We thank God for giving us a perfect, 12 day vacation this year. We got to spend time in the mountains and on the beach.

It's my mother-in-law's 75th birthday this year (everyone say Happy Birthday Dori!!) so we all went in together and rented a rather large cabin in Gatlinburg, TN....complete with gameroom, hot tub, and access to three pools. About 20 of us spent five days driving up and down the steep roads that led about two miles outside of town to our cabin. We had a great view of the Great Smoky Mountains and OberGatlinburg. If you've never been to the 4th of July Parade at 12:01am in Gatlinburg, you have to try it atleast once. They boast of it being "the first Independence Day Parade in the nation".  I've never seen so many patriotic floats in one place. And LONG......it was soooo looonnnnngggggg. LOL But it was fun. And now we can say we've been.

During our stay, I talked Honey and the kids into going on a hike in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. We've been on the paved 2-miler to LaureL Falls. That was a piece of cake. This time I wanted to hit something a bit harder. So, we trekked up the 1,700 feet ascension to Chimney Tops. It was two miles up and two  miles back. And it was HARD!!!! Honey was about ready to kill me half way up.....I thought he was going to have a heart attack. It was very scenic and beautiful and steep and hot and humid. It had just rained the night before, so the bugs were out. I was thankful though...I think the rain cooled it off a little from the high 90's we'd seen the days before. When we got to the top, it was utterly amazing!!! A perfectly panoramic display of God's beauty and creation. The giant rock-top jutted out with straight drops down both sides. You literally had to crawl and climb out on your hands and feet. With the kids, Honey decided that we weren't going out that far, so he stopped the train after about 20 feet up the rock. The team staged a minor revolt, but to no avail. He wouldn't budge. So, we stayed there sitting where we stopped to take in the gorgeous view and discuss the many things that could happen if we fell off the side of the mountain.  You know how it is with two boys and a tomboy-wanna-be.

Would you believe that I forgot my camera???? I was so mad at myself!! Aunt Deb said that it must've just meant to be a great memory. She has a good point. There is a difference when you're sitting there in the middle of this miraculous scenery able to just sit, and breath it in, and think about how amazing our Great God really is, AND when your looking at it all through the lens of a camera. Yes, you get to keep the memories forever, BUT I'm sure God was thinking that Deborah likes to take pictures so much that she will surely miss the whole point of being there....PLUS she's bound to fall off from not paying attention to which rock she rested her foot on. Ha!!!

At any rate, it was a great bonding adventure for our family. It was hard going up, but worth it. It was also a good opportunity to talk about hard times and trials in life and how they compare to climbing a mountain. If we always stuck with the easy way out, we'd never see the blessings and benefits that promise to come with a little blood, sweat and tears. 

We ended up leaving on Sunday morning and continuing on to our own family vacation to Charleston, SC.

Next entry is on our time at the beach! Stay tuned....

Believe me when I say that I'm not trying evade the topic of school....LOL.....we're just on vacation. I know I haven't talked much about it lately. We've just had SO MUCH going on with life in general.  

So, here's my attempt to get current with what's happening in our school room....

• Well, it looks like it's under construction most of the time!! LOL It ends up being the transition room for items being moved from one room to another. With changing rooms around and getting ready to paint, our school room looks more like a storage space right now.
• The kids are mainly keeping up with reading and math through the summer. We took a break from everything for the first couple weeks. Now we're settling into a semi-structured schedule of getting school and chores done BEFORE anyone leaves the house to play outside for the day. =]
• We met with a few hsr's on Tuesday for a playdate at the park. It was fun and relaxing. The kids hung out and played all kinds of games while the moms sat and talked in the shade. We needed it!!
• The fall schedule has not made it to paper yet. I'm having to wait this year to buy some curriculums....and I'm hoping to find them used. In particular, I'm trying to find some feedback on a language arts curr called Analytical Grammar. It was recommended by the SCM website. We're also moving on to Mystery of History Volume III, Apologia General Science for my 8th grader, and Swimming Creatures for the younger two.  I'll post our schedule in mid-July, after vacation.
• A couple girlfriends and I are working on a small co-op for Thursday afternoons, after CBS. She's going to be teaching Institute for Excellence in Writing (I can't wait.). I'm doing Beginning Public Speaking again (Communicators for Christ). We plan on having two groups, 2nd-5th and 6th-8th. If we're still here for the second semester, we'll have a Book Club too.
• We're registered for CBS. We'll be studying the Book of Luke. CBS is a global organization. You should check and see if you have a group in your town.
• I have yet to get anything on my fieldtrip calendar!! It looks like it's going to have to come together in July....God willing.  =]

Okay, that should do it for now. I promised Honey that I'd get up and mow the lawn this mornng and it's already 85 degrees!!  Gotta go!

Have a blessed day!!

Bruce and our nephew, Andy, will be leaving tonight for New Orleans. They are bringing a trailer down to load and bring back up for our friend Bill, the CrossroadsMissions director there. This also gives Bruce a little "recon" opportunity.

Please pray that they have a safe trip traveling through the night, that God will watch over them and protect them. They plan on taking turns sleeping and driving. Pray that God will continue to bring some clarity to Bruce regarding the mission in N.O.. Pray that he can begin to find out a few details about living options and costs. Pray that God keeps his heart and  mind open to listening.

Thanks a bunch! This is the first step for us.

More to come....

Deborah

"you might not finish this chapter".......hmmmm....interesting title for a chapter....what's it suppposed to mean? I asked myself.

It means that at any given time, every single one of us will meet one-on-one with death, be it sudden and unexpected, or drawn-out and anticipated for months or years. Either way you look at it, we're all going to die.

It's a morbid thought that most of us don't really like to think about. The funny thing is, we'd rather spend our days consumed with our living. Even consumed so much that if we're honest, we spend entirely too much time worrying and stressing about what the day is going to bring....should bring....what if it doesn't bring.....what will tomorrow bring??? Instead of shining for Jesus, and bringing God glory in everything we do, we almost scare others away with our complaining, and arguing, and worrying, and stressing, and looking as if our lives are more out-of-control because  we're spinning so fast.

About two years ago, Bruce's granny died at the full-life age of 92. She's one of the few people I've ever really heard say "It's my time and I want to go to be with the Lord....I'm tired of being down here." And although the process of seeing her go through the highs and lows in the hospital were hard for all of us, her passing away and funeral were one of the most peaceful celebrations of life that I've ever had the honor of attending. It's something quite different when you've walked with the Lord for as long as she had. I vividly remember her telling every person she came into contact with how "Every day was a pure blessing and that she's so proud of how her entire family is serving the Lord.....I know I'm blessed." she'd say.

One year ago, a 40 year old mother of two boys...long time member at our church....Christian counselor.....dating a fine Christian man and looking forward to beginning a new life with him.....was sun-bathing in her back yard. She had been experiencing migraines for quite some time and was on medication for it. On that day, she had upped her dose a little because of the intensity of the pain. That, crossed with not drinking enough water and being out for an extended period of time in the sun (she'd fallen asleep), brought her sad and unexpected death. I think they said she had a cardiac arrest. It was a devastating day in the life of our church. And although we knew she was with the Lord, and there was no doubt in our minds, for some, there was no fighting the feelings of resentment. Lord, how could you take her now? She had such a promising future and she touched the lives of so many people in our church and community with her gift of counseling. She was a bright light in our lives.

Only a short seven months ago, one of the boys in my Cub Scout den and his older brother, lost their mom in a fatal car accident. Brett and Jessica were driving down the same road they drove down every other day. They were on their way over to his parents to pick up the boys. It was raining and the roads were a little slippery. They came up to a curve, lost control of the car, and crashed into the entrance of a subdivision. Brett lost his wife. It was so sad, and still is, to know that this man and his two sons would be beginning a whole new chapter of their lives that they didn't choose....with one less loved one in their midst. You could tell that Jessica was loved much and had an impact on the lives of many people in her community and synagogue. She loved to volunteer for different organizations. As a matter of fact, she used to be the den leader for our den before I was. This fall we will be planting a tree over at the school in her memory....something to remind the kids of a faithful servant that once walked the halls of their school.

So why are we talking about all this??  Frederick Buechner wrote, "Intellectually, we all knw that we will die, but we do not really know it in the sense that the knowledge becomes a part of us. We do not really know it in the sense of living as though it were true. On the contrary, we tend to live as though our lives would go on forever."  We tend to go about our day more interested in just getting through it. Francis talks about how we tend to go about our day subconsciously justifying our stress and worry.

"When I am consumed by my problems -- stressed out about my life, my family, and my job -- I actually convey the belief that I think the circumstances are more important than God's command to always rejoice. In other words, that I have a "right" to disobey God because of the magnitude of my responsiblities.....Stress says that the things we are involved in are important enough to merit our impatience, our lack of grace toward others, or our tight grip of control."

I know what this means. I know first hand what it's like to allow a week  to pass by as a blur because I'm so caught up in what needs to get done. I'm ashamed to look back and think about how many times I yelled at the kids, or judged a stranger, or argued with my husband. I'm ashamed when I realize that my so-called divine light, was nothing more than a dull, 10 volt glow. Did I live to bring glory to God in every move I made (as the song goes)? Were my actions and words something I know brought someone closer to knowing Jesus? I don't think so.

Francis says.....and this is good...that 

 "The point of your life is to point to Him."

I started something new this flag football season with my son Connor. I've started asking him before each game, "Who are you playing for?"  The first time I asked him this he answered with all the "right answers"....for you and daddy....for the coach....for my teammates.  But, when I told him what the Bible said in First Corinthians 10:31, "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.", his answer has changed significantly.

The kids and I have spent about 12 hours this week at church filling up water balloons for the Massive Middle School Water Ballon War that is taking place this evening.  Would you believe we filled 5,700 balloons this week???? I can't believe it. My fingers are aching from turning nozzles on and off and tying balloons.

Yesterday was the last day for filling and we celebrated with a mini-water fight of our own....myself, Micah (one of our MS interns) and about 8 kids. I held my own for a while in a prime stragetic location under the steps where the spicket was, until everyone ganged up on me, overtook the hose, and dumped a rather large trash can of water on my head.  LOL  It was pretty fun. Tonight the war takes place from 6:30-8:30pm with our 150 middle schoolers and all their closest friends.

Other news this week  ~

• Adri's transcript that was supposed to be returned apostilled by the Secretary of State was returned without its stamp. Apparently, we wasted about $20 getting the thing "certified " at the County Clerk's extension office and sending it on with self-addressed stamped envelopes. They should've told us to go down to the main office for a "blue and gold" seal of approval before sending it on. Now we have to go through the whole process again.....lovely.
• Talked to Adri over the phone last night....she had her English test yesterday and is starting her summer school today. Poor girl. After working so hard all year long. She does miss us. =] We can ditto that 100 times.
• Our friend Jean from the DR is emailing us again. He has joined the church since our visit there almost two years ago. Praise God!! He is very excited but is really struggling in life right now. It would be so cool if he could come visit us. =]
• Connor and I are taking guitar lessons. This is a piece of cake for him since he's been taking informal lessons from our neighbor on and off. For me, this comes as a GREAT challenge. Don't forget I'm 42 here....forging brand new brain paths for me. I don't think my fingernails have been this short since I was 5 years old.   But, it does seem to help. Sweet Connor tells me last week, "Mom, just think. If we keep learning guitar together, maybe we could start our own band and go on tour like Third Day!!" Ha! Ha!  Oh, bless his heart!!  I'm just thinking it would be fun to be able to sing songs together at family functions and retreats. =]
• Okay, I'm already behind on my Summer To-Do list.....I've had this crappy cold for about 3 weeks and it's driving me crazy!! I feel worn-out all the time. Pray for me please??  The kids are shooting to do three math lessons each week and a couple reading programs. Ofcourse, without me reminding them, they're happy as clams to play outside all day long........which on the other hand I don't mind either. That's what we used to do all summer long, right?? And for that matter, the summer is cut so short these days!!   Just pray for me....thanks! =]
• Hangyul, our next exchange student from South Korea, is scheduled to be arriving on July 31st. Big project this summer: paint the boys room, move Connor to his own room downstairs, move Briar upstairs. I also need to get his transfer app into the school some time next week (since it didn't happen this week.)

Okay, that's all for now. I am working on my "crazylove ~part 2" entry. I can't say it enough.....this book is life-changing.

More to come....

We said "good-bye for now" to our first foreign exchange student, Adriana. Family and friends came together on Saturday for a really fun combination "Adios Amiga" party for Adri,  and "Happy Birthday" to both Adri and Briar, who turned 13 on Monday. We had alot of fun.

Sunday morning we got up at 6am and left for the airport at 7am. She had a connection in Cincy on her way to New York. Stayed there for 7 hours after being delayed 2 hours due to a severe thunderstorm coming through JFK. She said when they finally let them go there was still lightning in the clouds and alot of turbulance. "It was VERY scary." she said.

Since Monday, Clara has retaken her room...cleaned it good....and moved back in. I should take a picture now, since it's the cleanest it'll ever be. LOL

We went to see IronMan for Briar's birthday on Monday night. That was a pretty cool movie, I must say. And I think it's Robert Downey Jr.'s best part ever.....in my opinion ofcourse. The story was pretty good and I liked how it brought in some current happenings in the world. His sense of humor and "special relationship" he had with all his robots was the funniest. Clara and I decided "Butter Fingers" was our favorite. LOL  And yes, I am NOW the mother of a 13 year old.....a REAL teenager....I don't want to just skim by that one.  Please keep us in your prayers. =]  He now has the "I am a man, here me roar." attitude.

Next step in the summer schedule is to prepare for our next student coming from South Korea at the end of July. Connor will have his own room this time, which I find very interesting since he hates to sleep in a room by himself. I asked him the other day if he really wanted to have his own room. He said "Sure I do!!" So I asked, "How do you think you'll do sleeping on your own?".....he paused....looked up at me....and said...."I'm not sleeping on my own. What do you mean???"  The implications never occurred to him. LOL  Well, we'll have to figure it out. Briar is dead-set on sharing a room with Hangyul.

And speaking of Hangyul, the latest news is basically no news. Ballard (our area High School) is refusing to give us a definite answer until the end of the summer. Which means we have to go ahead and apply to transfer out of our area to Easter High School.....a good school, but even bigger then ours.....a get an acceptance from some school.  They couldn't believe Ballard was putting us through this....especially since we have the only f.e. student for next year right now. Go figure.  One way or another, he's coming. We just won't know which school he'll attend until the end of July. Yippee!! 

This morning, I am oozing with a tender feeling of being loved and encouraged. I sat quietly on the couch for an hour or so reading all the notes of encouragement that I brought home in my note bag from our weekend retreat.

Reading these notes was like opening a box of chocolates....and binging on the whole darn thing. LOL Except without the getting sick part. =]

As I looked into the bag, I thoughtfully chose which delicious chunk would be the next to bite into. Knowing that they were all heavenly. And thankfully, I knew there would be no orange creme's or rasberry gels.=]  Each card and piece of paper I pulled out  was a precious note of encouragement and blessing from my girlfriends on our retreat. Some wrote two!!

What did I do with that kleenex box anyway??

I was reminded of our topics of sharing, encouragement and freedom. I was reminded of intimate conversations I'd shared with friends of old and new. I was reminded of dancing and laughing and crying and hugging and hiking.....and even that really special moment that I did that cannonball right in the middle of all my girlfriends beginning there morning water aerobics class. What are good friends for anyway????  What fun we had!! What memories we made!! What friendships we forged!

I am absolutely, unquestionably, and unswervingly convinced that all women need a retreat. We need to take a weekend atleast once a year to simply get away....out of the normal surroundings....away from the daily schedule and routine....far away from the pile of laundry and dishes that call to you every time you pass by.  Whether we retreat alone or with girlfriends (and there is a need for both), women need that time to refresh, refuel and recommit their hearts to their calling. Let's be honest. It's good for our families too!

As a matter of fact, I am convinced that women need a retreat atleast once a month....even every day. And I mean guilt-free too.

Monthly, we should find the time to go out with some girlfriends and get charged up again....a reaallll  Girl's Night Out. Healthy facetime with girlfriends can reach down into our soul and pull out second-wind energy that we all know husbands are simply not designed to offer much.  It's not the same. It's not a good or bad thing.....it's just a different way.

Daily, a woman needs to take the time to literally kick her feet up, and be still, purposefully. Read a book. Read a magazine. Read the Bible. Take a power snooze. Pray. Listen to your favorite music. Eat some dark chocolate. Go away from the computer, the phone, and the kids. And take 20 to 30 minutes to simply rest. Guilt-free. Worry-free. Stress-free.

We call that a little mini-retreat. =]

Back to my box of chocolates.....I am so blessed with the sweet girlfriends that I have. My husband would say they've helped to save my sanity! Hey, they're the cheapest therapy you'll ever find. I was challenged this weekend to make new friends, invest more heart and time into my friendships (they're worth it!), and to be an authentic friend.  Friendships won't get very deep if we can't learn to be real in them, you know?

Thank you Lord, for giving us girlfriends the ability to break past the pretentions, and get to the things that really matter. Thank you for designing us to be emotional and giggly and not afraid to tear up sometimes. Thank you for the way you've created us to energize eachother, and then like a sponge, to ring it back out....all over the ones we love. Thank you for our "other halves"....or Honey's back home....who love us enough to let us go.

To any Girlfriends that are reading this.....have a Chocolate-Covered Day!

"God is love. Crazy, relentless, all-powerful love..."

When I read these first words vertically laid out across the back flap of the new book I brought home, more than my interest was peaked. I felt a tinge of something deep inside my soul that fluttered.....I almost felt like one of Pavlov's dogs salivating from the mouth when food was presented before them.  Ha! It was physiological. I knew I needed to read it. It spoke truth to my heart. And it quickened my spirit. Do you ever find a book like that?

I knew I'd been in a valley for a while. Not quite satified with where I was with God. Feeling like there should be something more. Knowing that there was something more. I haven't talked about it very much. But it's there.

Being in the valley doesn't keep me from talking to God, or going to church, or singing those awesome worship songs on Sunday mornings, or even reading the Bible. But I know better. Really knowing God takes more  than that.

Maybe I'm going out on a limb here, but do you ever feel like you need to "force-feed" yourself? You don't feel like going through the motions, but you do it because you know it's what you should do. You know that even though you don't feel God's presence, He's there. And you want to do whatever you can to keep that connection. I lift up prayer needs of others, listen to friend's struggles with an open heart and mind, continue to serve in various capacities. But, something is still missing. It just doesn't seem like enough. I feel like there has to be something more than this.

It hit me like a ton of bricks when I opened to the first page of the Preface...

"We all know something's wrong. At first I thought it was just me. Then I stood before twenty thousand Christian college students and asked, "How many of you have read the New Testament and wondered if we in the church are missing it? When almost every hand went up, I felt comforted. At least I'm not crazy."

Okay, that means I must not be crazy either, right?

 "It's crazy, if you think about it. The God of the universe -- the Creator of nitrogen and pine needles, galaxies and E-minor --- loves us with a radical, unconditional, self-sacrificing love. And what is our typical response? We go to church, sing songs, and try not to cuss. Whether you've verbalized it yet or not...we all know somethings's wrong. Does something deep inside your heart long to break free from the status quo?  Yes. Are you hungry for an authentic faith that addresses the problems of our world with tangible, even radical, solution? Yes! Yes! God is calling you to a passionate love relationship with Himself. So that's what it is? How have I been missing it? " (emphasis all mine)

It's not as if there's no need around here staring us in the face. We see it everywhere we go. Just on my street alone, I think the other night on my walk about the widowed man living with a his practically non-existent, promiscuous teenage daughter....they pass eachother like ships in the night as he lives out the reality of being alone and she's looking for love in all the wrong places. (Been there. Done that myself.) A young couple with a toddler up on the hill....we can hear them from our house in the evening hours screaming and cussing at one another. The elderly couple on the corner...a retired pastor, blind, and dutifully working in his yard a few times a week....he waves when we go by even though we've never met. The homosexual couple who's lives appear to revolve around the walking schedule of their dogs. The man and woman next door who we only see when they come out to mow the yard...his little girl comes to visit them a couple times a month. The divorced woman on the other side of us  --  she puts an unbelieveable amount of time into her perfectly manicured yard. The woman living with her boyfriend and her four children fathered by four different men....she claims they are all on medication for depression and schizophrenia. The empty house in foreclosure.

I think I covered everyone on just our street.

It's so sad........Is there not enough need in the world? We all have it. We all know someone who experiences it. We see it in extreme all over the world. Jesus said, "The poor you will always have with you," (Matt. 26:11) Who am I to passively think that there's nothing I can do to make a difference?

Francis writes, "God is calling you to a passionate love relationship with Himself. Because the answer to religious complacency isn't working harder at a list of do's and don'ts -- it's falling in love with God. And once you encounter His love, you will never be the same."

So when I really fall in love with God, I can learn to love all these people and situations the same way.  Okay....  I think moving beyond talk is the challenge here. God is seemingly giving me the desire of my heart as I speak. 

I illustrated it to my kids like this: What if we compared a life in Christ to a ball game....any ball game. We could go to the game and sit in the bleachers and just keep being a spectator. It'd be fun to watch for a while. But sooner or later, we would probably realize that the game would be a whole lot  more fun if we we were actually in it playing, ya know? With a life in Christ Jesus, we should come to The Game with more in mind than being a pinch hitter or bench warmer or even part of the group sitting on the bleachers. Maybe we can actually be a player and make a difference to the home team!

In this scenerio, Francis would call those on the sidelines, "lukewarm, halfhearted, or stagnant Christians". He would say that they have an "inaccurate view of God" who we assume is "satified when people manage to fit Him into their lives in some small way."....maybe by just going to church and singing those songs.  God wants us to get in the game. He wants us to be an actual, contributing player.

So what have I learned so far from this Crazy Love book?

I want to learn to take the old truths of the Word and apply them to my heart and life in a fresh new way.

I want to have a crazy love for Jesus.

Listen to this....

This is how we know what love is; Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us love not love with words or tongue
 but with actions and in truth.

1 John 3:16-18

I'm slowly letting out a sigh of relief this week. We're finishing up everything but math (to be continued through the summer). And the extracurriculars are coming to their end.

We had our last two fieldtrips this week  ~ a visit to the nature preserve and a showing of Treasure Island in an outside amphitheater.  We lined up four workshops at the nature preserve that the kids rotated through in four different age groups (PK-8th). They learned about Native American games and medicinal plant, wetland ecology and metamorphasis, and global warming. It turned out to be a perfect day so we had a picnic under the trees and later went for a long hike. The kids were even able to do some creek walking. =]

Stage One had a terrific showing of Treasure Island. It's funny because we've been able to see four different stage presentations this year so now the kids are starting to recognize certain actors that they've seen in different parts. They really did a great job. The story was complete with sword fighting and singing pirates! LOL And ofcourse, ended with a suspenseful battle scene and uncovering buried treasure.

Last night we had our last pack meeting of the year. Connor "crossed over" to Webelos. He was so excited and fun to watch as he stood up on that stage. They wore their new shirts under their old ones until the Cubmaster told them to all take them off. Needless to say, old shirts went flying. And the boys were beaming. =] We also came in first place for collecting pull-tabs this year. That means our den gets a pizza party sometime over the summer. Ya-hoo!!! The pull-tabs are a fundraiser for the Ronald McDonald House.

Tonight is our last official gathering for the Girl Scouts. We like to have our Bridging and Award Picnic at a park closeby. They have the perfect setting for a bridging ceremony.....a new bridge that crosses over a stream. We decorate the bridge and make it look real festive. We also have a big pitch-in dinner and KFC. It's  been a while since I've mentioned that this is a homeschooler's multi-level Girl Scout troop. We have different patrols from Daisy's to Cadettes. I lead my daughters Junior troop. We will be receiving nine new girls that will be bridging from Brownies. My girls decided to make little felt bookmarks as gifts for them. They sewed them together and decorated with stitiching. They turned out really good.

Last week was our last CBS gathering. They call it "Sharing Day". We had a pitch-in brunch and then anyone who wanted to, could come up and share about how God had worked in their life over the last year through the study. It was a very special time.  The gals in my group were so sweet. I was blessed to have a group that was so diverse in age and walk. They were a treasure chest of wisdom and insight. We had three hsing moms in our group including myself. The other two gals are actually going to go on our girl's retreat weekend coming up in a couple weeks.

Okay, it's time to go....Bri Guy and I are having QT together in the mornings now.

A few weeks ago we found out that we would be hosting another student in the fall. He is a 15yo boy from South Korea. His name is Hangyul. We are very excited for him and looking forward to his arrival. He seems to be a perfect match for our family.

He likes to hike and camp (like us) and is very interested in joining Briar's Boy Scout troop. He plays soccer (like the kids and I) and guitar (like Connor). He loves to listen to all kinds of music (like Bruce and Briar). And he SAYS he likes to cook (like me).  He says he's looking forward to making us "real Korean cousine". We've been emailing and IMing back and forth. So last week he sent us all these pictures of typical Korean dishes. It was so cute!! I think I'd try all of it except for the soup with the blood in it. Ugh!!    That's not my cup-o-tea....or cup-o-soup rather. =]  But I recall Adri telling me that blood soup was delicious in Spain too.

We have hit a small glitch however....atleast we're praying it's small.  Yesterday, we found out that the high school in our area, is refusing to take a new student through us. It appears, and I'm not kidding here, that since we homeschool and don't have children going to the high school (even though they aren't even of age to go to high school AND even though we've had a foreign exchange student attending there all year!!), they would rather use the spot for a family that IS using the school.

Now, a few questions occur to me....like....don't we pay taxes? And don't a portion of our taxes go to supporting our public schools? And what would they say if we didn't have any children at all? Let alone homeschooled children? And, what does that have to do with a foreign exchange student anyway?  Isn't there some policy on this??

I could go on and on, but for now, I have to figure out what I'm going to say to the school when I call them tomorrow. Our exchange organization wants me to call first and see if I can make any difference, before they go to the school board.  I'm feeling strongly that there is some sort of an injustice going on here. I just hope I can communicate it well. You know??  This just seems really unfair.

If you have any ideas, please feel free to share...

I've somehow managed to capture a Friday morning to myself. Since we live in "Derby Country", it appears to be sacriligious to send children to school on the day of The Oaks.  And since we have been living by the school calendar for the sake of our Spaniard.......we have a long weekend.

I really don't mind.

I could use it myself.

The kids are still sleeping. Honey went in for a half day of work, surprisingly. And I have a sweet time to myself.

We live in the back corner of a quiet, older, suburbian neighborhood. Beyond our street lies a cornfield. Past the end of our dead-end, begins a long stretch of woods. We often go for a nature walk back through those woods to explore, search for signs of wildlife, collect rocks, and commune with the outdoors.

Behind our home, as I look out my kitchen window, there is a run-off creek. Most of the year it's just a gentle trickle of a stream. But in the spring it becomes it's own ecosystem with the birth of spring frogs, crawdads, and earthworms...a real outdoor school for the kids.  During rainy seasons, it can evolve into a  "raging river", as my children claim. Beyond that there is a "just big enough" patch of woods (one that tempts the explorer into the larger wood) and a small field that the kids love to play in, and where the utility company maintains a small pumping station back in the corner. 

I fondly remember countless days of looking out my kitchen window to see a dozen kids from the neighborhood climbing trees, spending hours building forts, laying in the grass, playing football and kickball and baseball in the field, and patiently crouched down on the bank of the stream, looking for "Big Daddy" frogs to catch.

The windy creekbed enters into the woods here. We have made many memories on long spring afternoons seeing how far we could follow the rockbed before getting tired and heading back. The woods go for a long way. And it's hard to really visualize where we are in the large scheme of things once we're back there. That's all part of the experience.

The funny thing is, there is our neighborhood, and "our woods" (which really isn't "ours" at all...they belong to the farmer) and a couple of small farms around here. But we are all boxed in by two busy streets that run parallel and two other streets that run parallel the other way. All that we love to explore back in those woods really have boundaries all around. But as long as we've stayed to the trail, or the creekbed, the boundaries have been hidden to us.

So that's the "history".

All of this I tell you to give you a mental picture of all that we've enjoyed in the last decade of living in this house and making it our home. Now we come up to about last fall when we found out that the neighborhood council decided to sell the field behind our house to a developer and use it and our small patch a woods to build a half dozen houses that apparently are much needed in our older, quiet neighborhood.

(Honestly, I have a hard time imagining who is going to come looking to buy a new smaller home in the middle of a 40 year old subdivision. But, who am I.)

As you can imagine, it's the kids who have had the hardest time with all of this. Last fall when the surveyors came out to mark off the property. Unbeknownst to us until later, the "gang" decided that they were going to initiate a full-out offense against the "bad men". =] They secretly pulled up the stakes. And one day they decided to dig a gigantic hole about four feet wide and three feet deep in the middle of the trail. They argued that this would keep the enemies from coming across their trail with their bulldozer. LOL

I have to admit that I was kindof proud of all the kids trying to stand up for what they believed in. I truly hoped that their declaration would pull a heart string of someone over there and they would rethink their plan. Unfortunately, spring came and they put up one of those bright red, plastic fences around the perimeter of the site, which by-the-way, encompassed almost all of the kids trail and small patch of woods.

Two weeks ago, on a Monday morning just after school started for us, we heard the sound of big equipment starting up. And we stood on our back porch in silence, as we watched them bulldoze down almost all of the big beautiful trees that we climbed in and played around for years. In the days to come, they quickly and without hesitation, took big machines down into the creekbed and in the exact spot where Clara claimed was the "main frog pool", they jackhammered all the creek rock, hauled it out, laid huge drain pipe down, filled in with gravel and dirt, and rolled out a dirt road so they could take their big machines across and "invade our woods".

I called my husband from the porch and solemnly spoke "There goes the big tree we watched that racoon climb that day.....there goes the hard-pressed trail back into the woods we've ran up and down thousands of time....there goes Ruby our hamster's gravesite....." It was so depressing.

In light of all that's happened and how disappointing it is to all of us, Connor said something the other day that really got me thinking. You know how the Bible says to not complain and to be joyful in all things. Well, he found an upside to all of this. He said, "Look at it this way, now we'll have new families move in and maybe they'll have kids our age!" 

Bless him. In his nine year old way, he saw how to not complain and how to be joyful in all circumstances....and most of all, to trust God even though he didn't understand. A good lesson for me. It's been good for me to watch this process through the eyes of my kids. To see how they've dealt with the loss. And how they've worked through it in their own way and come back to the truth.

Thankfully, we still have the entrance into the woods at the end of our street. So there will still be many adventures ahead for us. And, we've learned that change can be hard, but inevitable. Sometimes we can protest it and try to keep it from happening. But sometimes, we just need to submit, accept and trust that God's plan is perfect, and bigger then anything we can imagine. We can't always understand the "why's". But we can always trust them to be answered in God's perfect timing.

I'm posting the pictures that we took at the Indy Zoo. This was the fieldtrip I talked about taking during the trip to mom and dad's over spring break.

What is GREAT day it was!

Well, once again, time flies when you're having fun....or just being busy!  We are coming out of the final turn, and the finish line is in sight!! That's "derby" talk.....being the Kentucky Girl that I am, and Derby is just a week away. Ofcourse I'm referring to our school year. I have so much to catch up with in blogging!  I just put a pot a potatoes on to boil. So, I guess that gives me about 15 minutes worth of catchin' up to do. LOL

OKAY, Connor started spring Flag Football in the last month. They won their second game this morning. I think Honey is thinking of coaching his team in the fall....that's what happens when you're not satisfied with the way the present coach is doing things, but you don't want to step on anyone's toes. =] We're still deciding on whether he'll continue with Flag, or start tackle.

The kids and I spent a week at my mom and dad's over spring break. In a nutshell, my parents have bought a house up in Michigan across the street from thier present property and cabin. They both have retired and planned on moving up there in the next few years. When this house unexpectantly went on the market, they grabbed the opportunity. I think it's a God Thing. On the down side, they have less then a month to prepare, put their present house on the market, and move. Yikes!!

Long story short, my sister and I met at mom and dad's with the kids to sift through the closets, cupboards, drawers, bookshelves and attic to find Moving Sale items and condense for the move. It was a different experience.....hard work....a little stressful....a little depressing at times....but also neat to go through old memories. We managed to pull it off with a successful 3-day Moving Sale.

For the kids, we kindof felt like "all work and no play" wasn't a great idea for their Spring Break, so one day we went to the zoo, and one day my mother-in-law picked them up for a day at the children's museum.  The rest of the time they had a blast playing with their cousins around the house, and meeting all the kids their age in the neighborhood. In no time, they were pulling together kickball games, football games, and bike rides. =]

For Adri's Spring Break, she had the once-in-a-lifetime-opportunity to go on a highschool mission trip to New Orleans. (It was our hs group from church.) They had over 80 kids and chaperones going to work on building two houses and clearing debris from vacant lots. She had an amazing experience that we are so thankful that she could be apart of. She will remember it forever.

Sissy turned 11 years old on the 13th!!  She is killin' me with how fast she's growing!! LOL Everyone says she'll pass me up in the next year. She already has passed her older brother (he doesn't like that one bit). We had a great day together for the occasion. We went shopping for some new clothes for her, went to see Nim's Island (GREAT family movie BTW), and out to eat. Daddy presented her with two tickets to see the Lippazaner Stallions Show for just the two of them. They went out for their date on the following Friday night. =]

Spanish finished up last Monday night. That's Level II under our belt. I think we're going to wait until the fall to start the third level.

Gosh, I think that's all I can fit in for now. Potatoes are done. =]

More to come....

This year for science we have been using the Simply Charlotte Mason 106 Days of Creation Studies ~ A family study handbook.   It's been a great guide for covering the six days of creation throughout the school year. It's not heavy on detail, but provides an outline to follow, a biblical start, and gives many suggestions for reading, activities, and fieldtrips. We've really liked it. They also recommended using Considering God's Creation alongside for added depth. It has been a great resource for not only more information, but also reproducible worksheets with diagrams, games, drawing pages, etc. I've actually used both with all four kids (2nd, 3rd, 5th and 7th).

Since we started the Human Body this week, I've been searching for some multi-media additions to spice it up a bit and I wanted to share some great websites and links that have been helpful additions...

• BrainPOP - This site is awesome! It has a library of short, animated videos that cover science, social studies, language arts and more. Each clip comes with a quiz and teacher resources. The nice thing is you can test it out for a week for free. Family membership is $99 per year, or $9.95 per month.
• KidsHealth - Tons of great information including a library of short articles for kids starting about middle school age on "Growing Up"....puberty, body changes, emotional changes, frequently asked questions....that kind of thing. They also have a section on "How the Body Works" with animated video clips (limited library), printables, and teacher/parent resources.
• Inside the Cell - This is just an amazing look inside the cell. The kids were so excited about learning about the cell after they saw it. =]
• BBC Human Body and Mind - Great for the older ones. This site has games and quizes to test their knowledge of how the body works.....games and quizes on the skeleton, organs, systems, senses, the mind, and more.

Thank you Lord! We finally have that warm spring day we've all been waiting for with great anticipation. I think it's peaking around 63 degrees today. I just came inside from playing a little game of H-O-R-S-E with Conman and his friend......I lost ofcourse. But, it felt good. Upon my return, my daugher exclaimed, "Mom! I didn't know you knew how to play that game!" LOL  Oh brother, it's been a long winter. LOL

My girlfriends and I have been talking lately about how it always seems like this time of the year is the hardest.....right at the end of the winter. It's like everyone gets cabin fever. We get grumpy, edgy, impatient with eachother. We all need a break. Just something long enough to hold us over to the end of May.

THIS however, has been a great week so far. We have done very well to stay on task and get alot done with our studies. After the last couple of grumpy months, I felt the need to change our schedule a bit to go along with the changing seasons. So, I added a "recess" into our schedule, and I make them spend it outside. =]  It's done us all some good. And helped to energize us for the afternoon work.

Here's our schedule for this week:
7:45am     ~    Kids Awake, make beds, eat breakfast, brush teeth
8:30am     ~    Bible Study - CBS, Bible reading, journal
9:00am     ~    Math
9:45am     ~    Rhetoric (Individual Reading, Vocabulary, Grammar, Writing)
11:00am   ~    History - This week's historical topics are Roger Bacon, the Khans and the Mongol invasion of China, and Marco Polo.
12:00pm   ~    Lunch
12:30pm   ~    Recess
1:00pm     ~    Science - Started the Human Body, Introduction to the Systems and the Cell. BriGuy started the Health LifePac for middle schoolers.
2:00pm     ~    Spanish - still using our Warren Hardy Power Verbs Level I
2:30 on            Homework and Extras

Tommorow with CBS in the morning we will adjust our schedule a little to manage a half-day.

Happy Spring Day to you!
Deborah

Happy Good Friday to my Christian Sisters and Brothers in Christ!

I pray your Holy Week has been a special one for you and your family. Today is the momentus day we celebrate as "Good" Friday, even though it came with a huge price. Today is the day we observe from history, that Christ was crucified. Yesterday at the table Adri asked, "Well, why was it "good" if it's the day that Jesus died?" A very good question. I was humbled to hear my kids go on to share with her the Good News...."He was crucified and died that day on the cross to pay for all of our sins, but he rose from the dead three days later......death couldn't keep him down.....and that's why we celebrate Easter".   I thank the Lord that the story wasn't over then, and it's not over yet.

Many years ago, my sister-in-law gave us a great book that we return to every Easter season. It's written by Max Lucado, and it's entitled Christ in Easter: A Family Celebration of Holy Week. He writes in the introduction "The Easter announcement is clear. Victory is secure. Wails of Bethlehem will turn into the victories of Calvary. Don't forget that. The next time the soldiers of Satan Steal the joy from your arms. The next time your prayers float into a silent sky. The next time you wonder how God could sit still while the innocent suffer. Remember, the story's not over yet. Remember the Easter Jesus rescued the imprisoned and remember.....He is coming to do it again."   Amen!!

Now is a perfect time to remember, embrace, and praise God for how far He's come to save us from sin. Maybe for you, it's a time to recommit your heart to serving Him, and honoring Him with your life each day. Don't let this opportunity pass without using some hands-on activities to "bring it home" for your kids too.

One book that we have cherished for many years is Benjamin's Box. These days my kids love to read it on their own. The message is timeless. Last Saturday we participated in a Walk Through Jerusalem at our church. Our booth was sampling the Seder Meal. We learned how the elements of the Passover Meal represented the Israelites bondage to the Egyptians and the deliverance that God made possible for them. Today, we can celebrate that Jesus is our Bread of Life and our way to be delivered from the bondage of sin. Tomorrow we will make Resurrection Cookies. How fun!

We pray that this Easter Season finds you blessed with special time with your family, friends, and  church.

God Bless You!

Deborah

This was given to me by my friend....thanks Anna!

Why did Jesus fold the linen burial cloth after His resurrection?

Resurrection Cookies