I missed my personal deadline for the weekly homeschool wrap-up.  I could still write it, but there is a point when the weeks begin to run together for me.   Not to mention that I have all of these ideas flowing through my head, and because I don’t stop to write them down, I can never remember them when I’m in a time crunch!   So, with this being a short week such that I know I won’t have much to say about school, I might just use this weekend’s downtime to write a 2-week wrap-up.   Yeah, that’s it.   In the meantime, I've wanted to catch everyone up on our Sunday school, and it took a while to pull all of the links together, but I finally sat and took the time to make it happen. 

This past Sunday was our Sunday to teach the lesson to our younger teen’s class, and while the kids worked, my husband and I were discussing how much has changed from when we arrived.   Our pre-teen and teen teachers are tremendous ministers of the gospel.      They all have callings to pastor churches; this has been, in my opinion, both a blessing and a curse.    In almost every case, they have perhaps forgotten more about God’s Word than I will ever know.    Yet, their teaching style—YIKES!—is to stand before the children and preach.   And preach.   And preach.   Such was the case with our class’s previous teacher when we arrived, complete with the homeschooler’s trademark--object lessons.   Now suddenly, the kids were expected to move around, to respond, and to complete a project or individual activity.    I talked some about the reading abilities, the lack of self esteem, etc. in an earlier post.     Most of those kids ran from our class the minute they got old enough to move into the next class, not waiting for our annual “promotion day.”   They longed for, and got, another preacher who’d allow them to sit and veg, to text, and to talk amongst themselves during a weekly sermon.

For many months, our class ran lean—only 4-6 students.    Our Children’s Director pressed for numbers.     Growth is good, but it’s not my primary goal.   That’s a source of disconnect between the Director, our co-teacher, and I, but I have peace that I’m on the right path.   The angels in heaven rejoice when one is saved—why get worked up over a classroom full of people who aren’t looking for Christ?   Anyway, as much as I’m thankful for a class that now averages 10+ kids each week—largely because of the promotion day, not necessarily because of us—now seemed as good a time as any to talk about some of what God has used us to help those kids walk through.    For these opportunities, I am truly thankful.

I wrote last spring about a student whose parent shared with us a potential felony that the student was facing.   If you’d care to read it, that story is here.      The student spent weeks in an alternative school, which was a frightening enough experience, but was also facing a court date to see if time in a juvenile detention center was also appropriate.   The parents were to pay thousands of dollars to a lawyer, but the husband decided against it.    His words were that “we’re not paying some stranger to prove who she is.   God already knows who she is.”    When they reached the public attorney’s office, the lawyer assigned to them said, “This child is going places.   Let’s try and get this dismissed.”  And it was.   Hallelujah!    That child moved on to the next class this year, but we give God glory that we were able to touch and agree for her deliverance from the hands of the enemy.

I wrote about the 5 boys from a nearby foster home.       The one who was being punished, in part, and kept from Sunday school is now back.   He popped out and gave us all such a pleasant surprise this past Sunday, and I think he was as happy to see us as we were to see him.   The sad news is that he told us that one of the other boys was transferred to a different home after a behavior problem.   The boy who was transferred was another interested and bright student, and the last one that I would have thought to have behavioral issues.    The two that remain in our class are curiously quiet about the whole thing, which leads me to more prayer.    We lost another of the boys to a mental facility, which I believe I’d shared before.    The fifth little boy, who didn’t talk (found here),  was too young for our class and now sits faithfully in a group that is more age appropriate for him.   He has had to join us when that teacher is absent, and I now know his name—John.   John loves to talk, when in an environment where others don’t laugh at his speech impediment, which sounds like that of a child who has hearing problems.   Two weeks ago, I asked him to share something, calling him by name.    His blue eyes twinkled, and he beamed like a baby who can confidently take a few steps amidst applauding parents when he said, “You know my name!”    The fact that I could quickly memorize names, while most people struggled with mine, embarrassed me as a younger person, but being able to call him “John” after only hearing his name once allowed me to see how God can use even the smallest gifts to yield big results.

This past Sunday, I was sharing with the kids that I live my dream on most days.  I talked about the kids, I talked about working from home, and I talked about being married for almost 20 years (in actuality we’ll celebrate year 18 in about 3 months).    My husband let out somthing that sounded close to a rebel yell, and the oldest almost went under her desk.   Later she told my husband how embarrassed she was at his clamor.    We both began to share the stories of several of these kids.    There are others—children watching parents fight constantly as they contemplate divorce, children struggling to pass school, and there are probably hosts of other trials of which we’re unaware.    Our children are relatively sheltered—they live with two Christian parents in a healthy marriage, and though we have our own struggles and dysfunctions, our issues rarely affect the kids in a tangible way.    She, and our other two, may not appreciate this for the blessing that it is until they have children of their own, but during this time of year, I’m not only celebrating Thanksgiving, I’m embracing Thanksliving.   As my very eloquent cousin, Homeschool Daddy, says, ‘Thanksgiving is one day; Thanksliving is a way of life.’     (You simply must see his post on not being "that dad!"   May God grant you a beautiful Thanksliving as well.

It's been a while since I've been tagged for anything; it seems as if that season of tags and awards came and left, and I write that with mixed emotions.    Yes, the tags could be cumbersome at times, and the awards felt almost like a chain letter, but I like to believe that each was passed with some level of genuine affection and admiration, and that's never wrong or inconvenient to share.   

Our son and his dance duet partner from last year began a joint blog not too long ago, and I’m very late in completing a tag he sent.   It's been interesting, in a word--as in engaging, gratifying, and nerve-wrecking all at once--to watch him sort through all of his emotions.  I believe wholeheartedly that the two are experiencing their first taste of puppy love.   Yet, with his partner now gone to a new studio and both of them finding new interests and new friends, I think he’ll grow out of his first crush gracefully and land on his feet.   In the meantime, I’ve had two different moms approach me regarding the possibility that their daughters might be his new duet partner.   Should be another interesting dance season.   In the meantime, here’s the tag.    Typical of his personality, his tag is short and sweet.  However, I also thought of it as a quick look into some parts of the quirkiness that is me that I’d otherwise not consider sharing.

How old is your blog?  Almost 3-1/2 years old

Where is your favorite place to go on vacation?  Of the places I’ve been, probably Hawaii

What is your favorite color(s)?  blue

When did you start this tag? 9:03 a.m.

Who are you going to tag?  I won’t list anyone specifically, but if you read it and find it fun, consider yourself tagged!

I am not a Facebook user.   I made a very conscious decision that, though it might afford me the opportunity to meet more great friends and expand my network, I would rather spend my social networking time creating an informative, and occasionally entertaining (HA HA), blog.   I don’t deny anyone else a guilty pleasure, but I want to take on more activities that are along the lines of purpose, and less that might be good, but distracting.   Besides, because 90% of my classes are online, I spend enough time on the sidelines of family activities while at the computer.  Last night the youngest had another family of 3 girls come for a last-minute sleepover.   They had a movie night on last night, and then went bowling today.   Where was I?   At the hairdresser’s at 6 a.m. getting gorgeous (or at least trying to), and then returning to this computer to complete grades.   The men of the house, the superhero and our son, have been wonderful hostesses (smile).    In the meantime, I’ve read recently that the average time spent on Facebook is around 4 hours per session.   Yeah, like I need another 4 hours on the computer.

At any rate, our son found a couple of articles from World on the Web for his current events notebook.   I found these so neat until I couldn’t help but post them, in his words.

“Facebook Follies Part 1”

Two Australian kids were trapped inside a sewer.   The girls were 10 and 12.   Instead of using their mobile phones to call for help, they used them to post their situation on Facebook.   A friend was online when it happened.   That person called 911 and the girls were found.

“Facebook Follies Part 2”

A 19-year-old teen robbed a house.   His name was Johnathan G. Parker.   He went through drawers and cabinets and found diamond rings.   While he was there, Parker checked his Facebook profile.   But he didn’t log off.   The police found out who he was and arrested him.

Happy social networking to you!

Oh, how we enjoyed our time with Karen and her family this past week.   It's amazing to think of how small the world is and how I would have never met this woman, so like me, if it weren't for a blogging relationship.    They were wonderful, and as I put this mini-slide show together, it occurred to me how much they seemed like friends we'd known forever, so I went with a nostalgic look.   My sincerest prayer is that we will grow to be old, and still dear, friends (although black-and-white wouldn't have to come back! LOL)    She has more pictures here.

I’ve been busy enough that I’m not posting some items in a timely manner.   I was ministered to this morning as I spoke to a group of wonderful ladies at the Heart of the Matter’s Parenting and Home Education Conference.   God’s Word is so powerful, and I am so honored to feel it flow through such a flawed vessel.    I think this Conference will be my own personal pep rally each year--it is an event not to be missed.   At any rate, there are other items—pure fun and inspiration—that I wanted to share:

There’s a great Not-Back-to-School Blog Hop occurring over the next four weeks that looks like a great soirée in homeschool blog land.   Yesterday was a hop through various curriculum plans from each family.   I didn’t post mine since I listed everything on the right side of this blog.   The weeks to come will feature school room photos, first day of school photos, and typical days-in-the-life.   The link can be found here.

I also wanted to make you aware of the end of a blog that is significant in my life.   LindaFay is stopping her “Higher Up and Further In” blog posts.   I hate to see her leave Blogland, but I understand being obedient to seasons in your life.   She has introduced Charlotte Mason Help (www.charlottemasonhelp.com) in order to capture her posts in a way that will be continuously helpful to those looking for what I consider to be not just generic CM help (who is she, what is her teaching approach, etc.), but also the real-life practical application of her theories in her household.

Finally, I also wanted to share another article from yours truly, posted on Heart of the Matter Online today.   I honestly had forgotten that I submitted this, but it’s a timely reminder at this time of year about, from another author’s point of view, the 7 Costly Mistakes of Homeschooling.   The article can be found here, and I pray that it blesses you.

Editor's note: As of today, 8/4/09, there are 100+ bloggers participating in the Not-Back-to-School Blog Hop, and this week is curriculum listing--happy reading!  Oh, boy!