” When there is so much that could get done in a single day, it’s hard for me to take the time to slow down and work alongside my kids as I should. Some days I am very successful in this area, some days….not so much.
My biggest struggle as a teacher was finding my own teaching style. I know everyone is hip to the issue of learning styles for our children, but I think that it’s unfortunate that we overlook “teaching styles.” When we first started homeschooling, I was sucked in by the romantic sound of the laid-back-follow-your-child’s-interests thing. I tried and tried, but kept failing because I learned that I am the kind of gal who needs a plan. I need something written down for me that I can follow, or I have the tendency to flake and never finish what we start because in my own planning, I would come up with too many resources and had a hard time weeding things out that we could have lived without. So I found a curriculum with a plan, and because I have the daily schedule, I feel comfortable branching out and following a trail that the kids want to further explore, knowing that I can pick back up where we left off when we’re done. I heard Jessica Hulcy once say that it takes three years to learn how to teach, and be a teacher, and I certainly lived that out.
The things that have been the biggest relief to me, as a person who needs a schedule are:
Sonlight. Oh my goodness. They’ve done all the scheduling! We use Sonlight for Language Arts. I take their schedule and add a few things to it, then hand it off to my kids for them to follow. It’s been a great tool for teaching them responsibility and accountability.
Yahoogroups! Since I don’t use Sonlight for everything, I’ve found that there is usually a Yahoogroup for most other curricula. I’ve joined many of them, and there has always been someone more on-the-ball than me who has already made a schedule to go along with the book and have uploaded it to the Files section of the Yahoogroup site. What a blessing. I’m excited because right now I am making a schedule for my son’s Greek studies, and I hope I get to share it with someone else who might be able to use it! I’ve also met some very kewl people through those groups that I have had the chance to meet in real life that I would have never known without the Yahoogroup.
Going to God in Prayer. I don’t know how many times I have started off a day feeling as if I was just going to be spinning my wheels all day, getting nothing done. I’ll look around the kitchen and see breakfast dishes stacked up, the living room a total disaster, a sick kid, a kid who isn’t in the mood for school or chores, and a fussy baby and wonder if I’ll even be able to make lunch. When I started homeschooling, there were way too many days that I would let myself get overwhelmed, so I would call a movie day, or a park day. Those are the days when I obviously really would get nothing done. The big breakthrough for me came during our Bible Study time. It was a frustrating day with bickering kids and while gearing up to sing, I had a conversation with God, and He set me straight. Ever since then, I continually bring my day to Him. I can’t make it without Him! I wrote an article about it for our support group’s newsletter. If you’re interested, you can read it HERE. Here’s an excerpt.
"We were getting ready for our morning Bible study. I sat on the couch with my Bible and hymn book in my lap, rubbing my forehead with my first three fingers in total despair and frustration, until I thought I was going to wear a permanent red mark there. I was shedding a few tears and silently praying, “God, I see the vision You’ve given Darin and me for our kids, but would it really hurt to call it a Movie Day? They can space out to movies, and I can get away from their arguing with each other and me. Sounds fair, ya?” No.
“God, I can see the vision You’ve given Darin and me for our kids, but surely it wouldn’t hurt if I just called a timeout and spent some time building myself up for a change, rather than being bombarded with complaining and disobedience. It would help me to be able to deal calmly with them later, ya?” No.
“God, I can see the vision You’ve given Darin and me for our kids, but I am worn out! I don’t think I can go on, YA?” No. You can. You have to. Do you see the vision I have given you?
“Okay. Please help me!” Ya."
Through it all, God is my mainstay. I begged Him at one point for a mentor. I felt alone and as if I had no clue, and would never get one. But as I was praying this prayer, he drew me to Psalm 32:8:
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will guide you with My eye.
Sends shivers down my spine every time I remember this answer to my prayer. He is so good, and Oh, What a Relief HE is to Me! ;-)
I look at this picture and wonder how I could ever lose the vision that God has supplied. What a precious group He has given me!
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Sep. 2, 2008 - Blogger Friend School
Blogger Friend School is in session! The ladies there are leaving it open this year, so you can join-in at any time! Here is the first assignment:
Assignment: Take time this week to write about you and your feelings of trials and triumphs with homeschooling. Touch on when you first heard about the concept of home schooling and whether you tip-toed into the idea or just jumped in and never looked back. Share your schooling as a child and how you compare it to what your goals are for your children.
I love homeschooling. I have from the first minute I understood that it existed, which was when I was 28! Honestly, I had never, EVER heard of homeschooling until 1996. I was working part-time at a bookstore after our first son was born. Being a new Mom, during my breaks, I would wander over to the “Parenting” section of the store and browse. There was a tiny little section of about five books on Homeschooling. The first book I read on it was the Colfax’s Homeschooling for Excellence. That was it for me. From then on, we were going to homeschool. My Husband gave me the ol’, “I went to public school and I turned out all right!” Then he thought about it and remembered a few more details of his life as a public school kid, and reconsidered. ;-)
Looking back on my own time in public school, I am just sad. Things weren’t always easy in my own home life, and I spent all my time in school trying to work through all of that. And the working-through was uncomfortable. Silly, but intense fighting with my friends, poor decisions, poor grades. Don’t get me wrong. I was a pretty good gal, had lots of good friends, was considered “popular,” but it was a struggle. It would have been nice to have a little more adult guidance. I did get that later on in high school when I went to a boarding school. That probably saved me in a lot of ways.
Anyway….we are beginning our 9th year of homeschooling, and I hate to say this because, well, you know, it’s the “saying it out loud” thing…..but I’ve never felt burned out and ready to give it up. My regular prayer to God is to give me His vision for me as a wife, parent and homeschooling Mom. And I pray that A LOT. After all, I am the Mom of five hard-heads. God is so good and has held me steadily in His hand through all the frustrating moments, hours and days, and I never want my life to be different. God made me for this!
My goals for my children have changed over time. At first I didn’t really have any goals. Like a true control freak, I only wanted to be the one to have a say in what my kids studied. I still like that control, but now my goal is just to raise them to be servants of Christ. That’s really hard because that means I can’t really put my faith in a curriculum to do that for me. I have to be the example every day. Ugh. I constantly fail, and a lot of times I don’t WANT to do what I need to do to be an example. So many people say they could never homeschool, but I believe it’s because they don’t want to enough. That’s the way I feel about being that example sometimes….that I don’t want to enough. I think of this verse often to encourage me: Ezra 8:22 “…the hand of our God is upon all them for good that seek Him.” When I remember that, I know that I can continue. J
Here’s our new table for our littles. One of our new purchases this fall for school, and quickly labeled “Kid’s Coloring Table” by my older ones.
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