Please continue to pray for our friends in Greensburg, Kansas.  They're still recuperating from the devastating tornado that hit on May 4, 2007.  When I say "friends," I don't know anyone personally from there; but as Americans, we're all friends.

Please read this recent blog entry from a homeschool mom who lived through this nightmare.  I think she regularly participates in The Simple Woman Daybook meme, so you may recognize her blog from that.

Photo courtesy of NSSL (taken in May 1981 in OK)

Go over to The Simple Woman's blog if you'd like to join us for The Simple Woman's Daybook.

For Today...

Outside my Window... the sky is clear blue.

I am thinking... the weather is nearly perfect!

From the learning rooms... the girls are learning that not all people "do" school the same way.

I am thankful for... the leaves changing colors.

From the kitchen... I'm hoping to make some Fall-ish "comfort" food.

I am wearing... red T-shirt, jeans w/ just the right amount of spandex to make 'em comfy, barefoot.

I am reading... still working on Victoria Woodhull: Free Spirit for Women's Rights by Miriam Brody, but almost finished.

I am hoping... my monthly 'thing' will go ahead and start so I won't be so irritable.

I am creating... fun memories of my girls' creations -- They're making 'leaf' hats, rings, bracelets, skirts, etc. for themselves, for me, and for their stuffed animals.  :)  (see my picture thought!)

I am hearing... someone mowing their lawn or perhaps using their mower to blow leaves into our lawn - ha!

Around the house... things are a mess, as usual - for example... clean laundry piled on the couch (some folded - some waiting to be folded), clean dishes in the drain rack, breakfast cereal bowls waiting to be washed, etc.

One of my favorite things... the stillness of the dawn.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week... continue caring for friends' pets while they are away on vacation, AWANA is cancelled due to public school Fall Break, more outside time since it's Fall Break and less people wondering -- "Why aren't they in school?", my hubby's busy work days with alternate schedules due to a 'remote' that the station is planning to do in Albany, Georgia with the creators of Fireproof, homeschool music class on Thursday morning, Adventure Club at our library Thursday afternoon... followed by a playdate with some other homeschoolers who go to the library program.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you...

My daughter wearing one of her creations.  (see "I am creating" above)  

Internet not working for the last 24 hours. Well, it was working but not very well. It does this every so often. Now I know to just close the computer and wait it out. Even until the next day if needed.

Our barometer is still working. It has been pointing way up high for awhile and we have had beautiful weather. Low pressures are coming into the area and low and behold our barometer told us even before the weather man did. It was even lower the day before.

School yesterday. Math.

The cow and princess love to read everyday.

Goodnight barn.

Goodnight sky.

Goodnight moon.

Blessings.

First, I want to make clear that I in no way condone violent behavior, of any kind, that targets anyone. Murder is not right for any reason. I am not writing this blog entry to support anyone who thinks they should bully others.

I am writing this entry to say that I oppose federal tax dollars being used to create schools that exist to solely support homosexuality. I am writing this entry to point out that while your public schooled child may not be a target of bullys, they are seeing violence every day by some who claim to be acting on the Lord's behalf. Violence that comes from people who are out of control, which does put your child in a bully's path. School authorities have no control over these bullys. That's why these special schools are even being considered (one such school has been in place since the 80's).

Teaching tolerance does not work because the schools definition of tolerance is total acceptance. That goes against everything the Lord stands for. "Hey, wait a minute!" I can hear you typing furiously now. No, you wait a minute and read further. Jesus wants to accept everyone into Heaven but there is one thing that can never enter Heaven, and that's sin. IT IS NOT TOLERATED. That's why Jesus died on the cross; to atone for our sins. To make us clean, to make us whiter than snow, so that we can enter into Heaven if we accept Christ's precious gift.

Sin may not be tolerated in Heaven, but it is on this earth. It is taught as docrtine, "Thou Shalt Tolerate." I don't tolerate bully's any more than I tolerate homosexuality. It's a shame that the schools do.

Tia Linschied
Senior Editor of HSB

I was up early and on the porch yesterday morning. I was going to post this yesterday but didn't get the chance.

WOW!

And this too!

Have a great and blessed Sunday!

One of our many friendly neighbors told us awhile ago that she had a friend that harvests her own honey each fall. Since we like to use honey a lot she said she would give us a holler when it was ready.(actually she said call but in the country it sounds better to say give a holler)  It's ready!

Here is an explanation of what honey is:

Honeyis a thick liquid produced by certain types of bees from the nectar of flowers.  While many species of insects consume nectar, honeybees refine and concentrate nectar to make honey.  Indeed, they make lots of honey so they will have plenty of food for times when flower nectar is unavailable, such as winter.  Unlike most insects, honeybees remain active through the winter, consuming and metabolizing honey in order to keep from freezing to death.  Early humans probably watched bears and other mammals raid bee hives for honey and then tried it themselves.  Once people found out what honey was, next they had to learn how to get it from the bees safely!

Well, we are getting it safely and not going straight to the hive like Winnie-the-Pooh. Will we look like this after eating all that honey?

"Do Hard Things.” That’s the title of a book by Alex and Brett Harris, twin brothers of Josh Harris of “I Kissed Dating Goodbye” fame.  

If you haven’t read the book, I think you’d find it worth your while. While the book is aimed at teens, it has some real lessons for everyone. I know I stepped away from it reflecting on its lessons for me.

The premise of the book is that society sets expectations for teens ridiculously low, that teens are capable of excellence in their spiritual and material lives, and that the revolution – or as the twins like to say, rebelution -- is already underway.

The book outlines ways for teens to identify their weaknesses and overcome them and ways they can maximize their strengths. It’s packed with real life examples. Above all, it’s a cheerleader in print – a “you can do it” book.

You won’t mistake “Do Hard Things” for C.S. Lewis or Chesterton or any of the deep thinkers of Christianity. It’s more along the lines of the ever popular motivational books that sell by the millions today – but with the twist of simple spiritual substance where many of those books lack it.

I think that if my children were still teens and I wanted them to read “Do Hard Things,” I’d want to make it a discussion book, one that all of us would read and talk about. On the other hand, teens in the throes of rebellion or lacking a good relationship with their parents would benefit from a read-alone approach.

The book would make a very good gift for public school students who long for something more challenging and meaningful in their lives.

Finally, if you read the book yourself, look for the lessons that can apply to our job as parents. Homeschooling can sometimes be one of the very big “hard things” we do in life, and you’ll find help in mustering the courage and tenacity to stick with it as well good examples of what it means to not give up when the going gets tough.

Tammy Drennan homeschooled her sons from 1985 through 2003. She now works as a writer and tutor and maintains several web sites and blogs, including www.educationconversation.wordpress.com and www.homeschoolstarter.com