• Aug. 18, 2009
The Kids Keep Me Laughing

The kids have kept me laughing in school today. First, I was doing multiplication flashcards with Cael and he was using funny accents for his answers, switching from Southern, to French, to British. At one point, when Cael was in southern accent mode, Ellie walked through the room and exclaimed, "Great now he's speaking Farmer!" She was dead serious too and then wanted to know why my Aunt, who lives on an orchard, doesn't speak farmer.

At another point as Ellie was again walking through the room during flashcard time (Cael and Ian each have about 100 flashcards to go through), I asked Cael what 7 x 6 was to which Ellie (6 yrs old) sighs and says 42- as if the entire world just KNOWS that. Even Cael was laughing at the way she said it. How she knows that- I have NO idea, other than just paying attention during flashcard time for her brothers. If she learns that easily, yikes! I have my work cut out for me!   

Praise the Lord for days when I can see the humor in my Little Blessings!

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• May. 1, 2009
A New and Exciting Idea

There's a new blog that I just recently found and have been following, it's called Nesting Place (you can find it here: http://nestingplacenc.blogspot.com/ ).  I loved her post today about the new DaySpring tableware collection- Life to the Full. Not only are the dishes themselves beautiful, but who wouldn't love dishes with John 10:10 on them!

Nester's post today not only showcased the new collection, but she also inspired a new idea in me. She made a comment about the variety of styles available in this new Life the the Full collection which should be able to match anyone's current collection. The thought suddenly struck me, you mean my "good' dishes don't all have to be the same design or pattern to "match"? As you can imagine, this single idea has opened up a whole new realm of possibilities for me.

 Now to go digging and figure out all that my collection currently consists of, and decide how I could enhance it to make it uniquely mine! I know this seems crazy to some of you , but for me- the idea that I get to be creative with my dishes is thrilling.

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• Apr. 30, 2009
The Lawn (big sigh)

At the risk of sounding like a toddler- I mowed the lawn all by myself- first time ever!   All of it is done, the front yard, the side yard, and the weed patch (soon to be reclaimed as the back yard). I think that when my husband gets home he can have this job back. It's kinda' like the laundry or the dishes- you only do it...  so you'll get to do it again. Or maybe he'd like to trade; he could take over the laundry or dishes and I'll do the lawn. I think he'll like the lawn better- it's only seasonal; the other two are day-in and day-out F-OR-E-V-ER. Anyway just a quick update and a "pat myself on the back" moment. Now off to do the weed-eating; life is SO exciting around here. 

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• Mar. 30, 2009
Praising the Lord!

I was having one of those days; I am fighting off some kind of stomach bug with a really bad headache. I am also feeling worn out, and I was feeling sorry for myself.... my husband is half way around the world, I'm not feeling well, and haven't heard ANYTHING on the adoption in about 4 months. I asked God for strength and rest, and to help me praise Him instead of complaining.

The kids were quiet for about 30 minutes this afternoon and I slept through each one of those quite moments. Then I got up to go out in the sunshine to get the mail this afternoon and found a blessed surprise:  some very generous friends of ours sent us $1000 for the adoption! WOW!!!

I am feeling a little better after that nap, and the money was a wonderful reminder that God is still working- even when it seems as if nothing is going on; God is still in control and He cares.  It was a wonderful gift to receive. I'm very thankful to our friends for their generosity and to the Lord for His provision and the reminder of His love!

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• Mar. 2, 2009
Four Legged Friends

This week's Homeschool Memoirs theme is our pets. We currently have two dogs who, though they are about the same size are as different as can be. Both are full of energy and around 2 yrs old. One dog, Sarge, is supposed to be a black lab mix, but he is extremely unfriendly to other dogs and to most people who show up at our door when I haven't had a chance to calm him down first. Though Sarge seems extremely aggressive to strangers and other dogs, he really only barks ferociously and then hides behind my legs or under my bed. We lovingly call him our neurotic dog, he is often very nervous, especially when our three children start running three separate ways; he has no idea what to do or which on to go after first.  His favorite spots in our house are right at my feet or in his "bed", which is his dog crate.

Our other dog, Layla, is as friendly as can be. She is full of energy, but very good with the kids. She obeys very well except for when it comes to going to her "bed" (her dog crate).  She would much rather snuggle up with one of the warm children at night or leave the house with us. She loves people and attention. She is extremely jealous of Sarge getting attention.

Our dogs can often be annoying, especially now, while all is wet and muddy outside; cleaning up after them is a chore. Though  they come with extra chores, they are such a source of comfort for our family. They help the kids to learn chores, patience, and gentleness. They are worth the effort, and an established part of our family... we love them and their unique personalities.

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• Feb. 16, 2009
Facebook

I just joined facebook. I'm still getting used to it. I find it an excellent tool for getting in touch with people you knew "back when", or even people you know now but don't run into often enough. It will also be a great tool for my husband to communicate with everyone how he's doing and what he's up to without having to send out a hundred emails.  I 'm still learning my way around though, and wondering why anyone would be interested in "what I'm doing right now" all the time.  That feature eludes me somehow, but perhaps I'll find it more useful as I learn more about the site and more about my friends, old and new.

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• Feb. 8, 2009
The End of Basketball Season

Basketball season is over!! It was crazy, even though my son sat out for three weeks with a broken wrist. It was crazy, but the last game of the season made all the craziness worthwhile.

My son hadn't played much basketball before the season started, so he wasn't as “good” as some of the players on his community team. He also doesn't go to school with any of the players, leaving him sort of the odd man out. The coach kept my son on the bench through most of the games that he was able to play in, and sometimes the other players made fun of him, but his smile never left his face. His determination to learn the game grew, and he practiced harder, rather than complaining.

While I noticed all that was going on throughout his basketball season, I prayed. I prayed that the LORD would protect his spirit, and not allow him to be crushed. God was so good, and answered my prayers. Not only did He help my son keep a great attitude despite the circumstances, He blessed him during this last game of the season.

The coach of the team wasn't able to make it to the last game, so the dad of one of the other players filled in. My son got to play much of the game, even trying out positions that he hadn't gotten to play before. It was amazing! Playing some of the different positions gave him a new perspective on the game, gave him confidence on the court, and helped him to “get” how to play the game (he even made his first basket). It wasn't only him, but some of the other players who hadn't gotten much of a chance to play in games or try new positions were all encouraged to do so in this game. I also noticed before and during the game, my dear son laughing, joking, and playing around with all the other members of the team. He didn't change who he was to earn their friendship, but gained their respect through his perseverance and won their friendship from there.

Can you tell that I am proud of him?! I am proud of his attitude throughout the entire season, and his strength in not changing or compromising who he is to be accepted.

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• Dec. 30, 2008

It's been a while since I've logged in and written. Life got a little out of hand for the last few months. It feels like life is starting to slow down a little, and I can think again. We are beginning to settle into a routine without my dear husband here, and looking forward to when he will come back.

I had one of those mornings, where it took me an unusually long time to figure out what day it was. With my dear husband here, all I have to do is think, “Did he work yesterday?” The answer to that question automatically narrows down the options. I suppose that if I had been thinking clearly, first thing this morning, I could have just turned on the computer and looked. Alas, I am not one of those few blessed people who can jump out of bed with a smile and all my wits about me. It takes a few... well, a while.

Though I do regret that I am not a truly morning person, like the rest of the family I was raised in, I am learning to be comfortable with who God made me to be. I may not wake up with a smile, but, once it shows up, it's usually there the rest of the day. God made each of us unique and I need to be thankful that He made me my groggy self in the morning. (Maybe that will bring the smile sooner; I'm not sure it will help with the grogginess though.)

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• Oct. 12, 2008
Adoption Seminar

Yesterday was a great day! My Hero and I were not looking forward to having to drop everything and go to the adoption seminar that was required for us to be able to continue with the adoption. We have been especially dreading it since my Hero got his deployment orders.

The trip started out badly. The hotel I had booked for us for Friday night had been switched to one in another town (30 min in the direction from which we had just traveled). The night in the hotel room was not good either. Our neighbor came into his room around 2 am and called someone- we could hear the loud conversation in our room. Then despite the fact that all the rooms were "non-smoking", someone next to us was definitely smoking shortly after the loud phone conversation. Of course after all that we heard every noise around us (toilets flushing, snoring, etc.) for the rest of the night.

When we woke up on Saturday, neither of us was planning for the day to go any better than our night had just gone. We were sorely mistaken. Praise the LORD!   Yesterday was great! It was not at all what we had expected. We are adopting through the African American Infant Adoption program. Part of the seminar was on hair and skin issues for our baby. Another part was gaining perspective from a birthmother who had chosen to give her baby to another family to raise. We also went through legal issues and so much more.

It was fun to get out of the house and focus completely on something other than the looming deployment for a while. It was great to be able to express some of our fears about the adoption and hear from other couples who were feeling the same way. It was wonderful to get a more clear understanding of how this adoption works from the legal perspective. The information we got from the class on hair and skin issues was amazing and so valuable.

I didn't think it was possible to get any more excited about this adoption than I already was. This seminar, that we initially felt dragged into, was great and fueled the fire of our passion and excitement for our newest family member. Now if only we didn't still have to WAIT an unknown amount of time.   I guess I need to practice patience and remember that the baby God has picked out to join our family is most definitely worth the wait!

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• Oct. 7, 2008
Favorite snacks

This weeks Homeschool Memoirs assignment is to list the snack foods our family enjoys. Our snacks are not really all that grand. We are usually busy moving from one activity to the next.

Let me think....
1. Our favorite snack is fruit, whatever is fresh and on sale (Next year I'll try my hand at canning to save some money).
2.  Yogurt
3. Fruit smoothies
4. Applesauce or banana muffins
5. Celery with peanut butter
6. Cucumbers, tomatoes, and string cheese
7. Homemade soft pretzels
8. Popcorn with butter
9. Chocolate chip cookies
10. Homemade trail mix: cereal, pretzels, raisins, and peanuts

That's about it. It isn't a very adventurous list, but it's what works for us.

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• Sep. 23, 2008
A household under orders

My children and I are lounging around the house today. We are picking up and cleaning, from a long weekend at the coast, a little here and there. But mostly we are all tired after our vacation.

It wasn't really the vacation that wore us out, as much as the news that we received on our way out the door on Friday afternoon. My dear husband is being deployed to war.

This is only the second deployment in 4 yrs, so we are very ready for it...on paper. Being emotionally ready to receive those orders is a totally different thing.

At least we have more warning than last time. Last time we had three days, this time we get six weeks.

The question all of our family keeps asking me is, "How do you feel about all this?" That is a very difficult question to answer. I feel a whole lot of different emotions all at once. I am excited for my "warrior" husband to get to do what God made him to do. I am upset and sad about the thought of months and months without him. I am thankful for the blessing of our family and their willingness to help and encourage us. I am also thankful that our kids are out of diapers (unlike last time when they were all in diapers ), until our adopted baby joins our family. I am apprehensive about finishing the adoption process by myself...I am tired from feeling all these things and so much more.

Mostly, I am thankful that no matter how I feel, God is in control of all things, including war and those who stay home and pine.

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• Sep. 18, 2008
A few of my favorite sites

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• Sep. 16, 2008
I have to admit it...

I know, it's not something that homeschool moms say often...or maybe at all. I don't even often hear other women at all who will admit it... I am a huge football fan!  I am a big fan of all kinds of different sports, but there is no other sport so thrilling to watch (or in my case, with no TV, listen to) as football. My husband just laughs and counts himself blessed to have a wife who will read our biweekly sports magazine from cover- to- cover before he gets a chance to.

I guess it should come as no surprise to me that our middle son, Ian, is a football nut and is already counting down the days to when he can start playing football- next year.  While I love watching sports, especially football, I'm not so sure I'm ready for our family to head into the sports world just yet.

I'm not quite sure my Ian is ready to face some of the challenges that community sports will bring to him. So, Dear Husband and I have decided to use his desire to play sports as a chance to encourage character growth. If we don't see improvement in certain character traits- thinking of others first, patience, diligence, standing up to peers- he won't be able to play.

This is difficult for major sports fans like my husband and myself to enforce. We want to encourage that love of sports,... but we also want all of our children to remember that the most important thing in life is to love the Lord with all their being. All of our other interests should come second to our committment to loving God more deeply, and serving Him with our whole hearts.  

So, perhaps an interest in sports is not so bad, even for a mom, like me; as long as our family keeps our interests in perspective, holding them up in the light of eterninty. God comes first in all things. 

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• Sep. 6, 2008
Homeschool Routines

I have worked very hard to make a "schedule" for our homeschool this year. We've never really had one before.   Even though I am still "tweaking" our schedule, I can certainly see the benefits of having one as a tool to guide us through our homeschool time.

Time:	Caelen	Ian	Ellie
9:00	Bible Time Together
9:30	Math/Handwriting/ Literature	Math/ Handwriting/Play with Puzzle	Math/ Handwriting/Phonics
10:00	Snack/Play Outside (or finish morning chores)
10:30	Latin/ Grammar/ History	Phonics/ Hisotory	Play with Puzzle
11:00	Spelling	Play quietly together
11:30	Mon & Fri: Current Events Project
	Tue & Thur: Art Lesson
	Wed: Royal Ambassadors & Keepers at Home
12:00	Lunch Time
12:30	Mon: Art Appreciation
	Tue: Plutarch	Play Time
	Wed: Science
	Thur: Shakespeare	Play Time
	Fri: Music Appreciation
1:00	Rest Time
2:30	Computer time	Rest Time
3:00	Snack/ Mom Read Aloud

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• Sep. 4, 2008
Juggling

Well, after officially starting school last month and then taking two weeks and a half weeks off already,  We were back at it, just doing basics yesterday... Bible, handwriting, math, grammar, and phonics.

I find myself still struggling with the same problem as every year of homeschooling: how to juggle housework and homeschool. It is actually a little better this year, the kids are older and helping a lot more. Their help does mean lowering my standards a little. Don't get me wrong, I insist on a clean bathroom, bedroom, etc. The rooms just don't get as perfectly clean as I would like them to be.

We have been entertaining more. It seems as if we've been having different families over every Friday night for over a month. I love having people over; I also like to present a perfectly clean house. I'm beginning to realize that while we homeschool that perfectly clean house will only exist in my dreams.

I'm working on putting together a home management binder, which is basically putting everything running through my brain down on paper (freeing up precious and much needed creative brain space). I'm working on one section at a time. As I finish it, I'll have to show you what it looks like. Hopefully, it will help with the juggling act.

I am open to any suggestions anyone might have on this juggling act: homeschool- housework (perfectly clean house).

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• Sep. 2, 2008
Homeschool Memoirs... Agenda

This year the main agenda is to become more consistent with our homeschool journey. Hopefully this blog will help me out with that.  You all will help me to stay accountable, right?

I have a three homeschooling children in fourth and first grades, and kindergarten. We will also have a baby joining our household at some point this school year, so that is when consistency will be the toughest.

For my fourth and first grade boys, we are trying out Ambleside Online for history and literature. Many of the books suggested in the course of study are available at our local library or online (free). We do a lot of narration with our reading of these "real" books. The boys have to tell me back what they remember of what I just read to them. They impress me every time with their narrations! For history, my older son is also entering his narrations (either typed by me or hand copied by him) into a "Book of Centuries" along with placing the event or person we are reading about on the appropriate place in the timeline.  The forms we are using for our Book of Centuries we downloaded from http://higherupandfurtherin.blogspot.com/2007/01/how-and-when-to-begin-book-of-centuries.html.

Our Math curriculum for everyone is Math U See. The kids all love it, understand it, and are doing great with this hands on approach. I cannot say enough good things about this curriculum.

Our handwriting curriculum is just copying verses, poems, or sayings/speeches of famous people. My oldest son is also starting to copy his own narrations. My Kindergarten age daughter is learning to form her letters as she is learning to read.

Our phonics and spelling program is Phonics Pathways. I love this book; it is written in a way that is simply laid out, with plenty of practice for learning to read and spell.

My fourth grade son is also working his way through Easy Grammar and Daily Grams. He is in book 3 on both of these as we did not start them until late this spring.

He will also be learning Latin from Memoria Press; we have a Prima Latina book that we are working through before I order the Latina Christiana set.

Oh, don't forget science! We are working through the book, "Exploring Creation through Astronomy"  by Jeannie Fulbright. We will be using narration, copywork, and of course fun hands- on experiments to learn from this wonderful book. 

Our Bible curriculum is a little of everything. We read a Keys for Kids devotion together each morning. We are work our way through memorizing passages of Scripture. I am also trying to establish a time each day where I purposefully train each child in a characer trait that needs a little strengthening.  My husband is reading through a Children's Bible with our daughter each night, and through the Proverbs with the boys each night. The boys are in a Royal Ambassador's group at church (it's like a Boyscout/AWANA group).  I have started going through the "Little Keepers at Home" book with our daughter, while the boys and dad are gone at RA.

Other than that we are trying to fit in violin, guitar, ballet, baseball, basketball, and possibly gymnastics.

That seems like a lot, but it really isn't. It is very ecclectic, but that's just the way my random brain likes it. 

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• Sep. 1, 2008
Yesterday

I like blogging; the reflection that goes on when I write about what has transpired often feels therapeutic.

Yesterday was a busy day which started out with teaching Sunday School. Then many of our extended family members arrived at our church to watch our oldest son, Caelen, get baptized. What a special and blessed day! It brought tears to my eyes to watch my son turn his personal experience of faith into a public expression of that faith and commitment.

The day was not over yet. Yesterday was also my son's birthday. So after going out to a big lunch with our family, we had about an hour to clean the house (you know how the house can get in the get- out- the-door- to -church rush ), and frost cupcakes for the birthday party. Birthday parties around here mostly just consist of extended family and a friend or two with their families. We had 23 people at our house to celebrate Caelen on his birthday!

Still, the day was not over. As everyone left our house we scrambled to clean up a little, and I had some school assignments due that I needed to put the finishing touches on before we could head off to evening church. Our evening service was not the usual service yesterday. Every time there is a fifth Sunday in the month all the churches in the surrounding areas of the same association get together for “Fifth Sunday Sing”. I LOVE fifth Sunday Sing. We get to see people we've known for years, but don't get to see often enough, and it's a tremendous time of praise, prayer, and joy.

After the Fifth Sunday Sing there was an ice cream feast at the hosting church, which the kids loved (and come to think of it I never did make dinner last night, so no wonder they were so ready for an ice cream feast). There was plenty of fellowship after the service last night. My mother-in-law had stayed after the birthday party to travel with us to the Fifth Sunday Sing; we got home at about 9:00 pm and we were all exhausted. We convinced mom to stay the night with us rather than travel the 30 minutes to her home. We then stayed up for a couple of hours just talking together; it was very relaxing after such a busy day.

The day was finally over. As I look back on yesterday and all that transpired, I realize that though Caelen's birthday did not go as I had originally planned (it was much busier), I believe he had a good day and it will be a very special day for him to remember. Praise the Lord for days such as this one, where not much goes as planned, but everything turns out “right”, just as God had it planned all along. 

 

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• Aug. 29, 2008
A Little About My Family...

 My assignment to Homeschool Memoirs for last week is a little late, sorry; better late than never, right?
 
My family includes myself, my dear husband (my hero), and three children, so far: 8 yo son, Caelen; 6 yo son, Ian; and 5 yo daughter, Ellie. We are in the process of adopting a baby, and we are all  getting so excited as we get further along in the process!

We homeschool for many reasons, the three main reasons are: dissatisfied with the public school system, desire to teach our children about God and His creation at every opportunity, and because I love teaching our children! 

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• Aug. 25, 2008
Adoption Update II

We finished our homestudy for the adoption today!    The social worker assigned to our family will hopefully have her report typed and in to the adoption agency by the end of the week. The next step for us is to put together a portfolio of our family to present to birth mothers. After that, we wait to be chosen by a birth mother. That may be the hardest part of the process, but we are praying for patience as we await our newest family member.

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• Aug. 21, 2008
Just slow down

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